Class Notes

January/February 2022

Note: Classmates' names in gold font are links to a pre-addressed email form (if your browser is properly configured). Other links (underlined) take you to more information about the topic. A shorter version of these Notes is published in the Yale Alumni Magazine. If you would like to write a guest column, please let me know. Do we have your current email address in our website directory?

As we approach the year-end holidays, I’m optimistic that conditions will permit us to gather in person again soon. Zoom has been serving us well, as reported below, but there’s nothing like congenial in-person gatherings. The Mory’s group has already reinstituted monthly in-person luncheons, under the leadership of Chris Getman. The Bay Area group, hosted by Owen O’Donnell, has continued to use Zoom, at least through November 2021. Their October theme was “Compare the world we faced in June 1964 to the world facing recent graduates today. Were we lucky or existentially challenged?” An earlier theme, which touched me deeply, was “Have you dealt with profound grief, and how?” The Boston-area group, hosted by Jerry Flannelly, has also continued to use Zoom. Jerry emailed: “In addition to the rogues shown in this Zoom Gallery shot, Karl Ziegler joined from England and Sheldon Leader joined from France. We watched the MSNBC interview with Yale Professor Timothy Snyder and a somewhat intense discussion of free speech followed.”

The highlight of the past two months was the Zoom mini-reunion on October 9 organized by Chris Getman and Robert Whitby with the theme, “60 Years of Change to Yale’s Academic Canon.” As reported in a News article, it featured a stellar cast of presenters, including three classmates — Stephen Greenblatt, Jock Reynolds (honorary), and Roger Thompson. Discussions in the ten breakout rooms were lively. The event was recorded (except for the breakout rooms), so I urge you to find the link on our Class Website/News and watch it. President Peter Salovey emailed: “What a fantastic event! You have a marvelous community in the Class of 1964, and I am so glad that your work with them brings you a sense of purpose during this time. Please say hello to the group for me.” During the Zoom event, Peter Putzel emailed: “This program is really superb!” Robert Whitby summed it up afterwards in an email to Richard Brodhead and Stephen Greenblatt: “Your shared contribution to our mini-reunion made the day! Your treatment of the subject was perfectly on-point and received great reviews from our Classmates who attended. Thank you from the reunion organizers and from the entire Class of 1964 for such an excellent presentation. It really hit the mark!” In an email to Jock Reynolds and James Prosek, Chris Getman added: “Jock and Jim, your joint presentation was very interesting and informative. Yale students are indeed lucky to have such resources as the Yale Art Gallery (and soon, the Peabody, again) at their disposal.” Robert Whitby also emailed Dean Marvin Chun: “Thanks so much for putting together your presentation to kick off our mini-reunion. You really set the tone for a day which reassured the 100 or so classmates who participated in the event that, despite the radical changes which have occurred at Yale since 1964, the University is still a top-notch, though evolving, place.” In an email to Tom Duffy and Roger Thompson, Chris Getman wrote: “Thanks so much for putting together your interesting and informative presentation about music at Yale. I have always felt that the music at Yale is one of its most important draws, and your and Tom’s presentations reinforced my belief. Thanks for taking the time to put it together. I believe everyone enjoyed it.”

With the success of recent Zoom events — the ’64 Authors Book Club and the Yale Canon — we scheduled a second Book Club for Wednesday, January 12, featuring Timothy Breen and his distinguished book The Will of the People: The Revolutionary Birth of America. The event will be recorded, and a link posted for anyone who misses it. See it live, and you’ll be able to participate in the discussion. Joe Wishcamper, one of the classmates who inspired the Zoom events, is already polling classmates for ideas for a Zoom event early in 2022. Email Joe if you have thematic suggestions. Yale also broadcast several big Zoom events in the fourth quarter, notably the launch of the Yale for Humanity Campaign. A number of classmates accused me of putting the schneid on this year’s football team, with their recent loss to UConn. On a more positive note, Chris Getman is trying to put a block of tickets and a Mory’s dinner together for The Game on November 20. The annual Class Council meeting will be held on February 19, 2022. For the second year in a row, it will take place via Zoom.

