Tag: 1959

Further doings of the Great Class of 1959:

Bert Edwards and Skip Silloway went on to Stanford Business School (’61) after Wesleyan and attended a mini-reunion in Boston. These are regular events held around the country involving around 24 couples and are great fun.

Marilyn and Ed Murphy spent six weeks this winter skiing in Winter Park, Colo. They have two boys, both living in Florida: one in Tampa, a Navy Seal attached to the Special Operations Command; and the other a blooming entrepreneur in Jacksonville starting a business importing tequila! Fuel for our Reunion?!

The spring lunch in Washington hosted by Ed at the Hamilton Restaurant included Messrs. Edwards, Chase, Errington, Leverich, Moody, and Ogren. “In spite of the uplifting conversation about developments at Wesleyan and our recent travels and activities, the unexpected no-show of Josiah S. Carberry, honorary member of ’59, professor of psychoceramics (the study of cracked pots) at Wesleyan and Brown, cast a bit of a pall on the afternoon.”

Paul Stevens and wife Dodo celebrated two 50th anniversaries last fall: Their marriage and 50 summers on Little Diamond Island in Maine. Paul is still working at SMRT Architects and Engineers (52 years), traveling last winter to Costa Rica, Italy, and Florida, and running competitively, though he says the competition is thinning out in the 80-plus group. No more marathons, however.

Bert Edwards needs no introduction, but we wanted to share a bit about his career, which is extraordinary! Bert became an accountant after Stanford and went to Washington to work for the government. He retired, with many awards, as the assistant secretary and CFO of the State Department. The Interior Department then called Bert out of retirement to help them settle a long-running suit for $175 billion brought by several Native American tribes, representing 300,000 people. The suit was settled eventually for $1.4 billion. Bert worked for two female cabinet secretaries, Madeline Albright and Gail Norton, one Republican and one Democrat. A man of great talent and flexibility!

Hugh Lifson still lives a block from the campus at Cornell College, where he is a professor emeritus. He works a couple of hours every day in acrylic and plastic wrap, his signature medium since the 1960s, except Sunday, reserved for the New York Times.

Phil Pessoni reports the wonderful news that his daughter, Clare Frey, gave birth in April to their fifth grandchild, Nicholas Peter, in Montgomery, Ala.

Steve Pyle has completed two oil paintings of holes at the Whispering Pines short course, the best in Texas by far. His message to Skip: “Come for a visit and we’ll tee it up for old times’ sake.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cyndy and John Spurdle hosted “A Salute to Sir Tom Stoppard” at the Roundabout Theatre in New York in early April. Tom was retiring as president of the famed London Library after 15 years of noble service. His play, Travesties, was opening in New York for a limited run.

Ellen and Herb Steiner are well, Herb hitting 81 in July. They are in close touch with the Martins and the Vander Veers and will be visiting the Martins at their farm in Connecticut to pick blueberries! Sounds perfect.

The Wesleyan lacrosse CLUB got its first coach in 1959, Nate Osur, football line and wrestling coach, and went 4-4 for the season. Fifty-nine years later at Gillette Stadium in Foxboro, Mass., the Wesleyan lacrosse TEAM took the Division III national title by defeating Salisbury of Maryland (read the article here). Heartiest congratulations to the team and coaches from some of the “founding fathers.” Lacrosse got started on campus four years earlier thanks to the efforts of George Davies ’57, Kent Davies ’57, and Dick Griscom ’57, among others. Long gone are the days of hijacking classmates as they came out of class to go play away games, whether they knew anything about lacrosse or not, and borrowing equipment, as we could, from the opposing teams.

Finally, three sad notes: Ernie Dunn passed away just weeks before his 81st birthday. Born in Harlem, Ga., he grew up in Erie, Pa. Doug Bennet, friend and former Wesleyan president passed away in June. Reminiscences from classmates can be found here. Walter McCann passed away last summer. Tom McHugh wrote: “I found a delightful and well-illustrated memorial to Walter at waltermccann.com.” Our deepest sympathy to his wife, Dr. Alba Ambert. Please contact us for her address if you’d like to send her a note.

Skip Silloway | ssillow@gmail.com; 801/532-4311 

John Spurdle | jspurdle@aol.com; 212/644-4858

Dear Friends,

By now you probably know of the death of Doug Bennet. You can read about him in these articles in the New York Times, the Washington Post, and the Hartford Courant.

A good guy, a great friend of ours, and a great friend of Wesleyan.

He will be missed.

If anyone has reminiscences to share, please send them along.

Sincerely,

Skip, John, Bert, and Ed

Skip Silloway | ssillow@gmail.com; 801/532-4311 

John Spurdle | jspurdle@aol.com; 212/644-4858

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Thoughts on Doug from Classmates

Tim Chapin: “Whenever Doug took on some enterprise, he quickly became the face of it, and eventually its leader.  He brought a whole new meaning to “over-achiever.” He also was attentive to the more minor issues in life and a kindness and empathy for the less fortunate or those in trouble. He is the man who is missing from today’s world;  we need a million more Dougs, not one less.”

