Scene - Colgate Alumni

Transcription

Scene - Colgate Alumni
scene
Winter 2011
News and views for the Colgate community
The Forgotten Freedom Fighter
Beyond the 11th
Modernism at the Fringes
scene
Winter 2011
26 The Forgotten Freedom Fighter
History professor and biographer Graham Hodges gives radical black abolitionist David Ruggles his due
32 Beyond the 11th
After the 2001 terror attacks, Susan Retik Ger ’90 turned her personal tragedy into an opportunity to improve the lives of others
36 Modernism at the Fringes
Herbert Mayer ’29 and the World House Galleries
3
Message from President Jeffrey Herbst
4
Letters
6
Work & Play
13
Colgate history, tradition, and spirit
14
Life of the Mind
18
Arts & Culture
20
Go ’gate
24
New, Noted & Quoted
42
The Big Picture
44
Stay Connected
2011 Alumni Council Election
45
Class News
77 Marriages & Unions
77 Births & Adoptions
78 In Memoriam
80
Salmagundi: Puzzle, Slices contest, Rewind
DEPARTMENTS
On the cover: Guard Joe Hoban ’11 gives some pre-drill coaching at the annual Shoot
with the Raiders community event on Cotterell Court. Photo by Janna Minehart ’13
Left: Payne Creek scenic by Andrew Daddio
News and views for the Colgate community
1
Volume XL Number 2
The Scene is published by Colgate
University four times a year — in autumn,
winter, spring, and summer. The Scene
is circulated without charge to alumni,
parents, friends, and students.
Graham Russell Gao
Hodges, George Dorland
Langdon Jr. Professor
of history and Africana
and Latin American
studies (“The Forgotten
Freedom Fighter,” pg.
26), has taught early
American and New York
City history at Colgate
since 1986. Several of
his books have brought
to light neglected but
significant historical
figures such as AsianAmerican actress Anna
May Wong and Revolutionary War Loyalist
Colonel Tye.
Professor of Art and
Art History Mary Ann
Calo (“Modernism at the
Fringes,” pg. 36) teaches
courses on modern
and contemporary art
history and American
art. She is the author
of several books and
numerous articles.
Her research interests
include the history of
art criticism, American
art and culture between
the world wars, and the
visual art of the Harlem
Renaissance.
Managing Editor
Rebecca Costello
Associate Editor
Aleta Mayne
Director of Publications
Gerald Gall
Coordinator of Photographic Services
Andrew Daddio
Production Assistant
Kathy Bridge
David McKay Wilson
(“Bikes Belong,” pg. 54)
has written for more
than 80 university and
college alumni magazines, The New York
Times, and the Harvard
Education Letter. The
founder and president
of the Bike Walk Alliance of Westchester &
Putnam, which works
with municipalities to
promote cycling and
walking, he logged
2,300 miles on his bike
in 2010.
Contributing writers and designers:
Director of Web Content
Timothy O’Keeffe
Art Director
Karen Luciani
Graphic Designer
Katherine Mutz
Director of Marketing and Public Relations
Barbara Brooks
Senior Advancement Writer
Mark Walden
Online Community Manager
Jennifer McGee
Assistant Director of Athletic Communications
Matt Faulkner
8
scene online
Contact:
[email protected]
315-228-7417
www.colgateconnect.org/scene
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Listen
In the Studio: www.colgate.edu/video
The Resolutions, the university’s original coed
a cappella group, used the audio studio at Case
Library and Geyer Center for Information Technology
to record a CD.
Watch
World Affairs: www.colgate.edu/about/
presidentjeffreyherbst/podcasts
President Jeffrey Herbst discusses a range of topics
with influential campus guests — such as philosopher Kwame Anthony Appiah — in a new podcast
series called Colgate Conversations: World Affairs.
Get connected
Community: www.colgateconnect.org
Parents are invited to join our online community
and utilize the wide range of tools available on our
renamed website.
Look
Boathouse Production:
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Check our flickr site for photographs of the theater
production 1500 Meters Above Jack’s Level, held in
an unusual location: the Glendening Boathouse.
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Latest news: http://blogs.colgate.edu
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Message from President Jeffrey Herbst
With approximately 16 months
left in the Passion for
the Climb campaign, we have already exceeded our goal of raising $87.5 million for financial aid. Yet, in
typical Colgate spirit, we have decided to step up our ambitions — by raising an additional $40 million
so that more students of limited means can receive one of the best educations in America.
I believe that raising more funds for financial aid is Colgate’s most
important strategic goal. Today, we are dependent on a large percentage
(much greater than many of our peer schools) of students paying full
tuition at a time when our society has lost considerable wealth. That is
a significant risk to the university. We simply must be able to diversify
our admissions pipeline in order to draw from a larger proportion of
American society.
At the moment, we lose on the proverbial “cutting room floor”
outstanding students who want to come to Colgate but whom we
cannot afford because of our limited financial aid resources. These are
very high quality, well-prepared students who would add to the vitality
and diversity of our campus. Vice President and Dean of Admission Gary
Ross ’77 has shared with me some examples of the students we currently
cannot admit. We have changed their names and removed identifying
information, but I think that you will find their stories compelling:
“Scott” (West Coast)
3.78 GPA/1490 SAT testing. (The SAT scores shown for each example are
the combined critical reading and math score.) In 1996, Scott was in a
car accident with his grandparents, parents, and sister. He was the only
survivor. Since age 4, he has been raised by his aunt and uncle. He wrote
his personal statement on being his family’s ‘anchor’ after their death.
Scott is also an Eagle Scout and student representative to the school
board. Teachers say Scott has “limitless potential.”
They also say she “exemplifies excellence” in the classroom. She serves as
captain of the ice hockey and soccer teams and made the all-state team
for soccer. When her coach suffered a debilitating stroke, she and her
teammates rallied the community and raised more than $15,000.
Our eventual goal is to make Colgate need blind, so that we can admit
the very best students irrespective of family means. It will take time
and considerable financial resources to meet that goal; however, along
the way, every single student we are able to provide with assistance is a
victory.
Since its inception, the Passion for the Climb campaign has been a
great success. Despite the daunting economic challenges of the last few
years — when many nonprofit organizations saw substantial declines
in the gifts they received — our campaign remains ahead of projections.
Everyone at the university is extremely appreciative of the extraordinary
commitment Colgate alumni have shown, especially in these difficult
times.
As I travel around the country, I am grateful for the enthusiasm with
which Colgate’s supporters have seized on our goal for financial aid. I look
forward to working with you to ensure that no student who wants to
come to Colgate is hindered by a lack of family resources — a great goal
for a great university.
President Herbst chats with students at a reception in the Hall of Presidents.
“Patricia” (Northwest)
3.83/1530. Patricia earned top praise from a
teacher as “one of the brightest and most
articulate students I have encountered in
32 years.” She is co-editor of her school’s
literary magazine and is described as a
leader in the classroom. Her essay speaks
to her life as a child being raised by parents
who come from very different places.
“Lisa” (Northeast)
3.84/1460. Lisa is legally blind and wrote a
compelling essay about this challenge. Her
mother grew up on an island in the Pacific,
so this perspective has helped shape her
childhood. She is the captain of the field
hockey and ski teams, vice president of
student government, and treasurer of the
National Honor Society. Her teachers speak
to her compassion toward others and her
modesty in light of her achievements.
“Jane” (Northeast)
4.05/1380. Jane ranks in the top 2 percent
of her class. Teachers describe her as the
most incredible ever taught at the school.
Andrew Daddio
scene team
Contributors
Cert no. SW-COC-002556
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scene: Winter 2011
News and views for the Colgate community
3
Letters
scene
ings. Find my contact info atop this
issue’s 1960 class notes.
Autumn 2010
News and views for the Colgate community
Steve Greenbaum ’60
Sherman Oaks, Calif.
Mott and the WSG
“Diary from Haiti” superb
Globetrotter: Jeffrey Herbst, Colgate’s 16th President
The ’Gate Shopper’s Gift Guide
The Accidental Filmmaker
The Scene welcomes letters. We reserve
the right to decide whether a letter is
acceptable for publication and to edit
for accuracy, clarity, and length. Letters
deemed potentially libelous or that malign
a person or group will not be published. Letters should not exceed 250 words. You
can reach us by mail, or e-mail sceneletters
@colgate.edu. Please include your full
name, class year if applicable, address,
phone number, and/or e-mail address. If we
receive many letters on a given topic, we
will print a representative sample of the
opinions expressed. On occasion, we may
run additional letters online.
I think the Scene has become a fantastic magazine. Wonderful articles.
I read it from cover to cover. “Diary
from Haiti” (summer 2010) was
superb.
I really appreciate the Colgate
connection. My dad, uncle, husband,
brother, and niece were all Colgate
graduates. Unfortunately, when I
went to college, women were not yet
accepted at Colgate. Keep up the good
work!
Shirley Searing Preston
Rochester, N.Y.
Speirs: From the Bottom of a Well
A friend of my classmate Bruce Barth
was attracted to a book titled Shouts
From the Bottom of a Deep Well while
browsing in a used bookstore. Seeing
that it was written by Russell Speirs
from Colgate, he gave it to Bruce.
Bruce, knowing that Russ was my faculty adviser and Shakespeare teacher,
sent the book to me.
Professor Speirs’s dedication is as
follows: “To the many students who
put up with me on good days and
bad days, in good years and bad years,
from 1923 through 1971.”
To you graduates who knew Russ
and loved him, to those thespians in
Masque and Triangle (many of whom
are named in this book) who were
fortunate enough to be involved with
him in creating drama for Colgate, I
will lend to you this delightful autobiography wrapped in his poetry and
decorated with his whimsical draw-
One reason I attended Colgate was
to try to join the Washington Study
Group. I got acquainted with Professor
Rodney Mott. He encouraged me, and
we became friends (a lot of us did).
Regretfully, WWII came along and we
all changed direction. Thank you for
writing about Mott (“Founding the
Washington Study Group,” Letters,
autumn 2010).
Harold Duncan ’44
San Antonio, Texas
Bob Howard’s timeless lessons
The passing of Bob Howard ’49 (In
Memoriam, autumn 2010) should be
a reminder to all alumni — and the
institution he loved so dearly — that
Colgate exists today because we stand
upon the shoulders of Colgate men
like him.
that for Colgate to be more than a
name and a place, it must protect and
impart the importance of Colgate’s
past — its teachers, its staff, and its
people — while building a better
future.
Bob served Colgate in the admission and alumni offices. He understood and tended to the lifeblood of
the university: its students and its
alumni. As the adviser to the Colgate
Thirteen, he was an anchor for the
group at a critical time in its history,
and for that, the Thirteen and Colgate
will benefit for years to come.
While Colgate has changed, the
core of what Bob taught us remains
timeless. Bob’s language of love was
living. Through his own example,
he taught so many that we must
embrace life with a sense of possibility, do the work that needs to be done,
and connect with all those who touch
our lives.
There are few at Colgate today who
know of Bob Howard. Yet the Colgate
community needs to pause a moment
and remember this man from the
Class of 1949 because our lives are
better because of his.
Scott Williams ’80
Bethesda, Md.
Remembering Ole Kollevoll
Bob taught us that people matter.
No effort, however simple or small,
went unrecognized by this graceful,
thoughtful man. He had an innocence
of heart open to all who crossed his
path, and those who did meet Bob
were instantly infused with the true
“spirit that is Colgate.” He understood
Our beloved former hockey coach Ole
Kollevoll ’45 (In Memoriam, pg. 78 this
issue) died in Sarasota, Fla., on Sept.
11, giving me yet another reason to
never forget that date. Playing for Ole
and then coaching Colgate’s freshman
baseball and hockey teams [under
Ole’s tutelage] while I was in grad
school played a big part in my going
into coaching for a part of my life. I’m
sure it played a similar role for others
as well.
Ole had a very positive effect on
people. You looked up to him, and you
did not want to disappoint him. He
was a man’s man, and a great role
model for a bunch of impressionable
young hockey players. I feel sad that
he is gone, but I feel lucky to have
known him and very thankful to have
played for him. Ole Kollevoll will be
missed by all of us, but forgotten by
none of us.
about winning, and about ourselves.
He did it well!
At the front end of the modern era
of hockey at Colgate, he was to all his
players a great and memorable coach
— and he made it a privilege to play
for Colgate — and for Ole Kollevoll!
Dick Johnson ’64
Duxbury, Mass.
Bob Meehan ’65
Boxford, Mass.
Remembering Coach Ole (the Camel)
Kollevoll is a lot easier than trying to
forget him. He has been unforgettable
to many of us since leaving Colgate.
The impact he had on ’gate student
athletes on and off the field across the
sports he coached, especially hockey,
was and is his living legacy, and will
be with those of us whom he coached
until we die. He never let us forget
why we were at Colgate; first and foremost, to get an outstanding education,
and, oh, yeah — play hockey, and win!
When we crossed the hockey lockerroom threshold and entered Starr Rink
for a practice or to play a game, everything else in our lives was to be left
outside that room. We were there to
learn, play hard, and win. In so many
ways, as accomplished as we thought
we might be as players, he not only
coached us on how to play the game,
but he also taught us about the game,
In five short years after starting
Colgate’s modern hockey program,
Ole’s Colgate teams went to the ECAC
championships, only to be stopped
by the eastern champions Harvard
in 1963 and Providence College in
1964 — an amazing accomplishment
considering that, unlike most successful programs, his Colgate teams had
very few Canadian players, consisting mainly of northern New York,
Minnesota, and Massachusetts high
school players who excelled under his
tutelage.
What kind of coach was Ole? Ole
was not a screamer, and he never
belittled a player. There were plenty
of “doggone its” and “goldang its,”
but he would never swear; neither
would he tolerate swearing. When
we were underperforming, a typical
between-period talk went like this:
“You guys are disappointing me, your
school, your parents, and coaches who
worked so hard to get you here, and
most of all yourselves. Now let’s turn
this thing around!”
We learned on and off the ice that
success demanded perseverance,
consistency, commitment, accountability, sacrifice, teamwork, giving
your all until the last whistle, and, yes,
Norwegian stubbornness! His developing these qualities in players led to
successful doctors, dentists, lawyers,
teachers, professors, administrators,
leaders in transportation, business,
and finance, distinguished military careers, professional athletes, and some
who gave their lives in the service of
their country.
His former players can only reverently say, “Thank you, coach. We are
very, very proud of you. You inspired
us until the end of your game, and still
do!”
Kurt Brown ’64
Sarasota, Fla.
Spread the word on fitness
One of Colgate’s great legacies to
the world has been to instill in the
Colgate family a fanatical commit-
ment to physical fitness. We need an
in-ground whirlpool, steam bath, and
massage facilities. Let us put on a conference on physical fitness and invite
the national news media and people
from all over the world to this conference at Colgate, to give the world our
love of physical fitness!
Edward T. O’Donnell Jr. ’70
Wilmington, Del.
Relive the exhilaration and
challenge of liberal arts
learning. Nine of Colgate’s
engaging professors will adapt
their most popular material
for alumni, family, and friends
who yearn for a serious
academic experience. Outside
of the classroom, enjoy fitness
June 22–26
activities, golf at Seven Oaks,
and the Village of Hamilton, from the Farmer’s Market, shops, and
restaurants to a historical walking tour.
Summer on the Hill — Think Colgate Study Group, closer to home and
all grown up.
Course options
Making Art Modern: Cezanne, Picasso, and Kandinsky — Mary Ann Calo,
art and art history
Shakespeare: Antony and Cleopatra — Margaret Maurer, English
Telling Right from Wrong: The Search for Objective Morality — David
McCabe, philosophy and Core Modernity
Alien Invaders: Exotic Species and Biodiversity — Timothy S. McCay,
environmental studies and biology
Human Memory: The good, the bad, and the ugly — Douglas N. Johnson,
psychology
Evolution and You: Frank Frey, biology and environmental studies
The Great Recession — Nicole Simpson, economics
The Swinging Gate: U.S. Immigration Policy in the 21st Century — Ellen
Percy Kraly, geography
The American Way of Graft — Michael Johnston, political science
For details on schedule, accommodations, meals, and registration,
call 315-228-7433 or visit www.colgateconnect.org/summerhill.
Registration deadline: May 16, 2011
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scene: Winter 2011
News and views for the Colgate community
5
work & play
Campus scrapbook
D
E
A
B
A
B
Groove is in the heart. Students rehearse for their December Dancefest performance.
Arielle Sperling ’14 guides Audrey Lapp in the Learn to Skate program offered by Colgate Figure Skating.
The Golden Dragon Acrobats jumped through hoops to wow the audience in an event sponsored by the Chinese Interest Association.
D
Hunkering down in Case Library during finals week.
E
Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow — and let’s go tobogganing.
F
Students and area children build gingerbread houses to
facilitate the building of real houses as part of a benefit for Habitat for Humanity.
Photos A, B, C, and F by Janna Minehart ’13; photos D and E by
Andrew Daddio
C
C
6
scene: Winter 2011
F
News and views for the Colgate community
7
evenly distributed, but structure and
opportunities are not,” Clinton said.
From longtime poverty and
devastation in Haiti to drug wars in
Mexico to the financial crisis in the
United States, Clinton explained how
each country’s problems affect us all
because of our interdependence. “We
can’t get away from each other and
we can’t escape the consequences
of our actions on others, around the
corner or around the world.”
Village Green
8
scene: Winter 2011
Discussing climate change and
CGI’s environmental work, Clinton
said improved sustainability efforts
are one solution for improving the
economic situation. “It’s the number
one thing we can do to modernize the
economy, to bring back manufacturing, to increase the employment base,
to rebuild the middle class in America,
and I have some evidence to support
that,” he said, greeted by applause.
Following Clinton’s talk, Colgate
ArtsPower presented the musical The Rainbow Fish, based on Marcus
Pfister’s children’s book, at the Palace Theater. The sold-out performance
was part of Act Now — Educate Forever, a program that invites schools and
the public to a live theater production that gives teachers and parents teaching material to meet the New York State Learning Standards. The curriculum
connections touched on such themes as family relationships, values, history,
and communication skills.
Stretching the parameters of acoustic swing, Caravan of Thieves performed their unique brand of gypsy-flavored songs at the Barge Canal
Coffee Co. on Dec. 4. Much dancing, stomping, singing, and laughter was
reported at the cozy coffee shop. The show ended with an acoustic version
of the new Caravan song “Raise the Dead,” with the audience on their feet,
clapping to the beat.
Leslie Yacavone, owner of The Peppermill kitchenware store, led cooking
classes for A Holiday Meal to Remember, held at Bridle Creek Bed & Breakfast in December. The menu, created by Yacavone, included mini Stilton
cheesecakes, haricot verts with warm bacon vinaigrette, pork medallions
with pomegranate cherry/merlot sauce, and chocolate mint truffle torte.
The Colgate Bookstore’s Jane Austen Book Club hosted an author event
and discussion followed by a full English-style tea at the Colgate Inn. David
M. Shapard, editor of The Annotated Pride and Prejudice and The Annotated
Persuasion spoke and answered questions about the process of annotating
Austen’s works. He then led a group discussion about Persuasion and signed
copies of his own books. Afterward, the group assembled for afternoon tea
in a private room at the Colgate Inn.
Families gathered at Heritage Farm for Breakfast with Santa Claus, a
holiday pancake feast followed by a photo opportunity with Old Saint Nick in
the poinsettia-filled greenhouse.
President Jeffrey Herbst presented
him with questions submitted by students. Kendall Dolbec ’11 asked what
career advice Clinton had for Colgate’s
graduating class, given the current
global economy. “Start by asking
yourself, ‘What could I do that would
make me happiest and make me feel
most fulfilled and make me feel most
useful?’” Clinton said. “Then I would
say, ‘Can I do that now?’ If the answer
is no because of the economic circumstances, then I would find something
I could do that was useful and that I’d
learn something from for a couple of
years.” Adding that students shouldn’t
make a long-term decision based on
the country’s economic standing, he
said, “You’ve got to believe your country’s coming back — I do. You never
bet against America.”
The event in Sanford Field House
was part of The Kerschner Family
Series Global Leaders at Colgate, sponsored by the Parents’ and Grandparents’ Fund.
Go figure
Let’s get physical
With the new Trudy Fitness Center about
to open, the Scene got the skinny on the
Colgate community’s physical fitness last
semester.*
312 students worked out every week
day (Mon.–Thurs.)
202 students worked out every weekend
day (Fri.–Sun.)
47 faculty/staff worked out each week
day; 24 each weekend day
32 community members worked out each
week day; 19 each weekend day
14,646.5
lbs of total weights in the
Wm. Brian Little Fitness Center
4 murals of athletes lifting weights
16 elliptical machines
14 treadmills
224–320
oz of sanitizer sprayed on
the equipment each week
* numbers were averaged and collected at
press time
Kevin Williams ’10
Service in memory of
Kevin Williams ’10
An emotional service was held Dec.
6 in Memorial Chapel in memory of
Kevin Williams ’10, who died October
4 after a yearlong battle with an inoperable brain tumor. The service, filled
with moving songs and stories and
pictures of the 22-year-old, was open
to everyone who had been touched by
his short life. Williams’s family was
present, as well as his fiancée, Kathlin
Ramsdell ’10, and her family.
Williams had been battling the
tumor with radiation therapy and
chemotherapy, staying in Stanford,
Calif., with his family.
While at Colgate, Williams majored
in geology and geography. He was
captain of the water polo team, raced
on the ski team, and participated
as a summer fellow at the Upstate
Institute, working on land-use issues
in Cazenovia. He also enjoyed kneeboard surfing and volleyball.
Geology professor Amy Leventer
described Williams as seeming “to
have been born on the sunny side
of life,” remarking on his “curiosity,
knack for asking the right question,
and for encouraging great discussions.”
Ellen Kraly, William R. Kenan Jr.
Professor of geography and director of
the Upstate Institute, noted his “quiet
presence, wicked humor, poise, and
professionalism.”
Six fellow members of the water
polo team went up on the Chapel
stage to show support for their teammate. Chip Molten ’12 and Mike Schon
’12 both spoke about how Williams
was one of the first people to reach
out to them before even coming to
Colgate. Molten said that Williams
was the person who most helped him
during a difficult first year at Colgate,
and Schon echoed a phrase Williams
often repeated: “Enjoy life and live it
to the fullest.”
The Williams family launched a
blog at kickingkevinscancer.blogspot.
com to keep his friends updated
throughout the treatment process,
and his friends from home created
a Facebook group as an outlet for
words of encouragement. Last April,
members of the Class of 2010 hosted
a Trivia Night at Donovan’s Pub and
raised money toward his medical
bills.
During the service, Williams’s
father, Rich Williams, shared how one
of his son’s last wishes was to come
back to Colgate. Since that was not
possible, the family has established a
memorial fund within the geography
and geology departments to keep Williams “here at Colgate forever.”
— Elizabeth Stein ’12
‘Rap troubadour’ drops his take
on evolution
Waving peace signs in the air and
repeating choruses of “I’m ‘A’ African,”
students and professors hardly looked
like they were gathered in Love Auditorium to learn anything. Yet they
were treated to a unique and original
lesson in evolutionary biology — in
rap format. Baba Brinkman, a “rap
troubadour” from Vancouver, Canada,
brought his award-winning performance to campus on Dec. 1.
Without a doubt, he proved that
it is possible to drop a beat while
explaining Darwinism. Brinkman
originally composed the rap at the
request of a committee honoring Dar-
win’s bicentennial in 2009, after the
chairperson heard his rap of Chaucer’s
Canterbury Tales. He researched evolution and then submitted his lyrics to
a handful of scientists to ensure their
factual correctness — so, as he noted,
it’s the first ever peer-reviewed rap.
Reworking classics by the Notorious
B.I.G. and Dead Prez, among others,
Brinkman deftly presented heavy and
complicated information in a fun and
engaging format. His rhymes explained,
for example, how all human life came
from Africa — at one point in history,
the species was concentrated there.
Hence, as he noted, everyone in the
audience could proudly shout, “I’m ‘A’
African.”
Geology professor Constance Soja
helped bring Brinkman to campus,
having seen his performance while
leading the Australia Study Group in
spring 2010. “It’s unconventional, and
that’s the goal,” she said. “[It’s] science,
even though he’s not a scientist … it’s
rap, so it’s music, it’s performance, it’s
social commentary. I just thought, this
is so unique and innovative.”
Indeed, Brinkman managed to
apply the abstract scientific concept
of evolution to modern social issues,
such as teenage pregnancy in violent
inner-city neighborhoods. Because life
expectancy is lower there, in theory,
the biological need to pass on genes
manifests itself earlier — leading to
higher levels of pregnant minors.
Soja liked that Brinkman made the
connection between evolution and
our world today, and hoped that
students left the performance with a
new perspective on Darwin’s theories.
“Darwin and evolution speak
across the ages; evolution relates to
Rapper Baba Brinkman
Janna Minehart ’13
Andrew Daddio
As former President Bill Clinton
began speaking to a crowd of 5,000
at Colgate on Oct. 29, he explained
that he would be talking about “all
these apparently disparate things that
are going on in the world” through a
framework outlined by three clusters
of problems: inequality, instability,
and unsustainability.
“One of the things I picked up [on
while] traveling around America, is
how hard it is for people — especially
if they’re having a hard time paying
their bills and staying in their homes
and holding onto their jobs and educating their children — to make sense
of all the things that are happening,”
he said. Relating the problems in
America to what’s happening on the
global stage, Clinton spoke of what
he’s gleaned through his international
travels in working with his nongovernmental organization. The Clinton
Global Initiative (CGI), whose members have made 1,700 commitments
valued at $57 billion, has already
affected more than 220 million people
in 170 countries. “One thing I’ve learned is that intelligence and effort are
Phil Lanoue
work & play
President Bill Clinton provides
perspective on U.S. and global
challenges
News and views for the Colgate community
9
On Cosmopolitanism
Janna Minehart ’13
Kwame Anthony Appiah
visited campus to speak
about his book Cosmopolitanism, the summer
reading assignment for
first-years.
In late October, just before the
2010 voting, FOX News contributor,
Washington Examiner columnist,
and author Michael Barone shared
historical perspective on elections and
the current U.S. political climate. The
event was sponsored by the Center
for Freedom and Western Civilization;
Institute for Philosophy, Politics, and
Economics; College Republicans; and
College Democrats.
Barone, a resident fellow at the
American Enterprise Institute, cast
America’s recent political past in
martial terms. Since 1960, he said,
the country has alternated between
periods of “trench warfare” and “open
field” politics, the former characterized
by stable electorates and predictable
outcomes, the latter by volatile issues
and unpredictable voter behavior. After shifts in the early ’80s and ’90s,
and again in 2005, he said the country
has entered a period of open field conflict over the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the environment, the economy,
and big government. Questions about
government’s function and proportion
stretch back to the beginning of the
republic, but in the 20th century, “progressives and New Dealers wanted to
encourage a culture of dependence,”
he said.
“Progressive rhetoric,” Barone
continued, no longer holds its own
against the bedrock principles of the
nation’s founders. He predicted that
proof would come in a wave of Repub-
10
scene: Winter 2011
Speaking to a packed house at Memorial Chapel, Kwame Anthony Appiah
charged his audience with but one
task: see one foreign, subtitled film
per month. After all, he pointed out,
others around the world must do this
any time they wish to see popular
American movies. Such was the
theme of the philosopher’s October 4
lecture, based on his book Cosmopolitanism: Ethics in a World of Strangers,
the summer reading assignment for
the incoming Class of 2014.
Appiah first discussed the etymology of the term cosmopolitan,
explaining that it comes from the
word cosmos, or world, and politan,
the word used in ancient Greece to
refer to a citizen of a city. The concept,
he said, is that we are all citizens of
the world.
Appiah spoke of the importance of
respecting the right of each individual
to live his or her life by his or her chosen ideals.
“Reading his book and hearing him
speak were very different experiences,” said Kara Brounstein ’14. “I
thought that he did a good job in elo-
Talking points
“One of the saddest things … is to see
the forest being cut down… When you
see the trucks carrying away the big
trunks of trees as though they’re carrying away the souls of people.”
— V.S. Naipaul at his talk during Colgate’s fall 2010 Living Writers series
“By appointing a special negotiator
to the Middle East on day two of his
administration, [President] Obama
manifested an understanding of the
problems of this region and laid the
groundwork to the significance of the
process.”
— Daniel Kurtzer, former U.S. ambassador to Israel and Egypt, on the U.S.
role in the Middle East peace process
“War isn’t over, but it’s changing.”
— Scott Straus, an expert on genocide,
human rights, and African politics,
discussing the varied landscape of
violence in Africa during the second
annual Schaehrer Memorial Lecture
“Hazte valer.”
— Patti Solis Doyle, a Latin American
political operative who worked on
the campaigns of President Barack
Obama and Hillary Rodham Clinton,
repeated this Spanish phrase that
roughly translates to “make yourself
valuable” when she came to campus
and encouraged students to become
agents of change
The medicalization of desire
When documentarian Liz Canner
came to campus in the fall to screen
her new film Orgasm Inc., it was a
flashback for Professor Meika Loe,
whose Women, Health, Medicine
class from six years ago is shown in
the movie. Loe’s current students in
Gender, Sexuality, and Society got the
chance to watch the former students
discuss the pharmaceutical industry’s
ongoing search for the female Viagra
and learn about the medicalization of
women’s sexuality.
Using a humorous slant, Canner gives viewers a look inside the
medical industry and the marketing campaigns that she asserts are
reshaping our everyday lives around
health, illness, and desire. Through the
Colgate students appear in a scene of this
new documentary.
course of filming the documentary,
she began to suspect that a cadre of
medical companies might be trying to
take advantage of women — potentially endangering their health — in
pursuit of billion-dollar profits.
Loe and Canner met through their
involvement in the activism around
the FDA hearings for female Viagra.
Loe had just released her book The
Rise of Viagra, and she invited Canner to campus to observe her class.
In Orgasm Inc., Colgate students are
shown talking about the pharmaceutical industry’s research into women’s
sexual problems and the larger issues
that might actually contribute to
those problems, such as the lack of sex
education in America.
The film served as an eye opener
for students — and community members — who attended the screening
of Orgasm Inc. in Love Auditorium.
“The students experienced a dramatic
paradigm shift in watching the film
and talking with the filmmaker in
thinking about how pharmaceutical
marketing not only shapes our needs
and desires, but also creates a sense
of normal — normal womanhood,
normal sexuality,” Loe explained.
“This generation has grown up with
pharmaceutical advertising and really
takes it for granted.”
“The documentary is a real wakeup call about the role pharmaceutical
companies, the medical world, and
media play in issues that are supposed to be of a personal nature,” said
Brittani DiMare ’12.
“It’s scary that the sexual identity
and body image of so many women
are defined by media outlets or the
agenda of large corporations,” said
Christina Liu ’13.
After the screening, Canner spent
an hour answering questions from the
large audience. She was as impressed
with Colgate students as they were
with her. Following her visit, she sent
a letter to the university saying that,
of all the campuses she’s visited on
her tour, Colgate has “the most vibrant
and active women’s studies department and women’s center with the
most student engagement.”
For Loe, that was a huge compliment to the department’s mission. Additionally, the movie’s release gave Loe
the chance to reconnect with former
students, whom she contacted to tell
them that they are on the big screen.
“It was fascinating to see where they
all are in their lives,” she said.
Get to know: Thomas Cruz-Soto
Andrew Daddio
FOX News contributor offers
views on 2010 election
quently summing up the main tenets
of his book while also expanding on
his ideas and exploring new topics.”
Appiah, a Princeton philosophy
professor, spoke of the need for increased respect and responsibility for
others in light of increased globalization, thanks in large part to the
Internet.
This idea especially resonated
with Brounstein. “The cosmopolitan
mindset is one that is almost inherent to us,” she said, stressing “the
importance of being an individual
and having our own ideas, but also
being conscious of the influences that
shape us, as well as respectful of other
individuals in different cultures.”
Peter McEnaney ’14 thought the
lecture was especially relevant for
first-years, who are new to Colgate’s
broad range of opportunities to enjoy
and people to meet. “As human beings
— and more specifically, as Colgate
students — it is our duty to challenge
ourselves through interaction with
people different from us,” he said. “We
can learn from them; they can learn
from us.”
— Kate Hicks ’11
Liz Canner
lican victories at all levels of government — federal, state, and local.
Undergraduates on both ends of
the political spectrum had a chance
to engage with Barone. Max Weiss ’11
and Andrew Philipson ’14 represented
the College Democrats, while Alexandra Nieto ’12 and Kate Hicks ’11 served
as the voice of the College Republicans.
Weiss, Philipson, and Barone
sparred briefly over “Obamacare” and
the Troubled Asset Relief Program;
debated whether Republican enthusiasm around the 2008 presidential
elections was underreported or simply
nonexistent; and exchanged words
over the question of biased reporting
at FOX News.
The College Republicans had
Barone looking forward: would a new
Republican majority be able to roll
back the welfare state? In Barone’s
estimation, the public will back reductions in government if that government is perceived to be cumbersome,
but Congress will have to find ways
around a presidential veto if it wants
to take action, he said. When will the
nation retreat from the open field and
return to a period of trench warfare? “I
will tell you the answer to that question about two or three years after it
happens,” he quipped.
Janna Minehart ’13
work & play
everyone,” she said. “It’s got a bad
rap — pun intended — but I think
he explains that it doesn’t have to be
frightening, that it’s something we
can embrace in any society.”
— Kate Hicks ’11
Assistant Dean for Multicultural Affairs,
Director of International Services,
Director of the ALANA Cultural Center
Mantra: It doesn’t matter where you are from, it’s what you do while you are here.
Recent initiatives: For many international students, once they come to campus, their life
is here, so we’ve developed an initiative providing support, like meals, mall trips, and other
activities during breaks — about 45 students came to a Thanksgiving dinner that was put on
by Gerry Nash, the chef from Theta Chi.
On working with students: They keep you young and engaged in everything they do. The
cultural center alone had 174 events last year, 90 percent of them put on by students. There
can be 500 people there, but they know if I’m not there. It’s important to me to be true to
them. I also get involved in intramural sports — basketball and baseball. I came to Colgate
weighing about 250 pounds and, four years later, I’m 207 pounds!
Work philosophy: I had the opportunity to go to Japan last summer, and that was something
completely out of my comfort zone. I want to be sure I am not catering to one particular
group, but am reaching out and being diverse in what I’m doing and how I lead my life.
Roots of his work: I wouldn’t be here if not for the access a college environment gave me.
I’m a poor kid from Camden, N.J., a family of 11, where after high school, you went to work.
College was never an aspiration for me until CHAMP [Creating Higher Aspirations and Motivations Project] — which gives 6th- to 12th-grade students math, science, and literature
readiness and college tours — came around. I ended up at Muhlenberg College. I didn’t feel
I fit into the eliteness of college from a socioeconomic perspective. What helped me was
starting a group, Kid’s Council, that was similar to CHAMP. Those students helped me while I
was helping them; they gave me a niche to fit into. That helped develop my character, finish
college — and also gave me a job.
Path to Colgate: I started working in sales for First Union National Bank before becoming
an academic counselor for CHAMP. I secured my master’s in higher ed administration at
Rowan University, and then was executive director of Kean University’s Gear Up program.
On being three-time champion of the campus tailgate barbecue competition: This year,
I won with some scalloped clams, but my signature dish is my ribs — it’s a secret marinade
that I can’t share and traditional Goya seasonings. Cooking has kept my family together
through the hardest of times, so being able to do that for other people is fun.
Recently engaged: My fiancée, Rria Castillo, teaches sixth grade at Hamilton Central. She’s
Dominican and I’m Puerto Rican, so we’ll get married in the Dominican Republic and honeymoon in Puerto Rico.
Tunes of choice: I’m going to date myself: I grew up when MTV first started showing videos.
In my car’s CD changer, I have Bon Jovi’s Greatest Hits, Wu Tang Clan, and John Legend.
News and views for the Colgate community
11
In his research, philosopher Reid Blackman,
who specializes in
meta-ethics and moral
psychology, is keenly
interested in providing an account of what
grounds our reasons
for emotions. A visiting
assistant professor of
philosophy at Colgate
since 2009, he teaches
Ethics, Philosophy of
Mind, Environmental
Ethics, Social and
Political Philosophy,
and Introduction to
Philosophy. Having
completed his BA at
Cornell, he earned an
MA at Northwestern
and a PhD at University
of Texas at Austin.
I transferred out of Colgate after
my sophomore year. I know, I know,
I’m sorry. But, in my defense, I’ve
returned; this time, as a professor.
Colgate pushed me forward. And in
a circle. This is at least partly due
to Colgate philosophy professor–
induced metaphorical vertigo and
literal sleep deprivation, for which I
am grateful.
In the interim — between my first
semester at Colgate and my return —
came my senior year of college. The
first question I asked myself: “Should
I go to graduate school in philosophy
or law school?” The second question
immediately followed: “If I go to law
school, this will be my last year doing
philosophy; is that OK?” And a prompt
response, delivered in a tone of incredulity: “Have you lost your mind, Reid?!
— of course that’s not OK! You’re
going to grad school in philosophy,
and I don’t want to hear another word
about law school! Idiot.” So, one of
the biggest moments of my life was,
in at least one important sense, not a
choice at all. To not pursue philosophy
12
scene: Winter 2011
ing opinions on issues about which
there is no truth is going to have to do
some philosophy. In fact, in thinking
about what I’ve written in the previous paragraphs, you’ve been doing
philosophy. Thinking about philosophical issues, and getting others to think
about them, is what I love.
In my first semester at Colgate,
philosophy professors taught me
there are at least two worlds to
explore. The first is a philosophical
landscape. Sometimes someone can
ask us a question that shows us that
there is a part of the world of which
we were previously ignorant. Philosophy begins with those questions.
Doing philosophy, though, is a rigorous
exploration of those new landscapes.
Each possible answer is a feature of
that philosophical landscape, and as it
turns out, much of it is constituted by
very crumbly rock. The second world
is oneself. Because in doing philosophy, one holds before oneself one’s
deepest-held convictions about the
world and oneself, the sort of beliefs
by which we lead our lives, the sort of
beliefs that constitute our respective identities. And then one attacks.
The beliefs and views one is given as
one grows up are subject to the light
of rational scrutiny, and, most often,
found wanting. One wants to settle
for a view that makes one feel good,
or at least just settle for some view
or other so one can feel as though one
is standing on steady ground. But the
philosophical spirit forbids comfort
and complacency.
I once wished I were an astronaut,
or an inventor, or perhaps an explorer
in, say, the 1400s. But doing philosophy, it turns out, is an activity of (self)
exploration, discovery, and invention.
I’ve been engaged in such activities
for more than a decade, and the fact
that it is only the beginning — that
after another decade or two, I’ll find
more faults with my views and get a
deeper, more accurate understanding of myself and the world — well, it
keeps me up at night.
8
Read more essays from our
Passion for the Climb series, or see
how you can submit your own essay, at
www.colgate.edu/scene/pfcessays
Arts Risin
The '60s:
In the 1960s — not once, but twice —
students organized extraordinarily
ambitious festivals that reflected a
renaissance in the arts on campus and
the cultural ethos of the decade.
With the 1964 Creative Arts Festival,
students were doing their part in the drive to
build the Dana Arts Center. Chairman Harold
Snedcof ’65 told the Colgate Maroon they
were “seeking to disprove the cries
Homage to the Square © 2010 The Josef and Anni Albers Foundation / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York
By Reid Blackman
would have been an act of betrayal
against myself.
Now, you might wonder what there
is to get so worked up about. Most
people think philosophy is an area of
inquiry with no answers. But this is
nonsense. If anything, the problem
is that there are too many answers.
Others complain that people doing
philosophy are just expressing their
opinions, so everyone is equally right.
This is equally ridiculous; anyone who
is even minimally reflective has recognized at one point or another that he
or she was wrong about some important issue. It could be on something
as abstract as the nature of a good
life, whether God exists, or the relations between the mind or soul and
the body, or as concrete as whether
abortion, capital punishment, and
euthanasia are morally permissible,
or whether individuals or countries
have obligations to stop worldwide
poverty.
There are those rare individuals
who think they have never been wrong
or mistaken in their reasonings about
any of these issues, that they are
perfect when it comes to contemplating these matters. Anyone who
recognizes the possibility of error in
this arena, though, and has attempted
to think through any of these issues
finds error not just possible, but
highly probable.
Some will say, “Yes, well, when you
change your mind about an issue, that
doesn’t mean you are more right than
you were before; it’s a change, but not
an improvement. And the same holds
for disagreeing with other people.
It’s just a matter of opinion; no one
is more right than anyone else.” But
those who say these kinds of things
are unaware that 1) they are offering
a position on a philosophical issue;
that is, the issue of whether there are
truths to be discovered about these
issues, 2) their answer is that there
are no truths about these matters,
and 3) they think their position on
this philosophical issue is true! And
they think someone who disagrees
with them on this is equally right! So,
their view is self-undermining, and it
also requires one to believe one thing,
while at the same time believing that
the contradictory view is also right!
In short, they are deeply confused,
and should realize that anyone who
attempts to provide a reason for
thinking that philosophical discussions are merely a matter of express-
Backdrop: Logo and poster for the 1968 Fortnight
On Insomnia …
the Good Kind
Andrew Daddio
work & play
Passion for the Climb
of our critics that we are a statusseeking, do-nothing, apathetic
generation.” Their “anti-lecture” format
the likes of Josef Albers, William DeKooning,
Jacques Lipchitz, and Jackson Pollock.
In 1968, the Fortnight of the
Active Arts shifted the focus to active
collaboration between artists and students.
Co-chair (with George Paul Brown ’68)
Barnet Kellman ’68 said, “People should
see where art fits in, and realize that
art is a structuring of material that
fits into our daily lives, not just paint
and canvas.”
placed students in direct contact with
artists for spontaneous discussions about
“what is currently preoccupying the mind
of the creative artist” and featured an
exhibition in Case Library including work by
Both festivals featured current and
rising luminaries on the cutting edge of
art, architecture, music, literature,
theater, dance, and criticism, in extensive
programs of discussions, films, workshops,
performances, and exhibitions. Below is a
sampling of who came.
1964 Creative Arts Festival
1968 Fortnight of the Active Arts
Norman Mailer
Susan Sontag
Milton Babbitt
Philip Roth
Gunther Schuller
W.D. Snodgrass
R. Buckminster Fuller
Merce Cunningham
John Cage
Joseph Chaiken (Open Theater)
Vienna Academy Chorus
The Doors
13
Page 13 is the showplace
for Colgate tradition, history,
and school spirit.
scene: Winter 2011
Distinguished faculty
appointments
The following faculty members were
recently appointed to distinguished
chairs.
Fernando Canales was named
Mark S. Randall Head Coach of men’s
and women’s swimming, director of
aquatics, and instructor in physical
education. Canales began his appointment at Colgate in August, having
come from the University of Michigan.
There, he was a member of the coaching staff that sent seven athletes to
the Beijing Olympics, including medalists Peter Vanderkaay and Michael
Phelps. He also represented Team USA
at the FINA World Congress during
the World Aquatic Championships
and at the Pan American Games.
John Carter has been named
professor for the study of the great
religions of the world and professor
of philosophy and religion. Carter
has been on the Colgate faculty since
1972. His teaching specialties include
Buddhist, Hindu, and other Asian
religious traditions, comparative study
of religion, comparative religious philosophy, history of religion, theological
issues of a religiously plural world,
Sanskrit, Pali, and Sinhala. He is also
the director of both the Fund for the
Study of the Great Religions of the
World and Chapel House.
Syllabus
ENGL366: Literature and Medicine
MWF 9:20 a.m., Lawrence 304
George Hudson, Professor of English
Course description: Disease and the human condition, the healer and the healed,
the cure and the failure of the cure, and
the acceptance of death are at the heart
of this medical humanities course. Fiction
and poetry by writers who have been physicians — Anton Chekhov, Oliver Wendell
Holmes, Sir William Osler, John Stone,
Lewis Thomas, William Carlos Williams,
and others — are discussed in parallel with
writing by non-physicians who recorded
their encounters with sickness and with
doctors. This course is particularly relevant to students considering a career in
medicine.
Reading list: On Doctoring: Stories,
Poems, and Essays, ed. Richard Reynolds,
MD, and John Stone, MD; Camus, The
Plague; Defoe, A Journal of the Plague
Year; Kafka, The Metamorphosis; plus
a wide range of materials, from Samuel
Beckett’s play Rockaby to Perri Klass’s
essay “Invasions,” to Emily Dickinson’s
poem “There’s Been a Death”
Professor of the humanities and Native American studies and religion.
He has been on the religion department faculty since 1982. His teaching
specialties include American religious
history and American Indian religion,
history, and culture. The author or
editor of numerous books, Vecsey
has served as department chair and
director of both the Native American
Studies Program and the Division of
the Humanities.
World War II era to create documentary films that highlight the lifelong
impact of war.
• Max Counter ’10 is creating
a learning environment in which
Colombian university students can
advance their English language skills
through engaged conversation and
critical-thinking exercises.
• While participating in the
intensive cultural experience of a Korean home stay, Matt Geduldig ’10 is
helping Korean students learn about
the language and the culture of the
United States.
• Julia Quintanilla ’10 is a languagelearning assistant within Mexico’s
public education system, engaging
students in classroom activities to
build English skills.
• Alison Wohlers ’10 is studying the
effects of globalization on Moroccan
identity through the manifestations
of colonialism and the creation and
legacy of dualistic cities. She is traveling throughout Morocco to conduct
historical research and interview
residents.
• Tara Woods ’10 is helping teach
English and American studies to German school students. Cross-cultural
understanding will be at the center
of her Fulbright year as she presents
American history and culture to the
students.
“We are very proud of each of our
Fulbright scholars,” said Ann Landstrom, assistant dean and director
of the Office of National Fellowships
and Scholarships. “Their hard work
has made them ambassadors for our
country and for the Colgate experience.”
Colgate among top Fulbright
producers
Every year, 600 colleges and universities submit applications for Fulbright
fellowships. When the Chronicle of
Higher Education published the program’s list of top producers this fall,
Colgate tied for eighth place among
bachelor’s institutions. In 2010-2011,
seven Colgate alumni joined almost
1,700 scholars, artists, and young professionals in the State Department’s
prestigious foreign exchange initiative, which dates back to 1946.
• As an English teaching assistant
in Indonesia, Victor Chiapaikeo ’10 is
engaging secondary-level students
through lesson plans that incorporate
language acquisition and cultural
exchange.
• With “Voices from the War of
Resistance,” Jessica Chow ’09 has been
interviewing Chinese survivors of the
Clockwise from top left: physics textbook
collaborators Enrique Galvez, Charlie
Holbrow, Beth Parks, and Joe Amato
Key assignments: Find both a writer and
literature on a condition not already discussed in class: write a paper on each.
Physics text reaffirms Colgate’s
innovative approach
Special feature: Guest lectures by practicing physicians, including Thad Waites,
director of the American College of
Cardiology
The professor says: “Medical humanities
courses encourage students to regard the
patient as an organism, not a mechanism.
They invite consideration of the doctor’s
responsibilities, address psychological
and spiritual burdens, and stress human
rather than material rewards. I wanted to
make a course specifically for students in
the science community, and I based it on
one taught with great success by the poet
and cardiologist Dr. John Stone at Emory
University.”
Michael Schon ’12
Jennifer Cooney Vulpas
life of the mind
14
An illustration representing the Gretchen
Hoadley Burke ’81 Endowed Chair in Regional
Studies, which focuses
research on upstate
New York.
Enrique Galvez was named
Charles A. Dana Professor of physics
and astronomy. A faculty member
in that department since 1988, he
specializes in teaching experimental
physics, electronics, and optics, and his
research interests include experimental atomic physics, quantum optics,
Rydberg atoms, and applied modern
optics. He has received several grants
from the National Science Foundation
and the Research Corporation. The
American Physical Society awarded
Galvez the 2010 Prize for a Faculty
Member for Research in an Undergraduate Institution.
John Naughton has been named
Harrington and Shirley Drake Professor of the humanities in the Department of Romance Languages and
Literatures. Naughton has been on the
faculty since 1983. His teaching specialties and research interests include
Dante, quest literature, the French
novel, and modern French poetry. He
has authored, edited, and translated
several books.
David Robinson has been named
Robert Hung-Nai Ho Professor in
Asian studies. A history professor who
came to Colgate in 1996, he is fluent
in Chinese, Japanese, and Korean; he
has become a leading scholar of the
history of Ming China, the Mongol
Empire, and East Asia generally. His
most recent book is Empire’s Twilight:
Northeast Asia Under the Mongols.
Robinson also has an earlier monograph on Ming China, is editor of and
contributor to an edited volume on
the Ming Court, and has published six
articles plus two translations and multiple book reviews. Robinson teaches a
wide variety of courses on East Asian
history.
Nicole Simpson has been named
the first holder of the Gretchen
Hoadley Burke ’81 Endowed Chair in
Regional Studies, a rotating appointment. An economics professor, she
came to Colgate in 2001; she teaches
courses in macroeconomics, international economics, applied economic
theory, and the causes and consequences of immigration. Her publications in the area of fiscal policy have
focused on the relationships between
education expenditure and growth
and between social insurance and
bankruptcy. More recently, Simpson
has been working on issues of labor
and capital mobility across borders.
Christopher Vecsey has been
named Harry Emerson Fosdick
After four years of revising and a
semester spent poring over printer’s
proofs, physics professors Charlie Holbrow, Jim Lloyd ’54, Joe Amato, Enrique
Galvez, and Beth Parks just released
the second edition of the Colgateinspired textbook Modern Introductory Physics. The volume will continue
to be used as the central text for Physics 120, a calculus-level survey class
that has set Colgate apart for decades.
Back in the early 1980s, when physics enrollment was down, Holbrow,
Lloyd, and Amato (who have all since
retired) set out to determine why and
fix the problem. One of their solutions was to redesign the introductory
course. They found that they needed
to bring incoming first-years back up
to speed on algebra and trigonometry.
So they detoured, where possible,
around the mass of standard fare
from Newton or Galileo, focusing instead on current concepts that answer
the question, “Why do we believe in
atoms?” The result was less overwhelming and more engaging.
“Most universities start with
mechanics,” said Galvez. “But ask
physicists what’s exciting, and they’ll
say something like ‘photons.’”
This new approach to teaching
modern physics required a different
textbook. So they wrote one to support their syllabus. Quoting Winston
Churchill’s exhortation to “be strong,
be brave, be persistent,” the book
thoughtfully presents the topic to
students who are re-introducing
themselves to physics after a hiatus
from the high school lab.
That pedagogy has returned Colgate’s physics department to its historic popularity and has been adopted
by universities like Western Kentucky
and Bryn Mawr. It has been successful enough to warrant the re-issuing
of the book, updated with the help of
Parks and Galvez, who arrived since
that original brainstorming session
decades ago.
In its latest incarnation, Modern
Introductory Physics — and its
complementary lab material — further distances itself from pulleys
and planes to present fundamental
principles of quantum mechanics. “We
end the new edition touching on the
new physics of the 21st century,” said
Galvez.
At the authors’ request, royalties
from the textbook support a special
fund to underwrite departmental
initiatives and guest speakers.
AMS scholarship: from health
care reform to planet formation
Five Alumni Memorial Scholars presented their 2010 summer research
projects at the Ho Science Center in
October.
Tyler Coolman ’11 examined the
differences in medical practice and delivery of health care between the Latin
American countries of Nicaragua
and Costa Rica. In addition, he looked
for differences between modern
medical practices and indigenous
medicine and medical techniques,
such as efficiency and availability. “In
other words, do cheaper, more widely
available indigenous practices equate
Live and learn
Six students
formed Colgate’s
first Intercollegiate Ethics Bowl
team last fall. On
November 20,
they competed
in the Northeast Regional
Championship at
Dartmouth College. Ryan Nelson ’12 reports:
The Intercollegiate Ethics Bowl is a
national competition where teams present
and argue answers to ethical dilemmas,
with the aim of proving to the judges that
their position — and more importantly,
their reasons for taking that position —
make their answer the most ethical. For
example, would you butt into a stranger’s
conversation at a bar if they were speaking insensitively about homosexuals; or,
would you support a law to grant birthright
citizenship to children of illegal immigrants? Questions like this become even
more engaging when they change from
“What would you do?” to “What should you
do?”
After deciding to put together a team,
we quickly realized the uphill challenge we
faced. No one had any Ethics Bowl experience, and we only had a month and a half
to prepare our answers to the 15 regional
championship cases. But with Professor
Reid Blackman’s guidance, we dedicated
ourselves to preparing.
When we arrived at the tournament,
where more than 20 universities were
competing, we were nervous, but anxious
to try out our arguments. After the preliminary rounds, we had accumulated the
most points and were invited to compete
in the playoff rounds. We proceeded to
edge out a nail-biting win in the quarterfinals and moved on to the semifinals, where
we narrowly lost to Stevens Institute (who
won the tournament).
We soon learned that we were not done
competing. Following our elimination, the
tournament director notified us that we
had qualified for the National Championship this March!
Looking ahead, we have new ethical
cases to discuss, and a new level of competition for which to prepare. Moving onto
the national stage will be daunting, but
when we ask “What should we do about
it?” our answer is simple. We will enjoy
discussing issues and preparing the best
we can.
News and views for the Colgate community
15
tion technology, faculty and student
development, and diversity.
The three-year grant will provide
significant funding for the consortium’s MediaShare Project, a joint
library–information technology initiative designed to facilitate the sharing
of media collections and technologies, leverage resources, and enhance
services through cooperation and
coordination. It also will create the
New York Six Network, a series of activities designed to help faculty, staff,
and students on the six campuses to
explore and develop useful, productive collaborations. These programs
emerged from a one-year planning
initiative, also funded by the Mellon
Foundation.
“We’re excited about working with
our consortium partners to leverage
these great resources and make them
available to our campus communities,” said President Jeffrey Herbst.
“Utilizing technology to its fullest potential is an important component of
our academic mission here at Colgate.”
In addition to Colgate, the consortium comprises five other upstate
New York liberal arts institutions:
Hamilton College, Hobart and William
Smith Colleges, St. Lawrence University, Skidmore College, and Union
College. Colgate recently hosted the
consortium’s first Student Diversity
Leadership Conference, at which student leaders from the six schools had
a chance to make recommendations
on what their schools’ administrations
and faculty can do to enhance the
overall college experience for multicultural and international students.
You say potato…
Nancy Ries, associate professor of
anthropology and peace and conflict
studies, was awarded the Cultural Horizons Prize by the Society for Cultural
Anthropology for her article “Potato
Ontology: Surviving Postsocialism in
Russia.” The Cultural Horizons Prize is
awarded yearly by a jury of doctoral
students for the best article appearing
in the journal Cultural Anthropology.
Colgate among six colleges
awarded Mellon grant
The New York Six Liberal Arts Consortium, of which Colgate is a member,
has received a $600,000 grant from
The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation to
support collaborative programs in the
areas of library collections, informa-
The LOT in Edinburgh,
Scotland, is one of the
performance venues
studied by AMS scholar
Francesca Gallo ’11.
16
scene: Winter 2011
There’s an app for that
About a dozen “hikers” — including
six Colgate students — gathered at
the corner of Lex and Astor Place in
Colgate Conversations with
President Herbst
Conversations on world affairs take
place at Colgate every day, and, of
course, they can’t all be recorded and
shared. But the highlights can. “Colgate Conversations on World Affairs”
is a new series of 20-minute video
interviews with visiting scholars —
hosted by university president Jeffrey
Herbst.
A political scientist who focuses
his scholarship and teaching on the
politics of sub-Saharan Africa, Herbst
launched the series with six interviews during fall 2010. He spoke in the
Colgate studio with renowned political scientists, a philosopher, and an
expert on digital educational technology. Subjects ranged from ethics and
identity to African statehood, the war
in Afghanistan, and the causes and
consequences of genocide.
Abi Conklin ’13 uses her phone as part of
the Indeterminate Hikes project.
Get to know: Mel Watkins ’62
Andrew Daddio
Colgate hosted the first Student Diversity
Leadership Conference of the New York
Six Liberal Arts Consortium.
Peppermint’s teaching and research at Colgate spans new media
theory and practice with an emphasis
on digital-ecological art. He secured
funding for the New York City trip
through the university’s Beyond
Colgate program, which provides
opportunities for students to extend
their coursework through travel to
museums, research centers, and other
destinations.
Spencer Cavallo ’13 stretched his
legs and the range of his studies
during the hike. A physics major, he
admits to not being especially gifted
in the arts. “It was a good outlet to
experience something as far away
from my major as possible,” he said.
Cavallo said the hikers often drew
inquiring looks from passers-by as
they took their “30 breaths” at each
spot. One group of onlookers became
a bit belligerent before breaking up
in laughter and walking away. “We
considered it a true brush with the
wild and were grateful to have used
our survival instincts (playing dead) to
get away unscathed,” Conklin added.
For all the Indeterminate Hikers,
it was a walk on the wild side, armed
only with an app, in the most cosmopolitan of cities.
Manhattan on a fall Saturday, smart
phones in hand and exploration in
mind. The group was with art professor Cary Peppermint, who had created
what he called Indeterminate Hikes,
a custom application for Android
smart phones that led participants to
various locations — or “scenic vistas”
— in the East Village. At each spot,
the application would offer a cryptic
message about the locale, and hikers
were invited to spend a meditative
moment before taking photos with
their phones.
For Peppermint, the project was
intended to cultivate the imagination
of nature, wildness, and sustainability
in a networked, cosmopolitan environment. What it did for Abi Conklin
’13, who is a studio art major and
Japanese minor, was redefine what is
meant by the term wilderness. “There
was a blurring of the line between
‘wilderness’ and ‘civilization,’” she said.
“At each vista, we would take a few
minutes to look around and appreciate the area, take some pictures, and
scout for things and sounds typical of
the urban ‘wild’ — domesticated pets,
car alarms, or couples squabbling.”
Photos taken during the hike were
stored on a database that participants
can access and discuss. Besides a web
presence, the project also was included as an installation in the Whitney
Museum of American Art 2010 ISP
Exhibition.
NEH Professor of the Humanities,
Department of English
When Richard Pryor died in 2005, after having revolutionized stand-up comedy with
poignant yet profanity-laced examinations of race, The New York Times turned to a former
employee to write his obituary: Mel Watkins ’62.
Pryor had been a catalyst for Watkins’s interest in African-American humor and how it
reflected and shaped society. Watkins explored that topic in his seminal book On the Real
Side: Laughing, Lying and Signifying — The Underground Tradition of African-American
Humor That Transformed American Culture. That book, published in 1994, would solidify
his research interest and transform him into a sought-after commentator on the subject of
black humor for media outlets and academic conferences.
Watkins spent more than 20 years at the Times, where he became the first AfricanAmerican editor at the Sunday Book Review after having started at the paper as a copy boy.
The Book Review section was a major focal point for literary life in New York City in the mid1960s to the mid-1980s, and Watkins was in the middle of it.
“Some people talked about a new black renaissance in writing at this point. You had
a number of young writers coming along who were trying new things, who were doing
Afro-centric writing, using African-American folklore in their writing,” he said in discussing
authors such as Toni Morrison, Ishmael Reed, and Alice Walker.
While at the Times, Watkins won an Alicia Patterson Foundation grant to research
the history of black humor, which laid the groundwork for On the Real Side. The Colgate
alumnus, who now teaches at the university, uses the book in his course. It provides context
about the social influences that forced black performers to put on blackface to perform in
a minstrel show, led Lincoln Perry (aka Stepin Fetchit) to cultivate the shiftless character
that would make him a movie star and occasional NAACP target, and resulted in the strange
situation in which one of the most popular radio shows in U.S. history — Amos ’n’ Andy —
featured two white men portraying African-Americans. “When white America wanted to
find something out about black people, they turned to that show,” Watkins said of the radio
program that ran from about 1928 to 1960.
Watkins continues to study the evolution of African-American humor and share that with
his students. He enjoys being in front of the classroom where he used to sit as an undergraduate.
“In many cases, students don’t know why there is a Dave Chappelle or hip-hop or racial
tension because they have grown up in a time when people think — assume — that everything is on an equal basis. I think the course helps them see it on a broader level.”
— Tim O’Keeffe
8
Cary Peppermint
Andrew Daddio
Rajan collected data on productivity
and employee satisfaction through
interviews, surveys, and company
documents. After returning to campus,
she qualitatively and quantitatively
analyzed the collected data under the
guidance of Takao Kato, W.S. Schupf
Professor in Far Eastern studies and
economics professor. Margaret Swaney ’11 explored
processes affecting planet formation
around the young sun-like star GM
Aurigae. She traveled with Jeff Bary,
assistant professor of physics and
astronomy, to Hawaii in January 2010
to collect data using the Gemini North
Telescope on Mauna Kea. Then, in
June, they went to Germany to meet
a collaborator at the Max-PlanckInstitut für Extraterrestriche Physik
and learn data analysis techniques.
Francesca Gallo ’11
life of the mind
to the quality of care of modern
practices?” he questioned. “Can this
be defined in terms other than cost;
for example, the satisfaction of the
patient?” His research involved traveling to small towns in Costa Rica and
Nicaragua, conducting interviews at
free clinics.
Francesca Gallo ’11 traveled to
Edinburgh, Scotland, to investigate
whether the sacredness of church
space could affect the experience of a
theatrical performance, and, in turn, if
a theatrical performance could affect
the experience of church space and
its sacredness. “I chose to conduct
my research in the context of the
Edinburgh Festival Fringe because it
provided an opportunity to observe
the mass operation of both active and
deconsecrated churches as performance venues,” she explained. Gallo
examined various perceptions of the
sacred through interviews with audience members, theater companies,
and venue caretakers.
Meghan Healey ’11 spent 10 weeks
as an intern at MIT’s Saxelab of Social
Cognitive Neuroscience. There, she
was trained to use functional magnetic resonance imaging and was
involved in a project investigating the
neural correlates of impaired social
interaction skills in adults with autism
spectrum disorders.
Ruchira Rajan ’12 traveled throughout India to look at human resources
practices in Indian firms, specifically
through field research at the Indian
automobile giants Maruti Suzuki
Ltd., Honda Siel, and Tata Motors, and
energy infrastructure company BHEL.
The videotaped conversations are
available at www.colgate.edu/about/
presidentjeffreyherbst/podcasts,
and on the Colgate University page on
iTunes U.
Go to www.colgate.edu/podcasts to watch Mel Watkins discuss the evolution of AfricanAmerican humor and comedians such as Bert Williams, Stepin Fetchit, Redd Foxx, and Chris
Rock in a wide-ranging interview for the Colgate Conversations podcast series. You also can
go to the Colgate Conversations page for more download options.
News and views for the Colgate community
17
scene: Winter 2011
the campus music scene at the time,
learning that Colgate hosted The Doors
and other major rock and roll bands.
— Elizabeth Stein ’12
Gilbert & Sullivan on Wall Street
Passion, betrayal, global dominance,
and office romance — such describes
the operetta by Charles Veley ’65 that
was recognized as the 2010 best new
musical by the Academy for New
Musical Theater. Gilbert and Sullivan
on Wall Street tells the story of an
operetta conductor who inherits his
uncle’s $12 billion investment company and learns that golden dreams
can hold hidden surprises.
“It’s a frivolous view of contemporary Wall Street and what happens
when a good guy comes up against
a bad guy,” said Veley, describing his
protagonist Frederick Freemarket and
antagonist J. Geoffrey Behemoth as
“exaggerated.” Themes of freedom in
the marketplace as well as freedom to
love are laced throughout.
The light-hearted operetta is a
bow to the musical comedies of W.S.
Gilbert and Arthur Sullivan, with
melodies from eight of the duo’s operettas. Veley was inspired after he and
his wife saw a Gilbert & Sullivan show
during the dot-com crisis. “Wall Street
was absurd at the time,” he said. “The
idea I had was, wouldn’t it be great
to see Gilbert and Sullivan’s take on
today’s follies?”
In his professional life, Veley is
director of global real estate development for United Technologies Corporation; however, he is no stranger to
the pen, having earned his BA in Eng-
lish at Colgate and then a doctorate in
English at Penn State. Before entering
law school, he spent several years as a
full-time published novelist.
While Veley was working on Wall
Street, the Wilton Playshop in Connecticut (with which he had been
involved through prior theater performances) offered to have it premiere
as the 2010 season opener. This gave
Veley the kick in the pants he needed
to finish writing, he said.
Wanting to fine-tune it before the
October premiere, he submitted his
operetta to the Academy for New
Musical Theater’s Search for New
Musicals contest. The Los Angeles
organization selected Wall Street as
the winner of the 2010 new musical
award. Veley’s prize was a workshop
in which a cast performed the work in
front of a panel of experts, who then
gave him a detailed critique. He also
won a concert reading at the Colony
Theatre in Burbank, Calif., which took
place in November.
The Wilton Playshop show in October generated a lot of buzz and some
additional activity for Wall Street.
Troupers Light Opera of Darien, who
performed the show in Wilton, was
asked to perform it at the November
meeting of the New York Gilbert
& Sullivan Society in Manhattan.
Troupers will also perform the show
with full orchestration in Stamford,
Conn., in June, and the group has been
invited to present Wall Street at the International Gilbert & Sullivan Festival
in Gettysburg, Pa., this summer.
Clifford Gallery, electrified
An interdisciplinary artist team
known as LoVid showed the Colgate
community a playful way to create
art with a variety of media. Tali
Hinkis and Kyle Lapidus collaborated
with students from a handful of
departments to assemble their Rural
Electrification exhibition in Clifford
Gallery Oct. 20–Nov. 19. It included live
video, analog and video technologies,
prints, sculptures, fabrics, electrical
wires, and electricity.
On one side of the gallery, several
10-foot–tall towers stood in staggered
rows. Circuit boards and conductive
wires crossed the towers in the air.
Jane Kelly ’11 helped LoVid with this
piece, which is also called Rural Electrification. She spent about eight hours,
mostly on a ladder, working with
LoVid to assemble the wires around
the towers.
Rural Electrification, LoVid
“Working on the exhibition together
was a great chance to get to know the
students, and it was nice to later be
able to see some individual students’
work,” LoVid said via e-mail.
A video of chaotic black-and-white
patterns danced on the white paper
towers that Kelly helped LoVid assemble. LoVid’s handmade synthesizer
created the live video, which changed
based on the present atmosphere of
the gallery and the visitors there.
Another live video played on a
television screen set inside a wooden
structure in an opposite corner, as
part of Fishy Panorama of Untangled
Webs. The pace of the red, yellow, and
white zigzags on the screen changed
when someone touched metal pieces
on the wood structure that respond to
electricity in the body.
A variety of colorful fabrics in
obtuse shapes hung on a nearby wall,
composing the piece called Mixed
Media Collage and Patchworks Series.
Several were video-generated images
printed onto pieces of cloth that were
sewn together.
“We hope that the work will cause
visitors to think in different ways
about their bodies and how they
relate to the world and electrical devices,” said LoVid.
Art professor Cary Peppermint,
who invited LoVid to Colgate, said
their visit opened up new possibilities
for making art. “Their work gave students permission to experiment with
media outside of their comfort zones
in a playful, fun way.”
In Peppermint’s Digital Studio
course, students responded to Rural
Electrification in a series of assign-
ments that used a variety of digitalbased media. That student work was
then put on display on the second
floor of Little Hall.
— Kiki Koroshetz ’11
Boathouse as theater
Although University Theater staged
its fall production, 1500 Meters Above
Jack’s Level, for five nights in October,
Brehmer Theater sat strangely empty.
Instead, groups of about 50 people
met on the steps of Dana Arts Center
and took a yellow school bus to Glendening Boathouse on Lake Moraine to
watch the performances.
English professor April Sweeney,
the play’s director, had known for
a while that she wanted to use the
unusual location. “When I walked
into the boathouse in 2007, I saw
that space and immediately thought,
set (designed by Marjorie Bradley
Kellogg, assistant professor of English)
and the memorable location as they
stood waiting for the bus to take
them back to campus. Students in the
audience seemed especially intrigued
by the use of a working bathtub, and
with the acting, as well.
Joining Gamez on stage was
Michael Piznarski ’11, Octavia ChavezRichmond ’11, and Simona Giurgea,
visiting assistant professor of English
in the University Theater.
— Kate Hicks ’11
I want to do this play and I can do it
here. It was an impulsive decision.”
Written by Argentine playwright
Frederico Leon, the play tells the story
of a family in transition, as a son seeks
to move past the loss of his father by
creating his own family. At the same
time, he tries to help his mother recover and re-engage in life — no easy
task, as she refuses to emerge from
the bathtub.
Melissa Gamez ’13, one of three student actors in the production, thought
using the boathouse was an interesting interpretation of the play, fitting
well with the water motif. “Clearly,
water played a significant role for the
personal and political implications
of the play, but I believe that we had
much more freedom to experiment
with the water, as well as with each
other [thanks to the venue].”
The story, in fact, unfolds in a bathroom, and while it’s unique enough
to have a character spend most of
the play sitting in a water-filled tub,
the unconventional location of the
play added to the unfamiliarity. Yet
Sweeney said this was her goal — she
liked that the boathouse space was for
storage, that it was so close to water,
and that it was “foreign.”
“The idea was to take the reality of
a functional, utilitarian space, the best
simulation of a real bathroom, and
there would be a tension and a dialogue between the space of the bathroom and the space of the boathouse,”
she said. “And inside both of these real
spaces, allows another space for the
play, for the fiction of the play to fit.”
