What’s gone into making our 60th Reunion the best ever?

February 26, 2024

Dear 1964 classmates and friends,

I’m sending this message and the May-June 2024 Class Notes that accompany it earlier than usual … for two reasons:

1. I’m having spine surgery this week and don’t know how long my recuperation will take;
2. There are some time-sensitive reunion matters that I want to share.

Attendance: Over 200 classmates have preregistered with intentions to bring over 130 guests.

Registration: The YAA formal registration package prompting you to use your credit card to reserve spots (meals, etc.) for you and your guest(s) will be sent to you via email around the second week in March. This is also where you can reserve accommodations in Timothy Dwight College, our Class HQ. Your preregistration doesn't reserve anything, so be sure to act on the registration package.

Hotel Reservations: There was a huge demand for New Haven hotel rooms when the blocks opened on January 31. If you were unsuccessful, don’t give up. This happens every year, and rooms usually come available. Some classmates have booked an Airbnb in New Haven.

People Make It Successful:  There have been thousands of hours devoted to making this reunion a success, including classmates and YAA staff.  John Evans and his Reunion Committee have assembled over twenty sessions led by classmates to complement the stellar programming with Yale professors. Bill Galvin has produced an impressive Reunion Book with over 300 classmate essays that will be a family keepsake for generations. If you haven’t responded to Bill’s email asking if you want a free Reunion Book, email Bill now to confirm your shipping address and phone number(s). Or simply preregister (here) for the reunion (whether you're coming or not) and you'll receive a book. Sam Francis has gathered and tracked all the data on our class to maximize outreach and timely execution. As a result, we have one of the best and most accurate Class directories of 20th-century Yale classes.

High Quality Hospitality Takes Money:  I was in the hospitality business for 50 years, and the sector has been hit hard by inflation in recent years. The organizing committee didn’t want to compromise standards or make the price to attend too expensive. Frankly, it’s disappointing that fewer than 20% of classmates have paid the modest $100 Class dues this year. In contrast, I found it very touching when Marc Blum’s widow Leonor paid his dues in November, three months after he died, because “being a member of this class was very important to Marc.” Dues are NOT a donation to Yale. Instead, they are one of the resources to subsidize the reunion and the Reunion Book. If you’ve overlooked your dues payment, please respond when you get Chip Brennan’s reminder, or go to this page and pay them now. Facing higher costs this year, seven classmates have made generous voluntary contributions to keep the fees down. Our “lead horse” in this effort was Chip Brennan ($25,000), joined by Bob Buchanan ($10,000), Jim Rogers ($10,000), Joe Wishcamper ($10,000), Will Elting ($5,000), Ted Wagner ($3,000). and Peter Bradford ($500), Their financial support will enable us to waive fees for surviving spouses, provide some financial aid to classmates who otherwise might not be able to attend, and send the Reunion Book at no cost to classmates and surviving spouses who want one. Lastly, I hope you will consider supporting the Yale Alumni Fund and the Class Gift Fund in this reunion year.

Yale Today:  During reunion years, there seems to be a heightened interest in expressing opinions and providing feedback on Yale (and other higher-education) topics in the news. That is to be desired, because it shows engagement and thoughtfulness.  Unfortunately, these opinions sometimes lead to disengagement, such as “I’m not going to attend the reunion or make a gift because I don’t agree with [blank].”  Please consider the reunion a perfect time and place to express your point of view and hear from others about theirs. Remember the words of our alma mater: "Time and change shall naught avail / to break the friendships formed at Yale."

On behalf of your 1964 Class Council, we look forward to seeing you over Memorial Day weekend for our penultimate Class Reunion!

Cheers,

May/June Class Notes

[To read these Notes in your browser in living color, click here.]

As I write this issue for the website, there are only ten weeks until our 60th class reunion. Attendance is still building, so check out who’s coming and preregister if you haven’t already done so. About half of the classmates coming are bringing a guest … even some grandchildren. We had our annual Class Council meeting in New Haven on February 3 with seventeen Class Council members attending in person and another nine members attending via Zoom. The previous evening, many members enjoyed fellowship and dinner at Mory’s and then watched the Yale men’s hockey team defeat Union College in Ingalls Rink.

