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Class Mailings to Date - Post Reunion '08!
June 27, 2008
Dear Classmates,
I wish I could personally thank everyone who attended our 40th, because that is why it was such a great success! The total number of returnees was 89, a record high for a Skidmore 40th Reunion Class and for the Class of 1968 within the last 10 years! We had 38 alumni attend our 35th and 83 attend our 30th.
Another high note was the number of classmates who came to Reunion for the first time and the number of Nursing majors who were able to come. Kudos to Martha MacDonald Price. Could you ever imagine 100% attendance from our nursing majors?
When the Reunion picture came, I revisited some of the conversations and chuckles I enjoyed over the weekend. I also noted, however, that there were some people I never saw and never spoke to; I am sorry about that and just hope to see them in '13!
Of course, there is always the money angle, and WOW, did we ever succeed in that. Thanks to the diligence of Susan Hirsch Schwartz, Class Fund Chair, Ellen Rosen Wolfson, Class Friends of the Presidents Chair, and several Class Agents, we raised $104,199 from 52% of the class, including 16 FOPs. This was our best philanthropic effort ever! A huge thank you to all who helped us exceed our lofty goal. In honor of our Reunion, our class gift will be designated for the Class of '68 Annual Fund Scholarships to make a difference in the lives of talented and deserving students. Stay tuned this fall to hear from "our" scholarship recipients!
I would also like to thank Julie Traylor and the three panelists she lined up for our class panel discussion centered around the theme of our Reunion: Still Changing-- the World and Ourselves. I thoroughly enjoyed hearing about Roxie Currie Wales' seven year segments, Foxie Henn-Mason's tips for success as we enter our 60's, and Marty MacDonald Price's priceless story of how her life evolved.
Another high point was seeing the fabulous artwork of Lauren Ewing, Pat Ferguson Nobo, and Marsha Petersen Kenny displayed at the Tang Museum in the fourteenth Annual Reunion Art Exhibition. It was very impressive to see all that talent!
Foxie and her good sport husband, Richard, did a bang-up job in the Hospitality Suite – lots of good conversation and camaraderie were to be found there. Staying in the dorm was a hoot, even if we were a little chilly during the first night. Much laughter and levity were to be heard in those stark dorm rooms.
The weekend ended with a Memorial Service in the Surrey Gardens celebrating the lives of our classmates and those in other Reunion classes who have passed away since our last Reunion. It was a very moving service in an absolutely beautiful setting at the Alumni Memorial Garden behind the Surrey Williamson Inn.
Of course, Carrie VonKloberg and Jeanne Shipp Waldinger continue to be the anchors of our class, and thank goodness they are. We all are grateful for their dedication and devotion to Skidmore!
Thanks to Jeanne for being our Class Historian and to all of the classmates who submitted their personal stories and pictures for our Class History. If you didn't attend Reunion, the Alumni Office has a few extra copies of our class history available for purchase for only $10, and they will ship it right to you. Please call them at 518-580-5610 if you are interested.
The Office of Advancement, specifically Megan Mercier, Lisa Hilberg '04 and Lori Eastman '87 and their staff, worked tirelessly to set the stage for a super 40th Reunion and deserve our thanks. The Skidmore office of Advancement is very easy to work with, for those of you who would like to help out in volunteer roles now or with the 45th! Just let us know! If you have feedback from our 40th or ideas for our 45th please email them to our Class Secretary, Dorothy Kanrich Sandford at sscott106@aol.com.
If you'd like to share your digital photos from the weekend, please email them to Mary Monigan, who will post them on the 1968 photo gallery page. Her email address is mmonigan@skidmore.edu.
Sincerely,
Judy
Judith Norman O'Connell
Class Reunion Chair
These pre-reunion letters are listed in chronicle order
December 13, 2007
Dear Class of ’68,
At our reunions, our Class History has given us a way to learn about our classmates’ lives since Skidmore. Our reunion theme “Still Changing …Our World and Ourselves,” seems very appropriate for those of us who made history by beginning the “Baby Boom”. In Judy Norman O’Connell’s September Class Reunion Chair letter, Judy gave us the following encouragement to attend reunion.
S SIXTY-EIGHTERS--STILL CHANGING…OUR WORLD AND
OURSELVES
K KUDOS TO OUR PAST AND FUTURE ACCOMPLISHMENTS!
