Tequila Sunset

Our Colorado contingent recently rallied to Don Hindman's cry and found time to share a meal, some stories and a little tequila!

LtoR: Will Pierson, RJ Harrington, Jeff Spadafora and Don Hindman

Buffalo Country

 REPOST:

Tuesday, September 16, 2025

Buffalo Country

Doug Schmidt met up with Will Piersol in Denver this week in between his own healthcare meetings. "Will is bagging Buffalos out here and helping Coach Prime recruit lacrosse players to an anemic football squad (not!).  In actuality,  he's keeping up with his wife and two daughters, one of whom is at Northeastern and is CO-OP'ing at Toast to bring a quality experience to all those who are dining out.  He's living healthy and learning more about the wellness and longevity space - as we all should be. Definitely look him up if you find yourself out this way."

Buffalo Country

Doug Schmidt met up with Will Piersol in Denver this week in between his own healthcare meetings. "Will is bagging Buffalos out here and helping Coach Prime recruit lacrosse players to an anemic football squad (not!).  In actuality,  he's keeping up with his wife and two daughters, one of whom is at Northeastern and is CO-OP'ing at Toast to bring a quality experience to all those who are dining out.  He's living healthy and learning more about the wellness and longevity space - as we all should be. Definitely look him up if you find yourself out this way."

Shock and awwwwwwwwwwwwwe!

While congratulations are in order for John Cianciolo on the occasion of his 60th birthday,  it was universally agreed that his daughter Lilly should get all the praise for the SURPRISE 60th she unleashed.

It started with an abbreviated Peleton ride when Bob Keirstead (from Illinois), Will Piersol (from Colorado) and local driver John Knight showed up in his driveway. (CC was overhead later saying, "I'm gonna kill her!")

Phase one surprise visitors included: Knight, Keirstead, CC, Piersol and Doug Schmidt!

More school friends from Deerfield and Boston College descended on a bar in Narraganset for further shenanigans.

Thanks to Nelse Clark (MA), Spence Brown (CT) and Jim Wareck (CT) for joining in the fun!

Kudos to all the classmates that were able to answer the call for John, but especially class spokesman, Bubba Keirstead!

Recent Lunches announce new photo policy

Two great classmate lunches happened recently and all participants "forgot" to include a photo with their information sharing.  This, sadly, includes your editor.  Hence the new policy of yearbook photos as stand ins.  Enjoy!

Will Piersol and Andy Stewart dined in the West...

While Knight and Wareck dined in the East!

Oceans 9

Another wonderful Zoom Happy Hour on Saturday 5/23.  Our third. Was great to see Andrew Witherspoon, RJ Harrington and Whit Armstrong for the first time on Zoom.  Lots of great conversations and business ideas floating around.  Also good intel on what it's like in other parts of the country.

The attendees continue to ask for more Zoom calls and encourage others to join when they can!  Stay tuned for another invite - that will come from john knight's email address at the University of Denver (@du.edu). If u aren't receiving them - email jgknight83ATgmail.com ("AT"=@)

That was fun. Zoom HH #2 scheduled for May 2

Thanks to those classmates who braved the first Class of 83 Zoom Happy Hour!

Great to See and hear from Brian Steward (TX), John Knight - Don Hindman and Will Piersol (CO), Adam Feiges (IA), Eric Suher and Ben Patton (MA), Dean Singewald (CT), Jim Wareck and Alex Kerr (CA), Whit Sheppard (VA) and Chris Flagg - PB Weymouth and Doug Cruikshank (NY).

We all agreed to do it again and to try and expand the attendee list!

One classmate also recommended a book to the group: "The Classmates: Privilege, Chaos and the End of an Era" by Geoffrey Douglas.  Big picture - it follows five classmates from the class of 1962 at St. Paul's School - John Kerry among them".  Sounds interesting!

Class of 1983 Zoom HH #2 will be May 2 at 6 pm ET.  To get the invite - ask any of the attendees from HH #1 or email "jgknight83 AT gmail.com".  (HINT: use @ for "AT")

The more the merrier!!!

