Williams
P E O P L E l S E P T E M B E R 2 01 3
YOU, ME, US, WILLIAMS
OK, so what exactly is this thing, anyway?
It has a fancy name: The Williams College Society of Alumni.
It has a long history: Nearly 200 years, back to 1821.
It has an impressive pedigree: Oldest of its kind in the nation. Oldest of its
kind, in fact, on the planet, so far as we know.
But what exactly is it?
“The Williams
College Society of
Alumni is you.
It’s me. It’s us. And
it’s our relationships
with each other and
with the college.”
—Dennis O’Shea ’77
President, Society of Alumni
doshea55@comcast.net
Well, I could point you toward the mission statement, toward the constitution,
toward the planning process we’re engaged in right now to chart out the society’s
path toward its bicentennial. And all that is important.
But here’s the bottom line: The Williams College Society of Alumni is you. It’s
me. It’s us. And it’s our relationships with each other and with the college.
And it is truly amazing.
From my perspective, just a little over halfway through two years as president,
I couldn’t be more impressed with the society you have built. It’s not that we have
it all figured out; far from it. We know there is much to do to further strengthen our
relationships. We know, for instance, that we can make better use of technology.
We know that we have work to do in ensuring that all of us—no matter who we
are or where we come from—can find a comfortable place for ourselves in the
purple tent. And we know we can do a better job in recruiting and supporting the
volunteers who make it all happen in the regions, in the classes, in the affinity
groups, in student interactions and everywhere there is an Eph connection.
Still: It’s pretty amazing. I love to meet fellow Ephs in Williamstown or visit
them around the country. I love to hear about what they’re up to, to watch them
connecting, to witness deep friendships growing between those who’ve just
graduated and those who graduated, well, less recently.
I love seeing that the intellectual curiosity that brought you to Williams has
only deepened. I love watching you still acting on the instinct to accomplish—the
drive to do well, to do good and to do it together—that got you through your
Williams years. That curiosity, that instinct and that drive enabled you and your
classmates to leave a lasting mark on the college community. They enable you
and your fellow alumni to do the same wherever you are today.
Our job on the society’s executive committee, in partnership with the Office of
Alumni Relations and so many more colleagues and friends at the college, is to
encourage, support and assist with everything you are already doing.
One very recent example: the just-relaunched alumni website at http://alumni.
williams.edu. Take a look: It’s built to help you grow your relationships with each
other and with Williams.
Drill down through each of the tabs at the top: “Connect” with fellow alumni,
participate in “Events,” find out more “About” the society. And, especially,
“Learn.” It’s on that tab where you’ll find lots of food to feed that intellectual
hunger that led you to Williamstown in the first place.
We’ll be adding more learning opportunities soon. And many more opportunities to connect and participate, too. So check back online often. And please let
me hear your ideas, suggestions and concerns. After all, this society is you. It’s
me. It’s us.
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On the Cover
1988 classmates Mark Solan
and Jody Abzug enjoy the
parade of classes during
Reunion Weekend in June.
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131
contents
Alumni Photos
4
Class Notes
8
(including Reunion Scrapbook)
Weddings
130
Births & Adoptions
134
Obituaries
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WILLIAMS PEOPLE
SEPTEMBER 2013
Volume No. 107, Issue No. 6
Editors
Jennifer E. Grow
Amy T. Lovett
Design & Production
Oberlander Group
Address Changes/Updates
Bio Records
75 Park St.
Williamstown, MA 01267-2114
tel: 413.597.4399
fax: 413.597.4178
e-mail: alumni.office@williams.edu
http://alumni.williams.edu
Editorial Offices
P.O. Box 676
Williamstown, MA 01267-0676
tel: 413.597.4278
fax: 413.597.4158
e-mail: magazine@williams.edu
http://alumni-news.williams.edu
Williams Magazines
(USPS No. 684-580) is published in November,
January, March, May, July and September and
distributed free of charge by Williams College.
Opinions expressed in this publication may not
necessarily reflect those of Williams
College or of the Society of Alumni.
Student Assistant
Corbin Chu ’15
Periodical postage paid at
Williamstown, MA 01267 and
additional mailing offices.
Postmaster:
Send address changes to
Bio Records, 75 Park St.,
Williamstown, MA 01267-2114
www.facebook.com/williamscollege
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ALUMNI PHOTOS
Visit http://bit.ly/15MSmOG to learn how to
submit photos for consideration.
1. 2013 classmates (unless noted, from left) Olivia Foley, Lauren Agoubi, Erica Wu, Peter Clement ’14, Alexandra Berg, Alexander
Kopynec ’09, Julia Bender Stern, Jeffrey Reimann, Blair Robinson and Sarah Guillot met up at beach week in May 2012. 2. 1993
classmates (from left) Nicole Moore, Nicole Haynes and Rebecca Dickinson celebrated the 30th anniversary of the Williams
Black Alumni Network in NYC in April 2013. 3. After overhearing the words “beer run” and “Pittsfield” during a cruise through the
Panama Canal, Deb (Claypoole) Anderson ’84 introduced herself to Larry Nilsen ’58. 4. In April 2013, Fred Scarborough ’45 (second
from right) visited classmates (from left) Charlie Pinkerton Jr., Fran Lathrop Jr., Bud Edwards and Fred Wardwell in Maine. 5. Alex
St. Clair ’97 (left) ran into Alex Steinberg Barrage ’97 during a half-marathon in Alexandria, Va., in May 2013. 6. Soraya Membreno
’12 (second from left) joined ruggers Kim Dacres ’08 (left) of the N.Y. Village Lions and (from right) Casey Lyons ’07 and Meagan
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Braun ’12 of the D.C. Furies in NYC in April 2013. 7. After a March 2013 interview with Legal Advocates for Children and Youth,
Nicole Chen ’15 visited Roy Bennett ’67, recently retired from the organization. 8. World Flying Disc Federation President “Nob”
Rauch ’80 (center) was on hand when the International Olympic Committee granted his sports official recognition in May 2013.
9. Leehom Wang ’98 (center) met with Neil Kubler (fourth from left), Williams’ Stanfield Professor of Asian Studies, and students
during a Winter Study trip to Taiwan in January 2013. 10. High school lacrosse teams coached by Chris Parisi ’90 (left) and Jeff
Stripp ’90 battled for the first ever Renzie Lamb Trophy at Mount Greylock Regional High School in April 2013. 11. Kathryn (Rowland)
Meyer ’07 (left) attended Mariana Uribe’s ’07 first profession of vows with the Sisters of Life in Connecticut in August 2012. 12. From
left: Mark Tercek ’79, Lorraine Atwood ’81 and Jim Clemons ’74 met up at a Vermont Law School Board dinner in May 2012.
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ALUMNI PHOTOS
13. 2010 classmates (from left) Julia Reiser, Andrea Park and Annick Benavides met up in Beijing in June 2013. 14. While spending
the fall 2013 semester at Oxford, Diana Davis ’07 (left) spent time with Paige McClanahan Brown ’04. 15. Matt Rouse ’97 (left)
celebrated his 40th birthday in Boston in June 2013 with (from left) Hilary Roberts ’97, Ginny Suss ’99, Eain Williams ’01 and Alexis
Wruble ’99. 16. Will Rathgeber ’07 (left) took a break from teaching in rural Kenya in April 2013 to climb Mount Kilmanjaro with Elliot
Heilman ’07, who was visiting from Northwestern University. 17. Family and friends attending the graduation of Katie Quayle ’08
(third from left) from UMass Medical School in Worcester in June 2013 included (from left) her brother Will Quayle ’12, their dad
Win Quayle ’73, and Williams ’08 classmates Natashia Kadimik, Becky Nourse and Nisi Zhang.
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18. The Levy family (from left) Michael ’12, Carol Miller, Rich ’74 and Rachel ’09 went hiking with Caleb Balderston ’10 in the White
Mountains of New Hampshire in June 2013. 19. Whitey Perrott ’55 (right) celebrated his 80th birthday with (from left) Ted Bowers
’55 and Bill Regan ’55 in Vero Beach in April 2013. 20. Sisters Liza Walsh Keenan ’01 (left) and Ellie Walsh Beasley ’03 and their
daughters, born two days apart, got together in Port Colborne, Canada, in July 2013. 21. The first night of her honeymoon in May
2013, Carolyn Robbs Bilanko ’04 (left) and her husband had an Eph encounter when they were seated next to Chris Muir ’05 (right)
and his girlfriend. 22. In March 2013, NYC area Ephs from the Classes of 1952 to 2011 participated in a Williams Club outing to see
an off-Broadway production of “The Old Boy,” written by A.R. “Pete” Gurney Jr. ’52 (front row, second from left), with marketing
director Abigail Solomon ’92 (fourth from left).
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If your class isn’t listed, please submit notes to Williams People,
C l a s s N ot e s
1936
Richard U. Sherman, 6000 Riverside Drive, Friendship
Village Dublin, The Meadows Room 204, Dublin, OH
43017; 1936secretary@williams.edu
Greetings from the Class of ’36! “Yard by yard
we fought our way...” While most of our classmates
have already begun their heavenly cavorting, five
of us are still here finishing out our work before
party time begins: Leverett Davis, Gerard Langeler,
Joseph Loughlin Jr., John Van Eck and myself. “Cheer on cheer did rend the air...” After celebrating our 70th wedding anniversary, my wife
Jinny passed on last year. She always wanted to get
to the party first. (Remember that 40th Williams
reunion!) Recently I relocated to The Meadows at
Friendship Village in Dublin, where I stay quite
busy. My daughter laughed as I apologized to her
for not calling back for several weeks on account of
my many activities! Speaking of activities, my grandson, named
after my grandfather, VP James Schoolcraft
Sherman, was married on July 20 to Jessie Naderer
here in Ohio. Grandson Sunny Haft ’08 and my
daughter Marion Sherman ’77 were on site to help
celebrate. James works as a doctor of pharmacy
at the VA in Phoenix, and Jessie is studying for
her doctorate in physical therapy. Sunny plans
to become an ENT surgeon and has completed
three years at University of Pennsylvania School of
Medicine, and Marion currently practices psychiatry in Pensacola, Fla. With my PhD in economics,
this makes three generations in a wide variety of
“Dr. Shermans.”
On Sept. 28 I will celebrate 99 years on this
earth, and I have enjoyed every one of them. Best
to you, my fellow Ephs, “For we’ll fight for dear old
Williams, and we’ll win and win again!”
1938
George McKay, 2833 Wind Pump Road, Fort Wayne, IN
46804; 1938secretary@williams.edu
With sincere regret, we report the deaths of two
more classmates: Douglas Johnston and W.W. Keen
Butcher. This brings our class membership to six.
1939
REUNION JUNE 12-15
Karl Mertz, Mangels Ranch, P.O. Box 1509, Aptos, CA
95001; 1939secretary@williams.edu
I’ve volunteered to take over Roger Moore’s job.
Here is recent news: John Ahlstrom says he is retired
with a capital R, but he and Doris are still looking
forward to again renting a house on the beach at
Stone Harbor, N.J. Alex Carroll sends greetings.
He and Marilyn are well. Alex is phasing out of his
responsibilities at the Accelerated Charter School,
which he was instrumental in founding years ago.
Charlie Cleaver reports that sadly he has given up
golf, which he used to play two or three times a
week, but he makes up for it with walks with Pat.
Bruce Burnham reminded me that we were both in
D Entry Sage. His latest woodworking project is
a grandfather clock. I wanted to include an update
about our class president Jim Burns, but when I
tried to reach him I learned he had the flu.
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P.O. Box 676, Williamstown, MA 01267 or magazine@williams.edu.
If you are interested in serving as class secretary, please contact
the Alumni Office at 413.597.4151.
Before I volunteered to take over the secretary
job, Harry Gotlieb submitted the following directly
to the editors: “When I opened the Williams People
of May 2013 and turned to the class notes section, I
was unhappy to see no listing for the great Class of
’39. This is not your fault, but ours, since we failed
to find a replacement for our late, faithful scribe,
Dr. Roger Moore.
“While our surviving class members have become
a precious few, we want to be remembered for some
things. For one, Jack Sawyer, who became president
of Williams College, was a member of ’39. Nationally known Bernie Auer and James MacGregor
Burns are included.
“We were the right age for involvement in
WWII, in which 10 class members died.
“My brother Alan (Harvard ’41) was one who
died. I am writing this letter on Memorial Day.
“For me, Williams ’39 has meant several lifetime
friendships: George Allen, Max Berking, Jim Burns,
Alex Carroll, Jack Cooper, Dave Simond and Jack
Whiting, of whom only Alex and Jim survive. My
life has been enriched by being a member of ’39.
“Jean and I celebrated our 71st wedding anniversary on May 23.”
1941
Pete Parish, 350 East Michigan Ave., Ste. 500,
Kalamazoo, MI 49007; Wayne Wilkins, 240 South St.,
Williamstown, MA 01267; 1941secretary@williams.edu
The top of our news? Who else but our valedictorian! Allen Senear reported his apologies for not
getting back to reunion this year. “It’s a long trip”
from Seattle, he claims, but in the next breath he
records a remarkable year of travel in ’12: a week
in Southern California in February, two weeks in
France in April, several weeks in July/August in the
Baltic states with “side trips” into Russia, concluding with two weeks back east for a family wedding
in the autumn.
Perhaps his decision to “end international travel”
is related to what air travelers frequently encounter.
Example: “Somebody in Wisconsin had severed
a buried cable, putting all of Alaska’s computers
country-wide out of use” as the Senears began a trip
from Seattle. Clerks reverted to “a new technique,”
the telephone. Good story, Allen.
Jim Fowle too wrote as reunion time for the 3s
and 8s rolled around with his good wishes to anyone
attending from ’41. He was absolutely right predicting the presence of Frank Bush and Audrey. I had
the privilege of sitting with them in the front row
at the annual Saturday meeting of the Society of
Alumni. Indeed, we were asked to stand (generous
applause) for being the oldest alums present.
Back to Jim and his suggestion of “Progeny
Statistics” competition as a method of encouraging
communications for the notes. He suggests our late
classmate Dick Lovell as the leader: 12-12, grandchildren and greats. Jim records “a laggardly 5-0.”
The Wilkinses do a bit better: 5-3. I’m sure Pete
Parish is competitive, but we’ll save that for our next
report. How about all of you: alums and honoraries?
These reports from Allen and Jim take me back
in memory to our commencement on June 16,
1941, when each gave an undergraduate address:
1936–42
James Warren Fowle, “The Williams Temper,” and
Allen Eugene Senear (the valedictory) “What of the
Future?” I’m impressed: three mentioned in these
notes were magna cum laude graduates, and Allen, a
summa! They provide impressive longevity too.
Via telephone conversations I can report that Tod
Blodget and Margie are fine, and Charlie Ferguson
is continuing his painting, possibly our most productive classmate. Local informants who know of
his golfing skills report they are still top notch. He
was captain of the golf team, you remember, in our
undergraduate days.
I report the sad loss of two classmates. David C.
Twichell died on April 24, 2013. Dave spent the
five years after our graduation as a Naval pilot in
WWII. He subsequently received a master’s degree
in education and zoology from Yale. The next 25
years, in his words, were spent in secondary school
education, including 10 years as headmaster of the
Pomfret School and five as head of the Thacher
School in Ojai, Calif. His final teaching days were
spent at the Buckingham, Browne & Nichols
School in Cambridge, Mass., where he became head
of their new middle school from 1971 until 1976.
He was always a stalwart supporter of his college.
I was struck by two phrases in his obituary: “He
gave his service in countless ways to many,” and he
followed his own advice “to leave the world a better
place than you found it.” He was 95.
Edgar J. Nathan III died in his own home in NYC
on April 30 at the age of 93. We in Williamstown
had last seen him when he and wife Ruth attended
a minireunion of 1941 in the fall of 2009. His oldest
son Arthur Nathan ’73 died in his sophomore year
at Williams. His nephew Fred Nathan Jr. ’83 is a
trustee of Williams. Edgar served four years in the
Army Signal Corps and the Air Force, ending as
a captain. He earned his law degree from Yale and
became an assistant district attorney in New York
County. He began private practice in 1951, something he enjoyed throughout his active years. In his
biographical sketch for our 50th reunion he note,
“For the past 23 years I have been the president
of Congregation Shearith Israel, the Spanish and
Portuguese synagogue, which was founded by my
ancestors in 1654.”
News anyone?
1942
Thurston Holt, 4902 Willowood Way, Norman, OK
73026; 1942secretary@williams.edu
On Aug. 22, 1851, the yacht America outsailed
the entire British fleet in a race around the Isle of
Wight, off Cowes, southern England. The nearest
British yacht to her, Aurora, finished eight minutes
after America. Although the 100 Guinea Trophy
she won was put up by the Royal Yacht Society of
England, it was renamed the America’s Cup in her
honor, and this series of races held every three years
became known by the same name.
Hello, dear reader. So you think you know the
Williams Class of 1942? Then which member
made it to the America’s Cup Hall of Fame?
Welcome. Parking in rear. Answer within.
Bill Sammons, class agent, reports, “Not one
college class (in the current reporting) has as many
honorary members supporting the Alumni Fund
as does ’42. That speaks very well for early ‘decision
making’ and for our resourceful Liz Hannock. ”
Jack Greenland and his wife Margaret have
been happily married for 64 years. They live in
Westgrove, Pa., in the southwest corner of the state
almost touching both Delaware and Maryland. Jack
vividly remembers how, while he was a Navy deck
officer in WWII, his heavy cruiser USS Savannah
captured and sank a merchant ship off the coast
of Italy and, later, when the Germans bombed his
ship, 200 lives were lost. After the war he joined
Kaiser Aluminum and became a regional sales
manager in the Philadelphia area.
He has collected antiques and been a hospital
volunteer. Jack enjoys reading. Also his family: The
couple have two children and four grandchildren.
Son Niven, specializing in music composition,
is head of arts at Eastern University. Son-in-law
Richard Cooch ’70 is a Superior Court judge.
Jack and I fondly recalled comedian Jimmy
Durante with his “Everbuddy wants to got in the
act, da nose knows,” singing, “Who will be wit
you when I’m far away?” and always at the end
of his act, thanking the audience, wishing them
goodnight, then gazing stage left, calling, “And
goodnight, Mrs. Callibar, wherever you are.”
Jacqueline Egan told me about her career in
speech therapy. She specialized in helping young
children. “They would understand what you were
saying,” she said, “but you couldn’t understand
what they were saying. Helping 2- or 3-year-olds is
easier than helping 4-, 5- or 6-year-olds.”
When Bill Wulffleff told me he is caring for his
wife, “even doing all the grocery shopping,” his
voice had a ring of devotion. He and his Irelandborn wife Joanne live in a high-rise apartment in
Atlantic City, N.J., and were spared the fury of
Superstorm Sandy. “I’m glad to be taking care of
Joanne because I think of all the care she gave our
children,” Bill said. The couple have been married
56 years and have three grandchildren and one
great-grandchild.
Growing up in Long Neck, N.Y., on Long Island,
Bill was maneuvering a sailing canoe when he was
6 and an 18-foot sailboat later. His father had a
32-foot cruiser. In addition to sailing, Bill became
fond of fishing—surf and deep sea. He said, “My
brother owned a sailboat, and we angled for sailfish
off the coast of Florida. It was just for sport. They’re
not edible. We threw them back in.”
Bill’s career was with Interlake, a Chicago-based
steel company. He was a Philadelphia-area sales
manager for their packaging equipment. In 1942
the U.S. Air Force called Bill up a month before he
was to graduate from Williams. “Because of that I
resigned from the Class of ’42 on April Fool’s Day
so I could have about a month of leisure before
reporting.”
Bill flew B-25 bombers. Equipped with radar,
bombs and depth charges, their mission was to
harass and destroy U-boat submarines.
After WWII, despite his missing his final two
months, Williams awarded Bill his BA degree.
In 1929 Jack Sutphen and his family had just
moved to Larchmont, N.Y. His mother was looking for something to keep her 9-year-old son busy
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for the summer. A notice in the paper told about
the Larchmont Yacht Club junior sailing program,
a six-day-a-week class four blocks from where they
lived. Turned out to be just the thing for a love of
sailing the rest of Jack’s life.
Five years later Jack was experienced enough
(and more importantly the right weight) to be
asked to crew in an international dinghy race, U.S.
against Great Britain. The British brought two
Uffa Fox 11 dinghies to Larchmont to race two
Nick Potter dinghies, Consternation and Confusion.
Racing out in Long Island Sound, the U.S. boats
were better in the choppy seas that developed both
days, so they won.
Then it was on to Williams. Jack described his
experience: “Other than enjoying Williams I
accomplished very little during my one year of college. I did make center [captain too] on the freshman hockey team and was on the sailing team,
but the only real accomplishment was marriage to
my childhood sweetheart, Jean. In view of the fact
that our marriage lasted over 50 times longer than
my college career, it is obvious who deserves the
credit.”
In 1942 Jack was working in a shipyard in Rye,
N.Y., running a small tugboat that moved 110-foot
wooden barges that the yard was building for the
Army, when a lieutenant in the U.S. Air Corps
came looking for young men to run Air Sea Rescue
boats. Jack signed on, and after quick training
became skipper on an 85-foot crash boat. He
and his crew of six patrolled most of the Gulf of
Mexico. Hundreds of B-17 and B-29 bombers flew
over, and the crash boat would be below the flights
in case one ditched.
After the war Jack joined sail maker Ratsey &
Lapthorn and later became VP.
His wife Jean, who was a swimmer, became U.S.
women’s national 200-meter freestyle champion
during their engagement. She shared Jack’s enthusiasm for sailing. The couple enjoyed racing their
Scorpion in the summer and their Rum Dum in
winter “frostbite” competition.
I have so much of Jack’s story that I’d love to
share. If you want to receive it, please be in touch.
It’s too lengthy to print here, but I’d be happy to
send it along. Jack did make America’s Cup Hall of
Fame. Sadly, he died March 24, 2013. Somehow I didn’t get the sad news of the death
of Romeyn Everdell until I saw his obituary in the
May ’13 issue of People. Then, two days before
submitting these notes, I found out our beloved
president Fred Rudolph had died.
1943
Bill Brewer, P.O. Box 289, Galesville, MD 20765;
1943secretary@williams.edu
Submitted by outgoing secretary Malcolm MacGruer:
Greetings, classmates, and best wishes from friends
who were at the ’43 70th reunion in Williamstown
in June. Our get-together began on Thursday,
June 6, when we had dinner at Dodd House (Old
Williams Inn) at a table marked with a tall ’43
sign. Fortunately the college provided vehicle
transportation to Dodd House, as did several of our
classmates.
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While there were 17 people representing the
fabulous class, the majority of them were friends
and family of classmates of ’43. I feel compelled
to report the attendance of four fabulous alumni
who constituted a quorum for class business.
Our honorable alumni present were Fred Nathan,
Bill Brewer, Walt Stults and McGurk MacGruer.
Among family members were Fred Nathan’s wife
Fran and their son Fred S. Nathan Jr. ’83 and
his family, Walt Stults and his wife Jean, and
McGurk’s son Duncan and grandson MacKenzie,
daughter Amanda and her husband Bob.
Friday there was an Ephraim Williams Society
breakfast (attended by invitation), seminars and
good food at the Dodd House for lunch and dinner. McGurk attended the breakfast affair.
Before dinner Friday evening the class had a
meeting attended by all. A report was made on
the condition of the college, the ’43 Scholarship
Fund, Williams’ need-blind admission policy and
other matters pertaining to the management of
the number-one liberal arts college in the USA.
Following discussion of college matters, nominations and the election of class officers took place.
The slate of candidates had the following names:
president/class agent, McGurk; class treasurer, Walt
Stults; class secretary, Bill Brewer. The slate was
unanimously elected following a request by Fred
Nathan to learn if our secretary pro-tem Amanda
MacGruer Davis had studied math and could count
all four of the votes.
The college sponsored a cocktail/dinner affair at
Dodd House attended by all classes whose year
of graduation did not end in 3 or 8. Those classes,
except for ’43, were having their own dinners.
During the reception, ’43 members were privileged to spend 20 minutes in conversation with
Williams’ great new president, Adam Falk, a brilliant and most personable man.
As dinner was concluding in the big dining room
four waitresses carried in and brought to the ’43
table an enormous (enough for everyone in the
room !) square, thick, chocolate cake, decorated
and with an inscription bringing best wishes
on the 92nd birthday of your class president!
Embarrassment prevailed.
On Saturday we participated in the Alumni
Parade, driven in top-down sports cars—MG,
Austin Healy, Morris and Triumph. Our cavalcade
followed the Williams Reunion Jazz Band on its
flatbed truck and was preceded by a ’43 sign-carrying Alumni Office staff member to the Chandler
gymnasium, where we were seated in the front row
to enjoy the entrances of other classes, one with a
bagpipe band. (Do you remember ’43’s 50th? That
started something!) After the presentation of all
the cups and awards we went to Lasell Gym for the
Joseph’s Coat luncheon and enjoyed seeing a post50th alumnus being given the Coat for outstanding performance as chosen by the alumni and the
college. At the head table were Brooks Foehl ’88
(secretary of the Society of Alumni), Wayne Wilkins
’41, Pete Peterson ’48, Fred Nathan, McGurk, and
wives and family. Wilkins, Peterson and McGurk
had previously been awarded Joseph’s Coats.
Saturday’s dinner was at the Williams Inn, cocktails (you pay) and a fine dinner with singing by
1942–45
an alumni group composed of alumni who were in
small singing groups as undergraduates. Wonderful!
Sunday was pack-up day and head for home after
a splendid weekend with family and friends—old
and new.
And don’t forget that the Alumni Fund will be
getting under way in a matter of weeks. You’ll hear
from us about that!
1944
REUNION JUNE 12-15
David Thurston, 2001 West Rudasill Road, #8312,
Tucson, AZ 84704; 1944secretary@williams.edu
I learned that Milt Prigoff shattered his upper left
arm. I hope to have progress to report next issue.
Also, I’m sorry to report that we lost another
classmate. Hank Hunter passed away in July. An
obituary for him will appear in the next issue.
I hope to have lots more to report next time.
Please share with me your news and updates.
1945
Frederick Wardwell, P.O. Box 118, Searsmont, ME
04973; 1945secretary@williams.edu
Fred Scarborough and wife Gay suggested lunch
in Kennebunkport, Maine, on April 19 and thus
Lucy and Charlie Pinkerton, Bud Edwards, Betty
and Fran Lathrop, the Scarboroughs, and Ann and
Fred Wardwell gathered for lunch and a lot of talk.
It was a great time, the view of the beach and ocean
dramatic, and flattering pictures were taken.
From Patricia Burton, assistant director of donor
relations, via Stu Coan, I received nine thank-you
notes from students selected for 2013 springsummer ’45 World Fellowship financial support.
The fund we started has now grown to about
$12 million, with the income withdrawn for the
program limited so that the fund more than keeps
up with inflation. The subjects to be studied are
somewhat mind-boggling; to wit: Palestinian experience in Germany, especially the Holocaust and
1972 Olympic massacre; economic development
of Uighurs in Xinjiang province in China; study of
agriculture and food distribution in South America;
comparing war memorials in Japan as part of a
thesis on the remembrance of the WWII Pacific
War; micro-finance in South Africa; the experience
of Italian Jews in WWII Italy; study of victims
of political strife in Guinea; and mobile media
as it affects information sharing and government
relationships. Wow!
Don Bishop is carrying an oxygen bottle around,
but this is not the first time he has been on O2. He
navigated transports around in WWII, spent time
in the Aleutians and, with wife Betty, produced four
kids, one whom is at home keeping them there.
Stu Coan has not slowed down, although he and
Mary are relieved to have Yale Medical announce,
after several months of testing, why he lost weight
he felt he would rather keep. It appears there is
a satisfactory treatment for whatever the cause.
Stu spent Reunion Weekend in Williamstown
and was hugely pleased. He and honorary ’45
John Chandler were the only ’45ers in attendance,
perhaps because the inclement weather kept Gil
Lefferts and others away. In any event, the awarding
of Joseph’s Coat and other events were totally
satisfactory.
Jim Draper, still very much in the physics business
at the University of California, and having sailed a
lot in the past, was closely following the America’s
Cup trials in nearby San Francisco.
Ted Lincoln is still publishing his real estate
newsletter in Florida but says it is not easy and that
it, along with keeping his lawn mowed, takes most
of his time.
Dick Morrill’s three daughters induced him to junket to Darien, Conn., for his birthday, and a party
of 35 made merry (included were a few classmates’
daughters). From there he went to Denver, and
thence to Silver Plume, where he boarded the vintage passenger cars on the Georgetown Loop narrow gauge railroad at 9,500 feet elevation, served
by a 1923 Lima Shay steam engine, restored at
the cost of $350,000 and fitted with vertical steam
pistons. The Lima Shay, designed and patented by
Dick’s great-grandfather in 1881, was able to haul
loads up and down very steep grades and became
the workhorse of the lumbering industry. The Shay,
with the worldwide acknowledgement “Nothing
works like a Shay,” was the foundation of the Lima
Locomotive Works, Lima, Ohio, a very successful
company.
In November Dick went on the National Review
post-election cruise to the Caribbean, where featured speakers included Bernhardt Lewis, Norman
Podhoretz, Midge Decter and Roman Gann.
Rounding out the year, Dick proceeded to Ft.
Lauderdale to attend the meeting of the National
Investor Relations Institute. He was one of seven
founders, and at the meeting attended by 1,300 of
the 3,500 members he speechified to a standing ovation and was declared “The First Fellow”
of the organization. His reaction was that’s what
you get for being the oldest of the three still living
founders.
Jay Mueller has lived in Anchorage, Alaska, since
1948 without regrets. He reports no income tax,
and the state even sends money from time to time.
He has always worked in and with computers.
Ted Murphy had just finished bowling a game on
Wii, which is apparently done through a gadget
box hooked to one’s TV and which responds to the
way you swing your arm. He wouldn’t tell me his
score but said you can play golf, tennis or whatever,
all without getting a sunburn. Ted flew P47s in
WWII, and I told him that William Manchester
and Paul Reid, in 10,050 pages about Churchill and
the war, only once mentioned P47s. Ted quickly
pointed out that Churchill never had much to do
in the Pacific, and that was where he flew. Ted and
Shirley live in Rockville, Md., in an independent
senior living development.
Bob Ward died in March and his obit follows in
the rear of this publication; however, Bob Jr. sent
me a nice note saying that his father pretty well
died with his boots on at home, being happy with
the way things were going with his liver cancer
up until the last three days. He also said Bob
attributed his considerable professional experience
to Williams and said he often recited poetry and
passages from the classics, but that they came from
Williams, not subsequent study.
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Fred Wardwell seems to be able to keep eight
beehives alive, the grass cut and to sail his iceboat
for 16 days last winter. As class secretary he has
to report on those classmates who failed to make
it through June. With 10 members, the list seems
unfortunately too long: Al Bonynge, Bob Cope, Art
Dodge, Dick Raffman, Dick Palmer, Bill Snyder,
John Ward, Bob Ward, Walter Wilmot and Bill
Wilson. Obits will appear in this or future issues.
1946
Bill Shellenberger, 4031 Kennett Pike, Wilmington, DE
19807; 1946secretary@williams.edu
One of the true pleasures of this job is to
receive phone calls (my no. 302.656.0459) and/
or to get mail (email: wdshell@aol.com) from
classmates. Also, this prompted me to read fully
our 50th reunion book (thankfully saved, through
two address changes, by my dear wife Barbara)
compiled by editors Gates Helms, Dick Debevoise
and Harry Earle. They did a wonderful job. It’s well
worth reviewing. Quite a few members are no
longer with us, but the accomplishments of all are
quite remarkable.
Hearty thanks to the 24 of 49 living classmates
who responded to my request for news. There were
five more responses from wives or widows—so glad
they keep in touch. Several returns were from those
not heard from in years. They will go in first.
The list of all who responded: Jake Abrahams,
Wells Adams, Norm Birnbaum, Irv Clark, Dan Case,
John Cleveland, Harry Davenport, Gene Detmer
(wife), anonymous, Dick Debevoise, Larry Heely, Pat
Higgins, Tom Hyndman, George Kuwayama, Bob
Lessor, Bud Morrow, Howard Sachs, Dick Schneller,
myself, Don Stone, Wally Thompson, Irv Van Woert,
Bill Wenzel and Rolf Wyer.
Widows who wrote: Art Brown’s Jan, Earle
Brown’s Rita, Jerv Brinton’s Toni, George Peiper’s
Barbara and Lew Scheffey’s Joyce. I see Alison
Bradford and Roz Dupont and get Christmas cards
from Leigh Beeman and Judith Whitley.
Jim Wilson of Keene, N.H., died in ’85 and his
wife in 2009, according to their daughter.
Bill Carl’s widow Billie reported he had moved
to ’45.
Obit: Manvel Schauffler attended Williams
before entering the Navy in WWII. He was a
member of Theta Delta Chi. Postwar, he graduated
elsewhere and became an acclaimed independent
school educator in Portland, Ore.
Don Stone was the first to contact me, a real treat
since it’s been several years since we were last in
touch. Like Dick Debevoise and myself, he was in
the combat engineers in the ETO, assigned to the
British army throughout the Bulge. Don, as his
father before him, was a successful financier on
Wall Street for 51 years. Now he enjoys fly-fishing
for tarpon and his four children and six grandchildren. His daughter Amy Stone ’75 was the first
daughter of an alum to graduate from Williams,
and her daughter Emily Stone Tucker ’03 was the
first daughter of a female graduate to, also, graduate
from Williams.
Sam Fuller called next. He recently had a knee
replacement but, unfortunately, got an infection. As
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he wrote in his bio for the 50th reunion, the Naval
Reserve, his family tobacco business and all the
various banks for which he worked have deep-sixed.
He wrote his own paper for some years in Suffield,
Conn. In his questionnaire response, his favorite
activity now is reading on his Kindle. Still drives
day and night, but no reunion due to the knee.
Jake Abrahams wrote that he was in
Williamstown on Oct. 12, 2012, for his granddaughter’s wedding (Lily Gray ’07). She is the
daughter of his son Peter Abrahams ’68. Jake
states he is “surprisingly well—no medications.”
(He must avoid doctors.) He still has his 30-foot
sailboat, which he still handles by himself in good
weather. Spends two hours every other day in the
gym, on the bike and pumping iron. Winters in
Port Charlotte, Fla. He adds that his grandson Jake
Abrahams ’14 finished his junior year and is on the
golf team and is a Gargoyle. Congratulations, Jake.
Dentistry and Canada certainly agreed with you.
Yes and yes to driving. Reunion doubtful—fall is
busy.
Rolfe Wyer of La Jolla, Calif., writes that he
graduated from Williams in September 1944, when
very few of our starting class were still around.
Checking on three of them, for a previous reunion,
two were dead. He has severe health problems—
cancer twice and hydrocephalus of the brain. He
reads and walks with a cane and doesn’t drive at all.
In March Bob Lessor wrote a long letter to our
president, praising Gates Helms. He gave up law a
few years ago and now is pursuing commercial real
property. He has a portfolio of such in Connecticut,
New York, Pennsylvania and Florida. Says that on
the letter date he is closing his Fairfield office and
moving it to Sarasota, Fla. He has a condo on Long
Boat Key plus a lovely house in Weston, Conn.,
with a pond and a waterfall. He invites all classmates to visit either place. Answering the questionnaire, his favorite activities are “stamp collecting,
betting on the horses, reading.” Re: health, “Doesn’t
want to hear about them.” Still drives, “but slower,”
no nighttime. Yes to reunion when in Connecticut.
He is near enough to NYC to regularly attend
the ballet, NY Philharmonic and the museums.
Appreciate that update, Bob.
Wells Adams has a new address: 3003 Gulf
Shore Blvd. N., #304, Naples, FL 34103-3912. He
spent his freshman year at Trinity but joined the
Williams Class of ’46 after the war, graduating in
’47, as many of us did due to summer courses. He
lost his wife Grace, his companion of 64 years, in
December 2011, “requiring much adjustment.”
Regarding health, he writes that an abundance of
pills “scares away most threats.” Reading his bio in
the 50th reunion book provides a lot more info. He
was a B-24 navigator in WWII, a POW in Sagan,
Poland. He and Grace traveled the world, had a son
who graduated from Williams. Wells flew his own
plane until 1996, and much more.
John Cleveland wrote that he saw Pete
Vanderhoef in Houston a few years ago. He was
fraternity brother of both of us—did only that one
’42 summer semester with us before joining the
Army Air Corps. He was a B-17 pilot, flew 25 missions and was shot down twice, awarded the DFC.
When seen, he had a crippled leg due to a horse
1945–48
accident. He invited John to have lunch with him
and his friends, George and Barbara Bush. Pete
was a classmate of George’s at Greenwich Country
Day—and Pete had dated Barbara as a teenager.
John writes his health is excellent—he follows a
“blood type diet” so with O neg. blood eats mainly
red meat, some yams, raw vegetables and fruit, no
processed food, drinks only water and red wine,
sleeps all night. Cataract surgery on left eye twice,
and now macular degeneration in right eye. Says we
are lucky—modern medical miracles like cataract
surgery (incorrect—cataract surgery was done with
thorns several thousand years ago) and Viagra came
along at just the right time for us. He last skied on
his 85th birthday at Vail. Has written an article
explaining what the country needs to do with its
monetary and tax problems, but no one will publish
it. Reads mysteries, or any good book. Two divorces,
four children, four grandchildren. Has lived in New
Orleans the past 13 years in a wonderful relationship with a world-class kinetic sculptor named
Lin Emery. Left eye vision good, so drives day and
night. No reunion—too remote personally and
geographically.
Gene Detmer’s wife wrote that he has had two
strokes in the last 12 years. The second, a major
one, left him needing full-time care and with
dementia. I called her, hoping to speak to Gene,
but she wasn’t sure he would know who I was. His
grandson Brad Lidge was the Phillies’ outstanding
relief pitcher a few years ago and is going to retire
as a Phillie in August.
Pat Higgins responded succinctly that he had
“lots” of health problems. Reads, no driving. He
lives in a retirement home in Buffalo. I called, and
he sounds well. Says he’s still able to be up and
about.
The last for this issue is George Kuwayama. He
writes that he has attended several Williams events
in LA and says, “I am definitely a fossil.” Amazed
to see so many Williams women. Re: health, he
says he’s still alive. “Exercise helps, and lots of pills.”
(Heard that and do that, before.) Has discovered the
stock market, which he finds very time consuming.
Drives day and night. Re: reunion—3,000 miles, but
he’d think about it. He was the curator of Oriental
art at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art.
In WWII he was a member of the 82nd Airborne
Division. Read more in the 50th reunion book.
Not knowing the future, I’ll give you some local
history and serendipity of the Wilmington, Del.,
area. When I first came to Wilmington in 1952
to join an established older doctor, three members
of ’46 were here: Joe Bradford, Wally Thompson
and Bernie Felch. Joe and Alison were both from
old Wilmington families; they were very kind to
me, introducing me to many. After I married four
years later, we often played mixed-doubles tennis
and dined. They were among the first to come to
Stonegates, a retirement community where we now
live. Alison is a few cottages away, and we see each
other often when she is here.
Wally and Kitsy (she was my date at football
weekend, left in Wally’s care when I had early
curfew as a team member) were my first patients.
Their son Brad was born shortly before I had my
Delaware license and so was cared for by my older
partner. All three of Wally’s sons attended primary
school in what has become the aforementioned
Stonegates.
Bernie was teaching art, and I cared for his first
family. As a legacy here, he built an artistic brick
wall, which can be viewed at the Delaware Art
Museum. He was a good friend of another artist,
Bake Roll. The latter’s sister, Ruth Kauffman, lived
in Wilmington, and her family members were
my patients. After Bernie’s divorce, he and Roz
Dupont lived in an old de-sanctified RC church
in Landenburg. Roz and Wally occasionally dine
together since their spouses passed.
John Egan was the last of the Wilmington
five to arrive. He was the first hematologist in
Wilmington, setting up a still-going group. He
was an excellent bridge player, a not-so-excellent
golfer (we played together as equals). Here’s the
real serendipity—his son was the surgeon on
call for the ER when I arrived in agony with an
incarcerated sliding esophageal hernia in December
2000. He operated and saved my life. Recently, his
daughter Bonnie joined the law firm where my son
works, and she works with him in the family law
department.
Remember Bob Olcott? Shortly before his death,
he and Jessie moved to nearby Chadds Ford, as
their daughter Lois Price worked at Winterthur
Museum, where she is now the head conservator.
My wife Barbara is still a guide and does special
tours there.
I’ll have more the next issue, but keep writing,
calling or emailing.
1947
John C. Speaks III, 33 Heathwood Road, Williamsville,
NY 14211; 1947secretary@williams.edu
1948
John A. Peterson Jr., 5811 Glencove Drive, Apt. 1005,
Naples, FL 34108; 1948secretary@williams.edu
Our 65th reunion began Wednesday, June 5, and
concluded Sunday, June 9. All formal affairs were at
Dodd House (the former Williams Inn), except for
the Saturday evening banquet at the Williams Inn.
All current class officers agreed to remain for the
next term: President George Kennedy, VP Davie
Maier, Treasurer Don Markstein and Secretary Pete
Peterson.
Reunion attendees: Arthur Arditti with Alison,
Adrian, Edward, Eric, Evan; Rhett Austell with
Carol; George Couch with Lis; Walter Croen with
Lila; Harry Dewey with Jane; Arthur Dodd with
Yvonne; Marilyn Ellingwood; John Glore with
Nancy Heer; Richard Gray; Alfred Hammond with
Betty Shaver; Philip Hoff with Joan; Theodore
Holsten with Lydia; Don Markstein with Judy;
Richard McElvein; Alexander Orr; John Peterson
with Sandra; William Rutter with Geraldine; Chuck
Smidt with Martha; Helen Smith; Gerald Teran;
John Wilson; and Paul Leighton with daughter and
daughter-in-law. So, final tally: 20 classmates plus
Marilyn Ellingwood and Bunny Smith.
The weather for the first couple days was typical
Florida style (plenty rain) but broke just before
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the Saturday parade began and continued sunny
through Sunday. You have heard my thoughts in
the past re: my belief that 1948 became a class
through reunions. WWII messed up our lives/
schedules, and we missed the traditional (normal?)
college life. Each reunion seems to have brought us
closer together as a class. To all who helped make
our 65th a winner, THANKS. Some remarks from
a couple classmates who could not attend:
Rich Persoff: “For years now I’ve enjoyed your
reports on our classmates—wish that reunion was
possible this year for us. In mind’s eye I see us
moving out sharply with our inadequately sized
or well-worn straws and blazers of unmandatory
but appropriate colors, and will check the weather
channel to see what it’s like for you all in Billville
this Saturday. Ann and I stay thankfully well, but
travel inconveniences and the blood clot hazard of
long periods sitting have shifted travel way down
our list of desirables. Glad we got to see so much
of this wondrous world when we did. Right now
I’m looking over the lake past our newly landscaped meadow, watching the new peaches ripen
and listening to Shubert’s Trout Quintet. For the
thousandth time I’m overwhelmed by my gratitude
for my freshmen music appreciation class with Dr.
Nin-Culmell, which has been the route to countless joyous moments. Which I never would have
predicted, sharpening those cactus needles in the
library listening carrels 60 years ago! My forever
thanks to whoever on that long-ago curriculum
committee decreed that even science students take
humanities!”
Ralph Goetzenberger: “Unfortunately I had to
cancel coming to our 65th. As you may know my
dear Elfrida passed away on April 4 after battling
Alzheimer’s for many years. However, I was still
planning to come; but now a new problem has
erupted requiring my staying pretty close to home,
at least for now. They call it cervical arthritis, and
my right shoulder and neck is in pain much of the
time, particularly at night. I start a course of physical therapy this coming Friday. My greetings to all
my surviving classmates. Will be thinking of you
all on the reunion days. Hope to make the 70th!”
Lastly, two more deaths to report: Ed Trumpbour
on April 17 and Buck Jordan on May 5. Buck and
I had a long phone conversation on our mutual
interest in trains and railroads just a couple weeks
before his death. We send our condolences to their
respective families.
One goof-up on my part: I never followed up
with the college’s photo schedule, and to my
knowledge, we never had an official 65th picture
taken. Mea culpa.
As reunion chair, I especially want to thank our
Williamstown rep, Bunny Smith, who really put
things together for us. Without her efforts our
65th would not have been as successful.
Hang in there, group, and I hope we can all be
together at our 70th in 2018.
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1949
REUNION JUNE 12-15
Chuck Utley, 1835 Van Buren Circle, Mountain View, CA
94040; 1949secretary@williams.edu
Jim McClements reported that Steve Sondheim
’50 came to Delaware early this year for a speaking
engagement where he and Jim were able to have
an enjoyable conversation. Their friendship dates
back to the summer of 1948 when Steve, Jim
and Dave Bennett ’48 drove to Pasadena to visit
Pete Hoagland ’48. Jim added that he expects to
be a great-grandfather by now, and that his twin
granddaughters, Anne McClements ’16 and Becky
McClements ’17, are both at Williams following in
the footsteps of parents Bill McClements ’85 and
Susan McClements ’85.
Ed Maynard has been rooting for his granddaughter Lucy (daughter of Dan Maynard ’83) to
become another Eph. According to Ed, “She is
a bright girl who was offered several top school
choices and made the somewhat misguided selection of Stanford over Williams. I still have two
‘grands’ that look like good Williams prospects but
will have to wait two or three years to see if my luck
improves.”
Alec Clement commented about a very rough
spring: “Wife Carolyn suffering from a muscular thing that has rendered her incapacitated is
improving, however slowly. Both sons had spinal
surgery within a week of each other, and my daughter had a rotator cuff done. My two granddaughters
from Va., plus their father and son-in-law ran the
Boston Marathon. My daughter was waiting for
them at the finish line and got blown off her feet by
the explosion—too close for comfort—fortunately
no injury. We hope for a better summer and some
visits to Tanglewood and the Berkshires.”
Our resolute class agent Oren Pollock sadly wrote:
“My wife Anita (mostly known as Sam) died May
7 after many years of chronic leukemia. Many
members of our family were with her at the end.
Before Sam’s death, we welcomed our first greatgrandchild into the world, Eleanor Gray Matteson.
For me, there were more than 30 wonderful years.
Many reunions, major and minor, were a very
happy part of our lives.” And classmates far and
wide will share memories of great times with Sam
and Nero on those occasions.
David Waite reported on his active musical life in
Grand Rapids: “There’s little news when you are 87
( July 1) and living in an assisted living facility. But
a Father’s Day program here was developed around
me. My oldest son, John, read a Father’s Day poem
and then introduced the program: ‘Piano Melodies
For Your Pleasure with David G. Waite, Ed.D.’
One of my songs was ‘You Must Have Been A
Beautiful Baby (’cause baby look at you now).’ A
very attractive private duty aide of mine stood
beside the piano as I sang the song to her—to
the applause of 40 to 50 old folks in the audience.
We also read the Lord’s Prayer to the audience
together—she each verse, followed by my interpretation of the meaning. My life was largely involved
with Christian counseling to poor people, working
with handicapped people and teaching in three colleges or universities. Although confined to a walker
or wheelchair now, I find useful activities by acting
1948–51
in an encouraging role to the lonely and limited
residents with whom I reside.” Congratulations for
all of your good works, David.
Giles Kelly is deeply into the role of grandfather.
“This past June, Lauren was the first of my five
grandchildren to marry.” Giles admits, “It was a
big deal to be the grandfather of the bride. It was a
splendid black-tie affair in Washington, D.C., with
much dancing afterward. Then, with that behind
me, I went to work preparing for a one-man show
of my water color and oil paintings opening in July
at the Ingleside Gallery at Rockcreek in DC.”
Nancy and Ron Chute have completed their
move to Chester, Vt., from Washington, Conn.
Ron explains: “Our son Dave, a builder, has added
a 2,000-sq.-ft. addition, Vermont-style, to their
weekend house. We rented for a year while it was
being built after selling our ‘1774 house’ in Conn.
We’re still unpacking; finally gave up looking for
dishes buried somewhere in the three storage
containers and bought place settings at Walmart.
My knee won’t allow me to ski, but Dave, his wife
Monica and four young kids are dedicated skiers
in winter. We may find somewhere warmer then.
Nancy has moved carloads of her plants from
Washington and is planning borders and continuing her involvement in the garden world. We
welcome visitors to this pretty part of the world:
494 Main St., Chester, Vt. 05143.”
1950
Francis J. (Jack) McConnell, 1155 Wildwood Lane,
Glenview, IL 66025; 1950secretary@williams.edu
Your new secretary and wife Lynn celebrated
St. Patrick’s Day a day early with Joanie and Tom
Healy and Sandy and Doug Coleman in Tucson,
Ariz. Instead of the traditional corned beef and
cabbage, we enjoyed pork tenderloin and my signature Mexican corn (white and yellow corn, peppers,
grilled onions and bacon bits). Tom, after multiple
surgeries by Royer Collins and his team (hip and
knee), is a new bionic man and is doing well. Doug
continues to complain about loss of distance with
his golf game. My only wartime experience worthy
of mention involved a chain letter circulating in
the Seventh Army where I was stationed during
the Korean conflict. I wrote a letter to Seventh
Army HQ pointing out that the letter violated
several Army regulations. This caused a directive
to be issued terminating the letter just as my CO
and sergeant were about to cash in. Needless to say,
I was not very popular with them, but I was very
popular with my fellow privates who were being
pressured to sign on.
I had a note from Charlie Schaaf reporting that
Ellen and Pete Thurber had visited them in their
new condominium in Edmonds, Wash. Charlie
and Gail moved there to be closer to their three
daughters. Charlie also mentioned that he and
Stu Robinson played an epic tennis match, which
they called a draw after six games apiece (no tie
breakers). Coach Chafee refereed the match from
above. Because of the distance he missed several
line calls. John Brinkerhoff sent me a photo taken
by Barry Benepe at the 1948 Winter Carnival. It
shows John going off the ski jump at Sheep Hill
(very good form). John was out-jumped by Per
Smith, a Norwegian student at Amherst, but they
both out-jumped the landing area, landing in the
transition area. Had they gone any farther they
likely would have broken their ankles, if not more.
John still skis, but on the water in Florida. Our
president, Stan Roller, talked with Stu Duffield. Stu
mentioned that he enjoys fishing in Wyoming with
Dunc McDonald and Leigh Perkins. Tom Hodgeman
and Mary will be attending the wedding of their
granddaughter Eliza Davison ’06 in August. Eliza is
her class’s president.
I would like to pay tribute to our retiring secretary, Kevin Delany. Kevin, as many of you know,
had a distinguished journalism career with CBS
and ABC news. In 1973 he was made director of
news for ABC’s Washington bureau. He directed
the day-to-day coverage of the Watergate period,
including the impeachment hearings and Nixon’s
resignation. In March 1975, Kevin returned to
Saigon to cover the fall of South Vietnam, from
which he was evacuated on the final day. Following
retirement, Kevin headed his own crisis management firm. Kevin and Joan remain active in
Georgetown civic affairs.
1951
Gordon Clarke, 183 Foreside Road, Falmouth, ME 04105;
1951secretary@williams.edu
For those classmates who are not National
Geographic subscribers, the cover of the May 2013
issue shows a photograph of an infant, sandyhaired, blue eyed, staring directly at the camera
lens. The caption over the photo is, “This baby will
live to be 120.” My copy arrived during the week of
April 8. What a timely reminder that Ruth Anne
and Wally Bortz were due to run in the Boston
Marathon on the 15th. As background, they seem
to have completed 53 traditional marathons, with
another 17 in their plans. To those figures we
should add Ruth Ann’s two 100-mile completions.
The day before the Boston Marathon, Wally
addressed the Natural Running Center; there is
nothing like a speech to warm one for the long
run. Following are quotes from Wally’s post-race
and bombing email to friends. “Ruth Anne and I
were on the course when lightning struck … 4 p.m.
… I, on Heartbreak Hill, five miles from finish …
(she) still a ways back … police tape proclaimed
that Boston was shut down … here we were with
miles yet to go before we could sleep or shower
or beer … but alive … a bit tarnished but still full
of optimism… A BOMB! What the hell did that
have to do with a marathon, or sanity or anything
else that was rational?
“Now it was six hours after the starting gun. …
Three-plus hours since the winners had finished …
until BOOM!!... The whole world shook a bit…
I had never … carried my cell phone on a run
… common sense had prevailed … my phone at
the ready … virtually no information available to
help the 300 or so yet to finishers, collected at the
Newton City Hall … fine mayor and hundreds of
helpmates covered us … concern … generosity …
pizza, Oreos abounded…
“Phone call to RA’s sister, who lived five miles
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away… By 7 p.m. … evacuated from the route…
Had we have been of even average pace … would
have been bloodied with the rest of the 22,000
finishers… Almost zero information available …
restless sleep … 3 a.m. cab to hotel at the periphery
of the no-entry zone in Boston... SWAT team
… armored cars … machine guns … hundreds of
freedom’s guardians at the ready to ensure that Paul
Revere’s ride had not been in vain…
“Take-home lesson: It is sometimes better to
be a tortoise than a hare, particularly when there
is blood up ahead!” Editor’s Note: Wally’s report
prompted me to Google “Perils of Pauline”; the
report makes more gripping reading!
Jeanne and Chuck Halleck have celebrated their
43rd wedding anniversary and were pleased that
the family was featured on the cover of the May
Williams People. As this is written, they will be
packing for a visit to children, grandchildren and
two great-grandsons in Washington, D.C.
If People were a regular broadsheet paper, we
could have an “Arts and Literature” section for
this issue. Pete deLisser writes that he will soon
publish On the Pier in Piermont—100 poems with
color photographs. For his 80th birthday, his family bought him a solid bench, which rests on the
mile-long pier that juts into the Hudson River
near his house. He writes daily. Titles such as “A
Conversation with a Seagull,” and “Do You Know
Moss Reflects the Sun?”
Pete keeps in touch with Bill Rodie, Pete Fisher
and Stu Duffield ’50 and attended Bill Sperry’s
funeral service. On Memorial Day, Pete read
“On Flanders Fields” at the Piermont parade and
program. As a veteran, it triggered memories of our
classmate and roommate Bill Anderson, RAF flying
officer, who died many years ago as a test pilot.
Joe McElroy concludes his report of what is happening currently in his very busy life by writing, “I
thank my work and my family and friends (many
new, young friends, too) and in my cloud of unknowing maybe inscrutable powers as well, for health,
curiosity and the additional stresses of a supremely
interesting life.” That “life” includes: a son, recently a
college graduate, who has opened a recording studio
in Manhattan, is attracting clients and already has a
record out on iTunes; Joe’s wife, Barbara Ellman, is
readying an out-of-town show with 100 paintings
and over 100 drawings; Joe’s ninth novel, Cannonball,
published in mid-June, as well as a reprint of his
1971 Ancient History with introduction by Jonathan
Lethem. Joe covers lots of ground in his report, and
there is one topic that, to me, is especially significant.
He writes: “New England Review is running a brief
section of a nonfiction water book I’m at last completing this year. I’m speaking June 14 in the New
York PS1/MoMA ‘Speculations’ series. My subject,
a global ethic for water arising in part from science
and the arts. I went to India last September-October
on a research inquiry into flood control projects in
Mumbai. Some e-books available now.” Editor’s
Note: I wish I could have been in New York to hear
Joe speak; he is touching on one of the half dozen or
so areas that are likely to influence all lives over the
next hundred years.
Next, we come to a note from a classmate
who invokes his right to privacy, saying twice,
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“confidential and privileged information” and
claiming to be “the first person who was dropped
from Corrective Comp since 1803.” It takes all
kinds.
Al Schlosser (“one putt” to those who receive his
emails) writes that he and Jackie attended memorial services for both Jon O’Herron and Bill Sperry,
where they joined Brad Purcell, Stu Duffield ’50,
Ellen and Dick Siegel, Joe Callahan and Pete
deLisser. A note from Patrick Graham reports that
he and Eric Showers had a nice visit with Jon a few
weeks before he died.
Dottie and George Dorion organized a very
successful luncheon for alumni in the Ponte Vedra
area, attracting attendees from as far back as the
Class of 1944. The speaker was Statistics Professor
Dick De Veaux, whose topic was “Data Mining:
Fool’s Gold—Or the Mother Lode.” He made
a difficult subject amusing but, then, that is to
be expected from a man who in his spare time
performs with a doo-wop group, “The Diminished
Faculty.”
Tad Jeffrey writes that, in celebration of 62 years
of a happy marriage, he and Nancy are installing
“Nancy’s Folly,” an indoor swimming pool attached
to their house. He observes that the pool is likely to
cost about five times what they paid for the house
50 years ago. Editor’s Note: Bravo, Nancy! Most of
Tad’s classmates can hardly get into the shower let
alone jump into and climb out of the pool.
Dick Siegel writes that his cataract surgery result
was “beyond my fondest expectation” and that his
recent back treatment “has relieved the worst pains”
and he is “no longer walking like the hunchback
of Notre Dame,” and he is looking forward to the
tennis season. Editor’s Note: One of the uplifting aspects of this assignment is that, even though
there are fewer and fewer of us still standing, we
keep looking up and ahead rather than back and
down!
What better way to wrap up than to recount
the report from Don Gregg, who has now added a
class of West Point seniors to his teaching résumé,
which already includes several January sessions
at Williams. The following is excerpted from a
letter he wrote in April to the Board of the Pacific
Century Institute of which he is chairman. At a
dinner following a talk by Col. Cindy Jebb, head of
the Department of Social Sciences at West Point,
Don noted that she wore paratrooper wings and
“told her that (he) had gone through parachute
training, under alias as a young CIA officer, in
1951. We then had a hilarious conversation about
what had scared us most and discovered that the
three-week course I went through 62 years ago is
totally unchanged. Perhaps as a result of that conversation, Col. Jebb invited me to … speak at West
Point, an invitation I was delighted to accept.
“I had last spoken at West Point in the mid to late
1980s. … I found the academy then still to be under
the dark shadow of Vietnam—faculty saddened
by the number of graduates … killed in a war they
thought should never have been fought … curriculum … still seemed to carry great emphasis on past
battles … and how they had been won or lost…
“Things have changed greatly since then. The
Department of Social Sciences now offers 65
1951–52
courses—philosophy, cultural anthropology, economics, history, political science, intelligence and
policy, terrorism, international security issues …
many other related fields. The motto of the department is ‘humani nihil alienum,’ meaning ‘nothing in
the human condition is alien to us,’ adopted in the
last 20 years—clearly since I had last spoken there.”
In speaking to 25 senior cadets, the colonel
“hoped that I would raise issues that they might
not hear about from other guest speakers: speaking
truth to power, terrible consequences of torture and
when to break the rules.
“The cadets, male and female, were impressive
physically and full of purpose—sizing me up the
minute I walked into the room … not at all deferential … word that comes to mind is ‘formidable.’
… Their questions—penetrating, particularly those
dealing with my story of breaking the rules as a
CIA officer when I protested torture by the Korean
CIA when I had been told not to … resulted in the
firing of the KCIA director and his replacement
who … specifically forbade further torture.
“After my talk, several cadets came up to talk with
me. One young man said, ‘I don’t think I would
have the guts… You risked everything.’ I replied,
‘I decided that how I felt about myself was more
important than how the CIA felt about me.’
“I left West Point deeply impressed by all I had
seen… At a time when many Americans are disappointed with Congress, skeptical about integrity or
lack thereof along Wall Street and appalled by the
influence of the gun lobby, it is good to be able to
think of a key institution like West Point, which,
through its constant efforts to stay attuned to the
world as it is, produces such magnificent young
leaders…”
Earlier, Don wrote of the students he had met, “I
am deeply gratified that both Williams and West
Point are attracting young people of their stature
and background.”
1952
Alec Robertson, 3 Essex Meadows, Essex, CT 06426;
1952secretary@williams.edu
After quite a cold and rainy spring, warm weather
finally appeared in late May. Judy and I looked
forward to going on a Williams trip around the
Black Sea in July with John Hyde and hoped for a
lessening of the unrest in Turkey, as Istanbul was to
be our takeoff and return port of call.
Jane and President Bill Missimer informed me
that spring had “finally sprung in the foothills of the
Berkshires, and the blueberry bushes are demanding attention. … We were delighted to hear of Doug
Foster’s Alumni Fund award in recognition of his
years of faithful and effective service. Hope to see
many classmates at the ‘mini’ in early October.”
Betty and Howard Martin stated: “No overseas
travel this year. Just three weddings of grandchildren this summer! It is a bit much for the set of
parents to whom all three belong. We are thrilled
with the new in-laws, but since all three will be ‘Big
Fat Greek Weddings,’ even we as grandparents are
slightly overwhelmed.”
Bob Riegel wrote that he and Keren had a great
but hot trip to Thailand and Myanmar. “We
discovered that April is the hottest month of the
year there. The great Irrawaddy River was down to
a few feet deep from over 30 feet during monsoons. We saw thousands of the many pagodas and
Buddhas and had a small boat trip for 11 days on
the river called ‘The Road to Mandalay.’ Keren still
does some counseling and training of counselors.
Occasionally I will take services at churches where
the rector is away or sick. A few times the cathedral
has asked me to help with funerals and other
services. I discovered, as perhaps many of you have,
that retirement takes away patterns of living and
meaningful work. But I am beginning to enjoy it.
Sorry that I don’t get back for reunions.”
Don Martin stated that he and Jacquie will be
sorry to miss the minireunion, as they will be in
Spain. They want to make sure they can attend Pete
Gurney’s play at the Flea, as they think that is a
great venue.
Frank Olmsted is very active and not retiring. “I’m
on the Judicial Administration Section Council
and the Special Committee on Voir Dire of the
Maryland State Bar Association, and I also serve
on the State Code Revision Committee. They are
fun. Most of the others on these bodies are smarter
that I, so being on the committees gives my mind
the exercise it needs. We have five black cats. They
are sweet. The eldest belongs to our neighbors, but
she likes to be petted, and have her kittens, at our
house. The neighbors don’t mind. The other four
are her kittens.”
“About this time last year we were gathering
in Williamstown for our great 60th reunion,”
recounted Fred Goldstein. “What a wonderful
weekend, and what a great job the reunion committee did! The memories are still lingering, and I am
still overwhelmed by the way the class and college
honored me. Although retired, I still try to keep in
touch. President Bill Missimer is doing a terrific job.
Nicky and Paige L’Hommedieu and the Goldsteins
enjoyed their last “Lyrics and Lyricists” series at the
92nd Street Y in New York. It was a great series this
year, and we were joined by Joan and Jim Manning
for one earlier. Emily Kraft and Edwen and I were
looking forward to our annual visit with Nicky
and Paige at their place in the Adirondacks in July.
We hoped to see Marigold and Bob Bischoff while
there. Finally, I talked to Pete Gurney recently. He
is beginning casting for his new play, which will be
coming on at the Flea Theatre in New York in the
fall. If you live in the New York area or would like to
be included, stay tuned or let me know, as we will be
planning a theater afternoon and evening (show and
dinner afterwards).”
Bill Hatch replied: “Right now Pat and I are very
busy with a graduation (our granddaughter from
high school), a funeral in Chicago and a wedding in
Indianapolis (a grand-nephew of Pat’s). After that
we are on R&R. Not happy with what is going on
in Washington. I am concerned about the economy
because I believe we are on a slippery slope. If
interest rates rise, which they will eventually, we
could see a correction in the market, a slowdown
in hiring and more unemployment—not a good
outlook. Also there seems to be no answer to the
problems in the Middle East. Other than that
everything is rosy.” (Rosy indeed. —Alec)
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“Had a great time at our 60th last June,” said
Ted Chasteney. “Looking forward to our 65th in a
few years, God willing! I am enjoying retirement.”
Ted planned to take part in a Williams sponsored
trip—National Parks & Lodges of the Old West—
June 20 through July 13.
Spoke to John Hyde about the Williams trip
around the Black Sea in July. He said he’d be going
on a “busman’s holiday” and would not be speaking
officially, although I am sure his comments were
valuable along the way.
Bea Fuller sent an informative note about
the family. “The good news from the Fullers is
that grandson Devlin Nelligan is accepted into
the Williams Class of 2017. He will represent the
third generation of Fullers at Williams and gives
me a good reason to return to Williamstown. He is
the second oldest of our 14 grandchildren. The oldest, Vince Kindfuller, just completed his first year at
MIT. I hope to see some of you this fall.”
Bob Bischoff wrote: “Kudos to our grandson, who
graduated from Williams on a soggy-hot June 2.
Mike Ormsbee ’13 did his parents and grandparents
proud by finishing up magna cum laude and Phi
Beta Kappa. Mike has his next year set up, going
to Singapore on a ‘Princeton in Asia’ assignment to
teach English to high schoolers there in that exotic
city. His parents, Elisabeth Bischoff-Ormsbee ’83
and John Ormsbee ’83, went back to Williamstown
for their 30th reunion the next weekend. I imagine
that they did quite a lot of celebrating! Marigold
and I had a three-week stay in southern California
in late April and May, visiting with our youngest
daughter, who works for the Southern California
Tennis Assn. Meg had the misfortune to fall down
some steps while we were there but was a trooper
despite the pain that the contusions gave her. All
better now, fortunately.”
“Busy with getting settled at our summer home
on Lake Willoughby in northeastern Vermont,
where we will be welcoming many kids and grandkids,” replied Swifty Swift. “Finally have an offer to
sell our home in St. Michaels, Md.” He hoped to
close by mid-August. “If so, we’re planning to buy
a small winter place in Green Valley, Ariz., about
30 miles south of Tucson and a wonderful area for
retired folks—lots to do and very inexpensive.”
Rick Wheeler chimed in with the following: “You
all provided Betty Ann and me with an extraordinary degree of support during those last two years
of my studies! To this day, we still find ourselves
recalling the many times that we all came together,
such as the sports events, Betty Ann’s performance
in Steve Sondheim’s ’50 play and the many other
Williams gatherings that brought us together.
For that we both send to all of you our deepest
thanks and appreciation! Betty Ann is in the fourth
month of recuperation from a ‘reverse full shoulder
replacement’ back in mid-February. I have been
fully on hand reflecting those marriage vows! Our
beloved house ‘Windrift’ on Cape Cod suffered
greatly from the several winter storms. Fortunately,
the next generation has stepped up to help us
greatly in the management. Carrying on from my
major in American history, I am still quite actively
involved with our Minute Man National Historic
Park as well as a locally formed group dedicated
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to continuing study of the American Revolution.
Both Duke Curtis and I are charter members! Our
warmest best to all.”
I am sad to report the death of our admired
classmate Tom Evans on June 11 in Bay Harbor
Islands, Fla. Having been a decorated Marine (a
Silver Star and two Purple Hearts), a graduate of
Columbia Law School, and having received a EdD
from Piedmont College, Tom went on to a fine
law career as a partner at Mudge Rose Guthrie
& Alexander. He also was chairman of Teachers
College Board at Columbia University, the author
of two bestselling books, a star in the Republican
Party, and a contributor to many eleemosynary
causes. Tom was a champion of educational
outreach efforts, and he established a program in
which lawyers mentored students in New York
schools. Tom is survived by Lois Evans, his wife of
56 years, three children and eight grandchildren.
We will miss him.
1953
Stephen W. Klein, 378 Thornden St., South Orange, N.J.
07079; 1953secretary@williams.edu
A 60th reunion record, 51 members of the class
of ’53 plus two honorary members and 42 wives/
friends gathered in Williamstown the weekend
of June 6-9. High praise to Todd Mauck for his
thoughtful preparation and excellent organization for our reunion. List of participants follows:
John Allan, Dudley Baker, Joan and Robert Bauer,
John Beard, Tom Belshe, Mary and Tom Brucker,
Inge and Gordon Canning, Nancy and Woody
D’Oench, John Dighton, Tess and Dave Doheny,
Dick Ellis, Lucy and Pete Fetterolf, Carol and Dan
Fitch, Joy and Walter Flaherty, Mary French and
Dorie Friend, Marian and Mike Goldstein, Marjorie
and Slim Harkins, Marianne and George Hartnett,
John Hewett, Barbara and Bob Howard, Pamela
Dana and Bud Hudson, Paula and Stuart Jay, Don
Jones, Joanne and Steve Klein, Tess and Derry
Kruse, Joan Clear and Mike Lazor, Happy and
Todd Mauck, Ann and John McDermott, Daphne
and Tiger McGill, Mary and Jack Merselis, Sally
and Harry Molwitz, Gretchen and Bob Morrison,
Anne and Charlie Mott, Judy and Art Murray,
Peg Norwood, Janis and John Notz, Elizabeth and
Bob Ouchterloney, Lorraine and Dave Petersen,
Granthia and Fred Preston, Mike Puffer, Marlie
and Don Rand, Maren and Tim Robinson, Sheila
Thomson and Bob Sillcox, Joanne and Mac Sims,
Evie and George Stege, Nancy and Pete Sterling,
Barbara and Ted Terry, Sharon and Jim Tompkins,
Bobbye and Bob Tucker, Barbara Weedon, Linda
and John Whitney, Linda and Bill Williams, and Joe
Worthington.
Among those traveling the longest distance
appropriately were the long-distance swimmers
on the Williams swim team, Don Jones and Joe
Worthington, who were able to have this year’s
long-distance swimmers’ reunion in Williamstown.
Other West Coast entries were Tom Belshe
from San Rafael, Calif., and from the Pacific
Northwest Tom Brucker and George Stege. The
weather improved sufficiently Saturday morning
for the Alumni Parade, with many from the class
1952–54
actually on foot. At the Joseph’s Coat luncheon
Pete Sterling was this year’s acclaimed winner. A
murmur unheeded called for restoring the House
of Walsh to Spring Street. It did not appear that
Sterling’s jacket was tailored by anyone who ever
knew the Walsh brothers. Pete had a good visit
with Susan and Peter Connolly in what Susan refers
to as their “new port” in Hingham, Mass. Tennis
courts dried and Harry Molwitz, John Beard, Pete
Fetterolf and Pete Sterling were able to get in their
tennis match. Sally Molwitz presided from the
umpire’s chair. She concluded that she is not yet
ready for a similar position at the U.S. Open. It
might be noted that even a slightly subdued Walter
Flaherty is still easily the most dapper of the class.
Bob Ouchterloney tells of losing some 8-9 kilos on
his new, no-wheat diet. He happily has traded ice
cream for bread. Bob generally gets to his office
three times per week and also journeys to Garden
City to see Hank Schreier. Bob Sillcox stays in
touch with his fellow Canadian and our sometime
classmate Tony Griffiths but was unable to prevail
upon him to attend our reunion. Statesman Charlie
Mott and Bob Morrison monitored the nominating process for the slate of class officers. President
John Dighton and the other incumbents, in the
usual democratic manner, were the proposed slate
and, at the class meeting, all were re-elected with a
unanimous vote of one posted by the class secretary.
Needless to say, it is a great class, and it was a
magnificent reunion.
A conflict prevented Don Goldstein from attending the reunion. A festschrift was organized in
Don’s honor by Harvard Medical School/Brigham
and Woman’s Hospital. A number of Don’s
protégés, now scattered throughout the U.S., came
to present papers. The final paper was presented
by Don, which was a history and summary of his
50-plus years as doctor and professor of medicine.
A festive dinner followed at the Harvard Club for
friends, family and attendees. Don has been a full
professor at Harvard since 1998, in which role he
will continue. More information about Don and his
career and interests will be in the next class notes.
Bill Kimbrough has sold their Lexington,
Ky., house. A son, previously on the faculty of
the University of Kentucky, has been lured to
Oklahoma State in Stillwater as department chairman. Consequently, Janice and Bill plan to spend
most of the year in their home in Belleair, Fla.
1954
REUNION JUNE 12-15
Al Horne, 7214 Rebecca Drive, Alexandria, VA 22307;
1954secretary@williams.edu
The first thing you should know is that we whose
classes are now more than 50 years old are no longer called the Old Guard. Our new official name is
the Greylocks. That may or may not explain why so
few of us made it to Williamstown for the reunion
in June. A more likely explanation is that we are
making advance plans to arrive en masse for the
60th reunion next year, Greylocks or not.
As sparse as our out-of-town contingent was,
the larger void was the absence of one of our local
luminaries, Pokey Kalker, who was in a hospital in
Pittsfield. Sadly, she died a few days later. She was
a gracious and welcoming focus of our gatherings,
both as Phil Kalker’s wife and as his widow, and she
will be sorely missed.
For the record, those who attended our 59th
reunion were Shirley and Jim Carpenter, Mary Jo
and Russ Carpenter, Hugh Germanetti, Ann and Al
Horne, Mal Kane, Harry Montgomery with Audrey
Clarkson, Sonnie and Bob Murdock, Bill Stott, and
Dan Tritter with Jacqueline Laroche. Daphne and
Bob McGill, another of our Williamstown couples,
were also present but spent the weekend with his
original class of 1953, which was celebrating its
60th.
Mal Kane, a faithful attendee at many of these
reunions, spent some time in Williamstown earlier
in the year researching the history of the Garfield
Club. The club, Mal found, was started early in the
administration of Harry Garfield, president from
1908 to 1934, as the Commons Club for nonfraternity students. It was renamed in his honor in
1935 and played a significant role in the process
that led eventually to the end of the fraternity system by voting in 1952 to threaten to dissolve itself.
If you’re interested in a copy of Mal’s paper, send
him a message at emal2@verizon.net or phone him
at 410.750.3179.
In May, the Rhode Island Senate passed a resolution honoring several state residents for their roles
in restoring the official portrait of William Sprague,
who served as the state’s governor from 1860 to
1863, and among those honored was one of our
class’s art majors, John Miller of Narragansett, who
served on the committee that arranged the restoration. The work was done at the Williamstown Art
Conservation Center, which is housed in the Stone
Hill Center, the newest building of the Clark Art
Institute. Bob McGill is a past president of the conservation center’s board, and Jim Moltz is a trustee
of the Clark.
After that news from the art world, it’s time for
some news of music. Dan Tritter reports that he and
Jacqueline ran into Barbara and Sedge Ward at a
Metropolitan Opera performance of Wagner’s Ring
Cycle at New York’s Lincoln Center. Wasn’t it Mark
Twain who said that Wagner’s music is better than
it sounds?
Now for some legal news: Curt Titus reports that
he left his law firm in Farmington, Conn., after it
merged into a firm in Hartford at the end of last
year. “Since most of my clients are in the greater
Waterbury and Litchfield County areas, I came
back to Waterbury and cut my 40-minute commute in half,” Curt writes. “Now I am of counsel
to the law firm of Tinley, Nastri, Renehan & Dost,
doing business law, real estate and land use law, and
enjoying every minute.” Curt has six children and
12 grandchildren and says he hopes to make our
60th reunion next year.
Finally, in a rare sighting of a long-unheard-from
classmate, our man in Paris Laurie Craig spotted a
letter to the editor of the Financial Times newspaper signed by a D.P. Marchessini of London.
Yes, that’s our Jim Marchessini, commenting on
an article about Lean In, a highly publicized book
on women’s roles in their careers and marriages.
Laurie sent his find to Dan Tritter, who sent it to
your scribe.
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“Most women today,” Jim wrote, “ignore the
fact that men are not obliged to marry and, unless
they are very stupid, they will not marry unless
marriage improves their way of life. Women need
husbands—as fathers for their children, to support their families and for emotional support, but
men do not need wives, and they are not going to
marry women unless the terms are to their liking.”
According to Jim’s letter, “The deal has always been
that the man supports the family while the wife
looks after the children, the house and the husband.
If these terms are now changed, or broken, then
what is the husband getting? In previous centuries, men had to marry in order to go to bed with
women, but that is no longer true. There is general
promiscuity. So, what do men get from marriage
today?”
Our classmate, using his formal name of Demetri,
has published three books and conducts an online
blog that you can find at this site: marchessini.
co.uk. His books are called Scams & Hypocrisy: The
Cancer of Our Age; Modern Myths & The Realities
Behind Them; and a photo collection with commentary called Women in Trousers: A Rear View.
1955
Norm Hugo, 37 Carriage Lane, New Canaan, CT 06840;
1955secretary@williams.edu
Sadly, we lost another dear friend and classmate.
Fred Bennett succumbed to pancreatic cancer.
Carole cared for him during his final days and was
an angel of mercy. Our class condolences have been
sent to her. I attended the memorial service for
Terry White at St. John’s in Williamstown along
with Carolyn and Bobby Behr, Sandy and Ted
Bowers, Sharon and John DuBois, Sandy Laitman,
Debbie and Bill Montgomery and Susan and Phil
Smith. Terry’s closest friend since early childhood,
Bill Montgomery, delivered the uplifting eulogy. The
service closed with a capella singing of “Neath the
Shadow of the Hills” and “The Mountains.”
On May 16 Bobby Behr sent out a summary of
how our 25th and 50th reunion gifts are performing. Our indefatigable Treasurer Sandy Laitman
has solicited sufficient funds to establish the Irwin
Shainman Memorial Scholarship. Irwin was our
first Class of ’55 Professor.
Bill Fall lives in a retirement community for
officers in Leesburg, Va. Pals with lots of wonderful
folks and retains his love for history by leading tours
to sites in DC. Don Everett sees George Olmstead
when on the Cape. Produces news releases for
Environmental Learning Center. Still playing golf
and tennis. Sandy Fargo has a new address: 23053
Westchester Boulevard, Apt. G514, Port Charlotte,
Fla., 33980. Stan Foster retired from the CDC 15
years ago and continued teaching in public health at
Emory. But he is now winding up with a final lecture: “50 Years in Public Health, Lessons Learned
and Visions for the Future.” It may be viewed online
at http://bit.ly/16EeUMw. Stan and family summer
at Lake Winnipesaukee, NH., along with 40 Foster
cousins at the family compound established generations ago.
I had lunch with Roger Friedman, and he and Pat
are hale and hearty. We reminisced about the good
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old days and vowed to keep active. Steve Gordon
and Dorie were tooling along at 50 mph on the
Hutchinson Parkway when Steve noted in the rearview mirror a car approaching at breakneck speed.
And then it rear-ended them and sent them backward down the parkway at 50 mph, stopping only
when they hit a concrete barricade. Miraculously
they walked away, but the car was totaled. Steve
spends his quieter moments giving one-man art
shows (two recently) which have been well received.
Steve stays in touch with Larry Pomerance and Sol
Sevy, who has homes in British Columbia and San
Francisco. Chan Headley had a couple of careers
working in the insurance business and later teaching
at a junior college. Teaching was his passion. His
son is Phil Headley ’86. Stays in touch with Frank
Rosenbach. Paul Hunn is still single but squiring a
couple of ladies. Have had lunch many times with
Paul, and he is still full of pep. Taught grad courses
in bank credit at both Columbia and U. of Virginia.
Sees John Kern on his visits to New York from home
in London. Two days after he arrived in New York,
John learned of an explosion and fire which gutted
his London flat. Fortunately his significant other
escaped serious injury. John Innes has recently happily retired after 63 years. Started an electronic fund
transfer system for thousands of banks. Recently
recovered from glaucoma eye surgery. Married a
Swiss lady and visits Switzerland frequently. In
his younger days John was a Naval aviator. Bill
Irwin took retirement at age 69 after managing
radio stations—mostly in Pittsburgh—and then a
second career as a stock broker. Dotes on a granddaughter who lives nearby. Sees Mac Fiske and Bill
Montgomery. Don Kelley lives in Bennington and so
visits the track every day at Williams. Has a bunch
of grandkids playing lacrosse for Williamstown
high school—maybe future stars at Williams. Stu
Kleit lives in Florida after a successful career at
Indiana University Medical Center where he was
professor and chief of nephrology and associate
dean at the medical school. Peter Loomis enjoys
his two acres of shoreline overlooking Buzzards
Bay and tinkering with his sailboat and motorboat.
His grandkids exhibit great musical talent. Richard
Maidman is still working as a lawyer and sees Roger
Friedman frequently. Pete Maucher reminisced about
the Pingry gang who went to Williams. Sold his
business of records management and document
storage and morphed into a real estate broker. Still
active at Pingry. Ken Meyer retired from school
administration in Harrison, N.Y., and is busy as
chairman of maintenance for his condo and volunteering at Southbury Training School. His passion
was teaching. Whitey Perrott celebrated his 80th
birthday in Vero Beach surrounded by classmates
Ted Bowers, Don Everett, Paul Quinn, Bill Regan and
Bob Wilkes. Whitey completed a most successful
Alumni Fund, reaching an 86 percent contribution
rate and placing him as the best agent the class
has ever had. Congratulations! Fred Paton made a
six-month appointment with his ophthalmologist
and the night before his visit had a stroke and lost
vision in one eye. He made it to the appointment
and saved further damage. Able to drive but walking a bit harder. Fred is using his banking skills by
being the treasurer of the gift shop at his retirement
1954–56
facility. Bill Pogue lost the function of the hair cells
in the utricle which control balance, resulting in
some vertigo. This has not slowed him down, and
he volunteers for Rotary by mentoring high school
students in service projects. He also works with
elementary students to combat bullying. On his
own he visits pediatric hospitals as a clown with
his small Maltese dog and bills his act as Beware
of the Dog. His daughter just received a Doctor of
Divinity, and she is an Episcopal priest. Bob Wilkes
was back summering in Manchester, Vt., and saw
Whitey Perrott and a few younger Williams grads.
His rheumatologist is Class of ’58. Still an avid
golfer, but for some reason the ball does not go as
far. Bob returned from Richmond, Va., where his
grandson graduated high school prior to going into
the Navy, allowing some maturation prior to college.
Ed Wilkins, a widower since ’09, is happily retired
from a career as a consultant for executive search
and evaluation. Mel Bearns read the last issue and
was “inspired to send in a short summary of recent
activities.” He wrote, “Deere and I set sail as planned
from St. Thomas to Barcelona on the Seabourn
Legend on April 5, ready for a 3,800-mile crossing
to Barcelona via the Madeiras and Gibraltar. All
went splendidly, as usual, until Deere got blindsided by an unexpected wave that hit the ship just
as we were leaving the dining room after dinner
five days out from the VI. She lost her balance and
fell, breaking the fifth metatarsal in her left foot.
The ship’s doctor did X-rays and bound things up,
advising us to see an ortho specialist as soon as we
got home. Meanwhile, he provided us with a fine,
compact wheelchair for her to get around on while
on board, and we did quite well from then on.”
Mel continued, writing that he and Deere “toured
about Funchal in an AWD Land Rover over some
spectacular goat trails. The Madeiras are all volcanicformed, and the island was one of the most vertical
and striking places I’ve ever seen. At one point we
stopped at an overlook cantilevered out over a beach
1,500 feet straight down. The floor is steel mesh you
can see through, a terrible sight for anyone, like me,
with acrophobia, and even worse the center part is
transparent glass or plastic and the feeling is even
stronger. I was land-sick from so many days at sea,
and the ground was continually rocking and rolling
wherever I was, so I practically had to get down and
crawl off the overlook on my hands and knees.”
The Bearnses travels also included Gibraltar and
Barcelona, where they “spent a few days seeing
the sights, eating great food and drinking excellent wine from Catalunya. Highly recommend
the Hotel Colon right on the plaza in front of
the downtown cathedral, right on the edge of the
Barri Gotic, aka Gothic Quarter, and close to the
Ramblas.
“From Barcelona,” Mel writes, “we flew on to
London and hung out for a few days on at a lovely
small hotel on Sloane Square, stomping ground
for the famous Sloane Rangers way back when,
then back home via, once more, Reykjavik to take
advantage of IcelandAir’s great prices and service in
business class.”
Mel concluded, “Next up, daughter Courtney
Bearns’ ’07 wedding to her long-standing (since
fall of her freshman year) S.O. Bartley Tablante
’07. This mega-event takes place late June in
Connecticut, and the whole collective family will be
descending from all over to join the crowd. The Far
East is on the board for February and will be duly
reported.”
Charley Bradley remains upbeat in spite of spending time in PT and with a personal trainer. He
would love to hear from classmates (914.762.5369).
1956
Vern Squires, 727 Ardsley Road, Winnetka, IL 60093;
1956secretary@williams.edu
In a relieved change of pace, this article does not
commence with a report of deaths of classmates.
But a reminder of the occurrence of these sad
events over the past 12 months came with a note
from the college which listed classmates’ spouses
who, as widows, were elected as honorary members
of the Society of Alumni at the annual meeting in
June. They were: Jacquelyn Crocker, Helen Davis,
Mary Ford and Gail Jenkins.