Dick Cadigan: “Doug had an amazing career and contributions to ‘making the world better’!”

Tim Day: “It is very sad to lose another of our great classmates. Doug lived a life of distinction and brought honor to the Class of ’59. May he RIP and celebrate a celestial reunion with those who proceeded him—like my roommates Terry Smith and Marty Jaskot and many other friends.”

John Dennis: “When I ran for congress in 1988, Doug was a magnificent behind the scenes tutor. The political world was a new territory for me  and with all the other far more important things that were on Doug’s desk, he always seemed to have time for me. More than a skilled political counselor, he was a master confidence builder. As I look back at the years of his presidency, I wonder if the greatest legacy that he left Wesleyan might possibly have been the same gift that he gave me. Confidence Builder!”

Bob McKelvey: “In reading yesterday’s lengthy and laudatory NY Times obituary about our friend and classmate, Doug Bennet, detailing his contributions to education, NPR, the State Department, and the political world, I suspect that Vic Butterfield would have said: “That is what I call contributing out of proportion to his numbers.” Vic would have been very proud of Doug,  as are all of us to have had Doug as a friend and classmate.”

Joe Mallory: “I did not know Doug very well at Wesleyan but never heard anything but good things about him.In thinking back, I was able to recall one anecdote that might be worth adding to the collection: It was at the beginning of our junior or senior years when Dean Barlow assembled the new crop of dormitory counselors to brief them on the mission, rules, protocols, etc. As we approached the eagerly anticipated end of the meeting, the dean invited questions or comments. Whereupon, Doug raised concern regarding the policy that dorm counselors on duty during party weekends were allowed to have dates in their rooms. To this day, I remember the stunned silence that fell over the group and the dismayed looks as Dean Barlow seemed to agree that Doug’s concern had merit. Of course, we had no way of knowing that somewhere in the future Doug would become president of Wesleyan University. However, after witnessing that display of strength of conviction, and in this case, raw courage, I think none of us would have been surprised.”

Skip Silloway: “I did not know Doug well when at Wes. I became acquainted much later when he became president. I am grateful for his having reeled my father back into the Wes fold. He had been very much estranged for many years. Doug and Dad became great friends proving opposites attract. They exchanged visits to each others homes. The aging conservative business man and the liberal college pres. They argued each others positions over an abundance of single-malt scotch and a genuine friendship ensued. It was great for Dad to have this connection in his later years. This is a personal anecdote but how I remember Doug. It is a measure of who he was. I am grateful for the connection.”

Owen Tabor: “Doug was a guy with great eyebrows. He was not particularly athletic but he gave a great effort on the soccer field. He was, we all knew, very smart. His time at NPR was remarkable and he provided a summer job for our daughter, Mary. She went on to the NY Times and a great, but shor,t career in journalism. He had plenty of social graces, a resonating voice and ready smile. When he became president of Wesleyan I thought, ‘What a great choice,’ and it was. Although we were not particularly close I considered him a friend and the loss is significant. He understood fraternities and their pluses and minuses, but he was a fine mind in a reasonable body with a strong heart. May flights of angels . . .”

Charlie Wrubel: “Doug was the right president for Wes during his tenure. His vision and practical application of financial strategy both energized our growth and created a sensible approach to building our  endowment. Wes should be forever grateful for his leadership.”

Save the date for our 60th Reunion on May 23-26, 2019! Ellen and Herb Steiner are in Del Ray January through March. They see Sibyl and Tim Martin and Diane and Joe Vander Veer. Herb is in email touch with the “three Bob’s” Bob Mann, Bob Waterhouse, and Bob Ogren. Racquetball every morning and violin practice daily. Herb plays in orchestras in New Jersey and Florida, and “though the old arm ain’t what it used to be, I love making music!”

Wayne Fillback, now 81, responded to a birthday postcard Skip had sent. After leaving Wesleyan, Wayne graduated from Colby, where he taught history and coached. Married for 53 years, with two daughters and four grandsons the happy result! Wayne still officiates at track and field events and helps with the four boys. He remembers Dick Root and Gerry Hanford ’64 especially fondly.

John Fowler sent along a note with his annual check saying he enjoyed his “Big 80” birthday postcard. Bravo John on both counts!

Ted Nagel is in great fettle, still doing some doctoring, but largely retired from his practice at this point.

Phil Pessoni has written a book about his 18 years at the helm of Lexington Photo Labs, which is not yet available for public consumption, calledDeveloping Friendships at Lexington Photo Labs New York City 1964-1981, about the amazing friendships he made: Isak Dinesin, Peter Beard, Caroline Kennedy, Jackie Onasssis, Lee Radziwill, Anne Marie Rasmussen Rockefeller, Jay Mellon, Richard DuPont Andy Warhol, Cheryl Tiegs Linda McCartney, Claude Picasso, Ginger Rogers, and Mick Jagger. Phil staged seven major exhibits at his gallery and made all the prints for 15 photo books.

