1964
Barbara Maly Fish
919-688-9125
Barb2fish@yahoo.com

I send the sympathy of the class to Debby Parker Hamilton, whose husband Tim died on July 2, 2017 after a battle with pancreatic cancer. Debby and Tim had been married for 54 years. Another recent widow in our class, Ann McMillan Shuman, has sold her Pittsburgh area home of 40 years and moved to Delray Beach, FL to be more helpful to her daughter’s family. She enjoys being near her grandchildren, Shane 9 and Sadie 7. Ann’s first social activity in FL was lunch with her sophomore French House roommate, JoAnn Winer Sutton, who lives in Boca Raton. Ann’s lunch with JoAnn was not the only recent mini-reunion. Marta Schneebeli Johnson visited Ruth Fredericks Frey at Ruth’s new home in Cambria, CA; Karen Kuechenmeister Lehrhaupt and Debby Parker Hamilton got together at the beach in NC; and Kate Jenks Powell, Darlene “Cookie” Johnson Bolig, Sandy Borrelli Ricci, and I convened in Bay Head, NJ. All of these should whet your appetite for our big 55th Hood Reunion in June 2019. Traveling to SC recently with her yoga group, Lynn Byers Gorz planned to visit Ellie Berklite Harris. Unfortunately, Ellie and husband Al were on their way to England, but they left behind a pass enabling Lynn’s group to have lunch at the Ocean Club on Kiawah Island. Just before the trip to SC, Lynn and her grandson Aaron visited New York City as guests of her daughter and son-in-law. They attended a performance of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, which Lynn described as “a wonderful theatrical experience.” Back home in KY, Lynn is busy with taking care of her local grand boys one day a week, plus doing lots of quilting. She has had two successful knee surgeries and is ready for more travel, even though husband Ken says no more travel for him. After living in Chesterfield, VA for 20 years, Martha Grove Whiteside persuaded her husband Steve to move close to one of their daughters. They have been in Gettysburg, PA since 2016 and are loving it. The Whitesides now have easy access to their three grandchildren, one of whom is an excellent soccer player. He is trying out for the semi-pro team that plays at Hood and will go to Sweden with the Frederick Traveling Team this summer. Martha and Steve also own a condo in Fort Myers, FL, where they go in the winter and spend time with their other daughter who works in fashion. Congratulations to Carol Hottenstein Parker, an avid bridge player, who recently became an American Contract Bridge League Life Master. Those of you who play bridge know that this is a very big deal! Carol and her husband are very serious about checking items off their bucket lists: they have visited all 50 of the state capitol buildings and now they are visiting presidential birthplaces, homes, or libraries. My request for news caught Susan Lyeth Sternfeld as she was about to leave for England with her son Brian. To celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary, Susan and husband Joe planned a major family reunion in the New Forest. Their cohousing community in Cambridge, MA will celebrate its 20th year of existence this year, which will involve more festivities. Always working to improve their Spanish, the Sternfelds recently visited Cuba and Mexico. Back home, Susan creates landscape wall quilts, putting to good use that 7th grade sewing class she took just a few years ago. While Susan was headed to the U.K., Judi Coombs Creighton and husband Bob were coming back. They spent a week in Scotland with their son Alex and his son Brooks. Alex, an orthopedic surgeon who cares for the UNC football, basketball, and women’s soccer teams, attended a conference, while Judi and Bob entertained Brooks. Judi says, “What a gift of great worth to have time with your adult child and a grandchild whom you do not see very often.” After Alex and Brooks went home, Judi and Bob spent 10 days touring Ireland to try to locate Bob’s ancestral homes in the areas of Lough Neagh and Coleraine. Judi keeps in regular contact with Susan “Eloise” Varney Rauth, who is fine except for some dental repair work. Judi and Eloise very much miss Sue Sterner, who died more than a year ago. Judi advises, “Keep your loved ones close and tell them how important they are to you.”