www.andover.edu/intouch and Mid-Cities area. He was looking forward to linking up with Lindsay Hoopes and Liza Darnell in January. Grancis’s fellow former Bishop Hall resident Nathaniel Fowler became engaged to his girlfriend of the past 2-1/2 years, Alissa Leonard, on New Year’s Eve in Cozumel, Mexico. Sara Smith recently moved back to her native Manhattan after completing nursing school in Philadelphia. Having passed the boards, she is now a certified nurse practioner. I had the opportunity to have dinner with Sara and Liza Trafton Ndreu last fall following an Andover event in Greenwich, Conn. It was wonderful to catch up, and I’m looking forward to more get-togethers in 2015! Liza, along with Tysie Sawyer, also paid a visit to Morgan Madera Baroni in Walpole, Mass., to meet Morgan’s 7-month-old daughter, Isabella. Morgan reports that she was also visited by Fred Flather, who is expecting his fourth child this May! In more baby news, Jennie Cohen wrote in to say that she and her husband welcomed their son, Gideon, in November 2014; their daughter, Eloise, turned 2 later that month. Jennie also said that Chris Chen and his wife had a baby on the same day Gideon was born. Congratulations to both Jennie and Chris on their new additions! Though he’s embarrassed to admit that it’s his first submission since graduation, Aaron Stearns wrote in to let us know that he, wife Jillanne, and 18-month-old son, Thomas, recently relocated from NYC to Winter Park, Fla. The winter of 2014 proved to be the family’s last straw with long, cold winters. While the Stearnses miss New York’s vibrancy, they are enjoying the change of pace and the absence of coats, gloves, and boots. The move also brought them closer to Jillanne’s family, which is good, as Aaron travels a great deal for the business he founded three years ago, VestaPoint Capital. VestaPoint Capital is a real estate investment firm, and while the business is still in the early stages, it has had some initial success. Aaron relishes the role of entrepreneur and the wide range of responsibilities that accompany the position. Aaron regrets not keeping in better touch with Andover friends and resolved to make a concerted effort to do so in 2015 and beyond. As a first step, he recently ordered and enjoyed a bottle of cabernet sauvignon from Lindsay Hoopes’s vineyard, which he reports was delicious! Let’s hope that reconnecting with classmates will offer many reasons for celebratory toasts. That optimistic note is where I’ll leave you for now. I hope that each and every one of you is happy and healthy and that you will write in to share your life stories, travels, and successes with your classmates.
2000 15th REUNION June 12–14, 2015 Jia H. Jung 550 11th St., No. 4R Brooklyn NY 11215 917-589-5423 (cell) jiajung@alum.berkeley.edu
Our 15th Reunion is just around the corner. Fifteen years is pretty much the age we were when we began attending PA and more than triple the time we spent there. Gross/awesome. I know that for some of us, life has remained reassuringly or disappointingly the same for the past five (or 10 or 15) years. For others, life has been dramatically or stunningly or devastatingly different. Either way, I hope to catch up on all things on campus in June. In the meantime, here are some spoilers. From Erin Liotta, ol’ buddy ol’ pal from Latin and calculus and Doherty Middle School before that, who kindly relented to my pursuit of an offFacebook scoop: “In September 2013 I got married to Bren Darrow in a regional park in Berkeley, Calif., where we live. In a year of record drought for California, we were surprised to wake up on our wedding day to a total downpour! But the sun was shining by the day’s end, and family and friends rallied around us, including Andover classmates Emily Griset, Drew Chin, Emily Carter, and Katherine Stirling. Life just got a little bit crazier with my youngest brother, Joe Liotta ’10, coming to live with us post-college. We are busy constructing a tiny cottage for him in our backyard, squeezing trips to the lumber store in between our ‘real’ jobs as public-interest attorneys. Dinner’s on us for anyone who wants to stop by and pitch in on the construction project!” Mean it, Erin? I just might. Miss my old college town; so awesome you’ve put down roots there. Lucy Greene, last seen in senior spring Shakespeare, revealed that she moved to LA in 2013 after a time in Portland, Ore. She splits her time between LA and Joshua Tree, Calif., where she works in a couple different artists’ studios. Rowan Riley remains a friend since the triad days, and the two gals even shared an apartment for a time post-PA, joking all the while about their return to dorm life. Kei Kushiro has become an assistant professor at the University of Tokyo in the department of bioengineering, where he has been working for three years now. He researches the interactions between cells and biomaterials, and more specifically, the cell motility on microstructured polymers and hydrogel materials. (Wow...I wonder if the agar of Bio 30 lab experiments of the formerly existent Evans Hall is somehow involved?) Kei is also working toward the globalization of the University of Tokyo, so he’s staying very busy; alive and very well.
And a rather jolting message arrived from Harry Chandler ’71, father of Margot Chandler Cook. He wrote, “Unfortunately, in August of last year, Margot nearly drowned at her parents’ pool in LA. Luckily, she did not succumb to the incident but has been fighting back from very serious brain injuries and other challenges ever since. After 96 days in hospitals, she and her husband, Cutler, are now living in an apartment, and she is braving it through daily rehab to regain motor and cognitive skills. Her spirits are up and her sense of humor is back.” “Luckily” is right. I got gooseflesh reading about such a close call. At the time of writing, Mr. Chandler felt that Margot might be ready for some cheer from her Andover classmates and friends in the spring (which is now). So just let your class secretary know if you would like to send a heartening message, and I can help get you in touch with Mr. Chandler, who will then relay your consideration to Margot. Margot, it’s good to know that you are fighting and getting better every day. Remember...you got through Andover. As the time for our gathering draws nigh, my thoughts and memories can’t help but go to Casey Hill Mercer. I’m sure a lot of you, including her closest friends and family, are thinking of her, too. Ah, it is no secret that our class has had some rough breaks, especially for being so young (yes, we are still young). But we’re also out there doing great things and being hard-assed survivors and creators. This reunion, I hope and trust that we will find ourselves—a real tribe—in greater unity than ever, in spite of the trials and losses we might have encountered in the past 15 years. And to bring the circle back to underscore the hope, love, and new life in store for us all: Teri Moss-Tyler Alexander wrote in to report that she, her husband, Tesfa, and son Nathaniel (age 2) welcomed another baby boy, Nour, last September. Teri says that the crew of four is having an awesome time, having recently moved to Silver Spring, Md., and has enjoyed visits from the PA family, including Linda Griffith, who stopped by while she was in the area, and Bobby Edwards, who lives nearby. Other Andover visitors have included Richelle Lane ’99, Michelle Gittens ’99, Tamika Guishard ’98, and Anthony Morales ’98, with his beautiful family! Teri also recently caught up with Alison Wheeler ’05, a dear friend she met while living in Washington, D.C. Meanwhile, near my ’hood, Biana Fay Varga, daughter Maple, and husband Adam Varga welcomed a new addition to the clan: a baby boy named Arlo Moss Varga, born in December. So far, big sis Maple seems to love her baby brother, and Biana calls it a “whole new game” that she’s winning for sure. What a thing, to hear about both the Andover family and the families that you are beginning to build for yourselves as well! See you all soon, I guess, but those of you with babies and kids— Andover | Spring 2015
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