Dr. Owen Tabor retired from his orthopedic surgery practice after being supplied with two new knees compliments of his oldest son, who now guides Tabor Orthopedic in Memphis. Owen is in touch with Elizabeth and Jack Lambert in London at their beautiful home in Islington, and he and Margaret enjoy time with their children and grandchildren. He writes, “A recent letter sent by Walter Burnett, with a picture of the current members of Skull and Serpent made me realize what a special time we had at Wesleyan at that most critical time in our lives.”

Marsha and Bob Gillette stopped to see Peg and Weg Thomas on their way back from watching the total eclipse in Wyoming, their second after Zambia. Apart from non-stop hospitality, and continuous Wes style bull sessions, we also got to see Weg’s passion, the 25,371 acres of the McHenry County Conservation District. He is the behind the scenes director and lives the mission of the conservancy “to preserve, restore and manage natural areas for their intrinsic value and for the benefits to present and future generations.” He writes, “Everywhere we travelled we saw the marks of Weg’s work: trail maps, photographic explanations, and magnificent photographs of the scenes we marveled at. We were thrilled to share in his passion.”

Paul Hadzima lives less than an hour from campus. He wrote, “It wasn’t until our 50th that I rediscovered what a great place Wesleyan is! I began attending lectures and concerts, then joined the Friends of the Wesleyan Library, on whose governing Board I now sit. Then a decision was made to put on display the objects housed in the old museum on top of Judd Hall. I happened to be the last student curator of the Museum.” He was featured in a blog post by students in the earth and environmental sciences department (wespeoplesfossils.blogs.wesleyan.edu). “The rock, mineral, and fossil part of that collection is now in the Exley Science Center (Joe Webb Peoples Museum). Professor Peoples chaired the geology department while we were there. As one of two geology majors in our class, along with Skip McAfee, Joe played a big part in my life at Wesleyan.”

Dick Cadigan writes of two terrific ideas: “Number one: I want to get a campaign going for a banner in the Silloway Gymnasium for the 1959 varsity basketball team. We were the first Wesleyan basketball team to play in the NCAA Tournament, were Little Three Champs after a 10-year drought, and barely lost to Harvard (four points). I am sure we could raise the money to fund the banner! Number two: And admission of what was one of the best Wesleyan basketball teams ever to the Wesleyan University Athletic Hall of Fame at our 60th Reunion.”

The Eklunds win ’59 Most Traveled Award: February, Maui and Florence, June, Nantucket and the Cape, July, Lake Tahoe, August, Nantucket for Mary’s 75th, Dave to fish in Alaska, September, visit to Cornell grandson and Brown granddaughter, Thanksgiving in California, Christmas in Jackson Hole, back to Tiburon for Dave’s big 80 and to keep the sanitation department running.

Our thoughts are with Joyce Harbinger. Wayne died on Christmas Day 2017.

At the end of the year, Tim Day is retiring as chairman of the board of directors at Bar-S after being with the company for 36 years.

Skip Silloway is still skiing Alta and promises to send us pictures. In the meantime, he and Molly have been married 53 years and are settled in Salt Lake City, about halfway between their two sons. One lives in Northern California and the other in New Mexico, each a day’s drive away. The boys have one child each; one boy, one girl.

Charlie Wrubel reports: “After 19 years of traveling to the children for Thanksgiving, the decree went out to Bill ’85and Jen ’92in Beverly Hills, Rob ’88 from Colorado Springs, Julian Scottsdale and Andrew ’85 from Brooklyn to attend the master in his lair for the celebration.” Charlie has a new valve and other certified new parts and is fine.

Shirley and Larry Keddes will celebrate their 60th wedding anniversary in June, just after Reunion. Larry had successful lower back surgery 18 months ago and is now back building his model railroad in his old home office. Are there any other railroaders in the class? “Every doctor I see, and there are many, make me think how young they are!”

Bill Moody missed the fall mini-reunion lunch in Washington as both he and Janet were in and out of the hospital at the time. All is well, however. Moods highly recommends Dave Potts’ History of Wesleyan 1910-1970. “It is a must read for the Class of 1959 in my opinion. It puts our time there in perspective.” Plans are afoot for a mini Eclectic reunion chez Leverich including the Moodys, Chases, and the Gillettes.

Walter Burnett wrote in, “It hardly seems possible that the 60th is so close. Assuming that all goes well, I plan to be there. The weather has been a bit out of sorts in the western North Carolina mountains so access to my mountain home has been a bit problematic with unexpected freezing and re-freezing of the mountain roads. Even Atlanta has had some winter weather problems. The 2017 eclipse was full over my North Carolina home. It gave me the opportunity to gather my children and grandchildren along with my brother and his children and grandchildren, It was quite a house full, but we all had a great time with members of the family coming from eight states.

