After graduating from the Catholic University in Lima with a B.S. in chemistry, I moved in the fall of 1989 to New York City to pursue graduate studies in the Department of Chemistry at Columbia University (Ph.D., 1994). Living in the Big Apple for five years was a lot more than doing exciting research in the lab, which I did (not to mention the 13 publications that came out of that effort): visiting some of the best museums in the world (the Met and the MoMA were my favorites), attending free concerts in Central Park, walking in midtown Manhattan, buying the Sunday edition of the NY Times on Saturday evenings, the diversity of cultures and foods In 1992 I got married to a former classmate from the Catholic University, who had come to the U.S. a year and a half after me to study polymer chemistry at nearby Brooklyn Polytechnic. Monica and I fortunately graduated within months of each other and moved together to work at Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico. We have fond memories from the two years we lived in the Southwest: synthesis of dicarbollide complexes of thorium and uranium during the week and unforgettable trips to national parks and historical sites on weekends.

We moved again in August of 1996, this time to Charlotte, North Carolina, where I had accepted a position as a new Assistant Professor in the Department of Chemistry at the local university, and our first daughter (Debbie) was born a month later. Life at the outset of my independent career and the beginning of a family was busy enough, but things got really hectic two years later with the arrival of our twin boys (Ari & David). At UNC Charlotte, I have being teaching different inorganic and general chemistry courses and my research interests continue to be focused in synthetic and structural inorganic chemistry, including the design of new sufur-based ligands and the synthesis of model compounds for the active site in [NiFe] hydrogenases. I would refer those interested in more information to my web page (http://www.uncc.edu/drabinov), where I also hope to have someday portions of my stamp collection on display.

Besides family and work, to be honest, I don't have a lot of spare time these days. I try to play racquetball once a week and I regularly coach our children's soccer teams. I like listening to classic rock and heavy metal, sometimes even when I'm writing a paper or research proposal! Philatelically speaking, I actively collect used stamps from France, Great Britain, Peru, Sweden, and Switzerland and, of course, any philatelic materials (e.g., stamps, First Day Covers, special cancellations and slogan meters, maximum cards) related to chemistry and allied fields.

In closing, I must say that it's already clear to me that the Editor of PCP plays a key role in promoting our combined interest in science and philately and in the continued success of the Unit as a whole. Foil Miller has done an outstanding job during his tenure as Editor since 1997 and, now that I've started to realize the challenges and rewards the position entails, I will strive to keep PCP as lively, diverse, and informative as it has always been. Last but not least, I'm glad to report that Foil will still contribute periodically to PCP, so let's all hope that we continue enjoying his expertise, wit, and enthusiasm for many years to come. Back to Officers!