Kudos to Dean Singewald for the DA Dining Hall as his virtual background!  Maybe we should call it "Sit-Down Happy Hour"?

When Schmidt's in town...

Doug had a biz trip to Denver, so team 83 rallied in support.  Don Hindman organized a dinner which drew from up and down the Front Range.  Schmidt, Harrington, Knight, Hindman and Piersol enjoyed Mexican food and a ton of laughs at a cute spot in old Golden.  Nothing like a mini-reunion! Props to RJ for wearing the green and white...Don then dragged Schmidt into the mountains for a chilly day at Copper which apparently involved a good deal of cinnamon flavored liquid heat...and a solid photobomb.

Make the effort to get to our 35th reunion please - its gonna be a good time!

Earth Day

I'm sure there are more Earth Day events that the class participated in - but here's two..

Mark LaFlamme and family went for a run in CA...

And Will Piersol and JK joined Darwin Toll '78 to work on a Volunteer Outdoor Colorado project as part of Deerfield's Day of Service.  The project completed the first section of a new trail to make available the lands of the Rocky Mountain Arsenal Wildlife Preserve (formerly a munitions area for US Army and a Superfund site) to the people of Colorado.  Snow and rain and 35 degrees at the start, sunny and 65 at the finish!

So close to #10...

Colorado almost added its tenth classmate recently...But alas the plan has changed and major revisions are needed for the post originally prepared...

Here are the Colorado Nine:

Gassman
Graney
Hammar
Harrington
Hindman
Knight
Piersol
Spadafora
Watts

It was November 2015 when Matt Calman visited Denver with his wife to scout the area for his wife's job shift with TransAmerica.  I kept it quiet so we could have a big dinner when they got settled...and to surprise the CO 9....

Since then, Matt landed an Innovation job at Microsoft in Seattle and his wife's job has shifted back to HQ in Cedar Rapids, IA! This modern couple is frequently traveling, and Matt may one day write a post for the blog on said glamorous (?) expeditions.

Too bad not to add another to our group but best of luck with your transitions!!!

It's just lunch...

Will had business in Denver (he lives near Boulder) so made a point to schedule a lunch with JK.  Then the business cancelled and he still came to lunch.  Great wide-ranging chat between two old friends who hadn't seen much of each other in the last 30+ years.  You should try it too!

All caught up...

I did it!  I found the newest classmate in the octet known as the Colorado Eight!  Will Piersol in the red shirt, joined by nearest classmate Taylor Watts and me.  Sunny and 70 as usual at lunchtime...

Will had some great stories about his time in Singapore, Taiwan and Japan but the family decided the time was right to live back in the US. So great to have him nearby...

Will recalled how in 1978-79 he was touring schools as part of the admission process and visited DA during the winter term.  When he arrived on campus in the fall of 1979 to start 9th grade he asked, where are the girls?  Turns out his parents never mentioned that DA was all-male, and he assumed that since he saw girls on campus (Emma Willard exchange!) during his tour it was coed. Way to stick it out Will!!!

What? Another one?

So last week, as I'm getting ready to meet Tom Hammar (after nearly 32 years) for lunch and meet the final classmate in Colorado (6 for 6!) I glance at my email.

But more on that later.  Tom looked very happy and his 20 years in Denver have treated him well.  He didn't really like his two years at DA after having been sent from Chicagoland, so he doesn't really stay in touch with anyone from the class. It was great he made a point to have lunch with me, given all that background.

He went to CU-Boulder and had too much fun.   He spent some time in Estonia with the Peace Corps.
He has worked in retail but he has found a groove in the building trades.  2008 wasn't kind to his employer so Tom bought and flipped a house to keep himself busy.  Then the economy got back on track and now he is leading all building and renovation projects in the Rocky Mountains (32 stores) for Whole Foods.

He was excited to see the Global H2O presentation was part of the Denver Reception, because water is such an important issue - especially out here.  "If I had a kid who was malleable - I'd push them toward Law, specifically Water Law".

