These pages contain all class notes from the Yale Alumni Magazine from 1957 on. The notes from the July 1957 issue through that of July 2004 appear unchanged from their original publication in the magazine save for the correction of misspellings and other small errors. Starting with the September/October 2004 issue, the notes appear as they were submitted to the Yale Alumni Magazine. The edited notes as published in the magazine can be accessed via https://yalealumnimagazine.com/. The differences are minor. Gaps in coverage result from the absence of Class of 1957 notes in a few issues of the magazine over the years. Also, in keeping with changes in the magazine itself since 1957, the frequency of publication has occasionally changed.

Return to Master Index of All Class Notes

Notes: January/February 2023

Notes: March/April 2023

Notes: May/June 2023

Notes: July/August 2023

Notes: September/October 2023

Notes: November/December 2023

January/February 2023

Three Cheers to Don Roberts, recipient in October of a Yale Medal! No '57er has more deserved the award.

Bill Goldstein, Larry Kramer's official biographer, reports that the Historic Landmark Preservation Center of the City of New York installed a Cultural Medallion outside Larry's long-time residence at 2 Fifth Avenue on October 27, 2022. Dr. Anthony Fauci, once one of Larry's early nemeses, eventually close friend, was a speaker.

Frank Michelman is enjoying the appearance of two recent books-his co-authored Legitimation by Constitution: A Dialogue on Political Liberalism and his own Constitutional Essentials: On the Constitutional Theory of Political Liberalism. From Medford, Oregon, comes word from John Strong, a retired attorney and professor of property and evidence law (successively at Duke, Oregon, Nebraska, and Arizona State universities), that he's a mediator for two county trial courts and, having taken up the baritone horn at 60, plays with local bands.

Tim Towell and I were included in an early October Washington reunion of most of the remnants of 1957's TD "Zoo." They were Ron (with Lee) Ragen, Drum (with Heide) King, Allan (with Que) Wendt, Lyman Drake, and Pierre Boucaren. All were in high fettle.

In Memoriam: Garson F. Heller, Jr., died from mounting health difficulties on September 23, 2021, in or near Westport, Connecticut. A chemical engineering major, Gar started out at Mobil Oil, then, designing content automation and workflow systems, eventually joined the Securities Industry Automation Corporation, which supports stock exchange trading and processing activities. He became one of the firm's directors before his 2002 retirement. Gar was also a long-serving office-holder in Westport-for 14 years a member of its town meeting and for 38 of its board of assessment appeals, eventually as chairman. Roommate Henry Chisholm writes that, a competitive college bridge player, Gar was a 20-plus-year member of a group of bridge devotees who competed with each other on their daily train commutes to work, his card-table prowess earning him designation as a Bronze Life Master Bridge Player. A quiet, modest man, he bore a gentle, wry smile while,his achievements kept far under his shirt, possessing a sharp mind and wit. George Bullwinkle, a close friend, describes him as "highly intelligent" as well as "kind and generous." Gar is survived by Velma, his wife of 64 years, their sons Grant and David and daughter Julie ('88), their families, and many others. Donations in his memory should go to the American Heart Association.

In Memoriam: We lost Peter C. Hobart in Lima, Peru, on October 6, 2021, after a long illness. An intensive history of art major, Peter served in the U.S. Army in Verona, Italy, before entering on a career, mostly abroad, with his family's firm, Hobart Brothers, a designer and producer of welding and generating equipment for domestic and military markets. From Amsterdam, then Rome, Peter led the company's worldwide expansion into a multinational corporation (acquired in 1998 by Illinois Tool Works) that contributed its expertise to Chicago's Sears Tower, the World Trade Center, submarines, oil and gas pipelines, space shuttles, battery-charged vehicles, and robotics. Notable for his enthusiastic, multi-lingual bon-vivant cosmopolitanism, he devoted much attention to sculpture, which led to his becoming Chairman of the International Sculpture Center. The Hobart Institute of Welding Technology, while training welders, welcomed artists to create works on premise. Helping develop the Hobart Urban Nature Preserve in his Troy, Ohio, birthplace, Peter also produced documentary films on modern and contemporary art. He left Rome in 2011, the year he-remarried and moved to Lima, after suffering a brain aneurysm. He's survived by his former wife Anna, their children Michelle and Peter and their families. Donations in his memory should go to the Hobart Institute of Welding Technology for student scholarships.

