Maureen Kuhn ’78
Classes and Reunion Committee Chair

Cerise Jalelian-
Keim ’81
Clubs Committee Chair

Welcome from Committee Chairs

Dear Mount Holyoke Alumna Volunteer,

e are proud to present the very first edition of the Alumnae Association’s biannual class and club volunteer e-newsletter, Clippings. We realize that it is often difficult to juggle life, work, and volunteering, so we created this new resource to help you. We hope our e-newsletter will deepen your connection to us and help support the work you do so well.

As many of you may know, this year we re-launched the Association and unveiled a new and improved Web site. A special section of the site has been created just for you. You can find it by choosing the “Volunteer” link on the home page and clicking on “Resources.” In this section you can:

• request e-mail blasts
• order reports, lists, and/or labels
• download your annual report forms
• access your volunteer handbooks or guidelines
• find a listing of all your class and club committee contacts
• utilize the Speakers Bureau listing
• and much, much more!

In addition to introducing our new e-newsletter, we would also like to take a moment to introduce ourselves. We are Cerise Jalelian-Keim ’81 and Maureen Kuhn ’78, and we represent two important Alumnae Association committees that are here to keep you connected. Cerise chairs the committee that works with clubs; Maureen chairs the classes and reunion committee.

Our committees offer training and support to enhance your communications among and between the class board, your classmates, or your club officers. We can help you conduct service programs, set policies, or work with the other Alumnae Association committees. We can also serve as sounding boards when planning events becomes challenging. Take advantage of our experience! Each committee has an alumna assigned either to each decade of classes or each club, and we also work closely with the fantastic Alumnae Association staff. Please feel free to contact any of us with questions or concerns.

We know how busy you are, and we want to make your personal volunteer experience meaningful and enjoyable. Let us help you, your class, or your club to reach out to the broadest range of alumnae you possibly can.

Stay tuned for more interesting news items in future issues of this newsletter.

Please e-mail all thoughts and ideas to Joni Haas Zubi, associate director of classes and reunions.

Volunteer Spotlight

e plan to spotlight a class and/or club volunteer, project, or idea in each issue of Clippings. Please tell us about any new or innovative ways your class or club is keeping you informed and connected to MHC and one another. Do you know a class or club volunteer who is going above and beyond the call of duty? Pass along her name so we can feature her in an upcoming issue. Please e-mail all thoughts and ideas to Joni Haas Zubi, associate director of classes and reunions. We appreciate your help!

Renee Cary ’48

Clubs Spotlight

or this debut issue, we are very pleased to feature Renee Cary ’48. Renee has been an active, dedicated volunteer, serving the alumnae community in myriad ways. Over the years, she has cheerfully assumed numerous leadership roles: trustee of the college; vice-president of the Santa Barbara Club; president, membership chair, and admissions representative of the Britain Club; and steering committee member of the Legacy of Leadership campaign for the College. A recipient of the Alumnae Medal of Honor, Renee remains an active alumnae volunteer in London, where she lives part of the year, and in Santa Barbara, managing to keep alumnae enthusiasm high on two continents. We are delighted to salute Renee, one of the Alumnae Association’s most charming, energetic, and inspiring club members. Our heartfelt thanks to Renee for her great generosity and her ongoing support of the extended MHC community.

Dana Feldshuh
Whyte ’60 and
Sue Bradley Cabot ’60

Classes Spotlight

ave you ever heard of Esther Howland (Class of 1847) or Emma Perry Carr (Class of 1902)? They are only two of the many Mount Holyoke women who have been honored with “birthday” biographies written by Dana Feldshuh Whyte ’60 and Sue Bradley Cabot ’60, co-presidents of their class who are sharing the spotlight this month.

