Notes from the Cornell Class of 1991 - 1995 September/October

Class Notes, 1995 September/October

September 1995

Greetings! If the health of our class is to be determined by the number of doctors in it, then we will probably all live to a ripe old age. I just received a pair of news releases from Baylor College of Medicine announcing that Parul Desai and Naresh Patel had graduated this past spring. Parul will be performing her residency in family practice at Thomas Jefferson Hospital in Philadelphia, while Naresh will be performing his residency in neurosurgery at Mt. Sinai Hospital in New York City. I also received a letter from Gemma Guillermo, now performing her residency in psychiatry at the U. of California at San Francisco after graduating from Cornell Medical College this past spring. Gemma also wrote that best friend Doantrang Du graduated from Mount Sinai medical school and is doing her residency in internal medicine at Albert Einstein/Montefiore Hospital in NYC. Both were in Paris this past spring, where they got to see Patrick So and Genie Cortez '92.

Yet more medical news comes from Reunion Chair Jeff Weintraub, who also graduated from Cornell Med. Jeff is now an intern in emergency medicine in Philadelphia. Jeff wrote with news of several other classmates who also graduated from Cornell Med this past spring. Piers Barker is a resident in pediatrics in Baltimore, Steve Bryant is in internal medicine in NYC, Cindy Johnson is in pediatrics in Philadelphia, Greg Oleyourryk is in urology in Rochester, and Shaun Cho is in internal medicine in Philadelphia.

Jeff wanted me to pass along news regarding Reunion next June. (Gee, have we really been out for almost five years?) We will need volunteers to help organize events and run the weekend for our class. Please consider helping us out.1 Also, our class officers (president, vice president, treasurer, secretary, class correspondents, and Reunion chairs) will be announced at Reunion. Anyone interested in taking on one of these jobs for the next five years will need to submit a personal statement, but watch future columns for further details. I hope to see you all back on the Hill for Reunion in 1996!

Jason Feinsmith called me a while back to pass on various news items from his life. Jason recently changed jobs and is now the university program manager at Xilinx, a company which produces programmable logic chips. Jason is responsible for working with universities to incorporate Xilinx chips into student labs. Jason mentioned that he and wife Elana (Adleman) '89 hosted a Passover seder this past spring. Attendees included Cornellians Susan Cohen, Bill Rusitzky, MBA '90, Deirdre Newman '89, and Steve Rueben '90. Jason also mentioned that his cousin Todd Feinsmith, JD '91, was married to classmate Kristen Paltz on May 6. The wedding took place in Anabel Taylor Hall, with the reception at the Statler.

News of two other spring weddings comes via The New York Times. Elizabeth Collard married Craig Richter '89 in May. Both attended New York U., Elizabeth for law and Craig for medicine. Elizabeth is currently an associate at Fish & Neave in NYC, while Craig is an ophthalmology resident at the New York Eye and Ear Infirmary. Also, Jennifer Woolf married James McCarrick Jr. '92 in June. Jennifer finished her veterinary degree at the U. of Florida this past spring, while James is working on his PhD at MIT. Congratulations to all of the newlyweds!

Thanks to the hardworking folks at Cornell, I have been well-supplied with news releases about our classmates. Dave DeCecco is now an account executive with National Media Group in New Y ork, a sports marketing firm. Dave had been director of public relations for the Amateur Athletic Union in Indianapolis, after receiving his MS in sports management from the U. of Massachusetts. Thomas Corcoran received his JD from Tulane law school last year, and has joined the Columbia, SC office of Nelson, Mullins, Riley & Scarborough, a large law firm with offices in several Southeastern cities.

There is also news of several classmates who are in the Navy. Lt. Jeffrey Hyink earned his gold wings as a naval aviator last winter, and is stationed in Meridian, MS. Two classmates recently returned from overseas deployments. Matthew Dorr served aboard the aircraft carrier USS Eisenhower in the Persian Gulf, enforcing the no-fly zone over Iraq, and in the Adriatic Sea, supporting the humanitarian efforts in Bosnia. Matthew also got to visit France, Greece, Israel, Italy, Spain, Turkey, and the United Arab Emirates during his tour. Lt. Theodore Enders was aboard the amphibious ship USS Ogden in the Persian Gulf and in Somalia, where he helped in the UN withdrawal. Theodore also visited Australia, Hong Kong, Kuwait, Pearl Harbor, Singapore, and the United Arab Emirates.

Well, that's the news for this month. I hope all is well with all of you, and that you will tell me what is going on in your lives. I leave you with this thought: "In philosophy, it is not the attainment of the goal that matters, it is the things that are met with by the way." (Havelock Ellis, The Dance of Life) *Howard Stein, 600 Warren Rd., #32D, Ithaca, NY 14850; (607) 257-3922.

