There are a lot of reasons to love Dartmouth: beautiful campus, amazing traditions, alumni pride, academic growth and challenges, family legacies, to name a few. Perhaps the greatest reasons are the lasting friendships you forge and the lifelong connections that you enjoy once you set foot on campus as a student. You are immediately part of something that endures and links you to anyone green. How many times have you been asked where you went to school and, after responding, someone says, “My neighbor/cousin/uncle/mom went to Dartmouth? Do you know…?” Though we identify as ’85s, we are connected to all Dartmouth students, past and present, and that’s pretty cool.

Something else that’s pretty cool is the now completed trip by our own Scott “Goose” Schneider, who journeyed to Tanzania and climbed Mount Kilimanjaro in February with brother Kurt ’87. I, for one, am looking forward to a recap of their journey, perhaps minus the tales of sharing a tent at 19,341 feet. Can anyone say “Oh, hi” in Tanzanian?

As a class co-secretary I do a bit of writing—three columns a year, so about 1,500 words. Okay, I can hear the shouts, “You call what you do writing?” Well, that’s exactly my point. If you want some real writing, look no further than these talented ’85 authors.

Kudos to Michelle Duster. Her Shifts anthology book got selected as finalist for the 2015 USA Book News Award. Her book, Shifts: An Anthology of Women’s Growth Through Change, co-edited with Trina Sotira, was selected as a finalist in the women’s issues category! Michelle received this notice: The 2015 USA Best Book Awards brought in more than 2,000 entries, its biggest year since the program started in 2004. By placing in this year’s awards, she beat out 75 percent of her fellow entrants. The book is available on Amazon.

A Big Green cheer also goes to Merle Weiner, who was also busy writing, as she shared news of the publication of her new book, A Parent-Partner Status for American Family Law, available through Cambridge University Press. When not writing, Merle is a Philip H. Knight Professor at the University of Oregon School of Law, which undoubtedly means she wears Nikes to work.

Give a rouse to a classmate making her mark in the finance world. Congrats to Eva Lindholm Ispahani, who was recently selected for inclusion in Financial News’ 100 Most Influential Women in European Finance 2015. You can look at the awards on the Financial News website. There is a tab on the awards and a short commentary under each recipient on her background and rationale for inclusion.

To be honest, my favorite reason for loving Dartmouth (and all that other stuff is really great) is that I met Cindy there. I think she’d say the same, but beer pong might be a very close second. Happy 2016 to all!

—John MacManus, 118 Ringwood Road, Rosemont, PA 19010; slampong@aol.com; Leslie A. Davis Dahl, 83 Pecksland Road, Greenwich, CT 06831; (203) 552-0070; dahlleslie@yahoo.com