Category Archives: Reunions

September 25, 2017 · 11:54 am

Jump Around! Jump Up! Jump Up and Get Down! (42 Weeks To Go)

By Kiera Reilly, C’93 with help from Howard Blecher, Marianne Alves Brogdale, Deb Brown, Ed Gold, Debbie Jaffe, Betty Magome, Kathleen Paralusz, Meesh Joslyn Pierce, Jef Pollock, Bardo Ramirez, and Lisa Bardfeld Shapiro

As I’m going through old photos and papers from our time at Penn, I’m listening to Depeche Mode, one of my favorite bands from high school and college. And as I’m sorting through old emails and documents, I found this list of songs from classmates.

When we were preparing for our 15th reunion in May of 2008, we needed a song that would play as we marched down Locust Walk in the alumni parade and arrived at the viewing stand. By popular vote, House of Pain’s “Jump Around” won. And, after listening to it, how can you not Jump Around?

“Jump Around,” wasn’t the only song that we remembered…here are other suggestions from classmates. It was interesting to read how many of us suggested the same songs or the same bands. Throw these all together on a playlist and you have a ‘mix tape’ soundtrack of the early 90’s at Penn! (A mix tape! What is that???)

Songs suggested multiple times by 1993 Classmates

“Jump Around” – House of Pain

“Groove is in the Heart” – Deee-Lite

“Two Princes” – Spin Doctors

“These Are Days” – 10,000 Maniacs

“No Rain” – Blind Melon

Here are some of the notes and song memories that classmates shared in 2013.

Debbie Jaffe:

“Groove Is in the Heart” by DeeLite reminds me of Penn. Spot on with Indigo Girls and Blues Traveler (especially “Closer I am to Fine” and “But Anyway”).

Ed Gold:

“All I Want” – Toad the Wet Sprocket

Marianne Alves Brogdale:

“Oh what a night,” is the one I always think of – and songs from Murph’s. I also always think of “Two Princes” because my roommate loved it.

Also, from the Billboard Top 100 Songs of 1993:

I’d Do Anything For Love (But I Won’t Do That), Meat Loaf
I’m Every Woman, Whitney Houston
Whoot, There It Is, 95 South
Fields Of Gold, Sting
Hey Mr. D.J., Zhane

Kathleen Paralusz:

How about “Jump Around”? I have very fond memories of DKE parties w/ that song playing.

Jef Pollock:

“Two Princes” – Spin Doctors

“These Are Days” – 10,000 Maniacs

“Smells Like Teen Spirit” – Nirvana

“Life is a Highway” – Tom Cochran

Matthew Sweet – almost anything

Howard Blecher:

“True Faith” – New Order

“Bizarre Love Triangle” – New Order

“She Sells Sanctuary” – The Cult

“Boys Don’t Cry” – The Cure

“Just Like Heaven” – The Cure

“In Between Days” – The Cure

“Chains of Love” – Erasure

“The One I Love” – R.E.M.

“Superman” – R.E.M.

“It’s the End of the World as We Know It (And I Feel Fine)” – R.E.M.

“Rub You the Right Way” – Johnny Gill

Bardo Ramirez:

“Wild World” – Cat Stevens

“Don’t Call Me Daughter “– Pearl Jam

“Loser” – Beck

“The Choice is Yours” – Black Sheep

“Jump Around” – House of Pain

“No Rain” – Blind Melon

Mitchell Kraus:

Well, as far as songs – I looked up the top 100 for 1993, and #2 was – Whoomp! (There It Is) by Tag Team. I think that would be fun and relevant.

Deb Brown:

“Tennessee” by Arrested Development and two obvious R.E.M. songs: “Shiny Happy People” and “Losing my Religion”. Also “Dyslexic Heart” from the Singles soundtrack.

Lisa Bardfeld Shapiro:

“Jump Around” definitely brings back some senior year memories for me…..

Meesh Pierce and Betty Magome really went all out and sent us lots of songs…but they’re all so good and spot on that I couldn’t cut any of them from this post.

Do you have a favorite song from our time at Penn? Tell us in the comments!

Meesh Joslyn Pierce:

Meesh sent us a play list from her wedding – so many good songs from the 90’s here!

