Welcome to the HR1981 gathering in Cambridge and Boston, May 3-5, 2024!
Please check out the below, then take these two steps to sign up:
Step 1: Fill out the survey. (If anything changes, please email Joe McDonough.)
Step 2: Pay the special event fees on Eventbrite:
- General Registration fee. (Sliding scale!)
- Tickets to Friday night Dinner Party at the Hong Kong with the Krokodiloes (around 8 pm).
- Tickets to Sunday Brunch at the Harvard Club with the Russ Gershon Quartet; Friends and family welcomed! Registration ends May 1 at noon, ET.
What’s on this page:
- The planned events
- Communications media (here, and WhatsApp)
- Lodging
- Questions, or offers to help
Summary of events
We’ll have wonderful events to bring us all together in a variety of ways. Here’s what’s planned, so far:
Friday evening, May 3, 6-10pm: Scorpion Bowl Welcome Dinner Party featuring the Krokodiloes. Hong Kong Restaurant in Harvard Square. Buffet dinner included. Register above.
After-party: Russ Gershon with Vibra Tropical, a big Latin band at La Fabrica in Central Square until 11pm. No cover charge.
Saturday, May 4, Museums:
10:30: Harvard Museum of Natural History: Meet at the Oxford St. door. (unticketed)
10:30: Boston Institute of Contemporary Art & Lunch
Meet at the front door to the Boston ICA on the waterfront at 10:30 AM. We’ll tour the exhibits for an hour or more, then repair to a restaurant nearby for a group lunch and a cold beer. Maybe, if the weather is good, we’ll eat outdoors on the waterfront. Everyone buys their own tickets and lunch. Organizer: Joe McDonough
11 AM and 12 PM: Tours of Harvard Art Museums. FULL. Please notify Joe if you cannot attend or have forgotten your time.
Saturday, May 4th, afternoon at the Gutman Center:
12-2:30 PM: BYOBrunch
Pick up some food in the square and join classmates in room 302 of the Gutman Center, Harvard Graduate School of Education, 13 Appian Way (next to Radcliffe Yard).
Stay for the class discussion or take a stroll together.
2:30 PM: Stroll around Harvard with classmates, starting at Gutman 302
2:30 – 4:00 PM: HR1981 Classmate Discussion
The prompt for our discussion is: “What do we hope? What do we fear?” (See below, for more details.)
Saturday, May 4th, 6 PM – 8 PM Cocktail Party:
Hosted by Chris & Hilary Gabrieli at their home on Beacon Hill, at 8 Louisburg Square. (Maximum of 150 guests. No charge.) Many thanks to Chris and Hilary for making this a beautiful evening!
To receive an invitation with all the details, sign up on the survey (per “Step 1”, above. It’s event #7.) Please sign up only if you can come, and be sure to cancel, if things change, by emailing Joe McDonough. We will keep a wait list.
NO PARKING!! There are two T stops within 10 minutes, the Boston Common Garage is nearby, or use spothero.
Suggested attire: cocktail attire such as dresses, skirts, nice slacks, suits, jackets and ties, and Harvard paraphernalia (including varsity sweaters)! Cobbled streets, so flats are recommended.
Sunday, May 5, 11 AM – 1 PM Brunch Buffet at the Harvard Club.
Harvard Hall, 374 Commonwealth Ave, Back Bay, Boston. ($44 + cash bar). Jazz music by HR1981’s own Russ Gershon and his Quartet. Many thanks to Susie Kendall for using her considerable clout to pull this off.
We have space for the full family and friends ’81 orbit. Please CONFIRM YOUR ATTENDANCE BY PURCHASING YOUR TICKET via the link above.
Feel free to contact Susie directly if you have questions: (or: 617-828-5084)
Sunday, May 5, immediately following brunch: An easy stroll through the Back Bay to the Boston Public Garden.
Sunday, May 5, 2pm: Boston Symphony Orchestra’s Concert for the City, (their annual free concert) A few tickets are available, Please email susanisrealsocial@gmail.com if you would like one. We will gather after the brunch to coordinate.
ADDITIONAL NOTES ON SATURDAY’S CLASSMATE DISCUSSION:
The prompt for our discussion is: “What do we hope? What do we fear?” And within that broad framework, everything is fair game. Our health, our goals, our mortality, our legacy, our joy, our responsibilities… it’s all on the agenda. It’s a lot. Daphne de Marneffe, our friend and classmate, will moderate, hoping the discussion will expand beyond the confines of one Saturday afternoon. As classmates, we hear each other. As classmates, we are here for each other.
Preparation: please bring a piece of paper with some writing that is meaningful to you, anything from a single word to a substantial paragraph in any form with the theme: “What do we hope? What do we fear?” At our meeting, we’ll read these contributions aloud as seeds for our discussions.
Communications: Here, and on WhatsApp
This page (via HR1981.org) is your official source for this gathering. We’ll also be chatting on WhatsApp, so ask Joe McDonough to invite you to the WhatsApp 2024 Cambridge Gathering thread, to get the latest news and to connect with everyone who’s going, before and during the weekend.
Lodging?
If anyone wants to organize a room block anywhere, please send details to Susan or to Joe, and we will post it here. Other than that, you are on your own.
“What can I do to help?” and other questions
Please pass the word to your classmates with the sign-up link to attend.
Email Joe (2jomcd@gmail.com, 650-245-7907)
We look forward to seeing you all in May!
Planning Un-Committee (all are welcome):
Susan Israel, Joe McDonough, Nancy Staples, Lois Nesbitt, Russ Gershon, Fred Geyer, Walter Gillett, Doris Rezza, Patricia Hudson, Kim Bendheim, Siri Smedvig, Steve Zelinger, Ed Bettigole