Notes from the Cornell Class of 1991 - 2016 July/August

Class Notes, 2016 July/August

July/August 2016

If you are reading this, you are either reflecting back on our class's 25th Reunion in Ithaca or hearing about the event from your classmates who traveled far and wide to remember, reminisce, and share their adventures since their time on the Hill. A Reunion Report will appear in the Sept/Oct issue. For those who could not make it, here are some notes from our classmates.

First off is an inspiring story of the efforts of Felise Feingold (Newport, RI) and her fellow Cornell Delta Gamma sisters to raise over $150,000 for the Ovarian Cancer Research Fund (OCRF). For Felise, this was a personal journey as she is an ovarian cancer survivor who also lost her mother to the disease. The indoor cycling event held at the Easton's Beach Rotunda in October 2015 included more than 100 participants, including classmates and DG sisters Lisa Dale, Cynthia Lee Dow, Debbie Fine, Sharlyn Carter Heslam, Amy Gellert Lebovitz, Kari Ginsberg Nesbit, Jenny Harris, Kristen Sciacca, and Kris Hurley Van Riper, who collectively raised over $50,000 toward the event's success. It's great to see our classmates band together and make a difference.

We have another update from the Ocean State. Laura North Pippitt writes, 'We are still in Rhode Island. While I'm home raising the kids, I love being a Girl Scout leader, playing on multiple tennis teams, and sewing for the kids' school plays. The kids are growing up quickly. Robby, 11, is in fifth grade and enjoys playing lacrosse, soccer, and Pokemon. Ashley, 9, is in fourth grade. She is on multiple cheer and gymnastics teams and also likes Pokemon. Both of them love acting in the school plays. Tom is with Ameriprise Financial and loves to take us boating." Jennifer Leeds (Walnut Creek, CA) happily shares that her son Tjaden was accepted into the Class of 2020! He will be a freshman in Arts and Sciences on the Hill this fall. It's exciting that the next generation of Cornellians are getting to share the Quad and halls of their parents.

Joshua Berman (Chevy Chase, MD) sent us the following update: "After more than seven years as a federal prosecutor and then more than 11 in private law practice, I recently returned to public service. I was appointed by President Obama to serve as the Deputy General Counsel of the US Commerce Dept. My wife, Amy (Kroe) '94, is a civil rights education lawyer and the deputy director of the National Academy of Education. She and I have two awesome boys (ages 12 and 9). When not playing endless baseball, the older one is honing his drum skills in several rock and roll bands, no doubt to play at the Haunt someday. Our younger one pines for the open seas and certainly will be found on Cayuga Lake before we know it." Joshua also writes that one of the best decisions he made was when he and his wife endowed a scholarship at Cornell several years ago to create annual scholarship opportunities-"in honor of a close friend who died, but who was a wonderful caregiver and educator to our young children." It's the contributions of our class that make future classes possible.

I close out this column with a thank you to everyone who has sent in news to keep us all in touch, and the efforts of the staff at Cornell Alumni Magazine. Most of the time, we get things right. This is my last column for a while as I move on to other commitments. In this age of Facebook and other social media, it's easier to keep in touch with our close classmates. However, it's these notes that surprise and connect us as a class in ways we don't anticipate. Thank you for letting me be able to hear and share your stories. I hope you get involved with our class and keep those updates coming. *Charles Wu, ccwu@mac. com; Tom Greenberg, twg22@cornell.edu; and Wendy Milks Coburn, wmilkscoburn@me.com. Online news form, http://www.alumni.cornell.edu/participate/class-notes.cfm.