Class Notes | 1950s

Remember when Bob Runyon challenged us to examine our bucket lists—our goals for the time left to us? Recently I was compelled to revisit mine. I’ve never once had an urge to ski Mount Everest, but I have set foot on all seven continents. I accept that I’ll never sing a performance of Bach’s Mass in B-Minor, but derive some consolation from having 26 recordings to choose from, should I want to listen to it. I’ll have no regrets if I never see a World Series game or a Super Bowl in person, but I hoped to see Wesleyan win one more Little Three football championship before I depart this mortal coil.

And I did! Ann and I drove up to Middletown last November 2 to watch our Cardinals edge Williams’s Ephs to take the crown after 42 years of frustration. It was nerve-wracking to be sure, but how sweet it was! I wore my newly acquired Wesleyan sweatshirt for a week straight! Of course, Trinity put an end to that, but it was great while it lasted. Hip, hip, hooray!

We planned to sit with my roommate, Tom Reed ’57, but we never connected. Tom, bring your cell phone next time! I did see old friend Hal Buckingham ’52, Bill Gordon ’55, and our own Al Haas there. Al, I must say, looks great. He is still active as president of Educational Futures, Inc., assisting students from around the world who wish to study in North America. Al and Loni enjoy their role as grandparents for six boys and one girl who live in the Boston area.

The game prompted happy exchanges with Jim Gramentine and Ed Palmer. Enthused Jim: “This is just plain fun. Wish I had been there with you!” Ed, who is professor emeritus of mathematics at Michigan State and battles some serious health issues, added: “It’s so nice to hear that our guys are handling the aging process with courage. My own medical team has their hands full, especially my massage therapists, Ingrid and Dagmar.”

Dick Bauer writes: “News here pretty steady state. Health holding up; Ginny and wider family doing well. Play piano and sing regularly, finding more and more corners in the American Songbook for exploration. Also, still derive considerable satisfaction from leading monthly discussion groups here at our retirement community in Hingham, Mass. Over 80 are active; three separate sessions; lots of good, often humorous exchange. Hope our classmates are thriving.”

Random thoughts from Barry Passett: “I recently connected with a ‘kid’ from elementary school. He remembers Marv Pisetsky, one of our class’s best. Scott Aiken ’57 died. Not our class, but a diligent Argus writer/editor, so well-known to many. Two students took it upon themselves to create an event commemorating the anniversary of Ed Beckham’s death. Not our class, but important. They planned the event, overcame the usual bureaucratic obstacles, and raised the money. Over 200 people attended. (I was stuck in D.C.) Students rock!”

I promised more from Tom Connell, and here are some excerpts: “I have traveled a lot, something I continue to do. In 2012, I helped the Audubon Society lay out a trail for the sensory deprived and wrote a script explaining what was at each of the marked stops along the all-person trail. That script was professionally recorded and is available in MP3 and downloads for people who want to use it.

“My other major activity is research and trading stock, which keeps me active now that I am retired from the practice of law. I run my own portfolios and have enjoyed enough success at it that I am not tempted to turn management over to any other entity. I interested my son-in-law. We often debate just how much is predictable and recurring so you can learn from the past, and how much is based on current news happenings and political ‘moves’ (which are hard to predict). My background in law and politics leads to one method, his in science leads to another. It’s a good way to spend time.

“My son has his doctorate from MIT in artificial intelligence and is employed at the Watson Lab of IBM. He has a number of patents and several books in print (check under Jonathan Hudson Connell). By agreement with IBM he has his own, separate, small business, which designs and sells to colleges and schools kits that make artificial intelligence robots. He also teaches at Vassar. His wife has her doctorate in chemistry and is employed by, and part owner of, a technical instrument firm. My granddaughter is a sophomore at Vassar and my grandson entered college last fall. My daughter did her MBA work at UMass where she met her husband, my trading partner, who has his doctorate in polymer chemistry and is employed by Kimberly-Clarke evaluating potential acquisitions. Their older daughter, 13, has apraxia and is severely handicapped. The younger, 7, now in first grade, is a live wire and very creative.”

