Tag: 2016

Hello! Please see updates from our classmates:

Ally Ruchman started a sustainable wedding consulting and coordination business in 2025 year called Greener Unions. She hosted an event in November that was featured in The New York Times! The event was a bridal clothing swap at a local Brooklyn bridal salon. It was so successful that her group planned to host a second event at the end of January 2026. If any Wes alums are engaged and looking for help planning their wedding and finding ways to incorporate sustainability, she’d love to help. The best email to reach her at is aruchman1@gmail.com.

Alton Wang just finished nearly two years of serving as president of the Board of Trustees at Pasadena City College after being elected to the board in June 2022. He is preparing to run for re-election in November 2026!

Since our 2016 commencement, Rhys Langston Podell has lived in his native Southern California, working as a musician, visual artist, and writer. However, in 2025 he took to the road, performing songs from his new album Pale Black Negative in 12 states and 14 cities. Before his nationwide tour began, he also contributed a long-form essay to the Los Angeles Review of Books, critiquing Donald Trump’s illegal deployment of troops to his hometown of Los Angeles.

I am finished with the first six months of ophthalmology training, and it has been a tiring, humbling, and wonderfully rewarding experience! I spent the winter holidays in Albuquerque and enjoyed seeing the beautiful luminarias decorating the buildings in Old Town. I’m praying we get snow soon so we can go skiing this winter!

Stay well,

Mariam

Please see updates from our classmates:

From Kate Davis: “Hi everyone! I recently moved to Panamá, which now marks my second time leaving the country post-presidential election (last move was to China in 2017) so hit me up for a visit, and I will happily host you! Otherwise, hope to see y’all at our 10-year reunion. 🙂

From Jackie Freed: “I am starting my MSW at Washington University in St Louis this fall!”

Taran Carr and Sarah Mi welcomed their first child, a daughter, in April 2025. There was a mini-Wesleyan reunion at their baby shower featuring Mariam Torres, Kellyn Maves, Chiara Wabl, Melissa Leung, Alisse Singer, and Deborah Mi ’14. They will be staying in San Diego after Sarah finishes her pediatrics residency this summer.

Stephanie Roemer (née Ling) married her husband, Colin, late last year in Washington, D.C., where they live with their two cats, Lila and Mercury.

Trisha Arora married non-Wesleyan grad Jonathan Chisholm in May on Cape Cod. Her incredible maid of honor was Kate Davis, and the celebration included many Wesleyan friends: Helena Awad, Savannah Morehouse, a few Lollipop boys (Ethan Quinn, Jack Trowbridge, Emerson Obus, and Lisa Kremen), and her Butts A Copenhagen crew (Alisse Singer, Hannah Maniates, Teresa Paterson, Stephanie Ling, and Sadichchha Adhikari). Trisha and Jonathan live in Somerville, Massachusetts, with their 13-year-old cat, Simba. Photo from Trisha’s wedding featuring some ‘16 alums.

As for me, I completed my intern year of residency and was excited to finally start ophthalmology residency in earnest this summer. I have continued to explore New Mexico and am constantly amazed by the beauty of this state. Let me know if you are ever in the area!

Stay well,

Mariam

Marina King and Michael Glasser got married in Brooklyn this past September! Their officiant was friend Conor Hunt, and they had lots of Wes pals in attendance, including Marina’s brother, Aiden King ’14 and Trustee Emeritus Darryl Hazel ’70. They’re living happily in New York City with their rescue dog, Cashew.

Tim Israel writes: “Living in Oakland with the Jack Reuter and Ella Geismar. Come thru!”

As for me, I’m halfway through my first year of residency and still loving Albuquerque!

Stay well,

Mariam

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

I hope you are all well!

Please see updates from our classmates:

Zach Larabee is enjoying his new home in Springfield, Massachusetts, with Betsy, his fiancée, and their dog Roxy. When they’re not working their day jobs in the restaurant tech industry, they’re out enjoying the food and beverage scene of New England, or bartending at a local restaurant. If anyone wants to give or get any recommendations for amazing restaurants in New England, please don’t hesitate to reach out! Zach’s excited to spend his summer weekends exploring the golf courses around western Massachusetts and continue to beat Cameron Rahbar ’15 by only a few strokes during their monthly golf outings. They’re excited to celebrate a few upcoming Wesleyan weddings with loved ones and friends this summer and fall, as well as plan their own wedding in the near future!

