2005

NOVEMBER – DECEMBER 2005

Branford College is where we will be on June 1-4 to celebrate enduring friendships and renew friendships which may have lapsed. We will enjoy libations, meals, and “hanging out”. We will hear distinguished professors and accomplished classmates. John Eaton will perform his magic; the 1956 Whiffs will lead us back to “the tables down at Mory’s”; the class chorus will sing; three classmates will report on their Davenport Fellowship experiences. While celebrating the past 50 years of accomplishments and contributions to the greater good, we will confirm that we are not yet finished, as we contemplate the future we envision. I remind you that we are celebrating our reunion and our university with a
significant class gift, and we need your support. We want to see YOU in New Haven. If personal circumstances make it difficult for you to return, I urge you to contact me with a confidential description of what you require to make your return feasible, and I will confidentially seek assistance.

It is now barely two weeks after Katrina struck the gulf coast, and several of us have been trying to e-mail classmates to ascertain their status. Communications still are a mess, but we finally heard from Nikki Barranger, who reports: “The devastation at Red Bluff would break your heart, but we are safe and sound…the break in the levy in New Orleans is a new thing in our lives, one long expected but nonetheless devastating…It has now been two weeks of 98% humidity and 90+ degrees of heat. It is what Ms. Dickenson would call ‘all we need of hell’” Although Nikki admits that they all are depressed by the destruction around them, his sense of humor has survived, as evidenced by his comments about Trent Lott’s front porch.

As we prepare to look to the future at our reunion, how about these examples?

Bob Soley is retiring after 35 years in plastic and reconstructive surgery but will continue his push for HSA’s and tort reform. Sam Hunter has co-founded SmartHedge (dot com), a firm offering a non-recourse loan on public traded stock.

Paul Buckwalter has retired as state-wide organizer for the Arizona Interfaith Network and as teacher at Seabury Western Theological Seminary.

Our efforts to find lost classmates continues with some success. Wearing his yearbook co-editor cap, Ben Scotch has been bird-dogging all known sources of information and has found the not completely lost Phil Stull, who reports that while he has not been in touch with New Haven since graduation, he has been a long-standing member of the Vero Beach Yale Club and has been in touch with Spence Letts and John Tunney.

Unfortunately, three “lost” classmates have been found through death notices I have received. John Meeth died on July 20, 2002. I was able to contact his widow, Antionette (255 Ovington Avenue, Apt. 27, Brooklyn NY, 11209-1355) who reported on the beautiful life she shared with John, who lived with MS and who died from that disease and a stroke. John worked for the Echo Wire Company in Manhattan. Denis Deegan died on December 6, 1995. I have not found any further information. Bill Allen died on May 16, 2005. Bill interrupted his Yale career for four years of Navy service, graduated with our class and from Harvard Law School, and practiced law in Providence for forty-five years, serving as Assistant Attorney General in the Chafee administration. He was very active in civic organizations. Bill is survived by his widow, Helen, two children and two grandsons.

Alden Lofquist was not a “lost” classmate. He died on July 9, 2005. His delightful widow, Frederica, filled me in on Alden’s life. He started out in the class of 1952, left during the Korean War to join the Air Force (8th AFDS-SAC in England) and graduated with us. Alden and Frederica received special permission to marry in December of our senior year only after Frederica’s father guaranteed to Dean Robley that Alden would, indeed, graduate. While Alden was completing his courses at Yale, Frederica worked in the Law School library. Alden retired from Bechtel-Savannah River site. The Lofquists have a son, daughter, and three grandchildren. Frederica can be reached at 103 Sand River Court, Aiken, SC 29801. She promises to try to come to our reunion.

Bob Harrington and Charlie Dorchester wrote me of the death of Jim Ingerson, who died of heart failure on August 23, 2005. These three plus Steve Waters and spouses (Jim was single) had gathered in early July in Lebanon New Hampshire for their annual Saybrook roommates dinner. All seemed in reasonably good health, although Charlie reports that Jim had a cough and complained of general weakness. I was stunned by the news, for I had received an e-mail from Jim on July 8th reporting on the dinner and commenting that “We are all in good health…We all are aging gracefully.” After our graduation, Jim received a MusB and MusM from the Yale School of Music in organ performance. In addition to teaching English and music at Kimball Union Academy, Jim was organist/choirmaster and cantor at various New Hampshire churches and a consultant to the Episcopal Diocese in music and liturgy. He also was active in MENSA.