In Memoriam: Robert B. Smith II died of un-stated causes on October 23, 2021, in Savannah, Georgia. An American studies major, Bob (known to us as Smitty) made his mark in college as president of Yale Aviation and owner of his own plane. After stateside Army service, he spent his career as a pilot-first with Republic Airlines, then with United Airlines. Also a sailor, he settled with his wife Kathleen, a flight attendant he met on one of his pilotings aloft, in Annapolis, Maryland, where he amassed a record of notable, if harmless, failures, one a mystery novel said by his family to have been "widely viewed in literary circles as the most unintentionally funny book ever written." Retired, he settled in Fernandina Beach, Florida, where he took up golf, apparently with about as much success as his fiction, before moving to Savannah. Among Bob's many qualities, his roommate Dave Dickson writes, "his greatest asset was to always look at the bright side of things and give a little giggle." Predeceased by his wife, Bob is survived by their four children Robert III, Christopher, Jonathan, and Molly Wilson, as well as their spouses and eight grandchildren. Gifts in his memory should go to the Humane Society for Greater Savannah.

In Memoriam: Charles T. Ludington, Jr., succumbed to renal failure on November 4, 2021, in Pittsboro, North Carolina. An English major, member of the Aurelian Society, Berzelius, and the Alley Cats, and varsity soccer player, after serving as a Marine Corps officer in California Towny attained a PhD at Duke. He then joined the English Department of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where he eventually became the Cary C. Boshamer Distinguished Professor of English and American Studies before retiring in 2004. Standing out as a six-foot-six peak among surrounding human foothills, he was a leading campus figure. He helped build the university's American Studies Department, its Department of African, African-American, and Diaspora Studies, and its American Indian and Indigenous Studies Program; chaired the Curriculum in Peace, War, and Defense and the University Athletics Committee; and long served as a member of the University of North Carolina Press's board of governors. He held visiting posts as Fulbright visiting scholar in Lyon, France, lectureships in Northern Ireland and Tbingen, Germany, a professorship at West Point, a visiting position at the U.S. International Communication Agency, and a fellowship at the National Humanities Center. His major books were John Dos Passos: A Twentieth Century Odyssey (1980), Marsden Hartley: The Biography of an American Artist (1992), and Seeking the Spiritual: The Paintings of Marsden Hartley (1998). Towny compensated for his towering height by approaching others with a disarmingly gentle smile, calm demeanor, and easy tolerance as if thinking everything in life slightly amusing. In Will Reimann's words, he was "mild-mannered, intelligent, observant, and inquiring, possessed of both grace and dignity, as well as a puckish sense of humor." Towny is survived by Jane, his wife of 63 years, their children David, Chad ('87), Jamie, and Sarah, their families, and a sister. Donations in his memory should go to the Carolina Firsts Fund or the Townsend Ludington Distinguished Professorship in American Studies at UNC-Chapel Hill.

JMB

March/April 2023

Our traditional annual in-person class gatherings will resume as a luncheon on Friday, May 19, at the Yale Club of New York. Details will follow. Save the date.

Peter Wolf 's' new book, The Sugar King: Leon Godchaux, a New Orleans Legend, His Creole Slave, and His Jewish Roots, which stars Peter’s great-great-grandfather, has recently appeared. Also comes word from Ara Bagdasarian in Cheshire, Connecticut, that he retired from his surgery practice over seven years ago.

In Memoriam: Ralph W. Douglas died in New York City of unstated causes on October 25, 2021. Doug's claim to collegiate fame, says roommate Charlie Cushman , was his invention of the "quadrabed," a space-saving, room-filling contraption that accommodated four sleeping students on different mattress levels. (It didn’t catch on.) After Air National Guard service, Doug rose to become chairman of the Wall Street investment firm MacKay Shields before founding his own company, White Oak Capital Management. From a Bridgehampton, Long Island, house, he indulged his love of gardening, surf casting, duck hunting, golf, tennis, paddle tennis, and a 1935 British racing green Model A Ford convertible; became an expert on all things Winston Churchill-ish to the point of taking up oil and watercolor painting; and, as Tom Bitting , another roommate, reports, survived a liver transplant at age 62. Charlie recalls Doug as "witty with a devilish streak, conscientious, at ease around people" and a man of strong conservative convictions, which “only grew more fixed as he grew older." In addition to his wife Julia, Doug is survived by their daughters Olivia and Ashley, their families, and others.