Now to the latest news of the upbeat variety. One
of the first persons I met at Williams in September
1952 was Jim Squiers. After too long a period of no
communication, he obliged my request for information with a delightful letter. He reflected that he
spent so many of his last three years ostensibly at
Williams but actually on visits to Skidmore, that he
jokingly tells people that he is a Skidmore graduate. However, it worked out well; he is indeed a
member in good standing in the Williams Class of
’56, and he has been married to Carol—a Skidmore
graduate—for 55 years. Jim spent 40 years in the
stock brokerage business in Chappaqua, N.Y., and
then he and Carol moved to Greenwich, Conn.,
in 2005 where they built a house. Except for visits
to Saratoga and Florida, Greenwich remains their
home. Jim and Carol have three daughters and
eight grandchildren.
Wally Jensen wrote with some good news and
bad news. The bad news was that he developed
acute coronary insufficiency resulting in an
emergency coronary angiogram and two stents.
The good news is that the procedure was a success,
and Wally will be back to playing tennis very soon.
But the really good news is that he has finished
writing a novel! Their Unbridled Rivalry will be selfpublished soon through Amazon.com. Ironically,
the novel begins with the heroine in medical straits
very similar to those unexpectedly arriving on
Wally’s doorstep.
Bob Bethune wrote from his home in Toronto,
Canada, to say that he was pleased to read news
about some of his football and hockey comrades
from days of yore, e.g., Tim Hanan and Steve
Gilman. Bob still sees, on a regular basis, classmates
who come to Ontario for the summer, e.g., Kirt
Gardner and Bill Jenks. Bob and his wife departed
for Europe in June for a three-week trip, including
visits to London and Leipzig.
I had a nice note from Rod Ward, who with
Susan had just returned from their Cape Town
winter quarters. Rod has moved to “of counsel”
status with the Skadden Arps law firm, but he
remains “as busy as I want to be” with his position
as chairman of the Winterthur Garden and Library
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and as a director of the Garden Conservancy along
with directorships on a couple of other boards.
Bruce Graves is in the fully retired group (actually
long-retired, since Bruce left the practice of law in
1994). A resident of Sarasota, Fla., he enjoys the
Williams-Amherst games which are piped in to
local viewers, and he keeps in touch with Dan Reed
and Jim Snyder.
Sy Becker’s letter made it abundantly clear that,
although retired from Rutgers for many years, he
is certainly not retired from a very busy lifestyle. Sy
is still engaged in research, writing, publishing and
attending conferences. His most recent publication (March 2012) is an article in a British journal
on the original and changing meaning of the term
“Great Game” as applied to Anglo-Russian and
American-Soviet rivalry in Central Asia, and he is
now writing a book on how 19th-century Russians
viewed their western borderlands, from Finland
to Ukraine. (Note to Sy: having returned from a
Russia trip a year ago and reading Peter the Great,
I think it would be interesting if your next book
turned it around and discussed how the people
of the Ukraine and Finland viewed their eastern
borderlands with Russia. Nervously, I suspect.) Sy
and his wife have been spending the spring or fall
in New England but allowing plenty of time for
travels to Russia, Turkey, Israel, Greece, Finland,
England and Spain.
Art Hyde wrote of the pleasure of seeing friends
and classmates from Williams. Art had some
Arizona time with Jack Carter and Ed Amidon and,
before his recent death, Dave (Doc) Loomis. Dave
presided at Art’s wedding ceremony way back in
1962, and it was Dave’s first wedding officiating.
But, Art notes, he didn’t tell us until it was done.
Ed McCarthy reported that at the end of each
quarter he stills travels to consult on Enterprise
Wide Risk Management—the methods and
processes used by organizations to manage risks—
for a couple of banks who continue to value Ed’s
services as an intermediary between the bank’s
risk officer and the business/service head. Ed and
Betty departed South Miami, Fla., to Boynton
Beach, Fla., where there are “more golf courses than
golfers and good fishing and splendid parks.” In
2012 they cruised the Mediterranean islands, and
for 2013 they will sail the Danube Canal down to
and around the Black Sea. Ed is not the only one
in the family who still works; Betty continues as
co-head of ikebana ( Japanese art flower design) at
the Morikami Museum and Japanese Gardens in
Delray Beach, Fla.
A letter with nostalgic tones came in from Gerry
Pappin. Following his father (Class of 1920) as a
Williams grad, Gerry departed Williams in 1956
to spend the next four years at a lieutenant, junior
grade, flying drones for fleet gunnery exercises and
missile shoots. In 1962 Gerry married Chip Mann’s
sister in a ceremony where John Barton and Bruce
Dayton served as ushers. In due course, Gerry
founded an investment advisory firm, served as
president and chief investment officer and retired at
age 75. Gerry and Suzie have been married for 51
years and have four children and six grandchildren.
Gerry’s letter closed on a note of justifiable pride: “I
have attended each and every one of our five-year
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reunions at Williams! God willing, I look forward
to seeing our classmates at the next reunion.”
And speaking of Chip Mann, a nice card arrived
which observed that, after his retirement from
Harvard in 2002 as an international development advisor, he has been producing educational
documentaries about topics he worked on while
at Harvard. Take a look at www.DER.org (which
stands for Documentary Educational Resources)
and enter the search term “Charles Mann”; you will
find a list of projects on which Chip has worked,
drawing on his experience as a working economist
for seven years in Turkey. DER was founded in
1968 with the mission of developing thought-provoking documentary films and media for learning
about the people and cultures of the world. Those
who attended our 55th reunion will recall that
Chip presented one of his films to an appreciative
group of classmates and other attendees.
A phone conversation with Dan Berman elicited
both history and current news. First item of note:
Dan called from his office in Salt Lake City,
indicating that he is still practicing law, even if on
a reduced basis. Dan started with a law firm in
NYC but left for Utah in 1960 where he joined the
faculty at the University of Utah Law School. But
law firms soon followed where he specialized in
complex commercial and antitrust litigation. Dan
has a great variety of non-legal interests: He has a
ranch in a beautiful part of southwest Wyoming,
is an avid bird-watcher, enjoys the company of his
125-pound Great Dane and has an extensive collection of Western art.
Denny Makepiece sent one of the most succinct
messages ever. He recalled the story of a newspaper
reporter contacting actor Cary Grant on the latter’s
birthday. “How old, Cary Grant?” The actor replied:
“Old Cary Grant fine, how you?” To which, Denny
added: “We’re fine.”
Bill Mauritz wrote to say that he and Carolyn
are well and enjoying life in Rye, N.Y. Over the
Memorial Day weekend they welcomed Martha
and Bill Merizon to their home. A short while later
they journeyed to Chicago for a charitable foundation board meeting and took advantage of the
trip to have dinner with Toni and Ken Harkness,
Ausrene and Bill Kerr and Gay Taylor. Speaking of
Gay, in early April, Judy and I had the pleasure of
having dinner with her in Vero Beach, where we
were visiting friends.
Travels often constitute a part of these reports, and
this article is no exception. In March, a Williamssponsored trip (along with Dartmouth and Duke)
saw four classmates gathered together on the same
cruise ship. Joanie and Jock Duncan, Elinor and
Sig Balka, Mary and Jim Edgar and Barbara and
Bill Zeckhausen enjoyed a “Cruise to the Lesser
Antilles,” originating in and returning to Puerto
Rico with stops in between at St. Maarten, St. Kitts,
Dominica, Antigua, St. Barts and Virgin Gorda.
(Unfortunate footnote: Judy and I were supposed to
be the fifth Williams couple on the cruise but a lastsecond death in the family required our canceling
out.) It was a great trip—wonderful abundant food,
excellent performances and interesting lectures,
islands and activities. For Bill, a special feature was
the presence of Dave Krehbiel ’55, with whom Bill
1956–57
studied at night in the geology lab and then joined
in more studying at New College, the theological
seminary in Edinburgh. The only blemish on the
trip, confirmed in phone calls I had with both Sig
and Dave Krehbiel, was the day when the seas were
so rough that the ship-to-shore boat couldn’t make
it. If anyone was seasick, it remains unreported.
“Escaping tear gas in Turkey” might have been
the preface to the adventures of Paula and Tink
Campbell, but they got in and out of Turkey in May
before the trouble started. They had a terrific twoweek trip to Greece and Turkey, enjoying visits to
Ephesus, the Halicarnassus Mausoleum in Bodrum
(Turkey) and a grand tour of the incomparable city
of Istanbul. Tink says, as I hope others do, that he
and Paula plan to be at the Vero Beach minireunion in March.
I had a very interesting letter from John Knapton,
whose name may not be familiar to many but who
is, nonetheless, a member of the Class of ’56. John
received his undergraduate degree in physics from
the University of Massachusetts and then came to
Williams for an MA in physics in 1956, serving as
a graduate assistant in the process. Although John
refers to himself as a “non-Williams man,” that
degree in 1956 is good enough to make him a classmate in good standing. John spoke appreciatively
of his in-depth studies in statistical thermo, atomic
physics and quantum mechanics under Professors
Ralph Winch and David Park. (That is a world
away from political science under James Burns ’39
and Fred Greene). An interesting career followed:
work at the Ballistic Research Laboratory (later
the U.S. Army Research Lab) for 41 years as an
experimental physicist and then, upon retirement,
part-time work for GeoCenters (later the Science
Application International) for 14 years, all the while
finding time to work with employees at major U.S.
companies, several small business companies and
joint programs with colleagues in Germany, France
and the UK. Now in full retirement, John enjoys
gardening and is experimenting with the propagation of coffee tree cuttings. In a touching conclusion
to his letter, John related how, many years ago, his
wife fell victim to multiple myeloma, a serious blood
disorder, and was given six months to live. However,
that was 17 years ago! By turning to a non-standard
medical treatment, she survived and currently shows
no sign of the disease even though the medical
community still does not generally accept her form
of treatment.
It is always nice to hear from John Garfield. He
recalled his involvement at the 25th and 30th
reunions but then slid into a “fading away” period.
But the trip to Oxford prior to the 50th reunion
renewed old friendships and made new friendships,
and John’s involvement was further renewed with
the 50th and 55th reunions. He and Sylvia have
over 50 years of blissful marriage and, as he put it,
“The 21st century has given us the chance to retire
to New Hampshire, where the traffic is slower and
both taxes and welfare are minimal (allegedly). We
are a bit slower, too; the joints and the heart and
other body parts don’t work quite so well! But we
are pretty happy, I think.”
To close this article on a light note, I will relate
what I view as one of the great all-time job
descriptions. After the untimely death last year of
our Class Treasurer Tony Fisher, Dave Snow (Tony’s
successor) wrote to Bob Schumacher seeking some
information on our balances or payables. Bob’s
reply: “Welcome to the easiest class officer job on
the planet—1956 has no money, no general operating accounts and no payables! In other words, the
title was created in 2011 because the college wants
every class to have a treasurer for some unknown
reason down the road.”
And now to sign off with this important thought:
Place on your calendars the minireunion in Vero
Beach for March 5-8, 2014 (where perhaps Sy
Becker and Wally Jensen will appear for book
signings).
1957
Richard P. Towne, 13 Silverwood Terrace, South Hadley,
MA 01075; 1957secretary@williams.edu
Continuing where we left off in my quest for
Western perspective from our class, I heard from
two notable members among the medical profession: Courtney Brown and Eric Butler. Courtney,
known to us back then as Warren, still practices
orthopedic surgery in Golden, Colo., where he
moved after graduating from Columbia College of
Physicians & Surgeons and residency at New York’s
St. Luke’s Hospital. That’s where he met and married his wife Ingrid. In Colorado, he’s been written
up as part of the medical team covering the U.S.
Ski Team. He’s authored numerous medical articles
and book chapters and has taught at Children’s
Hospital of Denver on orthopedic medicine. “I can
only speak for Colorado as a Westerner, but the
main difference between here and the East for me
is that professional relationships there often started
on a basis of ‘why did you do that?’ versus ‘perhaps
you should approach it another way.’ It took me
at least 10 years or more to correct my approach
and thus get along in civil fashion with my peers.
Perhaps bigger western cities are the same as New
York. However, when I have been in those locations, they do not appear to be so.” Candor remains
among Courtney’s many strong points.
Another Western doctor we know is Len
Kirschner. Lenny is at it again with a series of
letters to the editors of The Arizona Republic, Wall
Street Journal, etc., from his Litchfield Park home
about federal healthcare policy. It seems when
Arizona adopted its Healthcare Cost Containment
System in 1982, Len was the director of Planned
Parenthood in that state. They sued the feds over
the exclusion of abortion funding by Arizona,
which it obtained as a waiver from the law. The suit
was dropped when Arizona changed its mind by
allowing abortion funding as a “covered benefit,”
but the issue is now back on the table. The media
has depicted Planned Parenthood during Len’s tenure as having “created 10,000 unwanted pregnancies.” Len’s wife takes exception to such a depiction
of Len, as such a feat few of us could hope to
achieve and most would not wish to have printed.
Right on, Peggy, I’d say! Len was a New Yorker
who left the East Coast after Albany Medical
School for San Francisco, having never been farther
west than Pennsylvania. His wife Peggy, whom he
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met there, thinks of Arizona as being “back east,”
having been born in LA, while he thinks of New
Jersey as being “out west.”
No sooner did I finish writing the words “James
Humes (has been) absent from the scene for over
50 years” than magically he’s reappeared! Days after
the last class notes deadline, Jamie reported in, alive
and well living in Cripple Creek, Colo. “I’m the
fifth generation of my family to settle here since
(my ancestor) came to work as a foreman in a silver
mine. I left Philadelphia, where the family lived for
many generations, to accept a chair in rhetoric at
Colorado State University in Pueblo. Living is relatively cheap in this part of the state, and it has the
advantage of mild weather.” If you haven’t kept up
with Jamie’s career, a web search of his name will
enlighten you. He’s lived an abundant life traveling
across a large swath of America from the Berkshires
to Washington to the Rockies, writing speeches for
presidents, lecturing and performing stage shows
about Winston Churchill and publishing histories
on political figures both past and present. His
current project is a book he’s calling Churchill: The
Prophetic Statesman. His next, and he says his last,
Fame Dropping: Five Decades of Encounters with the
Eminent. With that as a title, I wouldn’t bet against
the chance there could be a sequel!
Eric Butler “ended up in the West by stages:
beginning at Rochester Medical School, where
classmates belittled the Berkshires as “foothills.”
Their jibes persuaded him to go west, where he
found the space and weather suited him. “Marriage
to a San Francisco native (Suzanne Rocca-Butler)
fixed me in place. The Bay Area’s lower snowdrifts
have been a definite plus!”
The other Eric we have is geologist Eric Dahlberg.
I should say geologist turned artist. He, and not
his wife Janice (as I had suggested might be the
case in my last column) is the creator of the jewelry
craftsmanship you’ll find pictured at www.ecdsilver.
com. “I’ve managed to wreck a lot of metal over
12 years at the career while cutting, burning and
scarring many fingers striving to make silversmithing a fruitful endeavor. Janice is the true artist,
having progressed as a pianist from her role as an
accompanist to the Skidmore Freshman Chorus
back in 1954 to teaching and singing with the
Calgary Philharmonic Chorus here in ‘Cowtown.’
I still present exploration training courses for the
petroleum industry. Next week’s will be my 407th
course. My big kick of the year was skiing a foot of
powder on my birthday in December, 60 years after
sneaking off to Bromley rather than study for those
damnable Chem 1A-2A hour tests. I’m often asked,
since I wrote the book on ‘fracking,’ is it good or
bad? My answer is both—but not always predictably. I look forward to discussing pipelines and
Canadian oil with Nick Wright someday.” So it goes.
Location choices based on climate, courtship,
recreational interest, career opportunities have all
shaped values that now are permanent parts of our
classmates who have carved unique paths for themselves and their families west of the Mississippi.
There’s something new it seems whenever I’ve
written about ex-roommate Ted Graham. This time
he’s moved into the ranks of the disabled: thankfully not permanently, however. Writing about an
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experience that happened last February, Graham
tells me he spent the winter in Vermont’s North
Kingdom journeying with Barbara to Montpelier
on crutches to watch theatrical performances there
following an accident while tending to one of his
sugar maple tree buckets. While using a stepladder resting against the tree, he fell, resulting in a
broken femur and six weeks of recuperation. I knew
he was made of tougher stuff when he moved from
Lawrenceville’s dormitories to become the caretaker
of a Vermont tree farm, but I never expected he’d
prove this macho! We suburbanites don’t know the
challenges we’re missing in life, do we?
Not many of us combine an urge to do community service with an exercise program as George
Welles told me he does, but that’s why George
recently became involved with the Brockton Boys
and Girls Club—as the part time janitor. “It’s very
rewarding and honorable work that helps, too, with
my daily exercise program,” he tells me. No stranger
to an honorable cause, I can still remember reading
about George and Annie in the Cape Cod Times
when he retired as Provincetown’s Episcopal minister after years in this remote Outer Cape town,
attending to the needs of its gay community during
their struggles with AIDS. Now he and Annie
have a new grandson. “Sebastian Patrick George
Fredrico Welles, born on the Cape to Mary and
our son Patrick, so we’re up to 15 grandchildren.”
He continues, “Annie and I have just returned from
five and a half weeks visiting our son Stephen and
family that includes wife Jennifer, granddaughters
Alexandra, 3, and Jacqueline, 1, in San Jose, Calif.
We visit them at least once and sometimes twice a
year. We celebrate our 55th wedding anniversary in
June and two 60th school reunions, high school and
boarding school, next fall. We see the Floods from
time to time and are still trying to arrange a movie
date with the Leinbachs and Gardners. If Nick
Wright plans another 4th of July party that includes
the 1957 Summer Scholars, he should send out a
wider invitation so others in the class could attend.
I wish that there were more opportunities to have
contact with the ’57 Scholars, both undergraduates
and graduates. I’ll bet some of the graduates are in
the Boston area. Annie and I would love to host a
gathering that would include members of our class
as well.”
This may not be exactly what George has in
mind, but news from Bruce Dayton ’56 mentions
a gathering planned in Vero Beach, where many
snowbirds congregate, March 5-8 for Classes 195559. Watch for details to come in the next edition of
class notes.
Let’s catch up with some other folks you
remember from the Nifty Fifties! Nancy and Ted
Cobden have not moved as far west as most of the
classmates I’ve written about, but they have moved
in recent years—west to the Berkshires from Cape
Cod and the Hartford area. They sent me an appreciative note from Stockbridge about my last column.
I thank them heartily and use the opportunity to
remind you I need your news regardless of where
you live. Maybe next edition I’ll choose another area
to ask the same question I asked the Westerners.
Why did you choose the place you live in today, and
what’s unique about your hometown compared to
1957–58
where you lived when you were at Williams? The
character of the people there, their attitudes, their
values—that’s what I’d most like to know about.
Maybe the Southerners among us should have a try
at the subject. My sample of the class would include
anybody from the Beltway of DC to Florida and
south of the Ohio River as far as Texas. If that’s
where you live, think about what you could say
about yourselves.
Footnote: After these words were written, I
received an email from Bob Behr ’55 about the
Dahlbergs. Sadly for them, floodwaters destroyed
many homes on their street, including much of
theirs, according to The Calgary Herald. Pictures
from the newspaper show Eric, assisted by his
10-year-old grandson, clearing debris from the
front of their home and showing the reporter
the damage to Janice’s Steinway pianos, living
room and all else therein, where water reached “a
meter above the elevated first floor.” The reporter
describes him as “exuding an impossible positivity
during the tour of his devastated home. ‘It’s almost
revitalizing, believe it or not. It just gets you going
again,’ he explains. But he’s not naive. Far from it.”
That’s Eric, showing a Westerner’s optimism while
dealing with the cruelty of Mother Nature.
1958
Dick Davis, 5732 East Woodridge Drive, Scottsdale, AZ
85254; 1958secretary@williams.edu
Our 55th reunion was hugely enjoyable, notwithstanding persistent rain, which utterly failed to
dampen a single spirit.
We kicked off on Thursday evening at the Chet
Lasells. Chet and Kate had us entented, and the
din and crowd were reminiscent of parties of a previous era. I noticed that nobody left before 8 p.m.
when the last call for grub had sounded.
Lunch Friday was terrific from a college point
of view. As Chet noted, our class has made a huge
contribution to the alma mater through former
president and trustee Carl Vogt, Ephraim Williams
Professor of American History Charley Dew and
longtime physics professor Stu Crampton. The
Friday program was Charley’s and Carl’s, and it was
absorbing.
Charley is chairman of the history department,
chaired the committee on residential living and
was the faculty representative and secretary to the
trustees’ selection committee that chose President
Falk. He talked about the present student body, its
varied background and how it is far more nocturnal
than we were (well, most of us). He indicated that
faculty-administration relations are now quite positive, a trend which got going strong during Carl’s
interim presidency. He also spoke fondly of Prof.
Fred Rudolph ’42, who passed away in June.
Carl endorsed President Falk’s decision to relinquish the traditional residence and acquire a home
of his own in Williamstown. Phinney’s old house
is a bit of a fishbowl now and not the best place to
raise a family. The structure will be used for other
purposes. Both Carl and Charley think the current
administration has the potential to be a great one.
The outdoor tent was a soggy mire, so we ate
inside Dodd House Friday night. The swordfish
was outstanding. So were the earlier seminar programs, I heard from all who attended. The Williams
Reunion Jazz Band played the mellowist kind of
music both Friday and Saturday nights. Barbara
Clifford told me they had a big gig up in Vermont
Thursday night. I don’t see how Bob Kingsbury and
Fred Clifford and colleagues do it, and do it so well.
Saturday morning we paraded and heard from
President Falk, trustees and others. Saturday
evening was a delightful meal at the Williams Inn
and a musical presentation by the Ephlats, led
by Martha Williamson ’77, she of Touched by An
Angel, and our board of trustees. There was a lusty
sing along, featuring especially “Brush up Your
Shakespeare.” I noticed Warren Clark didn’t miss
one word of that classic and that everybody properly pronounced “Cleopatterer.” I detected special
verve on the first part of the ancient Chinese verb
“kow-tow.”
The Sunday morning memorial service was
especially poignant, with our recent losses of Matt
Donner and George Vare and also David Seymour,
who was with us freshman year.
It’s not possible to give sufficient credit to Chet
Lasell and Rick Driscoll and their spouses Kate and
Jeanne and all the others who put together this fine
gathering and weekend.
Others I haven’t mentioned who attended were
Dave Allan and Connie, Ron Anderson and Barbie,
Jim Bowers and Susie, John Boyd and Linda, Betsy
Clark, Jim Conlan and Virginia, Tom Connolly
and Ann, Dave Cook and Loy, Stu Crampton and
Susan, Denny Doucette, Denny Doyle and Barbara
Galbraith, Don Freeman and Phyllis, Peter French,
David Grossman and Jill, Bob Guyett and Sue, Bill
Harter, Bob Iverson, Sam Jones and Becky, Spence
Jones, David Kane and Siegrun, Whitey Kaufmann
and Karen, Peter Levin and Beth, Lou Lustenberger
and Anita, Skip Martin and Nancy, Phil McKean
and Deborah, Bruno Quinson and Minkie, Bob
Salisbury and Toni, Arnie Sher and Serena, Dick
Siegel and Pam, David Sims and Jennifer, Brad
Thayer and Bee, Margrit Vogt, Rich Wagner and
Ginn, and Phil Wilcox and Cindy.
Peter Levin sent me the following: “My wonderful wife Mary and I fought a losing battle with
cancer for eight months, two years ago. We were
sweethearts at the University of Michigan when
I was in law school. Married in 1960 with three
great daughters and five grandchildren. After deep
mourning and no expectation of another serious
relationship, this magnificent creature, Elizabeth,
appeared in my life. She was also widowed. It was
almost love at first sight. We were married last
month (May). My close friend Rabbi Arnie Sher
officiated. He and Serena are our family since
we reunited with them in 2002 when we built
our home in Lenox.” Congratulations Peter and
Elizabeth, and we enjoyed our meeting! Peter is
now also a yoga instructor.
It was great to see Ivy, Bob Iverson, who hadn’t
been able to get to recent reunions. Bob says he
needs a goat (maybe a herd) to help him keep up
his three acres near Hinsdale. Denny Doucette
gets Gretchen over to Hancock, Maine, for about
three weeks in the summer. He usually sees Russ
Pope in Bar Harbor. Here’s a rarity: Denny’s son,
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Peter Doucette ’85, taught Denny’s grandson math
at Westminster. He earned a strong grade from
a tough teacher, Denny said. Don Freeman and
Phyllis are looking good, with a slight incipient
Cape Cod tan. I recall Phyllis, still in prep school,
coming up to see Don freshman year. Don also
penetrated later the Holyoke quarantine. They love
the Cape. Lou Lustenberger is another one looking
mighty fit and trim. Lou and Anita had been living
in Portland, Ore., for about a month. Their address
is 6114 SW Riverpoint Lane, Portland, OR 97239,
phone 503.241.2971, email louislustenberger@
gmail.com. Lou says he’s gradually slowing down
a bit to the tempo of the Pacific Northwest as
opposed to the proverbial “New York minute.”
Everyone else looks good, too. Phil McKean and
Deborah were off to Bali over the summer. Susie
says she and Jim Bowers are going to do some U.S.
traveling, including maybe Arizona and especially
Sedona, our red rock jewel. Peter French lives just
a few miles away from Billville, in Stamford, Vt.
Rick Driscoll sees him on campus from time to
time. John Boyd, in his later years of practice, had
his own firm specializing in admiralty law. Dave
Phillips started out in that (to me, esoteric) field. Bill
Harter will take his umpteenth (but it’s a lot more
than teens) tour to Israel next February. He looks
good for maybe 13 more. Bob Guyett was spoofing
Bruno Quinson about his youth, as I sometimes do.
Bruno only came along 1/01/38. It sounded like the
Barrington Stage (and Minkie has two other venues
now!) had a solid summer coming up. As I am
finishing these notes I read a rave review for its On
The Town revival.
Jim Kolster’s son Michael Kolster ’85 was named
a 2013 Guggenheim Fellow. Michael is a professor
of fine arts at Bowdoin, which Jim says has a strong
commitment to the visual and performing arts.
Frank Tokioka supplied macadamia nuts to the festivities. They were festive and good. Thanks, Frank.
Frank recently lunched with Dave Andrew.
David Kane and Siegrun were recently at the
Intellectual Property Lawyers convention in Dallas.
Siegrun was a presenter at one of the seminars. The
sixth edition of her work is coming out this year.
Intellectual property is an especially lively place
these days. David has headed the NYC IP­­­­Bar.
Karen and I enjoyed talking with Margrit Vogt.
I asked how she enjoyed her First Lady role while
Carl was president of Williams. She said she never
really had the role; she was working and flew in on
Friday and was magnificently treated by the house
staff. Margrit formerly taught German at Berkeley.
She noted enrollment in the liberal arts is way down
there.
Rich Wagner and Ginn love their new home in
Oxford, Md., across the bay from Annapolis. There
are to Rich’s knowledge no other Ephs or Jeffs
there, but he’s a little wary of five Trinity alums. I
didn’t know that Rich worked closely with Casper
Weinberger in the Reagan era. He still does some
work with the DOD.
The second weekend in April was a sad one for
’58. Matt Donner passed away very suddenly on
April 11 in New York, and George Vare passed away
the next day at home. These were the staunchest
kind of men and classmates.
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The service for Matt was held April 15 in New
York and was attended by Whitey Kaufmann,
Skip Martin, David Grossman, Rick Lombard, Tom
Synnott, Joe Young, David Kane, Jim Conlan, Jim
Stevens, Carl Vogt, Dave Allan, Lou Lustenberger,
Tom Connolly, Jim Murphy, Dave Allan, Bob Guyett
and Mike Shimkin ’59. Judy requested that memorials be sent to Williams.
Though far fewer classmates were able to get to
the memorial service for George Vare in the packed
Napa Valley Opera House on May 18, I understand
there were a number of younger Ephs present.
Whitey Kaufmann and John Buckner and Lorraine
were there. Elsa said that George passed away (from
virulent melanoma) wearing his Williams shirt.
Whitey Kaufmann spoke at both services. I asked
Whitey for the texts of his remarks. His words are
wonderful tributes to these great friends. They were
greatly felt and appreciated by those who heard
them. Let me or Whitey (wjkaufmann@aol.com)
know should you wish a copy. Whitey also has
the URL for a beautiful film of the harvesting of
George’s 2012 grape crop.
David Seymour passed away May 13 in Denver.
Rick Driscoll attended his service. Rick and David
were roommates at St. Paul Academy in Minnesota.
Another freshman-year classmate, Mike Piel, is
reported to have passed away on Oct. 2, 2002. I
knew Mike and enjoyed him.
Here are upcoming events and dates to make note
of. First, the minireunion is Oct. 4-6. Chet and Rick
will be providing details. Next is Dec. 6, 2013. Joe
Young is putting together the 15th annual Holiday
Lunch at the Williams Club in the Princeton Club
in Manhattan. Joe put together the first one many
years ago. This one is special. The last event is a bit
of a “newbie,” but sounds exciting: There will be a
“Five Class Reunion” for classes ’55 through ’59 in
Vero Beach March 5-8, 2014. I understand a hotel
has been commandeered. Bruce Dayton ’56 and Dan
Rankin ’59 are organizers; as you know, Chet Lasell
co-presides over the Williams club of Vero Beach.
Next I’ve got to report that your officers for the
past five years were re-elected. Rick Driscoll did the
nominating at the Saturday class dinner and then
made an expectant (honest, guys) plea for a coup
d’état. Hearing none, however, he pronounced the
slate re-elected.
I note here that the only reason Zeke Knight
wasn’t at the reunion is that his summer school for
inner-urban youth in San Diego was opening. That
is a big deal in San Diego. We are going to get some
Ephs out of there.
Finally, indulge me. You know of a “Subway
Series” and a “Freeway Series.” How about an AllEph Family Series? Si se puede! The Buccos versus
the Yankees. The Vegas odds have to be down on
that this year. But even Jim Conlan concedes that the
Yankees need to do some rebuilding.
1959
REUNION JUNE 12-15
Dan Rankin, 1870 Bay Road, #213, Vero Beach, FL
32963; 1959secretary@williams.edu
Let me begin with the important news I learned
back in April. Bill Moomaw will be recognized
for his work addressing climate change when
1958–59
the college awards him a Bicentennial Medal at
Convocation in September. Last May he retired
from Tufts, where he’s been a professor and head
of the Center for International Environmental
and Resource Policy. Along with many honors,
“Moo” was a former director of the Williams
Environmental Studies Program. Bicentennial
Medals are presented to celebrate and recognize
distinguished achievement in any field of endeavor.
Does the name Pavlov ring a bell? I was delighted
to receive information of several classmates whom
we haven’t heard from recently. Marc Newberg
spent an enjoyable evening with Susan and Peter
Naiman at the 50th reunion of their Columbia
Medical School class. Marc reports they are “both
well and look and sound the same.” Peter is “almost
completely” (a definite “maybe”) retired from the
practice of orthopedics in Milford, Conn. Chuck
Dunkel notes that Tom Heeken served on the 50th
reunion committee for Michigan Law School’s
Class of ’62. Chuck and Jay Hodgson attended law
school at Michigan with Tom. David Thun, always
a dependable correspondent, is a font of knowledge
about ’59ers. He first wrote from Costa Rica, then
moved on to Naples, Fla., then to Santa Barbara,
then on to Davis, Calif. With the exception of
Central America he saw classmates on all his stops.
His daughter, son-in-law and 11-year-old granddaughter live in Costa Rica and thrive. In Naples,
the Thuns saw Barbara’s brother David Boothby,
who continues to recover from the liver transplant
he had some time ago. David B. plans to move into
a new retirement home currently being constructed
in Columbus, Ohio. In Santa Barbara, the Thuns
visited Susan and Terry Northrop, who are considering many options for their next living environment.
Their current place is wonderfully stimulating and
comfortable, so it may be a while before they make
a move. In Davis, Calif., David spent two nights
with Judy and Dick Wydick, who sold their house
and were in the process of moving into a corner
apartment in an attractive retirement community
about a mile away. From his Thailand home comes
word from Bill Norris. Bill recently gave a birthday
party for his wife Bua “at a lovely restaurant on the
banks of the Ping River here in Chaing Mai. One
of the guests explained she had a cousin who had
graduated from Williams in the Class of ’59—Tom
Kingsley. She reminded Bill that Tom had attended
the University of Michigan Medical School and
after an internship in LA, a stint in the Air Force,
time teaching back at the U of Michigan, and
residency in Springfield, Mass., Tom spent 31 years
as director of hematology at Kennestone Hospital
in Atlanta. As for Bill, he divides his time between
Thailand and Northampton, Mass., and he enjoys
summers visiting Tanglewood, MASS MoCA,
and the Williamstown Theatre Festival. During
the summer months we (the Rankins) live only
about 40 miles from Judy and Sam Parkhill, but I
still must rely on others to tell me the accomplishments of our Belmont Hill boy. Both John Palmer
and Bob McAlaine notified me that Sam is now
president of the board of trustees for the Portland
(Maine) Symphony Orchestra. This is no fly-bynight outfit. As John pointed out, it’s “a world-class
city sized orchestra.” It was founded in 1923 and
annually performs nine classical concerts, several
pop concerts, three family concerts, two concerts
for high school students and multiple children’s
concerts. Sam, Mac and John joined nine other
golfers in late June to travel to Inverness, Nova
Scotia, to play at Cabot Links and Highland Links
in Cape Breton National Park. To his credit, Bob
has co-chaired a successful $8 million campaign
for scholarships at the Gesu School in the poorest
section of north Philadelphia. Gesu runs pre-K
through eighth grade and has been acclaimed a
model inner-city school with a strong track record
and innovative programs. Not to be left out of the
golf picture, Hobie (Bart? Robbie?) Robinson wrote
to comment on the sad death of Matty Donner ’58
and described a match he and Matty played several
years ago. An Amherst friend of his challenged
Hobie to a four-ball match between Amherst and
Williams. Hobie invited Matty to be his partner,
and the two planned to thrash their Lord Jeff rivals.
As the match started it was suggested the loser
must report the results to the two schools’ alumni
magazines. Not a good idea. The Williams team
was soundly crunched. A day or two later when
Hobie was playing golf with Bob Lowden, Jerry
Tipper and John Palmer, he explained his dilemma
of reporting the score. John immediately resolved
the problem by suggesting that the results should
read, “Williams came in second, and Amherst was
next to last.” Perfectly correct.
In the “if you find a job you love you’ll never work
another day in your life department” comes word
from Ross Baldessarini that he continues to work
“nominally” on a half-time basis doing medical
research at Harvard Medical School, McLean and
Mass General hospitals. The accurate story as told
by his wife Fran is that Ross gets “half-time pay for
time-and-a-half-effort.” In his spare moments he
has just finished the third edition of his textbook
on clinical “psychopharmacology.” (Now, good doctor, tell me what it means?)
From the northeast corner of Pennsylvania Jere
Packard writes that he’s teaching history part
time—well, “three classes … almost full time”—at
nearby Misericordia University. ”It’s fun and fulfilling with good interaction with the students,” he
says. While it might not have been full-strength
hubris, Jere has to admit he was rather “cocky”
about his good health—proper weight, low BP, low
cholesterol, etc.—until he was “brutally” surprised
by an atrial fibrillation that had him in the hospital
for 10 days. Since that bout Jere has had a defibrillator/pacemaker put in, and all seems fine now.
Ernie Fleishman still works part time at Scholastic,
“helping to improve literacy among struggling
learners in large cities and some states.” He and
Amy spent two weeks in Myanmar witnessing a
society that is in the very early stages of democratic reform. Cliff Colwell is still working on “the
development of a ligament balancer for use in
total joint replacement surgery as well as pursuing inroads into the causes and prevention of the
arthritic process.” The Colwells enjoyed a wonderful two-week trip to South Africa, Botswana and
Zambia visiting the wine country, shantytowns
and Victoria Falls. While Jack Hyland’s work has
focused on the publication of his thriller The Moses
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Virus, he, like Jere Packard, took time off to have an
ablation to deal with atrial fibrillation. Following a
seven-hour “procedure,” the surgeons assured him
it was “non-invasive.” Good grief, what would an
invasive procedure entail? He’s recovered and was
struggling mightily to decide which of four colorful
book covers should adorn his novel.
“Always remember you’re unique like everyone
else.” Get this: From Bugaboo Spires in British
Columbia, Bev Compton writes he’s been “heliskiing” in the Canadian Rockies. He claims to have
caught sight of Fred Winston in the Alta, Utah, area
as he (Bev) sped by from the very top of Spring
Valley. Apparently Fred has a condo in Alta, and
he and El are excellent skiers. Though Alex Reeves
resides on the East Coast in Virginia, he reports
from the mountaintops of Georgia that he’s following his heart and building another bamboo fly rod
to catch the elusive perfect fish. This semi-retired
physician is considering accepting a new neurology position near his home in the tidewater area of
Virginia. We all knew Bob Embry was talented and
unique, but it turns out his wife, Mary Ann Mears,
is also. A sculptor for many years, she now has a
spectacular piece of work located at the entrance
of the new Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital in
Charlestown. Those in the Boston area might want
to check out her sculpture. Steve Webb’s dogged
determination resulted in the publication of the
capstone of his career, Marlborough’s America. He
and Margaret managed to visit Key Largo, where
they “sailed with some nice modern-day pirates.”
The one-of-a-kind Chip Ide contributed information for a book Fay Vincent ’60 was working on
about the legendary Yale swimming coach Bob
Kiphuth. Chip had trained with Kiphuth several
times in preparation for national meets and could
discuss methods and world-class swimmers who
had worked with him. In March, Steve Bachand,
Hobie Robinson and I enjoyed a weekend gathering of Williams folks in Ponte Vedra, Fla., to hear
Professor Dick De Veaux speak on “Mining Big
Data” and to share good companionship.
“The thing about remembering is you don’t forget.” Joe Prendergast sent me a warm remembrance
of Bruce Listerman, commenting how sad it was to
lose Bruce shortly before our 50th. After graduation
he and Bruce went to Sweden to work for Volvo.
“Bruce went to Stockholm to show the Swedes
what great people Williams turns out, and I went to
Eskilstuna to analyze iron and steel bought to make
tractors. Our most important duty that summer was
to take a Volvo modified for racing and run it as if
we were on our way from LA to Las Vegas.” Joe met
a Swedish nurse this past summer who had run into
Bruce back in 1959, remembered him, and wanted
to be remembered to his family. That family is now
composed of Beth Listerman, their two daughters,
Lisa Listerman ’91 and Kristin, and grandchildren.
Beth still spends most of the year in Cleveland but
tries to get to her Cape Cod condo in Falmouth
often and is able to see Lisa, who lives in the Boston
area. In March other part-time Cleveland residents
Caryn and Henry Foltz were the perfect hosts,
having the Rankins for lunch in Delray Beach, Fla.
Tita and Harry Gratwick were planning to join us
but had to cancel. Sian Batchelder, Peggy Hedeman
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and Lonnie Fisher all wrote expressing interest in
attending the “Five Class Reunion” to be held in
Vero Beach, Fla., next March. It would be a treat
if all three make it. Out on the West Coast Norm
Cram related how nice it was to visit Alison and
Palmer White and Judy and Tom Christopher in
Novato, Calif. Chuck Dunkel reports Norm held a
Holy Eucharist at his home in Sonoma, Calif., to
celebrate the 50th anniversary of his ordination to
the Episcopal priesthood. Janet and Bo Kirschen
joined Chuck at the gathering. From the DallasFort Worth area Grey McGown continues to enjoy
the company of neighbors John Castleman ’61 and
Steve Thayer ’61. Sandy and Peter (Fess) Fesseden
left their digs in Santa Fe, N.M., long enough
to celebrate Sandy’s 75th with a cruise in the
Caribbean—Tortolla, Antigua, Barbados, St. Barts
and St. Lucia.
Most of you recall the Robert Frost line “home
is the place where, when you have to go there, they
have to take you in.” This old saw rings true with
Williamstown. Besides Jack Dietze, Pim Goodbody,
E.J. Johnson, Bill Moomaw and Jim Richardson, who
make their permanent residences there, others often
return. Michele and Pete Willmott spend most of
the summer there in their home away from home.
“Motsey” says his house has been on the market for
a while, and he’d be happy to give any classmate a
good deal on it. Contact him soon! Jay Hodgson
follows his lacrosse-playing grandson, who attends
Bowdoin. He was quite surprised to return to the
Berkshires on Easter Sunday to watch Bowdoin
beat Williams in four overtimes. From his home up
Route 7 in Shaftsbury, Vt., Barry Mayer often travels
to Williamstown and recently took his grandchildren to the college for a tour. He was struck by the
student guide, who walked backwards all over campus without ever falling down. Barry discovered this
talent may have been acquired from playing field
hockey. Seeing Sage and Williams Halls (Entry B
particularly) provided plenty of residual adolescence.
For many years I’ve believed the term “Old
Reliable” was the nickname applied to the N.Y.
Yankee outfielder Tommy Henrich. No, no. Now
it’s now reserved for Ernie Imhoff. He always comes
through with stories, ideas, comments, pictures, etc.
Being a local Williamstown boy, his knowledge
of Greylock and Pine Cobble is vast, and he can
recite Henry David Thoreau’s quotes tying Mount
Greylock to Williams College. Geoff Morton and
I journeyed back to our favorite mountain in early
June for reunion weekend. We had dinner with
John Chandler and Barry Mayer, heard several
good lectures, enjoyed seeing members of the Class
of ’58 who were celebrating their 55th and hearing
the Williams Reunion Jazz Band with Tom Hayne
and John Halsey performing.
Special thanks are in order for Bob Lowden,
Hobie Robinson and Tony Volpe for their fine work
running our annual fund. To have over 70 percent
of the class contribute is truly remarkable. Kudos
are also due Jack Hyland and David Thun for succeeding in getting 38 classmates to remember the
college in their estate plans.
Important dates to remember: Oct. 4-6—minireunion, Williamstown. March 5-8, 2014, five-class
reunion (’55-’59), in Vero Beach, Fla.
1959–60
1960
Michael Penner, 38334 South Desert Bluff Drive, Tucson,
AZ 85739; 1960secretary@williams.edu
Dick Eggers reports while in Vero Beach he
and Lynda had a lovely dinner with fellow D.U.
classmate Dave Banta and Tina, whom they hadn’t
seen since the 45th reunion. Dick wrote, “The following day, in a tightly fought golf match against
two Orchid Club friends of mine, my partner Dave
stole the show by draining a critical long putt on
17, followed by a lipped-out 140-yard approach
shot on 18 for a birdie that was an eagle for a
moment. With such superb play, Dave assured me
we would not be invited back, but as I recall, our
fraternity oath included helping each other financially in our dotage.”
Win Healy Jr. passed away on the morning of
March 15. Win was proudest of the family he raised
and of the school, Punahou in Honolulu, that he
helped to build as English teacher, dean of administration and, for 30 years, principal. At Punahou,
Win had a deep influence on the education of tens
of thousands of students who became teachers,
thinkers, business leaders, loving parents and at least
one president. He also impacted hundreds of teachers, a legacy he was deeply pleased with. Although
he spent his entire adult life in the islands, Win’s
true paradise was his family’s farm on which he was
raised and where he retired. At the end of his life
Win was surrounded by his former wife, two sons,
two daughters, family and friends. A memorial service was held at the Charlemont Federated Church
on April 6. An additional memorial service was
scheduled for Aug. 3 at Punahou School’s Thurston
Chapel. Win worked long and hard to make our
50th the great event it was.
Jon O’Brien wins the award for first responder. Jon
reports that he and Joan are well. They continue to
live in Westport Mass., along with their daughter
Megan and her two children, Jonathan, 18, and
Olivia,16. Olivia is at St. Andrew’s School in
Delaware (11th grade in fall), where Joan and I
spent 20 years working. Jonathan will be working on a ranch in the high country of Patagonia,
Chile, for six months starting in the fall. Our other
daughters, Jennifer and Elizabeth, live, respectively,
in San Francisco and Davidson, N.C.—both
great places to visit. One of Elizabeth’s daughters,
Charlotte, will join Olivia at St. Andrews next fall.
We had an excellent trip to China and Tibet last
October and will be in Morocco this fall, but most
of all we love being in Westport. Kay and Peter
Lisle are neighbors, and Bob Gormley ’61 and I had
a good visit with Bob Rorke over a superb lunch in
a French restaurant in Boston in the winter. I keep
in touch by phone with some others but don’t see
many classmates these days. I hope a lot of us can
“hang in there” until our 55th in 2015. Speaking
of 55th, Joan and I celebrated ours on June 12 this
year. What a wonderful ride it’s been!
Jerry Bernstein is spearheading the construction of
a new high-rise office building for the San Francisco
Lighthouse for the Blind. This $70 million project
will take four to five years to complete. He says, “It
entails buying the building next door, buying an
apartment building for the 27 current apartment
owners to live in, ensuring we are not building the
new building on top of some ancient burial ground,
enduring the interminable San Francisco politics
involved with building only a half block away from
City Hall, architects, solar designers (it is San
Francisco, after all), yada, yada, yada. This will be my
last hurrah, and then I will retire. After having been
in the scrap business for 30 years, this project should
finally give me enough good karma to keep me
from being damned to hell for all eternity (maybe…
although there was that one time in San Jose… OK,
let’s not talk about that).”
Dave Banta hopes to see all of you at the minireunion weekend Oct. 4-6. Kevin Tierney reports
spending the last four weeks traveling sections of
the Silk Road. He started with visits to the many
Hans in Istanbul and then flew to the central part
of the Silk Road in Tashkent, Samarkand and
Bukhara. He saw portions in Armenian villages
and Kurdish towns, while skirting the Iran, Iraq
and Syria borders. Kevin still has a full trial docket.
The stock market is up but so are foreclosures, even
in Fairfield County. Marianne and Kevin planned
to host their three kids with their eight grandchildren for a week in the Chesapeake Bay area
in August to celebrate Kevin’s 75th. Sally and Ken
Gillett report having dinner with Betsey and Jerry
Goodwin in Weston, Conn.; dinner on Captiva
Island, Fla., with Ann and Hank Humphrey; and an
afternoon visit with Earla Sue and Colin McNaull
in Trumansville, N.Y., when they were in Ithaca
for granddaughter Sarah’s graduation from Cornell
(about 30,000 in the football stadium watching
about 5,500 get diplomas). The Goodwins also
went to Dayton, Ohio, for grandson Peter’s graduation from University of Dayton. Summer and early
fall were to be in Deer Isle, Maine, with a weekend
off to Ithaca for Sarah’s wedding. A full life this
year. They are enjoying Newton, Conn., when not
in Deer Isle! Earla Sue and Colin McNaull enjoyed
the Gilletts’ visit. Colin has a new “rented” horse for
this year’s riding season. His horse, Maize, passed
away in February. Their 52nd anniversary plans
include staying at a lighthouse in Narragansett Bay
and sailing on a 12-meter out of Newport, which
was their home port during their Navy days. Dixie
Griffin reports that she and Keith took a 12-day
road trip to visit Texas. The first stop was San
Antonio and the Alamo (for the first time). They
learned a great deal that they thought they already
knew, and Dixie discovered a direct connection to
an important daughter of Texas. They saw some of
Keith’s family and most of Dixie’s while in Texas
and then headed for Santa Fe, N.M., to see Janice.
Janice will be living and working there and loves
the place. Keith and Dixie joined Kimberley in
Williamstown to celebrate Isabel Griffin-Smith’s
’13 graduation. Kim and Isabel will both return to
Riverside for a couple of weeks for a well-deserved
rest and holiday and then go back to England
together. Jim Pilgrim reports that they have just
returned from a week-long cruise on the Queen
of the West paddlewheel boat down the Snake and
Columbia Rivers. There were many stops along the
way to see various sights and some nice wineries. It was advertised as a wine cruise, so there
were lots of wine tastings. They also learned some
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detailed history of the Lewis and Clark Expedition
commissioned by President Thomas Jefferson to
explore and map the Louisiana Purchase. The
paddlewheel boat went as far west as Astoria, Ore.,
and then turned around back to Portland, Ore., and
the plane home. Upon returning Jim attended an
alumni weekend lecture entitled, “Dangerous Times
Ahead? The Arab Spring and the Middle East,”
by Magnus Bernhardsson, professor of history. It
was outstanding, and all the seats were filled! If
Williams puts the lecture on the website, it is well
worth watching. Jim reports that Duncan Brown
and Bob Stegeman were in attendance.
1961
Bob Gormley, 1775 Drift Road, P.O. Box 3922, Westport,
MA 02790; 1961secretary@williams.edu
’61 was on the road again in the summer and
fall. First there’s the elegant Treasures of Spain:
Cultural Legacies of Andalusia group event
organized by John Byers, John Denne and Wally
Bernheimer, coming up Oct. 7-16. Included with
those three and wives are Clyde Buck and Sherri,
Walt Henrion and Page, Paul Boire and Nancy,
John Leathers and Della, Art Waltman and Carol
Watson, Harvey Plonsker and Madeleine plus Spike
Kellogg ’62 and Gillian and Dick McCauley ’62 and
Jane along with tour faculty lecturer Bill Darrow.
Bon voyage!
A few who considered but already had travel
commitments included Eric Widmer and Meera
(due in China), Charlie Dana and Ann, who’ve
become globetrotters in retirement but are now
tracking U.S. sites, Dave Brown and Mary, who will
have covered Italy (May) and the Holy Land before
lighting back in their Nantucket summer place.
And yours truly, with Bea, will be off to Scotland in
September, with a stop in Iona to pay our respects
to the Irish St. Columba (6th-century missioner).
Eric continues his foundational education
work as an advisor to the SOLA school in Kabul,
the School for Leadership/Afghanistan. SOLA
(“peace” in Pashtun) is the only boarding school for
girls in the country, and Eric’s role is to guide its
graduates to schools and colleges in the U.S. Here’s
to that and the place of their women!
George Lowe deserves a patience medal. Back in
Feb. he sent me a fascinating report on his teaching adventures in Ukraine, and it got fouled up in
mailing so missed the cut for the last notes. After
training in Salzburg at the Center for International
Legal Studies in spring ’12, he and Barbara went
off to Odessa in fall ’12 for a five-week stint teaching American criminal law where they mentored
35 eager law students and were drawn into the
culture. I understood why, at least from George’s
standpoint, when I saw the accompanying pics of
him with those gorgeous women students, ear to
ear grin on his face. He quipped: “Eat your heart
out, Noland!”
Noyes Rogers also deserves a patience award.
He wrote back in March of being in NYC (from
Nebraska) for the new production of Parsifal at
the Met. He’d had dinner with Kevin Morrissey
and Hatice at Tom Johnson’s son’s (Asa Johnson
’02) new restaurant, Three Letters, in Brooklyn.
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He’s a discriminating guy and gave the restaurant
high marks: “Very pleasant spot with good simple
French food not far from the new Barclay’s Center.”
He was also going to see Dan Fales and Nancy in
Naples in April.
Mike Dively was back in Santa Cruz, Calif., after
hosting the annual Dively Committee dinner
and enjoying a return to campus life. But he was
thinking about a new travel adventure in August,
to swim the ancient Hellespont (Dardanelles, the
strait connecting mainland Turkey with Gallipoli,
1-4 miles across) in celebration of his 75th in
December. The water’s more tolerable in August
though. Anyone planning a more challenging 75th
birthday challenge? Bush Sr. risked a parachute
jump, remember. Anyway, I’ve got till Oct. ’14 to
think about heroics at 75.
True to his word, Bob Judd did get up to Alaska
over the summer to retrace the trail from Fairbanks
to Seattle that his Uncle John and a buddy followed
on motorcycles back in the day before there were
many roads and no highways. Bob’s book, A Mighty
Fool Stunt, will tell the whole tale, but he tracked
the uncle’s diary in a comfortable vehicle and sent
some spectacular photos of roadside vistas—whitewater streams, serpentine valleys, snowcapped
mountains.
Pierce “Butch” Anderson checked in to report
a fun sail with Molly on his Tartan 37-foot sloop
down the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway to
Florida from their place in Maryland, discovering
the Low Country of Georgia and South Carolina
and stops in Cumberland and Jekyll Island,
Savannah, Charleston and Beaufort, S.C., and
Amelia Island and St. Augustine in Fla. Reminds
me of Jim Hodges living full time on his boat near
Charleston.
Dave Whittemore and Mary experienced a memorable cruise on the Silver Sea to the Lesser Antilles
with 35 other Williams folks. He also wove in great
golf on St. Kitts. At one point the Carnival liner
with 4,000 passengers aboard docked next to them,
the one that sent everyone home by air when their
generator went down in a fire. Dave chose well.
Bill Holmes is another man on the move. Came
back east from his nest in California to tour around
Virginia for family and history (Charlottesville,
Williamsburg, Jamestown). He was to be up at
Tahoe in August and off on an Adriatic cruise in
Oct. He and Chris were also set to host a 50th
anniversary barbecue. So congrats to them, and a
reminder that others of you will be coming on such
landmark events so let us know.
I never know what to expect from Tom Millington.
Turns out this spring he had an exchange with
Henry Kissinger (90 this year and still active) about
some research and writing Tom had done on a
human rights hero of the Argentinian Dirty War
period and the “disappeared” in the 1970s, Emilio
Mignone. It also turns out that we had published a
book by Mignone at Orbis Books, which I directed,
and that Tom’s brother Jeff Millington ’66, a foreign
service officer, played a significant role in getting
the State Department, then under Kissinger, to
take up the cause of the “disappeared,” including
Mignone’s own daughter, thereafter. Dr. Kissinger
gratefully acknowledged Dr. Millington’s partial
1960–62
translation of a recent Spanish publication on the
issue, and I have proof in hand.
Our man on the scene, John Denne, delivered a
brief report on the June reunion, our 52nd. John
and Joan dined at the Gramercy Bistro in North
Adams on the Friday with Fred Mayer and Pat, Al
Schiavetti and Bobbi, Jay Tarses and Rachel, and
Dave Macpherson ’64 and Polly. Dave will chair
the ’64 50th next year, so he was picking up tips
from John. Dave also went to the same Buffalo
high school as Fred, who was back from St. Louis
to celebrate with brother George Mayer ’63. Fred
had called me earlier to warn he was due back on
campus but also that he, Paul Mersereau, Mike
White and Rik Warch had planned a minireunion
for Chicago at the end of June. That foursome
was the “ADQ” (for Alum Dorm Quartet) who
shared quarters senior year in a secret room off the
staircase at Theta Delt. Sadly, they had to cancel
plans when it was learned that brain cancer had
gotten the better of Rik, in hospice as I write. I’m
so glad we could spend time with him and Margo
at our 50th.
With that, I’d better get the rest of the bad news
out of the way: Dave Whittemore reported that
Lee Baynard passed away on Nov. 28, 2012, in St.
Petersburg after a long bout with Parkinson’s. And
Bill DeWitt, our star on the Williams biology faculty,
died on May 3, 2013. Bill had been a mainstay at
the college since 1967. (Please see the obit section
of this issue for detail.) A bittersweet footnote is
that spouses Galey Clark (Sam Weaver), Jane Frick
and Kitima Samuelson were elected honorary
members of the Society of Alumni in June.
Fred Rudolph ’42, revered professor and mentor
to many of us in AH&L, passed away on June 3,
and I’m still processing that sadness. Among other
things, Fred was a leading historian of American
higher education and immortalized Mark Hopkins
with his Yale Ph.D. dissertation later published as
Mark Hopkins and the Log.
On to happier things. Ron Roberts was in touch
with another of his down home reports—no big
events except for a knee replacement, no travel
since Puerto Vallarta in 2010 and “continuing
to write novels under the pseudonym of Harlan
Coben.” I had to check Coben on Google, but he’s
been pretty successful. No wonder the good life in
Hilton Head keeps him energized. Dependable Gil
Kerr was in from northern Georgia as well. He’s
taking time to appreciate the change of seasons
and finds himself less vulnerable to the political
winds. Still watches some Fox News to see some
gas thrown on the fire (he’s pretty conservative and
likes the daily pin-pricking).
Another dependable, Bob Marrin, with wife Lois,
was in from KC, where he’s associated with The
Whole Person (WHP), an agency that works with
disabled people and has assisted him in recovery.
WHP recently moved into new hyper-accessible
quarters in a historic building to expand its frontline therapeutic programs, and Bob assists them
with marketing from home.
Last bit: John Whitney and Pat have a grandson,
Ben, with a rare life-threatening obesity disorder (PWS). Pat coordinates golf tournaments at
Vermont National and on Aug. 5 was to stage the
second annual Friends of Ben Classic at Red Tail
(Ft. Devens) in Ayer, Mass. Wally Bernheimer,
Bob Stegeman ’60 and I planned to pull in a low
handicap horse to ride and join the fun.
Flash: Gordie Stevenson, a working fool, has
become of counsel to Nutter McLennan & Fish
LLP in Boston, joining the trusts and estates
group from his former firm. Need expert retirement advice? Also, Steve Lazarus talked to Gibby
Rachleff recently, and Gib is still struggling
to regain full mobility but has lost none of his
good humor. He would appreciate hearing from
classmates.
Hope to see some of you the weekend of Oct. 5-6
at the fall minireunion and football gathering in
Williamstown.
1962
William M. Ryan, 112 Beech Mountain Road, Mansfield
Center, CT 06250; 1962secretary@williams.edu
It has been an especially tough winter in general
in Connecticut and, in particular, it has been even
tougher for me. We experienced two very heavy
snowstorms, the first breaking the single-storm
snowfall record of 30 inches. Spring took a long
time arriving, and as I write this in late May we are
experiencing cold, rainy weather. I was hit with two
hospitalizations for COPD (breathing) issues that
conveniently excused me from all snow-shoveling
duties. Just yesterday I was diagnosed with sciatica.
I have recovered nicely from the COPD problems,
though it is a condition that will not go away.
And I will recover from the sciatic nerve problem,
though it does provide me with a ready-made
excuse for a horrendous golf swing. Are you guys
getting older, too? Or are we already old?
Our 50th seems to have spawned several microreunions. My former roommate, Steve Brumberg,
stopped in Connecticut with his good friend Carol
Ingall on the way to Carol’s condo in Newport,
R.I. Carol is a retired professor from the Jewish
Theological Seminary in NYC. Steve says he will
retire sometime next year from Brooklyn College
(I’ve heard this before!) so that he can devote full
time to his book on the influence of Catholicism
on education in the U.S.A. While at lunch at one
of my favorite restaurants, a wasp flew around our
table. Steve, the inveterate punster commented,
“Gee, I didn’t think wasps liked to hang around
Jews.” Last year, Carol and Steve attended a jazz
concert with LaVerne and Bill Robertson, resuming
their old practice of jazz concert-going, last done
when they were in graduate school in Cambridge.
Steve reported: “On this occasion, Bill did not
bring his trombone but organized the evening’s
dinner and concert with Bill Charlap and his trio.”
The Robertsons were busy dining last fall. Bill
Vaughn informed me that he and Jane had dinner
with Bill and LaVerne and Walter Graham and
his friend Carol in October. Bill Vaughn continues
his work as a trustee on two major pension funds,
“which takes me to Naples, Fla., and Phoenix,
Ariz., frequently.” They again planned to spend the
summer at their lovely Cape Cod home.
Shannon and Jim Evans hosted a Psi U micro in
March at their stately home in Franklin, La. Steve
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Huffman reported that the attendees included
Bonnie and John Russ, Mia and John Wilkinson,
Linda and Bob Evan, Bill Penick, Mardie and Hud
Holland ’61 and Bobbie and Al Schiavetti ’61. Steve
said, “We fished on bayous, saw gators, roasted a
pig, had a crawfish boil and caught up with each
other after all these years.” Jim added: “A marvelous
time was had by all, especially me.” It was the fifth
time Jim has orchestrated a fraternity reunion. He
and Shannon enjoyed a river cruise through the
waterways of Holland and Belgium. “I was wearing
a Williams shirt, and a young man in Holland
came forward and identified himself as a Williams
College junior doing a year abroad.”
Fred Wentz wrote to me that he “had the pleasure
of connecting with Al Oehrle, Bill Hyland and John
Haslett” in May at their 55th high school reunion
(The Haverford School). “They acted like it was
their 25th.”
Peggy and Marc Comstock dined with Martha and
Skip Little in Falmouth, having discovered they were
nearby at our 50th. Said Marc, “It was great to catch
up with them. We will do it again.” Marc has visited
73 countries (“not including Minnesota”) and will
add the Czech Republic to his list this year.
Judy and Bruce Grinnell spent two weeks in
Beaufort, S.C., at the recommendation of Carl Davis,
who now resides there for most of the year. They
drove to Savannah to lunch with Janet and Rawson
Gordon. “It was a wonderful visit. The Mike Reily ’64
weekend and our 50th reunion were really the first
occasions to visit with Rawson in a long time. He
gave me a DVD of the ’61 Tufts game, one of our
two losses that year. He obtained a copy because he
claims he caught seven passes in the game. Coach
Waters was convinced that we couldn’t run on Tufts
because they outweighed our line by about 45 lbs.
per man, so we threw 22 passes. I think I completed
eight. I think it was the most passes attempted in a
Waters-coached game by a factor of 2.5.”
Toby Cosgrove is in the news again, this time in
an article in the Harvard Business Review entitled
“Health Care’s Service Fanatics.” The gist of the
article is that patient satisfaction with their hospital
experience is as important as the medical outcomes of that experience. They have reorganized
their staff with that thought in mind, and it has
worked. Providing patients with an excellent overall
experience—in areas such as making appointments,
offering a pleasant physical environment, addressing their fears and concerns during their stay and
providing clear discharge instructions—became
a priority. As a recent participant in a two-week
hospital stay, I can attest to the importance of their
model and applaud Toby and the Cleveland Clinic.
Tom Payzant was on the West Coast doing some
education mentoring and consulting during the
running of the Boston Marathon and returned two
days after that horrific event. “It was hard to stay
away from the TV with a constant flow of information and a citywide lockdown. Resilience has been
powerful, and the Red Sox are doing great!”
Don Pelletier’s son, Emile, entered a competition
sponsored by the Canadian Broadcast System for
singer/songwriters. “Emile has been doing this as a
serious sideline for years and has just completed his
third original CD.” Unfortunately, it is too late to
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cast your ballot for Emile, but you can listen to his
entry at http://r3.ca/0YP8.
“The theater, it seems, still needs little old men.”
So says Ash Crosby who made recent appearances
in Henry V at the Arkansas Rep and Romeo and
Juliet at the Roxy Regional Theater in Tennessee.
(No, he wasn’t Romeo.)
Gil Leigh was chosen as one of the top volunteers
in Arlington County in Virginia, where he helps
out at the county library. He and Chris enjoyed
their annual spring fling at Hilton Head in May,
riding bikes, playing tennis, overeating and lazing
on the beach. Chris had an emergency stent installation in March but has recovered quickly.
After 43 years of employment in the physics department at the University of Florida, Jack
Sabin has retired. He will retain his position at the
University of Southern Denmark in Odense. He
lectured in Mexico in May and will spend part of
the fall in Denmark. Since, as I’m sure you know,
this year marks the 100th anniversary of one of Nils
Bohr’s most important papers, he will be attending
a conference in San Sebastian (Basque country) to
celebrate that event.
Nick Rogers is sort of retired but sort of not. He
continues to practice dermatology at the Mayo
Clinic in Arizona, teaching and providing staff
supervision for resident patients. He teaches a
14-hour course for University at Sea two or three
times a year and has visited all parts of the globe
on his 28 (and counting) voyages. Last year he
was made an honorary member of the European
Academy of Dermatology and Venereology at their
annual meeting in Prague. He had his second hip
replacement last year, and both hips are “perfect.” “I
enjoy living in Arizona for the weather climate but
not the political climate.” He and Sue will celebrate
their 50th anniversary next year on a teaching
cruise from Singapore to Hong Kong.
Fin Fogg’s photo appeared in the Sunday New
York Times in May as he presided at the annual
Legal Aid Society dinner. “Raised $3.2 million, a
new record,” he reported.
For the unfortunate among you who are not connected to Eugene Cassidy’s blog, I include a sample:
“Ammo is getting scarce… This morning I lucked
out and was able to buy several cases of .223 ammo.
On the way back home, I stopped at the gas station
where a drop-dead gorgeous blonde was filling up
her car at the next pump. She looked at the ammo
in the back of my Jeep and said in a very sexy voice,
‘I’m a big believer in barter, big boy. Would you
be interested in trading sex for ammo?’ I thought
for a few seconds and asked, ‘What kind of ammo
you got?’” To read more of his very well written
and humorous insights, contact him at cassidy@
marshallnet.com.
Jim MacDougall passed away on Feb. 28. After
receiving his master’s degree and Ph.D. from Case
Western Reserve, he became a professor of English
at Ball State University in Muncie. He also served
as the director of prison education with the Indiana
Department of Corrections and was very active in
the St. Lawrence Catholic Church. He is survived
by his wife of 50 years, Carol MacDougall, and two
children, Rebecca Thompson and Ross MacDougall.
Sympathies from the class to the family.
1962–63
Gillian and Spike Kellogg continue their active
lifestyle and are looking forward to the fall trip to
Andalusia with the Class of ’61 “once skiing and
biking season slow down.” Janey and Dick McCauley
also have accepted the invitation of ’61 to join
them on this adventure. While talking with Spike,
we detoured into a discussion of the number of
countries we had visited, which prompted me to
ask the same question of classmates. I invited you
to check out the Traveler’s Century Club website
to determine if we had any members and inquired
about your favorite destinations. (Membership in
the TCC is limited to those who have touched
down in at least 100 countries.) I was surprised
to learn that no one in ’62 qualifies for the TCC.
Steve Clarey has visited the most, 94, but since he
was a U.S. Navy admiral, most of his trips were
done at our expense. Bill Whitman is close behind
at 93, followed by Bob Goff with 86 and Gillian
Kellogg at 84.
Favorites: Carol and Dick Paul very much enjoy
the Williams-sponsored trips, went last year on a
riverboat cruise in Moscow and plan on another
Williams trip—Peru—this year. Family trips are
popular as many of us are celebrating 50th anniversaries. Dinny and Barney Shaw entertained all
their kids and grandkids at Siesta Beach in Florida,
and Judy and John Huntington gathered their
family together for an Alaskan cruise. Barbara and
Rob Beard spent two weeks in Argentina visiting
Bariloche, Patagonia, Mendoza and Buenos Aires.
But the prize for the most unusual and fascinating trip goes to Choppy Rheinfrank. “I made two
National Geographic trips by myself in 2008,
separated from each other only by a month. I traveled around the world with 80 other passengers on
a Boeing chartered jet. I chose them because two of
my favorite authors were the leaders of the trip. One
was Spencer Wells (who wrote The Journey of Man),
and the other was Jared Diamond (Guns, Germs and
Steel and Collapse). Truly an amazing experience.”
Now that our 50th and my travels are history,
soliciting info for these notes is quite challenging.
I decided I would phone a few classmates for each
issue, concentrating on those whom I did not visit
or who did not write bios in our book. The first two
of the Seldom Heard:
Bill Robinson finished Williams with the Class
of ’63 (though he remains officially with ’62), the
result of an automobile accident our senior year.
He spent six years in the Marine Corps, including several stints in Vietnam. He was wounded by
a grenade in Nam and has been on a 70 percent
disability pension since. Boats have been a constant
presence in his life, and he worked for 24 years for
Bath Iron Works in Maine. His work included ship
design, development of materials and construction.
He retired in ’02 and immediately began teaching
special education at Medomak HS. “I began largely
due to my wife Joyce’s influence. She has had a
long career as a social worker.” Joyce is his second
wife. He has two children and one grandchild with
his first wife, Marilyn, and both of them are into
boats, also. His memories of Williams include the
wrestling team with Ash Crosby, who tried to get
him interested in the theater. “It didn’t work,” said
Bill. “Ash had talent; I didn’t.”
Tom Herschbach entered OCS in Newport,
where he roomed with Rawson Gordon. He spent
three-and-a-half years in the Navy, including over
a year in Vietnam. He began his career with the
First National Bank of Chicago (“back when banks
had sensible names”) and took his first retirement in 2001 after reaching a senior level in the
bond-trading department. His son-in-law asked
if he would help out in the finance department of
his farm and truck dealership, which he did for the
next nine years. He and his wife Janet have two
children and five grandchildren and split their time
in Flossmoor, Ill., where they have been for 35
years, and Stuart, Fla., spending about a half-year in
each. “I enjoyed Williams immensely,” Tom said. “I
wasn’t particularly well prepared, but the professors
worked with me, and I really learned how to write
and think.” You may remember Tom as one of the
outstanding swimmers on our outstanding swim
team. “Our freshmen team was undefeated. By the
time we all were seniors, I was the only one still in
the water.” He related a story to me concerning a
trip to Cape Cod with Jim Van Hoven just prior to
graduation. “We didn’t know anyone there and slept
on the beach. Please ask Jim if his back remembers
that trip.” He also asked to be remembered to Steve
Clarey, “whose parents were so kind to me when I
arrived in Honolulu from Vietnam.”
Hope to hear from all of you, whether you are a
member of the Seldom or Often Heard.
1963
Phil Kinnicutt, 341 Iliaina St., Kailua, HI 96734;
1963secretary@williams.edu
Submitted by outgoing secretary Jim Blume: I think
it is no exaggeration to say that those of us who
attended our gala 50th reunion had an experience that was exhilarating as well as warm and
embracing. For those of you who regrettably could
not attend (you were missed), I will try, in my final
notes as class secretary, to convey some sense of the
celebratory nature of our reunion.
It is fitting to commend, yet again, our classmates who engineered the event so brilliantly. Bill
Burnett, our chair, performed his tasks in exemplary
fashion. Every event was flawlessly executed, except
for the downpour on Thursday and Friday, which,
surprisingly, he could not control. Bill McDaniels, as
president, was omnipresent, and his remarks were at
once charming and memorable. Lenny Bernheimer
tirelessly organized our fundraising, and, due largely
to his Herculean efforts, aided by leadership gifts
from Harry Hagey and Jack Luetkemeyer, we managed to raise an astounding $13.5 million, which
will be used to fund our three gift purposes: scholarships, the Center for Media Initiatives and the 1963
Sustainability Fund. Robbin and John Churchill
managed our many meals over five days, which were
not only delicious and varied but also, thankfully, a
total departure from our previous culinary experience at our alma mater. Our class book, produced
by the renowned team of Brooks Goddard and John
Bell, was thoughtful, well-conceived and beautifully
produced. (Incidentally, even Alan Schlosser, who
made a vow to memorize everyone’s entry, found the
task to be too daunting.)
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Bernie Wruble worked many long hours to
increase the turnout. In fact, 112 of our 236
classmates returned to Williamstown, which was
impressive. Not satisfied merely to prod people,
Bernie, with the able aid of Gayle Mandle, chose
our simple but elegant clothing for the parade on
Saturday.
It is, of course, impossible in this necessarily short
essay to thank all of our classmates who provided
backup in innumerable ways to each of these leaders, but know that their efforts recognized.
The only sad note was the death of Fred Rudolph
’42 on the Monday before our reunion. Fred was
revered by many in our class as a professor, as a
mentor, as a friend and as an inspiring presence. He
will be sorely missed. Subsequent to our reunion,
Peter Moock wrote a moving tribute to him, which
I presume will be printed in the forthcoming postreunion class book.
Without question, the highlight of the reunion
was the opportunity to re-connect with classmates,
some of whom each of us knew intimately and some
of whom we only knew distantly. It was clearly
evident that camaraderie and bonhomie pervaded
our entire time in Williamstown. I would be remiss,
however, if I didn’t mention some of the events of
the weekend that were unique to our class.
On Thursday, Mac Dick, a pediatric oncologist,
organized a panel of three ’63 doctors to discuss
changes in medical technology. Bill Reznikoff, a
PhD biologist, discussed DNA sequencing in a
way that even lay people could comprehend. He
was followed by Roy Weiner, who commented on
the practical application for gene discoveries. Terry
Davis was expected to be the third speaker, but
unfortunately a family emergency kept him in Ohio.
Following that fascinating seminar, Allan Mondell,
an honored documentarian, chaired a panel entitled
“Making a Difference.” Initially, Allan showed a
clip from his new gripping documentary about the
Peace Corps. Bill Boyd, who served in the Peace
Corps in Cameroon, and Brooks Goddard, who
taught in the Kenya USAID’s Teachers for Africa
project, sat on the panel in which they described
their post-college overseas experience. Impressively,
17 members of our class either served in the Peace
Corps or were involved in some overseas program.
Zoe Armstrong, a recruiter for the Peace Corps,
was the third panelist and commented on the long
and distinguished history of Williams alums in the
Peace Corps.
While the Women of Williams, led by Lyn
Bernheimer and Jeanie Goddard, lunched and
heard Professor Darra Goldstein discuss desserts,
the highly competitive Williams ’63 tennis tourney
was being played (stumbled is probably a more apt
word) in front of a cheering crowd of two—Carolyn
Lougee, the wife of our tennis chair, Dave Lougee,
and Lael Carter. Competitors—a rather loose
term—included Bill Carter, Bernie Wruble, Peter
Moock, Phil Reynolds, Ned Grew, Dave Steward,
Gordy Prichett, Lenny Bernheimer, me and a ringer,
Rick Berry’s wife Kelly. While there were no winners, it should be noted that in the final match of
the day, Lenny and I overcame the highly favored
team of Lougee and Kelly Berry in rather decisive
fashion.
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Throughout the weekend, golf was enjoyed by
many under the leadership of George Kilborn. I’m
told that players included: Bob Ciulla, Rick Berry,
John Churchill, Lenny Bernheimer, Bill McDaniels,
John Moran, Steve Weinstock, Gene Goodwillie, Bill
Holmes, Brian King, Tony Lamb, Elliot Urdang and
Rich Goodman.
Our third seminar on the “Value of Liberal Arts
Education” was skillfully led by Carolyn Lougee,
a professor of history at Stanford. On the panel
were three classmates, Garrett Kirk, Woody Lockhart
and Paul Michel—Renaissance men all—each of
whom, in their incisive way, extolled the impact of
their liberal arts education on their post-Williams
careers. As an added fillip at the college-wide ceremony at the end of the parade, Paul, a prominent
judge on the Court of Appeals, was awarded the
Kellogg Award, which is “presented to a Williams
graduate in recognition of a most distinguished
career.” Paul was clearly a deserved recipient of the
award, which he accepted with his typical modesty.
Kudos, Paul!
After the parade and lunch on Saturday, Jay
Rohrlich and I led a group discussion about “Lives
Since 1963,” which provided a forum for classmates
to share their thoughts on a variety of subjects.
The session was well attended, and a lively though
somewhat disjointed, but far-reaching and fascinating dialogue ensued.
Finally, Perry Kingman and Steve Franklin led
a poignant memorial service for our departed
classmates. A small brochure listing each classmate’s name and subsequently read by either
Perry or Steve was powerfully evocative. The cover
of the brochure was adorned by a watercolor by
Sandy McPeck, who died in March. In addition to
many classmates, the service was attended by Kitty
Strauss, Peter Strauss’s widow, and Susan McPeck,
Sandy McPeck’s widow, who seemed very touched
by the service. Although she could not attend the
commemoration, Bonnie Knight, Woody Knight’s
widow, wrote an email to all of us, which I will
partially quote, “I appreciate all your thoughtfulness and kindness to me over the two days I was
at the 50th reunion with my daughter Heidi. I felt
enveloped in your love.”
I do want to take this opportunity to honor
Sandy McPeck, who died subsequent to the submission of my class notes for the May issue.
Sandy’s obituary, which was published in the
Toledo Blade, had the following headline, “Former
teacher, and an advocate who inspired students.”
Sandy, who received a MAT from Brown, taught
English and coached soccer at Maumee Valley
Community Day School for 27 years. He was
assistant headmaster for a period in the ’90s and
“was a leader in making students and staff sensitive
to the racial, ethnic, religious, cultural and even economic variation among students.” Sandy had two
daughters and a son from his first marriage. One
of his daughters, Alex, commented that “he was
an advocate for all kinds of people.” After retiring
from Maumee Valley, Sandy taught English for a
decade at New Bedford Regional Vocational High
School, where most students were learning a trade
and worked after school to support their families. Teaching English to kids from working-class
1963
backgrounds was totally involving for him. Susan
noted that “he earned their respect.” Sandy and
Susan married in 1991, and he became a stepfather
to Susan’s four children. He is also survived by five
grandchildren and four step-grandchildren.
Those of us who were privileged to know Sandy
mourn his loss. He was a lovely and honorable man
who will be long remembered.
Since these notes will represent my final submission to People, I’m going to claim secretarial
privilege (a term I’ve coined) and provide an
impressionistic, stream-of-consciousness view of
classmates whom I encountered at the reunion. It
is certainly not intended to be inclusive, though
I’ve tried to represent as many classmates as my
memory would allow.
The first person Kathryn and I encountered upon
arriving at our HQ was Bill Reeves, who was sitting
under a tree munching on a snack. Bill, somewhat
begrudgingly, revealed that he wasn’t optimistic
but he hoped to encounter some contrariness at
our gathering. When I saw him next on Friday and
inquired if he had been successful, he looked at me,
smiled broadly and responded with an emphatic
yes… Bernie Wruble’s veins are a rich purple. Not
only is his wife Jill Wruble ’83 an alumna but also
their two children, Matti Wruble ’14 and Austin
Wruble ’17, are currently enrolled at the college.
But that’s not all—two of his three daughters
from his previous marriage, Vanessa Wruble ’96
and Alexis Wruble ’99, are also graduates… Five
classmates who attended the reunion celebrated
their 50th anniversaries in June. Congratulations
to Hobby and David Jeffrey, Lyn and Lenny
Bernheimer, Carolyn and Dave Lougee, Ann
and Felipe Santo Domingo and Robbin and John
Churchill… Exuding conviviality, John Bell was as
charming as ever, and Lyn’s presence in the light of
her MS was both admirable and courageous. Frank
Simunek and Brooks Goddard have continued to
avidly collect stamps. Gene Goodwillie, ebullient
as ever, could not recall if he starred at left wing or
right wing on the famed hockey line of Holt, Roe
and Goodwillie.
For years, I never knew the derivation of “Toes”
Moseley’s name. In fact, I didn’t think that he had
a first name. Well, much to my amazement, “Toes”
revealed its origin. Evidently freshman year, Woodie
Hartman cleverly rhymed “toes” and “mose,” and it
stuck. Felipe Santo Domingo told me a similar story
about his nickname, “Fop.”
Throughout our time together, Bill Burnett was a
picture of equanimity, beaming as he let his careful
planning unfold… Brooks Goddard, as is his wont,
eschewed a tie and jacket at our festive Saturday
night dinner but was resplendent in a gorgeous,
lush purple tunic from Mali… Steve Weinstock
and Jack Luetkemeyer arrived at the reunion via
private planes… Jimmy Williams’ distinctive laugh
has maintained its distinctiveness… In opining
on why she missed Oxford and Europe last year,
Tom Boschen’s wife Ginny revealed that Tom is
a devoted student of history, particularly focusing
on major battles, a subject which does not interest
her… Carroll Connard, though considerably slimmer
since his captaincy of the swimming team, has
seemingly maintained his calm, quiet demeanor…
Fellow swimming captain John Moran’s dulcet
voice has become even richer and mellower… Dale
and Peter Coxe’s dog was awarded the “Pet of the
Reunion” prize… Bobby Seidman was aglow while
signing copies of his novel Moments Captured for
classmates… George Mayer was as robust and
hearty as in days of yore.
The fearless foursome of fishing, Dave Lougee,
Dave Steward, Gordy Prichett and Phil Kinnicutt,
I’m told, managed to stink up the Taconic Golf
Course in innumerable ways… Gordon Davis
claimed that he was a starter on the basketball team
along with Pete Obourn, Dan “Dunk” Voorhees,
Roger Williams and Steve Weinstock. Others
remained skeptical about Gordon’s assertion…
Former hockey manager Phil Albert looked to
be hale after recovering from quadruple by-pass
surgery… Andy Holt bedecked himself in the same
pajamas at the “Come As You Were Party” as he
wore in the KA house in 1963. Andy claimed,
however, that he had washed them several times
since then. Very few of us believed him… Doug
Maxwell’s crinkly-eyed smile has not changed in 50
years… Peter Moock’s forehand and serve proved
awesomely powerful, though their accuracy was
sporadic, at best…
Win McKeithen, who graduated in 1966, and Ned
Grew traveled the farthest to attend the reunion.
Win arrived from Thailand, while Ned came from
Finland… David Larry made a quick entry and an
equally rapid departure from the festivities… Bill
Hubbard was, as ever, elusive… John Dorman, whose
sartorial skills historically have been limited (at
least compared to his wife Charlene) shocked the
assembled by appearing in purple low-top sneakers
from Brooks Brothers, replete with yellow laces…
Bill Carter was an eager participant at the seminars,
asking penetrating questions to the panelists…
After the reunion, Jay Rohrlich, a last-minute
attendee, wrote a sweetly sentimental paean about
his Reunion experience… Cecil Baker, suave as
ever, rued the lack of women at Williams during our undergraduate years… Larry Favrot’s lush
locks proved the envy of many hirsutely challenged
classmates… Frank Lloyd, fully recovered from his
neurological difficulties due to the insertion of a
shunt, was both lively and vibrant… Rich Gottlieb,
belying his age, appeared extremely fit.
Finally, over the weekend, Allan Mondell’s very
attentive and brilliant young grandson (less than a
year old), Juan Jose, decided to apply to Williams
for the Class of 2035, or so Alan, Cynthia and
daughter Fonya claimed… The renowned Morgan
Hall crew consisting of Gordon Davis, John Davis,
Bill Whitney, Murray Ross, Jules Quinlan, Bobby
Seidman and Alan Schlosser, which had both
grown and contracted over the years, held their own
boisterous reunion outside their former residence…
At the conclusion of the events on Sunday, Bill
Sittig, who always seemed so reserved, approached
me with tears in his eyes and exclaimed to me how
moved he was by the reuniting with all of us.
I am now prepared to hand over the pen and take
up the gavel of the presidency. Phil Kinnicutt will
take over as class secretary. I hope that you will all
overwhelm him with news of your doings.
SEP TEMBER 2013 PEOPLE
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C l a s s N ot e s
1964
REUNION JUNE 12-15
50
Martin P. Wasserman, 13200 Triadelphia Road,
TH
Ellicott City, MD 21042; 1964secretary@williams.edu
Classmates, with less than 12 months to go until
our 50th reunion, I want to begin by offering several
comments related to this event. First of all, be sure
to reserve Thursday, June 12, through Sunday, June
15, 2014. Those are the dates of the reunion, and we
hope that ALL of you will attend. In order to prepare for the event, skip Dunn has created a website,
www.ephs1964.com, which I invite each of you to
access and ask that you provide additional information. There is a “special” section which remembers
those of our class who are deceased and offers an
opportunity to remember them by writing an “In
Memory” message. Ben Wagner says that over the
next few months, tom Howell, steve Doughty and
he will reach out to classmates, roommates, brothers,
siblings, widows, partners and friends to ensure
that “our deceased classmates are remembered in
the class book.” We are also encouraging widows,
partners and family members to join us for the 50th
reunion.
steve Doughty finds that as he is recalling the
lives of classmates lost that he is experiencing “much
meaning in it. Plus it is rewarding to have a small
part in this whole much larger deal. (50th reunion—
wow!)” From the letters and notes that I receive as
class secretary, it is certain that everyone participating in any phase of the reunion is gratified by the
experience.
tom Howell remembers those who have passed
away in rhyme and calls the class to the Purple
Valley:
Give a cheer and raise a beer to the Class of ’64,
After 50 years we’ve all changed gears, but we’re
coming back for more.
We acquired spouses, kids and houses. We’ve
gone our separate ways.
But we’ll get together—birds of a purple
feather—and toast those good old days.
Some of our best have gone to rest. Too soon. It
was not fair.
But they’re part of us, a giant plus; in spirit they’ll
be there.
Most embrace that purple place—a purple passion burns,
While others scrammed after last exam, not eager
to return
But love it or not, cool or hot, I have a firm belief:
That at least in part, in head or heart, we all
became part Eph.
So some with hair, and some quite bare, all a bit
grayer now;
We will rally in the Purple Valley because we’re
all part Purple Cow.
Both Tom and Ben Wagner encourage us to write
our personal essays, so there will be a complete
biography of the members of 1964.
