scene Autumn 2011
News and views for the Colgate community
’Gate posts Young runner for the circle Aging our way
scene
Autumn 2011
26 ’Gate posts
Old Colgate postcards give a glimpse of times past
32 Young runner for the circle
Eric Noyes ’86 is on a mission: to help American Indians preserve their traditions and spread their message
36 Aging our way
Rethinking old age and the possibilities for staying independent
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Message from President Jeffrey Herbst
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Letters
6
Work & Play
13
Colgate history, tradition, and spirit
14
Life of the Mind
18
Arts & Culture
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Go ’gate
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New, Noted & Quoted
42
The Big Picture
44
Stay Connected
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Class News 76 Marriages & Unions 76 Births & Adoptions 77 In Memoriam
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Salmagundi: Puzzle, Slices contest, Rewind
DEPARTMENTS
On the cover: The crowd makes the ball game. Photo by Andrew Daddio Left: Colorful footballs mark victories of yore. Photo by Basil Childers
News and views for the Colgate community
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scene team
Contributors
Volume XLl Number 1 The Scene is published by Colgate University four times a year — in autumn, winter, spring, and summer. The Scene is circulated without charge to alumni, parents, friends, and students.
Suzanne B. Spring (“’Gate posts,” pg. 26), assistant professor of writing and rhetoric, studies 19th-century women’s private and public anti-slavery letter writing. She said that her current work on theorizing the mechanism of presence as a structural logic in social movement rhetoric “made working with the Scene a particular pleasure.” She lives in the village of Hamilton with her family.
Freelance photographer Thomas Lee (“Young runner for the circle,” pg. 32) works throughout the American West, capturing the people and places that make that part of the world so dramatic and tender. He has authored two books of photography, Yellowstone View and Historic Homes of Bozeman.
Professor Meika Loe (“Aging our way,” pg. 36) has published her critical scholarship on culture, age, medicine, technology, and gender in academic journals and in her first book, The Rise of Viagra: How The Little Blue Pill Changed Sex in America. She’s been tapped for her expertise by numerous media outlets, including National Public Radio, BBC, Mother Jones, the New York Times, Christian Science Monitor, and the London Sunday Times.
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scene online
Listen
Conversations on World Affairs: colgate.edu/ about/presidentjeffreyherbst/podcasts President Jeffrey Herbst talks with University of California at Berkeley professor Michael Watts, an expert on the politics of oil in the Niger Delta.
The award-winning work of watercolor artist Irena Roman (“Aging our way,” pg. 36) is featured in galleries as well as in editorial, publishing, and advertising venues. Her illustrations have been recognized in Communication Arts illustration annuals and in Print’s Regional Design annuals. A graduate of Syracuse University, she is a professor of illustration at Massachusetts College of Art and Design.
Look
http://exlibris.colgate.edu/digital/ studentnewspapers.html The Colgate library has digitized the student newspapers from 1846 to 1997. Each iteration, including the Hamilton Student, Madisonensis, Colgate Maroon, Colgate News, Maroon-News, and others, is available.
Watch
Living Writers on Thursdays at 4:30 p.m.: livestream.com/colgateuniversity Live webcasts of public readings by acclaimed authors Michael Cunningham (Nov. 3), Sigrid Nunez (Nov. 10), Joseph O’Neill (Nov. 17), and Jennifer Egan (Dec. 1). See colgate.edu/livingwriters for more on the program.
Get connected
Alumni Career Advisory Network (iCAN): colgateconnect.org/ican With iCAN, you can search the alumni directory for professional contacts by job function, region, and more. Or, you can become a mentor to undergraduates! 2
scene: Autumn 2011
Talk
Get social: facebook.com/colgateuniversity Join the discussion about all things Colgate on the university’s Facebook page. Feel free to share your ’gate-related photos, too!
Go paperless
Online Scene subscription: sceneletters@colgate.edu To stop receiving the printed Scene, e-mail us your name, class year, address, and e-mail address, and put Online Mailing List in the subject. We’ll send you an e-mail when we post new online editions (www. colgateconnect.org/scene).
Vice President for Communications Debra Townsend Managing Editor Rebecca Costello Associate Editor Aleta Mayne Director of Publications Gerald Gall Coordinator of Photographic Services Andrew Daddio Production Assistant Kathy Bridge
Contributing writers and designers: Timothy O’Keeffe, Director of Web Content; Karen Luciani, Art Director; Katherine Mutz, Graphic Designer; Barbara Brooks, Director of Marketing and Public Relations; Mark Walden, Senior Advancement Writer; Jennifer McGee, Online Community Manager; Matt Faulkner, Assistant Director of Athletic Communications
Contact: scene@colgate.edu 315-228-7417 www.colgateconnect.org/scene Printed and mailed from Lane Press in South Burlington, Vt.
If you’re moving... Please clip the address label and send with your new address to: Alumni Records Clerk, Colgate University, 13 Oak Drive, Hamilton, NY 13346-1398. Opinions expressed are not necessarily shared by the university, the publishers, or the editors. Notice of Non-Discrimination: Colgate University does not discriminate in its programs and activities because of race, color, sex, pregnancy, religion, creed, national origin (including ancestry), citizenship status, physical or mental disability, age, marital status, sexual orientation, veteran or military status (including special disabled veteran, Vietnam-era veteran, or recently separated veteran), predisposing genetic characteristics, domestic violence victim status, or any other protected category under applicable local, state, or federal law. The following person has been designated to handle inquiries regarding the university’s non-discrimination policies: Marilyn Rugg, University Harassment Officer, 13 Oak Drive, Hamilton, NY 13346; 315-228-7288.
Message from President Jeffrey Herbst
The start of a student’s
college career has many rites: the crowded car
on move-in day, the misty emotions of saying goodbye to family, orientation, starting new classes, making new friends. In recent decades, another tradition has emerged: the onslaught of college rankings. Since U.S. News & World Report introduced its college rankings in 1983, an entire industry has developed that seeks to measure, parse, and evaluate higher education. Like U.S. News, some address the entire collegiate experience, while others are more focused. Those that have emerged in recent years include Forbes, Kiplinger’s, CNBC, PayScale and Smart Money (graduates’ salaries), the Princeton Review (from academics and administration to the social scene), the Sierra Club (“eco-enlightened” universities), Women’s Wear Daily (best-dressed students), and PC Magazine (most wired campuses). There’s even a twist in response to the college rankings craze: the online news magazine Gawker’s 25 Most Unranked Colleges in America. Beyond our society’s obsession with rankings of all kinds, the impetus behind this industry stems from the challenge of evaluating and choosing from among the thousands of colleges and universities, and concerns about the increasing cost, as well as the value, of higher education. Choosing a college is enormously consequential, yet there is no concrete or clearly understood metric for decision making like quarterly profits or return on investment. And because families go through the process only a few times at most, there is no learning curve. As well, some measures are contradictory. For instance, we can be proud of a ranking that shows a significant percentage of our graduates earn high salaries, but alumni who influence thousands of lives in less-lucrative careers, such as teaching or the nonprofit sector, can only be
James Yang
considered great successes as well. Educators have criticized many of these rankings, and paradoxically, the most popular, U.S. News, is also viewed by many (including myself) as amongst the most problematic. U.S. News seeks to compress a huge range of measures into a single number to rank enormously complex and diverse institutions. The University of Michigan, for example, is an outstanding public institution with more than 40,000 students against whom Colgate (2,900 students) competes for applicants. The difference in student body size is only one indicator of the difficulty in comparing educational experiences and opportunities between the two. Also troubling is the fact that 22.5 percent of the U.S. News ranking is derived from reputational polls sent to senior academic administrators and high school guidance counselors. Like presidents across the country, I fill out this form, but I have sufficient knowledge of only a handful of schools, so I don’t feel my evaluation can be comprehensive. Many other U.S. News indicators measure inputs rather than outputs. For instance, one indicator is financial resources per student. That could be important; however, as former Dean of the Faculty Lyle Roelofs has pointed out repeatedly, if we received a vast sum of money and simply buried it in the ground, our students would see no benefit, but our U.S. News ranking would increase. As a result of these concerns, Colgate, among many other liberal arts schools, agreed some years ago not to use the U.S. News rankings in our publicity. At the same time, some in higher education have gone too far the other way, suggesting that it is pointless to assess what students learn and what colleges do. I disagree; in fact, I welcome careful assessment and analysis because I believe that our faculty offer a world-class education and that we have a great story to tell. That does not mean, however, that we are perfect. My philosophy is to continually measure defined aspects of what we do, while holding ourselves accountable for our ultimate output: the value of the education we provide. My colleagues and I devote an enormous amount of attention to the National Survey of Student Engagement, which provides student feedback on Colgate’s academic and extracurricular experiences and compares it to other schools. We also participate in other surveys that measure different aspects of Colgate compared to our peers. Last year, working with the Board of Trustees, we developed “dashboard” indicators that are “owned” by my academic and administrative senior staff and provide important information on our progress over time and, when possible, compared to other schools. Examples include class size, facultystudent interaction, percentage of students from underrepresented groups, admissions acceptance rate, endowment-per-square-foot of physical plant, cost per dollar raised through fundraising, and student-athlete GPAs. We are also developing new ways to assess how we are doing. For example, last year, we began requiring all seniors to complete a comprehensive exit survey on their Colgate experience. The first set of responses has already yielded important findings, on topics as diverse as satisfaction with advising to course availability. The reams of data we use to guide us are not as easy to digest as rankings. The process requires nuance and respect for the complexity of higher education. By assessing ourselves against our ambitions and our peers, we will be able to engage in continuous improvement. That is how we will move Colgate forward.
News and views for the Colgate community
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Letters
scene
Currency, context, and community
Summer 2011
News and views for the Colgate community
Central New York Road Trip Following 9/11 Faces of Fitness
The Scene welcomes letters. We reserve the right to decide whether a letter is acceptable for publication and to edit for accuracy, clarity, and length. Letters deemed potentially libelous or that malign a person or group will not be published. Letters should not exceed 250 words. You can reach us by mail, or e-mail sceneletters @colgate.edu. Please include your full name, class year if applicable, address, phone number, and/or e-mail address. If we receive many letters on a given topic, we will print a representative sample of the opinions expressed. On occasion, we may run additional letters online.
Thanks from Morocco
I’m not one to throw around compliments lightly, but the last issue of the Scene (summer 2011) was outstanding. Light years ago, I told then-president Rebecca Chopp that the only thing the old Scene did well was community, but it needed to do a much better job on currency (current events) and context — the three alliterative Cs of a preacher. Chris Vecsey’s piece on 9/11 and religion took care of currency and context, and Jim Leach’s piece on the community entrepreneurs was outstanding. I see a lot of alumni magazines, and your class notes are second to none.
On your shelf Whether you’re enjoying family game night, having a midnight snack, or doing laundry, a product you use daily might have been created by a Colgate alumnus.
Chilly citrus John M. Fox ’34 (1912–2003)
Fox’s company, Florida Foods (later Minute Maid), made the first commercial batch of frozen orange juice concentrate in 1946. A branding maven, Fox later put the ubiquitous blue sticker on Chiquita bananas.
Wash & wear Harold Selmer Jensen ’34 (1912–2003)
A research chemist, Jensen held several patents for household products including Woolite, the go-to detergent for delicates, as well as Griffin shoe polish.
Creamy delights Bennett Cohen ’73
Cohen and his childhood friend co-founded Ben & Jerry’s in 1978 — they invested $12,000 to open a scoop shop in a renovated gas station in Burlington, Vt.
Genius edition Ed Werner ’71 and John Haney ’70
These friends were among the four creators of Trivial Pursuit, which Time magazine once deemed “the biggest phenomenon in game history.”
Healthy hydration Darius Bikoff ’83
After a New York City water scare in the early 1990s, Bikoff founded Energy Brands in 1996 to create the nutrient-enhanced beverages Vitaminwater and Smartwater as alternatives to tap and spring water.
13 Page 13 is the showplace
for Colgate tradition, history, and school spirit.
In addition, the features and graphic design are very, very good. I especially liked Page 13. I noted the passing of two of my former professors, Behler and Longyear. I took Harry Behler’s intro course on American Politics and got a B — from Harry the Hook. I was really proud of myself. Imagine that, proud of a B. The centerpiece photo was gorgeous. Compliments to everyone involved in putting out the Scene. Dan Cattau ’72 Park Ridge, Ill.
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scene: Autumn 2011
I wanted to send a long-overdue thank you to the staff and many contributors of the Colgate Scene. I have been serving as a rural health extension agent with the Peace Corps in Morocco since March of 2010. Shortly after I swore in as a health Peace Corps volunteer, I received my first Colgate Scene in my new mailbox. The days that I receive my Colgate Scene are always eventful because I get to spend the 45-kilometer trip, which can take anywhere from 90 minutes to 3 hours, based on the weather and the condition of the road, reading about the events that are taking place halfway around the world and, in some cases, just a few countries away from Morocco. I always beam with pride as I read the Scene, and on many occasions, I’ve translated the Scene into Tamazirght (the local language in my region) and found myself turning into a local recruiter for Colgate — although my audience is usually Amazirgh (Berber) women who have little to no schooling and just enjoy looking at the great pictures (they really are great)! Some people read their Scene over a cup of coffee ... well, I read my Scene as I squeeze in rural transit (often with a sheep stuffed under the seat and a bag of flour on my lap). It means just as much to me (if not more) to receive it every quarter and it makes it that much more special when I get to share my Colgate experience with others. Thank you so much for helping add a little bit of maroon to my Peace Corps experience. Ayanna Williams ’08 Keelat M’Gouna, Ouarzazate Province, Morocco
A Woolite mystery Your reference to Harold Selmer Jensen’s “patent” of Woolite on Page 13 in your most recent Scene (summer 2011) under the category of “Wash & Wear” greatly surprised me. I knew the original promoter of Woolite, Harvey Hewitt, quite well when the product was introduced in 1954. Hewitt had told me he was paid $15,000 in 1950 to “add a few ingredients” to its then-present formula, which would be difficult to break down by competitors. But, as a soap product, he said it could still never be patented, only registered by a trademark, because “soap is soap and not unique except for its odor, application, etc.” It’s possible that Hewitt hired Jensen to change the ingredients of his existing formula to avoid duplication by a competitor. Hewitt sold the company to American Home Products circa 1962 for $4 million and died of
a heart attack three years later at age 45 (moral: money can’t buy you longevity!). With both Selmer and Hewitt deceased, I guess we’ll never know. Hewitt, by the way, bought a fullpage ad from me in ’56 when I was editor of The Banter at Colgate [Ed. note: see ad at left]. Keep up the good work. Ben Patt ’56 Vero Beach, Fla.
Missing the football schedule How could you not publish the football schedule in the latest Scene? Otherwise, a great publication. John Sias ’52 Hollis, N.H. Editor’s reply: Alas, with 25 men’s and women’s Division 1 sports and a quarterly publishing schedule, we simply don’t have the luxury of space — or timeliness. But a quick visit to gocolgateraiders.com will put all the Raider schedules at your fingertips.
Thoughtful article about women’s sexuality I salute you for your thoughtful article about Joyce McFadden’s work and book in the summer Scene (“Let’s talk about sex,” pg. 52). So many women in my generation were left ignorant of sex and had their lives warped because of their own mothers’ failure to understand it. And there are no doubt many current victims. Let us hope the number continues to dwindle. Jim Dickinson ’39 Moody, Maine
Remembering Harry Behler I read with great sadness of the passing of Prof. Behler (In tribute, summer 2011, pg. 74). Although he retired after my freshman year, one of my more memorable academic experiences was taking his lecture course as a freshman. He was always quick witted and warning us that we would find out that things would get much harder once we left Colgate and entered the “cold, cold, world.” I took special note of the fact that, in his photo in the Scene, he was wearing pants. I don’t ever recall seeing him clad in anything other than a velour shirt and a pair of shorts — even in a February snowstorm. One of the great things about Colgate is that you meet memorable characters, whom you may know only briefly, but who leave an indelible mark. Prof. Behler was exactly that, and I’m glad I had the chance. Nick Verbitsky ’91 Norwalk, Conn.
Taylor Lake photo Editor’s note: The campus landscape on page 40-41 of the summer 2011 Scene prompted numerous queries from curious readers: Is it a photo? A painting? How did you do it? We asked university photographer Andrew Daddio to describe how he made this “Big picture” — which is, in fact, a photograph. “It was a multistep process. I used a 3-stop neutral density filter, as
well as a polarizing filter on the camera lens when I shot it. That did two things: it reduced the light that was hitting the camera’s sensor by about 97 percent, so that roughly 3 percent of the light that would normally be available was reaching it. This greatly increased the necessary exposure time, which allowed me to capture the movements of the tree branches so that they have a liquid kind of feel (the long exposure time also necessitated the use of a tripod to keep the camera steady). The polarizing filter also reduces reflections and enhances colors, such as deepening the blueness and saturation of the sky. I then did 9 bracketed exposures of the scene using different exposure times and used them as the basis for a High Dynamic Range (HDR) image. HDR provides an extraordinarily expanded tonal range — you can see the brightest highlights as well as into the deepest shadows. I compiled the multiple exposures using special software to produce a single image. That file was then imported back into Adobe Lightroom, where I applied a lens blur effect to the outer image areas and made some other tonal and further color adjustments.”
What they’re saying online On Colgate’s Facebook page August 31/ColgateUniversity: Zipcar will soon be launching at Colgate. Visit zipcar.com/colgate to learn more. The best part? You only have to be 18 to join + gas & insurance are included. Eileen Millan ’95 Wow, how awesome is that! I remember having to ask for rides to the Ford dealership to rent cars in Hamilton. So much has changed. I really need to make a trip up to Colgate soon. Sonia Gonzalez-Thomas ’81 Modern days! I had to take a bus to get home to NYC and walk to town. Now Zipcars and Colgate shuttle! August25/ColgateUniversity: Move-in Day!!! Welcome to all members of the Class of 2015. We wish you the very best of luck, and we’re glad you are all part of the Colgate community. Jim Gerken ’73, P’11 I remember this day four years ago. I can’t believe how quickly time has gone. New students and parents, too, savor these years. They will be over before you know it. Phoebe Outerbridge ’88 I second that! Will be on the hill this fall with my daughter taking a tour. How the years fly... David Hollis Welcome to Hamilton, all 776 of you! Reed Strathdee Lewis ’96 One of the best decisions you will ever make! Alita Giuda ’02 I remember arriving first year, and also being a Link my junior and senior years! Love arrival day! Eileen Ciotti-Gargiulo P’15 We dropped our son off today. It was a fantastic day, rain and shine. Michael was thrilled to be there and so were we. His enthusiasm was beyond our expectations, as was Colgate. Have a great 4 years, Class of 2015!
