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1950M. Grace Piselli Keene As you are all GSTC grads, your Alumni Association wants to keep in touch. Please become involved by volunteering whether you are in Maine, an alumni snowbird, or wherever in the world. You are an advocate for USM! FYI, the Office of Admission has reported that 10,220 students were enrolled at USM during the fall semester. Forty-three different groups have contributed over $20,000 to the Gorham Campus Beautification Project. Things are happening! The USM School of Business has received $1 million from L.L. Bean and the family of Leon Gorman, the company’s chairman of the board, to fund an endowed chair of accounting at USM’s School of Business. We have much of which to be proud. Pick up your Mainestream once again and read it. Find out how you can be a part of the University’s growth in this century. Volunteer! Keith Grant and his wife, Erika, of Florida, celebrated their 23rd anniversary. Keith has learned he has diabetes. An overnight stay in the hospital with vertigo revealed the sad news. We know Erika will monitor Keith’s food intake. He misses his cookies! You may be interested to write to Edna Dickey at the Gorham House, 58 New Portland Road, Gorham, ME 04038. Brighten her day! Eleanor Carville Todd, of Cape Neddick, took a trip to Hawaii. It included all the islands. She went scuba-diving and snorkeling, viewing the underwater life. She found it to be a beautiful area of plants, flowers, volcano remains, beaches, and wildlife. Eleanor has been active with volunteering at both hospitals and schools. She takes day trips around New England with the Retired Teachers’ Association. Trudy Ford, president of Southern Maine Gorham Alumni Association, moved to Piper Shores, a lifecare facility in Scarborough. She has a beautiful ocean view. In May, she traveled to several of the national parks. She found it to be inspiring and wonderful. Thanksgiving found Lorraine Davis Mosher hosting 46 people! They prayed and sang and enjoyed an evening meal. Did you have anything left over to serve them? Guess we know where to go for party time. Ella Hayford Weichert writes that she and her husband, Richard, are enjoying being back in Maine, “the way life should be.” They were able to travel along the coast of Maine in September and went leaf peeping in Vermont in October. Did you read the article about Rosalie Preble Barden in the last Mainestream? She has now sold over 500 paintings. In the Portland show in August 2001, she sold six paintings and five prints. She continues to teach art and painting. She has been singing in the church choir for 42 years. Great talent, Rosalie! A 50th anniversary found Nina Curry Stitson, and her husband, Bill, entertained by their entire family at Dimillo’s Floating restaurant on Portland’s waterfront. They also went on a Celebrity cruise in the Caribbean. A special gathering of friends and family was held at the campus of Parsonfield Seminary where Bill was a member of the last graduating class and currently a member of the board of trustees. I was happy to be a part of that gala celebration. Congratulations to you both! Esper Mank Bagley and her husband, Ed, of Searsport, spent a week touring Nova Scotia and Newfoundland in a rented van with family. They also took the Maine Line tour to Foxwood, and later, had an overnight stay in Yarmouth. Both Esper and Ed are staunch volunteers at church as well as in the community. Two deaths need to be reported: Robert N. Miller, 87, died of natural causes during a fishing trip to Quebec. We do recall all the leaves he made us identify on campus! Leona Poor Craig of Augusta, died of cancer. My memory of her is that beautiful smile and her happy nature. She taught in Cape Elizabeth, retiring after 36 years of teaching. My husband, Hugh, and I traveled to new places and saw brand new sights on our Canadian Rockies trip. It was the “Year of the Great Bear,” a heritage tourism initiative aimed at protecting healthy mountain parks and surrounding ecosystems through education and environmental stewardship. Highlights for us were staying at the Banff Springs Hotel, taking an eight-minute gondola ride to get a 360 degree panoramic view of the Rockies, staying at the Chateau Lake Louise at the base of Mt. Victoria, and standing on the Athabascar Glacier, the largest that forms the Columbia ice fields. It is 1,000 feet thick. We stepped onto ice that was formed from snowfall that fell 400 years ago. What a thrill! In other class news, Noreen F. Libby has six grandchildren and a new great-grandchild, Paul August Yeager. From October 30 to November 4, she took a trip to Quebec with Eastern Star members. Noreen is also a church organist at Christian Science Society in Sanford. 