Fight for your right to Party – Beastie Boys
Come on Eileen (Dexys Midnight…)
Freedom ’90 – George Michael
Sweet Child o Mine – Guns n Roses
Tainted Love – Soft Cell
Joy and Pain
Brass Monkey – Beastie Boys
The Choice is Yours – Black Sheep
Jump Around – House of Pain
Been Caught Stealing – Jane’s Addiction
Just Another Day – Oingo Boingo
Ladies Night – Kool and the Gang
Mama Said Knock You… – LL Cool J
Walkin with a Deadman – Oingo Boingo
Crazy Train – Ozzy Osbourne
Orange Crush – REM
Ice Ice Baby – Vanilla Ice
Mony Mony – Billy Idol
New Sensation – INXS
Love Shack – The B-52s
No Rain – Blind Melon
Groove is in the Heart – Deee Lite
Rebirth of Slick (Cool Like Dat) – Digable Planets
I Touch Myself – Divinyls
Parents Just Don’t Understand – Fresh Prince
Cheeseburger in Paradise – Jimmy Buffett
Margaritaville – Jimmy Buffett
You Really Got Me – The Kinks
Jump – Kris Kross
Down Under – Men at Work
The Safety Dance – Men Without Hats
To Be With You – Mr. Big
OPP – Naughty by Nature
Funky Cold Medina – Party on
I’m Too Sexy – Right Said Fred
Baby Got Back – Sir Mix A Lot
Gin and Juice – Snoop Dogg
Back to Life (However Do you…) – Soul II Soul
Stray Cat Strut – Stray Cats
Desire – U2
Rump Shaker (Radio…) – Wreckx-N-Effect

Betty Magome:

Hope it’s not too late:

Here are some great songs from our class (4 years)!

“Groove is in the Heart” – Deee-Lite

“One” – U2

“Killing in the Name of” – Rage Against the Machine (angry, but I listened to it a lot)

“Smells Like Teen Spirit” – Nirvana and any Nirvana song

“These Are Days” – 10,000 Maniacs

“Candy Everybody Wants” – 10,000 Maniacs

“Stay” – Lisa Loeb

“Wicked Game” – Chris Isaak

“Jump Around” – House of Pain

“Walking in Memphis” – Marc Cohn

“No Rain” – Blind Melon

“Whoop There it Is” – Tag Team

“500 Miles” – The Proclaimers

“Connected” – Stereo MCs

“What’s Up” – 4 Non Blonde’s
“Forever Young” – Alphaville

“Bizarre Love Triangle” – New Order

“Doctor Doctor” – Thompson Twins

“Living in Oblivion” – Anything Box

“Russian Radio” – Red Flag

“How Long” – Information Society

“Pure” – Lightning Seeds

“Jump” – Kriss Kross

“Please Don’t Go” – KWS

“Lips Like Sugar” – Echo and the Bunnymen

Pet Shop Boys

“West End Girls”

“Love Comes Easily”

“It’s a Sin”

“What have I done to deserve this”

Depeche Mode

“Personal Jesus”

“Just Can’t get Enough”

“Enjoy the Silence”

“Strangelove”

“People are People”

“Master and Servant”

Erasure

“Oh L’Amour”

“Victim of Love”

“Ship of Fools”

“A Little Respect”

“Take a Chance on Me”

Penn Class of 1993 25th Reunion Countdown

The weekend of July 21 – 22, 2017, marked 42 weeks until the 25th Reunion of the Penn Class of 1993 (May 11 – 14, 2018)!

Join us we count down the weeks to our reunion #93tothe25th:

Do you have old photos or mementos from our time at Penn? Photos of Spring Fling? Football at Franklin Field? Classes at DRL? We are taking a trip down memory lane and would love for you to share your memories with our class in a future post. Please email us upenn1993@gmail.com!
Join our reunion committee – email Lisa Grabelle at lisagrabelle@yahoo.com.
Follow us on Twitter, Tumblr, and Instagram.
Classmates are invited to join our Facebook and LinkedIn groups.

Important hotel update! Overwhelming response from our great class has sold out the Downtown Marriott Class of 1993 room block for Saturday night. There are alternative hotels. We recommend booking ASAP! Please see our class website for additional details.

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Filed under 25th Reunion, Class of 1993, Kiera R., Reunions

Tagged as 1993, 93tothe25th, Class of 1993, Penn Class of 1993

August 14, 2017 · 4:52 pm

Summer Re-Boot for 1993 (47 Weeks To Go)

By Kiera Reilly, C’93, and Caren Lissner, C’93

You may have noticed that our weekly reunion countdown took a bit of a summer break (senioritis perhaps?). But it is August and as children around the country start or prepare to start their school year, the Class of 1993 is gearing up for the year ahead and the planning for our 25th Reunion in May!