In Memoriam: Arthur A. Diefendorf died on November 26, 2021, in New Hartford, New York, from a combination of degenerative disease and COVID-19. After college, Art attended Naval OCS and served on a Pacific-based radar picket ship, then entered the family's Diefendorf Gear Corporation in his native Syracuse. After becoming its president, he had to arrange its sale because of Chinese competition. Eventually he became known for his expertise in Olympic-sport Finn sailing. He was president of the USA Finn Association between 1976 and 1982 when eight of the world's top ten Finn sailors were USA Finn members. Subsequently, he was a founder of the Finn Foundation. A jovial man, after helping initiate an annual Finn boat regatta on Lake Cazenovia he and a friend retrieved an old cast-iron toilet to serve as the regatta's trophy, the event thus becoming known as “the Toilet Bowl Regatta.” Rod Correll describes Art as "a gentle man, someone who faced a variety of adversities with dignity, determination, faith, and an irrepressible sense of humor." Roommate Jack Turben writes that "he was one of the most thoughtful, kind, and stable people I have ever known." Art is survived by Georgia (Dodie), his wife of 49 years and their children Elizabeth and Donald.

In Memoriam: We lost W. Anthony Hogan, Jr. , on January 3, 2022, from the complications of Covid-19, presumably in or near his home in Jamaica Plain, Massachusetts. When shortly after graduation his father died, Tony forsook the law to wind up his parent’s raw sugar brokerage business, Hogan and Company, but instead maintained and enlarged it, remained a sugar broker for over 60 years, and along the way served on corporate boards and helped settle legal and administrative disputes. A sailor from his teens, Tony crewed off-shore races to Bermuda and transatlantic contests to Denmark and Spain. He and Sandra, his wife of 61 years, also were collectors of art and traveled widely. A quiet, dignified, modest man, he was an effective and respected mentor of others, which he considered his proudest achievement. Alan Lovins , whose daughter Rachel married Tony’s son Andrew, says that Tony’s word was “solid coinage in a market where trust could be at a discount.” In addition to his wife, Tony is survived by their sons William and Andrew, daughters Marie Hayes and Catherine Forrest, and their families.

In Memoriam: Stephen V. Flagg succumbed to a long set of illnesses on January 8, 2022, in North Branford, Connecticut. After college, Steve studied medicine at Columbia P&S, interned at New York’s Roosevelt Hospital, then pursued that plastic and hand surgery for the rest of his career. Practicing first at the Royal Victoria Infirmary in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, then back at Roosevelt Hospital, he joined Yale Medical School’s faculty in 1971 as clinical assistant professor and associate section chief of plastic surgery. Maintaining a private practice in New Haven, he was described as an old-fashioned doctor who spent time with patients and, not surprising to any who knew him, devoted to their care. A founding member and president of the New England Society of Hand Surgery, Steve also served as president of the Connecticut Society of Plastic Surgeons and the New England Society of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery from which in 2010 he received the Robert M. Goldwyn, M.D. Lifetime Achievement Award. As he wrote in our 50th reunion book, "while most people like to leave their mark, a good plastic surgeon is judged by leaving no trace." A member and president of the New Haven Rowing Club, he helped build its boathouse on the Housatonic and was a medalist in rowing competitions around the world. "Much loved and admired" as Rob Walker observes, Steve was, as Gene Doggett adds, "always upbeat, optimistic, cheerful, supportive and understanding no matter what the circumstances might be." Toby Briggs points to Steve’s special gifts as a physician: "His concern and compassion were always present, but to a patient they were unforgettable." It appears, too, that Steve was a skilled matchmaker: He’s said to have introduced Reed and Jane Rubin to each other and provided the setting for Toby’s proposal to future wife Kate. Predeceased by his twin brother Tom, Steve is survived by Edith, his wife of 35 years, his children Danielle, Alex, and Michael, his step-child Jonathan Hanf, their families, and his former wife Cynthia. Contributions in his memory may go to the New Haven Rowing Club, the Church at Point O'Woods, or the Sanibel Captiva Conservation Foundation.

