Class Notes

There’s more news this time thanks to holiday cards and letters from “Old Faithfuls.” I’d love to hear from more of you. Send news to the email address above or to the Office of Alumni Relations.

Since I wrote our last Class Notes column, Hurricane Sandy and snowstorm Nemo hit the East Coast. Fortunately, I had no damage but lost power and phone for several days during Sandy. I hope you all did as well with the weather where you live.

I attended my 66th high school reunion in Tenafly, N.J., last year and have lunch regularly with five high school friends, some of whom I’ve known since kindergarten.

Carol Bailey Miller in Cumberland, Va., had a scare when an allergic reaction to medication caused her tongue to swell so that she could hardly breathe. She was rushed to the ER, and it took 24 hours for the swelling to go down. More recently, a tree came down on her utility shed. Carol completed the biography of her 90-year-old sister, Ruth Bailey Conroy ’43, and had booklets made for herself, Ruth, and Ruth’s son, Patrick. Carol is historian emeritus for the Virginia Horse Association and continues to interview people involved with it. She joined the Cumberland historical society, hoping to learn more about where she lives.

Miriam Sollows Wieland sent an enlarged photo featuring her and her family at a reception on the lawn at Brompton. While UMW Magazine cannot include the photo, Mim said Tom and Jason have had fun with a box of slides she sent home with Tom, who is to send more enlarged and improved photos from them. Tom was heading to the Cape, and Mim hoped to go there for a bit and to spend a few days in Florida.

Billie Mitchell Hanes and Dick moved from their three-story house on the dune in Virginia Beach, where they lived for 40 years, to a one-story duplex apartment across the street. It’s adequate for two and senior-friendly. Billie enjoys her kitchen with new cabinets and stainless steel appliances, tall fireplace, and cozy family room. Dick still works from home and goes to the gym. Billie does water aerobics and spends time with friends.

At Marcy Weatherly Morris and Juney Morris’ yearly visit to Cleveland in July for Juney’s checkup, they learned that he can wait two years for the next visit. They attended Marcy’s 66th high school reunion at Pawley’s Island, S.C., continue to attend Mary Washington events, and are great fans of President Hurley and wife Rose. Daughter Ellen and husband Rod live nearby and own four alpacas that Marcy can see grazing from her back porch. Ellen works in Mary Washington Healthcare’s ambulatory surgery center. Rod takes care of their alpacas, golden retriever, horse, chickens, and huge garden. Marcy and Juney get fresh eggs and produce. Marcy’s son, Tip, and wife Laura, who teaches French at Toano Middle School, are in Williamsburg.

Nan Riley Pointer and Joe’s son, Glenn, and his wife moved back from North Carolina and live just down the road. Owen and Teresa live next door. Their son, Christopher, goes to community college and helps Joe farm. Nan is involved with the District Committee on Ordained Ministry, and she’s parliamentarian for the Conference of United Methodist Women. She and Joe celebrated their 60th anniversary in June at a dinner party with family and friends, and took a riverboat cruise on the Danube from Budapest to Bucharest, their first trip to that part of the world.

Gerry Boswell Griffin volunteers with special activities and entertainment at Davidson College in North Carolina. Helen Hopkins Timberlake flew from Florida for late husband Neal’s grandson’s wedding in Atlanta. The bride and groom graduated from Davidson. He’s studying for the ministry on a scholarship at Duke, and she’s pre-med. Helen bought a few “The Great Courses” DVDs and enjoyed From Monet to Van Gogh: A History of Impressionism.

Garland “Dorsey” Estes McCarthy of Humble, Texas, goes with her husband to Galveston at Christmastime to enjoy the beach. They drank coffee and ate beignets at Café Du Monde in New Orleans. Patti Head Ferguson traveled in August to the Arctic via Sweden and Norway on a luxury boat. They saw reindeer and polar bears with their cubs. Patti had her dropped foot corrected in September, staying in a NYC hospital and nursing home. She returned after Christmas to have metal pins removed and a cast put on, and looked forward to driving again.

Nell Grieve Swanson and Betty Gavett Breeden live in San Diego. Betty is still in her apartment and sings in two choirs. She fell and broke her right arm in August and had to put her library-book mending on hold. Family members helped provide five weeks of round-the-clock care, and a church friend helped with transportation when Betty was put in a brace and could wear real clothes and do more for herself. She returned to driving before Thanksgiving.

Rosemary Miller in Benzonia, Mich., still plays in the symphony and returned to directing the church choir, while they advertise for a new director. Barbara Lloyd Hiller retired from her Women’s Club newsletter job, found a great replacement, and hoped to get back into quilting. Husband Jim was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease, so they have questions about their future.

Marilyn Noel Perry ’74 relayed that her mother, Edith Wilhelm Noel, passed away. Edith taught math, mainly algebra, for 37 years. After retiring in 1988, she was active in church and volunteered in the community. A bad fall in 2009 resulted in broken bones and a move to a long-term care facility. When her eyesight declined, Marilyn read our Class Notes column to her, and Edith enjoyed hearing about classmates. Mary Mount Lind’s husband, Dick, relayed that Mary passed away. I was shocked, as her Christmas note was upbeat, though she’d recently lost her sister, Sally. Mary and Dick faithfully attended our reunions.