35th Reunion: Yesterday and Today     
May 29-31, 2009

March 1, 2009

Dear Classmates, 

It’s March, it’s freezing in New England, and we’ll see each other in the next “M” month, and it will be warm and sunny.  It will be warm and sunny because we will be together in South Hadley for our 35^th Reunion, May 29-31, and there will be no papers due or exams looming. It wouldn’t be MHC, however, without high expectations of each of you! Whether you have been to every reunion or to none, this reunion will be the best because we expect to see you there. 

• Read all in this mailing, and return all necessary forms. Register by April 17 to avoid the $25 late fee.  Register even if you are not 100% sure you can come; you can cancel up until May 14 for a complete refund.
  • We are very aware of the financial turmoil going on. Our class, in an effort to make this Reunion as affordable as possible, is NOT CHARGING the usual “costume fee” (fear not – we will have awesome costumes! See more on this below.), nor are we charging to attend Friday night’s dinner (but we do want to know if you’ll be attending, so we have enough food!). In addition, if you register by April 17 and attend Reunion, you will be entered into a Class of ’74 lottery for a $100 credit towards your cost of attending. So – do read on, and do register. Reunion will be a wonderful success, but only if you are there!
  •  Of particular note – PLEASE include on the reservation form any housing issues you may have, being as specific as possible and, if you wish, including the name of a roommate. Luisa Tavares (413-538-2201, ltavares@mtholyoke.edu) is the Reservation Coordinator for the weekend.  
     
• Contact 4 of your best friends from ‘74 and encourage each of them to come. If you’ve lost contact information for someone, Alumnae Information Services (413-538-2303, or ais@mtholyoke.edu) will help you.
   
• Round up something white and fabulous – or not so fabulous – the fashion police will NOT be in attendance, but white attire is required for the class count – to wear Saturday AM.  Dress, skirt, pants, shorts – it’s all good. Our class has consistently been a contender for attendance awards – let’s keep up the tradition!
   
• Even though our class color is red, let’s be as green as possible at this reunion. We are planning a beautiful red item to be the basis for our costume, but we ask that you complete the look by bringing your favorite red accessory from home. It might be a scarf, or shoes, or a necklace, or the red reading glasses from our 25th reunion, or a hat or a visor. Many of us have gotten to that point in our life when we have all the stuff we really want or need. Let’s reuse and recycle and see how creative we can be! 
   
• Pack comfortable shoes (you are no longer 22 years old!)
   
• Debbie Hall and Jane Zimmy, our head class agents, remind us that all gifts to the Alumnae Association Annual Fund are important, now more than ever. Supporting this fund is honoring the school, her students, her heritage and her future.  Our goal is to have 74% of our class make a gift (get it?) totaling $225,000. To date, 33% have given a total of $120,000. All that is missing is a gift from you. And we really are more interested in the 74% than the dollar amount. Contact Ashley Brown in the Development Office (1-800-MHC-GIVE) or www.mtholyoke.edu/go/mhcgive  
   
• Deb Orgera and our Nominating Committee have made many phone calls, spoken to many classmates for recommendations and references, culminating in the following slate of officers to serve from May ’09 - 14, to be voted on at our Class Meeting, Saturday morning of Reunion. Please take the time to read it over now.

President: Carole LaMond       Vice President: Deb Orgera      Treasurer: Christine Carr
Secretary: Doris O’Keefe       Scribe: Lynn Massman Mordan      Web Diva: Laurie Avrill
Nominating Chairs: Paula Gerden, Flo Chichester  and Committee: Kate Pappas, Melissa Thornton
Reunion Chair: Jane Homan Antin     Head Class Agents: Debby Hall, Jane Zimmy  

• Plan on enjoying the beautiful campus and all that is offered while you are in South Hadley.  It may not look as it did the last time you were here. Have you seen the new dorm everyone is raving about? We hear the laundry room is to-die for! Tours will be available throughout the weekend.
   
