PROMENADE THE GEORGE PEPPERDINE COLLEGE NEWSLETTER
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Dear Fellow Waves,
The Promenade newsletter is the voice of the alumni of George Pepperdine College. It is a place where memories live vividly through fervent storytelling by each of you. We invite you now to relax and drink in the words of your fellow Waves in the pages that follow, and as their recollections reignite stories of your own, I hope you will participate by reaching out to share them with us. I am looking forward to hearing from you! God bless, Matt Ebeling (SC, ‘99) Executive Director, Alumni Affairs Seaver College & George Pepperdine College (310) 506-4348 | matt.ebeling@pepperdine.edu
Promenade Staff
Editor • Matt Ebeling Graphic Designer • Gabriela Moreno Production Manager • Jill McWilliams Copy Editor • Vincent Way Contributing Writers • Bob Andrew (’52), Norma Wade Young-Mahaffey (’61), Jon Washington (’63), Robyn Winn Hall (’61), Harry Nelson (’50), Ferne Hogan (’42), Chuck Cole (’62), Darlene Adam Gruwell (’62), Avesta Carrara, and Matt Ebeling (’99)
In This Issue What Ever Happened To… Dr. Lucille Todd, Pepperdine’s first Dean of Women?
7 GPC Athletes Continue to Be Chosen for Pepperdine Athletics Hall of Fame
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Former Wave standouts John Furlong (’51) and Dr. James Brinton (’57) join an exclusive group.
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Sound Marriage Is His Message with eHarmony.com
Dr. Neil Clark Warren (’56) on life, love, and his mission to foster healthy marriages.
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Who’s Your Favorite Professor?
Alumni recall fond memories of GPC Professor, Dr. Richard A. Hogan (’42).
Gammas Thrive in the 21st Century
Alumnae of the Sigma Pi Gamma sorority stick together over the years by embracing technology.
GPC Photo Album
A glimpse of GPC student life through the eyes of Jon Washington (’63).
Who’s Your Favorite Professor?
Alumni recall fond memories of GPC Professor, Dr. Harry Robert Fox.
Football Was a Winner From the Start
A look back into the history of the Pepperdine Football program.
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GPC Student Body Presidents – Where Are They Now?
Alumnus John Rettberg (’59), his path to the presidency, and life after graduation.
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GPC Grad Named Board Chair of Another Christian College
Christian education remains a priority for Jim Randolph (’66).
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M.I.T.A.Y. and the Power of Storytelling
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GPC Returns to Life for Seaver Students
A special GPC alumni tradition continues in Long Beach, California.
The Waves of Malibu visit the heart of Pepperdine at 79th and Vermont and are transported back in time through heartfelt storytelling.
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In Memorium
Remembering the lives of fellow alumni recently passed.
Class Notes Brief updates in the lives of our fellow Waves.
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Sound is His Message A healthy marriage has a certain rhythm in the relationship between man and wife that echoes in musical theme language used by Dr. Neil Clark Warren, the founder of eHarmony.com and a 1956 graduate of George Pepperdine College. That musical note also sounds in the title of one of his 10 best-selling books, Catching the Rhythm of Love. Dr. Warren had already spent 35 years as a psychologist and marriage counselor before he and one of his sons-in-law, Greg Forgatch, launched in 2000 the Internet site where, on average, 236 people who were matched on the site get married each day. However, it was not the sound of music but the desire to assure that his three daughters were harmonically matched when they selected their husbands that first stimulated Neil to undertake his extensive study of couple compatibility. Oddly enough, however, he claims that it was not his own family background that directed his vision. Solid, unshakeable marriages run in his family, beginning with his parents who were married for 70 years. However, by the standards he applies in the 29 key criteria of compatibility that make up a solid and lasting marriage, he admits he would not have predicted such a long-lasting relationship for them. Over the years, his father owned an auto dealership, a John Deere store, and a grocery store. Then Papa ran for the board of supervisors for his county and Mama voted against him because she thought politics was a dirty business. “My dad was just so stinking bright and my mom was so sweet, but she was two standard deviations below him in intelligence,” Neil said in an Internet interview by Rebecca Traister. While his father liked to discuss the Middle East conflicts between Arabs and Jews, his mother “didn’t know where the Middle East was,” which resulted in his spending a bored childhood “sitting there with two people who never talked.” Neil was only 20 years behind his parents when he celebrated 50 years of marriage in March to his bride who graduated from Pepperdine in 1958 as Marylyn Mann, a princess in that school year’s Homecoming Court. They didn’t begin to
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with eHarmony.com
By Bob Andrew (‘58)
