CURRENT ISSUE | SUBSCRIBE | ADVERTISE | WRITE TO US | CORNELL AUTHORS | PAST ISSUES
| JAN./FEB. 2004 VOLUME 106 NUMBER 4 | Class Notes |
26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 31 | 32 | 33 | 34 | 35 | 36 | 37 | 38 | 39 |
31 | “The best laid plans o’ mice and men gang aft agley” (or something close to that). The Class of ’31’s lifelong, very highly honored planner of the lives and fortunes of his insurance clients, our recent vociferous advocate of “Live to be 100”—and attend our 80th Reunion—our vigorous promoter of healthful activities such as tennis and kick-boxing to achieve that goal, and our respected and admired class officer and agent for the Cornell Fund Ed Mintz (Edward J.) has been frustrated by the wisdom contained in the line from the old Scots poet. On an October visit to Ithaca for the inauguration of Cornell’s new president, Jeffrey Lehman ’77, I was overwhelmed by the belated news from a California friend, Jim Stocker ’51, that Ed had died suddenly nearly a month before on Sept. 23. Jim said that the “Celebration of Life” services for Ed were a fitting tribute to a life of service—and of amusement and pleasure—to humanity. Ed wanted those extra years only to continue to serve and give pleasure. We are the losers for having lost him. His wife Dorothy, who came with Ed to many of our reunions, survives at the retirement community to which they had recently moved (1840 Tice Creek Dr., Apt. 2447, Walnut Creek, CA 94595).
I received a nice letter from Ben Hertzberg (The Pierre, #1207, 795 Fifth Ave., NYC 10021), who appears to be actually doing what we all should be doing, but are probably putting off till tomorrow. He has been going through his files, albums, scrapbooks, and collection boxes and disposing of the contents. He sent me a couple of clips from past issues of this magazine’s Class Notes. Mostly sad reminders of old friends no longer with us! The best material, however, he has sent where it may do some good—to Cornell and to his other alma mater, the Harvard Business School. Most such institutions and organizations now have “Archive” departments that are eager to receive your memorabilia, no matter how personal and irrelevant to the institution’s history it may appear to be to you. It’s better to let the experts at the institution decide what to throw out, than to leave it to some descendant in the harried moments of “settling your affairs.”
Jerry Finch, PhD ’36 (Jeremiah S., 3110 Monroe Village,Monroe Township, NJ 08831- 1918), our English major and longtime professor and dean at Princeton, is one who has evidently been doing the same as Ben, with the help of his daughter Anne Finch-Fakundiny ’64. (Good idea! Get your family involved! They will know what to save for a “family archive.”) Anne sent Cornell a copy of a poem Jerry wrote in 1938, which, as she says, “speaks for all Cornellians,” not just ’31.
When the friendship between us is broken,
When the pathways of life are apart,
When the last word of cheer has been spoken,
When the years will have hardened my heart,
Though we meet not together hereafter,
Though the music of youth becomes still,
There will ring again echoes of laughter
In memory of days on the Hill.
v Bill Vanneman, 237 N. Main St. #250, S. Yarmouth, MA 02664-2088; tel., (508) 760-4250; e-mail, ggrampi@gis.net.
32 | Beatrice Greenfield Maslow writes that she and Will ’29 celebrate their 70th anniversary this year and adds that they “thank Cornell for introducing us.” Both are retired, visiting doctors, trying to set geriatric records, enjoying friends, movies, and museums, and living at 401 E. 86th St., NYC 10028. They have two daughters, Laura, an attorney in Boston, and Catha, a family therapist in Warwick, NY. The family members are numerous and all seem to be engaged in interesting activities. These include a great-granddaughter whose parents live in Paris and who, at the age of 1-1/2, has crossed the Atlantic six times to see Bibi and Will.
Recently I have been driven by pressure from many quarters to get involved with the email set. So far I have made a few tentative steps, but am timid about wading in too far, as I mess up a lot. When I sent my e-mail address to walfenn@aol.com (aka Walt Deming), bfalk @4.net (aka Ben Falk) and wdmull@axs2000. net (aka Whitey Mullestein), I received electronic congratulations from Walt and Ben. Perhaps one from Whitey is buried in my machine’s memory, which is a lot better than mine, but I won’t know for sure until my computer tutor pays her next visit.
