Class Notes

Would you ever in your wildest dreams (or nightmares) have imagined the events of this year, 2020?

This COVID-19 pandemic has brought heartbreak and change. We must be patient and have faith. We will see a light at the end of this tunnel as has been witnessed throughout our history if we will just let go and let God!

Juney and I have faithfully followed the guidelines for our quarantine experience, a must at our ages. Our 70th wedding anniversary included a surprise meal delivery and more than 100 cards, organized by our granddaughter Kelly. Our church organized a 60-participant drive-by to share anniversary wishes.

Our great-grandsons Liam Prunczik ’24 and Garry Lewis ’24 are first-year UMW students and started classes online. Great-grandson Lucas Prunczik ’20 graduated from our alma mater in May with no fanfare, so different from our experiences!

Carol Bailey Miller no longer rides (her horse, Buddy, has a new, loving home) but has been involved with her local 4-H horse program and has enjoyed activities with these young people.

Miriam “Mim” Sollows Wieland lost her husband, Earl, soon after their family Thanksgiving gathering in 2019. Family members were able to spend time with him in the hospital. She is in full quarantine at her retirement community and missed her grandson’s May 3 pandemic wedding as well as a second ceremony planned for late July.

Virginia Felts Brown of Mount Holly, Virginia, passed away Jan. 25, 2019. She was a past president of the Mary Washington College Alumni Association. She was a former president of the Northern Neck of Virginia Historical Society and edited the society’s magazine for many years. The Brown family grave marker inscription appropriately reads: “To Live in Hearts We Leave Behind Is Not to Die.”

Nan Riley Pointer and her husband still live in Gloucester, Virginia, under strict quarantine. Nan reads, knits baby hats for the Children’s Hospital of the King’s Daughters in Norfolk, sews dresses for the Dress a Girl Around the World project, and works jigsaw puzzles. Their youngest grandson is a junior at William & Mary and was taking classes online. They took a 14-day Caribbean cruise in January, before the pandemic. She shared this positive message: “I send my prayers for all of my classmates that they will stay positive, well, and safe. We are not alone – God is with us, and He is in control.”

Kathryn “Kay” Smith Majeski ’66 shared the sad news that her friend Margaret “Peg” Penn Hutchins passed away March 20, 2020. Kay wrote that both her husband and Peg’s graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy and that the couples saw each other on many occasions.

“Undoubtedly there are still alumni who remember Peg because she was very active until the last few years,”
Kay wrote.

Tom Augherton wrote that after his wife’s death in 2011 he moved next door to his son near Phoenix, Arizona. He completed a bereavement course, became active in his church, and has spent the past eight years counseling others. He and his late wife, Betty, enjoyed the Road Scholar program, and Tom has continued in the program with his son.

Tom’s friend and fellow World War II veteran student Alford “Al” Taylor married Tom’s sister Charlotte just after graduation, and they passed away within two months of each other in 2017.

Tom meets monthly with 95 other World War II veterans in Carefree, Arizona, for lunch and speakers. He wrote, “Arizona continues to be very good to me, with good health that permits a very active lifestyle for which I am thankful.”

Our 70th class reunion has been delayed but not forgotten. We plan to celebrate May 14-16, 2021! Make your plans now to come together and remember our time at dear Mary Washington!