Alfred Winthrop Maxwell III, June 26, 2010 Al Maxwell described himself this way: “I am an earthy crunchy techno-dweeb.” His earthy crunchy side is evident in his early career building energyefficient “off the grid” structures, including his own shelter at West Carry Pond. The techno-dweeb came a bit later, when he joined Lotus Corp. and then IBM, from which he retired in 2008 as a senior software engineer. In between, he held several jobs with the state of Maine, most notably with the Energy Audit Program, designed to evaluate and curtail excessive energy consumption in schools and state buildings. He also became a financial planner during this time. In 1998, he married Janet Vermeulen, and they moved to a farmhouse set on 60 acres in Bridgton. There, he kept his Maule M4 airplane in a hangar he built himself. He took a number of trips to the Far East to feed his interest in Eastern philosophies. He felt a special connection to Nepal after trekking through its mountains. A physics major, he was a registered professional engineer in Maine. Survivors include his wife; mother Dianne Maxwell; and brother David. 1976 Russell John Erickson, Dec. 20, 2010 Russ Erickson worked for the Social Security Administration for 33 years and received several Commissioner’s Citations. He developed WAC, the agency’s national and international case management system. He also taught computer programming at St. Joseph’s and Andover colleges. A committed cyclist, he biked to work and took long trips through Florida and Maine. He rode in The Register’s Annual Great Bicycle Ride Across Iowa, a seven-day trip that bills itself as “the oldest, largest, and longest bicycle touring event in the world.” A history buff, he led walking tours through Portland as part of Portland’s History Docent Program. Survivors include wife Teeter Bibber; children Rilla and Dana Erickson; and three stepchildren. 1980 Patricia Marion James, July 30, 2010 “PJ” James joined the Bates admission staff after graduating with a degree in psychology and spent two years as an assistant dean. Then, she told another staff member, she had to move on because of her fears she would “become a lifer.” She moved on to a career with Bristol-Myers Squibb, where she became the manager of curricula for USP Learning. (United States Pharmacopeia is a non-governmental official standards-setting authority for prescription and other medications sold in the U.S.) While a student, she was a Benjamin Mays Scholar and was nominated as a New York City Urban Fellow. She directed and coordinated educational and referral services at the Androscoggin County Jail while at Bates, and was an intern at Riker’s Island. Even though she didn’t want to be a “lifer,” she remained close to the College, most notably as a member of the Alumni Council. She was also a class agent, an Alumni-in-Admissions volunteer, and a member of the College Key. Survivors include son Jared James; mother Cecilia James; sisters Melissa Webb and Courtney Steele; and dear friend Joanne Stillmun ’80. 1982 Mark Kevin Dickman, June, 18, 2010 Mark Dickman left Bates after one year and worked in the electrical distribution industry, most recently with Electrical Wholesalers Inc., in Hartford. Survivors include fiancée Marianne Enes; mother Marjorie Dickman; and brother Jeffrey. Mary Sinnamon Michelman, Dec. 17, 2010 When Mary Sinnamon Michelman graduated with a degree in biology, she was named a Dana Scholar and received the Abigail Smith Award, given to the senior man and woman who have done the most to contribute to residence hall spirit. She went on to earn a master’s in biological oceanography from
In Acton, Mass., environmental activist MARY SINNAMON MICHELMAN ’82 kept a close eye on the W.R. Grace pollution cleanup. “The irony of her contracting cancer,” said the chair of the Board of Selectmen, “is not lost on the community.” the Univ. of Rhode Island. She spent two years on a fishing trawler, then moved inland, to Acton, Mass., where she became known for her volunteer work on environmental issues. She organized Earth Days and stream cleanup days. She was president of Acton Citizens for Environmental Safety, and kept a close eye on the W.R. Grace pollution cleanup. “The irony of her contracting cancer,” said Lauren Rosenzweig Morton, chair of Acton’s Board of Selectmen, “is not lost on the community.” She had survived breast cancer and a double mastectomy only to have the cancer return. Survivors include husband Tom Michelman and daughters Julie and Valerie. 2002 William Adams Thomas III, Aug. 21, 2010 Adam Thomas had a peripatetic four years at Bates: He studied in six countries on three continents. Beyond learning about different cultures and languages, he said more than anything else he learned understanding. He put that knowledge to work after graduation by earning a law degree from the Univ. of Pittsburgh School of Law and becoming a telecommunications attorney dedicated to the public interest. He focused on democratizing knowledge, and worked with Public Knowledge, an organization that defends consumer rights in the emerging digital world. The organization has started a fellowship in his name. He previously worked with the Electronic Frontier Foundation and was a fellow with Free Press. He fought off three bouts of a rare brain cancer, but its fourth recurrence proved too strong. Survivors include wife Katie Strumpf; father Bill Thomas; and brother Ian Thomas. 2006 Nathan Dowd Dorpalen, Oct. 7, 2010 Nate Dorpalen died while backpacking on the Lofoten Islands in northern Norway. He was a master’s candidate in environmental agroecology at the Norwegian University of Life Sciences. Pursuing this degree was a natural progression after earning a bachelor’s degree in environmental sciences from the College. He was interested in small-scale organic farming, and had worked at farms in Maine, Alaska, and North Carolina. While at Bates, he apprenticed himself to the town of Palermo, where he learned forestry, carpentry, and orchard management. Immediately after college, he worked in Alaska, assisting with cleaning up gold mine sites and monitoring peregrine falcon nests. He hiked Denali and also hiked in Siberia. Survivors include parents Peter and Mary-Louise Dorpalen; twin sister Erica Dorpalen; and grandmother Rose-Marie Dorpalen. To celebrate his life, family and friends hiked up a mountain near his parents’ home in Connecticut.
