Reunion 96--Class of 1986
The 10th Reunion of the Class of 1986 was a rousing success with lots of classmates (80 at last unofficial count) in attendance. We were incredibly lucky with the weather--although rain was threatening all day Saturday the showers held off until we were safely inside partying on Saturday night.
Some lucky classmates started the weekend festivities early by playing golf on Friday afternoon and then joined the rest of the working folk on Friday night and were treated to good food and drink. Later Friday night, we gathered in our class headquarters in Mary Low Lounge and, with the help of some background music and a nice beer and wine bar, settled in for a catching-up session that lasted late into the night.
Saturday morning, our class made quite a picture parading to the football field, blowing bubbles and getting sticky, thanks to the cheerleading efforts of our class host, David Hanauer '97, plus Hank Yelle's insistence that bubbles were mandatory. Jay Allen and Chris Engstrom did a great job as banner bearers, with support from Brian Cornwall waving our class year sign. We also admired the great class T-shirts designed by Leslie Greenslet Perry and wished we'd all worn ours for the parade--next time! Tom Fisher didn't really surprise us when he admitted he'd had a hard time getting up in time for the parade, but did surprise us with his accurate identification of a Baltimore oriole near Dana--by sound alone.
At the presentation of gifts, we wowed everyone, including ourselves, when we saw how well we'd done in supporting Colby; just a few dollars shy of $200,000 from the Class of '86, including all our campaign pledges. Several classmates asked for and received a mini-lesson in fund raising and learned about annual vs. capital giving.
In the afternoon, we gathered on Dana lawn-- and, back to basics, cooked our own burgers and hot dogs and lounged around doing lots of catching up and catching rays. Ted Wolff, Sue Whitney and Chris Engstrom had a good time reminiscing about their Sea Semester experience. Professors Pete and Jane Moss found our barbecue, despite a last-minute location change, and held court on the lawn. All the kids were in their glory, too: Eve Ermer's Erik and Andrea, Deb Pernice Duffy's Hannah and Joe, Jay Church's Connor, Chapman Mayo's Hugh, John Haberstock's Taylor, plus the darling little tykes of Geoff Alexander whose names did not get written down. Each one was cuter than the next. Everyone seemed to have a great time. During lunch, Ted Wolff, Jay Church, Sue Maxwell Reisert, Heather Frasier Chabot and Anne Butter all agreed to sign up as class agents and, with the help of Bill Northfield's handy yearbook, even chose the folks they'll be contacting in our class.
After dispersing a bit to take tours of the beautiful art museum, impressive new Olin Science Center, or expanded Alfond Athletic Center, we came together again for our class banquet in Roberts on Saturday night. Our nifty bottle coolers were a big hit all around, as was the night in general. We were greatly entertained by our visit from Jan Hogendorn, who regaled us with stories of Colby Then and Now. President Cotter's incredibly timely entrance created a sensation, unequaled throughout the weekend. Jay Church might argue that the highlight of the evening was having his picture taken with his "personal harem" of Teri Appleton, Lisa Foley, Robin Clisby Pelczar, Jessica Flood Leitz, Amy Barnes Hurley and (of course!) Imogen Mintzer Church. We had a great time dancing--Deb Brooks won the prize for her spunky duet with our mysterious guest. For a while, we thought Brian and Laurie Clark Cornwall were the only ones who knew how to dance like grown-ups, until we saw Peter and Linda Flight Lull waltzing to the Smashing Pumpkins.
Sunday morning, we lingered over Bonnie's coffee cake in the dorm and reluctantly said our good-byes, mixed with promises of "next time!" and "see you sooner!" Let's start thinking about what we want to do next time!