Time has flown since those halcyon days of the late '40s when the Class of '48 roamed the Hanover plain. It's hard to believe that 50 years have passed -- 50 years during which so many significant changes have occurred.
To take our college alone, there are more buildings, more students -- half of them women, more ethnic diversity, more areas of study, more courses within areas, better sports facilities, a new cultural center and the list can go on and on.
Yet, for all the changes, much still remains the same:
-the beautiful Connecticut River flows to the sea -- with its contours even enhanced by several new dams along the way;
-stately trees permeate the campus -- with some of the decayed elms replaced by maples now full grown;
-the endlessly cared for green grass casts its beauty abroad, broken only by the myriad of paths crisscrossing the campus enabling students -- now women as well as men -- to hurry to their next class;
-the majesty of Baker Library and the stateliness of Dartmouth Row, which invoke feelings of pride and security.
-the beloved trails at Moosilauke now even further hewn by those of succeeding classes -- and I daresay by a few stalwarts of the Class of '48, though perhaps at a more casual pace than in days of yore.
Memories of years ago abound:
-of bright September morns broken only by the sounds of reveille for the Navy and Marine V-12 and Navy V-5 students;
-the clatter of mess trays on the way to and from the kitchens of Commons (now Collis in its expanded form);
-the cold, crisp silent days of winter when the crunch of snow beneath our feet told us it was zero or below;
-the ice slides which speeded our way across campus to class, to the Indian Bowl, to Tanzi's -- or just "to town";
-the duck boards across the ever present spring mud on the Green;
-the lazy days of summer and all its distractions which made it impossible to study;
-the road trips along those wondrously curvy two-lane roads which carried us to New London, Northampton, Boston and points near and far;
-the lessons of military discipline, the shout of cadence and the rhythmic pounding of marching feet on the ground;
-the beat of the music for round and square dancing in Wilder or Thetford;
-the hours of classes with the greats of Dartmouth at that time -- Foley, Allen, Goodhue, Silverman, West, Brown, Morse, Carlson, Lindahl ... to mention only a few;
-and, of course, the excitement of Great Issues lectures through which paraded a host of world leaders -- professional, political and philosophical;
Yes, we carry memories from those days now long gone.
The Class of '48, composed of civilians, V-12's and V-5's and those returning from service, is the smallest and probably one of the most disjointed in modern Dartmouth history. Because we started and graduated at different times, many of us do not know -- or even got the opportunity to know -- others in our class. Yet we share the common experience of place.
And, our accomplishments are many -- as individuals where the annals record each of our special contributions and achievements across a wide variety of endeavors ... in medicine, in business, in law, in government, in education; as family members guiding the lives of others touched by us; and as a Dartmouth class where prominent displays of our respect and love dot the campus today. For example, the '48 bench, the '48 bookcase in the main hall of Baker, the chairs on the Hanover Inn porch and perhaps the most heralded, which keep us in touch with students of today, the '48 Scholar Athlete Award. This award goes to two members of the junior class -- one man-one woman -- as chosen by Dartmouth coaches for their outstanding academic accomplishments and their special skills and noteworthy performance in their chosen sport.
Throughout the years -- and continuing to this day -- Dartmouth casts a special spell over its students and graduates. A spell which provides a confidence in one's self, a recognition that an individual can make a difference at home, in one's chosen field, and yes, even the world, and a belief that an individual must always answer first to himself for acts of commission or omission.
And that is perhaps, in part, the reason that Dartmouth people, young and old, continue to respect and love this place; and why this small disjointed Class of 1948 will, in its 50th reunion year, contribute over $1 million to the College and why as Richard Hovey suggests in our alma mater, Dartmouth is made part of us 'til death.
