Class Notes
These are the unedited class notes as submitted by class agents and other alumni. Edited notes appear in the print edition.
If you prefer to submit Class Notes by mail, send to:
UMW Magazine – Class Notes1301 College Ave.
Fredericksburg, VA 22401
1970s
1970
Anne Sommervold LeDoux
ledouxanne@yahoo.com
From Carol: After approximately 25 years of being your class agent, I have decided to “retire.” Anne Sommervold LeDoux has graciously offered to be our new class agent. I sincerely thank all of you who have sent me your news over the years and I hope you will continue to do so with Anne.
Our 45th college reunion the last weekend in May was a blast and truly enjoyable, especially seeing so many of our classmates! There were several new activities added to the weekend and they were great fun. Please mark your calendars for five years from now for our 50th reunion!
Prior to the reunion, Ted and I visited my 95-year-old aunt in Pennsylvania. She’s an inspiration to me, still getting around with the aid of her walker and very interested in everything that we were doing. Ted and I are pretty settled now in our new home in Georgia and we are enjoying all of the activities of our community. We are both in cooking clubs, Ted is active with the Veteran’s group, the Optimist Club, and the community Advisory Board, and I have learned new card games and Mah Jongg. Ted’s youngest son lives two hours away in Gadsden, Alabama, and he recently visited for Father’s Day weekend.
In November 2015, Pat Piermatti vacationed in Florida, cruised out of Port Everglades on the maiden voyage of the Regal Princess—which was even more exciting because some of The Love Boat cast members were special guests—and then cruised on the Coral Princess to Aruba, Colombia, Costa Rica, Panama, and Jamaica. Victorian Society bus trips allowed Pat to visit Iviswold, the Castle at Felician College in Rutherford, New Jersey; Kips Castle in Essex County; Lyndhurst, a Gothic revival home designed by Alexander Jackson Davis in Tarrytown, New York; and Caramoor in Katonah, New York. Pat also visited the Little Falls (Little Falls, New Jersey) and the Great Falls (Paterson, New Jersey) of the Passaic River and the Thomas Edison National Historical Park in West Orange, New Jersey. Pat continues to write her “Historical Nuggets” articles for the Women’s Club of Upper Montclair newsletter along with completing other Historian duties and taking photographs of special church activities, one of which was published in The Montclair Times on October 9, 2014.
Martha Veasey Sawyer and her husband, Roger, visited Gatlinburg, Tennessee, several times last year, staying at The Buckhorn Inn and hiking in Smoky Mountain National Park. Martha was thrilled to see Judy Collins in concert in Blacksburg, Virginia, in January of 2014. May 2014 brought a trip to Myrtle Beach to visit Roger’s sister and brother-in-law. Martha and Roger’s big trip of 2014 was their cruise and land trip to Alaska. They were awed by the scenery and the wildlife during their stay in Denali National Park. June 2014 found them on their annual pilgrimage to Atlantic City. In November, 2014, Martha and Roger joined Kaye Webster Gary, her husband, Bob, and Mary Jane Johnson Tyler and her husband, Hugh, in Charleston, South Carolina, for their annual reunion. Their daughter Debbie graduated from Radford and enjoys her job at Trust House while working on her master’s degree in social work; daughter Beth lives in Atlanta with her husband and three teenagers; and daughter Suzanne’s field of expertise is in book and paper restoration.
Barbara Forgione Tansey enjoyed a four-day getaway to New York City with her daughter Lisa, where they enjoyed the theatre, bus tours, Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island, Central Park, and Ground Zero with the 9/11 memorial. Barbara had two foot surgeries last year, but she recovered from those nicely and attended several activities at our 45th reunion.
From Anne: Our class would like to thank Carole LaMonica Clark for her many years of service as our class agent! She did an outstanding job sharing our news with us even though it was sometimes difficult to get a response from all of us! Her time and devotion has been greatly appreciated. I have agreed to take over this job and I only hope that I can do half as well as Carole did! Please keep me informed, either by email or card—even a Christmas card. Keeping in touch, especially as we approach that really important milestone, our 50th reunion, is so important!
For those of you who were unable to attend our 45th reunion, we really missed seeing you! There were approximately 35 members of our class in attendance and we had a wonderful time reminiscing about our memorable days back as students at MWC. We all agreed that it really could not have been 45 years ago since we all looked so young and wonderful. Thanks to the hard work of our planning committee, our class started off Friday night with our class party at the home of Bill and Terrie Crawley. Their beautiful home provided a delightful background for visiting and viewing a slideshow of pictures from our college days which was put together by Susie Duffey DiMaina. Susie also had designed and ordered T-shirts for us to wear which were just super! A big thanks to Susie for all of her efforts! Those of us in attendance would love to see all of you in 2020 as we celebrate our 50th reunion!