Sarah Mi, Melissa Leung, Chiara Wabl, Kellyn Maves, Martin Malabanan, Giselle Torres, Taran Carr, Dacheng Zhao ’18, and Deborah Mi ’14 traveled to Puerto Rico to celebrate my wedding in my hometown of Ponce back in February! We even took a walking tour of the historic area of Ponce, led by Melina Aguilar ’10, through her tourism company, Isla Caribe. From Sarah: “It was an amazing time reuniting with old friends and a reminder that our alcohol tolerance is not what it used to be…!”

I am also excited to announce that I matched to residency in ophthalmology at the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque—which I found out about during the cocktail hour at my wedding! Please let me know if you are out there and would like to connect or have any advice or recommendations—they will be greatly appreciated. I can’t wait to spend (at least) the next four years in the Southwest, closer now to several Wes friends on the West Coast.

Stay well!

Mariam

Hello all!

Please see updates from our classmates:

Clara Leonard is now a lawyer! She graduated NYU Law, started her full-time job, and passed the bar exam. Massive congratulations on such a big accomplishment!

Maria Massad graduated from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business with her MBA in December, and is moving from Chicago to Washington, D.C., where she and her husband will be starting an exciting new chapter together. Maria is looking to expand her network and make new friends in the area, so please get in touch with her if you’re interested in meeting!

Jackie Freed is taking a sabbatical from real estate to manage re_ grocery’s Mar Vista shop, and work on her podcast, Emergency Protocol! She still lives in Venice with her dog, Nala.

Regen Routman and Nick Silva ’15 got married on November 11, 2023, in Dallas, Texas. 🙂 They had lots of Wesleyan friends in attendance, mostly from 2015 but a few from our year including Mara Woods-Robinson, Willie Zabar, and Joe Edmonds.

Tahreem Wasti (née Khalied) has been advocating for a ceasefire in Gaza, and recently signed the alumni petition demanding that Wesleyan divest from companies profiting off Israeli occupation and apartheid.

As for me, I’m working on my rank list for ophthalmology residency, and getting last minute wedding planning done before the big day in February. I also recently saw Sarah Mi and Chiara Wabl for a fun weekend in Cancun.

Hope you’re all doing well,

Mariam

I hope you are all well! 🙂

Please see updates from our classmates:

After six years living in the San Francisco Bay Area, Matthew Stein has moved to NYC to start a new job as an enigmatologist (yes, that’s real!).

Sadichchha Adhikari is in Bed-Stuy, Brooklyn, happily living in her new apartment and is glad to be closer to her parents in NYC. As an added perk, she loves being near Wesleyan pals and sees them on a regular basis. She’s also always looking for food/drink/travel recs in and around NYC, so hit her up if you have any!

Tim Israel went to Topgolf in San Jose with Jack Reuter and played Splendor with Emerson Obus recently. Also took a big hike with them and Ella Geismar. All Wesleyan people. Let’s go!

Emily Greenspan has been working as a college counselor and teacher since 2016 (some of her students have been accepted to Wes!) and recently started her own company, Aspire Counseling & Tutoring. She is pursuing her MFA in nonfiction creative writing at Ashland University. She writes about how scuba diving became a balm for her anxiety and about her identity as a granddaughter of Holocaust survivors. You can check out her website: emilygreenspan.com.

What up what up what up?!? Melissa Leung has left Cambrizzy (Cambridge, Massachusetts) for Cali and made a trek to San Diego to visit her parents, Sarah Mi and Taran Carr, and her furry siblings, Remington ’38 and Rosie ’40. She may perhaps find herself tethered to the sunny chill vibes but that’s still to be determined.

Caroline Shadle married Rob Hansen on August 19 at First Unitarian Church in Chicago. Rebecca Brill, Jordan Friedland, Eury German, Greg Goldstone, Joanna Paul ’18, and Lily Taylor shared readings as part of the ceremony and Professor Patricia Beaman, Sara Ben-Ezra, Maya Berkman, Helen Handelman, and Miranda Orbach ’15 were all there to celebrate. There was a lot of dancing.

