CLASS OF 1956 | 2024 | SUMMER ISSUE
As I write, Ann and I have just returned from a family pilgrimage to Grand Isle in Lake Champlain—between Vermont and New York—where we witnessed in all its glory the April 8 total eclipse of the Sun. It was Ann’s and my 11th successful total viewing around the world: from Aruba in the Caribbean to Zambia in the middle of Africa to Novosibirsk, smack in the east-west center of all Russia—also including the Black Sea (a Wesleyan sponsored tour), Turkey, the South Pacific, Indonesia, Chile, and two other sites in the continental USA. Our two misses, both weather related, were in Hawaii and Shanghai but have not dimmed our continuing quest. Believe me, it never gets old.
The next total solar eclipse visible from the continental USA will be in 2044, but take heart, and set your sights on either Iceland or Spain in August 2026.
We’ve received remembrances of three recently fallen classmates.
In case you missed it, our most recent loss was Andy Milewski, who died in January. Like many of you, I’m sure, I remember Andy—with Larry Tremper—as one of the twin towers of the Cardinal hoop squad. Andy was a local product (Meriden) and lived most of his subsequent life in Connecticut, where he devoted much of that life to civic service.
Bob Calvin remembers: “Andy Milewski was a fraternity brother of mine at Delta Sigma. He was a big, sweet guy with a passion for basketball. The obituary you sent really reflected a life I would have expected for Andy. I have not seen him since graduation. Strange to not have seen someone for almost 70 years and then read his obituary.”
From Al Haas: “Dick Boyden was one of a kind in many ways. Among other attributes, he was loyal, sentimental, diligent, thoughtful, and smart. He did not suffer fools gladly, and he could sniff out self-aggrandizement, pomposity, and arrogance with ease. He was a loyal class agent for many years and a steadfast scribe for our delegation at Eclectic for decades. He was the glue that sustained our bond to the fraternity and to our relationship with Wesleyan, achieving one of the sustaining records of support for the College. In real ways, physical, spiritual, and values, he was a giant. He was one of the best amongst us.”
Dick Bauer remembers: “Jack Dunn and Ed Thorndike very graciously invited me to share their Clark Hall fourth-floor dorm digs even though I was a Beta and not an Eclectic brother. I guess that made me ‘Eclectic adjacent.’ It was a happy experience for me for sure.
“The three of us joined in a psych project—running rats to see how well they navigated their maze. Just keeping them from dying off was enough of a challenge for me. We did write it up, but it never got published in Nature.
“Ed knew what he was good at, wanted to be, and with whom he wanted as his life partner, even as a sophomore. He would go through his physics problems at lightning speed, skipping intermediate steps, and putting a square figure around his answer, which was invariably right. As much as he liked his Eclectic brothers, he wanted to get on with his life, which meant marrying his beloved Liz ASAP… which he did. It took me a couple more years to get to that point, but I, too, married a Smithie—very happily so.
“It seems both ironic and cruel that Ed should suffer from dementia, but he illustrated how ‘time and chance happen to us all.’
“It was heartwarming to learn of the Thorndike dynasty at Wesleyan.”
How about some news from the here and now?
Jim Jekel writes, “As with most of our class who are still alive and kicking, I’m alive but kicking far less, with a usual assortment of illnesses, pains, and forgetfulness. Fortunately, I live close to all four children and frequently see most of my eight grandchildren and 12 great-grandchildren (with more in the pipeline). My old brain could never pass a Wesleyan test now, but it still functions normally for everyday matters.
“If any classmates are passing just west of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, I live in Camp Hill and would love to have them stop by.”