Class Note 1969
Issue
September-October 2020
At our 50th reunion the class of 1969 gave a rouse for the graduating class of 2019. Unlike our 1969 Commencement, washed out by a summer storm, the 2019 event was joyous, sun-drenched, and near-perfect. At our 50th few in our gray-haired gang could recall details of our connection to the class of 1919, although many of those alumni were with us for our turbulent 1969 Commencement. Christopher J. Stillbach reminds us that 50 years ago, Robert Stecher, class of 1919 (a legendary physician, philanthropist, and educator), predicted that by 2019 Dartmouth would change: “It will contain a substantial proportion of women,” Dr. Stecher said to the men assembled on the lawn, “and that is threatening.” Nonetheless, we are confident that he was secretly pleased that the class of 1969 had already welcomed women to our ranks. The film Early Daughters of Dartmouth: Blazing the Trail to Coeducation is now available online at preunions.dartmouth.edu.
Shedding our rain-soaked gowns and looking for our rolled-up diplomas spread out in the gym, we didn’t realize how much we would ultimately have in common with the class of 1919. By graduation they had survived three waves of H1N1 avian flu and a pandemic that killed 675,000 Americans, including fellow students. World War I, which claimed the lives of 112 Dartmouth men, ended during their senior year.
Dartmouth Memorial Field, completed in 1923, is dedicated to the memory of those who have served their country in war and peace, and the elegant 2015 sculpture “The Hill Wind Knows Their Name,” by Dimitri Gerakaris symbolizes the unbreakable bonds of memory that unite us. Among the names we can find members of the class of 1919.
The class of 1919 held father-son dinners at the Dartmouth Outing Club, which our class is renovating. John Myers and Tom Hunt have worked tirelessly to raise money for the Dartmouth College Fund (DCF), and our class has responded. When giving to the DCF, classmates may allocate a portion to our 50th reunion class gift, the DOC renovation. Go to dartgo.org/1969doc to contribute to the DCF, the DOC House renovation, or both. Contributions can also be mailed to the Gift Recording Office, 6066 Development Office, Hanover, NH 03755.
We also salute the class of 1970, whose 50th reunion plans were disrupted by the pandemic, and the class of 2020, the first to create a virtual celebration. Norm Jacobs reports from the Alumni Council, where President Hanlon praised the class of 2020: “They will depart the Dartmouth campus missing their senior spring and the opportunity to celebrate together at Commencement,” he said, “and my ask of you is to rally the alumni community to let the class of ’20 know that Dartmouth cares and that the Dartmouth fellowship is there for them, now and forever.” The class of 1969 rises to shout our support!
Also, we note with sadness that William E. “Bill” Ferguson passed away on June 116. I’ve sent a note to our email list and our next column will include remembrances.
—John “Tex” Talmadge, 3519 Brookline Lane, Farmers Branch, TX 75234; (214) 673-9250; johntalmadgemd@gmail.com
Shedding our rain-soaked gowns and looking for our rolled-up diplomas spread out in the gym, we didn’t realize how much we would ultimately have in common with the class of 1919. By graduation they had survived three waves of H1N1 avian flu and a pandemic that killed 675,000 Americans, including fellow students. World War I, which claimed the lives of 112 Dartmouth men, ended during their senior year.
Dartmouth Memorial Field, completed in 1923, is dedicated to the memory of those who have served their country in war and peace, and the elegant 2015 sculpture “The Hill Wind Knows Their Name,” by Dimitri Gerakaris symbolizes the unbreakable bonds of memory that unite us. Among the names we can find members of the class of 1919.
The class of 1919 held father-son dinners at the Dartmouth Outing Club, which our class is renovating. John Myers and Tom Hunt have worked tirelessly to raise money for the Dartmouth College Fund (DCF), and our class has responded. When giving to the DCF, classmates may allocate a portion to our 50th reunion class gift, the DOC renovation. Go to dartgo.org/1969doc to contribute to the DCF, the DOC House renovation, or both. Contributions can also be mailed to the Gift Recording Office, 6066 Development Office, Hanover, NH 03755.
We also salute the class of 1970, whose 50th reunion plans were disrupted by the pandemic, and the class of 2020, the first to create a virtual celebration. Norm Jacobs reports from the Alumni Council, where President Hanlon praised the class of 2020: “They will depart the Dartmouth campus missing their senior spring and the opportunity to celebrate together at Commencement,” he said, “and my ask of you is to rally the alumni community to let the class of ’20 know that Dartmouth cares and that the Dartmouth fellowship is there for them, now and forever.” The class of 1969 rises to shout our support!
Also, we note with sadness that William E. “Bill” Ferguson passed away on June 116. I’ve sent a note to our email list and our next column will include remembrances.
—John “Tex” Talmadge, 3519 Brookline Lane, Farmers Branch, TX 75234; (214) 673-9250; johntalmadgemd@gmail.com