Class Notes

Gail Balderson Dise

In August of 2018, I flew to Amsterdam to join friends for a couple of days of exploring Amsterdam before boarding a cruise ship for a 12 day Baltic cruise that included Copenhagen, Stockholm, Tallinn, St. Petersburg, Helsinki and Skagen Denmark. We hit the European heat wave, meaning that in Amsterdam we “enjoyed” touring when the heat index was 102 degrees.  We found it to be cooler to eat outside than inside with no air-conditioning. All of us still had a great time.  I look forward to seeing if the tulip bulbs I brought back survive my “black thumb” and bloom in the spring.  All of the cruise stops and tours were first time exploring for me, with the most notable being St Petersburg, Russia.  We booked a two day tour with Alla tours and covered the Fabergé Museum (a personal favorite), the Hermitage, Catherine’s  Palace, The Cathedral of the Resurrection, commonly known as “Our Saviour-on the-Spilled-Blood” and best of all, the grand palace and park complex, Peterhof.   When looking at pictures my grandson immediately described it as the Russian Versailles.  In November, over Veteran’s Day weekend, I met roommate Mary Bush Dore and her husband Casey in Fredericksburg for lunch at the alumni house with other 1908 society members followed by a performance of Merrily We roll Along by Stephen Sondheim at the Klein Theater.  Afterward I introduced them to Duck Donuts in Eagle Village.

 Jane Farrar Montague

I was in Arlington, Va. visiting my son who works in D. C.  I kept the home fires burning for my 11 yr. old grandson for most of October while my son and his wife were working long hours in the U.S. State Dept.  It was fun to go to soccer practices and games.  One day I took the bus into D.C. and visited some Smithsonian Museums and generally enjoyed being near the Capitol and Washington Monument.  I also had great fun visiting my 90+ year old twin cousins in Alexandria, Va., who are still on the go.

I also enjoyed hiking with my son to Mary’s Rock in Shenandoah National Park.

 Donna Sinclair Seward

Catherine Wilson, ’67 and Donna Sinclair Seward, ’67 took an exciting trip together in September, 2018 when they joined a National Geographic tour to Africa. After a very long plane ride (19 hours!) they arrived in Cape Town, South Africa. They visited Table Mountain, Robben Island, the prison where Nelson Mandela was held, Cape of Good Hope and other sights. They then went to Kruger National Park and Karongwe, a private game preserve, on a safari where they saw the “big five” lion, elephant, giraffe, hippo and Cape buffalo – among other animals. What a thrill to see so many animals up close! Catherine and Donna ended their trip in Zimbabwe at Victoria Falls which is spectacular. The trip was an experience of a lifetime!

Catherine and Donna are regularly in touch with Sandi Lawhorne Green, Claudia Bischoff Vroman, and Robin Williams Blair all class of ’67. Donna’s daughter-in-law, Kerin Ziobro Seward, is also a UMW alum class of ’96!

 Patsy Monahan Holden

Mike and I celebrated our 50th anniversary by taking our triplets, their spouses and our 4 grandchildren to Hawaii for 2 weeks last summer.  It was a wonderful trip and everyone enjoyed good family time.  Mike’s mobility is a problem and he uses a scooter for long distances.   Our daughter is fighting breast cancer but the rest of us are fine.  I work one day a week as a psychotherapist and enjoy cards, water aerobics and entertaining.

Mary Basnight Donovan

If you haven’t tried a UMW sponsored trip, I can highly recommend them.  In Oct. ’17 I joined the group in Italy and wanted to just stay and live there. The trips are nicely paced with plenty of good food, nice hotels and wonderful scenery.  In Jul.’18 the trip was to Great Britain and once again quite enjoyable. Jo Walters ’65 and her friend, Linda, were on both trips and we managed to keep up with the group and even do some extra excursions.  Since Italy I’ve also done a river cruise in Russia, a Seattle-San Francisco tour, New Orleans & San Antonio, as well as St. Simons and Jekyll Islands.

For the last 30+ years I’ve lived in MD where I got my teaching credentials, taught for 18 years, and raised 2 children. My son is a banker living in Alpharetta, GA with his wife and dog and my daughter is a CPA living in Columbia, MD with her husband, 2 children and their dog. I did get a chance to visit with my roommate, Judy Boyd Colella, in Ashville last summer and catch up on news and we took a tour of Ashville. I also visited campus for the reception for those going on the G. Britain trip and Mark Thaden gave me a very nice tour of the campus.

Nancy McDonald Legat

My husband Dan and I continue to live in Lexington, SC and love being retired very much! Lots of time is spent with their family: 3 daughters and 3 sons-in-laws, 7 grandchildren and 3 great grandchildren plus one more coming in March 2019! They love to travel and especially enjoy the beach.

Amendment to January 2019 Classnotes for Class of 1967

Eleanor Frith Peters

Mike and I celebrated our 50^th anniversary in June with a wonderful cruise from Lisbon to Dublin with good friends.  We’re still enjoying living in NYC but have decided to move closer to our daughter and her family.  We are building a home in Greenville, SC.  They say it will be completed in April but as of mid-December, They have not broken ground so we’re not holding our breath!  In the meantime, we love all that New York has to offer so we’ll continue to enjoy that.  Our kids and grands are doing well.  Daughter Becca (high school social studies teacher) and her family are in Greenville, SC.  Her husband Patrick is a dentist so they will never move away.  Consequently, the decision to move in that direction. Son Mike will retire as a Colonel in the US Army on 1 July.  In August, the family will move to Madrid , Spain.

Mary Bush Dore

Fall was a slow time for travel.  Casey and I did evacuate with the dogs in the RV to Jackonville, FL in case Hurricane Florence hit our corner of SC.  She didn’t. What a relief!.  Later in October, we went to the Missouri-University of South Carolina game.  Casey had not been to a  game since graduation, long, long ago.  In November, we went to UMW for the 1908 Society luncheon and play.  Campus was lovely with all the trees that had turned.  We enjoyed being  with roommate, Gail Dise, at the new Hyatt at Eagle Village. We then made our annual pilgrimage to Williamsburg, Va. and the candy shop.  Gayle and Warren Channel were able to get away from Portsmouth to meet us for lunch.  They look really good even though they are both working hard for the Portsmouth Va. Rotary  Club  As it became colder, we decided it was time to head south

Thank you to all who have sent in their news.  Keep sending it as it happens to mbeth1945@gmail.com.   I will be glad to store and report it .