I am preparing these notes on 9/11/2005, with the vivid memories of four years ago and the vision of the faces of the underprivileged and underserved victims in New Orleans etched in my mind. As I despair over the status of the world, I turn my thoughts to John Englander, Yale classmate of our son Charlie and, in turn, son of our classmate, Roger Englander. John sponsors an annual 10K race, being held as I write this, to honor our two dead grandchildren, Hayden and Cameron. John’s generosity and compassion offer an example of the best in human nature, of hope for the future that we envision and will discuss at reunion. See you there.

SEPTEMBER-OCTOBER 2005

We may be in our seventies, but grass doesn’t grow under our feet department:

Jim Kern has been a backpacker, wildlife photographer, and expedition leader. He has lived on the edge of Biscayne Bay for 35 years and had never spent a night on a boat. In fact, his boating experience since 1956 had been three one day sails. So, Jim took sailing lessons and decided an overnight in the inter-coastal waterway would not suffice. Instead, Jim bought a 31’ sailboat and set off alone across the Atlantic, 13 days and 1000 miles to Bermuda, where he re-united with his young bride, Jackie. (They were married on April 3rd.) Included in Jim’s planned travels is an overland trip to New Haven in June for our 50th.

No grass under John McCrosky’s feet either. He and Corinne Samios were married on June 10th. Mark Thoman was the best man. Also present at the reception were Nancy Thoman, Judy and Gil Chapman, Peg and Ted Robb, Bobby and Jim Bishop and yours truly. When the artistic and talented Corinne visited us in our Washington house, she observed that she had designed the fabric on our couch, one of hundreds of Corinne’s designs for major companies. Unlike Jim Kern, Jim Bishop is a very experienced international sailor and racing skipper. Shortly after the wedding, Jim was off as a watch captain on a transatlantic race. Peg Robb was getting ready to return to Bahrain for a reunion with the students she taught while based with Ted in the Persian Gulf.

On the move again, the Reverend Hugh Magee has retired as Communications Officer for the Diocese of Spokane and is mo

ving with Yvonne to Bournemouth, England, where Hugh briefly lived in 1939.

Several of our other clergy classmates have been in the news lately. David Whilhelm sent me a clipping from the Arizona Daily Star reporting on Paul Buckwalter’s contributions to the Pima County Interfaith Council, a network of religious institutions which gives a voice to the poor while fighting gangs and drug usage and promoting affordable housing, adult education, and the other needs of the immigrant population in the Tucson area. Paul, the rector of St. Philips in the Hills Episcopal Church, was honored at a celebration of his contributions.

The headline in The Witness magazine was: “Bush, Church Are Environmentally Challenged.” The author of the article was the Reverend Skip Vilas, who has been very active in the environmental movement, serving on the UN Interfaith Advisory Committee. I quote from the article:

“What is needed now is not less, but more of an effort to promote the concept of a global commons, which is ours by the gift of God’s grace, and which we are called to protect out of reverence as well as out of concern for the human generations to come. A new spiritual vision is needed, one which would raise the image of the beauty of God’s universe once more to human consciousness. This is a spiritual, not an environmental task. Yet no environmental achievements in the future may be strong enough to overcome the human drive to consumption.”

My request in the May-June YAM for information about the late Joe Poremba elicited responses which led me down new paths. Dick Wilde was an associate of Joe’s at Hamilton Standard in the 1960’s but then lost track of him. Dick, who recently had the pleasure of nominating Dick Kline, ‘55BE, for one of the Yale Science and Engineering Association’s annual awards, referred me to Joe’s roommates in Silliman for more information. I then got in touch with Forbes Dewey, currently Professor of Mechanical Engineering and Bioengineering at MIT. Forbes’s broad research interests include high temperature gas dynamics, fully-ionized plasmas, lasers and laser applications…and many more. He has lectured at scores of universities around the world; consulted at Harvard Medical School and all the leading hospitals around Boston; prepared over 150 peer-reviewed papers and patents; and consulted with such organizations as RAND, 3M, IBM, and General Motors. Describing himself as an “active and belligerent” professor, Forbes reports that he has moved into Boston’s North End. He, too, lost track of Joe Poremba and, also, his other roommate Alden Nelson. After law school, Al worked in supertanker shipping, based in London. Forbes has been unable to find Al for the past 30 years. Does anyone out there have any information?

