ALUMNI PROFILES
Frances Vitaglione '63
Finding a Future

Fred Valone '72
Spiritual Challenge

Ari Druker '93
Asia Major

Sarah Toland '00
A Step Ahead

Semi retired seems to describe me and an increasing number of our classmates. Without the pressures of full-time work, full-time play is our best option. To wit: Randy Roody, randroo@aol.com, says he has been able to work out a three-day schedule at Teledyne in N.H., and with his wife, Deborah, has been to Europe to visit friends most years. Still fluent in German, both are active in the Germanic Association, where Randy is treasurer and enrolled in the language and literature class. "Biking has become a bit of a passion," he says, "and most of our trips to Europe are planned around a week on the road on bikes stopping at small inns and seeing the countryside up close." . . . Also out for some exercise, Marnie Hale Fowler and her husband, Al, celebrated the Nov. 18 Maine snowstorm "by skiing out our back door through the woods and along the shore of North Twin Lake at Norcross, near Millinocket, where we live." Marnie retired in June '01 after 25 years of teaching seventh grade reading, language arts and math. Now, she says, "I do volunteer work at a local assisted living center, on the Appalachian Trail and at Baxter State Park; make music playing the organ and piano in my church; take pictures; do a little writing; and procrastinate about organizing the last 30 years worth of my photographs. I work very hard at fund raising for MS and have been supported financially on bike rides by Ginny Marshall Cosbey, Jill Long, Susan Mc Ginley, Tina Moore Miller, Peggy Hornaday Rhoads and Fran Holmes Varney." Marnie related news from Ginny Marshall Cosbey, who also rides the "Tour de Tucson" fund raiser. Ginny is an artist out of her "Back Room Studio" and is still with the school system working with "suspended kids and their parents, trying to get them back on track." . . . Dave Hatch will retire from teaching Spanish in June and relocate to Ft. Myers, Fla., where, he says, "I can watch the Red Sox in spring training." . . . Also moving to Ft. Myers will be John Bragg, who just bought a condo in preparation for retirement. . . . Semi retired Eliot Terborgh is "CFO and board member of a California start-up company in the wireless networking space" ("space" is apparently California-speak for something we 286 chip folks don't know about). He is also working as a merger and acquisition intermediary helping small business people sell their companies. "Cris and I continue to stay in touch with Randy Antik, Tom and Nancy Ryen Morrione, Sunny Coady and Ralph Bunche. Ralph was very kind and helpful to us while our youngest son, Andrew, was studying in London," said Eliot. Ralph retired in January '02 but is now getting involved in a number of ventures. The Terborghs had a summer '02 holiday in Egypt, including a Nile cruise from Luxor to Aswan. . . . Jann Buffinton Browning is still working but has changed careers--still insurance but now with Standard Publishing Corp. of Boston as editor of The Journal of Workers Compensation. She also edits The John Liner Review. She says, "It's a fun job, and I'm constantly learning." Jann runs into Rick Davis occasionally at professional events. . . . A newspaper clipping reports that Charlie Bonsall continues to work on a history of the 13th Maine Infantry Regiment, which fought in the Civil War. He visited his parents in Waterville in August '02 while doing research at the Augusta State Archives. He has found data on 900 of the 1,100 in the regiment. Charlie joined the Navy in 1963, earned a B.S. in electronic engineering after Vietnam service and now has retired after 30 years with the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration as an engineer and manager. He would welcome your regimental news at maine13th@aol.com or cabonsall@aol.com. . . . I spent 17 days in the Baltics last August. I almost hit a moose-like creature in southern Estonia but saw no white mules. Hail, Colby, Hail!

