Tag: 2004

Wes ’04 continues to share some great life events and activities. Check out what your classmates have been up to.

On the West Coast, Michael Aylward tells us: “Been a few years here, and thought I’d say hello! I’m still living in San Francisco, on a bit of a detour from my energy and climate work for the past couple years (working at a tech company with some lovely people)—still involved in energy and politics and still enjoy sharing guidance, information, and support to young Wes alumni interested in climate and politics.”

Close by, Mark Schindler is a product manager at Fountain, leading the development of a brand new app within the company. Mark loves the interdisciplinary and strategic aspects of being a PM, and always looks forward to visits to the Bay area. Earlier this year he ran into former lacrosse teammate Jason Scott at a Warriors game, and he enjoyed watching the men’s lacrosse team beat Middlebury when Coach Raba and the boys visited Baltimore.

Meanwhile, Jennifer Colker Hammond says, “I will be working as a college counselor at Berkeley High School in California. If anyone wants to make the Wesleyan connection, let me know!”

From Southern California, Stephanie Mandell says, “I moved to Burbank and welcomed a second daughter in January. I work as a business advisory consultant in Slalom’s Strategy & Operations group.”

Back on the East Coast, Brennan Carney says, “I’m living in Colchester, Vt., happily married for eight years. We have three children: Cooper, 6, Boden, 4, and Quinn, 2. I just retired as a varsity football coach in my 15th year, and will spend my time with children. I am a teacher at Burlington High School and my wife is a fourth-grade teacher in Colchester.”

Also in the Northeast, Ariel Pliskin is completing a master of social work at Westfield State University and teaching sex education to adolescents in western Massachusetts.

Alden Ferro had a very eventful fall. He started a new job in the Office of Public Affairs at Yale Law School. Two weeks later, he married Richard Luedeman in a ceremony at Edgerton Park in New Haven officiated by Judge Susan L. Carney. Joshua Kaye and Jonathan Lashley served as best men. Other WesGuests included Megan Ridley-Kaye ’05, Susan Manikas, Rebecca Solow, Dael Norwood, Michelle Paul, Liz Thaler ’05, David Haan ’06, and Nora Hanagan, who was there in spirit, and consulted on the playlist. Wes faculty Claudia Nascimento and Ron Ebrecht were also in attendance. Alden and Richard spent two weeks in Italy on their honeymoon before returning to the real world.

Rebecca Gundle shares some wonderful family news. “I gave birth to baby boy, Ezra Sigmund Porter, on March 22 with my partner Eric Porter. We now have two little ones under 2 as we became foster parents, and by the time you’re reading this, permanent guardians to my nephew, Tristan, who is 15 months old now. Our hands and hearts are very full!”

To keep the up with the great family updates: K.J. Iribe shares that she and husband Jim Woodsome ’06 had a baby in January, Madeleine Woodsome! “She’s pretty great. Jim and I think we’ll keep her.”

Also, with growing family updates, Rebecca Hall and Sam Fletcher have had an exciting few years. They had a daughter, Cora Hall Fletcher, in November 2015 and had a son, Wesley Hall Fletcher, on Thanksgiving Day. They couldn’t be more grateful for the life they have built in Old Greenwich, Conn. They both work in Stamford, Rebecca as a dermatologist and Sam as a copywriter. They enjoyed seeing classmates at the 15th Reunion.

Thanks for the great updates, ’04. Keep them coming! You can always submit, even between calls for entries.

Jenina Nuñez | jenina.nunez@outlook.com

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

Hi, Class of ’04! As usual, you’re making big moves and celebrating amazing things!

We have two classmates releasing books soon. First, we hear from Joe Fischel that his next book will be coming out this December, titled Screw Consent: A Better Politics of Sexual Justice.

Amy Meyerson is an assistant professor in the writing program and the director of the Undergraduate Writers Conference at the University of Southern California. Her debut novel, The Bookshop of Yesterdays, was published on June 12 by Park Row Books, an imprint at HarperCollins.

Overseas, C.S. Hsia tells that after a year toiling in the commodities trading sector, he’s decided to give entrepreneurship one more go by joining Alchemist Brewing in Taiwan, growing ingredients locally for beer and other delicious beverages.