According to Dana and Sue, the genesis of the biography project was a casual remark made by a classmate to her co-presidents: “Why don’t you send out a blast e-mail about Mary Lyon on Founder’s Day?” Thus began the monthly “Birthday Bio” e-mails. All feature uncommon Mount Holyoke women who are no longer with us, and most are researched and written by Sue or Dana. Other classmates have also contributed bios of relatives or mentors associated with the College. When the project began, the two alumnae hoped it would help co-presidents stay in touch with each other. According to both women, they also wanted to “share the accounts of these strong, accomplished, and creative women who were connected to MHC—via undergraduate degrees, lecturing, teaching, or honorary degrees.”

Dana and Sue report, to their delight, that they have also found the Birthday Bio e-mails “fostering many surprise communications and connections. Writing them has truly become our job as co-presidents.” They hope to continue Birthday Bios e-mails until their 50^th Reunion.

You can view the Birthday Bios by clicking on the Class of 1960’s Web site and choosing the message board option. To send comments or to suggest an individual for a biography, please contact Susan Bradley Cabot or Dana Feldshuh Whyte.

Fun Finance Quiz

ow well do you know your class/club finances? Take the test and see how you score!

How did you score?

1. Our class/club is tax exempt, so we don’t have to pay sales taxes.

False. All Alumnae Association affiliates are exempt from federal taxes. Sales tax, however, is entirely different. Sales tax rules are determined by individual states, and each class/club must apply for sales tax exemption in each state in which the class/club wants to make sales-tax exempt purchases.

2. The Alumnae Association handles all paperwork, filings, and issues regarding exemption.

False. The Alumnae Association takes care of all federal filings and maintains our 501(c)(3) status. The Association does not file for sales tax exemption for classes/clubs, and also does not file individual class/club state returns (if any). We are available to provide advice and help with questions, and we have a database of information on sales tax exemption.

3. Class/club dues are tax-exempt.

True. Donations to any Alumnae Association affiliate are tax-deductible by the donor by itemizing deductions on form 1040 schedule A.

If you scored less than three out of three, you’re not alone! We’re here to help:

• The information above, and much more, is available on our Web site at www.alumnae.mtholyoke.edu, in the “Volunteers” section under “Resources.”
• Alumnae Council offers a wide variety of workshops designed to support your efforts-so please consider having members of your class/club attend Alumnae Council when invited.
• Alumnae Association staff members are available to answer your questions: call or e-mail any time.

Alumnae in Action

ot plans for spring? How would you like to spend one day this April:

• contributing to a clean, green environment,
• promoting Mount Holyoke College, and
• re-connecting in a meaningful way with your alumnae sisters?

“Alumnae in Action” is a way to accomplish all three at once. Alumnae in Action is a new, international community-service program we’ve created for MHC clubs, classes, and affiliate groups. Our first event is scheduled for Earth Day, April 22. On that day, participating alumnae around the world will gather for a volunteer project in their home communities. Your club’s service project might include working with a local chapter of an environmental organization, organizing a cleanup of a park or school, planting a community garden, or spearheading a recycling project. You may also want to organize a mini-reunion for your class with a community service project as your activity.

The Alumnae Association will provide resources and free promotional support for these events. At the request of your class or club, we will also provide a free “action kit” containing custom-designed water bottles and bandannas as a gift for volunteers. After the event, photos and descriptions of Alumnae in Action events around the world will be posted on the Association Web site.

For further information, please contact Krysia L. Villón ’96, assistant director of clubs or Leanna James Blackwell, director of communications.

What’s your Ritual?

veryone has a favorite way of getting started on those volunteer tasks. One alumna likes to begin with a cup of strong black tea and a Mozart CD. Another alumna reserves the same day of each week for her volunteer work, which she begins with first-thing-in-the-morning phone calls to fellow club members. Do you have a favorite place or a special time for your volunteer activities? Essential props (laptop, footrest, or snacks within reach) that you always use? We’d love to hear about it, and we’ll share your routines in the next issue of this e-newsletter. E-mail Joni Haas Zubi, associate director of classes and reunions or Krysia L. Villón ’96, assistant director of clubs.