Dan Lambert '86 enjoys a holiday with extended family in St. Tropez.

1986

I have received a lot of feedback about past updates and I need to make some changes. I have always written this column as a private communication between classmates, but in this electronic age, nothing is private anymore. Classmates have been nice enough to share the great moments of their lives with me and I did not treat those moments with the respect they deserved. Many off our classmates have incredibly responsible jobs and have tens of thousands of employees looking up to them for leadership. They do not need or want some wisecrack posted for eternity. Everyone has been very nice and almost apologized to me when asking me to be nicer. I will try. I still receive lots of ridiculous invitations. Recently I was invited to a necktie party. The host offered to provide the tie and even lend a tree. Some sort of new and trendy bridal shower party, I am told. On to the real news.

Thomas Gyongyosi is living in Salzburg, Austria, with his wife Natalie and children, Kira, 9, and Marc, 10. The happy couple has been married since 1993 and has lived in Salzburg since 1992. Thomas has owned his own company since 1987, doing consulting and investment services work. Thomas and the family will visit the United States this summer. They hope to see many former classmates.

Nathan Troutman has returned to New York after spending three years in Seattle helping Paul Allen reorganize his entire portfolio (investments, sports franchises and philanthropic projects). Nathan enjoyed his time in Seattle and working with Paul Allen, but says it's great to be back in New York. Nathan was mentioned in an article about Paul Allen published in BusinessWeek magazine. He hopes to spend time this summer reconnecting with his old Kellogg and Wall Street friends.

Nikki Pope is in her ninth month of her one-year internship at the Department of Justice. Apparently, a Kellogg MBA does not carry the same weight at the Justice Department as it does at many consumer product companies. She requests that her classmates try to stay out of jail or at least the headlines. She recently argued a case before the Seventh Circuit in Chicago, so they must have a lot of confidence in her abilities. Their confidence is well-founded. In February, she was sworn into the California Bar by Justice John Paul Stevens, who graciously agreed to swear her in despite the fact that he only does this for his own clerks and close family friends, neither of which applied to her. She keeps in touch with Tom Moore and Craig Brennan. Tom perfects his negotiating skills by trying to convince his 3-year-old daughter to go to bed. Craig is still in Lima, Peru, and enjoys calling people while relaxing on the beach, listening to the crash of the waves.

	Dan Lambert '86 and family

Dan Lambert was nice enough to contribute a picture of his family and he has cleared with said family that classmates can stay with them when they visit Hawaii. Just remember the rule about fish and houseguests.

Lori Collins is keeping busy managing recent mergers between Lending Tree and getsmart.com. Her biggest concern is getting in better shape for a 280-mile bike ride this summer. She might be sore at the finish, but she will finish.

Doug Allen moved to Chicago from Houston about two years ago. He is still with Allstate, but has recently changed jobs from a senior portfolio manager to director, asset/liability management for its life and annuity business. His new office is down the hall from Laura Zimmerman. Doug has run into Fred O'Connor, Doug Rowe (in the air) and Ray Carso '89.

The Twin Cities report includes updates from David Jaffray and Ron Leaf. David recently left Kroll Ontrack and is looking for an opportunity to combine his business skills with his life passions. Many of us only have about 10 years until retirement, so why waste them working at something we hate? Ron's daughter Mary reports that she is a teenager and therefore old enough to attend college. She will be attending Cornell this fall, and when Ron drives her there, they might have time to spend a night in Milwaukee and take Oyvind Solvang's ferryboat to Michigan. Since the ship/boat has been upgraded, I doubt Ron will get seasick. If he gets sick, it will be from my grilling and not the boat journey.

Roger Clark would like to thank Tony Mann for a big favor that Tony did for his family while they were in New York recently. Roger is enjoying Wisconsin winters so much that he can tell you how many days it is until his youngest child graduates from high school, allowing him and Beth to move south to a warmer climate. Laurie and I recently had dinner with Lauren Schreiner and her husband Jim. We will get together a few more times this summer to lose golf balls. I recently went to Monroe, Wis., to play a round of golf with John Baumann '85 during Badger Booster Days. Is there a way to put a résumé on a golf ball? Besides being president of Swiss Colony, John manages the largest fund raiser for the University of Wisconsin athletic department. I am trying as many careers as possible. I recently started managing an office/warehouse complex, working with my cousin managing apartments near Marquette, while still teaching at UW-Milwaukee and Concordia. The consulting business is still going strong as well. Three cheers for caffeine.