1982

Since I'm still shivering from my brief trip to Minneapolis in February, I've designated Rick Bercuvitz to warm you with news of his trek across the globe.

"Dear 1982 Class Notes: I am sending you these notes, remarkably, via the Internet from Bamako, Mali, where I have arrived on the latest leg of a several-month odyssey that has taken me through various lands and numerous encounters with all manner of strange and unusual Dartmouth '82s. The journey began in my hometown of Burlington, Vt., where I occasionally bump into Dave Conrad, who works as a lawyer in Burlington. Enjoyed a pre-New Year's full moon sweat lodge with (among others) Brian Tompkins, who works as a sculptor, computer-geographer, stone-wall builder and, during the school year when wife Suzanne is busy teaching English, as primary caregiver for four-year-old daughter Zephyr.

"Then on to the Bay Area, where a remarkable number of Dartmouth people are concentrated. Stayed with Greg Jones and his wife, Amanda, for six weeks. Greg is an executive at Synopsis, a software company in the Silicon Valley. Amanda is an editor and travel writer and currently is producing a documentary movie. Down the road only about a 15-minute drive away are Eric Christensen and Sue Elliot, finally well-rooted after some years in France and currently living outside Palo Alto. Eric is working for a firm managing large endowment funds. They have two kids, Kyle 4 and Sarah 1.

"The East Bay is home to Chip Hankins, who along with wife Philippa owns a horse ranch in Martinez. Chip works in insurance in Oakland, and Philippa is a vet. No kids, although they did help deliver a foal who arrived during the third S.F. touchdown on SuperBowl Sunday—they named it Floyd, for the player who scored the touchdown. There's always work to be done at the Hankins horse ranch (Wild Oaks).

"Spent a weekend in Tahoe with numerous Dartmouth people, and of course we had to bring the pong and foosball tables up from San Francisco. Some 20 minutes up the road are Wendi Terlizzi Cook and GordonCook, living in Clayton, Calif. Gordo is a telecommunications executive, and Wendi is working as fulltime mom to daughter Summer, who is one and a half.

"Flew to Salt Lake City for two days to catch up with George Huntington, who is still living in Laramie, Wyo., and finishing an M.A. in mechanical engineering. Also saw lanCampbell, working as a restaurant manager and skiing along with wife Beth (a former national telemark champion) 'conservative estimate, 200 days per year!' On top of Alta I bumped into Rob Wagner, who works as a lawyer in Boston.

"Bob Bauer lives with wife Sally and two-and-a-half-year-old son Benjamin in Norfolk, Mass. Bob was crushed by his defeat in the reunion election for Class Notes editor, but he has rebounded and taken a job editing informational publications for a company managing mutual funds. Mike Tavis is now based in Moscow, managing a venture-capital project, while wife Anya commutes from Greenwich, Conn. Randy Gordon is finishing up a degree in international development in D.C. and living with wife Kathy. Also recently heard from Bobby Charles, who has a new job as chief counsel and chief of staff for the U.S. House subcommittee on national security and criminal justice, and along with wife Marina has a six-month-old son, Nicholas.

"As for me, I finally decided against rabbinical school and am presently doing a three-month consulting gig in Senegal with an adult-literacy program. I'm loving my first experience in Africa. At this moment, I am visiting Sam Carlson, who is in charge of educational and social policy for the World Bank in Mali. His wife, Linda McGinnis, is no slouch either—she's the World Bank resident representative (head of mission) for Mali. Both manage to find the time for daughter Maya (ten months), while Sam occasionally goes kayaking on the Niger river, which runs through Bamako. I'm off myself to journey up the Niger for a day or two, but don't expect to bump into any more Darmouth people here in the heat of the West African Sahel. But you never know!

"From the heat of Bamako, best wishes to all." —Rick Bercuvitz

Thanks, Rick!

26 Crestview Drive, Westborough, MA 01581-1736