1951Marilyn Weymouth MacLeod Barbara made a “revised” yearbook for the 50th Reunion using information you gave on the questionnaires we sent. We’ve included some of the information here and will include the rest in the fall issue. Note Barbara’s e-mail address or send it to either of us by snail-mail. Cynthia McComb Bowles and Keith have three grandchildren. She is retired and participates in church and community activities. She enjoys traveling and spending time with her grandchildren. Ramona Cook and her husband, Frank, have eight grandchildren. She enjoys her walking group, reading, attending music/theater events, spending time with her friends, family, and traveling. Winters find her in Arlington, Vt. Betsy Cooper received her master’s from the University of Maine. She is a member of Delta Kappa Gamma Society International (state president 1971-1973). After graduation she taught in Pittsfield for three years, Long Branch, N.J., for three years, and Roseville, Mich., for 28 years. Joyce Wentworth Cunningham and Cliff have four grandchildren. She is an active volunteer, mostly working at her church. She is a certified educator in the Maine UCC Conference. She likes reading, traveling, and doing puzzles. She spends part of the winter in Pinehurst, N.C. Rita Grant Drew ’68 didn’t graduate with us, but has always considered herself a member of the Class of ’51. She was with us until she married and returned later for her degree. She taught for 25 years in various Maine towns. She is a Senior College student in Sanford, as well as being a member of the steering committee. She has four children, five grandchildren, and two great-grandchildren, as well as three step-grandchildren and five step-great-grandchildren. She is a member of the Southern Maine Gorham Alumni Association. Ada Hall Duncan and Clyde have two children. They retired to Nobleboro and are busy remodeling her family home, which has been in the family since the 1840s. She is active in church and Extension homemakers and enjoys gardening, hiking, bird watching, and reading. Marilyn Taylor Flagg was in our class for three years before she left to marry Ray Flagg ’50. She earned her B.S. and later a master’s in professional studies at New York Theological Seminary while raising five children. She taught for six years, now spends time writing for newspapers, working as a volunteer with various organizations, and serving as a member of the Maine Fellowship of Christian Writers. She and Ray celebrated 50 years of marriage in August 2000. They have 10 grandchildren and two great-grandchildren. Carolla Haglund is retired and enjoys gardening, tennis, music, various art activities, traveling, and knitting. A former student of 30 years ago from Japan came to see her a while ago. She said it was rewarding and fun. At the December meeting of the Southern Maine Gorham Alumni Association, she said she is concentrating on living north in the summer at East Boothbay and south in the winter at Thornton Oaks in Brunswick and trying to keep out of trouble. Bob and Dorothea Millett MacBeth have one child and four grandchildren. Bob got a master’s at BU was assistant superintendent (wrote first Head Start program), educational consultant, jack-of-all-trades, and world traveler (50 countries). He repairs anything that’s broken. He enjoys white-water canoeing in Maine. Dorothea is retired. She is involved in Mystic Chamber of Commerce and other town projects including saving Mystic railroad station. She enjoys genealogical research, wire-wrapping stones for display, and decorating eggs. She says she must have nine lives, having survived heart attacks and cancer. Marilyn Weymouth MacLeod retired in 1998 after teaching 29 years in Georgia, Connecticut, and Maine. She is widowed. Her daughter and son have given her five grandchildren. She drives to Framingham, Mass., occasionally to see three of them and drove to Charlottesville, Va., to visit her son’s family recently. She is active in Delta Kappa Gamma, Cumberland County Retired Teachers, Southern Maine Gorham Alumni, and College Club of Portland. She volunteers as a mentor in an after-school program in Portland. She enjoys taking SAGE courses at USM’s Senior College. Barbara Stanley Neal and Paul celebrated 52 years of marriage. They have three sons and four granddaughters. Barbara is retired but enjoys volunteering at the Gorham Times. Both she and Paul are very involved in singing with their church choir. She is vice-president of the Southern Maine Gorham Alumni Association, on the board of Maine Federation of Music Clubs and is a member of the Annie Cary Club. She enjoys gardening. At present, she is living through house remodeling! Glendora Parsons Pettygrove spent several years in Johannesburg, South Africa, after graduation. She taught for many years and is now retired. She is busy golfing, working at her church, traveling, and playing bridge. As a fund-raiser for her church she opened a bakery in her home specializing in Downeast recipes. She said it was a great success. Mary Sawyer is retired but still busy with a lot of volunteering at the Alzheimer’s unit in a nursing home, home-schooling, church, and soup kitchen. Helen Knight Sheffer is widowed. She enjoys volunteering at theaters and art schools in New Haven and traveling. She is busy renovating her farm in Harpswell and working as a title researcher for various law firms. Dick Smith taught 12 years in Gardiner and Cape Elizabeth and 26 years