Oswego - Fall/Winter 2004 by Oswego Alumni Association

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ALUMNI ASSOCIATION OF THE STATE UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK AT OSWEGO  VOL. 30, NO. 3  FALL/WINTER 2004

From Laker to Lion Joe Jones ’87 is shaking things up in the Ivy League.

Creating Connections 2003-2004 Honor Roll of Appreciation

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Alumni Association of the State University of New York at Oswego Vol. 30, No. 3

From Laker to Lion

Joe Jones ’87, the new head coach at Columbia University, is shaking things up in the Ivy League.

In Sickness and in Health

John ’91 and Jeannine Muoio Salamone ’92 battled heart disease and cancer together — and came out stronger for it.

Queer Eye for the Coach Guy

See how the Fab Five made over volleyball coach Mark Finegan ’89. 26

Dispatches from the War Zone

Alumni check in from Afghanistan and Iraq.

Creating Connections Special Section We celebrate campus connections and recognize our generous donors in the 2003–2004 Honor Roll of Appreciation. 32

PLUS Campus Currents Club News Class Notes Weddings Hideo Haiku

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ON THE COVER:

Creating Connections

Joe Jones ’87 is in his second year as head basketball coach at Columbia University. Photo by Joe Lawton

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State funds $52 million for campus transformation sweeping SUNY Oswego campus renewal plan that includes the renovation of the Swetman-Poucher complex into centers for academics and humanities, an enclosed pedestrian walkway and numerous modernization projects received a boost from $52 million in capital funds in the New York state budget passed in August. The funding supports the college’s next five-year plan for campus-wide renewal. “This project will transform our campus, using physical spaces and design elements to cultivate a learner-centered community,” said SUNY Oswego President Deborah F. Stanley. The largest piece of the new allocation would complete the central campus construction that began last fall with the start on the new $25.5 million Campus Center. The $3.1 million transformation of Poucher Hall into a humanities center is under way, while the first phase of the $15.3 million renovation of Swetman Hall should be under way next year.

“This project will transform our campus, using physical spaces and design elements to cultivate a learner-centered community.” –President Deborah F. Stanley

Swetman, the core of the pedestrian spine of the campus, will connect the Campus Center and Poucher Hall and will house clusters of academic services in an academic commons and education planning center. “The plan will create destinations with warm, welcoming academic and social purposes in close proximity,” Stanley said.“In addition, it will facilitate meaningful student-

faculty interaction, which is such an important part of the college experience.” Before the Swetman work can begin, the west wing of Sheldon Hall must be renovated. Nearly $4.6 million is earmarked for that project. Another significant piece of the capital plan allows the consolidation of the School of Education, including work in Park and Wilber halls and projects in Lanigan Hall and Penfield Library totaling about $12.8 million. Planning and program studies for the sciences in Snygg and Piez halls as well as classroom renovations and technological upgrades in buildings not scheduled for full rehabilitation are also planned. Exterior rehabilitation of Snygg Hall as

Main entrance of Swetman Hall, part of the Campus Center complex.

well as of buildings in the academic quad area, in a continuation of the exterior work that has been done on Mahar and Culkin halls, will receive around $8.5 million. Other projects will include window replacement in Mahar Hall scheduled for next summer, campus-wide building signage for disability access and upgrades of mechanical systems in several buildings. Between the recent allocation and the previous five-year plan, more than $100 million of state capital funding supports construction and renovation projects at Oswego. Another $43 million from New York State Dormitory Authority revenue bonds underwrites the completed rehabilitation of Johnson Hall, the continuing renovations of Riggs and Lakeside halls and future improvements for other residence halls. “We’re embarking on an ambitious project over the next few years, but the outcome will positively impact generations of learners on our lakeshore campus,” Stanley said. 

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Federal grant supports study on fear, anger ngoing work by an Oswego professor and student on the strategic role of a basic emotion will expand under a new $92,200 federal grant beginning in January. Dr. Craig DeLancey, an assistant professor of philosophy and cognitive science, and John Callan ’06, a computer science and cognitive science major, received a campus Challenge Grant last spring for their project to use simulations to test a series of hypotheses about the nature of the social and economic role of anger. Now the Army Research Institute’s Office of Basic Research has awarded DeLancey a yearlong grant to hire an additional student and expand the study to, among other things, include the role of fear.

Dr. Craig DeLancey of SUNY Oswego’s philosophy department (front) works with John Callan ’06 on a project that uses computer simulations to model the strategic effects of emotion. DeLancey has received a federal grant to expand the project.

Emotions like anger and fear often decisively determine how a person or a group behaves, DeLancey explained in his proposal, but predicting their role in varying scenarios has proven difficult.“It’s really hard to experiment with emotions,” he said. “Simulation is one of the few ways to get some traction.” With Callan as his computer programmer, he develops simulated individuals, or agents, and then uses genetic algorithms to “evolve” emotional behaviors, first in one-toone interactions and then in more complex social interactions. “No one has used these technologies to look at how emotion evolves,” he said.“To my knowledge, nobody out there is doing this.” Callan and the other student that DeLancey will bring on in January are key collaborators on the project, the professor said. “Undergraduate computer science students can do important work,” he said. “They’re really in the trenches doing the work, working with me, kicking around ideas. It really is collaborative.” 

Business school one of best THE PRINCETON REVIEW NAMED OSWEGO’S SCHOOL of Business one of the Best 143 Business Schools in its new graduate school guidebook, released this fall. “Students who enroll in the School of Business at SUNY Oswego can expect several things: excellent value for their money, intimate classes, knowledgeable professors, state-of-the-art facilities, and an excellent hockey team,” the guide’s profile of Oswego begins. In Central New York, only Syracuse University’s Whitman School of Management and Cornell University’s Johnson Graduate School of Management are included along with Oswego in the best 143 schools. In the State University of New York, only

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the University of Buffalo and Oswego are included in this top category. Among the criteria for inclusion in the Princeton Review’s Best 143 Business Schools are AACSB International accreditation and graduate degree programs in business. Among the comments from Oswego students who are quoted in the Best 143 Business Schools are: 

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“In most areas, the school of business is at the top of its class. The classes are challenging and worthwhile. Most professors are really good at their areas. They are also widely available to help students both inside and out of class.” “Very small classes promote learning and student-professor interaction.”

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“The professors are excellent, and the classes are fun and challenging.” “The course load is challenging, requiring solid communication and organization skills. Many professors are conducting research on global trade, accounting, and management science. My academic experience has been very positive. I would suggest Oswego to all prospective business students (undergraduate or graduate).”

The Princeton Review listing follows on the heels of Oswego’s mention in U.S. News: America’s Best Graduate Schools. The School of Business is listed among 377 U.S. schools with AACSB accreditation and an MBA program. Oswego is the only SUNY comprehensive college listed, along with the university centers at Albany, Binghamton and Buffalo. 

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Oswego among best for girls SUNY OSWEGO JOINED SUCH SCHOOLS AS Brown, Duke and Stanford universities among the 50 Best Colleges for Girls selected by CosmoGirl! magazine. The October issue featured the first of what is expected to be an annual list for CosmoGirl!, a Hearst publication for young teens with a circulation of around 1.3 million. It is the younger sibling of Cosmopolitan, also published by Hearst Magazines. The magazine editors compiled the list after consulting admissions officers and guidance counselors across the country to determine the kind of environment that gives girls the best chance of success in school and after graduation. Editors identified six key factors — small class size, prominent female faculty members, strong women’s sports programs, a career center that facilitates internship opportunities, opportunities to hold leadership positions in clubs and activities, and an active alumni network—that they cross-referenced

with baseline data from the Princeton Review to determine the best schools. The entry cites Oswego’s “renowned meteorology program” and its being the first of the 64 campuses in the SUNY system to hire a woman as president when Dr. Virginia L. Radley took the post in 1978. Among Oswego’s notable women alumni are a National Book Award winner and other bestselling writers, an ESPN anchor, and an executive vice president of Johnson & Johnson Pharmaceutical Group. Fortythree percent of Oswego’s nearly 500 faculty members are women. The student-run Women’s Center is one of the most active of Oswego’s 150 student organizations. Oswego is one of three schools in New York state that made the list, joining two private institutions, Bard College and Hobart and William Smith Colleges. 

A new mural in the School of Business, developed by students of Art Professor Matthew Friday (second from left) depicts a theme of globalization and the progress of technology. Shown at the dedication of the mural are from left, School of Business Dean Lanny Karns, Friday, Assistant School of Business Dean Paloma Jalife and College of Arts and Sciences Dean Sara Varhus.

Grant funds Teaching American History project ore than 100,000 students throughout the Finger Lakes may see changes in how they learn about history, thanks in part to the efforts of SUNY Oswego faculty members. History and curriculum and instruction professors from SUNY Oswego will provide professional and curriculum development under a federal Teaching American History grant received by the Eastern Wayne County Rural Public Schools Consortium. The North Rose-Wolcott Central

School District received the $779,000 U.S. Department of Education grant in partnership with three other Wayne County districts that serve mostly rural populations. SUNY Oswego’s participation includes organizing and leading summer oncampus institutes for scholastic history teachers in 2005, 2006 and 2007. Around 75 teachers who serve 5,000 students in a 300-square-mile radius in Wayne County are expected to participate each year in the summer institutes.

Plans call for teachers who attend the summer institutes at Oswego to mentor and instruct 300 other elementary and secondary teachers within a four-county Finger Lakes region. This second wave of teachers instructs around 100,000 additional students. The grant will pay for services provided by Oswego faculty members and incidental costs like supplies. It also will fund seminars during the school year led by Oswego professors, as well as visits to interpretive attractions around the Finger Lakes region. 

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New grads blog CURRENT STUDENTS AND ALUMNI can experience what it’s like to go out into the world in 2004 with a brand new Oswego degree. The Senior Class Planning Committee, sponsored by the Oswego Alumni Association, has posted Internet blogs (or online diaries) where seniors can follow the lives of Lisa Niescierenko ’04, Maureen Flynn ’04 and Julie Dougall ’04 as they experience their first year after SUNY Oswego. The three had varied majors and are working or attending graduate school in different cities. Follow their adventures at http//oswegoalumni. oswego.edu/seniorclass/life.html

New look for Lakers

swego students have engaged in athletic competition since founder Edward Austin Sheldon strolled the lakeshore in the 1800s. But the college’s student-athletes are sporting a unified identity for the first time this year. The new identity has a nautical theme, tying in with Oswego’s lakeside location. A primary logo features a stylized rendition of “Oswego State” with a gold ship’s flag flying over it. A secondary mark features the “Lakers” nickname in gold emblazoned across a hunter green ship’s wheel sporting the school’s name. Each team also has its own customized version of the secondary mark as well as a word mark. In 2002, Sports Information Director Lyle Fulton and Mike Howard ’90, assistant director of sports information and coach of Oswego’s wrestling and golf teams, got the ball rolling toward a standard image. Symbolic Inc. of Fairport, whose clients include St. John’s University and Nazareth

College, was retained to design and implement the athletic graphic identity program. Tim Hale, who came aboard as athletic director in fall 2003, emphasized that it was a large team effort involving feedback from student-athletes, individual students and groups like the Student Association and advisory groups like the Intercollegiate Athletic Board. The new look will be phased in on home uniforms, away uniforms and warmups for all the athletic teams over the next few years. It will be placed on the ice in Romney Field House and the Laker Hall courts, and on promotional items and eventually, merchandise. 

Sharing culture THIS YEAR’S CHOICE FOR THE OSWEGO READING INITIATIVE, The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fist Fight in Heaven, was supported by several exhibits and programs. Bill Miller (below), a Native American artist and performer, was on campus in September, and in October, Sherman Alexie (left photo, second from right), the author of the ORI book, spoke to classes and a convocation held in Max Ziel Gymnasium to accommodate the huge crowd of interested attendees. Films and a Tyler Art Gallery exhibit of Native American baskets rounded out the fall semester activities. 

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Seago earns high honor iology Professor James Seago joined the elite scholars in his field in August when the Botanical Society of America awarded him its highest honor. Past recipients of the award include winners of the Nobel Prize and the National Medal of Science. The merit award recognizes “outstanding contributions to botanical science.” The society’s awards committee wrote that, while Seago’s research is “solid and substantial,” he was honored above all for fostering undergraduate research and encouraging talented students to pursue careers in botany. “If students do not enter botany, the field will wither away,” the committee wrote. “Dr. Seago has made remarkable and longstanding contributions to the flow of students into our discipline. He has the ability to spot interest and aptitude, to involve students in research, and thus to nurture their ability and interest.” The committee noted that often in the past 30 years Seago has co-authored papers with students. At last year’s BSA meeting, for example, three recent graduates presented a paper co-authored with Seago. One of the first students to study with Seago was Joe Armstrong ’70, who is now a

Energizing Teachers ENTERGY CORP. PROVIDED POWERFUL support for Oswego’s 20th Institute in Energy Education for Secondary School Science and Technology Education Teachers this summer. Twenty-six teachers of science and technology education from all across New York state attended the institute in Westchester County. Over the past two decades, the program has trained 487 teachers in energy technology and exposed them to new ideas, teaching methodologies and strategies. They, in turn, have had an impact on an estimated 530,000 students. 

Biology Professor James Seago and biology major Willow Eyres ’05 cut thin cross-section samples from a plant stem in the biology lab. The Botanical Society of America awarded Seago its highest honor, citing his work with future botanists among his “outstanding contributions to botanical science.”

professor at Illinois State University.“It is notable that this is the first time the award has gone to someone whose career was spent at an undergraduate college,” Armstrong said.

