1960s

60 Enjoy Experience of a Lifetime

As I compose this article, Reunion has been postponed. There have been emails and phone communications between classmates recently. That is one of the positives of a nasty virus and a lot of sitting around. Two of our eight monthly Class of ’60 luncheons in Ft Myers/Naples have been cancelled so far. (Those were April and May.) Our reporting of classmates’ passing is not so accurate these days. Here are some recent deaths that we had not heard about, but notice came from Notre Dame: Gregory Gillies (Jan. 12, 2019), Robert Toland (Jan. 21, 2019), Eugene Hracho (Dec. 22, 2019), Bruce Fagon (Jan. 19, 2020), Edward Rice (Jan. 16, 2020) and Walter Rudge (Feb. 7, 2020). Please keep these families in your prayers. Our class has a monthly Mass said in the Basilica for deceased classmates, spouses and family members. Your occasional donations to our class allow this to happen. Dan Lyons, treasurer, takes care of this project. Fred Durocher was a friend of John Sears, and the obit brought back a memory. “Sophomore year, John and I ended up with a group who had a car. We signed in at Lyons Hall and snuck out a window, headed for a bar in Niles with this group including one friend who had a sister at Barat. As the bar closed, we thought it a good idea to take home a case of beer, but the Niles police thought better of it and hauled us in. During the routine interrogation, they started by going around the circle and asking how old we were. We thought the answers were going well with 20s and even a 21, until John scuffed his shoe and finally said 17. We were all astonished. This allowed the cops to have more fun while they mulled over charging us with contributing to the delinquency of a minor, but after wasting most of the night, they told us get the hell out of town and don’t come back until we were all 21. Mike Schaefer’s new address is 2173 Camino del Este 6401, San Diego CA 92108. “I thought colleges kill addresses after age 80 on theory that most alumni have expired. I have been in 34 elections in four states, but am a native of San Diego, was twice councilman in my 20s, and now at 82 on March 25, I am oldest constitutional officer (12 of us) in history. My Carlsbad pal Dave Huarte, and I visit often, only 70 miles away. I talk to Art Velasquez annually.” Ted Dudley called to check on some details for the 60th reunion. Ted related, “our eldest grandchild, Ryan Dudley ’19, graduated in chemical engineering. Ryan’s father Jim ’90 and our daughter Jillian ’97 are second generation, which makes Ryan our third generation Domer.” Terry Keating reported that Declan O’Donnell was one of the infamous 17 members of the U of Detroit Jesuit class of ’56 who became part of ND ’60. Dek led quite a life; many tales could be told. St Peter’s Prep’s 12 folks rivaled the Detroit group and far outnumbered our Kokomo group of Jim Winslow, Mike Dalzell, Jim Reith, Steve Kiley and your humble writer. The first two picked the wrong parents; they both predeceased us. Which brings us to the point. We are fortunate to have so many classmate friends remaining in our long span of years. A comment from Paul Chestnut about the passing of Jim Hirshfeld: “Jim and I were in Lyons Hall sophomore year. My daughter was born at Stanford Hospital in September 1964. Jim was a pediatrician in training there at that time, and he looked after my daughter after her birth.” Jim was our class valedictorian. A note came from Marv Anderson on the passing of Bill Killilea and Terry Keating replacing Bill as class president. “We couldn’t have a better man than Terry for this position. I have been working the past 9-10 months trying to get a plan published to screen newborns for their ability to tolerate a standard vaccine regimen vs. one adjusted to their ability according to newborn screening test results. No luck yet. Many rejections by the traditional establishment. I have a hardworking editor who has been willing to stick his neck out. Please pray, and be assured of my prayers for Bill, our class and you, Joe, and your family.” — Joseph F. Jansen; 9190 Southmont Cove, No. 103, Ft. Myers FL 33908; cell 317-514-4478; jfjansen@aol.com

 

61 Staying Home

If you are reading this, it is apparent that you have survived the COVID-19 attack. I laughed when I read April 8 in the local paper that liquor sales in Victoria were up about 55 percent from the same time last year. No doubt it is a consequence of the national “stay home stay safe” endeavor. However, I read in the same paper about a week later that the 55 percent increase had continued to climb, and sales were then up 300 percent. There is no telling what they are now. We had many products that fell into short supply, such as toilet paper. Some said those who went and bought up all the available TP are the same people who run out and buy all the light bulbs when the electric power is down. At any rate, I hope you are well. I suggest we pray for each other in times like these. Reports have been coming in about the glorious St. Patrick’s Day parade in Naples. Larry Ericson reported that about 40 mates attended. Tim Monahan made note of the fact that our next reunion will be 60 years and he is hoping we can work out a proper celebration at the ND Reunion or Naples or another time and location. Michael P. Esposito Jr. could remain silent no more when he celebrated his 80th birthday and promptly went into retirement. (Welcome, Mike.) His career included 34 years at Chase Manhattan Bank (CFO and chief administrative officer) in NYC, 10 years at XL Capital Ltd. (chairman) in Bermuda and 12 years at Syncora Guarantee (chairman) in NYC. He continues to get back to ND for football season and about five basketball games a year. He and wife, Ellen, plan to visit their nine grandchildren and enjoy retirement. Oh, by the way, he too is a Marine. I got an email from D.T. Penny. He has an impressive family: nine grandchildren and eight great-grandchildren. He says birthdays and Christmas have gotten very expensive but fun. He commented on his friendship with Prince Chuck Lennon and Joan’s comments in her letter, parts of which I included in my Spring Class Notes. He says he and wife Kathy’s trips back to ND are no longer possible due to his need of canes, walker and electric scooter. He now lives in Manheim PA. He still drives his car. He has other health issues, some of which landed him in the hospital for 12 days in February. In that regard, he mentioned his memories of football with Terry Hutton and Fred Gamble, who he relates are playing with the team in heaven. A couple of you have written to me about Marty Ronan. He is dealing with serious health issues. Larry Erickson wrote and advised that Marty is pretty much homebound and would appreciate hearing from us. His phone numbers are: 703-922-9393 and 703-975-4585. Also, it was reported by Joe Libby that Bob Mahony, Gene Epperly, as well as he himself are dealing with serious health issues. Please pray for these and other classmates with health problems. Tim Monahan and David Wochner have written to me on the death of Jim Kane. All of us associated with the football team remember him as a tenacious and faithful member of the demonstration team along with other great members of our class. I had some inquiries on Abbie and her ankle problem. She had surgery Nov. 12 to bring her dead bone back. Regrettably it was not successful, so we are looking at replacement of the talus bone with a titanium replacement. It was scheduled April 14, postponed to April 22, and postponed again to a date when the virus is no longer a threat to patients traveling to Houston. Interesting, the replacement bone was made by a 3-D printer on the East Coast from scans made here in Texas. But, fear not. She is faithfully at the front door with the latch string out waiting for you all to drop in on your way through south Texas. — Joseph P. “Pat” Kelly; 2103 N. Wheeler St., Victoria TX 77901; 361-573-9982; jpkellytx@sbcglobal.net

