Categories Obituaries | 1940-1949Posted on

CHARLES A. BRIGGS SR. ’49

CHARLES A. BRIGGS SR., former executive director of the Central Intelligence Agency, died Nov. 4, 2015, at age 89. A member of Alpha Delta Phi, he served in the U.S. Army during World War II and in 1952 joined the CIA after receiving a master’s degree from the University of Michigan. Over the course of the following 34 years he went from being a Junior Officer Trainee to the top position of CIA Executive Director. He served in administrative roles in all four divisions with the agency, including postings as Inspector General, Comptroller, Director of Services Staff, Congressional Liaison, and Executive Director. He held the unique distinction (in June 1983) while serving as Executive Director, of being briefly designated as the Acting Director of Central Intelligence and Acting Deputy Director, serving in all three positions simultaneously. He was awarded the Distinguished Intelligence Medal in honor of his service and accomplishments. After retiring in 1986, he was called back to served the intelligence community as a private contractor. A notable contribution was serving as liaison for the creation of the Sixth Floor Museum in Dallas, Tex., dedicated to the JFK Assassination. He served five years as chairman of the board for the Central Intelligence Retirement Association (CIRA) and also four years as chairman of the board for the Association of Former Intelligence Officers (AFIO). In 1999 he was awarded the distinguished David Atlee Phillips Founder’s award by AFIO for sustained and exceptional contributions. He was also active with his children in numerous sports leagues and organizations in his Vienna, Va., community. His wife, Catherine Ann Murphy Briggs (Caty) died in 2008. Nine children, 20 grandchildren, seven great-grandchildren, three brothers, and a large extended family survive.

Categories Obituaries | 1940-1949Posted on

DOUGLAS F. DORCHESTER ’46

DOUGLAS F. DORCHESTER, a retired minister, died Nov. 1, 2015. He was 91. The great-grandson of Daniel Dorchester of the class of 1847 and the son of Donald H. Dorchester of the class of 1917, he received his degree with high honors and was elected to Phi Beta Kappa. During World War II he served as a chaplain in the U.S. Navy and then received a degree from the Yale Divinity School. He served a wide range of ministries from the local parish to the denominational level. For more than 20 years he served as executive secretary of the Board of Education in Southern New England and Northern New Jersey, as well as serving in a number of ecumenical positions. His wife, Janice Potter Dorchester, survives, as do four children, six grandchildren, and three great-grandchildren. One son predeceased him.

Categories Obituaries | 1940-1949Posted on

VINCENT W. JONES JR. ’45

VINCENT W. JONES JR., 92, a financial adviser, died Nov. 27, 2015. The son of Vincent W. Jones of the class of 1911; the grandson of Robert W. Jones of the class of 1871; the cousin of Frederic W. Frost of the class of 1923, Bradford R. Frost of the class of 1935, and Frederic W. Frost III of the class of 1956, he received his bachelor’s degree from Harvard University, from which he also received an MBA. During World War II he served in the U.S. Navy. His first wife, Marie Prince Jones, predeceased him. Among those who survive are his wife, Cindy Fisher Jones; three children; five grandchildren; his brother, David P. Jones ’51; a nephew, David P. Jones Jr. ’83; two nieces, Suzanne H. Varney ’84 and Lisa J. Chung ’86.