date until after they had both graduated, he said. When they started dating, Neil earned a modest level of envy from every fraternity member on campus. Marylyn didn’t work until the Warrens’ third daughter went off to college, but then she made up for it by serving for 11 years as vice president and head of development for the Huntington Library and by handling eHarmony’s public relations after that project had been launched. She is still active, including being a member of the Pepperdine University Board of Regents for more than a year. About the time they married, Neil received his master’s degree in divinity from Princeton Theological Seminary (1959) and went on to earn a PhD in psychology from the University of Chicago. He then became a professor, and later the dean, at Fuller Theological Seminary’s Graduate School of Psychology. He also maintained a private practice as a psychologist and marriage counselor. That was where he learned that half the marriages in the U.S. end in divorce and half of those that don’t divorce are still unhappy. He came to realize that similar values and interests are the anchors that hold the solid marriages in place, but it took years of research to confirm that conclusion. Neil conducted 500 “divorce autopsies” involving interviews with both former spouses, their children, and parents. He discovered that, because of wide separations in interests and beliefs, more than 70 percent of those marriages had been in trouble before the final “I do” was spoken. Starting from that point, Neil and his business partner son-inlaw, Greg Forgatch, began in 1995 to analyze 5,000 married people, eventually narrowing their focus down to 200 people in each of four categories: 1) very happily married, 2) pretty happily married, 3) unhappy but not ready to quit, and 4) very discouraged couples. Then they concentrated on groups 1 and 4 and discovered that those couples gave widely divergent answers in 29 categories of compatibility questions. Neil surmised that marriages would greatly increase the survival rate
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if they were formed from couples with similar responses in categories that include curiosity, intellect, appearance, spirituality, and values. “I’ve often said that my dream is to get the divorce rate down to single digits,” Neil told Readers Digest for an interview entitled “Dreamers: The Love Doctor.” Warren declares that compatibility in deeply held conviction areas–such as spiritual orientation and politics–is especially critical in a securely founded marriage. “Similarities are like money in the bank. Differences are like debts you owe. It’s all right to have a few debts as long as you have plenty of equity in your account. Otherwise, your marriage may be bankrupt at an early point,” he told National Review for an online interview. In that same article, Neil rejected the old adage that opposites attract. “I often say that opposites do attract, and then they attack,” he said. “In one of my books, Finding the Love of Your Life, I list 50 areas in which it is good to be similar to your mate. You don’t have to have all 50 of these similarities, but it certainly is good to have in the upper 30s or lower 40s. You want to have way more similarities than differences. Otherwise, you will be maritally bankrupt at a frighteningly early point in your marriage.” In the first five years on the Internet, eHarmony registered more than 6.5 million men and women who were searching
online for the ideal marriage partner and continues to register approximately 15,000 more each day. One of the more controversial aspects of eHarmony’s rules for finding a mate is that an exchange of photographs is discouraged at first. Warren said this standard was established to help prevent a strong early attachment to one person based on physical attraction rather than harmonic quality standards. “The fact is that the most important qualities that contribute to long term marital satisfaction are qualities from the inside of a person–their values, their ‘heart,’ their character, their personality. When you get to know these inside qualities, you will tend to be more forgiving of external features. Sometimes people veto another person on the basis of external factors, but if they had actually gotten to know them from the inside out, they would have discovered what a perfect mate this person might have been for them.” Greg, Neil’s business partner, is also the husband of his oldest daughter, Lorrie. The Forgatch family has four sons: Matt, Joe, Warren, and William. The middle Warren daughter, Luann, and her husband, Rolf Sohlberg, have three daughters: Marylyn, Sarah and Amy. The youngest Warren daughter, Lindsay, and her husband, Jon Vinnik, have a son, Andrew, and a daughter, Mara. All present indications are that Neil and Marylyn have helped orchestrate the compatibility factors in their family’s marriages to near symphonic proportions. †
Her Favorite Prof was a Good
Catch
My favorite Pepperdine faculty member was Dr. Richard A. Hogan (’42).
Dick started at Pepperdine in 1938 and graduated in 1942. During that time he did a lot of things–like being editor of the Promenade yearbook. When he and his close buddy, Kenneth Hahn (’42), graduated, they immediately left for Notre Dame to become ensigns in the U.S. Navy. The very day they graduated, both of them flew over to Iowa and Dick and I were married (with Kenny as best man). There are funny stories from that, but perhaps for another day.
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By Ferne Hogan (’42)
When his war service was over, Dick came home and we went to the University of Chicago so that he could become Dr. Hogan. He then came back to Pepperdine as professor of psychology and as dean of students. Naturally, he became my favorite professor. He left for private practice in 1956, but he was always interested in following Pepperdine events. He was my favorite for 66 years. He passed away in September 2008, but he will always be my favorite. †
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A tea party for Sigma Pi Gamma alumnae to honor Jolene Creed Harwell’s birthday in San Diego. Jolene made the hats. Pictured from left to right: Carolanne Bell Whitfield, Sharon Fitzpatrick, Darlene Adam Gruwell, Jolene Creed Harwell, Robyn Winn Hall, Donna Tolbert Falls, Charlotte Crowell Chase.
