Class of 1944

From the March/April 2017 Issue

Isabella Howard Alexander writes: “I have attended many reunions. At 93 years old, I am still quite active driving, playing bridge, etc. I look forward to attending my 75th reunion in 2019—hopefully!! I have enjoyed three careers; a microbiologist, a businesswoman, and a teacher. I have lived in the Southwest (Texas and Oklahoma) since 1946, but still miss the beauty of Narragansett Bay.”

From the May/June 2015 Issue

Willard Fernald writes: “I retired from a pediatric group practice in 2007. For 55 years I have cared for profoundly developmentally delayed residents of the Heinzerling Foundation in Columbus, Ohio. I am active in the Central Ohio Diabetes Assoc. and direct a camp for diabetic children.”

From the September/October 2014 Issue

Lillian Carneglia Affleck reports: “Our class has reached another milestone—70 years since we walked through the Van Wickle Gates as graduating seniors! We are a special class, having witnessed a historic time in our nation’s history during the war years. How gratifying to report that, including guests, a total of 21 class members attended a momentous 70th reunion, accompanied by many unregistered family and friends. It all began with a cocktail reception and dinner at the University Club Friday evening, after which a few young at heart admirably chose to recapture the memories of Campus Dance. Saturday we held our traditional class luncheon in the Chancellors Dining Room at Sharpe Refectory, and the Hope Club was the setting for cocktails and an elegant dinner that evening. We viewed the magic of WaterFire on two beautiful evenings. The weekend’s most exciting moments were on Sunday during the Commencement procession, which is still full of pageantry and emotion. A few brave souls walked down College Hill to the applause and adulation of a very spirited crowd. Approaching the bottom of the hill, more than 2,000 seniors cheered loudest in a welcoming tribute to the class of ’44. A grand finale! Classmates who attended included Isabel Howard Alexander, Hope Richards Brothers, Shirley Burr Darling, Doris Fain Hirsch, Grace Costagliola Perry, Shirley Reeves, Miriam Jolley Spencer, Marjorie Greene Hazeltine Wolfe, Edgar Jessup, John Merriam, and David Oppenheimer.”

From the July/August 2014 Issue

Carolyn Collins Roberts writes that she’s still “plodding around with the use of a walker.”

From the May/June 2014 Issue

Having traveled extensively during retirement, Preston Atwood and his wife, Lois (Chicago ’44), now live comfortably a few blocks from the Brown campus and would love to hear from any surviving classmates. Son David Atwood ’72, having retired after 38 years with the U.S. Foreign Service, now works under contract with USAID and has traveled to many Third World countries in a continuing effort to eliminate world hunger.

From the January/February 2013 Issue

Isabella Howard Alexander writes: “Hopefully, I will attend my 70th reunion and walk down the hill and celebrate Brown’s 250th. I’ve lived in Oklahoma for 56 years and am a retired educator. I have attended numerous reunions.”

Sylvia Berry Rose writes that her daughter Sally passed away in September and that she misses her.

From the January/February 2013 Issue

Marjorie Hazeltine-Wolfe writes: “Hank and I were married in 2008, one year after we had both lost our spouses. Since then we have enjoyed several Road Scholar trips together, playing golf and keeping busy with activities here at our retirement community.”

From the July/August 2011 Issue

Preston Atwood and his wife, Lois (Chicago '44), are living comfortably and are fairly active at Medway Place, a senior condominium complex one mile from Brown's campus.

From the March/April 2011 Issue

Lillian Carneglia Affleck writes: "Greetings to all classmates. Regret our numbers prevent us from meeting annually as we have for 65 years. However, let's believe we can surmount this hurdle and look forward to celebrating our 70th. It would be so special. Best wishes to all."

From the January/February 2011 Issue

Marjorie Greene writes that she and Hank Hazeltine were married about a year after they both lost their spouses. They are both happily involved in many activities, and she still plays the piano at various venues and is fooling around with a folk harp.

From the September/October 2009 Issue

Class secretary Charles Collins writes: "Our ranks were down in numbers for the 65th reunion, as might have been expected. In attendance were: Preston Atwood, Charles Collins, Willard Fernald, Richard Houck, Charles Isherwood, John Merriam, Charles Nathanson, and John Turnbull. The men stayed at Sigma Chi and met there for their opening gathering. They joined the ladies of Pembroke 1944 for refreshments. They also met at the Faculty Club on Saturday to extend their officers' terms. Peter Atwood will remain president, David Oppenheimer will remain vice president, and I will remain secretary. The men ate at the club, and then marched down College Hill the next day as the second-oldest class present for the event."

Reunion chair Lillian Carneglia Affleck writes: "Congratulations to those classmates who were able to attend a very special and significant reunion; and to those classmates who were not able to come, we missed you. Every event proved to be a success, from the welcoming reception in the Sigma Chi lounge to a Pembroke luncheon in the Chancellor's Dining Room and an elegant dinner with music at the Faculty Club. A few classmates were able to attend forums, the tour with the president, and a memorial service for deceased alumni. However, the traditional procession through the Van Wickle Gates was the most emotional and exciting experience—beyond description. How often are we seniors cheered and honored by the graduates as we march down College Hill? Later, we needed the Fifty Plus Luncheon as a finale to come down from our high and exchange fond farewells and thank especially our events coordinator, Lisa Griffin, student assistant, Blair McNamara '12, and cochair, Doris Fain Hirsch. In attendance were: Isabella Howard Alexander, Roxanne Karibian Arzoomanian '45, '62 MAT, Hope Richards Brothers, Shirley Burr Darling, Dorothy Segool Goldblatt, Doris Fain Hirsch, Caroline Woodbury Hookway, Flora Hall Lovell and husband Jim '48, Otilia Ramos Magee '45, Grace Costagliola Perry, Shirley Reeves and her sister Jean Boyce, Miriam Jolley Spencer, and Aaron Cohen '48."

