MARCH 2001
www.a1um.dartmouth.org/c1asses/54/
Unless you are a Renaissance man ala JOE MESICS (computers are rude!),
get a pair of scissors, cut out the headline and paste it on the top edge of
your computer screen. The headline is the address of the Class website, managed
with brilliance by PERRY DAVIS. Every week, some new innovation comes
along and the website’s content is enhanced. Before you bring it up, make
yourself a sandwich and pour a beer, because you’ll be on-line for at least 45
minutes, savoring the ‘54-ness of what comes up. You can even read the
newsletter three weeks before its publication (with photos in color!). Face it -
this is the world of our grandchildren and we need to keep
up with the technology - might
as well enjoy it.
While the newsletter editor has come up empty over the past seven years on
finding old Tulsa-buddy DON MILLER, the job was accomplished by
now-Californian PETER SCHENCK, primarily by getting a note from Don. The
Millers (LORI and the man) live in Oxnard, CA and can be reached
at donlori@iopener.net. Before email contact was made with Don, Peter reported
what sounded like a heart attack problem begun on the golf course. The good news
came in the response from Don: "NO HEART ATTACK -
HONEST!". The message/advice underlying this
prodamation is : Always pay attention to chest pains on the golf course!
Ignoring the ‘54 prodivity to "macho" through such minor
irritations, Don hied himself to a hospital, found that the potential was
certainly there - an
agina attack - and was
able to have steps taken, in plenty of time, to reduce the odds well within acceptable levels. While this is interesting and welcome
news, there is something far more intriguing in Don’s kit bag -
his website. Having just exercised your well-honed
computer skills, bring up the website - www.seeit-learnit.com
- and be prepared to be
dazzled by what Don has conjured, beginning with a simple question asked in
Psych I, nurtured through a broad educational portfolio and ripened with the
observations of a career dedicated to education. What you will see and learn is
a fascinating view of how we think and how we learn. Your value to your
grandchildren will be greatly enhanced and you will become far more interesting
to the women seated next to you &t d~. parties. A fine re-connection with a
Classmate with dividends.
Hold on - don’t
log off yet! Bring up www.artmeister.com. Hit Florida Artists,then hit DON KENNEDY. There, following several notable quotes and a
statement that Don’s imagination has been allowed to run "amuck",
you will find some brilliant computer artwork from his hand. Plus, you will be
offered the opportunity to put forth minima! cash for some of his work. On the
other side of Don, there is his tract, "The Tip of the Iceberg", which
he represents as having been written by "Don Kennedy, curmudgeon". It
is a compilation of Don’s discussions of politics and legislative direction
under "Why ...." headings,
such as "Why ... has
moral relativism supplanted the rule of right and wrong?" While it leans
somewhat to the right, it does have a striking cover -
a fine combination of the righteous and the artistic.
Lastly, this whirling dervish of
retirement age activities has started a rowing program in Pinellas County, FL He
is currently wading through the morass of funding, ecological concerns and
required local governmental support
while truly sensing a momentum toward attainment which will benefit potential
young athletes and, possibly scholarships under Title IX grants. All in all, a
‘54 to be applauded.
The Secretary of the Class of 2004, one Caryn Karo, has contacted the Class
of 1954, proposing a cross-century project. Loosely defined, the initial idea is
to hook up individual ‘04s with individual ‘54s for an exchange of
experiences, observations, ideas, opinions, etc. First, if you would be
interested in participating, whip a Greencard so stating to the editor today;
Second, let’s play with the concept a little -
are there some imaginative ways we can make the project
more challenging and entertaining? Interesting to
consider our relative "youth" and vitality of today when imagining
such a project between us in 1950 and the Class of 1904. Probably inconceivable
50 years ago, while it seems an easy connection today. Let’s hear from you.
