Author: klynch02

I have been doing this for well over 40 years and—because I found you to be a delightfully spirited group back when whose trajectories have exceeded all my expectations—it has been a pleasure. But these are difficult/strange times to retain my usual good cheer: Not long ago I was caught up in the impeachment proceedings, but then thousands started dying, millions became unemployed and we, as members of a high-risk cohort, walk about with a target on our backs. While you know all that, I could not proceed without at least noting it.

Locally: for reasons that defy comprehension, my wife still loves me and gives me no option but to do things by the book. I like our governor’s leadership. Our son, Josh, was to be married to a good woman May 24 in Seattle. Heartbreakingly postponed. But we’re fine.

Pre-all this, Helen Dempsey had a lapse of judgment and married Bill Van Den Berg in a Unitarian service in the State College, Penn., area. We spent time together at the 50th and they are a fun couple. Andy Gaus—who is in Boston—and I had a great email exchange. We agreed that this is the time in our lives when we should do exactly what we want. For him, that was to self-publish a selection of his songwriting from his teens through his 70s entitled Songbag and available at Amazon.

John Poor died peacefully at home in Bronxville, April 13, of COPD. The Commodore “was a charismatic, smart, and generous man who…loved kids and art and sailing and the beach. He was very sharp and would do the Saturday crossword puzzle in minutes (and in pen). He truly loved life and lived it well” (from the NYT). Professionally, he was a well-regarded advertising executive with Blair Television and later Petry Media. Steve Carlson remembers him as a “fun and unique guy” who inherited his crossword skills from his mother and will be sorely missed.

It may seem a little unexpected, but Wig Sherman is the classmate with whom I stay in closest contact. We do not agree about anything (except some jokes) but serve as one another’s portal into alternate universes. However, our discord is brotherly. The May 7 arrival of Elizabeth Bean made him a grandfather for the first time. A devoted friend, he keeps up with the guys from the Lodge and is currently supporting Bob Newhouse, who retains a strong spirit as he contends with some medical issues.

Erica MALS ’91 and Nason Hamlin, one of our most elegant couples, retired to (and hunkered down on) Washington’s San Juan island. “Adequate supplies, gardening, reading, jigsaw puzzles, a beautiful setting, and lots of fresh air. The big downers are not being able to hug our grandchildren…and the cancellation of three musical string quartet workshops (Bruges, Sooke, BC, and Seattle)” as well as Nason’s barbershop quartet.

I am not a phone guy and normally wouldn’t suggest this, but the times are not normal, and a call from any of you about anything would be most welcome. After noon or early evenings, s.v.p. Be safe. Stay well.

Lloyd Buzzell | LBuzz463@aol.com
70 Turtle Bay, Branford, CT 06405 | 203/208-5360

Classmates,

I was cruising along, teaching two courses (one, Personality, the other, The American Upper Class), when, during our spring break in late March, we were informed that all classes were shifting to an online format. Things changed suddenly here and everywhere, and like so many teachers around the country, I finished those two classes online (learning, in the process, new pedagogical lingo, like “synchronous classes” versus “asynchronous classes”—mine were asynchronous). Things are still up in the air for the fall semester, but I have decided it is time to retire. For one thing, I don’t want to end my long and enjoyable teaching career trying to teach online. But also, equally important, Guilford College, where I have taught since 1974, has furloughed 133 people so far and is about to furlough or terminate more, including teaching faculty. I do not want to be teaching and drawing a salary when my younger colleagues are losing their jobs. I am still trying to figure out what this change will mean.

Not a lot of news about our classmates which, given our age and susceptibilities, probably falls in the no news is good news category. Before the coronavirus crisis hit, I did get word of international travel by two classmates. In November, Bill Klaber, a graduate of the College of Social Science (CSS), and the author of a number of books, spoke at the Dublin Festival of Politics about many questions that surround what he calls (in the subtitle of one of his books) “the unsolved murder of Robert F. Kennedy.” He is also doing podcasts and is working on a series that looks at the murder of Martin Luther King Jr. A Wesleyan publication quotes him saying, “People sometimes refer to me as a conspiracy guy, which serves to dismiss my work. I’m an evidence guy.”