Following the Friday night performance, attendees spoke of the realistic
A new way to view art
1500 Meters Above Jack’s Level, the University Theater’s fall production
Andrew Daddio
Images from the
student-produced
exhibition No Sex, No
Drugs, Just Rock ’n’
Roll at the Picker Art
Gallery. Left: Ritchie
Blackmore, 1970.
Right: Tina Turner,
1971. © Barrie Wentzell
Students in Photo History Seminar
got a taste of stardom by producing
their own exhibition of work by rock
’n’ roll photographer Barrie Wentzell.
The exhibition, No Sex, No Drugs, Just
Rock ’n’ Roll, was on view at the Picker
Art Gallery Oct. 29–Dec. 17. Wentzell’s
photographs of musicians such as
Diana Ross, Jimi Hendrix, Tina Turner,
and the Beatles were already owned
by the gallery. Many of his prints are
candid shots of the stars performing
and during downtime on tour.
The course was taught in the
spring semester by visiting Syracuse
University professor Mary Warner
Marien, and the students opted to
put together the exhibition in place
of writing a final research paper. Students researched the photographs and
Wentzell’s artistic style, and even had
the opportunity to conduct a phone
interview with him. They selected the
images to display, working with digital curator Jesse Henderson through
Colgate’s digital archive, and compiled
a catalogue to guide gallery visitors
through the exhibition. Additionally,
they consulted with local graphic
designer Stephanie McClintick, who
developed the promotional materials.
The students themselves contributed
the text for the brochures and the gallery catalogue, as well as the layout of
the exhibition.
“It was a real-life experience and a
great application of the work we did
throughout the semester,” explained
Alayna Anderson ’11. To tie the project
back to Colgate, Anderson researched
Colgate Maroon articles to check out
Warren Wheeler
arts & culture
18
No Sex, No Drugs, Just Rock ’n’ Roll
Green laser pointer in hand, John T.
Spike gestured to a woman in the
background of Caravaggio’s painting
of the burial of Christ. Arms outstretched, she mourns the death of
Jesus — yet Spike was concerned with
her abnormally tall height. Because
of her positioning in the back of the
painting, she should theoretically
be unseen. This, he noted, is one of
the many optical tricks prevalent in
the works of Caravaggio, an Italian
Baroque painter. Such was the subject
of Spike’s lecture on the artist in
November.
Visiting from Florence, Italy, Spike
appeared as part of the annual Eric J.
Ryan Lecture series. A renowned art
critic, historian, and curator, he has
written more than 20 books on Baroque and Renaissance art, including
one on Caravaggio himself.
Carolyn Guile, assistant professor
of art and art history, noted that the
visit fit within the context of commemorating the 400th anniversary of
Caravaggio’s death. Colgate joined in
the worldwide celebration, with the
art and art history department having
featured other lectures and films on
the artist. Additionally, the department offered a seminar devoted
exclusively to Caravaggio, which Spike
visited before the lecture.
Guile mentioned that part of
Spike’s appeal is as an engaging
storyteller, which was clear during
his lecture. In an absorbing hour, he
detailed the optical sleights present in
some of Caravaggio’s repertoire, focusing on how the artist included many
unprecedented effects in his work.
“I want them to learn how to use
their eyes,” Guile said. “I wanted someone who could synthesize what is in
those pictures with how we see.”
— Kate Hicks ’11
News and views for the Colgate community
19
go ’gate
Raider Nation
Fan spotlights with Vicky Chun ’91, senior associate athletic director
Colgate No. 1 for student-athlete
graduation rate
Running back Nate
Eachus ’12 (#32)
rushed 44 times for a
season-high 214 yards
and four touchdowns
as the Raiders toppled
Georgetown 34-3 in the
homecoming game at
Andy Kerr Stadium.
jersey from his playing days, and was
glad to talk about his dad, Al ’51, who
captained the 1950 team that beat
Syracuse 19-14, marking the last time
the Raiders beat the Orange. “Football
is such a huge tradition and legacy
here at Colgate, and this kind of event
is a great chance for us to come back
and see our old buddies, teammates,
and friends,” said Egler.
Colgate recorded a 100 percent graduation success rate for its studentathletes, according to a report
released by the NCAA in late October.
That figure is the best of all Division
I schools. Last year, Colgate shared
the No. 1 ranking with Notre Dame,
with each school touting a 99 percent
graduation rate.
“Being ranked No. 1 in all of Division I is a credit to the dedication
of our excellent student-athletes,
coaches, and staff,” said Director of
Athletics Dave Roach. “We take great
pride in the fact that our students
strive for success on and off the field
of play.”
Colgate’s success rate outpaced
the national average of 79 percent.
The NCAA report covered Division I
athletes entering school between the
2000–2001 and 2003–2004 academic
years and who earned a degree within
six years.
The NCAA data differs from
federal graduation statistics because
students who transfer are taken into
account. The NCAA’s figures, unlike
the federal ones, do not penalize an
institution for athletes who leave to
attend other colleges, as long as they
depart in good academic standing.
Colgate was the only school with a
100 percent rate, while Notre Dame
remained at 99 percent. Fellow
Patriot League institutions Holy Cross
and Lafayette were tied with the likes
of Duke, Furman, and Northwestern
for third, at 97 percent.
Michael Schon ’12
Football wins 600th game
Colgate topped Connecticut, 5-3, at Starr Rink for their second-straight win over the
Huskies and first-ever win against them at home.
Colgate 35th in NCSA
Power Rankings
NCSA Athletic Recruiting announced
that Colgate was ranked 35th among
NCAA Division I universities, and 93rd
overall in the 8th Annual NCSA Collegiate Power Rankings.
NCSA Athletic Recruiting’s Collegiate Power Rankings assess the
academic and athletics standards of
all NCAA athletics programs across
the country. The Power Rankings
were developed to help prospective
student-athletes and their families
evaluate the particular strengths of
the top colleges and universities at the
Division I, II, and III levels. Fewer than
6 percent of colleges and universities
earn a spot in NCSA Athletic Recruiting’s Top 100 for 2010, and Colgate is
in this elite class.
The rankings are calculated for
each Division I, II, and III college and
university by averaging studentathlete graduation rates, academic
rankings provided by U.S. News &
World Report, and the strength of the
athletics departments as determined
by the Learfield Sports Directors’ Cup
ranking.
Michael Schon ’12
Reviving rivalry, memories
20
scene: Winter 2011
Ask Frank Speno ’56 about the tradition that is Colgate football and he’ll
share stories about how he, as a
140-pound defensive back, went up
against the human sledgehammer
that was running back Jim Brown of
Syracuse University.
Or ask Al Short ’47, who will talk
about how he planted his foot in the
rain-drenched muck of SU’s Archbold
Stadium to kick an extra point that
would be the winning margin in a 7-6
victory in 1945.
These proud former players joined
dozens of other alumni, young and
old, at a special tailgate to mark the renewal of the historic rivalry between
the Raiders and the Orange at the end
of September.
It was the 66th meeting of the two
teams, and the first since 1987. The
game would not end well for the Raiders, who would fall 42-7 at the Carrier
Dome, but in the David-versus-Goliath
tradition that is Colgate athletics, the
team would compete hard against the
bigger, faster Orange, dominate the
time of possession, and gain more first
downs.
At the pregame tailgate, Short
was welcomed by President Jeffrey
Herbst and athletics director David
Roach. The 84-year-old brought the
ball that he had kicked through the
uprights during that 1945 game, and
his grandson Chris Dole pointed to
what he said, with all sincerity, was
the mark where his grandfather’s toe
met leather. Short was presented with
a new ball signed by current team
members, and a jersey with his No. 17.
Tom McGarrity ’79, P’10 reminisced
about playing for Coach Fred Dunlap
’50, and said one of his favorite memories was a big win over Villanova, in a
game that featured future NFL great
Howie Long, back in 1978.
Al Egler ’79 sported his No. 27
On October 16, Colgate became the
15th team in the Football Championship Subdivision to reach its 600th
win in school history. The Raiders
whipped its rivals to the west with a
44-3 win against Cornell at Schoelkopf
Field. Nate Eachus ’12 rushed 25 times
for a Colgate and Patriot League record
of 291 yards. Greg Sullivan ’11 also
gained more than 100 yards with 102
yards on eight carries and scored three
touchdowns. The Raiders ended up
with 502 yards of total offense with
440 yards on the ground.
With the 102 yards rushing, Sullivan became the Patriot League’s
all-time leading rushing quarterback
with 2,112 yards in three-plus years.
Eachus had a big day as well, with
three touchdowns, and he went over
the 1,000-yard rushing mark for the
first time in his career.
First D1 hockey game on Cape
The Raiders were the first men’s
hockey team, along with Army, to
play a regular-season game on Cape
Cod, Mass. They played in front of a
standing-room–only crowd of 1,689 at
the Hyannis Youth and Community
Center at the Lt. Joseph P. Kennedy
Memorial Skating Rink. The event
featured a puck drop by 1960 gold
medal–winning and former Army
head coach Jack Riley.
Captain Brian Day ’11, along with
Mike McCann ’14 and Austin Smith ’12,
tallied goals in a 3-1 win.
The visit to the Cape also featured
an alumni golf tournament at the
Olde Barnstable Fairground Golf
Course the morning of the game.
Women’s cross country earns
first Patriot League title
Led by Elise DeRoo ’12, who won the
individual title, the women’s cross
country team came through with its
first Patriot League title in team history, winning with 42 points. Colgate
placed four runners in the top 15.
DeRoo and Chelsea Burns ’12 led the
way, finishing first and second overall.
DeRoo posted a school-record time
of 19:17 to claim her second-straight
Patriot League championship as Burns
posted a personal-record time of
20:07.
DeRoo was also named the Patriot
League Cross Country Scholar-Athlete
of the Year. She was voted onto the
Academic All-Patriot League Team,
along with captain Julie Tarallo ’11.
DeRoo continued her success at
the NCAA Northeast Regional as she
qualified for the NCAA Championships with a time of 20:16.3, helping
the Raiders to a 15th-place finish. She
finished sixth and earned all-region
honors.
Hockey alumni make way in NHL
At press time, four men’s hockey
alumni had made an appearance in
the early NHL season. Andy McDonald ’00 is in his 11th NHL season, now
playing with the St. Louis Blues, and
is inching closer to his 600th career
game.
Jesse Winchester ’08 entered his
fourth season with Ottawa after
re-signing with the Senators for two
more years. He has played in more
than 150 games for Canada’s capital
team.
Kyle Wilson ’06 made the Columbus Blue Jackets out of training camp
and made an immediate impact with
four goals and three points in 10
games.
Mark Dekanich ’08 was called up
by the Nashville Predators for the first
team.
Men’s soccer claims Patriot
League regular-season title
The men’s soccer team won the Patriot
League regular-season title on home
turf with an unbeaten mark of 5-0-2
against league opponents. Chris Miller
’11 was named Goalkeeper of the Year
by the league, while Head Coach Erik
Ronning won the Coach of the Year
award.
Steven Miller ’11 led the team with
12 points on a team-high five goals
and two assists. Matt Schuber ’12
finished second on the team with 10
points on four goals and two assists.
The Raiders finished with eight overtime games, seven of them going into
double overtime. Five games ended
in ties, while Colgate won two of the
games and lost only one.
The season came to an end in
the semifinals of the Patriot League
Corey Landstrom, assistant dean of students
and university discipline officer
Game: Women’s Ice Hockey, 10/8/10. The Raiders defeated University of New Hampshire (#8 national rank)
in OT 1-0!
How long have you worked at Colgate? I’m in my 8th year.
Why did you come to this game? I love ice hockey! My family and I support both
the men’s and women’s ice hockey programs.
Did you enjoy the game? What a great win! The team played well together, and
nothing is better than an overtime win.
Do you come to a lot of athletics events? We try to get to as many as we can. It is
important to go. I would like to see greater student turnout because the studentathletes work hard and need that support.
Do you have a favorite Colgate sports moment? My family and I have fun supporting the men’s and women’s ice hockey teams during playoffs. We’ve traveled
to Hanover, N.H., Ithaca, N.Y., and Albany, N.Y., to name a few.
Joellen Kelleher Wall ’89
Game: Men’s Ice Hockey, 10/16/10. The
Raiders defeated Brock University 3-2 in
front of a full house in Starr Rink
Resides in: Sugar Land, Texas (“The Land
of Plenty”)
Who did you bring to the game? My four
children, Mary, Joseph, John, and Michael
Mary’s take on the game: “This was fun … really, really fun!”
Why did you decide to visit Colgate now? I want my kids to see this part of the
country during the fall because it’s spectacular.
Do you have a favorite Colgate sports memory? In 1986, I was on the volleyball
team and we beat Syracuse University. I remember the Syracuse players were
angry because we were there to be beaten.
Vicky Brondum, Colgate Bookstore director
Game: Men’s Soccer, 11/2/10. The Raiders hosted
Princeton University (#16 national rank)
How long have you worked at Colgate? 9 1/2 years
Why did come to this game? I’m the men’s soccer team’s
biggest fan!
What do you think the temperature is out here? A warm and balmy 30 degrees.
How long have you been coming to the men’s soccer games? I’ve been a faithful
fan for 9 years.
What was Family Weekend like at the bookstore? It was crazy wonderful.
What do you think of Colgate athletics? It is unique — the student-athletes are
incredibly talented both on the field/court and in the classroom.
News and views for the Colgate community
21
Women’s soccer wrap-up
Michael Schon ’12
The women’s soccer team’s season
came to a close in early November
when it fell to Army 1-0 in overtime, in
the first semifinal game of the Patriot
League Tournament in West Point, N.Y.
“We played an outstanding second
half tonight,” said Head Coach Kathy
Brawn. “We defended and attacked as
a team and stayed focused in spite of
some very physical challenges by the
Black Knights.”
The team completed the season
with an overall record of 6-12-1. Forward Jillian Kinter ’13 and midfield/
forward Alyssa Manoogian ’12 finished the season as the point leaders,
with Kinter leading the team in goals
(6) and Manoogian leading the team
in assists (5).
The men’s water polo team beat RPI 16-13 in the Collegiate Water Polo Association New
York Division Championships at Hamilton College on October 23.
fense that posted four shutout wins.
The senior has received numerous
academic and athletic awards over
the years, most recently the Thomas
M. Wilson ’67 Memorial Endowed
Leadership Award for Athletics and
the Lasher Prize for English at the
university’s Convocation Awards Program. Koroshetz has also received the
Spencer Colwell ’41 Endowed Memorial Scholarship Fund, was named to
the 2009 ESPN The Magazine/CoSIDA
Academic All-District Team, and has
been a member of the Patriot League
Academic Honor Roll and the Raider
Academic Honor Roll every semester
since her first year.
In addition, Koroshetz is an active
member of the community. She is the
vice president of the Student Athlete
Advisory Committee and volunteers
at the Colgate Hunger Outreach
Program, the Hamilton Elementary
School, and with Uplifting Athletes at
Colgate.
Koroshetz named scholar-athlete
of the year
In the second match of
day two of the Colgate
Invitational, the Raiders had a big comeback
against Big Red, taking
the final three sets to
come away with a 3-2
win.
Co-captain Kiki Koroshetz ’11 was
named the 2010 Patriot League
Women’s Soccer Scholar-Athlete of the
Year. She was also selected to the 2010
Academic All-Patriot League team.
Koroshetz, who has a cumulative GPA
of 3.90, is an English major with a minor in psychology. She started in all 17
games for the Raiders this season and
has been a solid part of the team’s de-
Michael Schon ’12
Field hockey closes season at
Patriot League Tournament
22
scene: Winter 2011
The field hockey team saw its season
come to an end in early November
with an 8-1 loss to American in the
semifinals of the Patriot League Tournament.
The Raiders got their lone goal
from Halle Biggar ’14, with the assist
going to Laura Denenga ’11. Captain
Kirsten Lalli ’11 tried to keep the Raiders in the game with 17 saves. She
finished the year with 8 games at or
above 10 saves per game and reached
17 saves for the fifth time. Captain Allison Waugh ’11 came up big with two
key defensive saves.
Intramural and club sports
During the fall semester, more than
600 students participated in approximately 40 club sports including
baseball, cricket, curling, and cycling.
The intramural programs, which operate at full capacity, are enjoyed by 630
students. Here are some highlights
from the season:
Ultimate homecoming
Former Ultimate Frisbee club members returned to Hamilton en masse
for Homecoming Weekend when 24
alumni from six class years participated in a scrimmage against current
students. They flew in from as far as
Portland, Ore., Des Moines, Iowa, and
Chapel Hill, N.C.
Five members of the women’s
team — now in their fifth full season
— joined 19 members of the men’s
team, which has been one of Colgate’s
most active club sports teams since its
inception more than 20 years ago.
Students and alumni will join
forces for two summer tournaments
in 2011.
— Cody Tipton ’07
Other highlights
The English equestrian team is the
top-placing club team in the region,
ranking in 3rd place behind Skidmore
and Morrisville, which are both varsity teams. Colgate has four out of the
eight top open riders in the region.
In its fourth season, the field
hockey club finished with a winning
record.
The figure skating club ran a wellattended Learn to Skate session for
community children. They have also
started a synchronized skating team
with Hamilton College, and on December 5, the synchronized team and
individual players performed at Starr
Rink.
The karate club ran a Kickathon
during Homecoming Weekend to
fundraise for the Wounded Warrior
Project and will host their 15th annual
Karate Tournament this spring.
The ping pong club took their first
trip to Hamilton College for the Intercollegiate Ping Pong Tournament and
won the final championship. At the
end of November, the club co-sponsored a competition to fundraise for
Oxfam, a nonprofit organization that
fights poverty.
Despite a tough first loss on the
road for men’s rugby, the club had a
comeback and won four consecutive
games. They led the league for four
weeks, outscored opponents 191-61,
averaged 31 points per game, and were
undefeated at home in the regular
season. They tied for second place in
the league, but placed third on tiebreakers.
The men’s soccer club went to the
Regional Tournament in Pennsylvania,
where they played the University of
Delaware, SUNY New Paltz, Loyola,
and University of Connecticut.
The women’s soccer club attended
the Penn State Tournament, where
they played West Virginia University,
Washington University in St. Louis,
Penn State, and Yale.
The men’s squash club hosted and
won their fall home tournament. In
January, they traveled to the Naval
Academy to play a club Patriot League
tournament and then represented
Colgate at the National Team Championships at Harvard.
Get to know: Elise DeRoo ’12
Andrew Daddio
ciation (MAISA), the team once again
qualified for the America Trophy
regatta at Cornell University, which
was the end-of-the-season “regionals”
last spring.
The team entered into the fall
season with a large group of energetic
first-years who were very eager to sail
for the squad. Homecoming weekend
marked the second Alumni Regatta,
during which approximately 10
alumni returned to compete against
old friends. The following weekend,
over fall break, we hosted our annual
Colgate Open Regatta. With seven
other MAISA teams competing for the
win, Colgate finished first after a very
close competition. The rest of the fall
continued smoothly, with the sailing
club ranking 23rd out of 46 MAISA
teams.
— Nate Swift ’11
– Hometown: Newtown, Conn.
– Major: molecular biology
You had a great season, having broken the Colgate record for the 6K, winning the Patriot
League Championships both individually and as a team, and winning Patriot League
Female Scholar-Athlete of the Year, as well as running in the National Championship race.
Share your thoughts.
This season has been the most fun season thus far in my collegiate experience. There was
great camaraderie between everyone on the team and an incredible teamwide commitment
toward working harder in practice. My proudest accomplishment was winning Patriots as a
team. The memory I have of that October morning is one that I will look back on for the rest
of my life.
What are your goals for next season?
I’d love to consistently be in the 19-minute range for 6Ks.
Where are your favorite runs on campus?
My favorite run is a semi-hilly 10-miler known to everyone on the team as “Bonney Hill
with extension.” The views you get about halfway through definitely make running the hills
worth it!
Tell us some of your team memories.
I have a lot of silly and bizarre team memories: running around a bend on one of our
workouts far away from campus, only to find a bunch of hens, geese, and other barnyard
animals right in our path (we decided to hurdle them to keep on pace rather than stop and
go around); when our team got caught in a freak hail/lightning storm on the trails in early
fall last year; the time my teammate and I accidentally showed up in jeans to the only formal
function at nationals.
The women’s rugby team at their homecoming weekend game
Your Scholar-Athlete of the Year award noted your 3.9 GPA in molecular biology. How do
you balance your running and your studies?
Running helps me manage my time that I dedicate to school work and also serves as a
release for me, so I don’t see it as another job. Running makes me stay balanced. These are
the two activities I’ve chosen to pursue in college, and I strive to do them to the best of my
ability.
Do you have any good-luck rituals before competition?
I quadruple-knot my shoes because I have a somewhat-irrational fear of my spikes coming
untied and losing a spike (or two!) during the race. What’s your favorite song to run to?
I’ve been listening to a lot of Matt and Kim. I like to run to the songs “Don’t Slow Down” and
“I’ll take us home.” Smooth sailing
The sailing team had yet another
successful season. Part of the MiddleAtlantic Intercollegiate Sailing Asso-
Janet Little
go ’gate
Tournament with a tough 1-0 loss to
Bucknell. They completed their season
with an 8-6-5 overall record. Although
admitting disappointment over the
loss, Ronning said, “I am proud of
what this group achieved this season.”
What’s one of your pastimes?
I enjoy cooking and baking. I try to cook something nice or bake something fun at least once
every week.
— Kate Hicks ’11
News and views for the Colgate community
23
new, noted ,
& quoted
In the media
Books, music &
film
Information is provided by publishers,
authors, and artists.
Long Way Home: On the Trail of
Steinbeck’s America
Bill Barich ’65
(Walker & Company)
In the run-up to
2008’s ObamaMcCain election,
expatriate novelist and essayist
Bill Barich returned from Ireland in the hope
of rediscovering
America. Inspired by John Steinbeck’s
somewhat darker and more acerbic
Travels with Charley in Search of
America, written during the 1960
Nixon-Kennedy election, Long Way
Home explores whom we have
become in the half century since. In
place of Charley, Steinbeck’s standard
poodle, Barich travels with the ghost
of Steinbeck himself, while Walt Whitman, Henry Miller, and other literary
spirits also appear. Sidestepping Wall
Street, he drives through the American heartland. Times are tough, yet
despite their hardships, people are
unwilling to surrender their personal
connection to the American dream.
As Barich reminds us throughout this
richly rewarding book, in America, it is
still the people who matter most.
— Garner Simmons ’65
Pictures of the Highway
Marc Black ’71
(Suma Records)
Award-winning
folksinger/songwriter Marc Black
has released a
new CD, Pictures
of the Highway,
which includes 12 songs presented in
a seductive tapestry of grooves and
instrumentation — reminiscent of
Randy Newman and Tim Hardin. The
CD begins with the sultry opener “Red
Lite,” continues with a love song to
coffee (“Ooh I Love My Coffee”), and
rounds out with the humorous “I Love
You Rachel Maddow.”
24
scene: Winter 2011
Hannibal
The Eye of the Beholder:
Deformity and Disability in the
Graeco-Roman World
Robert Garland
(Bristol Classical Press)
Classics professor
Robert Garland
has two new
releases through
Bristol Classical
Press: Hannibal
and The Eye of
the Beholder:
Deformity and
Disability in the
Graeco-Roman World, Second Edition.
In Hannibal, Garland spotlights the
Carthaginian general whose military
and political career made him one of
history’s greatest survivors, Rome’s
most formidable adversary, and the
man who came closest to destroying
the power base in Italy. At the same
time, Garland
writes, Hannibal
did more than
anyone else to
bring Carthage to
the edge of ruin.
Garland investigates Hannibal’s
unintended yet
powerful legacy
and concludes that he is both an inspiration and a warning to anyone who
dreams big dreams.
The second edition of The Eye of the
Beholder is in paperback, with a new
preface and updated bibliography.
This first-ever book-length investigation into the plight of the disabled and
deformed in Graeco-Roman society
draws on literary texts, medical tracts,
vase paintings, sculpture, mythology,
and ethnography.
nied by more than 200 photos, this
book tells the story of how Kerasote
found Pukka, recounting the early
days of their bonding as they explore
the world. Walks become hikes and
hikes become climbs, their adventures
culminating in a rugged wilderness
journey that teaches both Pukka and
Kerasote something new about the
dog-human partnership. Pukka is a
love story as well as Kerasote’s take on
raising a puppy. It will do pictorially
what Merle did with words: show how
dogs thrive when treated as peers
while illustrating the many ways that
dogs open the door to our hearts.
To Kill a Tsar
Al Rieber ’53 (pen name G.K. George)
(SCARITH)
In this work
of historical
fiction by G.K.
George (Al
Rieber), the eccentric Inspector
Vasiliev exposes
a conspiracy by
a high-ranking
Russian nobleman and a top official
in the secret police to assassinate Tsar
Alexander II. Inspector Vasiliev finds
unexpected help in his work from
Irina, a member of the revolutionary
underground. The tale lures readers
into the turbulent, terrorist times of
1880s Russia, with a plot full of twists
and dramatic encounters. Rieber
portrays the tensions and dynamics
of life in Imperial Russia on the eve
of Alexander II’s assassination as his
characters grapple with the assassination plot and an unlikely romance.
The Current Economic Crisis and
the Great Depression
Pukka: The Pup After Merle
Philip Salisbury ’65
(Xlibris)
Since the
publication of
the best-selling
Merle’s Door, Ted
Kerasote has received thousands
of e-mails asking
two questions:
“Have you gotten another dog?” and
“Are you writing a new book?” Pukka:
The Pup After Merle answers both.
Told in Pukka’s voice and accompa-
In The Current
Economic Crisis
and the Great
Depression, Philip
Salisbury offers
descriptive and
quantitative
approaches that
present new
perspectives on
the topic. He emphasizes similarities
between the pre-Depression years and
the current economic malaise. Readers will learn about the presence of a
Ted Kerasote ’72
(Houghton Mifflin Harcourt)
housing boom and bust in both situations being attributed to individuals
reaching home-buying age. It explains
that when this peak of home buying
reaches its crest and ages beyond that
time of life, a rapid decline in population occurs. This decline is followed
by a housing crisis as the number of
home-buying individuals declines.
Foreclosures follow as unemployment
increases and incomes decline. Behind
it all, the book explains the trends that
come with economic declines and
how they affect millions of people
around the world.
Sweet Chic: Stylish Treats to
Dress Up for Any Occasion
Rachel Schifter Thebault ’97
(Ballantine Books)
Founder and head confectioner of
Tribeca Treats in New York City, Rachel
Schifter Thebault combines a confectioner’s expertise with fashion sense
to share a cache of popular dessert
recipes that can be accessorized to fit
any occasion. Transforming a basic
dessert into a masterpiece brimming
with personality and flair can be easy,
BookCase
A selection from the new
titles shelf at Case Library
• Writing for the Internet: A Guide to Real
Communication in Virtual Space
Craig Baehr and Bob Schaller
• Is There Anything Good About Men? How
Cultures Flourish by Exploiting Men
Roy F. Baumeister
• Beating the Bear: Lessons from the 1929
Crash Applied to Today’s World
Harold Bierman Jr.
• The Age of Obama: The Changing Place
of Minorities in British and American
Society Tom Clark, Robert D. Putnam, Edward
Fieldhouse
• The Wireless Spectrum: The Politics,
Practices, and Poetics of Mobile Media
Edited by Barbara Crow, Michael Longford, and Kim Sawchuk
• Sweet Cider Days: A History of Mott’s in
Bouckville, New York
Jim Ford
• Every House Needs a Balcony, a novel
Rina Frank
• Faith, Interrupted: A Spiritual Journey
Eric Lax
• Paris Vogue: Covers 1920–2009 Sonia Rachline • Bob Marley: The Untold Story
Chris Salewicz
quick, and fun,
according to
Thebault. In the
same way you’d
plan an outfit,
Sweet Chic pieces
together devil’s
food cake (the
little black dress of delights) with such
irresistible accessories as caramel
buttercream, turns vanilla cookies
(the crisp oxford shirt) into strawberry
“shortcakes,” and blends brownies
(the cashmere sweater of confectionery) with a swirl of mint for a showstopping number. For both the novice
hoping to master the basics and the
expert looking to add a little versatility to existing creations, Sweet Chic is a
guide for memorable desserts.
Modern Irish Drama: W.B. Yeats
to Marina Carr
Sanford Sternlicht MA’55
(Syracuse University Press)
Modern Irish
Drama presents
a thorough introduction to the
recent history of
one of the greatest dramatic and
theatrical traditions in Western
culture. Originally published in 1988,
this second edition provides extensive new material, charting the path
of modern and contemporary Irish
drama from its roots in the Celtic Revival to its flowering in world theater.
The lives and careers of more than 50
modern Irish playwrights are discussed along with summaries of their
major plays and recommendations for
further reading. Including a selected
bibliography and filmography, the
book is a resource for students of
drama studies and production companies alike. Sanford Sternlicht is an English professor at Syracuse University,
where he teaches Irish, American, and
British drama.
The Nature of New York
David Stradling ’88
(Cornell University Press)
From the arrival of Henry Hudson’s
Half Moon in the estuarial waters of
what would come to be called New
York Harbor to the 2006 agreement
that laid out plans for General Electric
to clean up the PCBs it pumped into
“The one thing you can’t do with energy is sit on your butt.”
— Richard Kessel ’71, CEO and president of the New York Power
Authority, in an Ithaca Journal article about his prediction of a future
energy crisis
“I can’t tell you how impressed I am with the coaching that
goes on there…”
— Syracuse University football coach Doug Marrone speaking with The Post-Standard (Syracuse) prior to his team’s matchup against Colgate
“I had never sung in my life besides maybe in the shower
and in a silly senior musical… Honestly, I was afraid of
embarrassing myself in front of these great singers.”
— Yuni Shameshima ’13, in a New York Times article about starting college, describes how he went out of his comfort zone to join the Colgate Thirteen
“People’s ethical norms have deteriorated [in Afghanistan]
to the point that whatever helps you survive from day to
day is OK.”
— R. Michael Smith ’70 talking to the Chronicle of Higher Education about his yearlong stint as a legal adviser in Afghanistan
“But it’s the Colgate maintenance team that deserves a bigger tip of the cap over Jones, who delivers a tough
test. The large greens here are easily some of New York’s finest…”
— Brandon Tucker, of TravelGolf.com, in his review of Seven Oaks Golf Club
the river named
after Hudson,
this work offers
a sweeping
environmental
history of New
York State. David
Stradling, associate professor of
history at the
University of Cincinnati, shows how
New York’s varied landscape and
abundant natural resources have
played a fundamental role in shaping the state’s culture and economy.
Simultaneously, he underscores the
extent to which New Yorkers have,
through such projects as the excavation of the Erie Canal and the construction of highways and reservoir
systems, changed the landscape of
their state. Also of note:
The novel The Korean Pipeline (Publish
America) by Raymond Flanders ’52
follows three enlisted men from their
initial recall to active duty to combat
service in the Korean War. Korean
pipeline was the term used for the
large numbers of enlisted men who
were funneled from civilian status to
the front line in Korea in a matter of
weeks as the war erupted. The book
begins at the start of the war in 1950
and continues as it drags on, finally
ending in a virtual stalemate where it
all started, at the 38th parallel in July
1953.
In Workplace Emotions: Emotional
Intelligence in Bahraini Management
(Outskirts Press), Richard Tzudiker ’73
and Suhaila Ebrahim AlHashemi, PhD,
tell the story of how emotional intelligence turns around one of Bahrain’s
largest companies. As management
learns to recognize feelings, harness
emotions, and adopt appropriate leadership tactics, signs of cultural change
emerge in a corporation steeped in
tradition.
News and views for the Colgate community
25
Ruggles sheltered him, Frederick Douglass observed his abolitionist activities,
and learned that Ruggles was a man of action as well as words and feeling.
Ruggles was the kind of black man whom Douglass wanted to emulate, and he
did. But, although Douglass wrote about Ruggles in all three of his autobiographies, it has taken more than 160 years for Ruggles’s own full biography to be
written. There are several reasons for this oversight.
Having died in 1849, Ruggles didn’t live long enough to be part of the turbulent events of the 1850s and the Civil War. And other abolitionist figures such
as William Lloyd Garrison and even Douglass himself cast a long shadow. In
addition, historians have only recently come to realize that many blacks were
an important part of the abolitionist movement. The scholarship has recently
evolved from a paradigm of whites assisting helpless blacks, to recognizing that enslaved people and free blacks were not passive about their conditions. Ru ggles w a s a ma n o f a ctio n a s
w ell a s w o rds a nd feeli ng
The euphoria that Frederick Augustus Bailey felt after escaping from slavery in
Maryland on Sept. 3, 1838, evaporated soon after his arrival in New York City. It
was 2 a.m., and Bailey was stranded. Broke, lonely, homeless, and worried about
slave catchers, he had planned to find a black man named David Ruggles, who
headed an organization famous among enslaved people fleeing from their
bondage. But then, Bailey ran into a friend from home whom he had known as
“Allender’s Jake,” now calling himself William Dixon. Dixon warned him against
trusting anyone. Deep in distress, Bailey spent the night sleeping among wharf
barrels on the docks as he anxiously pondered his next move.
Luckily, Ruggles, who had been expecting Bailey, searched for the forlorn
fugitive and took him home. There, at 36 Lispenard Street, Ruggles talked with
Bailey long into the night about abolitionism. He advised Bailey that New York
was unsafe and encouraged him to head to New England, where a fugitive could find work as a caulker or go seafaring.
26
scene: Winter 2011
Ruggles helped Bailey to forge a new identity and to bring his fiancée, Anna
Murray, to join him. When she arrived safely on September 15, the couple were
married in Ruggles’s home. Soon after, the newlyweds left, armed with a $5 bill
and a letter of introduction that Ruggles addressed to another black abolitionist, Nathan Johnson, in New Bedford, Mass. (the seaport known as the “Fugitives’
Gibraltar”). There, Bailey, now calling himself Frederick Johnson, found work as a
caulker. Nurtured in New Bedford’s anti-slavery community, within a few years,
having again changed his name, that man — Frederick Douglass — soared into
prominence to become one of the most famous 19th-century Americans. But
what more can be learned about David Ruggles?
David Ruggles’s significance, in fact, goes well beyond his role in one of the most
symbolically important slave escapes in American history. During the days that
David Ruggles was born free on March 15, 1810, in Old Lyme, Conn., the first of the
eight children of David and Nancy Ruggles, free blacks who were devout Congregationalists. His father was a respected blacksmith and his mother a noted
caterer — both careers in which they were treated with respect by blacks and
whites alike. The family lived in the Bean Hill area of Norwich, very close to the
home of Samuel Huntington, the state’s governor. In that environment, Ruggles
grew up as an educated man accustomed to a sense of equality. By the time he
left formal education in his teens, he was well versed in theology and rhetoric,
and had received special tutoring in Latin. His background served as a foundation upon which he would carry out his life.
Early work as a seafarer brought him to New York City by 1825; he was likely
present, then, for the 1827 celebrations marking the prohibition of slavery in the
state. But even after slavery was officially outlawed, New York City was generally
unsafe for blacks. Much of this had to do with their miserable economic status.
They lived in the poorest neighborhoods, suffered most from health epidemics,
and had shorter life expectancies. Public discrimination and insulting behavior
toward blacks were rampant. Watchmen routinely harassed blacks and arrested
them on the slightest pretext. To add insult to injury, journalists regularly derided the presence of free blacks in the city and they, as well as formal organizations, urged their expulsion from the country.
Making matters worse, the city was highly receptive to Southern slaveholders
who enjoyed visiting the new metropolis and expected to be allowed to bring
their slaves with them to provide the amenities of home. Shops, hotels, and
Graham Hodges
In many ways, David Ruggles was the quintessential activist. He was the man
who got everything going.
I first became interested in Ruggles while writing my book Root & Branch:
African Americans in New York and East Jersey, 1613-1863 some 10 years ago. One
of the first things I found was his obituary, which was written by abolitionist
William Lloyd Garrison. In it, Garrison lamented that Ruggles’s biography “had
yet to be written.”
In my books, I have found the re-creation of neglected but significant
historical figures — such as Anna May Wong, Thaddeus Kosciuszko, Colonel Tye,
and Isaac Lyon — and occupations like cartmen and cabdrivers to be a most
satisfying achievement. Of all these rediscoveries, Ruggles (1810-1849) is perhaps
the most significant because he changed the course of abolitionism. The more I learned about Ruggles, the more fascinating he became.
Ruggles personified radical abolitionism. A vocal antislavery activist, officer
of the Underground Railroad, and champion of civil rights for blacks, he took a
moral stance that overlapped with many associated reforms (such as temperance), tapped into religious communities, and crossed not only racial but also
gender lines. Ultimately, he gave his life to the movement. His was a captivating
story that had to be retold.
News and views for the Colgate community
27
restaurants catered to wealthy Southerners, whose sizable presence meant that a runaway’s chances of encountering his former master was not slight. As well,
the Fugitive Slave Law of 1793 (which gave slaveholders the right to recover
escaped slaves) gave cover to illicit slave trading by Americans contracting with
Portuguese sea captains and practically invited Southern masters to hire ruthless men to scour Northern cities in search of runaway slaves or to prey upon free
blacks. Enabled by sympathetic judges in New York, kidnappers regularly came
to the city and grabbed any black whose appearance resembled their quarry.
Not only were fugitive slaves being captured and taken back, but also free men,
women, and children were being kidnapped off the streets and sold into slavery
down South.
With that as the backdrop, by 1828, at only age 18, Ruggles had opened a
grocery shop at 1 Cortland Street at the corner of Broadway, where he also lived.
Although the neighborhood had a less-dense black population than the wards
farther north, he appealed to the black community for customers by placing store
advertisements in Freedom’s Journal (the nation’s first black newspaper).
The journal’s editor, Samuel Eli Cornish, a Presbyterian minister, would come
to have an important impact on Ruggles (for example, convincing him to adopt
the associated reform of temperance and stop selling alcohol in his store). In New
York City, black and white Presbyterians were prominent in urban ministry and
the antislavery movement. Cornish’s First Colored Presbyterian Church became a
home base for Ruggles. Membership there provided access to many other figures
in the antislavery movement with whom Ruggles would work closely in the near
future, including self-emancipated slaves James W.C. Pennington and Samuel
Ringgold Ward. There is evidence that Ruggles also affiliated with the African
Methodist Episcopal Church, the parish of New York’s black working class. In that
congregation, around the same time as Ruggles, was a recently freed woman
named Isabella Van Wagener, who would later be known as Sojourner Truth.
Ruggles officially joined the abolitionist movement when he began combining
the grocery business with antislavery activity. He hired escaped slaves Samuel
Ringgold Ward, who later became a distinguished Congregational minister and
proponent of expanded black civil rights, and his brother Isaiah Harper Ward.
Ruggles also became a visible member of black literacy, self-improvement, and
abolitionist organizations like the Phoenix Society and the American Antislavery
Society, attending and soon speaking at their conventions. Joined by prominent
abolitionists such as William Lloyd Garrison, he began delivering electrifying
speeches exhorting people to get involved with the resistance against slavery and
the promotion of black self-improvement.
When Garrison founded the Liberator, the newest print outlet for radical
expression, in 1831, Ruggles became an agent and was soon canvassing young city
blacks to help increase its readership. He also later became a general agent (one
of very few black agents) of the Emancipator, the fledgling newspaper published
by prominent white abolitionists Lewis and Arthur Tappan, who became two of
his longtime supporters.
Ruggles’s first publication in that newspaper launched another chapter in his
abolitionist work: his prolific writings, which included hundreds of letters to the
editor in many publications, as well as five pamphlets. His first was “The ‘Extinguisher’ Extinguished!” This diatribe against noted physician Dr. David M. Reese,
who supported the American Colonization Society (a popular organization that
planned forcible relocation of free blacks to Africa), was one of the first black imprints in the nation. In his essay “The Abrogation of the Seventh Commandment,
by the American Churches,” Ruggles was again ahead of the curve, this time by
aiming his message at a female audience. Capitalizing on the debate of whether
slave owners could be considered good Christians, he pointed out that masters
raping their enslaved women and having children with them constituted a violation of the Seventh Commandment against adultery, and that Southern women
By th e age o f 24, Ru ggles w a s a n
exp eri enced an tisl a v e ry agen t, co n v e n tio n
memb er, and w rit er
The Freedom’s Journal was essential reading for blacks intent on learning
about meetings of mutual relief, temperance, literary, and fraternal organizations.
Editorials espoused black improvement and castigated perceived enemies of
the black community. Ample space focused on efforts to improve black morality and education and used black heroes as examples to affirm self-discipline
and achievement. The newspaper also covered current fugitive slave cases and
illegal trafficking of slaves, and printed contemporary words of revolution, such
as the fiery writings of David Walker. Walker demanded that blacks battle for
their rights, beseeching fathers to teach their sons to confront slave masters,
and counseling, “kill or be killed . . . had you not rather be killed than to be a slave
to a tyrant, who takes the life of your mother, wife, and dear little children?” By
challenging racism, and emphasizing education and intellectual improvement,
the journal’s writers heightened black consciousness, inspired racial egalitarianism, and created a culture of dissent. For the youthful Ruggles, all this was heady
stuff and informed much of his thought and writing for years to come. Already
imbued with abolitionist sentiments, he could see that the time to battle slavery
and prejudice with one’s life was now.
While making his living as a grocer, Ruggles publicized abolitionist sentiments
in his advertisements, proclaiming, for example, that the “Sugars above mentioned are free sugars — they are manufactured by free people, not by slaves.”
This alliance with the free produce movement had several effects. It brought
him into contact with white and black women who were against slavery and for
whom purchasing free produce goods was a conscious moral and political choice.
Those female advocates of free produce then spread the word about his sin-free
staples, thereby helping his business. Despite that support, his activities also attracted anti-abolitionist attention; he had to relocate his store several times, and
on one occasion, it was burned down.
28
scene: Winter
Winter 2011
were standing by, letting their husbands, brothers, and sons do this. He called
upon Northern women to shun these women when they came North, because
they were complicit.
Ruggles quit the grocery business in 1833 to devote himself full time to the
movement as an agent of the Emancipator. Constantly on the road, he traveled
from town to town throughout New Jersey and Pennsylvania, selling subscriptions and making public speeches, spreading the word about abolitionism, and
denouncing slavery. His efforts were among the earliest for any antislavery
agent, and among the most dangerous; he became accustomed to working with
and convincing large crowds of curious whites in settings far from New York City.
Traveling alone in a countryside where he was likely to receive very little sympathy, Ruggles also showed considerable courage — mobbing of abolitionists was
common, and he was fortunate to avoid an attack.
By the age of 24, Ruggles was an experienced antislavery agent, convention
member, and writer. He had reached out to women and worked well with giants
of the city’s abolition scene. In the rapidly developing world of black abolitionism,
he had served an admirable apprenticeship. Now he was ready for larger responsibilities.
Part of a youthful cohort of frustrated, intelligent, ambitious, well-educated activists who butted against the prejudices of white New Yorkers, Ruggles gave the
new black radicalism a harder, more militant style and raised it to a higher profile.
He summed it up by noting, “The pleas of crying soft and sparing never answered
the purpose of a reform, and never will.” That comment nailed his controversial
and revolutionary approach, which went beyond moral suasion (simply trying to
convince slaveholders to give up the evil of slavery using nonviolent means) to
“practical abolitionism,” which embraced civil disobedience and self-defense —
fighting injustices on the ground, in the street.
In July 1834, New York City’s simmering racial tensions burst into flame in
coordinated, widespread riots against blacks. Racist groups accelerated broader
battles to overpower and drive out the black community and silence abolitionists, especially religious leaders. Ruggles’s response to this kind of harsh racism
was to openly defy it by continuing — and escalating — his activities.
For example, undaunted by the riots, he continued to operate the bookstore
and antislavery circulating library that he had opened that spring on Lispenard
Street. His new store was the first black-owned bookshop in the United States. In addition to selling paper supplies and classics of the abolitionist movement, it also served as a printing, bookbinding, and letterpress shop, especially of abolitionist materials. Several incidents indicate the pressures Ruggles faced.
Anti-abolitionists published newspaper attacks against him. A mob organized in front of the shop on three different nights. When arsonists burned the store in 1835, Ruggles offered a reward for their arrest and quickly reopened his shop
and library.
In November 1835, Ruggles and four other men created the fabled New York
Committee of Vigilance. The nation’s first of its kind, the committee stated that
its mission was “practical abolition” — offering direct assistance to “protect unoffending, defenseless, and endangered persons of color, by securing their rights
as far as practicable.” The officers were a mix of blacks and whites and included
Ruggles, a restaurant owner, a broker, and two career abolitionists. Members
helped fugitive slaves obtain “such protections as the law will afford” — battling
kidnappers and providing practical support such as hiring lawyers for them.
Showing his immense courage, Ruggles boarded a ship in the New York harbor
to arrest its captain for carrying slaves. On another occasion, Ruggles boldly
marched into a private home in Brooklyn to inform the servants of the house that
they were being unlawfully held as slaves. The committee held meetings and rallies all over town that were attended by, and raised funds from, blacks and whites
alike to support their efforts. Ruggles also wrote a barrage of publications about
illegal kidnappings on the committee’s behalf.
A quintessential example of the committee’s activities was playing out just
as Ruggles took Frederick Douglass into his home in 1838. The Darg Case involved
a Virginia slaveholder, John Darg, whose slave, Thomas Hughes, escaped with
approximately $7,000 of his money during a trip they took to New York City and
sought refuge with a Committee of Vigilance member. In the ensuing battle for
Hughes’s freedom, Ruggles and his colleague Barney Corse convinced Darg to free
Hughes, provided that his money was returned. When the returned sum turned
out to be less than the original amount, Darg had Ruggles arrested for grand
larceny, and he was jailed for three days. In what became one of the most sensational antislavery cases of the 1830s, Ruggles represented himself during the trial,
making him one of the first blacks in U.S. history to act as a lawyer.
The Mirror of Liberty, which Ruggles published as the committee’s second annual report in 1839, is generally accepted as the first magazine produced by a black
American. The magazine consisted of reports of local cases, reviews, the Committee of Vigilance’s report, poetry, and an essay on women’s rights. Ruggles received
high praise for his new venture. The National Reformer of Philadelphia lauded him
as a “thorough-going abolitionist — one that works by day and by night, with his
hands, feet, and pen… He is the most successful, as well as the most inveterate
enemy of the slaveholder.” Ruggles’s name was rapidly spreading throughout the
North and the South.
Beyond his organizational and publishing activities, Ruggles engaged in bold,
confrontational acts of civil disobedience. For example, to protest that blacks were
News and views for the Colgate community
29
Ruggles engage d in bol d, co nfro n t a tio n al
acts o f ci vil diso b edien ce
During his most intensive period of activism in the 1830s, Ruggles created sinewy
networks of collaborators who built the Underground Railroad, which owes a
debt to him that its chroniclers have not recognized. His contacts, made as an
agent for the Liberator and Emancipator and as a participant in conventions,
knotted together the ties between the city and the upstate region.
In one notable instance, in October 1835, Ruggles was one of several black men
to answer the call to form a statewide movement. Organizers chose to hold the
first meeting of what would become the New York State Antislavery Society. It
was held in Utica to widen abolitionist appeals beyond New York City, and perhaps to entice greater involvement by abolitionist Gerrit Smith, a wealthy land
baron who lived about 20 miles southwest, in the village of Peterboro in Madison
County. (Just 13 miles from Colgate, Peterboro is now the site for the National
Abolition Hall of Fame.)
After opponents mustered opposition to the convention, an angry mob disrupted the ceremonies. The antislavery advocates had to abandon the city, and at
Smith’s invitation, reconvened in Peterboro. The affair increased Ruggles’s status
among upstate abolitionists and widened his circle of contacts; he met dozens
who would later become supporters of his efforts, people from upstate towns
such as Fayetteville, Warsaw, and New Hartford, and such counties as Ontario
and Jefferson, all hotbeds of antislavery petitioning and rallies. One such future
supporter present at the meeting was Abel Brown, a stalwart of the abolitionist
movement who had attended the institution that was to become Colgate University (see Abel Brown: Colgate’s Heroic Abolitionist, pg. 31).
By 1838, Ruggles’s home at 36 Lispenard Street had become the city’s central
depot for the systematic network of conductors, safe houses, and freedom destinations between New York City and rural upstate sites. Runaway slaves coming
north already knew or were quickly informed that his house was the most welcoming place in New York. Fugitives who stayed free as far as Philadelphia were
invariably directed there.
Among several major strands to his network, in Albany, N.Y., movement stalwarts like Brown ensured that freedom-seekers received a warm welcome. They
could also find succor traveling through the Catskill Region into the Chenango
Valley and the home of Gerrit Smith in Peterboro and then farther north. In
numerous small towns, armed with a letter from Ruggles, they quickly found
warm hearts who would help out on the way to free soil. As an indicator of the
receptivity to his message, Ruggles received testimonials for his magazine from
supporters in such rural towns as Cazenovia, N.Y. One may easily surmise that the
commendations were implicit promises to harbor freedom-seekers sent their way
from New York City.
Every aspect of his work took a physical toll on Ruggles. Barely scraping out a
living, constantly in debt, working countless hours, and traveling in substandard conditions — not to mention several physical altercations in which he was
seriously injured — by 1839, he was nearly blind and suffered terrible digestive
problems.
Through his connections with Lydia Maria Child, a children’s book writer who
became an abolitionist and the first female editor of a newspaper, The National
Antislavery Standard, in 1841 he moved to the budding antislavery stronghold of
Northampton, Mass., to join the communitarian society there.
Weary and in great pain, Ruggles determined to try a new medical treatment
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scene: Winter 2011
called hydrotherapy, or water cure. The rigors of hydropathical methods included
endless baths, full body wraps in cold sheets, and bandaging, all of which demanded substantial inner strength and endurance. After months of treatment, he
experienced relief from his ailments. Convinced of the powers of the water cure,
he undertook the training to become a hydrotherapist himself, and soon, he was
known and respected as Dr. Ruggles, treating blacks and whites alike.
One of his first patients was Sojourner Truth, who entered his clinic in 1845.
Not yet known as an orator, Truth was seriously ill and close to becoming an
invalid. Ruggles treated her for a variety of ailments. Around that time, Frederick
Douglass, with whom Ruggles had kept up a correspondence, visited Northampton, where he was pleased to find his old benefactor.
Eventually, Ruggles borrowed money to set up a water-cure hospital. For the final few years of his life, he ran the hospital (Garrison once came to him for treatment there), while continuing to create an abolitionist community in Northampton to match the one he had left behind in New York City, as well as keeping up
his writings (with the help of a scribe).
Unfortunately, the water cure only worked so well, and Ruggles’s health began
to rapidly deteriorate. As he lay suffering, in addition to a Bible, Bunyan’s Pilgrim’s
Progress, Macauley’s History of England, and a history of the Mexican War by
his bedside, sat the biography of abolitionist Abel Brown, his old friend from the
Underground Railroad days in New York State. His mother and sister came to
Northampton to care for him, to no avail. Ruggles died on December 16, 1849, at
the age of 39. He had given his body as well as his career to the movement.
David Ruggles, who held a transformational role in the band of outsiders reformulating the ideology of abolitionism in the 1830s, is important today for many
reasons. By responding to the anguished cries of black New York families whose
loved ones were being kidnapped and sold into slavery, he pushed the abolitionist
movement into a more radical, confrontational stance. His insistence that a person attacked by slave catchers and kidnappers had the local right to resist “unto
death” opened the door to violent resistance in the 1840s and 1850s and led to the
devastating battle against slavery and white supremacy that shook our nation to
its very roots in the 1860s.
Consciously crossing racial and gender lines to bring more Americans into the
battle, he created a substantial network of Underground Railroad activists whose
efforts benefitted hundreds of self-emancipated people. A pioneering journalist, his articles, pamphlets, and magazines demonstrated the power of literacy
against evil. Above all, he showed that the spirit of liberty resides in the hearts of
all Americans, regardless of race, creed, or gender.
Postscript
In September, David Ruggles: A Radical Black Abolitionist and the Underground Railroad in
New York City by Graham Hodges, from which this article was adapted, was awarded the
2010 Hortense Simmons Prize for the Advancement of Knowledge by the Underground
Railroad Free Press, the highest honor bestowed in the international Underground Railroad
community. Hodges is the George Dorland Langdon Jr. Professor of history and Africana and
Latin American studies. From June 26 to July 22, 2011, he will direct a Teachers’ Institute on
Abolitionism and the Underground Railroad at Colgate for the National Endowment for the
Humanities (for details, visit colgate.edu/abolitionism/hodges).
Images ©2010 by the University of North Carolina Press. Used by permission of the
publisher. David Ruggles portrait (pg. 26) courtesy of the Negro Almanac Collection,
Amistad Research Center, Tulane University. Other portraits include William Lloyd
Garrison, Frederick Douglass (both collection of the author), Sojourner Truth (courtesy
of the American Antiquarian Society), James W.C. Pennington (courtesy of the
Division of Rare and Manuscript Collections, Cornell University Library),
Lydia Maria Child (Library of Congress)
In a letter to his sister, Brown described the
students’ routine as rising at 4:30 a.m., and assembling at chapel at 5:00 for prayers. Breakfast
at 6:30 featured porridge and bread. There was
meat, sauce, and bread for dinner; one could
choose between meat and butter. Afternoon tea
included cold water, bread, and butter (self-denial
helped withstand the temptations of sin and of
Satan, he said).
Brown and his fellow students primarily analyzed the Bible. An extremely devout young man,
he considered the ability to read the New Testament in Greek a standard skill, writing, “There is
an excellence in the Scriptures discernable only
to those who possess the spirit of their Author.”
Despite that claim, Brown’s professors found him
deficient in languages, and he was admonished to
work harder. It seems his activities as a prominent
campus exhorter and conductor of numerous
Sunday schools in Madison County were drawing
his attention away from his studies. Soon, Brown’s
Anti-Slavery Society in 1834, and, noting that the
professors had visited Southern Baptist conventions, accused them of putting worldly gain and
seeking the support of Southern Baptists ahead
of free speech on campus. He complained that
“The Institution courts the support of Slaveholders and their apologists,” and that the professors
“neglect to cry against the sin of slaveholding.”
In his book A History of Colgate University,
Howard Williams ’30 argues that the faculty had
been drawn into the antislavery movement much
against their will. Although opposed to slavery,
Abel Brown (1810-1844) was a passionate
Baptist minister, abolitionist, and active conductor on the Underground Railroad in upstate New
York. Born in Springfield, Mass., his family moved
when he was 11 to Hamilton, N.Y. There, he grew
to be a sturdy, friendly young fellow, and an enthusiastic sportsman and dancer, with a keen eye
for business. According to the Colgate Student
Register, Brown was admitted on Oct. 25, 1831, to
the Preparatory Course of the Hamilton Literary
and Theological Institution, as Colgate was then
called. He (among other students) applied for
“indulgence in the payment of their expenses.”
Brown’s reasons were “no funds his Father poor.”
The school responded positively to this early
request for financial aid; Brown is listed in the
catalogues for 1832-1833 and 1833-1834.
Collection of the author
not allowed to ride on streetcars, he would board them and refuse to get off.
When conductors threw him off, he would file an arrest suit. After a series of similar incidents that he and others instigated on railroads, the railroad companies
had to change their policies. These activities served to make practical changes in
people’s lives.
presence on campus became spotty due to his
constant traveling to large religious rallies around
the Northeast.
Brown left the institution in April 1834 with
an honorable dismissal but without a diploma.
By then, he had become a licensed minister and
itinerated around New York State, preaching the
gospel mixed with rebukes of his auditors about
“gambling, whiskey making, and other public sins.”
His preaching style offended one doctor in Westfield, N.Y., who publicly struck Brown 30 times
with a rawhide whip for allegedly slandering him.
Brown knelt in prayer during the attack as “Christ
held my spirit,” then returned home to pray for the
doctor.
Influenced by his studies and by abolitionist
Gerrit Smith of Peterboro, Brown turned increasingly to abolitionism and included attacks on
slavery in his sermons. He intended to cleanse
the Baptist church of the sin of slaveholding and
attacked the Southern Baptist Church for “holding property in slaves, buy and sell men of the
spirit of gain — even Baptists sell Baptists — part
husband and wife — parent and child…,” he said.
In 1837, Brown’s crusade took him back to his
old school, when, to the dismay of the faculty, he
gave a speech advising members of the senior
class to leave the college immediately or risk
sustaining slavery. Brown angrily denounced
reports that the faculty had dissolved a student
ABEL BROWN: COLGATE’S
HEROIC ABOLITIONIST
Williams contends, the faculty considered radical
abolitionists extreme and fanatical. Fearful of
the disturbance that agitation might raise among
the students, they “resolutely checked student
enthusiasm in this direction.”
Looking at Brown’s involvement gives a
new perspective on this fascinating episode. A
contemporary observer, Brown was accusing the
faculty of quiescence in the face of evil. Brown’s
appeal may have had some effect on the student
body. In April/May of 1837, the faculty reprimanded some students for leaving the term early
without permission. When they returned, they
were asked to give reasons for their departure,
which the faculty found to be unsatisfactory.
Although the exact reasons were not recorded in
the minutes, one could hypothesize that the students’ departures were a result of Brown’s work.
In June, the faculty moved to disassociate the
student Anti-Slavery Society from the institution,
and any students who retained ties to the society
were barred from attending classes until they
ceased their association with it.
After this encounter with his former school,
Brown became a full-time anti-slavery itinerant
speaker, traveling in Pennsylvania, then moving
east to Northampton, Mass., where he became
associated with the radical abolitionist Charles
Torrey. The pair moved to Albany, N.Y., and
entered Liberty Party politics. Brown founded
a militant abolitionist newspaper, The Tocsin of
Liberty, which openly proclaimed Underground
Railroad activities. With a network of conductors,
Brown created the Eastern New York Anti-Slavery
Society, which, with David Ruggles’s New York
Committee of Vigilance, coordinated the passage
to freedom for fugitive slaves coming up from the
South through New York City.
Brown worked closely with Henry Highland
Garnet, a major black abolitionist, and with
Charles B. Ray, also a longtime friend and supporter of Ruggles and, after 1839, the new head
of the vigilance committee. Brown kept up a frenetic pace, lecturing around the East and Midwest
against slavery, helping fugitives gain freedom,
and editing his newspaper. While on a speaking
tour in central New York with James Baker, a
fugitive slave and lecturer, Brown was caught in
a harsh November storm, contracted meningitis,
and died on November 8, 1844. He left a second
wife, who organized his letters into a memoir, and
two young sons.
Brown is buried in Canandaigua, N.Y. The
American Freeman, an abolitionist newspaper
in Wisconsin, memorialized him as “exhibit[ing]
a spirit that would not rest while so much was at
stake and so much required to be done.” The newspaper credited Brown with assisting more than
1,000 fugitive slaves who sought freedom. Today,
Colgate University can salute its most heroic
abolitionist. — G. Hodges
Sources: C.S. Brown, ed., Memoir of Rev. Abel Brown;
Tom Calarco, ed., People of the Underground Railroad:
A Biographical Dictionary; Student Register 1818-1856
and Faculty Minutes 1832-1836, Colgate University
Archives; Records of the Baptist Education Society of
the State of New York 1830-1839
News and views for the Colgate community
31
Beyond
The events of September 11, 2001, took Susan Retik Ger ’90 from
Needham, Mass., to Kabul, Afghanistan, to the U.S. White House.
This is the story of how she has turned a tragedy in her life into
an opportunity to improve the lives of others.
By Aleta Mayne
Speaking on her cell phone in Boston’s Logan International Airport, Susan Retik Ger ’90 is about to
board a plane to Pittsburgh. There, she will attend a
public screening of Beyond Belief, the documentary
about how she has reached out to help widows in
Afghanistan after losing her own husband in the
9/11 terrorist attacks.
Rewind to September 11, 2001. Susan’s husband,
David Retik ’90, was in the same airport, on his cell
phone, saying goodbye to Susan before boarding
American Airlines Flight 11. After hanging up, David
boarded the plane and took his seat in the first row
of first class. As the 33-year-old prepared for his business meeting in Los Angeles, another 33-year-old,
with much different intentions, was seated across
the aisle. Mohamed Atta, the Egyptian-born terrorist who would become known as the ringleader of
the World Trade Center attacks, was getting ready to
hijack the Boeing 767 and fly it into the North Tower.
As the subsequent events affected people the
world over, Susan’s life was turned upside down and
set on a new course.
Susan Zalesne and David Retik had met as Colgate first-years at a party in their dorm, Andrews
Hall. “I thought David was adorable the minute I met
him,” she recalled. “I remember thinking, if I made a
checklist of everything I wanted in a person, he had
it all.” She even called her mom and told her, “I think I
met the man I want to marry.” But, both were seeing
other people at the time. It wasn’t until the end of
their sophomore year that Susan started thinking of
furthering their friendship. Knowing they were both
32
scene: Winter 2011
going abroad the following year, she decided that as
soon as they came back to campus, she was going to
ask him out. That very first week of their senior year,
Susan bumped into David at the annual town-gown
barbecue on the Village Green. When he said he was
going to the library, she asked for a ride.
“Mind you, I had no reason to go to the library — I
had no book, no pencil, nothing,” she said, laughing.
“Over the course of that half-mile ride, I managed to
stutter out, ‘Do you want to go out with me sometime?’” He said yes, and as soon as they got to the
library, Susan ran to the pay phones to call her mom
with the news. David called her soon afterward
to ask her to dinner and a movie, and they were a
couple from then on.
Following graduation, Susan and David moved
separately to New York, where she got a job at
Scholastic in educational publishing and he went to
work for Ernst & Young in a program that enabled
him to simultaneously earn his master’s at New York
University. In 1993, David was offered a job with
the venture capital firm Burr, Egan, Deleage & Co. in
Boston. He asked Susan to move with him, so they
relocated to Brookline, Mass. Two years later, they
got married, and their son, Benjamin, was born in
1997. After moving to Needham, Mass., and the birth
of their daughter Molly in 1999, Susan quit her job at
Houghton Mifflin to be a stay-at-home mom. David
had become a founding partner at Alta Communications, a successor firm to his previous company.
Having built their dream life together, the Retiks
were expecting their third child when David boarded
Flight 11 for that business trip. At 8:46 a.m., their
lives would forever change. Seven months pregnant,
Image courtesy of Principle Pictures
the 11th
From left: Susan Retik Ger ’90 and Patti Quigley visiting
with widows in Afghanistan.
Susan was in her car running errands when she
turned off the children’s music and heard the NPR
reports. “As I was driving, it just became more clear
that there was a possibility this was Dave’s plane,”
she remembered. Susan returned home to look at
David’s itinerary, and knew in that moment when
she confirmed his flight number.
“I remember thinking, I can’t wait until my
mom gets here,” Susan recalled in the beginning
of Beyond Belief. “I just felt like then it would all be
OK. And I remember, she came and I got up to give
her a hug, and I realized, it’s not OK, she can’t make
it better.” Susan’s family and David’s parents came
to help with the children so that she could have
time to grieve. Numerous friends, neighbors, and
total strangers from around the world showed their
support — her mailbox overflowed with cards and
letters, and quilts and toys for her children were left
on her doorstep.
“Life was such a haze back then,” she said. Typical
of her type-A personality, Susan kept busy, partly as
a means of coping. Baby Dina (named after David)
was born on November 19. As if a newborn didn’t
present enough challenges, in January, Susan got the
family a puppy. “I never stopped,” she admitted.
In the ensuing months, as the United States
prepared to invade Afghanistan in retaliation for
the World Trade Center attacks, the news became
inundated with stories about the Afghan people.
Watching the coverage, as a recent widow herself,
Susan was overcome by the hardships that Afghan
women face.
“I just could not imagine living in Afghanistan
and having the same thing happen to me — losing my husband and not being able to support my
children, not knowing where the next meal was
going to come from,” she said. “Even though [losing
David] was so devastating, from what I was reading and seeing on TV, I realized I was still one of the
lucky ones. You look at those women begging on
the streets, covered in burqas, not allowed to go to
school, not allowed to work, and I just realized, we
are so lucky to be born in the United States with all
these freedoms.”
That comparison of her life to the lives of widows in Afghanistan inspired her to create Beyond
the 11th, a nonprofit organization with a twofold
mission: to fundraise for partner nongovernmental organizations that give Afghan
women the opportunity to learn a trade
and become self-sufficient, and to raise
awareness for the plight of those women.
Today, there are approximately two million Afghan widows, who are “stripped of
whatever resources and respect they had
when they were married,” according to
Beyondthe11th.org. Approximately 94 percent are illiterate; their average income is
$16 per month, versus $46 for male-headed
households in the country. According to a 2006
UNIFEM survey, 65 percent of the 50,000 widows
in Kabul “see suicide as the only option to get rid of
their miseries and desolation.”
Beyond the 11th started with a friendship. In February, Susan met another woman widowed on 9/11,
Patti Quigley, who lived in nearby Wellesley. Mutual
acquaintances had suggested that Susan and Patti
get together because they were both pregnant when
their husbands were murdered. In addition to their
shared experience, their personalities clicked, and
they became instant friends. “Susan has this energy
that, as soon as you meet her, you know exactly
where she stands, and I love that,” Patti said in Beyond Belief.
Not long after their friendship began, Susan approached Patti with an idea: to reach out to Afghan
widows. At first, she wanted to help just one or
two women. “It was never my intention to start a
nonprofit,” she explained. “My whole idea was to
help one family the way so many people have helped
me … to make one woman’s life easier so she doesn’t
have to worry about feeding her kids and providing
shelter and clothing, so that she can focus on raising
her kids and grieving.” Susan also wanted to make
a connection. “I wanted to reach out and say, ‘This
is who I am — who are you? Let’s learn about each
other.’ Because I didn’t hate them, and I didn’t think
they hated me.” The pair quickly realized that the
amount of money they each contributed would help
many more than just one or two Afghan women.
They threw themselves into researching Afghanistan and learning how to establish a nonprofit. It
was a welcome distraction for both. “My motto is,
the busier you are, the less you have to think,” Susan
said, adding, “which has served me really well in
certain ways, and not as well in others — because
“I wanted to reach out and say,
‘This is who I am — who are you?
Let’s learn about each other.’ Because
I didn’t hate them, and I didn’t think
they hated me.” — Susan Retik Ger ’90
eventually you have to take the time to think about
everything that’s going on.”
While developing Beyond the 11th, Susan also
dedicated her time as a board member of the Retik
Mello Foundation, which was established in memory
of David and his colleague Christopher Mello, who
also was on Flight 11. In June of 2002, she organized
the David Retik Fathers’ Day Fun Run and Walk
to raise money for the foundation, which funds
nonprofit programs in education and athletics. The
event, which that year attracted 1,000 people and
raised $45,000, was something Susan continued for
five years.
News and views for the Colgate community
33
34
scene: Winter 2011
Left: Susan with the daughters of a widow who participated
in CARE’s poultry-rearing program. Middle: Sahera, a widow
with whom Susan formed a close bond. Right: Last fall,
Susan was awarded the 2010 Presidential Citizens Medal.
President Barack Obama. She was awarded the 2010
Presidential Citizens Medal, the nation’s secondhighest civilian honor.
“No one would have blamed Susan if she turned
inward with grief or anger, but that’s not who she
is,” Obama told the crowd at the ceremony for the 13
award winners.
“To think that the president of the United States
knows my name and my work, it was unbelievable,”
Susan gushed.
True to her character, she made sure to shift the
focus back to the women she’s helping. In a White
House interview after receiving the award, she said,
“It’s an incredible honor, but I hope that some of the
light shed on Beyond the 11th’s work will transfer
over to the women in Afghanistan. They’re really
the ones who need all of the attention right now. We
can’t leave them behind; we need to remember that
we need to work really hard for them.”
Getty Images/Win McNamee
Afghanistan and here in the United States. If these
widows have the opportunity to learn about us and
we about them, we can begin to learn the truth
about one another. We feel if we can teach love and
kindness as opposed to teaching hatred, that is the
way terrorism will end.”
Susan and Patti also started training for their
largest fundraiser yet: a three-day, 275-mile bike ride
from Ground Zero to the Massachusetts 9/11 Memorial in Boston Public Garden. They set out September
9, 2004, and raised $140,000. The bike ride, which
Susan has continued over the years in different iterations, highlights another striking comparison. “Here,
I can say, I’m going to ride a bike from New York
to Boston — and I didn’t even own a bike,” Susan
said. “In Afghanistan, boys and men ride bikes, but
women aren’t allowed to.”
Just a few weeks before the 2004 bike ride, a
documentarian named Beth Murphy heard about it.
As chair of the board of the International Institute of
Boston, a group that helps immigrants and refugees,
Murphy was beckoned by the women’s story. “Not
only did I think it was a story that needed to be told,
but I also wanted to be the one to tell it,” she said.
Initially, Susan hesitated to participate because she
didn’t think anyone would be interested. But, as
Murphy said, “It was very clear to me from the outset what the film would be: that we would have an
appreciation for what had happened to them, share
the kinship they were feeling with Afghan widows,
and ultimately travel with them to Afghanistan as
they meet the women they were helping.” Although
a trip to Afghanistan was not yet planned, “they
had always expressed to me not just a desire to go,
but also feeling a real need to go there,” Murphy
explained.