During the reunion I tried to gather as much news as possible since the deadline for news was fast approaching. I apologize in advance if I did not get news from you, but if I didn’t, send me some for next time!
Elaine Wilson Maloney now has two grandchildren ages three and one-and-a-half years. She is still working as a school librarian for Fairfax County, and her husband, Mike, is the Executive Director of the Organization for Autism Research.
Barbara Forgione Tansey is retired, lives in Chesapeake in an over-55 community, and has a three-year-old grandson, Bodie. Tilly Thiel is enjoying life with three grandchildren—six-month-old boy and girl twins and a four-month-old boy. She is also playing lots of golf. She traveled to China this year and had a wonderful time.
Jean Burges Botts is living in Charlottesville. Kathi O’Neill is retiring from her job of 42 years in August and is starting a new consulting business for non-profits. Tina Kormanski Krause is leaving Northern Virginia and moving to Richmond so she can be nearer to her three grandchildren, ages six, four, and one. She plans to split her time between Richmond and Kiawah, South Carolina.
Rochele Hirsh, author of Relationship Chemistry: Understanding the Unspoken, is driving back across the country to the West Coast to start more definitive research on cravings. Gabby Pagin is retiring at the end of the year after 45 years with the Child Support Program. She is an avid cyclist, both for charity and fun rides, and also travels annually. Her most recent trip was to Costa Rica.
Kathy Shepherd Mehfoud is the Chairman of the UMW Foundation and was just reelected to her third term. She is also on the Presidential Search Committee for the new President of UMW. Kathy also stays busy with nine grandchildren who range in age from five to 13.
Laurie King Myse splits her time between Sarasota, Florida, and Stafford, Virginia. Sharon Arthur Spencer has a granddaughter and daughter in Dallas. She retired as a full time faculty member at Pensacola State College but will return to work part time as their assessment coordinator.
I stay busy with grandchildren and traveling. John and I just welcomed our fourth grandchild, Charlotte Rose LeDoux, in February. Last October I traveled to Mongolia with some girlfriends and it was an amazing trip! We slept in gers and even a teepee! My email is ledouxanne@yahoo.com and my address is Anne LeDoux, 1113 John Paul Jones Drive, Stafford, Virginia, 22554. Hope to hear from you!
1971
Karen Laino Giannuzzi
kapitankL11@yahoo.com
This is the first column under the new guidelines and timelines which should make some of the news a bit more current. I must note that this has been a tumultuous last six months for so many of us, so the news may be sparse and we are all finding our way into our new “normals.” The countdown has begun for our 45th reunion in 2016. Any ideas for a theme or ideas in general send to me and also to the Facebook page to share.
Terry Tucker Young and I have reconnected under sad circumstances during the illness and passing of a friend to so many of us, Sylvia Schwab, in March 2015. Terry and I have promised to meet up. Terry has had two very successful shops in Northern Virginia called Doodlehopper 4 Kids. They were voted the number one toy store in the area and they offer toys, games, science items, and baby gifts, among other things. Terry’s Zen, as she calls it, has been pottery, and in July she planned to attend a ceramic workshop in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Terry belongs to a studio in Arlington where she participates in art shows and it was there that she ran into Jane Touzalin and Margie McDonald. Another classmate, Pat Naybors Whitehead, shows in several area galleries and they see each other a few times a year. Phil, her husband of 33 years (where does the time go?) is in real estate and she has two step children—a DJ and a TV producer.
A funny thing happened on the way to reconnecting with friends. I had a note from Susan Brown Lohin, who is still at Wellesley in Massachusetts. She wrote about a high school friend who lives somewhere here in York. I suggested she give me the email address so I could contact her friend and possibly meet for coffee. Well it turns out her friend, Delilah, lives only seven houses down the next street from me and we have become walking buddies. Talk about a small world. Thank you, Susan, for introducing her to me.
Barbara Halliday soon celebrates one year as Mayor of Hayward, California, located in the San Francisco Bay area. Congratulations, Barbara. You certainly have your challenges for the next three years.
