Class Notes 1987

I was excited to hear from Michelle (Stone) Bittner, who sent news from Alaska. Michelle has recently become an empty-nester and is using her extra time and legal skills to conserve and protect the wildlife of her beloved State of Alaska. Michelle recently won an appeal before the Alaska Supreme Court, which was the first decision to grant standing to an individual, non-consumptive user of wildlife to challenge a predator control program conducted by the Alaska Department of Fish & Game under which it has killed hundreds of bears and wolves in the range of the Mulchatna caribou herd in southwestern Alaska. She hopes to continue to use her legal work to protect and conserve the vast wild lands and fish and wildlife in Alaska, which are unique in the world.

Michelle writes, “I encourage anyone who travels to Alaska to look me up. I live in Anchorage and am rebuilding my house so there will be more room for guests. I can provide travel tips to places in Alaska where you will see scenery and wildlife that will be forever seared in your memories or take you on hikes in the Chugach Front Range.”

Congratulations to Wendy Becker,who has been nominated to become the chair of the board of Sony Group Corp., following the company’s annual general meeting in March. Wendy is the first non-Japanese woman to chair a publicly listed Japanese company.

I am eager to hear what you are up to. If you don’t want to write about yourself, please send news about your classmates!

—Lisa Snyder, 430 Ward St., Newton, MA, 02459; dartmouth87classnews@gmail.com

I was happy to hear from Lauren Schwartz, who is currently working and living in San Francisco with her husband, Mill Nash, and her two teenage children.

Lauren has owned her own business, Kaboom Productions, for more than 25 years. The company makes TV commercials and other advertising and marketing content for ad agencies and clients all around the country.

Lauren’s daughter, Parker, is a senior at Sacred Heart Cathedral Preparatory, and her son, Finn, is a freshman at rival Saint Ignatius College Preparatory, which makes for some spirited dinner conversations. Lauren and her family have done a good amount of traveling during the last couple of years, including a trip to Portugal and Spain last summer.

Lauren notes, “I am always grateful for my Dartmouth friends, people I knew in college, those I bonded with in my 20s, and those I continue to connect with in our later years. For any friends wandering through the Bay Area—my doors are always open!”

Emil Chynn was recently married to Mariia Shulikina, who is from Moscow. Erik Schmidt and David Jacobs attended the ceremonial wedding in Cap Cana, in the Dominican Republic. Emil and Mariia are now traveling the world together. You can follow Emil’s travels on Instagram at @DrEmilChynn.

Star Bailey wrote to let me know that she is still working as a holistic chiropractor in the North County, San Diego area, and runs Blissful Goat Yoga and Star Stays Goat Yoga healing retreats. Star enjoys this new opportunity to help families or groups reconnect, heal, relax, and have fun.

I would love to hear what you are up to. If you don’t want to write about yourself, please send news about your classmates!

—Lisa Snyder, 430 Ward St., Newton, MA, 02459; dartmouth87classnews@gmail.com

Many thanks to those of you who have answered my pleas for news!

Mike Roy has been living in Middlebury, Vermont, for the past 16 years, where he has been serving as the dean of the library at Middlebury College. With his three kids now more or less launched, he’s getting ready for his third act, where he plans to shift his focus to climate. To get ready for this move, he’s chairing the Middlebury energy committee, serving on the board of the Climate Economy Action Center of Addison County, volunteering with climate justice group 350VT, helping to launch an energy coaching program, and writing occasional climate-oriented columns for the local newspaper (edited by classmate John McCright). If you are on a similar journey, Mike would love to talk! He can be reached at roymichaeldonald@gmail.com.

Shanta Puchtler, who lives in Watertown, Massachusetts, and Stratton, Vermont, recently retired from his role as CEO of a quant investing shop in Boston and president of Man Group in London. Shanta is married to a pastry chef and keeps himself busy fly fishing in Alaska, Wyoming, New Zealand, and the Bahamas (sometimes with classmate Rob Shen) and mountain climbing in the Alaska Range and the Wind River mountains of Wyoming. He recently returned to Vang Vieng, Laos, 53 years after evacuating from the Laotian village where he lived for his first five years. Shanta tries to get back annually to his cabin in Fairbanks, Alaska, where he grew up after coming to the United States from Laos in 1970.

H. Randall Morgan reports that he and his wife were on the verge of empty-nesting, but their oldest boomeranged in a good way and is now home in Potomac, Maryland, while working as a marketing associate for the Friends of the Israeli Defense Forces. Their son is in N.Y.C., working as a biomedical engineer and has been fortunate to get a position exploring therapies and cures for pancreatitis. Their youngest has been in Israel working at an internship in a pharma research lab for the summer before she returns to Cornell University for her sophomore fall. H. has picked up the guitar again and is splitting his time between his translation services contracts, caregiving for his father with dementia, and finally playing some golf.

Bruce Kelson is also anticipating life as an empty-nester. He writes, “My oldest son graduated in neuroscience from UNC Chapel Hill last year and is now coaching women’s soccer at a D1 college (Western Illinois University) while he gets his M.B.A.; my middle son graduated in aerospace engineering from Purdue University and is about to start his first real job at Pratt & Whitney in August; and my youngest son is about to head off to college at University of Colorado Boulder.”

I would love to hear what you are up to. If you don’t want to write about yourself, please send news about your classmates!

—Lisa Snyder, 430 Ward St., Newton, MA 02459; dartmouth87classnews@gmail.com

Hello, ’87 friends.

Jonathan Silverman, chair of the English department at UMass Lowell, shared some news that is very on point in light of this month’s “books” theme.

Jonathan is the editor of Astros and Asterisks: Houston’s Sign-Stealing Scandal Explained, which was published by University of Texas Press in 2023.

In addition, Jonathan’s 2020 book Johnny Cash International: How and Why Fans Love the Man in Black, co-written with Irish scholar Michael Hinds, has won the Irish Association for American Studies (IAAS) Peggy O’Brien Book Prize. Presenting the prize, chair of the IAAS Catherine Gander said, “Johnny Cash International by Michael Hinds and Jonathan Silverman is a book about a thoroughly American topic—one that nonetheless traverses all imaginable borders. Blending documentary, ethnography, fieldwork, and rigorous research, it’s an in-depth examination of fandom, of international and translocal community, of creativity and hardship, of how music culture can challenge and transcend the divisions we create of class, race, politics, geography.”

In other book news, Keith Boykin recently appeared on ABC’s The View to discuss his new book, Why Does Everything Have to Be About Race? As of this writing Keith is in the midst of several book signing events in England as part of his international book tour.

I would love to hear what you are up to. If you don’t want to write about yourself, send news about your classmates!

—Lisa Snyder, 430 Ward St., Newton, MA, 02459; dartmouth87classnews@gmail.com

Hello, fellow ’87s. I was happy to hear recently from Bob Cumming, who has lived in Melbourne, Australia, since 1997. This is where most of his family is located and where he met his wife, Antigone, whom he married in 2008. Bob became an engineer in 2010 and spent the next 12 years as a traffic engineer doing road safety audits and writing reports about how to make roads safer.

Two years ago Antigone suffered a stroke, and Bob retired a year ago to care for and spend time with her. Bob has been logging their travels and adventures in their yellow camper with their cat, Peppa, on a website called journeywithpeppa.com.

In addition to travel, Bob and Antigone enjoy attending music festivals, and Antigone continues to perform with a roving Bolivian pan-pipe band and a choir. Bob also devotes time to artistic and creative pursuits. Recent projects include an amazing photo quilt he made for his parents to celebrate their 60-year wedding anniversary. He also built Moreland Mini Books Station, which is a small-scale sidewalk library that is a replica of the 1888 station building. You can look it up on the streetlibrary.org.au website—it is amazing and adorable!

Ken Block has been getting a lot of national attention recently for his investigations into the Trump campaign’s allegations of voter fraud. Among other things, Ken was subpoenaed in early 2023 by special counsel Jack Smith. Ken’s book Disproven: My Unbiased Search for Voter Fraud for the Trump Campaign, the Data That Shows Why He Lost, and How We Can Improve Our Elections will be released in March.

Sadly, our classmate Andy Hart passed on October 6. I got to know Andy as a fellow philosophy major who was always eager to join in the discussions and tease apart a thorny issue. We traveled in the same social circles, and I have fond memories of seeing Andy bopping on the dance floor at his fraternity, Sig Ep, or at a similar establishment. Keith Boykin shared a warm remembrance of Andy in the December issue of our class newsletter, which is posted on the Dartmouth class of 1987 website.

Hoping that all of you are happy and well. Send me your news!

—Lisa Snyder, 430 Ward St., Newton, MA, 02459; dartmouth87classnews@gmail.com

Hello, fellow ’87s!

At the end of August, I was thrilled to be a part of our class “Peace Justice Respect” committee’s virtual watch party, “The Soul of ’87: From the ‘Summer of Soul’ to the 50th Anniversary of Hip Hop.” Regina Speed-Bost served as the moderator and class DJs Ed Boyle, Mario Brossard, and Raffiq Nathoo shared their thoughts about hip-hop music in the context of our undergraduate lives and as a broader cultural movement. The conversation was fun and lively and there was lots of seat dancing to some of the old favorites. Ed even shared the story of when he met hip-hop legends Salt-N-Pepa!

I had the good fortune to run into James Robertson and his husband, Rick DiCecca, in Provincetown, Massachusetts, in July at a gallery opening we were all attending. James has spent much of his career working in community-based response to HIV in the United States and other parts of the world, including India and Africa. He is currently enjoying living in Provincetown and makes a point to go swimming every day.

Hoping that all of you are happy and well. Send me your news!

—Lisa Snyder, 430 Ward St., Newton, MA 02459; dartmouth87classnews@gmail.com

Hello, fellow ’87s!

Many of you enthusiastically participated in “’87 Day” on March 28 by posting photos on our class Facebook page. Lauren Arnold and Martin McCarter posted from Golden, Colorado; Pam Haering posted from Central Park in N.Y.C.; and Allison Exall posted from Arapahoe Basin, Colorado. Not to be outdone, Tom Palisi checked in a few days later from the Bruce Springsteen concert at Madison Square Garden in N.Y.C.

Doug Keith’s son, Jimmy, is one of the stars of the movie Champions with Woody Harrelson. Jimmy is a world-class athlete who competes regularly in the Special Olympics.

Abdhish Bhavsar was excited to share the news that his new retina surgery textbook recently made its debut at the American Academy of Ophthalmology annual meeting. Congratulations, Abdhish—I’m sure it’s a real eye-opener!

Hoping that all of you are happy and well. Send me your news!

—Lisa Snyder, 430 Ward St., Newton, MA, 02459; dartmouth87classnews@gmail.com

Hello, fellow ’87s!

As I write this column I am still reliving amazing memories from our “Off the Green” reunion that took place in Chicago on September 16-18. Led by our 35th reunion chair Tim Parker and local host and class treasurer Maurice Holmes, the reunion planning committee created a weekend of reconnection, discussion, and lots of good times for approximately 150 classmates and guests. We were also honored to be joined for much of the weekend by Dr. Shontay Delalue, senior vice president and senior diversity officer at the College.

The weekend kicked off with beautiful weather and a Friday afternoon baseball game at Wrigley Field coordinated by Gregg Rippey. That evening we gathered at the Loews Hotel for a lively rooftop welcome reception set against the stunning backdrop of downtown Chicago. We had expected classmates to break off for dinner, but most stayed and talked until late in the evening.

Saturday morning started off with breakfast and the much-anticipated TED talks featuring Sandy (Reeves) Spears, Gregg Rippey, Larry Pedersen, and Derek Lopez and moderated by Peter Murane. In the afternoon some classmates attended a guided tour of Bronzeville, the historic center of Black life in Chicago, and visited the DuSable Black History Museum. Other classmates took an architecture boat tour or had some much-needed downtime. Saturday evening culminated in a scenic dinner cruise on Lake Michigan, complete with fabulous and nostalgic music by DJ Mario Brossard, a crowded dance floor, and a rousing rendition of “Dear Old Dartmouth” (the alma mater).

Sunday featured a brunch as well as recognition of the members of our class social justice initiative “Peace Justice Respect.” This was followed by a beautiful memorial service led by Crystal Crawford and an uplifting and emotional performance by members and friends of the gospel choir.

Many of our classmates who were there commented on what a unique and special experience it was to celebrate a reunion outside of Hanover. And some noted that the weekend caused them to embrace their classmates and their Dartmouth experience in a way they had not done previously. Fortunately, our class is already planning more events to bring us together again during the coming year.

I have sad news to report of a beloved classmate who has recently left us. Evan Marquit died in August after a nearly two-year struggle with cancer of the pancreas. Melissa Wallshein Smith wrote a beautiful tribute to Evan that was featured in our November newsletter and can also be found on our class web page.

Hoping that all of you are happy and well. Please send me your news!

—Lisa Snyder, 430 Ward St., Newton, MA 02459; dartmouth87classnews@gmail.com

Hello, fellow ’87s!

In June Dartmouth celebrated the 50th anniversary of Title IX with a cruise of Boston Harbor for Dartmouth female athletes. Julie (Park) Hubble, Deb (Rowe) Marchiony, Susan Murray, Chris (Schutz) Brownell, and Laurie Lopes were all there. As Julie observed, “Those of you women who were varsity athletes back in the 1980s know that you really were a pioneer. Happy 50th birthday to Title IX and Dartmouth coeducation!”