I have been busy with research and completing my application to ophthalmology residency. Interviews are coming up, so if anyone has any tips/pointers/advice send them my way! I can’t wait to know what next year will look like.

Stay well!

Mariam

Hello friends!

I’m happy to report the following updates from the Class of 2016.

Kota Uno moved to the fertile Aizu region in Fukushima three years ago and joined the largest traditional, regenerative organic farm in Japan. They grow the rice as incredibly nourishing superfood and do the ecoservice at the same time. From Kota: “Swing by when you are in Japan!”

Also in Japan, Kotaro Aoki founded a nonprofit educational organization, KOTOWARI. He has been inspired by his undergraduate studies of philosophy at Wesleyan University, as well as his three years studying yoga and meditation in the Himalayas, to bring unique and powerful methods of exploring the self and the world to today’s Japanese youth. KOTOWARI provides transformative educational experiences for high school, university, and graduate students as well as young professionals in Japan. Since 2021, KOTOWARI has been offering programs annually. Last year KOTOWARI was recognized as a pioneer in the field of education and was awarded a grant from the Mitsubishi Mirai Foundation.

Olivia Glick will be receiving her MBA from USC Marshall School of Business along with fellow Wes alum Danielle Pruitt ’15. Olivia was student body president at USC Marshall and will be heading off to Ernst and Young after she graduates to do management consulting. Danielle was the Business of Entertainment president and will be going to YouTube on the marketing team after she graduates.

Gla aka Gla4 aka Lena Meyerson is living in Providence and Central Connecticut, working on their of arts in teaching and on various film projects. They are hoping to reinvigorate clo$et, master’s their band with G. Foley. They invite you to say hi to them on Instagram, @kissytunnel.

Tahreem Wasti (née Khalied) has settled back in Middletown, Connecticut, with her husband and two children. She works at Yale as a program coordinator and is also in the process of getting her MBA in business analytics. Since she is in Middletown, she keeps in touch with some of her Wesleyan professors. From Tahreem: “My daughters and I regularly pass by the campus and they know this is where mama went to school . . . maybe (hopefully) they choose the same when their time comes!”

Dropping at the end of March (March 31) under his artist moniker, ENYE, Christian Nuñez’s third rap project RAPSTARTAPEZ is an exploration and experimentation of different genres and sounds. Inspired by the uptown, New York City soundscapes that raised him, this Spanglish mixtape breaks away from traditional hip-hop/reggaeton, entering a more underground, experimental subgenre.

Follow ENYE’s creative journey via his Instagram, @newyorkenye. All music streaming links included in his bio.

Sarah Mi and Taran Carr are living in San Diego and soaking up the sun. They have a guest room for Wes peeps to come through!

I recently visited Sarah and Taran and we had a great time eating our way through San Diego. I am still dreaming of the burritos. . . .  I came back to Atlanta in time to catch the Wesleyan Spirits concert and alumni event, which brought me right back to my time at Wes and how I would never miss one of their shows. Incredible to think it’s been over five years since we graduated. I am hoping this period of medical school can also pass by as quickly because it’s been the hardest yet while I balance clinical rotations, research, studying for the boards, and thinking about applying to residency! I do appreciate all my Wes friends who’ve gone through the process and have helped me immensely along the way. <3

Stay well,

Mariam

Hello Class of 2016! I’m happy to report the following updates from our classmates:

Deren Ertas has been pursuing her PhD at Harvard University in history and Middle Eastern Studies since 2019. She is working on a dissertation that deals with the history of mining in the Southeastern Taurus Mountains from the 18th century onward. This year, she became a Fulbright-Hays Fellow, which will bring her to Turkey, France, and Germany throughout 2023. She would be happy to connect with other alumni who live in these places!

Gari Francois is in an expansive and healing chapter of her life. She has been traveling the United States for the past year, hosting community gatherings and workshop/dialogue spaces and getting to experience different ways of living in America. She is currently back in NYC, but soon to be in Miami, Florida, for the winter. She does not enjoy the cold—LOL. Recently, she landed a role she had always asked for but never thought would come to fruition; she is a care coach for a virtual IOP provider, where she gets to serve and support kids in their journey toward mental wellness, which she describes as really fulfilling and gratifying work. She is also looking to begin her studies as a death doula in 2023. She is also currently brainstorming/creating in person gathering spaces that invite participants to engage in experiential learning and somatic healing.

