Susan '79 and Richard Rosenstein at Reunion 2004

1979

Jim Litwin reporting. As I write this, I just received word from the alumni office that our 25th reunion was the most successful ever, with 83 of our classmates and guests in attendance over the weekend. Our gala Saturday night dinner was a sell-out (in fact, oversold) with Dean Jain and several Kellogg School professors in attendance. And, as of mid-May, our class had raised more than $77,000 for our Reunion Class Gift.

I must admit that, after 25 years, we have a very impressive and distinguished-looking class! Here's some information about our classmates:

Govind K. Arora writes that he is SVP of manufacturing/logistics for General Binding Corp. in Northbrook, Ill. Prior to GBC, he worked at Hammond Organ, Federal Synal and Essex Corp.

Bob Bailey who is EVP, director of research at BBDO Chicago, writes, "I've spent my career at BBDO Chicago, mainly working on the Wrigley gum account. Life's been good."

Mike Cannon is CFO of Finn Corp. and writes, "My son is now attending Northwestern as a freshman in the Weinberg School of Arts and Sciences. Did my attending Kellogg influence him? No, not really, but it was the first school we visited. This is my oldest son, and he has a younger brother in high school. I got married in 1980 to a wonderful girl I found in Iowa, just a year after Kellogg. I spent 20 years with big companies before I found my niche in bringing good financial practices to small companies. I'm now the CFO of a $50 million, profitable, growing manufacturer, located in the north suburbs of Cincinnati. And as we 'boomers' head into retirement years, how many of you are now managing parental estates and beginning to think about what's next? I am."

Bill Cobb is SVP and general manager for the international business unit of eBay Inc., and was a keynote speaker at one of the main sessions. He, his wife Carole, and their three boys are enjoying living in California and playing every youth sport available.

Bill Colwell is senior director of portfolio analytics at CNH Capital (Case New Holland) and writes: "After grad school, went to Ford, where I spent 22 years in supply chain, manufacturing engineering and credit analytics. Married, raised a son, divorced. Joined Case New Holland in 2002. Enjoying rediscovering Chicago after 20 years. (It's much nicer than I remember it on a student budget!)"

Stoddard Crane is VP, business growth at Darden Restaurants and writes: "Celebrated 30th wedding anniversary in August 2003 and graduated oldest son from college in 2003 as well. On July 9, will have reached 25th anniversary with General Mills (16 years) and successor restaurant company --- Darden Restaurants (nine years). Approaching fifth year of committing weekly to strategy and growth responsibilities at Darden from home to work/office in Orlando. (Yes, I've got plenty of flyer miles.) Instead of all those finance and accounting classes, wish I'd studied more in market research. Still feel blessed to have had Gene Lavengood for policy --- one of those lifetime highs ..."

Bob Easter is VP at ChoicePoint in Macon, Ga. He and his wife Linda have one son.

John Erickson is first VP at LaSalle Bank and writes: "Following our graduation from Kellogg, I went to work for First Chicago Bank, trading bonds for the trust department. I met my wife Jane while looking for a date to my 10-year high school reunion. We got married in 1986, and had our son J.P. in 1988 and our daughter Ellie in 1991. In 1996, my job moved out to Detroit after a merger, but we stayed on in Chicago. I joined LaSalle Bank in 1998 and work there now as the fixed-income specialist and bond portfolio manager. My family lives in River Forest with our newest addition, Stetson, our miniature schnauzer."

Dave Gimbert works in finance at Orbital Sciences Corp. in Chandler, Ariz., and writes: "My most exciting news is my new daughter, our first child, Kamryn. After some years of anticipation, she was born on March 3 and is the light of our forever altered lives. I've continued to be employed in the finance department of Orbital Sciences for over nine years now. Kristin was able to resign her position with a real estate management company to take full-time charge of Kamryn. My father and I have continued to take annual trips in recent years, and after Rio de Janeiro last summer, have seen every continent except Antarctica. We enjoy the time together and have many lasting memories."