I heard recently from Sean Abbott, who shared news of his next chapter: “I seek help from the collective wisdom of 1987. My mother died recently (and suddenly: Covid), my kids are grown, and my passion for Manhattan is not what it was. I can do the work of a book editor and ghost writer wherever, so I plan to take up, for a time, a life of wandering. I am not talking Nomadland—unless I am. I really don’t know the first thing. And I would appreciate learning of the relatively recent experiences of any ’87 who has lived deliberately in this way, for however long: no fixed address, following the rise and fall of the less-traveled road. I remain to this day an avid long-distance cyclist (as in bicycle—the human-powered kind), but I would never say no to an accommodating tramp steamer if such still exists. I will welcome encouragement and admonition at historicnews@protonmail.com.”

As of this writing, I am excitedly looking forward to attending our in-person “Off the Green” class reunion in Chicago on September 15-18. I’ll post a recap next time.

Send me news about what you or your classmates have been up to!

—Lisa Snyder, 430 Ward St., Newton, MA, 02459; dartmouth87classnews@gmail.com

Hello, ’87 classmates!

This past March members of our class social justice task force, also known as the Peace, Justice, and Respect Committee, led approximately 70 of our classmates through a 21-day social justice challenge, featuring readings, video clips, and Zoom conversations focused on social justice topics. The response to the course was overwhelmingly positive, and the original study group has now broken up into smaller discussion groups to continue the conversation and plan other projects and events focused on social justice.

In April U.S. ambassador to Poland Mark Brzezinski was featured in an interview in The Washington Post Live’s program “World Stage: Ukraine.” Mark spoke about the refugee crisis and Poland’s efforts to help, the U.S. influence on the war in Ukraine, and diplomacy during times of crisis.

Ben Moynihan has recently been promoted to interim executive director at the Algebra Project Inc., a nonprofit that uses mathematics literacy as an organizing tool to guarantee quality public school education for every child in the United States.

Paal Gisholt recently launched Blueshift Nutrition. The company creates science-based supplements in delicious flavors delivered in pod form.

Abdhish Bhavsar is currently serving a second term on the board of directors of the Guthrie Theater located in Minneapolis, Minnesota. He has also been the medical expert on the theater’s task force to get the theater up and running after Covid-19. Happily, the theater has six live productions scheduled for the 2021-22 season.

Filmmaker Ricki Stern’s five-part series for CNN on UFOs will begin airing in July. The series features Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand ’88, who is responsible for introducing an unidentified aerial phenomenon amendment to the most recent National Defense Authorization Act. Ricki executive produced and directed the series and interviewed Gillibrand.

I am really looking forward to our in-person “Off the Green” reunion, which will be held in Chicago on September 15-18. We hope that you will join us for the opportunity to reconnect and spend time with classmates. The reunion committee has planned a variety of activities, including an architectural tour, a dinner cruise, a social justice history tour, and the always popular ’87 TED talks. Look for information about registration on our class website or in our private class Facebook group.

Send me your news—I look forward to hearing from you!

—Lisa Snyder, 430 Ward St., Newton, MA 02459; dartmouth87classnews@gmail.com

Hello, fellow ’87s! I hope that 2022 is off to a positive start for each of you.

Kurt Schneider and cohost Jon Ellenthal continue to build on the success of their podcast Smart Drivel, which has been described as “the definitive podcast for ambiguous topics.” As of the end of 2021 Kurt and Jon had recorded an impressive 90 episodes, with intriguing titles such as “Deceptively Named Foods,” “I Put a Spell on You,” and “Things We Can Live Without.” The podcast can be found on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.

In addition to staying busy as an author and political commentator, Keith Boykin has been attending book signings and other events to support his newest book, Race Against Time: The Politics of a Darkening America. In his book Keith discusses our current political climate within the context of demographic trends projecting that America will become a “majority-minority” nation within the next generation. This is the fifth book that Keith has either written or edited.

I am very excited about our in-person “Off the Green” reunion, which will be held in Chicago on September 15-18. We hope that you will join us there and take the opportunity to reconnect and spend time with your classmates. The reunion committee has planned a variety of activities, including an architectural tour, a dinner cruise, a social justice history tour, and the always popular ’87 TED talks. Look for information about registration in a recent email from the class or look for a link on our class website. The early bird registration rate is available through February 28.

By the time this column appears in your mailbox many of us will be looking ahead to warmer days in spring and summer. I would love to hear from you about your favorite memories of our Sophomore Summer in Hanover. Perhaps even some stories that have been kept under wraps until now? I look forward to hearing from you!

—Lisa Snyder, 430 Ward Street, Newton, MA, 02459; dartmouth87classnews@gmail.com

Welcome to my first column as your new class secretary! I’m very excited about hearing from you and sharing your news.

I was thrilled when my Alpha Theta brother and class reunion chair Tim Parker reached out to me about a year ago and asked me to join the 35th reunion committee. That role led to another, as a member of our class social justice task force, headed up by Tim, which was formed to identify specific tools and tangible ways for members of our class to combat inequality and racism while promoting social justice. Through a series of active discussion sessions, I have learned a tremendous amount from my fellow task force members Tim, Julie (Park) Hubble, Peter Murane, Beth Papp, Scott Rusert, Holly Silvestri,and Regina Speed-Bost. We are now working on ways to broaden our impact and get more of our class involved in these important discussions.

Speaking of reunion, our virtual 35th reunion took place during the weekend of June 17-20. More than 150 people registered to attend the reunion and the various events had enthusiastic participation. The class-specific programing started off with a warm greeting on Friday night from Tim and our class president Tracey Salmon-Smith. This was followed by a Zoom dance party that was also attended by ’85s and ’86s. Partiers were dazzled by the impressive musical knowledge and sharp dance moves of Regina, Nathan Gilliatt, Andrea Hayes-Jordan,and Vic and Leslie (Collins) Trautwein, among many others.

On Saturday we listened to ’87 TED talks featuring thoughtful and engaging presentations from Julie, Andrew McAllister, Pat Quinton, and Scott Taylor. The TED talks were followed by our inaugural classwide social justice task force event, a social justice listening session, which began with a short film based on the book The Color of Law. This was followed by a conversation between Scott and Tim about how we can communicate in a way that fosters peace, justice, and respect. The day wrapped up with a virtual cocktail hour and the chance to mingle and chat casually.

As part of the reunion weekend the class nominating committee, chaired by Bob Charles, presented its slate of nominees for the upcoming period from 2021-27. Subsequently elected by a vote of our class were Tracey, who will continue serving as our president; along with Brendan Connell and Tim, who were elected co-vice presidents; and Evan Azriliant, who was elected treasurer.

As fun as the virtual reunion was, the reunion committee is already planning our next event, which will be an in-person “off the Green” reunion in Chicago on September 15-18, 2022. Make sure to save the date!

Finally, I am very sad to report the passing of a beloved classmate, Michael McGinn. A tribute to Mike appeared in the September issue of our class newsletter, which is posted on the class web page.

Send me news! Please share your joys and successes and also your challenges and “growth experiences.”

—Lisa Snyder, 430 Ward St., Newton, MA, 02459; dartmouth87classnews@gmail.com

Our 35th reunion chair, Tim Parker, is a busy man. As if his plate is not already full with planning for a potential in-person class gathering in 2022 (details to follow!), Tim has announced the formation of our class social justice initiative committee. “The initiative is an affirmation of Dartmouth’s commitment to developing transformative, responsible leaders,” Tim said. “Despite the seemingly chaotic uncertainty we face, the class is driven to make our society more just and humane.” Along with Tim, the committee’s members include Regina Speed-Bost, co-newsletter editor Julie (Park) Hubble, co-head class agent Peter Murane, Beth Paap, Scott Rusert, Holly Silvestri, and Lisa Snyder. Stay tuned as the committee develops its action plan in the coming months.

On a lighter note, our annual 87th day class mini-reunion was a virtual one, just like almost everything else during this past year of surviving the pandemic. Leading off the throwback posts on our class Facebook page, Gregg Rippey unearthed a photo of his freshman-year roommates, Dan Foster and co-vice president Brendan Connell (rocking the flannel bathrobe). “After a long day of ‘Math 5’ and ‘Govy 6,’ I could come back to the warmth of 310 Streeter, where the paneling was faux but the friendship was real,” Greg reminisced. “I’ll always be grateful to ‘my Dans’ for supporting a fish out of water from out West.” Janet (Mailing) Wittenberg’s photo of herself—moving into North Hinman freshman fall with some serious 1980s hair—prompted admiration from both class compassion network chair Stacey (Wolff) Savas and Cory Mann: “Love the bangs!” My fellow South Hinman floor-mate Stephanie Taylor Song posted a current photo of her with an ’87 banner “because I didn’t have the presence of mind to take one of my Zoom in February with Louie Crosier, Karen Epps, and Charlie DeWitt. ”

Vic and Leslie (Collins) Trautwein proudly displayed their 25th reunion shirts after a night of camping near their home in the Dominican Republic. “We woke up to the 87th day in our tent! Covid resurrected our goal of at least 10 tent nights a year; this was number 11 in 2021. Much to our joy, some ’87s have ventured down here, including Amy (Strasser) Kistulinec, Ross Jones, and Jonathan Bigelow.” In Rochester, Minnesota, Robert Shen reported on “fond memories of when Rusty and Mich Gardner visited with their son so he could observe surgery at the Mayo Clinic.” Mich responded, “Thanks for inspiring him, Rob!” Co-newsletter editor Betsy (Wall) Rutherford shared a photo from Vermont last summer of her and Kevin Wilkins and Ginny Wise—three smiling faces that make you want to smile right back—during Kevin and Ginny’s trip to drop their ’24 off at Dartmouth.

While I cannot include all the wonderful 87th day posts here, I think Scott Rusert summed it up with a selfie taken on a gorgeous beach: “Looking forward to when we can all be together! Enjoy life’s moments, ’87s!”

—Laura Gasser, 746 17th Ave., San Francisco, CA 94121; marcklaurag@aol.com

What better panacea for our socially distanced lives than gathering with our fellow ’87s! Our 35th reunion, with the theme “The Spell on Us Remains: Apart, Yet Connected,” is scheduled for June 17-20. Give a rouse to reunion chair Tim Parker and his team, which includes many of our class officers (whose titles are omitted for space considerations): Hermann Mazard and Stacey (Wolff) Savas (registration); Sarah (McCraw) Crow, Julie (Park) Hubble, Tom Palisi, Gregg Rippey, and Betsy (Wall) Rutherford (communications); Deb (Rowe) Marchiony and Scott Rusert (activities); Bob Charles, Dennis Goldstein, Anne Kubik, Holly Silvestri, Lisa Snyder, Regina Speed-Bost, and Sarah Woodberry (programming); Margaret (Carter) Farinella and Tracey Salmon-Smith (catering); Jennifer (Lane) Hamlin (beverages—I love how beverages warrant a separate leader!); Ben Moynihan (entertainment); Crystal Crawford (memorial service); Kathleen (Joyce) Kusiak (swag); Maurice Holmes (treasurer); and Karyn (Wienski) Calcano and Peter Murane (reunion giving). As I write this column in December, Tim remains optimistic that we will be together in Hanover. “We’ll leverage technology to bring Dartmouth beyond Hanover,” Tim said. “Content streamed online will complement the energy and excitement of being on the Green and connect those unable to join on-campus festivities.” Thanks to Tim and the reunion committee for their flexibility and perseverance during these uncertain times.

This past fall Betsy spoke with London resident Wendy Becker and learned that Wendy was recently appointed to the council of the University of Oxford, England. As the university’s executive governing body, the council is responsible for both Oxford’s administration and management of its finances and assets. Wendy reported that she is the first non-alumni member of the council in the university’s more-than-900-year history. Impressive!

Many classmates were similarly impressed (and thrilled) to hear the voice of Pam Metzger on the radio in December, albeit on an unhappy topic. A professor and director of the Deason Criminal Justice Reform Center at Southern Methodist University’s Dedman School of Law in Dallas, Pam was a guest on an NPR program titled Vaccinating Inmates is Good for Public Health: Why Aren’t More States Doing It? Pam discussed the health risks to inmates—including pre-existing conditions, cramped living areas, poor nutrition, and problematic ventilation—and explained that “all of these conditions mean that the jails and prisons are breeding grounds for illness and disease long before you add something highly contagious like Covid-19.”

As we continue to look for light in the darkness, Ricki Stern encourages us to tune into Netflix to watch Break Thru Films’ Surviving Death, an in-depth investigative series exploring the possibility of an afterlife through innovative, new research and firsthand accounts. Ricki directed and executive produced the series, based on Leslie Kean’s book, Surviving Death: A Journalist Investigates Evidence for an Afterlife. A slew of other Dartmouth alumni worked on the project, including entertainment attorney Emerson Bruns. “Given how our world is suffering so much loss, my wish is that the series will speak to people in grief and provide a bit of hope,” Ricki said.