On Saturday morning, Tony Lavely called the meeting to order at 9:15am and introduced and thanked YAA staff members Janene Castaldi and Stephanie Hartnett. We welcomed new Council members Steve Klingelhofer and Ralph Jones. At the beginning of the meeting, Don Edwards led us in a circle of remembrance for departed classmates and longtime Council members Chris Getman and Terry Holcombe. Chip Brennan’s 2023-24 Class Treasurer’s report was approved with a sharp eye toward budgeting for and subsidizing the 60th Reunion and Reunion Book. Ward Wickwire provided an update on the 2023-24 Yale Alumni Fund. New YAA Class Delegate Ralph Jones circulated an excellent report on the November 2023 YAA Assembly, which he attended. In Ted Jones’ absence (due to illness), Sam Francis updated the group on the status of Mory’s Memorial Bricks for departed classmates. See the Class Website/In Memoriam for details. With the Class Reunion close at hand, we deferred action on planning an alternative to the Mory’s Memorial Brick program, recognizing that it will inevitably end due to limited patio space. Don Edwards spoke to the status of the Class Support Network, designed to provide confidential support to classmates by classmates for a wide range of issues. Pete Putzel nominated Class Officers for the next term which were unanimous approved. If you would like to serve on the Class Council, please contact Pete Putzel. The Council also unanimously endorsed five nominees for the quinquennial Class Distinguished Service Award who will be recognized at our 60th Class Reunion.

As planned, a great deal of time was devoted at the Class Council meeting to elements of our 60th Class Reunion in May 2024 (HQ in Timothy Dwight College). Regrettably, cochair Ted Wagner has been ill in recent months and conveyed his regrets that so much of the planning has fallen on cochair John Evans. For the same reason, Tom Trowbridge has stepped in to organize the monthly luncheons at the Yale Club of NYC on the third Wednesday of the month. The Council wished Ted a speedy recovery with hopes that he will be at our reunion. Jerry Flannelly and Sam Francis jointly reported that preregistrations for our reunion project that over 300 (200 classmates and 100+ guests) plan to attend. Bill Galvin, editor of the 60th Reunion Book, and Sam Francis, associate editor, gave a detailed report on the 60th Reunion Book that is a massive and invaluable undertaking, especially as it includes over 300 classmate essays. Books will be mailed in advance of the reunion to all classmates and surviving spouses who confirmed interest in receiving a book and provided a mailing address. Class Gift cochairs Tony Lavely and Steve Norman reported for the Class Gift Committee and its goal to raise $9 million by June 30, 2024. Nora Bok, Yale Development Associate Director, attended to offer her support for the Gift Committee and any classmates planning a gift. Bob Buchanan was recognized for his leadership in successfully launching a new “Yale Class of 1964 Scholarship Fund” (see here). John Evans circulated a report on reunion programming with over twenty individual sessions being led by classmates to complement the programming done by Yale for all reunion classes. Yale will also be organizing special building tours — Peabody Museum and Schwartzman Center — for reunion attendees. Details on this programming and tours can be found on the Class Website/Events. Edward Massey (who has been organizing our semi-annual ’64 Authors Book Clubs) reported via Zoom about special sessions being planned to explore authorship and publishing. Ted Jones, who is organizing a Class golf outing on Thursday, May 22, circulated a report on that event. Steve Klingelhofer and Don Edwards outlined plans for the Reunion Memorial Service to be held in Battell Chapel on Friday afternoon, May 23. Over eighty classmates who have died since our 55th reunion will be remembered. Jan Truebner is reaching out to all surviving spouses for whom she has contacts to invite them to our reunion (with fees waived thanks to Jim Rogers’ donation), especially to the memorial service. Jan is also offering to send them a Reunion Book.The Class Dinner, with special guests and entertainment by the Bales-Gitlin Band, one of Connecticut's top dance bands for over four decades, will take place on Saturday, May 25 in Timothy Dwight College.