News and views for the Colgate community
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work & play
Campus scrapbook
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Ready, set, pose. Volleyball teammates serve smiles on the Quad. Photo by Andrew Daddio
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High fives all around! The Class of 2015 is greeted by the Link crew as they enter the chapel for first-year orientation. Photo by Ashlee Eve ’14
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Bathing in sunlight and knowledge at the sky bridge in Persson Hall. Photo by Andrew Daddio
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The Dischords strike a chord in Frank Dining Hall. Photo by Ashlee Eve ’14
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Balancing work and play can be a juggling act, but it’s one that Colgate students do well. Photo by Andrew Daddio
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It’s a bird, it’s a plane, it’s … a skydiver soaring into the Quad?! Watch him stick his landing at www.youtube.com/cuat channel13. Photo by Ashlee Eve ’14
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Breanna Caruso ’13 performs neuroscience research in Professor Jun Yoshino’s laboratory in Olin Hall. In an effort to learn more about multiple sclerosis, Caruso is exploring the effects of specific drugs on cultured immune cells from the brain that become over-activated in patients with the disease and do lasting damage to the brain. Photo by Andrew Daddio
Delivering Latin flavor and rhythm, Aurora y Zon del Barrio spiced up ALANApalooza, the annual barbecue welcoming students to the ALANA Cultural Center. Photo by Andrew Daddio
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lot of things, we’re not so much the teachers anymore,” said philosophy professor David McCabe. “We’re codiscussants with smart, thoughtful people. I benefit from those conversations, and I look forward to them.” Summer on the Hill will return in 2012.
Leaving behind jobs, bills, and Glee reruns, 47 Colgate alumni, parents, and friends returned to the Chenango Valley in June for Summer on the Hill. This year marked the second edition of the increasingly popular program, which provides the chance to relive the liberal arts experience. Attendees chose from a menu of courses in the natural sciences, humanities, and social sciences. “I used neuro-connectors that may have been dormant for 30 years,” said Jane Porter ’74. “I loved the class participation, and learned so much from the other alumni and friends.” When Porter and her classmates weren’t proving that they’d done their homework, they were enjoying electives like yoga, rock climbing, strength conditioning, and Zumba. A special night of Colgate-style trivia at the Colgate Inn, an improv comedy performance at the Palace Theater, and a unique conversation about African politics with President Jeffrey Herbst rounded out the schedule. Faculty have lined up for the opportunity to participate by retooling their traditional courses for this veteran audience. “Working with people who have a lot of experience and have done a
Board of Trustees elects new leadership
Heather Ainsworth
work & play
Reliving the liberal arts at Summer on the Hill
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scene: Autumn 2011
Two accomplished alumni have been selected to lead Colgate’s Board of Trustees. Denis F. Cronin ’69 was elected chair, and Robert A. Kindler ’76 was named vice chair during the group’s June meeting. Cronin succeeds J. Christopher Clifford ’67, and Kindler follows Margaret A. Flanagan ’80. “Our university is operating from a position of strength, thanks to the efforts of outstanding leaders like Chris Clifford and Peg Flanagan,” said Cronin. “We must continue that advancement, highlight the teaching and research excellence of our professors, and expand access to the Colgate experience.” Cronin received a Maroon Citation and the Wm. Brian Little ’64 Award for Distinguished Service while compiling a lengthy record of alumni volunteerism and support for Colgate. He chaired the silent phase of the Passion for the Climb campaign, was a member of the search committee that hired Jeffrey Herbst as Colgate’s 16th president, spent two years on the Alumni Council, and was a member of the Parents’ Steering Committee of the Society of Families — a position also held by his wife, Linda. He served on the Board of Trustees from 1999 to 2008 and was re-elected last April. While a student, Cronin earned his bachelor’s degree in history, was the captain of the varsity basketball team, and was selected for Konosioni honor society membership. He is a former senior partner, now Of Counsel, to the law firm of Vinson & Elkins in New York City. He is also a trustee and pastpresident of the Fordham Law School Alumni Association. Read a “Get to know” conversation with Cronin on pg. 61. Kindler, global head of mergers and acquisitions and vice chairman of Morgan Stanley, and former partner at the law firm of Cravath, Swaine & Moore, has been a member of Colgate’s Board of Trustees since 2002, serving as a member of the board’s executive committee and in a number
Views from the hill What’s your favorite thing to do at Colgate in the fall? “I’m captain of the men’s rowing team, so my favorite thing is our biggest race, which is the Head of the Charles Regatta in Boston. It’s an international regatta — last year there were boats from New Zealand and China. “Also, I’m a deacon for the university church, so in October, we always do a big pumpkin picking and hayride in Cazenovia to get to know some of the first-years who are interested in church.” — Rob Bickhart ’12, geology major from Villanova, Pa. “A few of my friends and I are planning an ‘explore the county’ drive to see what we can find. I’m in a sorority — I’m a Tri Delta — and we went apple picking with our new members … it was such a gorgeous drive, so we talked about how much fun it would be to just explore the area.” — Rebecca Silberman ’13, biology major from Somers, N.Y. “There’s nothing I like doing more on an autumn day than to walk down Willow Path toward town. I’ll then kill an hour or two doing little things: running errands, stopping for coffee at the Barge Canal, a slice of pizza from Slices, and so on. Hamilton has some local businesses that I’ve grown to love, and in the fall, when the leaves turn orange, it sure is beautiful.” — Christopher Esposito ’14, economics major from Santa Cruz, Calif.
Go figure – The Colgate Scene This is the 13th issue since the Scene became a four-color magazine in autumn 2008 — how could we not celebrate with some fun facts on what’s gone into those 13 issues?
1,395 photographs 21 “Colgate Seen” photos (see pg. 55 for
this issue’s selections)
197 alumni profiled 115 alumni-authored books spotlighted 64 Colgate couple weddings announced 529 births and adoptions announced 0.100.65.47 CMYK makeup of
Colgate maroon ink
59,403 average words in class news 77 class editors 1909 oldest class represented in class news in the Colgate Scene’s original 13th issue (February 1974)
How are we doing in telling the Colgate story? Keep an eye on your e-mail inbox: in the coming weeks, you may be randomly selected for our reader survey. Or, you can always send feedback to scene@colgate. edu.
to help Colgate offer one of the best liberal arts programs anywhere,” said Kindler.
U.S. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand stresses sciences in visit
Shortly after announcing her agenda that she hopes will focus New York State’s manufacturing efforts on clean energy and technology, U.S. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) stopped at Colgate on July 5 to talk to youths about their critical roles in science. “We can beat our competitors in the race to green energy, and I think all of you will be part of that race because those are issues you care about,” she told a roomful of teenagers who had just arrived for Colgate’s Science and Sports Camp. The senator’s “Made in America” Block Grant Program Act has been designed to support clean energy technology in an effort to retool struggling manufacturers and aid the state’s economy. “We want to teach people your age to care about math and science because that’s the future,” she told the teens. “The future for New York is in high tech, biotech, nanotech, energy tech, clean tech, all these growing industries — that’s how we’re going to replace the old manufacturing jobs that we lost.” Prior to meeting with the campers, Gillibrand toured the Ho Science Center and met with faculty. In the Linsley Geology Museum, geology professor Bruce Selleck talked about Colgate students’ research and pointed out museum treasures like a whale jawbone found in upstate New York. Then, physics and astronomy professor Beth Parks showed the senator a mini-solar car that was one of the projects that camp students would be working on. Over the next two weeks, the adolescents — who came from as nearby as Utica and as far away as Chicago — delved into scientific research and a variety of sports. Gillibrand answered questions from the campers about her favorite presidents, the challenges in representing New York State, and how she first became interested in politics. Having just been featured in the New York Times for her campaign to get more women involved in politics, Gillibrand also talked about being inspired by her grandmother, a secretary in the state legislature who rallied other women to get politically involved. “It taught me an important
Back on campus Alumni help students turn thought into action
“Far better it is to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs, even though checkered by failure, than to take rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy much nor suffer much, because they live in the gray twilight that knows not victory nor defeat.” In quoting Theodore Roosevelt, Andy Greenfield ’74 charged the students taking part in this year’s Thought Into Action (TIA) Institute to have resilience and courage as they began their entrepreneurial adventures. Now in its third year, TIA is a monthly seminar on campus in which alumni serve as mentors to students who spend an academic year turning their business ideas into reality. Greenfield coordinates the program with Bob Gold ’80 and Wills Hapworth ’07. Since it began in fall 2009, TIA has ramped up its momentum — from Greenfield mentoring eight students in the first year, to now more than 20 alumni mentoring 53-plus students. “The interest from alumni entrepreneurs has been nothing short of staggering,” Greenfield emphasized. At the first class, on September 3, in addition to the three co-founders, the following came to lend their expertise and guidance: Jason Griswold ’97, Robert Johnson ’94, Kristine Michelsen-Correa ’07, Tim O’Neill ’78, Lynn Plant ’77, Jane Porter ’74, Matt
Seconi ’09, Read Wall ’09, Dick Weiss ’73, and Zach Zaro ’07. These alumni have found success in such diverse fields as software (Johnson), textiles (Porter), and journalism (Weiss). Students’ projects are also wide ranging, from nonprofit ideas — like Kenya BioGas, an effort to install biogas plants in a Kenyan village in order to convert waste to high-energy methane — to for-profit ventures and campus-enrichment projects — such as Notebrush, an online student museum that creates an interactive artists’ community. Each class begins with a lesson on different aspects of entrepreneurship; the first focused on developing a personal brand and problem solving. After a group discussion, the class breaks up into smaller teams of 10 to 12 students, led by 2 to 3 mentors, to drill down on individual projects. Problems are hashed out and new goals are set by the end of every class. “What’s amazing is that we’ll start to see that the students have real entrepreneurial reflexes as well,” said Hapworth. “While we try to mentor and point them in the right direction, we first let the students sort out the situation and get input from others in the room. We want them to be the first ones to provide insight.” To learn more, including how to become a mentor for TIA students, visit www.tiainstitute.com.
Heather Ainsworth
of other leadership capacities. Like Cronin, Kindler is a Maroon Citation and Wm. Brian Little award recipient. He is a former Konosioni member as well, and his undergraduate degree came from the Department of English, magna cum laude. Kindler went on to earn his law degree from the New York University School of Law, where he is a trustee. Read a “Get to know” interview with him in the spring 2010 Scene, pg. 61. Both Kindler and Cronin are rooted in the Colgate community, not only through their own experiences, but also through those of their children. Kindler is the father of Emily ’04, William ’08, and Dylan ’12; Cronin is the father of Denis ’09 and Megan ’10. “It will be a privilege to work with each of the board’s 35 alumni and parent members because they all strive
U.S. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand with Colgate geologist Bruce Selleck
News and views for the Colgate community
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work & play Andrew Daddio
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scene: Autumn 2011
life lesson that grassroots activism matters, that women’s voices matter, that you should care about who represents you … and I always wanted to serve because of it,” she said.
Zipcar program revs up
“Insight Ivana” and “Fountain Focus” rolled onto campus in September as part of the Zipcar car-sharing program that the Student Government Association (SGA) has brought to Colgate. Zipcar is an international program that provides an alternative to owning and renting a car in cities and on college campuses. Colgate received a 2011 Honda Insight Hybrid and a 2012 Ford Focus — both Smart Way fuelefficient vehicles. Alex Restrepo ’12, who spearheaded the initiative for the SGA, explained that Zipcar will help improve Colgate’s growing sustainability efforts by reducing the overall number of vehicles
on campus; approximately 15-20 personally owned vehicles are expected to be eliminated from campus roads through use of the program. Another perk is to provide a way for students to explore the surrounding area, and to improve mobility for one-car families on the staff and faculty. To sign up with Zipcar, a student, staff member, or faculty member completes a short online form. Any student age 18 and over can take part. Members age 18-20 can use the two Zipcars that are on campus. Members age 21 and over also have access to thousands of Zipcars around the world. On a sunny Tuesday afternoon in early September, Restrepo handed out information to numerous students who signed up for the program at the O’Connor Campus Center. Initial student opinion about the program was positive.
When the Scene called Ben Barrett to learn more about what’s been fueling Hamilton’s summer weekly car show, he was in the middle of sanding his 1931 Model A Ford. The car show organizer (who also owns Village Green a 1951 Ford pickup) started running the Tuesday-evening event with his wife four years ago. From the Tuesday before Memorial Day to the Tuesday after Labor Day, approximately 25 to 35 cars, trucks, and even tractors line Broad Street, which is blocked off for the event. “Anybody in the area who’s got a classic,
“Zipcars are great for campus because they allow transportation for those who can’t bring cars to campus,” said James Speight ’14.
University marks 10th anniversary of 9/11
Across Colgate’s campus on September 11, in private discussions held in dorm rooms to comments shared in community spaces, the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks was marked. Echoing the themes of remembrance and sacrifice that resonated around the nation and the world, students, faculty, and staff members took part in several events. A non-denominational memorial service was held at Memorial Chapel, and an afternoon of community service took place on campus. RSVP of Madison County, which matches adults age 55 and older with local volunteer opportunities, joined
antique, or muscle car” stops to pop their hoods, Barrett explained. “We get an eclectic mix,” he said, noting that the most unique vehicles he’s seen around the Village Green have been an antique John Deere tractor, a Reo from the early 1900s, and a 1930s sprint car. The auto expo has also been a good way to ignite business downtown, according to Barrett. “It’s brought in a lot of spectators,” he said. Adolescents from central New York and beyond learned the basics from A(ngles) to Z(oom) during the Youth Film/Video Workshop hosted by the Hamilton Movie Theater from July 11 to 15. Geared toward beginners, the workshops were led by Henry O’Connell, Dennis Kiely, and Kenny MacBain, all graduates of film and broadcast programs at Oswego State University. The trio taught film and video techniques, language, and processes to 18 youths (ages 11 to 16), who gained hands-on experience in conceptualizing, writing, recording, editing, and finalizing short film videos. Each group of students produced a short film that was featured at the Hamilton International Film Festival during the first weekend in August. People were levitated, items disappeared, and objects changed color — all during the Science of Magic event held at the Hamilton Public Library. Jeff Boyer, a.k.a. “the Amazing Mr. Snide,” performed illusions related to sound, light, solar power, and electric and kinetic energy. The event was part of the library’s summer reading program that invites guest speakers and performers every Wednesday in July to provide educational entertainment for the whole family. Parry’s, the staple shopping destination for students’ dorm and apartment supplies, has moved to the old Grand Union building on Route 12B. The new location gives Hamilton’s “modern-day general store” additional space for its wares.
Community mourns loss, celebrates life of student
Tears, smiles, and poignant remembrances merged on Saturday, September 10, to mark the passing of a Colgate student whose deep love of life, fun, and occasional “chaos” left an indelible mark on campus. Victor Krivitski ’12 died August 22 after an eight-month fight with cancer. Krivitski was a geology major, rugby player, member of the Colgate Geological Society, WRCU radio host, and recruitment chair of Phi Delta Theta. The 21-year-old was from Cape May Court House, N.J.
In September, hundreds of members of the Colgate community attended what was called Victor Krivitski Family Fun Day at the rugby pitch. Krivitski’s life was celebrated during a ceremony held between the men’s and women’s rugby games and throughout the afternoon, with a barbecue, a bounce house for children, and other activities. “His life was filled with happiness and joy and fun, and that’s exactly what the day succeeded in representing,” said Michael Schon ’12, co-organizer of the day and Krivitski’s close friend. A memorial service was held later in the day at Memorial Chapel, where it was standing-room only. In his eulogy, Schon noted his friend’s capacity for life. “Vic was driven by a pure, unadulterated love of life and a profound passion to live it beyond its normal boundaries. You could also rest assured that, ultimately, in some unexpected way, something good would come of the chaos he was inciting.” Schon said that, although the service was at times overwhelming and sad, it also was marked by an immense display of compassion and caring. “Everyone wore bright colors to celebrate Victor’s colorful and joyous life,” he said. “It was an amazing and inspiring show of unity by the Colgate community.” In addition to his Colgate activities, Krivitski worked summers as a whitewater rafting guide on the Arkansas River in Colorado. He enjoyed hiking and rock climbing in the Adirondack Mountains, Colorado, and New Hampshire, and he was a fan of scuba diving, camping, and riding his motorcycle.
Andrew Daddio
Get to know: Linda Maynard
Associate nurse manager, Health Services A nurse at Health Services since 1996, Linda Maynard takes care of ailing students as well as provides counseling and education. She says that, at times, her job even involves a little mothering. Maynard also takes on that role as a “host mother” through a campus program that matches international first-year students with Colgate families who volunteer to help them adjust to college life in America. How long have you been a host ‘mom’ for international students? I have worked at Colgate full time for 15 1/2 years and have had at least one student every year. I probably have had about 40 kids over the years. I had 26 last year because there were not enough hosts, and I always take any student who does not have a host parent. I have two Chinese students this year. What types of things do you do together? I take them to the Barge to get to know them the first year. I usually try to take them out for their birthdays and I try to give them a gift at Christmas. I am also available to help them get used to American ways. If I am free, I take them to the plane, bus, or train and pick them up. I have been a surrogate mom for the students whose parents cannot come to graduation. I helped one Bulgarian young lady move to Penn State for the master’s/PhD program. I attend as many special events as I can that involve the international community — banquets, dinners, etc. Last fall, I hosted a breakfast for dinner where we had pancakes for supper; I got help from other health center employees and staff. What does being a host mom mean to you? I will never get to travel outside the United States because we have a dairy farm and my husband cannot leave. So, I see the world through the students’ eyes. Each has a story, and I love to listen to them. Do you ever bring students to your home? Some of them have been to the farm, where my husband has taught them to parallel park. Tell us about your ‘global’ office. Some of them bring me small gifts from their homeland, and I display them. I’ve received jewelry from Bulgaria and India, pottery from Mexico, papyrus from Egypt, wooden animals from Ethiopia and Libya, wooden shoes from the Netherlands, and more. Material-wise, I have the most diverse office on campus! Do you have kids? I have two grown children, a son and a daughter (who lives in Kodiak, Alaska), and two grandsons. Ashlee Eve ’14
Colgate students in writing letters to an “adopted” platoon stationed in Afghanistan. The ALANA Cultural Center hosted an interfaith community dinner. English professor Jane Pinchin, who was serving as Colgate’s interim president at the time of the 2001 attacks, spoke about her recollections of the tragic day and its aftermath. She recalled how staff members searched lists of alumni to determine who was missing, and who might be dead. The number of deceased reached seven, and Pinchin said their names are now forever part of Colgate history: Sharon Balkcom ’80, Nestor Cintron ’96, Scott Coleman ’94, Edward Porter Felt ’81, Aaron J. Jacobs ’96, Todd Pelino ’89, and David Retik ’90. The alumni were among the 2,977 people killed in the attacks. An untold number were, and still are, deeply affected by the worst terrorist attack on U.S. soil. And so it was at Colgate, and at venues across the world, a day to remember and a day to renew the vow, “To never forget.”
