Class Notes 1996

With 2023 coming to its end and a new year on the horizon, we reflect on what has transpired over the last year. For the class of 1996, this most recent trip around the sun has been marked by remarkable personal growth, amazing professional achievement, and important familial events. With these concluding notes for the year and (for many) the last in our 40s, we salute a few of our bold classmates tackling new challenges this year.

Many ’96s were literally making great strides as they dedicated themselves to distance runs across the country. In early October Katie (Shutzer) Brennan completed the “51st Annual LBI Commemorative 18-Mile Run” in Long Beach Township, New Jersey (reportedly with the “best team” cheering for her along the way). That same week Drew Brady finished his first triathlon in Rock Hall, Maryland. Inga (Fisk) Stenta completed the Chicago Marathon; she indicated that this her 10th marathon was a “spectacular event” and offered thanks to “her dearest and oldest friends, Margie (Block) and Kevin Stineman, for hosting and shuttling and making pasta reservations and dealing with my crazy pre-marathon rituals.” In mid-October brothers-in-law Tom Shea and Chad Northrup ran the Baystate Marathon in Lowell, Massachusetts; according to Chad, it is “always great being out there with Tom,” and he was “very thankful to my family for supporting me in this craziness, especially my nephew [and Tom’s son], Cooper, who met us at the finish line.” And, lastly, Devon Carew and Laura Bright were part of a Dartmouth Club of Oregon team that completed a 196-mile relay run from Mount Hood to the Oregon coast; they ran with 10 other alums (from a ’69 all the way to recent ’23 grads) and the team completed the event in 32 hours, placing in the top half of its division despite the intent of “simply having a good time.”

Not to be outdone, several ’96s were also “winning” in the workplace. K.C. Danzansky relayed her “very last day as a General Mills employee! More than half my life (27 freaking years!) working for the company that gave me so much, including my incredible husband. Lots of gratitude for the growth, experience, and friendships—on to new adventures with Ecolab!” Shannon Smith-Bernardin announced with a “Woohoo baby!” that she had been promoted to associate professor at the University of California, San Francisco, School of Nursing. Oliver Will started a new position as research scientist at Oracle after nearly three years in research and development at Cerner Enviza. Jessica Schopp shared that she started a new position as head of global treasury management technical sales at US Bank (in her second year at the bank and after a previous 15 years of progressive product management positions at JPMorgan Chase). And Thomas “T.C.” Clarke posted that a work from his photography project on yoga was accepted to the De Young Museum’s 2023 Open for local artists; his portrait titled Triangle will be featured in the Sunnyvale, California, museum’s exhibit from September 30 to January 6.

A few of our alumni couples were also celebrating major life milestones this fall. In October Daphnie Monie and Devin Morgan were able to (finally) make it to their 20th wedding anniversary trip to Italy (postponed from 2020 by Covid); the couple saw much of the country, including Rome, Pompeii, Capri, Assisi, Venice, Tuscany, Pisa, Florence, and San Gimignano. Also celebrating were Stephanie (Brown) Scales and her husband, Webb ’86, who marked their 25th anniversary with a two-week trip across Scotland.

—Garrett Gil de Rubio, 1062 Middlebrooke Drive, Canton, GA 30115; ggdr@alum.dartmouth.org

This summer has been a time marked by new adventures and personal development for quite a few ’96s.

Heather McNemar completed the Tashkent Half Marathon in Kazakhstan in mid-June; she completed the event alongside one of her best running friends, who has been living in-country as well. She writes: “13.1 miles around the city, hitting all our favorite spots and ending in the Botanical Gardens (which was thankfully significantly cooler!).”

Shannon Smith-Bernardin literally set out on an adventure of a lifetime, traveling to Egypt with her husband, Alex, and a few friends in May. Despite delays in arrival of their luggage enroute from San Francisco, she and her group naturally visited the Pyramids and enjoyed multiple scuba dives off the Egyptian coast and an incredible five-hour spa experience (for some much-needed pampering). Weeks later (back home in San Francisco in early June) Shannon said, “Hello to a random guy walking by wearing a Dartmouth sweatshirt.” After discovering they were a ’96 and a ’91, respectively, he walked home and gifted Shannon a couple of his Dartmouth hats!

Starting an exciting new chapter of her life is our own Sansea Jacobson, who announced her engagement to John Miraglia exactly five years to the day the pair met. She expressed that, “Every story is unique, but ours is my favorite!” Congrats to the happy couple!

Continuing her musical legacy from our undergraduate years, Alicia Jennings has spent the 2022-23 season performing as a soprano with the Washington Chorus. The symphonic chorus had a triumphant performance of Beethoven’s “Symphony No. 9” at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts on June 3. The Washington Post truly sang the praises of the concert: “I’ve been waiting to hear the Washington Chorus tackle the Ninth since word first surfaced of this series, and it did not disappoint. The chorus was wonderfully balanced: rich and sturdy lows buttressing the crystalline gleam of the sopranos. No small feat when everything is turned up to the 19th-century equivalent of 11.”

On the professional front, kudos are also due to a few of our amazing classmates for their new work adventures. First, congrats to Sara (Solin) Martinez on her new position as director of alumni relations and corporate partnerships for the Georgetown University McDonough School of Business. As Sara described it, “I’ve worked in consulting, marketing, and finance and now I’m excited to jump into…higher ed!” Despite her new role, Sara will continue her volunteer support of the Women of Dartmouth’s District of Columbia chapter, where she has served as regional chair for the past few years.

Congrats also go out to Todd Newman, who after four years working as VP for innovation at Keurig Dr. Pepper, charted a completely new course in launching Manium Brands in the spring of 2023. His new company will be dedicated to the cultivation of fresh branding for consumer product goods companies—focusing on product strategy, brand strategy, and commercialization-marketing strategy for emerging established and emerging consumer packaged goods brands.

Also venturing into a new professional chapter was Morgen Sullivan, who announced in May that she was starting a new position as special projects manager at Feeding Northeast Florida, the largest food bank and hunger relief network in the greater Jacksonville area (and surrounding counties).

Lastly, congrats to Laura Fowler, who was officially named chief sustainability officer for Penn State University and director of the Penn State Sustainability Institute. Laura, a teaching professor of law at Penn State Law School and researcher with expertise centering on water, energy, agriculture, and dispute resolution, has been serving in both roles on an interim basis since July 2022.

—Garrett Gil de Rubio, 1062 Middlebrooke Drive, Canton, GA 30115; ggdr@alum.dartmouth.org

It has been quite a busy start to 2023 for the class of ’96—creatively and occupationally in particular!

Congrats to our own Taurey Butler, recently lauded by several jazz publications for his recent album, One of the Others. The work features a piano-bass-drums trio, with Taurey on piano. Downbeat magazine recently wrote of his work: “Butler’s originals and arrangements of standards honor the swing approach of the genre as a purist while still feeling entirely contemporary.” The album scored so high (4.5/5) that it was named one of Downbeat’s Best Albums of 2022. Taurey was further featured in a January article in JazzTimes magazine reviewing the influence of his lifelong journey to his now permanent home-base of Montreal.

In other updates from our musically inclined classmates, Brendan Doherty announced the release of his most recent book: Fundraiser in Chief: Presidents and the Politics of Campaign Cash. The book was published two months early (how often does that happen?) and represents a study of how presidents allocate their time, efforts, and other resources while in office and the potential controversies, ethical challenges, and implications for American political leadership that such fundraising represents.

Suzie Brown Sax had two exciting announcements relating to her musical career (not to be confused with her full-time side “hobby” of being a cardiologist). First, she announced that she would be recording her eighth studio album at the end of February; the album will feature Jano Rix (of the Wood Brothers) stripped down, with his piano and Suzie’s vocals. Additionally, Suzie will be on a bit of a European tour later this summer—including the “Roots, Ribs, Brews” festival in the Netherlands in July and a few to-be-named dates in the United Kingdom.

One of our extended ’96 family members has been making headlines of his own. Jack Kolodny’s son, Max, appeared on Good Morning America in mid-January, when he was interviewed by Michael Strahan and his designs featured on air. The budding couture dress designer (a.k.a. “Max Alexander”) has nearly 1 million followers on Instagram, has already held his first runway show at the tender age of 6 (with his second show now in the works), and has just signed with an agent. Celebrities are already reaching out to him to commission pieces for him to design and produce. Great job, Max!

In major life-change news, Megan Luce, husband Lindsay, and two sons recently moved from their home base of Seattle to Christchurch, New Zealand, for a six-month sabbatical (from February to July). Megan, a faculty member at Cascadia College since 2008, will be a visiting scholar working in the mathematics and statistics department at the University of Canterbury. She has already connected with Annie (Soutter) and Travis Horton, who live in Christchurch with their family. Megan relayed that Annie has already been able to provide amazing guidance as they prepared to travel, picked them up at the airport when they arrived, and then had the entire family over for dinner on their first day in town. Ironically, the Hortons’ daughter and Megan’s 14-year-old son are in the same form class (homeroom) together at Burnside High School. She said, “I am feeling lucky to have the opportunity to reconnect after all these years with somebody who is still so awesome.”

Lastly, some quick congratulations to Mal Wrenn on her new position as administrative VP of strategic solutions, partnerships, and outreach at Voya Financial; to Jonathan Hodgson, who recently became managing director at ClearView Healthcare Partners; and to Sheryl Jacobson, who is now medical-technology leader at Deloitte Consulting!

—Garrett Gil de Rubio, 1062 Middlebrooke Drive, Canton, GA 30115; ggdr@alum.dartmouth.org

As these Class Notes find their way onto the page, the first of many laps are being run around a blazing Homecoming bonfire on the eve of what I hope was a strong showing against Harvard at Memorial Field. The chill autumn air has already enveloped the Upper Valley and several classmates will be making the journey “home” to mark the annual passing of one of our inherently Dartmouth experiences.

With just a few months removed since our late summer reunion (another of those uniquely Dartmouth experiences), stories continue to trickle in from classmates who recently made that same journey home to Hanover. Jacquelyn Chappel—who traveled in from Hawaii where she teaches composition and developmental English at Kapiolani Community College and serves as a supervisor for teacher candidates at the Leeward Community College College of Education—said that some of the funniest conversations she had were, in fact, with ’96 parents about their own children (in particular, those of the 13- to 14-year-old age range). Names have been redacted to protect innocent parents in need of support.

One father relayed that with respect to his two kids and with all comic seriousness: “Every. Day. Is. A. Struggle.” Another challenged parent passed along that, “I’m pretty sure my 14-year-old doesn’t like me.” And one parental guardian offered what Jacquelyn found to be sage advice: “For preteens it’s all about ‘high frequency-low amplitude’ (lots of time-low stakes interactions), while for teens, it’s about ‘low frequency-high amplitude.’ They need less of your time, but when they do, cancel your meetings, move everything, make time for that teen. They need you.” As the father of a teenage daughter, I can personally identify with all three of these statements on any given day!

Speaking of ’96 fathers and their kids, our own Peter Jastreboff and his family (including his young son and daughter) made the long trip to New Hampshire just as the newest chapter of their lives was about to unfold. Their time in Hanover was part of a two-month sojourn on the East Coast of the United States midway through a round-the-globe move from their long-time home in Hong Kong to their new home in London, England. After multiple years specializing in systems architecture and information security within the financial services segment in the Asia-Pacific market (including multi-year stints with Morgan Stanley, JP Morgan, and Credit Suisse), Pete set forth for a new adventure in Europe as VP of client services with Talos, an assets trading platform provider that supports a crypto-asset market structure across the diverse parties involved with crypto trade.

One last note of congratulations to Monica (Oberkofler) Gorman after her recent transition to her new role as special assistant to the president for manufacturing and industrial policy at the National Economic Council. Her new role in the Biden White House represents a transition after 18 months as deputy assistant secretary of manufacturing in the U.S. Department of Commerce. Monica indicated that, “It is the honor of a lifetime (and extraordinarily humbling) to have been asked to take on this position, where I will continue to work on addressing the nation’s supply-chain challenges.”

—Garrett Gil de Rubio, 1062 Middlebrooke Drive, Canton, GA 30115; ggdr@alum.dartmouth.org

As these notes are being written, the class of ’96 is mere days away from gathering in Hanover for our pandemic-delayed 25th reunion in July. I look forward to highlighting in our next column stories of great revelry, recollection, and togetherness as we gather in the hallowed place that calls us all home.

It is therefore with great sadness that I relay that one of our classmates will quite unexpectedly not be joining us for our return to Hanover—as I must report the untimely passing of Rusty Dalferes, whose family conveyed news of his passing on May 11 from natural causes after a short illness. Rusty, to so many who knew him, was a beacon of positivity, friendly spirit, and unbridled enthusiasm, particularly when it came to his love for international law and promotion of global harmony. After graduating from Dartmouth Rusty obtained his J.D. in international law from Tulane University Law School, and it was at Tulane where he first took up the mantle of working with the International Law Students Association (ILSA) and its annual Jessup Competition. Within a year he joined the board of directors of the Jessup and eventually began communicating with and coordinating hundreds of judges around the world. He truly espoused and promoted the Jessup motto, “In the future, world leaders will look upon each other differently, because we met here first, as friends.”

Brian Johnson, who like Rusty attended Tulane Law after our time in Hanover, quite eloquently eulogized someone who was a light to so many: “Rest easy, my friend. You blessed everyone you met with your friendship, intelligence, and spirit. You are gone too soon, but yours was a life well lived. Newman will miss your kicking, Dartmouth will miss your pong skills, Tulane Law will miss your enthusiasm. Your Goodreads reviews have been my go-to for years. Luckily you reviewed so many, I’ll never run out. I’m not sure if you came back to NOLA for Mardi Gras this year, but I hope you squeezed one last one in. Until we meet again.”

A well-deserved shout-out and congratulations to our own Ruth Morgan, who had a few good reasons herself to head back to Hanover recently. She joined several of our ’96 Black Alumni of Dartmouth Association (BADA) members for its 50th reunion this past Memorial Day Weekend. (Drew Brady, Evelyn Waters Brady ’95, Timmeko Love, and approximately 300 other BADA alums from various classes were also in attendance).