We thought a re-boot of our countdown was in order, and what better way to re-boot than by looking back at the machines we re-booted at Penn – our very own computers! For many of us, we arrived at Penn with typewrites (like me) and no personal computer. Papers were written on computers borrowed from the few hall-mates that had them or in the computer labs around campus. We toted our floppy disks in our back-packs and popped them in the computers whenever we needed to work.

Classmate Caren Lissner shared a photo of her college computer and memories of her first computer purchase – a Macintosh.

Caren Lissner’s Macintosh Classic II from her senior year at Penn.

Caren’s recollection:

By the end of senior year, around 1993, I’d saved just enough money to buy a Macintosh Classic II from the Penn computer store at a discounted student rate (it was something like $1,100). I had always used the campus computer rooms and libraries to type papers, so I was glad to finally have my own machine so I could work on resumes. The computer moved with me to Hoboken after college, and I ended up writing my first published novel on it. I loved my little Mac even though I finally bought a a Dell around 1999 and put it away in storage. Now it’s in a closet, and I’m never giving it away (but I should probably clean it up a little).

Caren Lissner’s floppy disks

Did you have a PC at Penn? Did you arrive on campus with it freshman year or did you purchase it while you were a student? Do you still have any of your floppy disks?

Penn Class of 1993 25th Reunion Countdown

The weekend of June 16-17, 2017, marked 47 weeks until the 25th Reunion of the Penn Class of 1993 (May 11 – 14, 2018)!

Join us we count down the weeks to our reunion #93tothe25th:

Do you have old photos or mementos from our time at Penn? Photos of Spring Fling? Football at Franklin Field? Classes at DRL? We are taking a trip down memory lane and would love for you to share your memories with our class in a future post. Please email us upenn1993@gmail.com!
Join our reunion committee – email Lisa Grabelle at lisagrabelle@yahoo.com.
Follow us on Twitter, Tumblr, and Instagram.
Classmates are invited to join our Facebook and LinkedIn groups.

Important hotel update! Overwhelming response from our great class has sold out the Downtown Marriott Class of 1993 room block for Saturday night. Here are alternatives if you are planning the Saturday night stay. We recommend booking asap! Please see our class website for additional details:

1. Call the Downtown Marriott directly and book by phone under the “UPenn Alumni Weekend 2018” room block. Call (800) 320-5744 (for international classmates, call (215) 625-2900)
2. Book the Downtown Marriott on-line but select “Attendee” from the drop-down menu
3. Book at the Loews Philadelphia Hotel room block which is directly across the street and $279/night
4. Book at the Courtyard Philadelphia Downtown room block which is just 2 blocks away and $244/night

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Filed under 25th Reunion, Class of 1993, Kiera R., Memories of Penn, Reunions

Tagged as 1993, 93tothe25th, c, Class of 1993, Penn Class of 1993

June 9, 2017 · 10:37 pm

What Happens at Alumni Weekend? (49 Weeks To Go)

By Kiera Reilly, C’93

The clock is ticking, and our 25th reunion will be here before we know it (May 11 – 14, 2018). This week, we received the link to our class’ hotel room block for the weekend, and we encourage you to make your room reservations now as hotels are often completely booked. You can book by clicking this link https://aws.passkey.com/go/UpennClassof1993 or you can also call (800) 320-5744 to book over the phone.

What exactly happens on those four days of Penn Alumni Weekend? Here is a preview of what to expect. We will have more details on our class’ specific programming closer to May, but we want to give you time to consider joining us for the entire weekend!

Friday, May 11

Educational Programming is during the day. This is also a great time to walk around campus and see what has changed since we graduated. For our 20th reunion, our class sponsored a discussion on political campaign messaging with Jef Pollock, C’93, and Frank Luntz, C’84.

Frank Luntz, C’84, during the political campaigning lecture sponsored by the Penn Class of 1993 during Alumni Weekend, May, 2013.

Jef Pollock, C’93, and Frank Luntz, C’84, discuss political campaign messaging during our 20th reunion in May, 2013.

Friday night we will most likely be gathering downtown for a later night party. Here’s a picture from our Friday night gathering in 2013 at the Marriott Hotel.

Penn 1993 20th Reunion Friday night.

Saturday, May 12

There are additional educational programs in the morning, and there is always a, “Conversation with President Gutmann.”

“A Conversation with Penn President Amy Gutmann,” in Huntsman Hall during Alumni Weekend, 2013.

In the afternoon, there is the Alumni Parade of Classes and the Alumni Picnic. There are kid friendly activities for children.

