Class Notes

dren and four dogs. They keep busy going to enjoy music and are both still working.

David Coffin has recently retired and is enjoying a bit of travel and music. He and Jay Stewart attended the Ski Race this winter and hope to have a better turnout next year.

I (Claire) live in Winchester, Mass., and retired from Harvard University Department of Economics at the end of 2020. There was a package, and I took it. I am now a private chef’s assistant specializing in gluten-free and special diets. I still ski at Cannon Mountain.

1981

Robin

Gronlund

• (802) 598-0424 rgronlund11@gmail.com

Last summer, many from our class— including me, Pierre De Rochefort, Bobby Jones, Carl Strong, Scot Barry, Rob Lundin, Steve Baker, Sarah Lummus, Joe Thibert, Lee Walker, Sean Cota, and Ray Jacques—gathered at KUA for our 40th reunion. It was a beautiful weekend full of reminiscing, walking the much-improved campus, and even getting out on the dance floor.

David Cook reports from Saco, Maine, that there’s lots going on in the Cook family. His oldest, Jonathan, got married in Salt Lake City, Utah, last June, which is why they were unable to attend our reunion. He says it was a blast. “Patrice Reilly ’80 joined the party! Jon has been in SLC for the last 11 years and Patrice has been a great family friend to us and Jon. Our daughter, Amanda, is in grad school at Harvard for education and just got engaged, so Ann and I are starting the

DISPATCHES NEWS FROM ALUMNI planning mode for a wedding. Ann is not working and doing lots of full things in her spare time, and I’m still supplying the Social Security Administration with funds! I play hockey every Monday morning in Falmouth, Maine, with Pierre DeRochfort, which is pretty cool. We are a very formidable defense pair on ice! He travels overseas a lot and is doing well.”

Jim Friedlander shares that the last of his three daughters got married during Memorial Day weekend! “We have five granddaughters who seem to consume most of our free time. I have no intention of retiring in the near term—having too much fun with work and spending time (and money) traveling.”

We have learned of Dave Winslow’s passing in May. Dave lived in Falmouth, Maine, while also maintaining his family home in Southport. He ran a successful tug and barge business and during the past few years reconnected and stayed in touch with several KUA classmates. I believe he’d want us to remember the good times many of us had with him and how much he valued his KUA friendships.

Ray Jacques wrote that the loss of Dave Winslow was a tough hit to the Class of ’81: “Our hockey team was special and, at 25-3, we were as good as most any team I ever played on, including the 1982 U.S. National Junior team. Dave had an amazing work ethic, was a key part of our D core, and was well thought of by all. He will be sorely missed. I look forward to celebrating his life in July and seeing some of my teammates and classmates!”

Joe Thibert was sad to hear about

Dave Winslow’s passing as well. He shares that Dave was a fierce competitor, a first-class teammate, and had a great sense of humor! He says he has nothing but fond memories of Dave, as do many of us from ’81. Thanks to social media, I stay connected with a few classmates, including Sarah Lummus, who hosted an exchange student from France this past spring. It looked to me that she had a lot of fun showing this young teenager what life is like in Boston and on the Cape. Vaughn Harring’s daughter is on a very successful crew team at Middlebury College. He and his wife live an active life cross-country and downhill skiing and bike riding in the Pan-Mass Challenge, which is a fundraising event to help cure cancer with donations going straight to Dana Farber. Pam Boulanger Joyal works in the mental health field and this past April her daughter made it through training to earn her wings as a flight attendant for JetBlue airlines. Randy Reading is in the insurance business, engaged to his longtime sweetheart, and welcomed a new puppy into his house this past year.

For many of us, this was the year we celebrated our 60th birthdays. Congrats to all who joined this milestone club. I continue to work at Champlain College overseeing admissions, spending my extra time teaching an online course at the University of Vermont, and volunteering on the KUA Board of Trustees and at my local animal shelter walking dogs and taking care of cats. I’ve come to enjoy hot yoga and recently did a road biking trip to Acadia National Park and

Nova Scotia. My daughter, Annie Gronlund ’11, has been living in San Diego, Calif., for the past few years and working as a nurse on a bone marrow treatment floor of a local hospital. She was recently engaged and accepted into grad school at the University of Southern California to become a nurse practitioner. With a wedding to plan in the coming year, I have plenty to do! Wishing you and your family well. Please stay in touch by sending me an email at rgronlund11@gmail.com with your contact information and any news to share in the next issue of the magazine!

1983

Lauren Dole (971) 235-5973 lauren.dole@me.com

I am writing to share about the Class of 1983 40th Reunion. Chris Harris, Greg Nardone, Elise Stigum (and sister Tova), and Rob McGloughlin were also in attendance and all had a great time. I enjoyed the “State of the School” conversation with Head of School Tyler Lewis and was reminded that when we become a student, we become a part of a legacy. The conversation was an overview of the students before us, fun facts about the school’s history, and plans for the future. Rob’s quote for the weekend: “This is not the school I went to!” Tyler’s information gave me a sense of pride. I was impressed with the school’s approach to teaching based on neuroscience and working with the teen brain of today. Students are involved with sugarhouse and farm, the planning and construction of the new dorms, gaining real-world skills as well as sustainability and environmental responsibility. Though the Snack Bar is gone from the original location, the “bones” were used to recreate Daniel Kimball’s barn by the lower fields. We had so many laughs and enjoyed going down memory lane. I learned a lot about the misadventures of life in D-R but also enjoyed hearing stories of life after KUA. Also in attendance were former faculty Woodie Haskins, who would love to hear from the hockey players, the Bishops and Mike Taupier. Mike led a fun and informative KUA trivia night.

