spinsonault – Wesleyan Magazine Classnotes

Class Notes, Class Notes | 1960s2018/12/05

CLASS OF 1964 | 2018 | ISSUE 2

It’s finally May and I’m in a new recliner in my condo here in historic Savannah. We have a lot back in central Florida with a park-model RV, where we plan to spend a little less of our time than in Georgia.

My wife, Becky, and I just returned from an auto trip made up to Wesleyan, and satisfying my wife’s bucket list stopping over in Niagara Falls on a circuitous route home.

The reason for going to Wes was to be present for the addition of Steve Humphrey ’63 to the Wesleyan Baseball Wall of Fame. I had caught each of his pitching games in 1963 and 1964. I didn’t make it in previous years, when Peter Sipples (shortstop), Phil Rockwell ’65 (pitcher), and Jeff Hopkins ’66 (pitcher and hitter) were added to the wall. Unfortunately, Steve didn’t make the occasion, but he sent a letter to Jim Dresser ’63 to read on his behalf. He was honored and acknowledged his catcher, Teddy Manos, who never had a passed ball, Paul Brands (first base), Lou D’Ambrosio (second base), and Peter Sipples along with Roy Fazendeiro ’65 at third base. We won the Little Three Championship in 1963 and 1964 and were invited to the NCAA northeast region playoffs both years, but Wesleyan turned the invitation down. These days Wesleyan teams are motivated to qualify for postseason action.

I didn’t know most of the people at the reception and dinner, but I easily bonded with the Wesleyan baseballers from the late 1950s classes. There was Dave Darling ’59 and Tom Young ’59, both having been added to the wall in recent years. William Bixby ’56 was at our table, who was one of six added to the wall this year.

I’m sorry to add the news that Richard “Chip” Smith Jr. passed away recently, and it was a personal loss for me as we were fraternity brothers. He was an excellent student in his years at Wesleyan, and his life of political activism started with his participation in campus activities.

Charles Allen Crum also passed away earlier this year. This news was sent to me by his children, Elissa and Townsend, and their sentiment and information reflected their love and respect for their dad. He graduated from Cornell Law School, spent his career in NYC, and upon retiring to Ithaca, N.Y., was donating his time and knowledge to his community. His children will miss his humor, wit, and presence, which is a quite a testimony for this good, kind, and gentle Wesleyan alumnus.

On a positive note, I received communication from Mike Angelini, who was “amazed at the passing of so many years, and the richness and the number of memories of those four short years.” He and wife Marie live happily in Worcester, Mass., where he is an active trial lawyer and a contributor to his community. He summed up his life as being a very lucky guy.

I look forward to our next Reunion in 2019. I had fun getting together with the class of 1959 and how we shared similar memories of our alma mater. I had fun getting to know the baseball players from that class and realized we played the game with wooden bats. For many decades college baseball has used metal or composite bats.

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

Class Notes | 1960s2018/12/05

CLASS OF 1963 | 2018 | ISSUE 2

Our 55th is now history. And it has been a few months since 21 of us gathered to consider our lives then, now, and in the future. Here they are in alphabetical order—Tucker Andersen, Colby Andrus, Harvey Bagg, Gerald Baliles, Howard Black, Dave Buddington, Jim Dresser, Jack Emmott, Doug Evelyn, Bob Gallamore, Fritz Henn, Ronald Herriott, John Kikoski, Dave Landgraf, Stan Lewis, Byron Miller, Bill Roberts, Don Sexton, Fred Taylor, Peter Treffers, and Ron Wilson. We were aided and abetted by John Driscoll ’62, whom we dubbed an honorary classmate.

Prior to Reunion, several classmates (Marty Hatch, Jim Dooney, Russ Richey, Bill Roberts, Dave Landgraf, Harvey Bagg, Jim Dresser, John Kikoski, Peter Treffers, Doug Evelyn, Don Sexton, and I) worked hard at planning our schedule. Kate Quigley Lynch ’82 was our primary planning support staff member at WesU throughout it all.