Friend Sally Donavan Goodrich, Dec. 18, 2010 Sally Goodrich and her husband, Donald, took inspiration from their son’s outlook on life when they were confronted with unspeakable despair on Sept. 11, 2001. Their son was Peter Goodrich ’89, who was aboard the second airplane that hit the World Trade Center. They said, and his friends would agree, that Peter had “insatiable curiosity about life in all its various forms.” Sally and Donald decided to find a way to spark that curiosity in Afghan students, taking funds donated or awarded after the attacks to build a 26-room school for girls in Afghanistan. “The idea that we could go to Afghanistan...where the planning for our son’s death took place and provide an alternative way of looking at the world was very appealing to us,” said Don. They sponsored over a dozen exchange students from Afghanistan to the U.S., housing many of them themselves, and helping them obtain scholarships to American colleges. Among them is Mohammed Mustafa Basij-Rasikh ’12. To date, the foundation they formed in their son’s name has raised over $1 million. Survivors include her husband; son Foster Goodrich; daughter Kim Trimarchi; five grandchildren; and Peter’s wife Rachel Carr Goodrich ’90. Staff Joseph Woodhead, Oct. 18, 2010 In his 25 years as an assistant coach of track and field, Joseph Woodhead created a legacy of unparalleled success. His specialties were the indoor weight throw and the outdoor hammer throw. During those years, 15 Bates throwers won 43 All-America awards, including six NCAA championships. In February 2009, following renovations to Merrill Gymnasium and Slovenski Track, the throwing area was named in his honor. He won many coaching awards. Woodhead himself was a record-setting hammer thrower at Springfield College, as well as an All-New England football lineman. He also had a standout career at Lewiston High School. He coached at Lisbon High School for many years, winning four state championships. Among survivors are wife Mary Ellen Woodhead and sons Andy and Mike. Emeriti L. Ross Cummins, Sept. 21, 2010 L. Ross Cummins stepped into various roles during his 37 years at Bates. He was a professor of education, chair of the department of education and psychology, and director of guidance and placement. Educated at Yale — bachelor’s, master’s, and doctorate — in psychology, he served a term as president of the Maine Psychological Assn. During World War II, he became chief clinical psychologist at Battey General Hospital in Georgia, and left the Army in 1945 to establish the Veterans Administration Guidance Center in Savannah. A world traveler with a special fondness for London, he continued to participate in campus events after retirement. His wife Margaret died in 1983. Survivors include daughter Jane Cummins Fowler; two step-grandchildren; and four step-great-grandchildren. Honorary Richard Charles Albert Holbrooke, Dec. 13, 2010 The College honored Richard Holbrooke’s dedication to peace with an honorary degree in 1999. Bates President Donald Harward used these words to describe him: “Diplomat, scholar, forger of the prism of resolution, you have extended to international conflict opportunities for accord. Your efforts at the unfinished work of peace have offered the promise, through diplomatic negotiation, of the sanctity of inviolable rights, as well as the responsibilities of justice.” He was the driving force that ended the war in Bosnia in 1995, and was a key player in the Obama administration’s efforts to convince President Karzai of Afghanistan to take responsibility for security in his country. President Obama called him “simply one of the giants of American foreign policy.”
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