Class Memories

Share Something about Yourself: My journey since my graduation with the class of 1962 has been one of joy, trying to live out a life marked by "Meliora" and allowing my husband's career to lead the way (John Parker, U of R 1961, and Ph.D. 1966). I adjusted myself and our three children into changing lifestyles in ten U.S. cities, finding that we were able to live life successfully, following the descriptions in the book, Future Shock by Alvin Toffler. Flexibility and adventure were the positives: loss of continuity in my own career of teaching eventually brought personal regret and sorrow. This was not unusually for women in the class of 1962 who married immediately after graduation, worked in their fields for 3-4 years, had children, and then pursued their further education and careers within the framework.

The death of our middle child, a beautiful bright and creative daughter named Lindsay, at age 36, in 2004 brought long-lasting grief and upheaval in our lives. We are grateful for our son, David, his two sons, Trent and Cole, and our daughter, Lisa and her five children between age 6 and 16. Deep friendships, participation in worship leading, choir, and teaching adults in my church have been life-giving, as have resettling and teaching ESL to refugee families form the Sudan, Iraq, and Egypt.

The excellence of my education at the University of Rochester continues to shape and influence my standards and values.

Favorite Memories: Good times on Gannett 3 freshman year, dating my husband John, my mom; Dorothy Witters and Cynthia Velepec in the Dean's office, watching football games, singing in the Women's Chorus, studying under Dr. Lincoln Canfield (Philology), and education classes junior and senior year.

Share something about yourself: I most enjoyed my three years as the deputy of the Presidents Science Advisor in the Regan White House - My wife and I have also enjoyed our 15 years in San Diego, it's a great place to live.

Favorite Memories: A great engineering school, that preparted me well for my future profession. A responsible place to party and have a great time growing up, and I met my wife of 50 years at the University.

After reading the Memory Book that just came and kicking myself again for not getting organized in time, I see that many of you loved frosh week. Not me. It started with my roommate. The only reason I can see we were put together was that we were both poor on scholarship. I came from an upstate farm; she came from NYC. She smoked; I didn't. She was a night owl; I kept the farmer's hours. She was kind and tolerant; I was petty and petulant. Next I forgot to bring lightweight clothes for a hot September. Then, when I was feeling thoroughly sorry for myself, I stepped on my glasses at frosh camp and it took more than a week to get them replaced. BUT after that it stopped raining at Camp Granada and things picked up. One of our soph counselors, Mary Jones, for reasons neither of us can remember, hid me in her closet when the sophomores came through our hall (Hollister 4) hazing. That began a lifelong friendship that continues to this day and has shaped much of the rest of my life - but that's another story. Then in late fall a single came available on our hall and I moved into it. I met Jane Rearick and Sandy Rice and the next year we all, together with Mary and her roommate Stall Loomis, moved to Morgan 6 never to move again. I was lucky enough to room next to Patsy Runk, whom I knew from the Campus Times, and Joan Cook joined us later znd we remain good friends to this day. Then I was lucky to have great teachers, particularly Mr Hadas for many classes, Dr. Suhr in whose Interrelationships class I was mistakenly put as a freshman and he let me stay, and Dr. Gilman, whose sister (small world) was the supervisor of the Intern program I was in when I went to work for New York State, but that's another story. After a brief stint waitressing in the WRH (I attracted the fast eaters and took pride in getting my tables out the door before anyone else) I went to work in Rush Shees Library where Vera Tweddle was a mother hen to all her workers, and by my senior year had moved to the plum assignment, 'working' in the Wells Brown Reading Room. And finally there was bridge. My parents had a somewhat dated view of college life from the 30s but they were sure I would be a total misfit if I couldn't play bridge, so they taught my sister and me to play bridge. (They also worried about my flat Albany 'A' - they obviously had never heard the incredible Rochester 'A.') Hollister 4 was terrific but no one on the hall played but me! But it didn't take long for most of them to learn and we had bridge games everywhere, Friday coffe hour with the brownies and bridge, waiting in line to eat, when I should have been studying, probably in my sleep.

I took from the UR an education that changed the way I viewed and appreciated life, including my job although it wasn't directly related (another story) and dear friends that I will cherish always.

See you at the reunion!

I won't be making it to the reunion, but here are some random memories. They keep popping up the more I think about it, but it's time to quit and get it sent in...
Walking through the smelly tunnel under the chemistry building.

Looking for mail in the P.O. Boxes on the way to

Cherry Coke at Todd Union. (and hearing Perry Como sing something about a ring)

Slow dancing to Misty at the GPI.

Pork chops at Cianno's (?)

Dishing up food in the cafeteria kitchen.

Studying in the carrels in the library.

Walking across the quad.

Biking to �. Park, smelling the lilacs before we could see them, and at the top of the mound which held a reservoir, the chain link fence was covered with wisteria to match all those lilacs.

Walking underground from the dorm down to the music practice rooms to practice piano and the weekly bus ride to Eastman for lessons.

A modern dance master class from Merce Cunningham (?) which left our dorm hall reeking of Ben Gay.

