Class Notes

What a full 2016 and it is only February. Thank you to everyone that contributed. Let’s get to it!

Steven Tejada paid me a personal visit on a recent trip to NYC. My high school classmate, In-town roommate, and brother-for-life will relocate from Boston to Washington, D.C.—he was appointed the new Head of Upper School at The Maret School beginning July 1st. He continues to speak and perform throughout the country with his one-man show. In addition, his family welcomed another member—a baby boy. Super excited for mi hermano.

Matthew Fogelman wrote in to share that Wesleyan support was in full effect for the wonderful honor bestowed upon Seth Spector, as he was inducted into the Middletown Hall of Fame on a warm night in January. Matt, along with Raphael Crawford, Jack Eighmy, Armando Petruzziello ’98, and Gabe Wieder ’98 were fortunate enough to join Seth and his mom, Kate (and many others) for the induction ceremony. Longtime Wes track coach J. Elmer Swanson was also inducted.

Meanwhile, Matt’s wife, Amy Goorin Fogelman, reports: “After 10 years at Mass General Hospital, I have decided to cut down on my commute and I am continuing to practice internal medicine at Beth Israel Deaconess Chestnut Hill. I miss my old patients, though the good news is that I am finally accepting new ones, so if anyone needs a PCP, give me a holler!”

Abe Velez reconnected to update us with the happenings in his world: “I continue to do audio business development for ABC News and enjoy the Langone MBA program at NYU Stern, with the support of my wife, Sarah, and our fabulous second-grader, Frida. I was lucky enough to get briefly stuck in San Francisco during January’s storm and stay with Adam Rodnitzky—an evening filled with trading of puns that left us very amused, and his girlfriend, not so much. Recently saw Katharine Bailey and Ben Selkow ’96 at the home of my onetime neighbor Ned Gusick ’90. And then there’s the mystery of how most of us have turned 40…”

Andrew Frishman has been super consistent with keeping us informed on his world: “As I’ve mentioned in previous notes, I am the co-executive director of Big Picture Learning. Just last week I was visiting The Met High School in Providence, (which is the “mother ship” of the Big Picture Learning Network) and I had the particular privilege of enjoying a ‘philosophy literacy group’ that Arthur Baraf ’99 was leading. Arthur has the group of high school students enrolled and each week the students watch a lecture, do supplementary readings, and then engage in discussion and debate (Arthur serves as the TA). Took me back to my days at Wesleyan! In other news, it was fun to take my kids out to see the Wesleyan squash teams play in an invitational tournament in the fall up here in Cambridge. Go, Wes!”

I received a first-time submission from Bettina Berg Segal who shared, “After nearly 10 years of living abroad, across four continents and three babies later, I’m happy to say that my family and I have finally moved back to New York. It’s been great to be close to old friends… Jessica D’Amore, Mia Lobel, Anita Crabtree Mitra, Laura Roberts and Kerry Biancamano Coppola. And yes, I am an awesome packer.”

David Vine wrote: “I’ll be unabashedly self-promotional in saying that my book Base Nation: How U.S. Military Bases Abroad Harm America and the World (Henry Holt, 2015) just came out. The book shows how our country is encircling the globe with some 800 bases in foreign lands—and how these oft-forgotten installations cause an array of ills for everyone from U.S. military personnel and their families to locals living next to our bases to U.S. taxpayers who pay the $150 billion per year bill to maintain bases and troops overseas. Although many assume that these bases make the U.S. and the world safer, our military installations abroad are, in a range of ways, actually undermining national and global security. All the proceeds from Base Nation are going to organizations supporting veterans and other victims of war. People can read more about the book, check out its 16 maps, and learn more about bases overseas at basenation.us.”

Kimberly Gilbert shared, “After living in Canada for six years, my husband, Jared Carbone, and I have returned to live in his hometown of Boulder, Colo., with our two girls, Louisa (7) and Beatrice (1.5). I’m a writer and Jared is a professor of economics at the School of Mines. We’re thrilled that being back in the U.S. has given us the chance to visit and catch up with several Wes friends, including Naomi Pressman, Rachel Ruane, Matthew Rattigan, Lucas Edwards, and Emily Weinstein.”

“I am enjoying a year-long sabbatical from my job at the University of Nottingham to start a new book on relations between medieval Russia and the Byzantine empire. Turns out, it’s all about the Crimea. Thanks to what’s left of the British welfare state, I was lucky enough to have over seven months of maternity leave following the birth of Morris Whitehill in November 2014,” writes Monica White.

In January, Noah Garrison and his wife, Michelle, welcomed the birth of their son, Bryce Cameron Garrison, in Santa Monica. Everyone is doing well, and they’re looking forward to Bryce joining his older (canine) brother, Dexter, for lots of Calvin and Hobbes-style exploring. Noah left his job as a lawyer for the Natural Resources Defense Council last year to run an environmental science and policy capstone program at UCLA, and has gone back to his Wes E&ES roots to teach an intro geology class as well.

