Class Notes

Barbara Bishop Mann and Robert celebrated their 53rd anniversary at home with a bottle of white wine, takeout from a fine Richmond restaurant, and a movie viewed from their easy chairs. Other than taking walks around the neighborhood, they were staying home and avoiding COVID-19.

Kathy Goddard Moss and Tom quietly celebrated their anniversary socially isolating in their retirement community in Oakland, California. Their residence had been taking good care of them, delivering food to their apartment, shopping for them when requested, and maintaining a lovely garden and courtyard. Kathy and Tom kept in touch with their daughter’s family in Spain and their siblings, children, and grandchildren on Zoom.

After waiting five years for a San Diego retirement community to be completed, Dee Dee Nottingham Ward and Nat finally moved in February. They adjusted to the change from the large house they had for 46 years to a 1,400-square-foot apartment. Dee Dee was able to work from home with the tax season extended.

In March (pre-pandemic) Mary Kathryn Rowell Horner attended a luncheon hosted by Mary Grace Wright Day with President Troy Paino, Kelly Paino, and other Mary Washington alumni. Mary Kathryn stayed in their Florida condo rather than return to Alexandria in the spring. One day while shopping at the Publix, wearing her MWC 50th anniversary shirt, Mary K met a checkout lady from Virginia whose cousin is a 2008 graduate.

Joan Cuccias Patton had contracted a kitchen renovation just before the coronavirus outbreak. She managed to stay isolated during the construction and carefully disinfected everything each evening, per her children’s instructions. Joan and family celebrated Easter with a Zoom brunch. Joan festively set her table with silver, china, and crystal, and insisted the family dress for the occasion. The boys’ shirts and ties looked great – their shorts and flip-flops were out of sight! Joan and family enjoyed a brief annual vacation in the Outer Banks.

Midge Meredith Poyck reported that both her Arizona and South Carolina families have kept well during the pandemic. Midge was able to hike in the fairly unpopulated areas just north of her home except during the outbreak of a wildfire, which didn’t threaten her directly. In May, Midge and family conducted a backyard graduation ceremony for a granddaughter who was headed to Arizona State University’s Honors College in August. Midge wore her academic regalia, awarded a makeshift diploma, and hosted a Zoom party for the celebration.

Marty Spigel Sedoff wrote on her 90th day of isolation that she hadn’t been anywhere in forever! Bob did all the shopping for groceries, hardware, and other necessities. Marty and Bob mostly stayed home, reading, watching TV, Zooming with friends and family, and taking long walks with their dog. They also care for Bob’s 98-year-old mother, who lives nearby in her own home.

Anne Meade Clagett laughed hysterically at the suggestion of taking up new hobbies and projects, or developing new talents. Other than checking her temperature and O2 levels, she maintained her usual rural routine and kept in touch electronically with friends, her sister, favorite in-law cousins and, of course, her closest classmate, Bobbi Bishop Mann.

Terry Caruthers actually did develop new talents. Besides finishing a piece of furniture, having a knee replaced, and keeping up with the Golden Girls Club members, she wrote a series of short stories about her family. She self-published Brother Steve Stories on Blurb.com, about her older brother’s childhood adventures, his career, his three wives, and his valiant struggle with a rare terminal cancer. Terry next published Mystical Pieces of Me, describing some mystical experiences that are outliers in the pieces of her life’s puzzle. One such episode occurred at MWC, in Dr. Shaw’s vectors and matrices class!

Ginny Bateman Brinkley used her quarantine time to write poems for kids, published in May by BellAire Press. Ginny and Bill have decided to stay in isolation until a virus vaccine is available, especially since two family members became ill. Ginny set an all-time record for cooking meals. She enjoyed FaceTime calls with the grands, helping with their math homework. Granddaughter Brittany Hewitt performed her senior recital at Juilliard in February with 17 family members in attendance – the last performance before the pandemic. Ginny and Bill enjoyed staying with Susan Roth Nurin in her cozy Upper West Side apartment. Brittany returned home in March, finished her degree online, and had a virtual graduation in May. Ginny’s favorite part of the ceremony was the president of Juilliard declaring, “Graduates, please unmute your phones now so we can hear your cheering!” Brittany received a generous grant and was planning to return to NYC to record original music and further her career.