—Laura Gasser, 746 17th Ave., San Francisco, CA 94121; marcklaurag@aol.com

I doubt I am the only one who has been reading a ton more books since the Covid-19 craziness began in March. I have always been an avid reader, but I find I need the escape from reality now more than ever! If you are looking for your next read, authors Sarah (McGraw) Crow and Jonathan Silverman are here to help. Sarah is a longtime magazine writer, editor, and book reviewer. Scheduled for an October release, her debut novel, The Wrong Kind of Woman, takes place in the early 1970s at an elite men’s college loosely based on Dartmouth. The story focuses on a newly widowed professor’s wife, her relationship with the handful of women on the faculty, and the burgeoning women’s rights movement. “Unsurprisingly, my publisher is planning no in-person events this fall, so I’ll be doing Zoom events instead,” Sarah said. She often connects with fellow New Hampshire residents Chris and Mary (Halpin) Carter, Bill Kelsey, and Lindley Shutz. Just down the road, Jonathan is an associate professor of English at the University of Massachusetts Lowell. Earlier this summer the University of Iowa Press published Jonathan’s (and his coauthor’s) nonfiction book, Johnny Cash International: How and Why Fans Love the Man in Black, which examines digital and real-world fan communities around the world and the individuals who compose them, profiling their relationships to Johnny Cash and each other.

Kudos are also in order for Scott Taylor: The Georgetown University Walsh School of Foreign Service has appointed Scott, a professor and director of African studies there for the past 13 years, as the inaugural vice dean for diversity, equity, and inclusion. In his new role Scott will formulate and implement measures for better representation and opportunities for underrepresented groups and individuals in the school’s curriculum, programming, and recruitment, as well as promote an understanding of and appreciation for diversity. “Given the times, I felt it was important to step up and do my part to promote an anti-racist agenda at Georgetown,” Scott said. He is in touch with Bobby Charles, class co-vice president Brendan Connell, Laura Kennedy, Gregg Rippey, and Steve Salem, “none of whom lives within 1,600 miles of me, sadly,” Scott lamented.

In the “toot our own ’87 horn” category, co-head agents Karyn (Wienski) Calcano and Peter Murane report that 317 classmates gave a total of $847,850 to the 2019-20 Dartmouth College Fund, with 52 of us donating at the leadership level. In an email to the class agent team, Karyn and Peter said: “We increased our participation rate by four points—during Covid-19! Thank you for helping to connect with classmates, build our ’87 community, and support current and future Dartmouth students.” Finally, a big welcome to Tim Parker, who has graciously agreed to chair our 35th reunion on June 17-20, 2021. “I am super-excited for the opportunity,” Tim said. “I look forward to working with an amazing team of ’87s who will surely make this a wonderfully collaborative and inclusive effort.”

—Laura Gasser, 746 17th Ave., San Francisco, CA 94121; marcklaurag@aol.com

I write this column in San Francisco during week seven of California’s Covid-19 stay-at-home order. Along with home-cooked family meals, stress baking, and evening power walks through Golden Gate Park (six feet away from others, of course), my go-to relief during these difficult times is connecting with the people I care about.

During the past month of the crisis I enjoyed leisurely telephone chats with Laura Korfmann, Allison (Bleyler) McDonald, and Michele Rivard; topics we covered included keeping one’s sanity through good food and exercise, political leadership (and the lack thereof), teenagers stuck in the house, and parents who insist on leaving the house. I also received an actual handwritten letter from Sally McColl, who is fulfilling a challenge to write a letter per day for a year. A kindergarten teacher in northern Virginia, she and her husband have two grown kids: a son whom I remember feeding pizza in his highchair like it was yesterday and a daughter finishing college. During a trip to N.Y.C. in December, Sally had breakfast with Jon “Zebo” Zonis, and my name came up in their nostalgic musings, most likely because Zebo spent so much time lounging in our rooms in Kappa Alpha Theta senior year!

I miss my wonderful ’87 Theta sisters, so what better time to connect than now? In April I joined 16 of them in a lively and comforting Zoom call. What a blast to catch up a second time with Laura, Allison, Michele, and Sally, and with Bethamy Aronow, Allison Bailey, K.K. (McMahon) Bochman, Karen (Wicke) Boyle, Martha Ehrmann, Jane Ho, Colleen (Sullivan) Mikkelson, Colette (Bourquin) Nygren, Christen (Fitzpatrick) O’Connor (who organized the call), Diana (Headley) Saunders, Betsy (Booth) Scalco, and Maury (Lawrence) Stephan. Here are some of the reactions we shared after the call ended: “inspirational,” “a great way to end my day,” “a spirit lifter,” “the highlight of my week and probably my month,” and “it gave me tremendous energy to hear how you all are coping.”

Christine Wichers similarly organized a Covid-19 Zoom mini-reunion of freshman year Lodge residents that included George Balchunas, Karen Birch, Jenny Boesch, Paul Churchill (in Germany), Sarah (Pratt) Dawley, Aaron Deykin, Martha, Karen Epps, Tom and Laura (Woolman) Gamer, Mich (Poulin) Gardner, Jennifer (Reaser) Glass, Lisa Horowitz and Dave Huth, David Huang, Nancy (Davis) Lewis, Ted Little, Sue Murray, Tom Palisi, Melissa (Duarte) Phillips, Jennine (Shohan) Pommier, Scott Rafshoon, Roland Reynolds, Sam Semon, Regina Speed-Bost, and Christine herself. “The freshman ’87s in the Lodge were a close group,” Christine said. “In fact, we have three married couples. We talked about who is the first grandparent (Regina), who is the first to undergo a hip or knee replacement (Laura), and who currently has a child at Dartmouth (Aaron, Ted, Jennine, and Mich, at the Medical School). But mostly we laughed!” Karen posted a screenshot on our ’87 Facebook page and summed up the group’s feelings: “What a nice way to feel not so socially distant!”

—Laura Gasser, 746 17th Ave., San Francisco, CA 94121; marcklaurag@aol.com

The fall 2019 mini-reunion schedule was one for the record books! First off, Meg (Crone) Ramsden and Holly Taylor hosted a post-bonfire gathering at the Salt Hill Pub in Hanover on Homecoming night, and we had another successful virtual book club with professor Charlie Wheelan ’88 later in October. The ’87s then gathered with the ’88s and ’89s in Seattle, with Laurie Benton, Betsy (Park) Johnson, Clare Killeen (in town from San Francisco), Phil McCune, Matt McIlwain, Jennifer (Tisdel) Schorsch, and Eve Stacey in attendance. “It was a fun format with three recent Dartmouth graduates speaking about their passions,” Jennifer said. The main event of the season was on November 9, when the Dartmouth football team defeated Princeton at Yankee Stadium to clinch the Ivy League championship. “The game itself was a big reunion—nothing mini about it,” class co-mini-reunion chair Kathleen (Joyce) Kusiak said. Turnout was impressive at the Anne Schnader-organized post-game festivities with the ’85s and ’86s, including class treasurer Evan Azriliant, Jim Badenhausen, Jessica (Slosberg) Benjamin, Jim Benjamin, George Bingham, Tim Bixby, Emerson Bruns, class co-head agent Karyn (Wienski) Calcano, John Clarke, T.G. Diamandis, Martha Ehrmann, Nigel Ekern, Peter Eleftherio, David Foster, Diane (DeLuca) Gabianelli, John Gannon, Greg Garre, class special projects co-chair Julie (Grossberg) Harding, Maurice Holmes, Kim Jacobs, Ken Jaffe (whose son played in the game for Dartmouth!), Greg Jones, Mike Levine, Nancy Lomazzo, Chris Matonis, class social media chair Hermann Mazard, Tom McCallister, Colleen (Sullivan) Mikkelson, Heather Myers, Raffiq Nathoo, Tom Palisi, Larry Pedersen, Steve Salem, Diana (Headley) Saunders, Alicia (Altman) Southwell, class special projects co-chair Ricki Stern, Chris Thompson, Ernie Torain, Chip Wilson, class co-vice president Sarah Woodberry, Jon “Zebo” Zonis, and Kathleen herself.

During Thanksgiving K.K. (McMahon) Bochman grabbed the proverbial reins and reached out to classmates via our ’87 Facebook page to host a gathering in Boston. K.K., Martha Ehrmann, Paal Gisholt, Elizabeth (Weidberg) Maciag (in town from California on her way to a family celebration with sister Lynn and brother-in-law H. Morgan), and Deb (Rowe) Marchiony reminisced over festive holiday margaritas. Earlier in the year K.K. also saw Kevin Wilkins and Ginny Wise while she, Elizabeth, and Anne (Eldridge) Connolly were in New Orleans for a Mardi Gras girls’ weekend and, along with Betsy (Fagerstrom) Brady, attended the Massachusetts wedding of Hope (Castiglione) Gower’s daughter. Go, K.K.!

Looking ahead, mini-reunions to celebrate the 87th night of the year this spring are tentatively scheduled in Atlanta; Boston and central Massachusetts; three locations in California (San Francisco, San Juan Capistrano, and L.A.); Chapel Hill, North Carolina; Chicago; two locations in Connecticut (Fairfield County and Hartford); Hanover; Minneapolis; N.Y.C.; Park City, Utah; Philadelphia; Providence, Rhode Island; three locations in Texas (Austin, Dallas, and Houston); Seattle; Sun Valley, Idaho; and Washington, D.C. Watch the newsletter, the website, and your email for the when’s and where’s. Kudos to our award-winning mini-reunion team—Kathleen, Allison (Obermann) Exall, Pam Haering, and Anne Kubik—for all their organizational efforts.

—Laura Gasser, 746 17th Ave., San Francisco, CA 94121; marcklaurag@aol.com

For more than 15 years Oregon resident and “soon-to-be empty-nester” Christine (Foley) Kollmorgen’s “most cherished gift from Dartmouth” has been an annual getaway with a group of “amazingly dear ’87 ladies”: Lisa (Sweeney) Caputo, Wendy Chronister, Liz (Spear) Deakin, Allison (Obermann) Exall, Diane (DeLuca) Gabianelli, Pam Haering, Jennifer (Lane) Hamlin, Anne Kubik, Kathleen (Joyce) Kusiak, Lauren Schwartz, Carolyn (Negley) Wester, and Ellen (Procter) Wilson. “While we were not all interconnected in college, we have become closer than ever through the years and supported each other through the ups and downs of the deliciously messy business of navigating our family lives, important relationships, and careers,” Christine said. Thinking back on her time at Dartmouth, Christine misses “having close and authentic friends around me all the time” and “being able to run 10 miles without aching joints or worrying about an injury!”

When I drag my creaky, chronically injured self out to do what inevitably ends up being a slow shuffle rather than what most people would call a run, I think of Esther Schrader, whom I have not seen since we were both at Michele Rivard’s wedding many moons ago. On our Sophomore Summer jogs around Occom, Esther encouraged me to psychologically outwit the rolling terrain, and her advice—take smaller strides and pick up your pace on hills—is what I hear in my head today. I don’t know whether Esther is still outwitting hills in Chevy Chase, Maryland, but she is a communications writer for the World Bank and other nonprofits. Esther recently visited her daughter at Amherst College in Amherst, Massachusetts, and saw Allison (Bleyler) McDonald’s name in the local paper as a member of the public school board. “I soon found myself in Allison’s living room, talking about her life with husband Jock McDonald,” Esther said, “and I am happy to say we saw each other again a few months later when Allison was in D.C. for a conference.” Esther also has “spent some lively times with Dominique Cone and her family at their Colorado ski house” and, on her way to drop daughter Emily off at Stanford University for her freshman year, plans to visit with frequent Bay Area mini-reunion attendee Stephanie “Stevie” Losee in San Francisco.

Segueing from mini-reunions to 2018-19 Dartmouth College Fund news, class head agents Karyn (Wienski) Calcano and Peter Murane report that the ’87s raised more than $802,000, with 35.3 percent of the class making a gift. Our goal was 40 percent, but we increased participation a bit from last year’s 35 percent. Please donate this year to keep us on this upward trajectory.

I will leave you with a bit of wisdom from Esther, as she mused on her Dartmouth years: “I wish I had reached out more at Dartmouth because, years removed, I can see how much the people I didn’t really take the time or effort to know could have taught me. I wish I had spent less time judging people and more time accepting them.” Words to live by!

—Laura Gasser, 746 17th Ave., San Francisco, CA 94121; marcklaurag@aol.com

After organizing the Bay Area 87th night mini-reunion for the past 12 years, I handed the reins to the capable and creative Lauren Schwartz. Lauren gathered us together at China Live, one of San Francisco’s hippest spots, where Doug Collister is director of marketing and IT. The food and drink were excellent and the company was even better! Joining Lauren and gracious host Doug were yours truly (Laura Gasser), Diana (DeLuca) Gabianelli, Ken Hittleman, Clare Killeen, Greg Kroitzsh, Tom McCallister, John Sierotko, Alex Terry, Chris Wanger, and Ellen (Procter) Wilson. Photos of all of us hugging each other will be in the class newsletter.

John Gannon has a good reason why he wasn’t able to make it to an 87th night event: his extensive travels through southeast Asia for his employer, AIG. “My first job after Dartmouth was harvesting grapes in France with Jonathan Bigelow, and I’ve been trying to get another international assignment ever since then,” John said. Topping his sightseeing list are temples in Japan and Cambodia, the Manila American Cemetery and Memorial in the Philippines, the street scenes in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, “and the food, of course!” Along the way John has “eaten a lot of street noodles, met hundreds of wonderful people, and taken thousands of photographs,” available for viewing at www.jmgannon.com.