“No one would have blamed Susan if she
turned inward with grief or anger, but that’s not who she is.” — President Barack Obama
Image courtesy of Principle Pictures
In the fall of 2003, Beyond the 11th became official. Shortly afterward, Susan faced one of those
times when she was forced to think about what
she’d been avoiding. David’s remains had been
found, and although the family had a memorial
service after 9/11, they could now hold his funeral, in
Wayland, Mass. “It was horrible,” was all she would
say in a recent interview. Afterward, Susan and her
family traveled to Colgate, where a new gateway
to Van Doren Field was being dedicated in honor of
David and two other soccer alumni who perished in
the attacks, Todd Pelino ’89 and Scott Coleman ’94.
For the next year, Susan and Patti focused on
refining the mission of their organization and
fundraising. “We realized we didn’t want to recreate
the wheel; there are some fabulous NGOs that do
great work in Afghanistan, so we had to learn about
them,” Susan explained. They decided to partner
with CARE International, a humanitarian organization that works to fight global poverty, and Women
for Women International, which assists female
survivors of war. Both organizations were already
providing aid in Afghanistan, so Beyond the 11th
worked with them to create programs tailored to the
needs of widows.
Susan and Patti also devoted their time to the second aspect of their mission: educating the American
public about the plight of Afghan widows through
various media outlets and speaking engagements.
In one scene in Beyond Belief, they’re shown at the
Lowell (Mass.) Police Academy.
“I have tried to turn this into something other
than hatred,” Patti told the cadets. Susan added, “Not
only would we like to help these widows with their
basic necessities, we hope to undo, if even a small
bit, some of the hatred that has been learned both in
are scarce. “Women aren’t even supposed to go to a
male doctor, but there are so few women doctors in
Afghanistan because under the Taliban, educated
people fled for fear of being persecuted,” Susan said.
“Their choices are so difficult.”
With an appreciable gumption, Susan has made
the most of the freedom with which she has been
blessed. Her work has attracted the attention of
Oprah Winfrey, has been written about in numerous publications including the New York Times and
Boston Globe, and last August was recognized by
stepped down in 2005, but she still devotes time to
causes benefiting Afghanistan and the two are still
close friends.
Over the years, Susan has significantly expanded
Beyond the 11th, which now has given out more than
$600,000 in grants. The organization currently partners with four NGOs that empower Afghan women
and has begun sponsoring a microfinance program.
As part of her goal to educate people about the
cause, she does speaking engagements (she recently
spoke at a mosque for the first time and raised
$11,000 there) and travels to
some of the public screenings of Beyond Belief (one
will be at the Hamilton Theater this February). “The core
message I hope people walk
away with is, we are all
one,” Susan said. “It doesn’t
matter what religion you are, or what country you’re
born in. Pain is pain, no matter if your husband is
killed here in the United States, or in Afghanistan.”
The differences in cultures do, at times, present
challenges for Susan’s work with Beyond the 11th,
because she must operate within the confines of the
limitations placed on Afghan women. “It’s difficult
because there are so many fabulous business ideas
out there, so many wonderful things that they could
do to earn money, but there are constraints,” she
said; noting, for example, that women mostly have
to work from home.
It’s also frustrating for Susan to know that Afghan
women can’t enjoy many of the personal freedoms
she has. For example, while Susan is happily remarried and has added to her family, if Afghan widows
remarry, they must leave their children behind with
their first husband’s family. Many choose poverty so
their children can stay with them.
And while Susan is grateful for her Colgate degree, educational opportunities for Afghan women
the eggs and have some for their families. While in
Afghanistan, Susan and Patti assessed the program.
“We learned what worked and what didn’t and what
we could do to change it,” Susan said. “Originally, the
women got fifteen chickens, but they needed more
in case some got sick or didn’t produce as many
eggs. With our next round of grants, we were able to
change it to fifty.”
Before departing for Afghanistan, Susan had
said she believed their trip would be successful if
she could find a true connection with at least one
woman. She did form a bond — with a woman
named Sahera, who voiced her story in Beyond Belief.
Sahera explained that her in-laws forced her to wear
a burqa in public, even though she couldn’t see out
of it and it made her dizzy.
On a return trip to Afghanistan in 2009, Murphy
tracked down Sahera to deliver a video message
from Susan. When Murphy found her, she was “so
excited” to see that Sahera was not wearing a burqa.
Sahera’s life had changed, and so had Susan’s. She
had found love again. When Susan returned from
Afghanistan, the man she had been dating, Donald Ger, proposed. The couple was married seven
months later and welcomed baby Rebecca into their
family in 2008. Via video, Susan shared her good
news with Sahera. In return, Sahera recorded a video
message for Murphy to take back to Susan. Sahera
told her that because of the poultry program, she
was able to sell the chickens to buy fabric and support her family by sewing for women in her village.
“The bond that we have is not typical,” Sahera told
her. “We are not just two people who have met. We
are like sisters. I hope that we will meet again.” “It’s really difficult to stay in touch,” Susan explained recently. “But I know she’ll be a part of my
life in some way for many years to come, regardless
of how often we actually communicate.”
Today, Susan continues her full-time job as a
mom and running Beyond the 11th on her own. Patti
Courtesy of Susan Retik Ger ’90
Image courtesy of Principle Pictures
Afghan widows wait in line to receive rations of basic necessities such as cooking oil, flour, beans, and salt.
Filming began on what would become the
award-winning Principle Pictures film Beyond Belief.
The emotional and, at times, chilling documentary
follows Susan and Patti from their 2004 departure
from Ground Zero on their bikes, to the planning of
their Afghanistan trip, to their 2006 journey across
the globe to meet the women they were helping.
About a year and a half into filming, the project
almost took a different direction when there was
a question about whether or not the trip would
happen. Their main point of contact in Afghanistan,
CARE employee Clementina Cantoni, was kidnapped
at gunpoint and held hostage by a gang in Kabul. “As
soon as I heard this, my initial reaction was, I’m not
going, forget it, this is crazy — they’re targeting aid
workers,” Susan said.
“My first thought was, I was nervous because of
the kids, and my second thought was, we don’t need
any more losses,” echoed David’s mother, Lynn.
Protesting Cantoni’s capture, Afghan widows
filled the streets of Kabul. For women who generally
don’t have a voice and rarely even defend themselves, their signs and shouts of protest on behalf of
Cantoni spoke volumes. After a month, Cantoni was
freed.
Eight months later, Susan and Patti realized they
both still wanted to go. Plans for the trip resumed.
Arriving in Kabul on May 10, 2006, they were
aghast by what they saw. Despite their research
and their preparation for the trip — like shopping
for culturally appropriate clothing — the reality of
Afghanistan troubled them. “We had seen so many
images on TV of women in burqas and begging on
the street, so you think you’re prepared for it, but …
you looked around and everywhere there seemed to
be someone in need,” Susan said.
Traveling through the infrastructure of their
partner NGOs, the women met the widows they
were helping and got a glimpse of their daily lives.
A particularly unsettling scene shows a sea of blue
burqas as approximately 500 widows stand in the
hot sun waiting in line for their rations. They also
visited the widows’ one-room houses, which had no
furniture, no running water, and no electricity. “This
is poverty with a capital P,” Susan said.
Gathering in a small room packed with widows
all sitting on the floor, they listened to them tell of
their tribulations. “I want to thank my sisters for
helping us so much,” one woman told them. “I’ve had
a terrible life. A lot of my children have died from
starvation. I wish you could have come earlier so
my children wouldn’t have died. They went in the
ground hungry.”
Another widow told them how an American
bomb killed her husband and fractured her daughter’s skull and blinded her.
“Before we met you, we wanted to help you —
now that we’ve met you, we really want to help
you,” Susan told the group. “We will tell your stories
when we go home, and we will continue to help support you.”
One of their income-generating initiatives is a
poultry-rearing program in which they provide widows with chickens and feed to enable them to sell
News and views for the Colgate community
35
Modernism at the Fringes
Herbert Mayer ’29 and the
World House Galleries
By Mary Ann Calo
What happens when powerful art is set in a rural
but intellectually ambitious surrounding?
Herbert Mayer ’29, a longtime art collector and
New York City gallery owner, believed that just such
a juxtaposition might lead to a more sincere experience of art. During the ’50s and ’60s, Mayer partnered with Colgate to put that theory into action,
and he left a significant legacy to the university and
the community. From February to June of this year,
an exhibition at the Picker Art Gallery as well as a
substantive catalogue with several essays on Mayer
and the arts at Colgate celebrate that story.
Mayer had been an enthusiastic student of the
humanities at Colgate. An English major, he edited
the Willow Path literary magazine, and graduated
Phi Beta Kappa. He had originally planned to become
a playwright, but the travails of the Great Depression
led him to something more financially promising:
the law program at the University of Wisconsin.
He practiced law in New York City until the early
1940s, when a new technology captured his imagination: television. Mayer first opened a demonstration theater and began selling television sets. In
1944, he quit practicing law and founded the Empire
Coil Company, which manufactured RF coils for
televisions and licensed television stations. Then, in
1949, Mayer opened a station in Cleveland, Ohio —
WXEL — whose first broadcast was a Metropolitan
Opera production. Drawing on his literary talents,
he created a station mascot called Little Ajax the
Elephant, and wrote a children’s book about him.
Mayer went on to build the first UHF station in
Portland, Ore., in 1952, as well as a station in Kansas
City before leaving television to enter the world of
art full time. He had developed a passion for art back
when he graduated from Colgate and toured Europe
with English professor Russell Speirs, including four
months in Paris — “almost all of it in the Louvre,” as
he told the Scene in 1987.
In 1957, Mayer opened his own art gallery, which
he called World House Galleries, in the Carlyle Hotel
on Madison Avenue in New York City. His goal was
36
scene: Winter 2011
to present works of art that “express the thinking
and feeling of contemporary artists everywhere —
wherever unusual talent is discovered,” thus bringing a global focus to the New York City art scene. His
collaborator in that endeavor was another Colgate
professor with whom he had remained close, Alfred
Krakusin, who served as gallery adviser. Together,
the pair traveled the world looking for new and
exciting art. During those trips, Mayer also began
to build what would become a substantial personal
art collection that came to include pieces by lesserknown and also renowned artists such as Chagall,
Rodin, and Brancusi. Mayer and Krakusin also
worked together in a business enterprise in Hamilton called Sculptura, which produced bronze casts of
ancient statuary and plaques that were then sold at
World House Galleries.
Mayer and Krakusin’s partnership soon made a
strong impact on the Colgate campus. Between 1956
and 1962, they arranged many exhibitions of works
from both World House Galleries and Mayer’s personal collection. Held in the small space sometimes
referred to as the “Little Gallery” in the basement of
Lawrence Hall, many of these shows were used as
teaching resources in Core 21 and fine arts courses.
The exhibitions were often mounted immediately
before or after their New York openings.
Through those installations, the campus community was able to enjoy and study an extraordinary
array of original works of art in a program that rivaled
that of major metropolitan spaces. Mayer commented to the Colgate Maroon in 1959 that he was
motivated by his curiosity about the effect these
works might have when seen in the isolated, rural
setting of a university. Recalling his own enthusiasm
for the humanities while a student, Mayer said he
wondered if the experience had equipped him with
a receptivity to works of art that, while naive, was
decidedly different from that of the average urbanite
accustomed to seeing art in professional galleries.
In 1958, Mayer donated a work of art to Colgate,
beginning a string of gifts to his alma mater over
three decades. The largest, nearly 2,000 paintings,
sculptures, and works on paper, came to campus in
Simon Hantaï (1922–2008), No. 5, 1957,
Acrylic solution on canvas, 70 x 119 x 1/16 in
News and views for the Colgate community
37
1967, shortly after Mayer announced he would be closing World House Galleries. That gift became the core
of the collection for what would soon be known as the
Picker Art Gallery.
These activities coincided with a period of extraordinary growth in the arts on campus, not only with the
building of the Dana Arts Center and greater emphasis
on art in the curriculum, but also with a surge of student-initiated organizations and events, including two
major arts festivals (see pg. 13 for more). Alumni interest
in the arts was on the rise as well. In 1961, “The Fine Arts
and Literature,” a program that placed Colgate professors and alumni in panel discussions and seminars
about contemporary art, served as the very first Alumni
College program during Reunion Weekend — the intellectual sessions we know today as Reunion College.
Mayer continued to donate his artworks until the
mid-1980s, and Colgate awarded him a Maroon Citation
in 1984. He died in 1991, survived by his wife, Bet, five
children, and several grandchildren.
The 2011 Picker exhibition, which will feature 40
pieces and opens on February 15, has its own fascinating backstory that confirms the significance of Mayer’s
art-collecting activities and his legacy to Colgate. Back
in 2007, I proposed an exhibition of 20th-century Italian
art from the Mayer collection. With the help of a Colgate
Research Council Grant, I hired art history student
Gillian Pistell ’08 as a research assistant on the project.
We soon discovered that Mayer’s son Herbert Jr. had
recently donated all the original documents related to
World House Galleries to the Archives of American Art
at the Smithsonian Institution. That summer, we traveled together to Washington and examined the gallery
records.
Such a treasure trove of materials made it possible
to expand the scope of the exhibition — and enabled
me to write the history of World House Galleries and of
Mayer’s relationship to Colgate that became the principal essays of the exhibition catalogue. Also included are
an essay by art and art history professor Bob McVaugh
about the radical designs of both Mayer’s gallery in
New York and the Dana Arts Center (home of Colgate’s
Picker Art Gallery), and an essay about the objects in
the Mayer collection by exhibition curator Joachim
Homann.
As the catalogue points out, several of the artists in
the collection are little known in the United States but
are celebrated figures in their own countries; as such,
they present valuable opportunities for original student
research. The pedagogical value and importance of this
collection has already been demonstrated by teaching
and research that focuses on the extraordinary collection of Australian aboriginal children’s drawings that
were part of Mayer’s gift. Now, Mayer’s legacy will
continue not only through this and future exhibitions,
but also as a learning resource on campus. 1. Luis Moyano (1929–1965)
Horizontal Rose, ca. 1954
Oil on canvas
26 x 23 1/2 in
2. Paul Klee (1879–1940)
Pierrette, 1937
Oil on paper mounted on masonite
11 5/8 x 8 in
3. Gustavo Foppiani (1925–1986)
Storia Di Uccelli (Story of Birds),
1956
Mixed media on plywood
17 x 8 1/4 in
9. Untitled, Bernard Reder
4. Bruno Saetti (1902–1984)
Landscape and Sun, 1955
Oil on canvas
32 x 25 5/8 in
5. Simon Hantaï (1922–2008)
No. 2, 1958
Oil on canvas
39 1/2 x 32 in
4. Landscape and Sun, Bruno Saetti
1. Horizontal Rose, Luis Moyano
6. Lee Gatch (1902–1968)
Bovine Tapestry, 1958
Oil and canvas collage
19 5/8 x 35 5/8 in
7. Simon Hantaï (1922–2008)
No. 4 (Un Visiteur Tardis), 1950
Oil with acrylic solution on canvas
36 3/4 x 35 x 2 in
7. No. 4 (Un Visiteur Tardis), Simon Hantaï
10. Down to Drink, Parnell Dempster
8. Arturo Carmassi (b. 1925)
Monferrato in Autunno, 1957
Oil on canvas
31 1/2 x 39 3/8 in
9. Bernard Reder (1897–1963)
Untitled, 1953
Gouache
19 x 29 1/2 in
2. Pierrette, Paul Klee
10. Parnell Dempster (1936–2000)
Down to Drink, ca. 1949
Pastel
22 13/16 x 29 15/16 in
3. Storia Di Uccelli (Story of Birds), Gustavo Foppiani
11. Yiannis Spyropoulos (1912–
1990)
In Grey Tones‑Athens, 1960
Oil on paper
39 x 22 in
5. No. 2, Simon Hantaï
8. Monferrato in Autunno, Arturo Carmassi
Modernism at the Fringes will be on view at the
Picker Art Gallery February 15 – July 15. For more
information, visit http://picker.colgate.edu.
11. In Grey Tones‑Athens, Yiannis Spyropoulos
6. Bovine Tapestry, Lee Gatch
38
scene: Winter 2011
News and views for the Colgate community
39
12. Fermín Aguayo (1926–1977)
Les Blés (The Wheat), 1956
Oil on canvas
39 1/2 x 20 in
13. Nikos Nikolaou (1909–1986)
Two Figures with Bird, ca. 1956
Tempera on paper
21 3/16 x 36 5/8 in
14. Yiannis Spyropoulos (1912–
1990)
Sunday Afternoon, 1955
Oil on canvas
27 1/2 x 35 1/2 in
15. Renato Borsato (b. 1927)
La Casa Rosa, ca. 1953
Oil on canvas
28 3/4 x 39 1/2 in
12. Les Blés (The Wheat), Fermín Aguayo
16. Albert Chubac (1925–2008)
Composition, 1959
Collage on paper
25 1/2 x 19 3/4 in
17. Eugene Gabritschevsky (1893–
1979)
Theatrical Houses, ca. 1955
Gouache
18 x 21 1/4 in
15. La Casa Rosa, Renato Borsato
18. Riccardo Licata (b. 1929)
Composition #20, ca. 1942
Etching
20 x 14 in
19. Alexandre Istrati (1915–1991)
Red and Orange, 1958
Oil on canvas
9 3/8 x 12 7/8 in
18. Composition #20, Riccardo Licata
20. Albert Chubac (1925–2008)
Untitled, 1957
Gouache on paper
17 1/4 x 13 1/4 in
13. Two Figures with Bird, Nikos Nikolaou
21. Mohan Samant (1926–2004)
Untitled, 1964
Mixed media on canvas
58 x 58 in
21. Untitled, Mohan Samant
16. Composition, Albert Chubac
22. Paul Gauguin (1843–1903)
Figure Study (Sketch of a Woman’s
Head), ca. 1884
Graphite on paper
10 x 7 5/8 in
19. Red and Orange, Alexandre Istrati
23. Anonymous
Coptic Tapestry with Three Figures,
ca. 800
Textile
4 x 8 in
24. Spyros Vassiliou (1912–1984)
Aegina Island, ca. 1953
Oil on canvas
21 x 28 3/4 in
22. Figure Study, Paul Gauguin
17. Theatrical Houses, Eugene Gabritschevsky
25. Benjamin Kopman (1887–1965)
Bather, 1943
Gouache
18 x 13 in
24. Aegina Island, Spyros Vassiliou
14. Sunday Afternoon, Yiannis Spyropoulos
25. Bather, Benjamin Kopman
20. Untitled, Albert Chubac
40
scene: Winter 2011
23. Coptic Tapestry with Three Figures,
Anonymous
News and views for the Colgate community
41
Andrew Daddio
42
scene: Winter 2011
News and views for the Colgate community
43
Alumni bulletin board
– Alumni Council member since 2010; Real World; class gift committee; Presidents’ Club
Membership Committee, Member in Perpetuity
– Maroon Citation 2010; Athletics Hall of Honor
2001 (still holds 100-yard butterfly record!)
– Portfolio manager, Mariner Silvermine Fund,
Mariner Investment Group
What was your biggest Colgate moment as a student? Breaking
the 50-second barrier in the 100-yard butterfly at the state
championships.
Why were you interested in serving on the Alumni Council? I was
drawn to, and now really enjoy, the ongoing interaction with students and sharing their experiences with other alumni.
You’re the nominations committee chair — describe the selection
process for new members. We’re given a list of 300-plus candidates
who have been nominated by members of the Colgate community.
Through conference calls, we chisel the list down to 8 to 15 candidates for each era and regional slot. Then, at the fall meeting on
campus, we discuss the individuals in depth, and select a finalist for
each slot. The recommended slate is announced in the winter Scene
[at right], and unless the ballot is contested, these nominees will be
ratified for the open positions.
What criteria or qualities are you are looking for? We’re looking
for engaged alumni who love Colgate, who volunteer their time, who
give back financially. We look at their consistency, years, and type
of service — whether it’s through district clubs, engaging students
through the workforce, or philanthropy. We try to incorporate a
cross-section of alumni not only based on their eras, but also from
different walks of life and backgrounds.
What aspect of your job gets you up in the morning? The daily
excitement of trading. Much like on the athletic field, it’s about winning and losing, and that’s what really attracted me to it.
How does your family like to spend time together? My wife, Dina,
and I have four daughters: Tory, 17; Ali, 16; Maddie, 15; and Olivia,
13. They are all very involved athletically, but our favorite way to
spend time together is going to Broadway shows.
Do you have any special talents? I have a certain whistle that, when
I need to get the attention of my girls in a loud place, they know it’s
me. I just curl the tongue and let it rip.
What would people be surprised to learn about you? I am a junkie
for Seinfeld reruns.
44
scene: Winter 2011
2011 Colgate Alumni Council Election
The Nominations Committee of the Alumni
Council has selected the following slate of
alumni for election at Reunion 2011. The
candidates, chosen from approximately
300 nominees, have strong records of varied Colgate volunteer service, a consistent
history of giving financial support to Colgate, and meaningful personal or professional accomplishments or contributions
to the greater community.
Complete information about the election and challenge petition process, as well
as full biographies of the nominees listed
here, are posted at www.colgateconnect.
org. Paper copies are available by calling
315-228-7433, or by sending an e-mail to
[email protected].
Era I: Jerry Nordberg ’57
Jerry Nordberg is chairman of Nordberg
Capital Partners. A 1997 Maroon Citation
recipient and former campaign volunteer,
he has provided extensive support for offcampus study programs and athletics.
Era II: Robert Seaberg ’69
Robert Seaberg, a managing director at
Morgan Stanley Smith Barney, serves on
the Presidents’ Club Membership Committee and as a class agent. A former class
gift chair and Reunion College presenter,
he earned a Maroon Citation in 2009.
Era III: Bruce Crowley ’79
Hilbert Technology executive Bruce
Crowley has been a leader in Annual Fund,
Presidents’ Club, and class fundraising,
and a longtime career adviser. He earned
the 1996 Class Agent Excellence Award, a
2009 Maroon Citation, and the 2010 Silver
Puck award.
Era IV: Mark DiMaria ’84
Attorney Mark DiMaria has been a career
adviser and New York City–area admission
volunteer. A district alumni club past
president, treasurer, and board member, he
currently serves as a class gift agent.
Era V: Tom Murphy ’90
Growth equity executive Tom Murphy has
served as a dynamic class gift chair and
Presidents’ Club class chair, raising funds
for the David Retik ’90 Memorial Scholarship and other initiatives.
Era VI: Sara Golding Mullen ’99
Interior designer Sara Golding Mullen
served on the New York City alumni club
board. She serves on the Presidents’ Club
Membership Committee.
Era VII: Katie Finnegan ’05
An associate with A.T. Kearney, Katie
Finnegan serves on her alumni club board
and the Presidents’ Club Membership Committee. She’s an admission volunteer, a Real
World participant, and the 2010 Ann Yao
’80 Young Alumni Award recipient.
At-Large: Lisa Oppenheim-Schultz ’85
Education administrator Lisa OppenheimSchultz has been a career adviser, admission volunteer, Reunion College presenter,
and reunion program committee and
campaign steering committee member. An
Alumnae Council founder, she serves as its
current chair.
At-Large: Joy Buchanan ’99
Joy Buchanan is a consumer health reporter
for the Tennessean newspaper. She is the
Alumni of Color Board’s student-alumni
program co-chair and returns to campus as
a volunteer with the Office of Undergraduate Studies program.
class news
stay connected
to know:
Know:Kevin
NameRusch
Here ’85
Get to
•••••
Regional Vice Presidents
In addition to the nine elected members,
regional vice presidents are officially appointed at the council’s spring meeting.
RVP, Metro I: Joanna Allegretti ’05
An associate with AllianceBerstein, Joanna
Allegretti has been an admission volunteer,
class gift committee member, and New York
City alumni club co-president. She earned
the 2010 Ann Yao ’80 Young Alumni Award.
RVP, Metro II: Melissa Coley ’79
Melissa Coley, vice president at Brookfield
Properties, is a career adviser, class agent,
event host, and Women’s Advisory Committee participant.
RVP, New England: Travis Leach ’94
Boston-based environmental specialist
Travis Leach has been a class gift committee member and co-chair, a reunion gift
committee co-chair, and a member of his
district alumni committee as well as its
co-president.
RVP, Mid-Atlantic: Chris Gavigan ’84
Chris Gavigan is principal and managing
director of Charon Planning Corporation. A Presidents’ Club class chair, he has
appeared at Real World and served as
regional admission committee chair.
Alumni news and deadlines
Class news: Class editors will be
submitting their columns on April 8,
2011, and July 8, 2011. Please keep
these deadlines in mind when sending
information to your correspondents,
and understand that your news may
take a while to appear in print.
Marriage and birth listings — please
mail to the Scene, attn: Births/
Marriages, 13 Oak Dr., Hamilton, NY
13346; fax 315-228-7699; or e-mail
[email protected].
For address changes, or to report
the death of a Colgate graduate,
please notify alumni records. If possible, please identify surviving kin
and an address for condolences to be
sent. If a newspaper obituary is available, we would appreciate receiving a
copy: 315-228-7453 (tel.); 315-2287699 (fax); alumnirecords@colgate.
edu.
Should anyone up through the Class of 1934 have
news to share, please contact Aleta Mayne: 315228-6669; [email protected].
19 35
George Carmichael
930 Regency Square 110
Vero Beach, FL 32967
George: 772-569-6951;
[email protected]
19 36
Elizabeth Gallagher-Saward
Apartment 513
505 N. Lakeshore Drive
Chicago, IL 60611
Elizabeth: 312-527-1492
Reunion June 2–5, 2011
19 37
Gerald A Vernon
23 Lighthouse Way
Darien, CT 06820-5612
I reached Ed Phillips at his home in Claremont,
CA. He also has a house in MI, where he goes every year May–Sept to connect with his children, 3
grandchildren, and 4 great-grandchildren. Ed still
sails on his boat. He has owned several types as I
did, but my days are a great memory. As I previously reported, Ed has a PhD in botany.
It was great to talk to Ed Hornung on his farm
in NJ, or is it estate, Ed? He and I were both on the
wrestling team.
Jim Sprague in Miami doesn’t ride dolphins
anymore but still has a bunch of interests. After
our reunion in 2007, Jim commented, “Set your
sights on 2012, it’s just around the corner.” Well, I
like his optimism. Or???
Charles Harris celebrated his 95th bday with
family and 30 friends on Sept 25. He has a doctorate in medicine from the U of Rochester and is
the oldest graduate of his class.
I wasn’t able to reach King Davis at Cooper
Hall, but Margaret, one of the attendants,
returned my call. King did indeed talk to Paul
White, who is in a residence in NJ.
It’s worth noting that 6 of our 11 remaining
classmates have PhDs. Doesn’t that indicate
something?
19 38
Don Foley
1050 Mariposa Avenue
Berkeley, CA 94707-2444
We’re down to 11 classmates: Bill Butler, Venice,
FL; Paul Fager, Wellesley Hills, MA; Don Foley,
Berkeley, CA; Ev Hanke, Brunswick, ME; John
Lockwood, Longboat Key, FL; John Merrick,
Weatherford, TX; Dan Miller, Mentor, OH; Laurens
Rowe, Rochester, NY; Irv Ryerson, Wilmington,
NC; Bob Scott, Saddle River, NJ; Lloyd Tuttle,
Pittsboro, NC. We’re certainly well scattered.
We’ve learned that J Greenough Krogh,
Carmichael, CA, died Sept 22. Details are provided
in the In Memoriam section. We offer our condolences to his widow, Betty Jane, and his children
Charles, John, and Candace.
Not surprisingly, most of us maintain loyal
ties to Colgate. Ten of us were donors to Colgate
last year. Ev Hanke, to his great credit, continues
to encourage us. We’re also reminded of the
magnificent earlier donation by John Glendening and his family for the handsome boathouse
for Colgate crew. Son Robert ’71 continues to be
an enthusiastic supporter. In a recent e-mail to
a large group, he wrote: “Beverly and I just returned home after a wonderful Colgate weekend.
I think Uncle Charles ’17, Uncle Bob ’40, and Dad
John would also have liked Dr Herbst’s positive
speeches.” Quite a family!
The summer 2010 Scene under title “Living
in History” carried a fine account of earlier
Washington, DC, study programs. Ten of us from
our class participated in the fall of 1936. Some of
my memories are available as the 1st of several
dozen accounts accessible if you enter http://
www.colgatealumniorg/scenewsg. My 2 photos
include classmates Otto Becker, Henry Galpin,
Kay Lytle, John Moore, Frank Pratt, Bill Stillman,
and Bruce Wratten.
Don: 510-525-6983; [email protected]
1 939
Gus Nasmith
16003 W Falcon Ridge Drive
Sun City West, AZ 85375-6689
Jim Dickinson and I stay in touch by phone.
Recently he heard from Reid Sterrett’s son, who
also attended Colgate.
We had a good note and a photo of Jane and
Max Mason; he served many years as editor.
They celebrated their 61st anniversary on Oct 10.
Arthritis curtailed his golf, but they remain avid
birders and Max was chipper on the phone.
Gus: 623-546-9487; [email protected]
1 94 1
sed ligula sed ligula condimentum
bibendum. Sed mattis enim feugiat
felis.
Quisque venenatis lobortis dolor.
Ted Clapp
PO Box 579
Pellentesque
consequat. Nam nisi.
Damariscotta, ME 04543-0579
Praesent
feugiat fringilla nunc. Nulla
placerat
estJune
in arcu.
Nam
id velit eget
Reunion
2–5,
2011
leo
convallis
congue.
One of the giants of our Class of 1941 has gone
to his reward. Ted Mulford’s life was a noble
Donec
non elit As
et aligula
series of successes.
Colgateultrices
student, adhe
graduated magna
laude
and
was elected to
ipiscing.
Etiamcum
quis
nisl.
Suspendisse
Phi Beta Kappa. His greatest contribution to our
potenti.
Maecenas egestas libero eget
student life was as editor-in-chief of the Colgate
lectus.
Ut
et eros. Quisque est orci,
Maroon, contributing editor of Salmagundi, and
sagittis
vitae,
lacinia
nec,Hebibendum
a,
a member of the press
bureau.
was named to
dolor.
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temporUniversities
convallisand
leo.Colleges.
In mi
Who’s Who
in American
Ted is survived
by his wife
of 60
years, Ruth, and
felis,
pellentesque
quis,
scelerisque
alihis son, Barth, and daughter-in-law, Rebecca. The
quet,
volutpat non, dui. Nullam urna.
majority of his business career was with Link
Donec
venenatis tellus quis libero.
Aviation. Ted was a real public servant all his
Cum
sociis
natoque
penatibus
magadult life, serving
as commissioner
withet
the
NYS
nis
parturient
montes,
nascetur
Cabledis
Commission,
chair
of the SUNY’s
Statewide
Advisory Board
forAliquam
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fromAeridiculus
mus.
pharetra.
1983–1997. As chair of the Southern Tier High
nean
eget dui. Proin quis felis sit amet
Tech Council, he was a founder in the establishmi
suscipit fermentum.
ment of Binghamton U’s Watson Group. He was
on the board of dirs of NYS United Way, chaired
1 94 0
Fred Tedeschi
Unit 9D
2555 Youngs Avenue
Southold, NY 11971
Carl A Overstrom, 93, passed away in Painted
Post, NY, on July 9. Carl was a member of the
Commons Club. Next of kin is his widow, Eleanor.
Received a nice letter from Alice and Tom Williams, who I am happy to report are doing quite
well, having celebrated their 69th anniversary.
That is great news. Tom and Alice, many happy
years ahead. Tom advises that Carl Overstrom
served in the Air Force in WWII and worked at
Corning Glass Works as an engineer. Great to
hear from you, Tom. Any news of our 1938 DC
study group members?
Received a nice letter from Lyon Evans, who
now resides in Wausau, WI. Lyon reports he is a
young 91-year-old and now refers to the “Golden
Days” of pills and spills. (You are so right on
that one.) Lyon advises he is also busy trying to
finish up his book, called Market Hunters of the
19th and 20th Century. Lyon reports he has been
elected to the American Architectural Mfg Assoc
Hall of Fame.
Received a note from Amos Minkel, who
reports nothing new and good health.
Dick Berry reports he still mows his lawn
with a push mower and takes care of 170 begonias. In addition, he reports he has no aches and
pains. Keep up the good work, Dick. (I have some
properties that could use a good man with the
lawn mower.)
Received word from Harry Maynard’s wife,
Natalie, who reports that Harry suffers from
Alzheimer’s but he is still able to walk and climb
stairs, remembers family, and follows conversations. Hang in there, Harry. Harry promoted
scholarship in general semantics and was
recently honored with that org’s Michael Roberto
Award.
Lorem
ipsum dolor
sitBoard
amet,
SUNY’s Statewide
Advisory
forconsectBusiness
and Tech,
served on the
board
of dirs
of Lourdes
etuer
adipiscing
elit.
Morbi
dignissim
Hospital for 20 years. Ted received numerous
elit
sit amet massa. Morbi elemenawards, such as American Legion Hall of Fame
tum
purus non tortor. In urna justo,
in 1984, SUNY Board of Trustees Distinguished
dapibus
sit amet,
dictum
Citizen Award.
He wasmollis
a mastereget,
mason
for 65
et,
ligula.
Aenean
posuere,
sem
quis
years.
He was
a prominent
figure in
the growth
and development
of the city
of Binghamton,
scelerisque
sagittis,
pede
augue luctus
assisting the agencies, schools, and businesses
lacus,
nec varius risus odio sit amet
that have become the fabric of the community.
ante.
Duis
vulputate tellus ac justo.
What a power for good to the world around him.
Duis
est
turpis,
aliquam non, hendrerit
Praises be!
vel,
[email protected]
eget, ipsum. Sed conTed: 207-563-8369;
sectetuer dolor ut lacus. Sed vulputate tincidunt quam. Cras dignissim
magna
vel orci. Praesent nec libero.
Robert C. Smith
Nullam
Apt. 329 egestas nisl. Vestibulum tempus
urna.
3804fermentum
Brandon Avenue
1 94 2
Roanoke, VA 24018-7004
Sed feugiat dolor sed velit. Nullam
First, a correction. In the last issue, we mistakenquis
neque a arcu consequat ullamly reported Bert Ryder as deceased. Our sincerest
corper.
Vestibulum
ante
apologiesNulla
to Bert facilisi.
and his family
for our error.
ipsum
in faucibus
orci luctus
Heardprimis
from Henry
H Wilcox, Arthur
Rasi, et
and Edward
‘Ted’ Dunn.
Jim Byrne
’87 asked
for
ultrices
posuere
cubilia
Curae;
Nulla
information about Al Diebolt. We all walk many
ultricies
porta massa. Nullam ac diam.
paths in many ways. I recall Pres Cutten walking
Duis
rhoncus, augue quis bibendum
from his home down to the Student Union in
dapibus,
porttitor
mid-winterquam
withoutmagna
a top coat.
As you walk your
nisi,
id sollicitudin
nulla nisl
a nisi.my
path, take
care. When ordering
beer mugs,
fraternity brothers
“Grandpa
Smitty”
put on
Maecenas
justohad
elit,
tincidunt
a, commine. I am now “Great-Grandpa Smitty.”
modo
vitae, rutrum ut, felis. Phasellus
Bob: 540-776-2329; [email protected]
rhoncus magna eu nibh. Nulla odio
metus, sodales ac, iaculis non, sagittis
sit amet, est. Aliquam neque. Fusce
Joseph W. sollicitudin
DeBragga
blandit
mauris. Aliquam
51 Wavecrest Drive
sodales.
Maecenas adipiscing rhoncus
Islip, NY 11751-4015
libero. Quisque tellus leo, rutrum ac,
fermentum
tincidunt,
By
the time youeu,
readeuismod
this, Tim Kellam
will be
neque. Morbi
faucibus.
Aliquam
sit
continuing
his favorite
G&G pastimes
— gardening
andelit.
golf —
in Orlando.
Tim and Shirley left
amet
Cras
euismod.
1 94 3
their Mount Hope, WV, home in Oct when the
trees, as Tim says, turned to sticks. Tim also reports Jud Griffin is back in Stuart, FL, after a short
time last summer on the St Lawrence River.
Memories of Bob Lacey, who died last summer, include flooding and freezing a Stillman
Hall staircase one Feb night long ago.
Katie and Dick Labonte were the 2010
News and views for the Colgate community
45
“We flew the plane over Archbold Stadium and dropped plastic shirt bags filled with maroon paint on the
playing field as Syracuse scrimmaged prior to game day. It was in retaliation for the attack on Taylor Lake
in which orange dye was clandestinely introduced into the lake late one night.” — Stuart Angert ’62
recipients of the Bay Head, NJ, School Fndn’s
Distinguished Citizen Award. Dick and Katie
married in 1943, and after his Navy service as CO
of a submarine chaser in the S Pacific, Dick had
28 successful years at McGraw Publishing and
then moved to Bay Head, where he served in the
borough council and fire company. As undergrads we recognized his many abilities long ago
and are delighted with the acclaim he so richly
deserves.
Dick Hall recalls the innocence (or was it
ignorance?) of our 1939 freshman year when
Poland was invaded and we were assured no
American boy would be sent overseas. Those
were the days when Chevys and Plymouths sold
for less than $700! Bob Beardsley remembers
the Colgate-Cornell game in 1939 in Ithaca. In the
last quarter Ed Van Loan ’41 barely missed a field
goal that would have beaten Cornell. We lost
14-12. From Litchfield Park, AZ, Jim Gallo recalls
Prof Pat Foley would frequently leave his car in
the village and call the police, saying it had been
stolen. This happened so often the police knew
exactly where to find the car. Emmett Costich
has a vivid remembrance of George Barton Cutten. One night prexie knocked on the door of the
Stillman Hall room Emmett shared with Gene
Seanor and asked who owned a car parked on
the back road to the cemetery. Gene’s father, who
was visiting, said it was his, and prexie offered
profound apologies for hitting the Seanor car
and promised to pay for its repair.
19 4 4
Ellsworth Johnson
1309 Meadow Ridge
Redding, CT 06896-3224
Clem Furey reports that George Tift is recuperating well. He also mentioned that their house has
been on the market the past couple of months.
When sold, he and Martha plan to move to Kansas City and St Augustine, FL, to be nearer family
than presently on Cape Cod.
Jim Denton has his house on the market and
will move to Winchester Gardens, NJ, when sold.
Sadly, Hank Towers passed away at home
in Essex, CT, on Oct 10. (See In Memoriam for a
complete obit.)
The fall class football mini-reunion did not
materialize this year due to other commitments
and a reluctance to drive extended trips. A sign
of the times for ’44.
Class of 1944 gift summary 2010: $14,753 – 29
donors, 58%. This year’s total is 44.9% of 2009.
Attrition takes its toll!
Ellsworth: 203-544-8168; 1200 (fax)
19 4 5
Bob Husselrath
Apt 1217
18755 West Bernardo Drive
San Diego, CA 92127-3013
Here’s a note from Jack Miller: “My wife, Betsy,
and I flew to CA to visit with son Chris and then
take grandson Christian to AK. It was a wonderful trip to Seward Peninsula back-country lodges.
Did whitewater rafting in the Nehana River. Also,
saw my old Colgate roommate Roger Provost’s
46
scene: Winter 2011
wife, Fran, in Long Beach. She’s doing fine.”
Olav Bornt Kollevoll, Maroon Key, Konosioni,
DU, freshman class VP, football, hockey, basketball, passed away. Ole served in the Navy on PT
boats. Ole spent his life in sports, including some
time as hockey coach at Colgate. Three different
alums sent us copies of Ole’s notices. Our frat bro
and fellow trombonist Jack Stone played golf
with Ole for years. Phil Ingle ’46 was a friend
of Ole’s and fellow DU. Our own Chuck Wittig
played on 3 sports teams with Ole.
John E Kohlne, ATO, passed. He spent 3 1/2
years in the Marines in the Pacific and was
awarded a Bronze Star. After a successful business career, John devoted his time to community
service.
James H. Noble, Sigma Nu, student government, basketball, tennis, and softball. Jim served
in Europe during WWII and earned a Purple
Heart. Jim and Anna Mae had 7 children. Jim
was a fellow southern Californian living just a
few miles north of San Diego where the famous
swallows return each year. We both watched
the big Californian fires a couple of years ago, he
from the north, and Edith and I in the midst.
“Colgate’s First Coed,” we called her when Hal
Heim brought her to Hamilton in 1945 while he
finished up. Barbara passed in Aug. We’ll all miss
her.
Bob: 858-395-3213; [email protected]
1946
Don Schaefer
45 Lydecker Street
Englewood, NJ 07631-3008
Reunion June 2–5, 2011
Our 65th Reunion will be June 2–5, 2011. I’m chair
for our class. I hope we can all be there. At our
age, it’s not possible for many of us.
Phil Ingle is recovering from surgery. Still, he
plans to be there with Phyllis. Healthwise, this
has not been a good year for them. I wish them
speedy recoveries. Frank Tuma calls Phil on a
regular basis. Frank’s eyes are not so good.
On a happier note, Chuck Reinhart has lived
in Sun Lakes, AZ, for 20 years. He met wife Marty
62 years ago at Bucknell. They have 3 sons and
a daughter. He and I were in the Navy V-12 program together and then we went to pre-midshipmen’s school at Asbury Park, NJ. Chuck suffered a
back injury and was released from service. Now
he rides a bike everyday. He has been active in
his community, writing articles for their paper,
serving on 3 committees, and putting on a cable
TV show. This year he received the Crystal Award
from Sun Lakes for making his community a better place in which to live. Congrats, Chuck; what
a nice award.
Blair Vedder is moving to an apt from a larger
home. He will be closer to friends and facilities.
His health is restricted by “dicey” lungs. He is going to try to make it to our 65th. He was floored
to talk with Al Norman again. I called Al many
times with no luck, but last week he answered
the phone. His wife of 40+ years passed away
and Al had been quite ill. Now he is much better.
He, Blair, and I went to Colgate together. Al from
Evanston HS, Blair and I from New Trier HS. We
joined the Fiji house and all went into the Navy
in WWII.
Dick Benzoni says he has no news but that he
will attend our reunion. He still is into trapshooting. That takes ability plus good eyes. He sounds
great.
I was very pleased and surprised to hear from
Jim Smyth. Smitty is a wonderful guy. He lives
with his son in Beaufort, SC, next to Paris Island.
His wife, Nanette, is in a home suffering from
Alzheimer’s, as is my wife, Renate. Smitty and I
talked about many things, including his football
teammates Bob Bowman, Ed Stacco, Truman
Jenkins, John Hart, Jack Clifford, Bruff McQuade,
Bob Lampe, and others. Smitty attended his
HS reunion (the classes of ’41, ’42, and ’43 met
together in Connellsville, PA). It is also the home
of Johnny Lyack, a Notre Dame All-American QB.
I knew him briefly at Columbia Midshipmen’s
School.
Julia Bergamini Bergeron ’75 sent me Bob
Orth’s obit. He died in Sept in his sleep. Bob and
I talked often about fishing and Colgate. He was
a 2nd lt in the Army in WWII, serving in Europe.
His business career was with New England Life.
He was full of energy and laughter. He was a
world traveler and fisherman. He was always a
catch-and-release fisherman. He loved Colgate; I
don’t think he ever missed a reunion.
Bob Bowman also died in Sept, in St Lucie, FL.
His granddaughter Crissy Singer Shropshire ’92
(class editor for the Scene) sent me a beautiful
tribute to Bob. At Colgate he was a DKE, center
on the football team, was in the Navy, served
in the Pacific, and retired from the Navy as a lt
commander. After the war, he was drafted by the
SF 49ers but chose a business career. His favorite
sport was golf. He took Crissy to Colgate when
she was in HS. She followed in his footsteps,
although she knew she couldn’t fill his shoes.
Bob was a man who delighted in the company
of his family. He is survived by wife, Carolyn, 4
daughters, a son, plus 8 grandchildren and 12
great-grandchildren. He was predeceased by his
son Robert III.
Jim Fee will be the financial guru of our 65th. This fall, Renate and I were inducted into the
James B Colgate Society. I wish she could have
attended.
The good Lord willing, I’ll see you at our 65th.
To quote Malcolm Cowley, “They tell us that
you lose your mind when you grow older. What
they don’t tell you is that you won’t miss it very
much.”
Stay well!
Don: 201-568-0309;
[email protected]
1 9 47
Jack Scollay
Apt. 315
95 Elizabeth Street
Delaware, OH 43015-4312
It will be no surprise to any of us that classmate Al Short was honored on Sept 9 by the
Chautauqua Region Community Fndn when he
was presented with the 2010 John D Hamilton
Community Service Award. The annual award
cited Al as “an honorable gentleman who demonstrates dedication, leadership, and support in
furthering community spirit and more of the
things that last forever.” We knew that a long
time ago when he was a member of Phi Kappa
Psi, Maroon Key, the Pan-Hellenic Council, and
the winner of the freshman golf tourney. He also
starred on the soccer, football, and golf teams
and was capt of the undefeated ’47 hockey team.
He served in the Marine Corps during WWII. He
just keeps getting better. He and wife Elaine live
in Jamestown, NY.
Jack: 740-362-4035; [email protected]
19 4 8
George F Greene Jr
36096 N Newbridge Ct
Gurnee, IL 60031-4511
George: 847-856-0704;
[email protected]
19 4 9
David S. Davies
109 Barker Street
Wellington, OH 44090-1132
Communications with classmates reveal that
our more than 4-score years has burdened each
of us in different ways, some with good health
and some with crippling disabilities. And some,
we learn, have died. Reports from the Office of
Alumni Records tell of the death on May 26 of
Leland G Hickling and on July 22 of Robert L
Gardner. Lee was a member of the Commons
Club, majored in English, wrote for Banter, and
played in the pep and marching bands. He died
in Apalachin, NY. Bob was a member of Lambda
Chi Alpha, majored in sociology, served in
student govt, and was in Masque & Triangle. He
died in Huntsville, Ontario.
Trying to flesh out these meager facts,
fraternity brothers of Hickling and Gardner were
called. Hickling’s Commons Club classmate Marvin Morse reported from Sarasota, FL, that he and
his wife, Betty, have decided to make Sarasota
their permanent home, with the result that they
have 2 homes for sale, a co-op in Bethesda and a
condo in Long Boat Key, FL. He said that he had
not been in touch with Lee since they graduated,
when Marv went off to Yale Law. He thought
someone in the Colgate alumni club in Sarasota
might have kept up with Lee and would try to
track this down. Marv went into the Air Force after law school and stayed in the reserves, retiring
as a colonel. He also served as a Fed Admin Law
Judge with home base in DC. He and Betty have
3 children, Martin, a surgeon; Howard, an atty
in DC; and Lee Anne ’88, an educator in Saddle
River, NJ. Marv said that he was working hard for
a Democratic victory in FL, a result you will know
when you read this, and when all the gloating
has ended.
John Moore, also a Commons Club member,
reports that he had not talked with Hickling
since graduation. John earned his master’s and
PhD at Cornell and then joined the econ faculty
at the U of TN in Knoxville. He retired from that
position in 1991, and then became dir of the
university’s Construction Industry Resource
Ctr, a position he held until this June, when he
took a p/t position in the center. The center is
funded with a $3 million grant from the US Dept
of Labor. “It gets me going every day, and I have
lunch with long-time colleagues, and keep learning.” He says that the work has been particularly
important to him since the death of his wife in
1992. They had 3 daughters, Linda, Janet, and
Karen, the last 2 of whom live in Knoxville. John
also has 5 grandchildren, 3 living in Knoxville.
John has had his aortic valve replaced, but he
says that the operation went well and he feels in
good health.
Gardner’s fraternity brother and classmate
Steve Kuczek, who is 85, remembers that Bob
“played the drums a lot.” Steve reports that he is
terminally ill with melanoma cancer and as of
Oct 8 has been given 6 months to live. The cancer
was operated on 15 years ago, but has come back
and spread throughout his body. His wife, Clare,
died 3 years ago, but he says that the 3 of his 5
children who live near him in Scotia, NY, check
on him every day, a welcome intervention. He
says his mind is going, too, and that he is “kind of
goofed up,” but he is working to get his things in
order.
Another Lambda Chi brother of Gardner’s is
Charles ‘Mike’ Ball, who lives in Brewster, MA,
with wife Joanne. She reports that Mike is in a
rehabilitation program, recovering from a debilitating bout of summer flu. She says that a son,
Pete, is a wood worker who does architectural
restoration that is historically correct. Another
son, Charles, is a chef, and a daughter, Jennifer,
is the mother of 3 children, who have produced
4 great-grandchildren. Mike had a career with
Standard Oil of OH and then in plastics before
moving to Brewster and becoming a commercial
fisherman and lobsterman for 20 years. Joanne
says that Mike liked fishing the best. He also has
collected military artifacts, mostly from WWII,
but some from the Civil War.
Lois O’Brien, wife of James O’Brien, also a fraternity brother of Gardner’s, reports that Jim is in
remarkably good physical condition despite still
suffering the effects of a stroke that left him unable to speak and with limited use of his hands.
She says that Jim is a committed sports fan and
lives a life filled with the joy of having 7 sons, 10
grandchildren, and 12 great-grandchildren.
If I were better organized, some things that
slip between the cracks wouldn’t. Example: Ken
Ruether writes from Tyler, TX, “I’m curious. I’ve
never seen hide nor hair of my one and only
epistle in over 60 years.” A quick mea culpa
call to Ken confirmed that he meant it when
he wrote, “This is my last effort to let everyone
know (who may have a remote interest) that I’m
fine and send my regards and respects to the
grand Class of ’49 — what’s left of us at least.”
Ken accepted the apology and reported that he’s
been 50 years in TX. His wife, Billie, died 6 years
ago of cancer, and he has 1 child and 3 stepchildren. After 5 years in the Navy, he worked 35
years for Natl Gypsum and traveled all over the
world in his work. He said he is thankful for each
day, feels great, is in good health and very active,
and will be pleased to live out his life in Tyler,
serving local historical societies and his church.
He keeps in touch with Hugh Meinweiser. See
what a nudge of the elbow will do? Start nudging, please.
For the planned 70th Reunion of the Thirteen
scheduled for May 2012, Raymond L Otis is working from his Millis, MA, home to locate survivors
from ’42–’49. Ray reports that so far he has
located 21 alums. From the original ’42 members,
Ray thinks that there possibly are 4: Sherman
Black Jr, Richard S Kromer, William L MacIntosh,
and Bernard E Schreiber, all of the Class of 1944.
The unanswered question is whether all of these
men were in the original group.
Putting together numbers from different
sources, and mostly from the alumni office, I
calculate that ’49 ended up with a class of 338
graduates, of which, on Oct 8, l96 have died and
142 of us are alive. Of the living, 77 have not been
mentioned in the Scene since May 2008. Some
have been named on a list, while others share
more when coaxed into spending time telling
what they have been doing for 80 years or so.
That leaves a silent majority of 54 %, a rather
poor record. So, I’m listing the 77 classmates not
heard from on our class page at ColgateConnect.
org. Some of us may be having difficulty holding
a pencil, or are slipping into dementia, or are
reaching a point in our lives when we just don’t
give a damn. But if you are on the list, or if you
know someone who is, please tell me about it. It’s
not good to slip away incognito. Some classmate
cares about you. Please look at the list online,
and if you know one of these classmates, dead or
alive, let me (or Colgate) know. In any case, let’s
capture some of these folks, by stirring them to
write, by writing for them, or by making a call.
When you read this, the holidays will have
just gone. The best to all of you.
David: 440-647-5306; [email protected]
Get to know: Krista Moser ’11
19 50
Bunn Rhea
383 Clearbrook Drive
Avon Lake, OH 44012-3117
“Please join me in acknowledging Jim Youker’s
amazing and distinguished career in academic
medicine and leadership.” Those were the words
of the dean and exec VP of the Medical C of WI
after Jim announced his intention to step down
as chair of radiology on July 1, 2011.
Jim has served as prof and chair of the dept
at UMW since 1968 (42 years) and is the nation’s
senior radiology chair. He is a grad of the U of
Buffalo School of Medicine and completed a
residency in radiology at the U of MN and in pathology at Georgetown U. He joined the faculty
of the Medical College of VA in 1961, completed a
research fellowship at the U of Lund in Sweden
in 1964, and assumed an appt as asst prof of
radiology at UCSF, with promotion to assoc prof
in 1967. He has served on the editorial board of
6 major journals in his field, is recipient of Gold
Medals from the Radiological Society of NA, the
Assoc of University Radiologists, the American
Roentgen Ray Society, and the American C of
Radiology. He has served on the NCI Breast
Cancer Task Force, 2 terms as a trustee of the
American Board of Radiology, with responsibility
for the development of the breast imaging oral
exam, and as pres of both the American Board of
Medical Specialties and the Society of Chairmen
of Academic Radiology Depts. Jim has a total of
over 150 publications, chapters, and published
abstracts related to imaging, with a focus on cardiac, gastrointestinal, and breast cancer imaging
research.
Dick Yale says he canceled out of reunion
because that Saturday he had to drive with
Nancy to their granddaughter’s wedding shower
in Poughkeepsie. The wedding there followed on
July 23, 1 day before their 42nd anniversary. Six of
their 8 kids were able to attend.
He and Nancy are happy in their 2,000-sq-ft
cottage at Good Shepherd Village in Endwell,
where meals, maintenance, housekeeping, Road
Runner, and many activities are included. “Nancy
feels like a queen,” he says. There are about 70
cottages and 70 apts, plus a health center for
aging progression. Dick calls it their Happy Hunting Ground.
On Friday, July 13, while Pres Jeffrey Herbst
and the Thirteen were closing out the NY Stock
Exchange, Al Marean ’67 and Dick wowed them
at happy hour in their GSV Pub with Colgate
stories, including the KDR theft of the Syracuse
cannon when they were frosh. A younger Syracuse grad was good-natured about it, but glad
the next Friday the 13th wasn’t due until May 11.
Jennings H Marburger died July 25 in Tucson.
‘Hammer’ was 85. He served in the US Navy,
taught social studies, did well in the ins business
as a CLU with both Travelers and Pan American
Krista Moser ’11, on a Galapagos research cruise, waxing parts that were dropped to the
sea floor to collect glass from broken rocks.
– Hometown: Cedar Rapids, Iowa
– Major: geology
– Becoming certified to teach in geology/earth science
– Basketball team, power forward, #50
Tell us about last summer’s research cruise to the Galapagos with Professor Karen Harpp
after taking the Galapagos Seminar: Geology 321 Analytical Methods.
On the cruise we were mapping the sea floor to look at the interaction between the mantle
plume and mid-oceanic ridge, in order to gain a better understanding of how the islands and
seamounts are formed. We collected rocks off the bottom of the sea floor through dredging
(dragging a large metal basket with teeth across the ocean floor). We are now analyzing
these rock samples. As the trip progressed and we mapped more of the region, we began
to look at the different trends and how they corresponded to what we learned in class. The
scientists on the boat had different theories, so we had to decide for ourselves what made
the most sense.
How are you furthering research from the cruise for your senior thesis?
I’m taking the imagery, which includes both bathymetry and sonar maps of the seamounts,
and putting them into a program to make 3-D images so that high school students can see
what the ocean floor looks like. Using the GPS coordinates from a tagged shark that swam
paths around the area we mapped, I’m making a virtual 3-D fly-through as if you were the
shark going over the ocean floor. We’re trying to see if the seamounts influence where the
shark paths are, because seamounts are a good source of biodiversity, fish, and nutrients.
We heard you coordinated the blog for the trip.
Yes. I’m not what you would consider technologically savvy, so Professor Harpp wanted me
to get more comfortable through the blog, especially because I am in the process of putting
my project online and creating a website. It was fun — everyone participated and wrote on
different days. It’s nice to have a scrapbook of what happened on the cruise.
What’s your guilty pleasure?
Chocolate! Ask my coaches who comes into their office the most to get peanut butter–
chocolate M&Ms.
What might people be surprised to learn about you?
I danced for eight years: tap, ballet, jazz, lyrical, and funky jazz. I still do a mean pirouette. How do you recharge your batteries?
I either sleep — something I can never get enough of — or go for a run while blaring the
greatest hits from the ’90s on my iPod.
— Aleta Mayne
News and views for the Colgate community
47
Bill Jorgenson ’65 (left) and a colleague in a lab where anaerobic digesters mix manure and
organic waste to generate power.
A new vision for “waste”
As the world searches for alternative sources of energy, Bill Jorgenson ’65 is exploring
an option that he acknowledges is not particularly glamorous: cow poop and garbage.
Jorgenson is the managing partner of AGreen Energy LLC (AGE), an organization that has
developed a process to not only generate sustainable energy from what would otherwise be
waste, but also to maintain the viability of small farms.
The process is fairly simple: farmers can install large anaerobic digesters on their farms
that mix manure and organic waste, such as leftover food from a mess hall. An enzymatic
process releases methane from the manure, and the methane can then be cleaned and
burned to power a generator. “The farmers only use about 10 percent of the electricity they
create; then the other 90 percent, they sell up to the grid,” explained Jorgenson. “A small
farm of 300 to 500 head of cattle can heat somewhere around 300 homes” — which means
that the farmers earn extra income.
AGE’s process is designed to maximize the use of resources in other ways as well.
The leftover mixture of manure and feedstock can be recycled as a high-efficiency, lowpollution fertilizer. Also, because all generators lose some energy to heat from friction,
AGE has designed a method of capturing that heat and feeding it into greenhouses. “The
farmers will be growing vegetables in the wintertime,” explained Jorgenson. “The largest
single cost that you have when running a greenhouse is energy. This is free, though, because
it is the heat from the generator that would otherwise be wasted.”
The organization is currently working with small dairy farmers in Massachusetts to build
the first pilot projects, and Jorgenson’s goal is that AGE’s system will one day assist small
farmers across the country.
Although he and his partners only started AGE in 2006, Jorgenson has bountiful experience at every level of the agri-food and renewable energy fields. He is an expert on the
biofuel industry, with which he has been involved nearly since its inception. Jorgenson has
also managed the operations of the Quaker Oats Company in Latin America, advised universities and even countries about sustainable development, and founded his own consulting
business, SJH and Company, which advises the world’s largest agri-food companies on issues like developing more efficient agriculture. He even patented a process, later acquired
by John Deere, for tracking food products all the way from the farm to the table, which is
critical when tracking food-borne illnesses like salmonella to their source.
For Jorgenson, AGE is something of a culmination of all that he has done so far, “and it
comes at a time when everybody says you should retire.” Instead of retiring, “which has no
appeal to me at all,” he said, Jorgenson is splitting his time between his consulting work with
SJH and Company, and the AGE project. He relishes the challenge of working one day with
the world’s largest corporations to design a more water-efficient method of growing tomatoes, and the next day with small farmers trying to ensure that their businesses can survive
into the next generation.
“Usually everybody wants to do things big,” Jorgenson observed. “What’s the end economic benefit, and when will somebody come along with a big treasure chest of money and
buy you out? Well, in this case, the buyout is that the next generation gets to keep the farm.”
— Jason Kammerdiener ’10
48
scene: Winter 2011
Life Insurance Companies, coached football and
baseball, played baseball under Eppy Barnes,
played football on Andy Kerr’s last team at Colgate, and was active in his district alumni club.
On a personal note: Through some bad luck
of the draw in my room assignments for the
football team, Hammer was left to share a room
with me, the team manager of all people, at the
Lord Jeff in Amherst, MA. It was a short-lived
indignity for which, thankfully, he forgave me;
and we became close friends.
Charles G Campbell passed away July 21 in
Hartford, CT, from a cerebral hemorrhage. In 1953,
he received a master of divinity from the Pacific
School of Religion in Berkeley, CA. In 1976, he
earned a doctor of ministry from Andover Newton Theological School in MA. He was sr pastor
of the 1st Congregational Church in Springfield,
VT, from 1974 until retiring in 1992. Charlie was
a member of Sigma Chi. Among his other listed
“highlights” in the 50th Reunion Yearbook was a
personal exchange with Eleanor Roosevelt and
Harry Truman at a whistle stop. No transcript of
that exchange was ever noted: too bad.
Cheever Morrison sent along a double dose of
bad news: the death of wife Marie; and also Stu
Miller. Marie died Aug 5 in Saratoga Springs, NY,
from alveolar lung cancer. Stu died Sept 16.
You may recall that Cheever and Marie married in Colgate’s chapel on Oct 12, 1958, with
Mark Randall as their best man. She had not
been feeling well all fall and, after antibiotics did
little to correct what was believed to be bacterial
pneumonia, the bad news (biopsy) came in Feb.
She came home March 16 under Hospice care.
There was a remembrance party for her Sept 26,
including a 14' banner printed with 120 photos
depicting her life during which she, among
other things, rose from being a child in a family
that had to be on home relief during the Great
Depression to becoming the chief exec asst to
the NYS Atty General — all without having
a college degree, a gap that she remedied in
2006 when she received her BS in poli sci from
SUNY Empire State C. Marie was a lady of many
accomplishments. Most of all, according to the
Saratogian, she was a professional writer and
editor, publishing travel articles in Cruising mag,
Camping Journal, Insight mag, and Transitions
Abroad as well as various research papers and
reports. At the time she was taken ill, she was
working on a book of “other voices,” a compilation of oral histories of members of the Saratoga
Springs community. Her research, writing, and
editing skills served her well throughout her
professional career.
Stu Miller and Cheever Morrison both had reservations at the Colgate Inn for our 60th Reunion
last June. (They wanted to see Purdy Jordan ’51
fly into the Hamilton Airport in his corp plane.)
A call from Stu’s wife, Valerie, on Sept 16 told
Cheever that Stu had died a few hours earlier.
The prostate cancer had spread throughout his
body. Cheever said that he hoped to go out to see
Stu after Marie’s remembrance party on Sept 26,
but they didn’t make it.
Regarding Stu, Cheever said it best: “Stu was
one of a kind, as strong as a bull in the water,
funny, jocular, witty, a bon vivant, yet also very
caring, very smart and interesting, completing
his PhD, writing a couple of interesting books,
and rising to become chair of the history dept at
SF State. He was always the loyal DEKE and never
tired of telling stories about his Irish roots in
Donegal or how he swam across the Upper Nile
while serving in the US Navy as a lt commander.
In those days he cut a dashing figure in his dress
whites and knocked all of the girls dead. We give
him a hearty farewell. We will miss him.”
ME and Bunn Rhea were on hand for a sur-
prise farewell “thank you” for RuthAnn Loveless
MA’72 at the Edgewater Yacht Club in Cleveland
on Aug 1. Others attending were Marianne
Crosley ’80 and Tim Clements, Jen and Tim
Mansfield, director of alum relations, and Vikki
Anderson Patacca ’86. RuthAnn will be retiring
after serving Colgate for 25 years. Marianne and
Tim treated RuthAnn to a cruise in their classy
sailboat on Lake Erie following the luncheon.
Tom Patterson has announced that he and
Jen have a new e-mail address. If you need to
know what they are doing and why, and where
they are, let me know.
Homecoming 2010 was a lively event. No
virus-stricken Georgetown this time, but they
did run into the Raiders and fell 34-3. Sally
and Hugh Meinweiser ’49, Ruth Leach, and Ted
Stacy ’51 joined the Rheas one more time and
combined for a most pleasant weekend at the
Thirteen house. Sally added to the festivities by
representing Cazenovia C at the inauguration of
Jeffrey Herbst on Sunday. “Little old Hamilton”
was a busy, busy place.
There are now 9 photos making up our album
on the 1950 website, some from the reunion and
other times. New photos of classmates together
are always welcome, so send them to me or to
the Scene if you would like something posted.
The new address for the Colgate website is
colgateconnect.org.
In a departure from class news, congrats
are due to Pres Herbst on his recent decision to
initiate the search for a VP for communications,
whose challenge it will be to explain Colgate,
extend its natl reputation, and attract students
from across the country and the world.
Speaking of class news, more is always nice
and appreciated. If you have “sorta promised” to
send me something, now would be a good time
to do it.
Best wishes and stay well, Bunn.
Bunn: 440-933-4137; [email protected]
19 51
Nels MacCallum
1915 Clark Road
Rochester, NY 14625-1830
Reunion June 2–5, 2011
Writing this column in early Oct with generally fine autumn weather going on and colors
starting to burst. As Al Egler would exclaim, “It’s
a football day.” As of this week, Raider football
is 2-2 for the season. You’re reading this in early
2011. Make it a happy, healthy year, our 60th
anniversary year of our graduation from Colgate.
Hope as many of us as possible will be back on
campus for our reunion, June 3–5, 2011.
Rick Mittleman screens in from Palm Desert,
CA: “Dear Prince-Among-Class-Correspondents.
I have to admit to continuous correspondence
with Danny Michelson, the king of nostalgia,
whose room was next to mine in Eaton Hall
where I saved some bucks serving as dorm
adviser. Even from faraway Denmark, Danny has
a remarkable ability to remember campus-based
anecdotes I’ve long forgotten, a condition not at
all helped by my daughter who reminded me
years ago that I’m losing thousands of brain cells
a day. Danny’s last letter also described his signing up for officers training on a lark following
Jimi Grimes’s lead, which led you, Nels, to call for
fellow classmates to detail their service experience. So, here goes. As you can see, unlike most of
my fellow Colgate classmates who proved their
mettle in their country’s service, I was never cut
out to be a soldier. I was drafted in 1952 and, violating all previous advice, I stepped across a line
when asked to volunteer and ended up in the
Army counter intelligence. I was sent for training
to Fort Holabird, MD, (now the repository for the
Watergate papers) where my 1st mistake was
casually waving at a passing 2-star general’s flagflying limo while lying on the ground during a
rest break from gardening duty. After a deserved
dressing down from the general on the spot, I did
OK until my newfound buddy Lucky Bernstein
and I opted for garbage detail, which was smelly
duty but just took a few hours a day — only to
take the starch out of a passing officer’s dress
khakis during a steam hose fight meant to
relieve the tension of cleaning out garbage cans.
After that, our only gaff was figuring out what
to do with the endless barrels of watermelon
rinds served at the 400-man company mess hall
located on the 2nd floor, which then had to be
dragged onto the elevator and then dragged to
the back delivery port. Then inspiration struck.
Raising the elevator 2' above floor level, we decided to dump the rinds down the elevator shaft. It
worked like a dream until the end of lunch when
the elevator came to a crunching halt a foot shy
of the bottom level. But, like I told our sgt major, I
never said I was perfect. Somehow I survived CIC
school and was assigned to the 316th CIC Detachment at the Presidio in SF, where, although never
rising above the rank of corporal, I wore civvies
and was allowed to live off base to protect my
cover. As a result I can proudly boast that there
was not one single attack on SF by the N Koreans
or the Red Chinese during my final year and a
half in the service. I can also proudly deny I was
not the agent who, while practicing quick-draw
techniques with his 38-caliber pistol during overnight unit guard duty, put a hole in the men’s
room ceiling. On a personal note, I enjoy reading
about the many years of marriage enjoyed by my
obviously loving and trusting classmates. I, too,
have been married for over 40 years. Unfortunately, 26 of those years were to my ex-wife.
See you all at our 60th Reunion.” (Look forward
to it, Rick). PS: “How’s Andy’s knee? Did she ever
undergo surgery?” Thanks for asking, Rick. She
had reconstruction; dedicated exercise before
and after surgery led to a fine rehab and the knee
is great.
Our freshman classmate Ken Sheeleigh
(remember him? I do) writes from Goshen, NY:
“I am very proud of my granddaughter Katie
Jeffers ’13 whose Colgate career has already
surpassed mine. She’s in her soph year after
making spring semester Dean’s List. In Sept 1947
I started Colgate while still on terminal leave as
a WWII Pacific vet. I played freshman basketball,
pledged DKE, and forgot to study. After a summer
school trial, Lafayette C took me in. I played 2
years of varsity basketball, was pres of DKE, and
managed to graduate with my Class of 1951. I
am still working in a family business I started
in 1960. To avoid NY winters, have spent the last
22 seasons at my Jupiter, FL, home. A member of
the same golf club as the late Alan Egler, whom
I played with at times. Best to you and any classmates who might remember a 1-year ‘wonder.’”
(Same to you, Ken. Thanks for thinking of us. And
congrats on your Colgate granddaughter.)
Charles Tillinghast drops another nature tale
from Tucson: “Desert adventures, Aug 10, 7:30pm.
I was in my shop doing leg stretches (for leg
cramps) in dim twilight when I heard a thump.
I’d heard noises out there before, never saw mice
or rat droppings, so noises went unexplained.
The thump could have come from the roof. I
joined Mary in the living room where all was
quiet as we read, yawned, and occasionally
checked time. Then, ‘thump!’ Could it be thunder?
Although rains of our summer monsoon season
(marked by shift of prevailing winds from the
NW to SE) are in abeyance, maybe not wholly
“Our only gaff was figuring out what to do with the endless barrels of watermelon rinds served at
the 400-man company mess hall located on the 2nd floor… Raising the elevator 2' above floor level,
we decided to dump the rinds down the elevator shaft.” — Rick Mittleman ’51
dead. Mary thought she saw raindrops on a
window, but I didn’t. All quiet, reading resumed,
then another ‘thump.’ Not thunder. We once had
raccoons on the roof so I went out to look. It was
dark and I saw nothing. Mary turned on outside
lights and said, ‘Bobcat behind you.’ I didn’t see
a cat and went to look out the window where
she was. There were 2 bobcat kittens cavorting
around a nearby mesquite tree they’d climbed
to get to the roof. We’d seen the mother and 2
kittens earlier in the day playing around our
fountain, currently dry except for rain residue.