Also note that the Williams Inn has a block of
rooms set aside for us. The inn is located directly
across the street from our 50th reunion HQ, which
will be at the former Saint A’s House. Reservations
can be made by calling 413.458.9371 and referring
to the Class of 1964 block. Get your name on the
list; our big weekend is coming up shortly!
36
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SEP TEMBER 2013 PEOPLE
As you know, since we all received invitations,
part of the “approach to the 50th” includes a trip
to Oxford, England, to join the Williams students
and faculty there and have an opportunity to learn,
relax, tour and enjoy the entertainment of the
London theater with a close group of classmates.
This year the following classmates and partners
experienced a delightful week across the pond:
Susan and Joe Barsky, Anne and Bruce Birgbauer,
Jane and Bill Frado, Hope and al Hageman,
Mary Stewart and Chris Hagy, Muffy and Peter
Johannsen, Mary and Gay Mayer, Caroline and
John Romans, Gerri and Gavin spence, Abby and
Bob summersgill, Paul Riecks and Carol Vellucci,
Craig schelter and Liz Nill, and John Winfield and
Leigh Callahan.
Gay Mayer commented that the 13 couples were
“on the run since arriving with five fantastic lecturers from the university provided a crash course
in English history, which was ‘extraordinary’ in a
word. We had a delightful dinner with 12 of the 25
Williams juniors who were here to study. Somehow
they manage the intensity of their academics and
yet have the ability to find ways to relax and to
continue learning from pub quizzes to singing in
the choir. Hamlet in Stratford-upon-Avon was
‘powerful’ and cause for much discussion in its 20th
century setting. The weather has been typically
English but only last night did I get caught in a real
bit of rain without a jacket or umbrella. Mary and
I had gone to a local pub with Caroline and John
Romans. Our reward for a bit of rain was a double
rainbow. It has been a real treat and, as all good
things, it comes to end all too soon.”
Gavin spence wrote that he and Gerri “enjoyed
it thoroughly” and found the lectures and day trips
to Oxford, Blenheim, Stratford-upon-Avon, the
Ashmoleon “great, but what we enjoyed most was
getting to know and interact with all of our classmates and spouses.”
Craig schelter said he and Liz spent “a fabulous
week at Oxford filled with laughter, camaraderie,
lectures, tours and history. It was a truly memorable
way to glide toward our 50th next June.”
Speaking of “gliding,” Dick tucker is “gliding” into
the realization that he is truly a senior citizen as
he proudly states that his oldest grandson has “just
completed his first year as a computer science major
at Fitchburg State University—making the dean’s
list both semesters.” Dick continues to add to his
responsibilities at Carnegie Mellon by becoming its
Title IX compliance officer in addition to teaching
and performing research. He and Rae somehow
manage to leave Pittsburgh on occasion and enjoy
their home on Cape Cod for get-aways.
While Dick Garland didn’t exactly “glide” to
the finish line during this year’s tragic Boston
Marathon, he did have a tale to tell about the horrors of that day which is best left in its entirety: “I
contributed a tale in the January issue of Williams
People about my turning 70, getting into shape,
qualifying for the Boston Marathon and getting
ready to run that race in April of 2013. As we now
all know, that race ended unexpectedly by an act of
violence and a great tragedy in which three persons
died, and a large number were injured. A number of
Williams friends contacted me with concern about
1964
how I was affected by those events and what exactly
I went through. My race was going fine until I met
my son and daughter near Kenmore Square at a
prearranged spot on Commonwealth Avenue. This
was just past the 25-mile point of the race. They
said they had heard ‘something had happened’ and
they might have trouble meeting me after the race.
At this point we were all ignorant of what had
happened. I continued on a bit but was stopped
in a large crowd at the point where Mass. Avenue
crosses Commonwealth. Everyone was frantic as
the word slowly spread that there had been an
explosion and some people were killed. No one
had the full story, and everyone with a phone was
frantically calling friends, family or other runners
to try to find out if their loved ones were safe. I
had my phone and kept getting texts from friends
near and far, but service was spotty to non-existent.
Eventually I found my kids again, and we walked
up Beacon Street to Coolidge Corner and found a
place to eat and make the necessary calls to friends
and family informing them that we were all OK.
But everyone was NOT OK, and we were in a daze
of thanks for escaping the tragedy but also suffering
from ‘survivors’ guilt’ whenever we thought of those
not so fortunate. The race organizer, the Boston
Athletic Association (BAA), was an absolute
champion both during and after the tragedy. About
a month later I was sent a marathon medal via
FedEx and an email, inviting all the 5,600-plus
runners who were stopped short of the finish line
to come back in April 2014, run the race again and
finish what we could not complete this year. I will
be there, shortly before our 50th reunion, and my
thoughts during the race will be as much on those
no longer with us as on my competing. The BAA
has given us a ‘do-over,’ and I intend to make the
most of it.”
Thank you so much for your insights, Dick.
For those of you who want to experience more
about the intensity of the preparation and training required for this event, check out Dick’s blog:
http://bit.ly/12NWzeW.
Tom Howell recently was in Boston to greet
grandchild number five and continues “not to be
bored with retirement!” Russ Bishop, through his
blended marriage to Ginger, now is grandfather
of 12, including two sets of fraternal twins! Their
five children all graduated from colleges including
Williams (Kiri Swinson ’87), Middlebury, Colorado
College, Smith and the University of Florida (the
latter transforming him to a Div. I “Gator!”). To
celebrate their 70th birthdays last year, the entire
entourage totaling 26 (you check the math!) spent
the last week in June in Bethany Beach, Del.,
meeting one another (some for the very first time).
In the past this has been the spot to vacation on
occasion with Mary and Gay Mayer and Ginger
and Bill Ruddiman, who met one another in
Bethany at age 14 and were to celebrate their 50th
anniversary “somewhere” this coming August. Russ
writes that he is winding down the investment
firm he founded in 1994, Harvest Advisers LLC,
through an agreement with his partners, including
Sean Cook ’88, leaving him with neither management nor supervisory responsibilities (yea!). With
his free time, Russ plans to “start up a subsidiary
of a company that helps people like us develop
habits of mind, body and spirit that can make our
’80s even more healthy, satisfying and meaningful than our ’70s.” He has been using some new
technologies to help him track exercise, nutrition,
sleep and related “habit change” areas and has
added meditation leading to a “happier, healthier
citizen than I was a year ago,” which I am sure
pleases Ginger, no doubt! Russ says he was able to
walk (along with 25,000 other fans) the seven-mile
U.S. Open Merion Golf Course in Ardmore, Pa.,
with his sons on two occasions, but he does admit
to have watched the final round in his “leather
recliner” (where I bet most of our old duffers spent
the entirety of the Open).
Joining the members of our class who reside
overseas, Fred Tuttle was to conclude a trip to Italy
during which time he visited Rome, the Vatican,
Pienza and Florence after celebrating his 50th
anniversary in Paris, “a great place to rekindle.” The
couple will then join a Williams travel adventure
river-land cruise from Lisbon to Madrid before
spending next year in Mougins, France, just outside
of Cannes. Sounds like the happy life, Fred; enjoy
the wine!
Tim Tuttle, no relation, recently concluded a
three-week investment trip through China, ending up in Singapore, where he attended his first
Chartered Financial Analysts convention in 45
years. He writes that “China is currently going
through a multiyear political and economic restructuring process that will support continued GDP
growth exceeding 6 percent (eat your heart out
Bernanke). I continue to be appalled at the gross
misreporting of Asian activities by the western
press, but I realize I am in a distinct minority here.”
During his travels on a World Wildlife Fund trip
in Indonesia, Skip Gwiazda commented on the toll
that humans take on other living species on our
planet. He has a “longstanding interest in marine
life, and I chose to snorkel along several thousand
miles from Sulawesi (large island north of Bali) to
Port Moresby in Papua New Guinea. I was joined
by 74 others and only two sharks were seen—and
these were only seen by the diving members of our
party. Finally, at Ashmore Reef, east beyond the
Great Barrier Reef, I finally saw two sharks. What
is the point? In a massive area of ocean the Chinese
and Taiwanese fishing industry has virtually eliminated one species of fish for shark fin soup.” As I
have become older, I, like Skip, have been reading
about and learning of man’s domain over the earth
and our relatively poor job of caretaking for it and
the other creatures who rely on its oceans, atmosphere and with whom we share the vast natural
resources of our planet. This is but one episode
in the rapidly dwindling biodiversity on Earth.
Perhaps these comments will create a discussion
that we might continue in our next People. John Jobeless writes that his travels have been
curtailed due to a bruised heel, which is preventing activity for three months. It is during these
times when we all come to realize how much we
rely on friends, and John’s spirits have perked up
as he rekindles with friends with whom he has
been able to pick up “long dormant relationships
where they left off—seemingly without a hitch, as
SEP TEMBER 2013 PEOPLE
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C l a s s N ot e s
if no extended time has passed.” He reminisces of
a former Williams travel/study Rhine River cruise
where he visited Budapest, Prague and Amsterdam
and hopes that when he heals…
And from out of the blue yonder, I received
a delightful history from Steve Bowling, who
mentioned that fellow Phi Sig Tim Reichert ’65
persuaded him to leave Cleveland and come west to
California and try his talents at Stanford Business
School. Following his MBA, Steve spent his entire
career in entrepreneurial companies in a variety
of positions (CFO, COO and CEO), remaining
in California but often commuting to places like
Memphis, Atlanta and Shanghai. At the age of
67, Steve retired and has done pro bono consulting for nonprofits through the Stanford Business
School Alumni Volunteers and is to be joining
their management board in September. Steve and
Gabriella have two accomplished daughters: Laura
is a genetic counselor at Loyola Medical Center in
Chicago, and Sara is just starting her second year
of residency in internal medicine at the University
of Washington in Seattle. While apologizing that
neither daughter could be coaxed to go east to
Williams, he and Gabriella will be heading in that
direction to attend our 50th next June.
On the home front, I completed my 18th swim
across the Chesapeake Bay and am now the third
oldest finisher of the 640 who were selected in the
lottery for this event. Each year, I must admit, those
4.4 miles seem to get longer, and the “speedsters”
look like infants, though they are actually our age
when we started school. Our youngest daughter,
Torrey, will be wed in the fall, so those of you who
have been through this can either offer tips, suggestions or just plain old cash to help me cope with
both the volume of decisions and the mixed sadness-joy of watching your “little girl” finally grow
up and out. I remember all of the times working
together on schoolwork, attending riding competitions and watching her take her first dive off the
board. And now she is a bright and beautiful young
woman using her advanced degrees in business
and public health to raise funds for the American
Public Health Association. But I am not alone, Paul
Crissey is planning for his son’s wedding, where the
“fellas” got together for a bachelor party at a recent
A’s game and followed it with dinner at a Brazilian
steakhouse in San Francisco. His spring production
of Footloose went very well, and he plans to work
with the Concord High students to take on Legally
Blonde, the Musical next year.
Biff Steel recently brought his multi-generational
family together for “anniversary celebrations.”
Together the Steel family totals 131 years of marriage! That seems to me to be pretty impressive and
says something for family values. Biff continues to
work and teach in Ghana and Uganda.
By the time you read these notes, we will be only
a little more than eight months until our 50th
reunion next June. Get your plane tickets and
rooms at the inn. It is going to be a blast!
—Marty
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SEP TEMBER 2013 PEOPLE
1965
Tom Burnett, 175 Riverside Drive, #2H, New York, NY
10024; 1965secretary@williams.edu
Secretary Burnett reports: By the time this
issue of People reaches our readers, several (Gage,
Wheelock, Foley, Reichert and your faithful scribe)
will have reached our “seventies” decade. So far, it
beats the alternative, but it sure is a difficult concept
to get used to. I welcome thoughts and comments
on this topic from any and all classmates, since I am
sure we have all been amazed by its appearance.
With less than two years remaining before our
50th Reunion Weekend, it is important to keep in
mind the many upcoming, related events. There will
be a minireunion in Williamstown Oct. 4-6 with a
multi-class dinner Friday night (beverages available)
and a dinner hosted by Gale and Dusty Griffin at
their home on Saturday night. The proposed trip
to Oxford is scheduled for the week of June 23-30,
2014, with further details provided at the October
minireunion. In preparation for his role as reunion
chair, Tim Reichart (along with Ron Kidd, Jack Foley
and Jim Worrall) “shadowed” the Class of 1963’s
50th reunion to get some ideas about how we may
want to organize our celebration in 2015. Martha
and John Storey will serve as editors for the class
book, which, based on the wonderful tome for
the 25th reunion, will be an important keepsake. I
want to single out Phil McKnight for his efforts in
communicating the various possible gift planning
arrangements that classmates can make for their
contributions to the college and the class gift. If
you have any questions, please email Phil directly at
Philip.McKnight@williams.edu for his advice and
comments. Dave Coolidge and Dusty have been on
top of all reunion-related events, and we owe them
both a sincere sense of gratitude and appreciation
for all their efforts.
Dave sent me a helpful summary of the
Colloquium Weekend that was held in
Williamstown April 25-27. Among attendees
were Dale Anderson, Joanne and Len Brumberg,
Jack Elgin, Jack Foley, Lynne and Jim Gage, Liz
and Lenny Gibson, Ron Kidd, Rob Oehler, Tina
and Fred Ohly, Carol and Bill Ouchi, Rod Patton,
Neil Peterson, Tim Reichart, Don Ross, Norm Spack,
Barbara and Gordy Sulcer, and “townies” Gale and
Dusty Griffin, Kathy and Phil McKnight, Alice and
Joe Small, Martha and John Storey, and Priscilla and
Jim Worrall. Several faculty members and current
students spoke at the various events, and President
Falk endorsed the two class gifts—Presidential
Venture Fund and a Student Opportunity Fund.
Dave concluded that the weekend was a highly
successful event.
Once again, we must tip our hat to Class Agent
Jim Worrall for all his efforts to complete an Alumni
Fund campaign raising some $170,000 with an
amazing participation rate of 90.1 percent of the
244 members of our class list. Congratulations, Jim,
on the job well done.
Jim sent me a note about his recent conversation
with Max Gail, who was excited about his role in 42,
the Jackie Robinson story. Max plays Burt Shotton,
who was Jackie’s first major league manager in 1947
(while Leo Durocher was serving a suspension). I
1964–66
saw the movie and thought Max did an excellent,
understated and believable job as the manager, and I
hope it will lead to other roles for him.
I was pleased to receive a note from Bill Meacham
from Austin, Texas. Bill is changing careers from
IT engineering (at Dell) to semi-retirement as a
teacher of philosophy. He has just published a book,
How to Be an Excellent Human, which is a study
of human nature from an Aristotelian perspective.
He is also the author of a blog called “Philosophy
for Real Life,” and his website is www.bmeacham.
com, where the book and blog are available. He
and his wife Patricia Michael live in Austin with
children, stepchildren and grandchildren in Texas
and Canada. Bill remembers “with fondness” the
large contingent of philosophy majors in the Class
of 1965.
One final note leading up to our big reunion—
Dusty is working to set up a website for commentary and memories of our four years at the college,
and I invite all classmates to participate in this
blog-like venture.
For our family, the big news was the birth of our
third grandchild, Sadie Rand Fefferman, to our
daughter Liza on June 14. We now have two in
NYC and one in Denver and could not feel more
lucky or blessed.
1966
Palmer Q. Bessey Jr., 1320 York Ave., 32H, New York,
NY 10021; John Gould, 80 Ocean St., Lynn, MA 01902;
1966secretary@williams.edu
I am late again in preparing this edition of the
notes, and I will claim as an excuse that I have been
trying to avoid writing about the abrupt death of
Carl Casselman in April. At the class dinner in
New York in February, he was energetic and upbeat
and positive about his future. He had developed
throat cancer in 2012 but had had a good response
to treatment and, as far as he knew, he had “no
evidence of disease,” as the doctors say. The notice
from the college contained no obituary, and so his
death came as a complete surprise and a mystery.
Wink Willett, who was a high school classmate and
freshman roommate of Carl’s, filled in some of the
details after attending a memorial service in May. In
March, Carl had moved to California to be close to
his children Robert and Ashley and also to be with
his high school sweetheart, Ginny Gifford, with
whom he had reconnected just last fall. He was as
happy and positive as ever. Then he developed pneumonia. Although the cancer in the throat was gone,
it was roaring ahead in the lung and brain. Carl
was a frequent contributor to these pages, writing
especially about the “Iron Butt” motorcycle races.
Wink wrote of the summer of 1964 when he, Carl
and Tom Jack went to Anchorage to help rebuild
the seven-story J.C. Penney store (tallest in Alaska),
which had been damaged in a 9.2 earthquake in
March of that year. Ted Washburn roomed with
Carl in Fayerweather and AD, and Carl was best
man at Ted’s wedding in 1967, serving with Mike
Burrows and Pete Richardson, who were ushers.
“Carl introduced me to skiing, beer ‘games’ and pool
in the cellar of AD, Camel cigarettes, a string of
comely, beautiful women, motorcycle riding (falling,
in my case), his autobiographical short stories and
his brilliant advertising shoots after graduation,”
Wink wrote. “One of my happiest memories is his
visit to St. Croix, snorkeling at Buck Island and
introducing him to calypso music. Regretfully, I
never saw Carl again after a brief visit while I was
living in a grotty apartment in Putney, south of
London in 1976. … He was a dear man, a smart
man and a loyal, caring friend for many years of my
life,” Wink wrote.
Rob Bradley reported on the sixth annual
Williams ’66 Boston dinner held in May at The
Country Club in Brookline. It was the largest dinner to date, with 16 attending—13 classmates and
three from the college. James Mahon, political science professor, gave a fascinating talk on Cuba and
Venezuela in transition, focusing primarily on the
economic forces that are driving changes in these
countries as well as throughout Latin America.
Classmates attending were Bill Adams, Peter Allen,
Bill Bowden, Rob Cunningham, Alan Fincke, George
Helmer, Con O’Leary, Dick Pingree, Marty Shulkin
and David Tunick as well as hosts Rob Bradley, Dan
Coquillette and Budge Upton. They are looking for
15‑20 classmates for the May 2014 event.
Con O’Leary was a first-time attendee at the
Boston dinner and confirmed that it was a fine
meal. Both he and Dan Coquillette are both still
teaching law at U Conn and BU, respectively. He
plans to go to both the New York and Boston dinners next year.
Arthur Benson is still practicing law full time. He
and his family took a break in May to visit Croatia
and Paris. No plans to retire.
Bailey Young spent the fall semester as visiting faculty at Harlaxton College near Grantham
(Lincolnshire) in Merry Olde England. It is an
overseas campus of the University of Evansville
in Indiana, where he teaches. It has an excellent
British studies core program that draws undergrads from a number of institutions. He taught
Stonehenge in the classroom and then went there
with the students. Everybody is lodged together
in a spacious Neo‑Elizabethan manor house,
which he said favored a Williams‑style liberal arts
teaching‑and‑learning environment. Back at home
he won the Distinguished Faculty Award. The
excavation of Walhain Castle in Belgium, which
he co‑directs with a colleague from the Catholic
University of Louvain, was featured on a Belgian
public TV special broadcast in May 2012, subtitled
Un Americain à Walhain.
Also continuing teaching was co-secretary John
Gould, who gave his grammar course again last
spring at Bennington. There were 17 students
enrolled, and they have signed him up to give the
course both in the fall and next spring. Who knew
that Bennington students were so interested in
rules? John had lunch with Ned Donohue’s daughter Maggie, who is a dance major and plans to work
for a dance company in Philadelphia. She did not
take the course, but had she done so he was sure
she would have passed. John also met her boyfriend
Max, who wants to do filmmaking, and he thinks
they make a nice team.
Willard Spiegelman wrote from across town on
a day that felt more like Dallas than Manhattan.
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Although he likes New York in June, it can be
oppressive when it is hot and humid. He teaches
one semester a year and otherwise divides his time
among Dallas, Connecticut and the Upper West
Side. He still writes for literary quarterlies and for
The Wall Street Journal. He looks forward to June
2016, which seems improbably close as well as
implausibly distant.
Economic forces are at play all over. David
Kollender reports that work had slowed due to the
sequester, but he was keeping busy at home and at
their summer place. Lots of chipping, scraping and
painting. Come the end of August the Kollender
family en masse was going to Germany for a river
cruise on the Main and Rhein rivers. Wife Linda
still has family in her grandparents’ hometown.
Andy Burr proudly announced that he finally is
going to be a grandfather. Architect daughter Alex
and her architect husband, Allen, are expecting a
proto architect, ETA late fall, but so far seem to
have no idea how their lives will change. He also
visited with Deb and Dave Rutherford and reported
that Dave is making “very cool” bags out of old sails
(Google “Barkley Sound Bags”), which he sews
himself. Their son Ethan Rutherford ’02 had his first
book of short stories published.
Roger Kubarych wanted to convey the considered
opinion that semi-retirement is pretty neat. His
second grandchild, Landon James, was brought
forth in May by his oldest son, Kevin, and his
wife Jen, both laser scientists at the University of
Michigan. To celebrate, Roger and Janet were able
to dine at that famed Chicago eatery, Bistrot Zinc,
with proprietor Lance Knox and his wife Mary.
Not to be outdone, Jon Linen reports that he
and Lee are working on their 11th grandchild, the
ninth girl. He is in what he calls “Stage II,” semiretired and consulting part time for Amex. He has
also been working hard with Wink Willett, Punky
Booth, Bill Bowden and various others on reunion
fund issues. He is busy and healthy. Life is great.
On the opposite coast, Bob Bates wrote that he
and Linda have daily gratitude for living in such a
beautiful place as Santa Cruz County, Calif., with
its ocean mountains, redwoods, mild climate, lots of
good friends and children/grandchildren an hour
away. After surgical repair of a couple of body parts
this year, they are gearing up for more travel. He
complained that he finds it increasingly difficult
to find the 1966 class notes, as they seem to be
(mistakenly, no doubt) placed with the old classes.
We will speak with the editor about that.
Tom Gunn wrote from western North Carolina.
He and Pat were traveling again with their motor
home for the summer just to stay cool. They leave
Florida in mid-May and do not return until midOctober. Last summer they spent in the middle
of Colorado in the collegiate range around Buena
Vista. The altitude gave great weather, but they
ended the summer realizing they are not as tough
as they used to be. This summer they are touring
the Great Smoky Mountains, 6,000 feet lower in
altitude. They affirm that it is a beautiful country,
and they continue to be amazed at how great the
people are that they meet along the way.
Dave Batten wrote from Mallorca, where he and
Evi have spent the year after sailing there from
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Turkey. Their daughter started school in Germany
in September, and they wanted to be close to her.
Happily, Schloss Schule Salem and Lydia are a
great match, and she is thriving. Their son went
to the Lycee in Palma and has added passable
Spanish to his English, French and German. Dave
is amazed at how young children can learn multiple
languages without an issue. They started a major
refit on the sailboat last fall, which has evolved into
a major and frustrating rebuild. Evi is back in the
real estate development business with a small townhouse project, and he gives occasional advice and
writes checks. In September, their son Alexis will
go to the School of American Ballet in New York.
Chip Malcolm is enjoying his half-time schedule:
Office two days a week and no OB or call any
more. It’ s like a normal routine. He and Nance see
their kids and four grandchildren often, since they
live close by. He serves on the board of the Opera
Company of Middlebury. When he wrote, he was
in the midst of their 10-day run of Eugene Onegin.
He saw John Ashton in Sun Valley last February,
and Mike Katz gave some Russian-language help to
the opera singers getting ready for Onegin.
Ron Worland retired from private practice a year
ago, since combined cost of malpractice and the
mandated move to electronic health records was
equal to half of his gross income. So far he has
completed two-week surgical missions to southern
India, southern China, Vietnam and Guatemala,
and when he wrote, he was about to return to
Venezuela and then back to China. Still busy but
happy no longer to have to carry a beeper for the
emergency room. More time now, after 35 years, for
afternoon naps and grandchildren.
Lysle Dalton wrote that he and wife Kathy were
expecting grandchild number two later that day,
and he was in the car with children on his way to
Knoxville. He is still busy as an associate professor in OB-GYN at University of Kentucky. He
plans on a few more deliveries before a probable
retirement in summer 2014. He rides horses, hunts
and enjoys a golf game that seems to have reached
a “suitable level of mediocrity,” and he still looks
forward to skiing each winter. Life is good, lots to
look forward to, especially for the Sun Valley Class
of 1966 gathering this summer.
Dave Tobis wrote a short note concerning the
pleasures of a self‑imposed sabbatical, biking in
Sonoma, hiking in Anza Borrego Desert and walking among Redwood trees with Doc Jon Citron.
He was then off to NYC for a book launch and an
op-ed piece in Time Magazine online about parents.
Art Perry regretted that he could relate no news
fit to print, except for recalling the wonderful the
Class of 1966 event last November at the National
Gallery celebrating a Roy Lichtenstein exhibit. He
encouraged us in our good works and is looking
forward to 2016.
Gil Conrad also recalled the event in the East
Wing of the National Gallery, organized by Rusty
Powell last fall. He further reported that he was
alive and well in Falls Church, Va.
Barry Barnes wrote that he is “livin’ wide.” He and
his partner John shuttle back and forth between
Provincetown and Kauai. They enjoy the beaches
and birding and beauty in both locations and also
1966–67
many places they visit on the way. “I never tire of
the views there on Kauai. … One of the reasons …
in particular is how natural the backdrops … are
there. … Many beaches other places … are beautiful, but when you turn around there are hotels or
condos or just not nature,” he says.
The next class event will be the minireunion in
Williamstown with the classes of 1964, 1965 and
1967 on Oct. 4-6. You should also have heard
by now of some of the projects the Reunion
Fund Committee, under Jon Linen, have taken
on. The biggest one involves the Kellogg House
project, which will strive to meet the Living
Building Challenge and will serve as the academic and administrative home of the Center for
Environmental Studies and the Zilkha Center for
Environmental Initiatives. The resulting building,
Class of 1966 Center for Environmental Studies,
will allow our class to have a long-term presence on
the campus. A second project, a scholarship fund,
will help future individual Williams students.
As you know, Peter Koenig, John Gould and I
have been laying plans for the 50th reunion book.
We are attempting to commission Dan Sherbok to
prepare some appropriate cartoons. He is balking a
little. Worried that they might be too subversive. In
any event, he has just done a book: The Atheneum:
A View of the Club, which is a collection of about
130 cartoons. It is to be published as an ebook by
Impress Books this summer or autumn. He has
heard that Archbishop Rowan Williams and P.D.
James are doing blurbs for the book.
And in closing, we received this from another
denizen of Dallas. “Yesterday, I took off early from
the office (where I work for my Bates‑educated
son) to meet a girl friend at the park. Seeing her
at the park from the back about 100 yards away,
I approached quietly to surprise her. Mine was
the surprise, however. ’Twas Inge‑Lise, wife of
Jack Lane, taking a brief respite from her quick
trip to Dallas for an art‑related project. We had a
glorious visit. Eventually my friend came, and we
left Inge‑Lise to her cellphone and her work. The
rest is not for [class notes]…” Then later on Jack
Vroom’s Facebook page: “I am very grateful for the
well‑wishing, and thank each and every one of you.
The health report is far better than I deserve. That
was the opinion of my cardiologist, who says he’s
not often seen folks have two heart attacks with
so little damage to the heart muscle. He says I am
lucky. Though I knew that, because I know you all!
Best wishes from East Dallas, where lives at least
one person grateful for your friendship… Thank
you also to Baylor Hospital, which stayed open late
for me on Tuesday evening and took care of business in a flash! It’s a nice day to be alive!” Whether
or not there is a connection between these events
we will leave for you to decide.
1967
Kenneth A. Willcox, 178 Westwood Lane, Wayzata, MN
55391; 1967secretary@williams.edu
Leading this edition is the first report from Scott
Baker in about 10 years. Earlier this year he and
his wife Inge were in Yangshuo, China, a small
rural town. They were staying at an old farmhouse,
since converted into a small hotel. The day they
arrived they met two delightful young women at
their restaurant. Turns out they had graduated from
Williams about four years ago. The women set up
a dinner for Scott and Inge a few weeks later in
Beijing with a group of Williams students. Based
on that terrific experience Scott concluded, “I have
figured out what was very wrong with my Williams
experience: no women.” He observed that a large
number (30 percent) of the students in some classes
have married fellow students. Most have said
their spouses were not people they had dated at
Williams. They reconnected at reunions. (Ed. note:
There’s a lesson there somewhere.)
Paul Lipof tried retirement last year for all of a
few months before he concluded he wasn’t ready
for it. So he is now back at it working for a NYC
real estate developer. He manages design and construction of new buildings and projects. He says the
NYC real estate market is soaring at the moment.
He has two new granddaughters. One arrived in
January, the other in April. So they are now up to
six grandchildren. Their oldest just graduated from
high school and is headed to college. Paul is still
biking, playing tennis and skiing, “but not like in
the good old days.” The Lipofs were able to get
together with the Meisters over the summer.
Cathy and John Schwab have moved from
northern Michigan to Chapel Hill, N.C. They lost
Cathy’s son almost two years ago in a mountain
biking event, and their move allows them to be
near her daughter in Durham and two of their
eight grandsons. John’s older son, John, lives in
Westford, Mass., with his wife Kim and three boys.
Kim was in the Boston Marathon in April and
was about 200 yards from the second blast. John
and the boys were at the finish line. Prayerfully,
no one was impacted. John’s son Eric and his wife
Michelle and their three boys live in Bloomfield
Hills, outside Detroit. In spite of John’s counsel to
his boys to smell the roses, it seems to have fallen
on deaf ears. Their retort is along the lines of, “And
what were you doing, Dad, when you were 42?”
John concludes, “So much for wisdom.”
Bill Garth says that he and his wife are “having
the time of our lives here in St. Petersburg.” To
illustrate the point he asked, “Did you know that
Henry VIII wrote madrigals and played several
instruments? We just learned that at a brass quintet
concert.” (Ed. note: Bill, your secretary confesses he
knew nothing about Henry’s musical talents, but
it’s certainly useful information to have.)
Ron Bodinson has had a number of meetings with
classmates regarding plans for our 50th reunion.
March found him caucusing with Allan Stern. Then
Ron and John Hufnagel met with Chris Covington
in Boston to pick his brain for 50th ideas. Chris
hosted them for lunch on the waterfront. In May,
Ron and George Cannon teamed up to attend the
leadership dinner on campus. While there, Ron
was able to visit Dottie and Fred Rudolph ’42.
(Ed. note: As all of you may know, Fred passed
away the following month.) Ron was also able to
get together with Carol and Peter Krause in Old
Saybrook and Sharyn and Irv Blond in Newport.
After a great trip to Sicily with Professor Lewis
as leader, Beth and Bryan Hickman along with
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Suzanne and Harry Tether have signed up for the
African safari this coming January. Bryan has
become heavily involved in education. This year
he has visited 17 cities and visited many charter
schools. Two of the best schools at educating
disadvantaged urban minority children have agreed
to open schools in Rochester, N.Y. They have purchased a building for one school and are building
community support for transforming educational
opportunity in Rochester.
Jeff Bowen says retirement is giving them the
freedom that was missing during their years as
superintendents. His biggest challenges these days
are yard work, bike hikes, Photoshop and puppy
training. They spent a few weeks on the Maine coast
over the summer. That allowed him to recuperate
from the shock of his 50th high school graduation.
Jack Hunt also attended his 50th high school
reunion this summer and enjoyed it. The Hunts
will become permanent West Coasters (San Juan
Capistrano) this year. They will be joining two of
their daughters (Orange County and Seattle) and
their three children. Their third daughter, Lisa
Hunt ’03, recently started her medical practice at
the University of New Mexico University Health
System in Albuquerque. This followed nine years of
training.
Another 50-year high school reunion attendee
was Harry Matthews. He trekked back to Cincinnati
for his event. He noted his high school is, lamentably, a shadow of its former self. Soon after his
graduation the school board fired most of the senior
faculty. The bean counters ruled and said no more
money. What had been a top school in a prestige
district tumbled. Harry notes, “As my grandmother
always said, you get what you pay for.” He was saddened to see what had become of the school that
had prepared him so well for a great education.
Chuck Glassmire tackled the next 450-mile stretch
of his hike along the Appalachian Trail over the
summer. This time he covered the New Hampshire/
Maine section. He also renovated his Falmouth,
Maine, condo and spent time ocean kayaking. He
had some old high school classmates join him over
the summer in Maine for their 50th reunion. He
notes this year is the last college tuition year for him,
and then all four kids will be through. Chuck plans
two more years of teaching and then retirement.
Hank Grass is recovering from yet another
athletic/orthopedic repair, but he has high hopes
of returning to an age-appropriate athletic function. He continues to love his psychiatric practice,
teaching and treating physicians. He summarizes, “I
have contentment with having found, realized and
contributed to my purpose in life on this planet.”
Marty Samuels claims no earth-shaking news
but adds that at this stage of life, that, alone is good
news. By way of small world, a young lady who just
graduated from Harvard and who happens to be a
next door neighbor of your secretary’s in Wayzata,
Minn., started work in Marty’s neurology department at Brigham & Women’s hospital in Boston.
It was fun comparing notes with Marty during the
hiring process.
Your secretary continues manufacturing truck
equipment in our two businesses. This industry
tends to be boom or bust, and it’s currently more
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boom. Winnie is still shuttling to Ohio, where she
provides primary care for her ailing mother in her
condo. Her mother has had hospice designation and
assistance for over two years. Meanwhile, as mayor
of our city, I am presiding over a particularly robust
period of development. So far the natives aren’t restless. That could change.
Thanks go to Turner Smith and your class leadership for their work, under way since last year, which
will lead us to our 50th reunion. As some of the
notes above suggested, considerable thought is
already going into the event. Please be receptive if
you are asked to help out.
1968
Paul Neely, P.O. Box 11526, Chattanooga, TN 37401;
1968secretary@williams.edu
Fifty-eight classmates and 49 of their spouses
or other guests met in Williamstown in June for
the 45th reunion of the class. Some of them had
changed over the years.
Early arrivers enjoyed a dinner at Diane and
Steve Phillips’ house next to the Taconic golf
course. Most prominent among the guests
were Moira and Kevin Dougherty, who live in
Williamstown now. Kevin is fighting his own
health battles and made a special effort to be with
us, to everyone’s great pleasure.
Friday brought more than an inch of rain with
a high of 53 degrees. Athletic heroes for the
weekend were Ron Yee, Clark McFadden and Denny
Kelly, who played 18 holes through that, and Ned
Williams, who joined them for the second nine.
The rest of us, who had the sense to come in out
of the rain, had a full array of lectures and tours
available to us. John Rahill presented on “Building
a Living Architecture,” about his involvement with
the college in sustainable design and construction. Ned Williams, who has written the book
Fixing Everything: Government Spending, Taxes,
Entitlements, Healthcare, Pensions, Immigration, Tort
Reform, Crime … spoke on the federal government.
He is pretty much not in favor of it.
Dinner Friday was a bit soggy underfoot, but the
tent part worked. Dinner Saturday included special
guests President Adam Falk, former Dean John
Hyde ’52 and geology professor and alumni travel
leader Bud Wobus.
Meals were a great time to catch up, so here are
some quick items:
Sherman Jones is teaching entrepreneurship at
the University of Tennessee at Knoxville and wrestling with the frustration of unsuccessful efforts to
get a charter school approved.
Bob Heiss runs a company that deals with environmental waste in ports.
Rod Dimock sold his real estate investment trust
and now does micro real estate deals.
Bob Lord is nominally retired but works in
development at a regional hospital and volunteers
in other roles there.
Bob Cricenti sold his longtime grocery business and says he devotes his time to chasing
grandchildren.
Bob Macartney retired from secondary teaching and is using his new free time to catch up on
1967–69
advances in his fields of physics and computer
science.
Henry Hecht is in his 30th year teaching at
UC Berkeley School of Law (Boalt Hall), now
rebranded as Berkeley Law, where he was just
named the John and Elizabeth Boalt Lecturer in
Residence.
E.J. Strasburger says he is still lawyering in
Pittsburgh, and John Fulkerson says he is still fixing
knees and shoulders.
Which leads to a word about reunions. At our
advanced stage they are no longer a chance to
compete over résumés. They are a chance to see old
friends. Friday night, for instance, I noticed a table
of former Prospect House residents—Ross Anthony,
Barton Jones and Bill Whitman—having dinner
together.
Meals are also a chance to compare notes on
everything from grandchildren to second careers.
David Allen and I, for instance, had a nice conversation about our similar marital histories. Two people
even chanced into a conversation about the difficulties of family life when a child develops mental
illness.
It may have been 45 years, but we still have a lot
to share.
If you were there, you know what I mean. If you
weren’t, start making plans to attend the 50th,
which always brings great sentiments from those
who attend, usually at least half the class.
Special thanks to Trav Auburn for chairing the
45th and to Tom Nicholson, who handled many of
the local arrangements.
Class officers for the next five years are: Ned Perry,
president; Tad Piper and Garrett Thornburg, VPs;
Larry Levien, class agent; Paul Neely, secretary; Jeff
Brinn, treasurer.
Fiftieth reunion leaders are Reunion Weekend
chairs Barton Jones and Bob Stanton. Fiftieth
Reunion Fund chairs are John Oppenheimer and
Bob Scott.
And, lest we forget, thanks to officers for the past
five years: Oppenheimer, Perry, Stanton, Levien and
Michael Yogman.
A sad footnote: Paul Allison died suddenly just
a month after the reunion, which he had attended
with his companion Beth-Anne Flynn ’81. Details
came to you earlier by email, but a number of people
have written to say how wonderful it was to be with
him at the reunion. Beth-Anne mentioned how
much he loved the college and his class.
1969
REUNION JUNE 12-15
Richard P. Gulla, 287 Grove St., Melrose, MA 02176;
1969secretary@williams.edu
We begin this edition with award winners.
Congratulations to Larry McCullough, who was
honored with the Barbara and Corbin J. Robertson
Jr. Presidential Award for Excellence in Education,
recognizing faculty members “who have made longstanding, consistent and highly valued contributions
to the educational mission of the college.” It is the
highest award for teaching given by the Baylor
College of Medicine. Larry holds Baylor’s Dalton
Tomlin Chair in Medical Ethics & Health Policy
and is a professor of medicine and medical ethics.
Congratulations are also due Henry Walker, who
received the 2013 Award for Lifetime Service to
the Computer Science Education Community
by the Special Interest Group for Computer
Science Education (SIGCSE) of the Association
for Computing Machinery. SIGCSE is the
primary international professional association for
computing educators. Henry also attended the
25th Anniversary Symposium of the Williams
Department of Computer Science. “Computer
science has evolved wonderfully at Williams—now
truly an impressive department and program.” At
the symposium, Henry met up and reminisced with
now-retired mathematics professor Victor Hill and
classmate Rudy Spraycar.
When many of us are retiring, Eric Koster has
started a new career. “On March 31, I resigned
from my law firm, where I concentrated on real
estate development for the past 39 years, and
entered the business world—the furniture business
to be exact. I have joined Ethan Allen Global and
its subsidiaries as VP, general counsel and secretary.
Heading up the legal department of a multinational
corporation, and the corporate world as a whole,
is far different than the rarefied and somewhat
academic atmosphere of a law firm, especially when
I have the opportunity to visit our manufacturing
plants.” Eric has a home in Pownal, Vt., and thus
can be found in Williamstown most weekends.
While now consulting for a small national
nonprofit publisher, Bob Whitton says he is making
plans to retire Dec. 31 and has the 45th on his
schedule. “Next summer will be busy. Andrea’s
reunion at Vassar usually overlaps ours, so it’s a
fun long weekend.” Bob saw Peg and Spike Riley
in Cape May over the Memorial Day Weekend
and says that Rich Pollet has retired from J. Walter
Thompson and relocated from the New York Metro
Area to Conway, Mass.
Pete Lineberger in Spokane, Wash., is having an
eventful year. He and spouse Connie celebrated
their 25th wedding anniversary in March. They will
also be seeing their second and third daughters,
Molly and Ann, get married ( June and September),
and Pete reports he is retiring from his law practice
at the end of the year.
Jim Barns is looking forward to the 45th reunion.
“I was for three years in the Class of 1968, dropped
out due to a tremendous and beneficial upheaval
in my life and returned to graduate with the Class
of 1969. I much preferred that class and though a
‘born again’ extrovert, by then there was no way that
I could connect with many of my new classmates. I
assiduously submit notes in an effort to compensate
and to be known to some come the 45th reunion.”
Jim also reports that his daughter, a student at
Ohio Wesleyan, spent the semester in Florence,
Italy, which prompted a visit by the parents. “Great
time, loved hearing the Italians talk.”
Dick Tobin has shared some thoughts on the
passing of professor Fred Rudolph ’42, a beloved
professor of our day. “The very recent news of Fred’s
death puts me in mind of many fine opportunities
he offered in our Williams days. In our graduation year, he and his wife invited all of the history
majors in our class to a big shindig at his home.
Sometimes a distinguished career is measured
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in small gestures like that as well as in the big
things—of which, for him, there were many as well,
of course.”
Marty Lafferty reports that he was elected commander of the U.S. Power Squadron District 5.
D/5, which serves the mid-Atlantic Region and
Chesapeake Bay with more than 3,000 Members in
33 squadrons, is the largest district in the national
boating organization.
Andy Lynn celebrated his 44th wedding anniversary in June. “Two kids, 40 and 36 (can I call them
kids?), both doctors. Still working, but out of the
home office, and at a much slower pace. Physically
active, thank God, tennis, golf, cycling, walking.
Really hard for me to sit still. My days at Williams
are still so clear to me: Lehman Hall: West College,
East College, Garfield House. A special shout out
to my roommates Tom Willmott and Bill Dickey.”
I take scribe’s privilege here to salute some
classmates. First, to Rick Corwin, Rob Brokaw and
Dick Peinert, who once again led our Alumni Fundraising effort. We may not be breaking any records
for fundraising (we’re at 53 percent participation,
not far behind the college average of 60 percent),
but these guys put in yeoman’s work for every campaign, and they’ve been doing it for years. Rick just
completed his sixth year of leadership, and Rob and
Dick are both approaching 10 years. And thanks to
the associate agents, many of whom have also been
serving for years: Chip Broadhurst, Skip Comstock,
Keith Cunningham, Alan Dittrich, Wes Howard, Bob
Kandel, John McKenzie, John Pascoe, Rich Pollet,
Bill Preston, Bob Quinn, Yogi Santa-Donato, Tom
Sipkins, Rudy Spraycar, Craig Townsend and Craig
Walker.
Finally, applause and thanks go to former Class
President Bob Grace, who has volunteered to chair
our 45th reunion committee. The goal is to get
as many classmates back as possible for nothing
more than an enjoyable weekend of relaxation and
rekindling friendships. Bob is eager to hear from
anyone with ideas for the gathering. Write to him at
rmgracejr@msn.com. So send your thoughts, mark
your calendars and reserve the dates—June 12-15—
for our 45th reunion.
1970
Rick Foster, 379 Dexter St., Denver, CO 80220;
1970secretary@williams.edu
First to reply (almost instantly) to my request
for class notes was Larry Hollar, who reports that
he is still in Dayton, Ohio, and is now approaching 20 years as a Bread for the World regional
organizer. Having acquired New York State as part
of his region, he happily ran into Fred Eames at
an Albany, N.Y., event. Stu Selonick ’71 regularly
drops by Dayton and lunches with Larry on his way
to Cincinnati. Larry is finishing a two-year stint
as president of the Bach Society of Dayton and
was elected vice moderator of the Presbytery of the
Miami Valley. So his church activity will ramp up as
the arts management work hopefully ramps down.
Larry’s wife Karen Cassedy is on sabbatical from her
pastoring work, so she and Larry are enjoying more
birding and heading east to Virginia to play with
their granddaughters, Cadence and Allegra Penn. 44
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Don Berens’ major news is the March 8 birth of
daughter Kathleen Berens Bucki’s ’09 daughter
Colleen and that Don and Maureen are greatly
enjoying grandparenthood. Don also said that
he and Fred Eames recently completed a season
(Fred’s eighth, Don’s first) as first tenors in the
Mendelssohn Club of Albany, a 60-plus voice
TTBB choir. Don also was training for a June bike
race up Whiteface Mountain and an August climb
of Kilimanjaro. Phil Greenland’s “not much news,”
is that he is thrilled to now have nine grandchildren
all living in Chicago, within five miles of Phil. Phil
and his spouse Aviva attended the wedding of Jim
Rubenstein and wife Ami’s son in Minneapolis.
Bill Courter has founded the Boomer Health
Institute (boomerhealthinstitute.com). Its web site,
which should be up and running by the time these
notes are published, offers a variety of services to
help the baby boomers achieve a better life style.
Bill’s new nonfiction book, The Boomer Survivor Kit
(565 pages), was to be published in mid June.
Suzanne Reed, who is chief of staff to California
State Sen. Carol Liu, sent the following: “Would
love to retire in the Pacific, but with waters rising
from climate change and the loss of equity and
short sale of my house, thinking more about a
double-wide on two acres somewhere on high
ground. My son Michael (SMU ’04) is still a
personal trainer in Dallas, and my daughter Diana
(NYU ’06) is an ADA in the Brooklyn District
Attorney’s Office. My boss is in the last term of her
legislative career, so we are looking at three-and-ahalf more years in the State Senate to reform public
education in California, slow down and plan for climate change and develop the green and sustainable
economy. I continue to ride horses competitively,
though I have switched from jumping to dressage.
Keeps me sane and somewhat safer, though my
horse is a real pip! I wish all my classmates well and
hope they will reconnect on LinkedIn or Facebook
if they are inclined.”
John Hitchens sent lots of news of his life and
family in Roanoke, Va.: John’s oldest daughter
Christine, 29, returned to school at Virginia
Commonwealth University in Richmond and completed an MSW to prepare for her job as a state
social worker in Charlottesville with Region Ten.
She is the first of John’s four children to be engaged
and will be married on Sept. 14 in Charlottesville.
John’s daughter Claire, 22, graduated in the spring
from the University of Virginia, and his youngest
child, Jack, 15, who attended our illustrious 40th
Williams reunion with John and Jean, finished
ninth grade in the spring.
John and Jean continue teaching in the Roanoke
City public schools, and Jean was the school system’s Teacher of the Year for 2011-12. John seemed
pleased to be, in his words “the famous husband of
the teacher of the year!” John also said, “I am happy
to report two exciting alumni happenings here
in Roanoke, Va. We had a nice visit from David
Strathairn in October 2011 when he was on a break
from filming Lincoln in Richmond. We enjoyed
catching up on family and friends with him over
dinner and a nice hike on the trails to Roanoke’s
Mill Mountain Star. Soon after that, we had the
good fortune of hosting a dinner welcoming Chip
1969–71
Baker and his wife to our neighborhood. I am so
excited to have a Williams grad from our very
own Class of 1970 just a short walk away from our
house.”
Jim Deutsch, whom I had not heard from in
a while, sent the following: “I am still living in
Washington, D.C., where I work as a curator and
editor for the Smithsonian Center for Folklife and
Cultural Heritage, helping to plan and produce
programs for the annual Smithsonian Folklife
Festival. My program this year is Hungarian heritage, with China coming up in 2014. I also teach
part time (primarily courses on film and folklore)
for the American studies department at George
Washington University.”
Dick Cooch had this to report: “Hard to believe,
but I have now served 20 years as a Delaware
Superior Court judge (the last 12 as resident judge
of my county—includes administrative duties). I’ve
liked judicial work from the beginning; I always
enjoyed being a lawyer but think that being a judge
is more my niche. I was reappointed last year to
another 12-year term. My wife Barbara keeps busy
with many volunteer activities. Son Richard just
graduated from Sierra Nevada College on Lake
Tahoe with interests in outdoor wilderness leadership and journalism; daughter Merritt is a junior
at the University of Delaware. All are well. We
spend time at a cottage on Damariscotta Lake in
Maine that we bought seven years ago, but my still
having a job gets in the way of lengthier stays there.
Barbara has the solution to that, which someday
not too far off I’ll implement.”
Tom Crowley, a former Williams wrestler, wrote
to offer his ringing endorsement of Scott Honecker,
Williams’ current head wrestling coach, who has
made a concerted effort to reach out to alumni and
try to reignite their interest in following the team
in its current incarnation. Scott hosted a reception
at last fall’s homecoming for the families of current
wrestlers, which Tom attended and greatly enjoyed.
Tom noted that wrestling was an important part of
his Williams experience, and his renewed enthusiasm for the sport has led him to attend a few
Williams matches held within hailing distance of
the Big Apple. He encourages all former wrestlers
from our class (you know who you are) to support
Scott in building the team, which this past year had
a 12-11 record, sent three wrestlers to the NCAA
Div. III Championships in Cedar Rapids and
ended up with two NCAA All-Americans (Ces
Antista ’13 and Jorge Lopez ’16). Scott won the Div.
III Rookie Coach of the Year award.
Bob Groban says that his life remains hectic but
also is filled with Eph sightings: “I am still with
Epstein Becker & Green PC and have no current
plans to retire. My son Eli Groban ’02 and his
family were with us for Memorial Day. They live
in San Francisco, so it was quite a treat seeing our
granddaughter Alila and being able to celebrate
her first birthday with her. Also, I have been in
touch with Tom Sweeney and Jay Nelson. For the
past decade, we have taught a Winter Study course
on the Supreme Court in alternative years and
just learned that the course has been approved for
January 2014. Anyone from the class of 1970 is
welcome to audit, but we cannot promise anything
on the grade! Finally, spoke with Jay McKenna, who
is still at Reid Smith but not traveling internationally as much as he had been. Jay and his wife have
eight grandchildren and are looking forward to
seeing more of them.”
Kelly Corr wrote in mid-June to say that he
was chosen as Lawyer of the Year for “Bet The
Company Litigation” for Seattle for 2013 by the
Best Lawyers in America publication. Per Kelly, “‘Bet
the Company Litigation’ is high-stakes litigation
in which the future success or failure of a client’s
business could depend on the outcome of the
litigation.” Kelly went on to say, “Hoping to go
out not at the bottom, I’ve decided to go part time
now with an eye toward retirement next year. On
a personal note, my wife and our two children just
came back from a two-week trip to the Galapagos
Islands off Ecuador and Machu Picchu in Peru.
Wonderful places that I recommend all Ephs put
on their bucket list.” Like most of us, Rod McLeod recently turned 65,
and he and spouse Naomi celebrated by spending a
week in Amsterdam without cell phones or itinerary, strolling around and seeing museums. When
he sent his email to me, they were about to leave
for Tanzania for the wildebeest migration and then
Zanzibar. Rod reported that in Israel, where he and
Naomi reside, “things are heating up on the Syrian
front, although it seems an Iran attack has been
deferred to next year. There is a slow boil among
the surrounding countries (Turkey, Egypt) that in
a way is quite hopeful for future positive change.
Definitely interesting times to be living in as well as
an interesting region.”
Finally, I thought I had found another classmate
in the news when one morning in June I picked
up the Denver Post to read about John Black’s
thoughts on the NSA’s cyber snooping through
Verizon phone data. The article described John as
an “expert on cryptology” and a computer science
professor at the University of Colorado in Boulder.
Knowing that “our” John Black had retired from
IBM in Boulder not too long ago, I emailed him to
see if I could tout his new fame in these class notes.
He immediately wrote back with the following:
“Nope, better quash this now, as I know nothing
of the matter. Since retirement my most strenuous
activity has been travel to visit grandkids in Phoenix
and Maine. My name is about as common as Bob
Smith, and I was not aware that the other John
Black in Boulder (there may be more) was involved
at CU.” John and Linda’s fourth grandchild is due in
December and, consequently, John will be spending
Christmas in Connecticut awaiting the birth.
1971
John Chambers, 10 Ashby Place, Katonah, NY 10536;
1971secretary@williams.edu
This set of notes includes some serious
thoughts—on mortality among the young and
innocent, among our old professors, among our
own classmates—but then continues, for those who
persevere, with happier news and concludes with
still lighter reports.
First, as these notes are written on the six-month
anniversary of the terrible killings at Sandy Hook
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Elementary School, Newtown, Conn., resident
Rich Casden reflects: “Mary and I—like the rest
of our country and even the world—were plunged
into unbearable sadness on Friday, 12/14/12… A
longtime patient of mine lost his daughter, who was
one of the young teachers. One of my employees
frantically awaited news about her grandson—fortunately a survivor. Virtually everyone in town had
a connection to the victims. In the ensuing days the
grief that permeated Newtown was palpable, and a
shroud still remains.”
Rich has tried to find ways to lend a hand toward
healing. In a very personal reaction, he wrote a
poem commemorating the victims, which can be
found in the February 2013 issue of the Connecticut
State Medical Society Journal. Professionally, he and
other physicians living or practicing in Newtown
have tried to bring focus to “four key elements of
our national epidemic of gun-related homicides:
research, mental health, culture of violence and
firearms.”
More in the fullness of years, three of our favorite
professors (as confirmed in the last notes) have
passed. Bill DeWitt ’61, professor of biology, died
in early May. Announcing the news to the college
community, President Adam Falk wrote, “Bill has
been a mainstay of the biology department and the
college since his return to Williams in 1967. It’s
hard to imagine his not being among us. The many
students who knew and admired him include the
large number he taught in Biology 101.”
President Falk commented on the Rev. John Eusden,
college chaplain in our time, as “a large presence at
Williams in more ways than one. While the tall,
former Harvard swim captain and former Marine
­pilot loomed forcefully from the pulpit, he also helped
lead the college into engagement with the civil rights
movement, ecumenical and interfaith initiatives,
international studies and environmentalism.” As Rick
Beinecke says, “For many of us, he was a great teacher,
mentor, advisor and leader. With Bob Gaudino, Kurt
Taube and others, he had a huge influence on my
views and values and what I have done since.”
Fred Rudolph ’42, cherished mentor to so many,
including myself, died early in June. Among President
Falk’s comments: “The college, and in fact higher education, lost … an important, even historic, figure: Fred
Rudolph. Fred served the college in so many ways. As
a student, he was a junior advisor, a member of College
Council and of Gargoyle, and editor of The Williams
Record. As an alumnus he served as president and 50th
reunion chair of the Class of 1942. Most notably, few
faculty in the past half century have had more of a hand
in the development of the Williams curriculum than
did Fred … including with the introduction of what we
now call the American studies program and of AfricanAmerican history. … More broadly Fred married his
love of American history and love of Williams to write
pioneering works in the history of higher education. …
For all of this and more, Williams bestowed on Fred
a Bicentennial Medal and one of his several honorary
degrees and established the Frederick Rudolph ’42
Class of 1965 Professorship of American Culture.”
Mark E. Stevenson died Jan. 31. According to
his obituary in an Oregon newspaper: “During his
years at Williams he cultivated his lifelong passion
for art [and] collected early works by well known
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artists from the pop and op art world. After college
… Mark became involved in the hotel business
while overseeing … real estate holdings of the
Stevenson family business. In 1982, Mark purchased the then-decrepit Heathman Hotel with a
vision of its transformation into an elegant, urbane
and vibrant downtown hotel. The Heathman
reopened in 1984 … [and] became a beacon of fine
design, excellent cuisine and gracious hospitality that contributed to Portland’s distinct urban
character and appeal.”
John Resor remembers Mark as “a great friend
and a supremely talented and artistic individual.”
Aided perhaps by the Massachusetts statute of limitations, John adds a story that includes a confession: “Mark had a lot of confidence, sometimes too
much. After an uneventful night at Smith, Mark
spotted a canoe that he really liked. He asked me to
help load it onto his station wagon and take it back
to Williams. When I declined, Mark approached a
campus cop and asked for help loading ‘his’ canoe
onto the car. When the two of them obviously
needed some help, I joined in on the crime. This
stunt certainly made the ride back to Williams
more enjoyable.” Jim Vipond, even without knowing this story, comments, “I was always in ‘awe’ of
Mark, he lived life to the fullest.” For the rest of us,
a visit to the Heathman when in Portland might be
a fitting tribute; how many leave such a testament?
Happier news came from several classmates.
Rob Jones, adding to our list of most remembered
faculty, named three: “Phil Smith ’55 was an incredible help and inspiration to me. … I can remember
many things which Clay Hunt said to shock and
awe, but the kindness and scholarly approach of
Peter Frost was so influential.” Rob reports a busy
practice of CV surgery but seems to invest frequent
time with three grandchildren, despite the need for
East Coast/West Coast travel to do so. At home in
Crystal Lake, Mich., he invites classmates to call
for a visit.
Travel news: Sharon and Mark Ruchman
were in Southeast Asia with Barbara and Jock
Kimberley ’66. “We spent several days in Singapore
where we met Jock’s classmate Dr. Kiat Tan ’66, a
world-regarded botanist/conservationist responsible for re-invigorating the National Botanical
Gardens of Singapore, including Gardens By the
Bay, a botanical garden and research center. … Its
mission is to gather, preserve and protect indigenous Southeast Asian flora threatened by the
rapid development of the region. … Very wonderful experience—classmates traveling to Singapore
[should] be sure and visit.”
Reliable John Acroff used his travel to update us
on classmates and their families: “We spent a few
days in late May with Janet and Sey Zimmerman,
who were our hosts as we visited some attractions
in the Washington, D.C., area. Frank Zimmerman
’10 was also there for part of our visit. We then
headed to Audubon, Pa., for the wedding of Craig
Lindeke’s daughter Lisa Lindeke ’06 to Seth Daniels
’06. (Seth’s father is Paul Daniels ’72.) Bill Lindeke
’01 was an officiant, and Ben Thompson ’01 was a
member of the wedding party. Craig’s brother Loren
Lindeke ’65 was there with his wife, and there was a
large contingent of Ephs from ’06 give or take.”
1971–72
More family news came from proud father Rick
Beinecke, whose daughters Emily and Katrina
graduated from Tufts and Roanoke in the spring.
Rich Casden’s family updates included all three of
his and Mary’s children: “Son Andy (Wesleyan ’03)
is a junior partner in a San Francisco-based company. Emily Casden ’06 earned a master’s degree in
art history and works as a curatorial assistant at the
Jewish Museum in NYC. Alyssa (Skidmore ’99)
provided our greatest recent joy when she married
Matthew Klein last May. She has an MPA from
NYU’s Wagner School and is an administrator at
Teach for America in NYC.”
Bob Eyre parlayed a trifecta—travel, family and
service: “I made my third trip to Haiti in February,
and it was doubly fun since son Andrew Eyre ’06
joined me. He is starting his third year of residency
in emergency medicine in July, so his surgical,
anesthesia and overall clinical skills were put to
excellent use. It was great to see how seamlessly he
bonded with a group of veteran surgical mission
participants. Stephen Eyre ’03 is in his last month
of urology residency and will be joining my practice
later this summer after taking his boards.”
Katie Eyre ’73 was reunion co-chair for her class,
and Bob offered a heartfelt report: “The sense of
fellowship, meaningful reflections and reconnections—and genuine affection among the classmates—was very special.” One panel discussion
“might have invited a discussion of retirement,
volunteer activities, leisure pursuits, etc. In fact it
touched on far deeper issues of the human condition. Panelists first gave a ‘Williams College Class
Notes’ version of their outward successes, accomplishments and careers but then discussed with
extraordinary candor and grace the issues that really
defined their lives: painful divorce, children in crisis,
caring for elderly parents, job upheaval, serious illness, etc. Rarely have I seen a group of such highly
successful men (and women) share such intimate
details with such openness.”
Class of ’71 reunion planners, take note! From
several of those worthies, for the moment, we have
what I respectfully characterize as “lighter reports,”
though serious golfers among us may see their news
as profound, since it included for Class President
Steve Latham “seven days of golf on the west coast
and north of Ireland,” and for Steve Brown close-up
views of the recent U.S. Open almost in his backyard at Merion, Pa. Ever gracious John Untereker
admitted to a bit of jealousy from his own backyard
in Houston but wished Brownie well even through
the rain delays.
And I wish all the best to every classmate—with
special thanks to contributors! Please help us
broaden that base, especially with news of those
who have been flying under the radar.
1972
Jim Armstrong, 600 West 115th St., Apt. 112, New York,
NY 10025; Julie Rose, 27 Norfolk Ave., Northampton,
MA 01060; 1972secretary@williams.edu
Our class notes begin with a couple of postscripts.
Both Tom Kerr and Lans Smith submitted news at
the end of 2012 that appeared in the May edition.
The recent follow-up from Lans is that he was
awarded the Pacifica Graduate School Medallion—
an honor that goes very nicely indeed with the
Hardin Professor Award for Excellence in Teaching
and Scholarship that he received 10 years ago from
Midwestern State University. Kudos! And from
Omaha, Tom writes: “I realize that a year has now
passed since our reunion. Freelance work has been
continuously good and has included a huge variety
of projects. To temper the instability of freelance, I
left the board of a small local nonprofit to become
their communications and marketing consultant.
We provide music and entertainment to the senior
community here in Nebraska and western Iowa.
When you attend one of our performances, you
see the magic that this provides. Every now and
again I wonder at what point the musical choices
for the seniors will be songs from the ’70s and ’80s.
We have met the clientele and they are us? Other
tidbits from this end are that daughter Em did
get a full-time job following her graduation from
college, and I launched a book at the Berkshire
Hathaway shareholders’ meeting, My First Berkshire
ABC. It was written by Nancy Rips, and I did the
illustrations. We’ve sold all but a handful of copies
of the print run, an amazing experience. I must
confess that ‘W’ in the book is for Wells Fargo, not
Williams.” At the end of his email, Tom included
a zinger of a cartoon of Odd Couple Dennis
Rodman and Kim Jong Un.
A fine profile carried by the Episcopal News
Service details how Jim Munroe is thriving as
dean of Christ Church Cathedral (Episcopal) in
Springfield, Mass. Jim is quoted as saying, “A large
part of my role is to be the pastor of the congregation. … I think probably my gifts are more in
being a parish priest than in being a diocesan
leader, or at least that’s what I enjoy.” He’s taking
Spanish lessons to better minister to the diverse
community of more than 200 who attend Sunday
services at the cathedral. He also reports he is
learning to play the drums. “I’m a beginner, but
it’s fun.” (Hey, Jim, bring the drums to the next
reunion! No, seriously—bring them.) He also
spoke of his larger involvement in the Springfield
community and beyond. His continuing work with
the Veteran’s Education Project and his outreach
as dean often jibe. He was particularly concerned
about the Boston Marathon bombings in April,
which echoed his experiences as a bombing victim
during his service as a Marine in Vietnam. “When
I saw the videos of the two explosions actually
happening, I understood that the people within
the blast zone were having the experience I had
and that it is an experience that is impossible to
describe with words. I also knew that that moment
would be a defining moment that they would seek
healing from for the rest of their lives and that it
may well be years before they’re even ready to begin
that healing.” For the full article, go to: http://bit.
ly/17j2Sug.
Over the transom (as people used to say in the
publishing business) as well as at the very last
moment came this delightful long-distance missive from Andy Bader: “At our 40th reunion last
year, I fielded many questions from classmates
about my decision to apply to the Peace Corps
after my retirement from the senior housing and
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services field. I am happy to report that, after a very
intensive three months of training, I was sworn in
on June 11 as a Peace Corps volunteer at the U.S.
Embassy in Kyiv, Ukraine. I recently moved to
my permanent site in the city of Dnipropetrovs’k,
where I am assisting a charitable organization that
places orphans with adoptive and foster families
and raises funds to purchase medications for
sick children. I am also working with a budding
advocacy and support group called the League of
People in Wheelchairs, which strives to overcome
the enormous obstacles that disabled persons face
in their daily lives here in Ukraine. There are many
sources of inspiration for my decision to serve
abroad at this stage of life, including my children,
but I also give credit to my liberal arts education at
Williams. I am literally learning as I go in a new
culture and environment. Experiential education—
valuable at age 20 or age 63. I want to thank my
friends and classmates for their support as I fulfill
this lifelong ambition.”
We received news that Don Beyer, who has
recently stepped down as U.S. ambassador to
Switzerland, was given the Thomas Jefferson Award
at a State Department ceremony in March. “The
award by American Citizens Abroad (ACA) is
presented to a U.S. State Department officer who
has rendered outstanding service to Americans
overseas. ACA is a citizen’s advocacy group representing 6 million overseas Americans,” according to the news release. Don was honored for his
leadership and participation in a series of town hall
meetings where U.S. expats’ issues and concerns
with Washington were discussed.
In March, the ArtQuilt Gallery NYC, owned
and operated by Dale Riehl and his wife Cathy
Izzo, had an exhibit of the work of the quilter Beth
Carney. Local Ephs Paul Isaac, Cande Olsen, David
Farren and Jim Armstrong were in attendance at the
opening and were treated to a guided tour not only
of the areas opened to the public but also of the
behind-the-scenes facilities. Absolutely fascinating!
For anything and everything to do with quilts, head
to 133 West 25th St.
Harry Kangis sent in a brief note: “Julia and I
just got back from the U.K. We took our oldest
grandson, Christopher (whose mother is Megan
Hawgood ’88), on a high school graduation trip
to play golf at St. Andrews in Scotland. They do
grow up fast.” He included a nice news item from
the Nature Conservancy. Harry is an honorary
life trustee of the Ohio program of the Nature
Conservancy and also an ardent scuba diver. His
latest efforts have been on behalf of the Raja
Ampat Islands, which are located in the Coral
Triangle in eastern Indonesia. He has been involved
in disseminating information about and helping
to raise much-needed funds for Raja Ampat—
$100,000, at last report. In the words of the press
release, “The seascape includes critical habitats for
globally threatened marine species, including sea
turtles and cetaceans, and is essential to the food
security of local communities. Since 2005, the
conservancy and Conservation International have
joined together to protect Raja Ampat and the surrounding seas from overfishing, destructive fishing
and climate change. With our support, the Raja
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Ampat government and local communities established six new marine protected areas to preserve
important coral reef habitats.”
Kitty Earle Babson sent in a nice, long, cheerful
email full of both family news and world news on
a personal scale. “Life is full in the 60-plus way of
being: parenting surviving parents who are now 91
and 88; continuing work with Myanmar for me
and North Korea for Brad Babson; and volunteering service on various boards. Brad is our local
Land Trust president, and I enjoy work on Virginia
Seminary’s Alumni Association Executive Council.
Having recently had to close one of the Episcopal
Diocese of Maine’s smallest, and, sadly, unviable
parishes, I now serve as ‘supply,’ or fill-in, clergy
when there is need, which is almost every Sunday.
“In January I returned to Myanmar for the 40thsomething time since 1994. Even in the short time
since my previous trip last year, the evidence of
mostly positive change was everywhere. Now that
Suu Kyi is out of house arrest and duly elected to
parliament, taxi drivers, shopkeepers, the young and
the old speak openly about what they think about
their new government and—without check—the
old one. Some of the more positive changes are that
the notorious censorship office has been closed,
the native press may write openly, and independent
dailies have appeared. Even public protest happens.
It has always been exciting and challenging for me
to take students with me to Myanmar, especially
when few have ever traveled in Asia or experienced
a culture so radically different from their own that
they invariably go through what a friend of mine
calls ‘difference fatigue.’ To be there to guide their
discovery of self and other is an eye-opener for
me every time. I cannot help but remember my
months in India as one of only three woman on
the Williams-in-India II program and how that
formed me as an eternal student of culture and
spirit, and as an educator intent on nurturing the
kind of ‘light bulb’ insight that can come from what
Bob Gaudino called ‘uncomfortable learning’—for
that is what time in Myanmar always is.
“On the home front, Brad and I are expecting
two more grandchildren this summer: a second
daughter to Ollie Babson ’97 and his wife Jamie,
and a first child to Gusty Babson ’00 and her
husband Quinn. We revel in being grandparents:
It’s not just about loving the little ones so much but
about seeing one’s children as loving parents who
reveal some of our own better nature and parental
ways—but seem wise enough to let go of much of
what isn’t and wasn’t. We are pleased and proud of
them all.”
Finally, as you may already know from the class
letter that David Webster sent, professor of biology Bill DeWitt ’61, the husband of our classmate
Mary Lou Brady, died in early May. Among the
many people from the Williams community who
attended Bill’s beautiful memorial service were Chip
Chandler and Michele Chandler and Julie Rose.
Bill was remembered as an extraordinary teacher
and mentor. Professor of Religion Mark Taylor
recalled Bill’s passion for teaching as a “calling,”
one that imbued his life and community. “Bill’s
students were not only in the classroom, where
he was a superb and memorable teacher; he was
1972–73
also a teacher for his family, Mary Lou, Tyler and
Erica, for his friends and for his colleagues. The
honesty and integrity with which Bill lived his life
harbor lessons for all of us.” Friends spoke of Bill’s
love of gardening and passion for the exquisite
landscapes of the American Southwest, particularly
in Canyonlands National Park, Utah. We extend
to Mary Lou, her children and all of Bill’s family,
friends and former students our condolences.
1973
Dan Farley, 6875 Avenida Andorra, La Jolla, CA 92037;
1973secretary@williams.edu
Submitted by outgoing secretary Cole Werble:
Thanks to recruiting and reporting skills of the
head of our reunion inclusion committee, Steve
Hauge, here is a quick by-the-numbers profile of a
very lively, stimulating and reflective 40th reunion
in the gray and cool Purple Valley. One-quarter of
the remaining class (101 of 404) made it back to
Williamstown for three days of events, including some very long journeys: Nan Elliot from
Anchorage, Alaska, Bill Bodenstab from Lihue,
Hawaii, and Tsong-Zung Chang (accompanied by
his son) from Hong Kong. A quarter of the quarter
who made it back had not been to a reunion in 15
years, and about 10 people were attending their
first reunion. We also had about 40 Eph-adoptees
(friends and family accompanying the Class of ’73),
and we picked up a few attendees from classes on
both sides of our graduation—a clear sign of the
magnetic draw of ’73.
The assembled group marched behind our
10-foot puppet of Ephraim. The puppet’s godfather/creator, Dick Lammert, is worried about the
state of the puppet from too much marching in
the Berkshires, but that was trouble for Ephraim
258 years ago. Dick noticed some extra flap in
Ephraim’s wrists; he may be in for an overhaul. He
is still, however, the high point (literally) of the
alumni parade.
Outgoing class president extraordinaire Jackie
Oliveri noted some other impressive acknowledgements of the successful reunion: 46 people
responded to Reunion Co-chair John Neikirk’s
program of short poster biogs that decorated the
Saturday night dessert and coffee; and, perhaps
most impressively, two reunion rangers called us
“classy”—a sign that our celebration played well
even with the newer-generation Ephs.
Word of the successful event spread quickly, and
I began immediately receiving second-hand notes
about the reunion. Milton Greenfell wrote that Dan
Lesny, Steve Werbe and Field Horne had immediately told him that “the reunion was very cordial
and at points deeply moving.”
The weather even cooperated to rekindle (or
re-chill) Purple Valley memories by putting on a
display of the finest Western Mass. overcast gloom:
The temperatures in the upper 50s were close to
half those of the last sweltering reunion in 2008.
The events started out on a high note with a
Thursday evening dinner hosted by Mercedes and
Jay Nawrocki in the barn of their house on Cold
Spring Road (Route 7), situated spectacularly over
the Green River Valley looking at Mount Greylock.
The dinner drew a record 55 people to the opening event. Peter Harnik took over as reunion food
manager for the next three group meals, though I
think the grilled honeybun desserts (à la snack bar)
were a group effort.
In Eph educational style, two of the highlights
of the weekend were seminar-style discussions
of two issues looking backward to the start of
co-education during our college years and forward
to the next life changes for Ephs 40 years out from
the Purple Valley. My thanks to Larry Heidges, who
sent summaries of both events to the notes.
The coeducation discussion, under the direction of Reunion Co-chair Katie Jacobs Eyre and
a panel comprised of Anne Kimball, Joe Standard,
Mary Schendel and Bill Walton, took about 60
class members back through the dislocations and
challenges for the women who uprooted from their
prior schools to face a previously all-male campus
to the men who moved from “initial resistance to
admiration and acceptance of women on campus.”
Showing that Ephs forever speak their minds, in
response to comments about the non-event of
the change to co-education, some people in the
audience spoke with spirited remembrances of
the rougher edges of the change—from isolated
quarters for the women to a less than universally
welcoming behavior from the men. One telling
comment for the long-term success of the change
for our class, however, is that women tend to return
to reunions in a higher percentage than men (22
to the 2013). As class secretary I have experienced
that strong attachment to Williams every few
months when a large proportion of the updates
come from the women members of the class. I just
chalked that up to more literacy from that cohort
and thanked the college fervently in retrospect for
adding note writers to the class mix.
The where-next discussion on Saturday drew
nearly 80 class members to a discussion led by
Steve Hauge and a panel comprised of Steve Harty,
Julian Beckford, Lucy Calkins and Larry Heiges.
Larry reported a thoughtful session with class
members sharing perspectives on dealing with the
old and new careers at the start of a fifth decade.
“Panelists reflected on careers cut short and what
do you do from here. Audience members joined in
on personal reflections of their own lives.” Larry
noted a mellowing change in the general class
perspective from youthful bragging about accomplishments to experienced examination of the best
way to use the years going forward. In reunion
spirit, Larry said two of the panelists looked back
to rock lyrics for summation: Larry to the Stones
and “you can’t always get what you want, but if you
try sometime you just might find you get what you
need” and Steve Harty to “all you need is love.”
Musical memories from Joe and Bing (Joe
Knowlton ’72 and Bing Bingham) made the class
feel very much back at home and back in time at
the Friday after-dinner entertainment class. Joe
and Bing pulled the feat of a golden anniversary
celebration as a musical pairing at our 40th: They
started playing seriously together 10 years before
our graduation in prep school and also had the
“geopolitical events” of the late 1960s prolong their
Williams careers. They played with feeling and
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energy for well over an hour, belying their many
years together. Warm-up for the aural nostalgia
was provided visually by two great slide shows of
images from the class, assembled artistically by
Wylie Mitchell and Nan Elliot.
Capturing the reflective tone of the event, firsttime reunioner Bobette Reed Kahn, an ordained
Episcopal minister, gave a benediction at the
Saturday dinner that noted the recent losses of
two important faculty members form our era:
John Eusden and Fred Rudolph ’42 (who passed
away early in the week leading up to reunion). It
was a moving moment with Marta Rudolph at the
dinner. Several class members spoke up noting the
recent passing of members of ’73, including Arturo
Calventi.
Class member Sally Shipton started the dinner
with an invocation: Bobette and Sally literally
demonstrating again the blessings of co-education
coming to our class.
Among many wonderful conversations, I was
lucky to have long conversations with two of
the other first-time reunioners: Chip Horne from
Denver and Peter Welling from his horse farm in
Unionville, Pa. Chip, with 24 marathons under
his belt (or in his shoes) looked like he could have
run from Colorado to Williamstown. Welling was
enthusiastic and looked like he could have ridden
one of his horses or a Ducati to the event. They
clearly enjoyed the new experience of reconnecting
with a great class.
The reunion was a good warm-up for the next
important decade leading to the 50th. I hope classmates will continue (or begin) writing effusively
to the new class secretaries: Dan Farley and Nan
Elliot—an impressive literary team of successful
publisher and creative writer that clearly upgrades
the notes for the next five to 10 years. We also have
a superb new team of officers: Tom Hyndman as
president, Joe Standart as VP and Bill Walton adding the institutional memory and knowledge of the
books as returning treasurer. Joe (Dart) is taking on
his new responsibilities on the fly: already on the
hunt for photos from the reunion and the class past
(jstandart@gmail.com). A great start on the photo
memories from the 40th already exists. Check them
out at www.Williams73.com.
It has been a delight reconnecting with the class
as secretary. In fact, it is hard to describe adequately
the pleasure in the correspondence with so many
of you. It is not as hard to finish the process of
de-scribing and hand over the Eph quill to Dan
and Nan. I urge you send your news to the new secretaries and start preparing for June 2018 and 2023.
1974
REUNION JUNE 12-15
Jonathan W. Fitch, 5 Cedar Hill Road, Dover, MA 02030;
1974secretary@williams.edu
Grace Paine Terzian was in Williamstown for this
year’s Reunion Weekend, getting a jump on our
40th. She writes, “I crashed the 1973 class reunion
and had a blast seeing folks I haven’t encountered
in a great many years and also managed to make
a quick visit over to Jeff Johnson in Pownal. I look
forward to our 40th class reunion in less than a
year. I really hope everyone makes an effort to
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come!” Grace, a party crasher? A surprise guest
is more like it. Grace also mentions that she has
started a new job as chief communications officer at
MediaDC, the powerhouse publisher of The Weekly
Standard, Washington Examiner and Red Alert
Politics. According to its website, MediaDC is an
assembly of “teams of world-class journalists in the
nation’s capital to inform and enlighten readers and
the people who make and practice politics at the
state and national levels.” Congratulations to Grace,
and good luck to her helping us all make sense out
of, well, things such as they are.
Gini Peterson writes, “Rob Peterson ’73 and I
have been married 39 years—yikes! Unfortunately
we couldn’t attend his 40th reunion two weeks ago,
but Grace Terzian sent us fabulous photos that we
loved looking at. Rob and I are living in Greenville,
N.C., where he is head of The Oakwood School,
and I am the fourth- and fifth-grade English
teacher. We have two children, both married. One
couple lives in NYC and the other in New Orleans.
We miss our children dreadfully, since teenagers in
one’s home add a great spirit and energy, but we are
trying to accept growing old gracefully and trying
to stay ‘current’ without them around to help us!”
McKelden Smith reports: “We are closing on
the sale of our home of 25 years in New Canaan,
Conn., on June 26. We have a signed contract on
an apartment in Manhattan and, while we are emotionally conflicted about leaving New Canaan, we
are excited to be starting a new, completely official,
empty nester existence in a few months. The only
hurdle standing in the way is getting accepted by
the building’s board. That is something we are not
taking for granted, so I cannot reveal anything
further about the exact location. I can say it is north
of 35th Street, which means it is not cool. But it
has other qualities.” Hardly one ever thought to
be uncool, it’s unimaginable that McKelden will
stumble snowing any mid-upper-East-West Side
building board!
Nancy Contel says, “I have joined the ranks of the
happily retired. The final work chapter was marked
by a meeting with folks whose lives were dramatically altered by a drug my company developed,
Jakafi for myelofibrosis. Dan and Susan had been
given six months to live and were living with
debilitating symptoms… This was now three and
four years later, and they are living full and normal
lives with very happy spouses and grandchildren.
I could not have imagined a better way to close
out this part of my life.” Nancy’s other news
regards her daughter Julia, the recipient of this
edition’s Amazing Child of ’74 Award. Nancy
pridefully tells us, “My first day of retirement was
my daughter’s first day of work post-college. Julia
graduated summa cum laude with a degree in
architecture from Washington University in St.
Louis. She received the Widmann Award, voted on
by faculty as the best in architecture. And faculty
told me what a dear person she is. So do ya think
this is one proud mom! Julia is working at Robert
A.M. Stern Architects in NYC as she felt it would
be a good idea to work for a few years prior to grad
school. So this is a really good period in life, and
I’m looking forward to travel and new adventures
in this next chapter.”
1973–74
Our renowned international conservationist
Bruce Beehler has begun a new job as director for
bird conservation at the National Fish and Wildlife
Foundation (NFWF). NFWF is one of the world’s
largest conservation grant-makers, created by
Congress in 1984. (Its website describes its broad
mission as protecting and restoring imperiled
species, promoting healthy oceans and estuaries,
improving working landscapes for wildlife, advancing sustainable fisheries and conserving water for
wildlife and people.) Before joining NFWF, Bruce
worked at Conservation International for over
16 years, most recently as senior director of the
Asia-Pacific Field Division, conducting climaterelated fieldwork in Papua New Guinea. While at
Conservation International, Bruce co-led a widely
published survey on biological diversity in the
Foja Mountains, Papua, where he, together with
a team of 11 international scientists, made several
significant discoveries of new species. In that connection, Bruce is currently working on a revision of
Birds of New Guinea and completing Taxonomy and
Distribution of the Birds of New Guinea, both with
co-author Thane Pratt. We are all lucky that he has
taken on such a comprehensive and important new
assignment at the NFWF.
Thanks to Jeff Elliot for sending along a New
York Times article on Bill Finn’s promising new
production, Little Miss Sunshine. The Times reports,
“A musical adaptation of Little Miss Sunshine,
the Oscar-nominated film about a dysfunctional
family traveling to a child beauty pageant, will
open the 35th season of Second Stage Theater in
October, the Off-Broadway company announced
on Wednesday. The show is the latest collaboration of the Tony Award winners William Finn,
who has written the music and lyrics, and James
Lapine, the book writer and director. They worked
on the musicals Falsettos and The 25th Annual
Putnam County Spelling Bee, which was produced at
Second Stage in 2005 before moving to Broadway
that spring. Little Miss Sunshine has also been
mentioned as a Broadway possibility, given the
talents involved, the high name recognition of the
movie, an out-of-town production of the musical
at La Jolla Playhouse in San Diego in 2011 and
the involvement of Broadway producers in helping
shepherd the show’s development, most recently
Beth Williams and Barbara Whitman. But Carole
Rothman, artistic director of Second Stage, said on
Wednesday that there were no plans for Broadway
after the run at Second Stage, where Little Miss
Sunshine is scheduled to begin preview performances on Oct. 15 and open in mid-November.
Asked why the show was going to Second Stage
instead of Broadway, Ms. Rothman said: ‘I’ve
sometimes been compared to a dog with a bone. I
really thought this piece would be a perfect match
for Second Stage. Whatever else was going on with
the show, I was fierce about trying to get it here. I
try to tune out the noise of the theater business and
just focus on getting things that are right for us.
This time we won.’” Of course, the theaters would
be fighting for the show! Jeff is trying to organize
a group of our classmates to attend a performance
of Little Miss Sunshine in December; stay tuned for
details.
No current news of the Class of ’74 would be
complete without entries in our ongoing collective
travelogue. To begin, Rich Levy writes, “Carol and
I had a peripatetic spring. In April, with Audrey
and Jeff Elliott, we spent great two weeks in Turkey
(luckily, before the recent unrest). Our travels took
us to the coastal areas of Izmir and Bodrum (and
various points in between), Cappadocia in the
center of the country and, finally, Istanbul (including the Taksim Square and Gezi Park areas at the
heart of the recent protests). By itself, Istanbul is
a remarkable city. If and when things return to a
semblance of normalcy, the country is definitely
worth a visit—interesting history and culture, and
great food and wine. And I must say, as I walked
into the Great Theatre at Ephesus and into the
Hagia Sophia in Istanbul, it was as if I could hear
the voices of E.J. Johnson ’59 and Whitney Stoddard
’35 lecturing about those very places in Art History
101-102.)” Rich also mentions that he “closed the
book on my 60th birthday by redeeming a promise
made last September by my son Michael Levy ’12,
my daughter Rachel Levy ’09 and her boyfriend
Caleb Balderston ’10 to spend a weekend of hiking
(more precisely, hiking by day and ‘hotel camping’
by night) with Carol and me. After a wet first day
(with wind and rain blowing horizontally across
the tops of three peaks in the Presidential Range)
but very nice second day, Carol, Michael and I
can count our first five of the White Mountain
48, while Rachel and Caleb added to their already
larger totals. Now onward to 20 more (of the 46)
Adirondacks and 43 more White Mountains!” Others sought warmer climes—and the
unsurpassed hospitality of Jeff Johnson in Key
West, Fla. Jeff writes, “Since we bought our house
in Key West (in October 2010), we have had a
steady stream of Williams guests. Nan Elliot ’73
flew in from Alaska in January to stay with us and
attend the incredible Key West Literary Seminar
for two weeks. Speaking at the seminar was
Darra Goldstein—currently the Francis Oakley
Professor of Russian at Williams. So we hosted a
‘Williams in Key West’ cocktail party. In addition
to myself, Nan and Darra were Darra’s husband
Dean Crawford and their daughter Leila Crawford
’12. Also attending were Carol and Bob Stegeman
’60. Even before Nan flew back to Alaska, Sam
Willmott (son of Charlie Willmott ’74) arrived for
a two-month stay. He is performing at the Red
Barn Theater in Key West in a new musical called
Sister Robert Ann’s Cabaret. And, of course, Charlie
just arrived yesterday to see his son perform. Other
Williams grads made their way south, including
Wendy Hopkins ’72 and Peter Hopkins, who combined their Key West adventure with a trip to Red
Sox spring training.”
