George Host
nghost@me.com
In early June, Fritz Newman presented Tom Bedford with the Alumni Association Medal awarded to the entire Form of 1970 in 2018. The medal has made its way to New Hampshire through New England, since its debut in New York. The hope is to share it with some of our southern and western brothers before it returns to N.H. for the 50th reunion.
In late May, Steve Crandall and Fritz – with wife Dolores – motored to Meredith, N.H., to inspect the Mill Falls Resort, the site of the form’s 2020 50th reunion. Upon returning to Concord, they were able to enjoy a veritable feast at the Centennial Inn with Frank Kenison and wife Pam and Miles Herter, who had spent the day at SPS performing forestry work in preparation for the next day’s SPARKS event. The next morning it was off to the School, where the ceaseless, inspired leadership of Steve Crandall, in conjunction with the entire Sixth Form and numerous School staff, led to what was universally termed as the most successful ever Graduation Week SPARKS event. Serving as alumni project team leaders, Miles Herter, Tres Davidson, Steve Crandall, Fritz, and Dolores were joined by Tom Iglehart ’69, Terry Hunt ’69, Morgan Paulk ’69, George Birchard ’69, Chris Ross ’69, Liz Robbins ’79, and the indefatigable Bobby Clark ’61. After showers in the gym, most remained at the School as guests of the Sixth Form for a traditional dinner in the dining hall during which the Sixth Form was welcomed into the Alumni Association.
Steve Crandall reports: “On May 4, 11 members of our form returned to SPS in support of the alumni-sponsored Service of Repentance and Healing and the participation of our formmate Craig MacColl in delivering its message. The gathering gave time while at SPS to plan for our 50th reunion in 2020. The goal is to make it the best-attended form reunion ever, combining traditional SPS-oriented activities and unstructured time outside Concord. The day concluded with an informative walk on the Lower School Pond Trail, led by SPS environmental steward Nick Babladelis and Miles Herter, our form’s environmental architect and builder.”
John Eldridge ’70 (l.) and Mike McLanahan ’44 having lunch in Houston.
Form of 1970 “Brotherhood of the Traveling Alumni Medal” with Fritz Newman (l.) and Tom Bedford.
Form of 1970 members who attended the Service of Repentance and Healing in May (l. to r.): Tom Bedford, Peter Culver, Steve Crandall, Lorne Johnson, Craig MacColl, Steve Moorhead, Fritz Newman, Dave Shiang, Miles Herter, Don Lippincott, and Tres Davidson.
Tiff Wood
wood.tiff@yahoo.com
Steve Gray writes: “My wife of 44 years, Eliza, and I now live in Galveston, Texas, a place we knew next to nothing about five years ago. It is a funky, eclectic place that I describe as one part New Orleans, one part Key West, and one part Jersey Shore – great restaurants and an old section (late 1800s) with the largest collection of Victorian homes in the U.S. Please tell any classmates to come see us in Galveston – it is a lot of fun and you will certainly be exposed to a part of U.S. history.”
Hornor Davis reports: “Possibly July 13 you felt the earth shake? I was married to The Rt. Rev. William Hague in St Jude’s Chapel in Seal Harbor, Maine. After 38 years of a great marriage with Frederica Miller Davis and two daughters (both at St. Mark’s), I was divorced and in retirement linked up again with a friend from UVA who had retired to Maine. It was a surprise to all and now we are delighted to be married and living in Seal Harbor. Marriage is popular in the Davis family this season. My daughter, Faith, was married to Alex Iselin on September 7 on the beach in Watch Hill, R.I., and they will continue to reside in Boulder, Colo. Many of you knew my brother, Caldwell ’74, who died in 2013. His oldest daughter, Tilden Davis, will be married November 11 in Charlotte, where she and her future husband, Alex Arnold, live.”
Ted Bohlen in Honolulu reports visits this year from Hugh Schmidt and Sonia, Petria and Scott Fossel, Adie and Auty Hayne, and Steve Bedford.