My apologies for this late entry on Penny Falkowitz Goldstein, who, with her husband, Dan, has been in Alaska for over 30 years. Penny had been a health and safety professional for BP Oil but had also worked for the U.S. Army, USDA, Forest Service, and ARCO. Penny was in Louisiana for the oil spill cleanup and also worked the North Slope for six years. She had quite a career while Dan worked for both the FAA and TSA as a budget and logistics specialist. Since retiring, they have a full schedule and a full house as foster parents and grandparents. She and Dan sit on the boards of local non-profits. They love Alaska and I am sure would love to see some of us up there to enjoy nature at its finest and roughest. Their one son has been studying to be a Rabbi. Penny stays in touch with Anne Patterson Mackinnon and Pattie Neyland Reams.
Betsy Pfromm has been in Pasadena, California, and heads a nationally recognized mental health center affiliated with the USC Keck School of Medicine. It has been recognized for leadership in major policy initiatives in areas of prevention, early intervention, and ethnic minority services. Betsy has also spent some time in Phuket, Thailand.
Debbie Oja Tuttle and Ed will celebrate 33 years of marriage, and when they retired from Washington, D.C., 16 years ago, they moved to Sunset Beach, North Carolina! They love living at the beach but it’s a zoo in the summer, so they also bought a condo in the mountains on a golf course in Linville, North Carolina, near Grandfather Mountain. Six months at the beach and six months in the mountains—love it! They have been lucky with good health and lots of friends, but Debbie would love to hear more from Mary Wash classmates.
Several of us like Liz Keith and Barbara Exline Staller have reconnected thanks to Words with Friends, a fun way to stay in touch. We are planning an almost annual reunion in October when Liz comes east for a wedding.
Again, let us all keep Sylvia’s family and Sylvia in our prayers and thoughts as we do all our departed classmates.
1972
Sherry Rutherford Myers
dllmyers@netzero.com
Greetings from hot, humid Baltimore, everyone. The time seems to go so quickly these days, but I hope you are all surviving the summer.
Nancy Mahone Miller, Terri Hall Alford, Shirley Harris Sutton, Kathryn Ray, Mary Saunders Williams, and Anne Toms Richardson took one fantastic trip to Scotland recently. The pictures on Facebook are totally awesome. It is always such a pleasure to see what this group of friends is up to, and so wonderful knowing the enjoyment they continue to have in each other’s company. Old friends truly are the best, and we owe our alma mater so much because of the friendships that were formed during those years. Thank you, Nancy, for allowing us to enjoy your photos of the trip and all of your other events. Keep them coming!
The above friendships remind me of how fortunate I am in having Cheryl Prietz Childress and Norah Heckman ’73 in my life. They were both a strong support this past winter after my mother passed away. Mom had been extremely fond of both of them. Cheryl and her husband, Dave, traveled to Roanoke for the funeral and stayed on to give both Dennis and me some much needed company. We always enjoy visiting with them even through troubled times.
Cheryl and Dave had some great news the past few months. Their son Alex just became engaged to a young lady who also lives in Richmond. They are planning a wedding in October of 2016. We are all so thrilled for everyone involved. Daughter Thea and son-in-law Eric are in the process of moving to Atlanta from St. Louis. Thea is still an active equestrienne and has enjoyed working for a theater in St. Louis as well. Atlanta should offer her even more opportunities with both of these activities. Cheryl and Dave continue to stay busy with the farm and their animals. Most recently, they added a new horse to the menagerie and he is a descendant of the Secretariat blood line. That is truly exciting. We hope to have them stop in Baltimore sometime this summer.
It was such a nice surprise to hear from Mary Buckingham Lipsey. We used to see each other quite a bit at Mary Washington around the Baptist Student Union and the church we attended. We had some great times together. Mary and her husband, Chris, live in Springfield, Virginia, and Chris continues to work for the USDA. Mary retired after teaching history for more than 30 years but keeps herself busy with all of her volunteer jobs.
In 2010, Mary stumbled upon a largely unknown story which happened in 1908 in Fairfax Station. It concerned a Dr. William Christmas, who built and flew a plane, making him the third American to fly. Three and a half years of extensive research resulted in Mary’s book, A Christmas Flight: Aviation Pioneer, Dr. William Christmas, which was published on April 7, 2013. Congratulations, Mary. That sounds like a must-read, and I for one cannot wait.
Here is hoping that some of the rest of you who have not been in touch will follow Mary’s fine example and drop a few lines from time to time. We all want to know what is going on in your lives.
