Each
Thanksgiving, my sister and I bring our families to my brother’s house in
Newton, MA. This year was a little different, because my son James brought his
girlfriend Becky along to meet the extended family. Brave child. She didn’t run
screaming from the house, so I think it went okay.
When
you’re dating someone, you want it to go well, and you put a lot of effort into
that. I’m surprised to learn that I, as a parent, feel a similar way about my
son and his girlfriend. I want it to go well for them. But there’s not a heck
of a lot I can do about it. I’m a nervous spectator. All I can do is watch and
hope.
Sorry
I missed sending out a newsletter in November. I was up to my eyeballs at work,
and too tired to do anything worthwhile when I got home.
We
are still thinking about holding a big 60th birthday party for all
of us in 2013. Many people have contributed lots of good ideas about where and
when to have it. I’ll let you know when we get it all sorted out.
Thanks
to some better information about some of our missing classmates, we now believe
we know the whereabouts of 699 classmates, a new record! I’m grateful to
everyone who forwards sightings of classmates. There’s a lot of us, and it’s a
lot for me to keep track of. I appreciate your help.
Condolences
to classmate Joyce Singer Lee, whose mother died in October. Here is more
information:
Condolences
to classmate Maria Zuena Perry, whose mother recently died. Here is more
information:
Classmates
Tom Iacono, his wife Nancy Goldis Iacono, and Monika Szynkarski Curnett recently
took a 2-week tour of Turkey, including visits to Istanbul, Pergamon, Troy,
Ephesus, Antalya, Pamukkale, and Cappadocia, which included a hot air balloon
ride over the amazing landscape.
Jakki
Kougasian Horan has lots of family goodness to report. Her oldest daughter,
Victoria, passed the MA and NH Bar Exams in October, all without taking a Bar
prep course, and also while holding down a full-time job in a law firm as both
receptionist and paralegal. Victoria also worked at the same full-time job for
the entire time she attended law school full-time in the evening. Victoria and
her husband George have custody of George's children, Dominic (11) and Jada
(7).
Jakki’s
middle daughter, Corie, graduated from Middlesex Community College in May 2012,
with an AS in Early Childhood Education. While Corie is looking for a job in a
daycare center or as a nanny, she is working at Marshall's.
Jakki’s
youngest daughter, Maggie, graduated from American University in 2011 and is a
forensic accountant in Manassas, VA, “which is much too far away”!
I
have two items to report myself. My son James now has a full-time job at the
Boston Museum of Science. He was a volunteer there for more than a year, then a
part-time employee for another year. He is now a guide at many of the special
exhibits (such as the Underwater Treasure and the Mastodon exhibits there now),
and helps run school trips to the museum. He loves his work and loves living in
Boston.
My
daughter Katie is a junior at Stonehill College, majoring in psychology and
communication. This year, she is also a Student Minister in her dorm. This is
something like an RA: she helps kids out, and they can come to her with
problems. She’s a junior on a floor with 28 freshman girls, so it’s like having
28 little sisters. She’s enjoying it a lot. She also volunteers 2 or 3 days a
week at My Brother’s Keeper, an organization near Stonehill that delivers food
and furniture to folks in need in southeast Massachusetts.
Ellie
and I are really proud of both of our kids!
We
have lots of ways to keep in touch online, now. For example, we have a web
site:
(thanks
to Ernie Sutcliffe for starting and maintaining)
and
Facebook group:
and
a Facebook event for the last Reunion:
Check
out one or more of these easy ways to see what people are up to.
And,
by the way, I post these updates online at http://chse1971.blogspot.com/.
Happy
Hanukkah!
Merry
Christmas!
Happy
New Year!
Ed
DeJesus