Categories Obituaries | 1940-1949Posted on

JOSEPH L. WEITZ ’44

JOSEPH L. WEITZ, professor emeritus of geology at Colorado State University in Fort Collins and a former assistant professor of geology at Wesleyan, died July 22, 2015, at age 93. He was the brother of John H. Weitz of the class of 1938. A member of Delta Kappa Epsilon, he received his degree with honors and was elected to Sigma Xi. He received an MS and a PhD from Yale University. During World War II he served in the U.S. Army Air Forces. He did his doctoral field studies in Newfoundland, co-authored a geologic map of Wyoming in 1954, and worked for the U.S. Geologic Survey. He joined his father’s company, Independent Explosives Company, in Pennsylvania for three years, then left to teach at Wesleyan from 1958-1960. In 1960 he took a position as professor of geology at Colorado State University in Fort Collins, retiring in 1983. During this time he served as director of the Earth Science Curriculum Project and did significant summer field work for the U.S.G.S. in Wyoming, Montana, Idaho, Connecticut, Colorado, and Switzerland. He was a member and leader of several professional societies and authored several publications for the U.S.G.S. Active in his community, he had been a volunteer firefighter and also helped to establish the Front Range Forum, an educational program, in addition to helping to arrange and catalogue the mineral collection at the Fort Collins Museum. Survivors include his wife, Jean Corthell Weitz, three children, one grandson, and a large extended family. One granddaughter preceded him in death.

Categories Obituaries | 1940-1949Posted on

CHARLES C. GILLISPIE ’40

CHARLES C. GILLISPIE, 97, the Dayton-Stockton Professor of History and professor emeritus of the history of science at Princeton University, died Oct. 6, 2015. He was the son of Raymond L. Gillispie of the class of 1910, the brother of Robert L.J. Gillispie of the class of 1942, the nephew of Robert W. Gillispie of the class of 1904, and the cousin of David L. Gillispie of the class of 1939. He received his degree in chemistry with honors and with high distinction in history. Elected to Phi Beta Kappa, he was a member of Psi Upsilon. After graduation he remained at Wesleyan for his master’s degree in history. During World War II he served with the U.S. Army. Following the war, he returned to the study of history, joining Princeton University’s faculty and earning a PhD in history from Harvard University. A leading figure in the establishment of the history and philosophy of science as an academic discipline, he founded the Program in the History of Science at Princeton in the 1960s. He was the author of many books that have become classics in the field, including Genesis and Geology: A Study in the Relations of Scientific Thought, Natural Theology, and Social Opinion in Great Britain, 1790-1850; The Edge of Objectivity: An Essay in the History of Scientific Ideas; and Pierre-Simon Laplace, 1749-1827: A Life in Exact Science. He was also the editor-in-chief of the Dictionary of Scientific Biography, a monumental reference work in 16 volumes with more than 4,500 essays on scientists and mathematicians of all periods and nationalities, for which he received the Dartmouth Medal from the American Library Association in 1981. He co-authored his final work, Lazare and Sadi Carnot: A Scientific and Filial Relationship, which was published in 2014. His many awards and distinctions include the 1997 Balzan Prize for History and Philosophy of Science for “the extraordinary contribution he has made to the history and philosophy of science by his intellectually vigorous and exacting works.” He received the Pfizer Prize in 1981 from the History of Science Society for his book, Science and Polity in France at the End of the Old Regime, and the Sarton Medal in 1984. Among his other awards are the Dibner Award for Distinction in History of Science and Technology from MIT in 1994 and la Médaille Alexandre Koyré from the Académie Internationale d’Histoire des Sciences in 1985. In 1972 he was elected to membership in the American Philosophical Society, America’s oldest learned society. He received honorary Doctor of Science degrees from Wesleyan in 1971, from Lafayette College in 2001, and a Doctor of Humane Letters degree from Princeton in 2011. His wife, Emily Clapp Gillispie, predeceased him.

Categories Obituaries | 1940-1949Posted on

CHARLES F. BELL ’40

CHARLES F. BELL, a retired pharmacist, died Jan. 20, 2015. He was 96. A member of Psi Upsilon, he was the brother of Albert M. Bell of the class of 1935, the nephew of Harry W. Bell of the class of 1912, and the cousin of Warren F. Bell of the class of 1943. He received his bachelor’s degree from the Brooklyn College of Pharmacy after serving in the U.S. Navy during World War II. Previously the president of Bell and Halpern Pharmacy, Inc., after his retirement he became the outpatient pharmacist at St. Francis Hospital in Roslyn, N.Y. Predeceased by his first wife, Castine Swanson Bell, and by a daughter, his wife of 32 years, Bess Herdt Bell, survives, as do two children, two step-children, six grandchildren, and one great-grandchild.

