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CLASS OF 1972 TRIP TO THE BERKSHIRES Sept 11-15, 2024
On September 11, 68 classmates and guests assembled at the legendary Red Lion Inn in Stockbridge, Mass., for a five-day, late-summer exploration of the Berkshires, as suggested and orchestrated by local part-timers Russ and Kathy Ayres. The trip provided for ample '72 camaraderie. Attendees traveled from as far as Saudi Arabia and the West Coast and Pacific Northwest, comprising a mix of first-timers and class-trip regulars. Led by excellent local guides, we enjoyed visits to museums and artists' studios showcasing the artistry of local celebrities Norman Rockwell (Four Freedoms, Saturday Evening Post covers) and Daniel Chester French (Lincoln Memorial), and summertime Gilded Age "cottage" retreats, with landscaped gardens, of the Choate (Naumkeag) and Morgan (Ventfort Hall) families and novelist Edith Wharton (The Mount). We passed through the Williams College campus and explored the expansive art installations of MASS MoCA (Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art), including the work of artists Sol LeWitt, James Turrell, and Spencer Finch. We strolled the grounds of Tanglewood, and toured the Hancock Shaker Village. Princeton history professor Sean Wilentz enlightened and entertained us with a talk on the intellectual history and heritage of the Berkshires. Picnic lunches, sumptuous dinners, and lively time spent in the hospitality suite at the hotel were great opportunities for renewing '72 friendships and forging new ones, in absolutely perfect weather. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Archive 7-9-24 Update The Berkshires- Wednesday Sept 11- Sunday Sept 15 2024- The outline for the trip was detailed in earlier correspondences, but highlights include lodging at the historic Red Lion Inn in Stockbridge Mass, visits to the Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art in North Adams, the homes of Joseph Choate, Daniel Chester French and Edith Wharton, Hancock Shaker Village, and the Norman Rockwell Museum. We will have dinners at Tanglewood (no music- closed for the season), and Ventfort Hall, a Berkshires “cottage” built for JP Morgan’s sister, along with some local restaurants. As of now, Professor Sean Wilentz will be with us for part of the trip, and he will give us some historical perspective on the area.While I know it is only two months away, we still have a few rooms available, (we have 50 rooms at the Inn).I have to give a firm commitment for the rooms soon, so please let me know if you are interested asap. For those already signed up, there will be an email concerning specifics in the next few weeks.
3-19-24 Update The Berkshires- Wednesday Sept 11- Sunday Sept 15 2024- The outline for the trip was detailed in my January 15 correspondence, but highlights include lodging at the historic Red Lion Inn in Stockbridge Mass, visits to the Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art in North Adams, the homes of Joseph Choate, Daniel Chester French and Edith Wharton, Hancock Shaker Village, and the Norman Rockwell Museum. We will have dinners at Tanglewood (no music- closed for the season), and Ventfort Hall, a Berkshires “cottage” built for JP Morgan’s sister, along with some local restaurants. As of now, Professor Sean Wilentz will be with us for part of the trip, and he will give us some historical perspective on the area. We still have a few rooms available, (we have 50 rooms at the Inn), so please sign up if you are interested.
Original Correspondence:
As I mentioned in my earlier correspondence, we will be staying in the historic Red Lion Inn in Stockbridge, Massachusetts. Highlights include The Norman Rockwell Museum, the Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art (MassMOCA) in North Adams, Hancock Shaker Village, and house tours of The Mount (Edith Wharton), Chesterwood (Daniel Chester French), and Naumkeg (Joseph Choate). We will be having dinners at Tanglewood (no concert- closed for the season), and Ventfort Hall, a Berkshire “Cottage” built for JP Morgan’s sister in 1893. Most of the legwork for this trip has been done by our classmate Russ Ayers and his wife Kathy, who have a home in Stockbridge. They have made sure we are hitting all the highlights!! We still have a few rooms unspoken for at the Red Lion Inn, so please sign up!! The price will be in the $4000 range, like most past trips of this length. And of course if it gets oversubscribed, we will have the wait list which we always go to. There is more info on this trip on the class website. One more incentive- we will be joined by Professor Sean Wilentz (unless his schedule changes), who will provide us with his unique brand of historical perspective on the Bershires area.
Robby
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