Now let’s see what classmates are saying! (We know you haven’t really read the letter above yet….)
Suddenly finding himself teaching from home, Gregg O. Courtad began a marathon renovation of his two-hundred-year-old house, however, just when it seemed Gregg’s momentum was unstoppable, he developed an otherworldly addiction—to Dark Shadows! Yes, that supernatural soap opera from our childhood has come back to haunt Gregg as he struggles with online classes, hybrid classes and painful salary cuts—all due to COVID. One can only hope that once all the vampires and werewolves have been destroyed or exorcised, Gregg can resume a normal life revolving around paint, plaster and sawdust.
Reid Click is making the best of 100% online teaching for the entire academic year, but still wearing pants throughout it all. Although enjoying playing with new technology, he also misses the personal interaction with students. Since he is locked out of his office at George Washington University, he is teaching from the couch in the TV room with the tablet propped up by the thickness of Atlas Shrugged. The commute from the bedroom is very short! Plus, the TV comes in handy during the interminable online faculty meetings.
Mike Green and family have been making the most of COVID isolation with kayak and hiking trips. Mike was inducted into the Johns Hopkins Society of Scholars (virtually) for his work on U.S. foreign policy and Asian international relations. He also adds, “…that was in April. I forget how far back this was supposed to go.”
Rick Howell reports, “Our orthopaedic practice kept our employees paid through the slowdown, and we are picking back up. One thing this has shown me, with the extra time on my hands, is that I am DEFINITELY not ready for retirement!!!!! If I have that much time on my hands, I need to have the freedom to do things, visit friends, etc! At my son's graduation from U of Michigan last spring I noticed that Lisa Disch was one of the professors in the political science dept...Go Kenyon! (she didn't attend the graduation, otherwise I would've said hello) Hope everyone is staying healthy.”
And, always on cue, Lisa Disch explains, “I am delighted to say that I won the Democratic primary for Ann Arbor City Council Ward One. We're a Democratic town so I'm virtually assured victory next month.”
The Dale Marsh family sends this: "We now have two in College, but due to COVID, both are taking classes on-line from home. Dale Jr. got equal scholarships from Kenyon and Case (where mommy graduated), but mommy bought him a car. So he choose Case :( We all went to see the Mini Cooper S Dale Jr. wanted and I thought the slimy salesman wanted too much, so I said 'walk away' and we left. The next day, when I came home from work, the car was in our driveway; they went back and just gave the guy the asking price. We also recently acquired a second Golden Retriever, but he ate my sock. Good news is these days, not only is canine laparotomy, jejunotomy and foreign body retrieval considered outpatient surgery, veterinary surgeons give you back the sock in a bag. That way you can keep your sock pairs matched and don't have to go around wearing two different colored socks.... This is no joke, the veterinary surgeon's bill for sock removal from the dog's intestine was $500 more than my medicare surgeon's fee for a single vessel, on-pump, coronary artery bypass ($2400 vs $1900)!"
According to Taylor Johnson: “What a strange year it has been. I returned from a late-February family vacation in the Bahamas to the governor's stay at home orders due to COVID-19. Interpreting that as "work on your home" orders, I used the time to complete a cedar shingle siding repair, paint the exterior and two rooms of the house, work on a bathroom tiling job, and remove the vines taking over the back garden to reclaim use of it. I have also become adept at using video technology and social media platforms to promote my real estate business when in-person meetings have not been possible. In addition, I have created a Maryland business networking event through the Happy Neighborhood Project. In a strange way, this time of local isolation has brought me closer together with my family spread out across the US as we have set up weekly zoom gatherings of siblings, nieces, and cousins whom I would otherwise only "see" at a family wedding or funeral. However, after not leaving the DC area for seven months, I am really getting the itch to go somewhere, anywhere!”