In Memoriam: Gilbert S. Merritt, Jr. , died of metastatic prostate cancer in Nashville, Tennessee, his birthplace, on January 17, 2022. At the time of his death, he was described as "a towering figure in [Nashville's] legal community" and was saluted by his friend, former Vice President Al Gore, as "an ardent defender of the liberties that form the foundations of our Constitution." After college, Gil took an LLB at Vanderbilt Law School, where he was its law review’s managing editor, and earned an LLM from Harvard Law School. Before joining the federal bench on Jimmy Carter’s nomination, he toggled back and forth between private practice and public service as Nashville's associate metropolitan attorney, U.S. Attorney (nominated by Lyndon Johnson) for the Middle District of Tennessee, and executive secretary of the Tennessee Code Commission. As U.S. Attorney, Gil appointed the first woman and first African American to serve as Assistant U.S. Attorneys for his jurisdiction. In 1977, he commenced a 44-year tenure as federal judge, at one time being considered by Bill Clinton for the Supreme Court position that eventually went to Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Taking senior status in 2001 but remaining at work, he became the longest-serving member of the federal 6th Circuit Court of Appeals. Considered a moderate liberal jurist, he opposed the death penalty but didn't shy away from taking positions for which other liberals criticized him. One such position was his successful effort to have his court investigate whether the U.S. had withheld evidence concerning the notorious Nazi extermination camp guard John Demjanjuk. His convivial bonhomie expressed in a soft Middle Tennessee voice, Gil was known for his legal scholarship and held in high esteem by colleagues and law clerks, many of whom he mentored. An accomplished pilot, competitive tennis player, and golfer, he also savored poetry. Gil's roommate Steve Weitz recalls him as a man with "a dry sense of humor, a liberal Dem in an increasingly Republican state, who was totally insistent that the judiciary be nonpartisan and be considered so by citizens." Gil is survived by his three children, Stroud, Louise, and Eli ('89); long-time partner Martha Rivers Ingram; daughter-in-law Rosana Castrillo Díaz; and three grandchildren. He was predeceased by his first wife Louise Clark Fort. Donations in his memory may go to the Tennessee Innocence Project or Alive Hospice in Nashville.

JMB

May/June 2023

A biography of Gil Merritt by Keel Hunt has appeared as A Sense of Justice: Judge Gilbert S. Merritt and His Times (West Margin Press, 2023).

The remaining news for this issue is unrelievedly sobering. As always, fuller obituaries of our departed classmates are available on the class’s website.

In Memoriam: John L. Robinson died of unstated causes on January 7, 2022, presumably in or near Worthington, Ohio. At Yale a ranking scholar, magna cum laude graduate in English, and member of the varsity golf team, John afterwards gained a medical degree from Columbia's College of Physicians and Surgeons. He then served for 40 years as a cardiologist at the Ohio State University School of Medicine. A skilled instructor, he was recognized in 1993 as the inaugural recipient of the Department of Surgery's eponymous John L. Robinson Teaching Award and with later citations for distinguished patient care and clinical teaching. Off duty, John was a medical advisor to the Worthington Emergency Squad, a private pilot, and a student of aviation history. He's survived by Carol, his wife of 58 years, their children Anne Albers and Paul, and their families. Donations in John's memory may go to the Creighton Prep AMDG Fund in Omaha, Nebraska; the OSU Cardiovascular Medicine Teaching and Research Fund; or the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation in Worthington, Ohio.

In Memoriam: David S. Clarke, Jr. died on January 21, 2022 of unstated causes, presumably in or near Evanston, Illinois. A ranking scholar magna cum laude, Dave wrote that his intensive philosophy major made him "hooked on philosophy and remain hooked for the rest of my life." After three years in the Marines, he gained a philosophy PhD at Emory, held a post-doc at Yale, then from 1966 until 1997 served on the philosophy faculty of Southern Illinois University where, widely published in semiotics, he served as department chair. He was twice a visiting scholar at Kyoto University, twice an invited professor at Kansai Gaidai University in Hirakata, Japan, and occupant of a similar post at Renmin University, Beijing. He also played in his university orchestra's violin section for 20 years. To Ted Vlamis, "Dave, the ultimate philosopher in every way, was a joy to have in our midst." In addition to his wife Sadako, whom he married in 1965, Dave is survived by their daughters Jessica H. Clarke and Katherine N. Kamholz and their children.

