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As reunion got under way, a group of alums and spouses reunited in GW. From left are Annick Mansfield with husband Doug Mansfield ’64, Bob Marshall ’64, Maria Little with husband Buck Little ’64, and Terry Trimble ’64 with wife Joan Whipple Trimble ’64. (The Trimbles met at their 25th Reunion!)
one another, even though 50 years had passed in the interim! “Our time on the Abbot campus (during the Abbot Tea in the former chapel) certainly brought back physical memories of school days. The old buildings were drab back in the ’60s. Now, they were filled with our animated conversations, our lives, and our energy. I was glad to be part of this transformation.” Kit Jones Prager adds, “I agree with Gwyneth’s assessment about the comfort level with our former classmates. What a pleasure to become reacquainted with those of you who attended reunion. “Of special note were Gwyneth’s musical compositions for the memorial service, which were splendid and touching. “As for Abbot’s physical plant, we noticed the stage was gone in McKeen Hall, where we spent Saturday evening being entertained. The stage is now a solid wall, with a second floor office space overlooking the main room. “The chapel in Abbot Hall is now called the School Room. Gone are the elevated risers and the pulpit. We met here for the Abbot Tea, which provided a setting away from the PA guys where we could talk. We saw an interesting video about the history of Abbot leading up to the merger with Andover. There were various pictures in it of our classmates. The dining room at Draper no longer exists—too bad, since it was a lovely room. With the conversion of that building into faculty housing, the dining room was no longer necessary. The Circle is pretty much as it was. “The apple orchard (which inspired a poem I wrote that earned an A in English) and tennis backboard (Gwyneth noted this, as she spent a lot of time practicing her expert shots there) behind French House (now called Bertha Bailey House, as PA had a French House) are gone. The house is also now faculty housing. “Our class tree—a red-leafed Japanese maple— has thrived. In front of Abbot Hall, the tree is
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Andover | Fall 2014
almost as tall as the building. This tree was my introduction to Japanese maples, which I have continued to love such that I have planted four around my house.” Mary Travers Munger writes, “Kit, I think the video is called The Girls of Abbot. I hope it will be available on the website soon. I think it was made to celebrate 40 years of coeducation. I have all those memories of Abbot, too. I think our bond and comfort with each other is due to all those shared experiences.” Lucy Bingham recounted that she was sorry to miss the reunion. Her life is enmeshed in family and finishing her novel, The Talcott House. She watches her 2-1/2-year-old granddaughter, Anna Walker Ellis, two or three days a week, and as much as she cherishes every moment, she is totally exhausted at the end of the day. She recounted a favorite memory of Abbot: “A bunch of us decided to go for a spring midnight stroll. We took the screen out of a window, preparing to drop down into the bushes below. Though I was scared silly, I boasted I would go first. My legs were dangling when—just like in the movies—a huge headlamp lit up the scene of the crime. The infirmary was just next door, and the nurses had heard us and had a floodlight waiting for just such an escape attempt. I somersaulted back into the room behind. Needless to say, instead of a midnight stroll, I was grounded for three weeks. Did anyone else get grounded too?” Nancy Poynter Sandberg writes, “What a pleasure to be with you all after 50 years, following the stresses of our teenage years at Abbot. I loved hearing about what’s happening with you and your children today. I was impressed by your satisfaction with your lives. Meeting the several husbands who accompanied you to the reunion was another fascinating window on your lives. Though I knew only a very few people at PA in 1964, it was such fun to catch up with them again. It’s comforting to realize that the connections we made so long ago
in class, Fidelio, at a mixer, or on the athletic fields were remade at the 50th.” Pat Morrill writes, “It was great fun reminiscing with fellow classmates at our 50th Reunion. The Andover campus was gorgeous, but the Abbot campus evoked the memories. Dinner in McKeen Hall brought back memories of senior prom, compulsory Saturday night lectures, and dreaded piano recitals. Lunch and tea in Abbot Hall brought back memories of morning chapel and the special assembly announcing Kennedy’s assassination. The wings of Draper have come down, so no chance to revisit the dorm rooms or the dining hall, alas!” Amy Shlossberg Wolfram writes, “[Husband] Mike and I truly enjoyed seeing the Abbot returnees and attending the numerous events at the reunion. It was a lovely weekend indeed. It was great to see classmates and a bit disorienting and dismaying to see the changes on the Abbot campus.” An Abbot alumna from the Class of ’67 sent me news that Suzanne Woodward McGuffey died in February 2014. The school did not know she had passed away at the time of the memorial service for our deceased classmates. I am retiring as class secretary, and Allis Brooks Hanley will be taking over. —Joan “Whippie” Whipple Trimble
PHILLIPS Ken Gass 2107 Evening Star Lane Bellingham WA 98229 360-393-2612 (cell) agassk@aol.com
[Editor’s note: Following this issue, Bob Marshall steps down from his role as class secretary. The Academy is very grateful for his service. Ken Gass is the new class secretary for the PA Class of ’64. Please send news and updates to him using the contact information above.]