Jim Cawse and his wife, Marietta, took the other international trip in January. Here is how he described the origins of the trip in an email to me: “Last May I chanced upon an advertisement for a cruise through the Spice Islands of Indonesia. It caught my eye because 142 years earlier, my great-grandfather, Captain James Cawse, piloted his clipper ship the John R. Worcester carrying a million pounds of tea through that exact region. He was accompanied by my great-grandmother, Emma Browne Cawse, and she kept a diary, which I now hold. It makes for romantic reading as she calls out the exotic names of the islands and talks about an informal race with the famed Cutty Sark. You may remember that I made books out of the diaries and showed them at our 45th Reunion.”

Jim and Marietta were able to visit some of the very same islands described in the diary. They also spent some time in Australia and New Zealand. Then, Jim writes, “We got back Jan. 27, and as we came out from under jetlag, we started reading rumors about some virus…”

I’ll end with a quiz for you guys. I received a letter dated May 11 from Michael Roth ’78 (president of Wes), Donna Morea ’76 (chair of the Board), and Essel Bailey ’66 (trustee). You probably got this letter, too. They wrote, “In mid-January, we learned that Wesleyan will be the recipient of two large bequests totaling $6 million: one from the late Dr. Roger Cyrus ’61, the other from the late Edward McCune ’67.” I don’t remember Edward McCune, so I immediately turned to my ’67 facebook (the original Facebook in my life, published 17 years before Mark Zuckerberg was born), but there was no sign of Edward McCune (it goes straight from Michael McCord, Germantown Friends, to James McEnteer, Culver Military Academy [!]). I then turned to our 50th Reunion book (and its addendum): no sign of McCune. So, somebody clue me in. When did he join our class, and what can you tell me about him?

Take care. Be safe.

Richie Zweigenhaft | rzweigen@guilford.edu

Don Craven has retired, his remarkable career as medical researcher and educator featured in The Wall Street Journal (Jan. 8, 2019), the article noting that Don served “as a professor of medicine at Tufts University and the chairman of the Center for Infectious Diseases and Prevention at the Lahey Clinic Medical Center since 2001. Prior to these illustrious roles, he was the professor of medicine, microbiology, epidemiology and biostatistics at Boston University from 1989 to 2001. Alongside this appointment, he also served Boston City Hospital in multiple capacities, including as director of the AIDS Program, associate director of medicine, director of AIDS Public Health, and hospital epidemiologist. Previously serving Boston University as an associated and assistant professor in the School of Medicine in the 1970s and 1980s, he commenced his career as a research associate and senior surgeon with the U.S. Public Health Service and a research associate with the National Institutes of Health Bureau of Biologics from 1976 to 1979.” During his distinguished career, Don published some 200 “articles on hospital epidemiology and AIDS.” In January, Jeff Nilson had lunch with Don, Harold Potter catching up with Don in March for “a very enjoyable lunch.”

Here is a photograph of Don and Jeff.

Jeff is still working on his book for children while taking a stab at poetry:

“I am trying to write like the good Dr. Seuss
But my rhymes are too weak and my meter’s too loose
I employ anapests while I’m beating a drum.
Ta ta DUM ta ta DUM ta ta DUM ta ta DUM
To write like the good doctor, oh, how I have tried!
But I’ve ended up committing anapestacide.”

On the theme of public service and exemplary careers, Jeff Evans writes: “On March 27, I ended 51-and-a-half years of uninterrupted employment by the U.S. Agency for International Development….” That is 18,769 days with USAID, serving our country from Viet Nam to Sri Lanka, to Russia and beyond. Jeff’s journey is not over. He has become “a part-time consultant to USAID’s Bureau for Global Health—at least for a few months—self-quarantined but working from home as is my wife, Aija, who teaches Latvian language and culture for the State Department. My goal is to see the last two of my six children graduate from college (one will next week) and get on with their lives and to continue a happy family life.”

