Class Note 1964
Issue
November-December 2020
Members of the class, particularly those with medical experience, were asked for their thoughts on Covid-19. Several said that the isolation, while challenging, had forced them to tackle tasks long overdue. With time to reflect, more than one undertook writing personal memoirs.
Barry Pressman, who has been practicing medicine at a 900-plus-bed facility in Los Angeles, noted the enormous behind-the-scenes administrative effort of teams formed to deal with the provision of personal protective equipment and ventilators, the cancellations of nonessential procedures, and the reassignment of staff to handle the pandemic. He notes, “It will take a long time for the nation’s hospitals to recover financially.”
Peter Wright has been “deeply engaged in leading a group at Dartmouth Hitchcock examining the immune responses to Covid-19.” He is pleased that his group is “now trying to morph to a vaccine trial.”
Wendell Smith addressed the broader, socioeconomic impact, stating “The Covid-19 pandemic has exposed the pathologic cost of our endemic culture of white supremacy and privilege to communities of color in these United States.” He challenges the benevolent mythology of the founding of Dartmouth College and cites a different history in which Eleazar “financed his plan with wealth from the triangular trade of rum for slaves, slaves for molasses, and molasses for rum.”
Newell Grant brings things home withthe telling of his wife, Judy’s, final days. She spent the Christmas holidays enjoying hikes and tending horses in the “high desert air and clear skies of New Mexico” with their son, Will, and his partner, Claire. Her feet, however, began to hurt, and it turned out to be due to more than tight boots. They discovered her cancer and began her chemotherapy in February. “And the winter gave way to spring’s better weather and promise of sunny days to come. The bright daffodils between snows became a counterpoint to Judy’s declining health. And on June 15 Judy’s charming, lively, engaging spirit glided away—past unknown stars and through distant galaxies to the arms of God. So, somehow, Covid just hasn’t been that big of a deal to our dog Riley or me.”
—Jay Evans, 512 Winterberry Lane, Duxbury, MA 02332; gjevans222@gmail.com
Barry Pressman, who has been practicing medicine at a 900-plus-bed facility in Los Angeles, noted the enormous behind-the-scenes administrative effort of teams formed to deal with the provision of personal protective equipment and ventilators, the cancellations of nonessential procedures, and the reassignment of staff to handle the pandemic. He notes, “It will take a long time for the nation’s hospitals to recover financially.”
Peter Wright has been “deeply engaged in leading a group at Dartmouth Hitchcock examining the immune responses to Covid-19.” He is pleased that his group is “now trying to morph to a vaccine trial.”
Wendell Smith addressed the broader, socioeconomic impact, stating “The Covid-19 pandemic has exposed the pathologic cost of our endemic culture of white supremacy and privilege to communities of color in these United States.” He challenges the benevolent mythology of the founding of Dartmouth College and cites a different history in which Eleazar “financed his plan with wealth from the triangular trade of rum for slaves, slaves for molasses, and molasses for rum.”
Newell Grant brings things home withthe telling of his wife, Judy’s, final days. She spent the Christmas holidays enjoying hikes and tending horses in the “high desert air and clear skies of New Mexico” with their son, Will, and his partner, Claire. Her feet, however, began to hurt, and it turned out to be due to more than tight boots. They discovered her cancer and began her chemotherapy in February. “And the winter gave way to spring’s better weather and promise of sunny days to come. The bright daffodils between snows became a counterpoint to Judy’s declining health. And on June 15 Judy’s charming, lively, engaging spirit glided away—past unknown stars and through distant galaxies to the arms of God. So, somehow, Covid just hasn’t been that big of a deal to our dog Riley or me.”
—Jay Evans, 512 Winterberry Lane, Duxbury, MA 02332; gjevans222@gmail.com