Class Notes

Caissa writes for this issue.

Hello, all! I hope that this message finds you well. I pray that everyone is having a great year and enjoying the shift into spring. My thoughts and prayers are with everyone that is in a season of healing and recovery.

I know that many are still marveling at the opportunity to view the recent solar eclipse. However, I am still surprised to learn that the Northeast actually has “real” earthquakes. I was working from home last week when I heard an odd rumbling. I initially wondered what could be barreling down the street before realizing that the floor was also shaking. I have added appreciation, and concern, for our West Coast–loving alums who experience this regularly.

I’m happy to report that I just closed on a new house and am in the middle of moving. I’m becoming a regular at Home Depot and Lowe’s as I ponder design ideas and consider my options for the beautiful space. It’s a bittersweet mix of joy and stress. I look forward to having more space to paint, create culinary masterpieces, and invite friends and family over.

I am extremely grateful and thankful to share that my family is doing well. Work is busy, but exciting and I am happily thriving.

            In other news. . .

Charlotte Castillo writes that she is “leading Poderistas, a nonprofit for Latinas focused on power building and driving civic engagement amongst Latinas.” You can learn more about “Latinas who elevate, amplify, and build power through their own actions and by harnessing the power of the collective,” by visiting https://poderistas.com/. Charlotte also shared that “I live in Riverdale with my 14-year-old son and am adjusting to life as a widow. I am also keeping busy serving as co-chair of WesLAN, Wesleyan’s Latinx Alum Network, and as the reunion ambassador for our class.” Charlotte is “hoping to see everyone on campus for our Reunion in May and for Homecoming weekend’s Latino Alumni celebration in November.” She adds that “I live close by and spends lots of time with Cynthia Centeno ’93 and Lisette Nieves ’92, and recently had catch-ups with Tanya Schneider Robinson and Wendy Nivar.”

Kate Foster provided an update that she is “still in Baltimore.” She writes that “both my daughters are in college—one at UNC–Chapel Hill, studying photojournalism at the Hussman School of Journalism; and the other is studying philosophy and dance at Tufts, while also serving on the mock trial team.” Kate continues to serve as the Mid-Atlantic director of Trail Development with Rails to Trails Conservancy, which “allows me to work out of Baltimore and also takes me to D.C., Philadelphia, and Camden, New Jersey, on a regular basis.” She adds that she “saw Sondra Youdelman while in NYC last summer and has also been able to see Tyrone Williams when in Medford visiting her daughter at Tufts.” In closing she said, “Life is good!”

Matthew J. Fraser writes that he “enjoyed three semesters at Wes and grew very fond of my classmates but did not feel right not playing football in 1991.” Upon further inquiry, I also learned that Matthew later enjoyed kickboxing and grappling as an adult. He also shared that “in 1993 I was hired to be a full-time page for the Massachusetts State Senate, where I learned a great deal, while getting to know disabled champion Fred Berry (D-Peabody).” He “got an interview thanks to a man that was very active in the city at the time—my father. One perk of the job: I was allowed to use the Senate Reading Room, and I read there every day. Strange as it sounds, in a whole year, I think I saw someone else in there reading once. Seriously, once.” Now, in 2024, he is happy to announce that “the second edition of my book, Critical Infrastructure for Children: the Astonishing Potential of New England Schools, came out, with a strong four-page section on how supporting the disabled is synonymous with supporting the Massachusetts economy.” He adds fondly, “I will always call Boston home.” 

Zanne Gerrard shared that “I am directing an outdoor production of Henry VI: Parts 2 and 3 for GreenStage to be performed in parks around the Seattle area this summer.” It will run from July 12 through August 17. She added that she has “recruited Ian Gerrard ’91 to join the show as a props designer to help with the manufacture of several severed heads.” Zanne invites anyone that will be in the Seattle area, to “come see this tale of the War of the Roses and the becoming of Richard III. You can also check out  last summer’s production of Henry VI:  Part 1 on YouTube at https://youtu.be/4IZ45kO48fs?si=ADlxHHp1Jg_qE6_k.” Zanne hopes to see everyone at this year’s class reunion. 