Just the week prior Ruth was also recognized as one of five recipients of Dartmouth’s Social Justice awards—honoring outstanding contributions to social justice, peace, civil rights, education, public health, and environmental justice. The awards were presented by Martin Luther King III in a ceremony at Spaulding Auditorium on May 23. Ruth was presented the Ongoing Commitment Award honoring an individual who has dedicated between 10 and 20 years to a chosen field. Ruth has dedicated her career as a family medicine physician to working with underserved communities, addressing health disparities, and helping educate future medical professionals. Ruth is the medical director of primary care at the integrated courtyard clinic for Project Homeless Engagement Addressing Limitations to Healthcare on the Haven for Hope campus in San Antonio, Texas. She also serves as core faculty and a site director for the community-based family medicine residency at the Texas Institute for Graduate Medical Education and Research. She has advocated on local, state, and national levels for housing-first models, graduate medical education expansion for family and community medicine programs, increasing mental health resources, and expanding medical coverage for the underinsured.

—Garrett Gil de Rubio, 1062 Middlebrooke Drive, Canton, GA 30115; ggdr@alum.dartmouth.org

The days are winding down until our slightly delayed 25th reunion in Hanover!

We have a lot of exciting plans in the works for everyone able to make it back to campus (and potentially a few options for those not able to make the trek back home). For information regarding our 25th, please contact our illustrious reunion chair Nakiah Cherry Chinchilla via email at nhc9d6reunion@gmail.com or visit our class of ’96 reunion page via www.dartmouth1996.org/25yearreunion. Looking forward to seeing everyone July 22-24!

And just in time for said reunion, one of our classmates is happily reconnecting with a few classmates after a recent life change. Bill Tovell shared his own deferred news (after finally settling into their new home) that he and his family had relocated to Dallas back in June 2021. Bill remains a senior banker at JP Morgan; in 2021 he also joined the board of Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America—helping connect, unite, and empower post-9/11 veterans.

Bill also reports that soon after the Tovell family’s relocation to Dallas, Jamie Hutter visited on his way home to New Zealand. Matt McGill also recently visited Bill on a work trip to the area and that he lives “uncomfortably close” to one Burns McKinney, who is managing director for NFJ Investment Group and himself based in Dallas. Bill invited anyone to ping him if work or life brings you to the Dallas area!

—Garrett Gil de Rubio, 1062 Middlebrooke Drive, Canton, GA 30115; ggdr@alum.dartmouth.org

The past two pandemic-defined years have represented life, relational, and professional challenges for the whole of humanity. With everyone’s lives greatly shifted from their norms, the collective mental and emotional health of our society has been plagued by fears of isolation, of suffering and illness, and of the unknown that the future represents for all of us. Despite this recent uncertainty, many of our amazing classmates continue to take new directions in so many aspects of their lives and careers—and a select group among us are specifically helping others to set the course for their new directions. One such guide helping her fellow humans to identify and pursue their intended paths is our own Jennie Tranter. As a psychotherapist and transformational coach, Jennie launched a private practice in September working with adults, adolescents, young people, and their families with a concentration on “liminality”—the psychological process of transitioning across boundaries and borders—a concept she discovered during her tenure at Dartmouth. Liminality encompasses the unknown and the discomfort of not knowing the right steps forward while also not being able to go backward. Her professional goal is to help people on their “journeys of transition and transformation” as they pass through their own liminal spaces. She has recently begun providing coaching and psychotherapy options via her main website at jennietranter.com.

And speaking of celebrating and promoting the paths of others, our own class president Leslie (Jennings) Rowley has recently ventured to document the paths many of our classmates have followed since their years as undergraduates. Her now award-winning Roads Taken podcast traces where our fellow ’96s were upon graduation, who they thought they would be, and the eventual roads taken across the 25 years that led them to where they are today. (See a profile of her and the podcast in the last DAM.) Each weekly episode of the podcast follows a different classmate’s journey between their liminal spaces (à la Jennie Tranter’s conceptual work discussed earlier in these notes).

The themes of each episode are as diverse and exciting as the members of our class themselves. Recent installments have included: “Gratitude, Attitude & Courage: Kate Andrew Kelly on finding joy by developing it in others”; “Pursuing Integrity: Tim Chow on being true to yourself”; and “Lucky & Charmed: K.C. Danzansky on staying the course and finding the new.” Season 2 of the podcast series also includes episodes focused on Kate Shanahan, Ryan Donovan, Carrie Kuss, Wendi Potter McKenna, Bill Tovell, Sarah Hodges, Carrington Bradley, Adam Medros, Sansea Jacobson, Kevin McGowan, Michael Zigmont, Rose Lee, Drew Natenshon, Sara Paisner,and Jeff Botelho—and those are just the episodes from the past four months prior to the submission of this column! The episodes are a great way to catch up with and find out more about the dynamic roads our lives have taken during these past two and half decades, and it is becoming a resource for younger alums and undergraduates to explore avenues they might undertake as they set their lives in new directions.

Take a few minutes and sit down with a classmate today via roadstakenshow.com—you won’t regret it and might even learn something new about yourself as you listen to the stories of others! If nothing else, catch up on everyone’s lives in advance of our forthcoming reunion—now just seven months away!

—Garrett Gil de Rubio, 1062 Middlebrooke Drive, Canton, GA 30115; ggdr@alum.dartmouth.org

Many of our classmates were disappointed by the cancellation of our in-person 25th reunion to be held this past June. But we are quite happy to report that we will indeed be holding that reunion in Hanover (albeit one year later) from July 22-24, 2022! Our reunion chair Nakiah Cherry Chinchilla is assembling an amazing reunion committee to plan and execute a celebratory on-campus event this time next summer! Be on the lookout for details (preliminarily themed “25 in 22”) as well as a few pre-reunion events leading up to the big date!

Though we were not able to gather for our standard class meeting held at reunion, we did elect a new slate of class officers who will lead the class for the next five years, including next year’s gathering. Leslie Jennings Rowley will officially take the helm as president, with Drew Brady and Sara Paisner serving as co-vice presidents; Garrett Gil de Rubio and Shervyn von Hoerl will continue in their roles as class secretary and treasurer, respectively. We also have an incredible cadre of talented classmates who will work with the named execs to lead the class for the next half decade.

As we simultaneously welcome Drew Brady into class leadership, he and his family are celebrating another significant chapter in their Dartmouth story. Though this past June did not have a reunion in the cards for our class, Drew’s daughter, Ashleigh, and her ’21 classmates were gratefully able to celebrate the conclusion of their tenures as Dartmouth undergraduates with an in-person Commencement in Hanover. Proud father Drew relayed, “Wow, how time flies. I can’t express in words how proud her mom and I are of her. She has grown up to be a phenomenal young woman who is learning her place in the world. Congratulations to all of the 2021 graduates, and a special congratulations to you, Ashleigh.” Congrats extend not only to the latest members of our alumni community, but also to Drew himself—who was recently recognized as a “Delaware Today Top Doc” for trauma surgery. Drew is an esteemed orthopedic surgeon specializing in general orthopedics, orthopedic trauma, hip and knee with interests in arthritis, fracture care, and trauma. He is one of only a few physicians in Delaware performing anterior total hip replacement.

Congratulations also extend to our own Brian Johnson. Residing in New Orleans, where he is a commercial real estate, commercial, and business attorney with Baldwin Haspel Burke & Mayer, Brian recently received the Louisiana State Bar Association’s “Free Legal Answers Award” for his commitment and dedication to providing pro bono service to the state’s indigent. Brian indicated that he was “happy to receive this reward and happy to help people who can’t otherwise afford attorneys, particularly with regards to successions, inheritance rights, and evictions.”

Also professionally speaking, congratulations to Sara McKinstry, who recently started a position as an environmental, social, and governance (ESG) specialist at Argyle/DG3, which does corporate communications and annual reporting. She’ll be helping corporate clients with their ESG and diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) communications, including annual reporting. Congratulations are also extended to Shakari (Cameron) Byerly, who will be continuing as a fellow in the UCLA labor and workplace studies department next year after getting rave student reviews for her course on “Making Black Lives Matter: The History and Politics of Black Workers” this past spring. It is scheduled again this fall.

Lastly, on the personal side of things, we received wonderful news from Julie Chilton, who excitedly announced her engagement in mid-June. “I’m so very happy with my own ‘coup de foudre,’ Cameron Moore, my hubs to be!”

—Garrett Gil de Rubio, 1062 Middlebrooke Drive, Canton, GA 30115; ggdr@alum.dartmouth.org

Many classmates (myself included!) have expressed disappointment in the cancellation of what was to have been our big 25th reunion in Hanover this June. Our class execs are quickly looking into other potential activities to gather everyone in some form—with hope that we will be able to get together on campus soon.

In the meanwhile, we will continue to keep everyone connected and updated on the many roads life continues to take our ’96 family. Despite pandemic-laden difficulties of this past year, many are setting off on incredible new chapters in their lives! For example, Aleph Henestrosa, his wife, and daughter made lemons out of lemonade by using the pandemic as a reason to permanently relocate to Melbourne, Australia. Aleph reports, “The Australian government just put me through one of the hardest experiences of my life, locking me and my wife up in a hotel room for 14 nights with our 3-year-old toddler. But, man, it was worth it.” Australia’s effective quarantine and lockdown procedures may have been tough but in the end “some sacrifices are truly worth it!”

As for new career paths, a few rapid-fire shoutouts to some classmates setting sail on new directions in their careers. In January Morgen Sullivan joined the faculty of the University of Florida Levin College of Law as an adjunct professor; this career pivot comes after a 12-year tenure as associate general counsel for CSX Transportation and a year at fin-tech company Voleo. In 2020 Timmeko Moore Love joined energy utility Entergy, a firm committed to transforming the energy utility space in Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas, as managing director. More specifically, Timmeko cofounded its corporate venture capital (CVC) unit Entergy Strategic Ventures, becoming the first Black woman to lead a CVC fund for a Fortune 500 company. Justin Steinman started a new position in late October as chief marketing officer for Definitive Healthcare in Framingham, Massachusetts, having held similar roles at Novell, GE Healthcare, and Aetna in the 12 years prior; the company is a Saas-based technology provider that offers market analytics and insights gathered from healthcare providers, facilities, and patients. Monica (Oberkofler) Gorman announced in February that she was leaving her VP position at New Balance after nine years; her departure is for a fantastic honor: She will be sworn in on March 1 as U.S. deputy assistant secretary of commerce for manufacturing. Not to be outdone on the governmental service spectrum, Joey Hood has been serving as acting assistant secretary for the U.S. State Department, recently welcoming new envoys back to Iran and Yemen after changes to the U.S. administration. Joey has been the principal deputy assistant secretary for Near Eastern affairs since 2019 and has served the U.S. diplomatic community abroad with the State Department for an amazing 23 years!

Congrats to Kendra Miller who, as executive vice-president and general counsel of BJ’s Restaurants for 10 years, was recognized by the Orange County Business Journal as one of its “People of Influence” across the whole of one of California’s largest counties. She had previously been recognized as “Outstanding General Counsel for a Public Company” after assuming additional responsibilities including employee training, well-being programs, and reduction of litigation rates. Thanks to her proud husband, Dan, for extending the shoutout!

Lastly, I want to extend congratulations to Calvin Daniels, wife Breana, and their extended family on the adoption of daughter Emerson (1). After a year-long process, she officially joins older sister Ryan (a busy undergrad at Purdue University) and brother Peyton (who just celebrated his all-important 16th birthday!). Welcome, Emerson, to the extended ’96 family!

—Garrett Gil de Rubio, 1062 Middlebrooke Drive, Canton, GA 30115; ggdr@alum.dartmouth.org

As this column is being composed, we are coming down to the last few days of what has been an arduous, cantankerous, and seemingly never-ending election cycle for the United States. Couple that with the ongoing challenges presented by a global pandemic, 2020 cannot come to an end soon enough for so many of us. And yet, as they say, happiness can be found even in the darkest of times.

First, congratulations to our own Christopher Kelly and his husband, Neritan Xhaferi, on the arrival of their daughter, Frances Kelly Xhaferi, born October 17. As of last report, she had just met her “deeply skeptical” older brother Eddie and is “gobbling up milk faster than we can make it!” With just a few days as a new family of four under the belt, they are extremely grateful for their gestational carrier and all their “family, friends, and colleagues who have offered so much love, support, and encouragement along the way.” Chris, by the way, is currently director of news innovation, topics, and features at New Jersey Advance Media, the parent company for the Newark Star-Ledger and NJ.com.

In other wonderful news, Kihara “Key” Kiarie and his wife, Caitlin, welcomed their newest bundle of joy, Mr. Kingston Onyx Kiarie, who made his “debut” on the morning of October 2. The happy couple, who reside in New York along with Kingston’s older brothers, are overjoyed with his arrival. Key is the chief financial officer of media at Geller & Co., a consultancy firm that specializes in providing custom strategic financial advisory and wealth management solutions.

Welcome to both Frances and Kingston, the newest members of our extended ’96 family! May your arrivals bring new light to a world that needs all the light it can get right about now.

Lastly, I hope everyone is looking forward to our big 25th-year reunion (it truly hurts to see that number so boldly in print!) in what will most assuredly be a wonderful new year for all of us! Nakiah (Cherry) Chinchilla has graciously volunteered as our class chair for this reunion cycle and is formulating amazing plans for us, which we hope we are all able to celebrate in person in Hanover next summer! Be on the lookout for information about the great reunion year plans in store in the weeks and months ahead—it will give us all something to which we can collectively look forward after a year that has been quite difficult for so many of us! In the meanwhile, everyone stay safe, stay sane, and stay happy!

—Garrett Gil de Rubio, 1062 Middlebrooke Drive, Canton, GA 30115; ggdr@alum.dartmouth.org

This year has been unlike any other in our tenures as alumni, not to mention our tenures as human beings. When last I wrote, we were in the initial throes of a global pandemic that had shut down most of the globe, isolated so many of us to our respective homes, and truly redefined what it is to be a society in a changing world. In the months since, horrifying events across the United States have forced American (and global) society to address its effects on many of the individuals that make up the very fabric of our nation.