Willard Fernald retired from his Columbus, Ohio, pediatrics practice in June 2007, after 51 years. He worked as medical director for the Heinzerling Foundation and the Central Ohio Diabetes Assoc. camp for children with diabetes. He is a clinical professor of pediatrics at Ohio State. His wife of 60 years, Bette, died in Feb. 2008. He has four children and four grandchildren.

From the May/June 2009 Issue [65th]

George M. Hindmarsh writes that he misses his late wife, Janet Lindsay, but is still healthy and enjoying life.

From the March/April 2009 Issue [65th] 

W. Edgar Jessup Jr. and his wife, Audrey, visited the D-Day landing sites in Normandy, France, in September, rekindling memories of June 6, 1944. Ed, a freshly commissioned ensign from Brown NROTC, along with classmates Bill Kimball and Dave Wood, were aboard the USS Quincy, which provided fire support for the invading troops.

From the January/February 2009 Issue [65th] 

Shirley Buckingham Allen writes that she is happily living at Sunrise Assisted Living, where she is safe, overfed, and entertained.

Preston A. Atwood writes: "Lois and I are in pretty good shape, living in a senior condo not far from the Brown campus and still going to the gym, theater, concerts, and our club. Son David '72 is a senior foreign service officer with USAID, serving as director of the African Office for Technical Assistance."

Howard Baetzhold '48 AM writes: "My wife and I are grateful to be living in the same house and to be attending activities at Butler Univ. I retired from Butler in 1988 after 35 years of service in the English department. I am the author of Mark Twain and John Bull: The British Connections and co-editor of The Bible According to Mark Twain."

William J. Bottomley looks forward to traveling to campus for his 65th reunion. He will also visit his sister Mary in Newport.

Charles H. Collins has four children and six grandchildren, ages 31 to 38, as well as five great-grandchildren, ages 2 to 15; they reside in R.I., Conn., Va., and Fla. One granddaughter just moved to the Sudan in East Africa, where she teaches school and her husband works for the U.S. Department of State.

George Hindmarsh writes that his wife, Janet Lindsay Hindmarsh, recently passed away, after 64 years of marriage: "I'm still fishing, golfing, and volunteering at a nature center in Punta Gorda, Fla. I now have three great-grandsons."

W.S. Maxwell Montgomery and his wife moved to Kimball Farms, a life-care facility in Lenox, Mass., on August 1. They write that they are enjoying their beautiful surroundings.

Phyllis Bidwell Oliver's husband, Donald, passed away in September 2006 of lung cancer. Phyllis has been in a wheelchair for five years but still lives in her home with her two cats and a caretaker.

John D. Ross Jr. retired from Ross & Ross in 1999 and handed operations over to his son and daughter. He lives on Cape Cod .

David Solomon and his wife, Ronnie, moved in September 2007 to a continuing-care retirement community. They write that they are enjoying life in retirement.

From the September/October 2008 Issue [65th]

Lillian Carneglia Affleck reports: "Every year since graduation the women of the class of '44 have enjoyed a reunion luncheon and connecting with our alma mater. The Hope Club was a perfect setting for our annual get-together. Next year is our 65th! It is always held on Memorial Day weekend, so plan ahead. Those who attended the 2008 event were: Hope Richards Brothers, Claire Fontaine Cayer and her daughter Julie, Jane O'Brien Cottam, Doris Fain Hirsch, Gloria Carbone LoPresti, Grace Costagliola Perry and her sister Luisa, and Miriam Jolley Spencer.

Isabella Howard Alexander had a partial hip replacement after an accident in January. She writes: "All is well now; I'm going places and doing things."

Marjorie Greene Hazeltine's husband, Jim, died Mar. 11, 2007, of Alzheimer's. She remarried on Mar. 15, and is living happily in Lancaster, Pa.

Natalie Gourse Prokesch writes: "My husband died last year and I moved from Connecticut to Massachusetts. While moving I found copies of the Pembroke Record from when I was editor and sent them to Brown. They are now part of the Archives at the John Hay Library. My grandson graduated from Northeastern Law School, another grandson is in the Peace Corps, and a granddaughter is in the process of getting her master's at the Univ. of Chicago."

Miriam Norbery Schofield writes she doesn't travel as much as she used to, but does attend classes at Osher Lifelong Learning Institute and is planning on entering an independent living facility in St. Augustine, Fla., in a year.

From the January / February 2008 Issue

Howard Krafsur writes he was president of Colliers International, which was created by a merger about twenty years ago and consists of leading real estate companies in each state and leading real estate companies in each country. He has done lots of public speaking here and overseas and received many awards in real estate over the years.

From the September / October 2007 Issue

Reunion chair Lillian Carneglia Affleck reports that attending the unofficial mini-reunion at the Hope Club on Commencement weekend were Hope Richards Brothers, Jane O'Brien Cottam, Violet Halpert, Doris Fain Hirsch, Caroline Woodbury Hookway, Gloria Carbone Lo Presti, Flora Hale Lovett, and her husband, Jim Lovett '48.

Isabella Howard Alexander traveled to Germany with her daughter in May. She looks forward to seeing everyone in the near future.

Irving R. Levine (see Caryl-Ann Miller Nieforth '59).

