Author: Randi Alexandra Plake

Class of 1975 Endowed Wesleyan Scholarship
Carolina Montano ’21, Homestead, FL

Drum roll, please! Tom Wheeler retired for the third time—the last, he swears—in February 2018. He and Sondra ’79 may move nearer to children and five grandchildren once Sondra retires from teaching at Wesley Seminary, but for now, they drive to Massachusetts and Pennsylvania. Tom’s busy working on projects with Quakers locally, nationally, and globally; reading, storytelling, taking art classes and visiting friends, including Steve Miller, Martha Meade ’76, and Dave Feldman ’73.

Rachel Adler Hayes only managed to stay retired for six months. Now she’s traveling the country doing sales training for a Massachusetts firm and trying to limit work to five-to-six days a month. She’s also engaged as VP of her synagogue, in the thick of a rabbi search. In June 2020, Rachel expects to become president of the 900-family congregation. Her summary? “Apparently I like being overbooked!”

Jill Rips takes advantage of retirement to visit Wesfriends. Finishing her public health career in reproductive health and HIV, Jill now works with refugees, and needle exchange. In November, she attended Carole Evans Sands’ daughter’s wedding and Nigerian engagement ceremony in New Hampshire. Carole, retired from a career in academic and community-based early childhood education, will visit Jill in San Antonio this spring while traveling the southern U.S. in a camper.

Check out Tracy Winn’s recent short stories, nominated for Best of the Net and a 2019 Pushcart Prize and posted at The Harvard Review and at Waxwing magazine.

From the “KO” section of Downey House mailboxes: Deb Kosich has been spending lots of time in Massachusetts, where her mother and her sister live. Brad Kosiba and Dorothy are enjoying Carolina life. With two sons nearby, the granddogs visit regularly. Brad is leading an expansion project for their Unitarian church, also keeping busy with gardening, beekeeping, and volunteer work. His mom passed away this winter after an extended period of declining health.

Charlie Stolper’s Facebook holiday letter included bittersweet cycle-of-life news. In 2018 Charlie’s son, Chad, got married shortly before his dad, Max, 93, died. Charlie and Christy caught up with their globetrotting daughter, Tory, in Austria (Max’s birthplace) for a cultural/family history adventure. They also enjoyed an Alaskan cruise last summer.

Dallas news: Ann Dallas used her education in design and liberal arts for a career in newspapers, but computers changed what papers could offer readers, then how news was consumed, and finally its ownership structure. Layoffs finally hit Ann a few years ago, so she’s figuring out what’s next. Ann and Dave (married 33 years) celebrated their son’s wedding “to a wonderful woman” last summer.

Joost Brouwer’s holiday letter announces that his three sons have lovely partners, and grandparenthood looms on the horizon in 2019. Eldest son, Martijn, based in Australia, got married in April. Joost and Emilie celebrated with the newlyweds in Canberra and the Netherlands. Younger sons, Sietse and Jelle, live in the Netherlands. All enjoy teaching and choral singing, interests they share with Emilie and Joost. Joost’s other passions are advocating for refugees and birdwatching.

Bruce Tobey practices municipal infrastructure law in Gloucester, Mass., but has spent “too much time traveling” on a two-year sabbatical embedded in a client’s wastewater technologies company. As former mayor, he is president of the nonprofit that is planning Gloucester’s 400th anniversary. Bruce’s and Pat’s four daughters hold four BAs, two MAs, and one doctorate-in-progress; two are married and have produced four grandchildren. Bruce’s main WesU connection is with his DKE brothers, whose hard work on the Kent Literary Society he admires.

No retirement for Jeff McChristian, who is continuing law practice in Avon, Conn., but conceding he’ll slow the pace a bit to allow more and longer travel with his wife, Pat. Recent years included cycling vacations in Croatia, France, Germany, and the Netherlands. The 2019 itinerary has the Cotswolds in spring (seeing Royal Shakespeare Company’s Taming of the Shrew in Stratford-on-Avon) and Spain’s Rioja wine region next fall. They also plan trips to visit son, Tyler, 31, in Steamboat Springs, and daughter, Erin, 28, in Greenville, S.C.

