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Brooke, ever since that very first phone call where we bonded over being Kansas City kids who were now in New York City -- you as a lifer, me as it turned out passing through for my 20s -- I knew we would have great conversations and we always did. Thank you for everything you did to bring me into NYU. Thank you for the support and listening ear and regal hosting that you provided while we were there. Thank you for meeting me for chats even when I had graduated. Thank you for following us yourself. This is a long-deserved retirement, and I hope you soak up every ounce. Enjoy!

  Alison Bowen 

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Hi Brooke! 

Though my class only got to be with you for a year, I'm so thankful that we got the chance to work with and learn from you. I remember being so intimidated and nervous when I first came to a GloJo event at your home in March of 2019, but I realized then that I would be so lucky to get to take part in this program with so many other incredible journalists. 

While this past year has been incredibly wacky and unexpected, I've learned so much and gotten to take advantage of so many opportunities —all thanks to you and GloJo. Thank you, Brooke, for introducing me to good friends, guiding me to be a better journalist and always keeping tabs on the work my cohort and I are doing. I can't wait to get back to work in just a couple of weeks!

Cheers!

Emmy

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hello Brooke - my time at NYU feels like two lifetimes ago but some impressions haven't faded -- your strong and steady leadership; your competence and poise; your grace and humor; your warmth and generosity, most explicitly displayed when you opened your home each year to fête the GloJo students.

you deserve whatever you want out of retirement and the next phase of your life. wishing you well and sending love.

sincerely,

Lance Steagall Glo-Jo class of 20??

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Dear Brooke,

Never would I have thought that years later, I would still be able to text the doyenne of GloJo and have her on the phone within minutes; that I could still count on having her in my corner when I find myself confounded; that I could still call on her font of care and clear-eyed criticism despite the expiration date on my press pass.

I think I can say with the rest of us: Our cups runneth over.

Much love from the Last Frontier,

Kyle Walker, '17

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Congratulations, Brooke! And thank you for working so hard for me and for all of us. Seeing what you built at NYU and the energy you brought to it is always inspiring. I wish you a happy and healthy retirement and I'm excited to see all that you'll get up to now.

All my best, Shahan

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Dear Brooke, 

Thank you for everything. I was just speaking with some GloJo palls the other day about what a gift it is to have your unwavering faith in us. We can call you in an absolute tailspin and you always lift us back out of it. I'm so grateful for your support. Onwards!

All the best of luck,

Hannah (2017-2019)

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Thank you, Brooke <3

For much of my life, I dreamed of being a journalist, but never really knew how to get from "That's my dream job" to "Hey, I could do that." Then, one day, I had a phone call with you. 

Thank you for taking a chance on me, on all of us. Though I haven't even finished the program yet, I am endlessly grateful for all I have learned in the past year, and all I have yet to learn. A year ago, I walked into your office terrified at the prospect of going to report my first story. You told me I was just as much of a reporter as anyone else. With that, I went out into New York, and I explored and asked questions and took photos and now, a year later, I'm finally starting to believe you.

Thank you, a million times thank you. I am so sad that we won't have you around this year, but I am so glad that you get to enjoy a very, very well-deserved retirement.

<3

Erin

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Dear Brooke,

Journalism is a calling based on human connection—ties formed with sources, informants, gatekeepers, and, maybe most importantly, colleagues. I am so thankful to be finishing my time at NYU with this amazing group of journalists, people I have bonded with and learned from, all thanks to you. Through your personal generosity, hard work, and sheer willpower, you created opportunities for us to come together. You taught us more than the mechanics of our profession—you taught us that the connections we make are precious, like gold. You fought for each and every one of us to be here and have pushed us to be better reporters, writers, observers, editors, and people. For me personally, you showed up, over and over. Your legacy here is solid, Brooke. We should all hope to have such an impact. Thank you.

Holly Pickett

(Photo from our GLOJO retreat, May 2019. L-R Alanna Elder, Lindsey Norwand, Holly Pickett)

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Brooke!