“I retired from the Emory School of Public Health faculty in 2014 and much to my surprise I enjoy the freedom of retirement. I continue to travel a fair amount. Last summer a friend and I explored the lakes of Northern Minnesota and drove the north shore of Lake Superior. This year we plan to explore some of the Louisiana bayou country and the lake country of Texas with a drive home on the Natchez Trace. I still day hike weekly as the weather permits and spend time in Atlanta where I can enjoy the Atlanta Symphony and spend time with friends.

“As time goes on it hardly seems possible that my grandsons are fast becoming adults. The older one is finishing his freshman year at Bowdoin and the younger one will head off to his freshman year in the fall. His high school graduation will take me to the D.C. area in June for a family visit.

“I am fortunate that my health is good and that live a one of the most beautiful parts of the country. I hope all is well with you.”

Wolfram Thiemann, in Germany, who attended Wesleyan as Foreign Scholar, wrote in with an interesting update of life after Wes, including a career in nuclear and environmental research. He writes, “I was not a typical class ’59 mate. I had been invited to enjoy the privilege as a Foreign Scholar to spend an entire academic year at Wesleyan as an undergraduate, whose major subject was chemistry, fleeing literarily from a country which was still suffering from the aftermath of a terrible Nazi dominated history, meant to last 1,000 years as a Third Reich, but was fortunately finished by the Allied Forces after only 12 years by a heroic bloody fight, called World War II.

“In contrast to many of my elders—relatives as well as teachers—we, the younger generation, called the end of Nazi terror in Germany a liberation instead of a defeat of the Hitler regime. At the time when I came to study at Wesleyan, I was registered as an undergraduate student at the Ludwig-Maximilian University Mÿnchen and the Freie Universitÿt Berlin, where many of my chemistry professors had served during the Nazi time and continued to teach in the post-war era of new democratic (West) Germany. The curriculum in the 50s was terribly old-fashioned, boring, and ultra-conservative. Full professors had absolute power and dominated the faculty. They could not be removed from their “chairs,” residing like gods. So, my chance to be given a scholarship to Wesleyan (inspired by the late Professor L. Gemeinhard) was a true revelation. It was like paradise compared to my German experience.

“Wesleyan, the small elite New England experience at Wesleyan saved my career. Having returned home to Berlin after this one-year experience I recovered my love for science again, which I had almost lost before, and continued my studies at Berlin (The Freie Universitÿt Berlin was a gift from USA, sponsored by Henry Ford Foundation, sworn in for defending democratic values—quite in contrast to the communist-ruled Humboldt-Universitÿt in the East Sector of Berlin!).

“After my graduation as a Diplom-ChemikerI received my Dr. rer. nat. (PhD degree in English) from the Technische Universitÿt Berlin, having performed my experimental work in the laboratory of the Hahn-Meitner-Institut fÿr Kernforschung in nuclear research. This was the first nuclear reactor, serving as a pure research instrument in West Germany. From here I had joined the nuclear research facility in Juelich, Germany, and in 1976 I was installed as full professor of physical chemistry in the young University of Bremen. My main research areas circled around the environmental research, focused on water quality and sanitation issues and on the search for the origins of life on earth and for extraterrestrial life.

“In 1980 I returned back to U.S. for sabbatical to be spent at the University of Maryland. My curiosity for the possibility of life or at least for its precursors on extraterrestrial bodies was—at least partially—satisfied with the soft landing of the space vehicle PHILAE released from the mother ship ROSETTA on a comet Chruy in November 2014 after a 10 years’ journey travelling around 400 mio kilometers. And—alas—we detected highly complex organic materials on this comet, resembling pretty good-looking precursors of living species having rained down on the early earth some 3-4 bio years ago.

“In 2003 I retired from teaching in Bremen, but have been busy still writing papers, chapters in monographs, lecturing on various topics in environment and astrochemistry, touring through China, India, Egypt, Brazil, France, and other regions of the world, helping to establish and enforce research cooperation among academic institutions.

“If possible, I would love to attend Reunion next year at Wesleyan. I still have contact with some of my former mates from Wesleyan. My old classmate Uli Kogelschatz, also a foreign student from Germany, with whom I had crossed the entire U.S. coast-to-coast on a second-hand Vespa. 150 ccm motorscooter over 6,000 miles. Unfortunately, he passed away last year. I think you received the information from his family living in Switzerland?”

We end with some wisdom by Frank Laubach, a famous missionary and teacher. “I have good news for you. The first 80 years are the hardest. The second 80 are a succession of birthday parties.

“Once you reach 80, everyone wants to carry your baggage and help you up the steps. If you forget your name or anybody else’s name, or an appointment, or your own telephone number, or promise to be three places at the same time, or can’t remember how many grandchildren you have, you need only explain that you are 80.

