CLASS OF 1991 | 2017 | ISSUE 1
April Cotte lives on the beach in Pacifica, Calif., with her partner, a retired firefighter, and their 6-year-old, Barry. April homeschools using Hand in Hand Parenting and Deep Nature Connection Mentoring. For 15 years, she facilitated Outward Bound wilderness and cross-cultural expeditions for adults in the northern Chihuahuan desert along the Texas/Mexico border and Copper Canyon. Along the way, she built relationships with local Jumano-Apache residents and knowledge keepers. She continues to support indigenous relations and protect their way of life. April enjoyed the recent visits of Gayatri Gopinath and Tacy Trowbridge ’90.
Julie Yannatta writes, “Some of you took, or remember, the Kundalini yoga class I taught on the lawn in front of Olin at Reunion. Well, my adventures in yoga continue, including teaching at Stars, Space and the Future, a conference in Turks and Caicos in August. I also have a record label called Be Why and we released an album of yogic mantra called, White Sun II, by the artist White Sun. White Sun II was nominated for a Grammy for Best New Age Album.
Nik Bates-Haus had a great time seeing so many people at Reunion, including Michael Reinke, Spencer Boyer (and his lovely wife, Clare Stroud, and their adorable children), Robin Ekiss, Erin Branagan, Adam Hahn, Stuart Rockoff, Kerim May ’93, Alisa Rosen, Elizabeth Reifke, and special guest, Canaan Folk-Reinke, born at Wes in 1991. Nik hung out at Malcom X house, caught one of the final shows at Eclectic, and I think we can all agree with his statement: “Wow, do today’s students have it great with the midnight grilled cheese truck!”
In December, the Healthy School Food Maryland coalition, which Lindsey Parsons coordinates, released School Food Environment Grades for every public school district in the state of Maryland. Check it out at healthyschoolfoodmd.org/2016_grades.php.
Out in my hometown of Chicago, Craig Mannarino has been accepted as a fellow into the prestigious International Academy of Trial Lawyers. Membership is limited to 500 U.S. fellows under the age of 70. Craig’s areas of expertise include medical malpractice, automobile negligence, pharmaceutical mass torts, and other catastrophic injury and wrongful death cases.
Some Perfect Year, by Cameron Gearen ’91, is a book of poems out now from Shearsman Books.
Ann Goebel-Fabbri started her own private psychology practice. Leaving Joslin Diabetes Center gave her the flexible time to write Prevention and Recovery from Eating Disorders in Type 1 Diabetes: Injecting Hope (Routledge Press) in February. It’s based on interviews conducted with 25 women in recovery, and you can find it on Amazon.
Some great news: Jim Adolf published his first play, I Cannot Tell a Lie at George Washington School. It’s been performed in Maine and Michigan.
Justin Bass, who made sure I heard the original version of “Don’t Walk Away Renée” our frosh year, now lives in Berlin, where he’s moved to teach English. He plans to stay until sometime in 2018, perhaps longer. He’d love to reconnect with any Wes alumni passing through!
Renée K. Carl | rcarl@wesleyan.edu