1981

It’s December 23 and this is one of the best times of the year. Festive activities, generosity of spirit and not too much “work” to do. Much better than the time of year when most of us will be reading this— at least those of us in New England and other northern climes—the time of year when we’ve had just about enough winter. Just a few weeks until pitchers and catchers report and the Red Sox begin defending their championship—hang in there.

When Brad Stone sent this along, he thought it wasn’t “exciting.” Me, I’m trying to avoid any- thing too exciting. “My wife, Pam, and I became quasi-empty-nesters recently when our young- est child left for boarding school. Our two older children were already away at school, so we’d sampled a quieter household. Still we were un- prepared for such change! Unscheduled date nights and new activities ensued, including a track day at Thompson Speedway with Hap Brake- ley, his wife, Sue, Tom Kiernan, and Kathy (Rackow) Kiernan. (Tom is the CEO of the American Wind Energy Association and wants ’81s to know that he fully offset his CO2 emissions.) I miss my kids, but we’re having fun reconnecting with friends.”

Mark “Beds” Bedard checked in from Hun- tington Beach, California, where he’s been for 17 years. Probably doesn’t matter what month it is there—the sun’s always shining. Mark let us know, “I came to help run a tractor-trailer rental business with a couple of high school buddies. We’re still having fun with it. My wife, Debbie, and I have kids Kristen (14) and Stephen (11). Like most other parents we run around taking them to practices and watching their games and performances. I occasionally see some ex-class- mates or other Dartmouth alums, if I’m lucky, but for the most part I stay in touch with them through emails. I’m looking forward to seeing many familiar faces again at our next reunion.”

A little more than a year ago Lee Carson mar- ried Glenna Waterman ’82. This past October they threw an anniversary party for more friends and family at the Silverado Resort in Califor- nia. Classmates in attendance were Hollywood (Chris) Halloran, Danny Evans, Geoff Bracken and John Casaudoumecq. There were around 75 people total including a pack of pesky ’82s.

Sadly, in closing, our class lost Jason Scott Lamb on August 20. In 1983 he received his mas- ter of arts degree from Harvard University’s Graduate School of Education, concentrating in administration planning and social policy, and later attended the Madison School of Law at the University of Wisconsin from 1986 to 1988. In 2002 he obtained the position he had been trained for, senior legal and policy analyst in the office of the secretary of the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Council. Jason was a father, a grandfather and a friend to many. One of his greatest passions was protecting the rights and civil liberties of Native people; he devoted his time, legal expertise and love to this cause.

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