I regret to report the death of three classmates. In the first two cases the reports were received very late, and I have no additional information. If you can help me pay them a proper tribute, please contact me about Joe Estill, who died on January 3rd 2004 in Stuart Florida, and John Almquist, who died in Evanston, Illinois on June 25th 2004. I played on the same high school basketball team as John but had lost touch with him.

Elliott Schlang alerted me to the death of Jay Levine on June 20, 2005 in Atlanta. Jay was eulogized with a beautiful tribute in The Atlanta Journal and Constitution. An investment banker with an MBA from Harvard, Jay retired in 1997. He was President of the Board of the Atlanta Symphony…and loved “brassy musicals and ragtime tunes and played the accordion and ukulele with a childlike sense of glee.” The article describes Jay’s “standard for unselfish community service” and his volunteer contributions to almost all the leading cultural institutions in the city. Personally, I remember how enthusiastic Jay was about the music at our New Orleans mini-reunion Jazz Fest. At his memorial service, the recessional was “Bright College Years.” Jay is survived by his wife, Elizabeth, a son, two daughters, and seven grandchildren. Elizabeth’s address is 3529 Rembrandt Road NW, Atlanta 30327.

A final note: Plans for the 50th reunion are well underway, with a program well balanced between exciting intellectual content and “hang out time.” Please plan to be with us June 1-4 2006.

JULY/AUGUST 2005

Nostalgia time. Nick Spofford and Jim Rutledge, with the assistance of the Historic Sound Recording Department of Sterling Library, have produced Voices of the 50’s, a collection of highlights from these 1950’s singing groups: Alley Cats, Augmented Seven, Bachelors, Bakers Dozen, Duke’s Men, O’s and B’s, and the Spizzwinks(?). It is great fun to head down memory lane, listening to this delightful CD. Orders may be placed at Voices of the 50’s, PO Box 867, Ridgefield, CT 06877 Cost is $20 plus $2 for shipping and handling. For more information write to spoffo@att.net

While on the nostalgia track, two recent communications brought back memories of my childhood. John Tunney wrote that he has retired from his money making business and now is involved in personal investments and overseeing the UCLA/Armand Hammer Museum, where he is Board Chair. John splits his time between Los Angeles and New York. His 98 year old mother still lives in the same house in Stamford, CT, where the Tunney and Lord families used to celebrate Christmas Eve together. Then I heard from Larry Strauss. As youths, Larry and I also exchanged visits in Stamford. Larry and Fran moved from New York to Lenox, MA last December, where they are enjoying a laid back but active cultural and sports life, while taking advantage of their proximity to Boston and New York. Fran works at home as a language arts specialist, writing and editing school and college English textbooks. Larry “dabbles” in business writing/editing while evaluating some not-for-profit activities.

“Joel Daly to Exchange One Career for Several More”. Thus read the headline in a Chicago newspaper sent to me by David Shayne. David is practicing estate law and is doing pro-bono work for the elderly and unaccompanied child refugees. As for Joel, he stepped down on May 6th after 38 years as a television news anchor. His work was described in the article as a “style of news…that would turn the market upside down and become a standard across the country.” Among Joel’s many award were five Chicago Emmys. In so-called retirement Joel will be a mediator, teacher, actor, singer, producer of public TV documentaries, and Director of External Affairs at the John Marshall School of Law. Joel’s work as a pro-bono lawyer also has won wide recognition. He will produce Chicago Justice, a series of programs about famous trials and will continue his acting career (Joel has had leads in To Kill a Mockingbird and Darrow). An accomplished yodeler, Joel is the lead in a country-western band. And…oh, yes…Joel is of counsel to a Chicago law firm and plans to concentrate on mediation. That’s retirement?

Tom O’Flaherty retired from Proctor and Gamble in 1993; Ellen retired from the University of Cincinnati Medical School in 1997, at which point the O’Flahertys moved to Lyon, France for six years before moving back to Boston. Tom and brother Bob O’Flaherty have sent five offspring to Yale, all of whom live in the Boston area. Both families maintain houses on Cape Cod. Tom advises that Bob lives in Hilton Head in the winter. Now that I have heard from Tom, it’s your turn, Bob.

