Class of 1975: 35th reunion

Although we didn’t have huge attendance, we all had a good time. And although we received some reports from our classmates who sent greetings, the theme for everyone attending was that we were all pretty busy at work—without any thoughts of retirement.

Vivian Reznik organized our fund raising efforts from San Diego, and came East to supervise. When not attending on the pediatric nephrology service at University of California, San Diego (UCSD), Vivian braves the deanery, keeping the faculty at ucsd in line. Adult pulmonary husband Andy (M.D. ’74) was in New Haven, attending his undergrad 40th reunion.

Lynn and Andy Newman were among our guests from the farthest away; they came all the way from Palo Alto, Calif.—where Andy attends at Stanford, and keeps busy with his own practice of pulmonary medicine (and still keeps his fellow scuba divers and swimmers healthy with any ocean-related health problems.) Lynn is still fighting the battle to improve public education; they enjoy coming East to visit their kids in New York.

Jamie Robertson and wife Annie came down from Rhode Island—they relocated there from outside Philadelphia. Jamie is practicing cardiology and had the unusual opportunity to act as attending for his daughter who is a resident at Brown. Annie is designing gardens (and enjoying a lovely new grandson).

Mark Ruchman and his wife Sharon traveled from northeast Connecticut; Mark has recently started his own practice in ophthalmology and plastics ophthalmology; Sharon is busy composing and performing classical music.

Like me, Syd Spiesel, and wife Christina didn’t drive too far—Syd has a very busy peds practice in New Haven, teaches our med students regularly, and finds time to be an active contributor to the website Slate (yes, all those comments in the media from Dr. Spiesel are from our Syd). At the law school, Christina teaches about the influence of digital technology on the law, among other exciting topics.

Jordan Pober and wife Barbara, M.D. ’78, also didn’t travel too far—Jordan is vice chair of the department at our alma mater that studies the immunobiology and pathology of vascular endothelial cells. Barbara commutes to Boston to continue her research on Williams syndrome. And, yes, it was Barbara you heard a few months ago on npr as the Williams expert! We received notes from many of our friends who were unable to attend, but sent greetings. Ed Olson, practicing cardiology in Dallas, was all set to come, but a bike injury kept him from coming to the reunion. Barbara Stoll, chair of peds at Emory, didn’t make it due to a busy travel schedule. Lana Holstein and Dave Taylor still do couples intimacy workshops in Tucson, but were in the middle of planning wedding festivities for their daughter. Hymie Milstein says he’s semi retired, but is still seeing patients in the office and volunteer teaching at ucla; his daughter is pre-med. Fred Sherman is still in Pittsburgh looking at fetal hearts, and still goes golfing with Hank Willner. Andy Pachner sent his greetings from New Jersey, where he is still an academic neurologist. Jim Rosenbaum sent greetings from Oregon, where he practices rheumatology, but he was at meeting in Berlin the day of our reunion. Bruce McLucas is non-invasively treating fibroids and other fun gyn pathology in Los Angeles, and sent his regards.

And your social secretary is doing pretty much the same activities as ever; the only difference is that I’ve given up on the obstetrical part of practice. But I can assure you the med students and residents here are still entertaining. And it looks like our kids will be heading towards a talking career (Allie is a big time debater) and Max will follow Steve’s footsteps in math.
So please start planning for our 40th.

—Mary Jane Minkin