--Richard W. Bankart

previous | next

There is always the temptation to wish you a Happy New Year as I write this column on a snowy late December day. Then I remember you'll be reading it well into 2003--so Happy Spring instead! . . . Colby sent me clippings about Claudia Fugere Finkelstein's first novel, Imperfect Strangers, which has placed among the top 15 entrants in a national competition for the Independent Publisher Awards. Congratulations, Claudia! She is working on a second novel, Shuffleboard Wars. . . . Nice to have Judi David Floyd reconnect with Colby after an "absence" of many years. Judi is an advanced practice nurse at the Harold Leever Regional Cancer Center in her hometown of Waterbury, Conn., where she combines her training "in oncology and massage therapy to help people undergoing radiation therapy through the integration of complementary modalities." She does a lot of speaking and teaching and has started volunteer training programs on relaxation and pain management in two hospitals. Judi writes, "Although Carl (Floyd) and I divorced after 32 years of marriage, we remain supportive friends and are dedicated to our daughters"--both accomplished professional women: Lynne, an opera singer, and Rebecca, a flutist and historian. Carl has retired from a career in the Navy, where he was an expert in periscopes and communications. . . . Another reconnected classmate is Paula Mc Namara of Wethersfield, Conn. She and her husband, Jack McConnell, have been married for 25 years and business partners for 30 years, doing corporate/advertising and photography out of their Hartford studio for clients around the world. They summer on Islesboro, Maine, visiting lots of Colby friends and traveling around Penobscot Bay in a 38-foot Crosby tugboat. Paula also writes poetry and short stories and aims to do an eclectic book with Jack's photos and her fiction. In the process, "I'm completely sleep-starved," she writes. "Reminds me of my Colby days, slaving over Benbow papers." . . . Stu Wantman and Linda Kaiser Wantman's son, Daniel, was married in Reading, Pa., last October. In attendance were George Cain, Ellie Caito Thompson and Marty Walker Marchut. . . . I saw a Boston Globe wedding announcement of Paula Hayden Knier and Denny Maguire's beautiful daughter, Alison, and have heard that one of Bill Snow's sons was recently married as well. . . . Last spring you read in this column of Ted Houghton's tongue cancer surgery and radiation. I am happy to pass along his good news that a year later he is in excellent health, the only after-effect being a rather dry mouth. "And no, I've never smoked and drink very little," he adds. He's enjoying retirement life to the fullest, traveling with Liz (Drinkwine '68) to Florida in their RV for most of the winter, with plans to move this spring to New England, back to their roots and nearer their two children and five grandchildren. . . . Mary Gourley Mastin reported from her winter home in Payson, Ariz., where husband, Bill, has set up their woodworking shop, she has fostered a litter of seven pups for the Humane Society, and they have both enjoyed the beautiful Arizona winter weather. . . . Living and working daily on the ocean and among boats at Manchester Marine quite agrees with Mac Donaldson, who doesn't seem to miss his former high-tech life one bit. One daughter lives near Mac and Nancy's home in Beverly, Mass., and the other daughter is in Washington, D.C. Mac ran into Gretchen Wollam O'Connor of neighboring Beverly Farms last summer. . . . Sue Turner and Karl Karnaki are now empty-nesters. Daughter Alissa is a freshman at Lawrence U. in Appleton, Wis., where Sue bumped into John Wheeler as he was also dropping off his freshman daughter last fall. Sue still loves teaching Spanish to college kids in Charleston, S.C. She and Karl summer on Mt. Desert Island, Maine, where Karl does biological research and Sue is an avid kayaker. They love seeing Linda Lord Hall and Russell in Maine and Liz Drinkwine and Ted Houghton, who visit them en route to Florida in the winter. . . . Elizabeth Hernberg Went writes of many wonderful reunions and European travel with old friends in 2002 but no get-togethers with Colby friends, although she thinks of Colby and Colby friends often and fondly. Our 40th reunion will be here before you know it, Elizabeth. . . . Updates on the grandparent front include news of Mary Sue Hilton Weeks's first grandchild, a boy born to her daughter last September. My daughter had a son last spring, and Peter and Linda Buchheim Wagner will be first-time grandparents by the time you read this, thanks to their son and his wife. Bonnie and Dirk Aube have been doubly blessed again, as one of their sons and his wife had twin sons not long after the birth of twin daughters. Four babies in fewer than two years in one household--wow! Can anyone top that?