Dennis and I took a trip to California in April to visit with friends and family. It was a marvelous break after such a cold winter. I continue with my job at the law firm which stays busy and stimulating. Other than that, we have been dividing our time between Baltimore and Roanoke as we are making plans to relocate to my mother’s home in the future.
In closing, here is hoping that those of you who have been in harm’s way with the strange weather patterns have come through intact. We pray for you and hope to hear from more of you in the future. ‘Til next time, have a blessed summer.
1973
Joyce Hines Molina
joyce.molina@verizon.net
It was good to hear from many of you and the lively discussion concerning the name change of the newspaper from The Bullet. After all these years, we still care.
There is sad news from two of our classmates. In 2014, Susan Jacobius Davis lost her daughter, and Bambi Creighton Willis lost her husband. Those who kept up with Susan or chatted at reunions know that Amy was a very special person and their relationship a strong one. Those who knew A.G. may share Bambi’s special memory of him engineering the fall of the balloons at our ring dance to the beat of “Aquarius.” Our thoughts are with them both.
I’m now the interim organist at my church and have dusted off my oboe to join a local community band. My honey bees did not fare well in the frigid February temperatures. I’m learning constantly and have a new colony started. In May we visited Kauai, a beautiful island but a very long trip from the east coast.
Janet Hedrick is Director of Development at the School Nutrition Foundation, a national organization of 55,000 members who work in school nutrition. Her job takes her throughout the country as she plans and delivers conferences. She enjoys time with her lilac-crowned Amazon parrot, Cody, who can say “I love you” and “give me a kiss.” She is active in her church, where she volunteers as the editor of the church newsletter. Janet obviously has plenty of energy.
Janet continues the traditional Thanksgiving visit with Sharon Richmond Janis. Sharon is living in a retirement community in Greensboro, and would love to hear from classmates. Her address is 4100 Well Spring Drive, Apt. 2120, Greensboro, NC, 27410. She does not use email.
Virginia Addison and Will welcomed their fourth grandchild in May.
Karen Parker is the Executive Director of Advantage Wellness & Recovery, providing individual whole health management, advocacy on disabilities and different distinctions, information, and possibilities to enhance overall well-being. She helps individuals create mind, feelings, body, and goal action strategies wherever they are in their life’s journeys.
Karen is feeling excited at this “second act” stage. She is also an independent contractor and volunteer in the field of behavioral health, and she advocates for rights and services to support persons with various challenges, providing comfort, encouragement, and ongoing mentoring to foster independence.
Karen reports that as she reinvents herself, she calls on her MWC foundations in liberal sciences, humanities and foreign languages, writing, public speaking, music, sports, spiritual growth, and teaching. She hopes that 2015 brought successes in everyone’s endeavors to “Be all they can be!”
Please continue to write and thanks to those who contributed to this article.
1974
Sid Baker Etherington
sidleexx@yahoo.com
Suzy Passarello Quenzer
sq3878@att.com
Greetings, Class of 1974! Your response has been great for this newsletter, let’s keep it up; it is so good to hear what everyone is doing. Thanks for the input.
Christine Haberstroth Deyoung writes that she has been living in Northern Virginia since her marriage in 1977. She worked at Viar and Company in Old Town Alexandria, which was acquired by DynCorp in the early 1990s, and then CSC acquired DynCorp in 2003. She has weathered the two acquisitions and is a Program Director for the EPA’s Superfund Contract Laboratory Program. They run the Sample Management Office that supports the EPA’s efforts in cleaning up hazardous waste sites across the country. Her husband, Jay, sold his software business a few years ago and is now retired. She has two children; Jon is a writer and is attending Florida State working towards a Master of Fine Arts in writing, and Kate is a researcher and is also back in school at American University working on a master’s degree in clinical psychology. Kate has worked in labs supporting research on abused pregnant women, suicide, and personal injury. Christine is looking forward to retiring in a couple of years and moving further south, maybe as far as Virgin Gorda! She and her husband hate the cold and shoveling snow.
Christine had dinner with Mary Hutchison Wilson a year or so ago. She transferred to William and Mary after our sophomore year. She is still working at the CIA. Both of her children are in New York. Her daughter is an actress with an impressive resume, just waiting for her big break. Her son is working in the financial arena.