Ben Falk’s message included one he received from an acquaintance, which, Ben assures me, relates an actual happening. Someone’s grandaunt died and several months later a bank wrote dunning letters because the deceased had failed to notify them that she was closing the account and, therefore, owed several months of service charges. A good deal of communication between the bank and Ben’s acquaintance ensued, during which the bank pointed out that the deceased lady’s delinquency might impair her credit rating. The grand-nephew asked whether an address would help. The bank thought it might help, but later pointed out that the address provided was a cemetery plot. That apparently was unsatisfactory. I don’t know how this matter has been resolved, but perhaps Ben will let me know as soon as he finds out.
The Buffalo News recently carried an article about the falls of Ithaca. It was written by Bob Downing of Knight Ridder newspapers and included a few facts that I did not previously know. For instance: there are more than 150 waterfalls within a 10-mile radius of Ithaca; Buttermilk is 150 ft. high; Taughannock Falls, with a 215-ft. drop, is the highest in the northeast. Mr. Downing gives an excellent description of Robert H. Treman State Park (which includes Enfield Glen) Buttermilk Falls State Park, and a few other memorable places. I have wonderful memories of all these lovely locations and of the fun we had swimming at the foot of Buttermilk when we should have been studying for our final examinations. v Jim Oppenheimer, 140 Chapin Pkwy., Buffalo, NY 14209-1104.
33 | We received sad news from Valerie Apter that her husband and our Class of ’33 president passed away on September 29 in his home in Peoria, AZ. “It seems that the 70th Reunion at Cornell was a promise Nat made to himself to attend. After we returned home he started to go downhill.”He was suffering from leukemia.We remember him as a gentle, wise man whose words to us were helpful and interesting always. “He practiced psychiatry and neurology at the U. of Chicago Medical Center for 46 years. He was also the 101st President of the Literary Club of Chicago. After retiring from medicine he moved to Dania, FL, and studied oceanography at Nova U., where he specialized in snail research and became a leading authority on them. He is survived by his loving wife Valerie, daughter Teri of Cambridge, England, stepdaughter Jessie of Fredericksburg, VA, five grandchildren, and six great-grandchildren. He had a wonderful smile and loved life. He will be greatly missed.” 8435 West Paradise Lane #321, Peoria, AZ 85382.
Our Treasurer Ted Tracy (111 Burlingame Rd., Syracuse, NY 13203-1604) has had a trying time with a new knee. It became infected and will probably be replaced with another knee.
Your secretary also is ailing. He lost consciousness on the streets of Cambridge and found himself in the Cambridge Hospital. Evidently his high blood pressure pills were acting too well as depressants, lowering his pulse rate. He spent five days in the hospital being adjusted to new pills and a pacemaker to give him stability, and is up and around but weak. Please send news to v Rev.Henry E.Horn, 47-1 Trowbridge St., Cambridge, MA 02138.
34 | In looking through the Communiqué magazine, I found a lovely article about Eloise Conner Bishop. It tells all about her life and doings, and I suggest that you read it. So much of what happened 34As I write these notes in mid- October 2003, Cornell University is inaugurating its new President, Jeffrey Lehman ’77, the first Cornell undergrad to be so honored.
When we entered Cornell back in 1930, Livingston Farrand was our president, a very dignified and distinguished figure around the campus. Since Dr. Farrand, over 70 years ago, there have been seven other Cornell presidents up to and including Dr. Lehman. The Class of ’34, from its beginning in fall of ’30 up to now, has seen Cornell through its greatest period of development and growth. And the Class of ’34 has been an integral part of this growth.
Recently I had a nice call from Eddie Borjesson. He still flies from his home in New Jersey to South America where he has some business interests. Eddie lost his wife recently, after a long and devoted life together. Our deepest sympathy goes out to him and his family. Eddie reports that he fully expects to be in Ithaca for our 70th on June 10-13, 2004!
Word from Ed McCabe comes from his summer home in the lovely rustic town of Worcester, NY, just off Rt. 88 in mid-New York State. Ed moves in late October to elegant Del Ray Beach, where he whiles away his winters.
The only other class news is that my wife of some 66 years fell in October and broke her hip. After surgery and a brief hospital stay, Anne is now back at our retirement community center, where she is getting good rehab care. She is recovering well. You might say that a class correspondent has to go to some lengths to create class news!
Please send news of yourselves to make life easier for Eleanor Mirsky Bloom and myself! And please plan to attend our 70th Reunion. A grand finale is planned and we want a great turnout. See you there! v Bill Robertson, 143 Rivermead Rd., Peterborough, NH 03458; tel., (603) 924-8654.