In Memoriam: We lost John Crosby II on January 28, 2022 to the complications of blood cancer in his native Minneapolis. An intensive political science major, president of Beta Theta Pi, and member of the Aurelian Society, after Army service John gained a Georgetown history MA before teaching at Honolulu's Punahou School. He then returned to his pre-collegiate alma mater, Minneapolis's Blake School, which he served for 20 years as history teacher, coach, and development officer before joining the staff of St. John's University as Vice President for Institutional Development. Around 1982, he became a business development representative and by 2007 was in the investment business. In Minneapolis, he served on the boards of the Minnesota Trust for Public Land, the 1000 Friends of Minnesota, the Minneapolis Parks Foundation, and Minneapolis Public Television and Radio. In Sam Chauncey’s words a "smart, steady, kind man," John was held in respect and affectionate regard by all who knew him. Phil Levine writes that he "wore his sharp intelligence lightly…[and], endlessly amiable and courteous, seemed in college in an admirable way more grownup than some of us." John is survived by Laura, his wife of 65 years, children John Jr., Laura Enebo, Slater W., and S. Brooks, and their families. Gifts in his memory should be sent to the Minneapolis Parks Foundation.

In Memoriam: Nathan Mobley, Jr., died on January 30th, 2022, of unstated causes in Napa, California. A history major, winner of the Air Force 1956 ROTC Distinguished Military Student Award, and varsity football player, Bob played guard for the Green Bay Packers’ practice team before gaining a history MA from Columbia Teachers College. He taught at the Greenwich Country Day School and the Harvard School in Los Angeles, whose history department he headed. He then turned to leadership training. Starting out teaching how to deliver effective speeches, by 1978 he formed a coaching firm designed to assist government and private businesses employees develop strong values, visions, and goals. This work became, in his family's fitting words, a "ministry" pursued with the heartfelt passion of a preacher. Bob drew inspiration from his idol, Winston Churchill, and the values of the Nepalese and Indian Gurkha forces that fought for Great Britain in its wars. Roommate John Herrmann describes Bob as "an irrepressible personality [and] story teller (usually exaggerated)....who always talked up in class (and exaggerated there, too). He was the wake-up-the-room guy with marshal music to which he often goose-stepped—particularly when getting ready for football games." Bob is survived by Melinda, his wife of fifty-one years, their two children Jennifer and Michael, their families, and three children—Sally Leger, Nathan, III, and Mark—from his first marriage and their families. Donations in his name should go to The Gurkha Welfare Trust or The Guards Chapel.

In Memoriam: Theodore C. Palen died of unstated causes in St. Petersburg, Florida, on February 2, 2022. A mechanical engineering major and NROTC participant, Ted served as a Navy officer for three years. Subsequently, with a Columbia MBA in hand, he took up manufacturing management work with Proctor & Gamble, which he pursued until his retirement in 1991. He followed that with part-time dealing in antiques and remained active as a Boy Scout troop leader and in his community's Methodist church, in whose choir he sang for 50 years. A lanky, quiet-spoken outdoorsman, he and his wife Fay, who predeceased him in 2021 after 63 years of marriage, spent winters in Thonotosassa, Florida. Ted is survived by their son Keith, daughter Deborah Havre, and their families.

JMB

July/August 2023

The Washington Post's March 14th issue carried an interview about current COVID realities with six noted health policy and infectious disease experts, including Bill Schaffner, who’s still advising against careless behavior. That didn’t, however, keep him from having some fun. Wiping everything down, he says, now “looks really d-u-m-b.” What’s more, “My wife would wipe down everything I brought into the house—including me.”

In Memoriam: Terrell L. Carlisle died on January 21, 2022, at home in Sonoma, California, of complications from a stroke. An industrial administration major and varsity swimmer—even, Jack Hughes writes, after suffering from polio, Terry lived a robust physical existence. While setting many swimming records himself, he coached at three schools and three universities, including the University of Cincinnati (head swimming coach) and the University of Tennessee (women’s swimming team coach). His credits included Florida high school state champions, US national champions, and two Olympians. By 1992, he was training to be a hypnotherapist and by 1997 had taken up Cajun and zydeco dancing and competed in an annual Maui Channel relay swim. Ray Ellison characterizes Terry as “always cheerful and unflappable, and a real ladies’ man—handsome, with blond hair and a dynamite smile.” He’s survived by Susan, his wife of 55 years, daughters Kimberly, Shelley, and Tylla, six grandchildren, and a sister.

