Notes from the Cornell Class of 1991 - 2003 November/December

Class Notes, 2003 November/December

November/December 2003

Greetings to fellow Class of '91 Cornellians far and wide. It is indeed an honor to write to you again, and of course, with summer comes a new batch of happenings and announcements from our classmates. Currently, I am wading through piles of boxes from our recently completed move across town to the house we have been building for the past year. Since no good deed goes unpunished, Mother Nature has decided to follow a year of drought with a year of unprecedented rainfall, and thus, our "yard" is still a pile of mud. The good side is that I haven't had to mow anything in a few weeks and fire ants have been less of a problem than usual. Regardless, let's get to the news, as there is much to report.

News about children is dominating this issue's mailbag. Robert Koenig and wife Joi (Smith) wanted everyone to know that their twins Max and Sarah celebrated their second birthdays recently. Robert gave those of us in the Class Correspondent department a good-natured scolding for not reporting their births in 2001. While we always aim to please, timeliness is not the greatest of our virtues. Robert also says he is now the executive director for CIBC in New York City. Randall Singer lets us know that son Tyler Max was born to him and wife Margie on July 17, '02. Mike Reading, ME M '92, and wife Chris announce the birth of their second child, Megan Elizabeth, on Apr. 15. '03. Megan joins older sister Julia in the family. Mike also notes that he and Chris got together with Craig Bloom, Rick Kowalczyk, Eric Jones '93, and Cathy Dohnanyi '93 in Providence to watch Cornell play in the NCAA hockey quarterfinals.

Rebecca Gilliand Booth informs of us of the birth of her son Alden George on Feb. 15, '03. In no time at all, Alden will be getting into the toys of his older siblings Davis and Evalynn. Monica Ruehli and husband John Haggerty '92 had their first child, Bridgit Quinn, in March 2002, and Kristen Zittel Winiecki writes that she and husband Joe had their third child, Paul Joseph, on Dec. 26, '02. Patrick Nace wanted the class to know he now has two daughters, Gwendolyn and Franziska. Gwendolyn was born in December 2002 and Franziska in December of 1999.

Avinash Mehrotra and wife Anjali Sadarangani tell us that their daughter Amaya just turned 1, while her older brother Sajan is well into his terrible twos. Avinash notes that both are keeping him and Anjali on their toes. Having personally weathered the terrible twos at my house, I can certainly sympathize with them. To echo Jerry Seinfeld's sentiment, having a 2-year-old is like having a blender without the top.

Julie Snell Callanan reports the birth of her son Aidan Finbar Callanan in February 2002. She is also now a resident in psychiatry at the Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center. I suppose we can overlook the Dartmouth affiliation-for now. Andrew Puzzio, MPA '92, writes that 3-year-old son Aidan now has a little brother, Trevor Blaine, as of July 8, '03. Melanie Bloom Hoffman and husband Lee give us the news that Joshua Michael arrived on Jan. 12, '03. The family currently lives in Coconut Grove, FL, and Melanie says she is really enjoying being a full-time mom. Not too far from them, Marc Koutoufaris says he and wife Dee have moved to Jacksonville, FL, as part of his job with Daymon Associates. They recently welcomed daughter Zoe Olympia, and Marc says she is the light of their lives. In the last of the baby announcements from our prolific classmates, Kelly Lawas Fairbairn tells us of the birth of her second son, Jack Andrew, on May 29, '03. She also recently completed the purchase of Lockwood Leadership International, an international consulting firm.

I received only one marriage announcement for my column this cycle. Judging from the birth announcements, it would seem our classmates have largely moved on to the next phase of coupled life. However, Wendy Hobson-Rohrer, MD '95, wrote that she and Matt Rohrer were married on July 20, '02, on the ski slopes of Alta, UT. David Cynn, Kristin Carano, MD '95, and Jackie Cadwallader Burton were in attendance. Wendy also says that David Cynn married Alice Kim in February 2003. Cornellians at that wedding included Bill DeVinney, Amy Kunman Buckman, Kevin Drumm '92, Mark '90 and Cathy Stiehle Weigle '90, and Derek Swaak '90, MBA '91. Since Wendy is bursting with news for us, she also wants us to know that Jackie Cadwallader Burton gave birth to daughter Katie in January 2003. For her part, Wendy received her MD from Cornell in '95 and is now looking at making a job change, taking a position as an assistant professor of pediatrics at the U. of Utah.

In random news and notes, Marc-David Seidel, MBA '91, reports that he is now a professor of organizational behavior at the U. of British Columbia. Marc-David says he loves Vancouver, but would love to have fellow Cornellians in the area give him a buzz at UBC. Angela Shope Stiefbold and husband Mark have moved to Germany for Mark's job with Siemens. However, Mark deployed to the Middle East with his Army Reserve unit, so for now, Angela is making her way in Germany with daughters Madison, Quinn, and Anya. Keith McAfee recently moved from San Francisco to Richmond, VA, and took a job with Capital One. Keith says he is missing the Bay Area but still liking the East Coast okay. He saw Tamar Cohen in Roanoke last May (people go to Roanoke by choice apparently) and says that overall, things are good.

Nicole Bisagni Deltoro has started her own executive search firm after working in the industry for six years. Nicole tells us that Deb Wengel Heitmann had a baby last year and that she still keeps in touch with Tammy Blum Ross and Sumaya El-Ashry Ali. Both live in Florida, and Tammy has a daughter while Sumaya has two wonderful sons. Jim Coburn graduated from Boston College Law School in May 2003. Salvador Cuadra finished his residency in general surgery this past June and will start a fellowship in vascular surgery in July. Shaun Cho, MD '95, finished his fellowship in cardiac electrophysiology at Stanford and is joining a private cardiology practice in the San Francisco area. Last, but most assuredly not least, Rebecca Abeles Couillard. PhD '98, informs us that she is teaching scuba diving at Cornell part-time while raising her 4-year-old daughter Sarah.

These columns always seem to go so fast when there is so much news to share with everyone. If you are with me here in the Carolinas, do your best to stay dry despite the daily monsoons. Hopefully, by the time this is published we will all be enjoying a colorful fall and winter. Take care everyone and keep the news coming in. *Dave Smith, DocDS30@yahoo.com; Nina Rosen Peek, nsr5@cornell.edu or NinaPeek@aol.com; and Corinne Kuchling, kuccori@hotmail.com.