“No one can find another comparable sized school that has produced so many botanists.” 

‘Really hot field’ funded for new facility National Science Foundation grant of nearly $250,000 will create a new proteomics and mass spectrometry facility at Oswego as early as January. It will open up opportunities for faculty and students in a growing field of scientific and medical research. Proteomics — the study of all the proteins in a cell at any given time — is “a really hot,important field right now and becoming more and more important,” said Dr. Anthony Ouellette, the biology professor who is leading the project.“This is a good time to get this facility.” The mass spectrometer is a tool that helps to identify and analyze many kinds of

molecules — biological, organic and inorganic. At Oswego, it will be used in courses and research by undergraduates, graduate students and faculty. Plans are to make the facility available to area high school teachers and students. Researchers will use the new facility to develop a simple test for the date rape drug GHB, and to study cyanotoxins in local waterways, the molecular mechanism of antidiabetes compounds obtained from medicinal plants, clusters of the metallic element molybdenum, how an antibiotic works, and the genetic relatedness of deer mice populations from Manitoba to Tennessee. 

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Business students glimpse future

uturist Ed Barlow Jr. along with members of the School of Business Dean’s Advisory Board, spoke Sept. 9 in Rich Hall to a group of finance and management students headed out into the real world within the next few months.

Ed Barlow, Jr.

Barlow, president of Creating the Future, Inc., was on campus as keynote speaker for the Sithe Luncheon opening the 2004 Oswego State Fall Classic, and made a special presentation to the business classes. In response to his questions, board members looked ahead to the next three to five years and discussed trends and issues facing their industries or pro-

fessions and responses to them, as well as what background, competencies and skills will make business school graduates successful job candidates. Advisory board members Russell Findlay ’89, William Hartman ’83, Patrick Murphy ’74, Michael J. Paez ’80 and Robert Pagano Jr. ’84 focused on a common theme of change, especially the notion that in today’s economy it is important to accept and understand change. Adapting to and accepting change was one of the qualities and characteristics they will be looking for in a business school graduate, they said, along with a drive or passion for the work, interpersonal skills and having initiative to follow through with tasks no matter how difficult they seem. A student in the crowd was asked about one thing he learned from this presentation. His reply was, “I learned that I need to figure out how my experiences will make me more marketable.” He added that he needs to think about how he can stand out among other graduates. Hartman summed it up best after giving students a detailed description of changes he noticed on his drive to Oswego: “Change is inevitable. Get used to it; enjoy it; have fun.”  —Melissa Garwol ’05

A familiar name to readers of Oswego, Emily King ’05, long-time editorial assistant on the magazine, interned this summer at NBC Sports, where she worked with Tom Caraccioli ’89. He contacted the Oswego Alumni Association for help in finding an intern to assist in the network’s Olympic coverage. Earlier in the summer, King was also an intern at the Ithaca Times, under a prestigious New York Press Association-sponsored program.

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Students help create ‘stimulating, exciting place to learn’ ot only is the number of new incoming students up, but their high school averages and SAT scores are also, which is good news for SUNY Oswego and current students. The head count enrollment for the fall semester is 8,400, counting full-time, parttime, undergraduate and graduate students, up from 7,718 in 1998-99, according to Dr. Joseph Grant, vice president for enrollment management and student services. “That’s a good, healthy number to have on campus, to generate the kind of positive, creative activity both in and out of the classrooms that we want,” says Grant. About 1,360 new freshmen enrolled at Oswego this year, compared with 1,325 last year. More were at the top of their classes than in earlier years. Those with high school averages of 93 and SAT scores of 1230 or better almost doubled, from 109 students in 2000 to over 200 in 2004, drawn to Oswego partly by the Presidential Scholarship Program and other merit awards. This year Oswego gave 567 merit-based scholarships to the incoming class, including transfers. Overall, the college awarded $2.5 million in merit-based scholarships and nearly $60 million in need-based aid. The average award was $8,326. Oswego has been successful in recruiting out-of-state and international students, swelling the numbers of students in the residence halls from 3,100 in 1999 to 3,720 in 2004. Oswego is in the midst of a residence hall renovation program and will complete replacement of all furnishings in the next three years. “In terms of our academic programs, evolving student body and physical facilities, we are having a renaissance of sorts in recent years,” says Grant. “We are moving to the environment all faculty and students can benefit from: a stimulating, exciting place to learn, live and work.” 

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Camps teach skills, offer fun EDWARD AUSTIN SHELDON would smile if he could have returned to campus this summer. The founder hosted Camp Shady Shore at his lakeside home. Now the college he started offers summer camps to teach children skills from technology and science to the visual and performing arts, to sports like basketball, baseball and lacrosse. Nearly 1,000 youngsters swarmed onto campus this summer to stretch their bodies, minds and spirits. 

Above: Students at the first-ever Oswego Summer Jazz Institute perform for family and friends in Penfield Library’s Lake Effect Café. Left: Liz Nielsen, Oswego Middle School seventh grader, gets help in computer-aided design from Professor Donna Matteson ’83, M ’88 during the inaugural Oswego Technology Camp in August. Nyssa Brockhoff of Fulton Junior High gets ready to take off on a bungee cart with the help of Physics Professor Dale Zych during the Young Scholars Program.

Boys from 8 to 16 learn lacrosse skills from an all-alumni coaching staff, led by head lacrosse coach Dan Witmer ’82.

Alumna in scholarship fund-raiser ACTRESS, STORYTELLER AND poetry/spoken word performer Millie Quinones-Dunlap ’95 returned to her alma mater this fall to present her one-woman show “Through the Eyes of a Bronx Girl.” Quinones-Dunlap’s performance benefited the Returning Excellence Among College Honors Scholarship fund. The REACH Scholarship, sponsored by Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority and Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity, supports

academic excellence and leadership for a student of color. The scholarship was established at Oswego’s 2002 Return to Oz II alumni of color reunion. As a theatre major Quinones-Dunlap appeared in productions of “The Boys Next Door,” “Our Country’s Good,” “The Enchanted Pig” and “Orientation Express.” The 10 characters Quinones-Dunlap portrays in “Through the Eyes of a Bronx Girl” range from a job applicant as a greeting card writer to a self-proclaimed “karaoke queen.” Through poetry/spoken

word, storytelling, song and hip-hop dance, a story of struggle, survival and commitment emerges in this high-energy performance, said Mark Cole ’73, professor and chair of theatre at SUNY Oswego. Originally from the Bronx and currently living in Rochester, Quinones-Dunlap draws on her Bronx upbringing as well as her current life as a wife, mother and librarian at Olympia High School in Greece to create what she subtitles “Every Woman’s Story.” 

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WRVO reaches its goal

WRVO’s John Krauss ’71 (right) meets NPR’s Carl Kasell at “Wait, Wait…Don’t Tell Me!”

RVO, the National Public Radio affiliate on the Oswego campus, met its goal for the New Sound for a New Century Campaign and construction on the updated studios has already begun. The project is expected to be completed this spring.

The campaign raised $332,000 to renovate outdated broadcast equipment in the Lanigan Hall studios. The funds included three matching grants: $139,593 from the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Public Telecommunications Facilities Program, $25,000 from the Central New York Community Foundation and $12,500 from the John Ben Snow Foundation. Over $8,000 was also raised through a national online auction, a first for WRVO and NPR. Contributing to the overall success of the campaign was a special event: the taping of the popular NPR quiz show “Wait, Wait...Don’t Tell Me!” live in Syracuse Sept. 16. The event celebrated WRVO’s 35th anniversary of broadcasting, since the station first went on the air from campus in 1969. Over 2,100 people attended the sold-out performance at the Mulroy Civic Center in Syracuse’s Oncenter complex. “Wait, Wait...Don’t Tell Me!” is hosted by NPR’s Peter Sagal, and features “Morning Edition” newscaster Carl Kasell as judge and

scorekeeper. It is heard on more than 290 NPR affiliates across the country and boasts more than 1.5 million listeners weekly. Panelists for the Syracuse show were Mo Rocca, writer, TV personality and frequent contributor to NBC’s “Today” show; Sue Ellicott, Los Angeles-based writer and journalist; and Charlie Pierce, writer for the Boston Globe and contributor to NPR’s “Only A Game.” Syracuse University men’s basketball head coach Jim Boeheim played the weekly “Not My Job” game, where celebrities answer questions well outside their area of expertise. The live audience was a new experience for WRVO station manager John Krauss ’71, who introduced the NPR cast. But following Kasell’s advice (“Just make believe you’re on radio”), the veteran broadcaster ventured out onto the Civic Center stage and addressed the packed house, receiving an ovation for WRVO’s efforts. To hear the show, go to www.wrvo.org/ and follow the links. 

Several alumni returned to Oswego to perform with Music Professor Emeritus Stan Gosek’s band, Freefall, at Harborfest 2004 in July. Dani GottusoBoudov ’98 belts out a tune, while Gosek plays organ. Also playing with the band at Harborfest were Redd Swindells ’75, Dave Welsch ’81, Ernie Pichette ’90, Jonathan Peck ’03, Kate DeForest Percival ’96, Michael Roe ’94, Jason Fitzgerald ’97 and Melchi Michel ’02.

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Oswego offers new human-computer interaction major UNY Oswego’s new graduate major in human-computer interaction will meet an important market need through an innovative interdisciplinary approach. The graduate program would be the first of its kind in New York state, said Dr. Gary Klatsky, associate professor of psychology. HCI has become an in-demand discipline that focuses on designing, evaluating and implementing computer systems with human factors in mind. Oswego’s interdisciplinary program incorporates computer science components that provide students with the ability to program user interfaces, psychology classes to learn how humans interact with technology, and graphic design courses that will help students understand visual and creative considerations. “What makes our program unique is that our students will learn the usability and aesthetics components of user interface design and how to program these designs,” Klatsky noted. The program will give students the understanding and broad base required to make them competitive for this hot job field, he added. More information is available online at http://www.oswego.edu/hci/ 

Dr. Gary Klatsky looks at some design work on the college’s new Web redesign with graduate student Brent Farrell. Farrell is one of the first applicants to Oswego’s new human-computer interaction graduate degree.

Dr. Kestas Bendinskas of Oswego’s chemistry department (second from left) and Vice President for Development Kevin Mahaney (second from right) attended the launch of the SUNY Spring Campaign, which asks employees of SUNY Central, the Research Foundation of SUNY and the SUNY Construction Fund to support the campus or campuses of their choice through payroll deduction. Last year’s gifts to Oswego were directed to supporting the Student/Faculty Collaborative Challenge Grants and Dr. Bendinskas spoke at the event about the impact that the gifts had on student research, including the work in his lab. Pictured from left are SUNY Chancellor Robert King, Bendinskas, Mahaney and Tim Murphy ’74, executive director of the Research Foundation. Murphy was honored at the event as the leading donor among staff at SUNY Plaza.

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SPORTS

Susie Burt ’06 (Cuba) and Heather McBride ’05 (Mechanicville) were the anchors, tying for the team lead in wins. McBride was the workhorse, throwing over 100 innings and Burt took to the mound for 70.

Men’s Tennis

T Paul Harvey ’06 finished second in the Hartwick College Invitational.

Golf

he Lakers opened the spring campaign in early April at the Hamilton College Invitational placing fifth in the 10-team field with a 324 total. Ryan Hawkins ’06 (Amherst/Clarence) led the way with a round of 74 and was named to the all-tourney team after finishing among the top five. Oswego State was once again invited to participate in the NCAA Division III MidAtlantic Region Invitational held at the Hershey Country Club’s East Course in Hershey, Pa. John Myers ’04 (Fulton) recorded a two-day total of 166 over the very demanding course. The following week the Lakers finished 11th out of the field of 18 teams at the two-day Palamountain Invitational hosted by Skidmore College at the Saratoga Spa State Park and McGreggor Links. Hawkins carded rounds of 77 and 79 to finish in the top 15 individually. In the final event of the spring, Oswego State placed second out of eight teams at the Hartwick College Invitational held at the Oneonta Country Club. Paul Harvey ’06 (Weedsport) finished second after losing in a playoff for medalist honors. Harvey recorded rounds of 77 and 75 for a two-day total of 152, while Hawkins tied for third, one stroke back. Three other Lakers finished among the top 15 as Russ Korn ’06 (Hilton) and Jeff Kattrein ’07 (Glenmont) tied for 12th with rounds of 157 and Myers two strokes back at 159.

he Lakers enjoyed plenty of success as the team collected three victories. Three players led the team in individual play as Mark Prestopnik ’04 (Little Falls), Matt Mueller ’07 (Lisbon) and Adam Webster ’07 (Brockport) each collected four victories apiece. Prestopnik competed at first singles with Mueller at fifth singles and Webster in the sixth slot. Prestopnik was also a factor in doubles action as he teamed with Andrew Greek ’04 (Binghamton) to pick up three wins at first doubles. Mueller and Webster also posted three victories at third doubles. As a team, Oswego State posted wins over Elmira, Clarkson and Utica College.

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outh was served for the Lakers in 2004 as newcomers dominated the roster. The Lakers faced three top 20 teams in their first three games with two of those games occurring on the team’s annual spring trip to Florida

Softball

young Oswego State team gained plenty of experience in 2004 taking to the field for 36 games. The Lakers were led by Missy Constanza ’06 (Hannibal), as the sophomore led the team in every offensive category. She boasted an average of .327 while racking up 32 hits with 13 doubles, two home runs and 20 runs batted in.