in State University of New York Systems of Community Colleges. He is now a professor emeritus from Ulster County Community College, Stone Ridge, N.Y. He and his wife, Kathleen, enjoy traveling. In 1994 he traveled to Romania with a group from the International School project and worked with Romanian teachers. He is treasurer of his church. He has one child, three step-children, six step-grandchildren, and two step-great-grandchildren. Elvira Lewis Usher and Eugene are retired and spend time with their family, which includes two grandchildren. They are active in church and choir. They spend summers in Sebago and Andover. They do quite a bit of traveling to see their son and family in Bradford, Mass. After graduation, Elvira taught in New Hampshire and Massachusetts from 1967-1985. She retired in 1985. Linwood White is in Upper Dam most of the summer and Largo, Fla., much of the winter. He and Mary have four children and six grandchildren. He continued his education with a master’s and doctorate from Columbia University. He is retired. Now retired, he enjoys life in Rangeley, Florida, and Orono. They ski, fish, and snowmobile. He taught in Orono for 30 years, then owned a hardware store, lumber company, and a trucking company. Nancy LeSueur Weber and her husband, Edward, have two children and four grandchildren. She is retired. After graduation, she taught in Goshen, Conn., for 36 years. She now enjoys the usual “happy retirement” pursuits such as family, gardening, reading, etc. She also attends Senior College at USM and is just enjoying Maine. Priscilla Jones Wilson and her husband, David, have been married for 48 years and have two children and six grandchildren. She enjoys traveling, gardening, knitting, and sewing. Barbara Wyman is retired. She works summers at the Hermit Island gift shop. She spends her time reading, participating in church activities, cooking, and working in a soup kitchen. She is a member of the Southern Maine Gorham Alumni Association. Our class has contributed $730 to the Campus Lights Project. There is still time to contribute to this fund! 1952 R. Jeannine Belisle Lee Alhquist wrote to wish us a happy and rewarding reunion this summer even though he will not be joining us. Dorothy W. Ahonen retired from teaching in June 1995 after teaching 57 years in Maine, 43 of them in Portland in grades kindergarten through eighth. Dorothy continues to substitute teach and volunteers at Riverton School, where 16 languages are spoken and 31 nationalities are represented. John Anagnostis is active in the Masons and writes for the Journal Tribune and other newspapers and magazines. He also speaks to groups and gives slide presentations. John and his wife, Dolly, do a lot of traveling to Greece, France, and England. John is looking forward to seeing the gang in June. Ruth Bryant plays the organ at Edgecomb Congregational Church, writes a column in local newspapers, and holds offices in the Edgecomb Historical Society, Edgecomb Cemetery Association, and Lincoln County Retired Teachers Association. Melissa Dunn Costello is active on the board of USM Retirees, Delta Kappa Gamma Association. and Phi Delta Kappa. She collects beach glass and Byers dolls, enjoys walking, meeting with friends, seeing plays, and playing cards. Jean MacDonald Colville enjoyed getting together last summer with Fleurette Forrest and yours truly. She plans to attend all reunion activities. Fleurette Roux Forrest is a Hospice volunteer, is on the Library Board and Parish Council, is a lector at church and teaches courses at Senior College and at adult evening school. She is studying Spanish, enjoys cross-country skiing, and counted cross-stitch. Fleurette will work on the crew for the 2002 Boston three-day breast cancer walk in May after doing the 60-mile walk herself in 2001. Kenneth Gardner spends his winters in Myrtle Beach, S.C., and summers at Bear Pond in Maine. Ken has spent 3,000 hours on hospital projects for the Masonic Lodge. Ken and his wife, June, will celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary on Dec. 24, 2002. Nancy “Bunny” Gibbs wrote that she had congestive heart failure in October and November and is glad to be back home. Please stay well for our big 5-0! Pat McSweeney Hickey is living in an Alzheimer’s facility in Saco, according to her daughter Nora who was kind enough to write from Scottsdale, Ariz. Pat’s former students visit her often. Sorry, I do not have the name of the facility in Saco at this time, but will find out and let you know in the next issue. Donald and Frances Hawkes Hale are in good health. They are both mentally and physically active. They enjoy golfing, playing bridge, socializing, dining, traveling—though not as much anymore—and are excited about the birth of their second grandchild. Their son, Rob, who is 41, is expecting the arrival of his first child. They were caring for Don’s mom, 95, who is now at 75 State Street in Portland, and is a recent amputee. They are looking ahead to their fabulous 50th! Marilyn Littlefield Hughes calls often to talk about family and friends. She keeps busy with church activities. She