The Class of 2024 celebrates graduation. Saint Mary’s has celebrated commencement exercises since 1879.
Board of Trustees 2024-2025
Officers
Merritt Atkins ’99, Chair
Tiffany Miller Clark ’82HS, Vice Chair
Julian Williamson P’18, ’23, Secretary
Jean Redding ’72HS, Treasurer
Members-at-Large
Diane Gupton Becton ’77HS
April Browne ’88HS ’91C
Catherine Bryant ’12
Hope Derby Carmichael P’24
Elizabeth Patteson Dixon ’80HS P’18
Eric Evans P’12,’14
Amanda Hampton P’25
Ken Howard P’11
Earl Johnson P’09
Angel Jones P’26,’27
Sheila McLamb ’75HS
Sally Pelletier ’77HS ’79C
Susan Creech Rankin ’74HS P’11
Will Rideout P’22,’24,’28
Ward Russell P’20
Sallie Shuping-Russell ’75C
Melissa Morrisette Tillman ’88HS P’23
Heather Clark Warren ’89HS ’91C
Saint Mary’s School, a community dedicated to academic excellence and personal achievement, prepares young women for college and life.
Founded in 1842 in the Episcopal tradition, Saint Mary’s School is an innovative independent, college-preparatory, girls boarding and day school dedicated to academic excellence and personal achievement for grades 9-12.
Saint Mary’s School admits girls of any race, religion, national or ethnic origin, disability, or sexual orientation to all the rights, privileges, programs, and activities generally accorded or made available to our students.
Saint Mary's School does not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, national and ethnic origin, or sexual orientation in the administration of its educational policies, admissions policies, financial aid programs, or athletic and other school programs.
Administration/Leadership Team
Adam Holden, Ed.D., head of school
Shelly Lammon, assistant head for finance and operations
Matthew Olesnevich, Ed.D., assistant head for student affairs and residential faculty
Patricia C.A. Sasser, assistant head for academic affairs
Or update your contact information online or scan the QR code at sms.edu/alumnae/update-my-information.
Editor
Mary Virginia Swain ’77C historian, author in residence mvswain@sms.edu
Class News Editor
Emory Rogers Church ’74C classnews@sms.edu
Director of Alumnae Engagement
Emily Smith ’01 ersmith@sms.edu
Contributors:
Marion Dees, Lauren Gerber, Adam Holden, Jessica Holden, Eileen Nedoma, Emily Smith ’01, Mary Virginia Swain ’77C
Design & Printing
Metro Productions
MESSAGE FROM THE HEAD OF SCHOOL & THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES
Dear alumnae and friends,
In 2022, the Saint Mary’s School Board of Trustees and school leadership team introduced a short-term strategic plan. Designed to move our community forward by leveraging our strengths, this plan was the roadmap that challenged us to make bold decisions at a pivotal time in our history, cultivating positive change and lasting success. Today, we are excited to build upon this all-important work and present the Saint Mary’s School Strategic Plan 2024-2029.
This five-year plan is defined by goals and priorities that reinforce and invigorate a transformative education for a diverse community of young women. Enriched by insightful feedback from faculty, staff, students, parents, alumnae, and friends, our Board of Trustees and the school’s leadership team completed this planning process in the spring of 2024. The Board of Trustees approved and adopted the final plan at the full board meeting April 24-25, 2024.
The Saint Mary’s School mission guides every aspect of our work, reminding us that, above all else, we are a community dedicated to academic excellence and personal achievement as we prepare young women for college and life. As a result, the Strategic Plan 2024-2029 pursues goals focused on academics, admissions, partnerships, residential life, community, and belonging.
With the Board of Trustees oversight and partnership with the school leadership team, our Saint Mary’s School staff is accountable for implementing this Strategic Plan 2024-2029. This innovative group of nationally recognized, industry leading educators and professionals will identify annual departmental goals and priorities supported by tactics and activations to deliver positive outcomes and measurable success.
Saint Mary’s School is a special place built on centuries-long tradition of unwavering loyalty and enthusiastic support. We are thrilled to begin this next chapter in our institution’s history and invite you to scan the QR Code on this page to read more about the Strategic Plan 2024-2029. We are honored to serve our students and institution with this transformative work and are deeply grateful for this extraordinary community.
Yours in education,
Dr. Adam Holden Head of School
Saint
Mary's School
Merritt Atkins ’99 Chair, Board of Trustees
Commencement 2024: Handkerchief drops on 182nd session
By Mary Virginia Swain ’77C School Historian, Author in Residence
The sights and sounds of Pomp and Circumstance filled the Grove Sunday morning, May 19, 2024, as 85 seniors graduated from Saint Mary’s School. It was a blue-ribbon Saint Mary’s commencement day in the Grove, as the graduates turned their tassels and Saint Mary’s rings, becoming Saint Mary’s newest alumnae.