Jessica McInroy Thompson and Mike Thompson ’96 met up with fellow Californians Maria Magaña, her husband Aaron Miller, and newlyweds Allison Perlman and Trevor Griffey for pre-Grammy dinner and drinks. Jessica was nominated for the Best Historical Album Grammy for remastering Erroll Garner’s The Complete Concert By the Sea. After a dozen years in NYC, Jessica and Mike recently relocated to Berkeley with their two kids, Clyde and Margot. Jessica now works out of Coast Mastering in Berkeley, and Mike is in his eighth year of running the music licensing library, The Diner.

As of May 2016, I, Kimberly Cooper King will have completed my master of science degree in integrated marketing from New York University, with a concentration in brand management. Working full time and going to school part time through fall, spring, and summer semesters, with a growing 4-year-old hasn’t been an easy balancing act, but happy to have made magic happen in just 2-½ years. I’m also proud to announce that I’ve been elected as a trustee with The Oliver Scholars Program (oliverscholars.org). As an alum of the 30-year-old program that prepares high-achieving African-American and Latino students for success at top independent high schools and prestigious colleges, I’m looking forward to supporting an organization that has made a difference in my life and the lives of so many other Wesleyan alums.

And my final update… After almost four years as your class secretary, I must announce this is my last official column. It has been great hearing from you, and I am now placing you in two pairs of great hands—BFF’s no less, Jessica Shea Lehmann and Sasha Lewis Reisen. They are super excited to share the duty of reporting the #ThisIsWhy happenings of our year so be sure to submit your updates to them moving forward.

Do note, Wesleyan is in my blood so I will still continue with my own #ThisIsWhy mission working with The Wesleyan Fund alongside Justin Clark, David Levin and Marisa Uchin as well as the Wesleyan Alumni of Color Council with super chair Ray Sanchez ’00 and Associate Director of Alumni & Parent Relations Greg Bernard. Service is a lifestyle. Be sure to have a fabulous spring.

Kimberly King | kimberly.king715@gmail.com

Jason writes: Greetings fellow ’98ers. As I write, I am just coming off a much needed vacation from Puerto Rico with my husband, Patrick, and our two daughters Marian and Betty. We are settled for the long, long haul here in Charlottesville, Va., keeping our restaurant, MarieBette Cafe & Bakery, going steady and strong. If you are in the area, please come visit us.

But enough about me. Here’s what’s going on with some other folks from our class.

John Speck: “I’m writing from our new place in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn. Still ‘living the dream’, playing trombone and traveling (toured to Sydney Australia last October). I’m also spending a lot of quality time with our 1-year-old daughter, C.C. I saw Jason Gonzalez and his adorable son, Samson, at C.C’s first birthday party last month.”

Amy Davenport had twin boys in November—Avery River and Elias Birch. Their big brother, Lucas, is thrilled. She and her husband still live in Carrboro N.C. Amy graduated from Frontier Nursing University in July and will be starting as a midwife at UNC Chapel Hill in March.

Brad Hoffman writes: “After more than a decade as an institutional equity salesperson at Lazard Capital Markets and Oppenheimer & Co., Inc., I decided to try my hand at a startup and joined Claravant Analytics as the head of business development. Claravant analyzes medical products to determine their likelihood of obtaining regulatory approval, commercial success, and strength of their IP protection. We base our reports on confidential reviews of all available research information, regulatory correspondence, and intellectual property provided by the sponsor company. That said, we take things a step further than any of our consulting competitors insofar as we allow our clients to use our findings, if they so choose, to engage investors and potential partners. I’d welcome the opportunity to speak with alumni who are in the drug or medical device research, commercialization, or investment fields (bhoffman@claravant.com)”

Stacey Garfield Fox is a pediatrician, living in Rehoboth Beach, Del., with her husband and 5-year-old daughter. She left academic medicine in Philadelphia for small-town private practice at the beach. She’s on the board of the Delaware AAP and a member of the Delaware Breastfeeding Coalition.

Lauren Berliner and her partner, Minda Martin, welcomed their child, Lucien, last April 3rd. The family lives in Seattle, where Lauren and Minda both work as professors at the University of Washington Bothell. Lauren recently co-organized a symposium with Nora Kenworthy at the Simpson Center for the Humanities at the University of Washington called “Crowdsourcing Care: Health, Debility, and Dying in a Digital Age” that included speakers Kalindi Vora and Christoph Hanssmann ’99, and participants Chris Wade ’00 and Johanna Crane ’93. When they realized how many of them went to Wesleyan, they had to take a moment to revisit the fight song. Go, Wes!

Amy Barnes welcomed a baby girl, Sarah, into the world last May and is enjoying life in the beautiful Pacific Northwest outside Seattle.

Sara Brenneis writes: “My husband, Eric Danton, and I are enjoying the radical life shifts our 1-year-old son, Charlie, brings to the mix. We’re still in Northampton, Mass., and I’m now an associate professor in the Spanish department at Amherst College. Would love to catch up with any Wesleyan ’98ers who are in the Pioneer Valley!”

Lena Maun DeSantis started the first annual Out Run Rett 5K Run which took place in New Suffolk, N.Y., on May 7. A beautiful run along the water on Long Island’s North Fork, it will raise money for the Rett Syndrome Research Trust.