Chuck Nelson is retiring from the banking industry at the end of December, leaving his role of senior vice president, Enterprise Data Management. His wife, Pam, will continue to run her small business, Walk the Walk Wellness, LLC, where Chuck will help. But his current side hustle as a musician will become his main hustle. He plays saxophone, clarinet, and flute in a variety of settings, including with his band, HWY6, a classic rock, blues, R&B, and country cover band. He and Pam have three children and six grandchildren (two of whom are in Omaha) so traveling and “granding” is on their list.
Mark Wheeler continues to enjoy life in France, living in a small village in Brittany and spending time in Paris, where his daughter has begun a master’s program at the American University there.
Curt Karnow, David Baldwin, and their wives, Marilyn and Karin, had overlapping itineraries and met for dinner at Brasserie Balzar in Paris in early September.
In May, Woody Pier, Bram Lewis, Trip Spencer, and Peter Seymour met for lunch at the New York Athletic Club to toast Fred Stillman, who had recently recovered from a bout of appendicitis. Their diagnosis is that, to avoid future health issues, Fred should stick to only the best aged single malts and not stoop to the lesser blended whiskeys.
On September 21, Jaymie and Trip Spencer hosted Tony Hairston and Peter Seymour at their condo overlooking Long Beach Island. Some took the last ocean swim of the summer, and then all sat down to an incredible dinner prepared by Jaymie.
Todd Howard reports that he is approaching the end of a now 38-year career as a surgeon. It has included liver and kidney transplant surgery, with eight years as director at Washington University and a stint as chairman of the UNOS liver and intestine committee. His main claim to transplant fame is the introduction of adult-to-adult living donor liver transplantation. The last 20 years have been as a liver and pancreas surgeon in private practice. The success has come at a high price (due to long hours bending over an open abdomen); lumbar spine fusion, total knee replacement, and (probably soon) a cervical spine fusion. He has nevertheless remained active with running, including a marathon and hiking with a five-day effort on the Inca trail as a highlight. He has been married to his wife, Kathy, for 25 years, and daughter Madi will be starting college this year.
Byam Stevens just got back from teaching a workshop for American Ballet Theatre’s Studio Company at the Kaatsbaan International Dance Center. He is off to Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre to work on their new production of Giselle. All this in service of the curriculum he developed at ABT for teaching acting/performance skills to dancers. Byam had lunch in June with Fred Stillman at Dive Bar on the Upper West Side, where he also ran into Bram Lewis and talked about his theatre company in Westchester.
Spencer Rumsey’s article, “Murder + Lies,” about the death of aspiring graffiti artist Michael Stewart at the hands of MTA cops in 1983 at a subway stop in Manhattan, was on display this year at the Guggenheim Museum as part of its special exhibit, “Basquiat’s ‘Defacement: The Untold Story.’” Spencer was the city editor of the East Village Eye at the time. Stewart had hung out with Jean Michael Basquiat and Keith Haring, and his death after 13 days in a coma sparked outrage among artists and local activists.
Donn Randall is enjoying living in Raleigh, N.C., with his wife, Pam Norley, and had a visit this summer from Dennis Dixon as he was traveling the country checking out little-known museums.
Charlie Bronson
chasbronson@gmail.com
Bob Stockman
stockman@groupoutcome.com
Bob Stockman had the pleasure of visiting not one but two former Rectors in New England in August – first with Marcia and Bill Matthews ’61 at their lovely Kennebunkport home and then a few days later with Cliff and Alina Gillespie in Rumford, R.I. “The Rock was awesome, fit as a fiddle, as we spent two hours poring over a 1970 SPS yearbook. The visit prompted an outpouring of e-mail and phone communications by football and lacrosse players from my era, all paying tribute to one of St. Paul’s most revered and respected teachers, coaches, and role models. It was an utter joy to see the Gillespies after so many years.”
Robin Beran reports: “I have been able to see Dawes Cooke in each of the past Junes while at Kiawah Island. He was unable to join for golf this year, but we had a very enjoyable dinner at The Fat Hen. The summer was filled with golf, my annual trip to mountains of north central Pennsylvania, and grandkids. Most weekends now are spent in the Lake Erie marshes with my two Labrador Retrievers. I continue to work full-time and so far have not tired of practice.”