One final note: I’d like to express my thanks to Dick Bauer, Bob Calvin, and Pete Deacon for their kind words in response to my piece in Issue 1 2013 of this journal. Go, Wes!

GEORGE CHIEN and BOB RUNYON
gchien@optonline.net; 201/261-0997
rrunyon@unomaha.edu ; 402/393-3320

rrunyon@unomaha.edu ; 402/393-3320

That old familiar phrase of “there’s good news and there’s bad news” applies to this rendition of Class Notes. First, the “Good News” is that there has been no notification of the passing of a classmate and the sadness that it entails. For this, we are all grateful. Now, for the “Bad News”: I think this may be the first time in my 50-plus years as your Class Secretary that nary a word has been received from members of the Crucial Class for inclusion in this edition of our alumni magazine. I know that I’ve raised the question concerning relevance of Class Notes previously what with the world of electronic communication seemingly taking over what we thought was the norm. I have read a line or two from Gail Clarke, George Edwards, and Brad Miter on my Facebook page but other than that, I do admit to being frustrated with the lack of e-mails or notes from you. I’ve wondered if stepping down as Class Secretary and letting someone new assume the role would inspire more communication that can be shared with all. What I’d appreciate most are your thoughts and comments. Hopefully, you’ll respond.

Now, on a more positive theme, I can report that Marianne and I continue to enjoy our lives here in Florida. We’re both in good health and have our fingers crossed that we will not witness a hurricane this season. The last time we huddled together in the recommended “safe area” was in 2005. There’s still a month to go before the Hurricane Season officially ends (end of November) and the outlook is good. As for taking advantage of the lack of real storms, I’ve racked up just under 4,800 miles on my bike (as of 10/22) and feel confident of reaching several more miles than the annual 5,000 mile target. I will admit as I begin to age I do take a nap after some rides and my knees sometimes call out in protest when we kick up the speed. Most of all, I feel blessed that I am able to continue this enjoyable activity and the social aspects that cycling with our local bike club affords.

Once again, let me wish you and your loved ones health and happiness in the days ahead.

DONALD J. BRAVERMAN
27A Stratford Ln. W., Boynton Beach, FL 33436; ybikedon@bellsouth.net; 561/654-3711

Gentlemen of 1954: Many thanks for your response to my e-mail. Seventeen of you came through! We’re looking for a big turnout at our 60th in May. Your Reunion Committee is in dialogue with Wes… meanwhile, here’s the latest:

John Binswanger still involved in the family’s industrial real estate business, one with worldwide exposure. Fourth generation now active. John and new bride recently returned from a MedCruise: Spain to Turkey. Next stop: Australia. Before the Mediterranean: Far East. John will be at the 60th.

Bill Christopher has seen Terry Hatter a few times over the past year. Recently, Bill and Barbara went to China (Beijing, Xian, and a cruise down the Yangtze from Chungqing to Shanghai.) Bill’s recap: “The trip was fascinating, but you don’t want to live there.” Bill and Barb will be at the 60th.

Last fall, Eric Cone and Hal White did a color tour of Vermont, plus a swing through the Wesleyan campus. Both agreed to attend our 60th next May. It will be Eric’s first Reunion. Meanwhile, he’s wrapping up affairs at the Oakland nonprofit that he helped found more than 30 years ago.

Ed Dewey and wife Joyce continue to live in the mountains of North Carolina at Big Canoe Resort. Recent travel has been limited to California, where their son, his wife, and 2-year-old grandson live. However, Ed and Joyce hope to return to Europe next year, especially England, Austria, and Germany.

Al Flynn and Emi have moved South to “a magnificent continuing care retirement community” in Asheville, N.C., following Al’s being diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease. A son lives nearby in Charlotte, with wife Jill, and three children. Son works for Wells Fargo, and Jill is on faculty of Charlotte Latin School. Al and Emi’s daughter, Sarah ’90, lives in San Jose with husband and two children. Al and Emi plan to celebrate their 50th anniversary with a tour of U.S. National Parks.

