Tag: 1961

It is so refreshing to hear of the many exploits and adventures that our classmates have chosen in these times of challenge. For example, when asked if he played clarinet, Calvin “Pete” Drayer replied that he is “totally retired and [living] with my wife in a retirement home. I did not play the clarinet although I took piano and trumpet lessons. More fun was that we had a judges’ singing group and had competitions in three counties. I still play my CD of the Highwaymen and sing along.”

It’s the neglected garage that gained the attention of Phil Rodd. When asked for some recent news, he writes: “News from here? Not so much…Staying at home, growing a beard, and cleaning the garage (which I’ve been putting off for 15 years). Like everyone all over America, some plans canceled or postponed. I was planning to lead a tour of New York people to see Mount Rushmore, but that’s not happening. My stepson’s wedding, which we had planned for July, will be postponed. Other than that, I am enjoying the opportunity to just sit home.”

Russell Mott (AKA Bob Lannigan) states: “My only news is good news. I am not getting married, but for all intents, I may as well be. Two days before my 80th, I met Carol Lessinger of Mill Creek, Utah, and in about six weeks, I moved her to Southern New Mexico to join our family here. I am quite beyond ecstatic about all this and astonished it should occur at this juncture in my life. I am every day in my ceramics’ studio, as I have been for the past 20 years, and that just keeps getting [to be] more and more fun. Here’s a shout out to you, Jon, for all the years you have done this toil about who’s where and done what.”

Peter Funk has checked in with lots of information. “It’s a short story.” He writes. “I moved from NYC to London with my first wife, Lisa, in 1973. We have two daughters who graduated from Wesleyan, Alexandra “Lexy” ’91, and Jenny ’95. In the process, they have continued my deep interest in Wesleyan affairs. Lisa and I divorced, and I married my wife, Jennie, in 1983. In 1988, Jennie and I moved from London to Jersey in the Channel Islands. I have been in the communications field all my working life; film and television production and distribution, broadcasting, and telecommunications. I remain involved with our commercial radio station here in Jersey, but, otherwise, I have pretty much retired to my sailing, tennis, skiing, and traveling, including trips back and forth to the USA to see Lexy and Jenny and the four grandchildren. Assuming our upside-down coronavirus dominated world returns to some normality, I am very much looking forward to our 60th Reunion in 2021. Jennie and I are locked down here on our small island with our fellow 105,000 residents. There are no passenger flights or ferries in or out except for supplies and mail. The incidence of coronavirus is, thankfully, very low as a result. What happens next is an open question as it is most everywhere else in our world.”

Paul Dickson has a new publication out that he claims “is now more relevant [than ever] in that it shows how the nation was able to prepare and mobilize under strong leadership and prepare for a world war, feeling now that a new world war has just begun.” See kirkusreviews.com’s review of The Rise of The G.I. Army, 1940-1941: The Forgotten Story of How America Forged a Powerful Army Before Pearl Harbor.

Sadly, there have been a number of classmates’ deaths. Bob Reiser writes: “Neal Schachtel died in November. We had become good friends over the years, both of us moving to Atlanta in 1971. Neal was diagnosed with leukemia in the summer of 2018, and the doctors could never stop the disease’s progression. Tricia, Neal’s wife, had a luncheon in December celebrating Neal’s life. It was a wonderful testimony to Neal’s generous nature and warm personality.”

Bob continues: “Margaret and I have an active life volunteering. Margaret is on the board of the Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens (the largest public garden in New England, and the second most visited site in Maine, well behind Acadia National Park, but ahead of L.L. Bean). I have the pleasure of serving on the Boothbay Region YMCA board and the Harbor Theater board. In Atlanta, we are active board members of the Alliance Theatre, and I am on the boards of the Atlanta Botanical Gardens and Oglethorpe University. This year I plan to finally retire from Balentine, an investment advisory firm after a 50-year career in investment management.”

An additional announcement is the death of Lou Larrey ’61, MAT ’62 on Nov. 7. He had lived in Falmouth for 46 years. His career as an English professor began in Connecticut, with later assignments in Oregon, California, and Massachusetts. Lou enjoyed singing with local choruses, boating, gardening, travel, and reading.

Please stay healthy, stay safe, and keep writing.