Gammas Thrive Academics–the sole purpose and value of a college education, right? Of course not! Equally important are the myriad of diverse experiences college life has to offer. We all love to discuss the games won or lost, who we dated, how we met our spouses, how we sat up all night getting the articles written for the Graphic or the pages for the yearbook, how we rehearsed all night for the play or musical, and the great fun we had at sorority and fraternity functions. These memories strongly bind us together, and as the years pass, staying connected grows increasingly more important as we yearn to reunite and to hear from our dear college friends. Sigma Pi Gamma members, over the years, have stayed in touch either through planned reunions or informal gatherings. Some have continued to count as close friends those who suffered through initiations with them. When the Grand Pepperdine Celebration of 2001 was held in Palm Springs, California, plans included time and space for sororities and fraternities to meet. More than 30 attended that Gamma reunion. Before the next GPC reunion, Sue Potts Hamilton had designed and implemented the Gamma Web site– www.sigmapigamma.org. It includes sections for the history of Gammas, events, photos (both past and current), resources, and a special memorial section called “Footprints.” One section is for members only and requires a password. A section is devoted to “lost Gammas” with the hope that eventually, all will be contacted and “found.” A lost Gamma can contact the webmaster or Darlene Adam Gruwell (’62) at
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in the 21st Century By Robyn Winn Hall (‘61)
darleneadamg@verizon.net. The site is complete with
color and music. It also contains links to health concerns, such as breast cancer, health and aging issues and services, mammography, osteoporosis, and heart issues. The site states as its purpose “To promote the social, cultural and intellectual ideals of the members,” but it has successfully given all Gammas a meeting place, in cyberspace! Communication occurs through the Web site, and Darlene has coordinated current e-mail addresses. In this way, members are kept current not only about each other’s lives, but Darlene also disseminates information about Pepperdine events. Before the GPC reunions, Gammas had gotten together in conjunction with the lectureships at Pepperdine, Homecoming events, or social gatherings, often in the Southern California area. One of the more recent events was a brunch reunion held at Darlene’s home in Wrightwood, California, attended by Norma Young-Mahaffey (’61), Sharon Fitzpatrick (’63), Susan Giboney (’62), Charlotte Chase (’61), Carol Whalin (’61), Donna Falls (’62), Carolanne Whitfield (’63), and Robyn Hall (’62). Another function organized by a Gamma group was a tea held in San Diego, highlighted by hats designed and constructed by Jolene Dillard Harwell. Attending that afternoon were Charlotte Chase, Donna Falls, Carolanne Whitfield, Robyn Hall, Darlene Gruwell, Sharon Fitzpatrick, and Jolene Harwell. Groups have met in various places across the country, such as Maine, Tennessee, Utah, and Massachusetts. †
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GPC
P
hoto
A lbum
This is a new feature for the Promenade newsletter showcasing your GPC photos! This issue features Promenade writer and GPC alumnus,
Jon Washington (’63).
Now it’s your turn! Send in your favorite snapshots from your days at George Pepperdine College! Tell your GPC story through these cherished images. “Candid” shots are preferred. Black and white photos are sufficient. All you have to do is mail your photos to us at the following address: Pepperdine University, GPC Alumni Affairs, Attn: Matt Ebeling – TAC-311 24255 Pacific Coast Highway Malibu, CA 90263
er on the Jon with his fath Building steps. Administration
We will then scan the photos and promptly mail the originals back to you. You may also opt to scan the photos yourself and e-mail them to
matt.ebeling@pepperdine.edu.
Please ensure that you scan at a high resolution (at least 300 dpi). Be sure to include with each photo an explanation of whom or what appears in the photo and its significance to you and your personal experience as a Wave! †
A picture th at proves D elores was o campus (at n least some of the time )!
rite of his favo e n o h it w ht). Jon (left) Ruby (rig e d a W r. ,D professors
The ageless presence of Ba xter Hall and Promenade Palms.
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Whatever Happened to...
Dr. Lucille Todd,
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Bill & Lucille Todd with friend, Annie Green (2006).
Pepperdine’s First Dean of Women
By Norma Wade Young-Mahaffey (’61) and Bob Andrew (’58)
Dr. Lucille Todd became Pepperdine’s first dean of women in 1961, bringing with her a curious mixture of strict Southern standards of social correctness and a loving heart that sought to link ladies in deep friendship regardless of divisions of race and religion that have been largely overcome in the past four decades. Dr. Todd arrived in the spring of 1961 and was Pepperdine’s first experience with a “dean of women” position. “Before she got there, the guy that was dean of men–Bob Davidson, who lived with his family in the boy’s dorm–he dealt with everything,” recalled Sharon Fitzpatrick (’63). “I think he was really in over his head with some problems encountered among the women and the sororities. But [Dr. Todd] was great, a very wise, loving person. She was a very accepting, non-judgmental person. A real Christian woman. I am so glad I got to know her.” Pat Hatchel Hodgson (’62), who was a dorm counselor at Marilyn Hall at the time, had to report to Dr. Todd every week. She recalls her as a warm-hearted and flexible woman who “was interested in each girl’s life, including my own. She challenged my heart and mind.” However, sometimes the difference in standards between the South and Southern California had an impact. “For instance, we were writing a girl’s campus handbook and she took my suggestion of changing Wednesday night’s attire,” Pat recalled. “She was making it mandatory for the girls to wear
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hose/nylons to the evening services, as she was such a Southern lady. Anyway, I convinced her that more of us Southern Cal girls would attend if we didn’t have to change clothes and put those on.” The coeds were more used to bobby socks and sandals than the much more formal and fragile hip-high nylons. “I thought I would never see that special lady again,” Pat wrote, “but several years after I had moved to the Dallas-Fort Worth area with my family, she retired and moved to be near her daughter Kay, the wife of Irvin Bishop, one of our elders. My husband, Dale Hodgson, and I were facilitating a marriage class and asked her to teach a marriage series. Of course, she was a big hit and blessed many marriages.” Dr. Todd had her own beliefs that would have horrified her Southern neighbors in 1937 when she and her late husband, Bill, were married. She believed that racial barriers–especially between women–should never stand in the way of Christians who followed the Lord in loving all people. She and two black friends, Ruth Bales and Ruby Holland, joined in creating a forum on Christian education in July 1971. Attending the seminar in Oceanside, California, were 20 black women and 20 white women. Within a week, the Black and White Group of Los Angeles was formed “to bestow love and understanding throughout the communities in which they live.” The Black and White Group continues working toward its goals, now under the Center for Women’s Studies.
