Tag: 2004

Meeghan writes for this issue. Thank you to my classmates for taking a moment to share their lives (and allowing me some room for editorial commentary per usual, mostly in the form of happy exclamations). In these strange times of escalating extreme nationalism, racism, sexism, terrorism, elitism, climate change denier-ism, and all the other negative “isms” out there, I asked to hear about good people doing good stuff, and they have delivered. So check out ’04’s positive impact in their families, communities, and world.

Saori Imaizumi has made D.C. her home for the past seven years, while spending significant time on the road traveling to countries such as India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Kenya, Ethiopia, Tajikistan and Sri Lanka. The main purpose of her travels? To improve quality of education and access to it, increase youth employment, and create an innovation ecosystem. Through her work at the World Bank, she leverages technological and innovative solutions to address these very challenges. Saori is working on the African regional partnership platform called PASET, to enhance applied science, engineering, and technology capacity at the institutional level across Africa. She is happy to hear about any collaboration opportunities for this initiative if anyone is interested!

Eliza Simon is living in D.C., and she and husband Micah welcomed two adorable and energetic little boys, Caleb and Nate, into their family in 2013 and 2016. When she isn’t busy with her family, she is getting it done as an attorney at the Civil Rights Division at the Department of Justice, working on housing discrimination. She feels lucky to still have so many great people from Wesleyan in her life! And we feel lucky to have you, Eliza, and are proud of the important work you’re doing. I am probably embarrassing you, frosh roomie, but it’s true!

Elaina Dellacava completed her psychiatry residency at Montefiore Medical Center as the chief resident, and is starting a fellowship in geriatric psychiatry at New York Presbyterian. She lives in Manhattan with her husband. She has free advice for those coping with the stress of 2017: Do as the doctor does, and get yourself a large dose of family time and improv comedy.

Abraham Lateiner and his partner, Erika, just hit a major milestone: 10 years of marriage! They’ve made their home in Cambridge, Mass., with daughters Estella (7) and Lulu (3). They frequently hang out with Bess Thaler and Sam Fentress, Ben Abrams ’03, and occasionally Tom Peteet. Abe is still mourning the mass departure of other classmates like Ben Morse and Ethan Butler, but is delighted to still be in the same state as Ariel Pliskin. Abe left his 10-year teaching career to do something different: community organizing work to co-create spaces for healing/transformation for people who benefit materially from systems of injustice. This work affirms for him that freedom is possible. The current occupant of the White House is, to him, a sign that the hegemony of rich white men is starting to crumble, and he sees himself as part of a hospice effort for this process.

Carl Cervone graduated from Columbia Business School and co-founded Enveritas, a platform that allows coffee companies to validate the sustainability of their purchasing with complete transparency. Carl lives in Brooklyn with his wife and their 2-year-old son, Lucas.

Bernadette Doykos just wrapped up her PhD in community psychology at Vanderbilt, and is very much loving post-dissertation life in Portland, Maine. She spent quality time with Meriel Darzen and Erin Malone ’03, and got to snuggle the next generation of Wesleyan lacrosse fans (their adorable kids, Nico and Josie). She’s looking forward to a Wesleyan reunion at Rich Renzi’s wedding this summer!

Brian and Jessie Adams live in Nashville with their two little boys, Caldwell (4) and Harding (15 months), keeping them quite busy. They’ve had a lot of fun cheering on the Nashville Predators and Wes Lax teams during their respective playoff runs over the spring (sidenote from my editor/husband, Daniel Creeden: the Predators would have clinched it had it not been for Pekka Rinne. No comment on Wes Lax, but I’m trying to teach him the fight song…). Brian and Jessie are also quite busy in their professional lives. Brian is an investment manager, and Jessie is the director of service learning at an independent girls’ school. Congrats to Jessie for being awarded the Jones Prize in Philanthropy for people under 40 working in the philanthropic space! They love hearing from classmates who are coming through Nashville. They recently had a visit from the new Dr. Bernadette Doykos, and look forward to summer beach trips with Brad Wasik and family.

