As this column is being composed, we are coming down to the last few days of what has been an arduous, cantankerous, and seemingly never-ending election cycle for the United States. Couple that with the ongoing challenges presented by a global pandemic, 2020 cannot come to an end soon enough for so many of us. And yet, as they say, happiness can be found even in the darkest of times.

First, congratulations to our own Christopher Kelly and his husband, Neritan Xhaferi, on the arrival of their daughter, Frances Kelly Xhaferi, born October 17. As of last report, she had just met her “deeply skeptical” older brother Eddie and is “gobbling up milk faster than we can make it!” With just a few days as a new family of four under the belt, they are extremely grateful for their gestational carrier and all their “family, friends, and colleagues who have offered so much love, support, and encouragement along the way.” Chris, by the way, is currently director of news innovation, topics, and features at New Jersey Advance Media, the parent company for the Newark Star-Ledger and NJ.com.

In other wonderful news, Kihara “Key” Kiarie and his wife, Caitlin, welcomed their newest bundle of joy, Mr. Kingston Onyx Kiarie, who made his “debut” on the morning of October 2. The happy couple, who reside in New York along with Kingston’s older brothers, are overjoyed with his arrival. Key is the chief financial officer of media at Geller & Co., a consultancy firm that specializes in providing custom strategic financial advisory and wealth management solutions.

Welcome to both Frances and Kingston, the newest members of our extended ’96 family! May your arrivals bring new light to a world that needs all the light it can get right about now.

Lastly, I hope everyone is looking forward to our big 25th-year reunion (it truly hurts to see that number so boldly in print!) in what will most assuredly be a wonderful new year for all of us! Nakiah (Cherry) Chinchilla has graciously volunteered as our class chair for this reunion cycle and is formulating amazing plans for us, which we hope we are all able to celebrate in person in Hanover next summer! Be on the lookout for information about the great reunion year plans in store in the weeks and months ahead—it will give us all something to which we can collectively look forward after a year that has been quite difficult for so many of us! In the meanwhile, everyone stay safe, stay sane, and stay happy!

—Garrett Gil de Rubio, 1062 Middlebrooke Drive, Canton, GA 30115; ggdr@alum.dartmouth.org