Class Notes | 1970s

Jono Cobb shared that “Like many of our classmates fortunate enough to have that option, my wife Suzzanne and I have been riding out the pandemic in the country which in our case is Martha’s Vineyard. We are also fortunate to have been able, since last March, to switch our teaching jobs to remote versions. I was already using Powerpoint slides as the basis for riffing about anatomy and physiology with my undergrad students. Suzzanne’s voice and music history curriculum was a tougher conversion. By summer our daughter, Jordan, will be living in Harlem near Rachel Christmas Derrick, with whom I’m in frequent Facebook contact.”

     Speaking of Rachel Christmas Derrick, she is “Still pinching myself that I’m actually making a decent living as a writer and editor. Writing is the only thing I ever dreamed of doing for a living. Despite the pandemic, 2020 was relatively kind to my family: I was promoted to assistant vice president and managing editor of the financial services nonprofit where I’ve worked for three years. My husband and I celebrated our 25th anniversary. Our daughter graduated magna cum laude from Yale, made Phi Beta Kappa, and went to Oxford, where she’s getting her international relations master’s in refugee and forced migration studies. Our son, now a junior at Wesleyan studying history and chemistry, was accepted into Columbia University’s three-summer pre-med program. Neysa Dillon Brown, Adrienne Kelly Lumpkin, Vicki Wilson, Michelle Morancie, Wanda Wardlaw Matthews, Jeanette Talavera, Becky Vazquez, Jay Hoggard, Allison Brown, Mora McLean, and quite a few other Wesleyanites remain in my life 46 years on.”

     “I (Denise Giacomozzi) am a volunteer with the COVID Grief Network, a volunteer-run mutual aid network that offers free 1:1 and group grief support to young adults in their 20s and 30s who are grieving the serious illness or loss of someone to COVID-19. We continue to see an increase in the number of young adults who are requesting our support, and we are in need of more volunteers to offer care.” Please visit the Wes notes online for a full description and websites.

     In her first ever alumni note, Jane McCoy Dausner reports, “40 years ago, I graduated from Columbia University with my master’s and have been working in hospice and palliative medicine ever since. I married my high school sweetheart the same year, and we have three daughters, three sons-in-law and four grands. I continued with athletics, playing and coaching tennis, basketball and softball; my girls are now coaching their kids. I got nationally ranked in singles 10 years ago. I urge all alums to consider putting “donor” on your driver’s license; this is very close to my heart, having donated a kidney to my sister 20 years ago. What an experience! I wish you all health, safety and peace through these challenging times; times that always provide opportunities for learning and improvement. Would love to hear from Jane Alexander Gutcher and Beverly Hinton!”

     Matt Okun and his wife Annie are headed back to Matt’s old stomping grounds in DC. They are looking forward to spending time with Casey Dinges and his family, high school buddies, Annie’s two grandkids in Alexandria and Matt’s daughters and granddaughters in Philly and Brooklyn. “What a long, strange trip it’s been! Planning to be teaching this fall, not even contemplating retirement.”

     Peter Campbell writes “While we don’t see each other in person because of COVID, Zoom, texts, emails and even Facebook keep a bunch of us ’79ers together including George Dupaul, Tim Fitz, Gary Breitbord, Mike Scacca, and Frank Hauser. All of us were roommates at some point. There is always some very intelligent thread on family, sports, politics or the weather. Everyone’s memory is still good as no one has forgotten anything embarrassing anyone else has ever done. A larger group of late ’70s DKEs has a twice monthly happy hour call which re-creates the old DKE Friday afternoon bar experience from our era.”

     Architect Willie Lee Jones shared an article about him and his path to becoming director of parks and recreation of Mecklenburg County, North Carolina. “We’re an expansive park and recreation department with over 230 facilities. We are an NRPA CAPRA accredited department, have the Carolina Star Award from the North Carolina Department of Labor, and we’re the only park and recreation department in the state that does.” To read the full article: http://blog.mecknc.gov/park-director/

     Stephen Lewin-Berlin finally retired last year from a career of starting software companies. “I was on the founding team for half a dozen or so, and several were quite successful. Unfortunately, our plans to travel extensively in retirement were curtailed by the pandemic. Our home life, here in a cohousing community in Acton, Massachusetts, is filled with dancing and drumming, reading and video binges, and social and political activism with a focus on anti-racist work, voting rights and environmental action. With three kids scattered across the world (Australia, California and Massachusetts) our family visits have become virtual online experiences, but with vaccines coming fast, we hope to travel again.”

     Alan Scott advised me that Mark Miller tracked Alan down recently and told him that their mutual friend, Bruce Hardesty, died in 2017. Bruce and Alan had been out of touch for many years. They lived in the same dorm or apartment for four years at Wesleyan; Bruce was a good friend.

Greetings Classmates. It’s early March as I compile our class notes and realize it was exactly one year ago that we, and the whole world, were just beginning to experience a dramatic change in our daily lives the likes of which we had never experienced. Thankfully, it appears there’s a light at the end of the pandemic tunnel. No doubt each of you has your own “COVID Story” to tell and hopefully it contains some silver linings as we’ll see with the following classmates’ shared updates:

     John Rose resides in Connecticut and New York City with two children and three pups. He continues his work as a consultant and has been spending the last year helping New York State on COVID-
related issues: “modeling economic harm; helping to draft approach and industry guidelines for reopening the economy; and standing up vaccine program.” His son is a freshman at Wesleyan and his daughter is a second-year student at William & Mary. His wife, Elizabeth, left her job as deputy chancellor for operations at New York City Department of Education and is now CFO of Publicolor, an education nonprofit, and is volunteering at Foodbank in Connecticut.

      Jodi Wilinsky Hill wrote from Maui: “Life is mostly good. All things considered. I am blessed with fabulous work contracts­—all that have me working on behalf of equity and access, changing the experience for those who have lived in chronic poverty and many who have been subjected to systemic racism. My Wednesday Zooms with Wes friends have been a lifeline. And my first grandbaby, born in December, brings me tremendous joy and hope. My partner’s family hails from Maui and since he “had to” come to Maui, I tagged along. I am working from a lanai overlooking a few smaller islands, and when I have the time to look up I often catch a glimpse of a humpback whale. They never fail to thrill!”