The weekend began Friday afternoon with a moving seminar led by Bill Roberts on the circle of life and rites of passage, with the focus being on rites for those approaching “elderly” status, which now applies to us. That conversation continued at our class reception that evening.

Saturday’s highlight was a related discussion among ourselves, including many spouses, on the challenges that come at our age. The discussion was both reflective and broad, touching on ongoing education, current personal life experiences, and ideas to add new meaning to our lives. With four classmates who were former Wesleyan trustees among the returnees, we also probed the condition of the University today and its continued vitality in producing critical thinking and engaged citizens.

At lunch for all classes post-50th, we heard from Athletic Director Mike Whalen ’83, who talked about the gratifying increase in WesU’s athletic success. We are no longer the doormat of the Little Three. As you may have heard, on Graduation Day our varsity men’s lacrosse team won a first-ever team National Championship for WesU!

On Saturday evening, our honored professors emeriti guests were Richard Buel, Dick Miller, and Mark Slobin. Like at our 50th, we watched a slide show of artworks of 10 classmates (Colby Andrus, Stan Lewis, Tom McKnight, Byron Miller, Don Sexton, Dan Snyder, George Tapley, Bob Travis, Lew Whitney, and Scott Wilson), but unlike our past Reunion dinners, we tried our hand at karaoke and all joined in to sing the Highway Men’s “Michael Row Your Boat Ashore.”

On a sad note, I received word of the passing of Jim Reynolds. Originally from Longmeadow, Mass., he loved athletics and could be drawn easily into the smallest argument about sports, especially with Steve Humphrey. Jim was especially proud of his son’s elevation to major league umpiring. Many in the Lodge and beyond will miss him.

In the next edition of our magazine, I will return to reports of individual classmates, and while at Reunion, I was given names of some who are thought to have never appeared or have not been heard from in these notes for too long a time. I know it’s early but let this be your first invitation to come back to our 60th Reunion. Mark your 2023 calendar for May 25 to May 28 when we hope to gather again. Till then, be careful crossing streets, look both ways, and practice breathing in and out diligently every day.

Byron S. Miller | tigr10@optonline.net
5 Clapboard Hill Rd., Westport, CT 06880

Class Notes | 1960s2018/12/05

CLASS OF 1962 | 2018 | ISSUE 2

Toni and Bruce Corwin celebrated their 50th anniversary “surrounded by family and friends including Jay Levy ’60 and Rick Tuttle.” He also writes, “Small world time: Next to our offices in Los Angeles, Dave Fisher’s daughter, Charlie, has opened a chiropractic gym. If you’re in the area and your back is bad, drop in. She’s great!”

Tuli Glasman, retired from the University of California, is a volunteer “spending time with elderly groups (ages 85–100) at the Santa Barbara Center for Successful Aging.”

Sad news is the passing of three of our classmates. Charles Armstrong died in June in Winter Park, Fla. After graduating from the University of Missouri Medical School, he practiced in Winter Park and Atlanta before opening a family medical practice in Alexandria, Va. Jeff Hughes passed away in February in New York where he spent many years in financing and banking with Lehman Brothers, and opened his own private equity firm, the Cypress Group. Fran Voigt died in May at his home in Cabot, Vt., after many years as the founder and president of the innovative and award-winning New England Culinary Institute. Many of us still fondly remember the fabulous dinners that Fran and his students prepared at two of our Reunions. Full obituaries can be found online here. Our condolences go out to their families.

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

Class Notes | 1960s2018/12/05

CLASS OF 1961 | 2018 | ISSUE 2

Bob Johnson sends his greetings touched with sadness: “Jan Westerman Jr., died in Los Angeles on Sept. 4, 2017, after a long illness. Jan had been the proprietor of his own paper and office supply company. He loved to sail, and he kept in touch with me regularly. He was divorced and left behind his ex-wife and his daughter.”

Phil Rodd checked in with a quick note: “Nothing special going on here, but if I think of something interesting, I will let you know.”

As a follow-up to Jack Richards’ comments noted in the previous column, (Issue 1, 2018) your secretary replied to Jack with the following: “A great submission, Jack, and I thank you for the quick reply. Your tour in Vietnam caught my eye, since I was in the Da Nang area at about the same time, 1967-1968. It might be worthwhile to survey the classmates, seeking those who also served there, and have them tell us their experiences and stories. I’ll do a bit more follow-up on that angle.”

