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CLASS NOTES
Kevin
Fay
Robert W. Passloff
Roy Pomerantz Rebecca Lauren Pomerantz was born on August 27. She weighed 6 lbs., 11 oz., and looks forward to meeting all of you at our 20th reunion. Andy Gershon spoke to Koko Eaton, who plans to bring his wife and kids to reunion. Robert Drew writes, “I briefly sold mechanical mice on the streets of New York after graduating. A professor I took a class with during my last semester at Columbia changed my grade from a B+ to an A- in exchange for one of these mechanical mice. I am associate professor of communication at Saginaw Valley State University in Michigan. My book Karaoke Nights: An Ethnographic Rhapsody was published in 2001 by AltaMira Press.” Dennis Searby ’85 notes, “Hello! I saw your class notes and noticed Alex Treitler’s name among committee members. I live in Stockholm where I got to know Alex quite a number of years ago but lost contact with him. Do you have his e-mail address?” Any other classmates interested in contacting ’83 graduates should send me an e-mail: bkroy@msn.com. John Alfone ’97 writes, “In the last issue of Columbia College Today, Steven Rubenstein was trying to reach out to alums breaking into the film industry (like myself). Do you have his contact info? Also in your class is a writer/director named P.J. Pesce. I’d like to get his info, as well.” It’s great to see the Columbia alumni network assisting recent graduates! George Wilson has been an unbelievable asset to the reunion committee. He is “dedicated to working with all volunteers to make this a ‘kick-ass’ reunion year.” George has done an outstanding job contacting classmates. He provides us with the following updates: Vincent Casey and his brother, Bob Casey, are practicing law in NYC. Michael Cataldo is redoing his new “old” home in Hingham, Mass. He enjoys offshore motor cruising. John Crofoot lives in the Atlanta area. Mark Devlin is an architect in NYC. Ronald Fiske works at CSFB and lives in Connecticut. John Gambino works and lives on Long Island. Ben Heimsath is an architect with his family architectural/development firm in Austin, Texas, specializing in religious structures (churches, synagogues, etc.). Stephen Huntley-Robertson lives large in Tampa, Fla., and is a bank officer with Bank of America. Also, John Kiernan is a real estate asset manager with Alecta, a European-based investment manager. Miroslav Lovric is a U.S. Federal Prosecutor for the Eastern District of N.Y. His wife is a Barnard alum. Anthony Marcus lives in Washington, D.C., and works for the U.S. Treasury Department in emerging markets. Michael McCarthy lives in Brooklyn Heights and works for AMBAC. His wife is a Barnard alum. Richard Pressman is married and practicing law in the city of Brotherly Love. Elliot Quint runs his family business in the Boston area. Luis Rueda is a design director for Nike on the West Coast. Laurits Schless lives in Philadelphia. Martin Shore is an architect in Washington, D.C. Joseph Sullivan is a businessman in the suburbs of Philadelphia. Mark Warner is an MBS investment specialist with Blackrock. He lives with his wife and kids in New Jersey. John Gil lives and works in Suffolk County, N.Y., as an M.D. Michael Pucker, a Boston boy, is now living and practicing law in the Windy City. James Oschal lives in Pennsylvania and practices law. George reports that the following classmates are MIA: Roy Canty, Frank Koumantaris, Ralph Lane, Dion Macellari, Thai Nguyen, Matthew Stedman and Mark Urban. Thanks again, George, for your tremendous support. Jill Levey ’88, former Alumni Office representative for our class, writes, “Hi, everyone. I gave birth on July 18 in our new car to another girl, Rachel Sophie Powlen.” From Daniel Ferreira: “My family has relocated to Pennsylvania from Florida. I intend to attend the Class of 1983 reunion, and I am willing to help in this locale and possibly in NYC.” Eric Epstein: “I am an attorney for the New York City Law Department/Office of Corporation Counsel. My wife, Michele Shapiro ’85 Barnard, is the entertainment director for Self. We have a wonderful daughter, Esme Serena Epstein, who is 3, and we live in the North Gramercy area of Manhattan. I am interested in joining the 20th reunion committee.” Robert Lucero notes, “Much belated