     Nancy McCabe, classmate and wife of Pat McCabe, checked in from Santa Monica, California. She commented, “One personal upside to the pandemic has been transcontinental Zoom cocktails with a ’78 sextet including Susie Bates, Jodi Hill, Suki Hoagland, Moira James, Pat McCabe and a semi-alum, Nancy McCabe. We’re a busy crew! There are engagements, weddings, grandchildren and thriving careers keeping us all happy, busy and covid-free!”

     David Weild is living in New York and “commuting from bedroom to living room (like most of the rest of the world) with stops at the gym.” His company, Weild & Co, “a decentralized investment bank” has a presence in 17 states and is growing. According to David, “they are bringing ‘Wall Street to Main Street.’” He’s also been involved in several Acts that have been passed into law, all “basic economic activism trying to bring back upward mobility, especially to poor communities and to advance US competitiveness.” His kids are in or about to head off to college with two of the three at Tulane. David writes that he is still friends/connected with Kaylie Jones, Dr. Seth Gendler, Muffy Brown, and Dr. Olivia (Lucille) Lanna. He and his wife, Christi, are plotting an exodus from the state of New York but struggling over what to do about parents who are 90 and in New York.

      Rachael N. Pine is also safely WFH in Brooklyn, New York. While ensconced in her home office, she “has the pleasure of sharing the journey of two adult children who are each in their first year of a graduate program­—one at Yale/Nursing and one at UC Berkeley/Urban Planning—that has them totally engaged and charged with the pleasure (and, yes, stress) of learning ‘stuff’ that will empower them to make a difference in the world.”

      Steve Reynolds and his wife, Beth, have been healthy and safe with respect to COVID, but miss seeing their sons who live on the West Coast whom they haven’t seen in over a year. Steve retired from the energy industry about a year and a half ago; they sold their New Hampshire home last July and have moved to Vero Beach, Florida. He and Beth love the warm climate where they are able to stay physically active outdoors, and he’s hopeful (like the rest of us!) to resume visiting family and friends later this year.

     Elise Wagner has lived in Chappaqua, New York for many years and practices law at Kramer Levin in New York City, where she is a partner in the Land Use Department. There were silver linings to this past difficult year for her as she was named the 2021 Woman of the Year by WX Women Executives in Real Estate, an organization of senior-level women in real estate in New York City. The award will be presented at an event this November, which she hopes will be in  person. Her twin daughters and her two grandchildren are perpetual highlights although seeing her Atlanta grandchildren only once in 2020 was hard to bear. She hopes for many more visits in 2021.

     Pete Lewis and his wife are enjoying splitting their time between homes in Wake Forest, North Carolina and Newcastle, Maine. He’s not sure how 65 crept up on him or how his friends got so old but I bet many of us can relate to those sentiments! Pete finds his two-and-a-half-year-old grandson a “wonderful bundle of energy” and perhaps a great distraction as he explores this thing called “retirement.”

     Yours truly (Susie) will always treasure the closeness my husband, Nick, and I developed with our four-generation (from ages 87 to three) COVID pod here in Duxbury over the last year. I also wholeheartedly agree with Jodi and Nancy about the joy our “Wesleyan Wednesdays” continue to bring. As things in our lives begin to open up and “go back to normal” may we hold fast to all the silver linings and may we appreciate as never before in-person social gatherings and real hugs!

The world seems a bit brighter these days: literally with added daylight hours, as well as better news with vaccinations arriving and COVID case numbers dropping. People are beginning to make plans again, even seeing weddings that were deferred in 2020 rescheduled for later this year. All welcome news! In addition, classmates supplied some updates from their respective bubbles.

     William Altman sent along a cover of his most recent book, Ascent to the Beautiful­—Plato the Teacher and the Pre-Republic Dialogues from Protagoras to Symposium. The reviews are very positive. Susan White writes in that she moved to Brookline, Massachusetts with her partner Jonathan and enjoys being a condo owner and not having to shovel. Her son graduated from social work school and got married in November in a COVID-approved socially-distanced ceremony. Sue’s daughter is teaching locally at Teach for America.

     Steve Gold writes that he and wife Sue are living in Brooklyn Heights, New York, where they moved after becoming empty nesters in 2012. At the start of 2021, Steve retired after serving 28 years as a U.S. magistrate judge for the Eastern District of New York and has joined JAMS, beginning a new chapter with a private mediation and arbitration service. Like many in our class he received his second vaccine dose and is now planning trips to join family he has not seen in over a year. Steve remains in close touch with Andy Adesman and Rick Dennett and can report good health and eager anticipation for more normal circumstances moving forward.

     Bob Krakower now lives in Amherst, Massachusetts with wife Rosalie Burrows, whom he met in law school. He took early retirement moving to Montserrat, a small Caribbean island, but eventually moved back to the States because of a continuing volcanic eruption. Everyone, including children and grandchildren, are doing well. Friends from Wesleyan, especially Jonathan Gertler and Joanne Silver ’74, are still among Bob’s closest friends.

      Rachel Feldman is grateful to have been able to continue to help her fellow New Yorkers during this pandemic via teletherapy, after 30 years of providing “in person” psychotherapy in Manhattan. Mark Slitt is not retired, but is fully vaccinated, which is big news. John Fink got the dreaded COVID disease and after many months, had no sense of taste (some would argue that has been the case for 60+ years) and limited sense of smell.

     Joe Mabel retired in December 2020 from the software industry and has plunged back into music. He started The Weill Project dedicated to the work of the German (later American) composer Kurt Weill (who happened to be a distant relative of this writer). Hank Rosenfeld recently went hiking in Death Valley National Park with Bob Rees. Hank is working on an oral history of KSAN-FM in San Francisco, the first hippie underground freeform radio station, founded in the Summer of Love.

     Don Spencer bought a home in St. Augustine, on the Intracoastal. He and wife Vicki will be splitting their time between Connecticut and Florida; we have all been invited to visit. Cindee Howard writes that after leaving the hospitality industry decimated by the pandemic, she is enjoying retirement by taking Hebrew classes via Zoom, has been renovating bathrooms, and plans to travel to Israel this November. Cindee sends a big thanks to Amy Fisher, who introduced her to Israeli folk-dancing the first Wednesday night we were at Wesleyan.    

