Joyce Ann (Wilder) Anderson died on November 16, 2022. After Yale, Joyce earned her JD degree from Cornell University Law School in 1974, and later she earned an LL.M. in tax law from Boston University. She practiced law in Nashua, New Hampshire, for several years, and in 1989 she and her husband moved to Las Cruces, New Mexico, where Joyce continued her law practice. Joyce’s obituary notes that she was an active supporter of many nature conservation organizations during her life, that she was especially fond of horses and her ginger cat, and that “her friends remember her as intellectually gifted, independent, and courageous, as she faced challenges with grit, resolve and grace.”

From Hugh Spitzer (’70) comes word that Alec Fisken died on March 28, 2023, after a several years’ battle with prostate cancer. Entering Yale in the Class of 1970, Alec pursued the Five Year B.A. program. He spent the year between his sophomore and junior years with Crossroads Africa and graduated with us in 1971. Hugh notes that “Alec was a remarkable person: newspaper and magazine publisher, investment banker, Seattle Port Commissioner, scholar, sailor, skier, but more importantly a wonderful, thoughtful principled, and whimsical human being who cared deeply about his family, the Seattle community, and the Pacific Northwest.” At Yale, Alec was on the News and a member of St. Anthony’s Hall.

Last February, Mitch Garner organized and moderated a webinar for the Yale Club of Michigan entitled “Hot Topics in Higher Education: Two Yale Alum Presidents Speak,” featuring James J. Duderstadt (’64), President Emeritus of the University of Michigan, and James E. Ryan (’88), current President of the University of Virginia. Over the course of an hour, the speakers answered questions covering a wide array of timely topics, including affordable access to higher education; free speech on college campuses; professionalization of student athletes; higher education’s role in society; the financial sustainability of liberal arts colleges; and whether colleges and universities may continue to take race into consideration as a factor in admissions. Mitch says that it was interesting to hear the perspectives of two major college presidents who are products of Yale College graduating classes 24 years apart: “Surprisingly, there was great commonality in their views on these topics.”

Lupi Robinson reports that the Yale Alumni College New Orleans trip, ably led by our classmate and Yale faculty member, Jay Gitlin, was a rousing success. The fifteen attendees, including 4 from the Class of ‘71– Jay, Kathy Cochran Murphy and Glen Murphy (all CC ‘71) and Lupi (DC) came from as far away as Tokyo. Jay provided a fascinating grounding in the history of the area, which was supplemented by tours and talks about architecture, jazz, and race. Jim Babst, Jay’s Calhoun roommate and lifelong resident of New Orleans, along with members of the Yale Club of New Orleans, added some local color at an evening reception. The combination of food, music, and fellowship was truly memorable.

Jay Gitlin’s popular “Yale and America” semester this spring included three students on the Ivy champion women’s hockey team. The class went to see their classmates play against Harvard in February. The Yale women beat Harvard 10-1, and one of the students, Elle Hartje, scored a hat trick — three goals in one game. To recognize this achievement, Jay presented Elle with Class of ‘71 hat. We have posted a picture of Jay and Elle — wearing the hat — on our Class Website (www.yale71.org). Elle was the ECAC Hockey Player of the Month last January. Jay reports that “all three of the players–Captain Claire Dalton, Emma Seitz, and Elle — are outstanding students.”

Bob Bruner retired from the University of Virginia at the end of May. He says that his 41 years at the University’s Darden School of Business, including 10 years as Dean, “have been a thrilling privilege to teach and serve. I look forward to doing more writing, attending to some neglected hobbies, traveling more with my wife, Bobbie, and spending good time with our granddaughters.” Bob’s latest book, the second edition of The Panic of 1907: Heralding a New Era in Finance, Capitalism, and Democracy, was published in March. Bob notes that this new edition, written with co-author Sean Carr, “contains the fruits of our ongoing original research on the Panic, as well as the findings of numerous studies published since our first edition. The Panic of 1907 is significant as one of the most severe in U.S. history and as the trigger for founding the U.S. Federal Reserve System. Plus, it is a compelling yarn, relevant to today, given the recent episodes of financial instability and the debates over the appropriateness of Fed responses.”

Bob Shulman retired from cardiology practice in 2015 and then taught voluntarily at Tufts Medical School for several years. He now works in the echocardiography laboratory four days per month interpreting studies and teaching the cardiology fellows. Since Covid, he does this work remotely: “Wonderful technology,” he notes. He and Phyllis are celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary this July. Bob recalls that Ezra Stiles classmates Craig Nelson and the late Jerry Twitty were ushers at their wedding, and Pat Pinnell was also there. Bob and Phyllis have four granddaughters, ranging in age from just a few months to 18 years (the latter heading to college in the fall). Bob connected with Andy Sherman and Roz Milstein at their 50th high school reunion in 2017 and with Jim Sadek at Maury Eldridge’s memorial service last fall. He occasionally emails with Ezra Stiles classmates Rick Friedrich, Doug Hawthorn and Craig Nelson. On a shelf in his study, Bob keeps a photo his father took of him with Bart Giamatti (then Master of Ezra Stiles) at our graduation. Bob says that he thinks of Bart whenever he sees his son on a screen (as many of us do, no doubt).

Bob Shulman’s note reported above accompanied a submission from him for our “Draft Lottery Night Recollections” project (including his reactions during a trip that he and his wife took to Vietnam a few years ago). I have forwarded Bob’s recollections to Michael Goodman and Jay Gitlin for inclusion in the compilation. Several other classmates, including Mark Hassett and Steve Swerdlow, have also sent in their recollections. Michael and Jay are continuing to collect submissions from classmates for the project. If you have recollections that you would like to share of that night, or observations of the impact that the lottery had on our lives over the ensuing years, it is not too late to send them to me, and I will forward them on to Michael and Jay.

With the COVID restrictions now lifted, George Guernsey and Jim Kaplan have expressed interest in resuming the monthly (or at least occasional) in-person luncheons at the Yale Club of New York City that they hosted in the pre-COVID days. These in-person luncheons would be in addition to the very popular monthly Class Zoom sessions that we have been hosting the last three years and which we intend to continue. If you would like to be added to the invitation list for the in-person luncheons, or to the list for the monthly Class Zoom sessions, or to both lists, please let me know.

Cheers,

AMK 5-12-23