 

61JD Class Secretary — John N. Moreland;

jnmnd1958@aol.com

 

62 Coronavirus Hits Home

One of the earliest deaths in the New Orleans area due to the virus was Jim Carriere, who died on St. Patrick’s Day. He was the second person recorded to have passed away in that area. Jim and his wife, Margaret, lived at an assisted living facility that was hard hit with over 50 residents affected and 13 dying by the end of March. Though Margaret was also affected, she pulled through. Many in the class said they are biking, walking, reading, cleaning out the basement and cataloging “accumulated stuff,” watching TV reruns from the 1950s and 1960s, emailing and calling friends and classmates to make sure they are OK, playing cards with their spouses, and reuniting with friends and neighbors at a distance with outdoor cocktail parties. Others are patronizing neighborhood mom and pop carry outs to help them through the crises and helping with food banks. Cancellations played havoc with two class events. Bill Snyder, Dick Trujillo and Mike Murray had to pull the plug on the initial “Desert Domer” class weekend in Phoenix. The annual Florida class gathering made it under the wire but Jim Krauser reported the numbers were down substantially, saying, “Fear was the overriding emotion of the two days as a number of classmates canceled and, as was pointed out, the vulnerable age of 80 with preexisting conditions seems to be the target market.” Both events will take place next spring. Others affected include Jim Squyres having to cancel his 80th birthday cruise to Alaska with his daughter’s family. Tom Ricca missed out on his annual Colorado Rockies opening game road trip. Sadly, Bill Pietrowicz lost out on his grandson’s graduation exercises at ND. His grandson is a fourth generation Domer. Mike Poll noted, “Although I was the invisible man on campus, due to my own aspirations and personality, I am killing time by writing short stories that no one will ever read, painting pictures that no one will ever see and making little pieces of wood out of big pieces of wood in my small shop. Reading, TV (The Lone Ranger and Sherlock Holmes) and my wife’s to-do-list also keep me busy. I am the luckiest guy in the world.” Speaking of The Lone Ranger, Ray Stefani grew up in Detroit where the radio show originated. “As a kid, I liked to wear cowboy clothes. We went out to dinner one night, and the waiter came over saying the gentleman nearby would like to meet me. It was Brace Beemer, the radio voice of the Lone Ranger before the TV show debuted.” Ray said Kemosabe is a Potawatomi word with Tonto meaning “wild one.” Jerry McKenna reports he produced a replica, in miniature, of the Parseghian statue at the stadium. It was recently placed aside Ara’s grave in Cedar Grove Cemetery. From the “it is a small world department,” Paul Radde said his spring issue of the ND Magazine was stuck to another as he retrieved it from his mailbox. The other was addressed to Richard Osterman. It turns out they have been living next door to each other in Austin for three years. In addition to Jim Carriere, we lost Russ Hoover on Feb. 5. He was living in the Chicago area where he practiced law for over 40 years. Chuck Persyn, who lived in the Oakland area, died on March 18 from cancer. On Good Friday, Mike Minelli passed away after fighting dementia for a couple of years. His wife, Sharon, in an earlier email about his condition, said, “it has been a long goodbye.” — Raymond Raedy; 5310 Rileys Ridge Road, Hillsborough NC 27278; 919-967-8816; nd62secy@medicinemanremedies.com

 

62JD Class Secretary — Thomas J. Kelly;

802 Ambriance Drive, Burr Ridge IL 60527; marianne1956@sbcglobal.net

 

63 Classmates Remembered

Michael McCarthy sent the following: “Kevin Hart, Notre Dame’s student body president 1962-63, and a graduate of our class, died on Feb. 15 on the

