CLASS OF 2007 | 2021 | ISSUE 1
Hello class of 2007! I hope everyone is staying safe and sane during this pandemic. The good news is that even a global pandemic won’t keep the class of 2007 down! We are welcoming many new babies for future Wesleyanites:
Sarah Lippincott and Brendan O’Connell ’08 welcomed their first child, Delphine, on October 27. She’s enjoyed lots of outdoor visits with family and friends, including Anne McSweeney ’08 and grandfather John Lippincott ’71 at their home in Conway, Massachusetts. Some of her favorite activities include watching snow fall and videoconferencing.
Simon Au ’07 welcomed his first child, Daniel, in early February. “Perhaps there is something to having children in your twenties instead of your thirties after all. . . .”
Melissa Mondesir Miller welcomed her second child, Chloé Michelle Miller, in June 2020. It was an eventful (pandemic) birth, which resulted in mom delivering the baby herself in the car while dad, Andrew, was speeding down the highway trying to make it to the birthing center in time. Thankfully everyone is doing well, and big brother, Theo, adores his new sister. During these crazy times, Melissa has been very grateful for monthly Zoom check-ins with her Wes ’07 Sister Circle, which consists of Jennifer Celestin, Oni Tongo, Nicole Reid, Samira Abdul-Karim, and Tashia Chin. “Thankful to these ladies for keeping me sane from afar.”
Albert Hill has resigned from teaching high school to be a full -time dad for a while. He and his partner welcomed their first child in Oakland in October.
And of course many ’07ers have been working on the front line in various capacities.
Lauren Ogden left Oregon after 10 years and spent the pandemic working as an infection control specialist at Stanford Children’s Hospital. While the work took over a lot of her life, she was able to reconnect with Debi Schwartz and Jacob Golden for some hikes and outdoor movies. In January she moved back home to Vermont with her partner as they are expecting their first baby.
Samira Abdul-Karim and her partner Yusef Ramelize co-founded Hyphens and Spaces, a diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) consulting company that serves people in organizations dedicated to furthering social causes and justice. “We started the company because we believe that by empowering the people who are striving to create a more equitable world, we can increase their net impact and multiply the good. As Black business owners, we are motivated by the drive to make sure our daughter can experience a world where her value is unquestioned and voice is celebrated. We offer DEI process consultation, learning programs, strategy support, and coaching services. Find us at hyphensandspaces.com.”
Matthew Brownstein’s family includes his wife Hillary, son Felix (4) and daughter Ellen Poppy—we call her Poppy (1). He is an assistant principal in New York City and lives in Queens. He is proud to be bringing in-person education to more and more of our young people. He wishes everyone health and some space to make sense of these crazy times.
And our class is filled with creativity and ingenuity.
Dawid Wiacek lives in White Plains, New York, where he occasionally forages for (non-toxic) berries and (non-hallucinogenic) mushrooms in the trails and parks throughout Westchester. After several years of successfully winging it as a freelancer and consultant, he finally formalized his career coaching and resume writing business —The Career Fixer—and is currently working on a book featuring his adorable chihuahua–pit bull mix (cuter than you think!) entitled Everything My Dog Taught Me About Resumes, Networking & Navigating a Career Change.
Owen Detlor currently lives in Brooklyn with his wife, Stephanie and their little pit bull, Honey. Since Wes, Owen has been in the world of architecture and construction, finishing a graduate degree in architecture in 2013, and since then working for a construction company specializing in custom building facades. Stephanie, Honey and Owen all moved in together in Philadelphia back in 2015, before moving back to his hometown New York in 2018, and getting married in 2019. (He married Stephanie, not Honey.)