Jeff’s KNK fraternity brother, Stephen Giddings, has followed a similar career path, Steve serving for “25 years as a foreign service officer with the U.S. Agency for International Development,” retiring in 2006 but going on to enjoy “’semi-retirement as a part-time consultant’” with USAID “for the past 13 years.” Steve writes, “2019 was an eventful year for my family when my wife Stephanie and I celebrated our 50th anniversary with a party in suburban Washington, D.C. in August, attended by all (surviving) members of our wedding party of 1969, including best man and KNK fraternity brother, Jeff Evans, sons visiting from Japan and Kenya and daughter from Kuwait, our two grandchildren and friends from near and far. I also reconnected this past summer with Peter Monro, who lives in Portland, Maine, about an hour from our summer place on the Maine Mid-coast. Peter and I were roommates living with our French family during our junior year in France in 1964-65 as students in the Sweet Briar College program. Finally, I discovered at the annual meeting this past summer that Joel Russ is the president of the newly formed Coastal Rivers Conservation Trust which helps to protect watershed areas in the Damariscotta/Pemaquid area of the Maine Mid-coast.”

As Steve notes, ours is a “small world,” and quite a wonderful one in that Joel, who among his many contributions to the public life of Portland and to the State of Maine “spent nearly four years as vice president of development (and a stretch as interim CEO) for a Portland, Maine, nonprofit, LearningWorks, which had, among other programs, an English as a Second Language program for immigrants, refugees and asylum-seekers.” Joel and Jeff reached out to help Barry Thomas as he prepared for his trip to Burundi. Barry returned from Burundi in early March, sending me a moving account of what he and his partner, Connie, were able to accomplish, a few of the highlights being the launching of a preschool program, providing a nourishing cup of porridge each day to some 450 children and their mothers, and supporting in various ways the ongoing work of D4C.

Bob Dearth writes that he finds Barry’s work “inspiring.” I find what Bob has been doing, passing along his wisdom and experience, providing guidance, to his Chi Psi brothers at Miami University and the University of Kentucky, also inspiring. Bob’s sustained contributions over many years grew out of his experiences at Wesleyan, where we received little guidance, if any, on the dangers of hazing and drinking. Bob knows what he is talking about, which no doubt these young men understand. Well done!

Rick Osofsky captures what many of us feel in reading about the exemplary lives of our fellow classmates: “Barry’s story is just amazing and heartwarming…I have to humbly thank both Barry and his wife—they are truly the embodiment of our better angels. It astounds me to discover both the character and humanity of so many of my ’66 classmates that I really never knew as we regularly passed each other on campus so many years ago. Though I did know who Barry was, I don’t believe we ever met—my loss.”

As for Peter Monro, he continues his peripatetic ways: “In September, I walked on the Via Podiensis, heading west from the volcanic city of Le Puy-en-Velay, hoping at least to reach the monastery town of Moissac in about a month. But the hills, steep chasms, wind, cold, and back spasms defeated me in a mere week, so I bailed. I recuperated for three days in sunny Barcelona, leaving just as the anti-Spain riots broke out, to hike for a week on the Camino Frances in Spain heading toward Burgos. Since the weather was warm, my back functioning again, the trails more gentle, and a friend Mary Lynn from an earlier trek to accompany me, a lovely time was had by both of us.”

Peter goes on to share the good news that “I’ve finally gotten around to dispersing my landscape architectural work products—the paper and digital landscape designs, historic site reports, and conservation plans of my 20-year plus practice in downtown Portland, Maine. (I had an earlier 15-year career in newspapers.) When I contacted the Maine Historical Society about their potential interest in my work, I thought they might be interested in my public projects—parks, cemeteries, historic gardens, and the like. But their archivist, upon visiting my office, agreed to take all of my projects in Maine, even including non-historic private residences. I was surprised and pleased. Within a year or so, the projects will all be accessible to the public, digitally catalogued and searchable. I hadn’t thought to have a legacy like that.” Congratulations, Peter.