Back to that email.  It was a nice 50th birthday greeting from Will Piersol.  Last I knew he was in Singapore.  It ended with "We've settled in the Boulder area, so if you're ever up this way..."

I guess there are now 8 of us in Colorado and I'm only 6 for 7!  Boulder, here I come..

DC and Boston...and the IHL

'83 turning out at Deerfield Receptions!

Top: Welcome to DC to Scott Pryce and family!  A brief stay in Brazil after his days in Spain didn't quite pan out for the family so they are in Washington now.  America's got new talent!

Below: Charlie van Dusen attended the Boston event last night and enjoyed reminiscing about the IHL Champion Maple Leafs and his elegant (i.e. disputed) goal in the final game over Bob Fitz and the Canadiens.

Additional: Not only does the Stanley Can live in my office, I have copies of season stats from 1979-1990. In our senior year the Leafs and the Bruins finished the regular season at 7-3-1, the Canadiens at 4-7 and the Blackhawks at 3-8. In the playoff semi-finals, the Canadiens stunned the Bruins 2-1 and the Leafs handled the Hawks 4-2.  In the final the Leafs won 2-1.  Charlie's goal was his only of the season (unverified).

Top scorers in the IHL that year:
First Line: D. Smith (8), Ehmann and Esty (7),  Jackson, Pauley and Piersol (6)
Second Line: Wolf (8), S Brown (7)
Third line: Rigsby (9)

Singapore Slim - Piersol weighs in

"Mark’s comments are pretty much spot on—eliminate all processed/fried foods—this is your biggest enemy. If it’s possible—particularly from a time perspective—make your meals at home from scratch with the best ingredients you can muster. These will be the biggest initial hurdles.


Mark’s claims about carbohydrates are accurate. Despite what “experts” claim and the claims of carbo-heavy FDA food pyramid—carbs are what will kill you weight-wise as it catalyzes into sugar and eventually leaves you hungry. One aspect Mark doesn’t discuss is eating proper proteins. You need fat to satisfy your hunger—otherwise it will be more challenging to lose weight sustainably. If you are eating high-quality meats, fishes, and poultry this should fulfil your hunger, and prevent you from snacking between meals. Even consuming low-fat yogurt, drinking skim milk, eating no butter—has the opposite effect in my opinion. You’ll be hungry in a few hours time.

If you are eating the proper proteins and fats, it should keep you from being delirious by 3pm. A diet of denial is difficult to sustain. Eating smartly is. And you should be able to keep the weight off sustainably with this type of balanced approach.


I do disagree strongly on his claim for potatoes. Potatoes –buy quality if you can (i.e organic)-- have Vitamin C and B complex, as well as potassium, calcium, and iron. The skin is full of fiber as well, and the potato itself has chloragenic acid which some believe has anti-cancer properties. It is true, in some people like diabetics, potatoes induce blood-sugar levels to rise, but the pros outweigh the cons IMO and you better served to forgo white rice, white bread, etc.
My best to you and your family for 2012—the Year of the Dragon. Tell anyone who is coming to Singapore to look me up.

Last thought on the diet discussion: exercise is important but it's secondary in importance to a proper diet, A proper diet will do a lot of the heavy lifting for you."

2006 - January - DA 83 E News

DA Class of 1983 E-Newsletter
January 2006


Dear 83er,

FEEDBACK:
Always great to know Jim Wareck is reading the newsletter: “Sorry it has taken me so long to respond to the latest email, but a few thoughts came to mind. One, it appears you must be very busy and successful in your new development post because the November 05 DA 83 newsletter was definitely a paste and cut job. I mean a word for word recitation of an Adam Weinberg PR press release? And Weinberg, are you going to try and convince us that this World Learning Center is NOT a North Korean front operation? Two, since when is it news that Eric Suher is controlling more means of production and avenues of commerce? Couldn't that be in the newsletter every month? And finally, I want to thank you and the newsletter for clearing up a potentially ground-breaking discovery. Around the time I received it, I was out walking at night and thought I had witnessed an unmistakable UFO. But now with the news that DA has appointed a female head of school, I realize the unidentified flying object shooting past the planet Venus was just PB Weymouth when he heard the news. Still in DC, all DA 83ers should call, I make an excellent tour guide and Craig Pattee has offered to pick up lunch.”

