Check out this 30th reunion preview from our programming chair, Gina Lam: “Just like old times, don’t be surprised if you’re called to early morning Rassias language drills, invited to Sanborn tea, enticed to a Mount Moosilauke hike or family-style dinner at the lodge, and most importantly, treated to discover and rediscover the voices and visions of the class of 1992. We are chomping at the bit to share the life experiences ‘round the girdled earth’ that made us older and wiser as we come back to reclaim ‘My, Your, Our Dartmouth’!” To register and read more details about the festivities planned for June 16-19, visit 1992.dartmouth.org/reunion.

During this past year of reunion planning, Molly Benz has been serving double duty, helping with both communications and fundraising. She wrote, “Greetings, fellow ’92s! George Benz and I celebrated our 25th wedding anniversary in June, and in those 25 years we have lived in Chicago, Los Angeles, and now we are in Dallas. After both working in the toy industry for many years, we have moved on to pet products (George) and trampolines (Molly). We have a 22-year-old daughter who is a senior at Tulane, a 19-year-old son who is a freshman at Texas A&M (the football games are a little different from Dartmouth’s), and a 16-year-old son who is a sophomore in high school. I teach yoga on the side and served for a couple of years on the board of our local Young Men’s Service League chapter. George was excited to put his Dartmouth education to good use recently when he helped our good friend’s son, a freshman at Southern Methodist University, build two pong tables for their fraternity.” Molly’s fellow Dartmouth College Fund (DCF) class agent, Brett Scoll Perryman, was recently honored by the Stephen F. Mandel ’52 Society, which recognizes alumni volunteers who provide visionary leadership in raising gifts through the DCF, at a New York event in April. Kudos to Brett for inspiring so many of us to give back to Dartmouth!

Sammy Desai recently became our third class agent, joining Molly and Brett. Many thanks to all three for guiding our class of 1992 fundraising efforts as we head toward the reunion.

While I’m biding my time ’til June, I’ll be reading more fantastic writing by our classmates.

Lisa Stringfellow’s debut novel, A Comb of Wishes (HarperCollins/Quill Tree Books), tells the tale of a grieving girl and a vengeful mermaid, set against the backdrop of Caribbean folklore. Described as “spellbinding,” it was selected as an American Booksellers Association Indies Introduce title for winter-spring 2022, a Kids’ Indie Next title for March-April 2022, as well as an Amazon Editor’s Pick for February. Lisa added, “I live in Boston and am in year 27 as a middle school English teacher, currently working at an independent girls school in Boston. I have three children and an always hungry cat.” Learn more about her work at lisastringfellow.com.

Thanks to Deirdre Harris for sharing her essay, “Facing That Mess: When Police Murdered My Unarmed Dad,” in our “Dartmouth Class of ’92” Facebook group. Dei wrote: “Before there was #BLM, before there were cell phones with cameras, before there was George Floyd, there was my family struggling to survive the murder of my unarmed Dad by police. This is how I survived, until I couldn’t. Dartmouth played a huge part in me being able to face what I could no longer avoid. Thank God for Dick’s House.” Dei’s description of the women’s self-defense class she took our senior spring is so powerful on many levels. Read the whole story at deirdrerharris.medium.com.

—Kelly Shriver Kolln, 3900 Cottage Grove Ave. SE, Cedar Rapids, IA 52403; (920) 306-2192; dartmouth92news@gmail.com