Heather McBride ’05 winds up for the pitch.

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Women’s Lacrosse

Midfielder Katie Carbonaro ’05 became the fifth player in program history to score 100 goals.

There were plenty of high points as a trio of players earned All-SUNYAC recognition. Katie Carbonaro ’05 (Auburn) was selected First Team All-SUNYAC after leading the Lakers in goals (36), points (44), draw controls (57) and ground balls. The midfielder also became the fifth player in program history to score 100 goals, as she now has 110 goals and 27 assists for 137 points, good for fifth on the all-time scoring list. A pair of Lakers were named Second Team All-SUNYAC, as Maura Meehan ’04 (Oswego) and Liz McCarthy ’04 (Syracuse) were honored. Meehan made the team as an attacker contributing with 14 goals and 20 points. McCarthy was selected as a defender while still providing the team with an offensive spark, tallying 10 goals.

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CURRENTS Baseball

Scott Ferguson ’04 prepares to attack the ball.

Men’s Lacrosse

hile the 2004 men’s Laker lacrosse team had a tough time breaking into the win column, several of its individual team members achieved honors and set school records. And, although the team finished with a 5-10 overall record and a 2-4 SUNYAC mark, their opponents included seven teams that earned either ECAC or NCAA playoff berths. Thin in numbers and inexperienced at both defense and attack, the Lakers managed to survive some early-season injuries and finish their season with two consecutive wins, a 13-12 upset win at Alfred and a 14-9 SUNYAC win at Brockport that enabled Oswego to finish fifth in the league. The Lakers continued their tradition of excellent midfield play, as three Lakers earned All-SUNYAC honors in 2004: Scott Ferguson ’04 (Ronkonkoma) (36-16-52) and defensive long stick middie David Pavlick ’04 (Port Crane) were named to the first team, while Mike Malecki ’04 (Baldwinsville) (43-9-52) earned secondteam honors. Ferguson also earned USILA All-American honors and played in the prestigious USILA North/South Game on June 12, 2004 at Nazareth College, where he scored two goals in his team’s 18-14 victory. He was also named to the first team of the 2004 ECAC Division III Upstate Lacrosse All-Star list.

hree Oswego State players were recognized among the elite players in the area as they were named to the American Baseball Coaches Association/Rawlings New York Region All-Star teams. Dan Bartel ’04 (Lancaster) was named first team as a shortstop with Garrit Tallini ’04 (Durhamville) making the second team as an outfielder. Matt Kimpland ’05 (Fulton) was the third Laker to be recognized, as the junior was selected to the third team as a second baseman. Bartel excelled both in the field and at the plate. He had an average of .345 and was second on the team in runs batted in with 32. Defensively, Bartel set the career assist record this year as he capped his tenure with the Lakers with 352 and he also broke the season mark this spring as he finished with 113. Bartel was also named ECAC Division III Upstate first team. Tallini earned second team recognition for the second straight year as he batted .377 while leading the team with four home runs and 36 runs batted in. The centerfielder has proved to be a threat on the base paths as he had a team-high 14 stolen bases. Kimpland was a steady infielder, who also provided a spark at the plate. He finished second on the team in hitting

Baseball Coach Frank Paino (left) with Snygg Award winner Dan Vacco ’04, who also won a SUNY Chancellor’s Award.

with an average of .384 a team-high 35 runs scored. All three players also earned SUNY Athletic Conference honors with Bartel and Kimpland being named first team AllSUNYAC and Tallini second team AllSUNYAC. Mike Cortellini ’05 (Arlington) was honored as SUNYAC First Year Player of the Year and was named first team AllSUNYAC in addition to outfielder Jim Miner ’05 (Liverpool). Dan Vacco ’04 (Rochester) was awarded the prestigious Snygg Award in addition to the SUNYAC Chancellor’s Award. As a team, Oswego State advanced to the ECAC Upstate Tournament for the third time in the past four seasons.

Outdoor Track and Field

usan McWilliams ’04 (Central Square) capped off her Laker career with an impressive post-season run. At the SUNYAC Championships she claimed titles in the 10k and 3000m steeplechase (her third straight steeple title) as well as a second-place finish in the 5k. The NYSCTC Championships brought a 1500m run title, and a return trip to the NCAA Championships resulted in a tremendous fourth-place finish in the steeplechase, earning McWilliams All-American honors for the second year in a row. Teammate Jessica Adam ’06 (Dover, N.H.) was the SUNYAC shot put champion to earn her second conference title, and Deb Richards ’04 (Oswego) was crowned the NYSCTC 100m dash champion to cap her impressive career as a Laker. For the men there were numerous personal bests and school records through the season. Jonathan Lagasse ’04 (Spencer) earned team MVP honors for his second place finish in the SUNYAC high jump competition; he also broke the Laker javelin throw record. Sprinters Justin van Alemlo ’05 (Groton) and Ramon Suarez Jr. ’07 (Buffalo) both placed in the SUNYAC Championships and contributed strongly to the men’s 4x400 relay which had a strong showing at the NYSCTC Championships.

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By Michael Weinreb

FROM LAKER TO LION n early October, two weeks before the start of preseason practice, Joe Jones ’87, the head basketball coach of the Columbia University Lions, sat behind his desk on the third floor of Levien Gymnasium and surveyed the clutter. He wore a baggy sweatsuit which disguised his narrow frame. He’d hoped to get to the gym that morning, but he had recruiting visits to take care of, and phone calls to return. Always with this man, there are phone calls to return. Chances are, if you’ve met Joe Jones once, if you conversed with him casually seven years ago at a Long Island convenience store, he’ll say that he owes you a phone call. Three times during a conversation about his years at Oswego, Jones dropped that very phrase. In the meantime, the phone on his desk chirped over and over again: A high-school coach, his team’s

manager, a number he didn’t recognize. “College, man,’’ he said, between interruptions.“I miss college a lot.’’ And yet here is Jones, reliving the college experience every day. He resides in an apartment one block away with his wife, Kristin, and young daughter, Sydney; and he’s become a fixture on campus, a cult figure of sorts, a lithe gadfly with a bald pate who, according to one recent article in the Columbia student newspaper, is “that oldschool gangsta uncle that everyone wants.’’ Jones took over the head job at Columbia prior to last season, in the midst of an attempt by a long-dormant Columbia program to elevate its status within the Ivy League. He beat out bigger names like Bobby Hurley, the former Duke point guard, and Hall of Fame center Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, and virtually everything Jones has done since then, most notably the

courting of students and the installation of an up-tempo style of play, has justified his hiring. “Everything (before he came) was boring and slow and stupid,’’ one Columbia student said last spring.“Not anymore.’’ Jones’ first season at Columbia began with little to no expectations and ended in March with an upset over Yale — a team coached, remarkably enough, by his brother James. It may not sound like much, a 1017 record, a 6-8 Ivy League season, but given what Jones had inherited — a 2-25 Columbia team with a marginal talent level at a school that has never embraced its basketball program — this was something to see. That the season’s final win came over his brother’s team in double overtime, with Levien Gym filled almost to capacity, only elevated the cult of Joe Jones to the next level.

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The World According to Joe Jones

Those who knew Jones, who grew up with him on Long Island, who went to school with him at Half Hollow Hills West in Dix Hills, and who knew him at Oswego, will tell you that he has always possessed these qualities. He is distinctive, and he is memorable, and he has a way with people that helped him become one of the top recruiters in the country while working as an assistant coach at Villanova (where he worked for six years before moving to Columbia). When Joe Jones is your friend, he’s not going to forget you, whether you like it or not. And, if the attendance at those Jones versus Jones meetings between Columbia and Yale last year were any indication, his friends don’t seem to forget him, either. “Last summer, 12 of us from college got together with our families and went to Nantucket,’’ Jones said.“I’ve tried to keep in touch with as many people as possible.’’ Jones has distinct memories of his years at Oswego; he played point guard (he is the all-time leader in assists and ranks second all-time for steals), and lived for three years on the third floor of Funnelle Hall with a number of fellow athletes, some of whom showed up at Columbia games last season. He was recruited by an assistant coach, Larry Domingo, with whom he still keeps in touch, and he calls former coach Paul Callaghan “a second dad.’’ Senior year, Jones lived off-campus in what he describes, rather lovingly, as “an

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“Everything (before he came) was boring and slow and stupid,’’ one Columbia student said last spring. “Not anymore.’’ absolute shack,’’ with five roommates (two women, three men), most of whom, not surprisingly, he still keeps in touch with. “When I got there, my room didn’t have a window pane or a window,’’ he said.“It was just an open space. The kitchen floor was on such a slant you could hardly walk on it. And to this day, I’ve never gone in that basement. It was held up by cement boulders that kept slipping out of place, and my roommates had to go down and fix them.’’ Jones graduated from Oswego in 1987 and stayed to go to graduate school. He became a hall director, and he became close with Director of Admissions Joe Grant, another mentor he continues to stay close to, and with Bill Farden, the guidance counselor and basketball coach at Oswego High School, where Jones did an internship. “That experience helped me grow up a little bit,’’ he said. “Sometimes when

oe Jones ’87 is the type of coach who can’t sit still. He is a man in constant motion, long arms flailing, feet stomping, mouth screwed up into a painful frown. The unscripted, unedited and sometimes unformed things that come out of his mouth during practices and games are already the stuff of legend at Columbia, where in his first year Jones led a team that went winless in the Ivy League in 2002-03 to six Ivy League victories. “It’s like watching a motivational speaker, isn’t it?’’ said Jones’ assistant coach, Jim Engles. “You watch him on the court, the way he jumps around,’’ said a Columbia student. “He’s just fun to watch.’’ Here are some vintage Joe-isms from both practices and games during his first year as coach: “It was great you made a shot. I feel wonderful! Now get back to your freaking spot! After we win a championship, we’ll celebrate!” “I’ve got guys telling me they’re tired, freshmen who won’t jump, guys getting stripped [of the ball]—it all comes out! The real person comes out when you’re tired!” “I see your faces! Don’t think I don’t see it! I see everything!” “Get it done when we hit the floor! That’s when you show what you’re made of. Not in my office! Not in the ——— locker room!” “You don’t deserve to play! The balls are done (for today)!”

you’re an athlete, you can be a little oblivious to the outside world.’’ His future, he thought, was in counseling, not coaching. In 1991, Jones became a guidance counselor and head basketball coach at Comsewogue High School, but he didn’t stay unrecognized for long. In 1994, he became an assistant at Hofstra, and then moved to Villanova in 1997. While he was at Villanova, James was hired as head coach at Yale, and when the Columbia job opened, he encouraged his brother to pursue it. That two African-American men from a working-class home, the sons of a dry-cleaning worker and a nurse, became the first brothers to coach against each other in a Division I basketball game in more than 40 years was enough of a storyline to intrigue Sports Illustrated, which ran a full-length profile. They talk on the phone constantly, James and Joe, which is not surprising, since Joe spends half of his life on the phone. The other half is usually spent with people, whether its continuing the constant back-andforth with his assistants, or meeting with Columbia president Lee Bollinger, or wandering across campus and shaking hands with the students who have come to recognize him as the man who could turn around an entire university’s athletic fortunes. There is still much work to be done, of course. Last year was only a start, and Jones, who has a tendency to outwork his own players during practice, who demands that they grunt and dive and roll and sweat through every drill, doesn’t plan on stopping anytime soon. “There’s nothing about this job,’’ he said, “that I don’t look forward to.’’ 

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IN SICKNESS AND IN

ealth H By Michele Reed

hen John ’91 and Jeannine Muoio Salamone ’92 promised, in 1997, to “have and to hold . . . in sickness and in health,” little did they realize how soon they would be called on to fulfill that vow. On John’s 31st birthday he underwent open-heart surgery for a congenital heart defect. It was the second time he’d had open-heart surgery. The first was when he was just 7. But that didn’t stop him from growing up active and playing soccer at Oswego. (“I have a game tomorrow,” he told Oswego alumni magazine in October. “Though I’m not as fast as I used to be.”) So when he started to develop severe mitral valve regurgitation along with atrial fibrillation in 1998, he knew they’d have to go in and fix the problem again. The surgery was scheduled for March 2000, at the Cleveland Clinic. A couple of days before the surgery, in the shower at the hotel room where she awaited her husband’s operation, Jeannine found a lump in her breast. She didn’t bother to tell John. Jeannine had been healthy and active all her life and she also wasn’t aware that women her age, 29, could be at risk for breast cancer. Besides, she was focused on taking care of her spouse. A couple of weeks later, John was home recuperating from his seven-hour operation. Jeannine’s lump was bigger and more painful. She told him about it.

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“I’ll never forget the day she told me,” he says. “We were sitting down having a glass of wine and putting a puzzle together.” He advised Jeannine to go to the doctor and she made an appointment right away. The doctor told her to come back a week later and when the lump was still there, ordered a mammogram and sonogram. The following week, Jeannine had a biopsy, which confirmed her worst fears: It was cancer. “The day before I turned 30 I got the news,” she says. It was exactly six weeks after John’s surgery. Jeannine had her own surgery at Georgetown University’s Lombardi Cancer Center — a lumpectomy with nine positive lymph nodes removed. Her cancer was at an advanced stage. It wasn’t the end of the bad news. The surgeon didn’t remove the entire tumor and she had to have a second operation a couple of weeks later. In July she started eight rounds of chemotherapy over a sixmonth period. Though she describes it as “over all not too terribly bad,” Jeannine was nauseated, tired, fatigued and bald. “She was absolutely beautiful bald,” John chimes in. He even posted a note on the bathroom mirror: “Bald is beautiful. Life is beautiful. Jeannine is beautiful.”

