Faith Wixson Varney
69 Falmouth Road
Falmouth, ME 04105
(207) 781-3038
fvarney@maine.rr.com
I guess we knew what we were doing when we selected Bill Johnson as our class president. According to the April 9, 2017, edition of the Journal Tribune he has added one more award to his list—The Spirit of America Foundation Tribute honoring his volunteerism. He has been mayor and city councilor and served on many committees in the community and in his church —First Parish Congregational Church, UCC. Mayor Ron Michaud presented the award to Bill at the City Council meeting that Bill attended at his wife Mary’s ‘55 request. Ron was very complimentary to Bill at the presentation saying Bill “represents what makes communities great. Bill has been a driving force in ensuring the community continues to be a vibrant and welcoming city.”
The officers and executive committee of our class met and elected the following to fill out the executive committee: Evelyn Whitney Foster; Geraldine Wallace Williams; Robert J. Williams; Carroll Brown Marino; John A. Schwartz; and Stuart P. Haskell. They will help with the mini-reunion planned for May 23 & 24, 2018, at the Hilton Garden Inn in Freeport. Stu, who will also serve as our representative to the Senior Alumni group, will also help plan the Senior Alumni September reunion.
Judith Barker Carducci left for Australia to teach there again. She took another swing at beautiful Prague in October, having not been able to paint there last time after breaking her shoulder on the day of arrival. This trip went better, and was followed by the fulfillment of a lifelong desire to see and paint Chartres cathedral, and then a final trip to southern France, where she’s taught for 10 years. In February she finally got to Israel, having had to bail on the plan to travel there two years ago, and she’s been busy creating paintings from sketches and notes she made since they were moving too fast to permit actual painting while there. In August her family and she will make what she’s sure will be her last trip to Italy, and in September she’ll be back on Monhegan Island for the annual painting trip. Meanwhile, the June/July issue of International Artist Magazine has an article by her on self-portraits, for your reading enjoyment. It has images of some of her self-portraits spanning her life from age 11 to now. Feeling her age physically but not otherwise! This long distance traveling is due to be phased out—or at least curtailed.
Elwood Hewes was back in Maine (Sebago Lake in Standish) for the summer from South Carolina. I expect he’s back in South Carolina now.
Jerry Pangakis is doing fine and is excited that his eldest granddaughter just graduated from Boston College and his youngest daughter just adopted a baby boy! Senior golf league in his town has just started up so he gets out of Martha’s way for a few hours! All in all, life is good!
Dick and Dena Jewett Ackerman just returned from a trip along the Maine coast to find my email. They started in Southwest Harbor, went south to Bailey Island, and ended in Kennebunk Beach. They spent three nights in each place and had a little bit of every kind of weather. They started on June 13 and returned home on the 23rd, celebrating their 58th anniversary with this trip! While in Southwest Harbor they drove up to the top of Cadillac and walked around the trail there on a beautiful sunny day. Also drove along Somes Sound, one of their favorite places. On a rainy day they went to the Seal Cove Auto Museum, where they saw a fantastic collection of antique autos. That place is worth a visit. Tell them Faith sent you.
Speaking of Auto Museums we visited one in Los Angeles when we went out to Pasadena to see my sister Sharon Clark ’55 and her husband, Glenn Gruber. We also toured the Huntington Gardens. It was a short trip but very worthwhile.
That’s all for now. You don’t have to wait until I write you. You can take the initiative you know.
Faith