Class Note 1979
Issue
Jan - Feb 2019
It’s about time to close the book on another year and welcome in 2019, which marks the 250th anniversary of the founding of Dartmouth. Yearlong celebratory events—including this special issue of DAM—have been in the planning since 2015 and can be found at 250.dartmouth.edu. Juan and I thought we would help bring the 250th to our class by asking some ’79s to briefly respond to this anniversary-themed question: “If you could talk to our founding father, Eleazar Wheelock, about which aspect of Dartmouth’s ethos is most meaningful or inspirational to you, what would you tell him?” Here are four sample responses.
Laurie Laidlaw: “Eleazar, thank you for Dartmouth and the versatile motto you adopted for generations of students to find meaning in according to their unique personal circumstances. Vox. Voice. My voice. Our voices. In making my way in this world and hoping to be a part of making it better, developing, growing, and using my voice has been an important aspect of the journey. Joining our voices, being together and understanding each individual’s voice, has been part of reaching the next level of a meaningful life.”
Laura Powers-Swiggett: “Community matters. If there is any Dartmouth value that has stuck with me, it’s that. My understanding of the voice in the wilderness is that it is not about a lone voice crying out in despair, but is instead about the one in the desert hearing a voice and receiving a call to action. We can stay in the desert or we can get in the game, engage with our community, and serve each other. Thanks, Eleazar (and Isaiah)!”
Peggy Epstein Tanner: “Hey, Eleazar, what did you put in the Kool-Aid that caused the still north to be in our hearts and the hill winds in our veins? Who knew a four-year residential college experience could provide a lifetime of friendships, a love of the outdoors, a love of learning, and enduring connections. Thank you, Dartmouth, and thank you to my awesome class of ’79 family!”
Mark Winkler: “Eleazar, even though you graduated from Yale, you redeemed yourself late in life by founding Dartmouth. You were 60 at the first commencement in 1771. Exactly 200 years after you died, our class graduated to continue championing your cross-cultural legacy of enlightenment. You’re best known for what you did after 60; our promise is, ‘So will we!’ Stay tuned.”
What would you tell Eleazar? Please email your responses to us so we can sprinkle them throughout our remaining 2019 Class Notes columns.
It is with great sadness that we must close by noting the passing of Joe Asch, our devoted classmate and one of Dartmouth’s most passionate, albeit controversial, alums. Our thoughts and prayers go out to Joe’s family. His life is memorialized at the “In Memory” page on our class website (www.1979.dartmouth.org).
Don’t forget to highlight June 17-21, 2020, in your calendars, when we’ll come together for our 40th reunion to celebrate friends here and gone. Happy New Year!
—Stanley Weil, 15 Peck Road, Mt. Kisco, NY 10549; (917) 428-0852; stanno79@gmail.com; John Currier, 82 Carpenter St., Norwich, VT 05055; (802) 649-2577; john.h.currier@dartmouth.edu
Laurie Laidlaw: “Eleazar, thank you for Dartmouth and the versatile motto you adopted for generations of students to find meaning in according to their unique personal circumstances. Vox. Voice. My voice. Our voices. In making my way in this world and hoping to be a part of making it better, developing, growing, and using my voice has been an important aspect of the journey. Joining our voices, being together and understanding each individual’s voice, has been part of reaching the next level of a meaningful life.”
Laura Powers-Swiggett: “Community matters. If there is any Dartmouth value that has stuck with me, it’s that. My understanding of the voice in the wilderness is that it is not about a lone voice crying out in despair, but is instead about the one in the desert hearing a voice and receiving a call to action. We can stay in the desert or we can get in the game, engage with our community, and serve each other. Thanks, Eleazar (and Isaiah)!”
Peggy Epstein Tanner: “Hey, Eleazar, what did you put in the Kool-Aid that caused the still north to be in our hearts and the hill winds in our veins? Who knew a four-year residential college experience could provide a lifetime of friendships, a love of the outdoors, a love of learning, and enduring connections. Thank you, Dartmouth, and thank you to my awesome class of ’79 family!”
Mark Winkler: “Eleazar, even though you graduated from Yale, you redeemed yourself late in life by founding Dartmouth. You were 60 at the first commencement in 1771. Exactly 200 years after you died, our class graduated to continue championing your cross-cultural legacy of enlightenment. You’re best known for what you did after 60; our promise is, ‘So will we!’ Stay tuned.”
What would you tell Eleazar? Please email your responses to us so we can sprinkle them throughout our remaining 2019 Class Notes columns.
It is with great sadness that we must close by noting the passing of Joe Asch, our devoted classmate and one of Dartmouth’s most passionate, albeit controversial, alums. Our thoughts and prayers go out to Joe’s family. His life is memorialized at the “In Memory” page on our class website (www.1979.dartmouth.org).
Don’t forget to highlight June 17-21, 2020, in your calendars, when we’ll come together for our 40th reunion to celebrate friends here and gone. Happy New Year!
—Stanley Weil, 15 Peck Road, Mt. Kisco, NY 10549; (917) 428-0852; stanno79@gmail.com; John Currier, 82 Carpenter St., Norwich, VT 05055; (802) 649-2577; john.h.currier@dartmouth.edu