Back at Dartmouth, Hanover resident Holly Taylor is associate director of undergraduate advising and research, director of the Women in Science Project, and advisor for the Fulbright program, which awards federal teaching and research grants. Prior to January 2017 Holly worked in Boston, so she loves that her commute “changed from a two-and-a-half-hour drive to a 20-minute walk.” Holly advises and teaches the children of many of our classmates, including Jeff Blatt and Erin Foster, Shannon Finnegan, and Steve Salem. She works to make students more aware of the Fulbright fellowship opportunities and the fact that they also can apply through Dartmouth after graduation (“hint to ‘87s!” Holly said). She must be doing something right: For the second straight school year, the U.S. State Department has named Dartmouth a top producer of Fulbright students.

Kudos are also in order for class special projects co-chair Ricki Stern. The Civilians, an innovative theater company in Brooklyn, New York, honored Ricki and her film production company partner at an April 1 benefit for their decades of work telling stories that enlighten our understanding of humanity. The Civilians troupe performed musical theater tributes to three of Ricki’s films: Reversing Roe, The Trials of Darryl Hunt, and Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work. “The benefit was a beautiful celebration of artists’ representation of the power of perseverance and resiliency over pain and suffering,” Ricki said. “We were all in tears.” Fellow ’87s in attendance were Jessica (Slosberg) Benjamin, Emerson Bruns, Jeff Lazarus, and Jon “Zebo” Zonis. Saturday Night Live alumna Rachel Dratch ’88 was there too and “gave a hilarious speech—no surprise!” Thanks to Kim Jacobs for passing along Ricki’s exciting news.

—Laura Gasser, 746 17th Ave., San Francisco, CA 94121; marcklaurag@aol.com

Eric Stern is a professor at the University of Albany, State University of New York, College of Emergency Preparedness, Homeland Security, and Cyber-Security. In addition to teaching courses in emergency preparedness and leadership and ethics, he is also the author of numerous studies and articles. In December both The Conversation and Newsweek published his article examining why the Trump administration has the highest staff turnover of recent presidents and George W. Bush had the lowest. Eric and Russell Kemp met up when Eric and his family visited Denver. “Life is happily comfortable and stable,” Russell said. “Married for 24 years, same law firm for 20 years, and home address hasn’t changed in 18 years.” The past two years Russell has joined Bob Gans on backpacking trips on the John Muir trail in California’s Sierra Nevada mountain range, which Russell described as “the most time I’ve spent in a tent since freshman trips.” Russell also sees fellow Denver residents Greg Rippey and co-head class agent Peter Murane: “We get drinks and laugh a lot on a regular basis.”

In the years we are not talking each other’s ears off under the class tent at reunion, my freshman roomie Susan (Barto) Emery and I swap career and family news via email. Susan and her family live in Larchmont, New York. In addition to her work in real estate, Susan is the co-president of the Larchmont Historical Society. She has enjoyed traveling up to Hanover for Homecoming the past few years, though she missed it in 2018. This past fall Susan had fun with Petra Schaefer when Petra, her children, and her dad (a Dartmouth ’62) visited N.Y.C.

Betsy (Booth) Scalco emailed me her news from North Carolina while she was snowed in after a record-breaking storm in December. Always active for Dartmouth, Betsy hosted a Dartmouth alumnae brunch at her home. Twenty-three women attended, including ’73s (the first female graduates who transferred in when Dartmouth went coed), co-newsletter editor Julie (Park) Hubble, and Betsy’s and my Kappa Alpha Theta sorority sisters, K.K. Lam ’89 and Dawn (Green) MacLaren ’89. “It was a fun afternoon of getting to know each other and making new friends,” Betsy said. They even created their own Facebook page, “Women of Dartmouth of the Piedmont,” and hope to hold events every few months. Speaking of fellow ’87 Thetas, Betsy had dinner with Martha Ehrmann when Martha, an obsetrician-gynecologist in Massachusetts, was in the area for a conference in November, and also hosted Colette (Bourquin) Nygren, who was judging a skating competition in Raleigh, North Carolina, in December. “When are you coming to visit?” Betsy asked me.

If you can make it to Hanover the weekend of March 1, Greg Garre and Neal Katyal ’91 will be reenacting the Dartmouth College case as part of Dartmouth’s sestercentennial celebration. Check the class newsletter for details about ’87 mini-reunion events.

—Laura Gasser, 746 17th Ave., San Francisco, CA 94121; marcklaurag@aol.com

Class president Tracey Salmon-Smith has had quite a year. First, she and her husband celebrated 20 years of marriage (a milestone my husband and I reached this year as well). Then Tracey changed jobs and became a partner at the law firm of Drinker Biddle & Reath LLP, continuing her work defending financial services firms out of its N.Y.C. and New Jersey offices. As a bonus, she will be able to visit her daughter, Avery, at Villanova University every time Tracey travels to the firm’s Philadelphia home office. But Tracey’s “most thrilling” news is that daughter Gabi will be joining the class of ’22, giving Tracey “even more reasons to travel back to dear old Dartmouth.” Tracey’s advice to Gabi (and to herself if she could do it all over again) is to “be open to possibilities, challenge yourself, and embrace what is front of you.” That sounds like sage life advice for all of us!

More good advice on making the most of one’s college experience comes from Matt McIlwain: “Embrace diversity of thought, follow your passions, and invest in lifelong relationships.” Matt’s daughter Madison just graduated from Dartmouth this year, and his two sons are in college and high school. Matt is managing director at Madrona Venture Group, a venture capital firm, where his “focus on investing in companies innovating in computer science and data science increasingly intersects with the amazing innovations happening in biological and chemical sciences.”

This past June, Matt became the chair of the board of trustees of the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, a Seattle-based nonprofit institute conducting research to improve prevention and treatment of cancer and related diseases. Since joining the board in 2013, he has helped “the Hutch” broaden its relationships with the Seattle-area technology community. As Matt explained, “My passion for finding cancer cures faster is a product of life experiences. My parents were both cancer survivors for many years—my dad passed away a few years back—and we have so many close friends who have been touched by cancer.”

On a class-wide note, head class agents Peter Murane and Karyn (Wienski) Calcano thank all who gave to the 2017-18 Dartmouth College Fund. We once again beat our fundraising goal, bringing in $1,972,000 against our goal of $1,700,000. “For a year-after reunion effort this is excellent, and the College is very happy with our class,” said Peter. However, we can improve our participation: Thirty-five percent of our classmates contributed, which is lower than our 40-percent goal. Toward that end, Peter and Karyn are expanding their class agent team. My favorite part of volunteering as a class agent is the fun of connecting and chatting with the classmates on my list, many of whom are friends, people I know and like, or both!

Contact Peter (peter.murane@brandjuice.com) or Karyn (karyn@calcanocapital.com) if you would like to become part of the effort, and you, too, might run into a few old friends along the way.

—Laura Gasser, 746 17th Ave., San Francisco, CA 94121; marcklaurag@aol.com

In this column I celebrate the diversity of career paths we ’87s have taken, from theater producers to politicians to photographers to bankers!

In theater, the Lucille Lortel Awards celebrate the best of off-Broadway theater, and Drew Desky is on the list of this year’s honorees. Drew and his husband, Dane Levens, coproduced Who’s Holiday!, one of two nominees in the outstanding solo show category.

In circus to politics, how is this for a catchy campaign slogan: “Aim High! Vote Lough!” Former Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey clown Steve Lough is running for the Democratic nomination in South Carolina’s 5th Congressional District. If he wins the June primary, Steve will face Republican Ralph Norman. On his campaign website, www.clownforcongress.com, Steve states that the horror of the 2012 shooting at the Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, is part of what motivated him to consider running for public office. Steve also feels that his circus experience gives him a unique insight: “Living on the train, touring America by rail, and working with performers, both human and animal, from all different parts of the world was the best education of all! When you sweat beside a person and laugh with them, wherever they are from, whatever the color of their skin, whatever god they worship, you learn to love all of humanity.”

In fine art, artist Liza Ryan focuses on Antarctica in her current photography series. Taken during a 50th birthday trip, Liza’s photographs are not only stunning—she uses other media such as charcoal and graphite to emphasize the architecture of the icebergs and glaciers—but quite timely, given the current administration’s environmental policies. In a recent blog post, Liza wrote that Antarctica “has a palpable power that is indescribable.” She has never worked on a particular series as long as she has done with Antarctica: “Since Antarctica is melting and could disappear soon, it’s difficult to stop.” A selection of Liza’s photography is online at www.kaynegriffincorcoran.com, and this summer the German publishing house Steidl will release The Unreal Real, a book surveying the last two decades of her work.

In banking, after stints at Morgan Stanley and Wells Fargo, Peter Bogardus joined Union Bank as a vice president and private wealth advisor in January. Although I didn’t know Peter while we were at Dartmouth, I have had the pleasure of spending quality time with him at our annual Bay Area mini-reunions. Peter also was the first person I saw at our 30th reunion. After a very long travel day, including an unpleasant four-hour drive from Logan, I walked alone in the dark up to the class tent, feeling a bit nervous and wondering who I would recognize. Then a voice called out my name and Peter came out with a big smile to graciously escort me to the registration table. What a warm and fuzzy start to a wonderful reunion weekend!

—Laura Gasser, 746 17th Ave., San Francisco, CA 94121; marcklaurag@aol.com

Phone calls with old friends are too few and far between these days, so I am especially grateful that Laura Korfmann and I were able to take time out from our work days to recap the fun we had at our 30th reunion and wax a bit nostalgic about Dartmouth in general. Laura and I have been friends since we lived on the same floor in the River Cluster freshman fall, and we forever will be “Korfmann” and “Gasser” to each other. Laura, her husband, Brian, and their three children (all of whom came to reunion) live in northern New Jersey in the town neighboring my hometown. An associate general counsel at Bessemer Trust in New York City, Laura is cheerful as always and said she “has no complaints.”

Diana (Headley) Saunders loves teaching fourth grade at the Wilmington Friends School in Delaware, where she has been for the past seven years. Her older daughter is a sophomore at Duke and her younger daughter will attend Colgate this fall. But probably the most exciting news is that, after being single since her daughters were toddlers, Diana is engaged! She met her fiancé online and will be married this summer. Congratulations to Diana!

In the online world, sports media website SBnation (www.sbnation.com) consulted our very own resident wine aficionado Meg Houston Maker and asked her to opine on whether NBA basketball star LeBron James has good taste in wine. In a November 2017 article, Meg and several other experts examined six wines James identified in an Instagram post and concluded—big surprise!—that the answer is yes. Meg described James’ selections as “exquisite and luxurious but not ostentatious” wines that “are made by people who are driven by a clear vision about what their wine, from their place, should be.” For more of Meg’s insights into wine and food, check out her always entertaining Facebook posts.

Scott Sodokoff, the proud father of Justin Sodokoff ’21, shared his thoughts on the similarities and differences between our Dartmouth experience in the 1980s and Justin’s experience now. Scott noted how Justin and his classmates are more collaborative and “work closer together than our generation did.” Based on his observations, Scott believes that “school is just harder today and the students have raised the bar on working hard and effectively managing time.” Still, some things do stay the same: “As ’87s we enjoyed the same incredible DOC trip experiences as matriculating ’21s. I get no sense from my son or his teammates and friends that anything has changed. Like many of us, after their final night of the trip at Moosilauke, which they first described as kind of ‘silly,’ they soon appreciated it as the powerful common bonding experience it is.” As Scott aptly expressed: “Dartmouth is a special place not bound by geography. It is a worldwide community with its heart in Hanover.” Look for a full account of Scott’s observations in a future class newsletter.

—Laura Gasser, 746 17th Ave., San Francisco, CA 94121; marcklaurag@aol.com

Greetings from San Francisco! I am one of I hope two new class secretaries, taking the reins from outgoing secretaries Lisa (Pabich) Damon and Allison (Bleyler) McDonald. I cannot resist starting off with some musings on our wonderful, intimate 30th reunion. The cozy Thursday night kick-off gathering under the class tent felt like a party at a friend’s house! Throughout the weekend I learned fun tidbits about classmates, renewed connections and made new ones.

At the Thursday night jam session I found out that Coe Bancroft is a drummer, and he was thrilled when Colin Mahoney graciously ceded the seat behind the drums to him. After reminiscing with Nancy Lomazzo about spending our sophomore fall still stuck in the River Cluster, she immediately put me in touch via text with my French roommate Connie “Pete” Lapite. Pete continues to enjoy outdoor adventures, including a sea kayaking trip in Canada amidst beluga whales. Until he tapped me on the shoulder, Rob Mazzarese and I had not seen each other since we took the New York state bar exam together in 1992. He is now an intellectual property attorney in Newton, Massachusetts. I also finally met the man who gave Randy “H” Morgan his nickname: H’s freshmen roommate Tom McCallister. A fellow Bay Area resident, Tom promised me he would come to the next San Francisco mini-reunion.

Someone I should have met during reunion was Andrew McAllister, but I was fortunate to connect with him afterwards. Andrew and I work at sister state agencies: He is a commissioner at the California Energy Commission and I am an assistant general counsel at the California Public Utilities Commission. After the Peace Corps in Costa Rica, graduate school at the University of California, Berkeley, and work on clean energy issues at the nonprofit Center for Sustainable Energy, Andrew became a commissioner in 2012. Andrew explained how California’s leadership role in energy policy has grown since the federal government pulled back: “It is a pathbreaking and very heady moment to be in California, where we are at the epicenter of the transformation of our energy systems from extractive to sustainable. The sense of mission here is palpable!” Andrew, his wife and their two children are building an energy- and water-efficient home in Davis, California, complete with chickens and honeybees.

