Class Notes

Thank you to all of the wonderful classmates who sent in their news this time around. It was a genuine pleasure to hear from some of you that haven’t written in a while. Hope to see many of you at the reunion next year.

Gale Mattox continues to enjoy teaching midshipmen at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis. She just published Coalition Challenges in Afghanistan: the Politics of Alliance with Stanford University Press (See: Books by UMW Alumni). Way to go, Gale!

Sarah Cross Eyre and husband Jim have lived in Isle of Palms, South Carolina, for 10 years. Yes, they moved to warmer climes after raising their children in Richmond. Jim retired from business in Richmond and they headed south. Sarah taught high school in Chesterfield County, Virginia, for many years. Now the two of them play quite a bit of tennis and Sarah teaches statistics and math part time for the local community college. Daughter Sally and her husband live close to them. Their other daughter, Kathleen, lives in southwest China with her husband and children and they are expecting their fourth child. Sarah can’t wait to meet them in Thailand for the delivery and will be helping out for five weeks. She is also pleased that the blessed event will be at western-type medical facilities. Sarah and Jim recently celebrated their 43rd wedding anniversary. Congratulations to you both!

Sarah stays in touch with Kathy Bradford Lehman, and Kathy took Sarah’s advice and wrote as well. She is well noted in library circles and has been a national officer in their society in addition to doing a lot of work for the library community in Virginia. She was in the same high school where Sarah taught for a number of years. Kathy retired after 37 years in the profession, most of which was in Chesterfield County Public Schools. She still keeps her hand in library work by teaching one online class a semester for the ODU library program and supervising student teachers in library placements. Kathy and her husband, Frank, split their time between Midlothian (near Richmond) and Machipongo (on the Chesapeake Bay) while thoroughly enjoying visits with children and grandchildren. Their son Andrew recently moved his family to Garden City and works in Manhattan. Daughter Julia is in Seattle finishing up a double master’s degree at Bastyr University. Kathy’s goal for the summer is to improve her golf game, play more bridge, and make a dent in her stack of great reads. She wants us to come see them at the Bay.

It is with much sorrow that we announce the passing of our dear classmate, Susan Palmer Bender. Eileen Reynolds Cantoni had contacted many of us after receiving a letter from Susan’s husband, John. Both Eileen and I were in the same freshman dorm (Betty Lewis) with Susan and remember her as such a fun-loving person who was also a great organizer. Susan was a terrific asset at the college reunions and heartily encouraged many about the importance of attending same. She will be sadly missed and our hearts go out to her family.

Eileen also wrote about another Betty Lewis resident and that news helps to balance out the sadness a little bit. Our lovely Patti Barrow Rios became a grandmother this past April. Her daughter, Alex, had a baby boy named Daniel. Patti is as thrilled as she can be and is quite the happy granny. They are all still living in Spain.

As another HONFest bites the dust, I’m settling back into my job at the law firm which remains challenging. Summer has come to our hot, humid town, so one of our goals is to stay cool. Between the home in Baltimore and my late mom’s home in Roanoke, I’ve got quite a time of downsizing ahead. Dennis and I caught up with Dave and Cheryl Prietz Childress in April when they were doing their colonial re-enactment at Ft. Frederick. Daughter Thea was along so it was a lovely reunion. Apparently they did quite well with the little business they take around to these festivals. Thea and her husband, Eric, are still enjoying Atlanta. The next big thing on the horizon is the wedding of their son, Alex, in October. Much as we are looking forward to that, we hope to get together another time before that.

Here is hoping you all have a good summer and that we get a record turnout at the reunion. Anyone who wants to help in the planning is welcome. In closing, our prayers go out to the families of the victims in Orlando. For those living in the area, be safe. Until next time.