Class Notes

1950s

Deborah Acton Tollefson ’59 reports that

the fall of 2020 brought a big change for her when she sold her southern Arizona property and moved to Florida to be near her daughter, Laura. It was a tremendous undertaking to dismantle 60 years of accumulation in a large house and outbuildings. Laura and her husband, Britt, decided in June 2020 to build a home in Bellacina by Casey Key in Nokomis and that started Deborah thinking. By the end of September, she found a house to purchase about 3/4 miles away on the same street as her daughter’s house. In December they all moved in and stayed until mid-March when their new home was completed. After 60 years of Arizona’s hot and dry heat Deborah says she is getting accustomed to Florida’s hot and wet heat, but she’s been told, “Just wait ‘til June!”

1960s

John B. Hintermaier ’60 shares what he

calls his “temporary sorrow and everlasting joy” at the passing of his wife, Jane Mary Kissel Hintermaier, on September 11, 2020. The couple Shared almost 30 years of marriage beginning on December 15,1990. Jane Mary helped raise John’s three young sons who after the death of his first wife, Marilyn, in May 1987. Jane graduated from Seton High School in Cincinnati, Ohio and received her LPN from Jackson Community College with honors in 1996. She received her associate’s degree liberal arts with honors from Washtenaw Community College and enrolled in the English literature honors program at Eastern Michigan University with advanced placement in the Master of Arts program. Prior to her marriage, Jane was employed by the University of Michigan’s School of Engineering and also worked as a paralegal at the law firm of Foster, Meade, Ramsey and Magill. She was the office manager for Chester Engineers and worked in the University of Michigan’s Graduate School Alumni Relations office. A memorial service will be held in the future when the extended family can gather to honor Jane. SMarilyn Propp ’65 says she and David Jones are very happy living in Kenosha, Wisconsin where their house has two large studios and an etching press. Check out their website at https://www.proppjonesstudio. com/. The couple recently took a sleeper room train to and from Indio, California (Coachella Valley) to visit family for a month and Marilyn highly recommends Amtrak! Paul Walsh ’67 and his best friend, Clyde Thomas, have been shark fishing in Gulf of Maine for many years. The friends take an annual Walsh-Thomas fishing trip that includes their brothers, sons, and grandsons. They have fished from Panama to Alaska on the West Coast and from the Panama to Maine on the East Coast and have also fished Northern Canada (Miminiska, Ontario, Canada). Before the pandemic hit, they made these annual trips for 22 years straight before the Pandemic hit and they are now hoping to restart soon. On those trips, the largest shark Paul and Clyde have ever seen was a 24-plus-foot great white. Paul says, “We know how big it was because we were in a 23-foot Grady. We were about five miles off when we saw two fins. We thought it was a mom whale with a pup. When we went over to explore, we discovered that the two fins were the dorsal and tail fins of a huge great white. Actually, we initially didn’t know if it was a great white or a basking shark. Clyde had the brilliant idea for me to drive the boat about 50 yards ahead and to the side of the shark and then turn off the engine to see what the shark would do. I did what Clyde suggested. As the shark became even with us, he turned sharply towards us, covering the 50 yards in just a couple of seconds. Clyde was yelling, “Turn on the engine!!!” But there was no time. As the shark was about to broadside the boat, perhaps five feet from the side of the boat, he dove underneath and surfaced on the other side of the boat in a span of a second or two. Clyde and I concluded that it was no basking shark and that this great white would have sunk the boat if he had rammed it.” The largest shark the friends have ever caught was a 17-foot thresher, which took two and a half hours to bring alongside the boat. The largest shark they have landed (brought into the cockpit of the boat) was a near-record 13-foot blue shark. Paul sends this message to other alumni: “If anyone wants to go shark fishing on the Gulf of Maine, give me a holler!”

William Durden ’67 was back on the mound recently after 50+ years. He shares that his first job was at the St. Paul’s Schools in Baltimore. Lacrosse was the only spring sport and the school was a multi-time state champion; baseball was prohibited. William lobbied to change that and became the school’s first coach. Fast forward to a recent day when William threw out the first pitch to celebrate 40 successful years of baseball at the school, multiple state championships, and some players going on to the majors. The first year William was in contact with Coach Dorwaldt, the AA team traveled to Baltimore for a week in the pre-season, and he arranged some games with the very top teams, but also one with St. Paul’s fledging lot. According to William, that was a mistake. This was the year that the AA team went on to the state championship and while Pete was trying to be kind, the score was 29-1 and was called early because of injury. William said he thought about reverting to the old submarine pitch in the recent game, but out of regard for his well-being, and others’, he stuck with a sort of overhand pitch. He said, it had decent speed but he failed to remember that the height of the mound influences the trajectory and length of the pitch. One bounce and through the catcher (never happen to you, Rick!). “I thought you guys would appreciate this dangerous moment as I went to the mound after some 50+ years,” William said.

Mark Macomber ’67 shared these two photos with us. The top photo shows his younger son flying through a canyon in Nevada at 560 knots with the canyon wall behind him. He flew 100 combat missions in the desert and earned five Air Medals. He is now teaching the F-15E Strike Eagle. Mark’s older son is head of robotic surgery at Abbott Northwestern in Minneapolis. The bottom photo is the jet Mark recently checked out in, as he begins his 51st year in aviation. He says, “It goes without saying that they can teach an old dog new tricks.” Jeffrey Levine ’67 reports that his new workbook, “Consistent Profitable Growth Map,” has become an Amazon Best Seller. The book helps business owners exit their business rich and provides a clear 5- to 19-year consistent profitable growth map. Jeff is proud to announce he has also been chosen to be part of the “13 Steps to Riches” book project. This the first collaborative book project on Napoleon Hill’s steps to riches, a