By strange coincidence, one of the alumni Jim and I visited in New England just happened to be a former Homecoming Central Committee co-chair – perfect timing to kick off this Cytennial Homecoming Week, no?
John Hagen (’84 business administration) not only co-chaired the committee, he also met his wife (Kerri Swenson Hagen) on Homecoming Central, and he still keeps in touch with his fellow co-chair, Carol Danker Banks, a 1984 management grad who now lives in Avon, Conn.
Small world.
John is head of human resources for iGate in the Americas, a global IT company, for which he travels throughout the United States, Canada, and Mexico. He lives in the tiny village of Amherst, N.H., founded in the 1700s and made famous in part by the fact that U.S. President Franklin Pierce was married there.
Originally from Marion, Iowa, John is a lifelong runner. He switched to Olympic-distance triathlons, a cross-training regimen he says is “less abusive to the body.” In addition to swimming, biking, and running, John has also taken up “typical New Hampshire activities” such as alpine skiing, Nordic skiing, and going to the beach.
“We go rafting and kayaking,” he says. “I like biking the coastline.” He said that 20 ski mountains are within a two-hour drive from Amherst.
For a location where it’s important to have a chain saw, a roof rake (for excessive snow), and a “good plow guy,” John says that outdoor activities help make the winter go by faster.
On the road 
Leave a Reply