Joseph Mahoney and Deborah Levin Mahoney ’96 have a son, Noah Mahoney, who continues the family legacy as a member of the Wesleyan Class of 2027. Joseph notes that Noah “is a freshman there. They apparently don’t say ‘frosh’ anymore. While the campus seems less radical than when we were there, he is taking a course on zombies.” I later learned that the zombies course is a religion class with a connection to Haiti. I await an update from Joseph to hear what Noah has to say about the class.

Michelle Montalbano MD writes that she is “an allergy/immunology specialist in Tulsa, Oklahoma.” She added that she and her “adventurous teenagers tent camped on a journey to New Mexico in 2023. Our excursions included stops in Taos, Chimayo, and Sante Fe, New Mexico, as well as Black Mesa State Park in Oklahoma.” I later learned that Michelle and I were both members of Ebony Singers while at Wesleyan and really enjoyed the experience.

Aram Sinnreich writes that he “and Jesse Gilbert have published a book entitled The Secret Life of Data: Navigating Hype and Uncertainty in the Age of Algorithmic Surveillance that was released by MIT Press in April 2024 and distributed by Penguin Random House. The book launch event was at the Microsoft New England Research & Development (NERD) Center, in collaboration with ACLU of Massachusetts. More information about the book is available at https://mitpress.mit.edu/9780262048811/the-secret-life-of-data/.”

            Deborah Sorin writes that she has “been emailing and talking to classmates about the reunion and giving to Wesleyan.” She was happy to share what she had heard and added that “as a former secretary, I know how hard this job is.” Deborah went on to share that Aaron Pyles is “living in St. Paul, Minnesota, and working for a supply-chain software company called ‘Manhattan.’ Aaron added that he and his wife, Carri, “just moved into a new house and have been busy sanding floors and that sort of thing.” Deborah also connected with Aundrea Almond who writes that she “is in Wilmington, Delaware, where I work in county government.” She is currently chief of staff for the county commissioner. Lin (Zhong) ter Horst also connected with Deborah and shared that she “lives on Maui, where she has a small agro-processing company that makes purees and candy from Hawaiian produce.” Deborah had the opportunity to visit with Lin while on vacation a few years ago. She says, “Lin’s products are ‘Soooo good!’ You can try them for yourself by visiting https://www.mauifruitjewels.com/.” Lin added that “we have been doing as well as anyone could have after the August wildfires. The island economy has taken a big hit and there is no sign of improvement any time soon. We are starting to focus on e-commerce, which we have not had the time to leverage until now. We are also hoping to lease some farmland in the future to cultivate passion fruits.” Deborah also heard from Rula Geha, who writes that she “lives in San Diego with her 11-year-old daughter.” Rula adds that she was “formerly in general surgery and have moved into health-care consulting. Look me up if you’re in the area.” Rod Wallace also connected with Deborah, and shared that he is “in Wilmington, Delaware, working as part of a coalition to prioritize the role of nutrition in public health. As the creator of the Foundation for Innovation in Healthy Food, me and my team are currently working to increase the amount of dietary fiber in wheat.” 

Like many of our classmates, Deborah was looking forward to seeing everyone at the reunion. Kudos, Deborah! I appreciate your assistance in garnering news and support for Wesleyan.

Hi, everyone! The notes are pretty sparse this time around, so if you’ve got something (anything!) for next time, please send it along to either Sue or me.

Jennifer Work Blattner writes, “I had a great time visiting Wes twice last fall to drop off my child, Suz, who is class of 2027! So much fun to visit the old haunts and realize Olin still smells the same! Also enjoyed seeing all the new things and hearing about Wes from Suz’s perspective. Brings back so many good memories.”

Diego von Vacano recently received a fellowship at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars in Washington, D.C., to finish his book on the geopolitics and ethics of lithium in Latin America for Oxford University Press, for 2024–25. He is a professor of political science at Texas A&M University.

Hello, Class of 1992!

My desperate plea for class notes material brought on a flood of responses. So much, in fact, that I have more news than I can fit into the 800-word limit of a single column. So, if your update did not make into this set of notes, fear not, you will have prominent placement in the next edition!

