the Common Room

“My father, Thomas Sweitzer, son of Harry F. Sweitzer and Ruth E (Waterman) Sweitzer, passed away on Tuesday, January 19, 2021 in Scottsdale, AZ. He had a very full and happy life and an especially wonderful retirement in Sedona, AZ, with his wife, Jan Sweitzer, who passed away in 2018. Dad’s life was remarkable for his dedication to his family, community, and volunteerism. He spent much of his childhood in Madison, CT, racing sailboats with his brother Skip and enjoying their experiences as they became Eagle Scouts. After Deerfield, he went on to Amherst College. Soon after he graduated, Dad joined N. W. Ayer, a renowned advertising firm in New York, where he spent his entire professional career, ultimately helping to make the firm a global agency. Dad’s proudest professional achievements were in his work in China in the 1980s, engaged to conduct an extensive survey of China’s cultural, industrial, and manufacturing assets to identify, develop and promote to western/international markets: The China Exposition, which Ayer designed and produced, was China’s re-introduction to the world. This virtuoso exhibition premiered in San Francisco and traveled across the US and Europe, setting the stage for the economic powerhouse we know today. Throughout his life, Dad shared his passions with the communities he lived in through teaching, mentoring, and volunteering. As a father, he shared his pleasures of boating, gardening, woodshop, art, music, and travel with my brother, Steve, and me. He also shared our mother’s life-long love for dogs and passionate support of animal rescue. As Dad neared retirement, after years of exhilarating travel and adventures that enlivened his marriage, his mind turned towards gratitude for the woman he adored. He accompanied Jan on her travels to the southwest as she searched for gems and minerals for her passion for jewelry making. As he traveled, he recalled her stories of the Blue Ridge Mountains, where her family escaped the heat of the summers in Knoxville, TN. He heard her longing for distant views that he rekindled with flying lessons that brought back the thrills of her first job as a stewardess on Delta Airlines DC-3s. Traveling to destinations throughout the southwest, he asked himself repeatedly, ‘Could I live here?’ When they discovered Sedona, the answer was an emphatic ‘Yes!’ For my brother Steve and I, this was a sudden and unexpected decision which, much to our consternation, they acted upon with great alacrity. In Sedona, they found a breathtaking place to live and an incredible community of locals and snowbirds to live out their retirement years. With Dad’s passing, Steve and I have learned what impactful people our parents were with the many unsolicited stories offered to us by Sedona locals and snowbirds and the dear friends from their 40+ years in Westport, CT. Often these accounts moved me to tears and, more often than not, brought revelations we had never imagined. Our admiration for them has grown, as has our understanding of them as citizens and individuals, well beyond their parenting of us. These often-moving accounts of their ongoing sharing of their lives’ passions and the support of those who shared them have painted a clear picture of who our parents were and how dedicated they were to ‘paying it forward.’ Our extended conversations and interviews with their surviving friends and family members have enabled us to recognize their legacies in those whose lives they touched and within ourselves. Theirs were lives well lived, fully and in the moment. They were good people.”—Tucker

Sweitzer

“My wife Anne and I celebrated our 65th wedding anniversary on July 2, 2022. In 2011, we moved to Fox Hill Village, a retirement community in Westwood, MA. Living is easy and agreeable in all respects. We have three daughters (two Smith and one Amherst), two of whom are close by and the other in Pelham, NY; there are five grandchildren. All are well, active, and productively engaged. Anne gardens and plays bridge. After nine hip operations, I wobble around exercising and also write short stories. An Amherst classmate and I coined the acronym SEEES: Sleep, Eat, Exercise, Engage (socially), Stretch. It’s an excellent guide for elder fitness.”

—Jack Vernon

“My wife and I live in a retirement community—Kendal at Hanover—in Hanover, NH. Deerfield classmate and good friend Peter Bien, is also here, as is Sam Franz ’49 Peter spent his career teaching at Dartmouth. My granddaughter, Grace Hall Wilson, is engaged Brendon Hindle Donoghue, grandson of classmate Win Hindle.”