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“I loved taking shorthand from her, writing her letters, because she was such a good storyteller. She was a great encourager,” recalls Peggy Winchell Huffman (’62), who was her secretary before getting married and moving to Arizona. “When Don Huffman and I decided to elope, I told only my sister Betty Winchell Wendhausen (’69), Sandy Hicks, and Mrs. Todd. Sandy and Betty took me shopping for my little trousseau, and Mrs. Todd made me an appointment with her gynecologist!” Dr. Todd and Gloria Sanders (’41) teamed together to give a reception for the newlyweds after their honeymoon. Peggy also has fond memories of Dr. Todd “going shopping and getting a terrific outfit and hat for her speech” at Abilene Christian College (now University). “She was like a young girl showing off her duds, and, of course, she looked great.” My own first encounter with Lucille Todd was her arrival, unannounced and unexpected, at the Spring Presents banquet for Sigma Pi Gamma when I was the outgoing president in the spring of 1961. We were all just finishing up our dinner at the Red Pony restaurant in La Jolla, California, and this lovely woman and her husband came into the dining area. We said we could find a place for them and they were just in time for dessert!
Favorite Professor
Harry Robert Fox By Darlene Adam Gruwell (’62)
Harry Robert Fox, professor of religion, is definitely my favorite professor. I took two of his classes: Living World Religions and a missions class. They were both excellent classes. His appeal went far beyond his knowledge of the classes he taught. He is the most Christ-like person I have ever known. He truly walks humbly with his God and is quietly and firmly grounded in his faith. His love and acceptance of others is so beautiful. He really lives the commandment to not judge others. It is part of his nature. Harry Robert is in his 80s now. He and his wife, Jeri, are living with their son in Utah. This is a recent move for them, and I will miss getting to see Harry Robert at the Pepperdine Bible Lectures each year. He has spent his lifetime ministering to others through counseling, preaching, teaching, and helping Churches of Christ when conflicts threaten the unity of their congregations.
The great Men vs. Women Debate at Pepperdine (1979). Pictured left to right: J.C. Moore, Wade Ruby, Lucille Todd
I thought at the time that she was checking up on us to see if there was any violation of the rules, and all of us knew there was to be no dancing or drinking at any Pepperdine social events. Since we had not had a dean of women the four years I was at Pepperdine–and Bob Davidson, dean of students at that time, had never just appeared at a sorority event–we were all abuzz about what the next year was going to bring for the women students. Lucille Todd is now living at a senior residence, The Plaza at Ridgemar #610, 6600 Lands End Court, Fort Worth, Texas 76116. She was married to her husband, Bill, for 69 years before he died at home April 5, 2007. Besides her son Bill and daughter Kay Bishop, she has six grandchildren and 16 great-grandchildren. †
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Harry Robert became a lifelong friend, mentor and spiritual advisor to me. He was with me through all the peaks and valleys of my life, no matter how far astray I was at times. He gently and patiently stayed beside me. Quite simply, I would not be the person I am today if he had not been in my life. I thank God for this precious man. †
Who is your favorite professor? Please write in to share your memories with us! Send your stories to the GPC Alumni Affairs office at gpc@pepperdine.edu or by post at the following address: Pepperdine University GPC Alumni Affairs 24255 Pacific Coast Highway Attn: Matt Ebeling, TAC 311 Malibu, CA 90263
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Football
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Winner from the Start was a
By Harry Nelson (‘50)
While thinking back to the days on the cozy little campus at 79th and Vermont, one cannot forget that there had been a football program of some significance, even though it vanished in 1961. Ed Hyduke (’51) contends we have to do something to create for future Pepperdiners an awareness of the place where athletic history was once made through this program. Ed had an idea that if a football scholarship was established, it might fill the need.
Bob Quine (’49), Keith Dolan (’50), Howard Geiger (’48), George Eppleman, Elmer Noonan (’50), Norm Stillwell (’49), Phil Strom (’48), Walt Reeves (’48), Jim Hamilton (’50), Harry Engelke (’47), Terry Bell (’50), and John Scolinos (’50), to name a few. We all met on the wonderful football field known as “the lawn” in front of Marilyn Hall, the women’s dorm. Oh yes, there were 27 freshmen among us. For the first game, against Whittier College, we won 13-0.
Hyduke then convened meetings to ponder that subject with Barney Barnhart (’50), Frank D’Alesandro (’59), Jack Drager (’50), Fred Gledhill (’49), Don Greeley (’57), Morris Hawkins (’64), Fred Hoover (’56), Darwin Horn (’49), Ted Kiapos (’50), Dwane Krumme (’65), John Leon (’50), Harry Nelson (’50), Elmer Noonan (’50), Dewey Parke (’49), Rich Raymond (’56), Jay Roelen (’58), Warren VanderSchuit (’57), Gordon Weisenburger (’55), and Ron Wootton (’66, MA ‘71). Hyduke’s idea was simple and straightforward. It was well known that sometimes athletes finish their playing eligibility and still need a semester to complete their degree requirements. Pepperdine being a private school, expenses tended to be high, which is where a scholarship could be a help. It was amazing to see how 20 highly vocal guys could come to an early agreement. Hence, the “Football Players Endowed Scholarship” was established. It is with fond memories that I think back to February 1946. As a 24-year-old freshman, I joined older World War II veterans taking advantage of the G.I. Bill to get a college education. That is when George Pepperdine College made the decision to start a football team, and 18 of us reported for spring practice under newly hired head football coach Warren Gaer from Drake University of Des Moines, Iowa. Joining me was Jack Drager (’50). I mentioned to him that with this limited group it would be some kind of team. Jack told me that there would be others as his brother, Dale (’50), would be coming along with a number of others from his high school team. They turned out to be what I called the Washington Brigade. It included Ted Kiapos (’50), Bob Downey (’49), Chuck Calvert (’50), Ron Whitson (’51), Vic Riley (’47), Bob McCluskey (’50), Keith Kenworthy, and Hal McCormick (’51), among others since Washington High School was within walking distance. When everyone reported in August, the number was 48, including Darwin Horn (’49), Bo Williams (’50), Marty Cook (’50),
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The two big games were against Arizona State in Tempe, which we lost 13-12, and Loyola College at Gilmore Stadium. Before the war, Loyola had a very powerful football program–the likes of USC and up-and-coming UCLA. Loyola was being hyped as a renewed power that would make a pushover of this new, small college team called Pepperdine. Surprise! The little guys won 21-6. After we also beat Cal Poly Pomona, Redlands, Cal Tech, and Humbolt State, people were beginning to pay attention. Darwin Horn, who was the second largest scorer in the country, became a focal point for attention. That generated an event which to date is unequalled in collegiate athletics, namely that Pepperdine became the only school to start a football program that in its first year went to a bowl game.
