Hello, classmates,
As I wrote my first column, I certainly did not expect the ensuing months to unfold
as they have. I’m sure we share the hope that by the time you read this column,
life is once again more settled. I find myself often thinking of Jerry Garcia and his
”What a long strange trip it’s been!”
Onward to what we can control!
Last August Dana Dolloff, our class president, arranged for John Diamond ’77,
’89G, president of the UMaine Alumni Association (UMAA), to talk with some
’63ers about how UMaine was handling COVID, how the university was doing,
how classes were to be handled, how the Alumni Association was doing, and
what is going on with UMaine Alumni Association advocacy, which is a special
interest to our class. Although the meeting is now several months old, it is still
available to be viewed. You can find it at: bit.ly/360XHpX.
As a sidebar, John’s dad, Nathan Diamond, a nontraditional student, was a
member of our class.
Well-deserved recognition goes to Dan Foley, who has run in each of the 22
Beach to Beacon road races since it started in 1998. He is one of the 103 people
referred to as “legacy runners.” With no race this year, his status carries over to
2021. Dan will be 87 at the time of the race. Dan, we are all cheering you on.
I received a very nice note from Elaine Farashian, who is enjoying her retirement
in Newtown Square, PA. We roomed next door to each other senior year in
Balentine Hall. We laughed often at the number of times someone would call out
“Elaine” and we both would answer.
William T. Hanson, better known as Tim, served for almost 25 years in the Air
Force, flying both in combat and in peacetime. He retired as a lieutenant colonel
and now lives on Cape Cod in the summer and Florida and Texas in the winter.
Tim is the author of a memoir entitled Prisoner of Peace, which is available on
your Kindle on Amazon. It is a true and chilling tale involving a mid-air collision of
a KC135 tanker. Tim lands the plane without two of the four engines and no
rudder control and gets court martialed. That is the teaser you get from me. Tim
is donating the proceeds from the sale of his book to our 1963 class fund.
Ron Brown, one of the group who worked so hard on the mini reunion planned
for Portland in June of 2020, lives in Casco, ME. He shows no sign of retiring as
he is a professional engineer with more than 45 years of professional experience
and over 25 years as an independent IT and telecom consultant. He has served
for more than a decade as an MTUG (Maine Technology Users Group) board
member and is also currently vice chair of the IEEE Communications and
Computer Societies in Maine and vice chair of the IEEE Maine Section.
From Fearrington Village, NC, James Rudbeck ’65G checked in to let us know he
and Mary are staying busy within their community as their travel plans for the
year have gone awry. He continues to play tennis three or four times a week. Jim
told me he had the pleasure of meeting John Diamond a few years back when,
as he put it, the men’s basketball team had the audacity to play Duke.
Bonnie Bassler Keast moved from California to Exeter, NH, a few years ago.
Being back in the area has its benefits, she reported. This summer she visited
with Linda Ellis Bennett at her cabin on Grand Lake, which also included time
with Lou Clark Ellis.
As I bring this column to a close, I need to bring Dana Dolloff back into the
picture. Besides being our class president, Dana has remained involved with the
UMaine Pulp and Paper Foundation, which recruits great students to UMaine and
gives out scholarships for students interested in the paper industry.
Along with Dana, the following classmates worked together to plan a mini reunion
in Portland for 2020: Marcia Roak Fitzgerald, Gail Hoxie Brown, Gina Barnes
Grogean, Irv Marsters ’71G, Jim Goff, Perry Clough, and Ron Brown. The hope
is that by the time you read this, there are definite plans for a mini reunion in
2021. Hope to see many of you then. Please stay in touch.