The latest Tuck School Directory lists one BAYNARD JOHNSON, nickname
"Baynard". The newsletter research staff has not been able to
determine a logical reason for the addition of an "N" to Bayard, so
there is obviously something more sinister afoot.
A memory from DICK PLUMMER warrants a full recitation: "Seeing
the notice of ROD ROCKFELLER’s passing reminded me of a story that’s
been buried for years about a proposal for a total energy plant that was
seriously considered in the early 1980s. The proposal was made by Rod through
his Pocantico Associates investment company and the idea was to construct in
downtown Hanover a huge electricity generation plant employing a slow speed
diesel engine. Dartmouth had nearly reached its ‘firm’ steam capacity at
that time and was considering what type of new boiler to install, where it would
go, what fuel to use, etc., and Rod came to us, unsolicited, with this idea of a
25 megawatt total energy plant that his company would finance and a company
called Thermo Electron would construct and operate beside our existing plant,
selling Dartmouth all the power we needed and the balance to the local electric
grid. As a byproduct, Dartmouth would also get all the steam it needed for most
of the year, supplementing with the boilers during the winter. It was a bold
plan for the times and we took it very seriously. A delegation of administrators
and plant personnel even took a trip to western New Jersey to Hoffman-LaRoche to
see such a diesel engine operating and came away very impressed. The engine was
huge, with 36 inch cylinders and must have been at least 25 feet high and 50-60
feet long! One could stand a couple of blocks away from the building that housed
it and hear the rumble. Memory dims as to all the reasons we had to turn the
proposal down, but I believe that size and noise were the serious problems;
also, the electrical connector to the nearest substation was across the river,
making access difficult. Oil storage was another problem, to say nothing about
the excessive carbon dioxide emissions. Rod took our refusal in stride and went
on to back other innovative schemes and I often think of how it might have been
if the College had accepted his proposal. Assuming no oil shortages over the
years, it would have saved millions of dollars, but perhaps would not have
enhanced the ambiance of Hanover." Quite a memory. Another notch on the
1954 belt for significance in the history and future of Dartmouth.
A gift copy of the
December/January issue of Copy Editor (subhead -
Language News for the Publishing Profession) arrived in
the newsletter office. It is an 8-page "tool kit" for those who pump
out millions of words in our daily newspapers and newsletters. Topics range from
the treatment of vulgarities to changes in the usage of words and phrases,
according to acceptability. The last article in the letter was entitled
"Quotation Quandary" and was penned by PAUL R. MARTIN,
Assistant Managing Editor of the Wall Street Journal. He dealt with the
sensitive issue of how to deal with obvious slips, errors, gaffes in quoted
statements. The stylebooks of the many news media vary dramatically from
"never alter" to "correct to
avoid errors which are embarrassing in print. "
Paul zeroes in on "quoted speech should be rendered
as accurately as possible, but not at the expense of distorting the speaker’s
intent or embarrassing him." Fine and upstanding, but one might suspect
that Paul would have difficulty working with or for Ruppert Murdoch. In the
March edition, Paul is quoted several times on the proper use of hyphens and it
is noted that William Safire once dubbed him "The Great Hyphenator".
JOHN HESTON, our Hanover stringer, has kept us informed on the progress
of DAVE MCLAUGHLIN’s blue ribbon commission on a tax basis for funding
public education in New Hampshire. While the commission did not present a
specific recommendation, it did put forth a well-researched "menu" of
the impact, economic stability, revenue potential and sensitivity of a melange
of taxes. Within the considerations were taxes on income, property, video
gambling, manufacturing (VAT) and sales. Looks like the next steps are
political.
Our Class Master Telephoner, FERRIS "TOMMY" THOMPSON,
reports that Professor JIM CONRAD has been working on the last two
chapters of his definitive book about the textile industry of the 1600s for the
last year! Considering the fact that whatever it was, it has already happened,
one might wonder what mysterious activities Dr.onrad is really engaged
in behind those dosed doors
every afternoon extraterrestrial communication?
