1947
It's April, my favorite time of year. My birthday (60), our anniversary (35), the Stanley cup, (Bruins 1970) the Red Sox (remember 1975?), the Celtics (perennial), and don't forget the Marathon on April 19.
This column will be with us in midsum- mer; and we'll have a chance to see where the Red Sox, Bruins, and Celtics have ended up.
We'll also be able to see more clearly the ongoing Dartmouth saga. I hope our own administration and ruling committees will have taken some strong, steadying steps to unfog the situation.
Our own Walter Peterson, as president of Franklin Pierce College in Rindge, N.H., was asked last week by President McLaughlin to accept all the papers and reports on the "shanty" cases, review them, and make a recommendation as to the appropriateness of the suspensions and other decisions and actions over the past months. Walt is ideally suited to enter in here and is capable of proper judgments.
We received a nice letter from Father John Mansfield of St. Ann's Rectory in West Bridge water, Mass. I know Father John in two ways: he was a classmate, and he also was a childhood friend of Dorothy. We have been blessed by his official presence in two family weddings, as Dottie has a large family in that area of Massachusetts. He's taken a strong interest in our young people, and he also hopes that a strong ending can come, out of the saga of the shanties. His remarks started me thinking (always a dangerous thing).
Sometimes Dartmouth is like America the USA - so many complaints abound from all sides that we can lose sight of the really good things that happen. U.S. foreign aid, Red Cross, disaster aid - but all we ever hear is Kadafy these days.
Look at Dartmouth sports. Not much can be said of the traditional bellwether teams such as Dartmouth hockey, Dartmouth basketball. But look again. Women's basketball, with a history of four consecutive Ivy titles, 1980-1984, was again in the thick of the Ivy title chase, and two players, Liz Walter '89 and Jayne Daigle '86, have won All-Ivy honors, Jayne for four years.
Look at Dartmouth track, the 17th Annual Dartmouth Relays. Dartmouth has a fine men's track squad, including one of the world's best pole vaulters, Jeff Jackson '86. The girls also are excelling in track events. Women's ice hockey is having better seasons than the men's.
From my own Dartmouth days, I can remember this is capitalism at its best. If a team is winning, put it in the news; if it loses, it drops from interest. We should do more of this. Let the teams and coaches vie for our interest by their success, not by crying to the media and certainly not by firing the coach as a scapegoat.
I would like to point out with pride that the Dartmouth campus was one of the very first to raise shanties, and during February through April dozens of large and small institutions have done precisely the same thing. Remember the days of swallowing goldfish? Building shanties is along that same line. Dartmouth leads the way. So like it or not, agree or not, Dartmouth is showing the way on this line of thinking.
Do we suppose, there is some correctness to this thinking? Were the longhairs right in their initial protests on Vietnam? Gerry Phillips writes from NYC that he has been appointed by the president of the American Bar Association as chairman of the forum committee on the Entertainment and Sports Industries of the ABA. He begins this in August. He will be moderating a seminar in London in May on the international financing of motion pictures. Gerry notes he is also chairman of WNYC Foundation, which helps to operate New York's radio and TV stations. These are extracurricular activities, so you can understand how Gerry Phillips is one busy man. Congratulations, Gerry: it's good to hear from you; and isn't it a wonderful tribute to a man's worth, to be appointed to such a post by one's peers.
Joe Eisaman, my private mailbag, writes from L.A. enclosing an article on Al Bildner, or at any rate, on Al and Joan's son. There will be two more of his upscale grocery stores in Filene's stores in Boston. These will be like the first one in Rich's store in Atlanta. What a success story! I may have to carry a separate column for all of Al's news, particularly if he has lots of relatives.
My final news is of Class Officers Weekend, May 2-3. Our class was represented by nine men, more than any other class. It was a most enjoyable weekend, with meetings and workshops for class presidents (Townes Harris), for class treasurers (Lansing Reed), for class secretaries (Ed Grady), for class bequest officers (Bob Mortimer, who with Mary flew in from Chicago), for newsletter editors (John Trethaway), for mini-reunion chairmen (Don Evans), for reunion giving agents (Frank Weber), and for reunion planners (Ham Chase and Dick Hollerith).
There were workshops for all, and in particular a fruitful planning session for our 40th reunion, our revised date now planned for June 15-18 (Monday through Thursday a.m.), 1987. Mark this date, as we will be sharing a specially arranged lecture series by our faculty, "Looking Ahead into the Nineties," an evening at the DOC House, another of Joe Hayes's exciting auctions, a Hood Museum special program, a tent full of your classmates, topped off by a classic banquet at the Hanover Inn, with slow dancing.
Closing out our May weekend was a reception by the College and a dinner gathering in Lebanon of '47s.
Hanover is in its beautiful spring green as I write, looks great, and believe me, all the questions of behavior and activity of the past six months in Hanover were answered for us, and now we're on to other things. Make plans for 40th reunion June 15-18, 1987; and for a preview, be in Hanover at our fall gathering September 26-27 at the Norwich Inn.
Remember Jim Osborne's Alumni Fund drive as you read this, and especially if you're in the matching gifts program. Your participation is needed. See you soon.
63 Maple Avenue Keene, NH 03431