Ailinglaplap atoll in the Marshall Islands. Kevin had done Peace Corps service in the Marshalls after graduation and returned to live there permanently several decades ago. He lived on an island given to him by a Marshallese family of distinction, and from that base taught mathematics to local children, and composed a history of the islands, which he loved and considered home. He retained a strong interest in Notre Dame, and spoke of it often with friends when he returned periodically to the US. He was a remarkable man who clearly marched to a different drummer. Kevin and I restored our earlier ND/Cape Cod connection at the time of our 30th class reunion. So that for the last 25 years we stayed in touch by email and by his almost annual returns to the US during the summer and early fall. We also shared intellectual interests that led to our exchanging papers and books across the miles. This past September, 12 of us who still gather periodically for long weekends invited Kevin to join us for a small reunion on Cape Cod. He was in good form and gave no hint, at least to me, of serious health concerns, though John Hennigan may know more. I do know that he couldn’t return to his Marshall Islands home until just before he died, because of a dengue fever quarantine. He thus spent several months with friends in Hawaii.” The Marshall Islands Journal published a tribute to Kevin and made mention of his memoir, Dear Folks: Life and Love at Notre Dame, 1959-1963. In late January, a minireunion was held at Shula’s Steak House in Naples FL attended by Steve Peters, Marty Gauthier, Lance Laerke, John Miller, Tom Dalum, Bob Burk and Ed Delahanty. Brian “Bomber” Richardson reports that due to the national pandemic, Greg Schwartz was unable to fly to Naples to hold his annual St. Patrick’s Day Party. Sandy and Mike Walker graciously took up the cause and held the party at their home. In attendance were Joann and Pat O’Brien, Mary Ann and Larry Morgan, Sandy Jason, and Elaine and Brian Richardson. Because of the pandemic, Cliff Angers, Matt Murphy and Terry Desmond were unable to attend. On St Patrick’s Day, Ed Burke lamented, “I’m thinking of Sweeney’s many decades ago. The only virus back then was an aching head the next day. Happy St Pat’s to all and a prayer in memory of those of the Class of 1963 who are no longer with us. Go Irish.” Tom Jolie has reached out saying “taking advantage of these days, I thought it might be a good time to reconnect.” He lives alone at the Casa San Carlo in Northlake IL. (708-848-4676; thomasjolie467@gmail.com). Tom’s wife Judith died in 2008 after a l0-year struggle with Alzheimer’s. Their life included years in Bolivia and Brazil and 48 years in Oak Park IL. Tom has two daughters, a son, Charlie ’89, and five grandchildren. As Tom says, “Lots of great memories.” The Alumni office has advised us of the passing of the following members of our class: Thomas W. Fabish of Midland Park NJ on Dec.18, survived by wife Frances and children William, Christopher and Mark; Richard J. Peplinski Jr. of Chicago on June 13, 2019, survived by children Richard and Timothy; Joseph J. D’Onofrio, DDS, of Sparta NJ on Jan. 17, survived by wife Joanne and children Andrew, Jennifer and Joseph; James R. Link on Dec. 23; James F. Dansereau of Burke VA on Dec. 13, survived by wife Judith and children Father Kevin, David, Mark and Sharon; Joseph V. Soisson Jr. of Columbia TN on Dec. 30, survived by wife Sarah and children J. Vincent, Michael and Steven. — John F. Dougherty Jr.; 915 Exeter Crest, Villanova PA; 215-510-0844; johndoc969@gmail.com

  

63JD Good News

This is being written under house arrest and during dark days. All the news is bad. Hopefully we will have been set free from coronavirus isolation by the time this gets to you. Meanwhile there actually are some very good things to talk about. Last year I reported that Tom Brannigan’s grandson Jack Brannigan, then a high school senior, was hoping to attend Notre Dame on a baseball scholarship. Well, he made it. Not only did he make it, he was a starter on the varsity team as a freshman in all 13 games until the season was shut down by the virus. Over those 13 games, he had a team-high 14 runs, 12 hits, 11 runs batted in, three steals and one home run. He also pitched in three games without allowing a run or hit. About eight years ago, Arlene and Mike Feldmeier lost their son, Bob Feldmeier ’87. Bob left behind his wife, Kathleen, and four children: Kelsey, Meghan, Daniel and Patrick. Two years ago, Arlene passed away. Now for the good news on how the Feldmeier family has responded. Kelsey ’19 graduated from Notre Dame last year and is working as an accountant. Meghan will soon complete the nursing program at Saint Mary’s. Daniel is a sophomore at ND majoring in finance. Last month, Patrick was accepted to ND and this fall will start his freshman year. Pat Cullen expects to be housebound under Maryland regulations until June, maybe longer, but isn’t complaining. He spends a lot of time working in the yard and practicing his golf swing. Carolyn and Bill Schirger will soon be celebrating their 58th wedding anniversary. He is still practicing but has closed his office for the time being. Except for concern about problems facing his long-time clients, Bill has a very positive view on the isolation noting that it has provided an opportunity for reflection on how lucky Carolyn and he are. Gwen and John Gildea still live in Elkhart but have a winter home near Tucson. They have chosen to stay in Arizona until all is clear on the coronavirus front, but miss their four children, eight grandchildren, and six great-grandchildren. The rules in Arizona seem to be less strict than some places because John is still permitted to play on the local golf course. Cullen may want to consider relocating as an alternative to practicing his swing in the back yard for the next two months. John reports that Tom Murphy, the son of our professor Ed Murphy, lives in Elkhart. He has known Tom for many years, and both are members of a group that meets for lunch on a regular basis. The Ed Adams family is hunkered down in their condo on Longboat Key FL. He describes their location as a tourist town without tourists. It is eerie and quiet but a good time for walking on the beach. Bob Noe reports that the border town in which he resides, although a relatively rural area, had a surprising 250 coronavirus cases and several deaths. The bars are closed. He goes into the office a couple of days a week but otherwise works from home. On Sundays, Bob and his family enjoy virtually attending the Mass broadcast from Notre Dame. In March, Norm Matteoni and the new dean of the Law School, Dean Marcus Cole, went to a Sharks hockey game in San Jose. Five days later, the rest of the season was canceled but not because of anything they did. The dean is still in the process of relocating from Palo Alto to South Bend. Norm has served on the ND Law School Law Council for many years. Denny Powell has been very active in Church matters for decades. Through the 54-Day Rosary Novena ritual, Jean and Denny pray daily for family and friends. He would like to reconnect with the remaining members of our class and will be sending an email, which you should have received by now. — Bob Saxe; 15725 Ranchero Drive, Morgan Hill CA 95037; bsaxe5@aol.com

 