I still remember the day you called my on the phone in Venezuela to offer me a spot in the GloJo program. Thank you for giving me a career-changing opportunity and for guiding our class through such an enriching program.

I wish you the best best and hope to be in touch with you in coming years. You will always have family in Caracas. 

Un abrazo, 

Juan Víctor 

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Brooke—thank you for making GloJo what it is, a singular, transformative program that did more, in a shorter period of time, to bring me nearer to my dreams than anything else in my life. I don’t think I have met anyone who more obviously cared about her students and, as part of that, demanded that they achieve what you knew they could achieve, especially when we did not. I will never forget my years at NYU and in the Global Journalism program, and I will be drawing on them throughout all the remaining years of my career. – Ben D

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Brooke: waving to a beloved student or gossiping? The world may never know.... 

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Sending Love from the Mediterranean...again!

BROOKE! 

First, I want to say congratulations on your retirement...it is so well deserved!!...and I am sorry that whatever beautiful plans you must have had to explore the world––or even the city––are on hold for now. 

I am so, so lucky that I am a part of GloJo and that I have had you as a teacher, as a mentor, and as an adviser. *Literally* every day in law school and in my internship this summer your voice pops into my head when I use a boring noun as a verb, or when I am having trouble cutting down a paragraph. "TRIM. THE. FAT!" I have been working at Legal Aid this summer, and it is amazing to see how much good research and writing can actually help people keep their homes and stave off debt...all skills that I learned from you! 

I was at my parents' in New Orleans for the last 5 months, and now I am in Turkey where I plan to stay until the election. Because of GloJo I was able to deepen my language skills and my relationship to this place. Thank you for encouraging us to see the world as a place to love and to live in (..."in which to live"?). 

I so wish we were able to get tarted up for a raucous retirement party, and I can't wait until I can see you again! 

[happy-glojo-hippos]

To Brooke

Dear Brooke, 

It would come as no surprise to you I'm sure that I blew the deadline for this, and am not entirely sure I'm doing it right. 

BUT because I am woefully late, I get to read all the wonderful posts above! It is hard to believe you are, in fact, retiring — I know I, and so many of us, can't imagine this GloJo community without you, but of course, we also know you'll always be such a fundamental part of it.

Look at this amazing community you have built! Every GloJo, out there in the world and inspiring us yet again to keep on with this thing with all love. Thank you for bringing together some of the very best friends in my life, without whom, I probably wouldn't be here, typing happily away at the memories and excited, still, for what's to come, even at this strange time.

Maybe especially in this strange time, I am, will always be, so grateful. 

All the best, 

Molly O'Toole

GloJo '11 

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Hi Brooke, flipping through the photos, it feels like a lifetime ago (13 years!) but also a little bit like it happened yesterday. When we first met, everything smelled brand new at the Journalism Institute. I remember the first impression after we met you; so enthusiastic, so welcoming and filled with energy. You were a very important part of my life in New York, always open to talk, always believing in us, having us at your place, listening to our progress. It was like having an aunt in the city :) It’s not an exaggeration to say that you were part of some of the most important moments in my life (not only my time in New York but also my wedding! :) I’ll never forget that and I’m very grateful. I wish you the best in this new stage. I hope you enjoy it a lot -–I’m sure you will, with your enthusiasm, your energy and you love for life. I hope you write a lot, learn a lot, travel a lot. And I hope we’ll meet again soon, undust that provolera and catch up :) Love and best wishes, Adriana Loeff.-

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NYC, 2007

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NYC, 2009

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Congrats!

Brooke, I missed my deadline on this but I wanted to belatedly add my thanks to the lovely notes others have already posted. When I joined GloJo I had no journalism experience. The fact that I'm still telling stories for a living more than ten years later is, in large part, a testament to you and the program you built. You helped guide me and so many others with your perfect blend of support and stern advice. I always left your office with a sharper idea of what I needed to do and how to make it happen. You've shaped the lives and careers of countless journalists. And as we struggle through social distancing, I often find myself fondly thinking of the GloJo get-togethers at your apartment, where the lovely views were nothing compared to the lively conversation.

All the best,

Michael