Fall 1999

Dear Classmates:

As you make plans for yearend, we hope you include attending the last Class of 1966 Mini-Reunion of the millennium (okay, someone had to say it) on October 22-23 in Hanover. Robin Carpenter has graciously agreed to be the local point man for the event, which includes brunch at Paul and Margo Doscher's home in Norwich prior to the Cornell game, a post-game reception with the '67s and '68s, and cocktails and dinner at the Norwich Inn. For your convenience, a complete schedule and acceptance form are enclosed (read the schedule carefully because Robin promises not to post any messages on the class scoreboard at Memorial Field).

While dashing to a meeting at MediaPlex in Cupertino, CA, a couple of weeks ago, who should I meet but Roger Brett, head of operations for this fast-growing Web media agency. Roger has been helping a number of startups over the past few years and this one is already proving itself to be a real winner, with proprietary technology that links manufacturers' enterprise data to information on consumers' Internet buying patterns. Look for an IPO in the next couple of months.

 

Allan Anderson, another Californian, writes that he and Gwen will be heading east this fall to visit daughter Courtney at Cornell, where she is a freshman (I assume they still have freshmen at the Big Red and not "first years" or "freshpersons"). Their older daughter, Elaine, "has been commuting between DC and here, soon to settle in on a consulting engagement in the Bay Area so she can spend some time in the house she bought last year. She and Greg have made another change in career paths. Ahhh…the patient and understanding parents. But remember I have four and one of them is behind Courtney. I am a man rich in spirit, and oh such an investor in education. John Arnold visited last May for a weekend retreat, and I will catch up with him and Alex in a couple of weeks for their son Justin's wedding in Seattle."

Also on the West Coast is Ed Larner, who recently moved back to San Diego after eight years in Oceanside, CA. Both of Ed's kids have graduated and are working in the computer field; one child was married in August. The Larners can be reached at 3617 Georgia St., San Diego, CA 92103 (phone 619-299-7829 home or 619-715-1020 work; e-mail tar@simplyweb.net).

From farther away comes a note of news and frustration: Erv Burkholder is still working his way through Russian bureaucracy to strike another blow for capitalism. "We finally got our joint venture agreement signed with our Russian partners after waiting three months for them to get proper title to the land and buildings that they are contributing. The government used to own all the land and buildings, so Russia did not have a title system in place when socialism ended. It took several years to get one going, and our partner never went to the trouble to get titles. So we waited while the infant bureaucracy cranked out 240 certificates, including a separate title for every chicken house and outhouse on the farm -- each requiring its own 'engineering study.' As they say over here…TIR (This Is Russia). Arthur Andersen promises that we will have our 'temporary registration certificate' shortly (see if Keiller can kick any butt in Moscow, or has he lost all his influence with his premature retirement?) which will allow us to get started with 17 other registrations with the social funds, tax authorities, fire department, etc. -- all before we can open a bank account and get a business started. I'm afraid that I'm not going to be able to make it to the mini-reunion. But please convey my best wishes and tell the gang that their old classmate -- with bombs to the left and right of him, granite in his brains, and arthritis in his muscles and bones -- carries the '66 banner forward to the chicken houses of the village of Olhovka, in the Rayon of Narofominsck, in the Oblast of Moscow, in the country of Russia, on the planet of …what the hell planet is this, anyway…it can't be Earth! Have a great weekend. And raise a vodka (no, not a vodka…anything but a vodka) to the past and future great adventures of the Class of '66."

From Dr. Zhivago to Dr. Will Wilkoff, who practices pediatrics in Maine and has recently authored a book entitled "Coping With A Picky Eater". "A real thriller," according to Will, the book is a realistic guide to how parents can avoid mealtime battles with children ages one to six, using sensible strategies that will establish a lifetime of healthful eating habits. "I am sure that at least a few of you guys must have children and/or grandchildren who are picky eaters," he writes, "and I have all the answers. Shop on Amazon.com so I can watch the sales figures rocket after the class newsletter comes out." The book has earned him appearances on ABC's 20/20 and The Today Show, and there's more to come: "While I am waiting for Oprah and Rosie to call, my agent (a reference I enjoy dropping for effect to anyone who will listen) was able to sell my second book about fatique (I want an autographed copy of that one) to the same publishers. It won't be out until the Fall of 2000." Will and Marilyn continue to enjoy bicycling and hiking, spend as much time as they can at their cottage on Casco Bay, and occasionally see Jack Aley, who lives in Brunswick.

