www.andover.edu/intouch Doug Crowe doesn’t have to go far for his “kid fix.” He reports in as follows: “I’ve arrived at the three-quarter-century mark out in the Virginia Piedmont, living about a quarter mile off Main Street in the historic town of Warrenton, home of John Mosby, the ‘Gray Ghost’ of the Confederacy. A committed ‘gym rat,’ I work out daily and walk a lot with my Lab/Rott ‘rescue’ dog, Abby (remember Harry Truman and his quip about Washington ‘friends’?). “My personal wealth begins and ends with my family. The proud father of three boys and two girls, I am additionally blessed with 12 grandchildren (with another due in October), all of whom—my cup runneth over—live within 25 miles of me in the Washington metro area. To add anything more would count as shameless bragging.” I caught up with Johnson Hall housemate John Cashman, who retired not too long ago from surgical duties. He recently downsized in Wilmington, N.C., his adopted city of 41 years, into a small gated community of 20 homes. Would you believe that last summer, the turnaround time between Jim Clunan’s noticing that there was a problem and his return home from an appendectomy was less than one day? That was his second emergency procedure in the same number of years. In 2012, during his wife Dorothy’s absence, his daughter Anne ’86 flew in from San Francisco to Maine and blessed him with her presence to the extent that the two watched the entire playoffs and World Series together on TV—a magic, fatherdaughter moment for bonding. Jim explains that he is winding down from the center of things. He’s no longer affiliated with his passion, Acadia Senior College, other than holding an unofficial title of director of institutional memory and emotional continuity. Limited to two 3-year terms, its board members and leaders have effectively turned over more than once since Jim left. Consistent with his abatement program, Clunan has also resigned from the Mt. Desert [Maine] Planning Board after a dozen years of membership. Jim informed me that he and his family had lived in West Berlin for four wonderful years while he and Dorothy worked as foreign service officers from 1974 to 1978. Too bad they did not join us for last summer’s class trip to Berlin. Skip Klemm’s familiar, cheerful, and resonant voice caught me up by phone to note that he and his wife, Beth, have reached their 50th milestone year of both marriage and residence in their home in Danvers, Mass., 10 miles from Andover. He is pleased that his 15-year-old grandson is attending St. John’s Prep, just blocks away from where he lives. From Saint-Jean-de-Luz, France, Doc Bennett informed us that he was editing his second historical novel. Set at the end of the 19th century in Mexico, it concerns a Mexican rural policeman who believes that the country’s 1857 constitution applies to all Mexicans, including Indians. Doc’s well-received first novel, Playing for Pancho Villa, is a love story set in 1916 Mexico and is obtainable at Amazon.com. Doc and Dianne Romain live
together in Guanajuato, the high desert country in the center of Mexico. Fellow ex-Andover oarsman Toby Clark wrapped up an important gig as director of operations for the National Commission on the BP Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill and Offshore Drilling. Begun under presidential executive order in April 2010 with a staff of four, the commission, Toby explained, eventually comprised five dozen team members, and he brought the project in by mid-January 2011—under budget and on time, a rare feat in corporate annals, much less government projects. After submitting these notes, we received late word that our classmate Peter Knipe died on Oct. 7, 2013. Look for a more extensive note honoring Peter in the next issue. If you have news you would like to share with your classmates, contact either of the two Phils. If you are not receiving our infrequent and newsworthy e-mails and would like to, send either Phil your e-mail address. We promise not to abuse the privilege. The Other Phil. ... (Bowers)
Lucy Beebe Tobias: Mary Margaret Manatee, written and illustrated by Lucy Beebe Tobias (website: www.marymargaretmanatee.com) Anne Deane: Plum Island, by Nelson DeMille P.S.: A copy of the Abbot Courant from January 1957 turned up recently among papers in my attic. Contributions from our class were really very nice. Youth, hope, humor, and effort were all in play then and, by your accounts, now. Best wishes to all of you. —Anne and Lulu
1957
There was so little material on hand when I sat down to write these notes that I almost called on my pal at the National Security Agency for help. Then Stephen “Triv” Trivers, my scribal colleague, launched an SOS, and a gratifying number of replies came back, ranging from John Draper’s cryptic “I am alive and doing well” to the rolling cadences of Bill Sterling’s class letter: “The grape harvest has begun. ...Apart from the fundamental concern whether we can find a way to keep our home and continue to live here, life is good.” (Check out the full text on the class website.) Nappy MacNaughton wrote about his passion for competitive show jumping. A dozen years ago, Nappy tried golf as a sport he and his wife, Liza Jane, could practice together as they grew older. But Liza Jane found her friends a bit too competitive. So, knowing she loved horses, Nappy volunteered blithely, “Why don’t I take up show jumping? You like going to shows and this will give me something to do while there.” A great deal of fun and many ribbons ensued. The sport inevitably involves some falls, however, and a year ago, at the urging of family and friends, Nappy gave up competitive jumping and returned to golf. “It’s tough to improve your swing, but one is closer to the ground,” he says. “Those jumpers are big!” Tom Fox spent two leisurely months at the family home on Mt. Desert Island in Maine. But the highlight of his summer, he writes, was dinner with Fred Shuman, his old roommate. Back in Washington, D.C., Tom remains active as board chairman of a foundation involved with children in Africa and teaching a graduate course on sustainable development. In September, John McConnell celebrated the 50th reunion of his Coast Guard OCS class in Newport, R.I. He says, “We told ourselves a few lies
ABBOT
Anne Boswell 5 Choate Road Hanover NH 03755-1701 603-643-5043 aboswell@valley.net Lucinda “Lulu” Cutler 267 Legend Hill Road Madison CT 06443-1881 203-779-5859 lucindacutler@gmail.com
Dear Class, This issue of Abbot class notes comes with sad news of Mary Ann Spurgeon Lewis’s death on May 27, 2013. Those of you who knew her well may want to add commemorative remarks about her for the next magazine. Our request for the titles of books you’ve found especially influential has been fruitful. To conserve space, we have put your choices in a very brief format: only one book per classmate, with editorial comments ruled out. Will save your additional suggestions for the next issue. Thank you for your participation and for the enthusiasm that comes with each recommendation. Mimi Ganem Reeder: Plainsong, by Kent Haruf Marcia Truslow: Fifty Shades of Grey, by E.L. James Sue Allen: God’s Hotel, by Victoria Sweet Louisa Lehmann Birch: Behind the Beautiful Forevers, by Katherine Boo Anne Boswell: The Kite Runner, by Khaled Hosseini
PHILLIPS Stephen C. Trivers 151 South Rose St., Suite 611 Kalamazoo MI 49007 269-385-2757 Stephen@StephenTrivers.com Gregory Wierzynski 4426 Klingle St., NW Washington DC 20016 202-686-9104 gregor@wierzynski.com Class website: www.andover57.ning.com
Andover | Winter 2014
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