Charles S. Peck – 50th Reunion Essay

Charles S. Peck

101 University Blvd #200

Denver, CO 80206

cpeck@cspresource.com

720-236-6801

Spouse(s): Madelon V. Peck (1969-1991); Shawn H. Peck (1992-present)

Child(ren): Christopher (1972), Taylor (1976), Stephen (1979), Hayden (1996), Corey (1999)

Grandchild(ren): Zach (2009), Logan (2012), Fisher (2010), Crosby (2013)

Education: Yale BA 1969, Harvard Grad Business 1974

National Service: US Navy 1969-1972 ; National Parks Foundation Board 2008-14

Career: Walt Disney Co, Treasurer 5 years; Cushman Realty Co., President 15 years; Destination Hotels, President 15 yrs; Silverwest Hotels LLC, President 5 years.

Avocations: Mountaineering; American Alpine Club; National Park Service & Foundation.

College: Davenport

I woke up early yesterday morning, a Saturday, because of a recurring anxiety dream. I was at a Yale-like place, and I’d failed to attend any classes, in any course, and now it was exam time. I tossed and turned as my dream-self tried desperately to think of strategies to catch up on lost time by cramming with books in the library. Today you could fake it with Wikipedia, aided by some entrepreneur’s online notes for sale…but back then you were screwed. This dream still happens occasionally, but I never quite get there.

Today, Sunday, April 29th, was that dreaded exam day, but surprisingly I woke up with thoughts of “what really matters,” and I started mulling over a series of random stories and experiences with the people in my life before, during, and after Yale.

I can vaguely remember some of my best and worst classes, but not much content. One memory that stuck was getting a C–, and then a “low pass” in a Vincent Scully architecture class, graded by some angry graduate assistant who thought my choice of a contemporary Manhattan high-rise office building to laud with praise was too capitalistic. His written comments included: “Does your Daddy own this building?” (He didn’t.) That’s pretty much it from my priceless Yale education.

But the people stories…. I find myself mulling all the then and now connections. Two of my roommates are MIA and I wonder why, but my four-year roommate Tim Briney, my good friend from St. Marks, and I are still connected. We had a free-range pet rabbit “Wort” as a roommate, who gnawed insulation off electric cords, so you would get shocked unplugging anything. Tim brought the Kentucky Derby, mostly the pre-game mint juleps, to Davenport, starting a tradition that lingers on today. Tim was also a loyal fan of Davenport hockey, coached by Henry “Sam” Chauncey, and he was assisted by George Bush as cheerleader.

The Bakers Dozen dominated much of my Yale life, where we had nine members from 1969. Perhaps we are a microcosm of what happens over 50 years. As an aside, we made several record albums, now called “vinyl”, I think, and one has a cover illustration from a young cartoonist, Garry Trudeau. I used to own the original artwork, but I lost it along the way.

Of the nine Bakers Dozen classmates, two are now deceased, maybe close to the correct actuarial expectations, but I’ve still not grasped the idea that peers of mine have passed on. So now there are seven of us, all worth mentioning, but I’ll point to Bob Brush, our spiritual Shaman, who with others, has been a catalyst for getting us together for fun retreats around the world. Of the seven we have a doctor, three lawyers, two businessmen, and an acclaimed multimedia artist, Bob, so we are a crosscut of society, at least among “middle-aged white males.”

I realize at this point, I probably haven’t written anything of note so far, but it’s made me happy to recall these experiences. Meanwhile, I dote on my five wonderful kids, all so different, and a total of four grandkids. I enjoy a new startup hotel investment company with people I like, Silverwest Hotels, which we founded in 2013 after three prior gigs running bigger companies with others. And I’m blessed with good health and work to stay reasonably fit, so I can keep climbing mountains in Colorado and elsewhere around the world.

I guess I have everything I could need or want, but especially all those people and experiences that have become the rock I stand on—that’s what really matters to me.