Randi Alexandra Plake – Page 97 – Wesleyan Magazine Classnotes

newsmakers | 1980s2017/08/262017/08/26

Glenn Ligon ’82

Glenn Ligon ’82, renowned conceptual artist, curated the exhibition Blue Black, a selection of pieces ranging from portraiture to African and American folk art, for the Pulitzer Arts Foundation in St. Louis, Mo. “The content of Glenn’s work is incredibly meaningful in the context of St. Louis, being the epicenter of the Black Lives Matter movement,” Pulitzer director Cara Starke told art critic Hilarie M. Sheets, writing for the New York Times. Ligon described an Ellsworth Kelly painting, “Blue Black” (2000), which hangs in the Pulitzer, as his inspiration, and he cited “a very funny aural hallucination where I kept hearing Louis Armstrong’s voice singing ‘What did I do to be so black and blue?’“ He used that color combination to explore questions about race, history, identity, and memory. An art major at Wesleyan, he was awarded an honorary doctorate of fine arts from the university in 2012.

newsmakers | 1970s2017/08/262017/08/26

Michele A. Roberts ’77

Adweek named Michele A. Roberts ’77, executive director—and first female leader—of the NBA Players Union, to its “30 Most Powerful Women in Sports” list, which featured outstanding executives, athletes, and journalists, among others. Previously an attorney with Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom, Roberts had begun her career as a public defender in Washington, D.C. In the June 26 article, Adweek’s Tim Baysinger noted that Roberts would be negotiating across the table from league commissioner Adam Silver when the two worked on a new collective bargaining agreement—and Roberts would be trying to avoid a lockout, something her two predecessors were not able to do. A government major at Wesleyan, Roberts earned her JD from the University of California at Berkeley. The negotiations now completed, Roberts noted, “The deal we worked out with the League contained a number of favorable provisions for our players, including a 45 percent across the board salary increase for those players whose salaries are pre-set. And, no lock-out!”

newsmakers | 1970s2017/08/26

Richard Melchreit ’77

Richard Melchreit ’77, MD, is the recipient of the 2017 Charles G. Huntington III Award for his 30-year career in public health. The Connecticut Public Health Association presents this award annually to a Connecticut health care practitioner who has demonstrated public health leadership and a commitment to the health and well-being of the population. Beyond his career in positions with St. Francis Medical Center and the Connecticut Department of Health, Melchreit mentored dozens of undergraduate and graduate students and held leadership roles in the Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologists, most recently on the Healthcare Associated Infections Subcomittee. Melchreit was a biology major at Wesleyan, and received his medical degree from the University of Connecticut.

Uncategorized2017/08/24

VICTORIA READ MAT’66, MALS’67

VICTORIA READ MAT’66, MALS’67, an English professor at the University of Connecticut, died May 29, 2017. She was 87. After receiving her BA from Vassar College, she taught English in Lake Placid, N.Y., before moving back to her native Minnesota as religion editor for the Fairmont Sentinel. She later earned an MAT and a MALS from Wesleyan, after which she joined the English Department faculty at the University of Connecticut. She is survived by her twin brother, two daughters, and two grandchildren.

Uncategorized2017/08/24

PATTI L. LANICH MAT’72

PATTI L. LANICH MAT’72, a teacher and software engineer, died July 12, 2016, at age 70. She received her AB degree from Ohio University, served in the Peace Corps in Nepal, and taught at Newton (Mass.) South High School. At the time of her death she was a software engineer and systems administrator in Burlington, Vt. One sister survives.

Uncategorized2017/08/242017/12/07

TRACY HELIN MALS’06

TRACY HELIN MALS’06, a community advocate, died Aug. 15, 2016. He was 46. After receiving a culinary degree from Newbury College, he received a BA in sociology from Central Connecticut State University and a master’s from Wesleyan. He dedicated most of his life and career to advocacy on behalf of many issues. An avid athlete in addition to his many hobbies, he completed two full marathons and 11 half-marathons in a three-year period, completing some races while receiving treatment for his illness. Survivors include his wife, Christy Kovel, his parents, his sister, one nephew, several stepsisters, and a very large extended family.

Uncategorized2017/08/24

PAUL J. KEANEY MALS’72

PAUL J. KEANEY MALS’72, an educator and administrator who was a founder of the Community School in Naples, Fla., died May 25, 2017, at age 80. He received his BA degree from Harvard University in 1959 and his MALS from Wesleyan. A U.S. Navy veteran, he served on an Admiral’s staff aboard the aircraft carrier USS Independence and saw duty during the Bay of Pigs incident and the Cuban missile crisis. He taught at the Brooks School and the Pomfret School before becoming one of the founders and the dean at the Community School. His last position was at Lee Academy in Maine, from which he retired in 1987. Beyond academics, he was dedicated to educating on the football field as well, and coached teams in the communities in which he lived. He also had an eclectic collection of music and books. His wife, Judith Smith Keaney, survives, as do two daughters, one grandson, his sister, and several nieces and nephews.

Uncategorized2017/08/24

THOMAS K. FITZPATRICK MALS’58

THOMAS K. FITZPATRICK MALS’58, an educator, died Mar. 31, 2016. He was 87. After receiving his BS degree from Mount St. Mary’s University, he received an MALS from Wesleyan and a master’s degree in library science from the University of Maine in 1971. He also studied military history at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point and was the academic instructor for ROTC cadets at Mount St. Mary’s for 15 years. Additional studies included Latin at Yale University, media at Boston University, education at Columbia University, and Lakota Studies at Oglala Lakota College. He served in the U.S. Army during World War II. Among those who survive are his wife, Barbara Mersch Fitzpatrick, and two children.

Uncategorized2017/08/242017/08/24

C. LENNART SANDQUIST MA’50

C. LENNART SANDQUIST MA’50, a research chemist, died Jan. 4, 2017, at age 93. After serving in the U.S. Navy during World War II, he returned to Bowdoin College, where he received his degree in 1947 and served as a teaching fellow until 1948. He then received his master’s from Wesleyan and a Ph.D. from Yale University. He was employed as a research chemist at the DuPont Benger Laboratory in Waynesboro, Va., until his retirement in 1984. During his career he contributed to the early development of Orlon acrylic, Nomex® aramid, and Lycra® spandex fibers, earning a patent for the spinning process for Lycra® fibers that made them long enough to be useable in clothing. Three children and four grandchildren survive.

Obituaries | 2000-20102017/08/24

ASHLEY A. SANFORD ’07

ASHLEY A. SANFORD, a musician and writer, died Mar. 8, 2017. She was 33 and had been in ill health for more than 10 years. A talented musician and writer, she was working on a memoir at the time of her death, hoping to help other Type I diabetics and organ transplant recipients. Her parents, Bruce and Marilou Sanford survive, as do her sister and brother, and a nephew and niece.