Congratulations are in order for Alden Ferro and his partner, Richard Luedeman. They got engaged in February when Richard surprised him at dinner and popped the question! They’ve set the date, September 15, 2018, in New Haven. Jess Richman and Marc Berger welcomed their son, Sidney Joseph, in December. The whole family is doing great in Seattle and is excited for a summer of swimming, dog walking, and plenty of porch sitting.

Jenina Nuñez | jenina.nunez@outlook.com

Meeghan Whooley Ward | meeghan.w.ward@gmail.com

NEWSMAKERS | 2000s NEWSMAKER GREGORY HELLER ’04 Gregory Heller ’04 was named one of Urban Land’s 40 Under 40. This award highlights the best young land-use professionals from around the globe, as selected by members of the Urban Land Institute (ULI). ULI is a member-supported nonprofit research and education organization dedicated to providing leadership in the responsible use of land. Heller is the executive director of the Philadelphia Redevelopment Authority. He recently published Ed Bacon: Planning, Politics, and the Building of Modern Philadelphia and spoke at a TEDx conference. While at Wesleyan, Heller was an American studies major with a concentration in German studies.

The Class of 2004 continues to share some great updates on work, family and travels!

Sohana Punithakumar is living in Seattle and working for Microsoft. She recently joined the HoloLens Product Marketing team and is excited to be focusing on the world of mixed reality!

Kendra Rosa and Zachary Nusbaum welcomed their daughter, Isadora Jane Nusbaum, to the world in May. She is ferocious.

Chris Kaminstein and Laura Stein ’03 got married last April in New Orleans. They run arts organizations and have a beautiful community of people down here in the Crescent City.

Aja Gabel writes, “My debut novel, In Common Time, will publish in early 2018 on Riverhead Penguin Random House. It’s a love story about a professional string quartet, and follows each member during the course of their entire career. I also sold the film option to my apocalyptic short story to the producers who made the films Midnight Special, Loving, and La La Land. Other than that, I am still working as a copywriter at Huge in Portland, Ore.”

Brian Hennessey writes, “I’ve just wrapped up two years of living in Paraguay working in telecom. My Spanish is better than ever and am a true believer that Paraguayan asado beats Brazilian, Uruguayan, and Argentinian hands down. My company has rotated me back to the Miami office, so if anyone comes down, they should drop me a line.”

Adam Faris writes, “After 10 years in the Atlantic City casino industry, I pursued my passion to become a certified personal trainer. I rented a building, outfitted it with equipment and officially opened P.O.H. (Pursuit of Happiness) Personal Training and Fitness LLC in Turnersville, N.J. in 2014. Specializing in functional training, strength training, weight loss, and making human beings move like they are supposed to, P.O.H. has already built a strong fitness-based community in the South Jersey area and is rapidly growing. I go to work at 4:45 a.m. on a Monday morning and am genuinely excited about getting the day started!”

David Bloom married Ritza Emmanuelle Calixte at the Wayfarer’s Chapel in Rancho Palos Verdes, Calif. Wes and fellow Quasimodal alumni James Schoen ’05 and Jed Rosenbaum ’02 were in attendance. After a lovely celebration, he returned to his craft, teaching theater at the Chadwick School in Palos Verdes Peninsula, Calif.

Adam Hodge left the U.S. Department of Treasury, Public Affairs and returned to the DNC as communications director for the general election. His son, Owen, is 15-months old and loves hanging with uncles Rich Renzi, Zach Lampell, and Dan Moger ’03.

Zil Jaeger and her wife, Violeta, had their first baby. They are excited to move to Portland, Ore., next summer where they’ve bought a home close to Logan Wright and his partner, Maggie.

Jenna Flateman was recently the youngest Wesleyan Athletic Hall of Fame inductee this year.