response to your invitation in mid-June to be part of the Class of 1983 reunion committee. My apologies … I would be delighted to participate if it’s not too late. I work in Newington, Conn. (when I’m not in an airplane), and live in Essex, Conn. I would love to be a part of making our 20th something special. I took note in a recent letter you sent of the interesting cross-section of Class of 1983 alums who are already on your committee.” Robert, thanks for the e-mail. There is still plenty of planning to do for reunion, and new volunteers are welcome. We already have about 50 people on the committee, and our goal is to have more than 100 classmates at the reunion. Based on the feedback thus far, our reunion will be the best-attended 20th in decades. From Greg Keller: “I’m responding to the most recent issue of CCT where my old roommate, Gerry Brandt, inquired about me. I’m beginning my seventh season as a stage director at the Metropolitan Opera. Last season, I directed Lulu with Christine Schafer, Franz Mazura and Hanna Schwarz. This season, I will be directing Don Giovanni with Dmitri Hvorostovsky in the title role. I’ve recently received my advanced certification as a scuba diver, and have logged more than a dozen dives in Hawaii and Mexico. P.S.: I’ve not heard from Bob Asher, either.” Greg, it’s great that Class Notes have provided a forum for you to reconnect with your old roommate. The reunion will also provide a unique opportunity to reconnect. Michael Calabrese reports, “ I am a professor of English at California State University, Los Angeles, and the author of a dozen articles on Chaucer and other medieval authors, such as Boccaccio, the Gawain poet, Marie de France, and a book on Chaucer (Chaucer’s Ovidian Arts of Love, University Press of Florida, 1994). I owe it all to alma mater!” Jack Abuhoff requested that we set up another tutorial with Professor Karl-Ludwig Selig. Any other classmates wanting to participate should contact me. Jack also notes, “My two girls bring me so much joy, it can’t even be described.” Ed Joyce has been extremely active in the planning for reunion. He has allowed us to use his law offices for meetings and has provided outstanding leadership. He writes, “It’s been 20 years since I last put on the Columbia Lion’s suit. Yikes! Where do I start? Linda Gerstel ’83 Barnard and I met 12 years ago at my former law firm, Anderson Kill. We were married in 1993. We never knew each other at Columbia/Barnard, although we figured out that we took one of Esther Fuchs’ political science classes at the same time. Linda and I have two girls, Kayla (7) and Sarah (6), and one boy, Adin (18 months). Adin was born on my 40th birthday. Given [my kids’] incredible height, I either have the makings of an incredible front line for basketball or a solid ‘engine room’ for a rowing eight. I am a very lucky person. “I saw Mike McCarthy at the John Jay Dinner at the Plaza Hotel. Michael, his wife, Jennifer Heyman McCarthy ’83 Barnard and their daughter, Isabelle, joined Linda, Kayla, Sarah and I at the Nutcracker ballet in December. Their son, Oliver, opted for sleep. They are doing very well and it’s good to have them back in the States. I recently heard from George Wilson, Bob Casey and, yes, even George Fryer. Those early morning workouts rowing together on the Harlem as part of Columbia’s varsity heavyweight crew are almost 20 years in the past, but sometimes they seem like only yesterday. “After working as a partner at Anderson Kill for 10 years, in July 2000, I moved my entire practice group to, and became a partner at, Heller Ehrman White & McAuliffe in its NYC office. The firm is based in San Francisco and has more than 500 lawyers. I represent corporate policyholders in insurance coverage disputes with their insurance companies, and I am having a blast doing it. Over the years, I have been quoted in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal and various business magazines/periodicals regarding my practice area. I appeared this year on CNNfn as a special commentator regarding D&O insurance in the context of the Enron debacle. The best part about it was watching my kids’ reaction when I was on the tube that night instead of SpongeBob or their regular show on the Disney Channel. “Linda is still a partner at Anderson Kill and has had