Class Notes

A sizeable and spirited group of ’68 classmates enjoyed a fun 50^th reunion weekend in Fredericksburg. We will be remembered on campus for our feistiness, our tiaras, and our stamina on the dance floor. If you weren’t there, you missed a good time! And we missed you. Thanks to all who contributed to the reunion gift—the Class of 1968 is now recognized on a brass plaque in the beautiful, newly restored Amphitheatre. 

Many classmates toured the Talley House during Reunion Weekend. Staff explained the counseling services available to UMW students. Expansion of these critical services was made possible by gifts from Betty Dobbins Talley and her husband. And we were all so proud to see our own Donna Sheehan Gladis inducted as the new president of the Alumni Association!

Helaine Patterson, who lives in CT, was not able to join us due to extensive caregiving duties for family members in GA and FL. Quite a few classmates are serving in the same capacity, and we missed seeing each of you.

Also unable to attend was Eileen Curley Baker, who was on a Viking River cruise from Budapest to Amsterdam with her husband, Frank. They divide their time among residences in Rhode Island (summers), Florida (winters), and home base in Connecticut. Their four children—a science fiction fantasy writer, a health insurance adjuster, a pediatric oncologist, and a theater costumer—are all doing well, and they enjoy their four grandchildren, ages 5, 4, 3, and 2.

Mary James Wright received her MA in theater from Northwestern University after finishing at Mary Washington. She returned to UMW (1969-70) as a faculty member in the theater department, taking over Dr. Klein’s classes when he suffered his fatal heart attack. She served on the committee to make the campus coed, not knowing that her eldest son, Christopher Wright, would later graduate with the class of 1993. Mary had a varied career in children’s theater and instructional design, completing her career as Managing Editor of Time-Life Children’s Publishing and Education.

Barbara Bennett was one of the first women to work on Wall Street in 1968, and one of the first women to attend the Chase Manhattan Bank Credit Training Program. She earned an MBA in Finance from Fordham Graduate School of Business in 1973, and was an international banker traveling to Latin America for over 40 years, working at Chase Manhattan, Bank of America, and Citibank. She is currently CEO of Anari, Inc., working with large institutional investors. After collecting artwork for many years, Barbie now owns a beautiful art gallery (Q Street Fine Art) in Washington, DC.

Douglas Finney continues to work as a psychotherapist at Finney Zimmerman Psychiatric Associates. She has two offices, in Norfolk and Virginia Beach. She has developed a new and enjoyable side practice in sports psychology, working with high school and middle school athletes. She also works with the Old Dominion University football team as a “Confidence Coach”.

Mary Ellen “Ashe” Ashelford wrote: “What an upbeat, uplifting, positive, and FUN weekend—plus we all look fabulous!” A Class of 2003 alum approached her at the reunion with a puzzled look and asked “Is that a tiara?” Before Ashe could respond, she glanced at her name tag and said, “Oh, 1968. You’re in that cool class!” Ashe says that being there was totally worth the THI pain (tiara head indentations)! Georgia Carroll Sherlock also loved the whole reunion experience, and reported that two members of the Class of ’93 asked if they could join our class because we were the coolest ones!

Betty Dobbins Talley wants to thank all her classmates that took the time to stop by the counseling center. She has had some amazing travel adventures this past year—hiking the last 100 kilometers of Camino de Santiago in Northern Spain with friends last fall; visiting Argentina, Chile, and Easter Island in April; and a tour of Ireland right after the reunion. When she’s home (Sebastian, FL), she stays busy volunteering for Habitat for Humanity, Riverside Theater, Impact 100, and Vero Beach Museum of Art.

Sally Guy Brown had a wonderful time reconnecting with friends and seeing the campus looking so gorgeous with landscaping and beautiful new buildings.

The 50^th reunion made Pam Tompkins Huggins prouder than ever of our extraordinary class: “Every five years, we all get the joy of being with smart, successful, and sassy women.” She and Jim are still in Staunton and their guest cottage is yearning to see more of you. According to Pam, Staunton has gotten pretty hipster in recent years, with great restaurants, performing and visual arts, eclectic first class music, and history.

Mary Margaret Marston Monroe also loved attending the reunion. She and Richard became grandparents for the third time in April, a little girl born to their son and his wife. She was premature and very small, but growing now by leaps and bounds. She joins the grandboys, their daughter’s children, 9 and 12 years old. The Monroes are retired in Blacksburg, VA, and love life in the mountains. They stay active with volunteer work and traveling to visit the grandchildren.