“Being 80 is a lot better than being 70. At 70, people are mad at you for everything. At 80, you have a perfect excuse, no matter what you do. If you act foolishly, it’s your second childhood. Everybody is looking for symptoms of softening of the brain.

“Being 70 is no fun at all. At that age, they expect you to retire to a house in Florida and complain about your arthritis and you ask everybody to stop mumbling because you can’t understand them. (Actually, your hearing is about 50 percent gone.)

“If you survive until you are 80, everybody is surprised that you are still alive. They treat you with respect just for having lived so long. Actually, they seem surprised that you can walk and talk sensibly.

“So please, folks, try to make it to 80. It’s the best time of life. People forgive you for anything. If you ask me, life begins at 80.”

Skip Silloway | ssillow@gmail.com; 801/532-4311 

John Spurdle | jspurdle@aol.com; 212/644-4858

The Great Class of 1959 continues to shine. You will have received a letter from our extraordinary co-class agents reporting on this year’s results—74 percent of our class participated in raising an amazing sum. Well done, Burt and Ed! We go for 90 percent at our 60th. Hope you are enjoying your birthday cards reminding you of that event, among other things!

Ed Murphy also tossed this on the pyre to keep the class fires burning: “By heading to Arizona after our son’s change of command ceremony, we managed to miss Irma by three days. Our two sons, one living in Tampa, and the other on the beach in Jacksonville, had the excitement, but no damage!”

Steve Pyle and family survived Harvey and various other Texas storms. Austin wasn’t hit directly, luckily. He is still very active painting oils, and has a backlog of commissioned work that seems to grow rather than diminish. Never made it to Fishers Island for our annual golf outing, so look forward to 2018.

World travelers Mary and Dave Eklund were home for a change in Tiburon, Calif. managing the Tiburon Library used book office. Dave is also the chair of the sanitation district, as you remember. Mayor next?

Ted Bromage writes, “Having missed our anniversary Bermuda trip in 2016, as I was in the hospital, we rescheduled for last May. Joan tripped and fell in Portland the night before departure, breaking her left arm, so Bermuda is still on the bucket list. We are now booked on a two-week cruise from San Diego via the Panama Canal to Fort Lauderdale. Our fingers are crossed.” (And so are your class secretaries’—such drama!)  “Dylan finished his walk on the Appalachian Trail in five months and three days. Granddaughter Abigail, daughter of Sally ’84, is newly engaged, and started nursing school at Emory. We are still too active in our local Episcopal church, but old habits die hard.”

Larry Brick is far from retired, as the following note shows: “Since moving into a Continuing Care Retirement Community six years ago, I thought we could finally retire in peace and relax. Not so! Discovered the oppression of being a senior in a place run by administrators with an almost total lack of sensitivity to the needs of their residents with multiple disabilities: hearing loss, vision problems, mobility difficulties, health issues requiring special diets, and the complex needs of senior citizens in their last years of life. Only if children or a trusted relative lived nearby to supervise, did the patient get good care. This had to stop, and my wife and I took up the cause. At one point I said to the administrators, ‘I wonder how this place got the approval from the Pennsylvania Department of Nursing? Maybe I should give them a call to see if there is an easy way to resolve it.’ Two weeks later a major problem of handicapped access was solved.  Conclusion: I guess I am a long way from retiring in peace and relaxing with the administration thinking they know more about our needs than we do! They need to improve their listening skills to become less deaf! And I close with my motto: Nothing About Us, Without Us.”

Marty Weil sends tweets on a variety of subjects, including timely humor and commentary on world events and politics.

He says: “I think we need to recruit more followers for my Twitter feed—it is @martyweilwapost. If our classmates do not have Twitter accounts, please get friends, relatives, acquaintances to follow, or get one.”

Right on, Marty. Mine is @jspurdle6128. Skip?

Dick Cadigan commented on the recent New York Times article, “Sex at Wesleyan: What’s Changed, What Hasn’t? An Alumna Asks.” Read it at nyti.ms/2vvQoB0. “The essence is summed up at the end of the article: Says one undergrad: ‘I always ask for consent…Always. I do not know what I will do after graduation. Am I still supposed to ask?’ Such worries are a burden, but not like ours, summed up by John Travolta in the song “Staying Alive.”

Tom McHugh responded: “I saw it, and am afraid I had difficulty understanding the gist of the story. Thoughts/interpretations welcome.”

Bob Chase couldn’t resist: “I cannot understand why Cads sent this to all the guys who knew less about sex than any of their contemporaries.”