In looking through the Communiqué magazine, I found a lovely article about Eloise Conner Bishop. It tells all about her life and doings, and I suggest that you read it. So much of what happened in her life could relate to all of us who were “Depression children.”
Alice Goulding Herrmann called from Connecticut. She has as many aches and pains as is usual, but her head is working full-time. Fortunately, she is allowed to have her cat live with her—and cats can be good company. Alice keeps in touch with Eleanor Clarkson, who continues to be active with her church work.
Winnie Loeb Saltzman keeps on doing interesting things, and is a constant participant in Adult University (CAU). Good for you! Bill Robertson’s letter about the ultimate resolution of our class is a gem—and so well thought out.
I mentioned that Alice Herrmann has a cat. I have always had animals (plural), and when my last cat died at 18, the vet handed me a 3-year-old Calico whom I named Enough Already. That sounds unkind, but she is great company.
The work at the Botanic Garden never ends, and I put in two or three days there that are tremendously rewarding.No brain power needed—just good physical work in good company. Have a Happy and Healthy New Year. v Eleanor “Dickie”Mirsky Bloom, 463 77th St., Brooklyn, NY 11209; tel., (718) 836-6344.
35 | We were fortunate recently in meeting in New York City with other alumni, including our new university president Jeffrey Lehman ’77, who reviewed with us his hopes and plans for the future. These covered a broad spectrum and should be well received.When you read this column, the New Year will be with you, and I wish each of you all the best in 2004.
Carlton Talcott, who has been on the rolls as a “Bad Address” for many years, has reappeared, we are happy to report, in Lakeland, FL, where he moved from Ithaca in 1952. Upon graduating from Cornell, he trained at GLF and became chief accountant and office manager of the Chemical Division in Ithaca. In Lakeland, he was employed by International Minerals and Chemical Corp., a miner of phosphates, where he spent a very successful career, retiring in 1975. His wife Mary Louise, also retired, was personnel manager at GTE in Lakeland. The Talcotts have three sons who were born in Ithaca and five grandchildren with multiple college degrees. They volunteer in the hospital auxiliary and at church, and Carl coaches baseball teams. They enjoy square-dancing and coin collecting.
Eleanor Smith Allen of 10209 Keeping Drive NW, Albuquerque, NM, writes that she vacations at home and spends much of her time enjoying her four children, six grown grandchildren, and three great-grandchildren. Ruth Tachna has recently moved from the east coast of Florida to 4540 Bee Ridge Rd., #418, Sarasota, FL, and has joined the local Cornell Club. She is a retired lawyer and law professor whose deceased spouse Paul Bauman was a classmate at Columbia Law School. She has daughter Dr. Leslie Levy, son Lionel Bauman, four grandchildren, and five great-grandchildren. Ruth is pictured and quoted at length in the pamphlet “Talking with Women of Columbia Law School,” which celebrated the 75th anniversary of the admission of women to Columbia Law School. She also teaches “Writing Your Memoirs for the Benefit of Your Children and Grandchildren.” Last year she took writing classes in St. Petersburg, Russia. Currently, she attends exercise classes three or four times a week. I am glad to hear that you are so busy, Ruth.
Hambleton Palmer and wife Eva of Severna Park,MD, are retired and travel a lot. Last spring France, then Alaska, and this March to Holland, Belgium, and England to see the gardens and all that walking. They still judge sailing regattas in the Chesapeake and are active in church groups. I’m glad to learn that you’re still sailing. Dr. Henry Berkan of Floral Park, NY, retired in 1998 and celebrated his 60th wedding anniversary in 2003 with wife Ernestine. They have three daughters and three granddaughters. Henry writes that his father graduated from Cornell in 1907. In earlier years they traveled extensively on more that 15 European and Caribbean cruises. Now he enjoys painting, piano, and his computer.
Our acting class secretary Florence DeRemer writes from her home on Ellis Hollow Rd. in Ithaca that she visits classmates and other Cornellians who are living in Kendal at Ithaca. She is active in the Presbyterian Church and in the Service League. Last fall she traveled to the Great Lakes, Soo Locks, and Mackinaw Island. She enjoys duplicate bridge and daily walks at the crack of dawn. Good-bye until next time. Don’t forget to send News. v Albert G. Preston Jr., 252 Overlook Dr., Greenwich, CT 06830; email, davada35@aol.com.