On the coronavirus front, Joel Russ writes: “These are most interesting times. I hope you and your family are doing well in Colorado. Carolyn and I are ‘hunkered down,’ but I get out for a five-mile run (alone) every day, in spite of the recent snow.” Essel Bailey and his wife, Menakka, “are housebound in Ann Arbor where UM is very closed down but we are fine as are our kids.” Essel notes that “Wes is managing as best we can.” Cliff Shedd writes that “Michelle and I and family are holed up and holding up pretty well in Houston, although boredom has been stalking us persistently.” For Thos Hawley and his wife, Marijke, the virus has led to quite an adventure. On March 12, they left for a cruise on the upper Amazon only to find themselves four days later quarantined for two weeks in Iquitos, Peru. See the Postcards from Iquitos for Thos’s riveting, wry, wonderfully written account.

In closing we celebrate the life of Thomas M. Francis, who died on Dec. 7, 2019. Hardy Spoehr writes: “sorry to hear of To’s passing. I played with him on the football team…a great tackle!” David Griffith, also a teammate, tells us that he can still “hear that great deep laugh. He was in Mystical Seven. He was immensely strong, a great football player, and I saw him toss that hammer in practice and tried it myself with him watching…no way. He was a gentle giant with amazing speed and fluid coordination…all you need for that impossible sport!” Thomas led an exemplary life, and then too, he still holds the Wesleyan record for the hammer throw! Here is a link to Thomas’s obituary.

LARRY CARVER carver1680@gmail.com
P.O. Box 103, Rico, Colorado, 81332 512/478-8968

Dear classmates, here’s the news:

Bob Mabon writes: “Last saw you at the 2005 Reunion, which I attended with Nan and Steve Hart and his wife, Jeanette. That’s when I heard the sad news about Sandy Creed’s illness. I corresponded with Sandy, and we reminisced about our superb trip to Europe. It must have been a great joy to Sandy and Alex to have three of Sandy’s best friends, you, Warren Thomas, and Charlie Orr, there at the end of his life. My father also succumbed to melanoma in 1996, which originated during the war when he was badly sunburned in North Africa.

“To Marine Corps OCS after law school, one year on active duty, and in the reserves for five years, retiring as a captain in 1974. Amazingly, Bob Del Bello and I were in the same OCS platoon. In the 50th Reunion class book, I wrote, along with you, a tribute to Sandy, and one for Bob, which recounts my experiences with Bob in the Marines.

“Retired from investment banking in 2010, having spent the last 17 years in London. Nan and I travel to the U.S. annually, except this year due to COVID-19, to see our two daughters, who live in NYC and Boston, respectively. We have four grandchildren. In 2010, we bought an apartment in a brownstone in Park Slope. It was built for the last mayor of Brooklyn in 1885. Our home in South Kensington was built in 1844. We frequently travel to Europe, especially Italy, where we lived in Venice from 1989 to 1992, before moving to London. (Steve and Jeanette live in Paris, and we see them often.)”

Carl Calendar writes: “At Brookdale Community College at the Jersey Shore for 48 years, ending up as dean of humanities. Still give lectures for the lifelong learning program. I worked three years in the summers for the state department in Malaysia and Borneo, promoting better writing and press freedom. And, had summer grants to study Shakespeare at Princeton and Exeter College, Oxford. I have traveled widely, including walking 200 miles on the Camino de Santiago where I earned my Compostela. Married to Jody Shaughnessy Calendar, former managing editor of the Asbury Park Press and Bergen Record. We have two sons: Bart runs his own communication company in Montpellier, France, and Shane is a corporate attorney in New Jersey.”

Gar Hargens writes: “In Beantown last weekend to watch grandsons Grayson and Holland (senior co-captain and sophomore) play two basketball games for Newton North High School. I connected with Susan Mead for a long-overdue lunch and reminiscence about Kirt and Wesleyan. She has four terrific grandkids and splits time between Cambridge and Marion. In December, Missy and I were invited to Costa Rica to meet 2-month-old granddaughter, Charlie Collett Hargens, my seventh grandchild. Youngest daughter Kendra ’04 is a senior designer for Patagonia, and with generous maternity leave, elected to introduce Charlie to surfing on the West Coast and have us down.”

