1940s
1940s
40 Class Secretary — Rebecca Smith;
542 Fairview Ave., Glen Ellyn IL 60137; 630-254-4485; rebecca.antas@gmail.com
41 Class Secretary — Meg Julian ’03, ’06JD;
11 E. 36th St., No. 603, New York NY 10016; 646-246-5480; megjulian@gmail.com
42 Adieu to John Kirby
“Time is not measured by clocks but by moments.” How true that is for the life lived by John Kirby. Colin Kirby ’10JD sends a history of his father’s life. “Charles John Kirby, 97, died suddenly in Marin County CA on Feb. 9. Born in New York in 1921, he and his three siblings were raised in Vina del Mar, Chile, and Miraflores, Peru, where his father, J.T. Kirby, was vice president of W.R. Grace Line. John was a WWII veteran, a Madison Avenue executive, and a Roosevelt Democrat to his core. At the age of 16 he was the youngest student entering the Class of 1942 and was named editor of The Scrip, graduating with the literature department’s Distinguished Student Award. At ND he developed his life-long practice of devouring literature and history. After graduation, he entered the Marine Corp starting as a Naval aviator, second lieutenant and discharged as a captain. He was based in Pensacola FL training new pilots, teaching, among others, baseball legend Ted Williams. In the Marine Corp, John developed a lifelong love of aviation and WWII history. When the war ended, John married Miriam Murray, a former WAVE lieutenant, (women’s branch of the Naval Reserve) and they raised four children in New York. John began his career in advertising sales moving from Pan Am and US News & World Report to Newsweek, and wound up his Madison Avenue performance as vice president of advertising sales at Scientific American. A born raconteur, John was a natural at sales in any language and helped lead Scientific American’s translated editions and advertising efforts throughout the US, Europe, Japan, China, and the Soviet Union. On return from a trip to the USSR he recounted his experience with President Ronald Reagan over lunch at the White House, urging the president to consider signing a “No First Use” nuclear pledge. In 1987, John shed the Paul Stuart attire that once landed him in the “Style” section of The New York Times after he and wife, Joan Driscoll, and their young son, Colin, moved to Kentfield CA. John maintained a suspect 16 handicap. Many a morning well into his 80s, he teed it up. For over 50 years he played in the annual father-son tournament on the East Coast. He and his son, Chris, emerged as victors on a handful of occasions. John remained an enthusiastic supporter of Notre Dame all his life, attending the annual Fighting Irish Golf Tournament and Class of 1942 tailgate parties (graciously hosted by the Judge Miller family) with Colin who graduated from Notre Dame Law School 68 years after his father’s 1942 graduation. For a decade, John was the columnist for the Class of ’42 Class Notes. He is survived by his wife, Dr. Joan Driscoll, and five children, Mary Levathes, John, Chris, David, Colin, and six grandchildren. Memorial services were initially scheduled in Boca Raton FL and Mill Valley CA but have been postponed due to the pandemic and will be rescheduled. Dr. Seuss once remarked, how did it get so late so soon? Note to Ann: Thank you, Ann Schanuel, for keeping the spirit alive with Steve Graliker through 30 years as the head, heart, mother, and assistant of the Class of ’42. Adieu John Kirby, ND Class of 1942. Alas we meet again in Byzantium. ‘And therefore I have sailed the seas and come/To the holy city of Byzantium’ — William Butler Yeats.” John, you are in heaven with your classmates most likely having deep discussions like when you were in your dorm, topics among them about God’s wonder and awe. — Ann Schanuel; annjolene2@aol.com
43 Class Secretary — A. Robert Masters ’05;
1906 E. Madison St., South Bend IN 46601; armasters@nfmlaw.com
44 Class Secretary — Laura (Julian) Fraser ’00;
1021 Royal Bombay Court, Naperville IL 60563; 773-255-9843; lejfraser@outlook.com
45 Memories and Love
As COVID throws our world off axis, one thing remains constant: love for family and friends. I counted over 30 “active members” of the Class of 1945 a few weeks ago and sent each a short note. Most of these gentlemen saw combat in WWII, many also fought in the Korean Conflict, and a few served in Vietnam. In their late 90s, this generation of men has experienced and survived events as terrifying as today’s pandemic. Yet, when asked about their lives, it is not the fears and atrocities they choose to talk about, but their memories and their love for family and friends. Elaine Lundergan contacted me with the sad news that her husband, Charles Donald Lundergan (Don), passed away on May 18 at age 97. He was the love of her life and a great man. At Notre Dame, Don was a member of the track team. A proud Navy veteran, he served as a lieutenant in the South Pacific during WWII and in the Naval Reserve from 1941 to 1986. Don was a physicist for