Steve Wainwright writes: “I am still practicing law here at Wainwright, Wainwright, Wainwright, Wainwright, and Wainwright with my brother, Richard Llewellyn, age 85, and his wife Ona Mae, age 85.

Neal Schachtel writes: “During our evacuation from Irma we spent 14 hours on the road to Atlanta with wife, mother-in-law, dog, and cat. Since we had no power in St. Pete, we stayed at Bob Reiser’s for a week while he and Margaret went to Egypt. The return trip only took 10 hours and convinced us to move off the water.”

And, congratulations to Joseph Miller, history professor emeritus at the University of Virginia, who was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. Joe has been back to Wesleyan a few times to lecture.

Sandy McCurdy recalls many memories: “I’ve not had a chance to speak to any of our classmates recently in person, though in my head, indeed, many conversations and recollections with: Larry Wiberg, Tom Peterson, Pete Odell, June Prince, Brad Beechen, Dave Sucher, Howard Morgan, and Jack Mitchell. Most recently, reading in the latest Wesleyan magazine, my eyes came across my Deke brother, Skip Silloway ’59, and thoughts returned full force to the days of yesteryear. Of the great times we had then, as a men’s college of under 600 souls, (actually more bodies than souls) having to ‘move out’ on weekends in pursuit of the fairer sex—not realizing, had we been gay, that said moving out would not have been necessary. But alas, some of our most brilliant and sensitive gay classmates would take their lives, feeling the isolation and condemnation of their nature. There were two young men in our class, whose names we know and honor.

“So, we left campus in our automobiles for luring destinations such as Smith (far away) or Conn College for Women (a nearer strike), stopping in Middletown near Goodyear’s to buy plentiful supplies of beer (illegally, but no problem) and then drive to our destinations, oblivious to our foolishness. No seat belts either, of course.

“And Skip and I: one fine day, he, two years (equaling two millennia then) older than I, decided to challenge each other in a drag race—he in his ’57 Chevy convertible and I in my ’57 Ford—stick shifts—how cool we were. Imagine: all without seat belts, we headed to the Merritt Parkway, found a straightaway stretch of the road, then waited for it to be empty for a moment, then headed out for the competition—which he won handily. The foolishness of it all, looking back, is breathtaking.

“I am thankful now that Wesleyan seems much more serious intellectually, though I do not idolize today’s youth and their capacities for nonsense on campus whatever its nature. Yet, the dominance of fraternities and fraternity life seems to have been diminished and overshadowed by serious intellectual pursuits—the latter always Wesleyan’s strong card. My votes that we Dekes give our old house to the University counts as a voice crying in the wilderness. That Amherst, Williams, and Yale have cut back or eliminated the brotherhoods—no matter. What do they know? Cheers to Wesleyan.”

John “Jack” Dennis published his new children’s book, The Mouse in the Lemon Tree, available on Amazon and first in a series to address kid literacy. “An accompanying animated video of the story explores just one phase of ‘advocacy animation’ that will allow us to explore how this book-video combination can increase its usefulness.” He will publish a second memoir this year that follows his first memoir, Jack in the Cracks, Primavera Press 2013.

Bob Hausman draws this column to a close with poetic verve:

“What expectest thou of this poor player, who,

on the stage of life,

strutteth and fretteth no more,

but, rather,

quietly entereth his dotage,

bereft of any tale to tell,

except that which might by any of us be told;

namely, that all things considered,

it is best

to still be found

above ground.”

Respectfully submitted,

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

Class Notes | 1960s2018/12/05

CLASS OF 1960 | 2018 | ISSUE 2

Nici and John Dobson have bought a home in southeastern Tucson, Ariz. They plan to keep their house in Big Sky for several more years.

Peggy and Dave Hale were in Peru for two weeks in February. They visited Lima, Iquitos, and were on a boat on the Amazon River.