The Great Class of ’59…60th Reunion 2019. For those who missed it, enjoy this video of the Wesleyan fight song at Commencement: fb.com/wesleyan.university/videos/10150822050344995! Congrats to this year’s exceptional lacrosse team. What a difference 58 years make! An extraordinary record of 20-2, Little Three, and NESCAC Championships, and the quarter-finals in Division III, make the 2017 team close to, if not, the best ever. On June 6, 1959, the Wesleyan Lacrosse Club, under its first-ever coach, Nate Osur, met the Connecticut Valley Lacrosse Club, boasting four All-Americans, eight All-New Englanders, and several Canadians. The result was about the same as the “game” of June 2, 1763, when Chief Pontiac and his tribe mesmerized the British Army at Fort Michilimackinac with a lacrosse game outside the fort, and followed a loose ball inside and finished off the Brits!

Joan and Ted Bromage took an anniversary cruise to Bermuda, last there for their honeymoon in 1960. Granddaughter Georgia is graduating from Savannah College of Art and Design, and grandson Dylan is walking to Maine to see Ted and Joan on the Appalachian Trail. He has made 900 miles so far!

Bob McKelvey got his 1959 birthday card. The card pictured John Lloyd in his Porsche, buried in snow, with a cast of characters trying to push him out, including Spurdle, which elicited a rude note from Bob: “An Eclectic helping to push an Alpha Delt out of the snow? Only one less likely would be a Chi Psi.”

A fascinating message from Larry Brick that details an extraordinary dedication to a life of advocacy for the hearing impaired. After retiring from the Pennsylvania School for the Deaf, he has continued his advocacy for the deaf community.  He and his wife have moved into a retirement home. The Bricks have three sons: the eldest is a computer expert, the second a well-known dancer and choreographer heading his own company, and the youngest, the first deaf graduate of Temple Law School, now working for the Governor of Maryland.

Peter Rockefeller sent us a very handsome picture of himself at a recent wedding. No other news, but he looks in great shape.

Charlie Wrubel wrote, “Now that my three-year term on the Board has ended, I want to thank all of you who allowed me to represent you as an alumni-elected trustee. Rest assured—and regardless of your thoughts about Wesleyan today—the University has a very responsible Board and excellent administrative leadership. Myra and I spent Thanksgiving in Scottsdale with son Julian and family. The New Year was celebrated in LA with son Bill ’85, and wife Jen Crittenden ’91, and their two girls. On the way there we watched granddaughter Sarah (son Rob ’88) participate in a fashion show. We ended with a great road trip with Mark Edmiston ’65’s family through New Mexico, Arizona, and Utah.”

From Dick Cadigan: “Just getting over some face skin cancer stuff involving small skin graft—however, whenever I get “cut” I do not think of it as small ! All fine now, after three weeks healing. I read the following and thought of you: “June 2, 1763—Chief Pontiac and  his Olibwe followers captured the British Fort Michilimackinac by diverting the garrison’s attention with a game of lacrosse and then chasing the a ball into the fort.” Wonder if you and other Wes lacrosse pioneers ever got recognized for your birthing efforts to get Wes lacrosse off the ground. As you know, this year’s Wes men’s and women’s teams were outstanding !

The following chain reaction started with Cads on April 6: “’After the age of 80, everything reminds you of something else.’—Lowell Thomas. ‘It doesn’t matter how slowly you go, as long as you do not stop.’—Confucius.”

Bing Leverich responded, “’Never look back. Something may be gaining on you.’—S. Paige.”

To which Tom McHugh said, “‘Never make predictions, especially about the future.’—C. Stengel. ‘You have got to be very careful if you don’t know where you are going because you might not get there.’—Yogi Berra.”

And the finale from Joe Mallory, citing a cartoon of doctor and aging patient, “‘Stop telling me I’ll live to be 80 years old. I am 80 years old!’”

Wolfram Thiemann, a German foreign scholar, responded to his birthday postcard saying, “Wow! Thank you, guys. I was struck flat completely.” He’s still busy in environmental research and astrobiology and said that fellow scholar Uri Kogelschatz, passed away in 2016. He also remembered fellow physicist Paul Boynton ’61, who visited Wolfram in Germany with his grandsons three years ago.

Marty Weil, night editor of The Washington Post, has discovered the power of Twitter. “I am a couple of months beyond my first year of Twitter. I would like to call on the school’s wisdom and tech knowhow to see how we can reach the greatest number of alumni, family, and friends. Anyone missing out on this edifying opportunity, because they are tragically unaware of it, is missing an awesome tool.”

Hugh Lifson just returned from the Badlands where he did a series of watercolor paintings and sepia drawings.

Skip found classmate Richard Moores in Bellevue, Wash., via the birthday card effort. Class secretaries do not sleep either!

David Britt updated his record: “Pulse: (pause)—yes. Mouth: still running. Hearing: when convenient. Hair: vaguely remembered. Health: executive summary—very good, considering details available at yawn, zzz. Mental health: fine, except for the constant witch-hunts and conspiracies against me. Aging: I hope to continue to do so a while longer. Pace: each year it takes longer and longer to do less and less and I’m almost at the point of doing nothing full-time.”