Also writing from Maine, Steve Lanfer "had the wonderful opportunity to welcome Judson Graves '69 to the Moosilauke Ravine Lodge for the second time last weekend. The first was on his freshman trip when I welcomed all freshmen for the Outing Club. The second time took place on July 17 at the rehearsal dinner for his daughter, Ashley, and my son, Stefan, both '97s. It was Ashley's involvement with the Lodge that prompted the location for the celebration. It was a great party and an amazing couple -- which both fathers agreed were humbling to be father to. This clearly is an advantage of co-education. We are enjoying the quieter pace of Maine, and, with almost all of the kids off to college or worse, we have lots of room for visitors."

Another Mainer, Ed Grew, returned last spring from four months on the 40th Japanese Antarctic Research Expedition, where he studied beryllium pegmatites (they must have covered this in the Rocks 101 class I cut) in the very hot (1,000+ C) and old (2,500 million+ years) Napier complex of Enderby Land, which was once adjacent to peninsular India. "The Japanese program had too be scrapped after only a few weeks because of hurricane force winds; I was lucky to have the expedition leader arrange for a special flight to one of my target localities so I could collect rock samples." Ed heads the Dept. of Geological Sciences at the University of Maine in Orono (esgrew@maine.maine.edu).

Farther west but on about the same latitude, Ted Thompson has joined the Lake Sunapee Bank as commercial loan officer, based in the Centerra Marketplace office. Ted was most recently at Ledyard National, where he achieved dramatic growth in that bank's commercial portfolio. So if you are looking to move your office to an idyllic spot overlooking the Colby campus, Ted's the man to see.

In other financial news, George Trumbull has been named to the Top 50 list of banking and financial executives by the publication Australian Banking & Finance. George is responsible for all of the activities of AMP Group in Australia, New Zealand, the UK, China and Indonesia. In a recent note, George wrote that "I haven't seen many 66s since being in Australia (5 years), but do see a surprising number of Dartmouth people there and in London, where I spend about 40% of my time. Keep in touch sporadically with a few in our class, including Chris Kinum, whose Dartmouth son hopes to spend the summer out here. My contract runs through the end of 2000 -- the Olympics; we are a major sponsor of the event, and the sponsor of the 2000 Torch Relay. After that, our desire to return home to the US will probably prevail even though it has been a great experience here." The Trumbulls are at 90 Braeside St., Wakroonga, NSW, Australia 2076 (phone from the US: 011-612-9257-7001 work)

 

Jack Lewis has added to the '66 legacy roster: "Proud to report my son Jon accepted early admission to Dartmouth Class of '03. Saw a couple of fellow ADs when interviewing in Hanover last October -- Dr. Bob Fritz and Terry Ruggles and wives all looked and are doing great. Expect to get back much more often to watch Jon play. Just celebrated (?) 25th anniversary at Ireland, Stapleton law firm in Denver where I head the corporate/securities department. Where are you, Red Eagan?" (376 Dahlia St., Denver, CO 80220; phone 303-355-8622 home, 303-623-2700 work; e-mail jlewis@irelandstapleton.com).

 

Speaking of legacies, the College recently provided a list of '66s with children enrolled at Dartmouth in the 2000-2002 classes and it's pretty impressive:

 

Class of 2002

Justin B. Barnard -- Tim Barnard
Neil B. Danberg -- Neil B. Danberg
Nathan J. Fidel -- Noel A. Fidel
Kristen R. LeFevre -- John H. LeFevre
Victoria S. Makol -- James R. Makol
Asa L. Tapley -- Lance E. Tapley
Else K. Wollman -- Henry S. Wollman

 

Class of 2001

Daniel K. W. Battle -- A. George Battle
Scott E. Kinum -- Christopher E. Kinum
Reid I. Smith -- Stephen L. Smith

 

Class of 2000

David C. Chamberlain III -- David C. Chamberlain Jr.
Samuel P. Emlen -- George W. Emlen IV
Gregory J. Gilbert -- Jeffrey D. Gilbert

Congratulations to Jeff and Susie Futter, who have taken a shot at having a '66 legacy admitted well into the new millennium: "I'm possibly the oldest '66er to have his first newborn on 6/4/99. Or if not the oldest, maybe the craziest? Baby girl's name is Jillian Lea and mom is doing just fine. Sorry we couldn't be with you in Charleston but Susie wasn't allowed to travel then; I'll look forward to the next one." Judging from the postmark, Jeff's note was written a day or two after Jillian's birth, which shows great dedication to keeping us up on the latest news and accounts for the shaky handwriting. The Futters can be reached at 516-692-6433 or via e-mail at jfutter@keyspanenergy.com.