David Lubell was named to the Chronicle of Philanthropy’s first-ever 40 Under 40. If you’re not familiar with the Chronicle, it’s a 25-year-old independent news organization covering the nonprofit world. The 40 Under 40 is a list of extraordinary young nonprofit leaders, fundraisers, foundation officials, donors, and social entrepreneurs from across the country.

Guillermo Brown writes: “Greetings, everyone from sunny Los Angeles! I’m currently playing drums on CBS on the Late Late Show with James Corden, releasing new music from my band Pegasus Warning, and just won grants from Creative Capital and MIT for my new theater work Bee Boy. Had breakfast with Ian Edelman the other day, dope things coming…”

After several years leading affordable housing policy inside the beltway for HUD, Margaret Solle Salazar moved from Washington, D.C., to her hometown of Portland, Ore., in late 2014 and welcomed twins Gabriel and Veronica into the world. Margaret is now serving as field office director for the HUD Oregon State Office where she is tackling homelessness, distressed housing and gentrification in Portland’s overheated housing market and attempting to remove peanut butter daily from two feisty toddlers.

Tarmla Small writes: “I recently (July 2015) joined the Oliver Scholars Program and serve as the recruitment manager (and Kimberly King ’97 is on the board.) I absolutely love my job!”

Keep those updates coming!

Marcus Chung | marcuschung98@gmail.com

Jason Becton | jcxbecton@yahoo.com

Darryl writes: After nearly 17 years living in the Bay Area, Tara Cohen—along with partner, child, dog, and two cats—packed up and laid down new roots in Ann Arbor, Mich.

Last spring, Kareem George concluded his tenure at the Detroit Symphony Orchestra to pursue entrepreneurial interests. He is now engaged full time with his company, Culture Traveler (culturetraveler.com), a boutique luxury travel service focused on fully customized, expert itineraries for individuals and small groups. He lives in Franklin, Mich., and enjoys the Midwest despite the winters.

Daniel Young is a freelance radio journalist covering a variety of environmental and social justice issues. His work is broadcast on community radio stations in both the Pacific Northwest and the Midwest.

Shoshanna Handel and her husband, Jason Reisman, live in Brooklyn with their baby, Lyla, who was born in October with support from Jada Shapiro, doula extraordinaire.

Shirley Fan lives in Brooklyn, too, with her PhD-seeking husband, and just had her second son, Kai Fan Borkenhagen, on Jan. 14, 2016. They feel fortunate that he is a great sleeper!

William Abbott and hubby David Paige welcomed Orion Lee Abbott-Paige into their family on Feb. 10, 2015. He’s one great guy who is already learning how to take a selfie! They live in the White Mountains of New Hampshire, where William runs the Upper Saco Valley Land Trust and David works in publishing. They are finally feeling settled after moving back and forth across the country four times since Wes.

In October, David Andrews ’02 and Lena Sadowitz welcomed their fourth kid: “He joins two older brothers and a sister in their DC-area den of Legos and laundry.”

Nina Kontos’ son turned 1 in December and he’s awesome. She still works at Google and hangs out with Wes friends in NYC and San Francisco. She saw Hamilton with a Wes crew (Allegra Jones, Davis Thompson-Moss, Danny Forster, Hannah Blitzer)—it was a blast; they loved it!

Arthur Baraf lives in Providence, R.I., with his wife and two daughters. He is in his 10th year as a high school principal, currently at the world-recognized Met High School. This year, he is also teaching for the master’s in urban education program at Providence College and coaching aspiring principals through the Center for Leadership and Educational Equity.

Leander Dolphin was elected to partnership at her firm, Shipman & Goodwin LLP, in Hartford.

Aimee Dawson was awarded tenure at Université Laval, where her teaching and research focus on preventive dentistry and access to care among underserved populations.

Ellen Sluder Cohen just finished her first year as VP of marketing for Medforce, a software company providing document and process management to healthcare. Her husband is a pilot for the Conair Corporation and their daughters, Henrietta and Beatrice, are 5 and 2 respectively. 2016 is promising to be a great year of catching up with fellow Wes alums at upcoming weddings and 40th birthday celebrations (too many to name!).

In August, Jose Stevenson married Dalia Trinidad. Robert Carrillo was his best man and many of the LUL Hermanos were there, including Sergio Zenteno ’00, Tom Constabile ’96, Francisco Tezen ’97 and his wife Linda Rodriguez ’97, Jose and Andrea DeJesus ’97, Miguel Guadalupe ’98 and his wife Maria Santana-Guadalupe ’98, Melvin Acevedo, Pablo Morales ’00, Ray Sanchez ’00, Jeremy White ’98, Gabe Aviles ’00, Luis “Gabbo” Torres and his wife Allison Panzer ’00, and Julio and Mariela Rosario Pabon ’02. Wes folks took up over two tables! Miguel and Maria even drew on their Caliente Dance Troupe choreographing days and helped Jose execute a surprise flash mob for his wife!