Kid Zone activities from our 20th reunion in May, 2013, followed by pictures of the Alumni Parade. You can see more photos from Alumni Weekend, 2013 in this online photo album from Penn Alumni Relations.

Programming for kids during Alumni Weekend at Penn, May 2013.

Programming for kids during Alumni Weekend, May 2013.

Penn Class of 1993 Celebrates their 20th Reunion during the Alumni Parade at Alumni Weekend, May, 2013.

The picnic tent is always crowded. Here are photos from our 20th reunion again.

Penn Class of 1993 20th Reunion Alumni Picnic, May, 2013.

Penn Class of 1993 20th Reunion Alumni Picnic, May, 2013.

Saturday night will be our big reunion party. Here our photos from our 20th reunion party. You can see more photos of the party here.

Penn Class of 1993 20th Reunion Party

Sunday, May 13

There is an all-alumni breakfast in the morning.

Monday, May 14

Commencement – there is always an alumni procession for commencement, and the graduates walk through the alumni flag bearers that line up in front of the Sweeten Alumni House on Locust Walk. The 25th and 50th reunion classes are both invited to walk in the procession as a class. This is something I highly recommend you do if you can – seeing the graduates march down Locust Walk brings back many happy memories from our own graduation.

Here are some photos from the alumni procession during Commencement.

The alumni class representatives march into Franklin Field for Commencement at Penn, May 2010.

Join Us!

You are welcome to return for everything we have planned or you can pick which activities interest you the most. You can come alone, you can bring your spouse or partner – or leave them at home, you can bring your kids, or leave them at home. All are welcome!

We are still adding to our ever-growing reunion committee and would love to have more classmates join us. Email Lisa Grabelle at lisagrabelle@yahoo.com if you would like to add your name to the committee. We will be gathering on campus for the Penn Reunion Leadership Conference on Saturday, September 16th if you would like to help us plan in person!

We look forward to hearing from our classmates, and to seeing you all on campus in May 2018!

Penn Class of 1993 25th Reunion Countdown

The weekend of June 2 – 3, 2017, marked 49 weeks until the 25th Reunion of the Penn Class of 1993 (May 11 – 14, 2018)!

Join us we count down the weeks to our reunion #93tothe25th:

Do you have old photos or mementos from our time at Penn? Photos of Spring Fling? Football at Franklin Field? Classes at DRL? We are taking a trip down memory lane and would love for you to share your memories with our class in a future post. Please email us upenn1993@gmail.com!
Follow us on Twitter, Tumblr, and Instagram.
Classmates are invited to join our Facebook and LinkedIn groups.

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Filed under 20th Reunion, 25th Reunion, Alumni Weekend, Class of 1993, Kiera R., Reunions

Tagged as 20th reunion, 93tothe25th, alumni weekend, Class of 1993, Penn Class of 1993, reunions

June 1, 2017 · 9:32 am

Where Have We Been? (51 Weeks To Go)

By Kiera Reilly, C’93

The countdown is on for our 25th Penn Reunion (May 11 – 14, 2018)!

With under a year to go until what we plan to be a fantastic weekend on campus reconnecting with classmates and Penn, we look back to the posts we shared so far as we noted the 93 weeks until our reunion starting in August, 2016 – #93tothe25th.

Thank you to the classmates that have contributed to our posts so far:

Aimee Alexander, James Asali, Jackie Einstein Astrof, Amy Chen Aubrecht, Julie Berliner Bell, Karen Grimm Berry, Howard Blecher, Danny Bockvar, Allison Weiss Brady, Marianne Alves Brogdale, Deb Brown, Frank Caccuro, Zach Conen, Emily Culbertson, Martin Dias, Alex Dunne, Amy Korn Duque, Allison Feder Fliegler, Debbie Frank, Josh Frank, Christine Lutton Foster, David Foster, Stephen Golden, Ruth McIlhenny Gorme, Lisa Nass Grabelle, Kysha Harris, Chrissy Bass Hofbeck, Debbie Jaffe, Jennifer Jarrett, Steve Jung, Peggy Hamm Kingsley, Mitchell Kraus, Minal Damani Kundra, Joanna Kwa, Chris Lehmann, Jaci Israel Leit, Howard Levene, Jeff Liebert, Caren Lissner, Paul Luongo, Ken MacFarlane, Brian Newberry, Gene Park, Jef Pollock, Lisa Bardfeld Shapiro, Lincoln Singleton, Justin Sowers, Jenn Spadano-Gasbarro, Allison Davis Talibi, Natalie Cutler Taub, Ebru Ural, Caroline Waxler, Joel Yarbrough, Jessica Zirkel-Rubin

Penn 1993 class flag on Alumni Day at Penn, May 15, 1993.

