Class Note 1990
Issue
Jan - Feb 2019
On the Saturday night of Homecoming Weekend, about 40 ’90s and several spouses gathered at the Hanover Inn for ’tails and dinner to celebrate our 50th birthdays. Highlights included a brief performance by Noah Drazen ’21 and his fellow Dartmouth Aires—and, because Noah’s daddy Brad Drazen and I made it a condition of the gig, we got to perform with them! (Cue Glory Days.) During the dinner Cheryl Shepherd and Brad (who co-organized the event) delivered an informal speech on what turning 50 means to all of us. At times hilarious and poignant, they brilliantly captured our collective mindset at this juncture in our lives—gratitude for joyful moments and relationships that have endured, sorrow for dreams and loved ones lost, the evolution of our definition of “success,” the myriad, difficult challenges that 50-year-olds such as us are facing right now, and the special meaning that Dartmouth College retains in our lives.
After dinner Jay Davis,director ofFirst Year Student Enrichment Program (FYSEP), gave us an overview of this remarkable program he directs at Dartmouth—and which our class supports through class dues. (FYSEP’s website summarizes it well: “Through one-on-one mentor-mentee meetings, social events, retreats, and workshops, FYSEP students learn the mechanics of a successful Dartmouth experience while forging a strong peer network that will continue even after graduation.”) And then Jay introduced two ’21s, both the first in their families to attend college, who took turns eloquently explaining the positive impact of FYSEP in their lives during their first-year-plus at Dartmouth. The dinner concluded with a rousing rendition of “Happy Birthday” (to Jay Davis and the rest of us). To all of you who attended, thank you for making the trip! And to all of you who couldn’t make it, we missed you, but you were there in spirit!
Now, here is Part III of your responses to “What are your salient memories of your freshman trip?” (Part IV still to come.) Kathy Heafey: “My memory of canoeing is a little different than Elizabeth Allen Edgar’s [in the July/August issue of DAM]. Being a ‘suburban pool child’ raised by city-kid parents, I had never taken a hike and was devoid of any outdoor skills. Since I was a lifeguard, it seemed I could make the cut for a canoeing trip: so 105F it was! As it turned out (and as Martin Short might say), I was not such a strong paddler. We canoed for miles and miles each day (and portaged too!). I am eternally grateful to Mike ‘Spider’ Lee for picking up my slack. Our route was not linked with cabins, so we slept sans tents in the great wide open (and woke up one morning surrounded by cows!). The see-your-breath-kind-of-cold at night had us huddling close in our sleeping bags. Hysterically, my lifeguarding skills ended up being relevant. We had a last-minute addition to our trip—Maz, a new grad student from Pakistan who mistakenly arrived in Hanover weeks before his classes were to begin. His joie de vivre was infectious, but his swimming skills were non-existent. (Thankfully, I did not need to make a rescue!) After graduation Spider and I each landed in Chicago and lived blocks apart in Lincoln Park. In line for a beer at an epic party at an apartment he shared with Les Morant ’89 and Michael Keller, I met my now-husband. In turn, Spider married a childhood friend of mine. And, happily, I see another trip-mate, Sarah Fjelstul, at least once a month, as we have been in the same book club for more than 20 years.”
—Rob Crawford, 22 Black Oak Road, Weston, MA 02493; crawdaddy37@gmail.com
After dinner Jay Davis,director ofFirst Year Student Enrichment Program (FYSEP), gave us an overview of this remarkable program he directs at Dartmouth—and which our class supports through class dues. (FYSEP’s website summarizes it well: “Through one-on-one mentor-mentee meetings, social events, retreats, and workshops, FYSEP students learn the mechanics of a successful Dartmouth experience while forging a strong peer network that will continue even after graduation.”) And then Jay introduced two ’21s, both the first in their families to attend college, who took turns eloquently explaining the positive impact of FYSEP in their lives during their first-year-plus at Dartmouth. The dinner concluded with a rousing rendition of “Happy Birthday” (to Jay Davis and the rest of us). To all of you who attended, thank you for making the trip! And to all of you who couldn’t make it, we missed you, but you were there in spirit!
Now, here is Part III of your responses to “What are your salient memories of your freshman trip?” (Part IV still to come.) Kathy Heafey: “My memory of canoeing is a little different than Elizabeth Allen Edgar’s [in the July/August issue of DAM]. Being a ‘suburban pool child’ raised by city-kid parents, I had never taken a hike and was devoid of any outdoor skills. Since I was a lifeguard, it seemed I could make the cut for a canoeing trip: so 105F it was! As it turned out (and as Martin Short might say), I was not such a strong paddler. We canoed for miles and miles each day (and portaged too!). I am eternally grateful to Mike ‘Spider’ Lee for picking up my slack. Our route was not linked with cabins, so we slept sans tents in the great wide open (and woke up one morning surrounded by cows!). The see-your-breath-kind-of-cold at night had us huddling close in our sleeping bags. Hysterically, my lifeguarding skills ended up being relevant. We had a last-minute addition to our trip—Maz, a new grad student from Pakistan who mistakenly arrived in Hanover weeks before his classes were to begin. His joie de vivre was infectious, but his swimming skills were non-existent. (Thankfully, I did not need to make a rescue!) After graduation Spider and I each landed in Chicago and lived blocks apart in Lincoln Park. In line for a beer at an epic party at an apartment he shared with Les Morant ’89 and Michael Keller, I met my now-husband. In turn, Spider married a childhood friend of mine. And, happily, I see another trip-mate, Sarah Fjelstul, at least once a month, as we have been in the same book club for more than 20 years.”
—Rob Crawford, 22 Black Oak Road, Weston, MA 02493; crawdaddy37@gmail.com