Jim Henderson writes of the young man—a gifted singer—whom he, wife Connie, and a loving community have supported, and who just completed his sophomore year at James Madison University on a full scholarship. Homeless through most of high school, he lived with Jim and Connie before college.

Jim and Connie visited with a former exchange student they hosted in the 1980s from Dusseldorf. They remain active with book clubs, classes, and a number of civic and charitable organizations. They traveled in England last summer, which tied into Connie’s longtime love of English gardens and participation in a woman’s Shakespeare class that has been active for over a century. They live in Carrollton, Va., and would welcome hearing from friends who are visiting the area.

Arthur Rhodes writes: “Just retired from Rush University Medical Center. Leslie and I will be spending more time with our combined families of five children and 10 grandchildren in Chicago and New Orleans. Homes in both places. Surprised how each day flies by when I am not seeing patients.”

Roger Spragg writes: “At UC San Diego for 50 years, now retired from the department of medicine and patient care but continuing some mentoring and investigative activities. Carole and I celebrated our 50th anniversary last winter with our two sons and their families at our home near Whitefish, Mont. Travel, hiking, and reading on some subjects I neglected at Wesleyan are major activities. I’d enjoy hearing (rspragg@ucsd.edu) from Wesleyan friends.”

Dick Travis writes: “In June 2019, Evelyn and I celebrated our 50th anniversary with our first return to Glacier National Park since our family was there in the summers of 1983 and 1984 when I was at the park with the U.S. Public Health Service. Then off to Banff National Park, Lake Louise, and other parts of the Canadian Rockies. Most of our life now revolves around church and grandchildren’s activities. Our grandchildren range in age from 22 in graduate school to a 9-year-old, and we are thankful to be in their lives.”

Due to the pandemic, we had our 55th Reunion online, nicely organized by Wesleyan (Mark Davis and Ann Goodwin ’79) and our fine leaders, Hugh Wilson and Mark Edmiston.

Because of a commitment, I got in on the conversation a bit late, but enjoyed seeing everyone on the zoom and hearing their voices.

Participating in the call were: Tom Bell, John Dunton, Gary Witten, Fred Nachman, Fred Joseph, Major Moise, Dan Gibbs, Art Rhodes, Win Chamberlin, Richard Smith, John Hall, Tony Schuman, Peter Kelman ’65, MAT ’66, Bob McLean, Jim Henderson, Steve Halliwell, Phil Russell, and Clyde Beers.

To cap off the good chat and family/professional updates, Jerry Melillo ’65, MAT ’68 was asked for his assessment of the future given the reality of climate change. Among other potential results he mentioned are cyclones, hurricanes, oil spills, etc. from a warmer Gulf Stream, and additional compound events. A sobering, but important, message on which to end our evening.

Thank you all for participating!

Sad news to report: Professor Norm Shapiro, Hon. ’72 and Jono Hildner passed away.

Philip L. Rockwell | prockwell@wesleyan.edu

I hope that when my notes are published, we have an economy that’s working much better than the mitigating practices we are slowly getting through that has turned our sense of normalcy upside down. I’ve been sheltering down in my condo in Savannah, Ga., and time has an unfamiliar pace. I’ve heard from Russ Messing and Bill White, who are managing with the new normal. Recently, I spoke with Paul Lapuc, who is sheltering down in Chatham, Mass., on Cape Cod, and we shared our similar experiences. Fortunately, each of our spouses are doing well, and Bill is a bachelor reflecting on what the world is learning from each day.

Not much else to share, and I wish everyone well during a time we won’t soon forget.

TED MANOS, M.D. | ted_manos@yahoo.com

Some of you may remember me; most probably do not. I’m Jan Van Meter of the Class of 1963, your new class secretary. However, I’m not replacing Byron Miller in the role. I’m following him and hoping to do the job as well as he.