News and views for the Colgate community
11
work & play
Passion for the Climb My post-stroke boot camp: steps to independence By Bob Otterbourg ’51
After writing several advice books on career changing and thriving in retirement, freelance writer Bob Otterbourg has had to focus on adjustments to his own life in recent months.
I live in what’s known as the Stroke Belt, a region in the southeastern United States that has a considerably higher incidence of stroke than other parts of the country. In early March, I became another statistic for the cardiovascular-disease database. Unlike many stroke victims, I exercised every day. I am not a smoker or drinker, and I rarely eat fried food. I have eaten at McDonald’s only once in my life. I believe my stroke resulted from stress, following several months of intensive personal care for my wife, Susan. She died six hours after I had my stroke. I hadn’t realized how emotionally involved I was with Susan’s cancer. I handled many of the household chores as I watched her health decline until she became bedridden. My internist warned me to take better care of myself. I thought I was being “Mr. Cool.” On March 6, while someone was tending to my wife of 54 years, my daughter, Laura, and I went out to lunch, ran some errands, and had an overall relaxing day. At 9:30 that night, I started getting ready for bed.
I kissed my wife goodnight. I thought I was putting on my pajamas, but I soon realized I was on the floor. I called for Laura, who was in the living room adjacent to the bedroom, and she called for an ambulance. At Duke University Hospital in Durham, N.C., I underwent numerous tests, including an MRI that showed bleeding in my brain. I now know I experienced a thalamic stroke on the right side of my brain. I lost the use of and feeling in my left arm and leg. However, I was still able to process information and speak fairly well, and I had control of my right-side motor skills. I was transferred from the intensive care unit to the regular medical floor of the hospital after six days. I was interviewed by the medical management team from the Durham Rehabilitation Institute (DRI). To become a rehab patient, I was told I would have to undergo a rigorous regimen of at least two types of skilled therapies and be able to tolerate at least three hours a day of active participation. I had to agree to the terms before the DRI would accept me. I have three therapists. Occupational therapy consists of practical points of day-to-day living, including dressing, grooming, and personal care. Physical therapy deals with strengthening muscles and teaching the patient how to regain balance and sit correctly.
Because my speech and language were not affected, my speech therapist and I have been focusing on my concentration, ability to put thoughts on paper, and expressing ideas cogently. This article is a product of that. I dictated part of it and wrote part of it longhand. My therapist typed it into the computer. The entire therapy process is a kind of boot camp. At times, I find it rather arduous because I am working on functions that I was once able to perform automatically. Now I have to focus on learning how to turn in bed, put on my clothes, and attend to tasks that were routine for me only a few months ago. In the first weeks of the program, I realized the importance of setting goals. I feel somewhat like the baby who wins the adulation of parents when he or she turns over or sits up for the first time. I remember when Laura was about 4 months old and how excited Susan and I were when she began to crawl to us. You would think that the death of my wife would make my recovery more difficult. But I went into mourning when I first heard that Susan had terminal cancer in March 2010. I knew that our anniversary on April 14 would be our last and that our trip to the North Carolina coast we loved would be our final one. By the time she died, I already had done my grieving. Thanks to my therapists, my balance and my attention span have been improving, and I can do more things with less assistance. Although I am impatient to get better, I do take pleasure in small gains. Before she died, Susan picked out my apartment in a retirement community. I am determined to get there, hopefully early next year. Six months after my stroke, I’m starting to walk. Even though I am only taking baby steps, it’s a start. Simply put, I’m considering having a T-shirt made: Strokes are not for sissies. — The original version of this essay appeared in the June 2011 Kiplinger’s Retirement Report. Printed with permission.
Ken Otterbourg
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scene: Autumn 2011
Read more essays from our Passion for the Climb series, or see how you can submit your own essay, at colgateconnect.org/scenepfc.
1 Payne Street With the Colgate Inn — a Hamilton landmark for more than eight decades — having undergone a significant renovation this year, we look back at its history and share some fun facts. Built on a site originally occupied by a Baptist church, the inn had a longstanding predecessor. The Park House inn and tavern had operated continuously since 1807, even surviving the great fire of 1895 that destroyed much of downtown Hamilton. It was demolished to make room for the larger structure we know today. Since opening in 1925, the inn has not only offered a place for the public to grab a bite and clink glasses and for travelers to rest their weary heads — notable guests said to have stayed or visited include Eleanor Roosevelt, Duke Ellington, Louis Armstrong, Ed Koch, Colin Powell, and the Dalai Lama — but it’s also been a hub for community activity. The interior has been reconfigured multiple times. The current renovation involved updating the guest rooms and creating six new suites, including three with balconies. On the first floor, the kitchen was relocated to the center for a more efficient flow, and the tap room was moved to the front along Payne and Madison streets, creating an inviting
1926 events (first full year of operation) Morning bridge party Home Bureau’s “old-fashioned dance” Joint meeting of Businessmen’s Assoc. & Exchange Club Taylor Club of Colgate University 6th District Dental Convention Hamilton High School Senior Class Dance League of Women Voters meeting Lambda Chi Alpha 10th Anniversary
outdoor seating area. The Green Room meeting space can now be joined with the tavern and the tap room to form a large reception space. Through it all, the exterior’s Dutch Colonial Revival–style visage has remained close to its roots. For more, visit colgateinn.com.
2011 events Weekly Trivia Night Hamilton Forum Independence Day Block Party Breakfast with Santa Seven Oaks Ladies Bridge Club Hamilton Rotary and Hamilton Club meetings Colgate Coaches Corner (live radio talk show) Colgate Finance Club Dinner Phi Eta Sigma honors society banquet
13 Page 13 is the showplace
for Colgate tradition, history, and school spirit.
scene: Autumn 2011
Janna Minehart ’13 (2)
life of the mind 14
Above: Living Writers professors Jane Pinchin (left) and Jennifer Brice field calls during an online book club. Right: Colson Whitehead
Living Writers: New York theme, new online connections
When Colson Whitehead came to campus in September to kick off the fall Living Writers course, his appearance was more of a stand-up comedy show than a public reading. The author of Sag Harbor, The Intuitionist, and John Henry Days professed that the reason he pursued writing as a profession was because he “didn’t have to wear clothes” or “talk to people.” He said he felt his hands were not suited for hard labor because they were thin and feminine. He also spoke about the difficulty of garnering an audience, proclaiming that he felt like a “microbe in the butt of a gnat trying to catch the attention of an elephant.” Persson Auditorium was filled with people — and laughter — while approximately 60 others watched Whitehead through a live webcast. Winner of the MacArthur Fellowship and numerous literary prizes, Whitehead shared a guide for how to become a writer. Only later did the audience find out that the advice was actually a short piece he had written and was not to be taken seriously. This year’s course highlights authors whose works are set in New
York. “We decided to conceive of the local in terms of the idea of New York — whether New York City, downstate, or upstate,” said professor Jane Pinchin, who co-teaches the course with Jennifer Brice. In addition to the undergraduate course, the professors for the first time are teaching a version called LW Online. Nearly 70 parents and alumni signed up for interactive forums — both virtual and in person — that have examined the works of four of the semester’s 10 authors: Whitehead, Michael Cunningham, Andrea Barrett, and Jennifer Egan. The four LW Online book club discussions are being webcast live, with the professors fielding questions from participants through a phonein system. And, while a participant blog is providing an online forum for continued discussion, the personal connections have not been forgotten. LW Online participants were invited to come to Hamilton in November to sit in on the undergraduate course, attend a public reading by Cunningham, and then have dinner with the author of The Hours. At a second event, in New York City in December, participants will again meet the faculty members and each other. For Brice and Pinchin, another exciting element of LW Online has been learning about family connections and ties to the Living Writers course, which was started by novelist and Colgate English professor Frederick Busch nearly 25 years ago. G. Martin Brogan ’73, who lives in Syracuse, and his daughter, Jane Brogan ’02, who spends a lot of time in New York City working on the World Trade Center project, joined the class together. Two women who took the Living Writers course just last year — Cecelia Menchetti ’11 and Molly Binenfeld ’11 — also signed up to take part in LW Online as alumnae. The three remaining authors are Sigrid Nunez, Joseph O’Neill, and Jennifer Egan. Visit www.colgate.edu/ livingwriters for the schedule, more information, and to watch live webcasts of their public readings. Also, check out the Living Writers@Colgate Facebook page to participate in the online discussion.
Colgate Forest will offset university’s carbon footprint
Chile’s Aysén Region of Patagonia will be home to the Colgate University Forest, the result of a 15-year commit-
Syllabus WRIT105/FSEM148: Colgate Talk Margaret Darby, Associate Professor of Writing and Rhetoric MWF 9:20 a.m., Lathrop 401 Course description: A number of people, both professionals and students, hold jobs that require speaking and writing about Colgate University. This course for first-year students samples writings that consider Colgate as both theme and organizing principle. The topic for discussion is Colgate itself — its real events, controversies, and ideals — and, at the same time, the individual student’s response to Colgate in light of the past. Students learn how to analyze texts through traditional rhetorical questions: What intellectual claims are made? What values are attributed? What audiences are addressed? Students develop new powers of persuasion by studying the interaction of language, autobiography, others’ points of view, and local cultural knowledge. On the reading list: Diana Hacker, A Writer’s Reference; David Rosenwasser and Jill Stephen, Writing Analytically; the Colgate Scene; www.colgate.edu; and the Colgate Maroon-News Class visitors: People who write and speak about Colgate for admission (staff and student tour guides), communications, advancement, and the Maroon-News. Homework: Students must prepare a piece of writing for nearly every class meeting. The professor says: “This course teaches students how to use writing to think more effectively. Its goal is the student who habitually says, ‘OK, that’s what I wrote in my rough draft, but what do I really mean?’ Its reward is a useful strategy for saying what you mean and meaning what you say. Not easy, but satisfying — and fundamental to an elite education.”
Patagonia Sur is a for-profit company that “invests in, protects, and enhances scenically remarkable and ecologically valuable properties in Chilean Patagonia.” It was founded by Warren Adams ’88, who also created PlanetAll, the first social-networking website, which was acquired by Amazon in 1998. After traveling to Patagonia, he was motivated by the region’s incredible natural beauty to apply his business acumen toward acquiring, conserving, and protecting large tracts of pristine land there, culminating in the 2007 establishment of Patagonia Sur.
The pact between the company and the university is just one part of Colgate’s Sustainability and Climate Action Plan, submitted to the American College and University Presidents’ Climate Commitment (ACUPCC) in September. Colgate’s goal is to become carbon neutral by 2019 (the university’s bicentennial), through 27 proposed on-campus projects. For purposes of the ACUPCC, climate neutrality is defined as having no net greenhouse gas emissions, to be achieved by minimizing those emissions as much as possible, and using carbon offsets or other measures to mitigate the remaining emissions. “Our aggressive time frame makes sense in terms of good global citizenship as well as Colgate’s academic mission,” said President Jeffrey Herbst, “and it is also fiscally responsible.” Of the plan’s $8.1 million one-time implementation cost, $7.3 million is earmarked for a future, necessary upgrade of Colgate’s aging heating plant that will ultimately eliminate consumption of fuel oil #6 on campus and lower the university’s annual heating expenditures. The innovative plan also includes several low-cost, high-impact strategies to encourage behavior changes in offices and residence halls. It suggests the purchase of electric and hybridelectric vehicles, potential use of wind and solar power, adaptive computer power management, and increased on-site composting. Many of the ideas in the plan were investigated by Colgate faculty, students, and staff, particularly through the committees and subcommittees of the Sustainability Council. Carbonreduction strategies were researched in courses such as Community-based Study of Environmental Issues and Global Change and You. In addition, 10 groups involving more than 100 students actively promote sustainable practices on campus. John Pumilio, Colgate’s sustainability coordinator, organized the yearlong planning effort, which followed the compilation of a comprehensive university-wide inventory of greenhouse gas emissions, and involved dozens of community members.
Alien earthworms invade
It’s hard to imagine the common earthworm as an “alien invader,” but those near Colgate are not native to North America, and it’s been found
that they could be harmful to the environment. The presence of exotic earthworms has led to a host of potential concerns, including a change in the carbon and nitrogen cycles as well as the accelerated breakdown of organic material on the forest floor surface. These changes often reduce habitat for animals, decrease nutrient availability, and contribute to soil erosion. Colgate professors and students have been working to better understand the spread of exotic earthworms in the region. Most recently, geography professor Peter Klepeis and his former student, Dara Seidl ’10, have published a study in the journal Human Ecology that helps uncover the human dimensions of earthworm invasion. It has since garnered the attention of BBC News and many other media outlets. Setting the stage for Klepeis and Seidl’s study, in 2009, biology professor Tim McCay and his team explored how soil characteristics in the Adirondacks — the largest unbroken temperate forest in the world — affect the incidence of invasive earthworms. McCay’s research, published in the Northeastern Naturalist, confirmed his hunch that people are key players in the earthworm story. McCay called on Klepeis to take a closer look at the role of humans, who have been identified as the main culprits of earthworm dispersal. People spread earthworms both inadvertently — via horticulture, land disturbance, and in the tires and underbodies of vehicles — and vol-
Live and learn
Last summer, I had the pleasure of helping to run a pilot youth camp on the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota, home to the Oglala Lakota Sioux Tribe. Other participants were Maggie Dunne ’13, Kelsey John ’13, Brenton Um ’11, and Lauren Miller ’11. We went as representatives of Maggie’s nonprofit organization, Lakota Pine Ridge Children’s Enrichment Project (LPRCEP). Pine Ridge is one of the most impoverished U.S. counties, so there are very few enrichment opportunities for children. With monies from fundraisers, individual donors, and the university’s Native American Studies Program, we worked with representatives from the National Indian Youth Leadership Project (NIYLP), Wings for America, the Oglala Sioux Housing Authority, and Re-Member, to bring a modified version of NIYLP’s Project Venture to 8- to 13-year-olds from the reservation. Activities during the five-day camp ran the gamut from archery, softball, kickball, and mural painting, to hikes through the Badlands and discussions with Lakota elders. These activities brought out the best in the campers, who were enthusiastic about all of the activities and really came out of their shells. By the end of the week, it felt like the kids were virtually running the camp, as evidenced by their excitement to set up impromptu games.
iStock/Maria
iStock/renelo
ment to purchase carbon offsets from Patagonia Sur. The 225,000 nativespecies trees, planted on 430 acres of land, will offset approximately 5,000 tons (about one-third) of Colgate’s present carbon footprint. The agreement is part of the university’s push to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and advance sustainability. Colgate is the first of 12 universities that will ultimately comprise Patagonia Sur’s University Conservation Circle. In addition to carbon offsets, the arrangement also provides the university with a research site for students and faculty, and a place to collaborate with member universities on research as well as the development of sustainability initiatives.
untarily, through composting and the improper disposal of fish bait. Despite humans’ negative impact on forest ecology, a survey by Seidl and Klepeis showed that only 17 percent of residents in Webb, N.Y., (located in the western Adirondacks) know that earthworms in the town are exotic invasive species. In fact, the use of earthworms in gardening and composting is perceived as benefi-
We worked long, hard days to keep the campers engaged, and in the process, we learned valuable lessons about the children — and ourselves. It took a lot of perseverance and faith to ensure the camp was enjoyable for all. All three graduates agreed that the camp was a fantastic capstone to our Colgate careers. Meanwhile, I’m envious that Maggie and Kelsey can take this experience back to campus to share it with classmates and professors. — Will Cawthern ‘11
News and views for the Colgate community
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©2011 Google Map
Summer research: Hamilton to Ethiopia
Michael Michonski ’12 tests a prototype of a device that measures the R-value of a wall to determine the effectiveness of the insulation in this Hamilton home, while his adviser, Professor Beth Parks, looks on.
Summer in Hamilton tends to be more dormant than the academic year, but this past summer, tucked away in laboratories and library corners, Colgate students were making life-changing discoveries as they assisted professors with their research. Here’s a glimpse into a few of those pockets of campus: • It’s the size of a bread box, runs on 9-volt batteries, is about the weight of a cell phone, and could help home owners conserve energy. This device in development at Colgate will detect the R-value, or thermal resistance, of wall insulation. Michael Michonski ’12, the fourth in a series of students who has been part of the project, is researching the device’s accuracy, stability, mobility, and consistency in Professor Beth Parks’s physics lab, and in homes around Hamilton. Michonski is continuing his summer research for his senior physics project. Colgate has submitted an application to patent the technology, which
Parks hopes to license to a local company that could manufacture it for homeowners. • The background and behavior of a water utility director in California, compared to that of one in New York City, may impact the utilities we use. Ted Carey ’13, Noah Goldberg ’12, Louisa Jelaco ’13, and Onnalee Kelley ’12 assisted political science professor Manny Teodoro with research on water utility management. Teodoro is studying the backgrounds, experiences, attitudes, management, and political behavior of utility administrators in order to advance knowledge of utility leadership and what factors help utilities succeed. The students contacted and interviewed scores of CEOs and directors of utility companies about their work and positions. The first-of-itskind study, sponsored by the Water Research Foundation, asked questions relating to how effective the executives feel in doing their jobs and about their career paths. An online questionnaire followed the interviews. Later, the students coded all of the answers and identified patterns in the data. Teodoro has been conducting onsite interviews at various locations around the country and plans to present the study’s results at a conference next year and in a published report.
