August 9th (12 page)

Business has been nothing short of fantastic. Another one of the start-ups we invested in three years ago went public with their IPO in March and it was a big payday for Rogers Schmidt. Lately, we’ve been overloaded with presentations from two different types of tech start-ups, Internet infrastructure and cellular phone components.

My old Stanford buddy Jeff sold his Company for $29 million. Good for him and good for Rogers Schmidt as we were one of his early investors. I had lunch with him at a recruiting session at Stanford. He’s still the same
guy he was at Stanford in T-shirts, jeans and sneakers. What’s very refreshing is that he’s totally unpretentious. Now a multi-millionaire many times over it’s never been about the money for him. Maggie and I went to his wedding in April and I was honored when he asked me to be one of his ushers. His wife Bonnie, a nurse, is a sweetheart and as endearing as Jeff. She’s got a five year old son from her first marriage that Jeff’s crazy about. In June Jeff stopped by our office with the biggest grin on his face because they’re having a baby. It’s always rewarding to see good things happen to good people. After all these years we’re still talking about starting our own Company.

My amazing little girl Caroline is now fifteen. Can you believe it? Her school work is way beyond me including her never ending ethical and morality questions. She wants to be a lawyer and practices on me by never losing an argument. I thought I was young graduating from high school at seventeen but she’s graduating a month before her sixteenth birthday. Who does that? Of course I’ve been trying to steer her towards Stanford or UCLA but she wants to go east to an Ivy League school. With her grades and test scores she can go anywhere she wants.

That’s the good news about Caroline. Now here’s the problem. She’s dating and thinks I interrogate her dates as if they’re on trial, and of course she’s right. A couple of weeks ago a boy shows up to take her to a movie and I started to grill him when he tells me he goes to Stanford. He’s seventeen which is a much older guy
for my little girl. Luckily for Caroline her mother was there to rescue her. All kidding aside, she is the smartest, sweetest daughter imaginable. She is so much like Maggie. They’re not only mother and daughter but also best friends.

Ben will be thirteen in December and is still a challenge in many ways. We’re thrilled the aggressive behavior he’s shown in the past had not reoccurred. His biggest challenge appears to be frustration. He’ll try to do something and keep trying over and over again not knowing how to express his frustration for not being able to do what he wants. It’s so sad to watch and I just try to shower him with love and attention. His favorite person in the world is Caroline and Maggie and I are worried about how her going off to college will affect him.

Saint Sarah, as I call her, is pretty much in charge of our home. We’ve even fixed up one of our extra bedrooms for her and she stays over a couple nights a week which really helps us out.

I finally figured out that I can only run a couple times a week and Maggie sensing I needed a new challenge bought me a very cool mountain bike for my birthday. One of the partners at Rogers Schmidt and I ride on Saturday mornings.

We saw a very different concert last month. We flew down to LA and took both sets of parents to see The Three Tenors at Dodger Stadium. There must have been 50,000 people there to hear Jose Carreras, Placido Domingo and the incomparable Luciano Pavarotti. They
were backed up by the L.A. Philharmonic, L.A. Opera Chorus and conductor Zubin Mehta. It was a beautiful summer evening and really a great show. It was also the first concert I’ve ever seen with my parents.

Looking back this really was a wonderful year. As always, I wish you good health, lots of happiness and the realization of your dreams.

Hi Tess,

My little girl is going to Yale.

After we visited Harvard, Yale, and Princeton she chose Yale. How can we disagree with her choice since it’s always rated one of the top three colleges in the country? She also likes the city of New Haven, but will live on campus as do most Yale undergraduates. The best way for us to fly there from here is through Hartford or Boston. Maggie is going back with her in a couple of weeks to help her get settled.

I couldn’t be any prouder of my beautiful daughter. She is mature way beyond her years. Her June graduation ceremony was one of the highlights of my life. Both sets of grandparents flew up to watch and hear their valedictorian granddaughter deliver her commencement speech, aptly titled “Why.” I was seated between Ben and Maggie in the auditorium. The content of her speech was totally thought provoking and her delivery
was as good as it gets. I had probably heard her practice the speech a half dozen times but she saved her best performance for when it mattered most. Unexpectedly, the moment I will cherish most and for the rest of my life occurred when she questioned unjust wars and racial and religious discrimination. To hear her wise words brought this proud father to tears and Ben seeing this put his arm around my shoulder and whispered, “Don’t cry daddy, please don’t cry.” For so many reasons that was one of the best moments of my life.