Shep Johnson and Nancy are doing well in a Florida retirement center. They get North each fall for six to eight weeks, and for upcoming graduations from St. Lawrence, Middlebury, B.U., and Franklin and Marshall. The Johnsons plan on being at our 60th.

Bud Johnson will be coming to Reunion off an Oceana ship, after attending grandson’s high school graduation in Charlotte on May 20th.

Karl Heiser ’55 read of Ed Keyes’ passing and sent this note (excerpts): “Got to know him better at MCAS-Kaneohe in 1961–63. He was an MAG-13 and I was a ground officer in the 4th Marines…Ed was a good Marine and a good guy…”

Curt McLaughlin and Barbara have moved to a continuing care retirement community near their former home in Chapel Hill. Both are in good health. “Many old and new friends. Many concerns relieved.”

Bob Muir is looking forward to our 60th Reunion in May.

Rod O’Connor visited Wesleyan for his first time since our 50th in 2004. Granddaughter Cameron Arkin ’17 is first-year student. It was Parents and Homecoming Weekend and the Wes football team won the Little Three Championship by beating Williams for the first time since 1970. Team had 7-0 record. Rod was very impressed with Wesleyan’s president, and he expects to be at our 60th next May.

George Ray says he’s looking forward to working with his fellow ’54ers on the Reunion.

Jules Schwaber retired from medical practice in 2012, just prior to reaching his 80th birthday—but he still has a foot in the door teaching first-year Harvard Med students weekly. Jules is enjoying leisure and less pressured days. Jule’s wife, Evelyne, is still working! They have far-flung family, with sons in L.A., Maryland, and Israel. Jules is “looking forward to seeing all of you at our 60th.”

Big news from Art Spada: “Aspiring to a successful 60th Reunion, I am going to donate the sum of $10,000 to the Wesleyan University Spada Scholarship Fund.” Art is hopeful that we may be able to raise $250,000 as we celebrate what may be our final (?) class Reunion. Art adds: “We may not be much in numbers, but we are surely strong in fidelity.”

Dave Walden is coming from Canada for our 60th Reunion. From Wesleyan in ’54, Dave entered Cornell, earning a MSc and PhD (1959). Dave and Carol married in ’56. Son is John ’82; daughter, Karen, is U. of Guelph ’85. Both kids live in Canada. Dave joined the faculty at U. of Western Ontario in 1961 and retired from there in 1997. His specialty was and is genetics, and Dave has received many honors and prestigious appointments over the years.

Harold White in Washington, D.C., is still at Georgetown U., lecturing in theology and serving as senior advisor to a program he created on Jewish Civilization. Hal is also working for the College President’s Office on a new initiative for Jewish-Catholic Dialogue.

We were saddened to learn of the death of Bill Claybaugh on Nov. 24, 2013. Our deepest condolences to Jane and their family.

Best to all, and see you in May!

BOB CAREY

618 W. Lyon Farm Dr., Greenwich, CT 06831
203/532-1745; bobcarey@optonline.net

College day friendships were renewed during our 60th Reunion last May. Three couples made plans for dinner together on Cape Cod during the summer. A few days into the fall, Joan and Bob Lavin, Sandy and Bill Underhill, and Sandy and Jerry Zackin were together in Sandwich, Mass. Jerry and Sandy will be in Sarasota, Fla., until May “except for a Dubai-Singapore cruise in December and a land trip to Croatia and Slovenia in March.”

The day before I departed Oklahoma to fly east for the Reunion, Joe Buchman shared memories and current activities with me during lunch in Tulsa, where he and his wife, Barbara, were visiting her daughter and grandchildren. In their Seattle domicile Joe continues consulting with medical professionals to provide efficient prevention and care to those in need and Barbara is involved in a number of community-wide activities.