her fair share of coverage in The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, The Washington Post, German and Austrian television, and so forth. She has been successfully representing Holocaust victims seeking compensation in various litigation in New York against European businesses and insurance companies. Besides being an attorney extraordinaire, she is the greatest mommy in town and the best friend a husband could ever have as his wife. I count my blessings every day.” Steve Coleman also has been extremely helpful in the reunion effort. Even though he is based in Massachusetts, he regularly participates in committee meetings via conference call. He notes, “I live in Lexington, Mass., with my wife, Laura (Berkman) ’84 Barnard ’91 Business and our daughters, Sarah (9) and Madeleine (4). I suppose it’s safe to say I am on my third career since college. After a traditional stint as an attorney, I moved into heavy industry. For the past four years, I have been working in technology in various strategy, investment and legal positions. Through the years, I also have tried to be a good alumnus. I am privileged to serve as chairman of the Boston Area Alumni Representation Committee, a member of the National Outreach of the College Alumni Association and a board member of the Columbia Club of New England.” I asked Stephen Huntley-Robertson to join the 20th committee. To my embarrassment, he responded, “In fact, I recently received a letter with my name on the reunion letterhead, so I suppose I consent! George Wilson has been in touch with me regarding reunion, and I said that I will try to make some telephone calls.” Thanks, Stephen, for your support! Steven Cambor reports, “My wife, Wendy Myers Cambor (Cornell Engineering ’88), joyfully announces the births of our children, Stephen Wentworth (August 1999) and Charlotte Hilliard (April 2002). We live on the Upper West Side. I work at Merrill Lynch, and Wendy is at Morgan Stanley.” Benjamin Hsing is “a partner at Kaye Scholer LLP specializing in patent and intellectual property litigation. I live in Briarcliff Manor, N.Y., with my beautiful wife, Shuyi, and Justin (10) and Lucas (3).” Bob Asher remarks, “Thanks for revving up interest amongst the Class of 1983. I have been living in Los Angeles since 1989 when I came out to get my master’s in film at USC. I met my wife, Jennifer, on a TV show (a cool Berkeley girl), and though we never imagined we would, we’re raising our family out here. Theo is 4 and Annabel is 2. I am v.p. of creative affairs for a production company in Santa Monica. Don’t know if I’ll be able to attend the reunion, but it’s great hearing where people are 20 years out!” Mark Licht and his wife, Margie, will happily attend reunion. Mark, bring your trumpet! Teddy Weinberger updates us from Israel: “The column I write about life in Israel is published in about a dozen Jewish newspapers across the States. I would be happy to put any other classmates onto my ‘list’ — even those I don’t know. Now that I’m writing, I have a bit of professional news: I have left academia and teaching, and — for the first time in my life — I have a ‘regular’ job. I am director of resource development for the Israel Religious Action Center, which is the public policy and legal arm of the Israel Movement for Progressive Judaism. Yes, who would have thunk it? This ol’ yeshiva boy from Brooklyn works for the Reform movement in Israel. The Orthodox Rabbinate has a monopoly on what is officially considered ‘Jewish’ in the State of Israel, and a lot of our work is geared toward religious pluralism here. And you thought that contemporary life in Israel is only about terrorist incidents! Shalom, Teddy.” Teddy attended the wedding of Maury Budow and his wife, Carolyn, on July 24. Mazel tov to the new couple! Miguel Estrada was, once again, the subject of an editorial in The New York Times. Miguel is a Bush nominee for D.C. appellate judge. The editorial stated, “The Republican Party has started producing a half-hour Spanish television show, Abriendo Caminos or Forging Paths. The first show’s news highlights included a clip of Trent Lott screaming ‘Viva Estrada’ at a pep rally for Miguel Estrada, a Bush nominee for appellate judge.” Thanks to everyone for their e-mails. I look forward to seeing you May 29–June 1, 2003.