Judy Wells Clark has continued playing music for church and teaching piano, in person or through FaceTime. Judy hopes that we can have some type of reunion whenever the COVID-19 threat is resolved.

Susanne Landerghini Boehm and husband Ralph stayed semi-quarantined at home, going out for errands, groceries, and plants. They visited their sons, who live in D.C. apartments, and took advantage of the restaurants, parks, and places of interest in walking distance. Susanne hopes that Karl and his girlfriend’s three adopted kittens will not be their only “grands.” Although business had slowed greatly, Susanne and Ralph still ran their music contracting business, and Ralph continued teaching violin, viola, cello, and bass students via Zoom from his basement studio. Susanne keeps in touch with Tyla Matteson and recently heard from Kate Ginman, who had spent many years traveling abroad working with the armed forces. Kate is now retired, living in Maryland, most recently working as an events planner. Kate relayed the sad news of the passing of her roommate, Linda Johnson Williams, from ovarian cancer. Susanne, Kate, and Linda were three of the freshmen who lived among juniors in Westmoreland, and Kate planned to visit Susanne as soon as COVID allows.

We heard from Cherie Wells Brumfield in the summer and were shocked and saddened to learn that she passed away Sept. 6, 2020.

Sally Souder was sad not to be able to walk along the beach and aid the sea turtles. She also missed her annual lunch meeting with Gerry Sargent Habas, with whom she keeps in close touch.

Carolyn Eldred reported that things in Fredericksburg had slowed to a crawl, especially with all the UMW activities suspended indefinitely.

Jana Privette Usry was sad to see all UMW activities halted suddenly. She was planning to attend the 1908 Society luncheon and participate in graduation. She also missed the annual luncheon for the Heritage Society and scholarship donors and its display of student projects. Jana kept in touch with neighbors’ outdoor happy hours, spent countless hours with her little dog, and participated in Zoom yoga. While working at home Jana completed at least eight mediation cases via conference calls (a new skill), fax, and computer. Jana’s favorite relaxation was listening to Wintley Phipps’ soothing sacred songs.

Ann Kales Lindblom and husband Steve stayed on lockdown for months at the insistence of daughter Beth, a nurse practitioner in Maryland. They happily kept in touch with their grandchildren by Zoom.

Winnie Woodson Stribling and husband Brad sheltered in place, taking advantage of Instacart and dinner delivery services. Daughter Sarah lives with them and runs necessary errands. Winnie researched patterns for face masks and made them before it became a total requirement. She missed her handbell choir but and stayed active with virtual church.

At their daughter’s urging, Catherine Cantwell Luria and husband Eric vacated their Ajijic, Mexico, home for a long stay near Sacha and family in Portland, Oregon. Their rental house has a yard with mature trees, flowering shrubs, and a small bridge to a city park.

Yvonne Hutchinson March managed to visit her son and daughter-in-law in Columbus, Ohio, in March, just before all flights were canceled. She didn’t get to Savannah, Georgia, to visit her daughter and grandchild. Husband Chris is not fond of traveling, so he didn’t object to the stay-at-home orders in Florida. Yvonne kept in touch with Susan Roth Nurin, who was feeling restricted in her NYC apartment, missing concerts, arts activities, and bilingual tours.

Betsy Chappelear Tryon in California had been on lockdown for months. Son Frank shares her townhouse and does the shopping and errands. Daughter Maureen lives nearby with granddaughter Maddy home from college doing online classes. “Volleyball star” Maddy did return to The Citadel in August but was unsure whether she’d get to play any games.

Kitty Down Gregg and husband Don stayed isolated at home, disappointed that son Chris and his fiancée had to postpone their wedding.

Pat Lewars Pace and Linda Glynn Hutchinson had planned a trip to Germany to see the once-in-every-10-years Oberammergau passion play. The trip was postponed until 2022, and Pat and Linda were hanging onto their reservation, hoping for a COVID vaccine. Meanwhile, Pat said her yard never looked better even though her aches and pains had increased.

Annette Maddra Horner started spring 2020 on a mission to replace invasives with native plants at her Richmond home. Her property looks beautiful and provides food and homes for native insects and birds. Annette also enjoyed the exercise and therapeutic benefits of working outdoors. She read Doug Tallamy’s books on natural gardening.

