Wael H. Aburida '98

1998

Hello '98ers,

Sincerest apologies for the technical glitches. I am in the process of changing email addresses and it all got a wee bit confusing as to what address you should send your news. For future reference, please send all emails (gossip, pictures, stock tips, recipes) to Melanie@honnor.com. (Honnor is my new surname.) In the interim, well done to the intrepid folks who tracked me down. You have saved us all from an empty Notes column. (Nothing is sadder than that.)

Clarissa and Andreas Zehnder had the opportunity to have Peter Harvey, his wife Anna and their four kids as guests for two days in Switzerland/Zürich. Peter is in the process of buying and managing an American school for international families in Lenk (Alps). The two families had an awesome time and toasted to all the Bottom Line members (Kellogg's unforgettable men's a capella singing group) at a luxurious restaurant overseeing the city of Zürich.

Rachel Fleishman writes: "All is well on the byways of Brussels, where I'm living with Eli (who most of you will remember) and Eytan and Chasya (who you will not — ages 4 and 1 1/2, respectively). I'm still making Europe safe for American companies ... I mean, directing the lobbying/policy function of AmCham EU and contemplating different futures. In the meantime, we're having fun exploring Europe on the weekends — let's hear it for budget airlines — and hosting the occasional Kellogg event. We had a two-dean week in March, when Dean Jain was in Antwerp and Dean Emeritus Jacobs was in Brussels! Let us know when you'll be in town and we'll plan something. Rene Brisson '98 is famous for his Chicago blues nights (and other social events) and Philippe Laval '95 is always cooking up an exclusive executive evening (accompanied by wine or beer). Hope to see you soon!"

Read Flake writes: "After seven years in Houston, we're packing up and moving the family back to Chicago! I've just started a new job with Orbitz, which is now part of Cendant. I'm managing the online business-booking product (Travelport/Orbitz for Business). You probably know Orbitz for its consumer travel site, but the B2B side is growing too. I'll be working downtown in the shadow of the Sears Tower, but will live out in suburbia somewhere. I look forward to seeing more of you in Chicago!"

Chris Tomseth says: "I'm still living in Atlanta with my wife Maddie and daughter Angelina, now 3. I'm working at TRX, a transaction processing and data integration company serving the travel industry, where I do a combination of strategy, business development, M&A and marketing. We just filed our S-1, so I may take on some investor relations responsibilities as well. Maddie still works at Delta Air Lines, so we continue to travel when we can, as long as Delta doesn't go out of business. We're contemplating our next step in life, but we're not quite sure what that should be. In the meantime, we're just taking it one day at a time."

On May 3, Leo Griffin's wife April gave birth to two healthy twins. He writes: "Our son Sebastian weighed 7 pounds and daughter Isabel weighed 6 pounds, 7 ounces. We are very much in love with them and — apart from being rather tired — love being new parents. This great event caps an amazing year for us in which we got married, moved to a beautiful house in the hills above Los Angeles and become parents times two!"

Merchant banking firm Douglas, Curtis & Allyn LLC (doing business as DCA) has named Wael H. Aburida as managing director and head of investment banking. In his new role at DCA, he will lead the company's continued growth of advisory business, including sell-side and buy-side mergers and acquisitions, equity and debt private placements and strategic advisory services. Wael will assist high-growth companies in evaluating strategic options, obtaining financing and other general management matters.

Leif Welch contributed his latest news: "I've been married for two years to a native San Franciscan (Elizabeth) and we now have two children — an 18-month-old girl (Alexandra) and a 3-month-old boy (Finn). We recently bought a house in Pleasant Hill, Calif., which is about 25 miles east of San Francisco. Life in the 'burbs is pretty good and the adjustment was much easier than expected. We hang out at Quizno's, Safeway, 7-Eleven and other fancy strip-mall shops. We're really enjoying it out there! I still play music from time to time and have been dying to finish recording a few new original tunes. Time is always a scarcity these days. Professionally, my work colleagues and I recently took our company private through a management buyout. We are now owners of a new company called AdMission Corp. (admissioncorp.com). We offer enhanced ad creation and distribution tools for small businesses and license this technology to newspaper classifieds, yellow pages and local search companies. It's a small company, but the deals are really starting to flow. I keep in touch with Martin Sansing on a regular basis. I was also thrilled to read a report about Eric Fullmer driving his bike through South America — you never know where he's going to show up!"