Mary Margaret McVeigh Canale writes that her oldest son, Alex, was married in November to the lovely Julie Groark. Alex teaches AP and Freshmen Chemistry and Forensics at St. Peter’s Prep and is their Crew Coach. Julie teaches sixth grade English in Westchester. Their younger son, Brendan, lives and works in Baltimore. Mary and her husband, Dave, spent time traveling in Sicily with friends this past April. They are both still working. She is looking forward to being on campus next May for her goddaughter’s graduation.
Cynthia Gorwitz writes that she lives in Fayetteville, North Carolina, and has two great children currently attending North Carolina colleges. She is a retired social worker and is involved in Democratic Party politics and social issues.
Diane Harvey Smith reports that son number two, Ben, was married in a lovely beachside ceremony in Destin, Florida, this April. Ben and his new bride will be moving to New Delhi for three years. They are looking forward to the adventure, although Mom is a bit concerned about the distance. But she has always wanted to go to India, so this is the big chance. Son number one, Adam, and his wife fortunately are remaining in Northern Virginia. Diane and her husband, Steve, continue to work on their retirement home in downtown Leedstown, Virginia. A home totally furnished in knotty pine is a decorating challenge!
Julia Blair Geier said she still lives in the Northern Neck of Virginia in White Stone. She is a grandmother of five wonderful granddaughters ranging in age from five months to five years. After years of steady volunteer work, she is now enjoying retirement! Her husband, Bill, refurbished their 20-year-old, 65-foot catamaran and they plan to take her south this fall.
Her dear friend Barbara Wilson Conley and she keep in close touch; Barbara and her husband, Lloyd, recently moved from Midlothian, Virginia, to Solomons, Maryland, and are very happy there, where they are closer to family and the water!
Bettiann Aylor writes that the group who worked on the 40th reunion did a great job—thanks to all of those involved. She had not seen Nancy Jones Brown for a long time and what a treat it was for her to spend time with her. Bettiann will complete her 41st year with Hanover County Public Schools. She is currently the administrative senior teacher in a school, which is the perfect place for her. She gets to teach a couple of classes and is the administrator for the math department, which she loves.
This summer, Bettiann will be in Europe for two weeks, going back to London, Normandy, Loire, and Paris. She is really looking forward to that, as she’ll have a chance to once again spend some time with an acquaintance from one of her previous trips. She loves Wicked and has tickets to see that in London. The Normandy area is one of her favorites. She says that not being a history person, it is amazing the greater appreciation she gains from such an experience. Then, there’s always Paris—amazing! Her plan is to be back at Hanover High next fall and will see what happens at the end of next year. She does plan to retire sometime but she has to find another job first!
If anyone has contact information for Andrea Hendricks Shannon, Bettiann would love to touch base with her. She has not been able to locate her.
Pat Denton Rounds reports that she retired from the Chatham County Public library system on her birthday and is now planning to move to the Charlotte area to be closer to her daughters. She will be leaving behind a wonderful Queen Anne home which she has lovingly been restoring, but now she will move on to new adventures in Cherryville, North Carolina.
Marci Alexander Anderson writes that she has never taken time to reply to our class newsletter, but decided to do so for the first time. She has finally retired in January after working for 39 years as a speech language pathologist! She has thoroughly enjoyed her career as an SLP and it was a hard decision for her to retire, as she has been happy and proud to serve and work in the field with pediatric and adult patients. She thinks she has worked in almost every setting possible, including outpatient clinics, public schools, a rehabilitation facility, inpatient and outpatient hospital settings, an ENT office, a pediatric neurologist’s office, home health, private practice, nursing homes, and a facility for the deaf. All of her patients have been challenging and rewarding.
Marci and her husband, Danny, enjoy traveling, and they just hiked Zion National Park and Bryce Canyon in Utah in May. They also just got back from a relaxing trip to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, and are looking forward to taking a two-week riverboat cruise through Germany in August. Then in September, Marci is going with three of her best tennis friends to the U.S. Tennis Open in New York. She stays busy helping her 92-year-old mother and looks forward to her 93rd birthday next month. Marci loves to exercise and swim most days or walk or go to the gym. She is also a big U.Va. fan and watches basketball, baseball, and football games and attends when she can. She also loves her church and its activities.
She keeps in touch with several classmates, including her old roommate, Cassy White Holcomb, in Washington State, and Judy Clark Hays ’75 in North Carolina, who was in the class behind us. She just ran into her freshman suitemate, Mary Kay O’Keefe Beasley, at the Lewis Ginter Botanical Gardens in Richmond during Easter. All are doing well.