Andrew Daddio
life of the mind
cial to ecosystem services, and using worms as fishing bait is part of the region’s culture. The authors concluded that mitigating the introduction of exotic earthworms in the Adirondacks requires not only information campaigns about the problems they cause, but also efforts empowering people to change their behavior, such as the provision of non-live bait and proper disposal methods of unused earthworms.
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• The forests in northern Ethiopia are disappearing as the country develops its agriculture. So, striking a balance between Ethiopians’ livelihoods and preserving biodiversity is the challenge, said Lindsay Shepard ’12, who has been assisting religion professor Eliza Kent.
Professors Catherine Cardelus, Tsega Etefa, and Peter Scull are collaborating with Kent on an interdisciplinary project to develop an educational conservation program in partnership with the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahido Church (EOTC). “The EOTC has done some impressive sustainability efforts with preserving the forests and the indigenous trees,” Shepard said, explaining that such efforts gain support from the church’s theology. Google Map images showing the churches encircled by small patches of lush forest, which are surrounded by vast areas of brown farmland, bring Shepard’s point into focus. Shepard also looked into the ways in which ecotheology is incorporated into various indigenous groups’ belief systems and gauged how receptive the community would be to sustainability and forest conservation efforts. The hope is that the Colgate team’s work will inform northern Ethiopian community members how they can most effectively maintain the patches of indigenous forest protected by Ethiopian Orthodox churches.
President Herbst’s summer intellectual travels
It was a busy summer for President Jeffrey Herbst, who was pursuing intellectual opportunities and contributing to conversations on global affairs. In July, Herbst was among a group of university presidents around the nation who visited Israel to participate in a program sponsored by Project Interchange, a nonprofit educational organization that brings opinion leaders and policy makers to Israel for learning. The 17-member del-
“American universities should aggressively defend academic freedom while actively engaging with China,” Herbst began. He called on American diplomats and elected officials to protest restrictions on academics who have been stymied by the Chinese, and to highlight “the negative effects on China in setting up barriers for academic research and exchange.” On balance, he added: “We should also seek to improve America’s own good but not perfect record in allowing critics to visit our country.” Read about and comment on the debate at www.nytimes.com/room fordebate.
Get to know: Joel Sommers
Andrew Daddio
egation of university presidents met with their executive counterparts at institutions including Tel Aviv University, Hebrew University, and Al-Quds University. They received in-depth briefings on research initiatives and discussed opportunities for academic exchange. Because the program also addressed complex issues facing Israel, the delegation met with senior government officials, including Israeli President Shimon Peres and Palestinian National Authority Prime Minister Salam Fayyad. Teeing up his forthcoming book, Herbst co-authored an article on ForeignPolicy.com that explores the causes of mass violence within nations. The article, titled “The Fault Lines of Failed States: Can social science determine what makes one state fail and another succeed?” was posted in August. It suggests that while every country and societal division is unique, there are three critical issues that can determine the prospects for conflicts within a nation: governance, democratization, and globalization. Herbst and co-author Greg Mills, director of the Johannesburg-based Brenthurst Foundation, explore these issues in an attempt to answer why some countries can manage societal divisions while others are plunged into violence by these same kinds of fault lines. The authors and longtime collaborators participated in a yearlong project with other experts who examined the nature of conflict and the role that these fault lines play — in countries including Africa, India, Yemen, Brazil, and Iraq. The result of the research is a book, edited by Herbst, Mills, and Terence McNamee, called On the Faultline: Managing Tensions and Divisions Within Societies, which is due out in January. Then, in September, Herbst shifted his focus to another area of the globe. Editors at the New York Times invited him to weigh in on an important issue regarding the internationalization of higher education: How can American scholars and universities maintain their academic freedom when interacting with China? The story was well-timed: 18 Chinese students arrived this fall as members of the Class of 2015, the largest contingent from that country in Colgate’s history. According to the Times, there are more undergraduates studying in the United States from China than from any other country in the world.
Colgate hosts campers from around the globe
Hundreds of talented athletes and musicians from all over the world got a taste of college life at Colgate — from residence hall living to communal meals at Frank — last summer. Campers came from such countries as Singapore, Japan, Italy, Germany, France, Guatemala, and the Netherlands. The Eastern U.S. Music Camp returned for its 36th successful season. Musicians of all levels, ages 10–18, honed their skills in campus practice rooms and studios, and performed for the public at Brehmer Theater. Colgate also hosted SoccerPlus, a renowned and rigorous camp for 11- to 17-year-olds. The camp’s CEO and founder, Tony DiCicco, currently coaches the Boston Breakers of Women’s Professional Soccer and has an international following. SoccerPlus drew approximately 200 participants from 12 nations for each of the two weeks it was on campus. With 2,984 fans, the organization’s Facebook page was abuzz with reports of fun and challenging times at Colgate. Finally, the All American Lacrosse Camp brought 80 male and female athletes to campus between June 26 and July 13. Twenty players from Manchester, England, joined participants from across North America. “The appeal is the community,” said camp director Bill Hardy. “It’s safe, clean. You turn on the lights in the stadium and look down the valley… It’s just a beautiful place.” Ian Murphy ’10 was one of several athletes who played for the Raiders after attending the All American summer camp, and Hardy predicted that others may have a similar goal.
Assistant professor of computer science Describe your research. I’m interested in measuring different aspects of the Internet and using what you can learn from those measurements to improve it. The Internet has grown in such decentralized ways that no one has a global view of what it looks like. I’m interested in what’s going on out there, and how can we improve it in terms of security or performance. How can your research help us? One of the things I’m working on now is to create a new network simulator that basically can give a high-level view of traffic patterns on a relatively large simulated network. There’s a lot of “attack traffic” out there — a lot of people trying to create either worms or viruses. But, there are no really good simulation tools to re-create both benign or normal-looking flows as well as anomalous-looking flows. One goal with this work is to use simulation capabilities to better test algorithms for quickly identifying attack traffic. A device employing one of these algorithms could alert a human to take action, or possibly take action itself. With what research projects have your students helped? One is an effort within the networking research community to build a nationwide test bed for experimentation with new networking ideas — it’s called GENI (Global Environment for Network Innovations). No one’s really sure if this can be pulled off, because nothing of this kind has been built before. I have a grant with a couple of principal investigators at other institutions to build a system to measure certain aspects of this test bed, so that when a researcher wants to run an experiment, they will use our system to take measurements of their experiment. The last two summers, we’ve had Colgate students working on this. How secure is the Internet? The side of me that does banking online and buys things online tends to not worry about that too much. The side of me that knows what websites might be doing once they get your data says that none of us should be doing any of this. You’re trusting a company to handle your data in a sensitive manner and, as more companies have become dependent on the Internet and on computational infrastructure, it’s been harder for them to keep track of what their systems are doing, and whether they have appropriately secure mechanisms for keeping data private. So, anywhere you look, I’m sure you could find loopholes. But to me, that’s not a good enough reason to not do stuff online. What do you do with your free time? I’m an avid runner. I ran the Boston Marathon last spring for my second time. I was signed up to run the New York Marathon last fall, but I deferred that, so I have an automatic trip to New York next year. I really like being out there and essentially switching my brain off and just enjoying the countryside. I have the goal of running 10 marathons before I turn 40. I’ve done 7, and I’m 38, so I’ve got some work to do. — Tim O’Keeffe
News and views for the Colgate community
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arts & culture 18
scene: Autumn 2011
Capturing Gulf Coast ‘cowboys’
The lines carved into their faces, calloused hands, and a penetrating gaze indicate a life of hardship for Louisiana fishermen — especially following the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in April 2010. Jackson Fager ’06 spent the four months leading up to the first anniversary of the spill taking photos of the fishermen, which Vanity Fair published online in May. As a cameraman for WWL-TV in New Orleans, Fager has been documenting the men and women whose livelihoods are at the mercy of the Gulf Coast’s health — even before
the catastrophe. But, last January, Fager put down his videocamera and grabbed his Canon 5D to capture them in still images as they continued to pick up the pieces at that crucial moment in time. “I wanted to tell the human side of it,” he said. On his days off, he would drive around, “getting lost and finding these little towns,” stopping when he saw fishermen working on their boats. Because he knew the challenges facing their industry from his work over the years, he easily developed a rapport with them. “We would talk, and after a little while, I’d ask if I could take their photos. They were always willing.” As he spent the day with them, he said, “they saw the camera as a way to tell me what they were going through.” Fager had wanted to be a videographer since his childhood, when he was surrounded by his dad’s (Jeff Fager ’77, chairman of CBS news) best friends, who were cameramen. “I’d think, these guys have amazing stories — I want to do what they do,” he recalled. At Colgate, he took video classes in which “[Professor] John Knecht gave me the confidence to think outside the box.” After graduating, he roadtripped to New Orleans, and the city cast its spell on him. “I need to move there,” he told himself. Fager initially worked in Alabama until he landed the job at WWL. And there’s no shortage of inspiration in the Big Easy. “It’s such an incredibly rich culture and place for so many different types of people,” he said. “You can walk around here with your camera and never stop taking pictures.” But it’s the fishermen who have made an indelible mark on him. “They’re a dying breed,” Fager said. “They remind me of American cowboys. It’s a life of solitude.” While on assignment, he’s even spent time on the water with the fishermen, and he admitted becoming fascinated with the lifestyle. “It’s just them and the ocean for weeks at a time; they don’t have interaction with the rest of the world, and they like it like that,” he said. “And they’re so in touch with nature. Part of me wanted to leave everything and become a fisherman with them.” At least for now, he’ll stay on land, telling their stories through his lens. To see Fager’s complete Vanity Fair slideshow, visit: www.vanityfair.com/ culture/features/2011/05/portraits-ofthe-gulf-slide-show-201105
Preview
Successful Strategies Brehmer Theater, Dana Arts Center November 3–5 at 8 pm, Nov. 5 and 6 at 2 pm Directed by Simona Giurgea, the University Theater Program presents Successful Strategies, a brisk and sophisticated comedy written by Pierre Carlet de Chamblain de Marivaux and translated by Timberlake Wertenbaker. With elegance, whimsy, and buzzing energy, the play examines the ambiguity of love and the hardship of self-quest. Encumbered by deception, deceit, connivance, and self-delusion, the characters — masters and servants living in a sheltered world of social immobility — experience bewildering emotional change.
8 For information on other arts events, visit www.colgate.edu/arts
As a haunting soundtrack from one of his films played in the background, Professor John Knecht introduced his newest exhibition — a series of animations — during a gallery talk in Clifford Gallery in September. There are biblical references throughout the series, starting with the title, Fragments from the Wheels of Ezekiel. Explaining that his work is autobiographical, Knecht told the audience of his colleagues, students, and friends that he learned a lot about the Bible while attending elementary school in a church basement in his small Midwestern hometown. He said he’d always been fascinated with the story of the prophet Ezekiel’s visions of wheels of fire. “Fragments from the Wheels of Ezekiel is a metaphor for the space where there’s no logic — anything goes, there are no rules in that atmosphere,” said Knecht, the Russell Colgate Distinguished University Professor of art and art history and film and media studies.
He has taught such successful documentary filmmakers as Joe Berlinger ’83, Chris Paine ’83, and Sandy Cioffi ’84. “John loved being controversial and challenging our conceptions,” said Paine, who made Who Killed the Electric Car? and Revenge of the Electric Car. “He will always be my seminal influence as a filmmaker.” “When I was at a crossroads in my life, in my late 20s, trying to figure out how to get into filmmaking, he [Knecht] gave me the sage advice: ‘Go make a film,’” recalled Berlinger. “I did, and I have been making films ever since.” Berlinger’s successes include such documentaries as Metallica, Paradise Lost, and Crude. As to what the future holds for Knecht, his first answer relates to that mysterious-sounding music in the gallery, which he made with an electric guitar and a piano. “I’m going to start a band as soon as I retire,” he said emphatically. And, of course, he’ll continue creating animations. “I love this medium because I can use words with it, I can use music… There’s no formula anymore. I’m too old for formulas. But it’s working all right. And I’m really anxious to start something new.”
Colgate hosts prestigious Flaherty Film Seminar
Fragment #13, from John Knecht’s Wheels of Ezekiel series, 2011; still frame from a hand-drawn, digital animation.
If the exhibition sounds indescribable, that’s because it was, to some extent. Even the artist admitted that, although he sees obvious symbols of his life experiences, he can’t pinpoint an exact meaning for every piece. “You’ve been allowed to look in my brain for a little while — good luck in there,” he joked. However, Knecht was able to offer a very tangible — and apropos — explanation of Anima, an animation on the entire far wall of the gallery, showing books flying upward. “A book [symbolizes] knowledge and formal thinking within the academy,” he said. “They’re flying away now, they’re fleeing like a soul, and so it’s a private goodbye,” Knecht added. After 30 years of teaching at Colgate, the professor will retire at the end of this academic year.
Attending the Robert Flaherty Film Seminar means being open to a different kind of film festival. Don’t, for example, ask for a list of films to be screened, because you won’t get one. Do, however, be open to in-depth discussion, and lots of it. At the end of June, for the fourth consecutive year, the Flaherty Seminar was held at Colgate, an arrangement that has proved successful for both parties. “In addition to Colgate having dual 35-millimeter projectors — which is one of the hardest things to find on a college campus — and enough seats in a theater, it [was] also great to be in upstate New York,” said Mary Kerr, the Flaherty’s executive director. “We [had] people from all over the country and the world attending, and we [were] excited to be able to expose them to this kind of setting.” The theme of this year’s seminar, curated by Dan Streible, was Sonic Truth. It focused on the audio and musical dimensions of filmmaking. “It just kept coming back to audio, music, and place, and how music is a part of
every culture and how it can really define a place,” said Kerr. “Dan wanted to concentrate on not just sounds for technical filmmaking, but also on the sound of the atmosphere that surrounds you.” One screening turned out to be a mix of 16mm films by Lillian Schwartz and Jodie Mack. Schwartz is considered a pioneer in the world of computer art, and she is credited with one of the first digitally created films. Mack, inspired by Schwartz’s work, currently teaches animation at Dartmouth College and is known for her artistic depiction of tactile objects such as fabrics, objects, and cutout materials, as well as celluloid. During the session, 3D glasses were passed out for the participants to watch Schwartz’s films UFO’s (1971) and Galaxies (1974). All filmmakers invited to present at the seminar stay the entire week, creating the opportunity for an evolving discussion with participants. “I really like the mix of people — that it’s not all filmmakers and not all film scholars, but also anthropologists, museum curators, and more,” said Augusta Palmer, a filmmaker and scholar from Brooklyn, N.Y. Colgate President Jeffrey Herbst and Flaherty board members met to discuss ways to further develop the relationship between the seminar and the university, integrating the expertise offered by festival participants with that of faculty members. One opportunity for the future might be to utilize the university’s visualization lab in the Ho Science Center. — Monica Dutia ’13
Birds and Beasts in Beads
One’s hand starts to cramp just imagining the hours dedicated to the intricate beadwork decorating the 200-plus pieces featured in Birds and Beasts in Beads: 150 Years of Iroquois Beadwork. Box purses with beaded loops dripping off the bottom, embellished pincushions, and colorful three-dimensional birds took over the Longyear Museum of Anthropology from August 29 until October 30. The majority of the collection was on loan from Dolores Elliott, a museum consultant and retired archaeologist from Johnson City, N.Y., whose “knowledge of Iroquois beadwork is
Warren Wheeler (2)
Knecht gets animated about exhibition
unsurpassed,” according to senior curator Carol Ann Lorenz. Many of the objects date from the mid-19th to the early 20th century, but there were also new pieces made by local Iroquois. The “beasts” were represented in imagery of animals from the farm, the forest, pets, and exotic species including a zebra, an elephant, and even a unicorn. There was a case devoted to Mohawk-style birds and another displaying Tuscarora-style feathered friends — “so you can see the differences from one end of Iroquois country to the other,” Lorenz explained. In addition to the exhibition, in mid-September, Colgate hosted the third annual International Iroquois Beadwork Conference, organized by the Iroquois Studies Association with the assistance of the Longyear Museum. It attracted approximately 100 international bead workers, collectors, curators, and bead specialists. The keynote speaker was Ruth B. Phillips, Canada research chair and professor of art history at Carleton University in Ottawa, whose career has focused on the study of historical and contemporary Native North American art. Students in Lorenz’s Native Art of North America course attended parts of the conference, and she dedi- cated a section of the class to Iroquois art, as well as bead history and trade.
News and views for the Colgate community
19
go ’gate
Men’s hockey visits Italy and Switzerland
The 2010 Patriot League Football Offensive Player of the Year, Eachus received several honors heading into this season. He was ranked as one of the top running backs in the nation by the Sports Network and received first-team preseason All-America recognition from many outlets including Sporting News, Athlon, Lindy’s, and Consensus Draft Services. Eachus earned consensus firstteam FCS All-America honors following his stellar 2010 campaign, one of the best seasons for a running back in Colgate and Patriot League history. He entered the 2011 season seventh in Patriot League history with 3,722 career rushing yards, and fifth with 47 rushing touchdowns. Eachus will aim to become the third Raider and Patriot Leaguer to win the Walter Payton Award. The previous two were Colgate running backs Kenny Gamble ’88 and Jamaal Branch ’05. Gamble won the inaugural award in 1987, while Branch claimed the honor in 2003.
Eachus on Walter Payton Award watch list
After numerous preseason All-America nods following an outstanding 2010 campaign, running back Nate Eachus ’12 claimed his top distinction to date. Heading into the fall, he was selected as one of 20 candidates on the watch list for the 2011 Walter Payton Award. The top individual honor for the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS), the award will be presented to the FCS’s outstanding player at the national awards banquet Jan. 5, 2012, in Frisco, Texas. Eachus finished sixth in the voting last year, making him the secondhighest returning receiver of votes behind only Appalachian State quarterback DeAndre Presley, who placed third.