64 All’s Well

I am working the relationship I have with Dick Wolfe for Class Notes material. More than 50 books into the journey, he is still prolific. Next up is a book on Craig Counsell ’92, John’s son, and Season with College GameDay, to be followed by a “been there, should have done that” book on diabetes. As it turns out, it is a personal story. Dick introduced me to Jon Spoelstra via a profile in Sports Business Journal. Jon started in our class but finished up in 1966 after running into some GPA problems during freshman year. “I was immature,” he says. Also, he was likely subjected to multiple distractions by roommate Wolfe. All’s well that ends well, as Jon went on to a sterling career in sports marketing and management. He served in leadership positions for NBA franchises in Portland, Denver, New Jersey and a host of other spots, all while mentoring a generation of executives now holding key sports management positions. Jon and Elisa have two children: Erik, coach of the Miami Heat, and Monica, a health and wellness exec. They live in Portland and winter in Hawaii when Jon is not coaching his grandson. I heard from my former WSND colleague retired Air Force Col. Mike Bradley, now in Shreveport LA. Mike served for 32 years of commissioned service, active and Reserves, retiring in 1996. He then became a civil servant and director of maintenance at Altus AFB in Oklahoma for 10 years. Those were big jobs with lots of responsibility. Mike and wife Lien live near their son while daughter, Cheryl, is not too far away with the grandchildren. I also connected with my former Navy buddy, Tom Moran, who resides in Princeton NJ. Tom is a fellow Destroyer sailor who served six years of sea duty (including three deployments to WestPac/Tonkin Gulf) before being posted to U of Pennsylvania as a Navy ROTC instructor. He received his MBA from Wharton. He left active duty in 1973 but remained in the Reserves and worked for a series of five companies (including two startups) providing goods and services to the pharmaceutical manufacturing industry. He retired from the Navy Reserves as a captain in 1994 and from the civilian world in 2005. He and Laura have two daughters and three grandsons, and split time between Princeton and a summer home in Stonington CT. I had a nice exchange with Paul Rossman from Pittsburgh. Prior to his retirement, Paul was partner in a recruiting firm specializing in IT professionals in western Pennsylvania. He recently spoke with Jim O’Brien (retired in New Orleans) and Jack Harty, who is still working in commercial real estate financing in southern California. Paul and his wife have four kids and 16 grandchildren. My next read will be The Golden Age of Democratic Party Activism by our own Pat Deluhery. This autobiographical review looks to offer a lot, including perspective on “the Notre Dame Days.” Classmates are hunkering down across the country. Bill Malley “attended” three virtual Masses on Palm Sunday. Claire and Tom Fox are in hibernation in northern Michigan. Barbara and Frank Fee are waiting things out in Palm Beach County. We understand Barry Curtin’s wife, Ann, passed away recently. Jack Bowe and PJ Shelley wrote to advise that our distinguished classmate Dave Stout, a terrific journalist and novelist, passed away in February. Les Jandoli of Marlton NJ died in January. He had practiced law for 30 years. Please keep in your prayers the families of John Trelease, John Geraghty and Bob Sullivan, all of whom died within the last few months. — Paul R. Charron; 44 Contentment Island Road, Darien CT 06820; 203-655-3930; paul.richard.charron@gmail.com

 

64JD Sheltering in Place

This is written in mid-April against the bizarre backdrop of the coronavirus and the almost unanimous response to it by our classmates. Simply stated, that response is, “We are sheltering in place.” (Or if you are from Indiana, “We’re hunkering down.”) Sequestered and constrained in mostly routine, uneventful days, we still can move on with our lives in a new, almost reclusive lifestyle. I have come to enjoy long walks with Sharon and have become best friends with our Great Dane, Pascal, a diversion that is also one of Jack Rammel’s. Charles Sacher reports he has reached an accommodation with Ted, his longtime pet cat, for friendlier relations and less hissing sounds from Ted. Russ Bley turned to a 1,000-piece jigsaw puzzles while simultaneously shredding old files. He is also recovering from his fall during a trip to Egypt early this year. Gene Kramer is trying to undo a planned trip to Sedona AZ on a malfunctioning home computer and is learning the meaning of the phrase “things can always get worse.” Tom Conneely temporarily abandoned skiing and replaced it with biking. Bob Cash is dealing with severe carpel tunnel and Eileen is having a knee replaced. Lou Pfeiler has followed the CDC guidelines rigorously, particularly those about staying home. Sagaciously, he describes the current condition as a demonstration that “God still is in charge.” Bob Frost reports he’s well and asked me to pass along a greeting to all. Jim Mercurio says he also is bored stiff with the new strictures on movement and a sends a greeting to all of us, as does Frank Miele, who is successfully recovering from a back injury last year in a fall from a ladder at the Met. Jim Slater has become an avid walker and has been enjoying watching some of his grandson’s baseball exploits earlier this year that have led to his college recruitment as a pitcher for Stanford. Bob Hanlon is coping well with the new environment and sends his greetings to everyone. May all of us come together in this difficult time and receive strength and light from the risen Christ. — Richard Balfe Wagner; 1204 Erskine Manor Hill, South Bend IN 46614; res 574-299-9888; cell 760-567-1270

 