In Memoriam: We lost Luke W. Finlay Jr. to unstated causes on February 14, 2022, in Skillman, New Jersey. Entering Yale after a year at the Sorbonne, Luke majored in American studies and was a skilled tennis player with, it was said, “a crafty left-handed serve.” In 1959, he purchased a sports car dealership in Syracuse, New York, and, taken with the cars, spent a brief period race car driving professionally. Subsequently, he worked for the Lawyers Cooperative Publishing Company to lead its Washington, DC, office, and until 1992 for the Michie Company, an official documents publisher. By then, he lived in Annapolis and owned an Eastern Shore waterside retreat on the Little Choptank River. In 2012, he was living near Princeton. Luke captivated people with his always mischievous, devilish cheeriness. Roommate Tom Chittenden describes him as “a handsome, vibrant guy who was often the life of the party.” Luke is survived by his wife Susan, their sons Luke III and Matthew, daughters Lisa and Laura Hanson, and 11 grandchildren. Donations in his memory should go to the Chesapeake Bay Foundation, 6 Herndon Ave, Annapolis, MD 21403.

In Memoriam: O. Palmer Bannerot died at home on March 6, 2022, in Islamorada, Florida, of unstated causes. At Yale a chemical engineering major, member of St. Anthony Hall, chairman of the Junior Prom committee, and known as a skilled varsity soccer and baseball player, Palmer left only traces with us. He was working as a chemical engineer for Pennzoil in Houston at the time of our 10th reunion and practicing civil engineering while living in Valencia, Pennsylvania, in 1987. His last known address was in Butler, Pennsylvania. As an undergraduate, Palmer was a lively, sunny presence. In addition to his widow Elizabeth, our 50th reunion book lists their children as Scott P., Leslie Ann, Lynn T., and Steven L. Bannerot.

In Memoriam: David A. Christenson died of unstated causes on March 7, 2022, in or near Ashland, Oregon. Dave was an industrial administration major. Upon graduating, he joined the Standard Oil Company of Ohio. Subsequently, he settled in Westchester County, New York, entered the graphic arts and photography business, and engaged in catalog and direct marketing. By 1992, he owned his own firm, Commercial Graphics. Dave became an avid golfer and active member of the Westchester Country Club, where he won many team championships and, in 1996, the club’s senior men’s championship. In 2003, he moved to Greensboro, North Carolina, where he lived on the Sedgefield Country Club fairway. Mike Sweedler writes that Dave “had a wonderful sense of humor, was devoted to his family, and was kind and always considerate.” He’s survived by his second wife, Judy, and two daughters, Jennifer Stout ’03 and Karin, as well as their families.

In Memoriam: William B. Smith succumbed to end-stage kidney failure under hospice care at his home in Kent, Connecticut, on May 5, 2022. Entering Yale with ’57, after a two-year leave Brad gained a 1959 BFA from the Yale School of Art after studying with painters Josef Albers, Rico LeBrun, and Neil Welliver and photographer Herbert Matter. His paintings and fine art photographs were widely exhibited and purchased for private collections. Having battled to stay sober, as he was for the last five decades of his life, Brad was a friend and sponsor of others facing similar struggles. In addition to his wife Karin, he’s survived by son Alexander, stepdaughter Jacqueline E. White, and others. Donations in his memory should go to RVNA Hospice or the Kent Volunteer Fire Department, of which he was a longtime member.

In Memoriam: Robert A. Sweet died on May 7, 2022, of unstated causes in or near Ripon, California. An industrial engineering major, Bob entered college with ’56, then, after a year off, re-entered with ’57. After spending two years in the Army, he gained an MBA from Xavier University. For at least half his career, he was a computer engineer, first for the B&O Railroad, then successively for NCR as a senior systems analyst, Polaroid, Bechtel as a programming support manager, then Safeway. He subsequently spent 30 years presumably in the real estate business in Modesto, California. From what can be inferred, his commitment to born-again Christianity was a central part of his life. Predeceased by his wife Dorothy (“Tommie”), Bob is survived by their children Mark, Lorelei, and Benjamin and their spouses; seven grandchildren; six great-grandchildren; and others.

