Tag: 1959

“It’s weird being the same age as old people!”

     Al Brooks signifies just this separation from our “age group.” The virus eliminated all his 2020 track meets, but Brooksie is determined to keep competing with the youngsters. Though a dislocated shoulder forced him to give up the discus, he is fully focused on the shot put. Closure of his regular gym led him to resurrect his old gym equipment in the basement and he has been preparing for the 2021 season, at 85!

     Dick Cadigan reports something incredibly unusual: “King Berlew ’51 died recently. He was married to my sister Jean. It reminded me that King’s father, Herman Berlew ’21, was captain of the Wesleyan football team in that year, now 100 years ago! My father Charlie was the captain of the Amherst football team in 1927. In 1921, Wesleyan beat Amherst 7–0. In 1927, Amherst won by 20–0. Both men became ministers, one Methodist, one Episcopalian.” Fun special note: John Spurdle’s father-in-law Dick Stauffer played halfback then with Charlie at Amherst! The only game they lost that year was to Princeton, 14–6!

     Staying on the course of athletics, Herb and Ellen Steiner are back for their 14th year in Delray Beach. The weather has been beautiful, says Herb, and they are playing “pickle ball” three to four times a week, and walking a lot. Herb is still playing in two string quartets. They are looking forward to welcoming their 11th grandchild in June . . . wow. That might be a 1959 record! Also finally getting the vaccinations for COVID-19.

     Joe Mallory writes: “Last summer I chose a half dozen areas in which I would like to become reasonably expert. I picked my own sources (books, courses, articles, friends), designed my own exams, administered my own grades, allowing do-overs where needed. No deadlines! Courses were birds (a longtime interest since age 12), botany, cosmology (the very big), quantum theory (the very small), concert music, and philosophy (inspired by Louis Mink’s Wesleyan course, which a number of us took and a teaching company course by Dan Robinson). It was a great experience learning this way, and with my own grading system I have a shot at Phi Beta Kappa!”

     Weg Thomas received a significant honor and was named conservation champion by the McHenry County Conservation Board for his “tireless and unwavering leadership in protecting the environment in McHenry County over many years.” He is known for his distinctive landscape photographs spanning a period of almost 50 years. Hired in 1972 to get the word out about the conservation area, he used his marketing, tracking, and mapping skills to bring the place alive. “We the people, plants, and animals in McHenry County and all the areas you touch with your personal passion are forever grateful. Thank you for standing out and standing up for conservation and the protection of our water, wildlife, and way of life in McHenry County.” Go Weg, Go ’59!

     Ed Murphy reports on his old pal and Wesleyan Fund agent Bert Edwards with an interesting story. Washington, DC was spun off by Congress some years ago. All funding for existing and new pensions was cut off, perhaps inadvertently, but cut off. Bert, as the independent auditor of DC, made such a fuss that Congress came around and sorted out the problem! Good training for his years as our co-class agent!

     Josiah Carberry, our mysterious honorary classmate, former professor of psychoceramics at Brown (per his last note in Issue 4, 2019 of this magazine), has surfaced in Brazil, where he seems to have fled after retirement from Brown: “Though no one in the class has asked for my help lately, highly unusual, in case of any uncertainty, I should definitely use Pfizer.”

     Molly and Skip Silloway are now settled in their new retirement home in Northern California. Skip says the only way to downsize is to do it early. Too much stuff! I think we ought to have a 1959 show of hands on the number of storage bins we have . . . put Spurdle down for five!

     We end on happy and sad notes:

    Dick Cadigan gets double billing. He reports causing some “discomfort” while getting his second COVID-19 shot. He was reading a book given to him by Katie, his Episcopal minister daughter, The Lost Art of Dying, during his post-shot recovery period. Cads, nervous that fellow patients had noted the title, covered it up! Main message from The Lost Art: Be patient!

     On a sad note, John Keeler passed away in February 2021. Our deep sympathy and prayers go out to his wife and best friend Catherine Blunt. We hope Catherine will be part of our class going forward.

“He can compress the most words into the smallest idea of any man I know.”—Abraham Lincoln. 

Not, we hope, dear classmates, referring to your humble scribes, but perhaps casting a shadow over tonight’s first presidential debate! 

Dick Cadigan sent us the following note: “Ned Lemkemeier has been desperately ill with COVID-19, spent several weeks in ICU, four to five weeks in hospital, and two weeks in rehab. Ned is now home and is mending, but walker/wheelchair-bound and 30 pounds thinner. His doc said he was as close to death as any patient he has had. If you’d like to drop him a line, his email is Lemkemeier@aol.com.

