Two EWU Alumni Discover They Are Siblings

When EWU alumnus Bill Beneke began searching for his birth family through Ancestry.com, he expected to find distant relatives. Instead, he discovered a younger sister, Lisa Fairburn, who shares his alma mater and his passion for psychology.

Beneke and Fairburn talked about growing up in separate households, their newfound relationship and their shared connection to Eastern while visiting the university this past summer. The siblings, who are also supporters of Eastern, were eagerly welcomed by faculty, staff and students – and President Shari McMahan.

Raised by adoptive parents in Spokane Valley, Beneke grew up knowing he was adopted. After earning a bachelor’s degree in psychology from EWU in 1968, he completed graduate school and built a career as a professor and university administrator in the Midwest. Decades later, his search for biological family led him to Fairburn.

Despite a nearly 20-year age gap and separate upbringings, their sibling connection was undeniable.

“Not only had we both graduated from Eastern, but we had both graduated from the psychology department,” Fairburn says.

For Beneke, who spent much of his career teaching and researching psychology at Lincoln University, an HBCU located in Jefferson City, Missouri, the parallel was striking.

“We were both astonished,” Beneke says. “One of the ongoing debates in psychology is nature versus nurture regarding where your traits come from. We are as different environmentally as we could possibly be – yet we ended up at Eastern in the same field.”

 

Beneke shared that his search for answers also led to two half-brothers on his biological father’s side, including one who holds a bachelor’s in business from Eastern – rounding out his family of Eagles.

Beneke initially left the Inland Northwest to study engineering at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh. Realizing engineering was not the right fit, he took aptitude tests that pointed him toward psychology. Because Carnegie Mellon lacked a psychology program for male students at the time, he returned home to study at Eastern.

While finishing his degree, he married his childhood neighbor, Patricia Mark. Housing for married students was full, so the couple lived in a trailer complex near the Cheney campus. After taking a few graduate courses at EWU, Beneke next earned his master’s degree and doctorate at University of New Mexico in Albuquerque in 1972.

Later that year, Beneke joined the behavioral psychology faculty at Lincoln, where he published research and mentored undergraduates looking to pursue careers in mental health.

One of his first research projects focused on teaching study skills to improve student self-control.

“I offered a free summer course to undergraduate students who wanted to improve their study skills, and then we tracked those students for their next year of college,” Beneke says. He then compared their performance against overall students’ grades and found that participants gained about half a letter grade in their semester GPAs.

Beneke later served as an associate dean at Central Methodist University, a private university in Fayette, Missouri.

Fairburn’s path, meanwhile, was one shaped by tragedy. When her father died in an automobile accident when she was just 18 months old, her mother became a solo parent, working a demanding job as a restaurant owner.

Thankfully, Fairburn’s older siblings and extended family members were there to help. With 10 children on her mother’s side and 13 on her father’s, Fairburn had plenty of support.

“I had a whole village that raised me,” Fairburn says.

Fairburn eventually became a first-generation college student at Eastern, funding her education through scholarships, working as a residence hall advisor to cover room and board, taking on a separate job at Tawanka Hall to help cover books and, later, switching to a part-time job at Costco. A hardworking student, Fairburn graduated with an applied psychology bachelor’s degree with a double minor in psychology and alcohol and drug studies in 1989.

“I was very honored to complete college without any debt,” Fairburn says.

Fairburn did her practicum at Daybreak Youth Services, helping teenagers overcome addictions. She went on to work as a drug and alcohol counselor at Sacajawea Middle School and Lewis and Clark High School, in Spokane, after graduating. She later joined her husband, Michael “Mike” Fairburn, in starting and managing the rapidly growing business they cofounded, Living Water Lawn & Tree Care. The company now includes a pest control division and employs more than 50 people.

Fairburn, who is now mostly retired from Living Water, recently earned a life coaching degree. She focuses on helping people navigate life transitions, such as becoming empty nesters, or changing careers. “I love to help individuals mine out of themselves what is already there,” Fairburn says.

In July, the siblings reunited on EWU’s campus for a tour, a luncheon, and a visit with members of the campus community. Fairburn attended despite mobility challenges while recovering from a motorcycle accident the couple suffered while on vacation. The meeting highlighted another shared value: supporting their community and university.

Fairburn and her husband contribute to local charitable initiatives, assisting single moms, aiding aspiring college students and EWU through the Living Water Foundation. Their company also offers on sight child-care opportunities for their employees.

Beneke, a long-time donor to Eastern, established an EWU scholarship fund two years ago to help with research costs for undergraduate psychology students. He named the endowment in honor of the late William Greene, a professor emeritus of psychology who served on Eastern’s faculty for 34 years before his death in 2023.

“I wanted to support undergraduate research because I did that throughout my career at Lincoln University,” Beneke says. “I saw how much of a difference it made in helping students get into graduate school and secure better jobs.”

Beneke, who has lived most of his life in Missouri, has faced the loss of his wife, a son, and other close family members. Now retired, he enjoys spending time with his surviving children and grandchildren and regularly visits Portland, Oregon, to see other family members.

In Spokane, Lisa enjoys time with her three daughters, son in laws and two granddaughters. Fairburn has navigated both past and recent grief, losing her mother, several aunts and uncles, and an older brother who helped raise her. For Fairburn, getting to know Beneke, her newly discovered brother, reminds her of some of the best qualities of cherished family members.

 

“It has been a beautiful thing to reconnect,” Fairburn says. “To me, Bill is my mom, my favorite uncle, and my brother all wrapped into one.”