 

David Anderson writes from Dallas, TX, (3409 Caruth Blvd., 75225; 214-739-8827) that he is "still working as Chairman and part owner of Zimmerman Sign Co., which produces site identification and product signage for major retailers. Jan (Skids '69) and I have four sons: David Jr. (sophomore at Vanderbilt), Tyler (entering Westminster), John (high school sophomore) and Will (7th grade). Been in Dallas since 1987 and miss the ease of getting reacquainted at the numerous events which were near at hand when we lived in Greenwich, CT."

From Ann Arbor, Bill Cooper reports that he has "taken an unaccustomed swerve to try out my suppressed ambition to be called 'professor.' I have a temporary appointment in the legal practice program at my law alma mater, the University of Michigan." Bill is at 2011 Brompton Ct., Ann Arbor, MI 48103 (734-995-1382).

The fraternity controversy on campus prompted Bill Dowling to write an article on same for the Daily D, of which, because of its length, I will offer a precis here. [Webmaster's note: click and read the entire article here!] Bill's thesis is that Dartmouth has always had a tradition of intellectual mediocrity, measured in part by the number of Rhodes scholars that Harvard produces (5-6 per year) vs. our alma mater (1-2 per decade, if we're lucky). More important, however, is that the other Ivies were ordained to turn out alums who really mattered in American society -- Noble prize winners, novelists and Secretaries of State -- while we produced "stockbrokers and urologists and guys who were a barrel of laughs in the locker room of the local country club. If it came to a showdown -- where Harvard was pointing to John Adams or Teddy Roosevelt or T.S. Eliot or John Updike or Leonard Bernstein -- we could always try talking a bit more loudly about Dr, Seuss." The fraternity controversy has made this condition painfully clear: "The tradition of mediocrity really has been due to Dartmouth's reputation, since the days of the Hopkins presidency, for having an ethos dominated by beer-swilling louts. Whether or not the reputation is deserved is a separate issue. The point is that the voice of this tradition -- the Hooray Harrys, as the British call them -- is now dominating this controversy." Therefore, Bill concludes, if President Wright and the Trustees hold their course, Dartmouth will draw more students "with the extra dimension of talent and intelligence and originality that makes people matter in life" -- which will make even the Hooray Harrys proud of having gone there. Bill remarked in his note to me that he would be "pleased to hear from any 66s interested in giving Jim Wright some concerted support on the frat issue" -- and that the "Harrys" (or louts, if one prefers) could sound off on the D's Web discussion board. Ship your thoughts off to Bill at wcdowling@aol.com or to me for inclusion in the next newsletter.

Back in early May, Fred MacMillan wrote that he was unable to make it to the 55th birthday party because he was getting married -- which presumably has taken place by now. "I met Nanci Low about a year and a half ago; she gave me a mortgage for the house I bought in Dublin, NH. An APR loan with no points turned into romance and we've been extremely happy ever since (that sure beats getting a microwave oven from your bank). Son Clarke is in second year at Bates and loves it. Marcie, who I thought had a legitimate shot at Dartmouth but didn't even make the wait list, will matriculate at

Bucknell. Becki will be a junior and hopefully will put her mind to books rather than boys before she finishes high school."

 

Peter Cleaves has made an interesting move to AVINA, a Swiss-based philanthropy that assists social entrepreneurs heading projects for the environment, education, business, communications or public policy, mainly in Latin America. "My first exposure to Latin America was with Prof. Silvert at Dartmouth, and I have made the region my career (as did several classmates). So, after about a decade each with the Ford Foundation, First Chicago and the U. of Texas, I'm now involved with an initiative that combines a business-like approach to non-profits and education. The advantage is that Dorothy and I will remain in Austin, and I will cover my responsibilities by Internet and frequent travel to Europe and Latin America."

Mid-life change has also come to Paul Darling, who has traded missiles for chocolate mousse by leaving the Pentagon to teach computer applications at a small hotel school in the Swiss Alps. Paul lives in Leysin, a village of about 2,000 at the eastern end of Lake Geneva, where "the slow lifestyle and stunning views are a tonic for the soul." He has already been contacted by Geneva resident Ken Kuistad '63 to do some Dartmouth recruiting, and invites any classmates who want to come over for a ski vacation to get in touch. (Hosta Ecole Hoteliere, CH1854 Leysin, Switzerland; paul_darling@hotmail.com or phone 41-024-494-1690).

The peripatetic Walter Knoepfel has returned to San Francisco again, this time from Indonesia -- but since this is his third round trip from an Asian assignment, he is not experiencing reverse culture shock. "However, I sure do notice how expensive it is here (with the recent Asian monetary crisis, Indonesia became unbelievable cheap). I am watching the Timor events with interest -- I was living in Indonesia in 1975 when they invaded Timor." Walter is at 1723 Sanchez St., San Francisco, CA 94131-2740; phone 415-821-3598; e-mail to waltknoepfel@hotmail.com).

