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ALUMNI NEWSDavid Baum (1982, Botany)writes about his family’s long-standing connection with the CollegeMy family’s connection to St Catherine’s College beganwith my Uncle, Professor J David Baum, who was aFellow in Medicine from 1977 until 1985. He had joinedthe Department of Paediatrics and was looking for acollege affiliation when Lord Bullock invited him to joinCatz. He loved the College so much that, when familyvisited, he made a point of walking them through thegrounds. I remember coming on such a visit with myparents and sisters when I was about sixteen and, ifmy memory serves me well, our visit to the Collegeimmediately preceded my first exposure to punting.While the latter hardly recommended Oxford to me – wemoved about 100 yards in one frustrating and wet hour– the tour of Catz made, in contrast, a good impression.I was then doing A-levels and had fallen in lovewith Botany. When I looked at applying to universityto pursue this subject further, I was happy thatOxford, unlike Cambridge, offered a Botany degree.Furthermore, St Catherine’s had one of the few Botanytutors at Oxford, Barrie Juniper. I applied and gainedadmittance, having survived an interview which involvedbeing asked to comment upon such unlikely objects as adolphin skull and a petri dish of cottage cheese. Whilemy life at College primarily revolved around tutorials,socialising with Catz biologists, diving, and expeditions,the family presence in Oxford enriched my experience,and I enjoyed many Friday nights with David, Angela,and their four boys. My Uncle also roped me into theOxford University Cholent Society, a Jewish dining clubthat was active at the time. One of my most painfulrecollections was trying single-handedly to cook akosher Cholent Society dinner for forty in theCollege kitchen!Around the time that I left Oxford (having eventuallybecome a tolerably good punter), David and hisfamily moved to Bristol University, where he hadbeen offered a Chair. The Catz-Baum story did not,however, end with our departure. Three years later,my sister Alison, and David’s eldest son Buzz, cameto Catz to read Biology and Biochemistry respectively.Two years after that, Buzz’s younger brother Jakecame up to read Biology. Add to that a cousin on mymother’s side, Libby Magrill, who read Maths, and Ithink you can see why St Catherine’s feels like afamily story. How has this story unfolded for us sincewe left College?David BaumST CATHERINE’S COLLEGE 2008/39