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www.theconnectionsnj.com
C. Mannion Construction,
LLC
Award Winning Builders
Established 1964
Kevin C. Mannion
908-234-1754
office
908-234-2155
fax
kevcmann@aol.com68 Main St., P.O. Box 34, Peapack NJ 07977
In 2012, I knew very little about James, one of my colleagues at a company in Boston where we worked. James’ specialty is creating websites that people find appealing and easy to use. In my role, I would not normally be involved in the details of James and his team. However, we found ourselves collaborating closely for a few weeks on a small project. One morning, dur- ing that period, James broadcast an e- mail that he was not feeling well, did- n’t want to infect others and therefore would be working from home. He would be available by cell phone as needed. He provided his number, which contained a 207 area code. I returned an email, recognizing the 207 as the area code for Maine, ask- ing James if he was from there. I told him that I had spent a considerable amount of time in Maine and looked forward to talking with him about it when he returned to the office. James didn’t wait until his return to the office. He responded immediately that he was born and raised in Brew- er, Maine. In my comeback, I told him of a prominent family I knew in Ban- gor, the neighboring town to Brewer. I also mentioned friends, originally from Princeton, that had settled in Brunswick becoming involved in the local community and Bowdoin Univer- sity, which two of their children had attended. James did not know of the family in Bangor. However, he did attend and graduated from Bowdoin. I then asked James if he had heard the news from a couple days before about the female graduate from Bow- doin, Hilary Strasburger, who was traveling in Africa. On one leg of her journey she took a ferry in Tanzania from the port of Dar es Salaam to Zanzibar. The ferry capsized in rough seas on the Indian ocean. Nearly 150 people drowned. The ferry’s captain was warned not to sail. Although there were about 250 on the manifest, the boat was packed with as many as 400 people. Hilary, was able to escape through a window and swam to the safety of a rescue boat. We have known Hilary, now 30, since birth. She is the daughter of our close friends, Carrie and Frank Stras- burger, who have been featured in this column in previous articles. Very few Americans heard about this tragedy as opposed to the South Korean ferry and Italian cruise ship dis- asters, which received so much media coverage. I encourage you to do a web search and read Frank’s op ed, published in the Washington Post, May 9, 2014, “Why Do We Care About Some People and Not Others?” James responded that he had been following this situation closely. He was more interested than most Bowdoin alums. His fiancé, Julia, was Hilary’s roommate at Bowdoin. James left the company but we have stayed in touch and celebrated together at Hilary’s wedding a couple of years later. WHY DO WE CONNECT WITH SOME PEOPLE AND NOT OTHERS? By: Dan Rosenberg $ Basking Ridge Area 24 Hour Emergency Number Visit Our Website at ### ! " " Call for our free consumer’s guide to carpet cleaning. 10% OFF % " % " % $ % ! ! % # % ! ! " % % % Receive a FREE Bottle of Spot Remover with Any ServicePAGE 88