Categories Obituaries, Obituaries | 1930-1939Posted on

ROBERT E. PORTER ’38

ROBERT E. PORTER, an attorney, died Feb. 4, 2016, at age 100. A member of Alpha Chi Rho, he received his degree with honors and with high distinction in government. He was elected to Phi Beta Kappa, received his law degree from the University of Pennsylvania Law School, and then served in the U.S. Army during World War II. After the war he returned to legal practice in Wayne, Penna., with the firm of Greenwell and Porter, later Greenwell, Porter, Smaltz, and Royal, until he retired in 1985. Active in his community as well as professional associations, he was an original trustee of Valley Forge Military Academy. His wife of 74 years, Doris Ray Porter, survives, as do two daughters, six grandchildren, four great-grandchildren, and his sister.

Categories Class Notes | 2010sPosted on

CLASS OF 2014 | 2015 | ISSUE 1

The class of 2014 continues to kill it. Here’s what they’re up to:
Jessica Titlebaum is gearing up to attend Michigan State college of veterinary medicine—class of 2019.

Jeremy Judelson writes, “I am working at Mass Appeal magazine and have put on lots of weight since graduation.”

John Steel is working at a pharma startup in Westchester, N.Y., with a bunch of other Wes alums including Hannah Plon. Very exciting and thrilling company (currently focused on women’s health, as well as sports nutrition and diabetes).

Henry Cheung just finished his first year of teaching in the Bronx through Teach For America and is enjoying the summer by conducting fascinating clinical research at Bellevue Hospital. Next year, he will be leading his school’s geometry and precalculus departments, spearheading in the creation of the curricula, training new teaching assistants, and guiding new teachers joining the department. In addition, he is expanding his organization, Equal College Guidance, to aid the juniors and seniors in both SAT math and the college admissions process.

Laura Getchell and Kevin Hughes worked at a company called OPENPediatrics, which is sponsored by Boston Children’s Hospital. OPENPediatrics is an online digital learning platform that provides open-access educational resources to clinicians worldwide. The mission of the program is to build an international community of clinicians sharing best practices from all resource settings around the world through innovative collaboration and digital learning technologies. Through their website, clinicians can access academically rigorous and peer-reviewed content, including expert medical educational videos, interactive device simulators, protocols, and medical calculators. They currently have users in 125 countries. To those pursuing a career in medicine, particularly in pediatrics, this is a wonderful, free resource. Their website is openpediatrics.org and anyone who is a medical student can register for a free account to gain access to all of their content.

Joshua Krugman now lives in Glover, Vt., where he works for the Bread and Puppet Theater, a political puppet theater, and hangs out with Hailey Sowden ’15, who works at a local sheep dairy and orchard. He often sees Leah Frost ’05 at Couriers or the C&C, local grocery stores, and at the Bread and Puppet farm. His poems appear in summer issues of Osiris and Matter Monthly.

Matt Leibowitz writes, “I’ve been spending the past year building my own organization, Consent is So Frat, which works to make consent and healthy relationships part of what it means to be a fraternity brother or sorority sister. We currently have campus representatives on almost 50 campuses and are working with the White House’s “It’s On Us” campaign as an official partner to develop Greek specific programming. I’ll be speaking on the “It’s On Us” Panel in D.C. next month at the Make Progress Summit, which will also include Senator Gillibrand, Senator Cory Booker, and Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi. I hope to connect with other alumni doing great work in this field!”

Katherine Clifford spent this past year working at the UCSF memory and aging center as a clinical research coordinator. She is now starting medical school this fall at the University of Vermont College of Medicine.