Verbatim from LUKE CASE: "There I was, having a drink with a guy
at Ojibway/Keewaydin on Lake Temagami last year. ‘ART KELEHER’ -
I replied’ I know an Art Keleher’. ‘Oh’ the reply -
‘from Virginia, from ....
whatever?’. ‘No’, said I, ‘how about Dartmouth?’.
‘Yes’. ‘How about Class of ‘54?’. ‘What did you say your name was?’
!!! As I have so often said about reunions, it is so very nice to meet nice
people that you can barely (if that) remember with whom you have spent at least
four common years"
BURT ONOFRIO: "Since leaving Dartmouth in 1955 after two years of
the Medical School, I finished at Cornell . M.D.
in 1957. Interned at Cornell in New York City, then joined the Navy. Served in
Japan and California. Met a Navy Junior, JUDITH TYREE and we married in
1960. Resident in Neurosurgery 1960-1964. Back in the Navy as a neurosurgeon at
Bethesda Naval Hospital. Joined the Mayo Clinic staff in 1967. Raised three
children - Scott, Gregg
and Jennifer. Retired in 1995 as
Professor of Neurosurgery. Still worked part time at Mayo General in Boston
until 1999 and continue to work part
time at Mayo Clinic, LaCrosse, WI facility. Judy is a nationally known
sculptor-artist and I am her manager and ‘grunt’. Nice to see JOHN POPE’s
recognition."
SYLVIA HOLTON forwarded a marvelous booklet
containing a series of tributes to MILNE at several memorials. Typical of
the commentary: "From the raucous to the highly evolved, his pliant and
elastic intellect swung in dizzying arcs, a kind of mind-dancing that Mime did
better than anybody." The list of his books, reviews and translations
consumed the last 5 pages.
Dr. DICK DEANER finds ironic humor in most everything: "Had my
right hip replaced in late January. And, since I was going to be lying there
anyway, my orthopedist decided to arthroscope my right knee and tidy-up that
joint a bit. UP-SIDE -no
more hip pain!; I get a disabled parking tag. DOWN-SIDE -
I’ll probably need to use an elevated commode (as
opposed to the shorter, standard artide) for the rest of my life. MORAL -
DON’T JOG! Repetitive joint trauma begets osteoarthritis."
Dick’s greencard data varies from that in the Class directory, so take note:
P.O. Box 21508, Bakersfield, CA; (661) 663-9637; bevdeaner@aol.com
Dr. BOB SPEARS keeps his hand in by chairing the Beth El Health Science
Board at the University of Colorado Springs and serves on the Board of First
Visitors … an organization that
trains people to visit new mothers and discuss issues of caring for newborn
babies. Also on the board of Memorial Hospital. Recent travel has been wide and
varied: "May 2000 - went
to Taiwan with the Mayor of Colorado Springs to attend the inauguration of the
first elected President of Taiwan. The inaugural ball of 5000 people was
something to see. July 2000
- went to China and visited several nursing schools.
Walked on the Great Wall.
December/January 2001 - cruised
down the Amazon in Brazil , visiting
villages and staring down alligators and other unidentifiable creatures."
The murder of the two Dartmouth professors in Etna, NH currently appears to
have been at the hands of two teenagers from Chelsea, NH and unrelated to the
College. With details of the actual crime being kept under tight control, the
press, induding The Dartmouth, have run rampant with speculation. Even the
Boston Globe was carried away and was forced to issue a public apology for
suggesting a salacious basis for what now appears to have been a
"thrill" killing.
In subtle retribution for some inter-Class ribbing, the prolific editor of
the 1953 newsletter, Don Goss, referred to The ‘54 Newsletter as
"creatively entitled". Having shucked off "Hazqui" as non-PC
years ago, we have been generically captioned ever since. Any thoughts or
opinions? Perhaps we should stress content over the marquee.
