1976

A profile of our class naturalist, Judy Zimicke Gianforte, recently appeared in the New York papers. Judy lives near Cazenovia, N.Y., with spouse Peter and kids Luke (6) and Piper (4), all of whom I had the great pleasure of seeing at last summer's Reunion. Judy conducts a variety of natural science education programs for youngsters, drawing on her earth sciences background at the College and her years of work as an alternative-energy consultant in Alaska. I know firsthand that while in Alaska, Judy was an enthusiastic nordic skier, avid hiker, and accomplished kayaker. The kids of Cazenovia are lucky to have her as a teacher!

Mary Nolan, in Portland, Ore., is happily running Avrotec, a company she founded in 1990. Avrotec is a member of the Agate Foundation, a consortium of 60-plus companies working together to "dramatically redesign the standards of safety, comfort, and economy for general aviation planes." Mary writes that "attending the meetings of the Agate flight systems technical council reminded me of arriving on the Hanover Plain in September 1972: I was one of three women in a room with 45 men!"

Mary was recently elected from among delegates from the likes of Cessna, Allied Systems, and Raytheon to chair Agate's national executive council: "I guess those years as a small minority hanging out in Kiewit and Thayer taught me something about leadership as well as differentials and co-tangents!" When not airborne, Mary is busy raising spouse Mark Gardiner and daughter Liz (3), and serving as president of the board of Planned Parenthood for the Columbia and Willamette valleys.

Paul Stockton wrote from Monterey, Calif., a beautiful spot we had occasion to -visit last summer for my cousin's wedding. I didn't know Paul was there, or we would have stopped by on the way to the aquarium to meet the latest addition to the Stockton family, young William Noble, a.k.a. "Thunderpants." Paul writes that Jamie Angell's chinchilla farm continues to thrive, and that at Paul Detwiler '77's recent wedding, "Myron Allen, Mike Aylward, and Andy Dill put on a display of gluttony and thirst-quenching that did our class proud."

Paul also reports that Bill Lynn abandoned his lucrative chinchilla-raising business to accept an appointment as comptroller of the Defense Department. I received a number of press releases and clippings about Bill's appointment. Paul's report was by far the best.

Paul's version follows, verbatim: "Bill is now sitting on a $250-billion pile of cash, writing checks like a drunken sailor, and enjoying his own personal office potty. Bill's competence for the job is not in doubt. Well, not much anyway!"

Kim Staggers Blanchard sent a very nice letter from New York City, where she is a leading tax attorney. Kim has offices in London and Beijing as well as on Park Avenue, and has been elected to New York's august Tax Forum. ("This is a little like being elected to Sphinx or Skull & Bones, and the food is about the same.") Kim has kept in touch with her former roommate, the irrepressible Susie Zimmerman McBeath. Susie, spouse Bob, and family have recently returned to Kentucky after "many, many years of living as expatriates in Costa Rica. Susie's eldest, Annie, is attending Harvard."

Kim apologized for not writing earlier. She had misplaced doubts that raising "two perfect children, a devoted husband, and a guinea pig" is not newsworthy. Please, if there are any other classmates who haven't written because of similar doubts, let me dispel them. Any news is of interest, whether involving chinchillas, guinea pigs, or small children!

957 Gold Belt Ave., Juneau, AK 99801; (907) 586-4000; fax: (907) 586-3777;

Bill Lynn abandoned his lucrative chinchillaraising business to become comptroller of the Defense Department. Dick Monkman '76