Daniel Wotherspoon:
CLASS OF 1977
Hilltop High SchoolClass of 1977
Chula vista, CA
Daniel's Story
Hi, Everyone!
Fun to get to see and learn about what you are up to these days. My life is enjoyable, having recently celebrated my 37th wedding anniversary. We currently live in Provo, Utah (just moved there last fall).. My wife, Lorri, and I have two children, a son who is 35 and lives in a small town outside of Vail, Colorado, and a daughter, 29 who lives here in Utah. We have two granddaughters, ages 3 and 5 months.
As some of you might have guessed, following high school I went on to more schooling. Too many more years, if you ask Lorri! Graduated BYU in philosophy, then did a masters in religious studies at Arizona State, and finally a doctorate from Claremont Graduate University in religion (philosophy of religion and theology emphasis). During those years, I managed a couple of small Mexican restaurants, threw an Arizona Republic paper route, worked as a staff member at the main library of the Claremont Colleges, at a Salt Lake homeless shelter, and then at a bookstore specializing in used and rare books related to Mormonism and the western U.S.. After finishing my M.A. and Ph.D, I taught as an adjunct for colleges and universities in Arizona, California, and Utah, and then was offered the job of heading up the largest independent Mormon foundation, Sunstone, which I led for 7.5 years and also served as the editor of its magazine. This last bit may crack some of you up as it did then, as I was the one who wrote a poem for Young Wings about Mrs. Browning and how all the stuff she taught is irrelevant. Uh, it was not. <sheepish grin>.
After that I worked for other non-profit foundations, edited and ghos...Expand for more
twrote books and articles, and kept active in Mormon circles, speaking at conferences and other events, and working with folks who are starting or managing faith journeys that they'd never imagined. Beginning in 2011, I started podcasting, hosting the Mormon Matters podcast until 2019, and then starting a new foundation and podcast, Latter-day Faith. I still edit things for others, but I'm also nearly finished with my own book.
I've struggled with my weight, especially during my schooling and when I held high-stress jobs. Now, I'm just six pounds higher that I was in the profile picture, and I'm aiming for another twenty. My main vices are golf, and shooting out to Wendover, NV, once a month to play blackjack.
Lorri and I travel most years., My most memorable travel was in January 2018 when a friend of mine invited me to go with him on one of his bucket-list items. It turned out to be to Antarctica (9-day cruise, with 6 stops on the peninsula where we could get off and explore the world of penguins and seals and interesting birds), and the cruise also featured incredible encounters with orcas and humpback whales, and fleeting glimpses of minke whales (one time fleeing from the orcas, and when we saw them they seemed to have escaped). At the end of the Antarctica portion of the trip, we visited Iguazu Falls (Argentine side), which was an amazing contrast to Antarctica--ice and snow to rain forest/jungle. I highly recommend both places to anyone who is planning trips to South America!
Not sure what else to share (already too much, I'm sure!). Ask me anything that you might be interested in knowing.
Cheers!
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