Class Note 1981
Issue
November-December 2020
We’re nearing the end of the ardous year that was 2020, and even though our 40th reunion was postponed, reminiscing about that distant June of 1981 is a worthwhile indulgence. Thanks to classmates who kindly responded to “Big Question No. 8” on mining memories from senior week and graduation.
Funny the things we remember. During senior week Veronica Wessels’ parents had an Argentine-style celebratory party for friends and their parents at 1 Occom. “My roommates and I scrubbed that place up and down to prepare. Argentine empanadas and cases of Argentine red wine were delivered from afar. A dad at the gathering declined the red wine and asked for Coke, and I will never forget the resulting incredulous and pained expression on my father’s face. I mean, Coca-Cola over red wine? Who are these people?!”
David Townsend has an alarming analog photo “of myself in my graduation cap and gown, standing outside on the tiny window ledge of my fourth-floor Lord Hall dorm room. I somehow got up the nerve to climb out there and stand with my arms spread as somebody took the photo from the ground.” In another incident from an upper story, Bill “Fred” Sherman recalls, “After the rained-out clambake senior week, someone put a leftover bushel of clams in a refrigerator at Phi Delt. Someone else, being helpful, locked it. Unfortunately, the fridge didn’t work and nobody knew the lock’s combination. By the fourth day the rot was so hideous we had to throw the whole fridge away…out the third-floor window!”
Despite the limits and hardships of 2020, it did not diminish outstanding ’81 achievements. Johns Hopkins Medicine surgeon-in-chief Robert Higgins was recently appointed the new senior associate dean for diversity and inclusion for the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine.
And Annette Gordon-Reed, trustee emerita of Dartmouth and the Charles Warren Professor of American History at Harvard Law School, has been named a “University Professor,” Harvard’s highest faculty honor. No surprise there.
Three compellingly titled books by ’81s are recently out: Pyrrho’s Way: The Ancient Greek Version of Buddhism (Sumeru Press) by Doug Bates; The Taxable Investor’s Manifesto: Wealth Management Strategies to Last a Lifetime (Wiley) by Stuart E. Lucas;and The Sex Obsession: Perversity and Possibility in American Politics (NYU Press) by Janet Jakobsen.
The sobering part of this new column-writing gig is that it includes acknowledging classmates who have passed away. I’m sorry to report that David M. Kahler, M.D., died this past August at his home in Virginia.
Almost 40 years out from graduation, we all know that life is short. Might I encourage you to take a stab at one of the big questions that comes into your email inbox? We would truly love to hear from you (d.81.news@gmail.com)! Meanwhile, wishing you and yours excellent memories, good health, and happy holidays.
—Ann Jacobus Kordahl, 2434 Leavenworth St., San Francisco, CA 94133; ajkordahl@gmail.com; Emil Miskovsky, PO Box 2162, North Conway, NH 03860; emilmiskovsky@gmail.com
Funny the things we remember. During senior week Veronica Wessels’ parents had an Argentine-style celebratory party for friends and their parents at 1 Occom. “My roommates and I scrubbed that place up and down to prepare. Argentine empanadas and cases of Argentine red wine were delivered from afar. A dad at the gathering declined the red wine and asked for Coke, and I will never forget the resulting incredulous and pained expression on my father’s face. I mean, Coca-Cola over red wine? Who are these people?!”
David Townsend has an alarming analog photo “of myself in my graduation cap and gown, standing outside on the tiny window ledge of my fourth-floor Lord Hall dorm room. I somehow got up the nerve to climb out there and stand with my arms spread as somebody took the photo from the ground.” In another incident from an upper story, Bill “Fred” Sherman recalls, “After the rained-out clambake senior week, someone put a leftover bushel of clams in a refrigerator at Phi Delt. Someone else, being helpful, locked it. Unfortunately, the fridge didn’t work and nobody knew the lock’s combination. By the fourth day the rot was so hideous we had to throw the whole fridge away…out the third-floor window!”
Despite the limits and hardships of 2020, it did not diminish outstanding ’81 achievements. Johns Hopkins Medicine surgeon-in-chief Robert Higgins was recently appointed the new senior associate dean for diversity and inclusion for the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine.
And Annette Gordon-Reed, trustee emerita of Dartmouth and the Charles Warren Professor of American History at Harvard Law School, has been named a “University Professor,” Harvard’s highest faculty honor. No surprise there.
Three compellingly titled books by ’81s are recently out: Pyrrho’s Way: The Ancient Greek Version of Buddhism (Sumeru Press) by Doug Bates; The Taxable Investor’s Manifesto: Wealth Management Strategies to Last a Lifetime (Wiley) by Stuart E. Lucas;and The Sex Obsession: Perversity and Possibility in American Politics (NYU Press) by Janet Jakobsen.
The sobering part of this new column-writing gig is that it includes acknowledging classmates who have passed away. I’m sorry to report that David M. Kahler, M.D., died this past August at his home in Virginia.
Almost 40 years out from graduation, we all know that life is short. Might I encourage you to take a stab at one of the big questions that comes into your email inbox? We would truly love to hear from you (d.81.news@gmail.com)! Meanwhile, wishing you and yours excellent memories, good health, and happy holidays.
—Ann Jacobus Kordahl, 2434 Leavenworth St., San Francisco, CA 94133; ajkordahl@gmail.com; Emil Miskovsky, PO Box 2162, North Conway, NH 03860; emilmiskovsky@gmail.com