Barry Lorch passed away on March 12. He was my fraternity brother at Delta Sigma and had a zest for life. He spent 36 years working for New York State and retired in 1996 as director of the classification and compensation department. Barry and his beloved wife, Brenda, spent their retirement years traveling the world seeking new birds, as Barry was an avid amateur birder. He is survived by Brenda, four children, and nine grandchildren.

Rob Mortimer wrote the following: “A few words from Paris, where Mimi and I have made a practice of spending a few months during the spring. As francophone literature and French politics have been central to our academic careers, we feel pretty much at home here where we have many friends. No one can exhaust the cultural riches of this fabulous city: music, theater, museums, outdoor markets, and parks. We are still jogging in the Bois de Vincennes, which keeps us happy and healthy. Where else can one see a magnificent white peacock while out for a run?”

Ira Sharkansky wrote a blog titled “Wesleyan and Me” that appeared in the Feb. 7 issue of The Jerusalem Post that tackles the contentious topic of support of the boycott, divestment, and sanctions against Israel movement on campus and academic freedom.

Jeannine and Myles Standish continue to be blessed with good health, enjoying retirement on the shores of Lake Keowee, about 10 miles from Clemson University in the northwest corner of South Carolina. Their community is extremely sociable; everyone’s from somewhere else and they arrive looking to make friends.

Myles still gives popular talks—on not only astronomy, but also on Shackleton, Robert Peary, Panama Canal, and the Brooklyn Bridge. Three sons are sadly far away in Hollywood, Portland, and Boulder. Upcoming 50th anniversary will be on the beach in San Diego and then visiting old friends in Southern California.

Paul Tractenberg and coauthor, Ryan Coughlan, released a major report, under the auspices of the Center for Diversity and Equality in Education (CDEE), titled The New Promise of School Integration and the Old Problem of Extreme Segregation: An Action Plan for New Jersey to Address Both. Paul established CDEE as a home base for his ongoing research and advocacy after retirement and serves as its president. He has a contract with Teachers College Press of Columbia University for a book about the Morris school district, a longtime project of his, along with three young research collaborators. Morris is the only school district in New Jersey, and quite likely in the U.S., that resulted from an order of the state commissioner of education merging two adjacent school districts for racial balance purposes. The merger occurred in 1971, and the Morris district remains one of the state’s most diverse, stable, and successful school districts. Paul and his colleagues have been awarded a $50,000 Chancellor’s Seed Grant from Rutgers-Newark to support ongoing work in the integration of New Jersey’s public schools for the next academic year.

Ann and Bob Williams are active singers in the Highlands Chorale. Bob participates in the Uncalled Four barbershop quartet. They are active at Midcoast Senior College as faculty, students, and administrators. The liberal arts curriculum there is reminiscent of Wesleyan.

The North Cascades Highway was closed for the winter and then opened in early May. Several hiking friends and I traveled to Washington Pass (elevation 5,500 feet) on May 16 for our last snowshoe of the season with a stunning view of Liberty Bell Mountain on a gorgeous sunny day.

SAL RUSSO | salandjudy@hotmail.com
2700 Kentucky St., Bellingham, WA 98229

Class Notes | 1950s2018/12/05

CLASS OF 1959 | 2018 | ISSUE 2

Further doings of the Great Class of 1959:

Bert Edwards and Skip Silloway went on to Stanford Business School (’61) after Wesleyan and attended a mini-reunion in Boston. These are regular events held around the country involving around 24 couples and are great fun.

Marilyn and Ed Murphy spent six weeks this winter skiing in Winter Park, Colo. They have two boys, both living in Florida: one in Tampa, a Navy Seal attached to the Special Operations Command; and the other a blooming entrepreneur in Jacksonville starting a business importing tequila! Fuel for our Reunion?!

The spring lunch in Washington hosted by Ed at the Hamilton Restaurant included Messrs. Edwards, Chase, Errington, Leverich, Moody, and Ogren. “In spite of the uplifting conversation about developments at Wesleyan and our recent travels and activities, the unexpected no-show of Josiah S. Carberry, honorary member of ’59, professor of psychoceramics (the study of cracked pots) at Wesleyan and Brown, cast a bit of a pall on the afternoon.”