In a recent all-classmate email, Sam Francis and I provided links to 27 new News articles on the Class website. You will find articles by or about classmates: John Hunsaker, Gerry Shea, Henry McCance, Tony Lee, John More, Edward Massey, Frank Franklin, Chas Freeman, Pat Caviness, Chris Getman, Strachan Donnelley, Owsley Brown II, Frank Basler, Syd Lea, Karl Ziegler, Denny Lynch, Nick Danforth, Timothy Breen, John Jeavons, David Wyles, Stan Thomas, Robert Whitby, Nick von Baillou, John Podeschi, Bob Buchanan, and Classmate authors. We will continue to add articles like these between bimonthly issues of Class Notes.

Steve Bingham, a regular on the Bay Area Zooms, circulated an article about the resignation of the Director of the Yale Grand Strategy Program, suggesting it as a theme for their October Zoom. Len Baker weighed in: “It’s a bit more complicated than the way the article reads.” Joe Wishcamper added: “Len, I’m not surprised. This type of thing usually has a back story.” Bob Buchanan emailed “It is absolutely pouring here in suburban Washington, D.C. today; so I too look forward to walking the field again after the rain. Sharon and I just returned from a four-day trip to Vermont to see a granddaughter at Middlebury and visit some of the wonderful small towns still in splendid color. It was nice to be in the America that doesn’t seem polarized by politics. Several years ago, you were one of the only people outside this region who knew of my ULI Lifetime Achievement Award, and I was very impressed with your vast network of connections. Although this new award will get more play once the Task Force knows where, when, and how it wants to hold the ceremony, I thought I would forward this on to you now. It was quite a surprise to receive this, and I am in far better company than I deserve. Every now and then that walk across the field brings more joy than anticipated.” See a news story about Bob’s award. Jim Carney, a contributor to Mo Dean’s Moristotle & Co. blog, emailed: “This year I have had the pleasure of visiting Dean Levy, Brooks Carder, and Neil Hoffmann. The year is not over yet. After I saw Dean Levy, he got hit by a major tax problem. After I saw Brooks Carder, he became homeless. The day I saw Neil Hoffmann, his wife rolled off an examining table in a doctor’s office and injured her head. My ill luck is not limited to Yalies. I went to see my cousin in New Jersey a month ago and found that since her husband died in April, her daughter and son-in-law are trying to throw her out of the house. Meanwhile, I am contemplating future visits. Men of Yale, be on your guard. Let your families stand together and the household doors be barred as the bird of ill fortune may be headed your way. Whose way and when the fickle finger of fate is pointing is uncertain. It is oscillating between southeast and northwest with no time designated. However, for mid-January it is pointing due south. So Nortin Hadler and Mo Dean, your days may be numbered.” Pat Caviness and Tony Lavely tried to connect on WhatsApp, but Lavely failed the App test. We’ll try again next month. We did exchange emails about Isabel Wilkerson’s book Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents. Caviness emailed: “I should have known you would have already read this book from a Pulitzer Prize-winning writer. Her analysis allows me to reframe the concept of racism into a broader structural interpretation.” Tim Damour read the obituary of Michael Nagel with sadness and emailed: “I regret not having read far enough down the September/October Class Notes to see the notice of Michael Nagel’s death in April. So, I was totally surprised to see it in the latest YAM. My wife Susan and I would see Michael in London on almost every trip we took to London since 1979 and hoped to do so again next month. If you have the contact information for his brother Stefan and can share that with me, I would appreciate it so that I can write a note to him.” I replied to Tim with Stefan’s contacts and added: “Michael’s death surprised me, too, as he had just left an upbeat comment for me on Facebook a few days earlier.”