I’d like to help increase our sense of community as the Class of ’63. What are you doing these days, with whom, and where? How are you coping with what seems to be a world without…everything? What does Wesleyan and the Class of ’63 mean to you now?

Of one thing you may be sure: I’ll be in touch…and I look forward to it.

JAN VAN METER | bensfamily@aol.com; 212/427-2062

Ed.’s note: Robert “Jib” Fowles passed away on March 7. Jib was a College of Letters major at Wesleyan. After graduation, he spent a Fulbright fellowship year in India. He later moved to New York City, where he earned his M.A. from Teachers College, Columbia University, and his PhD at New York University. He taught at NYU from 1967 to 1974. In 1974, he went to work at the University of Houston-Clear Lake as a charter faculty member where he taught for the rest of his career.

Jib was a committed scholar in media studies, publishing seven books and some 70 articles. His articles appeared in the New York Times, The Atlantic, TV Guide, Advertising Age, and many academic journals. His books include Television Viewers vs. Media Snobs (Stein & Day, 1982), Starstruck: Celebrity Performers and the American Public (Smithsonian Institution Press, 1992), and The Case for Television Violence (Sage, 1999).

In retirement, Jib served as commissioner of the Wiscasset’s Historic Preservation Commission, a docent for the Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens, and a member of the First Congregational Church of Wiscasset. At the time of his death, he was completing a book on the social history of photographic imagery.

Jib leaves behind his wife, Joy, daughter Celeste Fowles Nguyen ’01, son Nathan, and many others.

Lindsay Childs reports that he published a book, Cryptology and Error Correction, An Algebraic Introduction and Real-World Applications by Springer Nature in their series, Undergraduate Texts in Mathematics and Technology. He said he was excited that he just learned that it is being translated into Japanese. Lindsay wrote, “If there is an upside to the social distancing forced by the coronavirus, it is that there are presently far fewer distractions to keep me from focusing on the next book project: a research level collaboration on Hopf Galois module theory with six other mathematicians (in Munich, Atlanta, Boston, Gainesville, Keele (UK), and Montgomery). We hope to have it ready to submit by the end of the year.”

Bob Gause reported the publication of his fifth book, a collection of short stories entitled Strange Voices. He says he still works two days a week as a consultant in pediatric orthopedics “using telemedicine for 50% of patient visits.”

Dave Gottesman wrote a moving op-ed column on May 7 for The Post-Star (newspaper in Glen Falls, N.Y.) entitled “We Must Take Care of Our Front Line Workers” supporting the emotional needs of health care workers who have been serving the public in the coronavirus crisis. Hank Sprouse sent in the link for the class notes and said, “This is a very timely article at this moment in our lives.” Hank said that Tom Gregory had forwarded the article to him, saying that it was “Powerful, persuasive, and wonderfully written.” The newspaper noted that Dave “is a psychiatrist, the former commissioner of mental health for Albany County, and the former deputy commissioner of the New York Office of Mental Health.” Read it at poststar.com.

Gene Peckham writes that he was a Broome County (New York) Surrogate Judge from 2010 to 2011, then returned to law practice for several years, “semi-retiring a couple of years ago.” He serves as a hearing officer for the New York state retirement system and handles arbitration and small claims matters for the New York state courts. On a personal note, he said, “We have been going to London for about 30 years on a theater trip,” and says that “for retirement recreation,” they have a cottage in Hallstead, Pa., and a condo in Charlotte, N.C. “I am in regular contact with my fraternity brothers Mike Hackman, Dave Irwin, and Joel Teaford. His wife, Judy, retired last year as executive director of the Klee Foundation; his oldest daughter Margo is a priest and canon to the bishop for the Episcopal church in Newark, N.J.; son Joe is a lawyer in Florida; daughter Beth is a pediatric dentist in Charlotte, N.C.; and he has five grandchildren.