Yale ’56 is still active in space. Gil Leppelmeier reports from Finland that the instrumentation he helped to develop, including his Pressure Profile Instrument, worked perfectly on the Huyens Lander, which separated from NASA’s space craft on Christmas day. The Huyens “made a successful 25 hour transit through the atmosphere of Saturn’s moon Titan”, relaying data back to earth for 30 minutes. Gil comments that “after eight years of development and seven years of flight, it was a marvelous feeling to have all 27 channels of the PPI work perfectly.” As the information continues to come back from Cassini in orbit around Saturn, a new generation of scientists will be working with the data. Gil observes: ” Sometimes the seeds one plants go on to successive generations.”

AREIDEDERCI was the headline on an invitation for a wonderful event , a retirement party honoring Reid Williamson for his 31 years heading the Historic Landmark Foundation of Indiana. Fortunately, Ted Robb and Tersh Boasberg were able to join over 300 others to pay tribute to Reid. Our roving reporter, Tersh, reminds us that Reid started as Executive Director of the Historic Savannah Foundation in 1964. Ten years later, Reid was recruited by Indiana Landmarks. Reid turned an organization of 200 members, one small house museum, a $3 million endowment, and a staff of three into the most respected preservation state organization in the country, with 11,000 members, ten local offices, three museums, a $38 million endowment, and a staff of 53. Reid saved nearly 1000 historic buildings, neighborhoods, and architectural treasures and was very active nationally, primarily with Preservation Action and the National Trust for Historic Preservation. Reid can be found happily learning how to surf the internet in Hilton Head, near his two sons and their families.

50th REUNION NEWS: Jack Silliman reports that plans for the reunion gift campaign are well underway, with Jack, Joe McNay, and Angus Wurtele spearheading the effort and currently forming the gift committee. This is the big one, and we hope all of you will make a contribution to mark this milestone…100% participation is the goal.

A plea from our 50th reunion yearbook editors, Ben Scotch and Henry Cooper: Please complete the personal information questionnaire when you receive it from the AYA. If you log on to the class website, yale56.org after you receive your questionnaire, you will see a link to the questionnaire, which you can complete on line by using the unique identity code on the form. Or you can return the paper form, using the Reunion Press envelope. Please also complete our fun-filled anonymous opinion survey online, or mail in the form, noting that there are TWO envelopes. The survey should be sealed in the envelope with no return address or ID, marked anonymous survey.

MAY/JUNE 2005

JUNE 1-4, 2006. Save those dates for our 50th reunion. Please plan to be there. Barclay Robinson reports that he already has exchanged ” mutual written, and thus legally binding, promises with Mike McCone to be there” Barclay thought that Mike got the short end of the deal, having to travel over “3000 miles of mountain, desert, and fruited plain” to get to New Haven. Then Barclay realized that he would have to drive the “road from hell”, I 95, so Barclay now thinks that he got the short end. Presumably Ivan Phillips can find New Haven without a trip on I 95; he and Winnie will be there for the reunion. Ivan and Cush May, Yale roommates, meet for lunch every six weeks.

Jack McGinnis has lived since 1977 in Montpelier, VT. He reports that he, Kristina and a “good sized family party” were present to welcome the arrival of his latest grandchild, Morgan. Jack reflects: “How things have changed since we had our children.” Kristina has survived an orthopedic nightmare: Since 2002 she has had both knees and a hip replaced plus three major back operations. Jack and Kristina have moved into a retirement community and have four of six children, three of four grandchildren living locally-surely a significant percentage of the Montpelier population, which also includes Ben Scotch. As reported in The New York Times and in an interview on NPR, Ben drafted the resolution recently passed at almost all the Vermont town meetings “asking the State Legislature to investigate the impact of National Guard employment on Vermont’s readiness for a natural disaster or other emergency”. The measure also calls on Congress and the President to “take steps to withdraw American troops from Iraq.” It is my understanding that Vermont has the highest per capita casualty rate in Iraq of all the states. We are counting on Ben to temporarily lay down his lances as he organizes and publishes a glorious 50th reunion yearbook.