Phil Hayes lives in northern Indiana with his wife Claire and their three daughters, and writes that he has spent "15 years in sales and marketing for Poulan/Weed Eater, manufacturer of outdoor lawn and garden equipment; five years as president of Kent, a division of Electrolux, manufacturer of commercial cleaning equipment; and most recently, five years as general manager of Glaval Bus, division Forest River, manufacturer of shuttle buses and recreational vehicles."

Robert Herrman is managing director at Investment Management Advisors LLC in Mt. Prospect, Ill. He and his wife Melissa have three sons and one daughter.

Steve Knudsen is director of business development at BPA and writes: "Wow, how time flies. After graduation, I moved back to Oregon where, (surprise, surprise) I have remained. I spent many years in the federal government, most of them with BPA, a federal power marketing agency, managing everything from finance to power supply to marketing. About 10 years ago, I moved to the private sector in the gas transmission business, and from there on to underground storage development, and finally, became a power plant developer. Unfortunately, I became a victim of the post-Enron energy industry meltdown and recently returned to BPA. I have a wonderful wife of 17 years and three great boys (and a 1-year-old pointer)."

Mary Jo MacSwain is director of customer and segment marketing at Sara Lee and writes: "Started in CPG with Johnson & Johnson and James River. Switched to out-of-home business with Coca-Cola Fountain. After a brief stint at a research firm and some market consulting, went to Sara Lee Coffee and Tea in 2000."

Paul Misniak is vice president of advertising at Career Education Corp. in Hoffman Estates, Ill.

Susan Rosenstein is president of Susan Rosenstein Executive Search Limited in Chicago and writes: "After graduating, I spent seven years in consumer package goods marketing at Sara Lee (Kitchens of Sara Lee at that time) and Beatrice U.S. Food. I had a great time managing businesses and developing new products. In 1986, Beatrice was bought by KKR, I got married and left Beatrice to start an executive recruiting business. Since then, Susan Rosenstein Executive Search Limited has become known as a boutique firm specializing in the recruitment of mid- to senior-level marketing, strategy, communications and marketing research executives. All of the recruiters in the firm are MBAs with backgrounds in CPG marketing. The firm recruits nationally and has domestic and international clients. I have stayed very involved with Kellogg; spending several years as an active member of the Chicago alumni club, serving as chairperson for the career development committee and on the board as a secretary. I am currently a member of the Dean's Alumni Advisory Board; I participate in the mentorship program; I conduct workshops for students and alumni on interviewing, rÈsumÈ writing and networking; and was the co-chair for our 25th reunion.

"My husband Richard is a commercial real estate attorney. After attending many Kellogg events with me, he decided to attend the KMI program. He graduated in the Class of 2002 and loved every minute of it. In addition to Kellogg, my volunteer activities include the advisory board for the Second Chance Foundation for cancer research at Rush Medical Center, fund raising for the Chicago Academy for the Arts, and Mujeres, a bilingual/bicultural agency that seeks to empower women, their families and youth to become self-reliant. My interests include playing piano, gourmet cooking, snow skiing, travel, and more recently, golf. We play golf all summer at a club near our summer home in Lakeside, Mich., and in the winter whenever we can get away to warm weather."

Kirk Spresser told me he recently joined the Zyman Group in a leadership role and can be reached at kirk.spresser@zyman.com.

Carrie Stahl writes: "'Paradise is where I am.' These words by Voltaire sum up the current state of my life as I reflect on the present, 25 years after my graduation from Kellogg. I consider myself to be a very fortunate woman. Two years ago this July, I married a wonderful man, a retired Army general. We now live in the Washington metro area and love the excitement of the region. My daughter Cate graduated from Northwestern's Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences in 2003. Currently, she is at the top of her law school class and is looking forward to her summer associate position in international law. Her assignment will take her to London. Not a bad place to launch a legal career!

"About 10 years ago, I added a doctoral degree in psychology to my Kellogg credentials. On my 50th birthday, I left the corporate world to launch Strategic Solutions, a personal and business success coaching practice. I specialize in working with people in the process of redesigning their lives, their careers or their businesses. About 50 percent of my clients are women who reduced their career commitments while they devoted their time and attention to family demands and now seek a strategy to reconnect to the business world and identify a new professional agenda. Additionally, my daughter and I have founded a charitable foundation, named for my great aunt, Ada Wallenbach. Aunt Ada pioneered the modern dynamic spirit of today's women and succeeded in business at a time when very few women even considered any type of employment outside the home. In her honor, our foundation empowers women to achieve their full potential by offering seminars and workshops, individual and group counseling and merit scholarships for the study of business and law.