One might say that Jeff ’s big-heartedness as to
Williams folk is ubiquitous. Dave Maraghy is teaching courses in sports law and entertainment law at
Elon University School of Law and writes, “Had a
really neat connection with a wonderful classmate,
Jeff Johnson. This past May Jeff graciously took
time to make a presentation to my entertainment
law class via Skype from his office in NYC. Jeff was
also kind enough to have Hy Conrad sit in as well,
mystery writer and exec producer of the hit series
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Monk. Together they shared their invaluable advice
on all aspects of the entertainment industry but in
particular their experiences around publishing their
wonderful fun book: Things Your Dog Doesn’t Want
You to Know: Eleven Courageous Canines Tell All.”
Friends, that’s it for now. Please mark our reunion
dates of June 12-15, 2014, on your calendars.
Echoing Grace’s call, I really hope everyone makes
an effort to come! 1975
Julia Berens, 22 Sperry Lane, Lansing, NY 14882;
1975secretary@williams.edu
What a difference four months makes! Connie
Sheehy is reaching milestones ahead of expectations. Who else in the class can say (happily) she
has gained 12 pounds and prefers being weighed
wearing her shoes? Connie is driving, doing water
aerobics and playing some golf; she is deeply
grateful and humbled by the prayers and caring
of so many during her terrifying health scare. Fred
Stueber and wife Betsy were with Connie at a party
in Hanover the night before she checked in to the
hospital. Fred speaks for many of us in expressing
gratitude for Connie’s ever-improving health. His
six words for 60 are: “Working through yin and
yang complexities.”
Many wrote with updates of their children’s
graduations and weddings. Sarah Richardson
Straley is embracing the empty nest by working less
and traveling more. She is retiring from the Pinellas
County (Florida) Attorney’s Office and becoming
of counsel with her husband’s law firm in Tampa.
Her youngest daughter will enter Kenyon College
in the fall, and her oldest daughter will begin her
senior year at Wellesley after spending time working on the campaign for, and then in the office of,
Sen. Elizabeth Warren. Debba Curtis (new address:
19 Ellsworth St., Portland, ME 04102) has a new
daughter-in-law from Kiev, Ukraine, living with
her son Will in Abu Dhabi, and she expects to be a
grandmother in the fall. Having spent much of last
December in the hospital with a bad case of strep,
she wants to thank former roommate Julie Winkler
Petri for taking over her Alumni Fund duties.
Debba plans to catch up with Tacey Phillips Carroll
’76 and muster the courage to talk her father, Ted
Curtis ’51, into giving up his driver’s license.
Ben Duke’s daughter Rettie graduated cum
laude from Washington College in Maryland.
She is working as head fishing guide at a ranch in
Wyoming. His son Benjy heads up a fishing, hunting and riding expedition program he developed
for ranches covering nearly 100,000 acres. Ben is
still ranching cattle in Elbert County, Colo., and is
in his 20th year as a 4-H leader. As the executive
director of the Mesa Verde Foundation, Ben raises
money for programs and projects in the park.
Corinne Ball celebrated her youngest child’s graduation from Williams; Amanda Lorelei Weber ’13
joins her sister Aimee Claire Weber ’11 and Corinne
as Williams alumnae. She hopes to see Amanda Van
Dusen on a trip to Detroit, where her task is to help
the city work through its rescue. Other Eph graduations include Andy Quinn ’13, son of Margaret
Stuhr and Tim Quinn ’77, who were joined in
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Williamstown by their daughter Katie Eckelman
’08 and Katie’s husband Bryan Eckelmann ’09.
While attending a jazz concert in the Purple Valley
in May, they caught up with Tim’s roommate Steve
Nelson ’76. Mike Watkins and Ellin Goetz ’76 celebrated the graduation of Rhys Watkins ’13. Mike,
ever the tennis bum, was pleased to hear Billie
Jean King speaking. His winter in Naples, Fla.,
included visits from Andy Peterson and Suzanne
Peterson, Peter Keller and family, and yours truly.
If you haven’t checked out Mike’s hotel in Naples,
it’s high time you treated yourself to his amazing
hospitality. (OK, Mike—does that plug assure me a
spot next winter?)
From the “forgotten” Mountain Time Zone (if
you’re from the East, you never know when your
favorite TV shows will air), Mike Wilson writes that
he and Dr. Dave McKenzie (aka “the Griz”) met
for some skiing at Copper Mountain in March.
Despite having not been on the slopes in 18 years,
Dr. Dave picked it right up again. “Salutes were
given to deceased ski team coach Ralph Townsend.
From Copper Summit we could see over to
Ptarmigan Pass, where Coachie trained with the
110th Mountain Division during WWII.” Both
Mike and Dave are semi-retired and living the
good life.
While visiting my daughter in Colorado in the
spring, I looked up K.K. Duvivier, who lives in
Denver down the street from one of my childhood
friends. I toured K.K.’s award-winning “net-zero,
micro-load” house designed by her husband Lance
Wright (more Division III classes would have
helped me understand the science behind it all),
and then we enjoyed a delightful lunch, catching up
on 38 years of post-Williams life. K.K. was honored
this spring with the “2012-2013 Best Professor”
award from the University of Denver College of
Law, an especially meaningful tribute because professors are nominated by and voted on by students.
I am happy to report we have classmates keeping
the arts alive in their respective communities. Renee
Meyer continues to direct Ballet Mobile, bringing
inspirational ballet to over 3,000 people last year.
Renee writes that the performances “get those brain
neurons firing so our audiences can retrieve and
remember the emotional well-being they experience during our performance. We give every audience member a silk flower instead of getting flowers
ourselves. We make house calls instead of curtain
calls.” In addition to his day job as an investment
advisor and analyst, Fred Dittmann performed leading roles in three Gilbert and Sullivan operas with
The Savoy Company in Philadelphia. In chatting
with Fred, I told him memorizing all those lines
and melodies were sure to stave off a feeble mind.
Fred’s 13-year-old daughter Danielle plays hockey,
alto sax and sings. His a cappella group The Tonics
is about to produce its fourth CD, and he would be
happy to send it to interested classmates (my order
is in!).
Akua Lezli Hope White continues to create beautiful crafts, her latest being doily rugs. Her talents are
many; her poem “Elmira for Twain” can be found at
the Mark Twain Riverfront Park. I haven’t forgotten my promise to Lezli to get her to our next
reunion, only two years away. I may be contacting
1974–76
some of you for ideas of how to get our amazingly
talented, vivacious wheelchair-bound classmate to
the Purple Valley in 2015.
Patty Brown Glenn and husband Mike Pronko
have been building a web-based art gallery (www.
pm-artworks.com) with the goal of breaking even
and allowing emerging artists to realize a profit.
They travel internationally at least twice a year to
include artists they discover in other countries.
She spent her 60th birthday in the Sahara Desert
being serenaded by a South African lute player and
doesn’t expect to top that next year. Her children
Eliot and Virginia Glenn ’07 will both be in Boston
for grad school in the fall. While his wife Maria
was attending a composting workshop nearby, Ned
Reade was photographed by the Kennebec Journal,
happily behind his easel in Hallowell, Maine. Ned
is, no doubt, an institution at Trinity Pawling,
where he still teaches. Has anyone else had the
same job since 1975?
Some life changes to report: Scott Lutrey, after 34
years with the Department of Defense, has retired
and returned to Maryland after five years in North
Yorkshire. He writes, “As I prudently married a
bright, capable, younger woman, my immediate
prospect is to be a kept man—Ellen has thoughts
of a hot dinner and glass of wine waiting for her
when she gets home from the office.” After 37 years
of teaching math and science, Clive Hulick Connor
is retiring, and she and husband Herschel will hop
on their Pearson 365 ketch (sailboat) and head
south from Connecticut to the Caribbean for the
winter. They will take a break in October to join the
Williams group heading to Bhutan.
Jon Appelbaum completed his third medical
mission trip to Nicaragua and happily reports he
has been promoted to professor and named to an
endowed chair. Will Parish finished a decade of
teaching high school environmental science and
is working for a startup nonprofit, Ten Strands,
which partners with the state of California to get
environmental education into the public schools.
His son Mac is a portfolio manager at Kiva living
in Nairobi, Kenya, and Nate just graduated from
Colorado College and in the summer planned to
begin a car rally race from London to Mongolia.
Claire Berman Blum’s six words for 60 are: “so
grateful to be cancer free!” Her veggies are coming up in the organic community farm where
she gardens, and her high school freshman and
college sophomore children are well. Reid and
Linda Spencer Murchison had a fun visit with Ann
Batchelder and Henri Kieffer in May in Asheville,
N.C. Linda reports her daughter Clare Murchison
’08 had a blast at her fifth reunion.
Charlie Selcer had a good phone conversation
with Bobby Kittredge, though he did not reveal
the subject; some interesting possibilities come to
mind. Charlie’s Minnesota State representative wife
Yvonne has collaborated with Steve Kelley on some
initiatives. Daughter Danielle Selcer ’10 returned to
Minnesota after three years teaching in Vietnam.
Her language skills come in handy when her father
takes her to Pho restaurants.
A big round of applause to Dean Cycon for
being one of five honorees to receive the 2013
Business for Peace Award (sometimes called the
“Nobel Prize for Business”) in Oslo. He could not
attend the ceremony because he was attending his
daughter’s graduation from Pitzer College. Earlier
this year, Dean received the first Community
Engagement Award from U.N. Women, recognizing his 20 years of work with women and girls
throughout the coffeelands. Dean gives credit to his
Williams education for his international success.
Bob Reder has moved from adjunct status to
professor of law at Vanderbilt, teaching courses in
transactional practice and corporate governance.
Regan Miller has been appointed by the chief
justice of the North Carolina Supreme Court to be
the chief district court judge in his hometown of
Charlotte, N.C. Gina Campbell continues to enjoy
her granddaughter; she finds that the process of
producing two workbooks on clean language is as
demanding, at times, as producing a child.
True to his word, Steve Stephanian sent a
report of Peggy’s and his visit to Diane and Mike
Hensley’s ski/vacation home in West Virginia. They
snowshoed at 5,000 feet, “breathtaking in more
ways than one.” Otherwise, Steve’s spring was spent
as a volunteer coach for his 7-year-old grandson’s
soccer team. On his 40-minute drive home twice
a week, his reward was stopping at a package store
with a particularly good beer selection.
Somewhat uncharacteristically, Anton
Bestebreurtje had little to report. Milt Morin did
concede that Anton’s Christmas lights are even
more over the top than Milt’s Halloween decorations; I’m not sure where this competition can go
from here. Helen Kelly and Nancy Greenhouse had
their annual rendezvous at the Holyoke Mall, a
“glamorous place” that’s about halfway between
Helen in Coxsackie, N.Y., and Nancy in Boston. I
am glad to hear that Helen is her usual “delightful
ebullient” self. Nancy and her husband continue
to keep bees as well as two big dogs, and she
still works as a development consultant to some
nonprofits.
A correction is in order for Tony Kroker’s residence; he lives in Wallingford, Vt., not Connecticut.
Finally, a big congratulations to Rich Pickard, who
was elected alumni trustee, proudly joining Barbara
Austell and Jimmy Lee on the Williams College
Board of Trustees. He encourages classmates to be
in touch if they have concerns or if he can be of
help in his new position.
1976
Jane Ray Kell, 2110 Howell Mill Road NW, Atlanta, GA
30318; 1976secretary@williams.edu
Greetings, classmates. I hope this edition of class
notes finds you well. It’s been a year of transition
for many of us, with two of our classmates leaving
jobs at the college and others of us moving and/or
traveling to far-flung locations.
Kit Traub is on his way to London with wife
Ulrike and son Herbert after completing a sabbatical year at the National War College, where he
earned a Master’s of Science in national security
strategy. “I loved it for the caliber and spirit of my
fellow students, who included the lead pilot of
the Blue Angels, decorated soldiers from the Iraq
and Afghanistan wars, cyber experts, scientists
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and a handful of us diplomats,” Kit writes. “We
studied a whole-of-government approach that
aims to use tools of national power—diplomacy,
intelligence, military and economy—in the most
efficient, cost-sensitive and effective ways. But as
clever as our solutions might be, it remains true
there are many ‘wicked problems’ out there that will
challenge us and our successors.” The War College
is America’s premier institution for officers from
the Departments of Defense and State and other
civilian agencies who are heading to high-level
policy and command and staff jobs, so it is quite an
honor (though not surprising) that Kit was selected
to attend it.
Kit adds that Herbert “completed a three-year
middle school stint with perfect grades and a love
of anything having to do with a ball,” and that
“Ulrike kept both her students on track and sunny.”
In London, Kit will be political counselor to the
ambassador at the American embassy. While in
Washington, he saw Sue and Dave Clapp ’77 and
reconnected with Doug Hollett and his wife, Pam
Melroy. Kit adds that he especially is looking
forward to meeting up with a Williams contact in
London: Susannah Bragg, the filmmaker daughter
of Sandy Bragg and Kristi Bragg.
As attractive as London may be, Doug Smith can
top it with his plans to move to Cairo, where he
will join his wife Alia Al-Dalli, whom he married
in April. “I am now suddenly the stepfather of
three lovely daughters and three grandchildren,
and there is lots of excitement as our families come
together,” Doug writes. He and Alia were friends
in high school in Morocco, and they reconnected
after Doug’s wife Francoise passed away. Doug will
be teaching broadcast journalism at the American
University of Cairo during the fall semester while
on leave from his job as producer for CBS Sunday
Morning. His two sons are doing well and live in
Manhattan. Julien, 27, works at UBS bank as an
energy analyst, and Adrien, 26, works as a union
organizer for health and hospital workers in New
Jersey. Adrien will be going to Cambridge England
to get a master’s in public policy this fall. Doug
hopes his sons will visit him in Cairo and adds,
“I would love to hear from any Williams visitors
coming to Cairo too. My personal email is doug.
smith@gmail.com.” Congratulations, Doug!
Jim Follett is off for a distant location, with
plans to join the Williams College alumni trip to
Tanzania, where he will climb Mount Kilimanjaro
and take a safari to the Serengeti Preserve. “I have
been training and preparing since late January
and am really psyched,” he writes. Steve Wilson
is one of nine others joining the trip, along with
Outing Club Director Scott Lewis. “This comes at
a good time for me, as the company I was running,
Authentic Response Inc. in NYC, was sold in
December,” Jim writes. “I helped the new owners
integrate the two companies and then left in late
March. I will sort out my next step after I return
in July.”
Tersh Palmer reports that he is an American
literature professor at Castleton State College in
Vermont, about 50 miles north of Williamstown,
and the proud grandparent of a 2-year-old girl,
Eris, with another grandchild on the way. In
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February he published Vampires in the New World
(ABC-Clio/Praeger), which he describes as “a
general audience historical survey of vampires in
the U.S., mostly in fiction and film, but with some
attention to folklore.” Tersh lives in Fort Ann, N.Y.,
with partner Phoebe Jackson, who also is a professor. “We have too many books and a loud, older
cat,” Tersh explains, adding that he is enjoying the
area’s summer opportunities for boating, hiking and
camping.
“I keep downsizing,” Heather Neal Thomson
writes. “I left big pharma for stealth pharma (under
the radar), and now I’m at a startup that’s still
operating off of venture capital. I’m having a great
time, but it’s in Type 2 diabetes, which I figured
will be a growth industry for a long time to come
with all us fat baby boomers. I must say that learning about the disease state has inspired me to start
losing weight.”
Bill Hudson writes that his oldest son John is living in San Antonio with wife Darinka and daughter Isabella, “who is cute as a button.” His younger
son Michael is with 160th Night Stalkers (Special
Operations), living in Georgia with wife Annie and
sons William and Charles. Daughter Vanessa is
studying for nursing certification in San Antonio,
and youngest son Timothy was to start sixth Grade
at Episcopal Day School in Brownsville in August.
“What a world!” Bill sighs.
Debbie McCarthy Nelson and Paul Nelson met up
with Trish and Steve Castraberti and Jack Costello
and Susan Costello in the North End of Boston to
celebrate St. Patrick’s Day and had dinner in June
with DY (aka Dan Yeadon) and his wife Susan,
whom they also saw, along with Tony Kroker ’75, at
a 60th birthday party for Mike Capone ’75. “I must
say we all look pretty darn good! This 60 stuff isn’t
so terrifying after all,” Debbie writes. I am glad you
feel that way. The Nelsons have been busy planning the wedding of their oldest son, Alex, which
will take place in Carmel, Calif., this fall. “Luckily
there is not a conflict with the annual ’76 Williams
tailgate, which will be held this year on Oct. 5,”
Debbie writes. “Williams will be hosting Bates, and
plans are to have a class tent right behind the near
goalposts as usual.”
Jim Ware has had a major transition in his family,
with his father-in-law moving into his home. “We
have adjusted to his arrival pretty well,” he writes.
“He brought his Boxer, Bud, with him, so now we
have four dogs in our house. I was a bachelor 15
years ago, and now I live with eight other creatures!
It’s quite an adjustment.” Jim’s note came right after
Fathers’ Day, and he was feeling grateful for his two
daughters Alex, 12, and Nikki, 10. “I feel particularly blessed because these girls were quite unexpected,” he wrote. “My wife Janey was told by the
medical experts that ‘no kids were possible’ in our
future. A year into our marriage, she became pregnant completely naturally and delivered Alex nine
months later. Dad, that would be me, was quite
terrified by the whole event, not knowing what to
expect and becoming a dad late in life at age 46.
But the whole thing turned out so well, we decided
to have another one, Nikki. They are as different as
night and day, but both delight my heart.” Jim also
is grateful that his investment-industry consulting
1976–77
firm is booming. “We get fun assignments in places
like Cape Town, London, Amsterdam, Dublin
and of course Boston and New York. Today I head
for Sedona for a six-day meditation retreat. I look
forward to it but already miss my family.”
DC Dugdale has lots of good things happening
in his life. “My son, who graduated from Eastman
in December, has landed a full-time job teaching
music for the coming fall at a local high school. It’s
been great to see him work on this and, hey, a job
with benefits is good any time. My daughter Kate,
who just finished her freshman year at Colgate, has
had some trouble finding a job for the summer but
this week landed an internship at the local history
museum and a paid night-shift job at a local fabric
store; time for some ‘character-building’ with
night-shift work. She is a history major and wants
to do museum work, so the internship is great.”
DC’s daughter Emily Dugdale ’14 was in Chile for
her second semester and was due home in August
before returning to the Purple Valley, which DC
reports now is called the “Purple Bubble.” Are you
serious?! She has been selected as class secretary
for the Class of 2014, so she obviously has a fine
character. DC is looking forward to returning to
the Purple Bubble for Emily’s graduation and has
entered a lottery to stay at the Williams Inn. (Are
you sure about that—have they changed the plaid
carpet since 1976?) He also plans to attend Parents
Weekend, having enjoyed his experience in 2010,
when he reconnected with fellow parents Matt
Rowe ’77, Steve Pagnotta ’77, Vivian Patterson ’77
and Brad Kendall ’77 and Barb Kendall ’77.
Jim Trapp has left Williams to accept a position
with the Nature Conservancy of Michigan, where
he will be a major gift officer for their upcoming global fundraising campaign. Jim came to
Williams in 2004 to head up the 25th reunion
program and went on to become director of the
Alumni Fund and eventually annual giving. It’s a
big loss for the college, but Jim is looking forward
to being closer to parents, siblings and children
and to living in the Ann Arbor area, ideally on
a lake in one of the state recreation areas. We’ll
miss seeing you in Williamstown, Jim, but we’re
glad you and Judy will still be coming to OUR
reunions!
On a final note, it is hard to believe, but classmate Paula Moore Tabor has retired from Williams
after 21 years in the Alumni Relations Office! The
emails that came from the college were glowing,
recounting Paula’s many accomplishments with
respect to the Parent’s Fund, 25th Reunion, the
Williams Alumni of Color Networks, including
creation of WLAN and WAAAN, the Latino/
Latina and Asian American networks that
ultimately joined WBAN. The college tribute
opined, “Her entrepreneurial spirit coupled with
a magnetic personality will serve her well in her
new ventures as they have in her roles for alumni
relations.” I wholeheartedly second that and wish
Paula the very best in the next chapter of her life!
1977
Deborah DePorter Hoover, 7480 Herrick Park Drive,
Hudson, OH 44236; Sandra Lorimer Lambert, 149
College Road, Concord, MA 01742; 1977secretary@
williams.edu
We begin with the lyrics of a new song “When
Will It End?” written by Dave Bass concerning
racial profiling and gun violence, inspired by recent
events. Dave is a gospel vocalist and songwriter in
the tradition of Sam Cooke. He has partnered with
Dr. E. Faye Williams and the National Congress
of Black Women, The Spiritual Volunteers of
Washington, D.C. (a gospel quartet he used to sing
with), the Greater Washington Urban League, and
Pastor Alfred L. Dearing and C.A.Y.A. (Come
As You Are) Community Ministries to record and
release the song as a free public awareness CD
in June. We’ve reprinted the lyrics here; for more
information contact dnb.music@verizon.net.
“When Will It End?”
Guilty by sight/a deadly trend
Black is the crime/when will it end?
We need the truth/and justice too
To live in peace/as others do
Another young man/there on the ground
Looking for answers/but none are found
Only seventeen/went for a snack
A brief encounter/never came back
A mother crying/a father too
People are asking/ “What will they do?”
“Our hands are tied up!”/the “Po Po” say
A vigilante/just walks away
You can stand your ground/claiming a threat
Nobody’s watching/and no regrets
Oh but not this time/the world can see
It cries for justice/and honesty
BRIDGE
The world today/has so much hate
The way you look/can change your fate
Without the look/you can not blend
And so I ask:/when will it end?
As we write our class notes it is June and the season of graduations, and we heard from many proud
’77 parents about their graduates. Dennis O’Shea
alerted us that nine of our classmates had children
graduate in the Williams Class of 2013, including Tim Belk, George Christman, Alan Eusden and
Lynn Eusden, Pat Landers, Karen Leaf, Dave Marrs,
Tim Quinn and Dan Rashin. Congratulations to
all of you. Dennis shared that the ceremony was
capped by the “totally unexpected sight of commencement speaker Billie Jean King whacking 100
autographed tennis balls into the crowd at the end
of her speech.” And to think, we only had Robert
Redford...
On their way to graduation, Tim Quinn and his
wife Margaret Stuhr ’75 commented that “as we
drove down into Williamstown from the west
on Route 2 we were reminded of the incredible
impression Williams made on us lo’ these many
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years ago when we first saw the college. The place
still maintains its remarkable appeal.” We guess so,
as Tim and Margaret’s son Andy Quinn ’13 joins
fellow Williams graduates Katie Quinn Eckelmann
’04 and her husband Bryan Eckelmann ’05, now
living in San Antonio.
Also returning for graduation from Taipei,
Taiwan, were Lynn Smyers Eusden and Alan
Eusden, for their youngest son Greg Eusden ’13,
and to close out “nine years of tuition payments to
our favorite college. No, they weren’t all for Greg,
thank goodness,” according to Lynn. Greg joins
their eldest son Will Eusden ’08 and daughter
Caitlin Eusden ’10.
As most know, Alan’s father, the Rev. John
Eusden, passed away in April. Lynn confided that
they “received loads of very touching messages from
classmates about their interactions with John and
the way he impacted their lives.” Reed Zars was
one of the speakers at the memorial service. Alan’s
mother Josie remains in their retirement community in Brunswick, Maine.
Lynn also contributed that she and Alan were
moving back from Taipei to the U.S. over the summer, after six years of Alan serving as president and
chairman of Corning Display Technologies. They
are looking forward to returning to the Corning,
N.Y., area and being closer to kids and other family
members. Alan will be semi-retired but still doing
some consulting for Corning that will bring them
back to Taipei a few times over the next year.
Chris Lovell and Julie Scott Lovell ’78 had the
pleasure of running into Bob Fox and his wife
Andrea “in the bar, at the field house and places in
between” at Bucknell University on the occasion of
their daughters’ graduations. Chris and Julie also
celebrated their oldest son’s wedding in Denver,
Colorado ( John, Colorado College ’07). Classmates
in attendance included Jerry Tone, Scott Conant
and Michael Eisenson and Barbara Eisenson, as
well as Jonathan Lovell ’67, Steve and Lisa Jenks
’81, Katie Scott ’82, Amelia Bishop ’07, Sarah Jenks
’07, Pearson Jenks ’09 and Jonathan Breitbord ’06.
Chris added that he met Scott Conant at Lime
Rock Park in Connecticut for “a day of spirited
driving of fast cars around that classic old race
track. We are both refusing to accept being old.”
He added that one of the other drivers recalled
“knowing Tony Quay from his early MD days
in New Mexico/Arizona working with Native
Americans. I keep hearing about Tony, yet there has
not been a sighting in years.” Chris couldn’t resist
that old Pratt House joke. Chris added that his son
John is a postdoctorate plant geneticist, working
on international projects; daughter Samantha is
a second-grade teacher at the Pierce School in
Brookline, Mass.; and daughter Amanda is working
for Medix recruiting staff for life sciences companies in the Boston area. Chris continues to support
several large pharmaceutical firms with clinical trial
software and services, while Julie works in private
school admission and substitute teaches on the side.
Our predecessor as class secretary, Daiva
Gasperetti, attended her son Joe’s graduation from
Stanford University and reported that he will be
working for Facebook starting in October. Her
daughter Margot has completed her sophomore
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year at Penn and was to be home for the summer,
working at an internship at Oxford University
Press.
Scott Davis’ highpoint of the year was watching as daughter Charlotte graduated from Trinity
College in the spring, majoring in neuroscience,
which Scott added “is an area of focus for my
second career—medical social work and case
management.” Scott has been traveling since last
year’s reunion, spending weeks in Jackson Hole,
Wyo., and Park City, Utah (for the Sundance Film
Festival). He is looking forward to his 40th high
school reunion in Pasadena, Calif., in July before
going on safari to Kenya. For the moment, he
is rebuilding his place in Fire Island Pines after
Hurricane Sandy.
Also celebrating in May were Bruce Orkin and his
wife Ethel, whose youngest son David graduated
from Vassar College with honors. Bruce relocated
to Chicago earlier this year, after 24 years on the
East Coast, to become vice chair for academic
affairs at Rush University Medical Center (as
reported in our last issue).
Charlie Haines wrote that he couldn’t remember
when he last relayed news and contributed this
comprehensive update: “I was married three years
ago, and my wife and I have a total of three living
parents, eight children, five children-in-law, and
four grandchildren with one on the way. Of these
20 family members, we are fortunate to have 15
living in Alabama. In addition, our house has been
open to as many as four people transitioning from
a Christian shelter as they get back on their feet.
Needless to say, there is always something going
on at our house, and we have had some parking
issues in the neighborhood on some weekends…”
He reported that one of their children, Davis, was
nearly killed in a bicycling accident in Chicago in
July 2011, when a Mack truck ran over him and
crushed his pelvis and “there were three miracles
around his survival.” Davis and his identical twin
brother have a rock band, whysowhite, which was
recently voted Chicago’s #2 rock band. Charlie and
his wife Nancy are planning to go on a medical
mission to North Africa in October. He adds,
“She’s a nurse, and I am the strapping male carrying her bags.” Charlie is president of Kinsight
LLC and advises affluent families on “their journey
toward fulfillment by merging psychology and
money. In many ways, Williams prepared me for all
that is happening right now, and I will be forever
grateful.”
We so enjoyed hearing this from Ken
Leinbach: “By reading the class notes, one would
think that 58-year-olds lead pretty interesting
and stimulating lives. But not always.” Ken noted
that his oldest daughter graduated from Hamilton
College this year, and his younger daughter is
Williams-bound this fall, where she will be playing
for the women’s basketball team. As for Ken, “My
idea of excitement is trying for one more injury
comeback with aspirations of becoming a recreational jogger … and [listening] to an excessive
amount of sports talk radio as an antidote to NPR.”
Ken works in the ER and confesses to some jealousy over friends and peers retiring, “as that hand
wasn’t dealt” to him, although his work schedule
is tapering down. He hopes to spend his extra free
1977–78
time watching his daughter play for Williams at
various NESCAC campuses but expressed concern
that her boyfriend is Class of 2014.
Also with a Williams athlete in the family is
Michael Beschloss, who shared that his son Alex
Beschloss ’16 was a pitcher in the spring on the
Williams varsity baseball team. We wonder what
his major will be…
Tad Cavuoti took us down memory lane, recalling the production of Cole Porter’s Anything Goes
freshman year by Cap & Bells. He recently had
the joy of music directing the production at the
Landon School in Bethesda, Md., with Lowell
Davis ’68 in the audience. Tad commented that in
the Williams production, he “played the officious
Purser. (Type casting? Unquestionably not!)” He
remembers visiting Porter’s “composer’s cabin”
at nearby Williams and viewing some of his
manuscripts. Tad wonders whether any other ’77
classmates recall the production. I do—as a spectator! We’d love to hear from you…
Last year’s reunion bike ride inspired Jeff Knisely
to ride the Rocky Mountains! Last August he was
part of the “19th” team that rode in advance of the
U.S. Pro Cycling Challenge in Colorado. He covered the same route as the pro riders, approximately
600 miles in a week, over three 12,000-foot peaks!
He planned to top that effort with a five-day ride
over the summer, covering 400 miles and ascending
Pikes Peak and Mount Evans, which have the two
highest paved roads in the U.S. He is still teaching
history to eighth graders, encouraging his students
to apply to Williams (one success is Todd Brenner
’15), and “loving life!”
Fred Simmons is not to be outdone either—after
reaching the summit of Mount Everest last May,
he was planning to climb Carstensz Pyramid on
the island of Papua New Guinea. Joining him on
this adventure are Bill Simon ’73 and two of Fred’s
college-aged children.
Continuing on the adventure theme, Deborah
DePorter Hoover’s son Jack Hoover ’15 was off to
Kuwait as a summer intern and then to Jordan
for his semester abroad studying Arabic. Deb and
John Hoover ’76 plan a late fall trip to visit. In the
meantime, Deb is keeping busy with her day job
as president of The Burton D. Morgan Foundation
and as newly appointed chair of the Fund for Our
Economic Future, a philanthropic collaborative
with 50-plus members in Northeast Ohio pooling
resources to reinvent the regional economy.
Marty Marchese sent in a postcard (we love mail!)
of Mount Rushmore. Marty was on a Williams
National Parks Safari with Prof. Bud Wobus over
the summer along with several other alumns,
including Kevin Cramer and his wife Janet. Marty
is enjoying seeing “some of our beautiful and very
large country” after a travel respite.
Reporting from Paris, Jeb Seder contributed
that the “biggest Williams news for us is gratitude
for Dennis O’Shea, who is lodging our daughter
Julia, a rising senior at Goucher” over the summer
while she worked for a Baltimore-based children’s
services organization called TEAM. In addition to
Dennis being a great host, Jeb exposed that Dennis
is “a huge Dr. Who fan.” While celebrating the new
dean’s arrival at the American Cathedral of Paris,
Jeb and his wife Francie had a “Class of ’77 almost
connection.” The new dean invited some old friends
from Louisville, Ky., to attend, including Tay
Wilkens, sister of Neal Wilkens. Although Jeb had
“a fine catch up on Wilkens women up and around
the East Coast,” he didn’t share their secrets. At an
American University of Paris event, Jeb was invited
to fill a table by Joey Horn ’87 and Ragnar Horn ’85
and visited with Ray Henze ’74, Vicky Rummler
’87 and more. He mentioned that fellow Parisian
Tim Jones could not participate but was heard
from while illicitly emailing from various airborne
conveyances. He also reminisced with several
roommates and old friends (not friends who are
old) about Rev. Eusden, including Alan Eusden and
Lynn Smyers Eusden, Peter Sheil, David Rogers,
Holly Boyer Scott and Tony Quay (who he defended
as “NOT always missing”). He also mentioned
hearing from Amy Sterling Bratt, who is living in
Boston with her family.
Byrne Kelly contributed that he has “ironically”
been commissioned to design a retirement community next to National Harbor near Washington,
D.C., overlooking the Woodrow Wilson Bridge
and Alexandria, Va. Byrne lives in Takoma Park,
Md., and is a landscape architect and environmental planner and is “in transition toward a formal
marriage to Karin Elizabeth Theophile” that will
be completed when their children complete their
college studies. Stay tuned for more.
Joining the retirement ranks is Carlton H. Tucker,
after 34 years in high schools and the last 20 as
principal, most recently head of upper school at
Princeton Day School. Tuck commented that he
“thoroughly enjoyed last year’s reunion (my first
and only one I ever attended).” He was quick to
add that his school’s graduation always fell on that
weekend, and he is looking forward to our next
reunion.
Sandy Lorimer Lambert enviously watched her
daughter Sally Lambert ’08 and Owen Westbrook
’06 drive down Route 2 to her fifth Williams
reunion in June. Sally connected with several
friends and classmates under the tent in the
Greylock Quad, including Will Schmidt’s children
Peter Schmidt ’08 and Ellie (Eleanor) Schmidt ’06.
They shared that Will and Katherine’s house in the
Purple Valley is now complete—we’re looking for
an update from Will and maybe a house tour four
years from now! Until then, keep sending us your
emails and snail mail—the best part of this gig is
hearing from all of you!
1978
Maggie O’ Malley Luck, 751 Cypress Drive, Boulder, CO
80303; 1978secretary@williams.edu
Submitted by outgoing secretary Jeff “J.” DeLisle: It
seems surreal to be reflecting on reunion weekend,
35 years­after that sunny day in June where, full
of energy and optimism, 450 of us ventured forth.
That 110 returned is testimony to the enthusiasm,
loyalty and camaraderie of our group.
My fiancée Julie and I arrived Friday morning, having missed the hospitality of the previous
evening’s pizza and wine gathering at the home
of Doug Ellis and Amy Palmer-Ellis on Oblong
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Road. True to predictions, it rained like hell. I didn’t
know whether to praise the foresight or lament the
pessimism of our indefatigable class officers Bill
Kister, Amy Sterling-Bratt and Sue Stred, but the
purple umbrellas handed out at registration were
put to immediate good use. Most of us resigned
ourselves to attending the excellent afternoon presentations at the ’62 Center for Theatre and Dance.
There was a super talk about impressionism by
Carol Ockman, and former Greek cabinet minister
Pavlos Yerouloanos ’88 gave an insider’s take on the
absurdity and pathos of the Greek economic debacle.
President Falk’s Q and A session featured some clips
of a 1964 black and white TV documentary on Jack
Sawyer ’39. Not only were the visuals stunning—
the snow-covered campus looks scarcely different
in 2013—but the words from President Sawyer’s
mouth about why the liberal arts approach to education were so essential to prepare for an unpredictably
changing world were nothing short of prescient.
That was President Falk’s point—the Williams mission is essentially the same today. An earlier panel
discussion on the value of a liberal arts education was
interesting enough, but to me it was a head scratcher
that Mark Roche (“Why Choose Liberal Arts?”)
wasn’t included.
Meanwhile, back at Garfield House, Amy SterlingBratt fretted as she looked at the position of the tent
on the low ground. Recognizing it would be soon be
a bog, she contrived to drive to Home Depot to buy
mats to serve as a sidewalk. This proved a pretty good
albeit temporary solution, and the cocktail party and
BBQ took place on schedule. Music was provided
courtesy of Frank Carr, who schlepped his arenaworthy assemblage of speakers and audio equipment
from home to provide dance music. (That in walking
around making all those electrical hookups in the
wet grass Frank did not suffer an electrocution we
were all grateful, as Frank’s know-how would prove
critical Saturday night as well. But I digress.) With
the Temptations and other Motown and classic
rock tunes blaring, the dance floor was quickly filled
up, mostly by 50-something Bacchae who were
compelling if frightening to watch. I was impressed
if not amazed to watch Kathy Pierson in boots with
heels, managing to stay upright on the slippery
surface. (OK, she fell once, but she bounced up a lot
faster and stayed on her feet a lot longer than any
of the Pittsburgh Penguins, whose dismantling by
the Bruins was being watched inside by hard-core
hockey fans, or non-fans who needed to warm up.)
Of course, wine and beer were ample and supplied sufficient warmth for the rest of us. Yet when
compared with previous reunions, and certainly
by undergraduate standards, the attendees were an
abstemious group. People were early to bed, and tried
not to think about the driving rain, which brought
an additional 0.8 inches overnight.
Happily, the rain stopped before daybreak, leaving an evocative fog of a cool morning. Feeling
ambitious, I decided to observe a familiar undergraduate ritual of “running a Gale,” that is, run the
loop around Gale Road and then through campus.
Gassed by the time I reached the perimeter of Cole
field, I spied what at first appeared to be a statue
of an immense bird. As I approached I was able to
detect barely perceptible movement. As I passed by,
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I was astonished to discover the apparition was Tony
Lawrence, deep in concentration, executing precise
and graceful moves of what I later learned was Tai
Chi. Tony, a onetime avid practitioner of the art, was
making a comeback. When I caught up with him in
the tent that evening, Tony was more interested in
reminiscing about our premed travails than recounting his distinguished career as an ER physician and
urgent care in Washington, D.C. I had to pry that
out of him. His charming wife Jennifer is also a
physician, practicing Ob-Gyn.
Saturday’s breakfast was a pleasant affair, albeit
served in WWI trench conditions. Cordy Gould,
who has gone into business making, among other
products, artisanal granola, served some of her
soon-to-be famous fare. From there we made our
way to Chapin Hall for the alumni parade. I couldn’t
help noticing our class is getting disturbingly close
to the front of the line, where the Old Guard are
chauffeured in fancy antique cars. The parade was
over in a quick conversation or two, and we dutifully if reluctantly filed into the Lasell gym to the
alumni meeting. As boring as such things could be,
it gives one a certain pause to bear witness to the
same words and protocol uttered since the alumni
association was established well over a century ago.
And I will confess I felt a full-fledged chill when I
heard my name called as this year’s winner of the
class secretaries’ Thurston Cup, and more so, as I
returned from the podium with cup in hand, to hear
the cheers of encouragement of my all-of-a-sudden
rowdy classmates. At the conclusion of the meeting,
I had no idea what I was supposed to do with the
cup, and previous Thurston winner John Bessone
was nowhere to be seen. The consensus of the group
nearby was I could keep the cup for a year, just like
the Stanley Cup. Not for the first time regretting
that I heeded the advice of classmates, an hour later I
was a fugitive. Even if the security cop didn’t buy my
story, I was able to get the whole thing straightened
out. I will say the college security they have these
days have a better sense of humor than the muchdreaded Willard Busl, back in the day.
The big event of the afternoon was Herb
McCormick’s account of his sailing around the
Americas in a sailboat in 2010. The room was
packed, and Herb did not disappoint. He proved as
good a raconteur as scribe, captivating us with commentary on the slides which chronicled the journey.
That Herb told his amazing tale with modest
understatement made the icebergs of Baffin Island
and the rock islands of Cape Horn seem all the more
terrifying. Even accomplished sailor David Moir,
who peppered Herb with questions, had a hard time
believing it all, and he did not exactly jump at Herb’s
offer to make him a crew member next time around
Afterward we cruised Spring Street, where we ran
into an astonished Jim Cohen. Jim could scarcely
believe the transformation of the Purple Pub from
onetime dive to upscale establishment. We bought
espressos next door and relived Morgan West.
Limited by the cognitive limitations of middle age as
we may have been, we had no difficulty going room
by room recollecting its denizens of 1974-75.
Somewhere in the vicinity of King’s Liquors we
entered an interesting and unfamiliar boutique. I
was taken to be addressed by name by the proprietor,
1978–79
who turned out to be Wit McKay. After a career
in New York Wit and his wife Anne have moved
to Williamstown, and they had just opened their
store. I had no trouble picking out those core facial
features which make recognition 30 years later possible, yet something didn’t seem quite right… As far
as we could both recall, our Williams acquaintance
was based entirely on our first semester freshman
year, when we shared a trial by fire in R.G.L. Waite’s
section of History 101. Who thought taking a course
with the author of the Williams style manual, in
his specific area of expertise, was a good idea? Well,
I suppose this is the kind of thing that makes us
wiser as sophomores. Then it dawned on me—Wit’s
18-year-old voice, accented heavily by his North
Carolina roots, was gone! Funny though, how knowing each other only from sitting across a table from
one another discussing during a few hour sessions
when we were 18 years old such details stick with us
so clearly.
By dinnertime, the previous night’s runoff had
turned the turf under the Garfield tent to a quagmire. Even the upgraded plywood walkways were
of no use, and guys and girls alike wore their finery
with their boots. The enthusiasm was undiminished.
I had great conversations with the recently relocated
from Alabama to San Francisco: Maggie O’Brien, an
allergist for many years but seeking a position in an
administrative capacity in an international medicine
organization; Bill Huckle, who is tenured on the
biology faculty at Virginia Tech and is still rabid
about their football program; Mary O’Donohue, who
as promised brought her delightful daughter and
was wishing she was still singing with the Ephlats;
and Kevin O’Rourke, whose acting career caught fire
a few years ago (Mayor Edward Bader in HBO’s
Boardwalk Empire), but who takes even greater
satisfaction from running the summer mentor
program for undergraduates wishing to make their
living in acting. I also caught up with Morgan West
buddy John Simmons and his wife Karen Ham. I did
not get to say more than a brief hello to his Morgan
West roommate Bill Riegel but was fascinated to
hear much about him, including his passion for collecting history books from his wife Betsy Lyman. I
made acquaintance with Russ Hardy. I vaguely knew
of him at Williams, as we were pre-meds together,
but we never really connected till Saturday evening.
Russ worked as a bench research scientist and was
on the team which developed important monoclonal
antibodies as a treatment for lymphoma, at which
point his wife Joan’s pregnancy with twins necessitated his finding a better paying trade. The natural
move was to hematology/oncology. Russ has found
great satisfaction in the field and has an interesting
take on people’s wondering how he can handle so
many patients dying. “Compared with internists I
know, my patients are the best. Most people ignore
their doctor’s advice, smoke, overeat, let themselves
go, ignore what their doctors tell them because they
can’t be bothered. My patients will do anything so
they can live. The energy and love for life they show
is always inspiring.”
Somewhere during all of this conversing, we were
wondering why dinner was being served so late.
Turns out the caterer could not get the fire started
and had no backup plan. Fortunately for them, and
for all of us, Frank Carr stepped into the breach once
again. Whether through luck, divine intervention, or
actual know-how on his part, we managed to have
dinner without anyone getting blown up.
There were feel-good presentations and a moment
of prayer and silence for the list of departed classmates read by Sue Stred. Softspoken Mike Anton
turns out to have a showman’s streak, and his magic
act was no less impressive for the bad lighting and
mildly inebriated state of the crowd.
And then the music, sweet music, there was music
everywhere. Walter Ogier and The Six, the envy of
all other reunion classes, back by popular demand,
rocked and rolled Williamstown like it has not seen
since June 2008. These guys are just GOOD. Their
songs were of course right in our demographic’s
wheelhouse—The Band, Doobie Brothers, Van
Morrison, Rolling Stones—each song given a treatment that made it personal for each individual who
had the privilege of being in the tent. If you didn’t
get your mojo back listening to The Six, I am sorry
to say, Sir and Madam, it’s gone for good.
As energized as we got, the biological imperative
was calling, and some of us retired before the music
stopped. With the lights out, the Garfield window
open, I let the music soak me as I approached the
border of my dreams. I mused that in those mostly
happy, forward looking undergraduate years the
West College gate slogan “Climb High Climb Far”
was such a fitting slogan, but for this one night, we
dreamed of things as they once were.
I want to thank you, my class, for your unstinting
support and friendship through the past 10 years—
check that, for the past 39 years, since 1974. Without
denying our wonderful diverseness, we share an
identity and ethos. It has been a pleasure and great
privilege to be an imperfect mouthpiece for this. We
are fortunate to have Maggie O’Malley Luck taking
the pen from this point. Au revoir!
1979
REUNION JUNE 12-15
Barbara H. Sanders, 3 Stratford Road, White Plains, NY
10603; 1979secretary@williams.edu
There’s an old saying that 20 years go by in the
blink of an eye. So what does that mean about 38
years—are they gone in almost two blinks? It’s been
that long since we rolled onto campus in 1975,
coming in station wagons, taxis and buses. Perhaps
an upperclassperson picked you and your two
suitcases up at Albany Airport, with the remainder
of your belongings arriving in the Baxter Hall post
office. For whatever reason, your parents may have
been unable to accompany you through this rite of
passage, but in mind or spirit, they had faith and
trusted that you were mature enough to arrive in
Williamstown on your own—and you did! Your JAs
were happily waiting for you. Whether you were on
the first or the fourth floor of your entry, they and
others helped you lug your belongings to your room
on that beautiful day in early September. It felt like
early fall, but the calendar told us it was still late
summer. As families departed, to see them again in
a few months, you may have experienced an eyemoistening goodbye. But some time before the end
Class notes continued on page 76 >
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R
ainy weather failed to
dampen the spirits of 1,754
alumni and more than 1,300
family members and friends who
celebrated reunions June 6-9.
Highlights of the big event appear
on the following pages. For more
reunion coverage, including links
to videos and even more photos,
visit http://alumni.williams.edu/
reunionrecap.
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T
he Class of ’63 welcomed back
112 members (nearly half the
class) for four days of festivities. On
Thursday and Friday classmates led
and participated in seminars and panel
discussions about medical care of
the future, the Peace Corps and other
service opportunities, and the value of
a liberal arts education. On Saturday
classmates took part in an informal
conversation, “Our Lives Since 1963.”
The Hon. Paul Michel won the Kellogg
Award for lifetime career achievement
(see p. 70). The class raised more than
$13.5 million for its 50th reunion gift,
providing support for the Class of 1963
Center for Media Initiatives, the Class
of 1963 Scholarship Fund and the Class
of 1963 Sustainability Development
Fund. The class set a new Alumni Fund
record for dollars raised ($198,472) and
percent participation (69.16 percent).
class of
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he Class of ’88 smashed two 25th
reunion records, one for the
number of classmates in attendance
(250) and the other for percentage of
the class attending (49 percent).
Another 373 family members and friends
joined the Ephs for the festivities. With
a gift to the college of more than
$4 million, the class supported the
Alumni Fund and created the Class of
1988 Scholarship, which will provide
financial aid for Williams students who
are the first in their families to attend
and graduate from a four-year college.
1988 won two Alumni Fund trophies
for the largest gift and largest dollar
increase over the previous year’s gift.
Among other highlights was a talk
about the crisis in Greece by classmate
Pavlos Yeroulanos, the former Greek
minister of culture and tourism.
class of
’88
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AWARDS & HONORS
t this year’s Annual Meeting of
the Society of Alumni, Jen Bees
’08 (1) received both the Copeland
Award for admission volunteerism and,
on behalf of her class, the Reunion
Bowl for largest number of classmates
registered before the start of the
meeting (247). Jeff DeLisle ’78 (2) won
the Thurston Bowl for exceptional
service as class secretary. Lisa Tenerowicz
’88 (3) accepted the Reunion Trophy
for highest percentage of registered
classmates in attendance (47.69
percent). The Hon. Paul Michel ’63 (4),
a leader in law and public service, won
the Kellogg Award for lifetime career
achievement. Peter Sterling ’53 (5),
pictured here receiving one of two
Alumni Fund trophies on behalf of his
class, was awarded the Joseph’s Coat
in recognition of a highly esteemed
member of a post-50th reunion class.
2
And Katie Chatas ’88 (6) received the
Rogerson Cup, the college’s highest
award for alumni service.
3
1
5
4
6
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< Class notes continued from page 59
of the day, the fun would definitely begin! And of
course, academics would follow several days later.
Cathy Jackson Edington and family welcomed her
first grandchild, Jackson, into the world on June 20.
She is tickled pastel blue.
Jean Dexheimer Dudek and husband Paul enjoyed
a visit and dinner with Chris DiAngelo, his wife
Lindsay and son James. “Paul and Chris attended
high school together. The DiAngelos were in the
DC area to settle James in for his summer internship. From Washington, Paul and I went to Istanbul
for one week. Life is treating us just fine.”
After 32 years of service with the U.S. Geological
Survey and National Geodetic Survey (part of
NOAA), Marti Ikehara retired in March. “My
immediate goal is mundane—to organize, reorganize and de-clutter stuff in my house, now that
I have to see it all the time! My long-term goal is to
travel everywhere to expand my birding experience.
During Memorial Day weekend, I attended my
niece’s graduation from Middlebury, which is also
one of my sisters’ alma mater. The weather was horrible—cold, windy rain, and it even snowed in the
mountains! I stayed in North Conway, N.H., and
visited three colleagues in NH and Vermont. At my
request, my sister (who works at UMass Amherst)
gave me the ‘five college tour,’ so after all these
years, I got to see Amherst! I’m planning to come to
reunion, tying it in with another niece’s graduation
from Wesleyan.”
Gregg Hartman loves living in the Hanover, N.H.,
area, a college town much like Williamstown. “I
lived in NYC for 20 years before moving here in
1999. Traded my business suits for tractors and a
barn. My wife Jinny, son Ben, 17, and daughter
Matti, 14, are with me. Both children are avid ice
hockey players. I’ve pretty much traded soccer playing for hockey, and I coach and play in several men’s
leagues. Navigating the college selection scene this
year with Ben, and busy with Matti as she travels
while playing on numerous hockey teams and
camps has been an adventure. Both Jinny and I are
anesthesiologists at Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical
Center. I am a professor of anesthesiology at the
Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth and vice
chair of the department at the hospital. Tom Dodds
is department chair, so Williams is well represented!
I stay in touch with Michael Golden but exchange
lots of stories and current experiences with many
Williams classmates via Ken Hollingsworth’s birthday email chain and ‘blog’ of sorts.”
Linda Sheffer Larabee has jumped on the bandwagon of new correspondents and has happy news
at that. “My husband John Larabee ’78 and I were
in Williamstown over Memorial Day weekend to
joyously celebrate the wedding of our daughter Kate
Larabee ’07 to Sam Tuttle ’07. The Berkshires delivered some cold, windy rain that could not dampen
the exuberant Williams spirits. We are especially
grateful to Peter Tuttle ’78 and his wonderful wife
Cathy for raising such a great soulmate for Kate.
Sam and Kate will live in Boston while Sam completes his PhD in hydrology at Boston University
and Kate completes her pediatric residency at Mass
General Hospital.”
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Long Ellis writes to say, “I am working at a very
exciting mobile app media company called Flurry,
with NYC offices in the Flatiron District on
21st and Broadway. The company is based in San
Francisco, so I get out to see my mom (who is still
kicking at age 92) and one of my three sisters, who
lives in Menlo Park. I attended the Alta ski trip
this year and saw a number of classmates there,
including some of my Williams roommates—Tom
Albert, Jeff Jenks, Paul Detjen and Nick Noyes. Two
of our children have graduated from college and are
out in the working world. Our son is in the movie
business in LA, and our oldest daughter is in NYC
at a private bank. Our youngest daughter is a junior
at Dartmouth and playing on the lacrosse team.
Looking forward to year number two at the Alta ski
trip and our 35th reunion!”
After two years as assistant professor for clinical
family medicine in Greenville, S.C., Allan Macdonald
is returning to Florence. “I have accepted the position of associate director of the family medicine residency program, McLeod Regional Medical Center.
I will be directly involved in teaching full-spectrum
family medicine, including maternity care.”
Andrew Kane made it short and sweet—“I’ve been
married to Martha Buffkin Kane since 1986. We
have four children, including a daughter who is in
the Williams Class of ’10. I serve as a physician in
the emergency department of Lakes Region General
Hospital, Laconia, N.H.” We’ll press him for more
details at the reunion.
Lisa Russell O’Shea enjoys her work at the
Association of American Colleges & Universities in
DC. “In February, I spent a weekend in Philadelphia
with Kathy Burnside and Cyane Gresham, my freshman roommates from Morgan West. Kathy
continues to be one of the top distance runners in
her age group, and I had the pleasure of seeing her
cross the finish line of the Marine Corps Marathon
a few years back. I saw Joanna Monroe Polefrone,
also from the great Morgan West, when I was in
Pittsburgh. She’s doing well, and we shared stories
of our adult children. I had a fantastic surprise when
Rick Moog showed up at my office for a meeting. And I hope to see Tad Roach soon—he’s on one
of our advisory boards and is very respected in higher
education circles. It was great to lay eyes on Laurie
Jones Thomsen, Peter Thomsen, Tad Seder and Stan
Parese while I was in Williamstown for 24 hours in
May.”
Anyone can easily read Bill Webster’s effervescence
between the lines—“Diane Hughes (a.k.a. my wife),
Manette Jen McDermott and Pat Strong Owens
convened in Williamstown this spring for a girls’
getaway. Timing centered around the Williams/
Amherst baseball game (our son David Webster
’15 is on the Williams baseball team). Finding the
sport event (and Williamstown!) just too tempting,
my youngest son Will and I crashed the party—
some things never change! The ladies prepared
dinner for their Williams offspring (Abra Owens ’15,
Chi McDemott ’13 and David Webster ’15) as well as
their roommates and Riki McDermott ’09. The visit
to Billsville was great as always, with the exception
of the baseball team losing. Caught up with Clinton
Loftman by phone recently. He mentioned that the
weather had sufficiently thawed in Duluth for David
1979–80
Vipond to escape for a visit to San Francisco. David
continues to own and run a B&B in Duluth. So I
believe he enjoyed being on the guest side of things
for a few days. On my end, I am now spending
my work weeks in New Hampshire, working in
Dover and living in Portsmouth. On weekends I
head home to New Jersey. Enjoying Portsmouth
immensely and welcome any visitors!”
Stew Menking tells us, “The 1970s Ephlats once
again made our annual pilgrimage to Reunion
Weekend. So Gwen Nichols, Hal Sprague, Wayne
Wilkins and I celebrated our 34th reunion. Along
the way we were able to hang out with Chris Broda,
Connie Carpenter and even ran into Laurie Thomsen
on Spring Street. And speaking of the great ‘Main
Street, U.S.A.,’ we saw the outside of Barbara Ernst
Prey’s new art gallery. But the only time we had
to stop in was after midnight on Saturday, and
Barbara isn’t open 24 hours yet!”
Several days later, Barbara’s letter picked up where
Stew’s left off—“I’m really excited about the gallery.
It’s a wonderful place to exhibit my new paintings.
We also have a print room with a wide selection of
scenes of Williams and vicinity. I hope everyone will
stop in when you’re in town! It was great to have
Henry Lee and family at the opening. It was also
great to see Al Blakey, Long Ellis, Betsy Balderston
and other classmates who have stopped in. In other
locales, I ran into Kate Wheeler Rock on the plane
to Turks and Caicos, and our families had some fun
dinners together. I loved seeing Elisabeth Keller and
Mitchell Reiss recently in NYC, and Lauren Ingersoll
Murray ’80 (childhood friend) with husband Tam
Murray in DC when I am there for meetings. I follow Mark Tercek on Twitter, as the environment is so
important in my work as a landscape painter.”
Bill Couch is still working at IBM, traveling most
weekdays but back home on Thursday night. “Travel
is a challenge, but so is unemployment! The best
part is that I really enjoy my work as a consultant
to the insurance industry. My son Chandler joined
the U.S. Marine Corps and completed boot camp in
April. It was a really tough 13 weeks, but he actually
gained weight! He is now in advance training before
he deploys the ‘Fleet.’ My wife Helen and I plan to
attend our reunion in June.”
Betsy Harper started a new job in Massachusetts,
working in the field of energy efficiency and renewable energy and says, “So I’ve turned into a state
employee at age 55 (yikes!)—but for good reasons. I
will be directing projects to install approximately $7
million of energy efficient renovations and renewable technologies on Mass. state-owned housing
(primarily for the elderly). While new construction
LEED buildings get all the press, the real challenge
is to make our current housing stock more ‘energy
wise’—building by building. This is truly my secondcareer passion.”
Susan Eckman was looking forward to another
Williams graduation. “My daughter Susannah
Eckman ’11 came to the Purple Valley to watch
her BFF Ryan Loughran ’13 graduate. Ryan was a
four-year starter on the football team (offensive line)
and has certainly reinvigorated my interest in Little
Three football! And have to say, Stew Menking keeps
me feeling connected to Williams. Definitely worth
his weight in gold!”
This year, Hugh Calkins was elected president of
the Heart Rhythm Society, an international organization of more than 5,800 specialists in heart rhythm
disorders (also known as cardiac electrophysiologists) from 72 countries. Hugh was elected during
the organization’s 34th Annual Scientific Sessions
in Denver. He directs the clinical electrophysiology
laboratory, the arrhythmia service and the arrhythmogenic right ventricular dysplasia program at The
Johns Hopkins Hospital.
After sending out the request for class news, I
received what appeared to be a brief, innocuous
email from Steve Rogers. It included attachments,
which he asked me to share with my husband,
Charles Sanders ’78—some team football photos
from their separate freshman years at Williams.
Before I knew it, I found myself in the middle of a
high-spirited, “friendly crossfire” of emails (when the
dust began to settle, I scrolled down and found that
Ken Hollingsworth initiated the email chain—over
100 “footballers” in all! An impressive roster, as well
as priceless photographs of Williams scholar-athletes
from back in the day. From the pictures, you can tell
that they loved the game and the team). I gently
reminded Steve that the reason for my initial email
was to encourage him to send me news for the
column! “Well, everything on my end is going well.
I left Kellogg in October after teaching there for
17 years and returned to the good ole alma mater,
Harvard ‘B’ School. I teach entrepreneurial finance,
and I love being back. Herb Irvin, James Foy, Craig
White, Clint Loftman, Nate Paige ’81, Dan Perkins ’78
and Mike Reed ’75 are a few of the folks that I have
recently talked to or seen. It is always a pure joy to
interact with fellow alumni.”
Mark Lewy has a good reason to be thrilled—“My
daughter Jacqueline Lewy is a member of Williams
Class of 2017. She is not only a daughter of the
Class of ’79 but also a granddaughter of John Lewy
’54. We are all very proud of Jacqueline and very
excited for her as she begins the next phase of her
life.”
Just as a reminder—if you haven’t already done so,
start making your plans to return for our “once in a
lifetime” 35th reunion. June 12-15, 2014. There will
be plenty of space, because it’s in the Purple Valley.
Come enjoy the past, savor the present, and see the
vision for the future. See our reunion as a time of
renewal—to relax, hug old friends, make new friends,
strike up conversations and share stories—gain a
greater appreciation of what a great class we are and
what a special experience we had at Williams. 1980
Laura Pitts Smith, 1828 Old Yellowstone Trail S.,
Emigrant, MT 59027; 1980secretary@williams.edu
Years of parenting should have made this no
surprise to me: I did not harass or beleaguer any of
you for information (which has historically proven
necessary and productive), and lo and behold, I have
much less to report. Brace yourselves for October,
when I will resort to former tactics.
Graduation of the Class of 2013 brought some of
us together. Edward Bousa, Dan Chapman, Chip Foley
and Bart Mitchell watched their daughters cross
the stage. Dan reported the highlight being Billie
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Jean King hitting autographed tennis balls into the
audience. Edward has another daughter, Bridget,
matriculating this fall. She should keep an eye out
for Troy Sipprelle, son of Susan Leary and Dwight
Sipprelle, and Will Walker, son of Mike Walker.
Greg Avis was also in Williamstown for commencement and trustee meetings. He reports, “It
remains a privilege to serve the college on the board.
Financial aid has more than tripled to over $50
million annually over the last 10 years, the faculty
and students are better than ever, and Williams
weathered the financial crisis well despite some
tough choices. The fabulous Stetson-Sawyer Library
will be completed in a year, and work will begin on
Weston Field in the fall. We have talented leadership
on campus and a commitment to providing the best
liberal arts education and experience available.” Greg
then met Dave Young in Montana for a few days of
fishing.
Andy Clark’s daughter is going to Wesleyan
next year, despite his best efforts to convince her
otherwise. He reports, “During last year’s whirlwind
of college visits and related doings, I had occasion
to intersect with a number of classmates, including
many of the old crowd from Gladden House (aka
Hamlow’s Bar & Grill). A visit to Oberlin allowed
time for a quick dinner with Mike (Hamlow) Walker,
running his own management consulting business
from Cleveland and whose son Will is looking
forward to joining the Williams Class of ’17 in the
fall. In Boston, we caught up with Jay Skerry (still
practicing law in the area), Tim Langella (recently
departed from his law firm to join Martha Coakley
’75 in the State Attorney General’s Office) and his
wife Kolleen Rask ’82 and Steve Yavner (up from
the Connecticut/NYC area, where he is working
on a PhD at NYU and teaching communications
at Fairfield University). Back in DC, we enjoyed
a visit from Cincinnati surgeon and new grandpa
Dan Von Allmen (director of general and thoracic
surgery at Children’s Hospital) and have remained
in frequent contact with Dan Towle and David Srere,
among others. As for me, I continue to toil away on
behalf of American consumers at the Department
of Justice, where I am assistant director of the
consumer protection branch of the civil division.
With 35-year-old stepdaughter Emilie practicing
journalism on the West Coast and 18-year-old
Susannah soon to depart for Middletown, that
leaves just 15-year-old Maddy still at home, with
three more years of high school to go. Not too soon
to start selling her on the virtues of Ephdom, Class
of 2020. We could carpool to class reunions.” Andy
continues: “A couple years ago we rented a condo
in St. Thomas. Everything was arranged over the
Internet, and all I knew about our landlord was that
his name was Dave, and both he and his units were
reputed to be terrific. Only when we exchanged the
rental paperwork did I come to learn that ‘Dave’
was in fact David Paresky ’60. Yes that Paresky (as
in Paresky Center). And, yes, both he and the condo
were terrific. We struck up a friendly correspondence, and I look forward to meeting him in person
at our 35th (his 55th) reunion.”
Bill Clark reports, “After two years as a visiting
research professor at Loyola University Chicago, I
will be returning to full-time teaching at the College
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of the Holy Cross in Worcester, Mass., in the fall. In
Chicago I was engaged in a project involving leadership and mission in Catholic parishes; I had a very
enjoyable and productive stay and am disappointed
only that institutional priorities did not allow for the
continuation of the project. One of the pleasures of
my time in Chicago was the opportunity to reconnect … with fellow Sage-A-er Brian (Boaves) Avery
and his wife Janet, with whom I shared dinner on a
couple of occasions. … I also still reconnect periodically (mostly electronically) with Steve Pecorini,
Kathleen Kelliher and Nancy Bargessar Swyers
’79. I still do a fair bit of travel for conferences,
retreats and research (Omaha, Miami, London and
northwestern Germany this summer—a study in not
a few contrasts!). But all things considered I’m glad
to have home base back in New England, where I
can be closer to family. (An illness on my mother’s
part kept me going back and forth between Chicago
and Maine much more than I’d have liked this
past year; lots of miles racked up on American and
Southwest!)”
A nice contingent of classmates chimed in from
England. Ralph Schroeder says, “I normally don’t
have anything Williams-esque to report, but … I
had dinner with and gave a little talk to the current Williams students at the Williams-Exeter
Programme here in Oxford, which was fun. Since
the current director of the program, Katie Kent ’88,
is an English prof at Williams, we shared some
reminiscences of larger-than-life profs we had both
encountered at Williams, including the chainsmoking Laslo Versenyi. Apart from that, I saw
Jonathan Jacobson and family on a research trip to
DC last spring, and Mark Lanier came to visit me on
an England trip just before Christmas. Other than
that, there is not much news: my kids are both at
university, and I’m happily working as an academic
here (though I often wonder why they call what
I do ‘work’—it seems more like being a perpetual
student).”
Kathleen Kelliher reported on the annual Williams
in Europe weekend held last April: “My husband
Phil and I have always wanted to go and were
determined to do so this year. As it happens it was
in Cambridge, which while only an hour or so
from London, we really do not know at all. It was a
fabulous weekend, so well organized by the Williams
alums who are studying at Cambridge. Apparently
there are about 25 of them at any given time, the
only other American university with more representation was Harvard. When you compare class sizes,
Williams really does excel there.”
Pano Pliotis adds, “Things are fine here in
London, where I have lived with my wife and two
children (now teenagers) since the late 1990s. We
have been through what feels like the coldest winter
and spring in memory. I keep in touch with Steven
Hall, Joe Mellicker, Rich Robinowitz, Ann Eakland
and others from our class but, sadly, do not see them
as often as I would like; trips to the U.S. are taken
up by work or family visits and so the message to
all of you out there is visit London, and we will be
glad to show you around.” Pano moved to London
to work as a U.S. tax lawyer for Merrill Lynch and
now works in a similar role at GE Capital. His wife
is English, which made settling there easy.
1980
Marko Remec’s solo show Totally Totem, debuting
five of his newest works, opened at MASS MoCA
on June 15. Sloane Graff says he’s happily married
with three great kids, active in church and local
charitable activities. Carolyn Dye and Jon Broughman
are living in Princeton, N.J., where she enjoys the
flexibility of a part-time teaching position. Jon is the
headmaster at the Hun School of Princeton. Carolyn
adds, “Our older son, Sam, is a computer science
major at The College of New Jersey, which means he
will probably be employable when he graduates! Our
younger son, Ben, has just graduated from Hun and
will do a gap year in India and South Africa before
matriculating at Colby College in the fall of 2014.
He is thinking about becoming an archaeologist; not
sure what that means about his job prospects after
college! … I see quite a bit of my college roommate
Linda Hansell, who lives about an hour away in
Philadelphia.”
From the heat of Texas, Chip Oudin reports: “I’m
still traveling to London and Ghana for Anadarko,
working to develop several offshore oil fields in
West Africa. Julie and I had dinner with Calvin
Schnure ’81; he was in town performing with the
Lone Star Harmony Brigade’s quartet extravaganza,
with 80 men from all over the country singing
barbershop music all weekend. Absolutely fabulous!
Daughter Jessica and her husband just bought
their first house outside Atlanta; don’t you wish
we’d had three-point-something interest rates back
in the early ’80s when we were buying our first
homes?” And, when Chip wrote, daughter Jeanie
Oudin ’08 was back in Williamstown attending her
fifth reunion. Summer plans included a trip to the
Canadian Rockies.
The Head of the Charles always brings some
rowers together. Jeffrey Graham stayed with Bert
Snow and Leigh Snow ’81 at their bed and breakfast.
He also spent a night with Libby Holmann, who
gave him plenty of pointers from her experience the
previous year. He ran into Tom Rizzo ’81, George
Baumgarten ’81 and Tom Knowlton ’81, who rowed
together in the Williams alumni boat “Purple
Reign.” Jeff and his wife Janice still live just north
of Bangor, Maine. He hopes to get involved in the
scuba diving component of the Wounded Warriors
program and continues to do urology clinics in rural
Maine.
Ray Demeo sent an update on his family: “Our
son Ben Demeo ’15 finished his sophomore year
at Williams. He is spending the fall semester of
his junior year in a math program in Budapest.
He loves origami and its mathematical implications and so [was] happy to have secured a summer
internship at Brown, where his job [was] to analyze,
study and make origami models. … My oldest son,
Mike, is an American Sign Language interpreter in
Washington, D.C. Turns out there is a high demand
for interpreters, particularly male ones—ever notice
most interpreters are female? And DC is a great
place to work, because the government agencies
always need interpreters and, not incidentally,
it’s full of smart, talented young people. Jack, 18,
[graduated] from the Pioneer Valley Performing
Arts High School. He is an excellent guitarist who
fronts his own band, Goat Boy. They write smart
pop songs that their young fans like but which also
appeal to older (read: us) listeners.” At his graduation ceremony in the spring, Jack and his band covered the Talking Heads’ “This Must Be the Place.”
Ray continues, “Jack loves the Talking Heads, which
reminds me of when Steve Case wanted to bring
the band to Chapin for Spring weekend—I think
it was 1977. At that time I had never heard of the
Talking Heads, but Steve knew the next big thing
when he saw it. Turns out we got Cheap Trick
instead. And then there is 8-year-old daughter
Sophia, finishing second grade at Pioneer Valley
Chinese Immersion Charter School, where she is
learning—by immersion—Mandarin Chinese.”
Annie Ko and I share stories of chickens and
children. Hers are raised in the city, while mine
grow up in the country. Nevertheless, they lay eggs,
cause problems and bring joy. I believe the chickens
are safer in the city, but the children may be farther
from harm in the country. Annie’s youngest son
recently joined his dad on a mission project in Haiti.
Robert “Nob” Rauch has blended play and
work quite successfully. One of the founders of
the Williams Ultimate Frisbee Organization at
Williams in 1976-77, he is now the president of the
World Flying Disc Federation. By day, he’s a hedge
fund manager, specializing in emerging markets
distressed debt. Over the years, he won six U.S.
National Championships and five World Ultimate
Championships. Thanks to Nob’s growth and
development strategies with WFDF, a milestone
for Ultimate players was reached last spring, as
the sport received recognition by the International
Olympics Committee. Nob lives in Chappaqua,
N.Y., with his wife and three children.
I am closing with a reflection from Dave
Beardsley, who retired from the Navy on Jan. 1,
2013, with more than 32 years of service. Dave
recounts 17 to 19 physical career moves with his
family. He maintained his clinical skills with long
nights on call while he filled administrative roles
during the day. His wife was on active duty for 26
years, and their three sons are now grown and independent. They have friends scattered far and wide
and deeply appreciate the opportunity they had to
serve our country. He is now working as a medical
director of a large outpatient surgical center in
Fredericksburg, Va. Dave reports that the transition
to civilian practice has been easy: “My current group
is wonderful, and I believe we put out a service
that has value: two-thirds of the cost of a similar
hospital-based practice and a higher-quality product
(low nausea rates with amazing post-op pain control
and no infections) that is incredibly safe as well as
efficient. Many of our patients (I cover 50 to 70 a
day) are military retirees and even active duty, so I
feel at home. My peers are awesome surgeons, and
the nursing/support staff are committed. The community is also welcoming and wonderful as well as
interesting. As a Williams grad, and an American, I
feel blessed. Though we can always do better, this is
the greatest place in the world to live.”
I second that, Dave.
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1981
Alexis Yoshi Belash, 1466 Canton Ave., Milton, MA
02186; 1981secretary@williams.edu
I am sitting on a beach in the Perhentian Islands
off northeast peninsular Malaysia, waiting for a dive
boat and writing my notes. Thank you for all your
responses. Next stop: back to Boston for summer
vacation.
From our New England contingent:
Mary Kate Shea submits: “After many years working in the field of event logistics for various sports
entities, I’ve transitioned into higher education. I
worked in the conferences and special events office
at Dartmouth for three years before taking a position
as the director of conferences and events at Williams
in September 2009. This past October I became
the bursar at Williams. In that role I’ve had the
opportunity to reconnect with several classmates and
others from the years surrounding 1981 who have
children attending Williams. It’s great to be back in
the Purple Valley, and I encourage any classmates
who are in town to stop by the first floor of Hopkins
Hall!”
Karen Friedman reports that she has been “a total
slacker about writing in for class notes,” however,
things are good. “My husband Bill and I just
celebrated our fifth wedding anniversary, and it has
been a very happy five years for us. He’s a pastor at
a small but active UCC/Congregational Church in
Arlington, Mass., where I’m also a member and a
deacon. I’m practicing law at a commercial litigation
firm in downtown Boston and recently was named
partner. Our schedules are almost diametrically
opposed, but we manage to squeeze in some fun.”
Karen and Bill were looking forward to a summer
birding trip to Montana with Mass Audubon. Karen
continues, “We have two cats—Simon & Schuster—
and we do our best to keep them away from birds. I
haven’t seen too many Williams classmates lately—
Tad Read and Jamie MacDonald were the most recent
connections.”
In a reciprocal submission, old entrymate Tad
Read mentioned, “I had lunch with Karen Friedman
recently, who was looking well and enjoying her
new role as partner in her law firm. I have also been
hanging out with Nancy Shapiro and husband Bill
McIlroy, whom I regularly try to drag away from
their (currently) busy architectural practice to hit the
warm water beaches in Rhode Island. Frequent trips
to New Jersey to visit my ailing parents have the
benefit of getting me into Manhattan, where I get
to see Mike Koessel every few months. Mike lost his
mom earlier this year, and he visits Michigan often
to look in on his dad. I lost my dad in April, after a
major stroke had robbed him of his mind about a
year before. Father’s Day feels particularly poignant
this year.”
Athos Bousvaros writes, “I’ve spent the last 25
years of my career at Boston Children’s Hospital as a
pediatric gastroenterologist, focusing on the care of
children with Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis.
I recently became president of the North American
Society for Pediatric Gastroenterology and Nutrition
(www.naspghan.org). I’ve been happily married
for 26 years to my wife Meg, whom I met while in
medical school at Duke. Our son George is now a
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rising junior at Cambridge School of Weston and
loves biology, math and computer games. My love
of comic books has not diminished since college,
and one of my many side projects is developing
educational comics for children, including Amy Goes
Gluten Free, a book about Celiac disease. As for
Williams, I only occasionally talk with classmates
(most recently, I sent Greg Watchman a CD of
British ska music from the late ’70s). However, we’ve
established a great pipeline of Williams graduates
who work for our department before going on to
better things: this includes Sarah Weber, Helen
Hood, Kate Rooney, Jay Ingram and Ben Atkinson.”
In next-gen college news:
Lorraine Atwood has enjoyed visiting Williams
quite often this past year since “Caroline Atwood ’16
(one of my four children) just finished her freshman
year there. She was one of the crew team members
(alternate) at the NCAA. Caroline’s Newfoundland
was often found cheering the team on at meets
sporting a Williams banner (made by another team
member’s mother). … I just moved from the back
roads of Vermont to Norwich, Vt., and am enjoying
‘city’ life.” Caroline spent the summer at Williams,
participating in an American Foreign Policy
program.
Rich Besser: “It’s been a busy few months. I went
to Hong Kong to report on bird flu—tried to get to
Shanghai, but visas for journalists were not easy to
come by. I am now on the road promoting my first
book: Tell Me the Truth, Doctor. Highlight so far was
talking health with Stephen Colbert. I had dinner
… in Long Beach with Arun Swamy and his family.
Arun was in for a visit from Guam, where he is a
political science professor. I’m looking forward to
spending more time in Williamstown. Our older
son, Alex, will be a freshman this year.”
Lynda Miller is “recovering from my daughter’s college graduation from Lehigh and my son’s northern
California high school graduation in the 100-degree
heat. Facing an empty nest with husband Mark, but
still pretty busy with work at a broadcast equipment company, having gone through an acquisition
by Miranda Technologies in Montreal and later
an acquisition by Belden Cable based in Indiana.
Heading to Montreal soon for the third time this
year, although the first two were in January and
February, so I am actually looking forward to this
trip.”
Kyle Hodgkins: “Well, the Rolling Stones say
you can’t always get what you want, but we beg to
differ: We’re thrilled for our daughter Sara, who
will be heading off to Middlebury. She’s starting
as a February admit, which means she gets to do a
gap semester … so she’s piecing together a series of
adventures. I know Ann Maine and Rachel Aliber
Duffy (among others) have kids at Middlebury, so
she’ll be in good company. Rachel’s daughter Caitlin
was kind enough to meet with us when we went
back up for a re-visit; she’s a theater phenom and
was enormously helpful in giving us the Feb. scoop.
And I feel better that Dr. Mike Kiernan will be just
a stone’s throw away, as he’s entrenched in several
programs there. In May, we had a great time at the
wedding of Julia Fiske’s oldest son, Will Parker ’08
(also at Williams), and caught up with old roommates Jody Flood, in from London, and Jody Tabner
1981
Thayer. I also chatted with Robbie Kukulka, who
must have won the mileage award, as he made the
trek from the United Arab Emirates. As always, our
doors are wide open to any travelers passing through
Cincinnati.”
Mike Hulver raves: “Oh, the life of an expat abroad!
I guess I can start back a year or so ago, when I
took my second daughter, Ann Marie, to Australia
for her high school graduation present (two years
ago my wife took our first daughter, Sarah, to
Rajasthan, India, upon her graduation). We spent
two wonderful weeks there, with some time in
Sydney (walking the city and Harbour Bay Bridge),
diving on the Great Barrier Reef near Cairns (where
we swam extensively with sea turtles) and camping
in the Outback in the Alice Springs region (sunset
and sunrise around Uluru is stunning!). It was also
the first time that I spent time drinking with Ann
Marie, as she turned an alcohol-legal 18 on our first
day there! I spent the next several months continuing oil exploration here in Saudi Arabia, followed by
a short trip to Boston in late October that became
extended due to Hurricane Sandy! I was visiting
Ann Marie, where she had begun her freshman year
studying marine biology at Northeastern University.
Besides being stuck by Sandy, I spent a very pleasant lunch in Cambridge with Jamie MacDonald
at the Miracle of Science Bar & Grill, where we
‘grilled’ each other about our lives and interests.
After another six weeks in the Saudi sandbox, my
wife and I headed back across the Atlantic for our
four-week repatriation vacation. After a couple of
weeks with my family in West Virginia and our
house in Hebron, Ky., our entire family headed
down to Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, for some fun in the
sun! We enjoyed copious Mexican food and drink,
scuba diving, jungle zip-lining, whale watching
and pool encounters with sea lions and dolphins.
After returning from vacation, I completed my final
training for the Jan. 25 Dubai Marathon. I managed
to run 3:28:44, 11.5 minutes under my qualifying
time for Boston 2014! That was particularly sweet,
since in the spring of 2012 I had suffered from a
stress fracture that kept me from running till June
’12. Through this year I have continued working as
the regional geologist for the Rub’ al Khali desert
petroleum exploration team. I took a 10-day break
in May ’13 to travel to the States with my wife Amy
for a niece’s wedding in Minnesota, a visit to eldest
daughter Sarah at the Savannah College of Art and
Design (Savannah, Georgia) and a visit with youngest daughter Molly at Western Reserve Academy in
Ohio. My daughter Sarah just won a Student Gold
Award at the National Addy (advertising) awards for
a promotional video she created for a nonprofit organization. The One Bead Project sells recycled glass
beads made by Kenyan glass blowers to raise money
for Kenyan schools (www.onebead.org).”
Julia Heidmann relates that her empty nest was
“beginning early.” With both of her kids away for
the summer and her husband Tim in San Francisco
with the America’s Cup, she writes, “[It] should be
a lot of fun watching from the shore. The 45-foot
boats were very fast, and I haven’t seen the 72-foot
boats on the water yet. I will probably be doing a lot
of trips to the city in between ladies’ night in here
in Los Altos. … Still trying to figure out what that
next step is in my life. Meanwhile I’ve been spending
more time at the San Francisco Zoo and helping
with the education of current and new docents.
Springtime is great, as the animals are most active,
and there have been a lot of recent births there. My
nonexistent sewing talents have come into play, and
I have found myself making bug costumes as well as
banners for the cause. Who would have known? Saw
Dave Weyerhaeuser ’81 and Sarah Weyerhaeuser
’83 and Margaret Carr ’82 in Woods Hole. They are
doing well and have kids that went to or are still at
Williams. Ann Maine just graduated her last of four
sons from high school and had her last Eagle Scout
court of honor. Brendan is off to Middlebury next
year following two brothers and father Gordon. I
know Ginny Maynard is still playing hockey, as she
is playing with my sister-in-law in the Boston area.
Haven’t seen her or any games yet.”
Kim Kelling Engstrom: “I was recently attending
the PBS Annual Meeting in Miami. I am the director of community engagement at the PBS member
station WFSU in Tallahassee. The PBS Annual
Meeting is where all public media folks convene and
share what’s working and learn what is in the pipeline for the coming year. So it was quite a surprise
when Anne Avis walked up to me to say hello. Turns
out Anne is the chair of the Board of Directors for
KQED (that’s the San Francisco station). It was
great to catch up and share our passion for public
media and Williams.”
Sarah Foster says, “We have been enjoying our two
years as empty nesters and have turned into very lastminute planners, though we miss our girls at home.
We do not, however, miss worrying about them driving in the wee morning hours anymore. Last winter,
I enjoyed honing some old skills and learning new
ones through some very interesting career coaching, which was both worthwhile and has reaped
some rewards. It is not really helpful to learn in
your 50s that you are well suited to different careers
that require years of training and experience, such
as computer programming and criminal forensics!
On the other hand, at least my chosen profession
was also identified as a good choice (environmental
health science).”
Keith Berryhill and Diane Lidz report that Keith
“spent a great weekend with Marc Johnson while
I was in Indianapolis for the Masters National
Swimming Championships in May. Janis was away,
so Marc and I spent the evening cooking a great
‘guys’ meal, drinking beer and chatting about old
times and classmates. Marc came to the pool to
watch me swim and texted pictures of me to as many
classmates as he could think of.”
Sue Edelman is brief and to the point: “The kids
are suddenly 19 and 17, the humongous old Tudor
still has to be heated and you realize that it’s time to
downsize. Sold Tudor, offer accepted on ranch (about
one mile away), my body still hasn’t recovered from
packing contortions. Best feature of the ranch is two
full bathrooms! This is what excites me nowadays.”
Kevin Weist sounds like the Class of ’83 secretary:
“This past weekend, The Doctors (remember them?)
played our first gig in 33 years at the Class of ’83’s
30th reunion. It was epic! One-hundred-plus people
jammed into the Perry House living room and traveled back in time to 1980 with songs like ‘Surrender,’
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‘What I Like About You’ and ‘Whip It.’ Somebody
described it as being like that scene in Cocoon where
the old people jump in the pool and become young
again. Perry House was our pool—with lots of
sweating, pogo dancing and fists pumped in the
air. Playing in the band (with me) were original
members Paul Robinson ’80, Chris Tantillo ’83, Andy
Schlosser ’83, Bill Simpkins ’83 and new additions
Lyman Casey ’83 and Bruce Leddy ’83. And dancing their asses (off ) were … Dave Weyerhaeuser,
Sarah Mabie Weyerhaeuser ’83 and Nevill Smythe
and probably a lot more friends, but it was too dark
to see. For one brief magical moment, we were again
‘The Greatest Rock & Roll Band in the Room.’”
David Weyerhaeuser agrees: “Did up the ’83
reunion. The Doctors made their first house call in
over 30 years. They still got it. Dancing and general
merriment ensued.”
Phil Darrow writes: “I have taken a new job as
a regional counsel for KB Home in Las Vegas,
participating at last in the housing recovery after lo,
these many years of struggle (both for the town and
the industry, not to mention a bit of my own). We
are relocating from Chicago over a several-month
period, as our youngest, Mason, just finished high
school. Lots of family news, as our eldest, Adrienne
Darrow ’11, [got married] this summer before starting law school this fall, and our middle guy, Mack,
just became engaged and will be job-hunting in
Southern California. Robin put her seminary studies and eldercare chaplain duties on hold for a bit to
deal with all of this but plans to resume after we are
settled in. Although the state of Nevada does not,
ahem, have a seminary, she will be able to telecommute and sometimes commute to California.
Looking forward to a large Williams photo at
Adrienne’s wedding, where Ginny Earle Soybel ’79
will be one of the readers (Anna Soybel ’11 being
the maid of honor).”
Rick Boyce is still in the Cincinnati area: “I’m a
professor in the biological sciences department at
Northern Kentucky University. We have been there
for 11 years, which is the longest my wife Martha
Viehmann and I have lived in one area in our adult
lives! Our oldest boy has just finished his freshman
year in college, while the youngest has finished his
freshman year in high school. Both are now taller
than their parents. I’ve gotten into Irish music in a
big way (I play flute), while my wife is active in a
local group that promotes tolerance and diversity.”
Val Colville: “Read Bill Haylon’s novel I’m Will. It
traces a young man’s journey through high school—
but with the style, wit and sensitivity of our Bill.
And, as a mom with a now rising high school senior
… the story is particularly pertinent and poignant.
But even if you have older kids, littler kids or no
kids at all, read Bill’s book!
Val continues, “Andrew Starcher is alive and
well and living with his wife Suzanne in La Torre,
Valcolla, Ticino, Switzerland (look it up, it’s kind
of hard to find). He has simultaneously brought to
a successful end 20 years as a professor and senior
administrator at Franklin College Switzerland in
Lugano (easier to find—just ask Heather), and
a DBA in higher education management at the
University of Bath, UK (and everyone knows where
that is, right?). He is looking forward to his next
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professional challenge, though he currently has
no idea where or what that might be. Something
involving Switzerland, humanitarian work, higher
education, children, teacher education, Malta, Spiti
Valley (India), international education, teaching,
administration, Central Asia and/or the Persian
Gulf. Like we said, he doesn’t have a clue. His son
Alan has one more year of Liceo Classico in Italy
(they do 13 years of secondary school, of course) and
is likely to remain in Europe for his university studies. Or not. (He’s a little like his dad in that sense.)
Andrew is also a grandfather twice-over by way of
Suzanne’s daughter Leo and [was to] be happily
sitting on said granddaughters for two weeks in Pau,
France, this summer. Look him up, and tell him to
get up off those poor little girls.”