Marci has attended most of our class reunions, and she just wanted everyone to know that they are so much fun. She encourages all classmates to come back to Fredericksburg for a fun and full weekend. She would enjoy hearing from other classmates and encourages them to write in to our newsletter to keep in touch. Time flies, but it is always fun to reminisce about Mary Washington and the “good old days.”
Katherine R. “Jill” Hadden reported that she is has been in Atlanta for about 29 years now, or thereabouts, and has been in the suburb of Peachtree Corners since 1999. She is working two part-time jobs, both of which keep her on her feet almost all the time. She has been into board gaming pretty heavily now for about seven years, and she recently attended a five-day Game-O-Rama convention here in Atlanta and had an absolute blast! Such Fun! She normally plays around four to six times a month, depending on her work schedules.
Jill has one cat, Smidgeon, who is a piano cat and about 13 years old this month. She was thrilled that we finally have another Triple Crown winning racehorse, American Pharaoh, after an over 30-year drought! Thoroughbred racing is one of her favorite sports to watch and there is so little of it offered on TV. She tries to keep up with Norah Heckman and Patricia Barnett Millard from the MW days.
Peg Hubbard reports that at our 35th reunion a group of Jefferson Fourth West residents vowed to schedule annual reunions. They are proud to say that 2015 marks the seventh year in a row that they have gathered on the weekend following Memorial Day. Between the 35th and 40th reunions, they spent fun-filled weekends in four different East Coast cities. This year they returned to campus and enjoyed Reunion Weekend activities and dorm life in Mason. They even created their own class tent under the canopy of an old tree in front of Virginia Hall.
The group included Patti Goodall Strawderman, Karen Sunnarborg, Jonette deButts Hahn, Nancy Pederson Trzcinski, Deb Ryan Howard, and Peg Hubbard. There’s nothing like late-night conversations with your college chums. Susan Tyler Maguigan was unable to join them this year because her eldest of three daughters, Caitlin, was nine months pregnant. Susan and her husband, Tim, welcomed their first grandchild in June—a BOY!
1975
Armecia Spivey Medlock
vagirl805@msn.com
Natalie Whitcomb has been appointed as a Discipline Coordinator for the Florida Statewide Course Numbering System (SCNCS). Her duties include reviewing new courses submitted by state-supported institutions of higher education, approving course numbers, or suggesting a more appropriate course number. Natalie teaches geology, oceanography, and environmental science courses at Polk State College in Winter Haven, Florida. Natalie’s daughter, Rachael, graduated from Johns Hopkins with a master’s degree in public health this past May. Natalie’s son, Eric, is employed by the University of Florida Citrus Research Center.
Carol Pappas Bartold has been working a little over a year at Picturehouse, an independent film distributor in Bronxville, New York. Carol says that it helps to keep her in the world of accounting, which she loves. Carol had an essay published on the Prairie Schooner blog in May. Here’s the link: http://prairieschooner.unl.edu/blog/women-and-global-imagination-full-thrust. Carol writes that she is still happily writing for My Hometown Bronxville, covering local government, education, and land use.
Maureen Argo Marks was sorry to have missed our 40th reunion, but her husband, Bob, and she had planned a cruise to celebrate their 40th wedding anniversary a while before the reunion was announced, so it was too late to change it. Maureen is still working primary care for Kaiser, which is a great organization! There are long days, but Maureen makes sure to travel when she can.
Their youngest son, Daniel, just received his master’s degree in computer engineering and started working for Apple. Their daughter Ellen passed the California Bar and is working in San Diego. Their oldest son, Chris, was deployed last year to the Philippines, but is now back at MIT—safe and doing well. Michael and Andrew work in San Diego.
Bob and Maureen have seven grandchildren, who keep them busy. Bob just opened a new law office with one partner. They thought Bob was going to retire, but he changed his mind. Maureen and Bob still do a lot of swimming and, now that the water is warm, they do ocean swims before work. It’s a great way to start the day!
I’m very happy to announce that Ian and Vickie, our son and daughter-in-law, gave birth to our second granddaughter, Lucy Grace, this past June. This past August, our daughter Taylor began a 12-month nursing program for her BSN at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville.
We had a great group at our 40th class reunion this past May! It was wonderful to see everyone and spend time visiting. If we missed receiving your news in time for this update, please send your news for the next issue! We’d love to read about what you’re doing!
1976
Madelin Jones Barratt
madbarratt@aol.com
Donald Mulcare retired from NOAA in 2008. He worked as an adjunct professor in the Geographic Information Science program at Texas A&M University, Corpus Christi until 2013. Prompted by his mother’s declining health, he moved to Florida to be with her.