Virginia Siravo Stanley moved to Coronado, Calif., where she is involved in many volunteer projects. She was elected vice president of the Bridge and Bay Garden Club; is treasurer of Second Hand Prose, a used bookstore run by Friends of the Library; and is soon to be a volunteer at the Coronado Visitor's Center and Museum.

From the July / August 2007 Issue

George and Janet Lindsay Hindmarsh write: “We are not traveling any more; Janet’s condition is such that it’s impossible. However, we live in a beautiful area, so no complaints.”

From the January / February 2007 Issue

Leonard S. Rogers and Barbara Orkin are happily living in a continuing care retirement community where Leonard has just been elected as a member of the President’s Council.

From the September / October 2006 Issue

Lillian Carneglia Affleck, the class of 1944’s reunion chair, reports: “This year’s unofficial reunion was a fun time. A small group of twelve, we were all happy to be together and agreed to spread the word and meet annually until our 65th reunion. Jean Andrews Marble traveled from Ontario with her daughter, Carol Marble Thatcher ’72, but attended the luncheon with her guest, Barbara Primiano. Flora Hall Lovell was escorted by her husband, Jim Lovell ’48, who said he knows all the ‘girls’ and had a wonderful time. Others in attendance were Claire Fontaine Cayor, Jane O’Brien Cottam, Caroline Woodbury Hookway, Doris Fain Hirsch, Gloria Carbone Lo Presti, Grace Costagliola Perry, and Miriam Jolley Spencer.”

Isabella Howard Alexander writes: “Just returned from a trip in April—ten days in Aruba. Life in the fast lane is too much for me. How great it would be to be fifty years younger. And how great a place for my grandchildren. Also in March, I spent a pleasant week in the Ozarks visiting Branson, Mo., and Eureka Springs, Hot Springs, and Little Rock, all in Arkansas. I am still actively involved with many volunteer duties—Red Cross, historical society, civic arts, aging services, diocesan duties, etc., all of which I thoroughly enjoy. Thank goodness for good health. I always say, ‘I’m in good shape—for the shape I’m in.’ Of course, everything sags or is wrinkled! I look forward to 2009 for our 65th.”

Bruno Augustein died on July 6, 2005 (see Obituaries, January/February). David Tuckerman ’46 passed along this note from Bruno’s friend Tim Joyner: “I first met Bruno in 1941 at the Colgate-Hoyt pool at Brown. He was a scholarship student who’d gone to public schools and a townie who lived at home. After emigrating from Germany with his family at age 8, he attended grade school in Brooklyn and high school in Rhode Island. Bruno had no ties to the prep school network that in those days dominated student social activity at Brown. I too was a product of the public schools—those of New York City—and lived at Brown outside the pale of preppy social life. Bruno, Rus Dolan ’43, and I became fast friends and eventually fraternity brothers.

“On December 7, 1941, the attack on Pearl Harbor changed everything. The school year was accelerated and many students joined or were drafted into the armed services. Russ went into the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and I went to the U.S. Marine Corps. Bruno’s nearsightedness precluded his service in the military, but his mathematical and scientific talents were put to good use during the war. On a terrible day in June 1945, my unit was taking awful casualties in Okinawa. When the sun glinted off my binoculars, the Japanese gunner fired, shattering the boulders from which I was peering. A chunk of rock slammed into my helmet, knocking me unconscious. Several weeks later, I received a letter from Bruno asking if I’d been injured. The letter was dated the same day in June that the incident occurred; I had not written to him about it. May God rest you, Bruno. You were my dearest friend.”

Marjorie Greene Hazeltine writes: “I am looking forward to my first big cruise in the Mediterranean from Barcelona to Athens with exotic stops in between. My daughter, Leslie, is going with me. I’m enjoying living in retirement in Lancaster, Pa., where my husband, Jim, is well taken care of by the skilled nurses and where I can see him every day. I have many new friends as well as dear old ones (well, we’re all old). Still playing golf and tennis and have a lovely family. Three graduations of grandchildren last spring!”

Flora Hall Lovell writes: “Travel is in the forecast. Traveled to Seattle to attend a college graduation of a grandson. Then late June took us to Boone, N.C., for the marriage of another.”

Mary Gray Martin writes: “I took my yearly trip to California to visit my son and granddaughters at the end of May. My limbs are still functioning reasonably well with the help of medicines, and the senior center is a wonderful help for my physical and mental health.”

Elizabeth Pretzer Rall writes: “Geol­ogy is still my favorite sport. I really enjoy building maps and cross sections, but grandchildren are pretty special too.”

Jane Richardson Wright writes: “Gene and I are both pretty well for our age, but because Gene is in a wheelchair I would not feel right leaving him alone. He is a remarkable example of a multiple sclerosis patient who, because he’s also an engineer, can do anything that pleases him. After a couple falls on the garage floor, he recently designed and made himself a lift from the kitchen door to the garage floor (four steps up). A tall neighbor installed the motor in the garage ceiling, but all the cables and engineering—alteration on chair, etc.—Gene did. This is only the latest of his many projects.

“I am still at the Schenectady Museum in New York trying to hold up under plans (not mine) to turn it into a science museum. We have the largest costume collection in New York outside of the Metro­politan (who were very helpful to us in 1969 in getting started and have also contributed costumes). I don’t regret changing the museum to science because young people are working now and we don’t have enough volunteers. The museum has never provided us with paid help; it is time to close. Sooner or later we know the collection will be moved somewhere.”