He and wife Sue have moved to Chapel Hill, N.C., for summers, and stay on Amelia Island for winter. European trips in the works, “geezer tennis” regularly, and he chairs the Education Trust in D.C.

Elaine O’Neill sent word of Peter’s death. Our thoughts are with her.

Olin Associates have more fun! Please join and enjoy it!

And finally, the last word from Satchel Paige: “Age is a matter of mind over matter. If you don’t mind, it doesn’t matter.”

Skip Silloway | ssillow@gmail.com; 801/532-4311 

John Spurdle | jspurdle@aol.com; 212/644-4858

Happy New Year to the Great Class of ’59. Politics aside, we are in for interesting times, and interesting times lead us to much-needed reports of your latest adventures.

Susan Young reports on the induction of her husband, Tom, into the Wesleyan Baseball Wall of Fame last May. Sons Tom and Nate flew in from Seattle. Dave Darling, an inductee a year ago and best man in Sue and Tom’s wedding attended, as did Dave Eklund, an usher in the wedding. A great gathering!

Owen Tabor, while alternating between Memphis, Charlottesville, Scotland, and chasing various grands up and down freeways, reflected on a mock election held while we were at Wesleyan: Kennedy vs. Nixon. Students 55-45%; Faculty 65-35%. Imagine what would have happened this year! Owen ends with “all best wishes to a wonderful bunch of guys!”

Ed Murphy tells us of a newer tradition: A ’59er lunch held twice a year in D.C. Six of the eight ‘59ers in D.C. attended, among them Bob Chase, Bert Edwards, Pete Errington, Bill Moody, Bob Ogren, and Ed himself, who invites travelers to attend in April and November. E-mail Ed for info.

The third annual mid-coast Maine reunion took place in Damariscotta. Al Brooks reports that the usual gang assembled: Wendy and Joe Mallory (Pemaquid), Joanie and Bob Chase (Boothbay Harbor), Anne and Tom McHugh (Baileyville), and Marie-Pier and Alan Brooks (Southport). To this perfect soup was added Dick Cadigan, staying with the Chases. Luize and Bing Leverich have just bought a place in Maine, so the crowd is growing.

“Much talk of our adventures and misadventures,” says Brooksie, “Our love of physics, the stellar record of the ’58 soccer team, and Cads’ stories of a 5’9” basketball star.” Another great tradition! Anyone interested in holding a similar event in their area might contact Theresa Kidd at Wesleyan for info on local classmates. Great idea. New York next?

Cliff Vermilya reports on a move to Myrtle Beach, S.C. He and Chris had visited from New England, liked the area, and moved in October. Looks like brilliant timing. Is the welcome mat out for 2017?

Mary and Dave Eklund’s travels make your scribes envious and a bit dizzy, and all done without the Trump jet! Three children and lots of grandchildren seem to be the impetus. Also, a 57-year celebration of Dave’s fraternity class was held in Providence.

Herb Steiner writes, “Ellen and I traveled to Norway and Denmark in June, then to Japan for two weeks in October. Now off to Delray Beach for the winter. Will catch up with Diane and Joe Vander Veer, my old roommate, in Philadelphia, before we go. Busy volunteering, playing racquetball, and playing my violin in several orchestras in both New Jersey and Florida. Stay healthy, guys. I value the friendships made at Wesleyan and want to stay in close touch with everyone. We were a small bunch then and even smaller now, but still with a great shared history.

“Joe Vander Veer is president of the American Osler Society, a national group of physicians, historians, and librarians dedicated to preserving the memory of Sir William Osler, revered teacher at four universities: McGill, Penn, Hopkins, and Oxford. We are publishing Osler for White Coat Pockets, a handbook for medical students on clinical medicine that will be distributed at various white coat ceremonies at the leading medical schools.”

Hugh Lifson has had to contend with a mild heart attack and some medication challenges, while at the same time mounting a show of some of his recent work at the Hudson River Gallery in Iowa City, which he called a succès d’estime! See the show here: hudsonrivergallery.com/galleries.

Weg Thomas’ Asleep in the Cold
Weg Thomas’ Asleep in the Cold
Weg Thomas, another of our artists, has a wonderful winter photograph on Facebook.

Terry Smith’s memorial service at the Croton Yacht Club was well-attended. Tim Day, Gina and John Driscoll ’62, Tom Young, Dave Darling, and Dave Eklund, all teammates of Terry’s from Wesleyan, were there. He was an extraordinary coach, with two New York State football championships to his credit. His children, Nicole ’97 and Adrienne ’00, and son Mark (Yale) all participated in the impressive service.

