Hello, ’76 classmates. A quick note about the passing of history professor and former College President Jim Wright, someone many ’76ers regarded fondly and with much respect. His history courses opened many eyes to the facts about how Native people are treated in this country. Please google David Shribman’sremembrance column. The September-October Dartmouth Alumni Magazine made us proud, featuring three (only three and no women?!) among the top 100 athletes in Dartmouth history: Reggie Williams (No. 1), Jim Beattie (with action photo), and four-time Olympic skier Tim Caldwell. Kudos as well to Martha Johnson Beattie,named one of the 2022 Wearers of the Green. Best of all, our Class of 1976 Award to each year’s best female athlete was cited multiple times in the bios of Dartmouth’s top female athletes of all time. Coke McClure, serving as guest minister at the Wood River Valley, Idaho, Emmanuel Church, posted a beautiful photo of Ernest Hemingway’s favorite fishing spot nearby accompanied by a moving Hemingway quote from a eulogy: “Best of all he loved the fall, the leaves yellow in the cottonwoods. Leaves floating on the trout streams and above the hills. The high blue windless skies, now he will be part of them forever.” We are so fortunate to have some among us maintain the lasting traditions that make Dartmouth so special. M.K. Beach and Judy Burrows Csatari passed on the details of forging a relationship with the class of 2026. From matriculation to Commencement, there is a special connection between the Dartmouth classes that enroll and graduate 50 years apart. On September 11, 2022, members of the ’76-’26 Connection Committee greeted every member of Dartmouth’s incoming class of 2026. In addition to Judy and M.K., the committee includes Jeff Reed, John Sherman, Martha Hennessey, Randy White,and Susan Stine Felter.New members joining to support future activities include Cynthia “Inky” Ford, Spencer Kubo,and Viola Allen. Each ’26 received a flower and a letter from our class. At the time of our matriculation the ’76 women received a letter of welcome and encouragement and a flower from the class of 1926. Our letter to the first years was an invitation to connect with the class of ’76 during the next four years. Committee members imparted some history to the class of 2026, including anecdotes about changes that occurred during our time in Hanover—coeducation and year-round operation, of course, a recommitment to Native Americans at Dartmouth, awareness of 50 years of the Black Alumni of Dartmouth Association, encouragement for the College experience they would create for themselves, and wisdom about being agents of change. We surely have many classmates among the 4 million Americans who play pickleball, invented in 1965 on Bainbridge Island, Washington. That might be why Seattle’s Eric Copenhaver adopted the sport early. He’s now a coach with great personal success in the game, even as he evangelizes for it around the country—when he’s not fly-fishing, skiing, or baking pizza in his hand-built oven in his backyard. Please send news of yourself or classmates to steve@stevebellcommunications.com.

—Steve Bell, 15 Harbour Pointe, Buffalo, NY 14202; steve@stevebellcommunications.com