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1994

Victoria (Vicki) Tisch
vickitisch@yahoo.com

In NYC Townsend Belisle and wife Shoshana welcomed daughter Celeste in October. She is “a fast follower of fellow new-kids-on-the-Skidmore-block Campbell Walker (daughter of Frazier Rugg Walker) and Ethan Reiman (son of Jocelyn Schwartz Reiman).” The Belisles live in Harlem, and T continues as a corporate communications producer for Broadstreet while keeping his hand in the music industry via Haystack Needle. You can check out family photos online at http://haystack.smugmug.com.

Marianne Cook Ratcliffe married “a sweet southern boy” on August 20. Kirstin O’Rielly Drabek read at the ceremony; other Skiddies there included Laura Finkelson Fontecchio, Holly Stockdale, Meredith Eastman, and Anne Yedvabny Grieves. The Ratcliffes live in Chapel Hill, NC. Marianne works for a foundation providing grants in health care; Robert sells orthopedic equipment and advises surgeons on how to use it.

Leslie Glunts Guthrie and husband Bryan are still enjoying life in Hawaii.

Things are “happily hectic” for Jennifer Newman Shotton and husband Adrian. They traveled to the UK for the holidays, visiting Adrian’s family in Reading and seeing friends in London. Jennifer is busy painting, showing her work, and art consulting in NYC schools. In the near future she will be in charge of incorporating art into the Bill and Melinda Gates–funded city schools that currently lack art programs. Jennifer and Adrian recently moved from NYC to Dobbs Ferry, but they’re keeping their city apartment in order to avoid “suburban culture shock.”

Kirstin O’Rielly Drabek is a student in Skidmore’s Master of Arts in Liberal Studies program. The flexible program will allow her to continue working in Skidmore’s office of alumni affairs and college events while pursuing her degree. Her academic focus, within the field of sociology, is working mothers—a topic she will examine from a variety of disciplines. She is the mother of a 2-year-old.

Shannon Small Dunn and family—including daughter Emma, 2—are doing well. Shannon spent time with Sherie Gilman Barge, Becky Saravay Crespi, and Linda Schneiderman Humphrey at Samita Ahluwalia’s baby shower. (Samita recently delivered a baby girl.) “It was nice to catch up with everyone and let the kiddos play together,” reports Shannon.

After six years at the University of Missouri at Kansas City Conservatory of Music, Stephen Steigman has spent the last four as producer for an award-winning daily public-affairs show for KCUR, the NPR affiliate in Kansas City. He spends much of the year exploring different parts of the world with wife Tamara Falicov, an associate professor at the University of Kansas. He spends the rest of his free time working on his 1920s Craftsman-style bungalow. Stephen occasionally crosses paths with Sylvia Stone, also in Kansas City.

Becca Stein Gutwirth is living happily on a lake in Medford, NJ, with husband David Gutwirth ’92 and sons Jacob, 6, and Samson, 5. She writes educational materials and is working on a graduate degree in sports and recreation administration at Temple University.

Becky Klein and husband Jason Qua welcomed daughter Georgia in August; she joins sister Gabriel, 3.

In December I enjoyed celebrating with Anne Sachs ’97 as she hit the big 3-0. Also in attendance were Josh Weiner, Sarah Kalliney Gorvitz ’96 and her husband, and Derek Jeter (via cake likeness). Last spring Josh Weiner and I won roundtrip airfare to Europe and decided to go to Paris for New Year’s 2006. Ooh la la! Great food and wine, amazing urban energy, spectacular art and history. I got to try out some very choppy French, which was pretty funny (my high school–level Spanish wasn’t much help). Thank goodness Josh was there to save me from embarrassment.

We extend heartfelt condolences to the family of Schoeni Wolfe, who died last summer (see In Memoriam in last Scope). Special thoughts go out to Schoeni’s husband, Britton Upham ’95, and her mother, Twila Fleckten Wolfe ’62. This is a stunning loss, and Schoeni will be missed.