I caught up with Tom Kovar ’76 in December near his home in Florence, Mass., but missed hearing his band, The Retroverts, perform. We also spent an evening with Risa Korn, who in 2018 welcomed a new grandson in Boston, celebrated her daughter’s promotion at American Express in New York, and visited her youngest son doing his medical residency in Denver.

Bob and I have home improvement projects slated for 2019, looking forward to our daughter finishing her master’s in June, and paying our last tuition bills when our son graduates Northeastern next December.

Cynthia M. Ulman | cmu.home@cmugroup.com
860 Marin Drive, Mill Valley, CA 94941-3955

Remember to mark your calendars for our 45th Reunion May 24-26. Registration and information about the Reunion can be found at wesleyan.edu/rc . Also, feel free to contact any members of the Reunion committee, which includes: Bob Arcaro, Charley Blaine, Scott Brodie, Jon Eddison, Peter Heyward, John Hickenlooper, Lloyd Komesar, Lyn Thurber Lauffer, Barry Lenk, Charisse Lillie, Pat Mulcahy, Bill Pearson, Sharon Purdie, Dean Richlin, John Shapiro, Harold Sogard, Nancy Stack, Charles Steinhorn, and Pamela van der Meulen.

Devra Fischer, known at Wesleyan as Heather, was awarded a doctorate in psychoanalysis and certified as a psychoanalyst by the Psychoanalytic Center of California (PCC) in December in LA. This achievement comes after a long and fruitful career as a psychotherapist practicing in Beverly Hills.

This achievement comes after a long and fruitful career as a psychotherapist practicing in Beverly Hills, Calif. The title of her thesis is “The Body Speaks.” Devra can be reached at 310-749-1633 or ndevraf@gmail.com.

Jan Eliasberg reports, “I continue to write and direct in film and television, but I’ve been surprised and delighted to discover two new areas of creative expression:

“I’m currently completing the second draft of a novel called Heart Of The Atom. I sold the novel based on an original screenplay I had written and have spent the last seven months writing, and now revising, the manuscript. I’ve had terrific help and support from Paul Vidich ’72 another Wesleyan grad turned novelist, and his wife, Linda. I’m represented as a novelist by Adriann Ranta Zurellen at Foundry Literary + Media and publication details will be forthcoming. The following is a short synopsis of the book:

1945. The American and German scientists race to create, develop, and test an atomic bomb. Dr. Hannah Weiss, a brilliant physicist, is the only woman in the Critical Assemblies Division at Los Alamos, the top scientists working directly with Oppenheimer on the bomb’s final stages. Major Jack Delaney, a rising star in the shadowy world of military intelligence, arrives in Los Alamos with a mission: to find the spy leaking nuclear secrets to the Germans. Dr. Hannah Weiss becomes his prime suspect. Inspired by true events and characters, including the extraordinary female scientist Albert Einstein called “the Mother of the Bomb,”Heart of the Atomexplores one of the great mysteries of the Twentieth Century: How did Nazi Germany—with its fanatic will to power and its cadre of Nobel-winning scientists—lose the crucial race for the atomic bomb? Winston Churchill called it “a riddle, wrapped in a mystery, inside an enigma,” but Jack Delaney is determined to reveal the truth he knows is hidden in the heart of an unlikely hero.

“I also undertook to renovate an apartment in Manhattan that has been in the family, but sitting unused, for a number of years. I gut renovated the kitchen and three bathrooms, as well as making minor renovations throughout the rest of the space. I found a phenomenal contractor and sourced all of the fixtures, tiles, paint colors, wallpaper, rugs, furniture, and artwork myself. I was thrilled when the design magazine, Apartment Therapy, featured a storyon my work, complete with photographs. It turns out that I love the work of renovating and designing — it’s a very creative process similar to directing — and I’ve taken on a couple of paid gigs renovating for friends and colleagues.

“Finally, my daughter Sariel ’19 graduates from Wesleyan in June; she majored in American studies and film studies.”

Charlie Cocores retires to Pawleys Island SC when not in Old Saybrook. He is doing a Habitat for Humanity Global Village build in Romania and would love some Wesleyan folks to join in. Contact him at cocoshfh@gmail.com.