     Iddy Olson is now fully vaccinated. She will be in Jackson Hole, Wyoming being a doting grandmother as her son (my godson Des) has had baby number two. Iddy is grateful for her good health and that of her husband who had a tough 2020; they survived well in their first year of marriage during the pandemic year. It must get easier from here on. Carol Cooper passed her oral exams for her PhD in Jungian and archetypal psychology. She now returns to NYU as Doctor Cooper, to resume teaching part time as an adjunct professor at the Clive Davis Institute for Recorded Music. In addition to teaching, Carol continues to write about pop music and culture.

    Here’s to wishing everyone good health and may we all be vaccinated by the time you all read this.

     It will be great for us to look forward to our 45th Reunion in 2022 when we may get to hug one another.

Alan Miller was recently named “Washingtonian of the Year” by Washingtonian magazine. Thirteen years ago, after a full career as a journalist, Alan founded the News Literacy Project, a nonpartisan resource for educators and the public to develop critical thinking skills for evaluating news and information. One of the great features of NLP is the Checkology virtual classroom, a tool to help students and educators recognize credible news stories.

     Tom Kovar is still working at the V.A. and living near Northampton.  He’s still struggling with health issues that arose in part from a possible case of COVID last winter but remains cheerful and optimistic.  Given that gigging is out of the question right now, Tom has been continuing to play and write songs, and has found outlets for sharing music online. He’s looking forward to travelling to the Cape and to seeing friends and family in person again—soon!

     Arvid Bloom retired eight years ago after teaching psychology at West Chester University for 25 years. He remains active in his local photography club near Philadelphia; all meetings have been virtual lately. He enjoys taking long daily walks with spouse Gretchen, who retired from veterinary practice when he retired. Their 30th wedding anniversary is quickly approaching. He also stays in close touch with his 100-year-old dad, often remoting into his dad’s computer in Rhode Island to keep it running smoothly and to teach new computer skills.

     Ken Wagman reports that after transferring to UC Santa Cruz as a junior, he stayed in Santa Cruz—and he’s still there! He has been teaching math at Gavilan Community College in Gilroy and is looking forward to the day when he can leave Zoom behind and return to the classroom. He’s a member of the local masters swim team, working to swim 100 yards in fewer seconds than his age in years. Ken says he’ll retire when teaching is no longer fun.

     Jaimee Kurfirst spent the first 20 years of her career in advertising TV production, and the next 20 years as a high school English teacher. She and her husband are now happily retired and have moved to Morristown to be with their grandsons.  They’ve been able to spend the quarantine with their family in beautiful rural New Jersey.

     Joe Reiff just retired after 30 years teaching religious studies at Emory & Henry College. He spent the second semester of junior year at Millsaps College in Mississippi, with the intention of returning to Wes for senior year. But he fell in love and stayed at Millsaps, and he and his wife have just celebrated their 45th wedding anniversary.  They’ve retired to Abingdon, Virginia to be near their three adult children and three grandchildren. Joe writes: “I loved teaching and will miss working with students; I won’t miss grading and assessment.”  In 2016 Oxford University Press published his book Born of Conviction: White Methodists and Mississippi’s Closed Society.

     Polly Hays writes: “My personal COVID story is that I got sick in March 2020, just as Colorado was shutting down. Not sick enough to get tested at a time when tests were reserved for those on the verge of needing hospitalization, but in June I went for an antibody test out of curiosity, and it came back positive. I am now tested monthly as part of a study at Kaiser, and as of this note, still have antibodies 10 months after my presumed COVID. Some of my pandemic pastimes have included yoga, Feldenkrais, and qi gong classes in my living room; Zoom sings; and bike riding.”

     Carol Bellhouse is riding out the pandemic in Victoria, British Columbia, where she notes that the people are nice, the architecture is gorgeous, and spring flowers are in bloom. (Sorry, Texans.) She continues to write books, make movies, and practice law.

     David Harmin (I begged him to give me a note) says: “I’m still happy and privileged to be doing bioinformatics in Mike Greenberg’s neuroscience lab at Harvard Medical School. I miss visiting my two adult sons, who are scattered to the winds, one a geographer near Raleigh, North Carolina and the other a martial arts expert who is managing a pot shop in Saskatoon. I’d love to hear from Bernie Possidente and Jabez McLelland.”

     Keep in touch! Send me notes at any time; you don’t have to wait for the inevitable mass email plea we send out three times a year.

I hope you’re vaccinated, healthy, and enjoying whatever pandemic pleasures are available. Looking forward to our 50th, let’s stay in touch through calls, Class Notes, Zooms, and visits (someday?).

      We’re retiring in droves. Vin Broderick retired in September after 52 years at Camp Pasquaney (24 as director). He says, “I cannot imagine a more rewarding career.” Vin’s looking forward to some projects and staying in touch from his base in Hebron, New Hampshire. Ann Dallas thought her layoff after 30+ years in journalism (AKA retirement) was the last big transition. “But no! We became brand-new grandparents, which is much more fun. My husband has Parkinson’s and several other health issues, so adapting to that has been challenging. But being a granny? Divine!”

     It was great to hear from Shirley Dodson, retired after three decades with Quaker nonprofits. She loves it but misses her COVID-quarantined daughter, Katie Ailes. Katie recently earned her PhD in English from University of Strathclyde in Scotland. Karin Johnson retired in March 2020, just in time to stay at home. Displaying COVID gratitude, Karin’s glad to shelter (almost) together with daughter, Yuka and her spouse Takafumi, who live in Karin’s building. Looking for an excellent Japanese translator? Yuka got her master’s in translation studies from International Christian University. Karin is well but misses travel and hopes to attend our 50th Reunion.

     Janet Schwaner and Tim Hill (both retired) stayed home, cooking and gardening through the pandemic. Tim plays and directs bridge games online (thill75@wesleyan.edu if you’re interested). The quarantine treat has been reading with their granddaughter in British Columbia every few days since March 2020. Janet lives dangerously, playing string trios weekly at home (windows open, fireplace going, masks on, seven feet apart) and gives virtual tours at the Museum of Fine Arts. She worked on November and January elections and says, “I was ecstatic! Will never take an election for granted again.” Lu Semeraro Hanley occasionally stops for a distanced visit when in Wellesley and gave Janet some expert post-hip-replacement care last summer.

     Brad Kosiba is overseeing a home kitchen remodel and a church construction project, plus laying out spring gardening and beekeeping plans. “Life in masks, even inside on workdays, is getting old, but so far effective. I hope we get vaccines soon, maybe from my old colleagues at Pfizer.” Joost Brouwer’s holiday letter shared losses and love. He and Emilie (retired) have three married children and four grandchildren in the Netherlands and Australia. All are healthy, active, and grateful for life’s joys.

