Those of you who attended the 2005 mini-reunion in Sante Fe will remember what a great time we had. The astrological signs and portents are all pointing toward a magnificent reprise at the 2010 mini-reunion in Charleston, SC next March. Abe Claude and his "mini-committee" have planned a full agenda of tours of museums and plantations, generously interspersed with occasions to renew old friendships and make new ones with your classmates and their significant others (old and new). Click here to see a list of classmates who are definitely planning to attend and those who think they might. Peek in on this website for updates on the plans for the Mini-Reunion and the attendees.

Through the good offices of Abe Claude, the Class Council has made arrangements with the Yale Club of New York to hold informal, monthly Class lunches. These lunches will take place at 12:30 on the first Wednesday of each month, beginning December 3, in the Tap Room of the Club (40 Vanderbilt Avenue, right next to Grand Central Station). All Classmates are invited, including visitors from West of the Hudson. Club members will be able to charge the lunch to their accounts; non-Club members are asked to bring $35 in cash to give to Abe (or his designated host) to cover the cost of the buffet lunch and one drink. Club members will receive an email reminder from the Club each month, and we will try to find a way to get the word out to non-Club members in the New York area.

A number of other classes have found these lunches to be a great way to get a varying group of classmates together periodically just to schmooze and catch up with one another. We hope that these gatherings will become the institution that they have for these other classes. The inaugural lunch was held on December 3rd. The attendees are shown at the right. A good time was had by all.

(If you have questions about the lunches or want to alert Abe Claude that you plan to attend, you can email him at aclaude@gilberttweed.com). We hope to see you in the Tap Room whenever you're in Town on the appointed day.

The Literary Corner

Classmate William Goetzmann's new book Beyond the Revolution, A History of American Thought From Paine to Pragmatism, was reviewed by Jedediah Purdy in the Feb. 22 edition of the New York Times Book Review. In his quite complimentary review, Purdy comments: "Beyond the Revolution is scornful of regionalists, traditionalists and anyone else who would restrict the scope of American identity. It is richly populated with radicals and utopians who, with one eye on the innermost soul and the other on world history, created a tradition of open-ended experiment."

Class Poet Laureate Tom Greening's new book of serious and light poems, Words Against the Void: Poems by an Existential Psychologist was recently published by the Rockies Press and is available at Amazon.com.

Susan Jaffer, widow of classmate Joe Jaffer, who attended our 55th Reunion writes: "I'm happy to tell you that Yankee magazine has selected my personal essay about the 55th Reunion of the Class of 1952 to launch its new online feature, "Memories of New England." Susan's recounting of her apprehensions about attending and her experiences during the reunion are quite poignant. You can find it here: Three Days at Yale (It's all right to get a little misty-eyed.)

It is hard to imagine a more timely subject than Dr. Dan Callahan"s book "Taming the Beloved Beast: How Medical Technology Costs are Undermining Health Care and Reform Possibilities" which will be published by The Princeton University Press shortly.

Do you ever think, "Wouldn't it be great if I could just hear the 1952 Whiffenpoofs singing as they did in the good old days?" Well, have we got a treat for you? A magic jukebox has been added to our website that will play all our favorite Whiff songs, and it won't even require you to put in a nickel. Just click here to see the Whiffs as they were in 1952 and how they look today then click the song title you want to hear on the jukebox.

We are sorry to note the passing of Larry Norton who served as a member of the Class Council and as a class agent for many years. His life and his distinguished career in Dermatology are outlined in his obituary.

To see what your classmates are doing, click on "Classmate Activities."

The Nov. 20, 2008 issue of Investors Business Daily featured an article by classmate Joe Callo entitled "Does Anyone Have Our Back In Caribbean?" pointing out a very significan strategic economic threat to America looming in the Caribbean Sea and along its littoral.. To read Joe's article, click here.

Our class Poet Laureate, Tom Greening, has provided us with a new poem concerning "aging," a subject near and dear to all our hearts.

Rabbi Norman Hirsh's inspirational poem "Becoming" has been included in the recently published revised edition of the prayer book for Reform Judaism, Mishkan T'filah.

Dick Lemon, has formed his own publishing company, Owl 52 Press, to serve as an outlet for his novels and childrens books.

A poignant remembrance of departed classmate,Jim Kenney, by Michael Lazare (Yale '53) recently received by Barry Bryan has been posted in the "In Memoriam" section. The obituary of another deceased classmate Charles B. Payne, Jr. M.D. is accompanied by an excerpted chapter from Charlie's poetry and prose writings (provided to us by his friend and Pierson roommate, Nate Garrett). This chapter, entitled "Retribution" provides some fascinating and sobering insights on his experiences as one of a very few young blacks in the Yale Class of '52.

Help us find some missing classmates. There are 61 of our classmates for whom the AYA has no current address and does not even know if they are still living. Please look over the list of Class of '52 MIAs and if you have any information about their whereabouts, contact us or the AYA.

The Internet has become an almost omnipresent factor in our lives these days. In keeping with that trend, a new icon has been added to the row above. Clicking on the "Giving to Yale" button will take you to a webpage explaining the worthy purposes your contributions to the Yale Alumni Fund will be used for, and how all past and present Yale students (including ourselves) have benefited from contributions of the "old blues" who went before them. A link is provided to a webpage that will make it convenient for you to make your contribution online. Our new "Giving to Yale" page also gives a link to a webpage where you can pay your class dues online.