I have a few updates to include in this column, but I want to first applaud the many ’96s who have made their voices heard in taking a strong stand against racism, made loud statements against hierarchical structures that continue to persecute specific members of our society, and who have fully asserted that Black Lives Matter. I have received or seen so many updates of classmates who have protested, who have affected change within their businesses and communities, or who have simply made the statement aloud that inherently racist structures must be removed from our society once and for all—I simply can’t do them all justice. Thank you all for your powerful messages and please continue to let your voices be heard. The world is listening.

With all the Covid-specific updates in the last column, I was unable to include that our own Shakari (Cameron) Byerly had published a coauthored article titled “More than Spare Change: A Case Study of Contact and Voter Support for the Homeless in Los Angeles County, California” in Urban Affairs, a peer-reviewed journal. She and her husband, Rodrego Byerly ’98, are founders and owners of Evitarus, a Los Angeles-based public opinion research and public policy consulting firm that delivers actionable strategic advice and data to public policy, political, and corporate decision-makers. Their firm had served as one of the pollsters for U.S Sen. Kamala Harris’ presidential run. “Our two local candidates this cycle, Los Angeles County supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas and California State Senate budget chair Holly Mitchell, won their primaries—so it’s on to the general election! And last year we provided the research to support the legalization of recreational cannabis use in Illinois, which included a first-in-the-nation proposal to set aside a portion of the resulting tax revenue for communities disproportionately affected by mass incarceration.” The nation and our political leaders truly need their consultative services perhaps now more than ever, so I truly hope Evitarus is called on more in the weeks and months ahead!

I do also want to extend congratulations to David Kasregis, as he and his now-wife, Sara, were wed in June! Further congrats to Susie (Brown) Sax on the nomination for her album, Under the Surface, for an Independent Music Award for best folk singer-songwriter album! I also want to congratulate Holly Parker, who, after leaving her role a year ago as associate director at the University of New England North to work in its provost’s office, now returns as the interim director! She will be working and collaborating with people throughout the North Atlantic region to “support resilient communities, healthy environments, and thriving economies in Maine and elsewhere throughout the region.”

Everyone please stay safe and be good to each other.

—Garrett Gil de Rubio, 1062 Middlebrooke Drive, Canton, GA 30115; ggdr@alum.dartmouth.org

From new family members to awards to announcement of new ventures—our class continues to amaze with notable accomplishments across many facets of our personal and professional lives.

With respect to new arrivals, Michael Roberts and wife Alisha Davis announced the birth of their daughter, Sylvia Davis Roberts. “Little Sylvie was born January 8 at 5:15 a.m. Mom, dad, and big sister Alice are all over the moon with joy!” Also, Elizabeth Meyer Kelley (who in her “spare time” is director of class activities of the College) celebrated “Rennie Day” on January 17—the day when her daughter legally became a Kelley (though Rennie was truly theirs at 2 weeks old). The family now features “three kiddos within 33 months of each other” and Elizabeth proclaimed the experience as being “like the Iron Man of parenting.” And lastly, Melinda Holl Young and fiancé Greg White were engaged on December 24! Welcome to the ’96 family, Sylvie, Rennie, and Greg!

Jami Papa brought news of an exciting change in her life and career. Jami, a foreign service officer for the U.S. Department of State, announced, “After two crazy years, I am leaving Kabul today for the last time! Next stop will be Nairobi—visitors are welcome!” This change comes after 15 years of service in six countries and across three administrations. Matt Little also had a major change of his own. After five years as executive director of the Cascade Forest Conservancy in Washington State, Matt announced that he would run as an independent for the Clark County council—check out his website at mattlittle4clarkcounty.org.

Corby Thomas was gearing up for release of his first children’s music single, “Fun in the Yard,” in December. He has been the owner-operator of New York live music venue and restaurant Session 73 for 20 years. When son Jackson was born in early 2019, Corby started composing music and creating “Tunesy Time” jam sessions with his family. He will release additional singles in 2020 with the goal of “inspiring young imaginations and invoking a spirit of both curiosity and collaboration.” After a Kickstarter campaign, he headed to the studio to record his new compositions and worked with animators to produce accompanying music videos.

Congrats to Brandon del Pozo (the former chief of police of Burlington, Vermont). In January Brandon successfully defended his doctoral dissertation at the City University of New York. One of Brandon’s mentors paid his defense the highest compliment when he said, “We’d be in a better place in the nation if the police gave as much careful thought to how we should serve citizens as was laid out in the dissertation.”

Lastly comes news of several class authors (from each other no less!). Brad Parks, one of our class literati, was presenting at the Library of Virginia Literary Awards, where he ran into another of our prized writers, Erika Meitner. Erika’s work, Holy Moly Carry Me—a work Brad describes as “totally worth a read if you enjoy deeply human poems that grapple with everything from parenting to race relations to religious identity”—was nominated for the poetry prize at the ceremony. Erika has been traveling the country conducting readings at universities, bookstores, bars, and lecture halls for the better part of the past year. Probably the most amazing endorsement of her literary prowess came from our own Kerry (Fiacco) White, whose son, Thomas, needed a book of contemporary poetry for his AP English course—for which Kerry wholeheartedly recommended an autographed copy of a certain ’96 author’s Holy Moly Carry Me.

Not to be outdone, Brad had amazing news of his own, announcing that his The Last Act had been optioned by SkyDance Media—the company behind Mission: Impossible, Jack Ryan, Jack Reacher—for development as a television series. He said, “We’re still a long way from a green light, but this is an exciting step for a story I truly love.”

—Garrett Gil de Rubio, 1062 Middlebrooke Drive, Canton, GA 30115; ggdr@alum.dartmouth.org

It is with great sadness that I convey the untimely passing of one of our own. Jason York passed away unexpectedly on July 19, after suffering a heart attack. He leaves behind his wife, Julia, six adopted children, and his extended family. Jason resided in Madison, Mississippi, where he was an executive at Pearl River Resort in Choctaw (his employer for nearly 22 years). While at Dartmouth Jason was a beloved member of the Tabard and a government major. In condolences expressed on social media, Shervyn von Hoerl said his friends and family “will miss his gentle, generous humanity, and wonderful sense of humor,” and Tracy Canard Goodluck described him as “one of the kindest and gentlest people I knew.” Rest in peace, Jason, and comfort to your loved ones during this time of great loss.

As so often happens in times of sadness, the universe balances and affords us equally happy news as well. The class of ’96 can rejoice in what I could only call an epidemic of weddings this summer! Jorge Motoshige and his new bride, Elisabeth, were wed in Greece in the middle of June (with, from what I hear, lyrical vows!); Michael Roberts and Trevor Peterson were able to attend the festivities.

Kareema Lachica and her groom, Robert Wallos, were married in early July after 10 beautiful days of wedding celebration with family and friends in Playa del Carmen, Mexico (with Larisa Layug able to join the, in her words, “just crazy” couple in their celebrations).

Craig Pawling and his bride, Kendra, officially jumped into the foray of marriage in early August. The couple resides in Wilmington, North Carolina, where Craig is vice president of mobile product for Apiture.

Last (but certainly not least) in our slew of summer-ceremony newlyweds was Eugenia Kim, who married fellow designer Christopher Lee in mid-June. The pair met via a tennis partner matching site in 2012 and the rest, as they say, is history. The ceremony itself featured both an underlying tennis motif and (naturally) designs from Eugenia’s own millinery—whose designs have included a collection at Target and have been worn by the likes of Beyoncé, Madonna, Gwyneth Paltrow, and numerous other celebrities. The wedding itself was covered by no less than Vogue.com (yes, that Vogue), including an online photo album (including a few of those amazing hats!).

Congrats to all our newly married couples and welcome to all their significant others, who now become part of our extended ’96 class family!

In other exciting news, Morgen Sullivan started a new position as VP of growth at Voleo, a financial-tech company that has created the mobile platform for the modern investment club. This comes after more than 12 years as general counsel at CSX Transportation in Jacksonville, Florida. She says, “It’s a new direction in my career—getting back to my econ major roots—and I’m looking forward to it.”

Jami Papa had some exciting changes of her own. Her two-year stint as a foreign service officer in Kabul, Afghanistan, came to a close and, after some much-deserved home leave, she will be relocating to Nairobi, Kenya, in October.

Finally, a quick congratulations to our own Marsha Stephanie Blake, who become a first-time Emmy nominee for her incredible performance in Netflix’s powerful When They See Us—a miniseries based on the wrongful convictions of five young men as part of the 1989 Central Park Jogger case. I hope that as this column is published Marsha will have collected her first Emmy in the early September ceremony!

—Garrett Gil de Rubio, 1062 Middlebrooke Drive, Canton, GA 30115; ggdr@alum.dartmouth.org

The spring of 2019 has been awash with exciting achievements for multiple members of the class of 1996 across many spectra.

To begin, our own Jacquelyn Chappel exhibited at AERA Toronto in April, where she was promoting her recently published book, Engendering Cosmopolitanism Through the Local: Engaging Students in International Literature Through Connections to Personal Experience and Culture. Her work presents a “critique of multicultural education” in which she argues modern education does a “disservice by imparting lessons in international culture and history through multiculturalism, which can perpetuate insularity even as it claims to promote global coverage.” Jacquelyn completed her Ph.D. in curriculum studies at the University of Hawaii at Manoa in 2017, and has most recently been teaching at Kapiolani Community College in Honolulu.

Making big waves of her own was Betsy Miller, who on April 18 was keynote speaker at Tuck’s Women Symposium. Betsy, who is a partner at Cohen Milstein in Washington, D.C. (and co-chair of the firm’s public client practice), spoke on topics of authentic leadership and inspiring tomorrow’s leaders. Shervyn von Hoerl was able to attend the session, where he summarized Betsy as handling the speech “like a [expletive redacted for family friendly reading] boss!” As co-chair of the public client practice, Betsy represents state attorneys general in enforcement investigations and litigation that protect government interests and vulnerable communities against consumer and healthcare fraud. In particular, she has played a major role in promoting national opioids litigation against manufacturers and distributors of prescription narcotics. She was recently honored by the National Law Journal as one of nine “Elite Women of the Plaintiff’s Bar.” Trial Lawyer Magazine has also named her as one of America’s “50 Most Influential Trial Lawyers.” As if not busy enough, Betsy has also served since 2001 as an adjunct professor at Georgetown Law School, where she teaches courses on negotiation and mediation.

In other exciting classmate news, Gwyn Prentice has been making some equally impressive waves this year. Her company, Helen Jon, unveiled a dual swim collection with Draper James (a brand founded by actress Reese Witherspoon). Gwyn and her partner, Missy Neville, founded the company in 2012 with the intent of creating sophisticated and flattering swimwear designs for women. The joint collection features 20 designs that include everything from swimwear to beachside dresses. It “presents a modern twist on timeless style” and features Draper James’ “signature Southern aesthetic” paired with the “classic design and supportive fit” of the Helen Jon brand. Reese Witherspoon herself stated, “We are thrilled to offer this staple [for our customers] with Helen Jon, a brand known for its excellent quality and fit.”

Lastly, a salute to two ’96s completing graduate degrees many years removed from our time in Hanover. Holly Parker met the day of her Ph.D. dissertation defense (in public policy and educational leadership) at the University of Southern Maine with both aplomb and hilarity. She started that day with a Facebook post asking, “How much coffee is too much coffee on dissertation defense day?” She then concluded her day with a photo that suggested, “So that giddy look says, ‘Somehow, I just convinced these three people to give me a Ph.D.’ ” Congrats, Dr. Parker!

Our other pending ’96 graduate is actually me (Garrett Gil de Rubio). As I write this column, I am mere hours away from completing the final exam in completion of my M.B.A. at Auburn University. I can assure you it has been no easy feat given a demanding full-time job, a busy family life, and with 20 years removed from the world of academia—but with graduation mere days away, it is done!

—Garrett Gil de Rubio, 1062 Middlebrooke Drive, Canton, GA 30115; ggdr@alum.dartmouth.org

Happy 2019 to my fellow ’96s far and wide! As we usher in this final year of the decade, we close the books on a year in which so many of our classmates have left indelible marks in fields where they work to make the world a happier, healthier place for all of us.

To begin, congratulations to Dr. Sansea Jacobson, who was recently promoted to associate professor of psychiatry at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine (UPMC). Sansea is widely respected as a leader in medical education oriented toward child and adolescent psychiatry, promoting compassionate care of children and their families. As such, she provides care for her young patients in the Services for Teens at Risk clinic (a program focused on suicide prevention for depressed and anxious youth), at the UPMC Western Psychiatric Hospital’s Center for Children and Families, and through her affiliation with the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. She is a frequent speaker on suicide prevention at both the local and national levels.

Like Sansea, Chesley (Homan) Flotten is charting a course of her own in the arena of mental and emotional health counseling. Chesley is a licensed clinical social worker specializing in patients suffering from anxiety, depression, illness and disability, grief and loss, and caregiving stress. “I’m excited to announce that I’ve started a private counseling practice! It’s been in the works for a while now, as I’ve been looking for a way to expand my work to help people in my local community. I’ll also be offering telehealth for those a bit further away [from her base in Topsham, Maine] or for whom coming to an office isn’t possible.” She has launched clearspacecounseling.com to better serve the needs of potential patients and offer broader support in some of life’s toughest times.

Also working to promote the importance of self-care for mothers is Wendi McKenna, who was recently featured on a segment of Good Morning San Diego to discuss that particular topic in detail. Wendi is a pediatric physical therapist who specializes in working with parents to better understand and foster their children’s motor and sensory development. She is the founder of Strides Physical Therapy, a pediatric physical therapy clinic in Solana Beach, California, and MovePlayGrow.com, a site that works to better prepare parents to minimize preventable medical diagnoses and movement dysfunction in their children.

Two of our classmates are making bold stands locally to help expose and address our country’s massive opioid addiction epidemic. Brandon del Pozo has tackled the issue head on early in his tenure as chief of police for Burlington, Vermont. He has addressed the Burlington city council on the topic and recently very publicly commented on the passing of Madelyn Ellen Linsenmeir after 15 years of opioid addiction (a story picked up by People, the Huffington Post, and The Boston Globe); he did so in a Facebook post that itself went viral, resonating with many around the country. He also asked scientists specializing in addiction science and psychiatry to work with Burlington’s police department to better allow its officers to understand the depths of and their roles in confronting the crisis.

