Roger, Dottie, Annette, and Roland wish the SP family a joyous holiday season.
As January 2013 nears, Dottie and I enter our final six months as Housemasters of Sidney-Pacific Graduate Residence. We have hosted our last Thanksgiving dinner with our extended SP “family”, and just this month we watched as our last Christmas tree was trimmed in the lobby. It does not seem that long ago when we entered the building in August 2002 as brand new housemasters with the very first residents and an outstanding group of new officers and a newly designed government!
The past decade has rushed by, but it has been a deeply rewarding time for us. In fact, I think for me it has been the best period of my MIT career so far. We have seen the SP community develop into a supportive and vibrant home for an incredibly diverse and active group of nearly 700 friends and colleagues. We have had the privilege of working very closely with 11 sets of dedicated and creative officers, and Dottie has prepared more than 540 (and counting) dinners for weekly SPEC meetings! We are proud of the impressive leadership skills that have developed and rejoice at the friendships and even romances that have blossomed! Dottie and I are grateful for the wonderful collaboration and friendships we have enjoyed with our Associate Housemasters Keith and Brenda Hampton (2002–2005) and Roland Tang and Annette Kim (since 2005), and with Jack Ahern, our building manager.
We were looking yesterday at the photos documenting the fantastic 10th anniversary and reunion that was held this past summer, and as we looked at all the faces we realized how enriched our lives have been made by the many personal connections we have had over the years. I am sure that many SP alumni have had the same experiences. We hope that the friendships and professional connections made at SP will continue, that we can build a vibrant alumni association, and that periodically we will repeat our reunions!
On a personal note, Dottie and I will be moving out of SP at the end of June 2013 to make room for new housemasters, and an exciting new era at SP! We plan to move to a small coop townhouse in Jamaica Plain (near Jamaica Pond). The commute to my lab in building E25 will be longer than the 16-minute walk from SP, but will be quite manageable by car or even by bicycle. We would encourage you to look us up if you are in the area, and come for that “cup of tea and catch-up chat”. We do look forward to keeping in touch and hearing about your lives. Thanks for 11 great years and incredible memories!
We extend hearty holiday greetings to everyone!
Fondly,
Roger & Dottie Mark
Sidney-Pacific Housemasters