Mo Dean emailed: “Tony, I had somehow missed the information about your wife's demise, but now that I know it, I add to those many others who ‘know how you feel’ my own condolences. I have rehearsed in advance my own wife's potentially leaving me before I leave her, so I think I do ‘know how you feel.’ ‘Rehearsal’ seems to be something I do, for I did the same thing a year or two before my father died, even wept at the thought. FYI, as a possible explanation why I missed the information about your wife's death, I have been much preoccupied lately with our (my wife's and my) planned thirty nights in France next month. Departure for CDG Airport is scheduled for nineteen days from now, and it does seem to be going to happen. So, don't expect me to be available for the Zoom mini-reunion in October. While this could be, and probably will be, our last European trip, I suspect that Carolyn and I will continue to plan the next one after this. Something that we do is to identify things to give us incentives to remain alive and keep on living. One of the most recent is our decision to have a new furnace and a new air-conditioning unit installed to replace our old ones. This is a powerful incentive, for the warranties won't run out for a number of years.” [Editor’s note: I continue to include these wonderful messages about my late wife Wanda not because it tells me more about her (or myself), but because it tells me (and other classmates) more about the strong and empathetic feelings in our Class.] Dennis DeSilvey emailed: “Tony, my prayers and thoughts are with you and your family. I wish I could do more, but I am still practicing cardiology full time. I hope to connect with Will Elting who is on a bike trip in Maine.” After reading Jaren Carter’s ’61 poem, “After the Rain,” Don Van Doren emailed: “A poignant, reflective poem, Tony. Welcome back.” Chas Freeman emailed: “It may be of interest that my grandson, Cameron Abidi Freeman, is now a sophomore at Yale. He took a year off in Taiwan after graduating from Andover and spent his freshman year amidst the disruptions of COVID. Cam follows my daughter, Carla (a Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies professor), her daughter, Page Lowerr Benkowski, and son, James Edwin Benkowski, at Yale. Can my great granddaughter Emerson Georgia Deng be far behind? I remain active and a senior fellow at Brown University's Watson Institute for International and Public Affairs.”

Harvey Geiger called me recently. He talked about his strong connections to the Yale Art Gallery and the Yale School of Architecture. Harvey is writing a book about photography. During and after the Zoom event in October, Chris Getman and I discovered we had “six degrees” of separation with James Prosek (a former artist in residence at Yale), who was one of the featured speakers. James has a lifelong interest in fish and authored the highly regarded book Trout. My son-in-law and his father, Peter Corbin, are both avid fly-fishermen, and Peter is a fine artist. Prosek had fished with both of them, and Chris Getman knows them, too. Paul Balser owns some of Peter’s work. Small world! Greg Gilbert, one of our classmates on Mo Dean’s Moristotle thread, emailed: “Susan and I were at Oregon State University today visiting our granddaughter. While walking around looking at the campus we kept running into a school robot that was delivering food to people who were working on Sunday. It was fascinating to watch it cross streets, race down sidewalks, and carefully avoid bumping into us. It was maybe a little more than 18” tall, 28” long, and 18” wide. It had a little flag about 4’ tall to warn people it was there. Times have definitely changed from when we were in school.” Neil Hoffmann, another classmate on the same thread, emailed: “Speaking of food delivery, have you seen the Elton John and Lil Nas X ads for Uber Eats? It's taken weeks for me to wrap my head around them, but I have concluded that they are a true artistic innovation and pure delight. I never thought I would look forward to an ad. Brilliant. Am I losing it? How is everyone doing? Getting boosters? We got the Moderna vaccine and have been waiting for the Moderna booster, which is now available at your local Walmart. Nancy is a bit anxious about a potential reaction. We are relieved that vaccines will soon be available for younger grandchildren. Their parents are constantly stressed by any cold symptoms at school or home. The kids must be feeling it too.” Mo Dean, the sponsor of Moristotle, emailed: “My wife Carolyn and I are nearing the end of our month in France (Paris, Saint-Germain-en-Laye, Strasbourg, Colmar, Caen, Bayeux). We got negative results on the required COVID tests last evening, so we will be allowed to fly back home on Sunday. Once again, we passed the endurance test posed by foreign travel! Sadly, several times during the month, I remembered that the address of Rolf Dumke is no longer on our list. Our granddaughter Vera’s public school in Minneapolis had a Halloween parade. We Zoomed in yesterday evening from the 10th Arrondissement.”

