1983

	Scott Schiller and Mark Mitten, both ‘83, at Reunion this spring
	Scott Schiller ‘83 with John McEnaney ‘83 and his wife, Liz

As I write this, it's just a few weeks after one of the most memorable Kellogg moments: our 25th Reunion where 150 classmates broke every record imaginable. By the time all the books are closed, more than 40 percent of our class will have played a roll in raising the most ever by a reunion class — more than $500,000! Our collective thanks to Rick Kiley and Ted Martin, who led the charge and a devoted committee that focused on giving/participation and Reunion attendance. It sure paid off!

But, not to rest on our laurels, the team is focusing on a 30th Reunion with newly minted co-chairs Jeff Cohen and Scott Sanford. At the time of this writing, work has already begun. Save the date for the first Saturday in May 2013, day of the Kentucky Derby.

Two of the most significant moments, of this program and, of course, unique to the Class of 1983 were the "Open Mic" lunch and "Class of 1983 Reunion Facebook." The mandatory, but worth it, Open Mic lunch gave each class member 70 seconds (after which they were "gonged" by the daughter of class member Bill Albrecht) to talk about how Kellogg influenced their lives. Also impressive was how many folk traveled from all over to be in Evanston for the event. No effort was quite as poignant as witnessing all seven Filipino members of our class, who traveled across the world, at the party and lunch. An effort like this speaks to the passion, commitment and genuine love our classmates have for each other.

Second highlight: the Reunion Class Facebook. We all had some good laughs and impressive reading about our classmates, who were asked to compile an update of our first-ever class book. It was receiving this book in advance that made the event real for many of us and will provide lasting memories of our classmates. Some of us even look the same as the day we started at school!

Reliving the best memories, moments and faculty interactions illustrates the power of the Kellogg experience. What follows are just a few of the best selections. Follow along as I mix and match and also include a few updates from our classmates. Most of the memories had something to do with learning to grow up, or falling in love.

Here goes!

Random best moments: Meeting my wife, Donna, at a TG at Leverone Hall; blues nights at Biddy Mulligan's with Buddy Guy and Junior Wells; attending the Cubs game after my final exam, with friends who were waiting in the hallway with the cooler; academically, I still tell my own students a few good "war stories" from my marketing classes, like Brian Sternthal's lecture where he first used the word agentic. To this day, I have never seen or heard this word used!

Jukebox singalongs with other KGSM'ers at The Lodge on Rush Street; meeting my wife, Denice, while working on GMA together, and then falling in love with her during Special K!; Kellogg ski trips, cross-country skiing after TG and the Kellogg camping trip; receiving the diploma from the dean's hand and celebrating it with all classmates and families was very emotional and emblematic; reading Chuck Zent's musings in the student newspaper, particularly the tale of the real product TopJob, a foambased spray-on false hairpiece for bald men; group projects around my dining room table with Amy Huggins, Deborah Naish, Sallie Bray, Judy Rappaport, Kevin McDonald, Alan Robertson and a host of friendsÉ Hard to pick! The rafting and camping trip to Wisconsin when it rained all weekend and the ski trip when Rick Kiley made dinner with Velveeta cheese. Rebuilding a Northwestern frat for two years while pursuing my MBA. Playing on the Northwestern lacrosse team. Pam de Mars. The great experiences with friends in the student apartments. Being in our first class and assigned to our first team exercise where I was given a certain nickname that people still use today. Thanksgiving 1981 when Dean Jacobs and his wife joined us in the Living/Learning Center. I was a long way from home, and that was a very pleasant holiday for me. Discovering Chicago in the summer of '82 with the other wide-eyed four-quarter students. Another Stroh's grenade, anyone? Prof. Api Ruzdic in his Dracula get-up. Liam Fahey on the first day of class, with him refusing to answer any questions on the case study, stating "In business, you never have the info you need to solve problems – figure it out by next class session!" I will always remember my days at Kellogg as challenging, exciting and fun – mostly because I had the opportunity to be a part of and learn from a wonderful community of interesting classmates.