Kathy Valentine lives in Annapolis, Maryland, with her husband, Paul. She left her consulting work a year ago and started a full-time job with the law firm McKenna Long in Washington, D.C. She can work from home. She is the Desktop and Mobile Applications Manager in the Information Technology department. Her daughter turned 20 this year and is a rising junior at the University of Central Florida in Orlando. She is studying Event Planning and Hospitality. She has been on two mission trips to Haiti and loves the people and the place.
Kathy would love to hear from classmates! Her information is as follows: Kathy Valentine, 191 Glen Oban Drive, Arnold, MD, 21012. Phone is 410-647-0989. Email is Kathy@ValentineGraber.com.
Becky Mauck continues to work as director of the First Presbyterian Preschool in Richmond. She has two grandchildren and another on the way. She loves being a grandmother and looks forward to retiring and spending more time with her grandchildren.
Dena Kay Caulkins recently retired after 37 years working for the U.S. Government as a Senior Information Technology Specialist. She continues to participate in dance and music classes and events as she did at MWC. She enjoyed seeing fellow MWC dancers at the final performance of the Kathy Harty Gray Dance Theatre in Northern Virginia.
Margaret “Meg” Costello spent several days this summer in Fredericksburg with Molly Jones ’74, sister of Madelin Jones Barratt. She was writing a speech for the Working Class Studies Conference at Georgetown University on family, gender, and work. She enjoyed wandering around the Mary Washington campus checking out the new buildings. She spent time hiking and biking in West Virginia prior to visiting Molly. She still lives in Massachusetts, is semi-retired, active in sports, and is on the Stow, Massachusetts, Planning Board trying to control development and establish green zones for public use.
Nancy Saunders Puckett has been married 39 years to Jim. She has been a Director with Tupperware for 35 years and loves what she does!
Kathleen Chapman reported that her son Nick and his wife, Allie, have a baby boy. She and her husband, Michael, are very proud first-time grandparents. Nick is an Assistant Attorney General in Arizona. Her daughter Emily just got her master’s degree in psychology.
Kathleen is embarking on her 10th year working in the schools as a Speech and Language Pathologist Assistant and babysitting her grandson two days a week. She and Michael have been married 33 years! Her mother died five years ago and she still misses her. This summer they have plans to explore the Columbia River in Washington State and the coast of Oregon, too.
Sue Sendlein Luscomb’s daughter Ashton married Zachary Zimmerman in March 2015 in Savannah, Georgia. They live in Memphis near Sue and her husband, Rich. Ashton is the Associate Brand Manager for the Casablanca Fan division of the Hunter Fan Company. Zach is a Senior Financial Analyst, International with Wright Medical. Sue’s older daughter, Alicia Autry, began her pre-doctoral psychology internship—child and family track—at the Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth and is living in New Hampshire. Her husband, Dustin Autry, is a pilot with Delta Airlines.
Sue is involved with Community Bible Study as a small group leader and continues to be active in PEO, a women’s philanthropic education organization. Sue and Rich went to California for the UVA/UCLA game in the Rose Bowl, joining Rich’s fraternity brother and his wife for the game and a vacation in California.
Yolande Long is going to be a grandma for the second time. She has a granddaughter, Olivia, by the expectant parents, her daughter Elizabeth, and son-in-law Travis. Her elder son, Ross, was promoted with Hardywood Park Craft Brewery and is now their Eastern Division Sales Manager and lives in Norfolk. Their ounger son, Drew, is in East Asia finishing his master’s degree in commerce from U.Va. This is the “Global Immersion Experience” part of the degree to be conferred in August. Drew has traveled in South Korea, China, Greece, and Turkey. He has accepted a job with Capital One in Goochland.
Yolande is in contact with Beverly Hudnall Simons, Melissa Baisch Face ’78, Betsy Clark Pazahanick ’78, and Pamela Brown ’78.
Cindy Barrineau Thiele lives in Slidell, Louisiana, just across Lake Ponchartrain from New Orleans, with her husband, Mickey. He is a consultant engineer for the Naval Oceanographic Office and she has just retired as a Special Education teacher. She is looking forward to having more time for family and fun! Her son Michael is an artist.
Madelin Jones Barratt and her husband, Henry, celebrated 37 years of marriage in June.
Please send me your news. It is always good to hear from you all!