Diana Glanternik was married to Jonah Ramu Cohen (a Brown alum who admits that he sometimes regrets not choosing Wesleyan) in September at her parents’ home in Roxbury, Conn., and the celebration was well attended by Diana’s longtime Wes friends: Steffie Kinglake, Nina Ball-Pesut, Jennifer Karlin, Lauren Borowsky, Laura Zaks, Laura Plageman, Virginia Gray, Maya Mitchell, Margo Simon, Daniel Forster, Bryon Schafer, Rachel Ostrow, Lauren Kesner O’Brien, Nina Kontos, Wiley Bowen ’00, Jordan Fletcher ’00, Molly Barton ’00, Liz Donnelly ’00, Shira Gans ’01, Benji Shemmer ’01, Darren Ross ’98, Will Miller ’98, Harrison Owen ’98, and Matt Downes ’98, who all killed it on the dance floor till the tables were cleared and the DJ had to shut the music down.

Jeffrey Blumenthal listens to a lot of excellent podcasts while commuting by bike to and from the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center (SERC) at San Francisco State University’s Romberg Tiburon Center for Environmental Studies. Wesleyan’s favorite Professor Atwater was mentioned for his contribution to the calorie as we know it on food labels: gastropod.com/the-end-of-the-calorie/.

Thanks for the submissions! Kevin and I look forward to hearing from you for the next issue.

C. DARRYL UY | darryl.uy@gmail.com

KEVIN KUMLER | kevinkumler@gmail.com

Keefe Murren has a new job as head of FilmAid International, an organization that uses film, journalism and radio to create public information campaigns with refugees around the world.

Matt Lenard was awarded a grant from the Laura and John Arnold Foundation (~$83K) to study the impact of an academic and behavioral support model in the Wake County Public School System.

Tamar Wilner writes, “My husband, Will, and I still live in Dallas and surprisingly even enjoy it! Our little boy just turned 7—but he is a cat, so still no words. I have just started the online journalism master’s at the University of Missouri and I’m really enjoying it. My studies center on the role of online media in people’s health knowledge (and misperceptions). On the side I consult for the American Press Institute and write the odd article.”

Calvin Warner married Sarah Koby on April 25, 2015, in Kent, Ohio!

Matt Freeman and Bethany Caruso ’03 report, “We welcomed our daughter, Hannelore Scout Caruso Freeman, on Dec. 30. We moved into a more child-friendly home in Atlanta just in time and both continue to work at Emory University, exploring ways to improve access to water and sanitation and health in low-income countries.”

Jess Fantz updates: “I’ve been keeping incredibly busy after leaving the agency world to work for myself as a freelance UX/web designer for the last three years. I have been consulting with smaller design agencies who often don’t have an in-house Web design team. In addition to my work for my bigger corporate clients, I most recently led the redesign of the website for the Ralph Lauren Center for Cancer Care, a nonprofit cancer center in Harlem. (My personal site: jessfantzdesign.com). My wife, Caroline, and I moved this summer from Brooklyn to Glen Ridge, N.J., and are both still commuting to Manhattan for work. Our toddler, Jay Alexander, turned 1 in October. He’s keeping us on our toes!”

Tim Howard writes, “For the past year or so I’ve been working at a podcast called Reply All, out of Brooklyn, and it’s a blast. It’s ostensibly a show about the technology and the Internet, but is actually very far-ranging and irreverent, generally narrative-driven reporting. Anyone with story ideas should get in touch: tim@gimletmedia.com.”

Ray Sanchez was named to City & State NY’s 40 under 40 list in October.

Alok Appadurai is in Tucson, where Fed By Threads, his sweatshop-free organic clothing company, has provided more than 474,592 emergency meals to Americans in need. He is also writing a book, Good Elephant, about his adventures changing the world, while being a proud father to his 4-year-old son, Sequoia.

Lauryn Siegel continues to live in Brooklyn where she works as a creative director and producer of new media, content and multimedia art and video. She recently started a digital design, media and art studio called Dimensions in Bushwick and encourages alumni and friends to come by and hang out. She is excited to come to campus and hang out with her friends who are now professors! She has no babies or marriages, though maybe by the time this gets published that will change…. Never say never! 🙂

Tak Wai Chung and his wife Te-Ling Nai write, “We have moved our family to Singapore from Hong Kong at the end of 2015. Tak Wai has assumed the role of head of Mid Market Southeast Asia for EQT. Our daughter, Chun Yee, loves the sunshine and the green here and is enjoying her new school very much.

Samantha Kennedy writes, “After four-and-a-half years of running Pika Sign Language Interpreting Services, I am branching out on a new entrepreneurial endeavor. In 2015, I launched The Fabulous Babe (thefabulousbabe.com), supporting ambitious women (like us Wesleyan grads!) achieve their dreams without being overwhelmed, exhausted or worried so much about what others think of us. This one has been in the cooker for a while, and I’m so excited that it’s now a reality.”

Andrea McKnight says, “I am proud to announce that I was named to the 2015 Massachusetts Super Lawyers Rising Stars, which is the third consecutive year. I continue to work at a small firm in southeastern Mass. If I can help anyone, my e-mail is attorneymcknight@gmail.com.”

Avery Esdaile | wesleyan2000@gmail.com

Mara writes this time: Rebecca Schiff’s first book, a collection of stories called The Bed Moved, was published by Knopf in April. I remember Rebecca’s writing from college and can’t wait to read it.

