I've known for a few years now that wearing an Antioch shirt (or putting an Antioch sticker on your car ) is a sure-fire way to meet interesting people. I always have an interesting time when I wear one of my Antioch T-shirts, but this was doubly true yesterday at the March For Women's Lives in Washington, DC.

I had hoped to run into some Antiochians in DC, but I actually had my first Antioch encounter at 6:30 in the morning at the rest stop, when I ran into ... Well, OK, I totally forget their names, but the young guy with the glasses from the development office and the woman he was traveling with (anyone who knows antisolipsism should ask if this was her ... sounds like it may've been). . The guy with the glasses actually REMEMBERED me, which really kinda blew my mind. He asked if I was from Pittsburgh and I said I was. Apparently he was one of the people who came from Antioch when Mel Melnick '67 hosted a Pittsburgh Antiochian Gathering at his home a few years back. Wow. Anyway, he told me that graduation was the day before (graduation on April 24th? Shudder ...), so there wasn't going to be a big Antioch contingent; he said he and his friend were traveling on the Wright State bus.

Once we got to DC I met up with my friend Diana, some of her friends, and her friends' parents. We all chatted and, as we got off the Metro, the woman I'd be chatting with asked the question I was going to hear a lot of yesterday: "So, did you go to Antioch?" Turns out she got her masters at Antioch New England.

I had a DESPERATE need for iced coffee. It took some doing, but I found some at the McDonald's in the Air and Space Museum (I know, right). Unfortunately, going to get my second iced coffee got me separated from my friends. I came upon the Ohio contingent and took several breaks just standing by the sidelines, facing toward the march and just waiting for someone to ask "Did you go to Antioch?" I met a woman from 1970, her friend who only went to Antioch for 4 months, another woman from Yellow Springs ... Later on a man whose twins (I think) just graduated this past weekend ... I had a nice, long talk with a woman named Marsha who was there in 1968. We talked about dorms: she lived in Presidents, but dated a guy who lived in Birch. I said "Didn't we all ..."

All in all a great time. I was so glad I wore that shirt. I'll definitely do it again next time.

- Hope '92


[cross-posted to antioch_college, http://www.groups.msn.com/antioch92 and alumni-chat@antioch-college.edu]