CLASS OF 1975 | 2015 | ISSUE 3
Here is the belated 40th Reunion report for the 53 or so who “we know made it to Middletown and the rest of you who we had hoped would come.” Few classes break 50 attendees for the 40th, so we did well. If we can do it again in five years, we’ll beat the record. I’ll try to convey some of the flavor of the weekend.
First, thanks again to fellow Reunion Committee members who all showed up: Karen Freedman, class agent Steve Levin, Roger Weisberg, Charlie Stolper, Mark Schonberger, Dave Rosenblum, J.D. Moore, and Gary Steinel. Roger and Karen kicked off Friday night with a showing of Roger’s new documentary, Dream On, a funny and moving film about what the American dream means to people, and how it contrasts with their lives. Look for it on PBS. Gary reprised his beer tasting before the class dinner with an array of delicious samples. Over some brew, I caught up with Rook Van Nest and Jeff Dunn, both of whom are thriving in Weston, Mass.
Two shout-outs to classmates who led phenomenal WesSeminars: Mark Nickerson discussed his work with veterans and families dealing with PTSD. The room was packed, and it prompted a lively discussion of psychological and public policy issues. Cliff Chanin also riveted us with his heartfelt presentation about the September 11 Memorial site at ground zero and his role in it. His insights into the museum’s origins and design, how artifacts were selected and displayed, and the process and complexities of working with stakeholders were very moving.
There was also a terrific panel on co-education at Wesleyan that featured faculty and students from 1968–1975. It was connected with an academic study of the second era of coeducation at Wes. What was most fascinating was hearing the faculty perspective on the impact of “co-educating” faculty, administration, and the student body all at once. While we experienced coeducation as students, the culture shifts were at least as challenging within the faculty and administration. We definitely lived through a transformative era at Wesleyan and in society.
Some things don’t change, however: Saturday afternoon I spied George Cole from Boston and Mark Schonberger from New York in their spandex biking gear lounging on the Arts Center lawn after a ride through the Connecticut countryside. They looked like they bike together every weekend. Later, a bunch of us (Steve Miller, Brad Kosiba, Martha Meade ’76, Pam Swing, Charlie Stolper, Debbie Kosich, Risa Korn, Janet Brodie, me and others) found a spot in the Arts Center with a great echo and sang all the rounds we could remember from undergrad days. It’s amazing the old stuff that sticks in your brain and can be retrieved in the right circumstances. Passers-by wondered.
Pat McQuillan made a connection at Reunion with Pam Swing and her husband, Marty Plotkin ’76. Pam lives in Concord, Mass., and is an anthropologist. Pat wants her to come present in his education classes at Boston College.
It was great to see Jim Daley, Bill Devereaux, Dave Rosenthal, and Dave Harrison at dinner, as well as Steve McCarthy and Jeff McChristian. Cutty Wilbur was there, and I got a brief chance to check in with John Tabachnick, Ken Busman, Arthur Paterson, and Paul Gionfriddo. Cathy Gorlin came from Minnesota with her husband, Marshall Tanick.
Graduation day, unlike in 1975, was splendidly sunny—in fact the entire weekend was an advertisement for spring in New England. It was inspiring to watch Beverly Daniel Tatum receive her honorary degree on the terrace below Olin Library. The commencement speaker, Lin-Manuel Miranda ’02, gave a moving and entertaining speech that combined trademark rap/hip-hop libretto from his Broadway show, Hamilton, with words of wisdom about his experience balancing a drive to seize the moment with patience to wait for the right time to act. It was a message that resonates at any age.
It was also a lovely morning to sit on the Usdan Campus Center balcony overlooking the ceremony, say goodbye to friends as they scattered, and catch up with a last conversation or two. I enjoyed talking with Dan Cantor and his wife, Laurel Masten Cantor ’76, who had come up from New Jersey.
Among those who hadn’t come to Middletown were Jeff Morgan and his wife, Jodie. We’d had our own personal reunion earlier, however, including Jodie and my husband, Bob. Jeff and Jodie gave us a tour of their Covenant Winery in Berkeley, which makes fabulous kosher reds, whites, and rosés. Jeff regaled us with the tale of his Wesleyan career (only a brief part of which he spent on campus), his years as a jazz musician in the U.S. and France, and his transition to wine writer and, finally, winemaker.
Reunion was full of moments that reminded me how formative the college experience is for each generation. My nephew was at Wes for his 5th Reunion, single, staying on campus, and ready to party until the wee hours—unlike most of us who headed for hotels or home. I noted that we are no longer the alumni pushing strollers or wrangling children around the campus. And it is amazing how young the 50th Reunion class looks now, compared to how ancient they seemed when we were graduating. However many years go by, there are several hundred people who shared that time and place at Wes in the early ’70s. We are moving along life’s path, dealing with the sometimes messy work of trying to live well and perhaps make some difference in a complicated world.
I know there are those of you whom I have not had space to mention in these notes, and details of the news you shared with me on campus that I did not write down and now can’t recall accurately enough to feel comfortable publishing it. So please help embellish this account by sending me reminders of your news, e-mailing your impressions, or chiming in if you weren’t at Reunion.
Cynthia M. Ulman | cmu.home@cmugroup.com
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