--Meg Fallon Wheeler

We may have celebrated our 35th reunion, but many members of the Class of '67 have kept going strong. They've kept on learning, traveled to the far corners of the globe and found new ways to reconnect with family and friends. . . . Although they didn't get to the reunion, Clark and Kathy Haskell Whittier celebrated their 35th anniversary in June. Since the 1970s, Kathy has written a column for the Shopping News on events in North Yarmouth, Maine. Clark is serving his second stint as selectman, and they are both active in the North Yarmouth Congregational Church. Their daughter, Linda, is now a teacher in the same school she attended in town, and their son, Scott, more of a free spirit, lives in Portland. When asked what she would like to tell the world, Kathy responded, "Don't be afraid to put God in your life and act accordingly--all of us are often remembered not so much for what we do as how we do it. And, don't give up on your dreams." . . . Sarah Shute Hale recently returned from a short but delightful trip to New Zealand, where she read scripture at the wedding of a young friend and did some day tours, some hiking, some caving, and lots of walking and enjoying the late spring flowers. She has finished the course work for a master's program in spirituality and the arts and will put together a batik art show as the major part of her master's thesis. Her daughter, Julia, is in her second year of teaching at an English immersion school in Barranquilla, Colombia, and her son, Isaac, has been working in North Carolina as an "adventure therapist." Sarah says, "Having children and godchildren scattered all over the world is certainly a mind-expanding situation, and I am trying to take full advantage of it." . . . Rick Sadowski is delighted that his eldest daughter, Karen, gave birth to his first grandchild, Max Louis Lempert. "He is a healthy, happy and beautiful child, and his mother, who has always made me proud, continues to do so now as a full-time mother." In July, Rick spent two weeks on Kodiak Island, Alaska, a fishing and hunting paradise approximately the size of Connecticut, where he says the wild, unspoiled beauty of the island is magnificent: "Eagles are almost as common as pigeons in Boston. Whales and sea lions abound. Birds of all colors and sizes are abundant . . . and the fishing is great." One day they flew to Lake Uganik on a float plane, inflated a rubber raft and used the raft to pick their way down the river, stopping at likely looking spots to get out and fish. He says, "We caught salmon, trout and dolly vardon. We had no close encounter with the big bears but saw bedding sites in the reeds along the river bank and a lot of fresh prints and scat." He went deep-sea fishing and caught a 135-lb. halibut . . . which is considered on the small side of medium. He also enjoyed watching the whales breach and blow and slam and tail slap. In July, the sun rises around 3 a.m. and "sets" . . . sort of . . . around 11 p.m. Weather is a big factor, with rapid and dramatic changes common. In a few minutes, a bright sunny day can become one with a howling wind driving a cold rain. A couple of hours later, the sun returns. Rick added, "I was sorry to miss the 35th reunion as I had really enjoyed the 30th (the first I had attended) and had been looking forward to it. Unfortunately, a judge had a different idea as to where I should be. I look forward to the next reunion and seeing some more of the Class of '67. . . . The highlight of the year for Jean Ridington Goldfine was attending a Paul McCartney concert in Boston with her son, Daniel, a musician who considers it his responsibility to keep her up-to-date about the music scene. "I never saw the Beatles in the day, so Dan told me that I must not miss this one. Paul did a lot of 'rockin' numbers and also played 'Blackbird' and other numbers alone on his acoustic guitar. He did a tribute to both John and George. The George number was 'Something' played on ukulele, Paul singing alone. His curtain calls were 'Hey Jude,' 'Let It Be' and, finally, 'Sergeant Pepper,' ending with, of course 'The End.' I loved being there, especially with Dan." Jean has a private counseling practice in Belfast. She's also the president of the board of directors of Toddy Pond School, an alternative elementary school she helped found in 1979. Toddy Pond has small class size, experiential learning and a warm family atmosphere. "My kids went there," she says, "and I'm happy to help keep the school going." . . . So, what have you been up to? Go immediately to your computer and drop us an e-mail so that we can include it in our next column. We hope to hear from you.