As reported in the last Wesleyan, John W. Gould, a history major and member of Alpha Delta Phi, passed away unexpectedly on March 10, 2013, in Essex, Conn. Following military service, John began a career in real estate banking and insurance in the Philadelphia area. A long time resident of Wayne, Pa., he retired from the Lawyer’s Title Insurance Corporation, where he was a manager. In 2000, he and his wife, Nancy, moved to Essex, where John enjoyed traveling, bike riding, reading, gardening, going to the Essex Corinthian Yacht Club, and Monday night at the Griswold Inn. Condolences of the class are extended to his wife, Nancy, his three children, a granddaughter, brother-in-law George A. Lewis (also an Alpha Delt), and nephew Peter W. Lewis ’78.

The death of Stuart Goldsmith on July 23, 2013, at his home in Bellport, N.Y., was reported by Dixie Sanger ’52, who wrote the following tribute:

I have the sad duty of reporting the death of Brother Stuart Goldsmith on July 23, 2013, at his home in Bellport, NY. Chip had been in declining health for years, but as recently as last March, when Maggie and I visited him at his winter home in Florida, had seemed to have staged another of his remarkable recoveries. We had a lovely time dining with him and, of course wining with him (although you will be glad to know I abstained) and enjoyed the company of a couple of his lady friends, being careful never to acknowledge the existence of the one in the presence of the other.

Chip was in good spirits, moving around without too much discomfort, and still driving, although not well. (Nothing new in that; he was always a better guide than driver.) Shortly after returning to Long Island for the summer, however, he fell ill again. From a distance, our best diagnosis is that his much-repaired heart finally gave out; this time there were no more medical miracles to performed. Chip had enjoyed nearly 25 years of borrowed time; his first heart attack, which hit as he was hustling to board a plane at what was then Washington National Airport, would have killed him had it not taken place with skilled help (and a defibrillator) right at hand.

Last Friday he was taken off all life-support devices save an oxygen inhalator, and sent home from Stony Brook Medical Center.The doctors told him he might live two more hours, or two more weeks. He called a few friends, including Maggie and me, to say goodbye. I was able to tell him I loved him and that I would pray for him, whether he liked it or not.

As you may know, Chip had little use for organized religion; he acknowledged that there might be some cosmic Power beyond his understanding, but would never accept the idea of what he called “an interventionist God.” Ironically, he was the kid with the religious upbringing; I came from an essentially pagan home. In his teens he was an acolyte at Wilmington’s Trinity Church, where in 1953 he would be invited to be best man at my marriage to Margaret Marvel. (Delayed by problems on the Pennsylvania Railroad’s main line north of Wilmington, he arrived in his officers’ training sailor suit just in time to see Maggie and me emerge from the church.)

Chip was my oldest friend. We met when he was eight and I had just turned nine. Our fathers both mechanical engineers worked together building paper-making machines at the Pusey & Jones Corp. on Wilmington’s riverfront. My brother Frank, 13 years older than I, was at the Naval Academy at the time and had gotten tickets to the Army-Navy game in Philadelphia. The Frank Sangers and the Phil Goldsmiths were going up from Wilmington together. The families assembled at the Goldsmiths’ home in Wawaset, where I first met their son (an only child), Chip. Oddly, the first home Maggie and I owned a couple of decades later was the other half of this semi-detached house on Macdonough Road.

Many will remember Stuart as a serious student who graduated with high distinction from Wesleyan. What many of you may not realize, however, is that in an earlier incarnation he was an equally serious jock who showed little promise as a scholar. At Wilmington Friends School, he was the shortstop who backed me up and first gave me the nickname “Dixie” when I was on the mound pitching. Sent off to McDonogh, a military school in Baltimore, for an infraction that was never fully disclosed, he went on to play quarterback in a league where Friends School’s Quakers could never have held their own.

I might never have been a Wesleyan Alpha Delt but for Chip, and Chip might never have been one but for me. Chip’s cousin, Ann Hamm, was dating Brother Bob Ludlum in 1948, when I was recruited to go to Wesleyan. Through Chip and his family, I met Bob and actually got to know him and some of the other brothers Carl Wright, Jack Easton, Gigs Gamon when I visited them with my friend Mark Attix at a lakeside resort where they were working. Ludlum saw to it that I pledged Alpha Delt, and a year later I did the same for Chip when he followed along to Wesleyan.

