Alumni Spotlight
Juli
(Panza) Wubbena '94
Major: Bachelor of Science in Elementary Education
Eric Wubbena '95
Major: Bachelor of Business Administration in Marketing
and Management
Evangel College, er I mean University – so many memories and so many lessons learned, both in and out of the classroom. After all those late nights studying, the only thing remembered is Taco Tuesday at the Joust…
Eric and Juli (Panza) Wubbena, reside in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, with their two beautiful little girls, Lauren (7) and Hanna (5).
After being recruited out of college by IBM, Eric spent five years with the world’s largest technology company selling multimillion-dollar-computer systems in Pittsburgh and Cleveland, Ohio. During their time as DINKs (dual income, no kids), Juli taught the 3rd and 5th grades in local private schools. Once kids changed their lives and priorities, Juli started her second career as a full-time mom. Recently, she returned to the classroom for six weeks as Lauren’s first-grade teacher, while Eric began building his own computer consultant business, EWSolutions.net. Now that both kids are in school, Juli is running the household and teaching part-time.
Eric and Juli are active in their church, Allison Park Assembly of God. They worked as youth leaders for five years and now lead small groups. “We are Evangel’s #1 promoters in our area,” said Eric. He has made four trips from Pittsburgh to Springfield to bring kids from their church to attend College Days at Evangel.
Juli and Eric value the friendships they made at Evangel, “When we have reunited with friends from Evangel over the years, we pick up right where we left off.” Juli also was greatly influenced by Drs. Duane and Becky Huechteman. With an Elementary Education major and a Math minor, she had classes with both professors--sometimes on the same day! “It wasn’t necessarily anything profound that was said that affected me, but just watching their lives and character. Mrs. Huechteman’s sweet, caring spirit and Mr. Huechteman’s intelligent, witty humor just seemed to intrigue me.”
As for Eric, having his dad as a professor and advisor provided an added value to life on campus. “Not only did I develop my business skills,” he said, “I found a lifelong mentor and friend.” Evangel taught Eric how to integrate Christianity into the business world. With the opportunity to see the world and what the world offers, he realized that living for Christ is the only way to be fulfilled. As Eric and Juli look back over their lives, they see the choices that were made during their time at Evangel made them who they are today.
“As I think about the major life-changing decisions I made in my four years at Evangel, I just thank God that I was surrounded by friends, professors, and role models who knew the Lord,” Juli states.
Eric and Juli have watched the Lord’s amazing power in their lives as they have grown closer to him and each other over the past ten years. They have experienced physical healing and modern day miracles in their own lives as well as their children’s.
Eric concludes, “God has blessed me with a beautiful wife, healthy children, and a great career.