July 13 GTE Blog

Tomorrow is our first official GTE Roeper Alumni Gathering as we will be meeting at the DC home of Miranda Beebe at 5:00-7:00 for food, drink, socializing, reconnecting with old friends, meeting new friends, reminiscing about old times and dreaming of Roeper’s future. 

Neighborhood:  Adams Morgan

Address:  1821 Belmont Road NW #1, Washington DC  20009 (between 18th St and Columbia Rd NW)

Phone:  202-320-4790 (cell), 202-232-2753 (home)

Nearest Metro:  Woodley Park (Red Line - about a 15 min walk, or short cab ride)

Nearest Bus:  #42 stops 1.5 blocks away on Columbia Road NW

Parking:  Street parking, or Colonial Parking garage one block away on 18th Street NW.

Linda and I just finished up sorta' of an alumni gathering in Williamsburg, VA as we stayed a week with daughter Amanda Ronis, '00, and grandkid, Nadia Ronis.   This wonderful experience and the fact that we only see Amanda, Jason, '00 and Nadia every 6 weeks or so because they live in Columbus starts me thinking about how many of our Roeper kids have moved out of the metro Detroit area and what a  shame it is that our area which needs all the help it can get has so many of our "kids" leaving.

Is it just that other pastures are greener?  Is it the lack of opportunity in metro Detroit?  Is it the weather? Are we too small of a pond for those with big ambitions?  What is it?  Asking on behalf of a lotta' of alumni parents who want to see their grandkids more:  What can we do to keep you in the area?

In any event, I asked in a previous blog (and on the alumni FB page) for people who won't be able to join us at a GTE event to answer the questions ( respond via emery.pence@roeper.org and/or FB)  that we will be talking about at the gatherings: "What kind of citizens, workers and people do we need in the future?” and     

"What are the opportunities and challenges of empowering students via technology?"

We had two contributions so far.  Keith Cornfield,'79,  spoke of the need to teach kids the Roeper value of congruence or living up to one's ideals.  He remembered how George Roeper lived the Philosophy he taught. (check the previous blog for Keith's eloquent statement).

We have also received an opinion from Keith Carpenter who can't come to a gathering because he had hip surgery on July 10.   He answered the question not so much from what Roeper could do but what society in general needs.

 As for the questions to the first I'd say that we don't have as much control as we'd like but I would like to see more apprentice or skill training that would help the 50 percent of the population who gain little from college.
Keith

Lastly,  please don't forget the rest of the GTE events this July:

PHILADEPHIA:  Tuesday, July 16, 2013, 6:00pm until 8:00pm  

Vietnam Restaurant, 221 North 11th St., Philadelphia,

NYC:  Please join Eric Peterson, Linda Pence and me on Thursday, July 18  from 6:00-8:00 PM at the Arsenal in Central Park, 830 5th Ave (at 64th Street).

BOSTON: On Sunday, July 21 from 4:00-7:00 we will be at the home of Michelle Efros Fox, '95, 18 Frances St., Needham, MA 

WEST CENTRAL MASS.  Tom and Laura Roeper will host all available Roeperians at their home on Wednesday, July 24, 6:00-8:00 PM.  149 High St., Amherst, MA
For those in Mass., please feel free to come to both gatherings.  Actually, any Roeperian who comes to multiple GTE events will be lauded, honored and mentioned.

If you need to get a hold of us the day of an event or while we are on the road between July 6-July 25,  please call Linda at 248-318-0386 or me at 248-943-3256.

Oh, no -  Hindstrum just got loose in the Starbucks that we are working in and is trying to pick up female companionship.  Let's hope that there are no boyfriends around or we are going to have another brawl like that time in that Billings, Montana bar when Hindstrum made some anti-Ayn Rand statements.  

“What kind of education leads to those types of folks” Also, “What are the opportunities technology holds for education?”