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Class Pages : Class of 1972

35 Reunion Letter

October 30, 2006

Participation is the key to harmony.

Dear Classmates,

How are you? I’ve been wondering, concerned, since over the past two years our class notes section in the alumni magazine has often been empty, and the latest class list contains several classmates who no longer wish to be contacted by the school. I came close to making that choice myself: I was confused, disappointed, and frustrated by the decision to close the Northfield campus. But here I am, inviting you all to our 35th reunion, June 7–10. The reunion committee (Faith Glazer Toraby, Nancy Klarman, and Ric Stobaeus, so far) and I are united in our goal to get a record number of us to come together again.

My healing process over the past two years was helped by returning to campus a year ago for Celebrate Northfield and again for Reunion 2006. However, attending Leadership Weekend last September made the biggest difference. The school was bustling, students settling in on their first week back. Every building had a luster, and the grounds were immaculate. I talked with a random cross-section of students; even the Goths said they are really happy with the one-campus solution. As important as it was for me to say goodbye to the old school, saying hello to the new school really helped me heal.

Reunions are not just about the past. You and I are the roots of the school now; the fewer of us who participate, the fewer branches will flourish. Given the changes that have occurred since the last time we met, an extra participation effort seems crucial. So I set a goal of convincing at least 100 of us to make the journey back this June. It’s an ambitious goal, but it makes an important statement to our class, to other classes struggling with NMH’s changes, to the trustees, to the administration, and to faculty and students.

I hope you have a laugh reading the reunion poster I’ve enclosed. Obviously, these events are semifictional, although, to my surprise, the school is willing to facilitate a night walk to the Northfield campus. If anyone would like to relive it or is curious to know what it was like, the walk is a really special experience—and I’m game to make the trip again. Maybe we can plan some sort of celebration once we get there.

Dave Brown’s band is scheduled to play on Saturday night. Hogappella, a student a cappella group, will be roaming about. I’ve volunteered to host another coffeehouse on Friday night. Hopefully, I can convince all the other folk musicians in our class to join me. As always, I’d love to get requests beforehand from anyone who has a special folk song they would like to hear.

But what I really want is to hear from every one of you. What would you like to do? Who would you like to see again? Would you share your expertise in a seminar? I’ll do my best to make it happen. And I promise the school is equally committed to making this a rewarding reunion for every of us.

So please come back this summer. Embrace the old school and the new school. We’ll be in touch!

 

Joshua Spahn
212-541-5962

P.S.        Check out www.fromthewings.com/NMH.htm to see the presentation I made at our last reunion comparing the 1969 school handbooks (rules for boys vs. rules for girls). It also includes four songs Russ Pollock and I performed at the coffeehouse. I’ll put copies of my photographs from the Celebrate Northfield weekend up there too.

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Class AF Goals & Giving
NMH Annual Fund : Class Progress July 1, 2007 - June 30, 2008

Class and School	Giving to Date	Pledges to Date	Goal	Donors to Date	Pledges to Date	Donors Goal
1972NMH	$97670	$0	$100000	80	0	95

Last Update: July 23, 2008

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