In keeping with Saint Mary’s tradition, Student Government Association President Helen Newcomb ’24 and Senior Class President Ava Spencer ’24 marched at the head of the line of graduates. The new marshals led the two lines of graduates and the platform party dignitaries from Smedes Hall through the Grove.
As the graduates made their way around Smedes Circle to the center brick walkway for the official procession through The Grove, underclasswomen presented each graduate with an iris to carry and place in the Class of 1987 urn just before stepping onstage to receive her diploma.
Saint Mary’s Chaplain Maggie Stoddard offered the invocation. Head of School Adam Holden, Ed.D., welcomed the graduates, their families, and guests.
Cecilia Roberts ’24 of Raleigh, delivered the senior commencement address, having been elected by her classmates as the senior commencement speaker.
Valedictorian Chesson Becker ’24 of Raleigh delivered the valedictory address.
The Honors Chorale, under the direction of Jennifer Moran, offered special music, Homeland, by Z. Randall Stroope.
Erin Matson, coach of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill’s field hockey team, delivered an inspirational commencement address. Ms. Matson has won NCAA Division One championships both as a coach and player for the Tar Heels’ hockey program.
Adam Holden presented the graduates their Saint Mary’s diplomas.
Board of Trustees Chair Merritt Atkins ’99 introduced the awards portion of the ceremony. Awards were presented by Ms. Atkins, Assistant Head of School for Student Affairs Matt Olesnevich, and Dr. Adam Holden.
Following the benediction and the final singing of the year of the
School Hymn, Chief Marshal Carter Morrison ’25 stood at the top of the steps of Smedes Hall, directly beneath the lantern adorned with Saint Mary’s blue ribbons, to drop the handkerchief and declare the 182nd session at Saint Mary’s to be officially closed. After the iconic handkerchief drop, the marshals walked into Smedes and closed the doors on another Saint Mary’s commencement, while the graduates joyfully tossed their caps high into the canopy of stately oaks.
The Baccalaureate preceded the commencement exercises in the historic Saint Mary’s Chapel with Chaplain Maggie Stoddard presiding.
A celebratory dinner was held Saturday evening, May 18, and a graduation luncheon was held following commencement, both under a tent on the Hannah Smith ’12 Quad, rounding out a perfect commencement weekend.
Saint Mary’s commencement embodies personal touches of academic excellence, personal achievement, friendship, tradition, grace, honor, dignity, and resilience that are hallmarks of the Saint Mary’s experience.
Once again, Saint Mary’s graduating class boasts 100 percent college acceptance to a broad range of outstanding colleges and universities around the nation and abroad. The range of colleges and universities selected by graduates of the Class of 2024 are as varied as the graduates themselves and reflects their wideranging interests and personalities.
“Members of the Saint Mary’s School Class of 2024 are poised to step out of our gates and into an exciting future,” says Adam Holden. “Prepared at Saint Mary’s for college and life, these graduates have challenged themselves in and out of the classroom, expanded their boundaries, made real-world connections, and grown as young women of intelligence, integrity, and purpose – ready to serve and shape their world.”
Top to bottom: The Class of 2024; commencement platform party, left to right, Dr. Adam Holden, Dr. Matt Olesnovich, Dr. Anne Aichele, Merritt Atkins ’99, Chaplain Maggie Stoddard, Commencement Speaker Erin Matson, Chief Marshal Carter Morrison ’25; graduation procession from Smedes; commencement in the Grove; graduates sing The School Hymn
COMMENCEMENT AWARDS
Chesson Becker ’24 of Raleigh was the recipient of the 2023 Cooper Medal, in recognition of achieving the highest G.P.A. for the year. The Cooper Award was established in 1944 by Fannie Cooper Gilliam ’44C, Mrs. Sterling Gary Gilliam, in memory of her brother, Hill Parham Cooper. Chesson also received the 2023 Niles Medal for finishing with the highest G.P.A. over her years at Saint Mary’s. The Niles Medal was instituted in 1905 by Dr. Charles Martin Niles. She was also the 2024 valedictorian.
Yara Escamilla Jiminez ’24 of Neuvo Vallarta, Mexico, was chosen to receive the King Medal, awarded each year to the graduate, who, in the opinion of the faculty, has most consistently practiced good citizenship at Saint Mary’s and inconspicuously served as an example to others. The King Medal was established in 1964 by Mr. and Mrs. Madding King of Florence, Alabama.