Jon K. Magendanz, DDS | jon@magendanz.com
902 39th Avenue West, Bradenton, FL 34205

“I’ve been meaning to do this for a long time.” writes Alan Bernstein. In addition to finally sending an update to Class Notes, Alan’s many lifetime achievements include 60 years of marriage to his wife, JoAnne, founding a website (tempoandhup.com), which is dedicated to altruism with its implications for public policy, publishing part of a multivolume history of belief in hell titled Hell and Its Rivals, and teaching medieval history for over 20 years at the University of Arizona. Alan lives in Oakland, Calif.

Ernie Marino has been spending time in Guatemala. He writes: “My wife and I, with another Rotarian, initiated a project to help midwives with their growth and development in Guatemala. We received a grant from the Rotary Foundation for $73,000. The money is used for equipment, supplies, and clinical round tables. Eighty percent of births are at home and facilitated by midwives. Two women die each day during childbirth from largely preventable causes. Infant mortality is very high. Malnutrition is rampant. The average person earns two U.S. dollars per day. This emerging country is several decades removed from a proxy war for its mineral wealth and serious volcanic eruptions. Our efforts will take decades to accomplish, but we are off to a good start.”

Al Williams claims that he is now fully retired. Yet, he has immersed himself in singing, writing, physical fitness, and, most enjoyably, “trying to keep track of the interesting and changing lives of eight grandchildren, ages 15-21.” Al adds, “I was sorry to hear from his wife, Camilla, about Lou Larrey’s recent death. He and I were wrestling workout partners at Wes, and have seen each other summers on Cape Cod, where he lived, and we have a summer home nearby. We were at their party last summer to celebrate their 60th wedding anniversary and Lou’s 80th birthday.”

Lew Kirshner and his wife are living in Amsterdam for most of the year. His wife is an English literature teacher and author. With tongue in cheek, I’m sure, Lew states, “It is a good time to be an expat in a sane country.”

As most of you are aware, your class notes secretary attempts to elicit responses from classmates by sending out silly rhyming reminders. Well, Phil Rodd sustained the rhythm by replying in verse:

I’ve given it some thought, Not much going on.
Still healthy and happy.
Thanks for checking in, Jon.

Jon K. Magendanz, DDS | jon@magendanz.com
902 39th Avenue West, Bradenton, FL 34205

A question was posed to the Class of ’61 membership dealing with the future as we all foresee it, particularly in relation to advice for our grandchildren. Emil Frankel provided his predictions as follows: “We don’t have grandchildren (or children, for that matter), but my message to my grandnieces and -nephews and to your grandchildren is one of cautious optimism about the survival of the basic norms and values of American democracy. I wish that I could be hopeful about the quality of their physical lives. The catastrophic risks of climate change and environmental degradation seem irreversible and are already having effects on our lives. It’s hard to imagine how different (and unpleasant) the lives of our grandchildren will be. Sorry to be so gloomy.”

Emil continues: “Kathryn and I are living quietly in Washington D.C. I remain engaged in transportation policy issues, although at a reduced level, as a senior fellow at a small transportation policy think tank here in Washington, the Eno Center for Transportation. I continue to visit Wesleyan two or three times a year for various meetings and to attend the annual lecture on Jewish culture and history that we established at Wesleyan in my parents’ memories 35 years ago. Those lectures are always a source of great pleasure and interest, and provide me with the opportunity to reconnect with Wesleyan friends, faculty, and staff.”

An unexpected response came from Richard Poulton who wrote: “I doubt very much that you will remember me, but I had the privilege of being the Englishman who won a one-year overseas student scholarship in 1957-58, before returning to Cambridge in the U.K. and a lifetime of teaching. My year at Wesleyan was hugely enjoyable and extremely formative; I have been grateful ever since. My very best wishes to anyone who might remember me.”

Travel has played a significant role for a few classmates. Jack Mitchell writes: “Last summer Linda and I took six of our adult grandchildren plus a girlfriend (including Lyle ’16 and Dana ’18) to Australia for two weeks. First Sydney, then diving on the Great Barrier Reef, the rain forest, then Ayres Rock. A dream family fun trip of our lifetime. Three meals together every day. We shared and learned so much!”

Phil Rodd claims: “My wife and I just got back from 24 days touring Norway, Denmark, and Sweden. I wish I had something more exciting to tell you.”

A final comment comes from Pete Drayer: “I have been retired as a judge for three years. We still have our house in the Poconos in the same community where the children of Hank Hilles have a house. We have two wonderful daughters. One of them is divorced, and has two children. Hope things are well with you.”

