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Jill Rappoport shares: “I’ve been a professor of 19th-century British literature at the University of Kentucky since 2011. I remarried in 2022, and we have three sons (14, 12, and 9). Life is busy but a lot of fun! Looking forward to hearing other classmates’ news.—Jill”
Alexis Hyder writes: “I’ve been living in Los Angeles for six years, primarily working remotely for WBUR in Boston as a chief of staff and director of special projects. I recently launched my own business, Telescope Advising, to help mission-driven leaders answer strategic questions, evaluate emerging opportunities, and plan for future sustainability—without disrupting operations or letting go of other critical priorities. I’m learning a lot on this new journey! I’m in close touch with Nomi Maeyama and Jessie (Polin) Moseley, a Trinity grad who did a semester at Wes with the Twelve-College Exchange Program. I see Wes folks in LA and enjoyed catching up with Camille McGadney ’93 (alum and career center staffer) when she was in town moderating an alumni panel that featured classmate Josh Goldin!”
Bakley Smith: “My family and I moved to Decatur, Georgia, in the Atlanta area, in spring 2021. This was just after the arrival of our second child, our little pandemic baby, LOL. That has us with an eight-year-old and a three-year-old (no pets). Living in a city that is both old (I grew up here) and new (I lived away for 20-plus years) has had its challenges and adjustments, but I’ve been very happy with the change. I continue to work in the financial field focused on consumer products and food technology. One thing I want to shout-out to Wesleyan: one of the things the school emphasizes is a lifelong love of learning, and people around me have over and over noted that I seem to have a knack for wanting to inquire, learn about, and get to know things in an ongoing way. I think it is a cool compliment and I learned to develop it on our campus. Hope to see you in May!”
Melanie Grubman is the co-founder of a cohousing village and regenerative agriculture education center in central Vermont. She is living in a house that she designed with her 10- and 12-year-old sons. She runs an all-women’s masonry business, which focuses on traditional dry-stack walling methods, and teaches middle school at the Orchard Valley Waldorf School. “Come visit!” www.livingtreealliance.com
Paul Edlefsen and Liz Darlington are still in Seattle and raising their two fantastic kids, Eleanor and Arthur. Their relationship has shifted to co-parenting rather than remaining a couple, and they are making it work! They both work at Fred Hutch Cancer Center—Liz as a social worker and Paul as a biostatistician. They just had a reunion of their old band, Sweetness, with Anil Seth ’98, and they look forward to bringing the kids to our 25th Reunion!
Claudia Cruz was recently elected to serve as the Nevada chapter president of the National Association of Hispanic Journalists. She also attended the 2024 Paris Olympic Games with 16 of her students, and several colleagues, from the Reynolds School of Journalism at the University of Nevada, Reno. Claudia has plans to be in the Boston area in September and hopes to meet with Jennifer Tomasello and other Kappa Alpha Theta (Xi Chapter) sisters for brunch.
Jonah Dickstein shares, “I live in St. Petersburg, Florida, running my own criminal defense and appellate law firm [and] raising my son, Steven (age seven), and daughter, Kaia (age 2), with my wife, Margarita.”
Liz Alleva, née Doctors, lives in the serene woods of Wilton, Connecticut, with her husband, Neill, their 9-year-old son, Mason, and their tiny but spirited 3.5-pound dog, Kylie. As the founder of HypnoBirthing Mommy, Liz is dedicated to helping expectant parents experience a safe and gentle birth by guiding them to unlearn fear and embrace the natural birthing process. Mason is her best helper and sidekick in the business!
Tim Howard wrote in, “I’m enjoying summer in Berlin. This year I’ve been working as a story editor on a German podcast and playing shows with my band, Soltero. We’re also finishing up a new album, which will be out this fall.”
Hirut Johnson shares: “I’m still a mom in Maryland to a 5-year-old. I work for the World Bank if anyone wants to meet up in Kensington or K Street. I was covering Europe but now cover west/central Francophone and Lusophone, Africa, if people want to meet up in the field. This last fiscal year I was in Georgia, Serbia, and Montenegro. All beautiful places with fascinating history. Since my sector is governance, I worked on projects that improved digital services to citizens and modernized the tax administrations. If you are a wine lover or nature lover these are great places to visit.”
Scott Mayerowitz just celebrated the first anniversary of his own travel, loyalty, and media consultancy business: GlobeTrotScott Strategies. After 23 years in media, including jobs at ABC News, the Associated Press, and The Points Guy, Scott started his business to ease many of the friction points in travel that he personally experienced as a frequent traveler and complaints that he often heard from everyday travelers. His clients include JetBlue Airways, a leading ski company, and WeatherPromise, a start-up protecting travelers against rain on their vacations.
SERENA JONES | jones.serena@gmail.com
LEORA WIEN | leorawien@gmail.com