Alex Veylupek sends: “I have completed my six months of chemotherapy (lymphoma) and am now dealing with the aftermath. I have severe nerve damage (neuropathy) in my hands and my feet. I am unsteady on my feet, and my fingers are as weak as can be, but I have faith in the physical therapy I am doing. I know I will get stronger and get through this. I am overwhelmed with all the love and support I have received from Kenyon alumni, mostly through the K-80's Facebook group. Thank you all!”
From Julie Kern (Goldblatt): “I am still an instructor/student supervisor for Columbia's Masters in Occupational Therapy program, but I am also very involved with an activism group I co-founded which has over 600 members and has written over 80,000 postcards getting out the Democratic vote, in addition to other activities. We have been living in our house in the Berkshires, and our kids recently started work in NYC and Boston, so having them close by is great.”
Tim Slager says, “I continue to enjoy my work in the employment services field, especially in helping individuals in career transition. My wife Melissa and I also look forward to celebrating our 35th wedding anniversary this year. I always enjoy running into Kenyon folks here in Northeast Ohio.”
Jack Emens shares: "Just wanted to share that I am in Kidney failure and am on dialysis. I am on a Transplant List at Ohio State University-Wexner in Columbus, Ohio. Anyone interested in becoming a living kidney donor for me please call OSU at: 800-293-8965, option 3. I can take blood types A or O. Thank you for considering giving the gift of life!"
And there is this from John Cannon: “Well it’s been a great year! I’m having my best year ever as a Stock Trader. I took Warren Buffet’s advice. And we had all 3 kids living at home for 5 months! This will never happen again so we really cherished it. My mom just turned 91 and Ellen’s mom turned 95 in June. Wow, truly blessed 🙏. Everyone is healthy in our world. Flatten the fear!”
Pamela Pleasants, setting up a couple others, reports: “I attended a quarantine zoom birthday party for Amy Brill in Thailand, I was in Boston, Ed Spodick showed up from Hong Kong and Amy McCloskey in NYC. An international party for sure with drinks no matter the time zone. Pam Slotsy was there in spirit or in ""spirits"" as the case may be! Such fun on zoom, which is a rarity!"
And on cue, here is Amy Brill’s news: “After getting trapped outside of China on Phuket for seven MONTHS (which I survived with excellent support from K80’s), I finally made it to Cairo for this year’s teaching gig. Rode a camel around the pyramids and took a Falucca ride down the Nile! For a lot of reasons, this is likely to be a one year gig, but I am grateful to be in an apartment I love and to have the opportunity to truly experience a new-to-me culture. Also over-the-moon excited about the impending birth of my first grandchild - Charlotte Reese - right around Election Day. Here’s hoping I get double good news in November!”
And we hear this from Amy McCloskey: “Unfortunately, I don't have good news. ... That's how I've had to preface each of the more than 250 emails I've sent in just the last two months to people inquiring about booking Madame X. Though we're fortunate to have a (mostly) understanding landlord, being shut down for seven months (so far), with no clear end in sight has been devastating to us, and to so many other small businesses in NYC. There's no question in my mind that we shouldn't be open. It was immediately clear that bars would be by far the best (worst?) place to catch an airborne virus. But BOY I do not want to go out like this after 22 years... Sending love and positive thoughts to others out there in our situation, and to those who have lost loved ones to this pandemic. I remain ever hopeful that the news for all of us will be better by the time the next Alumni Magazine is published.”
And finally, in a rare appearance, Jim Dempsey writes, “It's been as long time since I sent in a class note! All is well! My wife Kate and I have been living in the Cleveland suburb of Rocky River since 1998. We just celebrated our 25th wedding anniversary this year. Our son Jack is a sophomore at Xavier University in Cincinnati. I have been working in business-to-business media for over 30 years. Most of that time with Reed Business Information and UBM-Informa. Now working for Cleveland-based WTWH Media managing clients across the US for our EE World, Design World and R&D World brands.”
Best wishes to everyone in the Class of 1983!