Interesting bits and pieces from all over: Jason Bacon recently trekked in Bhutan; he suggests a reality check with him before undertaking the challenge. David Slavitt’s 80th (!) book has been published by LSU press: Change of Address: Poems New and Selected. Bruce Ensley has gone back to school, training to be a docent at the Air and Space Museum in Washington. Apparently Bruce forgot one of his Yale lessons; he has Saturday classes. Joel Spector’s son, Gary, might be the guy sinking birdie putts in the foursome in front of you. Gary has qualified for the U.S. mid-amateur. Francis Compton checked in, reporting on his exciting trip from Seattle, east to Glacier National Park and then through the Canadian Rockies from Banff to Vancouver and Victoria. Having taken part of that trip myself, I can second Francis’s recommendation. Mike Altschuler wonders whether he is now the oldest ‘56er to become a first time grandfather. Emma Olivia was born on December 8th. Let me know if you can beat Mike.

Steve Scher has sold his business and is devoting his time to art history and museum studies, writing and serving on committees at the Met and the Frick in New York. Steve is working on an exhibition of medieval art for the Met.

Jim Downey reports on the small world department. While Jim and Sally were on a Vassar trip, “Shakespeare in the Mediterranean”, traveling from Venice to Croatia, Albania, and Greece, they made two new friends: Mike Carey, a neurosurgeon in New Orleans, and Betty, Mike’s spouse, also a Vassar graduate. Although both Jim and Mike were English majors and pre-med classmates at Yale, they did not know each other. Jim concludes: “Friendship lasts. On to the 50th.”

Another M.D., Bill Lovejoy, joins the rest of us in mourning the death of our “Mutt and Jeff” pair, Ed Wall and Jim McCaffrey. “They were good people, good friends, and made life joyful” writes Bill. Amen to that. Bill assures all those who have laughed at his “long talk of retirement” that it is about to happen, expressing the hope that retirement will make him a “more visible classmate, alumnus, and friend.” One of Bill’s nine grandchildren from six children carries Bill’s name.

I have been informed of the death of two classmates about whom I have no information, only addresses. If any of you can fill me in on their lives and activities, I would like to provide a proper recognition in a future column. Bill Peniston from St Peters, MO, died in October 1998; Joseph Poremba , from Orange CA, died in September, 2004.

On a happier note: The Boston, New York, and Washington Davenport Fellowship Committees have selected the three juniors who will be funded by us ($2500 each) for their summer projects. At our class dinner after the Harvard game in November we will hear about “A Glimpse into the World of Guatemalan Midwifery”, “Gotham, the Great Jazz Teacher”, and “Summer Program for Cambodian Youth in Bridgeport.”

MARCH/APRIL 2005

In my last column my “trailer” promised Tersh Boasberg’s report on the second annual Cody, WY, reunion, organized by the host, Roger Hollander, and by John Fitzgibbon. The list of attendees was expanded and included Tersh, John, Roger, Kim Chace, Jim Downey, Worth David, John Eaton, Bill Rees, Jack Silliman, John Wallace, Angus Wurtele, Dan Banks, Peter Brier, Bill Bourke, Peter Bull, and Milt Gaines. In addition to consuming beautiful wines and brook trout caught by Angus, Milt, and Bill, the gang enjoyed Bourke’s rendition of Irish poetry, Downey’s intrepid basso, a John Eaton concert, and a discussion of the program possibilities for the 50th reunion. That conversation continued at the Reunion Planning Committee meeting the Friday before the Princeton game and at the Executive Committee meeting the next morning. We agreed that we want to plan talks by outstanding Yale professors, followed by discussion panels of classmates with themes that build upon past experience and look to the future. We of the “silent generation” will continue to speak out. We also agreed that we will NOT be discussing prostates, and other body parts, or the admitted advantages of tofu and bean sprouts. We agreed that the intellectual program will be part of a broadly-appealing, over-all schedule of fun, including excursions, the ’56 Whiffs, and a John Eaton performance. We will continue to inform you of our progress, solicit your ideas, and advise you as soon as Yale has set the date for the reunion.

