CLASS OF 1987 | 2015 | ISSUE 2
Dear Classmates, I was lucky enough to see a lot of my favorite Wes people this spring. In May, Jeremy Mindich and I co-hosted a campaign fundraiser at my place for our beloved Senator from Colorado, Michael Bennet. Among those who came to support him were Brad Lubin, Lisa Abroms Herz, Dave Davenport ’88, Bill Shapiro, Michael Pruzan, Lucy Lehrer ‘85, Sarah Williams ’88 and Sharon Greenberger ‘88, as well as my sister Hilary Jacobs Hendel ’85. I also had a lovely long dinner and sleepover in NYC with Martha Sutro. I had at least two meals with Lisa Abroms Herz, and I got a great night out with Matt Paul and his (and Naomi Mezey’s) ever-fabulous kids. An embarrassment of riches!
Speaking of Naomi Mezey, starting this summer she will be the associate dean for the JD program at Georgetown Law. “The up side of taking on an administrative job like this is that I’ll get a chance to learn new skills (like being a decider) and think hard about legal education at a time when it is in flux. The downside of this job is that I won’t have much time for teaching or writing a book and that I’ll have to go into the office every single day of the week. I may also have to shower and wear nice clothes. I should note that the Wesleyan graduates who go on to become my students are uniformly awesome people.”
John Fitzpatrick was kind enough to write in about a Wes wedding that he had just been to. “Jeff McCarthy ’89 was married this past June in a beautiful outdoor ceremony in Park City, Utah. It was attended by Chris Olinger, Mike Pruzan, Mike Olinger ’89 and me. Jeff and Whitney organized a weekend of mountain biking, hiking, dancing the night away and general frivolity. A good time was had by all.”
After five years of living in Mexico City, Lucille Renwick moved back stateside (“for a little while,” she says) to N.Y. this summer, where her husband will work as a deputy sports editor for The New York Times and Lucille will look for work in communications/PR. She’s excited about reconnecting with Wes friends Sumana Chandrasekhar Rangachar, Amy Baltzell, Yvonne Ilton ’88, Sarah Williams ’88, Ruth Bodian ’88 and many more. Lucille is planning on running the 2015 NYC marathon to mark her return to New York and her upcoming 50th. She welcomes any Wes runners to help her keep pace.
Since graduating, Evelyn Shapiro “has been working in design and marketing, both in publishing and higher ed. At the same time, I’ve been teaching Alexander Technique privately to dancers, English teachers, and lawyers. This spring those two worlds came together when I wrapped up the design and development of my 75th title, a scholarly book called Alexander’s Way. Last fall I was honored to attend Clarinda Mac Low and Peter Stankiewicz’s beautiful wedding celebration in Brooklyn, where many a guest had Wes connections. Happily, my daughter made fast friends with the other kids there, including Chris Lotspeich’s girls. At home in Illinois, we are full on with a busy life including my partner, clarinetist Solomon Baer’s chamber music concerts, our son Mario’s (10) near-obsessive passion for soccer, and Hannah’s (7) intricate inner world of stories. We are looking forward to our second trip back to Guatemala, Mario’s birth country. I wish Kim Sargent-Wishart didn’t live so far away, but I relish her wit and wisdom and family pix from afar. I’ve also stayed in touch with our classmate Anna Luhrmann Dewdney, who is living her dream of painting kids’ books in Vermont.
Charles Grattan Baldwin is happy to report that he earned his PhD in literacy from the Rutgers Graduate School of Education and graduated this May. “I am now getting used to being called “Dr. Baldwin.”
Frank Barrett said it was “uplifting to catch up with Brad Vogt in NYC last month before we listened to Steve Genyk speak positively of his childhood friend and Wesleyan hockey teammate Ken Cain, during a 50th birthday party hosted by wife Susan Cain. Not long afterwards in Boston, Genyk and I had a ball connecting with old teammates Don Gillis ’84, Dave Blauer ’84, and Ed Colbert ’89. An uplifting night of reminiscing and laughter started on the back deck of the The Boston Tea Party Ships and Museum, courtesy of host Ted Galo ’85, who is the museum’s site manager. Oddly, all former Cardinals mentioned here are “Little Three Champions” without a shared title, a feat that has been accomplished just twice in 44 years of Wesleyan men’s ice hockey. Steve Genyk also wrote in about the same party, saying how great it was to see everyone, but wondered where A.J. Salerno and John Brais ’86 were.
Steve Kaminsky writes that his daughter, Juliet Margot Kaminsky, arrived Friday, Feb. 27th. “We are over the moon! Oh yeah, and I turned 50 yesterday. Woah!”
Scott Pryce and his family are enjoying quality of life in suburban Washington, D.C., after a short stint (a second one) in São Paulo. He shuttles every week to Miami for work, and would love to connect with Florida-based classmates.
Oy, the spring after next will bring our 30th Wesleyan Reunion. So don’t make any plans for Memorial Day Weekend 2017! Or better yet, put it in your iPhones now!