Please write to your class secretary.

Hi everyone! I hope you had a lovely summer no matter where you are. Here are some updates from the Class of 2021:

Gayon Yang recently moved to Chiang Rai, Thailand, to pursue her passion as a fifth-grade teacher at Chiang Rai International School. Gayon wrote, “Life is good here!” Congratulations to Gayon for starting a new chapter of life.

Costel-Tudor Voica was an international student from Moldova at Wesleyan. He is currently back in his home country. Costel’s American friend and housemate, Jonah Skolnik, visited Costel in the city he grew up in, Chisinau, the capital of Moldova.

Costel was invited by the Moldovan branch of EducationUSA, a U.S. Department of State network of international student advising centers, to give a presentation to high school students about Wesleyan. Costel invited Jonah to present as a duo.

Costel wrote, “It was so much fun, it was a very natural, almost podcast-like conversation about Wesleyan, and everyone loved it. The Moldovan high schoolers had the unique opportunity to get a taste of Wesleyan and studying in the U.S. through the lens of an American and a Moldovan international alumnus. And Jonah had the chance to enjoy the places and food I’ve been telling him about during our time in college.”

Zoe Farnsworth is now a choreographer and organizer in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Zoe had their local premiere of The Meaning of Where I’m From in September, their first public premiere of a dance show. Zoe explores their “trans”-generational Ashkenazi Jewish identity in a “solo” dance/theater performance through themes of family, ancestry, death, and ritual. They invite you into their composting process to dig, layer, and breathe new life into a complex past. What do you need to transform? Zoe can be reached by zoe.compostabledance@gmail.com.

Thank you for reading. Please feel free to send me updates throughout the year and look out for new submission requests. See you next time!

From Grant Hill: “I have been traveling for most of 2024, after wrapping up a four-year career in the cannabis industry while living in Portland, Maine. After a countrywide travel stint ranging from North Carolina to San Francisco, and a dip down to Costa Rica, I will be moving to Asheville, North Carolina, to pursue career growth in business development and digital marketing and further grow my photography business. If you are in the area, feel free to reach out via my cell at (203) 895–2391!”

From Nicholas Ticali: “I am currently in my final year of PA school, rotating in family medicine while also serving as student society president. I also just had my closing performance as Stacee Jaxx in Rock of Ages the musical, which was ‘nothin’ but a good time!’ I hope all of you 2020 grads are getting ready for fifth-year reunion!!”

From Kush Patel: “I’m working as a dermatology physician assistant in a private practice called Schweiger Dermatology Group located in Connecticut. I’m looking forward to a fulfilling career in the outpatient world caring for my patients’ skin concerns!”

From Luke Green: “I’ve been working as a producer at WNYC in New York for over three years now. What’s new is I just got a promotion over the summer, which is exciting! In September, we will air a special WNYC centennial broadcast about the history of New York mayor Fiorello La Guardia. I was the lead producer of the show and was working on it for the last six months, so it’s gratifying for people to finally be able to hear it!”

Gabrielle “Gabe” Hurlock, founder of Tribe Arts Consulting LLC, continues to bridge arts, social equity, and education through her work in metro Atlanta. Her company partners with nonprofits and government agencies to provide creative solutions for high-risk communities. Gabe remains committed to driving transformative change through innovative arts programming and consulting.

Congratulations are in order for Hannah Reale who was named was named a 2024–2025 Becton Fellow by Boston public media producer GBH. The Becton Fellowship honors promising GBH producers and content creators whose work reflects the organization’s commitment to public service. Congrats, Hannah!

Thanks all for submitting your updates, as always it is so great to hear from y’all!

These days I am soaking up the last of the Chicago summer sun. This fall, I spend all the time I can in my hometown of Atlanta, Georgia, supporting my mom, Susie Greenberg, and her campaign for the Georgia House of Representatives District 53. Susie’s campaign is based on reproductive freedom, community safety, and economic prosperity in our Atlanta-area community and across Georgia. I am so grateful for all the Wesleyan community support Susie received from the Wesleyan community!

Please send news and updates to your class secretary.

Emily Hilton, Isaac Yassky, and Najwa Anasse enjoyed their third-annual wellness week this summer with an appearance from Clemence Kim ’14.

Annie Cooperstone teaches English at Stuyvesant High School in New York City.

Alex Kamisher says he celebrated his one-year wedding anniversary with Kate Gilpin ’15. They live on Long Island with their two cats and new puppy and spend weekends with Wes friends in the New York City area.