At the same Executive Committee meeting mentioned above, Rocky Suddarth, in his swan song as our class representative to the AYA, reported on the fall convocation, “The New Yale: A Decade of Extraordinary Progress”. Some interesting comparative statistics, 1994 to 2004: Tuition from $26 000 to $39 000; SAT range from 610-710 to 690-790; Foreign Undergraduates from 4% to 9%; Endowment from $4 billion to $12 billion; Applications from 13 000 to 20 000 for 1500 places. The most popular majors are History, Economics and Political Science. In addition Yale spent $1 billion on deferred maintenance and another $2 billion on new buildings, chiefly in the areas of medicine, science, and engineering. We also provided Presidents for Cambridge, MIT, and Duke. The ambitious agenda for the next ten years includes further strengthening science and technology and internationalization- making Yale a truly global university. The Yale college experience will be improved by implementing the new curriculum review and tripling the number of undergraduates studying abroad. We thank Rocky for his great work attending and reporting on the assemblies and welcome his replacement, Charlie Cook. A final note on the Princeton weekend festivities: The Saturday night dinner, organized by Bud Prince, featuring the reports of our three Davenport fellowship winners and the singing group obtained by Roger Englander, was a wonderful event.

Richard Kamps,’53, writes that while sailing off the coast of Maine he sailed into a bay and “there, about 100 feet up a cliff and about 50-75 feet below the top… was ‘Yale ‘56′ chiseled into the granite cliff face.” Richard and I want to know how that tribute to a great class got there. Please contact me if you have any information, remembering that the statute of limitations has probably expired. If you are up for a government position and fearful of facing the Senate, I promise anonymity.

While on the subject of government service, Jack McGregor has been appointed by President Bush to be one of five members of the Advisory Board of the St. Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation.

Gil Leppelmeier reports from the Finnish space program that the rocket Aura was launched on July 15th, carrying his OMI and John Gille’s HIRDLS instrumentation on board. To learn more, go to www.aura.gsfc.nasa.gov/science. Isn’t it great to have a couple of 70 year old space scientists in our class?

Don Velsey, although officially retired, continues consulting on overseas architecture projects in Lesotho, Madagascar, the UK and elsewhere. Don’s new book, “Classic American Popular Song: The Second-Half Century”, “investigates all the good stuff still being written in the style of Gershwin, Porter, Arlen, Rodgers, etc.” Don: Meet John Eaton.

Classmates continue to publish. Howard Broek writes that his last scientific paper was accepted by the Journal of Physical Oceanography for publication this year. Having had that success, Howard now is writing a “political-medical fantasy” with a wonderful title- President’s Shrink Escapes Gitmo. Between publications Howard hiked and swam in Colorado.

When in New Orleans for a wedding, Gay and I caught up with one of our prolific authors — Nikki Barranger. His collection of Southern writers has just been published: Blue Moon Café Volume Three, available from www.overthetransom.com. Gay has just read, and I am starting, an advance copy of Nikki’s new play, which Gay enthusiastically praises. If all of that activity wasn’t enough, Nikki also had a major role in Camelot at the Tulane Summer Lyric Theater.

Richard Scoville died of cancer on November 26th. Dick was the first in his family to attend college, receiving a full scholarship from Yale (about $2500 per year). He earned his BA, MA, and PhD in mathematics, all at Yale. Dick joined the faculty at Duke in 1961, the start of a 36 year career at that university. He was the author, or co-author, of 38 professional articles in the fields of combinatorics and ergodic theory. He dedicated a lot of his time to tutoring elementary school children. His obituary lists the following interests: Japanese and Spanish language and culture, the game of Go, classical music, stamp collecting, photography, sports cars, gardening, astronomy, entymology and etymology, computers and robotics, Bonsai, cheesecake, butterscotch pudding, and maple sugar candy. Dick is survived by his two children and by his companion of 16 years, Alice Davidson. Unfortunately, I do not have an address for the family.

JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2005

Regardless of how we wanted the Presidential election to turn out, we all can be thankful that the 2000 Florida fiasco was not repeated. For that blessing we can, in part, thank Ben Scotch. As Larry Hewes pointed out in a recent e-mail, Ben, based on “sheer determination and guts”, developed and produced “Game’s Over: This Time We’re Voting”, starring Ozzie Davis. Designed to insure that all voters were aware of their rights and were not intimidated at the polls, the program was widely disseminated through the internet, cable TV, and radio.