Anne Maven Young ’48 ScM writes: “Howard Young ’48 PhD and I continue to thrive, but at a slower pace. The extended family in Texas, Louisiana, Georgia, Tennessee, and Kentucky is doing well. So too are those at college in Wisconsin, Massachusetts, Kentucky, and Tennessee. Our daughter, Margaret, and son-in-law had some harrowing times in Louisiana during Hurricane Katrina. They lost their house in New Orleans—it backed up to the 17th Street canal—but they have relocated just west of the city on slightly higher ground, and they are both back at work at their respective hospitals.”

From the July / August 2004 Issue

Priscilla Thomas Patterson (see Rula Patterson Shore ’67).

From the May / June 2004 Issue

Reunion weekend is May 28–31. For more information, contact reunion headquarters at (401) 863-1947 or reunions@brown.edu. Irving R. Levine writes: “I am looking forward to the 60th reunion. I continue as dean of the College of International Communications at Lynn Univ. in Boca Raton, Fla., splitting my time between Boca and Washington, D.C. I do commentary on the PBS-TV program Nightly Business Report and lecture several times a year aboard cruise ships.”

Charlie Peck writes: “After nineteen years of mowing and gardening in the biggest backyard in Asheville, N.C., I moved down the road to a retirement community in Black Mountain. It has an even bigger lawn to look at, but I don’t have to mow. That should leave more time for golf, tennis, and travel.”

From the March / April 2004 Issue

Your 60th reunion plans are complete, and now we hope to see you back at Brown on May 28–31! Join fellow classmates for a great reunion weekend. Registration information will arrive soon, so please make your reservation early. Register online at alumni.brown. edu and address any questions to reunion headquarters at (401) 863-1947 or reunions@ brown.edu. Virginia “Ginna” Siravo Stanley reports that she and her companion, George E. Brown, had a great stay in Tuscany this fall, followed by a ten-day Mediterranean cruise. Ginna, 80, still works as a real estate broker in Indiana and Illinois and also owns and operates Ginna Stanley Income Tax Service in Vincennes, Ind.

From the January / February 2004 Issue

Report from reunion headquarters: “The countdown has started for reunion weekend, May 28–31. Your class reunion committee is planning a great reunion. Mark your calendars. Your registration information will arrive in the spring.”

Class secretary Gene Gannon Gallagher reports: “The class extends its deepest sympathy to Hope Ballinger Brown on the death of her husband, Ed.”

Dorothy Bornstein Berstein writes: “I hope to be with classmates for the reunion. I’m hanging on and trying to ‘keep fit.’ ”

Kenneth McMurtrie writes: “Carolyn and I took a fifty-three-day South Pacific cruise this winter. In the spring we’re planning a sixty-three-day voyage around South America. In June we will host a weeklong family reunion for all our children at Fort Myers Beach, Fla.”

John L. Merriam writes: “I’m still kicking!”

Chuck Nathanson writes: “I retired in 1996 after fifty-two years with the Soluol Chemical Corp., a manufacturer of polyurethane polymers and coatings, serving as chief executive and operating officer.”

Carolyn Collins Roberts, of State College, Pa., writes: “I broke my right arm last May and am still educating my left arm to work. I still tutor math at the local high school. Al and I will be moving to a retirement center in November. Now we are selling our house.”

From the November / December 2003 Issue

Lillian Carneglia Affleck writes: “I’ve managed to survive year one without my late-husband Jack by keeping involved and active. I’m also learning to travel on my own by visiting daughters and grandchildren in California. My granddaughter Kate has graduated from high school and is at Brandeis.”

Caroline Woodbury Hookway writes: “Sorry to have missed the reunion, but I was attending the graduation of my niece in New Haven.”

Dotty Seidman Orent writes: “Both Norman Bernard Orent ’42 and I are well here in hot and steamy Florida.”

Shirley Reeves writes: “I am looking forward to our 60th reunion. I continue to enjoy good health.”

Irma Copes Rusk writes: “My life continues at its busy pace with trips to California to visit my daughter and to Prague and Budapest. I also do volunteer work, which has been most enriching since I retired in 1988. And, of course, there’s the constant excitement and challenge of living in New York City and enjoying all it has to offer.”

Miriam Norbery Schofield writes: “This will be my final year on the board of the Institute of Retired Professionals at the Univ. of Miami. I visit my sons in Texas and Pennsylvania twice a year. My daughter lives here and I worship my six adorable grandchildren. Last year I traveled in the English countryside and in Normandy, as well as Cape Cod and New England.” Miriam will celebrate her 80th birthday with her family at Disney World.

Jean Miner Sutton writes: “The past year has been good for me. I enjoyed my April 2002 trip to France, a birthday gift from my daughter and son-in-law, who accompanied me along with my sister Leslie Miner Taylor ’45. Community and church responsibilities contribute to a busy life.”

Jane Richardson Wright writes: “I still enjoy working at the Schenectady museum, collecting, caring for, and exhibiting the costume collection. We now have ten grandchildren and nine great-grandchildren scattered from California to Massachusetts.”

From the November / December 2002 Issue

Howard G. Baetzhold '48 A.M. was awarded the Henry Nash Smith Fellowship by the Center for Mark Twain Studies at Quarry Farm and Elmira (N.Y.) College. Howard is the Rebecca Clifton Reade Professor of English Emeritus at Butler University.

Irving R. Levine writes: "This is my seventh year as dean of the College of International Communications at Lynn University in Boca Raton, Fla. I also work as a commentator for the PBS program Nightly Business Report. My lecture activities include speaking on the Radisson Seven Seas Cruise Line, which this summer took me back to Russia, where I spent many years as an NBC News correspondent."

