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CLASS NOTES
Clyde A. Moneyhun
English Department
University of Delaware
Newark, DE 19711
moneyhun@udel.edu
First, apologies to Kevin Berry, whose name was
misspelled in the last column.
Bryan Alix, an ocean shipping sales manager in Westport,
Conn., reports that he has now been married to wife, Jane, for 20
years. They have two sons, Daniel, 17, and Andrew, 14, who both
play on the same high school ice hockey team and occasionally allow
dad to practice with them. Recent trips to Haiti and Brazil
impressed Bryan with the relative affluence back home. He reminds
classmates that this column is not only for reading about each
other's momentous personal achievements, but also for hearing that
"some of my classmates are enjoying their families and purchasing a
larger TV with more channels while managing to avoid lawsuits and
make some progress on the mortgage."
With
the Class of '76 reunion coming up fast (May 31-June 3, 2001), I've
established a Reunion Message Board on our Class of '76 class notes
website. Go to the main site at www.english.udel.edu/moneyhun/college76.htm
and follow the link to Reunion Message Board, or go directly to the
Message Board at www.english.udel.edu/moneyhun/
messageboard.html.
Speaking of reunions, I'll be pestering all '76ers who attend
to give me copy for this column, so if you see me coming and don't
want to contribute, you might want to cross your arms over your
name tag and turn the other way.
David Gorman
111 Regal Dr.
DeKalb, IL 60115
dgorman@niu.edu
You
may ask: What has Walter Simson been doing the last 24
years? He has been living in the Boston area with wife, Valerie. He
has worked in banking and in consulting. He has been CFO of one
biotech company and CEO of another. Now Walter, Valerie and their
three boys (currently 4, 7, and 10) are off to Madison, Wis., where
he has become CEO of another biotech firm. "The boys are excited
about the move to Wisconsin because they understand that ice hockey
is a 12-month sport there. The irony is that we moved to Boston,
and now to Madison, after I made Val promise me on our wedding day
that we would never leave Brooklyn." Walter reports that Gil
Kuperman lives in nearby Brookline and frequently rides over on
his bike. Walter further speculates, "Gil is accomplished enough as
a cyclist to continue the practice even as we move 1,090 miles
way."
Or,
you may wonder: What is up with Mark Ligorski? Look for him
in Danbury, Conn., where he runs the North Court Psychotherapy
Center; he is also clinical assistant professor of psychiatry at
New York Medical College. Mark is married with a son and daughter.
He is also assistant scoutmaster-I'm trying to picture him in the
shorts-of Lewisboro Troop 1. "We're a high-adventure troop doing a
lot of backpacking, climbing, skiing and other stuff like that."
Mark reminds us of something that we were told at graduation. "Our
dean said that 25 percent of us would be in jobs that didn't even
exist at the time. I thought that this was wildly inflated, but
have come to accept it as accurate." Echoing Simson, he adds,
"Certainly in my own life I have gotten involved in doing things I
never could have predicted."
Hey,
you people in the back, pipe down! I have an announcement. Reunion
weekend is coming up in 2002-May 30 through June 2. Yes, that is
our 25th Reunion (audible gasps). Among other things, the weekend
will include museum tours, Broadway shows followed by cocktails, an
all-class dinner and a starlight reception. If you would like to
attend or to help in planning the reunion, contact me.
Matthew Nemerson
35 Huntington Street
New Haven, CT 06511
mattnem@aol.com
David Beazer writes that last fall he left the dot.com
world of MSNBC in Secaucus, N.J., where he was a producer/editor,
to accept a post as managing editor, electronic communications, at
Texaco Inc. in Harrison, N.Y. "I lead the content team for Texaco's
Internet and Intranet Web sites. My wife, Jackie Bonesi, who has
her master's degree from the School of Public Health Class of 1983,
is a senior agent at GE Capital Insurance in Tarrytown, N.Y. I had
a nice visit with a classmate, Joseph Giovannelli, his wife,
Roberta Koenigsburg, B'78, and their two sons at a Christmas party
on the Upper West Side in December."
Proof, once again, that Columbia men are able to stay one step
ahead of both the tenor of Wall Street and the sweep of national
politics. But, lest you think that he isn't still open to some
non-Texas centric points of view, he does note, "I'm not surprised
that you find New Haven to be a nice town. Jackie lived in New
Haven before attending Columbia's Public Health School and we have
a godchild living there now, and other relatives living nearby.
