 | Kenya Class of Fall 1988 Alumni Reunion - October 10-13, 2008
We call ourselves, quite simply, "rafikis" (Swahili for friends) and we recently held our "rafiki 20-year reunion" in the Catskills of New York. Sixteen of us gathered from places far and near -- California  to Scotland. We can't quite explain the connection but it's been there for 20 years. We've attended each others weddings, held each others babies, and supported one another. Some lose touch, some reform bonds, and some are hard to locate but every time we get together, it's like only a few days have passed. A special addition to this reunion was reconnecting with our former director, Paul Siegel, who now works for the World Wildlife Fund in Senegal. We patched him in via SKYPE and projected him onto the wall. Emotions ranged from laughter to tears as we, one by one, shared tales with Paul of our past 20 years. Stories ranged from "I'm a professor at University of Sheffield, and I study flies and parrots," "I'm a vet and I'm also studying accupuncture," "I've just been appointed chief of infectious diseases in Maryland," "I've worked for Audubon for the past 15 years," "I've just had my 4th child," "I've completed my dissertation on marbled salamanders"... the list goes on. The accomplishments of our group are impressive -- which in some ways were shaped by our experiences in Kenya in 1988. We laughed over memories of Kenya from 20 years ago, shared old and new photos and stories, and made new memories to be celebrated at our next reunion.
Australia Class of Spring 2008 Alumni Gathering - August 12, 2008
Special Guests: Tim and Penny Curran
Generous Host: Cristina Liberati 
On a cloudy day in August, students from the wet (spring) semester 2008 gathered with their former SAM, Cristina, in Jamestown, Rhode Island to await the arrival of their favorite Rainforest Management faculty, Tim Curran. Tim and his wife Penny were visiting New England, escaping the Atherton Tablelands for a few weeks. The get-together had been arranged in secret, and when Tim arrived he was completely surprised to see his former students! Everyone caught each other up on their summer activities and over a BBQ lunch, favorite memories of the semester were shared. After lunch, some relaxed and enjoyed the clearing weather while others played a few rounds of bocce -- which happens to be very similar to the Australian game of Lawn Bowls! It was a small reunion but it was wonderful to get together outside of the rainforest! A great time was had by all and attendees got to take home a snazzy SFS reusable shopping bag!
Alumni Reception - August 21, 2008
Special Guests: Simon ole Seno, John Claydon, Marta Calosso  
In August, we had the pleasure of hosting field staff from two centers here in Salem. Center Director Simon ole Seno was in town from Kenya, and Center Director John Claydon and Research Associate Marta Calosso were here from the Turks and Caicos Islands. Alumni in the area were invited to stop by and say hi!
Having a reunion? Let us know! Email us at alumni@fieldstudies.org.
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