Regional Events

By Midge Wood Brittingham '60

In Celebration of Beautiful Landscaping

Dennis Greive
Dennis Greive

Oberlin alumni in the greater Cleveland area enjoyed the elegant gardens and house of the Holden Arboretum's Lantern Court, where they were treated to a slide lecture and special garden tour given by the College's manager of grounds, Dennis Greive.

Greive came to Oberlin from the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C., where he managed the grounds of the nation's most distinguished museums. At Oberlin, he involved hundreds of students in the creation of a new butterfly garden, an herb garden, and, to highlight the Underground Railroad sculpture between Baldwin and Talcott halls, a "healing garden" full of plants that proved useful for slaves on the road to freedom.


Chicago Serve-a-Thon

More than 40 Chicago-area alumni met for a day of community service work, pitching in at a food depository, an environmental organization, a café that serves the homeless, a cat shelter, and a residency for people with HIV. As an added perk, alumni enjoyed afternoon massages provided by massage therapist Walter Miller '84. "A lot of alumni said they felt volunteer service to be missing in their lives," said Barb Distler, '84, the Chicago Chapter's co-regional coordinator. "Many said it brought back the Oberlin days to be working side-by-side with others to help others."


A Proper Send-Off

Incoming students and their parents meet with the Oberlin Alumni Club of Washington, D.C.
RIGHT: Incoming students and their parents meet with the Oberlin Alumni Club of Washington, D.C.

Incoming students from the Class of 2002 and their parents were warmly greeted by the Oberlin Alumni Club of Washington, D.C., for a meet-and-eat picnic lunch August 15th. The pot-luck fare was provided by the 25 attending alumni who shared stories about beginning their career preparations at Oberlin.