     I think Ed Van Voorhees has nine grandchildren now, including a boy and girl born last fall. His daughter, Ellen, is a hospital chaplain in L.A.—a stressful job during COVID. Ed’s wife, Linda, plans to retire in July, and Ed’s aiming for May.

     Among the working folks, it’s been a tough year—between COVID and wildfires—for Jeff Morgan’s California winery, Covenant. His Israeli winery project, also hit hard, carries on under daughter, Zoe. She’s Napa Valley–bred, but has been in Israel for eight years. Jeff admits, “I guess we’ve been drinking even more than usual. But only with meals!” Cheers, Jeff and Jodie! Martha Faller Brown, also in Berkeley, reports good health. Her respites are lots of reading and hiking she wishes she could do more often.

     Roger Weisberg and Karen Freedman hunkered down in the Palisades, New York house where they raised kids. PBS recently broadcasted Roger’s 33rd documentary, and Karen continues fighting for foster kids as founder of Lawyers for Children. Their daughter Allie ’05 has kids ages five and eight, and 10 years ago founded Recess, an arts organization. Their son Daniel is regional medical director for Galileo, a startup improving health care delivery systems for complex care Medicare and Medicaid patients. Their daughter Liza, since finishing a clerkship with Judge Kimba Woods in the Southern District of New York, works for the ACLU. 

     Bruce Weinraub sent the most unusual missive I’ve gotten as secretary­—a photo of an antique page his mom bought, maybe from a Middletown guide circa mid-1800s. It refers to Wes as “an institution of great promise” and shows early College Row. Bruce says he chose Wes for its successful co-education and relatively high minority enrollment, but attached contemporaneous New York Times articles—one about the Class of 1975’s unprecedented 115 wait-list admissions, which they attributed to high ($5,000) cost of attendance, and perceptions of racial diversity.

     My quick update—both kids (26 and 24) are back in the Bay Area, thanks to COVID. I left my job last May (not retired but Bob is) and am working on reactivating my consulting practice in nonprofit strategy, growth and governance.  We four have stayed healthy. Bob and I are vaccinated and hopeful. Gratitude continues to be my pandemic watchword.

Monique Witt reports, “My younger son Ben was just named among finalists, 2020 JazzTimes Poll for best new artist and best new instrumentalist, and Dev, my older, was just reviewed by Brian Bender (TapeOp) for his groundbreaking monitor technology, and ExMachina is doing well.  Who knew two attorneys would produce musicians?  I was assured ducks had ducks.  Steve is working way too hard from the family room chair, and I’m still working on book on aesthetic philosophy with running partner (curator at Cooper Hewitt), running early morning and booking three albums (all jazz, different formats) to record early July.”

Blaise Noto is still teaching at Barton College in North Carolina and still loving life in Chapel Hill.  Also, he has been active with the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences serving on numerous committees including the Feature Animation and the International Film Nominating Committees for the Oscars, as well as the Student Academy Awards and Nichols Fellowship Awards for Screenwriting. 

Also, this year, he has been virtually interviewing applicants to Wesleyan not only in the USA but internationally from Moldova, Kathmandu, Moscow, China and Istanbul. 

Finally, he already received both COVID vaccinations thanks to the amazing efforts of Duke University Healthcare.  

Pat Mulcahy shares:  “Listed below is a little squib I did for a blog. I am really happy to have three projects coming out in one year–not the usual! The book business has weathered the pandemic in pretty good shape all things considered. And as someone who has long worked from home, I’ve been very fortunate. No vaccination yet–NYC is currently short of supply. I hope to get a slot at Citifield where the Mets play, which is supposed to operate 24/7. Not operational yet….

My neighborhood in Queens was the epicenter of the epicenter last March, a ghost town of screaming sirens. A year later, it is a very lively place, much more so than Manhattan. There are vendors on every street corner selling masks, kitchen appliances, arepas, tamales, and even toys. And the outdoor dining structures are packed with customers. Hope is in the air….now we just have to deal with the thirty people (is it that many??) running for mayor.   

2021 got off to a great start with the publication of Black Buck by Mateo Askaripour (Houghton Mifflin), a first novel I reviewed back in 2019. This workplace satire in the format of a sales manual follows the path of a young Starbucks barista who transforms himself into a super salesman at a tech start-up. It attracted attention from the get-go, with a rave endorsement from Colson Whitehead, who called it “full of verve and dark, comic energy.” Soon it was a selection of Jenna Bush Hager’s Today Show book club. And on 1/17 it hit The New York Times bestseller list! Mateo made the ultimate sale….

 This April, Vertel Publishing will release a business memoir, Authentic, by the founder of the Vans shoe company, Paul Van Doren. I worked with ace editor Amanda Murray to integrate Paul’s business lessons with his personal narrative in this very American story of a high-school dropout from a blue-collar Boston family who worked his way up the ladder in the sneaker trade, wound up in cahoots with a crew of renegade skater kids in Southern California, and never looked back. A fascinating look at the making of an iconic American brand. 

In the fall, Mango Publishing will release Alex Amouyel’s The Answer is You: Creating a Life Full of Impact. Alex is the Executive Director of MIT’s Solve, an accelerator platform that supports innovators, inventors, and social impact entrepreneurs. Her guide is aimed primarily at millennials and GenZers who want to craft a life of purpose above all. I am her collaborator on this timely and vividly detailed book.” 

John McLucas’ second novel, Spirit’s Tether, the sequel to his debut novel Dialogues on the Beach (2017), came out in late 2020 from BrickHouse Books in Baltimore.  It continues the story 20+ years later, and explores issues like mourning, coming out, marriages gay and straight, attachments across the generations, the seasons of an academic career, and sex in maturity.  There is a lot of local Baltimore color, some trips to Italy, and music sacred and profane.  Ask for it at your favorite independent book store; it is also available, on paper or as an eBook, on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and other sites. 