At the end of the Council meeting, members welcomed nine current Yale students from Urban Resources Initiative (SOE), Squash Haven, and the Slifka Center for Jewish Life at Yale. Their collective vitality was the highlight of the day! Hillary Getman Pearson (daughter of Chris Getman) and her husband Erik Pearson joined us for the URI portion. Erik is president of the URI board, extending a long association with the Getman family. After adjourning, we returned to Mory’s for dinner and then watched the Yale men’s basketball team trounce Penn in Payne Whitney Gymnasium. Our former YAA liaison, Jennifer Julier, commented on my FB post about the Class Council meeting: “Hi everybody! Glad you had such a great day.” Even Wally Grant ’63 (of field-goal fame in 1960 and also the chair of 1963’s 60th reunion) commented: “Great photo! Planning and holding a 60th is a hard but rewarding experience. Have a great time and give my greetings to all your classmates!”

Regional classmate luncheons and Zoom calls are building momentum for the reunion. Ralph Jones organized classmate luncheons at Mory’s on January 3 and February 7. Tom Trowbridge organized classmate luncheons at the Yale Club of NYC on January 17 and February 21. Owen O’Donnell hosted classmate Zoom calls in the Bay area on January 10 and February 14. Jerry Flannelly hosted classmate Zoom calls in the Boston area on January 17 and February 20. Tony Lavely attended Yale-generated webinars on January 17 (“Exploring Yale College with Dan Pericles Lewis”) and President Salovey’s Quarterly Updates on December 7 and February 20. The foremost of these was a YouTube live-streamed event on February 16, “Yale and Slavery,” to announce the findings of a 24-month research project and a new book by David Blight, Yale and Slavery: A History. You can learn more about this at The Yale and Slavery Research Project. You should have received an email in February to confirm delivery options for your Alumni Fellow ballot. This is your opportunity to vote for Yale trustees.

This is the section of Class Notes that doesn’t appear in the YAM version, due to word limits. Ironically, it’s the section that most fulfills the mission of Class Notes, i.e., it’s about classmates commenting on their daily lives. In this issue, we’ll compose this in reverse alphabetical order, to give the contributors at the end of the alphabet a little love. On a recent Boston-area Zoom (and following the death of Alexei Navalny in a Russian prison), Karl Ziegler and Nick Danforth reminisced about their tours with the Russian Chorus. Karl circulated an article from the Yale Daily News about Navalny’s years as a Yale Fellow.