Adriana Laser contributed two articles, “Becoming SHE” and “Nursing Solace,” which were featured in the book Being a Woman Surgeon, published by Gordian Knot Books.

Christopher C. Jeffries, of counsel at Kramon & Graham, has been recognized as a “Rising Star” by Maryland Super Lawyers for his work in business litigation and civil litigation. Chris has been selected to appear in the directory every year since 2010.

Eric Schultheis writes, “I’m about to finish my PhD at MIT in August and then I hope to travel for a few months before continuing my efforts to never stop going to school and to continue collecting degrees.” We wish you well in that endeavor, Eric!

Ross Evangelista sits on the board of a nonprofit art space in Manhattan called Participant, which he notes might be the last of its kind.

Don Kim reports daughter Madison was born last Dec. 8, weighing in at six pounds.

Emily Archibald and Ben Paradise welcomed their second son, Walter Vincent Paradise, in August.

Rebekah Raleigh writes, “I recently became the executive producer at Rotary International, which means I lead a team of photographers, producers, et al, highlighting Rotary’s great works around the world. I’m pretty excited about it. If any Wesleyan alumni are working with Rotary projects around the world, I’d love to hear what they are doing. We’re always looking for new stories to cover.”

Michael Polson writes, “I was just awarded a PhD in anthropology from CUNY Graduate Center for my work on the marijuana economy in Northern California. I’ve just landed a visiting professor job at American University, too, where I’m resurrecting my Wes training in queer and feminist studies for a course on Sex, Gender and Culture. Other than that, I’m living the post-hippie West Philly life and trying to remember what my hobbies were before grad school colonized my existence.”

“We’ve moved to Frankfurt, Germany,” reports Chris Saenger. “I’m still working for USAID, starting a four-year Foreign Service tour at our support platform for the Middle East. Before leaving D.C., I enjoyed a wonderful reunion with 80 Home Ave. housemates and our growing brood.”

Rachel Chasan, husband Uri Felsen, and son, Izzy, welcomed twin boys to the family, Nathaniel Henry Felsen and Leo William Felsen, last July.

Lauren Bloom Hanover is serving as the interim artistic director at Profile Theatre in Portland, Ore., where she lives with her husband and 15-month-old daughter. If you are passing through, get in touch!

Jim Isler edited a narrative feature film, Claire in Motion, which premiered in South By Southwest in March. The cinematographer was Andreas Burgess. Jim and his wife, Emily Barth Isler, welcomed their second child, Max, in January of 2015.

Peter Colvin writes, “I continue to work at the San Diego VA hospital/UCSD doing post-traumatic stress disorder clinical research with veterans. My wife and I have a 3-month-old, Joaquin Ozzy, who looks like a fat baby monkey; we are concerned he is not going to grow up with the East Coast edge. We are embracing the California lifestyle with triathlons and surfing.”

Eli Wise (formerly Eli Sheridan) is finishing his fifth year teaching Orff music and movement at Kaiser elementary school. He’s released another full studio album, Let My Tethers Fall, that’s available at eliwiseband.bandcamp.com. He’s also singing with the San Francisco Gay Men’s Chorus, keeping busy with his private music studio, and collaborating with local musicians and choreographers.

Kathryn Van Nimwegen Lachenmaier is now busy chasing after two little ones, with the addition of her son, Bradley, last May. She continues to enjoy her work at Kindering, serving the birth-to-three population with special needs. She’s especially enjoying teaching a class for children with significant motor challenges, creating a welcoming space for families to have their first preschool experience.

Amy Larkin Gelbach answered my call for praiseworthy nonprofits and writes, “I am back in my beloved hometown and volunteering (alongside my dad, Robert Gelbach ’63) for a great organization called New Haven Reads. We work one-on-one with public school students to help them develop their skill and love of reading.

Lauren Singerman writes in, “In 2015 I co-created, produced, and starred in my Web series, Precious Cargo, which was directed by my buddy, Ben Simington. Precious Cargo is a comedic series about the trials and tribulations of two sisters who tutor the fanciest kids in NYC, and it will be released this spring. I’m currently Salma Hayek’s on-set speech coach for her new film, Drunk Parents, in which she costars with Alec Baldwin.”

Bhavna K. Bhandari Mahal moved to Orlando, Fla., with her husband and two sons. She writes, “I am a NY-licensed attorney, originally from New Jersey, but here in Florida, I am preparing for the Florida bar exam and working as an advocate for special needs children in the public schools. Funding for public services and amenities in the schools is a very different story down here than in the North.” Despite the uphill battle, she is finding the work extremely rewarding.

Elizabeth Savage is practicing law in Portland, Ore., and she and her husband welcomed their second daughter last October.

Erica Gersowitz Bond recently took a job as special adviser for criminal justice and public safety to New York City’s First Deputy Mayor and would love to hear from any alumni working on criminal justice issues or in NYC government.

Just last night I caught up on the latest episodes of The Circus on Showtime, co-executive produced by Mary Robertson. The show intimately tracks the presidential election almost in real time. Riveting stuff. Why am I not surprised?

