1949

The most recent tally available for the Reunion shows that we will be 260 strong—or better—and that nearly 70 of those will proceed immediately after the 50th msxi to the Balsams mini. The total, as of late January, included about 140 classmates and 120 wives. There is still time to add your name to the burgeoning list, of course. Just return the postcard that you got in the mail, the envelope from the newsletter, or call either co-chair Bud Hughes at (732) 449-7737 or Punchy Thomas at (802) 449-2100. Don't forget, early birds save a few bucks because last-minute signups carry a small premium-ten bucks a head. By now, courtesy of Skip Ungar, you have the final details about activities during the 1999 Commencement weekend, which is when we celebrate. One highlight will be getting to know the College's new President Jim Wright. Another is having Thaf Seymour as a dinner speaker. A little golf here, a little tennis there, a few toasts, but reunions are mostly about renewing ties with the people who shared your Dartmouth experience.

Sometime soon, if production problems don't interfere with our best-laid plans, you are likely to receive your copy of the 50th Reunion yearbook—if you paid your dues. March is the target for mailing them out. You might want to bring your copy to Hanover so you can tell who's who. (Name tags can be difficult with bi-focals.)

If you haven't been back to Hanover for some time, don't worry, you will still recognize the place. There are a few new buildings here and there, and there's a big hole in the ground behind Baker. But the atmosphere is just the same. Webster Hall has morphed into a hightech library for special collections and is definitely worth a visit, particularly if the last time you were in the building was to see a movie, c. 1949, when Webster was the surrogate

Classmates who won't be joining us for the Reunion will, however, be with us in spirit, particularly those in whose memory contributions were made to last year's Alumni Fund. Specifically, that list includes

Don Anderson, Dick Bandfield, PaulErwin, Lou Farrar, Jim Flanders, EarlHamilton, Carter Hoyt, Jim Huntington,Ken McClain, Warren Norris, CharlesScheutz, and Joe Sullivan.

Our famous West Coast politician, Quent Kopp, was a private citizen for about 20 minutes. After almost three decades, first as a member of San Francisco's board of supervisors then as a state senator, Q served the state of California well, until term-limit rules got in the way. Then, just before leaving office, Gov. Pete Wilson appointed Q a judge of the San Mateo County Superior Court. A newspaper pundit put it this way: "The last of the independents. A man of many talents. A man of a million words." Q will bring some of those words to our Reunion.

Our East Coast politician (okay, he comes from the West) Sen. Slade Gorton was in the news a couple of months back when he joined with Connecticut's Senator Lieberman in sponsoring a speed-up proposal for the impeachment hearings. Unfortunately there was too much momentum. Let's hope we don't have to go through anything like that again soon. Once every ISO years seems about right, just to keep everyone on their toes.

496 Turnpike Road North, Fairlee, VT 05045;

June 11-13, 1999 Nugget.