(PB gets much positive pub later in this issue…)

November 30 Beer and Burger Social at PJ Clarke’s was well attended and provided many good laughs. Thanks to Doug Schmidt for getting it organized. Knight drove down from DA and brought Andy Blau ’81 with him to the event. Ian Murray ’82 attended and wondered who all the youngsters from ’83 were. Geoff Siefert ’84 stopped by as well, just in from South Africa via London! Dominating the scene was ’83 with Will Piersol, Whit Armstrong, John Kikoski, Schmidt, Knight, Al Compagno, Chris Lynch, Drew Schiff, PB Weymouth and hopefully I didn’t forget anyone. Pete Pauley was sad to miss it, and Dave Madden from CA lamented he had been in NYC only a day before!

Nate Blain complained from DC that nothing fun ever happens there with the class of ‘83. Sadly, I had to inform Nate that a DA sponsored young alumni event was taking place in DC in December…but he didn’t qualify!!! Maybe Nate can find a way to actually get Wareck and Pattee in the same room for a social occasion…

Johannes “Yogi” Mortier apologized from Germany that he could not attend. (Fifty bucks says he is coming to our 25th reunion in June 2008!!!) “Thanks for the note. Sorry, I cannot make it. I left the university of Frankfurt / Main and went into private practice (orthopedics). Home address is still the same.”

Jamie Robinson’s art has really taken off in Athens, Ohio. Look for his “Athens Block” reproductions at this art gallery site: http://www.lamborns.com/athensblock.html

This just blew in: Don Hindman (dhindman@clarknational.com) is living in Chicago with his wife, Maron, and their four children, ages 9, 7, 5, and 7 mos.! Don's most recent (surprise) baby, Trudy, will inevitably prompt a visit to the Urologist for Don at his earliest opportunity. As a "recovering lawyer", Don is running his family's distribution business, Clark National, Inc. Lastly, Don relates that he sees fellow alum Eddie Opler '89 on a regular basis in Chicago, where they meet to discuss the benefits of coeducation at Deerfield.

Eduardo Blohm is Deerfield’s Admission Representative in Venezuela and reports all is well with him…


NEW ALUMNI WEBSITE!
Having you been to the http://www.deerfieldalumni.org/ site lately? (You can get there from http://www.deerfield.edu/ too). It is all NEW – and hosted by a new company – so you will need to register again ONCE then you can create your own username and password. The 9 digit ID # required is being included on address labels in all major school mailings: it starts with “D00”. Contact Doug dschmidt2@nyc.rr.com or John jknight@deerfield.edu if you would like your ID# sooner than the Annual Report 2005 which is in the mail…

Upgrades include:

Automated registration and password retrieval process.
MyPage feature that will contain that information of most relevance and interest to the alumnus/a.
Easy to use and manage permanent email forwarding system.
Regular changes in photographs, content and layout.
The ability to create and edit class and club pages.
An ‘auto generator’ process for alumni to create their own class notes and allows them to upload related photos.
The ability to register online for events in addition to Reunion.
The alumni directory makes it possible for us to use virtually any field in the database for searches.
When updating records, alumni will be able to personally select which pieces of information are viewable and which are hidden.

Further Upgrades Coming:

Message Boards and Chat module
Polls and Quick Survey Module
Career and College Mentoring Modules

83 ON CAMPUS


Recently an alumni swim meet was held to honor the memories of former faculty Larry Boyle (recently deceased) and Bill Tyler (still very much kicking). Team ‘83 was well represented by Dean Singewald, Dave McNeil, Dave Morley and Sean Nottage. John Knight jumped in when the photographer appeared…Nottage and Morley are clearly benefiting from living in the Bahamas and it was fantastic they made the effort to attend the event. Dave McNeils’s father swam in the meet also…Great job!

