Friends
From College
Andrew Manies
Another member of Front Hall Fame, Andrew also went to school at Pomona College. He also spent a semester abroad in Marburg, Germany, where we devoted too much time to playing Hearts and Siedler (we moved to bridge the following year). He graduated with a degree in economics and read death certificates at Watson Wyatt in San Francisco for several years, before moving to UCSF as a level I analyst.
Leena Ved
My good friend Leena is a 1997 graduate of Pomona College, where she designed her own major, called Economics and Culture, and was a finalist in the state of California for the Rhodes Scholarship. After conducting field work in Pakistan (1997), she worked at SCORE! Educational Centers, where she ran learning centers for kids. During the summer of 2000 we traveled together to Eastern Europe. Leena finished an MBA at Stanford Business School, was involved with charter school management in the Bay Area, and now works for the Broad Academy (2006) as Associate Director of The Broad Residency in Urban Education.
Merryl Reiss
Ms. Reiss, a 1999 graduate of Pomona College, who comes to us from Atlanta, Georgia, is an incorrigible punster (do not incorrige), and fond of howler monkey vocals. I also have a small collection of Merryl’s copyrighted artwork, some pieces of which are available for purchase from the artist. Merryl attended Auburn University School of Vetrinary Medicine in conjunction with Ross University in St. Kitts, West Indies, and graduated as a vetrinarian in August, 2004. She would like to set foot on the shores of Lake Baikal in Russia for vacation. She adopted a Leeward Island Coconut Retriever from St. Kitts, West Indies, named Rinny.
Former Pen-Pals
Elisa
During high school I seemed to attract letters from teen-aged Italian girls; I received at least four letters that began: “Hi, I am your new pen-pal so and so.” One person was so confident that I was her pen-pal that she didn’t even include a return address! Elisa, however, did give me her address, and in fact, I went to visit her in February, 1996, when I was studying in Europe. Elisa lived in Rome with her parents and younger sister. Later on she was a college student. I had a great time visiting her, and she showed me around Rome for several days. Her family even took me to the mountains.
Olga
After returning to the States from my junior year abroad in Germany in high school, I took a Russian studies course, in which we (the class) started writing to an English class in Moscow. So began my (off and on) correspondence with Olga, who finished her degree in food science at some institute in Moscow. She has a twin sister, who is not shown in this photo—instead, we see Olga and her younger sister, Dasha, at the Moscow zoo. A few other pictures of Olga are also available.
Other Friends
Most of my other friends don’t have web-pages, and unfortunately I don’t have a lot of pictures of them. Some are also graduates of Pomona College.
For the sake of amusement, here are some further photos of friends and acquaintances, mostly from my own collection of photos.
- Class Pictures: Even cheesier and earlier—people from elementary school. It’s been so long, I guess it’s hard to call them "friends" anymore.
- WSAG Pictures: A few photos from the World Scholar Athlete Games (June, 1993) in Rhode Island.
- German Friends: Friends from high school in Germany. Should get around to seeing them again. It’s been too long.
- High School photos are now available on a separate page.
If you would like to be added to this list, just let me know, and I will gladly add your name. If you wish to be removed, let me know, I will flip a coin, and you might get your wish.