From patient to caregiver

hile still recuperating, John became the caregiver. It was a role he was prepared for by his own experiences. “By being a patient, I understood what it was like to be a patient. I didn’t know what it was like to have breast cancer, but I knew what it was like to go to the hospital and have major surgery,” he says. “The common thread for me was being able to help Jeannine. . . in dealing with a life-threatening disease. I knew what it was like to be scared, to face the unknown.” Jeannine finished her chemotherapy in December 2000. But genetic testing showed that she had a mutation that could cause a recurrence of the cancer as well as a high risk of developing ovarian cancer. She chose to undergo a double mastectomy with reconstruction. She followed up the surgery with radiation treatments and has been on the cancer-fighting drug tamoxifen for three

years, with less than two more years to go. “It was a rough experience, but in the end it made me a stronger person and made me realize what I want to do with my life,” says Jeannine. What she wants to do is to help other people facing cancer. This fall, after working for 10 years at a public relations firm in Alexandria, Va., she took a job in the communications department of the American Society of Clinical Oncology, “actually working toward the cause,” she says. She also volunteers as public relations co-chair with the Young Survival Coalition, dedicated to issues faced by young women with breast cancer. She also serves on YSC’s board of directors. “Her advocacy work is truly amazing,” her proud husband relates. Jeannine has been profiled in magazines, including Shape, the fitness chain Curves’ Diane, Glamour and Fitness, as well as the New York Daily News. She received an award from Lifetime Television for her advocacy work, the Lifetime Breast Cancer Heroes Award. At the end of October she was on the Discovery Health Channel, talking about breast cancer and genetic testing in the film, “Breast Cancer Legacy.” John shares his experiences to help others, too. He volunteers for Mended Hearts, a group he first joined to seek support before his own surgery. Since then he has been involved with the organization on a regional and national level, serving as public relations chairman and now lobbying, legislative and legal chairman (a logical choice, since he is a staff member with the U.S. Senate Subcommittee on the Oversight of Government Management.) In addition to his work for fellow heart patients, he is active in Men Against Breast Cancer, a group dedicated to teaching men how to best support their loved ones facing the disease.

Love born at Oswego

acing open-heart surgery and breast cancer are experiences no young couple expects so early in their marriage. Yet, for John and Jeannine the crises only strengthened their love and commitment. “Going through it at the same time

brought us closer together,” says John. “It was a tremendously positive experience in the face of difficult circumstances,” adds Jeannine. The love that saw them through their illnesses was born at Oswego, where the couple had their first date. “I always loved her, and knew I wanted to be with her,” John says. “I used to watch her run around the soccer fields when she was training for cross-country. She was so darn cute.” Jeannine, who went to the NCAA cross-country championships her senior year says,“I’m still running, but now I run a lot slower.” “And I can catch her!” quips John. Another Oswego connection helped Jeannine through those rough times — one of her best friends at college, Tracey Donovan Fanning ’92. “She and I are still best friends and the experience I went through brought us even closer,” Jeannine says. “She was a huge support during the whole experience.” Jeannine’s twin sister, Jacqueline Muoio Mazzilli ’92, also supported her in her fight.“She’s great and we’ve grown closer, too,” says Jeannine.“We talk every day.” John got support from an Oswego friend, too. His Seneca Hall roommate, Joe Giuliano ’91, was helpful during the treatment and they remain close today. Despite the fear and hardships their diagnoses caused, the Salamones remain positive. “Receiving a breast cancer diagnosis one day before my 30th birthday certainly was not the gift I was hoping for, but looking back over four years later, it has turned out to be one of the greatest gifts of my life,” says Jeannine. “Breast cancer has enriched my life more than I could have ever imagined. Persevering through the diagnosis, surgeries, treatments, recovery and beyond has strengthened my relationships with my husband, my family and friends and has provided me with a better understanding of the meaning of my life — which is to work to raise awareness of breast cancer and to unconditionally live each and every day I have with those I love.” 

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BRAVO PHOTO: MATTHEW PEYTON

Queer Eye FOR THE

Coach Guy By Patricia Rycraft O’Toole ’79

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Mark Finegan ’89 (left) gets a little help in the wardrobe department from Carson Kressley, one of the makeover artists on “Queer Eye for the Straight Guy.”

Some of Mark’s and Cindy’s furniture was literally tossed to the curb. “They burned some of my clothes in the fireplace and threw some of my clothes out of the top window,” said Mark. Then it was time to go out and buy new stuff. Mark was taken on a shopping spree for clothes and furniture. He was also whisked off to a spa, where he received tips on hair styling and some new hair products. While the Fab Five did encourage Mark to spend less time golfing and to take Cindy along when he goes on out-of-town golf trips,they did buy him a new set of golf clubs. They also coached him on how to plan a romantic evening with Cindy. Mark was then ready for his big “reveal” (make-over show talk for the moment the made-over guest, home or garden is shown off for the first time), which he made at a home volleyball game, with family, friends, students and colleagues filling the stands. It was the first time that even Cindy would see “the new Mark.” The members of the volleyball team were the first ones to see Mark. They were stunned when their coach arrived to talk to them before the game. Then the crowd went wild when Mark entered the gym dressed in khakis, a black turtleneck, a blazer, new shoes and cool sunglasses. He also sported a new coach’s whistle from Tiffany’s, engraved with the inscription: XOXO Fab Five.

“When I did my reveal it was a real nice moment,” said Mark. “It was nice the kids all came out and supported me. And we won the game, too.” Then it was time for a romantic evening with Cindy. Mark arrived home first while Cindy dropped off their son with a babysitter. She had yet to see their newly furnished living room, dining room and family room. Mark lit a fire in the fireplace — initially forgetting to open the flue so the room started to fill up with smoke. He finally got the flue open. Next, Mark made the dessert that he had practiced making earlier. Although he forgot at first to add the water to the parfait, it turned out tasting great. Once Cindy arrived home and was totally thrilled with the new look of their home, they settled in for some quiet time together. Mark presented her with a locket with two pictures inside, one of Mark and Cindy on their wedding day and the other of their son. The show closes with Mark sharing with Cindy that he realizes that it’s important for them to spend more time together. While the Fab Five made lots of changes for Mark and Cindy, there was one thing that surprisingly stayed the same. “They left the golf bathroom,” said Mark. 

‘Extreme’ Surprise

ABC/STEVE FENN

ark Finegan ’89 by all accounts is a really nice guy — just ask his wife, the kids he teaches and coaches, and his colleagues. But even Mark, a physical education teacher, would admit there were a few areas in his life where he needed to make some changes for the better. For one, he had to spend less time on the golf course and more romantic time with his wife of nearly six years, Cindy. For another, his wardrobe, which consisted primarily of sweatpants and T-shirts, was also in serious need of attention.“I had five pairs of navy blue sweatpants and five pairs of black sweatpants and I alternated them.” His idea of dressing up was wearing a golf shirt with his sweats. And Mark also needed to be a bit more generous with the budget for home furnishings for the Eastchester house that he and Cindy share with their son, Jack, 2. Cindy, along with the girls on the Pelham Memorial High School Varsity volleyball team that Mark coaches, decided that he was the perfect candidate for the hit reality show,“Queer Eye for the Straight Guy.” They contacted the producers of the show,who agreed that Mark was just the kind of guy that the Fab Five loves to transform. In fact, Cindy heard back from the producers the day after she sent them an e-mail. So, at the end of January, the Fab Five showed up on Mark’s and Cindy’s doorstep. The episode, titled “Romancing the Coach,” aired April 20. The premise of “Queer Eye for the Straight Guy,” which airs on the Bravo channel, is that the Fab Five — Kyan Douglas, Ted Allen, Jai Rodriguez, Thom Filicia and Carson Kressley — share their various areas of expertise including fashion, culture, grooming, food and interior design with a straight guy. “They are exactly like they appear on TV — very accommodating, very accessible,”said Mark.“They are really funny guys.” As soon as the Fab Five arrived at the Finegan home, the chaos began. “The first thing they do is come in and tear apart your house and make fun of different things,” said Mark. They had a field day mocking Mark’s golf theme bathroom, complete with its wallpaper border of famous golf clubhouses and a picture of Jack Nicklaus.

New York City firefighters Joe Liselli ’87 (right) and Pete Wasserman ’87 (left) were surprised with a major renovation of their bachelor apartment on the popular ABC-TV show “Extreme Makeover Home Edition.” Here, they are shown with Ty Pennington (center), design team leader and carpenter on the program. The producers of the show wanted to do something nice for the guys, as both had lost many brother firefighters in the Sept. 11, 2001, World Trade Center terrorist attacks.

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Helping Hand for Afghanistan Q By Michele Reed

uietly, without a lot of fanfare, one Oswego alumnus helped make possible a huge humanitarian effort in Afghanistan. Army Reserve Major Robert Liput ’87 was the commander of the forward logistics element for a Jordanian field hospital serving 300 to 1,200 indigent Afghan patients a day. Liput was deployed to the province of Balkh in northern Afghanistan for about 11 months, returning in May. In a scene straight out of “M*A*S*H,” Jordanian doctors worked in tents and makeshift operating rooms. They needed supplies to run the hospital, electricity for their equipment and food for themselves and their patients. “We made sure they had fuel trucked in, medicines flown in — everything they needed to sustain the hospital, we supplied for them,” said Liput of his 23-soldier team. He compared his unit to a superstore, supplying the basic needs of the Jordanian medical team. “If they needed a pallet of water or an ice cream cone, chances are we’d have it. If a generator broke down, we could fix it,” he said,“We were pretty much able to pull rabbits out of our hat, so to speak.” It was a big responsibility for Liput, but a welcome one. “Being in charge was a very great honor for me,” he said, of his experience working with representatives of dozens of countries. “I worked with people from Afghanistan to Zimbabwe — the entire alphabet of countries.” Liput and his soldiers also worked with about 43 Afghan nationals, including 23 interpreters, who would help them barter for the supplies the hospital needed. Many were doctors themselves, who helped the Jordanian doctors understand people’s

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Army Reserve Major Robert Liput ’87 “tagging” a wrecked aircraft with Oswego ROTC. Tagging is a popular thing to do among soldiers and Marines.

needs. “I find the Afghan people are a very hardworking, very proud group,” he said. “They had a great deal of respect and I had a great deal of respect for them. Some put their lives on the line to help the Americans.”

Caring for children

iput’s reports about the children’s situation — many with no shoes in winter, malnourished or missing limbs from land mines — struck a note with Liput’s family, and his wife and mother-in-law started a

grass-roots movement to help the children of Afghanistan. Operation Child Comfort provided blankets, shoes, clothing, hats, mittens and pediatric medicines the hospital might be missing. What began as a family effort expanded to the Ohio communities of Dayton and Middletown. His mother-in-law’s church collected dozens of boxes with supplies and “comfort items,” like blankets and stuffed animals. Local businesses donated provisions. His son’s Boy Scout troop held a

A typical day at the hospital. “All the women huddle around pediatrics to wait for the doctors,” says Robert Liput ’87.

fund-raiser doing jumping jacks to provide the money to ship the boxes over. “It really did improve the quality of their life while at the hospital,” Liput said of the sick children.

Inspired at Oswego

iput describes himself in high school as “one of those kids who didn’t have any direction”in his life. He came to Oswego as a transfer student after a year in community college. One incident at Oswego ended up changing his life. “I was living in Waterbury. My RA came into my room, doing a check to see if the door was locked and he had one of those cigarette-lighter hand grenades. He rolled the hand grenade lighter down the floor. It scared me.” He said,“I am in ROTC. Why don’t you come to hear a talk about it?” Liput did, and signed up. He was commissioned a 2nd lieutenant in May 1987. He served in the first Gulf War in Saudi Arabia and then went into the Army Reserves. The father of three children, Alex, 12; Rachael 9; and Emily, 3; Liput is a sales

Robert Liput ’87 (center) takes part in an Operation Child Comfort gift presentation to sick children in the hospital. He is standing next to Jordanian doctors of the hospital. Photo top right, Liput in front of the “Blue Mosque,” said to be the second holiest site in the Muslim world. The son-in-law of the prophet Mohammad is buried here.

representative for the Marlin Co., which sells employee communication services, when he’s not on active duty. “I’m going into my 19th year, and have not regretted a day of it since,” he said of his Army involvement. “Oswego ROTC was a big influence on my life.” 

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From Kabul to Kunduz One Recent Grad’s First-Hand Look at a Country at War Story by Travis Durfee ’02 Photos by Connie Frisbee Houde

Travis Durfee ’02 climbs the ruins of an ancient Buddhist temple along the Silk Route near Kabul.

