Class Note 1976

I know I say this every time but never have I valued the bonds formed around a beautiful New Hampshire college Green more than during the past several months. From precious laughter with gal pals on Zoom to connecting with classmates for this column, our four-decade friendships shine bright with certainty to dissipate the doubts. Andy Goldberg retired from a full-time career in neuroradiology but continues with his part-time practice of both hospital-based and outpatient teleradiology in Cleveland. He writes, “Like everyone, I am awed by and supremely grateful for my medical, nursing, and technologist colleagues who are serving on the frontlines of the Covid pandemic. With the recent hold on non-emergency procedures, my workload has diminished markedly.” Andy foresees “significant restructuring” in his as well as other medical specialties. Andy follows classmate activities on our Facebook page and Jim Burns’ newsletter. He’s also enjoyed several Dartmouth alumni trips. Jeff Hillebrand, former chief operating officer of NorthShore University HealthSystem in Evanston, Illinois, which includes four hospitals and 10,000 employees, reports that his former colleagues say they have “never worked with such intensity.” Retired and living with wife Nini in La Quinta, California, Jeff serves on the healthcare advisory board of a Chicago private equity firm and as president of PGA West. Nini, a retired ICU and hospice nurse, has organized a group to sew personal protective gowns for the local hospital and looks forward to resuming visits to the Alzheimer’s facility with the Hillebrands’ therapy dog Wally. Tony Gomes, for many years a top executive at one of New England’s supermarket chains, praises supermarket workers for serving on the frontlines. He says that, unlike restaurants and other retailers, supermarkets have seen “a huge spike in business,” but predicts that sadly many small restaurants won’t survive. He and his wife, Karen, live “on top of a mountain” in western Massachusetts. Their son lives nearby and “has assumed the grocery shopping for both families.” I asked our two pro athletes what it would be like to play without spectators. Reggie Williams played for the Cincinnati Bengals in the coldest game in NFL history, the 1982 AFC Championship with a wind chill of 59 below zero. He writes, “We won the game against San Diego to go to our first Super Bowl in franchise history, but the joy for me ended when three fans died from hypothermia. If there is a possibility that a fan could risk death to watch a game, I would gladly play to an empty house. Having never played on TV at Dartmouth, that medium would be all I’d need to play with the passion to succeed.” Jim Beattie spent decades in packed Major League Baseball parks as a player, a general manager, and a scout. He agrees that fan safety is paramount. “It’s hard to imagine playing without spectators. As an athlete, a crowd adds tremendously to the competition. The ballpark is not a ballpark without fans and noise.” Neither are the Class Notes, so write me soon!

—Sara Hoagland Hunter, 72 Mount Vernon St., Unit 4B, Boston, MA 02108; sarahunter76@gmail.com