We were destined to be one of 13 classes with no new information to report, but Rich Brachold came through with an update on his life over the past five decades. Thank you, Rich.
Here goes:
“Over the years when I receive an issue of the alumni magazine I go right to our Class of ‘73 section and enjoy catching up on any classmates I might recognize (and now sadly, seeing any who might have passed). After graduating, I stayed around Orono and coached the Alpine ski team for two years.
In ’75 my former roommate and I formed an acoustic duo and played the club scene on Cape Cod, where I met my wife, Nancy (a graduate of Boston Business School). In ˜77, I found myself teaching high school biology (my major) in Connecticut. After a couple years of that I realized teaching high school was not for me, so I continued using my degree and sold laboratory equipment for a major scientific supplier and moved to metro Boston. I moved from sales in science to sales in electronics during the computer boom in metro-Boston through most of the ‘80s. But in ’88 my deep passion for skiing pulled me back and Nancy and I opened Village Ski & Snowboard in Franklin, MA. Thirty-four years and a number of accolades later, including “Best Ski Shop in NE,” we passed the business on to our son Keith who now runs it with his wife, Kaelah. Although I’m officially retired from the shop (yeah, right!), I’m still involved in the shop’s finances and as the ski-tuning technician. Our web site is villageski.com. Our other child Jaime followed in my biology footsteps as a forensic scientist and works at Thermo Fisher Scientific as the senior manager of the Forensic Science Applications Group. We have three grandchildren, Archie and Lennon, both eight and born one day apart; and Mabel, who is five. Archie and Lennon ski with me all over the mountain; Mabel wants nothing to do with skiing.
“My other passion besides skiing has been a long side career in aviation. I began flying on the Cape in ’75, became a flight instructor in 2000, and earned an airline transport pilot license in 2010. Being too old to fly for the airlines, the ATP was more of a challenge and honor than anything else. I do, however, currently use the commercial side of the license to fly and instruct for a New England charter company.
“Somehow, I still find time to play in a classic rock cover band, Bigelow Station. We’ve been together for going on 20 years and have traveled back up to Maine to play at The Forks White Water Rafting Company and numerous clubs around Sugarloaf. Keeping with my Maine roots, the band’s name comes from the northern-most station on the Farmington narrow-gauge railroad line, where the ski team bunked when skiing Sugarloaf in the early ’70s.
“Nancy and I live in Norfolk, MA, and have a summer home in Mashpee on the Cape. We still travel up to Maine with our kids and grandchildren to ski Sugarloaf in April when the shop closes for the season.
“Quite frankly, it’s the first time I’ve put my post-college history into words, and I got a kick out of reminiscing.”
Thanks to Rich for carrying the class burden here. Let us know what’s going on in your life.