65 56th Reunion

With our 55th reunion a casualty of the COVID-19 pandemic, Bob Lee, class treasurer, and I are working with the University to hold a 56th reunion shortly after the regular program scheduled next June. This column and as many emails as possible will keep you posted. Ed Armento, retired FBI special agent, lives in Prospect KY with his wife, Jennifer. They have two daughters, including Andrea ’93. Ed writes that Robert Carey entered the Peace Corps upon graduation and served two years in India. His wife, Ann, just completed a two-year term as chair of the American Association of College Nursing Deans. They live in Estero FL not far from Tom Hawkins. Retired Army Lt. Col. Jim “Tex” Zoeller and his wife of 50 years, Harriett, live on top of a mountain about an hour from Ft. Worth. After graduation he received his commission with the Army OCS at Ft. Knox, spent two years in Vietnam and 28 years in the Army Reserve until retiring. He continues to teach at the Cadet Flight Academy every May and June. In 2010, lung cancer was diagnosed and responded to treatment. Last fall, he was diagnosed with prostate cancer and multiple myeloma. All these neoplasms have been attributed to his Agent Orange exposure in Vietnam. Maggie and Harrison Pierce live in New Canaan CT where he retired from his pediatric practice but continues as medical advisor to the New Canaan Schools in a part-time position. Pediatrician Jim Goetz and his wife, Kathy, live in Brockport NY where Jim sees patients one day a week and spends other days with The Child and Adolescent Behavior and Mental Health Coalition group that he founded. His daughter, Catherine, is a PA in his office. In the past two years Jim has twice visited a Maryknoll Mission Hospital in Kowak, Tanzania, to provide care. Sadly, there are more deceased classmates to report. Mike Conerty of San Diego wrote that his ND roommate, Neal Clark, died in his sleep in early February. He was not under treatment for any medical issues. Neal and his wife, Sue, lived in Park Ridge IL. John Kluding died in February. Big Fork MT was home to John, Jean, and their four children. Pete Broderick passed away in February. He and wife Susan lived in NYC where Pete had retired from a general practice of law. Pete was a Vietnam veteran. Marine Col. Tom Meurer died in January. Norfolk was home to Tom and his wife, Jacqueline. On Holy Saturday, April 11, Jack Sheridan died in St. Louis where he had a successful orthopedic practice. He is survived by wife Nancy and a son. Barry Branagan talked to Ed O’Gara regarding deceased classmate Jim Salscheider. Ed was a good friend of Jim and revealed that Jim had suffered from medical problems and died from a stroke. Barry and wife, Patty, are 15 years retired from the city of Thousand Oaks CA. Home now is a four-acre plot in Casa Grande AZ. — James P. Harnisch MD; 6759 West Mercer Way, Mercer Island WA 98040; jphnd65@hotmail.com

 

65JD Class Secretary — John Donald O’Shea;

pelagius@qconline.com

 

66 Just Warming Up

Despite the COVID chaos, life continues to be full and active for many in the ’66 ND cohort. There is still spunk in them thar hearts and bones. You may have read in the last issue of ND Magazine about our distinguished B. “Pat” Bauer, who retired after 50 years in the Indiana legislature. Congrats BPB on a job well-done. I heard from Tony Rivizzigno in Syracuse NY, where he practices municipal law. Talk about coincidence: Tony was watching his grandson Ben play club lacrosse when his daughter mentioned that the father of the woman standing next to her went to ND. It was Jane Flynn, daughter of my old roomie and our dear departed friend, former AD Mike Wadsworth. Tony notes that Emmett Flynn is the image of Mike. Tony is in touch with Bob Lombardo, now retired from his GI med practice in the Hamptons. Speaking of the good old days, George Bernard reminded class leader Cap Gagnon that Wads and I lived in 102 Stanford frosh year, a regular stopping-off point for many on the way to and from dinner. Among those living in our immediate “hood” were Tom Callahan, Ben Campbell, Pete Palumbo, Ben Nelson, Jim Murphy, Tom Belden and Tony Andrea. Also in Stanford that year as roomies were Nick Eddy and Arunas Vasys, fellow PA fullbacks Jim Smith and the late great Pete Duranko, along with future barristers Phil Sheridan and Bob Meeker. On a sad note, Bob, still living in and practicing law in Akron, lost his wife of 40 years, Mary, in late February following a long battle with Alzheimer’s. She had an extraordinary career in nursing, including caring for Alzheimer’s patients. Cap reports that on a recent campus walk he ran into SB transplant Mike Rush, who became disoriented after leaving Beantown … trying to find the Prudential Building. Cap notes that pal Frank Duncan, living in Massachusetts, is having vision problems but remains sharp and in touch with his many friends. Art Frigo, the tallest ’66er, reported that he continued to play basketball in parks and rec and industrial leagues following graduation and ultimately became a marathoner. Bob Basche reported that he and fellow Nitelighter Tony Andrea are funning it with a new production company, Sygnificant Prod. To date they’ve produced an NFL tailgate cooking show for CBS and plan a series of nine-ball pool events on TBS. Pat and Dick Frey have fled to Lenexa KS, where Dick is permitted to sing bass as part of a folk group at Mass. Dick sent the sad news of the sudden passing of Dr. Ralph Boyd in Pensacola, where he had led the county health dept. One of the few African Americans in our class, Ralph was in the Glee Club and always had a smile on his face. I caught up with Greg Rust out of Greensburg IN, who’s still plying his trade in financial planning. He’s in touch with Paul Mayeux, also a broker, in Charlotte, and the now-retired Pat McRedmond in Music City. Greg recalls spirited shaving cream fights in BP with the folks above and the late Jim Phelan and Jim Gallagher. Word is that Bill Wentworth winters with his lady friend in Naples and summers at his Bloomfield Village MI mansion, to which he welcomes all comers. Alan Loboy is out Oregon way after a fulfilling career as a teacher, coach and administrator. Skip Medina of Houston is active with the local ND club. Bob “Ozzie” Schwartz of Nashville is passing on his printing business to his son. Chuck Reali lived across the Columbia River in Washington from Al for years but is now in Marston MO rehabbing a failing smelter. He will be closer to ND, where his granddaughter will enroll in fall. Jack reminds us that the class website is in transition and should be workable by fall. That’s all folks. Aim high, go long and stay positive. — Tom Sullivan; 1108 Westwicke Lane, Lutherville MD 21093; cell 773-454-4343; t66sullynd@gmail.coim

 

66JD Class Secretary — Philip C. Ruddy;

rudds241@aol.com

 