 

Dr. Peter Dorsen writes that he is feeling the affects of aging that he has so capably written about in Dr. D's Handbook for Men Over 40 (now available through Wiley & Sons for a mere $16.95). "The rough edge is that I am frightfully aware of the meteoric speed of my aging process. It seems like I keep shifting from one age of my life to another -- this morning I performed CPR on a neighbor who dropped and was 57. Ominous." Pete keeps a full schedule, working on location at a non-profit prison on the South Dakota border four days a week, then making house calls Friday through the weekend to see Russian immigrant patients. You can get your autographed copy of "Over 40" from Pete at 2510 W. 22nd St., Minneapolis, MN (612-377-6745 or e-mail drdee6969@aol.com).

Harking back to his days on the Connecticut, John Harbaugh recalls Bob Serenbetz calling cadence: "Every time I hear the name 'Serenbetz' I think back to his call of 'up 2 and drive 10!' Bob commanded our varsity lightweight 8 shell that rowed against Princeton and Harvard in 1964. I think coxing my recalcitrant brother and me gave Bob the skills he needed to run for President of the Class." John is still on the water: 480 Trinidad Dr., Satellite Beach, FL 32937.

While we're on the subject, my wife and I saw Bob and Karen Serenbetz over dinner recently. They are traveling extensively this year, having just returned from a trip through Germany, Austria and the Czech Republic and, by the time you read this, will be touring China with Al and Joanne Keiller as part of a Dartmouth alumni program. Karen reported that, on the German leg of their trip, one of the locals translated "Serenbetz" for them: It means "Little Bernie, Giver of Pain" and indicates that there was a dentist somewhere in the family's past. You are free to use this information as you wish; since Bob has intentions of working on the Alumni Fund when he steps down from the Class presidency, I think we'll discover how well the name fits.

 

Ken Zuhr past a threshold this year that he found more interesting than age 55. "With both daughters away at school (Beth a sophomore at Lewis & Clark and Kathryn studying ballet at London Studio Centre), Ann and I finally joined the ranks of 'recovering parents'. Our symbol is an empty nest and our motto is 'spending our children's inheritance (at least the part left after tuition) with joy!' We have discovered that recovery will be a long process. Every visit, call or letter is sufficient to cause a relapse, as is the absence of visits, calls or letters."

In April, Peter Prichard received the Daniel Webster Distinguished Public Service Award at a dinner hosted by the Dartmouth Club of Washington. Peter was given the honor in recognition of his work as Editor-in-Chief of USA Today, Executive Director of the Newseum, and President and COO of The Freedom Forum. Both Chuck Sherman, in his presentation speech, and Peter, in his acceptance, had numerous stories of members of the Class of 66 who helped or hindered Peter in his rise through the ranks of the Army (all the way to PFC) and the Gannett Corp. Other 66s on hand: Jim Weiskopf, Jack Bennett, Bob Bach, Greg Eden, Doug Greenwood, Steve Pozniak, John Rollins and Larry Simms.

 

Class Executive Committee

A meeting of the Class Executive Committee was held on September 13, and I have enclosed the minutes for your review rather than type them into the newsletter. Also, we are looking for an able-bodied editor to step forward and assume responsibility for this newsletter, effective with our 35th reunion in 2001. The term of duty is five years, and the requirements are that you can read scribbling without losing your eyesight (unfortunately, the older we get, the greater the scribbling and the worse the eyesight ), have a modest respect for deadlines, can turn a phrase (we want to upgrade the job in this area) and have an interest in what your classmates are doing. As Will Wikoff said in his note, "we seem to have grown to be a rather diverse and successful bunch, regardless of how one chooses to measure success" -- and keeping track of our progress can be very interesting.

 

In Memoriam

Finally, it is with great sadness that I report the passing on June 15 of friend and classmate Paul Babcock. A resident of Freedom, NH, Paul was a member of Alpha Chi Alpha and the DOC, and had worked extensively since graduation on behalf of the College as Reunion Giving Committee member, Class Agent, Class Treasurer, member of the Class Executive Committee, Regional Agent, and Fraternity Agent. Paul is survived by his wife, Frances, and two sons, Andrew and Matthew ('94).

Sincerely,

Jim Lustenader
7 Boudinot Street
Princeton, NJ 08540
Business fax: 973-359-3401
E-mail: jlustenader@dvc.com