plans to attend reunion activities. Frederick “Ted” Jackson wrote from Florida that he also will attend June functions. He is a retired teacher, principal, and superintendent. He and his wife, Barbara, have been married three years. Don Kenney likes the idea of dedicating our class gift to Miss Dickey. Edna Lilley Leary works at the polls, is recording secretary for the Saco Valley Land Trust and Church Council, and is substitute organist at West Scarborough United Methodist Church. Edna helps with farm responsibilities when needed, and often takes care of her grandchildren. Her 6 children have 12 offspring. She also helps her husband Jim collect Saco and Scarborough postcards. Thanks for your suggestions for Friday evening possibilities. Bob and Evelyn Jepson Lemieux also plan to attend graduation and reunion activities. They spend summers on Sebago Lake, winters in Florida, home still in Gorham when they are not traveling to Alaska and other locations. Joyce Carlson Marsano has served 10 years on the board of directors of the Eunice Frye Home. She is an active member of St. Ansgar Lutheran Church, is organist at Friends Church, and served as president of State Church Women United. Joyce takes fantastic scenic photographs. She has attended seven Elderhostels, including one in Scandinavia. She is writing her family history and attends Senior College. Amelia Mitchell Moore will be celebrating her 50th reunion from GSTC. She hopes she can make it. She and her husband, John, will celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary on Sept. 5, 2002. They are still living in Provo, Utah, but seem to get to Maine each summer for a visit. During the summer of 2001 all five children and 11 grandchildren went to Maine with them to find their “roots.” It was a wonderful experience. Anne Leach Nation has enjoyed her travels to Europe, Great Britain, Australia, and New Zealand. Anne enjoys quilting and reading. She teaches Bible study and serves as a mentor. She visits nursing homes, drives patients to dialysis, and helps with Meals on Wheels. Hopefully, Anne will stay in the area from graduation in May until the reunion in June. Carmela Casale Paradis is still teaching second grade in North Haven, Conn. She still loves teaching and is appreciative of the education she received at Gorham. Carmela is interested in theater, reading, and teaching her grandchildren. She will be celebrating her 50th wedding anniversary on June 19. Congratulations! Her husband, George, retired but takes care of 60 apartment units they own. They bought a summer place in Old Lyme but Carmela says it can’t compare to Maine beaches. Carmela’s school schedule may conflict with reunion but please try to come for at least events on June 15. Satch Page called recently to chat about plans. He is willing to have us at his new home in Buxton after the luncheon on campus on June 15. The Pages’ are six or seven miles from Gorham, how perfect! Satch is finally retired. Glad to have you join the club. Cliff Randall operates a small building company in Maine. Classmate Raleigh Folsom works with him. Cliff does volunteer work for the American Red Cross and is on the Disaster Action Team. He is active with Lions Club International and is a Fidelco representative for southern Maine. Fidelco, located in Bloomfield, Conn., trains guide dogs for the blind. The Randalls have traveled to Germany, England, Hawaii, Japan, China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Singapore, Bangkok, and Canada. They have a fifth wheel to see more of the U.S. The Randalls will celebrate their 54th wedding anniversary in June. Congratulations! Janet Clark Riedel is looking forward to the 50th class reunion. Garth Somers has served as auditor for the Florida Chapter of the USM Alumni for five years. He looks forward to annual meetings which include Melissa Costello and her husband, Dick, Jean and Jim Colville, Roberta and Jim Willis. Garth and Mary enjoy traveling a good portion of the year and look forward to the reunion. Virginia Briggs Somers has her own private practice offering counseling and hypnotherapy, specializing in mind-body wellness. She teaches stress reduction techniques, goal setting, maximizing potential, meditation, financial freedom, and super learning methods. She is looking forward to the reunion so we can “catch up.” Sounds like a plan to me. Doris Robinson Towne is a professor at Long Island University, C.W. Post Campus. She is a student in the master’s program in counseling. She enjoys traveling and animals. Doris likes honoring Edna Dickey, a truly fine lady. We are sorry to hear Doris will not be attending the reunion. Joyce Clark Swett’s new motto is “have wheelchair, will travel.” She enjoyed another trip to Disney World in December. How about a Wheelchair Derby with you and Joyce Marsano setting the pace? By June you will probably both be leading us into the Commencement ceremony. Roger Wallace was in Washington, D.C., on September 11, 2001, ready to fly from Dulles to Ft. Myers. He was delayed five days. Roger constructs and installs stained glass windows when he gets