Paul Stevens and wife Dodo celebrated two 50th anniversaries last fall: Their marriage and 50 summers on Little Diamond Island in Maine. Paul is still working at SMRT Architects and Engineers (52 years), traveling last winter to Costa Rica, Italy, and Florida, and running competitively, though he says the competition is thinning out in the 80-plus group. No more marathons, however.

Bert Edwards needs no introduction, but we wanted to share a bit about his career, which is extraordinary! Bert became an accountant after Stanford and went to Washington to work for the government. He retired, with many awards, as the assistant secretary and CFO of the State Department. The Interior Department then called Bert out of retirement to help them settle a long-running suit for $175 billion brought by several Native American tribes, representing 300,000 people. The suit was settled eventually for $1.4 billion. Bert worked for two female cabinet secretaries, Madeline Albright and Gail Norton, one Republican and one Democrat. A man of great talent and flexibility!

Hugh Lifson still lives a block from the campus at Cornell College, where he is a professor emeritus. He works a couple of hours every day in acrylic and plastic wrap, his signature medium since the 1960s, except Sunday, reserved for the New York Times.

Phil Pessoni reports the wonderful news that his daughter, Clare Frey, gave birth in April to their fifth grandchild, Nicholas Peter, in Montgomery, Ala.

Steve Pyle has completed two oil paintings of holes at the Whispering Pines short course, the best in Texas by far. His message to Skip: “Come for a visit and we’ll tee it up for old times’ sake.”

Cyndy and John Spurdle hosted “A Salute to Sir Tom Stoppard” at the Roundabout Theatre in New York in early April. Tom was retiring as president of the famed London Library after 15 years of noble service. His play, Travesties, was opening in New York for a limited run.

Ellen and Herb Steiner are well, Herb hitting 81 in July. They are in close touch with the Martins and the Vander Veers and will be visiting the Martins at their farm in Connecticut to pick blueberries! Sounds perfect.

The Wesleyan lacrosse CLUB got its first coach in 1959, Nate Osur, football line and wrestling coach, and went 4-4 for the season. Fifty-nine years later at Gillette Stadium in Foxboro, Mass., the Wesleyan lacrosse TEAM took the Division III national title by defeating Salisbury of Maryland (read the article here). Heartiest congratulations to the team and coaches from some of the “founding fathers.” Lacrosse got started on campus four years earlier thanks to the efforts of George Davies ’57, Kent Davies ’57, and Dick Griscom ’57, among others. Long gone are the days of hijacking classmates as they came out of class to go play away games, whether they knew anything about lacrosse or not, and borrowing equipment, as we could, from the opposing teams.

Finally, three sad notes: Ernie Dunn passed away just weeks before his 81st birthday. Born in Harlem, Ga., he grew up in Erie, Pa. Doug Bennet, friend and former Wesleyan president passed away in June. Reminiscences from classmates can be found here. Walter McCann passed away last summer. Tom McHugh wrote: “I found a delightful and well-illustrated memorial to Walter at waltermccann.com.” Our deepest sympathy to his wife, Dr. Alba Ambert. Please contact us for her address if you’d like to send her a note.

Skip Silloway | ssillow@gmail.com; 801/532-4311

John Spurdle | jspurdle@aol.com; 212/644-4858

Class Notes | 1950s2018/12/05

CLASS OF 1958 | 2018 | ISSUE 2

The last hurrah has come and gone. For our 60th Reunion Wesleyan was very accommodating with golf carts to transport us old-timers around the campus and a designated area to park. Meals on Friday were cafeteria-style and satisfactory. Saturday lunch at Patricelli was superb and our gala Saturday evening was spectacular. Unfortunately, John Corkran’s wife, Toni, sustained a serious shoulder injury and she and John had to head to North Carolina so they missed our Saturday evening dinner. Sad because John had worked so hard to make our 60th a success. Priscilla and Bob Hayes were also absent due to confusion over their motel reservations. And we missed Mel Cote and Bob Schoetz.