The kittens then lapped up the water and
chased each other up and around the fountain
levels. They also charged some bushes, perhaps
looking for the rat we’d seen there. I said something to Mary, apparently too loudly. Mama
cat looked up, startled, and off they went, until
night. It’s nice to have these beautiful animals
around, big and exotic enough to provide some
excitement not provided by doves, or even rats.
‘Nice’ as long as they don’t jump around the
roof at night keeping us awake. Aug 11 dawned.
We had slept through the night without
thumps. With morning the bobcats returned,
3 kittens this time. Maybe 1 was a friend that
came along for fountain fun. No explanation
offered. Best wishes.” I replied to Charles, asking how the “kissing bugs” (his earlier nature
report) were doing. He answered, “Only 3 or 4 of
them showed up in the house during the high
months of their activities. When killed they
emitted no blood, so no one was bitten. Good
news for Mary. For me, too! A road runner has
been visiting us in afternoons, hanging its beak
on the living room slider, then cavorting about.
But that’s another story.”
Walt Timmerman updates from Elkton, FL:
“Great to hear from you again. Jean and I are
doing fine in the Sunshine State despite the
warmer-than-average summer. Last Feb we
welcomed our 1st great-grandchild (a girl).”
(Congrats!) “Family lives in Charlotte, NC. Made
a trip to CO Springs in July for the wedding of 1
of our grandsons. Did some sightseeing at the
AF Academy, Royal Gorge Railway, etc. Regards
to you and classmates.”
Jack Travis MD writes from Kansas City, MO:
“In our 81st year (56 years of marriage). Mary
Ann is legally blind, under RX for AMD. We both
have Parkinson’s disease. I am somewhat crippled, extensive spinal surgery in 2006. But our
spirits are high. Our 2 sons and 5 grandchildren
raise our spirits more. We have a new address.
It is a lovely place; we have a large 2-bedroom
apt. Our daughter Ann, a registered MSW, lives
in another apt here, watches over us, with care
and love. Best wishes to all.” (Our best wishes
and thoughts right back to Mary Ann and you,
Jack.)
Bill Waggener checks in from Denver:
“Retired from law practice 9 years ago, but still
keep busy playing golf, doing volunteer work for
my church and others, taking some classes put
on by Denver U, and taking vacations with wife
Gladys. Last trip was a cruise around the New
England islands. Now we know how the super
rich live. Have had several phone conversations
with Shell Storrier to reminisce about old
times. I enjoy hearing about what some of our
classmates are doing. Best to all.”
Walt Wilson paints a lovely scene: “I am still
happily married to Patty (Cornell ’51) after 58th
anniversary. Still live in Tubac (AZ) with a 2nd
home in the mtns of Pinetop, AZ. Six kids have
given us a dozen grandchildren and 4 greatgrandchildren — all bright, productive, and
prosperous; yes, we are fortunate. Still an artist;
also still in business with an LLC and art gallery.
Still golf with a high handicap and we travel
and enjoy life. Best to you all.” Walt also sent
an art book flyer on his book: Walter Blakelock
Wilson/an American Artist/ 66 Years of Painting…
Landscapes, portraits, historical subjects, famous
artists.
Austin ‘Woody’ Wood sails in from Sunapee,
NH: “Sue and I enjoy good health and an active
life here. We visit our collective 5 children and 8
grandchildren scattered across the country coast
to coast. Looking forward to a European odyssey
to Berlin, Prague, Vienna, and Budapest (departed Sept 22). A trip to FL last March included
a visit with classmates Tom Walbridge and Don
Stichter and their wives. I enjoy my woodworking, gardening, cycling, and cruising on our
‘Driftwood’ on Lake Champlain. We look forward
to our 60th Reunion in 2011. See you all there.” It’s
a date, Woody.
Stew Hare sends sad news from Elba, NY: “It is
with regret that I send this obituary notice about
Blair Davis. Blair died in Wilmington, DE, on July
28. He was our classmate, as well as my fraternity brother and longtime good friend. He was
an all-around great guy and it is always tough to
lose good people like him. This will be sad news
for his many Colgate friends.” (Indeed, Stew. Blair
was a great guy and classmate [and fine baseball
teammate of mine]. I wrote to his wife of 29
years, Patricia, expressing the condolences and
remembrances of ’51 classmates.)
In Aug, Dick Schubert surprised me with a
call from a phone booth at the Port of Rochester.
Shirley and he were on a Great Lakes cruise, had
arrived here the night before, and had a tour
of the city, winding up at the George Eastman
House (Museum of Photography). Neither we,
nor any of our friends, were aware of a cruise like
this. It starts at Chicago, Lake Michigan, Lake Erie,
Lake Ontario, St Lawrence River to the Hudson
River, down to NYC, LI Sound, Atlantic, and, ultimately to Providence, RI, where they would catch
a plane back to NC. We talked for a bit and suddenly he said, “Oops! Looks like they’re working
on the gang-plank. I better grab my cane and get
over there. Good to talk to you.” Fifteen minutes
later he phoned, on his cell phone, from his stateroom to explain: When Shirley reboarded the
ship, the crew mistakenly thought that Dick had
preceded her and checked him off as re-boarded.
Thinking all passengers were on the ship, they
were taking up the gang plank and he got there
just in time. I told Dick if he had missed the ship,
we could have had a nice catch up as I drove the
4 hours to the next port of call, Ogdensburg.
Our reliable overseas observer Dan Michelson
reports from Copenhagen: “I was reading the
weekly travel section of the NY Times online
when, lo and behold! The section is dated Aug 3,
2010, and look under the heading ‘Frugal Traveler
by Seth Kugel.’ The article is about the Frugal
Traveler taking his (aged?) parents on a trip to
Nicaragua: ‘Mom and Dad, Meet My Budget.’ And
there is a photo, in color! It is of Seth’s parents
on a motor boat. So I checked and believe now
that the father is our own notorious Peter Kugel,
who was my freshman roommate back in the
previous century. Classmates can search and find
the article and photo on NY Times online.” (It is
humorous — and informative. I’ll quote briefly
from it: “My parents, Judy Kugel, 72-year-old university dean, and Peter Kugel, 80-year-old retired
prof, in from Boston, did not utter a complaint.
They were getting exactly what they wanted:
a window into their son’s travels through Latin
America on $500 a week. And I was getting what
I wanted as well: a chance to see whether I could
put together a frugal but acceptable itinerary for
2 seasoned travelers accustomed to vacations
with the comforts a more generous budget provides. Nicaragua seemed to be the ideal setting
for such a venture; it is very affordable and has
grown safer in recent years. Over 6 days, several
challenges would arise in my quest to meld the
budget I had been traveling on — a maximum
of $70 per person per day — with equal parts adventure and ease.”) Dan, always curious, wonders
about the adventure. From the photo: why the
fancy watch in the jungle? Is there a classified
electronic device in that Rolex? And where did
they get the Nicaraguan military shorts? What
is really going on here? He closes with: “Best
regards to all from your diligent reporter.”
Again, make it a happy, healthy 2011. Audrey
and I plan to be at our 60th Reunion, June 3–5,
2011. Look forward to seeing many of you there!
Nels: [email protected]
1 952
Jackson T King
476 Grace Trail
Orange, CT 06477-2619
I received the following note from Dick Leonard:
“At the spring meeting of the Alumni Council,
I heard a presentation by our new pres, Jeff
Herbst. Although Rebecca Chopp will be sorely
missed, I have very high hopes and expectations
that Jeff will do a great job. I had the privilege
of working with him on a Princeton education
project in S Africa. He has extremely strong credentials and has attacked his new job with great
enthusiasm. Although a scholarly type, he is a
supporter of both sports and fraternities, which
should give comfort to many of us. “And for those in our class who served on the
Alumni Council, formerly known as ACBOD, I
would note that RuthAnn Loveless MA’72 is retiring as executive secretary after 17 years. She has
been the heart and soul of that org and a good
friend to all of us. We wish her Godspeed.
“I am delighted to see that Tom Morgan (lt gen
USMC ret) has taken an active role in getting Colgate involved in the new Post-9/11 GI Bill’s Yellow
Ribbon Program, which allows colleges to enter
into dollar-for-dollar matching agreements with
the federal govt to pay veterans’ educational
costs. Not only is this a great way to say thank
you to our veterans, but it can bring to campus
mature students from diverse backgrounds. We
missed seeing Tom at our last reunion and hope
he is in good health.
“As for myself, I’m still active in business. I go
down to Bogota, Colombia, every month or 2 on a
bio-fertilizer project. I’m still involved with on oil
refinery in Afghanistan and am a dir of a Cam-
News and views for the Colgate community
49
Alan Zenuk
From the director’s chair
Seasoned Hollywood director Mel Damski ’68 talks to the Scene about the changing landscape of movies and television.
In a time when the flick Jackass 3D opens as the number-one box office hit, director Mel
Damski ’68 wonders where that leaves him. His recently released movie, Legendary (starring Patricia Clarkson, Danny Glover, and wrestling superstar John Cena), tells the story of
a high school student who joins the wrestling team as a way to reunite his family, which has
been torn apart by the death of his father. The film exemplifies one of the signatures of his
work, which he described as focusing on the human experience.
“The studios only want to make movies that make a lot of money; they’re not interested
in little prestigious films,” Damski said. “And maybe that’s why it’s harder to get people to
leave their TV sets to go to the movies — you have to find some big event thing to get them
there.”
Legendary is faring better on DVD than it did in the Cineplex. “What that tells me is, the
Legendary audience is totally happy to watch a film on their home TV, and it takes something more than that to get them to go to the theater,” he said.
Damski has built his long career directing television shows and movies. Starting with
Barnaby Jones and The Bionic Woman, he’s also worked on a number of David Kelley sensations like Picket Fences, The Practice, Ally McBeal, and Boston Public.
He just finished producing and directing the fifth season of Psych, a comedic crime
series on the USA Network. “For the most part, it’s very lighthearted, but still based on real
people and the foibles we see in ourselves,” Damski said.
Although he wishes that crude movies and action films weren’t the ones breaking weekend box-office records, Damski said he doesn’t dislike them, and believes that the changing
landscape has had the positive effect of driving older writers from the silver screen to the
small screen. “There are so many channels that there’s more good television available now
than ever, and there are some terrific writers in television. These are people who in the ’20s
would have been playwrights and in the ’40s would have been writing movies.”
Acknowledging that there is a certain amount of ageism in Hollywood, Damski said he
plans to stay in the game as long as possible. “I have been very blessed to do what I love, and
I’m still doing it at 64 years old. How many people have had as much fun going to work every
day as I have?”
If the time does come that Damski is no longer in demand, he said he won’t spend his
time on the golf course or playing bridge — he’ll devote himself to charity work. In the meantime, he’s created a website called Lonelyasparagus.com, to address childhood obesity, and
he is president of Lyrique Wine Company. “Well, that’s not helping the world,” he admitted.
“Maybe a little … one sip at a time,” he joked.
— Aleta Mayne
bodian country fund. I’m living in the Princeton
area. I’d love to hear from you.”
I also received a letter from Bruce Ergood
recently. He writes as follows: “On Aug 20 we
celebrated a mini-Colgate reunion here on Lake
George. Bob Bowser was our house guest for several days, and on the 20th, we had nearby classmates and friends join us to enjoy memories,
renew old friendships, and meet our classmates’
50
scene: Winter 2011
wives. Joining us were Henda and Sam Strasser,
Ruth and Bob Yates, Sara Lee and John Sanborn
’53, and Bob Gardiner ’54 (all the way from Lenox,
MA). No Colgate football or hockey, just renewing
relationships and those formative years in a
wholesome, educational, and cultural environment.
“I’m off to Mexico to visit my compadre of
over 50 years. Then in Jan to continue our train-
ing and supplying primary health care workers
in mountainous southern Honduras. (See article
on our work in Scene spring 2010, p 48.)”
I received some news about our classmate
Roy Plaut and his wife, Olga. Roy and Olga had
founded from scratch an internatl school in
Atlanta. In 1985 the school opened its doors with
51 kindergarten and 1st-grade children. At present the school has almost 1,000 students K–12.
This is their 25th anniversary and the Atlanta
International School (AIS) has blossomed. The
school has been nationally and internationally
recognized for its innovative curriculum in which
subjects are taught in other languages along
with English. A 25th anniversary book has just
been published. Congrats to Roy and Olga. What
a great achievement. Thanks to Al Busby for
passing on much of this info.
Charles B Dorf, as student basketball varsity
manager, is now memorialized at a Memorial
Grove located near Chapel House. This is a serene
space offering the opportunity to memorialize
loved ones with an engraved granite stone.
Arthur Thompson’s wife, Carol, passed away
on Aug 11, in Hope Sound, FL. She also leaves her
son, Curt Thompson ’79.
I would certainly appreciate hearing from you
by phone, mail, or e-mail.
Jack: 203-795-9111; [email protected]
1953
Lou Wilcox
27 Oak Avenue
West Yarmouth, MA 02673
Jack Fletcher sent me the following on his doings, “The Scene is a great publication. You are
one reason it’s so good. I enjoy reading the 1953
column. After viewing your work of art first, I
go to the sports section, then the main features,
and finally the ‘In Memoriam’ column. I was
deeply saddened by the notice of Clay Noia’s
death. Although we were not close friends, we
did communicate occasionally, particularly after
I read his 1st published book about growing up
in CT during WWII. A few years back while Kathy
and I were RVing through So CA, we contacted
Clay about a visit. He warned us about the
rugged drive through the then–fire ravaged San
Bernardino Mtns, where he and his wife lived,
particularly with an RV. So, we met in Barstow,
60 miles north of his home, and had a very
pleasant extra-long lunch. That is the last time
we saw Clay.
“The day after Labor Day, Kathy and I depart
Quilcene in our RV and head east to attend our
61st Montclair, NJ, HS reunion. As you remember,
some class notables came from MHS: Charlie
Kimber, Jack McMahon, Preston Strazza, Arnie
Koch (although he transferred to Blair Academy
for his final HS year), and Gus Keriazakos (who
stayed 1 semester and then opted for a big league
baseball career with the Chicago White Sox and
Washington Senators). While in the area, we
will also take a Bermuda cruise from NYC with a
daughter and niece. Then we head south to meet
our brand-new great-grandson in Jacksonville, FL.
After that stop, we head west and home. Kathy,
the navigator, figures we will be in Quilcene
before Thanksgiving.”
And then, what to my wondering eyes should
appear in W Yarmouth than a large 5th wheel
RV with Kathy and Jack Fletcher aboard. We had
a wonderful 2 1/2 days, talking about everything
from submarines to happenings when we were
undergrads, to gardening and food, visiting all
the sites and sights of Cape Cod. I had seen Jack
briefly at the 50th, but otherwise had not seen
him since our graduation from Colgate. Ayuh,
much catching up to do. Nicki and I really appreciated their visit, and hope that anyone else
passing by this area will stop by, too.
Bernie Siegel checked in with the following
thoughts: “Have more books out on faith, hope,
and healing and words … Swords is a collection
of my poems written for my therapy and years
later helping others and working on one with
miracle stories. I am writing to let you know
about our 3 dogs and 4 cats since you mention
my pets. Now have Penny, Princess, Rusty, and
Hope; dogs are Furphy, Buddy, and Sex.”
In a 2nd note, Bernie adds, “We sold our house
on the Cape as Bobbie is affected by long-term
MS and hard to go up and back. I did think we
would retire there, but now it’s CT, although
I am far from retired, with writing, speaking,
teaching, and pet care. Our cat Miracle made it
to 20. She was special and I took her everywhere
like a dog. In the car she kept me awake and sat
up watching everything. I built her a door shelf
next to me to sit on so she feared nothing and
responded to my commands better than a dog. I
entered her in a dog show so she wouldn’t have
her feelings hurt. People thought I was nuts
when I showed up, but she got more attention
than the dogs, sitting there at peace in the midst
of them all sniffing her. Following year ad said
‘dog show for dogs only.’”
Gene Schulze checked in with some wonderful 9-11 pictures, many of which had never been
published before. Thanks, Gene, for sharing the
photos. He also sent in the following, which
should wake us all up to the advantages of
growing older: “Working people frequently ask
retired people what they do to make their days
interesting. Well, for example, the other day,
my wife and I went into town and into a shop.
We were only in there for about 5 minutes.
When we came out, there was a cop writing
out a parking ticket. We went up to him and
said, ‘Come on man, how about giving a senior
citizen a break?’ He ignored us and continued
writing the ticket. I called him a Nazi turd. He
glared at me and started writing another ticket
for having worn tires. So, my wife called him a
s*** head. He finished the 2nd ticket and put it
on the windshield with the 1st. Then he started
writing a 3rd ticket. This went on for about 20
minutes. The more we abused him, the more
tickets he wrote. Personally, we didn’t care. We
came into town by bus. We try to have a little
fun each day now that we’re retired. It’s important at our age.”
Jack Schramm wrote recently of some happenings in his life. Jack was invited by USAID to
train the 15 elected provincial councils in Iraq on
how to conduct themselves as a legislative body,
and to play a role in moderating an ongoing
debate about the division of governance responsibilities between the natl parliament and these
sub-natl governance institutions. It was a delicious opportunity for him, a last chance (at his
age) to make some contribution, however small,
to the potential of some degree of stability in
the Middle East, if that’s possible, he said. Jack
faced much opposition from his family to this
trip, but they finally yielded.
Here are some of Jack’s impressions of what
he found in Iraq. After asking the chief of party
what restrictions there were on his communications, the only thing was he could not speak
publicly about his travel plans in Iraq. Jack arrived in Iraq, where he met up with his security
detail after a lengthy visa/customs check. His
private security detail was 2 Brits, Carl and
Tucker, ex-military for the UK. Jack got along famously with Carl, and watched as Carl strapped
on his pistol and checked his machine gun and
put Jack in a flak jacket. Jack was wedged in the
middle of the vehicle because Carl told him that
if they were attacked, Jack should get down as
low as he could since the vehicle was armored.
Jack and his entourage arrived at the Internatl
Zone, formerly the Green Zone, where the US has
built the largest and most secure embassy in the
world, on 104 acres. Jack arrived at the RTI Compound only to find more security and machinegun sand-bagged posts. He said to himself, “Jack,
you dodo bird, what have you gotten yourself
into this time!” He buried the thought for the
moment.
The RTI Compound sits on 5–6 acres where
once stood the palace of Uday Hussein, son of
Saddam. Jack’s “room” was located in one of 2
parallel 1-story rows of what are called bungalows. On the row where Jack lived, the sign read
“Desolation Row,” and the other row was labeled
“Broken Dreams Blvd.” Jack was issued a helmet
that reminded him of WWII German Wehrmacht
helmets and a 40-lb flak jacket that he could
barely lift, but felt quite comfortable once on.
Jack eats in a contracted Bangladeshi-operated restaurant for lunch and dinner. At each of
these meals, he eats much food and then loads
up take-home covered plates and stores the
excess in his refrigerator for breakfast or a rainy
day. Walking about the compound is discouraged, and if you walk, they want you to walk in
pairs. The vehicles are subject to search with a
mirror and dog, both coming and going at the
checkpoint just outside RTI’s compound.
If anyone wants Jack’s full report, drop me a
note and I will e-mail it to you.
I am living happily on Cape Cod with Nicki
McMahon, Jack McMahon’s widow, and we are
engaged, although we have not set a date for
marriage. So, again, if in the area, do stop by and
you can learn all the secrets of getting engaged
at our young age. It should be known that Nicki
and I are both rabid gardeners, so if you arrive
here unannounced and we do not answer the
door, look out in the gardens for us.
Lou: 508-827-4080; [email protected]
19 54
Peter W Rakov
159 Edgewood Avenue
Hurley, NY 12443-5406
Happily, Bill Mast is still spending 6 months/
yr in Germany. He hikes a lot and plays in the
village brass ensemble. Says he’s finally at home
with the language.
Mike Lodato got his 3rd hole-in-one on
Memorial Day. My apologies, Mike, I must have
misplaced your Christmas e-mail. The Lodatos
and the Harry Matthews see a lot of each other,
including plans for New Year’s.
Joy and John McLaughlin moved to Hilton
Head Sept 23. He wrote, “It was fun working with
you, Russ (Lloyd, Gary Chandler, and Curt Taylor)
on our 50th Reunion.” Right on. All, let’s do it
again June 2–5, 2011!
Several men have asked for Dick Janeway’s
contact info — his wife passed Jan 7. Contact me
and I will pass it along.
Three dear classmates have passed since last
July: Fred McKnight, Dave Cox, and Mike Copeland. Diane McKnight is in Sea Girt, NJ. Mary Cox
is in Auburn, MA. Betty Ruth Copeland is in Apex,
NC. Our deepest sympathy to all three ladies.
Bob Coye was in a commitment ceremony to
Darlene Dunlap on Oct 17.
Peter: 845-340-0659; [email protected]
19 55
Bruce Burke
4661 Sweetmeadow Circle
Sarasota, FL 34238-4334
How busy some of our classmates are! I have
heard from several of them. Bob Victorin wrote
at the beginning of Oct: “Thought I would send a
photo from the weekend Jack Boyd and I spent
at Colgate. We enjoyed the hospitality of Nike
and Bud Bolte, who planned a mini-tour of the
campus, including a show at the planetarium,
and stopping at the geology dept exhibition, the
Coop, and an exhibition of Bud’s paintings at the
Hamilton library. Then, the game at the Carrier
Dome, which was fabulous. Colgate offense
controlled the ball in the 1st half and they were
only down 7-0 until Syracuse scored just before
the half, but we had a TD called back, bad call.
The outcome was obvious as ’Cuse took over. I
guess Colgate played for the money! We parked
at Skytop, shuttled to the quad and to the Colgate
alumni luncheon at the faculty ctr, which was
the former DKE House. I’ve included a picture
of Lake Moraine in front of the Boltes’ house. I
had forgotten how beautiful the lake is. Then,
you will find Jack prepared to cheer and Jack,
Bud, and Nike relaxing at the inn. Sorry that we
missed seeing Bob Horstmyer, who looked for us
during halftime.”
William L Boyle Jr wrote about being back
on campus in mid-Sept for the introductory
luncheon at the inn with our new pres, Jeff
Herbst. He is a fellow poli scientist with great
(Ivy League) credentials. He is also a full prof of
poli sci, while his wife is a noted marketing specialist. They have 3 children, 2 in college and one
in local Hamilton schools. The family will live on
campus, in Watson House.
Glad to hear from our class pres, Bob Quitzau,
who reports: “I just got home after a full weekend of Alumni Council meetings, Homecoming,
and Inauguration at Colgate. The great Class of
’55 was well-represented as Art DuBois and I
were there for the fall Council sessions and to
wear our academic robes in the procession for
the Inauguration of Pres Herbst on Sunday. Bud
and Nike Bolte were at the Inauguration and
also at the Homecoming game the preceding
day. Polly and Carl DeFaria, and Bob Horstmyer were there to watch the Raiders demolish
Georgetown. It was a great weekend and the fair
Chenango Valley was beautiful with the leaves
changing color.”
Bruce: 941-926-3244; [email protected],
[email protected]
19 5 6
Jerry Rhodes
101 Magerton Court
Cary, NC 27511-7303
Reunion June 2–5, 2011
First, I must regretfully report that Tom Robertson died on July 16 at his home in Unadilla,
NY. We pass along our sincere condolences to
his wife, Jane, and the family. As with all the
others, Tom will be missed whenever classmates
get together. Jane sent me a note saying how
much Tom enjoyed telling stories, and many of
them were from his Colgate years. I’m sure he
had some good ones, too! Gene Soechtig wrote
that he was greatly saddened at the news of
Tom’s death as he was a fraternity bother and
a friend for over 50 years. The 2 of them used
to get together at reunions and talk fly-fishing,
both being great enthusiasts. They always talked
about going steelheading together but, alas,
never quite managed it. Gene also said he has
been looking for roomie Brian McIntosh for over
10 years but without any luck. The last time
Gene knew, Brian was in Wheaton, IL. So, Brian, if
you’re out there, be like ET and call home!
I received a note from Mickey Warburton
asking if I had heard from his roommates, Jim
Mihalke and Charlie Mueller. (The answer is,
occasionally!) Mickey is the new pres of the
Treasure Coast Alumni Club and he’s planning
a mid-winter all-FL gathering. Hal Trevenen
sent me a wonderful note that I’d like to pass on
verbatim. He writes: “Ponder these words: ‘There
is no dress rehearsal for life. There is a reason for
everything that happens. I’m the luckiest person
on the face of the earth.’ On the cold wintry AM
of Jan 22, 2010, I awoke to a strange situation.
Most of my life I had always competed in the
‘best-of-3-sets’ competition. This day I met a
strange and unfamiliar competitor and quickly
realized it was going to be a 5-set battle against
a strong opponent known in medical circles as
‘killer stroke.’ Over the next 6 months I have often reflected on the above words. The contest has
seen me tired, confused, challenged, and blessed.
I’m fortunate to be here to share it with you all:
fortunate for the medical teams, my wonderful
wife, Peggy, family and friends, and multiple
prayer chains. Bloodwork, MRA, MRI, EEG, PT, OT,
and speech therapy sessions became routine. I’m
very aware others have faced these challenges,
so please, no sympathy. Just live each day to the
fullest and thank the creator for all blessings.”
Thank you, Hal, and perhaps this will encourage
others who face similar trials.
I got 2 notes from Jack Herring. The 1st was
a request for info on Pete Payne, his freshman
roommate. I sent him what I had, and Jack managed to get hold of him. Pete lives on St Helena
Island, SC. They had a great talk and shared
e-mail addresses so they can keep in contact. Jack
says that Pete is in good health and still plays
tennis regularly (as does Jack) and he is enjoying
retirement. Jack also passed along that he and
Marti welcomed a new family addition — their
1st great-grandchild. Congrats to you both! Frank
Proietti says that he and Larry Scharbach will
be taking their annual ski trip to Steamboat in
Feb. Have fun, guys, and don’t break anything!
Gordie Miller reports that he and Heide went
to CO Springs for a few days for his Air Force
baseball team’s reunion. A visit to Norad also
highlighted the trip. Then, they were off to Italy:
Rome, Cinque Terra, and parts of Umbria. Gordie
says he’s been taking Italian lessons off and on
for the past 2 years, but “it’s been a struggle. In
any case, I’m down pat with my buongiornos and
ciaos; after that it’s a free-for-all.” Buona fortuna,
signore!
I received an interesting note from Sheila Haisfield, who lives in Bali, Indonesia. She and her
cousin were good friends of Bo Patrick for many
years in NY and Greece. She had planned a trip
to Mykonos and wanted to know if I had a good
contact for Bo. She found me by doing a Google
search for Bo and I guess she wound up with one
of my Scene columns. I don’t think I was much
help, so I hope she was able to find Bo. Mr Patrick,
I would greatly appreciate hearing from you,
as would your classmates. Larry Martin writes
that he and Jorette had a great trip to Boston
over July 4. They were on a boat in the Charles
River watching the fireworks and listening to the
Boston Pops. (I’m envious!) As for future plans,
they are planning a Danube River cruise next
summer with a side trip to Prague. It’s a great
trip and I know they’ll love it. Also, when Larry
wrote to me in Sept, they were about to head
out to Albuquerque for the city’s balloon fest (I
know there’s a hot air joke in there somewhere!)
and were planning to spend some time with Ed
Jaqua.
I received a call from Dave Hartley informing
me of his new e-mail address, for which he has
my lasting thanks. (That’s a hint to the rest of
you!) Dave still lives near Sandy Hook, NJ, and
says he’s the last of the big-time gamblers — he
put a $2 bet on the Colgate/Monmouth football
game! It’s a good thing no more was bet, as we
only won by a point! Jack Goodreds and I had a
good phone conversation back in Sept. He says
he finally sold his house in Goshen, for which
he’s very glad. He also said he attended classes at
Colgate’s Summer on the Hill and really enjoyed
them. He recommends them to all who can get
up to Hamilton in the summer. He says that Don
Rith is selling his paintings at a gallery on Broad
St in Hamilton. Jack also got together with Chuck
Berky ’59 and Dick Carpenter ’55.
I thank you all for your notes and cards. I
really would like to hear from more of you. If
spouses or SO’s are reading this, light a fire under
your guy and get him to write! Until next time…
Jerry: 919-363-1980; [email protected]
1 957
Ev Smethurst
6 Son Bon
Laguna Niguel, CA 92677-8601
Fall in SoCal is different from upstate NY. There
is no color in the trees. We had clouds and rain
2 days ago. It will get up to the mid-90s by this
weekend. The natives get confused: don’t know
when to go out, when to stay home. The elderly
swimmers I see every day are not affected by
weather of any kind. We just look at the clock:
when it is 10 AM, we go to the pool.
How is that for an opening?! Hope everyone
is well. Had a great summer. Arlene and I got
to NYC last week for 4 great days. We have the
perfect date: she goes to a musical, I go to a play,
and then we eat. We also saw our 2 great sons
and grandson Skuli, who turned 6 yesterday.
On to the news. I sent an e-mail to old friend
Bob Bleiweiss ’56. He responded from Jerusalem.
We will get together next month in SoCal. I have
also heard from David Peck ’60, who lives in
Laguna Beach. We have coffee from time to time.
David gave me the address of another old friend
— Carl Benton Straub ’58. I dropped him a note
and he responded. Carl has been on the faculty at
Bates C for 40 years and recently retired. Arlene
and I attended the send-off in LaJolla last month.
We met the great folks from the San Diego
alumni group, led by Chris Schweighart ’97.
There is little to report from the Class of 1957.
I made an effort to reach Ellis Rowland and Jim
Aston, but their e-mails bounced. So I need new
addresses. The only news is sad. Our good friend
from Phi Tau, Fred Schroeder, passed away July
7. Fred was an internist in Pearl River for 37 years
and on the staff of Nyack Hospital before retiring
in 2000. In the early 1970s, working with the Rotary and members of the Pearl River Ambulance
Corps, he organized and trained the 1st volunteer
ambulance telemetry cardiac care with Nyack
Hospital. He also served as doctor for the Pearl
River Fire Dept. He is survived by his wife of 53
years, Geraldine, of Saddle River; his children,
Cynthia Anne of Charlottesville, VA, Dr Keith of
Spencerport, NY, and Dr Todd of Palm City, FL; and
5 grandchildren. Our deepest sympathies to the
Schroeder family.
That’s it. Your editor is making very little out
of almost nothing. See you next time.
Ev: 949-495-4862; [email protected]
News and views for the Colgate community
51
1 958
Bob Woodruff
3017 West Garfield Street
Seattle, WA 98199-4243
Wow, 15 of you came through with e-mails and
submissions for my deadline. Thank you to each
one of you. The great Class of 1958! This process
seems to be working. About a week before my
deadline, I will send out an e-mail blast to pick
up your news and events in your lives. Then I
will write the article 2 days before the deadline,
so I appreciate your timely responses. Here goes:
In the summer issue of the Scene, Ron Greenleese challenged us to identify the “mystery
classmate of the quarter.” He stated, “One of
our stellar ’58 grads who put his 2 daughters
through Colgate, and whose father also graduated from Colgate, has a grandson about to be
drafted into the NFL. The grandson starred at
NC State.” Who is the classmate? I spoke with
Ron yesterday and he identified the mystery
classmate as Bob Stemmermann! Congrats, Bob.
No one submitted a guess, so I will just have
to keep the prize for myself! Bob’s grandson’s
name is Ted Larsen, son of Karen Stemmermann
Larsen ’84. He plays for his hometown Tampa
Bay Buccaneers. Bob and wife Denny are proud
of Ted and their other grandchildren. Bob just
chimed in and said another daughter, Lynn
Stemmermann Pfost ’82, is also a Colgate grad.
Bob’s father, Ted, was ’24.
Who else would like to submit a “mystery
classmate” story? Who has that many Colgate
connections?
I am experiencing the 6-degrees of separation
phenomenon. Paul Schupf leads to Alan Young
who leads to Bob Balentine. Paul writes that he
has been made chair of the Musicians Aid Society of NY; Greg Koerner ’88 had founded MASNY
to make grants to worthy NY-area musicians.
MASNY had its 1st very successful fundraising
jubilee this summer touring Manhattan with
300 on board including classmate Alan Young
and wife Sharon Bobb. Many Colgate alums
from other classes also attended. Alan writes
that he and his wife have a 2nd home in Harpers
Ferry, WV, as does Bob Balentine. Small world.
Ron Colwell and wife Bertie are into significant volunteering as he drives patients to the
American Cancer Society for treatments. This
work is particularly meaningful as both of them
lost their 1st spouses to cancer. They also do
charitable work with their friends and neighbors in their retirement community in Leesburg,
FL.
Howard Davis and wife Barbara celebrated
their 50th anniversary with a 19-day European
cruise after having a wonderful dinner with
their 3 children and spouses. He is involved in
community, country club, and homeowner’s
assoc in their community of Boca Raton, FL.
I heard from one of my 1st-year roommates
in Stillman Hall before we both moved to West
Hall in its 1954 renovation. Mike McKoane sold
his real estate company, Farnsworth, McKoane
and Co, in Chicago, and he and wife Mary Ann
headed for Door County, WI, in the summers and
Bonita Springs, FL, when the snow flies. Mike
has raised money for Colgate and worked for
Hospice. He now works for a couple of charities
and plays. He and Mary Ann have 7 kids and 15
grandchildren! Lots of bday parties.
I always hear from the French men in our
class. I enjoy it, as I am a Francophile myself.
Tad Brown lives 40 km (about 30 miles) west
of Paris, gardening, being an astronomer and a
birder. He also plays clarinet in 2 local concert
52
scene: Winter 2011
bands and plays other instruments. He follows
up with another e-mail declaring that his beans
are “producing abundantly.” He concludes in his
best French, “Et voila, Bob! Bonne santé, bonne fin
de vacances.”
Not far away, near Paris, in Brittany, Robert
Barton-Clegg tells that he has just completed
his 14th year of helping Handicap Internatl with
their “Mountain of Shoes” campaign against
landmines and cluster bombs. He also supports
Greenpeace. His Brittany place is near the West
Coast of France in a region noted for its big
stones and great seafood. When should we go?
Wayne King tells me that he is on his 3rd
career making his avocation of photography a
vocation with WayneKing Photography in Phoenix. They just returned from a cruise to Turkey,
Greece, Israel. Great. They have 13 grandkids.
Back in the Hamilton area, Arthur Rashap, our
immediate past class editor, has taken up the tutoring business at Morrisville State and Colgate.
He particularly enjoys helping students realize
that what goes on in the classroom does relate to
their “real life.” He believes that this translation
through mentoring is the key to the education
process today. He frequents Seven Oaks Golf
Course and is working to promote an alumni
village for the Hamilton area. He often sees
Dick Cheshire, Phil Bisselle, and Paul Schupf, all
Hamilton residents.
Bill Caprio, all-reunion chair extraordinaire,
mentioned the mini-reunion that was held Oct
23 at the Colgate-Holy Cross football weekend.
He reported that 17 classmates and 12 spouses
signed up as of early Oct and he hoped to have
twice that number. I am sure, if Bill had his
fingers into this reunion, it was successful.
Dick Van Cleave is enjoying work and is in
regular contact with Ted Boccuzzi and Barry
Mandelbaum.
Din Walker speaks of his planned retirement
and sale of his home during our 50th Reunion
period and just before the real estate market
collapsed. His wife, Sis, had been suffering from
MS for a number of years, and after moving into
their Rockville, MD, home, she passed away. As
Din said, “So the best laid plans don’t always
work out!” He notes that Colgate didn’t prepare
him for the next year (2009 into 2010) and that
life is now improving. He has children’s families
in the DC area and in FL, so they have been supporting him. Din has been with Cal Low and Ann
at their Beaufort, SC, home on one of his return
trips from FL.
Konrad Perlman checks in, having held a photography open house in Sept showing 30+ years
of “art photography.” His results were: 2 sold
and 1 commission. Konrad and wife Kathleen
live in DC and he says his field is pretty thin in
his market and it is just about impossible to get
published in a down economy. He states, “I need
the help of a prominent photography curator”
to move ahead. Does anyone know of one? He
has recently seen Emily and Mike Brand and the
“hilarious” Fred Jacobs and wife Miriam.
A set of last notes: The alumni office has sent
me a notice of the passing of Ross Weeks on Aug
3. Ross lived across the hall from me at Doc West’s
on Madison St our 1st semester of our soph year. I
will always remember his intellect and his sense
of humor. The summer Scene reported the following from our class as recently deceased: Ralph
Antone, Larry Griffin, and Peter Ill. Our thoughts
are with their families during this time of grief
and transition.
Have a grand winter.
Bob: 206-550-6715; [email protected]
1959
Paul W Beardslee
Tunnel Mt B&B
Rt 1 Box 59-1
Elkins, WV 26241-9711
The Colgate spirit was present, the preparation
was complete, all the qualifiers (hurdles) were
met. But, the weather, true to the North Sea,
was not cooperative whatsoever! And so, Ted
Gregory met frustration in his quest of mastering the English Channel. In our view, Ted was
more than successful! He spent years preparing,
he qualified in Malta, and he persevered 11 days
of windy “Brit” weather, trying to wait out the
choppy seas. Hey, that gets expensive, and Ted
said he can’t prep anymore. Moreover, he’d
rather give the hotel fees to his alma mater (son
Jake’s tuition beckons!). He does still talk about
doing an English Channel relay next Aug, so do
stay tuned!
While Ted was sharing his disappointment
with me in early Aug, Susan Carlson (Roy ‘Chip’
Carlson’s wife) was visiting with us in our hills.
It seems Susan was/is an Elkins “product,” but
came for a reunion with siblings, leaving Chip
home to do, in his words, his “honey dos.” According to Susan, Chip has been working with
the Census Bureau, so we know he is counted
somewhere! By the way, Chip, are you counted
under Roy or Chip?
You may recall that I hoped we would hear
more from Bill Davenport, Chuck Berky, and
Bob Armata, among others. All 3 responded, so I
can now share details not heretofore available. Bill wrote in Aug telling us that he and
Tildy are very active and travel a lot. There are 7
grandchildren, Little League, soccer, and skiing.
Steamboat Springs, FL, Sri Lanka, and ME (John
Leyden’s widow, Bev, is on the schedule) are all
on the itinerary. Bill is heading up a fund drive
to “update” their local 213-year-old library and
he still had time to test Colgate’s Summer on the
Hill (rave reviews were tendered). Yes, Bill, that’s
active! Please keep us posted on Tildy’s mother
(she was 105 1/2 as this was written!).
Chuck Berky shared two e-mails with us.
The 1st was to clarify that those Christmas
scenes last year were not his! Doesn’t matter,
Chuck! They were great and we are glad you
chose to share them. In fact, we hope you might
consider re-sending them again each holiday
season. Chuck’s other “e” thing referenced to
Ted Gregory’s activities, applauding the efforts
and sharing the disappointment. Chuck was
responding to Craig Bollman, who was recalling
the days on the Colgate Raider swim team. As
Craig put it, he led off and Ted did the anchoring, usually bringing home a victory. As Craig
said, “Ted’s plans and preparations are right in
character and made him proud to share this tale
with family and friends.” By the by, John James
was involved in these e-mails as well. Perhaps
one of you can prod John to jot a few lines and
send them to our hills. The same applies to Jack
Hadlock who, per Chuck Berky, was a Summer
on the Hill participant as well. We need a report,
Jack.
Readers might recall that we wondered why
Bob Armata left our reunion early. Bob experienced a family death, so I hope all of you will
join me in expressing sympathies to Bob. We are
so sorry, Bob, but thank you for sharing. As many
of you know, Bob’s life has been full and “good,”
per Bob. He has 2 Colgate grads in his family and
1 from St Lawrence. Most of Bob’s career was
spent in Boston as managing partner of an insurance brokerage firm (only 2 of the 9 partners
were not Harvard or Yale!). Bob retired and lived
in Sarasota, FL, where he managed a turnaround
for a small specialty underwriting firm. He then
remarried a lady from his hometown and moved
back to the Berkshires. He and Carol do a lot
of traveling and try to catch a couple football
(Colgate) games every year. A full life to date,
Bob, and thanks for the update. Keep up the good
community work.
Back in July, as referenced in our autumn
missive, we had a call from Bill ‘Scoop’ Seibert.
While the mtns curtailed our chat, Scoop did call
later. It seems they were on their way to Joyce’s
family reunion in PA. We had hoped to hook up
with the Seiberts and Nan and Dave Bowman
again, however, my plans had a sudden, and
somewhat dramatic, “change in direction.” In July
I found myself getting “bypassed (3 of them)” in
the WVU Medical Ctr. Now a member of the “zipper club,” I’m back on my daily 3- and 4-mile dog
walks and seem to be doing well. At least it all
got scheduled in such a fashion that my “scribe”
obligations were not interrupted! I do need to
thank Scoop, Dave, Bill Williams, and others (Ted,
for one) for calling to check on me.
As I’ve promised, we would share news, etc on
mates in attendance at our 50th. One such was
‘Doctor’ Dick Myers, but as I mentioned in our
April submission, Dick’s write-up was missing!
That has now changed, for I have before me
the notice of an award received by none other
than Dr Dick. It was announced in Aug that
Dick is the recipient of the 2010 James E Brophy
Distinguished Service Award of the American
Assoc of Orthodontists. Dick is an orthodontist in
Fayetteville, NY. The award is presented to those
who have made contributions to orthodontics in
addition to other valuable and devoted services
to the field. Over the years, Dick has served as
pres of the AAO Fndn and as a clinical prof in the
orthodontic residency program at the Eastman
Institute for Oral Health of the U of Rochester
School of Med and Dentistry in Rochester, NY.
After Colgate, Dick earned his DDS at SUNY
Buffalo and had a private practice in Oneida and
Norwich. Now retired from active practice, Dick
and Janet are residents of Boca Grande, FL, residing in Fayetteville, NY, during summer months.
They have 2 children and 2 grandchildren, and
Dick now spends times in private aviation and
fishing. Way to go, Dick. Please come to #55 so we
can applaud you in person!
Sadly, I must report the loss of another
classmate. Back in June we lost Leland Moss,
who had been ill for several years. I know you all
will join me in sending our sympathies to Lee’s
wife, Joanne. Please know, Joanne, that Lee will
be remembered when next we gather in the
Chenango. Godspeed to Lee.
And before we close, I have a call in to Frank
McCarthy, and it seems we need a (Jim) Madura
poser to ponder for several months. So, tell me:
what did the entire audience shout when the
projector malfunctioned in the downtown Hamilton movie theater? Now, there is one to test the
cerebral cortex. Hopefully, you’ll have the answer
in 6 months, together with a McCarthy report
and some details on some of the other reunion
attendees.
And so it goes! I shall check on Ted (to make
sure he keeps splashing) and I urge all readers to
feel free to write, call, use smoke signals, or ESP
(the e-thing). All the news that fits to print will
be shared. Be well, do good works, and stay busy!
Cheers.
Paul: 304-636-1684; [email protected]
19 6 0
Stephen Greenbaum
PH6
4242 Stansbury Avenue
Sherman Oaks, CA 91423-4265
This year, our 50th, has claimed many of our
classmates. I heard from Mike Wolk that William
Doremus died Sept 25, and Denny Fincke writes
that William Braden died Oct 2 after a long battle
with prostate cancer. His obit can be found in
The Pilot. The alumni office just notified me that
Peter Stahel died Sept 9 from cancer. Prior to
this, I was told by Stephen Lefrak that Daniel
Fox died soon after our reunion.
Danny’s wife, Sandy, sent along the following:
“We met April 1960 at Syracuse U. Danny was
the driver for the winning Colgate College Bowl.
We were together at graduation in ’60 and married in ’63 after his graduation from Fordham
Pharmacy. We raised 3 children — Deborah
Fox Rush ’86, Rutgers Law ’89, now head of the
juvenile division of the public defender’s office
in the Bronx; Lauren Fox Sugar, Penn State ’89;
Lawrence Fox, U of PA’90, Duke Law ’94. Danny
was grandfather to Sydney Rush, Samantha
Rush, Skyler Sugar, Nora Fox, and Benjamin Fox.
He was very happy to attend the 50th Reunion
and reconnect with so many old friends. His
wish was that 1 of his 5 grandchildren would like
to graduate from Colgate.”
Jack Blanchard writes: “I, too, am saddened
by the passing of Danny. He was all smiles over
the weekend, chatting with everybody and
taking special notice of our classmates’ images
on screen during the Saturday evening dinner.
It was obvious he was enjoying reconnecting
with everybody. I told Tim Mansfield and Phil
Perham that their multimedia presentation
was a successful alternative to a dinner speaker.
The presentation was about us and our time at
Colgate, and Danny was proof of that attraction.
He got up from the table a number of times to
get closer to the screen to better identify who
was who.”
Jack further notes that Bruce Warwick’s bio
was accidentally left out of the Class of 1960’s
50th Reunion Yearbook. You can read all about
Bruce, and read all the bios of our classmates
who sent theirs in, by going to our class page
at www.colgateconnect.org and clicking on the
Class of 1960 Yearbook link. If you want to be
included, send your bio to the alumni office and
it, too, will be online.
Glenn Tryon writes: “The last time you heard
from me, I was in Puerto Rico and owned 8 pizza
stores: a true expert in saucing and cheesing
and the ability to slap on pepperoni with the
best of them. Then the Puerto Rican economy
really went into the dumper with double-digit
unemployment and major chain stores shutting
down. My wife, Ninin, and I decided it was time
to get out of Dodge, so we moved to TX to get
back into broadcasting, managing 3 stations
south of San Antonio. Another opportunity
opened in Sheridan, WY, which is where we are
now. I manage, program, and sell 3 stations in
this very competitive market. Who would ever
have thought I’d leave the tropics for cold and
snow near the Canadian border? This is beautiful
country near Yellowstone and in the heart of the
Big Horn Mtns. It keeps me fired up!” [Ed note:
call me for Glenn’s cell phone.]
Ralph Wright writes: “Sorry I wasn’t able to
make the reunion and particularly to see Danny
Fox before he passed away. Our prayers are
with him and his family. One reason for my not
being able to make the reunion was because on
June 30th I retired from the pastoral ministry
at Yaphank Presbyterian Church, having served
there for 14 years. The time right before that was
very hectic, and I am still trying to tie up loose
ends, particularly the completion of the construction of a Community Service Building. As a
worker priest, I will continue with various higher
judicatory responsibilities as well as heading up
E&R Tax and Business Services on Long Island.
A note on what I thought had been a completed
project: Last night I was in Harry’s New York
Bar in Paris. As many who have shared libations
there know, the bar of Hemingway and friends
has a collection of pennants of all the major
colleges and universities in the U.S. I looked and
I could not find a Colgate banner. Yes, COLumbia,
yes, COLby … but no COLgate. Do any of my expat
classmates know what happened to the last
attempt to get a Colgate pennant placed there?
I’ll be back in New York by the time you read this,
but I think we need to look into this. [Ed note:
contact me if you have any light on this.]
Bob Meyer wrote this note: “I’m very sorry to
learn that our classmate Danny Fox has passed
away. He was a good man and will be missed.”
Dick Leland writes: “I was recently inducted
into the Sons of the American Revolution, as
my great-great-great-great-grandfather Joshua
Leland was a colonel in George Washington’s
Continental Army. He has a historical marker
outside of Hamilton, near the town of Eaton,
and 2 small ponds named Leland Pond. I had
never heard of the SAR before, but it was actually started before the DAR (Daughters of the
American Revolution), which almost everyone
has heard of. Sheryl and I went to a ceremony at
the Saratoga Battleground a few weeks ago with
re-enactments, fife & drum, horseback riders,
etc, which was quite impressive. I have Joshua’s
Revolutionary War sword in my possession as it
is handed down to the oldest son in each generation. Fiction and Fact from Dick’s Almanac, but
this is all true.” Dick further notes that Princeton
has a wide-receiver named Andrew Kerr —
should have been a Raider.
Wally Gnaedinger writes: “I have been enjoying retirement and volunteering for natl wildlife
refuges during the colder months: Key West
NWL/lower Rio Grande area/SE AZ. I spent all last
summer in Homer, AK, with AK Maritimes nwr.
I’m still in Lake Placid and Baja, Mexico, when I’m
not volunteering.”
Charlie Ehin’s article “Muddling Through:
Engaging Our Innate Heuristics” was published
in the Oct issue of The Journal for Quality and
Participation.
Bruce Barth writes: “We’re movin’ to ID! I
have a call to Trinity Lutheran Church, Bonners
Ferry, a little village of 2,100 just 25 miles south
of Canada in the Panhandle: 3 mountain ranges,
the beautiful Kootenai River, and folks looking
forward to what I can bring in my ministry. We
are pumped. There is nothing left for us in NE,
and I feel good going to a place that voted unanimously to call us. We’ll be 5 hours from Banff in
Calgary, 6 to Seattle, 4 to Glacier in MT — a truly
beautiful part of the world. We hope all goes well
and this will be our last move and we can retire
here in 3–5 years. Keep us in your energy and
prayers. Come see us. Bring your passport and
we’ll make an ausflug into Canada.”
As always, I seek your updates. Thanks for
helping make these columns worth reading.
Steve: 818-999-2777; 788-2557 (fax);
[email protected]
Getting the job done
Imagine you’re leading a group project. Will everyone agree on how to proceed? Probably
not. Will some people speak up more than others? Likely. Will everyone do what’s expected?
Maybe. Will interpersonal dynamics impact progress? Most definitely. In the end, how well
the team accomplishes its goal will depend in large part on your leadership approach. Why?
“Group dynamics are challenging, because they are fluid, and the energy and focus
is always shifting, so managing a team effectively requires alertness and finesse,” said
Robert Klein ’72, a social psychologist who teaches education, psychology, and business
management at Western New England College. With that notion in mind, he designed a new
leadership development tool that has caught the attention of corporations, colleges, and
the analytical psychology community alike.
It’s called the Klein Group Instrument for Effective Leadership and Participation in
Teams (KGI). The KGI can be used independently, but also complements the Myers-Briggs
Type Indicator, the personality inventory most commonly used by organizations for individual staff development. Inspired by his extensive experience providing group training in
the mental health field and by his doctoral studies in educational psychology at Harvard,
Klein devoted more than 12 years to developing the KGI, consulting with noted human development psychologists in a painstaking research and testing process.
The KGI helps people assess their strengths and weaknesses by illuminating patterns of
behavior. First, you take a 20-minute online survey (at CAPT.org) that asks questions about
your tendencies and preferred ways of operating in a group setting. You receive a personal
profile that outlines your skill levels in four main areas: leadership (ability to influence other
members and guide the group), negotiation orientation (ability to discuss issues constructively and reach agreement), task focus (ability to help analyze, organize, and complete the
task), and interpersonal focus (ability to attend to “people issues”). The report gives you a
score in each area, and specifies behaviors that you enjoy (such as “finding fresh, creative
ways of doing things”) as well as those that could help you grow (such as “be aware of people
who haven’t contributed to the discussion and invite them to share their ideas”).
The theory behind the KGI is unique; it relates those four skill areas dynamically. In a nutshell, if there is disagreement on a team, people lose focus on the task, so the leader must
simultaneously pay attention to and employ a variety of negotiating skills for both task and
people issues. The report shows how your energy normally flows in those efforts.
As Klein explained it: “Ultimately, the model enables you to explore less-frequently
used behaviors to facilitate your growth. It’s like steps in a staircase. As you go up, you get
psychologically adapted to carrying out new behaviors, and you learn a strategic process to
refine your skills. When you have a successful experience, your view of your effectiveness
both as a leader and a team member changes. You get more confident, and the way others
view you changes. It’s transformative, and we’ve seen some remarkable things happen for
people.”
Published by an organization that does the Myers-Briggs assessment, the KGI is gaining traction, being administered at companies like PriceWaterhouseCoopers by trained
facilitators worldwide. At Western New England College, Klein developed a related course,
Leadership and Group Skills, and created a pilot program to instruct first-year students. His
presentation at the C.G. Jung Institute in Zurich, Switzerland (the KGI and the Myers-Briggs
are both based in Jung’s theories), led to a recent appointment on its long-term faculty.
Klein takes huge satisfaction in his work. “My goal was to empower people, to help them
acquire leadership and social skills. I developed an instrument that can do just that — it’s a
wonderful feeling.”
— Rebecca Costello
News and views for the Colgate community
53
Kent Blair
4535 Sanderling Circle West
Boynton Beach, FL 33436-5120
Reunion June 2–5, 2011
Bikes Belong
Tim Blumenthal ’77 grew up riding bikes in New York City’s northern suburbs. He delivered
the Daily Item on his Raleigh 3-speed and rode his bike to Rye High. At Colgate, one of his
first dates with his wife-to-be, Lise Berlind ’77, was a bike ride around Hamilton on Peugeot
10-speeds.
Since graduation, he has written about cycling, edited national bike magazines, and
served as NBC’s consultant on bike racing at the last seven Summer Olympics. Today, he is
one of the nation’s leading advocates for biking.
Blumenthal leads the movement to promote cycling as president of the Bikes Belong
Coalition, an organization with a $3 million annual budget supported by nearly 500 bike
suppliers and retailers.
“When people ride bikes, great things happen,” said the lanky Blumenthal, 55, who was
dressed in a conservative dark suit at this year’s National Bike Summit in Washington, D.C.
“You counter obesity, reduce road congestion, and cut air pollution. Communities where
people feel comfortable and safe riding bikes tend to be desirable places to live.”
Among those bike-friendly communities is Boulder, Colo., where Blumenthal lives and
commutes six miles daily by bike. At Bikes Belong, he also oversees a $2 million foundation that during the past year provided key support to the Safe Routes to School National
Partnership, as well as grassroots organizations that are building bike facilities such as
mountain bike trails in South Dakota and Florida or promoting biking through local advocacy
groups in New Jersey and Pennsylvania.
“The bike industry wants to get more people on bikes, more often,” he said.
Blumenthal moved to Boulder in 1994 to become director, and sole full-time employee,
of the International Mountain Bike Association (IMBA). When he left 10 years later to lead
Bikes Belong, IMBA had a staff of 23, and an annual budget of $2.5 million.
Last spring, he traveled to Washington to kick off an online campaign to get a million
Americans to sign a pledge of support for biking at www.peopleforbikes.org. By midOctober, 150,000 cyclists had signed up in a database he hopes to tap for support for federal spending on bike infrastructure improvements in the next federal transportation bill.
An estimated 46 million Americans ride each year, but only 250,000 are affiliated with
bike groups, Blumenthal said. “There’s a huge gap between those who like riding bikes, and
the number who stand up to tell their mayor or member of Congress that it’s important to
develop places to bike that are safe, convenient, and appealing.”
Blumenthal, meanwhile, still finds time to ride. He’ll take his Fuji road bike for 40 miles
up into the hills outside Boulder. He commutes on a Specialized Sirrus and takes his full suspension Trek on single-track in the Rockies.
In July, he headed for the Pyrenees to ride a leg of the Tour de France, before the racers
completed the course. It was a 112-mile jaunt, with 10,000 riders, that ends with a 5,000foot ascent to the Tourmalet — one of the legendary race’s most grueling climbs.
“If I can get out for two hours these days, I’m lucky,” he said. “Riding that stage of the tour
in ninety-degree weather was super-tough but an amazing experience — as much a psychological test as anything. But, any day I get to ride is a happy day.”
— David McKay Wilson
54
scene: Winter 2011
It’s late Sept, and Prudy and I have just returned
from a 3-day pro-am golf tourney at Dick Rasor’s
Bethel Inn Resort in ME. It was a fun event, and I
actually was on the winning team 1 day. We are
on our way to Paris and Avignon after a busy
summer traveling to MI, WI, and Chicago. I used
to visit these places on business and wanted
Prudy to see how nice mid-America is. Also, we
took a cruise to Norway, once again, a nostalgic
trip as I lived there with the econ study group
in ’61. Figure got to do these things while we’re
still young.
I hope you’re making plans to attend our 50th
Reunion, which will be held June 2–5, 2011. Bill
Swezey is organizing a great party — a special
class dinner on Thurs, at which our new pres,
Jeffrey Herbst, will speak, a golf tourney on
Fri, the all-class parade, which we will lead, on
Sat, and a dinner that evening. Our class will
be housed at the Wendt University Inn, a hotel
just outside Hamilton. Shuttle buses will run
continuously between the campus, downtown
Hamilton, and the hotel — no more driving
late at night or sharing bathrooms. As you may
know, a long time ago, our class established an
investment fund that has grown in value over
the years. The Reunion Committee feels that it
is appropriate to use a portion of these funds to
cover reunion fees, including the yearbook, entertainment costs, and class souvenirs. We know
that some classmates face financial issues in
coming back to the reunion. Anyone who would
like assistance to attend the reunion should
contact Tim Mansfield (dir of Alumni Affairs) by
e-mail at [email protected] or by phone at
315-228-7433. All inquiries will be handled on a
confidential basis.
Now, here’s the news. Jon Adler is still
working f/t in internal medicine and infectious
diseases in Winchester, MA. He’s on both his
hospital’s and physician’s org boards. Jon says
his practice allows him to care for the majority
of the HIV cases in the community not seen at
the larger academic centers. He hoped to meet
Charlie Thurber at their upcoming 45th Cornell
med school reunion. He sees Jerry Somers and
Marty Aronson around the Boston area. Jon also
pointed out that John Weber is 1 of only 2 or 3
Americans, along with Douglas Dillon, who are
listed on a plaque as major donors to the Shanghai Museum. Jon, you must have read those
donors names very carefully.
Judy and Brett Beazley entertained June and
Carl Luecke at their home in SC, where they
caught up on old times, swam some laps, boated
on Lake Keowee, and attended the Furman game.
Sue and Jack Homestead joined them for dinner
that evening. Carl told me that twice he played
successfully #13 at a casino in Baden-Baden,
Germany. (I’ve been to that casino and always
lost, having never played our lucky number.)
Brett talked with some other classmates at the
game — Dave Daley, Liz and Bud Sales, and Bill
Wood. Bill had earlier e-mailed from his vacation
home on the Isle of Palms, SC, that he was taking
a friend to the Furman game to establish bragging rights between the Southern Conference
and the Patriot League. Unfortunately, Bill didn’t
have much to brag about. Carl also provided
some news on Bob Jones, who is semi-retired,
and John Fornuto, who continues to enjoy his
antique business/hobby. Carl sat next to Don
Labor Day weekend. Prior to our feast, which
included a splendid bottle of champagne, Ray
gave us an in-depth review of his art collection.
We share a keen interest in art of the American
West, and Ray has several paintings to die for.
Bill McDonald wrote that he finished his
PhD in lit and religion in ’65 and, after 4 years
of teaching in IL, took a position in SoCal at U of
Redlands, a small liberal arts college. Bill helped
found an experimental program, the Johnston
Ctr for Integrative Studies, where he taught lit
and interdisciplinary humanities. He described
this as, “mainly reading great books with smart
people.” He takes pride in the fact that after
more than 40 years, his program is flourishing,
while many other similar colleges from the ’70s
in SoCal have faded away. Bill is retired but still
teaching 2 courses a year and leads an occasional
travel tour — next year to Greece. He stays in
touch with Ross Jackson (I’d like to hear from
you, Ross) and his mentor Don Berry. Bill has 3
kids, 4 grandkids, and a 7-year-old great-granddaughter (explanation on request). Jerry Murphy
retired as capt after a 32-year career with the
Navy. He then moved back to the family home
in CT and became mayor of Brookfield, a town of
17,000. He and Susan have 3 children, including
a Navy cdr, and 7 grandchildren. Jerry would love
to see some of his Colgate pals.
Dave Shailer retired from the investment
firm of Douglas, Noyes back in ’97. Although
Dave fractured his back awhile ago, he and Posey
toured NM and CO this past summer. They split
their time between NJ and FL. After several failed
attempts to communicate via e-mail, David
Shuttleworth persevered and sent a lengthy
note updating his life to date. After 38 years in
pediatric med, he retired in ’09. David had a 3–4
person private practice affiliated with the U of
R med school. He was active in teaching both
students and residents, which was always stimulating. During his last 2 years, he was med dir of
Lifetime Medical Group in Rochester. This was
very different from his private practice as several
doctors had super egos that were hard to deal
with. Dave and Karen plan to stay in Rochester
but travel to see their daughters, 2 of whom went
to Colgate, in FL and RI. He has lots of hobbies
and interests so not as much free time as he had
expected.
Bill and Sally Swezey have stayed close to
home most of this year, but are going to Boston
to see the sights and visit friends in the fall.
They’re planning a major trip in ’11 to explore
several of the natl parks out West.
John Stockton wrote to put in another plug
for retiring in Hamilton, where he and a growing
number of alums have settled. One of the attractions is Lifelong Learning, an adult education
program that is gaining momentum in the area.
He writes that several local alums are supporting
a number of female sports, eg, volleyball, softball,
and hockey.
I received a long e-mail from Bill Thoms, who
lives in Little Falls, MN. After graduation, he
served in the US Army reserves and then earned
his law degree from Yale, while working nights
on the NY, New Haven, and Hartford RR. Bill did
grad work at Tulane, ending with a PhD in the
civil law of the Roman world as it applies today
in France, Quebec, and LA. He spent most of his
career at the U of ND Law School, also teaching as a visitor at the U of Denver and MI St. He
composed the score for 3 musical comedies with
the late Gail Roen, which, he pointed out, have
never been presented east of the Red River. Next,
Bill spent 12 years in the practice of criminal defense in CO. He’s written 5 books on the subject
of transportation law. Bill’s very proud of his
daughter, Jan, who’s active in the MN Natl Guard,
and his 3 grandchildren. He still plays the piano
and teaches 1 week a year at the U of Ottawa. He
finished by writing, “As for me, I live the life of
an old curmudgeon, writing crank letters to the
editor, and sharing my humble quarters with a
foul-tempered cat, Mauser.” Bill, ever since the
College Quiz Bowl victory, I knew you’d do well.
Bill Welch is retired and living with Angela
in Ford’s Colony, Williamsburg. He’s active in
several local orgs, primarily the committees in
charge of security and travel. This year, they did
the Canadian Rockies and traveled to Paris. In ’11,
they’re headed to NZ, Australia, and Indonesia.
Nancy and Jan Williams are living in Forest Hill,
MD. He’s spent most of his legal career in the
field of addictions treatment. In ’89, he joined
Loyola U in MD as dir of the school’s alcohol and
drug education and support services. Jan also has
a private addictions counseling practice, much of
which is carried out online. The youngest of his
5 children is a jr at Loyola U. After his graduation,
Jan says he’ll think about retirement, maybe.
Remember that you can always contact any
alum for whom Colgate has information by
visiting the directory at ColgateConnect.org or
through the alumni office. Thanks again to all of
you who sent in info. Please make your plans for
reunion and keep those cards and letters coming.
Kent: 561-731-5331(winter); 908-277-3295
(summer); [email protected]
19 62
Stuart Angert
179 Greenaway Road
Amherst, NY 14226-4165
This has been a busy month with a significant
amount of news to share. Bob Wollam, who
realized his lifelong dream of becoming a flower
grower when he moved to the DC area in 1986,
hosted a dahlia extravaganza at Wollam Gardens,
sharing 10,000 dahlia plants with friends and
family at his 11-acre Jeffersonton, VA, farm. He
grows 70 varieties of annual and perennial flowers sold through retail outlets, including Whole
Foods and farmers’ markets. To learn more about
Bob’s extensive activities, visit Wollam Gardens
online.
Suzanne and Dan Adams took a bicycle trip
through the Rockies — 8 days and an average
of 55 miles per day including 2 mtn passes, 1 of
which took them over the Continental Divide on
the Going-To-The-Sun road across Logan’s Pass
in Glacier NP — 12 miles uphill. I got tired just
thinking about the trek! Also, “The other news
is that the Vintage Thirteen just had a reunion
weekend in Lake George. From our class we had
Beau Clark, both Tom and Pete Behr, Dave Luerssen, and Dock Murdock.” In total there were 40
Thirteeners in attendance. Dave Luerssen also reports on his Thirteen experience at Lake George:
“We all looked the same, but sounded better than
ever!”
Always in motion in interesting corners of the
world is Ted Vaill, who just returned from his 3rd
trip to NYC to spend time with his girlfriend Joan
Yang at her Upper East Side condo. He attended
a Yankees/Mets game, then on to the US Open,
and played the tourist in the city — plays, movies, biking Manhattan, hiked the ’Gunks and in
Central Park, went to Block Island for his sister’s
bday, ate at great restaurants, and met up with
Mel Watkins, who taught at Colgate in the fall
semester. “Back out West, I went with my twin
daughters to So UT, where we hiked in Bryce Canyon and Zion Natl Parks. Also hosted my family
for a week at ‘Camp Vaill’ at my condo in Mammoth Lakes in the Sierras.” He and Joan were
planning a trip to the Yangtze River in China in
Oct, traveling from Chungking to Shanghai down
the river, and then back to NYC for the ColgateFordham game. As has been the case for many
years, Ted remains actively involved in political
campaigns.
It was great to hear from Demi Read, whom
we have missed for some time. “Have seen
Dock Murdock a great deal now that he lives 10
minutes away. He is still the consummate music
maker. Pete Eddy stopped in for a brief stay with
us in S Dartmouth on his way to Turtle Island in
ME. Pete’s a great guest but when he out-fished
me on a day trip to Chatham, I had to give him
a copy of Read’s Rules of Order. That said, Terry
Connolly did the same with trophy bluefish and
striped bass. Great to see old friends no matter
how rude they might be, and, ‘no,’ I will not stop
fishing!” Demi has honed his angling skills far
and wide. He and wife, Tina, live in a saltwater
environment in Dartmouth, “90% of our fishing
is on the fly — always catch and release unless
the fish isn’t going to survive, which is rare. That
said, we love trout fishing and have traveled
to some wonderful places to enjoy it. We have
fished in AK, CO, WY, ID, NH, and VT. Our longer
distance fly-fishing adventures have taken us
to NZ, Argentina, Chile, and the Seychelles. They
say golf takes you to great spots, but I think flyfishing may be even better. Never a good walk
spoiled walking up a beautiful river or stream
all day! We are planning a trip back to Chile this
winter, another wonderful country, with very
nice people and terrific fly-fishing.”
Joe Medved comments, “One of the things I
enjoy the most is serving as a volunteer for the
alumni admissions program. I attend college
fairs at NH high schools and talk to students
who want to learn about Colgate. It is refreshing to meet young men and women who are
interested in making something of their lives.
They have good questions and you can tell many
are very bright. Initially, I was concerned how
well I would relate to students 50 years younger
than me. It really is not a problem. They are only
interested in getting the correct info. The university provides excellent materials for distribution.
I highly recommend this for anyone looking for
something worthwhile and very interesting.”
We received word from Larry Stults in HI. “I’m
keeping too busy as the coach of my son Sam’s
USTA/JTT Open/14 tennis team; talk about the
blind leading the blind, but duty called. In my 4th
year as treasurer of our high-rise condo Nuuanu
Parkside here in Honolulu: it’s the tedious, annual
budgeting time, too. For Thanksgiving, my family
and I will visit my remarkable 97-year-old father
in Tucson’s Oro Valley. If any classmates visit HI,
please contact me and we can at least share a
lunch or beverage together rehashing campus
life.”
Ted Whittier, a retired major of the USAF is
deeply committed to developing a permanent
spiritually based stewardship ministry at his
church, St Peter’s Episcopal in Kerrville, TX. “I am
on the vestry and part of a committee to raise
the funds to pay off the mortgage on our new
parish hall. Both efforts benefit greatly from my
education at Colgate. Betty and I plan to visit
with my brother Barney ’58 early next month.
We plan to travel by train for the 1st time as a
couple. I recall fondly taking the train to and
from Syracuse and Toledo, OH, to attend Colgate
on many occasions. Health is good and we prosper, enjoying a new home, having departed from
the manufactured home retirement community
where we lived here in Kerrville for 5 years. We
have sold our RV equipment and are settled in
as landed gentry. We enjoy Kerrville very much
in the beautiful central TX Hill Country. We are
blessed.”
Maroon’d…
in Maui
iStock Photo
1961
Roehm at a Savannah-Colgate Friday the 13th
dinner. Don continues to travel on business to
Asia and Australia.
Hardy Bedford wrote that several classmates
are expected to attend this fall’s soccer reunion.
The members of the ’60 soccer team, which was
undefeated and uninvited to the NCAA playoffs,
meet every 5 years to celebrate that great season.
Hardy believes that Don Roehm, Pete Smith, Jim
Taylor, and (deceased) Rick Stearns’s son Owen
will be on hand for this, the 50th, reunion. Hardy
hopes to strong-arm some other members of the
team to show up.
Fritz Blaicher e-mailed that every once in a
while, the old guys prevail, at least for a little
while. He was the 8 seed in the Vineyard Golf
Club championship flight and made it to the final
round before losing to a younger man. Along the
way, he beat Cam Neely (former Boston Bruins
right wing). Way to go, Fritz.
Curt Brockelman moved from SmithBarney
to MorganStanley in ’08 only to find that these
2 ops would merge in ’09. He’s enjoyed working
with his daughter Ellen ’94 in the wealth mgmt
area for the past 14 years. Curt and wife Lynn
split their time between Waccabuc, NY, and Lake
Wales, FL. Lynn is a low handicapper but, as he
wrote, tolerates playing with him anyway. His
main hobby is flying his own plane up and down
the East Coast and visiting his 8 grandchildren.