Sandia National Labs 1956 to 1986, including 10 years in foreign intelligence. Don was instrumental in the development of shock wave physics and groundbreaking theories still used today. His enjoyment of the great outdoors, skiing and mountain climbing, prompted Don to set up a mountain rescue unit in the Sandia Mountains. He taught physics and math at St. Louis U and Texas A&M. He lectured, published and received many awards for his numerous contributions. Don continued to tutor students well into his 90s. Don and Elaine were married in Greece after their request to be married by a witch doctor in the Congo was declined for diplomatic reasons. They traveled and explored the world together. Their marriage of nearly 50 years created a loving family of four sons. James Lee Campbell (Jim) passed on April 21. Jim attended ND for three years, majoring in aeronautical engineering, until he was called to active duty with the Army Engineers where he served in the European theatre and received four medals for his service. After returning home, he married and enrolled in U of Tennessee, obtaining a BS in mechanical engineering. Upon completing advanced Air Force ROTC, Jim was awarded a commission in the Air Force Reserve. Jim was called into active duty during the Korean Conflict, where he served as an electronics officer. In 1995, in recognition of his service to his country, ND awarded Jim a special citation. He was always proud of being a member of the “greatest generation.” Jim worked for the Electro Division of United Technology in Columbus MS for almost 30 years. He was active in the Annunciation Parish, the Layabout Golf Group and the Lake Norris Fishing Club, and served on the board of the Good Samaritan Medical Clinic. He wrote an autobiography, Further Down the Avenue. Jim is again with his wife of 60 years, Margaret, smiling down on Elyse, James, Jack, David and their families. Jack Hasten says hello from Sahuarita AZ. He and his wife, Annette, built a home two years ago in a lovely gated community with a wild desert look. It is a great place to ride out the pandemic. Jack says he is still “active” but gets around with the help of a walker. Ted Weber wrote describing falling and hitting his face on a concrete floor. It took five hours of surgery, but Ted is as good looking as ever. Bob Thomas says his retirement complex of about 200 residents is still in lockdown. Food is brought to their apartments, except two nights a week when 30 residents are allowed to eat in the dining room. Bob wants info from classmates Dennis Scully, Jim Griffin, Frank McFadden and Bill Glass. — Melissa Erkins Rackish ’77; 1224 Campbell St., Williamsport PA 17701; 570-326-4289; mrackish@comcast.net
46 Memories of South Bend
Ninety-four years ago, I was born in South Bend, although my home was in Niles MI, because the hospital was better. We had the South Bend Tribune delivered daily. When I was learning to read, I enjoyed the funnies. My parents kept up-to-date on sales in South Bend and frequently took us shopping there on Saturday afternoon. We always had supper at Smiths upscale cafeteria. My father took me to many Notre Dame football games. He was not a great fan of ND football having graduated from Michigan State. He liked to see a close game instead of ND winning in a blowout. In those times, single game tickets were readily available so he could pick and choose which games to go to. Immediately after high school, I started at ND as a civilian day student. I didn’t take any SAT tests. I enlisted in the Navy V12 program and after my 18th birthday, I was fortunately assigned to ND. There is one death to report: Jimmie A. Kurz Oct. 30, 2019, Shawnee KS. According to my count, there are only 43 of us remaining. — Paul Taggett; 10 W. Grove Ave., D15, Lake Wales FL 33853; paultaggett@gmail.com
47 Love Thee Notre Dame
I heard from Marie Marshall, wife of Willoughby Marks Marshall, concerning the passing of her husband on June 19 in his native and much-beloved Apalachicola FL. I was particularly touched by Marie sharing with me the Zoom footage of the funeral liturgy for Willoughby at the 1834 house in Apalachicola in which he was born, with beautiful hymns sung from his beloved hymnal by Theodore Marier. A veteran of WWII, Willoughby graduated from ND with a BFA in 1947 and a Bachelor of Architecture in 1949. His professional career as an architect began in the 1950s in Tallahassee with Pearce Barrett, forming the firm of Barrett and Marshall. During that time, Willoughby headed the Tallahassee Chamber of Commerce’s comprehensive development plan committee. Barrett and Marshall also designed Sacred Heart Church in Franklin County’s Lanark Village. In the early 1960s, he worked briefly with The Architects Collaborative in Cambridge MA before founding the firm of Architect Willoughby Marshall. During his more than two decades of architectural practice in Massachusetts, he designed private and institutional