I INVOLVED AND INTRUIGING WOMEN
D D'ANDREAS, DATES (DREADFUL AND DREAMY), HAPPY HOUR
AND HAPPY PAPPY
M MEMORIES AND MILESTONES
O OLD CAMPUS, NEW CAMPUS, OLD FRIENDS, NEW FRIENDS
R REUNION ‘08: REKINDLE, REFRESH, RESTORE, AND RENEW
E EVERYONE, PLEASE JOIN US!
For our Class History for our 40th Reunion, we would love to hear, how are you still changing? What are your past accomplishments and what do you hope to accomplish in the future? What keeps you involved and what intrigues you? What are you doing with your time? What do you find rewarding? What is important to you? What makes you laugh? What have you learned recently? What surprises you about your life now?
Whatever you decide to share with us, we will welcome your contribution to our history.
To complete your 40th Reunion Class History response, you can do that right now by clicking on the Class History icon on the left.
Simply save the word document as "yourname.doc" to your desktop, complete it, and email as an attachment to me at JeanneWaldinger@comcast.net If you do it now, that would be wonderful. The deadline is February 29, 2008.
The format of this year’s Class History gives you one or two pages to fill almost any way you like. You can answer any or all the questions we have asked, or ask and answer your own. Photographs (either digital or printed) are welcome. You can email photographs as attachments to me.
If you prefer to send your completed Class History page or pages to me by US Mail, please send them to me at 4 Strawberry Hill, Dover, MA 02030.
Remember, at Skidmore today “Creative Thought Matters” so your page in our Class History can look and sound as unique as you are!
I hope you will all try to return for our celebration in May 2008. But even if you can’t attend, please send your contribution to our Class History. Our classmates would love to read about your news, what’s on your mind and your plans for the future.
I’m looking forward to hearing from all of you, and seeing you again in Saratoga May 29-June 1, 2008.
With best wishes,
Jeanne Shipp Waldinger
Class Historian
June 14, 2007
Greetings to all, and I hope this letter finds you well and enjoying spring. Everything is lush and green here and the days are getting longer. Some campus and class news follows.
CAMPUS
2007 Commencement
It was a great day, despite a little cold and much rain. The excitement was more prevalent, and we welcomed 648 alums to this wonderful side of the Skidmore community. Honorary degrees were awarded to prize-winning reporters Tom Brokaw and Linda Greenhouse, and Nora Naranjo-Morse, master sculptor, writer and filmmaker President Glotzbach’s address, “Angels in Architecture,” was inspiring for students, parents and all present. He reflected on significant transitions in the lives of both individuals and families. I can’t distill all of his thoughts here. (You can read the entire address on the Web site www.skidmore.edu.) His words “learn to cherish your experience with both comfort and familiarity, and your encounters with the uncertainty of feeling a bit lost, of starting over in a place. Never lose the courage to shift your course on this journey called life – and begin the process of turning an idea into some great thought or deed,” were most meaningful to me.
I also stopped at the Schick Art Gallery to see the Skidmore Alumni Exhibit and was so pleased to see the beautiful works of one of our classmates, Elena Borstein. The brochure with Elena’s work on the cover is available at www.skidmore.edu/academics/art/schick/Alumni07.htmlP.
Physical Changes
The campus continues to evolve in the most wonderful ways. For those who have not been back recently, the new Northwoods Village apartments and the newly renovated Murray-Aikins dining hall (on my list as one of the best places to dine in town) are a sight to see. Site work has begun on the new Zankel Music Center this summer; it will serve as the new gateway to campus and will greatly enhance all that Skidmore has to offer.
CLASS NOTES
Dorothy Kanrich Sandford, who has been our Fund Chair for many years, will be assuming the role of Class Secretary. Jeanne Shipp Waldinger has asked to step down due to many professional and personal commitments, but has graciously agreed to be involved in reunion activities again this year. Susan Hirsch Schwartz will be our new Class Fund Chair. All have given much service to our class over the years, and we truly thank them for their past, current and future efforts.
So many of you have also given of your time, effort and gifts through the years. We appreciate all of your efforts and hope you will continue all the great work that you do.
Julianne Cartwright Traylor has recently accepted a position on the Alumni Board of Directors as Alumni Trustee. I will look forward to working with her, as I will be Chair of Class Council on the same board.
Upcoming Reunion and Reunion Planning
I had the pleasure of meeting with Renee Akel Rosebrook and Cathy Traber Ruff recently. We talked about our upcoming 40th reunion, and they have some great ideas. They uncovered some photos from our years. Does anyone else have any photos to scan, send and share?
Please give some feedback, and send your photos, and ideas. Please send your news to Dorothy Sanford at sscott10@aol.com.
Best regards.
Carrie
Carol J. VanKloberg
Class President