—Tom Wilson

“I was a math major at Oberlin. After Navy OCS and three years on minesweepers, I enrolled in economics grad school at Yale (PhD in1962). Joined the economics department at Wesleyan in 1960, retiring in 2006. I taught a selection of courses: introductory, the micro and macro courses required of majors, industrial organization, antitrust economics, accounting, business ethics, and corporate finance. Being at Wesleyan allowed me to wander among subfields in both teaching and research (as my interests evolved; not possible at graduate programs) and also to take up visiting and moonlighting positions at other institutions: MIT, Cal Berkeley, UCONN, New Zealand Institute of Economic Research, University of Adelaide, and (six times) Yale. I have tried to stay intellectually occupied by continuing the trickle of articles. I married in 1956; Joan (married for 57 years; she is now deceased), and I have three children and eight grandchildren spread around (Portland, OR, Albuquerque, NM, Boston, MA, Minturn, CO, Portland, ME). Family summers in Maine, inland on a lake (hiking, swimming, sailing). I gave up squash 20 years ago (at my doctor’s suggestion). Health? Two replaced hips, cataract surgery, arthritis; I am very fortunate.” —Dick

Miller

“After graduating from Brown in 1952 and going on to do two years in the Navy during the Korean war, I got my MBA from Wharton Graduate at Penn. After sojourns with IBM and Chase Bank, I went into advertising with McCann Erickson, then to Brand Management with Bristol Myers, Johnson & Johnson, Ocean Spray (Director of New Products), Richardson Vicks (Americas Far East), and finally Proctor and Gamble, retiring early at 57. Since then, my Norwegian wife (right) two children, and I moved through years of marketing consulting to an active retirement in Naples, FL, in 1994. We’re still here. I’ve been active in my community, serving as president of master and village associates while founding a winning swim team, summer camp, tennis program, a social committee, and as editor of our newsletter. Twelve doubles trophies later, I retired as captain of the tennis team. I remember Gordy and me on the D’Field lightweight football team. My latest book is the second edition of The Ivy Fest Song Book: Ivy Fight Songs.” —Ty Day Dear Classmates, Gordy Hall and Jack Vernon (right) here, writing you as your New Class Agent Team! In 2020, I (Gordy) wrote the Office of Advancement to inquire about several classmates; they told me that personal information was available only to the class agent and then asked if I would like to fill that now-vacant role. Jack and I went to Amherst together and have been close ever since. I asked him if he would like to take on the job as a team, a job that would hopefully invoke a sentimental journey (corny but accurate) for all of us. We’re all 90+/- years old, and there are 50 of us still standing (or sitting or supine). We want to ask you for communications on any subject: offspring, occupations, health, travel, politics, observations, or whatever comes to mind. Bragging is definitely encouraged, as well as curmudgeonly comments. Here’s my two cents worth: After Amherst, I went to the Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies but wound up in commercial real estate and ownership of properties that two of my three sons now expand and manage. I’m involved in four non-profit environmental/conservation organizations, which I enjoy immensely; the world is in big trouble, and help is needed. I self-published a book, Satan in the Pulpit, about the founding of Phillips Andover and Exeter Academies, where my great, great grandfather went to Divinity School, and I have sold 175 copies. I have two replaced hips and one replaced knee (Deerfield lightweight football) and have had a bypass and an arrhythmia correction—I’m fortunate that all of them have worked, and I can be active. I live in Marblehead, MA, and for 25 years, I raced a succession of sailboats named Katabatic. We were the boat to beat, and I loved it. In summer, my wife and I now cruise on the coast of Maine and go to our way-off-the-grid Northern Maine camp and watch wildlife. At home, I play tennis if I don’t have to run far. That’s it for me. Here’s Jack: To Amherst with Gordy and Win Hindle, MIT for a master’s, then Navy Civil Engineering Corps. I began my career as a consultant with Arthur D. Little, then to Instron Corp. for nine years, then left as EVP/COO to become president of a start-up developing a modern steam engine—limited future. Became an executive search consultant and retired after 25 years as managing director of Russell Reynolds Association. Along the way was Chair of the Weston, MA, School Committee, WGBH Board of Overseers, and finally, Board Chair of the New England Conservatory of Music. We now live in a retirement community in Westwood, MA. I’ve published a book, Very Short Stories, that includes a piece on Dick Hatch. Survived one prostate, one double bypass with a pacemaker, and six hip operations (two and four). Golf handicap 12, now 22. Married for 65 years to Anne Bennett. We have three daughters and five grandchildren, all well above average. As Garrison Keillor said: ‘Be well, do good work, and keep in touch.’ We’re in high hopes that all this will encourage you to write whatever is on your mind or about your life—anything, including complaints. We all have a pretty short runway ahead, and that’s a good reason to hear from each other. Please write to: gordonhall3@comcast.net and/or jvernon30@gmail.com. Thanks! —Gordon Hall/Jack Vernon