buildings, with a focus on religious architecture. Following the Second Vatican Council, he designed renovations for several churches in the Boston Archdiocese, including the Catholic chapel at Brandeis U where he and Marie were married in 1967. His design of Saint Peter’s Church on Mount Desert Island ME and the Newman Center for the U of Maine in Orono received awards from the American Institute of Architects’ Guild for Religious Architecture. In 1977, he received the American Institute of Architects’ Honor Award for the renovation of the New Melleray Trappist Abbey in Dubuque IA. Often returning with his family for visits to his hometown of Apalachicola, he reflected upon what he had learned from Prof. Francis Kervick while an architecture student at ND. Kervick helped Marshall appreciate the ways, simple and profound, that Apalachicola’s design history was tied to the nation as a whole: that its native cypress trees supplied lumber for the downspouts on stately 19th-century Boston brick townhouses; and that Apalachicola’s city plan was based on Philadelphia’s urban plan. Marshall also valued Apalachicola’s primacy as a “working port” and seafood industry hub, historic and economic assets he hoped the city would continue to foster. His insights for the historical preservation of Apalachicola were the subject of his firm’s 1974-75 US Department of Housing and Urban Development award-winning study “Apalachicola: Economic Development Through Historic Preservation,” republished in 2009 as a continuing guide to the preservation of the city’s National Register Historic District. Willoughby’s legacy to his children, family and friends is not just his “doing” but also his “being.” Always warm in manner with an irrepressible sense of humor, “gentleman” is the word frequently written and spoken by those who knew Willoughby. I am also saddened to report the passing of Paul J. McKee on May 23. I heard from Patrice Pucci concerning the recent death of her father, Gino Leonard Pucci. Len passed away on April 16. He was born in Union City NJ and graduated from ND with a degree in aeronautical engineering. Len was a member of ROTC at ND, served in the Navy in WWII, and in Navy Reserves, retiring as a commander. Len married his love, Betty Jane Edgren, and moved to Muskegon MI in 1947. The family then moved to Clearwater FL in 1969. He worked for various General Telephone companies (GTE) and retired after 26 years from GTE of Florida. Len stayed involved in community activities including chairing the Pinellas County Historical Commission in 1976, helping to establish Heritage Park in Largo FL. Betty Jane passed in 2014. Len is survived by his son, James, and daughters Cheryl and Patrice. — Eileen Z. Surprenant ’09, ’15; eileen.surprenant@gmail.com
48 Loyal Sons
I am saddened to report the passing of Albert J. “Al” La Mere on April 12 and Joseph D. Demuro on March 11, 2019. — Eileen Z. Surprenant ’09, ’15; eileen.surprenant@gmail.com
49 God, Country, Notre Dame
Just finished reading Soldiers of a Different Cloth by John Wukovits ’67. I found it to be a great read recounting the exploits of Notre Dame chaplains in WWII. Wukovits offers a masterpiece in not only describing the day-to-day priestly duties of these intrepid heroes, but he waves in vivid descriptions of front line major campaigns involving actual combat and experiences of these brave 35 ND chaplains. He takes us through Anzio, Monte Cassino, Normandy, Bastogne, Iwo Jima, Saipan, Bataan and Dachau to name a few. Then we survivors met up again on campus after the hostilities. Do you remember fellow classmates, faculty and administrators like Barry, Murray, Burke, Norton and how those ex-chaplains shaped our lives? I received an obit notice from Stephen Schuster via the alumni office for his father, our popular classmate Ken Schuster, Western Springs IL. Ken retired as Executive VP for Central Steel and Wire after 45 years of service. He was a member of Leahy’s Lads, having played on the Irish football squad during our years on campus. I also had an obit notice from Martha Kapur, the daughter of our classmate Jack Sant Amour, Murfreesboro TN. Jack died in October 2019, but the notice came in too late to be included in the last ND edition. Jack was a Senior VP and financial advisor with Morgan Stanley of Nashville. He also held administrative positions with the Singer Sewing Machine Co. for 20 years while serving as a partner to the family-owned Western Auto Store. Jack was a B-17 navigator in the Army Air Corps during WWII. His plane was shot down over Germany and he was a POW till liberated. He was very active in the Vets Club while on campus. Amy Jarmasek ‘93 emailed a notice that her dad, Frank Brogan, Chicago IL, passed away in true Irish fashion on St. Patrick’s Day. A virtual candle glows for him at the Grotto. Rest well, old friends, until we meet again. — Joe O’Brien; 18120 Cloverleaf Drive, South Bend IN 46637; 574-271-8323; obiend49@aol.com