From his side of the epidemic, Dr. Michael Bradley is working to curb opioid dependency at the South County Health Orthopedics Center in Rhode Island. In his role as an orthopedic surgeon he has outlined a multi-modal approach to pain management working between surgeon, pharmacists, and patients to minimize the use of narcotics before, during, and after surgical procedures; his approach works to control the patient’s pain levels while promoting use of non-narcotic options to reduce addiction and other side effects.

—Garrett Gil de Rubio, 1062 Middlebrooke Drive, Canton, GA 30115; ggdr@alum.dartmouth.org

It is with an extremely heavy heart that I must share the news of the untimely passing of one of our own. Andre “Dre” Junior left us on March 15 in Washington, D.C., after succumbing to multiple gunshot wounds; a D.C. man is under arrest and charged with first-degree murder while armed. Born and raised in Allendale, South Carolina, Dre and his family had resided in Upper Marlboro, Maryland. He is survived by his loving wife, Ericka Perry-Junior, young daughter Ava, parents Richard and Mary, and the extended Junior and Perry families.

Several of Dre’s Dartmouth classmates have started a GoFundMe campaign in support of Ava’s education (www.gofundme.com/andrejunior). In the months since his passing, the campaign has exceeded its initial goals for fundraising, but continues to collect donations in support of Ava. A page has also been added in his memory to the National Gun Violence Memorial site at www.gunmemorial.org/2018/03/15/andre-junior.

I feel the words from a few of our Dartmouth classmates themselves say it best: Dre “was a people person; never met a stranger. He created memories to last a lifetime with everyone…remarkable and irreplaceable!” He was “loved by fellow students, faculty, and administrators alike. This son of Dartmouth had a razor-sharp intellect, beautiful smile, and easygoing personality. It’s telling that many of his friends from all points of his life remembered him as ‘good people.’ That was Dre, good, good people.” Tracey Gainor shared the following with the class via Facebook: “Our hearts are very heavy, and we stand by Andre’s wife, beloved daughter, family, and friends. Andre was and will continue to be loved. Dartmouth ’96 loves you.” As beautifully expressed by Dre’s GoFundMe campaign and in the poignant words of another Dartmouth son (Dr. Seuss): “Don’t cry because it’s over, smile because it happened.” Rest in peace, Dre. Our thoughts and prayers are with your entire family as it contends with this senseless tragedy.

As life so often does, with great sadness comes great joy. I am pleased to announce several new arrivals to the extended ’96 family! First, I am happy to report the arrival of Vivian Camilla Grimm, who was welcomed into the world on March 13 in Seattle by her very smitten mother, Kelcey Grimm. Vivian joins her equally smitten older brother, Luke (age 4). Second, I am elated to introduce Tyler Robert Callahan, who was born on April 17 to our own Tara Callahan (who reports he is “8 pounds, 10 ounces, 20 inches, and as cute as can be!”). And last but certainly not least, I am excited to present Om Rajana Putta-Swamy, the first child for Kishan Putta and his wife, Divya. Om was born just in time for Father’s Day on June 9 in Washington, D.C. His first name represents the sound of symbol of eternal truth and knowledge and the inner self, and his second name means “brightening and illuminating” and represents a combination of all four of his grandparents. Welcome to all our newest class babies, who (if my math is indeed correct) represent some of the first members of the Big Green class of (gulp!) 2040! Finally, and with just a few words left of space in this month’s column, I am happy to congratulate (via his wife, Robyn Altman) Brendan Doherty on his promotion to full professor in political science at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland! Go, Navy!

—Garrett Gil de Rubio, 1062 Middlebrooke Drive, Canton, GA 30115; ggdr@alum.dartmouth.org

Quite often this column is dedicated to classmate news from the world of business, news of life’s little events or, occasionally, the passing of one of our own. With the conclusion of another winter behind us and the renewal that is spring, I want to dedicate this particular column to updates of a truly celebratory nature that will remind us all of the greatness that is another trip around the sun.

First, there is classmate news of the marital persuasion. I am happy to report that Mercedes Lopez married Martin Anderson on February 10. The now Mrs. Anderson, who works for the Archdiocese of New York, relayed that they were wed in a “beautiful, quiet wedding with family” in the Lady Chapel of St. Patrick’s Cathedral. Congratulations to the newlyweds and best wishes for many years of happiness ahead!

Second, we have the arrival of the newest member of the class of ’96 family. On that very same day (February 10) and in the very same city, Ryan Carey and his wife, Beth, welcomed one Finnegan Jack Carey into the world. Baby, mother and new, doting dad all appear to be doing exceptionally well!

Third, comes word of new adventures, as our own world traveler Monica Oberkofler Gorman and her husband, John, set off in January for a destination few on our planet ever get the opportunity to visit in person.

“Greetings from the end of the world. We are alive and well. The verdict for this once-in-a-lifetime post: Antarctica is magnificent and otherworldly.” I can testify to the fact that Monica’s pictures are amazing, and I am quite jealous of their amazing sojourn to the bottom of the world!

And, last, comes particularly happy news of life, perseverance and the power of family. Our own Ken Lee has endured perhaps one of the most difficult years of his life, and in doing so found a perspective to which many in this world can only aspire. I’ll let his words of late February speak for themselves: “Exactly one year ago I underwent emergency brain surgery and, for a while, could barely talk or read. Because of the doctors, nurses and staff at Massachusetts General Hospital and the Francis Burr Proton Center, tonight I get to worry about the buffalo-sriracha cauliflower I made for dinner and whether the USA will beat Canada for the gold. [Secretary’s note: They did!] I also can’t express enough thanks to my beloved wife, family and friends who made this possible.” Ken, his wife, Becky (Symmes) Lee ’98, and his entire family celebrated his last round of chemotherapy in mid-January. Best wishes for many, many years of good health to come, Kenny, and may we all take a little time to appreciate all the good that life brings us in this season of renewal!

—Garrett Gil de Rubio, 1062 Middlebrooke Drive, Canton, GA 30115; ggdr@alum.dartmouth.org

It has been an eventful autumn for many of our class business leaders. These movers and shakers have made their presence known in ways that will continue to impact the business world for years to come.

First comes word of a highly successful Dartmouth alum-led venture. Appian was founded in 1999 with the premise of low-code development, a concept oriented toward expediting the software application development process, allowing companies to cut their time to launch with enterprise innovations. Nearly 20 years later, the company’s founders are celebrating not only two decades of incredible growth but also a successful initial public offering valued at $75 million this past May. Three of the company’s four founders just happen to be Dartmouth alumni, including CEO Matt Calkins ’94 and our own Mike Beckley and Marc Wilson, who are Appian’s chief technology officer and senior VP, respectively. The IPO was so significant in fact that TechCrunch ranked it as the “No. 1 tech IPO of 2017.”

Also making news of his own was Adam Medros. After 13 pivotal years serving as senior VP of product for TripAdvisor, Adam is moving on to a new adventure. It was announced that come this November he would be assuming the role of president and chief operating officer of edX, a nonprofit, open-source learning destination bringing together online courses from more than 130 colleges and universities and other various organizations. EdX’s business focus is oriented toward transforming online and classroom learning through groundbreaking methodologies, game-like educational experiences and cutting-edge research on an open-source platform.

Last but not least comes word that our own Anh Thu Cunnion had thrown her hat in the ring in the election for town clerk and tax collector for the city of Essex, New York. Anh Thu, her husband, Jeff, and three sons have been residing there since 2016, after relocating from Baltimore, Maryland. By the time these notes are printed, the town will have its newest town clerk and here’s hoping that a future column is describing all the great work she is doing once in office!

—Garrett Gil de Rubio, 1062 Middlebrooke Drive, Canton, GA 30115; ggdr@alum.dartmouth.org

During the course of the past few months a number of ’96s have written in to express their thoughts on a number of events back in Hanover. Despite being so many years removed from our time on campus, many of the institutions that defined our collective experience called many of us “home” (or at least had us thinking of “home” quite significantly). Several members of our class were excited to attend the College’s 45th annual Native American Powwow in mid-May. Mere days later came news of the passing of William “Bill” Cook, professor of English and one of the class’ most beloved faculty members. And, then came news that Everything But Anchovies (EBAs) was closing its doors after 38 years in business.

But it was one of our classmates who has become an institution in Hanover in his own right and for whom recent weeks have represented a major milestone. It was 22 years ago that Joshua Marks and his bagpipes lead our procession into Commencement, becoming the College’s official commencement bagpiper and becoming a seminal part of the graduation experience. Just as he did for our class all those years ago (and every class since), this past June he ushered the class of 2017 into its era of alumni-hood.

In speaking with Dartmouth News, Josh remarked that, “I have been honored to play at all of them. The time has really gone fast. But Dartmouth seems to be admitting younger and younger students as I get older. With much love and respect for the class of 2017, I’m sure I am going at look at them and think, you are all in nursery school. How is it possible that you are receiving a bachelor’s degree from the college I went to? Shouldn’t you be accompanied by an adult?”

Away from Hanover, several other classmates are making their names known in the arts as well. Tyler Stableford recently had two of his images awarded as winning entries in the 2017 Graphis Photography Annual. Graphis is one of the country’s most prestigious photography competitions, receiving approximately 4,000 submissions from around the world each year. Tyler is not only a celebrated photographer but also a successful film director, having recently premiered a screening of his short film The Calling at this year’s Sundance Film Festival. He has become well known for “crafting bold visual stories” for TV commercial, print and branded content campaigns. He is one of Canon’s prestigious “Explorers of Light,” and Men’s Journal named him one of seven of the “World’s Greatest Adventure Photographers.” Check out some of his amazing images at tylerstableford.com or social media sites of the same name.

Also making great strides in her respective field is Helen Burnham. She recently curated “Matisse in the Studio” at the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston. The exhibit allows visitors the opportunity to view 34 paintings, 26 drawings, 11 bronzes, seven cutouts and three prints by Henri Matisse, along with 39 objects from his studio. It gives the viewer access to the artist’s studio as well as specific insight into his process of artistic creation through themes and objects he used as inspiration. Helen, who is curator of prints and drawings at the MFA, has also co-edited a book compiling a series of essays authored by respected art historians and featuring photographs of many of the principle objects incorporated into the exhibit and paired with the paintings where they appear.

Jay Kaveeshwar commented that the exhibit was “a stunning show,” having recently seen it while in Boston for a short trip.

—Garrett Gil de Rubio, 1062 Middlebrooke Drive, Canton, GA 30115; ggdr@alum.dartmouth.org

With this first column of the new year, I would normally extend well wishes to everyone for what lies ahead in 2017. However, it is with great sadness that I instead relay the passing of one of our own in the final hours of 2016. Maribel (Sanchez) Souther passed away in Hanover on the afternoon of New Year’s Eve after a courageous two-and-a-half-year battle with breast cancer.

As an undergraduate Maribel was a cross-country and track and field legend. She was a four-time All-American, a two-time Heptagonal cross-country champion and a two-time indoor and three-time outdoor Heptagonal champion. She won the USA Junior Nationals in cross country in 1994, captained the cross-country teams in 1995 and 1996 and was honored as Dartmouth’s outstanding female athlete in 1996 after leading cross country to a fifth-place finish at the NCAA championships. She also holds the school record in the 3,000-meter.

After graduation Maribel stayed in Hanover for two years, running competitively and coaching track at Hanover High School. She then moved to Boston (where she was introduced to her husband by a former Dartmouth teammate), earned a license as a massage therapist and continued to run competitively while counting a number of elite Boston-area athletes as her clients. She competed for both Team New Balance and Reebok Boston, qualifying for the 2000 Olympic trials in the 5,000-meter. In the fall of 2002 she returned to Dartmouth as an intern, helping lead the women’s cross-country team to a third-place finish at the NCAA qualifier.

In August 2003 Maribel was named Dartmouth’s interim cross-country and track coach and, in July 2004, became the women’s head cross-country coach. In her first year the team achieved its highest finish in the Ivy League championships since 1998. She would coach the Big Green women’s team for six years, developing talent within the program and recruiting outstanding first-year classes. She is credited with coaching one All-American, seven All-Ivy, five All-Region and six All-New England runners—and with the recruitment of now storied Olympian Abbey D’Agostino ’14.

Maribel is survived by her husband, John, and their three young children. In her memory her family established the Maribel Sanchez Souther 1996 Memorial Scholarship Fund, supporting track and field and cross-country athletes at Dartmouth (available at dartgo.org/MaribelFund); its focus will be to provide scholarships to student-athletes at Dartmouth in need of financial aid. The fund has a goal of reaching $50,000 in order to make it a permanent legacy and allow future cross-country and track and field athletes to be touched by Maribel. Please donate today and keep Maribel’s loved ones in your thoughts and prayers as they endure this time of great loss.

The universe certainly likes a sense of balance, so with sad news comes happy news as well: Shawn Burgess and his wife, Diana, welcomed their fourth child, Mallory Ruth, on July 17. She joins big sister Karina (age 10) and brothers Quinn and Rhett (ages 7 and 2). Shawn added, “We’re about to celebrate our 10th anniversary living in Charlotte, North Carolina, where I’m an ER physician. With four possible future Dartmouth legacies I’ll probably be working until I’m 80!”

Congrats to the Burgess clan on its newest addition and best of luck to Shawn for those three to four additional decades of gainful employment!

And with that, I wish all our classmates far and wide a wonderful new year filled with great happiness, health and prosperity—and with a reminder to keep those we hold dear a little closer this year!

—Garrett Gil de Rubio, 1062 Middlebrooke Drive, Canton, GA 30115; ggdr@alum.dartmouth.org

The autumnal air so often brings with it a sense of change: the chill of cooler weather, the first full months of the new school year, the kaleidoscope of colors seen through Nature’s slideshow of fall foliage. It is fitting then that as the transition to a new season begins, word comes of many new directions for many of our classmates.