commissions. The Wallaces plan to visit Stuttgart, Germany, in March and April and then visit Rome and Venice before taking an eight-day cruise of the Greek Islands. Just be back for May 11 and June 15! The Wallaces’ youngest daughter was married in October. Mary Louise Marks Smith volunteered to send start up money for the organization of our reunion. Thanks, funds would be welcome. We discovered we have a friend in common when I visited a high school friend in California in October. They went to Westbrook Junior College together. Catherine Payne Weidhas purchased a new condo in Portland and loves living in the city. She spent January through April in Phoenix, Ariz. “Kay” thinks we should wear red to the reunion to honor Dr. Bailey. Mary Wilson teaches women’s Bible study and is active in church, sings in the choir, enjoys bird watching, is secretary of Pejepscot Genealogy Society, and is president of Local Retired Teachers. Keep those cards and letters coming. Your donations to the 50th class gift are appreciated. 1953 Harry G. True Andrew W. Elcik passed away on May 16, 2000 of cancer. His wife, Barbara Morse Elcik ’74 wrote: “We were so happy to be able to attend Andy’s 45th reunion in 1998 and had a wonderful time. We never missed a reunion, and I will miss seeing everyone in 2003 at his 50th.” Ruth Ouelette Vermette had a wonderful reunion with her two college roommates, Sherry L. Henry and Jane Pickett. They met in Freeport and reminisced a bit and talked a lot about current events. Ruth is sure that they will all get together again soon. 1954 Nelson Wentworth I have a feeling a lot more class members are now online and that I do not know your e-mail addresses. If you are one of those, please check in with me at the above address. It will make our communication so much easier. A large group of GSTC friends gathered for an October lunch in Auburn, including Edie Macdonald Jordan, Joan Price Laws, Louise Bonang Marchildon, Lorraine Bonang Gingrass, Elizabeth Green Fogg, Elizabeth Bolton Gailey, Madeline Clement and her sister, Ginny, Pat Ames and her mom, Ruth Jordan Ames ’27, Helen Vattes Beach, Janice Boynton Day, Jessica True Hatch, Barbara Bernard Howe, Margie and me. Quite a wild and obstreperous bunch! During the afternoon, we were guests of hostess, Edie Jordan, at her home in Lewiston. As always, we had a wonderful time together, in spite of thoughts about the September terrorist attacks. We plan to get together next fall in the Sedgewick area with hostess, Madeline Clement. Dick Jenkins ’55 and his wife, Merle, visited us in October during their vacation in Wells. Dick still subs occasionally and continues to operate his tree business in the Hampden area. Melvin (Mickey) Boutelier was recently inducted into the Sports Legends Hall of Honors at the Alfond Youth Center in Waterville for contributions to Maine athletics and young people in the state. The Portland Press Herald news article stated that Mickey has been the driving force behind Maine Special Olympics and has served as the state’s director for 30 years. Keith ’52 and Adele Kimball Springer ’55, of Wilmington, N.C., helped their daughter move from New Jersey to Miami where she will teach English as a Second Language at the University of Miami. They plan to return to Gorham for Keith’s 50th reunion in June. We exchange e-mail reviews of books by Kenneth Roberts, who writes books that we continue to enjoy reading over and over again. Keith plans to follow up on Benedict Arnold’s 1775 trek through Maine during their visit this summer. We received thoughtful cards and messages from Joyce Lembree Rondeau of North Haven, Conn. She and Jim are waiting for a while before planning any long flights anywhere. They were anticipating a family gathering on Cape Cod for Thanksgiving. They have received e-mail from friends in Russia extending their sympathy and prayers to all America for the tragedies of 9-11. A Christmas card included a wonderful photograph of granddaughter, Nicole, who will be two years old in March. Frank Day e-mailed from Greenville, S.C., that he enjoyed reading the last Mainestream, especially about his old freshman college roommate, Roland Grant, who had been laying bricks in Bolivia. Frank says that after he retires on June 25, he plans to travel a lot in Parsonsfield, the biggest town in area of York County. During spring break in March, he and Pat took an Elderhostel trip to Prague. They are planning to be in New Orleans in December for a convention of English and foreign language teachers. Frank says he can never visit New Orleans without thinking of Ronnie Banks ’56. Ronnie was a UMO faculty member, Maine author, and well known for his work with the Maine Educational Council on Indian Education. He was killed in New Orleans in 1979 by a youth attempting to rob him. I have fond memories of Ronnie as a GSTC baseball teammate whose size 12 baseball shoes dominated the third-base side of our infield. Maurice Getchell reports from Westbrook that, as a result of his congestive heart failure episode last year, he is now taking 12 prescription medications daily, a very