Jonathan Weiss writes:  “I live in Andover, Mass. with my partner Bonny,  and work in the next town as an outpatient psychiatrist.  Currently doing all appointments by phone.  Things are busy, as you can imagine.  For fun I play guitar and sing, ski (except this winter,) and do puzzles.   My eldest Sam lives in Palo Alto,  and works as CTO for a startup called Instrumental. He and his wife Alice had a girl six weeks ago.  My father Herbert (Wesleyan ’48) died in October,  so I went quickly from being a son to a grandfather. My daughter Hannah (Wesleyan ’12)  lives in Australia, she is a citizen there and it’s a long flight to see her.  She loves it there.” 

The extended family of Scott Michael Karsten, of Glastonbury, is heartbroken to announce his passing on January 6, 2021. Scott was embarking on a Florida RV adventure to escape the New England winter when he died suddenly and unexpectedly of a heart attack. Scott was born to Harold J. Karsten, Jr. and Jayne Gourley Karsten on October 2, 1951 in Oklahoma City, OK. The eldest of four children, Scott was the lovable “sheriff” and instigator for his other siblings, and ungrudgingly assumed the role of surrogate father after the tragic and premature passing of his father at age 59. All knew that Scott’s occasionally tough and crusty demeanor belied a tender, loving, and generous heart. Scott’s formative years were spent free-range in the idyllic environs of Chagrin Falls, OH, where he, his close friends and often tag-along siblings terrorized the muskrats, bluegills, reptiles and amphibians of Paw Paw Lake. He competed in classical piano competitions, played Professor Henry Higgins in local youth musical theater, read constantly, and dabbled in taxidermy and fly-tying in his few spare moments. The family move to Westport in his early teens brought Scott to the state of Connecticut, where he resided for the remainder of his life. Scott was an all-star varsity football and wrestling athlete at Staples High School, earning the 1969 title of CT state heavyweight champion. He continued pursuit of his many passions as a student at Wesleyan University, where he was a member of the DKE fraternity. After college, Scott attended the University of Connecticut School of Law, where he was third in his class and graduated with honors. While attending law school, and wanting to deepen his personal understanding of the noble profession he was to later enter, he served as a police officer and president of the police union in West Hartford, CT. Scott began his law career with the firm of Day, Berry, and Howard, and went on to become partner in the firm of Sack, Spector, and Karsten. Before retiring, Scott was the founding partner of the Karsten & Tallberg law firm, from which he recently retired. His legal practice focused on jury trials of complex civil actions at both the state and federal levels, trying more than seventy cases to verdict or court judgment. His primary focus was on the defense of civil rights actions against state and municipal government employees and officials, education agencies and employees, public and private sector employment matters, and professional liability claims. He was a skillful, dedicated, and relentless representative for his various clients and brought his integrity and deep love for the rule of law to his practice. Ever the mentor, he frequently shared his insights as a speaker at continuing legal education seminars through his various bar associations. For over a decade, his peers repeatedly selected him as a New England and Connecticut “Super Lawyer”. He was a member of the Connecticut Bar, the Pennsylvania Bar, and was a member of the American Board of Trial Advocates. He was also admitted to practice in the U.S. District Courts for the Districts of Connecticut, Vermont and New York (Eastern and Southern), the Second Circuit Court of Appeals, and the United States Supreme Court, and was an emeritus of the Oliver Ellsworth Inn of Court. It was in law school that Scott met his future wife, Elizabeth (Beth) Alspach. They settled in Glastonbury and welcomed daughter Jules into their lives. Sadly, their romance and happy family togetherness was cut short as Beth courageously, but unsuccessfully, battled cancer, dying at age 41. Scott was a devoted single parent for many years after. A second marriage to Emely Karandy (of Gladwyne, PA) ended in divorce. Most recently, Scott found great love and happiness in his relationship with Gail Petersen. He embraced her children and grandchildren as his own, and in Scott they found a loving and engaged surrogate father and grandfather. Scott was a true Renaissance man, whose intellect, passion, and deep ethic infused all of his endeavors. He was an avid fisherman and hunter who was most at peace wading in a pristine trout stream, landing a bone fish in the Caribbean, or plucking a freshly acquired goose for New Year’s dinner. He was a skillful cook, a wicked card player, a smooth dancer, and a surprisingly effective karaoke singer – no doubt informed by his stint covering 1960s hits as an electric organ player in his high school band. He was an honorable leader who helped energize his friends, colleagues, family and the community. All that being said, Scott’s greatest passion was his devotion to family, and particularly to Jules. He was exceptionally proud of her and the creative, independent, young woman she has become. A dedicated and caring father and son, a loyal and supportive brother, uncle, grand-uncle, and partner, Scott was reliably available to provide advice, comfort, an occasional necessary scolding, or a haven for those needing a bed and a good meal for the night. His sense of humor was an extraordinary combination of wit, timing, intuition, and a genuine love of sharing a great laugh with those he cared about. Often it involved props of garbage bags, dead fish, strangely knitted caps, or whatever else he might have at hand. He cared deeply about those he loved, and was not afraid to show that, in fact, real men do shed tears – of joy, of sorrow, of genuine happiness, and of love. In addition to Jules, her fiancé Zach Burt-Axford and partner Ken Johnson, and Gail, Scott is survived by: his 96-year old mother, Jayne, of Annapolis, MD; sisters Tracey Karsten Farrell (Glenn) of Lafayette, CA and Jill Karsten (Rodey Batiza) of Eden Prairie, MN; brother Kurt Karsten (Michelle Smith) of Annapolis, MD; nieces and nephews Caitlin Echelbarger (Nick), Shannon Baskauskas (Brian), Devon Kufske (Brad), Travis Batiza (Alyssa Curlee), Conrad Karsten (Ali Hakusui), Nora Karsten (Chris Olsen), Emma Karsten, Garrett Karsten, Eric Batiza (Molly), Rodey Batiza (Anna Wang); great nieces and nephews Helen (7), Chase (4), Jack (2), Cole (7 months), Logan (9), and Kyle (6); and cousin Barbara Karsten Rose (John) and AJ. He is also survived by his “adopted” children and grandchildren: Andrew Petersen (Tory Beavens) of Sinking Spring, PA; Mark Petersen (Jesse Ramos) and their children Pamela and Audrey Petersen (of Glastonbury, CT), Emely and the Silverman children (Kirkley, Eddie, Molly, and Schuyler) and their families, as well as numerous dear friends. To paraphrase Norman Maclean in A River Runs Through It, Scott was “very sure about certain matters pertaining to the universe. To him, all good things-trout as well as eternal salvation-come by grace and grace comes by art and art does not come easy.” In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to the Scott Karsten Scholarship Fund at Wesleyan University, newly established in his memory. Donation checks payable to “Kent Literary Club (DKE)” with “Scott Karsten Scholarship Fund” in the memo section should be mailed to: Kent Literary Club, 196 East Main Street, Suite C Box 352, Milford, MA 01757. A joyous celebration of Scott’s life will be scheduled for the Summer of 2021 once it is safe for everyone who loved him, to hug, dance, and laugh together, as we share stories about this remarkable man who touched so many lives, so deeply. 