After that, it was OCS and a lengthy, if mysterious, career as a Cold Warrior, first in Naval Intelligence and, after Harvard Business School, in what he said was simply international business. Whatever it was, he and Ann traveled the world, in and out of London and Tokyo like commuters and coming to roost in hot spots like Nairobi and Cairo. Along the way, he earned the respect of many for his business acumen and the admiration of others for his cosmopolitan lifestyle. He loved the theater and the opera. He collected fine art as he journeyed around the world. He followed current events with considerable passion, and gave generously in support of his principles. He even ran for the local school board, won, and served until the “teachers’ union,” one of the objects of his sometimes vitriolic scorn, rose up and unseated him. Stuart leaves no immediate survivors. His beloved Ann died three years ago; his own death occurred on what would have been their 53rd wedding anniversary. As he wished, there will be no funeral. His remains will go where he wanted with Ann’s, on the waters of the Great South Bay.

A history-English major, Olla Podrida editor-in-chief, and member of Alpha Delta Phi, Stuart served four years in naval intelligence and received a Harvard MBA in 1960. His international business activities for a number of companies took his wife, Ann, and him around the world, “in and out of London and Tokyo like commuters and coming to roost in hot spots like Nairobi and Cairo.” Stuart leaves no immediate survivors, Ann having died three years previous.

A bit of college trivia: Being the fifth of six immediate family members (my uncle, my father and three cousins) to attend Wesleyan, I had identified two distant Miller cousins, class of 1909 and 1929, as additional graduates through my continuing genealogy research. A seventh graduate, class of 1885, was a non-Miller, distant female cousin whose pioneering medical practice was cut short by her death at age 41. Now, unexpectedly, I find that my daughter-in-law’s third great-grandfather’s second marriage to a Middletown widow was performed by our President Stephen Olin in 1850 and that the widow’s father, William James Trench, was one of the founders of the university and a trustee 1835–1867. Her first husband was a Wesman (1844) as was the husband (1875) of her daughter. Her two spouses and the son-in-law were Methodist Episcopal ministers.

JOHN W. MILLER
306 Autumn Court, Bartlesville, OK 74006
(918)335-0081; Jwalmiller@aol.com

Walter Pories, M.D., was recently honored by the Harris County (Texas) Medical Society and Houston Academy of Medicine as a “renowned surgeon, educator, and international leader in research” with the prestigious John P. McGovern Compleat Physician Award. This award recognizes “a multi-accomplished physician who exemplifies the Oslerian ideals of medical excellence, humane and ethical care, commitment to medical humanities and writing, research, and harmony between the academician and medical practitioner.” Congratulations, Walter!

Once again, we report with sadness the death of another of our classmates, Joe McCabe, on Aug. 8, 2013. You can find an obituary online at hartfordcourant.com, as well a notice in the magazine, with an obituary in the online magazine (Go to wesleyan.edu and follow the links to the magazine). We extend our very sincere sympathy to Joe’s family

Hal Buckingham reports that he had lunch in Worcester, Mass., with Don Kipp ’52 and ’56 whom he hadn’t seen since 1950 when he left Wesleyan for the service. “We picked right up where we left off 65 years ago!” Hal says, and adds, “Don told me a very interesting story that is well worth passing along: One of his roommates and fellow Psi U brothers sophomore year was the late Paul Kerr. Paul had a brand new blue Pontiac convertible. That in itself was unbelievable for a Wesleyan student in those days! But Paul was unbelievable, too!

“It seems that Paul spotted the photographic portrait of a Joan Appleton on the Dec. 12, 1949, cover of Life Magazine. Paul was smitten. He learned that this young woman was a student at Wellesley, so he gassed up his Pontiac and took off for Wellesley determined to meet her.