When Joe Wishcamper saw YAA Executive Director Weili Cheng’s comment on the group photo of the 1964 Class Council (Weili said: “What a young and handsome group of Yalies!”), Joe commented: “Weili needs to see an optometrist!”). Earlier, Joe Wishcamper regretted to a Bay-area Zoom call: “Sorry to have missed last week’s Zoom. Was occupied viewing penguins in Antarctica. Like my roommate Mike Sherwood, I’m sharing my essay for the book and hope you will all do the same. Knowing Owen, he might devise a discussion topic out of these essays for an upcoming meeting.” Other classmates in the Bay-area Zoom group exchanged their Reunion Book personal essays with each other via email. John Wylie commented on Sandy McKleroy’s essay as follows: “I wanted you to know how moved I am by your essay, particularly because I am a psychiatrist and my field has an unfortunate history of ‘medicalizing’ people’s behavior. Quite to the contrary, this passionate statement fills me with awe: ‘So, gratitude to God in strength and courage, for Love, for Forgiveness, for Justice, Kindness and Service are the pillars of my life and prayers.’ ” You will be able to real all of these personal essays in our Reunion Book, simply by emailing Bill Galvin and giving him your mailing address. John Wylie also exchanged thoughts with Wishcamper on the same thread: “In the midst of our current global circumstance, there are ample reasons to be highly encouraged. We are witnessing an unprecedented era of technological advancements and scientific breakthroughs that promise to address some of our most pressing challenges, from climate change to healthcare. The global connectivity we experience today fosters unprecedented collaboration, enabling diverse minds to unite in solving complex problems. Moreover, there's a rising global consciousness about sustainability, equality, and justice, driving societies towards more ethical and inclusive practices. These factors, combined with the resilience and adaptability humanity has consistently shown, provide a solid foundation for optimism about our collective future. This era, with all its challenges, is also one of incredible opportunity and potential for positive transformation." John Wylie added one more story with a different theme about Martin Luther King, Jr.’s appearance at Yale in 1964 to be awarded an honorary degree: “Some months before that sermon, my roommate Dave Plimpton had personally delivered a note from Albert Latuli, then head of the ANC in South Africa (whom he had sought out) all the way to King in Atlanta. But, characteristically for Dave, he had told me nothing about it, and I probably barely knew who King was at that point. On the morning in question, Dave, whom I grew up with, says: ‘John-Boy, just trust me on this one. OK? Get your ass out of bed, put on a coat and tie, and follow me.’ So, we are walking over to the Old Campus, and it seems like the entire black community of New Haven is streaming into Battell. Then the mind-blowing sermon talking about the universe. Afterwards we line up to shake hands with Dr. King, he embraces Dave, and Dave turns around and says I want you to meet my friend, John. I shake his hand, and it is the softest hand I have ever felt, like a little pillow.” In this same active Bay-area email thread, Don Van Doren, replied to Russell Sunshine about “optimism”: “My long-term optimism comes in part from my contemplation of cycles throughout history and from reading commentary of people who are experts. There seems to be a consensus that our economy, and reflected in the coming stock-market performance, as well as our political landscape, is in for navigating through troubled waters. These cyclical periods seem historically to have taken a decade or two to work themselves out. The galloping advances in AI and machine learning, coupled with the emerging promise of bioengineering and genetics, portend new opportunities for economic growth, health care, etc. that will affect many, many people. But it will likely take a decade or so to sort out the disruption in the lives of many people in many lines of work, likely even more disruptive than past challenges of incorporating newfangled innovations into our livelihoods. By the way, I’m not thinking that AI will ‘take over’ much of daily work. Not at all. But it will change current patterns and there will be a surge of opportunity for skills significantly different than what people now know and use. That is one source of the fuel for the growth patterns I anticipate later in the 2030s. Also, interestingly, will be a growth in demand for trade skills.”

After Gus Speth participated in a Boston-area Zoom call, Nancy Upper (surviving spouse of Dennis Upper) emailed Gus: “Thank you for linking us to your important article. Your four reasons for our climate crisis are spot on. Your conclusion that we must seek new values and live in accordance with these values is vital in this election year.” Paul Steiger emailed both Ted Wagner and Tom Trowbridge about the February luncheon at the Yale Club of NYC: “Ted, I hope you get quickly on the mend. It would be great to see you at the February 21 lunch. And regards to you, Tom, many thanks for pitching in. I plan to be there.” Owen O’Donnell (organizer of the aforementioned Bay-area monthly Zoom) shared his son’s blog with a classmate blogger, Russell Sunshine, who commented: “Owen, thanks very much for sharing. Your son writes well, with wit and self-awareness. I also appreciate that, like myself, he's long-winded. If you can't rattle on in your own blog, there is no point to going on living. You should be proud of your offspring. He sounds like an interesting and modest fellow. No surprise; blood will tell.” Later, Russell Sunshine replied to the February Zoom invitation: “Thanks, Owen. Nancy and I will just have arrived on the Monterey peninsula where we'll be visiting old friends and neighbors. If I can check in to our room at Asilomar Conference Center by or soon after 3pm, I will try to Zoom in.” In that February Zoom, Owen led the group in a discussion of third-party candidates and their potential impact on the presidential election. Joe Lieberman’s No Labels book and organization were part of the discussion.

When Pete Putzel read my FB post about dining at Ruth’s’ Chris Steak House in Minneapolis, he commented: “No! No! You can’t eat crab cakes at Ruth’s Chris!” To that same post, Pat Caviness commented, “I still remember Ms. Ruth and her steak house in New Orleans. The late John Bowen ’63 and I used to go there for a Friday night treat while I was doing my doctorate at Tulane. I’m sure that as a former executive of the company, you were served an awesome dinner.” Tony Lavely also got some reactions to his FB post about the Oscar-nominated movie, The Holdovers, with Paul Giamatti.” Pat Caviness commented, “I highly identified with this story for all the reasons you cited plus my one-year experience as a senior at Taft.” Dan Pollack commented: “My cousin's husband, Steve Greenberg, a Yale grad, soccer goalie, minor-league baseball player, and very successful entrepreneur, was assistant to Bart Giamatti. Steve and brother Glenn donated the indoor track in Payne Whitney.”