1977
Anne Robinson Hallerman
arhmwc77@yahoo.com
Kathryn Wire Weatherhead retired from teaching in June 2014 after 35 years. She is now serving as science department chair at Hilton Head Island High School. She continues to teach part time for the University of South Carolina, where she began her teaching career as a grad student in 1977. She still conducts workshops, summer institutes, and graduate courses around the country for College Board as an AP Biology and AP Environmental Science consultant, and has a private science education consulting business. Her four grandsons under three-and-a-half years of age also keep her busy from coast to coast!
1978
Leslie Kash
lesliekash@gmail.com
Abby Omans Seeley reported several big updates. She was married in June of 2014 to her high school sweetheart, Marc K. Seeley, after they reconnected and dated for five years. They honeymooned their way around the beautiful state of Virginia, staying at various B&Bs. They are living at Abby’s previous address in West Springfield.
Abby was also named 2015 Virginia History Teacher of the Year. The VDOE presented the award at the school where she teaches sixth grade, Orange Hunt Elementary, at a ceremony the last week of school. The VDOE press release may be found here.
Sharon Doggett and Cynthia Samuels Brown ’79 visited Marilyn Graves Hopkins in Montgomery, Alabama, in March 2015. The three then drove to Selma, Alabama, for the 50th anniversary of the Selma to Montgomery march.
1979
Barbara Goliash Emerson
emers3@msn.com
I can always count on Lisa Bratton Soltis and Gayle Weinberger Petro to have lots of class news. Lisa reported that Gayle, along with her significant other, Jim, visited Roanoke in April and they had a great time! She is still waiting for Gayle to move to the Star City, but not sure the move is still in her plan. She added that Donna Anaya attended her cousin’s wedding in May in Greece, and she absolutely loved being there and hopes to make it a UMW girls’ trip in the near future.
Lisa had plans to meet up with Nancy Quaintance Nelles at Wintergreen over Father’s Day weekend. Gayle, Nancy, and Lisa were looking forward to a visit with Karin Hedberg to celebrate her birthday the weekend of July 24–26 in Cape Cod. Gayle had plans to travel to Boston to visit friends, while Nancy and Lisa were headed to Newport, Rhode Island, and Woodstock, Vermont, ending their journey in New York City to attend Beautiful: The Carole King Musical on Broadway.
Lisa added that Sally Hart Morgan stopped in Roanoke on the way to visit her parents in Ferrum, Virginia. Sally, Julia Martin Belvin ’72, and Lisa had a great visit at dinner. Julia and Lisa are planning a trip to Sally’s house in early fall to ride the Virginia Creeper Trail.
Over Memorial Day weekend, Diana Rupert Livingston ’71, of Richmond, and Lisa visited UMW Foundation Board peer Jeane Baughn Stone ’75 in Birmingham, Alabama. They had a fabulous time eating their way through this lovely Southern city. Lisa noted that it was a great experience and the silver lining is that they learned a new game—Mah Jongg!
Also in May, Vickie Nichols Sherertz ’78 and Joan Castner Neiderlehner ’77 hosted a wonderful dinner for just the girls, and it was a stellar meal!
Lastly, Lisa noted that Shelley Roberts Havnoonian lost her father-in-law in May. He was a wonderful man and was 90 years old when he passed away.
Gayle Weinberger Petro continues to stay busy traveling the country. She attended the wedding of a former student who is now a police officer and ran into another four students that she taught. While retired from Fairfax County Public Schools, Gayle is still subbing at her former school when needed. She calls it “diva” subbing, as she only works at her former school and only when it’s pre-arranged to fit into her busy schedule. She and Jim volunteered at Reunion Weekend where they served as Host and Hostess of the Carl’s Trolley, and Gayle announced the Alumni Awards at the All-Class Party.
Gayle noted that Lisa Bratton Soltis does a news show for Economic Development called Biz Roanoke. According to Gayle, Lisa is quite good at interviewing new businesses in the Roanoke area. Gayle added that Lisa Carle Shields handles mortgage loans for Sun Trust and now lives at Smith Mountain Lake.
Mark Fortney emailed from Ohio to say he has been retired for several years but keeps involved by coaching track and girls’ basketball at local schools. He added that Athens made it to the state of Ohio Division III finals in football before falling to Toledo Central Catholic.
Carolyn Bess Pantzer wrote that she retired from Fairfax County’s Department of Family Services in January 2015 after 26 years and is loving retirement! She has a new grandson, Landon, born in March, so retirement allows her to spend more time with him.