Edgar Parker (left) shared this story from the Friends of Anne Arundel County Trails about being named Volunteer of the Month in July 2021: When Arnold resident and Navy veteran Edgar Parker looks back on his life, he is proud of many things but especially his volunteer efforts. In 1985, Parker began representing his community at the Eastern District Community Relations Council. When asked to volunteer as the recording secretary, he took meeting minutes. “Some people had a problem, some community members, and this was a good chance for them to come and talk to the district captain,” Parker said. “Then we kind of straightened it out or told them what they could and couldn’t do.” He continued to volunteer for 15 years but remains a member, representing Woodfield Village off of College Parkway. After retiring in 1997, Parker continued his work with the county police by giving his time to the Volunteers in Police Service. For 20 years, Parker assisted in non-enforcement roles with the police department. After being inspired by a neighbor who ran frequently, Parker joined the Annapolis Striders. “I eventually got to where I could run 10 miles fairly comfortably,” Parker said. “I really do have a bureau full of t-shirts.” When he could no longer run, he volunteered to assist with parking and manage the finish line at longer races. From 2009 to 2018, Parker belonged to the Anne Arundel County Public Library Foundation. A selfproclaimed “reader,” Parker served a nine-year term where he attended meetings and library events, donated money, and helped with fundraising. Parker was nominated for Volunteer of the Month by the Friends of Anne Arundel County Trails (FOAACT.) His involvement with the trail began when he lobbied Councilman Cliff Roop and Wayne Gilchrist for a trail along College Parkway by Anne Arundel Community College. “I thought you shouldn’t have to have a car to go to the community college,” Parker said. “You should be able to walk or ride a bicycle.” His successful efforts launched a study to assess the area by College Parkway. When Parker learned that the Friends of the B&A Trail had changed its name and established the FOAACT, he contacted them to get involved and continue working on the Broadneck Trail. He joined the board of directors and administered a boating safety course for 16 years. He stayed involved as a representative of the Broadneck Trail even after discontinuing the boating course. As a Trailblazer, a group of volunteers who monitor the trails and help people along the way, he continues to make monetary donations. He is currently working to install a special water fountain along the trail. After the first section of the Broadneck Trail was completed in 2012, Parker donated money to build a rest area by the Broadneck Library in memory of Allan and Edie Segree. His generosity helped build a large rest area in memory of his wife, Jean, and himself. After Parker lost his wife to Alzheimer’s, he was inspired to help run a monthly Alzheimer’s caregivers support group on top of his other volunteer efforts. There is no question that Parker has made a substantial difference in this community. He said that he wants people to remember him for the good that he did. “I like to help people, but I feel you are obligated to help people.”

Matt Harrington ’85 shared the news of his father’s passing: Robert John Harrington died August 23, 2021, at Martin Nursing and Rehabilitation Center in Stuart, FL, where he lived since May 2020, when he fractured his hip at home. Born on January 19, 1935, in Holyoke, MA, Robert was the second child of Mary Harrington and Elmer Joseph Harrington, MD. Called Bobby by his elder sister and only sibling, Nancy, Robert spent a happy childhood with his extended family in Holyoke. Robert graduated from Deerfield in 1952, attended Holy Cross College in Worcester, MA, and Regis College, a Catholic Jesuit institution in Denver, CO. He entered the Army in 1956. He worked as a cryptographer in Arlington, VA, during his service. Robert’s business career started in journalism at the Boston Herald Traveler and included reporting and editorial work with United Press International and the National Review in New York. He later entered the field of public relations and advertising, working in several roles, including co-founder of The Communicators advertising agency in Harrisburg, PA. He combined early experience as an announcer and disc jockey to become a writer, producer, and voice talent for numerous radio and television advertisements. These included ones featuring his children and their friends for clients Foxx Pools and Harrisburg Radio Lab. He returned to radio announcer and DJ roles later in life. After moving from Boston to New York, Robert met Lucy Hayes Rodgers of Reedsville, PA, in 1962. They were married at New York’s St. Patrick’s Cathedral in 1963 and later moved to central Pennsylvania to be closer to Lucy’s family and raise one of their own.

“My Constitutional Essentials: On the Constitutional Theory of Political Liberalism—taking up some core questions for the theory and practice of democratic constitutionalism —was published in September of 2022 by Oxford University Press. This book covers work I’ve had in progress for quite a while, and largely written after my 2012 retirement from active teaching at Harvard.”

