CL ASS NOTES
the air. Last August, Gene and I went to the Ukiah, Calif., county fair to watch our 10and 12-year-old great-grandsons show cattle. The 6-year-old is not old enough, but he works with his brothers. It brought back fond memories of watching our three sons show in 4-H 52 years ago. I am now a member of a regional hay growers association. They will broker our hay so we will not need to store and sell retail. My son, who does the planting and swathing, finished planting the 150 acres the day before Thanksgiving, fortunately — Thanksgiving morning he fell from the roof of his house and cracked a rib and damaged a hip. This happened four hours after I was released from the emergency room with a rogue stomach virus, which I passed to husband, Gene, and, eventually, my son. Thanksgiving 2018 will not be favorably remembered. • When you read this, it will be about a year before our 70th reunion. I realize it will be difficult or impossible for many to attend (I have 3,000 miles to travel). I plan to attend, but one cannot predict at our age what will happen next week. If you do not receive an email from me, and you do have an email address, that means I do not have yours. Please take the time to send it to me along with a bit of news. Have a wonderful summer.
51
Northfield Mount Hermon Pat McCormick Hoehing sylv.snail@bex.net 7125 San Benito Drive, Sylvania, OH 43560 • Frederick W. Miller fwcemiller@sbcglobal.net From Pat: Sadly, Anne Cotton died on 7/28/18. Anne resided in West Gould at Northfield and later attended Smith College, graduating with a B.A. in 1955. Her obituary outlined an extraordinarily full life of accomplishments, including both master’s and doctoral degrees in education from Harvard. She worked for variable periods of time at the National Security Agency, Doubleday Publishing Company, Metropolitan Opera, Harvard, and lastly, Mount Holyoke College, retiring in 1998. In retirement, she volunteered at a daycare center for developmentally handicapped adults, and made pet therapy visits with her dogs. Always a dog owner, Anne had discovered flat-coated retrievers in 1990. Her expertise benefited many canine organizations; she wrote regular columns for the Northeast Flat-Coated Retriever Club. Anne sang in the choir at All Saints Episcopal Church in South Hadley, Mass. Please contact me if you would like a complete copy of her extensive obituary. • NMH is not the school we experi-
50
NMH Magazine
enced. It has become intellectually, globally, culturally, and spiritually diverse. Use of technological advances in the classroom boggles my understanding. Old school traditions have changed, but many new traditions are celebrated. The current development in the arts at NMH is unequaled. Music is still important, but not as we knew it. I would miss the full-school participation at Christmas Vespers and Sacred Concert. However, what I stream on my computer is beautiful and probably equally significant to the participating members of the student body and their audience. What I am trying to say is: We are nothing if we are not flexible, and, as with computers, updates are constantly necessary. Most important is the continuing need for scholarship aid. Please help out as you are able. In spite of changes we may have been unhappy with, I do believe NMH still maintains the goals of D.L. Moody: Educate the head, the heart, and the hand. The school is well respected, and its graduates are ready for the next step into this everchanging, complex world. • From Fred: Our senior class president and outstanding pole vaulter, Robert Titus Owen, of Germantown, Tenn., died on 6/20/18. He was surrounded by his wife and daughters singing hymns to him as he was called home to be with the Lord. He was born in Bronxville, N.Y., and grew up in East Williston, Long Island. Bob was a three-year man at Mount Hermon, where he was a campus leader, earned letters in soccer and track, played baseball, was band president during sophomore year, played in the orchestra, sang in the Glee Club, and was a student deacon. Bob was on the student council — its vice-president in our senior year, and class vice-president in junior year. He earned a degree in business at Wharton School of Business, University of Pennsylvania. He was a member of Delta Kappa Epsilon and president in his senior year. He continued his pole vaulting and set records in track meets in England and Ireland. Bob was married to the love of his life, Nancy Louise Wagaman, for 63 years. They lived for two years in Karlsruhe, Germany, while Bob served in the Army. He and Nancy moved to Memphis in 1971 through Bob’s job transfer with NBC bank. They raised three daughters. He is survived by his wife, their daughters and grandchildren, and brother William Owen ’54. Bob’s humor, dry wit, love, thoughtfulness, and generosity brought much joy to his family and friends. He was an active member of First Evangelical Church in Memphis and Grace Evangelical Church in Germantown for the past 44 years. • Larry Levine’s wife, Helen, wrote to
say that Larry passed away on 2/7/18. Larry lived on Martha’s Vineyard and spent some time in Las Vegas, Nev. As a two-year man at Mount Hermon, he played fall and spring tennis, baseball, was in the band and orchestra, and participated in the chess club. Helen and Larry were married for 39 years, and he had three children from a previous marriage. Helen added, “He will always be in my heart.” • Arthur Schuman (West Hartford, Conn.) celebrated his 85th birthday last fall and he still goes to work every day. “I enjoy working and watching my son, Mark, run my company,” said Arthur. “He has not fired me yet. I also spend wonderful times with my seven grandchildren — the oldest is teaching English as a second language in Spain, and the two youngest are in middle school and high school. Matty plays high school soccer, so I watch him all the time. He also beats his old grandfather on the golf course now. One granddaughter is now at Tulane and loving it.” • Daren A. Rathkopf and his wife, Mira, traveled in December to San Miguel de Allende, Mexico, where they have a house. They were joined for Christmas by their two daughters and their families. The Rathkopfs found Mexico very festive during Christmastime, “as it is most times of the year,” said Daren. • By the time you read this, my wife, Carol, and I expect to be living in a senior retirement community of 600 people in Carol Stream, Ill., just six miles west of where we have lived for over 39 years.
52
Northfield Mount Hermon Julie Taylor Clemens jtclemens@cs.com For our Nov. 2–4, 2018, mini reunion, some of the attendees arrived at the Hampton Inn in Greenfield on Friday afternoon. Your scribe (Julie Taylor Clemens) and husband Drew stopped at the Four Leaf Clover in Bernardston, just for old time’s sake. Several years ago, we had joined about 20 classmates, family, and spouses, but this time we were the only ones. At that time, it was a good start to the Friday-night lobster dinners cooked by classmates and friends, with lots of time to reminisce in a church basement over cocktails and nibbles brought by everyone. • Times have changed and new arrangements have been made to accommodate our minis. Mimi Brewster Hollister Gardner, Steve Waters, and Nancy Stuart Philippi planned the 2018 mini. Many thanks for all their time and effort, which was halted mid-planning by the death of Sybil Benton Williamson, who was also helping with the preparations as our class president pro tempore. • Many of those attending had
