Tag: 1957

Summer highlights and high life for Lois and Bill Shepard comprised an extensive lecture cruise to Scandinavian and Baltic ports aboard the impressive-sounding Brilliance of the Seas Baltic out of Harwich, U.K. Ports included Copenhagen, Helsinki, Oslo, Stockholm, and St. Petersburg, the last featuring a visit to the Peterhof. One nice surprise was the city of Tallinn. Bill recalls his stint as a Baltic desk officer during his State Department days, yet never visited Estonia until now. He also commented that he picked up on some anxiety there over Russia-Ukraine. Estonia was a former SSR. I guess history is never that far removed. Back in the USA, they were in Michigan in August at a granddaughter’s wedding in a lakeside setting.

Closer to home and not that distant, Mike Stein and wife Jasmine made trips to James Madison’s home, Montpelier, near Orange, Va., and also to Monticello, where a new visitors’ center awaits those touring Thomas Jefferson’s home. He adds that they both appreciate living in an area rich in American culture. Coming up on their list are Civil War battle sites, including Bull Run, very nearby their home. Some of those are on the bucket list of yours truly, so I’ll be interested in Mike’s forthcoming reports.

With this column largely dealing with summer pursuits, it strikes me as how transitory the season is, now that colder days have arrived. Like a line from a Paul Simon song: “July, she will fly, and give no warning to her flight.”

Talk about filling “the unforgiving minute with 60 seconds worth of distance run” (Kipling—I was always taught to acknowledge quotes in English 1-2), Gordy Wilmot reports on his family’s annual sleepover party for nine grandchildren, ranging in age from 6 to 25. All manner of sleep equipment is trotted out: beds, mattresses, sofas, loveseats, and so on. Games included football, Uno, and Twister (yes, really). Late night rewards included pizza at one a.m. For those able to rise early, Marilyn cooked a pancake breakfast. Readers of the column may recall that Gordy treated his family to a Bermuda cruise last year. Uno and Twister were also played on that occasion. Wow—it sure is good to have the Wilmots as grandparents.

Early this past summer, Joan and I celebrated our 50th wedding anniversary. We took our family, including three grandsons, ages 5, 12, and 14, to the Sagamore resort on the southern end of Lake George. Luckily, the late June weather was cooperative, so all enjoyed a variety of activities such as golf, boat rides, and paddle boarding. Service and dining were exceptional, and they even recently opened an indoor rec center for rock climbing, mini golf, and even a whiffle baseball stadium. The grandboys made good use of it all.

Art Typermass | AGType@msn.com

Some corresponding with Mike Stein—we were remembering Scott Aiken and our Argus days—led to a story dealing with careers, choices, and the like. Mike was positioned to pursue journalism after his Marine Corps stint concluded in 1960. After a writing exam under the auspices of the Charlotte Observer was successful, he was accepted at Columbia Journalism, but couldn’t manage the cost—he said he earned all of $11,000 in three years of duty—so he went to work for the CIA where among other things he served in Vietnam as an intelligence officer and continued in that career. Here, I’ll add my own editorial comment that there’s probably a lot of additional stories in his catalog that would require security clearance for disclosure. Mike stays in touch with Carey Congdon, Bill Daley, and Bob Sharlet. He is looking forward to our 60th.

Bob Gorin writes in with the observation that this year would be ’57’s 57th anniversary, but he stopped short of lobbying for an intermediate Reunion—which is perhaps a good idea, but it’d have to be informal. He reports that his four grandchildren, ranging in age from 6 to 14, are busy in their respective school and sports activities. To borrow a title from a recent movie (which I recommend) The Kids Are All Right and they keep their grandparents young at heart.

Tony Austin is a regular contributor to the column, and he continues with commercial fishing off the North Carolina coast. I wanted to learn more about it from him, so here goes. He left academia in the late 1960s and was a Cape Codder for many years (the Capies call late-comers—that’s anyone arriving after the 18th century—washashores), originally as a lobsterman and then fishing out of Wellfleet, Harwichport, and Chatham. He’s been in North Carolina for 25 years and runs a 34-foot Duffy & Duffy, Ruthie’s Redress, and fishes for black sea bass some 20 miles offshore. Tony has also advised Puerto Rico on development for Vieques (island). He adds that during the Cape years, he tied up next to the owner of the Andrea Gail, the now famous boat of The Perfect Storm, which, of course, was written by Sebastian Junger ’84.