The beauty of the KUA area was wonderful to see again as well. Request to classmates: I would love to communicate with you, but we are missing class contact information. Please email me at lauren.dole@ me.com or the Advancement Office at advancement@kua.org to share updated address, phone, and email of you and any classmates.

1989

Melissa Longacre

(603) 306-2024 mlongacre@myfairpoint.net

The Class of ’89 continues to be a bit elusive! I want you all to start planning right now to return to Meriden in June for our 35-year reunion! Yes, you read that right—35 years! Surely that warrants a trip to The Hilltop. I feel a bit more vested in KUA these days as I’m working in the Student Life Office here. Dhamay Tenzing Norgay and Ray Mann were both on cam- pus this May for the graduation of their daughter and son, respectively. Congratulations! Both of Andrea Bueno Keen’s children are here as well and I see Andrea at most musical performances, as Seb is involved in jazz and Pip is involved in music and theater.

Candi Osgood Strickland and her family have moved to Orlando, Fla. She invites anyone in the area to get in touch!

Kurt DePoy is in Dallas, Texas, with his two children. He works for Aethon Energy as its talent acquisition manager. He loves to travel and attends as many concerts as possible!

So far this year, Jim Jonas has had at least two children get married. His family—as well as his Goat Milk Stuff business—continues to grow in leaps and bounds.

Robin Amison Tarnoff eloped in February and has relocated to eastern Tennessee on Cherokee Lake. She loves it there and welcomes guests, so reach out if you are in the area. Her sunset pictures and garden are amazing!

Call your KUA buddies and start planning—you will be so happy you did! The campus looks amazing and exciting things are happening here! Did you know there are sheep and chickens on campus or that two new dorms are being built? Reconnect with your friends and remember why KUA is such a special place! Till next time….

Isn’t it great to return to routines:

vacations, gatherings, sporting events, and celebrations!

So many of our classmates— Drew Blicharz, Chris Yoshida, Colby Eldridge, Danielle Adams, Eric Dudenbostel, Jennifer Lenz, Joe Noguchi, Kate Stephenson, Kristine Pratt, Meaghan (Fuller) Stoddard, Meredith (Cass) Diamond, and Stephen Overman—had some great trips both local and international and a few of us were caught wearing our KUA gear. Alex Pierson is back to touring, so catch him the next time he’s in your neighborhood.

Many of us—Andrea McKnight, Benjamin Fisher, Bianca Saul, Bonnie (Jordan) Skobel, Caroline (Mans) Kolb, David Sefton, Evan Thompson, Jared Reigstad, Jessica (Landers) Bendell, Jonathan Romero, Justin Lillie, Meg Giulano-Otte, Pao Meader, Peter Schieffelin, Samantha (Holmes) Domagala, Sara (Benelli) Memmi, and Eric Dudenbostel—have been joyfully gathering with family or enjoying the thrill of watching our kids play in their respective sports, be it skiing, hockey, figure skating, biking, races, football, lacrosse, or gymnastics. Yali Ratheau can proudly say that her son, Corbin, is a jiu-jitsu champion!

Whether celebrating milestones or lives well lived, it is so nice to be able to do it together again.

pivoted with the many changes during three and a half years, and made it to their graduation through resilience and grit. I am in awe of the Class of 2023. Of course, I couldn’t help but recall with nostalgia our class, our graduation, and how in a flash we’re only three years away from our 30th reunion. Mixed with nostalgia was gratitude for all the efforts taken by the administration, teachers, and staff to make the high school experience special for us and all the kids who have walked on The Hilltop.

KUA also stepped up this past fall, when we lost our beloved Miss Howe. Although I planned to attend the celebration of her life in person, I was glad to have the option to join virtually to celebrate her legacy and proudly wear purple in her honor. I hope that our classmates Charles Donham and Lori Lamanuzzi were able to experience a celebration of life worthy of their fathers. Life is like a journey on a train: Be a good passenger to others and enjoy the ride!

Please feel free to share your news with me for future class notes at bianca@borislow.com.

2000

Kelly Farrell Millar kellyjanefarrell@gmail.com

bianca@borislow.com

Congratulations to Jessica (Jones) Purdy’s eldest, George, who graduated this spring from high school. I had the great pleasure of attending three graduations this year. In attending these graduations, it dawned on me what a milestone it is for students who were interrupted as freshmen with a pandemic,

Kelly Condon and I work in the same office at the University of New Hampshire. We get to see each other every single day—talk about keeping the KUA connection!