Josh Pelletier and his wife report back from the trenches of new parenthood on the wonderful Presley. “Every day is magical with her, watching her grow, smile, seeing her discover new things about the world, and develop skills that seem to bring her joy. It’s inspiring to live with someone who really only knows how to live in the moment; It has allowed us to slow down and live in these moments with her. Having a child is really a wonderful teacher and we are so grateful to have her in our lives.”

Meanwhile, Jenina Nuñez continues to enjoy living in the Windy City working for McDonald’s Corporation at their global headquarters. She’s also discovered a love of running, having completed her first half-marathon in the fall of 2016 and curling up with her Chihuahua mix, Marley, in her downtime when she gets a moment.

Jenina Nuñez | jenina.nunez@outlook.com

Meeghan Whooley Ward | meeghan.w.ward@gmail.com

NEWSMAKERS | 2000s NEWSMAKER MOSAH FERNANDEZ GOODMAN ’04 Mosah Fernandez Goodman ’04 was named one of the Ten Outstanding Young Omahans (“TOYO!”), exemplifying community ideas and exhibiting extraordinary leadership. Active in the Omaha community, Goodman serves on the board for the Child Saving Institute, has served on the metro area board for TeamMates, is a co-founder of 24HoursofImpact.com, and is a graduate of Leadership Omaha. A theater major as an undergraduate, he also earned an MALS from Wesleyan, as well as a JD/MBA from the University of Iowa. Currently serving as counsel at Gavilon, he has managed the construction of the company’s downtown headquarters, supported many business development efforts, and has worked on a variety of legal and compliance issues.

Congratulations are in order for David Whiting. David reports, “My wife and I have a beautiful baby boy! Aksel Smythe Whiting was born on Sept. 6 and everyone is happy and healthy. We are still living in Brooklyn and I am still working with the communications marketing firm, Edelman, as a senior vice president in the public affairs division.”

More great news. Robbie Roose and Katie Zackin ’10 were engaged in August after a romantic proposal at Cannon Beach, Ore. The couple had been living together for the last couple years in the Boston area and relocated to Portland, Ore. They will get married next August in western Massachusetts. Katie graduated from MGH in the spring and is a pediatric nurse practitioner. Robbie runs corporate development and investor relations for Avid Technology.

Brian Hennessey writes, “I’m still working for a multinational telecom company in Paraguay. Work is great and living in Asuncion continues to be fun. Any Wes folks visiting the country should find me on Wesconnect and say ’hi.’ It would be my pleasure to show you around or recommend things to do.”

Lauren Kelly writes, “I have good news. I graduated in May from Columbia University with a PhD in English education. In August, I began a postdoctoral research fellowship with Boston University’s School of Education. I look forward to reading and sending you more updates in the future.”

Jenina Nuñez | jenina.nunez@outlook.com

Meeghan Whooley Ward | meeghan.w.ward@gmail.com

Jenina writes: Hi, Class of 2004! Once again, you’ve shared some of the many wonderful, exciting things happening in your lives. So read on to learn more about what your former classmates are up to in work, families and travels!

From the East Coast, Elaina Dellacava seems to have a ton going on. She tells us: “I’m getting married July 30th in Tarrytown, N.Y., to my fiancé, Adam Knowles. We met in residency at Montefiore Medical Center and we are living in Manhattan. Rebecca Weinstein, Morgan Philbin and Sarah Abramson will be at the wedding. I’m chief resident in the outpatient department this year and will be doing a geriatric psychiatry fellowship at New York Presbyterian/Cornell beginning in July 2017.”

Also in New York, Nick Malinowski and David Fine live together in Brooklyn, as they once did on Washington Street in Middletown. “David’s side of the room remains scrupulously tidy,” Nick reports.

Nearby, in Connecticut, Nick Blondin has some great news. “My wife, Rebecca Gordon ’06, and I celebrated the birth of our second child, Daniel Jacob Blondin, on April 5. It was a dual birthday for mom and baby! Big sister Alice loved going to Wes for Reunion & Commencement this year.