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anding in Afghanistan is jarring the first time around. Even if, by some stroke of luck, your flight into Kabul on Ariana Airlines, the country’s only and much maligned international air carrier, wasn’t dotted with sporadic power outages or overhead compartments rattling open. And say the chorus of creaks and moans emanating from the outdated jet’s fuselage during each bout with turbulence somehow passed your attention, too. Even missing these, a few of the quirks that have become Ariana’s legend, you’re still faced with what’s out the window the first time you touch down in Afghanistan. Rusting metal hulks, the discarded carcasses of flights less smooth than your own, and random aviation parts are scattered on either side of the runway at the Kabul International Airport. A graveyard of functional-looking airplanes lies out one window, nearest the terminal. A variety of military vehicles and men scanning for landmines are spread out across the grounds looking out the other. The plane parks, you descend a metal staircase out onto the runway and head toward the small hangar that is the airport’s only terminal. Posters of the slain Northern Alliance leader, Ahmed Shah Masoud, and a large metallic welcome sign greet you in English near the entrance, as do soldiers from the Afghan National Army bearing automatic weapons. “What the hell

have I done,” I’m thinking to myself at this point. I mean, I’d had previous experience firing and being fired upon by the Kalashnikov, but that was while playing “James Bond: 007” on Nintendo 64 in my Onondaga Hall suite. I’d only been out of the country for the first time last summer, and that was for a wedding in the U.K. Earlier this year, Connie Frisbee Houde, a freelance photographer and world traveler from Albany, presented me with the opportunity to spend a month journeying through the Central Asian nation of Afghanistan. Our main goal was to chronicle the work of an Albany-area man who helps run an eye care program that has provided the people of Afghanistan with the majority of their optical services since the 1960s. Aside from reporting on the eye care mission, Connie and I were also able to travel throughout the country by ourselves, visiting a few cities and interacting with many Afghans. We experienced an earthquake and my food poisoning. We slept on mats and bathed in buckets. It was an amazing experience, some of which I wrote about for the newspaper that allowed me to make the journey, Albany’s Metroland [www.metroland.net/back_issues/vol_27_ no18/features.html]. Reporting about the eye care program for Metroland gave me the excuse to travel halfway around the globe and get an idea of what life is like for a people who, aside from living in the first stop in “the war on terror,” have themselves been at war for the last quarter century. And considering that war has been such a central feature of life in Afghanistan, and possibly something the Afghan people might want to leave behind, it was quite surprising to see how ubiquitous, ingenious and, at times, sad, were the re-incorporations of the relics from battles passed. Tank treads were frequently employed as speed bumps on roads and streets nearing heavily-populated areas. These treads and loose tank hubs were also combined to

Left: Durfee interviews Afghans in Kunduz Below, right: Durfee watches cataract surgery on a 9-year-old, blind since birth. Below, center: Afghan man in a fig grove

PHOTO BY TRAVIS DURFEE ’02

form ramps for cleaning or working under their cars and trucks. Helicopter blades affixed to metal poles are strung with ropes and made into playground equipment. One of Kabul’s largest public schools, Habibia High School, remains in such a state of disrepair that students are forced to attend class outside. To avoid the rubble and broken glass on the floors in most of the school’s classrooms, teachers have lined up desks and blackboards on the basketball courts and soccer fields behind the building. The salvaged casing of a Russian tank shell hangs from a wall of the building and is struck with a steel rod to announce the end of classes. Though poverty and hardship are enduring features of life in Afghanistan, many Afghans I met exhibited joy carrying out the tasks of their everyday lives. Despite our language barrier, a group of teenaged boys running their family’s restaurant in the northeastern city of Kunduz tried to engage me in their laughing and joking as they served customers a traditional Afghan breakfast of nan, hot tea and lamb kabob. Wandering in the woods behind a restaurant and truck stop in the Hindu Kush I came upon a fig grove and its caretaker, a smiling man who couldn’t speak. Seeing that I had a camera, the man, who wore a Chicago Bears sweater over his traditional baggy pants and shirt, wanted nothing more than for me to take his picture among his trees. Repeatedly. He walked me

from one tree to the next, gesturing to have his photo taken again and again and again. The most recent chapter in the country’s history started three years ago. The late-2001 military intervention headed by the United States and supported by more than 30 other countries and the United Nations, led to the ouster of the repressive Taliban regime and set the country on a path of reform and reconstruction where the going is slow. Most Afghans I spoke with during my visit were satisfied with the changes brought to their country by the recent military intervention and hope for the future. Music stores were open once more,Afghans were asking for their pictures to be taken, children were flying kites again — all of which were outlawed under the Taliban. Afghans voted this fall in their country’s first presidential election.

“We are leaving a dark time,” an 18year-old Afghan told me, proudly displaying his voter identification card. But this is not to let on that there is not work to be done. Afghanistan perennially ranks near the bottom of the list of U.N. vital statistics. Much of the country’s infrastructure is still in ruins. Despite a relative calm in Kabul, ethnic and factional warlords still maintain control of many of the country’s remote regions. The drug trade in Afghanistan currently accounts for 75 percent of the world’s heroin and the U.N. estimates that this year’s opiumpoppy crop could be the largest ever. So I’m looking to go back; to find some more stories and get a better idea of what life is like in the country. With any luck, the graduate studies in public affairs I recently began at Cornell will allow me to find summer employment at a non-governmental organization providing assistance to the Afghan people. I’m looking forward to viewing how far along are the many developments that began when I was in the country, like school and road construction. I’ve heard they were looking to improve the airline, too, so I’ll have to let you know what it was like landing in Afghanistan the second time around.  Travis Durfee ’02 can be reached at traviscalhoun@hotmail.com See Connie Frisbee Houde’s photographs at www.conniefrisbeehoude.com

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A ‘Touch of Oswego’ in Iraq By Steve Yablonski ’77 Reprinted with permission of the author from Oswego Daily News.com, Sept. 16, 2004

hey’re thousands of miles away from home and in harm’s way. However, they still have their sense of humor and a little piece of Oswego. Sgt. Adam Colby ’87 e-mailed a photo of himself and Sgt. Steven Baker ’86 wearing their Sigma Tau Chi T-shirts in Iraq to another Sigma Tau Chi alumnus, Gary Maher ’86, who forwarded it to the Daily News . . . “(Here’s a) photo of Steve and I prepping for an open smoker at the University of Mosul,” Sgt. Colby joked in the e-mail to his friend. Sgt. Colby is from Riverdale, and currently lives in Delaware where he serves as a Delaware Highway Police Officer. He just returned to Iraq after taking four weeks leave to be with his wife, Colleen, for the arrival of their first child, Morgan. “Adam was my little brother during our days in Oswego,” Maher said. Sgt. Baker is a native of Fulton. He still has family there. Currently, Steve, his wife, Theresa (an attorney with Met Life Insurance), and their triplets (two boys and a girl) live in Scarsdale, Maher said. “When Steve isn’t playing ‘Army guy,’ he works as an attorney for the American Transit Insurance Co. in the Bronx,” Maher said. “Both of these guys have been away from their families since last November and the way it looks they won’t be home again until sometime next year,” he continued. Maher says the two soldiers are his best friends. “Both of them were attendants at my wedding, as I was at theirs,” he said.” The three of us are still very active with the Sigma Tau Chi Alumni Association whose main objective is the restoration of the house at 8 Montcalm St. Even though they are in a very difficult situation, they have not lost their sense of humor.” Baker and Colby are both Rangers serving with the 416th Civil Affairs Division in Mosul, Iraq. They joined the reserves back in 1994 as “something fun and different to do on weekends,” Maher said. They were assigned to the “Fighting 69th” and served with that battalion for a number of years. One of the honors they received during their time with the 69th was to be part of the color guard that led the St. Patrick’s Day Parade down Fifth Avenue in New York City. After a number of years, they sought a different challenge and moved forward to become Rangers. “I remember one of my conversations with Sgt. Baker about becoming a Ranger involved what he had to do in order to qualify,” Maher said. “He told me that he had to run a mile in under 10 minutes, do a series of grueling exercises, and jump out of a plane with a parachute.”

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Sgt. Adam Colby ’87 and Sgt. Steven Baker ’86 wear their Sigma Tau Chi T-shirts in Iraq with pride.

After graduating from SUNY Oswego, Sgt. Colby joined the Army in 1989 and trained as a helicopter pilot. After his hitch in the Army he joined the reserves. He met his future wife on a camping trip. Sgt. Baker graduated from New York University Law School in 1990 and he passed the bar in 1991 and has worked for the American Transit Insurance Co. since then. He is also general counsel to the Sigma Tau Chi Alumni Association, Maher noted. “He is the primary moving force that helped this organization incorporate and obtain its 501(3) (c) not-for-profit status. He has also played a key role in the restoration of the fraternity house located on Montcalm Street,” he said. “As you can see, I’m very proud of my friends. Not just for their accomplishments, but for the bravery they demonstrate on a daily basis by defending our country. While I can’t say I approve of this war, I do support the troops and especially the two guys I call my best friends.”  Editor’s note: At press time, Oswego learned that Sgt. Colby and Sgt. Baker were cycled back to the States in time for the holidays.

Class Notes Goodman Helped Build Camp David An Oswego alumnus put his industrial arts training to use building an American landmark. Sidney J. Goodman ’35, who died July 12 at age 90, was involved in the construction of Camp David — the presidential retreat in Maryland. An industrial arts teacher and cabinetmaker, Sidney was assigned to a Marine detachment in Washington, D.C., when he was called on to take part in building the famous camp. “Dad spent months during World War II in freezing weather on Catoctin Mountain, helping to erect the buildings that were to be used by President Roosevelt,” Dr. Mark Goodman, Sidney’s son, told Jerry Vondas of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review in a

July 15 obituary. “It was a top-secret project.” Sidney put his Oswego training to use writing courses for the Marine Corps Institute in Washington, D.C. to send to Marines stationed throughout the world. He shared his Oswego experience with a new generation of young people. As a shop teacher in the ’30s, he also worked as a cabinetmaker and hired high school kids as assistants. He encouraged them, and two became industrial arts teachers, including On Chin ’63. After graduating from Oswego, Sidney earned his master’s degree in industrial arts from New York University. In 1937 he married Martha

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Call us at: 315/312-2258 E-mail us at: alumni@oswego.edu Fax us at: 315/312-5570 Visit our Web site at: http://oswegoalumni.oswego.edu

1930 75th JUNE 9–12

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1940 65th Sidney J. Goodman ’35 JUNE 9–12

Friedman, whom he met while they both volunteered at a settlement house on the Lower East Side of Manhattan. The couple retired in the 1970s and Martha passed away in January. “Dad got the education of a lifetime at Oswego, and it served him well,” Mark said.

1945 60th JUNE 9–12

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Mom and Daughter Reunion When does an Oswego Reunion become a family reunion? When moms and daughters attend together! This June four Class of 1954 mothers and their daughters came back to Oswego for Reunion 2004 and gathered for a group portrait on the steps of Sheldon Hall. Sharing in the fun were, front row from left, Janice Harrison Brinson ’54 and Kimberly Brinson; Millie Segarra Santiago ’54 and her daughter, Roxanne Clancy; second row, Julie Soda and her mother Enid Cantor Lesser ’54; and top row, Jennifer Connell, Margery Klock Connell ’54 and Maria Connell ’94.

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50-Year Class Gathers Class of 1954 alumni were guests of President Deborah F. Stanley at Shady Shore for a coffee hour during Reunion 2004 to celebrate their Golden Anniversary. On hand were, first row, from left, Curtiss Matterson, Rosemary Ciulla DeLuca, Doris Houser Tilton, Millie Segarra Santiago, Margery Klock Connell, Adeline Canale Sutton, Jeanne Mitchell, Enid Cantor Lesser and Muncie Moy Eng; second row, from left, Marilyn Ringler Traub, Sylvia “Sunny” Nessman Milch, (Merrilyn) Betsy Griswold Sweeting, Pearl Capanna Hierholzer, Ethel Anderson Bower, Alma Brown Moses and Abby Weller Herring; third row, from left, Patricia McComber Gessler, Carole Coppernoll Drenchko, Mary Markovci House, Dick Bower, Janice Harrison Brinson, Leonard Ricchi and Phillip Otis; fourth row, from left, Don Brooks, Tom Croce, Georgia Roseman Cooper, Barbara Sincavage Sabatini, Doris (Patty) Comiskey Lee and Bob Allen; fifth row, from left, Ken Wenz, Denis Foley, Barbara Schulz Walker, Al Skinner, Tom Lee and Joan Leonard; sixth row, from left, Jim Graves, Jerry Turner, Russ Abrams, Joan Bresseleers Ahders, Al Marini and Allen (Pete) Case; seventh row, from left, Joe Donovan, Richard Tallman, Stan Levenson and Roy Wiegand; eighth row, from left, Ed Caraccioli, Fred Champagne, Ed Peterson, Dick Little, Louis House and George Cristiano.

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1960 45th JUNE 9–12

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Thomas Honored with Sheldon Excellence Award A “TEACHER’S TEACHER” was honored at SUNY Oswego’s Reunion Weekend with an award named for the college’s founder. Richard J. Thomas ’68 received the Oswego Alumni Association Sheldon Award for Excellence in Education at Reunion 2004. Dick, who began his career as a classroom teacher and served as a principal Award winner Dr. Richard J. and superintendent of schools, Thomas ’68 (center) with is the executive director of the President Deborah F. Stanley School Administrators Associaand David Kidd ’49 (left) who tion of New York State, the nominated Thomas. second largest school leadership association in the country, with 6,800 members. He is president and chief executive officer of the Magellan Foundation, which two years ago received a $7.5 million grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to provide educational opportunities for public and private school principals and superintendents. He launched the New York State Blue Ribbon Commission on Youth Leadership and is chair of the National Executive Directors Association, representing school leader groups in all 50 states. “Oswego did more than fulfill its promise to me, it gave me the freedom to journey down many unexpected and rewarding paths,” said Thomas in accepting the award. “That is the goal of all educators. We provide the means of personal freedom to all children in our charge and we provide the substance of our collective freedom as a nation.”

