Class Note 1996
It is with great sadness that I convey the untimely passing of one of our own. Jason York passed away unexpectedly on July 19, after suffering a heart attack. He leaves behind his wife, Julia, six adopted children, and his extended family. Jason resided in Madison, Mississippi, where he was an executive at Pearl River Resort in Choctaw (his employer for nearly 22 years). While at Dartmouth Jason was a beloved member of the Tabard and a government major. In condolences expressed on social media, Shervyn von Hoerl said his friends and family “will miss his gentle, generous humanity, and wonderful sense of humor,” and Tracy Canard Goodluck described him as “one of the kindest and gentlest people I knew.” Rest in peace, Jason, and comfort to your loved ones during this time of great loss.
As so often happens in times of sadness, the universe balances and affords us equally happy news as well. The class of ’96 can rejoice in what I could only call an epidemic of weddings this summer! Jorge Motoshige and his new bride, Elisabeth, were wed in Greece in the middle of June (with, from what I hear, lyrical vows!); Michael Roberts and Trevor Peterson were able to attend the festivities.
Kareema Lachica and her groom, Robert Wallos, were married in early July after 10 beautiful days of wedding celebration with family and friends in Playa del Carmen, Mexico (with Larisa Layug able to join the, in her words, “just crazy” couple in their celebrations).
Craig Pawling and his bride, Kendra, officially jumped into the foray of marriage in early August. The couple resides in Wilmington, North Carolina, where Craig is vice president of mobile product for Apiture.
Last (but certainly not least) in our slew of summer-ceremony newlyweds was Eugenia Kim, who married fellow designer Christopher Lee in mid-June. The pair met via a tennis partner matching site in 2012 and the rest, as they say, is history. The ceremony itself featured both an underlying tennis motif and (naturally) designs from Eugenia’s own millinery—whose designs have included a collection at Target and have been worn by the likes of Beyoncé, Madonna, Gwyneth Paltrow, and numerous other celebrities. The wedding itself was covered by no less than Vogue.com (yes, that Vogue), including an online photo album (including a few of those amazing hats!).
Congrats to all our newly married couples and welcome to all their significant others, who now become part of our extended ’96 class family!
In other exciting news, Morgen Sullivan started a new position as VP of growth at Voleo, a financial-tech company that has created the mobile platform for the modern investment club. This comes after more than 12 years as general counsel at CSX Transportation in Jacksonville, Florida. She says, “It’s a new direction in my career—getting back to my econ major roots—and I’m looking forward to it.”
Jami Papa had some exciting changes of her own. Her two-year stint as a foreign service officer in Kabul, Afghanistan, came to a close and, after some much-deserved home leave, she will be relocating to Nairobi, Kenya, in October.
Finally, a quick congratulations to our own Marsha Stephanie Blake, who become a first-time Emmy nominee for her incredible performance in Netflix’s powerful When They See Us—a miniseries based on the wrongful convictions of five young men as part of the 1989 Central Park Jogger case. I hope that as this column is published Marsha will have collected her first Emmy in the early September ceremony!
—Garrett Gil de Rubio, 1062 Middlebrooke Drive, Canton, GA 30115; ggdr@alum.dartmouth.org