In Memoriam: Robert Y. Lee died on February 27, 2023, after a brief, unstated illness in Rockville, Maryland. At Yale, Bob majored in economics and was already an avid, accomplished bridge player, which he remained throughout his life. He spent his career in the federal service, principally with the Census Bureau and the Bureau of International Finance. Beyond his love of bridge, he was a devoted gardener, cook, and traveler. He also amassed a large collection of African art, which he donated to the Yale Art Gallery. Bob is survived by his wife Linda, their sons Thomas and Jonathan, their wives and children, and others. His family asks that contributions in his memory go to the American Kidney Fund.

JMB

September/October 2023

Our second season of monthly virtual class events behind us, we open our third this fall. It’s star Alan McGowan on AI, Kim Cheney on serving as Vermont’s attorney general, Don Roberts on corporate board service, and Clem Labine on historic house restoration. Tune in!

Happy news: Don Roberts and Sally Sonne, widow of Chris Sonne, were married in a small Adirondacks family wedding in early August. All happiness to bride and groom!

About the departed: Chesapeake Region Accessible Boating, the pioneering sailing organization created by Don Backe for disabled people after his own grievous auto accident, continues its remarkable growth out of Annapolis. The June 29th New York Times (p. D2) reported on a packed delayed memorial for Larry Kramer mixing “affection and ire” and featuring Anthony Fauci, Tony Kushner, and Bud Trillin.

Brian Kelly, former Washington Star reporter, founding editor of two military history magazines, and co-author with his wife Ingrid of The Best Little Stories from... sends word of his retirement from the UVA journalism faculty. In June, Princeton’s local paper featured Roly and Pam Machold’s long, successful efforts to preserve and bring back to life one of the town’s most treasured parks. And Ed Dean continues to ski and ride horses. He even enters jumping events.

In Memoriam: Philander C. Derby died on November 21, 2021 of unstated causes in his native Honolulu. Phil (aka Phi) was one of Yale’s first undergraduates to major in Japanese. After two years in the Army, mostly in Japan, he returned to Hawaii to teach Japanese and Asian history at the Iolani School, then the Kamehameha Schools, Chaminade University, and Kansai Gaidai University. On retiring, he served as docent at Hanauma Bay State Park while helping preserve its natural wonders. A singer, Phil performed and sung native Hawaiian music, especially kanikapila, an island genre played in jam sessions using local string instruments. He was so skilled that noted Hawaiian entertainer Don Ho saluted him as "a haole who knows more verses to Hawaiian songs than most people." Phil is survived by his wife George-Anne, their daughter Elizabeth, son David P. (’88), their families, and others.

In Memoriam: Rodney D. Farrow died peacefully at home in Chilmark, Massachusetts, on January 23, 2022, the cause of his death unstated. After graduation, Rod moved to Rochester, New York, the city of his birth, to pursue a career with Eastman Kodak in marketing, finance, and venture management. In 1991, he and his wife Betty moved to Martha’s Vineyard. There, he had his mother’s historic photos of pre-WWII Vineyard life digitized for donation to the island’s historical museum and with Betty designed and built three houses. Rod was known for his commitments to Chilmark, one of his greatest pleasures being to lead 12-mile hikes from Philbin Beach in Gay Head along the shore to Chilmark Pond. Rod is survived by his wife of 63 years, as well as their three daughters, Lee Cook, Amy Thomas, and Kristin Culp, their husbands and children, and many others.

In Memoriam: Wallace P. Ritchie, Jr. died of unstated causes on March 17, 2022, presumably in or near Minneapolis. A member of Torch and Skull and Bones, after graduation Wally received a 1961 MD degree from the Johns Hopkins Medical School. Then, after an internship and residency at Yale-New Haven Hospital, he obtained a PhD in general surgery at the University of Minnesota. Drafted into Army service in 1970, he spent three years at Walter Reed Hospital devising innovative treatments for Vietnam War veterans suffering from peptic ulcers. In 1973, he became professor of surgery at the UVA Medical School, his research centering on gastric physiology while he practiced general intestinal surgery. Before leaving Virginia in 1984, he’d become known as one of the leading American surgical scientists and a world authority on peptic ulcers and other inflammatory stomach conditions. Wally spent the next ten years as professor of surgery and chair of Temple University Medical School's department of surgery while presiding over the development of Philadelphia's first cardiac transplant program and participating in some of the nation’s earliest successful transplant surgeries. Beloved and respected by students, residents, and colleagues, in 2014 he was recognized by them with a portrait now hanging in the Temple School of Medicine as well as by an eponymous lectureship. He left teaching in 1994 to become executive director of the American Board of Surgery. He also served as president of the Association for Academic Surgery and the Philadelphia Academy of Surgery. Those who knew Wally knew him as a peppery, high-energy man who, writes roommate Nick Tingley, was "cheerful, outgoing, and always interesting." Predeceased by his wife Barbara, Wally is survived by their children, Stephanie, David, and Jessica McCarthy, as well as four grandchildren and a brother.