Howard Gillette emailed just before the “Yale Canon” Zoom, “It looks like I will not be able to participate in tomorrow’s Zoom event, much as it pains me to miss it. I am entertaining family during our last visit to Vermont before selling our house here. There was no flexibility on our date, and I only recently realized the visit conflicted with the mini-reunion. I hope and trust it will go well, and I will look forward to hearing a report that I am sure will follow.” [Editor’s Note: The event was recorded and can be viewed here.] Stephen Greenblatt, a star performer on the recent “Yale Academic Canon” Zoom, emailed: “Tony, your note with its reference to Jared Carter’s poem, ‘After the Rain,’ made me think of a beautiful poem from the 17th century by George Herbert: ‘The Flower.’ Butch Hetherington emailed: “Tony, I almost spent the whole afternoon reading the emails from classmates about the death of your wife. From what others say, I am sure Wanda did a lot for you and your family. I do have an incident about myself which shows how wonderful and caring wives can be. Shortly after we came to CT, I continued playing tennis but had to give up singles because I was taking too many falls. For some reason, this past June I entered a men's over-80 singles tournament, and my opponent started hitting drop shots. I decided the only way to win was to get to the net and put them away. My first charge to the net I fell just as I had four years ago, but this time I broke my hip. I was rushed to the Yale Hospital, had my hip fixed, spent three miserable nights in the hospital which was packed with COVID patients, and my room had no door or bathroom. When I got home, I needed full-time care from Rebecca including driving me wherever I had to go. She was great, but it tested our marriage. I am now almost fully recovered and starting golf and tennis but no running and only doubles. If I had only kept my own rule!” Neil Hoffmann emailed: “I got the lovely photo and your tribute to Wanda. Thanks for including me. What a great gal. I spent much of the day watching the heart-wrenching testimony of the four Olympic Gymnasts before Dick Durbin’s Senate Judiciary Committee, including the damning evidence of collusion between FBI officers and the head of the the Olympic Gymnastics program which allowed Larry Nassar to assault girls for another year. The DOJ won’t prosecute anyone. A giant cover-up. Wanda would be outraged, as I am.” Later, after he read Peter Salovey’s remarks on “The First Amendment in the Information Age,” Neil Hoffmann emailed: “I found this very informative. Particularly the idea that social media should have fiduciary responsibility for your information.”

Many classmates reacted to the resignation of the Director of the Yale Grand Strategy Program. Steve Hoffman emailed, “Welcome to the slippery slope! Follow the money to find out where the power lies. Why do the WSJ and NYT pick on Yale?” Terry Holcombe dual-streamed the “Yale Canon” mini-reunion and the Yale-Dartmouth game and commented on the latter: “Tough ending at Dartmouth. All due to one outrageous, obvious slug in the face of a Dartmouth player between plays by a Yale down lineman. Duderstadt would never have done that!” John Hunsaker emailed: “Tony, I was so disheartened to learn of Wanda’s death that it has taken this long to write you. This is not about me, who may grieve differently than you, as I did on the loss of parents and a younger brother, as no one can experience the pain and the sorrow of the going away of a giving, always supportive, bigger-than-life mother and wife. Your wonderfully crafted and affectionate remembrance surely provided an exquisite portrait of her core and how much she meant to so many. I snooped around to find sentiments of great men of letters who lost their wife. John Milton’s, poem ‘On His Deceased Wife,’ is one such sentiment.” In response to an inquiry from me, Blaine Krickl emailed: “My recollections about Bill Dorsey go back a very long way to the time, twenty years ago or so, when he relocated from his farm in the Cotswolds to the wilds of Norfolk where he purchased an XVIII Century family estate with its own church on 600+ acres. Jane and I made our way there on one of our adventures and were treated to a wonderful luncheon in the pavilion and a full tour of the house and nearby grounds ... most memorable indeed.”

Larry Lawrence emailed: “We just received your lovely card with Wanda’s obituary, and I have just now finished reading the most recent class notes and the many heartfelt expressions of sympathy and condolence from our classmates. Sally and I, and our daughter, Christina, also had a ‘Wow!’ reaction as we were reading and talking about Wanda’s adventurous spirit and remarkable life over dinner last evening. You were certainly fortunate to have her as your soulmate and life partner, as she was to have you and your generous and caring character. I’m sorry not to have been able to know either of you better over the last several decades, but the enjoyable privilege of getting to know and work with your daughter Hillary has given me at least a second-hand appreciation of the talent and dedication you both brought to the job of parenting. I have come to feel that, whatever other form of future life may exist, one important component of life beyond our own physical lives is the impact we are able to have on others through how we live our lives and, of course, how the values important to us are reflected in the lives of our children and grandchildren. You and Wanda have obviously generated a lasting and admirable legacy in that respect.”