In January and February, Tony Lavely attended the monthly Yale 1960s Roundtable at the Minneapolis Club and the Minneapolis Feb Club Emeritus on February 26. Nancy and Tony Lavely had dinner with Dana and Dick Niglio in February and wished them bon voyage for their trip to Turks and Caicos in March. They are looking forward to our 60th reunion. Douglass Lea posted: “FIFA has revealed the schedule for the 2026 World Cup, which will take place jointly in the United States, Canada, and Mexico. Sixteen cities will host games, and it’s been revealed that 78 of the 104 games in total will be in the United States. Most notably, FIFA decided to award the World Cup Final to MetLife Stadium, which is in a swamp in northern New Jersey and was technically the ‘New York/New Jersey’ bid for reasons that are not entirely clear. It beat out Dallas and Los Angeles for the final, but as a consolation prize Dallas will be getting one of the semifinal games. Given that it’s FIFA and that it’s northern New Jersey, it’s absolutely possible that this World Cup will be the Manhattan Project of grift, where the finest minds in political corruption convene to produce a once-in-a-generation technical leap in the art of nepotism, patronage, influence peddling, and self-dealing.” Later, Douglass Lea posted: “It’s not a sin to be 81,” to which Sam Low commented: “Hey classmate, how you doin’? How did you find crossing the octogenarian river? It's a different country, right? Very interesting place to be.” Pat Caviness added: “Hell, it's not even a sin to be 82, well borderline … maybe!” From Martha’s Vineyard, Sam Low posted: “A lot of people who came to the Vineyard lived in an area called Sunnyledge in New Britain... Moores, Vibberts, Chamberlains, and Harts. They were mostly upper-level managers at Stanley Works. This house was about 200 feet from my grandfather's house at 388 Hart Street.”

With San Francisco in the Super Bowl again this year, Tony Lavely posted a remembrance of Jim Klint: “I don’t have a horse in the game today. So, my Yale connection to San Francisco will have me cheering for the 49ers. My late 1964 Yale classmate, Jim Klint, ‘won’ five Super Bowl rings during his tenure (1979-2002) as their team doctor. I was present in the stadium for four of those wins. It was a record until the Patriots (Belichick and Brady) won their sixth. The 49ers could tie that record with a win today. Jim and I were Yale classmates, teammates, fraternity brothers, and friends. We lost Jim in 2003 at far too young an age. I’ll see his widow Kris at our 60th class reunion in May.” [Alas, the 49ers didn’t win. I guess Jim was their good-luck charm.] Pat Caviness commented: “Thanks for your warm memories of Jim.” Dan Pollack added: “I miss Jim every day. We were floor buddies at Morse at Yale. I visited Jim's home in Rockford IL before traveling to the University of Wisconsin for spring break. Kris fixed us up with dates. We didn't want to leave.” Waldo Johnston emailed: “Candy and I had a delightful dinner with Bobbie and Ed Trippe at the Moorings in Florida where they live.” Ted Jones commented on the FB post of the Class Council meeting: “Wish I could have been there. So many familiar and loved faces.” Butch Hetherington sent me a photo of the basketball court in Pauli Murray for which his family donated the naming gift. It accompanied a photo of him and his son Alex, at Alex’s graduation summa cum laude in 2006: “Later, Alex worked at the Yale Investment Office.”

