1956

Tradition has it that in spring young men's thoughts turn to love. Ann remarked once that mine turned to lacrosse. For thousands of Dartmouth men and women, however, spring also means the Alumni Fund. This is for the class, in fact, our 30th year out. Think about it and give.

Tragedy seems so much closer when it strikes those we know. Sad news has come from the families of two of our classmate diplomats. Marion Gribble died of a heart attack in November at his home outside Washington, D.C. Marion had retired from the Foreign Service in June 1983 after 31 years of government service, which included military service in Korea. His last assignment was as political officer at the U.S. Embassy in Vientiane, Laos. In addition, Marion had assignments in Norway, Denmark, Austria, Turkey, Thailand, and the Philippines. He also served in Washington as secretary general of the International Satellite Communications Conference, which resulted in the establishment of INTELSAT. Marion's wife, Judy, their three children and two grandchildren all live in the Washington area. Our sympathy is extended to all.

Rising above tragedy takes a special kind of character. Last August Bob andPeggy Barry lost their son, Peter, a student at Yale, in a sinking of a commercial fishing boat off the coast of Alaska. Bob and his wife have turned their grief to research and to constructive criticism and reform with respect to safety in the commercial fishing industry. Bob is quoted in The Washington Post: "It is too late now to help Peter. But publicizing the danger of commercial fishing and imposing minimal regulations on it may help others to avoid his senseless death." Our hearts go out to Bob and Peggy. Bob is a senior diplomat whose current assignment involves him in the European disarmament talks. Last year he was the first Resident Fellow of the Dickey Endowment for International Understanding at the College.

Much of the information concerning Bob and Marion was received from SamFry, another diplomat. Currently with the State Department's Inspector General's office, Sam has recently returned from seven years as deputy ambassador in Finland and Rumania. While in Finland, Sam developed an interest in things Arctic, and he has been studying and writing since, which he intends to continue upon retirement from the State Department. In Rumania, living under "Communist tyranny in the purest form," Sam found weekend relief in the Transylvanian Mountains, where castles, monasteries, and ruins were punctuated by "occasional Dracula sightings." Certainly more interesting than the NFL!

A recent article in The Economist concerning Arkansas' Governor Clinton contained the name of Dan Daniels. Dan, a consultant based in Boston, is reported to be developing the Arkansas economic development plan. Efforts to elicit more from Dan, including what job he gets "when Governor Clinton becomes President," have been unsuccessful.

Joel and Marsha Ash invited 200 of their closest friends, most of them from Massapequa, Long Island, where they lived for 19 years, to Weston, Conn., in late December to celebrate Joel's 50th birthday. The class of '56 was represented by Harold and Joan Gordon and the Malins. In preparation for a budding second career, Joel has written a novel, as yet unpublished. Part of it takes place at a small college in New Hampshire. Classmates will have to guess the rest. Tune in again next month.

It was late December in New York City-what better excuse for a '54 mini-reunion ? Fora list of those pictured, see the '54 column.

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