My old housemate Simon Fulford continues to live in Portland, Oregon, where he has been the executive director of a child-and-family-serving nonprofit. Last October they broke ground on a $25 million youth residential treatment campus—Oregon ranks pretty much worst in the nation for addiction and recovery services for kids and adults. Simon’s two youngest sons are seventh and tenth graders, providing all the joys and challenges that come with that. His eldest, now 21, currently lives in Buenos Aires.

Dr. John “Juan” Luque is a full professor at Florida A&M University, in public health in Tallahassee, Florida. He was recently elected president of the American Association for Cancer Education. He spends his free time playing tennis in USTA league and defended his title in the annual local mixed doubles Sweetheart Tournament in February. He is also training his elementary school-age daughter in tennis so he can have a second career as a coach.

Cathy Keane continues to live in St. Louis where she has been teaching classics at Washington University since 2001.

This year Sara (Davidson) Flanders opened a yoga studio in Providence, Rhode Island, where she lives with her husband and 10-year-old kiddo. It’s the first yoga studio in Rhode Island that’s donation based with a majority of teachers of color and teachers in the LQBTQ community.

Dan Wulf recently musically directed Working for the third time (all three versions) for his 27th Watertown (Massachusetts) High School musical. Dan also conducts the Boston chapter of HaZamir, an international Jewish choir, and crossed paths with Allison (Wienir) Wissot ’93 at the annual festival performance weekend.

Valerie Nozick was recently promoted to chief commercial officer at Europcar Mobility Group USA/Fox Rent a Car. Last fall she joined Fox to establish the sales and marketing group and to get back to the travel industry. When not traveling, she spends her time at home in Seattle with her husband, Dan, and their spoiled dog, Geoffrey.

Kathryn Berlá was inspired by her experience with our 2022 30th Reunion and continues to see Wes folk. She was happy to connect with John Melnick and Hal Skinner (and their children) visiting NYC in December, and then again with Hal and Jonathan Liebson in February on another quick trip to the city.

Sam Ernst is living in the Berkshires, teaching middle school, and emptying the nest of his three collegiate children. Sam recently finished a tour of the last dregs of the ski season, along with the eclipse, in northern Vermont and New Hampshire: Magic, Sugarbush, Stowe, Bolton Valley, Mad River, and Tuckerman’s. The trip left him pining for a reunion of the Wes ski team, so be sure to get in touch with Sam if you find yourself in New England.

Matt Wein is now leading corporate law and compliance at Bay Area-based gene-editing biotech Metagenomi, which just completed a successful IPO in February. He’s residing in Hopkinton, Massachusetts, and splitting his time between San Francisco and Boston.

Jen Mittelstadt reports that she and her husband, Aaron Matthews ’93, were thrilled be back on campus this year to drop off their son, Lucas Matthews, as a Wes frosh. She’s a professor of history at Rutgers University and Aaron is a documentary filmmaker. They live in Brooklyn with their daughter, Adelaide, who will be applying to college next year. 

Darcy Dennett is on hiatus from TV production, working on a corporate project for JPMorgan Chase & Co. She just ran the NYC Half, albeit it somewhat slowly in an effort to get into better shape for the Brooklyn Half in May. 

Rick Barot’s fifth book of poems, Moving the Bones, will be published in October 2024. He’s been a visiting writer at the University of Utah this year but will soon be back at his regular gig, directing the MFA program in creative writing at Pacific Lutheran University in Tacoma, Washington.

That’s all for now. But even though I have some extra news for the next column, I’m always looking for your updates, so please continue to send me your news—I would especially love to hear from you if it’s been a while since you last checked in. Your classmates want to know what you are up to!

Please write to your class secretary.

Hi all! Here’s what we have:

Victor Khodadad will be singing the role of Don Jose in Peter Brooks’ adaptation La tragedie de Carmen with New Camerata Opera in New York City this fall. Please visit www.newcamerataopera.org for more information. He recently saw Barry Levine for dinner and enjoyed reminiscing about the days of yore!

Jonathan Torop recently moved from UBS (after 11 years) to Morgan Stanley. “It’s a good change and I’m required to be in New York City twice a week, which is great because working from home was getting a bit boring. I’m also getting involved with AIPAC, the pro-Israel lobby, in order to maintain the bipartisan, pro-Israel consensus in Congress. In addition, I joined a group called the Israel Economic Forum that connects global businesspeople with Israel counterparts. We were in Spain in February where we spent time with members of Spain’s small Jewish community. We have a solidarity mission to Israel in June that I’m looking forward to.”