From the September / October 2002 Issue

Lillian Carneglia Affleck writes: "A heartfelt thanks to my classmates for your thoughtfulness following Jack's death. I'm slowly putting my life back together. This year's mini-reunion lifted my spirits. Twelve classmates arrived at the Hope Club and we enjoyed a delightful luncheon. The following send warm regards to the class: Hope Ballinger Brown, Jane O'Brien Cottam, Mary 'Gene' Gannon Gallagher, Louise Whittier Giles, Dorothy Segool Goldblatt, Dorothy Robinson Golner, Doris Fain Hirsch, Caroline Woodbury Hookway, Gloria Carbone LoPresti, Grace Costagliola Perry, Miriam Jolley Spencer, and yours truly, Lillian Carneglia Affleck. Remember: 2004 is our 60th. Plan ahead."

Donald Baker '55 Ph.D., of Brewster, Mass., has published his seventh book, Fought by Boys: New and Selected Poems from War (Xlibris Publications). A portion of the book's proceeds will benefit the Brewster Ladies' Library.

From the July / August 2002 Issue

Hermes C. Grillo writes: "I received the Baaken Award for Scientific Achievement from the Society of Thoracic Surgeons in January. The endowed Hermes C. Grillo Professorship of General Thoracic Surgery at Harvard Medical School was activated this spring."

John Turnbull, of Bakersfield, Calif., writes: "I'm looking forward to our 60th reunion, if we're still around then. I might meet someone I knew - the war raised hell with normalcy."

From the May / June 2002 Issue

Class secretary Mary Gannon Gallagher writes: "The class extends its deepest sympathy to Lillian Carneglia Affleck on the death of her husband, Jack. He was an honorary member of our class and would entertain out-of-town husbands during our class luncheons."

Charles Collins writes: "Our campaign to fill the walkway at Maddock Alumni Center has had some success, but we need more 1944 bricks. For those not yet enshrined, we have a spot for you."

From the November / December 2000 Issue

Class secretary Gene Gannon Gallagher writes: “The class extends its deepest sympathy to Lois Dwight McDaniel, whose husband, Willard (Harvard ’47), passed away in September 1999. We also extend our sympathy to Virginia Siravo Stanley on the death of her son, Eric, and to Virginia Richardson Briggs, whose husband, William ’42, passed away on May 28.”

Marjorie Dore Bertram writes: “We enjoyed our winter in Florida and our trip to New England for the holidays to be with our three daughters and their families.”

Jane O’Brien Cottam writes: “Life isn’t bad: good music, good theater, and I drown my back problems in the pool at least three times a week.”

Betty Heiden Froelich writes: “I’m happy to have my three daughters back on the East Coast. Jo Grossman, my eldest, lives in Sheffield, Mass. Her Mystery Café is no longer in existence, but her book, A Taste of Murder (recipes from mystery writers), is doing well. Nancy Nagle, a psychotherapist, and her husband, Bill, an artist, live in East Hampton, N.Y. They’re celebrating their 30th anniversary. Lucy Rochambeau, my youngest, is back from two years in Mexico and working for the Bravo Group, where she puts her bilingual abilities to good use. I also have stepchildren and grandchildren: Bill and Sandi live in New Jersey; Nancy and Rick Allen live in Los Angeles, where Rick is a producer for Friends. We spent the summer in Clinton Corners, N.Y.”

Doris “Dodo” Fain Hirsch, of Providence, writes: “Reunion weekend I was in Oakland, Calif., to attend the bar mitzvah of the grandson of Edith Plofsky Pearlman ’43. The week before, I was in New Orleans to attend the graduation of my grandson, Ben, from Tulane. Ben is a glass artist and sculptor who has already sold his work (and not just to a friend or relative). My grandson, Joshua, spent the past year traveling with Up with People, and as I write this, he is living with a host family in Switzerland. Then he’s off to Italy, Germany, and Belgium. We expected him home on July 1. As usual, I’m running around in nonconcentric circles, grateful to friends and family who help me manage to keep on truckin’ along. Best wishes to you all. I certainly missed seeing you at the mini-reunion.”

Eloise Kates Julius writes: “We are well. I paint a great deal and garden even more. Dick sculpts, volunteers, and golfs when weather permits.”

Betty B. Levin writes: “When Poet Laureate Robert Pinsky spoke at the Southwest Writers’ Conference I attended, he asked for letters naming favorite poems and explaining why the poems were favored. One line from a long letter I wrote was accepted for the book America’s Favorite Poems. Being in print has had a ripple effect. I was interviewed and photographed in the Sunday Journal and was asked to read a favorite poem (in the company of Tony Hillerman!) at a celebration of poetry month last April.”

Irving R. Levine, along with ten other Korean War correspondents, attended a week-long commemoration in June of the 50th anniversary of the outbreak of the war; the gathering took place in Seoul, South Korea. Irving is dean of the college of international studies at Lynn University in Boca Raton, Fla., and also delivers commentaries for PBS television’s Nightly Business Report. In Seoul, Irving and his wife, Nancy, were guests of the South Korean government. The visit included a trip to the 38th parallel demilitarized zone, the dividing line between North and South Korea, as well as meetings with government officials. In May the Levines sailed from Funchal, Portugal; to Casablanca, Morocco; and to Malaga, Barcelona, and Bilbao in Spain aboard the Radisson Seven Seas cruise ship Diamond, where Irving was a guest lecturer.

Lois Dwight McDaniel writes: “The years seem to fly by very quickly. My husband, Willard (Harvard ’47), passed away in September, so I have been adjusting to a new way of life. Four grandsons keep me young!”