Chris Moeller reports, “My family and I are well.  Like many others, we have tried our best to endure that last 12 months and avoid getting sick.  So far, so good.

Nearly all social activity stopped as of March, 2020 and we maintain
contact with friends primarily via Facebook, phone calls, and email. 
Fortunately for us, both of our children live in the Twin Cities, as does
my sister.  That way we do get to visit other humans now and then.

Last February our daughter gave birth to a daughter, Liselore.  So, we
are now happy grandparents of two grandchildren.  And, of course, we
are anxious to get vaccinated so we can see them more frequently.  Some
activities, like reading, cooking, and gardening go on at home.  We look
forward to resuming other activities, like folk-dancing, playing music and
visiting friends, once the pandemic subsides.” 

Steven Cutts writes,  “I’ve remained hunkered down here in Washington, D.C. — distressed by all of the security fencing downtown, tired of the monotony of the COVID restrictions, but healthy with one of two vaccinations in my arm as of mid-February.  Two-plus years into retirement, I have been very happy not to have had to teach remotely, but my wife and I have benefitted from (and been distracted by) learning in various online courses through our robust Osher Lifelong Learning Institute based at American University.   

I continue to find things to write songs about, and since May 2020 I’ve streamed four hour-long concerts of my original material from home on YouTube Live.  (Links to previous shows and announcement of future streamings are easily found at my website ThePrimeCutts.com.)   I’m grateful to a stalwart band of Class of ’74 friends who have tuned in to one or more of these evening entertainments.”

 Sally Hernandez Pinero updates,  “I am currently a member of the Board of DireCroesus  of the New York City Health and Hospitals Corporation which oversees 13 public hospitals, 5 nursing homes and 20 community health centers in New York. I am also Chairperson of the MetroPlus Health Plan, a 600,000 member public managed health care plan in New York. Although housing development, financing and management were the focus of my career, I have found a second passion for health care.

I will forever cherish my time at Wesleyan. It was life transforming for me.
I am retired and live in Riverdale in the Bronx with my husband Hector. I am the proud mom of two wonderful young men, Justin and Eric.” 

Harold Sogard reminds us that our classmate Henry Willis was also once a contestant on Jeopardy but was somehow overlooked in Wesleyan’s news release about the many Wes contestants.

From Middletown, Ron Medley writes that “the biggest news” is that he’s just renewed his lease for a College Street studio apartment. “This marks my second year as a part-time Middletown resident,” he writes. “For folks who have not set foot in our adopted city these last few decades, suffice it to say, most of us would barely recognize the place. For sure, the old North End is still familiar with its mom and pop storefronts and O’Rourke’s diner holding up nicely. But, the whole South End of town (including the old Middletown Press building, if I recall correctly) has been bulldozed, sanitized, and curated to resemble an ersatz Northampton or Amherst.” He reports that some will love it. Others will not. “All I know is that as a dyed-in-the-wool New Yorker, the new Middletown comes with one indispensable ingredient that the old one did not,” he says. The city now has a functioning public transit system. Buses now leave Main Street to the Meriden train depot pretty much on the hour, eliminating the need for a car. He says during his first summer there, he walked over to Jane and Michael Gianfriddo’s house on the other side of Long Lane Road for lunch. Ron says,  “Michael and I now have a standing invitation to meet on the steps of Olin for as many power walks as we can squeeze in before the Connecticut Valley summers kick in.”

     Rich Ladd tells me that he lives near Olympia, Washington with wife Carolyn. He still works in mortgage lending and continues to enjoy tinkering with cars. His daughter works at Amazon HQ and his son attends Boise State. “Rugby remains a favorite sport—watching only,” he says.  Rich and Carolyn were very sad at the loss of their friend Tom Pfeiffer.

     Moses Samuel Pinkston tells me that he has retired from the Department of Human Services after 12 years working as an adoption social worker. “I met many children in need of permanent loving families,” says Moses, and others “who were in foster care, and now are permanently living with loving families.” He traveled to Georgia and Florida, as well as all over Pennsylvania, to place children in permanent homes.

     Dr. Ron Johnson tells me Granderson “Granny” Hale runs a homeless ministry in Philadelphia, providing hot meals and clothing to those less fortunate. He has six kids and 14 grandchildren.

     Ron lives in Orinda, California. He is nine months now retired from his medical specialty where he was a vitreoretinal surgeon for the Kaiser Permanente Medical Group. Ron now spends his time traveling and working on his golf game, hiking, biking and enjoying life.                                                  

     Ron reports that Doug Belt is presently living in Florida for the last six months after moving from New Jersey. Doug just recently retired from the research and analytics company he founded. He tells us he has been happily married for 50 years! “Some of us remember his wife Sheila, a Mt. Holyoke grad. Doug is most proud of his four exceptional children including an associate professor of law at Stanford, a medical doctor, a biological researcher, and a businessman,” says Ron.

     Albert Smith tells us he is a self-made independent architect who has run his own firm in New York City for the past 38 years! He is married to Rosalyn, the love of his life, and they have five kids.

     James (Diego) Howard is a graduate of University of Michigan law school and resides in Pleasanton, California. He is now retired and tells us he has been married for 35 years with two children and is expecting his first grandchild this April. After suffering a medical setback in 2019, Diego is now vegan.

     Lacy Tinnen tells us he’s been living in North Carolina since 1994 and is married to the love of his life for the past 30 years! He has been in the income tax business since 1991 with national franchises.He has two successful  sons, and notes that despite his busy schedule he still enjoys boating, fishing and biking.

     Marshal Lassiter tells us he’s been living in Atlanta since 1977, has been married for the past 47 years and has two sons. After 43 years, he is still working as an executive for the railroads.

