1961

1961

It is now the end of February and the class of’61 has just completed its second mid-year mini-reunion of the fiscal year. The winter mini-reunion via Zoom was again focused mostly on our fellow classmates and their life experiences after Dartmouth, while at Dartmouth (where relevant), and prior to Dartmouth (if relevant). In addition, presentations and discussion with various members of the administration, faculty, and current students comprise about 30 percent of each mini-reunion schedule. However, even these sessions have had classmates as the moderator.

As usual, this recent mini-reunion was well organized, well produced, and well managed by Pete Bleyler, mini-reunion chair, with quality technical and operational assistance from Harris McKee and Maynard Wheeler. Also, as usual, about 90 people registered to attend, with approximately 60 in attendance for the entire four-hour formal session and some lesser number for the half-hour informal classmate discussion before and after the formal discussion and the halfhour women’s discussion group subsequent to the formal session.

Participants from the class in this minireunion, either as direct participants or as moderator, included Al Rozycki, Pete Bleyler, Oscar Arslanian, Hop Holmberg, Ted Tapper, Pete Tuschak, Ron Wybranowski. and Matt Friedman. Also active were three spouses of classmates: Karla Goodridge was a participant while Nyla Arslanian and Patti Rich were the co-coordinators and co-moderators of the ’61 women’s group session at the end of the formal program.

The segments of the program relating to quality presentations by and discussions with members of the Dartmouth faculty, administrators, and current students included Dartmouth’s new head football coach Sammy McCorkle along with two members ofthe current team and Dartmouth’s first vice president for government and human relations, Emma Wolfe.

In summary, the mini-reunion was informative, educational, interesting, and entertaining. Certainly I was one classmate (apparently among many others) who was not aware that John Kemeny, Dartmouth’s then faculty department head and future president, led the College’s successful effort to quietly admit 10 qualified Hungarian refugee students into the class of 1961 as scholarship students.

—Victor S. Rich, 94 Dove HUI Drive, Manhasset, NY11030; (516) 446-3977; richwindl3@gmail. com