Class Notes

The older we get, the harder it is to receive class notes, but please respond with news for the next issue.

Ron Daniel just turned 93 and still goes to the office and gym two to three times a week but is not sure how long he can keep it up. Onward!!

My next milestone is 92 and still working full time, going to the gym three to four times a week, ballroom dancing two times a week, and occasionally hit tennis balls with son-in-law Samuel Bender ’82, MD. Granddaughter Maddie Bender—daughter of Sam and Ellen (Friedman) Bender ’82—a graduate of Yale 2021, with a master’s in public health from Yale 2022, is going to Sierra Leone in May for two weeks as an intern with Nicholas Kristof, American journalist, political commentator, and the op-ed columnist for The New York Times, who is a regular CNN contributor and winner of two Pulitzer Prizes. She was awarded this honor in March 2020 but the trip was delayed because of COVID.

PLEASE WRITE!

Just three responses since the fall when I last asked. We have all slowed down but what seems boring to you just might be of interest to the rest of us. I really like to have some “news” to share.

Now the “news.” From Richard (Dick) De Gennaro, “I am still alive at age 97. That’s my news.” You may remember that Dick and his brother George were members of Alpha Chi Rho. George had been in the service and Dick had studied in France prior to coming to Wesleyan.

Boardman “Barney” Kathan writes, “The only thing that I would add to the class notes is that after five years I have created an endowed scholarship fund at Yale Divinity School to help students with their tuition costs. I agreed to do this back in 2018, and I was received into a special donors’ group in a special dinner at the school in the fall. I had graduated from YDS in 1956.”

Charlie Selig, always the reliable correspondent writes, “All OK here at Boca West, Boca Raton, Florida. I had to stop tennis this year, but swim regularly and work out a number of times each week. Lots of bridge and social life keep me busy. Nothing like Florida weather . . . return to New York for four months in June. Enjoyed NFL season with my Giants finally hiring the coach and GM needed for future growth. Best to all Wes friends.”

Some of you may not have heard about the passing of Frank G. Binswanger Jr. ’50, P’76, ’78, GP’13, ’15 on July 6, 2022. Last summer, President Roth wrote fondly of him, saying, “Frank graduated more than 70 years ago, but he remained keenly interested in alma mater. He was a trustee during the 1970s . . . and over the years, I would receive questions, advice, and encouragement from Frank.” Frank and his brother John ’54, P’83, GP’ 06, ’10, ’16 established the Binswanger Prize for Excellence in Teaching, which is awarded every year at Commencement. Roth’s note concluded by saying, “Teaching, learning, philanthropy—Binswanger traditions. May Frank’s memory be a blessing.”

Bob Wylie shared: “A comment as to the age of graduates immediately following the war: As many were veterans, ages were in the mid-20s, which now reflects those in their late 90s. There are few of us left, indeed I know of only four. Fortunately, I have my memories of Wesleyan—the institution, the faculty, social life (even without girls), and my fellow students. They are all cherished.”

Since my last column, it has been very gratifying to me to receive the number of favorable comments from so many alumni. When you get to be probably the only member of the class, it’s better to receive information from outside its confines than to just sit and talk to yourself. I have no word from any individual from the class, the actual class of 1945, so I speak for all or none as you wish. As a result of the recent publicity I received in dealing with matters of the 10th Mountain Division and Camp Hale becoming a national monument, I can now tell you that the Denver NBC station is planning a documentary concerning the 10th Mountain’s influence on not just land and monuments but also the impact on the economy that the development of the ski industry in Colorado has bought. When the members of the 10th Mountain Division came back from Italy, numbers of them came back to Colorado and settled into building ski resorts. Such places as Vale, Copper, Arapaho, et al., were built by entrepreneurs who saw a need and filled it. Not only ski resorts but the entire ski industry—for instance, manufacturing new and better skis, improving boots, safety harnesses—all the gear associated with skiing came under their observation and development. As a consequence, Colorado has become famous for its ski offerings and famous in all areas of the ski industry from the planks people now ski on to the post-skiing fireside delights that the resorts offer.

I am proud of my association with the 10th Mountain Division, am happy in being part of all that it has offered and brought to Colorado, and am satisfied that out of all this will come some significant development of the old Camp Hale site. It was a pleasure for me to get to know two alumni senators, Michael Bennet ’87 and John Hickenlooper ’74.