93. 93 Reasons Why We Love Penn

92. Memories of Penn Reunions

91. Remembering Campus with Photo Prints

90. Before There Was Facebook There was the Freshman Record

89. The More Things Change, The More They Stay the Same: The Real Le Anh and Beijing

88. We Were Merely Freshmen…

87. Scenes From Freshman Move-In

86. New Student Week

85. Tuition Then and Now

84. Freshman Move-In 2016

83. Freshman Move-In 1989

82. The 1992 Election

81. The Class Schedule and Drop/Add

80. Mid-Terms, Finals and Blue Books

79. Homecoming Freshman Year and Missing Tiger Heads

78. Giving Tuesday and the Class of 1993 Giving to Penn

77. Freshman Dorms in 1989

76. Thankful for the Red and the Blue

75. Penn Planners

74. Last 250th Anniversary Event – Winter Festival on the Green

73. Snow at Penn

72. Day Trippin’ to NYC

71. Gov. Mario Cuomo Speaks at Penn

70. Grades in the Mail

69. A “Billion for Ben” Bag Survives

68. A Plethora of Performing Arts

67. Course Registration

66. Happy 90th Birthday Palestra

65. The Class of 1993’s Annual Community Service Day at the Netter Center

64. The Class of 1993’s Community Service Project in NYC

63. Party at Penn

62. Welcome to PARIS!

61. Reflections on “Protesting”

60. Spring Fling Concerts

59. Student Bands at Fling

58. The DP Joke Issue

57. Hey Deja Vu

56. Friendships Formed in the Quad

55. A Huge Penn Banner

54. Tickets From Penn

53. Penn 1993 Celebrates Hey Day

52. Class of 1993 – One Year Until We Celebrate

Penn Class of 1993 25th Reunion Countdown

The weekend of May 19 – 20, 2017, marked 51 weeks until the 25th Reunion of the Penn Class of 1993 (May 11 – 14, 2018)!

Join us we count down the weeks to our reunion #93tothe25th:

Do you have old photos or mementos from our time at Penn? Photos of Spring Fling? Football at Franklin Field? Classes at DRL? We are taking a trip down memory lane and would love for you to share your memories with our class in a future post. Please email us upenn1993@gmail.com!
Follow us on Twitter, Tumblr, and Instagram.
Classmates are invited to join our Facebook and LinkedIn groups.

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Filed under 25th Reunion, Class of 1993, Kiera R., Reunions

Tagged as 93tothe25th, Class of 1993, Penn 1993

May 15, 2017 · 2:35 pm

Class of 1993 – One Year Until We Celebrate (52 Weeks To Go)

By Lisa Nass Grabelle, C’93, L’96, and Kiera Reilly, C’93

Last summer, we started counting down the ninety-three weeks until our 25th Penn Reunion, and now, the weekend of May 12 – 15, 2017, we are at the one year mark until we celebrate the twenty-five years since our graduation from Penn.

We celebrated our first Alumni Day on Saturday, May 15, 1993, by marching down Locust Walk as a class to lead the alumni parade of classes. We gathered on College Green to listen to Penn President Sheldon Hackney and sing, “The Red and The Blue.”

The Penn Band leads the Penn Alumni Parade of Classes on Alumni Day at Penn, May 15, 1993

The Penn Alumni parade of classes on Alumni Day at Penn, May 15, 1993

Singing, "The Red and The Blue," on College Green, May 15, 1993

Singing, “The Red and The Blue,” on College Green for Alumni Day, May 15, 1993. Photo by Kiera Reilly, C’93.

On Monday, May 17, 1993, we processed from Superblock, down Locust Walk, and into Franklin Field for our Commencement.

The Commencement Procession across the 38th Street Bridge and down Locust Walk, May 17, 1993. Photo by Lisa Nass Grabelle, C’93, L’96

Leaving Superblock as we start the procession to Franklin Field, photo by Kiera Reilly, C’93

The Class of 1993 leaves Superblock, crossing the 38th Street Bridge for Penn’s Commencement, May 17, 1993. Photo by Kiera Reilly, C’93

Twenty-four years passed…

And we are now in full swing planning our class’ 25th Reunion for May 11-13, 2018! Our planning committee is growing by the day, and we’d love for you to join us. Email us at upenn1993@Gmail.com or lisagrabelle@yahoo.com to join our Reunion Committee.

