By Mauricio Minotta

Members of GIA New York’s first resident Graduate Gemologist class gathered at the Institute’s summer cocktail reception in New York City in July to celebrate the 30th anniversary of their graduation.

Seven of the 18 graduates attended the event and were introduced by GIA President William E. Boyajian. Each received a certificate of recognition in honor of their accomplishments.

Many have remained in the gem and jewelry industry, but some have gone on to pursue other interests, including computers, financial consulting and religious studies. Winifred Barnes made a career as a school teacher after receiving her G.G. She remains grateful, however, for the education she received at GIA in 1974.

“When I first started at GIA, I thought girdles where what you wore and tables where what you ate on,” Barnes said jokingly. “But I learned so much at GIA and it’s wonderful to still keep in touch with some of my fellow graduates.”

The group present at the event, held at The Plaza Hotel, included Barnes, Marcelia Cruz-Hicks, Doug Parker, Bill Sites, Andy Zagoren, Neil Winter and Kailash Rawat.

Cruz-Hicks, who organized the gathering, is among those from the class who remains in the industry. She is vice president of DIACo International, a New York-based manufacturer of loose diamonds and fine diamond jewelry.

She was hand-picked after she received her G.G., along with Parker and Sites, to work in the GIA Gem Trade Laboratory as a diamond grader under the tutelage of G. Robert Crowningshield, former vice president of the GIA Gem Trade Laboratory. She helped identify colored stones when they were submitted to the laboratory.

“Every stone is a challenge, and I love colored stones. So when one came into the lab, I would volunteer to identify it,” Cruz-Hicks said.“My studies at GIA were my foundation. Getting that knowledge was incredibly helpful in launching my gemological career.”