He’s looking forward to reunion. I had a long
phone conversation with Gordy Brown about life
in general and music in particular. After 33 years,
he gave up playing the piano with a Dixieland
band and now splits his time between NY and
the Gulf Coast. Gordy told me a bunch of stories
about the crazy things he’s done over the past
50 years, including traveling to S Africa for a
personal ride in a jet plane that accelerated to
61,000' in 60 seconds. That must have been some
kind of thrill! I hope he comes back in June to tell
us more of his exciting adventures.
Ginny and Mark Ewald are enjoying retirement in Water Mill, LI, and Victor, ID, a small
town in the Tetons. He looks forward to our 50th
so he can catch up with everybody.
Received a note from Ken Gale, who mentioned that this was the 1st time he’d contributed
to the Scene. Ken still does p/t IT consulting,
primarily in the health-care field, helping the
customer select, negotiate, and then install large
computer systems. He and Carole winter in FL
near the Space Center, and have a blast watching
the shuttles take off and land. He has 3 daughters
and 5 grandkids, whom they see frequently.
Bob Gray received his MD from U of Rochester,
where he roomed with Ron Blasberg. A few
years later, he moved back to CA and practiced
angiography and cardiac radiology, 1st at UCLA
and then 30 years at St John’s Hospital in Santa
Monica, retiring in ’06. He and Kathy have 2 sons
and just acquired a golden retriever. Bob says
they still like CA, although they have the sensation that the state is crumbling around them.
Two years ago, he had a small cancer removed
and is doing fine. Bob spends his time reading,
traveling, visiting old colleagues, walking the
dog, driving his Morgan, and occasionally playing bad golf. He’d like to hear from classmates.
Last summer, I had lunch with Locky Jones,
who brought me up to date on his travels. He had
just returned from attending a wedding in the
Rheingau wine area of Germany, after which he
did a Danube cruise from Budapest to Nuremberg. In Sept, Locky was on his way to AK and
later on had scheduled 2 transatlantic crossings
in Nov and Jan. He says he loves the north Atlantic in the winter as you get “a good ride.”
Mary Claude and Ray Londa prepared an
exquisite lobster dinner for Prudy and me over
Mark Nozette ’71 tries to escape to his
home near Makena Beach, on the south
coast of Maui, three times a year. Here
are his thoughts for travelers:
Beaches… Many of the best, and quietest, beaches are in south Maui, near
Wailea and Makena: Big Beach, Kama’ole
Beach Park, Makena Landing, and the
red sand beach of Onelui. In west Maui,
Kapalua Beach is one of the most beautiful. To the north, H.A. Baldwin is spectacular. En route to Hana, the black sand
beaches in Wai’anapanapa State Park
are truly unique.
Golf courses… Those with the most
breathtaking views are in Wailea, Kapalua, and Kaanapali.
Day trips… Haleakala’s active volcano,
rising more than 10,000 feet, is most
spectacular at sunrise or sunset. The trip
up, by car or bike, allows a view of upcountry Maui, which is entirely different
in climate and topography from the rest
of the island. Hana is the epitome of old
Hawaii, although the narrow and curvy
Hana Highway is a challenge, particularly
to complete round-trip in one day. Paia,
an old sugar plantation town in Kahului,
has shops, galleries, and beaches.
Cuisine… Maui has wonderful restaurants, many specializing in seafood and
fusion cuisine. Capische? and Sorrento’s
are among the best. Renowned local chef
David Paul has returned to open David
Paul’s Island Grill in Lahaina. And at the
perennial favorite Mama’s Fish House,
patrons will sometimes see fishermen
carrying in their catch.
Accommodations… The Four Seasons
and Grand Wailea in Wailea as well as the
Ritz-Carlton in Kapalua are world-class.
In Lahaina, the Plantation Inn is the
island’s leading bed and breakfast, with
an excellent French restaurant.
Have tips for people who might be
maroon’d in your town? Write to us at
[email protected] and put Maroon’d in
the subject line.
News and views for the Colgate community
55
56
scene: Winter 2011
we dropped, we were very proud of our exploit.
Coach Ben Schwartzwalder and team scattered,
seeking shelter under the stands and at the exits.
However, we misjudged the trajectory of the 1st
bag that we deployed. It shot out of the stadium.
What we later learned was that it hit an ROTC
car. The driver captured the wing numbers of
our plane that we rented in Norwich, NY. As we
flew back to Norwich, and subsequently drove
back to Colgate in a self-congratulatory mood,
we were greeted by Dean William ‘Bill’ Griffith
(read: Animal House’s Dean Wormer), who immediately ushered the 4 of us into his office. We
thought that this was to be the last day of our
Colgate experience. Due to the extreme nature
of the rivalry, we were given the sentence of
social probation for 1 semester, mandating that
we could not participate in any party or social
function on campus or in the fraternity house.
That day was defining. Had I been escorted to the
edge of town and told never to return to campus,
my life would have been inexorably changed for
the worse, and irrevocably irretrievable. Dean
Griffith’s humanity saved us all, or we would currently be living the life of Flounder who, when
told by Dean Wormer that he had a 0.2 GPA
— four F’s and a D replied, “I guess I’m putting
too much time into 1 subject.” It seems like only
yesterday…
Stuart: 716-913-7772;
[email protected]
1963
Carl G Langbert
Princeton Manor
46 Edgemere Drive
Kendall Park, NJ 08824-7000
Received an interesting letter from Ron Glenn,
so here goes. “I am glad you had a great visit to
Vietnam and sure it was emotional. I thought
I would give you an update on Nancy’s and my
activities. Living in S FL gives us an opportunity
to keep up with several of our classmates. We
always see Andi and Roger Busch when they
come down. Rog looks great and spends most of
his time practicing his throws. I personally feel
that we should put a push on to have him entered into the Colgate Hall of Fame since he has
held the discus record for over 50 years. Speaking
of records, on Oct 2, the 1960 undefeated soccer
team was honored for its 50th anniversary. Returning from our class was Jim Paterson, Norm
Siegel, and myself. From the Class of ’61 was
Jim Taylor (2-time All-American), Don Roehm
(All-American), Pete Smith, and Hardy Bedford.
From ’62, Pete Eddy and from ’64, Al Chagan. It
was a great team, and thanks to Mark Randall;
he allowed us to have fun while keeping us
focused on conditioning and winning. Putting
the ’59, ’60, and ’61 seasons together, the teams
won 19 straight regular season games. Not a
bad record. We get together with Beckie and
Pete O’Neil several times. They only live a mile
from us on the intercoastal waterway. We had
dinner at their place in May with Ferrell and Chi
McClean. In June the McCleans and Glenns met
in Portland before we traveled down the Pacific
Coast (a beautiful drive) to spend 3 days playing
all 4 courses at the Bandon Dunes Golf Resort.
We had great weather and the courses are some
of the best in the world. No carts are allowed, but
the ‘walking wounded’ classmates managed 36
holes 1 day and 18 each on the other days. It was
tough keeping up with the ladies. The Sunday
they arrived in Portland, we celebrated their
40th wedding anniversary, and the Friday, we
returned to Portland, we celebrated Nancy’s and
my 42nd anniversary. We just returned from Vail,
where we were guests of the McCleans. We had
a Colgate golf day with Nancy and Don Remey
’64 and Barbara and Charlie Wolff ’62. We will
stay here in Park City, UT, until mid-Oct, when we
return to FL.”
Barbara and I managed to meet up with
Jane and Walt Schoenewolf in Charlotte, NC, at
their new home. They looked great. The house is
superb and we wish them well. The house was
really beautiful on this lovely body of water.
Shelly and Burt Levine are going to the
Colgate-Princeton game with us and we look forward to spending the day with them. We always
have a good time. We are also scheduled to meet
the new pres of Colgate for an early breakfast so
that we can get acquainted.
I hope everyone enjoyed the holidays and
looks forward to this new year. Please keep in
touch. I could use some info for the column.
Carl: 732-422-0556 (H); 247-0630 (O); 545-1934
(fax); [email protected]
1964
Richard J Johnson
22 Goose Point Lane
Box 1825
Duxbury, MA 02331-5120
This is written in Oct, on the day that the Patriots
are sending Randy Moss back to the Vikings. I
know Bill has something up his sleeve … doesn’t
he? If not, there goes the football season around
here.
Don Remey writes that he and Nancy are now
splitting their time between Jupiter, FL, and Vail,
CO. Not bad duty. Their 3 children have produced
7 grandchildren who keep Don and Nancy quite
busy. Don says that Ferrell and Chi McClean ’63
live nearby in FL and also recently bought a place
in Vail so they see one another rather frequently.
Ron Glenn ’63 recently visited from Park City and
Don put together a Colgate foursome, which also
included Charlie Wolff ’62. Mike Kostelnik is yet
another neighbor at the Loxahatchee Club in FL.
Biff Jones fixed Mike’s ailing back last year and
now he is back playing golf and shooting in the
80s again. Don related how hard it is to believe
that we are now attending our 50th HS Reunions
and what a great time he had catching up with
his classmates. I also went back to my 50th, Don,
the only HS reunion that I’ve been to so far, and
was glad that I did, it was really worth the trip.
Thanks for the news, Don.
Gary ‘Old Rip’ Ripple wrote that he recently
met with a new client named Harrison Jones
who lived in Emmaus, PA. His grandpa played
football at Colgate back in the dark ages and was
known as Biff. Time does march on, Rip, and yes,
they did wear helmets in those days.
Good news on Kurt Brown and his health issues. The twice-before mentioned Biff Jones had
helped Kurt find the right medical people in NYC,
and after seeing a neurologist at Memorial Sloan
Kettering (and after his 5th MRI), Tonto was happy to report that the lesion on his thalamus that
was causing his symptoms is gone. Apparently
the doctor did extensive mental and physical
exams on Kurt and found everything perfectly
normal (for a goalie, anyway) and doesn’t want
to see him for another 6 months. Kurt is now
about 90% normal (for a goalie) but has some
occasional imbalance when he turns quickly.
Else still thinks his disposition needs adjusting,
and who could argue with that? Kurt relays his
thanks for all your thoughts and prayers. Way to
go, Kemo Sabe, keep up the good work.
There was more good news healthwise, this
time for Perry Kinkaide, who also had a close call
recently. In June, as a byproduct of dehydration,
he was hospitalized with a heart rate of 28, down
from his cross-country standard of 48. While in
intensive care, who should appear after 46 years
of neglect, but his old friend Bud Hilton. They
hadn’t spoken since graduation, and shared stories of time spent with Marilyn Monroe on Fire
Island (are we actually to believe this story, Perry
and Bud?) and good times at Colgate. On discharge, Perry spent a week back on LI organizing
a legacy trust fund and the 50th Reunion for 3 HS
classes and 200 classmates. He also reconnected
with Steve Lane, who is married to a former
Sayville HS classmate. Perry says the geriatric
G-force of golf, gardening, and grandchildren
has so far proven elusive. He spends his days
in “angel” financing, overseeing a portfolio of a
dozen early stage tech startups, requiring 4 tires
and a Blackberry. When not at a board mtg, he is
5 years into serving as pres and founder of the
Alberta Council of Technologies. This society of
5,500 subscribers is charged with “demystifying
and advancing the commercialization of emerging, and potentially disruptive, technologies”
such as fusion energy, cell therapies, clean tech,
and machine learning, always with an eye on
the ethics and implications of change (easy for
you to say) — a throwback to Perry’s education at
Colgate. His lake cottage and sailing offer relief
from his activities, and he says the Oilers and
Blue Jays offer hope. Wife Alexandra is registrar
of the Alberta C of Psychologists, and the longestserving registrar in Canada. Son Peter was married in Oct, and is VP of business development for
an investment firm in Calgary. Son Paul and wife
Christie founded and manage Alberta’s largest
tutoring agency, Success 2000. No wonder you
were dehydrated, Perry. Take some time for golf,
it’s not as stressful as your current schedule.
Ralph Verni, emeritus trustee of Colgate’s Bd
of Directors and chair of the Eaton Vance family
of mutual funds, has been appointed to the bd of
directors at Moobella Inc, developers of revolutionary ice creamery machines. Congrats, Ralph.
Now please sign me up as a taster. I’m ready to
go, extremely experienced in the field, and have
been preparing for the job my whole life.
Lastly, in what has become the worst part
of my Scene assignment, I’m saddened to have
to report on the passing of Ole Kollevoll ’45,
our beloved former hockey coach. Ole died in
Sarasota on Sept 11, giving me yet another reason
to never forget that date. He was 87 and I’m
sure that you will be able to read of his rich, full
life in these pages or in the many obits that are
available. When Ole became ill, Kurt Brown, who
lives in Sarasota, and Eric Kollevoll, Ole’s son,
kept a large group of his former hockey, baseball,
and football players aware of Ole’s progress.
Things were looking good initially, but sadly, he
eventually could not overcome the complications
that had developed after surgery. Mike Jukoski,
Dave Healey ’65, and Dave Hawley ’63 attended
Ole’s funeral, as well as Kurt Brown, who gave a
wonderful tribute to Ole on behalf of his student
athletes from Colgate and St Lawrence. Great
job, Kurt, I am sure that was very difficult. Bob
Meehan ’65 had sent Ole a stuffed camel when
he was in the hospital. Apparently, Ole’s 10-yearold granddaughter clutched it to her side during
the entire reception following the funeral and
wouldn’t let it go. “The Camel” must have loved
watching that from above. Playing for Ole and
then coaching Colgate’s freshman baseball and
hockey teams [under Ole’s tutelage] while I was
in grad school certainly played a big part in my
going into coaching for a part of my life and I’m
sure it played a similar role for Mike Foley and
others as well. Ole had a very positive effect on
people. You looked up to him, and you did not
want to disappoint him. He was a man’s man
and a great role model for a bunch of impressionable young hockey players. I feel sad that he is
gone, but feel lucky to have known him, and very
thankful to have played for him. Ole Kollevoll will
be missed by all of us, but forgotten by none of us.
Take care of yourselves out there. Stay healthy
and keep those amusing e-mails coming. That
means you, Dan Baird, Biff Atwater ’63, Doug
Stay ’67, Mike Foley, Kurt Brown, and anyone else
whom I forgot to mention. Go, Patsies!
Dick: 800-829-9199 x5148; [email protected]
19 6 5
Garner Simmons
22126 Providencia Street
Woodland Hills, CA 91364-4133
It’s been a half-century now, but in the fall of
1961, as the Class of ’65 gathered together for the
1st time, among the tasks we were charged with
by the inimitable Lloyd Huntley ’24 was to build
a monumental bonfire for a pep rally prior to
what was to be the conclusion of the ColgateSyracuse football rivalry. A longstanding tradition, the height had to be your class year plus
13'. Thus, at 78' tall, the bonfire we built, using 75'
poles cut from pine forests and embedded 10'
in the ground and employing discarded lumber
scavenged and trucked in from near and far, was
the tallest (and last) ever erected on Whitnall
Field. In the process, we came together as a class
forging bonds of friendship that have lasted a
lifetime. As for the game, played in Syracuse’s Archbold
Stadium, the Red Raiders led at the end of the
1st quarter 8-0 on a pass from Danny Keating ’63 to Clint Rappole ’62 followed by a 2-pt
conversion, Keating to Jimmy Heilman ’64. At
that moment, anything seemed possible. As the
quarter ended, however, the legendary Ernie
Davis had yet to play a down. In the following
three quarters, the Orangemen scored 7 touchdowns, including a 57-yard pass from Davis to
John Mackey, plus a field goal to win 8-51. It was
a typical Colgate effort. What we lacked in depth,
we made up for with heart.
Fast-forward to this past Oct as Colgate
once again played Syracuse, and our own Ken
Roffe was there: “The ‘Gate-Syracuse game was
something else. Apparently our game plan was
to keep them off the field so their superior talent
couldn’t hurt us that much. We actually held the
ball for 44 minutes. Yet Syracuse somehow managed to score 42 pts in only 16 minutes. So much
for planning! 7-42. I had Valerie bundle up for the
game; you know what fall weather can be like in
upstate NY. We had layers of sweaters, scarves,
gloves, etc., plus one big umbrella. It was hard
to figure our why all the people on the bus from
the parking lot to the stadium were dressed in Tshirts and flip-flops. I guess they must call it the
Carrier DOME for a reason. It was the umbrella
that was most embarrassing.”
On a sadder note, I received an e-mail
from Bob Meehan on the passing of another
Colgate legend, famed hockey coach Ole Kollevoll ’45 in Sarasota, FL, at 87. Known as “the
Camel” for his ability to travel forever without
a pit stop on long hockey road trips, Ole was a
gifted athlete who played semi-pro hockey after
a short stint in the Navy at the end of WWII. A
member of the 1948 US National Hockey Team at
the World Championships in Prague, he was recruited by the old Boston Braves as a catcher and
rose to triple-A before a career-ending shoulder
injury caused him to give it up. Turning instead
to coaching, he made his way into history and
the hearts of all who cared about Colgate hockey.
Included in Bob’s e-mail was a photo sent by
Ole’s son Eric of Ole’s golfing gear, with the caption: “As he heads for the front 9 of Heaven.” Bob
closes with: “Going in style, indeed! God’s speed,
Coach! Keep your head down and your socks up!”
Meanwhile, Bill Barich’s new book, Long Way
Home: On the Trail of Steinbeck’s America, has hit
the bookstores. Read my review in this issue’s
New, Noted & Quoted section.
Heard from Karl Maggard, who, with wife
Anne, splits the year between FL and OR: “Anne
and I had to make a quick trip back to FL for an
unexpected family memorial — a cousin I was
close to. It turned out to be a wonderful celebration of a great life. We had the added benefit of
spending a little time with son Jeff and his family.”
Pete Schaehrer lives on in the Annual Peter
C. Schaehrer Memorial Lecture on campus. This
year’s speaker was Prof Scott Straus of the U of
WI, an expert in genocide studies who discussed
“Violence and the Future of Africa.” Initially
launched last year through the tireless efforts
of Rick Stege, it is again presented under the
auspices of Colgate’s Peace and Conflict Studies
Dept.
In a similar spirit, poet/lawyer/teacher Frank
Pommersheim sends along a picture of a stone
Buddha floating among the trees. Beside it, Frank
includes a poem titled “Buddha Becomes a Life
Coach.” It reads: “Drink tea (go green) / Disconnect the dots.” You can catch Frank reading his
poetry online on YouTube and Facebook.
Received a series of e-mails from Dick Rawdon:
“It’s been about 4 months since our 45th. With
my recently graduated daughter working our
tent and my roommate Dixon Merkt and wife
Carol blessing us with their presence, it made for
a great weekend. It had been several years since
Dixon and I had gotten together. Lots of fun. I
had been to Colgate just 2 weeks before for Emily
Alison’s graduation. Proud to say she received
several honors. Alison is now doing grad work at
the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. In addition to her studies, she is working for the Chicago
Fire, the soccer team. Her work with Colgate’s
Sports Information Office paid off.
“Also at reunion, I spent some time with Craig
Bell, discussing his book, Berkshire October. Craig
talked about how interesting it would be to
drive around the country and visit towns with
unusual names and research the origins of their
names. When I read Craig’s book, within the first
50 pages that very topic is suggested. Great read!
“Some thoughts on Barry Dunleavy, who
passed away last summer. Barry was a pledge
brother at Sigma Nu. He was a good student; I
was a struggling student. I was required to study
with him each day spring semester freshman
year by the pledge master. It worked. I did better
academically as Barry taught me how to study.
Without Barry I may have been a 1-year wonder.
I will always remember and appreciate what he
did for me.
“Still working full time as a trial attorney, running, and following sports. After retiring from
officiating football, I am now on the field with
the local high school helping at games. Running
plans for the new year include Boston, Big Sur,
and a European marathon.
“Finally, the World Equestrian Games are
being held in the US for the first time ever at the
KY Horse Park in Lexington. And for entertainment, in addition to the Vienna Philharmonic,
Little Feat, and many others is Peter Rowan and
his Blue Grass Band. Peter’s in tall cotton with at
least 2 performances. A question: Yesterday’s paper carried an article on Jane Forbes Clark, who
owns horses and is pres of the US Equestrian
Team Foundation. She is also chairwoman of the
Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown created
by her grandfather, Stephen Clark. Her greatgrandfather co-founded Singer Sewing Machine.
At 55, she splits her time between Cooperstown,
Manhattan, and FL. By any chance, is she kin to
our Peter Clark?”
I forwarded it to Peter, who wrote back to say:
“I wish! As I tell everyone in Cooperstown, ‘I’m
the other Clark in town, from Joysey.’”
Speaking of Craig Bell, he was good enough to
send along an excellent article from the Houston
Chronicle on Karl Baumgartner (including a
photo of Karl explaining the virtues of the yellow passion flower to a couple of fellow naturalists). Craig writes: “Long having been passionate
about nature and ecology, for some years, Karl
has been pres of the Coastal Prairie Chapter of TX
Master Naturalists. The Master Naturalist Training Program is a national initiative whose idea is
to develop a local corps of ‘master volunteers and
service providers’ to offer education, outreach,
and service dedicated to helping the public better understand and manage the natural areas
within their communities. As a result, much of
Karl’s energy over the last few years has been
focused on spearheading the transformation of a
385-acre green-space into the Seabourne Creek Park, a people-friendly park that reintroduces
native flora and fauna. I sent out a notice that Charlie Veley’s musical Gilbert & Sullivan on Wall Street (aka: Wall
Street: The Musical would have its East Coast
premiere at the Wilton Theatre in Wilton, CT,
on Oct. 1 & 2. Heard immediately back from Bob
Cranston looking to reconnect with Charlie and
wish him well, and from Ken Roffe who was
interested in attending. George Johnson wrote
from Jomtien Chonburi, Thailand: “A bit far for
me … but I would love to see a video version. Still
enjoying life in Thailand and learning new ways
of thinking. Ace Voak ’68 and I continue to work
on a variety of business projects.”
Charlie sent along the following: “Thought
you might like an update on how things went
in Wilton. We had 2 sold-out performances, and
about 50 people stayed for the Q&A. Ken Roffe
was there for the Saturday night performance
and started his question with, ‘You’ve come a
long way since freshman English, Charlie…!’
Lots of enthusiasm and some good feedback.
The director of the G&S Festival in Gettysburg
was there and invited the cast to perform the
show at next summer’s event. They also went
to NYC to perform it before the G&S Society of
NY on Nov 15th. Meanwhile, I’m busily churning
out rewrites based on the feedback I received in
order to get them to the ANMT in Burbank.” See
this issue’s Arts & Culture section for more.
It’s been a busy couple of months for Geoff
Craig: “Just got back from Pittsburgh, where
my play Take Two Aspirin and Call Me in the
Morning was produced in a festival for new
works. Both the director and the actress (it’s a
1-woman show) were terrific. As with my other
productions, I learned a huge amount. We made
changes throughout the rehearsal process, and
the actress, who went on despite walking pneumonia, was hilarious. ” Meanwhile, Geoff’s 1-act
Quincy’s Ghost was selected for Culture Park’s 9th
Annual Short Play Marathon on Nov 20 in New
Bedford, MA. The plays were performed in staged
readings with breaks for playwright/audience
panel discussions. And, finally, his short story
“Heat Lightning” appeared in the fall 2010 issue
of the New Plains Review while his short story
“Family Matters” will be published in Calliope’s
Spring 2011 magazine.
Heard from Rick Bailey, who had just returned from Minneapolis-St. Paul and Macalester
College, where he and wife Ginny had gone to
see their son Eric’s wife, Sha Cage, play the lead
My picture of Colgate
Andrew Daddio
My Theta Chi roommate, Ian Volner, wrote, “In
the small-world dept, Martha and I just returned
from a Natl Geographic cruise in the Baltic Sea. It
was a small ship, about 150 passengers, and there
was one man on the trip who looked more than
vaguely familiar, and to make matters worse,
his name looked more than vaguely familiar. Of
course, the fact that I am only known to Colgate
types as Dave did not help, so Ted Cushmore of
the 1962 ‘family’ did not recognize me either. We
did make the Colgate connection toward the end
of the trip and had a good visit. I have no idea
how to calculate the odds that 2 of us from the
same class would end up meeting in the middle
of the Baltic Sea. Ted stays in touch with Clint
Rappole and Bob Duffy. He can fill you in on
details of his life, including his ownership of a
baseball team. As for me, nothing new: I am still
practicing law and will one day get it right, at
which point I won’t need to ‘practice’ anymore.”
Joyce and I spent a fabulous week with Sue
and Jim Himoff ’65 and Barbara and Carl Langbert ’63 at Point O’ Pines Camp on Brant Lake
in the Adirondacks. Sue and Jim purchased this
pristine 2,000-acre girls’ summer camp 25 years
ago. It has every amenity one could envision —
500-acre horse farm, championship tennis, every
water sport and water craft, a long and rich list
of activities. Along with their son, Brandon ’95,
they run a camp that personifies best-in-class.
A perfect environment with attention to detail
— and great cuisine in Jimbo’s, their fine-dining
restaurant on the grounds. When the 8-week
session of camp ends, Sue and Jim annually host
friends and family for a week of nonstop activities. There were over 50 of all ages enjoying the
experience. All the counselors remain in camp
to guide us. Carl and I fished — caught a few, but
left plenty in the lake for next year.
On another note, with the renewal of the
Colgate-Syracuse rivalry, the Syracuse Daily Orange ran an article that reflected on the activities
of both universities that historically led up to the
game. You will remember that we constructed a
bonfire that was 62' high in preparation for the
pre-game pep rally. You may also remember that
there were extracurricular activities that, while
not officially condoned by Colgate and Syracuse,
were tacitly overlooked when perpetrated. Karl
Clauss ’90, dir of advancement, capital giving,
knowing of my involvement in the events of
1958, sent me the article. He acknowledged that it
validated the story that I had previously related
to him, a tale that involved a flyover of Archbold
Stadium on the Syracuse campus where the
game was played. You can read the entire article
at dailyorange.com.
Now for the rest of the story. The article
rekindled personal memories of the rivalry that
existed, at least off the field in 1958, in the days of
Ernie Davis. Since the statute of limitations has
long ago expired, I can share the fact that it was
I and 3 fraternity brothers from Theta Chi who
launched the initiative. Our pilot, Dave Haring
’61, who subsequently became a pilot for United,
enabled us to implement the plot. I have omitted the names of the other 2 perpetrators since
they may still need to preserve their pristine
reputation in their professional pursuits. We flew
the plane over Archbold Stadium and dropped
plastic shirt bags filled with maroon (not red
as described in the article) paint on the playing
field as Syracuse scrimmaged prior to game
day. It was in retaliation for the attack on Taylor
Lake in which orange dye was clandestinely
introduced into the lake late one night. It also
served as retribution for the fact that 2 Colgate
students’ heads were shaved with an “S” by
Syracuse students. After the flyover and after the
moments of impact of the many “bombs” that
My absolute favorite place on campus is
a spot in the woods way above the buildings. First, go up the road between Frank
Dining Hall and West Stillman, pass Chapel
House on your right, and then you’ll see the
cemetery on your left. Keep going straight
to the end of the road. After the cemetery
road ends, walk across the old ski hill
and keep heading straight. You’ll come to
where a stream runs under the hillside.
When you reach a wide path that heads
to the right, you are on the cross country
ski trail that later turns left and runs high
along a ridge on the same hill. Before the
path turns left, you will see a gully on your
right with the stream at the bottom. Go
down the slope to the right to reach the
stream. In the gully, there are ferns bordering the stream with a tiny waterfall.
You have arrived.
It is a very peaceful place. I used to
spend Easter afternoons there. Winter was
most often still in control but was slowly
and inevitably losing its power. It was like
watching deadly winter die from the slowly
approaching reign of the sun, hence symbolic of eternal life, which is the central
message of the resurrection and Easter.
I would write poetry there while watching
the waterfall.
On the way back to the campus, I would
stop and visit Chapel House. You can
enter through the large left-hand door to
the chapel itself. Or, on a very cold day, I
recommend visiting the library with the
beautiful fireplace mantelpiece depicting
Old Testament stories in bronze. Pick out
a good book, something you wouldn’t normally read, and sit by the fire in one of the
chairs. Or go in the music room and put on
a favorite like Handel’s Messiah. The cares
of the world will melt away. — Jackie Downing Mulrooney ’79
Share your own favorite verbal “picture” of
Colgate: [email protected] or Colgate
Scene, 13 Oak Drive, Hamilton, NY 13346.
News and views for the Colgate community
57
Alumni Clubs and Groups
The writing’s in the sand at Treasure Cay Beach in the Abacos,
Bahamas: Colgate 08/13/10. Celebrating Colgate Day were
(l to r): Dave Stafford ’97, Jennie Bostic Leclere ’98, Ian Blackburn
’98, Elizabeth Ann Blackburn, Shiyana Valentine-Williams ’98,
Adonal Foyle ’98, Jennifer Heldmann ’98, and Jimmy Wohl ’98.
Notes
Colgate Day
The only Colgate Day in 2010 was proudly celebrated around the
world on Friday, August 13. In addition to informal gatherings,
Triskaidekafanatics from the clubs of Boston, New York City, the
Lehigh Valley, Rochester, and Savannah gathered, wearing maroon to proclaim their love of the number 13. Join the worldwide
festivity every Friday the 13th; the next one is May 13, 2011.
Colgate on the road
The clubs of Northern New Jersey and Philadelphia enjoyed discussions with William Henry Crawshaw Professor of Literature
Margaret Maurer in the fall regarding her specialty: Shakespeare. Maurer joined alumni and friends at The Shakespeare
Theatre of New Jersey on the campus of Drew University in late
September for a reception, private talk in the theater’s balcony,
and a performance of All’s Well That Ends Well. In early November, Philadelphia club members had lunch and a discussion with
Maurer at The Wilma Theater before seeing the theater’s firstever Shakespeare production, Macbeth.
Colgate’s sustainability coordinator, John Pumilio, met
with alumni and guests from the Club of the Rockies. Pumilio
discussed the campus recycling program, green initiatives, and
student involvement in sustainability. Political science professor Tim Byrnes joined the Club of the
Chenango Valley in October for its monthly luncheon. Byrnes
offered his perspective of the upcoming elections and made predictions for the remainder of President Obama’s term.
Presidential Inaugural Tour
President Jeff Herbst has been hitting the road and visiting
with alumni clubs around the country. This fall, Herbst met with
more than 750 alumni, parents, and friends from the clubs of
the Chenango Valley, New York City, Fairfield County, Chicago,
Northern New Jersey, Philadelphia, and the Alumni of Color
organization. His tour will continue into the spring. Welcome to the City
The metropolitan clubs welcomed members of the Class of 2010
as the most recent graduates in their new cities. Receptions
were held in New York City, Boston, Chicago, San Francisco, and
Washington, D.C. 58
scene: Winter 2011
Tail ’gates
Alumni were rooting for Raiders on the road at official ’gate
tailgates throughout the fall. Alumni in South Carolina rallied for
the Furman football game, while those in Syracuse relished the
revival of an old Maroon-Orange rivalry at Syracuse University’s
Carrier Dome. Other football fans congregated for pre-game
festivities at Princeton, Cornell, Lehigh, and Fordham. The men’s
hockey team kicked off their season with the inaugural Cape
Cod Classic against Army. Alumni and parents gathered that
morning for a scramble golf tournament at the Old Barnstable
Fairgrounds Golf Course. Before the game (in which Colgate defeated Army in front of a sold-out crowd), Raider fans tailgated
at the Cape Codder resort.
Club happenings
The Club of Phoenix convened for a brunch reception and afternoon tour at the Musical Instrument Museum, where Christina
Linsenmeyer ’93 is curator.
The Club of Grand Rapids heard from artist Amanda Katz ’10
at the Frederick Meijer Sculpture Gardens. Katz’s piece titled
Vessel was entered in the local juried art competition. After a
lecture describing the sculpture and collaborations at Colgate,
Katz gave the group of 30 alumni a private tour of the gardens.
The Resolutions performed for the Club of Washington, D.C.,
in mid-October as more than 50 alumni gathered in the home of
Christopher Nulty ’09.
in the drama Eclipsed. Making this an especially
poignant evening is the fact that the play deals
with the plight of Liberian women caught up in
that country’s civil war. Following graduation
from Colgate, Rick served in the Peace Corps in
Liberia, and Rick’s son Eric was born there.
Don Messinger wrote to extend the sad news
that Andy Harkness had unexpectedly passed
away: “Andy, Chuck Ingraham, Marty Miller, and
I were classmates at Colgate and at Duke Law.
Andy was a great person, and it was a shock to
learn of his death… Sally and I continue to work
full time (or possibly more than full time), me as
an attorney and she as a realtor. We now have 3
grandchildren. Life’s been good.”
Andy Harkness was truly a man for all
seasons. After graduating from Duke Law in
1968, he served in the US Army’s JAG section at
the Pentagon. Returning to practice law in his
hometown of Canandaigua, NY, he lived there
the rest of his life with the single exception of
roughly 6 years in CO. Active to the very end in
many civic organizations, he served as pres of
the Canandaigua Chamber of Commerce, and
he was honored as 2010’s Rotarian of the Year.
An exceptionally talented drummer, he played
with the Finger Lakes Concert Band, Victor Community Band, and the jazz trio Generations Jazz.
Lee Woltman, Ken Roffe, and Rick Stege all sent
their condolences, and I received the following
from Chuck Ingraham: “Together with our wives,
Marty Miller and I traveled to Canandaigua for
Andy’s funeral, where Mike Rubenstein ’66 was
also present. Andy, Marty, and I spent our 1st
year at Duke Law living together in a small
house. In close quarters, I got to know Andy well.
He was my moot court partner when we won
the 1st-year law school competition. He was a
smart, capable, multi-talented guy. We were not
surprised to hear the speakers at the funeral
extravagantly praise Andy for his many contributions to the community. What we recall most,
though, were his ready smile, his passion for ‘the
beat,’ and later in life his appreciation for a good
meal and a good bottle of wine.”
That’s all the news for now. If you have a moment, drop me an note and let me now what’s
going on where you are. In friendship, Gar.
Garner: 818-713-1353; 1392 (fax); [email protected]
19 6 6
Members of the Carey family show off their argyle style during a
golf tournament on the morning of the Cape Cod Classic hockey
game. Left to right: Colleen, Joan, Lauren ’09, Bridget, Matt, Maggie ’11, and John.
Club leaders
We welcome as new alumni club leaders Emily Raiber Radovic ’02
([email protected]), Club of Southern California; and Christian Teeter ’95 ([email protected]) and Charles
Wechsler ’88 ([email protected]), Club of Orange County.
A special thanks to outgoing club leaders Lynn Sommer ’95,
Club of Southern California; and Ken Roffe ’65, Club of Fairfield
County.
8
Interested in learning about club events in your neck of
the woods? Visit www.colgateconnect.org
Robert Malley
322 Shore Road
Westerly, RI 02891-3904
Reunion June 2–5, 2011
I’m writing this column on Columbus Day. It will
be 2011 when you read this, so I hope that all of
you had a very happy Thanksgiving and holiday
season.
This past Sat we attended the men’s hockey
team’s season opener at the inaugural Cape Cod
Classic in Hyannis, MA, where we defeated Army
3-1. We outshot the Cadets 45-23. Our team has
been picked to finish 4/5 in the ECAC but we have
a lot of scoring returning from last year’s team
plus some very promising rookies, so it should
be exciting to see how the team fares. The arena
was sold out and we coincidentally found seats
right behind Steve Howlett and his family. Steve
is still working for Morgan Stanley in Boston, and
his brother Phil is also still working in Boston at
UBS. We did some catching up between periods.
I was back on campus Sept 29–30 for meetings and ran into Suzanne and John Golden and
their daughter Emily and husband Or at the
Colgate Inn. John and Suzanne had just come
up from NYC to see the kids and attend Pres Jeff
Herbst’s Inauguration. I joined them for dinner
and we had a good time catching up. John and
Suzanne became grandparents for the 2nd time
in May when daughter Katie delivered Juliet Rose
Kelter. Belated congrats to you both, and to Katie!
The next day, Munie Saltoun came through Hamilton, so John, Munie, and I had lunch at Seven
Oaks before I drove back to Westerly. Munie and
wife Jane are about to gain a daughter, as his son
Andrew is getting married.
John had previously sent me an e-mail
from Richard Yarmuth, who, with his wife, has
recently established a farm to raise goats and
make artisan goat cheese in the Cascade Mtns 70
miles from Seattle. Richard wrote that they have
been “selling out our cheese ever since to cheese
shops and restaurants (albeit in quantities insufficient ever to make us a major industrial enterprise). It’s enormous fun. I’m still practicing law
in Seattle ‘f/t lite’ and enjoying it (as long as I can
delegate most stuff to younger eager lawyers). I
hope you’re all well.”
Tom Tobey was a very busy communicator
during the summer months and into Sept, for
which I owe him lots of thanks, as you’ll see. First,
he forwarded an e-mail he received from Jack
Keiser in the Boston area, which is excerpted
here: “A couple of weeks ago, we had a weekend
full of both of my kids, their spouses, and all 5
grandchildren including 1 who is now living in
Sacramento. The house is just now getting back
together, but it was great fun and beautiful to
watch all of them together as they don’t get that
chance very often. Second, Ann and I just completed a 2-day bike event to raise funds for DanaFarber Cancer Institute in conjunction with the
Jimmy Fund. The 2-day event raised in excess of
$30 million with 100 cents on the dollar donated
going to DF. The ride is 110 miles on day 1 and 90
the second day, ending up in Provincetown. Ann
has done this for the past 7 years and I have been
her sherpa and a volunteer during the ride, but
this year, I enrolled. We have been doing about
100 miles a week for the past couple of months.
What I did not plan on was the emotional
involvement in the ride as the local communities,
rest stops with volunteers, and numerous young
cancer survivors and the overall commitment of
the 5,200 riders served to really get to me. Watching riders complete the ride who had lost legs to
the disease but were riding a road bike anyway
sort of blows you away and makes the rest of
your problems go away. I am committed to do
it again every year I can. Thirdly, I have played
much less golf as the bike training interfered,
but I have been playing better, maybe because
my weight is down and my strength must be
up: net result is my partner and I won the 2nd
division in our annual 4-ball event, beating a
number of teams of superior golfers last month.
Finally, my brother Steve Keiser ’69, whom you
may remember, has retired. Maybe when I quit,
Ann and I will venture out to see you guys as
we do more traveling. At the moment, we are
spending about 9 months in MA and 3 in FL and
that may change slightly but I don’t see a time
when we flip the schedule around because we
enjoy New England too much. I see a couple of
Colgate friends fairly regularly, like Brian Edgerly
’65, Jeff Roberts ’68, and Peter Wakeman ’63,
and speak electronically almost each day with
‘Pebble’ Rock: he has a great line of jokes as do I,
so we swap them. Spoke to Rich St Pierre when
we were on Nantucket over the 4th and he is
scheduled to have hip replacement surgery in
Oct but otherwise sounded good.”
Tom also received notes from Toby Griggs
and John Thomas. Toby is still on his ranch in WI
(let me know if you’d like his contact info). Toby
wrote, “I have VM. Best to call AM before 9, noonish, evenings after 6 PM. Otherwise am outside in
the fields.” John and his wife, Sanna, spent some
time earlier this year in France (“lousy weather”),
Tahoe, and then MI to spend time with Sanna’s
son, his wife, and their new daughter. John
wrote: “Speaking of MI, we are staying on the
lake and have invited a good friend of ours from
NYC to come out for a few days with her new
beau. Beau is Richard Braun, Phi Delt. Small
world.” John and Sanna also hosted Fred Riebe
and wife Cindy and Tom and Karen for Sept
sailing SF Bay. To quote Tom, “What an awesome
day with old friends.” Tom was also in touch with
Alan Hall and my East Hall freshman roommate
Harry Taylor. Alan is closely involved with Mike
Berger. Tom reported that Mike (affectionately
known at Colgate as the “Philosopher King”) is
doing great things in Carlsbad. He is the chief
medical investigator and board member for
Immunovative Therapies Inc Clinical Research
Inc. “Go to their website and take a peek at the
videos on Allostim, Cryovax, and AlloVax. Mike
and his company are 10 months and 42 patients
deep into clinical trials on a cancer cure drug
that seems to be working on terminally ill tumor
patients.” To quote Tom, “Harry is alive and well
in Charlotte, NC. He lost the election (in ’08) but
not the fervor for being very involved in local
politics. He is still an avid fisherman, plays the
fiddle and banjo, and occasionally woodcarves.
He is still the pres of Taylor Real Estate Group.”
Tom reported that Harry’s father (also a Colgate
grad) passed away during the summer, and Jerry
Murphy attended his memorial service in NJ.
Jerry is city mgr and a town council member in
Sparta, NJ. Harry, please accept our very sincere,
if belated, condolences.
Colgate’s alumni office has changed the
alumni website colgatealumni.org to colgate
connect.org, so add this new site to your bookmarks and check out our ’66 class page, where
you’ll see the photo of Tom Tobey, Jim Eppolito,
and Chip Andruss carousing at the StanfordUCLA football game back on Sept 11.
That’s all for now. Send news, and don’t forget
our 45th Reunion in June!
Bob: 401-322-0908; 322-7411 (fax);
[email protected]
19 67
Edward A Ryan
69 Portland Road
Summit, NJ 07901-3011
I received notes from numerous globetrotters
and bloggers. Hank Evans wrote: “I enjoyed your
comments on Andy Rooney ’42. Andy and my
dad (Henry Jr ’42) were best friends at the Albany
Academy (also my alma mater). They went to
Colgate together and remained close for the rest
of Dad’s life. My mom and Andy’s wife were
also friends. I met him once, very briefly, at an
academy reunion. Funny story: Andy and my
dad were out in my grandfather’s car on a double
date. After seeing the ladies home, they stopped
for jelly doughnuts and had a fender bender.
The jelly went all over both of them. When they
got home, my grandmother met them, covered
with red jelly, and thought they were bleeding
to death. She fainted. My grandfather, Dr Evans,
quickly determined the boys were OK and revived my grandmother with smelling salts. Hope
you are summering well. We are having a ball
doing New England by water. Cheers from Queen
Ann’s Revenge anchored amongst the witches @
Salem, MA.” In a follow-up, Hank reported: “We
had a marvelous summer cruising ME and New
England. The weather was great, with only 2
days of rain and one of fog. The folks in ME said
it was the best summer in 20 years. We are in Old
Lyme, CT, headed for Key West and the Bahamas
for the winter. Life is good on the water.”
Alan Brown, runner, chef, artist, photographer,
woodcraftsman, iPod, iPad, and other latest gadget user, and Renaissance man married to poet
Marion, wrote: “We are heading out tomorrow to
WV for Marion’s poetry reading at Fairmont St.
We will then head west through St Louis, Santa
Fe, Grand Canyon, Zion, Bryce, and finally end
up in SF to deliver the chair I made for grandson
Samuel. We will then give up our car and fly to
Seattle for daughter Deborah’s bday. You can
follow us on our blog titled Windsor Goes West.
[Hint: Windsor is the chair.] The frequency of
postings depends on how energetic I am feeling
after long days of driving or hiking!” While in
Seattle, Alan sent a note: “Prayed (a 1st for me)
and drank coffee with Richard Schaper (not a 1st)
at Grace Cathedral on Tuesday. He is in fine fettle,
looking forward to hosting an annual get-together of his Rhodes Scholar class. Check out the most
recent entry in our blog; it mentions our meeting
and has a photo of Richard’s office building.
Also doing some traveling and blogging is
John Gamel, former FBI special agent and currently a PI in the Boston area. John wrote: “I’m
leaving tomorrow on a solo motorcycle journey
that will take me through NJ, VA, NC, and then
west across TN, AR, OK, and TX. After some time
in the TX panhandle looking for relatives from
my Dad’s side of the family, I’ll go to Galveston to see an old FBI pal. From there I’ll go to
Pensacola (where I was in the Navy, same place
Tom Salmon and Tom Santoro were in OCS).
Then I’ll go north, probably getting back to MA
by early Nov. Could be as much as 6,000 miles
on my BMW R1200RT.” John’s blog of his journey
is: http://jgamelsouthernswing.blogspot.com.
In Aug, John’s son Scott and wife Laura had twin
boys, Gregory Francis and Joshua Steven, which
makes a total of 3 grandsons. No granddaughters
yet.
In July Cathy and I traveled north to NH and
spent a week admiring the beautiful scenery
in the Lake Sunapee region. We enjoyed a great
dinner and evening with a magnificent view of
Mt Kearsarge at the home of Pam and Ray Ilg,
who had just returned from a golf outing with
“the gang,” including Stevie Wright. Although
renowned for his prowess as middle LB on the
football teams of Colgate and the NE Patriots, Ray
was also an outstanding catcher on the baseball
team. Ray and I, collectively, enjoyed many
multi-hit games in which Ray had 2-3 hits and I
was also in the lineup, and we reminisced about
our “road trips” for away games when Ray, Tom
Wilson, and I traveled with John ‘Rocky’ Williard
’65 in his amazing VW. Somehow we managed to
make it safely to/from the games, Rock’s driving
notwithstanding. Ray (now known as “little Ray,”
when he stands next to his son) has enjoyed
tweaking his numerous Dartmouth neighbors
every time our Raiders roll over the Big Green,
and would love to see some Colgate folks move
into the area. Per Ray: “It was great spending
time with both of you, and hard to believe so
much time has gone by since we last saw each
other at the ’Gate. I’m still working and actually
looking for a few people to join me here in New
London, NH. I helped create our firm 20 years
ago. We sell fixed-income securities to institutions in the USA and abroad.”
Pres Alden Joe Doolittle sent a note and some
pictures of the annual gathering of Vintage
Thirteen at Lake George. There were 37 voices
and 68 diners who gathered for the feasts on Fri
and Sat evenings. “There was some golfing, some
singing, and some wonderful time together.
Linda and Paul Bradley hosted at their beautiful
year-round place on Harris Bay. In addition to
wife Gay and I, our class members were Sue
and Wren Blanchard, Rita and Keith Fagan, Rick
Gehret, Sue and Dave Phillips, and at long last,
Chuck Thomas, who led the group our sr year.
Chuck has retired from his role as financial VP
for a large natl law firm based in Cleveland, is
doing some singing locally there, and has time
to carouse with our vintage group. The group
performed at a concert Sat for the Chapman
Historical Museum in Glens Falls, and roped in a
friend, Dan Berggren, who sang at St Lawrence
and now entertains as an Adirondack folksingerlorist as an opener. He wore plaid, we wore blazers, but it worked. CDs to follow. John Tracy was
in attendance. John is still doing commercial real
estate and lives in Saratoga Springs, where wife
Linda is the minister of the Unitarian church.
The Wed after Lake George, Chuck Thomas and
I drove to Hamilton, toured, treated leaders of
the current group (Michael Michonski ’12, Sam
Christie ’11, Tyler Alexander ’11, Kitt Norris ’13,
Carl Johnson ’12, Felix Dai ’11) to pizza at the
Thirteen House, and sat in on a rehearsal. The
campus sparkled, with its very impressive new
buildings. On the way over, CBT and I stopped in
Cooperstown and had lunch with Lynn Green,
Thirteen business mgr, Furd’s roommate. Ate on
the patio at the Otesaga, looking right up Otsego
Lake, almost as pretty as Bradley’s view toward
the Sagamore! Lynn is a country lawyer, who
practices with his son and maintains an office
across the street from the Baseball Hall of Fame.
Also has begun to slow down a bit on his other
vocation, his cattle farm. He’s a 3rd-generation
upstate NY farmer.” Joe also sent news that Paul
and Linda Bradley became grandparents of twins
in late May, a boy and a girl, Birch and Zoe, who
live with their parents in Saratoga Springs.
Bradley continues to serve as member of
the Alumni Council. While in Hamilton for the
Oct meetings of the council, Bradley attended
the inauguration of Colgate’s 16th pres, Jeffrey
Herbst. Paul noted: “His remarks suggested a
focus on the intl scene, greater use of tech, and
a commitment to Hamilton as our permanent
home and an integral part of the Colgate experience. One spin on the intl focus is that Dr Herbst
is an Africa scholar and I detect a leaning to more
attention to the so-called ‘third world’ vs our
traditional Euro-centric programmatic activities.”
John Gillick, a permanent member of the Alumni
Council and pres of Colgate’s Hardwood Club,
also attended the inauguration.
Gary Blongiewicz, another traveler but not
a blogger, had just returned from Jackson, NH,
celebrating son Christopher’s wedding to Nicole
Peterson. “They were married on Oct 1. The wedding was a fun time, as my Polish family members arrived a few days earlier to begin the weeklong celebration. The fall colors were spectacular.
The remnants of Tropical Storm Nicole did force
the wedding ceremony inside, but everyone still
had a great time. Jeanne Marie and I danced a
lot, including a couple of polkas. [My crack staff
is looking for video of Blongo doing the Lawrence
Welk thing; these tapes will be found and posted
for viewing at our 50th.] Our legs still feel it!
The honeymooners are spending this week in St
Lucia. Both are paramedics, which should help
as I continue the aging process. I managed to
play golf about once a week this summer and
tried to walk the courses as much as possible. I
want to be able to play at our 50th! Earlier this
summer we visited our daughter Jenna and
husband Dave in Boulder — always fun to tour
the Rockies. Both kids are now married, so we are
looking forward to going to weddings of some of
our friends’ kids. We can just relax — no toasts to
give, no in-laws to deal with, no special dances,
and no big checks to write! Colgate BB is just
News and views for the Colgate community
59
“Andy (Rooney ’42) and my dad (Henry Jr ’42) … stopped for jelly doughnuts and had a fender bender.
The jelly went all over both of them. When they got home, my grandmother met them, covered with
red jelly, and thought they were bleeding to death. She fainted.” — Hank Evans ’67
around the corner, maybe we can all get together
again for a game or two.”
Speaking of traveling b-ballers, and someone
who actually could have been a Globetrotter,
I heard from Detroit Pistons draftee George
Dalzell, who wrote: “My daughter and my wife,
Sue, decided to go to Europe for 3 weeks starting
Oct 14 believing this was going to be their last
chance for another mother/daughter trip for
quite a while.” George was left with 2 horses,
a dog, and a cat to take care of, not to mention
himself.
Another former basketball player, Tom
Johnson, is doing commercial litigation f/t at
the Denver law firm of Davis Graham & Stubbs.
Tom says: “The mandatory retirement age is
70, absent a waiver from the mgmt committee.
Dee (my wife) is already preparing the waiver
application on my (her) behalf. We still manage
a lot of skiing, tennis, and golf and time with our
grown kids.”
Richard Schaper, who resides in the
hometown of the 2010 NL Division champions,
hosted the Browns at the western end of their
cross-country chair delivery trip and also hosted
a reunion of 19 of his Rhodes Scholar classmates
with sails on the SF Bay and laughs at Beach
Blanket Babylon musical revue.
Doug Magill proudly reports: “On June 5 in a
lovely ceremony overlooking the beach at Johns
Island in Vero Beach, daughter Sara ’03 was married to Jordan Krawll ’03. The Colgate connection
at work!”
This is a perfect segue to remind all that you
should have received info from the alumni
office announcing that colgatealumni.org is now
colgateconnect.org. The new address is meant to
be more inclusive of parents and friends of Colgate. Please check out the site — there’s always
some news you can choose to use.
Ed: 908-277-4128; [email protected]
1 96 8
Jay Benedict
333 Brampton Court
Lake Forest, Ill 60045-3410
It has been great hearing from some of my Ctr
Stillman classmates. Chuck Lucurto wrote a note
reporting that in mid-June he got together with
John Schoonover and Jim Robbins at Chuck’s
home in Sturbridge, MA. John is recently retired
after a long career in upper mgmt at Sylvania.
Jim manages his own business as a personal
injury atty in Boston, and he is also a highly successful photographer. Chuck is in his 33rd year
as a prof of psych at Holy Cross. He says he keeps
up on Colgate athletics, but did not mention who
he roots for when they play in Patriot League
games. Also heard from my old roommate John
Boardman, who is moving back to the Philly area
to teach at Frankford HS. John and I also share
the “stent of the month club” membership with
our other roommate, Bill James. Between the 3 of
us, I think we have 8 stents and a bypass or 2. Not
sure about our other roommate, Steve Johnson.
Steve, please write and let us know you are the
exception to the 310 Ctr Stillman curse.
Carlos Mercado says he spent many years in
internatl banking in the Rochester area. Carlos
says: “When the big banks bought up the local
60
scene: Winter 2011
Rochester banks, I moved on to a variety of other
things, including chamber of commerce pres, VP
of finance and admin for a couple of firms, and
also running my own business.” Carlos and wife
Trina are easing into retirement, which means
not working f/t and visiting children and grandchildren. Carlos traveled to campus in late summer of 2009, and met up with Al Baldinger ’67
and wife Annie and “had a fun day seeing all the
additions and changes to the campus these last
40+ years. When football and hockey schedules
coincide (not this year!), my son and I drive down
for the football game, hockey game, dinner at the
inn, and back home by 11 pm. I hope many more
classmates will write and just let us know what
you all are doing.”
Received a nice note from Bob Raiber. This
past November, his daughter Emily ’02 was married and there was a large Colgate presence at
the wedding. Federal Judge Andrew Weiss officiated at the ceremony, which included bridesmaids Suzie Lamm-Roberts, Susie Roberts, Sarah
Tuttle, Meg Donoghue, and Courtney Goldsmith
(all ’02). Also attending the wedding was Mel
Damski. Bob’s nephew Justin Altman ’03 flew
in from UT. Other alums included Jill Spielberg
Sipzener ’02, Blake Drew ’02, Lucas Batzer ’05,
Megan Sobel ’07, and former trustee Andrew
Heyward. This past summer Bob played golf with
Andy Weiss and Bill Finard, who joined Bob as a
member of Gardiner’s Bay on Shelter Island
Heard from Vaughn Carney, who said, “I
connected with Joe Castiglione (“The Voice
of the Red Sox“) just last week after nearly 40
years. He was the 1st person I met at Colgate in
the fall of 1964, and I have never forgotten the
generosity of his family that day. He is well and
is a proud grandparent. I recently saw the film
Legendary, from Mel Damski and thoroughly
enjoyed this sensitive, intelligent, well-acted
family drama. It’s so refreshing and edifying to
go into a Cineplex and not be assaulted by the
usual car chases, gunfights, and explosions. I
have been in touch with Theta Chi frat brothers
Tom Richardson, who’s an appellate litigator in a
Seattle law firm, and Tim Carton, who still lives
in the Manhattan apt he snagged 41 years ago in
the Gramercy Park area. I retain happy memories
of Tim, my brother Steve, and I going to the 1986
Montreux Jazz Fest in Switzerland, and then
renting a hot-red convertible and cruising St
Tropez and environs along the Cote d’Azur.”
Jim Nelson writes: “I retired right before the
40th Reunion, after 38 years in the insurance
industry. Have been in Tampa for 22 years, but
wife Jane just took a job in Raleigh, so we will
be relocating within the next month or so. She
and I had dinner with Carol and Dick Nason
while they were vacationing in Sarasota in Feb.
While it was warmer than their home in MA, it
was cool by FL standards. Would welcome e-mail
from any 1968 era alums in the Raleigh area.”
John Blackmore came home to live in Hamilton after moving from NYC with wife Janie.
They have entertained fellow ’Gaters over the
last 4 years, including ’69ers Tony SantaCroce,
Barnet Kellman, Jim Milmoe, Dick Herbst, Steve
Horne. Tom Pikul visited from Burgundy with
wife Catherine, where they run a country inn
and conduct wine tours (assume Ripple is not the
local favorite).
Former class scribe Pete O’Neill likens his life
to living in a Seinfeld episode — lots of nothing
going on. Pete and Anne did make a trip to the
Windy City to visit Jim Anderson and wife Trisha. Pete sees quite a bit of Cal Trevenen (his new
brother-in-law). Pete also notes that he is still
practicing law in Princeton and periodically runs
into Chris Hedges ’79 and Jim Barnshaw ’63. Pete
and Jim swap war stories about the track teams
and outdoor track they trained on for winter
track.
Bob Zitter is EVP and chief tech officer at
HBO. Bob is “very engaged in moving TV onto
portable Internet-connected devices used by
young people today and launching HBO’s 3D TV
offering. Now enjoying 5 grandchildren. Enjoy
occasionally seeing Joe Castiglione’s son doing
sports on NY TV.”
Got a nice update from Mike Grimes, who remembered our freshman football days together,
and can’t believe how much time has passed
since those glory days on the gridiron. Mike has
lived in Round Rock, TX, and practiced law for
the last 39 years. He keeps in contact with Alan
Frumin and Bob Hoshino from time to time. He
has no plans for retirement and wants to keep
working until he can’t.
One of my old Stillman buddies, Steve
Naclerio, sent an update from Miami, where he
still plays golf in Dec. Steve is happy to report his
eldest daughter, Christine ’05, became engaged
to classmate Eric Koleda ’05 last Aug while vacationing in ME. This will make 4 Colgate grads in
the family (with daughter Catherine ’09). Steve
is still practicing law in Miami and finds it very
gratifying that a 1963 decision to attend Colgate
would have led to such happy consequences in
his life.
Ned Hengerer lives in Potomac, MD, and has
been in the DC area 40 years (after 2 years in
the Peace Corps right after Colgate). Ned writes,
“While I’m now mainly a customer design/
builder, in an earlier professional incarnation
as an energy lawyer, 1st for the federal govt
and then in private practice, I worked with Dick
Hertzberg. Dick and wife Carol moved to Del
Mar in S CA around 1980 and did very well for
himself developing co-generator plants. Haven’t
seen him since 2001, but he seems to really enjoy
that SoCA lifestyle. Our daughter Meg ’03 was
married this past May to Joe Gabriele ’03; many
young ’Gate grads in attendance.” Ned keeps
in close touch with fellow East Hall and TEKE
pals Terry Joggerst, Rocky Adriance, and Dick
Feinberg.
Former Thirteen member Jim Quick says the
Vintage Thirteen has been gathering every 2
years since 1999. Jim and wife Sheri attended
a 2008 gathering and then again this Sept in
Lake George. Other classmates attending were
Brad Johnson and Ron Silverman. Both are doing
great. They remembered Thirteeners Al Brindisi
and Trevor Lamb, who both passed before the
2008 gathering. Jim says, “It was wonderful for
me again to hear them in concert on Sat afternoon, with white shirts, blue blazers, and a new
touch ‘Hiner ties’ (maroon and white stripes)
… nearly like old. In all, 33+ Vintage Thirteeners were on hand with spouses and loves ones.
They got a standing ovation to close out a great
concert.”
I had a great time getting together with Fred
Meyland-Smith, Larry Kenna, and our wives
for the wedding of Fred’s son Scott in late Aug.
There was a great live band and we all risked
exhaustion by dancing late into the night to
the tunes of the Four Tops, the Temptations, etc.
Larry also made it to the Syracuse football game
along with fellow ATO Bill ‘Bullit’ Miles ’69 and
wife Jan. Earlier in the day Larry had a mini-pep
rally with his brother-in-law Bruce Todd ’70 and
wife Debby and still had the stamina to make
it to the Colgate tailgate party before the game.
Larry ran into Tom Hughes, whom we have seen
at several Colgate hockey games over the years.
Even though the score was not close enough, a
good time was had by all.
Speaking of football, got a note from Al
Scuterud, who works for Panasonic in NJ. He was
the football mgr our sr year and took a boatload
of pictures for the Maroon. Al recently found
3 years worth of negatives from ’65–’68 that
include sports and campus shots. He is working
with the Scene to see if we can get some pictures
published. Thanks, Al!
Thanks to all who have contributed to this
quarter’s Scene. Sure would like to hear from new
voices. Be good.
Jay: [email protected]
19 6 9
C James Milmoe
1700 Verrazzano Place
Wilmington, NC 28405-4040
Recent Scene issues have focused on retirements,
2nd careers, and some marathoners like Jack
Janes, who keeps plugging at successful vocations. Jack was surprised at all the retirement
talk in our class. He is not even thinking about
it. For the past 22 years, he has been working in
DC, running a think-tank on German-American
relations. Jack entered the field during a 1966 Jan
studies project in Vienna, Austria. He spent his jr
year in Freiburg, Germany, with George Knapp.
Between ’71 and ’85, he worked at a German
university for 3 years, ran a German-American
cultural ctr in Tuebingen, and finally wound up
in Bonn for 5 years working for an American
fndn. In between all that, he spent 3 years earning a doctorate in CA at Claremont Grad School,
getting married, and having a couple of kids. In
1985, Jack, his wife, and 2 kids moved back to the
States and they then spent 3 years in Pittsburgh
(where he reunited with Tim Geyer and his
family). Since 1989, he has been in DC with the
American Institute for Contemporary German
Studies, which is affiliated with Johns Hopkins
U. Jack’s kids, Tanya and Nick, now 30 and 27,
are bilingual and have 2 passports (his wife is
German). Jack’s focus on Germany has limited
contact with classmates except for George
Knapp, Bob Seaburg (who attended UC Divinity
School at the same time as Jack and whom Jack
saw in Manhattan some time ago), and Jim
Christensen, who visited Jack’s office recently.
Jack did not make our 40th last year because he
was in Germany. George Knapp himself wrote that he has
been trying to get Colgate to fund a women’s
golf team. He failed, and as a result, his daughter
Sarah did not apply to Colgate and will attend Dartmouth, where skiing, not golf, is the
preferred sport. Sarah, the N FL girl golfer of the
year 2009, is 5'4" and averages about 265 yards
straight off the tee. I asked George why Colgate
would not fund women’s golf. He said they
brought Dean Griff back from the dead to say
they could not because their “hands were tied.”
It’s been a long time since we’ve heard from
Chip Demarest, so we were pleased when he
wrote: “I am currently living with wife Patricia
in Albuquerque, where I have been for the last
27 years. I am a prof and chief of surgery at the
U of NM School of Medicine and have managed
the burn and trauma unit at the Health Sciences
Ctr since 1983. I have no plans to retire anytime
soon and have enough work to keep me busy
forever. I did recently retire from the US Navy as
a reservist after 21 years and have been deployed
overseas multiple times. I was gratefully pleased
to interact with a Navy Seal grad of Colgate in
2002 while in Djibouti, Africa, and shared old
stories of the ’Gate from a patriot 30 years my
jr. I remain a staunch conservative baffled by
our current political environment. Health care
delivery in NM is constantly strained to the limit,
as over 45% of the patient population is undocumented. I have 4 children, a boy and 3 girls, all
educated west of the Mississippi, graduated, and
thankfully independent of their parents. Patricia
is an emergency dept nurse and we spent 2
weeks in Jan in Haiti and worked with dozens of
wonderful health care volunteers in providing
care and treatment to the injured following the
earthquake. I was pleased to read the article on
Haiti in the last Scene.”
Bill Travis retired as superintendent of schools
from Mount Greylock Regional School District in
Williamstown, MA, in June and went on vacation
to Sweden with his wife. Upon his return, he
began helping a small school near Williamstown
by being an interim principal while they search
for a new principal. So he will dust off the tie and
jacket and help out p/t while collecting retirement. Bill wants everyone, but especially Terry
Kushner to write him at his new e-mail (contact
me for the address).
I heard from Nick Brill that John Hanson and
wife Barbara celebrated July 4th weekend at the
Brill beach house in Kennebunkport, ME. Nick
shares a zip code (and little else) with the Bush
family. They spent the weekend sunning on the
beach, enjoying the cool water, and introducing
the Hansons to the “ME method of eating lobster
— extracting every last morsel of delicious
meat!”
John Abraham travels around by “crotch rocket” [Yamaha FZ6R motorcycle]. Not coincidentally, he is a thanatologist [one who studies death
and dying and social and psychological means of
coping] and is willing to offer his services free to
any ’69 alumnus.
Woody Swain is trying his hand as a cartoonist and graphic novelist in this era of “no print.”
He says it is hard work and intense — doing it
the old-fashioned way with pen and ink wash
— with some computer retouching on Mac. Last
March, wearing a Colgate cap during an intermission of Horton Foote’s epic Orphan’s Home
Cycle on Broadway, he was accosted by Dave
Werner, who was in NYC visiting from PA. Dave
missed our 40th, so the chance meeting helped
make up for that omission. Totally not retired is Read McNamara, exec
dir of the Career Mgmt Ctr at Vanderbilt’s Grad
school of Business. He travels a bit, and in Aug he
had lunch with Bob Seaberg, who is hale, hearty,
and riding herd over the wealth advisory practice
at Citi. Read is anxious to track down any classmates who might be in the Nashville area.
The retirement horizon has moved back a bit
for Jim Molt, who tried to retire to a life of sailing
this past winter. His company asked him to stay
on while they reorganized. He will be the global
head of regulatory affairs through 2012.
In retirement, Bill Berry’s life remains a combination of Odysseus, Kerouac, Steinbeck, and
Lewis & Clark. He and Jane travel by motor home
to various parts of the country, where they stop
for extended periods and act as volunteer hosts
or guides to other travelers. Jane dutifully records
newsworthy events on her web page, web.mac.
com/janemberry. They spent much of the
summer touring Newfoundland. Their usually
reliable diesel engine experienced mechanical
problems somewhere near Nowhere, Newfoundland. Bill put some duct tape over the “check
engine” light and pressed on. Thus has our liberal
arts education prepared us to manage technical
problems. It so happened that when Bill and
Jane were in Newfoundland, Alex and I were in
Nova Scotia. When I told Bill I would be near the
ferry dock on the day he was returning to the
mainland, and that I owed him a dinner because
a shipwreck in 1973 caused him to miss our wedding, he was forced to decline. He used the same
excuse he used in 1973 — unreliable marine
transport might cause him to miss a wedding in
N Hampton. Bill will be in Big Bend Natl Park in
Feb to resume our camp hosting duties.
On the tailgate front, Greg Threatte wrote
from Upstate Medical Ctr that he was organizing
an event for the Colgate-Syracuse game. John
Higgins was soliciting people to attend the Dartmouth Holiday Tourney on Dec 30 in Hanover to
watch the Raiders skate against the world champ
Eagles of Boston C.
In Sept, I got news that Dick Johnson has
resigned his position as exec VP of the US Naval
Academy Fndn, effective Oct 11. He has accepted
a position as VP for philanthropy and alumni
relations at Clarkson U in Potsdam, NY. Dick
worked at Clarkson previously, so he says this is a
“homeward move.” Dick and his team raised $254
million for the Naval Academy.
Dave Helman wrote to advise that Jerry Commerford ’68 has retired as dean of students at
Bucknell. Dave asked me to pass a photo of Jerry
on a motor scooter and news of the retirements
of Jerry and Ron Canterna ’68.
Two classmates, Bill Beery and Denis Cronin,
gave me a heads up in Aug that they were visiting my hometown of Wilmington, NC, in hopes
of enjoying a cocktail on the Milmoe porch. Alas,
I was out of town, backpacking the “100 Mile
Wilderness” stretch of the Appalachian Trail in
ME and missed them. Sorry, fellas. The bar will be
open next time. Also in Aug, and at the urging of
several Facebook friends, Don Kinsella and I attended a reunion: not Colgate ’69, but Oneida HS
’65. Don told our OHS classmates: “Jim Milmoe
will now use Facebook to chronicle all of our lives
and comings and goings (in the spirit of Laddie
Milmoe ’30) as he does for the Colgate Class of
’69. If there were a Pulitzer for things like that,
he’d be a sure winner.” [Ed note: any submission
recommending me for the Pulitzer Prize is likely
to be published.]
We regret to report the death of Jacqueline N
Schafer MA’69, on July 16, in New Hartford, NY.
She is survived by siblings and families, including great nephew Travis Larrison ’13.
Jim: 910-256-5522; [email protected]
197 0
George Murphy Jr
1510 Ocean Avenue
Mantoloking, NJ 08738-1516
After careful consideration and discussion with
various classmates, it has been determined that
no news is not necessarily good news. We think
that our class may have had a reputation of
being somewhat apathetic. At this stage of our
lives, a little effort to post good news may be just
what the doctor ordered. Drop us a line.
Murph: 732-892-0217; 7806 (fax);
[email protected]
Get to know: Mark Nozette ’71, Colgate Trustee
– Board member since 2005; chair, audit committee; student affairs and
legal affairs committees
– JD, with distinction, Cornell, ’74; Law Review editor-in-chief
– Vice chairman, president, CEO, Attorneys’ Liability Assurance Society,
Inc.
Tell us about your work. Basically, I’m a lawyer for lawyers. Attorneys’ Liability Assurance
Society is a group of 230 of the largest U.S. law firms who formed their own insurance
company to cover malpractice claims generated from more than 60,000 lawyers. I oversee
a staff of about 100 people. I spend a lot of time on loss prevention and risk management,
talking about how to avoid conflicts of interest and other things that lead to claims. We are
waiting to see if claims arise from the foreclosure mess.
You had a brush with Major League Baseball back when you were a litigator? I was part of
the team that represented Commissioner Bart Giamatti in the investigation of Pete Rose
that led to his lifetime suspension for gambling. It was a very sad situation because he had
such great talent, but the integrity of the game was the most important thing.
Describe what serving on Colgate’s Board of Trustees means to you, and what you hope
you bring to the table? It’s exhilarating because it’s intellectually challenging but totally
different from what I do every day. In practicing law, I have seen so many different walks of
life and issues; that experience has been very helpful. For example, I have seen a lot of corporate governance issues, which translates to what we do on the audit committee in terms
of how we deal with risks Colgate may be facing in the years ahead.