Peter Brastow and his wife, Carolyn (Gencarella), “are still swimming along—and getting along swimmingly. Thing 1 (Julian) does the ski-bum thing in Bend, Oregon, which will be followed by a stint on the local fire crew for the USFS this summer. Thing 2 (Kaden) will finish up at UCLA in June, and vamos a ver which road he chooses. Carolyn still has her toes in science education, doing a bit of work still for San Francisco Unified School District as well as teaching a class in the education department at San Francisco State University. I, myself, continue to try and save the world in my own little corner (the San Francisco Environment Department), while it otherwise goes to hell in a handbasket.” Peter added: “We’re getting a ton of rain again this winter—maybe won’t quite match last year—and the snow is coming down again in the Sierra, where I’m headed next weekend to ski with my sis.”

Peter and Carolyn regularly see Arieh Rosenbaum, his wife, Barbara, and their two children, who “live about a half mile away.” Their older child is graduating from high school. “Arieh continues to work at the intersection of medicine and information technology as the chief medical informatics officer for Brown and Toland.” Like Peter and Carolyn, he has dreams of retiring soon! In the meantime, he exercises even more than Peter does, and on April 14, completed a triathlon in Folsom, California, where he won his age group! Arieh and Peter, as usual, look forward to next year’s 35th (!) at Wes.

That’s all for now. I hope all of you have been enjoying the summer. Please write with any news or updates that you have.

Classmates,

By now our 35th Reunion is behind us (although we’re writing this beforehand because of the deadline). Check our next issue for those stories. Until then, know that a couple of you asked if we could mention our dear classmate, Kate True, in our column. Kate passed away in October of last year and was mentioned in the obituary section in the previous notes. 

Dina Goldman wrote of her this way:

“Kate was a very self-contained, thoughtful, poised, lovely person who also happened to be an incredibly gifted artist. She had a quiet charisma and was magnetic to so many of us.”

Always feel free to share thoughts of any of our ’89 classmates who have transitioned. We’re happy to share good memories and stories here. 

Wishing you all well!

Peter writes for this issue.

Rich Silverman advises, “Three years back in NYC and two years at Corcoran. Love being in the city and try to take advantage of all that it has to offer—member hours at the MOMA, book talks at Hunter and the Apollo, hole-in-the-wall restaurants in Chinatown, and walks in Central Park. Tonight, I’m going to see Phil Rosenthal at the Beacon.”

Rob Wrubel writes in, “My daughter, Annie, will attend Wes starting this fall, and she’s excited to be heading to Middletown. We live in Colorado Springs, far from Middletown, and I look forward to visiting the campus this fall.”

Reid Cramer shares, “I’ve co-produced a record of music with Smithsonian Folkways featuring the singing of Sonya Cohen Cramer, who started Wesleyan in the Class of 1987 but marched with the Class of 1988. The record is called You’ve Been a Friend to Me and is a collection of beautifully sung folk songs, traditional ballads, and original music that reflect the full arc of Sonya’s musical life. Sonya was an amazing woman, who passed away in 2015, and it was exhilarating to be her partner. She had a beautiful voice and remarkable spirit. Growing up in a musical family, she was exposed to many kinds of folk and traditional music, but her time at Wesleyan, and especially her study of Carnatic singing with T. Viswanathan, sparked a lifelong engagement with singing as a craft and a practice. Along with a stellar group of people, she helped form the Wesleyan Women’s Singer/Songwriter Collective, which produced a captivating cassette of music, songs, and poems called SPIN.”

Stephen Morison updates, “I’m very excited to be joining The American School of Marrakesh community next year. I will be the new head of school. This is a homecoming of sorts. Emily and I began our international teaching careers in Tangier in 1997. Since then, we have taught all over the world but have returned frequently to Morocco to visit family and friends.”

Steven Zubkoff writes, “Jana Craston ’87 and I went to Canada to watch the eclipse at the lake cottage and we spent the rest of our time in Hanover, New Hampshire, and Norwich, Vermont. Hoping to go visit Stu and Susan (’90) Ellman in a few weeks.”