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N E W S M A K E R Richard Jay-Alexander ’74, Broadway producer, spent the summer at Vassar College in Poughkeepsie, directing a longtime friend, actress and Academy Award nominee, Amy Irving. They first met in 1981 when they were both acting in the original Broadway production of “Amadeus” and have stayed friends ever since. Richard Jay-Alexander ’74 and Amy Richard staged Amy’s Irving in June of 2004, on the Vassar musical numbers for the campus, during rehearsals for the Sony Classics film “Bossa New York Stage and Film’s 20th anniversary season production of Nova,” directed by Bruno “A Safe Harbor for Elizabeth Bishop” Barreto and filmed on by Marta Goes, at the Powerhouse location in Rio DeJaneiro. Theatre. This summer was the first time they teamed up as director and actress. The production, “A Safe Harbor for Elizabeth Bishop,” was a huge hit in Brazil for two years, and the Vassar showing was the first in the United States according to the July 8 issue of the Syracuse Post Standard. During his visit to the Vassar campus, JayAlexander taught a master class. The Vassar production turned a few heads and producers from New York attended performances in hopes the show might head their way, reported Joan E. Vadeboncoeur. According to the Post Standard, another possibility is “a tour of a college circuit.” That will have to wait, since Bette Midler’s tour, which Richard staged, was so successful a fall tour developed, keeping him plenty occupied. — Melissa Garwol ’05

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N E W S M A K E R ROBERT A. RUBINSTEIN ’72 SPOKE IN the United Nations Department of Peacekeeping Operations series in late January and addressed the topic of “How the Model of ‘Hybrid’ Operations Increases Challenges of Cooperation in Peace Operations.” Rubinstein is a professor of anthropology and international relations at the Maxwell School of Syracuse University as well as director of the Robert A. Program on the Analysis and Resolution Rubinstein ’72 of Conflicts and senior research associate of the Alan K. Campbell Public Affairs Institute. The Jamesville resident, in addition to his bachelor’s degree from Oswego, received a master of science in public health degree in anthropology from the University of Illinois and a doctorate in anthropology from SUNY Binghamton. He was the recipient of the Oswego Alumni Association’s anniversary class award in 1997. — Melissa Garwol ’05

Jef Billings ’71 was honored by the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences Sept. 12 with a 20032004 Creative Arts Primetime Emmy. The costume designer won a juried award, selected unanimously by a blueribbon panel, for “Outstanding Costumes for a Variety or Music Program” for “Smucker’s Stars on Ice 2004.” It is the first production that Billings also directed and coproduced with Scott Hamilton and Christopher Dean.

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Oswego Ruggers Play On THE OSWEGO RUGBY FOOTBALL CLUB WAS FOUNDED IN 1970 by a stalwart bunch of collegiate athletes. By the mid-70’s the club had gained popularity and increased its membership, sometimes fielding three sides at each match. Matches were initially played on Laker Field near the Field House just behind what were once called the “Blue” apartments. This venue became know as the “Oswego Hill” by opposing teams and became quite a home team advantage. Anyone who could run up and down the hill for 80 minutes was bound to win the The 1975 A team match. In the early 80’s, matches moved to the “Hidden Fields” just west of Onondaga Hall near the tennis courts. From 1974 to 1979, the team flourished, turning in some impressive victories and building some lasting friendships. A highlight of the 1977 season was winning the Upstate Rugby Union Championship A-Team Division. To this day, many of the players keep in touch and even get together once a year to play in the Can-Am Rugby Tournament held during the first weekend in August every year. The Can-Am Tournament, created in 1974, is considered one The 1975 B team of the largest rugby events in the world with participation of over 100 teams. Oswego rugby alumni “Old Boys” have participated in this tournament every year since 1975 with individuals returning from as far away as Florida, Texas and the Midwest. Currently participating in the over-45-year-old bracket, the team plays under the name WildOATS Rugby (Oswego The 1977 Upstate Rugby Union A-side champions. Alumni Touring Side). “Our (Photo courtesy Henry Borovich ’77 Archives) band of Oswego rugby brothers continually strives to reconnect and rekindle some of the fondest memories you can imagine and hopefully win a few games at the tournament,” says Jim Harding ’78. The team has a Web site, www.wildoatsrugby.org, to post nostalgic information and photographs about the team and current contact informaThe Oswego Wild OATS team got together once again at the Can-Am tion of former members. Tournament in August. They are, front row kneeling from left, Dave Arbes If anyone would like ’79, Jerry Arbes ’77, Jim Harding ’78, Henry Borovich ’77, Peter further information, please DeCastro ’77, Dex Kozen (Binghamton), Joe Longo (Binghamton), Ron Shaftsberger (Binghamton), Terry Bedford ’77; left center row from left, contact Jim “Hap” Harding at Dennis Siry (Cortland), Frank Caruso ’77; and back row from left, Charlie 717-761-4336 or by e-mail at Liu (Cortland), Tony Morrisey (England), Mark Grogan (Binghamton), Mike jim.harding@verizon.net. McLaughlin ’78, Kevin Lee ’77, Rick Scanlon ’76, George Wurtz ’78, Pete Whipple ’76, Kevin Gilman ’75, Jim Clark ’77, Mike Whelan ’78 and Billy Kretz (Cortland). Oswego players present at the tournament but not in picture were Paul Kreutter ’76, Dan Gotimer ’79, Steve Compo ’93 and Clark Taylor ’76.

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Alumni Bookshelf This column celebrates the publishing success of Oswego alumni authors, illustrators and recording artists. Please keep us informed about new books and CDs by requesting that your publisher or distributor send a copy for the Oswego Alumni Bookshelf at King Alumni Hall.

How My Private Personal Journal Became a Bestseller by Julia DeVillers ’89 is the story of a 14-year-old girl named Jamie whose private journal is discovered and published and becomes a huge best-selling book. From book signings to power lunches to celebrity events, Jamie discovers that entering the glamorous world of pop stardom changes everything, but what really matters in life stays the same. DeVillers is also the author of Girlwise and the Tuned In series. Dutton, 2004.

job hunting to interview techniques, from ‘fitting in’ in the workplace to whether or not to disclose a diagnosis. This book guides people with NLD or AS successfully through the employment field. The book also provides information for employers, agencies and career counselors on AS and NLD as ‘invisible’ disabilities, including an analysis of the typical strengths of somebody with NLD or AS, and how to use these positively in the workplace. Jessica Kinglsey Publishers, 2004.

Yvonne Fast ’81, M ’83 has published Employment for Individuals with Asperger Syndrome or Non-Verbal Learning Disability: Stories and Strategies. Fast provides technical advice on everything from

Each day calls us to tend life beyond ourselves. In Dancing with the Ten Thousand Things by Tom Balles ’73, readers will learn how to answer that call and become a more powerful healing presence. The book helps

transform care and compassion to effective action by outlining the journey of waking up through being of service. Readers will observe two changes taking place: less unnecessary suffering and greater possibilities in the life you share with others. With this book you will learn to consciously tend to life one moment at a time. IUniverse, 2004. CORRECTION: In the Summer ’04 edition of Alumni Bookshelf, we mistakenly left out an alumna contributor to Lewis Turco and His Work: A Celebration, edited by Steven E. Swerdfeger ’79. Professor Turco’s daughter, Melora Turco Ranney Norman ’83 contributed a series of memories about growing up with her poet father.

Oswego Lacrosse Star Honored in Canada TRAVIS COOK ’78 WAS inducted into the Canadian Lacrosse Hall of Fame in the “Box Lacrosse Player” category Nov. 6. “It’s a very rewarding feeling to be inducted into the highest honor you can receive in Canada in Travis Cook ’78 lacrosse,” said Travis. “Not only for me but for my family, who has always supported me, and for my community. Lacrosse is such a vital part of our community.” His family traveled to British Columbia from New York state, Chicago, Akwesasne and Los Angeles to be present at the award ceremony. Travis started playing lacrosse in 1962 in Cornwall and in 1971 he won the Eastern Canada Junior B Championships with the

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St. Regis Braves, taking home MVP honors. At Oswego, he excelled in football and lacrosse, leading both teams in scoring and was a football All-American. He played in the original National Lacrosse League in 1974 with Syracuse and 1975 for the Quebec Caribou, winning the Nations Cup while being the team’s leading scorer. In his pro career, Travis amassed 141 goals and 128 assists for 269 points in 92 games. From 1977 to 1996, Travis was involved with the Akwesasne Warriors and Oneida Nation, promoting lacrosse. In 1996, he won the David J. Burns Memorial Award for outstanding achievement in lacrosse and contributions to lacrosse development at Oswego and elsewhere. “Travis has used the game of lacrosse to inspire others and has served as a role model to thousands of sports enthusiasts and Native American youth,” said Michael

Travis Cook ’78 when he played for the Quebec Caribou box lacrosse team

Mitchell, former Chief of the Mohawk Council of Akwesasne and the First Nations Representative on the Board of Directors of the Canadian Lacrosse Association. Travis is a charter member of Oswego’s Athletic Hall of Fame.

Tech Teacher Honored But it is teaching that is dearest to his heart. It’s a passion kindled at Oswego, where he learned from the likes of Dr. Ken Smith, who taught with a competency-based approach. Frawley’s master teacher, Jim Decker, modeled phenomenology for him, crafting a classroom where kids drove the learning experience. Frawley melded the two approaches into his own method of teaching. In his classroom a TV and music blare as kids bustle about, working on self-directed photography projects and doing peer-to-peer tutoring. Other Oswego connections were Dr. Dave Faux, a “tremendous influence,” Dr. Hanks, “personable and professional,” and current faculty members Donna Matteson ’83, M’ 88 and Thomas Kubicki, with whom he collaborates often.

It was a banner year for Thomas A. Frawley ’77. The technology education teacher at G. Ray Bodley High School in Fulton took home five awards for his teaching excellence, including the International Technology Education Association Teacher Excellence Award, the CNYTEA region 9 teacher of the year, one of 11 regional NYSTEA awards and the state ITEA/NYSTEA award as well the Golden Apple Award for Thomas A. technology education from the Syracuse Frawley ’77 Post-Standard. It was the international award that most pleased him, he told Oswego. “There were 14 countries represented and the UN flag was on stage when I went up to accept the award,” he says. “That just tickled me.” “He has gone beyond the classroom,” says Steve Poydock ’71, M ’75, who chairs the New York State Technology Education Association awards committee. “He puts into words what technology education is, and he’s really an advocate for our program in the schools.” Frawley is an activist for his profession. He has served as president of CNYTEA for five years and is current president of the state organization. He edits the New York State Technology Teacher, the association’s monthly magazine, and is vociferous in arguing for the funding of technology programs and for including gender equity in programs. While global accolades may be new to Frawley, world travel isn’t. He’s been to 24 countries, walked on the Great Wall of China, gone scuba diving on the Great Barrier Reef, landed on a glacier in the Swiss Alps and kissed the Blarney Stone. Nor is he a stranger to recognition. In 1990 he saved a Down syndrome girl from a burning building and was nominated for the Carnegie Foundation Hero award as well as receiving local honors.

Thomas A. Frawley ’77 helps Kailee McIntyre with some black and white prints she made for class while classmate Jamie Bergman works on his own project.

1980 25th JUNE 9–12

1995 10th JUNE 9–12

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Silver Anniversary Class Silver anniversary alumni from the class of 1979 got together at Shady Shore with President Deborah F. Stanley during Reunion 2004 this June. After an enjoyable late-afternoon cocktail party on the shore of Lake Ontario, they gathered for this commemorative photo.

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For Fallen Friends

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Three alumni lost on September 11 were remembered in recent months. Friends of Richard Caproni ’89 and Michael Hannon ’89 were on hand for Reunion 2004 and visited the tree they planted in honor of the two, who lost their lives in the World Trade Center. Jimmy Grismer ’89 told the gathered friends, “We lost two of our own — two individuals who shared innumerable gatherings with us, many long rides. They were family to all of us. Today they are here in spirit.” James E. Potorti ’92 was honored in Ithaca, where his widow, Nikki Stern, funded gorge walks in his honor through the Paleontological Research Institute’s Museum of the Earth. “We’d always walk the gorges. Always,” Stern said in a prepared statement read at the walk. “These walks are a perfect synthesis of the things Jim loved and the man he was and his roots in Ithaca, his love of the outdoors and his respect for nature.”

Robert J. Pagano Jr. ’84 became controller of ITT Industries Inc., a Fortune 500 Company based in White Plains, in early August. He was promoted from his post as president of ITT Industries Fluid Technology Industrial Products Group. Pagano’s career began with KPMG Peat Marwick in Syracuse and after five years he returned to Goulds Pumps/ ITT Industries where he had interned while Robert J. Pagano earning his bachelor’s degree from Jr. ’84 Oswego. Pagano has also attended postgraduate courses at Syracuse University and is a certified public accountant and certified management accountant. Pagano and his wife, Susan, along with their two children, Robert Pagano III ’08 and Stacey, live in Baldwinsville and are waiting until Stacey graduates from high school to move to the White Plains area. Pagano says his family is excited from a career point of view but sad because his and his wife’s families are from Waterloo. “Seneca Falls is near and dear to my heart, and I’ll always be watching over IPG,” Pagano told Finger Lakes Times. — Melissa Garwol ’05

Timothy Macdowell ’90 decorates the monument at the tree planted in honor of Richard Caproni ’89 and Michael Hannon ’89, two alumni lost in the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.