Michelle Agresti and Rachel Rosengard are roommates and have survived their first year in New York, despite their apartment’s best efforts. They are currently looking for a new apartment, and now on their list of requirements, in addition to affordable rent, is no mushrooms growing out of the kitchen ceiling (despite how scientifically stunning it was the first time). Michelle is working as an actress, attending acting school, and has a variety of jobs, including being a zombie. She just wrapped filming on a series of short films that she created with a fellow actor, and the crew was all Wesleyan! If you have any contact with her on the Internet, you’ll hear about it. Rachel assists in PET/MRI brain imaging to study schizophrenia and substance abuse. Trained in phlebotomy, the quality of your veins is one of the first things she’ll notice (and love) about you! Off the clock, Rachel volunteers at a nonprofit bookstore cafe.

Simon Riker writes: “I’ve spent my year since graduation working as a freelance musician, mostly in the theatre. I have worked on two new musicals as an assistant and orchestrator. I’ve played keyboard for New York regional theatre productions of Sweeney Todd and The Little Mermaid. I work as a music director at the Play Group Theatre in White Plains, N.Y., and as assistant music director for the Summer Theatre of New Canaan. Me Prometheus, my caveman musical, was produced at William and Mary in April and my co-writer and I are currently rewriting it and looking for its next opportunity to run.”

Categories Class Notes | 2010sPosted on

CLASS OF 2013 | 2015 | ISSUE 2

Hello, All! It has been two years since the Class of 2013 left Wesleyan. We’ve embarked on journeys near and far, collected master’s degrees or are enroute to becoming PhDs, changed jobs/lives/cities a few times, and we’ve stuck by each other through it all.

Chantal Ferguson, Suzanne Gallo, and Emily Wolcott are just about to move out of the Jolly Rogers house they have shared for the last two years. Emily and Suzanne are getting their master’s in social work and Chantal is starting her MD/PhD at UMass. They are frequently visited by local classmates including Thomas Kassel and Andrew Perlmutter. Current pastimes include competitive knitting, basket weaving, and soup-making competitions. Weekends are often concluded with team bowling and all-you-can-eat Chinese buffet. If anyone is visiting Boston, the Jolly Rogers crew would love to have you at their new digs close by.

Trevor Michelson will be representing the United States in the lightweight single sculls at the 2015 World University Games in Gwangju, South Korea in July. Randy Linder is working at Capital Group in Los Angeles. Bennett Kirschner started a small theatre ensemble/Vietnamese pop-up in New Orleans called the Cobbleslop Group. Their first production, titled Feast & Crime, went up this past March and was a resounding success. Their next production, titled John Locke Schmidt: The Unforgiven Betrayal of a Close Friend will be in mid-August at a small art gallery, and he would love it if any and all Wesleyan grads could make it!

Joseph O’Donnell is over half way done with a thru-hike of the Appalachian Trail, which spans 2,189 miles from Georgia to Maine. He is fundraising along the way for Hike for Mental Health, an organization devoted to promoting mental health research and hiking as a therapeutic activity. To follow or donate for mental health, visit psychhikes.com. Chloe Lalonde and Ceili Brennan are hiking the Pacific Crest Trail the summer. As of this message, they are on top of Mount Whitney! 766 miles out of 2660 down. They are also wearing their Wesleyan Cross Country T-shirts and repping our alma mater.

Ross Gormley is starting an MFA program this fall in creative nonfiction at UNC Wilmington. Before he enrolls, he is traveling out West on a trip made entirely possible by Wesleyan friends—many thanks to them. Sarah Cassel will be beginning a master’s degree in criminology at the University of Cambridge, U.K., in Oct. Ever since participating as a writing tutor in Wesleyan’s Center for Prison Education, she has become passionate about working in the intersecting field of prison reform, rehabilitation, and racial justice.
Last year, Lia Monti moved into a historic home in Brooklyn Heights built in 1834 by Walt Whitman’s father (with help from young Walt). She graduated this May from Columbia University with a master’s in postwar Japanese art history. Janet Cushey moved from Seoul to NYC in August of 2014 to begin a position as an investor relations associate with a small firm that works with oncology and drug development companies. Anna Swartz is living in Bed-Stuy, writing for The Dodo and looking forward to some scenic drives through good ol’ Connecticut this summer. Walter Rodriguez started a new role this year in global procurement at Pfizer, where he’s been since graduating from Wesleyan. His daughter, Adriana, just graduated from kindergarten this June. He is looking forward to many summer weekends in NYC with her at parks, zoos, aquariums, and gardens. She loves taking the train from New Jersey.