As we used to say in parting, “Ski heil.”

Slán go fóill.

Postgraduation, our classmates are doing some amazing things! Thank you to everyone who contributed and congratulations on all that you have been achieving!

Milton Espinoza Jr.: “I moved to Harlem in September and recently started at the Columbia University School of the Arts for my master’s in acting.”

Annie Yu: “I moved to Pennsylvania in August and recently started at Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine for my MD. I’m enjoying exploring different areas of health care and also hike in my free time!”

Gabby Roberts: “I’m about to finish my first semester at Washington and Lee law school!”

Yongxi Tan: “I quit my corporate job after graduation to work on my own beauty start-up.”

Nabiha Syed: After realizing chemistry was not her real dream, Nabiha moved to LA to start her own band called Nasty Nabs. She is now a drummer, inspired by our very own Taiko drumming class at Wesleyan.

Julia Nacario: Julia is a community engagement coordinator at Friends of the Urban Forest and also a camera assistant for documentaries on the side. They are able to be their whole self while pursuing both passions of being a community member and storyteller. You can learn more about her career journey by watching this segment: https://www.linkedin.com/video/event/urn:li:ugcPost:6994322128929988608/.

Virginia Sciolino has relocated from Mississippi to Los Angeles, California, where she is a paralegal with the civil rights firm, the PLC Law Group, LLC.

Sarah Lucente writes, “Since graduating from Wesleyan, I’ve become a middle school humanities teacher at Greenwich Country Day School, and spent last year co-teaching with fellow Cardinal and Head of School Adam Rohdie ’89. I’ve also worked on many short films and made my own short film alongside various Wes alums. Stay tuned!”

Kush Patel is halfway through PA school (at Tufts), heading to rotations starting January 2023, and graduating January 2024!

From Nick Ticali: “Life is good. I am now a little over two months into my PA program at the New York Institute of Technology. I have been regularly going to the gym, constantly studying, and spending the free time I do have with the ones I love.”

From Rachel Curran: “After working in Boston for the past two years, I recently drove cross country and moved to San Diego to pursue a new job! The trip itself was an amazing experience, and I am excited for this next chapter on the West Coast!”

Rajendra Amira Leila S. is currently based in Indonesia and has been involved in the musical theater production, Cerita Beda Hak Sama (Different Stories, Same Rights), a musical production focusing on HIV/AIDs that raises donations for two HIV/AIDs foundations: Akar Cinta Kasih Foundation in Bali and Syair Sahabat Foundation in Jakarta. As part of the ensemble and supporting cast, they are excited to share this story in contribution to erasing the stigma of HIV/AIDs in their region. You can find more info on the CBHS Instagram: @ceritabedahaksama.

I’m still in Chicago doing my best to stay warm this winter. Thanks again for all of your updates and look out for another email from me soon!

Hey everyone! Hope you are all doing well and staying safe. Here are some updates from our peers:

Katie Tyner recently published a co-authored, open-access article in Politics & Policy with Farida Jalalzai covering women prime ministers during COVID-19. Katie and Farida interviewed 45 politicians, civil servants, medical professionals, local journalists, and other leaders for this study, including Iceland Prime Minister Katrin Jakobsdóttir and New Zealand Deputy Prime Minister Grant Robertson. The article can be accessed at https://doi.org/10.1111/polp.12511.

Sarah Paulson graduated this summer from the University of Groningen in the Netherlands with a master’s in marine biology. She recently started a new job as a coastal restoration science technician with the Nature Conservancy. Sarah’s girlfriend Anna Knes also recently received a master’s—hers in forensic science from the University of Amsterdam in October ’22. Both recently moved to Providence, Rhode Island, and together they are looking at adopting a cat!

Special thanks to everyone who reached out with their life updates. Keep an eye out for my next email about the next edition of the alumni magazine soon.

Paige Amanda wrote a children’s book earlier this year called Spencer’s Noisy Mixer. In 2023, they will have another book coming out called Spencer’s Special Interests. These books are part of a series of neurodiversity-affirming children’s books about two autistic siblings. You can check out their writing at: paigeamandawrites.com.