Former Badger Basketballer Rod Ripley Rallies and Rebuilds
- Aug. 02, 2024
Lucky’s 1313 on Regent owner and former Badger basketball player Rod Ripley ’87, MAcc’88’s hotel is open for business again two years after a massive fire burned down his three-story motel located on Lake Wisconsin in Lodi. The former athlete is no stranger to starting over, as he survived a nearly fatal accident 10 years ago that almost completely severed his right arm at the elbow. With ingenuity, resilience, and hard work, he has overcome both. The new hotel, renamed Lucky’s Lodge on Lake Wisconsin, features a nice dose of Wisconsin charm, including 53 headboards that Rod handcrafted from old barn wood and nature photography taken by his son.
More Alumni Notes
Samuel Bowie Gardiner ’63, a retired U.S. Air Force colonel and expert in war gaming and military strategy, died November 25, 2025, in Roanoke, VA, at the age of 84. Gardiner, influenced by the World War II service of his father at Omaha Beach and...
The Peace History Society has given its inaugural Edited Book Prize to The Oxford Handbook of Peace History, edited by Charles Howlett, Deborah Buffton PhD’87, Christian Peterson, and David Hostetter. Deborah received her PhD in history from UW–Ma...
Aziz Hoodbhoy, Class of 1965, passed away on December 19, 2025. He cherished his time at the University of Wisconsin–Madison and his memories of campus life and Lake Mendota. He talked “fondly” of Wisconsin winters and how his snow sho...
Gerald Keith Erickson, Class of 1964, passed away on November 10, 2025. He had a bachelor of science degree in mechanical engineering.
At its annual meeting in October 2025, the Canadian Society for Exercise Physiology (CSEP) presented the 2025 CSEP Honour Award to Peter WR Lemon PhD’79. This award is designed to honor a CSEP member who has made exceptional contributions to the f...
Glen Zipper ’95, Oscar-winning producer of such documentaries as John Candy: I Like Me and IMAX’s The Blue Angels will be adding scripted projects to his filmography with Sony’s upcoming science fiction film Grand Gear, from Godzilla Minus O...
Alanna Goldman ’20 founded a sports media company, 5wins, based on her own experience growing up a Badger sports fan. As her interest in women’s college sports grew, she realized that understanding athletes as people and the passion of the w...
Samuel Bowie Gardiner ’63, a retired U.S. Air Force colonel and expert in war gaming and military strategy, died November 25, 2025, in Roanoke, VA, at the age of 84. Gardiner, influenced by the World War II service of his father at Omaha Beach and...
The Peace History Society has given its inaugural Edited Book Prize to The Oxford Handbook of Peace History, edited by Charles Howlett, Deborah Buffton PhD’87, Christian Peterson, and David Hostetter. Deborah received her PhD in history from UW–Ma...
Aziz Hoodbhoy, Class of 1965, passed away on December 19, 2025. He cherished his time at the University of Wisconsin–Madison and his memories of campus life and Lake Mendota. He talked “fondly” of Wisconsin winters and how his snow sho...
Gerald Keith Erickson, Class of 1964, passed away on November 10, 2025. He had a bachelor of science degree in mechanical engineering.
At its annual meeting in October 2025, the Canadian Society for Exercise Physiology (CSEP) presented the 2025 CSEP Honour Award to Peter WR Lemon PhD’79. This award is designed to honor a CSEP member who has made exceptional contributions to the f...
Glen Zipper ’95, Oscar-winning producer of such documentaries as John Candy: I Like Me and IMAX’s The Blue Angels will be adding scripted projects to his filmography with Sony’s upcoming science fiction film Grand Gear, from Godzilla Minus O...
Alanna Goldman ’20 founded a sports media company, 5wins, based on her own experience growing up a Badger sports fan. As her interest in women’s college sports grew, she realized that understanding athletes as people and the passion of the w...
Samuel Bowie Gardiner ’63, a retired U.S. Air Force colonel and expert in war gaming and military strategy, died November 25, 2025, in Roanoke, VA, at the age of 84. Gardiner, influenced by the World War II service of his father at Omaha Beach and...
The Peace History Society has given its inaugural Edited Book Prize to The Oxford Handbook of Peace History, edited by Charles Howlett, Deborah Buffton PhD’87, Christian Peterson, and David Hostetter. Deborah received her PhD in history from UW–Ma...
Aziz Hoodbhoy, Class of 1965, passed away on December 19, 2025. He cherished his time at the University of Wisconsin–Madison and his memories of campus life and Lake Mendota. He talked “fondly” of Wisconsin winters and how his snow sho...
Gerald Keith Erickson, Class of 1964, passed away on November 10, 2025. He had a bachelor of science degree in mechanical engineering.
At its annual meeting in October 2025, the Canadian Society for Exercise Physiology (CSEP) presented the 2025 CSEP Honour Award to Peter WR Lemon PhD’79. This award is designed to honor a CSEP member who has made exceptional contributions to the f...
Glen Zipper ’95, Oscar-winning producer of such documentaries as John Candy: I Like Me and IMAX’s The Blue Angels will be adding scripted projects to his filmography with Sony’s upcoming science fiction film Grand Gear, from Godzilla Minus O...
Alanna Goldman ’20 founded a sports media company, 5wins, based on her own experience growing up a Badger sports fan. As her interest in women’s college sports grew, she realized that understanding athletes as people and the passion of the w...