“Professionally, I have continued building the St. Vincent’s Brain Tumor Center and now have five clinical trials for cutting-edge treatment of brain cancer, in addition to all the state-of-the-art standard treatments. I am optimistic that these breakthrough treatments will lead to advancements in the fight against brain cancer.”

Heading over to Philadelphia, we have another ’04 classmate who’s been keeping busy. In April Greg Heller started a new job as executive director of the Philadelphia Redevelopment Authority—the city’s implementation arm for community development. Also his book, Ed Bacon: Planning, Politics, and the Building of Modern Philadelphia, recently came out in paperback.

Sascha Stanton-Craven has been bouncing between coasts recently, continuing his run in Brooklyn of living with Jon Golbe ’06 for a longer period of time than he has with anyone not related to him by blood, and being expertly hosted by Jeff Brenner ’03 and family in Los Angeles while working on Web-to-TV series Decker (with intern Spencer Sheridan ’10), which will run on Adult Swim starting June 17th. Sascha says hello to everyone and hopes you’re all doing great.

Aja Gabel tells us: “Last year I earned my PhD in literature and creative writing from the University of Houston. After spending some time in Japan, I began working full time as a copywriter for Huge in Portland, Ore. Just last week I sold my first novel to Riverhead Books /Penguin Random House.”

Liz Leipzig has some wonderful family news. “I had a baby in January, Logan McKeown Leipzig. Happy, healthy baby. Wish he would sleep through the night! My daughter, Emily, is starting first grade in the fall. She plans to be a paleontologist. I’ll be married to my high school sweetheart and business partner 10 years in September.”

Tajan Renderos also has some great family news and work updates to share: “I’m very busy with the coaching practice that I run, Tajan Renderos Coaching. Our mission is to inspire, challenge, and support young women as they make power moves to go from being stuck in life to soaring. I do this by providing coaching and workshops within organizations that serve young women, where they can learn and apply spiritual principles that are needed to thrive in adulthood. I also have a really cool vlog series that you can check out on tajanrenderos.com. When I’m not at work, Wil Renderos ’05 and I are busy chasing after our 2-year-old guru, Sahai.”

Isaiah O’Rear shares some news on his work in the educational space. “I work at the U.S. Dept. of Education as the project officer for the ED School Climate Surveys (EDSCLS). The EDSCLS was released to the public in April 2016. The EDSCLS is a Web-based platform that allows schools and school districts to collect, report, and act on reliable, valid, and timely measures of school climate.”

And Mosah Fernandez Goodman was recognized in his new hometown of Omaha! “It was recently announced that I will receive an award in Omaha—10 Outstanding Young Omahans (2015 TOYO! Recipient). The TOYO! is in its 83rd year and is among the top honors within the City of Omaha. It has been getting significant media attention within this region. While the award is certainly a personal honor, I thought it demonstrates that Wes alumni make a difference in communities wherever they go in life… even Omaha.”

Congrats to these folks!

As always, we’d love to hear what you’re up to. To get into the next issue, please send a quick note:

Jenina Nuñez | jenina.nunez@gmail.com

Meeghan Whooley Ward | meeghan.w.ward@gmail.com

Baby boom, courtesy of the class of 2004! Plus more of our classmates finding love, finding their passion, and doing amazing work in this world.

Ashley Elia Weller and Kyle Weller welcomed baby boy Jett Ryan one Jan. 22, 2016. As weather systems seem to align with all Weller major life events, Jett was born during a snow storm in New Jersey. Luckily with Facetime, visitors were still able to meet the little guy in his first days (including me, from over here in Switzerland). With his long fingers, toes and limbs, he just might be a baller like his mom! Ash and Kyle are elated, and adjusting to life as new parents.

Malia Shelton Kuss and husband Josh Kuss will be welcoming their first child, a baby boy, in March. An early congratulation to these San Diegans, who are loving life in the Golden State!