Speaking of leadership, and in case you missed the great news in the August class newsletter, 39 percent of us participated in the 2017 Dartmouth College Fund and donated nearly $5.4 million, the second highest dollar amount of any class in 2017 and a record gift by the class of ’87. Thanks to all who gave!

Finally, on a fun programming note, the Dartmouth football team plays Brown at Fenway Park in Boston at 8 p.m. on November 10 in a nationally televised game. Buy tickets at www.redsox.com/gridiron.

—Laura Gasser, 746 17th Ave., San Francisco, CA 94121; marcklaurag@aol.com

A big shout-out to reunion co-chairs Sarah Woodberry and Anne Kubik and their whole team for a wonderful 30th reunion in June! More than 400 people attended, which made for much comradery, warmth, laughter, hugging, dancing, catching-up and nostalgic reminiscing. Activity highlights included a “it sounds like they’ve been practicing for weeks” performance by Barbary Coast alums (including George Farmer, Colin Mahoney and John Whipple); a silent disco that was so much goofy fun no one wanted to stop after the DJ left so Mike Krupka and Deb Rowe Marchiony kept the music and dancing going til after 2 a.m.; a packed crowd for the TED-style talks by Max Cobb, Andrea Hayes-Jordan, Greg Kroitzsh, Holly Silvestri and Luanne Zurlo; tennis led by Julie Hubble Park that had a great turnout despite an 8 a.m. (!) start time (Cathy Welch Dinauer was crowned champion); and more than 30 of us collectively working out our accumulated kinks at Maury Lawrence Stephan’s stretching class (Maury was expecting fewer than 10 people!). Also notable this year was the number of ’87s who hadn’t been back to campus in many (many) years—welcome back to you all, including Laura Korfmann and John MacGregor. First-time attendees included Craig Bamsey, Andrew McAllister, Denise McCarthy Irvin, Sarah Rosenfield Worley and Lisa Schwartz-Weiss.

Reunion weekend also finalized the election for the changeover of our class executive committee. Some officers are staying for an additional term. Several new members have joined the team. Tracey Salmon-Smith will remain our class president and Evan Azriliant will continue as treasurer. Brendan Connell and Sarah Woodberry have joined as vice presidents. Kathleen Bochman and Laura Gasser are serving as co-secretaries. A more complete list of all class leaders can be found on the website.

Bummed it’s over or that you weren’t able to make it? We get to do it all over again in just four years! Mark your calendars for June 2021 and a “clustered” reunion with the ’86s and ’85s.

Check out 1987.dartmouth.org and facebook.com/groups/Dartmouth1987, #dartmouth1987 on Facebook and Instagram for reunion pictures and other class info.

—Lisa Pabich Damon, 2124 Ashwood Ave., Nashville, TN 37212; lisa.damon.87@alum.dartmouth.org; Allison Bleyler McDonald, 43 Hop Brook Road, Amherst, MA 01002; allisonmcd@gmail.com

Our 30th reunion—celebrating our “Many Paths, Many Passions”—is just around the corner, June 15-18. If you haven’t already registered, what are you waiting for? Early-bird pricing ends on April 15! Go to www.dartmouth87.org, where you can check out the schedule of events, see a list of expected attendees and add your name to that list by registering today. Hope to see you there!

In the meantime, check out our social channels on Facebook and Instagram. Participate in what we’re calling “A View from My Life” class video project for our 30th reunion year. Shoot and share a perspective or passion in your life. How are you spending your free time? What’s cool, quirky or interesting in your world: www.facebook.com/groups/Dartmouth1987; Instagram, #dartmouth1987.

—Lisa Pabich Damon, 2124 Ashwood Ave., Nashville, TN 37212; lisa.damon.87@alum.dartmouth.org; Allison Bleyler McDonald, 43 Hop Brook Road, Amherst, MA 01002; allisonmcd@gmail.com

I’m excited to explore new themes for upcoming class notes columns. The deadline for this issue occurred the same week the National Park Service celebrated its 100-year anniversary. I enjoyed hearing about the parks and festivities in the news. The parks have been a travel destination for my family recently and we spent time this summer hiking and biking at the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. I’m looking for news from anyone who traveled to one or more of the parks this year and has a favorite to recommend. Also, news from our 50th birthday celebrations garnered a positive response and as a follow up I’m looking for experiences and ideas of how you are planning for your “next chapter”—would love to share your dreams and plans.

Karen Boyle responded to a recent request for news about these themes: “After 28 years in education I have four more years to go before I retire. My husband, Rick, also does, and we plan to travel the United States when we retire. We visited Greece and Hawaii in the past two years—Volcano National Park was spectacular, as was the rest of the big island. My oldest daughter just got her first teaching position at our local elementary school teaching second grade. My younger daughter is playing softball at the University of South Florida in Tampa, where she is starting her junior year. If you happen to see them on ESPN, she is No. 14!”

Bob Gans admits to being guilty of rarely contributing news for this class notes column but the theme of “travel to national parks” caught his attention: “In late August my wife, Melissa, and I will drop off our youngest child at college, officially making us empty-nesters. In early September, to deal with the trauma, I will begin hiking the John Muir Trail, which begins in the Yosemite Valley and officially ends at the summit of Mount Whitney, about 220 miles away. It is part of the Pacific Coast Trail and the longest wilderness trail in the United States that does not cross a road. If all goes well I will finish up in three weeks. If not….”

Petra Schaefer also shared some thoughts and photos from a visit this year to Yosemite: “There is a week or so in February when the sunset hits the water on Horsetail Falls and it looks like a fiery waterfall (not to be confused with the dumping of burning branches off another point, a practice Yosemite stopped years ago). The New York Times ran a piece about this and I was heading up there with a friend and got a great picture. Not a bonfire on the Green but spectacular nonetheless. I am working for a family business that is located in central Massachusetts but I am living in California until my youngest finishes high school—four more years. I have been seeing more of Susan (Barto) Emery because her husband is working in the Palm Springs area, so she is on this coast more often. Very nice to keep in touch.” After these two endorsements of Yosemite, I definitely have this on my bucket list.

Class of 1987 30th reunion June 15-18, 2017—this is a great time to update your contact information to be sure that you receive reunion information. Visit dartgo.org/update to log in to the online system.

—Lisa Pabich Damon, 2124 Ashwood Ave., Nashville, TN 37212; lisa.damon.87@alum.dartmouth.org; Allison Bleyler McDonald, 43 Hop Brook Road, Amherst, MA 01002; allisonmcd@gmail.com

Spring is the season for graduations and reunions. This time next year we will be celebrating: class of 1987 30th reunion June 15-18, 2017—save the date.

Betsy Wall Rutherford, Sharon Flanagan and Wendy Becker recently got together for a belated celebration of their 50th birthdays. Betsy shared: “Sharon lives in Chicago with her husband and two daughters. She is consulting with a newly created firm of her own (Lone Pine Advisors LLC). Wendy is quite busy in London with her husband, two kids and work on several boards—both for profit and not for profit. It was fun hearing from her about the British education system. Wendy is a tri-country citizen (United States, United Kingdom and Italy)—and, as usual, involved everywhere she is! Wendy is also on the board of Dartmouth’s Dickey Center for International Understanding; she was heading to Hanover for a meeting after seeing us. I am in Baltimore, working for Johns Hopkins Medicine as a fundraiser for the department of psychiatry and behavioral sciences. My kids are both in college, one in Hanover (graduating in June!) and the other is a freshman at Vassar. Being an empty-nester has not been as bad as I thought, but it is quiet.”

Vic Trautwein and Leslie Collins Trautwein live in a somewhat rural town in the Dominican Republic. “We raised our four kids down here, though three have left the nest at this point in time. Our oldest son and daughter are in college together in the San Francisco area. Our third is a high school junior studying in Germany. Our youngest, Chase, is still at home and turned 15 in December, which means a huge, almost wedding-like quinceañera. She drew and sewed her gown (clearly this mango fell far from the apple tree!).”

For the last 14 years Vic and Leslie have directed a group of orphanages and schools serving 1,800 impoverished kids for an organization called Kids Alive International. They need more child sponsors if anyone wants to help. You can sign up online at kidsalive.org (make sure to pick a kid in the Dominican Republic). “We love our work helping kids and have had the privilege of watching families break out of cyclical poverty and formerly disenfranchised youth become productive members of society. We are grateful for our language study abroad Granada experiences and especially Dartmouth friends who have encouraged, supported, prayed for and visited us over these years! It has been full of ups and downs, but we wouldn’t trade it for the world.”

Leslie also shared a little health news: “Right after our 25th I was diagnosed with breast cancer. Caroline Sobota pushed me to follow up on a mammogram I had put off for months. Thank you! (Get those routine checks done, girlfriends!) If anyone is walking through this journey, I would love to encourage you and walk alongside. As far as we know I am cancer-free.”

Like other ’87s who live “a bit off the beaten path,” Vic and Leslie were unable to attend one of the recent 87th day of the year mini-reunions but would be open to hosting an 87th night sometime in the future. Though they live in the mountains, with three peaks greater than 10,000 feet, they could probably venture away to a nice beach for a day or two if a group came down that way. Any takers?

Make a contribution to the Dartmouth Alumni Fund (dartmouth.edu/~alfund) by June 30 to help us meet our class goal.

—Lisa Pabich Damon, 2124 Ashwood Ave., Nashville, TN 37212; lisa.damon.87@alum.dartmouth.org; Allison Bleyler McDonald, 43 Hop Brook Road, Amherst, MA 01002; allisonmcd@gmail.com

I received news from Lisa Snyder about her September birthday. “I celebrated my 50th by getting together for an overnight with friends on Cape Cod. We had glorious summer weather, so we enjoyed hanging out at the beach, playing lawn games and swimming. The signature cocktail was hard cider in cans and we had a yummy catered dinner with carrot cake for dessert. Other Dartmouth alums in attendance were Lars Harvey, Ann Suchoza McDonough (my freshman year roommate and still my bestie), dear husband Jeff Foster ’88 and father-in-law King Foster ’55 (who graciously let us all invade his house for the event).”

A trio of classmates shared about their December birthday celebrations. Drew Shagrin recalled that “My 40th birthday party 10 years ago was on a barge on the Seine: amazing views of the Eiffel Tower, a salsa band for dancing, Cuban cuisine, not a bad recipe for a lot of fun. For my 50th I preferred a low-key weekend away with my wife and kids, filled with laughter and warmth. Professionally, I recently sold Mamanana, the fashion e-boutique I launched just before my 40th birthday. As for my next professional adventure, I’m still not sure what it’ll be. Classmates seen this year were George Bingham (who passed through Paris in January) and Alex Cuthbert (who passed through in September). The terrorist attacks here in November were very disturbing—I knew one of the victims, a mother in the class of one of my kids—but no place is safe from terror attacks in today’s world, as the Riverside attack showed just a few weeks later. So come to Paris and give a shout if you do.”

Laura Gasser celebrated her December 10 birthday by taking the day off from work and spending it with her husband: “After Marc and I dropped off our two boys at the school bus we went for a run in Golden Gate Park, ate sushi in Sausalito and hiked in the Marin headlands, with a payoff of 360-degree views of the ocean, the Golden Gate Bridge, the city and the hills. I saw my first coyote, which couldn’t get away from us fast enough. It was also wonderful to get all the emails, calls, texts, Facebook birthday wishes and flower deliveries from my family, plus cake and champagne (of course).” Laura kept celebrating all month—a blowout dinner celebration with a good friend who also turned 50 in December, a lunch out with work buddies and to top it all off, a trip to Mexico (sans kids!) for five days. What fun!

Allison McDonald celebrated at the end of December in Hanover. She joined her family (no kids!) for a 50th birthday dinner at Pine at the Hanover Inn. She enjoyed a massage the next day with her sister and mom, who turned 75 last August.

There are a few of us left who will turn 50 in 2016. We would love to hear more news about birthday celebrations or anything else!

Save the date: class of 1987 30th reunion Thursday-Sunday, June 15-18, 2017.

—Lisa Pabich Damon, 2124 Ashwood Ave., Nashville, TN 37212; lisa.damon.87@alum.dartmouth.org; Allison Bleyler McDonald, 43 Hop Brook Road, Amherst, MA 01002; allisonmcd@gmail.com

As I write this column, August is coming to an end. There is a slight coolness to the air in Nashville, Tennessee, and schools are back in session. I’m planning to cheer on the Dartmouth women’s soccer team when they are in town to play at Vanderbilt. Go Big Green!

It has been fun hearing about our 50th birthday celebrations. Karen Boyle shared a photo from the Coliseum in Rome, Italy. “For my 50th (in May) my family and I took a nine-day cruise to Greece and Italy. It was spectacular!” Anne-Marie LaMarche Valencia wrote that she celebrated her birthday with a 1960s Mad Men-themed party. Judging from the go-go boots and dresses in the photo, I’m guessing it was a fun time.

Thanks to everyone who came out to celebrate our 50th birthdays in Hanover. Keep the birthday news coming!