expensive proposition. He has found it pays to be a veteran and gets his prescriptions through the Veterans’ Administration, saving lots of money. It is doubtful if they will go to Florida this winter. Their youngest daughter is having problems following surgery and they do not want to be too far from home until that situation gets resolved. Their oldest son is defending his doctoral dissertation in fish pathology at Cornell. He will be the first doctor in the family. Audrey Peterson Alexander awoke one morning in Brunswick after September 11 and realized that she wanted more time for her hobbies, including some travel. She also realized that working wasn’t fun anymore. So, she is beginning to end her four part-time jobs and retire for the third time. Her first trip was to be a month-long stay with friends in Phoenix in the spring. She will take side trips to Las Vegas, the Grand Canyon, San Francisco, and the wine country (one of her favorite places). She is also considering living in Florida during the cold months each year. Winter has never been her favorite season and now she just plain hates it. Margie and I hope that she and Liz Johnson Stilphen will soon make a return visit to the rocking chairs on our front porch. Roland Grant’s e-mail from Billings, Mont., told of cataract surgery in December and that he is back teaching one course for the second semester. Roland and Kay’s daughter and family moved back to Montana from Seattle last February and were in town for the holidays. Their son and his wife also returned from San Francisco for Christmas. They continue to get Maine news from the Getchells and read the Wiscasset paper via the Internet.
The Class of 1954 initiated the Esther Wood Scholarship Fund at its 40th reunion in 1994 because she had exemplified those extraordinary qualities of teaching excellence that we, as her students, hoped we would someday find within ourselves. As a result of Miss Wood’s special meaning to thousands of prospective teachers during her long and spirited career at Gorham, that fund has received contributions from students of many different graduating classes. As of August 2001, the Esther Wood Scholarship Fund had grown to a market value of $25,378 and, each year, a scholarship is awarded in her name. You may still contribute to that fund by writing a check to USM and designating it for that fund. This scholarship represents a lasting and fitting tribute to a truly marvelous teacher, beloved and respected by all who knew her. And, we are pleased and comforted to know that Miss Wood, in retirement, continues to live in the same old Blue Hill family homestead. Edie Macdonald Jordan, of Lewiston, had a letter from Utah’s Dotty MacDonald Hunt, telling about their activities in preparation for the Olympics. She also had talked with Betty Bolton Gailey, Joan Price Laws, and Helen Vattes Beach. Betty and John were still in New Castle. Edie and Ken were planning to spend the month of April in St. Augustine with Don and Louise Bonang Marchildon. Helen Vattes Beach wrote from Augusta that she and Dick were very involved in the various activities of their three grandchildren. Their son, John, was badly injured in an automobile accident, but is recovering. They planned to celebrate Valentine’s Day with Edie Macdonald Jordan and Ken at Sedgely’s in Greene. Helen and her sister, Ada, are going to Montana to visit another sister in April. Dick Carter and Gladys ’81 have both retired and live in Gorham. They are thankful to be near their daughters, husbands, and four grandchildren. Gladys does volunteer work in both Gorham and Falmouth schools. Both Dick and Gladys are very active in the Osher Lifelong Learning Center, formerly Senior College. Dick is a board member and chairman of the curriculum committee. Gladys has taught children’s literature for grandparents, and both enjoy taking courses and participating in social activities. Dick is working part-time in the School of Applied Science, Engineering, and Technology at USM. Joan Rosenblad Stanton writes from Linville, N.C., that she never did get into the teaching world and has been able to return to a Gorham reunion only once in 1959. Her husband, Jim, joined IBM in 1961 and they moved to Massachusetts, California, and Florida, where he retired in 1988. In 1990, they decided to make North Carolina their permanent home. They have children and grandchildren living there, as well as in Virginia and Kentucky, so they are close to all the family. Their most recent trip was a river cruise through Austria, Germany, Holland, and Belgium. They were in Germany on 9-11 where they got lots of sympathetic support from the people there. Joan’s Gorham years were really special and go back a long way in her family, including her mother, grandmother and cousins, Lee and Ed Ahlquist, both ’52. Joan and Rockland’s Janette Sulides have renewed their friendship with letters and one visit after many years. She also hears from Marlen Wellichausen Stocks, who lives in Kezar Falls. She enjoys reading the class news but is always saddened to hear of the death of former classmates. From Hawthorne, Fla., Margie