Class of 1978

“See if you can guess what subtle theme is being evoked here,” said Karen Clark, the very funny wife of Brooks Clark, as she threw open the doors of their newly finished dining room in Knoxville, Tennessee: white woodwork and dark green walls, hung with a 1905 print of the Green and a portrait of William Jewett Tucker.

It was just another day in the life of a ’78SO, or significant other. They don’t have their own designation, though they should. Their ways of supporting us in our love for Dartmouth are as varied as the hills. But they are all, in Christine Hughes’ words, “Tangled Up in Green.”

“One of my first gifts from Sterling Wall was a pumpkin for Halloween, painted forest green with a big white ‘D,’ ” Christine writes of her partner. “He got it, the whole Dartmouth thing, and he got me. The Class of 1978 Life Sciences Center gets a gift each year from Sterling. The class bunkhouse bears his name. He’s weathered three (!) reunions, gathering friends along the way. He is indubitably a member of the class.”

Jeff Crowe has “only Dartmouth undying gratitude” for his wife, Amy, who has endured “more than 40 years of being surrounded by ‘D’ family (father-in-law, brothers-in-law, three daughters, sons-in-law, niece, and nephews); has made countless trips to Hanover, starting junior year in college; has attended too many events through the decades; puts up with too many friends telling the same worn-out (but funny) stories; is still hosting dinners for organizations such as the Magnuson Center for Entrepreneurship; actually is willing to wear swag herself; and, last but not least, still smiles when her extended family decides it is time to play pong in the basement—at home.”

Melinda Kassen writes from Boulder, Colorado, that her husband, Bill, “supports my Dartmouth habit by sending me off, cheerfully, to Dartmouth events by myself so I can go green with you unfettered, not needing to introduce him or take time out of my fun to explain Dartmouth anything to him.”

My husband, Bob Marino, married into Dartmouth in 2010 with eyes wide open: He helped take down our 2009 Homecoming tent in the pouring rain. Since then he has made countless trays of hors d’oeuvres for visitors to the class balcony in Paris. (Yes, that’s an invitation.)

Speaking of hospitality, Ellen Bullion and Bartie Leber, the better halves of Jim Bullion and Drew Rockwell, deserve an entire column for opening their Upper Valley homes to us for Homecoming gatherings and reunion kickoffs.

There is a special place for the spouses of our hard-working class presidents, including Jane Graham (widow of Dave Graham) and Rene Martinez (late husband of Barbie Snyder Martinez), who shared with us their precious time with their partners. We will never forget it or them.

On the theme of remembering, please give a thought for the family and friends of Bill Cunningham, who passed away March 21 in Boonton Township, New Jersey.

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—Anne Bagamery, 13 rue de Presles, 75015 Paris, France; abagamery78@gmail.com; Rick Beyer, 1305 S. Michigan Ave., #1104, Chicago, IL 60605; rickbeyer78@gmail.com