CLASS OF 1980 | 2016 | ISSUE 3
September ’16 responses:
Douglas Cuomo writes, “My family and I (wife, the author Sharon Guskin, two boys Ben and Eli) just returned from a three-week stay in Kathmandu, where Arjuna’s Dilemma, an opera I’d written, was produced and performed. The production by One World Theatre, was mounted by a tremendous cast of artists from eight countries, mostly from Nepal, and was extremely well-received, by both audiences and the press. It was the first time a Western opera has been publicly performed in Nepal, and the experience was beyond description. The difficulties of mounting such a complicated show in a country like Nepal were not inconsiderable, but so were the rewards. You can see pictures and read more at douglasjcuomo.com. We also saw many important historical Buddhist sites, which was extremely meaningful to us, since both Sharon and I are Buddhists, and many important figures in our lineage spent time in Nepal. We visited the Segyu monastery in Kathmandu numerous times, with all four of us teaching English to the young monks living and studying there. I have upcoming performances of new pieces this fall in the UK by the Orchestra of the Swan, and in Florida and D.C., by the chorus, Seraphic Fire.”
Wendy Buskop writes, “My daughter, Jacqueline ’19, is now a sophomore at Wes studying earth and environmental science. She wants an internship with a company that builds robots for marine use, like underwater automated vehicles or remotely operated vehicles. Does anyone know someone that can help her? Contact Jacqueline at jbuskop@wesleyan.edu.”
Tamar Bauer writes, “Kim—Intrigued by your son’s start-up. My daughter is graduating with a mechanical engineering degree this spring. She is also into food and farming, and looking for a way to combine all three. Can we connect them?” (We are in the process of connecting them.)
Melissa Stern writes, “After a three-month run at Redux Contemporary Art Center in Charleston, my exhibition, The Talking Cure, opened at the Weisman Art Museum in Minneapolis, where it will reside for eight months. There is a wide variety of programming around the exhibition planned and I expect to travel to Minneapolis several times. In October my solo exhibition, Loose Lips, opened at the University of Alabama and I traveled there for the opening. Lastly, I will be teaching a one-week intensive class about storytelling, drawing, and collage at the famed Penland School of Art. In March, my solo show in New York City will open at Station Independent Gallery.”
May ’16 responses:
Ellen Catala writes, “Your e-mail about David Clair was so beautiful and so moving. I didn’t know David, but I am sure he was just as wonderful a person as you describe. My blessing, I will share on this Mother’s Day, was to spend the past 16 years caring for my mother as she lived with slowly advancing Parkinson’s. She died Apr. 5, and I miss her already, but at least I had the honor, privilege, and joy of taking care of her up to the very end. I found that in the last year, when it was becoming clear she would die from not being able to swallow very well, I started feeling towards her as you feel towards a precious infant. Her somewhat mild dementia allowed me to reach out in a different way than one might usually, and I kissed her often, stroked her hands and head, sung to her, and told her often how much I loved her. Were it not for her condition, I probably would never have expressed these feelings, and although I would have done anything to take away her illness, I still feel blessed by its unexpected consequence.
“Thank you for listening and for all the wonderful, loving work you do for our class. My most sincere sympathy to David’s friends and family. How tragic that he died so young, leaving behind a full life and many people who still needed him. By the way, Kim, you might recall that I shared a poem my son’s friend had written about the blood moon. Well, I am soon to become his foster mother. He was removed from his home a year ago and he is doing well—overcoming a sort of mutism that came on as his home life became traumatic. He continues to write beautifully and I am hopeful that he will benefit from his time with us, and vice versa. Happy Mother’s Day! God bless! Many thanks!”
Halsey Frank writes, “Scary how fast the time goes, even in the slow lane in Maine. We have been here almost 17 years. Our daughter, Laura, who was born in D.C., and was three when we moved, is now a freshman at Cornell after having taken a year off to see a bit of the world. Our son, Alex, who missed being a native-born Mainer by months, is a junior at Portland High and thinking about college himself. In addition to other sports, he plays a lot of soccer, which took us to Indianapolis with his travel team for the nationals last summer. My wife Eva’s latest get-rich-quick scheme is shopping bags with helpful logos such as “All mushrooms are edible, some only once.” I hope this one pays off.
“I am a prosecutor at the U.S. attorney’s office, have been somewhat active in local politics, write a column for The Forecaster weekly, and will once again this summer be trying to figure out how to race the Etchells sailboat I bought with friends (it’s got a lot of controls).”
Brian Hasbrouck writes, “I’m enjoying early retirement in Boston, sing in a couple of choruses, and have a variety of projects.”
John Snook writes, “I’m listed in the class of 1980, but I only attended Wesleyan formally from 1976–1977. I have been volunteering for 24 years at the Guggenheim Museum in New York. I would like to get in touch with some of my friends from the Class of 1980 including Jim Burnett, Bill Moss, Stuart Schonberger, Brook Morris, Addy Dix, and Thom Kleiner. My contact info: johnhsnook@gmail.com and 212/749-2707 or 212/666-3914.”
KIMBERLY OFRIA SELBY | kim_selby@yahoo.com