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The first indication of national attention came when sports writer Deke Houlgate made his All-American selections, which included Glen Davis and Doc Blanchard of Army. Houlgate noted that his “Team of the Year” was Pepperdine. The second attraction came when it was reported that Pepperdine was one of five teams being considered to play Tennessee in the Orange Bowl. That did not occur, but the Waves team was selected to play in the Will Rogers Bowl in Oklahoma City,
where we competed against Nebraska Wesleyan and edged out a 38-13 victory. The following year, the team was undefeated and in a 2-year period went 17-1. In 1947, Horn was the nation’s highest scorer and an All-American. It is easy to understand the thinking of Ed Hyduke that this very important aspect in the history of Pepperdine Athletics should have some visibility to all present and future students. †
GPC Student Body Presidents –
Where are they NOW?
RETTBERG as a Last-Minute Write-In Won the 1958-59 PRESIDENCY
By Jon Washington (’63)
After all the campaigning and speeches were over, the ballots printed, and just two days before the 1958-59 George Pepperdine College student body election, Bill Bartell (’60), a Beachcomber fraternity official, spoke out. “I didn’t like the choices for student body president,” Bartell recalled from his Bakersfield, California, home. “I admired one of our ‘Combers,’ junior John Rettberg (’59), and convinced him to run for president as a write-in. He had shown outstanding leadership qualities within our fraternity and also on the basketball floor for Duck Dowell’s Waves.” The competition was Alton Tomlin (’59) who was campaigning on two basic campus issues: greater religious tolerance and a campus swimming pool. “I was surprised about John’s late entry into the race,” said Tomlin, who now lives in Muldoon, Texas. “John and I were friends. “At least I ended up as president of the Knights, GPC’s men’s service club,” Tomlin said. “In those days, that’s usually what happened. The student body president runner-up was offered to head the Knights.” Rettberg was hesitant at first because he was on a basketball scholarship. After talking with (Coach) Dowell and getting his permission, he said to Bill, “Go ahead and submit my name.” As part of the deal with the coach, Rettburg promised to give back his basketball scholarship so Duck could recruit another player. “I had been told the student body president gets a full scholarship,” Rettberg explained. The rest is history. John won the election–the first (and only) write-in to do so.
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His presidency, as it turned out, didn’t interfere with his studies or his golf and basketball experiences. As a senior, Rettberg, the team’s point guard, received AllConference Honorable Mention, averaged 12 points per game (a game high of 28 points), and was team captain. Of Rettberg, Dowell even said, “He was one of the three best shooters I ever coached.” Not only that, Rettberg also earned all As and Bs his junior and senior years. “That’s after Dr. Ruby, Coach Dowell, Oly Tegner and others helped me get my priorities in order. They kept on my case and changed my life,” Rettberg said. While president, Rettberg instituted Western Day (even having Chuck Connors at the event), helped organize a pep band, and convinced then Pepperdine College president Dr. Norvel Young he should be part of the Monday chapel program to keep students in the know about campus events. His fellow student board officers included Bernardo Garcia (’59), vice president; Pat Lane (’59), secretary; and Eldon Gottschalk (’59), treasurer. After graduation, along with attaining the rank of sergeant major in the California Army National Guard, Rettberg began a 33-year career with Northrop Grumman, a Los Angeles-based firm that provides technologically advanced defense and commercial electronics, information systems integration, and nuclear and nonnuclear shipbuilding and operating systems. Rettberg retired from Northrop Grumman in 1995, but not before showing time and time again his leadership qualities–the same qualities his Beachcomber brother, Bartell, recognized in the late ‘50s.
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A RT IC L E S Prior to becoming corporate treasurer in 1987, Rettberg served in many other capacities for the L.A.-based company after joining the firm as an engineering clerk performing budgeting functions. He was transferred to finance in 1965 and held several positions in finance and business management for various divisions and the corporate office. In 1980, he was assigned the business management responsibilities for the $50 billion B-2 Stealth Bomber program. Northrop-Grumman was the prime contractor for the U.S. Air Force. Rettberg had organizational responsibility for finance, major subcontracts, prime contracts and pricing, audit, and the overall management of 1,500 people. Even in retirement, Rettberg still jet-sets, serving as a trustee on a JPMorgan Chase mutual fund board of directors in New York and director and chief financial officer for the Network of Evangelical Women in Ministry in Southern California. He has previously served as a board director for the Vari-Lite Corp., Enalasys Corp., Junior Achievement, and the Independent Colleges of Southern California.