“The great thing about getting older is that you don’t lose all the other ages you’ve been,” according to Madeleine L’Engle.

—Lisa Pabich Damon, 2124 Ashwood Ave., Nashville, TN 37212; lisa.damon.87@alum.dartmouth.org; Allison Bleyler McDonald, 43 Hop Brook Road, Amherst, MA 01002; allisonmcd@gmail.com

By now, more than half of us have reached our milestone 50th birthday. In honor of this special year the next few Class Notes columns will feature news about how we have marked this occasion.


Meg Ramsden celebrated her 50th birthday last fall by running the Children’s Hospital at Dartmouth Hero Half-Marathon with her daughter, Margaret ’15. She had just turned 21, so milestones for both. It was a fantastic day in honor of a great cause. Jen (Kitchel) Reining had an excellent 50th. Her daughters made her a Swedish princess cake with a skull on it and spray painted “Happy Birthday Mom” on the dog. They also had Nepalese take out—yummy!


Pam Haering had an amazing month-long series of celebrations that gave her the opportunity to connect with many dear friends! She wrote: “In February my husband, Randy, threw me a surprise party at a local L.A. nightclub and hired The English Beat to play a few sets! I had some dear schoolmates in attendance, including Ellen Procter Wilson, Jennifer Lane Hamlin, Clare Killeen, Allison Oberman Exall, Andy Youmans, Sharon Holland, Lynne Tenhoopen Lear ’86, Ed Lear ’83 and John Brady ’86! A second celebration took place on the ski slopes of Park City, Utah, where we had an all-women’s gathering. Dartmouth friends in attendance included Natalie Wilensky ’86, Lynn Mahoney Easterling, Jennifer Tisdel Schorsch and Wendy Chronister. Truly a birthday to remember! I hope everyone has the opportunity to celebrate their half century in a way that is perfect for them.”


Chris Baker is happily married and living in San Francisco with two wonderful kids. He is an avid surfer and is convinced that he was accepted to Dartmouth only because he wrote an essay about surfing and the surfer quota for the class of ’87 hadn’t yet been filled. Chris writes: “I still surf all the time. Sometimes with other Dartmouth alums such as Mike Litter ’94. As long as I can still surf and make it out to the waves before Mike, I don’t worry about my age. Tracking my surfing days has helped me feel better about time passing. I surfed 123 days in 2013 and 102 in 2014.” Around the time of his 50th birthday in January Chris was surfing in cold San Francisco. He also shared a photo of surfing in warmer Fiji. He is planning to go to the Maldives in August; might be space available if any ’87s want to join in.


Please save the date of Homecoming Weekend, October 9-10, and plan to join us in Hanover for a big 50th birthday party celebration. The festivities will begin with the Dartmouth Night Parade Friday. A class dinner is planned for Saturday. Book your hotel soon. Visit http://alumni.dartmouth.edu/visitingcampus/uppervalleylodging for lodging ideas.


Keep the news coming!


—Lisa Pabich Damon, 2124 Ashwood Ave., Nashville, TN 37212; lisa.damon.87@alum.dartmouth.org; Allison Bleyler McDonald, 43 Hop Brook Road, Amherst, MA 01002; allisonmcd@gmail.com


Hello, ’87s!


Hope your 2015 is off to a great start and you are keeping your resolutions. The deadline for this column was at the end of December and I am thankful to Allison Bleyler McDonald for sharing some news about what she and husband Jock McDonald were up to during the holiday season: “Jock and I are meeting up with Amy Baker and family tonight at the Iron Horse in Northampton, Massachusetts. We’ll be catching up and seeing blues and rock guitarist Johnny A., who was recently inducted into the Boston Music Hall of Fame. Amy’s Christmas card notes that she started work at Guidewire, lives in San Francisco with husband Skip Pile and daughter Molly (8). Allison and family were lucky to spend the first part of the New Year in chilly Hanover cheering on the hockey team during the Ledyard Bank tournament.”


Seen any good movies lately? Allison saw the movie Big Hero 6 and noted in the credits that classmate Kyle Odermatt was special effects supervisor for the film. He was involved with a few other films my kids love and is working on another animated film due out next year.


—Lisa Pabich Damon, 2124 Ashwood Ave., Nashville, TN 37212; lisa.damon.87@alum.dartmouth.org; Allison Bleyler McDonald, 43 Hop Brook Road, Amherst, MA 01002; allisonmcd@gmail.com


In July I had the chance to catch up with Cheryl Walsh in Wellfleet, Massachusetts, while on vacation. She is working with Head Start programs in the Boston area. Cape Cod is a popular place to find ’87s in the summer. Cheryl wrote that she bumped into Kathleen Joyce Kusiak at the Beachcomber, a popular destination overlooking the dunes of Cahoon Hollow Beach. Kathleen was spending a family vacation in Provincetown.


Cheryl shared some news about a mini Kappa Sig reunion that her husband, John Walsh, attended. He spent a weekend in Wisconsin with Darr Keiger, Andy McGrath, David Weiser, Conrad Smith, Erik Nelsen and Peter Panagos. They played golf, took in a Milwaukee Brewers game and spent some fun time at a lake house. A good time was had by all!


This DAM column does not give me the space to add photos but I wanted to thank Emil Chynn for sending me a shot from the U.S. Open Tennis Championships. In late August Emil attended some matches with his Germany language study abroad buddy Erik Schmidt and freshman Hitchcock roommate Tim Moore.


Keep the news coming.


—Lisa Pabich Damon, 2124 Ashwood Ave., Nashville, TN 37212; lisa.damon.87@alum.dartmouth.org; Allison Bleyler McDonald, 43 Hop Brook Road, Amherst, MA 01002; allisonmcd@gmail.com


As the summer solstice approaches most of us are ready to leave this year’s brutal winter and stormy spring behind us. John Steinbeck provides us with an ideal quote to start the season: “What good is the warmth of summer, without the cold of winter to give it sweetness.” Wishing you a sweet summer!


We would love to hear from you with some news or thoughts for the class. You can also connect with ’87s on Facebook, www.facebook.com/dartmouth87.


—Lisa Pabich Damon, 2124 Ashwood Ave., Nashville, TN 37212; lisa.damon.87@alum.dartmouth.org; Allison Bleyler McDonald, 43 Hop Brook Road, Amherst, MA 01002; allisonmcd@gmail.com


Maury (Lawrence) Stephan writes “I am living in Suwanee, Georgia, which made it on Money magazine’s list of the best 10 small town places to live in the United States last year. I have lived here for almost nine years. I am mostly a stay-at-home mom to my children Oliver (8), Carter (5) and Angela (3 1/2). You know how important that ‘1/2’ is at certain ages! I was a practicing massage therapist in my former life (a.k.a. pre-kids and while living in California for 10 years), but when we moved to Georgia with a 2-month-old, knowing absolutely no one, I didn’t practice regularly for a long time. Recently I started practicing again, on a very part-time basis.


“The last time I saw a classmate was at the Women of Dartmouth celebration in San Francisco. I stayed with Lynn and Greg Nerland (both ’86s). Lynn and I planned a dinner with some other women who were in KAO with us, one of whom was Laura Gasser. It was fun to reminisce and wonder both how long ago that was and yet it didn’t really seem all that long ago either. Time is a funny thing, for sure.”


Lisa Snyder is living with her husband, Jeff Foster ’88, and her sons Pierce (11) and Malcolm (8) in Newton, Massachusetts. She has worked for the same law firm, Cooley Manion Jones LLP, since 1997 and became operations partner at the end of 2007. She is helping to coordinate the opening of offices in Wilmington, Delaware, and San Francisco. She enjoyed visiting Ann (Suchoza) McDonough and her family one day last November while campaigning for Obama in New Hampshire. [Class secretary’s fault on timing of inclusion!]


We received word that Allison Exall has been chosen by Who’s Who Legal as one of Texas’ top environmental attorneys. The announcement reports “Ms. Exall was nominated for this honor through independent research among clients and peers. Ms. Exall is one of only 44 lawyers in Texas who comprise their environmental chapter. She was also recently given the distinction as a Best Lawyer in America in Environmental Law for 2007 and 2008 and was selected as a 2008 D Magazine Best Lawyer.”


We have also been informed of the publication of an exciting new work by Chris Benner. Published by Cornell University, This Could Be the Start of Something Big: How Social Movements for Regional Equity Are Reshaping Metropolitan America is “a major contribution to the study of sociology and has already garnered considerable praise by scholars in the field.”


Mike Roy moved to Middlebury, Vermont, in July of 2008 with his wife, Lisa Gates ’88, and his kids Ethan (15), Anna (12) and Julian (7). He’s working at Middlebury College as the head of its merged library/IT shop. He’s found a great soccer game to play in on Sunday mornings and otherwise runs, albeit slowly, when he gets a chance. His classmate and teammate John McCright is also living in Middlebury and working at the local newspaper, The Addison Independent. Thank you to all the ’87s who have given their time to mentor a Dartmouth Partners in Community Service intern: Sarah McCraw Crow, Pam Haering, Alan Haig, Julie Park Hubble, Kim Jacobs, Meg Houston Maker, Veronica Rassias Markwood, Ben Moynihan, David Roccaforte, Lauren Schwartz, Alicia Altman Southwell, David Wiser and Sarah Woodbury. Please feel free to contact one of them about their experience and try to be open to mentor an undergraduate if asked in the future. Go to www.dartmouth.edu/~dpcs for more information. 


—Wendy Becker, 2 Kensington Gate, London, England, W8 5NA; wendy.becker.87@alum.dartmouth.org; Melissa Wallshein Smith, 77 Benedict Hill Road, New Canaan, CT 06840; melissaj@optonline.net


A sincere apology for class secretary sloppiness goes to Sarah Woodberry, whose name we misspelled in last month’s column.


Christine DiMilla Sarfati has been living in Arlington, Massachusetts, for more than seven years. She is planning (or perhaps has had by now—secretary apologies!) a second wedding, is adding a bedroom to the second floor of her house and became an aunt recently for the first time. She has worked in the training area at Fidelity Investments for the past 13-plus years—in a variety of instructional design and project management roles. Christine has two bilingual kids, Leah, 9, and Ben, 8 (their dad is from France). She would like to send a hello to Amanda Carpenter Ragon (who is living in Michigan with her family and working in her veterinarian practice) and a request for information from Susan Patterson in Texas. 


Another Choate alumna, Maria Nisi Stutt, has lived since 1992 in Brooklyn, New York, where she teaches high school math, currently AP calculus. Maria is married with three kids, ages 10, 10 and 12. Maria met Ann (Lamb) Litchfield, Mary Beth (Meys) Bird and Amy (Heiserman) Szvetecz for a weekend in Charleston, South Carolina, a short while back. She also ran the N.Y.C. marathon in 2006 and at last note was planning to try again in 2009.


Tino Sellitto has lived in San Francisco for over four and a half years. He has been a portfolio manager at a small investment firm, Akahi Capital Management, for more than five years and in the industry for more than 16 years. He writes: “I really enjoy my work and I focus on small domestic companies for research and investment. I am married to the former Lisa Dawn Gruber (George Washington University). We were married two years ago in Sonoma, California. We have a daughter, Sienna Lehua, age 6 months. I also have a son Antonio Rafaello, who is 10 now. We are happy and busy parents!” Tino saw Dave Gabianelli, John Jakiemiec, Chris Wanger, Tom McCallister, Bruce Kelson and a few others at a small get-together in San Francisco in the fall. Tino has run an impressive 11 marathons, though none in store this year. 


Jay Samek has lived in Lansing, Michigan, since 1995. He moved there to do graduate work in geography at Michigan State University and is now a research scientist in the department of forestry at Michigan State University working on a number of climate change forest mitigation projects with communities in Southeast Asia. He travels three or four times a year to the region. Jay is married to Manila Siviseth Samek, who is originally from Laos, and they have daughter Rachiny, who is a sophomore at Lake Forest College. Jay updates us: “The last classmates I have seen are Wil Pigeon and Bill Martin. We would see Wil and his family on the way out to pick up our daughter who was in school in Massachusetts. ‘Pidge’ was kind enough to offer us room and board on our travels. We spent a great few nights with Bill Martin and his family when Rachiny was touring colleges after her high school graduation in 2008. I need to get together with these two guys more often, for a sanity check!”


We have learned that Brian J. Foley won the teaching award at the first-ever graduation at Drexel University Earle Mack School of Law on May 27. Students voted on the Excellence in the Classroom Award. Brian was a visiting associate professor at Drexel in 2007-08. Well done!


—Wendy Becker, 2 Kensington Gate, London, England, W8 5NA; wendy.becker.87@alum.dartmouth.org; Melissa Wallshein Smith, 77 Benedict Hill Road, New Canaan, CT 06840; melissaj@optonline.net


Lots of great correspondence. Keith Boykin writes: “I’m living in New York and Miami these days. I’m an on-air contributor for CNBC, commenting mostly on business and politics. Also I’m still working for MSNBC from time to time. I’ve been traveling the country lately on the lecture circuit, giving speeches about politics, race and sexuality. And I’m working on my fourth book, which I hope will be out in 2011.”