Syd Lea emailed: “I am sorry to be so out of the loop that I had not heard of your loss. I literally cannot imagine it. My heartfelt sympathy. I do hope you are bearing up. I remember my mother’s saying that the hardest part of growing old was losing dear relatives and friends. How much better I understand that than I did 20-odd years ago when she said it! Yours is such heart-rending news that I feel abashed even to mention my own good fortune. I lately learned that I have been given the state of Vermont’s most prestigious arts recognition: the Governor’s Award for Excellence in the Arts.” Later, Syd Lea emailed,” I had no idea that Jared Carter was a Yale guy. I have always thought him a marvelous and under-recognized poet (perhaps that's redundant); he and I were co-panelists on the 2008 National Endowment for the Arts literary fellowship committee, and I much enjoyed his company there in D.C.” Randy Labbe added: “Thanks Tony, Carter’s poem resonated with me as well.” Tony Lee emailed: “Tony, you were always better at promoting ‘Can We Stop Climate Change?’ so I’ll leave the narrative up to you. It’s not much more than encouraging people to take a look at the website and sign up for the webinar. I’ve been working very closely with John More on the website over the past two months. We kept him on the sidelines while he was recovering and kept him at about half speed for a few weeks. He is a lucky son of a gun. He lives on an island in Maine and fortunately was on the mainland when his aorta ruptured. He is very thankful for still being with us … as are we.” Later, Tony Lee emailed: “Margie and I attended portions of the ReGenerative Communities Summit that extended over two weeks at the end of September and early October 2021. Included in the program were numerous Films for the Planet, one of which featured John Jeavons of Ecology Action in Willets CA talking passionately about how to train people worldwide to better feed themselves while conserving resources.” Still later, Tony Lee emailed: I don’t know if you’ve read The Celestine Prophecy by James Redfield. According to Wikipedia it was published in 1993 and was a new-age spiritual-awakening book. Redfield talks about ‘synchronicity’ and that there are no coincidences in life. Right after I read it, I was on an airplane flying to San Francisco and had an incredible experience with coincidences. Fast forward to today where I had a smaller series of ‘coincidences.’ I was scheduled to give a climate-change talk to the Manchester CT Rotary Club in late August. Hurricane Henri arrived at the same time and my talk was postponed to October 26. I was working on my talk today, and I thought it would be fun to talk about all the tropical storms and hurricanes that had received names since Henri. Are you aware that there were twelve named storms in the two-month time frame? Including ‘S’ for Sam and ‘T’ for Teresa? The twelve after Henri were Ida, Julien, Kate, Larry, Mindy, Nicholas, Odette, Peter, Rose, Sam, Teresa, and Victor. There is only one more available name left in the alphabet because there are no names for X, Y and Z. The last name for ‘W’ is Wanda. An amazing coincidence?”

Tony Lavely and his children hosted a “Celebration of Life” for Wanda in October at the Atlanta Botanical Garden. His brother Jay Lavely ’65 and his sister Kim Lavely attended with their family members and friends. Tony Lavely posted: “I was able to attend my Newton High School (MA) 60th reunion in October (actually the 61st since it was postponed from last year). Sorry that Lorna and Dan Berman weren’t able to make it.” Did anyone watch the amazing run that Yale student Matt Amodio had on Jeopardy? He won $1.5 million, the third best all time. Jeopardy was Wanda’s favorite TV show, so I’m still hooked. Michelle Mead (surviving spouse of John Armor) emailed: “I know how difficult it is to be the center of attention when your spouse passes away, and suddenly the phone stops ringing. I wanted to let you know that I haven't forgotten you.” Chip Nielsen, a regular on the Bay Area Zoom “luncheons,” emailed: “Sorry to miss the Zoom today. I’m in Cambria CA to see family.” Steve Norman emailed: “Tony, your remembrance of Wanda was the best spousal tribute I’ve ever read. Hope to see you in the Bowl for The Game.” John Podeschi emailed: “Thanks, Tony, for astutely pursuing news of my comic-book ventures. Let me convey to you my sincere condolences over the death of your wife. As we grow old and closer to death ourselves, we are more affected by death and decline in the lives of old friends and schoolmates. I recently visited an old pal of mine, a high-school classmate, who is dying. As we talked of those happy years and our shared experiences, the effect was almost cathartic, not melancholic. When you report the death of a classmate, it is done gracefully, usually evoking for me memories of those ‘bright college years’ that we all shared.” After he read that Yale adopted a policy allowing for student-athletes to profit from their name and image, Dan Pollack emailed: “If you assume we could have been millionaires, then we would have had to have had something of value to sell. As far as I'm concerned, this is not ‘shoulda, coulda, woulda.’ We'll just have to be satisfied with being anonymous.” Earlier, Dan Pollack emailed: “Nancy and I had one of our periodic lunches with Sherry Reum (Bob Reum’s surviving spouse) last week. We've developed a nice friendship. All three of her kids live in LA. She has apartments in downtown Chicago and a home in the western suburbs. We’re driving to Northern Michigan next week to visit Susan and Bob Hannah for our annual mini, mini reunion. We're usually joined by Hannah and Mike Mazer but they're not coming due to COVID concerns.” Dan Pollack added: “If you have not taken the virtual Yale campus tour, please do so. The transformation and growth of the Yale campus is astounding. The Schwarzman Center, former Commons, is incredible.”