News from the heart of Trump country and our “starving artist”  Steve Pyle is good. Steve is still actively painting, and has finished over 80 works. Who knew what hidden talents lurked in our favorite tight end!

Tim Day is ensconced in Jackson Hole and having all sorts of adventures. On his morning bike ride the other day he encountered a dead moose, apparently hit by a car sometime during the night. They are rather large beasts, Tim reminds us city-slickers. He also writes: “Yesterday morning, a large hot air balloon full of tourists got into some sort of trouble and was headed right for our house as a landing spot. Luckily the pilot was able to bring everyone down safely on the lot next to ours!” He adds: “In spite of all these incidents, Jackson is having a mini-boom as people head for the National Parks and the great outdoors.

We live on the west side of the Snake River, about 10 miles from Jackson, so things are quieter here. We are planning to stay here until early October. 

My granddaughter, Sophia, has just started her freshman year at Fordham, near Lincoln Center. We are all worried about her safety from COVID-19, and the waves of protest in New York. I suspect it will be a long time before we have the urge to visit NYC again!”

Charlie Wrubel checks in from a rehab facility after having had a bit of work done on his leg. His recovery is progressing well. He has been most concerned about people who continue to refuse to wear a mask. Perhaps the refusers don’t worry about infecting other people.  Your scribes agree!

John and Cyndy Spurdle are back in New York, not having many adventures, but surviving. They had a delightful stay on Fishers Island for August and early September, and were sorry to have to leave!  While there, they celebrated their 61st wedding anniversary with their children and those grandchildren in town at the time. As Clint Eastwood said: “They say marriages are made in heaven! So are thunder and lightning!” Their ushers included Dennis Allee, Dick Cadigan, and Bing Leverich 

They have three grandchildren now in Montana, one helping Governor Bullock run for the US Senate, one working at the Yellowstone Club as a fishing guide while awaiting return for his junior year at St Lawrence, one granddaughter in Hamburg working and polishing up her German pending university next fall, and English grandson in his first year at the University of Exeter. They are hoping to get to the UK for Christmas, but that is far from a sure bet at this point.

Skip and Molly Silloway have sold their house in Salt Lake City and are on their way to their new home north of San Francisco. They write: “We are in a kind of pandemic limbo as we move into a retirement community in California. Restrictions imposed because of the virus have delayed the construction of our new home. Looks like we might finally move in this October. One does wonder what the longer-term effects of the pandemic will be.  

People working from home and liking it will open up huge space in office buildings.  Retail will never be the same and owning restaurants will be a tougher business than ever.  Colleges and Universities are facing multiple challenges.  The well-endowed legacy institutions of which Wesleyan is one, will likely make it through if well managed.  Our endowment, kick started by classmate Doug Bennet. Is the foundation that will enable Wesleyan to handle any transition, along with strong, continued support by our alumni.  The Great Class of ’59 has been particularly generous over the years. Please don’t forget to help this year, the most crucial ever!

Wolfram Thiemann writes from Bremen: “This COVID-19 pandemic has indeed left a very bad imprint on the whole world. I have had sort of a double quarantine, suffering from the general restrictions imposed by our German government as well as knee surgery, which kept me hospitalized for some time. Survived happily and am now getting my mobility back with strict therapy!  Living here in Germany has kept us reasonably safe compared to New York. We are pleased about ushering in a new presidency on January 20th and looking forward to positive change in 2021. Wen and I cannot forget our wonderful trip to Manhattan and the Bronx just over a year ago in the wake of our wonderful reunion of the Class of ’59! Wen and I send our very best.”

For those who missed it, we had the first ever Zoom call for the Great Class of ’59 on June 30. Those participating were: Tim Day, Bob McKelvey, Skip Silloway, Walter Burnett, Charlie Wrubel, John Spurdle, Tom McHugh, Herb Steiner, Ted and Jane Bromage, Dick and Linda Cadigan, Bob Hydeman.

It was a unique experience organized by Mark Davis at Wesleyan, and a brilliant job of organization it was.  The call was for 6:00 pm and everyone made it.  Terrific fun,even without the pandemic.  You can imagine the strict discipline, organized note taking, etc. Ho Ho! That is where it should remain.  A perfect Wesleyan gathering! 