We hear that Noah Nattell started new jobs in the past year. He tells us: “I’m the medical director for Planned Parenthood Pasadena and San Gabriel Valley, which provides reproductive and sexual healthcare for 22 communities in Los Angeles county. I serve as the director of women’s health for the LA County Correctional Health Services, overseeing and providing prenatal and gynecological care in the largest women’s jail in the U.S.”

Bernadette Doykos is “living in Portland, Maine, and working and teaching a bit at the University of Southern Maine. Martina McPherson and I started working with Sonya Behnke Page ’03 and her nonprofit consulting group, Page Consulting, LLC. Let us know if you need any help with grant writing, evaluation, or any other nonprofit needs. I’m also looking forward to Chris Mele’s wedding in July!”

We also learned that Michelle Paul and Dael Norwood are moving to Delaware. After successfully radicalizing their neighbors in upstate New York, they’re on their way to the very carefully pronounced Newark (say “New Ark”), where Dael is taking a position as a historian of capitalism at the University of Delaware. Michelle will continue in her new-ish role as managing director of PatronManager, the technology company she’s been helping to grow since 2005. They look forward to adding to their supply of fun facts about the First State, because so far that’s literally all they know. Give a shout if you’re in the neighborhood doing some tax-free shopping!

Meanwhile, Mark Schindler is the head of BI and analytics for a San Francisco-based startup called Fountain. He says it’s really interesting and detailed work, and his only wish is that he had known at Wes how much he would enjoy engineering/code work. He says he still wouldn’t have given up majoring in psych, but definitely would have pursued computer science as well.

Abraham Lateiner says: “I am feeling firmly rooted here in the greater Boston area. My wife, Erika, and I are watching our two girls grow up (Estella is 8, Lulu is 4) and enjoying a sense of settling down. Meanwhile, my professional life is where things feel wild . . . I’m focusing on creating ‘containers’ for people in a position of privilege and domination to learn the art of powerful surrender of their dominating power in solidarity with movements led by marginalized people. In particular, I’m working to support white men and rich people to commit to a lifelong process of learning to be ‘fully human,’ which to me means living in deep and joyful interdependence with the rest of the world. It is deeply challenging and rewarding work.”

Jennifer Brown writes: “After over a decade living and working in China and Southeast Asia, I finally moved back to the U.S. and finished up an executive MBA program through UNC Chapel Hill’s Kenan-Flagler business school. I decided to make the Bay Area my new home, where I’ve been thrilled to regularly catch up with Becca Gelenberg, Liza Harrison Ashbrook, and Leah Pransky (shoutout to Leah for housing me when I first arrived!). I’ve been doing some small consulting projects in global nonprofit and social impact work and encourage any Wes classmates working in that space to reach out!”

Carl Cervone writes, “I’m just over a year into my startup, Enveritas, where I’m COO. We verify sustainability levels in coffee supply chains, combining machine learning with on-the-ground data collection and using the insights to help coffee companies improve their buying practices. We just got accepted into the startup accelerator Y Combinator. I split my summer between Silicon Valley and New York.”

Jenina Nuñez | jenina.nunez@outlook.com

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

Mariah Klaneski Reisner, husband Sam, and daughter Aviva are pleased to announce the birth of Zohana Grace Reisner. She was born June 19, 2017, at 8:02 a.m., weighed 8 lbs., 7.5 oz, and was 20.5 inches long.

Meanwhile, Carl Cervone lives in Brooklyn with wife Kidist and their 3-year-old son, Lucas. Carl finished an MBA at Columbia and runs a startup nonprofit called Enveritas that verifies sustainability practices in coffee supply chains.

Sarah Colao Wallach reports some wonderful news after taking a bit of a break from sharing some news: “Dan Wallach and I (and big sister Zoey) will be celebrating the first birthday of our second child, Maisy, this month. I changed jobs within my organization earlier this year—moving out of the general counsel role and into the chief operating officer role at the Massachusetts Clean Energy Center, whose mission is to grow the state’s clean energy industry.”

Finally, Jenina Nuñez shares some of her own news: stepping into a new role as director of communications at global advertising firm Foote, Cone & Belding in Chicago. Jenina’s appreciating the new role’s fast pace and working in a creative-first environment everyday.

Congrats to everyone for the growing families and wonderful career moves! Do you have an update for an upcoming issue? Don’t forget to send them along to us.

Jenina Nuñez | jenina.nunez@outlook.com

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

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