67 Conoscenti at 50

Chris Conoscenti ’97 writes that our classmate and his dad, Tom Conoscenti, and his mother Ellen celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary Dec. 30, 2017. Tom and Ellen have three children and six grandchildren. Tom and Ellen moved to Houston in 2017. Son Chris reminds us that his dad has a face for radio as he was active in WSND as a student. Tom tells stories to his grandkids how successful he was as a campaign manager in hall and class elections. Tom Hennessy writes about how much he enjoyed our 50th reunion reminiscing about Prof. Emil T. Hofman, being forced to live off campus due to grades, palling around with his Indianapolis buddies Joe Broecker and Earl Guertin, as well as driving his old Nash Rambler, which he considered a “chick magnet.” After graduating, Tom went into the Navy via OCS followed by the Navy Supply School in Athens GA. He then reported to his ship anchored off Vung Tau, South Vietnam. After his service, he met his wife, Cynthia, in San Diego, and moved back to Indianapolis for nine months. He never really liked accounting and ultimately became a court reporter. He recently retired from Sacramento County Courthouse. His son Andrew ’01 and daughter Katie ’03 are Domers. Unfortunately, we have a few deaths to report. Art Boyle passed away Dec. 5, 2017. Bob Peters reported that Jim Bourke left this world in January. Bob reminds us that Jim was a member of the Irish Guard, a Navy ROTC cadet, and served in Vietnam following graduation. Bill Hanigan reported that we lost John Hughes in late 2017 from complications of a bone marrow transplant. John moved back to his hometown of Bayonne NJ and was labeled by the Jersey Journal as an “unsung hero” in the community for his leadership in the City of Bayonne, being a public defender, and a longtime scoutmaster. He received the city’s Distinguished Citizen Award in 2004. I hope we try to keep this column going by sending information about yourselves and classmates. It would be nice to see all classmates mentioned in this column before it’s time for their obituaries. — Bert R. Bondi; 1891 Curtis St., Unit 1502, Denver CO 80202; bertrbondi@gmail.com

 

67JD Annual Minireunion in Florida

Flo and I drove to the Naples FL area to meet up with classmates who live in the area or routinely visit in the winter. We had a great time. However, we did miss seeing a number of guys whose schedule had them in the area, but not exactly at the time of our minireunion and who indicated that they would have arranged their schedule differently had they known far enough in advance. So, I would like to propose an annual get-together for an evening in the first week of February each year in the Naples area. What do you think? Perhaps it could be expanded to include a day of golf, sightseeing or shopping. Nancy and Jim Olson reside in Mishawaka but winter in Florida each year. Jim has retired and sold his practice in Indiana but maintains an office for himself. He shows up occasionally to throw out the junk mail that accumulates. Jim had commissioned a special ND hat embroidered with ’67 Law and gave them to each attendee. Jim has always been ready to help me with planning our get-togethers and did so again this year. Thanks, Jim. Pam and Tom Sullivan spend five months in northern Michigan and seven months in Florida. Both are still in great shape with Tom playing pickle ball and golf and Pam involved with bridge, yoga and tennis. Pam had a serious medical scare last year but recovered completely. Chris and Jay Johnston are fully retired and live in Bonita Bay FL; they enjoyed a trip to Vietnam last year. Carolyn and Dom Monterosso are healthy and spend three months each year in Florida. Their son, Dominic ’89, is a doctor on the frontlines of the COVID war. Sarah and Gary Kaup winter on San Marco Island but maintain a home in Ohio. Gary was a prosecutor in Ohio until his retirement last year. He has quit golf but is seriously into “throwing clay” and maintains a studio in Angola IN. They have 16 grandchildren. Gary reminisced about his beloved 1950s Plymouth he had during his ND days. Apparently, it had a canoe semi-permanently attached to the roof and was nicknamed the “CarNu.” It had only one working door (on the driver’s side) and only one of the front windshield wipers worked. It was operated manually by the driver with a string. It was a well-known (and hard to ignore) car on campus. Rev. Ted Hesburgh, CSC ’39, once stopped Gary walking on campus and told him that CarNu was not the image ND wanted to project and forbid the car to be parked on campus. That is another treasured memory of ND. John Blasi hasn’t appeared in this column for some time, but he sent an update. John moved to Kingston WA about seven years ago. Sadly, he lost his wife, Nancy, in 2001 but she lives on in their three children and 10 grandchildren who are scattered among three states. One grandson starts ND in the fall. In winter, John enjoys downhill and cross-country skiing. The rest of the year, he kayaks and paddle boards on Puget Sound. John has learned to crab from the paddle board by dropping the pot and then retrieving it from 75 feet of water, a tricky and dangerous maneuver. When a grandson was asked, “Where does your grandfather live?” He answered, “Oh, he lives on vacation.” — Jim Heinhold; 1200 Carmel Lane, New Bern NC 28562; res 252-638-5913; im4irish@aol.com 

 