Don’t forget as well that WE ARE ALL OLD ENOUGH to join the OLIN SOCIETY. Please consider leaving whatever you might have left over to Wesleyan. It is an easy way to do good things via your will and estate plan.

On a terribly sad note, Weg Thomas wrote on July 1:  “Just to let you all know that Peg passed away early this morning. She never recovered from the diabetic coma, but lingered five days after we ended life support. You were all very special to her and meant a lot to her at Eclectic and later at our reunions and visit to Maine. Thank you for being part of her life. Paz Y amor, Weg.”

Our thoughts go out to Weg and the family.

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

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

Greetings to the Great Class of 1959! Your scribes are hoping that you are behaving yourselves and looking like masked bandits. Talking about bandits, the Class of 1960 is again trying to assert that it is the fulfillment of Vic Butterfield’s dream of the “Ideal Wesleyan Class.” A distinguished member of the Class of 1960, not surprisingly, made this assertion. (The final evidence: 60th Reunion attendees for the Class of ’59 was 33; while the Class of ’60 had a mere 29 expressing serious interest).

Bob McKelvey reports that working from home was fun at first but now seems like spending time in a high-class jail. He moved his office off the beach in New Jersey after Hurricane Sandy to a posh location inland, which is now quite useless.

Ted Fiske reports that he and Sunny are safely ensconced in their Chapel Hill retirement community, and he has recently achieved a new first. Sunny produced a pair of scissors and asked Ted to cut her hair. All seemingly went well, but it looks like it was a one-way deal. Ted has developed a new coping strategy. The days of the week are now to be known as “thisday, thatday, otherday, someday, yesterday, today, and nextday!”

Wolfram Thiemann writes, “Since our last visit to our splendid 60th Reunion, the highlight of our lives has been Wen and my visit to Croatia. She left China for the first time in 1989 to study at the Oceanic Research Institute in Split, former Yugoslavia. It proved to be a really nostalgic and warm rendezvous for her. The rest of the time has been spent in Bremen enjoying my extended family of three generations living in Western Germany’s Rhineland.”

Dave Britt cannot hold back! “My creative juices have fled all known jurisdictions and were placed in a blind trust some years ago. So far, the trustees have noted no activity or interest. To report: Nada, Zippo, Snore City—and those are the highlights! I wear my mask and gloves for shopping (it turns out that my cape confuses people). I see people practicing safe distancing, but finding ways to get out safely and be together. Neighbors, friends, family gather round, as we can. Perhaps more important, we’re gaining some human respect and feeling for the folks who help us survive day-to-day, but cannot afford to lose even one hour’s work, and have no safety net, no health care, no financial resources. We ’59ers are certainly fulfilling the ancient and ambiguous Chinese toast ‘to live in interesting times.’ Silent Generation or not, I think we contribute beyond our numbers! ‘Go Wes,’ old man, ‘Go Wes.’”

Molly and Skip Silloway said goodbye to their home in Salt Lake City and moved to a retirement home in Northern California to be near their grandson. “Hope he is looking forward to it as much as we are,” said Skip.

Sandy, Rosie, and Tim Day are doing well in Arizona. Tim said, “Turned 83 on May 10 and feel pretty good for an old fossil! I survived some heart surgery in early March. Sandy (with nurse’s training) has been a saint in keeping us going, and safe. I had hoped to be wise when I reached this age, but wisdom remains elusive for me. I cannot say whether or not it is safe to open the economy, but do know that the virus’s impact, this unforeseen crisis, has been without precedent. In many cases, the losses will be for good, and the ‘new normal’ will be far different than our life in 2019. Our new puppy, Rosie, broke her little leg and was in a cast for seven weeks.” A difficult time in our history, says Tim, but this too will pass!

Reporting from hard-hit New Jersey, Charlie Wrubel talks of Zooming for all kinds of activities, online training, Pilates, Spanish lessons, and family visits. Food deliveries and takeout are keeping the wolf from the door.

Herb Steiner wrote, “We had a mini-Sigma Nu ’59 reunion on Zoom. Present were Bob Waterhouse, Tim Martin, Joe Vander Veer, Bob Mann, and I. Good to be in touch with old friends.”

Dick Cadigan and Weg Thomas have been keeping our spirits up, Dick with the neologism winners from the Washington Post, and Weg with the quarantine edition of “The Longest Time.” Cads is particularly dangerous now, as he has found a new hearing aid that actually works!