Joshua Kaye and Megan Ridley-Kaye ’05 welcomed their son Benjamin Ridley Kaye (‘37?) in November. They are overjoyed. Megan has just returned to work as an in-house attorney at Noble Americas, focusing on structured finance and mergers and acquisitions, but also fielding the occasional call from a freighter captain. Josh is a litigator at Paul Weiss, where in addition to representing a wide range of corporate clients, he devotes a substantial portion of his practice to marriage equality and LGBT rights. He represented Edie Windsor in her successful challenge to the Defense of Marriage Act in the Supreme Court in 2013. He is currently representing married gay couples who are challenging Mississippi’s blanket ban on gay couples adopting.

Lauren Pearlman and Fletcher Durant ’03 have had a busy year, first with a move from Brooklyn, N.Y., to Gainesville, Fla., where they both started tenure track jobs at the University of Florida. Lauren is an assistant professor in the History and African American Studies Departments, and Fletcher is a preservation librarian. In November, they welcomed Milo Freeland Durant into the world. He joins older brother, Felix, who has quickly accumulated all the blue-and-orange clothing a boy could need. They welcome visitors to Florida to stay in their guest house—Julia Pearlman ’10 has already visited several times!

Gregory Heller and his wife, Diana Lind, are proud to announce the birth of their son, Theodore Douglas Heller, on Nov. 24, 2015. They have been celebrating with Wes friends Katherine Gajewski ’02, Liz King ’03, and their neighbor, Brad Moss ’80. In addition to their family growing, Greg’s organization, ACT, has also grown exponentially, now working on community development projects in 27 U.S. cities. Last year, Next City featured Greg in a piece titled “This CEO Wants to Change the Real Estate Game for Low-Income Neighborhoods.” Greg also received the honor of being named Urban Innovator by Urban Innovation Exchange—a project of the Kresge Foundation and Meeting of the Minds to identify the nation’s top urban leaders. If you want to learn more, you can also check out his TEDx Philadelphia talk, discussing how “social impact real estate” can transform our cities: youtube.com/watch?v=1ueVS1acOgo

Joseph Berman married Sarah Novick last summer. He also started working with Jewish Voice for Peace in D.C., working for justice, equality, and human rights for Palestinians and Israelis.

Rebecca Solow has been living in Geneva, Switzerland, for the past year, and working at the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB and malaria. Rebecca and husband, Scott Griffin, were married in October, and had a wonderful time celebrating with the many Wes alums in attendance, including Josh Kaye, Megan Ridley-Kaye ’05, Jon Lashley, Alden Ferro, Dael Norwood, Michelle Paul, and “Maid of Dishonor” Susan Manikas. They look forward to heading back to New York in March, where Rebecca will rejoin the Boston Consulting Group.

Katie Schoendorf and Noah Nattell were married in Big Sur, California, on September 5th, 2015. The ceremony was officiated by Emma Alpert and Krishna Andavolu, with music by Joaquin Cotler ’05 and Steven Gravatt. The wedding party included Mark Hatch-Miller, Rose Lichter-Marck, and Aaron Schoonhoven. Others Wesleyan alums in attendance: Robbie Botta ’05, Katy Clark-Spohn Botta ’05, Carl Cervone, Laurel Daen ’05, Andrea Garcia, Ben Goldwasser ’05, Lucas Jansen, Aaron Lowenstein ’98, Jesse McIntosh ’05, Lindsey Reynolds, Lindsay Rodgers ’06, and Peter Thilly. The couple recently moved to Los Angeles, where Noah is a fellow in obstetrics and gynecology with a focus in family planning at the University of Southern California.

Jeremy Levinn is a financial planner at an independent firm (Financial Life Focus) in the greater NYC area that is working to re-shape the industry, and is helping their clients make decisions that align with both financial goals and personal values. Their approach is simple: they don’t sell anything except expertise, and don’t get paid by anyone, except their clients. Financial Life Focus is part of a small minority in a sea of brokers and insurance salesmen acting as “advisers” but really pushing product. The firm works with people of all ages and financial means, including clients in their 30s, faced with important financial decisions, but typically ignored for lack of millions of dollars. It’s his great hope that more of the smart, thoughtful graduates of Wesleyan will eventually help change this industry for the better.

