Clubs & Groups
Clubs & Groups
Despite the challenges of holding socially distanced events, Dartmouth clubs and groups managed to pull together some great events during the past several months. Any club that is looking for ideas should reach out to the alumni below for support!
John Bash ’67, president ofthe Dartmouth Club of Sarasota, Florida, wrote in to report that on July 24 the club held its first virtual meeting to discuss club activities and Dartmouth plans for the coming year. Ed Mazer ’63 handled the Zoom setup perfectly. During the meeting Bob Mahoney ’62, the southwest Florida district enrollment director, requested more Dartmouth admissions ambassadors for the coming application season. Florida swimming champion Christina Cianciolo ’23 described her first year at the College (two terms in residence, one term remote) with a lot of enthusiasm and resiliency. Bill Wellstead ’63 and Fred Jarrett ’63 highlighted the contribution of scholar-athletes to Dartmouth’s excellence and diversity.
Tara Gulla ’95 shared that the Dartmouth Club of Suburban New Jersey was able to continue business as usual, for the most part, holding its annual organizational meeting virtually in August. Club president David Dietze ’78 led the Zoom meeting and the club discussed options to continue many of their traditional events in virtual or socially distanced ways.
Barry Weeks ’72, the executive director ofthe Dartmouth Club of New York (DCNY), wrote in with quite a few updates. The club has made great progress with virtual events. DCNY community service chair Soh Won Cha ’04 developed DCNY’s first two virtual events following the Covid-19 disruption in April. These were a virtual seminar titled “Evaluating Your Career” with Joanna Giordano ’04, which gave a peek into the employee recruitment and candidate selection process during an uncertain time, and a “Virtual Workout” with Judy Kuan ’03 of Fitphile LLC, which was a free, 30-minute, live-streamed yoga-kick fusion workout. Building on those successes, the club organized eight more virtual events throughout this past summer. The first DCNYbook club meeting was held on May 25 to discuss book selections and launch the p rogram. It was arrange d by Nancy Guevara ’13, Th’14, DCNY co-social chair.
In June two virtual community service events were organized. First, the “Support a Pal” program was launched. It is a weekly phone call program between students and senior citizens, and it was coordinated by Young Alumni of Dartmouth Activities (YADA) chair Josiah Hannon ’15. Second, the college and career success coaches for Breakthrough New York program commenced. It was an effort supporting motivated students from low-income backgrounds from middle school through college and was coordinated by Soh Won Cha. The DCNY speaker series continued on June 2 with an event featuring WWII veteran Col. Jonathan De Sola Mendes ’42. The event was a virtual talk on longevity, plus interesting remarks about Ted Williams and John Glenn during the Korean War. A 40-minute slideshow was produced by the colonel’s son, Josh Mendes ’84. Zoom pro tech assistance was provided by DCNY president Charles Allison ’78 and the event was coordinated by speaker series chair Dorothy Price Hill ’88 and Barry Weeks ’72. On June 11 DCNY parents Ann Chao and Medill Harvey ’90 developed a special virtual event for Dartmouth parents about the first appointment of a woman to the Dartmouth faculty in 1918. It was presented by Jay Satterfield, head of Rauner Special Collections.
On July 21 the DCNY held a fireside chat with professor Charles Wheelan ’88. The event was titled “A Look into the Pandemic & Where We Go From Here” and was connected to his 2019 first novel, The Rationing, about the United States in the throes of a global pandemic and the political storms that follow. The event was coordinated by Acacia Hoisington ’18. On August 4 Dorothy Price Hill ’88 interviewed Matt Robinson, Dartmouth spouse and author of Lions, Tigers, and...Bulldogs: An Unofficial Guide to the Legends and Lore ofthe Ivy League. On August 13 the DCNY held a successful Zoom event for 110 incoming first-year students and their families. There were several panelists, including Adrienne “Tee” Lotson ’82, former president ofthe Alumni Council. Dartmouth parents Ken ’74 and Joan ’76 Marable and Paul and Sandra Allen helped to host some ofthe 10-plus Zoom breakout rooms. The event was coordinated by parent liaison officer Medill Harvey ’90.
The Dartmouth Club of Maryland also held a fantastic virtual send-off party for local incoming class of2024s on August 23. It was the first time the event had been held virtually, and Dave Stephens ’75 organized it skillfully. The Zoom event worked very well, and the ’24s were able to make even deeper connections with each other and local alums. The club feels proud to have shown the ’24s that they have a supportive Dartmouth community at home in Maryland. In attendance were many alums and students, including Dave Stephens ’75, Caroline Wayner ’88, Lauren John ’09, Isaac Spokes ’22, Darren Nelson ’23, Sereena Knight ’24, Emily Schuster ’24, Camera Walker ’24, Ava Scharfstein ’24, Dylan Wang ’24, Joseph Nakasone ’24, Andrew Kim ’24. and Hannah Dunleavy ’24.
Thank you for all the updates. Please stay safe and send me news about the great events that your club, association, or affiliated group has organized. —Stina Brock ’01, P.O. Box9274, Jackson, WY83002; s tina. brock@gmail. com
Stina Brock ’01