Hanscom Hay writes that 2001 was an adventure that began in Richmond, Va., where she had surgery on her eyelids in May. She and Russell went on to Maine and Boston in support of Margie’s only sister, Judy, as she carried on her fight with multiple myeloma until she was well enough for them to return to Florida. Russell added to the adventure by having to deal with prostate cancer in November and has had a successful recovery. Judy is wintering with them, doing very well and planning to return home in April. Margie and Russell received a great Christmas present when their son, his wife and two grandchildren moved to Hawthorn in December. A brief note arrived from Roberta Jewell Douglass of Sebago, saying that she is busy, happy, and healthy and that each new day is another of God’s blessings. In the same day’s mail, I received a letter from Joan Connary Clark at her new address of 1481 E. Torrey Pine Lane, Chandler, AZ 85249, saying that she and Roberta keep in touch after a reunion in Yuma, Ariz., where their sons lived a few years ago. She and Roberta were great buddies at Gorham and have enjoyed getting reacquainted in the southwest. Joan’s hobby of knitting is very rewarding, but not needed much by her grandchildren, who are all located in the greater Phoenix area. However, Old Pueblo Knitters of Tucson accept her sweaters for Navajo children in northern Arizona where winters are very cold. Also, local hospitals accept her preemie outfits for those who come into the world a bit early. After 34 years in Tucson, they have located to the southeast Phoenix area of Chandler in a gated resort, and love being closer to their children and grandchildren. Louise Bonang Marchildon writes from Augusta that she is feeling great and goes to the gym five times a week. Now, she wants to work on controlling her appetite. Louise and Don enjoyed their trip to Ireland with Edie and Ken Jordan last September. They landed in Dublin, visited St. Patrick’s Cathedral and Trinity College Library, then on to Glendolough, which is famous for early monastic ruins. They heard the news of the 9-11 attacks during their stop at the Waterford Crystal Factory. They also visited Blarney Castle and thought their trip was absolutely great. Their next excursion will be a month-long trip to St. Augustine in April. We also got a nice card at Christmas from Lorraine Bonang Gingras, who also lives in Augusta. From Hillsboro, Oreg., Janice Brown Collins shares news that she is a permanent employee of Cascade Microtech and is enjoying the benefits, especially the health coverage. She planned a trip to Maine in February. She looks forward to each issue of Mainestream and news of classmates. She is already anticipating our 50th reunion in 2004. A loyal alumna, Jan has made two recent trips across country in recent years to attend Spirit of Gorham Reunions. Elizabeth Bolton Gailey sent a note from her home in New Castle, N.H., saying that she and John planned to leave for Florida in early March. Over the years, several classmates got to know Pat Ames’s mother, Ruth Jordan Ames ’27. The news of Ruth's death in January, at age 94, saddened us. She and Pat had attended the USM Alumni annual meeting earlier that month in Portland, when I was pleased to have the opportunity to talk with her again and enjoy her lively sense of humor. As always, she seemed full of zip and warm personality. She was a lovely lady and we will miss her. Carolyn Karstensen Payne called to say that she and husband, Herb, moved from Asheville, N.C., to their new condo at 1517 Palm Woode Dr., Ft. Myers, FL 33919-6720. They are happy being back in Ft. Myers, where they lived from 1988-1994. Their condo complex is south of the city, has a pool and a pond with ducks and blue herons. They had just had a visit from Keith ’52 and Adele ’55 Springer, who were in Florida to visit their daughter. Carolyn grew up in Westbrook and lived on the street where Maurice Getchell and Judy now live. She remembers being taken to the GSTC campus by her father when she was a child and thought the buildings there were the tallest she had ever seen. Carolyn taught at the elementary level for 30 years in Connecticut before retiring in 1984. Her sister, Shirley ’53, lives in Windsor, Conn., and still teaches there. Carolyn returned for our 45th reunion and we hope to see her again for our 50th in 2004. Jessica True Hatch and her husband moved from Litchfield to 315 Lake St., Auburn, ME 04201 a year ago, where they enjoy caring for their 18-month-old grandson two days each week. This is the first year she has not worked at school for at least part of the year. Jessica always looks forward to the annual get-together of GSTC friends who have been meeting almost every year since our 1954 graduation. She has lost contact with college friend, Joan Young Jorgensen. Joan's address is 5803 NE 195th St., Kenmore, WA 98028. The Gorham Olde Campus Beautification Project began in the fall of 1998 and resulted in contributions of over $18,000 for new walkways, roadways, and landscaping. Since then, 50th reunion classes of ’50 and ’51 have completed their