From a New York Times January article about the 1973 resignation of Elliot
Richardson as Attorney General: "Back at Justice, Richardson gathered his
top aides over sandwiches and told them what he had said about Cox. JONATHAN
MOORE, a longtime advisor, was stunned. ‘Why in the hell did you think
that?’ he asked. Even if Richardson believed it, saying so would only embolden
the White House men. Moore feared that they were not telling Richardson their
full plans, in hopes that, surprised and boxed in, he would feel compelled to go
along. Richardson’s desire not to judge anyone unfairly, Moore suspected, was
keeping him from seeing the cynical games they were playing." Wonder if
Alexander Cox knew that our Varsity Cox was thinking about him.
Adopted classmate CARRIE PELZEL has been promoted to Vice President
for Development, reporting directly to President Jim Wright. In the
announcement, her "strength as an administrator, a fund raiser and a
strategic thinker" was cited. An initial challenge for Carrie will be the
impending capital campaign. Once again, the Class has responded to a prime need
of the College.
Grab your ‘54 Directory and make the following changes:
John Pope: change FL address to P0 Box 696, New London, NH 03257
Mort Galper: new email
rn.galper@worldnet.att.net
Jim Davidson: new email
BOCAFISHERMAN@aol.com
Don Miller: scratch "Blue Solutions Security Company"
According to STU ROTH and TED NOVASCONE, Ted and his two
partners won the amateur division of the Bob Hope Classic, played on three
course in the La Quinta, CA area! Ted appeared on national television, with
doubters in the crowd demanding a check of handicaps. Awaiting details.
JOHN GILLESPIE’s cup runneth over.He received an effusive thank you
note from the cheerleaders (girls) for being their official photographer and his
daughter-in-law and her team won a Lincoln Prize $50,000 award from Gettysburg
College for their CD-ROM, book and website: "Valley of the Shadow:The Eve
of War", which explores antebellum life on both sides of the Civil War. In
response to the damor for new digs for the Boston holiday luncheon, John has
contracted with the brand new Quincy Marriott which opens in May.
BOB LEVINE sent a letter to
the editor in which he corrects the reported diminishment of his high school
class from 135 down to 8 to a current number of 80.
MIKE BIGGS has issued several notes to various musicians who wandered
from their own reunion in the woods in 1999 to our tent on Friday night. There
is quite a fraternity of these talented men from a spread of different classes.
Following the death of Chuck Knudson ‘52, the flashy trumpet-playing leader of
The Barbary Coast Orchestra, Jim Wheaton ‘53, established a Barbary Coast
website which has grown tremendously, both in its content and its list of email
addresses. A great piece of memorabilia. Interested? The website is
www.siterrific.com/BarbCoastOrch/. Mike "can no longer do tenths or Bud
Powell type right-hand solos, but as long as I can play the changes, all is not
lost" due to the onset of some osteo-arthritis. You won’t notice the
difference at our 50th.
The ski mini-reunion at Mt. Snow in late January. Skiing en masse were DANA
and ANNE LOW, DICK and ELLEN GORSEY, STEARNS and PAT MARTIN, DICK and
snowboarding daughter Jennifer PEARL and leader JAY DAVIS (MARTHA
joined them for apres ski festivities). The conditions were rated a ten. The
skill of the assemblage was attested to by the challenging of several black
diamond hills with no spills. Plans are to duplicate the trip exactly next year.
Some headlines from The Dartmouth:
-Psi U Keg Jump Gone for Good
-Women’s Hockey Posts Glittering 19-1-1 Mark;
Claims ECAC Playoff Spot
-Trustees Raise 2001 Tuition to $26,400/year
-Carnival Sees No Major Incidences
-Dartmouth Provost To Leave in Summer
(to seek better opportunities)
-Saturday Classes Set For Green Key
-Are We Over the Rainbow Yet?
