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Speakers Sean
Callahan Download or listen to the Commencement Address in mp3 format.
During his 17 years with CRS, Callahan has had a wide variety of global experiences including representing CRS at the Asian Bishops Synod in 1998; working closely with Mother Teresa of the Missionaries of Charity in Calcutta; responding to flood, drought, earthquake and man-made emergencies; experiencing a terrorist attack by the LTTE (Tamil Tigers) in the Sri Lankan airport; and facilitating programs in Afghanistan during and after the Taliban. A native of Massachusetts, Callahan, 45, holds a bachelor of arts degree in Spanish from Tufts University and an master of arts degree in law and diplomacy from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University. He makes his home in Columbia, Md., with his wife Piyali and their two children, Shana and Ryan.
Caroline Amber Samuelson Download or listen to the Valedictory Address in mp3 format.
While attending Saint Martin’s, Samuelson worked in the Writing Center where she assisted students with papers and projects. She student taught at Warren D. Hunt Elementary School in Puyallup, Wash., and graduates with a degree in elementary education. Her cumulative grade point average at Saint Martin’s is 4.0. Samuelson lives in Tacoma with her husband Aaron.
Janice Lee Nelson Download or listen to the Valedictory Address in mp3 format.
The daughter of Arden and Armyn Deering, now of Olympia, Nelson grew up in Lacey. She enjoys local history, reading, involvement with children, camping and tutoring math. She is actively involved with the women’s and children’s ministries at Crossroads Foursquare Church in Rochester. Following graduation, Nelson plans to continue tutoring and maintaining a connection with the Saint Martin’s community. While at Saint Martin’s, Nelson earned at cumulative grade point average of 4.0. Nelson and her husband Mike live in Olympia. Their children are Jeff, 33, and Karin Chatwood, 32, both of Olympia; and Keith, 29, of Tumwater.
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Vice President for Overseas Operations for Catholic
Relief Services (CRS), Sean Callahan directs a staff of over 3,500
people and relief activities in more than 90 countries. He has overseen
relief efforts following the South Asia tsunami, the El Salvador volcano
eruption, devastating hurricanes in the Caribbean and Central America,
and the recent earthquake in Pakistan. 
Caroline Amber Samuelson also was class
valedictorian when she graduated from W.F. West High School in Chehalis
in 2002. The daughter of Steven and Laurie Rambo, Samuelson was born and
raised in the Twin Cities area of southwest Washington, where she was
active in soccer, volleyball, track and field, “and,” as she says,
“academics, of course.” 
After raising three children, Janice Lee Nelson, 54,
decided to return to school, “not to pursue a career,” she says, “but
for personal growth.” So, she enrolled at South Puget Sound Community
College and later transferred to Saint Martin’s to major in mathematics.
