1961

Reunion weekend began, spiritually, with an alumni Glee Club concert. The guys sounded as good as they did 35 years ago, but the contrast is emotional: then, there were no wet eyes while singing traditional songs; now there are no dry eyes.

Reunion weekend began, physically, with some climbing Mount Moosilauke with Andy Urquhart, some running, and some heading for the tennis courts, the golf course, or the fitness center. Others used the time to tap the ever present kegs.

The weekend's theme was "Reconnections," and at times it appeared as if Animal House was being recreated. Some main characters were back: Doberman (aka the Rev. Duane Cox) for the first time in more than 30 years; Otter (San Francisco lawyer Robert Anderson), and the talk often turned to Chris Miller's saga.

Reunion weekend began emotionally with Doberman and Tom McDonough leading another of our patented Passages sessions, a fixture of both in and out of Hanover reunions since the 15th, a period of sharing ups and downs of our careers and our lives that triggered discussions throughout the rest of the wonderful weekend.

Reunion weekend began socially with a DJ and Oscar Arslanian's CDs, and continued with a live band, the Blue Hornets, on Friday and Saturday nights. All dancing was on a floor and the grass under the bigtop.

The emotional peak of the weekend was the giving of the statue of Robert Frost just after noon on Saturday. The statue was set out on Thursday beside the Rockefeller Center, just off Fraternity Row, and drew curious onlookers as well as proud members of our class.

Not everybody agreed, and at the class meeting on Saturday morning, Tony Field made his case against the statue in a crowded session. But there was little question that the statue would be given, and dozens of classmates spoke for it, some emotionally

The ceremony was preceded by a breathtaking one-hour presentation on Frost by professor Donald Pease; the statue was presented to the College by outgoing President Art Kelton, and accepted by Lee Bollinger, the provost of the College. Placement of the statue will be decided in the fall.

The class's ties to today's Dartmouth grew even stronger with the election of Steve Bosworth as chair of the trustees, and by Mike Gazzaniga's return as David T. McLaughlin Distinguished Professor in cognitive neuroscience and psychology.

At the class meeting on Saturday, OscarArslanian was voted president; Reunion Chair Roger McArt and Doberman as vice presidents, Kelton as Alumni Council representative, Pete Bleyler as head agent, and virtually everybody else stayed in office: me, Ivar Jozus as treasurer, TomConger and Bert Rowley as newsletter editors, Mike Murphy as projects chair, and Art Johnson as mini reunion chair, though he also has agreed to head up our 40th (!) Reunion as well.

There was more, much more,from talks by several of the class writers at Friday breakfast to just plain fellowship at the tent, the Bema, the picnic near Storrs Pond, the dinner at the DOC house, etc. More next month.

Bowman Gray School of Medicine, Medical Center Boulevard. Winston Salem, NC 27157-1015

Mike Murphy '61 reunes, p,25