—Frank Michelman

l to r: Grant Harrington, Matt Harrington ’85, Robert John Harrington ’52 in 2009; and Robert John Harrington from the 1952 Pocumtuck

“My new book, Voices from the Past, was published in the United States in December 2020 (having already been published in Great Britain, where I live, early that year). The book is dedicated to the idea that history is a feast to be enjoyed every day and that memorable quotations are like glasses of fine wine that bring out the flavor of a three-star meal. The book offers a historical piece for every date in the year, each headlined with a quotation related to the event. (The text contains hundred more quotes—in all, there are about 1200.) The stories range from ancient times to the 21st century.”

—Bill Marsh

“We extend our special thanks and grateful recognition to Mike Grant and Terry Blanchard for their contributions: Mike’s Class of ’55 letters, and Terry’s Pocumtuck Revisited 50th Reunion update. Mike’s letters are eagerly anticipated, and Terry’s brochure reunited us with the current goings-on of our classmates. It’s mind boggling that we graduated from Deerfield 67 years ago. May we all make it back to our 70th Reunion in June 2025!”—Tom L’Esperance

John Frymoyer’s daughters reported: “Surrounded by his loving family, John Frymoyer spent the afternoon outside under a beautiful, sunny New England blue sky before quietly passing away that evening—August 2, 2021—at the age of 83.”

In August of 2021, Tom L’Esperance reported that Lou Greer’s wife, Dee, passed away three years ago. “Nowadays, it’s pretty much me, the dog, and the cat,” Lou said. “Growing older is mandatory but growing up is optional.” Tom also reported that Lou gave up riding a bicycle, but he continues to swim a lot and go to the YMCA, which is just down the street. He lives in Greer, SC. “Wow! That’s impressive,” Tom commented, “although he grew up in New York and claimed that the town is not named after his family.”

“We are doing well—at least as well as expected in our advancing years and coming out of this horrible year plus Covid. I suspect it will color and etch itself into all our beings for some time. The isolation, the fears, the desperation to get vaccinated, the relief when that second needle came out—these occurrences we all will share. Wanda and I are happily ensconced in a 55+ Condo community in Byfield, MA, not far from where we lived for the previous 20 years. I can still play golf locally with a group of guys who like to be out in the open air, and for whom nine holes are plenty. One of our children lives in Salem, only half an hour away, but the other lives in St. Paul, MN. We go out there a couple of times a year, and they come here to rent a house near the beach for a week in August. We love it when we can all be together. We are still trying to travel, hopefully to Switzerland this September and Florida for about six weeks in the winter to get out of the worst of it here. Increasingly the memories of youth come back to call—generally with a great deal of joy. I certainly hope that we will be able to revisit Western Massachusetts when the magic 70th takes place.”—Terry Blanchard

As of June 2020, Tom L’Esperance was able to report on behalf of John Herdeg: “All’s well in Mendenhall, PA. John and Judy continue to ‘summer in West Chop on Martha’s Vineyard’—we can’t make these names up! They have three children, a son who’s an architect in San Antonio, TX, another son in the aerospace industry, and a daughter, Leli, who, after maintaining 4.0 grades in college, became a hay farmer, boards horses, and raises sheep. Leli and her family live next door.”

Peter was one of my close buds at Deerfield. I used to spend time with his family in Amherst. He also lived in Fairfield for a while. An always upbeat guy who came to be a competent educator and leader of secondary schools (including our own Deerfield Academy). And on a personal note a la It’s a Small World: in Peter’s early years, he lived in my Uncle Tom’s former ‘cabin’ at The Notch in Mount Holyoke Range State Park.” from Tom L’Esperance

On October 28, 2020, ’55ers Jerry Rood ’55, Tom L’Esperance’55, Tim Day ’55 and spouses celebrated their 10th annual get-together in La Jolla, CA. l to r: Jerry Rood ’55, Tom L’Esperance ’55, Tim Day ’55, Sandy Day, Merry L’Esperance, and Joyce Rood