Bob Garcia reports, “Happy to share my first kids’ book, Aim High, Little Giant, Aim High!, was picked up for distribution by Haymarket. The first title I ever authored, Where’d You Get Those? New York City’s Sneaker Culture: 1960–1987 (Testify, 2003), is celebrating its 20th anniversary of publication with a special edition; and my next project is a memoir tentatively titled Bobbito’s Book of B-ball Bong Bong, which Akashic, founded by Johnny Temple, will release in 2025! I’ve also opened an online bookshop: https://bookshop.org/shop/koolboblove. Very pleased to make strides in literature considering how horribly I did in that subject while on campus, ba haaa!”

Hello, Friends!

We’re in a transitional stage of our careers . . . some of us are winding down, while others changing lanes and revving up for more adventure.

After 35 years in K–12 public education, Tim Sullivan will be retiring in June from his position as superintendent of the CREC Magnet Schools in Hartford, Connecticut.

Linda Ryden is making career changes after 20 years as the peace teacher in the Washington, D.C., schools. While there, she created a curriculum integrating mindfulness, brain science, conflict resolution, and social justice. In 2018 she formed a nonprofit to share the curriculum. Now she works there full time as creative director, and the curriculum is in schools across the country. Linda has a series of books, a YouTube channel, and a podcast for kids. Check out TeachPeaceofMind.org. 

David “Prahas” Nafissian has released an ebook, Becoming the Butterfly that you can download for free. Here’s the tag line: “Is humanity really doomed? I think not!”

This story features me in a surprising role. Steve Shackman, Ira Skolnik, and I often text about our beloved Queens-based baseball team. (If you know, you know. I’m still a little obsessive . . . will travel to London in June to see them play! I’ll see Liz Rabineau there. She is not interested in any of my “baseball shenanigans.” But I digress . . . .) In November, knowing Ira’s passion for U2, I asked if he planned to see the band in Las Vegas. At that time, it seemed a popular adventure. Inspired, Ira created his own Wesleyan reunion. He quickly had six Wesleyan friends signed up for a February weekend. He’ll take it from here: “We had Shack from New York City, Dan ‘Jughead’ Levy ’88 from Philadelphia, Scott Ades ’88 from New Jersey, Bill ‘Hooter’ Houston from Florida, Ed ‘Eduardo’ Thorndike ’89 from Connecticut, and, the biggest treat, Rich Pham ’88, who was traveling from Vietnam for a Vegas business trip that weekend. Since many of us had not seen each other in many years, it was three days of nonstop laughter and reminiscing. We are six ‘old men’ who still think we are college age. No arrests were made, no one went missing, and we made it back with our teeth intact.”

Kurt Lyn reports that he and his wife, Michelle Anderson Lyn ’84, MD,are still enjoying their professional careers, but they recently took a Wesleyan-type detour: launching a vineyard and winery close to their ranch about an hour from Houston, Texas. They invite all their Wesleyan friends to try their wines, Chapelton Vineyards, now available in local supermarkets and fine restaurants.

Erika Ranee (Cosby) checks in for the first time! She has been a professional artist since receiving a 1993 MFA from UC Berkeley. She started teaching at NYU in 2007, when Lyle Ashton Harris ’88 recommended her for the job. In 2023 Erika was one of 15 woman-identifying artists awarded a $25,000 grant from Anonymous Was a Woman. Her solo exhibition with the NYC gallery Klaus von Nichtssagend in 2024 was well reviewed in Artforum. This winter, Erika was selected to show in the 200th anniversary celebration of the Brooklyn Museum. That exhibit opens in October 2024.

You can findYouTube clips of David Abramson’s new storytelling skills. He talks about odd encounters with people from the former Soviet Union, finally tapping into a performance angle of his Russian major! David remembers a miserable foray into theater at Wesleyan when he played a tree in a rendering of Lorca’s Blood Wedding during sophomore year. He works as an analyst of Russian foreign policy at the State Department. His daughter, Hazel ’23, graduated from Wesleyan as an art history major —she lived next to his senior year home across from West Co and the science library. His daughter, Daisy, is a sophomore at Bryn Mawr. He’s in touch with Janet Ginzberg, Skip Lockhart, Jessica Miller, Cheryl Duncan, and Becky Riccio.