Monique Witt writes, “Not much that’s new while we’re involved in the new building. Ben is touring, Dev is designing audio tech, I’m finishing up some production projects and Steven is hip-deep in his deals. Ben has an Instagram post from a Target store in Cali where he’s playing a kid’s cat keyboard that meows. They were buying a pick-up cable by the toy section. It helped to lighten my day in the face of the hardships from the political situation. NYC suffers less, but I run with a curator from the Smithsonian and the situation is dire. Hope everyone is getting through this.”

Gail Austin Cooney reminds us that “it’s that age when the big news is often retirement! I stopped working because it was getting in the way of my dancing. Now, I am a modern dancer with Demetrius Klein DKDC/DIY in West Palm Beach. My brief encounter with modern dance at Wesleyan (thank you, Cheryl Cutler) is finally paying off. I am the oldest in the company and have the least amount of formal training but I’m not the only one on Medicare—it’s a diverse group and a huge source of joy in my life. We perform several times a year on a regular basis. One of our goals is to bring modern dance to people in the community who might not otherwise encounter it. Fun, fun, fun!” Contact her at gail.cooney@gmail.com.

Howard Curzer reports, “The new, big thing in my life is a very small thing—a grandson. Jonah Henry Stanton Curzer was born to Mirah Curzer and Josh Stanton on Dec. 16. Jonah has not yet revealed his superpower, but we can wait.”

Harold Sogard has no meaningful personal news this time around, but would like to say that he is very much hoping that people who for one reason or another have not come to previous reunions will be able to attend our 45th Reunion this May!

Larry Green continues to practice law as a trial attorney and partner at the Boston law firm, Burns & Levinson. When introduced to someone outside of work, Larry is often asked: “You’re retired, right?” To which he jokingly responds, “I must look much older than I really am or much more prosperous than I really am.” Larry and his wife, Denise, do, in fact, enjoy life outside of work, spending more and more time at their second home in Ogunquit, Maine, and traveling to visit five grandchildren in Boulder and Palo Alto. Having been unable to make it to Wes Reunions because his annual extended family reunion is held in Ogunquit every Memorial Day weekend, Larry extends an open invitation to classmates to look him up when traveling to either Boston or Ogunquit.

Chuck Gregorywas elected to the vestry at St. Mark’s Episcopal Church in Fort Lauderdale. He also sings in the choir there. He also sings in the choir there. He’s secretary to the board of a community group, the Central City Alliance, which held a street fair on March 2nd called the 13th Street Craft Beer and Wine Festival with Car Show. Busy, busy, busy!

Sharon Purdie | spurdie@wesleyan.edu

We have news from across the country. Mike Robinson regrets having to back out of our recent milestone Reunion and will try to visit this year but has 2023 written in red in the centennial calendar. Meanwhile, he reconnected with a rowing teammate, Vinnie Broderick ’75. Vinnie, who runs a summer rowing camp in Vermont, met up with Mike’s rowing coach brother and tracked Mike down in Baltimore and York, Pa. The visit yielded a reconnection for Mike with Phil Calhoun ’62, past rowing coach, as well as  stories of shenanigans during the rowers’ spring training in Florida.

From Lafayette, Colo., Mike McKenna has been appointed to the USA Rugby board of directors. Mike says, “I look forward to combining my passion for the sport and professional experience to help further strengthen our great game both here in the U.S. and within the international rugby community.” Mike has been active for decades helping the Wesleyan rugby club and founded the Old Methodist RFC, strengthening alumni ties. Congrats, Mike!

Peter Gelblum devotes his time to the worlds of theater and social justice. He is president of Mountain Community Theater in Ben Lomond, Calif. Over the last few years, his “work” at MCT has included playing Brutus in Julius Caesar and one of the convict-angels in My Three Angels, and directing Miracle on 34th Street, the Play, Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike, Other Desert Cities, Damn Yankees, and my favorite, August: Osage County. He writes, “At other local theaters in the astonishingly vibrant theater scene in Santa Cruz county, I’ve recently played Judge Haywood (the Spencer Tracy part in the movie) in Judgment at Nuremberg and directed several shows for an annual festival of 10-minute plays.” He has also produced two productions of Climate Change Theater Action in Santa Cruz.