“Our family was pleasantly surprised to see the tribute to Bayard DeMallie from his induction into Worcester Academy’s Hall of Fame in the 2019 Spring/Summer issue of Deerfield Magazine. Unfortunately, because Worcester Academy prepared it for its audience, it overlooked his strong loyalty to Deerfield throughout his life and his family’s Deerfield legacy spanning four generations. His father, Gardener ’29, father-in-law James Cowan ’30, uncle John Carley ’32, brother-in-law James Cowan III ’61, and his brothers Gardener Jr ’54 and Glenn ’63, all attended Deerfield. Three children and grandchildren have graduated from Deerfield in the last four decades, including Bayard DeMallie III ’80, Mary Rockett ’11, and Bayard DeMallie IV ’19. Three other grandchildren, Sam Rockett ’20, Garret DeMallie ’21, and Cooper DeMallie ’22, are recent alumni. All told, 14 members of the family have attended Deerfield, and one was a faculty member in the 1960s. Watching his five grandchildren complete on football and lacrosse fields, sharing the bonds that connect all Deerfield graduates, would have filled ‘B’ with pride.”—Bayard DeMallie III ’80 In the spring of 2020, Joe Twichell reported that Bob O’Hara had been increasingly interested in supporting the Fund for Global Understanding, established as a gift to the school at their 50th Reunion. Bob gave up his office at Milbank, Tweed, Hadley, and McCloy at the end of 2018 (he had been there since 1965, following his graduation as a Captain from the US Army). He now enjoys life as a retired partner of the firm (now named Milbank LLP) and is free of prior entanglements with clients, businesses, and not-for-profit boards. Bob and his wife, Bonnie, continue from their home base on Park Avenue in NYC. Their five girls, ages 47 to 57, and grandchildren are spread out from NYC to Walpole, NH, to Boulder, CO, to San Francisco, to Homer, AK, to various grand dogs, so there is lots of real estate to cover. Bob and Bonnie entertain them at their beach houses at Point O’Woods, Long Island, and Boca Grande, FL. Bob says life has been very good to him. He traveled for work extensively as an international corporate and securities lawyer, and he and Bonnie traveled globally for enlightenment and friendships (and golf) over the four-plus decades of their marriage. When Bob began thinking of what he might do for Deerfield, he inquired about our class’s 50th Reunion gift and decided it could benefit from renewed interest. He firmly believes that the world can be a better place through increased knowledge and understanding of people in other lands, and the class’ Fund for Global Understanding can help.

Relationships are at the heart of Robert Cumming’s book of poetry: childhood friendships and foes; the awe a father possesses when regarding his son; an older couple contemplating a long moment of awkwardness at the breakfast table. Cumming uses nostalgia, the strange, and even the divine, to tell remarkable stories.

Arthur Gregg regrets to report that his wife of 53 years, Sally Cook Gregg, of Brooklin, ME, died on November 16, 2021, after a long battle with Alzheimer’s. Her brother was Stephen P. Cook, and her father was long-time Deerfield French teacher, Roland H. Cook, both previously deceased.

John Thayer Talbott (left) died peacefully at his home on November 30, 2021. He was born in New York City in 1939, the son of Harold E. Talbott Jr. and Margaret Thayer Talbott. John attended the Buckley School and Deerfield Academy and received his Masters in Divinity from Vanderbilt University. As a young man, he served in the 101st Airborne, before meeting the love of his life, Anne, on Fishers Island, NY. They spent 42 wonderful and adventurous years living in Texas, California, Tennessee, Washington, DC, Connecticut, and Fishers Island. Filled with intellectual curiosity, John explored a variety of professions, including finance, farming, and retail, before finding his vocation as a minister. After his studies at Sewanee University, he was ordained in the Episcopal Church. He served as rector of the Church of the Redeemer in Shelbyville, TN, and St. Augustine’s Church in Washington, DC, before retiring to Connecticut, where he continued his pastoral care and service as Curate at St. Ann’s Church, Old Lyme, and as an interim and supply priest throughout the Episcopal Diocese of Connecticut. While in Washington, DC, John was honored to participate in the memorial service for Justice Thurgood Marshall; the prayer John wrote in honor of Justice Marshall’s life is shared annually throughout the Anglican Communion as part of the Episcopal Church Liturgical Calendar. John possessed a deep and abiding love of community and a commitment to supporting those in need. He provided pastoral care and bereavement support to those in Middlesex County and served on the Zoning Commission in Old Saybrook. His great joys were reading, studying, and spending time with family. John was devoted to his family and friends, whether close or far, new or old. He will be remembered for his dry wit and the twinkle in his eye. We will all miss his birthday messages. Predeceased by his life-long love, Anne Kinsolving Talbott, John is survived by his three daughters, Thayer, Kemp, and Polly, and two granddaughters, as well as many cousins, nieces, nephews, and loved ones.

