Class Note 1990
Issue
November-December 2026
Class Note 1990. I asked ’90s, “What was the luckiest thing that happened to you during your years at Dartmouth?” Here is Part II of your remarkable responses. Kevin Roon writes, “The freshman seminar I wanted to take in the fall of 1986 was full, and I didn’t have a backup plan. I wandered around the various departments and signed up for Russian 1 on a whim. I wound up majoring in Russian, getting my master’s in it, then getting a Ph.D. in linguistics, all likely due to that serendipitous moment.”
Mary Es Anderson writes, “The luckiest thing that happened to me was that one ’91 and three ’92s saw Esther’s ad for a ‘drummer and a guitarist’ and Noise Complaint was born (almost named Socks in the Dryer). Playing and singing with Jeff, Bill, Eric, and Chris and singing rock and roll with Esther were some of the best memories of college!” Mark Sternman writes, “Dartmouth gave me a career, an education, and lasting memories; most important, Dartmouth gave me five lifelong friends: Tor Blaisdell, Roth Herrlinger, Jamie Pringle, Scott Spring, and Marilyn (Cummings) Morris ’92.” John Stouffer writes, “Taking skiing for PE my freshman year changed my life. As a surfer and skater, I fell in love with the winter sport, and senior year, I learned to snowboard at Suicide Six (because it wasn’t allowed at the Skiway). I then ended up working as the business editor of a snowboard magazine for almost 15 years and then for eight years worked for Fuel TV, a channel that featured snowboarding and surfing. I’m not in sports anymore, but I’ve still got my Ikon pass for winters at Mammoth and Big Bear, and both my boys not only surf with me, they also ski and snowboard. All this thanks to a PE requirement at Dartmouth!”
Julie Davis writes, “The luckiest thing that happened to me at Dartmouth was meeting and having lunch with Robert Redford my freshman year. I had just joined the Film Society—I believe I was the only freshman—and Robert Redford was coming for a tribute a few weeks after I joined so I was invited to have lunch with him at Bill Pence’s house. (Bill was the founder of the Telluride Film Festival and the head of the Film Society.) Only about six students showed up, and everyone was so nervous, they were scared to talk to him. For some reason, I wasn’t nervous and got to have a great conversation with him that changed the trajectory of my life. He gave me the confidence to pursue my dream of making independent films in Los Angeles. They say luck is when preparation meets opportunity, and I believe that wholeheartedly. The opportunity was that he came to Dartmouth, the preparation was that I watched all his films, joined the Film Society, and showed up—and it’s all about showing up!”
—Rob Crawford, 22 Black Oak Road, Weston, MA 02493; crawdaddy37@gmail.com
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Mary Es Anderson writes, “The luckiest thing that happened to me was that one ’91 and three ’92s saw Esther’s ad for a ‘drummer and a guitarist’ and Noise Complaint was born (almost named Socks in the Dryer). Playing and singing with Jeff, Bill, Eric, and Chris and singing rock and roll with Esther were some of the best memories of college!” Mark Sternman writes, “Dartmouth gave me a career, an education, and lasting memories; most important, Dartmouth gave me five lifelong friends: Tor Blaisdell, Roth Herrlinger, Jamie Pringle, Scott Spring, and Marilyn (Cummings) Morris ’92.” John Stouffer writes, “Taking skiing for PE my freshman year changed my life. As a surfer and skater, I fell in love with the winter sport, and senior year, I learned to snowboard at Suicide Six (because it wasn’t allowed at the Skiway). I then ended up working as the business editor of a snowboard magazine for almost 15 years and then for eight years worked for Fuel TV, a channel that featured snowboarding and surfing. I’m not in sports anymore, but I’ve still got my Ikon pass for winters at Mammoth and Big Bear, and both my boys not only surf with me, they also ski and snowboard. All this thanks to a PE requirement at Dartmouth!”
Julie Davis writes, “The luckiest thing that happened to me at Dartmouth was meeting and having lunch with Robert Redford my freshman year. I had just joined the Film Society—I believe I was the only freshman—and Robert Redford was coming for a tribute a few weeks after I joined so I was invited to have lunch with him at Bill Pence’s house. (Bill was the founder of the Telluride Film Festival and the head of the Film Society.) Only about six students showed up, and everyone was so nervous, they were scared to talk to him. For some reason, I wasn’t nervous and got to have a great conversation with him that changed the trajectory of my life. He gave me the confidence to pursue my dream of making independent films in Los Angeles. They say luck is when preparation meets opportunity, and I believe that wholeheartedly. The opportunity was that he came to Dartmouth, the preparation was that I watched all his films, joined the Film Society, and showed up—and it’s all about showing up!”
—Rob Crawford, 22 Black Oak Road, Weston, MA 02493; crawdaddy37@gmail.com