Bob Shepley writes: “Another Groton vs. SPS Challenge Cup tennis match was played in Blue Hill, Maine, this summer. Participating were three Groton/SPS married couples: Char Joslin (Groton ’85) and Les Cheek ’84; Lisa Cluett Thors ’83 and Rex Thors (Groton ’83); and Julie Cluett (Groton ’85) and yours truly. A strong addition to the Groton squad was Guy Ardrey (Groton ’90). His wife, Sara Becton (Groton ’91), was scorekeeper and presented the silver cup to the winning team, Groton. Next year we will be recruiting a strong SPS female player in hopes of regaining the cup.”
From Eric Carlson: “My wife, Peggy, and I retired on the same day in August and moved to the North Carolina coastal town of Southport at the mouth of the Cape Fear River. Hurricane Dorian visited two weeks later, but fortunately did no damage. All is well.”
And from Lin Giralt: “My summer was spent teaching in China, but the end was punctuated by two major storms; on August 10-12 I was in Shanghai for Typhoon Lekima, and then I was in Houston for Tropical Storm Imelda. Both involved tons of water, no Internet, a return to reading books, and praying we didn’t return to candlelit nights. Luckily, we didn’t. Imelda cost some of my wife’s fellow teachers their cars, but we were lucky ours was safely home in our garage. Lekima left quite a few dead and thousands impacted in China, while I only lost three days stuck in a hotel wanting to get home. So let’s all count our blessings, others have it worse.”
An SPS vs. Groton tennis showdown with (l. to r.): Les Cheek ’84, Bob Shepley ’72, Lisa Cluett Thors ’83, Char Joslin, Julie Cluett, Rex Thors, and Guy and Sara Ardrey.
Jeffrey Keith ’72 in his Herreshoff boat.
Bob Stockman ’72 (r.) with Cliff and Alina Gillespie in Rumford, R.I.
Owen Andrews
owenandrews1@gmail.com
The following note was collected by Kevin McCaffrey (kmccaffr2009@gmail.com) and Gregg Townsend (sdpartysounds@yahoo.com).
Bill Laverack ’75 (l.) with wife, Cory, and Jon O’Herron ’75 with wife, Maria, at the Old Course at St. Andrews in Scotland.
Bill Laverack and Jon O’Herron report that they were fortunate to have played seven Scottish golf courses in seven days together this summer, including the Old Course at St. Andrews (along with their wives, Cory and Maria, and two other couples).
Nora Tracy Phillips
noratphil@aol.com
Jon Sweet
Jsweet1000@gmail.com
Nora Tracy Phillips shares the somber news of the passing of her mother, Mary Rand Tracy, on June 21.
Liz Droz writes: “I am back in higher education, working in student affairs for the State University of New York in Oswego. The campus is about 30 minutes north of Syracuse and sits by Lake Ontario (yes, I keep working in cold, northern areas). For the past two years, I worked at The Hotchkiss School and got to see firsthand what our teachers, mentors, and other school employees did. Did you ever wonder why our teachers always looked so tired? I know. They work 24/7. It is an exhausting job, but well worth doing. I loved working with Hotchkiss students. To be honest, being with college students is not that different, but I enjoy the college pace a little better. Many thanks to all who work with high school students.”
From Joan Mackay-Smith Dalton: “My sister, Emily Mackay-Smith Day ’86, and I, along with our sister, Juliet, mother Winkie, and five of our six children, spent a week in September riding, shooting, line dancing, rounding up cattle, and other cowboy/cowgirl pursuits at Latigo Ranch near Kremmling, Colo. Great place, great fun – I heartily recommend!”