Dennis Klainberg Mazel Tov to Mark Gill and his bride, Robyn. My wife, Dana, and I had the good fortune to attend their wedding in NYC, with this writer taking off his CCT Class Notes hat, donning a yarmulke and signing off on the Ketubah as a witness, the same mitzah provided by Mark, a professional writer (whose features appear regularly in GQ, Esquire and Vanity Fair) at our wedding, some 11 years ago! Indeed, it was thanks to Mark and his sister, Jen ’86 Barnard, (Barnard’s dean of admissions), that en route to a dinner at V&T’s five years after graduation, I met Jen’s suitemate — Dana. And speaking of my family, which includes Adam (10), Emma (7), Sydney (6) and Jacob (4), we were most happy to bump into Dr. Tom Shin and his lovely wife, Chris ’84 Barnard, and their child, Garret (3), at a resort in the Catskills. Tom, a fellow band alumnus, is affiliated with Columbia Presbyterian Hospital and hits a mean golf ball. Indeed, on a previous trip — despite good attempts and lots of e-mail — our family was not able to see class salutatorian Cary Pfeffer et famille in Boston. After a two-year stint in Paris, Cary continues to work for Biogen, and was recently promoted to vice president of global medical affairs. Cary writes, “We just had our first child, Samantha Greta, who is almost five months. Ruth is still off from work, but I am cranking away at Biogen as we continue to grow.” And if you thought that I didn’t cavort with enough classmates to earn the honor of writing this column, check out the accompanying photo. I was honored to organize a Columbia ’84 West dinner last July in L.A. This just in … Micahel Ackerman is running for the Hollywood City Council (if such a council is approved by the electorate). Break a leg! Invited, but unable to attend, was Brent Giddons, who lives in Palos Verdes, Calif., with his wife and three daughters. A USC law grad, Brent worked briefly with Dan Weisberg (a partner in the New York office of Brobeck, Phleger & Harrison), and is a partner with the L.A. office of Sonnenschein Nath & Rosenthal, specializing in labor and employment matters. He writes, “On my all-too-infrequent trips to NYC, despite the tragic demise of The Third Phase, I still manage to see Chris Boyle ’83 and Andy Gershon ’83. When I’m in Chicago, I often see Tommy Brecht ’83, who is the ultimate capitalist, trading money for profit on the floor of the Mercantile Exchange. I have seen Joe “Rubble” Wright when he passes through Los Angeles, generally on the way to Asia and other distant locations. I am pleased to see Adam Belanoff’s name in the credits for various television shows. It would be great to hear from classmates: bg@sonnenschein.com.” In Northern California, class president Larry Kane and his wife, Christina, recently returned from a six-month leave of absence to travel around the world. After biking, trekking, hiking and camping in Asia, India and Europe, Larry’s back in San Francisco, working as an attorney at Orrick and celebrating his 10th season as head coach of an inner city high school wrestling team. Back on campus, the Phi Epsilon Pi fraternity had a reunion party at The West End on June 22. Attending were Mike Hall, who lives in Minneapolis and is general partner of Norwest Mezzanine Partners, and Reggie Henderson, who lives in Douglaston, N.Y., and is senior v.p. of The Kamakura Corp. We caught up on old friends such as Brian F.X. Murphy, president and COO of Plateau Systems, who lives in Arlington, Va.; Flo Wetzel ’84 Barnard, who recently published Mrs. Papadakis and Aspasia: Two Novels (Writer’s Club Press, 2002) and lives in Hoboken, N.J.; and Ron Hubsher ’84E, who is v.p. of Upshot.com and lives in San Jose, Calif. Mark Binder and Alicia Lehrer ’88 Barnard announce the birth of Francesca Rose Lehrer Binder. She joins Max and Harry in scenic and uncorrupted Providence, R.I. Mark also is psyched about the release of his first storytelling CD, Tall Tales, Whoppers and Lies. Also in the record business: David Terhune is a member of a band, Kustard Kings, which recently released the CD Blam! It’s available through his record company (www.confidentialrecordings.com) and amazon.com. Performing monthly shows — called the Loser’s Lounge — at the Fez and the Westbeth Theatre, David writes, “The CD is our original instrumental music, in the Booker T. style, and we just finished a CD of Christmas instrumental music for release this fall. Check out www.kustardkings.com for links to different sites.” First-time contributor John Feeney, his wife, Joanne, and three children, Ryan, Kate and Sean, send regards from Morris Plains, N.J. Mike Bozzo and his family live nearby. Glenn Meyers is married to Ilana ’88 Barnard and has three children: twins Garrick and Mackenzie (6) and Paxton (8 months). Glenn writes: “We had a fourth child, Slater Jett, who died at seven months after a struggle with a severe brain injury suffered at birth. Ilana and I have formed a nonprofit foundation in his memory, the Slater Jett Meyers Foundation, to raise money for children who have suffered birth