DAVID FISKE | davidfiske17@gmail.com
17 W. Buckingham Dr. Rehoboth Beach, DE 19971

It is so refreshing to hear of the many exploits and adventures that our classmates have chosen in these times of challenge. For example, when asked if he played clarinet, Calvin “Pete” Drayer replied that he is “totally retired and [living] with my wife in a retirement home. I did not play the clarinet although I took piano and trumpet lessons. More fun was that we had a judges’ singing group and had competitions in three counties. I still play my CD of the Highwaymen and sing along.”

It’s the neglected garage that gained the attention of Phil Rodd. When asked for some recent news, he writes: “News from here? Not so much…Staying at home, growing a beard, and cleaning the garage (which I’ve been putting off for 15 years). Like everyone all over America, some plans canceled or postponed. I was planning to lead a tour of New York people to see Mount Rushmore, but that’s not happening. My stepson’s wedding, which we had planned for July, will be postponed. Other than that, I am enjoying the opportunity to just sit home.”

Russell Mott (AKA Bob Lannigan) states: “My only news is good news. I am not getting married, but for all intents, I may as well be. Two days before my 80th, I met Carol Lessinger of Mill Creek, Utah, and in about six weeks, I moved her to Southern New Mexico to join our family here. I am quite beyond ecstatic about all this and astonished it should occur at this juncture in my life. I am every day in my ceramics’ studio, as I have been for the past 20 years, and that just keeps getting [to be] more and more fun. Here’s a shout out to you, Jon, for all the years you have done this toil about who’s where and done what.”

Peter Funk has checked in with lots of information. “It’s a short story.” He writes. “I moved from NYC to London with my first wife, Lisa, in 1973. We have two daughters who graduated from Wesleyan, Alexandra “Lexy” ’91, and Jenny ’95. In the process, they have continued my deep interest in Wesleyan affairs. Lisa and I divorced, and I married my wife, Jennie, in 1983. In 1988, Jennie and I moved from London to Jersey in the Channel Islands. I have been in the communications field all my working life; film and television production and distribution, broadcasting, and telecommunications. I remain involved with our commercial radio station here in Jersey, but, otherwise, I have pretty much retired to my sailing, tennis, skiing, and traveling, including trips back and forth to the USA to see Lexy and Jenny and the four grandchildren. Assuming our upside-down coronavirus dominated world returns to some normality, I am very much looking forward to our 60th Reunion in 2021. Jennie and I are locked down here on our small island with our fellow 105,000 residents. There are no passenger flights or ferries in or out except for supplies and mail. The incidence of coronavirus is, thankfully, very low as a result. What happens next is an open question as it is most everywhere else in our world.”

Paul Dickson has a new publication out that he claims “is now more relevant [than ever] in that it shows how the nation was able to prepare and mobilize under strong leadership and prepare for a world war, feeling now that a new world war has just begun.” See kirkusreviews.com’s review of The Rise of The G.I. Army, 1940-1941: The Forgotten Story of How America Forged a Powerful Army Before Pearl Harbor.

Sadly, there have been a number of classmates’ deaths. Bob Reiser writes: “Neal Schachtel died in November. We had become good friends over the years, both of us moving to Atlanta in 1971. Neal was diagnosed with leukemia in the summer of 2018, and the doctors could never stop the disease’s progression. Tricia, Neal’s wife, had a luncheon in December celebrating Neal’s life. It was a wonderful testimony to Neal’s generous nature and warm personality.”

Bob continues: “Margaret and I have an active life volunteering. Margaret is on the board of the Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens (the largest public garden in New England, and the second most visited site in Maine, well behind Acadia National Park, but ahead of L.L. Bean). I have the pleasure of serving on the Boothbay Region YMCA board and the Harbor Theater board. In Atlanta, we are active board members of the Alliance Theatre, and I am on the boards of the Atlanta Botanical Gardens and Oglethorpe University. This year I plan to finally retire from Balentine, an investment advisory firm after a 50-year career in investment management.”

An additional announcement is the death of Lou Larrey ’61, MAT ’62 on Nov. 7. He had lived in Falmouth for 46 years. His career as an English professor began in Connecticut, with later assignments in Oregon, California, and Massachusetts. Lou enjoyed singing with local choruses, boating, gardening, travel, and reading.