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For starters, he is a past president of the Pepperdine Alumni Association and is currently a member of the Alumni Leadership Council, hand picked by Pepperdine University president, Andrew K. Benton. He also serves the University as a member and former chair of the Athletics Board, among other capacities. In keeping with his interest in Pepperdine Athletics, Rettberg was responsible for raising funds for the Duck Dowell Basketball Floor in the Firestone Fieldhouse gymnasium and numerous other successful projects. Rettberg’s love for Pepperdine basketball started when he was “12 or 13 and living on 79th Street about two miles from GPC. I used to ride my bike down the street to the gym and cheer for the Waves,” Rettberg said. “In those days, the Waves were decked out in peppermint-striped uniforms.” He recently was honored by the University with a Distinguished Alumnus Award and with the Oly Tegner Award for Outstanding Volunteer Service.
“I’m slowing down now,” Rettberg said. “Too much traveling.”
Rettberg married Jackie Todd (’59), a GPC music production standout, in 1959. They have two married children, “two wonderful daughters-in-law and five grandchildren,” a proud Rettberg wrote in his response to a Promenade questionnaire.
More importantly, Rettberg points out, “I have been able to serve Pepperdine, too, over the years.”
The Rettbergs are members of the Sierra Vista Community Church, where their youngest son is the pastor.
That’s Rettberg’s quiet, modest personality. He has more than simply served Pepperdine.
Editor’s Note – This is the first of an ongoing Promenade feature. Share with GPC Alumni Affairs your stories about “your” GPC student body president and his or her accomplishments after graduation. †
GPC Grad Named
BOARD CHAIR
of Another Christian College
By Jon Washington (’63)
Jim Randolph, who graduated from Pepperdine College in 1966, was named chairman of the Board of Trustees for Rochester College, a Christian college in Rochester, Michigan, in October 2007. He had served on the board since 1998 and became chairman of its finance committee in 2004. Randolph began his career of nearly 40 years with General Motors while still an undergraduate at Pepperdine. He graduated with a business degree in 1967 and later received his MA in business administration from Central Michigan University. In an aside comment e-mailed with the announcement about his appointment, Randolph credited a specific professor for the start of his General Motors career. “Edward Bailey was my accounting prof for several classes, including taxation, which nearly kept me from graduating. However, he was most noteworthy for golf and the fact that he played often with the controller of the General Motors assembly plant in South Gate. He recommended me to him for a job in 1966,
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which I accepted while still attending GPC. It was a career that lasted until 2003 when I retired as the executive director of global business services.” Randolph also met his wife, the former Caye Cannon (’64), while they were both GPC students. They married in 1963 and have three daughters, Dalaina Harrell, a graduate of Abilene Christian University, and Jamie Watson (’91) and Allison Ballard (’93), both graduates of Pepperdine University. Jim and Caye Randolph also have eight grandchildren. The Randolph family has long been supporters of Christian education, a tradition passed down by Jim’s maternal grandfather, E. W. McMillan, who was instrumental in founding Ibaraki Christian College in Japan after World War II. Prior to serving on the Rochester College board, both Jim and Caye served for several years on the Pepperdine University Board of Visitors. Caye Cannon Randolph also offered memories of her favorite Pepperdine professors: “Dr. Tegner and Mrs. Pat Lucas would certainly be at the top of my list. They were my major professors and were extremely knowledgeable. Mrs. Lucas, director of elementary education student teaching, was an outstanding professor. I think of her often as I continue my work in the field of education as the director of student teachers at Rochester College. Another of my favorites was Dr. James Atkinson, English professor. He shared a quote with our class that I have continued to reflect on, what, some 45 years later. ‘The joy of recognition is greater than the joy of surprise.’ Guess that is what alumni associations are all about, right?” †
The Classiest of Company –
Ladies
GPC
Luncheon
By Avesta Carrara - GPC Alumni Affairs Photography by Hanson Williams
What a treat to be in a room with the “Ladies of the Greatest Generation!” I’ve had the joy of supporting the continuing tradition of the M.I.T.A.Y. luncheon, born of Harry Nelson (’50) and Darwin Horn’s (’49) cherishing of their Pepperdine days. From this men’s annual get-together of athletes, the GPC Alumni Affairs office started a ladies luncheon in an adjacent room while the men told their stories and hugged their pals. Some of the ladies are GPC alumnae and others feel like they “caught the bug” from their husbands. As each lady stands up at her table and tells her story of how she met her husband or her own days at the old campus, one feels a warm connection to the richness of their lives and their Pepperdine experience. You folks have seen it all: depression, war, strife, the struggles of life, and now the challenges of age. Despite those challenges, you push to get to these annual sparkles in time for a moment to remember when life was a bit less cluttered, sharing your common “Waves” experience and your core beliefs with special friends. Pepperdine is really rich to have all of you! † GPC alumni interested in attending this annual event should send an email to gpc@pepperdine.edu or call (310) 506-4348
A few of the ever lovely M.I.T.A.Y. Ladies
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M.I.T.A.Y. and the Power of Storytelling
Annual Men’s Luncheon The term “Pepperdine Spirit” was given even more special meaning to me on January 27, 2009, when I had the honor of attending the annual GPC alumni M.I.T.A.Y. (Made It Through Another Year) men’s luncheon.
By Matt Ebeling (’99) Executive Director, GPC Alumni Affairs Photography by Hanson Williams
Warm, smiling faces, hearty handshakes, big bear hugs (thanks, Paul Perry), and genuine Wave pride consumed me from the moment I entered the beautiful banquet room of the Grand, Long Beach Event Center, a wonderful backdrop for this unique gathering. I recall asking Harry Nelson (’50) upon my arrival, “Hey Harry! So what’s the agenda today?” “No agenda,” he replied. “M.I.T.A.Y. is simply a place for all of us to gather to celebrate life and one another. Anybody can get up anytime and say whatever they’d like.” And so it went, enjoying fellowship, lively conversations around the luncheon tables, storytelling from the podium, boisterous laughter, and countless heartfelt moments of encouragement and acknowledgement to one another.