October 1995

As the 1996 Olympics draw near, many of us are gearing up for the games and festivities. Kim Brown Bixler said she and her husband bought a house in Morningside, GA and welcome any visitors. Kim also adds that she attended Jeff Loiter's wedding in Chicago over Memorial Day weekend. She comments, "It was a wonderful and educational ceremony!" Stephen Weinstein has also relocated to the Atlanta area, where he is working at Ogilvy & Mather advertising agency.

Amon Rosan is in New York City, but his company is working on a project to provide all of the tent flooring for the 1996 Olympic Games. Also in the city, Kirsten Blau married Douglas Krohn at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden. Kirsten is now an associate publisher at Advanstar Communications in NYC, and Douglas is in his second year at Albert Einstein College of Medicine. Beth Chartoff is working at Donaldson, Lufkin, & Jenrette after receiving her MBA from Wharton. Meanwhile, Alison Miller came to the city after living in Rome, Italy for the past two years. She was painting and working for an artist there, and in NYC she is working for an auction house while she continues painting on her own.

Ina Kurcz is in the Bronx after she graduated from U. of Michigan law school in December 1994, passed the New York Bar Exam, and traveled to Russia on a fellowship. Ina worked in Moscow for two months for IRIS (the Center for Institutional Reform and the Informal Sector) under the direction of Lane Blumenfeld '89. Holly Geiger married David Kotler '90 in September 1994. In May, she started working for Andersen Consulting in human resources. Holly and David live in Hoboken, NJ.

There are just as many classmates throughout the streets of Chicago. Chris Casieri is working for MacArthur Foundation. He also gives news about other classmates: Andre Bourghol is working at Mt. Sinai Medical in New York, Andy Kimmel is an engineer for Dental Laser Co. in California, and Todd Zielinski is at Duke business school. Darcy Andrew graduated from MIT's Sloan School of Management in May and now lives in Chicago, where she works as a consultant at Price Waterhouse.

Stephanie Goldstein and Adam Black were married in June in Washington, DC. Stephanie graduated from Temple U. medical school last May and Adam, from Northwestern U. medical school. Their residencies will be in Chicago. Cornellians attending the wedding were Joanne Pundyk, Jill Bernstein '93, and Jen Diamond, who were bridesmaids; also present were Cathy Merrill, Jill Berger, Nina Rosen, Michael Peek '88, Lynne Rumberg, Stephen Goldstein '92, Rob Odell '92, and Scott Berniker.

Florida is another place flooded with Cornellians. Amy Seegal says she is enjoying life in sunny Miami. She is currently working as a museum educator for Dade County Public Schools and as a freelance illustrator. Amy reports that Elissa Icso '90 is working in NYC as an architect, and Steve Schwartz graduated from New York U. medical school. Joel Stevens is a financial advisor associate with Sanford Bernstein and Co. Inc. investment research and management and lives in W. Palm Beach. Joel serves on the board of the Cornell Club of Eastern Florida, and is active in the Cornell EPE Program. Tammy Blum married Mitch Ross in March. Cornellians at the wedding were Sumaya El-Ashry Ali, Nicole Bisagni, Jennifer Perna '92, Debbra Klugewicz '92, Maria Tillis Hanagan, Victoria Gyimesi '92, Deborah Stein '93, Lynn Bilgore '88, and Lauren Blum '89. Tammy is now working at the Westin Hotel, Cypress Creek in Ft. Lauderdale as the national corporate sales manager. Sumaya El Ashry was married last September in Maryland. Classmates present were Tammy Blum Ross, Nicole Bisagni, Nancy Beninati, and Lauren Blum '89. Sumaya is living in Hallandale, FL.

Jill Gordon, who was married to Eli Steigelfest in May at Boca Resort and Club, graduated from Albert Einstein College of Medicine in June. Classmates who attended the wedding included Ellen Goode, Katrina Peck Overton, Debbie Snoonian, Jenny Sherwood, Heidi Hirvonen, Amy Chen '88, and Rob and Sue Portman Price, both '90. Letitia Todd expects to graduate from U. of Michigan law school in May 1996. She says she traveled to South America, Europe, Australia, and Asia. Letitia says she ran into Cornellians in Uruguay, Nepal, Thailand, and Japan!

On the West Coast, Michelle Minotti is in San Mateo, CA, where she is employed by Pinnacle Data Corp./Fastrac Systems of San Francisco in marketing. Michelle and David Campbell, PhD '90 have married. Joshua Laterman is in Manhattan Beach, CA. Joshua toured Japan with fellows from the Leadership Inst. and was a summer associate with Brobeck, Phlegen, & Harrison in Los Angeles. He expects to do a lot of barbecuing by the beach with his new roommate Greg Darrah. *Melanie Bloom, 315 E. 85th St., #2C, NYC 10028.