Murphy hired as men’s lacrosse coach
Andrew Daddio
Running back Nate Eachus ’12 (#32) scored a touchdown in the second half, helping Colgate beat Albany 37-34 in overtime on September 3 at Andy Kerr Stadium.
The Colgate men’s hockey team had an experience of a lifetime in early August with a trip to northern Italy and Switzerland. The Raiders embarked on a 10-day educational and athletic excursion that included three games and visits to some of the world’s greatest destinations. Kevin McNamara ’12, Jeremy Price ’13, and Nathan Sinz ’13 provided players’ insights into the trip through a blog on GoColgateRaiders.com, covering their hockey games as well as the sights. The Raiders played three games on the trip, one against a professional team in Switzerland and two in the Challenge Cup against the Under-26 Italian National Team. In the first game, against GDT Bellanzona — a third-tier professional team from Bellanzona, Switzerland — the Raiders won 10-1. After the win, the team visited the house of Thomas Larkin ’13 in Cocquio Trevisago, which is northwest of Milan. Heading back to Milan, the team jumped on a bus to Bassano del Grappa for their second game. The Raiders played the Under-26 Italian National Team for the first of a two-game series for the Challenge Cup. The game was extremely competitive, but Colgate pulled out a 4-2 win. The team then went to Asiago to
play the second game of the series against the U26 team. The last two days were spent in Rome, where the team toured the Vatican, Roman Coliseum, and Trevi Fountain. McNamara summed things up in the last few sentences of his final blog entry: “The athletic portion was a great experience and should help the team this season, but culturally, the trip allowed us to visit places that we’ve only read about in textbooks. It was truly an incredible and invaluable experience.”
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scene: Autumn 2011
The men’s lacrosse team has a new face at the helm, and the Raiders didn’t have to go far to get Mike Murphy, who spent the last eight years as an assistant coach at rival Army. From 2003–2011, Murphy served as the defensive coordinator for the Black Knights, who consistently ranked among the best defensive teams, both in the Patriot League and nationally. “With 14 years’ experience, he has a wealth of knowledge of lacrosse, particularly the Patriot League,” said Director of Athletics David Roach. Murphy helped lead the Black Knights to three NCAA Tournament appearances (2004-2005, 2010), two Patriot League regular season titles, and one Patriot League tournament championship (2010). In 2010, Army finished third in the Patriot League in scoring defense (9.31 gpg), while holding then–No. 2 Syracuse to just eight goals in a 9-8 upset victory in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. In his 14 years of coaching, Murphy has mentored 17 All-Americans, 80 All-Conference performers, eight Patriot League Players of the Year, one member of the 2010 Team USA, and one finalist for the 2011 Tewaaraton Trophy. Murphy joined Army after spending two seasons at Denison University, where he was in charge of the Big
Raider Nation
Fan spotlights with Vicky Chun ’91, senior associate athletic director
Nicci Hays Fort
Hometown: Monroe City, Mo. Occupation: Recently hired as Colgate’s head women’s basketball coach Game: Women’s soccer home opener vs. Vermont, 8/21/11; the Raiders crushed Vermont 5-1 Why did you come to this game? This was a great opportunity to watch one of the top programs in our athletics department as they play their first home game.
Bob Cornell
What do you think of the Colgate community so far? Everyone has been very welcoming to me and my husband, Gregg. They have been supportive and positive about the direction the program is going.
The volleyball team lost their lead in their opening game against the Buffalo Bulls, but they pulled out a 3-1 win the following evening, on the final day of the Colgate Classic.
Red’s defensive unit and face-off personnel. He also served on the football coaching staff and was an instructor in the Department of Athletics, Physical Education, and Recreation. Previously, Murphy served as head assistant coach/defensive coordinator at Wingate University from 1999– 2001. The Beverly, Mass., native helped the Bulldogs to their first NCAA Division III National Semifinal appearance in school history.
Alumni dominate on PL Anniversary Football Team
Colgate was well-represented on the Patriot League 25th Anniversary Football Team, when a group of players spanning four decades and seven different schools was honored over the summer. Colgate and Lehigh, the two winningest programs in Patriot League history, combined to make up half of the 26-man roster. The Raiders led the way with seven selections, and the Mountain Hawks recorded six. Bucknell, Fordham, Holy Cross, and Lafayette each placed three players on the team, while Towson had the remaining selection. Six of the Raiders came on the offensive side of the ball — Ryan Vena ’00, Kenny Gamble ’88, Corey Hill ’99, Paul Clasby ’00, Luke George ’99, and Nick Hennessey ’10 — while Greg Manusky ’88 represented Colgate’s defensive side. The anniversary team was elected by the seven current football Patriot
League–member schools; each institution received one vote and was ineligible to select its own players. Players qualified for the ballot by earning three-time All-Patriot League status; a first-, second-, or third-team All-America honor from the four major awarding organizations; or a Patriot League Player, Offensive Player, or Defensive Player of the Year award. Schools were also permitted to include additional candidates who did not meet the automatic qualification criteria. Players on the 25th Anniversary Team are being profiled throughout the 2011 season on Patriotleague.org, along with features on additional student-athletes, coaches, and teams in league history.
Eck in MLL All-Star game
Chris Eck ’08, face-off specialist for the Boston Cannons, was selected to compete in the Major League Lacrosse All-Star game for the second consecutive year and got to play in front of his home crowd at Harvard Stadium in Boston. Going into the July 9 contest, Eck was leading the league in face-off wins with 121 in seven games. The previous year, he won 6 of 13 draws in the All-Star Game, but this summer, he won an amazing 21 of 38 face-offs. At press time, Eck was still one of the best face-off men in the league, having won 132 of 229 face-offs. A fourth-round selection of the Cannons in the 2008 MLL draft, he is one of six former Colgate players to be selected
What has been your greatest experience at Colgate so far? It’s a toss-up between playing in the Fred Dunlap Golf Tournament or when Head Football Coach Dick Biddle said ‘Hi’ to me.
Chris McLain
Hometown: Oneida, N.Y. Occupation: Associate head women’s soccer coach, professional fisherman, director and founder of the Odyssey Soccer Club Game: Men’s soccer vs. Syracuse, 8/27/11; the Raiders beat their local rival, 1-0 Why did you come to this game? My wife and I like to take our three children, ages 4, 3, and 2, to as many Colgate sporting events as possible. Colgate games are very special to them, and the student-athletes treat my kids — and all kids — with the utmost respect. Every time we leave, my kids ask when is the next time they’re going to come. Of course, having a bounce house always helps. What do you think of tonight’s atmosphere? I love seeing the students and everyone here … even President Herbst and his wife, Sharon, are here! What do your kids think about Raider? At first they were scared, but tonight, they just gave him a high five and a couple of ‘pounds’ on the fist, so now they love him!
Meghan Seok ’11 (former Cheer Team member) From: Southeastern Pennsylvania Occupation: Event planner Game: Football vs. Albany, 9/3/11; Colgate won 37-34 in OT Why did you come to this game? I came to support the team, and I still get nervous for the team at their home opener! It was nice to watch a game — when I was on the Cheer Team, we would spend most of the game facing the crowd. What was your favorite Colgate athletics event? The ‘Springcoming’ men’s or women’s lacrosse games. I got to see the men beat Ohio State and the women beat University of Florida on our home turf. I love watching the ice cream–eating contest at Springcoming, too! How does it feel coming back as an alumna? I forgot how beautiful it is here… Colgate is the most beautiful place you will ever see!
News and views for the Colgate community
21
Trading places
Bob Cornell
In field hockey’s season opener, Colgate beat Ball State 3-0, with Halle Biggar ’14 (#12) scoring the final goal on Tyler’s Field.
Kyle Wilson ’06 may be giving Mark Dekanich ’08 advice on the professional hockey team he’s joining this winter — and vice versa. The two former Colgate hockey standouts are switching teams: Wilson has left the Columbus Blue Jackets to join the Nashville Predators, and Dekanich has said goodbye to Nashville and signed a new contract with the Blue Jackets. Dekanich, who was an AHL AllStar last season and one of the top goalies in the league, will be backing up Columbus starting netminder Steve Mason. The one-year contract is a one-way NHL deal. He had been called up with the Predators, but was only with the NHL squad for a few games. He posted a 23-12-2 record with a 2.02 goals-against average, .931 save percentage, and four shutouts in 43 games with the Milwaukee Admirals, Nashville’s top affiliate. He led the AHL in save percentage and ranked third in goals-against average. Wilson slides over to Nashville on a two-year contract, with the first year (2011–2012) being a two-way deal at the NHL and AHL levels; the second season will be a one-way NHL deal. In
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scene: Autumn 2011
his last season with the Blue Jackets, he posted 11 points in 32 NHL contests and 24 points in 23 games with the AHL’s Springfield Falcons. He played the majority of his first four professional seasons with the Hershey Bears from 2006–2010, amassing 251 points (119g, The Raiders fought hard to secure a 1-0 win against Syracuse in 132a) in 320 front of 1,664 fans at Van Doren Field. games and winning back-to-back Calder Cup titles Hickey’s Heroes Flight; David Tyburski in 2009 and 2010. The 6-foot, 201-lb and Michael Andrusko of the Endless center saw his first NHL action with Flight; Tom Bogan and Mike Martin Washington in 2009–2010, registering ’69 of the Weatherwax Flight; and two assists in two games. Brad Houston and Ron Noble of the In other hockey news, David McParbusters Flight. Intyre ’10 was traded from the New Jersey Devils to the Minnesota Wild 2011 Hall of Honor inductees following the end of the 2010–2011 On October 1, Colgate inducted the season. McIntyre just finished his first following 13 sports luminaries into the professional season with the Albany Athletic Hall of Honor. Devils of the AHL, picking up 30 points on 12 goals and 18 assists in 78 games. John Beyer His rookie season followed a standout (former head m/w soccer coach) four-year career with the Raiders in Rejean Boivin ’88 (hockey) which he totaled 131 points in 151 conKurt Brown ’64 (hockey) tests and was a finalist for the 2009 Patrick Campolieta ’02 (basketball) Hobey Baker Award as a junior. The Judy Culhane ’00 (volleyball) Oakville, Ontario, native was originally Doug Curtis ’79 (football) a fifth-round pick of Dallas (138th Corey Hill ’99 (football) overall) in 2006, but had his rights Derek Laub ’93 (lacrosse) traded to Anaheim, and then to New Kaitlyn Lynch ’95 (soccer) Jersey. Kate Manzella ’00 (lacrosse) Melissa Rawson ’03 Alumni golf tournament (softball/volleyball) Fifty-four teams participated in Katie Russo ’95 (field hockey) the 30th Annual Colgate University Betsy Weisburgh ’80 (swimming) Alumni Golf Tournament in early July at Seven Oaks Golf Course. Head men’s For more on each inductee, visit www. golf coach Keith Tyburski organized colgate.edu/2011hoh the three-day 54-hole tournament, which was composed of 108 particiHochman makes U.S. National pants and nine flights. Team again “The amount of support and For the second time in her post-Raider generosity was overwhelming, and career, former Colgate rowing standwe look forward to keeping this out Lindsey Hochman ’07 competed tradition alive,” Tyburski said. for the U.S. National Team at the Flight winners were Ricky Hayes World Rowing Championships. and Joe Vogler ’09 of the Scratch Hochman was a member of the Flight; John Barnes and Rick Grassey lightweight women’s quadruple of the ’77 Flight; Sandy Jackson ’81 sculls team at the 2011 World Rowing and Susan Foulds of the Quack Flight; Championships in Bled, Slovenia, from Shaun Richard and Jeremiah Hergott August 28 to September 4. Her crew of the Trent Jones Flight; Randy earned the spot after placing first at Swanson ’75 and Ken Beitz ’75 of the the 2011 Senior World Championships
Bob Cornell
go ’gate
in the draft and the only Raider to be competing in the league right now. Eck was a first team and second team All-Patriot League performer at Colgate. He holds the career record in face-off wins with 664 and has four of the top-eight season records for face-off wins, including the most in a season (199 in 2008).
Trials. She made the team for the first time back in 2009, when she won the bronze medal in the same event.
Alumnus leads Canada to fourth gold at hockey tourney
Steve Spott ’90, head coach of Canada’s under-18 men’s hockey team, led his players to their fourth-consecutive
gold medal at the Ivan Hlinka Memorial Tournament in Breclav, Czech Republic, in August. Canada lost the first game 5-1 to Sweden, but avenged that loss with a 4-1 win the following day, securing the gold medal. “[The Swedes] were a team that was pretty proud and I think took us
light,” Spott told the Canadian press. “We learned a good lesson … because we knew we were better than we were [in the first game]. Thankfully, our boys bought into our game plan and executed it to perfection.” In Spott’s four years as a Raider, he was a right wing (forward) who scored 149 points in his career, with
How to…
75 goals and 73 assists in 131 games. He was a member of the 1990 ECAC Hockey title team and competed in the NCAA National Title game. Even 20-plus years after graduation, Colgate’s lucky number continues to bring Spott good fortune. As he told the Canadian press: “We’ve got 13 very, very good players.”
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As head strength and conditioning coach, Gabriel Harrington designs and administers complete workout programs for all of Colgate’s varsity athletes to improve their performance. Previously, he led the West Point football strength program as well as other strength and conditioning programs. He has a master’s degree in biomechanics from Michigan State University. Here, Harrington explains the art of long snapping in football. It’s a trick you can teach your child as you toss the pigskin around the yard, as well as a skill that can lead to college scholarships and NFL contracts. Long snapping — a quick, accurate throw by the center to the holder or punter for punts, field goals, and extra points — is an integral part of the game, yet it often gets overlooked. Here is an introductory breakdown of the science behind the snap. 1. Grip: snap hand. The snap hand is the hand you throw with. Place this hand on the ball with your fingertips at the laces. The number of fingers on the laces depends on the size of your hand. For an average hand size, two fingers should suffice (athletes with large hands may have three fingers; small hands may only get one). The grip should be tight, but not so tight that control is lost. 2. Grip: snap hand and guide hand. The guide hand is the non-dominant hand. Hold the ball in front of you and turn the wrist of the snap hand in until the seam opposite of the laces faces you. Place the middle finger of your guide hand on this seam and spread your fingers. The index finger of the guide hand should just about intersect
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the thumb of the snap hand. With fingers spread, place even pressure on the ball with both hands. When you’re ready to throw, follow through with your thumbs down, index fingers pointing at your target. 3. Foot placement. Find a natural T on the field, like where the 15 yard line intersects the sideline. Your feet should be slightly wider than shoulder width, with toes pointing straight ahead. Straddle the yard line so that your feet are the same distance on either side of the line. 4. Approach. Once you set your feet, place the ball on the sideline (keeping with the natural T) and practice walking up to it. The distance from the nose of the ball (nearest you) and your toes should be about 12". Make sure you’re comfortable and that your head is behind the ball. Bending your knees and leaning forward from the waist, reach out and grip the ball as you have practiced. Keep your back flat and distribute your weight to the outside of your feet and the balls of your feet, keeping knees apart.
5. Position. Looking between your legs, you should see a headless target. You may have to work on flexibility to be able to see your target from the neck down, but it will pay off in the long run — chances are, you won’t send a snap sailing over your punter’s head from the proper position. 6. Putting it all together. At a distance of 10 yards, snap to a partner (preferably your punter). Keep the ball at a 45-degree-or-less angle to the ground, and use your hips when
Gabriel Harrington (6)
Long snap a football
throwing. Aim for the hip pocket of your partner’s kicking leg. Once you are able to snap 10 perfect spirals in a row at 10 yards, move to 11, then 12, 13, 14, and 15 yards. Make sure you can snap 10 perfect spirals in a row at each distance before moving on to another. You are now only one million reps away from being great! For Harrington’s complete researchbased long snapping system and drills to perfect this skill, visit www. essentialsoflongsnapping.com.
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new, noted , & quoted
Books, music & film Information is provided by publishers, authors, and artists.
Life, on the Line: A Chef’s Story of Chasing Greatness, Facing Death, and Redefining the Way We Eat Grant Achatz and Nick Kokonas ’90 (Gotham Books)
In 2007, chef Grant Achatz seemingly had it made: he was named one of the best new chefs in America by Food & Wine in 2002, recipient of the James Beard Foundation Rising Star Chef of the Year Award in 2003, and coowner (with Nick Kokonas ’90) of the conceptually radical restaurant Alinea, Gourmet magazine’s 2006 Best Restaurant in America. Then, Achatz was diagnosed with cancer — stage IV squamous cell carcinoma — on his tongue, and doctors agreed the only course of action was to remove the cancerous tissue, which included his entire tongue. Desperate to preserve his quality of life, Achatz underwent an alternative treatment of aggressive chemotherapy and radiation. But the choice came at a cost — including losing his sense of taste. In Life, on the Line, Achatz and Kokonas share the story of Achatz’s battle with the disease while staying on top of the restaurant game.
Reverse Mission: Transnational Religious Communities and the Making of U.S. Foreign Policy Timothy A. Byrnes (Georgetown University Press)
In Reverse Mission, Colgate political science professor Timothy Byrnes examines the place of religion in world politics by looking at U.S. Catholic priests, nuns, and brothers who belong to transnational religious communities. He focuses on three Catholic communities — Jesuit,
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Maryknoll, and Benedictine — and how they seek to shape U.S. policy in El Salvador, Nicaragua, and Mexico. Based on years of fieldwork and onthe-ground interviews, Reverse Mission details the transnational bonds that drive the political activities of these Catholic orders. The book reveals how the men and women of these orders became politically active in complex and sometimes controversial causes and how, ultimately, they exert a unique influence on foreign policy that is derived from their communal loyalties rather than any ethnic or national origin.
Very Bad Men
Harry Dolan ’88 (Amy Einhorn/Putnam) In this sequel to Harry Dolan’s debut crime novel Bad Things Happen, amateur sleuth David Loogan returns. Loogan is living in Ann Arbor with Detective Elizabeth Waishkey and her daughter, Sarah. He’s settled into a quiet routine as editor of the mystery magazine Gray Streets, until he one day finds a manuscript outside his door. It begins: “I killed Henry Kormoran.” Meanwhile, Anthony Lark has a list of names that he’s targeting: Terry Dawtrey, Sutton Bell, Henry Kormoran. To his eyes, the names glow red on the page. They move. They breathe. The people on the list have little in common except that, 17 years ago, they were involved in a notorious robbery. Now, Lark is hunting them down, and he won’t stop until every one of them is dead.
