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and great people. She also adopted a kitten named Ginger. Amy’s been in touch with Lynn Williams Kern and Sandy Thompson Ketchum. She loves getting news of NMH, is so glad the school is doing so well, and is keenly interested, as we all are, in the future of our Northfield campus. Her new email address: mariamneboothby@comcast.net. Gina Lyman, along with her sister and cousin, had a blast spending nine days in Arizona in February visiting Molly McClure. “The Desert Museum outside of Tucson was spectacular.” Jane Hougen Fast had a spring jaunt to Paris. Stay tuned for her next adventures in travel. Tom and Ellie Watson Payzant attended Bob Burnett’s “Celebration of Life,” where there was a full house. The Burnett family all participated in some way, including the grandchildren. The two remaining Highwaymen performed along with two others, and those gathered sang several folk tunes. The Highwaymen’s most famous gold record was “Michael Row Your Boat Ashore.” Ellie says: “It was a very touching and truly meaningful time.” Tom and Ellie attended the NMH trustees’ meeting in San Francisco in January, where they saw Mary Beth and Bob Starzel. They also attended a Moody donor event in Boston. In May, Tom and Ellie sang in Sacred Concert. “A treat to join with Sheila and talented students and orchestra. The campus was in tip-top shape.” After the concert, Trinka Craw Greger, John Stone, Steve and Joan Millett Walker, and the Payzants enjoyed dinner at Bella Notte. Ellie says this is the year of the 50ths for them— her 50th at Conn College, Tom’s 50th at Williams, and their 50th wedding anniversary. Lynn Williams Kern has moved to senior living at the Carmel Valley Manor in Carmel, Calif. “We are happy to say that, although it took some effort to downsize, it has been well worth it. It did not take long to find a Hermonite, Gordon Smith ’40, who is very active here on campus.” Contact Claire for Lynn’s address and phone number. Steve and Joan Millett Walker had a good winter in Florida, where they spent time with
Anne Webb Burnham ’44, Dave Burnham, Al Burnett ’62, Kathy Burnett (Bob’s widow), Ellie Watson Payzant ’58, Tom Payzant ’58, Trinka Craw Greger ’58, and John Stone ’58 at the musical tribute and celebration for Bob Burnett ’58 last May.
56 I NMH Magazine
Norma Kerlin ’58, Debby Martin Pearse ’58, and Missy Greening Swan ’58 in Cape Porpoise, Maine.
daughter Elizabeth and her family. Daughter Pam recently moved there. Joan also spent time there with her sister Craig Millett Yohn ’60, who has kept her Parkinson’s at bay for 25 years. Joan and Steve drove to NMH for Sacred Concert. “A visit to the Northfield campus was nostalgic, and though the chapel was closed, it looked great on the outside. Holly Lobby has refurbished the Auditorium: the fresh paint seemed incongruous, but it looked terrific. As always, Sacred Concert was beautiful. Meanwhile, Steve is working on the rental house in Nantucket and the boat and plans to bring it to Rhode Island so we can get in much sailing this summer.” Your secretary, Claire Kurtgis-Hunter, is having a great summer on Nantucket. Our Spiritual Heritage Nantucket speakers this June are Brit Hume and wife Kim. Working on the SHN committee for a luncheon at the Great Harbor Yacht Club opens a summer promising to be filled with excitement and fun. The first Hunter greatgranddaughter was born in June and joins three great-grandsons. Paul and Claire look forward to a two-week trip in late October to Kauai, where they will visit two nephews living there. Finally, a reminder to mark your calendars for our 55th reunion next June. Our 50th was terrific and our 55th looks to be even better. From Bill: In January, John Abel caught up with Susie and Bart Ferris while in N.Y.C. for the Met Opera. They joined John for brunch at the Cornell Club of N.Y. and then a visit to the Frick Museum. Bart persists in maintaining activities but has limited ability to walk. He continues to follow NMH and college wrestling. John has been retired from Cornell since ’08, but maintains an office on campus and has stayed active. Son Bill Abel ’91 has moved home so John no longer lives alone following the death of wife Lynne in ’06. John invites classmates passing through or near Ithaca to stop by for a tour of campus and the nearby spectacular state parks, as well as a boat ride on the lake. You can make reservations at the Abel B&B at jfa5@cornell.edu. John’s daughter and family live in Plymouth, Minn., where she is on the German faculty at Macalester College, and her husband works at Best Buy headquarters. Will (12) and Natasha (9) are
Gina Lyman ’58 and Molly McClure ’59 in Arizona in February ’12.
in Spanish immersion schools. John writes: “In a reprise of spring ’09 when I was ‘Grandpa Nanny’ in Vienna while Britt ran and taught in Macalester’s study abroad program, it now looks like spring ’13 will be similar. Tough duty, but someone needs to suffer through time in Vienna and the capitals of Eastern Europe.” In pursuit of John’s activities as president of the International Association for Shell and Spatial Structures (IASS), he had trips to Sarajevo, Bosnia, in April, and Seoul, Korea, in May. At the latter, John’s presidency expired after two three-year terms. John says his greatest accomplishments as president were the creation of a new website (www.iass-structures.org); an increase of membership to more than 900 engineers, architects, students, companies, and subscribers; and editing a 500-page book observing the 50th anniversary of the association, titled Fifty Years of Progress for Shell and Spatial Structures. Norm Barstow was in Bulgaria last summer and planned to visit a Bulgarian school in the role of “Mr. Science” to present a science lesson to a group of fifth graders. Norm hopes that his Bulgarski will be understood. Stan Cort, Carla, and their twins, Camilla and Carlton (7 1/2), are based in Cleveland Heights, where the twins just completed the second grade at Gilmour Academy. In June, the family planned to make their annual move to their beach house in Euclid until Halloween. Cammy is an accomplished equestrian and a creative fashionista. Carl is an avid hockey player—he leans toward defense—and has progressed from Star Wars and Pirates of the Caribbean video games to his own finely detailed re-creations of WW II battles. Carla’s mobile PET-CT (positron emission tomography) business is doing well. It is a useful foundation for expanding the platform into two promising health-care-delivery–related information system businesses. May marked Stan’s 50th at Harvard. He is glad not to have aged as his old duffer classmates have. Stan is emeritus at the Weatherhead School of Management at Case Western Reserve Univ. and teaches a high school senior/junior elective in management and entrepreneurship at Gilmour Academy. So far, retirement has not been dull.