Despite coming down with COVID, Steve Hoffman attended the entire Class Council meeting on February 3 via Zoom and also helped several classmates find hotel accommodations in New Haven for the reunion. Following Gus Speth’s participation in the January Boston-area Zoom, Neil Hoffmann emailed: “Thanks Gus. All of this points out how critical it is that Trump not become President.” Later, Neil emailed about Brooks Carder’s death: “I didn’t know Brooks except by email, but I enjoyed his contributions to our discussions. Most of all, as a golfer, I enjoyed his report on his trip to Scotland and Saint Andrews with his sons some years ago. A truly beautiful and warm-hearted story which is very memorable. Did that get posted on the Class of ‘64 website? If not, it should be now as an adjunct to his obituary. Many of our classmates would enjoy it.” Marya Holcombe (surviving spouse of Terry Holcombe) posted, “I just got back from another lovely visit to Punta Cana, Dominican Republic, with Kerry (their daughter). I brought the sun but couldn’t pack the warmth.” John Howells had heart surgery to place a stent in early February but still attended the Class Council meeting via Zoom. Way to go Beast! John Hunsaker did a great job canvassing Trumbull College classmates for reunion attendance. One of his vivid undergraduate memories was the Trumbull College Beer and Bike Race for which Yale Alumni Magazine did a throwback-photo-feature in January 2024. On Valentine’s Day, Celeste Finn (spouse of Eric Fossel) posted a photo of Eric and her at a fancy restaurant: “Hoping that every FBF has the opportunity to share (any) beverage with their bestie today — even if it’s over Zoom. And? Even if they exhibit ‘Resting Norwegian Face’.” Ed Gaffney posted a photo of dramatic erosion along the Pacific Coast Highway and commented: “One of Southern California’s most prominent and popular roads will be closed nightly for an indeterminate amount of time. The city of Malibu announced that all lanes of PCH will be closed from 6:00pm to at least 7:00am the next day due to erosion of the oceanside shoulder from high tides and storm damage, and more expected storms.” Later, Ed Gaffney posted: “We have survived what was probably the most uncomfortable weekend of our 49-year-old marriage. The good news: we have a new car. The bad news: we spent eight hours Friday in a couple of car dealerships looking, waiting, getting an offer. (Saturday it snowed — a lot for ABQ.) And another five hours at the winning dealer waiting, bargaining a bit, waiting, signing, and — eventually — buying. Bye-bye haunted CRV. Welcome new HRV.”

In February, Morris Dean emailed me: “Tony, after a very good exchange with our classmate Douglas Grandgeorge a couple of years ago, he mysteriously ‘fell off my radar.’ But he's listed as a possible attendee of our 60th reunion, so he seems to still be with us. However, he has not replied to several emails from me. It's possible that he has blocked me for some reason, possibly by accident. Would you be willing to contact him on my behalf to inquire about this? Let me know if you need more information in order to decide. Thanks. I appreciate it.” They eventually connected. [All email addresses for classmates who provide them are listed in our Class Directory on the Class website.] Morris emailed: “Tony, thanks again for asking Douglas Grandgeorge to reach out to me. I received an email from him last night — roughly as long as our reunion essays — and I have already written a reply, which I want to go over another time or two before dispatching it.” Ralph DeFronzo commented on John Hunsaker’s Trumbull Beer and Bike Race thread: “What memories! The ‘good old days’ were really good. Unfortunately, current-day students are under the microscope.”

Dick duPont wrote an illustrated short story titled A Wintry Day in Iowa, about a harrowing flying experience in 1962 and sent it to Pat Caviness, Joe Wishcamper, and me. It's posted in "class news" here. Dick also relates: “In May 1963, a colleague and I were passengers in a single-engine Piper Cub that lost power 6500 feet over Lake Huron 12 miles from shore. With oil splattered all over the windshield, the pilot glided the plane to shore, and landed it on a narrow tractor path between a fence and a muddy field. My colleague and I walked to the nearest farm in our suits and carrying our briefcases. We startled a Mennonite farmer who took us into his house for a prayer and a cup of coffee.”

