Harvard Club of Philadelphia

Message from the Club President

September 2021

Dear Harvard Alumni,

Welcome back!

As we begin to emerge from this Pandemic and reflect, one thing we have all learned is how important community and belonging are to our very well-being. On behalf of the Harvard Club of Philadelphia Board, I would like to welcome you back as an integral participant in our vibrant Harvard Philadelphia community.

Our theme for the Harvard Club of Philadelphia this year is Re-engagement. We strive to bring back those human connections that people have missed over the past 18 months with a great slate of programing, new and creative membership initiatives, and a larger presence on social media. We hope to meet in-person whenever, and however, it is safe to do so; when not possible to be in-person, we will continue to utilize technology to engage with each other in more of a two-way dialogue.

As I take over as Club President, I’d like to thank Luke McLoughlin ’00 for his leadership over the past two years and the successful pivot to a robust slate of virtual programming. Luke remains active on the board in his new role as Nominating chair.

I am so excited to be working for and with all of you this year to rekindle, reengage, and strongly foster the sense of our local Harvard presence. One of my favorite aspects of the Harvard Club of Philadelphia is meeting others in the area with whom I share a Crimson bond.  For those of you who don’t yet know me, I am a Harvard and Radcliffe College Class of 2000 and Mather House alumna.  I have served on the board of the Harvard Club of Philadelphia for the past 6 years as Treasurer and member of the Executive Committee. When not volunteering with the Harvard Club, I work in Supply Chain Strategy at Estee Lauder, live in the Fairmount neighborhood of Philadelphia, and am a mom to 4-year-old twin boys. I hope each of you will, similarly, take the opportunity to introduce yourselves to me, and each other over the course of the year!

My invitation to all of you is to harness the power of our Philadelphia Harvard community this year by participating in a way that is most meaningful for you (click the links to find out more):

• Join/renew your membership in the Club to support our community-building initiatives and receive discounts for all programming.
• Attend in-person events to network and learn
• Engage with our speakers via zoom, 
• Interview prospective local area students, 
• Engage with us on social media (Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn), 
• Contribute to our scholarship fund supporting local Harvard undergraduates, 
• Mentor others within the Harvard Alumni community or local high schools.  

There is something for everyone, and our Harvard Philadelphia community is so much more vibrant with each of you playing an active role in it! 

Our first in-person opportunity to get together will be our Fall Opener: Welcome Back! on October 5th at the Betsy Ross House Courtyard (sign up here).  We hope to see you all there to mingle, re-engage, and form new Harvard friendships.

Warmly,

Melanie Sheerr, AB ‘00

President, Harvard Club of Philadelphia

Join or Renew Your Membership Today!!!!