Bill Herbst, professor of astronomy, was our featured speaker and his 30-minute presentation was relevant and interesting.

Dick Goldman received the Wesleyan University Service Award, richly deserved, presented by Bill Krenz.

On Saturday at 3 p.m., Dick Goldman and Dick Seabury led a one-hour discussion group where we discussed what we do in the way of community service. From my perspective, Brenda and Rick Pank were the clear leaders in this area.

Besides the attendees, I received a note from David Schalk (alive and well, nothing outstanding to report) and a lengthy e-mail from Ezra Amsterdam. He is working hard as ever, publishing papers and books and was listed among the top 27 cardiologists in the U.S. Bart Bolton, who did attend Saturday night, is excited by the marriage of his oldest granddaughter and the granting of an academic scholarship to another granddaughter. Neil Springborn says hi to all classmates. His health is good, but he was injured and damaged his hip socket. Six weeks in traction cured him, but he fears that a hip replacement is in his future. Funny note: He advises not to vacuum while wearing headphones. He wore headphones, did the whole house then realized the vacuum was not plugged in. Finally, Jack Wright reveals that his study of neurobiology is paying off. He believes that recent discoveries are evolutionary, challenging many theories in education, psychology, and sociology.

Bob Wuerthner apologizes for missing the 60th; too much on his plate. He and Joan are well, enjoying Kennebunk and their home, and they feel fortunate to be living close to their kids and seven grandchildren. Bob, despite a fused lower back and a new knee, plays doubles tennis three times a week, mostly against opponents 15 to 20 years younger. He and Joan did a wonderful Road Scholar trip to Cuba in March.

John Corkran reports that Toni is recovering from her injury well. Three weeks in a sling then physical therapy. John was published for the third time by the Black Mountain College (BMC) special edition of the Appalachian Journal. His article “Extra Innings” traces his lifelong relationship with BMC students and faculty whom he first met as an 11-year-old. His first article dealt with alumni programs for the support of education. His second was a humorous poem about the mysteries of recognizing gender today. John wants to express his gratitude to the donors who helped us reach and exceed our goals and to those who served on the Reunion committee.

Thanks to Theresa Kidd, our Wesleyan liaison. We were able to receive our latest yearbook, Class of 1958 60th Reunion. Send to the alumni office for a copy. At our gala Saturday evening the list of our deceased classmates was on the back of the program. We took about 15 minutes to eulogize some who were close to us.

Question, will we have a 65th Reunion?

Cliff Hordlow | Khordlow@gmail.com
Apt. 103, 4645 Winged Foot Court | Naples, FL 34112; 239/732-6821

Class Notes | 1950s2018/12/05

CLASS OF 1957 | 2018 | ISSUE 2

Gordy Wilmot and family are enjoying a summer cruise out of Boston to Bermuda. This is an event that the Wilmots have done previously, and it attracts almost the entire participation of the family, 19 in all. His eldest grandson married in May and all the Wilmot children (three) and grandchildren (nine) attended. Gordy hosted a bachelor party in his rec room, where the fare consisted of pizza and games included Dungeons and Dragons.

John Chaplick writes novels, the latest entitled Parchments of Fire. Deep sea divers discover a 2,000-year-old Roman shipwreck that harbors secrets proving potentially catastrophic to modern day Greece. This is the fourth of John’s published novels in the adventure genre. His fiction writing career began on the first day following his retirement, after finishing his morning cup of coffee, and he has not looked back. The novels are framed against the dark shadow of foreboding, but with a real event likely to occur in a contemporary setting. The books are available via Amazon or EngagingBooksBlog.com.

I’ve heard from Naren Bali in Buenos Aires, where, among other things, he reminds me that it is winter in Argentina. He has a consulting practice and says wife Margarita is busy with a variety of cultural pursuits including modern dance and video production. She completed a three-month program as an invited artist under a Mellon fellowship at the University of Washington in Seattle. Their children teach at the university level; daughter poly-sci at Michigan State and son math at the University of Buenos Aires.