Grattan Baldwin files a slightly sarcastic report: “It is with deep shame that I report that my daughter, Annika, is a senior at Amherst; I console myself knowing at least it is not Williams. The good news, Amherst now has my last undergraduate tuition payment. Well, maybe not the very last . . .  in 2023 my wife, Cristina, brought forth our own personal sleep disruptor. Maria Luce Frederica Baldwin is a beautiful bundle of “feed me now.” A few early photos suggest the need for an exorcism, so we found the perfect priest in Milan to do the job. We were pleasantly surprised that in front of God and family, lightning did not strike, an earthquake did not hit, and the holy water did not boil. I consider this a good start. Now that she was freed from original sin, we hoped our overnight tormentor would sleep better; apparently that is not how that works.” 

Bill Gerber sent in this update: “Steve Elbaum and his wife, Jill, was part of a group that recently acquired Cold Hollow Cider Mill in Waterbury, Vermont, near Stowe. Still practicing law in Stamford, Connecticut, Steve and Jill spend many weekends at the mill. John McIntyre, John Brais, Dave Patterson, and I visited [recently] and we were incredibly impressed by how fluent Steve has become in cider production! While there we FaceTimed with Nic Pifer.”

Tavy Ronen shared: “I am still happily living in Manhattan, near Lincoln Center. I have been at Rutgers for almost three decades and am a professor of finance, specializing in market microstructure and corporate bonds. About 10 years ago, I launched a set of Business of Fashion programs for Rutgers Business School, and I get to occasionally hang out with fashion executives and attend New York Fashion Week events. 😊 My daughter is still in grad school nearby, so I feel very lucky to get to spend a lot of time with her. She is, by far, my most notable single-authored work.

            “As we collectively approach our 60th birthday, I think often of Sara Williams, whom so many of us loved dearly. As most of us know, she died so young and tragically. Last month I sat in the Key Park at Gramercy Park, beneath the building she grew up in, and wondered where she would have been now.”

Marc Rosner wrote: “In just one month: 60 candles, wedding bells, and a retirement incentive from Hastings-on-Hudson schools. Four decades supporting science is enough; Diane and I are retiring to build appraisals, restoration, and sales at Hudson Valley Numismatics. (Who knew WESU senior Silversmithing would ignite a second career?) Recently had lunch with Amy Grossman ’88. Always texting Alex Rothman, Andrew Zeller, and Dave Warne.”

And speaking of Alex Rothman, he wrote: “How time flies. Somehow Nina and I are now entering our 30th year in Minneapolis; long enough that our two sons are now off and have found their way (back) to the East Coast. Fortunately, life does lead me back to New York, and on a trip this past March, [I] had a great day eating and wandering about NYC with Dave Warne and Andrew Zeller.

Tierney Sutton updates us too:“The last few years have found me continuing to record and tour with several projects. The Tierney Sutton Band is still going strong and  we’ve opened up to some wonderful new personnel. (My last run in New York featured the great Lenny White on drums [Chick Corea and Return to Forever]). I have also done several tours of the U.S. and Europe with the Paris Sessions trio, which features my husband, Serge Merlaud, on guitar. (We split our time between Paris and Los Angeles when not on the road.)

“March 1, 2024, I released a new album, Good People, which is a collaboration between me and the San Gabriel Seven, a horn-based band that has done projects with many other artists. Eight of 10 tracks were either written or co-written by me, so this is a big departure. I’m especially excited about the title track, Good People, for which I produced a video (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tLq6CqzmTvY). It’s essentially Schoolhouse Rock! for systemic racism in the U.S. I’m planning to create a series of songs and videos to address U.S. history that is too often overlooked.”

Erika Levy shared: “I’m still enjoying my work as professor of communication sciences and disorders at Teachers College, Columbia University. My daughter is now a sophomore at Wes, having as great a time as I did, and it’s fun to visit her. My son is waiting to hear college decisions, and soon my husband and I will be empty nesters. My job keeps me very busy, but I try to squeeze in work with refugees and practice speaking languages. Always happy to connect with my Wesleyan classmates.”

Please write to your class secretary.