alumni at large cumbed” to a request by Karen Jaffe Brown, associate professor of Spanish at Ohio University in Zanesville, to replace her as a Spanish teacher for the winter and spring ’04 quarters while she took leave. Bob retired six years ago from full-time teaching and has been working as a consultant doing diversity training at schools. . . . Dave Hatch has taken up deep-sea fishing “with variations of success” now that he has retired to Ft. Myers, Fla. He had lunch with Dave Parish last winter and caught up on 30 years of news. He looks forward to attending our 40th next June 2-5. . . . The College passed on a press release that Ralph Bunche Jr. was to speak last February at the Fletcher School at Tufts about the life and legacy of his father, the 1950 Nobel Peace Prize winner and UN diplomat. Ralph, a Fletcher graduate in 1971, has been a banker in London for several years. . . . Tom ’63 and Patti Raymond Thomas were surprised with a 40th wedding anniversary party last April. Their three children arranged everything while the anniversary couple was in New York touring the new Queen Mary II. They own a travel agency in Doylestown, Pa., and spent two weeks in South Africa, Namibia and Botswana this past May. Patti continues with volunteer work with Planned Parenthood and their local YMCA. “So much to do and so little time!” So true. . . . Hail, Colby, Hail. —Richard W. Bankart
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Congratulations to Ginger Holbrook on her exhibit of watercolor paintings at the Hingham (Mass.) Public Library last April. Ginger is a gallery artist at the South Shore Arts Center, where she has participated in many shows. She lives in Hingham with her husband, Foster Aborn. . . . Lynn Seidenstuecker Gall’s son Jason was married at Lynn and Eddie’s lakeside property on Lake Cobbosseecontee in E. Winthrop, Maine, on a beautiful Saturday in June. . . . Wesley Barbour is a highly respected computer network coordinator for the Wells-Ogunquit (Maine) Community School District. Wes also runs an independent computer consulting business with his wife, Chris (Austin ’68), and teaches adult evening classes. . . . Responding to some questions I posed earlier in the year, Bill Snow wrote: “I find myself in a combined state of reflection and nostalgia, a better place in terms of perspective, as I take on my 60s. Almost two years ago, Karen (Knudsen ’64) and I decided it was time for 50 COLBY / Winter 2005
a little adventure—to Montgomery, Ala. The career opportunity offered to me there could not be matched in Maine. The decision to go to the land of Dixie has proven to be an excellent one.” Bill and Karen still have good reason to return to Maine frequently, however, as Bill’s son Cory ’91 and daughter-in-law Sheila presented Bill with his first grandchild, Molly, last February in Portland. As a former (vs. old) athlete, Bill knows the value of staying fit and looks forward to resuming tennis, swimming, gym workouts and attempts at golf when an Achilles tendon injury heals. Bill and Karen stay in touch with Peter and Linda Buchheim Wagner (“simply terrific people”) and with Bill’s good friend Rick Davis ’65. They will be at our 40th reunion! . . . “My major—in truth, my only—news is the July 2004 wedding of my son, David (Hobart ’98), to Alison Sherrick (William Smith ’98, Smith M.S.W. 2002),” writes Elizabeth Hernberg Went, who says she had no intention, as mother of the groom, of wearing beige and keeping her mouth shut. Elizabeth’s very special guest and escort at the wedding was Jay Fell of Colorado. She sends best wishes to all. . . . Do other classes read our column? Linda Johnson VanDine wants news of Ginny Cole Henkle ’65 and Sue Cook Locsin ’67. You can e-mail Linda at indavandine@cox.net. . . . How better to celebrate 60 years than to spend a June weekend in a big, beautiful cottage on the Maine coast with seven Colby classmates? That’s exactly what Beth Peo Armstrong, Kay McGee Christie-Wilson, Lynn Seidenstuecker Gall, Carol Rodgers Good, Pam Harris Holden, Linda Bucheim Wagner, Diane Leach Wilbur and I did, and we all agree it was a very special and wonderful celebration not only of 60 years but also of friendships maintained through the 42 years since we first met as freshmen on Mayflower Hill. We talked about then; we talked about now. We marveled over our similarities and differences and our ups and downs. We walked a lot, ate a lot, laughed a lot, slept a little and felt the awesome power of 480 cumulative years of womanhood under one roof! And of course we’ve vowed to do it again in honor of our 65th birthdays. But first we will all be together back on Mayflower Hill for our 40th reunion the weekend of June 9-11, 2006. We’ll see you there. —Meg Fallon Wheeler
67 As we approach age 60, class-