For several years, he has been on the board of directors and executive committee of the ACLU of Northern California and the chair of the Santa Cruz county chapter of the ACLU. “In those roles, I’ve gotten to work with other activists, elected officials, and law enforcement leaders to address issues such as protecting the rights of the large homeless population, militarization of police, police transparency and accountability, surveillance, racial justice, and immigration rights,” he says, adding he is currently on the sheriff’s advisory team for the county. Peter says “My wife, Michele, and I love it here in Boulder Creek among the redwoods. The only downside is that our combined three kids and two grandchildren are scattered around the country, so we don’t get to see them as often as we would like. In light of that, I’m especially thankful for those modern wonders of airplanes and video chat.”

Robert Abrevaya says the 14th edition of The Robert William Abrevaya Show was produced Dec. 28. Comedy by “The Official Comedian for the 2020 Elections.” He says seven of his shows and autobiographical information are available at vimeo.com/RWAShow. At The Comedy Store on Sunset Boulevard, he has been the closing act most potluck nights since (at least) 1983. His new Facebook page is RealRobert William Abrevaya. He is also on Twitter @AbrevayaR. And he invites you to call him at 323/926-6115.

A busy Tom Kelly is splitting his time between Phoenix and San Diego and now has four grandchildren who range from 4 months to 4 years old. He is working with early stage health care companies with “strong value propositions” in an industry that he believes could be involved with “massive disruption.” He is “trying to tilt Arizona blue with moderate success.”

For those of you who are doctors, I have to mention this personal medical note. Some alarm bells went off over a year ago when I my A1C count hit 7.2 and I went in to the Type 2 Diabetes danger zone. I went cold turkey on the sugar after decades of guzzling Coca-Cola and M&Ms. In three months, my A1C count dropped to 5.8 and in 6 months it dropped to 5.5. My doctor said the drop was “freakish” and had not seen such an A1C drop before, along with everything else that improved. I also dropped from 181 to 162 pounds—too big of a drop, one doctor said. Must admit I feel better and have lost the “glucose belly.” In light of all the commercials about lowering your A1C count, my wife thinks I should write a short book about this.

On a final note, this time last year many of us were getting ready to attend our 45th Reunion. All who attended said it was fantastic and afterwards were eager to start planning for our 50th Reunion (May 25-28, 2023). We’ll be reaching out to folks to collect up-to-date contact information as we want as many as possible to make it back to Middletown. If you want to get involved or haven’t heard from a Reunion committee member, contact Kate Quigley Lynch ’82, P’17, ’19 at klynch@wesleyan.edu or 680/685-5992.

Peter D’Oench | Pgdo10@aol.com

Let’s start with some news from Leon Vinci. Stepping down from his role as national technical advisor on Climate Change for the National Environmental Health Association (NEHA), he remains active with their Climate Change Committee. As a leader in climate change and health, he was invited to attend the Climate Change International Summit in Washington, D.C., in May.

During the second international Enhancing Environmental Health Knowledge (EEK): Vectors and Public Health Pests Virtual Conference in May, Leon’s presentation covered “Emerging Diseases and Vectors Related to Changes in Climate.” In June, he presented a paper entitled “What New Bugs are Telling Us About Climate Change “at the NEHA Annual Educational Conference in Anaheim, Calif. During that meeting he participated on an expert panel covering: “Collaborative Advances in Climate Change Policy at National Levels.” Along with chairing the educational track on Citizen Science at the National Environmental Monitoring Conference, he presented two papers on topics in citizen science, including “Global Examples of Citizen Science Policy” and “The Linkage of Citizen Science with Climate Change.” These events were in addition to his children’s health course, which he taught over the summer at the College of and Health Professions at Drexel University in Philadelphia.

Steve Schiff was one of the producers of The Americans, which is now reaping well-deserved awards (Golden Globe, Critics Choice). He is working as the showrunner for Lucasfilm’s prequel to Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. Since it will show on Disney+ we should not expect a lot of sex.

