CLASS NEWS
CLASS NEWS
CORRECTION: We apologize for the misprint in the Fall/Winter 2015 magazine. Martha Thwaite Weeks shares her lifelong love of Georgia’s golden coast in Tidewater Rip, a suspense novel available for purchase on Amazon.com. She lives in Beaufort, South Carolina, with her husband, Steve Weeks.
1964 Cindy Perryman was in Ireland in July to sketch and find new inspirations for her impressionistic oil paintings of people and places. Susie Soper writes, “In 2009, I created the ObitKit workbook to help families with end-of-life wishes, legacies, and life stories. I’m happy to report that, with a business partner, ObitKit gave birth this summer to an app: The Memory Kit—Collect. Save. Share. We are initially targeting Alzheimer’s families to engage and connect the person, caregiver, and friends through photos and memories, but it’s really a fun and useful tool for us all, from cradle to grave! Visit www.thememorykit.com or download the free app and give it a test drive!”
Pete Bentley ’67 produced his first solo CD in 2015, Songs I’ve Been Playing Forever.
1967 Pete Bentley writes, “We love living in St. Augustine! I am involved in the local live music scene and play frequently. I produced my first solo CD in 2015, Songs I’ve Been Playing Forever.” 1968 Mary Helen Akers Abbott writes, “This has been a difficult year having lost my husband, John, and having a heart attack one day before his funeral. All is well now. Making a new life for myself: went to the Arctic and saw polar bears in their natural habitat. I spent a wonderful week at Canyon Ranch with my daughters.”
Dan Aldridge ’68 recently published the book, To Lasso the Clouds: The Beginning of Aviation in Georgia. After 100 years, the book corrects the historical record of the first airplane flight in Georgia and reveals that this flight, by two young men from Athens, was the first flight of a monoplane in the United States.
Cathy Rudder ’65 hiking in the Pocono Mountains in July
1965 Cathy Rudder recently published a new book with co-authors A. Lee Fritschler and Yon Jung Choi, Public Policymaking by Private Organizations: Challenges to Democratic Governance (Brookings Institution Press). For details, visit http://www.brookings. edu/research/books/2016/publicpolicy-private-organizations.
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Zach Young retired in 2014 after 18 years as headmaster of Wesleyan School in Peachtree Corners. He was Westminster’s first development director and served the School for 16 years, lastly as vice president and assistant headmaster, prior to working at Wesleyan.
Mary Helen Akers Abbott ’68 during her trip to the Arctic
1969 Wade Lnenicka writes, “Following an unsuccessful run for mayor, I stepped down in January 2016 from the Smyrna City Council. I served 28 consecutive years, the most in Smyrna’s history.” Floyd Martin is the co-editor of a new publication about landscape and political meaning, Formations of Identity: Society, Politics, and Landscape (Cambridge Scholars Publishing). Learn more at www.cambridgescholars.com/ formations-of-identity. 1970 Julia LeCraw Mikell writes, “When my late husband was sick, I retired from active practice to take care of him. A couple of months after he died, I realized I needed structure and returned to the medical arena, this time as quality director of my hospital system. It is changing very rapidly, and this is an interesting and challenging job.” 1971 Eliot Moss writes, “Sorry to miss the 45th reunion, but I plan to be there for the 50th. Celebrated 40 years married to Hannah Abbott and her 40th college reunion at Wellesley last month (mine from MIT a year ago), as well as 12 years ordained in the Episcopal Church. Looking forward to children’s graduations next year— we’ll see how soon they actually leave the nest! Blessings to you all.”
1974 Nancy Ager writes, “Made the big move outside the perimeter to Marietta. Enjoying more acreage and ‘country life’—certainly miss the old neighborhood and people!” Chris Schroder and Jan Richey Schroder ’76 publish and write weekly columns for The Atlanta 100, a weekly e-newsletter they launched with SPR Atlanta that features exactly 100-word articles and 100-second videos. Topics include history, music, travel, restaurants, and business. Westminster President Keith Evans and Board Chair Mike Egan ’74 were featured in its “100 Seconds” video series. In 2015, Chris Butsch ’09 joined the team, writing weekly columns on cars and happiness hacks. Subscribe at TheAtlanta100.com.
John Young ’70, Weston Croft ’70, Steve White ’70, and brides enjoying “lobstah” and cold ones in Stonington, Maine
1975 Jon Bryant’s new book, Dark Places of the Earth: The Voyage of the Slave Ship Antelope, is one of five finalists for the L.A. Times Book Prize in History. Athena Sotus-Nawar writes, “I am so happy to have returned to my hometown of Atlanta this year. This has allowed me to spend more time with dear friends, including my partner in mischief, Louella Randall ’75. We recently spent a few days at Universal Studios in Orlando riding the rides and playing at being 12 years old again! I have loved reconnecting with many of the wonderful women in my class, so proud to be included in their warmth, support, and fun. Proud to be part of this ‘family’.”
Jeff Lewis ’73 danced the rumba at the 7th Annual Dancing Stars of Atlanta benefit to help raise $800,000 for the Alzheimer’s Association.
Louella Randall ’75 and Athena Sotus-Nawar ’75 at Universal Studios pretending Hogwarts was their postWestminster college!
Alumni having a great time at the annual Golden Wildcat Reception
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