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JUNE 9–12

Come home to Oswego… It’s worth the trip! Reunion 2005 June 9 – 12, 2005 Reunion Classes: 1930, 1935, 1940, 1945, 1950, 1955, 1965, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1980, 1995, 1999, 2000, 2001 To plan a mini-reunion for your group, contact the Alumni Office no later than Jan. 1, 2005. For the most up-to-date information on Reunion 2005, check out the Web site at http://oswegoalumni.oswego.edu/Reunion2005 or call the Reunion Hotline at 315-312-5559.

Write home . . . to Oswego Deadlines for Class Notes Materials for our Class Notes section, including the Wedding Album, Alumni Bookshelf and In Memoriam, will appear in Oswego alumni magazine according to the following schedule:

Material received by June 5 Oct. 5 Feb. 5

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Oswego Matters From the executive director

UNY Oswego — and I — lost a good friend this fall. Olive Brannan Spargo ’31 passed away in September while working outside in her beloved garden. When I was hired in the Office of Alumni and Parent Relations in 1984, Olive was a member of the Board of Directors of the Oswego Alumni Association. Over the years, our professional relationship, like those of so many other alumni who I have gotten to know over the years, became a true friendship. I learned many things from Olive over those years — things like class, quiet grace and elegance, and most importantly, commitment to service. Olive was engaged in service to her alma mater for most of her lifetime — as “the matriarch” of the Mohawk Valley alumni club, as a member of the Alumni Board of Directors, as a regional “cheerleader” to encourage high school students to attend Oswego. Years ago, she even was involved in chartering busses to bring Mohawk Valley students to the campus for admissions visits! Olive also demonstrated her commitment to service through her generous financial support of Oswego, with regular annual gifts and by endowing two scholarships at the college — one for students transferring from Mohawk Valley Community College; the other one a scholarship for student leaders. Her leadership and wisdom will be missed. In 2003, for the first time ever, she was unable to attend the Torchlight Ceremony, founded in 1936, at which she represented her class in the Inner Circle, because she was in the hospital. I think she was more upset about missing Torchlight than she was about the brief inconvenience in her life of being temporarily “out of commission!” She was so much the “institutional memory” of Oswego for me and so many others. I think she had met every Oswego State president since the 1930’s! So, as a legacy to Olive Brannan Spargo ’31, I invite you to commit, as she did, to your alma mater — as a mentor for current students, as a donor to enrich our campus, as a club or Reunion volunteer, or to network with other alumni or students. And to my good friend Olive, I wish you farewell and Godspeed. Oswego is richer for having had your involvement and your support for so many years.

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Longley Keeps Early Risers Informed

Dave Longley ’94

Hundreds of thousands of schoolkids and their parents pay close attention to Dave Longley ’94 — especially in winter. Longley is morning and noon meteorologist and co-anchor at WIXT, Newschannel 9, in Syracuse, where school cancellations are common because of lake-effect snow.

the community. There’s a lot at the campus for local people. It shows up highly in rankings among schools across the country.

Q. Dave, tell us a little about your job. A. I’ve been here at WIXT for 12 years. Until last

school thing. It provides a kind of unique environment to learn in. It makes it fun to study meteorology.

spring it was meteorology all the way, providing the weather forecast for the newscasts that I was on as well as forecasts for our radio stations at Clearchannel. We also forecast for our Web page. It’s weather from when I get in in the morning ’til I walk out in the afternoon. Since April I have also been co-anchoring the news. I’m involved in developing our morning and noon news, developing editorial content.

Q. Favorite Oswego memories? A. We did a lot of neat projects with different agen-

Q. You’re on pretty early in the morning. So, how are the hours? A. You get somewhat used to it. I work from 2:30 or 3 in the morning till 1 o’clock in the afternoon. You learn how to be tired a lot, learn how to deal with fatigue.

Q. How is your new role different? A. It’s kind of challenging. Not only do I have to keep track of the weather going on, I also have to have an understanding of the news events, not only here locally, but nationally and around the world. It’s more than just sitting up there reading something. I owe it to myself and the people who watch to understand what’s going on it. That takes time, a lot of reading and research. Basically to do that, I do a lot of skimming of different newspapers around the country and getting different viewpoints on things.

Q. How did you get your job at WIXT? A. I started in my senior year doing weekends and fillins. Five months after I graduated, I was hired full time. I guess you could say I was at the right place at the right time.

Q. Did you have any influences at Oswego? A. The whole program at Oswego is unique in the fact that it’s kind of smaller. In my years here we’ve had interns from larger universities. They sound like they missed out on something by going to a large university. One good thing at Oswego is you get a lot of hands-on work. The ease of accessibility with the professors is good.

Q. What’s your view of Oswego, 10 years out? A. It’s good to see the changes over the years. We’ve gone through some of the budget issues with the state. Good to see the money being spent to revitalize the campus: the dorms, the campus center, the business school as well. It’s good to see that investment in

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Q. You’re a weatherman. What about Oswego’s famous weather? A.The weather? It’s what you make of it. Just do your

cies — weather studies because of the uniqueness of the snow. We had to go the roof of Piez Hall during a snowstorm [for the Federal Aviation Administration, studying different types of de-icers]. The wind blows so strong there the trees grow sideways. We had a metal-frame thing tied down with cinderblocks and thought it was pretty sturdy — tied securely — until we came to school and found it on the ground. Where else could you be on the roof of the building in the middle of a blinding snowstorm, looking at metal plates trying to see when the snow accumulated? One cool thing we did in ’94, a week before we graduated. There was a solar eclipse. We had a cookout outside of Piez Hall and showed people the solar eclipse. We worked with the astronomy program under Ron Chaldu.

Q. You come back to campus often to speak to students. Why is that important to you? A. I was just back a couple of weeks ago for the United Way Walk-a-thon sponsored by the comm. classes and did an interview for the promotional video for Admissions. It’s important to come back. It’s only fair . . . you went in and got your education and experience out of it. It’s important for alumni to come back and talk about real life things: How they were able to apply what they learned and succeed, highlight some of the pitfalls and what students could encounter as they come up through the ranks. Also, I think it’s important to bridge the gap between students and the real world. When you’re in school, you think, “If I could just talk to somebody who’s doing what I want to do. If I could just get some tips.” I think that’s a very valuable resource.

Q. Any advice for current students? A. A lot of college is more than what the university does for you; it’s what you do to get out of the university what you want. Oswego provided enough freedom to do the things you wanted, what you were yearning for and aspiring for . . . I don’t think people should settle. Be a little crazy sometimes. Set a goal a little outside of your comfort zone . . . And challenge yourself. Just when you get that diploma, it doesn’t mean you’re done learning.

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’99, ’00, ’01 5th Cluster Reunion

JUNE 9–12

Banking on Their Support Fulton Savings Bank offers scholarships to several Oswego County high school students who choose to attend SUNY Oswego. The 2004 crop of first-year scholars gathered for the awards ceremony. Seated from left are Ashlee Distin, Michelle Eastman, Megan MacVean and Megan Grieves; and standing from left are Nancy Kush Ellis, vice president of Fulton Savings Bank, Nathan Roder, Tiffany Hax, Rebecca June and Kevin Mahaney, SUNY Oswego vice president for development. Absent from the photo are scholarship winners Tara Allen and Gloria McAndrew.

Smile — and Share Your Photos Our readers frequently send in photos that we can’t run in Oswego alumni magazine. Sometimes it’s a matter of policy, other times it’s a lack of space. Digital photos are often not high enough resolution for printing. Now we have a solution — The Oswego Alumni Association Web site is hosting a photo album, where those get-together pictures, new baby snapshots and milestone memories can be viewed. If you would like your photo to be displayed in the online photo album, just add a note telling us that. We reserve the right to limit or exclude photos. Photos will not be returned unless accompanied by a self-addressed stamped envelope. Send photos to: Alumni Photo Album, King Alumni Hall, 300 Washington Blvd., Oswego, NY 13126 or by e-mail to mreed@oswego.edu. Check out the album at http://oswegoalumni.oswego.edu/photoalbum/.

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From the Archives Radio Pioneers Editor’s note: The Spring 2004 story about WRVO’s 35th anniversary brought a flood of reminiscences about another, even older, radio station on campus. Alumni from the 1950s let us know about the student-run radio station. We hope this story brings back pleasant memories.

t was mid-century and years of war were barely past. Oswego was thriving with an influx of students under the GI Bill. And everyone was eager to know what was going on. In this atmosphere was born the student-run radio station. Although its call letters changed in those early years —WSRS in 1952 and 1953 and WGCV (Motto: “With Greater, Clearer Voices”) after that — one thing remained the same. These adventurous pioneers of broadcasting made do with very little to inform and entertain their classmates. Alan Saunders ’55 was one of the earliest members of the radio club. Rather than go through the president or dean

ders remembers asking a faculty member, then taking the transmitter out of the truck and using the surplus wire to broadcast over a carrier current right into the dormitory. A grant of $212.50 from the Student Council enabled them to get supplies for the station at Allied Radio. Sanford “Sandy” Sternlicht ’53 was station manager in 1952 and later, as a young faculty member, became adviser to the group. According to the 1953 Ontarian, the station played a selection of “recorded and live music, campus and world news, discussions and debates, plays, mysteries, and programs by the various campus religious, social, fraternal and educational groups.” Marilyn Ringler Traub ’54 was also among the early crew behind the microphone. She read a story about the Three Kings on Christmas Eve 1953. “We were on a wing and a prayer,” she recalls. “It was very tiny.” Details are sketchy after a half century but, “We were more nervous than anything else,” she says. “It was fun. We had a good time.” Among that early group, Marilyn remembers, were Rosemary Ciulla DeLuca ’54 and William Carrone ’54. Stan Levenson ’54 had a Sunday evening show playing

for permission, he recalls, they went straight to those who could do the job — the maintenance people, who converted an empty Splinter Village building into a studio for the students. Since it was post-war time, the college got some surplus equipment, including a radar truck with a big spool of telegraph wire used to communicate at the front. Saun-

The WSRS studio, from the 1953 Ontarian.

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big band music. “I used to also interview people on the show and bring in some of my friends who knew something about music,” he says. William T. Mayer ’57 joined Radio Club WGCV in the spring of 1955. He was one of a group of four men who came to Oswego from Westchester Community College under the G.I Bill. A communications chief in the Army in Korea, Mayer majored in electronics at Westchester, along with the other guys. A close friend of his, the late Gene Misture ’57, was also involved in the radio station. A prisoner of war and Purple Heart recipient in Korea, he also transferred in as a junior and got involved in the radio club. “You might say we worked out of an egg crate,” Mayer recalls. The Splinter Village studio was lined with oldfashioned egg cartons to insulate the room acoustically. Mayer became business manager in 1956 and the club was a member of the Intercollegiate Broadcasting System.

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He recalls broadcasting music from 6 to 10 p.m. evenings, using records from the Armed Services — “All kinds of things that at that time the students liked.” Each broadcaster had his or her own program and musical selections. Mayer played classical music and his theme song was “Night Train.” WGCV ended broadcasts by the early ’60s. In the fall 1967 semester, John Long ’71 began a radio station in Seneca Hall. John Krauss ’71 also got involved and by 1968 this forerunner of WOCR served the Seneca-Cayuga complex. In 1968, WOCR went campus-wide with funds from Student Association. Called Power Radio 64 (640KHZ), the AM carrier current top-40 station included broadcasters Al Roker ’76 and Joe O’Connor ’79. WOCR remained on the air in various forms (and name changes, including WOZZ) through the ’70s, ’80s and ’90s until today’s station WNYO-FM signed on the air on 88.9 MHZ in April 1992.

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SEND US YOUR YEARBOOKS! Do you have an old yearbook sitting in the basement, collecting dust? Has the cover been closed since you flipped through it after graduation? Would you like to donate it to the Oswego Alumni Association to share with fellow alumni and current students? If you answered “Yes” to these questions, send your old yearbooks to: Oswego Alumni Association King Alumni Hall SUNY Oswego 300 Washington Blvd. Oswego, NY 13126

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] Pamela Johnson Napolitano ’98 and Neil Napolitano ’98 were married Aug. 23, 2003. They are currently living in Boston, MA. Also shown are Kerry Mack, Jill Chmelko ’98, Deborah Crossman, Elizabeth Swigar ’98, Daniel Durante, Jason Walsh ’98, James Phipps, and Jason Imbesi ’98. Also present but not pictured, Micheal Yoon ’00’.

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Tonia Giglio ’92 and Mark Schaubroeck ’94 were married Nov. 1, 2003, in Rochester. Oswego alumni in attendance were, front row from left, Andy Kossak ’92, James Walton ’00, bridegroom and bride, Allison Blechman ’93 (AEPhi), Darcy Clements ’93 (AEPhi), Kimberly Aust ’92 (AEPhi), back row from left, John Russo ’94 (Gamma brother), Michelle Stoll ’92 (AEPhi), Shari Bryan ’93 (AEPhi), Anthony Capodicasa ’94 (Gamma brother), Jodi Baker-Pettit ’92, Kevin Meagher ’94 (Gamma brother), Jennifer Patterson Hauser ’93 (AEPhi), Kevin Maguire ’94 (Gamma brother), Tracy Debboli Murphy ’93 (AEPhi), Tricia Lum Dailey ’92 (AEPhi), Jennifer Harris ’93 (AEPhi), Christine Bovenzi ’95, Lilly Stojanovski Fursman ’92 (AEPhi), and Christy Camfield Carson ’92 (AEPhi).

