making stops in 14 countries along the way and studying various course topics throughout. He is due to dock in Cape Town in two days time. Daughter Sasha (14) has just started 9th grade, and she lights the world around her with her beautiful spirit. My wife Maka and I are living happily in Virginia Beach; after a lifetime of moving around the globe, our intention is to stay put here. That’s about it for the moment. Best regards to all at Suffield!
Collin McNeil
I am proud to report that I was elected to be Joint Master of the Radnor Hunt in Malvern, PA, in May. The “science” of hunting foxes can be exciting, engrossing, and exhausting!
Geoff Callahan
I am an avid NPR listener and was delighted last August as I was driving to hear an interview of Archer Mayor ’69 on NPR. Go to npr.org and search for Archer Mayor. The interview and review of his newest detective stories are all online. It was great to hear his voice and listen to Archer talk about his book. I guess Mason Nye and Gordon Glover laid the literary foundation for Archer’s future.
1969 CLASS AGENT Greg Putnam | serena3162@aol.com Bob Lally
As is the case for so many of my classmates, I have one of those memorable birthdays coming up. It’s hard to believe. When did this happen? As a celebration, at least of continued mobility, numerous orthopedic surgeries notwithstanding, I am out in Montana fly fishing. This all started with the fishing team at Suffield and Ap’s encouragement. I learned to fly cast behind his house with Perk Perkins, now president of Orvis. I was hiking in mountains and stayed in a cabin. Rough country, great scenery. My youngest son just started at West Point, so Anne and I are now empty nesters. Best wishes to all the ’69s.
Greg Putnam
Greetings from the West Coast. I hope you all had a great summer and that this finds you and yours healthy and happy. For those who enjoy guacamole, you might want to stop by out here as this year’s avocado crop is going to be a whopper. In fact, our little community of Carpinteria has its annual Avocado Festival the first part of October every year—over 100,000 came this year— and you can experience almost every imaginable use of the fruit. The golf courses are in magnificent condition, and the company is beyond reproach. And as it has been our practice in the past, the Class of 1969 shall again be generous in our participation in this year’s Annual Fund. Be well and send in some news.
George Shepard
I’m living on the farm in West Greenwich, RI. I am growing medical marijuana as a licensed caregiver and starting a worm farm this spring with the goal of producing organic potting soil. Funny thing is that Suffield had a much greater impact on my daughter Sally who attended summer school there for one brief session than on me. That session changed her life and really led to her getting her master’s degree in London last year.
1971 CLASS AGENTS Pierre Genvert | genvert@verizon.net Leo Letendre | leo.j.letendre@pfizer.com Brian Morris | bmorris1000@yahoo.com Brian Morris
I’m looking forward to reconnecting with my former classmates this year, and being one of the Class Agents will help me accomplish that goal. We had a great turnout for our 40th Reunion. I came all the way from California to celebrate the occasion!
George Swinston
A huge thank you to Charlie Cahn and everyone involved in hosting Reunion. In essence, this was the first time I have returned since graduating. So many memories came back while walking around campus and wandering the halls. Looking back, I didn’t appreciate everything that Suffield was and offered...but now I
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Abe Samii and George Swinston ’71
marvel at how fortunate I was to attend and how grateful I am for the friendships formed. I was in awe at the expansion of the facilities; truly a world-class, self-contained college preparatory institution. The monster snow storm that hit, knocking out power throughout New England, brought back many different memories of the intense winters at Suffield (ice fishing, skiing, etc.). A super special treat was seeing Abe Samii, Dennis Kinne, and George Pervear. They seem to never age! To my classmates, we share a special bond. Where did the 40 years go? I was truly thrilled to meet your spouses and tell stories of our younger days. I look forward to the next reunion—I will not miss it. For those who could not attend, come to the next one; you will not regret it! Thank you, and go Tigers!
Paul Liistro
Of course the impressive dynamic of the reunion was the strong draw which Suffield has for those of us who returned. In many cases, some of us have not seen each other since graduation, May 1971. Suffield made a large impression on all of us. It was fun to walk the halls, remark how the place has evolved, and actually wish we could reverse time to enjoy the substantial improvements and opportunities. Further, I was impressed with the curriculum, the emphasis on structure and discipline, and the focus on leadership. (I am not sure that I could get in!) Finally, the essence of our personalities was still evident so many years later. Morris is still the funniest guy I know; Flip, the most industrious; Leo, the most goal oriented; Raul, the most understated; Swinston, still the Flash; Loether, the quietest; Weil, the friendliest.; Thomas, the most even keeled; Glass, still in sales; and the missing in action, well, were missing: Sbriglio, Daugherty, Daniels, Perkins, Adams, and too many others. May the future be kind to us all. I look forward to the next meeting.
Paul Loether
It was great to see all the classmates from my era, as well as the teachers/coaches: Abe, Dennis, George, Don, and especially (for me) my musical mentor, Brad. Ricky and I had a lot of fun finding niches where we could engage is some unsupervised guitar playing, as well as singing with the COGs from my older brother’s era. Also, I much appreciated Charlie’s lunch-time review of the “state of the school,” as well as the strategic plan for the years ahead. Pretty exciting to know that the school is in the hands of a strong, young, visionary leader supported by an active, realistic, and dedicated board headed by Danny. Past and future, all well wrapped. It’s a great mix. Hope to be back next year.
Karl Heinz-Fruth
My senior year at Suffield Academy as an ASSIST-Scholar gave a very strong and positive impact to my life and career. So it was self-evident to return all the way from Germany to the 40th Reunion of our graduating class. My favorite part of the weekend was the Friday night reception at the county club and the after-reception party at the Suffield Inn! I was amazed by