More classmates getting in touch

Bob Van Derhayden and Elaine Holt

Bob VanDerhayden writes:

20 years just outside Scranton, Pennsylvania in a town called Waverly.

Love our big  old farm house... Fish in our pond. Swim in our pool,

hunt in our woods, sled on our hill and enjoy the gracious country life.

Same wife for 43 years.. the former Elaine Holt. NCHS class of 64.

3 children...4 grand children.  Own and operating 10 radio stations

in Northeast Pennsylvania and NY State.

Building a G-scale outdoor garden railroad.

Voice of the New Canaan Rams. This year will be my 52nd  !!!

Survived colon cancer, the gypsy moth infestation and most Democrats.

Still rockin' and rollin' after all these years.

Jim and Judy Johnson Corfield

So sorry I'm not going to make the reunion.  I've been in charge of a quilt show for the last two years and it's the same weekend.  I knew that when I said I'd call people. Anyway, give my regards to everyone.  I'm shocked at the number of people we have lost in the last 10 years.

My last 10 years have been glorious and challenging.  We've had two children married and now have 3 grandchildren.  It's wonderful to have 2 of them close by and calling to visit us.  We've traveled the world with the American Horticultural society as tour leaders but than came to a halt when I was diagnosed with breast cancer 3 years ago.  All is now fine and I'm back to normal.  Five years ago we decided to expand our house since we liked our neighborhood.  It was a good thing since we have first floor living and it has been needed more than once. Other than than the normal aging process and the medical problems than come with it, we've survived nicely.   I am reminded of Vance Packard's comment 10 years ago that "life is a series of inconsequential decisions."  As I think back over the flow of my life, it is really true. Career paths, where you live, close friends, all because of an inconsequential decision.

I wish you all well and hope to read about others as time draws near for the 50th.  If you have a great time, I suppose there will be more.  Keep me posted on the doings, how the events go, and any news that you hear.  Fondly,  Judy

Jan Davis and Sally Ann King

Sally's update:  

Can it possibly be 10 years since our last reunion?  After that reunion Jan Davis followed me home for a visit in Massachusetts.  We stopped along the highway and each ate two hotdogs that were being cooked and given out by local boy scouts.  Do you remember that Jan?  Well, this year we got together and the lunch was double lobsters!

Bruce and I will be married 49 years in December.  Our 9 grandchildren range in age from 5 to 20.  Eight of them are boys.  They all live in Massachusetts so we have had no great desire to move any where else. 

We have become very politically active and I had a great time working on Scott Brown’s campaign. You may recall that he took over “the people’s seat” that Ted Kennedy sat in for so many years.  Bruce likes to say that we moved here when they were importing Republicans but to be honest with you, I am more of a Tea Party grandma right now!

My mother has been living with us for the last 7 years so traveling and other neat stuff has been somewhat limited by our own choice.  She is 98 and unable to live on her own and we are happy  to be able to give her support and care at this time.  We all watch the wild turkeys (22 of them) and enjoy the deer now that they are fenced out from the gardens.  The children and grand children visit often and so our hearts are very much content to be here.

No picture, but here is a letter from Bill Avrett.  Link

A message from Al Holly: We just got back from the hospital. Test results don't look that bad and I will start a new series of chemo with the addition of another drug $300.00 per pill once a day. Thank God for insurance. The IV part will be Mon. and Tues. so we should be able to attend the reunion. I'm sending in the registration today. We are not moving to little Rock. We will just stay there 2 or 3 nights a week during treatments. Hopefully we won't need it for more than a year and we will make it available to other patients that come from all over the country and the world. Hope to see you at the reunion. Al

Ed Note: May I add that Al is really trying to get to this reunion. We all wish him well in this fight.

Pris Spring Roehm, photo taken June 1010 on tour of Germany. Pris can't make it to the reunion: Another decade has passed and many changes have taken place. In 2002 my husband Tom passed away suddenly leaving me with some decisions to be made. After visiting my daughter, son-in-law and 5 year old granddaughter at Christmas, I decided to move out to Santa Clarita, north of Los Angeles where they were living. That meant retiring from teaching, selling my house, and leaving many friends from living 24 years in Jacksonville, FL. The next 2 ½ years were spent enjoying my daughter and being grandmother.

Buying a house with land for their horse was impossible in CA so my daughter and family found a place in Santa Fe, NM. They are both involved in the movie industry which has expanded in New Mexico. What should I do? Their place was 25 miles out of town which didn’t sound so good if I wanted to be involved in church and quilting activities. When I told my sister Phyllis, she said “Why don’t you live with me in Vermont?” I said, “Because it’s cold there!” Her husband had passed away two weeks before Tom so we were both alone. After some thought though, I did decide to move to Vermont. What a wonderful decision! I’ve been here 4 ½ years and except for the cold have loved every minute. I’ve become active in the Quilting Guild and am its Webmaster now (www.cvqgvt.org).