Name a memorable Colgate experience. I participated in the 100-hour sit-in at the administration building during my freshman year. Every year we had a major demonstration of some
type. Those of us at Colgate during that tumultuous time realized that, even though we were
in an idyllic setting, we couldn’t shut out the world. That’s what I carried away more than
anything else: you’ve got to be part of the action and passion of your time.
What trait do you most value in your friends or colleagues? The ability to admit a mistake. I
try to do that, and I expect the same from others.
What do you do in your spare time? I’ve got a place near the ocean on Maui.* I particularly
enjoy mountain climbing and jet skiing. I’m a big nonfiction reader. Right now, I’m reading a
biography of Justice Brennan, Jimmy Carter’s book, and Bob Woodward’s book about Obama.
What’s the most unique item in your office? A baseball signed by Bart Giamatti. It says, “To
Mark Nozette, Scholar” — because I was so deeply involved in the writing of the Pete Rose
report. I really appreciated that from him.
Does your job require a lot of travel? I’m sometimes on the road three to four days a week,
so I have more than six million miles on American Airlines alone. I know so many of the flight
attendants and gate agents. If you saw Up in the Air with George Clooney as a road warrior,
he had a special card with a private number — I have one of those cards!
— Rebecca Costello
*See Maroon’d on pg. 55 for Mark’s tips on visiting the Hawaiian island.
News and views for the Colgate community
61
1 97 1
Richard C Beck
4290 SE Augusta Loop
Gresham, OR 97080-8435
Reunion June 2–5, 2011
Greetings! Before getting into the column,
please note the new e-mail address. My previous
Internet provider, Verizon, sold its rural lines to
Frontier Communications. I guess that means I
live in the countryside! In any event, the class is
fast approaching our 40th Reunion. Now is not
too early to start planning for it. The reunion will
be held June 2 –5, 2011. Mark your calendars.
The news has been a bit sparse, but I have
word on 2 classmates. Steve S Kingsbury is an
acupuncturist providing treatment at Ashland
Community Acupuncture LLC in Ashland, MA. He
got together this spring for a mini–Sigma Chi reunion in Boston with Jim Swanson, Tom Basalla
’72, and Wayne Keil ’72.
Carl S Spencer has spent most of his postColgate time starting and managing his own
company. Now known as KS&R Inc, it employees
350 people. KS&R has grown over the years into
one of the 50 largest market research firms with
an array of Fortune 100 customers and locations
through domestic and global business lines. Carl
Shirt tales
God’s Quad Squad
Rhyme-master Mark Shiner, university
chaplain and Catholic campus minister,
coined the phrase “God’s Quad Squad”
during a brainstorming session. Shiner
(pictured right) and his cohorts Rabbi
Steve Nathan, associate university
chaplain and director of Jewish life,
and Ann Zinsmeister, office manager,
sported T-shirts with the slogan at
this year’s orientation to welcome the
Class of 2014.
62
scene: Winter 2011
is now transitioning his ownership to a younger
generation as he intends to retire within 3 or 4
years.
Married to wife Sharon for over 30 years,
the Spencers have raised 2 children. Carl mentions that as Sharon has been into horses since
childhood, the family supports a number of the
“critters,” one of which is a champion show
jumper. Carl’s daughter rides that one. As for Carl,
he is still firmly committed to the virtues of the
automobile.
Until next time…
Richard: 503-512-8085 (H); 986-3375 (W);
504-8431 (C); [email protected]
1972
David M Brockway
201 Lincoln Road
Horseheads, NY 14845-2267
Time for another column already! Snow will
be flying in these parts by the time this hits
the press. It seems that taxes start out as a
somewhat common thread in this edition of
things. Frank Barrie has retired as a NY tax law
judge and is now immersed in editorial duties
for Knowwhereyourfoodcomesfrom.com. The
autumn issue contains an article regarding
Colgate’s organic garden, which is an outgrowth
of an environmental studies project done in
2001 by Heather Schoen ’02. The Class of 2010
sr gift went to the Sustainability Council, which
planted its “Green Thumbs” garden not far from
Andy Kerr stadium last June. Frank invites everyone to visit the website and to also pass along
any suggestions to be included in the “farm-totable” restaurant section. Meanwhile, Jeffrey
Allen stays busy as a CPA at EisnerAmper in
Manhattan. Jeff notes that he stays in touch with
Colgate regularly through his responsibilities on
the Fraternity-Sorority Alumni Assn Bd, along
with Tom Dempsey. Jeff adds that he and wife
Linda have 4 kids and 2 grandchildren, including
daughter Jill Allen Murray ’98, who is the DC
chief of staff for US Rep Dan Maffei (NY-25).
Prof Marshall Olds also sent along some news.
He’s pleased to be returning to Colgate to teach
this spring semester as the Olive B O’Connor
Distinguished Visiting Prof of lit. He’ll be “on
loan” from U of NE and will be teaching French
lit, as he did 6 years ago. Visiting classmates can
drop by to see him at Lawrence Hall! Marshall
also noted that he made a trek east last summer,
catching up with several alums. One weekend
was spent in western MA with Jim Billipp, who
joined up from Boston for a fishing expedition
on the Housatonic. While out this way, Marshall
and wife Nanne also caught up with Doc Will
Schwartz and wife Priscilla, who both came up
from NYC. Finally, Marshall mentioned that he
stays in pretty regular contact with Dan Cattau,
who stays busy as a freelance writer and as a
devoted dad to Sam and Olivia.
I had the pleasure of hearing from Steve
Wishner, who e-mailed me back in Sept to extend bday wishes to me (yes, that big 6-0 thing).
Not to be outdone in recognizing my 60th were
class veep Eric Luce and Dana Thompson. They
had spent some days together at the US Open.
I imagine that many “happy 60th” wishes are
past-due to most of us fine folks.
Last but not least, I owe apologies to cinematographer and photographer Rick Fee, who
called me over a year ago, but I just found my
notes to myself. Rick returned east to Hingham,
MA, his hometown, after several decades out
in sunny CA. It was great hearing from our
colleague who had a hand in filming such great
movies as Raging Bull, ET, and St Elmo’s Fire, as
well as many different TV series over the years.
David: 607-739-0267 (H); 737-2901 (O); 737-2961
(fax); [email protected]
1 973
Marc Gettis
43 Summit Avenue
Gillette, NJ 07933
I’m pleased that several class members have
broken 37 years of silence and provided news for
this column. Everyone who did can reassure you
that doing so is painless.
Mike Hilbert (Rev Michael Hilbert, SJ) has
been given a new mission. A Jesuit priest, he
entered the Jesuit Order, the Society of Jesus, in
August 1973, was ordained a priest in 1983, and
has been in Rome since 1980, first as a theology
student, then for his doctorate in canon law and
since 1990 as prof of canon law at the Pontifical
Gregorian U, a university founded in 1551 by St
Ignatius Loyola. Mike was also academic VP of
the university 2000–2004 and dean of the faculty of Canon Law 2004–Sept 2010. He has since
become pres of La Fondazione la Gregoriana, the
fndn that supports the 3 academic institutions
of the Jesuits in Rome — the Gregorian U, the
Pontifical Biblical Institute, and the Pontifical
Oriental Institute. After 30 years of academic
life, he now has the mission of raising funds in
Europe in order to secure the financial future of
these institutions. Before beginning that work,
Mike is putting in a stint as visiting prof at
Hebrew U in Jerusalem: “Some time in the Holy
City before returning to the Eternal City!” He is in
regular contact with Mick Doyle, Bob Kelly, and
Don Shea as well as Beta Theta Pi brothers Jim
Lomonosoff and Bill Cox ’75. Anyone coming to
Rome will receive a warm welcome, a customized tour, a plate of spaghetti and — if you live in
Europe — Mike’s calling card.
John Skeats began his career at IBM Marketing in Syracuse, where he remained for 10 years
before moving into an IBM job in operating
system design and architecture in Kingston, NY.
Following 10 years in IBM US Marketing HQ,
managing various software product areas, he decided to exercise his technical muscles again by
managing security in Poughkeepsie, but quickly
shifted into managing a major portion of IBM’s
Y2K readiness. John currently manages delivery
of services by IBM’s services arm to IBM itself,
which consists of managing a global business
risk mgmt process that controls changes during
the most critical business periods and evaluating
the business needs to make the changes against
the risks associated with doing so. He resides
in Woodstock, NY, and has 4 children (2 of each)
ages 22–29. All were deeply involved in competitive swimming, which led John to a hobby officiating swimming. He has volunteered his services
at all levels from “country club” meets with kids
as young as 4 to US Masters Swimming meets
with swimmers upward of 80, to high levels of
competition such as NY Empire State Games,
USA Swimming’s Natl Championships, and
World Cup competitions. As John starts to look
seriously at retirement, he’s still puzzled by the
question he had when we received our diplomas
by Taylor Lake and which many of us are still
asking: “What do I want to do when I grow up?”
Also trying to figure out where to go from
here is Alan ‘Chip’ Avery, who retired last July 1
after 33+ years working for Ocean County, NJ, the
last 5 as county administrator. This departure
means Bill Barnaskas will miss calling “to chirp
when the newspaper takes [Chip’s] name in vain,
but might leave time to join Bill in one of his
Jersey Shore watering holes.” Chip also looks
forward to a round of golf with Jim Ashenfelter
(still lawyering in Montclair) and drinks with
Fred Diehl (still selling Chevys) and plans to
spend more time with wife Kathleen at their
cabin in the Adirondacks. Chip also keeps in
contact with Rich Sarajian, yet another fellow
KDR. In what must be synchronicity, Rich independently checked in and reported that he lives
in Rockland County, NY, and runs the commercial
litigation dept at the New City, NY, law firm currently known as Montalbano Condon & Frank,
where he has been a member since 1982. Rich
and wife Nora (Merrimack C), have 4 sons — Ara
(Merrimack ’10), Raffi (Springfield C ’13), Garo
(Johns Hopkins ’14), and Haig (9th grade). In
2009, Ara interned for Chip in Ocean County, NJ.
Being very active in the Armenian community,
where he has held many natl and internatl
positions over the years, Rich occasionally runs
into Colgate prof Peter Balakian. Coincidentally,
Rich’s great-grandfather was arrested by the
Turks on April 24, 1915, at the same time as Peter’s
great-uncle and thus is mentioned several times
in Peter’s recently published book The Armenian
Golgotha.
Bill Powers, CEO of Bonnie Brae Residential
Treatment Ctr for Adolescent Boys in Liberty
Corner, NJ, recently received a visit from former
heavyweight boxer Gerry Cooney, who shared
his story with the boys at the center. A photo of
Bill with Gerry appears on our class web page at
colgateconnect.org.
Honcho House bulletin: Keith Sinusas hosted
a small reunion of Honchos last summer, with
Alan ‘Aldo’ VanArsdal, Pete Stassa, and Don King
in attendance. A photo appears on our class web
page with some of the guys sporting Project
Honcho T-shirts, which remarkably still fit. They
had a great time hanging out, catching up on
each others’ activities, playing guitar, and retelling stories of the glory days of Honcho House.
David Mills just retired from a long career as
an administrator at Yale and has shifted his energy toward music education with a home base
at Neighborhood Music School in New Haven, CT.
From the links: When Jim Sowers checked in,
he had just played golf with John Bloom. John is
a sr exec with CEMEX in Houston and has been
working on managing the carbon footprint and
shaping policy on emissions for his firm in the
states in which it operates. Golf scores were not
reported. Bill Johnston and Ron Joyce connected
last summer for some competitive golf in RI.
Joyce narrowly defeated Johnston and is now
claiming the title of Class of ’73 champ (any protests to this claim can be sent to your editor or
by way of direct challenge to Ron). “Joyce didn’t
shoot his age, but he did shoot his class year!”
David Michonski has written a new book,
Unlocking the Gate: Power Marketing for Luxury
Real Estate, about how to power market real estate for people who do not have to sell to people
who do not have to buy. The book, based upon
his 30+ years in marketing luxury real estate, has
already received great reviews. David has been
responsible for some of the most notable and
record real estate sales in the US, including the
sale of the notoriously famous Newport cottage
“Clarendon Court,” owned by Sunny and Claus
von Bulow, the subject of the movie Reversal of
Fortune.
Also recently published is Michael Hiltzik’s
book, Colossus, a social history of the building of
the Hoover Dam. This news comes courtesy of
Kathy Burns, whose husband represents Imperial
County on issues involving CO River allocation
and loved the book. When the opportunity to go
to LA together presented itself, they arranged a
get-together for lunch with Michael as part of
the trip. Although Kathy hadn’t seen Michael
since graduation, “it felt like it was yesterday. He
looks exactly the same and most importantly,
maintains his great sense of humor!” Kathy’s
twin daughters started 8th grade and she’s trying to figure out options for HS.
Kathleen and Bruce Feron live on Skidaway Island off Savannah, GA, amidst the beauty of the
Low Country, in semi-retirement. He is co-pres of
the Colgate Club of the Low Country, encompassing the greater Savannah/Hilton Head area. On
the island are quite a few alumni, whom Bruce
often sees on the tennis courts or the golf course
(retirement and golf seem to be themes running
through this column). He tries to get to Colgate
each July for the annual Alumni Golf Tourney.
Last July, Bruce, Kathleen, and her Uncle Ken,
a retired Lutheran minister from Camillus, NY,
attended the 1st Summer on the Hill at Colgate,
finding that the “experience was fantastic and
highlighted the great faculty at Colgate as well
the relevant curriculum for our new world
community. I would recommend this program
for any classmates. The trip to Cooperstown, the
Trivial Pursuit Night, and great leisure activities
and hospitality outside the classroom made this
an exceptional experience.” Bruce and Kathleen
always have their doors open to any Colgate
friends traveling through Savannah; anyone
planning to take them up on this offer should
“leave an extra day for a round of golf or some
Southern home cooking.”
Peter Rothenberg, who is still practicing
internal and intensive care medicine in San
Clemente, CA, was just awarded his 2nd patent
for a technique using electrocardiograms to
guide a central venous catheter to its correct
anatomic location. “A central venous catheter
is a long-term intravenous access that is used
when people need long-term antibiotics,
chemotherapy, etc. The tip is supposed to lie in
a specific vein location, which, up until now, has
been documented by x-ray.” Peter’s technique
is faster, cheaper, and more accurate. A large
medical device company bought the patents and
he hopes the devices incorporating these patents
will be on the market in a couple of years. More
news about Peter appears on our class web page.
He also reported that Paul Van Dyke was married
in Oct on Jekyll Island, GA.
Also on the nuptial front, Tony Johns reports
that after 25 years of “going steady,” his lifepartner, Holly Martin, officially became his wife
on Oct 2, with ceremony and reception held
in 68° temps under crystal-blue skies at the
Hopkins Inn, overlooking Lake Waramaug in Litchfield County, CT. Guests included Beta Theta Pi
fraternity brothers Bob Ruettger a/k/a Rutgers,
Jim Lomonosoff, and Bruce Rutter; Tony’s twin
brother, Loren ’76, was best man. Also joining in
the festivities was Sharon Douglas-Dingman ’76,
Tony’s unofficial “sister” and lifelong friend.
After skipping last year, Fausto Miraglia and
wife, Susan, caught up with Bob Litts and family
again in Martha’s Vineyard, where the weather
was superb. “Add that weather to their great
hospitality and you spell one good time.” They
all joined April and Bill Cornachio, who made
a call to the Vineyard on their way to Newport,
RI, and Block Island, for a drink on Bill’s sailboat.
“Bill has the life with the freedom to sail the
seas. Rumor has it he is an excellent captain.”
Fausto wants to remind class members that a
new annual fund drive began as of last fall and
he will be calling on some classmates to give
once again in support of Colgate. “I know these
times are tough, but it is times like these that
we have to make our best effort to help our
university and its students. We surely want them
to experience Colgate as a 1st-rate university as
we did.” He hopes to catch a football or hockey
game this year, anticipating a win and nothing
less. Fausto wants to thank Jim McMahon for his
great suggestions on how to tour Tuscany. Jim
and his wife go there every year, renting an apt
and living like locals, enjoying 1 city at a time. “If
you’re headed to Tuscany, call Jim. It appears like
he has been to every walled medieval city there
and knows how to really enjoy them.” While in
Tuscany, Fausto got to meet Dario Cecchini, who
Bill Buford of the New Yorker called “Il maestro”
and the “Dante quoting butcher of Panzano.” This
visit was inspired by Bill Cornachio’s gift of the
book Heat. “I recommend anyone traveling in
Tuscany to visit Panzano and see Dario. Tell him
Fausto sent you.”
News, travel tips, and offers of hospitality
in one column — what more could you ask? If
you’re not receiving my periodic e-mail blasts,
please adjust your settings (or check your spam
folder) so as to allow e-mails from my address
and from [email protected]. Our class web
page is now located at www.colgateconnect.org.
Note this new url, although the old address will
still get you there for the time being. As before,
go to “Clubs, classes and groups” and select “Class
of 1973” on the pull-down menu. Content has
been and will continue to be added.
Marc: 908-580-1414, 580-1946(f);
[email protected]
1 974
Gregg McAllister
21 Ross Street
Batavia, NY 14020-2307
I have been to many college campuses in recent
months as my son is a HS senior. Of course, I
hold them all to the Colgate standard, and none
measure up. Alas, his thought is that Colgate is in
the middle of nowhere, so will probably end up
at a much larger school in a city.
The Colgate campus over the summer is
delightful, as we all know. Here’s a report from
Bruce Wright, who took part in the 1st Summer
on the Hill: “I left Hamilton Fri morning with
a clear realization just how much I enjoy intellectual debate, and how little of it persists in the
‘real world’ outside of academia. I had as much
fun in 9 class sessions as I can recall having in
any 9 meetings in all the years since I left Colgate
35 years ago. I enjoyed all the profs in the classes
I participated in, and I enjoyed the interaction with fellow attendees, not to mention the
particular surprise of meeting up with my RA
from 1st year, Ed Werner ’71. Spending time with
profs like Tony A, Bob McV, Dave D, and Scott A
reminded me of just how talented the faculty
was (and remains) and just how lucky all of us
were who studied under this type of guidance.
And by Thurs, my 3rd attack on the Seven Oaks
course, I had knocked 15 strokes off my 1st round
score. Bottom line, I had a blast. I expect my next
time back to come sooner than this one did.”
Bruce is working on Stephen Marshall, another Eaton “survivor,” to come next year. Bruce’s
assessment of the campus: KED is no longer
there, at least not recognizably, and not with that
name. New buildings are everywhere, the new
union, library, and a giant new science building,
and the new stadium, still called Andy Kerr field,
is in a new place, north of the old one. The Coop
looks much the same as when we sat there doing
the NYT crossword, but the bookstore is now
downtown.
And a word from another KED-er: Bill Carl
sends regards to Andy Schiff, Bob Murray, and
the rest of the crew from 4th-floor Kendrick.
(Although he agrees with Bruce that KED’s
disappearance is no loss.) For 34 years Bill has
been in the business of buying and selling fine
prints, with museums in the US and abroad being a significant part of his client base. He lives
in Northampton, MA, where “life is good.” He
specializes in the period 1850 to the present with
an emphasis on color woodcuts, American prints,
Dutch, Belgian, and other fine European printmakers. He says the art business is very good in
spite of the economy. His business is largely web
based, but he does shows around the country
and travels to Europe to buy on a regular basis.
And from a warmer climate: Ed Schnittger
teaches math/special ed at the Fairfax County,
VA Juvenile Detention Ctr, and, yes, he continues
to sing and play regularly. “There are enough
graybeards around who still appreciate hearing
the Peter, Paul, and Mary, the Dylan, and the John
Denver stuff.” His kids and grandson, 3, are still
in the SW part of the state. Ed has updated his
info in the Alumni Directory and invites those
traveling to or around our nation’s capital to get
in touch.
Please shoot us an e-mail with what’s going
on in your life.
Gregg: 585-345-6154 (O); 343-9796 (H);
[email protected]
Colgate seen
The spirit of alumni sporting their Colgate
gear is seen here, there, and everywhere
around the globe. Where was your latest
spotting? On a Machu Picchu trek? At a
mini-reunion in Pocatello? An election
polling site in Houston? We’re collecting
photos of Colgate sightings around the
world. Send them to [email protected].
1 97 5
Carolyn Swift
#514
2022 Columbia Rd NW
Washington, DC 20009-1316
Greetings of the new year to one and all. First
up is a note: the alumni website has a new address — www.colgateconnect.org (don’t worry,
colgatealumni.org will continue to work). The
new name ColgateConnect reflects the broad
base of participants including parents, friends,
and many others in addition to alums. And don’t
forget to send me news, updates, or just a hello
for the column.
I haven’t been in touch with as many people
from reunion as I’d planned when I wrote my
last column. This past summer struck me like a
tornado and I could barely keep up with all the
things I had no clue I’d be doing back in June.
And it was like that for so many of us! How was
your summer? Was it like that — or even busier?!
Meanwhile, I’m still holding more reunion updates and planning to be in touch, so keep an ear
out for the phone (or an eye out for the e-mail
message)!
Carla Jimenez sent me a message that makes
me laugh out loud every time I read it. She wrote
that she had considered coming to the reunion
but ended up with a conflict so didn’t make it
(too bad for us) then decided she would go on the
Class of ’75 website to at least see photos of what
she missed but, when she had registered and
logged on and finally made it to the Class of ’75
website — nothing there!
Would love to blame the whole thing on the
whole lake crew, who again at this reunion were
(as Bryan Powers noted) conspicuous by their
presence, but instead I can only say, my bad!
I was supposed to get the class page up and
going and thought reunion photos and stories
would be a great kickoff but ended up running
out of time so I never did. It was not, however,
intended to be a sneaky trick to elicit e-mail from
long-lost classmates (although that might not be
a bad idea — just kidding!). Carla’s message will
inspire me to take it up again, however, and I am
now officially soliciting photos for our site, so
send ’em to me!
Raj Matthis sent me an invitation to a party
for Andrea ‘Bunny’ Ford Roberts ’74 last April at
the home of Covette Rooney ’74 and I had been
L to R: Kara Culgin ’08, Katie Castino ’08,
and Mary Beth King ’08, co-presidents of
Colgate’s Washington State Alumni Club,
risk getting gobbled up by the Fremont
troll under the Aurora Bridge in Seattle.
We bent the rules for Sara Margaret
Gilbert ’03 (left) and Eleanor Finnegan ’03,
who may not be wearing Colgate gear in
this picture of them in Marrakesh, Morocco, but the truck says “Colgate” in Arabic!
News and views for the Colgate community
63
In the know: Hiking principles
hoping I could go and celebrate Bunny and catch
up with a lot of long-lost classmates and friends
(like Kelly Zanders, Dan Gasby, Raj, Covette,
Amani Ayers, Lois Robinson, and Cozette Rooney
Ferron), but I had a conflict and couldn’t go. I’m
still hoping to get in touch with the Class of
’75ers! It’s been way too long!
And that’s it for 2010. Until the spring issue,
enjoy and take care!
Carolyn: 202-483-0809 (H); 752-7169 (O);
752-6158 (fax); [email protected]
1 976
Valerie Avedon Gardiner
40 St Andrews Road
Severna Park, MD 21146-1439
Reunion June 2–5, 2011
Steve Parker ’74, an avid hiker, skier, and former Boy Scout leader, logged nearly 2,000
miles hiking last year. He mostly hikes in the Pisgah National Forest and trails along the
Blue Ridge Parkway in North Carolina. If his boots could talk, they’d recount tales of Mount
Mitchell in -41° F wind chill, and walking among wild horses at Mount Rogers, Va.
At Colgate, Steve was a winter sports director for the Outing Club, treasurer of Sigma
Chi, and member of the Washington Study Group. He lives in Matthews, N.C., and hikes with
his children, Eric, Allison, and Stuart. He shares some tips:
Getting started
First, get a physical and get in shape. Try to walk or run daily, exercise to strengthen your
torso muscles, drink plenty of water, and adopt a diet that will lower your Body Mass Index
to below 25.
Hike with a partner or club to make the experience safer and more enjoyable. There are
plenty of organizations that can get you started, from the Outdoor Education Program if
you’re on campus, to the Appalachian Mountain Club, Adirondack Mountain Club, and the
Sierra Club.
Learn how to use a map and compass, and know first aid. Good reference sources for
these skills — even for adults — are The Boy Scout Handbook and The Boy Scout Fieldbook,
as well as Backpacker magazine and www.backpacker.com.
Dress for success
Because mountains expose the hiker to rugged terrain and weather that can change in an
instant, the right clothing is imperative.
Boots should be sturdy, properly fitted, and moisture controlled.
In cold weather, to counter the dangers of sweating and then chilling as well as hypothermia, wear moisture-wicking clothing and dress in layers. In winter, start off slightly
underdressed, wearing a wicking base layer against the skin and a hard-surfaced fabric shell
and pants as an outer layer to protect against the wind; add intermediate layers as needed.
A hat, gloves, and extra socks should be worn to stem heat loss from both the extremities
and the body core.
The 10 essentials
These emergency preparedness items should be packed for most hikes: water; pocket knife
or multi-tool; first aid kit; trail food; rain gear (including a pack cover); extra clothing; flashlight; fire starter; map and compass; and sun protection.
Hitting the trail
If you’re a beginner, go on hikes organized by a club, park staff, or outdoor equipment store
to learn how to gauge your ability, and to plan and execute hikes. Start at a state or national
park with well-marked trails of varying ability levels.
Go online before a trip to find out what parks and routes work well with your skill level,
time constraints, and equipment. Learn the disciplines of setting departure, turnaround,
and return times and sticking to plans. Leave a copy of your hike plans with a friend or family member and an action plan to follow if you do not return on time.
Finally, be courteous to animals and the environment. “Make no scents” to attract animals and follow the “leave no trace” principles of environmental stewardship.
Now, go take a hike!
What do you know? If you’re an expert in an area of your field or avocation and would like
to share your sage advice, e-mail [email protected] or write to the Colgate Scene,
13 Oak Drive, Hamilton, NY 13346.
64
scene: Winter 2011
So, you’re saving up all the news to deliver in
person at Reunion 35, right?! Sure do hope so because before we know it, it will be June 2 and we
will be wondering where you are and what you
have been up to. I continue to get news updates
from a stalwart group of ’76ers, but I must begin
with Mary Chirba-Martin, who has shown great
patience and grace awaiting this column. Kudos
to her as she very proudly announces the receipt
of her doctorate from the Harvard School of Public Health last May. She wants to acknowledge
her 3 amigos, Janie Friedman Shapiro, and Leeza
and Rico Rodriguez for their constant encouragement and support. She says she could never
have crossed the “finish line” without them.
Mary’s thesis tackled the interaction of recent
state and federal health care reform laws, which
remain her focus as she continues teaching
health and policy and legal reasoning at Boston C
Law School. Also serving on BC’s law admissions
committee, she encourages us to send our aspiring attys her way.
Onto the dependables for their updates: On
the evening of Aug 28, in a splendid outdoor
setting overlooking the San Gabriel River Valley
in central TX, Midge Loposzko and a close group
of friends and family witnessed the marriage of
Midge’s daughter Katy to college sweetheart Rob.
Katy’s brother Tommy, enjoying another year at
Stephen F Austin St U at Nagadoches and a p/t
job at a psych clinic, walked Midge and her mom
down the aisle, gave Katy away, and then had a
blast partying with all, including Colgate folks
Wanda Pan and Dave Tocco, whose 3 daughters,
although unable to attend, were there in spirit:
Sarah just graduated from CO State with a
business degree; Mary, the Tulane grad, is in her
3rd year of med school at U of TX, Houston; and
youngest, Lisa, is a jr at Emory in Atlanta. Nina
and Tom Queffelec enjoyed the celebration with
daughters Katya, a frosh at U of Houston, and
8-year-old Tanya. Neil Braunsdorf and wife Liz
Schertz were accompanied by Liz’s daughters
Kandace and Chelsea (just back from London
with her theater group that performed at The
Globe). The newlyweds are back to their lives in
MI, where Katy is a neuroscience grad student at
U of MI and Rob is an educator for the Ann Arbor
school district. More news from that gang: Chris
Hemingway Jones sent a great photo of hers truly
with John ‘K2’ Kern and hubby Nat Jones taken
at a recent mini-reunion in Low Country. K2
was East taking a break from all that skiing and
fishing with his wife in Salt Lake City. He made
a quick stop in Cleveland on his way, where he
caught up with Linda and Jon Sobel. As I write
the column up for the next issue, the Steve Wagners, Rick Greenswags, and Dave Tocco are also
due in to Low Country for some late fall sun and
fun and excellent cuisine on a scheduled visit
with the Joneses. Rumor has it their unofficial
B&B outside of Charleston, is the place to “B.”
Kendrick kontinues to rock with the Dave
Beddow, Doug Conte, Gary Skoien 35th Straight
Annual Fall Trip up to Hamilton, where they
witnessed the Syracuse trouncing, played golf,
and hung at the Jug with Dave’s son James ’11.
They reported diehard fans Harry and Sue Shibel
Horowitz were also partying away. Always enjoying her life in Israel — in particular with her
dad and his wife — Gail Cohen Zamri enjoyed a
Sept visit from her stateside folks. Her kids are
scattered ’round the world and Gail continues
playing basketball, teaching sr citizen fitness
classes, and is going for her real estate license.
That woman has too much energy. Speaking of
energy, Sandee Luccock-Kush is keeping W Hartford, CT, on its toes with her new involvement in
a program called “50 and Better,” for those that
age and up based at the Elmwood Community
Ctr. And Jeff Kleiser is astonishing as he wraps
up principal photography on Shah Rukh Khan’s
sci-fi film Ra over in Mumbai, India, where he has
been living for months. Jeff was headed home in
late Oct to wrap up a large chunk of the effects in
his MA office of Synthespian Studios. Can’t wait
for the red-carpet invite, JK! DJ-extraordinaire
Lin Brehmer was busy during baseball season
and even showed up to sing “Take Me Out to
the Ballgame” on Wrigley field for a Chicago
hometown-crowd. (Google him — it’s great!) Doing good in Hollywood? Sarah Hollman Jennings,
major gifts dir for Autism Speaks, west region,
out of LA. Check out the photo on our class page
at colgateconnect.org of Sarah with Ed Asner and
his son Matt at a recent luncheon honoring them
for their advocacy work on behalf of the society.
The guy in the pic background is Billy Riback,
writer for Home Improvement. Fun! Another fun
tidbit: check out Gordon Simmons’s new baby:
the Lookcie, a Bluetooth headset camcorder that
just hit the market. Ultra-cool project, Gordo!
Congrats! Any chance we get one for each of us
in goody bags for reunion?! (Hey, it can’t hurt to
ask!)
So, yes, Reunion 35 is in the planning stages:
’76ers like George Miller are digging through
attics and finding old treasures/pictures/incriminating evidence to bring along. Check out the
Facebook webpage and ColgateConnect.org, and
get excited about a return to the Chenango Valley in 2011.
As I close out, please allow me to thank all
of you who wrote, called, texted, and continue
to do so since I lost my precious Papi on July 10.
Were it not for him I would most likely have gone
to UConn. Imagine all the great people I would
never have met; the amazing lifelong friends
I wouldn’t have been able to claim as my very
own. Love you guys. CU on June 2.
Valerie: 410-987-8808; [email protected]
197 7
Carl P Barone
176 Reilly Road
LaGrangeville, NY 12540-9530
Please check out our class page on Facebook
anytime the spirit moves you: posts and pics are
always welcome. While there was a paucity of
news this time around, it was pleasing to hear
from 2 classmates I remember but haven’t heard
from in a long time. Linda Jeffries Hammon
has been living in Herndon, VA, for the past 20
years, after relocating from the NY metro area.
Linda continues to work in IT project mgmt in
the business intelligence/data warehouse area
for idea integration in Fairfax. She keeps in touch
with McKinley Winston ’76, Lois Robinson ’75,
and Robin Motton-Thorbourne and would love
to hear from Kathryn Pierson Lollis, Godfrey
Johnson, and Ken Flamer. Regina Bullock Young
also sent in a kind note with an update on her
career path. After graduating in 2008 from the U
of MD, College Park, with a PhD in minority and
urban education, Regina is teaching HS English
in Prince George’s County, MD, in addition to
staff development courses for the MD Institute
for Minority Achievement and Urban Edu.
Regina’s dissertation at the U of MD focused on
white pre-service teachers and their preparation
for employment in schools with black students.
Regina sends regards to her 1st-year roommate
Joyce Williams, so if you read this, Joyce, please
contact Regina. She also sends “shout outs” to her
sister, Lori Bullock Floyd ’80, Ben Carter, Van Don
Williams, Jacob Conrad Williams, Derek Jones,
Angela Moody Robinson, Giselle ChalmersTurner, Paula Huntley ’78, Helen Blackwood ’78,
Ronald Bertrand, and Gregory Armstrong ’78.
If this column has you humming that old ditty
“Is that All There Is?” I welcome your contribution to our next column!
Carl: 845-227-1854; [email protected]
197 8
Linda Pattillo
Suite 230-271
245 N. Highland Avenue
Atlanta, GA 30307
Linda: [email protected]
197 9
Kimi de Murga
#1A
227 E 66th Street
New York, NY 10021-6413
You would think since I have been writing this
column for 26 years I would plan ahead and not
leave it to the last moment, but no, some things
never change. Since I am crushed for time, I am
taking the easy way out and just quoting the
entire e-mail I received from Greg Brodsky. “I
was reading the summer issue of the Scene and
found myself reading the class notes from all the
way back. Some fascinating stuff and it seems
like only yesterday that our class notes were in
the back of the book. Now some of our ’79 classmates have kids that are Colgate grads! My own
kids have chosen other schools: Allie is entering
her jr year at NW, where she’s a theater major
(and obviously gets that gift from my wife).
She spent this summer in London with a Duke
study abroad program, which reminds me of
the remarkable summer of ’77 that 48 or so of us
shared with Profs RV and RW Smith in Scotland
and Oxford. While those back home endured the
great NYC blackout and Son of Sam and enjoyed
a sci-fi hit named Star Wars, our group bonded
over Scottish folk dancing, pints of bitter in the
pubs, pizza at Sweeney Todd’s, and the occasional
trip to London. That remains my favorite summer, and I’m sure I’m not alone. I re-visited our
Oxford campus last summer with the family.
“My son Daniel enjoyed a HS sports career
that I could only dream about and scored 20
points against my HS alma mater in the state
basketball tourney. He’s in the Class of 2014 at
Lehigh. My wife, Leigh Anne, is in her 12th year
overseeing consumer products for Nickelodeon
and Comedy Central, and I thank the creators of
Sponge Bob and Dora every day.
“As for me, I resigned from my position this
summer as marketing dir for ESPN NY to restart my own entertainment/sports marketing
consultancy. We live in a 125-year-old Victorian
in Tenafly, NJ, and we’re fortunate enough to
have a weekend place in Woodstock, NY, with a
stream-fed pond. And I remain a die-hard Red
Sox fan and still relish our World Series wins in
’04 and ’07. It never gets old. For those who know
me well, you won’t be surprised that my vinyl
collection is intact and I still use the turntable on
occasion. Regrettably, I only keep in touch with
a handful of ’79 classmates and would love to
re-connect.”
Contact me for Greg’s e-mail address. While
you are dropping Greg an e-mail, copy me so I
will have some news for the next column. Happy
winter!
Kimi: 212-517-6776; [email protected]
19 80
David H Alvord
424 Washington Avenue
Oneida, NY 13421-1906
Your editor spent Labor Day weekend helping
NYC set a new annual record for tourism. I
visited the USS Intrepid, took a walking tour of
Greenwich Village, and in the company of Mark
Williams, caught a performance of In the Heights
as well as other elements of the city’s nightlife.
Christine McNamara Matz visited the Colgate
campus in Aug to drop off son Dan, who is a
member of the Class of 2014. (I get a twinge just
writing that, since I knew a man who was in the
Class of 1914.) Chris is sr dir of admin for the Boston and Portland offices of the law firm Brigham
McCutchen.
Staying in New England, Mark LeClair is prof
of econ at Fairfield U. His new book, Cartelization,
Antitrust and Globalization in the US and Europe,
was published in July.
Steve Burke is being promoted to CEO of NBC
Universal upon completion of the merger with
Comcast. Mike Costa joined the Cowen Group,
a financial services firm hq’d in NYC, in July as
head of mergers and acquisitions and vice chairman of investment banking after 20 years with
Merrill Lynch.
Bill Reading is in investment banking as head
of the new Charlotte office of Mid-Cap Advisors.
Hope winter is treating you all well. Please
keep the news coming.
David: 315-363-2117; [email protected]
19 81
Nancy Horwitz
77 Islington Road
Auburndale, MA 02466-1009
Nancy: 617-558-9781;
[email protected]
Reunion June 2–5, 2011
19 82
Margie Jiampietro Palladino
37 Boulder Road
Wellesley, MA 02481-1502
Betsy Lawrence sent me a great photo of a girls’
weekend in Deer Lake, WI, at the lakeshore home
of Phil and Jeanne Cunniff Foussard to celebrate
all their 50th bdays. Joining Betsy and Jeanne
were Carol Bernstein, Julie vanDomelen, Alix
Kennedy, Lee McConaughy Woodruff, Rebecca
Ablin Boucher, Amy Brunhuber Shaffer, Nora
Gleason Leary, and Sara Lefens Donaldson. Betsy
is under a strict oath not to reveal what took
place or was said there… “but suffice it to say
we had a gas being wined and dined and we all
caught up on each other’s lives by the end of the
long weekend.”
After months of waiting patiently, I finally
received an e-mail from our CA classmate Rene
Jackson reporting on her mini-reunion with
Scott and Chris Scannell Giaccone and Wendy
Lesko Hornich at the Giaccone home on LI last
April. Rene reports she had a great time feasting
on a wonderful dinner prepared by Scott, and
was excited to meet the Giaccone’s 2 beautiful
daughters, Kailyn, 16, and Annabell, 14. Scott
retired from his private law practice and is a
prof at Suffolk County CC. Chris is dir at the
American Physical Society, publishing physics
journals. Wendy, an HR mgr in NJ, is loving her
job and her 2 awesome kids: Matt, a HS 1st-year,
and Emma, a HS sr who is doing the college tour
this year. Wendy has found time to travel the
world since she updated us last, visiting Mexico,
Ireland, London, and Paris, and is looking forward
to a graduation trip with Emma back to Paris this
summer. Rene sends her best to all and hopes to
get back East soon for more reunions.
Sue Reed McClanahan remembered that Rene
was one of the 1st classmates she met at 1st-year
summer orientation, of which she has such fond
memories. She also related to my description of
life in a recent column in terms of decades with
a purpose. “I do the same (must be that it’s easier
to break it down that way at our age), but for me,
20s was all about NYC banking and MBA; 30s,
getting married and finally being able to build
a family at nearly 37; 40s, raising the family and
thinking about what to do next professionally;
and now 50s, still raising the family but in a new
place (Chapel Hill, NC) and back to grad school
for a degree in college counseling.” Last summer,
Sue’s husband, Earl (Washington & Lee ’82), and
she decided that they had enough of NY and
searched out the best place to finish raising their
girls (13, 12, and 9) and slow down life a bit while
reducing costs and simplifying. Chapel Hill won
out and they love it. Sue is registered at NC State
to finish her degree in college counseling and
Earl has joined a private equity firm in Greensboro. “It’s hard being more than twice the age
of most of my classmates and being addressed
as ‘maam’ at times, but I just keep reminding myself that age must have its advantages, especially
when it comes to counseling college students.”
While Sue is enjoying the slower pace of NC,
our friend Marcos Rada is basking in the light of
NYC. Marcos just celebrated his 8th year in real
estate with Prudential Douglas Elliman. “I am
having the time of my life helping buyers and
sellers in Manhattan, Brooklyn, and Queens, and
I can help anyone if they are thinking of buying,
selling, or investing anywhere, by referring them
to a great agent in their area.”
Marcos, who is writing to the Scene for the
1st time (thanks to our chance meeting on Facebook), was busy traveling the world since graduation (that explains why he wasn’t writing to
me). He’s visited Europe, Scandinavia, S America,
Tokyo, Hong Kong, Shanghai, and Beijing. He
“loves, loves, loves Spain,” and visits Madrid
and Ibiza every July. Marcos writes that 2 major
moments occurred this year, “when I walked into
the Forbidden City and climbed up on the Great
Wall. Wow!” He is soon off to Kyoto and then
Machu Picchu, “a dream destination for me, since
I was born in Ecuador and probably have some
Incan in me.” Africa, India, and Russia are on his
“Places to Go” list.
Marcos had a lovely dinner recently with good
friends Allison Rosen and Amy Moss Clark, her
husband, Bill, and daughters Eliza and Zoe, to
celebrate Amy’s bday. Marcos describes turning
50 as “a marker of time, growth, and memories.”
He writes, “As it turns out, Colgate was the best
foundation and launching pad for me. It taught
me to explore, question, look for answers, and
consider alternative positions and opinions. And,
most importantly, I made very special and dear
friends there. You know who you are. Suffice it
to say, it has been a fun ride so far, and hopefully
there will be many more years of adventure, joy,
and friendship. It’s a good life!”
Speaking of Facebook, I have so enjoyed reconnecting with so many ’82 classmates! It is so nice
to see everybody doing so well, perusing your
great pictures and posts.
Finally, it is with great sadness that I inform
you of the recent deaths of two classmates,
Lennox Sterling and Eric Schoenlein. They will
be missed. If you have a special remembrance of
Lennox or Eric, please write to me.
Margie: 781-235-9386; [email protected]
1 983
Gwen Tutun Campbell
22 Old Hill Road
Westport, CT 06880
I am sorry to report the death of classmate and
DKE member Stephen R Sferra. Stephen passed
away in Aug 2009 and leaves his widow, Jeanine.
I enjoyed Bob Woodruff’s report on Korea in
Oct. In Nov, the Bob Woodruff Fndn hosted the
Stand Up for Heroes evening in NYC. Bob’s foundation raises money and awareness for returning veterans. Hope you are all well and would
love to hear more news from our classmates!
Gwen: 203-226-2608 (h); 203-856-2922 (c);
[email protected]
1 984
Diane Munzer Fisher
4356 Stilson Circle
Norcross, GA 30092-1648
Seems like many of us attended our 30th HS
Reunions this fall. I headed back to NJ for mine
in Oct and was grateful to Sue Steinberg, who
put me up during my stay. Pam Gasek, who has a
massage therapy practice associated with an integrated health clinic and is a certified personal
fitness trainer, was at hers in MA. Pam is taking
a pharmacy tech class to get nationally certified
and is finding it challenging to be back in school
after all these years. She regularly sees local Colgate friends. She’s lunched with Bob Barnshaw,
who lives 2 towns away, and sees Sharon Fisher
Rizzo often, as Sharon is an asst teacher at her
daughter’s school in Sudbury, MA. Bonnie Rubin
McGavick and Mary Fiorentino Barry also live
in Sudbury. Pat McGuire and Robert FirpoCappiello were at their Pleasantville HS reunion.
Rob was recently named executive managing
editor at Remedy Health Media. He manages the
day-to-day editorial ops of the company, including planning and editing the magazines Remedy,
Healthy Living, and Diabetes Focus and managing
a redesign of their website, HealthCommunities.
com. Rob had a less formal reunion when he
met CJ Menard for dinner in Boston, the 1st time
they’d seen each other in 17 years.
Becky Rawson Cavazuti traveled from her
home in CT to Cape Cod for her daughter’s hockey tourney. She and Corinne Costanzo Wickel
were able catch up while dining and cheering on
the team.
Tracy Wilson went to Colgate to drop his
daughter Vicky ’12, off for her jr year. Vicky will
be following in dad’s footsteps a bit more when
she heads to Germany in the spring as Tracy
did 29 years ago. While in Hamilton, Tracy took
advantage of the gorgeous weather and played a
few rounds of golf, one of them with Steve Rock
’85, whose daughter is a soph at Colgate this year.
Members of the class are still accomplishing
News and views for the Colgate community
65
19 8 5
Michael Yardley
18806 North 95th Street
Scottsdale, AZ 85255-5562
So here we are, in the depths of winter, searching for the proverbial light at the end of the proverbial tunnel. That seems like a lot of proverbial
searching. Let’s move on. First, I want to plug our
class Facebook page, partly because it’s a great
way for the class to stay connected (outside
of this fabulous column, anyway) and partly
because I have forgotten to plug it in the past
2 columns and so am making up for lost time. I
was on the page the other day and noticed that
Lindsay Stoner has posted some pics from the
good old days (with a particular focus on Roger
Todebush, it seems). Anyway, please go check it
out: just pull up Facebook and search for Colgate
Class of 1985, and join so we can build out the
page, and have some good, clean online fun.
Only about 70 classmates have joined thus far, so
please spread the word. In another bit of online
news, colgatealumni.org is now colgateconnect.
org. The new address is meant to be more inclusive of parents and friends of Colgate.
So here’s a random way to pick up on class
news. Not long ago, my wife was lounging on
the couch, casually leafing through one of the
17 home design/renovation mags that she subscribes to (which she swears are all purchased
via frequent fliers miles, so no money changes
hands). This particular mag was Traditional
Home, and in it was a feature on a house in
Bridgehampton, NY, belonging to our friend
and classmate Greg Richter. In the spirit of full
disclosure, I will tell you that the article was
really about the wonderful work that Greg’s wife,
Nina, has done to create a beautiful beach house.
The article featured many shots of the house,
before and after, and several nice photos of Nina
66
scene: Winter 2011
and their children. All this, and Greg swears he
knew nothing about it. So if you see Greg, be sure
to ask him about it and see if it rings any bells.
Lastly, I saw that he is now with the Candlewood
Investment Group, but still in NYC.
I was thrilled to hear recently from 1 of my
frosh roommates from Center Stillman, Gordon
Hwang. He missed reunion, but that’s understandable after reading his e-mail. “I’ve been
living 8,000 miles away in Shanghai. I did make
it to Colgate in July when we were in the States
doing the college tour for my daughter. I moved
to Shanghai from NJ at the end of 2006 to create
the regional law dept for Tyco Electronics. After
doing that for a couple of years, I was moved
into the position leading our business in China.
Shanghai is a great place to live. The pace of
change is incredible, and the infrastructure is
very quickly becoming world class. We can get
pretty much anything we need, including PopTarts, but that’s not surprising considering that
it’s a city of 24 million people with lots of other
expats. We’ve been taking advantage of this assignment to travel throughout the region. As for
the family, Jessica is 16 and Jared is 12. Both attend the Shanghai America School. Jess is a soph
and starting to look at colleges in the States. My
wife, Grace, and I have been married almost 20
years, after having met in law school. She’s now
retired from the practice of law. I asked if I could
retire, too, but that conversation went nowhere.”
Staying with the theme of far-flung classmates checking in from around the world, I
also heard from Peter Kessler, who has been
posted to Pakistan since early Aug with UNHCR,
helping to coordinate the effort to help people in
temporary camps and those able to return home.
According to Peter, “The situation across much of
Pakistan remains catastrophic due to the flooding. While the crisis has faded from most news
media, flooding continues across the low-lying
areas of Pakistan, particularly in Sindh Province.
People are heading home in other regions, but
finding their villages destroyed or heavily damaged by the floods. Meanwhile, the govt of the
Republic of Moldova has accepted my nomination as representative of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees. I am expected to take up my
appt as head of office for UNHCR in Moldova
later this year. Moldova, Europe’s poorest country,
works closely with UNHCR to protect refugees,
asylum seekers, and stateless persons.” Incredibly
interesting and important work, indeed. Hearing
global updates from Gordon and Peter makes my
mundane job and existence here in the boring
US of A seem even more mundane. Thank goodness for the Internet.
Michael: 480-301-4459;
[email protected]
1986
Michele Radin
681 Indian Ridge Drive
Palm Desert, CA 92211-7485
Reunion June 2–5, 2011
I am hoping some of you had the opportunity
to attend one or both fall alumni events: the 4th
Annual James E Lewis Memorial Scholarship
Fund Weekend held at Colgate Sept 3–5 and
the 25th Reunion Kickoff in NYC Sept 23. Tim
‘Nuge’ Nugent sent a recap of Jimbo’s weekend;
remember, all these festivities are free, compliments of the Lewis family and the scholarship
committee! Tim and fellow ’86ers Roland
Foster, Don Franklin, Dan Hurwitz, Dave Reed,
Chuck Rosenstein, Mike Todisco, Don Taylor
’88, and Alan Valenca started at the Colgate Inn
for cocktails with Colgate pres Jeffrey Herbst
and his wife. Dinner for over 40 included Jimbo
stories, entertainment by Emmy Award-winning
songwriter Kevin Briody ’85, and the famously
spectacular door prizes. Saturday began early
with golf at Seven Oaks and a reception hosted
by the Lewis family; the gang then headed off
for an afternoon tailgate and football game. The
weekend concluded with breakfast in Frank Dining Hall with the Lewis family. By the way, the
scholarship fund stands at $180,000 and helps
support 1 scholar athlete per year.
I heard from several of you too busy running
road races or having babies — not to mention
starting new jobs — to find time for social
events. When exactly do we start acting “middleaged,” whatever that means? Starting with the babies, belated congrats to
David Riester, whose son Benjamin Albert was
born April 7, 8 lbs, 13 oz. Like any properly proud
papa, the 1st words of David’s e-mail were, “Do
you want a photo of my son?” Of course we do,
David; everyone should post those little legacies
online. Perhaps indicative of David’s more “mature” paternal outlook, he also noted that books
and tuition for the Class of 2032 for Benjamin
would require a return of 43% per year … and
David never retire.
Doug Scheidt can provide advice to
the 40-something on parenting an infant. Doug
and partner, Marty Wimmer (Syracuse ’86),
brought home their newborn on Aug 2, 2006; 4
years later they have finalized the adoption, making Matthew Joseph Scheidt Wimmer “officially
and forever” their son. Much future happiness.
From men with babies, let’s move on to men
who run — and swim and bike. For the past
few years, thanks to reports from Mike Maloney, we’ve been following the achievements
of a group of ’86 guys as they race triathlons
around the country. Their latest adventure took
them to a natl qualifying event in Myrtle
Beach. Erik Morse and Rich Chey had registered
for the Half Ironman, a 1.2-mile swim, 56-mile
bike ride, 13-mile run, but weather-induced
bacteria canceled the swim. Despite losing his
Colgate swim team advantage, Erik “smoked” on
the other events to come in 37th overall against
competitors from across the country. Rich was
also fast enough to make the local TV news.
Dave Carty, Tripp Shannon, and Mike raced
the shorter Olympic distance, a half-Half Ironman. Mike initially thought he was off to the
Olympics himself after posting a “blistering and
literally unbelievable” 5 min 40 sec pace on the
run — until he realized a course-marking error
caused him and several other runners to skip two
miles of the course! Although Mike’s honesty
cost him an 11th place finish, he calls Tripp
“the real champion” because Tripp completed
the course with the scars of 2 heart surgeries
just this year. Keep us posted on your next athletic exploits, guys!
And ’86 women are also using road races to,
as Trish Roth describes it, “wrestle those mid-40s
demons to the ground.” Over the past 2 years,
Trish has progressed from not being able to run
a 5K to completing a 10 miler at Chicago’s Soldier
Field this past Memorial Day Weekend. She has
found particular inspiration in an online community called Run Like A Mother — only to discover
its founders (and authors of the eponymous
book) are fellow alumnae/runners Sarah Bowen
Shea ’88 and Dimity McDowell Davis ’94. Trish’s
next stop is the Run for Chocolate 9 miler (15K )
… and Ghirardelli post-race fondue! We are holding her to her promise of a post about the half
marathon she is training for in 2011.
On to ’86ers showing their version of
middle-aged-ness by jumping into new career
challenges. Jim Wylie recently accepted appoint-
ment to chief marketing officer and exec
managing dir at Turner Investment Partners, an
employee-owned investment-mgmt firm in Berwyn, PA. Jim arrived from Acadian Asset Mgmt,
where he served as exec VP and global head of
sales and marketing. Jim’s Colgate internatl relations/econ degree, with a little help from a Fuqua
MBA, have taken him a long way to his new
position; he leads the sales, client-service, and
marketing activities for a firm managing $16 billion in assets, plus he joins the Exec Mgmt Group,
whose scope ranges from the day-to-day mgmt
of the firm to development and execution of corp
strategy with the board of directors. What do you
call the opposite of a mid-life crisis?
But the award for fearlessness in our 25th
Reunion year must go to Joe Donnelly, who, instead of investing in the picket fence, has bet it
all on a new venture he has dreamt of for years:
founding and publishing his own magazine. Joe
and co-editor Laurie Ochoa debuted their new
quarterly Slake: Los Angeles in the summer of
2010 with a simple mission: “Why doesn’t a
city as cool and interesting as Los Angeles have
a publication as cool and interesting as the
city?” Joe has long been a fixture in LA journalism, following his Berkeley journalism MA, with
editorial positions at New Times Los Angeles and
Bikini to become deputy editor of the LA Weekly
2002–2008. With its focus on long-form narrative, photography, poetry, memoir — all that
stuff we studied at Colgate and traditional media
has since forsaken in its struggle to “compete”
with the Internet — Slake is already generating
success on local bestseller lists and accolades
in the press (and the envy of all those journalists still trapped in the corp media world). The
journal comes beautifully printed and bound, but
you can check it out online to see Joe’s “whole
new way of looking at LA and the world.”
I hope these stories of fearless 40-something
classmates inspire. As we approach our 25th Reunion, send in your own stories on the meaning
of middle-age for the Colgate ’86er.
Michele: 706-641-6357; [email protected]
19 87
Adam Weiss
54 Alan Lane
New Canaan, CT 06840
Editor emeritus Maggie O’Connor Behrens sent
me a note. Maggie writes so well that I don’t
need to edit it. Here goes: “I headed back to Richmond, VA, in June to see the gals: Judy Crosby
McClure, Kitty Bone Bolinger, and Lucy Ackley.
Richmond, by the way, is the best, emptiest
airport I have ever been in. No matter what my
future destination, I will try to fly to Richmond
and then drive … even if it’s Maui. Even though it
was equatorially, face-of-the-sun hot in VA and
apparently got hotter after I left, we had a great
time that involved plenty of wine, good food,
and ’80s music. Judy is living in Charlottesville
in a very sweet house just a stone’s throw from
Monticello. She continues teaching emotionally
disturbed children. I met one of the boys she
teaches while I was there and came away even
more convinced that she changes lives. Kitty
has just taken a job as US sales dir, natl accounts
for Vasyli footwear. She and husband Geoff
Snelling ’85 live in Haddonfield, NJ, with their
Brady Bunch mélange of children: William, Jake,
and Caroline Snelling and Molly (15) and Alex (11)
Bolinger. Lucy is living in Columbus, OH, working
in the alumni office of her prep school, Columbus
School for Girls (sounds like a place for troublemakers, it’s not surprising Lucy’s there). Her kids
are way too grown up as I remember them as
little tiny babies. John is 16 and Katherine is 14.
Maggie is in Portland doing pro-bono event planning for nonprofits. It’s time to find one to put
me on staff. What with this recession, my timing
is impeccable. My daughters are taller than I or
just about, not that it is a huge accomplishment.
Annie is 13 and Brigid is 11.” Thanks, Mags.
An update from Lisa Bernhard. She is married
to partner Gwendolyn (Wendy) Bounds (UNC,
Chapel Hill ’93), a writer for the Wall Street Journal and book author. They are happily ensconced
among the hills of the Hudson River Valley. Lisa
is actively involved in developing, hosting, and
producing media content aimed at young adults
with cancer. As Lisa writes, “The 70,000 young
adults diagnosed each year often fall through
the cracks of the health care system — too old for
pediatric care, too young for over-40 treatment.”
Her current projects include a Web radio show
called The Stupid Cancer Show; a grassroots org
for young adults with cancer called “I’m Too
Young for This!”; and a fundraising web-a-thon
for the web series “Anyone But Me,” about HS
kids in post 9/11 NY.
Maura ‘Mav’ Babin Devlin, along with
husband Mark and their 3 children (Molly, Jack,
and Paul) took a whirlwind European tour this
past summer, covering I think 24 cities in 6 days.
The highlight, of course, was stopping off for a
beer at the Cafe des Ducs in Dijon. The voyage
covered most of France, Switzerland, Germany.
And FYI to all you French tourists, if your rental
car breaks down in France because you fill it up
with unleaded instead of diesel, the French govt
(and taxpayers) are happy to pay to tow your car,
put you up in a hotel, and buy you meals until
the car gets fixed. Formidable! Maura is back,
safe and sound, running marathons and working
as dir of student development at Bay Path C in
Longmeadow, MA.
Sarah Lange made her annual pilgrimage
to Downeast, ME, this summer to see Suzanne
Brown, where she, her husband, and 2 girls live
on a sprawling 105-acre farm. Sarah reconnected
with Sue Fay. She’s still living in NH, with her
2 kids. Sarah reports that Liz Stookey Sunde
and her husband are still in VT, raising their 2
sons. Liz is running her own consulting co and
her father’s fndn. Sarah recently opened a new
consulting company focused on nonprofits called
New Era. She’s had articles published in Contributions mag (July ’10) and The Nonprofit Advantage
(Sept ’10). Sarah’s son Christopher is a HS 1st year,
following in his mom’s soccer footsteps. Sarah
still coaches his town league team (undefeated
this past spring!). Sarah has put out an APB on
Ken Landauer. Ken, please check in.
Last year I commented on Jim ‘Stephen King’
Hornfischer’s writing prowess. Well, just in
stores is his latest: Neptune’s Inferno: The U.S.
Navy at Guadalcanal. It tells the story of how the
Navy broke Japan’s will to fight in 1942, and suffered its worst casualties of the war. Jim recently
visited West Point as part of his book tour. Nice
job, Chowder!
Ebe Metcalf writes in that he recently moved
his family to Madrid for 2 years to support his
mobile tech M&A business and “teach my children that the whole world is not like N CA.” Nice
life, Ebe.
Karen B Simons is sr counsel at GE Capital
Real Estate, handling real estate matters and
mergers and acquisitions work for mostly alternative energy deals (wind, solar, nuclear). Karen
lives in Albany, and now feels she’s successful
enough to consider taking on a house husband. I
am trying to put together a reunion of the Sisters
of Idontwannathinka for next summer. They
know who they are.
Tim Walsh is creative consultant and co-editor
on a documentary film on toy inventors called
Toyland. He also appears in the film as a game
inventor (Tim invented a game called Blurt!).
Toyland just won best docu at the Naperville
Independent Film Fest in Chicago and best docu
at the Independents’ Film Fest in Tampa. Tim
has been married for 15 years. He and wife Sarah
have 2 girls, 14 and 12, who appear in the film as
well.
Barry Chubb attended the annual Fred Dunlap
Golf outing at Seven Oaks. In addition to Barry,
there were a number of ’87 grads present: Eric
Andersen, Scott Lesperance, Scott Bleczinski,
Erik Rosenmeier, Mark Hulburt, Alan Swan.
Margaret Eckerstrom Macdonald, after
10 years of p/t work in the marketing world,
switched roles with her husband so he could
explore a different career on a p/t basis. Now
she’s working f/t as a strategic planner at a small
marketing agency in Chicago. Life is good with
her 2 girls, dog, and hubby, but she does miss her
buddy Carol Messing as she would have added
many more laughs to her life.
Stephan Hull recently moved with wife Erin
and kids John, 7, and Grace, 5, from the suburbs of
DC to Norwell on the So shore of Boston. Stephan
continues to run his own internatl consulting
practice focused on medical device issues, with a
dozen partners worldwide.
Adam Hoeflich, wife Denise, and their 2 sons
— Jacob, 14, and Josh, 13 — live in Glencoe, IL, a
suburb of Chicago. Adam works at Bartlit Beck,
a small law firm he joined 16 years ago. His life
has been a “blessing,” and they would very much
enjoy receiving visitors to the area.
Lisa Masotta is training this academic year in
Clinical Pastor Education through the Chaplaincy
Center in Providence, RI. She’d love to connect
with any Colgate alumni who are in Providence.
Her chaplaincy internship 2 days a week is
at Women and Infants Hospital, “where I accompany women and their families through the
full life cycle — births, complicated pregnancy,
cancer.” She lives and work in Boston the rest of
the time.
John ‘JD’ Dunn and Lee Sterne (via SF) trekked
up to the ’Gate to join 40 other Beta brothers for
their 6th Annual Beta fall weekend, with classes
from 1952 through 2008 represented, along with
a new class of Beta pledges. Golf at Seven Oaks
on Fri afternoon rolled into cocktails and dinner
at the Beta house, where they were joined by
Tim Mansfield (Alumni Affairs) and new pres
Jeff Herbst, among other movers and shakers.
Later, they enjoyed a few hours at the Jug and
some late-night slices downtown, where they
were the oldest folks by only 40-years or so. On
Sat, they road-tripped in roomy school buses up
to the Syracuse Carrier Dome for a well-attended
tailgate and an unfortunate 42-7 brow-beating at
the hands of the Orange. Later that evening, they
were all kindly added to the guest list of a Beta +
Gamma Phi “mixer,” where they honed their social skills and played a few games of Scrabble. JD
adds, serenely, that it was the kind of classic fall
weekend that we all remember in the Chenango
Valley. Only he didn’t bounce back as quickly.
He’d highly recommend making a trip if you can
during the school year, as you truly get a sense
how great a place our alma mater has become.
Some news on my end, I’ve joined a rock band:
The FryDaddys. We’re just a group of 45-year-old
guys from Fairfield County, CT, who wished they
were musicians rather than Wall St grinds. We
play all covers, mostly ’70s classic rock. Check us
out online. We’ve played several gigs in CT and
NYC. I was psyched to see Billy and Jackie Spencer Baxter recently at our gig in Old Greenwich.
Granted, it’s tough getting them off their sailboat
on the weekends, but they both looked great and
partied like true alums. When Jackie and Billy
aren’t sailing, they have 4 kids — Billy, 15, Claire,
U.S. Department of State
professional success. Leslie French Seidman has
been appointed acting chair of the Financial
Accounting Standards Board (FASB). Since 1973,
the FASB has been the designated org in the
private sector for establishing the standards of
financial accounting that govern the preparation of financial reports by nongovt entities.
Richard Jackim is the managing dir of MidCap
Advisors’ Chicago office. He has been working to
expand MidCap’s health care services specialty
practice group. Shortly after joining MidCap, he
recruited Bill Reading ’80 (also a Phi Delt) to run
MidCap’s Charlotte office. On a personal front,
Rich has been married to Susan Bush for 16 years
and they have 2 wonderful kids, 9 and 11. David
Rosenbloom writes that in 2000 a paranoia
about global warming took hold and he sold his
UT ski shop of 20 years. In retrospect it was just
the right moment given what the economy later
did. He went to law school at the U of UT and
subsequently went into criminal defense, where
he still makes his living. Dave has remarkably
made Burning Man every year over the past
decade. Says Dave, “I am still over-married 2
decades to a girl far too amazing for me, who for
some reason lacks the capacity to realize that she
under-married. More frightening is the fact that I
routinely run into Colgate grads who weren’t yet
conceived when I was in Hamilton.”
Sadly, I end this column reporting the death of
yet another classmate. Denise A Doerrer passed
away in May. She was a religion major who participated in the India Study Group. Hope you all
had a wonderful holiday season. Looking forward
to hearing from you in the year ahead.
Diane: 770-209-9341 (h);
[email protected]
Robert Kelty ’95 (right) was interviewed in an episode of America’s Most Wanted for his
role in bringing a fugitive to justice.
Nabbing criminals down in Belize
Colgate alumni may not be featured frequently on the TV show America’s Most Wanted,
yet last winter, Robert Kelty ’95 hit international television as part of the program’s 999th
episode. But fear not — he was not one of the featured fugitives. Kelty was on the right side
of the law, discussing his role in capturing Robert Snyder, a convicted sex offender who had
fled from the United States to Belize.
Snyder’s capture was by no means the first time that Kelty — a special agent with the Department of State’s Diplomatic Security Service, and regional security officer for the U.S.
Embassy in Belmopan, Belize — had helped bring a fugitive to justice. “Of the 136 fugitives
worldwide returned by Diplomatic Security” in 2009, explained Kelty, “my office sent back
19 to the United States.”
In fact, the U.S. Marshals Service honored Kelty and his staff with the Investigative
Excellence Award at the 12th Annual International Investigators Conference in May. They
were the first Diplomatic Service agents to ever receive the award, which recognized their
efforts in locating and capturing another fugitive, Patrick Brown, accused of a 1995 murder
in Boston.
Brown’s case had required a great deal of investigative legwork. “My office initially
received information on Brown from our counterparts in San Jose, Costa Rica,” explained
Kelty. “Although that lead went cold, we were able to use fingerprint records to confirm that
Brown had previously been arrested in Belize, and developed additional leads from that
arrest file.” Kelty and his team collaborated with the Belize Police Department to track the
fugitive, and on February 5, Brown was finally arrested on a pier in the port town of Punta
Gorda, Belize.
“He was only steps away from the boat that was to take him back into hiding,” recounted
Kelty. Instead, “Brown was finally returned to the United States to face justice after fifteen
elusive years on the run.”
Although nabbing fugitives has attracted the spotlight, Kelty’s work features other
responsibilities as well. “First and foremost, I am responsible for protecting our ambassador, our diplomatic staff, and the embassy from acts of terrorism, crime, and even natural
disasters,” Kelty explained in an article by the Westport News.
It wasn’t until his senior year at Colgate, when he was a part of the Washington Study
Group, that Kelty began to realize what he wanted his career to be. He worked as an intern
in Senator Christopher Dodd’s office and with the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA)
while on the study group.
His experiences and the network he built at the DEA were instrumental in finding his first
job with DynCorp, a company doing contract work with the agency. Kelty told the Westport
News that since joining Diplomatic Security, he has worked a presidential inauguration,
traveled to China with former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, and was a security
officer at the U.S. Embassy in Athens, Greece, before the 2004 Olympics.
Kelty has been at his post in Belize since 2008, but is slated for a move in 2011, although
he does not yet know where his new assignment will be.
“In the Foreign Service, it is impossible to know where you are going to be tomorrow, no
less where you are going to be in ten years. So, wherever I am, as long as my wife, Margaret,
and my daughter, Rachel, are with me, I am sure life will be great!”
— Jason Kammerdiener ’10
News and views for the Colgate community
67
Q & A with Marisa Gard Rastetter ’96,
triathlete and attorney
Was it a surprise to see yourself on the fall cover of USA Triathlon Life?
I was totally shocked. I didn’t know until I saw e-mails from friends and my coach congratulating me. It’s definitely an honor.
Did you get to explore Budapest?
Yes, we were in Europe for about two-and-ahalf weeks. We started in Barcelona, did the
race in Budapest, and then went to Croatia,
Montenegro, and Paris. We then flew from
Paris to Tuscaloosa, Alabama, to race in
the U.S. Nationals. I placed tenth, which
qualified me for the U.S. team for world
championships next year. It’s in Beijing on
the Olympic course, so it’ll be an interesting
race.
What does your training involve?
I train between fifteen to twenty hours a
Cover girl: Marisa Gard Rastetter ’96 in
week. I work out every day and generally do
at least two of the three sports in a triathlon.
the fall Speed Issue of USA Triathlon Life
One day a week I’ll do all three. I lift weights
twice a week and do pilates one day. When I trained for the ironman distance — I’ve done
Ironman Utah and Ironman Canada — I was training thirty-five hours a week. I was fit!
Would you like to try the Ironman Hawaii?
I am on my quest to get there. I’ve missed qualifying three times by less than a few minutes.
One year I got a flat tire; it took me about seven minutes to change my tire, and I missed the
slot by one minute and thirty seconds. Another year I lost my energy and fell from first to
fourth in the last three minutes of the race — the first three women got the slots.
How long have you been doing triathlons?
I did my first race in 1999 and fell in love. It’s an addictive sport because everybody is on
this high after finishing. I moved to San Diego a year later, and one of the reasons is because
it is known as the U.S. triathlon capital.
What is one of your racing goals?
For next year, World Championships in Beijing, it would be awesome to be in the top three.
So I’ll work on my speed and I’ll focus on my weakness, which is running.
How do you become a faster runner?
It’s basically putting yourself through pain in your workouts and increasing your pain tolerance. And working on technique. I try to run more on the mid to forefront of my foot and
lean forward.
What mental preparation do you do before a race?
Weeks before, when I’m laying in bed, I go through each event in my mind. For the swim, I
think about my stroke and how it’s going to feel. I even breathe how I’m going to breathe.
I visualize running out of the swim and my transition: pulling off the cap, my goggles, the
top of my wet suit, running up to transition, putting on my sunglasses, my helmet, clip the
helmet. I visualize pushing hard on the bike and my next transition. On the run, I visualize my
form and the finish.
What have been some of your favorite races?
I did the Long Beach triathlon; that’s where I grew up. I stayed with my parents, did the
race, and I won overall female. That same year, I did the Los Angeles triathlon. I was in the
middle of downtown Los Angeles with thousands of people, and I got called up when they
announced that I was the overall female winner. That was very special.
What do you do professionally?
I’m an attorney at a nonprofit called the San Diego Volunteer Lawyer Program. I run a legal
clinic for low-income people who have HIV and AIDS.