In the Belash household, twins Isabel and Ali
finished their ninth-grade year and were awarded
“IASAS Scholar Athletes.” Each played on the varsity football, touch rugby and track and field teams,
competing across Asia for their school. Wreck and
night scuba dives in the Perhentians prepared them
for wreck diving in Bali and for Isabel to spend a
week on a school trip rebuilding a coral reef back
in Bali, while Ali will be trekking in Nepal this
fall. My wife, Kate Sweetman, could be found all
over Asia and Australia, interviewing leaders for an
upcoming study as well as teaching leadership seminars as part of Bank Negara’s (Malaysia’s central
bank) consulting practice known as ICLIF, where
she is the director of research and curriculum. Yoshi
finished his year of coaching girls’ varsity football
and boys’ varsity rugby with a gold medal in the
final international schools rugby tournament. I also
coached middle school football and Frisbee as well
as served on various committees while mountain
biking in the jungle in my spare time.
1982
Will Layman, 8507 Garfield St., Bethesda, MD 20817;
1982secretary@williams.edu
In games of international intrigue only the
chumps and the dead guys tell their story, spill their
guts, reveal their thinking. I guess that makes me a
chump, since I’m still drawing breath. For now.
I was on assignment from “the Company”—my
goal simply to intercept the movements of an
international agent with a vague but possibly sinister
mission. He was known as “The Bonobo,” and I
was led to believe that he had something to sell,
something that the U.S. government wouldn’t want
falling into just anyone’s hands.
I had one lead. New Yorker Marlene Standish
Regalado had supposedly seen The Bonobo and
was willing to meet me on the Fourth of July in
Fort Lauderdale, out of the glare of The Big Apple.
I found her there with her husband Cesar on “a
four-day weekend where they do the fireworks over
the ocean. It was truly beautiful—sea breezes and
perfect weather.” Sure it was. “But what was happening back in New York? I asked her. “We learned
that we escaped a heat wave,” she told me. “Florida
is cooler than NYC.” Which told me that Gotham
was where I needed to head next.
I took the auto-train north with every intention of
arriving in Manhattan the next day, but things rarely
1981–82
go according to plan in this business. An encoded
message from my Company contact suggested,
mysteriously, that I “make an appointment with Dr.
Miller in DC.” Talk about Company-speak. Next
thing I knew I was in a briefing with Mike Miller,
whose new job as “physician-in-residence at the
National Governors Association’s Center for Best
Practices” put him in constant motion “across the
country by working collaboratively with both the
NGA health team and governors’ health staffs.”
Fine, but what did that have to do with catching
The Bonobo? “While I’ll be working on a variety of
projects,” he told me, “one area I’ll be focusing on
will be improving care and lowering total costs for
‘super utilizers,’ people with complicated medical
conditions and/or lack of coordination across providers and care settings.”
Super Utilizers, eh? I thought to myself. That meant
I was going to need some additional equipment
to deal with this Bonobo fellow. “Got it, Doc,” I
told him, before he added that he’d be “working on
ways to integrate community health with traditional healthcare delivery, activities to improve birth
outcomes and the NGA’s Prescription Drug Abuse
Project.
“Interesting and hectic,” he said, “like drinking
from a fire hose while going over a waterfall.” I’d
been warned.
If I was going to need more tools, then I’d have
to stop for some “corporate yoga” in the City of
Brotherly Love. I was off to see Missi Pelham. She
had “started working as a yoga instructor for a
privately owned company that brings wellness and
fitness programs into office and corporate settings.
It’s great to see those stressed-out employees unwind
during an hour yoga break from their desks.” Some
brilliant cover for a busy trade in tiny transmitters
and gel pens that double as HD cameras. Missi was
“enjoying some local summer pleasures like trips
to the Jersey Shore and to the ballpark to catch a
Phillies game,” so she slipped me a small package
at Citizens Bank Park during the seventh inning
stretch, and I was on the road again.
I arrived in Manhattan with the temperatures
soaring. It was evening, and my contacts were to
be three of the most “dangerous” agents in the
Company: Shari Lusskin and Seton Melvin. I was
guided to the rendezvous point by Marlene Standish
Regalado—who explained that our cover story was
that they were all “celebrating turning 50 again on
a steamy July night in New York.” I appreciated the
humor, as not one of them looked a day over 39. The
town was dead, though, with no sign of a black market presence. Lusskin pulled me aside and whispered,
“We could use some Purple Valley time.” I got the
hint, pulled my Lamborghini Veneno around, and
the two of us headed up the Taconic Parkway.
It’s a little-known truth that North Adams, Mass.,
is a hotbed of international weaponry trading. That
MASS MoCA place? Little more than a warehouse
full of thinly disguised shoulder-mounted grenade
launchers. Shari and I arrived in time to pick up
traces of the presence of Evan Benjamin, whose cover
story was that he had “returned to Williamstown to
watch my son Ari Benjamin ’13 graduate. It was quite
a thrill to be there and watch the pomp.” Pomp? Is
that what the kids are calling the weapons trade
these days? Benjamin was no babe in the woods. We
heard that he said, “Williams celebrates tradition
well.” Shari learned that the word on the street was
that Evan had seen a few other ’82ers there, including other parents of ’13s: Amy Ferguson Daubert
and Dan Goldman. Merely a coincidence? We
thought not, particularly when we learned that he
had also gotten to “catch up with old friend and new
Williams Board of Trustees member Eric Cochran.”
Clearly something was going on in the Berkshires.
Was Evan Benjamin The Bonobo?
In the middle of lunch at Pappa Charlie’s (Charlie
himself having been part of the Company back in
the 1970s), Shari grabbed my shoulder and pointed
out the window. It was James Hoch. In no time we
pulled him into a hallway in Morgan and leaned
in close and curious. “I’m here to see some of the
Williamstown Theatre Festival productions,” he
declared. “Truly great shows. My daughter Julia Hoch
’15 is working at the festival this summer as the
social media intern, so everyone should follow her
on Twitter—@WTFest.” The story checked out all
right, and it struck us that the action in Billsville was
over. Our Bonobo had moved on. The trail, we felt,
was inexorably pointing north.
Eileen Schlee: “OK, Will, I respect your work (as
have been doing the beg-job re: Kent Place School
classmates as class secretary and have employed
every nearly tactic to extract stuff ) and belatedly
throw a bone: Clive and I find ourselves happily at
the end of the line viz packing kids off to university,
with a lucky youngest, Isabel Schlee, entering the
Williams Class of 2017 end of August. She had a
chance to meet the great Costleys on Spring Street
last summer and looks forward to new years of good
food and weather, good sport, leaving the UK behind
for a while. These days I’m working, just on my golf
game. My life goal now to shoot under 100 one day
on the Taconic.”
Shari decided we should make a stop in
Charlestown, N.H., to gather some intel from Jon
Scott, a retired agent. The trail of crumbs we had to
follow to track him down led us to an evening drum
circle. It was a Thursday, and Jon was “the lone electric guitarist playing with an interesting, eclectic and
variable group of between five and eight drummerpercussionists—circle format, of course—none of
whom went to Williams College and (unlike some
of our classmates) all of whom have a decent sense
of rhythm.” The Bonobo might have been traveling
on two wheels, he said. “The motorcycle collection in
my garage is down to only four bikes, at least for the
time being,” he said. Let’s go, Shari whispered to me.
And we were headed for the border.
You’d be hard-pressed to find a city more likely
to be crawling with international terrorists than
Quebec. Charming on the surface, but delinquent at
its heart. Shari and I arrived on the weekend of the
Summer Festival, and we kept our nose in the air for
trouble. All we found, however, were Marian Hewitt
and her husband Bill, listening to a free concert at
the festival and having “a great time.” It was too
calm to be real. Shari isn’t much on French food or
wine, so we retreated to an Irish bar to consider the
possibilities. “Frankly, Will, I think you’ve spooked
the Bonobo—no pun intended—and he’s either left
the U.S. or is hiding here, laying low. Whaddaya say
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I stay here and you take off beyond the U.S., give
us two chances to run into this scumbag?” So Shari
buried herself in a pint, and I was off for Dublin.
My contact in Ireland was Maria Pramaggiori,
the new chair of media studies at the National
University of Ireland-Maynooth, “a small university
town (not unlike Williamstown, actually) located
just outside Dublin.” She taught for a year in Cork
on a Fulbright, but this was still new: “After so
many years in North Carolina, I anticipate a lot of
exciting changes, months of spirit-crushing logistical problems to solve and complex transactions
undertaken in dimly understood currencies.” Her
partner Tom was there, too, along with their dogs.
“I had mixed feelings about leaving North Carolina
now that it has decided to return to its former status
as most embarrassing Southern state, a reputation
well-earned when Jessie Helms was alive. I have
been attending the ‘Moral Monday’ protests against
our Republican-dominated legislature. I hate to
leave the fight. To be honest, Ireland looks like a
hedonistic society compared to NC these days.”
Hedonism is Ireland? I thought that kind of thing
was in the past now that our old associate Mike
McGinn was stuck on the West Coast, being the
mayor of Seattle. “You think The Bonobo would
seek refuge on the West Coast, Maria?” She just
nodded and, against her better Irish judgment, lent
me her raincoat.
After I landed in the Seattle airport (where, as
usual, a small rain cloud had made its way inside
and was sprinkling mildly on my luggage carousel),
I reached Shari by cell phone to tell her where I was.
“I wandered south again,” she told me, the sound
of the Lamborghini growling in the background.
“Visited Sean Bayliss in upstate N.Y., where he
teaches high school art history and works on his
own paintings with imagery and text based on
conversations. He’s doing the ‘older dad’ thing,” she
said. “He just took Luke, who is almost 7, on a road
trip to see relatives in Michigan and for camping. ‘I
often wish I had the more resilient body of a 30 year
old,’ he told me.” Shari had just turned 39 again, so
I just found this confusing, but I couldn’t ponder it
as I suddenly saw Will Hodgeman in a yellow slicker
near the ticket counter.
“Hodgeman,” I said. “I thought you were wandering the Asia-Pacific rim for some high-tech
company.”
“Nope,” he said, wiping the rain from his brow.
“Now I am splitting time between Seattle as home
and San Francisco for work as CEO of a young
company, KISSmetrics, whose HQ is in downtown
SF.”
Hodgey still loved acronyms, I could see, and I
asked him about Mayor McGinn. “You support the
guy, or might he be questionable. Ever hear him call
himself ‘The Bonobo’?”
Hodgeman shook his head no. “Vote Mike!” he
said. Then he offered to show me his “SF Chinese
restaurant collection of Fortune Cookie fortunes.
I’m silently awaiting the magic numbers for the
next Powerball,” he winked. In the meantime, he
suggested I wander north a bit to a little island
community called “Anacortes” and “check out the
hyperbaric oxygen, man.” I’d heard of the stuff but
wasn’t sure why he was steering me there.
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Once I arrived on my rented Harley, I was greeted
by an old friend, Rick Versace. We’d trained together
years ago, knew the same guys. “I’ve just been
‘hanging out’ here running the new wound care and
hyperbaric medicine clinic at Island Hospital. Hope
all is well, Will.” Dr. Enrico looked grand, but his
face twisted into a pretzel when I mentioned The
Bonobo. He told me to immediately call Will Foster,
who was now teaching international cybersecurity
policy at Georgia Tech.
“How’s it going, Will?” He was really enjoying
the teaching, he said. And he had good news for
me. The Bonobo had been hiding in plain sight all
along—headquartered in DC right under my nose.
Hiding from us for 20 years.
It was Sally Coxe. An old friend. What? I phoned
Shari and had her meet me at Dulles. We would
be at Sally’s whereabouts within an hour, and that
evening we had her cornered in a Cleveland Park
bar. And she admitted, yeah, she was The Bonobo.
Sort of.
“I have been delinquent for far too long … hiding
in the shadows, relishing the things, vowing to send
some scintillating news, but…” She looked at us as
if to figure out if we could be trusted. “There’s no
time like the present to repent. What have I been
up to for the past 20 years? I’ll tell you.” And she
did.
What’s all this about The Bonobo, we asked her.
“If you don’t know what a bonobo is, you’re missing
out on one of this world’s most amazing beings. I
didn’t know until 1993 when I was working at
National Geographic on a book about the great
apes. Bonobos are more closely related to humans
than any creature on earth (along with chimpanzees), yet most people still do not even know they
exist! Bonobos are extremely rare, found only in the
war-torn Democratic Republic of Congo. Bonobos
are the ‘hippie chimps,’ distinguished by their ‘make
love, not war’ proclivities, their peaceful, matriarchal
society and their remarkable intelligence.
“So, what I’ve been doing for 20 years is:
I’ve been working to save the bonobo and the
Congolese rainforest.” She had founded the Bonobo
Conservation Initiative in DC. Wow, we thought.
Not plotting to take over the world, but just to
save a neat little slice of it. “It has been a privilege
to work with the Congolese people to protect the
bonobos and their habitat in the heart of the second
largest rainforest on earth. We have established two
official nature reserves—you can read all about it at
www.bonobo.org and in a new book to be published
this fall by D.Y. Béchard: Empty Hands, Open
Arms. Folks should drop me a line or sign up on our
website to come to book signings.”
We offered Sally a lift in the Lamborghini to her
next meeting. We laughed. I pretended, unsuccessfully, to be an intelligent primate. She regretted
being out of touch and said that she even planned
to meet us last summer in the Berkshires. “Not
only were my bags packed for the last reunion, but
they were even in my car when I got stopped in my
tracks by an untimely comeuppance. I was so there
in spirit.”
After that, Shari and I were on to our next
adventures, she in N.Y., me in DC. There were loose
nukes to be tracked down, most likely, or maybe
1982–83
some WikiLeaks refugees to annoy. Being an international man of intrigue could almost be as tough
as living in the Congolese rainforest, I thought, as I
motored home.
1983
Bea Fuller, 404 Old County Road, Severna Park, MD
21146; 1983secretary@williams.edu
On June 8 in Williamstown, in the wood-paneled
living room at Perry House, after a great dinner
under the tents next to Perry, about a fourth of
the class of 1983 time traveled. We really did. The
Doctors played some great time pieces like “Whip
It,” “I’m a Man,” “867-5309/Jenny” and “Suffragette
City.” We danced, and we shouted/sang with them,
and for about 90 minutes, we were 20 years old
again. Who knew that we still knew all the words
from those songs? I know I speak for everyone who
was there when I heartily thank Chris Tantillo, Andy
Scholosser, Bill Simpkins, Bruce Leddy, Lyman
Casey, Kevin Weist ’81 and Paul Robinson ’80 for
transporting us back to 1980 and a simpler time—a
time when we weren’t worried about mortgages,
teenagers, toddlers, driving, college admissions, the
economy, the environment, or anything else except
what time the pub closed. So of course a bunch of
us headed down to the fancy new Purple Pub and
had a great time hanging outside reluctantly trying
to get our feet back in 2013 but knowing that the
early ’80s were a great time to be in Williamstown.
Special thanks to Jill Diamond-Wruble and Dave
Shufelt, our class co-presidents, and to Marc Sopher,
Dave Durfee, Elizabeth Neilsen and Don Carlson, who
all helped organize a wonderful 30th reunion. Extra
special thanks to Marc Sopher for collecting and
sending out photos for the past six months to inspire
us to attend and for creating a slide show and sound
track for the event itself. Check out those photos
and some from reunion on Marc’s Facebook page for
anyone who wants to see what s/he missed or what
we did. Also thanks to Meredith McGill and her parents for hosting a gathering Friday and to Elizabeth
Neilsen for hosting a dinner Thursday.
I know I was psyched to get some real quality time
with Bernie Neuner, who is running long distances
too fast for me as he trains for a marathon, and Dave
Lott, who is as clever as ever and must be entertaining his students and colleagues at Montgomery
College, and Doug Staiger, who apparently is a rock
star professor at Dartmouth, according to one of my
students, and with Matt Lynch. Scott Garabedian and
Chris Tantillo were sharing stories of freshman year
in Lehman and noted that in 1979, if you came from
Kansas, you could keep just about anything in your
freshman room. We had a Lehman minireunion
with Kate Lytton, Laura Kunberger, Laura Kaiser,
Cary Gaunt, Denise Soucy and Sue Hanlon. I also
was grateful that I was able to share some meals
with Mike Weiner and Di Margolis, who made the
trek up to Williams despite Mike’s recent move to
a wheelchair. I also had a good mini-catch up with
Maryam Elahi, who continues to amaze me with her
dedication to helping women around the world who
are victims of abuse.
Special thanks to our JAs J.L. Neville Smythe
III ’81, Dean Ahlberg ’81 and Liz Colpoys Costley
’81 for checking up on their freshmen 30 years
later. Neville won the colorful, spirited shirt awards.
Here are a few reflections from other classmates:
Roger Platt commented, “Reunion for Liz and me
was an absolute blast. Catching up with our incredibly diverse and accomplished classmates throughout
the weekend and concluding with a Saturday night
blowout with The Doctors (and ending up at the
vastly improved Purple Pub) is tough to beat! As
busy as we all are with our own careers, families, personal challenges, etc., it was fun to decompress for a
couple of days and get reintroduced to what brought
us to Williamstown in 1979. Most important, it
was great to spend some quality time with close
friends who we don’t see nearly enough. Thanks to
everyone involved in planning what turned out to be
a spectacular weekend.” Dave Shufelt: “Speaking of
The Doctors turning back the clock, John Ormsbee,
as you may have seen, was ‘partying like it was 1999!’
He came off the dance floor at one point (sweating
like the temp in the room was 1999 degrees!) and
hollered, ‘I’m 22 again—I just fell through a Doctors
time warp!’”
Drew Helene “is grateful to Bruce Goff for lending
him a fan for the weekend!” Marc Sopher wonders:
“Does your face still hurt from so much smiling
and laughing? Does your voice still sound like a
‘weedwhacker’? No fat lady in sight, so the celebration carries on, online! Kudos to all, as every person
there had a hand in making it a joyous weekend,
exceeding all expectations, a 12 out of 10. Where
to start? How about with The Doctors! Believe it
or not, these humble guys were worried they would
disappoint us! It was sublime; the dance was like a
giant machine, operated by The Doctors, that had
the ability to transport a room full of people back in
time 30 years. It was like the scene in Cocoon where
the old people jump in the pool and become young
again. Perry House living room was our pool. If you
are hankering for more of their musical medicine,
go to the Williams ’83 or my Facebook pages, where
a handful of one-minute clips have been posted,
courtesy of Jeremy ‘Dane Gibbs’ Snow. Jeremy’s
musical roots stretch back to The Sex Pistols and
The Dead Kennedys, with which he performed.
Modest to a fault, Jeremy strives for anonymity, but
I feel compelled to reveal the man behind the mask
and bring his genius to light. If any of you took
video of reasonable quality, please send it my way
(via Dropbox or YouTube link) and I will share with
everyone. Andy ‘Guitar’ Schlosser’s wife also took
video, so stay tuned. Show these guys some love, and
let them know we want them to rock at our 35th!”
I know there are many class members who wished
they could have attended. So what did those of
you do in lieu of attending reunion? Sandi Clark
Watson was attending the Star Trek Convention in
Boston. Dave Park was on an outdoor adventure out
west. (The view was stunning!) Geoff Mamelt was
“welcoming my youngest daughter, Rebecca, into the
ranks of Jewish adults, meaning she is now able to
help lead our congregation through the Shabbat religious service. I was a ‘proud papa,’ as she did a great
job at her bat mitzvah. Sorry to miss out on seeing
friends at #30, but I expect to make it to #35!”
Gordon Celender missed the 30th reunion but was
planning to be at Williams from 26 to 28 of July for
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a special tennis reunion and was “looking forward
to seeing my family and old friends from the tennis
team.” He wrote, “I’ve been living in Dublin, Ireland,
for the past nine years and haven’t been in the States
since November of 2008, when my dear mother
Mildred died. … I hope you had a most blessed
weekend, reminiscing with all those who returned to
gather in idyllic Williamstown, perhaps one of the
most beautiful places to attend college in the whole
world. If you wish, I’m sure Marc Sopher will have
some photos of the event to provide for anyone who
might wish to see the faces of the tennis alumni.”
Barb Reifler was “in the Bahamas with my family.
Tommy, my 15-year-old son, is enamored with the
sea and fishing. He and my husband traversed the
Atlantic by boat while my younger son Parker and I
flew over, as we both hate losing sight of land. Great
fishing and snorkeling was had in Hope Town.
Hunter Pynchon told me I missed a great reunion. I
do miss the Berkshire Mountains and would have
liked to catch up with old friends and new. Thanks to
the organizers!”
Liz Streitz wrote, “I just wanted to let you know
how much my husband Tom Powel and I wanted
to be at this year’s reunion. I hope you all had a
grand time, and I look forward to hearing about it
from everyone. I hope there are lots of ‘war stories’
and much juvenile behavior to report. We would
have been there in Billsville with you all, but in late
February Tom was asked to shoot the American
artist Sarah Sze’s installation at the USA Pavilion
for the 55th Venice Biennial, so we had to move
to Italy for a month, as we also signed up six more
artists/countries for Tom to shoot. … Tom is the top
photographer of contemporary art in NY—he shoots
for all the major artists, galleries, museums, etc.”
Matt Ryan was sorry to miss, but he had to watch
his daughter Emily race in the All New Englands,
for which she qualified by running in the States. Kris
Strohbehn also had to cancel at the last minute to
watch his son’s Little Mermaid play. Claudia Berger’s
daughter had a dance performance, and Eric Smith
also had a dance performance because, as he wrote,
“You know me—I gotsta boogie!”
Of course this column represents a small portion
of the wonders of reunion. Stay tuned for the next
installment. Thanks again to all for letting me keep
writing the class notes—I really love the opportunity
to stay in touch with so many different classmates.
Happy summer and fall!
1984
REUNION JUNE 12-15
Sean M. Crotty, 31 Carriage House Lane, Saratoga
Springs, NY 12866; Carrie Bradley Neves, 1009 Route 3,
Halcott Center, NY 12430; 1984secretary@williams.edu
1985
Wendy Webster Coakley, 271 Pittsfield Road, Lenox, MA
01240; 1985secretary@williams.edu
We open this column on a congratulatory note,
starting with Eric Dahlberg, whose Napa-based
wine filtration company was recognized as a Veteran
Employer of the Year by the California Employer
Advisory Council. An Army veteran himself, Eric
has hired a number of service members over the
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years; many have moved on to jobs with local wineries or advanced to management positions within
his own organization. Outside of work, Eric is busy
ferrying kids to sports activities; his eldest daughter,
Frances, is on a travel water polo team, a year-round
sport in California. He stays in touch with Mat
Glauninger, Graham McDougal ’89, David Stevens
’83 and Susan Anderson Stevens ’83.
John Clayton, my senior-year breakfast buddy,
also deserves congrats for the publication of his first
book in five years, Stories from Montana’s Enduring
Frontier: Exploring an Untamed Legacy. The book
collects 27 of John’s essays on Montana history,
composed over a 20-year time span. “The very first
magazine article I wrote about Montana history
was for the Alumni Review, a portrait of rancher
Bill Mackay ’35,” Clates reminisced. “That was in
1991, shortly after I moved out here. I went on to
write a few more. An editor from The History Press
suggested I collect them in a book. I hadn’t thought
publishers were interested in essay collections, nor
did I think I had enough to collect. Happily, I was
wrong on both counts. Indeed, I had so much material that the original Mackay article ended up on the
cutting-room floor.”
Outdoorsman Toner Mitchell has been appointed
New Mexico public lands coordinator for Trout
Unlimited. Appropriately enough, his LinkedIn avatar is a rainbow trout that he caught in Alaska. “My
work in New Mexico with Trout Unlimited involves
everything from protecting our two endangered
trout species, outdoor education, a little lobbying on
public lands issues and writing about conservation
and fly fishing issues (a blog called Truchacabra),”
Toner wrote. “Also, borrowing water from cities and
farms to leave in the streams for fish, no small task in
these droughty times in the Southwest.”
Toner traveled to California to help Gordon
Becker celebrate his 50th birthday, along with Lou
Benevento.
Kudos to David Shipley, an editor at The New York
Times, for nurturing the next generation of journalists as a member of the college’s Jones Fellowship
Committee. Established in 2009 in memory of
Jeffrey Jones ’66, this graduate fellowship bestows a
$10,000 prize at commencement to a senior wishing
to pursue journalism in print, film or other media.
Gus Haracopos is also representing our class in service to the college as the newly elected Tyng Bequest
administrator. “I’m excited for the opportunity to
give back to Williams, especially because the Tyng
basically changed my life—not once but twice,” Gus
noted. “Of course it made Williams possible, with all
that entailed and with all the benefits that I still feel
from that amazing time, and it also allowed me to
pursue social work without worry that my earnings
would never catch up with student loans. It’s exciting
to think about helping young Ephs make those decisions for themselves and to watch them embark on
grad school and careers that really mean something
to them and to the world. Personally, I like the
timing because it’s a milestone year, with many of
us classmates rounding the 50th birthday bend this
year. It feels like the right time to take some responsibility for supporting those budding careers.”
Brooklyn-based Adam Pass took a slightly more
Bacchanalian approach for his 50th, escaping to
1983–85
the Napa Valley for some “vine tourism” with wife
Joanne and another couple (no doubt making Napa
wine guy Eric Dahlberg very happy; see above).
Adam also enjoyed a minireunion with Elaine
Rosenfeld Margulis while attending an ophthalmology conference in Chicago. “Had a lovely dinner
with her and her husband Art (Princeton ’85) and
their two great kids, Sarah and Aaron,” Adam
reported. “What’s amazing is that, in all these years,
neither Elaine nor I have aged a day. As an ophthalmologist, I know the value of not wearing the proper
corrective eyewear in situations like these—a little
blurriness around the edges is a beautiful thing!”
Adam’s son Scott decided that small town New
England college life was not for him and chose to
matriculate at the University of Wisconsin. “So
instead of yelling ‘Go Ephs’ at football games, we’ll
be shouting ‘Go Badgers,’ which should be an
interesting and different experience for all of us,”
Adam noted. He’s reassured that the proud borough
of Brooklyn is being represented in Williamstown by
Harold Theurer, the son of his Poly Prep classmate
and Morgan East entrymate Lynne Jaycobs Theurer.
Hamilton Humes and brother Hans Humes ’87
returned to Billsville as Kraftee Vets, the honored
title given to WUFO alumni. “We played the kids
on the WUFO ‘A’ team. On most points I was more
than twice as old as everybody else on the Kraftee
line-up, so my grey hair really stuck out,” he said. “I
also covered (not well, mind you) my nephew Willem
Humes ’16, who scored on me but was extremely
nice about it.” Yours truly managed to carve out a quick break
from a 24-hour business trip to Chicago to reconnect with my fellow Lake Forest High School alum
Bob Angevin. His downtown real estate development
firm, Starbuck Capital LLC, has been operating successfully for more than a decade. Bob looks great—
he’d just returned from a ski trip out West—and
stays in touch with fellow Chicagoans Adam Carroll
and Jeff Louis (currently living in London).
Cacky Caan Mayher wrote in as she and Rachel
Stauffer were making plans for their annual summer
trip to Northern Wisconsin, where they both went
to camp. “Rachel visited Suzy Schulze Taylor in May,
and I was supposed to join them until a broken arm
sidelined me,” Cacky lamented. “I was running and
tripped over uneven sidewalk and landed with my
right arm outstretched and snapped my humerus
just under my shoulder in three places. Ugh! And
rehab at my advanced age is long! My golf career is
suffering.”
“May was my month to meet progeny of our
class,” observed our man in LA, Dan Blatt. “I
hosted Katherine Boozer Cote’s son at an Ephs-inEntertainment dinner and also had lunch with Anne
Fetter and her kids up in Berkeley.” Rob Mancuso
and Phil Walsh were on hand to help Dan usher in
his 50th, along with Cesar Alvarez ’84, David Roland
’84, Andrea Smith ’86, Jacqui Davis ’87 and a casting
call of alums ranging from the early ’70s to the late
’90s. He also got together with Chris Varrone during
a trip to NYC.
“Even though Chris and I often lock horns on
Facebook on matters political, we kept our discussion to the experience of writing fiction, as I have
now finished the first part of the first book of a
fantasy epic that has been kicking around in my head
for about 10 years,” Dan added. Astute readers of
this column may recall that Chris published his first
novel, Shadows in Summer, two years ago.
Mike Coakley and I attended an on-campus lecture
on the legacy of Williams President Jack Sawyer,
where we caught up with Steve Nielsen. Steve is
based in Palm Beach but has a second home in
nearby Hancock, Mass. We stopped at Mezze to
fortify ourselves for the drive back to Lenox and
saw Tim Peterson ’86 and Sally Hart Peterson ’86
on the college tour with their son Jack, a nationally ranked junior tennis player. Young Jack and his
friends helped Sally with the social media aspects of
her successful run for City Council in Ann Arbor,
Mich. We also chatted with the Rev. John Denaro,
who was enjoying dinner with his partner Joel Van
Lieuw and the Rev. Peter Elvin from St. John’s in
Williamstown. After working for the Episcopal
Church at the national level for many years, John has
returned to parish ministry in Brooklyn.
For those classmates who are not on the class
email list server, it is my sad duty to report the passing of Will Gillespie—Justice Department economist, legendary trivia buff, husband to Catherine and
doting father to 8-year-old Anna—on April 29.
“Will was the first classmate with whom I communicated,” recalled Kelley Murphy. “In the summer
of 1981 he responded to an initial letter I sent to my
three future roommates. I can still recall Will’s pride
in his hometown of Erie, and his gentle correction of my diction. Will made the best of a rather
diverse freshman rooming quad (with Asa Bloomer
and Rich Dimperio). A typical scene in the suite was
Will at his desk, looking sideways with a wry smile,
taking in whatever drama might be occasioned in
our common room. He was consistently cheerful
and easygoing, remarkably providing neither a cross
word nor reprimand all year. I remember seeing
these characteristics seemingly unchanged in him at
a recent reunion.”
Brother-in-law Ted Benson was kind enough to
send me the eulogy he delivered at Will’s funeral at
Burke Presbyterian Church in Burke, Va. “I really
got to know Will sophomore year, when we started
living in the same dorm,” Ted remarked that day.
“The best rooms went to seniors and then juniors, so
sophomores got lousy rooms. But not Will. Because
of his heart condition, he couldn’t hike lots of stairs,
so he got a ground floor room. This was a prime
room—it was huge and a single—with a desk, walkin closet and sitting area with a big picture window
looking out at the Berkshire Quad. Even though we
all knew he had it because of his health, we were a
little jealous. And even though he knew he had it
because of his health, he was pretty psyched.
“His room was big enough that he could host
study sessions, Dungeons & Dragons games, even
parties,” Ted continued. “At one Halloween party,
there were expected costumes: witches, vampires and
stuff, and then Will, who was just nicely dressed, in
khaki pants, blue blazer, white shirt, red tie. He made
us guess what he was, and when none of us got it, he
smiled broadly and said, ‘I’m a prospective!’”
Will’s keen wit was also in evidence on our
graduation day, when he was called upon, as class
salutatorian, to step in when Valedictorian Aristotelis
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Papadopoulos elected not to speak. I encourage all
of you to pull out your 25th reunion book and read
Will’s remarks, if for no other reason than that they
represent the first time a Williams salutatorian had
addressed the class since 1898 (and probably the
only time since).
“I realized that I had now become the answer to
a trivia question,” was Will’s wry observation from
the podium. “My initial reaction, however, quickly
gave way to shock when I realized that I would have
to give a speech. I had carefully avoided nominating
myself for either of the other two speaking positions,
and since I knew I was not the valedictorian, I had
thought I was safe. One of my friends suggested
that I would rather be in Greece, and the idea was
certainly attractive.” No doubt Will’s fellow orators—Phi Beta Kappa Speaker Hank Uberoi and
Class Speaker Dave Wehner—appreciated his selfdeprecating humor from their chairs on stage.
“Will was very good natured about subbing and
seemed to think it was all rather funny,” recalled
Hamilton Humes. “And, of course, he gave a great
speech.” “By the way,” Hamilton added, not realizing that
his next comment was going to rock my secretarial
world, “Aris claimed he would be out of the country
at graduation, but he actually was there listening to
Will’s speech, which he thought was wonderful and
was the best reason for him to give his speaking slot
that he could think of. The leaving early was really
just a cover story.”
Goodness gracious, for the past 28 years I’d
thought Aris had hightailed it back to Greece when,
in fact, he’d pulled a Tom Sawyer and watched the
entire thing! Another ’85 myth debunked: Will’s sly
parting gift to us all.
1986
J.P. Conlan, Tulane D-2, San Juan, Puerto Rico 00927;
1986secretary@williams.edu
As more and more members of the Great Class
of ’86 turn 49 years old, some of the transitions that
mark this season are as varied and unanticipated as
they are interesting. Some transitions in employment, already consummated, inspire our admiration:
Mammen P. Mammen Jr. retired from the Army
after 21 years of service and took a VP position with
a San Diego biotech company. Now living in Del
Mar, Calif., Mammen has the same 301 area code
cell phone number. Chris Stearns, chairman of the Seattle Human
Rights Commission and of counsel with Hobbs,
Straus Dean & Walker LLP, was appointed by
Washington Gov. Jay Inslee to the State Gambling
Commission. A member of the Navajo nation, Chris
has worked for Energy Secretary Bill Richardson
and published and litigated on American Indian
affairs.
Other work transitions, still in the process of being
sorted out in this hoofed and bleating economy,
afford us the opportunity to match our classmates’
talents to the needs of our employers, partners and
ourselves:
Andy Mylott is an experienced hedge fund lawyer
between positions looking for the next opportunity.
“I haven’t worked in NYC since 1999. I worked in
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Norwalk, Conn., for 13 years. But I’m looking in
NYC now.” If any alumni know of a hedge fund
manager who is looking to hire general counsel, I’m
sure Andy would appreciate a note.
Steve Troyer writes that he “retired” (quotation
marks, his) from Juniper Networks in April. Steve
spent the next two months evaluating new employment options, visiting his older son at college and
touring New England and New York schools with
his daughter, acting as chauffeur for his 10-year-old
and literally putting food on the table, and attempting to summit Mount Shasta, the second highest
volcano in the Cascades: “I was with three other
guys and two guides. Only one guy made it to the
14,100-plus foot summit with one of the guides.
The other guide had to tend to the rest of us with
altitude sickness.” Steve was happy with the attempt:
“It was a great learning experience. 12,000 feet was
the highest I have done. One more day at altitude
and I may have made it.” Steve’s now working with
some folks on founding a startup. “We have a great
team and idea, and with any luck by next class notes
we will have raised a round, which enables us to start
building the business.” He invites anyone interested
in hearing more to give him a call.
The ever-ebullient Bruce Bullock writes, “I
launched the Digital Domain Institute last spring
with stand-alone classes in digital matte painting, rotoscoping, compositing and cinematography
and welcomed our first cohort of FSU Film/DDI
students into our BA degree program. Unfortunately,
Digital Domain went bankrupt in September, and
my school was closed.” In the spring Bruce taught
film appreciation at Palm Beach State part time
and started looking nationwide for a good project
appropriate to someone with what he describes as
“a meandering and exotic CV” that boasts among
its accomplishments “film production, digital post
production, civil litigation, criminal prosecution,
educational administration, teaching, banging hammers, giving Disney tours, delivering pizzas, training
Census takers, etc., etc.” Bruce planned to be in West
Palm until the end of August, but he was willing to
relocate anywhere, including Williamstown, for the
right opportunity.
Some developments in our employment situations
remind us of the challenges we faced at Williams:
Still at Staples (25 years this past April), Sara
Morgan shifted out of IT into an ecommerce business role (still in tight coordination with IT) about
six months ago. “It’s a very big change and somewhat
painful,” writes Sara, that reminds her of the freshman quad “when suitemates Peggy Dyer, Maureen
Murray and I would scream out our first-floor
windows ‘Pain is Growth!!!!’ to vent our stress. *sigh*
Not sure what my 10- and 11-year-olds would think
of that, never mind my husband!”
It would be curious to get Brian Carpenter’s
opinion on that question: “Back here in St. Louis,”
writes Professor Carpenter, “I’ve wrapped up another
semester living in a dorm with 150 freshmen and
am looking forward to one final year there. We’ve
done all sorts of great academic and social events
with the students, and it’s been eye opening to
see how 18-year-olds really live—a bit of amateur
anthropology and window into music, fashion, slang,
technology and perverse sleep and dietary habits
1985–86
I wouldn’t know the first thing about otherwise.”
In his academic work in the psychology department at Washington University, Saint Louis, Brian
reports that his research is going well despite the
scarcity of grant funding opportunities in recent
years. Undaunted by the prospect of teaching his
first online course in the fall, Brian responds, “Great
adventures!”
Great adventures await many in our class.
Professor of Art and Art History at University of
Texas at Arlington Mary Vaccarro took summer
break from studying Italian drawings in France and
hiked in Colorado and then on the Amalfi Coast.
(This looks like vacation, but it is not beyond the
pale that photographs taken on her visit to the
Amalfi Coast will make it into her next project.)
Having been admitted to the New York State
and U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit bars
this spring, your humble chronicler, J.P. Conlan, is
looking for part-time “of counsel” appointments,
document review and federal appellate cases as a
hedge against an at-risk university pension.
Laura Towne, still practicing dermatology in St.
Augustine, Fla., where she, thriving in the hot
Florida climate, has developed that “thin blood that
we, as hearty Williams college students, used to
make fun of,” works in an expanding multi-specialty
group with facial plastic surgeons and otolaryngologists. “We are so excited because we are finally
bringing on another dermatologist at the end of the
summer,” Laura reports: “It means a lot of work for
me right now but hopefully will translate into more
vacation (and maybe a trip up to Williams) in the
future.” Laura writes that Saint Augustine is a great
place to vacation: “If anyone is ever down this way,
please drop me a line!”
Some adventures occur at home on a day-to-day
basis:
Sara Morgan informs me that her daughter Elena
turned 10, was testing for a karate belt (green with
a black stripe, which comes before brown and
then black) and also playing town lacrosse; Sara’s
son Dylan, 18 months older, also plays both town
lacrosse and on two club teams. During the summer
they were at three lacrosse tournaments, and at one
of them Dylan was to play both club teams. Sara
says, “Christian is coaching two of the three teams,
so life is a tad busy!”
The grand adventure of their children matriculating in the Purple Valley weighs on some of our
classmates’ minds:
Laura Towne reports that her daughters are now
18 and 14—the elder, Ali, a rising sophomore at
Washington & Lee University, the younger, Sarah, a
rising freshman in high school. “I have four years to
work on [Sarah],” writes Laura, “in the hopes that
maybe we can have another Williams grad in the
family.” The means of persuasion is to develop in her
daughter an exquisite fashion sense: “Everything I
buy for her is either purple or gold,” writes Laura. “I
wonder if she has noticed?”
Class President Mark Broude writes that he and
his wife have been hitting the college trail with
their son, a rising senior in high school. “Of course
Williams is on the list,” writes Mark. Our son “has
been there a couple times already and is planning on
an overnight visit in the fall. I do my best to allow
him to make his own decision unfettered by my
prejudices,” confesses Mark, “but that is sometimes
easier said than done.” Of the means of persuading
college aspirants to seek out Williams as their first
choice, Mark thinks that, from his son’s experience,
Ephs are the best possible marketing tools that
Williams has: “My son was walking through Central
Park earlier this month with a Williams backpack
on and was approached by a recent graduate who
asked him if he went to Williams,” recounts Mark.
“Hearing that he was actually a high school student
looking to apply there, she spent 30 minutes talking
with him about her experience at Williams and
what she found so rewarding about the school.”
Mark’s conclusion? “That type of random encounter
does much more to sell the experience to him than
anything I could ever do.”
As it happens, though, not all of our classmates
have children at the college shopping stage quite yet:
“I attended my younger son’s kindergarten ‘graduation’ yesterday!” writes David Chua. “I know, I have a
long way to go.” Not discouraged from adventuring,
David and his family planned to vacation in Taiwan
over the summer. In preparation, David’s two boys
are enrolled in a Chinese-immersion school. David
and his wife Christina hope that their boys can hone
their Mandarin in local Taipei YMCA camps for
a few weeks. “I think everyone will be able to communicate with ease (and without eliciting questioning looks or even laughter) except for me,” David
confesses. “My saving grace is that I can at least read
Chinese.” Good luck, David!
David’s proud kindergarten graduate is hardly
the youngest scion of the Great Class of ’86. To my
knowledge, that honor belongs to Patrick Antonio
Thomas Vitale—“named after his two grandfathers
(and me),” writes Tom Vitale. Tom and his wife
Antoinette welcomed baby Patrick into the world
in April. Tom Vitale writes the six Vitales—little
Patrick, Tom, Antoinette and Patrick’s three older
sisters—Giovanna, 10, Ava, 8, and Cararose, almost
6, occupy a house in Pelham Manor in lower
Westchester County, N.Y., where Tom moved about
three years ago, after living in Manhattan apartments since graduation. “All is well and we are really
enjoying having a new baby in the house!” Tom
reports. “Some of the best moments for me and
my wife with baby Patrick are when we watch our
daughters interact with their new brother.” When his
girls were each born, Tom admits, they were so close
in age that they didn’t really appreciate each new
baby as something new and special. “But now that
they are older, they are really celebrating the experience too. Lots of fun!”
This comparative interaction is preserved for future
viewing in Tom and Antoinette remarkable “Picture
of the Day” project. “Every day of my children’s
lives,” Tom informs me, “we have taken at least
one photo of them (often many, many more). We
started with the birth of our first child, figuring that
we would only keep up with this project for a few
months, but then we got a bit obsessive and have
continued for the last 10 years! The photos are different every day—basically a visual diary of the activities, events and people in their lives and including
both quiet moments and busy times, solo shots and
pictures with others.” Tom and Antoinette currently
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have about 200,000 photos on their computers and
back-up drives, organized by month and events—a
truly formidable archive that, in this writer’s opinion,
not only promises to enrich their children’s understanding of themselves and their growth but also
promises to make the inevitable sitting down with
the parents to view baby pictures a sure-fire way to
discern the true intentions of his daughters’ future
suitors.
As children grow up and leave home, there has
been a tendency to take on new work: Brad Ball,
commuting from Chatham, N.J., to NYC to
work as an equity analyst at Evercore Partners,
writes, “[With] our eldest son Matt … a senior at
Middlebury … currently traveling in Brazil and will
be in NYC for an Off Broadway internship this
summer [and] our second son Nick … a sophomore
at Hamilton … in Utah for the summer, working for
Deer Valley Resort and volunteering at the oldest
dairy farm in the state, [and] our youngest Zac …
a high school sophomore … spending the summer
volunteering and training for swim team and keeping us from being ‘empty nesters’ thankfully (since
we are way too young to have adult kids).” His wife
Amy Ball has restarted her professional career in
real estate. Amy keeps in regular contact with Julie
Convisser and Amy Glick; Brad saw Jeff Weber and
Mark Broude recently, and Amy and Brad had dinner
with Tom Vitale and his wife just before their new
arrival.
Anne von Arentschildt Dawson announces that she
will be teaching children’s yoga in the fall “to deal
with partial empty nest.” Of her boys, she writes:
Husband “Michael Dawson ’88 and I took boys to
Michael’s 25th reunion, and boys ate Papa Charlie’s
subs all weekend, did college tour for rising 11th
grader Charles and visited Clark with rising ninth
grader Henry so he will have something to talk
about with Ben Williams ’85, the headmaster at
Cate, which Henry will be attending in California as
of this fall.” As part of their adventures, Michael and
Henry shall be biking Camino de Santiago in Spain
(300 km of it), and Charles is off to Taiwan.
Also visiting Williamstown this spring was Brian
Carpenter, who participated in the Daring Change
program, “a series of TED-like lectures by students,
staff and faculty focused on envisioning the future of
Williams in the future.” The presentations are available online. There he caught up with Jeff Weber and
his wife Stacey. “They are both doing well in NYC
and were about to host a Williams event at their
house,” writes Brian, “generous alums that they are.”
Class President Mark Broude was up in
Williamstown in May for an alumni event: “It was a
beautiful, sunny afternoon (which seems incredibly
rare on the East Coast this spring), and the campus
looked its best.” Mark spent time talking with
Ted Plonsker, Jeff Sher (whose daughter starts at
Williams in the fall) and John Malcolm (with whom
he and his son had dinner early in the spring when
he was in New York). Mark also recently had lunch
with Tara Kazak, who gets to experience Obamacare
first hand, working for a large hospital organization
out on Long Island.
Mark reminds the class that our next reunion
is only two years away. He would be interested in
hearing everyone’s ideas about activities we could
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plan to make our weekend as enjoyable as possible:
“Any ideas that could generate excitement would be
welcome.” Please, do drop him a line.
Finally, with “nothing much to report,” Daniel Peris
informs the class, “Life goes on.”
Indeed, it does, Dan. And may these notes find
it treating you all well, and even better tomorrow!
Muchos saludos.
1987
Jeff Heilman, 426 67th St., Floor 2, Brooklyn, NY 11220;
Jill Shulman, 135 Red Gate Lane, Amherst MA 01002;
1987secretary@williams.edu
My father, Jeff Shulman ’60, called Williamstown
a “toilet bowl” in the spring. After steady rain for
almost two weeks in Western Massachusetts, I
get it, Dad! Barb Halligan also “gets it” and braved
Spring Street during monsoon season where she
spotted honorary degree recipient Annie Lennox
not once but twice. Barb also continued her reign
as a stellar student and will now shape the minds of
other students after recently earning her teaching
certification.
I imagine toilet bowl memories, among others,
were rekindled at Reunion Weekend as well. Phoebe
Roosevelt informed me that her husband Chauncy
Lennon ’88 brought one of their three children to
his 25th, leaving Phoebe behind in NYC to man
(woman?) the fort with their other two. Phoebe also
caught a glimpse of Maura Henry as well as Charlie
Lazor when they were passing through town, each
with a daughter named Maeve.
On the topic of popular names, after copious
research, I can answer Jeff Heilman’s puzzler from
the last round of class notes. In case you didn’t realize, these are serial notes, like a soap opera, so for
those of you who miss All My Children since it went
off the air, you will get your fix tri-annually from
Jeff and me. Drum roll please… Though we have
16 Davids in our class, we have 21 Johns, the most
popular name in the Class of ’87!
However, Davids win for most news submitted to
class notes this round. I was moved by this heartwarming Williams story from Dave Tager. “When
my father-in-law found out he needed a quadruple
bypass and aortic valve surgery, my first thought was
to reach out to the Williams family. … I Facebook
messaged my friend and cardiologist, Nate Lebowitz
’86. He was away on vacation at the time but replied
and provided invaluable advice. I’d also emailed
Toby Cosgrove ’62. He offered to provide a second
opinion from the Cleveland Clinic. And I’d reached
out to Craig Smith ’70 at Columbia Presbyterian,
perhaps best known for being President Clinton’s
surgeon. Craig called me immediately on that
Sunday and ended up performing what he called
“routine” surgery (at least for him) in April—so far,
so good. My father-in-law and others were amazed
by the power of the Williams community, especially
that such esteemed people whom I’d never met had
responded so quickly and with so much care. While
I wasn’t surprised, I am impressed and grateful that
this is who we are as Ephs.”
There are other sickness-to-health stories from our
class. Gail Henderson-Belsito wrote, “On Nov. 6, I
was diagnosed with breast kanswer (yes, I spell it my
1986–87
own way. I will show no respect to such a dreadful
disease.)” After a wretched winter, Gail is now on
the mend, supported by husband Steve Belsito and
children. Gail sums up her news with gratitude and
the sentiment, “All is well. All is well. All manner of
thing shall be well.”
Katie (Kerr) Clarke’s response to “kanswer” was
similarly disrespectful to the disease but uberrespectful to those it affects. “My sister Kendra
(Kerr) Olvany ’82 and I recently launched a social
enterprise called The Licorice Project. It’s an online
community for everyone affected by breast cancer:
newly diagnosed patients, survivors and their friends
and families. Our mission is to connect people
locally, share resources and make it easier to give
and receive help. We also want to spread unexpected
joy along the way! You can check us out at www.
thelicoriceproject.com.”
Greg Leeds wrote, “Just spent the weekend with
Nik Khakee. We (Nik, me, his boys and my son
Zach) went to Yankee Stadium to see the Sox blow
out the Yanks—very nice for us Sox fans! Zach
and Nik’s boys will be spending another summer
together up in NH at Camp Pemigewassett. Still
working at Northfield Mount Hermon, running the
summer school, teaching math and coaching soccer
and skiing. Zach just finished his freshman year here,
and my daughters Heidi and Hillary will be coming
to NMH in the near future.”
Karen Adams Finley reports the surprising fringe
benefit of the college search process with her daughter Katherine was visiting with Williams classmates
along the way. She ran into Sarah (Hansen) Wilson
’88 in an airport security line, each traveling to a
different destination for college tours. Karen also saw
Thayer Tolles twice, each time in a different state.
A fierce battle ensued between me and Jody Abzug
’88, when Karen’s daughter was accepted at Sarah
Lawrence College, where Jody is the senior director
of giving, as well as Hampshire College, a 10-minute
drive from my house. I won—Katherine will attend
Hampshire next fall—and I am sure to happily
report many visits with Karen in the next four years.
Hopefully, Jody can join us.
I also had a wonderful visit with Martha Hoopes
over strong coffee at a local coffee shop. Martha
lives nearby in Easthampton, Mass., and teaches at
Mount Holyoke College. This year she is on leave
with a Harvard Bullard Fellowship, and her new
textbook, Invasion Ecology, hit bookshelves in June.
Lots of other work-related news came from Bob
O’Connell, who begins his email, “I think this may be
my first submission to the class secretary in 26 years,
but hey, you have to start some time.” Bob reports
that after 13 years lawyering at Goodwin Procter in
Boston, he has packed up and moved his practice
to Fish & Richardson, an intellectual property
firm. Bob himself focuses on strategic copyright
and trademark advice and counseling, and he was
listed for three years running in the “WTR 1000.”
Trademark lawyers out there, you know what this is,
and you know it is impressive.
Bob also reported he “will be getting together
with Coleman Yeaw, Cliff Peale, Steve Pekala
and Jim Jordan for our annual getaway of golf and
hijinks. Coleman is doing IT at Bain; Cliff is still
scribbling for the Cincinnati Enquirer; Steve does
strategic market intelligence for a big construction
company in Minneapolis (the company that built
Target Field), and Jim is one of the very few of our
classmates who has had just one job from the get-go,
teaching science and coaching at the Lawrenceville
School. I am also regularly in touch with Paul J.
Mahoney, who is still prosecuting crooked doctors
and Medicaid fraud in New York. At home, my
daughter Anna just turned 13 (give me strength),
and my son Michael is about to be 11. The teenage
daughter years should be fun…”
Lori Jonas reported, “Just got back from Memorial
Day weekend in NYC, where we had dinner with
Daniela Klare Elliott and her lovely family. We
brunched on Monday with Beau Everett and his
delightful crew and did some sightseeing. Both Beau
and Tiff have children attending my old school,
Hunter College High School, which is pretty neat.
Everyone looks amazing—hard to believe it is 26
years since graduation!”
Minireunions abound. I heard tell of a potentially
raucous night (though top secret) in Philadelphia
when Missy Wilcox Debarge, Denis Newcomer and
Cindy (Morhouse) Bardwil were on the prowl. Cindy
reports, “As fate would have it, while we were searching aimlessly for a mechanical bull toward the end
of the evening, we ran into Suzanne Biemiller (righthand woman to the mayor of Philly), who directed
us to the aforementioned bull. All I can say is what
happens in the city of brotherly love stays in this city
of brotherly love!” Of course, my obvious follow-up
question was, “Did anyone get hurt?” to which Cindy
responded, “I can’t tell you. I would have to kill you.”
Please note that there was no smiley face emoticon
included in this response.
I received another report of “one of those nights”
from Sheila Coogan, who gathered with “Sean
Denniston, Steve Browning, John Hund and his wife
Linda at Hugo’s in Houston for dinner. John ordered
the fried grasshoppers, which Steve declined because
it was a Friday during Lent. Fortunately, John also
ordered the pitcher of margaritas.
Monica (Crossman) Meling reported, “After living
12 years in Norway, we moved to Canada in 2007
for four years and are now back in Norway again.
We loved experiencing the Canadian culture and,
much to my surprise, it was quite different than
the American culture. Great for our 15-year-old
twins to do a French immersion program and to be
close to my family in Arizona, too. Did get back to
NYC in 2009 to visit Thayer Tolles, and we spent
a weekend up at Lake George at Cindy (Morhouse)
Bardwil’s house with 10 other Class of ’87 women.
It was an amazing experience to reunite in such
lovely surroundings with such dynamic classmates.”
The following Ephs were also present and accounted
for: Karen Adams Finley, Haley Clifford Adams,
Barb Halligan, Deb Gordon, Carol Smallwood, Kerry
Cullen Morgen, Maria Cook Robertson, Ann Marie
Plankey, Suzanne Biemiller, Kelly Flynn Post and
Missy Wilcox. Monica continues, “Otherwise, life is
good in Norway. I returned to my true love—teaching! I teach IB economics at a local Norwegian high
school here…” Monica welcomes classmates visiting
Norway to visit her.
In closing, I am happy to report that the rain
has finally stopped here in Western Mass. The sun
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is shining, the birds are chirping, and today is my
birthday. (We all know which one.) Many of you are
popping up on my Facebook wall, which gives me
the warm and fuzzy feeling of spending the day with
dear old (read “old” whichever way you like) friends.
Thank you for your contributions—local, national
and international—all equally valuable. And do write
to Jeff with the solution to this episode’s puzzler:
What was the exciting technological addition to the
dorm rooms after our freshman year at Williams?
Hint: I made mention of this in my introduction
to our reunion class book. Now I must go blow out
the candles on my birthday cake before the house
catches fire. Signing out with warmth and gratitude,
your co-secretary, Jill.
1988
Peter Grose, 1 Hampshire Woods Court, Towson, MD
21204; 1988secretary@williams.edu
Submitted by outgoing secretaries Britta Bjornlund
and Carolyn O’Brien: The always late, make ’em
wait, extend the date, tempting fate, great Class of
’88 showed up en force at the 25th reunion. If you
weren’t there, or weren’t at the meeting, or didn’t get
the email, our great class won the Webster Atwell ’21
Trophy for the class raising the largest dollar amount
for the Alumni Fund and the John P. English ’32
Trophy for the largest increase in dollars over last
year for reunion classes. Our overall gift to the college, presented at the Society of Alumni meeting,
was $4,001,088, which includes our Class of 1988
Scholarship in the amount of $1,070,829 to benefit
first-generation students at Williams. This is all
very impressive, if we do say so on our own behalf!
And thank you to each and every one of you who
contributed. We also broke attendance records for a
25th reunion and won the Reunion Bowl!
Katie Kessler Chatas won the Rogerson Cup,
which is the college’s highest award for alumni service and symbolizes outstanding loyalty, achievement
and service in the name of Williams. Very deserved;
congratulations Katie!
At the alumni meeting, Katie, Stu Staley, Brooks
Foehl and Russell Werkman all graced the stage and
gave inspiring speeches. Many thanks to them as
well as Tracy Heilman and Matt Lapointe and the
class agent team, who not only whipped the class
into shape to achieve an incredibly high participation rate in the Alumni Fund (of course in the last
moments just to make it interesting), but have been
doing so for the past five years! Tracy volunteered
to continue serving as co-head class agent for the
Alumni Fund with Lewis Collins and Cary Benedict
Collins, who were among Tracy’s army of volunteers
this past year.
After leading her own army of volunteers in putting together an amazing reunion, down to sharing
her cell phone number with the entire class, Lisa
Tenerowicz agreed to serve as class president for the
next five and help ensure our 30th is equally fun.
Joining Lisa is Jody Abzug, VP, Britta Bjornlund, treasurer, and Peter Grose (our joint thanks) taking over
as secretary—send him your news! And no, Pete, we
have no idea who nominated you!
Brian Kornfield sent a shout out to thank Dave
Greenberg for organizing the soccer game on
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Saturday afternoon at Poker Flats. The team
included Brian, Dave, Susan Enright Amburg, Rob
Chase, Peter English, Brooks Foehl, Pier Friend,
Peter Grose, Eric Hanson, Bill Hilty, Dave Kane,
Robert Pucciariello and Ben Schlosser, among others. This geriatric group apparently pulled through
beating the opposing team, which may have been
comprised of their own kids.
Ann Munchmeyer led a rousing Zumba class that
was attended by Cindy Craig Johnson (of course!),
Kerstin Skoogfors Porter and Karen Olson. We saw
some pictures, and those women were working
out! Orion Howard and Bob Gallagher rode bikes
up Mount Greylock sometime during Reunion
Weekend. Rain didn’t stop Scott Healy, Ben
Schlosser and Bill Brydges from playing some golf
but it did give Scott and Bill a good excuse to ride
in the cart instead of walking. Refusing to ride in
the cart, Ben later complained that he was sore from
carrying his bag the full 18 holes! Maybe that’s why
he broke out the North Carolina moonshine on
Saturday night.
Anyone who wasn’t at reunion, come next time
just for the swag. We got cool t-shirts designed by
Tom Newhall. We all wore them during the Saturday
morning parade (as required), led by class marshals
Katie and Brooks. During the parade, many of us
finally understood the logo (hey who said we were
smart—have a closer look if you haven’t already).
We also received cool glasses to shield the sun and
engraved stemless glasses for our beverages. Carrie
Curvin expressed pleasure that an entire 12-ounce
seltzer could fit in her new glass.
Thursday night brought an early group of
reunioners to the Log. This group included Nick
Beatty, Bill Brydges, Annie Shulman Budlong, Nils
Christofferson, Cary Benedict and Lewis Collins,
Alison Foehl and Brooks Foehl, Tim Hamilton,
Andy Harris, Tracy Heilman, Tommy Hudgins, Mark
Huffman, Terrance Hults, Lisa Phillips Klein, Chris
Oldham, Kurt Oeler, J.R. Rahill, Tom Smith, Stu
Staley, Chris Swindell and Lisa Tenerowicz.
Friday night the skies opened up, but that didn’t
stop an enthusiastic crowd in the Towne Field
House. Ramona Gelzer Bell, Letitia Carolina-Powell,
Martin J. Furey and Peter Ruggerio are just a few
of the people that had a chance to catch up while
remaining dry. Wendell Chesnutt and Donna Lisker
posed for photos. And there was plenty of space for
the kids to run and for their parents to ignore—we
mean, keep a watchful eye on—them. Sean Cook’s
son Calder tried almost all of the kids’ games. Ellen
O’Connell’s 6-year-old Gordon showed off serious
soccer skills. He must take after granddad Mickey
O’Connell ’50. Friday evening also found Mary Ellen
Ulmer cracking up her former roommate Donna
Lisker with tales of Mary Ellen’s husband’s sartorial
challenges.
Our class won many college-sponsored awards,
but who will get the Looks Just Like S/He Did
in College award? One nominee might be Ted
Arrowsmith, still a long-distance runner since his
Purple Valley training 25 years ago. Maureen “Moe”
Kelleher is a strong candidate as well! Some of us
still think Bill Hilty looks the same as he did in college, but at least one wisecrack (Chris Shorb—not
in attendance) viewing reunion photos commented
1987–88
that it was Tom Higgins that hadn’t aged, adding that
perhaps that was because Tom always looked like
a 40-something-year-old. (Not our joke, you look
great, Tom.) And while we don’t want to appear
superficial, we did overhear a fellow classmate
exclaim, “Randy Fox is a fox!” and we are guessing his
wife would agree.
During the Friday night buffet, Jonny Hollenberg,
Derek Buckley and Doug Troob polled classmates as
to which of them had the most grey hair. Embracing
our age is healthy, and the more hair the better right?
Later, Doug Troob lamented with Bill Pike, Ray
George and Jim Elliott that Steve Gutterman hadn’t
made it in from Moscow.
Rumor has it a bold crowd moved on to the Purple
Pub later that night possibly led by Scott Berman
and others. The reports were that the Purple Pub is
no longer a dive and also no longer offers pitchers of
beer for $3. And after all the chatter pre-reunion we
have to wonder if anyone went tunneling that night.
On Saturday, shopping for Williams gear at Goff ’s
was a great way to spot folks (and to stay dry). Bill
Boyd and Tom Higgins were there (right around the
pick-up rugby game!) as were Phil Culhane, Mac
Hines, Stephen Kargere, Don Ousterhout and John
Rumsey. Mark Solan was probably not the only person who picked up a new purple and gold umbrella
for the weekend. Jean Janson Fulkerson made sure
she went home with some purple bling. Across the
street, Claire Hsiang Marx, Sally Robertson Laroche,
Rebecca Thomas and Amy Searight stopped in for
some Pappa Charlie’s memories.
During the Saturday picnic lunch, Corinna Lamb
chased her twin 5-year-old boys around, while Stan
Macel chatted with classmates. Several classmates
and progeny visited Hopkins Forest Saturday afternoon, once the weather was a bit clearer, some just
enjoying the nature like Anne Magnuson Hartnett
and Jim Hartnett, while others hiked (or slid) down
a muddy hill for a “critter search,” including Mike R.
Harrington and son Declan (Mike’s partner David
chose to oversee younger son Noah’s napping);
inspiring class speaker Pavlos Yeroulanos and family;
Mark Meyer and family (who spurned the shuttle
bus on the way back to campus and earned an ice
cream); and Mike Goldstein and kids (shout out to
Mike’s daughter Zoe who not only helped some of
the “old” folks through the mud but later kept an
eye on Carolyn O’Brien’s daughter Audrey during
the Saturday night kids event). The shuttle bus was a
good opportunity to catch up with Nora Harrington
and Sharon Burke, who were enjoying a few minutes
of sun in the late Saturday afternoon. Kate Gerber
Kennedy attended several of the Saturday offerings and caught up colleagues on plans for the new
library and new and old Stetson. J.R. Rahill apparently enjoyed the day, his birthday, flying his small
plane with friends.
At the Saturday cocktails, before indefatigable
25th reunion director Alice Wilson brought out
her bullhorn to round up the class at the ’62 Center
for Theatre and Dance for a photo, Lillian Kessler
shared the joys of raising two young children on the
Upper West Side of Manhattan in a busy law practice. Wilbur Swan and wife were enjoying their time
away from their four kids. Gerry Kirschner’s wife
Katie gamely tried to capture the action on her own
camera. After the full class shot, several groups posed
for freshman entry or senior year housing photos.
When Tommy Hudgins was missing for a 71-73
Hoxsey photo, Brad Roegge kindly stepped in, slicking his hair back and channeling his inner Tommy.
Despite a soggy Poker Flats, Saturday dinner
was clearly a highlight for our class. It is true that
as you get older the reunion food gets better. More
importantly, we had a chance to sit down and enjoy
our old and new friends. Tim Farnham and Chris
Gascon serenaded us and were joined by Joyce
Noonan Andersen, Tom Smith, Russell Werkman and
HuJung Joseph Yoon as we all sang “60 Thou to Live
with Cows.” (Stu Staley earlier pointed out that 60
Thou does not currently even cover one year tuition.)
Seated near the live music (loud for us old folks)
and also conveniently located near the dessert bar,
Nichole Donath and Sean Lev prepared to dance the
night away. Lots of folks were seen cutting the rug,
perhaps no one as enthusiastically as Peter Ruggiero.
Austin Kelly was having such a good time that the
children’s dinner organizers had to call his cell phone
at 11 p.m. to remind him that it was time to come
get his kids. He brought them back to the festivities.
A drink or two was all it took to get Joyce Noonan
talking about laundry—she has five active boys.
Reunion organizer Lisa Buxbaum Burke made sure
her husband Brian was enjoying his first Williams
reunion. Rob Chase, his good-sport wife Gen and
two children were pleased they made the trip to
Williamstown from New Delhi, India, where he is
working. Rodney Cunningham proved his memory
is actually somewhat intact 25 years later, as he could
remember which of our classmates were fellow
political science majors! Ken Alleyne’s son told him
that his friends were pretty cool.
Mac Hines and his wife and four children were
making an East Coast vacation of the trip to
Williamstown. Mike Friedman and his wife Adena
Testa Friedman ’91 and two sons embarked on a college tour, and Meg Thomas Kahdeman brought her
oldest daughter for some East Coast sight-seeing in
addition to reunion. Andrea Walter showed off the
campus to her daughter Juniper Walter-Eger.
Former off-campus roommates Sonja Lengnick
and Janet Mansfield came back for reunion; no word
on whether they’re teaching their respective children
how to play rugby. Ellen Lee-Allen was much more
interested in showing daughter Maya the Williams
College Museum of Art than the rugby fields. Mike
Wiedemann showed his son around the new Sawyer
Library.
Both Keith McIver and Ken McIver attended
reunion. We are sworn to secrecy on which brother
was fondly recalling the flume with a Mission Park
food service staffer.
Ben Miller envied future treasurer Britta Bjornlund,
since he kindly served in the role in the days before
online checking. Barak Rosenbloom confirmed that,
politics aside, he was all in favor of four more years
of a “Barak” in the White House, even if the DC
Barack spells things a little differently.
Sue Lavigne Thomas had no complaints about
dorm living during the weekend, given that husband
Neil and son Gregory were spending the rainy
reunion weekend on a Boy Scout camping trip!
Tim Hamilton shared a suite with the Munchmeyer/
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Healy clan (Ann, Scott and three boys) and coped by
spending as little time in the room as possible. David
Walters, with some prompting, showed off pictures
of his own boys, now young men, traveling on some
exciting family vacations.
The Vermont contingent of sean MacFaden and
Holly Brough as well as anne Molleur Hanson and
her husband Eric made the trek to reunion to get
together with former Washington, D.C., roommate
Geri tierney. Britta Bjornlund brought her own family from DC and that of her sister lydia Bjornlund
’83, who was attending her first Williams reunion at
her 30th. (Those of you who haven’t attended, will
we see you in five?)
Some people were missing a reunion for the first
time. Nicole Melcher was expecting her first child.
Jason Drake Martin arrived on June 17, clocking in
at 8 pounds, 14 ounces. Congratulations Nicole!
Ironically, ted lange used an ice-climbing theme
in his 25th reunion book submission, and unfortunately he had an ice-climbing incident in late March
that prevented his attendance. What started as a
day trek to climb a pillar of ice in Montana became
a mile-long crawl through the snow with a broken
ankle. He’s doing OK and recuperating in Bozeman.
To everyone who attended in June, everyone who
has written us these past five years, and to everyone
who reads these notes, thank you very much! As
class secretaries signing off, we apologize for any
misspellings and for any poorly placed jokes, and we
want to say it has been a pleasure. Continue to write
in and see you in the Purple Valley in 2018!
Missed the reunion? These alums were also there:
Kim Daboo, Christopher Pachus, Vonessa schulze,
Dan Wolsk, timothy Bock, lisa Nahf, linda Yarlott,
sarah Werkman, sarah Benioff, Cathy Venkatesh,
Robert Newman, Kate Dengel, William Mead, Derek
Molliver, Nat McCormick, tal Klein, Ken april,
Nathan schimke, erin Braden, Ben Miller, Robert
stubblebine, ajata Mediratta, Deborah Zalesne, Vicki
Fuqua, laura Hurwitz, Bill emptage, Nancy truettner,
Bill sherman, Nikolai Nachamkin, Marc lanoue,
tim Yarter, anne o’Malley, Jonathan edie, David
Rakonitz, Charlie Kaplan, eleanor Congdon, Jim
Munson, susan Courtney-Faruqee, Hamid Faruqee,
Julie Medalis, suzanne Maclehose, Jenna Kakimoto,
andrew Kelly, Katherine Wolf, Karen Rivetti, laura
Wefing Brady, Jane amidon, lisa Mandl, Bobby
Maclean, Mike Papasodoro, Caryn Nagler, scott
Garfield, Jill teixeira, Chris Jepson, Jane Becker,
stephen Groh, David treworgy, Dave Glendon,
scott Mozarsky, Bennett lee, David Gelobter, sarah
taub, sara Wilson, Cecilia Malm, Christopher Jones,
Mara Burnett, Doug Phillips, Julie McGuire, Michael
Roach, Christine Roach, Drew erdmann, Dirk Holden,
Gail Covington, Mark Raisbeck, scott sibley, terri
Williams-Weekes, Janet Mansfield, Bill Ryan, George
tolley, Michael Dawson, Brooke ackerly, Christopher
leitz, Kenneth Marcus, Mark schein, Brian Watson,
Matt Hendrickson, Yoshi Ishizaka-Monterio, Daniel
Comiskey, Jack Phillips, sara st. antoine, Marianne
DeMarco, edward Weiss, John Canty, Philip
Gratwick, sean logan, tom Berton, scott Kessler,
lisa Klem, Chauncy lennon, Rick Fearon, Cindy
soohoo, sarah levy, scott Purdy, stephen Halloran,
Mike Harrington, Beth Harrington, Joe thorndike,
Jennifer lindberg, Michael leBauer, Gregor smith,
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David Meisels, adam lesser, elyse Rosenblum, eric
Velazquez, Maureen Velazquez, Catherine eatonCoakley, John Kucich, albert Miseje, Hoyt ludington,
amy senecal, Ross Jannotta, eric Churchill, Carter
Zinn, Doreen saia, Dirck Fuller and Mike sullivan.
1989
REUNION JUNE 12-15
David Bar Katz, 138 Watts St., Apt. 4,
25
TH
New York, NY 10013; Shannon Penick Pryor,
3630 Prospect St., NW, Washington, DC 20007;
1989secretary@williams.edu
Greetings ’89ers! Not much news this time, but I
loved reading about your oddest or most improbable encounters with other Williams alumni. First,
the news. John Berger writes, “For those who want
a review of what I have been up to since I left the
finance world, my wife Sarah has published a book
about how she started the nonprofit I helped her
grow and have worked at full time now for several
years. The book is Sarah’s story, so I play mostly
a supporting role—but there are plenty of stories
about how much I had to modify my working style
to survive in the nonprofit world. (It still bugs me
you can’t just fire volunteers.) The best chapter is
called ‘John’s rules.’ The book is called This is No
Ordinary Joy by Sarah Symons.”
Byron shah, writing in for the first time in years
(or ever?) says: “Crazy times here in LA (where
I’ve been for 20 years!): A third son due at the end
of June, in addition to a 9- and a 7-year-old. I’m
shooting a TV show called The Crazy Ones, and we’re
adding a bedroom on to our house. Crazy but fun;
still time for skiing, camping and yoga.”
ann Carson writes that life on Cape Cod is “pretty
good. It’s been four years since Paul and I took the
leap and left the DC suburbs for a slower pace and
to be closer to my aging parents. We truly don’t miss
the Beltway and all it entails (both literally and figuratively), although we still do miss friends and ethnic
food. We had a cool, wet spring, and that had us
housebound a bit longer than usual, but the gardens,
golf course and beach are calling now. We each still
work full time for our DC- and Md.-based employers. I have been with NCQA, a healthcare nonprofit,
for coming on 19 years, which I never imagined. But
my tenure allows me creativity and flexibility that
I love. Our big plans right now are a 17-day trip to
Italy in September for our 10th wedding anniversary. Neither of us has ever been, and between ruins,
museums and wine we expect to do Rome, Tuscany,
Cinque Terre, Florence and Venice. We are looking
forward to reunion in a year—hard to believe its
been almost 25!” tom loose and tina (Webster)
loose spent a lovely 24 hours with Dan Pryor and
shannon (Penick) Pryor on the Chesapeake Bay earlier this spring—“and learned the hard way that Dan
is a force to be reckoned with at ‘Corn Hole.’ Also
hosted John ‘Bunnyman’ Bellwoar and his kids for
the weekend of the annual Fantasy Baseball draft—
where the kids enjoyed repeatedly racing around the
snow-covered yard, barefoot and dripping, before
plunging back into the hot tub. Got a busy summer ahead of us if the kids ever get released from
school—Hurricane Sandy took its toll here, too, and
can’t believe that our twins will be entering high
school in the fall!” shannon Pryor has been elected as
1988–90
the first chair of the American Medical Association
Women Physicians Section. John Nicholson recently
left the law firm and has joined Infosys as a “strategic
negotiator” (cue visions of William Shatner). “The
job is actually going to involve moving to London
for a few years, starting in January 2014. In the
meantime, my wife Estelle, our two kids and I have
sold our house in DC and moved to Wilmington,
Del., where we plan to be for the rest of the year.”
And now, for your reading pleasure, the chance
encounters. Nancy (Titus) Johnson “met a Williams
alum in Kazakhstan when she attended the church
where my husband and I were missionaries. More
recently, while visiting my twin Laura (Titus) Tang
in Shanghai, we had coffee at Starbucks with a
more recent alum whom she had befriended. Right
now, I am finishing my second year of teaching at
an international school in Tbilisi, Georgia. I taught
seventh grade and loved it. All four of my children
attend the school, and my son was in three of my
classes, but he took algebra with my husband along
with our oldest, Autumn. Ironically, I did not teach
the seventh-grade life science class, even though I
wrote the curriculum, but I did have the opportunity
to teach modern world history, which I also enjoyed
very much.” Heather (Martinez) Zona: “Still playing
soccer four to five times a week, trying to curb my
animal hoarding habits (three dogs, two parrots),
planning my next trip overseas. I just got back from
a weekend in Palm Springs with Leila Jere ’92 and
Heidi Beebe ’92. We have been taking this trip for
the past eight years. Paul Knudsen and I work at
the same nonprofit, training volunteers to advocate
for kids in foster care. I keep up with many folks
on Facebook.” While in California on a business
trip, Stewart Verdery met up with David Sandford,
a senior executive at TiVo—much hilarity was had
reliving Oxford ’87-’88 moments. Stewart also saw
Ted Hobart in his new Pittsburgh hometown earlier
this spring—his consulting firm is working for Ted’s
wife at Dick’s Sporting Goods. And in a very random coincidence, one of Stewart’s former employees
at Homeland Security has retired to run a B&B in
Williamstown—what are the odds? Hart Murphy
just finished 11 years of teaching at W.B. Travis
High School in Austin, Texas. “Williams connections are all pretty sparse and random down here in
Texas. A couple of weeks ago I happened to run into
J.B. Bird ’86 for the first time since he graduated. It
turns out he has been working in public relations for
the University of Texas at Austin, a cause which has
surely not been helped by the fact that they awarded
me a degree last month (an M.A. in government). I
have summoned Christian Hudak ’08 back from his
restoration work in Dunhuang to help me translate
a letter I just received in Mandarin. He insists it is a
job offer. Who do I know in Shanghai? I am at least
glad this missive did not get misfiled with the bride
requests in the rest of my foreign mail stack.”
1990
Katie Brennan, 2018 Rosilla Place, Los Angeles CA
90046; 1990secretary@williams.edu
It has been a great few months of hearing from
classmates who haven’t appeared in the class notes
for quite a while, if ever!
Carey Simon writes from York, England, “I’m
married with a lively 6-year-old daughter. I work for
Network Rail sort of in a clerical role (was the old
British Rail before privatisation). I’m grateful for life
here in Northern England and just, as is said here,
mosey along. My biggest passion is de-cluttering,
digitizing and attempting to reach a more minimalist way of living so that my mind can be more free to
think beyond the minutiae of everyday life.”
Melissa Scalera wrote from her home in
Blenheim, a small town at the top of the South
Island in New Zealand, where she has been living
with her family (a 10-year-old son and a 4-year-old
daughter) and working as an OB-GYN for seven
years. “Moving to New Zealand was actually sort
of an accident. I signed up for a six-month locum
tenens assignment and just never left.”
Brice Hoskin and Karen (Hufnagel) Hoskin are
“really enjoying having our goddaughter Ariel living
with us for the summer in Crested Butte, Colo.
Ariel is the 19-year-old daughter of Thaddeus
Ward, who is (maybe technically) Class of ’91,
but only because of a few lagging credits after a
(very) memorable junior year abroad in Peru. If I
remember correctly, Thaddeus’ classes were derailed
by Sendero Luminoso, and he was sent back to the
USA mid-year. Brice and I are making up for many
years of forgetting to send Ariel birthday gifts and
failing to provide any spiritual guidance whatsoever.
She is great help on the bottling line at Montanya
Distillers, so maybe we will at least send her home
with a marketable skill in a growing industry sector.
She has become fast friends with our boys Nate, 15,
and Will, 13. We are still hoping her fluent Spanish
will rub off on our boys and that someday we can
send our boys to experience the boroughs of NYC,
which Thaddeus and Daysi call home now after
several years in Lima.”
On March 9, Jacques Payne wed his sweetheart
Diana near Little Rock, delighted to have family
come from all over, including 14-month-old niece
Joelle who managed to spend most of the night on
the dance floor! Jacques and Diana were looking
forward to a honeymoon in Aruba. “Diana and I are
battling breast cancer now as well. Two years ago,
Diana was diagnosed with Stage III C breast cancer.
She went on to receive two rounds of chemotherapy
before undergoing a bilateral mastectomy and a
month of radiation. After receiving word that the
cancer was in remission, we participated in the
Walk for the Cure here in Little Rock. Diana was
able to participate in the cancer survivors’ parade
at the end, which really meant a great deal to her.
Unfortunately, shortly after the race her next PET
scan showed that the cancer had returned and
metastasized. Diana now has stage IV breast cancer,
and from here on out the cancer will be treated
like a chronic illness. I hope and pray there will be
something that will slow or stop the cancer and she
will be with us for many years to come.” In Jacques’
work, he manages clinical trials for several biotech
and pharmaceutical companies, mostly oncology
trials. He would like to remind us all that, “Cancer
is awful. I encourage everyone to stay up to date on
their physicals and at the first sign of a potential
issue, go to the doctor.” Thank you, Jacques, and our
thoughts are with you and Diana.
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Victoria Szabo is “teaching visual and media studies
at Duke University, where I have been since 2006.
I am especially interested in how we can create
‘hybrid reality systems’ that combine real-world
and virtual experiences as a way to explore layers of
history and culture in a critically engaged, effectively rich way. Most recently I have been learning
mobile app development and studying Italian for
beginners, partly in support of a digital city project
focused on Venice, where I’ll be teaching in fall 2013
(in English!). I’m also chairing a digital art gallery,
‘XYZN: Scale’ at the ACM SIGGRAPH 2013
conference in Anaheim, Calif., this summer, and
have been dabbling in a bit of digital art production
myself with some collaborative augmented reality
and game-based works. In other news, I’m still
rowing with my Williams women’s crew teammate
Donna Lisker ’88 for the Carolina masters crew
down in Chapel Hill, where we prove to all doubters
that Duke and UNC-CH can indeed live in harmony (as long as we don’t wear the ‘wrong’ color blue
to the boathouse)!”
Jim Adams and wife Erika Kahill are the proud
parents of daughter Clementine, born in June. Jim
has also moved to the National Audubon Society,
where he is now the Alaska policy director.
Since the last reunion, Margaret Laster has held
research positions and fellowships at the Frick
Collection, the Center for the History of Collecting
at the Frick Art Reference Library and at the
Smithsonian’s Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M.
Sackler Gallery. In May, she completed her Ph.D. in
art history at the Graduate Center, City University
of New York, with a ceremony at Avery Fisher Hall.
She continues to live in NYC, where she sees fellow
alums from Williams.
Will Lafave is back in hometown, Shaker Heights,
“happily married going on 18 years now with a son,
10, and a daughter, 5 going on 16. My role as VP
of major accounts gives me a chance to work for an
Israeli surveillance technology manufacturer from
my home office with responsibility for accounts
spread from Denver to New York, Cincinnati
to Houston, and a few more cities in between. I
narrowly missed our last major Williams reunion
to a business trip to Nice, France. My last trip to
Williamstown was a passing through stopover on my
way to Vermont the summer of 2008. I had great fun
showing off the campus to my bride, who had never
been, playing with my son on the rugby pitch, taking
a tour of The Clark Art Institute, enjoyed a meal at
the 1896 House and an overnight in the Williams
Inn. While I did not get to campus much, I spent a
decade in Cleveland running the Williams Alumni
Association of Northeast Ohio—an organization
my grandfather helped to create and which is well
run by Ted Moore ’92 now for a few years already. So
I’ve managed to stay connected to Williams in that
manner over time.”
The news from Philadelphia is that Mike Barsanti
has “been newly remarried, to the lovely Erin Rose
Mooney, in November, and we have a new baby,
Pierce James Barsanti, born in December! So it’s
been an interesting time! I’m continuing to work on
an online graphic novel adaptation of James Joyce’s
Ulysses called Ulysses Seen, which is currently being
hosted by the James Joyce Centre in Dublin (www.
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jamesjoyce.ie). I loved our 20th reunion and am very
much looking forward to 25. I may not have the
youngest child in our class by then, but I imagine I’ll
be close!”
All is well with Anne Darnton in Santa Fe. “Evan
(my 8-year-old second grader) is in those golden
years of childhood where he is curious about how
the world works and yet believes in the magical
side of things. I get to commute with him every day
to our school, where he is still OK with being the
principal’s son. (I don’t know how long that will last!)
I am continuously envious of my husband Chris’
ability to have interests outside of work that he
actively pursues. I am a tag-along fly fisherman, skier
and mountain biker. With a new superintendent
and school board, work (i.e., school) has been overly
consuming this year, and I am determined to bring
some balance back where it belongs. We moved a
little over a year ago into a more rural location, and I
love that I look out my windows and see mountains,
horses and barns every day. (That way I can pretend
I am a horse owner without the commitment and
expense!) It is a restorative view.”
Ethel Brooks and family are back in New Jersey.
“I am still missing my year in London, and all of us
would like to permanently relocate … but not sure
how to make it happen. In January, for the U.N.
Holocaust Remembrance Day, I was invited to speak
at the ceremony in the U.N. General Assembly
Hall.” Ethel’s speech remembering the plight of the
Romani during the Holocaust is on YouTube at
http://bit.ly/1bo6jTG.
Scott Nabel was the designated People note-taker
at the Boston bar mitzvah of Neal Lindeman and
Liz Borowsky’s son Henry, “who clearly inherited
his looks from his father (who now looks like his
own father) and a beautiful singing voice from his
mother.” Scott was impressed that the flowers on the
bimah (stage) during the service were purple and
gold, and although Neal claimed that this was not
intentional, it must have been at least subliminal.
“Other Ephs in attendance were Dan Drezner, whose
son was bar mitzvahed just two weeks prior at the
opposite end of Newton. Dan is a professor of international relations at Tufts. Making her first appearance in these class notes (courtesy of moi) is Rebecca
Buchanan, who lives outside DC and for the past
two years has been working in the State Department
on European human rights issues. I promised not
to share any of her classified work stories, so I can
only report from my own observations that she is an
extremely capable swing dancer. As for yours truly, I
remain a civil servant for the city of New Haven. In
January 2011, I was loaned from human resources
to labor relations. The last labor director decided
to resign and stay home with her newborn, so I
continue to hold down the fort by myself.”
Hilary Klotz enjoyed a great visit with Carol Metcalf
Lind and Cassandra T. Hiland and their daughters in
Chicago and sent on a super-cute photo of “the girls
of the girls of Jake House.” She also came across a
wonderful TED talk by Dan Drezner, who is continuing to pursue the zombie meme (http://youtu.
be/Vjke3VTp5ks). Apparently zombies have surpassed vampires in the popular imagination, possibly
indicating a new fatalistic strain in the American
psyche. Check it out—lots of fun!
1990–91
In November Alexandra Iselin and husband
Philippe celebrated the birth of their son Oscar, who
joined his three sisters Sophie, 8, Camille, 6, and
Zoe, 3, in the town of Porrentruy in northwest
Switzerland. “Sisters are all thrilled (and so am I).
I still have a little time to work as an independent
architect. And of course we spend our free time skiing and hiking and golfing.”
Sue Abbott got married to longtime sweetheart
Dave Schweizer in June in a “lovely small wedding on the Vineyard with family and a few close
friends—beautiful weather and everything went
smoothly (even the dog as ring bearer). We had a
‘mini-moon’ in Vermont and will take a longer trip
later.”
All is well with Rusty Field in Minnesota. “I left
Ameriprise Financial after 19 years in 2009 and have
been with UnitedHealthGroup for the past three
years. Healthcare is a fascinating space. Kids are 12,
10 and 8—two girls and a boy. Outside of work, it
seems my life has become that of a friendly sherpa—
shuttling back and forth at all hours.”