First Lady Hillary Clinton, Interim Penn President Claire Fagin, and Penn President Sheldon Hackney watch the Commencement Procession at Penn, May 17, 1993. Photo by Kiera Reilly, C’93

Our Reunion will be here before we know it – look for information about our hotel block very soon. In the meantime, be sure to save our the reunion dates on your calendar, and also save Monday, May 14, which is Commencement. The 25th and 50th reunion classes are invited to march in the Commencement procession, and it is very special to walk on Franklin Field again with the alumni classes. We strongly encourage you to participate if you can!

The Class of 1993 enters Franklin Field for Penn Commencement, May 17, 1993. Photo courtesy of Kiera Reilly, C’93

Graduates on Franklin Field for Commencement, May 17, 1993. Photo by Lisa Nass Grabelle, C’93, L’96.

Every classmate is invited to join us for a fun weekend of reunion planning back at Penn Reunion Leadership Conference (PRLC) on September 15- 16. The conference is actually one day on Saturday, September 16th, but we will have Class of 93 only planning on the 15th in the afternoon and then all go out that night. We welcome you to join us for either or both days.

We want to continue our trip down memory lane, and are looking for blog posts, photos, mementos or memories of our time at Penn. Please email us if you have something to share – we want to include as many classmates as possible in our future posts.

We are excited as we look toward this next year, and hope to make our reunion next May one that our entire class will not forget.

Let’s get ready to meet at the button!

#93tothe25th

The Alumni Parade of classes enters Franklin Field for Penn Commencement, May 17, 1993. Photo courtesy of Kiera Reilly, C’93.

Penn Commencement on Franklin Field, May 17, 1993. Photo courtesy of Kiera Reilly, C’93.

Penn Class of 1993 25th Reunion Countdown

The weekend of May 12 – 13, 2017, marked 52 weeks until the 25th Reunion of the Penn Class of 1993 (May 11 – 13, 2018)!

Join us we count down the weeks to our reunion #93tothe25th:

Do you have old photos or mementos from our time at Penn? Photos of Spring Fling? Football at Franklin Field? Classes at DRL? We are taking a trip down memory lane and would love for you to share your memories with our class in a future post. Please email us upenn1993@gmail.com!
Follow us on Twitter, Tumblr, and Instagram.
Classmates are invited to join our Facebook and LinkedIn groups.

Beach ball fun during Penn Commencement, May 17, 1993. Photo by Kiera Reilly, C’93.

Graduates cheer for the Alumni Procession

Penn 1993 class flag on Alumni Day at Penn, May 15, 1993.

First Lady Hillary Clinton and Penn President Sheldon Hackney make their way to the Commencement stage.

Pinterest #93tothe35th Penn Reunion Class of 1993

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Filed under 25th Reunion, Class of 1993, Kiera R., Reunions

Tagged as 1993, 93tothe25th, alumni weekend, Class of 1993, commencement, Penn Class of 1993

August 8, 2016 · 10:15 am

Memories of ’93 Reunions

By Kiera Reilly, C’93

The countdown to our 25^th Penn reunion continues, as this weekend, August 5-6, 2016, marks 92 weeks until Alumni Weekend 2018 (save the date on your calendars for Alumni Weekend May 11 – 13, 2018!). #93tothe25th

I pulled out my 1993 folder in my filing cabinet and found old reunion invitations, reunion committee notes and printed class newsletters from the late 90’s. Most of our communication is now electronic, so it is nice to see these old printed pieces.

Here is a Penn Fund appeal letter from our Class Gift Co-Chairs Stephanie Fish and Lincoln Singleton in the Spring of 1997. The letter notes that 15,000 students are applying to Penn that year. Now more than 30,000 students apply for admission to Penn annually!

The other document is minutes from the Class of 1993 5^th Reunion Committee meeting from our classmate Jennifer Rizzi who at the time worked in Alumni Relations. Those attending what was I think the first committee meeting on July 30, 1997 included: Michele Boisvert, Katie Faunce, Darren Fogel, Christine Lutton Foster, David Foster, Christine O’Connor and Jennifer Rizzi.

93_1

Here are some of our early class newsletters. The one on the right, from the Fall of 1997 is signed by our then-Class President Michael “Scoops” Rosenband. The newsletter on the left is from our current Class President Lisa Nass Grabelle (then Lisa Nass) in the Spring of 1999.