After many years working in the education realm as a teacher, squash coach and sailing mentor, Holly Parker started a Ph.D. program at the University of Southern Maine this September. She is simultaneously nervous and excited to be studying public policy and education leadership, more specifically “tackling some big projects on behalf of our great state of Maine and its kids.” Knowing her dedication to inspiring others, I’m confident Holly has no need to be nervous! In keeping with major life changes, Holly also reports that Daniel Flax and his wife, Shoshana, welcomed baby Madeline Milly Flax on July 17! Belated congratulations to the new parents!

In other baby news, Shervyn von Hoerl and his wife, Amanda, welcomed their third child, Ignatius Bernard Organa Monier-Hoerl (affectionately known as “Iggy”), back in March. Roger Vincent and his wife, Melissa, are expecting their first a child, a daughter, in October (I hope the family is happy, healthy and at home by the time of this issue’s publication!). Roger is the senior investment officer in Cornell University’s investment office and indicated they are looking forward to raising a child in Ithaca, New York—a place that reminds him so much of Dartmouth.

That sense of change can come in so many forms—some unexpected. Kerry (Fiacco) White experienced one such instance recently. “After working for 12 years as a scientist with Infinity Pharmaceuticals in Cambridge, Massachusetts, I was “transitioned out of the company” along with the entire discovery department on July 1. After the initial shock, I adjusted to the idea of a summer of unemployment and spent my summer being a domestic goddess and director of Camp Mom. Then I secured a new position in oncology research with a start date after Labor Day and am ready to get back to work once the kids start school. My oldest is a freshman in high school (hold me!) and the other two boys are entering sixth and third grades.” Infinity’s loss is your new company’s gain (not to mention the countless people benefitting from your research), so onward and upward, Kerry!

Dave Kramer also wrote in with a quick note saying he and his family had just relocated from Boston to Austin, Texas. He said, “So far, we love it, though my kids are already sick of breakfast tacos.” Dave is senior manager for impact, learning and innovation for EcoLogic Development Fund, which empowers rural communities to restore and protect tropical ecosystems in Central America and Mexico.

Finally, I heard from Helene Sisti, who has been doing a lot of business travel lately—including a trip to Dubai and four trips to Australia last year alone. During her last visit Down Under Helene met up with Dave Erikson and his wife, Julie Smith ’95, who recently moved to Melbourne with their son. She indicated it “felt like just yesterday when they were all hanging out on the track together!” When business travel finally slowed, she spent the winter in Vermont and became a ski instructor, which she hopes to be able to do again next year. While she did miss our class reunion, she did meet up in New York with Eugenia Kim and Sarah Lugaric before Sarah flew home from the event.

—Garrett Gil de Rubio, 1062 Middlebrooke Drive, Canton, GA 30115; ggdr@alum.dartmouth.org

As we formally mark the 20th June since (most of us) left our undergraduate days behind us, I imagine it is dawning on many of our classmates (myself included) that we have been in each other’s lives for well more than half our existences. The working world, higher degrees, growing families and other unavoidable indicators of adulthood continue to mount—and yet many of us keep in touch as if we were still down the hall from each other in our freshman-year dorms. So while reportable news from the class is a bit on the lighter side this go around, quite a few ’96s have been waxing nostalgic in recent weeks and reflecting on the connections we even still today maintain.

I had the pleasure of meeting up with two of my oldest and dearest Dartmouth friends within just a few weeks of each other. I was able to meet up with Keli’i Opulauoho during a work trip to New York in late February and Rose Lee when she and her eldest son, Grant, made their way down to Atlanta for a national chess tournament in March. Both visits were cut far too short due to schedule restrictions and work schedules, but it was as if not a day had passed since we all met each other during our first few days in Hanover. It’s amazing how just a few hours with an old friend can reinvigorate the soul!

And speaking of a couple of people forever linked by their Dartmouth experience, I am elated to pass along news of the newest arrival in our extended ’96 family. The world got a little brighter on April 20 when our own David Mattingly and Marybeth Mattingly welcomed daughter Éile into their family. The now family of seven resides in Dover, New Hampshire, and word is that Éile is quite loved by her four elder siblings (whom Marybeth reports are all doing quite well in second, fourth, sixth and 10th grades, respectively!). Though a few sleepless nights of child rearing again await them in the months ahead, the couple is also quite busy with their “day jobs” in the world of academia. Dave is a physics professor at the University of New Hampshire and Marybeth splits her time between management of a research program at the Carsey School of Public Policy (also at UNH) and consulting for the Stanford Center on Poverty and Inequality. Congratulations to the entire Mattingly clan on its newest arrival and well wishes for sleep, tranquility and happiness as the household readjusts to having a little one again!

Please keep those updates coming, and all the best for a relaxing summer ahead!

—Garrett Gil de Rubio, 1062 Middlebrooke Drive, Canton, GA 30115; ggdr@alum.dartmouth.org

Happy 2016 to all our ’96 classmates far and wide! As we head into our “official” 20th year as alums, it’s quite apropos that a few among us are venturing into new chapters of their professional lives in favor of exciting new opportunities.

After more than a decade running educational programs for Princeton University’s office of alumni affairs—including amazing trips with faculty all around the world—Leslie Jennings Rowley recently took a leap to become the inaugural administrator in Princeton’s newly formed Kahneman-Treisman Center for Behavioral Science and Public Policy. During the last few years in her “free time” she has been pursuing a Ph.D. in psychology, not knowing what she’d do with it but realizing that she needed to grow in new ways. The new gig should allow her to use her newfound academic interests, along with her economics degree and M.B.A., for the kind of real external impact she’s been missing. It will also give her more time to spend with her husband Clancy (Princeton ’95), son Worth (8) and daughter Cecilia (6).

Also entering a new phase of his career is our own Zachary Stein. “After 11 years I left Whole Foods to begin a new adventure with Blue Apron.” Blue Apron delivers original recipes and high-quality ingredients to home chefs that allow them to prepare high-end meals that are fresh, low-in-calories and easy to make. Zach will be leading the purchasing team that covers half of the company’s operations and will be moving, along with wife Margaret Chang and family, from southern Florida to the northern New Jersey suburbs early next year. Very exciting and look forward to great things from the new company!

Aassia (Haroon) Haq is making some impressive changes of her own. After spending the last 10 years in startup and growth company space, first as CEO of a future of work startup, then chief management officer at MBO Partners, she is starting her own company from the ground up. “I left the MBO position earlier this year to start Guidrr Inc.—an on-demand platform that’s an Etsy for travel experiences (www.guidrr.com). Our app just launched and was immediately picked up as a tech product to watch by Product Hunt and we’ve been featured this month on KillerStartups.com.” On the personal front, she has been based in the Dallas area these past 10 years with her husband, Faisal, and kids Zoya (11) and Adam (6). She also said she’s active with the local Dartmouth club and would love to connect with other ’96s in the area or in the startup community generally.

Best of luck to all in your new ventures (and adventures!) moving forward! I hope you will inspire others among us thinking about making a change at this point in their professional lives to take a big leap in the new year ahead! And, as always, drop a note my way when you do! In the meanwhile, a happy, healthy, prosperous 2016 to us all!

—Garrett Gil de Rubio, 1062 Middlebrooke Drive, Canton, GA 30115; ggdr@alum.dartmouth.org

It’s hard to believe that a couple of months have already passed since so many of us returned to Hanover for what was a brief but wonderful reunion! Stories of the weekend are still trickling in (be forewarned!), but I have also heard a few wonderful reasons for why many classmates were not able to join us for our dual-decade celebration.

One ’96 with a legitimate “excuse” for being unable to attend was my fellow Atlantan John McEwan. John and his wife, Mary, a graduate of Centre College in Kentucky, were expecting the newest member of their family and were attending a family wedding that weekend. They then welcomed their third son on August 24, when William “Pierce” McEwan came into the world. He joins older brothers Jack and David in what the now father-of-three describes as his “crazy, growing family.” John also said all is well with life in Atlanta, where he is the chief financial officer of Peoplenet, a workforce management technology company.

I also heard from Jamie Hansen, who had not one, but two great reasons for her inability to make the trek up to Hanover this year! Apparently she missed our class reunion because her twin daughters, Grace and Annabelle, were born on April 16. According to their very proud mom’s report, both young ladies are “healthy and happy and I am ecstatic!” We’ll give our newest parents a pass on this year’s reunion, but we’ll all expect to see them and three very lively 6-year olds at our 25th reunion in 2021! In the meanwhile, congrats all around and enjoy every moment!

Another classmate having a particularly busy summer was our own Brandon del Pozo. As many of us know, Brandon has dutifully served as an officer within the New York Police Department for the past 18 years since graduation—rising up from patrolman to the role of deputy inspector (and amassing three master’s degrees and beginning a doctorate program along the way!). His law enforcement career is about to take him due north—to the Green Mountain State—as Brandon was just confirmed by the city council of Burlington, Vermont, as its newest police chief. He will start his tenure there effective September 1. The area has long been of special significance to his entire family, which regularly visits the area; in fact, he and his wife, Sarah, returned to Burlington for their first wedding anniversary. The couple and sons Zane (7) and Rex (3) will now be writing a new chapter in their lives as they adjust to a new, permanent home in Burlington and Brandon adjusts to his new role. Congrats, Chief del Pozo!

As far as those able to attend reunion, Sharon Karlsberg relayed a few mini-reunions that occurred while everyone was in town. She and her husband, Craig Sakowitz ’93, gathered with fellow glee clubbers for impromptu concerts on the steps of Dartmouth Hall. Included in that gleeful gathering were Kim Koontz Haring, Miranda Barrows Siano and husband Matt Siano ’95, Alison Moll ’95, Kaja Schuppert ’95, Julie Wells ’95, Diana Ricci ’94, Andrew Plumridge ’94, Megan Mitchell ’94, Daisy Alpert ’95, Justin Wells ’95, Jennifer Lien ’95, Matt Zevod ’94, Tony Lipp ’93, Laura Broughton ’95 and others. There was also a gathering at the Casque & Gauntlet “castle” when Sharon, Tom Caputo, Lara Burgel and Leslie Jennings joined multiple ’94s and ’95s for a round-table reunion. According to Sharon, both venues provided wonderful, smaller-scale opportunities to reconnect with close friends across the spectrum of 20th reunion classes.

—Garrett Gil de Rubio, 1062 Middlebrooke Drive, Canton, GA 30115; ggdr@alum.dartmouth.org

It’s official—we’re old! Welcome it or dread it, our reunion draws nigh! Time for us to gather in Hanover and lament the passage of time, reflect on days of yore and marvel at how much we’ve all changed in the (nearly) two decades since Commencement. I look forward to reporting many updates from what looks to be a great weekend, but in the meanwhile have received news of a few great happenings in our classmates’ lives!


Andy Graham, husband of our own Jeneen DiBenedetto Graham, wrote in with word of her accolade from the University of California, Irvine (where she completed her doctorate in a combined UCI/UCLA Ed.D. program in 2011). Each year the university selects faculty and alumni for distinctive achievement in their respective disciplines. Jeneen is the academic dean at St. Margaret’s Episcopal School in San Juan Capistrano, California, where she developed and taught a unique open online course for edX, a program which allows high school students (and students of all ages) to pursue advanced high school and college-level coursework through its global online learning community. St. Margaret’s is one of two high schools to partner with edX and Jeneen’s dedicated efforts in leading the program have garnered her the well-deserved recognition.


Another ’96 advancing the world of education is Dan Gonzalez, who for several years after graduating taught physics at Milton Academy. He soon found himself helping his students with physics, math and test preparation, which in turn translated into a full tutoring schedule. In 2005 he leveraged that experience to join Manhattan Prep, a test prep service that offers real education from some of the industry’s best instructors. His role in the company soon grew from GMAT instructor and curriculum writer to instructor trainer and, most recently, to president of the entire company—which has become the largest GMAT test provider in the United States.


Also writing in was Sophia Zalios, who reports “life is good here in Greenwich,” Connecticut, where she lives with her “amazing husband,” Joe Smoley, and their beloved “fur babies.” Sophia has worked with Pure, a high-net-worth personal lines carrier in White Plains, New York, for the last nine years; she’s responsible for managing underwriting and agency relationships in the New England territory (including occasional visits to Hanover). She regularly sees Tom Farley ’98, who works in Pure’s Chicago office. But it’s home in the New York City area where she often runs into other Dartmouth folks, including Leo Stezano, his wife, Happy, and “adorable” kids– who live down the street in Greenwich. She occasionally sees Keli’i Opulauoho in the city, as well as Sal Spataro (who recently returned home after a few years in London). Last summer she also had the honor of attending Chris Jacobus’ wedding in Toledo, Ohio, where she reconnected with Carrie Bagshaw (whom Sophia reports “does not age!”).


Lastly, I have some unintentionally delayed news from Mark Buschmann from last year (which somehow was mysteriously hidden away by my messy inbox!). The year 2014 was a particularly busy one for Mark and his entire family. He and his wife added baby No. 3 in mid-2013 (Luke, who joined big brothers Dylan and Tyler) only to follow up with baby No. 4 in December 2014 (to which Mark said, “Thank God it’s a girl!” adding, “And, yes, we are done.”). The now-finalized family of six recently left New York for New Canaan, Connecticut, and couldn’t be happier with the move. He works at Blackstone in the restructuring advisory business, but he and his partners are spinning out into a new, to-be-named advisory firm in 2015. Sorry for the delay, Mark!


—Garrett Gil de Rubio, 1062 Middlebrooke Drive, Canton, GA 30115; ggdr@alum.dartmouth.org


With 2015 now well under way and our 20th reunion just a few months away, it’s an exciting time of change for some of our classmates and their extended families!


On October 17 Shelley Arakawa and husband Jarrid Whitney welcomed son Luke Shigemi Otahyoni Whitney into the world. Luke’s name represents a true amalgamation of their rich family histories—his first name relates to the patron saint of students (since both parents work in education), Shigemi is Shelley’s grandfather’s first and father’s middle name, and Otahyoni means “wolf” in Cayuga (since Jarrid’s lineage is Wolf Clan on his mom’s side). Luke joins proud big sister Kalia, age 5, in rounding out the Arakawa-Whitney clan. They reside in Pasadena, California, where Shelley is director of regional advancement for the Punahou School and Jarrid is executive director of admissions and financial aid at the California Institute of Technology. We like to consider Jarrid an honorary Dartmouth ’96, given the fact that he and Shelley met during their shared tenure working for the Dartmouth admissions office.