own special beautification projects, which have been extraordinary, indeed. The Class of ’52 plans to present its class project on Reunion Day 2002. Don’t miss it! The Campus Lights Project began in the summer of 2000 and has thus far brought in more than $20,000 in donations—27 new streetlights have been installed throughout the old campus, giving everything a bright and brilliant finishing touch. Class agents will be completing their fund-raising this spring and, by Reunion day, we expect to have plaques attached to the street lamps identifying the contributing classes. Those who return for the 2002 Spirit of Gorham Reunion in June will see a revitalized campus, made possible by hundreds of generous friends and alumni. Thanks to all of you for helping restore a sense of pride in the appearance of our old college on the hill. Now, let us be vigilant to keep it that way. Margie and I took a ride to Gorham one late January evening to see the new campus lights after dark. As we stood between Corthell and Robie at dusk, the lights suddenly flashed on, quite like a shower of stars. After strolling around and admiring it all, we drove down and parked for several minutes at the bottom of the hill to see the whole campus shimmering in its new light. It was a sight worth seeing and a trip worth taking. I hope others will make the same pilgrimage. You’ll be glad you did. 1955 Suzanne Gilbert Corcoran Your Class Agent Suzanne Corcoran recently returned from Florida and really enjoyed the wonderful weather and many friends. The 50th reunion in 2005 will be here before we know it. We are looking for a chairperson to coordinate activities. I hope someone will agree to do that. Do you want a two- or three-day reunion, or maybe a one-day lobster/clambake? Please let me know what you’d like to do. You could e-mail me with your ideas. How about contributing more to the Campus Light Project. Our class has donated $900, so far. There are 15 lights installed and lit. They really look beautiful! John E. Moore and his wife, Amelia Mitchell Moore ’52, will celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary on September 5, 2002. They are still living in Provo, Utah, but seem to get to Maine each summer for a visit. During the summer of 2001 all 5 children and 11 grandchildren went to Maine with them to find their “roots.” It was a wonderful experience for all involved. Things are going well now for Mildred “Hammie” Black. She writes that she discovered her lymphoma was active again last June and spent the summer getting treatments. She had nearly 100 days in or at Mercy Hospital for treatment. It was a rough summer, but since October, she has done well. Pat Tardif Crowley, Norene Grover, Connie Hanson Harrison, Jackie Greenwood, Nancy Grant, Chris Bennett, Barbara Hills, Jane Brown Spofford, and Adelle Kimball Springer all went to see her, sent cards, or called during her illness. “The GSTC bunch are the best.” 1956 Betty Lou Dodge Banks Patricia Carmichael Swett Joseph Murphy Jr. is still the minister of the Grace Bible Church of Moscow, Vt., and chaplain at the Vermont State Hospital. Joe and his wife, Joan, flew to Lynchburg, Va., in June to visit their daughter, Rachel Seavers and her husband, Bob, and their first baby born on June 18, named Amanda. In July they flew to West Allis, Wisc., to visit their son Michael Allen and family. While there they attended the Greater Milwaukee Open and a Brewers baseball game. Two granddaughters flew back with them for a week’s vacation. In August, Joan’s mother, Charlotte Johnson of Portland, passed away so they spent a few days in Portland. Joe thinks Portland has changed a lot, especially the old Portland Junior College campus. 1957 Charlene Boisvert Thompson 1958Pauline Deschambeault Pollock Carol Lilly Bond writes that one of the proudest
moments of her life happened on May 19, 2001, when her daughter, Cheryl
Dozier, received her Ph.D. in reading from the University of Albany.
After the ceremony her husband and her three children hosted a large
reception/graduation party at their home in Voorheesville. Her other
grandchildren are scattered throughout the United States and stay
busy with sports and work and school. Her husband keeps busy with
his Masonic commitments. He is an appointed officer in the Grand Lodge
of Maine. Janis Rand will be celebrating her 40th wedding anniversary
on June 9. She and her husband are both working full-time at their
dry cleaning business. Last summer, they visited their daughter and
family in Mukwonago, Wisc. They took three trips to Chicago to visit
museums and the Sears Tower. 1959 Joan Morse Bragdon Morton A. Strom and his wife, Jean, are both
retired teachers who have lived in Camden since 1959. They have three
children, two of whom are teachers. They were recently honored with
the naming of the new Camden Hills Regional High School 800-seat auditorium,
Strom Auditorium. Jean Pulsifer Young retired from teaching
last spring. She is loving retired life. She has three young grandchildren
and enjoys every minute she can get with them.
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