Roger Jackson led a fall tour through India last fall. Wes connections on the tour included Frank Levering ’74, Frank’s sister Betsy Morgan, Hon. ’97, one-time teacher at Wes and spouse of Professor of History Emeritus David Morgan, and Kristin Bloomer ’89, associate professor of religion at Carleton College, from which Roger retired a few years ago.

Ron Ashkenas is co-author of the Harvard Business Review Leader’s Handbook, published last fall by Harvard Business Press. The aim of the book is to help aspiring and existing leaders understand the small number of fundamental practices they need to master throughout their careers—and not get lost in the “noise” about leadership that is around these days. Ron and his co-author interviewed 40 successful leaders across a number of industries, including Wesleyan’s Michael Roth ’78.

“Michael was quite gracious in spending time to discuss his views on leadership,” Ron reports, “and the book includes a wonderful vignette about the process he used for reaching consensus about a ‘unifying vision’ for Wesleyan. If you get hold of the book, you’ll find it on page 38.”

Mike Kaloyanides is one of the contributors to the newly published Greek Music in America. The book is an anthology of essays exploring Greek music traditions in America. To quote Dan Georgakas, the blurb writer, “This is a landmark work in Greek American studies. Comprehensive essays and thumbnail portraits chronicle popular, rebetiko, regional, and sacred music in Greek America. The various contributors deal authoritatively with the subtle interactions between immigrant and mainstream culture. A must-read for anyone interested in the Greek diaspora or ethnic cultures in America.” The book is published by the University Press of Mississippi.

And, finally, I am pleased to add this important reminder: Our 50th Reunion is May 19-22, 2022. The Reunion Committee will be reaching out to folks to collect up-to-date contact information. Look for pre-Reunion regional events and if close by, attend! Want to get involved or haven’t heard from one of us? Contact Kate Quigley Lynch ’82, P’17, ’19 at klynch@wesleyan.edu or 680/685-5992. And, check out wesleyan.edu/classof1972 for the latest news.

Seth A. Davis | sethdavis@post.harvard.edu
213 Copper Square Drive, Bethel, CT 06801

Aloha, classmates. Let me start off with some sad news. Jonathan Felt died in October. He was originally in our class, but due to health reasons, graduated with Class of ’72. His death was sent in by his roommate, Patrick Callahan, and friend, Jake Weiss. His obituary was in the Ridgefield Press. Jon was an accomplished film producer and director. He had an eye for capturing the beauty around him and was quick to teach others who were just as eager to learn. Working with ABC 20/20 for many years, he spotlighted endless incredible stories for the world. Jon brought home numerous awards for groundbreaking documentaries like The Men Who Brought the Dawn, which highlighted the Enola Gay crew that dropped the first atomic bomb. He is survived by his two daughters, Danika and Alissa, granddog Mickey, and former wife yet cherished friend, Doreen Felt.

Our 50th Reunion is coming fast. Yes, 2021 will be here before you know it. Bob Millner attended a working meeting of the Class of ’70 and gave us a report of what we need to start preparing to do. The committee is seeking volunteers to help plan this important milestone. We could use people who would help put together a class book. It involves soliciting bios and submissions from classmates.

The committee is looking for class members of color to participate in organizing a program addressing the African-American experience in our class (which was the first one at Wesleyan with a significant African-American presence) and perhaps comparing it with that experience today.

The Reunion committee will be reaching out to folks to collect up-to-date contact information. Look for pre-Reunion regional events and if close by, attend! Want to get involved or haven’t heard from one of us? Contact Kate Quigley Lynch ’82, P’17, ’19 at klynch@wesleyan.edu or 680/685-5992. And, check out wesleyan.edu/classof1971 for the latest news.

That’s all the news I have this time. I will continue to remind you about the 50th Reunion so please volunteer to make this event the best Reunion milestone. Thanks, and aloha.

Neil J. Clendeninn | Cybermad@msn.com
PO Box 1005, Hanalei, HI 96714

Aloha, everyone. Maurice Hakim and Carol are “glad to be back in Florida for the winter although we already miss being in our 1799 Cape in Clinton, Conn. We’ve made many improvements to the house. We’re now planning for the addition that includes a modern kitchen and sunporch.” Maurice is still working. His company manufactures ready-to-drink organic teas and lemonades for private-label grocery store chains. He sees Jeremy Serwer, Phil Dundas, and Charlie Farrow ’69. He’s in touch with Seth Kaufman, Jim Elston, and David Geller. Maurice is working with John Griffin on our 50th Reunion book.