Ellen Paik and Melissa Leung are enjoying their blissful grad school vacation in Cambridge, Massachusetts, over hot pot dinner followed by bottles of wine. Since it is cold AF, Melissa does seek snuggles from Ben Romero when he returns from the woods of New Hampshire and Ulysses Estrada ’17, who is her neighbor! She has yet to cuddle with Chase Knowles but is hopeful they will meet soon after this update publishes.

Kellyn Maves and Sarah Mi are surviving intern year and were able to have a little reunion in San Diego when Kellyn went to visit Sarah on a coinciding weekend off. Kellyn also recently cut down a Christmas tree and just finished decorating it!

As for me, I am busy with medical school but have to say this has been the best year yet with exploring all these different specialties and departments. Most exciting is that I have decided to apply to ophthalmology next year, so if anyone has any advice or words of wisdom as I embark on that journey, they will be well received!

I hope for a great start to the year!

Stay well,

Mariam

I hope everyone had a wonderful summer of 2022! I’m very excited to present what the members of the class of 2016 have been up to since the last issue:

Jordan Farber is a passionate environmentalist currently working at an environmental consulting firm in the site remediation center. He is concurrently enrolled in the Energy Policy and Climate program at Johns Hopkins University, with the intent to pursue a career in climate change consulting. He is also the voice of “Lawrence the Owl” in a newly released children’s animated special.

Ellen Paik is a dual-degree MBA/MPA candidate at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania and Harvard Kennedy School. She is studying real estate/urban policy and is excited to continue exploring the ways that inequities throughout our society may be addressed by reimagining the built environment.

Alton Wang graduated from the UCLA School of Law with a JD and earned the Equal Justice Works fellowship. He was elected in June 2022 to serve as a trustee for the Pasadena City College Board of Trustees, representing his hometowns of Arcadia and Temple City.

Alexis Fineman is a climate advocate and currently moonlights as the mayor of San Anselmo, where she is working on all things at the intersection of climate change and local government. She’s also working on bringing progressive policies and programs forward. Her day job is focused on climate change and sustainability education in K–12 education. If you are thinking about getting involved in climate work or advocacy, please reach out—it’s all hands-on deck!

Since 2019, Matthew Stein has been a full-time puzzle designer, creating puzzle hunts, alternate reality games, and escape rooms. He also writes about immersive gaming for Room Escape Artist. On the music front, he released a new album of Yiddish art song called Kosmopolitn with his klezmer trio Baymele and Tsvey Brider; and they had an album release tour through California and New England (including a show in Brooklyn where he was delighted to see many Wes classmates)! He’ll also be playing violin in the San Francisco production of Indecent this fall.

Linsin Smith has graduated with a PhD in genetics from University of Chicago this July!

Melissa Leung finally made her return to a city where spices are bountifully found on menus (TYJ). But she will long for the woods where her friends include bears, moose, and Eric Jones. 😉 Best of luck to Lara Peng ’15 who will begin her MBA also at Tuck in the Dartmouth woods. Back in the city of Cambridge, Xian Hui Ang ’15 journeyed from Kuala Lumpur to Melissa (!) and to fall equally and madly in love with the Dedham, Massachusetts, Costco and all of their Asian selections. Nothing like chilling with peeps from the past such as the magnificent KADA aka Kate Davis to go on reflective journeys through both the cringe and delights!

Sarah Mi and Taran Carr have moved to sunny San Diego for Sarah’s residency in pediatrics at UCSD. They are enjoying being pet parents to their puppy Rosie and cat Remy. Taran continues to live that nice work-from-home life and has been consistently rock climbing. Hit him up if you want to rock climb with him in SD!

Tabs Gillombardo moved to Philly and is still figuring out how to use “jawn” in a sentence. She is a Levy Scholar at the University of Pennsylvania Law School. Her career interest is in challenging state-sanctioned violence by advocating for incarcerated people and reproductive justice. Tabs has loved hanging and learning with Sam Rudovsky and Lizzie Shackney ’17!

Since this spring, I have been running around Atlanta through all the different Emory hospitals during my clinical year in med school. I have also loved almost every rotation I’ve been on so far, so deciding on a career path will be a tough decision to make by the end of this year, all while planning my wedding.

Stay well and keep in touch!