Alumni and Friends Stories

Having descended from Finnish immigrants who landed in Gogebic and Houghton Counties in the early 1900s, Jonene Eliasson and Roger Hewlett were no strangers to Michigan Tech, despite both growing up in Detroit. While neither graduated from the University, they are both choosing to make a difference in students’ lives through their gifts. Eliasson and Hewlett were married in 2004, shortly after they each retired and more than 50 years after they both attended Cody High School. They moved to St. Clair, Michigan, where they still reside today, in addition to spending summers in the Keweenaw. Eliasson was born in Bessemer, Michigan, but spent her childhood in Detroit alongside her older brother, Brian. While their parents did not attend college, they instilled a strong love of learning in their children, which led to Jonene and Brian becoming first-generation college students. She attended the University of Michigan (U of M) to earn her bachelor’s degree in French, and Brian went to Michigan Tech to study physics. He graduated with his bachelor’s degree in 1959.