Speaking of Eric Fullmer, he sent in this update: "After six years of consulting in Europe and the Americas, I have left Bain & Co. to start two new ventures in Central America: private equity fund 'Caoba Capital' in El Salvador with two former clients and venture capital shop 'Novita Capital' in my home town of San Jose, Costa Rica. Novita is already developing several projects: a jungle tour for cruise ship passengers, assisted-living centers for U.S. retirees and a rental property management startup. I am also taking time off with my globe-trotting German girlfriend: a BMW 1150GS motorcycle. I have taken her across both the Alps and the Andes. As to a flesh-and-bone type girlfriend, I hope actually being in one place for more than a couple of months will finally do the trick."

Ian Harris writes: "Has it really been seven years? Doesn't time fly when you're avoiding the NASDAQ meltdown, getting married and having a child. I am still in New York and loving the city more than ever. I have avoided the siren's call to the suburbs and live with my wife Karen and our son Luke in downtown Manhattan. I left Morgan Stanley last year to move to Lehman Bothers, a well-timed move it seems. Same job, same customers, very different firm culture. Of the Kellogg alums, I regularly see Andrew Calderwood (and work with him across the phones of a trading floor). I am set to kayak a section of the Missouri river with Graeme Jack, Scott Hauncher and John Hoesley this summer. I also see Julian Wagner/Richardson, David Koh and Scott Gardner from time to time."

Tracy and Federico Germani write: "We're still enjoying life in Miami and recently traded in our oceanfront condo for a house with a backyard and a pool to better accommodate our growing family. Mateo Manuel was born March 14, weighing in at 7 pounds, 11 ounces. He joins big brother Diego at home, who recently turned 2. After being born 11 weeks prematurely, Diego has made a full recovery, for which we are very thankful, and is now a BIG boy. We have both also changed our jobs since the last update Š Fede left McKinsey a year ago to join LAN Cargo as vice president of planning and finance analysis and is very much enjoying his new position. Tracy also left her job at World Fuel Services in October of last year to become a full-time mom and is also having a great time in her new role."

Leigh Anne Albert writes: "It has been 2 1/2 years since Allan and I moved to sunny Cape Town from dreary London. The move has been positive on all fronts: lifestyle, career and family. In January 2004, Allan and I bought a failing business that distributed cellular accessories. Although off to a slow start, the business is accelerating and we are quickly becoming one of the established players in the market. We represent various technology brands in South Africa such as Jabra and Samsung. See our Web site at flat-rock.com. Growing even more quickly than the business is Pia Lindiwe, born Jan. 15. (Lindiwe is a Xhosa name meaning 'long-awaited child'). Motherhood has been fantastic! Despite being business owners, we still find time to enjoy sunset picnics, mountain hikes and wineland tours in this amazing city. We love getting visitors; seeing Lisa Lee in November was awesome (she even made it to my baby shower), so please look me up if you make it to South Africa."

Suzie and Rob Kornblum are thrilled to announce the arrival of Christopher Henry Kornblum on May 19. Rob writes: "He joins big brothers Davis and Alex at home. Suzie and Christopher are both home and doing great. On the work front, I took a position last fall with Angle Technology Group, a U.K.-based firm focused on technology commercialization. We identify intellectual property in universities, national labs and corporations that we license to form a start-up company. We provide both the management team and seed capital. Although I am still based in the States (Washington, D.C.), I am traveling to London frequently. On the last trip, I had a great dinner with Shawn Leutchens."

Sarah Carroll is the proud mother of Ellie, born in August, and Alex, born in June 2002. She lives in Lawrenceville, N.J., where she works part time as a consultant to community development investors.

That's all for this edition, people. Speak to you again in the autumn. Have a lovely, lovely summer! Love, Melanie