68 Social Distancing

We know social distancing, don’t we? We know the disappointment when Saint Mary’s women abruptly cancel Friday night dates and the envy as lovely Barat or Xavier students alight from their buses and rush past us to the likes of more fortunate and charismatic classmates. We survived then, and we are surviving now. Joe Blake sent a photo of a project he took on during the early days of the national lockdown: baking an apple pie. Just before the lockdown curtain fell in Florida, Bob Brady and his friend Kathleen hosted a dinner for 10 in his Naples home. Neighbors Jeff Keyes and Meg were there, as were Will Dunfey and Joan, Elise Stephens Reeder, Julie Ann Bodner, yours truly Tom Figel and Nancy Carlin. To their own amazement, Bob and Jeff have a regimen of daily tennis and golf. Prior to the quarantine and prior to Easter morning, Brian Sullivan and Nancy met for unmasked dinner in Bal Harbour FL with Mike Ryan and Rich Rogers. Rich wrote on Easter that, while watching Mass from the Vatican with Nancy, Brian passed away. Jim O’Rourke, Mendoza professor of management, endorsed the leadership of Queen Elizabeth upon her address to the English people grappling with the coronavirus pandemic. Jim’s remarks, carried in an Associated Press article, included: “Now, more than ever, the people of the UK must have someone to rely upon, someone whose word they can trust.” When Chris Murphy praised Drs. Fred Ferlic and Steve Anderson in a message sent widely over the Bryan Dunigan network, the email not only produced additional testaments to the physicians, it sparked a clarification from modest Steve: “I had been doing administrative work as the CMO at St. Joe’s in Mishawaka until July, 2018. … I then retired from full-time administrative work and began spending five months annually in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, with winters down south in South Bend. Inspired by the frenetic work of my ND colleague, Mark Walsh ’69, who is doing emergency department and hospitalist work at St. Joe, I went back to working one shift a week as a hospitalist at St. Joe this past November.” Email from Dan Kimball, Port Townsend WA, indicates that ND’68 has good representation on the Notre Dame Senior Alumni Board. Dan is chairman and, ex officio, sits on the NDAA Board. Tom McGrath is Rick Gutowski’s successor representing the southeast region. Dan’s year regularly includes game attendance with Herb Kaler and Ken Larson. The Senior Alumni are hosting a golf event to benefit veterans. Visit ndsa.undgroup.org for more info. Tom Dorsel, on Hilton Head Island SC, has provided the guitar/vocal Irish music for St. Patrick’s Day at Reilley’s North End Pub for the last three years. Tom claims he learned the songs from the juke box at Sweeney’s, while there with Kevin Doyle, Tom Duxbury and Jim LaTerza. The Observer student newspaper dipped into its archives for a November 1966 Dennis O’Dea article about the arrest and beating that Brian McTigue suffered as a civil rights worker in Georgia that summer. Brian, now a lawyer advocating for clients protesting unfair banking treatment, works in Washington DC. Even with Tom Gibbs’ blunt recommendation of a live-streamed viewing because of virus concerns, the funeral of Sheila Gates Gibbs brought a crowd to St. Luke’s, River Forest IL, on March 18. Sheila, the Barat grad who became Tom’s wife and enthusiastic center of myriad class gatherings, had not let her illness diminish any family or class life. Easter, a day of rough news, brought word from Bryan Dunigan that his Badin Hall roommate Mike McKeon had entered hospice at his home in Butte MT. There was hardly time to say goodbye, something Brian McManus did via FaceTime before Mike died April 15. Please remember Mike, his wife Carol and his two children in your prayers. Paul Zalesky wrote of the sudden death Jan. 19 of Richard Jurjevic. At Notre Dame, said Paul, “Rick and I worked … in the aerospace facility studying (under confidentiality) fluid dynamics for various-shaped vehicles that evolved into the Apollo mission selections.” Please send news and photos. The class blog ndclass1968.com has additional news. — Tom Figel; 1054 West North Shore, Apt. 3E, Chicago IL 60626; 773-764-4898; tfigel@reputecture.com

 

68JD Class Secretary — Dennis G. Collins;

2203 Derby Way, St. Louis MO 63131; bus 314-516-2648; dgc@greensfelder.com

 

69 World Upside Down

Pandemic updates: Drs. Rick Boland, David Coulter, Ted Fahy, and Paul Freitas shared their coronavirus perspectives on the class blog. Bob Gibbons interviewed Dr. Marc Imundo and his daughter, NYC RN Nicole Marchese, for the series. Bob is also posting five movie reviews weekly on the blog from his 25-year-old archives. Terry Hanratty contracted the virus and is home after a six-day hospitalization, as described in the blog and the South Bend Tribune. Len Moretti bought 10 pizzas for his son and his colleagues working at South Bend’s Memorial Hospital. The Milwaukee ’69er breakfast group raised $2,600 to buy meals for staff at two hospitals, featured in the University’s “Be the Light” campaign. Dr. Peggy Barron, wife of Jim Lyons, orchestrated the deliveries. Diane and Steve Kavalauskas began making masks for their daughter, Dr. Natasha Hernandez ’99, and her colleagues, as did Paul Fries’ wife, Joanne, for a hospital in Naperville IL. Jim Burke, Gary Campana, Steve Cassetta, Joel Connelly, Mike Collins, Bill Costantini, George Daleiden, Bob DePierre, Greg Downes, Andy Fedynsky, Errol Flynn, Paul Fries, Joe Garbrous, Joel Garreau, Tom Genis, Bill Gunlocke, Dave Heskin, Delbert Hosemann, Greg Hipskind, Kip Horvath, Bill Hurd, Don Hynes, Mike Keane, Tony Macleod, Dan Merritt, Mike McCauley, Peter McInerney, Bill Murphy, Tim Rooney, Tom Ryan, Bob Sacoff, Dave Sim, and Bill Wade shared their isolation stories on the blog’s “The ’69er COVID Chronicles” series. Dick Farrell is hunkered down safely in Moline IL. In news from January, Bill Murphy visited Charles Nau in Florida. Fritz Gast, Ernie Gargaro, Jerry Teagan, Jim Burke, Mike Busby, and Ebby Moran gathered for their annual January basketball outing at the Louisville game. Bob Franken, Kelley Macke, and Dan Merritt attended a reunion of former Alumni Association Board members. Phil Kolski’s first grandchild, Alexander, arrived Jan. 17. Congratulations to Christina Kolski Pinilla ’00. Len Moretti and Tom Shannon, hockey season-ticket holders, met at the Wisconsin game. Mike Fogarty, Dan Merritt, and Tim Roddy watched the men’s and women’s b-ball teams play one weekend. In February, John Wehrheim screened his film The Edge of Paradise twice at the LA Art Show. Lauren and Jim Cain attended one show and then hosted John at their Pasadena home for dinner. I was in Ft. Worth for a Carter Museum board meeting and lunched with Jim Bennett, a 40-year Cowtown lawyer. Snowbird Mike McCauley and Florida residents Greg Ryder, Jim Conway, and Errol Flynn, and wives met for lunch in Naples. Linda Nix and Neil Short visited Karen and Neil Harnisch in Auckland, New Zealand. It was the first time these ruggers had met since 1969. They called fellow rugger Mike “Mad Dog” Brennan in Chicago to reminisce about their sedate rugby parties. Florida snowbirds John Quinn, Pat Cronin, John Kenefick, and Dean Benner joined Al Lutz of Jacksonville for lunch in Naples. In March, Dan Saracino returned to his South Bend home after suffering a stroke last fall. In April, Don Hynes retired from his construction management business. Joel Connelly announced his June 30 retirement as a columnist for Seattlepi.com. The ND Senior Alumni group selected me to be the Central Region director for a three-year term beginning July 1. Classmate deaths include John McCoy, Jan. 2, Taos NM; Michael Wendl, Jan. 15, NYC; Bernard “Craig” Wald, Jan. 20, Bel Air MD; Sam DeLuca, Jan. 24, Branchburg NJ; Mark Geary, Feb. 16, Southlake TX; Paul Purcell, Feb. 28, Sarasota FL; Tim Schilling, March 1, Cincinnati; Mike Pasquale, March 19, Spring Lake NJ; Bill Cella, April 9, Chicago. Requiescat in pace. Our condolences to their families. Take care, stay healthy, and God bless you and your families. — John Hickey; 262-385-1961; notredameclassof1969blog.blogspot.com; jphjr47@hotmail.com