Jenina Nuñez | jenina.nunez@gmail.com

Meeghan Whooley Ward | meeghan.w.ward@gmail.com

Hey, Class of 2004! You continue to share some great updates and we’re happy to share them…

Vincent Balsamo was named assistant principal at Crosby High School, in Waterbury, Conn., in March, his son Joey just turned 1, and he and his wife purchased a home in Prospect.

Nearby, Lelah Baker-Rabe ’04 says: “My family and I recently returned to Connecticut after 10 years in Los Angeles. My husband, Dylan Osborn ’05, and our two sons, Truman (3) and Holden (1), just moved to Norwalk and are preparing ourselves for our first real winter in a decade. We’re looking forward to reconnecting with our east coast family and Wes friends.”

Shanta Cortez-Greig tells us she got her LCSW—she’s a social worker and has been working as a forensic clinician at the county jail. “But I am currently working on my music career. My debut album came out in 2013 and a new EP entitled “7” is being released in the next month. Also, (and I’m super excited about this!!), I am embarking on a national tour—The Guerrilla Gigs Tour Across the USA! I will be brazenly busking every major city and national landmark in the country as a maverick musician.” Her tour launches in Boston on Oct. 4th, where I will be playing The Burren. I will then be making my way northwest, then down California and then back to New England, making 27 scheduled stops…” More information can be found on my website: ShantaPaloma.com. (P.S. People can sponsor me at Gofundme.com/ShantaPaloma2015.)

Ashley Elia Weller tells us she’s expecting! “My husband and I are looking forward to having our first child, due in January 2016. That’s about it for now.”

Peter Thilly says he received his PhD in history from Northwestern University in September 2015, and is currently working as a faculty fellow in East Asian Studies and History at Colby College in Waterville, Maine.

Mike and Kate Patterson Gilles are thrilled to announce the birth of their daughter, Natalie Caroline, on July 17th. With newly minted big brother Sebastian, they still live on Capitol Hill in DC, where they’ve received much-appreciated Wesleyan village support, including from Anna Christensen ’03, Liz King ’03, and Suzy Sacher ’03.

Gina Zorzi Klein tells us: “I’m proud to announce that, starting Oct. 4th, my publishing house, ARC Press, will have an entire bookcase in Barnes & Noble stores. We are partnering with B&N to fill the gap between listening to books and reading independently. Wes alums with small children, please go to your local B&N to Learn to Read with our Training Wheels Series or check us out on the Web at trainingwheelsseries.com.”

And from Rebecca Hall: “Twelve years after meeting, due to an auspicious Wesleyan housing pick that landed us both in a lovely 10-person low-rise apartment, Sam Fletcher and I got married last fall in Charleston. Several Wes alums were there to celebrate with us, including Anna Teeter ’04, James Panczykowski ’04, and Kingsley Choi ’05. Since then, we haven’t wasted any time and are excited to have purchased our first home in Old Greenwich, Conn., and to welcome our first child in fall 2015. Sam works as a copywriter in Westport, and I am a dermatologist practicing in Stamford.”

Jenina NuÑez | jenina.nunez@gmail.com

Meeghan Whooley Ward | meeghan.w.ward@gmail.com

Hi, Class of 2004! As usual, you’re keeping busy and have some wonderful milestones to celebrate!

Liana Heitin is living in D.C. and working as a reporter for Education Week newspaper. In September, she married her best friend and running buddy, Jonathan Loewus-Deitch, in an outdoor wedding in the mountains of West Virginia. The two honeymooned in Thailand this winter.

Nick Blondin tells us: “I’ve been quite busy in my practice as a neuro-oncologist in Fairfield, Conn., at Associated Neurologists of Southern Connecticut (ANSC). I’ve recently opened two clinical trials for patients with glioblastoma, the most aggressive form of brain cancer. I have also started a clinical research project with medical marijuana for patients with brain cancer. I’m on twitter @NeuroOncNews if you want to follow!”

