In Alumni Reunion, PBHA Celebrates Century of Service

The Phillips Brooks House Association (PBHA), Harvard's largest public service organization, hosted its first-ever alumni reunion this weekend, celebrating 100 years of student-led community initiatives.

PBHA used the weekend to formally launch its Centennial Campaign, which aims to raise $7.25 million over three years.

The campaign has already raised more than $2 million, according to PBHA. The group plans to send out mailings and solicit additional donations over the next several months.

The weekend's festivities included inspirational speeches, panel discussions and a retirement party for PBHA Administrative Assistant Lee Smith, who alumni praised for her 43 years of work.

Alumni who attended the reunion spoke nostalgically about their time with PBHA.

"I think it made a substantial contribution to the people we served," Robert H. Easton '58 said. "For me personally, it helped define and clarify the directions I wanted to go."

They said they appreciated the turnout as well as the enthusiasm.

"What I enjoyed is to see that the spectrum of ages are all energized by the same sort of motivations," John G. Bewis '68 said.

"It's been a great opportunity for people who served together to meet each other," Robert E. Giannino '94 said. "My hat goes off to the PBHA people who organized this."

Several recent graduates alluded to a decrease in tensions with University administrators since 1995, when about 700 students rallied in Harvard Yard against an administration that wanted more oversight of PBHA, which had been autonomous for many years.

Clay M. West '97 said he was pleased that the disputes between students and administrators have calmed.

"PBHA has solidified its relationship with the University," West said. "In practice, it's better than we hoped."

The informative panel sessions addressed a wide array of topics, such as "Trends in Undergraduate Public Service," "Philanthropy in the 21st Century" and "Connecting the Local and Global."

Several discussion leaders said that even in a complex world, seemingly insignificant efforts by individuals can make profound differences.

Mary Jo Bane, Bradshaw professor of public policy, said people should still value personal interactions highly.

"The advent of the Internet can help bridge communities, but it's not a cure-all." Bane said. "I think that makes people-to-people contact that much more important now."

Several panelists said that the non-profit sector has plenty of room for improvement.

"We have to have the fortitude to say that certain non-profits shouldn't be in place, and that others should take their place," said Kelly Fitzimmons, the co-founder of New Profit Incorporated.

John L. Warner '59 said the quality of the discussions exceeded his expectations and went beyond simple idealism.

"I expected the people to be a bunch of bureaucrats," Warner said. "They were less phony than I expected them to be."

The emotional culmination of the festivities came when Rev. Peter J. Gomes, Plummer professor of Christian morals, talked eloquently and wittily about Lee Smith's great contributions to PBHA.

"Great revisions of the social order have come and gone and Lee has remained," Gomes quipped.

He added on a serious note, "She has seen so many changes in the styles and focus and direction of this house."

The audience gave Smith a standing ovation lasting more than a minute.

"I've never seen a standing ovation for what was essentially a eulogy," joked Walter W. Birge '61.

Smith said she was flattered and thanked a number of people in the crowd.

"I can't tell you what a privilege it's been to work with you," she said.