Katie Winn Green visited her son and family in Cardiff, Wales, last Christmas before they moved to Sydney, Australia, in February. Unable to visit them in Australia this year, and with her choral group concert canceled because of COVID, Katie picked up her acoustic guitar and practiced enough to build up finger calluses.

Caroline Hogeland Ruppar and husband Allan flew to South Africa in February for 10 days including a safari – the “most amazing experience ever!” They embarked on a scheduled 28-day cruise up the east coast of Africa and across the Indian Ocean. But the pandemic closed ports, and the 1,000 passengers and crew spent two weeks on the ship while the cruise line searched for a port where they could disembark. They finally departed from Muscat, Oman, knowing that they were safe because they had been quarantined aboard. Caroline and Allan traveled 38 hours through four international airports to get home.

Back in Reston, Virginia, they finished a master suite addition and took a short family restricted beach vacation in Delaware. Caroline looked forward to our resuming our MW Lunch Bunch meetings as soon as it was safe.

Last October Diana Hamilton Cowell and husband Dan traveled to The Dalles, Oregon, to which her father’s ancestors had emigrated along the Oregon Trail in 1846. They visited cousins, saw the actual seat from the Smith family covered wagon, and paid respects at the family cemetery. Now that she has hearing aids, Diana has discovered she is no longer surrounded by mumblers.

Genie McClellan Hobson spent much of her quarantine time sewing masks for the Nemours/Alfred I. duPont Hospital for Children, writing postcards to voters, and Zooming with family. Genie attended a Baylor University grad student’s dissertation defense via Zoom, happy to be a part of it since she had collaborated on some of the scientific work. Genie was able to keep working as a Realtor while she and Don quarantined.

Linda Mitchell Spiers retired as rector of Trinity Episcopal Church in Collinsville, Connecticut, and traveled for the fourth time to Israel and Palestine. In August 2019 Linda was appointed interim priest-in-charge at St. John’s Episcopal Church in Essex, Connecticut, and continues to serve full time. Worship services continued via livestream, with meetings and programs via Zoom. Linda is deeply involved in the Racial Healing, Justice, and Reconciliation Network of the diocese, especially significant during recent tragedies and injustices.

Eileen Goddard Albrigo opened their home pool at the end of May, a welcome antidote for the COVID doldrums. The grandkids visited in shifts and mostly stayed outdoors, social distancing. Husband John continued his medical practice, doing only urgent surgeries and seeing patients who needed his physical presence for treatments. Son Todd’s family, all homeschooled, easily adjusted to the new norm except for the eldest, who had to finish his freshman year at Virginia Tech virtually. The Albrigo clan planned trips to their Hilton Head beach house with strict social distancing.

I, Katharine Rogers Lavery, and family pushed our annual Outer Banks vacation reservation to next year. I spent the summer working on the house, yard, and garden, keeping a close eye on the bird feeders, four fox kits, and twin fawns living in the backyard. A magical huge stand-up Happy Birthday sign appeared in the front yard the morning of my 75th birthday, and Hank and I celebrated our 25th anniversary with a dinner of home-caught crabs from our son’s river house. After remotely celebrating three grandkids’ graduations and several birthdays, we were able to attend daughter Tracy’s tiny June wedding, the first time the family had gotten together since Christmas!

Our bowling, senior fitness classes, church music, theater subscription, and Pentagon Sailing Club activities were suspended indefinitely except for Zoom meetings. One good PSC friend is John Laffman ’94! I tutored math second semester on FaceTime and resumed in the fall with at least five students. Hank continued managing an office building in Falls Church with reduced hours, since most of the tenants were teleworking.

Tyla Matteson and husband Glen stayed home for months. She kept busy with Sierra Club meetings, all virtual, and worked on local races in Hampton and Newport News, helping to elect several environmental champions. She was dismayed by the coronavirus deaths and racial troubles. Tyla forwarded two Richmond Times-Dispatch articles. One was about UMW professors’ efforts to establish a historical marker at the Freedom Riders’ first bus stop in Fredericksburg. James Farmer – later a Mary Washington professor – organized the Freedom Rides. The other, by Vice President of Student Affairs Juliette Landphair, concerned the late Congressman John Lewis and his connections to Mary Washington.

We send condolences to Sandra Hutchison Schanné on the loss of her husband, Richard, June 6, 2020. Besides Linda Johnson Williams, who died in May 2020, we remember our classmate Barbara Ann Green, who passed away May 6, 2020.