     Zane Bailey currently resides in Philadelphia. He’s been married for the past 41 years and has been blessed with two daughters and grandchildren who are the loves of his life. “Teaching them lacrosse, which Zane excelled at 50 plus years ago, gives him a great sense of pride,” says Ron. Zane retired nine years ago doing medical research and private investigating in the office of his best friend, the late Philadelphia lawyer Ronald White ’73.

     Wayne Barber currently resides in Lake Oswego, Oregon, after moving there from Honolulu, Hawaii two years ago. Wayne is retired from his specialty as an ears, nose and throat doctor with the Kaiser Permanente Medical Group and in private practice in Hawaii. He has been happily married to the former Sharon Nelson, Mt. Holyoke class of ’74, for 45 years! Wayne has two daughters. Kerri ’91 is an educator and Tori is a sound and light engineer in Los Angeles. Wayne continues to do research in diagnosis and prevention of childhood hearing disorders.

     In other news, can you believe this: our 50th Reunion is right around the corner, in May 2023. Class President Bill Quigley says the ’73 Reunion Committee is looking for volunteers to expand and broaden interest and participation. He notes he is looking for a wide range of people, and there will be opportunities to serve on various subcommittees. If you have any interest, please contact Jay Rose (jrose907@aol.com), Kate Q. Lynch (our Wesleyan organizer— klynch@wesleyan.edu), or Bill Quigley (bquig@aol.com).

      It should be an unforgettable weekend.

As I write this I just heard a news bulletin that the former president of France was found guilty of corruption, and sentenced to a year’s confinement in his home. Sounds like the sentence that all of us are just finishing. I would like to salute Elisa Serling Davis ’76 as the rightful winner of the title Best Person With Whom To Be Locked Down.

     I sent out a request to the whole class for “good news.” Many wrote that they had been or shortly would be vaccinated. Pardon me for not enumerating them, but that is indeed good news. Jean Christensen wrote “We have a real president now.  That’s the best news in four years.” 

     Less than good news is the passing of Rob Hilton in January.  Rob had a very successful career in finance, then gave it up to become executive director of the A.M. McGregor Foundation, focusing on the needs of the elderly in Cleveland. Many will remember him speaking about his career change at a panel on “giving back” at one of our reunions. Many classmates have fond memories of Rob, and I am among them. He lived next door to me freshman year. Dale, his wife of 44 years, survives him.

     Paul Vidich has published another marvelous spy novel—The Mercenary.  Read it—and his previous ones—if you haven’t already. Paul and Steve Schiff had a particularly enlightening online discussion of the book, spy fiction, and writing in general, hosted by the Wesleyan bookstore. The conjunction of two such perceptive, articulate, and creative individuals was a truly exciting event, and I am blessed to know each of them. If only it could have been in person.

     Rachel Klein, who teaches U.S. cultural history at UC San Diego, recently published Art Wars: The Politics of Taste in Nineteenth-Century New York (University of Pennsylvania Press, 2020). It deals with the early history of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, among other things.  Since the 1980s Rachel has been living in San Diego with her husband, Robert Westman, a recently retired history professor at UCSD. They have two sons. The youngest is a clinical psychologist in Los Angeles. The eldest (actually Rachel’s stepson) is a musician in Northern California. He and his wife just had a baby, so the most interesting thing in Rachel’s life at the moment is being a step-grandmother to a sweet little baby girl.

     John Hagel’s eighth (yes, eighth) book, The Journey Beyond Fear, is about to be published by McGraw Hill. This volume is, according to John, “a pretty significant departure from my previous books which were largely business books.” The blurb on amazon.com modestly claims that the book “provides everything you need to identify your fears, face your fears, move beyond your fears and cultivate emotions that motivate you to pursue valuable business opportunities, realize your full potential, and create opportunities that benefit all.” He has “at least” two more books in the pipeline.

     Nat Warren-White’s book about his circumnavigation, that he and his wife Betsy began in 2006 and completed in 2011 aboard their 43′ cutter, Bahati, is also about to be released. It’s called In Slocum’s Wake, in honor of Joshua Slocum, the first man to sail solo around the world alone in the late 1800s. They followed much the same route he took and competed with him on several legs. Sometimes he won, sometimes they did. He did it all by himself; they had more than 50 family and friends join them on various legs. His voyage took two years less time overall than theirs, mostly due to their long visits to a number of wonderful countries, including a year in New Zealand and four months in South Africa. Nat is glad they decided to do it when they did—taking it on now at our age is a daunting proposition. Me?  All I’ve written is this column.

     Bonnie Krueger is retiring from teaching French at Hamilton College at the end of the spring semester. Going out via virtual teaching is not what she imagined—she last taught in person a year ago.  Bonnie and husband Thomas Bass have not seen their children in Texas, Belgium, and Austria since the pandemic started, and have missed a whole year of their young grandson’s life. They plan to spend long summers and extended falls in Truro, Massachusetts.     Bruce Throne is now on the “glide path to full retirement” after 44 years of law practice. He recently went skiing in Santa Fe and met a (masked) young man on the chairlift who said he’d just moved from Middletown to teach fourth graders. “Wes Tech?” Bruce asked. “Yes,” he said, class of 2020 that graduated without any ceremony.  “Class of ’72,” Bruce replied. “He looked at me somewhat incredulously, as if surprised I was still alive let alone still skiing. So good to learn Wesleyan is still producing some teachers.”

Aloha classmates! The pandemic has changed everything for everybody, including our May 2021 50th Reunion to virtual. Please plan your virtual attendance as we will still have an innovative and wonderful program.

     We do have a reunion committee and they are working on things to do now and events and ideas for the future. You can still join the committee by contacting Kate Quigley Lynch ’82, P’17, P’19 at klynch@Wesleyan.edu. Also you can receive more information at www.wesleyan.edu/classof1971.

     We have had several Zoom virtual calls and they have been attracting a large number of our classmates. Sometimes the calls are in conjunction with a current Wesleyan class so we can get a flavor of the current school environment. We hear some interesting ideas and topics and then break into groups of about six to eight people to refresh and reacquaint ourselves with our classmates.  For those who have missed them, more virtual events will be scheduled over the next few months. The next group of calls will have a theme with speakers from our class and the University on a specific topic.

     The ideas behind the pre-reunion Zoom calls are as follows: Build interest and participation for the Reunion, and unearth classmates by having them attend (and engage) or participate in the pre-reunion sessions; pilot some programming ideas for the future Reunion or to the reunion “Book.”