Plus, he was up at Wes on Jan. 31 for the swim team meet against Coast Guard Academy, visiting with Tom Cleveland ’05. “I think Coach Solomon is doing an awesome job!” We agree!

Brian Hennessey graduated from his MBA program and got a spot in a rotational program with a telecom company that works in Latin America and Africa. “I spent some of the fall in Miami at our Latam Headquarters and I’m spending the first half of 2015 in Paraguay working on a few fun projects. I haven’t seen many other Wesers but am planning to be in NYC for Will Kendall’s wedding, so I hope to reconnect with a few folks then.”

Laurel Kemper tells us she had a baby, Leonhard Kemper Kennedy, on July 13, 2014. Plus, she’s in Vienna, Austria, through 2018 with her family and would love to have Wesleyan visitors.

Kristin Small got married Aug. 9, 2014, to Jonathan Holz and lives happily in Rochester, N.Y. She’s also enjoying her job as a civil rights lawyer at Empire Justice Center.

Hannah Tennant-Moore is newly, happily married to Wyatt Mason. Her first novel will be published by Hogarth/Random House next year.

Nick Vincent got married last May at the Winterthur Museum in Delaware, where he met his wife, Eliza, in grad school. Wes alums at the wedding included soccer teammates Chris Feige, Rick Ferri, Nick Katzenbach, and Rich Valentino ’03. On the professional front, Nick was promoted to a senior management position in the director’s office at The Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Stephanie Mandell got married in October in the Brooklyn Botanic Garden. Josh Kaye, Megan Ridley Kaye ’05, Nora Hanagan, Jon Lashley, Becca Solow, and Camille Zahniser attended. She’s lived in LA for three years now, and is a managing consultant at IBM, focusing on energy and utilities.

Tatiana McDougall, (officially Dr. Tatiana McDougall) writes: “I received my PhD in clinical psychology from the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, in Dec, 2014. My dissertation research examined the influence of stress and attachment on intimacy, using dyadic data-analyses to model complex interdependent processes. I am continuing to work with individuals and couples as I complete my post-doctoral fellowship at the Long Beach VA Hospital, where I am also involved in research examining the influence of attachment style on therapeutic processes in veterans with PTSD. I live with my husband, Masai, and our dog, Melody, in Long Beach. It’s been great to be closer to West Coast family and friends; we even get to see Chet Devaskar and Shivani Siroya, when we are not all busy with our crazy lives.”

In more Wes alum marriage news, Bonnie Oliva and Tim Porter said “I do” on campus in January over Martin Luther King Day weekend. Wes was in full effect, with many alums in attendance, such as Bernadette Doykos, Biz Ghormely, Dawn Papacena ’02, Anthony Rosario ’02, Andres Villalon, Ahkai Franklin, Tivon Sidorsky, Josh Goldstein, Brian McKenna, Melissa DeCew, Rebecca Kirchheimer, wedding coordinator Delilah Lora ’05 and Bonnie’s 9 Vine roommates—Judivelly Torres, Monica Gonzalez, Cassandra (James) Dixon and Jenina Nuñez.

And that’s it for now. Until next time!

Jenina NuÑez | meeghan.w.ward@gmail.com

Meeghan Whooley Ward | jenina.nunez@gmail.com

Adam Barton spent much of 2014 working on a new science/comedy series for National Geographic called Going Deep with David Rees. It’s a “how-to show for things you think you already know how to do.” For example, one segment is called how to light a match. Media from Vice.com to Rolling Stone have been raving about the series, but ultimately real people need to watch this show, not just magazine editors, so please check out Adam’s show on cable or hulu.com. His production company also partners with Tantra World Wide on a music and travel series called Music Voyager which airs on PBS. Incredible work by our classmate!