In other baby news, Suzanne Leonard and her husband, Alan Billing, welcome their first child Anabelle Savannah Billing, born early on the morning of October 8. In addition to her new role as mom, Suzanne is an associate professor of English at Simmons College, where she regularly instructs classes on film studies and film theory, women’s literature, literary interpretation and feminist cultural studies and also teaches courses affiliated with the college’s honors program, the women’s and gender studies department and gender and cultural studies master’s program.


Greg Papajohn also wrote in with updates on his growing family! He and his wife, Suzanne, welcomed baby girl Maren into the world on August 25 and report that mom and baby are doing great (as are older brothers Nicholas, age 8, and James, age 3). He is absolutely not looking forward to the future Dartmouth tuition tab that his now-larger family unit represents! Greg continues to enjoy his position as managing director of a technology public relations firm in Manhattan and also added that, “if your venture capital, professional engineering firm or tech company has eyes on Re/Code and TechCrunch is buzzing with jargon such as ‘social influence content marketing,’ I can help.” 


Greg also passed along news that Dan Nicastri is back in the country following multiple tours of duty as a lieutenant commander in the U.S. Navy. Greg, Dan and Brian Crowell met up for a few “brewskies” in Greenwich, Connecticut, upon Dan’s return, and Greg said Dan “looked like Tom Cruise in his dress whites” (a point I can report Dan adamantly refutes!). After tours in Guantanamo, Afghanistan and several other hot spots around the world, Dan is now a cardiovascular surgeon (and assistant professor of thoracic surgery) at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York and lives in Pelham Manor with his wife, Pamela, son Anthony, age 5, and daughter Despina, age 3. Greg reiterated he is very happy to have Dan back home safe after his many years of service so far away (as we all are).


I also heard from Bill Tovell, who reports that he recently had a freshman-year roommate reunion with Eric Schwartz and his wife, Emma, when Eric’s daughter, Lea, and Bill’s sons, William and Byron, met up for a playdate in Brooklyn. Bill indicated it is still amazing to him that he and Eric have known each other for 22 years! In less planned fashion, Bill and his wife also randomly met up with Lee Grinberg near Union Square as he was walking his dog on a Sunday afternoon in New York. 


—Garrett Gil de Rubio, 1062 Middlebrooke Drive, Canton, GA 30115; ggdr@alum.dartmouth.org


It is with a heavy heart that I begin with news of the death of one of our own, as Leigh Warren passed away June 12. I have heard from a number of ’96s with fond memories of Leigh during our time in Hanover, where she majored in chemistry and was active in both Chamber Singers and the Wind Symphony. Her Dartmouth major was a stepping stone to greater things, as she worked as a chemist for Roche Diagnostics before obtaining her Ph.D. in organic chemistry from the University of California, Berkeley, in 2002. From there her career became more policy focused, obtaining her J.D. from Columbia University’s School of Law in 2006 before moving into private practice with an emphasis on patent litigation and prosecution. She was awarded her LL.M. in health law and policy from American University’s Washington College of Law in 2010 and settled in Rockville, Maryland, after taking a position within the office of general counsel, public health division, of U.S. Department of Health & Human Services (DHHS). She worked with the DHHS until the time of her passing. Leigh is survived by her parents, Paul and Judith, and sister Joy, and we extend our deepest condolences to her loved ones and Dartmouth friends alike. 


While we collectively mourn Leigh’s passing, there is other, happier class news to report as well. It was recently announced that Erika Meitner had received a U.S. scholar award from the Fulbright Commission. Erika, an associate professor of English at Virginia Tech since 2007, will be the Distinguished Scholar in Creative Writing at the Seamus Heaney Centre for Poetry at Queen’s University Belfast in North Ireland in spring 2015; as such she will not only assist with undergraduate coursework in creative writing and poetry, but also be afforded with the incredible opportunity to immerse herself in the thriving literary scenes of Ireland and the United Kingdom while exploring Anglo-Irish influences on American poetry. She has published three books and has a fourth, Copia! will be released in September. Her first work, Inventory at the All-Night Drugstore, was the recipient of the Anhinga Press Prize for Poetry in 2002, and her second, Ideal Cities, was a 2009 National Poetry Series winner. Part of Erika’s time in Belfast will be spent working on Fragments from Holymoleyland, a collection of poems exploring the ways in which individuals and communities respond to violent events (which she began writing after the Sandy Hook Elementary tragedy in 2012).


In life news, celebration is in order in recognition of a few recent classmate nuptials and the arrival of a few ’96 offspring! Andrew Kingsdale and Kate Possin were married in a San Francisco Bay-side ceremony on May 4, while Ryan Carey and his bride, Beth Gilroy, were wed overlooking Mount Hood and the Hood River region of Ryan’s beloved Oregon in late July. Congratulations to both lovely couples and may your many years together be filled with much love, health and happiness! 


We’re also in the midst of a mini ’96 baby boom, with several classmates recently welcoming little ones and a few more expecting in the months ahead! Anh-Thu Cunnion and her husband, Jeff Siegel, welcomed son Mason in late May; Mason joins elder twin brothers Henry and Owen, who reached the ripe old age of 3 in March. And cardiologist slash singer-songwriter Suzie Brown Sax and her singer-songwriter husband, Scot, announced their latest collaboration—Josephine “Josie” Sax—born in April after the couple’s relocation to Nashville, Tennessee, earlier in the year (where Suzie also works at the Vanderbilt University Medical Center in all her “free time”).


—Garrett Gil de Rubio, 1062 Middlebrooke Drive, Canton, GA 30115; ggdr@alum.dartmouth.org


The summer months are upon us and many within our ranks are destined for semi-tropical locales in search of sun-soaked solace, while still others make the most of a well-deserved “stay-cation” within the more-familiar confines of home. The possibilities are endless, but each begs the question, “What does one do with copious amounts of down time?” 


Beyond the obvious answer of “help plan our 2015 class reunion!” one could always opt for the age-old “curling up with a good book” to escape from the doldrums of the everyday. If you have not outlined a reading list for yourself since the days when a professor-imposed syllabus defined your course of erudition, then one particular ’96 author has not one but five novels available for your literary consumption!


Our own Brad Parks, who for a dozen years after graduating defined himself as a “newspaper guy through and through,” took a leap that will make all our summer reading adventures all the more interesting. After dutifully serving his time as an award-winning columnist for both The Washington Post and The (Newark, New Jersey) Star-Ledger, Brad had crazy thoughts about venturing into the realm of writing mystery novels. A decline in the print newspaper industry expedited the transition and forced him to pursue a dream that he would have “otherwise been too chicken to chase.”


It was while on assignment for The Star-Ledger in 2004 that Brad found the inspiration for his first foray into the world of fiction. He covered a quadruple homicide in Newark that provided the launching point for Carter Ross, a fictional character who “bears no resemblance to Brad beyond shared height, weight, eye color, hair color, skin color, charmed upbringing, sartorial blandness and general worldview.” Within a year of leaving the newspaper industry for good, he had published Faces of the Gone, his first novel featuring his sometimes-dashing protagonist. That novel sold through its first print run in nine days and went on to win the Nero Award for best American mystery and the Shamus Award for best first mystery—the first author in the awards’ 60-year history to win both for the same work. 


Brad has since penned four additional books in the Carter Ross series: 2011’s Eyes of the Innocent, 2012’s The Girl Next Door, 2013’s The Good Cop and The Player, published earlier this year. He has won two Lefty Awards (given for best humorous mystery) for his third and fourth novels in the series and remains the only writer to win the Nero, Shamus and Lefty. His sixth book in the series is under contract and scheduled for publication in 2015.


On the family side of things, Brad and his wife, Melissa Taylor—who met sophomore summer—“finally got around to” getting married in 2004. They have two lovely kids and live far from the rat race in a little cottage on the Rappahannock River in rural Virginia, where Melissa works at a boarding school. Brad said, “It sounds idyllic and is. Sometimes. Other times, we really miss ready access to good Indian takeout.” He stays in regular contact with Leslie Jennings Rowley, who works in alumni development at Princeton and married a Princeton professor; Leslie has two kids whom Brad’s kids call their “cousins.” He also sometimes hangs out with Jorge Motoshige, who is consulting in New York City and continues to live that crazy bachelor lifestyle that Brad would be envious of except it mostly just wears him out. He’s looking forward to our 20th reunion in 2015 and seeing all the folks with whom he has been woefully out of touch.


—Garrett Gil de Rubio, 1062 Middlebrooke Drive, Canton, GA 30115; ggdr@alum.dartmouth.org


At the time of this writing there’s been a run on Michael Jackson’s “Thriller,” the Iran election is still being contested and they just found the South Carolina governor. Hope you’re having a good harvest!


Andre Hylton practices law as an in-house attorney at Georgia-Pacific. He was recently appointed as senior division counsel and lives in Atlanta with his 3-year-old daughter Sophia.


Ben Brainard has been living in Athens, Georgia, and is an assistant professor of critical care at the University of Georgia Veterinary School. He commented to me that he has been forced to radically increase his intake of fried foods and is pleased to support this aspect of the local economy.


Having recently finished veterinary school Carrie Bagshaw has accepted a position at a small animal practice close to home in Santa Monica, California, after celebrating her accomplishments in Europe. Her daughter Katherine is turning 7 and Sarah is looking forward with some trepidation to starting kindergarten in September.


Genevieve Jeong Bennett and her husband, Christian Bennett ’99, welcomed their second son, Callum Matthew, on January 29, 2008. He joins big brother Ronan (4). After graduating from Dartmouth Genevieve and Christian spent 10 years in San Francisco before moving to sunnier Palo Alto. When not chasing the kids she is putting her English degree to good use as a director with the nonprofit National Writing Project.


After three years there William Isaac Thorne is still living in London. Following two and half years consulting with Bain he recently joined the reorganization services group at Deloitte Corporate Finance UK as an assistant director, focusing primarily on financial restructuring and turnaround plans for distressed companies. If anyone is visiting London for work or fun, give him a shout—he knows all the fun old pubs at this point.


Brad and Melissa (Taylor) Parks welcomed Cara Lillian, born 8 pounds, 6 ounces, on December 6, 2008, joining older brother Avery (2). Melissa has a new job as director of guidance services at the Christchurch School, a boys boarding school down in the tidewater part of Virginia. The family lives in a tiny little cottage on the shore of the Rappahannock River. Brad has a new murder mystery book called Faces of the Gone, published by St. Martin’s Press. Pre-order at Amazon.com


Joey Hood, his wife and two kids are currently living in Doha, Qatar, where Joey is the U.S. Embassy’s public affairs officer. The New York Times designated Doha as the “Cultural Destination of 2009,” and Joey invites fellow ’96s to come check out this tiny country with a ton of important U.S. interests and an interesting museum of Islamic art. Just don’t come during the summer, when it’s 120 degrees in the shade.


Jim and Katie Shutzer Brennan had a number of ’96 sightings: Laurel and Tyler Newby and their adorable, sweet little girl Adeline (1) in Washington, D.C.; Betsy Miller and Cory Wishengrad at the Harvard reunion—both seemed great; Alex Edlich and his wife, Gouri (their kids will be attending the same school in September!); Sarah Brooke MacColl and Sharon Wolfe Schwartz, who both visited over the winter with their children. Sarah’s son James will be 2 in May and she is expecting baby No. 2 in July. Sharon’s daughter Josie will be 2 in June. Monica Oberkofler Gorman also stopped in a few months ago. 


The New Black Gods: Arthur Huff Fauset and the Study of African American Religions (Religion in North America) by Edward E. Curtis IV and Danielle Brune Sigler, published earlier this year, is a collection of essays that create a dynamic, humanistic and thoroughly interdisciplinary understanding of African-American religious history and life. This book is essential reading for anyone who studies the African-American experience.


That’s all for now! Be well, and keep on keeping on.


—Kelii Opulauoho, 733 Amsterdam Ave., #3F, New York, NY 10025; l.alan.keli’i.opulauoho.96@alum.dartmouth.org


At the time of this writing the president is on vacation in Martha’s Vineyard, Hurricane Danny is coming up the East Coast, school will be starting in the next week or two and Camelot has just ended. Perhaps you’ll make it back to the Upper Valley for the foliage and—FYI—Dartmouth Night and Homecoming is October 23-25. 


Jocelyn Bramble and her partner, Heather Capell Bramble, are celebrating the birth of their first child, Jonah Bramble.


Craig Pawling and his wife, Jennifer, welcomed their first child into the world. Baby Maya Pawling was born on April 28. Both mom and Maya are happy and healthy. 


Chris Castonguay and his wife, Cynthia, welcomed their first child into the world on April 29. Her name is Ava Elizabeth and she is the most precious thing Chris has ever seen. The family is living in East Kingston, New Hampshire (seacoast area near Exeter), and will be celebrating their fifth anniversary at the time of this publication. Happy anniversary to you both.


David Kramer has been in Quetzaltenango (Xela), Guatemala, for the summer along with his wife, Carolina, and 4.5-year-old daughter Alana. David is working out of EcoLogic Development Fund’s regional office (which oversees work with rural communities throughout Mexico and Central America) instead of his usual routine in their Cambridge office. 


Drew Natenshon was married on Saturday, July 25. Zachary and Margaret (Chang) Stein, Scott Lassonde, Jorge Motoshige and Jim and Katie (Schutzer) Brennan were on the invite list. Zach attended the bachelor party on the 23rd, but luckily had just seen The Hangover and taken good notes. 