injuries. Our mission is to provide comfort, assistance and advocacy through direct contributions, donations of medical supplies and the sponsoring of activities that promote physical, social, emotional and psychological well-being and facilitate mainstream interaction. Anyone interested can reach me at (845) 358-1792, imeyers1@optonline.net or gmeyers@oru.com.” Albert Pinzon lives in NYC with his wife, Beverly, and their three children: Tyler (6), Zoe (4) and Sarah (2). He is an attorney specializing in corporate finance and insurance regulatory matters at Mound Cotton (where he is a partner) and hopes to hear from or about David Cavicke in Washington and Andrew Byer in Florida. Medicine man David Fischer writes: “After Columbia, I went to medical school in Rochester, N.Y., and then to UCLA for training in pediatrics and anesthesia. I moved to Santa Barbara in 1996 to do pediatric intensive care. Burned out after four years, and now I’m just doing anesthesia around the area. I’m an avid road (all hail, Lance!) and mountain biker. Gladly will take anyone on a ride if they’re in the area. Hope my soccer-playing comrades are well.” Evan Kingsley works and lives in Brooklyn with his wife, Dara Meyers ’83 Barnard, and their two children. Evan “was inspired to drop a note, as I had the pleasure of seeing two dear Columbia friends this summer: Lenny Hersh and Jeff Rashba. Turned 40 (as did most of us) and thought it appropriate to commiserate with others by writing. Seeing Len and Jeff brought back memories of a great college experience, now more than half my life ago. How time passes.” Finally, although belatedly, this writer wishes mazel tov and kudos to the staff and chaverim at Columbia-Barnard Hillel and the Kraft Center for Jewish Life for the great fund raiser earlier this year honoring former President George Rupp with the Seixas Medal (one of Columbia’s earliest trustees and a colonial rabbi), with keynote speaker Tom Friedman of The New York Times. It was great to meet, talk and dance the hora with distinguished alumni Robert Kraft ’63 , owner of the New England Patriots; Professor Robert Pollack ’61 (former dean of the College); Arthur Sulzberger ’51, New York Times publisher; Gerry Sherwin ’55, former CC Alumni Association president; and Roger Lehecka ’67, former dean of students and now executive director of Columbia 250. In the words of staff member Deborah Bernick, “We have alumni and friends events all year long and welcome visitors to the center on 115th Street anytime. Shalom!”
Kevin G. Kelly I understand that summertime means funtime and that many of you were on vacation and therefore couldn’t submit a ditty or two. As I have received no submissions for this issue, I will regale all of you with my thoughts-aspirations-plans. I had a great summer — plenty of travel to beachfront property and visits with friends in the northeastern United States. Also many, many trips to Jones Beach, Fire Island and East Hampton, all during the week, of course, meaning fewer people and no traffic hassles. I spent many a weekend in New York City; easy parking, fewer crowds and that great baking heat that rises up from the pavement, envelops, sears and sizzles you. Delicious! I checked out MoMA QNS, which was cool, plus the Noguchi Museum, Socrates Sculpture Park and P.S. 1, all in Queens, and all previously unknown to me. I spent October in Egypt and Jordan, visiting a friend and traveling with her. The pyramids, Luxor, Karnak, the Nile, Aswan, Abu Simbel and the new library in Alexandria were on my list of things to experience in Egypt. In Jordan, I was looking forward to a couple of days at the Dead Sea and then a visit to Petra, a spectacular city carved out of rock in southern Jordan. I’m applying to graduate schools, having decided to return to school in September 2003 to obtain a Ph.D. in organizational behavior. I am looking forward to either teaching or working in a research institution. I plan to apply to Columbia, Penn (where I received my M.B.A. and M.A.) and Harvard. If anyone out there has any experience with or knowledge of the Ph. D. programs at the business schools at Columbia, Penn or Harvard, I would appreciate hearing from you! I plan to submit my applications by mid-December so that after Christmas, I can go to northern Italy for six weeks (Venice and Florence, three weeks each) then back to New York, then down to Costa Rica (where I was in the Peace Corps) to visit friends for the greater part of February and March, then back to New York to await the news from the Ph.D. programs. If all goes well, next spring I will be sending in a deposit to secure my place in an entering class in either New York, Philadelphia or Cambridge for September 2003. Please send in information to share with your classmates regarding
your family, your career, your achievements, your thoughts-aspirations-plans,
your life. Have an enjoyable and safe autumn, and take the time
to tell the people you love that you love them. You will be glad
you did.
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