While I was working on the presidential campaign in the Philadelphia area, I had a delightful dinner with Ted Robb, who continues his commitment to providing independent living, subsidized housing for the elderly. Ted has now participated in the development of twenty-seven such facilities. Of course, behind the numbers are human beings. One elderly woman, with tears in her eyes, thanked Ted for enabling her to leave her children’s garage, where she had been living, banned from seeing her grandchildren, and for restoring her dignity, as well as her own home. One of Ted’s latest projects, in New York City, was co-sponsored with Ken Liebman’s dynamic non-profit, Grand Street Settlement. In addition to his very active involvement with Grand Street, Ken currently is President of the University Glee Club in New York, a group which includes

Roger Englander and Marv Berenblum. Ken, and several other classmates, were on the Alumni Glee Club trip to Brazil, Argentina and Chile. Toni Liebman also is actively involved with good causes, serving as President of the Coalition against Child Abuse and Neglect. Toni still runs her educational consulting business, and Ken is busier than ever in the insurance world.

I still am playing “catch up”: Some time ago Cornelius Van Cott reported that he “stays sharp” by composing words and music, a derivative of his Navy days as a cryptologist. Cornelius, married for 45 years to Patty, also tutors math students and enjoys visiting his children and grandchildren. The Van Cotts relax on Lake Androscoggin in Maine and cruise the Caribbean, the British Isles and Europe. Cornelius wonders why all the best brains at Yale and Harvard can’t fix the TV signal for the Y-H game transmission to Washington.

Bob Said, retired editor of aviation magazines, is building his own plane, a KR 2, a craft twelve feet long with an eighteen foot wingspan. To quote Bob: “Am extremely retired, but still intact. My former wife wanted badly to enter an old folks’ home, but I am not THAT retired, so we divorced, and I have moved to the western slope of the Rockies.” (Montrose, CO) Bob bought a 1908 house and expects “to spend the next 38 years patching it up.” He moved with 40 boxes (2000 pounds) of books and has re-read 68 pounds worth. Bob promises to join us at the 50th, even if has to walk to New Haven.

Our classmates certainly get around. Tom Vennum was in Amsterdam in August to award the Vennum cup at an international lacrosse tournament. Tom’s book, “American Indian Lacrosse: Little Brother of War”, was published by the Smithsonian Press in 1994. Marjorie and Howard Parker have traveled extensively during the last year, everywhere from the Caribbean, St.Louis, Lexington (KY) to up-state New York. Between trips the Parkers enjoy baby sitting for their three grandchildren, working on their house and socializing with local seniors. Jim Moore and Barbara split their time between Stuart, Florida and Cohasset, Massachusetts, still hitting tennis balls and actively volunteering in those communities.

Also in Massachusetts-Orleans- Dinny and Phil Goodwin are involved in a wide range of activities, from gardening to golf and fishing. Clay Alexander and spouse visited the Goodwins while east from California for a wedding. Clay retired as a surgeon in Dallas and has moved to Oceanside, CA. Clay, please, I need your address and phone number, which are not in the directory.

Irwin Miller has kept in touch and reports that he is involved in the founding of the American Automotive Group, a new company that will be “a platform…to combine automobile retail sales, insurance services for consumers and financial services for consumers and dealerships.” Irwin is in charge of the New York office of this California-based company, which expects to go public in 2005. Irwin is grateful for the encouragement he has received from his wife, Judy, and from his Yale friends as he starts on this new venture.

You may recall that I reported in the July-August YAM on Andy Emerson’s translation of the Chinese poetry of Huang Xiang. I regret to report that Andy died on August 16th. At various times Andy lived in New Jersey, Washington, the Philippines, and Okinawa. After Yale Andy served in the Navy, decrypting intercepted Chinese communications. After graduating from Columbia Law School, he began his career in law, subsequently became a banker, and eventually started his own investment firm. Recently Andy founded Med Tech Home Rentals, a retailer of home medical devices. He was another singing classmate, appearing with the Pro Arte Chorale at Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center. Andy was a very bright, warm and sensitive friend. He is survived by his wife, Tilly-Jo, who can be reached at 17 Woodland Road, Maplewood, NJ, 07040, and by three children.

In my in-box (the pile on my desk) I have a wonderful report from Tersh Boasberg on the second 1956 Cody, WY reunion of 16 classmates held at Roger Hollander’s ranch. Space limitations require that this serve as a trailer for next month’s column. Meanwhile, see Personal News for a description.