Respectfully submitted,

Jon K. Magendanz, DDS | jon@magendanz.com
902 39th Avenue West, Bradenton, FL 34205

Russ Robertson described his Vietnam experience as follows: “I spent eight months in DaNang as the head and neck surgeon. After repairing a perforation of the eardrum of a 12-year-old girl, I learned that her father was the head general of South Viet Nam. The following Sunday, I played a tennis match in downtown DaNang with the general. The court was surrounded by four tanks at each corner with four machine guns interspersed between them! Multiple other times were filled with one to two days continuously in the operating room. Most cases involved three teams of surgeons simultaneously working on the same patient—orthopods completing amputations, general surgeons repairing abdominal wounds, and me repairing through-and-through neck wounds as well as multiple facial fractures . . . no sleep and little food.”

Before moving on to other subjects, I would like to insert a few comments regarding my own involvement in the Vietnam conflict. The U.S. Navy offered a program to dental students which fundamentally insured the student a Navy internship immediately after graduation from dental school. I entered the Navy my sophomore year as an ensign, performing basic training at Annapolis the following summer, and then began my internship two years later at St. Albans Naval Hospital in NYC. Normally, the internship would be completed in one year, but I was offered an additional year as a resident in anesthesiology. Upon completion of that unique training pilot program, it was customary to meet with the admiral and determine future assignments. My meeting went something like this:

Admiral: “Well, Dr. Magendanz, have you given any thought to where you would like to be assigned next?”

My reply: “Yes, sir . . . maybe Naples, Italy?” (Silence!) “Or a hospital ship?” (Still silence!) “Perhaps it’s Vietnam? . . .”

“Very good, Dr. Magendanz. That’s an excellent choice!”

So, after Marine Corps training at Pendelton, Calif., I shipped out to Southeast Asia. Oddly enough, I was immediately positioned at a dental facility in DaNang, straddled with the responsibility of training dental corps staff members. After normal work hours, however, I would sneak off to the station hospital OR and put my anesthesia training to use. (My initial dental CO would not tolerate his dental officer “passing gas.”) When the new CO arrived (an oral surgeon), I was quickly transferred to the hospital anesthesia staff, with an additional part-time assignment to the USS Sanctuary hospital ship anesthesia staff. The clinical exposure, the experience and the respect that I gained that year could never have been achieved in the States.

I was later discharged from the regular navy to reserve status as a LCDR, allowing me to return to the States to get my medical degree. Unfortunately, the academic world was hesitant to set a precedent allowing a dental alumnus advanced standing admission to the medical school. Also, hospitals shied away from employing a dentist as an anesthesiologist because guidelines were inadequate and the risk of litigation was high. As dreadful as the Vietnam conflict was, it did, in my case, provide a silver lining on that dark cloud of history, providing me with the knowledge and training to treat apprehensive children and adults for 20 years in my private practice, providing dental care which they would not otherwise have tolerated.

Sadly, my concluding comments address the deaths of Steve Wainwright and Wayne Glazier. Six months before Steve’s death, I received a letter from Steve describing his cancer treatment. Paul Dickson forwarded the following note: “Steve died March 2. Funeral March 13. His obit is in today’s Globe. It’s one of the longest obits, three columns, I’ve seen in the paid obit section, which I cannot find online. Quite a life as an attorney in Brockton and North Easton.”

Responses to Steve’s death include Dickson’s: “Every once in a while it hits me what an odd, talented and unpredictable—to say nothing of motley—crew Jack Hoy ’55, MALS’61 created when he created the Wesleyan Class of 1961.” From Rich Corson: “His obituary brings it all back, Marvelous Marvin Hagler and all! He did have a colorful life.” And Brad Beechen: “Truly one of a kind. Many fond memories.”

Wayne Glazier’s wife Jan provided insight to Wayne’s career, travels, and accomplishments. She said, “Wayne passed away July 14, 2018, after a prolonged and very brave battle with cancer. He was always proud of his Wesleyan connections and kept in contact with Jim Stewart, his fraternity brother throughout the years, sharing holidays in the States, Australia, and around the world, including a house-building project in Cambodia.” Wayne was described as “a quiet, gentle man with high intelligence and integrity.” Family was important to Wayne and Jan. With an MBA from Harvard, an Australian CPA, and a master’s in taxation, he was appointed editor of the Australian Tax Guide, reaching retirement in 2008.

Jon K. Magendanz, DDS | jon@magendanz.com
902 39th Avenue West, Bradenton, FL 34205