Hi ‘66ers. It’s that time again to share the past half year of happenings. I turned 80 back in March but suspect that’s going around in this group.
Some time back I got a phone call from classmate Richard Perkins about his efforts to get recognition of John Marsh the namesake of Marsh Island upon which the University of Maine campus stands. He is hoping to have a device of some sort placed on or near Folger Library in honor of this man.
A photo showing six members of the Means family (including Sarge) all UMaine alumni from the Classes of 1960 through 2027 (and mention of earlier alumni family members not depicted) was forwarded to me. Quite a legacy. As I was rereading the last column, Joe Ferris’ honor of having a baseball field named after him reminded me that Marge and I had the softball field at Bowling Green State University named for us, based on no athletic abilities whatsoever, but from ardent support of the program and the female athletes in it. We (1) financially supported installation of lights on the softball field and heaters in the dugouts; (2) Once a year Marge and I invite the team of 26 women to our house for a meal of Marge’s sumptuous homemade soup; and (3) We attend every home game come rain, snow, or dark of night, and go to a number of the away games on our own dime.
Cheryl and Bruce Brockway ’73G report that they are enjoying life in Brewster on Cape Cod where Bruce is secretary of the Rotary Club of Nauset and is a volunteer with the Brewster Conservation Trust.
Nancy Erikson Ladd wanted to let us know how much she and her husband enjoyed the Senior Alumni Reunion back in September. The Senior Alumni luncheon featured current students who expressed their appreciation of financial support from Senior Alumni scholarships.
Emil Swift and his wife sold their house in Vermont and have moved to a new home in Venice, FL. He provided information about the ’66 Scholarship Fund, which started fiscal ’23 with $60,221. The Class of ’66 alumni donated $2,003 in ’23, and a worthy student received a scholarship of $1,810 from the fund. Despite a rocky market, the fund ended ’23 with $67,3122. The plan for the coming year is to break the $2,000 scholarship mark.
Charley Dumas and his wife of 55 years, Angie, live in San Diego and spend four months a year in Crested Butte, CO, where Charlie harks back to his membership on the UMaine Ski Team.
Terry Nelson put his B.S. in chemical engineering to work for 32 years with Monsanto Company in both Springfield, MA, and Trenton, MI. He received an M.S. degree in ’99 and was adjunct faculty at Baypath and Springfield colleges. I’ll wrap this up apologetically to Martin McCrum, who sent me information for the last column and which I failed to use. He and his wife, Julie, completed their tour of the US in Hawaii. He and his classmate and friend Jim Maynard started their careers with General Electric. Jim retired after 40 years and relocated to Greensboro, NC.
Thanks to all who provide me with grist for the mill!