5 minute read
Alumni Events
In 2020, we encouraged alumni to maintain connections with their classmates through “burrito parties.” If three or more alumni gather together for good food and great conversation, we reimbursed them in exchange for a photo and a copy of the receipt. We saw a lot of smiling faces, and hope to see many more in the coming year.
Julia Teymourian ‘15, Avery Minor ‘13, and Jane Ross ‘15 met over the summer for pizza at the Alpine Inn.
Veronica Lempert ‘16, Maria Naclerio ‘16, and Sarah Halabe ‘16 met at the Alpine Inn for Burgers and Fries.
Gabrielle Filloux (‘15), Valerie Filloux (‘17), Christian Filloux (‘15), and Veronique Filloux (‘11) have a burrito party at home.
Below: Robert Screven ‘16, David Casente ‘16, Gigi de Fort-Menares ‘16, and Kylie Harrison ‘16 enjoy Mexican food at the park.
Ryan Schackel ‘19, Sonya Walker ‘19 and Henry Hertz ‘18 take advantage of a Sunday at Timber & Salt.
Nearly 100 alumni made Priory history in October by attending Priory’s fi rst-ever Zoom reunions throughout October. Classes spanning 1965-2015 logged in from across the world to reconnect and share their stories. John Kirch ‘76 deserves credit for being the fi rst alum to suggest virtual reunions back in April. Alumni logged in from Paris, Spain, Bangkok, Tokyo, Taiwan, Mexico, and across the U.S. We were able to include classmates who would have been otherwise unable to attend due to distance or circumstance and hear their stories. Father Martin, Patrick Ruff, and Paul Trudelle made these reunions a little more special with their presence. Lastly, we were able to engage with our community in a totally new way, and we’ve received nothing but positive feedback. We’ll be sure to include more virtual gatherings in the coming year.
CLASS NEWS & NOTES
Norton Batkin ‘65 lives in New York teaching Philosophy of Aesthetics at Bard University. Norton has been a philosophy professor at Bard for thirty years.
Enrique Mereles’70 lives in San Diego and enjoys racing on the water with his 33-foot sloop.
Daniel Riveong ‘00 became a father in September.
Katelin Rowland ‘00 lives in Kentucky with her husband and two children. In her free time, Katelin can be seen wakeboarding at a local lake.
Jonathan Morgan ‘00 and his wife Dana welcomed their daughter Cassandra into the world in September.
Andras Hlacs ‘00 is currently living in Paris with his wife and daughter Abigail, who speaks perfect French at three years old.
Taylor Eigsti ‘02 received a Hewlett Commission grant to do a project called “Imagine Our Future” involving submitted artwork, music, and poetry from young students in the Bay Area. He is using bits and pieces of these submissions to create a long form large ensemble performance piece.
Francys Scott ‘05 gave birth to little Elizabeth on October 20, just two days before her 15 year reunion.
Leila Hoch ‘05 also gave birth to a little baby boy in October, just before her reunion the following week.
Cynthia Sleight ‘05 recently started a new job as an 8th and 9th grade health teacher at Seattle Academy of Arts and Sciences. Though living in Washington, Cynthia remains a strong part of our alumni community.
Nate Coombs ‘05 passed the Jeopardy online test and auditioned via Zoom in August. Tania Valetsky ‘05 lives in Benicia as an independent artist.
Mariana Shtukina ‘07 currently works as an actress, producer, and voiceover talent in Atlanta. She recently started a small mask accessories brand called Little Shtuchki and plans to move to New York soon.
Maia Thielen ‘10 just joined Priory as one of our Residential Faculty. Before coming to Priory, Maia was the Events & Community Engagement Manager at the Bozeman Symphony in Bozeman, Montana.
Eleanor Oates ‘10 completed her doctorate in 2020 and began a career in Genentech later in the year.
Monica Granucci ‘10 works on clinical trials at Stanford’s Neurosurgery department. She married her husband Eric Granucci and has a 1 year old son, Milo.
Rick Dolezalek ‘10 proposed to his fiance in September and currently lives in Oceanside, CA.
Veronique Filloux ‘11 moved to Pittsburgh in August to begin work with the Pittsburgh Opera.
Kat Gregory ‘12 took advantage of remote work over the summer by staying in Colorado and hiking after work.
Chris Gregory ‘14 works as a primary EMT instructor, and has certified over 180 students. He still works in ambulances though and plans to attend medical school in the fall.
After graduating from Priory, James Phelps ‘15 graduated from University at Redlands with a B.A. in Public Policy. He now lives in San Diego with his girlfriend of five years.
John Gregory ‘16 graduated from Colorado State University and proposed to his girlfriend, Michelle. She will be joining the family in August 2021.
A look back at some beautiful pieces of artwork that was done by alumni during their time at Priory!
“Red Orange Drip” by Lena Bhagat ‘18
“Breadth Portrait” by Yuju Shin ‘15
Alumni Reunion is Coming in May 2021!
This year we’re celebrating the milestone classes of 1961, 1966, 1971, 1976, 1981, 1986, 1991, 1996, 2001, 2006, 2011, and 2016! Details for an on-campus event are still in the works, but we will certainly include Zoom gatherings as a key component of this year’s reunion. Whether you’re in the Bay Area, living across the country (or perhaps the world), or if life prevents you from returning to campus, we will find a way to bring you home. Stay tuned for more details in the coming months!