I have a little news of my own, as I will start this
fall at Cal State University Fullerton as an assistant
professor in the biology department. I’ve had quite
a series of teaching and research positions over the
years, and it feels like a real treat to actually get a
permanent position (tenure, knock on wood…).
When I confessed a little trepidation about starting
on this path so late, Catherine Crouch reassured me
that it makes no difference, and that she also got a
late start on the tenure track (at, ahem, age 33)! I’ve
been a bad mom, as the trek from our house in LA
to Disneyland has always seemed a little too far, and
I’ve never taken the kids. That same trek will now be
my daily commute: karma biting back! Most missed
from my time at UCLA will be the exercise group
I’ve been meeting with before dawn on the track for
the past few years. The camaraderie and motivation
will be hard to replace.
Hilary Klotz and Dave Pesikoff were again in
Williamstown in May accepting trophies galore as
our head agents. From Dave, “With 351 gifts, we
hit over 70 percent for the second year in a row,
third highest of all classes since 1973. For what it’s
worth, our average over the last four years is now
69.5 percent, the highest for all classes since 1973.
And to boot, this is the third year in the last four
we have won the Alden Trophy. We also, somewhat unexpectedly, won the Chairman’s Trophy for
most dollars raised among classes 11-24 years out.
It means a great deal to say that the Class of 1990
raised enough money to fund the financial aid needs
of five students.”
Dave Bank will now be joining Hilary and Dave P.
as a third co-head agent of our class, while Dave P.
has been tapped to co-chair the entire Alumni Fund
for 2013-15. I imagine the competition for those
trophies will heat up as Dave P. shares his prowess
with other classes, but we welcome the challenge,
right?! And welcome to Dave B., as well, and thank
you for stepping up!
Hope you all had a good summer and will consider
dropping me a line.
1991
Christine Choi, 85 First Place, Brooklyn, NY 11231;
1991secretary@williams.edu
The first responder to my request for news was Joe
Cruz. Turns out it was a big day for him: “Getting
married today, darling, under crystal blue skies
in Williamstown surrounded by family and friends
in Griffin Hall. Margaret Coady ’95 and I will continue to live in lower Manhattan and Williamstown.
I’m unspeakably happy.”
Another Morgan freshman to grow his family is
Kristian Omland: “Our son Aron was born on Feb.
22. He’s great, his big sister Phoebe dotes on him,
and we’re settling into parenting two. That means
we’re tired!”
Fellow Morgan entrymate Michelle Sanders
spent the summer training for the Pan-Mass
Challenge cycling event, which benefited the DanaFarber Cancer Center in Boston. The 27-mile route
said to her: “You can DO this!” She had also hoped
to spend the summer with Jonquil Wolfson and her
daughters.
Louise Price Kelly also raced, in a Spartan Sprint at
Tuxedo Ridge, N.Y., and came in the top 1 percent
for her/our age group. She started her own company,
Glowstone Consulting (http://www.glowstoneconsulting.com), which provides technology and
marketing services to nonprofit organizations. “My
few years of ‘leaning back’ allowed me to get this
business started; my volunteer work in the community helped me identify a market opportunity
and establish a strong network of clients.” Next stop:
Istanbul to visit Lisa Kaestner and “Super Spartan”
in September. Louise’s daughter is graduating from
elementary school, and her twin boys will be going
into fourth grade. While they’re growing up, Louise
strives to be less mature. Good plan, I say. Lisa has
been in Istanbul for nearly three years, “observing
political developments and protests with interest. At
sundown, people bang pots and pans, blow car horns
and generally make noise in support of the protests
at Taksim Square. Otherwise, since we live quite far
from the protests, our lives are not directly affected.”
Professor Darra Goldstein visited Lisa in the winter;
everyone is welcome.
Istanbul was where Ramona Liberoff landed for
work: “A vibrant, cosmopolitan city in the throes of a
skirmish of ideas: Can the secular bourgeois prevail
against an authoritarian regime? It was most odd:
driving along the coast with my colleagues getting
social media alerts and tweets from Taksim Square;
dining at a podh restaurant where precisely at 9 p.m.,
all the diners banged their plates in sympathy with
the protesters. Made me feel very humble and also
lucky to have the freedom to live in a democracy
with rights!”
Sean Watterson emailed from Islamabad, where he
represented the World Bank and worked with the
Securities & Exchange Commission Pakistan, “a bit
of a break from being a bar owner in Cleveland. Griff
Mann and Amanda Mann are moving from
Cleveland: Griff will run the Cloisters and serve as
medieval curator for the Met.”
Betsy Allen-Pennebaker reported that the BBC
reported on Sean’s Happy Dog (reporter goes to a
bar to hear Schumann and Beethoven!). She and
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Andrew Allen have embarked on a “crash course in
parenting. We got certified as foster parents and
have a great young woman (15 years old, smart,
funny, extremely opinionated) living with us part of
each week. Hats off to those who do it full time! I
have no idea how people do it.”
Anyone in Asia Pac? Ellen Highstone Sorensen
and her husband and 3-year-old twins Alex and
Sofia moved to Singapore “to take on the job
of managing director, South East Asia, for Vacheron
Constantin, the Swiss timepiece maker. My territory
includes Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, Philippines,
Vietnam and Singapore. Would be happy to connect
with any Williams alums based here.”
Michael La Porte: “I’ve finally succumbed to the
suburbs of Chicago. The wife and I moved our
31⁄2-year-old daughter Margot and our Scottish
Terrier Simon to the North Shore suburb of
Glencoe and then a month later bought a ‘fixer
upper’ to renovate and move into by Halloween. Had
coffee with Rob Abel on one of his visits to Chicago.
Traded email with Barbara Kircheimer pondering the relationship between her and one of my
new neighbors, also a Kircheimer—none apparent.
Always enjoy reading Tim Hanes’ global warming
activism on FB and Jon Faini’s extremely thoughtful
exploration of the gun control issue, also on FB. Still
chugging away at Flachsbart & Greenspoon—the
names of my two law partners— in our four-man
patent-litigation practice!”
Ray Neufeld moved his family from Connecticut to
NYC: “My wife Julia Whitworth (Dartmouth ’93)
works at St. John the Divine Cathedral, where she
will be named canon for liturgy and the arts this fall.
We are living on the Cathedral Close with three kids
(Liam, 7, Gregory, 41⁄2, and Grace, 2).” Ray works in
TV as a freelance camera crane op and video utility
and was designing the set for Stonington Opera
House’s production of Cymbeline on Deere Isle,
Maine, while scouting a NYC studio for drawing
and sculpting.
Anna Bardone-Cone teaches, among other classes,
“abnormal psychology (which I never took at
Williams being a math/French major—took intro
psych my senior year—crazy things can happen!)”
at UNC (Chapel Hill). After a summer of travel to
Chicago, Wisconsin (where she and her husband
attended graduate school and met) and Ecuador,
Anna began “a five-year study that focuses on eating disorders (with a focus on how to best define
recovery).”
Did you catch Stein Soelberg interviewed for
winning the NCAA bracket in Time magazine by
Joel Stein, who by judging from his unprintable filth
about Williams, is either a Canadian or Stanfordian?
Deb Tomaselli and Chris Aylott live in central Texas,
where “the summer reading program is keeping
her hopping at the San Marcos Library, and I’m in
the middle of designing a game for Disney Mobile.
Meanwhile the kids are rampaging through summer camps and daycare. We also just celebrated the
summer round of birthdays and anniversaries with a
weekend at Bastrop State Park, where the CCCbuilt cabins are cool, the grill is hot, and the wildlife
is overly friendly.”
Barry Clifford hinted of a quiet summer: “Maybe
Ohio to ride roller coasters at some point, maybe
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hiking in New Hampshire with a friend from
b-school.”
Leila Jere and Melissa Fenton attended the spring
meeting of the Executive Committee of the Society
of Alumni. Leila reports that Melissa “gave an
amazingly creative exit with a song, accompanied
by mandolin, and got everyone to sing along. While
the EC is losing Melissa, we will gain another ’91-er
as Mary Moule begins her three-year term on the
committee. EC-ers had lunch with students as part
of the Life After Williams series and attended the
Daring Change seminars, which offered a look
back at Jack Sawyer’s ’39 era. I learned a lot and
was reminded yet again of how little I was paying
attention to much of anything while a student. I also
ran into Sara Dubow in Paresky.” Leila organized an
annual Palm Springs trip with Heidi Beebe, Heather
Martinez ’89 and others.
Providence, R.I.-based Kathi Fisler was back on
campus with Mike Cox and Erik Sebesta for the 25th
anniversary of the computer science department: “A
fun weekend of talks from CS alums (students and
faculty) from across the years, it was fun to see folks
who aren’t in the same five-year reunion cohort for a
change.” Kathi met up with Mark Henderson, Karen
Kristiansson “and their (rapidly growing!) girls” in
California and is spending her sabbatical “running
after my preschooler, Tara, who has just learned
to ride her bicycle without training wheels—good
workout!—and doing outreach work with middleand high-school computer science education.” Kathi
reports that Amy Butler Greenfield’s latest book
came out in May: “It’s in the youth fantasy genre, set
in 17th-century England. The book is the first in a
trilogy coming out in the next couple of years. The
book page is at http://bit.ly/15s9jdg.”
In her dream job working with Bonnie
Raitt, Molly Foehl gets to travels to Australia and
New Zealand (site of a wonderful dinner with Amy
Beliveau and family) and spent the summer in
Europe: “I am thoroughly enjoying working with
one of my musical heroes!” Home is Oakland, but
the Berkshires remain close to her heart because her
family, including head of the alumni office Brooks
Foehl ’88, lives in Williamstown: “My nephew Taylor
Foehl ’14 finished his junior year at Williams, where
he was a JA in Williams F. It was so fun to visit his
dorm room last year and have many fond memories of Williams E and the Freshman Quad come
bubbling back. I am also lucky to visit with Kathleen
Judge Igoe, my freshman-year roommate, and run
into other fun ’91 folks who live there including Rob
Abel and Ann Marie Marvin Swann.” Kathy (Munchmeyer) Kendall reported a miniSage C reunion: “Katherine (Stearns) Sprenger, Pam
(Volpe) Jelaca, Shauna (Steele) Powell and Alejandra
(Fernandez) Stavrinides visited me in Falmouth,
Mass. We had a wonderful time relaxing, checking out Cape Cod and reminiscing and even had
Facetime conversations with Pete McEntegart and
John Faini.”
Steve Martin forwarded an email from the
Williams College Summer Theatre Lab, pointing
out that Erica Dankemeyer was featured in a trivia
question. (“With which dance company did Erica
dance before coming to teach at Williams?”) What is
he up to? “Raising chickens and family doctoring in
1991–92
Northfield, just an hour from the Village Beautiful!”
After a scare with deep vein thrombosis and
massive pulmonary embolisms, I am back on my
feet, traveling regularly from Brooklyn to Chicago
(site of our first Virgin Hotel) and Newark (where
my friend Shavar Jeffries after improving the school
district with KIPP charter schools, is running for
mayor). Evan Buxbaum and his lovely wife Valerie,
Stef Andemichael, Damion Luaiye and Jim Kutscher
and I enjoyed a warm gathering on a cold NYC
winter night, and my summer began with a stroll
with India Amos, who mentioned an app that tracks
good habits: we decided to try 15 minutes/day of
virtuousness. Low bar, high yield.
1992
Heidi Sandreuter, 130 West 79th St., #11A, New York,
NY 10024; 1992secretary@williams.edu
It seems like I am not the only one who is feeling
a bit more creaky these days. Don’t get me wrong—
I am incredibly thankful to have the privilege of
aging. It’s just interesting how many of us now feel
compelled to share stories on this topic. For example,
Denise Royal explained that her daughter finishing
up kindergarten and becoming a first grader “totally
makes me feel old. I can’t imagine how I’d feel if she
was a teenager!” Denise realized that she may even
be in denial about being in her 40s when telling a
friend about someone she had met: “He asked me if
he was our age and I said, ‘No, he’s a little older than
us, maybe in his early 40s?’ My friend just gave me a
funny look and then I realized ‘CRAP! WE’RE in
our early 40s! So yeah, I guess he’s about our age.’”
Funny how it sneaks up on you.
As does a hip replacement. Andrew Everett wondered if he might be the first classmate to have a
joint replaced: “I had my hip replaced in mid-April.
As of this writing, six weeks later I am already back
to 75 percent to 80 percent and making amazing
progress daily.” Since this is Andrew Everett, LAX
season was not to be missed. The man had “lots of
fun” coaching the local boys’ seventh-/eighth-grade
team and helping with his daughter’s first-/secondgrade co-ed team. Andrew and his new hip even
helped his own team win the local B league tourney.
Andrew and his wife Elise (Newhall) Everett ’94
moved near my childhood best friend, Becky Castle,
when relocating from Seattle to Vermont. Even
though she helped Middlebury beat Williams more
than once, they have realized Becky’s a good egg
with some great little girls to love (and babysit) the
littlest Everetts.
Another “gray hair” point was made by Jay
Emerson when he called out that this is the year of
our 25th high school reunions. Jay is “still mucking
about at Yale, now working on a book tentatively
titled R is for Racing.” He frequently sees Ben
Northrup walking around the neighborhood.
Despite being in our 40s, we’re still procreating
quite well. Tom Warren shared news that Chris Pare
just had his second child, Eliza, in May. Charles
Picard and his wife Deanna Zibello ’98 had their first
child, Alexander Daniel Picard, in March. “We’re
calling him Xander for now, but we chose Alexander
because it gives him a wealth of nicknames to pick
from when he’s old enough to care about such
things.” The Picards are in Spokane, Wash., since
Deanna will be teaching for another year at Gonzaga
University. Pavel Shlossberg ’96 recently joined the
faculty at Gonzaga, so he and his wife Christina Li
’95 hang out with the Picards frequently.
Thomas LaPorte has two announcements: “After
five years out of the game, we had another baby girl,
Leah Colette La Porte, on March 23. It was an early
birthday present for her brother Noah and her sister
Hannah. And, since we didn’t feel like a newborn
was enough stress, six weeks later we packed our
bags and headed to Shanghai, PRC, for an advance
visit to look at schools and housing in anticipation
of being relocated in the summer. For the next three
years we’ll be in Shanghai as I help build a new animation studio as the director of digital operations for
Oriental DreamWorks!” Looking forward to future
tales of the LaP’s in the PRC.
Too bad they just missed Ashley Milliken and her
family, who were traveling through China during
the summer weeks after finishing up their Taipei
adventure. Ashley typed her scoop on a phone while
on a boat to China, explaining how the Millikens
just ended their five months in Taiwan where daughters Perrin, 13, & Carly, 11, “had a chance to be city
kids.” The family hung out in Xiamen before moving
on to Yunnan Province to do some volunteer work.
Then it was off to Beijing to reconnect with some
friends from their days as residents in 1994-97. By
September the Millikens should be firmly planted
back in Vermont.
Chris Gemignani and his family are on the move:
“We’re pulling up the deepest, warmest, fuzziest
roots we’ve ever had, keeping them alive and then
making some new ones. We’re moving to Nashville,
Tenn., after six glorious years in Reston, Va.”
The relocation is driven by Chris’s business, Juice
Analytics, and the kids (Zoe, Zachary and Noah)
who have been pressing for their own rooms. “In
Nashville, kids, anything is possible. Anyone want
some of our stuff?” Git your country on, Chris,
because Nashville is f-u-n.
Sean Keilen and his wife Abby moved from
Washington, D.C., to Northern California to start
new jobs in the literature department at UC Santa
Cruz. (Go, Banana Slugs!) Sean writes, “We’re
very happy. Born and raised on the East Coast, I’ve
always been my best self in California, and it’s something of a miracle that these jobs became available.
At work, I have the privilege of spending almost all
of my time with Shakespeare, Ovid, Montaigne and
Freud (the writers whom I love the most). I am also
the provost of Porter College, one of UCSC’s 10
residential colleges and the one devoted to the fine
arts.” Sean —ever the teacher—anticipated, “What’s
a provost? In this context, it would be wrong to think
‘viceroy.’ Instead, think ‘vicar of a small country parish’ or ‘teaching principal of the high school in Fame’
or possibly ‘Dumbledore.’” I’m glad Sean cleared that
up—and made me feel old with the Fame reference that conjured up fond recollections of Bruno
Martelli.
After 20 years in San Francisco, Lon Troyer moved
to Chicago to join his partner Mario. On a recent
trip to NYC, Lon caught up with Liza Johnson “over
a decadently rich brunch in Brooklyn. I spent the
next day trying to walk it off with Brendan Kearse
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in Central Park. Clearly, closer proximity to the East
Coast is already paying dividends.”
Despite claiming that she’s “not terribly interesting at the moment,” Amy Sachtleben has landed
softly back in LA after leaving her job at Disney in
London last summer. In her months off, Amy traveled to Paris, Morocco, Myanmar and the Icehotel
in Sweden (“Ridiculous, I know, but very fun. It was
like an Armstrong late night, only—colder”). In
March, Amy began working at Mattel doing finance
and strategy for its consumer products business.
Amy spends most of her time in Marina del Rey
and is “maybe sort of thinking about getting back in
to rowing. Or not.” Rowing always makes me think
of Susan Snyder, of course, who refused to share
any news about life in Newton, Mass., other than
bragging about her central a/c and having an extra
room for guests (like me) who used to sleep in her
basement.
The scoop that made me most exhausted was from
Dave Toder. Dave’s wife, Colleen (Boland) Toder,
has been homeschooling their six kids, ages 16 to 4,
while he has been busy with his architecture practice,
“including the design of a second zero-net energy
development of homes here in New Paltz. We’ve also
been working on a small renovation/addition on our
house and new garden areas, both of which are looking good. Our eldest is taking driver’s ed and college
courses, three others just performed in a ballet recital,
another will be playing trumpet in a jazz recital, and
another will be testing for his next karate belt. Then
we’re going to the Galapagos for a week with my
parents, which we’re all looking forward to. Life is
full and fun.” And I’m off to take a nap.
Doug Dreffer also has a 16-year-old (seriously?).
“I’m loving life in New Hampshire. My apologies to
New Hampshire-ites I ridiculed as a Massachusetts
snob back in the day. And June marked my 20th
wedding anniversary with Lisa. Since the wedding
was a year after graduation, it was a big Williams
affair. I recall, just before the open bar closed, walking past the boys from Goodrich who had all just
returned from the bar with as much beer as they
could carry. In all seriousness, it was a very special
day with lifelong friends. Gregg Goumas ’92 was
a groomsman. Otherwise, life revolves around our
teenagers Kyla, 16, and Grant, 14. I have thoroughly
enjoyed teaching Kyla to drive, when we can fit it in.
Grant is an avid rock climber, so I’ve learned about
belaying, quickdraws, and ways to avoid injury. Last
year I took on the role as residency program director
at the NH Dartmouth Family Medicine Residency
at Concord Hospital. So far, so good.”
Abby Solomon is balancing mothering, acting and
wife-ing as she celebrated her first wedding anniversary on Memorial Day and enjoys parenthood with
her year-old son, Jasper. “I’m still working on various
theater projects. I produced and acted in a show
Off-Broadway earlier this year and will spend this
summer on Cape Cod acting in a Shakespeare play.”
Jillian Hollmann is “still living in my birthplace of
NYC. My ‘community’ here, beyond my immediate
family (which includes my parents and sister, who
still live here too, as well as my husband Mark and
sons Oliver and Tucker), is really the families at
Oliver’s school (P.S. 87, our local public elementary
school), who remind me of the Williams community
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in their simultaneous diversity (in terms of background, talents and interests) and uniformity (in
terms of their commitment to community, openness
and service). Although I’ve been a therapist for a
while, I only recently found my niche and discovered
that what I really love doing is coaching parents who
worry a lot about whether they are doing what’s
best for their kids (by giving them the most effective
tools to deal with their particular concerns, so they
can worry less and enjoy their time with their kids
more!).”
On the topic of helping parents, Sallie Han has
just published Pregnancy in Practice: Expectation and
Experience in the Contemporary U.S. “A fine read for
anyone who has been, is, will be pregnant or knows
someone who has been, is, or will be pregnant or
wants to teach it to undergraduates in cultural
anthropology!”
More classmates experiencing some serious life
adventures include Ken Thomas, who wrote from
Mexico City. Ken is now working for Mexico’s new
opposition party, MORENA, “after two elections
with the ‘leftist’ (I cringe at that a little) candidate
Lopez Obrador.” And Dan Brayton was living
with his family aboard a 36-foot wooden ketch in
Woods Hole, Mass., this past June while teaching
a summer program for Sea Education Association.
“This is my idea of a working vacation. Just before
we headed down to Woods Hole, my daughter
Nell, 7, and son Nico, 11, had a great time playing
with Tess, 8, daughter of Andrew Everett and Elise
(Newhall) Everett ’94, who live just up the road from
us in Shelburne, Vt.” Dan was quite impressed with
Andrew’s quick mastery of the local brew scene.
After the SEA program, Dan planned to be back in
Vermont, “where my crew and I will keep sailing …
on smaller bodies of water and in smaller boats.”
Kristen Forbes and her husband Steve Calhoun
(Dartmouth ’93) have been spending time in
London, a temporary stay required by Steve’s finance
work. Hopefully Kristen, an MIT/Sloan professor, is taking a break from breaking new ground
in economics and enjoying wearing Wellies in the
rain with her three kids, Leighton, 7, Griffin, 6, and
Rowan, 4. Candace Kelly, U.S. attorney extraordinaire, has finished up an assignment that landed
her in DC yet again. By the time these notes go to
press, Candace may be back swimming in the San
Francisco Bay without a wetsuit. And Kerr Houston
celebrated his 11th year of teaching at the Maryland
Institute College of Art by spending a few lazy
evenings at Camden Yards, watching the emergence
of Manny Machado. He then went to Venice in
June, shepherding 14 students from Torcello to the
Biennale and from gelateria to pasticceria. Yum.
Contributing to the “Hell Has Frozen Over”
section of notes, Bill McKinley is doing (and liking)
yoga, likely ironing-out remaining Ironman kinks.
Billy and his better half, Jen (Plansky) McKinley,
keep it real in Lexington, Mass., where they ponder
how to navigate the technological landscape with
three growing (and amazing) daughters, Emily and
Katie, 13, and Annie, 10.
Thanks to everyone for sharing your scoop and
keeping us all better connected. Brumberg, what is
up in your Queens corner of neuropsychology?
Go Cows.
1992–93
1993
Anne Conrad Hummel, 5 Bittersweet Court, Centerport,
NY 11721; 1993secretary@williams.edu
Submitted by outgoing secretary Chad Orzel: I wasn’t
able to arrange to be in an airport for my final edition of the Class Notes, but I’m sitting down with
a beer that I charged myself $8 for (which I will
endeavor to keep from spilling all over my keyboard),
after removing my belt and shoes, so it’s almost like
being in a Chili’s at BWI. Only not.
It’s been a busy five years—when I sat down to
write my first installment of these, my daughter was
barely a month old, and by the time you see this,
she’ll be starting kindergarten, and her little brother
will be almost 2. Just for kicks, because I’m a science
nerd and like numbers, I went back through all my
Class Notes files to get some figures on just how
eventful the last five years have been: I’ve had the
honor of reporting on nine weddings and a whopping 76 births (36 boys and 40 girls). Those tallies
include a few very recent additions: Roz Moxon
attended Guy Nachtomi’s wedding to Kimberly Beal
in April in LA with Hilary O’Rourke Wynperle and
Jennifer Weiss Blecker; Tim Pinto and his wife Jamie
had a son, Evan, in April, and thanks to Facebook
I can confirm that he’s very cute. Greg Locroft and
his wife Anna welcomed Lucas Deeny Locroft on
June 3, and Camille Preston and Mark Newhall (one
of the aforementioned nine weddings) had a son,
Preston B. Newhall, on June 11, just two days after
our reunion.
Those new kids provided an excellent excuse for
Tim, Greg and Camille to miss the reunion, but
about 140 of us (plus a double handful of spouses
from other classes) turned up in Williamstown
in early June to take over the Frosh Quad. While
Friday’s dreary rain demonstrated just how much
difficulty incoming class president Tom Kimbis
will have coordinating the first fully solar-powered
reunion in 2018, the skies cleared somewhat on
Saturday, and an excellent time was had by nearly
everyone.
Of course, having an excellent time is not entirely
compatible with accurate class secretary journalism,
but I’ll do my best. As with previous reunions, the
weekend was a nice mix of getting to see people I
hung out with regularly in college—meeting Luke
Shullenberger’s son Cole, who would hit it off great
with my daughter (within 10 seconds of meeting
me, he was playing Whack-a-Mole with my feet);
watching Chris Wolf employ economic incentives
with his son Alexander; seeing Jen Galbraith Ryan
and Dave Ryan ’92 chase their daughter Penny
around the dance floor; reminiscing about Gurgle
and telling stories about science grad school with
Dave Young and Ethan Marin—and spending more
time with some other people over the course of one
weekend than I did during the four years we lived
within a mile of one another. I particularly enjoyed
talking with Mike Wynn and his wife Vicki, and
Kerrita Mayfield was good enough to write down an
update for me, that I promptly lost (the gist was that
she’s recovering well from major surgery and doing
outstanding work with anti-bullying programs at
the education school of UMass in Amherst). And,
of course, the crowd was just big enough that there
were people I almost didn’t see at all—had I not
swung by the Snack Bar to get a Coke on my way
out of town, I would’ve completely missed talking to
Jen Weiss and Roz Moxon O’Connor.
Like a good science geek, I spent a fair amount of
time talking to other physics and astronomy majors
from back in the day. Jonathan Young started a job
running the Internet operations of the National
Geographic Society, so if you’d like a discount on
tickets to the Galapagos Islands, well, he probably
can’t help you, but it couldn’t hurt. Dan Robb recently
moved from Berry College in Georgia to Roanoke
College in western Virginia, and his wife Natalia is
teaching at Washington & Lee University just up
the road. Dan also got up at 7 a.m. Saturday for the
bird walk in Hopkins Forest with Mark Mossey, a
concept that I found kind of mind-boggling, not
exactly being ambulatory at that hour. Dan also
heard second-hand about Paul Hausladen, who is
working at Oak Ridge National Lab with one of
Dan’s new colleagues (who described Haus as “a
unique and funny individual,” so we know he’s got
the right guy. Trevor Pound was in from Ottawa,
and we exchanged border-crossing stories (I came
directly to the reunion from a physics conference in
Quebec). Kevin Greenberg and Karen Greenberg
were in from Philadelphia, and Kevin did a good
job of navigating some historical awkwardness.
Alex Bump apparently narrowly edged out Adam
Stegeman for the longest trip to reunion, as he lives
a few miles farther east in England. Matt Smith
wasn’t a physics or astronomy major but graciously
tolerated some jokes about him stepping down from
playing Dr. Who that were only funny to the cardcarrying geeks, so he deserves a mention here.
There wasn’t a very big rugby contingent present,
but I did spend a while catching up with Mary
Refermat and Margaret Wang. And a couple months
previous, I came over the mountains for a memorial
event in honor of Jon Siegelbaum ’95, where I saw
a bunch of rugby players from later classes—Colin
Sellar ’94, Derek Kuhl ’95 and Brad Svrluga ’95
(who was good enough to provide crash space), Dan
Ionascu ’96, and George Watson ’97 and Ian Synnott
’97.
For want of a more coherent narrative, here are
some scattered other recollections from the weekend:
talking with Jon Birknes about the surprising connections between neurosurgery and dairy farming,
and with Jon and Sean Rorke about Rob Neviaser
(new linebackers’ coach at Bowling Green) and Paul
Minnefor (who is an attorney in New Jersey, and
also sent me a Facebook message after the reunion
noting that while he wasn’t able to make the reunion,
he had been to a football event in April with Dean
Pignatare, Sean Rorke, Brian Prendergast, Todd
Machnik ’94, Adam Cefalo ’94, Brad Kroh ’94, Tom
Castiello ’94, Mike Hlatki ’95, Gerry Keegan ’95, Eric
Minkwitz ’96 and Ethan Brooks ’96); my jokingly
announcing Jon Nasser as the next class secretary
on Facebook, which was a little awkward to explain
to him the next day; talking with Raj Purohit and
Sandeep Patel for the first time since they used to
exercise total control over the thermostat in Wood;
Dave Nickoll reporting that he’s working on a project
with Queen Latifah; Dave Kensinger had recently
received my books as a birthday gift from his wife,
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Beth Kensinger; several of us made an ill-omened
trip to Spring Street that I’m going to blame on
Eli Torgeson for no obvious reason; and particular
thanks are due to Derek Catsam’s expert services as
a mediator. When last I saw Derek, he was hard at
work brokering a solution to the problem of women
in combat with two active-duty members of the U.S.
military. Andy Lee deserves special mention for making a last-minute effort to get to reunion, only to be
thwarted by the airlines.
As I said, it was an excellent time, and huge thanks
are due to Jamie Art and Kate Brill, who pulled the
whole thing together for us. Other than Friday’s
weather (which wasn’t in their direct control, but
kudos to Kate for providing us all with umbrellas),
everything came off without a hitch.
Believe it or not, there was also news that didn’t
revolve around three days in Williamstown. In the
“sarcasm gets results” file, Dan Yu responded to his
joking mention in the last Class Notes by writing in
to say that he’s “spent time working on the iPhone
and iPad for Apple, worked on a number of movies
for Dreamworks Animation, and yet [I] don’t feel
like I’ve accomplished what I want to accomplish
yet.” That’s probably a good indicator that we’re not
all over the hill yet. Though we’re probably nearing
the top of that metaphorical hill, as Erik Jacobsen
writes that he missed the reunion due to a European
vacation (among other things, visiting Jennifer Austin
Flanigan ’91 in Paris) to celebrate his oldest daughter’s high school graduation. Also checking in from
Europe was Nancy Rodriguez, working in below-sealevel real estate in the Netherlands with “three boys
speaking fluent Dutch (me, still trying my best).”
Closer to Williamstown, Bridget Conry writes
that she’s managing the Haven Bakery and Café
in Lenox these days and expanding to Great
Barrington. She’s been studying herbal medicine for
the last decade, and is “putting this knowledge and
experience to good use in the burgeoning cannabis
industry” in Vermont and Massachusetts, and has
7- and 10-year-old daughters, the older of whom
has recently taken up basketball. On the West Coast,
Helene (Wilburn) Lhamon is working as an ER doctor on Whidbey Island north of Seattle and enjoying
the last little while before she’s officially parenting
teenage girls.
We also have two additions to the ever-growing
Class of 1993 Media Empire: Ethan Zuckerman’s
new book, Rewire: Digital Cosmopolitans in the Age of
Connection hit stores just after reunion; Ethan came
to the reunion from an early launch event in NYC.
And Reenita Malhotra has both a book (Forever
Young—Unleashing the Magic of Ayurveda) and an
award-winning radio show, Asian Threads, on RTHK
Radio 3 in Hong Kong. Her show just won the top
award for current affairs at the New York Festivals
International Radio awards, which was ample
justification for a trip to New York for the award
ceremony.
And that’s almost certainly enough news to make
a final edition of the Class Notes. On a personal
note, though, I want to thank everyone who’s said
nice things, both in person and via the Internet,
about the last five years’ worth of reports. I’ve had a
lot of fun writing these up, and I’m glad to hear that
they’re also entertaining for people who aren’t me.
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And I’m grateful for the chance to be a part, however
tangential, of the huge array of activities you’ve all
been sharing with me. Thanks very much for keeping
me plugged in.
And with that, I’ll close out my tenure as class
secretary and pass the metaphorical torch to Anne
Conrad Hummel, who I’m sure will do an excellent
job chronicling the next five years. And I look forward to seeing many of you at the 25th, if not sooner.
1994
REUNION JUNE 12-15
Elizabeth Randolph Rappaport, 9 Killington St.,
Chappaqua, NY 10514; 1994secretary@williams.edu
Summer is here, and it’s sweltering in New York
most days, which makes me somewhat grateful
for my freezing cold office. My kids are happily in
camp, and we planned to head to Boston for a week
at the end of August to visit family and hit some
North Shore beaches. I was recently up in the lower
Berkshires and the breeze made me miss Williams.
Coreen McCool wrote to say she left her consulting job at Monitor Group after 18 years for a job at
Analysis Group, another consulting firm, as the VP
of human resources and recruiting. She is busy with
her three boys, ages 10, 7 and 4. Erik White was on vacation in Sunriver, Ore., where
it rained, but his “Northwest kids” took it in stride,
he said. They rode bikes and visited a lava tunnel and
watched lizards and toads eat crickets at a nature
center. Erik took on a new job as medical director for
his anesthesiologist group. Busy academic bees, our class…
Allyson Hightower wrote to say she is a graduate student at Silberman School of Social Work at
Hunter College, where she teaches and works with
children and special needs children. Allyson plans on
going into the field of play therapy when she finishes
school and will work with children and families.
Jason Poling received his Doctor of Ministry in
June of 2012 from Biblical Theological Seminary. He
caught up with Mike Strauss and Josh Kussman in
Washington, D.C., earlier this spring. Previously he
was in Williamstown to celebrate Professor Robert
Dalzell’s retirement and has reported celebrating
Ravens victories with Mike Strauss last winter at a
“Bengals” bar in DC. “For the record, as we all know
the tablecloth well preceded the cloth for Jason,” he
writes.
Sandy Ryan is earning her master’s degree in mental health counseling from the University of Vermont
at the end of the summer—four years in the making.
She did the program part time and conquered breast
cancer in the process. “I’m pretty excited for what
comes next,” she writes.
Brooklyn’s own Jen Wingate is pleased to announce
the publication of Sculpting Doughboys: Memory,
Gender and Taste in America’s World War I Memorials.
She teaches art history at St. Francis College in
downtown Brooklyn where she lives with husband
Steve Dean and their 5-year-old son John. They had
a visit from Heather Walsh over the July 4 weekend.
Steve and Jen also saw two different productions of a
great new play, The Ultimate Stimulus, by Felipe Ossa. Cynthia Sharpe is living in Kansas and telecommuting to California. She makes theme parks and
has recently worked on creating the Warner Bros.
1993–95
Movie Studio Tour London: The Making of Harry
Potter. She says she has “the best job ever, getting
paid to make nerdy dreams come awesomely true.”
Cynthia says her 10-year-old daughter just finished
fourth grade but dreams of going to her father’s alma
mater, Cornell. She said: “I need to even the score.”
Brett Schneider is moving to Providence, R.I., to
take up a professorship at the Rhode Island School
of Design.
Kirsten Rose writes from Williamstown, where
she lives with her husband and 8-year-old daughter
and works as the children’s librarian in town. “What
could be more glamorous than doing the hokeypokey at story time with a huge gang of toddlers
and pushing Harry Potter books at the older kids?”
she asked, adding that she loves small town life way
more than “I ever thought I would.”
Between hikes and breaking up “plunger wars”
between her 9- and 6-year-old boys, Amanda Ward
is typing up ideas for a new novel in Ouray, Colo.,
where she is spending the summer. She also has a
1-year-old girl who she spends much time trying to
get to sleep for naps.
Another Eph in transit, Adam Scheer, and his
family are moving to the San Francisco Bay area to
take an expanded role with JDS Uniphase, where he
develops and markets anti-counterfeiting technologies. He will live just north of the Golden Gate
Bridge in Tiburon, where he hopes to catch up with
local alums.
Denise Molina wrote to say she and Dominic Ellis,
who live in London, had dinner at St. John’s Bread
and Wine with Tibisay Salerno, who was visiting.
She also ran into Andreas Zapf and his daughter at a
local farmers’ market.
1995
Anamaria Villamarin-Lupin, 535 Arabella St., New
Orleans, LA 70115; Nancy O’Brien Wagner, 1049
Linwood Ave., Saint Paul, MN 55105; 1995secretary@
williams.edu
Dear friends, greetings from Minnesota!
First, the good news: Jen Rork sends news from
Williamstown that Cady Rork Craig was born
March 18 and is as sweet as can be. Jen vouches that
adjusting to having three kids is going quite well.
This fall will bring a new shift as big sister Adelyn
will be starting kindergarten in the same class as
Sarah Brill’s twins Molly and Paige Cangelosi and
Brad Svurluga’s son Will.
Lara (Cooper) Edwards sent word that Cooper
William Edwards was born on May 6. Lara jokes,
“You can decide whether naming our kids after
ourselves speaks to our narcissism or our inability to
come up with anything more creative. So far, he is an
easy-going baby and is happily tolerating excessive
face-kissing from his 2-year-old sister Paige and
excessive face-licking from his canine big brother
Bogart.”
Mahri Relin sends news of her new business,
Body Conceptions by Mahri. “I started it in
March 2012 doing exclusively private training,
and we began offering public classes in Tribeca in
January. We’ve already been named ‘One of the
Best Body-Sculpting Workouts in the Country’ by
Vogue and were profiled recently in Dujour Magazine,
Dance Spirit Magazine and Well+Good. We are also
currently featured in the cover article for Fitness
Magazine. I’m so excited about these developments,
and I’m looking forward to creating a growing wellness identity in and out of the city.”
Paul Boxer writes “I am still on the faculty at
Rutgers University, not knowing whether to laugh or
cry about the national scandals that keep hitting our
central administration. Having tenure has allowed
me to stay focused on my passion for improving care
for kids in the justice system. To that end I have been
working on research funded by the U.S. Department
of Justice evaluating services for gang-involved kids.
My wife is tenured at Montclair State, and we’ve
been collaborating on research on adolescent development. We just moved with our three kids (7, 5 and
almost 2) to Livingston, and my son is delighted by
the groundhog who resides in our backyard and the
deer who wander over from the nearby park.”
David Lee had a busy week in June traveling the
West coast. “Was fortunate enough to have dinner
with Joe Pew and Mopsie Pepper and their two
adorable daughters up in Seattle. I went to Palm
Springs and 105-degree heat for Adam Nagata’s
wedding. I got to see Rami Batniji, Chris Murphy,
Jay Ashton, Gretchen Engster, Matt Aselton ’93, Alex
Shawe, Jessie Price, John Streng and Andrew Nagata
’97.” Apparently, the heat was so extreme that most
people ended up in the pool. Fun!
Mark Cordes and fiancée Virginie have been
enjoying life and travel in the Northwest, fitting is
some water sports fun at Lake Chelan, camping
on the Olympic Peninsula and urban adventures
in Portland, Ore. “It’s amazing that it’s all in such a
compact area!”
Greg Crowther sends a note that Pam Proffit Smith
won America’s most prestigious ultramarathon, the
(100-mile) Western States Endurance Run, in June.
She became the second Eph to win this race, the
other being three-time victor Nikki Kimball ’93. “In
a message a few months ago I referred to myself as
the self-appointed class distance runner; however, in
light of Pam’s success at Western States, the world
100K championships, etc., the title really belongs
to her.” He signs off, “Greg Crowther, class distance
runner, emeritus.”
Lisa Siraganian wrote, “This May I had a chance to
chat with our former prez Francis Oakley about the
Williams-Exeter Programme he initiated (and some
of us experienced). He was receiving an honorary
degree from SMU, nominated by one of my colleagues English professor Willard Spiegelman ’66.”
Sheri Esteban-Elie and Teresa Rodriguez both
wrote to report a lovely reunion, sans kids or spouses
for themselves and Archana Unni Tamoshunas, Missy
Pearlman MacMillan, Ammu Ramakrishnan Kirtane
and Rachel Levinson-Waldman. The goal was to “celebrate our 40th birthdays this year (well, mostly this
year—Rachel Levinson-Waldman is a young ’un). We
met up in Boston and had an amazing time doing
lots of fun things and having a chance to catch up.
It was kind of like being in college again—staying
up too late talking!” Sheri sent a picture, too, which
shows six beautiful women having a great time.
Brad Svrluga wrote about a similar event on the
other side of the country. Being a Doughty-Housecentered event, there was a striper involved. “Most
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notable, in honor of our collective 40th birthdays,
and under the capable and inspired leadership of
Brett Dalke, my housemates from Doughty House
and I spent five days on a 75-foot houseboat in Lake
Powell, Utah, over Memorial Day weekend. Those in
attendance: Meech Ackah, John Berkley, Brett Dalke,
Brian Eng, Randall Friedman, Grant Harbison, Chris
Oleks, Dave Rowland and John Ruder. Beautiful
weather, great company, lots of stripers biting and
great memories. We’ll be back.” Brad reports his
regularly scheduled life in Billsville continues to
satisfy, though making it work requires weekly trips
to NYC for a few days. “But that’s a happy and satisfying balance. We just finished hosting Becky Poate
Schaffler, her husband Michael and their adorable
kids Lucas and Lilly for a long weekend and Wilco’s
Solid Sound Festival, which takes place each year at
MASS MoCA in North Adams. Becky and family
live in LA, where she and Michael practice law.
We spent a lot of time over the weekend with Ali
Garbarini ’94 and Micah Singer ’94. Ali is a professor
in the history department at Williams, and Micah is
an entrepreneur.”
FlorenceMae Waldron celebrated her 40th birthday
in May with a 40-mile bike ride. “Thanks to pregnancies/newborn babies/etc. over the past several
years, this was the first time I’ve done a ‘birthday ride’
since I rode 35 miles for my 35th, and despite being
early in the summer riding season, it was a fabulous
ride and a fabulous way to celebrate. Closed out the
month by celebrating our fifth wedding anniversary,
for which my husband gave me a lovely silver pendant of a bicyclist that was custom-designed by the
same local jeweler who (besides being an avid biker
herself ) custom-designed our wedding bands.”
As for myself, I took the low-effort approach to
the big Four-Oh. Dave and I planned to pack up
the three kids in the minivan to drive to Mount
Rushmore for the 4th of July. That plan sounded
really smart in June, but on the eve of the trip (as I’m
writing these notes), I’m thinking this isn’t such a
low-key idea after all. I’ll let you know how it goes,
unless, of course, my long-term memory dissolves
once I actually do turn 40. In that case, just assume
it was great.
And for the sad news: As our class notes were
being collected, Eric Roiter and Neil Glass wrote to
pass on the news of our classmate Geoff Quinn’s
death on June 21 in a San Diego hospital with
his parents and brother by his side. Geoff fought
a courageous two-and-a-half-year battle against
an aggressive sarcoma tumor condition that had
been diagnosed in November 2010. Neil wrote,
“Throughout the fight, we marveled at Geoff ’s
ability to be completely selfless and thoughtful while
maintaining his faith. For the past five years, Geoff
had been studying at Gordon Conwell Theological
Seminary outside of Boston. He was working toward
a Master of Divinity when his symptoms began.
While at Williams, Geoff excelled in the pool, being
named a two-time All American swimmer. He will
be deeply missed.”
As the news spread, many of you wrote to me to
express your sadness. Geoff was a lovely soul, and
he touched a lot of people, including myself. As
Owen Bittinger noted, we have lost too many of our
classmates too soon. We’re 40 now, and far enough
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from our youth to marvel at the beauty, strength and
optimism that we witlessly carried each day. Yet still,
we are 40 now—midway through this adventure and
finally graced with some awareness of those blessings
we’ve got. That’s a good thing. Take care of yourself,
keep in touch, and call a fellow Eph this week.
1996
Lesley Whitcomb Fierst, 50 Scottsdale Drive,
Fredericksburg, VA 22405; 1996secretary@williams.edu
By the time you all read this, to paraphrase
Florence + the Machine, summer’s dog days will
be over, the dog days will be done, and for me,
personally, at least, the horses indeed are coming.
But more on that later. Mark Rudolph gets to be first,
because he complimented my plea for contributions.
“I enjoyed the video you sent so much that you have
convinced me to send in a brief blurb. Regrettably,
just like the two people in the video, I have nothing
much of substance to say. I moved to Duxbury,
Mass., last year from Plymouth. I remain a forensic
psychiatrist who also maintains a part-time clinical
practice. I have finally reached the point in my career
where I can be somewhat picky about which forensic
cases I take, and this is certainly a blessing. Other
than watching the Williams College Reunion Jazz
Band play, I have had no known recent sightings
of fellow alumni (though I am expecting this will
change right around your news cut-off date). In
March, however, I did meet up with Professor of
Music Emeritus Kenneth Roberts, with whom I
have kept in contact since graduation, at a Boston
Symphony Orchestra performance.”
Speaking of long-lost classmates, Emine Fetvaci
wrote, “Sorry I have not sent any news in a long,
long time, but I hope to make up for that this time
around. 2013 has been an exceptionally productive year for me Not only has my book come out
(Picturing History at the Ottoman Court, Indiana
University Press, 2013), but it has already been
translated into Turkish, too. A volume of essays
on Ottoman history that I and a colleague edited
together has also appeared in the last week. Most
importantly, though, my husband Daniel and I
welcomed our baby girl Dilara on May 3. Dilara is a
sweet little darling and quickly taking charge of our
lives!” And Danny Kim wrote, “I haven’t contributed
in a while, but I figured this was as good a time as
any to do so. The big news is that I’m getting married (!) June 15. I might not have time before your
deadline to provide a blow-by-blow, so I’ll give you
the ‘expected’ details now. Anyway, I’m getting married in Columbus, Ohio, to Meagan Toohey (whom
I met in law school at UVA). The ’96 contingent
is expected to include: AJ (Bernheim) Brush and
Mike Brush, Peter Everett, Bryan Greenhouse, Allie
(Verderber) Herriott, Jared Hughes, Kyle Nagle,
Barbara Shreve and Janet (Alter) Stocco. And, my
best man will be my brother (Matthew Kim ’01).
After the wedding, we’ll head to Bermuda for our
honeymoon. Meagan got her fill of legal practice and
is now an academic adviser at OSU. I’m still toiling
away at DOJ. Unfortunately, for the time being, that
means that we continue our long-distance relationship. Here’s to hoping that the Columbus legal market can stand to absorb one more lawyer—and soon!”
1995–96
Holly (Hodgson) Stephens recently finished her
first year of teaching and first year back at work after
being a stay-at-home mom for six years—“Definitely
nice to be back in the classroom! Fun Eph visits
lately from Jen (Nicholson) Todd and Jon Todd, Brian
Spitzer and Laura Massie ’99, and Dawn Biehler-Day
’97 and Nathan Day ’97. Much fun was had by all
progeny at the zoo and pool. Narrowly missed seeing Jen Suesse due to pink eye (ugh) but continue
to enjoy weekly Kate Nights with Kate Marquis.”
Kudos to Holly for her careful drafting—you can’t
tell who had the pink eye. (Reminds me of the time
a couple of years ago when I picked up my daughter
Aviva from preschool and she said to me, “Mommy,
I think I have junkatitis.” I had to hold back the
laughter as I asked her if she meant conjunctivitis.)
Speaking of discolored eyes, in June, Lydia
(Vermilye) Weiss and James Weiss hosted a rockin’
cocktail party with many Ephs in attendance. (Get
it?) Wes Smedley and his wife Lori, Henry Shinn
and his wife Heather, Mary (Booth) Dwight ’97, Jim
Heyes and his wife Julie, Sarah Greenberger and her
husband Matt Engel, and Eyal and I all were able to
ditch the kids, swig some drinks and enjoy a warm
but not sweltering DC summer evening. Sarah
is working as counsel for the Department of the
Interior, and she and Matt recently had a daughter,
Eliza, who joins their 4-year-old son Toby. Lydia
(Vermilye) Weiss is working hard for our natural
resources as a lobbyist for the Alaska Wilderness
League, and Wes is an Episcopal priest just across
the Potomac in northern Virginia. I didn’t get to talk
shop with Henry or Mary, but I did get to see an
adorable video of Henry’s twin boys.
In June, Peter Goddard was ordained and became
a deacon at the Myrtle Baptist Church in West
Newton, Mass. Once again, like the last Goddard
update, this did not come to me from Peter himself
but from his dad/PR agent Brooks Goddard ’63.
(Does Peter send in updates on his dad to his dad’s
class secretary?) And Elizabeth Waugh-Duford submitted her own exciting news. “First, I got married
to Tom Duford on April 13. It’s a second marriage
for both of us, and we had a very sweet outdoor
ceremony with just our families. All four of our kids
participated and were adorable (as usual). Tiffany
Steinwert was our officiant, and it was so wonderful
to have her bless our marriage! Her sons Grady, 3,
and Henry, 1, were very helpful, and husband Josh
was a trooper throughout despite being on crutches!
So, I am now Elizabeth Waugh-Duford (I promise
this is the LAST name change, ever), and I have
two stepchildren, Ben, 7, and Olivia, 5, along with
my two daughters, Stella Rose, 6, and Callie, 4. It’s
a total madhouse around here but full of fun (most
of the time, anyway!). Second, Tom and I went up to
the Boston area to visit his family, and I caught up
with Jen Fain Greenwold, her husband Simon and
their two children Molly and Henry; and with Kelly
Beard and her girlfriend Sarah, who is awesome. Jen
continues to work as a psychiatrist in Cambridge,
and Kelly is in divinity school in Newton. I always
love seeing my Williams friends—there’s truly nothing like that bond.” Agreed! Speaking of the bond of Williams friendships,
Alice (Borden) Peterson wrote, “Ali (Poett) Sullivan’s
husband decided she deserved to get away for her
39th birthday, and Kasia (Sullivan) Horner, Sonia
Ocasio and I were happy to support the cause. The
four of us spent the weekend in Miami, where lots
of chatting made it clear we should be doing this
much more often and the TRX class made it clear
that we are no longer as coordinated or physically fit
as we were when living in Dennett 130. We missed
Margaret (Howell) Lawrence, who was in the process
of moving to a beautiful new house in Brookline,
Mass., and Katie Hyde, who happened to have
another trip to sunny LA planned for Ali’s birthday
weekend.”
Speaking of girls’ getaways, Porter (Harris) May,
Robin (Keller) Elliott and I had one of our own in
May. (Karen (Robinson) Coyle was supposed to
join us but couldn’t make it at the last minute.) We
headed to Bronxville, N.Y., where Porter and her
family have lived for the past several years, though
we did head into NYC for the day, sans kids—which
means we got to do things like try on clothes in
store dressing rooms without kids either opening the
door or ducking under the locked door and out of
the dressing room when you’re the least clothed. It
was wonderful to catch up with the girls again. The
following month, Porter moved back to Winchester,
Mass., where she had lived shortly after we graduated from Williams, but this time with her husband
Peter and their three kids, Savannah, 6, Henry, 4,
and Scarlett, 1. In other fellow mama news, Tonia
Lopez-Fresquet began her update with an apology:
“I wanted to update you last time, I really did, but
my son Russell was born on Jan. 23 and somehow I
didn’t manage it. He’s a wonderful, cheerful baby, and
thankfully a much better sleeper than his big sister
was. Still, caring for two little kids is keeping me
(delightfully) busy. Betsy Rosenblatt ’95 is an honorary aunt, and we see her regularly, but otherwise I’m
really missing more chances to see my Williams
friends. More of you need to visit Los Angeles!”
Speaking of California, “Things are going great
here!” wrote Katie Sawyer Rose. “Two exciting work
happenings: I got a commission to silkscreen a
bank of floor-to-ceiling windows at a new apartment building going up on Nob Hill, San Francisco.
They saw my work on California native plants and
thought it was a good fit for the view out to the
courtyard. (So now I’m learning to silkscreen!) I’ve
also been accepted for a residency at Vermont Studio
Center. I’ll be up there in September, and I’m looking forward to taking a day trip down to Williams!” So I joked in the opening paragraph that the
horses are coming. After 15 years in the DC area
and the last seven years in Silver Spring, Md., only
miles from the DC border, my family recently
moved to significantly less urban Fredericksburg,
Va. How much less urban? There is a house just
down the street from us with goats in the yard, and
now that the super hot weather has slowed down,
the horses and cows are often out in the yard of the
house (farm? Do the animals automatically make it
a farm?) around the corner, on our way to my kids’
new school. It’s quite a change. Since that may not
be enough change, I also recently changed jobs, joining the law firm of Troutman Sanders. We are sad
to leave the area (where we’re 15 minutes away from
Lydia and her adorable family!), but I’m excited for
our new ’hood and to get more settled at work and at
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home. Let me know if you’re in the Fredericksburg/
Richmond area; looking forward to hearing from
you all soon.
1997
Jeff Zeeman, Department of Justice, 1400 New York
Ave., N.W., Washington, DC 20005; 1997secretary@
williams.edu
Through the first half of 2013, creativity is the
name of the game for the class. Several folks have
written in to report on the rave reviews Fiona
Maazel’s new novel, Woke up Lonely, has received,
as well as to note the thrill of seeing it featured at
their local bookstore. Meanwhile, Brian Slattery has
earned plaudits of his own, as in March his novel
Lost Everything won the Philip K. Dick award for
distinguished science fiction. Sumi Loundon Kim
is writing a fourth book, a Buddhist-meditative
curriculum for parents and children. Drew Bunting’s
first album of children’s music, I Don’t Wanna Brush
My Teeth, was distributed to subscribers of Bobbledy
Books (Matthew Swanson’s and Robbi Behr’s creation) in June. Copies are available at bobbledybooks.
com and on iTunes. Drew managed a second creation this year, as he and his wife welcomed a second
little boy (Eddie) to the world on April 23.
Something must be in the air, because boatloads
of other classmates wrote in with baby news, for
example, Julie Rapaport: “In February, Tom Reid and
I welcomed our respective children, Amity Reid and
Alec Derouin, into the world. Though they were due
the same date, Alec beat Amity by about two weeks.
… The past year has mostly been consumed with
gestating and the results thereof. Alec has already
hiked to the bottom of the Grand Canyon and the
top of Angel’s Landing (in Zion), not that he knew
it. He’s also been to Tahoe (he was aware of that).”
Gigi Saltonstall “hopes that all is well. … My
husband JF and I welcomed a new baby girl on April
25 of this year, Josephine Saltonstall Goldstyn. All
is well, and our older daughter Cordelia is handling
it with as much grace as you can expect from a
2-year-old! I’m taking a few months’ leave from the
landscape architecture practice that I started last year,
SALT Studio, but I’m looking forward to getting
back to work in the fall.”
Luisa (Rios) Heinz had a second baby girl, Elsa,
on April 8. Luisa notes that 4-year-old big sister
Sofia and husband Matt could not have been more
excited, and all are doing well. Lauren Araiza and her
husband Charlie McNamara ’96 adopted a newborn
baby girl at the end of March. They named her Rita
Marisol McNamara, and she is an absolute joy.
Rebecca Hynes checks in from Baton Rouge, La.:
“My child has more love for the class notes than any
alum ever could. She’s 22 months old and calls the
class notes her ‘book,’ which she insists on carrying
everywhere and having read to her. She curls up on
it protectively when she goes to sleep. Future class of
2033 secretary? As for me, I’m still practicing family
law in my solo practice and loving it. It’s great to feel
like I’m helping people through a really hard time
in their lives.” Warning, classmates: now that our
audience extends to toddlers, I may feel compelled to
censor some of your PG-13 entries—50 Shades of
Purple, these notes are not.
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Alex St. Clair started running in the fall. Over
Memorial Day weekend, Alex (literally) ran into
Alexandra Barrage on the course of a half marathon
in Alexandria, Va. (Alex was wearing Williams
garb.) After the race, they enjoyed an impromptu
gathering that included Alex’s kids, Penn, 5, and
Laurie, 3.
Two longtime listeners, first-time Class Notes
callers stop by. First, Dan DeSnyder writes, “This fall,
married the love of my life, Sarah, in Houston, where
I’ve been living for the last seven years. We’ve firmly
planted the flag in Texas, and I can’t imagine how
our two careers will ever lead us anywhere else, so be
sure to look us up if you ever pass through town. We
had a great Williams turnout at the wedding—too
many to mention, but it was great to finally mix up
all those Williams guys and their families with the
friends I’ve picked up along the way since. Thanks,
guys.” Jeanette Kim also made her inaugural Class
Notes appearance to share the birth of her first
child, Juliette Sooheh Chu, on April 12, 5 lbs., 9 oz.
Jeannette and Yvan “survived the first two months
and are enjoying our adventure in parenthood.”
Jeanette claims, “This is the first time I’ve EVER
written in for class notes, so I guess nothing of note
has happened to me since ’97 until this,” but plenty
of us can testify to the contrary (details confidential,
of course).
Lots of interesting news from Dave Vosburg:
“Dave and Kate Vosburg ’98 brought their three
kids with them to Cambridge, England, on sabbatical this year, so stop by if you’re wandering
through the U.K.! Dave received a grant from The
BioLogos Foundation to study and write about
the integration of evolution and Christian faith.
He’s collaborating with The Faraday Institute for
Science and Religion and also working in the laboratory of Jonathan Nitschke ’95 at the University of
Cambridge.”
Geoff Findlay is “still helping people get patents on
biotech-related inventions. Within the last few years,
I somehow got recruited to be a soccer coach for my
daughters’ teams. Most recently I have been a coach
for my daughter’s preschool team. As much fun as
it would be to tell you that I have them organized
into a group of Cobra Kai ninjas and brag online
after we dominate other teams, at this age the game
is more like ‘soccer fu’ than soccer.” I for one am glad
to hear that none of Geoff ’s daughter’s opponents
have, in fact, been victimized by sweeping of the leg,
placement in body bags or general lack of mercy
exhibited.
Rachel Steel Cohn writes: “In June my family and
I moved to Westport, Conn. My daughter Olivia
starts kindergarten in the fall, and my twins Reese
and Clark will be in preschool (we did not name
them after candy bars on purpose). I love working at
Facebook, where I can be found eating tofu scramble
and drinking kale juice alongside 20-somethings
while lying about my age. My husband Neil does
environmental finance at a private equity fund, and
he’s led the superhuman job of a yearlong house
renovation—not for the faint of heart. We just got
an SUV that I am quite certain is bigger than my
freshman suite in Williams B. Looking forward
to becoming active in the Fairfield County alumni
group!”
1996–98
Emily Eldredge “gave, in late April, a TED talk at
Marion Correctional Institution in Marion, Ohio,
called ‘The Truth About Inner Demons,’ followed
by three days doing the Drawing Out Process with
inmates in three different Ohio prisons. It was one of
the most incredible experiences of my life, and I feel
so deeply awed and blessed to work with these men.
I’m also thrilled to have illustrations by the wonderful Robbi Behr play a major role in my work.”
Annie Thoms and Jeff Bolas welcomed the birth
of their third child, William Elliot Bolas, on Feb. 13,
2013. Annie notes, “Will is developing into a happy,
easygoing baby, and big sisters Eleanor and Isabel are
great at entertaining him. After seeing Ken Harmon
’97 play the title role in a production of The Mikado
in April, this entertainment has taken the form of
increased dancing to Gilbert and Sullivan operettas.
I’m on leave from teaching HS English for a little
while but still blogging about children’s books (at
annieandaunt.blogspot.com). Jeff continues to work
in computer forensics.”
Adrienne Lu’s family welcomed their newest addition, Veronica Lu Sullivan, on Jan. 24. According to
Adrienne, “She is the happiest baby I have ever met,
and we love her to pieces. Big brother Benjamin has
not yet asked if we can return her to the hospital. In
April we packed up and moved to a suburb of DC
just in time to catch the last of the cherry blossoms,
and last month I started a new job, so it’s been a busy
few months.”
Karen Vazquez and Mike Vazquez are still in
Medfield, Mass. Mike is an orthopedic surgeon
and practices in Milford. Karen is home with the
kids—three boys and a girl. The oldest is 9, and the
youngest is nine months. Craig MacDonald earns
the award for most classmates mentioned per word
in his update: “Not much happening here. Finally
settled in on the move from Richmond to Northern
VA. Looking forward to catch up with friends Pat
Moore, Eric Kelly, Chris Mestl, Brian Higgins, Kevin
Poppe and Bob Hyland at Frank Pericolosi’s wedding
in August.”
Congratulations to class secretary emeritus Bahia
Ramos for being named one of south Florida’s 40
under 40 Black Leaders of Today and Tomorrow by
the Miami Herald!
And finally, lots of news from Holly Grace: “Kris
Kahn and I welcomed our daughter Hannah on
Feb. 2. We are sleepy but are having lots of fun with
her. Kris continues to work on his company’s line of
grills and grilling accessories, including a must-have
summer essential called S’more to Love. I’m back at
work with an affordable housing nonprofit where we
will be breaking ground on construction of a senior
development this summer. We’ve hosted Eph visitors
from near and far to meet little Hannah. We had a
fantastic time in April carbo loading and cheering on
Mark Torres as he ran a super fast Boston Marathon
(and are very grateful that we were unaffected by the
awful bombings). He, Erinn and their two kids have
relocated to Denver from DC. When not giving
me much needed baby advice, Sandra Plouffe has
been busy managing the gut renovation of her future
NYC condo home and chasing after her two adorable daughters.” Thanks for all the updates, folks. I’m
off to grill some s’mores!
1998
Jediah White; 503 South Prospect Ave., Madison, WI
53711; 1998secretary@williams.edu
Submitted by outgoing secretary Andrea Stanton:
Hello and happy summer 2013 from Denver, where
our late season snows have given away to hot days
and some June wildfires. I hope that those of you
who attended our 15th reunion had a terrific time
and that those of us who did not attend enjoyed
following the fun through Facebook updates and
emails. Many thanks to our reunion committee cochairs, Erin Casey and Conrad Oakey, for their work
in putting together what looked like a great array of
events.
Many people wrote in with family updates. Gwen
Garber reports that she was married in June to
David Hoffman, celebrating their Massachusetts
wedding with Janee Woods Weber and Matt Woods
Weber, Lauren (Guth) Barnes and Tony Barnes, Abby
(Williamson) Fisher and Adam Fisher, and Samantha
Abelson. “Despite the 95-degree weather,” she writes,
“we danced the night away in the outdoor tent” and
then “spent a few relaxing nights on Nantucket.”
Bunge (Warren) Cook writes that he enjoyed seeing
everyone who attended reunion and that it was
“great to get a round of golf in at the Taconic.” He
eloped with bride Eliza in early 2011, and they have
been on the move ever since. “In July ’12 I completed my tour on recruiting duty in Los Angeles,”
he writes. “We moved to Newport, R.I., where I
just completed a master’s in national security at the
U.S. Naval War College and Eliza worked in the
JAG office.” He has been assigned to headquarters
Marine Corps at the Pentagon for his next tour,
and by the time you read these notes, Bunge and
Eliza will be settled in Washington, D.C. Laura
Davis Stahl writes that they welcomed son James
Faulkner on May 3 and that “big sister Hailey is
enjoying her baby brother.” They missed our 15th
but plan to attend the 20th. Chris Smith writes that
his family welcomed son Sebastian Christopher on
April 19. Matt Garland also writes with news of a
new one: he and wife Emily welcomed Nathaniel
Gabriel on June 2. His father terms him “supercute.”
Tui Sutherland writes that she and Adam Sterns are
“having a wonderful time with our two boys ( Jonah,
3, and Elliot, 1) and loved bringing them to reunion
and showing them around their future campus (no
pressure or anything!).” The third book in her dragon
series, Wings of Fire (Scholastic) came out this summer, with two more on the way. “I’m really excited
about these books,” she says, “not least because they
have the best covers I’ve ever had!” Another trilogy,
co-written with sister Kari Sutherland ’02, came out
with Harper in March. They enjoy the “Boston contingent of Williams alums, which now includes Jordi
(Schuster) Battis and Seth Battis, as well as Kristin
Cashore. They had a great time with Mitch Stripling
and his family at his Brooklyn wedding last summer
and stopped by Northampton on the way back from
reunion to see Erica (Hyman) Kates—“her two girls
Eden and Talia are ridiculously adorable.” She ends
by noting: “It was great to have a minireunion of
some of our entry (Williams A/Sage F) at reunion:
Aaron Kammerer, Pete Robinson, Bryan Frederick
and Thais Mariz de Oliveira, especially when our
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JA Johnny showed up to say hi.” Maryellen (Davis)
Collett writes that she and husband Keith also grew
their family this spring, welcoming their second
daughter, Maura Jane, on May 6. Lauren (Guth)
Barnes writes that she and Tony Barnes added son
Zachary Benjamin to their family on April 25.
“Everyone is happy and healthy, and Ariadne loves
being a big sister,” she writes.
Veronica Roberts writes that after over a decade
in New York, she has moved to Austin, Texas.
“Although my mother was horrified (I think her
knowledge of Texas is limited to 1980s Dallas
episodes) and made me promise that I won’t acquire
a Texas twang (no worries there) or wear cowboy
boots (couldn’t promise that), I absolutely love
Austin,” she writes. Having moved for a position
as curator of contemporary and modern art at the
Blanton, she says: “I pinch myself to be living in
the land of great live music, bats, dogs—everyone
has one—and breakfast tacos.” She hasn’t spotted
Ryan Gosling at the local Whole Foods yet but has
seen Liz Craft “quite a bit” and adds that she now
has an “actual guest bedroom, so any and all Ephs
should please holler if they are ever in town.” Stefan
Papaioannou has accepted an assistant professor
position at Framingham State University, and he
and his wife look forward to reconnecting with
other Williams folk in eastern Massachusetts. Jeri
Williams “has moved back to southern California
and has joined a neurology practice in Bakersfield.
She is subspecializing in movement disorders as well
as intraoperative monitoring deep-brain stimulation procedures for neurodegenerative disorders and
dystonia.” Marla Robertson writes that she and her
family have left Chennai, India, after seven years to
relocate in Shenzen, China. “I’ll be teaching second
grade at Shekou International School, while my
husband will be involved in teaching and administration in the high school,” she writes, adding, “Our
kids Talia and Taitum will be entering third grade
and kindergarten. We’re very excited about the move
and about getting to know a new corner of the
world!” Kate (Hedden) Vosburg and Dave Vosburg
’97 are off to Cambridge, England, for a year-long
sabbatical. “We’ll spend it exploring castles, punting
on the Cam, and cultivating British accents,” she
writes. “That will be particularly amusing for our
three kids (ages 7, 4.5 and 4.5); I’d love to see them
pick up British slang,” she adds. They’ll miss seeing
Pam Bromley, who was to return from a sabbatical in
Germany over the summer.
From Boston, Peter Robinson writes: “I’m very
fortunate to have some of my favorite Ephs nearby.
We’ve spent time recently with Aaron Kammerer, his
wife Daphne and son Henry who recently moved
from Cambridge to Newton. And to really make our
lives easier, Jim Bell and Caroline (Nesbit) Bell ’99,
Riley and Myles moved there too. Jim whipped us
up some gourmet sandwiches while Millie and Riley
got acquainted. Despite pressure to head five miles
west, Liz, Millie and I remain in the South End of
Boston continuing to love our neighborhood of 12
years.” Michael Veloso writes that for the past 18
months he has “been composing music and doing
sound and game design for the upcoming video
game Fantasia: Music Evolved! It’s a wicked exciting
project to work on, and it will be a pretty singular
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experience,” he says. “In other news, Emily Ronald
’99 and I are raising our wonderful son Julian, who
is nearly 3 years old. And somewhere in there I’m
trying to find time to write some songs for a local
avant-rock band.” Leah (Pollak) Abel writes that she
and Jason Abel “had a blast catching up with old
friends at the reunion and particularly enjoyed hanging out with the many Sage F-Williams B alums
(Leah’s old entry-mates) who made the trip. The
very next weekend we enjoyed an impromptu family
vacation up to Traverse City, Mich., for Father’s
Day.” The highlight, she notes, was Sleeping Bear
Dunes, “an amazing expanse of sandy dunes that
stretch for miles. We trekked barefoot, seven miles in
all, to enjoy beautiful Lake Michigan, which resembles an ocean. The three kids, Jack, going into fourth
grade, Emmy, going into second, and Alex, entering
kindergarten, kept leaving Mom and Dad in the
sandy dust! The next day Leah and Jack enjoyed
ziplining at a pirate-themed adventure park.” Jed
White writes: “Reunion was a blast, though it seems
there may be a five-year hangover.” He adds: “It will
take my daughter that long to wear through her
supply of purple cow tattoos, and I’ve been dubiously
honored as the next class secretary. Since the thrills
and chills in my life are monopolized by two very
small people who also would rather not hear about
my day, I’m looking forward to keeping up with
everyone else’s much-more-interesting lives until
another excuse for beer pong in the Berkshires.”
Catherine Riihimaki writes that she “went all the
way to reunion, only to discover that I work across
the street from Chris Little at Princeton University.
I guess I should write updates a little more often!”
She adds: “I’ve been at Princeton now for just under
a year, working to improve science education for our
undergraduates. It was great to see so many friends
at reunion, especially seeing all of our kids (future
Ephs?) playing together.” Mike Ryan writes that he
has been living outside Philadelphia for the past six
years, “working for an investment firm in the burbs.”
He says: “At the reunion, my three little kids enjoyed
sporting their new purple cow shirts and made new
friends among their future Williams classmates,”
adding: “Tony Barnes talked me into serving as VP
of the next reunion, but I don’t know that we can top
this year’s show!”
Whether you attended our 15th reunion in person
or in spirit, I hope you’ll all enjoy this concluding update, from James Kossuth, who says: “I love
reunions. I missed the fifth, but the 10th and 15th
were just amazing. I’ve been to my wife’s high school
and college reunions and my high school reunion,
and I’ve heard about other non-Williams reunions,
but really nothing comes even close to the experience of a Williams reunion. Ann and Lucy (now
6.5) both look forward to reunion almost as much
as I do.” James adds: “While it’s not always going
to work out to have your entire Mission Park suite
reunited so that you can reminisce about any of
various literally sophomoric escapades, it’s quite a
different experience altogether to have meaningful
conversations with people that you basically—for
whatever reason—never crossed paths with during
school.” He notes: “There’s a song that Lucy sings in
Daisy Scouts—‘Make new friends, but keep the old;
one is silver and the other gold.’ I feel the same way
1998–99
after this reunion. The possibilities for friendships
in our class, even with people I never knew during
school, are endless. And that’s a wonderful thing.” This is my final update as class secretary. It has
been a pleasure and a privilege to receive your
updates every four months—thank you all for sending them in and for leading such interesting lives. In
the meantime, I’ve done my own bit of writing, and
am happy to say that I just received advance copies of
my first “big girl” book, This is Jerusalem Calling: State
Radio in Mandate Palestine, which the University
of Texas Press is publishing. I’ve also been doing an
increasing amount of speaking and writing on Syria,
a place dear to me for all the wonderful experiences
I had as a part-time Damascene from 2002 to 2006.
And, to seal my identity as a Coloradan, Ted and
I adopted a rescue dog: part Golden, part mystery
pooch, all hiker. And now, I hand the digital torch
to Jed White, who as noted above will be taking
over as class secretary for the next five years. Please
welcome him this fall with a big bouquet of updates:
jediahw@gmail.com.
1999
REUNION JUNE 12-15
Erik Holmes, 915 East Mayfair Ave., Orange, CA 92867;
Nat White, 11 Interlaken Road, Lakeville, CT 06039;
1999secretary@williams.edu
As a class, we seem to be settling into routines of
work and family life, with most updates centered
on major changes like new babies or jobs and fewer
of you sending in small updates about visits with
friends. This may be OK for the next year, since
we will hopefully have a large contingent getting
together to catch up in person next June, but then I
hope we’ll get brief updates again, even if they don’t
contain anything major. If you’re interested in helping plan our reunion, please email Dede at dedeot@
gmail.com.
On the note of reunions, I’ll start with some affinity reunions that just took place. Jodie Hearn Wilson
brought her husband Bob and daughter Sylvia to
Williamstown in April for the 25th anniversary of
the computer science department. Jodie notes that
it was “a tremendous event, especially considering both organizers and attendees are generally
not known for their social skills.” Jodie enjoyed the
informal mingling as well as the official program,
catching up with Matt Bell, who works at Google
in NYC, Derek Sasaki-Scanlon ’98, who runs his
own business, mypetchicken.com, and Art Munson
’01, who just signed on with a tech startup. Rachel
Axler wrote about the Ephlats reunion (which I also
heard about from my colleague at Hotchkiss, Betsy
Beck ’77), where she got to catch up with Wesleyan
professor Mary-Jane Rubenstein, Mark D’Arrigo, Nat
Roland and “a bunch of awesome humans from our
surrounding years.” Facebook rumors indicate that
Mark did something important in Las Vegas, but I
haven’t heard a direct report, so you’ll have to wait.
Rachel continues to write funny things for a variety
of programs, mostly for TV (How I Met Your Mother,
Goodwin Games), but also for movies (Epic).
Several classmates snuck into a 15th reunion a
year early, by way of their spouses. Stephanie Sewell
King and her husband Jonathan King ’98 won the
award for having the youngest child among the 15th
crowd; Alexander Thomas King was born on May
11 and made the trip from NYC to Williamstown
at 4 weeks old. Also attending were Kim Comeau
Webster ’98, Sam Webster and their boys. Stephanie
also recently met up with Catherine Bagley Beamer
and Brooke Harnisch in Boston. Catherine was in
town from San Diego for a conference, and Brooke
is moving from Boston to Milwaukee for a fellowship. Stephanie and Jonathan moved to a bigger
place near Columbia, and they are greatly enjoying
truly having space for their two boys and goldendoodle. Since the move, Stephanie met Jan Postma
and his 6-month-old, Lily, for lunch.
Rich von Bargen is set to take over as the new
president of the Williams Club in New York; he’ll
take the reins at the 100th anniversary annual meeting and dinner in June, and I’m sure he’d love to
see classmates drop by. David Glendinnig and Hans
Davies took their annual trip from DC to Atlantic
City in the spring; they returned heavier in the
midsection and lighter in the wallet, and it sounds
like fun was had. Jon Kravis elected not to join in
this year, instead choosing to spend the time with
his wife Laura (Jacobs) Kravis and kids William
and Emily. Hans reports that wife Jennifer Walcott
is thrilled to join the board of BalletNova, a dance
company providing instruction and performances for
children and adults. Hans and Jennifer are already
planning their trip to reunion, but in the meantime
they will head for Holland and for Maine. The evertraveling Marc Barreda wrote that he was headed
out on an Alaskan salmon-fishing boat with Josh
Pierson ’00 and Adam Nesbit ’97, and they were
anticipating the arrival of Todd Carnam ’00.
Meg (Randall) Park and her husband Eddie Park
’98 welcomed Ella Nayoung Park into the world,
only 13 days after her due date. Meg reports
that residency has trained her well for the sleep
deprivation and given her the ability to nap any
time, anywhere. Meg and Eddie had visitors before
Ella was born: Dan Polsby ’96, Darby Jack ’97 and
Nathan Foster ’98. Meg and Eddie and Ella will be
in LA for at least two more years; Meg has one year
of internal medicine residency left at UCLA and is
staying on an extra year to serve as chief resident.
Fellow California resident Cara Yoder Matzen and
her husband Evan welcomed their second son, Theo
Yoder Matzen, on March 1. Theo is a mellow, smiley
baby, much like older brother Rigel. Ethan Gutmann
and his wife had their second child, Brendan
Michael Gutmann, on March 13. Brendan is aiming
to be as tall and skinny as his dad. Julie CantatoreFrancis and Jon Francis are excited about the arrival
of boy #3, William Vito Francis, who arrived May
13. Julie reports that, thus far, older brothers Nolan
and Augie have been good helpers. Cathy Warren
and Scott Snyder are thrilled to announce the arrival
of Sebastian Warren Snyder on April 9. Sebastian
is set to be an overachiever like his parents, starting
by arriving a couple weeks early. Cathy, Scott and
Sebastian are headed from New York to Jupiter, Fla.,
where Scott has taken a job at the Scripps Research
Institute starting this fall.
Amy Patterson is also starting a new job in
academia in the southeast; she’ll be an assistant
professor of public health at Agnes Scott College, in
Decatur, Ga. Amy is very excited to be returning to
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her liberal arts roots at a school with purple as one
of its colors, even if it’s in the South, all-female and
much smaller. Erik Holmes, his wife Shannon Reid,
and their son Declan planned to move to Charlotte,
N.C., at the end of June. Shannon has finished
her PhD and taken a post as assistant professor of
criminology at UNC Charlotte. Erik is continuing
his work as a jury consultant, now working from
home and traveling quite a bit. Erik would love
recommendations for BBQ joints in Charlotte.
Before the move, Erik and his family caught up with
Ian Eisenman and his family in San Diego. Ian and
his wife Ariane both work at the Scripps Institute of
Oceanography. In addition to Ian, Ariane and their
kids Maya and Leo, Ian Lewis ’00, his wife Tricia,
and their kids Joshua and Lilly joined in on the
farewell dinner for Erik.
Christina Williams wrote in from South Sudan,
where she is spending three months as a surgeon
with MSF (Doctors Without Borders). Upon
completion of this stint, Christina will “return to
exciting Ohio to continue my more ‘normal’ work
in surgery.” Erryn Leinbaugh also has the travel bug.
He finished his residency in Providence and sold his
house. Erryn is taking his wife and daughter on a
monthlong vacation in Moscow to meet the Russian
side of the family before moving into their new
house in Williamstown. Erryn will be an ER attending at Berkshire Medical Center in Pittsfield.
Lindsay (Beach) Petersen has been hanging out
at home, where she is entertained by her kids Eric
and Ellie. Ellie is a girl after my own heart; she
apparently wakes up making the sign for “bike”
and patting her head so her parents know it’s time
to put her helmet on. Lindsay did catch up with
Becky Logue-Conroy and Anazette (Williams) Ray
via Google Hangout, something that the Lehman
East girls apparently try to do several times a year.
Lindsay’s massage clinic has moved into a building
with an orthopedic surgery office, so she’s looking
forward to hanging out with some people “at the
top end of the medical food chain. It will make
me feel like I’m back at school with all you other
geniuses.” Speaking of homes, Andrea Slate Daily
showed hers off to the entire country on the Today
Show on June 14. Andrea’s husband Brent was
featured in a story as a follow-up to a piece in the
Wall Street Journal about why new dads don’t take
paternity leave. It was a good few weeks for our class
in major news media, as Sarah Carr had an opinion
piece published in The New York Times on June
16. Sarah’s column relates to her new book, Hope
Against Hope: Three Schools, One City, and the Struggle
to Educate America’s Children, which is focused on
New Orleans schools.
As for me, I’ve been catching up with, and missing, Ephs in various places. My wife, Julie Rusczek,
and I took our kids Jasper and Greta up to Great
Barrington, Mass., to catch up with Becky LogueConroy and her twin girls Maeve and Meiris in time
to hear the fabulous news that Becky’s husband
Chris Conroy has made it to the major leagues as an
umpire. We had a visit from my brother Jed White
’98 and his family on their way to reunion, where he
apparently decided that this class secretary thing was
a good idea and he should try it. I missed connecting with Jess (Green) Murphy when we were each
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in Ann Arbor for weddings at the same time and
didn’t know it. I was there for Andrew Henderson’s
wedding to Kate Crary, and it was lovely. Andrew is
an assistant professor in Houston, and Kate (a grantwriter extraordinaire) has her office two doors down.
While there, I did get to catch up with groomsman Neelay Shah and his wife Roopal, in from
Portland, and Albert Dang and his wife Elaine, in
from San Francisco by way of Chicago and en route
to Toronto. Neelay continues to work for Intel, and
Albert is working for Frog Design. Upon my return
to campus, I re-met Heather (May) Eckert ’00, who
will be moving into the next building over as she and
her husband Michael move from Blair Academy to
Hotchkiss.
I hope you caught the theme of these notes, and I
hope that it will spur you to start planning for June.
I’m looking forward to seeing a lot of you back in
Williamstown next year. In the meantime, keep the
news coming in!
2000
Jon Pearson, 129 Franklin St., Apt. 218, Cambridge, MA
02139; 2000secretary@williams.edu
Let’s start with the MLE’s. It has been a very busy
year of human child making.
Alexis (Gilman) Khalil welcomed a baby boy,
Oliver Myles Khalil, on April 26. “He is a very
calm and easygoing baby and is much loved by his
big (by eight years!) sister.” Dan Mason’s forbidden
MLE from last night is forbidden no more, as he
welcomed daughter Sara Jane on Pi Day, March 14.
“Big bro and big sis love her and have accepted her
into the wolf pack,” says co-pack leader Dan. Dan
also had the pleasure of running into Chris Richards,
who described his Google workplace to Dan as
“magical pony land.”
We have two other members of the Three Child
Club (TCC), the first being Class Notes All-Pro
Deb (Frisone) Young, who welcomed Hannah Fay
Young on April 24. Hannah weighed in at a solid
8 pounds, 2 ounces. “Life is busy, nothing else
to report!” Then there’s Lily (Filip) Trajman, who
celebrated the birth of daughter Miriam Yvonne on
May 2. “I’m thrilled to have a daughter after two
boys. Gideon and Asher are adjusting pretty well,
and Omer and I are struggling to shift from manto-man to zone defense.” The Trajmans live in the
Castro in San Francisco and were planning a busy
summer of international travel.
Kate (Flynn) Grant and Tom Grant scoff at the
Three Child Club members (they actually do no
scoffing at all, but it’s more fun if I say they’re scoffing), having graduated to the Quatro Society (QS)
with the arrival of Garrett David Grant, born May
9. Key stats: 8 pounds, 14 ounces, and 20½ inches
long. “With the addition of our fourth boy we can
now have a brotherly team represented in the 2030
Winter Olympics—either in curling or bobsled.”
Also joining the QS are Amy (Sprengelmeyer)
Healy and Jason Healy, who added twin girls Nora
Leilani and Maya Waileia on May 13. The two girls
totaled 12 pounds, 2 ounces, and 36 inches of baby.
Big brothers Seth and Evan are reported to be very
loving siblings and are even helping with diaper
changes. Amy wrote that “life is busy and sweet,”
1999–01
which was a very sweet thing to write, really. Both
Amy and Jason still work at Suffield Academy.
Morgan (Eckles) Bernstein was good enough to
provide us with a double-MLE update: Last summer she married her business school sweetheart,
Matt Bernstein, and in May she welcomed her first
child, daughter Dillan Melia Bernstein. Stats: 7
pounds, 6 ounces, 19 inches long. Morgan and Matt
live in San Francisco; she works at the Haas School
of Business. Congratulations also go out to Molly
(Cummins) Scott and Richard Scott, who welcomed
Lucy Hunnewell Scott, little sister to Henry, on
April 22. The Scott family resides in Washington,
D.C.
Debbie (Ebert) Bloss and her husband Kevin
welcomed Charles Thomas Bloss on May 27. Debbie
wrote: “Charlie is doing great, and his big sister
Ella loves to give him hugs and kisses. It has been a
wonderful few weeks so far.” She then gave us a very
Torie Gorges-esque flourish by adding, “although
we do miss our sleep.” Anna Frantz and Matt Levy’s
second child was so eager to get in under the Class
Notes deadline that he arrived two weeks early.
Zachary Lee Levy was born on June 19, “fighting in
the featherweight division at 4 pounds, 14 ounces,”
according to his proud papa. Wrapping up the new
additions portion of our program this time is Sarah
Weston, who welcomed daughter Miriam to the
world on March 26.
First-time Class Notes writer Nicole Steinmuller
married Benjamin Shappell on May 4 in Nantucket,
surrounded by several of our fellow alums. She and
Benjamin met through friends in Boston during her
medical residency. Nicole finished her medical training last year after a fellowship at the University of
Rochester and is now working as a family physician,
also on Nantucket.
We will start our Classmates Being Awesome at
Things (CBAT) section with someone who is far
from a first-time submitter, Sara (Caswell) Kolbet.
Sara is very excited to announce that she is going to
graduate school, specifically to the speech language
pathology program at Pacific University in Forest
Grove, Ore. So excited is she that her email included
not one, not two, but four exclamation points! “I’m
aware that Virginia (Pyle) See is going through a
similar program in Washington—we’ve been in
touch about it. Of course, only mention that if she
does.” Well, she didn’t mention it, but I’ll include it
anyway! Sara continues to raise her two children, a
son who just finished kindergarten and a daughter
who is starting preschool.
Julia Brown wrote for the first time with news of
some very cool work that she was planning for later
in the year. She was to spend three months during
the summer in Milan on a grant from the George
Washington University, and in the fall she was planning to return to the U.S. to do an artist fellowship
at The Core in Houston and a Smithsonian Artist
Research Fellowship in Washington, D.C. Meg
(Ting) Ryan switched jobs last February and is now
working in a private practice endocrinology group in
Bryn Mawr, Pa. She also had a great time at husband
Mike Ting’s ’98 15-year reunion. They took all of
their children, Finn, Declan and Eve, and even gave
them purple cow tattoos. I assume temporary, since
Meg did not specify.