Wyz Deans shares this news: “When my daughter, Katie, was turning 21, I made the mistake of asking her how she might like to celebrate the occasion. I figured she would ask for a lavish party and steeled myself to persuade her for a kegger in the backyard. Instead, she surprised me by explaining that she wanted to do the Pan-Mass Challenge, which involved spending two days riding across Massachusetts and raising $5,000. Each. A party would have been so much easier, but I could not argue with her ‘party with a purpose.’ For us, the ride was just as the name suggested. We rode through chilly rain one day and intense heat the next; we slogged up hills that lurked around every corner. It took forever to finish and we swore that we would never do it again. However, in January, when the e-mail arrived inviting us to sign up, we had forgotten our exhaustion, the hills, and the headwinds. We remembered the people we met and the stories we heard. This past August, we completed our third PMC. We rode from Wellesley to Provincetown and together raised more than $11,000 to support the Dana Farber Cancer Institute and the Jimmy Fund. Several friends and classmates contributed and supported our efforts, including Mar Bodine ’76, Linda Richards Bolesta, Sarah Chubb Sauvayre, Rob Deans ’73, Leslie Groves, Katie Thayer McCammond, Andy Schlosser ’79, Jennifer Walsh ’79, and Victoria Wilson-Charles ’76. This year, the weather was phenomenal, and we were unfazed by the hills and headwinds. It has become a tradition, a way for us to celebrate our birthdays together, and an adventure we share as we contribute to fighting cancer.”
Pressed to give us a full report, Chip Olney tells us the following: That his younger daughter Alexis graduated from Richmond in May, is halfway through her CPA exams, and will start a career as an auditor with PwC in N.Y.C. in October. Also in N.Y.C., Chip’s elder daughter, Emma, just finished a two-year training program with AXA XL and is now a cyber-liability underwriter. Chip goes on to say that his wife, Pam, is celebrating 10 years of working at Greenwich Academy, dealing with student billing, financial aid, and facilities management issues. Finally, on the very day in September he sent in this formnote, Chip himself set upon a new journey. “The independent, family-owned insurance agency I’ve worked for in Greenwich, Rand Insurance, has just been sold to Cross Insurance, one of New England’s largest independent insurance intermediaries. Brace for that phone call!”
Jess Baily writes: “I returned to Washington last spring and retired after 34 years in the State Department, the past four as ambassador to (now) North Macedonia. Representing the United States in seven different countries has been a great honor and a fantastic adventure. Capie and I will remain in the Washington area, figuring out how to contribute in new ways and enjoying being closer to friends and family, especially son Noah ’13, now an officer in the U.S. Navy.”
On a quiet Monday night in August, Sara Weil drove east from her home in the Berkshires and Liz Cave drove south on her way home to Raleigh, N.C., having visited family in New Hampshire. They converged at the Wellesley, Mass., home of Nora Tracy Phillips, where the three of them delighted in walking and talking and sharing a lobster dinner.
In response to the expanding Ebola epidemic in DR Congo, Scott Elder, who works for an aviation fuel and handling agent with niche markets mostly in Africa and Asia, met with his aircraft ground-handling colleagues in Kinshasa to discuss Kinshasa Airport’s ramp procedure compliance to international protocols. The purpose was to ensure company readiness to support US DoD humanitarian air missions in case the current Ebola epidemic gets worse.
A sizeable gathering of Paulies and friends at the home of Talie Ward Harris ’77.
Sisters Juliet Mackay-Smith, Joan Mackay-Smith Dalton ’78, and Emily Mackay-Smith Day ’86 at Latigo Ranch in Colorado.
Wyzzie Deans ’78 completed the Pan-Mass Challenge with her daughter, Katie.
(L. to r.) front: Madeline Harris ’12, Eleanor Hamilton ’12, Frederika “Freddie” Hamilton ’20; back: Cici Cruice Peterson ’77, Talie Ward Harris ’77, and Tom Hamilton ’80 gathered in Denver.
Miriam Gurniak ’79 (l.) and Beth Eastlick ’78 celebrated the wedding of Ariel (Barbie) Blair ’78 (r.) and Jim Bay in Georgia.
Caroline Willis ’14 and father Chris ’77 (with Santana playing in the background) at the NOLA Jazz Festival.
Scott Elder ’78 (r.) with the commandant of the Kinshasa Airport (blue shirt) and aircraft handling partners in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.