Notes from the Cornell Class of 1991 - 2009 January/February

Class Notes, 2009 January/February

January/February 2009

With the holidays behind us and before the winter doldrums set in, grab a cup of hot cocoa, relax by the fire with your Cornell Alumni Magazine, and enjoy reading the many exciting updates from your classmates. Wedding bells continue to ring for the Class of '91! Wayne Hickey has been out in Seattle, WA, for almost nine years now and was married in August 2008 to Paige Young. About three weeks after their wedding Wayne switched jobs; he is a senior vice president at Edelman, a public relations firm, overseeing its global Xbox account. He also works with Edelman's worldwide digital entertainment practice as a senior strategist. Wayne says, "It's been a great year, but I think that's about as much change as I can handle for now." Wayne and Paige had a small, family-only wedding, but for the wedding party the following week, Billy Navas '90 and wife Susanne flew out from Connecticut. Wayne and his bride had plans to see Chris Milazzo and wife Heidi (and their son Max) in January during their two-week honeymoon in New Zealand.

Wendy Milks (Portland, ME) married Robert Coburn on Sept. 22, 2007. Chuck and Julie Welch Alvarez '92 were at the wedding. Wendy and Robert welcomed son Stephen Larsen Coburn on Sept. 29, 2008. She says that everyone is well. John Heimlich married Layla Voll at the Cosmos Club in Washington, DC, on Oct. 4, 2008. Cornellians in attendance included Jon Kay '92, Doug Han, William Hanisch, Sanjeev Dhawan, Sameer Desai, Amy Haught Slusher, and Wendy Fisler Petti '76, MAT '78. John is vice president and chief economist for the Air Transport Assn. of America. He continues to play clarinet with a local quintet and is captain of his softball team. Layla is a medical librarian with the Washington Hospital Center and active in a variety of charitable causes. They live in DC's Woodley Park neighborhood.

In baby news, Mark Mower (Los Angeles, CA) writes that he and wife Kathleen welcomed their first child, Mason Priel Mower, on Sept. 17, 2008. Debra McMahon Williams (New Haven, CT) shares that she had a son, Dennis "Denny" Gary Williams, on Jan. 12, 2008, and has been busy watching over him; she loves parenthood. Debra is a consultant at Collective Energy Consulting LLC, and helps individuals and teams "get out of their own way" using a technique for improving constructive and creative thinking. Rachel Teck Moore (Williamsburg, VA) is a sixth grade language arts teacher. She also enjoys taking care of her 6-month-old granddaughter. For fun, Rachel attends 18th-century dances at Colonial Williamsburg. What she remembers most fondly about Cornell was visiting the parks and gorges and the Plantations.

Elena Klaw and her spouse and daughter, 6, live in San Jose, CA. Elena is an associate professor at San Jose State U. and director of the Center for Community Learning & Leadership. Her book Mentoring and Making it in Academe: A Guide for Newcomers to the Ivory Tower is now out in paperback. To order copies, call the Rowman and Littlefield customer service dept. at (800) 462-6420 and use the promotion code "UPREPUB." Jon Krumerman lives in his adopted state of Texas with his wife, daughters ages 10 and 8, a Boston terrier, and a baby Doberman who thinks she runs the place. Coming from Miami, Jon never thought he would live in Dallas or any other land-locked city, but he really likes it, especially the people. As a native Austinite, I know what Jon means! He says Dallas weather is pretty unforgiving in the summer, so they spend much of the season in San Diego, CA. Jon practices neurosurgery and is in the process of building a spine hospital. Although Jon enjoys his work very much, he admits that he needs a break and looks forward to escaping to Paris (as in France--not Texas). Bon voyage!

Carrie Koenig (Telluride, CO) reports that her recent endeavors include real estate brokerage (http://www.tellurideproperties.com), managing a vacation rental property (www.Visit-TellurideColorado.com), and learning about passive solar design to build her own off-grid cabin next year. Carrie tells us that she has not married, yet, but is open to suggestions! Meanwhile, she enjoys a lifestyle of outdoor adventure in the Rocky Mountains: hiking, biking, and skiing. Trevor Morris writes that he played Go regularly as an undergrad, restarting and running the Cornell Go Club. On Oct. 11, 2008, he traveled to China to compete in Go at the first World Mind Sports Games and stayed in the same place in Beijing that housed the Olympic athletes. Go, probably the most popular board game in the world, is so old Confucius mentioned it in the 5th century BCE. It is especially popular in Korea and Japan, where it is called "Igo," a derivation of its English name. According to usgo.org, "Beyond being merely a game, Go can take on other meanings to enthusiasts: an analogy with life, an intense meditation, a mirror of one's personality, an exercise in abstract reasoning, or, when played well, a beautiful art in which black and white dance across the board in delicate balance."

A star is born (or, more likely, will continue to shine): Francine Goldstein Tajfel was selected for the New Jersey Super Lawyers-Rising Stars Edition 2008. The list was published in the August 2008 edition of New Jersey Monthly. Only 2.5 percent of lawyers in the state are named to the list, which represents up-and-coming attorneys who are either 40 and under or who have practiced for ten years or less. Francine is an associate at Wilentz, Goldman and Spitzer PA. Her practice focuses on commercial real estate, commercial leasing, and the preparation of governing documents for the sale of condominiums and planned real estate developments. Francine has lectured on condominium law for the New Jersey Inst. for Continuing Legal Education.

Todd Zielinski (Atlanta, GA) has been traveling throughout the US and Asia (China and Vietnam) for work. He is a global sourcing director at Georgia Pacific, but would rather be traveling with his family and friends. When he is not traveling the world, he enjoys playing tennis and golf, but especially chasing his sons, ages 4 and 1. Todd writes that one thing he remembers about his time at Cornell is hanging out at 101 Eddy St. and 517 E. Buffalo with B, C, Drewski, Dre, Skin, Satch, Selley, Stash, Noel, and, of course, Janese! Please continue to share news with us via e-mail, through the link on our class website (http://classof91.alumni.cornell.edu), or on the news form in our most recent class mailing. We love to hear from you! Sharlyn Carter Heslam, sheslam@berkshirepartners.com; Ariane Schreiber Horn, ams14@cornell.edu; and Kathryn Kraus Bolks, klk22@cornell.edu.