In late January, Patrick Caviness emailed me from Koh Samui: “Yesterday I received your 2023 Christmas card. Mail still travels slowly to places on the other side of the world, but at least it travels. I was delighted to see the annual photo of you and your ever-expanding family. I enjoyed reading about all the travels and activities you and Nancy packed in since you moved to Minnesota. It has been fun following your explorations on FB. Reading your summary reminds me of how happy you are and how much fun you and Nancy are having together. Hurrah. We are in the final packing stage for our first-ever cruise to Antarctica. Recently I learned that Joe Wishcamper and his family are taking a similar cruise to the same destination right now. [Editor: So did Toddie and Chris Getman and Mary and Chip Brennan.] I’m sorry to say I won’t be going to our 60th reunion. I will miss seeing you and meeting Nancy. It will be an amazing event. I know you will give the inspirational event your usual thorough coverage in your Class Notes. I’m looking forward to reading about it. These times continue to be golden years for Frederique and me. Our last 20 years together have been the happiest time of my life. After building and living in our Samui holiday home for almost all of those years, we find we love the home we now live in. It is perfect for us at this stage in our lives. We have great neighbors, a magnificent view, and a happy home filled with sunshine and sea breezes. Like you and Nancy, our new home is a place we enjoy sharing with local friends and the many folks who come to Samui to visit. I hope one day you and Nancy will come and stay with us. Big hugs to you, teammate.” Soon after, Pat Caviness and Frederique Deleage took an extended cruise to South America and the Antarctic on the good ship SS Voyager in February. They posted enough photos and narratives on Facebook to fill this column twice over. My favorite was one of Patrick with the caption, “Old Man at Sea." He’s described by a friend this way: "Amidst the boundless horizons of the Antarctic, Patrick the Explorer embarked on a soul-stirring odyssey, unearthing not only the secrets of the icy wilderness but also the depths of his own resilience and spirit, crafting a narrative of personal triumph amidst the frozen expanse."

In February, Jim Currie called me about his plans for our 60th reunion. He and his co-pilot are flying in from Arizona. That’s gotta be some kind of record! Len Bakeris a regular on the Bay-area Zooms and contributed mightily to their discussion of academic freedom in January. “Of course, the university’s mission includes teaching, but teaching of what? Is teaching of ideological dogma in an atmosphere with bullying of questioners or dissenters included in the definition? Of course, universities cannot escape from politics, especially because they are rich, selective, and doors to prosperity. That’s all the more reason why the university’s core mission must guide what it does in political and social-justice issues. The qualifications for a university president are near-impossible. They must be respected scholars. They must be able to persuade a lot of strong-minded faculty, students, donors, and alums, each of whom sometimes hates the others. They actually have limited formal authority. They are constantly at the mercy of unfair attacks from self-interested press and politicians. They need to be able to manage. They need to understand finance. They need to seem authentic when attending boring events. They need stamina and huge energy. This is not the whole list. It may be the hardest job there is. That’s perhaps why elite universities have recently had weak, get-along-to-go-along presidents instead of leaders. I worked closely with Rick Levin for 12 years. He was excellent (though no one is perfect). But if they don’t have a deep understanding and belief in the core mission of the university, all else is lost, sooner or later.” Later, Len Baker was in Guatemala and emailed: “For a number of years I’ve been supporting a non-profit that builds libraries in small communities in Guatemala and this was the first time I had a chance to visit them. It was interesting, but the lives of the people are pretty depressing to witness.”

Dan Berman (whom I saw at my high-school reunion last fall) continues to petition Yale to rescind their 1996 Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters to Stephan Schmidheiny for his asbestos crimes. Steve Bingham (a regular on the Bay-area Zooms) shared his Reunion Book personal essay with the group. Here’s an excerpt: “Much has happened since our 50th. Despite living with the daily grief of losing our daughter Sylvia (Y09), Francoise and I continue to move forward with our lives. Both of us are sustained by being very busy all the time. Francoise has been teaching all levels of French at our local Community College of Marin for several years. She thrives on it, enjoying her students, and loves having the shortest commute of her teaching career.” Many classmates in the Bay-area have seen the documentary film about Steve and his expatriate years in the 1970s, A Double Life. We are trying very hard to have it screened at our 60th reunion and be joined by Sylvia’s friends from the Class of 2009. Bill Bowe posted from Chicago, “The world map was published in 1768 when the entry on ‘Women’ in Encyclopedia Britannica’s first edition read ‘the opposite of Man’.” Michelle Mead (surviving spouse of John Armor) posted: “Oh, my gosh. Found out yesterday that my 11th great grandfather was Joseph Loomis, who helped found Windsor, CT. In 1903, Euphemia Loomis established a fund to create a fountain in honor of her late husband, Hezekiah. You've got to dig the names! The Loomis family also founded Loomis School. Down the line there were five adult children who, alas, all lost their children. They created the Loomis School, later Loomis-Chaffee (the first for boys, the second for girls) so that the children of others could be educated. There was also a proviso in the donation that members of the family got first pick in admissions! Ah, legacies!” Later, Michelle posted: “Just took a look at the list of Grammy nominees. Yes, I recognized a few. But mostly, my thought was ‘Who the hell is that?’ So, I think I'll skip the whole thing, and just eat popcorn and watch PBS. Ah, the life of a boomer.”