Most influential course or faculty member: The Socratic method-based discussion and business analysis methods taught in Liam Fahey's management policy course. Strategy with Gene Lavengood. Consumer Behavior & Advertising. Dean Ed Wilson who helped my transition back to Kellogg after a horrific car accident. Marketing Channels with Louis Stern. Don Haider's introductiong to public management — I've used this much to describe the difference between nonprofit and for profit management. Learning to recognize and ignore sunk costs (literally and metaphorically) has been key. Philip Kotler's marketing courses.

Greatest impact of the Kellogg experience: The confidence of being able to solve any business problem. Negotiation skills. A strong reputation with prospective employers. Aside from the business tools, an ability to approach issues from a macro perspective down to the details. Kellogg helped launch my dream career — consumer marketing — and also my summer internship where I met my husband! For the first time in my academic career, I was inspired by the quality of students around me at Kellogg. That influence helped me grow up. Being selected for the Internship at Toshiba in Tokyo was the foundation of what would become an international career doing business in over 30 countries, living again in Tokyo and in Singapore. The culture of sharing, caring and positive energy fostered by Kellogg is something that I draw on with frequency. When I graduated from Kellogg, I co-founded a business – The Alcar Group – with two professors, Alfred Rappaport and Carl Noble Jr., and several other alums: life transforming! Kellogg changed my life forever!

As for news from our classmates, Robert Murray writes that he joined Credit Capital Investments of Short Hills, N.Y., which is the advisor to the Teak Hill Fund. He is recently married (2007) to "a lovely Argentine women who holds an M.A. in economics from the University of Chicago. They split their time between her hacienda in Belleville and his townhouse in Princeton, N.Y.

Art Greco writes: "To the surprise and dismay of many, I managed to find a life partner, Allene Chung, and procreate. We have two wonderful sons - Dakota (6) and Oliver (3), both of whom bring great joy and boundless love into our lives. I am the CEO of StemSave, an emerging life sciences company engaged in the harvesting and cryogenic preservation of an individual's valuable adult stem cells. Prior to founding StemSave, and following a stint on Wall Street, I have had the good fortune to travel extensively, the misfortune of being jailed in Texas, the requisite life altering near-death experience, criss-crossing the country on an iron horse and inventing 'molecular art.'

Scott Fearon reports the following. "In 1983, I moved to Houston. I spent five years at Texas Commerce Bank, the last four of which in investment division. I managed an equity fund and did well. I was recruited to San Francisco by British mutual fund company G.T. Capital. I managed U.S. stock onshore/offshore funds. I was enticed to start my own hedge fund by money managment friends in Marin County. I'm still slugging away 18 years later with $250 million under management. Lucrative and still exciting with 17 'up' years. I stopped taking new investors 10 years ago and will likely retire soon, but the biz remains as fun and challenging as ever. I married in 1987 and have three kids, the youngest (13) of which is autistic and has cystic fibrosis; this has been the toughest challenge anyone could face, but my son is doing well. He is semiverbal and has taught me and my other kids to be helpful, compassionate and eternally patient. In 2000, our family started a school for disabled kids with other families of impaired kids. We have 22 kids today and hope to serve up to 40 in a few years. I am finance head, and my wife is chair of the school board. This takes a lot of time but is very rewarding. I travel all over the Western U.S. visiting smaller, publicly traded companies but have not been to Chicago in more than 10 years, although I may get there this summer and will visit Evanston. Hopefully the bar/restaurant The Third Rail still exists.

Spencer Lampert writes: "I am happily married for the past 17 years and have one daughter who is about to turn 13, which I suppose is about to turn my hair gray? I have been with Tudor Investment Corp for more than 20 years now. Who knew I could be so faithful? The most interesting thing that has happened to me was the ability to sit down for lunch with Scott Schiller and catch up on the many Kellogg alums." Well, Spencer, Dave Tuchler and Stu Flink ask the burning question, "Where is Omar Sherif?"

Finally, Claire Brown Letrilliart and Mark Mitten invite classmates to contact Claire at clairebrown@yahoo.com. They will be organizing an informal, N.Y./Boston reunion this summer to catch up with some of our friends who could not make the festivities in May. E-mail me all your news for our next column.