M
alcolm Gladwell's best-selling book Outliers:
The Story of Success asked the question, "What
makes high-achievers different?" His answers caught
the curiosity of many and started a debate that
continues today of not just nature vs. nurture, but the
confluence of other factors such as being born at the
right time and surrounded by the right people.
One literary commentator summarized Gladwell's
findings this way: "His answer is that we pay too
much attention to what successful people are like,
and too little attention to where they are from: that
is, their culture, their family, their generation, and the
idiosyncratic experiences of their upbringing."
You probably have read Gladwell's book; I have.
From time to time I see evidence of Gladwell's thesis
that shows success coming as a product of right time,
right place, right culture, and surrounding oneself
with the right people.
You could say that is true with the DU pledge class
of 1953.
I observed it in early February at a funeral. The
deceased was a dear family friend, Dr. Jack Holt
'57, and a member of that iconic class. Originally
from Fowler, Kansas, near Liberal, Holt went to KU
and joined DU because that's where his dad called
home, as well as his two brothers. After graduation
he married his high school sweetheart, Charlette, and
went to medical school while she attended nursing
school. Holt specialized in internal medicine and
opened a practice in my hometown of Great Bend.
For many years he was the only internal medicine
physician in town. In that town, Holt earned another
distinction—he was my dad's best friend.
And so the gathering at the Lenexa funeral home was
a mini-reunion of that class. Tom Rinehart '57 was
there. Tom's benevolence to the Chapter explains
why his portrait hangs in the house library. Tom is
also from southwest Kansas, graduated in petroleum
engineering and formed his own energy exploration
company, Elkhorn Energy. Now he builds wind
farms. Also present were classmates John Reese '57
and Dick Shaw '57, who, like Holt, went to medical
school.
That class had 22 other members. Of those, five were
accepted into medical or dental school, two law school,
three military officers at grade of lt. colonel or greater,
three or more engineers and two or more exceptionally
Spring 2018
The
Sunflower
A publicAtion of the KAnSAS chApter of DeltA upSilon
Class of 1957, front row, from
left: Martin Hanna, Tom Emery,
Jim Hull, Jack Bertoglio, John
Waddell, Bob Simpson, and
John Guyant; second row:
Bruce Tabor, John Kramer, Tom
Rinehart, Jim Anderson, Larry
Baker, and Roger Wood; third
row: Gary Rohrer, Jack Holt,
Arden Treaster, Vic McCall, Jay
Swink, and Charles Belt; fourth
row: John Reese, Monty Rowe,
Bill Graves, Duane Estes, and
Frank Mastin. Not pictured:
Victor McCall and Dick Shaw.
DU Pledge Class of 1953:
A Class Like No other
Submitted by Matt Keenan '81
Connect with
Kansas DU
Online
-
www.kansasdu.com
f
Alumni of Kansas Chapter
of Delta Upsilon
l
@KansasDU
i
The Kansas Chapter of
Delta Upsilon
-
www.kansasdu.com/
giving-back/
support-kansas-du
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