Dear Yale ’75 Classmates & Friends:

Your Reunion Chairs, Class Officers, and many other class members are working hard on planning for our upcoming 50th Reunion (May 29-June 1) in Davenport College. This is the first of five “Reunion Updates” we will be sending you this winter and spring about what we are planning. At the end of this message is a link to a short questionnaire about your plans and preferences for the reunion–please help us by answering it.

SAVE THE DATES AND PLAN TO ATTEND!
This will be a wonderful reunion–our completely unbiased commitment to you. Encourage your classmates to attend too. Our 50th reunion is a major milestone. It will be our biggest reunion ever and our best opportunity to gather and see each other again. We’re not getting any younger. More important, perhaps: we now have perspectives and perhaps even wisdom worth sharing.

FIFTIETH REUNION CLASS BOOK
As we have done for past reunions, we will be preparing a Class Book, with space for each class member to share reflections on their Yale experiences and life since Yale, as well as photographs. Please plan to contribute your reflections and photos to this book! It will become the definitive written and photographic record of our class. The more of us who contribute, the more valuable and interesting it will be for us ourselves–and for others. We will be working with a partner–Bespoke Reunion Publishing–to assist in collecting contributions, formatting & design, and print production. You should have received an email from Bespoke providing options for how you can contribute – which will be simple and easy.

Didn't receive the class book email? Please contact tom@bespokereunionpublishing.com.

CLASS SURVEY
In March, we will be conducting a Class Survey about a very wide range of topics ranging from our experiences at Yale, our lives since Yale, and our opinions on a very wide range of topics.  Other classes including the Class of 1970 have conducted similar surveys, and the results have been the subject of great interest and much discussion at and following their reunions. Please plan to respond to the survey–which will be completely confidential. The more of us who respond the more representative it will be of our class and the more we will learn about ourselves.

CLASS WEBSITE EXPANSION
We plan to significantly modify and expand our class website to allow us to share and appreciate the amazing breadth of activities of the Class of ’75, including links to classmates’ professional and personal websites, books, scientific articles, graphic arts, musical and other artistic performances, pictures from our Yale years–and much more. Stay tuned for information on how to submit these and other materials for the website. 

REUNION ACTIVITIES
The most important part of all reunions is the chance to renew old friendships with classmates and make new friendships. There will also be a very wide range of activities organized by Yale and by our class. For the mornings, the Yale Alumni Association is planning a wide variety of activities for all reunion classes such as campus tours, open houses, and lectures by Yale Faculty. For the afternoons we are planning activities organized by and featuring members of our class.

These will include a “Women’s Lunch” on Saturday in the President's Room at Woolsey Hall, which will provide an opportunity for our women classmates to reminisce and share stories about being at Yale in the early days of coeducation. We have received many other excellent suggestions for class activities and we welcome more.

REUNION NEWS FROM YALE COLLEGE REUNIONS
As it becomes available, the Yale College Reunions office will be sending alumni for all reunion classes a variety of practical details about the reunion, including lodging options, registration, and how to apply (confidentially) for financial assistance to attend the reunion. A reminder: hotel blocks reserved for Yale Reunions will be opening on January 29 and often fill up quickly.

Not receiving emails about reunions? Visit the Online Alumni Directory to verify your contact information and contact preferences.

REUNION GIFT EFFORT
The 50th Reunion Gift Committee is making good progress towards our reunion gift goal, with 384 donors to date (35% of our class). Please join those donors: gifts of all sizes are meaningful.

REUNION PLANNING QUESTIONNAIRE
Here is a link to a very short and simple questionnaire about your plans and preferences for the reunion. Please take a few minutes to answer it! Your answers will help us a lot in our planning.

Sincerely,

Javade Chaudhri, Reunion Co-Chair (javade.chaudhri@gmail.com)

Gunnar Knapp, Reunion Co-Chair (Gunnar.Knapp@gmail.com)

Tommy Bourgeois, Class Secretary (tjbourgeois1@gmail.com)

Nancy Young, Class Treasurer (nancy.young212@gmail.com)
 

p.s.  Grandma and Grandpa: what was “Yale”? Our filmmaker Wendy Goodman Thum sends this request: “You've heard of Cinéma Vérité? Let's try a little Lux et Verité. By little, I mean a compilation of short clips from short people: your grandkids. First, find photos from our 1970s Yale years–the groovier, the hairier, the dweebier, the better. Then show these old photos to this new wave of filmmakers and record their audio or video reactions with your phone. Better yet, let them film their own reactions. Every kid who contributes will get a credit (next stop, Studio Head). If you have music you think would work well, please send that, too. Email it all to me at: wendythum@gmail.com.”