Donnie Powell ’99 and Sharon Kerner ’99 were married Nov. 15, 2003. Oswego alumni in attendance included, front row from left, the bride and the bridegroom, second row from left, Shane Marindale Krobisch ’98, Jaime McKenney ’00, Christine Maggio Roberts ’99; back row from left, Chris LaFroscia ’01, Chris Krobisch ’99, Jim Roberts ’99, Dave Fiorello ’99, Colin Sheehan ’98, Sean Hayden ’01, Dan Labriola ’98, Ryan Lewis ’98 and Pat Farrell ’98. The couple resides in Manhattan.

Irma Mioduser Greene ’51 and Dr. Sidney Shulman were married June 27, 2004. After 53 years, seven of Irma’s Oswego friends attended the Berkshire garden wedding. Pictured are, from left, Terry Orkand Carin ’51, Lorrie Braun Levy ’51, Norman Brust ’49, Lorraine Ranzman Farand ’51, the bridegroom, the bride, Nancy “Bambi” Hirschaut Bernhard ’51, Nonnie Friedman Star ’52 and Lucile Seligman Kleiman ’51. Irma retired to New York City after an extensive education career as teacher, academic and administrator. She has two sons and seven grandchildren, the oldest of whom just graduated from Harvard. Both Irma and Sidney are New York City performing and visual arts enthusiasts, particularly opera. The couple currently resides in New York City.

Tammy Popen ’93 and Stephen Cuyler ’90 were married May 1, 2004. Maid of honor was Kim Popen ’96. Oswego alumni in the wedding party were Stephanie (Cuyler) Lewis ’91, and Terry Lewis ’91. Other alumni in attendance included Gretchen (Sommers) McDonough ’93, F. Deanne (Cuyler) Morrill ’90, and Rusty Sawyer ’90. The couple are currently working in the Rochester area.

Marc Schiffl ’96 and Bethann Lestrange ’96 were married Aug. 9, 2003, at the Chateau La Mer on Long Island. Oswego alumni attending the wedding included, back row from left, John Calderera ’95 (TKE), Cassandra Sudano ’96 (AEPhi), Stephen Casella ’93 (TKE), Ed Snyder ’94 (TKE), Thomas McDevitt ’94 (TKE), Doug Hirst ’95 (TKE), Anthony Covello ’95, David Shavelson ’95, Jim Healy ’96 (Phi Tau), Warren Communale ’95, Gabrielle Albano ’97 (Phi Sig), Kerri Wakeman ’95 (AEPhi), Tracy Glogoza ’96 (AEPhi), Jeff Mercendetti ’96 (TKE), Sharon Johnson ’97 (Phi Sig), the bridegroom, the bride, Julie Wilson ’98 (Phi Sig), Tammy Hoch ’97 (Phi Sig), Heather Golba ’99 (Phi Sig), Danielle Castellani ’97 (Phi Sig), Kari Meyers-Covello ’96 (DPhiE), Jenny Wildermuth ’96 (DPhiE), Sal Bagliavio ’95 (TKE), and Margie Parker ’98 (Phi Sig). The couple currently lives in Massapequa. Bethann is a high school guidance counselor and Marc is a medical salesman for Medtronic.

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Lois Chaffee ’34 of Hannibal died April 20. She taught in the Red Creek Central School District until her retirement in 1976, her last five years as head teacher at the Fair Haven building. Sidney J. Goodman ’35, of Mt. Lebanon, Pa., died July 12. He was involved in the construction of Camp David, the presidential retreat (see story, p. 29). Sidney retired in the 1970s from teaching junior high school industrial arts and wood shop in Brooklyn. He is predeceased by his wife, Martha Friedman Goodman. He is survived by two sons and five grandchildren. Joyce Kaiser ’47 of Golf Breeze, Fla., died April 25. G. Earl Hay ’48 of Delmar passed away June 28. Prior to his retirement, he was chief of the bureau of trade, technical and health occupations for the New York State Department of Education. Earl is survived by his wife, Margaret; two sons; and a grandson. James S. Evans ’49 of Columbia, S.C., died April 20. He was a World War II veteran, having served in the United States Army. He taught industrial arts for 35 years in the Endicott school system. Survivors include two sons and daughters-inlaw, Gregory J. and Jane Evans, and Donald G. and Shirley Evans; five grandchildren; three great-grandchildren; three brothers; a sister; and several nieces and nephews. He was predeceased by his parents, his wife of 56 years, Virginia Irene Evans, and grandson, Jonathan Evans.

In Memoriam Policy Printing notices of alumni deaths is an important service of Oswego alumni magazine. In order to insure the accuracy of our reports, we require verification before we can publish a death notice—an obituary or a letter signed by a family member. Because the magazine is published only three times a year and we are working on an issue months in advance, there may be a delay of several months between the time we receive notification and the news is printed in the magazine. Thank you for your patience!

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John Martin ’53 of Grand Island passed away May 17. He served with the 12th Cavalry Regiment of the U.S. Army in Japan during and after World War II, earning the rank of corporal by the time of his discharge in 1947. John was a guidance counselor at West Seneca High School from 1971 until his retirement in 1989. He is survived by a daughter and two sons. Constance LaRock Seeber ’53 of Billings, Mont., passed away April 27. Louis Palombi ’54 of Stuart, Fla., passed away Jan. 4. Alfred (Al) Peevers ’54 of Cooperstown passed away Oct. 25, 2003. He served in the Navy as a Machinist’s Mate during World War II. After Oswego, he earned a master’s degree in industrial labor relations at Cornell. He worked for the First National Bank of Nevada and was personnel director for the 1960 Winter Olympics in Squaw Valley and a real estate broker in Reno, Nev. He is survived by his wife, Vi; a sister; four sons; 11 grandchildren and seven greatgrandchildren. Barbara Rosen Brown ’55 of Cortlandt Manor died May 7. Nancy Searles ’60 of New Haven passed away June 7. She taught in Palermo from 1960 to 1976 and in New Haven from 1976 until her retirement in 1994. Joan VanWie ’61 of Fort Myers, Fla., died March 27. Prior to retiring in 1988, Joan taught in the Auburn School District. Paul Andrejkovics ’63 of Hudson Falls passed away March 15. Gail Young Woolley ’64 of Clinton died Feb. 29. She is survived by her husband, Louis; a son and two grandchildren. Catherine Jordan Weikman ’65 of Farmingdale passed away Oct. 20, 2003. She was a teacher for 30 years. Catherine is survived by her husband, Frank; and a daughter, Maura. Francis Paparella ’68 of Oswego passed away May 3. He was a math teacher at Fulton Junior High School for 33 years until retiring in 2001. Joanne Carey ’69 of Babylon passed away Jan. 24. Elizabeth Travis Emma ’73 of Scotia passed away Feb. 25. She recently retired from the New York State Thruway Authority. Liz is survived by her husband, Michael; and her parents. Scott Blanchard ’87 of Greencastle, Pa., died April 24. He was a project manager at First Data and was working on his master’s degree in public administration at Shippen-

The Oswego family lost a beloved member when Olive Brannon Spargo ’31 passed away Sept. 8 at the age of 93. Always an active participant in campus life, she had been planning to attend the Oswego State Fall Classic reception the next day, Sept. 9. Her last visits to campus were in June for Reunion and the Alumni Board of Directors meeting. She represented the class of 1931 last spring at Torchlight. In May of 2003, when she was hospitalized after a fall, her biggest concern was that she would miss the Torchlight ceremony for the first time in over 70 years as an alumna. “She was a perfect example of what we wish for our current students, a life of purpose and achievement in the best sense,” said President Deborah F. Stanley. A member of the Oswego Alumni Association Board for 24 years, Olive was elected to the board in 1980, elected vice president in 1982 and was president from 1984 to 1990. Olive helped establish and was a leader of the Mohawk Valley Alumni Club for many years. In 2000 she established the Olive Brannon Spargo Endowed Leadership Fund and the Olive B. Spargo Scholarship. She was retired after a career as a teacher in Rome. An active community member, she was a former trustee and council member of St. Paul’s Church, president of its altar rosary society and former Regent of Catholic Daughters of America and member of Phi Kappa Phi and Vega. She was a former board member and past president of the Rome City School District Board of Education, board of directors of the Foundation at Mohawk Valley Community College and member of Rome Retired Teachers. She was predeceased by her husband, William J. Spargo. She is survived by two sons, William J. and Thomas J. Spargo, Thomas’ wife, Mary Ann, and seven grandchildren. Gifts may be made in Olive’s memory to the Oswego College Foundation for the Olive Brannon Spargo Endowed Leadership Fund.

burg University. Scott is survived by his wife, Mary; his parents; and two brothers. Anne Marie Brancato Rollo ’97 of Watertown passed away June 4. She taught English and ESOL at Indian River, Watertown High School and Watertown IHC. Anne Marie is survived by her husband, Richard; a son; a daughter; and her mother. John Readling,Professor Emeritus of Educational Administration, passed away May 22. He earned his bachelor’s degree from Brockport State, and his master’s and doctorate degrees from Buffalo State University. Prior to coming to Oswego State, John was a teacher, coach and principal at Cheektowaga, Williamsville and North Tonawanda. In 1962 he accepted the position of director of 46

student teaching at Oswego State. In 1970, John started the Department of Educational Administration at Oswego. He retired in 1987. John served in the U.S. Army during World War II from 1943 to 1945. Surviving are his wife, Maryann; two daughters, Maris Davis and Teresa Readling Savio ’01; three sons, Joseph, Thomas and John Readling ’97; and eight grandchildren. Gardner “Tully” Wells, Professor Emeritus of Health and Physical Education, died July 1. At Oswego State he was chair of the athletic department and was instrumental in the development of the ice hockey program. He was inducted posthumously into the Osweo Athletic Hall of Fame in October 2004. He retired in the mid-1970s and moved to Myrtle Beach. Tully was predeceased

Tell Us About Yourself

Olive Branches

Share your information in the Class Notes section of an upcoming Oswego magazine.

If you’re on a soapbox, get off as quickly as you can. Learn to listen — especially learn to listen to those who do not agree with you.

Full Legal Name

Learn to listen to the silence as well as the roomful of emotional churning to an irrational pitch.

Preferred Name

Class year

Last Name as a Student

Learn how to separate rumor from fact.

Major

Whenever possible, accept invitations to attend and/or speak at programs for different groups.

Address

Make sure you never promise anything that you neither should nor could deliver.

State

City Zip

Home Phone

Look at each problem and attack it without fear or favor.

Business Phone

Where you’ve been is history; where you go from today is up to you.

E-mail

Sometimes silence makes the best conversations.

Employer and Position

The greatest gift you can bestow is being a good example.

Employer’s Address

Correction does much; encouragement does more.

Spouse/Life Partner’s Full Name

With two eyes and one tongue, we should see twice as much as we say.

SUNY Oswego Class Year Employer and Position

A person who never makes a mistake must be very tired of doing nothing.

Here’s my news (attach separate sheet if needed.)

A committee meeting is usually an orderly way of not doing anything. I have found through the many years of good God-given living that these branches produce and support good fruit — for persons of all ages, gender, nationality, race or religion. — compiled by Olive Brannan Spargo ’31

by his wife, Barbara, on April 27. He is survived by a son, Richard; two grandchildren; and one greatgranddaughter. Frances Inman Gaylord, of Meadville, Pa., passed away May 15. She was the great-granddaughter of Edward Austin Sheldon, founder of the Oswego Normal School.

Please send admissions information to: Name Address City State

Zip

I would like to make a gift to Oswego State. Enclosed is my check made payable to Oswego College Foundation for $_____. For credit card gifts, gifts of stock, or information on other forms of giving, call 315-312-3003 or go online to http://oswegoalumni.oswego.edu/ development/. Clip and mail to The Office of Alumni Relations, King Alumni Hall, SUNY Oswego, Oswego, NY 13126 or respond electronically on our Web site at http://oswegoalumni.oswego.edu/alumni/where.html

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First prize

Hideo Haiku M

ore than 80 poems were submitted by alumni, faculty, staff and students for the second Hideo Haiku contest, honoring Hideo Takamine, who graduated from Oswego Normal School in 1877 and went on to found a teacher’s college in Japan. Here are the winners:

Autumn breezes steal The souls of old tabby cats And hide them in leaves Robert Keim M ’05

Second Prize The Shed, Barney’s, Greene’s Buckland’s, Broadwell’s, and the Patch Where has my youth gone? Dennis B. Treubig ’96

Third Prize A candy blue sky, Bright white clouds are puffing by, Bridge Street is frozen. David Chill ’77

Honorable Mention Like wisdom, snow flakes Gather deep where cold white winds Pause to contemplate Robert Keim M’05

The crack of the bat Softball on grassy green fields A sound of summer Joan Loveridge Sanbonatsu, Professor Emerita

Magnolia blooms Gold finches flit through the tree Bright jewels of spring Joan Loveridge Sanbonatsu, Professor Emerita

Wings of orange silk Dance on wild honeysuckle Summer’s dragon flies Joan Loveridge Sanbonatsu, Professor Emerita

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This calligraphy scroll, written by Hideo Takamine 1877, is kept in the library at Ochanomizu University, where he taught for a decade before his death.

Sun shines on the lake Bodies soaking up the sun The snow forgotten Laura Putnam ’85

From our judge . . . Cicadas The day is so still Their voices drill into stone — Cicadas calling. Did it shrill until It became only echo, This cicada shell? Lewis Turco, Professor Emeritus

And from Japan . . . Mrs. Eiko Nakamura of Tokyo, grandniece of Hideo Takamine, very generously sent prizes for the winners as well as some of her own haiku. We share two of her poems below.

Red dragonflies Dance for joy over Playful dogs Rain falling Envelops flower scent In my path Mrs. Eiko Nakamura