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Artemis Magazine February 2012
ALUMNAE NOTES 10 Year Reunion
CLASS OF 2002
Submitted by Class Representative Helen Vera ’02 This has been quite a year for the Class of 2002. True to the pioneering spirit of Archer, several of the creative and tenacious members of our class run their own businesses. Elana Schwarzman Besserman’s kettle-corn company, PopGram, can be found at farmers’ markets around LA or booked for any event (www.popgramkettlecorn.com). Elana married Adam Besserman in a beautiful ceremony in Malibu last July. Congrats to the newlyweds! Meghan Muntean left her Wall Street job in 2010 to run her own company, ChickRx, full-time. An online health and wellness community for young women, ChickRx invites users to share insights, ask questions and get answers from experts and peers. Check it out and sign up for the new private beta at ChickRx.com. Ashley Sawtelle recently left her job in the financial industry to run her own photography business specializing in portraiture, events, and live music (www.ashleysawtellephoto.com). Ashley traces her passion for photography back to Mr. Hartsfield’s class at Archer. “Mr. Hartsfield is such an amazing teacher and mentor,” Ashley writes. Ashley lives in Boulder, Colorado, with her fiancé, Joey Kietzmann; they are planning a Colorado wedding in June, a few weeks after our ten-year reunion on April 21 (stay tuned for updates on that!). Congratulations to Korinne Mitchell Hinderliter and her husband, Victor, who were married last May. Korinne, a fabric manager at Taylor Scott furniture, recently started a book club with other Archer alumnae—what a great way to keep in touch! Alisha Bunch Perry and her husband of a year and a half, D’Juan, live in England. Alisha is enjoying her job as a first-grade teacher, as well as the opportunity to travel around Europe—the Perrys spent Thanksgiving in Spain and New Year’s in Ireland. Julia Gazdag lives in L.A.
and edits a blog, Women Working To Do Good, in partnership with the White House Office of Public Engagement. Julia is also a photographer; you can check out her work at www.juliagazdag. com. Ivy Weinglass lives in Brooklyn, New York, and works as an assistant stylist at the online home-furnishings retailer, One Kings Lane. Ever the world traveler, she recently vacationed in Paris. Natalia Serrano lives in Seville, Spain, and teaches English in a local public school. She will marry Alejandro Sanchez Dominguez next summer. Samantha Estrada quit her job at Juicy Couture last year to pursue freelance fashion design. Sam, who enjoys figure drawing, is excited to report that she is remodeling a studio space in the LA home she shares with her fiancé and their two pit bulls. Our very own Casey LaBow played Kate Denali, a beautiful vampire, in “The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn” Part 1, and reprised the role in Part 2. Congrats on the breakout role, Casey! I’m sure scores of current Archer girls are painfully envious. I want to extend the warmest wishes to Rebecca Emshwiller, who has been fighting Hodgkin’s lymphoma; it is currently in remission. Rebecca has been spending quality time with family and friends and focusing on getting better. We are all thinking of you, Rebecca, and wishing you a full and relaxing recovery.
Some of us have gone back to school in recent years. Cailey Hall left New York City last summer and is now working on a PhD in English at UCLA. She plans to focus on women writers and female fan groups. Hazella Bowmani left her job as a software trainer last year to start law school at Santa Clara University. She is interested in social justice work. Helen Vera (that’s me! --Ed.) is a second-year student at Yale Law School, and is interested in the rather divergent areas of prisoners’ rights and intellectual property. She will work in the New York office of the law firm Ropes & Gray next summer. Well, that’s it for now! It has been so much fun corresponding with many of you and hearing your latest news. Please never hesitate to get in touch with updates, questions, or just a quick hello. We may not be able to return to our Archer days—lunches in the courtyard, Spice Girls impersonations, overnight trips to Joshua Tree for “outdoor credit”—but keeping in touch is definitely the next best thing.
Photos (clockwise from left): Adam and Elana Besserman ’02 on their wedding day, July 9, 2011; Alisha Perry ’02 snorkeling in the Canary Islands in 2010; Korinne Hinderliter ’02, Natalia Serrano ’02, and Helen Vera ’02 at Adam and Elana Besserman’s ’02 wedding