Phyllis Bidwell Oliver writes: “Despite having a stroke in January 1997 that has affected my mobility, I have since traveled to Alaska. Last August Dan and I also attended an Elderhostel in Great Falls, Mont. We visited various sites of the Lewis and Clark expedition and studied the cowboy art of Charles Russell. We then spent four days in Glacier National Park before flying home. Over the years we have had wonderful Elderhostel experiences in Maine, Kentucky, Georgia, the Carolinas, Florida, Arizona, England, and Scotland.”

Natalie Gourse Prokesch writes: “In May I attended my stepdaughter’s graduation in Atlanta. With fifteen grandchildren, there is always something doing on Memorial Day weekend!”

Betty Pretzer Rall writes: “After twenty-five years we returned to Calgary to see our friends and to cross-country ski at Lake Louise. We lived there for seven lucky years. Last summer Ray and I celebrated our 50th anniversary with a brunch served by our little pond. It was heaven to be surrounded by our family and friends. I continue to be involved at Dinosaur Ridge, explaining geology and paleontology to about 50,000 students and visitors a year.”

Miriam Norbery Schofield writes: “I’m active in the Institute for Retired Professionals at the University of Miami. I was head of curriculum last year. I adore my six grandchildren, ages 1 to 15. I expect to take a trip to Normandy and Brittany next spring with English friends.”

Kathryn Dennehy Sherry writes: “I have returned to Stonington, Conn., from Stratford, where I had been teaching at Bunnell High School. I enjoyed the area, but both Maurice and I enjoy living near the water.”

Virginia Siravo Stanley writes: “At the glorious age of 76 I am still a real-estate broker in Illinois and Indiana and still own Ginna Stanley Income Tax Service. I recently lost my son, Eric, 49, to lung cancer. I’ve taken many cruises in the thirteen years since I became a widow. On one, my significant other, George, and I visited Helen Shanley Traill ’44 and her husband, Bob ’43, in Portland.

From the September / October 2000 Issue

Class secretary Gene Gannon Gallagher reports: "Nine classmates met for a luncheon at the Hope Club: Dorothy Segool Goldblatt, Hope Richards Brothers, Claire Fontaine Cayer, Miriam Jolley Spencer, Phyllis Bidwell Oliver, Hope Ballinger Brown, Gene Gannon Gallagher, Grace Costagliola Perry, and Lillian Carneglia Affleck. The class extends its sympathy to Dorthea Gladding Blackman on the death of her husband, Arthur."

Lillian Carneglia Affleck, of Barrington, R.I., writes: "Gratefully, Jack and I celebrated our 50th wedding anniversary in 1999 with a Panama Canal cruise in February, a family-reunion clambake in July, and a Bermuda vacation for the actual date in October. We are blessed."

Dorothea Gladding Blackman’s husband, Arthur, died May 23. He worked in mechanical engineering with Raytheon Co. and Syscon Co. in Middletown, R.I., until he retired in 1983. A pilot, he was a member of the Wanumetonomy Golf and Country Club. He is also survived by two daughters and a stepson.

Dorothy Segool Goldblatt writes that she is copresident of the Sarasota-Manatee Brown Club in Florida.

Mary Grey Martin, of Rockville, Md., writes: "I spent an enjoyable two weeks in Los Angeles in November visiting my son, Robert, and his daughter. They returned the favor in December by spending a week with me."

Kenneth A. McMurtrie of Ocala, Fla., writes: "On this, our 50th wedding anniversary year, Carolyn and I toured South America from January through March, visiting seventeen cities in ten countries. In November we plan to host a week-long celebration with our eight children at our former home on St. John, Virgin Islands."

Virginia Johnson Risdon of Branch-ville, N.J., writes: "Robert and I usually spend three months in the winter riding around the South and Southwest in our motor home. In 1999 we varied the routine and took a trip to Australia, New Zealand, and Fiji. It was wonderful."

From the July / August 2000 Issue

Bill Ewald writes that he is chairman and CEO of the nonprofit PACT program (Positive Alternative Choices Today), which serves at-risk 11- to 15-year-olds in Los Angeles’s west side and south bay. Early in his career he was assistant commissioner of the Urban Renewal Administration under President Eisenhower, then was named the Western Hemisphere’s senior vice president of Doxiadis International. Striking out on his own in 1963, Bill’s first client was President Kennedy. Bill is listed in several Who’s Who books and is a member of the Cosmos Club.

Eugene Rames writes: "I retired from active practice of medicine two and a half years ago and moved back to upstate New York. We spend winters in Cobleskill and summers at my lake cottage on Otsego Lake in Cooperstown (half an hour away). We enjoyed a visit last summer from Herb Sherman and his wife, Ruth. I miss seeing patients, but I don’t miss the hours involved. I loved every minute of being a doctor and have no regrets. I have three sons and two daughters scattered about the country."

Stanley Snyder, of Pittsburgh, writes: "In March my wife, Bernice, and I spent a week in Gateshead, England, visiting our grandson, his wife, and our great-granddaughter and great-grandson. Gateshead is in northeast England across the river Tyne from Newcastle upon Tyne. We then spent three weeks in Israel, where we visited with Ralph Kolodny and his wife, Vivian. We had a very nice visit, reminiscing about Brown and solving the problems of the world in general and the Middle East in particular. We also toured the country and visited with several other people."

From the May / June 1999 Issue

Leonard Rogers and Barbara Orkin Rogers have returned from Alexandria, Egypt, after volunteering for one month with the International Promoters & Marketing Group, with whom Leonard planned and organized a private trade fair to promote Egyptian-made products. Leonard is retired president of National Fairs Inc.