Harry Nelson ('50) rallies the Waves!
At the gentlemen’s luncheon, Sam Lagana of Pepperdine Athletics got our blue and orange blood pumping as he paid homage to the great Pepperdine football teams of yesteryear and gave us a peek at the present and future of Pepperdine Athletics and the fighting spirit of our amazing student-athletes. We remembered dear friends who have passed and celebrated new friendships forged. Dr. Charles B. Runnels, Chancellor Emeritus for Pepperdine, demonstrated his usual class in honoring each of you and what you have meant to him personally–as well as to Pepperdine University–and how very important your support over the years has always been toward strengthening our students for lives of purpose, service, and leadership. Those stories that you all share are so important to me and to the next generations of the Pepperdine Family. With every tale, you show us how Pepperdine came to be and how it must continue to be. You illustrate the pure values upon which this institution is still based, leading us to an even more meaningful future. You challenge us to do more, and you inspire us to carry the GPC torch with pride as we take what you started at 79th and Vermont and spread it from Malibu to L.A., Washington, D.C., Germany, Italy, China, and every other shore in our world that feels the powerful impact of our Waves. As you all celebrate “making it through another year,” I proudly celebrate how your inspiring stories and wisdom will undoubtedly shape the year ahead for me and for so many other members of the Pepperdine Family. Thank you, God bless you, and I look forward to seeing you again very soon, my brothers. †
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GPC Alumni: (top row, left to right) Hal Syfritt (‘63), Harry Nelson (‘50), Jim Gibson (‘58), Ted Porter (‘59), Sol Henderson (‘59); (bottom row, left to right) John Katch (‘60), Al Calce (‘57), Duane Larue (‘58), and Bill Squire (‘53).
GPC Alumni: (standing, left to right) Duane Sherman, Bayard Bartley (‘49), Sam Lagana (Assoc. Vice Chancellor, Advancement & Athletics), Val Fejtek (‘52), and Paul Perry (‘50); (seated) Dr. Jim Hedstrom, Ph.D. (‘51). 5/26/09 9:11 AM
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GPC Athletes Selected for
Pepperdine Athletics Hall of Fame By Jon Washington (’63) Even with passing time, George Pepperdine College athletes continue to find their way to the Pepperdine University Athletics Hall of Fame. “It’s been a long time,” said basketball player, coach and former high school teacher, John Furlong (’51), reacting to his induction in November 2008. “But now the wait is over and I’m thrilled to be included in this most exclusive group. The idea that my efforts, not only as an athlete at Pepperdine, but as a high school coach/teacher at Woodland Hills, California, Taft High School, have been recognized by my peers is a grand feeling, believe me, and I am overwhelmed by the honor.” In recognition of Furlong’s basketball coaching success at Taft High School, the school named the gymnasium after him. Joining Furlong in the hall in 2008 was James Brinton, M.D. (’57), a three-year baseball letterman and longtime physician (28 years, urologic surgeon in Huntington Beach and Newport Beach, California) and Pepperdine supporter as a member of the Seaver Board of Visitors, the Alumni Board, and the Athletics Board. He is also in attendance at many Pepperdine basketball and baseball games, and is a Pepperdine Endowed Associate, having personally endowed the John Scolinos Award. He was elected for the Distinguished Service category, which is described within the program as “Special recognition for exceptional contributions and service to the athletic program at Pepperdine University.” “It’s great–and somewhat unexpected,” Brinton said of his Hall of Fame induction. “I have served on the selection committee– but I had no idea I was about to be voted in.” “Scolinos played a big part in my maturation at Pepperdine,” Brinton said. “He still, to this day (at age 91), gives the right signals for life. I’ve never heard a negative word or character reference to him. He’s a living legend of what it means to have lived life successfully by being a great teacher, coach, and friend. He walks the walk and talks the talk. He also has had a great influence on young coaches. He even advised me (correctly, I might add) to turn down a minor league baseball contract from the Boston Red Sox and go to medical school.”
in scoring (13.6 points per game) and rebounding (7.7 rebounds per game) and led scoring as a junior as well with 11 points per game. He also was an outstanding multi-athlete at Los Angeles, Fremont High School. Established in 1980, the Pepperdine Athletics Hall of Fame, (counting 2008 inductees Furlong and Brinton, along with seven others from Pepperdine University) now includes 77 individuals (both men and women), 12 teams, and seven special achievement recipients. The special achievement recipients include Helen Pepperdine, Eddy D. and Helen Field, Hugh Tiner, Leonard K. Firestone, Howard A. White, Charles B. Runnels, and Neal Scott. Our beloved Olaf Tegner was named to the Hall in 1984. “Our Athletics Hall of Fame is a showcase for Pepperdine’s rich history in intercollegiate athletics,” Pepperdine Director of Athletics, Dr. John Watson, said. “These athletes have earned their well-deserved place in our Hall of Fame, not only for what they accomplished at 79th and Vermont and Malibu, but in their professional lives as well, whether in athletics or in other fields.” To be eligible for induction, nominees must have competed, coached for, or rendered an extraordinary service to Pepperdine College/Athletics. After nominees are identified, Pepperdine University’s Hall of Fame Committee makes the final decisions. Specific categories are as follows: Former Students – Athletic Achievement, Former Students – Professional Achievement, Coach or Administrator, Distinguished Service, Athletic Team, and the Posthumous Award. To nominate an individual or team for Hall of Fame consideration or for a complete listing of honorees, please visit the Hall of Fame category listed on the Pepperdine Athletics Web site: www.pepperdine.edu/athletics/. †
“I love Pepperdine for what it did for me,” Brinton said. “I met my wife, Lorraine, there, was active in Beta Tau Delta, and earned an undergraduate degree in biology before entering the UC Irvine Medical School.” Furlong, after completing military duty in the U.S. Army, was a three-year letterman in basketball (’49, ’50, and ‘51) at center. He earned All-American honors as a senior after leading the Waves
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John Furlong (‘51) humbly accepts his Hall of Fame induction.