— Aleta Mayne
68
scene: Winter 2011
USA Triathlon
What race were you running in the picture?
The ITU Short Course Triathlon World Championships in Budapest in September.
13, Spencer, 11, and Mac, 10 — keeping them busy.
Another sailing couple, Francesco and
Patricia Samperi ’89 Rietti, have initiated their
daughters, Sofia, 14, Olivia, 11, and Cristina, 6,
with trips to the British VI and local excursions
around their home in Marblehead, MA. In Aug
they spent more time in ME, where they met
up with Paige Sabine (Sturner ’89) and her
son Tucker, 10, and husband Shawn. In typical
ME fashion they canoed, kayaked, saw moose,
loons, and bald eagles. Francesco is pleading for
some advice managing a teenage daughter, but
fortunately has 2 younger girls who still dote on
him. Cristina is now in 1st grade while Olivia is in
6th. Francis pointed out that some ancient video
archives from our 1st year are on youtube. See
Dave ‘Mike Wallace’ Slomin as our news anchor,
and the Rietti tuba twirl.
Thanks again to everyone for keeping in
touch. Again, you can see the class notes on our
class web page. Colgate’s alumni website has
changed to www.colgateconnect.org.
If you’d like photos posted on the site, send
them to me or the alumni office (alumni@
colgate.edu).
Adam: [email protected]
1988
Jack Kearney
Sarah Bowen Shea
2508 NE 24th Avenue
Portland, OR 97212-4830
Greetings from Portland. Our big news is that
Sarah’s time in the Portland marathon in Oct
qualified for Boston. Now that she’s BQ (Boston
Qualified), she’ll probably run in 2012. Sarah is
still promoting her book Run Like a Mother, cowritten by Dimity McDowell Davis ’94, and was
on a speaking panel in Portland with world-class
runners and trainers. They’ve been invited by
several cities to act as marathon consultants.
In Nov we took the whole tribe cross-country
(airplane, not the metallic-pea family truckster)
to see relatives and for Sarah to run half of the
Philly marathon. Jack made it to Colgate to watch
a men’s hockey game and to scarf down some
wings and taters. On to other news!
Doing good: We received an e-mail from
Colgate regarding Wendy Bleier Mervis, exec
dir of Camp Good Days and Special Times. The
camp is dedicated to improving the quality
of life for children, adults, and families whose
lives have been touched by cancer and other
life challenges. Last summer, Wendy’s Colgate
roommate Idil Iderman volunteered at the Doing
a World of Good Program (which was founded in
1989 and has helped children from 25 countries).
Also volunteering was Tracey Henderson ’04, a
3rd-year pediatric resident at U of Rochester Med
Ctr. There’s a photo of them on our class page at
Colgateconnect.org.
Gathering no moss: Debbie DeMilia Robins,
who lives outside Philly in NJ, writes that she
had a great but way-too-brief visit with Jennie
Fuehrer Warner, her husband, Jim, and their 3
boys. They were on their way back to FL after
a New England vacation and stopped in at the
Robins’s nest. It was their 2nd consecutive stopover, so Debbie’s hoping it’s turning into a yearly
tradition. Jennie’s boys had a great time getting
out some of that pent-up energy jumping on
the trampoline. It was nice for the families to
see all the kids (Debbie has 4, 7–17 years) getting
to know one another and having fun. This year
it was on Friday the 13th, so they took a picture
with a Colgate banner to send in for Colgate Day.
Debbie’s other news is that she and husband
Jon ’86 dropped off daughter Hannah for her 1st
year at Colgate. Debbie states, “Yes, we can be
that old! It’s really kind of strange. She’s going to
be in the dorm Jon was in 1st year.” Debbie and
Jon both had Hannah’s 1st-year seminar prof
when they were at Colgate. The Robins will be
spending lots of time in Hamilton over the next
few years!
That’s all for now. Until next time, Go, ’gate!
Jack and Sarah: 503-288-7874;
[email protected]
19 89
Brent Goldstein
13709 Lakewood Ct
Rockville, MD 20850-3649
Hey, everyone. We’re in the midst of a very light
class news cycle. I recall a similar malaise during
the 2 years after our 15th Reunion. Only 1 piece of
news this quarter, and that’s a hearty congrats to
Ed Audi on the July 11 marriage to Laila Kobrossy
(American U of Beirut ’99, ’01, McGill ’06). Ed
and Laila were married in Beirut, Lebanon, in the
same church in which both of their parents were
married. A large ’Gate contingent celebrated
with Ed and Laila in Aug in Syracuse, including
Peter Lowenberg, Jim Noone, Mike Vahey, Big
Steve Olejarczyk ’86, Diana Macken Nemirovsky
’88, Charles Wechsler ’88, Peter Abdella ’84,
John Pelosi ’85, Richard ’90 and Beth Alexander
Schluter, Aminy Audi H’06, Greg Koerner ’88,
Dick Hanson ’88, Dan Berndt ’91, Andy Groat
’91, John Wanamaker ’83, Peter Derrenbacker,
Emerson Fales ’90, Kristin Colbert, John Horzepa
’88, Dan Cowherd, Fran Loehmann ’91, Carmel
Gunther Robinson, Professor Jerry Balmuth,
Robert Audi ’63, and David Crenshaw.
By the way, if anyone with a lot to share
wants to fill in as scribe temporarily, or permanently, please let me know. After 15 years, I have
no problem ceding my post for awhile.
Brent: 240-838-6170; [email protected]
19 9 0
Julie O’Leary Muir
48 Barr Farm Road
Bedford, NH 03110-5221
Greetings, Class of ’90! As I sit here with my
trusty muse, Mr Cabernet Sauvignon, on a chilly
Oct evening, it dawns on me that occasionally I
make reference to the varied “rings of hell” that
I find myself occupying. Examples? Carpools,
children vomiting at 2 am, getting and training
a puppy and smelling constantly of urine and
saliva, loss of luggage … well, you catch my drift.
In my distress, I will call out the Ring I feel I
occupy, and feel a small sense of satisfaction
that in my misery, at least I feel cultured. I have,
as have you, dear classmates, read and quickly
forgotten the gold standard guide to Hell. We
have all descended into Dante’s Inferno in GNED.
You know you read it. You know you fell asleep
reading it. I barely remember it! Therefore, we
(CS and I) have decided that this edition’s perfect
thesis (ahem) will be… Let’s Take a Tour of Julie’s,
I mean Dante’s Inferno, and See Which Ring You
May Currently Occupy. Please don your most
comfortable asbestos slippers and robe, find your
glass of inspiration, tie your ascot in a jaunty
knot, and let us take a delightful boat ride across
the river Acheron. Allow me to be your Virgil as
we journey through a few of the 9 concentric
circles of Hell. Abandon all hope, ye who continue to read on!
First Circle: LIMBO, or as I like to call it, the
early parenting years, those years when your
life simply is not your own, when we are forced
to live in limbo where sleep is infrequent and
schedules are dictated by those under 2' tall.
There are a lot of Class of ’90 sitting in limbo at
the moment. Competing for the title of Queen
of Limbo is Dr Kristin Smith. Kristin had triplets
Theo, Charlie, and Ben in Jan with hubby Harry.
The boys are absolutely adorable, and Kristin is
working as a general surgeon in Winchester, MA.
Challenging Kristin for the presidency is Christina Lyndrup Farrell, who had twins Cullen and
Martin in Sept with husband Timmy. The twins
join sister Olivia and brother Brendan, making
the Farrell household officially 4 under 4! Mark
and Carrie Boodin ’92 Zehfuss had son Braeden
in Nov ’09, who joined Emma, 10, and Chloe, 8.
The Zehfuss family lives in Richmond, VA, where
Mark is pres of Baby Jogger and Carrie is “retired”
from practicing law and is enjoying staying at
home. Evan Davis and wife Rozella (Harvard
’92) welcomed Eleanor Rose in Jan, joining sister
Ruth, now 2. Both are federal prosecutors in the
US Attys Office in LA. Finally, Phil Auerbach and
wife Stephanie welcomed their 3rd in Sept ’09,
Bess Emily. To all of the ’90 occupants of Limbo,
savor the time in this ring as it really is very short
and bittersweet. They grow so quickly, and soon
you’ll move on to another ring, which is likely
scarier but perhaps filled with less liquid waste.
Second Circle: LUST. Wow. How to tackle
this one? I know, I’ll twist it! How unlike me!
Nancy Epstein has been overcome by lust. Lust
for miles, that is. Nancy walked 60 miles in the
Susan G Komen 3-Day for the Cure in Oct in DC.
She was cheered on by husband Eric and sons
Benjamin and Daniel. Suffering from blisters and
road rash on her legs, Nance totally rocked the
event, and a sly Christina Lyndrup Farrell noted,
“Back in the day, the farthest you would walk
was to the Jug.” Way to go, Nancy, you’re an inspiration! Well done, my friend!
Third Circle: GLUTTONY, as in gluttons for punishment. As in those who volunteer too much,
and can’t say no. I profess to live in this circle as
well, and joining me is my life twin, Laura Pool
Huber. Laura lives in CA with husband Jeff and
kids Max, 8, and Grace, 6. Laura writes, “While
writing this I have been forced to realize just
how much I have embraced my inner suburban
housewife and how much I am enjoying it.”
Ever the glutton for punishment, Laura spends
time in school art rooms, libraries, teaches kids
to make homemade corn tortillas, guacamole,
and salsa (what Hell this is! wink, wink), she is
a soccer supporter, children’s hospital volunteer,
and tennis player. Noooooo! Also a glutton for
punishment is Chris Torell, who lives in Marcellus, NY, with his wife and 2 kids. Chris is an
environmental engineer, and does such 3rd ring
things as USS swimming, baseball, and skiing
with his children. Attention residents of the 3rd
ring: I have a mantra for you. SUV! SUV! Stop Unnecessary Volunteering! Good luck!
Fourth Circle: AVARICE, as in those who are
somehow loosely connected to commercial
banknote printing. What do you know, Dane
McSpedon, you are global sales director for the
world’s leading commercial banknote printer for
almost 5 years?! How convenient! Dane moved
from London back to NYC last autumn with his
wife and 2 children.
Fifth Circle: WANING SUPPLY OF CABERNET. I
am currently in this circle. Help.
Sixth Circle: HERESY. I admit it is getting late.
If we misspell it ‘Hershey’s’ then I may be a f/t
resident. Oh, you sweet Hershey’s Kisses, why are
you so irresistible?
Seventh Circle: ENTERTAINMENT IN LA. I may
be a bit fuzzy remembering this circle. Is it correct? No matter. We have a few distinguished
class members making their way in LA. Jay Chandrasekhar, Kevin Heffernan, Steve Lemme’91,
Erik Stolhanske ’91, and Paul Soter’91 round
out the cult-favorite Broken Lizard comedy
troupe who have found great success on screen.
I personally believe Supertroopers and Beerfest
are works of comedic genius. Lizard’s latest, The
Slammin’ Salmon, was released on DVD in true
Colgate form on April 13. Craig Dehmel is also a
fan. He has been at 20th Century Fox for 10 years
and runs Internatl Distribution. Craig writes,
“Yes, I distributed Supertroopers and Club Dread
outside the US, which was very cool, given Jay
Chandrasekhar and I were 1st-year roommates.
I stay in touch with Jay and the Broken Lizard
guys and was fortunate to catch the LA premiere
of Kevin Heffernan–directed The Slammin’
Salmon in the spring. It was very funny and good
to see the guys in great form.” Craig lives on the
westside of LA with wife Suzi (Rutgers ’96) and
daughters Chloe and Vienna.
Eighth Circle: TOO MANY KID ACTIVITIES.
OK, I totally made this one up. But a lot of us
have parked our minivans in this circle. Chris
and Beth Tracy Dalrymple are enjoying their 3
girls — Julia, 9, Paige, 7, and Meredith, 3. They
live in Chappaqua, NY, “where our weekends
are spent doing the suburban shuttle between
soccer, theater, playdates, etc.” Chris was named
general counsel for the Alleghany Corporation
in NYC. I suspect he drives a minivan, but I do
not have confirmation or denial of this fact. John
Hyland is busy with adorable son Ben, who is a
child actor. Ben appeared in Marley & Me, on Michael & Michael Have Issues on Comedy Central,
and on Sesame Street, and in the to-be-released
movie Somebody’s Hero.
Ninth Circle: TREACHERY or as I will loosely
translate it: Middle School (joking!). I say this
because I am parenting a middle schooler, and
there are days when it certainly feels like the 9th
circle of Hell. Dan and Heather Flannery Raabe
have chosen to live in this circle. Dan teaches HS
econ and coaches ultimate Frisbee “nonstop,”
which to this Frisbee-impaired girl seems like
punishment, and Heather teaches art to 7th–12th
graders. They are also enjoying parenting their
13-year-old daughter in the Madison, WI, area.
Laura Sosnoski Tracey is also living in the 9th
ring. She teaches middle school outside of Boston
and is raising kids Alice, 12, and Neil, 9, with
husband Brian. She writes, “It’s an interesting
time since I’m now teaching students the age
of my daughter. I thought I was coming close to
mastering teaching, but I see now that teenagers
are even more complicated than they appear at
school!” Amen, sister. Finally, I have good company in Marc Schwartz, who also has 2 middle
school/tween girls. He lives in Atlanta and is
father to Abby, 12, who he says is “more mature
than I am,” and to Mia, 10, who has limitless
energy.
Are you as exhausted as I, gentle readers? Did
the circles terrify you, or did you fall asleep on
this 2nd journey as well? Kenny Reisman, are you
still awake? You may now safely remove your
flame-proof clothing, and exits are located in the
back of this column. For now I wish you sweet
adieu, my dear classmates, until we meet again
in a few months.
Julie: 603-488-5454; [email protected]
19 91
Kathryn Dillon Marcotte
45 Ridgewood Lane
Wakefield, RI 02879
Reunion June 2–5, 2011
Being in the Class of ’91, it is difficult to accept
that we have tolled the bell on 2011 already.
What happened? Lots, that’s what. This time I
heard from some old friends from far and near.
Greg Russell has really been doing some amazing things, not the least of which is having his
beautiful daughter, Gisele Renee, born in March
2010. Gisele joins his beautiful wife Rachel and
son Gavin. Greg has been working with the band
Rush. He started by doing Neil Peart’s (the drummer) website, which then led to doing animated
movies during Rush concerts. This year, he actually designed the look of Neil’s crazy drum set,
making 3D renderings of it prior to supervising
the building/fabrication of various hardware and
electronic elements. Greg also rides motorcycles
on tour with Neil, sleeps in the tour bus, etc.
He was quoted and pictured in an article in
American Motorcyclist mag that featured Neil
as well. As Rush has always been Greg’s favorite
band, this is all the sweeter. In addition, Greg’s
company, Tandem Digital, did some visual effects
for the film Date Night. Check it out!
Peter Mahnke claimed nothing too interesting, but I beg to differ. He and his lovely wife
Angela Haswell are living outside of London.
Peter runs Web Team for Scholastic in the UK
and Angela works for a hedge fund. They have
2 boys — Owen, 11, and Ryan, 9. Peter still keeps
in touch with Martin Sances and his wife, Betsy.
They just welcomed son Sam in Sept and Martin
credits him with his lack of sleep. Martin has
been in-house counsel for over 10 years now,
and in addition to sailing most weekends, he
and his wife also have a small winery. He is now
looking forward to taking Sam out to watch the
America’s Cup on SF bay in the years to come. He
speaks with Russell Cogar, who heads libraries
in Minneapolis and has a young daughter. I will
try to catch up with him in the next few months.
Strangely enough, neither Russell nor Peter have
given Martin the practical child-rearing advice
he is looking for. As he says, “They mostly laugh
at me and give a knowing smile.”
I found that Jeanne McCaffery is in my neck
of the woods. She and husband Tom Kling (Loyola
U of New Orleans’94) live in W Greenwich, RI,
with their 2 kids — Audrey, 6, and Duncan, 4
— who keep them busy with all their activities.
Jeanne was just promoted to assoc prof of psych
and human behavior at Brown Medical School
in Providence, where she works as a health psychologist on behavioral interventions to reduce
cardiovascular disease risk. Jeanne also enjoys
visiting Lisa Frascino Puma and Sam Backus for
an annual girls’ weekend.
Debbie Lewin Hurwitz and husband Joshua
(Rutgers ’97 and master’s in public affairs and
politics ’06) are well. They are living in Roseland,
NJ. Debbie works for JESPY House, an agency that
helps adults with learning and developmental
disabilities. She assists them in finding employment. She just came back from a conf in Atlantic
City and is doing great. Seth Marcus is celebrating 15 years of bliss with wife Jaqui Woods ’93. He
credits this to Jaqui’s high pain threshold. They
live in Larchmont, NY, and spend most weekends
chasing their 7-year-old daughter, Kate, and
10-year-old son, Matt, around to their various
activities.
I also got a great e-mail from Lisa Thompson
Sommer, who is also in Larchmont. She has been
spending a lot of time on the sidelines with
Paolo Vicinelli and wife Kara Raezer ’92. Their
son Max and Lisa’s son Tim play on the same
travel lax team in the spring. Paolo has also been
coaching for the rec lax league, though Lisa says
her son has not been lucky enough to draw him
yet. Last summer Lisa had a visit from Lorena
Conlin Hoopes, who is living in NJ with her new
baby daughter, Heather, and works at PSE&G.
Her 2-year-old son, Holden, also came and Lisa
says they are both very cute and very blond.
Lisa’s 3 boys who are now in 8th, 5th, and 2nd
grades keep her pretty busy but she has begun a
p/t bookkeeping job, which has been great.
Please keep the updates coming. I look forward to hearing from you. Hope you are enjoying
the winter. I will be making some turns, hopefully in powder, until you hear from me again.
Kathy: 401-783-3897; [email protected]
1 992
Crissy Singer Shropshire
66 Indian Hill Road
Mt. Kisco, NY 10549-3827
The end of 2010 has been good news-wise for the
Class of ’92, so let’s get right to it.
Last year, Cici Clark had the “unbelievably
amazing opportunity” to travel to the Galapagos
Islands to work on a documentary for NOVA
called What Darwin Never Knew. “I had to keep
pinching myself! Not only was I in the Galapagos, but I was being paid to be there. I had a hard
time convincing myself that it could get much
better, but it turns out it could. My really big
news is that in April of this year, I gave birth to
an adorable baby boy, David. So, while everyone
I know is practically ready to send their kids
off to college (OK, a bit of an exaggeration, but
that’s what it feels like!), I’m thoroughly enjoying
this new experience of motherhood.” Cici, baby
David, and David Calle are living outside Boston
in Belmont, MA.
Lena Robins-Faden has become a mom for
the 3rd time. In early March, Isabelle made her
debut, joining sisters Emily, 5, and Anna, 2. “My
husband, Ryan, is now officially outnumbered
(even the dog is a girl!).” Some guys have all the
luck.
There was a big Sigma Chi reunion up at Jeff
Standish’s cabin in Killington, VT, in late June,
reports Cy Samai. “We played a lot of golf (some
of us worse than others) and sadly watched the
USA lose to Ghana in the World Cup. Attendees included Will Adams, Andy Finizio, Steve
McLaud, Mike Gitlin, Tom Carroll, and, of course,
Jeff Standish. Mike and his wife are living in Baltimore with their 3 kids. He is working for T Rowe
Price. Will is still living in SF with wife Christie
and daughter Ellie. He works for Alpine Investors, a private equity firm. Steve is working for
Verizon Communications in their NHL marketing
division and is living in NJ with 3 boys and wife
Tiffany Ulrich ’94. Andy is living north of Boston
in his new house with his wife and 2 daughters.
He works for Babcock Power. Tom lives in NJ with
wife Julie and his 2 children. He works in NYC
and loves to wax poetic about his glory days on
the gridiron. Jeff is moving to DC because wife
Kara just got a sweet job with the Smithsonian.
Jeff is looking for a higher ed teaching position
in the DC area. I still live in Atlanta and work as
a pediatric cardiologist.” My thanks to Cy for his
newsy update.
In Aug, Damian Anderson got married to
Kristie Hawkins in SF. Liz Galiardo wrote in with
a full rundown: “The wedding weekend was
incredible. There were the pre-wedding cocktails
and morning-after brunch in their gorgeous
apt/backyard in Noe Valley, a group outing to a
SF Giants game, and then the wedding day. The
ceremony itself was held outdoors on a peak in
the city’s geographic center, which made for a
pretty and peaceful setting. Former roommate,
fellow Thirteener, and longtime pal Vic Victoriano officiated the ceremony, having become
ordained online just for this occasion. His sermon
and the ceremony were, in a word, perfect, and
paid a wonderful tribute to D and Kristie. (Quick
side note: 3 weeks later, Father Vic went on
to become a father for real when he and wife
News and views for the Colgate community
69
— Edward Rosensteel ’98
Jennifer Barron welcomed Madelyn Barron into
the world. Judging from the photos on Facebook,
she’s a cutie!) Ceremony complete, bride and
groom beaming, and guests thirsty, we all piled
into our trolley car shuttle and headed back to
the Westin St Francis in Union Sq for a reception
on the top floor that had jaw-dropping views of
the city. (As darkness fell, the DJ played “When
the Lights Go Down in the City” … nice touch,
Damian). Thirteeners Vic, Damian, Fitz DeSmet,
PJ Piper, Geoff Headington, Wyman Chu ’91, and
Marc Glogoff ’93 entertained the guests with a
brief set, which concluded with … what else? The
groom serenading his beautiful new bride.” The
newlyweds honeymooned in Malaysia.
Colgate guests also included Greg Sales, Cy
Samai, Will Adams, and Kathy Cortez. Greg is
living in So CA. Fitz lives in Shanghai with his
fiancée Caroline. This was the 1st time many of
his friends were introduced to her. Fitz is starting
up a couple of businesses and playing softball,
hockey, and running. PJ and wife Samantha
brought their adorable baby, Paige. The 3 live in
the Boston area. Kathy took a quickie whirlwind
solo trip to see D get hitched before heading
back to husband Matt and 14 month-old twins
Jesse and Estela. The family of 4 lives in Brooklyn.
Geoff and wife Kerry live in Sausalito and have 2
boys, Morgan, 4, and Kyle, 2. Geoff works for Wells
Fargo in debt capital markets and syndication.
“Last but not least, there was 1 honorary Colgate
alum — best man Anton Anderson. Some of you
might remember a pint-sized 10-year-old Anton.
He’s all grown up now and brought down the
house when he gave an awesome speech about
how Damian was his hero. He had me at “hero,”
and I was looking for tissues. All in all, a fantastic
weekend and I’ve never seen my BFF Damian so
happy. But then … he found the perfect lady.”
Kristen Todebush Ryan is a girl after my own
heart. “Turning 40 is a great excuse to have some
serious fun. In May, 6 couples left the kids at
home and went to Half Moon, Jamaica, to act
like 40 is really the new 21! Marc ’93 and Andi
Tasker Glogoff, Dave and Allison Roarty Prince,
Graham and Lorena Sayer O’Brien, Alex ’90 and
Lane Wilson Miles, Cathy Anderson and Mike
Pick ’89, and Mike and Kristen Todebush Ryan
took full advantage of the all-inclusive resort:
for the right price, a video documenting the trip
is available! Safe to say, a good time was had by
all and hopefully plans for the reunion trip are
underway! Of course, 1 fabulous trip shouldn’t
take the place of celebrating throughout the
year! After our livers recovered over the summer,
Sept brought the group together again with the
addition of even more fantastic Colgate alums!
The men’s quarterfinals of the US Open served
as a backdrop for Andi’s incredible surprise bday
party — thanks to the talents of her fantastic
husband, Marc. Cocktails in a cabana kicked off
the night. The group above was joined by Peter
and Suzannah McLain Smith, Melissa and Tom
Carlson ’93, Jayne and Wyman Chu ’91, Nicole
and Derek Donnelly, and many non-Colgate pals.
Then we moved the party to Arthur Ashe Stadium to watch Raphael Nadal pummel Fernando
Verdasco; well, at least we tried to watch, but it
was something of a tailgate party in the stands!
The group has a few more 40s to go, so hopefully
will have more fun gatherings to report in the
next Scene!”
70
scene: Winter 2011
Speaking of fun gatherings, I had the good
fortune to do a bit of celebrating myself this past
summer. The festivities kicked off in the middle
of July when Alix Reiskind, Amy Forsythe, Jean
Lovett Huff, Lily Cabezon, Xan Parker, and I
spent a weekend in Cape May, NJ, to celebrate
our bdays. We stayed at a darling hotel, spent
the day at the beach, and retired to the pool for
happy hour. But the highlight of the weekend
had to be when, after a long dinner in the private
room of a restaurant, we decided to make a human pyramid. Let’s just say none of us were cut
out to be cheerleaders. I only had to wait 2 short
weekends before I would see some of the gals
again for my almost-surprise party thrown by
my husband Camp ’91 at our house. The plan was
to send me out for a spa day while my backyard
was transformed into party central. The only
glitch was when a guy showed up to deliver porto-sans 5 hours early — thus earning himself the
title “Party Pooper.” Still, the fun was not ruined.
Representing Colgate were Jean, Alix, Lily, Jim
Grady ’91, Russ Sherman ’91, and Wyman Chu
’91. Finally, in late Sept, there was 1 more surprise
party, this one in Boston for both Jean and Alix.
Xan, Marwan Khuri, and I made the trip up from
NY to celebrate the girls at a family style bowling
party. Some parts of turning 40 ain’t bad at all.
And finally, it is with great sadness that I must
report the news of my grandfather’s passing
on Sept 9. Robert J Bowman Jr ’46 was a star on
the football field at Colgate, a member of Delta
Kappa Epsilon, and a Navy man who had to leave
Colgate for 2 years to serve in WWII. There, he
rose to the rank of lt cmdr. Bob was a gentleman,
the kind whom you rarely come across these
days. Near the end of his life, he sent a list to
my brother, his advice for making life “interesting and fun.” None of it is groundbreaking, but
as I raise my own children, it is something to
consider — words from a man who led a life
worth emulating: “1) love for one another, 2) good
education, 3) good health, 4) good manners, 5)
empathy.” Rest in peace, Commander.
Crissy: 914-864-1387; [email protected]
1993
Kaori Nakamura DiChiara
61 Mustato Road
Katonah, NY 10536-3725
Hello, everyone, and happy 2011! Well, the
DiChiara’s finally experienced an illness-free,
rain-free Disney World vacation! Since we went
in early Sept before school started, the parks
were less crowded and the visitors consisted of
mostly northeasterners and Europeans. What I
found most entertaining was that, in the midst
of reprimanding my children (Mia, 7, Chris, 5.5)
to stop getting on each other’s nerves in humid
92° weather, I stopped and listened to my surroundings, and I heard variations of “Stop crying/
whining!”, “You need to share!”, “Behave!” in all
languages of the world. Oh, the joys of parenthood. Once we arrived in NY, I seriously wanted
to jump on another plane to anywhere and enjoy
a solo vacation where I could catch up on sleep
and get my brain back! Since that wasn’t an
option, we all made efforts to get back into the
swing of things with work and school. Clearly
the month of Sept was not enough time for me
to get it together as I mixed up the dates for my
kids’ curriculum night — totally missed it and
my husband did, too — and made plans with
Andy Sweet. Andy, who has resided in London
for 10 years, was working and visiting the NY/
CT area in late Sept. He was working as well as
house hunting in CT and Westchester County
(by the time you read this, he will be settled in
a home somewhere with his wife, Alexis, and
3 children — Maddy, 5, Nate, 3, Ben, ~5 mo). He
met me in Katonah and we were able to catch
up over dinner and drinks. We had not seen each
other since reunion, but it was as if we saw each
other the other day. I will always be grateful to
Colgate for the lifelong friendships it has given
me! Andy will be moving back to the US to work
at his company’s NY office. I look forward to
meeting his beautiful family and seeing another
familiar face in the tri-state! Although I could
not tell, he recently recovered from hip surgery,
which was the result of a bike racing accident
over the summer. The great part of this story was
that Scott Barger and Art Roulac raced with him
as well, and Art won the race! John Zuzenak also
completed 2 triathlons —the 1st in Aug and the
2nd in Sept. By the time you read this, he may
have completed 2 or 3 more! You all are very
inspiring gentlemen!
It was wonderful hearing back from a number
of you. Hopefully before the next Scene deadline
I will have contacted everyone on the class list!
Like the Sweets, Matthew and Emily Thomas ’91
Boland and children (Julia, Charlie, and Henry)
moved back to the US after living in Panama,
where he worked as consul at the US Embassy.
He wrote, “We will miss the beaches, the people,
and the amazingly diverse wildlife. We won’t
miss the Panamanian drivers and the ‘Diablo
Rojo’ old American school buses that race across
the country at breakneck speed.” The Bolands
now reside in Falls Church, VA, and Matthew
is now the public diplomacy desk officer for
the UK, Ireland, Belgium, Luxemburg, and the
Netherlands. In late summer, Jeff DeMarrais
moved abroad to the UK. He continues to work
for GE (13 years and counting) and he is now the
VP of global communications for GE Healthcare.
He and his family reside in the London suburb
of Gerrads Cross and he hopes to connect with
other UK/EU-based alums. After living in various
parts of the US, David Back now resides outside
of Portland, OR. As I remember from my last visit
to Portland, he mentioned that the street names
correspond with characters from The Simpsons,
since the show’s creator, Matt Groening, is from
there. Recently, David was able to secure funding of a long-awaited pet project. He is writing
a graphic novel and has been interviewing
artists and editors and working with all that
surrounds production. Good luck with this, and
looking forward to hearing about the completion of this novel! It was wonderful receiving an
update from Kendra Bence, who is currently on
the faculty at the U of PA, doing research on the
neuroscience of obesity. She is living in Media,
PA, with husband Kurt and 2 daughters (Abby,
3, Madeline, 1). Like many of us, she is “trying
to figure out that precious work-life balance.”
When you figure this out, please call me! Ross
Fredenburg and John Clyde both have family
who reside in Media, PA, so the Bences get to see
them and their families when they visit.
It was great to hear from Darren Brown, who
provided brief updates on a number of people.
Darren is the managing dir of employee benefits
at Wells Fargo and is living in Danville, CA, with
wife Sally (UNC) and 2 daughters (Katheryn, 7,
Barrett, 3). Darren has been able to see Travis
Reed more often since Travis and wife Chrissy
recently moved to Danville. Brian Wycall, who is
currently an endodontist, got married in the fall
and the Browns and the Reeds attended as well
as the following: Morgan Dunbar, Dan Fields,
Greg Kuchar, Andrew Stephens, Brian Tom, Foster Wright, Carter Brokaw ’94, and Jason Keefer
’94. Morgan and wife Staci live in NYC and just
became new parents (Morgan, congrats and
please write in about this!). Dan was described
as “splitting his time between Chicago, WI, and
Vancouver, BC, when he is not fishing in AK or
FL.” I’m assuming his wife, Amy, is accompanying him during some of these travels (?). Greg
is enjoying his bachelorhood while residing in
Newport Beach, and Andrew is living outside of
Boston with wife Jacqueline and 2 daughters.
Andrew is the principal at Wycall’s alma mater
Duxbury HS (yes, I laughed, too). Brian Tom made
the trip from HK to attend the wedding. He
continues to work/live there with his wife and 2
children. Foster lives in NJ with wife Deb Swan
’94 and their 2 children. Darren is also in touch
with Jim Russell, who lives in CT with his wife
and 2 children, and Tony Colistra, who recently
moved to the NE with his wife and 3 children.
Well, it took a Facebook update to inform me
of Greg Collett’s new status as a married man! A
loud congrats to him and Michele Giunta (Fordham ’93), who tied the knot in late Sept. I read
some comment about him becoming a father as
well. To be continued!
Sherri Weiss Poall wrote in and did such a
nice job that I’m going to quote her. “Kerin Coyle
McCarthy is enjoying life outside Charlotte, NC,
with husband Jerry and 2 children (Grace, 2,
Connor, ~4 mo). Kerin recently returned to work
after maternity leave to American City Business
Journals, where she is a VP of marketing. As
usual, Kerin makes balancing the demands of
work and motherhood look easy while teaching
yoga on the side. Back up north, in Hopkinton,
MA, Suzie Huber Roleke works as a marketing
consultant while caring, with husband Chris, for
Carly, 3, and Bridget, 1.5, the latter of which looks
like a mini-Suzie. Down the road on the MA Pike,
Michaela McMahon Popeo and husband Steve are
busy overseeing their 4 towheads in Needham
(Lindsay, 6, Jake, 4, Lily, 3, Lexie, 1). This summer
Michaela moved to a new home to house her
rambunctious — and adorable — brood. Jessica
Kurtz Erlbaum, living outside Philly, finally
welcomed a little girl, Shifra, in May to her posse
of boys — husband Jon and sons Akiva, 9, twins
Yonah and Dovi, 7, and Hillel, 4. We are thrilled
that Jessica can now incorporate pink into her
family’s wardrobe. Abby Imrem is busy teaching
French at the Walter Payton C Prep School in
Chicago.” Lastly, Sherri works as a sr managing
dir at a PR company in Manhattan. She lives in
Brooklyn with husband Steven and they “keep
tabs on their Colgate pals from their perch in
Brooklyn Heights, borrowing their friends’ children on occasion when the urge strikes them.”
Initially excited to see Ana Validzic’s name in
a forwarded e-mail from Colgate, I was immediately saddened when I read the news of Melissa
Spearing’s passing. Ana, who was a close friend
to Melissa, kindly provided the following announcement: “Melissa Spearing departed this life
on Aug 26, following a courageous journey with
cancer. Melissa graduated from Colgate with a
degree in psychology, and earned her master’s in
health sci from Johns Hopkins School of Public
Health in 1999. She was a valued editor and
communications specialist at the Natl Institute
of Mental Health in Bethesda. In May 2008 she
married Matthew Trout, her partner of many
years, in a joyful ceremony of life and affirmation. She is survived by husband Matt, and her
parents, Elizabeth and Robert Spearing. Melissa
was a dear friend to many in the Colgate community. We will never forget her radiant smile
and her tenacity in finding fullness of life in the
course of adversity. She will be sorely missed by
all who knew her. Her family asks that memorial
contributions in her memory be sent to Life with
Cancer.”
Although I did not know Melissa well, she and
I always exchanged friendly hellos when we saw
each other on campus. We met during 1st year,
and I will always remember her warmth and
positive energy. I hope you enjoyed the holiday season. Continue to be healthy, merry, and bright! As always,
looking forward to hearing from all of you.
Kaori: 914-232-0549; [email protected]
19 9 4
Allison Good
#8
319 West 88th Street
New York, NY 10024-2271
Happy New Year!
A little light on the Colgate news this time,
but a few exciting morsels to tide you over:
a super-sleuthed TV watcher in CT spotted 2
classmates in 1 evening: Gillian Vigman in a
Chase commercial, followed by a Mike Yurchak
cameo on Mad Men. The throngs are crying out
for encores!
More excitement: Jeffrey Makala has received
tenure at the U of SC. His new title is librarian
for instruction and outreach in the Irvin Dept of
Rare Books and Special Collections in the University Libraries. Congrats!
Allison: 212-875-0751; [email protected]
19 9 5
David A. Schreiber
1717 West Schubert Avenue
Chicago, IL 60614
Greetings, classmates! I hope this finds you all
happy, healthy, and enjoying yourselves. Class
news has been uncharacteristically slow the
past several columns. Perhaps you all sufficiently
caught up with each other at our 15th Reunion
back in June and don’t have additional news to
share for the time being. In any case, this is my
annual (or semi-annual) plea for updates at your
earliest convenience! Please shoot me an e-mail
when you can with any news that’s fit to print.
Your classmates will certainly appreciate a full
and more interesting class column.
On a personal note, I am very happy to share
that Jen Armstrong Schreiber and I welcomed
our 1st child, son Hayden Alexander, on July 22.
Mom, Dad, and our little guy are all doing great,
albeit with a lot less sleep for the proud parents.
Hayden has turned our world upside down in an
amazingly wonderful way and we look forward
to introducing him to our alma mater sometime
soon.
I am also pleased to report that Jason Corrigan and wife Marion welcomed their 3rd child,
daughter Siobhan Katherine, on Sept 17. She joins
sisters Fiona, 5, and Delaney, 3.
That’s all I have for now. Take care and stay
well.
David: 773-281-8152;
[email protected]
19 96
Kelly Connolly
Apt. 2
15 Hale Street
Randolph, VT 05060
Reunion June 2–5, 2011
Hi, all. Ryan Hoffman received a promotion from
GEI Consultants. From the press release: “Ryan
has more than 12 years of experience investigating and remediating contaminated sites. Ryan
received a master’s in geology from the U of MN,
Minneapolis in 1998.” Congrats to Ryan!
Big congrats also go out to Liz Posner Navisky
and Shannon Thompson Looby, who each added
to their broods this past year. Liz and hubby had
their 2nd boy, Lev Emmett, on May 12. Lev joins
son Asher, 3.5. Liz lives outside Boston and does
freelance food writing gigs in between working
on her thesis for her master’s in gastronomy.
Shannon and Patrick Looby welcomed daughter
Vivian June on June 4. Get this — Vivian is their
5th child! I can’t even imagine how noisy that
household must be. Vivian joins Marjorie, 8,
Colin, 6, Tess, 4, and Helen, 2. Shannon writes that
in addition to Vivian, the Loobys added a new
house and a new job to their lives over the summer. Talk about multitasking!
And a huge thank you to Rich Mok, who saw
my feeble plea for class news on Facebook. Rich
writes: “My wife, Krissy Kern, and I welcomed
baby boy #3 to the family on Aug 15: Jason,
named after his ultra awesome uncle Jason Kern
’92. We’re having a blast with our educational
publishing business, creating SMART board and
iPad products for classrooms. I’m also slogging
my way through the 2nd (and final!) year of
Cornell’s exec MBA program. And when I can
squeeze it in, I’m playing lax in an old-guys’
league, where I run into Eric Beiley ’95, Brett
Tucker ’98, and Eric Farber ’98 from time to
time.”
Hope I covered all the news for everyone,
since it’s 2 am and I am really, really, really, really
tired after a day of getting sideswiped by an
unidentified motorist in the law school parking
lot (presumably by a future lawyer who will,
hopefully, be subjected to severe SEC regulatory
action someday), reading a million “To Everyone”
e-mails about composting yogurt lids, and forgetting to put my car windows up during a freak
rainstorm. So, it’s got to be better tomorrow,
right?
Kelly: 240-686-1538; [email protected]
19 97
Amy McKnight Fazen
68 Pine Crest Road
Newton, MA 02459
Hi, everyone. I hope this issue finds you all well.
More great news to share about our class.
Mary Dispenza Snyder writes, “My husband
and I, son Luke, and daughter Alicia (b 4/16/09 —
new since I last wrote in, I think) spent July 4th
weekend with Becky Fagan Tiernan, husband
Matt, and daughter Molly (b 3/10).”
DJ Herman Mitchell writes, “Matt and I are
thrilled to report that we welcomed another little
girl on Jan 28. Montana Lu joins sister Cadence.
Our girls are keeping us on our toes … and keeping us smiling!”
Lauren Groff’s wife, Erika, writes, “We
welcomed our 3rd child, a boy named Liam Vancouver, on Feb 26. His middle name is in honor
of this year’s Winter Olympics. He has 2 sisters
— Grace, 5, and Satya, 4. This past spring, Lauren
Shireen Hamdan
“James is too young to play the tuba, but yes, he does fit inside it and looks very cute peering out of
the bell with a toothless grin. When I rattle off the Colgate fight song, James erupts into laughter.”
AVID educators
They admit it sounds a bit cliché, but Eric Wolf Welch ’94 and Stephanie Pickard ’98 are on a
mission to revive the American dream. Chance brought the two alumni together as teachers
in the social studies department of J.E.B. Stuart High School in Falls Church, Va., where they
now work to prepare their students to attend college through a program called AVID.
The school lies on the outskirts of Washington, D.C., serving a student population predominantly from low-income and immigrant families. Nearly 60 percent of the students are
eligible for free or reduced-price lunch. Welch and Pickard recognize that the aspirations at
such a school are just as high as anywhere else, but often go without the resources needed
for achieving them. “A lot of parents want their children to go to college, and students want
to go,” said Pickard, “but they don’t understand how the system works.”
That is why, five years ago, Welch brought AVID — which stands for Advancement Via
Individual Determination — to the school. “What motivated me to get into teaching is the
same thing that motivated me to bring AVID here,” explained Welch. “I wanted to help kids
find their dream.” The program has been implemented in schools nationwide for more than
30 years, and is designed to mentor students who have ambitious college goals but lack the
support necessary to reach them.
Welch coordinates the program at both the high school and middle school in the district,
while he, Pickard, and several other instructors teach AVID classes. In those classes,
students learn skills like effective note-taking, how to work in groups, and how to plan their
high school course load to prepare for applying to college. What makes AVID stand apart
from other programs, according to Pickard, is that “AVID is not to motivate kids; they’re
already motivated. It is to help those who already have that will, and to teach them the way
to succeed.”
For Welch and Pickard, this means much more than simply teaching an additional course.
For instance, they were able to arrange for three of their students to enroll in a mentoring
program at the White House with Barack and Michelle Obama. “In March, which is Women’s
History Month,” explained Welch, “those students went down to the State Department with
Michelle Obama, and got to meet Hillary Clinton at a ceremony about women in foreign
policy.”
“Things like that are about access,” added Pickard. “These are kids who don’t have access
to anything, so AVID helps them meet people who provide them with something like an
understanding of a government system, or even a letter of recommendation.”
Maintaining such a program is a constant challenge for Welch and Pickard, who are
confronted with very real time and budgetary restrictions as they try to promote opportunities like student trips to colleges, businesses, and college fairs. Their students, however,
must contend with the most significant challenges. In addition to the typical struggles faced
by teenagers, many AVID students have had to confront tragedies, such as the murder of a
family member, eviction, and even rape, as they work toward going to college.
Despite the monumental struggles the students face, the AVID program in the Falls
Church district has a 100 percent success rate in sending graduates to either two-year or
four-year colleges — a testament to the efforts of both students and instructors.
“We have also been trying to promote the liberal arts as a way of holistically educating
themselves,” explained Pickard.
“The kids are tired of hearing me and Stephanie talk about Colgate. Hopefully we’ll get a
couple to Colgate at some point,” Welch added.
— Jason Kammerdiener ’10
News and views for the Colgate community
71
Soccer pro to doctor-in-training
The oppressive summer heat envelops Glenn Volk ’09 as he squats on the crude concrete
floor at a clinic in the Punjab region of Pakistan. Beside him, a mother cradles her lifelesslooking baby, who seems to have barely any strength left to make it through the night. Volk
quickly diagnoses the child as severely dehydrated, and administers an oral rehydration
solution. Within minutes, the baby begins to cry and show signs of life.
“It was a humbling experience,” Volk said, looking back on that day. “It makes you feel
grateful and very lucky to be born in America.”
As part of the medical staff of Dr. Eduardo Dolhun and his Doctor’s Outreach Clinic, Volk
recently spent 10 days working with Team Rubicon, a humanitarian effort to aid Pakistanis
whose homes, livelihoods, and health were impacted by the major flooding that began there
in late July.
But Volk hasn’t been in the medical field for long. After graduating from Colgate, the
former captain of the 2008 Raiders soccer team had embarked on a promising professional
soccer career. He spent a year in Puerto Rico and then started for the Louisville Lightning during the 2009–2010 season as a midfielder. But then, he switched gears, choosing
medicine over soccer when — instead of renewing his contract for 2010 — he accepted a
position with Dolhun, a family practice physician in San Francisco who offers a pre-medical
internship for post-baccalaureate students planning to attend medical school.
“It was an uphill struggle to play soccer,” Volk explained. “I still love the sport, and I love to
play, but medicine has always been on the back burner for me. It’s great to have the ability
to help everyone.”
In Pakistan, Volk worked alongside Dolhun and Team Rubicon’s paramedic to treat
victims of the flooding, administering a rehydration solution called Drip Drop that Dolhun
himself, an expert in cholera, developed. The group saw up to 1,000 patients a day, which
made it a “challenge just seeing everybody,” Volk said. “We went to places where no medical
aid could go. We sometimes had to hike to patients, and it was hard having to leave even
though there were still more patients to see.”
Often, the team had to change clinic locations in the middle of the day due to security
concerns, because many places suffered, in addition to the weather, from suicide bombings.
When his parents sent a picture of Volk at work in Pakistan to his former Colgate geography professor Ellen Kraly, she proudly shared the news of what he was doing with other
departments on campus.
“I miss Glenn every day here in the geography department,” Kraly said of Volk, who had
taken her Medical Geography and Disease Ecology course, describing him as “so engaged ...
the very best listener, and very kind.”
Now back in the States, Volk is finishing his medical school prerequisites at the University of San Francisco and plans to take the MCAT next year.
“I still have some time before that, though,” he said, “so hopefully I can travel some more
and help out wherever I’m needed.”
— Elizabeth Stein ’12
72
scene: Winter 2011
celebrated the 5th anniversary of his small business, Groff NetWorks, which provides computer
and IT support for other small businesses. We
celebrate 10 years of marriage this Sept.”
Kyle Patterson Martin, her husband, and son
Wyatt made the trip up from Memphis to the
NE for Labor Day. This prompted Jessica Salins
Malloy, Kate Johnston Reed, Courtney Conant
Maunsell, and me to make the trip to VT to
spend the weekend at Julina Henderson Ogilvie’s
house. It was the first time that Maggie Reed,
Charlotte Maunsell, Addie Fazen, Kaylin Ogilvie,
and Wyatt Martin (all between the ages of 18 and
24 months) got to meet each other and wreak
havoc! Shortly after returning to Memphis, Kyle
welcomed a son, Wells Thomas, Oct 3.
Michael Schwartz writes “…wanted to drop a
quick note that Sabine Grace was born on lucky
Friday, Aug 13. She was a couple weeks early, but
Jennifer Badenoch and I think she was highly
motivated to make her arrival on Colgate Day!
Older siblings Jonah and Lila are having a blast
with their new toy and ‘gentle’ is quickly becoming the most common word in the Schwartz
household.”
Congrats, everyone. Please keep the fantastic
news rolling in and please keep the updates
coming!
Amy: [email protected]
1998
Carmella Alvaro
Apt. 355
3939 Glenwood Avenue
Raleigh, NC 27612-4900
Jen Hayes Mogan writes, “I just returned from an
amazing 2-week VBT bike trip in Czech Republic,
Germany, and Austria with my husband and
some friends. What a wonderful way to truly
see the countries and get a little exercise at the
same time! It was a really long time to be away
from my 1 1/2– and 3 1/2–year-olds but definitely
a great experience! I spent a weekend sharing
some drinks and stories of our escapades with
my uncle, David Smith ’52, who is visiting us in
Rochester from Knoxville, TN.”
Andrea Mirabito writes, “Talya Hord got
married in July to Jon Constable (UVM ’01). It
was a beautiful wedding at a carriage house in
Baltimore and, despite the 100+° weather, Talya
was a gorgeous bride. We had a great time and
Colgate was represented well on the dance floor
by bridesmaids Julia Murphy ’99 and Leslie
Frank, as well as Judd and Ali Olczak Wildman.
We missed Rachel Reiss Buckley, who would
have been there, but she was a few days away
from having her baby. I live in Miami with my
boyfriend, Marshall Frank (Leslie’s brother,
which is still very funny even after 3 years!). I am
practicing tax law and estate planning now only
p/t and recently obtained my real estate sales
assoc license, so I am going to see how that goes
for a while. If any of you are looking for a winter
retreat down in FL, give me a call!”
Rebecca Katz is now the dir of investor relations and business development at Canid Asset
Mgmt LLC. Todd Markin reports, “My family —
wife Kim, Nate, 5, and Wes, 2.5 — moved from the
W Village in NYC to New Canaan, CT, at the end
of the summer. Diggin’ everything about it. Everyone seems to really be enjoying the move so
far — feels like vacation out there. Other Fairfield
County ’98 residents whom I keep in touch with
all are doing well — Eric Farber, Brett Tucker,
and Tom Gilligan. Sadly, I caught up with a bunch
of other ’Gate alums at the funeral of Adrian
Walters ’95 in May.”
Kristen Hoskinson Francis writes, “Noth-
ing huge to report, but I’ve started coaching
my daughter’s U6 girls soccer team and we’re
having a blast with it. Due to ongoing rivalries
between SEC football teams and her desire to be
a cheerleader for Halloween, I may just have to
get her another Colgate cheerleader outfit so I
can escape showing any favoritism toward any
of the SEC mess!”
Here are the baby updates. Double digit
babies — nice work everyone. I check out all the
pictures of your babies on Facebook and I have
to say that Colgate ’98 makes some beautiful
kids. Colgate Classes 2020ish to 202? will be
a good-looking group. I am happy to be able
to announce Mark and Rachel Reiss Buckley
welcomed Jacob on Aug 24. Alissa Behrstock
Shulkin writes, “Jon and I had our 2nd child,
Joseph Kiefer, on June 24. He joins Sofia, 3 1/2. We
visited Rachel and Mark and Jacob in Boulder
about a week after Jacob was born, where Joey
and Jake had their 1st of many play dates! We
just moved to a new apt (3 weeks before the baby
came), but we are still living in Chicago, where I
run a mobile vet practice. Last summer, I got to
see Tina Pavlak when she was in town. She’s in
grad school in Boston and is doing great.”
Laura Leclair Accettella writes, “On Aug 10,
Chris ’97 and I welcomed our baby boy, Andrew
Brian. His sister, Madeleine, just adores him and
we’re really happy to be a healthy family of 4. I
still can’t believe that Rachel Reiss Buckley and
I had baby boys just 2 weeks apart from each
other. I can’t wait to get the little guys together!”
Lynn Hoffman Carlton writes, “My husband,
Lance, and I had a baby boy named Bridger in
May. He is named after the Bridger Mtns of
MT, where my husband went to school (and
skied a lot!).” Erik and Mima Zolla Neandross
welcomed their 2nd son, Eli Martin, born July 5.
Erik writes, “His brother is still getting used to
the idea of competition, but otherwise everyone
is doing great.” Brett Tucker reports, “Alice Stuart
was born Sep 17, joining Owen and Hadley, 4.”
Duncan Hughes writes, “My wife, Linsey, and I
had our 2nd son, Holland, on June 5. All is well!”
From Stephen Ward: “My wife, Sarah, had a
baby girl on April 15. Her name is Campbell
Grace. All is well here in Tampa. Hello and best
wishes to our class.” Jerry Ouderkirk reports,
“Happy to announce my 2nd daughter, Avery
Carter, was born Oct 5. She weighed 7 lbs, 15
ounces and both mother and daughter are doing great. ’Gate alums Cameron Hughes, Todd
Markin, and Matt Ouderkirk ’02 all swung by
the hospital to check in.” Anna Davis reports,
“On April 30, Lewis Kaufman ’97 and I closed on
a home in SF and 3 days later we welcomed the
arrival of our daughter, Rae Davis. This fall, I went
back to working p/t as a disaster consultant and
am fortunate that it has been a relatively quiet
hurricane and wildfire season. I am also training
for my 1st trail marathon, the North Face Endurance Challenge Championship, on Mt Tamalpa in
Dec. I’m psyched that trail running guru Nicole
St Jean will also be in attendance on race day!”
Chris Anderson updates, “My family and I are
back in the US after I served 2 years as the consul
at the US Embassy in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia.
Last March, my wife gave birth to our 2nd daughter, Lyla. We now live in Arlington, VA, where
I’m studying Russian in preparation for my next
assignment as the transnatl crime affairs officer
in the embassy in Yerevan, Armenia. I’ll leave the
US for my next post Aug 2011.”
Jane Petrino writes, “I started a new job in
Oct, although it is a return to my old company,
so it’s not exactly new. Still doing PR work for
pharma companies in NY. Keeps me busy and is
usually interesting.”
Beth Vuolo Gousman writes, “It’s been a
busy year. I graduated with my master’s in
library and info sci from San Jose State U in Dec
2009. Our daughter, Mia, was born in March
2010, so I have yet to use said degree beyond
reading Sandra Boynton books aloud with
wild abandon. Play dates have included former
Link Atif Chauhdry’s ’95 son Mikail and Lew
Kaufman ’97 and Anna Davis’s daughter Rae.
Last week, we flew to Austin so she could meet
Brett and Lori Breier Strong and their kids.
Holiday plans involve braving the elements
to see Jason Sebell and the family along with
Stacey Viola Summers in MA.” Keri Funderburg
Woodard reports, “On Aug 30, my husband,
Eric, and I welcomed our twins, Fletcher John
and Piper Elizabeth, into the world. While mom
and babies were still in the hospital, we were
visited by Tim and Erin Johnson Girard, whose
own twins will surely have lots of advice for
our new little ones. Other than this excitement,
our lives remain relatively the same. I’m still
working at ICF Internatl (10 years this past July)
doing marketing and communications for govt
programs focused on issues like flood insurance
and air quality.”
Edward Rosensteel reports, “About a year
ago, my wife, Susanna, and I grew weary of
city life and fled NY for the ’burbs to start our
family. We are now breathing easier in Crotonon-Hudson. We welcomed our 1st child, James
Michael, into our lives on the lucky 13th day
of June. James is too young to play the tuba,
but yes, he does fit inside it and looks very
cute peering out of the bell with a toothless
grin. When I rattle off the Colgate fight song,
James erupts into laughter, perhaps because
he is inspired by my rousing rendition, but
more likely because the muddy retorts from
the tuba remind James of his own harmonic
resolution to a recent digestive movement. In
between diaper changes and home improvement projects, I’m still making tracks to the city
for work, where, for the past 4 years, I have been
producing concerts and events at Columbia U’s
Miller Theatre. Working nights and weekends is
a drag now that I’m a dad, but so far parenthood has not spelled curtains for my career in
show business.”
New mommy Sam Jackson Dilts reports,
“Our daughter, Hadley, was born on Aug 29.
Adam and I are thrilled and adjusting to life as
parents. We are still living in GA. I am in my last
year of residency and will be pursuing a fellowship in pediatric pulmonary medicine at Emory
when I am done. Hope everyone is healthy and
well!” Michelle Bridenbaker reports, “I moved
from the UK to Zurich with my boyfriend,
Mario, in July. I am still working for Pfizer in
medical info, busy getting the European service
up and running. Between working and studying for my master’s in toxicology, I have been
enjoying the beautiful hiking and weather.”
Flory Wilson: “I’ve relocated to NYC from
DC. I’m working at a nonprofit called B Lab and
building the emerging market assessment for
a global impact investing ratings system. The
work is exciting and I’m enjoying exploring
NY.” The former Elizabeth Saft announces,
“Ian Blackburn and I got married last July in
a surprise ceremony and became included in
the long list of Colgate marriages.” Stephanie P
May Beaumier writes, “I ran my 11th marathon
Oct 10 in Chicago, where I stayed with my sister
Brittany May Marsch ’00 and her husband,
Kenny. The following weekend I was back
home to tackle the Columbus 1/2 marathon.
Rand ’97 and Wendy Schreiber ’99 McClellan
put on a great send-off picnic this summer
here in Columbus for the Class of 2014. My
Last year, Cici Clark ’92 had the “unbelievably amazing opportunity” to travel to the Galapagos Islands
to work on a documentary for NOVA called What Darwin Never Knew.
youngest stepdaughter, Zoe, was so impressed by
everyone’s enthusiasm that she is applying early
decision this fall. I have my fingers crossed that
there will be more trips to Hamilton for us in the
near future.”
Scott Hoekman writes, “I attended the inauguration of Jeffrey Herbst, Colgate’s 16th pres,
on Oct 3. Because I am on the Alumni Council (a
great honor and privilege), I was able to dress up
in the academic robes with the faculty, board of
trustees, and other council members and to be
part of the procession. A very intriguing experience! Pres Herbst is impressive and a notable
scholar on Africa. His big themes are technology,
internatl opportunities, and need-blind admissions. If Colgate can raise the endowment funds,
then the latter point will make Colgate more
accessible for any student from any background.
It is a great goal for Colgate.” Craig Wolsk reports
from Spain, where he is married and a chef. Greg
Dahlberg updates, “In Sept, I attended Tiffany
Alvarado’s ’00 wedding in the Adirondacks
to Robert McKenna (Hamilton C ’98). It was a
beautiful ceremony overlooking the lake. Other
’98ers in attendance included Natalie Volkman,
Emily Hayes, Susanne Stallkamp, Sarah Lopez,
Karen Clemente, Frank Martin, and about 15–20
other Colgate grads. Last summer I moved back
to Hell’s Kitchen in Manhattan after joining the
corp marketing and strategy dept at Moody’s
Analytics.”
As for me, in Aug, I spent a weekend in Vegas
with Melissa Macewicz Thomas and some of our
other HS buddies, where we ate very good food
and learned how to play craps; that’s about all I
am going to publish about that trip in keeping
the Sacred Code of Vegas. I also had a Colgate
Ladies’ Weekend here in Raleigh, where 7 of us
crowded into my apt for our annual weekend of
sloth with a twist — we ran a 5k together and
my out-of-town guests showed up the locals.
In attendance: Katie Pitula Reilly finished 2nd
overall, Bethany Tietz McColley (1st place in our
age group), Joanne Caragan, Kristin VanVoorhees
Nelson, Aimee Bariteau, Allison Gleason Besch,
and me — all “finishers” with some completing
their 1st 5Ks. Everyone is doing well and we had a
great time. I forced them to work for their dinner
and we made fresh pasta the old-school Italian
way, rolling pin and all, with my newfound skills
learned on my trip to Italy earlier in the month.
I spent some time in Bologna learning the
old-school ways of rolling out pasta dough and
drinking 4 espressos a day at a minimum. It was
a lot of fun and I am taking special orders now.
You just have to come to Raleigh to pick up your
orders. I went over and messed up my Raleigh
neighbor Heather Rincavage Vita’s kitchen to
experiment with some ravioli making and put
Heather to work rolling out some dough for me.
We had our homemade dinner with her husband
and fellow Italian Mike and little Caroline.
Drea Smith sent this update: “It all started
a few months ago… last minute, I got accepted
to this physical therapy course in Atlanta. As it
happens, Chapin Brackett was headed to Atlanta
the same weekend for a work conf, so we had
dinner with John Weaver and Molly (his fiancée
at the time, now wife). John and Molly were
living in Atlanta at the time, so we went to their
local Mexican spot. I didn’t know at the time
that Chapin would be getting engaged shortly
after that. So I busied myself with visits to the NJ
shore, where I got to see Terri Keeley and Mike
Fine, and their daughter Elli (9 mo). Then I was
once again headed to Seattle in August for the
wedding of Chapin Brackett and Chelsea Forkner
(fabulous). The Colgate ’98 in attendance:
Kathryn Weibrecht, Karin Garver, Brian Flynn,
Aaron Patillo, Jeff and Katie Holmes, Helen and
Jay Won, and Preston Walls. Jennie and Matt
Shaw were close at hand and in our thoughts as
they were eagerly awaiting their 2nd child,
Sylvia, who arrived a few weeks later. Then, in
keeping with the small-world theme, I was at a
wedding in Oct in NJ. The bride is my brother-inlaw’s stepsister, and as I am attentively watching
the bridal party procession, I distinctly recognize
one of the groomsmen as a classmates from
Colgate! It turns out that my brother-in-law’s
stepsister is marrying a man who’s brother is my
fellow Colgate ’98 grad Jay Barnes! So, we reminisced and had a laugh, and it turns out that Jay
and Chapin were soph year roommates. Small
world!”
That’s all for now. Keep updating.
Carm: [email protected]
1 999
Katie Raisio Abstoss
Greetings, fellow ’99ers! I’ll start with some career-oriented updates: Nathan Bech is deployed
with the US Army, and is currently in Kandahar,
Afghanistan. “I am a civil affairs officer, and my
job is to meet with locals here to try to help them
more effectively engage their own govt, and
to meet with local and regional govt leaders in
order to help them more effectively serve their
constituents. It is a great mission, and I am proud
to be a part of it.”
David Mills argued a case (Ortiz v. Jordan) at
the US Supreme Court in Nov, and reports that
he has “started teaching appellate practice p/t as
an adjunct prof of law at Case Western U School
of Law.” Ben Rich wrote that he just performed
on Broadway as part of the swing dance troupe
Troupe212, who performed at the Town Hall
theater. Ben is teaching physics at The Montclair
Kimberley Academy and coaching volleyball, and
has recently seen Colgate alums Mike ’98 and
Tara Meddaugh Bouteneff and Jordan Slutsky
’01.
Mike Evans recently moved to Denver with his
wife, Manjiri, and son Naveen to take a job at the
corp offices of Sports Authority in strategy and
business development. Jamie and Robin King
Ostrov report that they are “still living in Buffalo.
Jamie was awarded tenure at U of Buffalo this
past June, which we are very excited about. It
was a long 6 years, but he was finally rewarded
for his hard work. Our son Aaron turned 1 in June,
and he is keeping us very busy. He is extremely
independent and stubborn, so definitely keeps us
on our toes. I am still working in HR at Delaware
North Companies.” This summer Robin and Jamie visited Boston and caught up with Suzanne
Rommelfanger and Tara Kieffer. Suzanne still
finds lots of opportunities to travel the country
and the world, which she loves to do. Tara is very
successful at Vertex, and travels internationally
for work quite a bit.
On the babies front: Michael and Jessie
Seiden Sartor welcomed James Hamilton on
April 3, joining brother William, “who is madly in
love with his little brother, James.” John Sutton,
his wife, Amy (UC Davis ’99), and their 3-year-old
son, Matthew, are proud to announce the birth
of Nathaniel. Nathaniel was born in Carson City,
NV, on Sept 26. Rob ’97 and Leslie Harr Wittman
reported that they welcomed Edward Patrick
(‘Ned’) on July 19. “Toby just turned 2 and actually
seems to sort of like his new little bro.” Leslie
also shared that they moved from Cambridge to
Hingham, MA, in May 2009.
Courtney Bender Liggera and husband Mike
(Princeton ’99) welcomed their 1st child, Alexandra Margaret, on May 22. “She is absolutely perfect, and we are just loving parenthood.” Caroline
Vignolo Collins welcomed Catherine Jane (‘Cate’)
on June 25, joining brothers Henry and Teddy.
Steve Windfeldt and wife Molly welcomed their
son, Ryder Jerome, on July 20. Joe Dominguez
shares that on Oct 1, “Gretchen delivered our 2nd
baby boy! Charles Driggs tipped the scale at 9 lbs,
5 oz, and nearly 22"! Little Joey doesn’t yet know
what to do with him, but I am sure he will come
around!”
Vic Cossel reports, “Fearing the global populist backlash against bankers, I decided to trade
my 10+-year banking career for a new botanical
venture. I’m excited to report that along with an
old work colleague, we’ve partnered to launch
our own ‘hedge’ fund called SaddlePoint Investment Advisors. Hopefully our hedge business
will grow like a weed!” Vic and his girlfriend,
Theresa Niu (Emory ’00), crossed paths with
Marshall Phelps at a wedding, and they visited
with Ryan and Betsey Thomas ’00 Clements and
their children, and “spent the night testing skill
sets we acquired back at Colgate.” Vic also reports
that his dad passed away on Sept 24 following a
valiant 11-year battle with kidney cancer. Vic and
his dad recently recollected about Colgate times
and he kept laughing about how 3 people spilled
beer on him during a parents’ weekend visit. He
was set to be rest with full Marine Corps Honors
at Arlington Natl Cemetery in Jan.
Lastly, Nick and I had a great time celebrating
Kellyn Smith’s nuptials to Jay Kenny in Sept. Kellyn looked stunning; the setting, at Jay’s family
home in Old Lyme, CT, was spectacular; and the
weekend was packed with fun events. Erin Chapman, Erin Matts, Devon Slauenwhite, Jay ’00 and
Vanessa Rath Menton, Paul and Meghan Carey
Frank, Roger and Kate Foster Lengyel, Greg and
Caroline Bing Wishart, and Marnie DeMichele
Dolan ’98 were all in attendance and rocking the
dance floor. Thanks for all the updates. Please
keep them coming!
Katie: [email protected]
Answer key to Take Five puzzle on
p. 80
News and views for the Colgate community
73
2000
Katie Tone Brock
411 Sloan Road
Nashville, TN 37209-4654
Greetings and Happy New Year, Class of 2000! I
hope you enjoyed the holidays with family and
friends. Before we kick off news for 2011, let’s
wrap up with end-of-the-year updates from
2010:
Jessica Giannetti Kelley and her husband welcomed their 1st child, Amelia Catherine, on April
10. Also in April, Evan Timbie and wife Janelle
welcomed their 1st born, William. The Timbie
family is doing well and living in Manhattan.
Webster Pilcher and wife Sheryl Koenigsberg
celebrated their 2nd wedding anniversary with
an amazing vacation in Iceland. They also recently adopted a puppy, Lucy, who Webster says
“may be the happiest puppy in the world!”
Ryan Meliker writes: “I am living in NYC,
where I have been for the past 6 years. I am the
lodging industry analyst at Morgan Stanley and
see Kevin Kaczmarek every day. He works in the
same dept and sits only 50' from me. The big
news was that in June I got married to Tosca DiMatteo (RIT ’01) in Garrison, NY. It was a beautiful
day and perfect for a summer wedding. We were
happy to celebrate with Mark Astrachan, David
and Julie Dubitsky Lazarus, David Mehlman, Jeremy Brewer, Chad and Valerie Place Cooley ’99,
Josh Krellenstein, Jay Baum, Rachel Owens, Ali
McGrath, Kevin Kaczmarek, and Jarett Landman.
Mike Esposito and family moved to Westfield,
NJ.
Eric and Kasey Sudmyer Conrad welcomed a
daughter, Julianna Dempsey, on Aug 14. Julianna
weighed 8 lb, 3 oz and brother Max welcomed
her home. Max will be turning 3 in Jan. Proud
mom Kasey writes: “So far they look nothing
alike; Max is blond with blue eyes and Julianna
has dark hair and brown eyes! Eric and I are
also looking forward to the wedding of Brian
Boyle ’99 and Katie Perham in Dec. Eric will be a
groomsman and Max will be a ring bearer! Can’t
wait to see lots of Colgate friends at the wedding!”
Last fall, Jessica Massanari-Sapp started a
new job as a middle school Spanish teacher in
Marblehead, MA.
Finally, Brooke Bucklin D’Entremont sent in
an update about a fun weekend with Colgate
friends: “Shaun and Maryellen Tuzio Khosla,
along with their son, Mason, hosted a group of
people at their beautiful home in Alexandria, VA,
for a weekend at the end of Sept. My daughter, Grace, and I made the trip along with Jess
Masters, Jenn Dudeff Klein and her daughter,
Whitney, Kelly Cusick, Erin Mahony, Brent and
Jennie Wilson Krasner and their son, Micah. It
was a really nice visit with great friends.”
Thanks to everyone for staying in touch.
Here’s to a great 2011! I look forward to hearing
from you throughout the year. Take care and be
well.
Katey: 615-417-9727; [email protected]
2001
Jane Seney
83 Bradford Road
Watertown, MA 02472
Reunion June 2–5, 2011
I am happy to announce that Leah Garabedian
recently joined the law firm Brown & Crouppen in their St Louis office. Leah graduated from
74
scene: Winter 2011
Washington & Lee U School of Law in 2004.
Congrats, Leah!
Jane: [email protected]
20 02
Betsy Yates Long
445 Legacy Ct
Westerville OH 43082
Greetings, Class of ’02! I must tell you that I’ve
had quite the overload of Colgate events over the
last month. It has been great to see a few people
and catch up!
Our Alum Club of Central OH has restarted
and has had quite the showing. We had our
send-off party at the home of Rand ’97 and
Wendy Schreiber ’99 McClellan, and it was
great to catch up with Rob Letson, Katie Fuller
Zvolanek ’05, Heather Lindamoud Buchanan ’98,
and Stephanie May Beaumier ’98, along with our
current Columbus-area students. Rob is doing
well in Central OH, enjoying his time with his
adorable puppy, Walter, and running marathons
and such in his free time. Congrats to the new
future ’Gate alums!
I also got the chance to catch up with Lindsay
Cohan Swad ’03 over lunch with Katy Rollings in
Aug; Katy came out to visit on her way to Buffalo
and we had a fabulous time catching up over
Chinese. Lindsay’s been working with a special
events coordinator here in Columbus. Katy and
I celebrated her finishing her PhD at TX with a
night out on the town. It was a fun-filled lunch,
to say the least. Thank you to Katy for being such
a fabulous houseguest!
Just 2 weeks ago, my husband and I traveled
up to the Colgate-Syracuse game, where we met
Rob ’03 and Alli Walcott Markert, Viral Keshwala,
Pete McDonald ’03, Rich Grant, Andrew Oladipo
’04, and Andy Barr ’03. We got to listen to the
Thirteen and hear of rivalry games past with
Jane Brogan ’02, Bart Hale ’04, and Jarman
Russell ’06. Of course, it’s always good times to
see Jane, who’s still happily working in NY, and
we also saw Jenna Webb, who’s working in the
alumni office at Colgate. At the game I briefly
chatted with Ainslee Ellis ’00 and spied Bill
Kern, but didn’t have a chance to catch up with
him. Joe Leo ’01 and son were also in attendance;
it was great to hear that he and Amy Hargrave ’01
are still doing well and loving Hamilton. It was
a fun-filled weekend in Hamilton and Syracuse,
which even allowed us to feel young again in the
presence of Alli’s sister Liz Walcott ’12 and Hilary
Flack ’12. congrats to Rob Markert on his recent
job upgrade and hoping that Andy Barr’s rolled
ankle feels better soon.