Bob Rands, a regular on the Boston-area Zoom luncheons, circulated an interesting article from The Economist about “wage and growth inflation.” Later, Bob Rands emailed: “I was saddened to hear about the recent passing of your wife, Tony. I did not respond sooner because I'm sure your visibility within the Yale community meant that you probably heard from many people. I lost my second wife Jean Barker in 2000 to breast cancer at the age of 47. I took a five-month sabbatical from work to be with her when she came home from the hospital for the last time. Afterwards, my family, our church, and friends took very good care of me. She actually kept worrying about me!!! But summer came and everyone disappeared. That spring I read In Lieu of Flowers by Nancy Cobb. The book highlighted The Sunken Garden Poetry Festival in Farmington CT. I always read a lot of poetry and I thought that it might be a good respite for me. But I knew most of my male friends had very little interest in poetry. But I did remember a talk I had with Amy Roboff at coffee hour after church. She talked about how she and a friend had crashed a Seamus Heaney class at Harvard. I asked my best friend Ron on a long walk in the woods, ‘Should I ask her out?’ He said, definitely. I did, we went, and now we've been married for 18 years. Take advantage of Serendipity.” Jim Rogers emailed: “I have been behind, so am just learning of your loss. It is a shattering event as you well know now. I do remember my father saying to me decades ago that his friends were starting to die. It clearly made an impression since I still remember it. Now it is happening to us, unfortunately.” Francis Snyder emailed: “I know this is a very difficult time for you. You wrote a wonderful obituary about your wife. I was so moved by the knowledge and details and emotion about Wanda and your family. I wish I could participate in the lunches at the YCNYC but this is a bit difficult from France. Perhaps, there are Zoom meetings sometime? Anyway, all this to say that I am interested in participating more in Yale affairs, even at a distance. I tend to be a very private person, partly because I still receive so much work-related email. (I am still teaching, supervising theses, giving guest lectures, etc.) I’ve always hesitated to send you details about everyday life. However, perhaps we learn to share more as we grow older.”

Russell Sunshine, blogger extraordinaire, emailed the Bay Area Zoom group, “I’ll miss the September Zoom, since Nancy and I depart for my 60th high-school class reunion road trip on September 14. Here's hoping that I will be settled back at home by October. In the meantime, I'd love to receive a short essay from one or two classmates for my October 31 blog post.” Roger Thompson, one of the principals on the recent “Yale Canon” Zoom, emailed that the 1964 Whiffenpoofs hold periodic Zoom calls just to check in with each other. After he saw my News post about Chip Thomas’ (son of Stan Thomas) wedding, Pat Caviness emailed: “Thank you for posting the beautiful open-air wedding photos of Chip Thomas’ wedding with you officiating. It must have been a once-in-a-lifetime magic moment. You have been a long-time everlasting friend to Stan and his family, and especially to Chip.” Jim Heyworth added: “Congratulations on being chosen to marry Chip Thomas and his wife to be. It is really nice that you are able to make a difference in Chip’s life. Stan was the best. A very thoughtful and kind man and a super executive and leader. I hope Chip has many of his father’s attributes.” Dan Pollack, another of Stan Thomas’ teammates wrote: “Congratulations on Chip's marriage to Shannon. The announcement, agenda, explanation of how they met, menu, etc. provides one with a true understanding of how special this wedding will be. Your devotion to his family is a wonderful example of the true meaning of ‘friend,’ and how you felt about Chip’s dad, Stan. Have a wonderful time at the wedding. If you do a good job presiding, you may have discovered your next calling.” Dick Niglio added: “Well done, Laves. They couldn’t have picked a better guy to do the deed!” Toby Tompkins emailed: “I was very sorry to hear of Evan Lanman’s death. He was one on my best Saybrook College friends, an immensely talented guy with an ironic sense of humor.” Nancy Upper (surviving spouse of Dennis Upper) thanked me for my infusion of emotion into Class Notes. She emailed: “I think it was George Bernard Shaw who said something like, ‘When you write about one man, you write about every man.’ Your openness touched people personally.” Nancy (a practitioner and student of ballet) also replied to my citation of Jared Carter’s ’61 poem, “After the Rain,” by sending a video of the New York City Ballet dancers performing an excerpt from Christopher Wheeldon's “After the Rain.”