    The pre-reunion program category ideas are:

     1) Attract and motivate specialty interest segment groups. Programs: “Then vs. Now at Wesleyan” or “Looking Back Through Today’s Lens” (e.g. Athletics, Science, Humanities, Film and Theater Arts, Jewish Life, Women at Wesleyan, etc.), featuring faculty and students from “then” (67–71) and now.

     2) Attract general interest and enthusiasm by tapping into a wide mosaic of classmate accomplishments and journeys. 

     If you have other ideas or would like to create a Zoom call, contact Kate Lynch. These calls are a great way to catch up with classmates you have not seen, sometimes in over 50 years! These days who can honestly say they have not done a Zoom call? So do plan to Zoom-in for these calls! Information should be coming to you in emails. If you are not receiving them, please contact Kate.

     Another item that required your response was the reunion book. It is too late now to get into the book, but a supplement is planned for all you procrastinators. Contact Kate for more info. We hear from previous classes that when the book comes out those who are not included regret it and your classmates are sad not to have info on you.

   In other news . . . Ed Swanson (etswanson@att.net) says: “Jonathan Kramer asked about, among others, Walter Zdrok ’72. Walter (currently Vladimir) was my roommate freshman year and is living outside of Philadelphia. I talk to Vladimir occasionally, and will mention that Jonathan and Henry Sanders were wondering about him. He ended up graduating a year later than us, and so officially is class of 1972.”

     Neil Cumsky writes he has not been hearing about the Reunion and sends his new email address, ncumsky@princetonresorts.com.                     Warren White (warrenwhite1949@gmail.com) has relocated to 1025 West Grace St. Apt. #515, Richmond, VA 23220.

     Well, that is all the news I have for now. Even though our 50th has been postponed (not canceled), please make an effort to join our future Zoom calls. Great fun!

Hello everyone. I hope all of you have been weathering the pandemic and various levels of sheltering at home as well as you can. My husband and I (Diane) have been pretty much staying sequestered in our home but are cautiously optimistic about 2021. 

On that subject, Peter Cherr passed along his innovative approach to uplifting us: “In April, in response to COVID-19, I started a Haiku project called “Haiku in the Time of Corona Virus” in hopes of bringing some peace and calm and perhaps respite for people in this trying time. Toward this goal, I write and post on Instagram at least one Haiku every day with an accompanying picture which I hope uplifts people. The project can be found on my page @peter_c_cherr, and also, by the end of December, the website kindovermatter.com will have published 27 Haiku in their “Poetry Corner.” I have posted over 160 Haiku on Instagram to date and will have posted over 250 by year-end. The project will continue daily into next year while we wait for the pandemic crisis to ease.” 

Barbara Woike retired from the Associated Press in New York in March 2019 after being a photo editor there for 32 years. “My husband Jim McNamara and I decided to try small town living, surrounded by nature, so we sold our Brooklyn co-op and moved to the Berkshires. We now live in Stockbridge, Massachusetts, a stone’s throw from the Red Lion Inn and the Main Street that still looks pretty much the way it did when Norman Rockwell painted it half a century ago. We couldn’t have been better placed when COVID-19 struck, and we’re enjoying our new lifestyle, but it is sad to see Tanglewood and all the other cultural attractions shut down and the local economy suffering.” 

 Cliff Hendel recently authored a chapter in a collective work published in Spain called A La Sombra—Actores Secundarios de la Historia. Each of the 57 chapters pairs a leading historical figure with another person who has remained “in the shadows” but without whom the historical figure would not have reached the status/notoriety he/she enjoys. His chapter had a certain Wesleyan connection. It involved the relation between Hamilton (relatively unknown, even in the United States, before Chernow’s biography and Miranda’s musical) and Washington (a global demi-god). Cliff continues to live in Madrid, practicing law and finding time to be a patron of the Fundación Española Pro Bono and to coach a team of law students from Madrid’s Universidad Carlos III in the annual Vis Moot competition.

Laura Walker, with an accomplished career most notably for transforming New York Public Radio into an independent media powerhouse and for spearheading successful, innovative initiatives at Sesame Workshop and Carnegie Hall, was recently appointed president of Bennington College. Congrats, Laura!

Ben Solnit reports that he has been running Zoom board meetings for the ACLU of Connecticut and the Morris Land Trust. Virtual mini-reunions were attended by Kitty Hannaford, John Hatleberg, Maura Resnick, Kate Sutherland, Laura Tully, and Laura Walker, along with many spouses. Ben is also taking a class with Professor Emeritus Herbert Arnold on Wolfram von Eschenbach’s masterpiece Parzival. “If 2020 has you down, medieval literature is the way to go.”

In an impassioned plea for environmental action, Ellen Reiter writes “All I can say is glad I’m old . . . I’ve been a climate activist since the 70s, but seeing negative results: climate change is out of control, and we humans, in my opinion, sit atop the endangered species list and indeed deserve to go extinct! Sorry, not sorry, world needs to stop burning fossil fuels, destroying ecosystems and waging endless war, all in the name of run-amok capitalism and systemic racism.” She also shares that she has recently relocated from San Francisco to Ocala, Florida to care for her very cool parents!

Casey Dinges retired after 35 years at ASCE working on infrastructure issues.

Diane MacLean Boumenot has retired from the American Mathematical Society and now works as a professional genealogist specializing in southern New England. Her website is onerhodeislandfamily.com. Diane published a guide to Rhode Island genealogy through the National Genealogical Society in 2018.

In our last issue, Ann reported on the passing of Joe Britton. Our former co-class secretary, Gary Breitbord, passed along the following message after we went to print on that issue: “Joe Britton passed away in May. He was my third-floor sophomore year roommate; one of my best friends in the world; my brother in every sense of the word; a staunch defender of DKE; a loving father, son, brother, husband and grandfather. He was the best of us. Please keep his family, wife Nancy, son Scott, daughter Paige, and granddaughter Madison in your thoughts and prayers. Also take a moment to remember the times and stories that made Joe such a great friend and such a special person. God bless and rest in peace.” 

Please send us news for our next issue. We are part of a wonderful community. Connections to our friends, no matter how long it’s been since we last saw each other, are important and bring joy even, maybe even especially, in these challenging times.

Ann Biester Deane | abdeane@gmail.com

Diane LaPointe | dmlapointe28@gmail.com