1965
Most of us wandered into our careers in the late sixties with what we assumed were the mutually important goals of performing a useful service and receiving reasonable rewards. Had we been persons of great vision, able to project the needs of the eighties, we would no doubt have seen that such objectives could best be met by becoming hazardous-waste disposal technicians, geriatric social workers, or even lead guitar players. Instead, for the most part, we followed the conventional wisdom of the day and became doctors, engineers, and businessmen.
Jay Wright was one of our classmates who knew early in his Hanover days that he wanted to be an attorney. He was diverted from his career path for nearly four years while the U.S. Navy encouraged him to study tremendous amounts of water, but he eventually entered Harvard Law School in 1969. His missionary efforts in Cambridge obviously went well since he continued even beyond his law degree and received a master's in economics in 1973. He then spent one year as a clerk for the U.S. Court of Appeals and a subsequent year as a clerk for Justice William O. Douglas of the Supreme Court. Jay married Meredith (Merry Lou) Ahnberg of Mt. Holyoke in 1967, and they now have two children. Since 1975 he has been with the Washington office of Hughes Hubbard and Reed, where he specializes in what he describes as "commercial litigation work." To any of us who wonder what that means and perhaps as a discreet bit of advertising to classmates in need, Jay further explains that most of his truly creative efforts have been in the defense of accountants and yes, even other attorneys.
A lawyer who followed a more meandering route to his present postion is RonLewis of Oxford, Miss. Ron, a French major at Dartmouth, taught for a year in Orleans following graduation. He returned to the United States for an M.A.T degree at Harvard and pursued an academic career on both the secondary and university levels in Durham, N.H. In 1971, at the height of the "back to earth" movement, Ron left teaching and started seriously studying the occupation and art of being a blacksmith. At about the same time, he also began serving as a part-time journalist with what he describes as a "well-intentioned but eventually unsuccessful" newspaper. In 1967, Ron again "spun the career wheel" and decided his objective might now best be met by a "cheap, warm place to go to law school," namely the University of Mississippi. Ron had initial intentions of returning to his native Wyoming after receiving his law degree but was soon won over by the charm and, no doubt, the abundant trees of Oxford. His firm, Hill and Lewis, primarily represent plaintiffs in civil rights and environmental cases and Ron, along with his wife, Cory, feels he is now at home in the South.
Charlie Strauss became neither a Pulitzer prizewinner nor the publisher of a major daily newspaper as would have seemed the obvious career track for an English major and editor of The Dartmouth. Instead, he followed a very successful business career and in August was named president and general manager of the packaged foods division of Cheseborough-Ponds, Inc. His new company manufactures and markets such popular brand names as Ragu, Bass, Vaseline, and Q-Tips, and Charlie's division alone accounts for more than S400 million in annual sales. After a reflective pause, Charlie says with true Dartmouth eloquence that the major challenge of his new position will be to "try not to screw up." He reports he received an M.B.A. from Columbia in 1967, worked for Procter and Gamble, and was sent to Europe by International Playtex in 1971. He returned to the United States in 1978 as a partner with Marketing Corporation of America and most recently was with a major affiliate of H.J. Heinz. He and his wife, Marion, a Dutch citizen, and their seven-year-old son, Karsten, have relocated from Boise, Idaho, to the Westport, Conn., area and are looking forward to easier access to Hanover.
Tom Balogh and his wife, Diane, now find themselves in the business of providing bed and breakfast lodging at Point Reyes Station, Calif. The Holly Tree Inn is located on the coast about an hour north of the Golden Gate Bridge and, according to Tom, has an extremely interesting and colorful history. Any '6ss or other potential guests are invited to call 415/663-1554 for a reservation. Prior to launching into this new venture, Tom had been employed by Blue Shield in San Francisco in various financial planning roles. He had joined Blue Shield following his discharge from the navy in 1970. As a naval officer he spent four years aboard destroyers and one year, safely on land, in Vietnam. Tom mentions that he would like to hear from any classmates who have joined the current campus movement towards Macintosh computers. Tom is fascinated by his own "little green Apple" and wonders what others of our pioneering Dartmouth computer generation might be doing.
Perhaps more important than any of our occupations is how we are leading our lives and the people who are making the journey with us. On a very serious note, Bob Murphy asks that mention be made of the recent loss of such a companion with the death of his wife, Donna, on June 30, 1985. Bob and Donna had made their home in Hanover, and Donna had strong Dartmouth loyalties that had grown through innumerable class functions, Sigma Nu parties, and football games since 1964. Her fight against cancer during the past several years had been an inspiring one, and friends may make contributions in her memory to Mascoma Home Health, Box 378, Enfield, NH 03748.
That's it for another issue. Keep up the good work, let us know of your progress, and enjoy the holiday season.
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