David Gilford works in the administration of Mayor
Bloomberg in New York, leading the city’s energy,
clean technology and resilience economic development programs. “Post-Sandy it’s been a challenging
but exciting time, developing programs to try to
make us better prepared for the next storm.” His
work also brings him into contact with Emily Small,
who is chief of staff for the Division of Energy
Management. In June, Dave met up with our distinguished class secretary, emeritus, Bert Leatherman,
who was visiting from Brazil. Also, as of this writing,
Dave and his wife were preparing for the imminent
arrival of a highly forbidden MLE.
Congrats to Pat Burton, who is now a tenured
professor in the biology department at Wabash
College. Pat remarks: “Looks like I’ll be in Indiana
for quite a while…” Will Darrin changed jobs within
the insurance industry, moving from Liberty Mutual
to Travelers. Otherwise, he says only that he is trying
to keep his daughter Autumn from eating sand at
the beach. Closing out this section is Lauren (Singer)
Cohee, who finished her year as chief resident of
pediatrics at Johns Hopkins and has started a second
year of an infectious disease and tropical pediatrics
fellowship at the University of Maryland. Her husband Brian is working on a fellowship in pulmonary
and critical care at Walter Reed Medical Center. So
basically, if your family needs medical care, you could
do a lot worse than finding a Cohee.
Time for Lightning Round: Katherine Birnie
enjoyed visits with Aya Reiss, Ethan Plunkett, Taylor
Schildgen and Lauren Buckley last spring. Katherine
works in environmentally focused private equity;
Aya is a pediatric resident at Children’s Hospital
in Seattle; Ethan and Lauren are ecologists in
Massachusetts and Seattle, respectively; and Taylor
is working on a postdoc in geology in Germany and
Peru.
Vineeta Mahajan Bonthala lives in Chicago and
works as an in-house attorney for a bank and has
two young sons, ages 4 and 2. She had dinner with
Andre Mura in the spring and runs into Rob Howell
frequently. Hilary Barraford probably didn’t expect
to see this in print, from her June 17 email: “I got
nothin’! Sorry dude.” No worries, homegirl.
Steve Roman, with his patented bulleted list: “Ran
the LA Marathon with Drew Sutton on St. Patrick’s
Day. Visited Boston to get some nerd on with Jon
Pearson, Brad Geddes and Alfonso Gonzalez del
Riego. While I was away, my lovely wife Becky
(Iwantsch) Roman visited Kevin and Virginia See as
they vacationed in Northern California. I believe
they destroyed some Salvadoran food. Smooches, my
fantabulous gringo.”
And with that…
2001
Liana Thompson Knight, 135 Pleasant St., Richmond, ME
04357; 2001secretary@williams.edu
I am super psyched to be able to start this
column with news of Michael Cooper’s musical,
Sunfish, which I had the pleasure of reading about
five years ago. Michael wrote from Daegu, South
Korea, where, in June, Sunfish opened the Daegu
International Musical Theater Festival (which happens to be the world’s largest international musical
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theater festival). Michael, who is the writer, lyricist
and co-producer, went to Korea with a group of 20
performers, designers and creatives to mount this
brand new production that included puppetry and
masks. Songs from Sunfish were also featured in
concert as part of the Broadway’s Future series at
Lincoln Center in May.
Sarah Thomas’ film Backwards, in which she stars
opposite James Van Der Beek, is still on iTunes
and became available on Netflix streaming in June.
In March, Sharmistha Ray was one of five artists
nominated for a 2013 L’Oreal Paris Femina Women
Award in the Art category. This award, given in
17 categories, “honors women with extraordinary
accomplishments, outstanding leadership qualities
and exceptional commitment to their careers and
communities,” according to news site India-West.
Sharmistha will be opening a solo exhibition at
Aicon Gallery in New York on Oct. 24 (and would
love to have Ephs come check it out).
Rob Seitelman finished his fifth year of teaching
last spring and was looking forward to teaching
theater at Mountain View High School in the fall.
In June he participated in a reading of a new play
as part of Berkeley Repertory Theater’s new work
development program called The Ground Floor.
Seth Brown has created a hip-hop card game,
Legend of the Cipher, which combines strategic card
play and rapping (two of Seth’s hobbies). The game
was released this year at PAX East and is available
at LegendoftheCipher.com. Seth said that initial
reviews have been positive.
After 11½ years, seven moves and four overseas
deployments as an active duty Marine Corps officer,
Rob MacDougall and his family decided that it is
time to return to the “civilian” world. Rob, his wife
and their four children moved to Northern Virginia
in July. They are hoping that this move will allow
them to settle down and stay somewhere longer than
three years. Reflecting on his years with the Marines,
Rob wrote, “It has been such an honor to serve in
this capacity, and I will miss it dearly!”
Melissa (Vecchio) Wood and Don Wood ‘00 moved
to the DC area in July because Melissa took a job as
director of speech and language at The Lab School
of Washington. Melissa also noted that at all of 4
and 2, sons Cameron and Tyler already team up and
conspire against her and Don, and that their days are
filled with a mix of laughter and exasperation.
Joey Shapiro Key accepted a position as director of education and outreach for the Center for
Gravitational Wave Astronomy at the University of
Texas at Brownsville and was anticipating a move
to Texas. Her husband will also be working at the
university, and their kids were looking forward to
learning Spanish and going to the beach.
After three years teaching in Cape Town, South
Africa, Darik Velez and Elizabeth (Moulton) Velez
’02, along with their kids Rigel and River, have
returned to New England. They began teaching at
St. Paul’s School in New Hampshire last fall and
have enjoyed the return to New England, which has
put them closer to family and allowed them to host
a Williams gathering over New Year’s. Darik wrote
that they have also had the pleasure of meeting
Aaron Marsh and his family, who were also in their
first year at St. Paul’s.
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After nearly 11 years in Washington, D.C.,
Heather Barney moved to Lewisburg, Pa., last fall to
coach rowing at Bucknell University. She misses the
city but has found Lewisburg to have a charm not
unlike that of the Purple Valley. On June 15 Heather
and her partner Abigail were married in nearby
Bloomsburg, Pa., in a ceremony attended by Roshni
(David) Guerry, Kristin Wikelius, Laura Spero ’02,
Lisa Cohan ’02 and Liz Mygatt ’03.Heather also had
the chance to see Meg (Tierney) Gemborys (and her
kids Henry and Hazel) and Elizabeth Roller Apgar
(and her kids Maggie and Charlotte) when she
was in Worcester, Mass., for her team’s conference
championships. (Her crew won!)
Royce Smith was named to the 2013 list of
Pennsylvania Super Lawyers, which annually recognizes the top five percent of Pennsylvania lawyers.
Royce, who works for the Philadelphia personal
injury law firm Feldman Shepherd, was recognized
as a Rising Star last year.
Jessica Robbins graduated from the University
of Michigan with a PhD in anthropology in May.
She got together with Danielle Tarantolo, Kristin
Wikelius, Margaret (Radzik) Scoolidge, and Kristine
Taylor in Brooklyn to celebrate. Danielle reports
that they had a blast though were reminded that it is
dangerous to try to drink like they are 22. Danielle
is enjoying her work as a lawyer at a legal services
organization, where she does class actions on behalf
of the poor. She also loves hanging out with her
1½-year-old son Carlo, who was just learning how to
talk back at the time of this writing.
Verena Arnabal and her family bought a house in
Westchester County and were planning a mid-July
move—in time for her elder daughter, Maya, to start
kindergarten in the suburbs in the fall.
Chris Koegel and Susan Levin Koegel ’02 are still
in Boston, where Chris is enjoying working at Bain
and Susan teaches biology at Tufts. Their daughter Shelby, 2½, enjoys playing with several other
Williams kids: Amelia (daughter of Robert Adamo
and Jessica Bauman ’02), Caroline and Fletcher
(Todd Rogers’ kids), Wilson and Lucy (Will Ouimet’s
kids) and Ralph and Sam (Aaron Marsh’s kids).
Caren Mintz and her husband closed on a home in
Manhattan in January, becoming shareholders in a
co-op apartment. The new home was part of their
preparation for the arrival of their daughter, Hannah
Sylvie Grossman, born Feb. 17. Hannah was due
on Caren’s birthday but chose to wait about a week,
so she got her own day. Four months in, Caren was
enjoying motherhood and reported that Hannah
looks very happy in her Williams onesie with a
purple cow on it.
Michele Kovacs and Scott Goldberg ’02 had a son,
Ty, on Feb. 27. They are still living in Venice, Calif.,
and Michele graduated from family medicine residency this summer. Feb. 27 was also the date when
Tracy Zanco welcomed her second daughter, Keira
Rose Hardekopf. In June, Tracy was about to start
doing pro bono legal work teaching a class on law to
teen parents.
Cameron Clendaniel and Sara Hausner-Levine ’02
welcomed their second child, Hannah, in March.
They are still living in Brooklyn, N.Y., where their
son Jack, 2, goes to school with Lizzie Jacobs’ son
Henry. In mid-June, Cameron, Sara, Jack and
2001–02
Hannah bravely hosted a Williams weekend in
the southern Berkshires. They were joined by Ryan
Grimaldi Pickard and John Pickard ’99, with their
children Luke and Claire, and Kaitlin Rahl Brandt
’02 and Nick Brandt ’02 and their children Jamie and
Lila. “As far as I know, everyone survived!” Cameron
wrote.
On April 2, Jen Berylson welcomed her second
child, Zachary Leonard Block, who joins big brother
Benjamin Jay Block. Jen’s family still has their giant
Saint Bernard, and Jen reports that she is officially
outnumbered. A few days later, on April 4, Fumi
Tosu and his wife Karen welcomed their first child,
son Yushi Tosu. Melissa (Scuereb) Bonventre and
her husband Brian had a baby girl, Kara Alexis, on
May 31. Their son Lucas is 3.
Writing about all the new babies brings me right
back to when our daughter was newborn; however,
at a bit over 1, Stella Jean isn’t so much like a baby
any more. She gave me kisses for the first time on
Mother’s Day, and she started walking on Father’s
Day. Toddlerhood, here we come!
Feyisara Akanki visited with Vanea Norris and her
husband Derek at their home and reports that their
little baby girl is no longer a baby either but a toddler with a bright smile and curious eyes. Sadly, the
reason for Feyisara’s visit with Vanea was not a happy
one—Feyisara’s mother passed away at the end of
April, and she was in Boston for the funeral. During
the funeral, Williams friends Enuma Menkiti, Dafina
Westbrooks and Vanea were there to give Feyisara
support. Back at home in Texas, Feyisara has been
working as an adult physician at a Parkland clinic in
the Dallas metro area since just before the New Year.
She noted that the transition from resident to full
attending was a bit bumpy, but that as of June things
were going smoothly.
I am really grateful to Feyisara for her news this
time, because I had been thinking about how to
acknowledge, in this column, that not all of us are
facing a bed of roses each time I send out my little
blurb requesting news. So many of the updates I
piece together for these notes are life’s high points,
yet I know that there are classmates out there who
are also going through difficult life events between
these columns. Sometimes I hear about those events,
usually followed by a request to leave that piece out
of the class notes; most of the time I don’t hear about
them. But I’d like to acknowledge that they are out
there. They take many different forms: unemployment, divorce, miscarriages, deaths of loved ones,
health issues and more. If that’s where your life is,
I hope you know that you’re still just as valued a
member of this Williams community as are the
people with the sunny news. If that’s where your life
is, I hope you have friends like Enuma, Dafina and
Vanea to support you. And if you’re one of the supporting friends, thank you.
2002
William Davidson, 219 East 69th St., Apt. 11J, New
York, NY 10021; 2002secretary@williams.edu
Patrick McCurdy, Maximilian Niederste-Ostholt
and I all joined Sam Wilson on his bachelor party
in Reykjavik, Iceland, in early June. We hopped
a red eye and hit the ground running upon our
arrival. We took an ATV safari along the mountains
that surround Grindavik (a fishing town about 30
minutes outside of the capital) before decompressing at the Blue Lagoon. With little to no darkness,
we explored Reykjavik’s extensive nightlife and were
shown around by a mutual friend named Vikingur.
Although we were only there for 48 hours, it is a trip
none of us will soon forget.
Patrick, Max and I also attended Billy Marino’s
wedding in Palm Beach, Fla., in early May and had a
blast soaking up the sun and catching up with Billy,
who is working and living in Boca Raton, Fla. Also
in attendance were Chris Bruno, Chris Hall and John
Snipes ’08.
Nicholas Minekime planned to marry Andrea
Nogales ’04 in July, and they decided to make
their home on the East Coast. “I moved to NYC
in April and am now enjoying a new commute
through Central Park every morning. I couldn’t
have picked a better time to arrive. After six years in
the Bay Area, I’m looking forward to being closer
to Williamstown, family and the beautiful East
Coast with its four seasons again.” Nick is still with
Capricorn Investment Group and is focusing on
building a business in solar finance.
Daniel Morales is a new dad. Dan’s wife
Gwendolyn (Baxter) Morales ’00 gave birth to a baby
girl, Calista Isadora Morales, on April 15, 2013.
Hillary (Weinblatt) Chapman and Jason Chapman
wanted to share the wonderful news that their
daughter Sydney Allen Chapman was born on April
23 (eight days early and a day after they closed on
the sale of the downtown Boston apartment). “She’s
loving her assortment of purple cow onesies and
other Eph-related paraphernalia!”
Sarah (Hart) Unger, her husband Joshua and their
1-year-old daughter Annabel planned to move from
Durham, N.C., to Miami Beach, Fla., this summer
after finally finishing their medical training. Sarah
will be starting as a pediatric endocrinologist in
Hollywood, and Joshua will be starting as vascular
surgeon in Miami Beach. “We will miss Durham
but look forward to lots of excitement up ahead!”
Sarah wrote.
Tenaya (Plowman) Kolar purchased her first
home with husband Nathan Kolar ’05. “It’s just
a few blocks from where we live here in Hailey,
Idaho. We’re doing a bit of remodeling before we
move in. … But we’ll be keeping (for the time
being) the orange shag carpet, pool table and wet
bar in the basement—it’s quite the party pad (in
case anyone wants to visit!). Looking forward to
getting through the construction phase and into
something livable!” Tenaya reports that Nate has
been teaching at the Sage School for the past two
years and that they regularly see fellow Ephs who
have also been involved in the startup: Emily Olsen
’09 and Hilary (Angle) Weekes ’94. Tenaya’s brother
Jonathan Plowman ’00 was planning to be married
“here in the valley, amid some lovely mountain
views, on June 22. Should be a great party with a
few Williams-folk making the trip out.” Topping
off Tenaya’s eventful June was a gathering of fellow
Ephs in the Bay Area, including Sarah Barger,
Brooke Ray Smith, Annie Weiss, Jenny Wetzel,
Hilary (Hackmann) Redden, Brooke Toczylowski ’03
and Susan Fulmer.
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Garry Sanders sent a report from Oregon,
where he crossed paths with a few Ephs of late.
Laddie Peterson came down from Portland for a
ski weekend and again in May to compete in the
2013 Pole, Pedal, Paddle with Garry, his wife and
another friend in the team category. “Good times
were had all around by Team VAGL, and we posted
a respectable finish in our age category. It was great
to see Laddie before she leaves Oregon for the East
Coast.” Garry was looking forward to spending
some time with Eric Moore and his wife Beth during
a whitewater rafting trip for five days in June. Garry
has promised photos for the next issue.
Eric Olson-Getty has gotten back into running big
time. “I completed my first half-marathon in March
and hope to run my first marathon sometime in the
fall.” Eric has been involved with the Moral Monday
civil disobedience actions organized by the NAACP
at the North Carolina General Assembly in Raleigh.
“I got arrested on May 20 protesting a laundry list of
right-wing policies being churned out of our legislature and governor’s office, and it has been exciting to
watch the movement grow from week to week.”
Sadaf Ahmad celebrated the birthday of Nura
Kinge ’05 with Christopher Calfee ’04 and other
Ephs at a Moroccan restaurant in Dupont Circle,
DC. “Belly dancers entertained the crew.” Sadaf
is looking forward to Williams Alumni of Color
reunion weekend on Martha’s Vineyard with Enuma
Menkiti ’01 and Jamilla Deria ’01. However, she will
miss Heather Brutz, who departed Washington,
D.C., with her boyfriend for a MBA program in
North Carolina.
Sarah Philipp’s summer has been hectic so far. She
returned to Jacksonville, Fla., from her deployment
to Japan at the beginning of June. She’d been there
since Thanksgiving in her job as a Navy squadron
flight surgeon. “Deployment went well, but I’m very
happy to be home.” When she wrote, Sarah was on
her way to Peru for a two-week vacation and was
“looking forward to seeing Machu Picchu, whitewater rafting in the Amazon, zip lining, sand boarding
and exploring Lima and Cusco.” Upon her return
she expected to be busy with residency applications. This is her final year with the Navy, so she was
applying to civilian emergency medicine residencies
over the summer.
Ethan Rutherford’s first collection of stories, The
Peripatetic Coffin, was published in May and called
a “bracing debut” by The New York Times. He had a
lovely few months traveling in support of the book
(and seeing old classmates as well). In August he and
his family planned to move to Akron, Ohio, where
his wife Maryhope accepted a job as a professor at
Kent State. Ethan was “looking forward to seeing
David Roberts just about every day.”
Irene Hollowell reports that her work at Southern
Exposure Seed Exchange includes garden photography, customer service and trial crop growing,
so she gets to grow and eat “lots of unusual stuff
like sesame, Swordleaf lettuce and Mexican sour
gherkins. A couple weeks ago we planted 11 kinds of
edible gourds and 24 kinds of winter squash in our
trial gardens.” Irene also reports that she “enjoyed a
trip to Hawaii, where I met up with Adriana Woods
’03; she and her husband have a plant nursery with
rare fruit trees.”
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Unfortunately, as Irene Hollowell was coming
home from Hawaii, the warehouse burned down at
Acorn intentional community, where she lives. Their
woodshop, autoshop and a portion of their seed
inventory were consumed. “We were all relieved that
no one was hurt. Despite the fire, Acorn Community
is also a experiencing a time of delights, including baby goats, baby humans (getting ready for our
second), a high proportion of couples, growing seed
sales and many delicious lacto-fermented vegetables.”
Noelle Ho reports that Drew Gatewood ’10 was
working in Hong Kong for Citibank over the summer. Russell Yeh ’79, HK alumni association chair,
emeritus, hosted a small dinner to welcome Drew
to the city on June 6 at the Shanghai Fraternity
Association. At the dinner were Drew, Russell,
Noelle and her husband Wai-Shan Lam, Trisha
Yeh ’04 and her husband Ed Tsui, Thomas Leung,
Conrad and Martin Matsui, head of the external
managers division of the reserves management
department at the Hong Kong Monetary Authority,
which is Hong Kong’s Central bank. Martin is the
uncle of Kaison Tanabe ’13, who happens to be
Drew’s wrestling teammate back at the Purple Valley.
2003
Claire Magat Raffaelli, 56 Old Spanish Trail, Portola
Valley, CA 94028; 2003secretary@williams.edu
Submitted by outgoing secretary Anri Wheeler
Brenninkmeyer: It was great catching up with so
many of you at reunion in June. Our class had a
record turnout, and we hope to have even more at
the 15th! David Brenninkmeyer and I had a great
weekend introducing our daughters Summer and
Harper to Williams and seeing friends. Highlights
included: the car ride up with Perry Kalmus during
which he regaled us with tales of his life in LA;
walking in the parade with the double stroller;
watching Summer and Harper play with Sarah
Lenzi’s son Ethan and Davida Kutscher’s daughter
Carmel; laughing harder than I’ve laughed in a while
with Gus Howard; and late night at Goodrich with
WRFC alums.
New class officers were named at reunion and
are as follows: President Perry Kalmus, VP Lisa
Schulman, Treasurer Fulton Breen and Secretary
Claire Magat Raffaelli. It has been a true pleasure
gathering and writing your notes for the past five
years. Thank you for sharing all of your milestones
and minutia with me. I look forward to reading
Claire’s notes in the years to come.
Babies, and more babies… All told, our class’s
offspring count rose by 12 since last notes! Ray Stahl
and Jessica Calfee Stahl had a baby girl, Emily
Virginia Stahl, on Feb 23. Tracy (Borawski) Baker gave birth to son Brecken
William Baker on Feb 26. Brecken joins older
brother Jackson. The Bakers recently renovated and
reopened the Spirit Shop Deli, and both the liquor
store and the new deli are doing well. The class of
2003 reunion blew other 10-year reunions out of the
water when it came to alcohol consumption (and
attendance in general), and Tracy sends a big thank
you for the business.
Whitney Hosty and her husband Patrick
welcomed their second baby, Henry, on March
2002–03
18. Whitney, Patrick, Lillian and Henry made
the trip from Kansas City to Williamstown for
reunion and had a wonderful time catching up
with everyone. They loved meeting all of the other
kids there, especially the other possible members
of the classes of ’32 and ’35. Tim Austin and his wife Jess have a new addition to
their family. Cecily Mae Austin was born on March
20. Tim and Jess are enjoying watching her grow
and develop and were looking forward to summer,
during which they’d have lots more time to spend
with her. All three had a great time catching up with
people at reunion.
On May 1, Pete Glenn-Applegate’s wife Katherine
gave birth to Edward M. Glenn-Applegate, their
first child and a future member of the Class of 2035.
Trisha Blake ’02 and Alex Blake welcomed their
third son, Zion Alika Barbosa Blake, weighing in
at 7 pounds. Alex has been traveling back and forth
to New Jersey working at Johnson & Johnson HQ
for a marketing project. He had dinner with Andy
Ramirez ’02 in Princeton, N.J.
Abby Tadenev and Mike Tadenev are still in Bar
Harbor, Maine, and loving it. They welcomed a little
girl, Molly (Mary Lucille Tadenev), on May 5. She
arrived a week late; must have wanted to wait for a
Cinco de Mayo birthday. Abby and Molly are both
doing great and were finding that summer is a great
time to be on maternity leave in Bar Harbor.
Andrew Layng has two new additions to his
family. His wife Caitlin gave birth to twins on May
31. Finley Evelyn and Henry Hamilton were born a
month early, but both came home with Caitlin and
are doing well. Big brothers Charlie, 4, and Teddy, 2,
are happy to have another brother and now a sister
as well.
Amy Graham was sad to miss reunion but had a
very busy spring. Amy’s husband was transferred
to DC, and they were very happy to leave Illinois
for northern Virginia. Their daughter Lucy Eleanor
was born on April 9, just a couple weeks after the
move. Amy is taking some time away from practice
and has been writing for a veterinary journal while
staying home with Lucy. Amy and her family love
being back on the East Coast and exploring the DC
area. They have seen Jen Nail several times and were
also able to see Grey Maggiano give his last sermon
before moving. Amy was looking forward to catching up with more classmates in the area.
Also on April 9, Alix Davis Weiss and her husband
Andrew welcomed their first child, Averil Sophia.
In her first two months of life, Averil had playdates
with Philadelphia-area Ephs Lindi von Mutius,
Camilla Lynch and Bethany Sayles Yu, as well as
enjoyed a visit from Katharine Baker, Eric Woodward
and their daughter Ayelet. After many happy years
in Philadelphia, Alix moved at the end of June to
Baltimore, Md., where her husband was to begin a
cardiology fellowship at the University of Maryland
Medical Center. She is eager to reconnect with
Baltimore-area Ephs.
Liz (Campos) Pearce is still at Vanderbilt and has
two years left in her otolaryngology, head and neck
surgery, residency. She was so sad to miss reunion
but for a good reason: she and her husband Russ
welcomed Oliver “Ollie” Daniel Pearce into the
world on April 24. He arrived one month early,
only six days after Liz’s Willy B roommate Emma
(Herries) Purdy had her son Hunter. Liz and Emma
can’t wait for Ollie and Hunter to go on their Class
of ’35 WOOLF trip together! There are also three weddings to report. Catherine
Denver Fowler is living in Baltimore, Md., with her
husband Brad, an attorney. They were married in
October 2012 and are looking forward to a new
addition soon: a dog. Catherine works in nursing
and public health at Johns Hopkins and is contemplating a doctorate in public health, but for now she’s
enjoying not being a student.
Andrew Ferrer and Caitlin Barrett were married in May and had a blast at their reception at
the Peabody Essex Museum in Salem, Mass., with
Joe Gallagher, Mike Pinkel, Jason Leith and Chris
Vaughan ’04. Andrew and Caitlin moved into their
first home in Wellesley, Mass., after coming back
from Maui and Kauai.
Linda Lau married Gavin Rosenbush in Boyds,
Md., in May. ’03ers there to celebrate with the
couple included Kyla Dotson, Caroline Fan, Andrew
Golden, Janet Ho, Jiyong Kim, Lisa Marco-Bujosa,
Binney McCague, Joo-Hee Suh and Brigitte Teissedre.
Miguel Payano’s first solo show in Hong Kong,
Koicocks, was a success. His interview on the TV program Dolce Vita aired in June. You can see the online
catalog for his show at http://bit.ly/1aoOsy7.
Jenny McElroy bought a townhouse in the Twin
Cities last September and is finally moved in. In
addition to catching up with many classmates,
Jenny’s reunion travels also allowed for her to hang
out with grad school buddies Elliott Hibbler ’00 and
his wife Laura. Vivien Shotwell received her artist diploma in
opera singing from Yale in May. In March she sang
at a recital at Williams with Paul La Rosa ’02 and
Noah Lindquist ’08. Her novel Vienna Nocturne,
which began as a short story she wrote at Williams,
is coming out in February 2014 with Ballantine
Books.
Jon Hatoun was in DC for a pediatric conference and stayed with Josh Kotin, his wife and their
4-month-old baby boy, who are all doing well. Jon
finished his residency and started a general pediatrics
academic fellowship at Boston Medical Center in
July. Peter Tucker and Emily (Glenn) Tucker relocated
to the Bay Area last fall. The Tuckers and their
daughter Amelia, who turned 2 in June, live in Los
Altos. Emily works as a child psychologist in private
practice, and Peter is an attorney.
Nina Chaopricha finished her PhD on organic
carbon stabilization in deep and buried soils and is
enjoying living in Ithaca, N.Y. On a recent family
trip to Boston, Nina’s husband enjoyed trying out
Seth Brown’s ’01 “tabletop hip-hop game,” Legend
of the Cipher. Liz Chase has accepted a position at Stonehill
College in the library. She also hopes to teach undergrad classes in Irish studies. Tad Hodgson is going
to be working from home for Slalom Consulting.
Liz and Tad moved back to the Boston area and are
happy to be back from the South. They’re looking
forward to seeing more of their ’03 friends. They’ve
already seen Joe Lucia, Katherine McGrath, Steve
Eyre and Caty Sumner. During a visit to New Jersey,
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Liz and Tad saw Kate Carroll, Patrick Zimmerman,
their son Luke and daughter Beth as well as Kristin
Hunter-Thomson and her son Linden.
Anastasia (Gilman) Leyden left her job in pharmaceuticals (as a medical writer) and has just begun
graduate studies in education at Lesley University.
She will be teaching elementary school come fall
2014.
Kimmie Kemper Beal and Angus Beal and are fulfilling a college dream of growing lots of vegetables.
By day they are growing and distributing veggies on
four former lawns in Salt Lake City through a sixmember CSA, while by night they cruise real estate
in New England, looking for farmland to occupy
in 2014 when Angus finishes residency. The Beals
thought reunion was awesome and had forgotten
how “green green green” Williamstown is. Nick Goodbody and his wife just finished their first
year living in Doha, Qatar. Nick is working as an
assistant professor and coordinator of the master’s
program in translation studies at Hamad bin Khalifa
University. It’s been a great adventure, and they are
looking forward to next year. If any Ephs are in the
neighborhood, they should look Nick up.
Janet Ho just finished her first year as the vice principal at a new STEM charter high school in LA, just
in time for her to attend reunion. At reunion, Janet
relived college nights by playing games and talking
with many classmates and their significant others,
including Linda Lau, Binney McCauge, Brigitte
Teissedre, Monty Silva, Jiyong Kim, Lisa MarcoBujosa, Caroline Fan, Kevin Hseuh, Andy Golden and
Christina Adams. Ayesha Fuentes missed reunion because she is
finishing her master’s thesis in conservation at the
UCLA/Getty Program. Beginning in August she
will be working with conservators at the Department
of Cultural Properties in Bhutan for three months,
treating damaged wall paintings and monastic
objects. This summer she enjoyed the beaches in
sunny LA with her boyfriend Michael Heep ’99
and caught up with fellow Angeleno Pete van
Steemburg over a game of Big Buck Hunter and tall
glasses of bourbon. Irene Yoon ran the Corner Canyon trail run (25K)
and saw Angus Beal at the race. Though she lives
two blocks from Kimmie and Angus in Salt Lake
City, she’s never bumped into them there but managed to see them two weekends in a row elsewhere:
at reunion and the trail run. To quote Irene, “Angus
came in at least 29,482 hours before I did. It was a
fun, small, local event that benefits a member of the
trail running community who is battling cancer.”
2004
REUNION JUNE 12-15
Nicole Eisenman, 141 Joralemon St., Apt. 3E, Brooklyn,
NY 11201; Cortney Tunis, 150 The Riverway, Box 802,
Boston, MA 02115; 2004secretary@williams.edu
At submission time, Adam Grogg was in the midst
of wrapping up his fellowship, having had a great
year back in New Haven (and hanging frequently
with Steve Seigel). He’ll be starting a job with the
Department of Justice in Washington, D.C., in
December and spending the intervening months
biking from Deadhorse, Alaska, to Arizona (or farther south?) with his boyfriend. Adam says, “ Wish
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us luck, and if you’re on the left coast look us up as
we pass through!”
Steve Seigel was at Paul Weiss DC for the summer in the litigation department, working part time
as a summer associate and part time as a babysitter
for all the young 20-somethings in his summer class.
In the office, Williams grads are also outnumbered
by Amherst grads 2-1, which is a little disheartening. Luckily, there is a partner in this office, Alex
Young K. Oh ’90, who kindly keeps vigilant lest the
Amherst folks get too aggressive. Otherwise, Steve
is very happy to be back in DC and reunited with
his husband and dog until law school starts back up
again in September.
Myriam Southgate moved to Amsterdam over the
summer and celebrated the new king’s coronation
and the last Queen’s Day (for a while). Her new job
is at Heineken, and she will be doing quite a bit of
business travel around Africa and the Middle East.
Akilah Rogers studied luxury hospitality in Monaco
for six months at the International-University of
Monaco. After four years in Colorado, Mike Henry
is back in DC, where he’s helping to open an office
for his employer, the University Corporation for
Atmospheric Research.
Martin Mudd reports: “As the second year of the
Montessori High School comes to a close, I reflect
on my participation in founding and sustaining it,
and at the same time I am making a transition to
half-time teaching Japanese and advanced maths
next academic year and spending the rest of my days
doing historic building restoration work, developing my vision of liberatory education, and growing
and cooking food for me and my partner Nishaan.
Although I do not often see many Williams grads
here in Lexington, Ky., I do enjoy reading about
the social justice work of radical Ephs around the
country.”
M.J. (Prest) Lanum just published (as M.J. Prest) a
young-adult novel titled Immersion. She says, “My
audience is teens, but it’s perfect for adults as a
beach read due to a scorching hot love triangle and
just enough action to keep you reading late into the
night. It’s now available on Amazon.com and as an
audiobook on iTunes.”
On May 11, Carolyn Robbs married Jeff Bilanko
in Palm Springs, Calif. She felt so lucky that
Meredith (Jones) Clifford and Sean Clifford ’05
were able to come and represent our alma mater.
She hadn’t seen them for four years, and Carolyn
got to meet their beautiful daughter Ellie. Jeff and
Carolyn spent their honeymoon exploring France
for two weeks. She reports, “On our first night in
Paris, we went out to dinner and were seated near
two other English speakers. We struck up a casual
conversation, and about 30 minutes in, we realized
one of them was another Williams alum, Chris
Muir ’05! Jeff, Chris, his girlfriend and I ended up
drinking wine and talking long into the night. The
bartenders even sent us off with complimentary
double shots of absinthe. It was a perfect start to
the trip.”
While still working as a Boston Chocolate
Walking Tours tour guide, Ally Matteodo joined the
Cambridge Historical tours, which offer Harvard
tours, Cantabrigia tours, ghost tours, and pub crawls!
She also appeared in the 4th Wall Stage Company’s
2003–04
production of Sam Shepard’s Simpatico, directed
by Barbara Guertin and performed at the Hanover
Theatre in Worcester, Mass.
Prior to this Ally performed in What a Drag with
Theatre with a Twist at the Bull Run Restaurant in
Shirley for a fundraiser to generate money for the
Country Day School of Groton. Over the summer
Ally was working with the Massachusetts Theater
Experiment on The Other Side of Town, a fictional
story with realistic characters and settings that takes
place in 1968 Somerville. On April 24, Melanie (Beeck) Gaudion and her
husband Lee welcomed their first son, Oliver Lee.
Melanie says, “My mom had been here from Brazil a
couple of weeks, my dad a few days and my brother
was arriving with his wife and 22-month-old when
I was in the delivery room. They came to stay with
us almost a month, and boy was it a crazy, fun—at
times very loud—experience having all the South
American energy, a 15-month-old hyperactive Vizsla
dog, a cat that seeks attention and someone to play
with at all times and who thinks she’s the house
princess (she isn’t wrong!) and a newborn all under
the same roof.”
Jonathan Langer and Nicholas Brandfon visited
Tim Patterson in Craftsbury, Vt., for a week of turkey
hunting after the wedding of George W. Evans. The
turkeys outsmarted them for six mornings, but they
finally bagged a gobbler on the last day, and it flew
back to Denver with Jon. Kristen (Van Woert) Connolly and her husband
Greg welcomed their baby boy, Colin Edward
Connolly, on Oct. 20, 2012. He loved meeting
Brookie Kaltsas, Sarah (Torkelson) Stickney, Tim
Stickney, Pete Endres and Caitlin Canty in his first
few weeks/months of life. Kristen says, “He loves to
smile and is always on the move; we are blissfully
happy!” Kristen finished pediatric residency in
June, and they were staying in Vermont, where she
planned to join a pediatric practice near Burlington.
Kristen is looking forward to our 10th (gasp!)
reunion next year!
Shamus Brady had the honor of serving in the
wedding party of Bill Ference ’07. Shamus managed
to lose count of the number of family members he
was escorting in but redeemed himself by helping the groom with a wardrobe emergency at
around 9:53 p.m. He was only able to navigate to the
wilds of Pennsylvania and out of lower Manhattan
thanks to trusty co-pilot Eric Engler. Needless to say,
after a quite pedestrian and rather boring bachelor
party it was nice to attend a wedding with some
excitement.
Nick Borja married Annie Lord in Miami, Fla.,
on April 20, and a strong Williams contingent was
there to celebrate: Carlos Silva, Elliott Baer, Elliot
Morrison, Zach Yeskel, Heather Brubaker ’03, Jeremy
Redburn ’03, Rob Gonzalez ’03, Rana Kannan,
Krishna Kannan ’03, Dan Schwab ’02, Ellie Cowen
’06, Thomas Hall ’06, Ceci Calleros and Jeremy
Calleros ’98. All the fun Frisbee-playing and dance
floor antics gave Annie a taste for what’s in store at
next year’s reunion; she’s just as excited as Nick is! On March 8, Kate (Berens) Bucki and her husband
Craig welcomed daughter Colleen Victoria Bucki
into the world. In April, Kate was appointed to the
Board of Trustees of the Buffalo and Erie County
Public Library. She is enjoying being a new mom
and serving the community.
After meeting at ACE Jazz Lounge in Goodrich
in 2003, Ariel Peters ’06 and Drew Newman are
engaged and are planning a November wedding in
the Berkshires.
Elliot Morrison, Maggie Popkin ’03 and their son
Toby bid New York farewell, moving to Cleveland,
where Maggie will be a professor at Case Western,
and Elliot will finally be something more closely
approximating a real lawyer. Anyone else who wants
to halve their rent and quadruple their square footage is invited to join them in the rust belt.
Laura Day had a blast with Ephlats from the
Classes of 1963 to 2016 at the a cappella group’s
two-year-late 55th reunion back in April, along with
Herr Dr. Professor Jamie O’Leary, Liz (Dimenno)
Rooney ’05, Ashok Pillai ’05, Sasha (Gsovski)
Albohm ’06, Nim Deshpande ’07, and about 70
others. Andrew Giarolo graduated from Seton Hall
Law in May and was to start work as an ADA for
Berkshire County after taking the bar later in the
summer. In the meantime, he was making good
use of the Sawyer monkey carrels while studying
for the bar. Laura and Ashley Cart ’05 ran a halfmarathon together in Lenox and Stockbridge over
Memorial Day weekend. It was cold and rainy but
made very exciting by the bear that crossed their
path at mile 3.5! Their respective husbands, Andrew
and James Cart ’05, along with the Cart kiddos and
three-legged dog won the unofficial prize for “most
supportive spouses” as they drove all around South
County to cheer them on.
Kristin Cole writes: “I’ve been embracing the
California lifestyle and thriving in my foodie mecca
of Oakland, where the sun is always shining and
temps are 10 degrees warmer than SF! I’m living the
freelancer’s dream and balancing my time between
chefing and organizing farm-to-table yoga events
with a Williamstown ‘townie.’ Pei-Ru Ko ’09 also
helps us out at these WildSoul events. I live close to
Sara (Gilliam) Lonergan and family and visit often
for my doses of dog and baby time!”
Prosper Nwankpa writes that he has two wonderful
kids, Jesse, 23 months, and Pearl, 4 months, and that
he is “loving life and working on many cool things!”
Tim Stickney and Sarah (Torkelson) Stickney have
been enjoying their time living in Maine, where
they have been since 2012. Tim and Sarah felt
compelled to write (after a long hiatus from Class
Notes) after a weekend at Newfound Lake in New
Hampshire at Ashley Carter’s family lake house.
Joining the festivities were Pete Endres, Adam
Grogg, Nicole (Eisenman) Weber, Cortney Tunis, and
Ashley Carter and Laurel Carter ’12 (among others).
Activities ranged from bathrobe modeling, flip cup,
channeling Justin Timberlake and Snoop Dogg,
dinner making dance parties, not sleeping followed
by napping and deep conversations in the sauna.
Everyone agreed that our rendition of “Mirrors” is
top notch and that Tim really needs a better fitting
robe.
Dave Arnolds and his wife Marin welcomed the
birth of their son Edward Porter Arnolds on May
20. Dave has one more year left in his MD/PhD
program and is hoping to have a real job before the
baby starts college.
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Hannah Harte is working part time and started a
graduate program in psychology at Pepperdine. It’s
no Williams, but it feels good to be in school again.
She’s also thrilled that Sumana (Cooppan) Wolf was
to move to Los Angeles over the summer!
Since last July Scott Grinsell has been in DC,
clerking for U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sonia
Sotomayor. The clerkship was winding down, and
Scott was headed back to New York for the summer.
He was looking forward to a few months of vacation
and seeing everyone he missed over the past year.
Chrissy Milkosky got married Oct. 6, 2012, in
High Point, N.C., to Jonathan Gentry. Her bridesmaids included Amanda Stout and Jessica Ebberson.
On the eve of class notes being due, Heather
Foran was working late with Jen Lazar, the two of
them about to embark on the Field Academy’s
third summer expedition. They’ve been building
this traveling high school for the last three years,
and in July they were to be studying water and
survival in the Southwest. Daniel Shearer, who had
the pleasure of being on the board during the first
year when Claire Samuel was assisting with the
first expedition and before Annie Moore jumped on
the board, reports that the students absolutely love
the experience and come out of it ready to direct
their own education. Get in touch with Daniel for
more details on the emerging alumni movement to
get Williams to divest from fossil fuels. Daniel and
Jen also just bought a house with Rachel Brodie
’02 in Richmond, Vt., and you should visit! While
visiting, you might also run into Claire Samuel or
Ken Brown ‘05.
Zak Haviland ran into Ben Fleming in Brooklyn,
and the clever fellows realized that the two women
they had married last summer were best friends who
had grown up together in Dallas, Texas. Oops! They
caught up about corporate law and principal-ing,
and Ben confided that yes, he still has night terrors.
Devin Fitzgibbons was MIA and likely taking care of
his really cute new baby, whom he reports has almost
developed the balance to ride a cat.
Jonathan Langer continues to live in Denver,
although he surprisingly felt pangs of jealousy for life
out east on recent visits to Tim Patterson’s custom
house-on-a-hill in Vermont and George Evans’
and Nick Brandfon’s classic red-brick apartments in
Brooklyn. Jonathan left BakerHostetler, where he’d
practiced since law school, to join the boutique business law firm Izbiky & Assoc.
Alex Grashkina-Hristov writes: “I was in Sofia,
Bulgaria, in June and hung out with Petya Miteva
’10, who leads visitors to the city on tours and
pub crawls. Then, I went to London and met
Roman Herman ’06 for brunch. He had flown in
from Bratislava for the weekend, and he met our
11-month-old daughter. Also with a cute little girl,
Teodora Ivanova-Limon ’03 and her husband seemed
to be enjoying living in London.”
Charlie Davidson writes: “Kam Shahid, Rob
Follansbee, and I had dinner with my dad Max
Davidson ’61 in New York, while Kam was in town
for a two-week rotation. Way back in 2012, Dave
Rackovan and his girlfriend Yana stayed with me in
NYC, and we rang in the New Year at a party down
in SoHo. Finally, I moved to Williamsburg despite
being a Manhattan lifer to date. Thankfully, I found
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Ned Hole ’05 and his wife Jessie Freeman ’08 live
nearby. While meeting at a rooftop bar for a beer on
Cinco de Mayo, we ran into a glittery face-painted,
sombrero-wearing Andrew Zimmer, which just happens to be one of my favorite types of Zimmer.”
Keith and Joanna (Touger) Olsen welcomed their
second son, Asher Jacob Olsen, on March 22 and
have settled in as a family of four. He is a very happy
baby and has already enjoyed his first playdate with
Matt Hoffman’s son Brendan. Keith graduated from
the MD/PhD program at University of Rochester in
May. He will complete his intern year in Rochester,
after which they will be headed to Portland, Ore., in
June 2014 for residency. They look forward to seeing
Pacific NW Ephs.
2005
Aron Chang, 3802 Hamilton St., Irvine, CA 92614;
Charles Soha, 150 Huntington Ave., Apt. NA6, Boston,
MA 02115; 2005secretary@williams.edu
Friends, the Class of 2005 has surely been on the
move since our last issue. Dave Cohen relocated to
Chicago to start his residency at Northwestern in
internal medicine and would love to hear from any
Williams folks who are there. Zach McArthur was
moving to Chicago in August to start a new teaching job. He’s excited to reconnect with Alice Brown,
who teaches in the suburbs there, and he may live
with Jeff Koegel ’06. Vladimir Andonov has been
in Chicago for nearly a year for business school.
He met up with Jane McCamant and ran into Gigi
Stender at a Williams event in May. Vladimir also
went to NYC for three days to get together with
Ivan Manolov and Kamen Kozarev. They reminisced
about their early post-Williams days and had dinner
at an Austrian restaurant on the Lower East Side.
Bart Clareman graduated from Harvard Business
School alongside Bynum Hunter and David Roth
in May. Bart moved back to NYC, where he’s cofounding an education technology company called
Tiggly (www.tiggly.com) that’s developing toys for
toddlers that interact with tablet screens. He notes
to those that have children, nieces or nephews that
Tiggly makes a great gift! Marissa Doran graduated
from Yale Law in June and will be clerking for a year
in San Diego. She then plans to move back to New
York. Dan Lieberman graduated from medical school
in June and moved to Seattle to start residency at the
University of Washington in emergency medicine.
Maryl Gensheimer and Jason Davis were moving
from New York to DC over the summer; Maryl is to
join the faculty at the University of Maryland in the
fall. They were sorry to say goodbye to New York but
were both looking forward to catching up with Ephs
in the area.
Micah Halsey and Elena Bonifacio graduated from
Columbia Business School in May. Micah and his
fiancée Simone Levien ’08 moved to Brooklyn.
They went up to Williamstown for her fifth reunion
and had a blast. Jocelyn Gardner Spencer and Matt
Spencer are moving to Connecticut, where Jocelyn
will be the pastor of the First Congregational
Church of Woodstock. Matt will be teaching math
at Holy Cross in Worcester, where he ran into
Beth Landis when he went for his interview. Hilarie
Ashton was gearing up to start her PhD at CUNY in
2004–05
the fall. Until then, she’s preparing for her mother’s
memorial, kickboxing up a storm, writing a book and
soaking up as much sun as she can. She celebrated
Alana Whitman’s 30th birthday in June and was also
thrilled to see Davida Kutscher ’03 and her daughter
Carmel when they were stateside for Davida’s 10th
reunion.
Phil Smith celebrated his 30th birthday in the East
Village with Kerel Nurse and Kerel’s wife Ines Major
’06, Veronica Mendiola, Kyle Acebo, Elena Bonifacio,
Chuck Soha and Vishal Agraharkar. Vishal had a
similar celebration a few weeks later with a similar
crowd—including Phil, Kerel, Ines, Elena and
Chuck as well as Abby Whitbeck, Amanda Niu, Laura
Futransky, Chris DeNicola and Karl Johanson.
Meg Bossong turned 30 and says, “Mike Silverstein
is correct: It does make you better at complaining about things.” She participated in the Daring
Change event that the college held back in April
(http://www.williams.edu/daring-change/), “which
was really fantastic, and I was really energized by
the number of people coming together to talk
about Williams’ identity, past, present and future.”
Christina Villegas spent her 30th birthday in San
Francisco biking, hiking and celebrating with Jessica
Lovaas ’06 and Gina Calderon ’04. Christina’s been
gardening at her folks’ house in Queens, N.Y., with
the help of consultants Faith Lim and Julian Lazalde
’04. After working in Arizona for two years at The
Florence Immigrant and Refugee Rights Project,
she’s back in NYC, working at The Bronx Defenders,
and is excited to reconnect with folks and make new
friends.
Phil Enock, still in the process of working toward
a PhD in experimental clinical psychology at
Harvard, published his first journal article (http://
bit.ly/13N6dDm). It includes research on mobile
applications for mental health treatment. Jennifer
Simmons trained for and successfully completed her
first three half-marathons: the first in February at
Disney World, the second in March with a variety
of rock bands and the third in April at the Nike
Women’s Half Marathon, where she received a
Tiffany’s finisher award.
JJ O’Brien has started his own adventure, making
“rather rad apparel” (hemhaus.com). He spends his
days getting fit with Katie Shattuck’s Move Me Fit
platform and spotting Chief Resident Dr. Emily
(Welsh) Gottenborg’s picture throughout the halls of
UCSF. JJ sends special thanks to Megan Henze for
flying out from NYC to celebrate his 30th birthday
in Tahoe, along with the many other Bay Area Ephs
who made the trip, including Katie Shattuck, Emily
(Welsh) Gottenborg, Drew Gottenborg ’06, Garrett
Collins ’04, Blair Coffman ’06, Christian Henze ’09
and Marco DeMeireles ’09. Kara Weiss (karaweiss.
com) is releasing her debut book, a novella-in-stories
titled Late Lights, complete with a blurb by Williams
professor Jim Shepard on the back! A book launch
party was planned for NYC along with other events
in Salt Lake City, Seattle, Boston and Martha’s
Vineyard throughout the summer; she hoped to see
’05s at them.
Daniel Krass loves life in Music City, halfway
to his doctorate in audiology at Vanderbilt. He
saw Jocelyn Gardner when she was in town and
hangs out with Sam Goldman every so often. He
anticipates returning home to the Bay Area in a
year for his clinical externship but in the meantime
offers a free place to stay in Nashville. Molly Sharlach
completed her PhD in microbiology at UC Berkeley
and in September was starting a one-year certificate
program in science communication at UC Santa
Cruz. She looked forward to a summer of relaxation,
travel and relocation from Berkeley to Silicon Valley
with her husband Kevin.
Jonathan Landsman made a trip up to Boston to
link up with Zach McArthur and head north to rendezvous with Ken Brown at a Vermont ski mountain.
Before they hit the road, Jonathan worked Yelp
to painstakingly choose a breakfast place with the
largest homemade donuts he’s ever seen. The order
of the day was “we are old men; let’s not get hurt.”
Jonathan took one lone black diamond shortcut, and
that made him the team stunt devil. They put in a
respectable four hours or so then headed back to the
lodge for more donuts, drinking coffee like a New
Yorker—so much that Jonathan muses that he drank
Ken and Zach under the table. Ross Smith plans to
spend four more years in Uppsala, Sweden, where
he is starting a PhD position. When not busy in the
lab, he was out in the forest, training for a summer of
big orienteering competitions. The most exciting was
planned for Cali, Colombia, in August at the World
Games, where he and his fiancée Samantha will be
representing the U.S. While near Albany, N.Y. for
the team trials, he hung out with Dan Weintraub and
Anna Popick ’04.
Ashley Weeks Cart and James Cart are giving
vegetable-gardening a real try this season—stopping
at nothing to have farm-fresh tomatoes. They bought
a small farm in Vermont last spring, aptly naming it
Cartwheel Farm. They have a flock of chickens and
12 kitchen garden beds and are learning all about
life out on rural country roads. Their daughters are
getting old enough now that they can help and learn
the joys of farm life. Next up? Sheep ownership, so
that Ashley can have an endless supply of wool to
feed her knitting obsession.
Tim Crawley hung out with fellow Spring Streeter
Matt Earle ’07 at the Crawley compound in Cottage
Grove, then went back up to Portland, Ore., where
Matt was able to satiate a massive coffee craving at
Stumptown. Katie Dolbec planned to start a sports
medicine fellowship in Lewiston/Augusta, Maine,
in July after finishing her emergency medicine residency in Portland, Maine. Jaime Hensel graduated
from the Yale School of Nursing with an MSN to
become a family nurse practitioner. Sara Martin and
Ari Schoenholtz came for her graduation. Pam Choi
is a surgery resident at Washington University in St.
Louis, undergoing a basic science research fellowship
studying small bowel adaptation. One day, at a joint
surgery-radiology conference, she happened to sit
down next to John Symanski ’06, who is a radiology
resident. Pam was looking forward to her summer
wedding with Deborah Hemel and Nisha David as
bridesmaids.
Beth Potter and Devin Fitzgibbons ’04 welcomed
Anne Potter Fitzgibbons to the world on April 22.
They’re still living in Brooklyn and were looking
forward to escaping to the Adirondacks for the summer. Asha Rhodes-Meade married Sean Meade on
May 25. Barrington Fulton and Jamal Mobley ’04 and
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his wife Denyse Deane ’03 attended the wedding.
Yami Mackenzie ’06 was one of Asha’s bridesmaids.
Tameka Watler married Owuraka Koney last August,
with Ben Rah, Salem Fevrier, Nii Koney ’01, Silvia
Paz-Frydman ’06, Jeff Delaney, Alcia Jackson ’07,
Samson Ampofo, Chris Sewell, Claudene Marshall
’03, Rod McLeod, Zophia Edwards, Professor Sandra
Burton, Aaron Jenkins ’03, Fran-Fredane Fraser and
Ricardo Woolery in attendance.
2006
Ariel Peters, 626 Independence Ave. SE, Apt. 206,
Washington, DC 20003; 2006secretary@williams.edu
There’s lots of good news to share, so let’s start
with Megan O’Malley, who got a promotion; she’s
now a producer at R/GA and is working on the
Nike FuelBand. She’s also loading up on extracurriculars: R/GA has a Toastmasters chapter, and she’s an
officer; plus, she started a company CSA—“lots of
yummy treats.” She, Kristyn Bretz ’07 and Cecilia de
la Campa were set on doing all of the touristy things
New Yorkers never actually do, like walking across
the Brooklyn Bridge and visiting the Brooklyn
Botanic Garden over the summer.
High-five to Lisha Perez, who graduated from
Wharton in May and is back in NYC for a new job
at Unilever. She saw Ikem Joseph and Joe Hutchinson
at Ikem’s birthday in June.
Emily Casden was “co-maid of honor” with Joe at
Jon Russell and Melissa Paige’s (15!) wedding in
April, and over Memorial Day weekend she and her
girlfriend April moved in together; they now share a
spacious one-bedroom in Prospect Lefferts Gardens.
“We’re one block from Prospect Park and actually
have too much space.” Emily reports that April has
been welcomed with open arms into the Eph “cult,”
as she calls it. Meanwhile, Emily is still at the Jewish
Museum, and she coordinated the career retrospective of comic artist Art Spiegelman, which will be on
view from Nov. 8 to March 23!
Lisa Lindeke and Seth Daniels got married at the
John J. Audubon Center in Audubon, Pa., on May
26. Their guest list included 39 alums spanning the
classes of 1968 to 2006, including both of their
fathers, Craig Lindeke ’71 and Paul Daniels ’72.
Lisa wrote, “It was particularly special to us to be
able to have a self-uniting marriage (allowable in
Pennsylvania due to its Quaker heritage).” Two
of their brothers officiated—one of them is Bill
Lindeke ’01—and Colin Yee and maid of honor
Emily Bonem served as their witnesses. At the end
of the night a dozen Ephs recreated the dance to
“What a Feeling” from the Winter Study music
video that needs no introduction.
Lisa and Seth honeymooned in Greece and
Turkey and are now back stateside, where Lisa
is in the last year of her PhD program in child
clinical psychology at Penn State, and Seth is a
mortgage foreclosure litigation attorney outside of
Philadelphia.
Sarah Louise Smith attended EunSu Chang’s
wedding in May along with Jay Bid, Michelle Lee,
Thomas Kunjappu, Tseli Mohammed and An-Lo Yu
’07. While vacationing in Morocco and Senegal
she spent time with Matt Hsieh and Meg McCann,
who are living in Dakar. They visited a resort called
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Obama Beach and (accidentally) went off-roading
through towns all over West Senegal.
Brad Brecher wed his fiancée of two years, Erica, in
Boston on June 1. At the wedding was a herd of purple cows, including Adam Bloch, Zack Orjuela, Blake
and Sasha Albohm, Laura Borland and her husband
Seth Borland ’03, Guy Smith ’04, Brian Carey and
Abby Carey ’07, Ben Bullitt ’08 and Mike Kirwan ’08.
Brad changed jobs within the Marine Corps and
now works as an operational law attorney at the II
Marine Expeditionary Force. Erica graduated from
Tufts Dental School and was to start a pediatric
dental residency program at UNC Chapel Hill.
While they were in Boston, Blake and Sasha
checked in on Evan Bick and Gillian Sowden’s boys,
who were turning 1. Sasha and Blake have their own
bundle of joy—a dog named Scotch, who is also
a year old. She’s a lanky mix of setter, spaniel and
perhaps something else, and she “looks really good in
a purple collar.”
Yariv Pierce and Aston Gonzalez ’08 also tied the
knot in June, eight years after Vickie Fernandez—
Yariv’s entrymate and Aston’s JA—introduced the
two. Yariv and Aston were thrilled to celebrate with
53 Ephs at their wedding in New Rochelle, N.Y.
Dianne Pfundstein was on her honeymoon in
Iceland; she married Robert Chamberlain in NYC
on June 8.
Alex Chan’s engagement to her fiancé Justin drew
a crowd to Brooklyn. Reed Harrison and Annie
Harrison flew in from Portland, Analia Sorribas came
up from Jersey, Jared Powell and Julia Esko came
down from Boston, Arathi Rao joined from DC, and
Stephanie Vano, Anne Louise Ennis and Nick Perry
’04 also stopped in for the celebration. Alex finished
business school in the spring, and she and Justin
were moving back to the Bay Area over the summer.
Erin Wagner and Beth Ann Barnosky were busy
celebrating their upcoming weddings to good
friends and MIT frat brothers Will and Kevin. (Erin
actually introduced Beth Ann and Kevin just weeks
after we graduated.) Erin had her bachelorette in
Killington in March with Beth Ann, Kristin Moss,
Katie Krause and Meaghan Lisman, and Beth Ann
had hers in Denver in April with Erin and Kristin,
plus Poker E housemates and bridesmaids Meaghan,
Emily Madden and Kate Sauerhoff. Erin’s wedding
was in Boston on June 15, and Beth Ann’s was July 5
on Long Island.
Maggie Carr was planning an August wedding in
Pittsburgh. She and her fiancé Paul were looking
forward to seeing lots of Ephs … and Lord Jeffs. Yes,
it’s true: “I’m afraid to admit that Paul did in fact
go to Amherst.” Todd Shayler has already forgiven
her; he visited Maggie in California in the spring:
“We had a lovely time hanging out, telling jokes and
drinking cocktails in my backyard.”
Cristin Wilson and her fiancé James welcomed baby
boy Chase Jacob on Dec. 13 last year. They bought a
house in March and are getting married in October!
Speaking of babies, Bradford Chu was to start a
fellowship in pediatric cardiology in July. In May he
went to New Orleans for Jazzfest with the one and
only Jon Wisbey, who, says Brad, “appears to have
found his natural habitat.”
Others are settling in elsewhere: Neal Holtschulte
is a third-year PhD student in computer science at
2005–07
the University of New Mexico. He taught his first
class, “Introduction to Programming in Java,” over
the summer and went for runs in the high desert of
Albuquerque.
Tommy Hall is living in Telluride, Colo., where he
hikes, mountain bikes and grows Outside LSAT, his
LSAT (and now GMAT!) tutoring and publishing
company.
Erika Latham started working at a small-animal
clinic in the Miami area. “I still find it odd to have
palm trees be the norm and see lizards climbing up
trees instead of squirrels.” She had plans to travel to
Europe in July, including dancing at a tango festival
on the coast of Croatia.
Erin (Blanchard) Chen was looking forward to
hosting Kate Majzoub in Seattle in August and
“savoring the late-summer sun and sharing the city
that is feeling more and more like home.” Before
starting a new job at the culturally diverse Seattle
World School in the fall, she had planned her own
excursions to Peru and China.
Lucy Cox-Chapman is still in Boston and is now
with a health-care advocacy organization; she
was working hard on the October launch of the
Affordable Care Act.
The highlight of Adam Bloch’s winter was a trip
to Speed Week at the Bonneville Salt Flats of Utah,
where he managed to ride his heavily modified
antique motorcycle to a couple of records.
Alissa Caron was about to get on a plane: “My
husband Kinal and I are moving back to Boston
tonight,” she wrote. She had been in Southeast Asia
for more than four years but was eager to be closer to
home and to start her new job at Harvard School of
Public Health.
Chris Geissler and Kim Geissler (16!) finished their
PhDs in North Carolina (in economics and health
policy, respectively) and were packing up the car.
Chris is in Holyoke, and Kim is doing a postdoc
in Boston. They saw Todd Shayler, Ben Cohen, Liz
Killien, Heather Casteel and Alyson Lynch at Katie
Belshe’s wedding in June, “which was a great start to
the summer.”
Meanwhile, Jim Prevas was finishing up his residency, and he and his wife, Helen Prevas ’07, were
moving to Annapolis.
Sometimes people ask me for an update, so I’ll
oblige. I was in New York over the summer for a
legal internship. I got lobster in Red Hook with
Pamela Good, Ainsley O’Connell and Mary Catherine
Blanton on Memorial Day and celebrated Pam’s
wedding in Providence a few weeks later with
Ainsley, Mary Catherine, Mary Singer, Meredith
Singer and Meghan Ryan. What else? Oh, I’m
engaged! Drew Newman ’04 and I are happily
anticipating our Nov. 2 wedding in (where else?) the
Purple Valley. I don’t think we’ll be able to top Yariv’s
guest list, but we’ll certainly try!
2007
Caitlin Hanley, 1121 Arlington Blvd., Apt. 608, Arlington,
VA 22209; 2007secretary@williams.edu
It is hard to believe that it was 10 years ago
this fall that we arrived as a class in the Purple
Valley! Embarking on a journey called “college,” we embraced the quintessentially Williams
traditions—freshman year entries, Mountain Day,
homecoming—and made Williamstown our fouryear home. Ten years later, the class notes serve as
continued evidence of the enduring friendships and
memories forged by the Class of 2007 in the Purple
Valley and beyond.
And so this edition begins with ’07 Eph-ventures.
This past April, Elliot Heilman traveled to Africa
for a month to visit Will Rathgeber, who was
teaching in a small village in Western Kenya.
The two climbed Mount Kilimanjaro, which was
both “pretty cool and freezing cold.” Elliot is at
the dissertating stage in a graduate program at
Northwestern University called rhetoric and public
culture. Will begins law school at Berkeley this fall.
Martha Rogers spent the first two weeks of June
visiting Lalibela and hiking northern Ethiopia with
Glenn Rogers ’79 and José Pacas ’08. Martha and
José then visited Dar es Salaam, where they met up
with Lauren Fernandez ’07 on her way back from
South Africa.
Also returning from a recent trip to Africa, Abby
Taylor, who now coaches women’s club hockey at
Ohio State University, writes, “It’s nice to be back
on the ice.” Abby is pursuing a degree in veterinary
medicine at OSU.
Auyon Mukarji reports, “All is well in Darlingsideworld.” The summer is off to a momentous start
for the string-rock quintet with “festivals, a few
opening slots for bands that open for bands that
you have heard of and tank tops. That’s pretty much
it,” as Auyon sums it up.
The spring was filled with ’07 wedding celebrations, engagements and the arrival of new little
Ephs. On June 8, Elizabeth Pierce and Matt Davis
were married in Lenox, Mass. It was an “amazing
and perfect day” surrounded by friends and family,
including Colleen Gerrity, Alex Hogan, Natalie
Vokes, Alison Penning, Ren McDermott, Emma
Reynolds, David DeVaughn, Brian Van Wyck, Sura
Tilakawardane, Caroline Doctor, Abelee Esparza,
Matt Summers and Justin Bates. Elizabeth and
Matt took a few days to relax in Vermont before
returning to work (teaching and consulting,
respectively). In addition to enjoying the “wonderful” wedding weekend, Colleen Gerrity and Alex
Hogan had an extra reason to celebrate as they both
survived their intern years as pediatric residents at
Hasbro Children’s Hospital in Providence, R.I.
Kathryn Rowland married Chris Meyer in May
2012, and Liz Pearce, Joe Shippee, Scott Faley ’05,
Liz (Ellis) Ludvik ’06 and Jeff Ossinger ’05 attended
the ceremony in New Jersey. In August 2012,
Kathryn attended Mariana Uribe, now Sr. Mariana
Benedicta’s, first profession of vows with the
religious order the Sisters of Life in Connecticut.
Kathryn spent the past year in South Bend, Ind.,
where her husband finished law school at Notre
Dame. Brian Norton visited the Meyers from St.
Louis, and along with Bianca Czaderna ’11, who is
in graduate school at Notre Dame, had dinner with
Professor Jim Nolan, who was participating in a
fellowship program at Notre Dame for the spring
semester. On Feb. 14, the Meyers welcomed daughter Claire Elizabeth (a Valentine’s baby!). They
recently moved to Denver, where they are “enjoying
the beautiful mountain views!”
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On April 16, Laura (Lee) Ernst and husband
Christian welcomed son Eli. Though no Ephs
have met him yet, Angela Doyle and Jen Menzies
attended baby showers (in San Diego and
Tennessee, respectively) before his birth. The Ernsts
still live in San Diego and are adapting to life in
their family of three.
In the spring, Andy Eklund and Allegra Funsten
got engaged at the National Arboretum. Sean
Gleeson and Lauren Hartmann were engaged on
June 8. In March, Sean took a football coaching job
at Princeton University and moved to Princeton
with Lauren in June. He looks forward to introducing her to fellow Ephs at Brian Nelson’s wedding to
Sophie Scully ’06.
Graduations, relocations and ’07 Eph gatherings
also continue to go strong. Ally Holmes graduated from law school last January, took the bar in
February and was sworn to the Massachusetts Bar
in June. She is now officially an attorney for the city
of Boston and looks forward to having some free
time now that school is over and getting back in
touch with Boston Ephs.
Diana Davis graduated from Brown with a PhD
in math and accepted a postdoc for next year at
Northwestern University. Also at NU, Kevin Kellert
finished his first year at the Kellogg School of
Management and spent the summer interning in
New York. He maintains a personal finance and
economics website (http://krkreflections.blogspot.
com) and encourages Eph readers.
Katie Fleming finished an MPP program at UC
Berkeley and moved back to New York. While she
is “sad to leave Laura Wagner in California,” she
is “happy to be back with Margot Weller, Charles
Howard and other New York Ephs.” Jen Sleeper works at Walt Disney in Burbank,
Calif. In May, she attended an Ephs in
Entertainment lunch at the Disney executive cafeteria with John Headly ’89, Peter Nelson ’71 and
William Jacobson ’09.
Also in California, Ben Echols is “still in SF doing
the same old stuff ” but recently has made a few
trips to the East Coast for Eph wedding festivities.
The ’07 WUFO crew—Ben, Rohan Mehra, Tyler
Auer, Conor Quinn, Doug Hammond, Alex Hogan,
Owen Simpson, Larry Dworkin, Giorgio Mosoni
as well as Charlie Upton ’08, Jamie Quella ’10 and
Jon Dahlberg ’10—gathered in NYC to celebrate
Norman Nicholson’s bachelor party. Ben also joined
a number of Ephs attending Charlie Upton’s wedding to Elana Boehm ’06 in Chapel Hill, N.C.
Maggie Lowenstein finished medical school at
University of Pennsylvania and moved to San
Francisco to start her internal medicine residency
at UCSF, where Lindsey Wu is also in her residency
program. Maggie hangs out with co-JA Ben Echols
(who lives down the street!) as well as Haley Tone
and Riley Maddox ’08, who also live in SF. Also
graduating from medical school, Ben Grass wrote
“from the road” en route from Hanover, N.H., to
Missoula, Mont., to complete a residency in family
medicine.
Nirmal Deshpande is also “saying goodbye to the
East Coast” as he heads to Ann Arbor for business
school at University of Michigan in the fall. In
this spring, he attended the 55th Ephlats reunion
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in Williamstown. It was a weekend “spent singing
and laughing with old friends (fed by at least four
consecutive late-night Colonial’s deliveries to Perry
library—who knew that [Colonial] accepts payments via Square!)”
Carpe diem! To the next 10 years and many
more!
2008
Sarah Bonn, 110 East 84th ST., #5D, New York, NY
10028; Tim Geoffrion, 45 Trowbridge St., Apt. 5B,
Cambridge, MA 02138; 2008secretary@williams.edu
Submitted by outgoing secretary Julie Van Deusen: It
was wonderful to see so many of you at our reunion
in June! Despite (or possibly because of ) the rain
and mud, it seemed like everyone had a truly great
time. It was fun to see our class reconnecting
with one another, and it really felt as if we were in
college again. A few highlights from the weekend
include rocking out to Darlingside at First Fridays
in Goodrich and eating a LOT of knock-younakeds, testing our Williams knowledge during
trivia in Paresky Pub, hanging out and playing
lawn games in the Greylock Quad, and dressing
up and then subsequently dancing in the mud pit
on Saturday night. We had more than 300 people
attend our reunion, which won us the “highest
class attendance” award at the Alumni Meeting on
Saturday morning, at which, ironically, our attendance was very low.
Now that reunion is behind us, it’s time for a
new group of class officers to take over for Jen,
Liz, Gordon and me. From all of us, it’s been a
pleasure to serve as your class leaders for the last
five years. I would like to officially congratulate
Jessica (Freeman) Hole and Lashonda (Williams)
Gardenhire, co-presidents, Charlotte VanWagenen,
VP, and Sarah Bonn and Tim Geoffrion, co-secretaries. You will likely be hearing from Sarah and Tim
soon for the next round of Class Notes.
I hope you enjoyed the rest of your summer, and
I’m already looking forward to seeing everyone
again in five more years!
2009
REUNION JUNE 12-15
Mijon Zulu, 377 East 33rd St., Apt. 8H, New York, NY
10016; 2009secretary@williams.edu
When I think about our class and school I think
about: College rankings, embarrassing and/or
inspiring escapades, old friends and interesting if
not mostly good and heart-warming memories.
In the fall, we’ll commence our fifth year since
graduating college (our ninth since beginning
college together) and, surprisingly so, I could not
be prouder of our progress. I am sure that at times
life can be mundane, trying, or feel stale, but if you
let yourself look, pause and assess, you’ll see that
we are not the ‘lost generation.’ We are defying the
odds of a recession and figuring out what to pursue
and how moving forward. Congrats to everyone
regardless what you are up to. Now, for the latest
and the greatest.
We are traveling the world! In Europe, Morgan
Phillips-Spotts spent spring break traveling through
England and Scotland and squeezed in some
2007–09
quality time with Emilie Voight. In the Middle
East, Molly Hunter—two years into her job at ABC
News NY bureau—lent her apartment to rising
2L Bibi Metsch-Garcia and relocated to Jerusalem
for July and August to study Arabic and join
ABC News Jerusalem bureau. In Africa, Danielle
Zentner took a break from her thesis at Stanford
to do a summer field trip in South Africa (#lucky)!
And, from Asia, we have finally gotten news from
Ed Wichiencharoen who reports to be living happily
in Bangkok, Thailand, working part time in entertainment and part time in seafood manufacturing.
Mr. Wichiencharoen also went back to America for
the first time since graduation this past April for
work and had a chance to visit a lot of friends in
New York, Boston and LA!
We are teaching the leaders of tomorrow. Almost
done with her master’s at Teachers College, Becca
Gordon will teach middle or high school English at
an NYC public school in the fall. After two years
of working at the Stratton Mountain School, Liz
Kantack started a one-year MAT program at Bard
College in Annandale-on-Hudson, N.Y. Finally,
the Claires have reunited. Claire Whipple is back
from Malawi and will start a master’s in education
at Bank Street, which is where Claire Rindlaub has
been studying. Ms. Rindlaub is naturally overjoyed
but was occupied with summer school and catching
up with Kelly Kirkpatrick and Emily Smithad
We are educating ourselves and to become leaders
of tomorrow. Lindsay Bouton and Hannah Ratcliffe
graduated with MAs from Harvard School of
Public Health. Ms. Ratcliffe will be staying at
HSPH, working as a project coordinator for the
Women and Health Initiative, while Ms. Bouton
will move to DC to work for the FDA.
Ruth Aronoff spent the first half of the summer in
Houston—where she caught up with Katie Stack
’08 and Danielle Zentner—as a geology intern at an
oil and gas company and then headed to Colorado
to make field maps before heading back to Indiana,
where she is still in a geology PhD program. Frecka
Brasz is pursuing a PhD in mechanical engineering at Princeton and finds time to play professional
ultimate Frisbee for the Philadelphia Spinners.
Nico Aiello is in his fifth year at UMass for a
PhD in math but spent the summer in Madison,
Wis., interning as a software developer for Epic, a
healthcare software company. Also, TJ Khoo finally
chimed in (yay!). Mr. Khoo spent the past four
years at the University of Cambridge, working
toward a PhD in experimental high energy physics
on the ATLAS experiment. A couple of the highlights were spending 2010- 11 working at CERN
and discovering the Higgs boson on July 4, 2012.
In October, he plans to begin three years as a junior
research fellow at Jesus College, Cambridge.
Jacob Cerny will take the next year off of teaching to finish his master’s in linguistics at FIU and
complete the prerequisites for the anesthesiology
assistants program at Nova University. Boston
resident Andy Ward will relocate to the Bay Area
in August to live with Anna Soybel ’11 and get a
PhD in neuroscience at UC Berkeley. Brian Prest
is moving on after two years at the Congressional
Budget Office and two years at NERA Economic
Consulting to pursue a PhD at Duke in
environmental economics, with a focus on energy
economics and climate change. Finally, Noemi
Fernandez left Boston after two years to start
graduate school at UPenn, where she was named
the Dean’s Centennial Scholar for the Division of
Higher Education.
Rachel Bring graduated from NYU School
of Medicine and started an internal medicine
residency at New York-Presbyterian Hospital/
Columbia University Medical Center, while Sam
Smith left Chicago for New Haven to start a
residency at Yale-New Haven Hospital in Internal
Medicine-Pediatrics. Upon arrival, Ms. Smith
caught up with Brian Delmolino and Zach Safford
over dinner. Caroline Kan is finishing her last year
and is applying to residency programs in anesthesia
(good luck!), while Kelly Smith continues her studies at Georgetown.
Ian Simmons spent the summer studying for the
bar exam while rising 3Ls are working hard for
their post-law school opportunities. Columbia’s Ben
Howard split his summer between Skadden, Arps’
NY and LA offices before heading to Birthright
in Israel. Cornell’s Stef Williams left Law Review
to work at Davis Polk in NY, while Nicole McNeil
took a quick trip to Sri Lanka and Singapore with
Patricia Ludwig and Catie Lee before summering
at Latham & Watkins in Boston. Down in DC,
UVA’s Ben Bodurian summered at Gibson Dunn.
Ali Tozier spent her 1L summer clerking for a
judge and gaining experience with child protective, family law and criminal cases. And in the
fall Raff Donelson will start at Northwestern Law
while Hanna Miller, fresh from her MA at Harvard
Divinity School, will start at NYU Law.
We are getting ready to shape the business world.
Rising second year George Miller finished his first
year at Sloane where he ran the MIT Clean Energy
Prize, started a Sloane yoga class and spent the
summer interning at XL Hybrids, a startup that
converts vans into hybrids. Also a rising secondyear, Naya-Joi Martin has kept her relationship
with basketball alive as she interned in PR for
the Knicks and worked for the NBA Las Vegas
Summer league in July. Ms. Martin is busy but still
finds time to catch up with Nailah Wilds, David
Edwards and Barrett Allison. Angelo Terra left
Deloitte Consulting after four years to spend three
months at SITAWI, a finance for good nonprofit
organization in Rio de Janeiro before he starts at
the Kellogg School of Management in the fall. Jake
Gorelov and Liz Bacon will be going to Wharton,
Ali Barrett will stay in NYC and go to Stern, and
Natalia ReydeCastro will be back in the States to
get an MBA at Yale with an eye to continue her
career in economic development.
We are conquering the working world. In the city
that never sleeps, Ephs are working hard for the
money. Patty Liao is living in Long Island City with
Alda Chan. In May, Ms. Liao went on an inspiring
glacier-filled cruise vacation to Alaska. Wendy Li
started a job as associate producer on a true crime
series, while Julian Mesri concluded his Emerging
Artist Fellowship and is now an adjunct professor of theater at Pace University, teaching Spanish
contemporary theater. Mr. Mesri is also busy
studying for the GRE and putting final touches on
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his new bilingual play, Immersion. Anthony Molina
changed jobs to follow his former boss and work
at MNI Targeted Media, a TIME Inc. company,
and spent July 4 at Lisa Sloane’s BBQ. In the fall,
Allison Khederian will move to NYC and live with
her brother Robert Khederian ’12
In New England, Sarah Riskind is conducting
a church choir and teaching upper and middle
school music at the German International School
of Boston. Rahul Bahl went to Billsville for the
alumni golf tourney with Tyler Zara, Dave Ramsay,
Chris Chiang and Matt Felser plus a quick Forge
session with Kari Lyden-Fortier. Mr. Bahl celebrated
Chris Chiang’s birthday with Brandon Halloway in
Chicago.
Owen Martel decided to follow up his walk across
Europe in 2011 with a 2,400-mile trek across the
American West. Check his progress at http://
walkthewest.wordpress.com. In Balboa (Newport
Beach), Calif.—home of the Arrested Development
banana stand—Jess Kopcho hosted Allison Prevatt,
Liz Kantack, Meg Conan, Kat Conaway, Katherine
Robinson, Clara Coughlin and Monsie Munoz for
“margs”and a minireunion. In Shiprock, N.M., Jim
Lowe is the coordinator of data, assessment and
compliance for the Central Consolidated School
District. And in LA, Gabrielle Woodson launched a
music blog (www.gabfestgabrielle.com), where she
posts Juicy Jams, Righteous Remixes and interviews
with musicians and music industry folk, including Cirque du Soleil music directors and owners
of boutique music licensing agencies. Finally, Elise
Piazza published a study in Psychological Science on
the auditory system’s efficient use of statistical
information to perceive sounds while Catalin Iordan
gave a talk on the representation of object typicality
in the human brain at the Vision Sciences Society
meeting in May.
We are finding time to declare our love for each
other. Brian Prest proposed to Sarah Tung and,
while she is not an Eph, they met through Ben
Howard, who studied with Ms. Tung in Edinburgh!
Also, college sweethearts Rob Buesing and Jess
Kopcho are finally engaged. (Doesn’t that make
Psych 101 sounds like soothsayer?)
Now, for the weddings. Lauren Bloch kicked
things off in Hilton Head and married Seth Peress
on May 19. Ms. Bloch was surrounded by the
Eph love of Courtney Asher, Denise Duquette, Ali
Tozier, Tim Ryan, Ali Barrett and David Thompson
’11. Michael Kearney married Sarah Wood, whom
he met at MIT, on June 15. The wedding was
attended by Britt Spackman, Caitlin Colesanti, Andy
Camposeo ’08, Catie Lee, Kevin Snyder, Tomas
Golia, Grant Meyer, Chris Rose ’08, Francisco
Bisono, Michael Moorstein ’10, Joe Geoghegan ’10,
Blake Shultz ’10, Ben Bodurian and Mike Maker
(men’s basketball coach). Later that month, Kevin
Coombs married Whitney Ballsrud and partied the
night away with Matt Felser, Brian Bistolfo, Andre
Martinez, Michael Gerbush, Lauren Garcia, Eric
Muller and Rusty Abedinzadeh. Also, sometime in
June, Morgan Phillips-Spotts and Stephanie Reist
snuck in a quick catch-up session with Victoria
Williams before joining Maggie Tucker, YaWen
Lu, Natalia Gonzales and Carol Tsoi ’11 at Maddie
Jones’ wedding.
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Stay tuned for updates about the August weddings of Lizzie Burns and Mike Smith as well as
Becky Sansone and Tyler Bonewell.
It is beyond an honor to revel in your glory. Much
love and well wishes, YCS
2010
Cat Vielma, 833 W. 15th Pl., Apt 312, Chicago, IL 60608;
2010secretary@williams.edu
Submitted by outgoing secretary Ethan TimminsSchiffman: Amanda Widing is still working her way
to doctor status at Columbia Medical School. “A
highlight for me is Meg Zisser returning to New
York for the summer and planning all sorts of summer activities with her,” she says.
Whitney Hitchcock is also chugging along through
medical school. In the spring, she was leaning
toward pursuing urology for her residency, citing
as motivation both her love for surgery and the
connection between urology and the portion of her
last name that contains an age-old euphemism for a
body part closely associated with that field of medicine. Now entering her fourth year at Dartmouth,
Whitney lists as her major accomplishments in
Vermont scouting out every “fabulous” brewery and
planting a “kick a**” garden with Chris Beeler ’08.
I encourage Whitney to read Abby Wood’s next
piece for Berkshire Magazine, a county-wide beer
and hard cider tour, “a perfect way to soak it all
in” before Abby heads to Manhattan in August to
attend Columbia University Graduate School of
Journalism. There, she will pursue a master’s degree:
“I couldn’t be more excited!” Check out Abby’s
Williamstown profile (http://bit.ly/14oGK0R)
from June for a historical perspective on our old
stomping grounds.
Mike Tcheyan visited the village beautiful in June
in between concluding his three years teaching
in South Texas and moving even farther south
for his next adventure. “During those three years,
I have employed Professor Richardson-inspired
teaching techniques, had the pleasure of serving
as a TFA corps member alongside Caitlin Eley and
attended many ‘Pachangas’ within sight of the Rio
Grande River.” After stopping by campus, Mike
moved to Arequipa, Peru, to teach for Freeport
McMoRan Copper & Gold. “If any fellow Ephs
end up in Peru (and I know somebody will end up
down there), make sure to shoot me an email at
miketcheyan@gmail.com.”
Staying on the subject of international travel,
Chuck Kollmer wrote in to share some positive
news. In the spring he had just wrapped up a
master’s degree in interdisciplinary humanities and
social thought at NYU. “Over the past two years, I
put in some serious time working on my German,
receiving lots of help from my esteemed colleagues
at Deutsches Haus at NYU.” His hard work paid
off in the form of a Fulbright grant to study in
Germany for 2013-14. “I’ll be nerding out heavy,
studying the history of plant biology in postwar
Europe.”
Also a student of horticulture, though more of
the post-winter East Bay variety as of late, Jacob
Levin spent the spring completing a “Jewish/urban
ag/social justice fellowship” at Urban Adamah
2009–10
in Berkeley, Calif. When I met up with him
on a sunny May day he guided me through the
program’s farm: The goats were cute, the kale was
sweet, and his fellow fellows were busy making tiedye shirts. Jacob told me that he planned on sticking around for the summer before heading back to
North Carolina’s Research Triangle in the fall.
Perhaps Jacob’s compatriots will find interest in
Marco Sanchez’s new tee shirt company “bolilod,”
which is based on “mirror words” from his college
thesis. Fully settled in Brooklyn, Marco continues
to play trombone with the Harmonica Lewinskies.
“We’re in the process of recording our second
album and playing shows weekly.”
Kallan Wood is another transplant immersed in
NYC life. Quoting HBO’s show Girls and noting
that she realizes she is indeed the program’s target
demographic, Kallan wrote that she is “almost
getting it kind of together” a year and a half since
she moved from California. Kallan is continuing to
dance but is also looking at graduate school outside
of the performing arts. She is “super excited” for
the summer and her sister Gillian Wood’s ’14
return from the Williams-Exeter Programme in
Oxford to work as a Columbia research fellow. “I’m
pumped to have her up the street for two months!”
Ariel Williams will begin graduate school at
Columbia in the fall to pursue a master’s in international affairs. She is both nervous and excited for
the change.
After nearly three years in California, Rebecca
Gilbert is moving back east. She moved home in
Pennsylvania for the summer with plans to begin a
master’s degree at the Yale School of Forestry and
Environmental Studies in August. Words, she says,
cannot express her excitement.
Liz Irvin also starts graduate school this fall. She
will pursue a master’s in city planning at MIT. “I’m
looking forward to reconnecting to Ephs in the
Boston/Cambridge area and escaping the swampy
DC weather.”
Just outside of Beantown, Mike Drzyzga is still
researching HIV as a chemistry Ph.D. student at
Brandeis: “Things have begun to heat up in lab,
as we’ve had some very promising leads. I want
to call them breakthroughs, but it’s early enough
that I could jinx it that way.” Besides work, he
has attended monthly game nights hosted by
Joshua Wilson ’11 and Johannes Wilson ’11 and
had the chance to hang out with Colin Killick ’12
to celebrate the choral piece he and Dan Kohane
’12 wrote for the Cambridge Science Festival.
In May he took part in the annual Watch City
Festival in Waltham, Mass. There, he dressed up in
steampunk garb and a had a “nerdy blast.” “There
may soon be videos circulating of me dancing
with Cobra Commander from G.I. Joe,” he wrote.
During the festival he hosted a showing of his web
series, Dirigible Days. The second season is still on
Kickstarter, now reimagined as a graphic novel: “All
in all, busy times.”
Like Mike, Meredith Craven is studying the HIV
virus. Meredith, who wrote in from Amsterdam,
attends Rollins School of Public Health at Emory.
She traveled to Ndola, Zambia, over the summer to
work with Zambia Emory HIV Research Project.
“The umbrella project is based on reducing HIV
through couples getting tested together and then
undergoing counseling to discuss results. They are
beginning to integrate family planning into the
counseling, as the group just received a grant to
insert IUDs and implants (LARC measures—long
acting reproductive contraceptives).” Meredith’s
job was to evaluate the safety and effectiveness of
nurses training in these methods. After her three
months in Zambia, Meredith planned on visiting
South Africa for “some fun (a.k.a. vineyards).”
I, too, hope to visit South Africa after Mike
Moorstein spoke highly of his experience there
years ago. I plan on doing so from Guinea, where
I will begin Peace Corps service as an agroforestry
volunteer in December. I had originally accepted an
invitation to serve in Benin in June, but a bone spur
in my elbow required surgery. (Speaking of spurs—
or, the Spurs, rather—big ups to Will Hardy and the
rest of the San Antonio Spurs organization for a
successful season.) Many thanks to returned Peace
Corps volunteers Ana Iona (Kenya), Alex Howard
(Senegal), Jess Clarke (Cameroon) and Carry Clark
(Kazakhstan) for their words of wisdom; thanks to
all for the good luck wishes. While I look forward
to Peace Corps service this winter, Seattle provides
ample reasons to enjoy the present. I have seen
three performances by the Satori Group, a local
theater company comprised of many Ephs, including Liza Curtiss, who played a ghost in a June show:
Spooky! Williams theater department chair David
Eppel was in attendance, and I was lucky enough
to break naan with him beforehand at an Indian
restaurant: Spicy!