"As a serious advocate of work-life balance, a top priority for me is adequate time for fun. My husband and I enjoy travel, winter sports and hiking. Over the years, I have become an accomplished amateur photographer and an active participant in our community art league. Additionally, last year I won first place in our club's badminton championship. Presently I am studying yoga and will earn instructor certification later this year. Wouldn't it be wonderful if on the occasion of our 50th reunion, I could manifest this same level of fitness and flexibility? This challenge will become my goal! It is impossible for me to recount all the benefits of my Kellogg experience. I gained a great deal from my professors and an unexpected amount from all of you. Thank you for everything."

Ann Murtfeldt Sundberg writes: "I've been a free-lance marketing (and some HR) consultant since leaving General Mills in 1987. It's been a good way to balance the raising of three kids with some brain stimulation and income. I married a great guy in 1983 and we're looking forward to more travel as we start to empty the nest. We are starting the college process with our eldest, which is more challenging than I remember it being in 1973. Life in the Minneapolis area has been great, but I look forward to spending the winters somewhere else. (We're thinking of South Australia instead of Naples and Scottsdale.)"

Jerry Thode is president of the J. Paul Group LLC in Southern California.

Michael L. Tucker is senior counsel at Bank One Corp. and writes, "After being an office manager for three years, I became a pension consultant and went to law school at night. I spent 11 years in private practice as an ERISA, employee benefits and executive compensation specialist and then joined Bank One's law department. I now handle investment advisory and institutional trust matters for Bank One's investment management group."

Mike Weisberger is VP of Ipsos North America and writes, "I recently left the company where I spent 17 years to join a different market research firm. I've been married for 21 years, and lived in New Jersey for 19 years."

Tom Wong is SVP at Strottman International and writes, "Hi all! Sorry I couldn't join you for Reunion, but it was good hearing from old friends with invites, seductions, reasons (and 'threats') to come to the reunion. Time flies in so many ways, and surprisingly (to me, more than anyone else), I've coming up on 20 years with my current company. Keeping ahead of kids and teens (and their families) in the marketplace has kept us hopping, and in a way, 'forever young' (or feeling not-so-young, when I see some of the things they do). We cracked the Top 10 last year, so at least it's working. My 'forever young' is teaching BMW owners (everyone from 16-year-old wannabe racers to boomers in their brand-new 745s and M5s) race-track driving from the 'shotgun' seat. 'Running out of talent' at more than 100 mph is not unusual, and you can use your imagination from there. Anyway, if you're ever out in Southern California with a couple of hours to kill, give me a ring."

Hiroshi (Hiro) Matsuzaki wanted to let old friends know about a new career in Sofia, Bulgaria. Hiroshi writes: "Since I left The Institute for International Business Communication at the end of 2002, I've been involved in several consulting activities in the fields of global leader development, e-learning, global business, English education, etc. Also, through my expanded networking activities with various business circles and groups, I have been pursuing my personal interest for revitalizing Japan in the global arena. Through these activities, out of the blue, I was asked if I would be interested in taking part in a special national project for Bulgaria. My first reaction was excitement, expecting that I would be exposed to a unique environment with a culture and history I had never known.

"As you might know, Bulgaria, along with other former Socialist countries, started modernizing in the late '80s. After more than 10 years, however, the country's modernization has not been accomplished as initially intended. A lack of business leaders in the country is considered to be one of the reasons for this, and as a result, the Bulgarian government has requested Japan's assistance in establishing fundamental schemes for cultivating future business leaders in the country.

"The job satisfies my personal interest of 'contributing to goals accomplishment in the global arena.' I'm thrilled about this opportunity, but a bit nervous, for this is a project agreed to on a government-to-government basis and the Bulgarian people will see Japan through me." We wish Hiroshi good luck in the new position.