YAM Class Notes: September/October 2019
By John M. PinneyA disturbing pattern is developing: Just before I write the class notes, we experience a massive downpour that drenches the area. So far, no one has suggested a causal relationship between the two events, so I will continue to adhere to the magazine deadlines (mostly).
Our 55th reunion team was represented at the Class of ’64 55th by Bob Leich, Carl Farrington, and David Roscoe. They reported their findings to the full reunion team, noting that overall it was an excellent event, although they left after dinner on Saturday so did not observe the quality of the post-dinner dancing. One idea under consideration for our 55th is a panel with the Class of ’70, with a focus on the significant changes that occurred in the five years after we graduated.
Bill Nelson reported on life after the Senate: “I am happy to announce that we are beginning the “Nelson Initiative on Ethics and Leadership” at the University of Florida. I have deposited my extensive collection of papers and other historical materials with the George A. Smathers Libraries, establishing a significant archive spanning over four decades of public service. I am convening a series of forums to examine ethics and leadership, with the first one to kick off July 2.”
Classmates in the news. From Jim Wood: “A nice surprise to see classmate Richard Hodes on the cover of the current AARP newsletter, along with coverage of his important work at the National Institute on Aging (about which he spoke at our 50th). Sadly, they didn’t mention his Yale affiliation, just Harvard Med School.” The New York Times reported that Judge Barrington (Danny) Parker wrote the opinion for the US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit on the question of blocking President Trump’s critics from Twitter: “Judge Parker noted that the conduct of the government and its officials are subject today to a ‘wide-open, robust debate’ that ‘generates a level of passion and intensity the likes of which have rarely been seen.’ The First Amendment prohibits an official who uses a social media account for government purposes from excluding people from an ‘otherwise open online dialogue’ because they say things the official disagrees with, he wrote.”
Karl Schonborn reported that he is “almost done with creating a serviceable fourth draft of Privileged Killers (his next book). All I’ll need moving forward is a better title, an agent, a publisher, and an army of pre-dementia readers (my Tribe?) who’re curious enough to give the book a chance.” Karl and Leslie celebrated their 35th anniversary in New York City where they met up with Dennis Mack and Robert Cohen.
Classmates in the arts: Ralph Protsik posted on the listserv: “On Saturday night, August 17, 8pm, the Berkeley Repertory School of Theater will be presenting my new play, Kafka in China, a collaboration with Warren Rothman. The reading of the complete play will include a full cast of seven actors, with stage direction but without stage settings or props.” Ralph’s posting precipitated a lengthy exchange on the listserv, including a commitment from David Roscoe to attend, and the disclosure by Warren that he just underwent rotator cuff surgery. Warren commented on Ralph’s adaptation: “Ralph dramatized my books which describe the most intensely painful, and in some ways painfully consequential, experience of my life, with the utmost sensitivity, craftsmanship, and creativity.”
Brief notes: Perrin and Peggy Quarles celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary on June 11. Perrin and Peggy are in Crested Butte, Colorado, where Perrin is recovering from back surgery. Donna and I celebrated our 35th anniversary on June 8. Landon (Bunky) Carter’s wife, Diane Covington-Carter, has published a memoir of her father’s effort to find a French orphan he met during WWII. The title is Finding Gilbert, A Promise Fulfilled. Bob Woodward’s daughter Diana Walsh Woodward graduated from Yale cum laude in May. She will work as a research coordinator for Harvard psychiatrists at Massachusetts General Hospital. Bob is working on another book.
Fred Roberts posted a lengthy report on his photography program: “This year is one full of progress, expansion, and new beginnings. It began with an extraordinary exhibit by our students in Toronto, illustrating the United Nations 17 Sustainable Development Goals. Next week we travel to a new destination with a new partner. We are heading to Athens to work with Solidarity Now, an NGO “committed to improving vulnerable people’s lives to pursue a better future.” Our students will include refugees, immigrants, and the local underserved community. In August, we return to Toronto for our third workshop, supported by two returning classes of advanced students. Then, in October, we join an existing partner, the Aga Khan Academies, in their new campus in Maputo, Mozambique. We look forward to continuing the successful programs we have instituted in their campuses in Hyderabad and Mombasa. Next year, in addition to returning to Monterrey, Mexico, we anticipate completing our expansion program with two new partners including the SEEDS program of the Pacific Links Foundation in Danang, Vietnam.”
Reminders: Class dinner October 25 at the Yale Club of New York City. 55th Reunion, May 30 to June 2, 2020. In preparation for the 55th, please be sure to update your contact information at the YAA website (click on directory).