Greetings to my classmates!
Nancy Morse Dysart is chairman of Reunion events, and early plans call for a gathering in Portland, ME, before the Reunion in Orono in September. Details of both places will be forthcoming. Last summer Nancy enjoyed being on Prince Edward Island, where she has a cottage.
Class president Ace Conro has been a great help to me by forwarding news he receives. One piece included news of the death of Gary Auclair from his wife, Jacqueline. Gary worked as an engineer for General Electric in Schenectady, NY, and later for Lockheed Missiles and Space Corporation in Sunnyvale, CA, where he held various managerial positions. His work was in spacecraft and various types of satellites.
Vice president Rick Lloyd in Honolulu, HI, mentioned he is unlikely to make another 11,000-mile trip to Maine. He recently got a call from the head of a local video production company to see if he would rent his ’49 antique Studebaker to make a music video.
Diane Tatlock Pierce continues as our class secretary, and Ralph Pillsbury as our treasurer.
Lucy Ezzard Bartlett of Tiger, GA, reports she is recovering from heart surgery. She sounded very chipper and said that “growing old is not for sissies.”
Rev. Charlie Coldwell, of Oyster Bay, NY, recently retired as an Episcopal priest. He was Ace Conro’s roommate for three years and both played football their freshman year.
Dr. Prescott “Mike” Cheney lives in Pemaquid, ME. Mike was an orthopedic surgeon in Concord, MA. He took an early retirement and returned to Maine and told me it was the best decision he ever made. Mike lives on the Johns River and has a 27-foot sailboat, a Pearson named Sea Biscuit.
Recently, he held a reunion of the Bristol High School class of 1956. UMaine classmates present were Kay Sawyer Hannah of New Harbor, ME, and Tade Osier Cross of Winston-Salem, NC.
Mike mentioned they saluted the other high school classmate and UMaine graduate Chalmer Loud Lewis, who is deceased.
Janice Hourin Adams in Northborough, MA, is recovering from a broken collar bone after recovering from a previous surgery. For many years she taught history and government in Framingham and Holliston and later at a community college. We both commented on how much fun it is to run into former students. She is good pals with a sorority Phi Mu sister, Joan Philbrook Miller, who resides in Bedford, MA. Joan visits her place in Tenants Harbor in the summer.
Brad Hooper of Huntington, WV, was out shopping last April when a pit bull dog attacked him with enough force to knock him down on solid concrete. West Virginia has a leash law and the women who owned the dog did not have it on a leash. Someone called an ambulance and state police arrived. Brad was grateful he did not break any bones and is still trying to see if the owners’ insurance will help with his hospital bills. He commented he can no longer play his bagpipes as it puts too much pressure on his eyes. As you know, he was a champion piper both in the United States and Scotland.
When I called classmate Bonny Brown, her husband, Bobby, answered and said she was at The Enclave, a lovely assisted living facility at 18 Black Point Road, Scarborough, ME 04074. Bonny was a Pi Phi and Bobby said he reads her mail to her. Any of you who know her, write her a card as it would be very much appreciated.
On the West coast about 100 miles south of San Francisco, Ralph Beaudoin and his wife, Madeline, live in an area of farms and farmers markets. They are originally from Biddeford, and he worked for the Bangor Daily News when he met her. His career was in industrial engineering.
Please take time to call or write me with your news even if it does not seem extraordinary. We all know how special it is to get a real letter.
Have all the fun you can get away with!