From the March / April 1999 Issue

It's time to renew old friendships, reminisce with classmates, and reconnect with Brown. We hope you plan to join our 55th reunion, which is just a few months away. Please promptly return your registration form, which is in your reunion packet along with housing forms and reunion schedules. Please contact reunion headquarters at (401) 863-1947 if you have questions or need assistance. See you in May!

Preston Atwood, Rumford, R.I., is still active in St. Martin's Church, the Providence Art Club, and The Players (Barker Playhouse). He is president of the Barker Foundation. Preston sails, but on other people's boats _ sixteen days on a thirty-footer in the Gulf of Finland in June 1997 and then in Scotland, Cornwall, and Devon last September. He and his wife, Lois, lately spend a great deal of time in fitness clubs.

Marjorie Greene Hazeltine, Millersville, Pa., visited her niece Jocelyn Greene '74 and her family in Prague in early October, where Jocelyn and her husband are with the U.S. Embassy. "What an enthralling, gorgeous, musical city it is!" Marjorie writes. "The weather couldn't have been more perfect." Marjorie is back with old Lancaster friends, playing some golf and tennis, teaching piano students, and involving herself in musical activities and volunteer work. Her newest venture is Granny's House, an after-school program for inner-city elementary school kids. "I'm looking forward to our 55th reunion," she writes, "although I believe the 50th was too wonderful to try to equal or surpass."

Sara Grace Hahn Holcomb's husband, Floyd, passed away suddenly on July 27.

Miriam Norbery Schofield is on the board of directors of the Institute for Retired Professionals at the University of Miami. She coordinated two series of classes, one on alternative medicine and one called "What's New in Medicine." She will do another, titled "Conditions of the Brain and Central Nervous System," in the spring. Miriam did an Elderhostel in Rome, visited Florence, and spent three weeks in Turkey last year. She has three children and was expecting her sixth grandchild in January.

From the January / February 1999 Issue

Your Pembroke and Brown reunion committees, capably led by Charlie Collins and Lillian Carneglia Affleck, are planning a reunion to remember. Join your classmates on Memorial Day weekend, May 28-31. Come prepared to renew old friendships and reconnect with Brown! If you have questions please call reunion headquarters at (401) 863-1947.

Phyllis Bidwell Oliver, Bloomfield, Conn., writes: "Our most interesting short trip this summer was to Machais Seal Island, off the Maine coast, to see puffins. We'd been disappointed not to have seen them in Alaska in 1997; this trip off the coast guaranteed seeing them during mating season. What a fascinating species!"

Elizabeth Pretzer Rall, Littleton, Colo., writes: "Retirement keeps me super-busy. In addition to the usual trips to see children and grandchildren scattered across the country and Europe, there is volunteering for my chosen career, geology. I am president of Friends of Dinosaur Ridge, a nonprofit organization dedicated to preserving the dinosaur bones and trackways along the Rocky Mountain foothills and educating members of the public about what they see there. I am also doing regional stratigraphy for the U.S. Geological Survey. I wish every day were longer!"

From the November / December 1998 Issue

Lillian Carneglia Affleck writes: "Quite a year, with a daughter's wedding followed by a niece's wedding two weeks later; family and relatives descended upon us for both. I just returned from visiting two daughters and their families in California then spent a week in Albuquerque for a reunion with my sister and her clan. Our aging bodies continue to hold up fairly well. We enjoy traveling and continue with longstanding church and volunteer commitments."

Connie Lucas Chase writes: "I've finally begun to drive to Massachusetts. I'm not fond of it, but Caroline Woodbury Hookway said once that if she wants to go anywhere, she has no choice but to drive - so I've taken a page from her book. Next year I'll join you all in Providence. Activities here include participating in a rug-hooking group, volunteering at the adult day care program at the hospital, and doing crafts to benefit local children in distress. We have a sale each fall.Healthwise, I'm okay. The usual back problems, but the dizzy spells seem to be in remission, thank goodness."

Doris Fain Hirsch writes: "Grandson Joshua graduated from Gettysburg College in May, and Ben is at Tulane."

Eloise Kates Julius, White Plains, N.Y., writes: "Dick is carving, and I am painting and gardening. Grandchildren are delightful and brilliant, of course. I'm very saddened to hear of Judy Weiss's death. She was a marvelous person, always."

Flora Hall Lovell writes: "We continue our dichotomous lives, spending seven months in New York and five on Cuttyhunk Island. Our schedule is full with church work and other volunteer activities, including being docents at the historical society and organizing an annual home-grown musical event. Between daily swims and frequent sails, we both sing in choir and in secular choruses. Travels have mostly involved visiting family in all four corners of the country. This spring the graduations of our grandchildren took us to New York University Law School, the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill, and the University of Washington in Seattle."

Betty Clay Mein is enjoying her trips with Global Volunteers.

Phyllis Bidwell Oliver writes: "Despite my stroke in January 1997, Don and I were able to go to Alaska in May. We had been home about four days when he developed a medical problem that kept him confined to the house until early December. We drove to Hilton Head, S.C., for a wonderful elderhostel in March, and then went on to windy, cool Jupiter, Fla., for ten days. I was saddened to learn of Judy Weiss's death - we will certainly miss her and her contributions."

Miriam Jolley Spencer writes: "I finally decided it was time to visit my sister in Florida, so I flew down in March for an eight-day stay. My brother and his wife drove up from Vero Beach. It was a great reunion."

From the September / October 1998 Issue

Shirley Buckingham Allen writes: "No news, other than being seventy-five years old and still feeling pretty good. Stan and I are enjoying the senior living scene and will be at Westport Point, Mass., this summer. Love to you all."

