Class Notes, November/December 2021
By John M. PinneyA year ago, I commented on the cancellation of our 2020 class dinner and expressed some optimism about the coming year. No doubt things are better now, just not better enough to hold our 2021 class dinner. On the bright side, our monthly Zoom program continues to feature excellent speakers and consistently high attendance, thanks to the dedication of the Y65 Zoom team (Roscoe, Mack, and Hammond) aided by a growing number of classmates who serve as moderators. The September installment with Karl Marlantes (Y’67) was especially engaging, given the recent withdrawal from Afghanistan, as the discussion focused on “Lessons from Vietnam.” The August session, “Our Aging Eyes,” offered more practical observations from our distinguished ophthalmologists, Lee Jampol and Bill Quayle. Lee and Bill provided us with valuable information as we all face age-related eye conditions such as macular degeneration, cataracts, glaucoma, and diabetes. Both sessions were recorded and can be viewed on our website yale65.org.
Brief notes: Suzanne (LaPrade) Haaland married Bill Broaddus, a longtime friend, on June 19 and they paid us a delightful visit on July 23 en route back to Kilmarnock, Virginia. Another visit brought Dan and Monette O’Grady to this area as they celebrated their wedding anniversary with a stay at the Inn at Perry Cabin, our local resort of renown. We dined with them at the home of mutual friends and achieved a balance of Yale talk and reminiscences of Dan’s and our host’s time together at Marriott Corp. Please keep St. Michaels in mind as you traverse the mid-Atlantic. Bob Woodward is garnering national attention with the publication of his latest book, Peril, detailing the last days of the Trump presidency. Bob and coauthor Robert Costa were the featured guests on The Late Show with Steven Colbert. While I couldn’t stay awake to watch, I did record it and found it particularly interesting that after all he’s seen of the inner turmoils of successive presidencies, Bob was shocked at what they found and published.
Seth Hoyt reports that he has relocated to “Stonington, Connecticut, not too far from where two of my three daughters and their families live. I’m a go-to chauffeur now, accomplished dog walker, and a cheery neighbor! Jim and Margot Butler paid me a visit not long ago. Ditto, Jon Ingham. Stonington is 45 minutes from Providence, where the Schencks and Prestons live. I helped Holly and John celebrate their 48th anniversary over dinner in some yummy French restaurant where the Schencks know everyone, and all staff know John and Holly. Just a couple of days ago Stan and Doozle Trotman were in Weekapaug, Rhode Island, and I joined them for dinner there.” Seth also reported on a “mini mini-reunion” at Mory’s: “Classmate George Michas put together lunch at Mory’s, with Joel and Barbara Papernik, Dave and Stephanie Williams, and Jim and Margot Butler. The brass plaque in honor of Stan Trotman’s dad, Stan Sr. Y’34, was nailed to the booth/table in which we just happened to be seated. Inter-generational serendipity. Pinney observed that we septuagenarians had clearly grown in wisdom and judgment as there was no green cup in evidence on the Trotman table.” A picture is posted on our website.
In other news, Lee Lundy wrote: “After a short period of focused deliberation but lots of thinking about it, Nancy and I have moved from Arizona to Greenwich, Connecticut. There were several reasons; chief among them was the fact that we were two 70-plusers thousands of miles from family. We are now in a co-op in Greenwich, waiting for the movers to arrive.” Also on the move, Landon (Bunky) and Diane Carter “said goodbye to the rainbows of New Zealand and boarded our Air New Zealand flight back to California. It was the first time we had to wear a mask. We are grateful to be back home at our sweet farm in Northern California and to hug family again.” And Hugh Levick’s Hear Now held its 10th annual festival of new music by contemporary Los Angeles composers online on September 23–26, and October 1–3.
There were two memorial services for departed classmates held since the last notes. Bob Leich reported on the service for Bill Christian: “Barbara Zimmerman, Bill’s widow, hosted a memorial service for Bill at the Shakespeare Club in Pasadena on Saturday, August 14, under beautiful sunny California skies. Yale ’65ers in attendance were: Bob Leich and Jay Lavely who drove up from West L.A., Sam Bruttomesso from Malibu, Dan Dennison who took the train from San Diego, Steve Huntington from Philadelphia, and Chris Cooke from Anchorage. It was a beautiful service followed by lunch. There were several speakers, one of whom was Chris, who concluded with a touching song about friendship and loss.” And I, along with nearly two dozen classmates, attended the memorial for Jeff Miller in Darien on September 21. It was a touching and appropriate celebration of our “Class Secretary Emeritus” whose dedication to our class, and whose natural good nature and positive attitude, continue to be an inspiration, especially in these difficult times.
I look forward to happier gatherings in the coming months and hope you will all stay safe. Having proved a poor prognosticator, I can only wish that as soon as circumstances permit, we will be convening in many venues, large and small.