36 | Hello, again. This column is going to be different from the previous ones for one simple reason —all of you seem to have taken a vacation from sending in anything for me to use. I hope that this isn’t habit-forming and that you will favor the rest of us with news about yourself, more of the bios that were all so interesting, or even comments that you may have on things past or present at Cornell. In that vein, the following two items, one about the present, the other about the distant past, will be of interest.
The latest issue of Cornell Engineer announced that Ronald R. Kline, professor of electrical and computer engineering and of science and technology studies, has been elected the first holder of the Sue G. and Harry E.Bovay Jr. Professor in the History and Ethics of Professional Engineering, endowed with a gift from Harry Bovay and his wife Sue. In the early 1990s, an endowment from the Bovays established at Cornell the Bovay Program for the Study of the History and Ethics of Professional Engineering. The new Chair will become part of a campuswide initiative that is teaching ethics throughout the disciplines, funded through a grant from the Pew Charitable Trusts.We are reminded almost daily of the need for an appreciation of ethics in business and the professions, and we congratulate Harry on this significant contribution.
Now, about the past. Most of us will remember that in 1939 our football team traveled to Columbus, OH, where they received national attention by beating Ohio State—newsworthy because, as you will also remember, four years earlier our ’36 team had tied one game (Columbia) and lost all the rest. I recently found a clipping of a column by Richards Vidmer from the Nov. 21, ’39 issue of the New York Herald Tribune which begins, “Cornell is being hailed as the outstanding football team in the East, one of the outstanding leaders in the country, and up at Ithaca they are making the most of it.” He continues, “It wasn’t so long ago that Gil Dobie took a Cornell team to Dartmouth under different circumstances. Arriving the afternoon before the game [in those days it was about a 24-hour train ride from Ithaca to Hanover, so we left Ithaca on Thursday afternoon], he assembled his squad and told them there would be no practice that afternoon. ‘There’s nothing you can learn in 24 hours that will help any, but I do want you to feel at home and not get excited by your surroundings, so we’ll just take a stroll over to the field.’
“They straggled over to the gridiron and Dobie waved his arm at the white-stripped rectangle. ‘Well, there’s the field and that’s where you will be playing tomorrow. Look around and get used to it. The stands will be filled with people. I want you to feel at home.’He led them out onto the field and pointed to the ground. ‘There’s the 40-yard line. That’s where Dartmouth will kick off from if they win the toss. I want you to get familiar with all these things. Now come on down here.’ He marched them down to the other end of the field. In the shadows of the goal post he halted and waited until every man on the squad had gathered around him. Then he pointed to the ground again and in solemn tones said: ‘There’s the 5-yard line. Look at it very closely and feel at home, because that’s where you’re going to be all afternoon!’ ”
That’s a true story, as I was there to hear it, and basically he was correct—they beat us 41-6. We had a great bunch of fellows on that team, but they were not outstanding football players, under a coach who was out of touch with the way the game was then being played. That all changed within the next four years under Carl Snavely, who made the most of such players on our freshman team as Brud Holland ’39, MS ’41.
As Dean Martin used to sing, “Memories are made of this.” Send me some . . . or whatever else you would care to. v Bill Hoyt, 8090 Oakmont Dr., Santa Rosa, CA 95409; subilhoyt@aol.com.
37 | There is not too much that Bob Rosevear and I can write about, since we have not heard from you folks recently. Last fall, our loyal and faithful co-presidents Ed and Doris Thompson Shineman sent out a letter reminding everyone about “News and Dues,” and we’re looking forward to having your updates forwarded to us shortly from Alumni House. Your dues include a subscription to Cornell Alumni Magazine, and your news helps us write this column. If you haven’t done so yet, we hope you will send reports to us of interesting events in your lives, along with your class dues.
As for me, I am on my way for a week in Las Vegas with my two daughters! As for all of you, keep well and enjoy every day. Best wishes to all. v Selma Block Green, 15 Weaver St., Scarsdale, NY 10583; tel., (914) 472-0535; and Robert A. Rosevear, 2714 Saratoga Rd. N., DeLand, FL 32720-1403.
