1965

Jean and I recently saw Marc Efron and his wife, Barbara, at a cocktail party in Little Compton, R.I., at the home of Graham Bell '66 and his wife, Claudia. Marc and Barbara had just taken their two sons to camp in New Hampshire and were returning to Washington. We are hopeful that the next time thev are passing through the area, they will be able to stay a while as guests at our vacation home in Litde Compton so that we will have more time to catch up. In the time we had together I learned that .Marc's law practice is going very well and keeping him quite busy. He also regularly sees Tom Wise, Jerry Putnam, and Bob McGonnaghey, three of our classmates from whom I would love to hear more news for this column. Despite a few new inside-the-beltway Washington political jokes, I was unable to learn of any new Monicagate rumors from Alarc, but he promised to keep us informed. It was great to see him even for such a short time.

Perhaps summer travels have allowed vou to reconnect with old classmates. If so, we would love to hear of it, or simply any news you may have, travel-related or not. As we celebrate 55th birthdays, many of us are experiencing interesting transitions perhaps a career change, a geographical residence change, an interesting new hobby, or sport, grandchildren, or a recent child's graduation. Please tell us about it. Your classmates are interested in hearing about you and your news. No need to be lengthy or dramatic, so please take a moment to drop me a line.

We take many Dartmouth traditions for granted. One that was recendy reemphasized for me is the tradition of reading the name of even graduate at the granting of diplomas on graduation day. When our oldest son Jon graduated from Dartmouth in 1996. it was certainly nice to see him individually recognized. Two months ago we had the pleasure of seeing our middle son, Christopher, graduate from Princeton. The class day, baccalaureate, and graduation ceremonies were dignified and impressive. Even though Princeton's undergraduate class is only about 20 percent larger than Dartmouth's, Princeton does not read the name of each individual graduate. Rather, degrees are conferred by departmental major. The extra touch of recognizing each graduate at Dartmouth's graduation is a tradition that I hope will not disappear in the name of expediency.

I cannot help but highlight an item from Allen Zern's latest edition of the class newsletter regarding a letter he received from Byron Ford. Allen writes: "And finally. with a thought for all to consider as we breeze past 55, Byron concludes; 'Retirement is great. I wish I had done it sooner.'" Many of us are certainly thinking about it. Please let us know your thoughts about retirement—pros and cons from the perspective of age 55. Is it right for you? Why or why not?

Finally, a reminder of our Hanover mini October 16-18. Sharon and Bob Blake promise a great time.

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