Thank you for writing in. Until next time,

ARYN KALSON-SPERANDIO | arynsperandio@yahoo.com

MARA VOUKYDIS | maravee@gmail.com

George Obulutsa is still going strong as a correspondent for Reuters News, based in Nairobi, and had the pleasure of covering Pope Francis’s visit to Kenya in 2015.

Marisa LaScala and Jesse Hassenger ’02 welcomed their daughter, Eloise, in October. They live in Brooklyn in an apartment almost big enough for the three of them.

Coe Hoeksema (Will) and husband Craig, welcomed their son Owen Calder Hoeksema on Aug. 24, 2015. He is so delightful that Coe quit her architectural marketing job of 10 years at FXFOWLE and took a position as marketing manager for WE Design in Brooklyn, within walking distance of her apartment. She continues her freelance architectural photography work on the side.

Neville Galloway-Williams began a year-long clinical psychology post-doc in PTSD at the Baltimore VA in July 2015. She, her partner Joshua, and their daughter, Alice, welcomed baby Louis in Dec. 2015. The family of four continues to enjoy Baltimore, and they have been lucky enough to hang out with Rachel Gooze ’02 and Amy Sanchez ’02. Anyone in the Baltimore area is welcome to come hang out!

Arcelie Reyes and Evan Newell ’02 welcomed their third child, Cassius, on Feb. 2. Cassius was born peacefully at home and is getting lots of loving attention from his older siblings, Kingston and Phoenix. Arcelie has been busy attending other Brooklyn mothers and babies as a birth doula and providing postpartum support, including lactation counseling and babywearing tutorials.

Bethany Caruso completed her doctorate in public health at Emory University in mid-December 2015, and just two weeks later she and her husband, Matthew Freeman ’00, welcomed their daughter, Hannelore Scout Caruso Freeman. Bethany and Matt both work at the Rollins School of Public Health at Emory.

AMY TANNENBAUM | atannenbaum@wesleyan.edu

Baby boom, courtesy of the class of 2004! Plus more of our classmates finding love, finding their passion, and doing amazing work in this world.

Ashley Elia Weller and Kyle Weller welcomed baby boy Jett Ryan one Jan. 22, 2016. As weather systems seem to align with all Weller major life events, Jett was born during a snow storm in New Jersey. Luckily with Facetime, visitors were still able to meet the little guy in his first days (including me, from over here in Switzerland). With his long fingers, toes and limbs, he just might be a baller like his mom! Ash and Kyle are elated, and adjusting to life as new parents.

Malia Shelton Kuss and husband Josh Kuss will be welcoming their first child, a baby boy, in March. An early congratulation to these San Diegans, who are loving life in the Golden State!

Joshua Kaye and Megan Ridley-Kaye ’05 welcomed their son Benjamin Ridley Kaye (‘37?) in November. They are overjoyed. Megan has just returned to work as an in-house attorney at Noble Americas, focusing on structured finance and mergers and acquisitions, but also fielding the occasional call from a freighter captain. Josh is a litigator at Paul Weiss, where in addition to representing a wide range of corporate clients, he devotes a substantial portion of his practice to marriage equality and LGBT rights. He represented Edie Windsor in her successful challenge to the Defense of Marriage Act in the Supreme Court in 2013. He is currently representing married gay couples who are challenging Mississippi’s blanket ban on gay couples adopting.

Lauren Pearlman and Fletcher Durant ’03 have had a busy year, first with a move from Brooklyn, N.Y., to Gainesville, Fla., where they both started tenure track jobs at the University of Florida. Lauren is an assistant professor in the History and African American Studies Departments, and Fletcher is a preservation librarian. In November, they welcomed Milo Freeland Durant into the world. He joins older brother, Felix, who has quickly accumulated all the blue-and-orange clothing a boy could need. They welcome visitors to Florida to stay in their guest house—Julia Pearlman ’10 has already visited several times!

Gregory Heller and his wife, Diana Lind, are proud to announce the birth of their son, Theodore Douglas Heller, on Nov. 24, 2015. They have been celebrating with Wes friends Katherine Gajewski ’02, Liz King ’03, and their neighbor, Brad Moss ’80. In addition to their family growing, Greg’s organization, ACT, has also grown exponentially, now working on community development projects in 27 U.S. cities. Last year, Next City featured Greg in a piece titled “This CEO Wants to Change the Real Estate Game for Low-Income Neighborhoods.” Greg also received the honor of being named Urban Innovator by Urban Innovation Exchange—a project of the Kresge Foundation and Meeting of the Minds to identify the nation’s top urban leaders. If you want to learn more, you can also check out his TEDx Philadelphia talk, discussing how “social impact real estate” can transform our cities: youtube.com/watch?v=1ueVS1acOgo

Joseph Berman married Sarah Novick last summer. He also started working with Jewish Voice for Peace in D.C., working for justice, equality, and human rights for Palestinians and Israelis.

Rebecca Solow has been living in Geneva, Switzerland, for the past year, and working at the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB and malaria. Rebecca and husband, Scott Griffin, were married in October, and had a wonderful time celebrating with the many Wes alums in attendance, including Josh Kaye, Megan Ridley-Kaye ’05, Jon Lashley, Alden Ferro, Dael Norwood, Michelle Paul, and “Maid of Dishonor” Susan Manikas. They look forward to heading back to New York in March, where Rebecca will rejoin the Boston Consulting Group.

