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from our May/June 2017 Class Notes column:
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Our 50th Reunion will be
a full and fun weekend party in Ithaca in just three years! The dates
are June 4-7, 2020. As always, I encourage each of you to check out our
various '70 sites: our class website, cornell70.org; our Face-book page, www.facebook.com/Cornell70;
and our Twitter page, www.twitter.com/CornellClass70. With our milestone
50th approaching, the Class of '70 is looking for classmate volunteers to help with
ALL aspects of our Reunion, both big and small. At least two Reunion
chairs would be great, or we could have a Reunion coordinator working with many
Reunion committee members. There are many aspects of Reunion that will
be planned and prepared before we meet in June 2020: planning meals and menus and
meeting with caterers; picking the campus venues for all events; selecting a Reunion
souvenir (or not!); arranging a unique Class of '70 forum; decorating our Reunion
headquarters; refreshments for headquarters (food and drink); and more! Please let
me know what role you would like to fill, keeping in mind that Cornell's alumni
staff is very organized and incredibly helpful with “everything Reunion”! We will
all work together toward a great Reunion weekend.
During summer 2016, Phil
and Andrea Schwartz (Santa Monica, CA) spent three remarkable weeks exploring
the Scottish Highlands on foot and by car while traveling with two good friends
from the L.A. area. Phil says he shot “way too many images” with his
Nikon. Then in December 2016, they went on a two-week journey to Cambodia
and Vietnam. It included an eight-day cruise on the Mekong River on an
AMA Waterways vessel. Phil reports that it was an eye-opening experience,
though they were not always pleasant sights (e.g., the Killing Fields sites in Cambodia). It
was a genuine exposure to life in Southeast Asia. They explored small
fishing and farming villages, met hospitable people everywhere, and visited many
historically significant places. The food in Vietnam was fabulous. Ho
Chi Minh City (formerly Saigon) is a huge metropolis of 11 million people and eight
million motorbikes, all on the streets at the same time! Phil continues
teaching cinematography, as an adjunct, at the U. of Southern California and Cal
State, Long Beach three days a week. He says that his life is full and
completely enjoyable between travel, teaching responsibilities, preparing a photography
book, and enjoying their grandchildren. Sounds delightful! He
recently started working on his coffee table book, selecting images that he has
shot all over the world since 1973. Phil would enjoy hearing from his
Cornell friend Marty Goldstein '69, DVM '73. George Staller, PhD '59,
his professor in his senior Economics seminar, had a great influence on Phil when
we were on the Hill.
...Please read this notice. [read the whole
column on the
Cornell Library's eCommons website]
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from our March/April 2017 Class Notes column:
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Time is moving along quickly,
as always. But does it seem faster these past several years? Our
big 50th Reunion is now just over three years away. The dates are June
4-7, 2020. As always, I encourage each of you to check out our various
'70 sites: our class website, www.cornell70.orgwww.cornell70.org;
our Facebook page, www.facebook.com/Cornell70;
and our Twitter page, www.twitter.com/CornellClass70.
Joli Adams recently retired
and had surgery to get her legs working better so she can really get started on
the retirement adventure! She hopes to hear from classmates and friends. Joli
tells us that she is grateful for the reconnection with Linda Jackson, MA
'73, in her last decade. Sadly, Linda passed away on July 29, 2014. Joli
says there were many people at Cornell who had a great impact on her; however, years
after leaving Cornell she discovered that one professor in particular, Eric Blackall,
influenced her graduate work. Prof. Blackall saved Austrian dramatist
Arthur Schnitzler's papers from Vienna during the Nazi occupation in 1938, making
it possible for her to study them. She says he gave the best analysis
she's heard as to what makes the most sense for academics during social crisis. This
was related to the weeks surrounding the Straight takeover in April 1969. Blackall
held class as usual, and the issues were discussed.
James Collyer is doing
some freelance consulting while tending to a couple of not-for-profit projects. His
two daughters are blasting through high school, with the older one soon to be off
to college in early fall. Both she and her younger sister have their
eyes on a Big Red prize. When asked is there anything else he wishes
he could be doing, James replied, “Living in an Asian megalopolis (now 20 years
on) is too removed from nature. More would be welcome and is frequently
the target of an occasional flight to the outer islands.â€
...Please read this notice. [read the whole
column on the
Cornell Library's eCommons website]
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from our January/February 2017 Class Notes column:
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First, I am sending my very
best wishes to all my fellow classmates and friends for a wonderful New Year. May
2017 be a year that brings each of you good health, happiness, and a big portion
of fun as well. Second, as always, I encourage each of you to check out
our various '70 sites: our class website,
cornell70.org; our Facebook page, www.facebook.com/Cornell70; and our Twitter page,
www.twitter.com/CornellClass70. Third,
I would like to correct information I included in the Sept/Oct column. Mina
Dulcan's correct and current e-mail address is: m-dulcan@northwestern.edu.
In early spring 2016, Tom '69 and Jean Myers Smith, MS '72 (Glen Allen, VA; jean.smith48@gmail.com)
moved from Baltimore to the Richmond, VA, area to be near two of their grandchildren
who are now 4 and 6-1/2. Their youngest grandson, who will be 4 this
June, lives in Upstate New York with his Cornell parents, Chris '04 and Emily Smith
DeBolt '04. Grandpa Tom would like to be doing more fly-fishing. Phillip Sperry and
his wife, Lorelei, live in Bloomington, IN, where they maintain their rentals, tend
their flower gardens and orchard, and attend to their doggies and birds.
They visit their children as often as possible as well. Phillip says
he fishes every day. They vacation twice a year in Palm Beach, FL, and
also spend a week in the mountains of Tennessee. Along with weekend sailing
on Lake Michigan, they attend an annual family reunion in Ohio. In fall
2016, the big event was a 50th high school reunion. Phillip does admit
that he would like to be taking more naps. He also says that he would
like to hear from any football teammates.
...Please read this notice. [read the whole
column on the
Cornell Library's eCommons website]
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from our November/December 2016 Class Notes column:
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As the year 2016 draws to
a close, we have witnessed possibly the most unusual and tumultuous presidential
election in our lifetime. I am writing this column two months before
Election Day and you may be reading it before the voting has been completed! Best
wishes to you all for a joyous and blessed holiday season followed by a happy and
healthy 2017. Good news from
Fred Piscop: this past August he became the new editor of the USA Today
crossword! Paul
and Betsy Reed Guthrie (Novato, CA) are now retired together, and
their first big outing�while they could still camp and hike�was to southern
Utah. In December 2014, Betsy retired from Autodesk (a 3D graphics company),
where she was a program manager. Betsy says that choosing Cornell instead
of a women�s college was one of her best decisions. "It plunged me into a new
world from my tiny high school and helped me grow up." Simon & Garfunkel
at Barton was her favorite concert while we were at Cornell. Sharon Gerl,
Sharon Huey Persbacker, and Betsy get together every few years to ski and
visit. James Mackerer (Hudson, NY) has retired from his position
as senior VP of commercial lending from Kinderhook Bank. He now serves
as chairman of the Columbia County Industrial Development Agency and the Columbia
County Capital Resource Corp. Ellen Saltonstall lives in New York
City, where she has been teaching yoga and Bodymind Ballwork for more than 45 years. She
has also written two books and has two more in progress. Ellen's
decision to balance work and family creatively was one of her best, she says. She
has three children and three grandchildren. Her favorite concert at Cornell
was the Rose Ensemble, which she attended when her son was a student there.
...Please read this notice. [read the whole
column on the
Cornell Library's eCommons website]
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click here to see excerpts of earlier Class Columns
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