Last December, Dr. JOHN STEEL attended the annual meeting of the
American Academy of Aging in Las Vegas. 300 exhibit booths and 4000 registered
attendees. Along with his associates, John manned their Body Wise International
booth for their new product, AG Immune, a nutritional supplement.
"Anti-aging" is defined as the ability to continue to function in a
capable way far past what has traditionally thought of as "old". John
projects the potential well into our 80s. That should translate into
well-attended 60th, 65th and maybe 70th reunions. The IRS has already recognized
improved longevity by revising its tables for mandatory withdrawals from IRAs.
Contact John for more information: jsteel@san.rr.com.
The picture-filled Christmas letter from BOB and MARY KENNEY indicates
a pair for whom the term "aging" has no meaning. Bob’s still
teaching calculus at UVM and they manage to fill the rest of their time with
travel and family. Last summer, they flew to Istanbul where they toured the Blue
Mosque and Hagia Sophia, ferried across the Bosporus and enjoyed belly dancers
before boarding a ship for visits to Kusadai, Rhodes, Santorim and Athens. At
home, they gave up on a recently acquired sailboat and upgraded to a Pearson 31
with dreams of sailing from Maine back up to Lake Champlain. BUSY!
IN MEMORIAM
KEVIN
IRVING SULLIVAN
We have lost a Classmate who was extraordinary not only in accomplishments,
but also in his contributions. Kevin Sullivan succumbed to complications
following surgery for esophageal cancer on February 15th. A memorial service was
held at the Medaille College Campus Center on March 2nd.
Kevin joined with us in Hanover in 1950 from Winchester High School, MA.
While pursuing his AB in History, Key, starting with the Dorm Manager Award at
the 1952 Wet Down, took on a series of important campus responsibilities that
were mirrored in his later life. As President of the Interdormitory Council, he
served as its representative on the Undergraduate Council and was subsequently
appointed to the ultimate Palaeopitus, the eleven ‘54s who basically set the
agenda and the tenor of the Class and the College. In addition, he found time
for the Newman Club, the Chi Phi house, the Intramural department and the
strictures of the Air Force ROTC.
Kevin spent his military years in a SAC outfit in Maine, accompanied by bride
GINNY DARLING of Colby Junior. Following his mustering out, good fortune
took the Sullivans to Buffalo where Key began a banking career that soared to
the position of President and CEO of the Western Region for the Bank of New
York, a position he held at the time of our 25th reunion. The early years in
Buffalo brought forth son Kevin ‘79 and Keith, an alumnus of Medaille College.
In 1987, Kevin took a dassic ‘54 career step and moved from Chairman of the
Board of Trustees of Medaille College to its presidency.
The truly awe-inspiring impact of his presidency is described in the obituary
in the Buffalo press: "Mr. Sullivan has overseen and provided leadership
for unprecedented growth in enrollment at both the undergraduate and graduate
levels, academic program development, initiating a residence life program
including the recent ground breaking for the College’s first oncampus
residence hall complex, maturing of the intercollegiate athletic program and
attainment of full NCAA Division III status, geographic expansion of the
off-campus ACCEL Program and implementation of the College’s first Capital
Campaign, designed to enhance the College’s physical facilities and
accommodate future growth."In 2000, the Board of Trustees confirmed their
exceptional good fortune by appointing Kevin to an unprecedented fifth term as
President.
Incredibly, he found time to involve himself in multiple institutional and
organizational causes in Western New York. The Class of 1954 was the beneficiary
of his energies in its early post-grad years. How about this -
Head Agent for the first six years after 1954, at-large
member of the Alumni Council, 10-year District Enrollment Director, Third
Century Chairman for the Buffalo area and a Class Agent and Enrollment Director
for many years. He laid the base for our 25th year reunion giving. The Class
recognized his contributions with the Class of 1954 Award at the 40th reunion.
We are diminished by the loss of Kevin and extend our condolences to Ginny
and their family.
Click
here for obit from Medaille College
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