Abdhish R. Bhavsar pitches in: “I live outside of Minneapolis on a farm/ranch and have three children who all are ice hockey players. I coach my daughter’s team. This is particularly interesting since I never played hockey before, but I am right in there with them skating and stick handling. We all ride horses as well. On the professional side I am growing my retina surgery practice and my retina surgery textbook, DVD, Retina and Vitreous Surgery, has been selling very well globally. I contribute to clinical research and will be the lead investigator in a national clinical trial for the Diabetic Retinopathy Clinical Research Network funded via the National Eye Institute and National Institutes of Health.”


Ken Block updates us: “My wife, Jennifer, and I live in Barrington, Rhode Island, with our kids Sam (7) and Anna (6). Beyond the two businesses that I own, I have spent the last three years creating a new political party in Rhode Island called the Moderate Party of Rhode Island. This last year has been a whirlwind—we had to file a federal lawsuit and strike down as unconstitutional aspects of R.I. ballot access laws, collected 34,000 signatures in less than two months to ballot qualify the new party and recruited candidates across the ballot for the 2010 elections. I recently handed off chairmanship of the party to focus my energies on my candidacy for governor for the 2010 elections.”


Craig Budner sends his regards from Dallas: “I’ve been married for almost 18 years. My wife, Dawn, and I have three kids, Will (15—ouch), Ben (11) and Lily (6). I manage the Dallas office of K&L Gates. I am a commercial litigator and specialize in business fraud and insolvency litigation. I visited Dartmouth for Homecoming 2009 and watched the Big Green’s first win in three years in a torrential downpour. I bumped into my old roomy and Sigma Alpha Epsilon brother Evan Azriliant when I was there. I keep in touch with my debate partner Chrissy Mahoney (who lives in D.C. with her husband and daughter) as well as with Tom Palisi, who is doing great. To make sure I feel really old, I think my oldest plans to attend the Dartmouth debate camp this summer. I also see Allison Exall from time to time in Dallas.”


Harold Ambler shares: “I am living in Austin, Texas, with my wife, Kim, and 4-year-old daughter Annalee. Also in our family are two rescued dogs and one rescued cat. During the warm months we can be found at various swimming holes around town and nearby. We travel frequently to see grandparents in California and Rhode Island. I completed a book for Brown last year about the history of its rowing program. While doing the research I learned that Dartmouth is believed to have the longest rowing history of any school in the country (although it was Harvard and Yale to first hold a formal race). At present I am finishing rewrites on a project about climate change, Don’t Sell Your Coat. I also play gigs as a songwriter around town. I miss living close enough to Dartmouth to rent a cabin from time to time (and snowboard at the Skiway).”


Until next time.


—Wendy Becker, 2 Kensington Gate, London, England, W8 5NA; wendy.becker.87@alum.dartmouth.org; Melissa Wallshein Smith, 77 Benedict Hill Road, New Canaan, CT 06840; melissaj@optonline.net


A very class secretary-supportive update this month from Adam Gross, who works in corporate communications for Northrop Grumman while continuing his Hollywood adventure.


“Quick news from month of June: Was back in N.Y.C. first week in June. We had a scale model of the James Webb Space Telescope, the successor to the Hubble, on display in Battery Park as part of the World Science Festival. We are prime contractor building it for NASA, Canadian Space Agency and European Space Agency. Great event, lots of press. The James Webb Space Telescope is the nation’s No. 1 priority in astronomy and physics for the next decade.


“Saw Eric Semler for a game and dinner at Yankee Stadium. Erik is doing great and when he’s not running a world class hedge fund he’s coaching his sons and local Bronx kids in baseball. He’s amazing, giving his time to promoting baseball among kids who love the game. He’s hands-on and 100 percent committed to making sure these kids get the support they need to just enjoy the game and realize their potential.


“Saw Dennis Sughrue. Got great pizza and gelato in the West Village. Dennis loves N.Y.C., his job as a partner at a commercial real estate law firm and his cat, which was a gift from Dan Bernstein and wife. Dennis lives in a great Richard Meier building off Prospect Park. He is as funny and perceptive about the human condition as ever.


“Saw Michael Kong for the Laker’s clincher of Game 7 in L.A. Great party at Michael’s place. Michael has a wonderful wife, Stacy, three beautiful daughters, a Chihuahua named Louis and a Labrador named Harry.


“Didn’t see Lauren Shwartz, but she saw my wife, J.J., during a fire drill at Disney’s office. I do keep in touch with Lauren. She is taking care of two kids, married to the very cool Mill, producing independent movies and running her commercial production company. I believe she also leaps tall buildings in a single bound.”


Meanwhile Drew Desky is still living in New York after all these years and provided an inspiring update: “In mid-2008 Citigroup dissolved my entire department as a result of the credit crisis. I let the friendly folks at Rand Thompson Consultants know. Rand Thompson is an executive recruiting firm that had been following my career for 10 years and we had developed a great relationship. They first asked me to do some business development consulting for them while I was engaged in my search. One thing led to another and they asked me to join full time last year, which I did. As the recruiting business was still reeling last year, the founder was looking to close up shop and retire, and my two business partners and I decided that we wanted to continue building the business and in December engineered a management buyout of the firm. Little did I know after working for large institutions for so long that I would become a small business owner. Rand Thompson focuses on executive recruiting for investment banking, corporate banking, capital markets, hedge funds, funds of funds and private equity. I am thrilled to have the opportunity to work with such good people and help our clients while we place talented people in some great roles.”


Sort of reminds me of the old Remington commercials: “I liked the product so much, I bought the company.”


Celebrate before the Harvard-Dartmouth Homecoming game on October 30 at a four-class mini-reunion brunch with the ’86s, ’85s and ’84s. See our website for details, and e-mail mini-reunion chair Laura Gasser at lgx@cpuc.ca.gov if you plan to attend.


—Wendy Becker, 2 Kensington Gate, London, England, W8 5NA; wendy.becker.87@alum.dartmouth.org; Melissa Wallshein Smith, 77 Benedict Hill Road, New Canaan, CT 06840; melissaj@optonline.net


We don’t have a lot of news this month, but I did hear from Ken Block recently. Ken has been in Rhode Island for more than 20 years and is the president of Simpatico Software Systems, a software engineering firm and Cross Alert Systems, a manufacturer of specialized traffic signals for recreational trail and public road intersections. He has been active in the Rhode Island political scene and is now running for governor (check him out at www.kenblockforgovernor.com). Ken lives in Barrington with his wife, Jennifer, a middle school science teacher, and their two active and politically aware children Sam (11) and Anna (9).


For many of us this time of year is filled with college tours, applications or decisions. If any of you will be visiting the Amherst, Massachusetts, area, drop me a line. Our region boasts not only five prestigious colleges but also three classmates—Jock McDonald, me and David Arnold, who is on the faculty at University of Massachusetts. I am not above bribery, and would spring for a drink or even breakfast in exchange for some news!


—Lisa Pabich Damon, 2124 Ashwood Ave., Nashville, TN 37212; lisa.damon.87@alum.dartmouth.org; Allison Bleyler McDonald, 43 Hop Brook Road, Amherst, MA 01002; allisonmcd@gmail.com


Thanks to everyone who shared news to include in this month’s column. We learned that Robin Neiterman has been inducted as the president of the Jewish Family and Children’s Services (JF&CS) of Boston. JF&CS provides human service and healthcare programs to people of all faiths, races and ages and has been a presence in Boston area communities for almost 150 years. Keep up the good work, Robin!


Jonathan Silverman continues his writing and publishing adventures and has started a small press, 99: The Press. From the website, 99thepress.com, “99 is a series of short, readable books on provocative, timely subjects that are precisely 99 pages long (prefaces, footnotes and references aside). Although the Internet has changed the way we receive information, people’s love of books has not significantly diminished. But their attention spans may have, as has their willingness to receive books of pure text; 99 will serve a series of audiences who value both complex ideas and a readable frame for those ideas. In addition to standard pop culture subjects, these books will feature interesting visual components, making them even more attractive and enjoyable.” The first book to come out is We’ll Always Have Linsanity: Strange Takes on the Strangest Season in Knicks History. You can find it on Amazon.


Three classmates had an unplanned, spontaneous mini-reunion at Emil Chynn’s practice, Park Avenue SafeSight. Garrett Hornsby had Lasik by Emil a decade ago, and is still 20/20 for distance, but now is starting to need reading glasses (like most of us). He is going to get a tune-up so he won’t need readers while working in the real estate division of Citibank. Sean Reese was considering doing the same thing, and visited from New Hampshire to do an epithelial PreVue, which is a new way that the patient can experience how he would see after Lasik that Emil invented and is patenting (he holds three U.S. patents). Sean lives with Elizabeth Miles ’88 with his daughters Sky and Megan.


Stephen Hegarty found himself unexpectedly at a Dartmouth mini-reunion this spring on the baseball field in suburban Maryland. He, David Nitkin ’88 and James Mahoney ’84 were assistant coaches for their sons’ baseball team. The three had never met but exchanged e-mails before the first practice of the Howard County Youth Program Pony League Braves because they had volunteered to help out the team. The sighting of a sweatshirt in a familiar shade of green and an equally familiar font and letter (hint: it comes after “C”) led to conversation and the discovery that all three assistants were graduates of the College on the Hill. While their boys connected with each other playing baseball, the Dartmouth grads enjoyed getting to know each other by reminiscing about freshman dorms, majors and visits to campus.


Keep the news coming! See what’s going on with ’87s on Facebook, www.facebook.com/dartmouth87.


—Lisa Pabich Damon, 2124 Ashwood Ave., Nashville, TN 37212; lisa.damon.87@alum.dartmouth.org; Allison Bleyler McDonald, 43 Hop Brook Road, Amherst, MA 01002; allisonmcd@gmail.com


Maybe from denial, but it may come as some surprise to you that we are closing in on 25 years of life in the real world that followed Dartmouth: Our 25th reunion will take place on Thursday to Sunday, June 14-17, 2012! 


Planning has begun in earnest, and the reunion committee is eager to hear from all ’87s who wish to help plan an unforgettable reunion. Co-chaired by Allison Bleyler McDonald and Dan Wolfe, the committee will focus not only on the food, fun and music at our upcoming 25th, but also is actively reaching out to all the diverse members of our great class in hopes of bringing as large and representative a group as possible. In addition to providing a chance to catch up with old friends, the reunion committee plans to provide opportunities to make new friends. Activities for children and topical discussions are also in the planning stages.


Please mark the date in your calendars and plan to join us. All contributions to the organizing efforts, however large or small, are welcome. Write to Allison and Dan at reunion@dartmouth87.org.


Beyond just reunion planning, Dan Wolfe updates us: “I live in Moscow, where I have been working since 1992. After various professional twists and turns I now find myself working as a senior manager of Quadra, a publicly listed utilities company that provides heat and electricity to 11 Russian oblasts (states). At Quadra I am responsible for strategy and working with investors and public markets. I am creating a financial model for this billion-dollar company and I sit on the executive board.


“I continue to work deals through my own finance company, Wolfeworks Ltd. Frequent appearances on the live market-oriented programs of RBK (Russia’s CNBC) have become part of my Moscow work life. I am also leading the Columbia University alumni club (having graduated from the law school in 1991). I also travel frequently to New York, spending as much time as I can with my two daughters, who live on the Upper West Side with my ex-wife.”


Carl Failmezger wrote in that he “was recently appointed a Virginia magistrate, which is a low-level judge, filtering out the improbable cases to keep them out of court, sorting out the dangerous criminals by locking them up by bond hearings and issuing arrest warrants and search warrants. I am married to my wife, Lydia, and live with my two sons Richard and Maxwell.”


Rumor has it that Devon Davis has left the D.C. area to take a job on Norwegian Cruise Lines as the ship’s doctor. She is looking forward to our 25th!


Dave Havlick is living in Colorado Springs, Colorado, with his wife and two young kids. He wisely comments: “Kindergarten, it turns out, is a lot more work than preschool. If we’d only known how easy we had it when we didn’t have to pack lunches, worry about on-time early morning arrival! I’m an assistant professor in geography at the University of Colorado-Colorado Springs, teaching courses on conservation and public lands, environmental restoration and critical military geographies and directing the program in sustainability. I’m in a three-year National Science Foundation-funded project that examines the ethical implications of restoring former military installations to new land uses. Last year I met up with Paul Casella, who lives in Iowa, when he came to Colorado with his family. We climbed a 14,000-foot peak in June snow.”


Some sad news about our Dartmouth classmate and friend Ernie “Tim” Marshall, who died in a motorcycle accident outside Austin, Texas, on March 31. Our sympathies go out to his family and friends.


