167th Column
167th Column. Labor Day, 1 Sep. Time is now for attacking this labor of love. The masthead above has our new address and telephone (the latter may change, trying Comcast my internet service provider for phone service, but not all that happy with the VOIP service). We moved to Goodwin House Alexandria on 22 Aug. GHA is a lifetime care retirement community. We plan to move to a larger apartment when the waiting list permits. This is great place, but thus far the food ranks below Washington Hall of our cadet days. Perhaps I am afflicted with rosy memories of our youth.
From ’59 Scribe Joe Coreth’s class notes in Jul-Aug for those who might have missed this info: “Mary Callaghan, Bill’s wife died on 7 Mar 08 at a hospital in Dallas. Mary had fought a decades-long courageous battle with rheumatoid arthritis, was wheel chair bound, but passed away peacefully. Funeral services and burial were to be at West Point at a later date. The class offers its prayers for Bill and for all of Mary’s family and friends.” And ’58 adds its amen! Bill D1 was a victim of Social Science in Jan 57, one of our last contributions to ’59.
Scribe has re-read the past two columns in an attempt not to be repetitive in this one. Sorry I beat you over the head with our Ghostly Assemblage stats in both 165th and 166th: galloping senility combined with memory loss. No excuse, sir!
Sad news: Lorna Kirkpatrick Forgit died on 1 July. Lorna and Roy (or Kirk to K2 files and other classmates) married in Aug 70. They settled in RI when he was medically retired in 1974 following a major heart attack. You will recall that Roy died on 26 Aug 91. Excerpts from the Newport Daily News: “She was a 1960 graduate of Somersworth High and a 1964 graduate of the University of New Hampshire in Durham. Lorna received a Master's in Education from Boston College in Special Education. She taught in the Boston area for several years, before moving to Fort Stanton, New Mexico where she taught special needs children at a state hospital. Lorna married Lt. Col. Roy Spencer Kirkpatrick in 1970 and lived in several different states (before) moving to Portsmouth, RI in 1974. She taught special needs children at the James L. Maher Center and worked as a special education teacher at Tiverton High School until retiring in 2004 as chairperson of the department. In 2005 she married her longtime friend Roy Forgit. Her funeral will be held on Monday, July 7, 2008, at 11 a.m. in St. Mary's Episcopal Church, 324 East Main Road, Portsmouth. Burial will be in St. Mary's Churchyard (where Roy is buried) in Portsmouth.” Thanks for Dick Bauchspies for the information.
Joan Collins. From C1 CCQ Jerry Mitchell: “A Memorial Service and Celebration of Life Service for Joan Nutter Collins, wife of Samuel Pickens Collins, was held at the Old Cadet Chapel at West Point on 25 June, 2008. After the Service and Inurnment of Joan's remains in the Columbarium at the Old Cadet Chapel, a reception and continuation of the celebration of Joan's life was held of the West Point Officer's Club hosted by Sam Collins and their children. Attendees were members of the Collins and Nutter families, friends and relatives, and the following members of the class of 1958: George & Mary Jane Lawton, Jerry & Maria Mitchell, Jim & Mary Ruth Peck, Will & Barbara Merrill, Bill & Mary Jane Parks, Don & Marti Palladino, and Marion Bunker. We all have fond memories of Joan Collins. Be Thou at Peace.” Amen re fond memories! In addition to those memories, Scribe must report that Joan’s myriad class contacts produced lots of information and photos for class columns over many years. I will miss her contributions to these columns. “Well done, be thou at peace.”
Fran Schneider.
From brother-in-law Wally Ward: “A Memorial Mass for Fran Schneider,
wife of our diseased classmate Jack Schneider, was held at the St. Louis
Catholic Church, Fairfax, VA, on 1 July 2008. The event was attended by over 300
people with music provided by a 15 person choir along with individual singers.
Classmates included George Lawton and Ed & Cathy Weckel. The
church provided a great reception after the mass with plenty of food and
memories of Fran's career as a teacher and vice principal at the St. Louis
school for over 30 years.” Scribe continues: Fran was buried at the West Point
Cemetery on 15 July, our 19th couple on the Roll Call and sixth
buried at West Point. She was a very courageous lady with her early loss of
Jack to cancer and her own battle with ALS. Again the refrain, “Well done, be
thou at peace.”
John Stone.
John’s funeral was on 13 Aug at Willamette National Cemetery. Email from
Paul Vanture: “Attached is a photo of
us at John Stone’s funeral: Terry Connell, Bob Miller, D’Ann
Stone, Vanture and OK Hill. The ceremony was nice with military
honors. We sang the Alma Mater at the end, but as OK said, the only real voice
was listening.” You can all see the class flag. The flowers (not
shown) were from John’s company-mates in A1.
Small World. “Two weeks after our fabulous reunion, Nancy and I are cruising on the Yanghze River in China on MV Anna and we run into Phil & Maude Ackerman on another tour but on the same boat going through the ‘Three Gorges.’ Is this a small world after all? What are the odds that the first two (alphabetically) would end up on the same boat on the other side of the world two weeks after the reunion? The ladies said it was a bad hair day but what can you expect on a river boat? Regards, John Abernathy.”
M1 Update after 50th. An email on the M1 net from CCQ Otto Thamasett: “After our 50th reunion I wrote notes to a couple of classmates who did not attend and sent memorial service programs to Jack Lynne, Karen Kittelson and Mary Ann Scherffius. I received a letter from Larry Shull from Kings Mountain, NC. He is still doing some religious and political writing. I was pleased that he did contribute to the 50th Anniversary book and you get his update from that. Mary Ann also wrote a nice note and sends her warm wishes to our class. She still resides in San Antonio and is doing well. She had a total knee replacement in February and is now back to work. Best regards, Otto”
B2 at 50th. B2 ladies: 1st Row (seated): Vimol Kullavanijaya, Ann Forster, Judy Buchly; 2d Row (standing): Katrina Willingham (Paul's daughter), Earldean Dean, Maude Ackerman, Sue Oelke, Sylvia Schonberger, Virginia Vanture, Nancy Manos, Kathy
Forster (Tony's sister-in-law). And the B2 men: (1st row kneeling): Ackerman, Oelke and Manos; 2d row (standing): Kullavanijaya, May, Vanture, Buchly, Schonberger and Prochaska.
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March Back 2008. Photo before with wives: Ed & Cathy Weckel, Will & Andrea Collett and Jo & Wally Ward. Our stalwarts Weckel and Ward have made them all – 2000 through 2008 and dump all over Collette because he missed 2000 and has made all the rest. Here is a photo during the march while the Tac was checking on our marchers.
More on K2 All Classes Reunion. From President Jack Bradshaw: A letter came to me last week from Megan Dill, Assistant Director of Class & Annual Giving. Megan reported that K2 held a reunion at Hilton Head (for more info see 165th and article in Jul-Aug Assembly). Some funds were left over, $1,006.00, which were distributed for accounting among 10 classes attending. $106 to the credit of K2, USMA 1958. Megan said thanks.”
Skiers. The OIC for 1-6 March 2009 ’58 Ski is Paul Ruud. The place is Lake Tahoe. The commands are (1) “think snow” and (2) contact Paul if you need info or plan to attend.
Watch your email (class list and/or forum) for updates on classmates with health problems. Recently we have been following Dick Bauchspies and Barry Zwick: no info here because of time lag – you won’t read this till Nov-Dec. And that reminds me on this Labor Day to wish you all a Merry Christmas.