Please stay healthy, stay safe, and keep writing.

Jon K. Magendanz, DDS | jon@magendanz.com
902 39th Avenue West, Bradenton, FL 34205

Thank you to Dave Hohl for planning our 60th Reunion. It is unfortunate that the COVID-19 pandemic prevented us from gathering in Middletown. Thanks also to Myles Standish ’60, MA ’62 and Bill Masterson for producing the 60th Reunion booklet that provides an update on classmates. I still have copies of our freshman class directory (1956), 20-year history (1980), and 50th Reunion booklet (2010). Together with the most recent 2020 booklet, they provide an informative historical record.

Dave Hohl led our virtual 60th Reunion via Zoom on June 12. The program began with Alan Wulff reading the names of our 43 deceased class members. Participants then had the opportunity to describe their current activities. Jay Levy answered questions about the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. We ended our session by having a lively discussion of politics with written background material provided by David Boesel (“The Oligarchs and the Mob” as well as “Similarities between Trumpism and Fascism”), Bill Walker (“Butterfield Excerpt”), and Robert C. Williams (“The Virus of Autocracy”).

From Gus Napier: “Margaret and I remain uneasily isolated in the beauty of our woodland Appalachian spring. Grateful for the friends here and trying socially-distanced hikes and even occasional shared meals at the two ends of a picnic table. Margaret does the grocery shopping at certain hours in a small market and gives socially-distanced tours of her beautiful native plant garden. I ‘chair’ a 12-man discussion group on Zoom and am working on poetry and some photography. I was delighted by the bios in the class book.

“Our son, Mark, a pulmonologist, has returned to his former hospital, Albany Medical Center, to work weekends on the COVID-19 unit while doing his full-time work as a medical director at Anthem. Sarah and her family from Concord, Mass., are headed soon for residence in our guest house, and we are very eager to see them. The parents will both work online. Julia’s family in Buenos Aires seems incredibly far away now. The city is in severe lockdown, but Julia and Juan seem to be very productive. I am in close conversation with Oliveio, 13, who wants to be a filmmaker—we share movie reviews on Letterboxd.

“I am very disappointed not to get to meet for our 60th. I find the impulse to reach out to others very strong and find the old-fashioned landline a good friend. Good luck to us all, and to you-all, as we say down here.”

Rick Garcia has moved to an apartment in La Paz, where he occasionally enjoys the company of children and grandchildren. He is the president of the National Academy of Economic Sciences of Bolivia (ABCE). ABCE and INESAD produced Investigations for the Economic Development of Bolivia that contains the research results of five groups chosen in a worldwide competition. The book serves as a reference for universities and public policymakers in Bolivia. At Wesleyan in February 2019, he presented and discussed a comparative view of liberal arts college education in Bolivia and the U.S., and a paper on sustainable development from the point of view of Bolivia’s compliance with U.N. goals and the performance of the Morales government.

Tragically, Robert G. Williams was killed in a car accident on Nov. 22, 2019. He was an attorney in Mooresville, N.C.

Alan Shestack died in his Washington, D.C. home on April 14. He had been suffering from multiple health problems in recent years. Alan’s first curator job included responsibilities for the National Gallery’s Lessing J. Rosenwald Collection in Pennsylvania. In 1965, he moved to Yale University Art Gallery, where he stayed until 1985, rising to become a director and an adjunct professor. After two years in Minneapolis, he began his tenure as director of the Boston Museum of Fine Arts (MFA). Upon leaving the MFA in 1993, he returned to the National Gallery, where he was deputy director and chief curator until retiring 15 years later. His longtime friend Mervin Richard commented that Alan “was keenly in love with art, especially prints.” He married Nancy Jane Davidson, an immigration lawyer, in 1967. She died in 2016. He is survived by a foster daughter, Lisa Yi Lu Feng, and two grandchildren.

SAL RUSSO | salandjudy@hotmail.com
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