Tough break for your Senator Joe Lieberman. I interviewed him a
couple of years ago while on a tryout at Channel 3 in Hartford and
he impressed me as a thoughtful and astute politician."
What
you don't know, David, is that Joe actually wrote a college
recommendation letter for me in 1973, when he was a young State
Senator I happened to know! Our class's Broadway credentials have
always been deep, and Henry Aronson reminds us Columbia men
are never more than a phone call away from getting a front row
seat, as he writes, "Having already conducted the Broadway
productions of Tommy and Saturday Night Fever, I
continue my '70s retrospective as music director of The Rocky
Horror Show live on Broadway. The cast is mind-boggling (Dick
Cavett, Joan Jett, Lea de Laria, Daphne Rubin-Vega, et al.), the
band rocks hard and, yes, the audience throws toilet paper nightly.
We expect to record the cast album soon."
Frank Collini has put his College learning to good use
and clearly is creating a modest dynasty in his neck of the woods.
"I am probably in the same lot as most of the guys in our
class-here we are finally making some dough, entering the prime of
life, busy as can be at work and just enjoying a piece of the
proverbial American pie. Most of us have kids-I have two-we are
watching them grow and participating in their lives as much as
possible. I am a plastic surgeon in a successful solo practice and
I enjoy my work tremendously-I now know what I can and cannot do
with my hands. I have learned how and when to operate, but I am
still learning when not to operate. My wife runs an all-purpose
beauty/skin care salon and a clothing boutique, both of which are
attached to my office. She has also written a book called Two
Girlfriends Get Real About Cosmetic Surgery, which is doing
well and can be purchased at almost any neighborhood
bookstore.
"We
are putting a huge addition onto our house (hope the market turns
around in 2001) and we own two horses-my daughter won the district
equestrian championship this year. My son is a typical 10
year-old-into sports more than bookwork, but with my guidance he is
somehow balancing the two. I still often think of Columbia and
those crazy days of frivolity. I think we all took a piece of that
great school to wherever we ended up."
(It
is letters like that one that keeps your humble scribe
young.)
Timothy Burnett and his wife, Susan, were in town over
the winter holidays. They are former active New Haveners who have
enjoyed the last nine years or so in sunny Los Angeles. Tim has
launched a successful architecture office and has an eclectic
roster of clients.
Life
in the computer world is still exciting. But remember, if you plan
to install Web kiosks any time soon, you have a college brother who
wants to sell you some software.
For
all of the Orthodox guys from Jersey and Brooklyn who let this very
Reform kid convince you to have your first lobsters and ballpark
franks, here is something you won't believe. In a sincere (but
probably misguided) attempt to recognize me for my past efforts in
community development, I will be honored in a few months at a
fund-raising dinner for our very successful regional Yeshiva High
School. Now that is something that even my frequently honored
friend Stephen Gruhin will no doubt be surprised to hear
about!
Finally, here's a scary thought. Now that we are all in our
mid-40s, I expect you can begin turning over more of your business
to your junior associates, which means only one thing... more time
to write to the class secretary. I hope to hear from you all
soon.
Lyle Steele
511 East 73rd Street
Suite 7
New York, NY 10021
cct@columbia.edu
Two
old Furnald roommates unite. Steven Porcelli and Robert
Darnell used to laugh at one another's biases in studying the
sciences. Steve used to swear by immunology while Bob swore by the
power of molecular biology. Now they've come together
professionally when Bob, an M.D. and professor of molecular
neuro-oncology at Rockefeller University, invited Steve, an M.D.
and professor of medicine in the microbiology and immunology
department at Albert Einstein College of Medicine, to present his
work. Ironically, Steve has made a major discovery of a new class
of immune signaling molecules particularly important to such
diseases as tuberculosis, using in part the tools of molecular
biology, while Bob has used the tools of molecular biology to bring
new insights into immunity, autoimmunity and brain
function.
Apparently, Furnald's reputation solely as the home of a folk
fest and a general beer drinking destination is
undeserved.
Craig Lesser
160 West End Ave., #18F
New York, NY 10023
CraigL160@aol.com
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