93_2

Pictured on the left is our Class Honor Roll for giving for our 5^th reunion and on the right our newsletter featuring photos from our 5^th reunion in May, 1998.

The printed invitation for our 10th reunion in 2003.

Mailings in advance of our 15^th reunion in 2008.

The printed invitation for our 15^th reunion featured photos pulled from our class yearbook.

A postcard in advance of our 20^th reunion in 2013.

The invitation for our 20^th reunion in May, 2013.

Did you save your reunion invitations or class newsletters? We would love to see other 1993 mailings from classmates! Please add a comment below or email us UPenn1993 (at) gmail.com.

If you are a member of the Penn Class of 1993, please join our Facebook and LinkedIn groups. We are also on Twitter, Tumblr, and recently joined Instagram.

And don’t forget to save the date of our 25^th reunion on your calendar:

May 11 – 13, 2018!

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Filed under 25th Reunion, Class of 1993, Kiera R., Reunions

Tagged as 93tothe25th, Penn 1993, Penn Class of 1993, reunions

June 13, 2014 · 9:19 am

My Top Penn List: Alumni Weekend 2014 Tweets

By: Casey Ryan, C’95

First of all I’d like to acknowledge my amazing colleague, Jason Strohl, for running a few stories in lieu of mine because I was going to miss the deadline. Thank you, Strohly, for covering for me.

It’s been a month since Alumni Weekend. I wanted to share with you some of the most enjoyable tweets and pictures (with #PennAW) from the wonderful weekend. (Note: the opinions and views expressed through these Twitter, instagram and other social media accounts are the opinions of those individuals and do not reflect the opinions or views of the University or myself).

10. @yPennAlumni: The truest #PennAW button that ever existed. pennalumni @penn @penn2004 @penn2009 http://bit.ly/1qL0ha2

9. @Penn: For their 5th reunion, @Penn2009 had the right idea for their class gift. #PennAW #ArmyofAmys @yPennAlumni https://twitter.com/Penn/status/468109660705533952

8. @gsh1984: What a great time teaching social media basics with @KarenLGlass #PennAW photo http://i.instagram.com/p/oGZXu0iYBh/

7. @CarlinAdelson: I saw people and it was terrific! #pennaw #by09 http://twitter.com/CarlinAdelson/status/468016479414521856/

6. @heatherette01: A little blurry, but a gem #freshmanyear #roomielove #penn09 #pennaw http://Instagram.com/p/oHqXqcP-46/

5. @IraHarkavy: Amazing day. Congrats to the Young Quakers, who competed against Harlem Lacrosse players at Penn Park #PennAW http://twitter.com/IraHarkavy/status/467807661560692736

4. @ErinnLCarey: This @penn alum from the class of ’54 still has his tuition bill! Grand total, including fees?? $342.50!! #PennAW http://twitter.com/ErinnLCarey/status/467785572665540608/

3. @PennMedAlumni: Our med alumni show off their #pennpride in a parade that leads into the newly completed #pennpark #maw2014 #pennaw http://twitter.com/PennMedAlumni/status/467707493502943232/

2. @thomaswnance: Best Friends Ever!! #PennAW #BenFranklinStatue @ College Green http://Instagram.com/p/oGsoFHKLYo/

1. @KieraReilly: Hi Ben! I bet lots of alumni will come by to say hi today. #PennAW http://4sq.com/S30uFU

There were two honorable mentions:

@jgoldner: When do I get to throw toast? #PennAW”

“@johnbudd: First stop at reunion: Abner’s. #PennAW http://twitter.com/johnbudd/status/467425812912685056

I hope to see you come back to campus for Homecoming, October 30-November 1 and Alumni Weekend 2015 May 15-18 and tweet away.

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Filed under Alumni Weekend, Casey R., Reunions, Top Ten

May 27, 2014 · 12:59 pm

My 25 Year Penn Reunion: Living an “As Is” life in a world that only wants “So Perfect!”

Author: Lisa Ellen Niver, C’89

Wandering on Madison Ave in Manhattan last week, I noticed paparazzi everywhere. After asking, a woman told us, with tears in her eyes, that JLo was eating lunch. I would have missed her. She did not look “So Perfect” but she is stunning. As I left New York City for Philadelphia for my twenty-five year college reunion, I have been thinking about what have I done and what do I want for the next twenty-five years!

In a life filled with product placement where JLo is lifting her Coca-Cola glass so many times per hour on American Idol, our lives have been given a structure that we might not purchase if it were not so insidious.

