February 2004

Look who’s coming to the 2004 Montana Crans Reunion. Why aren’t you on this list?

The Great Friends of Bluche Reunion of 2004 is definitely happening, and you want to be there! Do not wait for the next one, THIS IS THE ONE!

Ottavia Giorgi Monfort, Giancarlo Felli and Pradeep Kapadia met recently in Montana Crans to finalize plans for the reunion. After many glasses of ‘Dole du Valais,’ they arrived at the ideal plan. They ended the meeting with a toast for their friends and good times to come at the Great Friends of Bluche Reunion of 2004!

Dates: The reunion is scheduled for July 14 to the 18, beginning Wednesday evening and running to Sunday morning, a total of four nights at the hotel.

Venue: The reunion will be held at the Hotel Aida in Crans, the same hotel that hosted the reunion 10 years ago. The hotel is centrally located, within walking distance to Montana Crans, and has a swimming pool and a great dance hall for that all-important soiree. Ottavia will be negotiating costs and events with the hotel and will report on her discussions by March 1. Visit this website after March 10 for the next reunion update which will include prices.

Some folks have expressed an interest in staying at the old school. Unfortunately, the summer program of the hotel school that replaced LR/PF begins the same week as the reunion, so the logistics are not favorable. Also, Clivaz sold the school, so we have fewer connections with the current school administration.

Activities: While still in the planning stages, the following activities are planned:

• Wednesday evening, July 14: Welcome cocktails and buffet dinner at Hotel Aida. Slide show of pictures from previous reunions and from the old days at Bluche.

• Thursday, July 15: Ride down the funiculaire or walk down the path to Bluche and take a nostalgic tour of the old school – walk through the pavilions and rooms, visit St. Francois, walk the grounds, and have a picnic lunch on the fields behind the school. Come back to Montana Crans in the afternoon and visit the old shops, skating rink, the new casino (!), play a round of golf or go horseback riding. In the evening, have a fondue or raclette dinner in a local restaurant (maybe Auberge Petit Paradis?).

• Friday, July 16: Spend the day at Zermatt. Take the Funiculaire to Sierre and the train to Zermatt. Spend the day visiting the town, take a ski lift up to the base of the Matterhorn, or walk the fields looking for that elusive edelweiss. Come back to the Hotel Aida in the evening for dinner followed by the soiree dance, with music from the old days.

• Saturday, July 17: Open day – hang out at Montana Crans, take a gentle walk past Aminona to the waterfall. An afternoon barbeque/picnic hosted by Giancarlo and Nati Felli at their chalet, followed by open activities around town.

• Sunday, July 18: Farewell Brunch at Hotel Aida.

Some alumni may want to extend their stay in Switzerland or travel elsewhere in Europe. If you plan to travel around the area before or after the reunion, and would like to hook up with other classmates who plan to do the same, please let Ottavia know (OCTAVIAXXI@terra.es). Options include going to Neuchatel (Ottavia will be glad to host you in her hometown), taking a scenic train ride through the Alps, or trekking around the mountains with overnight stays in mountain huts.

It was agreed that we need to make a special effort to get more alumni on our email list, especially those alumni from Europe who could not attend the past two reunions, which were held in the US. If you can track down any old friends and get their email addresses, please send them to Ross Povenmire atRoss@povenmire.com.

What you need to do now: Email Ottavia today and let her know your intentions about attending the reunion: Yes, Maybe or No. She will update her list every two weeks and post it on the website for all to see.

Russell James writes: Ross, Great to hear from you! I am surprised to hear that there’s another Les Roches/PF reunion in the wrks. I was under the impression last summer’s get-together was the last. Do put me on the list for the newsletter. I’d like to subscribe. The last time I saw John Paul was at Margaret’s wedding some seven or eight years back. . . . I turn 50 this August. (Yes, I think about it EVERYDAY.) Am planning to visit Europe in late September as part of my celebration. Nor sure if I can make two trips to Europe to make the trip to Bluche. . . .Give my regards to Susan.

Heather Kinsley writes: Yes! Wonderful news… I was married this September.  David is a lot of fun and I feel really lucky to have met him at this point in my life.   Sometimes it does pay off to go to church…  Believe it or not but Elizabeth turns 24 this year…Amazing!  She spent the past two years on the Island of Wright off the southern coast of England but is back at Queens with only 6 weeks left to complete her BA.  I’d love to be on the mailing list!!  Although I told Susan that I wouldn’t be able to go to Switzerland for a reunion, David just said that he would like to go…  Not sure how the finances will take it but never say never.

Susan Seipel Sturgis writes: I am planning on sending my 20 year old daughter and Trevor to the reunion. He will be 13 by the time the reunion starts. I am joining Rob [husband] in Toronto this summer . . .. I can not wait to see Heather in Ottawa. She is only 4 hours from the Toronto Apt. Rob has an assignment for 1 year +++.

Gary Turner writes: congratulations!! i am gary turner, les roches 67-68.
i was going to volunteer my half ass french knowledge to translate [the recent call for newsletter articles],but you got a first rate job done. i have been in touch with some of my classmates off and on for the last 4 or 5 years including les winslett in colorado, but havent heard from him in a while. just recently talked to nancy goodheart from pres fleuris for the first time in many years. hope to be in bluche this summer if i can get some of my classmates to attend also.

Swagat Bam writes: Thanks for your very exciting email! I confirm I will be there (I perhaps may not have been if the venue had not been Bluche). July seems fine. Do you think we should all assemble in Geneva and then proceed on to Bluche like we used to do apres les vacances? This will be my first trip back to Switzerland since 1974. I’m really looking forward to it.