Naren updates on a “periodic economic crisis” in Argentina with a resignation that this will ultimately pass. He cites a Spanish saying, “No hay mal que due cien anos” loosely translated as “there’s no harm that lasts a hundred years.” Somehow that sounds more resonant in the original language. He concludes his note this time with some nostalgic thoughts about our time at Wes, where the so-called Silent Generation benefited from government by a “reasonable Republican” and the Yankees won the World Series. (Naren, I second the motion, especially the baseball reference even though it wasn’t every year, just many of them.)

A note from Dick Cassie informs the class of the passing of Roger Nelson in April. Friend and roommate at Wes, Dick played basketball versus Roger in high school and when they found out they were both headed to Middletown, they decided to room together, along with Ted Kuhn. These two Jersey boys kept in touch all throughout the passing years—a lifetime of fun and laughter. Dick writes that Roger was always upbeat, true to his associations in business and personally. He adds that Roger was wont to say that Wesleyan gave him “a terrific education.”

Bill Shepard’s wife, Lois, is recovering from a knee replacement. He endorses Jim Brown’s comments (in my last column) on the values of regular swimming and the backstroke in particular. Bill writes for the periodical French Wine Explorers and will teach an American history course on World War I at nearby Chesapeake College.

Art Typermass | joanarth64@gmail.com
144 East Ave., #302B, Norwalk, CT 06851 | 203/504-8942

Class Notes | 1950s2018/12/05

CLASS OF 1956 | 2018 | ISSUE 2

Jay Kaplan’s new book, Secrets and Suspense (International Law Stories), has been published by Academica Press. You can read about Jay and the book on Amazon’s website. I’ve had the privilege of reading a sample chapter, which was fascinating.

Bill Bixby writes: “In May I was inducted into the Wes Baseball Wall of Fame with other new members from 1963, 1977, 1988, 1991, and 2003.

“Unfortunately, none of my family could attend, but some friends did. The alumni baseball game was mostly fun but looked a lot more like batting practice.

“I lost my wife, Fran, who passed away in September. But my family is very busy, and all are doing well. My son, Mark, and his wife, Jen, went to Germany to visit their son, Evan, a senior at Hobart William Smith, studying there. His older brother Tucker graduated last year from Trinity College and is in the U.S. Marine reserves. My middle grandson, Reed, graduated last year from Union College and works at an insurance company in Charleston, S.C. My granddaughter, Kira, a junior, is doing well in high school.

“I’m on a waiting list to move into Applewood, an assisted independent living facility only 10 minutes from my home in Amherst as well as from my son’s home.”

From Dave Thompson: “I’m writing from our winter roost in Vero Beach, Fla., but going north soon to Weston, Conn., and our house of 45 years. Two of our three children live in Connecticut and their young-adult kids still call it home. We have one daughter and a granddaughter in California. Joyce and I will celebrate our 60th anniversary with a family bash in Montana. My only serious complaint is that days are getting briefer—they go by too quickly. This sounds like a ’56er contented with life; a fair interpretation! Looking forward to our next Reunion.”

John Foster greets spring: “Renewal, yet the old body resists. We are blessed by having both our boys—one a WesTech grad—with grandkids here with us in Marblehead. Several of the latter are in college, though—Vassar and Brown—and two are youngsters. Thus—bypassing the med issues—life is good.”

Jim Wagner adds: “During the March 2 nor’easter, a tree fell on our house. Fortunately, insurance will pay all but the $500 deductible, and we were able to live in the house while awaiting repairs. It was a crazy late winter and spring: two 80-plus degree days in February, March colder than February, and four nor’easters. For the winter as a whole, we seemed to be in a donut hole as far as snow was concerned. Even my brother-in-law in Charleston, S.C., had more snow than I did in northern Virginia, and good old Connecticut, where I grew up, got clobbered at least once.

“In April Betty and I had a great time attending her 50th class reunion at James Madison University here in Virginia. We talked with JMU’s president, and I shared with him that my liberal arts education at Wesleyan was valuable to me as a science major. He was familiar with Wesleyan’s high reputation and said that JMU had a similar requirement for students majoring in the sciences—that they take at least a minimum number of liberal arts type classes for a well-rounded education.

