Class Note 1959

Your current scribe’s first Class Notes column appeared in DAM in late 2014. Reviewing these columns, a broad range of activities, of both the class and individual classmates, has been chronicled, with at least one glaring omission. Although these notes have referred to some of the projects currently supported by the class, they have not specifically focused upon Dartmouth Partners in Community Service (DPCS), which, without disparaging other projects, is the class’s signature project.

Our 50th reunion memory book includes an article by Karl Holtzschue that recounts the founding in 1995 and early history of DPCS. It also names many of the large number of classmates, including spouses, who have served in leadership positions, mentored interns, and contributed financially. From its beginning, the project gathered support from the College and numerous other classes, and it has grown to an organization under the Dartmouth Center for Social Impact, which last year sponsored 45 interns selected from a record pool of applicants and mentored by members of 20 Dartmouth classes. The mission of DPCS is to inspire Dartmouth students to join with alumni in addressing and impacting social problems. It fits closely with the College’s emphasis on social impact and experiential learning.

Recognizing that we are aging and will not be able to continue indefinitely our support of DPCS, the class has begun the delicate process of handing over leadership roles to the College and other Dartmouth classes. Nonetheless, we continue to support DPCS, and Karl Holtzschue currently represents our class on its board. Our founding and continued support of DPCS has resulted in a number of awards to the class and individual classmates, some of which are described in the history written by Karl. Recently, the class was selected by the College, for our legacy support of DPCS, to receive in early 2019 the Lester B. Granger ’18 Award for Lifetime Achievement, awarded annually for exemplary commitment to public service. The award was established in 2002 and all previous recipients have been individuals. This will be the first time that an entire group—our class—will be so honored.

—Dick Hoehn, 845 Union St., Marshfield, MA 02050; (781) 834-7194; r06hoehn@gmail.com