Fighting Chance
Faye E. Dudden (Oxford University) The advocates of women’s suffrage and black suffrage came to a bitter falling out in the midst of Reconstruction, when Elizabeth Cady Stanton opposed the 15th Amendment because it granted the vote to
black men but not to women. How did these two causes, so long allied, come to this? Based on extensive research, Colgate history professor Faye Dudden tells this story of how idealists descended to racist betrayal and desperate failure.
The New Deal: A Modern History Michael Hiltzik ’73 (Simon & Schuster)
With The New Deal, Pulitzer Prize–winning writer Michael Hiltzik offers insights into Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal, which Hiltzik asserts was a reordering of the political system that continues to define America to this day. Understanding the New Deal may be more important today than at any time in the last eight decades, the author maintains. Conceived in response to a devastating financial crisis very similar to America’s most recent downturn, the New Deal remade the country’s economic and political environment in six years of intensive experimentation. FDR had no effective model for fighting the worst economic downturn in his generation’s experience — but the New Deal has provided a model for subsequent presidents who faced challenging economic conditions, right up to the present.
The Big Enough Company: Creating a Business that Works for You Adelaide Lancaster ’02 and Amy Abrams (Portfolio/Penguin)
All entrepreneurs start their companies because they think it will give them freedom — to work on their own terms, be their own bosses, and create something that meets their needs. But so often, the opposite happens, say Adelaide Lancaster and Amy Abrams: entrepreneurs end up building businesses that fall short of their original goals and motivations, leaving them unsatisfied and
In the media unfulfilled. The Big Enough Company explores how to grow your enterprise in a way that sustains your own personal goals and needs, not someone else’s standards. Drawing on the true stories of nearly 100 entrepreneurs, as well as their own experiences, Lancaster and Abrams guide readers through the principles that really matter when you work for yourself.
People’s Warrior: John Moss and the Fight for Freedom of Information and Consumer Rights Michael R. Lemov ’56 (Lexington Books)
The right to obtain government information, protection against hazards in children’s toys and other consumer products, federal safety standards for motor vehicles, and insurance to protect an investor’s money and securities in brokerage accounts: these and other consumer rights were created only after fierce political battles between 1966 and 1976, explains Michael Lemov. People’s Warrior is the untold story of that decade and one of its towering leaders, Congressman John Moss. Lemov served as chief counsel to Moss for eight years and as general counsel of the National Commission on Product Safety. With a foreword by Ralph Nader, People’s Warrior is based on previously undisclosed materials and interviews with key players of the time. It tells the story of a stormy decade in America, one in which laws such as the Freedom of Information Act and the Consumer Product Safety Act were enacted by Congress, despite overwhelming political opposition.
Aging Our Way: Lessons for Living from 85 and Beyond Meika Loe (Oxford University Press)
Aging Our Way follows the everyday lives of 30 elders (ages 85–102), living at home and mostly alone, to understand how they create and maintain meaningful lives for themselves. Drawing on the latest interdisciplinary scholarship on aging and three years of interviews with the elders,
Colgate sociology and women’s studies professor A g i n g O u r WAy Meika Loe explores how elders navigate the practical challenges of living as indepenM e i k A LO e dently as possible while staying healthy, connected, and comfortable. In their own voices, elders describe how they manage everything from grocery shopping, doctor appointments, and disability, to creating networks of friends and maintaining their autonomy. According to Publisher’s Weekly, “there is a great deal of wisdom” in the lessons the book shares. (Read some of these lessons in the feature article on page 26.)
Lessons for Living from 85 and Beyond
Also of Note:
The Lawyer Within: Successful SelfAdvocacy Techniques (A & UC Publishing) by Jeremy T. Robin ’92 offers a holistic and spiritual approach to negotiating solutions, searching within to develop the strength and self-confidence necessary to tackle challenging issues. When Someone You Love Suffers from Posttraumatic Stress: What to Expect and What You Can Do (Guilford Press), by Claudia Zayfert ’83 and Jason C. DeViva, is written for families dealing with any type of trauma, such as military-related stress, serious accidents, or sexual assault. The book explains how different types of trauma affect survivors and how to find effective treatment.
Footnote:
Charles Beitz ’70 was awarded the 2011 Estoril Global Issues Distinguished Book Prize for his book The Idea of Human Rights. The biggest award in the field of international studies, the prize is given to the “best book on globalization” that “offers outstanding analysis of global issues.” In his theoretical examination of the language of human rights (which he explains has become the common language of social criticism in global political life), Beitz examines the history and political practice of human rights for guidance in understanding. Beitz is Edwards S. Sanford Professor of politics and director of the University Center for Human Values at Princeton University.
“Deficit hawks often complain that we are spending our children’s future inheritance. That’s just an abstraction. The reality is that our children are already suffering from too little fiscal stimulus.” — Colgate economics professor Thomas Michl in a commentary piece on the debt-limit debate for the Times Union (Albany, N.Y.)
“No matter how many times I get on the water, it’s never enough.”
— Pete McDonald ’93, talking about his love of boating and fishing, on GardenCityPatch.com (Garden City, N.Y.). McDonald’s passion has inspired his first published book, The Blitz: Fly Fishing the Atlantic Migration.
“Now I have a greater appreciation for, number one, how difficult it is to run and manage and lead a franchise. We want to ensure that the game continues to be healthy.” — Mark Murphy ’77, president and CEO of the Green Bay Packers, commenting on the NFL labor dispute in the Wall Street Journal
“The poverty on many reservations today is closer to Third World poverty than the urban poverty that most American programs are equipped to address. For example: what good is a soup kitchen if the population served cannot get to the meal because there is no mass transportation and the roads are closed?” — Maggie Dunne ’13, talking to ScarsdalePatch.com (Scarsdale, N.Y.) about her dedication to helping the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota
“My experience abroad solidified my commitment to enter a profession in which I could be of service and have a positive impact on the lives of others.” — Alison Rhodes ’07, the recipient of the Measured Progress 2011 H. Michael Strout Scholarship, on Fosters.com (Dover, N.H.)
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Sent by Harold Jones 1910 to Miss H.E. Jones, Brooklyn, N.Y., postmarked Hamilton, N.Y., March 26, 1908
Old Colgate postcards, whether found in a family scrapbook, discovered at an antique show, or avidly collected, seem to fascinate both young and old. With that in mind, the Scene reached out to writing and rhetoric professor Suzanne Spring, who studies women’s 19th-century letter writing and teaches courses such as Visual Rhetoric and the Narrative in New Media. We asked her to help us choose a selection of cards — drawn from the university archives as well as a Colgate parent’s collection — that caught our collective fancy, and share her thoughts.
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This postcard, with its trace of the hand that composed it, holds a kind of presence.
“What I prefer, about post cards, is that one does not know what is front or back, here or there, near or far… Nor what is the most important, the picture or the text, and in the text, the message or the caption, or the address.” — Jacques Derrida, The Postcard
am not sure which aspect of this 1908 Colgate postcard delights me more: the black-and-white image of bright light streaming into an empty hall strung with banners and bunting, or the message scrawled to the side and on the back: This is hall where Soph soirée was held. Decorated as at the dance. Rather light print, but gives a fairly good idea of hall. Have been at it all day lately finishing Chemistry. Exam Monday 10.30 Chemistry. Math Tues 8.15 am. Literature Wednesday. Through Friday. Expect they will be stiff this term. Hope you are all alright. Fair weather here now but somewhat chilly at nights. Suppose you are getting it comparatively warm now. Love to all, Harold. This postcard, with its trace of the hand that composed it, holds a kind of presence. Scholars of rhetoric have long understood presence as a central element of communication. Chaïm Perelman and Lucie Olbrechts-Tyteca note that “one of the preoccupations” of a writer “is to make present, by verbal magic alone, what is actually absent.” Presence is powerfully at play in the selection of cards chosen here, animated by the dynamic relationship between text and image, between verbal and visual magic. Harold’s card evokes, for me, a few absent presences: the presence of light streaming out, not in, through windows into a darkening night. The presence of echoing voices, the relief of laughter, and a swirl of bodies in musical time. The presence of Harold, some time later in a quiet study corner, dipping pen into ink and remembering that night, sending out glimpses of his life at this college on a hill. The presence, even later, of mail arriving at 148 Spencer Street in Brooklyn and into the hand of Miss H.E. Jones. As vicarious interlopers into one side of a private exchange, we envision what is ‘front and back, here and there, near and far’: we attend to what is shared — and what is withheld. Yet, even as I allow myself this pleasure of imagining, I hear the echo of documentary photographer Walker Evans’s caution to “renounce sentimentality and nostalgia”; to seek in the postcard, instead, “the authenticity of the past.” I find then how these postcards offer evidence of a loosely connected network of people — students and others affiliated with Col-
gate, as well as those who have lived in and passed through the village — who took up their pens to mark their place in a rapidly changing world. I note how postcards circulated, even then, in a global system of exchange and how they affirm a set of values — sometimes dominant, sometimes transgressive — in what were distinct but interconnected cultures where the commodity of the visual had increasing purchase on the modern sense of place and self. In our current era of tweets and text messages, these hand-written artifacts provide a glimpse of how personal communication and expression — what we talk about, and how we say it — has changed, and also remained the same. Yet, ultimately, what has perhaps persisted most is the correspondent’s demand for what literary scholar Janet Altman has described as “the epistolary pact — the call for response from a specific reader within the correspondent’s world.” For these postcards, of course, we are not those specific readers, we cannot really occupy those worlds, but perhaps, for a moment, we may find in them something of our own worlds reflected back to us. “I am still waiting for that corner of a postal you promised to send. I expect to leave here for Lestershire very soon and would love to hear from you before leaving. This is my part of the contract, now you keep yours.” — Bob H., July 4, 1910, to Mr. Harry Willett, Red Creek, N.Y. —Suzanne Spring, assistant professor of writing and rhetoric News and views for the Colgate community
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Sent to Miss Addie Hawley, Petrus Corners, Lewis County, N.Y., postmarked Beaver River, N.Y., March 19, 1907
Sent to Mr. G.D. Cox, Kings County, Nova Scotia, postmarked Hamilton, N.Y., Sept. 30, 1907
Sent to Miss Elizabeth Bingham, London, England, postmarked Hamilton, N.Y., July 19, 1905
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Avid postcard collector Bob Lippman began collecting Colgate cards as a gift for his daughter Jessica ’10 back when she was first accepted early decision. By the time she graduated, he had amassed more than 160, including this one at left.
The first postcards were unadorned post-paid cards circulated primarily for government and business correspondence. They proved lucrative for the U.S. postal service; in the latter months of 1873, 60 million cards were sold at one cent each.
The first picture postcards can be traced to the 1860s and 1870s.
Sent to Miss Jennie Gill, Boonville, N.Y., postmarked Hamilton, N.Y., Sept. 24, 1919
Collecting postcards, also known as deltiology, has been described as the second-most popular hobby after coin collecting.
Several different series of Colgate postcards were produced. The majority of early colored Colgate postcards were commissioned and sold by R.W. Hurlburd, who advertised his department store that catered to Colgate students in the 1911 Salmagundi. There are approximately 114 in the “Elite� series made by C.H. Phelps of Sidney, N.Y. — but the archives collection only has representatives of approximately 70 of these.
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In 1909 alone, 668 million postcards were mailed in the United States. In 1902, Kodak began selling photographic processing paper, preprinted with a postcard back, which made oneof-a-kind postcard images possible. Presumably, Harold’s dance hall card on pg. 26 is an example of these. Documentary photographer Walker Evans described postcards as “folk document” and “the truest visual records ever made of any period.” He collected more than 9,000 of them.
Sent to Mrs. Robt. Good, Elmira, N.Y., postmarked May 13, 1951 “Dear Phyl, Bob, Randy, and Laurie, I am up here under slightly different circumstances. ‘Parents’ Weekend — we are eating tonite at the Oxen Club. Brother ‘Baby’ Bill is a X pledge — never did I think that. History repeats itself. We bought a house and things are great. How about coming down this summer. Love to all, Louise.”
Beyond personal communication and souvenir mementos, postcards have been used for advertising, propaganda, and social and political activism. Because postcards are rich resources for the study of culture, over the past 25 years, a new interdisciplinary field — “postcard studies” — has emerged.
To see more Colgate postcards and a list of sources about postcard history, go to colgateconnect.org/scenegateposts 30
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Sent to Mr. David Jones, Spencer St., Brooklyn, N.Y., postmarked Hamilton, N.Y., April 8, 1907 “This is the crowd of whose doings I wrote something to you. This is a pretty good photograph of most of the fellows as for myself. The three in second row center are Glee Club Lead, Manager and Leader of Band. Harold”
Sent to Miss Elizabeth Arthur, Lowville, N.Y., postmarked Hamilton, N.Y., Nov. 8, 1906 “I spent a summer in this house when a young girl. No porch was on it then but I spent many happy days there. How are you both this wintry weather. We don’t mind the cold as long as it is sunny. M.D.K.”
The Colgate archives currently hold more than 500 antique postcards, 450 of them Colgate-related. Several large groupings were donated by the family members of alumni — such as J. Herbert Owen ’16 — or others who found them when sorting out the departed’s belongings after they passed away.
scenegateposts
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Young runner for Eric Noyes ’86 has a calling: to help American Indians preserve their traditions and spread their message By Rebecca Costello Photographs by Thomas Lee From his many interactions with Indian elders, Eric Noyes ’86, executive director of the American Indian Institute (right), says he has learned how to truly listen. Here, Noyes listens to Crow Sun Dance Chief Leonard Bends in Crow Agency, Mont., in August.
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On a bright morning at the end of July, Eric Noyes ’86 found himself in a rental car, taking two elders from the Crow and Cheyenne American Indian tribes for a drive up into the hills of Onondaga County south of Syracuse, N.Y. The elders were visiting the Onondaga Nation for the annual council of the Traditional Circle of Indian Elders and Youth, which is made up of more than 300 spiritual leaders from tribes all over North America. After several days camped in a valley along an upstate New York creek, the men from out West were feeling “shut in,” Noyes explained. “Anywhere you live in Navajo country, you can see for 200 miles. So we just drove to where the hills open up, and they said it was good to see again.” As the executive director of the nonprofit American Indian Institute (AII), which serves as the administrative support unit for the Traditional Circle, Noyes was there to make sure all the particulars
of a meeting of 300-plus people were in order. But intuiting that those elders needed to feel properly connected to their earthly surroundings in order to see clearly while at council hints at how deeply immersed Noyes is in his work, and at how his experiences have shaped who he is and what he has become: a bridge between peoples whose worlds run in parallel but also form interlocking circles. Take the next morning after that drive, for example. This time, Noyes found himself walking through an old agricultural field dotted with woody honeysuckle and hawthorn at the top of Preston Hill just south of Colgate’s campus. Since he was back in the area (Onondaga is only about 40 miles west of Colgate), we had set up a 10 a.m. interview at the university, and he had left early so he’d have time to walk that trail. Heading over
the circle the crux of the viewshed and descending into the young valley forest, he stopped at a small wooden footbridge over the streambed at the lowest dip of the trail. It was a place he had visited often as a student. “I wanted to balance myself here in the valley again,” he said. “A bird was singing at the top of the trail, and down at the bottom in the forest were all different sounds. And there was a little trickle going across the rocks in the stream. I had to say a little prayer for that, because that’s sacred,” Noyes said. “That’s what they’d [American Indians] say. That’s a sacred place, because there’s that little trickle of water.” The natural law Because water is “the first law” for American Indians, discussions about all things sacred and essential to humanity’s connections to Mother Earth are part and parcel of the Traditional Circle’s gatherings such as the one at the Onondaga Nation. The circle includes today’s most respected and influential Native American spiritual leaders, known not only among the Indian community, but also nationally and internationally. “This a group of grassroots elders who represent a collection of living knowledge, and they see that their own timeline of survival is short,” Noyes explained. The circle’s mission is to help in preserving and passing their knowledge on to the next generation: their history, languages, ceremonies, and traditions, as well as their teachings — such as what must be done to sustain life for all peoples on Earth. The gathering, funded and organized by the AII, is held in a different location every year. On the first day, at first light, the host tribe ignites a flame in their traditional fire-making ceremony. For the next five days, the participants come to the fire to share oral history traditions, discuss Indian rights, exchange deep cultural stories, and compare ancient prophesies. “Traditional knowledge is different,” said Noyes. “Everything that happened in the past that’s important, and everything that is important for the future, has to get passed on orally, so they can see way back into the past. Indigenous people have a very long perspective of time. If you can see that far back with clarity, it’s easy to also predict forward with some clarity. They say it’s pretty scary looking forward.” The council is also a time for these spiritual leaders to reinforce each other, said Noyes. “There are fewer and fewer people carrying on the traditional ways, so whether they are conducting a funeral or a ceremony or teaching the language, they’re always giving. It’s a booster shot for them — they can go home feeling like they’re not alone.”