Clifton Berry, co-founder of Clifton Charles, hosted a Cocktails and Cotton Measuring Event this past August in SoHo. “Born out of frustration with the poor fit, limited selection and lack of advice currently available to most men when purchasing clothing, Clifton Charles’ mission is the democratization of customization—making available affordable luxurious custom-made dress shirts to all men. Through a dynamic online interactive experience CliftonCharles.com is introducing innovative and disruptive technology to the arcane men’s apparel industry. The Web site will employ a proprietary algorithm and 3-D technology to guide men to the perfect fitting and flattering custom-made dress shirt (delivered in 10 days or less), serving as their ‘Fashion GPS.’ Clifton Charles’ tailored approach is supported by a comprehensive multimedia fashion library and trusted commentary and advice from leading men’s clothing industry experts.” Find out more at www.cliftoncharles.com.


FYI: Clifton Charles finished runner-up in the first Dartmouth/Tuck Business Plan Competition.


Finally to wrap this article, I was coming out of the Fulton Street subway station downtown yesterday and proceeded to walk east on Broadway when I saw a gray Dartmouth jersey approaching worn by our very own Trevor Peterson. Having moved to New York following graduation Trevor now works in private equity with Compass Partners and splits his time between London and the Big Apple. He had the day off and was heading to pick up the new iPhone. Chance encounters are great—if you happen to see me, please say hi.


That’s all for now! Can you believe holiday time is just around the corner? Be well and keep on keeping on.


—Kelii Opulauoho, 733 Amsterdam Ave., #3F, New York, NY 10025; l.alan.keli’i.opulauoho.96@alum.dartmouth.org


At the time of this writing, the weather doesn’t know if it wants to be winter, spring or summer here in N.Y.C., Tiger’s latest round of golf is a huge struggle in Quail Hollow, oil from a Gulf spill reaches Louisiana and the most despised team in Major League Baseball is the Cleveland Indians. But at the time this is published, we would have had an awesome class reunion! So on to classmate news.


Our deepest condolences go out to the family of Timothy Francis Farrell, originally from Falls Church, Virginia, who passed away in Frankfurt, Germany, of unknown causes. While at Dartmouth Tim went on an FSP in philosophy and was a member of Sigma Phi Epsilon as well as the Fire & Skoal. To his friends, family and loved ones, we extend our deepest sympathies for your loss. 


I heard from Jeffrey Smith, who is working at the Hanover Inn as a sous chef. If you didn’t have an opportunity to stop in during reunion, you should make the trek back to the upper valley to see what’s happening. Check it out at: www.hanoverinn.com/dining/events.


From Washington, D.C., Kishan Putta is happy to announce that he recently got engaged to Divya Swamy—a Columbia alum who is a Foreign Service officer focused on South Asia. He’s been busy himself heading up health reform efforts for Blue Cross. Their wedding will be in the fall near Princeton and may or may not include an elephant. Divya’s never been to Dartmouth, so Kishan is looking forward to coming up to reunion a day early for the Moosilauke overnight stay and introducing Divya to our class. Congratulations, Kishan!


Justin Steinman’s got a lot going on with his family these days. On March 22 his wife, Tammy, gave birth to identical twin boys, Matthew Lawrence and Ryan Isaac. Big siblings Leah (5) and Alan (2) are excited, if a bit wary, of their new siblings. As for Justin, he is still trying to wrap his ahead around the fact that he now has four kids. Way back in 1996 he could have never dreamed that he would be responsible (and have to pay college tuition) for four kids. But it’s been a blessing and a lot of fun so far, although the whole family is a little sleep-deprived. Know the feeling, Justin. Justin is still working at Novell, where he is now the vice president of solution and product marketing. His team is responsible for Novell’s go-to-market strategy and messaging across all of their product lines. 


Rebecca Gorman is still living in Denver, Colorado, loving life there. She just attained tenure at Metro State College of Denver as an associate professor of English and is engaged to Daniel O’Neill. Their wedding will be in December. Best wishes, Rebecca!


It was great seeing you at reunion, if you made it there. Keep on keeping on.


—Kelii Opulauoho, 733 Amsterdam Ave., #3F, New York, NY 10025; l.alan.keli’i.opulauoho.96@alum.dartmouth.org


At the time of this writing the rain has finally slowed down and it feels like the temperature is getting ready for fall, summer vacation is ending for most in the next two weeks and with the amount of collateral received, it’s primary election time again here in New York City. So let’s get so some classmate news.


On June 22 in Washington, D.C., the White House announced the appointment of 13 outstanding men and women to serve as White House Fellows, including our very own Thomas Fischer. The program was created in 1964 by President Lyndon B. Johnson to give promising American leaders “first-hand, high-level experience with the workings of the federal government and to increase their sense of participation in national affairs.” This unique position in our nation’s government encourages active citizenship and service to the nation.


Thomas is an assistant professor at the University of Chicago. He practices emergency medicine in the department of medicine and studies the roles of race, socio-cultural structures and stereotyping in racial disparities in health and healthcare. Currently he is developing a community-medical center partnership called Community Solutions in Action to produce research and interventions that transform emergency departments’ approaches to vulnerable communities. He also partners with the New Community Program/Woodlawn in “Ask the Doctor,” a monthly community discussion on health. In the past he participated in founding Project Brotherhood, a healthcare center specifically for African-American men. He has mentored Chicago public schools students including co-leading the University of Chicago-Kenwood Academy program for academic exploration. His medical training included a year as chief resident and a fellowship in the Robert Wood Johnson Clinical Scholars Program. He is faculty affiliate of the University of Chicago’s Center for the Study of Race, Politics and Culture. Recently he was a 2007 Leadership Greater Chicago Fellow and a 2009 Aspen Institute Health Forum Fellow. In addition to being a member of the great Dartmouth class of 1996 Thomas also has an M.P.H. from the Harvard School of Public Health and an M.D. from the University of Chicago.


I also heard from Tyler Stableford, who was excited to share the trailer for his short-film documentary The Fall Line, a powerful story about Iraq war veteran Health Calhoun, who lost both of his legs in a grenade blast. Tyler was also a double award-winner featured in the prestigious American Photography 26 contest. The first image is of Colorado’s 120th Fighter Squadron Capt. TenEyck LaTourrette flying with other F-16 pilots over Pikes Peak. See the July issue of 5280 magazine for the full feature. The second image is of a 7-year-old boy named Lalo foraging in a Guatemalan landfill, shot as part of a volunteer documentary for the humanitarian-aid agency Wide Horizons for Children. The images were selected from more than 8,000 submissions and will be published in the AP26 Photo Annual this fall. Tyler also photographed wounded Marine Corps medic Jacob Hyde and his service dog Mya for the touching piece “Healed in Action” in the June issue of Southwest Airlines’ Spirit Magazine as well as the Outdoor Life cover June issue. Check out these and more at www.tylerstableford.com.


After almost two years of business planning and lots of drama, this fall Jamie Hansen will be opening a bakery and ice cream shop in Alameda, California. She and her business partner are moving along smoothly and are looking for support from all her Bay Area peeps. 


Last, I am pleased to announce that Sebastián Aston Stezano was born in San Diego, California, on July 20 at 3:42 a.m. weighing 8 pounds, 5 ounces, and measuring 20.75 inches to proud parents Happy and Leo Stezano. Get rest, Leo—you’re going to need it.


Be blessed, and keep on keeping on!


—Kelii Opulauoho, 311 W. 95th St., Apt. 4, New York City, NY 10025; l.alan.keli’i.opulauoho.96@alum.dartmouth.org


With this inaugural column of 2014 it is unequivocally undeniable that we ’96s are no longer the young bucks we once were! The first few members of our class started to reach the dreaded 40th milestone this past fall, with the vast majority of us slated to do so in the year ahead. As we collectively head over the hill I’m happy to highlight a few exciting goings-on in the lives of our fellow 40-somethings (oh how that hurts to type!).


Our first exciting update comes from Joseph Marcheso (who actually turned 40 in December). It was recently announced that Joe would be picking up the baton as the music director of Opera San José (OSJ) in California, effective with the opera’s 2014-15 season. As the only opera company in America with a resident ensemble of principal artists, OSJ showcases some of the finest singers in the nation. Joe most recently conducted OSJ’s run of Hansel and Gretel, his 10th production with the company that concluded in December. He is also on the conducting staff for the San Francisco Opera, where he has led a number of momentous productions. As if this professional development were not enough to celebrate, Joe and his husband, Jimmy, marked the first anniversary of their marriage (and eight years together) this past November! Congratulations all-around!


Christian Jacobus (who lucky for him will not have to contend with 40 until next January) has also had some exciting developments in both his professional and private lives. In December Chris proposed to his now fiancée Ashley Gottfried (spoiler alert: she said “yes!”) and are planning their wedding for later this year. Chris recently relocated to Nashville, Tennessee, after accepting a clinical fellowship in hospice and palliative medicine at Vanderbilt University Medical Center. He previously was the assistant residency director in the department of emergency medicine at Synergy Medical Education Alliance in Saginaw, Michigan. A busy year for Chris, to say the least!


Speaking of busy individuals, Alicia Jennings (who will gracefully enter her 40s this coming November) has been quite the world traveler this year; that’s actually a major understatement as Alicia has been traveling non-stop for the last few years as senior White House producer for NBC News. With 15 years at NBC and a decade working specifically within the West Wing, she has definitely earned her share of airline miles (if only Air Force One had a frequent flyer program!). One of her recent work trips took her to South Africa, where she traveled with President Obama for the funeral services of Nelson Mandela in mid-December. The “day” trip actually lasted a mammoth 51 hours door to door and included a brief stop in Senegal on the leg home. Just days before heading across the globe Alicia was able to move heaven and earth to make a surprise hospital visit to dear friend Elizabeth Manheim Ades, who had just given birth in New Jersey!


As far as 40th birthday get-togethers, my first official report comes from Bill Tovell. Bill, an executive director at J.P. Morgan, recently had a timely mini-reunion with fellow ’96s Andrew Webb, John Barrett and Vanessa Santaga-Barrett at a surprise birthday party for Brian Dunbar held in Bill’s hometown of South Beach, Florida, in November. He said that while they “could not find an ’80s band to meet Dr. Dunbar’s request,” they did enjoy both the beach itself and VIP area of Nikki Beach. They also made arrangements to gather in Dr. Dunbar’s “legendary” hometown of Portsmouth, New Hampshire, this summer (when Bill hits the big 40 in August).


Check out our new class website at 1996.dartmouth.org!


—Garrett Gil de Rubio, 1062 Middlebrooke Drive, Canton, GA 30115; ggdr@alum.dartmouth.org


I trust and hope all my fellow ’96s out there have had a wonderful summer filled with great escapades, valued down time with those they love and fond memories to cherish. As we wind down the warmer months of the year and head into the gradual cooling of autumn, I’ve heard from several classmates who have recently been quite busy with new developments and great escapades in their lives.


Ben Brainard passed along news of an inspiring trip about which some of us amateur zoologists can only dream. Ben, who is an associate professor with the intensive care unit at the University of Georgia’s College of Veterinary Medicine, recently returned from Cameroon, where he was part of a team from the Great Ape Heart Project. While in country the team anesthetized and evaluated the cardiac health of more than 45 chimpanzees and gorillas in a wildlife sanctuary there. The project’s overall goal is to understand the pathogenesis of cardiac disease in great apes so that it may be diagnosed and treated in captive apes (for more info check out http://greatapeproject.org). Ben said that “when not anesthetizing interesting species, I am still working and teaching at UGA” and that he speaks regularly with many fellow ’96s—who “all assure him that they are doing well.” I hope said ’96s will assure the rest of us of their wellness in a future Class Notes column!


While busily preparing a Chicago mini-reunion for our class and adjoining classes, Justin Heather told me of some exciting professional developments in his life. Justin, a founding partner Chicago-based law firm Korey Cotter Heather & Richardson who specializes in complex commercial litigation and international arbitration, was recently elected to serve a two-year term on the Chicago Bar Association’s board of managers. The position arose as a result of his having served as chair of the young lawyers section of the Chicago Bar Association from 2011 to 2012 (a group that includes more than 9,000 members within its ranks), as well as taking first place in five categories within the awards of achievement given by the American Bar Association’s young lawyers division for 2012. As if this undertaking would not keep him busy enough, Justin also told me he would be going on his own and will be opening his own law firm in July. Looks like someone has a busy summer and fall ahead of him—best of luck all-around, Justin!


Speaking of new ventures, I am happy to report that Eliza Barry Riker and her husband, Andrew Riker ’97, are the proud parents of newly arrived Aaron Samuel Barry Riker. Aaron was welcomed into the world on June 18 at a healthy 9 pounds, 14 ounces, and joins elder sister Lilah, who is apparently ecstatic to be a big sister! The now-expanded family of four resides in beautiful Hamilton, Bermuda. Definitely a summer to remember for them.


And with that I bid our class adieu until the next column; but before I do I want to implore all ’96s far and wide to please write (or type) in with your updates big and small! And don’t forget to mark your calendars: Our 20th (okay, officially our 19th) class reunion is now less than two years away in June 2015! The executive committee is looking for volunteers to help plan reunion, so reach out to our class leadership today and let them know you would like to help! 


—Garrett Gil de Rubio, 1062 Middlebrooke Drive, Canton, GA 30115; ggdr@alum.dartmouth.org


In marking the two-decade milestone since our matriculation, I’m astounded at how far (and busy!) our collective lives have come.


It hit me during a recent overnight trip to New York when I met up with two of the first people I met in Hanover, spending a few minutes visiting the growing household of Rose Lee (a friend from the minute we embarked on the same freshman trip) and a late dinner with Keli’i Opulauho (whom I met when we visited during our senior year of high school). Though my hectic schedule limited our time, it did not feel as though 20 years had passed—with only talk of kids, work and life to remind us it had! Belated congrats to Rose and husband Bryan on the arrival of their son Dean (joining Grant, 4 1/2, and Hana, 2 1/2).


Such time passed lends itself well to career developments so naturally I have other great news to report! Sara Paisner passed along that she and three partners had founded Blue Ridge Lighting Solutions, which designs and manufactures premium LED lighting fixtures. She said it’s been fun and challenging and she is having a blast. Sara and husband Howard are also busy raising three kids in North Carolina, with their eldest entering first grade this year.