A better book than the movie, in the opinion of yours truly. My house in Chatham is minutes from Tony’s marina on the Cape. Our family has been summering on the Cape for many years, and it’s possible we enjoyed some of Tony’s catch back in the day.

On the literary front lines, Jim Brown alerts us to the recent publication of Mystery of the Mona Lisa by his son, Dr. Chris Brown. There’s a book tour, an expected second printing and, yes, a movie in the offing. The book is part of a trilogy focusing on heady subject matter such as the Shroud of Turin and the Ark of the Covenant. Jim adds that his youngest, Kimberly Stalford ’88, is a psychiatrist and lives in Asheville, N.C. Jim plans a move there next year to be near her family, including three grandchildren.

The West Coast is calling in the form of Allen Jay, who like so may of our classmates is enjoying grandchild-time. Sometimes it feels as though we are going around again, with the added perk of being able to leave when you want. Anyway, based on a heads-up from Sam Bergner, he and wife Ricky looked up Jeff Morgan ’75 and spouse who produce Kosher wines at their Napa Valley winery in St. Helena, which is the kind of town featured in the movie Sideways ( which I also recommend). Allen and Ricky give great reviews for the pinot noir and cabernet choices, which have earned marks in the 90s from Wine Spectator. To validate their review, the Jays purchased cases of the Landsman Pinot Noir and the Covenant Cab. He did not indicate in his note whether or not he intended to share any with Sam. We’ll have to wait and see.

I’m writing this on a grey-toned afternoon in early spring, but with the near future in mind, thus I trust all are enjoying the summer.

Art Typermass | AGType@msn.com
144 East Avenue, #302B, Norwalk, CT 06851 | 203/504-8942

Herb Camp can be found at Okemo mountain these days, where he slaloms and shaloms downhill with reconstructed knees, hips, and a shoulder, courtesy of New York’s Hospital for Special Surgery. Along with wife Alice, he visited Sigma Chi brother Jon Ocksrider and his wife, Susan, in Rhode Island last year. When not on the slopes, the Camps live along the Connecticut shore; children and grandchildren are nearby or in other areas of New England.

Where it is not wintertime this time of year, we find Naren Bali in Buenos Aires, officially retired from a high tech career that comprised teaching, engineering, and management, yet lately continuing with consulting work in related fields. Wife Margarita, with backgrounds in dance and visual arts, is busy with projects in the latter field in B.A. Their daughter and her husband, both professors at Michigan State, visit during the summer season along with their children, ages five and seven

Some Reunion news (do not be alarmed—our 60th is still out there a bit) from Mike Stein and Allen Jay. For Mike, there were two such events: the 56th re-u of his Marine Corps Basic School, and the class of ’53 of Tenafly (that’s in Jersey) High. Mike’s son, Peter ’84, photographs Wes soccer. Allen and wife Ricky attended his 60th high school event in New York City last fall. Shortly afterward, they took all of the Jay family to Hawaii. While in New York, they spent an evening with Sam Bergner and wife Lynn, and then in Scottsdale visiting Ed Mehlman. The man gets around.

The Jack Braitmayers are in Florida this winter, trying out locations on both coasts to see which they like best. An inveterate mariner for many years, Jack reports that his docking facility on Florida’s west coast has closed, so for now the boat stays in Massachusetts, where Jack is looking forward to the summer sailing season. The Braitmayers got to last year’s Homecoming and basked in the joy of Wes capturing the Little Three crown with the victory over Williams. It was the first time Nancy Braitmayer had seen a Wes victory; Jack, of course with his lengthy perspective, can recall glory days of football in Middletown in the late 1940s.

Bob Gorin and wife Natalie also were in attendance at Homecoming along with their grandson. If others of ’57 were there for—dare I say it—this historic occasion, please let your secretary know.

Last September, Gary Rundle died at his home in Waldoboro, Maine. Originally from Meriden, Gary went on from Wes to receive his master’s of divinity from Virginia Seminary in 1961. He served in Episcopal parishes in Dover and Dorchester, Mass., and in Gorham, Maine.

We also lost Scott Aiken in 2013. Scott was my boss on the Argus, and it is largely from him that I have carried a lifelong love for journalism. He had great career success in that field and in corporate communications. I remember Scott as that rangy guy riding a bike all around campus and sporting a baseball cap in the days when they (the caps) were not so ubiquitous. A man ahead of his time.

Gary and Scott are greatly missed. On behalf of ’57, deepest sympathy to their families.

Art Typermass
144 East Avenue, #302B, Norwalk, CT 06851
203/504-8942; AGType@msn.com