• Plan on attending with your best buds some of the extra events the Alumnae Association has planned for the weekend.
  •  Come to campus on Thursday and spend the night. Then, you will be all set to start off the weekend relaxed (when was the last time you treated yourself to that feeling?) and attend the cooking demonstration and buffet dinner in Willets-Hallowell on Thursday evening, and be settled in and ready to go on Friday.
  • Want to add to your already enormous range of knowledge? Or just have fun? Check out the enclosed Back-to-Class pamphlet. Additional information about the Friday classes is available at www.alumnae.mtholyoke.edu/go/reunion  . 
  • Want to hear from President Creighton about the latest and greatest? Join her for lunch on Friday.
  • On Friday evening, meet your favorite professor (are any of them left on campus 35 years later??? Well – come talk with their protégés!) at the Alumnae/Faculty/Emeriti Faculty Reception in Kendade (you have seen Kendade, haven’t you?)
     
• Check out our new Reunion website, www.mhc74.com, celebrating who we are.  Melissa Thornton has designed this site with a page for each of us to use to share and to tell our own stories. Directions for your input will be coming to you via e-mail (if we have a valid e-mail address for you. Do we? Contact Class Scribe Carole LaMond at CLaMond@aol.com with an update) or snail mail, if we must. The site will be under construction right up until reunion, and even afterward, so we can continue to use this venue to share.
   
• And of course, enjoy all our 1974 planned activities Reunion Weekend, as we celebrate MHC of yesterday and today.
  • Mary Lyon will be coming to talk with us on Saturday afternoon (I kid you not), our very own V-8’s from the ‘70’s of yesteryear, but in fine form in 2009, will perform for us Saturday evening, as will Michelle Hurst and Bonnie Panson.  Coming off the heels of their successful performance at our 2007 South Hadley mini-reunion, Bonnie and Michelle have written and will present “Coming of Age,” a poetic journey from the girls we were, to the amazing women we have become, and on to the divas we will be. And to think – we knew them when!
  • Cathy Trauernicht is organizing a symposium, “Passing the Generational Baton,” tying together the yesterdays, todays, and tomorrows of our lives. If you have professional experience in intergenerational relationships, please contact Cathy (cwtrau@verizon.net) as this is a work in progress.
  • We are hoping to have a Class of '74 Art Show over the weekend. Complete and return the enclosed Art Show Response Form and/or visit our class
    web-site for complete information. http://www.alunae.mtholyoke.edu/~classof1974/?Stay_Connected/Reunion_Arts_Exhibit.
     
• You will be able to register for reunion 2009:
  • On-Line: At www.alumnae.mtholyoke.edu/go/reunion

This system is behind authentication so your personal information is protected and only MHC alumnae have access to it. If you are not yet a member of the on-line community, you will need to register using the 9-digit security ID code printed on your mailing label. The web-site has simple directions on screen, to be followed; however, if you have any questions or problems, Luisa Tavares (413-538-2201) is there to help you, Monday – Friday, 9AM-4PM, EST.

o       Mail-In: Use the enclosed paper form.

·        If we are assigned to a dorm not to your liking (dorm assignments will be made right after the April 17 deadline), check out the Hampton Inn in Chicopee (412-593-1500, refer to Group Code SMT) as an alternative. The Alumnae Association has reserved a limited number of rooms for May 28, 29, and 30 at the rate of $119 plus tax per night, with a 3 night reservation required. 

·        Continue the excitement leading up to Reunion Weekend in South Hadley. Log on to www.alumnae.mtholyoke.edu/go/reunion  and

o       find e-cards to send to your classmates, encouraging them to come – find pictures of campus and old Llamarada pictures to share.

o       join an existing  discussion group or start a new one to connect with classmates – maybe find out who’s rooming with whom, who is resurrecting her graduation dress for Saturday morning, and encourage each other to come, so it will be special for you.

o       In addition, the Alumnae Association will post videos and stills of the weekend, for all to enjoy. 

 Questions? Contact the Alumnae Association at 413-538-2159. 

Congratulations!  You made it this far!  Now, contact your girl friends, get your red accessory, and register! 