Katie Schoendorf and Noah Nattell were married in Big Sur, California, on September 5th, 2015. The ceremony was officiated by Emma Alpert and Krishna Andavolu, with music by Joaquin Cotler ’05 and Steven Gravatt. The wedding party included Mark Hatch-Miller, Rose Lichter-Marck, and Aaron Schoonhoven. Others Wesleyan alums in attendance: Robbie Botta ’05, Katy Clark-Spohn Botta ’05, Carl Cervone, Laurel Daen ’05, Andrea Garcia, Ben Goldwasser ’05, Lucas Jansen, Aaron Lowenstein ’98, Jesse McIntosh ’05, Lindsey Reynolds, Lindsay Rodgers ’06, and Peter Thilly. The couple recently moved to Los Angeles, where Noah is a fellow in obstetrics and gynecology with a focus in family planning at the University of Southern California.

Jeremy Levinn is a financial planner at an independent firm (Financial Life Focus) in the greater NYC area that is working to re-shape the industry, and is helping their clients make decisions that align with both financial goals and personal values. Their approach is simple: they don’t sell anything except expertise, and don’t get paid by anyone, except their clients. Financial Life Focus is part of a small minority in a sea of brokers and insurance salesmen acting as “advisers” but really pushing product. The firm works with people of all ages and financial means, including clients in their 30s, faced with important financial decisions, but typically ignored for lack of millions of dollars. It’s his great hope that more of the smart, thoughtful graduates of Wesleyan will eventually help change this industry for the better.

Jenina Nuñez | jenina.nunez@gmail.com

Meeghan Whooley Ward | meeghan.w.ward@gmail.com

Greetings class of 2007! As we welcome spring, we also begin the countdown to our 10-year Reunion. Between new family additions and exciting career moves, our class has been busy. Mark your calendars—we’ll have a lot to catch up on at the tent party next May!

Wedding bells have been ringing for many of us and the big day often provides a great opportunity to see old friends. Frani Geiger was excited to celebrate with her 35 Home Ave. housemates Ben Levinger, Scott Diamond, Loren Adler, and Brandon Stein at her wedding in November. To add to the excitement, the whole 35 Home Ave. crew was able to spend time with the first baby in the group, Desmond Levinger!

Molly Shuster married Edward Otocka on Sept. 12, 2015, in her hometown in Massachusetts. Many Wes friends were in attendance, including Victoria Santoro, Tiffany Lo, Elise Meyer, Amanda Belichick, Nicole Foley Clement and Lirra Schiebler Hill. Molly and Eddie recently moved to Riverside, Conn., with their two dogs, Penelope and Shiloh. Molly continues to work as a freelance food stylist and writer. Her first cookbook is slated to be published in 2017 by Hachette Livre.

Yoni Rabino and Naomi Ray-Schoenfeld also got married this past summer! Yoni recently started a distillery called Neversink Spirits, where they make apple brandy, whiskey, and other liquors for people to enjoy. Naomi is a nurse practitioner working in NYC and they are living in Queens.

Over this past New Year’s—as they’ve done for several years running—Arielle Cohen, Erica Pasciullo Cahill, Annie Rorem, and Nicole Tirado Strayer got together for a celebration and adventure. These friends have had plenty to celebrate recently, including Nicole’s wedding to Vlad Gutkovich, and Erica’s to Chris Cahill—both in 2014. Arielle, a family nurse practitioner serving un- and under-insured patients at a Federally Qualified Health Center in Santa Rosa, and Nicole, a developmental psychology doctoral student looking forward to her 2016 graduation from Stanford University, live in nearby neighborhoods in Oakland. On the other side of the country, Erica, in the third year of her obstetrics and gynecology residency at George Washington University, and Annie, recently hired as the senior research manager for the National Women’s Business Council, are also lucky enough to live within walking distance of each other. These women look forward to welcoming Erica and Chris’ new baby into the mix in April of this year!

The Class of 2007 is also doing its part to fill future Wesleyan classrooms. Robert Chang writes, “Our oldest daughter Angelina is now 23 months old and we are expecting the arrival of her baby sister in March. We also just bought a house back in my hometown of Bethesda, Md. The girls are now within walking distance to the same primary and secondary schools that their father attended.”

In December, Abby Bader Bullock and her husband, Jon, welcomed baby daughter, Juniper Lou.

Melissa Mondesir Miller and her husband, Andrew, celebrated the birth of their son, Theodore Olivier, on Nov. 29, 2015. Theo can’t wait to have play dates with fellow Wes babies in NYC! Melissa also completed her master’s in fundraising management at Columbia University in October.

James Picariello is an equity analyst with KeyBanc Capital Markets in Cleveland. He received an MBA in finance from Washington University in St. Louis (2011). James married Hannah Stubbs ’06 in 2012. Hannah, who was inducted into the Connecticut Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame in 2015, is a molecular medicine PhD candidate at the Cleveland Clinic and Case Western University, with research focused on brain cancer. Their son, Jack, was born in October 2015. The three Picariellos and their two dogs live in Shaker Heights at a home residence aptly numbered 3033 (James #30, Wes football; Hannah #33, Wes basketball).