Arline Kotite Bateman, Tucson, Ariz., writes: "My husband, Pete, died last May after a five-year battle against Alzheimer's. I keep busy with writing, classes with a lively senior study group, swimming, travel, and family - five grandchildren, but they're all step-; my own three children have yet to reproduce. Cheers to all."

Jane O'Brien Cottam, Providence, hopes to visit her daughter and grandchildren in Bangkok, Thailand, next fall. Jane writes: "I spent a month in Virginia helping daughter Kate with her new twins. Life and grandchildren go on and on."

Margaret Farabee, Oak Ridge, Tenn., writes: "I had hoped to make a trip to New England this summer instead of waiting until our 55th reunion, but it wasn't possible. My travel plans are to fly to Juneau, Alaska, in August. My sister and brother-in-law will celebrate their 80th birthdays, together with three married children and five grandchildren. I hope my dear friend Caroline Woodbury Hookway attended the luncheon and will keep me in touch with all the news."

Betty Bernstein Levin, Albuquerque, N. Mex., writes: "The entrepreneurial program

at the small business institute of the University of New Mexico has accepted my application to develop a business for a 'snacker cracker' temporarily called Albuquookies. Four students in the program are working out a three-year business plan, and a local high school wants to make and sell the crackers to raise money for their prom and clubs. The crackers come in four flavors, and I am constantly turning out dozens of samples for everyone who wants

to be a taster. When I am not occupied with problems of pricing, packaging, and marketing, I am busy with the Southwest Writers Workshop and planning a trip to Italy in the spring. In November, I had my first trip back to Mexico. But this time I went to a spa, not San Miguel. Each advancing year, it seems to me, is more exciting and more fun."

Irving R. Levine, Washington, D.C., is dean of international studies at Lynn University in Boca Raton, Fla., and does regular commentaries for the PBS television program Nightly Business Report. He also serves as international affairs speaker on Cunard cruise ships, most recently on the Royal Viking Sun in the Mediterranean.

Gloria Carbone LoPresti, Providence, writes: "We just completed our first Elderhostel to New Orleans and highly recommend it. The lecturers were superb, the jazz was like we'd never heard it before, and the history of New Orleans and its people was fascinating - very different from those of us in New England and elsewhere in these United States."

Sylvia Berry Rose writes: "I have just been blessed with my first great-grandchild, the daughter of my oldest granddaughter, bringing the total of grandchildren to twenty-one. Jerry '45 and I continue to enjoy our new quarters in Coral Gables, Fla. We travel about six months of the year."

Jean Miner Sutton, Pasadena, Md., writes: "My beloved husband, Fran '42, died on March 10, after we'd shared almost fifty-five years of life. Together it has been a rewarding life; rich in family and many loved ones. Among the memories I cherish are our days at Brown, where I met him. I look back fondly at my 50th class reunion. Thankfully, I am still well and active."

Jane Richardson Wright works part-time as a costume curator at the Schenectady (N.Y.) Museum. She has nine grandchildren, ranging in age from thirty to one, and four great-granddaughters, with a fifth on the way.

From the May / June 1998 Issue

Lois Dwight McDaniel and her husband, Bill, celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary on Jan. 3 at a party given by their children in Williamsburg, Va. A bakery used a photograph to reconstruct their wedding cake and placed the original figurines on top. The Bible Lois carried in the wedding was also on display, and the couple drank a toast from the same silver goblets they used for their 25th anniversary. Lois writes that they feel "most fortunate to be able to celebrate this occasion with those who mean the most to us - our children and their spouses" and that they have their sights on their 60th anniversary. Lois and Bill live in Richmond, Va., where Lois volunteers at a local hospital, Bill holds down the craft desk at home, and both continue to work on the yard, seeding, fencing, and planting.

Betty Clay Mein is participating in the Women's Health Initiative, one of the largest studies ever conducted on women's health. She writes: "This study will give answers about how hormones and diet affect women's risk of heart disease, cancer, and osteoporosis, thus giving women the information needed to make better decisions about their health. If you are between the ages of 60 and 79, please call 1-800-54-WOMEN to find out more about joining this study, sponsored by the National Institutes of Health."

From the May / June 1998 Issue

Lois Dwight McDaniel and her husband, Bill, celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary on Jan. 3 at a party given by their children in Williamsburg, Va. A bakery used a photograph to reconstruct their wedding cake and placed the original figurines on top. The Bible Lois carried in the wedding was also on display, and the couple drank a toast from the same silver goblets they used for their 25th anniversary. Lois writes that they feel "most fortunate to be able to celebrate this occasion with those who mean the most to us - our children and their spouses" and that they have their sights on their 60th anniversary. Lois and Bill live in Richmond, Va., where Lois volunteers at a local hospital, Bill holds down the craft desk at home, and both continue to work on the yard, seeding, fencing, and planting.

Betty Clay Mein is participating in the Women's Health Initiative, one of the largest studies ever conducted on women's health. She writes: "This study will give answers about how hormones and diet affect women's risk of heart disease, cancer, and osteoporosis, thus giving women the information needed to make better decisions about their health. If you are between the ages of 60 and 79, please call 1-800-54-WOMEN to find out more about joining this study, sponsored by the National Institutes of Health."

From the March / April 1998 Issue

Charles Nathanson retired as chief executive officer of Solnol Chemical Inc. in February 1997.

Carolyn Collins Roberts writes: "I'm trying my wings at something new. I am an aide to a first-grade teacher at LeMont Elementary School in State College, Pa. It's part-time, but all action."