--Robert Gracia and Judy Gerrie Heine

top | next

Richard Foster left his position at the medical center where he was both a psychotherapist and the director of post-doctoral training and now is solely in private practice. He and his associates run their own training institute in their suite. He also says he's doing a lot of things most of us did a generation ago, like coaching his son's Little League team. With his son in the third grade and his daughter in the first, he says, "The challenges of older parenthood are not really a problem, though I do have humbling experiences" (like the girl staring at him and his daughter on a playground; when she finally couldn't hold her curiosity any longer, she asked, "Are you Julia's father or grandfather?" Over the last month or so he's been outlining a psychology book he wants to write. He and his wife, Gabriele, did a lot of exotic travel before they had kids and think they're just about the age where they'll involve them in some more of it. He continues to correspond with Professor Fred Geib, who is still in Waterville though looking into assisted living in New Hampshire in about two years' time. Richard is hoping to make it to our class reunion in June. . . . Judith de Luce ended her year's leave (2001-2002) by going to China, which she characterizes as a remarkable experience, "especially for someone like me who teaches and studies classics." Now she is busily chairing her department, something she did many years ago. "Things have changed since then, so in some ways I am relearning the job," she said. "The last time I was chair the Internet did not exist, and we were only just getting used to computers on every desk." . . . Barbara Bixby writes from Riverhead, N.Y., that she is a musician and museum curator. Her son, Josh, graduated from SUNY-Oswego in 2000 and now lives in Manhattan. . . . Bill Palombo says he has been spending three weeks a month in Lewisburg, W.Va., rebuilding a plastics factory and will be there for about the next six months. He asks any classmates near the area--90 miles from Roanoke, Va., or 110 miles from Charleston, W.Va.--to please e-mail him (bill@wrpimi.com). He'd love to meet with any old friends located nearby. . . . Glenna White Crawforth has been the coordinator for the volunteer and internship program for the police department in Boise, Idaho, for just over two years, after running the county's juvenile court volunteer program for nine years. She's been married to the same guy for more than 33 years--he's a bankruptcy court trustee--and says, "We have three grown kids, none of whom are married! Gr-r-r. I may never be a grandma." Their two sons live in Boise--one runs his own computer business and the other has his master's in English and teaches at Boise State University. Their daughter lives in the Portland, Ore., area and runs an after-school recreation program for the YMCA. Recently, Glenna was recognized for community service by a local Kiwanis Club and given the "Nut of the Month" award for being "nuts" about the community. "It was quite an honor and came very much as a surprise," she said. She keeps in touch with Maxine Allison Anderson, who lives in the Burlington, Vt., area and recently finished remodeling an old farmhouse. . . . Congratulations to Claudia Bourcier Yap , whose book has just been published in France by the prestigious international house Editions Alan Sutton. Nos Chers Blessés--Une Infirmière Dans La Grande Guerre (Our Beloved Wounded--A Nurse in the Great War), is the story of her great-grandmother, Claudine, who volunteered as a nurse in France at the outbreak of WWI and then became a military nurse, dodging bombs on the front. Claudia writes, "those of you who read or teach French will enjoy it and can use it in your classes whether you are looking for a riveting story, women's studies, history, medical history or things French." Claudia is an award-winning author and illustrator of nine picture books for children written under the name Claudia Fregosi. . . . John and Jane Finkeldey Stephenson recently had a mini reunion at their house with Dana Heikes, Gregg Crawford and Donna Massey '69. She writes, "We had a great time--the four of us had not been together for about 20 years. Dana retired to Charleston, S.C., but has now resumed doing plastic surgery. Gregg is still in Greenfield, Mass., and both of his kids are now at Colby. He may even be persuaded to come to reunion! This summer John and I also spent a weekend with Jean (Peterson '69) and Chris Balsley--on Bob Goldstein '67's boat. Bob and his wife, Chris, sold their houses and legal practice and bought a large catamaran and sail the N.E. coast in the summer and then go to the Caribbean for the winter. Nice life! We do plan on being at reunion." . . . John Birkinbine writes from Illinois that he had a great August get-together with Rich Beddoe, Alex Palmer and Gary Weaver on the coast of Maine--lots of catching up, laughs and reminiscing. He would like to do the same thing again next summer with a larger number of Colbyites and their spouses and can be reached at jbirk@multistate.com. He and his wife, Sarah, are planning to attend our reunion. He says it's nice to be able to get to Maine twice in one year. . . . My husband, David, and I are planning to attend the reunion as well and look forward to seeing many of you. Can it really be our 35th?

--Nancy Dodge Bryan

top | next

Greetings to all. . . . Ines Ruelius Altemose had a successful trip to China, which included a cruise down the Yangtze River. Granny Ines is enjoying the company of her two grandchildren, ages 7 and 11. She says, "if they told you how much fun being a grandparent is, you would just skip the parenting part of the equation--just kidding!" . . . On the subject of grandparenting, Jane Master Rohrbach is the proud grandmother of two children born last spring. She says, "Being a grandparent is a whole new adventure!" Jane has just published a book titled Quiet Images, a collection of 40 of her nature photographs paired with simple affirmations. . . . Eric Siegeltuch is a financial planner with Met Life in Manhattan. He has been offering public seminars on financial planning for a number of years. He also continues to operate as a private art dealer and consultant to corporate and private collectors. His wife, Eunice, is a classical singer and performs in the New York area and has recently completed and produced a CD. . . . Our class continues to be in a leadership position on the Colby front with two classmates serving as overseers: Rob Rudnick and Moses Silverman. Thank you to both.

Sari Abul-Jubein

top | next