Yale Service Tours and Day of Service

As we enter the holiday season, you may be thinking of what 2009 will bring.  No doubt, we will face challenges, both personally and as a nation.  As a group, though, our class has been blessed with a number of advantages and we will have an opportunity to play leadership roles in our communities.  Yale is offering a few opportunities next years for us to give back to our communities through the Yale Service Tours, which are trips outside of the US.

Yale is also planning a Global Day of Service on May 16, 2009.  Look for details early in 2009 about service projects in your area.

Please think about participating.

Yale Service Tours: Home

Yale Alumni Exchange with Japan

Recently, Kathy Edersheim has been spending a lot of time volunteering with AYA to implement the Global Alumni Leadership Exchange program which took a group of 60 Yale Alumni leaders and families to Australia in August to work with the Australian National University and their alumni. In 2009, the program will be in Japan to work with the University of Tokyo and a consortium of universities in Tokyo and Kyoto. You can check out the project and the trips at www.galesig.org.

News from Darcy Troy Pollack

Darcy Troy Pollack wrote in the following news: "I am still living in Los Angeles, married with two kids... nothing new there. However, I do have something new to report: Anna Barber (class of '90) and I have founded a business called Scribble Press. Scribble Press is the first ever store where kids (and adults) can write, illustrate and publish their own books and other products. We launched our first store in Los Angeles this May and are planning to open additional locations soon. Check us out at www.scribblepress.com. Even if you are not in L.A., you can create books, notepads, notecards and more through our website!"

News about Paul Doiron

I heard from Paul Doiron recently via Facebook. Paul Doiron is the editor in chief of one of the premier regional magazines in the country, Down East: The Magazine of Maine. After college, he lived for a while in Los Angeles, at the ragged fringe of the movie industry. Missing the North Woods, he returned to his beloved state of Maine, where he was promptly struck by lightning while camping with two friends in the White Mountains - a harrowing event that nearly claimed two lives. The first and only feature screenplay he ever wrote (as his graduate thesis for Emerson College) was filmed in 2005 and released by Lionsgate Entertainment as Drop Dead Sexy, starring Jason Lee, Crispin Glover, and Brad Dourif. Before coming to work at Down East, he was the executive director of the groundbreaking writer's center, Maine Writers & Publishers Alliance. Paul has won multiple awards for his journalism from the International Regional Magazine Association and has published features in Yankee and Fly Rod & Reel, among other publications. An avid fly-fisherman, birder, and hunter, Paul lives on a trout stream in Camden, Maine, with his wife, the poet and environmentalist Kristen Lindquist.

News from Tim Calkins

Tim Calkins wrote to me to let us know what he is up to. He writes: "I'm currently clinical professor of marketing at Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management. I teach marketing strategy and branding. My new book is called Breakthrough Marketing Plans. It is a short, simple guide to creating a good marketing plan. I saw the need for the book when teaching MBA students; people really struggle to create a good plan, and th existing guides are not that helpful. The book has been well received so far. It seems to have touched a nerve...people really are trying to create better, more focused plans in this tough economy." Tim's websites are: www.breakthroughmarketingplans.com and www.timcalkins.com.

An e-mail I received requesting some historical information

Dear Class Secretaries,

I’m writing an article for the Yale Alumni Magazine on party suites—the rooms that most Residential Colleges designated (and supported one way or another) to throw parties—Silliman’s Beach Club, Branford’s God Quad, Calhoun’s Bookworld, etc. The article will consist mainly of anecdotes from alumni of all ages, thei r funniest and craziest memories from living in or visiting party suites while at Yale.

Would it be possible for you to forward this email to your class’s list serve so that members of your class will have the opportunity to contribute stories for the piece? Many of the suites have long tradition sand I’d love to hear more about the history behind them, as well as any stories that might illuminate how partying has changed over the years. Or things that are just plain funny. Anyone who’d like to contribute can reach me at this email, benjamin.conniff@gmail.com. I can certainly make your story anonymous if you’d prefer.

Thanks so much for your help, and I look forward to hearing from you and your classmates.Best wishes,

Ben Conniff, JE ‘07Benjamin.conniff@gmail.com

Yale Daily News from the Obama Transition

The Yale Daily News writes about the Yalies in the Obama transition team. Apparently, the Class of 1987 is well represented. Writes the YDN: "A lot of people who volunteer are doing it out of a sense of service -- service to the county and the president-elect," said Lihn Nguyen '87, co-lead of the Office of Personnel Management Review Team and president of Albuquerque-based Morningside Consulting. "Most are not doing this as an entree, but as an opportunity of service. That's certainly how I'm approaching it."

A Note from Minter Dial

I received a nice e-mail from Minter Dial. Minter writes: "My wife, Yendi, and I are now well installed in Paris having moved here in late 2006. Our son Oscar, 12, is now in boarding school in England (like father like son) learning to play rugby and (real) football. Daughter, Alexandra, is 9 and lives with us at home, learning piano and dancing Capoeira. We hang out with Stephen Groff (Y86) who also lives in Paris and will be visiting the Groffs in Bataan, Philippines, after Christmas. I am working at L'Oreal and running the International Professional Development worldwide for the Professional Division. This job includes running the Division's eBusiness (internet and intranet) as well as developing a Sustainable Development strategy. In my free time, outside of family life, I am playing lawn tennis and real (court) tennis and, to channel my desire to write, am a dedicated blogger (http://minterdial.com). Either come visit me in Paris or on my blog in the interim."