In other ’96 business ventures, Wendi (Potter) McKenna shared that her company Strides Physical Therapy just launched a new infant/child wellness program called Move Play Grow; it provides local parent/baby classes in the San Diego area covering typical child development milestones and red flags, enhancement of bonding and communication and other parent-driven topics. She encouraged everyone to check out moveplaygrow.com (or Facebook/Twitter pages of the same name) and appreciates any “likes,” comments or feedback. Wendi will herself be taking benefit of the program as she and husband Neil are expecting baby No. 3 in October!


Lara (Burgel) Fowler also wrote in with some exciting developments as she and husband Chris Fowler ’97 just relocated from Seattle to State College, Pennsylvania, with their kids Stephen and Elizabeth. Chris accepted a tenure-track teaching job with Penn State’s geography department, while Lara has a joint appointment to teach at the Dickinson School of Law (in the fall) and Penn State Institutes for Energy and Environment (in January). They are “excited to be here, though it is an interesting time to relocate to Penn State”; they welcome visitors and look to connect with area alums.


Also departing Seattle for broader educational horizons is Cameron Turner. Cameron, wife Annie and daughter Tallulah (2) are relocating to Palo Alto, California, in September when he begins his master’s program in statistics at Stanford University. He relays that he is looking forward to getting back in touch with Bay Area ’96s.


While not relocating, Dave Hemmer had great educational news of his own to share: “As it turns out I have recently been promoted to full professor and chairman of the mathematics department here at the University at Buffalo!” Dave has been happily married for 12 years to wife Ginny and they are raising kids Meghan (7), Benjamin (4) and Adam (1).


I leave the last portion of this update to Michele (Bourgoin) Leddy. She just returned to corporate life after spending eight years raising children Charlie (8) and Catie (5). With kindergarten calling, Michele accepted a position as account director leading experiential marketing for Source Marketing’s Chase Visa card business.


She was able to enjoy a few last moments of pre-work fun with Margie (Block) Stineman and Angie (Duff) Tortorella celebrating the 40th birthday of Teddy Johnson ’94. Their kids also had a blast, and Meg (Stineman), Catie (Leddy) and Jane (Tortorella) are all looking forward to matriculating in 13 years! 


—Garrett Gil de Rubio, 1062 Middlebrooke Drive, Canton, GA 30115; ggdr@alum.dartmouth.org


After a crazy winter defined by abnormal, up-and-down weather conditions, it appears that spring is bringing with it a number of new bundles of joy and exciting occupational opportunities for the class of ’96. First, we interrupt this regularly scheduled column for a fun fact: Did you know that we have no fewer than 80 ’96s married to another ’96? And a bonus fun fact: In addition to those 40 class couples, another 50 members of our class are married to alums from other classes! 


With so many Dartmouth couples in our midst, it warms this class officer’s heart to receive news of one of our illustrious pairings. My dear friend Naomi (Parker) Lee recently wrote in and updated me on her life with fellow ’96 Paul (Graeve) Lee, M.D. Paul was an English major and German minor and Naomi a German major, which makes it ironic that the two did not meet until senior spring after an introduction by mutual friend Darryl Knudsen (who just happens to have been my freshman-year roommate). Naomi and Paul recently relocated to Madison, Wisconsin, where Naomi is a qualitative researcher for the University of Wisconsin, Madison, and Paul works with the university hospital. She says, “Madison is fun and close to our parents and siblings in the Twin Cities. It’s the first time either of us has lived in the Midwest since high school, and with a first baby on the way in February/March, it’ll be wonderful having family closer by.” As of press time I have no baby news so I can’t wait to report the arrival of another ’96 baby in an upcoming issue!


I received news that Bill Tovell was just promoted to executive director at J.P. Morgan Securities, after moving from a rates/foreign exchange sales position to become a relationship banker (with lots more travel!). Just as he was changing positions Bill and his wife, Gayane, welcomed son William Tovell III into the world on July 23 (the new arrival will be going by “William” to keep everyone’s names straight). Mother and son are doing well and Bill reports that William is growing up fast!


In other baby-related news, I also heard from Jennifer Frontera, M.D., that she and her husband, Joe Hickey, welcomed their daughter Liliana Veronica Hickey on January 20. Jen and Joe live in New York and were married back in 2010 (a wedding I was happily able to attend with a number of fellow ’96s and ’97s). Jen is an assistant professor in the department of neurosurgery and neurology at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine, where she has been since 2006.


Shervyn Von Hoerl also had a number of life updates. Shervyn, our esteemed class treasurer, accepted a position as vice president at 20 Gates Management LLC last year. He and his wife, Amanda, then greeted their second child, Hildegard Bronwyn Gallifrey Monier (a.k.a. “Hildi”), in the early morning hours of December 8. Congratulations all-around!


Lastly, I wanted to relay some Facebook news from Holly Parker from mid-January. Holly, who is the assistant coach for the Bates College women’s squash team, was particularly torn given the fact that her Bates team (ranked ninth in the country) was in Hanover to face the eighth-ranked Big Green. While Holly reports that she truly enjoyed her nostalgic night back in Hanover, she said that on the day of the match she would in fact “turn all Bobcat!” Happily, I can report that the national rankings held and Dartmouth trounced said Bobcats with a 7-2 win! (Sorry, Holly!)


—Garrett Gil de Rubio, 1062 Middlebrooke Drive, Canton, GA 30115; ggdr@alum.dartmouth.org


Happy New Year to all ’96s far and wide! With 2013 upon us, most of us are knocking on the door of our 40th year with great life and career changes ahead! As such, I have been afforded with updates from a few busy alumnae who have not written for some time.


Soraya (O’Brien) Jollon told me the last time she sent in updates she had but one child; she and husband Alfredo are now proud parents of two boys (Thiago, 4, and Leos, 2) and daughter Lucia, newly turned 1. In addition to celebrating her 10th wedding anniversary in 2012, she will be celebrating that same decade-long milestone for her Brooklyn-based, event-planning company later this spring.


Soraya graciously provided updates on a few other ’96s, including news of what she called a “serendipitous Dartmouth moment” while visiting Brazil last year. She and Alfredo had taken their children to the Parque Buenos Aires, a location he frequented growing up in São Paulo. While watching their kids at play, someone asked if her name was Soraya and she turned around to see Christine (Puleo) Reis standing behind her. Christine (on the same freshman trip as Soraya) and her Brazilian husband, Bruno, live around the corner from the park with their 2-year-old daughter Marina. They ended up spending Carnaval together in Cunha, where Soraya says, “Eating dinner together under the stars while the children played is one of my favorite memories from the trip.”


She also recently visited with Amy Harman Burkart, a federal prosecutor in Boston who welcomed her third child (a son named Cormac) with husband Ryan Burkart ’99 and passed along that Gabe Schlumberger and family left New York this summer, moving to Los Angeles so “he could be closer to the Disney mother ship.” Gabe happens to be the godfather of Soraya’s younger son—a position he accepted only after she promised “not to die and leave him in charge of our son’s spiritual guidance!”


In other Angeleno news, Kristen Havens has been based there since 2000. She just ghosted her first book on a neuroscience/psychology-related topic to be published in early 2013, and expects to be ghostwriting a business book on management this year (leaving her looking forward to working with more scientists, doctors and researchers). “Those skills I picked up tutoring in the composition center in Sanborn have come in handy,” Kristen imparted. She keeps in regular touch with Tara Callahan and Suzanne Leonard, whom she was hoping to see over the holidays. 


Fiona Danks sent what she believes to be her first-ever update. After earning her Ph.D. in polar ecology from the Scott Polar Research Institute, she moved to Tromsø, Norway, in 2008 to become the station manager of the Norwegian Polar Institute’s research station in Ny-Ålesund, Svalbard; she describes the role as “an exciting and dynamic position in a majestic place.” Fiona recently returned to student life and is “enjoying immensely” the conservation (biology) leadership M.Phil. program at Cambridge University, an interdisciplinary course that combines conservation science, finance, policy, governance and leadership skills. She is making the most of life with winter daylight again!


Lastly, I have an update from Aassia (Haroon) Haq, who after running her own startup business, decided last year to take the plunge back into a full-time executive role as chief marketing officer at MBO Partners, which helps independent business professionals manage back-office responsibilities. “One year in I am loving my new role,” Aassia reports, enjoying the benefits of working from a home office in Plano, Texas, and spending more time with her children Zoya, 8, and Adam, 3; her husband, Faisal, has his own ophthalmology practice there. 


—Garrett Gil de Rubio, 1062 Middlebrooke Drive, Canton, GA 30115; ggdr@alum.dartmouth.org


With the mid-year months upon us, temperatures in this part of the world are quickly rising, summer vacations are in full swing and everyone’s kids are suffering from the doldrums of seasonal break. It’s fitting then that all my updates for this Class Notes installment are from classmates in the educational sector—whose schedules lend themselves well to sending in updates with the school calendar easing up for the summer!


Maryam Kia-Keating wrote in with two exciting updates in her life. First, she recently got tenure at the University of California, Santa Barbara, where she is an assistant professor in the clinical psychology program. I remembered seeing a recent Facebook post from Maryam confirming the great news: “Tenure and ‘Yo Gabba Gabba’ all in one week. Don’t know if I’ll be able to top this.” As if that professional development were not enough to celebrate, by the time these notes are published Maryam and her husband, Brett, will have welcomed their second baby (who joins their elder daughter) in May! She said they are all very excited for the new member of their family to arrive. I would say that news definitely trumps “Yo Gabba Gabba” for sure!


Also from the world of higher education, I heard from David Weinberg with some great news of his own. Having never written in before, it was the “perfect time” to provide both an update of where he’s been in addition to details of where he’s going. After graduating from law school at the University of Pennsylvania and a short stint of “pretending to practice law,” David spent the last eight years at Seton Hall University’s law school in various positions in admissions and career services. As of May he was moving to New Orleans to become the assistant dean for admission at Tulane Law School. He’s looking forward to life in the “Big Easy” and suggested “any classmates hitting New Orleans for a conference or just some fun should feel free to reach out.” His last note then struck me at my core: “I also realize that some of the kids of ’96s might be college-age now (scary!), so I’m happy to talk about law school admissions as well!” While I wish Dave all the best in his new position and new city, some realizations of age are best left unsaid!


My last set of updates comes from Miriam Cherry, whose career developments allowed her to stay in the same city. Miriam, a faculty member at Saint Louis University’s School of Law, will be a visiting professor next year at the University of Missouri-Columbia. She said the visit at their neighboring school will give her the breathing room she’s needed to complete various writing projects she’s had in the works. While at “Mizzou” she will be teaching classes in business and employment law and is looking forward to getting to know the faculty and students there. Miriam also recently bought a new house in St. Louis, Missouri (complete with requisite cherry tree), which has her in the throes of spring cleaning and yard work. Her quest for the new home was chronicled in an episode of HGTV’s House Hunters that premiered early this year and replays every few months. 


Congrats to all our hardworking educators (and “educator-adjacent” folks) on the completion of another academic year! Everyone else please keep sending those updates in and we’ll get your news into an upcoming Class Notes! With this issue reaching everyone around in June, don’t forget to also make your Dartmouth College Fund and ’96 class contributions today in time for the June 30 end to the academic/fiscal year!


—Garrett Gil de Rubio, 1062 Middlebrooke Drive, Canton, GA 30115; ggdr@alum.dartmouth.org


Fellow, ’96s, spring (in the northern hemisphere) is finally upon us, and at the time of this writing the Royal Wedding is overcrowding media of all forms, there have been some tragic storms in the South, China’s population swells to 1.3 billion, and President Obama releases an original long form birth certificate from the very, very great state of Hawaii. 


I’d first like to announce that Garret Gil de Rubio is returning as ’96 class officer, and will be joining me in the role of co-secretary. Given some of life’s demands, two hands will certainly be better than one, and we endeavor to keep the class up to date through all of the media available to us. Garrett lives in Alpharetta, Georgia, has been married to Amber since 2004 and is the very proud father of daughter Emma. Garrett, I’m so glad that you are on board, and I know that president Kimberly Koontz Haring is too! Garrett can be reached at ggdr@alum.dartmouth.org.


So let’s jump into news….


Having taken the last 15 years to consider sending in an update, Daniel Frem wrote to say he is starting off on a new career; apparently his third, and he hopes his last. Following Dartmouth he worked at Ford Motor Co. with Chris Dorros, Sharon Spatz, Jeremy Crane and several other Thayer M.E.M. graduates, but after two-plus years, he returned home to Massachusetts to help manage the family business: Cyprian Keyes Golf Club (a public golf and reception facility in Boylston, Massachusetts). After seven years there Dan decided to make some dramatic changes, enrolled in post-baccalaureate classes and applied to Veterinary School. By the time this is published, he will have graduated (May) with his doctorate of veterinary medicine from the Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine at Tufts University and will be working as an intern next year in Ventura, California. Congratulations, Dan!


Everybody, welcome Cassidy Jordan Holmwood, born September 28, 2010, the daughter of proud parents Matthew Holmwood and Malia Brink. At the time Malia wrote me, little Cassidy was just shy of 7 months old. She is trying hard to crawl, though thus far she has been unsuccessful and adorably frustrated by the process. But it is going to be okay, because her big sister Amelia says she is going to get the dog to teach her. 


Last year Jamie Hansen shared a preview of her bakery, which is now open in Oakland, California. The Starter Bakery serves sweet and savory breads available for catering and wholesale in the Bay Area. Alums in the area looking for catering for meetings should check out Jamie’s website: www.starterbakery.com. 


So here’s a one-line update from Peter Jastreboff: “Not sure if I mentioned…moved to Hong Kong in September with wife and (now) 2-year-old son.” If my records are correct, Peter continues his work with Morgan Stanley in Hong Kong. He and his wife, Shayaan Aga, have been married since 2008, and they welcomed their son Aidan Ishaan at the beginning of 2009. (Just a side note to all, a few more tidbits are always helpful when compiling the class updates. Thanks for your help!)


It is with regret that I must inform you that Dr. Katherine Domingo passed away on March 18 following an eight-year battle with breast cancer. Find her obituary at the Alumni Magazine website, dartmouthalumnimagazine.com.


Enjoy the summer, and keep on keeping on.


—Kelii Opulauoho, 733 Amsterdam Ave., #3F, New York, NY 10025