Christmas decorations on the doors of the dorm hall and Johnny Mathis carols.

Trying to stay awake in Interrelations of Art, Music and History (?). The subject was interesting, but the lights were dim for slides and it was right after lunch!

Cold, cold dark winter.

Discovering bluegrass music my first year, and playing with The Monroe County Digital Pyrotechnicians (Fred Sachs, Jerry Spector, Fred Kaplan, and Dave Bernstein).

The band's "van" was a 1956 Cadillac hearse. We once took someone to the airport, and as he and his luggage emerged from the rear, a skycap could be heard to exclaim, "man, I never saw anybody walk out of the back of one of those!"

Typing divisional papers on stencils.

Any class or seminar that Dr. Ralph Kaufman taught.

The Men's Dining Hall's "mystery meat."

The post office's mail boxes (my combination was "A-J-D").

Smitty's barbecue restaurant's spare ribs with incendiary hot sauce.

Maury Weingarten's reaction to Larry Burd's red Corvette.

The overwhelming panic upon leaving the farm and having to wear a cap the first day with hoards of kids I didn't know

The spark of physics being lit by Edwin Hafner with the first mimeographed edition of the post Sputnik advanced curriculum notes.

Meeting my roommate who said he is very flexible but don't touch his liquor.

Meeting Steve Price, Fred Kaplan, Dave Bernstein and Jerry Spector and playing folk music outside in good weather and noisily in the room annoying the neighbors. Also in the Women's dorm to entice candidates.

Going with Carl Zlatchin, Cathy Eisner, and Martha Rubin as representatives of the Student Government to sit-ins in Tennessee, hanging with the black protesters, watching a faculty member burn pigs in one school to study pain, and plying banjo with Reverend Jesse Jackson (before he was known) rehearsing a great boys quartet for a Carnegie hall fundraiser.

Raising a pet frog, Stocha Yamaguchi in the sinks, complete with natural environment of mud.

Sneaking a small frig into the dorm.

Eating at a Chinese restaurant downtown when the meal took 5 hours and well others to join us.

Going to Front street and buying pocket watches and being kicked out of stores that were fronts.

Playing blues music with Spider Jon Koerner in the dorm.

Making regular trips to Bennington in the hearse and meeting uncountable numbers of cool girls. Playing in the folk festival at Williams and wishing we were better.

Stealing furniture from the women's dorm.

Attempting to learn Russian on the beach and failing.

Becoming astounded at the all encompassing nature of complex variables.

Realizing that I couldn't make it in theoretical physics, but that experimental physics was the same a s failing physics.

Meeting Mike Aaron who had not only been to Russia but had be laid as well as plying banjo.

Pushing the iconoclasty so far as to skip taking my picture for the graduation yearbook.

Shooting coat hangers at the other dorms using big slingshots made with rubber tuping tied to our feet.

Hanging high voltage wires down the stair case to see who would touch them.

Seeing our upper classmate whose name I forgot leaving giant paper Mache elephants in the room.

Making an Easter Land type figure from apple wood in the sculpture class to give my girlfriend in Bennington. Actually having a naked model in art class...neat but most surprisingly I didn't have an erection.

Running freshman tract to get out of gym. Discus? almost nailed a runner.

Learning bridge in the student center basement cafe.

etc etc

I was lucky to get a Navy scholarship to attend the University. As I recall tuition was $800/semester. After graduation I became a Naval Aviator which prepared me for life's many challanges.
The Chemical Engineering program taught me how to get up early for those 8:00 AM classes.

I remember sitting in Ralph James Kaufman's Shakespeare class as the quad clock tolled ten. He said: "If you syncronize the beating of your heart with the sound of those bells, then you begin to understand the passion of Romeo and Juliet." All of us in his class were spellbound. The talk at lunches was what he had said in class that day, and those students not enrolled in his class were almost as eager to hear his latest bon mots.

I was selected to the U of R on a basketball scholarship. My high school grades were very good, as were all the students at the U of R. I thought I could play around at the same level I did in high school. So the first part of my freshman year was easy. At the end of the first term I received two Ds and three Cs. After that rude awaking, I changed my habits dramatically.

One of my math professors had a wonderful way of beginning each class. I wish I could remember his name. The class was called Number Theory. Each morning at the beginning of class, he did a card trick which surprisingly related to the material we would learn that day. It was fun trying to figure out how.

My four years as a basketball player was very rewarding. The relationships I made will live with me forever. In the last few years I am saddened by the passing of Coach Lyle Brown and Bill Boothby. They were good friends and fine people. I remember a tournament in Bangor, Maine during the Christmas Holidays. It was the first one we won, and it was cold outside. Mike Berger was our star player, and has become a great lawyer and a good friend.

While at the U of R I joined a great fraternity. We were the DKEs. I was fortunate to be the president in 1962.

Favorite Memories: I lived at home and commuted, but it was nice that the city girls could stay overnight occasionally in a special facility for us in the dorm. I remember Todd Union fondly. It seemed that Brubeck's Take Five was always playing.