Barbara Stevenson Kerkhoff wants to thank MWC for four incredible years of learning, growing, experiencing, and preparing for the rest of her life. Her enriching experiences included learning from Spanish and French professors who readied her to teach those languages to middle and high school students, and learning to play the harp from Jeanne Chalifoux, who sadly passed away in February. Barbara has continued to play the harp for weddings and other events. She noted that two electives were especially inspiring to her—Dr. Van Sant’s Contemporary Philosophy class, which helped her think in totally new ways, and Miss Pharr’s Short Fiction class.

An interview with Nancy Porter Atakan was featured in the 2017 Fall/Winter issue of Mary Washington Magazine. Nancy has lived at the same address in Istanbul since moving there in 1969. She and Mehmet are celebrating 50 years of marriage this year, and both sons and their families live within walking distance. Recent chemotherapy prevented Nancy from traveling to the reunion, but she was able to travel to a Berlin art event, a Madrid soccer match, and to Italy for a wedding. She continues with her art, and has shows scheduled in Istanbul, Canakkale, and Stockholm, as well as a show that will open October 30^th for three months at the ISCP Institute in Brooklyn, which she invites MWC classmates to visit if they are in the area.

For the last year (Liz) Morgan Golladay has been been dealing with the aftermath of the death of a spouse—the grief and loss, the finances, and the “stuff” that a life together accumulates. After the reunion (before which she officially joined the ranks of the Blue Hairs…literally!) she traveled to Raleigh for a four-day studio mentoring workshop with a married team of acrylic and collage artists. Now she’s back in the studio after a long hiatus as a caregiver, finishing several abstracts and working on others.

Lynn Belcher Fox was spending the summer and fall at her favorite place—the family cabin on the north shore of Gull Lake in Minnesota. She was enjoying the company of her four kids, four grandkids, three in-laws, and two friends of theirs who came to visit.

Leneice Wu wrote that she was still basking in the glow of the 50th reunion. “While we largely turned to our earlier relationships, we enjoyed our shared history of attendance at MWC with a much wider range of women. If nothing else, the gathering proved that ages 70-72 are just numbers. Our classmates have had very full and meaningful lives and the sheer joy of being together again was palpable. Our classmates remain an active, vibrant force, ready to face the world with a voice that demands to be heard. I couldn’t be more proud of what we’ve accomplished!” Leneice retired in 2002 from the Library of Congress. Her daughter, Emily Wolf, is a stage manager in San Jose, CA, and son Paul is a paralegal in Waterbury, CT. Paul’s son, Lucas Royce Wolf, is named for Leneice’s late husband, Royce Wolf, who died in 2005. Leneice was remarried in 2013 to John Thomas, an attorney. They are in the process of moving to a senior residence in NoVA as they cope with John’s Parkinson’s disease.

Janice Bryant Lotterhos, Marilyn Wheeler Hiatt, Betty Haskins McClaskey, and Mary Lou Hull Soper continued their 50th reunion celebration in the Canadian Rockies aboard the Rocky Mountaineer from Vancouver to Banff, also spending time in Lake Louise before flying home from Calgary. The breathtaking scenery throughout the trip definitely did not disappoint.  Along the way they watched parading Mounties on Canada Day, walked on a glacier, and soared above the mountains in a helicopter.  A happy bonus in Vancouver was dinner with Meg Livingston Asensio and husband Ash, who had just completed an Alaska cruise. At one point during the trip, a rainy day turned into snow at a higher elevation, affording the opportunity to tramp around in a holiday card snow scene in July. Those pictures made quite an impression on family and friends who were in the midst of a major heat wave at the time! Calgary was preparing for its famous Stampede, so cowboy hats were everywhere (even on Janice and Marilyn!). Although the beginning of the Calgary Stampede coincided with departure day, they got a taste of its spirit at an evening preview on the Stampede grounds. All in all, it was a wonderful way for four MWC grads to celebrate a 50+year friendship on a memorable trip.

Carol Hawtin wrote: “We certainly held our place as the ‘Most Fun Class Ever’ after our perfectly wonderful 50th reunion. Tiaras abounded, Sally is still beautiful, and Pam is still her friend after all these years of contention. MWC hosted a smashing weekend with endless classes, tours, food events, and a super band on Saturday night. Beanies off to Mark Thaden and the entire alumni group. You did us proud!”