Tim Ehrhart called from campus on January 6th to see if John Knight was getting any sleep (see below). Tim was in town to help with some family matters. Still working at Chubb (18 years) and living near Clinton NJ with a great wife and a great family of three kids 8,5 and 4!

As for John Knight, he is on a brief break from work at DA to help his wife Martha cope with the Christmas Day arrival of Eleanor Noelle Knight! He says it was still fun opening the gifts 10 days later! JK is taking any advice from Christmas babies on when to celebrate birthdays! Jim Wareck on Nora’s birthdate: “John many congrats to you and Martha. But god it sucks for Eleanor. Now she will only get one set of gifts, unless the Vatican acknowledges that Jesus was actually born in May.”

Making it happen at DA:
PB Weymouth was on hand for the new boathouse dedication, partly to honor his father. Here he is with his dad and his own two rugrats followed by the “press release” about the opening! PB is in his sixth year on the Executive Committee of the alumni association. THANKS PB!
November 15, 2005 Last Saturday on a crisp, blue sky morning, friends of Deerfield crew gathered to recognize donors and to dedicate the newly opened Hammerschlag Family Boathouse. A first-class facility that provides more convenient access to the Connecticut River for rowers, the Hammerschlag Family Boathouse is named in honor of Lynne and Mark Hammerschlag, P'93, P'04 and features three bays of shell storage space, training and strength conditioning rooms, and generous rigging areas.
Evoking a traditional New England barn, the post & beam wooden structure fits in comfortably with its natural surroundings, overlooking a grassy meadow above a quiet stretch of the river. Guests at the dedication ranged in age from 8 to 98 years and traveled from as far as the rowing Mecca of Henley-on-Thames, England -- a testament to the long and proud tradition of Deerfield graduates in the rowing world as well as the prospect of more enthusiastic rowers to come!
NOTHING NORMAL EVER HAPPENS TO:
Brian Steward
This is a picture which was taken (against my pleading) after I fell into the Nueces River near Montell, Texas (20 miles from Rocksprings) last Friday (in November). While the air temp was 70 degrees, the water was approximately 45. That did not prevent me from spending the next 2 hours in and around the river. Beautiful country. The comments about throwing a dog into the river were exaggerated. I was simply trying to ease her transition into the water…unsuccessfully. Fortunately, she eased my transition into the water on two occasions. Also note that I had changed clothes immediately before this spill which made it even more pleasurable.

AND THIS ONE IS FOR BEAUBIEN, SILVERMAN AND SUHER and any other WGAJ founders…an email sent the students 1/11/06 by the faculty rep for the radio station:

“Over the years Deerfield Academy's very own Radio Station WGAJ 91.7 FM THE VOICE has been under-recognized by our beloved community. Year after year DJs have come and gone and the greater community has neither embraced nor directly rejected these beautiful souls. Instead they have been given the cold shoulder of apathy. The poor radio station began to slowly fall and decay.
Luckily for the world, 6 brave Radio Warriors have arisen and taken up the challenge of getting everyone to tune into 91.7 FM, the place to be on the Franklin County dial. These 6 have decided that the station's black and white colors are too boring and out dated. After much debate, coffee and a scuffle or two they came up with the greatest idea imaginable. Give the station back to the people.
In order to do so these great wave warriors have decided to challenge you, O mighty Deerfield, to give the station a new image. There will be a T-shirt contest so everyone can proudly wear the WGAJ logo, which will be displayed on both our new banner and stickers. The logo, the sticker the banner and the T-shirt will all be made by you and contested over. All these will be submitted to the ITS box in the switchboard under the name Mr. Terwilliger.
Then the best 3 of each catogory will be picked and you will vote on the new image of WGAJ. Our job is done. Now it's your turn to let THE VOICE be heard.” The Mighty 6

HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL and keep those stories coming…

P.S. 25th reunion is June 6-8, 2008

Please let me know if there is a better email address for this missive…New email for newsletter contributions is jknight01038@comcast.net – or you could always use classnotes@deerfield.edu. Hope to hear from you…