Class Note 1966
Issue
Nov - Dec 2016
As we write this in late August the glow of our class of 1966 50th reunion in June is still warm and bright and three events, not mentioned in our previous column, all with long-term impact on the College, merit special note.
The first reunion impact event was the trustee lunch at which the class officially presented our $9,268,000 reunion gift, derived from 58-percent class participation, to the College. Representing the class were Joe Hafner, a strong supporter of Dartmouth College Fund; George Trumbull, Tim Urban and Rick Reiss, all of whom have funded generous endowed scholarships; and George Battle, whose $5 million gift is supporting the construction of a new lodge at Moosilauke. Also recognized was classmate George Berry, who made significant reunion gifts before his untimely passing in 2014.
The second impact event, the dedication of the Class of 1966 Bunkhouse at Moosilauke, took place, fittingly, on a cold and blustery afternoon. One hundred sixty-two classmates and widows of classmates donated $519,000 to fund this beautiful timber-framed, four-bedroom, four-season bunkhouse, built with the aid of 4,000 hours of volunteer labor. Bunkhouse advisory committee members Doug Hill, Jim Lustenader and Al Keiller cut the ribbon and, later during reunion, Tom Lipps and Ken Taylor, representing all donors, presented President Hanlon with the ceremonial “key” to the bunkhouse.
The third impact event may be benefiting the Dartmouth football team right now. With captain Tom Clarke, Ed Long, Roger Pezzuti and other members of our record-setting football team looking on, gridiron coach Buddy Teevens and some student tech wizzes demonstrated the latest version of the Dartmouth-invented automated tackling dummy. It’s a patented, full-sized big brother of R2D2 that is the only powered tackling device that simulates a real football player in size, weight and agility. So there’s no man-on-man tackling in practice, which cuts down on injuries while it upgrades skill and technique. Impact, without impact.
Positive reviews for the reunion continue to pour in. Diane and Dr. Harry Greenberg traveled from Stanford, California, where he is senior associate dean for research. “It was great to connect with that many people who I hung with 50 years ago and have basically not seen since,” said Harry. “And even better: Everybody seemed quite together, interesting and,” in an appropriate observation for a medical man, “more or less in good health.”
Jeff Futter, who specializes in natural gas legal matters for Con Edison in New York City and is busy following the sports careers of his three high school daughters, said the reunion was “great—I talked to guys that I really had not spent much time talking to ever before and thoroughly enjoyed it!”
Dr. John Erkklia, a retired orthopedic surgeon from Corvallis, Oregon, now passionate about finding ways to help the homeless, and Ellie “had a wonderful time at the reunion. Even the weather did not dampen or cool our experience. I spent more time with some of my classmates during this reunion than I did in four years at Dartmouth. Our participation in graduation was heartwarming. Seeing those grads always gives me hope for the future.”
Sadly, Jim Hazard, a lawyer from Walnut Creek, California, stricken with Parkinson’s, had hoped to attend our reunion, but the disease kept him at home and took Jim from us on August 19. Our deepest sympathies to Gigi, his wife of 49 years, and his extended family and friends.
—Larry Geiger, 93 Greenridge Ave., White Plains, NY 10605; (914) 860-4945; lgeiger@aol.com
The first reunion impact event was the trustee lunch at which the class officially presented our $9,268,000 reunion gift, derived from 58-percent class participation, to the College. Representing the class were Joe Hafner, a strong supporter of Dartmouth College Fund; George Trumbull, Tim Urban and Rick Reiss, all of whom have funded generous endowed scholarships; and George Battle, whose $5 million gift is supporting the construction of a new lodge at Moosilauke. Also recognized was classmate George Berry, who made significant reunion gifts before his untimely passing in 2014.
The second impact event, the dedication of the Class of 1966 Bunkhouse at Moosilauke, took place, fittingly, on a cold and blustery afternoon. One hundred sixty-two classmates and widows of classmates donated $519,000 to fund this beautiful timber-framed, four-bedroom, four-season bunkhouse, built with the aid of 4,000 hours of volunteer labor. Bunkhouse advisory committee members Doug Hill, Jim Lustenader and Al Keiller cut the ribbon and, later during reunion, Tom Lipps and Ken Taylor, representing all donors, presented President Hanlon with the ceremonial “key” to the bunkhouse.
The third impact event may be benefiting the Dartmouth football team right now. With captain Tom Clarke, Ed Long, Roger Pezzuti and other members of our record-setting football team looking on, gridiron coach Buddy Teevens and some student tech wizzes demonstrated the latest version of the Dartmouth-invented automated tackling dummy. It’s a patented, full-sized big brother of R2D2 that is the only powered tackling device that simulates a real football player in size, weight and agility. So there’s no man-on-man tackling in practice, which cuts down on injuries while it upgrades skill and technique. Impact, without impact.
Positive reviews for the reunion continue to pour in. Diane and Dr. Harry Greenberg traveled from Stanford, California, where he is senior associate dean for research. “It was great to connect with that many people who I hung with 50 years ago and have basically not seen since,” said Harry. “And even better: Everybody seemed quite together, interesting and,” in an appropriate observation for a medical man, “more or less in good health.”
Jeff Futter, who specializes in natural gas legal matters for Con Edison in New York City and is busy following the sports careers of his three high school daughters, said the reunion was “great—I talked to guys that I really had not spent much time talking to ever before and thoroughly enjoyed it!”
Dr. John Erkklia, a retired orthopedic surgeon from Corvallis, Oregon, now passionate about finding ways to help the homeless, and Ellie “had a wonderful time at the reunion. Even the weather did not dampen or cool our experience. I spent more time with some of my classmates during this reunion than I did in four years at Dartmouth. Our participation in graduation was heartwarming. Seeing those grads always gives me hope for the future.”
Sadly, Jim Hazard, a lawyer from Walnut Creek, California, stricken with Parkinson’s, had hoped to attend our reunion, but the disease kept him at home and took Jim from us on August 19. Our deepest sympathies to Gigi, his wife of 49 years, and his extended family and friends.
—Larry Geiger, 93 Greenridge Ave., White Plains, NY 10605; (914) 860-4945; lgeiger@aol.com