Sadly, Maurice is “now afflicted with Type 2 Diabetes and its consequences, particularly neuropathy, probably as a result of my overindulging in Hostess Cupcakes and My-T Fine chocolate pudding since my early youth. I have started to take it more seriously by going to physical therapy.”

I think this is the first time we’ve heard from Mitch Grashin. Mitch’s daughter Merrily Grashin (NYU ’06), has written a wonderful book, a very funny, educational and useful, feminist cocktail book, entitled Women’s Libation! Cocktails to Celebrate a Woman’s Right to Booze (Penguin/Random House). It was the New York Times Editor’s Pick on Black Friday.

Coming out of retirement for the second time, Mitch “helped create and is working with a startup, White Eagle Insurance Solutions, located in the Bay Area, the epicenter of the new California Gold Rush. We are becoming, and will soon be established as, the de facto insurance provider nationally for the $30-plus billion commercial cannabis industry.”

Gene Legg wrote, “I am in the midst of my 40th year of teaching high school and still going strong! I see my buddy Elliot Daum occasionally at special events, and he is as wonderful as ever. I am forever grateful to Wesleyan for the incredible education we all received and to Psi U for putting up with my self-centered idiocy for four years. I have raised two wonderful sons (28 and 24 respectively) and managed to stay out of trouble for most of our 48 years since graduation. Since I went to Harvard to get a graduate degree, I feel qualified to compare these two bastions of education. I loved Harvard, but no comparison: WesTech is in first place in every category!”

Mark Geannette retired after practicing law for 45 years. He and wife Gloria have been traveling, most notably to French Polynesia and Sardinia. For his 70th birthday they went to Easter Island.

Colin Kitchens is “in the San Francisco Bay Area with my wife and three dogs. I have been writing and the narrative and my energy to pursue it are about to collide. In exciting news, classmates, I am looking for an alternative to death, and making some incredible headway. I will set up a GoFundMe page soon­­—you don’t want to be late for this train.”

Still a political leader, Steve Talbot, regularly posts thoughtful and informative pieces on Facebook. On a related note, you’ll want to get Bob Stone’s Trumpericks books. You can see samples on FB regularly.

As I write, Jeremy Serwer is speaking on a group call of the 50th Reunion committee exhorting folks to call classmates about the Reunion. (He’s chairman of the outreach committee.) If you know anyone who’s kind of off-the-grid, please let the committee know how to contact the person, or better yet, do it yourself!

Our 50th Reunion is May 21-24, 2020, slightly more than a year away. A robust Reunion committee (Alschuler, Bullard, Carter, Dachs, Daum, Davis, Diamond, Elston, Fain, Geller, Gottfried, Griffin, Hakim, Hazel, Heilweil, Johnson, Jones, Josephson, Kellogg, Knight, Krugman, Laitos, Murphy, Ossad, Policoff, Poritz, Saltzman, Sarles, Scherr, Serwer, Sheffield, Silvestro, Stone, Talbot, Tam, White, Williams, Woods) is busy reaching out to folks to collect up-to-date contact information, as we want as many of you to come back to Middletown as possible.

Work has started on a class book and programming ideas are already being discussed. Look for pre-Reunion regional events and if close by, attend! Want to get involved or haven’t heard from one of us? Contact Kate Quigley Lynch ’82, P’17, ’19 at klynch@wesleyan.edu or 680/685-5992. And, please check out wesleyan.edu/classof1970 for the latest news.

I’m happy to report visible progress on the never-ending building project here on Kaua’i. The elevated solar rack is well underway, and the house foundation is scheduled to be poured in a few days. I can’t tell you the joy! Speaking of which, I made my first trip to New Orleans at the end of December and loved it. For anyone interested, I posted a lot of photos on FB.

Russ Josephson | russ_josephson@yahoo.com
P.O. Box 1151, Kilauea, HI 96754