In Memoriam: We lost G. Kendall Sharp unexpectedly on March 24, 2022. A varsity football player, Ken was best known as a bass in the Whiffs who, fellow-Whiff Reid White insists (against, one guesses, some self-regarding dispute), stood out as the group’s handsomest member. After three years of Navy service on the supercarrier USS Ranger and with an LLB from UVA, he practiced law before in 1978 accepting appointment to Florida's 19th Judicial Circuit Court. Five years later, Ken commenced 38-year service on Ronald Reagan’s nomination in the Orlando Division of the U.S. District Court of the Middle District of Florida. Judge Sharp, known for following precedent and legal guidelines and seen as conservative in criminal cases was widely respected and considered fair even by those against whom he ruled. His most newsworthy decision came in the notorious case of Ted Bundy, whose final 1987 appeal against a murder conviction Ken denied, a decision that sent Bundy to the electric chair. After taking senior status in 2000, he remained active until shortly before his death. Off the bench, Ken was mischievous, fun-loving, and athletic, a skilled spearfisher, snorkler, zipliner, skier, handball player, pilot, and story-teller and a devotée of seedy dive bars, regular Saturday male-only Bloody-Mary parties, and, notes Joel Sharp (no relative), oysters and Myers rum. Ken is survived by his wife Carolyn Coats, his daughters Kendall ('85) and Julia Carter, five grandchildren, and other family members.

In Memoriam: On November 6, 2022, much like Wally Ritchie (above), James E. Stevenson III also died of unstated causes presumably in or near Minneapolis. After college, Jim gained his medical degree from Northwestern’s Feinberg School of Medicine. Subsequently, he interned in Seattle, pursued his pathology residency at Miller Hospital in St. Paul, then served a three-year tour in Vietnam in the Army Medical Corps. Thereafter he appears to have spent the remainder of his life as a doctor of internal medicine, cardiology, and pathology in independent practice while affiliated at various times with the Minneapolis Veterans Hospital and Abbott Northwestern Hospital. He’s presumed to be survived by his wife Margaret, whom he married in 1973. No surviving children are known, although the photo accompanying his remarks in our 50th reunion book includes an identified young man, either Jim or a son, sporting a Yale sweater.

JMB

November/December 2023

I write these notes 70 years to the week after we bid farewell to our families, met roommates, went to Hammonasset Beach in company with the Rhinegold Girls, and became collegians (the genus), Yalemen (the species). Such such were the days!

Class Secretary Steve Wittenberg reports that a Class treasury balance has made possible the creation of a separate $150,000 endowment in the Yale School of Music to cover the costs of purchasing, maintaining, and repairing instruments for New Haven public school students who, with the help of YSM graduate students, receive instrumental instruction through our Class of 1957 Music in Schools Initiative.

In Memoriam: Maxton Clark Davies died on April 8, 2022. An engineering major, Clark earned a 1973 MBA from Case Western Reserve University. After working as an engineer, he succeeded his grandfather and father as CEO of Foster & Davies Advertising. A community activist, swimmer, scuba diver, and sailor who crewed for races on Lake Erie, he and his family summered in Put-in-Bay, Ohio, whose yacht club he served as Commodore, and wintered in Gulfport, Florida. Dennis Bates, Clark's brother-in-law, writes of Clark’s always being "up for adventure. A boon companion, he was liked and admired by all who knew him." In addition to his widow Mella, Clark is survived by their children Catherine Paetz, Kimberley Traum, and Margaret Naylon, seven grandchildren, and others. Contributions in his memory should go to Greater Cleveland Habitat for Humanity or St. Paul's Episcopal Church in Cleveland Heights or Put-In-Bay.