Regional Alumni Activities

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Alumni at the Dallas Cowboys Stadium earlier this year.

Atlanta

Alumni, students and parents enjoyed dinner and dialogue with RIT’s Vice President of Diversity and Inclusion Kevin McDonald on Aug. 21 at Atlanta Fish Market.

Boston

Alumni and friends enjoyed a private tasting of Harpoon Brewery’s finest on Oct. 27. Thanks to host Tim George ’08.

Charlotte, N.C.

Alumni and friends enjoyed a dinner cruise on the Catawba Queen on Lake Norman Oct. 1.

Connecticut

Alumni and friends cheered on the Bridgeport Blue Fish on Aug. 27 at a pregame reception and baseball game.

Dallas/Ft. Worth

Dallas/Fort Worth-area alumni gathered at the new Cowboys Stadium for a VIP stadium tour and lunch on July 30. Special thanks to alumni hosts Jennifer Neary ’99 and Scott Saldinger ’91.

Houston

Alumni and guests enjoyed dinner at the Melting Pot of Houston on July 31. Interested in being an alumni chapter volunteer in Houston? Contact the Office of Alumni Relations at 585-475-2586.

Maine

Alumni and friends enjoyed a night of friendly competition on the lanes at Bayside Bowl on Oct. 28.

New York City

RIT once again took in an exciting day of tennis at the U.S. Open on Sept. 11.

Thanks to all NYC area alumni who gathered to meet the incoming class of RIT students from the metro area at Murphy & Gonzalez on Aug. 18.

Rochester

Thanks to all RIT alumni who participated in this year’s inaugural alumni golf league. If you are interested in joining next season, contact Dan Christner at dtcdar@rit.edu.

On Aug. 8, a sold-out group of alumni and friends enjoyed a day-trip to the Shaw Festival at Niagara-on-the-Lake for a performance of My Fair Lady.

Alumni and their families enjoyed a summer day at Seabreeze Amusement Park on Aug. 20.

Rochester-area alumni enjoyed a day of wine tasting on Seneca Lake on Aug. 21. Special thanks to alumni hosts Rita Haschmann ’79 and Shirley Murphy ’81.

Hundreds of RIT faculty, staff and alumni welcomed the incoming class to RIT during the annual Tiger Walk event prior to convocation. Thanks to all who participated.

Alumni and families enjoyed a kids cooking class on Sept. 17 as part of the Wegmans Culinary Kids program.

More than 125 alumni enjoyed beautiful views and wine tasting aboard the Canandaigua Lady on Sept. 24. Special thanks to host Shirley Murphy ’81.

Alumni and guests enjoyed an evening of Oktoberfest beer and food at Lovin’ Cup on Oct. 26. Special thanks to hosts Susan Shanks ’97, Terry Palis ’77 and Alina Palis ’79.

Alumni prepared for the holiday season at the Pittsford Wegmans during the Party Starters Cooking Class. Special thanks to alumni hosts Sharyn Duffy ’87 and Shirley Murphy ’81.

Alumni, students and parents enjoyed dinner and dialogue with RIT’s Vice President of Diversity and Inclusion Kevin McDonald on Aug. 25 at P.F. Chang’s.

The inaugural RIT AALANA Golf Outing was held at Brockport Country Club on July 9. The day started with a buffet breakfast followed by a program updating AALANA (African American, Latino American, Native American) efforts on campus. Howard Ward, Student Auxiliary Services; Terry Walker ’10, Facilities Management Services; Johnnie Rolling, Facilities Management Services, won the tournament. Longest drive went to Axel Honorat ’80, ’98 and closest to the pin went to Howard Ward. A special thanks to alumni host Tim McCauley ’99.

A spRITed group of more than 20 alumni volunteered at Foodlink, the Rochester-area food bank, on Sept. 10. Special thanks to alumni host Bob Snyder ’56.

San Antonio

Alumni and guests enjoyed dinner at the Melting Pot of San Antonio on July 28. Interested in being an alumni chapter volunteer in San Antonio or Austin? Contact the Office of Alumni Relations at 585-475-2586.

Singapore

Alumni in Singapore got together for dinner on July 13 at Café Swiss. Special thanks to alumni hosts Howard Wang ’81 and Gilbert Ong ’02, ’05.

Thailand

Alumni in Bangkok gathered for dinner on Sept. 28 at L’Espace at Siam Paragon. Special thanks to alumni hosts Benjama Olarnsakul ’90 and Mark Fischer ’89.

Taiwan

Alumni in Taipei gathered for dinner on Sept. 21 at The Dragon in the Sheraton Taipei Hotel. Special thanks to hosts Chih-Tsung Chang ’94 and Sonja Phongsavanh.

Washington, D.C.

RIT alumni enjoyed an afternoon kayak tour on the Potomac on Oct. 1. Special thanks to Kevin Sheldon ’02 and Phil Jones ’02.

Alumni enjoyed an evening of sailing on Annapolis Harbor on July 30. Thanks to hosts Ken Rachfal ’71 and Victoria Griffith ’93.

Meet Dallas/Fort Worth

In 2006, Scott Saldinger ’91 (film and video) attended an RIT alumni event in Los Angeles where he met Jennifer Lindstrom Neary ’99 (hotel management).

Saldinger enjoyed the event, so when he moved to Dallas later that year, he connected with his new alumni chapter and attended a cooking demonstration.

“And who did I run into,” Saldinger says. “Jennifer was there. She had moved a couple of weeks earlier from California to Dallas.”

It turned out that the Dallas/Fort Worth chapter needed a leader, so Saldinger and Neary decided to work together to plan activities for the more than 700 alumni in northern Texas.

“We are doing things to bring the community closer together,” Saldinger says. Events include an annual potluck family picnic that in recent years has been held on a catamaran (the one last summer was complete with Rochester-based Zweigle’s hotdogs), an evening of baseball with the Texas Rangers and a tour of the Dallas Cowboys Stadium.

“Scott and I are just trying to create impactful and memorable events so we continue to grow the chapter,” says Neary, who works for Marriott. “You are meeting people from a common background. It makes you feel like you are back home.”

Their outreach has paid off. Saldinger, an account manager for NBC, says he was wearing an RIT shirt in a Costco recently when an alumnus stopped him.

“So you’re the guy on the e-mails,” the graduate said.

Saldinger wasn’t surprised to meet another Tiger.

“Immediately we have that connection,” he says. “These Texas schools don’t have what we have at RIT.”

For more information about the chapter, contact Saldinger at sws724@verizon.net or 210-872-1495 and Neary at Jennifer.m.neary@marriott.com or 817-637-2900.