Building trust The American Indian Institute, which is based in Bozeman, Mont., was founded in 1972 by a white man named Bob Staffanson. Staffanson held the conviction that preserving the ancient wisdom of Native Americans is key to modern-day human survival, and is the mission upon which he built the AII. He was seeking to, as he told the Montana Quarterly in 2008, “rectify the unspeakable treatment between cultures, to help maintain the unbroken legacy of spiritual power that is inherent in the Indian people, and attempt to communicate that legacy to the larger society.” For this world facing environmental degredation, hunger, and war, it’s a simple message: respect the earth and each other, and be thankful “for the creation that we are a part of.” Normally, outsiders are not privy to Native American practices and teachings; many spiritual leaders keep a self-protective distance from the outside world. But Staffanson built trust among them, said Oren Lyons, Faith Keeper of the Onondaga Nation, who has represented traditional Native Americans to the United Nations. Lyons should know: he helped Staffanson to create the AII. “Bob’s idea was, Indians know something that white people, or Americans, should know. We’re close to nature and understand it very well, and we’re trying to warn everybody.” Noyes tells a story to illustrate the significance of the trust the elders put in Staffanson. “When the Europeans first came here, the Dutch made treaties with the Iroquois. Wampum belts made of little shells tell the story of each treaty. Each belt is a physical representation of an agreement, so both sides would have identical belts to symbolically show what they agreed upon. One was called the Two-Row Wampum Treaty. The symbol on the belt is the river of life. There’s an Indian canoe, and there’s the Europeans’ oceangoing boat, and they’re going down the river side by side in mutual cooperation and respect. That’s what they thought that they were going to get with the Dutch. Of course, that didn’t happen.” But what those elders saw in Staffanson, said Noyes, “was the desire to go back to the two-row wampum and get it right.” Together, they created two groups working in parallel as signified by that two-row wampum belt: the non-Indian circle of the AII, assisting the Traditional Circle in carrying out its mission and its messages. Training ground Noyes believes his own path to the AII was subject to forces in the universe beyond his perceptions. Like Staffanson, he is not Native American, yet an Indian presence permeated
not only his formative years, but also his ancestral roots. With each touch point, that presence was like a bead placed on the path in front of him to pick up, treasure, and save. Later, he would stitch them together in a colorful weaving of life and work. His paternal great-great-grandfather was John Humphrey Noyes, founder (in 1848) of the utopian Oneida Community in Sherrill, N.Y., 20 miles north of Hamilton. The community’s close neighbors were Oneida Indians. “The Oneida Community published its own journals, and I was fascinated to read that the members had a strawberry festival with the Oneidas in the spring,” Noyes marveled, “because the strawberry ceremony is actually the first ceremony of the new year for all the Iroquois nations.” His grandfather grew up in the Oneida Community Mansion House, and his parents, Alan (Colgate Class of 1957), and Diane (who hailed from nearby Cazenovia), lived in Oneida before moving out West. When Noyes was 5 years old, the family relocated to the West Mesa outside of Albuquerque, N.M. He once wrote a vivid account of how that place and the native peoples he encountered influenced him: Just over our back fence was a vast, empty space stretching for 60 miles across the Laguna and Isleta Indian Reservations all the way to Turquoise Mountain (now called Mt. Taylor), the Navajos’ sacred mountain to the south. For my brother and sister and me, this was our playground, where adventures took place, where we chased and were chased by hardy desert creatures, and where we learned to respect prickly plants and unpredictable arroyos. It was our home — it felt safe, welcoming, real. I was shaped by this land. It is a part of who I am today and has influenced what I feel is important. Pueblo Indian culture was part of the backdrop: the large, quiet, women sitting on their blankets in the shade around the Taos plaza selling their silver and turquoise; the smell of piñon smoke coming from earth ovens at Santa Ana; and, of course, from all over the state, the dances and ceremonies (the ones that were open to us). These dances spoke to me about a human family who valued community, generosity, and peace over conflict; and who had a certain perspective of earth and plants and animals, and rain and sun, which seemed ancient and natural and real. Maybe I was more attuned to all this because I walked on their ground up on the Mesa. One event that has become more significant in my mind over the years took place when I was
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in my early 20s and was back in New Mexico to visit my parents for Christmas. A friend and I were among the few non-Indians observing a deer dance consisting of several hundred Indian dancers of all ages. After several hours, we were invited to step inside a dark doorway off the dirt plaza into a woman’s home just as she was serving a meal. She was sharing her abundance, creating warmth, reaching across cultures to a few strangers — non-Indians — at ceremony time. Even though very few words were spoken during that brief meal, that San Felipe Pueblo woman taught me what it means to be a human being, and about an underlying love of humanity. He recalls, too, how spending summers in the land of the Plains Indians — at a working ranch along the Upper Snake River near Yellowstone Park in Idaho that belonged to his family — further solidified his strong sense of connection to the land. Like many paths, his was no straight line, although looking back, he can see how the beads connected. At Colgate — his four-year return to the family seat and the land of the Iroquois — Noyes said, “I got in with a pretty competitive group of guys.” After graduating, he headed to New York City, where he was one of only three undergraduates nationwide hired for a sales and trading training program at Credit Suisse. In six years there, he became an accomplished investment banker, working on foreign currency interest rate swap trading accounts, leveraging lease transactions resulting in multi-million–dollar portfolios, and managing a start-up business procurement group for media, telecommunications, and entertainment companies. While getting his MBA at Columbia in the early ’90s, Noyes unknowingly picked up another bead when, for an elective outside the business school, he chose an anthropology course for which he wrote a paper about a Pueblo ceremony. Thinking of it now, he said, the introductory paragraph could describe the mission of the AII. Post-MBA, Noyes ended up in San Francisco, first at Peers & Co. and then with CS First Boston. His work, he was coming to realize, “held financial rewards, but little else for me.” When First Boston closed the San Francisco office and offered him a transfer to New York, Noyes said, “I’m done.” At 29 years old, he decided to change course. A purpose Noyes spent a year living out of a backpack, traveling through a grassroots cultural exchange organization that promotes world peace, called Servas.“It was really a trip about humanity and religion, of trying to understand people,” said Noyes. “Wherever I went, I was taken in by families to talk about peace. That’s pretty intense, but it’s beautiful, too, because you learn that we’re all the same. I came back knowing that I’m supposed to do something.” He just wasn’t quite sure what that something was. Before leaving San Francisco, Noyes had met Juliette Shaw, who would soon become his wife. In
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1997, they moved to Bozeman, where he brought his financial acumen and love of the land to serve as development director for a nonprofit environmental think tank called the Political Economy Research Center (PERC). The organization was founded on the question, “If markets can produce bread and cars, why can’t they produce environmental quality?” The work was closer to feeling “right.” But five years into his job at PERC, a single event changed everything. “I read about Bob Staffanson and the American Indian Institute, and I wanted to meet this guy. When he and I met, I realized within a few minutes that he was basically working alone, and I knew that I was supposed to meet him. The institute became my vocation at that very moment.” At the time, Staffanson was struggling to keep the AII afloat. At 80 years Billie He Does It, atop Pistol, carries a coup (counting strikes) stick of willow wrapped in old, he was losing his buffalo hide in a parade at Crow Fair in Crow Agency, Mont. The event draws thousands of hearing, and needed help. Indians from across North America, who gather to socialize, parade, dance, and compete He said he saw in Noyes in what they call the “giant family reunion under the Big Sky.” the person to whom he could entrust his legacy. rently putting the finishing touches on their first of “Eric’s persona fits the mission to tear down the ficial headquarters, in a renovated historic building wall of guilt, fear, apathy, misunderstanding, and in Bozeman. ignorance that has separated Native Americans from “He travels all over the country. He talks to the those who displaced them,” he said. Although Stafelders. He knows them,” said Lyons, “They’ve transfanson couldn’t pay him, Noyes soon quit his job and ferred the trust from Bob over to Eric. He’s done very started working for the AII as development director. well.” “That was very scary; we had a one-and-a-half-yearold and a newborn at home, and $10,000 in the A direct relationship As a non-Indian, Noyes bank,” Noyes recalled. “I just got to work.” It took him said, “I fundraise and I help run the council, but I six months to land a grant that would pay his salary, don’t go to the fire, and they respectfully keep their just as their money ran out. “I don’t know if I’d have distance from my file cabinets. I’m in this boat, and the guts to do it again,” he admitted. they are on that boat.” Since then, Noyes has worked side by side with That said, Noyes explained, “I do have to unStaffanson as the only full-time staff members (asderstand enough about what they’re saying to be sisted by a couple of part-timers), demonstrating able to go to New York City and meet with the Ford “the depth of his commitment to assist traditional Foundation and tell them why they should supNative American leaders, on their terms and with no port this group of elders financially.” In fact, he has strings attached,” said Staffanson. gone beyond basic understanding, absorbing and Under Noyes’s leadership (he took over the role of incorporating aspects of Native American spiritualexecutive director in 2008), the AII not only handles ity, habits, and values into his own life. “You can’t the fundraising and the logistics for the Traditional hang out with us for long without doing that,” Lyons Circle’s events and programs, but it also runs leaderquipped. ship youth camps and serves as the fiscal agent for The Noyes family (Crawford is 10, Oliver, 9, and the Iroquois Nationals lacrosse team. Following a Ceci, 7) lives in the old part of Bozeman. They hunt — successful $500,000 capital campaign, they’re cur-
for meat, not sport — and raise vegetables and chickens in their backyard. He talks of how he is teaching his children that spiritual connection, that they are a part of the cycle of the earth. “The elders are on a spiritual level all the time. A dozen times a day, they’re saying a prayer. It’s a direct relationship with the Creator. I’m raising my family in that way. When we’re at the ranch in Idaho, if my daughter sees a really neat rock, she will pick up that rock and just look at it. She closes her eyes for a minute. If she puts it down, it means that she asked if she could have it and she didn’t get a yes. She knows to ask before you take something like that, and if you take it, then you say thank you. “We have a freezer full of deer meat,” he continued. “Whether it’s me, or one of my sons, whoever’s name is on the package we’re having for dinner, they’re the one who took that deer, so that’s who says the prayer. And we all remember that very deer: that’s the one that we got over by the Jefferson River, and it was laying in the grass, and we all put our hand on that deer, remember? That deer saw the same thunderstorms that we saw his whole life. That deer gave its life for us to eat, and we held its head and we said thank you.” Making connections Following their annual council gathering, the Traditional Circle often issues a communiqué to the leaders of the world at large — simply worded messages outlining problems of concern to Native Americans and non-Indians alike, and putting out a call for action. Past communiqués have dealt with the loss of sacred traditions and language, social problems, and, very often, environmental degredation. For example, the 2000 communiqué, delivered by Lyons to the Millennium World Peace Summit of Religious and Spiritual Leaders at the United Nations, cited the alarming increase in the melting of the polar ice caps, as reported by “a runner [messenger] from the north, from Greenland . . . We see the acceleration of the winds. We see the fires that are raging in North America. And we see that the sun’s rays that provide us with light, energy, and the very essence of life now are causing cancer in people, blinding animals, and killing the plankton and krill of the sea . . . There can be no peace as long as we wage war upon Our Mother, The Earth. Responsible and courageous actions must be taken to realign ourselves with the great laws of nature. We must meet this crisis now, while we still have time. We offer these words as common peoples in support of peace, equity, justice, and reconciliation.” Soon after, Noyes traveled with Lyons to Greenland to talk to the Inuit people of that region. “In past generations, they’d take their kayaks up the fjord, pull them onto the ice, make their prayers at the wall, and then go up to the grounds for seal hunting,” said Noyes. “In 1963, the year before I was born, they already saw that water was moving in the big ice. They had no reference for that. So, when they told the elders, they said, something is not right in the world. That’s an incredible statement, because it shows how they understood the connections.
and you can feel it. It’s like there’s a little bit of pres “Today, in Greenland, the Inuit women can’t sure in there. It’s so dark. But you need that — all the breastfeed their babies,” Noyes continued. “They answers are still there. still eat a lot of seal. Pollution from the East Coast “Some of the big things that are happening in the of America washes into the ocean currents right up world are reminders that we can fool ourselves into to the waters where the Inuit hunt. The fish eat the thinking, we have governments and we have laws. polluted plankton, and the seals eat the fish that ate But there’s really only one law, and that’s the natural the plankton. It ends up in their bodies up there in law. The natural laws are there first, and that’s where Greenland, and probably ours, too. So we’re conI think we have a lot to learn from the earth-based nected to the women up there.” people. This group will be 40 years old next year. Beyond those communiqués, the AII does its work What they would say is, ‘We’ve taken a good first making connections quietly, without advertising or step’ — that tells you about their perspective of time. public relations campaigns. We’ve taken a good first step.” “It’s not like we fly our flag real high with this Lyons predicts that the Indian and non-Indian group,” said Noyes, “because the elders want to circles will eventually interlock and become one. keep a low profile and we have to protect them.” “And probably the catalyst for that will be global But another event initiated by the AII has gained warming. They will begin to listen to the traditional traction, building both a stronger bridge and greater people of this country and the world. Eric’s the awareness. young runner that was chosen out by Bob,” he said, In October, Noyes returned to rural upstate New to help carry that message forward. York — at the Kanatsiohareke Mohawk Community near Fonda — for the Ancient Voices – Contemporary Contexts Forum. Meant to foster dialogue among Indians and non-Indians, the forum brought religious leaders, academics, philanthropists, journalists, artists, and youth from across the country for discussions with members of the Traditional Circle, including Lyons as a keynote speaker. Discussions centered around humans’ spiritual relationship to the environment, their responsibility to coming generations, and course corrections in behavior impacting global warming that are needed for the survival of the world as we know it. “The Indians’ voice gets drowned out a lot of times,” said Noyes, “This is a forum where they have the stage, so it’s a chance when they can speak directly to non-Indians. And there’s a lot of noise now. Society is loud, and you really have to have quiet. Even when you’re on the top of Preston Hill, you can feel the breeze and hear the birds and the grasses blowing. Then you go down into the woods Passing on the traditions: an elder and child at Crow Fair in August.
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Aging Our Way By Meika Loe
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“How can I stay at home and live on my own terms in old age?” That is the question more and more people are asking, and that Colgate professor Meika Loe seeks to answer. The fastest-growing age group in the United States is people 85 and older, and as our longevity increases, the meaning of old age is changing — for one, it doesn’t necessarily entail being frail or dependent. Most Americans say they hope to age in their own homes, and in fact, studies show that older adults are more likely to live independently as they age. In her new book Aging Our Way, Loe tells the inspiring, but also at times painful, stories of elders who are home alone and redefining old age.
Ruth’s spacious Victorian home in Hamilton, N.Y., is around the corner from Carol’s house. I rent a room from Carol three days a week, coinciding with my teaching days at Colgate. Usually I am eating breakfast with Carol when Joanne calls at 8:00 for the morning check-in. Carol then calls Ruth, and wishes her a good morning. Once in a great while, Carol can’t reach Ruth. After trying to reach her several times by phone, she’ll grab the extra key and head to Ruth’s house, to make sure everything is OK. Once, she found Ruth on the floor. This, they all say, is why they keep up the morning phone tree. Six years ago when I first met these women, I wasn’t aware of the community of elders living around me. Then I started to pay attention. All around us, there are elders in our communities and neighborhoods, aging in place. For example, 36
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Illustrations by Irena Roman
in my neighborhood in Albany, N.Y., Mary and Bill live a few doors down from my family. A few blocks up, Juana shares a duplex with her daughter. And Joseph and Myra take a bus from their apartment complex to attend the subsidized hot meal program offered at my daughter’s child care center. In my other community of Hamilton, Margaret is the eldest of a group of elders living at the Madison Lane Apartments, right behind the Colgate Inn, just a few blocks from Ruth. All of these individuals were among a group of elders who agreed to participate in my project on “aging in place,” where I am the student, and they are the teachers. I am drawn to elders. My grandparents have always been my best friends in life, the people I have called on good days and bad days, who offer unconditional love, and confide in me about their own fears and aspirations. The homes I visited as a child became sanctuaries for aging individuals, and even as I got older, little did I know that the conversations I have had for years with my grandparents — about housing, health, finances, entitlement programs, and death and dying (and beyond) — would become part of a national conversation on our aging populace, or that I would become a sociologist who specializes in aging and the life course. Today, my maternal grandfather, who at 91 is my only surviving grandparent, is aging at home, on his own. He experiences a pronounced sense of isolation. Not only has he outlived his siblings, spouse, and most of his friends, many of his remaining family members (myself included) live far away. Gramps’s situation is not unique. And for elders aging in place, that is not the whole story. Far from passively passing time, most of the “oldest old” are actively managing their own care, comfort, and continuity; in so doing, they can help us to rethink age and aging. I wanted to learn how elders creatively and strategically maintain independence, health, and well-being. So, for three years, I followed the everyday lives of 30 people aged 85 and older, in the Hamilton and Albany areas where I live and work. Most of them live alone, at home. When I met them, nonagenarians Ruth, Mary and Bill, Juana, Joseph and Myra, and Margaret were living much like my grandfather, accomplishing self-care and stubbornly staying put. And yet, I wondered, how can they manage when they are not as mobile and strong as they once were? When
of pragmatism, personal creativity, and social connectedness, as well as the importance of interdependency. Most of us will eventually travel this road — today, nearly 40 percent of Americans 85 or older live by themselves, compared to only 20 percent of those age 65 to 74. Through these vignettes, we can learn how they strategically manage aging in place, while maintaining meaningful, comfortable, dignified, and even joyful lives in old age. After all, the real experts, testing out new and familiar theories on age and aging, are 85 and beyond.