Dave Clemens particularly liked “The Longest Time.” “So well done, creative—loved the use of a Lysol container for percussion. In another era, we could have done a rendition by the Spooky Seven (the famous Eclectic octet, a singing group which included classmates Cadigan, Clemens, Spurdle, Moody, Wenner). Such an abundance of creative, humorous, and inspiring videos making the rounds.”

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

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

Greetings to the Great Class of 1959 from your scribes. Surrounded by our election excitement, impeachment games, Brexit about to happen, and Harry and Meghan’s dramatic decision, our news is both normal and uplifting (as usual).

Dick Cadigan gets us started with the following tidbit: “Several years ago, Clint Eastwood, now 89, was asked, ‘How do you keep going at your age?’ Eastwood replied, ‘When I get up in the morning, I just say don’t let the old man in.’” Says Cads, “This is my new advice to myself—you guys, too!”

He also had a stimulating and informative 21-day adventure in November: Hong Kong, Hanoi, Saigon, Ho Chi Minh City, Angkor Wat, Cambodia, and Bangkok. Great lectures and guides. Stayed in the same hotel in Hanoi where Joan Baez stayed in 1972, where she ended up in a bomb shelter! Depressing that the U.S. did not learn enough from this horribly ugly Vietnam War.

Wonderful news: After arduous solicitation by your scribes, Cynthia Rockwell MALS ’19, retired managing editor of the Wesleyan, has agreed to join us as an honorary member of 1959, and adjunct class secretary. Her words say it all: “I am honored and humbled by your invitation. It is clearly the highlight of my career! Whenever you declare the next meeting, I’ll be there. I believe it is the adjunct’s first responsibility to bring liquid refreshment to the deliberations.”

It has been Cynthia’s burden over the past several years to keep your scribes from using off-color jokes or language inappropriate. Now she is on our side!

Walter Burnett writes: “Thoroughly enjoyed the 60th. Like many who have not been back for a while, I was amazed at the expansion of Wesleyan’s facilities. Continue my peripatetic lifestyle with Thanksgiving biking in Beaufort, S.C., Christmas with family in Maryland, New Year’s with daughter in California, spring plans relaxing in Myrtle Beach, and birding in Robbinsville!”

Weg Thomas is at it again with his camera and the latest effort is just brilliant.

Charlie Wrubel is trying hard to wrest away the traveler-of-the-year award from Dave Eklund: “During our 60th, Myra and I went to grandson Benjie’s graduation from Fountain Valley School (son of Rob ’88, MA ’89). He will have a gap-year teaching in Tanzania then on to Lafayette. A Leopard for life! Three London visits in 2019: Son Bill and I for a D-Day trip, grandson Miles in London and Paris, and a fall trip for fun. Bill was there working on a new TV show on English football. Back in time for the Homecoming game against Williams, the most exciting I have ever seen. Go, Little Three Champs! And then Thanksgiving in the California desert with the entire family.” Go, Charlie and Myra!

Dave and Mary Eklund, in the meantime, flew to Singapore, where they picked up a cruise ship for a little R&R, after a mad, spring dash covering graduations scattered all over the East Coast. Interesting Asian trip, but “too many people.”

Herb Steiner remarks on “aging out” of a couple of activities. Is Herb the only one? He is giving up the violin, and the tough first violin parts that he loved, in a switch to the less strenuous viola and has traded in his racquetball racquet for a pickleball one. Pickleball is a gentler game, apparently, not played with pickles. Herb stays in touch with Bob Waterhouse, Joe Vander Veer, and Tim Martin.

Tim Day has received the Thomas A. Richards Memorial Beer Stein Award, a great annual honor. After a quick trip to Harvard Business School to dedicate the new Tim Day Fitness Room, just amazing, down to Quantico for a reunion with the people Tim has put through HBS over the last several years. What an extraordinary achievement. He and Sandy have also found Rosie, a baby black pug puppy, who is the newest member of the family.

Wolfram Thiemann, our most enthusiastic adopted classmate, and wife Wen had a great time at Reunion, and in their later travels to New England, Washington, and Baltimore. It was terrific to see them both in Middletown and we wish them back soon. On their return to Europe, they explored the Dalmatian coast in Split, Croatia.

Owen Tabor and Margaret just returned from a warm week in the islands on a trimaran, with four married children and 11 of 13 available grands, far from the bustling election and impeachment noise, and enjoying the whole adventure in the shade!

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

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