Happy Birthday, Nina!

by Myrna Nickelsen, '78

I continue to have administrative access to this site, so I can still post articles, photos, etc. without Nina's permission or knowledge -- as is the case on this day.

Today, April 19, is Nina's birthday. While Judy Seals Baker (76) caught it on the April Birthdays post, I think Nina's birthday needs to be highlighted.

After the San Diego reunion, I set out to recruit a new reunion team, one of whom needed to also succeed me in my role as the first editor of this website. The editor was critical, in my opinion, because I was convinced of the role it would continue to play in keeping everyone engaged and in finding new members prior to the next reunion.

Nina Pierce Baker (77) was the first person who came to mind. She writes well, and I knew that if I could convince her to take on the role, she would commit the time and energy to keep it fresh. And WOW! What she's been doing since the fall of 2006 is nothing short of impressive. She's kept it fresh -- not an easy thing to do -- and the number of people she's convinced to come out of the woodwork is unbelievable.

Nina's smarts, commitment, and tenacity is not new to those who knew her at Wagner. I only knew her by name and face while at Clark, but I knew this much -- even if it was just by reputation. Though she'd attended every reunion since 1987, I still didn't know more than this about her until we began planning the San Diego reunion. Through email and virtually free telephone calls, Nina and I began to discover how many things we had in common, and she quickly became one of my favorite people.

I've always believed that photographs can capture an essence in people. The two pictures below are of Nina in the 1st grade and as a senior at Wagner, and I think you'll agree that both reflect the sweetness/kindness that I think is  her essence.

In addition to wishing her a HAPPY BIRTHDAY, I think this is an appropriate time to recognize and thank her for the work she's doing for this website. Mark Anderson (78) wants to join in the chorus with this personal message: Nina, we think you are doing such a wonderful job on the website that for your birthday we decided to grant your most intimate wish. Yep! You get to continue with the website for as long as you want. Score!

One of the best ways to show our appreciation for the work she does is to contribute articles and post your thoughts on any article you read. In addition to the comments serving as new content -- a great help to Nina -- they also let her know that you're visiting the site and reading its contents regularly.

Happy Birthday, Nina! Here's wishing you a year of love and laughter!

Comments

[Chrystella Byers]

I'm late! Happy Belated Birthday greetings. Still gorgeous as ever. *sigh*

[Kent Johnson '76]

Nina--

I hope you had a great birthday. How is it that most everyone else ages, and you stay the same? Keep up the good work.

[Sue Eby Dreshfield]

Happy Birthday, Nina! You're amazing in every way! Thanks for keeping the rest of us engaged in and entertained by this website through all your hard work. I can't imagine that any other high school group has a site like this one! That's what makes Wagner so special! Best wishes for a wonderful year as we both edge ever closer to the dreaded 50!

Love, Sue

[Ed Welch]

Nina,

Happy Birthday kid! Thanks for all your hard work on the web site. We are very lucky to have you around all these years later after you survived that vicious vacuum cleaner attack your senior year. I was really worried about you!

[Jennifer Jackson Clark]

Some people, no matter how old they get, never lose their beauty - they merely move it from their faces into their hearts.
-- Martin Buxbaum

I hope you had a wonderful day, and thank you for being so very fabo!

[Stephen Bowers]

¡Feliz Cumpleaños Nina!

[Jason Roosma '76]

Happy Birthday, Sweetie!

[Gabe Montes]

Hey Nina,

Happy Birthday woman!! Hope your day is as awesome as you are. You and your team are doing a great job at keeping us all connected. Thanks!

[Elin Pierce]

OK, OK, I'll admit it - I'm the "sidekick"! But, hey, I never even got a tiara....

You're an exception among women in staying young-looking and beautiful over the years; I thought the photos were a good comparison. (don't you readers?)

We all owe Nina a huge round of applause, not only for a job immensely well done, but for our appreciation of her as a loyal, steadfast friend, listener, supporter, and Nina, you also happen to be a *great* sister. (sorry if any others are envious! ;)

On this special day, I thought back through the years on what events I might be able to tell our Wagnerite friends about that would illustrate just what a remarkable person Nina is. (This is a tradition in Norway on birthdays, so bear with me!) Nina has continuously done massive amounts of well-accomplished, unpaid work, making sacrifices for her family, local schools, and athletic teams. One thing very few know about is that Nina once underwent a painful surgical procedure to save a man's life, donating her own bone marrow so that a stranger could still live today. That is one *huge* accomplishment; it shows true greatness. Along those same lines, Nina continues to donate her time and talented efforts to running this website. Would she but gotten a $ for every minute she spent here for us! Well, Nina, we will make sure you know today how much we all appreciate you; you are OUR hero.

I love you, sister.

- Elin

PS - Nina, let me know when you hit that "century mark" 100......!

[Dana Williams]

Nina,

Special birthday wishes to a special lady. And thank you for all your hard work, time and wonderful ideas you bring to the website.

[Nina Pierce]

Thanks, Myrna & Mark for the kind wishes - and for bestowing upon me my dearest wish! However did you know?

Obviously, you two had a little help with this post (doesn't everyone have their own tiara?) and I will deal with your "sidekick" later.

Working on the web site has been fun. I'm sure there are folks who cringe when they see my email address pop up in their in box, but I've gotten to know some great and interesting Wagnerites through all this and I am really looking forward to the next reunion in DC. I think most of us would like to move it up to 2010 since we had so much fun at the last one.

Thanks to all of you who've responded to surveys, sent in articles and pictures or updated me on fellow Wagnerites. You are the glue that holds this site together.

And thank you Myrna, for your friendship and guidance along the way, and for your dogged determination and hard work in keeping our far flung & motley crew in touch. Cheers everyone - Here's to my last year before I hit the half century mark!