Jonathan Hutchison Kress born October 21, 1940 to Rush Harrison Kress and Virginia Watkins Kress, passed away in his childhood home in Tucson, AZ, on August 6, 2022. He attended Sam Hughes Elementary, Mansfeld Middle School, Thatcher School, Deerfield, and National Taiwan University, graduating from Harvard in 1964. His fluency in Mandarin led him to graduate school at Yale University specializing in Southeast Asian archaeology and he subsequently taught at Case Western Reserve University and Duke University. He completed several digs on Palawan Island, Philippines, continuing to mentor students onsite there until recent years at Ille Cave. He was vocal about his progressive views and active in Democratic Party politics serving as chairman for one term. Jonathan was owner of affordable apartments in Tucson and formed San Felices Construction, building homes in Tucson and Green Valley. He is survived by Andrea Elena Ibáñez, his beloved wife of 45 years, who admired his adventurous, kind and patient spirit.

Edward Hines reported that Peter Dunhill Simpson died unexpectedly at home in Ballston Lake, NY, on March 23, 2021. He is survived by daughters Kristen and Leigh, a sister Margaret, and brother, William ’64. In addition to graduating from Deerfield, Pete attended Colgate University and graduated from the University of Connecticut. His professional career was in accounting. He spent many summers at Fourth Lake in the Adirondacks where he was a water ski and sailing instructor. He loved UConn basketball (women’s and men’s), and classical music.

Roberta Lowry, widow of Peter B. Lowry, reported the sad news that Peter passed away on June 29, 2022. Peter and his family had been living for 25 years in Australia. Peter devoted his life to the preservation of African American music. He left behind a collection of field recordings, the commercial releases held in the Blues collection at the Library of Congress, and the entire body of work archived at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Peter is also survived by his son Julian. Peter has a Wikipedia page, if anyone is interested: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ Peter_B._Lowry.

In June 2021, John Behlke shared: “It is unlikely for two bullets fired at one another will ever meet, but it can happen! Such was the case with Jerry Shively’46, living next door to me in the rural Dordogne valley in France. A further coincidence is that Jerry’s brother, Bob Shively ’50, was teaching at Deerfield during my time there! The two “J’s” met at a cocktail party and discovered our joint educational past. Since then, many more dinners and drinks have happened, seldom without discussion about the “Old School” and what it has meant to us–particularly the impact that Headmaster Extraordinaire Frank Boyden had upon us. The similarities are interesting: John was a four-year student, and Jerry came for only his senior year. Herewith is Jerry’s brief history and impressions, now over seventy years later: ‘It is, in my opinion, impossible to have met Mr. Boyden without being fascinated and impressed. After a half-hour discussion with Mr. Boyden and my mother, the ‘Head’ thought there would be room for me in the class of ’46 as a ‘new boy.’ We were delighted, but my schoolteacher mother had no idea that the yearly fee for Deerfield would be her yearly salary. I’m sure Mr. Boyden asked my mother what she thought it cost to feed me, and, upon hearing this, he asked her if she could provide that! A few months later, I hitchhiked to Deerfield and began one of my life’s most interesting and formative periods. Dr. Boyden, as he was sometimes called, was diminutive physically but a towering presence. To be called before him for some misdemeanor, however large or small, terrified all, though his admonishments were seldom severe and always delivered to respectful recipients. Spending my last year of school in the presence of interesting and challenging teachers and staff and a remarkable collection of bright young men made an enormous impression on me and I’m sure moved me toward a better, and frankly, more ambitious, direction in life. I will ever be grateful to Dr. Boyden for my Deerfield Experience.’ Enjoying my close association with fellow alumni, Jerry Shively, here in the Dordogne part of France, where we are both retired. Good company with numerous discussions and memories of Deerfield, so long ago for us both.”

Earlier this year my latest novel came out from Beck & Branch: The World Against Her Skin. It’s my mother’s story, but I invented much of it, including a gay older son. Both boys go to a prep school I call Darwin, which will look familiar. Indeed, members of the class of ’60 are sure to recognize the school’s art teacher, who plays a significant role in the book. I’ve written memoirs about my son and my father, and now this novel about my mother. Family life intrigues me, both past and present. For Christmas I’ll head out to Steamboat Springs to visit with my son Janir and his family. Grandkids! I’m predictably crazy about them. I look back at a class note I made in 2014 about the deaths of Barry Campbell and Sandy Weymouth. Not a day goes by that I don’t think about both of them. I’m still re-listening to the 1100 tapes Sandy and I made to each other, and to dozens that Barry and I exchanged. I’m often that pato lógico, that odd duck that flies through life looking backward.

—John Thorndike ’60

by Bob Dutton ’70 & Charlie Trautmann ’70