Classmates Reunite to Celebrate One of Their Own

They met more than 33 years ago, but for nine members of a 1980 Graduate Gemologist class, the connection they made as students has never broken.

 

“It was amazing to see everyone,” said Wayne Babcock, owner of Angels Antiques in Carpinteria, California. “We had only spent six months studying together at GIA, but had bonded so quickly and well! After 33 years, it was like we had never been apart. All the love was right there.”

 

The group traveled to Carlsbad for the West Coast premiere of the jewelry documentary Masters of Dreams, the brainchild of classmate Ken McGrath, of Toronto, Canada. The four-part series offers a behind-the-scenes view into the glamorous and artistic world of high-end jewelry.
 

“Making Masters of Dreams was the culmination of a lifelong passion and a tiny dream that grew big,” McGrath said. “To be able to include the sweetest, coolest group of rock star friends I had the pleasure of going to school with, was extremely moving. They were so supportive and positive. It truly was an awesome evening and a deeply meaningful experience for all of The Class of 1980!”

 

It has not always been easy for this pre-Internet group of friends to keep in touch.

 

“We had telephone numbers when we left class, but not all of them,” said David Conger, owner of Conger's Jewellers in Ottawa, Canada. “A few years ago, I gave up on the possibility that we would ever reunite. It was a goal of mine 20 years ago, but there was no mechanism to find the other classmates ‒ until we recently started to reconnect through Facebook.”

That’s how McGrath found them and invited them to the GIA event, which included a lunch in their honor, class photo, tours of the campus, and an evening reception and screening of his film. It also included hours retelling shared stories and laughter at their hotel.

 

“The best part of the reunion, for me, was simply sitting out on the hotel patio grilling dinner and just catching up with everyone and reminiscing,” said Debbie Hiss, owner of Debbie Hiss Consulting. “There was a lot of laughter!”

 

Lenore Goldman, who is in the yachting business, said she loved hearing about different directions their lives have taken. 

 

“It was great to hear everyone’s story, she said. “In some ways, it was like time had not passed, yet we all needed reading glasses to see the old photos.” 

 

Conger said he felt an instant connection with his old friends.

 

“It was wonderful to reconnect. It seemed as though no time had passed,” he said. “Hearing the familiar sounding laugh of one classmate brought it all back again as though nothing had changed. I loved the experience. This was a time of joy and happiness, not unlike the feeling I get at Christmas.”

 

Patricia Biehn, who traveled from Kauai, Hawaii, was a little concerned that the special connection they had might be lost because of the number of years that had gone by and the divergent paths they all traveled. 

 

“Not the case! We picked up right where we left off. We were a wonderful, tight-knit family, and still are,” she said. “We will not let 33 years go by before we get together again, more of us next time!”  
Impressions of the Carlsbad Campus

 

The grads, who attended a much smaller GIA campus in Santa Monica, were impressed by the size and location of the Carlsbad campus.

 

“GIA looks like a museum! The campus is beautiful,” Goldman said. “That view of the ocean makes me want to come back and never leave again.”

 

Babcock described it as modern, beautiful, efficient and enjoyable. “I am so very much more proud to be a gemologist after having seen the ‘new school’,” he said.

 

Several of the grads pointed out that for all of the physical changes, being on campus felt familiar.

 

“The first impression I ever had of GIA was how wonderful the teachers and staff were – how they were so willing to help the students with any issue,” Congers said.” I felt that had not changed.”

 

Marisa Vinciguerra, of Ballwin, Missouri, said she felt the same way walking through the halls of the Carlsbad campus as she did in Santa Monica. She described it as “that mystical feeling of being around all of that ‘gem-knowlegey'.”

 

The group tour included visits to classrooms where they were intrigued by the eLearning program, CAD/CAM courses and scope of the Institute. 

 

Despite all that was new, however, they sensed that the GIA standards they knew as students remain the same.

 

“The professionalism of GIA has always been a constant,” said James Allen Holmes, who owns a design and manufacturing business in Texas. “The culture of any corporate entity translates to the outside world and that still shines as bright as a diamond at GIA.”