I will miss Seattle, partially for the dinner parties
I have had with new and old friends alike. Abby
Islan came through to my parents’ home for an
evening meal before she and her fiancé Sascha
moved to Salem, Ore., in June. The couple met
in Seattle, where Abby had been working as a
customer support agent for Big Fish Games. Before
the move, Abby received a surprise visit from Sage
D entrymate Caitlin Eusden and a regular visit from
Gigi Campo, who was not in Sage D but is Abby’s
friend nonetheless.
Andrew Forrest is in DC, spending much time
with Doug Smythe, Chad Brown and Emily Barrios,
“all from our original Sage D crew.” Andrew works
at Upworthy, a startup media website, where he has
been since they launched in March 2012. “Just over
a year old, we just crossed the top 100 U.S. websites
mark by one official ranking, and we like to claim
that at least by some key metrics, we’re the fastest
growing media site in history. Fun times.”
I visited Alex Rubin at his family’s home outside
of DC in June. We strolled through Arlington
National Cemetery on a sweltering day, learned
some presidential history at the National Portrait
Gallery and snacked on frozen yogurt with Seamus
McKinsey ’12 and Liz Jimenez ’12. Also in DC,
I met up with a high school friend who studied
abroad with none other than Andrea Park.
Andrea left Beijing in the spring after wrapping up two months “Eph-ull of friendship and
traveling.” Julia Reiser came to visit, and the two of
them partied in Shanghai and camped overnight
on the Great Wall, where they were the only two
in the group to miss the sunrise. “Next time!” They
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returned to Beijing just in time to catch tacos and
cocktails with Annick Benavides, just before Julia
returned to Bangkok. Annick and Andrea then
caught the morning flight to Guilin, where they
rafted, cycled and hiked in the countryside and
met Scott Baker ’68 and his lovely wife Inge. They
returned to Beijing and proceeded to paint the
town red as only DJs A&A could until Annick
had to return to Albuquerque. In June Lily Zhou
came to town, and Andrea and Lily shared Yunnan
food, local beer and espresso double-chocolate-chip
cookies. Andrea arrived back in the States by way of
NYC, where Henry Blackford works at Fortress
Investment Group. “I enjoy seeing so many Ephs so
often around town,” Henry wrote.
Kristen Baldiga is one of those Ephs in the five
boroughs. She completed a “fun year” teaching high
school chemistry in downtown Brooklyn. “I think
I’ve successfully convinced a few of my favorites to
apply to Williams next year,” she wrote. She has
enjoyed reuniting with classmates and formed a
kickball team with Andrew Bartsch, Mike Grover,
Steven Menking, Christine Jones, Ben Mackinnon,
David Golkin and Everett Case. Their squad was
undefeated heading into the championship in June:
“Go Ephs!”
“I am currently watching my brother’s baseball game,” Tommy Coleman wrote in May. “Tina
Nawrocki is next to me, drinking a cup of tea, as
these Brits are wont to do. I have finished my third
year of graduate school. It progresses, but there
are no particularly interesting singular events to
report.”
2011
Caroline Chiappetti, 504 Clinton Ave., Apt. 3, Brooklyn,
NY 11238; 2011secretary@williams.edu
I guess we are getting old, since my plea for nuptials in the last edition was answered, and felicitations are in order for a number of happy classmates.
Who knew that members of the crew team were so
busy falling in love on and in between those long
bus rides around New England? Adrienne Darrow
planned to marry longtime beau Ian Boyd in July
and was excited to celebrate with many Ephs,
including maid of honor Anna Soybel and best man
Chris Serna. Adrienne promises to take a token
group photo with a Williams banner before she
and Ian jet off to Sardinia for their honeymoon. In
the fall, she is to begin law school and married life
in Ann Arbor, Mich.
Fellow teammates Becca Licht and Dan Constanza
traveled from Brooklyn Heights to Williamstown
for the crew team’s home race this spring, joined
by friends Leland Brewster, Jack Wadden, Anna
Soybel, Alex Treco ’12, Lisa Jaris ’12, Sara Wallace
’12 and Ashley Amos ’12. Dan took Becca on what
she believed was an impromptu hike up Stone Hill,
only to realize he wanted to ask her a very important life question. “It was so great to celebrate our
engagement basically on the spot with all of these
friends [over wings at the Forge],” wrote Becca.
Outside of the crew bubble, Heath Pruitt is
engaged to “a wonderful girl named Ann Marie.”
They’re planning their wedding for the fall of 2014.
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Steph Berger is back out on deployment on
the USS Pearl Harbor, giving aid to Pacific Island
nations with Pacific Partnership, a humanitarian
mission comprised of various militaries and NGOs.
She is looking forward to coming home and planning her wedding to Sara Plunkett ’10.
Life changes come in all sizes, however, and many
classmates were making moves big and small across
the country and around the globe over the summer.
After finishing her MFA in creative writing at the
University of Washington in Seattle, Liz Weinberg
plans a move to New Haven, Conn., with her girlfriend, who will be working on her master’s at Yale.
Leah Landsdowne paid Liz a visit in the spring as
she passed through Seattle.
Hari Ramesh is heading to New Haven to commence a PhD at Yale in political science after a year
living with Haley Steggall in Boston; the roomies
hosted Clare Quinlan for a weekend in the spring.
Making a transcontinental leap in a westerly
direction is Evan Skorpen. After a couple of years
in NYC, Evan went off to climb in Alaska with
George Sullivan for a month before heading to
San Francisco to start a new job and a new life. He
looks forward to hanging out with Briana Marshall,
Tommy Hester and the rest of the San Francisco
Williams crew.
Carly Ameen wins the award for the most serious
globetrotting; after completing her second summer
of fieldwork in the Yukon Delta of Alaska, she is
to move to Aberdeen, Scotland, in the fall to study
for her master’s in archaeology at the University of
Aberdeen.
Thammika “Prim” Songkaeo is moving to
Philadelphia from Austin to begin an education
degree at UPenn in the fall. During the summer,
she and Kaitlin Butler were developing a personal
statement workshop to help high school students
from under-served communities.
Former New Yorker and more recent Beantowner
Nina Cochran moved to Manchester, Vt., last spring,
and she is working as a literary assistant.
After an Asia adventure with Julia Van
Hoogstraten (that included a catch-up with Erin
McGonagle ’12 in Cambodia), Laura Staugaitis
moved to Denver from Chicago last spring to
continue her job and “return to mountainscapes.”
She gets lots of quality Eph time in Colorado, as
she works with Julia Seyferth ’12, and the aforementioned Erin is moving back to Colorado this
summer.
If I’ve learned anything from compiling these
class notes, it is that grad students certainly take
advantage of their time off to travel. Future doctor
Brian Borah finished his first year of medical school
at Loyola University of Chicago and immediately
departed for Guatemala City to work in a health
clinic for a month. He planned to arrive back in the
States just in time to attend the wedding of fellow
future doctor Mike Geary in Summit, N.J., in June.
Fellow med student Yuzhong “Jeff ” Meng was
just as eager to get out of town; he took off on a
“long-awaited” trip to France and Italy after finishing his first year at Harvard Medical School in
June. He was joined by Nai Chen Yeat ’13, who flew
to Paris only eight hours after donning cap and
gown at commencement.
2010–11
Daniel Walsh and Lisa Merkhofer have been
studying geology at Penn State, where Daniel has
co-taught geology field trips with David Oakley.
They planned to spend July traveling in Peru with
Kevin Wandrei.
Ellen Song was enjoying her summer off from
her PhD program at Duke. Writing in from South
Korea, she reiterated how nice it is to know there
are Ephs all around the world. She had hung out
with Jinyoung Park ’12 and Anne Kerth, who has
been teaching in South Korea since graduation.
To any Ephs dabbling in cybercrime—beware!
Danny Huang is busy analyzing the underground
economy of malware and Internet fraud as part of
his PhD thesis. He and his classmates at U.C. San
Diego are hoping to catch cybercriminals and make
the Internet safer.
With the exciting life of a graduate student still
ahead of her, Quaneece Calhoun has been working
in Michigan at the Hawthorne Center, a children’s
psychiatric hospital, since September 2011. She will
be attending the Michigan School of Professional
Psychology in the fall to obtain her master’s in
clinical psychology.
For advice, Quaneece could talk to Brooklynite
Andrew Triska, who just graduated with his master’s
and has a job as a psychotherapist working with
mentally ill adults. Partner Sam Barbaro ’09 joined
him on a trip to Cornell for his brother’s graduation, where they caught up with PhD student Shyla
Foster ’09. Andrew ran into his former professor,
Karen Russell, at a reading in Brooklyn and shares
that her book (Swamplandia) is selling like crazy!
Also in Brooklyn, Christine Chung reported that
she is living in Carroll Gardens and partying hard
with English PhD candidate Maya Hislop, who is
back in BK for the summer. Christine is still working in operations for a restaurant group based in
the West Village in NYC. Brooklyn neighbor Clare
Quinlan is now working as the development associate in individual giving at the New Museum. She
and Caroline Chiappetti enjoyed hanging with (nota-saint) Patrick Barren on St. Patrick’s Day, where
they ended up salsa-dancing in one of Christine’s
restaurants. Clare had the pleasure of attending a
very muddy Governor’s Ball in NYC in June with
Loretta Shen, Todd Schnuck and a bunch of friends
from their semester abroad in Madrid.
Thanks to our friends who are teaching and
molding youth into future Ephs. Tim Lengel is in
Richmond, Va., teaching U.S. history and government to high school students at Collegiate School.
He visited Chandler Sherman in DC.
Sarah Dewey and Corey Baldwin were joined at
Pine Cobble School in Williamstown this year by
Patrick Aquino ’12, and all three (“four if you count
my dog Gunner,” wrote Sarah) are psyched to stay
on for another year, with Sarah taking the job of
director of development. With the ’08s back in
town in June for their five-year reunion, Sarah “felt
like a freshman all over again!”
After serving as an Americorps VISTA for a year
in DC, Carol Tsoi became a community organizer
and worked with immigrant high school students
to push for interpretation in public schools. After
winning the campaign, Carol transitioned to
Telesis, a company that builds urban communities.
She planned to meet up in New Hampshire in
June with Sophie Robinson, Jen Rowe, Elizabeth
Kalb, Will Lee, Leigh Davis and David Phillips.
“Unfortunately Mara Shapero will still be in Israel
doing medical research and can’t join,” wrote Carol.
Sophie is working for a climate change nonprofit,
Better Future Project, in Cambridge, Mass. There,
she is the operations coordinator, and organizes
events, meetings and trainings.
Since moving to Boston, Fiona Moriarty has been
at Harvard, coaching track and field and running
for New Balance Boston. When not running or
coaching running, Fiona collects athletic shoes to
be recycled and refurbished to support microeconomics in West Africa. She now works for Rerun
Shoes as their brand consultant and is happily
accepting gently used sneakers!
Changemaker Manny Yekutiel is living in
beautiful San Francisco, working for FWD.us, a
new immigration reform advocacy group. Fellow
changemaker Tom Sikes is busy with band Great
Caesar, working on a big ambitious music video
about human rights and LGBT equality. (You
can check them out on Kickstarter if you want
to know more. The song is called “Don’t Ask Me
Why.”) Agricultural do-gooder Will Harron lives
on the New York side of Lake Champlain in a tiny
Adirondack town with just a bakery and a waterfall
(“absolutely beautiful”) and does project management for a farm nonprofit. “In an instance of
hoogedyboogedy, I get my food from a CSA farm
that Kelsie Meehan works at.”
Will Slack is still traveling all over the country
for work. His total state count is now 13. On
one such trip in May, he ate expensive pizza with
Diego Flores and Chris Brauchli in San Francisco.
He saw a long list of people (including Madeline
King, Emily Studamund, Will Harron, Alicia Cook,
Katerina Belkin, Dan Constanza, Katie Friedman
and Troy Whittington) at the Williams 2013
commencement.
Demonstrating that cross-country friendships
are alive and well, Illiyana Hadjistoyanova visited
Lexi Coleman for a week in Chicago. They almost
burned the city down for the second time in its
history.
Summing up the sensation of how fast time is
flying, Bhavya Reddy writes that since graduating,
“I’ve worked as a cemetery tour guide, lived in India
for a year and am now back home, interning at a
place that was once a monastery. I may or may not
have gotten into college for the fall (the letter was
pretty confusing) and am currently freaking out
about having graduated two years ago.”
As we can see, though, sometimes good things do
happen a few years after graduating from college;
people fall in love, travel, get into grad school and
land administrative positions at their dream organizations, if not their dream jobs. And if things are
taking their sweet time coming together, never fear,
there are decades of class notes to come.
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2012
Kyle Martin, 54 Woodland Road, Madison, CT 06443;
Kendra Sims, 19.5 Quincy St., Somerville, MA 01243:
2012secretary@williams.edu
Reading your updates was as though I was hosting offices hours, where each of you dropped by my
apartment and we caught up for a little bit before
you returned to your hectic schedules. So here’s the
notes…
The first batch of updates came from the slew of
teachers eagerly anticipating the end of their first
year. Dominique Rodriguez promptly responded,
“3 MORE DAYS!!!” Sabine Chishty was in the
“frantic final push” for the Regents at Bronx
Leadership Academy II. She will stay in NYC
as a teaching English for TFA. Coincidentally,
Paisley Kang will be teaching English in NYC
this fall as she finished her art teaching position
at BART charter school. She also had her solo art
show debut in Brooklyn and prepares for more.
Susannah Emerson is enjoying teaching art in
Madrid. From the Boston area, Marni Jacobs and
Hillary Higgs obtained teaching degrees and are
planning for their classrooms. Austin Davis finished
his position at Andover and joined Gregory Kaskan
at the Bread Loaf School of English at Middlebury
College over the summer. To prepare her Shanghai
students for American colleges, Kate Shaper took
them clubbing—experiential learning at its best!
She returned to the States to attend the wedding of
crewmate Sydney Tooze and Alex Taylor ’10. Also
returning from China, Thomas Kuczmarski finished
his teaching position in Taiwan and was “psyched
up to be back!” Melissa Whitaker-Reyes celebrated
her first year as Señora Reyes by visiting Brazil and
attending a Beyoncé concert with Newton Davis,
who admits, “This being out of college thing is
starting to make sense.”
In Philadelphia, Haley Brooks worked with
Raphael Menko on their start-up (Learn2Earn.
org) while hosting Gonpo Lama and Adnan Khan.
Haley traveled the East Coast, visiting Sarah Herr
in North Carolina and Peter Reznik and Michael
Mara in Williamstown before returning home to
San Diego.
From the West Coast, David Monnich sends “pas
y amor” as he, Chase Davenport and Felipe Colina
connected at the Golden Gate Park one day in
April. David also attended a Spurs vs. Lakers game
with Jimi Morales. Felipe is working at a marketing
manager for a software company there. Also in the
Bay Area, Chuan Ji works as a software engineer at
Google, where he encounters Andrew Lorenzen and
Dhyan Adler-Belendez. Filling out the Bay Area
roster, Jack Berry passed time with Matthew Crimp
and Hannah Satlzman, who finished their years
with AmeriCorps and Green Corp, respectively.
Matthew worked in an Oakland school garden,
while Hannah ran a campaign with Yosemite
National Park. For the summer, Matt returned to
his Alaskan homeland for some quality fishing,
while Michelle Rodriguez, taking a break from
teaching in Costa Rica, played her ukulele and
sang at Wrangell Mountains Center in Alaska. Amy
Nguyen and Kate Aldrin had another West Coast
reunion in the Silverlake area. Kate has a new job
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assisting a writer for Sony, and Nguyen works for a
NGO that does emergency relief and development
services abroad. Amy went to DC for work and
visited Elizabeth Jimenez, who, when not working at Booz Allen Hamilton, practices her Arabic
and demands anyone in the area to “holla at your
kid!” DC-based Ephs Madeleine Watson and Kate
Stevenson work at Booz Allen and NASA, respectively. They took a trip down to Nashville to visit
Grace Wright. Katy Gathright returned to DC to
work for Groundswell, which drives access of clean
energy to low-income communities. She writes, “I
definitely see a lot of Ephs down here. I had Siwol
Chang and Rodrigo de las Casas crash my all-girls
high school reunion.”
Let us move to NYC; the other post-Williams
epicenter. Oriana McGee and Bridget Ngcobo continue working as legal assistants at Sidley Austin
LLP, where in the building they see many Ephs,
including David Reison. Tom Casserly returned
from working on an energy farm in Oklahoma
to work at the Archdiocese of New York. Meisha
McIntosh did some PR for Oscar-winning Django
and Silver Linings Playbook. Stephen Maier does
research at NYU Hospital for Joint Diseases. Also
at NYU, Kesi Augestine finished her first year of
her master’s program and is teaching college essay
writing. Another city scholar, Mary Claire Brunelli,
was taking summer courses for her master’s in
French at Columbia. Michael Nelson works at
Relationship Science as a data consultant.
NYC was the place of many meet-ups as well.
Making the trek from Burlington, Megan Behrend
came to visit Christina Martin, Holly Crane, Margy
Love and Lizzie Fox. Ari Kerstein came from
Charlestown to meet up with Alex Cameron and
Brad Polsky to watch a Red Sox-Yankees game
and midnight screening of The Room. They also saw
Pinsi Lei, who does freelance PR for Levo League
and is enjoying the fast-paced scene that comes
with NYC tech startups, such as encountering an
array of people from Marina Abromovic to Busta
Rhymes. Michaela Morton finished her season at
PlayMakers Rep and visited NYC, where Sayantan
Mukhopadhyay hosted her before he returned to
India. Her trip was busy as she performed with
Alison Chase Performance and received insight
from Zoe Jenkin, who came fresh from a philosophy
conference in Latvia. Michaela now prepares for her
permanent move to the city. She’ll join Astoriabased Noah Schechter and Jonathan Draxton, who
work at Schrödinger by day and make theater by
night. Jonathan took a break from his double life
to pound Guinness with Leila Crawford in Dublin.
Finishing out the Astoria crew, Emily McTague
enjoyed her year living with Matt Staiger, Wendy
Magaronda and neighbor Kyle Villanova and moved
to Boston with Grace Babula and Emily Niehaus.
Although not permanent, Tyler Chapman, Brett
Eisenhart, Meera Sivalingham, Taylor Fleishhacker,
Kristin Alotta, Maia Dickinson and Caroline Capute
traveled to Boston’s South End to visit Helena
Nannes, Nicole Stenquist, Emily Wendell, Jill
Greenberg and Hannah Systrom. Chapman summarizes the weekend: “Lot’s of Eph lovin’!”
As always, Boston rolls deep. James Mathenge
begins his second year at Wellington Management
2012–13
Co., and Bianca Martinez works community
engagement for Massachusetts College of Art and
Design. Co-secretary Kendra Sims hangs out in
Cambridge with Jennifer Rodriguez, Stephanie
Jensen, Clarissa Andre and Shara Singh while
blogging for Julia Child’s favorite butcher! She
writes, “Bon appetit…” Also in Cambridge, Matt
Piltch returned from his teaching in Uganda and
now works at Deloitte Consulting. Matt returned
to Williamstown and reunited with Kate Gallagher,
Sylvia Molina, Sydney Tooze, Xio Pinto, Kesley
Conklin, Zach Evans, Amanda Esteves-Kraus, Austin
Davis, Elizabeth Dorr, Mati Amin and many others
to commemorate the bench next to Paresky in
memory of our classmate Gavin McIntire. Abigail
Stark, Francesca Barrett and Sonja Boatman are
enjoying the Cambridge summer doing research
while applying to PhD programs and medical
schools. Boston-based entrepreneur Imran Khoja
prepares for the new line of products that Designed
Good will release this fall. Additionally, the startup
made it into the Progression Lab accelerator in
Las Vegas, where Laura Berk still lives doing public
art projects for a venture capital firm. She joined
Rigoberto Ruiz-Bonilla to watch Emily Chapman
and English Cook graduate.
Last spring also brought as many changes as our
last one, as numerous ’12s were heading abroad
again. Adriana Leigh-Mendoza was off to Peru;
Leah Enrenyu headed back to Uganda; and Bridget
Ngcobo was leaving the big city and returning
home to continue her research. Jinyoung Park
returned to Korea and “will be happy to meet any
Eph dropping by!” Don Maruyuma, who is still at
his job translating official documents in Japan,
is excited for familiar faces to visit. After visiting
Seoul, Mindy Lee went to Bangkok to visit Adena
Hernandez. She says they spent their time “eating
their way through the city.” Paula Moren, Alex Long
and Nicholas Pugliese met up in Kuala Lumpur,
where Alex is a Fulbright ETA. Paula came from
South Korea, where she was teaching. Nicholas
came from Kabul, where he quit a telecommunications job to pursue a professional soccer career.
He’s been documenting his experiences at http://
footballinkabul.com.
When Steve Smith is not working for the U.S.
attorney office, he’s “winging” for a semi-professional rugby team that placed second at the U.S.
Rugby National Championships. He’s currently
training for the US 7s Olympic Development
Academy Team for Rio 2016. Olivia Delia finds
time to race with her French track team while
interning for the global malaria program at WHO
in Switzerland. Christopher Logan reports his
athletic training by replying, “Played tennis with
Takuto Sato.” Deon Soogrim met with WUFO
teammates Tom “Crawdaddy” Crawford, Aaron
“Ledge” Freeman, Luke “Cool Hands” Breckenridge
and Will “Body” Weiss in North Carolina and
played “lots of Ultimate and laser tag.” Deon works
at OSMOS gallery and started his fellowship with
the art nonprofit Creative Time.
Chengjia “Jia jia” Jin, along with Susan Chen,
Alex Cornel and Sara Davidson, also had their own
spring break trip in Florida. Back in NYC, Jia Jia
went to a Muse concert with Raven Hills before she
headed to Britain to pursue a master’s in forensic
psychology.
Raven joins a cohort of Ephs returning to
academia. Before Austin Davis heads to medical
school at Ohio State, she caught up with Talia
Mizikovsky (works in editing in NYC) and Vanessa
Harper at a wedding of Rachel Hagler ’13 and
Nathan Schine ’13. Natalie Davis is excited to come
to NYC after living with Matt Madden in Atlanta.
They visited Andy Schnieder in Houston before
she left. Meghan Breen was leaving Alabama to
matriculate to the University of Vermont medical
school. Erik Levinsohn and Thomas Bliska were
racing bikes over the summer before med school
in New Haven and M.Arch at the University of
Virginia, respectively. Inez Tan left the comforts of
Tunnel City to pursue a MFA in fiction writing in
Ann Arbor, Mich. Marsha Villaroel was spending
her summer in the Galapagos before heading to vet
school at Tufts. After a year working in Bulgaria
(and co-authoring a book), Anna Antonova planned
to return stateside to study marine affairs at the
University of Rhode Island. She writes, “I am
excited to see all the Ephs in the area.” And luckily
for her there are a few classmates in southern New
England. Elizabeth Dorsey continues her position in admissions at SEA Semester in Cape Cod,
while Ali Mitchell is working as a blacksmith for the
preservation yard at Mystic Seaport. Thirty minutes
away, Emily Schwab continues with AmeriCorps
in Providence. She joined Nora Kern to attend
Bonaroo. As for their other Thomas Street roommates, Sarah Dorsey is “still pitching my tent in
various places around the country (Montana, Idaho,
California, Utah).” She spent the spring teaching environmental education in Western Virginia.
Another Thomas Street resident, Lucy Rollins, simply replied, “Life is a Rainbow. Yeah, yeah, yeah!”
Vanessa Soetanto is trekking the great outdoors as
hiking dormant volcanoes in Guatemala.
Andy Morgosh and Kelsey Ham are in the process
of planning their Montana summer wedding by
a big yellow barn where Jack Fitzhenry and David
Carlin will be in attendance. Another Montanan,
Ford Smith, says it was going to be the highlight of
the Montana summer!
Well, as for yours truly, I got my own fellow
Montanan, Amy Darling, as well as Rebecca Eakins
and Lizzie Fox, and remain a welcome Eph-post for
any Brooklyn visitors while I prepare for my “big
break.” I find time to catch up with Elizabeth Chan
and Mustafa Saadi while reminiscing about our
“JA days.” In my Nostrand Ave. apartment, I enjoy
the fresh smell of Trinidadian roti, West African
incense and your stories. Thank you and until we
meet again.
2013
Lindsey Graham, 12 Lexington Ave., Somerville, MA
02144; 2013secretary@williams.edu
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WEDDINGS
Williams People publishes photographs of weddings,
commitment ceremonies and civil unions.
For detailed instructions on how to submit your photo,
please visit http://bit.ly/ephphotos.
COURTNEY ADKINSON ’05 & AIDAN FINLEY ’04
Arlington, Vt., July 7, 2012
CATHERINE DENVER ’03 & BRAD FOWLER
ELIZABETH WAUGH ’96 & TOM DUFORD
Rehoboth Beach, Del., Oct. 7, 2012
Chapel Hill, N.C., April 13, 2013
SARAH PESIN ’04 & ARI KESSLER ’04
LOUISE KUSHNER ’06 & SCHUYLER RIGGS ’05
Brooklyn, N.Y., Nov. 1, 2012
Photo taken at a March 22, 2013 celebration in Brooklyn, N.Y.
TAMEKA WATLER ’05 & OWURAKA KONEY ’05
Woodland Park, N.J., Aug. 24, 2012
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Houston, Texas, Sept. 2, 2012
YARIV PIERCE ’06 & ASTON GONZALEZ ’08
Yariv (wearing glasses) and Aston (wearing suspenders), each holding a Williams banner for his respective class, celebrated their
wedding with more than 50 Ephs and two stuffed purple cows in New Rochelle, N.Y., on June 2, 2013. Among the guests
was Vickie Fernandez ’06 (front row, third from left), Yariv’s entrymate and Aston’s JA, who introduced the couple.
ELAINE SHUM & ALBERT DANG ’99
Hong Kong, China, Dec. 25, 2012
KATHRYN ROWLAND ’07 & CHRISTOPHER MEYER
SASHA GSOVSKI ’06 & BLAKE ALBOHM ’06
Short Hills, N.J., May 19, 2012
Chilmark, Mass., Sept. 29, 2012
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WEDDINGS
CRISTY GARZA & JARED MAYERS ’07
Topsfield, Mass., Oct. 21, 2012
KRISTEN MACINNIS & TREVOR POWERS ’09
LESLIE THOMSON & MICHAEL STRAUSS ’94
Danvers, Mass., Jan. 19, 2013
Washington, D.C., Feb. 16, 2013
SUE HWANG & TRON WANG ’02
New York, N.Y., May 25, 2013
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ELIZABETH PIERCE ’07 & MATT DAVIS ’07
Elizabeth and Matt started dating during the fall of their junior year and were married at Stonover Farm in Lenox, Mass., on June 8,
2013. They are pictured with the 13 classmates who attended their ceremony, during which Natalie Vokes (second from right) gave
a reading. Colleen Gerrity (fifth from right) and David DeVaughn (sixth from left) spoke at the rehearsal dinner on June 7.
LISA LINDEKE ’06 & SETH DANIELS ’06
Audubon, Pa., May 26, 2013
JESSIE KASSAB & BILLY MARINO ’02
LINDA L AU ’03 & GAVIN ROSENBUSH
Palm Beach, Fla., May 4, 2013
Boyds, Md., May 18, 2013
NICOLE STEINMULLER ’00 & BEN SHAPPELL
Nantucket, Mass., May 4, 2013
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WEDDINGS
1975
Tom Cummings & Allison Hart, March 3, 2013
1984
Bob Hollister & Alejandra Okie, July 6, 2012
1987
Sumin Eng & Peter Elarde, July 7, 2012
1994
Susan Vaill & James DeCorpo, Dec. 12, 2012
1998
Mitch Stripling & Jordan Dexter Pascoe,
June 23, 2012
Lincoln Pan & Amy Chau, Dec. 30, 2012
Lizi Craft & Tyler Ferguson, Feb. 17, 2013
1999
Nikki Strauss & Luke Schroeder, Aug. 11, 2012
2003
Catherine Denver & Brad Fowler, Oct. 7, 2012
Andrew Ferrer & Caitlin Barrett, May 26, 2013
2004
Aidan Finley & Courtney Adkinson ’05,
July 7, 2012
Sara Arnold & Jonathan P. Wilson,
May 23, 2013
2005
Mary Baccash & Kerri McMahon,
Aug. 11, 2012
2007
Chris Kim & Adam R. Kahn, Sept. 29, 2012
2008
Matt Gustafson & Shannon Spaulding,
Feb. 23, 2013
2002
Kelley Cardeira & Chris Carlson, May 10, 2013
birthS & adoptions
1986
1996
Patrick Antonio Thomas Vitale to Tom Vitale,
April 19, 2013
Julia Marie O’Halloran to Jane (Greenawalt)
O’Halloran, Feb. 8, 2013
Scarlett Eleanor May to Porter (Harris) May,
Sept. 4, 2012
Jesse Theodore Bates to Megan Barber,
Sept. 12, 2012
James Ryder Elliott to Robin Keller Elliott,
Sept. 28, 2012
Matthew Francis Kozuch to Ana Maria (Zavala)
Kozuch, Oct. 1, 2012
Ketziah Teshuvah Dean to Peter Dean,
June 6, 2013
1993
1997
Reese Anne-Elizabeth Galloway to
Rose (Turiello) Galloway, Jan. 23, 2013
Sarah Vazquez to Karen Tarbell &
Michael Vazquez, September 2012
Rosalie Yarros Laurent to Jardayna Werlin
Laurent, Sept. 18, 2012
Elle Shin to Jessica (Petoia) Shin,
Sept. 27, 2012
Hannah Grace Kahn to Holly Grace &
Kris Kahn, Feb. 2, 2013
Juliette Sooheh Chu to Jeannette Kim,
April 12, 2013
Josephine Saltonstall Goldstyn to
Gigi Saltonstall, April 25, 2013
Duncan Stuart Forbes to Greg Forbes,
April 29, 2013
1988
Maximillian Stubblebine to Robert Stubblebine,
Oct. 26, 2012
1990
1994
Everly Clementine DeCorpo to Susan Vaill,
Sept. 3, 2012
1995
Saoirse Megan McDonald to Brenna McDonald,
Sept. 10, 2012
Hannah Maribel Hagy to Chris Hagy,
Oct. 15, 2012
Cooper William Edwards to Lara Cooper
Edwards, May 6, 2013
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birthS & adoptions
1998
Aya Mariah Jean Murray to Brady Murray,
Oct. 18, 2012
Liam Padraig Gerard Fiorino to Liz (Kajunski)
Fiorino, Nov. 9, 2012
1999
Alden Whitcraft Pompa to Christine Whitcraft,
Aug. 26, 2012
Colin Michael Plante to Jennifer (Rottmann)
Plante, Sept. 13, 2012
Gabriel Dylan Connell to Karen Hu, Oct. 8, 2012
Callum Clance Ray to Anazette (Williams) Ray,
Nov. 11, 2012
Alexander Will von Bargen to Rich von Bargen
& Suela (Nako) von Bargen ’00, Dec. 31, 2012
Sebastian Warren Snyder to Cathy Warren &
Scott Snyder, April 9, 2013
Carson William Hajjar to Peter Hajjar,
April 25, 2013
William Vito Francis to Julie Cantatore-Francis &
Jonathan Francis, May 13, 2013
2000
Zachary Leonard Block to Jen (Berylson) Block,
April 2, 2012
Wesley Matthew Chen-Gordon to Yng-Ru Chen,
Dec. 27, 2012
Owen Christopher Jacquin to Lanie (Holzapfel)
Jacquin, Jan. 24, 2013
Deia Beatrix Hunter to Stephanie Whitehead,
March 29, 2013
Lucy Hunnewell Scott to Molly (Cummins) Scott
& Richard Scott, April 22, 2013
Teagan Alyssa Joyce to David Joyce,
April 30, 2013
Garrett David Grant to Kate (Flynn) Grant &
Tom Grant, May 9, 2013
2001
Iyla Ruth Israelow to Tanushri Kumar &
Jacob Israelow, April 27, 2013
2002
Ayelet Baker-Woodward to Katharine Baker &
Eric Woodward, Nov. 26, 2012
Charlotte Griffin to Kristen (Shapiro) Griffin,
Jan. 15, 2013
Sofia & Lucia Palomino to Katie Gortz,
Jan. 21, 2013
Emily Virginia Stahl to Jessica Calfee Stahl &
Ray Stahl, Feb. 23, 2013
Brecken William Baker to Tracy (Borawski)
Baker, Feb. 26, 2013
Henry Alan Hosty to Whitney (Gee) Hosty,
March 18, 2013
Cecily Mae Austin to Jess (Tierney) Austin &
Tim Austin, March 20, 2013
Lucy Eleanor Mohl to Amy Graham,
April 9, 2013
Averil Sophia Weiss to Alix (Davis) Weiss,
April 9, 2013
Oliver Daniel Pearce to Liz Campos Pearce,
April 24, 2013
Edward M. Glenn-Applegate to Pete GlennApplegate, May 1, 2013
Mary Lucille Tadenev to Abby Davidson
Tadenev & Michael Tadenev, May 5, 2013
Henry Hamilton & Finley Evelyn Layng to
Andrew Layng, May 31, 2013
2004
Colin Edward Connolly to Kristen (Van Woert)
Connolly, Oct. 20, 2012
Pearl Chisom Nwankpa to Prosper Nwankpa,
Feb. 11, 2013
Asher David Olsen to Joanna Touger Olsen &
Keith Olsen, March 22, 2013
2005
Monica Yagel Gouvea to Marcos Gouvea &
Devin Yagel Gouvea ’07, Aug. 25, 2012
Rose Beatrice LaRocca to Roger LaRocca &
Alison (Burgner) LaRocca ’06, Sept. 27, 2012
2006
Chase Jacob Robinson to Cristin Wilson,
Dec. 13, 2012
Grayson Thomas Cotuno to Dan Cotuno,
Aug. 8, 2012
William Haldeman to Matt Haldeman,
Nov. 29, 2012
Zion Alika Barbosa Blake to Trisha (Barbosa)
Blake & Alex Blake ’03, Jan. 2, 2013
2003
Zoe Elton Durlacher to Chris Durlacher,
May 25, 2012
Mackenzie Lee Deaner to Jason Deaner,
July 5, 2012
Shane Anthony Porcelli to Jay Porcelli,
Oct. 11, 2012
Samuel Joseph Farke to Sarah Nichols,
Nov. 16, 2012
Beth Carroll Zimmerman to Kate Carroll &
Patrick Zimmerman, Nov. 21, 2012
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obituaries
1937
Herbert L. Gutterson, Jan.
11, 2013. Herb was honored in
1977 with the Independence
Foundation Chair at Choate
School in Wallingford, Conn.,
where he taught English—a job
he said one can never master—
coached track and served as a
dorm master for 30 years. A
supporter of the movement for
coeducation at Choate, Herb
stepped down early as chair of
the English department in order
to allow his successor more time
in the position to prepare for the
admission of girls to the school.
A lifelong writer, Herb’s novel,
The Last Autumn, was published
by William Morrow in 1958. He
spent his retirement as a yearround resident of Siasconset,
on Nantucket Island, until
he moved to Yarmouth Port,
Mass., in 2004. His survivors
include his wife of 64 years,
Dorrit, two children and three
grandchildren.
1938
D. Britton Faunce, Jan. 10,
2013. Britt graduated from
the University of Pennsylvania
in 1939 and then served as a
lieutenant commander in the
U.S. Navy during WWII. He
went into—and eventually took
over—the family business in foreign freight forwarding, and in
1974 he became the senior VP
of Wolf D. Barth, from which he
retired in 1983. Britt lived and
raised his family in Bryn Mawr,
Pa., and moved to Gladwyne in
2000. He enjoyed spending his
summers in Great Pond, Maine,
and was an avid golfer, once
traveling with Williams alumni
to Dublin, Ireland, to play the
game. He was predeceased in
April by his wife of more than
70 years, Phyllis. His survivors include three children,
four grandchildren and four
great-grandchildren.
Wade B.C. Weathers, Jan. 27,
2013. Wade’s love for flying was
fostered at Williams, and after
graduation he started working for Pan American Airways,
where he met his future wife,
Audrey. During WWII, he flew
between NYC, Portugal and
Brazil, and he brought supplies
into Berlin after the war. The
couple lived and raised their
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family in Stamford, Conn.,
as what he called “New York
suburbanites … [living] by the
Greenwich Mean Time Clock”
for his years flying with Pan
Am. In 1975 Wade and Audrey
moved to New London, N.H.,
and in 1988 he joined the Edo
Corp., serving as VP of sales
until his retirement in 1995.
Wade and his family summered
on Lake Sunapee, N.H., for
many years, as Wade had done
since childhood. A lifelong
golfer, he volunteered to coach
at the local high school. He was
predeceased by Audrey and one
daughter. Among his survivors
are four children, including
Prentice Weathers ’77, and six
grandchildren.
1939
Rev. Arthur C. Weil Jr., Jan.
3, 2013. Art earned his Master
of Divinity from Yale in 1942
and was ordained into the
ministry at the Congregational
Church in Williamstown that
same year. He served in several
Massachusetts parishes before
finding his home at the Rocky
Hill Congregational Church
in Connecticut, where he was
pastor from 1955 to 1979. He
was then associate pastor at
the First Church of Christ of
Glastonbury until his retirement in 1983. Art was active in
his community, serving as the
president of the Civitan Club
of Hartford and the AARP in
South Glastonbury and sitting
on the boards for Yale University
and the Hartford Seminary. He
suffered a major stroke in 1987,
but his spirit remained strong,
and his lifelong interest in the
world around him never waned.
His survivors include his wife of
68 years, Alice, four daughters
and five grandchildren.
1940
John O. Tomb, Jan. 7, 2013.
John worked for 25 years as
a partner at the management
consulting firm McKinsey
& Co., opening offices in
Cleveland, Toronto and Tokyo.
Among the towns he called
home were Boston, Chicago,
Wolfeboro, N.H., Saratoga
Springs, N.Y., and Richmond,
Va. Many years of his retirement
were spent between the east
shore of Lake Winnipesaukee
in the summertime and the
Santa Ynez Valley in the winter
months, where in both spots
family visits were a highlight. An
avid sailor, John owned a sloop
called Playful, which he piloted
about either Buzzards Bay or
Narragansett Bay many summer
days. His survivors include his
wife of 70 years, Helen, three
children, eight grandchildren,
three great-grandchildren and
niece Kirsten O. Lundberg ’76.
1942
Ray J. Egan, Jan. 22, 2013. Ray
was a captain in the U.S. Air
Force during WWII, when he
learned to fly. He stayed with
the Air Force full time after the
war and then went to work as
an airline pilot at Pan American
Airways (1966-80), receiving
letters of commendation for
the assignments he completed
there. He spent the 12 years
before retirement as a realtor, serving as VP and office
manager at Realtech Associates
in Ridgefield, Conn. In 1992
he moved to Florida, where
he enjoyed playing golf. His
survivors include his wife of 47
years, Jacqueline, four children,
five grandchildren and four
great-grandchildren.
Philip H. Hamerslough Jr.,
Feb. 3, 2013. Phil was assistant
to the president of Jacques
Kreisler Manufacturing in
North Bergen, N.J., and then
VP and part owner of Michigan
Peat Inc. in NYC for many
years before realizing his dream
of working in education. He
earned a Master of Arts in
teaching from Yale in 1964 and
taught English at Tappan Zee
High School before serving
as director of recruitment for
The Peace Corps. Later, he
worked as director of development at the Hackley School in
Tarrytown, N.Y. His years in
education fostered an interest in publishing, and in 1971
Phil became president of New
Dimensions in Education, an
educational publishing company.
He made his home in New
York and Connecticut and
spent summers in Mexico and
California. Phil was a lifelong
supporter of several Jewish
philanthropies and served for a
time as director of the American
1937–42
Jewish Committee. His survivors include his wife of 71
years, Edith, three sons and six
grandchildren.
Frederick Rudolph, June 3,
2013. Fred started writing drafts
of the college’s history as editor
of the Record and forged a career
in the history of American
higher education. A young Army
veteran of WWII, Fred was
among alumni recruited to teach
a swelling student population he
described as “not much younger
than I, and not much less
prepared for each day’s lessons.”
Seeking both more training and
more teaching experience, he
entered Yale’s graduate program
in history, earning a PhD in
1953. Though he didn’t intend
to come back to Williams, an
opening on the history faculty
brought together his need to do
field research for his dissertation
(which would become the book
Mark Hopkins and the Log, published in 1956) and his desire to
start his career teaching undergraduates. He and his bride
Dottie moved to Williamstown
in 1950 and, except for a
few visiting professorships at
Harvard and UC Berkeley, never
left. Fred’s scholarship in the
history of American colleges
and universities now serves
as the foundation to anyone
earning an advanced degree in
higher education. His books
include The American College
and University: A History (1962,
1990); Curriculum: A History
of the American Undergraduate
Course of Study Since 1636
(1977); and several edited collections of essays on educational,
and Williams, history. As a
teacher, Fred had a far-reaching
influence, developing several
central programs, including
American studies and women’s
and gender studies. He served as
college marshal, was the administrator of the Tyng bequest
and served on the Committee
on Admitting Women, the
Bicentennial Commission and
the Visiting Committee of the
Williams College Museum of
Art. He retired in 1982 and,
realizing that he had been
married to his job for three
decades, launched what he called
an “extended honeymoon,”
traveling all over the world
with Dottie. As an alumnus,
Fred served as his class’s 50th
reunion chair and was the class
president for more than two
decades. Williams honored him
with the Rogerson Cup in 1982,
an honorary degree in 1985, the
Joseph’s Coat in 2002 and the
Bicentennial Medal in 2011.
The Class of 1965 established
a professorship in American
culture in his name. He was a
two-time Guggenheim fellow
(1958 and 1968), founder of the
Berkshire County Historical
Society and a member of several
professional historical associations. Among his survivors are
his wife of almost 64 years,
Dottie, two children, including Marta Rudolph ’73, and six
grandchildren, including Payson
Cushman ’05.
John o. tomb ’40
Stedman Seay, March 13,
2013. Sted worked in insurance before WWII and then
spent five years in the Army, 10
months of which were spent
in combat with the fourth
Armored Division in Patton’s
Third Army. His career in the
retail business started soon after
the war and lasted until his
retirement. He served in various
capacities at stores throughout
New York and New England,
retiring as operations manager
from the Yale co-op in 1980. He
retired to his hometown in the
Schoharie Valley of New York,
spending hours in his workshop
on woodworking and artistic
projects. Predeceased by his
wife Betty in 2012, his survivors
include a son, two grandchildren, brother Elmer Seay ’39
and cousin Jack West ’55.
philip h. hamerslough jr. ’42
frederick rudolph ’42
John S. Sutphen, March 24,
2013. Jack started sailing at age 9
and never stopped. He served as
a skipper of air sea rescue boats
in the U.S. Army Air Force
during WWII and then went to
work as a sail maker at Ratsey
& Lapthorn, retiring as VP in
1980. While living and raising
his family in Mamaroneck,
N.Y., he competed in 35 winter
races in what is known as the
Frostbite series on Long Island,
with his wife Jean as his only
crew. He moved to San Diego,
Calif., after retirement and
immediately joined the yacht
club, where he volunteered
SEP TEMBER 2013 PEOPLE
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obituaries
and was awarded the Burgee
of Merit for that work. He
competed in seven America’s
Cups and was inducted with
honor into the America’s Cup
Hall of Fame in 2005. He
served as a judge in international
regattas, held championships
in the Pacific Coast Class and
finally wrote it all down in a
book called Messing About in
Boats for 80 Years. Predeceased
by his wife Jean and son John,
he is survived by, among others,
a daughter, a granddaughter and
two great-grandchildren.
1943
John C. Dewey III, Jan. 20,
2013. Jack’s undergraduate career was interrupted by
WWII, in which he served from
1942-45, sustaining an injury
that left his vision partially
impaired. He earned a master’s
degree in education from Boston
University in 1954 and worked
at the Belmont High School in
Belmont, Mass., for many years,
serving as a reading consultant
from 1984-89. But his work life
was cut short after he fell and
hit his head on a stone during
a round of golf. This injury left
him with speaking and balance
problems for the rest of his life,
and he described himself as
“taciturn rather than loquacious”
as a result. Predeceased by his
wife Sarah in 2007, Jack is survived by, among others, two sons
and cousins William T. Carleton
’35 and Henry B. Dewey ’48.
George L. Hubbell, Dec. 2,
2012. George was an active
swimmer at Williams and rediscovered the sport later in life,
swimming daily and competing
every month for many years.
He once said that Bob Muir’s
coaching came in handy 44 years
after the fact, as he competed
in Senior Olympics across the
country. He owned and operated
Hubbell Motors until 1969,
when he started a new career
on the staff of N.Y. State Sen.
Ron Stafford—occasionally
helping out for U.S. Rep. Bob
McEwen—until his retirement in 1985. In retirement,
George spent summers in his
hometown of Chazy, N.Y., on
Lake Champlain, and winters
on the Intracoastal Waterway,
Stuart, Fla. He was predeceased
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by his wife Loretta in 2009. His
survivors include five children,
six grandchildren and cousin
Edgerton G. North Jr. ’48.
Charles F. Yeiser, March 6,
2013. Chuck served in the U.S.
Navy during WWII and went
promptly to law school, where
he expected to remain. A phone
call from the headmaster of
the Cincinnati Country Day
School changed his plans. He
took what was meant to be a
one-year leave of absence to fill
in for an English teacher and
stayed at the school for more
than three decades. Along the
way he earned a master’s degree
from Xavier University in 1953,
and his career, initially as teacher
and coach, culminated with his
tenure as headmaster. During
that time the school became
coeducational, a highlight for
Chuck because of what he called
the “superior learning experience” the school could offer its
students. After his retirement,
Chuck went to work for a nonprofit independent school service
organization and helped place
teachers in independent schools
across the Midwest. He was also
a community leader, serving on
the boards of the Cincinnati
Symphony Orchestra, The
Children’s Home, The Springer
School and the local chapter of
Planned Parenthood. Of great
importance to him was his role
escorting women into the clinic,
through lines of picketers, and
raising the funds to purchase
a new building after the clinic
was burned down. Yet some of
his greatest work was done out
of the spotlight. For more than
30 years he supported college
students with limited means,
defraying their educational
expenses. He was honored
by the National Society of
Fundraising Executives with the
Individual Philanthropy Award
in 1991. He was predeceased by
his wife Mary in 1997. Among
his survivors are four children,
including Charles Yeiser Jr. ’67,
four grandchildren, including Lauren Yeiser ’10, and five
great-grandchildren.
1945
Albert W. Bonynge, Jan. 19,
2013. Al spent two years at
Williams before entering the
U.S. Army. He earned a BS from
NYU in 1947 and went on to a
32-year career in industrial sales
at Singer Sewing Co. He moved
to Doylestown, Pa., in 1960 and
began a second career as a real
estate agent with Class Harlan,
spending as many winters in
Florida as he could. He was predeceased by his wife Mary and
son David. His survivors include
two children, two grandchildren, two great-grandchildren
and longtime companion Gert
Hornstein.
Robert H. Cope Jr., April 15,
2013. Bob left Williams when
WWII broke out and served
as an intelligence specialist in
southern Italy with the 15th
Air Force, 304th Bombardment
Wing, earning a Bronze Star
Medal for his service. Back
stateside, he married his
sweetheart and they returned to
Williams together, Jeannie being
one of the first women to take
classes at the college in the days
after the war. Thanks to some
good advice from the Williams
placement bureau upon graduation, Bob started what would
become a lifelong career at
Equifax, taking early retirement
in 1985 and moving year-round
to Cape Cod. He spent retirement caring for the four-and-ahalf acres he lovingly called “the
farm” and reading for the blind
on local radio. He was predeceased by his wife of 61 years in
2007. His survivors include two
sons, five grandchildren and one
great-grandchild.
Gardiner Rogers, March
30, 2013. Gard’s Williams
education was interrupted by
WWII, during which he was
stationed in England and served
as a captain in the U.S. Air
Force, piloting B-17s. He was
honored with the Distinguished
Flying Cross and the Air
Medal for his service. After the
war, he finished his education at Washington University
in 1956 and embarked on a
career in the aerospace industry
and later with Penn Mutual
Life Insurance. But it was his
military experience that defined
his life, and he was a longtime
member of the Navy League
and the Military Order of the
World Wars. In retirement,
1942–45
he lobbied Washington, D.C.,
about military concerns. His
survivors include his wife of
61 years, Ginny, three children,
five grandchildren and one
great-granddaughter.
William B. Snyder, Feb. 6,
2013. Bill served in the U.S. Air
Corps during WWII before
beginning a career in finance.
He spent 20 years working for
the Bank of New York and
then nearly as many at Loomis,
Sayles & Co. before he founded
his own investment counseling firm, William B. Snyder &
Associates, in 1989. But Bill’s
biggest impact in his Bronxville
community was through his
volunteer work. He helped many
organizations navigate financial
planning and investment matters, including Jansen Memorial
Hospice, the Rotary Club, the
Bronxville School Foundation,
the Westchester Community
College Foundation, the
Reformed Church of Bronxville
and the Lawrence Hospital
Center. In his free time, Bill
restored antique furniture,
embroidered, played golf, fished
and rode his bicycle. He was
predeceased by his wife of 62
years, Challis, in 2010. Bill’s
survivors include three children
and two grandchildren.
John H. Ward, Jan. 21, 2013.
John had a deep appreciation
for classical music and was
proud to have attended one
of the first concerts to be held
at Tanglewood in 1940. After
a short time at Williams, he
went on to graduate from
the University of Colorado
at Boulder. A member of the
Army Engineering Corps
in WWII, he was stationed
in Luxembourg, Wales and
England. Upon his return to
the States, he went to work first
at Lummis Co., then the F.L.
Smith Co. and eventually went
on to a long career at the Knolls
Atomic Power Laboratory in his
hometown of Schenectady, N.Y.,
from which he retired in 1984.
John dedicated much of his
time in retirement to volunteer
work at his local library and his
church, the Eastern Parkway
United Methodist Church. He
was predeceased by his wife of
55 years, Aline, in 2007. John’s
survivors include three children,
five grandchildren and one
great-grandchild.
Robert E. Ward, March 9,
2013. Bob heard about the
attack on Pearl Harbor during
his freshman year at Williams.
He completed two years before
entering the Army Specialized
Training Program at Texas
A&M University, from which
he deployed with the 12th
Armored Division of the U.S.
Third Army, seeing combat
and getting wounded at the
Battle of the Bulge. Thanks
to the G.I. Bill, Bob finished
his undergraduate degree in
chemistry at Williams after the
war. He had a 35-year career in
chemical engineering, serving
as VP of several manufacturing
companies before launching a
second career as a realtor. He
received the Middlesex County
Board of Realtors Annual
Award every year for 20 years
working in his hometown of
Monroe Township, N.J. He was
predeceased by a daughter in
1995. His survivors include his
wife of almost 40 years, Anne,
three sons, seven grandchildren
and one great-grandchild.
CHARLES F. YEISER ’43
Walter S. Wilmot Jr., March
24, 2013. Walt proudly served in
the Medical Corps 68th General
Hospital during WWII and
returned to his alma mater to
teach political science after the
war. He studied government at
Harvard Graduate School for
a time but soon developed an
interest in business. He worked
as the director of labor relations
at AVCO Corp. in Greenwich,
Conn., for nearly 30 years and
then served in a similar role at
Textron Inc. in Providence, R.I.,
retiring in 1991 as the VP of
employee relations. Walt read
The New York Times every day
of his life and was proud not
to own a computer or have an
email address. He called himself
politically and economically liberal but said he was conservative
in his belief that everyone needs
a solid liberal arts education. He
was predeceased by a son and a
stepson. His survivors include
his wife of 31 years, Dottie,
two daughters, three stepsons,
seven grandchildren and nine
great-grandchildren.
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William H. Wilson, Jan. 24,
2013. Bill served in the Army
Air Corps during WWII as
a B-24 co-pilot, for which he
earned a Purple Heart. After the
war he worked as an associate
buyer and as a stockbroker, first
in upstate New York and then in
Houston, Texas. In the 1960s he
moved to Dallas to run the local
office for Manpower, a temporary staffing firm, and begin
a career from which he didn’t
retire until 2000. He served as
president of the local chapter
of the American Management
Association and was an avid
sailor, golfer, lover of fine food
and card player—gin rummy
was his game. His survivors
include his wife of 44 years,
Karin, four children and three
grandchildren.
1946
William W. Parsons, Dec.
25, 2012. Bill spent two years
at Williams as part of the V-12
program and graduated from
Tufts in 1945. After nearly
completing his master’s degree
in music, he switched gears and
earned a PhD in mathematics from Yeshiva University in
1967. He went on to a long and
distinguished career as a professor of math at various colleges,
and as a longtime New Yorker
he was proud to spend much
of it teaching at the Borough
of Manhattan Community
College. An observer of the
political and economic situation,
Bill felt Americans generally
could do more to make the
world a better place, and he
was a faithful correspondent
with Williams on such matters.
He did his part to improve
his community through his
contributions to the Center for
Constitutional Rights and the
Holy Apostles Soup Kitchen.
Bill’s survivors include a niece.
Manvel Schauffler, Jan.
8, 2013. WWII interrupted
Schauff ’s education, and when
he returned from serving in the
Navy he moved west to start a
farming cooperative with a few
friends and his new wife, and
he enrolled at Lewis and Clark
College. He earned a BA in
1954 and a master’s in education in 1955 while working at
his first teaching job at Estacada
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High School. Schauff started
teaching history and social studies at the Catlin Gabel School
in Portland, Ore., in 1953, and
by 1967 he had become the
school’s headmaster. Schauff
once took a bullet while protecting a boy from being kidnapped
off the school grounds. And he
held a meeting with a parent
while he looked under the hood
of—and fixed—her brokendown car. As headmaster,
Schauff coached nearly every
sport, directed plays and led
skiing and camping trips with
his students. But the classroom
beckoned, and Schauff moved
to Seattle in 1980, where he
taught middle school and served
as the dean of faculty at the
Bush School until 1995. Schauff
worked with the American
Friends Service Committee and
the Experiment in International
Living, and he helped to found
several independent schools. His
survivors include his wife of 65
years, Verna, three children and
two grandchildren.
1947
Richard T. Brigham, Nov. 12,
2012. Richard earned an MBA
from Stanford in 1955 and
had a long career as a project
manager in marketing analysis
at E.I. du Pont de Nemours &
Co., taking early retirement in
1985. A member of the choir at
Williams and a lifelong lover of
music, Richard sang for many
years with the DuPont Chorus
and later the Greenlea Chorale.
He was active in his community
of West Chester, Pa., serving on
the boards of the Wilmington
Music School, the Concept
School, the Chadds Ford
Historical Society and a retirement community called The
Hickman. He was the supervisor for Birmingham Township
for several years and the
treasurer for the Birmingham
Friends Meeting, where he
was a member for much of his
life. He was predeceased by his
wife of 62 years, Peggy, in 2011,
and son Douglas in 2012. His
survivors include four children,
three grandchildren, two greatgrandchildren and cousin Peter
Driscoll ’61.
1948
Briggs Baugh, March 7, 2013.
Briggs was an early proponent
of recycling, and he founded and
chaired the Greenwich, Conn.,
Recycling Advisory Board (earning him the nickname “Garbage
Czar”), for which the state honored him with several awards.
He once said that he had narrowly missed a career in politics,
having served as president of
the Greenwich and Connecticut
State Young Republicans Clubs
in his day, but instead he had a
long career in station relations at
ABC and as operations manager
at CBS before being, as he put
it, “downsized.” High on his
list of blessings he counted the
many trips he took around the
country and the world, through
the Air Force, his work in TV
and his own personal travels. He
spent his last 12 years working as an instructor with Little
Scientists, teaching hands-on
enrichment classes to young
children. He was predeceased by
his former wife, Claire, in 1998.
His survivors include three
children, three grandchildren,
four great-grandchildren, niece
Jennifer Marigliano Dehmel ’91
and nephew Paul R. Dehmel ’91.
Barrett F. Emmert, Jan.
25, 2013. Barry was born in
Indonesia, and although his education and career were situated
in the American Northeast, he
pointed to his birthplace by way
of explaining his love of travel.
He returned to Indonesia many
times, along the way visiting 43
countries and many spots in the
U.S. Local food and wine were
top on his list in each place,
and he always returned with
plenty of photographs and gifts
for friends and family. Having
earned an MBA from NYU in
1962, he served as president of
Burlington Industries for many
years. He made his home in
NYC and Connecticut, and he
retired to North Carolina in
the 1990s. He was predeceased
by his first wife, Helen, in
1970. His survivors include his
second wife of almost 40 years,
Geraldine.
1949
Robert S. Bacon, March 7,
2013. Bob earned two PhDs—
one in 1955 from the University
1945–50
of Nebraska-Lincoln in psychology and the other in 1971 from
the University of ColoradoBoulder in geography. In
between degrees, he worked as
a clinical psychologist and then
(briefly) a stock broker. But his
interest in geography was paramount, and he taught the subject
at Miami University of Ohio
for many years, retiring in 1993.
While working, he spent the
academic year in Oxford, Ohio,
and summers in Colorado, where
he played tennis and skied. More
recently, Bob and his wife spent
summers in Florida, where he
took up watercolor painting. His
survivors include his wife of 44
years, Betty, a daughter and two
grandchildren.
1950
Howard M. Cadmus, Dec. 7,
2012. Howard, who was fluent
in several languages, served as
a translator during the Korean
War. Upon his return, he
moved back to his hometown
of Montclair, N.J., where he
was president of the board of
education for several years.
Later, he moved south and
worked as VP and secretary of
the Carolina Casualty Insurance
Co. in Jacksonville, Fla., before
serving as a full-time pioneer of
the Geneva Congregation of the
Jehovah Witness for 14 years.
His survivors include his wife
of 36 years, Mavis, a daughter,
two grandchildren and one
great-grandson.
Peyton S. Cochran Jr., March
1, 2013. Skip earned a BS from
University of Virginia in 1950
and went on to a career with
the Rouse Co., from which he
retired in 1992. Skip’s work at
Rouse included the development
of indoor shopping centers and
planned communities, and yet
his heart was in land preservation. The two fit together perfectly, however, as one of Rouse
Co.’s goals was to work against
sprawl. Skip was a trustee of
Valleys Planning Council and
served on the advisory board of
the Trust for Public Lands. An
active fox hunter and steeplechaser for much of his life, he
was a member of the Maryland
State Wildlife Commission
and served on the Association
for Wildlife Conservation. As
founding member and president
of the Land Preservation
Trust, he helped create a
300-acre equestrian center in
Cockeysville, Md., near his
home. His survivors include his
wife of 52 years, Evelyn, three
children and five grandchildren.
Charles F. Gunther, Nov.
15, 2012. At Williams Chuck
was the president of the Horse
Polo Association and enjoyed
playing games against Harvard,
Yale, Princeton and Cornell. He
earned a BA from Stanford in
1950 and went on to a career in
financial services, first as a partner at Woodman, Kirkpatrick
& Gilbreath. In 1987 he moved
to Pacific Securities, where he
served as the executive VP and
director for five years before
becoming VP of Van Kasper
& Co., from which he retired
in 2003. His dedication to San
Francisco, the town in which he
was born and where he chose
to spend most of his adult life,
was expressed through his many
years on the advisory board of
the Salvation Army’s adult rehabilitation center. His survivors
include his wife of 58 years,
Patricia, and two children.
Barrett F. Emmert ’48
Thomas D. Richardson, Feb.
27, 2013. Tom’s impact on the
Norwalk, Conn., community
can be seen at nearly every turn.
He had a hand in the planning,
construction, design and renovation of projects including the
public schools, the YMCA, the
library and the United Church
of Rowayton—the project closest to his heart. The design of
its new sanctuary won several
architectural awards. Tom was
also a member of the Common
Council, the United Way, the
Senior Housing Board and the
Roton Point Beach Club. A
sergeant in the Philippines and
Japan during WWII, Tom went
into the business world after
graduation. He worked for an
advertising agency and then in
real estate before finding his
professional home as the administrator of the Oak Hills Golf
Park in 1970, where he worked
until 1987. After retirement,
his involvement at the church
became a nearly full-time job; he
served as business manager until
2000 and was deeply involved in
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obituaries
selecting the current pastor. In
2003 he was made an honorary
deacon of the church. In 2004 he
moved to Rosewell, Ga., where
he immediately became involved
in the community and local
church. His survivors include
his wife of 62 years, Gary, five
children, 13 grandchildren and
cousins Peter Richardson ’66
and Artemas Richardson ’40.
Stephen H. Rowan, Feb.
17, 2013. Born in England to
American parents, Stephen was
shipped to the States at the
outbreak of WWII, at the age
of 16. A few years later, while
studying art at Williams, he was
drafted but (despite memorizing the chart) failed the vision
test. Eager to lend his hand to
the war effort, he became an
ambulance driver and spent the
remainder of the war in Libya
and Italy. After graduation from
Williams, he started a master’s
program in art history but
changed course when he realized
he wanted to become a teacher.
In 1963, soon after earning
a master’s from Bank Street
College of Education in NYC,
he made plans for a yearlong trip
to Alaska and Arctic Canada.
That year turned into a lifetime,
and it was the only place he
ever called home; he became a
Canadian citizen in 1980 and
worked first as a teacher and
later as superintendent of education in Arctic Quebec and the
western Arctic. Stephen settled
in Fort Simpson, a small village
on the banks of the Mackenzie
River, where he was best known
for founding and sustaining
the Historical Society and
preserving the village’s historic
buildings. He was also a devoted
walking-tour guide—he wrote
the tour booklet himself—giving tours into his 80s. He was
devoted to the Beautification
Society, the library board and
the Jack Rabbit Ski Club, and
he received the Northwest
Territories Outstanding
Volunteer Award in 2003. His
survivors include eight nieces
and nephews.
1951
Robert R. Larson, Feb. 23,
2013. Bob, known during his
Williams days as “Swede,”
served as a special agent in
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the Army counter-intelligence
corps during the Korean War
and then returned to his home
state of New York to coach
high school basketball. Serving
as co-captain of the basketball
team at Williams brought him
great happiness, and he became
a lifelong sports enthusiast. He
moved to California (as he liked
to point out, the same year as
the N.Y. Giants) to work for
Transamerica Occidental Life
Insurance; by his retirement
in 1991, he was the VP and
division manager. In 1973 he
married Virginia and adopted
her young son Anthony. At the
time his stepson became a U.S.
citizen, he legally changed his
name to Larson, a fact that gave
Bob great pride. In 1992, Bob
moved to Arizona and spent
some of his retirement as a
volunteer driver for the clinic lab
at the local hospital and the rest
playing golf and traveling the
world with his wife. His survivors include his wife and son.
Jonathan O’Herron, April
4, 2013. John believed that
family came first. His father
didn’t attend college but deeply
wanted his son to, and one of
the scholarships John endowed
at Williams is in his mother’s
name. The other is named
for his children. He was also
devoted to his own children’s
educations, serving as a trustee
at their high school, St. Paul’s
School in Concord, N.H., for
nine years and establishing a
scholarship fund there. He was
also a trustee at his daughters’
college, Middlebury, for 15 years,
where he recently established an
internship to support students
committed to helping others.
John was also a strong supporter
of Catholic Charities of the
Archdiocese of New York, where
he was known for following
up major gifts with a question: “What else can I do?” He
was a trustee of the American
Red Cross of Greater New
York, Kolbe Cathedral High
School in Bridgeport, Conn.,
New York Medical College,
St. Joseph’s Medical Center
in Stamford, Conn., and the
Inner-City Scholarship Fund of
the Archdiocese of New York.
In 2004, he was made a Knight
of St. Gregory by Pope John
Paul II. A lifelong Democrat,
John often tried to change the
political affiliations and beliefs
of friends and neighbors in
his home, Darien, Conn., with
occasional success. He received
an MBA from Harvard in
1957 and had a long career—
from which he never officially
retired—as a partner at Lazard
Freres & Co. in New York. He
took great pride in mentoring young investment bankers,
cautioning them to balance
work and family life, and always
living by example. In addition
to the scholarships he funded
at his alma mater, John also
served as 50th Reunion Fund
vice chairman and class associate
agent (1995-2013). He was
predeceased by his wife Shirley
in 2004. Among his survivors
are three children, including
Jonathan O’Herron Jr. ’79, and 11
grandchildren, including Sarah
Burleigh ’09, Cornelia Burleigh
’13 and Tucker Burleigh ’16.
1952
Joseph H. Bumsted, March
24, 2013. Joe was 15 when he
was diagnosed with Type 1
diabetes, but his continued good
health in the face of the disease
was a great source of pride. His
long-term illness did ultimately
affect his ability to travel. (He
was particularly disappointed to
miss his 60th reunion). He was
a lifelong volunteer, counseling young diabetics being just
one example. He also served as
chairman of the United Fund
of Pelham, N.Y.—his home for
21 years—and on the Historic
Preservation Trust, the Visiting
Nurse Association and Diabetes
Association of Lancaster, Pa.,
where he moved in 1985. His
career started in the textile
industry, but he later served for
many years as division president
and executive VP and COO at
Woodstream Corp., a manufacturer of pest control solutions. In
retirement, he focused on education, mentoring in a reading
program in the public schools
and marketing creative building
toys to classrooms around the
country. An avid golfer, he also
found great delight in traveling
around the world to play. His
survivors include his wife of 35
years, Becky, two children and
two grandchildren.
1950–54
William C. Stroh III, Feb. 3,
2013. Bill got involved with
the radio station at Williams
when he was an undergraduate
and continued to operate ham
radio for much of his life. After
studying physics at Williams, he
earned a master’s degree from
the University of Michigan in
1956. He was a first lieutenant in
the U.S. Air Force during WWII
and later had a long career as
president of William Stroh Inc.,
a direct selling and marketing
company. He also served as civil
defense and emergency management director in his hometown
of Millburn, N.J. Bill’s survivors
include two sons and three
grandchildren.
1953
Alger B. Chapman Jr., Feb. 18,
2013. Duke went to Columbia
Law School after graduation,
and started his career as an
attorney with the Securities &
Exchange Commission before
moving on to VP and counsel of
the New York Stock Exchange.
By the time he retired in 2004,
he was chairman and CEO of
ABN Amro Financial Services.
In between, he experienced
firsthand one of Wall Street’s
amazing growth stories with
Shearson, Hammill & Co., of
which he was president and
CEO at the time of its merger
with CBWL Hayden Stone
in 1974. In 1982 the firm was
acquired by American Express,
and Duke became the vice
chairman of American Express
International Bank. In 1986 he
became chairman and CEO
of the Chicago Board Options
Exchange, where he spent more
than a decade. In that time, he
also served on the boards of
Smith Barney Mutual Funds,
Johnson International, Trade
Development Bank and New
England ISO. His commitment
to his community was evident
in his volunteer work with
the Cerebral Palsy Research
Foundation, the Boy Scouts of
America and the Police Athletic
League of New York. Among his
survivors are his wife of nearly
30 years, Beatrice, four children,
including Samuel Chapman ’86,
and five grandchildren.
David F. Decker, Dec. 21, 2012.
David worked in marketing with
IBM in Syracuse, N.Y., and
Boca Raton, Fla., for many years
before moving to Nettles Island
in Jensen Beach, Fla., for 25
years of his retired life. Active in
the Episcopal Church throughout his life, he was also a member of the local theater guild. His
survivors include his wife of 52
years, Joyce, two children and
two grandchildren.
Lewis J. Kleinrock, Dec. 3,
2012. Lew married his sweetheart, Peggy, while at Williams,
and by the time of his graduation they had lost two children
to cystic fibrosis. Heartbroken
but steadfast, they moved to
New Haven so Lew could attend
the Yale Law School. His postgraduate work was interrupted
by his service as a rifle platoon
commander in the Marines, and
when he returned he changed
course, entering Harvard’s MBA
program and graduating in
1959. He ended up in a career in
investment management, which
he loved because, as he said,
“you got paid far more than you
were worth.” Before becoming the president and director
of Independence Investment
Associates in Boston, Mass., he
was the VP of John Hancock
Mutual Life Insurance. He
helped found an inner-city girls’
high school and believed each
person should search for one
good idea “that makes a positive
difference in the lives of at least
10 people outside one’s family.”
Peggy died on Feb. 8, 2013.
Lew’s survivors include a son
and four grandchildren.
Joseph H. Bumsted ’52
Alger B. Chapman Jr. ’53
Harry E. Yeide Jr., Feb. 6, 2013.
After studying political science
at Williams, Harry earned
a bachelor’s of divinity from
Union Theological Seminary in
1957 and a PhD from Harvard
in 1964. He moved to Silver
Spring, Md., where he raised his
family and taught in and, for a
time, chaired the religion department at George Washington
University, from which he retired
in 2011. His survivors include
his wife of 57 years, Betty, and
three children.
1954
John F. Held, Nov. 24, 2012.
Jack earned an MBA from
Harvard in 1956 and spent 20
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obituaries
years in advertising in NYC and
Toronto. Jack then quit his job
to write a novel, which, though
never published, brought him
great joy. During that time, he
and his family moved to Reston,
Va., and when he went back to
paid employment (having “used
up our money”) it was with The
Washington Post. He worked
in the promotion department
before convincing the editor
that he should write a business
column, which covered topics
he described as “the folkways of
office life.” Through it all, Jack’s
family was what mattered most
to him, and he was proud to
bring “the same date I left with”
to his Williams reunions and
described his three children as
his “greatest pleasures and best
friends.” His survivors include
his wife of 59 years, Mary, three
children, six grandchildren, four
great-grandchildren and greatniece Julie Wyman ’08.
1955
Thomas R. Bell, Feb. 18, 2013.
Tom majored in English at
Williams and went to medical
school, earning an MD from
Johns Hopkins University in
1959. He spent several years in
the U.S. Air Force, an experience
that brought him to Walnut
Creek, Calif., the place he would
call home for the rest of his
life. After the Air Force, Tom
worked in private practice as a
pediatrician for more than four
decades. His survivors include
his wife of 55 years, Marylou,
four children, three grandchildren, brother William H. Bell ’41
and nephew David A. Bell ’76.
Harold F. White III, March
30, 2013. Through the luck of
a call to Williams’ placement
bureau in 1958, after his release
from the Air Force, Terry wound
up back in the Purple Valley.
He started out at the Warren
Wire company in Pownal, Vt.,
but soon moved to Sprague
Electric, where he spent 19
years, ultimately holding the title
of VP of human resources. After
Sprague, he took a position at
his alma mater, and until his
retirement in 2001, he reported
to the director of the physical
plant with varied responsibilities,
including student and faculty
housing, finance and personnel.
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In 1970 his wife Carole passed
away. Through old friends, he
met and was married to Alleson
Whitney the following year, and
their blended family included
four children from each side. He
loved living close to the Taconic
Golf Course, and he was a frequent competitor in the annual
Alumni/Guest Tournament.
Among his survivors are his wife
of nearly 42 years, eight children,
including W. Bradley White ’79,
14 grandchildren, including
Crosby Fish ’10, and brother
Palmer White ’59.
1956
David Ford, Jan. 8, 2013.
Dave went into the newspaper
business after graduation, first at
a weekly paper in Wilmington,
Mass., and then at his own
weekly in Milo, Maine—though
with inadequate advertising
revenue, this venture didn’t last
long. He soon went to work
at Harvard University Press,
becoming a senior graphic
designer and learning the skills
he needed to open David Ford
Graphic Design in 1974, where
he worked until his retirement
in 2007. First located in Lincoln,
Mass., and later in Woodstock,
Vt., Dave earned a name—and
several awards—in book design.
From 1988 to 2006 he also was
responsible for a family business
in textile equipment manufacturing, which later evolved into
a real-estate holding company.
He enjoyed music and the
outdoors—from gardening and
beekeeping to cross country
skiing and maple sugaring. His
survivors include his wife of
almost 53 years, Mary, and two
sons.
1958
Matthew C. Donner, April
11, 2013. Matt made his home
in NYC, earning an MBA at
Columbia in 1960 and working in securities sales on Wall
Street for many years. His
career started out with Smith,
Barney & Co., and he worked
with several research boutiques
until beginning a career with
Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette,
which was acquired by Credit
Suisse in 2000. He deeply
enjoyed his work and loved living in NYC but found ways to
retreat as well. He had a home
in Quogue, N.Y., where he spent
weekends with his family, and
he traveled to Williamstown
each fall, as he said, “for football
and foliage.” His survivors
include his wife of nearly 39
years, Judy, two children and two
grandchildren.
George A. Vare Jr., April 13,
2013. After graduation, George
went into the family electrical
construction business before
earning an MBA from Harvard
in 1966. He then went to work
with Schlitz Brewing Co., which
launched him into the world
of wineries. His introduction
to California wines came when
he was president of Geyser
Peak Winery, which he grew
to a 700,000-case brand before
setting out on his own. He also
ran a consulting firm for the
wine industry, started up several
small wineries and founded a
monthly newsletter about the
trends in the business. He served
as executive director of the
American Vineyard Foundation
and loved to provide young
winemakers with help fulfilling their visions. In 1996, he
co-founded Luna Vineyards,
which introduced varieties of
Italian grapes to Napa Valley,
and out of his education in those
grapes grew his final project:
Vare Vineyards, for which he
grew some of the toughest, most
idiosyncratic grapes, producing
wonderful wines. He traveled
extensively and often for his
work, and he learned to speak
Italian later in life. George loved
to sail, work in his woodworking studio, cook and meditate.
Among his survivors are his wife
of almost 30 years, Elsa, three
children, including Catherine
Vare Schembre ’82, three stepchildren, eight grandchildren,
cousin John Shaw ’62 and nephews John Willmott ’88 and David
Willmott ’92.
1959
Winston Healy Jr., March 15,
2013. Five days after graduation, Win set sail for Hawaii
for what he thought would be
a year or two, and he ended up
spending the next four decades
deeply embedded in the process
of educating the children at
the Punahou Academy in
Honolulu. He earned a Master
1954–67
of Education at the University
of Hawaii in 1968 and later
went on to receive his EdD from
UMass Amherst in 1981. Win
started in Punahou’s English
department in 1960 and coached
basketball. By 1968 he was also
the school’s principal. He gave
up coaching but never stopped
teaching a course on existential
literature, because he said it was
“inextricably interwoven with
high school leadership.” Win felt
blessed to live in Hawaii, where
he raised his family and worked
hard to make the Punahou
Academy an outstanding independent school. He retired in
2000 and returned to his hometown and his family’s farm in
Shelburne Falls, Mass., where he
helped advise the teachers and
staff at Charlemont Academy
and served on the Charlemont
Board of Selectman. Among
his survivors are four children,
including Than Healy ’91, Jason
Healy ’00 and Elisabeth Healy
’04, two grandchildren, his
brother Jonathan Healy ’68 and
cousin Allan Foster ’64.
molecular biology. He joined
the faculty in 1967. Bill taught
at Williams for nearly five
decades and was appointed the
C. Carlisle Tippit Professor
of Biology in 1983. He served
as chair of the biology department on four separate occasions
and sat on several important
faculty committees, including
the Steering Committee and the
Committee on Appointments
and Promotions. His research
was supported by the National
Institutes of Health and focused
on hemoglobin synthesis in
amphibians, the production of
antibiotic proteins in amphibian
skin and molecular strategies to
augment hydrogen production in
photosynthetic bacteria. He was
the author of three influential
and award-winning textbooks
and several articles on cellular
and molecular biology. Bill lived
what he described as a “pretty
routine, happy life in the Purple
Valley.” Among his survivors are
his wife of 40 years, Mary Lou
DeWitt ’72, and two children,
including Erica DeWitt ’09.
Hugh S. Johnston, Jan. 6,
1962
2013. After graduation, Mike
joined the U.S. Army Security
Agency and learned to speak
Mandarin for his post in
Special Operations Command,
for which he was stationed in
Okinawa, Japan. Upon his return
stateside, he earned a JD from
Hastings College in 1966 and
went on to a career practicing
law in Santa Cruz, Calif. Known
for his wonderful voice, Mike
was active in the Santa Cruz
music scene as lead singer of the
bluegrass band Hot Dam String
Band. His survivors include his
wife Joan, two children and two
grandchildren.
1961
William DeWitt, May 3, 2013.
Bill earned his PhD in biology from Princeton in 1966
and went to MIT to conduct postdoctoral research in
molecular biology. Although
offered a teaching job at MIT,
Bill decided big city life wasn’t
for him. He heard about an
opening at his alma mater, and
when Bill contacted the chair,
he was excited to learn that
Williams wanted to expand
its study of biology to include
James K. MacDougall Jr., Feb.
28, 2013. James earned a PhD
from Case Western Reserve
University in 1967 and taught
English at Ball State University
until his retirement in 2001.
He made his home and raised
his family in Muncie, Ind.,
yet traveled frequently to the
Indiana State Department of
Corrections, where he directed
the prison education program
for much of his academic career.
Active in the St. Lawrence
Catholic Church, James was
ordained a deacon in 2005 and
spent many years chairing the
stewardship committee and
presiding over nursing home
communion services. Among his
survivors are his wife of 50 years,
Carolyn, two children, including Rebecca Thompson ’85, and
four grandchildren.
Harold F. White III ’55
george a. vare jr. ’58
William DeWitt ’61
1967
Stephen S. Mark, Feb. 4, 2013.
Steve was on the debate team in
high school, and the seeds for
his career were sowed in that
experience. He went on to a long
and distinguished career in law,
living in Dallas, Texas, for much
of his adult life. But his other
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obituaries
love—at Williams and beyond—
was music, and Steve was proud
to have attended the first day of
the Woodstock Music Festival
before boarding the USS Davis,
on which he served as officer during the Vietnam War.
While pursuing his JD from
the University of Texas (1972)
Steve was editor of the Texas
Law Review, and he went on to
make partner at several different
Dallas firms. For 11 years he was
co-owner of Mitchell & Mark,
from which he retired in 2005.
Steve had one son, who lived for
just over a month in 1973. His
survivors include his partner of
the last 14 years, Melanie, a sister, two nephews and his former
wife and good friend, Shelby.
1971
Mark E. Stevenson, Jan. 31,
2013. Mark started collecting
art when he was an art history
major at Williams, making many
trips to NYC and developing
a collection of the early works
of now well-known pop artists.
After graduation he returned
home to the Pacific Northwest
and worked on design and
remodeling construction
projects. Through this work he
became fascinated with historic
restoration and bought the
Heathman Hotel—at the time
in disrepair—in Portland, Ore.
Through Mark’s vision and hard
work, he created a historic and
cultural landmark that is still a
beacon for the arts in the city
he loved. In 1990, having fallen
ill, he returned to his childhood home in White Salmon,
Wash., where he spent the rest
of his life. A longtime member
of the boards at the Oregon
Art Institute and the Oregon
Symphony Orchestra, Mark
was a constant supporter of the
arts in his community. Among
his survivors are his parents,
three siblings, and many cousins,
including Thomas Stevenson ’71
and Davy Stevenson ’04.
1972
Richard M. Deslauriers, Jan.
16, 2013. Rick was the owner
the Deslauriers Co. in Bon
Aqua, Tenn., specializing in
fine woodworking. An athlete
at Williams, he was a faithful
fan of the Nashville Predators
hockey team. Rick was devoted
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SEP TEMBER 2013 PEOPLE
to his family and enjoyed keeping bees and listening to music.
His survivors include his wife
Diane and three children.
1978
Katherine L. Frank, Dec.
26, 2012. Katherine’s time at
Williams was deeply formative—she found both her future
spouse and her career path
there—but it was the only time
she lived away from NYC.
Returning there after graduation, she earned a JD from
Fordham in 1983 and practiced
law until 2001, as both assistant
attorney general of New York
State and court attorney with
the New York State Supreme
Court. She later worked as a
literacy tutor with the New York
Public Library. Her survivors
include her husband of 28 years,
Jerome Page III ’77, two sons,
including Ian D. Page ’12, and
nephew Richard Bode ’02.
Other Deaths
Douglas U. Wilson ’46,
June, 1, 2013
J. Leroy Thompson Jr. ’54,
Feb. 1, 2013
James R. Ford ’55,
Jan. 17, 2013
Michael L. Piel ’58,
Oct. 2, 2002
David A. Seymour ’58,
May 5, 2013
Walter L. Baynard Jr. ’61,
Nov. 28, 2012
Arturo R. Calventi
Thomén ’73, 2001
Obituaries are written by Julia
Munemo and are based on
information that alumni and
their families have supplied
to the college over the years.
To access more biographical
information on many alumni,
visit www.legacy.com or
www.tributes.com.
Katherine L. Frank ’78
WHO IS THE ALUMNI SOCIETY?
Digging a little deeper on Society President Dennis O’Shea’s ’77 message
from the inside front cover of People, here’s a quick quiz to see how much you
know about your alumni family:
1. What’s the current count of alumni in the society (let’s say within
500 people)?
2. What’s the gender breakdown of the society? Extra credit if you can
guess what decade it reaches 50-50.
3. What’s the median class year of the society?
4. What are the top four most populous regions of the country? Extra
credit if you can put them in order.
5. What’s the ethnic breakdown of the society?
6. What’s the percentage of alumni married to each other?
Here are the answers:
1. With the addition of 527 members of the Class of 2013, along with 12
Grad Art and 28 CDE graduates, the society numbered 28,711 in late July.
2.The gender breakdown is currently 36.42 percent female and
63.57 percent male. Assuming current enrollment numbers stay constant, the
society will reach gender balance in 2040.
3. The median class year is 1986. I’m guessing how you feel about that
depends on which side of that number you land.
4. Not surprisingly, 25 percent of you live in New England. The next region may have thrown you—it’s the West Coast, with 17.5 percent. Metro
New York is next, with 16 percent, followed by the Mid-Atlantic at 13 percent. Those of you in the South make up 11 percent, and 9 percent of you
are in the Midwest. Slightly over 4 percent of you are living outside the U.S.
5. Approximately 84 percent of you are white, 5.5 percent are black,
5.3 percent are Asian, and 3.2 percent are Hispanic or Latino. Alumni of
color are the fastest evolving demographic within the society. The incoming Class of 2017 mirrors recent classes and numbers 552 students, 295
of whom are white and 206 are students of color (12 students declined to
indicate their race).
6. Rural legend has had the number of married alumni couples as high
as 50 percent, but it’s actually 11.64 percent.
These numbers only begin to tell the story of our diverse and disparate group.
We have Williams in common along with a broad range of affiliations with each
other and the college. The obligation of the Alumni Relations Office and the society’s leadership is to provide you with meaningful and substantive opportunities
to engage with Williams and your fellow alumni. In our data-driven world, we’re
increasingly focused on how we can measure the effectiveness of our efforts and
your engagement with the college. It shouldn’t come as a surprise that we track
points of engagement, among them your event participation, volunteerism, giving
and utilization of online resources. Combined, or viewed individually, these factors
paint a picture that gives us a sense of how you’re engaging with Williams.
But we also understand that the picture is incomplete. Whatever quantitative
analysis may tell us, we know that your relationship with Williams can’t be fully
captured in our database. Your definitions for engagement with Williams are as
disparate as the society you inhabit. We’d love to hear how you define yours.
With best wishes from Williamstown,
“Whatever quantitative
analysis may tell us,
we know that your
relationship with
Williams can’t be
fully captured in our
database.”
—Brooks Foehl ‘88
Director of Alumni Relations
bfoehl@williams.edu
Editorial Offices
P.O. Box 676
Williamstown, MA
01267-0676
Golf in the Antebellum South Rick Pohle
Australia & New Zealand Joan Edwards & David Smith
safari in TanzaniA Henry Art
The Galapagos Markes Johnson
Morocco Magnus Bernhardsson
France’s Dordogne Werner Gundersheimer
Italy’s Apulia Peter Low
The Rockies’ Vistas Bud Wobus
Alaska’s Inside Passage James Carlton
Italy’s Lake District James McAllister
The Adriatic John Hyde ’52
Myanmar Peter Frost ’58
Central America’s Volcanoes Bud Wobus
The Arts of berlin Michael Lewis
ALUMNI TRAVEL-STUDY 2013 Since 1981 Williams has offered outstanding educational
travel opportunities led by professors and alumni who are experts in each destination.
Learn more at http://alumni.williams.edu/alumnitravelstudy or contact
Robert.V.Behr@williams.edu, 413.597.4011.