CLASS OF 1982 | 2017 | ISSUE 3
Greetings, classmates. I’m glad to be in contact with so many of you. Aside from sending me notes—thank you!—who knew that one of the enduring advantages of a Wes education would be to have so many killer competitors at Words with Friends? You know who you are, David Hessekiel, Alison Fagan, John Brautigam, Randy Frisch ’84, and Judith Newman ’81—can anyone beat Judith at WWF? WTF?
I received so many kind replies to my solicitation for notes that if you don’t see your contribution today, it’s because I’ve saved it for next time. It’s what we, in the increasingly archaic world of magazines, used to call “inventory.”
As I write this, a number of our classmates are training to row together in the Head of the Charles, October 21, including Kevin Foley, Alex Thomson, Rob Miller, Greg Lewis, Mike Greenstein, and David Myers. They’ll be pulling alongside youngsters Kelem Butts ’89, Paul Slye ’84, Tom Policelli ’89, John McIntyre ’86, and Terry McClenahan ’85, all undoubtedly celebrating by the time you read this.
Sasha Alpert won her third (but who’s counting?) Emmy, for Casting for a Reality Program, for Born This Way, about young adults born with Down syndrome who are pursuing their dreams. Congratulations (and great dress!).
Anji Fink Citron and Todd Herron ’83 had a full summer in Bellingham, Wash., hosting a gang of Wesleyan friends, including William Erb ’83 and his partner, Suzanne. William lived in London and Tokyo for 20 years and moved to LA in 2010 to take a job with biotech company Amgen. In August, Anji and Todd celebrated the wedding of their son Noah Citron ’12 and Rachel Santiago ’12 (a Wes romance, like that of their parents; they met the first day of freshman year in Foss 7) with attendees Danny Kummer ’81, an NBC attorney living in Brooklyn with his wife, Lisa; Ellie Hitzrot ’81, who lives in Arlington, Mass., with husband Stu Forman ’80; and Rachel’s great-uncle, Fred Grand MALS ’73. They hosted Cheryl Cutler MA ’71, founder of the Wes Dance Department, with her partner, John, from Ashland, Ore. Anji asked Chery if she wanted to pass any words of wisdom along to our class, and she said, in her inimitable way, “I think the most astonishing and perhaps unheralded thing that I’m finding is that life doesn’t diminish or retract in any way, but just expands-—it deepens and opens out physically, intellectually, and spiritually into broader and broader views and manifestations of vitality!” I share Anji’s feeling that Chery had a profound effect on her sense of self and body image at Wesleyan, and her sentiment: “I’m so grateful to Wesleyan for connecting me with some of the most important people in my life.”
Julie Abrams Faude had a busy summer traveling to Iceland, Norway, Bornholm Island for bicycling, the coast of Denmark, Copenhagen, the Czech Republic, and Austria, ending up at a theatrical, rabbit-hole themed wedding on Lake Como. She promises to share her travel tips, which took her the first half of the summer to research, if you get in touch. She’s working as a clinical psychologist at The Episcopal Academy in Radnor, Pa., and with private clients.
Neil Richman traveled from Monterey to crash a gathering of other Wes people, instigated by John at his family’s camp in Maine. He met up with Mike Levine, Bob Russo and their respective partners and dogs, and dragged Garrett Randolph along with him. They traveled two-and-a-half hours on the backroads of Maine in rain and mud to climb into a dinghy and ferry across to the camp. Skies cleared for a summer afternoon on the lake. Neil also attended California Brazil Camp as the doc for the 11th consecutive year.
Julie Kraushaar Zürcher moved to Muttenz, Switzerland in July, their third time ping-ponging back and forth, which she says keeps her on her toes, culturally and linguistically. She’s enjoying the “more subdued, pragmatic approach to politics and political discourse favored by the Swiss.” Her son, Bryce ’18, is set to graduate in May.
Rolando Arroyo celebrated his third annual Paella on the Beach this summer, and is shopping for a bigger paella pan. His family is hosting a student getting ready to start her first year of college in Caracas, Venezuela, but who can’t return because of the social economic turmoil, and so is staying on with them.
Suzanne Kay is producing Sullivision: Ed Sullivan and the Struggle for Civil Rights, a 70-minute documentary on Ed Sullivan and his little-known support of racial justice. She’s partnering with Sullivan’s granddaughter on the project. Suzanne’s mother, Diahann Carroll, was on the show nine times—as were other performers white audiences had never heard of but are household names today, such as Chuck Berry, Nat King Cole, Sammy Davis, Jr, Pearl Bailey, Sam Cooke, James Brown, the Supremes, the Jackson 5, Leontyne Price, Johnny Mathis, and Harry Belafonte.
Dan Singer’s son Jake ’17 graduated this year, and Dan’s Foss 5 freshman hallmates, Dan Softness and Ken Kimmel, also had daughters getting their diplomas.
That’s my word limit! Please write me more for next time.
Laura Fraser | laura@laurafraser.com