We celebrated our 30th reunion on a glorious weekend that may have offered the only four consecutive days of sunny weather all spring in New England. Perhaps Joan Mitchell Fletcher’s selection of umbrellas as our reunion favor was the reason for the dry weather, or maybe it was our restraint from emblazoning the umbrellas with the slogan, "The Class of ’70 Reigns." In any case, the fine weather added greatly to the high spirits of the more than 200 classmates and guests.
After a lively Friday reception at class headquarters (Delta Phi lounge) the class convened for cocktails and dinner at the Faculty Club, where Nancy Gidwitz and others presented a check for almost $400,000 as our contribution to this year’s annual campaign. On a more somber note, Dave Whitman, outgoing class president, read the necrology of those classmates who have died since out last reunion. The loss of Rick Schomp was particularly noted because of his service on the reunion committee.
Margaret Genovese flew in from Toronto to once again host the Pembroke breakfast on Saturday morning. While enjoying cranberry coffeecake, more than fifty women shared stories of their lives since graduation. Later, Pembroke Field provided the perfect spot for a picnic and class meeting. Elaine Berlinsky Fain was elected president; Georgie White Johnson, vice president; and Joe Scali, treasurer. Jack Renshaw will continue to serve as secretary. Outgoing treasurer Jeff Bergart, who ran his wife ragged on Friday baking bread and decorating dorm rooms for returning classmates, organized the sale of extra T-shirts to benefit the class scholarship. We raised almost $1,000!
On Saturday evening, after enjoying a quiet dinner at Josiah’s, many of us listened to the Temptations perform at the Commencement concert.
Ken Miller, acclaimed Brown professor and author of Finding Darwin’s God, organized an inspirational Sunday class forum. After considering such topics as "Is There Life after the NFL" (which fell apart when Curt Bennett, our only logical participant, moved to Hawaii) and "Why Is the Class of ’70 So Cheap?" (yes, the gifts of most other reunion classes had one, if not two, more digits than ours!), Ken settled on "Is Religion the Enemy of Reason?" Panelists Peter Laarman, Cappy Cummings Nunlist, Sue Godsell Baust, and Bev Hodgson inspired much lively debate.
On Sunday evening Elaine and Barry Fain hosted a wonderful supper at their beautiful home next to Prospect Terrace in Providence. Their rooftop deck offers panoramic city views. As darkness fell, we wandered into the city to enjoy the sensational WaterFire and, later, upbeat country music at the Met Café. Amy Johnsen-Harris coordinated this event with club owner Rich Lupo. At one point Al Basile brought his horn onto the stage and made some beautiful music.
Monday’s Commencement march proved to be much more festive than the very somber march at our graduation, when the University was on strike. One of our dapperly attired class marshals, Paul Meyers, was particularly happy to see his daughter, Rachel ’00, graduate. It was a fabulous time, and all indications are that our 35th reunion will be even more fun. – Jack Renshaw
30th reunion attendees:
Bill Anderson
Denny Arar
Harold Bailey Jr.
Al Basile
Sue Godsell Baust
Mick Bedard
Jean Bessette Bedard
Jonathan Berek
Jeff Bergart
Suzanne Schaffner Borstein
Chris Braun
Neil Brockwehl
Richard Bush
Rob Carlson
Malcolm Carmichael
Bill Carr
Allen Castner
David Chenault
Sally Davenport Clevenger
Carole Collins
John Cooney
Jon Cowan
Bill Cronin
Ronnie Dane
Jaffa Kessler Davies
David Davies
Shari Sweet DeLuca
Kitty Nicholson Donnelly
Milan Dopirak
Sumati Eberstadt
Fred Ehrhardt
George Ellis
Jeff Emrich
Elaine Berlinsky Fain
Paul Farrell
Ellen Ogintz Fishman
Joan Mitchell Fletcher
Jane Medas Fleury
David Folsom-Jones
David Fox
Margaret Genovese
Nancy Gidwitz
Larry Gordon
Cheryl Connors Gouse
Anne Harvey Grote
Barbara Haines
Bryan Hansen
Anne Hyde Hanyen
Polly Amiot Harrington
Bob Hartman
Raymond Hawkins II
Cindy White Hesel
Kate Fleisher Hilburn
Ed Hirschland
Beverly Hodgson
Donna Hoffman
Mary Montgomery Howard
Rock Huang
Bill Hunt
Doug John
Amy Johnsen-Harris
Georgiana White Johnson
Betsy Judson
Larry Jurrist
Bill Kane
Alicia Phillips Klaffky
Ron Kreidman
Janice Kruger
Michael Leach
Alan Levine
Nancy Jahn Litchfield
Jason Liu
Barbara Marzetta Liu
Greg Lloyd
Iva Maclennan
Gina Macris
Chuck Mahoney
Leslie Martin
Steve Massarsky
Sue Di Norscia Mc Millan
Bernie Mendillo
Paul Meyers
Don Michelinie
Ken Miller
Susan Pond Mills
Glenn Morse
David Mountain
Dorothea Musgrave
Matthew Myers
Stephan Myers
Susan Newberger
Terry Newcomb
Mark Nunlist
Cappy Cummings Nunlist
Eric Olson
Jeanne Ellis Ormrod
Carol Armitage Pierstorff
Robert Polatty
David Porter
Warren Potas
Joyce Reback
Jack Renshaw
Jack Rose
Susan Lebach Rosenbloom
Joe Scali
Susan Singleton Schermerhorn
Richard Schermerhorn
Bob Schwartz
Bob Sedey
Peggy Egger Seher
Richard Shapiro
Renée Rose Shield
Bob Shippee
Billy Siegenfeld
Jonathan Silbermann
Jim Silverthorn
Robert Singleton
Phil Smith
Lafe Solomon
Mel Spigelman
Herman Ssebazza
Joy Javits Stewart
Dave Tardy
Steve Thomas
Geoff Thomas
Barbara Traver
Mark Trueblood
Pat Truman
Joy Sutro Truman
Craig Van Nostrand
Joy Veaudry
Steve Walach
Paul Weinberg
Bruce Wentworth
David Whitman
Don Williams
Geri Lemoi Williams
Robert Young
Peter Zwarg
Mary Anne Schloemer Zwarg