38 | Mabel Levy Gerhart, MA ’39, recently sent news from her home in Perkasie, PA: “Sorry I didn’t get to Reunion, but I didn’t want to take the ride alone and didn’t know of anyone in the area who was going. Recently returned from a trip to Italy again, to Lakes Garda and Como, both just as beautiful as ever and the weather played along with us—perfectly gorgeous.We stayed at Bellagio and Torri del Benaco, also drove through the Dolomites, which were, as they always are, spectacular in the evening sunset.We stayed in a lovely little town called Corvara at the Romantik Hotel La Perla, and in Brixen at the Hotel Elefant, also a lovely place. We spent the last three days in Milan at the Grand Hotel Duomo and enjoyed our last dinner in the roof garden restaurant with the gorgeous view to the illuminated cathedral on a beautiful moonlit night. Although we’ve both been to Italy several previous times, for some reason this trip seemed especially special, perhaps because the weather was just so perfect every day for the whole two weeks. The summer here in Pennsylvania was very strange and unusual this year, as I guess it was in many places, from what I’ve heard. Very, very wet and damp and humid.My flowers amounted to nothing—a real disaster. So now I’m out in the yard getting things tidied up for the new year. I’ll soon be real deep in leaves. I have about a three-acre plat and much is woods and lawn, so I have my work cut out for me, but wonderful mulch for rhodies and azaleas.”
From California, Irving Sarnoff, MD ’42 (Roslyn Heights, NY) wrote about his activities in the Golden State: “I retired from the practice of medicine in 1986.We spend our winters in La Jolla, CA, where our son Bob ’70 lives, and with our daughter Karen Sarnoff Davidson ’66 in Santa Barbara. Travel, tennis, and INDOLENCE take up much of life, but we enjoy it.”
Another classmate sending news from California is Olof Dahlstrand, BArch ’39 (Carmel, CA): “I’m still actively painting and drawing. A work of mine is currently hung in a juried art exhibit at the Monterey Museum of Art—a thousand entries, sixty accepted. The City of Carmel calls on me now and then for advice on zoning, land use, and other matters. Lucia and I still go wilderness camping (tent, sleeping bags on the ground, haul in our own food and water, don’t see a soul for a week) in the backroads areas of the West— wonderful subjects for my art. Health still good, but I’m becoming more bionic with each passing year. It must be the scotch that keeps things going.”
Last, but certainly not least, Bernard Gatlir wrote in with wonderful news: “I can only add that we celebrated our 62nd anniversary in August of 2003. Still going strong!” Let’s all keep going strong in the New Year. v Class of ’38, c/o Cornell Alumni Magazine, 55 Brown Rd., Ithaca, NY 14850-1247; e-mail, cornell_magazine@cornell.edu; or Helen Reichert Chadwick, 225 N. Second St., Lewiston, NY 14092.
39 | It’s hard to imagine your reading this column in January, when we are enjoying a pleasant October week filled with events on campus celebrating the inauguration of our new president, Jeffrey Lehman ’77. There are special lectures, campus-wide parties, and even a new flavor of ice cream from the Cornell Dairy in honor of the occasion.
This is the third inauguration since we returned to Ithaca, and it has been fascinating to watch how each president has put his own personal stamp on the development of Cornell: President Rhodes, a geologist, and President Rawlings, a classics scholar, instituted major changes in campus life, housing, and curriculum, among other things. Now, President Lehman, a legal scholar and a former Cornellian, will probably swing Cornell in a different direction to suit the economic changes that are occurring in our national life. Never a dull moment on this campus!
Major changes: the university is planning to move some of its offices to downtown Ithaca near the Commons, in a new office building to be constructed; and the dormitories on Stewart Avenue will be razed and new buildings erected that will facilitate the new program of residential colleges for upperclass men and women, including their own dining and classroom facilities and faculty residences, with the purpose of creating more opportunities for communal study, discussion, and student and faculty interchange. The plan is to build one residential hall at a time over a period of years. It sounds like a hybrid of the English system to me.
With our upcoming 65th Reunion looming, we need to think seriously about what should be done with whatever funds will remain in our treasury, and give the university a written direction for Alumni House to follow by the 70th Reunion. Apparently, we should have developed a plan after our 50th Reunion, which we never did, leaving the treasury in the capable hands of Bill Fuerst, MS ’61.When you all come back to Ithaca in June (and we all hope for that), please be prepared to offer your suggestions to the university: 1) leave the remainder to our Remembrance Garden at the Plantations; 2) add it all to our Tradition Scholarship fund; 3) divide it in half, each of the above receiving half; or 4) doing something entirely different with the remainder. We will need you to help your class officers decide. It is your money. As you can see, I have run out of class news sent me last fall, and I am hoping you will fill up my mail box to last me another year.May I wish all of you a happy and healthy 2004. v Ruth Gold Goodman, 103 White Park Rd., Ithaca, NY 14850; e-mail, bg11@cornell.edu.