Rory Campbell writes: As I recall from the last LR missive, you and Pradeep attended Woodstock II together and found it a soggy experience. I gather that the mudfest impressed you and Pradeep so much that you wanted everyone to share [see FOB newsletter of 1994, available on the FOB website]. Should we bring wetsuits?

Doug Shadel writes: I have a 2 year old baby, a teenager graduating from high school and a 95 year old father and 90 year old mother, all of which keeps me pretty busy and pretty anchored to Seattle for now.

Susan Reaper York writes: I have been going to school getting my business degree for the past two years. I am almost done (May 2004), so would be willing to help out with the newsletter. I usually can find an hour a week. I seem to be writing lots of papers! . . . I doubt I could go to Europe, although I would love to. I’ll have to wait until it’s over this way again.

Craig Boone writes: Believe it or not, I just got an email from Landis Hartman, (who was known as Steve, nicknamed Igor,) a schoolmate of mine in ’66-’67. He’s practically a neighbor. I called him and we must have talked for over an hour. We’re meeting for dinner tomorrow night. Thanks go to the website! Hope to see you at the next reunion.

Judy Gustafson writes: I think it would be wonderful to have a reunion in Switzerland and I think it should be in Montana-Crans. I don’t know it you have ever had the occasion to go there recently, but I have two sisters that live Geneva and so I do go over from time to time. Naturally, I have made it to Montana-Crans. It is quite built up now and very, very nice….please keep this in mind when you think of a location.

Brendan Foulkes writes: Well Rosie & I are planning for the trip already, as you know I have not been back to La Suisse since we left, and I am looking forward to showing Rosie our former “stoomping ground”.

Chris Lok writes: greetings from rainy vancouver. while it rains at sealevel, snow if falling in the mountains and the ski season has started. i am very interested in attending the reunion in switzerland. i have no real preference as to location. i would wish to coordinate the reunion around a trip my daughter is taking to europe next summer so we could meet up during or post-reunion to return home together. her trip is planned for late july or early august. so that would work best for me.

Pat Hall writes: I used to get paper newsletters and dues letters but have not received any lately [that’s because FOB has stopped using snail mail]. Please put me on your email distribution list. I would like to attend the Swiss reunion, along with my sister, Christina. June or early July would be perfect and why not the scene of our misadventures! I will endeavor to get my best friend from those days, Marie Torkehagen, to join

Wendy Lamont-Woolbright writes: I am so happy to finally get an email from Sharon Taylor Baumann and the link to this site. I have been searching for a number of years. My name is Wendy Lamont-Woolbright. I attended PF the year of 1967-68 and would have been in the 1970 graduating class. My brother Wayne Lamont also attended that year as a Sr. I am very much looking forward to finding friends once found and then lost again and again.

Pradeep

NewsFlash from Our Man in Thailand

Last year SARS really hurt the tourism industry in Thailand. This year, we are having Bird Flu but not SARS, an improvement of sorts. As far as the tourism business is concerned, there has been very little effect from the Bird Flu. The Bird Flu was discovered late last year in Thailand and has since spread through the country. It has damaged the poultry industry for the whole year, but we are still hopeful that it will not spread to Humans. Japan and the EU plus a lot of countries have banned the importation of Thai chicken. We have to cull all our chicken in the infected area. People have shied away from poultry products, of course. This has affected all chicken restaurants. My food factory is affected badly because more than 30% of our products are made from chicken. Anyway, Thailand hopefully will recover from the Bird Flu in six months if we have everything contained.

Pichet Nithivasin

Musings on the Airport

Do you remember the indescribable feeling of arriving at Geneva airport on the way home for winter, spring or summer vacation? We’d all been bused down together from Bluche, listening to music and excited about the holiday. At the airport, once we were all ticketed with bags checked, we’d settle in at the bar – our group growing smaller and smaller until all our flights had departed. We went our separate ways until the cycle began again with the return of school.

A year ago I was back at Geneva airport for the first time in more than 30 years. Memories of school arrivals and departures rushed back and my heart quickened remembering the emotional goodbyes – whether to family at home or to friends from PF/LR. It is hard now to reconstruct the setting as the inside of the airport has been renovated beyond recognition, or at least my recollection. The grey sky and cold winter weather were familiar and the taxis are still all Mercedes.

In September 1972 when our plane taxied to a stop I remember looking out the window and seeing commando forces patrolling the airport rooftop. They stood evenly spaced wearing black uniforms and carrying automatic weapons. They were there because of a rash of hijackings of airplanes toLibya. It was my first face to face meeting with the threat of terrorism and the introduction has stayed with me ever since.

If the rush of memories I felt at Geneva airport are any indication, a reunion in Bluche this summer should be knockout!

My visit to Geneva made me wonder about changes in Switzerland over the past three decades. If you find the following factoids interesting, there are more at: http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/3431.htm

• Despite a dearth of natural resources, the Swiss economy is among the world’s most advanced and prosperous. Per capita income is virtually the highest in the world, as are wages. Trade has been the key to prosperity in Switzerland.

• The Swiss federal government is deeply divided over EU membership as its long-term goal, and in a March 2001 referendum more than 70% of the voters rejected rapid steps toward EU membership. The issue of EU membership is, therefore, likely to be shelved for several years, if not a decade.

• Switzerland ranks 18th among the main trading partners of the U.S. worldwide. The United States is the second-largest importer (11.5%) of Swiss goods after Germany (20%). The U.S. exports more to Switzerland each year than to all the countries of the former Soviet Union and Eastern Europe combined, and Switzerland imports more U.S. products and services than does Spain.

Susan Povenmire