Laura Stevenson

Dear Bruce

Congratulations on your son's achievements. Being a procrastinator, I have only made it up to middle school with the older child and the younger one is still in elementary school. I have a reflection about Dr. Nelson that I would like to share. When I was a sophomore taking macro economics, I was the only female in a class of about twenty-five. Dr. Nelson always called on two students each day: me and somebody else. After two weeks, the pattern was pretty obvious. People would come up to me outside of the classroom and suggest that I complain to Dr. Terry. I didn't do that because I realized that Dr. Nelson was actually doing me a favor by forcing me to be prepared each day. And she continued to call on me every single class for the rest of the quarter. In all my conversations with Dr. Nelson, she never brought up her questioning procedure in that class, but right before graduation she gave me some advice: "Don't cut your hair," which was waist length. I didn't follow that particular piece of advice, but I think it reveals a side of Dr. Nelson that most people would never have imagined possible.

Regards

Laura Stevenson

Julie Chrisco

Only one Davidson moment this summer. My son mac spends 7 weeks at this camp in Maine called Camp Timanous. His bunkmate this year was a nice boy from Alphretta GA named John Douglas (JD), as the boys were packing up their trunks to go home JD put on a Davidson hat. Mac asked him where he got it... His mother Ann Wolcott (class of '81). Small world...

She looks exactly the same.

Philip Blue

.....and knee surgery.  We're in the same boat......bad knees.  So I finally  decided to undertake the inevitable........knee replacement surgery.  May 18 was  the big day.  It ain't fun, but the results are worth it if your knee hurts when  you climb steps, jump up and down (I quit trying that a long time ago), or just  simple stuff like carrying luggage, groceries, or climbing a hill in Brazil to  get to that beautiful deserted beach you've heard so much about!!  It was four  weeks ago today, and I can definitely do steps much better, as well as carrying  loads of groceries and bargains from flea markets and thrift shops.  Maybe I can  get back to Brazil this fall and check out a new place I've heard about.  But be  prepared for two to three weeks of limited mobility while you are recovering  from surgery, and you better have somebody to  help you get around.......and  prepare the ice packs.  Oh, and the most obvious thing...........only do one  knee at a time!!

Bob Morrison

Bruce, after 11 years as a presbytery executive I am back in the parish as an interim minister at the Bloomfield Presbyterian Church on the Green (bloomfield, nj). We started a church-college ministry with another Presbyterian-founded college, Bloomfield College, probably the most racially diverse in the nation. My sons are both at Rutgers University, the oldest as a graduate student, the youngest as an undergraduate.

Bob Morrison (aka post-marriage, Bob Foltz-Morrison) '78

Brian Cooper

Bruce,

Nice to hear you are visiting Chicago – we're just in the western suburbs, so don't hesitate to reach out if we can ever help with anything. (Meg and I actually met at the University of Chicago, where we got our MBA's. Scary smart kids there, especially undergraduate!)

I guess I have both personal and professional news. We just deposited our son Paul and a lot of cash at Carleton College, near Minneapolis, for his freshman year. In many ways, it feels like a Great White North version of Davidson – heavy liberal arts focus, 2000 students of whom 14% are national merit finalists, similar principles. It certainly brought back memories of our freshman orientation. Dan is already at DePaul. We still have Becca at home, but the nest is almost empty, at least until Thanksgiving.

On the professional front, I had joined family-owned Fellowes, Inc. two years ago as Chief Financial Officer. In March, I lost that role to changes in family succession planning but ended up with a new position just a few weeks later. So, as of April 20, I am the CFO of Westell Technologies, Inc., a Nasdaq company which manufactures broadband and telecommunications equipment.

I hope you are well and enjoy what has been (and is today) fabulous weather in Chicago.

Take care,

Brian

Jonathan Washburn

BRUCE

My daughter Julia is a sophomore at NC State, and a member of the Sigma Kappa Sorority. Her boyfriend Will is an SAE, and Julia has really blossomed in the college and sorority experience. I think she is structuring college to last about six years. My other daughter Cameron is a senior at New Hanover High School, and will be enjoying the “Discover Davidson” weekend in October. She hopes to swim in college, through no fault of my own. I will be running for District Court Judge in New Hanover and Pender County, NC (known as District 5), and my campaign will begin with the filing period in February 2010. I am accepting advice on the qualities of humility, wisdom, patience and tolerance.

Thanks for your good work.

JONATHAN

Roy McCall

Greetings Bruce  Temperatures here in Saudi Arabia in June are reaching 110-120F.  Naturally  people prefer to venture out at night.  Two of our three daughters attend the local German school where a number of the  teachers come from former East Germany.    Recently I accompanied the kindergarten class on a visit to Prince Al Waleed on  the 66th floor of the Kingdom Tower (after a visit to a lookout on the 99th  floor).  He seemed to appreciate the childrens' song about the ducks and frogs,  and saved his kiss for the girl who asked to be his queen.  Sincerely Roy McCall

Graeme Thomson

Hi Bruce,

I have had a busy international travel year (by the end of November, I will have been out of the country 8 times this year). I should end the year with 60,000-70,000 miles on both US Air and American. The attached photo was taken in the Atacama Desert in northern Chile, the driest desert in the world (0.2 inches a year). This trip included a visit to the Tatio Geysers at about 12,000-13,000 feet in the Andes (and 4 degrees F)On another trip, I was in Caracas, Venezuela, and to my horror, saw a poster announcing that Air Supply would be performing there the next month. It is bad enough that they were going to Caracas. Did someone have to promote it as well?

I continue to juggle travel and life as a 53 year old with the demands of having a just turned 4-year old son. We may be wiser at our age, but we certainly do not have the energy we had 20 years ago.

Graeme