Sara Sadownik moved to Boston over the summer and is loving her new job with the Massachusetts Health Policy Commission, working for the state on issues of sustainable health care cost growth. She hangs out with Rebecca Brigham ’05 and other fine Wes alums. She also bummed around Santa Fe with Tantri Wija ’03 for two weeks before the big move!

Greg Heller got married in May to Diana Lind. Celebrating the wedding with them were Mike Gilles, Kate Patterson Gilles, Liz King ’03, and Annika Brink ’05. In September Greg was named CEO of American Communities Trust, a national community development organization, dedicated to “building social impact” in urban and low-income communities across the U.S.

Raven Maldonado-Brown and Rasheed Brown had their baby boy on Aug. 8, 2014, and he’s just the cutest thing ever! His name is Wesley Alexander Brown and contrary to what most may think, he is not named after Wesleyan. It is pretty cool that his nickname will be Wes, and whenever Raven says his name, a little memory of her alma mater shines through!

Lauren Pearlman received her doctorate in American Studies and African American Studies from Yale University and is now a visiting assistant professor at the United States Military Academy, which is a lot like Wesleyan (but with more guns). When she’s not teaching up there, she spends time with her husband, Fletcher Durant ’03, son Felix who is now 2.5 year old, and all the other Wes parents in Brooklyn.

Jenina NuÑez | meeghan.w.ward@gmail.com

Meeghan Whooley Ward | jenina.nunez@gmail.com

Class of 2004: While there are many great updates to share, we’d like to start this set of class notes by remembering one of our classmates—Jocelyn Sweet Moore—who passed away in April after a long battle with cancer. We want to pay our most sincere respects to Jocelyn’s family. And if there are any favorite memories you’d like to share, please send them along and we’ll be sure to fold it into the next set of notes.

In additional updates, it seems that members of our class are still doing well! In great couple news, it looks like Michelle Paul and Dael Norwood got engaged! To each other! Hallmates and then housemates at Wes, and partners since, it can’t be said that anyone was at all surprised by this turn of events. For the moment, they are continuing to enjoy Brooklyn but they’ll soon be moving to scenic Binghamton, N.Y., where Dael will be starting as an assistant professor of history at Binghamton University. Michelle will continue on as director of product development at Patron Technology, where she’s worked since 2005.

Meanwhile, Sita Singhal attended medical school from 2006–2010 and finished a residency at UConn in 2013. Now, she is working as a hospitalist at Manchester and Rockville general hospitals. However, she also managed to travel the world, too. In Oct.–Nov. 2013, she took a trip to Australia and New Zealand, and earlier this year was in India, Dubai, and South Africa.

Meanwhile, back East, Ari Pliskin tells us: “I’ve been building a pay-what-you-can community café in Western Mass., teaching meditation and yoga and promoting dignity-based methods of reducing hunger around the world.”

Also nearby is Nick Blondin: “I joined Associated Neurologists of Southern Connecticut, located in Fairfield, last July. I’m the practice neuro-oncologist, and one of only four neuro-oncologists in the state of Conn. I’m still married to Rebecca Gordon ’06, and our baby Alice is turning 2 in August!”

Out on the west side of the country is Sohana Punithakumar, who is loving Seattle even more now that Marc Berger and Jess Richman Berger have moved here. They’re gearing up for their first local WEServe event in May.

And former New York native, Jenina Nuñez, continues to call Chicago home, where she lives with her little Chihuahua mix, age 4, and looks forward to summer weather that makes the city a blast after the rough winters!

Lena Eson Roe and Matthew Roe ’05 are living in Mexico City this year with their toddler, Gabriel. Matthew is lending a hand with pedestrian and traffic safety planning. Lena is taking Spanish-language intensive classes at UNAM while Gabriel learns Spanish at his amazing escuelita. And they’re all exploring lots of Mexico together. It’s mango season!

Jenina NuÑez meeghan.w.ward@gmail.com

Meeghan Whooley Ward
jenina.nunez@gmail.com