TAKE NOTE
Alumnae Updates
nothing goes unnoticed as far as our class is concerned! Turns out that Nancy’s son-in-law, Curt, an amateur cellist, established a foundation to provide instruments to young professional musicians, and he and Nancy’s daughter, Anne, sometimes arrange private concerts with the musicians. Nancy and Chic attended his 60th University of Michigan Law School reunion after spending much of this year very involved with the many celebrations of Abraham Lincoln’s two-hundredth birthday on February 12. Nancy is president of the Sangamon County Historical Society which since 1961 has been responsible for the preservation of the county’s history other than the area’s favorite son, Abraham Lincoln. During the summer the farmer Chapins enjoyed bumper crops of raspberries, beans, potatoes and lettuce along with two visits from their California granddaughter. Clarina Schwarzenbach Firmenich and I keep in touch on a regular basis, and she sent a note in September with her news from Geneva. For the past 10 years Clarina has volunteered with a support group of cancer survivors as a consultant for the selection of wigs, cosmetics and other enhancements after radiation, surgery and chemotherapy. Her hospital-based group, “Bonne Mine, Bonne Moral,” is patterned after the Estee Lauder program, “Look Good, Feel Better.” I can’t think of anyone who is better suited to do what she does. Clarina spent the summer at home and was particularly pleased that her son, Antoine, his wife, Christina, and their daughters spent the summer in Geneva, too. As the young Firmenich family are living in Singapore, visits in either city are infrequent. Clarina’s son, Patrick, his wife, Valentine, and their two children, Adrien and Laetitia, live nearby. Clarina’s companion, Dusan Sidjanski, serves as an advisor to Jose Manuel Barosso, President of the European Commission. Missy Turnbull Geddes and I had a brief telephone conversation. Missy says that everything with her is pretty much the same except that she and her husband, Max, now have three grandchildren in college, and so they are “making the rounds” to California, Boston, and Pennsylvania to visit them. The Geddes’ live in Oyster Bay, NY. We have a new bride! On May 16, 2009 Lorna Sargeant Langdon was married to Butch Pfaelzer. Lorna and Butch had known each other for several years, both were widowed, and so with Lorna’s son and two daughters and Butch’s three daughters they have begun their new life together in Chicago. Butch is a native of Chicago and a graduate of Amherst College. Congratulations, Lorna!
54 THE SUNDIAL
In early October I had a conversation with Barbara Bidwell Manuel, who is recovering at home after surgery in late September for cancer which was diagnosed in June. She assured me that she is comfortable, and taking this time to recuperate. We discovered that we have another mutual friend: our new organist and choirmaster, Dale Adelmann, here at the Cathedral of St. Philip. Dale was at Cambridge University when Barbara was there in charge of the Choir’s concerts and tours. I had the privilege of hearing Barbara in the Gloriae Dei Cantores choir when they came to Atlanta in 2007 — outstanding. Thinking of you, Barbara. In September, Dorothy Doubleday Massey sent an email reporting her daughter Mary and husband Sam live near Dorothy in Santa Fe where Dorothy and Mary are co-owners of their fine, independent bookstore, Collected Works. While the rest of the country and the world were downsizing, Dorothy and Mary moved to larger quarters at the corner of Galisteo and Water Streets in downtown Santa Fe, just a few blocks from the historic Plaza. The website for the store is www.collectedworks.com. What a success story! (Mal and I are on the email mailing list of the store and are always interested in the variety of programs and signings that are held there.) Dorothy also mentioned that she had recently seen Pat Love Anderson and her husband, Derek, who were visiting from California. Gail Sheppard Moloney and I picked up right where we left off in April. Gail and Phil spent their summer in Greenwich, CT, and planned to head to their home in Vero Beach, FL, in November where they will spend Christmas. Gail is an adept long distance traveler as she visits her three daughters and their families on a regular basis when they are not near the Moloneys. Gail’s daughter, Hillary, and her family are in London, while Courtney, her husband, and five children ages seven and under, have recently moved to Vermont. Daughter Kim and her husband are in Scottsdale, AZ. Gail recently received a spotlessly clean bill of health after a few years of difficult medical problems. Gail makes everything sound very easy as she moves gracefully among these spots. Gail is also a Sudoku aficionado! She claims that it will keep her from becoming senile. I can’t even get one done! Carol Keeney Munro sent a long note with her news, and she writes exactly as if she were here in person! She wrote that she had seen Diana Forman Colgate in Hobe Sound, FL, at the funeral of a mutual friend just before Diana joined the rest of us in New York in April. Keeney (yes, she’s still Keeney!) and her husband, Dick Munro, after living in New Canaan, CT, for many years, now divide their time between their homes in the