1980

Problem: One piece of class news (albeit a good one) as the Class Notes deadline reaches the eleventh hour. Resources: Major in policy studies, an interdisciplinary approach to problem-solving, five years experience telephone prospecting, and (thank God) Ma Bell. Solution: "Surf' the 'Bos class list.

I pick a name and brace myself for the usual response: "I have nothing exciting to say." Panic sets in as I dial the first number, but as the awkward introductions fade and the conversations progress you can feel the smiles through the phone and the years are suddenly washed away. Here's what some of our classmates had to say:

Ellen Martin Taratus has been living in Atlanta for the last five years with her husband Ken and their three sons, seven-year-old KT, four-year-old Christopher, and one-year-old Matthew. Ellen has been working as a fundraising consultant for Fox & Associates, an organization that supports non-profit organizations such as hospitals, art centers, and YMCAs. As if that weren't enough, Ellen plans to attend Georgia Tech in the fall to pursue a master's degree in microbiology.

Page Polk Lipe has been coaching figure skating for nearly 20 years now. She works with champion skaters and though she hasn't had an Olympian yet, she is currently working with this year's third-place junior Olympian, Rohene Ward. Page and her husband, Jay, live in Minneapolis with their children Chandler 6 and Carson 2.

Page was kind enough to report that she sees a fellow 'BO and sister-in-law, CarlaBuckman Lipe, who lives in the Chicago area with her husband and two-year-old son, Campbell. Carla works selling legal software.

Just past the "Ls" I came upon a familiar name whose voice I wanted to hear. Markita Moore was a delight to catch up with, a natural at networking me to two other classmates. Markita has been living in Winston Salem for the last two years and working for the Kate B. Reynolds Charitable Trust, a private foundation that gives grants to health-care organizations in North Carolina. Markita has her doctorate in public health from Chapel Hill.

After working for five years in public relations for a local school system, AngelaSanders now works in membership services for an association of engineers specializing in instruments and controls. When not traveling through Canada and South America for her work, Angela can be found living in Durham, N.C.

Because a couple of classmates asked about Lauri Livesey Sanduski, I decided to give her a call. Twins Julie and Kyle will be one September 6th. Twins Michael and Jennifer are five and a half and on their way to kindergarten this fall. Lauri has been on leave from IBM for the past year and, although Jim is good at pitching in, she looks forward to getting a little break from intensive motherhood by taking some courses or working parttime.

Ann Donovan has been an attorney with Burns & Levinson for eight years now and continues to do pro bono work at the Boston Juvenile Court as a guardian ad litem. Ann, along with Catrina CashCorey, has taken up golf with a passion. And what about their handicaps? "Not good, but we like it (golf)!"

Ann shared news about Crystal MorganPhillips, who is a radiologist at Columbia Presbyterian Medical Center in New York. Crystal and husband Scott have three children, Zach, Emma, and Ethan and are expecting their fourth in September of this year.

Finally, the treasured piece of written news comes from Jennifer Prigge Buhl all the way from Germany. Jenni writes that after having three boys, Markus, Matthias, and Lukas, their daughter, Claudia Katharina, was born March 19, 1996. Jenni and husband Peter celebrated Claudia's arrival with a beautiful birth announcement that includes pictures drawn by their children and a poem in English and German.

It all sounds pretty "exciting" to me. Thanks for sharing. Keep in touch. Keep connected.

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