What are some highlights from the last 40 years?

  • Career: I lived in Florida for a bit after graduating from Elon, but had a hard time finding a teaching position back then. I then moved back to NJ to continue my education as a computer programmer. I worked for an insurance company as a programmer/analyst but shifted gears when my daughter was born in 1992. By that time computer labs were showing up in elementary schools and it was a perfect fit for me with my technology background and holding a teacher’s cert in elementary education. I’ve been working at my current school for the last 22 years as the K – 5 computer teacher. I love my job, but find it to be extremely challenging during this time of Covid, distance learning and hybrid learning.
  • Personal: I got married to Glen in 1985 – remember the Live Aid Concert? Well, that happened to fall on our wedding day – 7/13/85. We’re still together and have 2 amazing children Caryn is 28 and Jeffrey is 25. Glen is the technology coordinator at a public school, Caryn followed in my footsteps and is an ESL teacher and Jeffrey works in the maintenance department at Kings Food Market.

Who would you particularly like to see at the reunion (virtual and in-person)?

The last reunion I went to, I think it was 2011, I met many people who I didn’t know while at Elon. That’s the beauty of reunions, to see the people you know well and to re-establish the old friendships, but to also get to know new people. To quote Will Rogers; “Strangers are just friends I haven’t met yet”. I look forward to 2021 when we can all get together face-to-face – it will be amazing!

How many (and/or) who of your classmates do you still keep in contact with today?

Thanks to Facebook I’m able to kept in touch with so many Elon classmates! I love reading about what my Phi Mu Sorority sisters are up to, they are an awesome bunch of women <3! I have even become friends with people who attended Elon long after I graduated – we all have a special bond and that’s a beautiful thing.

What is your favorite Elon memory?

Just one!? I can’t even count the number of parties that I attended that were both amazing and super crazy. I will say that going to the Library to study always ended up in some sort of laugh fest, I got more studying done in my room. I was known to wake up at about 7:55 and make it to an 8:05 class. Then arriving late to a 2:00 class during spring semester because I didn’t want to leave “Virginia Beach”, I learned really quick to not take afternoon classes in the spring. I loved the fact that, in 1976 when I arrived, it was such a small, intimate community and we were able to really create a bond with our professors. Speaking of professors, Dean Long was probably my favorite. He was on the Winter Term London Trip that I went on and I remember him running through the underground with us to catch a train! Then, when I was a senior, and had to take Political Science to fulfill my requirements to graduate he told me that if I could get at least 5 people interested he would teach a class. He kept his word and I do believe that it was one of the most memorable classes at Elon that I attended.

What is something interesting that you want your classmates to know about you?

  • In my spare time I still enjoy skiing and even picked up snowboarding about 10 years ago. I’ve been involved in our school’s ski club for many years and have been running it for the last 8 years.
  • I love going to the beach in the summer and still go in the ocean to body surf and I have also learned how to paddle board through the lagoons in Normandy Beach NJ where my family has been fortunate enough to keep the summer house that my parents had when we were kids.
  • I find gardening very therapeutic and love the end results when I see all of the flowers blooming.