Plenty of ’07 grads have been making Wesleyan proud when it comes to career success. Luke Mecklenburg graduated from the University of Colorado School of Law in 2014, was a law clerk for Chief Justice Nancy E. Rice of the Colorado Supreme Court, 2014–15, and now is an associate at the law firm of Snell & Wilmer L.L.P.

And 2015 was a big year for Portia Hemphill. In August, she received her joint PhD in political science and public policy from the University of Michigan and was chosen as a 2015 Presidential Management Fellow. Portia works at HUD’s headquarters in DC and is having a ball. She says, “See y’all next year!”

Gabrielle Fondiller has taken a one-year sabbatical from running her nonprofit in Kenya to pursue an MS in management at Stanford’s Graduate School of Business. Gabi reports that, so far, she loves it! Meanwhile, her nonprofit is now sponsoring and mentoring 300 Kenyan students in high school and university.

Tessa Hirschfeld-Stoller is living in NYC and working on her PhD in neuroscience at Columbia University. Her research investigates the role of developmental serotonin in psychiatric disorders. When not in the lab, Tessa is doing photography, traveling, or on her bike! Also in NYC, Scout James (née Michael) is in his second year of Juilliard’s drama conservatory.

Himanshu Suri reports that he’s enjoying the Heritage Hotel Artist Residency in Goa, India. And in case anyone is wondering, he still raps.

As we gear up for the big 1-0, keep the updates and good news coming! Send submissions to wesleyan007@gmail.com, or either address below:

Megan Harrington | megan.kretz@gmail.com

Victoria Pinsky | victoriapinsky@gmail.com

As usual, the Class of ’08 is doing impressive work! Paul Johnson writes: “I finally wrapped up a PhD in bioengineering last year, then started a job at Apple. I can’t really say much about what I’m working on, except that I sit at a computer a lot of the time, use a mouse, type on a keyboard, that sort of thing (I’ve said too much).”

Meanwhile, Lauren Goldman moved back to New York in June and is working at a solar energy company. She was happy to ring in the New Year in Brooklyn with Rashida Richardson, Annie Shepard ’09, and Molly Birnbaum ’09.

Karla Hargrave is working as a trekking guide in Torres del Paine National Park in Chile for six months, collecting research material for her next theatrical creation: a world traveling multimedia experience about climate change, the things we don’t want to change, and how to push for the solutions that we need. She is seeking a team of artists, scientists, lawyers, engineers, administrators, and of course, funders. Home base: Oakland, Calif.

Lucy Bickerton writes: “I was married this summer in Mexico to Cedric Vara, an ’06 Vassar alum. We met working on a film production, although I have since made a career change, and was just accepted to medical school! In the meantime, I am teaching chemistry at Hunter College and trying to make the most of my precious free time before classes start in August. I have had a blast reliving my college roommate days this month, with Stephanie Calvert staying in my guest room in Park Slope after she had an apartment fire.” Before the fire, Stephanie started working on a new art project, Shame to Pride, in the summer of 2014. This past November (2015) the work culminated with two solo shows, one in Dumbo (Brooklyn), one in the Lower East Side. The New York Times also wrote about her work on opening day of the Dumbo show: takingnote.blogs.nytimes.com/2015/11/12/a-mothers-hoarding-a-daughters-art/?_r=1

Daniel Collins and his wife just had a baby on Sept 25. Marianna Foos got her MS in bioinformatics in August. She jokes, “I think the peak number of Wes alums at the Boston Computational Biology and Bioinformatics Meetup was five, which is pretty solid for a field you’ve never heard of.” D. Ross Pemmerl writes: “I was selected as one of American Cancer Society’s two sponsored runners for the 2016 Boston Marathon. Interestingly enough, the other representative selected was Caroline Mead ’15. Both Caroline and I will be running to raise money for the American Cancer Society with all donations going to fund cancer research, maintain ACS care facilities, and support their outreach programs. If anyone is interested in learning more and/or donating to the cause, please e-mail me at rosspemmerl@gmail.com or look me up on FB (Ross Pemmerl). I’m running to honor my father who passed away from cancer my junior year at Wes, and I am excited to tackle the 26.2 in his memory!”

Jacob Mirsky says, “I moved to Boston (well, Brookline) with Gavriel Elkind ’09 to start my residency at the Brigham and Women’s Hospital on my path to becoming a primary care doctor. The stars aligned over Christmas, when I worked with my freshman (one-bedroom) roommate, Zack Frosch, on the cardiology service. I then had the pleasure of spending a weekend in Portland, Maine, at the winter chalet of Oren Gersten and Olivia Dooley ’09, which included cross-country skiing out their front door with their impressively well-behaved dog, Toby (Wes class TBD).”

Oren Gersten adds, “In November, my dog had a bowel obstruction caused by a corn cob. Luckily Ezra Steinberg ’01, VMD, was working that night and performed an emergency ex-lap and fixed him right up. Thanks, Dr. Steinberg!”

Alicia Collen Zeidan | acollen@wesleyan.edu