Ruth
they live alone and their children do not live close by? When they have outlived most of their friends? When they no longer have a regular source of income? When the family home is not easy to maintain? And how do they keep up their spirits in the midst of upstate New York winters, which can be brutal and isolating? Where do they live? And how do they live? So, I watched, listened, and learned from them. We spent time together, in living rooms, doctors’ offices, diners, grocery stores, fitness centers, and at birthday parties and funerals. I observed these long-living women and men actively working at quality of life. Over time, some folded me into their lives, and became my surrogate family. The lessons they live by have inspired me to be a better parent, professor, and person. I wanted to share the lessons of these experts by writing a book. Aging Our Way is structured around what I have learned. I approached the project in direct contradiction to how our society is structured. While we so often treat old age as a social problem, and elders as simply diminished versions of their former selves, I wanted to show them as they really are: lively, complicated, engaging people. Whether they decide to stay in place or move and create home anew, all continue to consciously weigh their options and strike a balance between autonomy and dependency. This tension is the story of their days, as it is for all of us. For me, their experiences have reinforced the power
“Somewhere around here,” Ruth says, “I have a cross-stitch with the words, ‘After Ninety-Five it is Mostly Maintenance.’ And it’s true. Between the home, the lawn, and this little old lady, I spend 90 percent of my time on maintenance, and most of that is caring for the little old lady.” At 98 years old, Ruth is the self-described CEO of her large Victorian home. The widow of late Colgate professor M. Holmes “Steve” Hartshorne, she was a founder of several Hamilton institutions, including Chenango Nursery School and Education Limited, worked for the Colgate library, and was a grader for philosophy and religion courses. Decades after she raised her family here, she has truly made this house her own. She has taken downsizing and home organization quite seriously. Several years ago, Ruth decided to move her bedroom downstairs and install an adjoining easy-access bathroom where the playroom used to be. These days, her television-free life is centered on the ground floor. Ruth has arranged her space to enable a comfortable and energizing daily routine. A trip to the den, where a sign at the entrance reads: “I’m not unorganized, just flexible,” is usually to check e-mail or do work on her computer. She’s proud of being up on the latest technology. She finds that e-mail is sometimes the easiest way to stay in touch, with the younger members of her family in particular. For a while, she worked on a memoir and wrote checks on her computer, but recent numbness in her hands inhibits too much typing. That said, it did not keep her from volunteering to copyedit my book (she did), a task at which she has always excelled. In the kitchen, glass jars full of freshly chopped vegetables are waiting for supper preparations. Rather than hire someone to cook for her, Ruth hired an old friend to shop and chop, so that she can continue to be creative in the kitchen and make her own meals. The chair in the corner of her sitting room (which is filled with her daughter’s art), facing the large front windows, is her favorite place to be. There sit her reading lamp, her books, a shawl, a letter opener, and a News and views for the Colgate community
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thesaurus. The word search books on a table nearby expose her newest hobby. Her cordless phone, safely ensconced in a small cloth purse, is draped over the chair. This is her command center — where she can receive guests, read, snack, and attend to most needs. In the winter, her favorite thing is to place a vase of flowers in the window so that she can gaze at vibrant colors against a snowy backdrop. While she sometimes feels housebound, Ruth lives for exercise and fresh air. In the winter, this might involve doing “laps” around her first floor and then opening the back door and breathing in the cold air before going to bed. During the school year, student volunteers from Colgate’s Adopt-a-Grandparent program walk with Ruth around the neighborhood. Other days, friends come to visit, or to transport her to one of her many social engagements. Ruth says she’s lucky to have lived so long, and to be in the village of Hamilton, where people look out for her. Her location and rootedness in her community are key factors contributing to her health, well-being, and sense of self. At the same time, it is also important to acknowledge how Ruth takes responsibility for her quality of life. Her creative “maintenance” routine epitomizes many of the lessons of Aging Our Way. First, Ruth emphasizes continuity and adaptability in her life by doing what she has always done, such as walking and preparing meals, while also adapting her space and daily routines to fit her changing needs and abilities. Part of being adaptable has meant redesigning and utilizing her living space in four different ways: downsizing within her large home (by focusing on downstairs rooms), creating a central pivot point and command center around her favorite chair, enhancing bathroom accessibility, and emphasizing color and vitality (through flowers and art, for example). While she focuses most of her energy on self-care, Ruth also asks for help and support from a variety of community members. Interestingly, this assistance in the form of a morning phone check-in, food preparation, and exercise partners enables Ruth to be mostly autonomous and in control. Finally, Ruth balances her time reaching out to family and friends (across generations) via e-mail or phone (always by her side) or in-person at her many club and organizational meetings. She also takes time for herself, enjoying word searches, reading, and engaging in creative cooking rituals. Aging her way means a life emphasizing healthy foods, color, exercise, and continuing to be an active community member and technogenarian.
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Margaret If Margaret, a 98-year-old former Avon saleswoman (who retired at the age of 88) and church group leader, doesn’t put on her “face” in the morning, she’s afraid she won’t be taken seriously by her doctors and her peers. She associates “keeping herself up” with confidence, youthfulness, and a sense of continuity. Like Ruth, Margaret values having her own space and daily routine, and is proud of being able to manage on her own. Margaret lives at Madison Lane Apartments, which are subsidized on a sliding scale. She moved here to downsize, as well as to have the best of both worlds: a sense of community and closeness to her family, who live 20 minutes away. Her cozy rental is just the right size, and Margaret, who worries about her legs giving out on her, stages all of her daily tools so that she can be as mobile and autonomous as possible. The routine goes roughly like this: when she wakes up in the morning, her shiny red “honey of a walker,” (which was paid for by Medicare) is waiting for her beside the bed. In the bathroom, she quickly applies her makeup and then rolls to the kitchen, where the coffee maker is ready to go and the dishes are neatly stored on the counter so that she avoids reaching or standing for too long. At the kitchen table, her pills, napkins, and a cutting board are awaiting her arrival. A CD player is an arm’s length away. And a few steps farther is her lemon-yellow recliner, where she receives a morning call from her son, reads the paper, and monitors the tree outside her window (for changing leaves, and birds, and other “signs of God’s presence”). Some days, Margaret’s home health aide Donna, who is paid by the county’s office for the aging, visits. Donna helps Margaret in the shower and does light cleaning, and they chat about their children and the weather. Margaret has her morning carefully choreographed for convenience and ease, as well as to enhance and magnify her abilities. Just before noon, Margaret does a few dishes, then takes the elevator down one floor (with walker
#2, which she keeps at her front door). There, she eats a hot lunch in the complex’s community room (offered through the county’s snack program) and then back upstairs to check up on her neighbor across the hall. After a few hours of television (sports and soaps), a light supper and a night-time snack of peanut butter on a graham cracker, Margaret wheels the walker into the bedroom, ready to start again tomorrow. For Margaret, space and routine must take into account her mobility challenges, as well as isolation. Margaret’s tiny apartment allows for easy access and convenience, which she has enhanced by staging dishes and other tools within reach. Caring for herself also means making herself presentable, resting her legs, and staying comfortable. Like Ruth, Margaret depends on others for a morning phone call, as well as for taking care of the things she can no longer handle, like help with showering and trash pickup. She delights in connecting with other apartment dwellers and churchgoers, and spending time with nearby family members. But the bulk of her day is spent alone, reading the paper, watching shows, and observing nature outside her window. Aging her way involves being presentable, living in moderation, connecting with family and friends, and taking the time to grow spiritually.
Mary and Bill Bill is outside on his stoop telling jokes again. He used to spout them out by memory, to construction workers and neighbors passing by. And before that, he joked around with his dental patients. These days, Bill doesn’t get out much, and when he does, he has to print the jokes out to help remember them. But he still believes that “a pleasant outlook on life and lots of laughter are the best medicine.” In the bustling downtown commercial district of Albany, Bill, 95, and his “child bride” Mary, 92, continue to live in the historic rowhouse where, decades before, he housed his dental practice on the first floor. They have watched the neighborhood change, cared for a child and grandchildren here, and would rather not live anywhere else. So, they continue what they have always done. Bill, a World War II veteran, still spends time on the ground floor, napping and playing computer solitaire. He answers the door and spends time out on the stoop, talking and joking with neighbors. Meanwhile, Mary, a first-generation Polish immigrant and former educator, sews, reads, or organizes her things up on the third floor, or nurtures her backyard garden. Several times a day, both meet on the second floor where they eat meals, watch M*A*S*H, and host company together. To get there, Bill takes the stair lift, and Mary holds tight to the railing. For them, home space enables quality time, both together and apart. When the doorbell rings, it is likely Mary and Bill’s do-everything-guy, Ray, who is almost a part of the family. Several years ago, Bill said, “We were mentioning to our pharmacist that we needed help, and he recommended Ray, who had recently retired and was looking for something to do.” Before long, Ray was their “right-hand man.” He would take them
grocery shopping, help them to prepare their home for the winter months, take out the trash, pick up prescriptions, and exchange jokes with Bill. Mary and Bill say it is their helper and their neighborhood community that make it possible to stay at home into their 90s. Neighbors will stop by to drop off meals, cookies, or children’s art, or invite them out to dinner or to a potluck next door. The monthly potlucks and regular neighborly interactions keep them socializing and feeling safe, especially after they programmed several neighbors’ phone numbers into their phone’s speed dial in case of emergency. As a neighbor of Mary and Bill’s, I have experienced the community’s support and love firsthand. Before my daughter was born, the neighborhood put together a surprise shower. The next year, we planned a joint birthday party — for the baby, who was turning one, and Mary, who was turning 90. Mary says having the baby in the mix brings everyone closer together: “Watching [the baby] grow and progress, it takes you back to when your children were that age. And it keeps you young! It really does.” For most of us on the block, family members live far away, so this is our social family. On special occasions, this is particularly evident. On Mary and Bill’s 60th wedding anniversary, we planned a surprise party for them, News and views for the Colgate community
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and invited family and friends. At the gathering, it was not clear who was related to the couple and who was not — and it didn’t matter. For Mary and Bill, aging their way means staying together, staying on the block, staying connected and busy, fostering and maintaining intergenerational ties, and engaging in a little tomfoolery.
and occasional gunshots do not bother Juana, who watches her beloved Yankees games at night, and does not venture out. In the daytime, Juana feels safe, walking the neighborhood, doing errands, and visiting her Catholic community. She is greeted as “Mama,” and appreciates the respect she receives. Juana values family above all else. Indoors, Juana uses her second-floor living space to serve her social and biological families, preparing rice and beans for her (now middle-aged) children, baking flan for the church deacons, watching baseball in the living room and dancing to reggaeton music, and climbing the ladder to the loft to take her siestas. In the small yard, Juana grows flowers and the herbs that keep her and her family healthy. Living in a duplex enables caregiving and interdependency, while ensuring privacy. Because her daughter is so close by, Juana can ask her for rides to doctors’ appointments, as well as to deliver food. Mother and daughter know where to find one another. In addition, Juana’s Catholic community is just blocks away. And her love for community extends to New York City, as the home of the Yankees and the city that embraced her as a new immigrant. After watching the 9/11 attack on the World Trade Center, Juana demonstrated her love for New York by taking a bus there to distribute a poem she wrote in memory of those who were lost. For Juana, aging her way means continuing to live in moderation, caring for family and community (and, in the process, receiving their love and respect), as well as expressing herself creatively.
Joseph and Myra
Juana On an afternoon last June, I arrived at the duplex Juana and her daughter Miriam share, expecting to find a grieving family. Miriam had called to report that her aunt had just passed away, leaving Juana as the only living sibling. But instead, on this warm summer day, Juana was just as vital as ever, and living in the moment. She pointed to her clothing, washed and hung on the line, a steamy bowl of rice and beans that sat covered on the stove, her son, happily fed and watching a Yankees pre-game show, and a recent newspaper picture of her favorite baseball player that she put aside, to eventually frame and add to her living room wall “hall of fame.” When I remarked about Juana’s seeming vitality and good health to her daughter, Miriam showed me a recent picture of Juana dancing to her favorite reggaeton song, “La Gasolina.” Juana, a first-generation Puerto Rican immigrant and single mother of seven, worked in factories both in her homeland and near Yankee Stadium. She exemplifies what social epidemiologists call the “Latino health paradox,” an unexplained trend in longevity among Latinos and Latinas living in the United States. At 94, Juana is disability free. Her doctor jokes that she could live another 50 years. Juana and Miriam’s modest duplex in one of the poorest neighborhoods in Albany is about a mile west of Mary and Bill’s home. The nighttime sirens 40
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More than 60 years ago, Joseph made a promise to his wife, Myra, that they would never again be apart after being separated in Nazi concentration camps. Joseph, who worked as a barber, was sent to a camp in Latvia. There, Joseph asked to shave the commandant’s beard, an opportunity that eventually saved his life and helped him to locate Myra in another camp. A year ago, that promise was in jeopardy, when Myra was hospitalized and sent to a nursing home. When I first met these Latvian-born Holocaust survivors, they lived in a small apartment in a high-rise complex across the parking lot from a shul, or synagogue. As survivors who qualified for financial help, their rent was partially subsidized through Housing and Urban Development, and Joseph was paying out of pocket for a nursing aide, Kim, to visit multiple times a week, including Saturdays. Joseph, 93, is legally blind, and Myra, 92, has dementia. But, with the help of their nearby daughters, the larger Jewish community, and their aide, Joseph and Myra were managing to look after one another. As he said, “she is my eyes, and I am her memory.” Joseph kept track of all appointments, took care of the bills (with his daughters’ and aide’s help), and took the weekly bus to the grocery store, where he shopped by memory. Myra watched television, napped, and described what she saw. Together, they shared meals and memories, and lived for family time on the weekends. When Myra was hospitalized, this sense of home and harmony was broken. Her doctors placed her in the dementia ward of a Jewish-themed nursing home, leaving Joseph distraught. On the phone, Joseph wasn’t himself. His tone was panicked, anxious. Several months later, a miracle occurred. He was able to move into the same home, in a different care wing. This was a rare occurrence, because both members of a couple do not often qualify for round-the-clock care in long-term care environments. Once there, nurses coordinated his health care and his doctor ordered him a glass eye (he previously wore a patch).
Because he is no longer responsible for his wife’s care, Joseph recently told me, they are free to be lovebirds again. He said that twice a week they sit side by side in the synagogue down the hall, holding hands. (Joseph confided he was never one for attending services daily; he does it to be close to Myra.) They also attend activities and concerts together. Joseph said the ability to see his wife almost every day and continue to be part of a Jewish community is wonderful. He is still surprised that life in a nursing home could be so good. For Joseph and Myra, aging their way means staying near each other, remaining socially engaged, honoring lifelong traditions, and cherishing their intimacy.
These nonagenarians exemplify how aging is changing. We are no longer a society with a mostly functionally impaired older generation alongside a fit, active, younger population. In fact, the 2009 MacArthur Foundation Research Report on Aging found that the trend is quite the opposite; i.e., toward a more active and healthier older population, and a less-healthy younger and middle-aged population. While disability rates have increased among those younger than 65 due to substantial increases in the rates of asthma, obesity, and diabetes, the health and functional status of the old have been improving steadily since the early 1980s, mainly thanks to improvements in medical care. At the same time, with longer lives comes more time to live and cope with chronic illness and disability. Perhaps the most profound lesson from all their stories is this: asking for help actually enables autonomy and control — as long as it is on their terms. While diverse in their approaches and guiding lifelong themes, all of these elders are instrumental in creating and maintaining their own homes and quality of life. I learned that where they live and how they live are decisions made based on their individual life experiences, location, health, and physical realities. Moreover, through discussions with the students in my courses on aging and the life course, I have come to see that these lessons resonate more broadly. Quite a few students say they enrolled in my course because aging scares them. This is no surprise. Despite what we see in our own families, we, as a culture, tend to expect elders to be nonproductive, dependent, and diseased. We learn and reinforce our culture’s age-based expectations and rules throughout our lives, and these scripts overlap with expectations regarding gender, social and physical location, and aging in place. These elders’ stories remind us to actively work at creating lives worth living and to reflect on mortality more often. Working at continuity, comfort, connections, and a balance of autonomy and dependency is crucial at all stages of human development. Their experiences and challenges highlight grassroots and policy opportunities for supporting the millions who are aging and will age at home. Most important, these elders remind us that old age can be empowering, meaningful, connected, and full of joy. — Meika Loe, associate professor of sociology and women’s studies, is director of the Women’s Studies Program and interim director of the Upstate Institute at Colgate. Her book Aging Our Way: Lessons for Living from 85 and Beyond was published by Oxford University Press October 1 (read her project blog at agingourway.wordpress.com). She also blogs for Ms. magazine.
Living at Home and Making It Work The 13 lessons of Aging Our Way Lesson 1 – Continue to Do What You Did
Lesson 6 – Connect with Peers
Lesson 11 – Insist on Hugs
Lesson 2 – (Re)Design Your Living Space
Lesson 7 – Resort to Tomfoolery
Lesson 12 – Be Adaptable
Lesson 3 – Live in Moderation
Lesson 8 – Care for Others
Lesson 13 – Accept and Prepare for Death
Lesson 4 – Take Time for Self
Lesson 9 – Reach Out to Family
Lesson 5 – Ask for Help; Mobilize Resources
Lesson 10 – Get Intergenerational; Redefine Family
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scene: Autumn 2011
Andrew Daddio
News and views for the Colgate community
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salmagundi
Grid Play
To get the answer to the riddle below, find the six individual pieces in the large photo. Some pieces have been rotated. When you find a piece, fill in the color-matched boxes with the letters from the piece’s original row and column. Then read those letters, in order, to get the answer to the riddle. This picture shows first-year students during Konosioni Field Day at orientation. At what point were they when they began the race? See page 73 for the answer.
Puzzle by Puzzability
Rewind Everybody out! On Friday morning at 10:38 the team leaves for Yale. Every year that Yale has been on our football schedule the whole student body has marched to the station on the morning that the Maroon team has left for New Haven and has inspired the team with confidence in themselves and in the student body which they were leaving behind. This has become a time honored custom as well as a duty to the team. We cannot all be at the game to cheer the team but we can be at the station to make the lasting impression upon them that there are five hundred and fifty red blooded Colgate men behind them and only eleven blue sweatered men before them. The faculty grant us the chapel period and following period in which to march to the station. Thus there will be no excuse for every man not being there. No exceptions will be tolerated. The rally will start to-night with a big parade downtown. Every student must be at the Y.M.C.A. at 7:00 P.M., to form in line and march to John Gate’s Corner. Here all the team yells and individual yells will be given. The songs will all be sung and the snake dance performed on Broad Street. Remember! 7:00 P.M., at the Y.M.C.A. On Friday morning at 10:00 sharp every student on the Hill will form in line in front of Alumni Hall and march to the station. Students who do not have 9:10 classes or who are not on the Hill will meet at the gymnasium and join the line there. At the station we will cheer the team, players, “Larry,” “Doc,” and “Jack.” We will make every man who is going, realize that every Colgate man’s heart goes with him. — The Colgate Maroon, Nov. 2, 1916 Do you have a reminiscence for Rewind? Send your submission of short prose, poetry, or a photograph with a description to scene@colgate.edu.
Slices
A pictorial contest, in homage to the nickname of New York Pizzeria, the late-night Village of Hamilton hot spot serving the Colgate community for more than three decades — one plain slice at a time. What are these Colgate students doing? Write a caption for this photo, correctly identifying the event. Bonus points if you can identify the year! Send in your answer about this “slice” of Colgate to scene@colgate.edu or attn: Colgate Scene, 13 Oak Dr., Hamilton, NY 13346. Correct responses received by December 5, 2011, will be put into a drawing for a Slices T-shirt.
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scene: Autumn 2011
Above: Members of the Experimental Theater Company ham it up at the Student Involvement Fair. Back cover: Autumn color on Oak Drive. Both photos by Andrew Daddio
News and views for the Colgate community
scene: News and views for the Colgate community Colgate University 13 Oak Drive Hamilton, NY 13346-1398
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