Michael Ortiz reports, “I completed my PhD in American studies at Harvard University this past May and joined the faculty in the Department of History at Bentley University in Waltham, Massachusetts!” Congratulations, Michael! 

I hope you are all well!

Please see updates from our classmates:

Melissa Leung has been contemplating the meaning of life while embracing the SoCal life by bird-watching and beach bumming. She visits her parents (aka Sarah Mi and Taran Carr) and fur siblings in San Diego often, to perpetually hunt for five-star Asian food and to begin her mildly unhealthy and obsessive relationship with pickleball given her ACL tear and current recovery (RIP). She dreams of Mariam Torres’s tropical elegance wedding, where Mariam gathered the girlies (Sarah Mi, Kellyn Maves, Chiara Wabl, Taran Carr‚ Giselle Torres, Martin Malabanan, Dacheng Zhao ’18, and Deborah Mi ’14) to shake our butts and dance on beat hopefully 🙏🏻 not bringing shame to the Torres Soto family.

I’m happy to report that ophthalmology residency in Albuquerque has been going well so far, and I have been loving the beauty of the Southwest. Feel free to reach out if you’re ever in the area!

Stay well,

Mariam

Andrew Postman has become an Equinox gay after a failed stint as a yoga influencer.

Jaime de Venecia,formerly a professional musician working in hospitality, transitioned into software engineering and web development in 2023. He’s still living in Los Angeles and is now a software engineer and engineering instructor at Codesmith.

Sam Wheeler married Adrie Lofters ’16 on September 7, after eight years together. They met behind the Usdan desk, where they worked for two years before dating. The couple lives in Brooklyn.

Gabe Gordon and Virgil Taylor recently met for a burger in Strawberry. 

Jalen Alexander is living in Brooklyn, New York, and celebrated five years at MDRC, a leading policy- research think tank, in May. Jalen also serves as the president of Social Policy Workers United (SPWU), the staff union at MDRC. The nearly 200-person unit represents researchers, IT staff, and administrative staff across the organization. On August 15, SPWU voted to ratify their first contract after over two years of bargaining. Jalen’s excited to have a bit of extra time to reconnect now that the contract fight is over. “Please reach out if you’re in NYC!”

InMayof this year, Julia “Jay” Benedith earned her Doctor of Education in Educational Sustainability from the University of Wisconsin–Stevens Point. In August, she got engaged to her longtime partner, Representative Benjamin Williams (D.C. State Board of Education). What a wonderful summer!

Julius Bjornson writes, “I recently released some live videos with my group, Earl & Thor. One is an adaptation of the classic Jean Ritchie song, Jubilee, and the other is a contemporary Appalachian tune. They can both be seen on our website: www.earlandthor.com.”

Ella Dawson celebrated the publication of her first novel in June. But How Are You, Really is a coming-of-age story about an anxious millennial who attends her five-year college reunion. All similarities to Wesleyan are purely coincidental! Her favorite moment from the book tour was doing a sold-out event at Kansas City’s romance bookstore with Gabe Rosenberg ’16, who lovingly roasted her as only a college best friend can. She’s grateful to all of the Wes alums who have supported the book and helped spread the word!

Adam Freed gives a quick update: “I got married on June 1 in Santa Cruz, California! My wife is not a Wes alum (we met in graduate school at the University of Michigan), so I don’t know if this is still newsworthy, but figured I’d pass this along.”

Jana Heaton will be officiating Frank Fineis ’13 and Alyssa Bonneau’swedding in October. Jana askes that you “let her know in advance if you have any objections. Thank you.” She also adds that “the wife and I recently had a baby. She’s very cute but incredibly short. I guess a normal size for a baby. But babies are super short and nobody’s talking about it.”

Two new chapbooks by Joshua Krugman,Unexpected Breakfast and If Something Good Happens, I’ll Be There Soon, are now out from Paradise Copies, and an essay about Bread & Puppet Theater’s play, The Hope Principle: Citizens’ Shame and Hope in the Time of Genocide (2024), is forthcoming in the fall 2024 issue of The Drama Review. 

Haley Weaver has left NYC, where she spent eight years working as a book editor for “Big Five” publishers Simon & Schuster and Hachette Book Group, and has started her own editorial business, Woven Word Editorial, in beautifully rainy Seattle. When not busy helping prospective authors land literary agents or finessing manuscripts to be self-published, she has been enjoying getting more into Seattle’s coffee culture and exploring the city with fellow Wes alum and seasoned Seattleite, Anya Morgan.

Please write to your class secretary.