CLASS OF 1964 | 2025 | SPRING ISSUE

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I had a nice phone conversation with Chuck Dauchy, and at my request he kindly provided this update on his post-Wes life:

“1964: U.S. Navy—three years—destroyers to the Atlantic, Mediterranean, and Red Sea out of Newport, Rhode Island. Then Harvard Ed School, MEd. A brief and unwise marriage (too many years of monastic life impaired my judgment). Three years teaching first grade in New Haven. Then came the first Earth Day and I discovered the environment. Back to school (Southern Connecticut State) to fill in large gaps in my science background so I could do a MSF at Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies (the GI Bill was good to me!).  

“Along in there, Larry Dougherty, Wesleyan roommate and hockey teammate, introduced me to Judy Weinthaler. His judgment was way better than mine had been—Judy and I are now approaching our 51st anniversary. Larry was our best man and Bill Spurrier, Wesleyan chaplain and hockey coach, officiated. Our marriage has produced two wonderful kids, two delightfully emerging grandkids, and 50-plus years of mutual respect, support, and love.

“After Yale and marriage, we moved to the Amherst, Massachusetts, area where I worked for the U.S. Department of Agriculture, then for a small civil engineering firm, and then on my own as a consultant (30 years) focused on wetland delineation, regulation, restoration, erosion control, stormwater management, and development design to protect the wetlands. That kept me active and often out in the woods until 2017 when I (mostly) retired and moved to Hopkinton, Massachusetts. We are now three miles from our daughter and family and get to see lots of the grandkids. I still get out in the woods as a member of the town’s Trails Committee and the board of the local land trust. I mark and map new trails and do some clearing but leave the heavy lifting to the young folks. In summary: Life and health are good, and we appreciate that our historical privilege has paved our way.” 

Steve Oleskey sent this note: “Steve Oleskey and wife Judith Tick have moved from their home of 40 years in Brookline, Massachusetts, to a condominium in Studio City, California, to be closer to their daughters and grandchildren. Their new address is 12045 Guerin Street, # 204, Studio City, CA 91604. Steve’s cell phone number remains (857) 233–3656. Please call or email if you live in the area or will be visiting Los Angeles and would like to catch up.” 

David Skaggs had this news: “The oft dreamed, but never realized, white-shoe law firm, POSH, convened for one of its occasional reunions in December in LA. Attending were Nick Puner (P), Steve Oleskey (O), David Skaggs (S), and Jim Howard (H). After appropriate libations, they considered but rejected a proposal to increase the firm’s standard hourly rate to $50.”

Paul Lapuc and I were freshman on the same Foss Hill dorm floor. It was great to hear from him:

“A brief update about myself. My wife of 59 years, Chris, and I moved to Linden Ponds, a CCRC in Hingham, Massachusetts, after residing in Chatham on Cape Cod for the past 28 years. We decided that since we have relatively good physical and mental health, we would be proactive in planning our future and choose where we age. We still have our Chatham home, so vacation time by the sea is always an option.

“Prior to Chatham we lived in Amherst, Massachusetts, for over 30 years where I spent time as a psychologist for the VA. After ‘retiring’ as director of Outpatient Mental Health in 1999, I entered full-time private practice, working with children and adolescents. Currently, and for the past 10 years, I have a niche position providing diagnostic and consultation services to assist school systems in determining if students at risk for violence or self-harm can have their needs met within the school district or require a therapeutic environment.

“Over our years in Chatham, I had the opportunity to socialize with several members of the Class of ’65. Bob Schmidt ’65 has a second home in Chatham and for several years we joined Bob, Tim Lynch ’65, Fritz Faerber ’65, and Tom Elliman ’65 and their significant others in an annual Columbus Day weekend celebration. Sadly, Tim and Fritz have passed away.

“The loss has been significant in our class. I was especially affected by last year’s passing of Ted Manos. Ted and I knew each other at Wesleyan and became close friends at our fifth reunion. We made a pact to return to all reunions until a family wedding forced me to recant. Whenever my family traveled to Disney World, we visited Ted and his family [who lived nearby].”

“Ted was the catcher and backbone of some of the best baseball teams that Wesleyan fielded in the 1960s. He caught three of the best pitchers that Wesleyan produced during that era. Nothing can be more telling of a player’s ability and leadership than a teammate’s appreciation. I understand when Steve Humphrey became a Wesleyan Baseball Wall of Fame recipient, he singled out Ted’s presence behind the plate as playing a prominent role in his pitching success.

“Ted had all the skills and attributes required to be offered the chance of a professional career in baseball. But he made the decision to forego baseball for a medical degree and became a well-respected obstetrician/gynecologist. His emotional intelligence, quick thinking ability, and perspective-taking skills that were sharpened by sports, translated well to his professional life.

“Ted didn’t walk away from baseball totally. He attended several Dodger fantasy camps where he became fast friends with many of his childhood–Brooklyn Dodger heroes. In addition to catching, at one camp he shifted to the pitching mound where he found considerable success and was named camp MVP, highlighting his athletic ability. He also spent many years playing in a 40-year-old-plus, Roy Hobbs–type league while maintaining his medical practice. Ted chronicled his fantasy camp experiences in his book Baseball and Babies: My Life as a Catcher, in which he detailed his ‘field of dreams’ experiences at the camp.

“Ted possessed a droll sense of humor. He was often excited about a new venture, a new investment opportunity, and sharing his perspective of self, family, and life in general. Ted was bigger than life and embodied the scholar-athlete model we were encouraged to be at Wesleyan. He was an advocate and supporter of the school. He is a friend who is fondly remembered and greatly missed.”

MIKE BROWN | michaelhbrown@verizon.net

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