Bam Alling emailed: “Not so many years ago I had no clue what ‘CCRC’ meant. (Continuing Care Retirement Community). Hell, not so many years ago I could still walk in the sand, swim in the ocean, and run our small boat. All gone now! Eileen and I have taken the plunge, downsized by 50%, and live in a wonderful bubble where others take care of the daily tasks of living, feed us wonderful food, keep us hydrated, and are unobtrusively there in case we need them for whatever.  This leaves us time to enjoy each other, fix the world, and share memories with an expanding (and contracting!) group of new friends. I highly recommend this transition and look forward to the reunion in May and hearing your solutions to the relentless march of aging!”

Waldo “Spike” Forbes has published a new book, A Rolling Stone: Evolution and the Ematomic Veil. Em - a - tóm - ic as an adjective means: “pertaining to any or all of the following: 1. the unavoidable gap between any word and the object it identifies; 2. the unavoidable gap between different understandings of a single word by two different people; 3. the unavoidable gap between the separate minds of two different people.”

Last summer, I missed the final entry by Morris Dean in his “Moristotle” blog. Well done, Morris! Syd Lea updated his Newsletter in “Substack,” with “Bound to Happen,” a short story. Ron Parlato is as prolific as ever in his blog, “Uncle Guido’s Facts.” Ron’s latest: “American Politics — The Fine Art of Bluster, Nonsense, and the Rise of a Progressive Star.” Paul Ruden took on the presidential election in his blog, “Sea to Shining Sea.” Ron Sipherd added several new entries in his photo-blog, “Ronksville.” Russell Sunshine started off the New Year in his blog “Agile Aging” with “The 2024 Presidential Election: Its Threat and Opportunities.”

It saddens me to report the deaths of three classmates since the previous issue. George Levendis told me that his roommate Steve Swanson died on November 13, 2023, in Manhattan Beach, CA. Brooks Carder’s son told us that Brooks died on January 10, 2024. Jamie Park died on January 16, 2924, in Amenia, NY. Jamie was the first of our thirteen Whiffenpoofs to die. Obituaries will be posted on our Class Website as they become available. Many of our Whiffenpoofs weighed in about Jamie. Al Rossiter (aka “Popo”) wrote: “I wasn't planning on having the '64 Whiffs sing at the memorial service. We could, however, sing the Whiff Song if all of you thought that was appropriate and if we could find a moment to rehearse before the service. Jamie was one of my oldest and dearest friends. We both entered St. Mark's School in 1955 and were close right up to his death.” John Evans (aka “Odds”) added: “Regarding Popo's proposal that we sing something in Jamie's memory at the memorial service, we could do ‘I Get Along Without You Very Well’ (Jamie's solo) but that wouldn't be accurate since we probably won't get along without him very well. He was the musical anchor on my side of the shoe, always on pitch.” John Evans added: “I suggest we reserve a table at dinner (which we are going to be able to do) and sing the Whiff song for ourselves and share Jamie stories. We could ask Betsy to join us, too. Her registration would be free (due to a gift from Jim Rogers).” Tony Lavely wrote: “On my way out of Payne Whitney following the Yale basketball win over UPenn on February 3, I came upon the framed jerseys of Rick Kaminsky and Denny Lynch who are both in the Yale Basketball Hall of Fame. By my count, there are over 21 locations on the Yale campus where our Class, as a group or individual classmates, are memorialized. We’re hoping to create a map of those locations for our reunion in May so you can explore those locations on your own.