mates are concluding some chapters of their lives but looking forward excitedly to new challenges. Bob Gracia will retire from the Brookline, Mass., schools in June. “I’ll be financially secure, but not employed, what a great deal! Carol will have one more year after I retire, and I will make life easier for her by making all meals and taking over her share of the household duties. I’m ready.” . . . Laurie Lewin Simms finished a three-year cycle of volunteer development work building start-up arts nonprofits for the benefit of Yellowstone National Park. “After having worked 24/7 to do this during my early retirement from art publishing,” she said, “I’ve decided to move from the volunteer realm back into the real job market but will take six months off first to really enjoy Montana.” . . . Focus Enterprises, Inc., an investment banking and corporate developmentconsulting firm in the Washington, D.C, area, recently announced that George Shea has been made a partner. For the past 14 years, George has run a boutique investment bank, Ambassador Capital Corporation, of Atlanta and his home base of Jacksonville, Fla. Previously he was president and CEO of InfoSave Corporations, a telecommunications and software company, and was industry marketing director for Digital Equipment Corporation. George also serves on the Board of the USO (United Services Organization). . . . The Maine Supreme Court has appointed John Foster of Eastport a trustee of the Maine Lawyers Fund for Client Protection. The fund promotes public confidence in the administration of justice and the integrity of the legal profession by making efforts toward reimbursement for losses caused by the dishonest conduct of Maine lawyers. After practicing law in Illinois with the Chicago Legal Aid Bureau from 1969 to 1971, John received his license to practice in Maine in 1971 and was employed with Pine Tree Legal Assistance. Since 1973 he has been in private practice in Eastport. He has served on the Bar Association Board of Governors, the Board of Overseers of the Bar and the Maine Bar Foundation, where he currently serves on the committee on judicial responsibility and disability. . . . Many classmates have taken a life path directed by their faith. Rev. Kenneth Johnson, who received a master of divinity degree from Lutheran Theological Seminary in Gettysburg, Pa., recently assumed pastoral responsibilities for the congregation of Good
Shepherd Lutheran Church (Missouri Synod) in Peterborough, N.H. Ken and his wife, Ellen, have four children and two grandchildren and live in Gill, Mass., so he will be commuting to his new assignment. Good Shepherd Lutheran church is a Christ-centered congregation whose ministry is both sacramental and evangelical. . . . Sarah Shute Hale completed a master of Christian studies from Regent, an interdenominational theological school on the campus of the University of British Columbia. After two terms of study in 2000 and 2001 she finished a thesis project last winter and in April presented the major part of her thesis, an art show at Regent College in Vancouver—“five large quilted batiks on the theme of ‘The Tree of Life.’” Now she is resettled in Arden, Ont., where she was preparing for a summer of making and selling art in her village studio. She also was preparing to go to Colombia, where her daughter was being married in June. . . . From his desk in Yarmouth, Maine, Chalmers “Chop” Hardenbergh writes a weekly newsletter about heavy industry in New England, eastern Quebec, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick. He and his wife of 18 years have separated, amicably. Their children are Chloe, 11, and Cy, 15. He says since he is nearly 60, spiritual questions have come to the fore and he has enjoyed a stint as lay minister for the First Universalist Church in Yarmouth. . . . Jim Katz had a visit from one of Colby’s and New England’s “national monuments,” Sari Abul-Jubein ’69, in late May. “The bon vivant, frequent Colby honoree and owner of the Casablanca Restaurant in Harvard Square was in Montreal for a family wedding and summoned me to the Sheraton hotel bar, where he looked rather at home and we had a few hours of excellent conversation.” Jim and Atmo are doing the fifth of their house-exchange vacations this year with www.Intervac.com. They were to spend July in Sweden. . . . Susan Mersky Fooks e-mailed from Australia, where she works in database development and Web management for an organization that undertakes research into the family. “At the moment, I feel as if we are a classic contemporary baby boomer family,” she said. “Our older son moved out of home a few years ago, but since January he and his girlfriend (both architects) are living with us. They have bought part of a warehouse in Melbourne, where they will move when they finish renovating it. . . .