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Life
GPC Returns to
A RT IC L E S
for
A busload of Seaver students returned to mid-century Pepperdine on October 25, 2008. “It’s satisfying to see where it all began,” said Genna Jones, president (not to mention paid employee) of the Seaver Student Alumni Organization, who teamed with Amanda Marble in (wonderful) organization of the tour. Eight not-so-distinguished George Pepperdine College alumni escorted gaggles of Seaver students, ebbing and flowing as they swirled about the perimeter of the 79th and Vermont campus. “. . . and this is where Dr. Ruby (Dr. Wade Ruby, former head of the English department) fended off a brigade of vicious snarling sparrows,” a tour guide embellished with relish. “They were attacking his hair. We never asked to borrow his pomade.” “The line of students selling their used textbooks back to the bookstore would extend well beyond the Graphic (student newspaper) office, which was not much more than a kiosk, parked about the middle of the lawn.” “Wasn’t this where Dr. (Hubert) Derrick taught his infamous ‘Bible in Survey’ class?” one guide asked another. “Don’t know. He didn’t require attendance (if you knew the answers on the test). That’s why it was infamous,” the other guide responded. “Dr. Ashby (Leo, history and civics, and husband of Louise, home economics) was boisterously garrulous and definitely not a sight for sore eyes at the ‘O’ (Oasis) on Saturday mornings.”
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Seaver Students By Chuck Cole (’61)
icked/brawled/played intramural sports and occasionally threw each other into “Delores,” a mid-campus fountain named after its centerpiece, a cherubic statue. “Delores,” it is rumored, clandestinely resides at an unknown location in the United States. “Wow, George Pepperdine, himself, walked here?” “Yes, as did Mrs. Pepperdine and various relatives. The Pepperdines attended chapel every Monday. And Monday chapel wasn’t even mandatory for them.” To the Seaver students, GPC professorial icons such as Dr. William “Bill” Banowsky and Dr. Howard White have been better known as streets and buildings on the Malibu campus. “They were giants,” an alumnus assured them. “But at the time, unfortunately, we didn’t realize we would never again encounter anybody like them.” But then, even on the old campus, there were monuments to giants of the past that the touring alumni had never met. Baxter Hall, the men’s dorm, which has since been replaced by a parking lot, was named for Dr. Batsell Baxter, an early president of the college. The ladies’ dorm, named Marilyn Hall, in commemoration of George Pepperdine’s daughter, still stands but is now used as a Christian preschool. Students learned that even back then, Pepperdine was a way of life–an exceptionally convivial ménage. Now that I’ve finished recording their discovery of the old campus, I’m going to get over to the Malibu campus to see if I can get Genna or some other students to show me around. †
Several students remarked on how much fun it must have been to have a quad of sorts where the student body congregated/frol-
In Memorium
We take this time to remember those Waves who have recently passed, and we celebrate the impact they made on fellow alumni and the world around them. Mr. Barney Barnhart (‘50) Mr. Michael Barnhart (‘74, MA ‘77) Mrs. Peggy Beckett (‘51) Mr. Ronald Bishop (‘53) Mr. Granville Lipscomb “Lip” Crothers (‘39) Mr. Frank D’Alessandro (‘59, MA ‘62) Dr. Richard Dankworth (‘52) Mrs. Isabella (Scannell) Dorriety (‘68) Mr. Eugene Harding (‘49) Mr. Eddie Hasson (‘49)
Dr. Hale Haws (‘47) Mr. James Hensley (‘69, MBA ‘76) Mrs. Lillian (Holiday) Moore (‘66, MS ‘81) Mr. John Imbler (‘43) Mr. Hubert Lee (‘50) Mrs. Anne (Marbury) Ligda (‘63) Mrs. Velda (Wright) McDonald (‘57) Mr. Marshall Miller (‘50) Dr. Bob Montgomery (‘51) Mr. Gerald Montgomery (‘63)
Mr. Chris Sangster (‘75, MBA ‘81) Mr. Fred Sevier (‘65) Mrs. Mary (Freeman) Stephens (‘57, MS ‘74) Mr. Dale Stewart (‘42) Mrs. Lena (Copeland) Thomas (‘46) Ms. Arline Votour (‘58) Mr. Jack Wallace (‘51) Mrs. Carol (Huff ) Whalin (‘61)
As you learn of the passing of George Pepperdine College alumni, please contact GPC Alumni Affairs at (310) 506-4348 or gpc@pepperdine.edu.
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GPC Class Notes
In future issues of the Promenade newsletter, we will be featuring brief updates from you! If you are an alumnus of George Pepperdine College and have an update to share that took place within the past six months, please send your update to us via e-mail at gpc@pepperdine.edu or by post to the following address: Pepperdine University GPC Alumni Affairs 24255 Pacific Coast Highway Attn: Matt Ebeling, TAC 311 Malibu, CA 90263 Be sure to include your first and last name, the year you graduated, and just a few sentences describing your update. We are always interested in your photos, too, which may be included in this feature.
We are looking forward to hearing from you!
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