In As Is by Rachel Michael Arends, the story is told through several narrators and Arends is able to share deep perspectives about how people with different lifestyles lock themselves into their own cage about money, sexuality, and professions of what they think that want and should own and should do.

Through Arends’ intriguing characters, we are able to wonder and wander. Is it a good choice to be an artist? Is it okay to defer your dream to care for your father? Most of the interactions and characters would have accepted the decisions of their friend or family member if they had only been told. Fear made nearly every character in this book withhold their personal truth.

Hiding themselves made them seem like a cheap imitation of what they could have brought to the table. Choosing to be courageous and wish for what they really wanted and reach out to receive it often only comes after tragedy and hardship but hopefully Rachel Michael Arends’ novel gives you the hope to share your story and live a life painted fully without regrets.

Early in the novel, Gwendolyn says: “On television it can look glamorous, and perhaps some people would love this lifestyle. But I don’t,” I wondered what didn’t she like? And who was she really?

Wandering the parade and picnic at the University of Pennsylvania, I thought what would life be like if we did not pretend. Gwendolyn believes that Armand “actually enjoys being So Perfect all the time,” it gave me pause to think about who do I know who resembles that remark and do they feel like Gwendolyn that “it just seems wrong, incongruous, and unnatural,” and more of a cage than a life.

There were many buttons to wear at Reunion: “I met my wife at Penn,” “<3 Penn,” and “Don’t worry, I don’t remember you either!” Maybe several alums felt like Gwendolyn: “I find it scary and unnerving when strangers approach me as if we’re old friends. I don’t like to worry about what I wear, if my hair and makeup look good enough (according to Armand they never do), what I say, or how I say it. I prefer to stay at home behind our high fences, inside our security system.”

w/ Joyce Lim Twomey

She has been told by Trey, her producer, “I’m lucky to have this job, that anyone in her right mind would want it.” At an Ivy League institution, in marriage or in many other settings, we are sold that line about being lucky. I went to medical school because I was smart in science. Like Gwendolyn I felt, “I don’t want to let anyone down…[but] I’m beginning to fear that I’ll be trapped in this mansion forever.” We sometimes become embroiled in a labyrinth or career and we seem to be stuck. Breaking out of the mold and consciously taking a different path can be a struggle but isn’t the freedom, to be who we really are, worth it?

When we become lost from our selves, we often need someone like Gwendolyn’s sister, Megan, to ask us: “What’s your plan? Are you going back there?” We all want to have someone in our life that we can tell as Gwendolyn does, “You’re like an island of sanity in the craziest day I’ve ever had.” It is possible we have those people already if we would only be honest with them about how we feel and what we need. Most of us keep our wounds and concerns a secret only sharing what we think looks “So Perfect” to the constant measuring up on Instagram and Pinterest.

When one character with a cane walks on a floor above Gwendolyn with a sliding sound, she muses, “It’s strange to think of carrying your damage on the outside where everyone can see it.” What if we shared our fears and foibles on Facebook and not just our fairytales that come true? Carrie, a character who is a fan of Gwendolyn on television but becomes a true friend in the story, shares, “The biggest thing I’ve learned over the course of this year is that life is one big surprise after another, and maybe I should loosen up and try my best to roll with it.” As I walked the parade on Saturday standing in between the two wonderful women who were my college roommates, I realized that I am so lucky in both an “as is” and “so perfect” way to have walked this road surrounded by people who know what I look life in real life and want to be friends anyway! Whether there are tears of joy or sadness, they have always run to my side, whenever I am ready to share this rollercoaster of life.

Arends’ character, Armand, realizes that “As Is,” could be his “motto for acceptance. Not an excuse to settle necessarily, but a reminder that at a certain point, you just need to say, OK, enough is enough! I’m sick of chasing the dream of perfection and that’s not a failure.”

Gwendolyn does believe in fate, as she says, “You have to. I just saw a falling star out the window and I wished for you. When I looked up, there you were!” In some ways like the movies, we want to say, “I wished for you” and for the person to appear. What if you are really wishing for yourself to stand up, take up space and live your dreams? I wish for you that you are inspired to pause and think about your own parade and find a path that leads you to yourself and the fulfillment of your best dreams.

w/Barbara Yorke

About the Author: Lisa Ellen Niver (CAS 1989) was honored to walk in graduation on May 19, 2014 with her classmates from twenty-five years ago! Learn more about her journeys at WeSaidGoTravel.com and ScienceisntScary.net.