I hope all have enjoyed the wonderful weather these past few days. Now
we’re at October Break which seems to have both arrived quickly and also just
when we all need it.
For all of you: Get some sleep. Get some exercise. Catch up with friends and family and take some time to catch up on work if need be.
I’d note that during our Fireside Chats we discovered, as we do every year, that a clear majority of students feel they were all a bit behind on work. (Just one or two people out of about 100 respondents said they were actually ahead in work.) So, don’t panic about being a bit behind. You’re in good company. But, do catch up and you’ll come back more relaxed.
For those of you staying on campus: I want to make sure you know that Trumbull
will be hosting a “break from whatever you’re doing on your break” event in our
Buttery with pizza on Friday, Oct. 18th at 6 p.m. Come join our graduate affiliate, Samuel Walter, who will be hosting this event. There will be pizza and Greek salad, drinks, and, most importantly, other Trumbullians there. Please email Deb Bellmore, operations manager, at deborah.bellmore@yale.edu, by noon on Thursday if you’d like to attend.
For those of you leaving for break: Lock your rooms before leaving. Turn down the heat
a bit but not completely. Close your windows. Travel safely and enjoy the break. (If you
are going abroad do not forget your passport.)
Thanks are due to:
Special thanks this week go to Uzo Biosah and Sarah Wie for leading some Trumbull trips to
local thrift stores for our first-year students. I hope it was fun as an outing and that people found something appealing.
Congratulations.
I had the joy of watching Trumbullian Jose Key play alto saxophone with the Yale Jazz group
last evening in Sprague Hall. He’s really good. Congratulations are due on a terrific performance.
Rumbull in TrumBull, Friday, Oct. 25, in TC Courtyard from 3:30-5:30
Games, cider and cider donuts, music and pumpkin carving (reserve your pumpkin with the TCC).
Upcoming Teas.
After you return from break I’ll be hosting two Trumbull Teas in the House. They are as follows:
Lauren Sherman, The Business of Fashion, Friday, Oct. 25, from 2:00-3:00 PM in the HOC house
Lauren Sherman is the chief correspondent in New York for The Business of
Fashion (BoF), the preeminent resource for the global fashion industry. Founded in
2007 and headquartered in London, BoF today welcomes more than 1 million unique
visitors per month and commands more than 4 million followers on social media
Carlos Alvarez, Monday Oct. 28, 4:00 pm in the HOC house [He’s the Alvarez of Alverez Courtyard in Trumbull and his daughter was (and is) a Trumbullian.]
Short Stories of the Highly Competitive US Beer Market An American Immigrant Success Story
Carlos Alvarez is CEO of The Gambrinus Company, a leading craft brewer in the United States. Carlos founded Gambrinus in San Antonio, Texas, in 1986, after emigrating with his family from their native Mexico. Today, Gambrinus owns and operates two independent craft breweries in the U.S.: the Spoetzl Brewery in Shiner, TX, brewer of Texas’ iconic Shiner Bock, and the Trumer Brewery in Berkeley, CA, brewer of Trumer Pils.
Carlos grew up in Acapulco where his father established a Corona beer distributorship in the mid-1940’s. As a young adult, he worked part time in the family business and learned the trade from the ground up. After college, he joined Grupo Modelo – brewers of Corona – and held several positions before becoming Export Manager in 1978. Shortly thereafter, he won brewery approval to take Corona Extra to the U.S. and, in the summer of 1981, sold the first few cases of Corona in Austin, TX. Carlos thus started and helped to develop what would become the most successful beer brand in contemporary beer marketing. Gambrinus officially became U.S. importer for Corona and other Modelo brands in 1986 and was responsible for sales and marketing for the next 20 years until 2006.
In 1989, Carlos acquired the Spoetzl Brewery in Shiner, TX. At that time, the brewery had been in the decline for several years and faced serious financial difficulties. Having experienced Austin’s developing consumer support for Shiner, he saw the brand’s potential and decided to buy the brewery. After years of investments in the brewery’s facilities and in selling and marketing efforts behind its beers, Shiner is today a major craft brewer in the U.S. with Shiner Bock as its leading brand. A unique partnership between Gambrinus and the centuries-old Trumer Brauerei in Salzburg, Austria resulted in the creation of a sister brewery in Berkeley, CA. Trumer Pils is today the most awarded pilsner in the world.
Carlos is a graduate of the Monterrey Institute of Technology in Monterrey, Mexico with a degree in Biochemical Engineering. He is very supportive of education, having contributed to educational institutions across the U.S., with a particular focus on scholarship funding. Carlos serves on the boards of National Public Radio and the World Affairs Council of America - both in Washington D.C. He is a Trustee of Davidson College, Davidson, NC, and a former Trustee of School Year Abroad, Andover, MA. In 2010, he was inducted into the Texas Business Hall of Fame. In 2011, for his accomplishments as an immigrant, Carlos was recognized with the Ellis Island Medal of Honor, an award given to Americans whose accomplishments in their field and inspired service to the United States are cause for celebration.
(For those of you 21 and over, we hope to obtain some samples of his beers for you to try out.)
Coming on Nov. 7, Tatianna Schlossberg, 4 p.m. in the Trumbull House.
Tatianna Schlossberg is a Trum-Alum (who graduated in 2012) who was a science writer for the New York Times and who just published a book entitled: Inconspicuous Consumption: The Environmental Impact You Don’t Know You Have. She will talk about her experiences since leaving Trumbull including the experience of writing this book.
We have copies in the main office you may borrow to read. See Deb Bellmore. (It’s not too long and not too heavy. It would be easy to read over break.)