MAY-JUNE 2011
MAY-JUNE 2011
Now–here is your annual quiz. What do Turkey, Indonesia, and Newfoundland have in common? You guessed it. Our Davenport Fellowship winners are headed to these countries, following their selection by the Fellowship committees in Boston, Washington, and New York. (No one ever applies for a project in Perth Amboy.) Rae Ellen Bichell’s younger sister, Lena, headed off on a trip to Turkey; Rae Ellen is going to see Turkey through Lena’s eyes. Genny Ladiges “an absolute bird fanatic” is going to Newfoundland, ”hotbed for some of the most brilliant waterfowl on the planet.” Courtney Grafton, concerned that “the effects of Westernization are drastically altering emerging cultures” is “investigating the linguistic, social, and cultural marginalization of the original population” in Bali.
It is exciting to realize that we will hear about these wonderful trips at the Class Dinner after the Harvard game. I hope to see YOU there.
On the home front there is news. John Phair is still seeing patients part-time and continuing his NIH-sponsored research.
Marjorie and Howard Parker celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary three times: 1) A round-trip cruise from Seattle to Alaska and Victoria, B.C. 2) A four day trip to St. Augustine to visit friends of 32 years. 3) A celebration dinner near home in Georgia with their kids and their spouses.
Speaking of 50th anniversaries, Nikki Barranger reports on the 50th anniversary of Harriet and Al Koch on Nantucket. Fortunately, Nikki bought an ebony cane to help him navigate the Nantucket cobblestones. Other 56er’s in attendance with their spouses were: Shaun Ruddy, Jordy Cohen, Peter Randolph, Larry Hewes, and Chris Gates. I gather that the festivities could not be confused with a WCTU outing, but there were bus tours and shopping expeditions. Nikki comments: “It’s a great pity that house parties like this seem to be relegated to novels by Agatha Christie. Happily for us, no one turned up dead.”
Francis Compton’s wife, Florence, is “blessedly clear of lung cancer after surgery and chemotherapy treatments.” Francis still is active in the Illinois Retired Teachers Association and in his local church’s book and men’s club, also finding time to go to exercise class three days a week.
Warren Hutchins retired on December 31st, 2009, after “53 ½ years in the financial services industry, the last 28 ½ years at Merrill Lynch.”
Joe Williams also is enjoying retirement from his position as CEO of the Williams Companies, dividing his time between Charleston, S.C, and Linville, N.C., depending on time of year and temperature.
On the class web site, you will find Jim Downey’s fascinating, full report on the Alumni Chorus trip to Cuba. Our Class is well represented on that group: Martin Fenton, Pete Allee, , Marvin Berenblum , Bill Bourne, Ken Liebman, and Jim Kingsbury. Several spouses accompanied the singers. However, Florence and Gene McKelvey and Peggy Kingsbury also intended to go. However, three days before the departure their visas were revoked because they were not singers, only ‘humanitarian workers.’ Jim’s observations about how the “tyranny of Communism can squeeze the life out of what was once a glorious island” are very interesting. In addition to commenting on “the great camraderie , spontaneous singing on the steps of a government building, ocean swimming, a wonderful night at the Hotel Nacional, which dates from the days when the mob held sway in Cuba, Jim reported that the group also visited the Buena Vista Social Club and “had a high speed trip through Havana in pre-1959 convertibles to the smiles and encouragement of the locals.” Cuban rum and cigars were enjoyed…but it wasn’t debauchery, as the Eli’s also played baseball against the Cubans, who “excelled.”
Speaking of interesting trips, if you are tempted by the thought of a cruise, get hold of Sabin Robbins’s book: “A Cruiser’s Guide to Ocean Wonders”. Sabin grew up in the wilds of Cincinnati, raising a raccoon, crow and sea gulls. After Yale and Oxford, he worked at the National Geographic and the National Zoo in Washington, also leading safaris around the world and lecturing on over 100 world cruises.
"After nearly a decade, a true stalwart of the local (and national) preservation movement has retired from the Chairmanship of the Historic Preservation Review Board" – (NW Current newspaper).
Who? Tersh Boasberg, of course. Tersh (an attorney specializing in historic preservation, land use and environmental law) has an impressive list of accomplishments, including work as a trustee of the National Building Museum and President of the National Center for Preservation Law.
On March 5th several classmates gathered at a beautiful service in Washington, CT to celebrate the life of Charley West about whose life you read in a recent column. A widower, he is survived by his wonderful, loving daughters, Georgia and Peyton. Honoring Charley were Frances and Ed Barlow, Ted Robb, Judy and Gil Chapman, Francine and Larry Strauss, Bobbie and Jim Bishop, Mary Jane and Jack McGregor, and I. Jack, Charley’s friend virtually from birth, delivered a beautiful, thoughtful, and inspiring eulogy and Larry delivered a touching Bible reading. Those of us who knew and loved Charley will truly miss him.
George Linn Davis, a very distinguished global lawyer, died on March 2nd.In addition to serving five Citibank and Citicorp CEO’s, George was appointed by the US government as CEO of two rescued banks. George was Chairman of the National Stroke Association, the Central Park Conservancy, Lincoln Park Zoological Society, and the Chicago March of Dimes. He founded Scarborough, providing turn-around services and litigation support in financial services. George is survived by his, wife, Mary, and five sons.
I hope you are preparing to return for our 55th .
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