CLASS OF 1959 | 2015 | ISSUE 1
Fresh from a 55th Reunion, the Great Class of ’59 continues on. We drew a surprising number of returnees, noted many have been married to the same spouse for nearly the entire time since graduation and want to recognize those of whom we are aware. Your two class scribes qualify, Cyndy and John Spurdle (56) and Molly and Skip Silloway (50). Our class “insider,” Charlie Wrubel and his wife Myra (54) certainly qualify. Others include Margaret and Owen Tabor (50), Judy and Bob Hydeman (52), Joan and Ted Bromage (55) and Sue and Bert Edwards. We are sure there others and we will include them when they report.
Alan Brooks writes: “At the 55th Reunion in May 2014, three classmates agreed to get together that summer in mid-coast Maine, where each had a summer place. Spurred on by Joe Mallory’s efforts, he and his wife, Wendy, joined Bob Chase and his wife, Joan, and Alan Brooks and wife Marie-Pier for dinner at the Public House in Damariscotta. A pleasant evening was shared during which we did ‘tell the stories of the glories of dear old Wesleyan.’ It was decided that our little reunion should become an annual summer tradition.”
Walter Burnett, visiting friends in Friendship, Maine, in early September, paid a call on his former roommate, Alan Brooks, at his Capitol Island cottage. During a leisurely lunch looking out over the Boothbay Harbor area, Walter and Alan had ample time to catch up on each other’s lives before Walter hit the road again headed for D.C.
Linda and Dick Cadigan report productive and satisfying missionary work in S.W. Uganda at a community hospital and health complex, where he encountered “a sobering exposure to the way millions live in much of the world.” Equally satisfying was the ordination on 1/15/15 of their oldest child, Katie, as an Episcopal priest in Santa Monica. They witnessed a standing ovation for Katie’s first service. The church is fortunate to see three generations of this family: Dick’s dad, Dick himself, and now Katie are all Episcopal ministers. The proud parents are now off to Belize in February for additional missionary work.
Ted Bromage staved off the cold while blowing 20 inches of snow from his half-mile driveway by thinking of the warmth and friendship of our Reunion. Also heartwarming is the spring launch of his trawler, Landfall, and our upcoming 60th high school reunion.
Molly and Skip Silloway, as part of their 50th anniversary celebration, spent much of July in the United Kingdom. The highlight was a weeklong charter of a barge on the Thames River. Both sons, a daughter-in-law, and their two grandchildren accompanied them on a memorable trip. After this, the two senior Silloways fled to Scotland for two weeks. All in all, a wonderful trip with great company, scenery, and people. “Och Aye Laddie, as they say in the Highlands, quite an odyssey.”
Cyndy and John Spurdle headed over to England in the Silloway’s wake for a trip to London to see old pals and to celebrate their youngest granddaughter’s birthday with theater, dining out and her own room at the Sloane Club. They then headed north to Suffolk for Christmas with daughter Meg ’84 and her family, renting “Fig Cottage” in the nearby village of Pettistree, home of the classic Greyhound pub. They headed back to London for New Year’s Eve and then home.
Our roving “starving artist” Steve Pyle has been reported on Fisher’s Island, where he delivered a painting, played golf, and stayed with the Spurdles. After flying into Groton in a plane far too powerful to land on Fisher’s Island, John came across the bay in his boat. There he played two rounds of Texan Foursomes with all available Texans on Fisher’s Island in increasingly windy weather, and had to find a bigger craft to take back to Connecticut.
On a more sober front we report the death of Marty Jaskot in Hawaii. Marty was one of Middletown’s own and leaves a large family here behind. The funeral took place in Hawaii and was live-streamed to Middletown for his family. Among the many and generous comments made about Marty were that he was a gentle man, unless one confronted him across the line of scrimmage. Marty was a great member of the class of ’59 and will be sorely missed.
Dave Eklund also reported the sad news that his younger brother Dick, whom he went east to help care for, has passed. Dick was a fighter pilot in Korea and Vietnam and since then a long time pilot for Delta. Our thoughts go out to his family.
Ted Fiske lives in Durham, N.C., where his wife, Sunny Ladd, teaches public policy and economics at Duke University and Ted edits the annual Fiske Guide to Colleges. The two continue to write together on issues of education policy and travel, often combining professional duties and sightseeing in such trips as a conference in Segovia with stops in Madrid and Barcelona. The two also make “mandatory” annual visits to their grandchildren in London and Amsterdam, spending time with Liz and Jack Lambert in the former last May. Their most recent travel was a week-long excursion to Cuba, where the U.S. trade embargo limits the American car importation after 1960. This meant that the couple drove to a restaurant in a robin’s egg blue 1957 Chevrolet convertible with the top down. “Talk about bringing back memories!”
Harry Lerch and wife Sharon are now living in a fly-in community in Palm City, Fla. Harry is almost retired from his law firm in Bethesda. The couple make it clear that classmates living in or visiting Florida should reach out: “We’d be happy to host you for a round of golf, check out the beach, or just hang out and chew the fat.”
Bob Hydeman caught up from Texas. His oldest granddaughter, 18, is attending the University of Alabama. The next two, identical twins, were recruited to the Air Force Academy for their soccer skills. His 15-year-old grandson is a keen baseball player and the youngest granddaughter is just as great at volleyball.
Ray Simone writes, “Anyone traveling to or through Rhode Island, if you have the time, please come to our new restaurant, Simone’s, at 275 Child Street in Warren, R.I. My sons and I opened the restaurant in September of 2014. We are attempting to source our food from local farms and serve locally caught seafood: simonesri.com.”
Skip Silloway | ssillow@gmail.com; 801-532-4311
John Spurdle | jspurdle@aol.com; 212-644-4858