“In June we plan to return to Harrisonburg for a week-long classical music festival featuring the music of Bach. It is sponsored by the music department of another school located there, Eastern Mennonite University. Hope y’all have a great summer!”

[In case you’ve forgotten, we were all required to take at least two courses in each of three disciplines: humanities, social science, and hard science—and to swim four lengths of the pool!]

Finally, “Sheila and Bob Runyon are suitably installed in their new apartment above the pond. We have downsized (kinda). Sheila more than Bob (a borderline hoarder). Selling the old homestead (36 years) was a necessity, but still a traumatic transition in memory. We have some great neighbors who have organized a Friday evening floor party: 5 p.m. wine, hors d’oeuvres, and conversation in a public space. An offshoot for guys is a Wednesday evening junket to The Casual Pint, a new craft beer franchise a few blocks away. Last week’s nature drama was the birth of five Canada geese underneath the first-floor balcony of a near neighbor. These new animal friends provide Bob with a treasured connection with the natural landscape. My daughter-in-law completes her first college year at the University of Nebraska Omaha in May, and my grandson will be off to Northwest Missouri State University for his freshman year in the fall. This struggling writer was immensely impressed with George’s superb memoir, Shards, which was independently published.” Thanks, Bob.

George Chien | gchien@optonline.net

Class Notes | 1950s2018/12/05

CLASS OF 1955 | 2018 | ISSUE 2

Sincere thanks to Stuart Rapp for his loving tribute and words upon notification of the passing of Jim Wright earlier this year. Although the full text is too lengthy to be included in class notes, highlights were sent specifically intended for inclusion. “Our generation was called ‘the Silent Generation,’ but I believe our history will one day be heard, albeit in a different voice from some before, and no doubt some after. Our story was not heroic as some are, but in terms of our individual lives, I believe all of us who have occupied this niche in time will one day be seen as deserving as the others, with the same memorable qualities of which King Harry spoke so long ago (begging our collective pardon for his timebound assumption of male supremacy)—

“This story shall a good man teach his son,

And Crispin Crispian shall ne’er go by

From this day to the ending of the world,

But we in it shall be remembered!”

A notice of Jim’s passing is included in the obituary section of the magazine and a full obituary is available online.

Ric Fisher is doing “fine” and living in Sweden. He is now the proud owner of a pacemaker as the result of a Type A aortic dissection late last year. Understandably, he lauds the Swedish health care system and praises his wife Ula “who has been not only loving, but also indispensable” during his recuperation. While no longer playing tennis seven hours a week, nor biking anymore either, he still finds time to vigorously walk his dog! Ric, one of my cycling buddies (an 80-year-old youngster) has been riding with a pacemaker for a number of years and says the Swedes are second to none in the field of pacemakers. Wish you the very best.

Laughed while I read the update sent by Jim Shepard and let me quote his May 15 submission in its entirety: “Friday morning I must leave by 5:30 a.m. to get to Silverado for the annual renal transplant meeting. Lectures don’t start until 1 p.m.; but I want to get there by 8 a.m. That is when I am scheduled to play the South golf course. At Wesleyan I realized the most important premedical school course was intramural golf.” Glad you haven’t lost your sense of humor, big guy!

Marianne and I have survived an unusually wet several months and, thankfully, we didn’t have to contend with flooding as did many in this part of “paradise.” We, for the most part, are still relatively in good health and able to enjoy the daily routine. I agreed to serve on the board of directors of our community, filling a vacancy until the end of the year. I do have the option of not standing for reelection if for any reason I feel it necessary. One provision I insisted upon was there would be no way my service would interfere with my four-day-a-week cycling schedule! Still at it in spite of the frequent rainouts these past several months. I’m only approximately 400 miles behind my annual target. As of today (June 5) I have logged a hair under 1,700 miles. While not as fast as I used to be, I can still hold my own with the youngsters (those under 80) in our group!

As always, my best wishes for health and happiness for you and your loved ones.

DONALD J. BRAVERMAN | ybikedon@bellsouth.net
14790 Bonaire Blvd., Apt. 102., Delray Beach, FL 33446