Susan McCrory Braaten and husband Tom are enjoying retirement in New Bern, NC. After 36 years of seeing the world with the Marine Corps, Tom retired at MCAS Cherry Point and became the CEO of the local YMCA, then Director of Coastal Carolina Regional Airport. They enjoy volunteering and spending time with their daughter and her family, who live in Raleigh, NC. Susan has spent the last 10 years providing technology training and support at Keller Williams Realty New Bern.

Merrilyn Sawyer Dodson and her husband have enjoyed recent travel experiences. In 2017, they spent 10 days in France—touring Provence, participating in cooking classes, and visiting Giverny (Monet’s home outside Paris). This year, they spent five days enjoying the sun, sand, and surf at Atlantic Beach, NC. They are adapting their lives to Steve’s diagnosis of Parkinson’s.

Custis dorm suitemates Nelle McLaughlin Busch, Amelia Cooper Grosberg, Sharon Maddrea Nelson, and Kathy Nagy Schabacker were together at the 50^th reunion for the first time since the seventies. While they thought the tours, programs, and parties were terrific, the best part for them was visiting with classmates—talking, remembering, and laughing into the wee hours, just like 1968. They also loved the campus changes: men as matriculated students, more beautifully landscaped grounds, new buildings, and the growth in academic quality and offerings.

Stevie Danahy Larson and her husband Peter also enjoyed the reunion, especially seeing so many ’68 classmates laughing and sharing one another’s company. They are celebrating their granddaughter Avery’s accomplishments–finishing as Valedictorian of her high school class and Commonwealth Governor’s School. She will be attending William and Mary this fall as a Monroe scholar. Stevie and Peter were traveling to Sturbridge Village, MA, in July for a conference of American Period Furniture Makers. Stevie is caregiving for her mom, who has dementia and still resides two blocks from Mary Washington. She encourages classmates to donate to research for this dreadful condition.

Dodo Fisher Roberts has sold her house in Wilton, CT, and moved to a downtown apartment where she can walk everywhere with her new rescue pup—and never shovel snow again! She spent last summer on Nantucket as usual, but returned for her mom’s 100^th birthday party. During the winter she traveled to Florida, Vermont, Bordeaux, and London. Following the reunion she was headed back to Nantucket for the summer—MWC visitors welcome!

In spite of being on dialysis three days a week, Debbie Derr McClintock is president of the Woman’s Club of Farmville GFWC, as well as district chairman and former state arts chairman. She is vice president of Central Virginia Arts, Garden Club secretary, and sings with the Commonwealth Chorale. Mahjong, book group, a poetry group, and weekly painting club also keep her busy. Moving to downtown Farmville and preparing for an October family reunion were on her summer schedule after the reunion.

Seeing so many classmates made Bobbie Price Wallach feel like an undergraduate again. She wrote, “As usual, no one could really keep up with our famous and energetic class. After being inspired by the interpretive dancing of Morgan Golladay and Ashe Ashelford [at the new amphitheater], the Dancing Queens, including our May Queen Sally Monroe Kelly (or is it Pam Tompkins Huggins?), kept up our tradition of showing our moves at the all-class party. The late Dr. Laura Sumner would have been proud to see that seven of the majors she mentored from our class—Judy Henley Beck, Judith Jackson Jones, Pam Tompkins Huggins, Julie Deane Webb, Leneice Wu, Donna Harrison Lile, and I have all turned out quite well and revere her memory.” Judy Henley Beck, Donna Harrison Lile, and Bobbi extended the reunion celebration by meeting in Richmond a few days later to see an exhibit of the Horse in Ancient Greek Art.

Shortly before the reunion weekend, Ash and I moved from SoCal to Denver, where we are living in a 12^th floor apartment until our new house in an over-55 community is completed later this year. We have been very happy with the VA medical services being provided to Ash as we cope with his motor neuron disease. Right after the reunion, we spent an amazing three weeks on a land tour and Windstar cruise in Alaska. A float plane ride over the Taku glacier and frequent wildlife sightings were highlights of the trip, and we were blessed with fantastic weather. Not sure where we’ll go next, but we plan to keep traveling as long as we can!

As I was finishing this column, I was informed of the death of Kerry Walsh Sweet from pancreatic cancer. Kerry started with our class, but left for a year, returning to graduate in 1969. She and I had reconnected on Facebook, and were able to have lunch together when Ash and I were in Seattle last summer.

Meg Livingston Asensio

1968 Class Agent

P.S. As promised, I made up some “interesting” news about those classmates that did not send me updates. Lucky for you, there is not enough room to include it in this issue. I’d suggest sending me your news for the next column!