—Wendy Becker, 4 Essex Villas, London, W8 7BN, UK, England; wendy.becker.87@alum.dartmouth.org; Melissa Wallshein Smith, 77 Benedict Hill Road, New Canaan, CT 06840; melissaj@optonline.net


Hello, ’87s! Laurie Lopes shared news from a Hanover visit: “I had the privilege of attending my first Class Officers Weekend in September. It was also my birthday weekend, one of many spent in Hanover—all the major ones: 18, 21, 30 and now 47. Boy, does time fly. Tracey Salmon-Smith, our current president, Allison Bleyler McDonald, our 25th reunion chair, Liz Spear Deakin, our mini-reunion chair, and I represented the class. We had a cozy table to ourselves up front. When the awards portion of the program began we were confident that H. Randall Morgan and his merry band of class officers who reigned for a six-year period were shoo-ins to receive a prize. Our confidence was high. The first class to be acknowledged was ’88, and at that point our hopes began to diminish. Several younger classes were honored, and the class of 2007 was recognized for the highest attendance in a reunion year. We were pretty disappointed at this point and maybe even a little bitter. I stepped out of the room for just a moment to take a birthday call and to my surprise, returned to see Tracey, Allison and Liz walking up to the podium giggling and in shock. It took me a second to register the fact that our class had won the big one—the 2012 Class of the Year 25 Years Out and Younger Award. We could not contain our laughter and our pride. It never dawned on us that they would save the best for last. I realize that I had little or nothing to do with the award we had just received, but I could not help but feel proud for all the previous class officers who poured their hearts and souls into making the last six years memorable for our class. And I could not imagine a better birthday than the one I spent in Hanover this year.”


Well done, ’87s! To quote from the award, “Members of the class of 1987 executive committee are to be congratulated individually and as a whole for their work for Dartmouth and for their class during the past 12 months. You worked effortlessly and seamlessly together to help strengthen your ties to the each other and to Dartmouth. You worked together to achieve a 25th reunion that not only brought your classmates together for a great party, but served to strengthen your class and its ties to the College for the years to come.”


Jessica Slosberg Benjamin writes about Dartmouth Partners in Community Service (DPCS). The class of ’87 is one of the sponsoring classes for DPCS. We give stipends to undergraduates to work in nonprofit community service organizations for off-term internships and provide an alumni mentor. The program is funded through the class dues check offs and individual donations (learn more at www.dartmouth. edu/~dpcs). DPCS now has a postgraduate component called the DPCS fellows program that assists interns for the year following their Dartmouth graduation. The fellows program is entering its fourth year, has organizations in New York City and Washington, D.C., and we are hoping to expand to Boston and San Francisco in the not-too-distant future. It’s incredibly exciting to be supporting these young and talented people who want to give back.


Bravo to Liz Spear Deakin, who organized our “87th Night of the Year” mini-reunions earlier this spring in cities across the country. Find photos and news from these gatherings in upcoming columns and newsletters and on Facebook: www.facebook.com/dartmouth87.


—Lisa Pabich Damon, 2124 Ashwood Ave., Nashville, TN 37212; lisa.damon.87@alum.dartmouth.org; Allison Bleyler McDonald, 43 Hop Brook Road, Amherst MA 01002; allisonmcd@gmail.com


Our reunion is coming up. Twenty-five years certainly seems awfully fast to me. Mark your calendars now for June 4-17, 2012. It promises to be good fun. Volunteers and great ideas are being sought of things to do to make it awesome for everyone. No idea is too big or too small. If you want to get in on the planning or pass along a brilliant thought, please let Allison Bleyler McDonald (allisonmcd@gmail.com) or Dan Wolfe (daniel_wolfe@mindspring.com) know and they will sign you up!


Meg Crone Ramsden is still in Rhode Island teaching preschool. She wrote: “Our big news is that our oldest child, Margaret, has been accepted to Dartmouth’s class of 2015! My husband, Chris Ramsden ’84, and I are delighted we will be able to carry on the green tradition.”


Stephanie Song is living in Maywood, New Jersey, with her husband, Bill, and two boys Eric (7) and Matthew (5). She is a registered dietitian and a certified diabetes educator and has a private nutrition practice. She reports: “It’s small at the moment because I’m basically at home with my boys. My husband has quit medicine and now has a medical aesthetic practice. I ran into a classmate two years ago. We were on our way to Newark, New Jersey, airport to catch an 8 a.m. We got lost trying to find our parking area, so we ended up very late in long-term parking and were running to catch that bus into the terminal. So here we are with two little boys with a bunch of luggage including skis getting on this bus, totally stressed since we had lost major time and had a good chance of missing our flight. I happened to look across the aisle at another family and noticed a Greenwich (Connecticut) Library stamp on one of the books they were reading. Since that’s where I’d lived until college I couldn’t help striking up a conversation. The dad had been very nice in helping me get settled in my seat with all of the stuff I was carrying—turned out to be a slimmed-down Chris Matonis. I didn’t really know him in college but I knew of him and he was quick to mention that he was ‘no longer fat.’ We had a good laugh and a nice conversation until we had to rush off to catch our plane.”


Debbi Jayne Seaver lives in Park City, Utah, teaches skiing at Deer Valley, does massage and teaches yoga, plus is mom to boys Luke (10) and Grant (8). “My husband and I just separated. My son Luke is a rippin’ snowboarder and just qualified for Nationals, which he’s really excited about. Grant is in a dual immersion program so speaks Spanish half the day. I just saw Laura Kennedy and Shannon Finnegan in Sun Valley, Idaho (where they both live), while I was there for Luke’s snowboard competition, then the next week I saw Dave Foster, who came to Park City with a group of friends. Perfectly timed, he was able to attend a Park City Winter Carnival with many Dartmouth alums—it was great fun!”


Chris Segal updated us that he is living in Chicago and running Chiasso, a retailer of modern furnishings. He and his wife, Karen, have children Andrew (16), Jonathan (14) and Caroline (8). Andrew is a sophomore at Loomis Chaffee so they’re spending a lot of time out East again.


He has seen to Steve Hutensky, who got married last year, and Kim Jacobs, who is revolutionizing social media for the liquor industry.


—Wendy Becker, 4 Essex Villas, London W8 7BN, United Kingdom, England, W8 5NA; wendy.becker. 87@alum.dartmouth.org; Melissa Wallshein Smith, 77 Benedict Hill Road, New Canaan, CT 06840; melissaj@optonline.net


In early April Dartmouth hosted Greenways, a weekend to celebrate 40 years of coeducation at Dartmouth. More than 500 alumnae, alumni, faculty gathered in Hanover and participated in special events and discussions. Several ’87s were among those invited to participate in a series of panel presentations about professional interests and life experiences. Crystal Crawford, program director of the California Wellness Foundation and former CEO of the California Black Women’s Health Project, spoke on a panel titled “The Common Good.” Luanne Zurlo, founder and president of Worldfund, an organization dedicated to improving education in Latin America, shared her experiences on a panel called “Changing Lanes.” Lastly, our class president, Tracey Salmon-Smith participated in the “Scales of Justice” panel with several other attorneys. Anne Schnader and Meg Crone Ramsden were also in attendance for the Greenways weekend. Meg wrote that she really enjoyed catching up with these classmates, as well as meeting so many incredible women from the 1970s on. Next time you are in Hanover stop by the alumni relations office and say hi to Meg; she is currently the assistant director for leadership. 


It’s hard to believe that a year has passed since our 25th reunion. I hope that the spirit of reconnecting with Dartmouth has remained with you since those glorious June days. Remember that paying class dues can help support our amazing class projects, the Class of ’87 Scholarship Fund and Dartmouth Partners in Community Service. In addition, the Alumni Fund welcomes contributions through June 30 toward giving for the fiscal year. Please consider a donation to the College to help the class meet our annual goal.


See what’s going on with ’87s on Facebook: www.facebook.com/dartmouth87.


—Lisa Pabich Damon, 2124 Ashwood Ave., Nashville, TN 37212; lisa.damon.87@alum.dartmouth.org Allison Bleyler McDonald, 43 Hop Brook Road, Amherst MA 01002; allisonmcd@gmail.com


By the time you all are reading this, it will be less than a year until our 25th class reunion, scheduled for June 14-17, 2012. It won’t be the same if you aren’t there, so mark your calendars now and plan to attend. 


Recently I was fortunate enough to catch up with two dear friends, and although it hasn’t been 25 years since I’ve seen them, it has been a while and it was eerie how little they’ve changed. I spent a winter weekend visiting Betsy Wall Rutherford, her husband, Ken ’86, and their kids Emily (17) and Andy (14) in Baltimore. Betsy is working at Johns Hopkins University Business School in development and is as organized, buoyant and energetic as she was in Hanover, only now she has more to juggle. Our class is in good hands with her on the reunion planning committee—only I know she will be hounding me to register up until the day we arrive in Hanover next June. I guess time passes but some things never change. During spring break I took my three children out to California for the rightly fabled Pacific Coast Highway road trip from Los Angeles to San Francisco. In addition to taking in amazing views, historic sites and miscellaneous hi-jinks adventures, I spent a couple of days with Evan Marquit, his wife, Laura, and their children Sadie (7) and Julian (5) in San Anselmo. All the mountain biking and back-country skiing that Evan does has preserved his joie de vivre. 


From a point east John Schmeeckle writes“I needed a job quick when I finished my master’s degree two years ago, so here I am in Seoul teaching conversational English to university students and business professionals. Regarding the master’s degree (in history), I stumbled across the official 1776 congressional definition of ‘happiness,’ which is going to upset a lot of established scholars when the word gets around. Somebody posted my master’s thesis online at http://gradworks.umi.com/14/56/1456018.html; my next step is to get published or get into a Ph.D. program.” 


Other classmates are making a stir, too. Ricki Stern and Annie Sundberg ’90, documentary filmmakers, recently won the 2011 Career Award by the Full Frame Documentary Festival in Durham, North Carolina. Despite the sobriquet, Stern and Sundberg are in the prime of their careers. After the release of their 1998 debut documentary, In My Corner, the filmmakers have generated an impressive, award-winning body of work during the last five years, starting with The Trials of Darryl Hunt (2006), The Devil Came on Horseback (2007), an exposé on genocide in Darfur told from the perspective of Brian Steidle, a former Marine and African Union monitor, and Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work (2010). Their latest project, Burma Soldier, tells the improbable story of Myo Myint, who converted from a fighter in Burma’s junta to a pro-democracy activist and political prisoner.


—Melissa Wallshein Smith, 77 Benedict Hill Road, New Canaan, CT 06840; melissaj@optonline.net; Wendy Becker, 4 Essex Villas, London W8 7BN, United Kingdom, England, W8 5NA; wendy.becker. 87@alum.dartmouth.org 


The 25th reunion is right around the corner, Thursday to Sunday, June 14-17! 


If you haven’t registered yet, check out the class website for current details, www. dartmouth87.org, or e-mail reunion@dartmouth87.org. You’ll find events, attendee list, lodging information and anything else you need to plan for this once-in-a-lifetime event. 


Also take a look at the class Facebook page to see what other ’87s are talking about, www.facebook.com/pages/dartmouth-class-of-1987/154123887962677. Lastly, another way to reconnect before reunion is through LinkedIn, www.linkedin.com/groups/dartmouth-class- 1987-4022639.


The class is also looking to fill a new slate of class officers. If you have a desire to serve the Dartmouth community or wish to recommend someone, e-mail: h@dartmouth87.org.


Lisa Pabich Damon writes from Nashville, Tennessee, that none of the several college towns she has lived in hold the special place in her heart that Hanover does. “My kids Lindsay, 8, and Christopher, 11, have been to Dartmouth only once—we had an adventurous drive in a snowstorm in 2007 to visit Christen O’Connor, and due to some extenuating circumstances got “snowed in” at the Hanover Inn for several nights. We had a fabulous time visiting with friends, eating at old haunts, making angels on the Green in freshly fallen snow and sledding at the golf course. I am so excited to bring my family to the 25th reunion to give them a taste of Hanover in the warmer months. I had a great phone conversation with Susie Olson Perret about life in the Midwest and youth sports schedules; I’ve gotten a better handle on Facebook. Thank you, Sue Axelrod Emanuel, for being my friend! We really enjoy being in Nashville. My husband is on the faculty at Vanderbilt. I mostly hold down the home front, keep up with the kids and volunteer with the public schools. I seem to live in a high-Dartmouth-density neighborhood—at least three other alums in a two-block radius, including Matt Wiltshire ’96, and Kerstin Stanley Clark ’90. I have enjoyed seeing Cheryl Maier Walsh and her family on Cape Cod, Massachusetts, when we have been traveling—hope to see her and her husband, John Walsh, in June. Besides connecting with old friends, I’m looking forward to meeting people I never knew at Dartmouth at the reunion.”


Liz Davey, director of the Tulane office of environmental affairs, was the first recipient of the Yvette Milner Jones Award, recognizing an outstanding Tulane staff member or administrator “because of her exemplary leadership in the areas of Tulane’s sustainability and environmental responsibility, her ability to build partnerships and relationships to facilitate the university’s goals in this regard and her demonstrated innovation in her work” said Anne Baños, vice president for administrative services. In 1999 Davey was named Tulane’s first sustainability manager.


“There’s always plenty going on in the Voves household,” writes Joe Voves. “Lucie Haswell Voves ’86 and I have four kids ages 9 to 17 and they all keep us very busy. Our oldest is a high school senior and the college application process is full swing. We were just in Hanover last June for Lucie’s 25th—it was a great time and I absolutely recommend that ’87s get our date down on their calendars now. Lucie and I work together and business is going well (www.diplomaframe.com). What started as a basement business selling diploma frames to the Dartmouth Co-op in 1991 is now quite a different and flourishing operation. We have 60 full-time employees and sell frames for more than 1,500 colleges and professional associations across the United States.”


—Melissa Wallshein Smith, 77 Benedict Hill Road, New Canaan, CT 06840; melissaj@optonline.net; Wendy Becker, 4 Essex Villas, London, W8 7BN, UK, England; wendy.becker.87@alum.dartmouth.org