But enough of my travels. Susan Rosenthal
Maisel wrote in about Hana Choi’s July marriage
to Olof Asbrink in Stockholm. She writes, “The
bride looked radiant as the couple finally married
after years of enduring a trans-Atlantic relationship. Ben Maisel ’02 and I were in attendance,
along with Matt ’01 and Mary Kate Walders
Coseo. Although they met in Korea and married
in Sweden, the newlyweds will call NYC home;
Hana is a writer for People.com and her hubby
works at a hedge fund. Ben and I are also in NYC.
I’m a litigation assoc at Paul, Weiss and Ben is at
Morgan Stanley. Matt and MK are in Saratoga
Springs, where she works at GE and he’s a defense atty. I’m also in touch with the rest of the
former 14 Lebanon crew: Liz Retz is at CBS in NYC
and Amy Sullivan is at Digitas in Boston.” Thanks,
Susan, and congrats to Hana and Olof!
Kim Malecka and I often talk over Facebook
about the Phillies, but Kim also submitted some
good news about her studies at Penn: “I got a PhD
in biological chem in July. It feels really awesome
to be finished. I even have some ’Gate people
around! Najat Khan ’06 works in my dept and
John Schmidt ’02 came to Penn as a post doc!
I’m sad to leave, but I’m not going too far away
as both John and I don’t want to leave Philly (go
Phillies!).” In other news, Kim and John Wutz are
planning their wedding next spring, which I’m
sure we’ll get a great update about soon! Spring
is just around the corner!
One final note. My apologies to Melissa
Roberts, whom I saw this summer on CNBC,
providing her analysis of the market. While I
congratulated her right away on such a awesome
achievement, I forgot to pass on the word to our
class to keep your eyes out for her! I’m sure it’s
not the last time I will hear her great work!
Keep the great news — and work — coming,
Class of 2002! Cheers!
Betsy: 614-506-0534; [email protected]
2003
Melanie Kiechle
Apt. 3
7040 Chew Avenue
Philadelphia, PA 19119
Melanie: 315-778-0497; [email protected]
2004
Moira Gillick
Tottering Hall
2501 Calvert Street NW
No. 705
Washington, DC 20008
Hello, beautiful people. OK, so a quick refresher
course to start.
Someone wrote me this time around, “I am
not sure how to submit this but…” So to review,
it’s really easy! Just e-mail me. E-mail me when
you think of it, or when you are out at the bar
or during a bout of insomnia or when I send a
reminder message, just drop me a line. No matter
when you write in, I am happy to put forward
your news to the class. My gmail is at the bottom. Frosh roommate Claire Putzeys calls me
“Moira G” so that’s my address.
Also, regarding the Colgate banner pictures
at weddings: it’s still a great tradition and keep
taking the pictures and keep sending them in.
However, instead of looking for them in print,
you will find them in the photo gallery on our
class page on ColgateConnect.org.
Now, on with the show! Single ladies first.
Chandler Bewkes, a girl who always knows
where she will be, writes, “Although I currently
live in Pitt, I was just up in Boston for Martha
Cook’s wedding, and still have Julia DeFeo’s to
look forward to at the end of Oct, so this fall has
been great for catching up with Colgate friends!
I’m currently in my 2nd year of b-school at
Carnegie Mellon and am loving it, and I recently
accepted a f/t job offer to stay in Pitt and work in
brand mgmt with HJ Heinz Co after graduation.
I’m thrilled to be sticking around the ’burgh, so
feel free to drop a line if anyone wants to meet
up for drinks next time they’re visiting the Pitt
area!”
Allison Taylor, a girl who never knows where
she will be, writes, “I’m out to sea again. I was
offered a job on a Wed to start the following
Tuesday aboard the Soerlandet, a Norwegian fullrigged ship, which Class Afloat, a Canadian-run
HS, has leased for the year. I joined in St Malo,
France, as an AB (watch leader on deck) among
a crew of 8, 6 teachers, and 55 students. Our
port calls between now and Jan: Porto, Portugal;
Barcelona; Cagliari, Italy; Agadir, Morocco; Dakar,
Senegal; Praia, Cabo Verde; Trinidad/Tobago;
Cartagena, Colombia; Puerto Limon, Costa Rica;
Belize City, Belize! It should be a good semester
for these kids. They’re from all over the world
but mostly Canada and they’re pretty great (very
motivated and energetic and relatively wellbehaved!). I’m having a fantastic time so far!”
Kristyn Fredericks writes: “Hello back ’atcha,
beautiful person! I’m starting a new job next
week, so trying to enjoy my last few days of
Info, please:
If you know of the whereabouts — home
address, phone, fax, or e-mail — of anyone on this list, please contact alumni
records: 315-228-7435; 315-228-7699
(fax); [email protected].
Thanks for your help!
Garrett A. Hults ’54
C. Jan Hunsinger ’61
James E. Gruel ’64
Jack Shuman ’67
Martha C. Sabin MA’69
George J. D. Cole ’71
James P. Sileneck ’72
Alexander B. Neill MA’73
Milton E. Battle ’74
H. Scott Stevenson ’74
Clinton Kendall Cole ’76
Jordan K. DeTuncq ’78
Michael W. Houle ’83
Rex L. Miller ’84
Salvatore Siracusa ’84
Paul J. Angelino ’89
Wayne R. Cowley ’89
Alison Fraser Heisler ’89
Jack Y. Afriyie ’91
David R. Camenisch ’91
Pamela B. Druckerman ’91
Bartle B. Gorman ’91
Peter T. Jivkov ’91
Joyce E. Saintelot ’95
Meghan Kelly Deana ’97
Jason T. Burney ’99
David A. Gold ’99
Heidi E. Nelson ’99
Avery M. Schonland ’99
Eric V. White ’01
Joyce K. Guerra ’02
Daniel B. Nagler ’02
Miranda Clark ’03
Stacey L. Corvino ’03
Andrew J. Driscoll ’03
Michael P. Dunphy ’03
Avery H. Marvin ’05
Stephen J. MacLellan ’06
Erin F. Frohardt ’07
Caroline G. Reed ’07
Jaime L. Dennison ’08
John R. Mahlan ’08
David W. McKenzie ’08
Margaret H. Mysliwiec ’08
Kevin M. Tarrant ’08
Colin A. McDonald ’09
Christian James Rahe ’09
Noah B. Sacco ’09
Antonio Villas-Boas ’09
Paige Ross Bayless ’10
freedom. I hear it’s starting to get a bit chilly on
the East Coast. Autumn is the only thing I miss
about the East Coast! I’m also writing to tell you
about a teeny tiny mini-reunion we had. Lauren
Fitzgerald married Chris Turner on June 19 in
Buffalo. Thea Schlendorf and Heather McKay
(with her fiancé, Greg) were also in attendance.
The rehearsal dinner was at Frank Lloyd Wright’s
Rowing Boathouse, a nod to our friendship history (the 4 of us met 1st year during crew and became good friends as we struggled to stay warm
during those frigid 5 am winter practices on
Lake Moraine). Despite the intense humidity, we
danced the night away at the Buffalo Historical
Society, where the reception was held. It should
come as no surprise that we were all seated at
Table 13!”
Tyler Constantine and Celin Wittman ’05 wed
on July 10 at the Church of St Ignatius Loyola in
Manhattan, with a reception at the University
Club. He said, “It was an incredible weekend.
We had numerous Colgate friends in attendance, including bridesmaids Dana Schifman
Colbert ’05 and Hannah Kauffman ’05, as well as
groomsman Morgan Stepp. We then went on an
unforgettable 2-week honeymoon to Indonesia
and Vietnam, and had the time of our lives!”
Douglas Tierney writes, “On Aug 28, I married
Danielle Gleason ’06, in Auburn, NY. Danielle
and I met on the Colgate study abroad trip
to Australia, led by Prof Ellen Kraly. We were
honored to have both Ellen and husband Scott
at the wedding, along with many other Colgate
folks, including: Pete and Hillary Fox Clayburgh,
Ben Maki, Ariel Dvorkin, Morgan Stepp, Tyler
Constantine, Celin Wittman ’05, Zach ’06 and
Emily Thomson Dollar ’06, Mike Gallihugh ’08,
Shannon O’Hagan ’06, Lindsey Byrne ’06, Morgan
Baker ’11, Sean Nevison ’03, Amber Codiroli ’10,
and Patrik von Rickenbach ’05. The wedding
was outside, the day was perfect, and we had a
fantastic time.”
Chris Conti is busy with his new job as a
freelance photographer, and apparently does
weddings as well (take note). He writes, “There
were 2 giant Colgate weddings in the last month.
Paul Caginalp got married and there were literally too many Colgate people there for me to list
right now. Also, Johny Chaklader ’03 married
Bridget Ryan ’06 and I shot the photos for their
wedding. We did a Colgate shot complete with a
Colgate banner. There were a least 15–20 Colgate
kids there.”
Kelsy Hill writes in with more Colgate
coupledom, “I am very excited to share that
Adam Polifka ’03 and I are engaged! I made the
move from my beloved NYC down to Baltimore
a few months later, and we’ll be staying here for
about 3 years while he finishes up his neurosurgery residency and fellowship. If anyone is in
Baltimore, let us know! We’re looking forward to
getting married next May and, yes, I have already
told people that it is totally acceptable to wear
their ’Gate duds in honor of ‘Colgate Day’ to the
rehearsal dinner on May 13. The wedding planning was surprisingly quick and easy, and left me
with about 2 months of stay-cation and time to
get in lots of visits to family and friends all over
the place, including many alumni! Since this has
been sitting in my drafts since late spring, these
updates run straight through the summer, so
without further ado: Christie Philbrick-Wheaton
and husband, Andrew Galvin (Amherst), are the
proud parents of a very, very cute little girl who
was born in Aug and my excitement for Reagan
rivals that of my engagement! I’ve probably
spent a 3rd of my time since I left NYC back up
at their house: she honestly is the cutest baby
ever and just keeps getting cuter, smarter, and
more active every time I see her! Dede Philbrick-
Wheaton ’06, is doing great, is the absolute best
aunt to Reagan, and still gives the best hugs
every time I see her. Between back-to-back East
Coast wedding weekends, Kate Norris Monroe
and husband Tom stayed with me during my
last days in NYC, and it was wonderful to have
some time with them now that they are back in
America. They’ve been busy overseas learning
how to be ‘wineauxs’ in France, but are officially
settled out in Portland, OR, as happy homeowners and gearing up for the 1st harvest any day
now. Amanda Bradshaw ’06 is back in NYC after
moving from Boston, as she takes on a new job.
An update to Jeremy Striffler’s last update: he
is in fact back in America with an MBA in hand,
and just moved into a sweet new bachelor pad
out in Minneapolis, which sounds like an incredibly cold place to live, but I pledged that I will
still go visit him regardless. I was also fortunate
enough to catch up with Becky Ortolano in her
last weekend in Annapolis before she headed
out to Seattle to start her pediatric medicine
residency program. Are those kiddos lucky, or
what?! Bart Hale is alive and well in NYC. He had
a busy summer of sailing regattas. I had a great
time causing a little trouble with Lindsey Sine in
Chi-town in early Aug; pretty much par for the
course when we get together. Andrew Houston is
engaged to the lovely Liz Verhagen (UNC ’04) as
of this summer — yay! Chris Gillick ’03 is doing
great, along with his Zogsports football team
that is kicking some major butt in the fall league.
Jonah Tulis is enjoying a lot of success with his
recent projects and, FYI, Flying Scissors is hilarious and has lots of cameos of people y’all will
recognize. Check it out if you haven’t seen it yet!
Danny Baker provided my 1st Baltimore Colgate
reconnect, and it’s been great to catch up with
him, get the full dish on the neighborhood since
we’re practically neighbors, and find out who
else is in the area. It turns out we’ll have plenty
of people to cheer on the Ravens with this fall.
Colgate always works out like that, right? I love
reading all the great updates and seeing what
everyone is up to.”
Christie Philbrick-Wheaton writes, “My
daughter, Reagan Barbara, was born on Aug 5 at
4:08 am, just in time to celebrate her 1st Colgate
Day the following week! She and I have been
thoroughly enjoying my maternity leave and
are making the most of her portability by gallivanting around town, including wedding dress
shopping with Kelsy Hill! Aunt Dede PhilbrickWheaton ’07 is obsessed (in a good way) with her
first niece. Hope all is well with you!”
David J Henry writes, “On Oct 16, I married
Lindsay Stuber (U of Richmond). The wedding
was in Dallas. We met in law school and currently live in Chicago. We are looking forward to
our honeymoon in Amsterdam and Rome.”
Rachel Marcus writes, “Lisa LaValle accepted
Peter Overmyer’s proposal of marriage this past
July at her parent’s house (even though he lied
about having to work in order to get the ring!). A
bunch of us lost our voices singing Karaoke and
‘Turning Back Time,’ celebrating their engagement in NYC, including Kevin Phillips, Paul
Lederer, Sara Pastel, Katie Hogan, and Susan
Teegarden. Pete unfortunately had to work, so
he was represented by a picture on a Popsicle
stick. Also, Katie Hogan married Leon Van Horn
III this Sept at a lovely ceremony in Riverhead, LI,
the day after the ‘deadly storm’ took Manhattan.
The sun came out just in time for a wonderful
celebration that included sing-a-longs of ‘Going
to the Chapel’ in a souped-up trolley, an amazing
party with more food than anyone needed to be
eating, a rendition of ‘Pants on the Ground,’ and
an intense 3-hour dancing session! Susan, Lisa,
and I served as bridesmaids. We are all anxiously
awaiting their return from their honeymoon in
HI!”
Alexander Choniski writes, “I am very happy
to say I was married to Cameron Lovell Hodgkins
(Lafayette) at the Adirondack Community Church
in Lake Placid, NY, on Sept 11. The following Colgate alumni were in attendance: Steele Arundel,
Ian Dennis, Natalie Wadsworth ’05, Corinne Desjardins, Cameron White, Russell Gunther, Meg
Lyons ’06, Lauren Herzog ’03, Jared Ripp, Taggart
Hutchinson, Liza Knowles, Andrew Klein, Keith
Lippmann, Colin Mathews, Kaitlyn Mitchell,
Michele Gurney Olsson ’85, TJ Opladen ’07, Nick
Reynolds, Benjamin Rubin, Charlie Stack, Walter
Sussman, and Shawn Trudeau ’06. As Scene
readers know, the weather is extremely variable
in upstate NY. After a week of rain, we were
blessed with crystal-blue skies on the day of the
wedding. All the guests enjoyed dinner at the
Lake Placid Club and danced into the night under
an outdoor pavilion. The boys from Beta Theta
Pi ended the evening by serenading Cameron
with a song traditionally sung at weddings and
pinnings, ‘Beta Sweetheart.’ A sweetheart she is,
indeed.” Sweet.
Do the boys of Theta Chi sing at weddings,
too? There have been at least 2 chances to practice recently, according to Jordan Taylor’s report.
He writes, “I got married on Sept 18 to Francesca
Hill in Boise, ID. Jesse Berman, Matt Porter, and
Jay Cavanaugh were in attendance, but Josh
Klauber got sick on the plane the day before and
couldn’t make it. I also just started a new job as
an atty at the ID State Appellate Public Defender
in Boise, and it’s going great. I’m looking forward
to seeing a lot of Colgate folks at Jesse’s marriage
to Tessa Klein (Middlebury), Oct 2.” Dancing in
the moonlight.
As always, I look forward to hearing from you,
and if not, hearing about you.
Moira: [email protected]
20 0 5
Amy Griffin
Apt. 3
847 North Oakley Boulevard
Chicago, IL 60622
Ah, yes, the ole winter column, where I write
about what happened last summer and everyone
is sad because it’s currently winter. Sorry about
the SAD- (seasonal affective disorder) ness, but
I’m obligated to report that this summer was
the best. So warm! Sorry. I’ll try and refrain from
describing the weather in detail.
Katie O’Hare had a summer internship at
the Natl Dairy Council in Chicago, and so she
stayed with me in my 7'x7' “bonus” room, which
was very reminiscent of Erin Pulice’s bedroom
in NYC in 2005. We dubbed this summer “the
summer of George” and it definitely lived up to
its name, however you’d like to interpret that.
So many museums! Concerts! Parks! Katie ran a
half-marathon! We took a trip to visit Leah Anderson while she was briefly in her hometown
of Waupaca, WI. The trip included some serious
kayaking as well as checking out the lakeside
restaurant where Leah worked in HS. Leah is
now living in Chicago, too. I was at a trivia night
in Bucktown once this summer and a young
woman came up to me and asked me if I went
to Colgate. Turns out it was Aron Buffen’s older
sister, who reported that Aron would be in town
that weekend. We of course had to call up Andrew May and have a little Colgate mini-reunion
with Aron, ending with a no-joke dance party at
the hideout.
I also heard from Lindsay Fleece Rentschler:
“Big news from LI: On Aug 1 at the gorgeous
Carlyle on the Green Country Club in Farmingdale, NY, Jen Polland and Ronny Ostrow made it
official. Mazel tov! After nearly 7 years of dating
that commenced jr year in the Birch Apts, Jen
and Ronny added their names to the ever-growing list of married Colgate couples. Obviously, Jen
was stunning, Ronny was debonair, the location
was beautiful, and Colgate was out in full effect.
The wedding was the perfect blend of Jewish
tradition and personal touches. I think we all
were amazed by the pre-ceremony events, which
included the Tish and the B’deken. These traditions entailed boys in one room razzing Ronny
while drinking scotch and eating hallah (or so
I am told). Meanwhile, the girls congregated to
drink champagne and greet Jen while she sat on
a throne. Then the fellas danced (literally) Ronny
into the ladies’ room and he checked under her
veil to ensure he was getting the right bride.
From there, the ceremony flowed outside and
there were few dry eyes. It was a very long bar.
Included in said crew was Danielle Baker, David
Beller, Brandy Bones, Lauren Breitenother,
Philip Craig, Ariel Dvorkin ’04, Wes Gordon, Amy
Handler, Katie Holbrook, Ashley Kaufman, Becky
Kirsch, Laurel Koester, Amanda Liberatore, Mia
Mabanta, Ryan Molloy, Lauren McCauley, Justin
Park ’04, Mark Rentschler ’04, myself, Brian
Reynolds, Allen Royce, Kate Rufe, Sarah Ward,
Adam Wolk, Jeremy Seeman, and Eric Wright.
Nathan Kanner ’04 and Loren Nosan, who were
just 2 weeks away from celebrating their 1-year
anniversary, were also there to celebrate. In other
news among the guests, there is a strong Colgate
presence in Philly these days. Brandy is there horrifying us all by showing how adult she is and
purchasing a house! Joining her are Kate Rufe (in
architecture school at UPenn), Sarah Ward (in vet
school at UPenn), and Amanda Liberatore (who
started at Wharton this fall). Speaking of MBA
programs, Mia Mabanta started at Stanford this
fall. Lauren McCauley is going on 3 years in LA
working in film, living in Venice, and loving the
beach. And Mark and I have joined the dwindling
West Coast crew. After a year back in NYC, Mark
and I decided to move to Portland, OR. Nathan
and Loren are leaving Ann Arbor, MI, and coming, too. The 4 of us are attempting to start a
trend, so move to Portland, or at least come visit
us! Back to the happy couple: after honeymooning in Mexico, Ronny will begin his final year at
Brooklyn Law and Jen will get back to her daily
grind as travel editor at Frommer’s and journalism teaching gig. Congrats, Jen and Ronny!”
Cara Angelopulos got engaged, to be married
in fall 2011. The lucky fellow is John Lawler, and
they both live in Boston. Congrats, Cara! Katie
Finnegan ran a half-marathon in Chicago. Jackie
Eisenberg did some of her med school rotations
in Chicago this fall.
Last but not least, I’d like to report on the
beautiful, sweet, and fun wedding of Mr and
Mrs John and Jessica Dustman Fuller. They
were married on a gorgeous Sept day in Clinton
Corners, NY. In attendance were John and Betsy
Harbison Bringewatt, Amanda Camelio, Katie
O’Hare, Mike Stein, Lauren Start, Ben Goldman,
Pat Murphy, Alex Hallowell, Lisa Widawsky ’04,
Mike Fish, Tyler Brownlee, Aron Buffen, and Rob
Campbell. The weather was perfect, the bride
was beautiful, the groom was eloquent, the venue was spectacular, the reception was a blast, the
after-party was a riot, and the after-after party in
the suites of the Beekman Arms, America’s oldest
inn, was… well you get the point. The wedding
was a definite success, is what I’m saying. The
morning after … well that was less of a success,
but that’s a story for another time.
Thanks for reading to the bottom. Go, ’gate.
Amy: [email protected]
News and views for the Colgate community
75
2006
Bob Fenity
Apt. 704
1415 Rhode Island Ave, NW
Washington, DC 20005
Bob: 585-506-5981; [email protected]
Reunion June 2–5, 2011
2007
Allie Grimes
Apt 2B
120 East 11th Street
New York, NY 10003-5311
I recently received some very exciting news
from Vonzelle Johnson. He wrote: “As I continue
to marvel at the accomplishments of our ’07
Colgate class, it gives me great pleasure to let you
know that I am now an elected official. I serve
as City Commissioner of DeLand, FL. I constantly
credit my alma mater for providing the resources
that distinguish us from many others. Proud to
be a Colgate alum.” Congratulations, Vonzelle,
that is an amazing accomplishment!
In other exciting news, Erica Murphy and Ben
Jones were married in Hamilton on Oct 9.
Colin Oberg began his first semester last fall
at the UNC Kenan Flagler b-school for his MBA.
Also attending are Rob Bollman ’05 and Leigh
Cuttino ’06. Jess Eisen is there as well, attending
UNC School of Education.
Allie: [email protected]
2008
Sarah Greenswag
2124 Birchwood Lane
Buffalo Grove, IL 60089
Class of ’08 is keeping things new and exciting this winter! Many of our classmates are
continuing or starting new adventures and new
chapters of their lives. Several people are living,
working, and studying abroad.
Ceci Sibony is living in Tel Aviv, Israel, and
working as the director of the American Corner
Yaffo and as the resource development coordinator at the Arab Jewish Community Center in
Jaffa. For the latter, she manages/conducts the
fundraising, PR, and communications for the
Community Center. For the former, she runs an
after-school center for Arabs and Jews in the
mixed, underprivileged neighborhood of Jaffa.
She creates and implements activities that promote American ideals of democracy, pluralism,
and tolerance and American history and culture
for the local populations.
Matt Inbusch is finishing up his 2nd year with
the Peace Corps in northern Peru. He works as a
water sanitation volunteer, improving rural water systems and installing a composting latrine
project in a small village. Matt plans to extend
his work with Peace Corps another year in a
volunteer-coordinator position south of Lima.
Emily Sherman is also nearing the end of a
2-year volunteer stint with the Peace Corps in
Zambia. She has been working with the rural
schools doing capacity building through teacher
trainings, resource development, and also
teaching 8th and 9th grade. Emily lives in a rural
village in a mud hut just like the locals do — and
LOVES it! Emily reports, “The village children are
my best friends, I rely on my bike for transport,
and I love all the local food. Work is busy, but I
still have time to visit other parts of Zambia and
neighboring countries. It has been an incredible,
eye-opening, and life-changing experience, so
76
scene: Winter 2011
much that while my contract is over in April, I
am applying to extend for a 3rd year.” I can’t wait
to hear how you enjoy your continued work with
the Peace Corps!
Katharine Zarrella continues her work as a
fashion journalist. She recently moved to London
where she will be pursuing a master’s in fashion
journalism at Central Saint Martins. She also
works as a correspondent for Interview magazine
and a contributing fashion and style editor at
The Dossier Journal. Katie reported on her recent
experiences. “I just finished up Paris Fashion
Week where I saw Gaultier’s last collection for
Hermes and watched Giles Deacon single-handedly revive the house of Ungaro.” Also in London
is Christina Anastos. She is pursuing a MA in
Politics Security and Integration at University
College London.
As for those of us who are stateside, many
exciting pursuits continue to keep us busy! David
Goodrich is over the halfway point in Primary
Flight School at NAS Whiting Field. Dave flies the
mighty T6-B every day. By the time you read this,
Dave will have completed primary and will be
moving on to the next phase of training.
Dave and Sarajane McMahon ’10 enjoyed
an awesome weekend in Miami this fall and
are looking forward to more visits through the
winter season.
Ruben Leavitt is working in Homer, NY, as
a field organizer with the NY Democratic Party
affiliated with Mike Arcuri for Congress.
Ben Camper is filing for a reality show in LA
this season. Hopefully, Ben will update us with
more details for next column so we can watch
him.
Daniel Glaser reported that Mark Dekanich
received his first call-up to the NHL by the Nashville Predators.
Also adding to an already impressive resumé
is Joe Bliss. This fall, Joe performed at the Radio
City Music Hall, where he sang with the Desoff
Choir for Lord of the Rings-The Two Towers: Live to
Projections. He is also in the Village Light Opera
Group’s production of Iolanthe. Joe ran into some
classmates at the end of Sept for Marty Pinnes’s
birthday dinner at Flea Market Café. Dillon
Kolkmann was there to celebrate upon his return
from Niger with the Peace Corps.
Lisa Belgam is now back in Hamilton working
as an assistant dean of admission at Colgate!
Hope you’re not snowed in yet!
Erica Leffler is working at a clean energy private equity firm and living with Lauren Mendell
in NYC. She recently visited Ali Whitehurst in
San Fran with Mara Kaufman.
Jill Blinderman also went to SF to see Ali
and Chris Beaver. I was able to visit NYC this
fall where I saw several close friends including
Courtney Dunlaevy who is working a boutique
investment bank and Julie Geifman who recently
moved to Williamsburg and is studying law at
Cardozo. Simon Jarcho recently moved to Saxtons River, VT, to begin a new career in teaching
at VT Academy. After 2 years of research at the
Princeton Economics Group, Simon decided to
return to the classroom. He is teaching algebra
and pre-calc and coaches the varsity boys soccer
team, the JV boys hockey team, and the JV tennis
team.
Last, but certainly not least, we have some
engagements and weddings to report! Lauren
Robinson and Jonathan Crossett got engaged
in Aug. The couple met in the Curtis dorm 1st
year and have been together ever since. They
look forward to the wedding, which is scheduled
for Aug 2011. Rob Sobelman and Deb Charney
were also engaged this fall. They celebrated at
Deb’s parents’ house in NJ. Jeremy Bennick and
Talia Goldstein got engaged and married this
summer. Jeremy proposed in the early summer
and they had a small ceremony with their family
on August 13th — Colgate Day! The wedding
involved just family and a few friends, including
Adam Coccari and Alyssa Lust. The couple looks
forward to a much larger celebration next year
with many more Colgate classmates. Rachel
Marks also reported the engagement of Emily
Rafferty to her longtime boyfriend Eric Murther
in the Adirondacks over Labor Day weekend.
Meredith Hines, Kevin Tarrant, Sam Obenhaus,
Kristen Coletti, Jamie Scovern, Jane Sheehan,
Lydia Gottesfeld joined Rachel in celebrating the
event with the happy couple. Congratulations to
you all!
Lastly, Taylor Buonocore, Lindsey Dole, Carolyn Theis, and I are part of the Women At Colgate
group and are looking for interest to create some
events with alums.
Thank you for all of the amazing updates!
You all continue to impress me with your postColgate pursuits. Please join the Facebook group
Colgate Class of 2008 if you haven’t already or
send me updates via e-mail.
Sarah: [email protected]
2009
Samantha Gillis
616 Crowne Oak Circle
Winston Salem, NC 27106-3388
Hi, Class of 2009! Hope everyone had a great fall.
I moved to DC and have been lucky enough to
see lots of our classmates. When I first got here,
I was able to go to the Biergarten Haus with
Kate Joyce, Mark Anderson, Laura Flisnik, Kaley
Zaharris, Amanda Gilmore, and Lindsay Wishart.
I was also able to attend the “Welcome to the
City” party, where I saw Steve Rood, who has
become an AmeriCorps VISTA and for the next
year will be the service learning coordinator for
Earth Force in DC.
While I was unable to attend Homecoming,
our pres Chris Nulty reports that the Class of
2009 was well-represented this year. Everyone
who survived the weekend is happy to report
that Mary at La Iguana still claims 2009 was the
best class, Louann at Slices expressed similar sentiment, and Dunkin’ Donuts is now a presence in
Hamilton.
This summer Rayna Eisenhut hosted a celebration for both Emily Aronowitz’s and America’s
bdays for a week over the 4th of July in Lake
Tahoe. Guests included Lally Weyhrauch, Doug
Clark, Marin Cohn, Rad McMahon, Scotty Tucker,
Charlotte Keenan, Ali Holdway, Alex Plunkett,
Chris Beaver ’08, Adam Coccari ’08, and Jon Berk
’07.
Congrats to Jessica Johnson Amato, who was
married to James Amato in Corolla, NC, on June
17! Kate Lamb and Nicole Varallo were there, and
Steph Macomber ’08 was the maid of honor!
Also a congrats to Josie Miller and Jeremy
Fisher ’10, who are engaged! The 2 were whitewater rafting on the New River in WV for the
weekend when he popped the question.
In school news, Kate Kokanovich wrote that
she and Kathryn Tripp Birken ’05 are now in their
2nd year of the doctor of pharmacy program
at the Wegmans School of Pharmacy at St John
Fisher C in Rochester, NY. They are liking their
time there and encourage any undergrads or
alumni interested in pharmacy school to contact
them — they would love to add to their Colgate
contingent there! Also, Paige L Carlos is in her
2nd year at FL A&M U C of Law in Orlando, and
was invited to join their Law Review!
Adam Bailey and Erin Bergman ’08 just moved
from Seattle to Madison, WI, where she will be
starting her MS in epidemiology and Adam is
starting his MD/PhD in immunology and microbiology at U of WI. The duo just got back from a
backpacking trip through Greece and Italy and
are enjoying being back in school.
In New England, Katherine Pezella is now
living with Sarah MacKenzie in Somerville.
Jessi Bauer, who is living in Burlington, VT, was
visited by Joe Rusckowski and John Tang-Kong.
The outdoorsy trio went rock climbing.
Abroad, Alex Golden is teaching English in
northern Japan to middle and elementary school
students.
Keep on the lookout for Zachary Held and
Mike Wenger’s OpenAction 2.0! The 2 entrepreneurs from our class launched the website this
past Oct.
Please keep sending updates!
Sam: 207-807-4116; [email protected]
2 0 10
Kim Siembieda
734 Arlington Road
Narberth, PA 19072
It was great seeing much of the 2010 class who
headed back to Colgate for what has been
termed our “0 Year Reunion.” With great weather
blessing the campus on Homecoming weekend,
I was happy to see most of the Hamilton area remain similar to when our class had left just a few
short months ago. Yet, there were a few notable
changes to our favorite campus. For one, Frank
Dining Hall has been remodeled, now providing
more seating options. The new fitness center is
also in the process of being built. First-years are
no longer allowed in Greek houses during their
1st semester. The former DKE house has been
converted into 1st-year living. Finally, much to
my dismay, there is a bouncer guarding the door
during one’s late night rush to Slices. However,
with 22 Utica Café now open until 3AM, post-Jug
cravings have never been more rewarding.
Aside from reliving our glory days at Colgate,
many people have begun new adventures. Two
of our class members, Kyle Poinsett and Daniela
Koci, got engaged on Aug 21! Along with wedding planning, Daniela is attending the U of
Central FL to get her MPA in nonprofit mgmt. She
is also a programming coordinator for the Venice
Touchdown Club Inc, a local FL nonprofit org.
Several Colgate grads from our class have
traveled across the country to CA. Christie
Bentley is working in the internatl dept of E!
Entertainment Networks in LA. Likewise, Arianne
Templeton is in LA working for Creative Artists
Agency. Andrew Burford has moved to Venice,
CA, and is now working at MGM Studios.
Setting their sights on internatl locations,
even more of our classmates have ventured
globally. Lauren Paverman is traveling to Galicia,
Spain, where she will be a teaching asst for 8
months. Likewise, Hannah Feldman has been
working in Bulgaria as an English teacher all
summer. Now, she has relocated to Moscow,
where she will continue to teach English until
June 2011. Ian McNally is working for the Heart
Corp, where he is a native English teacher in the
city of Kashiwain Chiba Prefecture, Japan. Fellow
classmate Jen Etkin introduced Josh McLane
to the Tanzanian family running an orphanage in Boma Ng’ombe, a town at the foothills of
Kilimanjaro. There he will be teaching English
at Kao La Amani until Christmas. Josh is also
looking forward to embracing the local culture
and practices. Kali McMillan spent 3 weeks this
summer photographing for a nonprofit, F3B, in
Mozambique, Swaziland, and South Africa. She
is now spending 2 months traveling through
Europe photographing her cultural experience
through Madrid, Barcelona, Berlin, Amsterdam,
Dublin, Paris, and Warsaw. See a photo of Kali on
our class page photo gallery at Colgateconnect.
org. Matt Geduldig is in S Korea as a Fulbright
English teaching assistantship. Matt is enjoying
the memorable experience and continues the
Colgate tradition abroad by wearing a Colgate
T-shirt every Friday the 13th! Kaitlin Tufts has
joined the Peace Corps and is venturing to the
Kingdom of Tonga in the S Pacific, where she will
be a primary school teacher for over 2 years.
There are also a few 2010 grads who have
sought to continue higher ed. Ian Aguilar is
pursuing his MBA at Rollins C, Crummer School
of Business in Winter Park, FL. Dibs Datta has
relocated to Pitt, where he is pursuing his PhD in
neuroscience at one of the top programs in the
country, the U of Pitt.
Sarajane McMahon spent a month in China
shooting a mini food documentary before
returning to Miami, where she is working in
the food-related industry. She has an events
internship with Slow Food Miami, a nonprofit
that raises money to build local elementary
school gardens and educates children on how to
cultivate their plants. She is also an apprentice
with Chef Norman Van Aken at his restaurant,
Norman’s 180. Sarajane is also looking forward to
attending her 5th Marine Corps Bday Ball with
her boyfriend, 1st Lieutenant David Goodrich ’08.
Kevin Gillard made a quick transition from
Colgate to the real world. The day after graduation, he moved to Bloomington, IN, where he
began working as a manager for the franchise
that holds the rights to build Five Guys Burgers
and Fries. His main objective is to open 5 new
restaurants over the next 3 years. Thus far, they
have opened their 1st of 5 restaurants on July 28.
Mark Kelso and Matt Muskin are living together in an apt in DC. Matt is a paralegal at the
Dept of Justice. Mark is working at MarketBridge,
a sales and marketing consulting firm, and sits
next to John Greenfield.
Sam Cutler is among many Colgate alumni
now residing in NYC. He started over the summer working as a business analyst at Privilege
Underwriters Reciprocal Exchange. Steve
Morgan is also in NY, working at an advertising
agency, BBDO, on their Snickers account. Brian
Fuller and Sam Inacker joined Lee Waldman ’08
at the NYSE working for Euronext as analysts
down on Wall St. Max Troper and Jordan Turban
work nearby at Sullivan & Cromwell. Brian; Max;
Chris Gonnella, an analyst for Saatchi & Saatchi
Advertising; and Christian Massey, an analyst
for Wilmington Trust, are all living together in
the city. Working in such close proximity to each
other, many of our classmates have reported
meeting up during lunchtime and for happy
hours, keeping that Colgate experience alive.
Jonathon Miller-Meeks has joined fellow
Colgate grads who founded a yogurt company in
Jan. The product launched in NYC this past June.
Pursing her artistic side, Alaina Sullivan is
continuing to paint. At the end of the summer
she sold her 1st painting! Visit her website to see
her latest artwork.
Elise Bronzo is now working at Colgate in
ALANA as an outreach programming coordinator.
Regan Corr has joined her father, Class of
’78, at the family business, Corr Distributors Inc
in Buffalo, as an account exec. Her family was
just featured in Business First, Buffalo’s weekly
business periodical. Remarkably, the writer of
the article, Allissa Kline, is also one of our own, a
graduate of the Class of 2001!
Continue sending in updates!
Kim: 610-952-0491; [email protected]
Marriages & Unions:
Births & Adoptions
(2010 unless otherwise noted)
(2010 unless otherwise noted)
To John Less ’93 and Laurie Schowater: Josephine
Elizabeth, June 4
Bob Coye ’54 and Darlene Dunlap, Oct. 17 (commitment ceremony)
To David Riester ’86: Benjamin Albert, April 7
To Michael Floyd ’94: Henrietta, Sept. 9
To Doug Scheidt ’86 and Marty Wimmer: Matthew Joseph, born on Aug. 2, 2006, adopted on
July 13
To Chris Kayser ’94 and Kara: Emily Rose, June 8
Susan DeVico ’79 and Edward Matney, July 31
Edward Audi ’89 and Laila Kobrossy, July 11
Jacqueline Strasser ’95 and Neal Higgins,
Aug. 14
Chapin Brackett ’98 and Chelsea Forkner, Aug. 14
Erin Matts ’99 and Gregory Kalleres, July 3
James E. Menapace ’99 and Amy G. Tsang,
Aug. 20
Stephanie Alvarado ’00 and Robert McKenna,
Sept. 11
To Wyandt Holmes ’89 and Hilary: Wesley
Wyandt, Aug. 30, joining Kendall
To John Livingston ’89 and Eugenia Carris: Peter
Carris, May 27, joining Eleni
To Jeffrey Sharp ’89 and Douglas Steinbrech:
John William Edward, April 28
To Patrick and Lorena Conlin ’91 Hoopes:
Heather Renee, Feb. 22
To Drew Bixby ’92 and Melissa: Kendall Quinn,
March 9
Paul Audi ’01 and Hillary Bobys, Aug. 7
To Eric Breitman ’92 and Dana: Scarlet, Aug. 21
Meghan P. Cooper ’01 and Brian L. Beaupre,
July 10
To Christie Demosthenous ’92 and Timothy
Paulsen: Elanor Rose, May 7
Dane Fraser ’01 and Kerri Zimmer, Sept. 5
To Stephen and Danielle D’Emilia ’95 DeCourcey:
Griffin Emmett, June 24
To David ’95 and Jennifer Armstrong ’95
Schreiber: Hayden Alexander, July 22
To Thomas and Kim Standish ’95 Reohr: Thomas
‘TJ,’ Nov. 26, 2009, joining Abby and Taryn
To Peter and Melanie Carroll ’96 Morrice: Gavin
James, July 6, joining Ryan
To Chris ’97 and Laura LeClair ’98 Accettella:
Andrew Brian, Aug. 10, joining Madeleine
To John Magnan ’97 and Heather: Campbell, July
23
To Pam Rattananont ’97 and Jonathan Ferris ’98:
Oliver Prasop, Aug. 9
To Thomas Rusling ’97 and Meme: May Lotus,
April 30, 2009
Laura Rohrbacher ’01 and Timothy Moore, Sept.
6, 2009
Merritt Dattel ’02 and David McGowan, May 15
Connect with Colgate
Amelia Hanley ’02 and Christian Cavallo, Sept. 1
Nicholas Thompson ’02 and Alexandra Rice ’02,
Sept. 18
Janelle Fatt-Hong Chin ’03 and David Ybarra,
May 2, 2009
Melissa Greer ’03 and Matthew Dreyfus, Oct. 18,
2009
Erin Kozaczuk ’03 and Ashwin Lall ’03, July 10
Sarah Mohr ’03 and Daniel Fabian, Nov. 7, 2009
Sarah Reczek ’03 and Cesar Cardona, Oct. 10
Sarah Hitchcock ’04 and Christopher Parker ’05,
Oct. 2
Rob Parker ’04 and Kim Smalley ’05, Aug. 7
Drew Beitz ’05 and Nora McGeough ’05, June 26
Luke Graham ’05 and Anne Coomber ’06, June 26
Natalie Heller ’05 and Shaun Gagnon, Oct. 10
Victoria Holland Klarfeld ’06 and John Boles
Capehart, Sept. 18
Ryan Martin ’06 and Lauren Pallone, Dec. 19, 2009
Heidi Ross ’06 and Erich Shafer, Aug. 7
Susan M. Taffe ’06 and Ryan J. Reed, June 6
Remember when making snow angels
was the perfect antidote to hours in
classrooms, the library, or lab?
Your financial support for the Colgate Annual Fund can make
you an angel again. Your gift of any size helps keep Colgate
strong. It provides students with financial aid and helps train
the leaders of tomorrow.
Megan Bergman ’07 and Cress Dawson, July 23
Gideon Hart ’07 and Allison Salewski ’09, Aug. 14
Jeremy Bennick ’08 and Talia Goldstein ’08,
Aug. 13
Please make your gift today.
Online at www.colgateconnect.org/makeagift
or call 800-668-4428.
Jessica Johnson ’09 and James Amato, June 17
News and views for the Colgate community
77
To Michael ’97 and Jennifer Badenoch ’97
Schwartz: Sabine Grace, Aug. 13
To Fernando and Caroline Westin ’97 Garcia:
Conrad Ignacio Emil, Oct. 28, 2009, joining
Staffan
To Jarrod Bowers ’98 and Julie: Blake, June 18
To Jeremy Eager ’98 and Jennifer: Leighton
Ellyse, June 2
To Seth A. Schaeffer ’98 and Carrie: Anna Clare,
April 16, joining Luke
To Michael ’98 and Kim Hebert ’98 Simone: Ewan
Joseph, April 30, joining Liam
To Edward ’98 and Heather McClendon ’97
Sinclair: Sophia, July 30
To Patrick and Nicole Aloe ’99 Keane: Tyler
Harrison, Aug. 17, joining Lillian
To Michael and Courtney Bender ’99 Liggera: Alexandra Margaret, May 22
To Ryan ’99 and Betsey Thomas ’00 Clements:
John Dennis, June 7, joining Scarlett
To Andrew ‘Koby’ ’99 and Chrissy Cortese ’01
Cohen: Riley Rose, May 28, 2009
To John and Emily Hagenah ’99 MacEntee:
Jackson William, May 3
To Patrick and Catherine Herbst ’99 Machir:
Taylor, April 13
To Michael ’99 and Jessie Seiden ’99 Sartor:
James Hamilton, April 3, joining William
To Benjamin and Jennifer Bombard ’00
McGovern: Ella Grace, July 20
To Gabriel Schwartz ’00 and Jolie: Sadie Mia,
Oct. 14
To Tyler ’01 and Gretchen Tucker ’01 Fonda:
Charlie, Sept. 8
To Jason and Kathleen Allen ’01 Kreuzer:
Annabel Mary, May 24
To Ben ’01 and Jamie Catalano ’01 Spielman:
Julia Rose, June 29
To Jesse ’01 and Elizabeth Reed ’02 Young:
Caroline Campbell, Feb. 8
To Terrence ’01 and Jennifer Kozlak ’01 Zinn:
Porter Wallace, June 8
To Edmund ’03 and Lorissa Wellenstein ’01
Durant: Isaiah David, Jan. 7
In Memoriam
The Scene runs deceased notices on all alumni,
current and former faculty members, honorary
degree recipients, and staff members and others
whom the editors determine would be well
known to alumni.
Jared L. Howland Sr. ’36, August 24, 2010. Chi
Omega Rho, Maroon Key, track. MA, Syracuse
University, 1938. He was a teacher with the Utica
City School District for 41 years, and following
retirement, was an income tax preparer until
2004. He was predeceased by his brother, Frank
78
scene: Winter 2011
’36, and his sister. He is survived by his wife,
Agnes, son, Jared Jr. ’78, son-in-law, Lewis Knapp
’65, sister, 2 daughters, 4 grandchildren, 8 greatgrandchildren, and several nephews and nieces.
J. Greenough Krogh ’38, September 22, 2010.
Delta Upsilon, Salmagundi, football, lacrosse. US
Army Air Corps, WWII. He worked with the US
Rubber Company before going on to own and operate Wim and Krogh Tire Service. He is survived
by his wife, Betty Jane, as well as 2 brothers, 3
children, 6 grandchildren, and several nieces and
nephews.
John C. Dorsey ’39, June 4, 2009. Phi Gamma
Delta, chorus, football, student government. US
Army; Bronze Star. He had a long career in sales
prior to retirement. He was predeceased by his
wife, Virginia. He is survived by 2 daughters and
sons-in-law, and 4 grandchildren.
James W. Robb ’39, June 27, 2010. Phi Beta Kappa.
US Navy, WWII. MA, Middlebury College, 1950;
PhD, Catholic University of America, 1958. He was
a faculty member at George Washington University for 38 years. He taught Spanish, French,
and Portuguese language courses, lectured on
Ibero-American literature, and was an authority
on Alfonso Reyes. He was predeceased by his
wife, Cecilia.
Carl A. Overstrom ’40, July 9, 2010. Commons
Club. US Army Air Corps, WWII. He worked as
an engineer with Corning Glass Works until his
retirement in 1981. He was predeceased by 2
daughters. He is survived by his wife, Eleanor, a
son, 3 grandchildren, and 3 step-grandchildren.
John T. McIntosh ’41, June 18, 2003. Alpha Tau
Omega. US Army, Korean War. He was a lumber
broker for 50 years and a bookkeeper. He is survived by his children and their families.
ment. He then entered private practice for 5 years
before retiring. He was predeceased by his wife,
Jacqueline. He is survived by a daughter, a son,
a grandson, a sister, brother-in-law Phillip Ingle
’46, and great-niece Christine Duncan ’06.
Robert R. Lacey ’43, August 31, 2010. Beta Theta
Pi, marching band, pep band, ski club. US Army;
US Navy. DDS, University of Pennsylvania School
of Dental Medicine, 1945. He retired from his dental practice in Binghamton, N.Y., in 1985. He was
predeceased by his wife, Esther. He is survived
by 3 sons, including Frederick ’76, 3 daughters-inlaw, and 4 granddaughters.
J. Duncan MacLean ’43, September 11, 2010. Phi
Delta Theta, International Relations Council, student government, boxing, track. US Army, WWII.
MBA, Harvard Business School, 1948. He worked
for 35 years with Chase Manhattan Bank and
became the VP of the corporate lending division.
He was predeceased by his wife, Virginia. He is
survived by 2 sons and 4 grandchildren.
Robert A. Martin ’43, September 19, 2010. Sigma
Nu, Phi Beta Kappa, Konosioni, Maroon Key, International Relations Council, tennis, track. US Navy,
WWII. MBA, University of Southern California,
1961. For 25 years, he worked for Howard Hughes
Aircraft, where he assembled the team that built
the first lunar landing craft, Surveyor, and he also
did industrial relations consulting. He is survived
by his sister and several nephews and nieces.
William S. Montgomery ’44, September 18, 2010.
Kappa Delta Rho. US Army, WWII, Korean War.
MD, Cornell University, 1947. He founded the
Orange County Diabetes Association, in addition
to serving as chief of staff at St. Luke’s Hospital
in Newburgh, N.Y. He was predeceased by his
daughter. He is survived by his wife, Gloria, 4
daughters, 7 grandchildren, 7 great-grandchildren, and a nephew.
Theodore E. Mulford ’41, August 12, 2010. Sigma
Chi, Phi Beta Kappa, Konosioni, Maroon, Salmagundi, Austen Colgate Scholar, Maroon Key, Maroon Citation, Maroon Council, debate. For many
years until retirement, he handled industrial and
public relations for Link Aviation, which later
became the Singer Co. He is survived by his wife,
Ruth, and their son.
Henry D. Towers ’44, October 10, 2010. Beta
Theta Pi, Konosioni, International Relations
Council, Maroon Key, football, student government, basketball. US Navy. He retired as VP of
manufacturing with Pratt, Read and Co. He was
predeceased by his wife, Shavaun. He is survived
by 2 daughters and 2 granddaughters.
Joseph M. Turino ’41, October 7, 2010. Alpha Tau
Omega, Konosioni, track, cheerleading. US Navy,
1941–1946. He was a principal in Wm. Turino Co.
and later J.M. Turino Co. He was predeceased
by his wife, Betty, and uncle Alfred ’32. He is
survived by a daughter, 3 sons including Thomas
’75, 2 daughters-in-law, a sister, a brother, and 7
grandchildren.
John E. Kohnle ’45, September 30, 2009. Alpha
Tau Omega. US Marine Corps, WWII; Bronze
and Silver Star. He was a 3-term president of the
Dayton Philharmonic (Ohio) and co-founder of
Dayton Public Radio. He was predeceased by a
son. He is survived by his wife, Sherri, 4 sons, 3
daughters, 8 grandchildren, and 4 great-grandchildren.
Charles S. Williams ’41, October 7, 2010. Sigma
Nu, Washington, D.C., Study Group, marching
band. US Navy; distinguished flying cross with
a gold star, Purple Heart, air medal with a silver
star and 3 gold stars, American Defense Medal,
American and Pacific Theatre Medals with 5
battle stars, WWII Victory Medal, Philippine
Liberation and Independence Medals. He was a
quarter-century employee of Montgomery Ward
and retired from Jefferson Stores in 1980. He was
predeceased by his wife, Inez. He is survived by 2
sons, 2 daughters, and 7 grandchildren.
Ole B. Kollevoll Sr. ’45, September 11, 2010. Delta
Upsilon, Konosioni, Maroon Key, hockey, baseball,
football, basketball, student government; Silver
Puck Award, Colgate Hall of Honor. US Navy.
MEd, 1945. Following his naval service, he was
recruited as a catcher for the Boston Braves. During that time, he also played semi-professional
hockey for the Clinton Comets. In 1947, he was a
member of the US National Team participating
at the World Hockey Championships in Prague.
His baseball talent elevated him to a Triple
A, before suffering a career-ending injury in
1948. He then began his career in coaching and
athletic administration, including coaching the
hockey and freshman football teams at Colgate
1955–1965. He left Colgate to join Lafayette College as director of athletics, retiring in 1989. He
was predeceased by his first wife, Sandy. He is
survived by his wife, Carol, 3 sons, 3 daughters-
William R. Campbell ’43, October 4, 2010. Phi
Delta Theta, basketball, chorus. US Air Force. LLB,
University of Florida, 1948; MBA, University of
Dayton, 1965. After retiring from the Air Force,
where he served in JAG, he worked at Pratt &
Whitney in the Contract Administration Depart-
in-law including Judith Myers Kollevoll ’82, a
stepdaughter, 4 stepsons, 6 grandchildren, and 12
step-grandchildren.
James H. Noble ’45, September 10, 2010. Sigma
Nu, student government, basketball, tennis,
softball. US Army; Purple Heart. He served as a
contract administrator at Aerojet for 30 years. He
is survived by his wife, Anna, 4 daughters, 3 sons,
12 grandchildren, 3 step-grandchildren, 2 greatgranddaughters, and many nieces and nephews.
Robert J. Bowman Jr. ’46, September 9, 2010.
Delta Kappa Epsilon, marching band, football.
US Navy, WWII. He served as the president of
R.J.B Marketing and then worked in real estate
with Hemlock Sales Agency. He was predeceased
by his son. He is survived by his wife, Carolyn,
as well as a son, 3 daughters, 8 grandchildren
including Cristine Singer Shropshire ’92,
grandson-in-law Camp Shropshire ’91, and 12
great-grandchildren.
Joseph C. Dilts ’46, July 5, 2010. Phi Kappa Psi,
Maroon, Austen Colgate Scholar, football, student
government. He retired from the DuPont Company after 30 years of service in the advertising
department. He was predeceased by his wife,
Jane. He is survived by his son, a daughter-in-law,
2 grandchildren, and 2 great-grandchildren.
Edward D. MacEwan ’46, July 23, 2010. Sigma
Nu, International Relations Club. US Army Air
Corps, WWII. MA, State University of New York,
New Paltz, 1974. He worked with Lehigh Portland
Cement Company until 1966. He then taught
history for 20 years and was head of the department at Pine Bush Central Schools. He was predeceased by his wife, Mary Jane, and a son. He is
survived by a son and 5 grandchildren.
Robert M. Orth ’46, September 1, 2010. Phi
Delta Theta, Outing Club, Masque and Triangle,
chorus. US Army, WWII. He began his career in
life insurance in 1950. The city of Burlington, Vt.,
designated Oct. 2 “Bob Orth Day” for his 50 years
of service with New England Financial, where
he was a managing partner for the state. He was
predeceased by his wife, Lynn. He is survived by
his longtime companion, Bunny, 2 daughters, a
son, a son-in-law, and 4 grandchildren.
Lowell C. Camps ’48, September 13, 2010. Delta
Kappa Epsilon, Maroon Key, Konosioni, Outing
Club, track, football. US Army, WWII. He worked
as a general agent for John Hancock Mutual Life
for 25 years. He was predeceased by his wife,
Helen. He is survived by his daughter, 2 sons, and
4 grandchildren.
James R. Jolly ’48, June 9, 2010. Beta Theta Pi,
Masque and Triangle. US Marine Corps, WWII. He
retired after a career in sales and marketing with
Cannon Mills, Inc. He is survived by his wife,
Mary, 3 sons including James ’73, his brother,
Alan ’50, 6 grandchildren, and a great-grandchild.
Sheldon W. Damsky ’49, September 1, 2010.
International Relations Council. US Navy, WWII.
LLB, Cornell Law School, 1952. His law career was
devoted to zoning and planning; following retirement, he was appointed to the Legislative Commission on Rural Resources to revise land use
statutes. He also wrote 5 novels. He is survived
by his wife, Dorice, 3 children, 3 stepsons, and 5
grandchildren.
Robert L. Gardner ’49, July 22, 2010. Lambda Chi
Alpha, Masque and Triangle, student government. He owned and operated a group of vaca-
tion cottages in Callander, Ontario. He is survived
by 2 daughters and a son.
Leland G. Hickling ’49, May 25, 2010. Commons
Club, Banter, pep band, marching band. MA,
Albany State College for Teachers, 1950. He spent
many years as the Washington correspondent
for Gannet Co., Inc. and then was a freelance
writer and musician. He is survived by his
children.
George W. Sommer ’49, August 27, 2009. Alpha
Tau Omega, psychology club. US Coast Guard,
Merchant Marines. LLB. He was a retired attorney. He is survived by his children and their
families.
Charles G. Campbell ’50, July 21, 2010. Sigma Chi.
US Merchant Marines, WWII. BDiv, Pacific School
of Religion; DMin, Andover Newton Theological School. After serving in parish ministry for
40 years, he retired as senior pastor of the First
Congregational Church in West Norwalk, Conn.
He is survived by his wife, Pennie, 3 daughters, 2
sons, 11 grandchildren, 2 sisters, and nieces and
nephews.
Earl J. Hoag Jr. ’50, June 28, 2010. Sigma Nu,
Outing Club, sailing club, chorus. US Air Force,
Korean War. He was employed at CIGNA Life
Insurance for 58 years until retiring in 2008. He
was predeceased by his uncle E. Walker Leonard
1912 and cousin Lester H. Leonard ’38. He is survived by his wife, Mary Jane, 2 sons, 2 daughters,
7 grandchildren, and 2 great-grandchildren.
Jennings Marburger ’50, July 25, 2010. Baseball,
football. US Navy, WWII. He began his career as
a teacher and coach before going into management for Travelers Life Ins. Co. and then
becoming an executive for Pan American Life
Insurance. He was predeceased by his first wife.
He is survived by his wife, Ginger, 3 children, 3
stepchildren, 13 grandchildren, and 2 greatgrandchildren.
Arthur M. Mettelman ’50, September 30, 2010.
Baseball. US Navy 1945-1946. DDS, Columbia
School of Dentistry, 1954. He practiced dentistry
for 44 years in Utica, N.Y. He is survived by his
wife, Joyce, a sister, 3 children, and 2 grandchildren.
K. Blair Davis ’51, July 28, 2010. Sigma Chi, ROTC,
Maroon Key, baseball, basketball. US Air Force,
Korean Conflict. He worked for more than 30
years in several departments in the DuPont Co.,
retiring from the international department. He
then worked as a realtor. He is survived by his
wife, Patricia, and many nieces and nephews.
Arthur T. Goodwin ’51, September 15, 2010. Phi
Kappa Psi, Masque and Triangle, debate society,
psychology club. US Navy. MA, New York University, 1964. He worked for Avon for 30 years.
He was predeceased by his wife, Margaret. He is
survived by his 4 children and 8 grandchildren.
John A. Howard ’52, September 25, 2010. Beta
Theta Pi, Maroon Key, Masque and Triangle, soccer, tennis. US Marine Corps. He worked as both
a sales and account manager with IBM and later
with Xerox before retirement. He is survived by
his wife, Maryann, 2 sons, 3 granddaughters, and
his brother.
Michael J. Copeland ’54, July 8, 2010. Phi Kappa
Tau, Russian studies club, Spanish club, marching
band, chess club. US Air Force, Korean War. Dur-
ing his career in the optical industry, he was one
of the developers of the first intra-ocular lens
used in the United States. His company manufactured an intra-ocular lens that revolutionized
cataracts surgery in 1968. He is survived by his
wife, Betty, 2 daughters, 2 sons, 2 stepdaughters,
a granddaughter, his brother, and numerous
nieces, nephews, and cousins.
David E. Cox ’54, July 18, 2010. Kappa Delta Rho.
US Army. University of Minnesota: BBA, 1951;
BCE, 1959. He was owner of Weldex Corp. for 30
years, servicing the propane industry. In 1992, he
established Northeast Propane Systems, creating
a second career investigating gas explosions
as a fuel gas expert. He is survived by his wife,
Mary Ellen, a son, 2 daughters, 2 grandchildren, a
brother, and many nieces and nephews.
Barton Crawford Hurd ’54, September 12, 2010.
Alpha Tau Omega, ROTC, Masque and Triangle,
International Relations Council, football. US Air
Force. He was president of the Hurd Shoe Company for more than 25 years and a partner in
Utica Computer Services. He was predeceased by
his wife, Trudy. He is survived by his companion,
Dottie, 3 daughters, 3 sons, 4 grandchildren, and
2 sisters.
Frederick E. McKnight ’54, August 17, 2010.
Alpha Tau Omega, International Relations Club,
soccer. US Marine Corps, Marine Reserves. A
former newspaper reporter and editorial writer
with Asbury Park Press, he worked in corporate
public relations with the Bell System for 26
years, and more recently as public affairs manager for AT&T Bell Laboratories, retiring in 1986.
He was predeceased by a son and daughter. He
is survived by his wife, Diane, a son, a sister-inlaw, and a niece.
Thomas R. Warne ’55, April 16, 2010. Beta Theta
Pi, Salmagundi, Washington Study Group, football, golf. His banking career began with the
Federal Reserve, and he went on to work at the
Lincoln Rochester Trust Co. as well as the Remington Rand Plant. He is survived by his children
and their families.
Thomas E. Robertson ’56, July 16, 2010. Lambda
Chi Alpha, boxing, wrestling. He pursued a
career as a teacher and wrestling coach, rising
to national stature in the latter role. He holds
the record for most wrestling wins as a coach in
New York Section IV history, and was inducted
into the National Wrestling Hall of Fame. He is
survived by his wife, Jane, 5 daughters, 2 sons, 16
grandchildren, and 5 great-grandchildren.
Robert A. Schakow ’56, November 28, 2008. Tau
Kappa Epsilon, football, indoor track. He was
an engineering specialist. He is survived by his
wife, Carolyn.
Fred A. Schroeder Jr. ’57, July 7, 2010. Phi Kappa
Tau, Young Republicans, concert band, sailing
club. MD, University of Rochester. He was an internist in Pearl River, N.Y., for 37 years and on the
staff of Nyack Hospital before retiring in 2000.
He is survived by his wife, Geraldine, a daughter,
2 sons, 5 grandchildren, and a sister.
Ross L. Weeks Jr. ’58, August 3, 2010. Kappa Delta Rho, International Relations Council, Maroon,
Caliper, Maroon Key, WRCU, Young Republicans.
US Army. MBA, George Washington University.
He retired as assistant to the president of the
College of William & Mary, where he had also
served as director of public information. He was
predeceased by his father, Ross ’33, and uncle
Stanley ’35. He is survived by his wife, Ndeleshia,
3 sons, a daughter, 2 grandchildren, a sister, a
nephew, and a cousin.
Stephen W. Fernald ’78, July 11, 2010. Phi Delta
Theta, tennis. US Marine Corps, Gulf War. BS,
Chapman University; MBA, Carroll Graduate
School of Management at Boston College, 1993.
After serving as a captain in the Marines and
earning his MBA, he began working for AT&T. He
is survived by his wife, Elizabeth, a daughter, his
parents, 3 brothers, and nieces and nephews.
Leland B. Moss ’59, June 30, 2010. Theta Chi,
Salmagundi, Outing Club, track, economics club,
student government. He spent 40 years working
for Liberty Mutual Insurance Co. He is survived
by his wife, Joanne, 2 sons, a daughter, and 2
grandchildren.
Karen Jeff Hickey ’78, August 23, 2010. Phi Beta
Kappa, Dijon study group. She worked in nonprofit education, rising to director of education at
the English Speaking Union of the United States,
where she founded the Shakespeare Set Free
Institute. She is survived by her husband, Brian,
a daughter, a sister, her father, and extended
family.
C. William Braden Jr. ’60, October 2, 2010. Sigma
Chi, Argentina Study Group, student government. US Army. He served as VP for 8 offices at
Summit and Elizabeth Trust Co. and went on to
become the owner of Lakeland Stationary. He
was predeceased by his father and sister. He
is survived by his wife, Belinda, son Timothy
Braden ’90, mother, a daughter, a sister, a granddaughter, and 3 nieces.
Mabel L. Lang H’78, July 21, 2010. AB, Cornell
University, 1939. Bryn Mawr College: MA, 1940;
PhD, 1943. She was Katherine E. McBride Professor emeritus and Paul Shorey Professor emeritus
of Greek at Bryn Mawr College. Throughout
her career, she was a major contributor to the
academic and institutional development of the
American School of Classical Studies at Athens
(ASCSA). During her 45 years at Bryn Mawr, she
served as acting dean of the college, dean of the
sophomore class, and secretary of the faculty.
In 1961, she became chair of the Department
of Greek, a position she held until retirement
in 1988. She contributed to numerous ASCSArelated publications spanning the fields of
history, epigraphy, and archaeology. Also, she
was the recipient of many honors in recognition
of her academic achievements, including a Guggenheim Fellowship, Fulbright Fellowship, and
3 honorary degrees. She is survived by her sister,
Marian Blanchard, 4 nephews, and a niece.
William H. Doremus ’60, September 25, 2010.
Theta Chi, Maroon, WRCU, Outing Club. He was
president of McCullagh Company Inc. in Plainview, N.Y. He is survived by his 3 sons including
Blaise ’14, 2 daughters-in-law, 3 grandchildren, a
sister, and a brother-in-law.
Peter J. Stahel ’60, September 9, 2010. Alpha
Tau Omega, Maroon, Outing Club, sailing club.
MBA, Columbia University, 1962. He worked in
international real estate consulting and development as a broker with both Prudential Elliman
and Daniel Gale Sotheby’s International. He
was predeceased by his son. He is survived by
his wife, Barbara, as well as 2 daughters and 8
grandchildren.
J. Barry Dunleavy ’65, June 7, 2010. Sigma Nu,
Austen Colgate Scholar, football. He was an
industrial salesman and then a developer for
Dunleavy Inc. He is survived by his wife, Louise,
and their children.
Eric P. Schoenlein ’82, October 12, 2010. Sigma
Chi, Phi Beta Kappa. DDS, Columbia University
School of Dental and Oral Surgery, 1985. He began
his practice of orthodontia in Utica, N.Y., in 1986.
He is survived by his parents, a brother, a sister
and brother-in-law, and a niece and nephew.
Andrew W. Harkness ’65, August 25, 2010. Tau
Kappa Epsilon, WRCU, Konosioni, Maroon Key,
Alumni Memorial Scholar, marching band, student government. US Army. JD, Duke University,
1968. After serving the Army at the Pentagon, he
began his law career in Rochester, N.Y. In 1976, he
opened his own practice in Canandaigua, N.Y.,
where he was also the city attorney. He later
worked as an attorney in Rochester, N.Y., lived in
Colorado, and then returned to Canandaigua. He
was predeceased by his father. He is survived by
his mother, a daughter, a son, a sister, a niece, a
nephew, an uncle, an aunt, and cousins.
Lennox N. Sterling ’82, September 22, 2010. Alpha
Tau Omega, hockey. He worked with the Canada
Post Corporation and coached junior league ice
hockey in Ontario. He is survived by his wife,
Kathleen, 2 brothers, and 3 sons.
Stephen R. Sferra ’83, August 6, 2009. Delta
Kappa Epsilon. He was self-employed as the
president of Stephen R. Sferra Construction. He is
survived by his wife, Jeanine, and a daughter.
Jacqueline N. Schafer MA’69, July 16, 2010. She
worked as a teacher and guidance counselor in
the New Hartford (N.Y.) Central School District,
rising to chairwoman of the guidance department. She also served on the district’s school
board, and served as past president. She is
survived by 2 brothers and 2 sisters.
Denise A. Doerrer ’84, May 31, 2010. India Study
Group. She lived in Hyde Park, Mass.
Melissa Spearing Trout ’93, August 26, 2010. MA,
Johns Hopkins School of Public Health, 1999. She
was a technical writer at the National Institute of
Mental Health in Bethesda, MD. She is survived
by her husband, Matthew, and her parents.
Michael L. Michael ’71, October 19, 2010. JD,
Georgetown University, 1974. Phi Beta Kappa, student government. He began private practice in
New York in 1975. An industry leader in financial
regulation and ethical decision making, most
recently he was a senior fellow at MossavarRahmani Center for Business and Government,
John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard, and executive fellow at Bentley College’s
Center for Business Ethics. He is survived by his
wife, Carol Brown Michael ’74, a daughter, a son,
his mother, a sister, and a brother-in-law.
Kevin B. Williams ’11, October 4, 2010. Upstate
Institute, ski club, water polo. He is survived by
his fiancée, Kathlin Ramsdell ’11, his parents, and
a sister.
Kenneth B. O’Brien, August 21, 2010. US Coast
Guard, WWII. PhD, Stanford University. An
American history scholar with a long career in
academia, he was a professor at Colgate as well
as executive assistant to the president in the
1960s. He is survived by his wife, Carol, 2 sons, a
daughter, 3 grandchildren, and a sister.
News and views for the Colgate community
79
salmagundi
Take Five puzzle
Can you divide this arrangement of Colgate products into five sections so that each section consists of five
connected squares and contains one of each kind of picture? The sections will not all have the same shape.
Answer key on pg. 73.
Puzzle by Puzzability
Slices
A pictorial contest, in homage to the nickname of New York Pizzeria, the late-night Village of Hamilton hot spot serving the Colgate
community for more than three decades —
one plain slice at a time.
What year did this three-day blizzard hit
Colgate a week before spring break, dropping
45 inches of snow, creating 10-foot-plus
snow banks, and giving students one of the
only snow days in university history? Send in
your answer about this “slice” of Colgate to
[email protected] or attn: Colgate Scene,
13 Oak Drive, Hamilton, NY 13346. Correct
responses received by March 7 will be put into
a drawing for a Slices T-shirt.
80
scene: Winter 2011
Rewind
An Imprint of Colgate 1970–1974
It has taken me decades to realize that my
time at Colgate was and remains a series
of life-altering events and near-photo-real
memories. Consider America during the
early 1970s — a massive media and cultural shift to the left, a burgeoning belief that
age and experience were not to be trusted,
and, of course, Watergate and Vietnam.
For me, Colgate consisted of four years
of cultural initiations. Arriving from rural
Indiana, I had not interacted with Jewish or
African-American kids, had never heard a
New Jersey or Boston accent, never met a
guy named Michael Michael, had not legally
taken a drink, had never seen a woman in
combat boots.
During a single day, I could be enlightened, embarrassed, engrossed, exhausted,
delirious, spirited, frightened, alone,
energized, silly, creative, and self-confident,
but, always, enveloped by an intense sensory cloud. Thankfully, the sanctity of the
chapel (dark, quiet, always unlocked) was
only 50 yards from my freshman room in
East Hall. My professors quickly discovered my ignorance, but, fortunately for me,
they generously rewarded both effort and
results.
An urgent boil of activism resulting
from the Vietnam horror during my first
two years seemed to reduce to a simmer
by my third year. There were a few veterans returning to campus and, even when
prodded, their disciplined reticence was
both curious and admirable. President
Nixon, however, introduced a unifying
theme of discontent for any student with
a pulse — Watergate. My second-shift
summer job at a truck manufacturing plant
afforded me the early afternoon to watch
the Watergate hearings.
Consider this: the Kent State tragedy
occured three months before our class
arrived in Hamilton, and Richard Nixon
resigned two months after Senator Sam
Ervin delivered our commencement address — the bookends of an apocalyptic
domestic era.
— David S. Moore ’74
Do you have a reminiscence for Rewind?
Send your submission of short prose,
poetry, or a photograph with a description
to [email protected].
Above: With a stick for a pipe and a carrot nose...
Frosty, eat your heart out! Back cover: Walking by
Hascall Hall on a snowy evening. Both photos by
Andrew Daddio
News and views for the Colgate community
scene: News and views for the Colgate community
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