Taran Catania has spent the last year in Washington D.C., working for an international bird conservation organization. Previously, she spent a few seasons in the field catching migratory shorebirds in Delaware Bay. She loves D.C., but does not love the Red Line metro. Evan Okun is now a central leader of Circles & Ciphers, a restorative justice organization or young people of color who are court and gang involved. This coming August, the organization will hire Cherkira Lashley ’15 to start a branch of the program for young women. This past May, Cherkira and Evan brought Circles & Ciphers to Wesleyan to facilitate conflict resolution circles with various groups on campus. One such circle focused on rebuilding community between residents of fraternities, Women of Color House, and Open House. Evan Okun has also brought with colleagues and Wesleyan alumni together to release an album, Well Lit LP. The debut music video can be found on YouTube: E. Oks—Beez (ft. Ash Frost). More music, articles, and poetry can be found at E-Oks.com

Chelsea Goldsmith has an update from the 410: “Cassie Liu came and visited me. The rest of you are still in trouble.”

As for myself, I’m continuing to enjoy the spoils of the Bay Area and am about to hit my two-year mark at Apple. Still making my way through SF gastronomy and exploring the world whenever time permits. Thanks to everyone for writing in and best wishes to all my classmates!

Categories Class Notes | 2010sPosted on

CLASS OF 2012 | 2015 | ISSUE 2

As another cohort of freshman begin to make Wes their new home, it is time to reflect on the adventures our 2012 classmates!

Zachary Cuong Nguyen and Mari Sahakyan both chose to attend UC Berkeley-Boalt School of Law last fall and have been roommates ever since. As their 1L year came to a close, they set off for their summer jobs; Mari was at the US Attorneys Office in San Francisco and Cuong spent the summer at the SEC in New York. Mari writes, “I am very lucky that one of my best friends from Wes is also in the program with me…and so live on the Wes connections!”

Mari continues her praises with another Wes alum, “Possibly the kindest and most-grounded individual from our class (and someone I am very lucky to call my friend) is finishing up his master’s in just about a week at the Tufts Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy!” I know we can all share in a round of applause for Justin Pena; we fully expect to hear about your accomplishments in the news.

And continuing the Wes connection overseas, William Miller, Nica Latto, and Phillip Ross have been living in Prague, Czech Republic, for the past two years. Will and Phil work for dueling social media marketing companies, while Nica teaches English and teaches people how to teach English. Recently, Nica began organizing trips throughout the Czech countryside, Phil settled down with a cat and a car, and Will completed a treacherous drive to Mongolia. They spend their free time gallivanting around Europe and would welcome a visit from any other Wes alumni!

Nathan Mackenzie recently returned to the U.S. in Nov. 2013 after working with Shining Hope for Communities in Nairobi, Kenya, since graduating. He has moved back to his home state of Colorado and worked for two nonprofits in Denver focused on local economy and local food economy work. Since July 2014, Nathan has been a part of El Pomar Foundation’s Fellowship program, which is a two-year leadership development program in Colorado Springs.

And back to my stomping grounds in BK, Lila Rachel Becker has finally settled in Brooklyn with all the many other Wes alums after living in Maine, Mass., and D.C. Lila directs plays professionally, most recently at The Flea and in the Source Festival in D.C.! She is thrilled to collaborate with cello wizard Mel Hsu ’13, who is composing and recording music for one of the plays. Outside of the rehearsal room, Lila works as a grant writer at BRIC.

As for me, I am rounding out my fourth year in the Big Apple, and hope to see and hear from many more Wes alumni. Wishing the class of 2012 all the best in all their endeavors!