 

69MBA Stay-at-Home Days

The theme for this quarterly newsletter is lockdown. Tom Gill moved to NYC to be near his daughter who just gave birth to her first child, Lucas. Soon after that, Lucas’s parents caught mild cases of the virus, so the Gills were isolated in their new place in the city. Joan and Gus Holderer had their babysitting visit to Texas cut short, and their offspring were quickly forced off campus. When they got home, they learned their septic tank was inoperable, and the repairman had to get permission to categorize it as an emergency so he would be allowed to make a house call. Linda and Joe Cavato were at a Cardinals spring training game in Florida, which was canceled midgame. They took a nostalgic road trip back to St. Louis along the route where they often had taken their kids. John Simna has continued working as a broadcaster in Cleveland, but otherwise is on the same stay-at-home program as Joe McCourt in Houston, who is still selling with every email. Also staying put are Ken Samara and Vince George in the Dallas area, Joan and Chris Odenbach. Joyce and Cliff Fleming are “trapped” in Florida. Bob Orthey is in Minneapolis. Sara and Nick Walz are in Michigan City IN. Will McGuire is in the Richmond VA area. Rita Knittel is being guarded by grandkids. Bernie Bieg is teaching accounting online, missing golf, and driving Barbara crazy. Fred Denny is so bored he is watching a bird feeder for excitement. Jerry Claeys is fully retired, and still getting lots of compliments on his 50-year MBA hat. His new email address is jclaeys3@outlook.com. I am still working remotely and managing to remain relatively busy. I passed my four-year kidney transplant review at Mayo the day before they shut down elective medical visits. Like most of you, Grace and I are walking, eating and communicating online a lot. We were saddened to hear Nick’s report that Duane Mertl passed away in January in Michigan City As you likely know by now, we have been taking to Zoom meetings. The first one was quite fun. Hopefully this will become a standard feature of the greatest MBA class. Our next minireunion, at the Western Michigan game Sept. 19, could be in jeopardy. We will keep you posted. — Bob Dowdell; 31625 Coast Highway, Laguna Beach CA 92651; 714-381-6104; bobdowdell55@gmail.com

 

69JD Apart but Together

While we are staying at home, working from home, wearing masks and social distancing to defeat the coronavirus, our class is coming together via email. Dave Larimer rented a place in Naples FL so his children, grandchildren and friends could visit just as the pandemic reared its head and derailed his plans. His wife had lung surgery in January and is high risk. His eldest daughter is Spain. She was on a six-month sabbatical and could not leave the country, but Spain may be better than her home in NYC. Dave had a visit with Jim Mackin and John McLeod just before he headed to Florida. Dave claims John used some of his confirmation money to buy dinner. His eldest son, Michael, and his wife are ER doctors in Birmingham AL but are OK. Hank Catenacci and his wife have hunkered down in Hunterdon County NJ. They have not left the house in weeks. One of their daughters is the manager of a supermarket and drops off a care package daily. The family has a Zoom gathering every day. Al Reed and his wife are in Kershaw County SC which was an epicenter of the virus. Al has several friends who contracted the virus but are recovering. Bob Greene is safe in Buffalo and in isolation as is Gary Stoff. Patsy and Scott Atwell are so accustomed to isolation that they are looking for a deserted island to move to once the pandemic blows over. “Scotwell” sent a joke about 2020 being a leap year with 29 days in February, 400 in March and four years in April. We have no word on how they spent April. Pam and Pat Cooney are OK in Houston and stay in touch with their children and grandchildren who live in two hotspots: LA and NYC. All is well so far. Bryan Hughes writes that he misses the class and is sorry he could not attend the reunion. He is ready to go to Dusty Rhodes classes if there is no football this fall. George Ball is in Park City UT where there had been good snow but no ski resorts open. Russ Heiple writes that he has enjoyed the friendship and good memories of our class. They lend support to him. I hope Russ sends me more on his life. Peter Loughlin watched the YouTube videos of the new dean of our Law School, Marcus Cole. Russ was moved by the dean’s address at the 150th anniversary of the Law School and thinks that our class is proof that Notre Dame produces “a different kind of lawyer.” Al Bannon is staying home in Oregon except for the walks his golden retriever takes him on. Ever the optimist, Tom Bonner, sent me a one-liner: NYC no longer exists. Jim Barba finally retired but was back at work the next day and busier than ever dealing with New York’s health system and the virus. It was great to hear from some of our classmates again. I am busy with the food bank and the 225,000 people in Hawaii who are unemployed. — Jim Starshak; 889 Kaohe Place, Honolulu HI 96825; 808-395-0443; cell 808-778-4033; starman@hawaii.rr.com