Following the precedent setting 5th Annual U.S. West Coast North Point Alumni Re-Union in Las Vegas, NV on Saturday, October 26, 2002; Fr Van drove to Los Angeles and met with several alumni who had been unable to join him in Las Vegas.

He then flew up to Northern California, where we gathered at the home of Monishi and Lalita Sanyal in Saratoga, near San Jose and enjoyed a sumptuous potluck dinner.  As in Las Vegas and Los Angeles, we congratulated Fr Van on his being conferred the Honorary Doctor of Laws from the University of Manitoba. And we cheered this as a precedent-setting event, for in our humble opinion, no North Point Rector has been so honored!

Alumni present were:

Monishi "63 and Lalita Sanyal

Mike Jala '53

Dorje Lama '53

Dorji Lama '59

Ronnie '64 and Maureen Leong

Suresh '64 and Georgina Mirchand

Lhary '58 Tshering

Phil '48 and Sophie LadenLa

We also welcomed Mike Jala to his first NP Reunion, following his many years of absence in his dedicated work abroad.

Each alumnus spoke for several minutes and declared how his North Point experience had benefitted him in his later years, whether in further studies, in his career or in the larger picture of life itself.  There was overall agreement that the teaching and discipline imparted us by our Jesuit teachers has made all the difference in our lives.  Even if the discipline appeared harsh at times, it is now recognized as having had a salutary effect! 

Later, Fr Van handed out the pledge cards and a discussion followed on the building plans and the need for funding to achieve these goals. Time was made for alumni to fill out the bioforms; and a plea was made for payment of dues

We recognized that Fr Van's visits here, as with the "old boys" around the world, have energized us all in the cause of North Point.  We need to sustain this momentum by starting to work without delay on our next West Coast Reunion; and so continue to help towards attaining the goals set for North Point.

The meeting ended with a rousing rendition of the North Point chorus."