Class Note 1989
Just a few weeks to go until we gather in Hanover to mark 25 years since we got up early on a Sunday morning in June, donned our black robes, listened quizzically to poet Joseph Brodsky telling us to embrace boredom and headed out into the wide world, diplomas in hand. “Her Spell on us Remains,” as we make our reunion travel plans for June 12-15. There’s so much to draw us back and still plenty of time to register if you haven’t already. Start at our class website, 1989.dartmouth.org and email me with any questions.
We’re also hoping that all ’89s will participate in our 25th reunion book, regardless of whether you join us in Hanover. Please share your reflections at our reunion book site. Go to 1989.dartmouth.org and click on the link. You’ll have the opportunity to submit your reflections on whatever you choose. The book will be organized alphabetically by classmate and you’ll have your own section that can include a combination of a photo or text. The book will be published in the fall.
Steve Blank writes from St. Paul, Minnesota, wondering if he’ll have the youngest kids at reunion. He and his wife, Rebecca Slisz ’95, welcomed their second child, Chelsea, last May. She joins her older brother Jordan, who is 3. About 10 years ago Steve and Rebecca moved to Minnesota, where Steve works as a sourcing manager at GE’s power and water business.
As reunion approaches our thoughts this spring turn to the 14 classmates no longer with us. One year in April since the passing of Jamie Kershaw. And in January we learned that Rick Bartlett passed away in New York after battling a rare lung disease. He was on the waiting list for a transplant at the time of his death. Rick and his wife, Loring, made their home in Rye, New York, with their children Jack, Cole and Caroline. Rick came to Dartmouth from Hudson Falls, New York, and earned varsity letters in football and in track and field as a pole-vaulter. He majored in computer science and was a member of Beta Theta Pi. Rick had a successful career on Wall Street at Citigroup that spanned more than two decades. Since 2007 he served as the head of equities for North and South America. Many ’89s spoke at Rick’s funeral service and reception, including Paul Prentice, Tim Parrott, Michael Luther and Tyler Dickson, who worked with Rick at Citi for many years. In a memo to its staff Citigroup wrote, “Rick was a man of immeasurable character. He always held himself to the highest of standards. Yet with others Rick showed compassion, a mentor who always found, in the midst of difficulty, a teaching moment. People were drawn to Rick. How could they not be? He was thoughtful and charismatic. He was inspiring, seemingly always one step ahead. He put others first, himself thereafter. In Rick you found someone invested in everything he did, everyone he came across.” In early December as Rick waited for the lung transplant that would never come, he wrote, “As many of you know, my favorite phrase is ‘Keep Calm and Carry On.’ That is how I approach each day and it seems to be very appropriate during this difficult time.”
We will have the opportunity to memorialize Rick and our 13 other classmates immediately following our Saturday lunch at reunion. The service will take place outdoors in the Rocky Courtyard and we hope it will be a welcoming and moving experience for all who can participate.
—Jennifer Avellino, 5912 Aberdeen Road, Bethesda, MD 20817; javellino@mac.com
