Class Note 1953
Issue
May-June 2026
Class Note 1953. Many thanks to those of you who participated in the second ’53 class Zoom conversation in March. It’s fun to learn how we’re all doing and what’s on our minds these days. These sessions are proving to be extremely popular with many of you, and we’ll continue to hold them periodically. Stay tuned.
The 2026 Winter Olympics are taking place in Italy as I write this. Sixteen Dartmouth students and alumni are participating, including Mikaela Shiffrin, who was awarded an honorary Dartmouth degree last June. Go Green!
Winter is still very much with us here in Hanover, with many days of below-zero temperatures and lots of snow and ice. Winter Carnival took place as usual; plenty of snow for the occasion but awfully cold to be a participant. Fortunately, students have more efficient circulations than we old folks do!
This winter has been extremely difficult for other reasons; all is not well on the national scene, whatever your political persuasion. Several of us aging seniors here at Kendal fan out along Route 10 every Saturday morning to demonstrate our frustration with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) invasions across the country and an increasing fear for our democracy. Passing motorists honk in solidarity with these old folks in walkers and wheelchairs waving our signs! Some of us join larger, weekly groups near the Green in Hanover. We often try to engage the Dartmouth students in conversation, encouraging some of them to join us. They rarely do, but they quietly thank us for trying to make the world safer for their generation. Today’s world is much different than the one we faced in 1953. These students are understandably concerned about their future and the diminishing likelihood of finding a job when they graduate.
Sadly, we note the following deaths: Robert D. Robinson Jr., M.D., in December; Richard A. Hall and Richard J. Loewenthal Jr. in January; and John M. Thornley in February. Our sincere expressions of sympathy go out to their families.
Stay well, stay safe, and stay involved. Let me hear from you!
—Donna Grant Reilly, 32 Penn Road, Apt. 418; Hanover, NH 03755; (603) 643-7281; reillys5357@gmail.com
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The 2026 Winter Olympics are taking place in Italy as I write this. Sixteen Dartmouth students and alumni are participating, including Mikaela Shiffrin, who was awarded an honorary Dartmouth degree last June. Go Green!
Winter is still very much with us here in Hanover, with many days of below-zero temperatures and lots of snow and ice. Winter Carnival took place as usual; plenty of snow for the occasion but awfully cold to be a participant. Fortunately, students have more efficient circulations than we old folks do!
This winter has been extremely difficult for other reasons; all is not well on the national scene, whatever your political persuasion. Several of us aging seniors here at Kendal fan out along Route 10 every Saturday morning to demonstrate our frustration with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) invasions across the country and an increasing fear for our democracy. Passing motorists honk in solidarity with these old folks in walkers and wheelchairs waving our signs! Some of us join larger, weekly groups near the Green in Hanover. We often try to engage the Dartmouth students in conversation, encouraging some of them to join us. They rarely do, but they quietly thank us for trying to make the world safer for their generation. Today’s world is much different than the one we faced in 1953. These students are understandably concerned about their future and the diminishing likelihood of finding a job when they graduate.
Sadly, we note the following deaths: Robert D. Robinson Jr., M.D., in December; Richard A. Hall and Richard J. Loewenthal Jr. in January; and John M. Thornley in February. Our sincere expressions of sympathy go out to their families.
Stay well, stay safe, and stay involved. Let me hear from you!
—Donna Grant Reilly, 32 Penn Road, Apt. 418; Hanover, NH 03755; (603) 643-7281; reillys5357@gmail.com