What will the next decade bring?

Nancy Blod Gustafson, from Roscoe, Illinois: 

This is a self-portrait done for one of my continuing photography classes. The lighting is harsh.  For our 60th reunion, I'll definitely use photoshop!

Lauren Dunbar sent these pictures from the Viet Nam memorial. Lauren can't make it to the reunion but sends her greetings to all. She sought out the name of our class VP, Dave Austin.

Charles David Austin

MAJ - O4 - Air Force - Regular

His tour began on Apr 24, 1967

Casualty was on Jun 7, 1978

In , NORTH VIETNAM

Hostile, died while missing, FIXED WING - CREW

AIR LOSS, CRASH ON LAND

Body was not recovered

Brenda Walker Swords with husband Peter, and granddaughter Anjali, in Paris, January 2009. Brenda plans to come to the reunion. Look for her bio somewhere here! Read Brenda's Bio

Dave and Judi Kelsey. Whats to say about us? Happy, healthy, enjoying retirement. 2 kids (and spouses) and 4 grand kids, all live within 7 miles in the Seattle suburbs. We have a home there, and a retreat on an island called Cypress Island, in the US San Juan islands... We spend 3 - 4 months a year there watching killer whales, bald eagles, otters, seals, and an abundance of bird life. We enjoy reading, cooking, genealogy, traveling, and I spend a good deal of time wood carving NW native style art. Life is good.

Click here to see Dave's carvings

A message from Carol Cookie Brown

Bev Byrne Walker sends her bio

A wonderful picture from Chris Chase, looking great at the wedding of Karen's daughter. Chris also sent an update of his life since the year 2000.  Here is Chris's bio:

Don Souden just sent me his personal bio piece: tales of the past 10 years, and included this photo as well. I stand ready to compile all such messages into a booklet for all to share at the reunion. Here is Don's bio

Connie and Bruce Taylor with their oldest grandson, Alex, at his high school graduation (also his eighteenth birthday). Eight more grandchildren coming along nicely. Hallmark must love us.

Here is part of a message from Bruce Taylor, sent to Lissa. I got his permission to post it here on the blog. You may send comments here, or to Bruce directly at brucetaylor1@optonline.net

Connie and I both retired in 2002. We have been enjoying a most satisfying life with family, travel, and creating lots of music with friends in the Walkabout Clearwater Chorus and the Serendipity Chorale.

We did experience tragedy unfortunately, when we lost our son (my step-son) Brad on 9/11. He was the super-star of our family - a straight A student, accomplished athlete, and most successful bank securities trader. Since then we have met many wonderful, supportive people whose families also suffered the loss of loved ones. Together we have been learning how to cope and make the best of our remaining years.

Here is a great picture of Jerry and Signe Mather, "standing in front of their little place in Maine." They had mentioned that some expansion had been done, and well, wow! They are coming to the reunion. Yay!

Dick (aka Mark) Liberatore sent in his picture
He asked that a link to his Youtube site be posted here.  I'll try!
youtube.com/markrichardslv

Dick Liberatore changed his name to Mark Richards in 1982 when he began getting gigs hosting TV game shows. He still owns a successful video production company in Las Vegas specializing in weddings, seminars, corporate events, TV commercials, etc.  He also handle promotions for a local Las Vegas radio station (KNUU/AM 970) and during the evening hours he is busy hosting 15 minute trivia contests in the lounges of many of the major Las Vegas casinos.  Got the gigs when he presented the entertainment directors a DVD of him hosting game shows on the Oprah Winfrey Show, Regis Philbin Show and hosting a rehearsal game of "Jeopardy." You can view these video clips by going to youtube.com/markrichardslv. Dick is still married to Beverly, a former flight attendant with US Air and just celebrated their 15th anniversary on September 9. If anyone from the class of '60 is planning a visit to Las Vegas, contact Dick at 702.274.6275 or e-mail: gameshowcompany@aol.com. Chances are he can arrange some free show ticket for you.

 

Dick (aka Mark Richards)

Here is Dick with wife, Bev

Center School "grads" gather for a picture at 40th reunion

Steve and Carole Richardot Enright
They are "retired and happy," and it shows

Sonja Lystad Heyerdahl came to the US with her husband, Oscar, in June. We coordinated her visit with a get-together honoring my parents' 70th Anniversary.
Harvey Rohde came over and here we are, in New Hampshire.

Our 50th Reunion!

Lissa has suggested the dates of October 8-11 (Columbus Day Weekend, 2010). Please get back to Lissa about this at lissab6@optonline.com