The circle letter

Consider the humble, handwritten letter. Before this era of social media and smartphones, pen and paper kept loved ones connected. One such letter—dubbed “the circle letter” as it cycled among recipients—became a two-decade tradition that documented the post-graduation days of these 1992 alumni.

Jennifer White Alsobrook, W’92, sent the first letter. For the next 20 years, it passed from alum to alum, each one reading the accumulated letters and adding their own updates before sending the growing collection onward. Letters in manila envelopes soon expanded into hefty parcels filled with photos, newspaper clippings, and mementos.

Sue Kaufman Milano, W’92, saw the letter’s evolution from the start: “The packets kept getting bigger. I’m shocked a box wasn’t delivered to my doorstep. I vividly remember setting aside a whole day to sit and read each letter, picturing my friends’ lives through their words. Then it would take another whole day to write [my letter]!”

The circle letter captured first jobs and apartments, graduate school, adventures abroad, weddings, births, and eventually more somber moments of loss and grief. When Ellen Blumeyer Peters Otto, W’92, lost her husband, the group coordinated to ensure someone wrote to her each week for nearly three months before gathering for a reunion weekend.

Digital media fully replaced the letter around 2010, but the bonds it forged have only strengthened. These alumni meet up annually, sometimes more. “We’ve been to cool places,” says Alsobrook. “Montana, Mexico, Phoenix (twice), Florida—not to mention attending and being in each other’s weddings.”

While digging through old letters and memorabilia, Christine Menand, W’92, considered how different communication is for the next generations: “My kids aren’t going to have [those mementos] unless they keep their electronics.” To her, a screen doesn’t hold the same thrill as ink on a page. “We kept the letter going because we like the physical aspect of it. These days, though, with email, we still keep in touch whether it’s with an exciting announcement or even just, ‘What book are you reading?’ or ‘Share what you’re doing right at this moment!’ This always gets fun responses.”