Class Notes

February 2001

by Tony Lee

Two classmates faced tough battles in the November elections. John Ashcroft lost his bid for re-election as US Senator from Missouri in an unusual and difficult situation when his opponent was killed in a plane crash 2 weeks before the election. By all accounts, John was honorable and gracious in responding to the situation and accepting defeat. Joe Lieberman was in the Pres & VP race. As of this writing the results are still unknown. But, it's safe to say, the whole class is cheering for Joe to win! 50% is hoping he'll be a heart beat away, and 50% is hoping Joe will return as US Senator from Connecticut.

Jim Duderstadt stepped down as the President of the University of Michigan a few years ago and has taken up writing. His first book A University for the 21st Century was based on his experience as Pres of U Mich. His second book Intercollegiate Athletics and the American University is a persuasive case for returning the athletic scene to its earlier, amateur status — eliminate athletic scholarships, get the NFL and NBA to sponsor farm clubs (as is done in hockey and baseball), and return football to the single-platoon system. Jim testified before the Knight Commission in Washington for the reform of college sports. The Commission resonated strongly with his message. You can read Jim's testimony on our web site along with a picture of old #71 in his Yale uniform! Jim donated a copy of each book for circulation among classmates. Email me if you want to be on the list.

Jim wrote: "Bo Schembechler always laughed at my football exploits. It turns out that we both arrived at Michigan the same week back in 1968. Bo managed to achieve a far higher visibility, but I managed to win more Rose Bowls as president than he did as coach!

"Life after the Michigan presidency remains hectic. Without a large staff, execution becomes more important than delegation. Aside from teaching, researching, writing, and tilting with windmills (like the reform of college sports and the future of the university), I find that old university presidents are fair game to chair various national committees. I spend much of my time chairing National Academy of Sciences studies, various federal advisory committees in areas such as nuclear energy and computer technology, and serving on corporate boards. I also find myself used occasionally by other university presidents as the '2x4' to get their faculty's attention about the changes that will almost certainly occur in higher education during the next decade.

"Joan and Ward Cates stayed with us in Ann Arbor a couple of weeks ago when they came up to visit their daughters here for Michigan-Michigan State weekend. This was apparently the last game of the season for the Michigan defense."

Tom Trowbridge has written a clever and humorous book Golf Made Difficult. The press release is on our web site. He will donate a copy as a prize at our golf outing in May. (We've yet to decide if it'll be given to the winners or losers.) Tom offers a suggestion: "I hope you will see it as the perfect gift for friends, colleagues, and loved ones. I also hope you will conclude that because the book is small and easily misplaced, all of these people should have multiple copies."

Bob Myers has been spending considerable time at Yale and is impressed with the excitement, new construction, and other initiatives of President Levin and Dean Brodhead. His daughters Anne '04 and Katherine '01 are members of the Yale women's lacrosse team. Son, Charlie, graduated with the class of '99.

Dave Anderson has switched his tax practice to Loeb & Loeb after 28 years with another firm. His son Patrick '01 is a senior in Trumbull. Dave has sponsored East LA Hispanic soccer teams for 10 years, after a friend persuaded him that the Hispanic kids were not getting as much opportunity as suburban kids to compete at higher levels. His group started the Super League and sponsored a Hispanic team in this league. 8 of the kids on the first team were offered division I soccer scholarships, and several have showed up in major league soccer.

Tom Walton checked in from Jakarta, Indonesia where he has been the Coordinator for Environment and Social Development of the World Bank since 1995. He lives with his second wife and her daughter. His daughter by his first wife is now a senior at Skidmore. I encourage you to read Tom's letter in our Web site to learn more about the World Bank and how it tries to promote environmentally friendly programs such as forestry lending. He also reports on the effect of the Asian economic collapse, the fall of Soeharto in 1998, the devastating forest fires in Indonesia, Borneo and Sumatra, and the situation in East Timor.

Tom echoes the sentiment of many Americans who spend time abroad: "I continue to marvel, as people here struggle with a constitution filled with problems, laws, and regulations that have perverse consequences, and civil service that has no concept of service to the public, at how much the founding fathers of the US got right the first time. That will eventually bring us home if nothing else does."

Thanks to Nick Danforth for hosting a lovely party before The Game. Jeremy Wood, Mike Price, Don Leka and I attended, as did John Bingham '61 and Gordon Pruett '63. Don Leka recently retired as corporate attorney for Teradyne and is thoroughly enjoying his second adulthood. He maintains a small law practice, and spends time playing the piano. He brought his portable keyboard to Nick's and provided musical accompaniment to the melodious voices that bellowed long into the night.

I hope you plan to attend the Washington, DC Mini Reunion from May 4 through 6. John Morrison, Mike Mazer, and Jon McBride (alias Moe, Mickey, and Mac) are planning a wonderful weekend for us all. As of this writing there are over 100 "will attend" and "hope to attend" classmates. Check the web site for the latest plans and the list of classmates who are planning to attend.