“Arriving at Wellesley, he sweet-talked himself past the housemother of Joan’s dorm and soon down the stairs came ‘the’ Joan Appleton. The only thing known to have transpired during that encounter was Paul’s invitation to Joan be his date at the next House Party Weekend at Wesleyan. And Joan accepted, as fate would have it!

“The term ‘bird dogging’ was prevalent back then. It was used to describe the actions of a fellow student/fraternity brother without a date who would ‘take over’ someone else’s date.

“Whether Chip Stone ’49 was guilty of bird dogging or not, and he claims no memory of even having been at that House Party, he met Joan for the first time on that occasion when she was Paul’s date. The rest is history, as the saying goes. Miss Appleton soon became Mrs. Charles B. Stone, Jr. and has remained that to this day, all thanks to a Life Magazine cover photo, a blue Pontiac convertible, and an assertive Paul Kerr.”

Hal adds: “Interestingly, his street number is 52 as shown in the photo. (He started with us, but is listed with his graduating class of ’56, I think.)”

DONALD T. SANDERS
33 Sunny Hill Drive, Madison, CT 06443
dtsanders1@sbcglobal.net

When Ken Barratt wrote in late summer, he and his wife had recently returned from a trip to Alaska and the Yukon Territory in northwestern Canada. They visited Dawson City and learned what life was like there in the gold rush days. They visited the kennels of Jeff King, who had won the Iditarod race from Anchorage to Nome for four straight years, and toured the tundra for a view of the mountains surrounding Mount McKinley, then headed back home to Green Valley, Ariz., in time to experience Arizona’s monsoon season. Ken said they were glad to have escaped at least some of the early summer heat wave, which sent the temperature soaring above 100 for 39 days in a row at their locale.

King Berlew wrote from Topsham, Maine, where he and his wife Jeanne spend seven months of the year. The Highlands Retirement Center, where he wrote from, is just across the Androscoggin River from Brunswick and Bowdoin College. For a small annual fee, they became friends of Bowdoin and have enjoyed taking advantage of numerous events at the college. They saw Bowdoin beat Wesleyan in football two years ago and hoped to see that result reversed this year. By the time this sees print, the Berlews will be back in Florida, where they spend the winter-spring months at their condo in Sea Oaks, which stretches between the Atlantic Beach and the intercoastal waterway.

Les Aroh wrote from Louisville that he was still active in leasing and managing the office warehouses he has had an interest in. He and his wife, Janet, had cut back on travel, but instead have enjoyed interacting with their two sons’ families, which, Les said, for the most part lived only minutes away from them. One granddaughter lives in Yuma, Ariz. At the time Les wrote, he and Janet were getting ready and had just learned that their oldest granddaughter would make them great-grandparents in March.

Walter Cook wrote in late August from Connecticut, where he and his wife, Marie, spend their summer months before moving to Florida for the winter. “We have families in both states, which makes it nice,” he wrote. Walter was a World War II veteran who was stationed for two years in France. As part of his voluminous summer reading he has recently read a lot about the war. But the best story was written by a member of his own family. Walter’s nephew convinced his father, Walter’s brother, to tell his story of a mission his brother had not told anybody for 69 years, the story of a bombing mission his crew carried out on Nov. 4, 1944. Their B-24 was shot down over Vienna and the crew had to bail out. Walter’s brother landed on a farm, where he was sheltered by a 20-year-old American exchange student named Vicki, who was hiding with her brother from the Nazis. She sheltered Walter’s brother until he could assemble his crew and they then made a 30-day trek across country, helped by the Underground, finally making it back to their base in Italy, from which they flew 43 more missions. After the war, Walter spent 41 years with the UniRoyal Chemical Corp. “So far, Marie and I are doing okay,” Walter wrote.

DAVID M. PHILIPS
100 Elena St., Apt. 618, Cranston, RI 02920-7620 davephilips69@hotmail.com

The editors thank Bob Birney for his fine service as Secretary for the Class of 1950.
If you would like to “pick up his pen,” please send a message to Associate Editor Cynthia Rockwell at crockwell@wesleyan.edu.