Warmly, 
Barbara Gay, Reunion Chair
Jane Homan Antin, Class President 

February, 2009

Dear 1974 Classmate,

Every time I pick up our Alumnae Quarterly, I am amazed at the variety of professions, activities and experiences members of our class have pursued since graduation. For many of us, keeping in touch with classmates is challenging, given the number of interests and obligations everyone has going on. That’s why reunion is such a great chance to reconnect with people you were close to in college as well as making new friends among the uncommon women of our year.

The theme for our 35th reunion in 2009 is Mount Holyoke: Yesterday and Today. We have a fabulous program planned, and we want to make this the best reunion ever. There will be music and the chance to meet some MHC figures from even farther back than 1974! Special recognition will go to those of you attending for the first time, as well as to those of you who have never missed one. In addition to the activities we are planning for our class, the Alumnae Association is holding a Thursday night cooking demonstration, wine tasting and dinner buffet for those of you who would like to arrive a little early. You can reconnect with faculty members, both current and emeriti, at a reception Friday evening. And if your kids are still in high school, there will be a Teen Scene program on Saturday afternoon and evening.

It’s going to be tough to break our previous attendance records, but we hope that as many of you as possible will not only attend yourselves, but also encourage your friends from college to do so as well. The Alumnae Association has a fun e-card service featuring our yearbook pictures (how else can we recognize each other?), which you can access HERE. Check it out – we were so adorable, and our 70s outfits are back in style!

We understand that budgets are tight for many of us, so we are working to keep down the cost of attending as much as possible. The Alumnae Association’s ballpark estimate is $350 per alumna for the entire weekend or $250 for Saturday only. The association also has a prepayment plan to help with reunion costs, and details and application forms are available on the website at www.alumnae.mtholyoke.edu/go/reunion. There is no fee for this service and the money is refundable if you have to cancel your plans to attend reunion.

At the class meeting on Saturday, we will elect a new slate of officers. The nominating committee has been developing a slate, but if you’d like to serve or if you’d like to nominate a classmate, please contact Debra Orgera, debra.orgera@verizon.net, (413) 586-3759.

Jane Zimmy and Debby Hall, our class agents, have recruited thirty wonderful volunteers to raise money for Mount Holyoke in honor of our reunion. They will be reaching out to you in the coming months and we hope that contributions will reflect the significant role that the college played in shaping our lives. Let’s do everything we can to make sure that a new generation has the same opportunities we had.

Moving into the 21st century, Melissa Thornton has volunteered to set up a website to exchange information prior to the reunion. Remember the hours of conversations we had back when, and be thinking of tidbits to share with classmates about what you’ve been up to in the last five years, what your family is doing, thoughts you have on the world situation, things that keep you awake at night, and the part that Mount Holyoke played in your life.

We are planning a fun, relaxing time, but some tasks remain – manning the reception desk in our dorm, preparing nametags, helping with dinner on Saturday. If you can volunteer a few hours, either during reunion or beforehand, I’ll be happy to hear from you.

Reunion registration will begin in March and will be available on-line or on-paper. To register on-line, you will need to be a member of the alumnae on-line community. This would be a great time to join if you haven’t done so already. You may use the nine-digit security code printed on the mailing label of this reunion packet and go to: http://www.alumnae.mtholyoke.edu/connect/index.php. In addition to convenient reunion registration, there are some really great features.

Let’s take this opportunity to celebrate what all of us have achieved and share our continued dreams for the future. We look forward to seeing all of you next May 29 –31 at Mt. Holyoke.

Cheers,

Barbara Gay
Reunion Chair

President: Carole LaMond    /  Vice President:   /  Treasurer: Christina Carr  /  Secretary:  /  Scribe:  /  Head Class Agents: Jane Zimmy and Debby Hall  /  Nominating Chair: /  Class of 1974 Webmaster: Laurie Averill  /  2010 Reunion Chair: Jane Homan Antin /   2010 Reunion WebMaster: Melissa Thornton