Cleveland: Q & A with '13ers

Written from Ohio Route 3, somewhere between Wooster (according to Joe Cruz pronounced War-chester)and Columbus. Posted from Chez Katie Chatas ’88:

En route from Columbus to Cleveland, we’re shunpiking through Holmes county and what appears to be the heart of agricultural Ohio. (In fact, we drove through a town that claims to be the “Geographical Center of Ohio”)  I’m from the Garden State (NJ, baby!) but I don’t think I’ve ever seen more farms or rolling fields of corn.  I never thought I’d say this, but I might even be growing tired of weather-beaten, jigsaw-puzzle worthy barns.

Ohio
Ohio

Holmes county has the highest Amish population of any county in the US.  We’ve seen a horse-and-buggy sign, but, alas, no horse-and-buggy.

We spent last night in Cleveland, the city on the lake and the home of a number of frustrated sports teams.  Our host, a surgeon and class of ’94 alum Tina Mahajan  arranged for us to get together at the Cleveland Skating Club in Shaker Heights, a cool venue that made me reminisce about my short-lived, elementary school era skating career. (It was about two months long)  We welcomed a small but appreciative crowd of about 20 folks at the Skating club.  Jay Lafave was the elder statesman, representing the great class of ’51.  Jay and Joe (Cruz) had a lengthy dialogue after the talk about language and conceptions of self.

Jason and Jay Lafave '51
Jason and Jay Lafave '51

Jen and I were both excited to see Annie Denison and Reed Harrison.  Annie and Reed are both ’06 Williams volleyball stars, Reed on the club team, Annie on the varsity.  I’m thrilled to announce that Reed and Annie, who started dating their junior year, are getting married in three weeks!  Congratulations to Reed and Annie and look for their picture in Williams People in a few months.

Reed Harrison '06 and Annie Denison '06.  Congratulations to you both!
Reed Harrison '06 and Annie Denison '06. Congratulations to you both!

We also had a fabulous conversation with Pam Merritt Nilsson ’88.  Jen and I were both comfortably admitting that we were, ah, “uncertain” about what we’d be doing this coming year.  Pam, who is a psychologist, jumped in with the fact that she spent some time as a potter immediately after Williams.  So, Jen mentioned that the two of us had taken “The Potter’s Wheel” for winter study Junior year and had thrown with Ray Bub, an artist in Pownal, Vermont.  Pam looked delighted; she had apprenticed with Ray after Williams and he was one of her teachers.  We bonded over shared stories of the wheel and times spent in Ray’s wood-heated studio in Vermont.

The most fun part of the evening was cornering the members of  the incoming class of ’13 in attendance and forcing them to answer some very important questions on camera.  Jenni Ginsberg ’13 and Kristen Sinicariello ’13 were awesome sports and consented to being interviewed.  Thanks to both of you!  Get their take below on undergraduate life, Cleveland, and who should be the next Williams President.  And if you’re a member of the class of ’13, make sure you mention this video to Jenni and Kristen when you see them this fall!

~Jason