Greetings from the Community

Peter L. Fohlin, Williamstown Town Manager
The Induction of Adam F. Falk as the 17th President of Williams College
Convocation, September 25, 2010

Peter FohlinGreetings, residents of Williamstown and visitors from near and far,

The first time I met President Falk, I was standing in Jim Kolesar’s office in my Purple Cow boxer shorts. President Falk, I welcome your sense of humor, your hearty laugh, and your easy embrace of the unexpected. Williamstown welcomes you, your wife Karen, and your children Briauna, David, and Alex.

We welcome your participation in our democracy, and thank you for registering to vote your first week in town, for already voting in our elections, and for participating in our town meeting.

At our first meeting you showed a keen interest in our history. We hope you devour every word of the copy of Williamstown, the First 250 Years we gave you. We welcome your involvement as we create the history of the next 250 years every day of our lives.

At the Frank Deford Award, President Falk asked Gorden Edes if there is any hope for his beloved Baltimore Orioles. There is not. We identify with your noble suffering as an Orioles fan. We welcome your conversion to either a New York Yankees fan or a Boston Red Sox fan – or both as the occasion is likely to require. We welcome your passion for sports, your support of Williams sports, and your appreciation for the Frank Deford Award.

We welcome your children into our schools. Thank you for sharing your experience at North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics at the Olmsted Awards. We invite your commitment to make our public schools great so the potential of every student can be ignited as it was for you at NCS&M. Somewhere in town there is another theoretical physicist looking to break out.

President Falk, welcome to Williamstown. May you and your family thrive here, and may you be President for many years to come.