1998

1998

Dear ’98s! First, I’m excited to follow in Gabe Galetti’s gargantuan footsteps as I take the reins as class secretary. Thank you, Gabe, for helping to keep our classmates connected over the years!

In my inaugural Class Note, I wanted to reflect on our 25th reunion! The 25th reunion brought together classmates from all communities of the greater '98 family. I, for one, reconnected with old friends such as Tiffany Battle, who I had not seen or spoken to since graduation. It was lovely to hear Tiffany’s laugh again and pick up right where we left off 25 years ago.

It truly felt like that fun friend’s wedding party where everyone there knew at least a couple of people while making new friends and connections throughout the entire reunion weekend. Kate Gold and the band of’98 executive committee members and class volunteers worked hard to deliver a high-touch, warm, and engaging reunion experience! There was a little something for everyone.

Many classmates attended the class-led panel discussions organized by Belinda Chiu and Kelly Ryerson. One such thought-provoking panel discussion featured Vikram Krishnan, Liz Gerber, and Eric Paley, all visionaries who discussed disruptive innovation and the next 25 years. In addition, I had the pleasure of serving on an early-riser panel on Saturday morning with classmates Lani Sipe Curtis, Spiros Miliagros, and Kelly Ryerson. As the sun pierced the horizon, we shared our stories about our life journeys and meanderings in early morning fellowship!

For those thrill seekers among us, there was the daring climb up 86 flights of stairs to the top of Bartlett Tower! Others hiked Mount Moosilauke and canoed on the Connecticut River, while some of us enjoyed our Dirt Cowboy lattes on the lawn chairs in front ofthe Hanover Inn. As nature would have it, some of us even had a bit of post-traumatic stress syndrome when lightening and heavy rain led to our class tent being evacuated during one of the lunches. It was graduation monsoon all over again except this time our mighty ’98s’ laughter and pure joy filled the air ofOccom Commons, drowning out the sounds of nature’s roars. Did I mention the delicious meals that we had throughout the weekend?

At reunion we gathered to remember those beautiful souls in our class who have left this earth to explore the vastness ofthe universe. We honored their memories through a music filled reflection led by Gabe Galetti and Julie McGuire Turchin (musical lead). It was a simple acknowledgement that every one of those beautiful souls lived and was loved by all of us.

Friends, I share these memories in hopes to reach every single member of our class with one message—keep in touch! Don’t wait until the next reunion to reconnect with your friends of Dartmouth days of old. Share your updates! Celebrate each other today. Peter Hasenkamp, Matt Senesky, John Wilde, and Jack Pien did just that. Peter wrote to say that they got together in San Francisco back in June for a mini-reunion since they were not able to attend the 25th reunion.

So let’s not let a moment go by without reaching out to a member of our Dartmouth ’98 family! Make sure the College has your updated information. Visit alumni.dartmouth.edu/directoryto update your communications. Interested in connecting to the greater Dartmouth community via a group? Well, you can find a group at alumni.dartmouth.edu/connect/find-group.

Lastly, I encourage you to reach out to me often to share your musings and meanderings! —Carline M. (Dorcena) Durocher, 137 Walnut St., Newton, Massachusetts 02460; cdurocher07@ gmail.com