When they called out Caroline Mae Brewster to receive her diploma our whole row stood in unison and cheered. Hearing us she couldn’t help but look over and smile.

This really was Caroline’s year because for her graduation gift we decided it was about time and she deserved to see some of the world. Maggie bought her a globe with a bunch of pins and we told her she could choose where she wanted to go, within reason. The other stipulation was that she had to be accompanied by another female, whose expenses we’d also cover. The woman had to be over 21 and responsible. That description sort of limited the field and there really was never any doubt who she’d choose. Maggie and Caroline had a wonderful two weeks touring London, Paris, Rome, and Florence.

Of course not everything came up roses for Caroline. With her sixteenth birthday came the obligatory driving test and lessons from dear old dad. Let’s just say I’m not sure who was more nervous and I quickly found
the biggest empty parking lot I could. I’m just glad she doesn’t need a car at Yale.

Ben seems to be making some progress. The special education and therapy he receives provides him the best possible environment. We keep hoping a wonder drug will soon be discovered and tested but as of today any new medication is still in the experimental phase. We’re still concerned over what’s going to happen with Caroline away at Yale so we found a special education teacher from Ben’s school who lives nearby and can help out after school when needed.

Maggie is even more active with her autism charity work and has turned into quite the prolific fund raiser. In the spring we hosted a dinner for all the Rogers Schmidt partners and she raised $100,000. The timing of the dinner was perfect as one of the tech companies we invested in had just been acquired.

I’m happy to tell you my sobriety has reached almost three years. I’ve also finally stopped drinking all those diet sodas. Who knows the long term effects from all those chemicals? It’s water and ice tea for me and I feel much better for it. Maggie and I continue to have very busy schedules but still make time to share our days during dinner or before bed.

The parade of new companies looking for funding continues at our office. I heard some interesting stats a couple weeks ago during a seminar at Stanford. Forty million US households now have a computer with fourteen million now online and there are now forty-four million cell phone subscribers. The predictions here in
the Valley are that those numbers are just the beginning. I sure hope so because that’s where we’re investing.

I’m very happy with the job President Clinton is doing. The country is finally being shown a Democrat can improve the economy. Of course he’s very popular in the Bay area because of his efforts to eliminate discrimination against gays and also increased spending for education.

In other loose ends, yes our house is too big and I’m riding my mountain bike to work most days since we took over more space in our building that includes a small workout room with bathrooms and showers. Finally, we’re blessed that everyone is healthy and I hope you are the same.

Dear Tess,

It’s been quite an adjustment at the Brewster household with Caroline away at school on the other coast.

Thankfully Ben has adjusted well and although he misses his sister I think he appreciates all the additional attention he gets. Although I miss Caroline dearly it’s been most difficult for Maggie with her daughter and best friend gone from the nest. Even though they talk on the phone most every day it’s just not the same. Luckily we can afford to fly back there frequently and Caroline comes home for holidays or when she has some vacation time.

I’m not surprised she loves Yale and the college experience in general. It didn’t take her long to get involved in all sorts of activities. Her roommate, Shelly, is from Atlanta and Caroline says they have some interesting discussions. Since law school is her ultimate objective
her undergraduate major is not that important but her choice of philosophy seems like a good fit.

Ben will be fifteen in December and at 5’10” he’s nearly as tall as me. All the dedicated special need teachers, counselors and therapists have really helped him. Plus we’ve learned how to better manage his behavior. We understand so much more and can recognize early signals and address potential problems before they occur.

I’m not sure I’ve ever mentioned Maggie’s younger brother, Henry, but he got married in May and we flew down to LA for the weekend. Unfortunately, Caroline was in the midst of finals and couldn’t make it back. Maggie’s parents, Susan and Rick, are not only wonderful parents but also great role models. I couldn’t ask for better in-laws. Hank’s new bride grew up in the San Fernando Valley and her dad works for Disney in Burbank.

They say mountain bike riding is like skiing in that you don’t know you’re going too fast until you fall. Well, I was going too fast at the end of a hard ride in the local hills. I was tired and careless and took a turn too fast. I always try to fall or slide on my butt but really couldn’t in this case and instinctively tried to break my fall with my left hand. My gloves protected my hands so I broke my wrist, my first broken bone, ever.