Peter von Mertens emailed: I am not certain that we knew each other at Yale, but I want to thank you for being so open about the death of your wife Wanda. What a lovely warm smile she had, and she contributed so much to so many during her lifetime of meaningful work. And thanks too for being the class secretary. Your personal warmth and openness encourage many of our class to contribute to your excellent notes.” Andy Villalon emailed: “Hello, my cyber-friend. As I said in an earlier email, I am truly sorry for your loss. I am coming up on a 50th wedding anniversary to a lady I met all those years ago in Yale Graduate School. And while we sometimes fight like cats and dogs, I really don't know what I'd do without her. BTW, I am an immense film fan. Have you watched ‘Good Will Hunting’? It is Robin Williams’ best film and one of Matt Damon's best and speaks poignantly to the issue of how one may deal with loss.” Ward Wickwire, our Chair of Alumni Fund Agents, follows the new Jackson Institute School of Global Affairs closely and emailed: “I think Yale is moving to establish Jackson as a major force in the field of foreign-affairs education and research. I think that Yale’s traditions of multiple-discipline education will position it well. I have noticed many graduates of one graduate school getting a simultaneous degree in another (Law and Environment; Health and Law; Business and Foreign Policy). Jackson is a personal interest of mine and I believe will be increasingly popular with students, fellows, and alumni. Jim Levinsohn, the Director of the Jackson Institute, was recently named to a two-year term as President of the Association of Professional Schools of International Affairs (APSIA). The stream of webinars on foreign affairs topics from Jackson continues at the rate of two to four per month.” Joe Wishcamper will miss the Class Council meeting in February 2022 and emailed: “I will be on a plane en route to Columbia that day.” Karl Ziegler emailed: “I thought you’d like to know of George Clooney’s latest movie as director called ‘The Tender Bar’ in which one of the main characters is awarded a full scholarship to Yale which changes his and his family’s life, as was also the case in my life. The film is due for release in December 2021. This news made me realize what a profound effect Yale’s need-blind policy continues to have on qualifying students.”

In our classmate authors group, Timothy Breen had an article in a recent issue of Trend and Tradition: The Magazine of Colonial Williamsburg, titled “American Evolution on Trial: Vanquished British General Demands Justice.” Ron Sipherd wrote a letter to the editor of the Yale Alumni Magazine (September-October issue) about the Yale Trustee election: “Controversy is to be expected on such questions, and debate is healthy.” Frank Basler posted a thoughtful article in his blog with the title “Anxious? Stop Thinking.” On his “Agile Aging” blog, Russell Sunshine posted “Down Memory Lanes,” about his 60th high-school reunion.

Since the previous issue of Class Notes, the deaths of three classmates were reported. Evan Lanman died in May 2021 at his home in Warren PA. Eric also graduated from Yale School of Architecture and later served in the U.S. Army in Vietnam. Nick von Baillou died of COVID-19 complications in July 2021 in an Alabama hospital. His surviving spouse, Vivienne, notified us that there will be a memorial service for Nick in Scottsville VA on November 6. Nick’s roommate, Joe Wishcamper added a touching remembrance on our Class website/In Memoriam. Richard B. (Dick) Ainsworth died on September 3, 2021, in Shaker Heights, OH. Dick was an experienced private investor and a lifelong “political junkie.” See his obituary here. The daughter of Paul Spiegel, who died in December 2020, added wonderful memories about her father, also at In Memoriam. Sam Low emailed: You can honor Andrew Combe — who recently passed away — on the Facebook page the Navy created. We strive to make these In Memoriam pages as meaningful as possible and welcome remembrances from their families and classmates. Chris Getman has a perpetual goal of adding Mory’s Memorial Bricks for all departed classmates, so please consider a donation to this fund. Sam Francis, who tracks the brick fund, added: “Larry Capodilupo just bought another brick for the fund, hoping it doesn’t go to him!” Jan Truebner, a surviving spouse herself, attempts to contact every surviving spouse or family member and invite them to our reunions.