The semester has gone by quickly, and so much has happened to the men and women of OH since they left the friendly confines of Aldrich 9 just four short months ago. Although they’re not together every day, a welcome party for NH, several pub nights and a simultaneous guys’ and girls’ night out have brought them back together frequently enough to alleviate the dullness of classes without inside jokes or Hector’s commentary.
But there have been more formal occasions as well. The crowd got together in October to celebrate the U.S. launch of sectionmate John Travers’ new book about Irish entrepreneurship, Driving the Tiger, over wine and cheese in Spangler. John’s book sold out at its launch (75 copies!) and continues to sell well on Amazon’s Top Selling Books by Irish HBS Students list.
Two events in the past two weeks have gotten the crowd together yet again. Claudia Esquivel and Hannah Vazzana, ably assisted by their partners Eddie and Greg, organized a section-wide Thanksgiving Dinner on the Tuesday before Turkey Day in the SFP Common Room. There was enough turkey, stuffing, ham, wine, beer, and dessert to feed the entire section, with plenty of leftovers for Eddie and Greg. For many, it was their first real American Thanksgiving. “I’ve eaten way too much,” Heba El-Gabaly said before burping loudly. Thanks to everyone who helped us celebrate.
Merely nine days later, it was time to get back together for Holidazzle. The pre-party was at the West Street Grill, not far from the Park Plaza Hotel. Hostess Kristen Kohler organized appetizers and more importantly an open bar for the partygoers. It was a flashback to the section’s first big event in January-how far we’ve come in 11 short months.
While everyone was drinking and well dressed, it was time to celebrate the rash of engagements that have happened in the past few months. During the second RC term, Mardie Oakes, Mike Holt, Kosty Gilis and Rob Alford all started making wedding plans. Then, over the break, Arsheya Devitre and Katherine Liu said “yes” when their boyfriends, Alok and Mic, both of whom live in Asia, popped the question. Charles Duncan usually likes to fly to Asia for the weekend, but he actually spent over a week in Bali for his engagement with his bride-to-be Hisaka. After we returned from the break, Ming Shu announced that he will be married soon, and Tom Burke, who met his fianc‚e Lynn only last January on the steps of Mellon, announced that they were tying the knot. Lynn met him trying to get in to see her friend Kathleen Schlaff, but Tom refused, explaining that she looked like a security threat and needed an escort. As an alternative to Mellon, he convinced her to join him in his Boxster for a tour of the sights of Allston. And the rest was history… There may be additional engagements soon, more seem to be announced every time the section gets together. Stay tuned.
Further along on the path to adulthood is Pete Cureton, who is getting married over the Christmas break in New York. Congratulations, Pete! He and Amy just can’t wait to go on WesTrek for their honeymoon.
Finally, babies. Lots of them.
Chris and Susan Leupold welcomed their new daughter Eve into the world on November 1st. Eve joins her big sister Grace. Everyone is doing fine.
J.R. and Susan Davis and Fabrice and Myrtille Dumontiel are both expecting their first bundles of joy this spring. Not to be outdone, Etienne and Kimberly Locoh-Donou and their daughter Ashley are about to have an addition to their family, as are Charlie, Ana and Simon Conover. Currently, all four couples are planning to name their new babies after OH’s most memorable professors. Warning: there may be a fight between the French couples for the name Luc.
As the year winds down, the people of OH want to wish everyone at HBS happy holidays and good luck with the job search!