Other sad news: Shive Shively passed away after a long battle with Parkinson’s. Our classmate for a while, Bill “Rick” Rickerby also passed away. While not officially a ’59 member, certainly an honorary one, Dick Huddleston ’60 died on Jan. 5 in Batavia, Ill. Also, Lenny Moore died on Dec. 7, a member of Alpha Chi Rho, a remarkable talent on the football and baseball teams, and a thorough gentleman. His service was in Philadelphia on Jan. 7. Our deepest condolences to his family.

Lastly, you will shortly be aware of postcards arriving in your mailboxes. These will be timed to arrive on your birthdays, and will start the process of reminding you of our 60th in 2019. With all the energy reflected in your various notes, we seem to be acting as though we are 60 already! Thus, 80 IS the new 60!

Please also consider becoming an Olin Associate. It is painless, we are old enough, and it is a great way to support the school using your estate! Go Wes ’59!

Best to all from your scribes.

Skip Silloway | ssillow@gmail.com; 801/532-4311

John Spurdle | jspurdle@aol.com; 212/644-4858

Congratulations to the Great Class of ’59 for having the highest percentage of class participants in the just-closed “This Is Why” campaign. Almost $500 million was added to the endowment in this effort, no small achievement! One has heard rumors that the Class of ’60 has been putting forward the idea that they tied us in this epic effort, but we do not acknowledge their claim, and have called for an official recount!

Dick Cadigan, from his gym in Dallas, says, “80 is the new 60.” How can one argue with such wisdom, as we are all either there or almost there? Cads is meeting Joe Mallory, Bob Chase, Tom McHugh, and Al Brooks for a mini-reunion in Damariscotta, Maine, about now, so we should have a good scoop for our next edition of class notes. He will also see brother-in-law King Berlew ’51, and possibly Jane Barlow, the widow of Mark Barlow ’46. His message ends with a quote for all of us: “I finally got off my mystery reading/sports watching/exercising/getting bored with blah blah electioneering duff to write you.”

Charlie Wrubel is tackling the question of 80/60 in quite a different way, by walking backwards on an elliptical trainer. He is still relatively young (79 in December), but after doing an eighth of a mile in reverse the other day, he figured that he was actually 76 and by our 60th Reunion, he would be 60 again. Go, Charlie! Based on this scientific experiment, we are considering a Class of ’59 Wrubel Backward Elliptical Training Marathon sometime before our Reunion in 2019.

Ted Bromage reports from Maine, having endured a difficult summer in the hospital with a serious infection followed by pneumonia. His nine-week ordeal caused the family to miss a cruise to Bermuda and his having to forego his 10th blacksmithing course at the Wooden Boat School. On a lighter note, Ted ran into Nancy, Robert DiMauro’s widow, and family touring nearby (her sister lives quite close to Ted). She remembered with great fondness her pleasant return to the Delta Sigma house this summer. Ted also attended a memorial gathering for David Schurman ’57. He saw George Bryant’s younger brother and spitting image, Gene, who reported that Mel Cote ’58 was enjoying life in Provincetown after his many years at the College of the Atlantic.

Tim Day is a whirling dervish! He has been asked by Mike Whalen ’83 to be honorary game captain of the football team for our annual battle with Trinity at Middletown on Nov. 12. This game will be Wesleyan’s “Salute to the Troops.” Tim will address the team and spend time with the veterans on campus, dedicate an equipment fitness program, and dine Friday night with Mike and President Michael Roth ’78.

Ray Simone’s oldest grandson will have started at Massachusetts Maritime Academy by now, majoring in marine transportation. Any and all classmates in and around Warren, R.I., are cordially invited to Simone’s, the restaurant of choice in the region. A free drink awaits us, Class of ’59, so do stop in if up that way. Many thanks, Ray.

Owen Tabor and Margaret spent the month of August on the northwest coast of the Isle of Skye, now their regular summer retreat. “Over the Sea to Skye,” Charles Edward Stuart, Bonnie Prince Charlie, also escaped to Skye for slightly different reasons, after losing the Battle of Culloden, near Inverness, remembered in the chorus of the Skye Boat Song:

“Speed, bonnie boat, like a bird on the wing,

Onward! the sailors cry;

Carry the lad that’s born to be King

Over the sea to Skye.”

Owen continues: “Always remember the plain joy of having you show up at our door in Memphis, a Princeton wedding, and we were the hosts! The Wes days were indeed wonderful, and you were part of it. Difficult now to connect with the modern day school that I read about. Vic Butterfield and Bill Spurrier ’58 were men I understood and admired.”

Sad 1959 News: Robert “Bob” Marks passed away on New Year’s Day 2016. Our deepest sympathy to his family and friends.

Terry Smith, friend, teammate, and fraternity brother, passed away in July. A fine athlete, Terry believed that his Wesleyan education was vital to his productive life. Both his daughters are graduates of Wesleyan. He will be sorely missed.

Skip Silloway | ssillow@gmail.com; 801/532-4311 

John Spurdle | jspurdle@aol.com; 212/644-4858