Ann Gerard Mohamed ’24 of Raleigh received the Catherine Ruth Proctor Award, presented by the Saint Mary’s chapter of the National Honor Society in recognition of the student making the greatest scholastic advancement over the past four years. The Proctor Award was established in 1974 in memory of Catherine Ruth Proctor ’75HS.
Maddie Ritter ’24 of Topping, Virginia, was the recipient of the Georgia Lee Kinsey Award, presented by Saint Mary’s Chapter of the National Honor Society to the graduate who has accomplished the greatest scholastic advancement over the past two years. The award was established in 1982 by Saint Mary’s College Chi Beta Chapter of Phi Theta Kappa in memory of Georgia Lee Kinsey ’81.
Margaret Raynal ’24 of Raleigh was voted by her classmates to receive the Margaret and Ann Highsmith Medal, awarded to a graduate who exemplifies the Christian idea of helpfulness to others motivated by her genuine love for all members of the school community. The Highsmith Medal was established in 1969 by Mr. and Mrs. Seavy Highsmith of Fayetteville, North Carolina, in honor of their daughters, Ann Cameron Highsmith ’70HS and Margaret Highsmith Dickson ’67HS.
Cecilia Roberts ’24 of Raleigh is the 2024 Marian Drane Graham Award winner, as chosen by a committee of representatives of the alumnae faculty and staff and the student body. This award was established in 1968 as a memorial to Marian Drane Graham, Class of 1919.The award is made each year to a graduate who, in the words of her husband, Dr. Frank Porter Graham, exemplifies Marian’s “reverence and humility of spirit, scholarship without pride of excellence, zest for life, faith and fortitude, and all-around development in the course of her radiant and nobly useful life.”
Saint Mary’s History Nugget
Saint Mary’s commencement tradition dates to 1879
By Mary Virginia Swain ’77C School Historian, Author in Residence
Although Saint Mary’s opened in May 1842, offering as excellent an education for young women as could be found in any school in the country, the school did not hold a commencement ceremony or award diplomas until 1879.
“During Dr. Aldert Smedes’ lifetime, St. Mary’s had no graduating exercises and bestowed no diplomas,” recalled Ella Tew Lindsay, one of the original 1879 graduates. “When Dr. Bennett Smedes became rector, this was changed. With other classmates having moved on in life, the 1879 graduating class had dwindled to five: Lucy Battle (valedictorian), Eliza Smedes, Kate Cheshire, Josephine Myers, and Ella Tew (salutatorian). Our class graduated June 19, 1879, and we received St. Mary’s first diplomas.”
The first commencement day at Saint Mary’s began at 10 a.m. in the great parlor in the main building with recitations and the reading of senior essays, concluding with addresses from the valedictorian and the rector followed by a procession of the clergy, faculty, and white robed graduates to the Chapel for devotions, addresses by the rector and bishop, the announcement of honors and distinctions, and the conferring of diplomas.
From those first exercises, commencement remained the highlight of the year at Saint Mary’s. Emilie Smedes Holmes wrote in Life at Saint Mary’s, “Commencement was the biggest thing in our lives. Finally, we found ourselves together in the Chapel for the last time and thrilling – can you believe it – to the strains of The Hallelujah Chorus We felt equipped at least in some measure to become worthwhile members of society.”
Commencement exercises were held in the large parlor with diplomas presented in the Chapel until 1907, when graduation was moved to the new Pittman Auditorium. The June 1906 St. Mary’s Muse heralds the anticipated relocation of commencement. “The historic parlor was used this year for commencement for the last time, as next year the exercises will take place in the Eliza Battle Pittman Auditorium, now being constructed, as the greater space will give a place for larger audiences, as many have been turned away from commencement events by the limitations of space for visitors.” Pittman Auditorium was dedicated on commencement eve, May 29, 1907, just in time for graduation. After the exercises in Pittman, the presentation of diplomas and awards continued to take place in the Chapel, followed by a procession of graduates and guests to the front of Smedes for the uniquely Saint Mary’s tradition of dropping the handkerchief to close the year.
The Saint Mary’s School Bulletin chronicled the hanky drop in 1928. “Led by Chief Marshal Elizabeth Smith, the school silently filed out of the Chapel after the presentation of the prized diplomas to the seniors. A semicircle was formed in front of Smedes Hall and as the last of the clergy and trustees had marched up, silence fell for a moment. Elizabeth Smith lifted her hand and pronounced those long-awaited words, ‘The 80th session of Saint Mary’s School is ended. School is dismissed!’”
In 1969, when the graduation ceremonies for the high school and college divisions were separated with the high school graduation at 10:30 a.m. and the college at 2 p.m., the dropping of the handkerchief moved to the Smedes porch.
Commencement 1968
“In 1971, with Smedes Hall towering in the background, commencement was held outside for the first time on May 15, when 80 members of the high school and 117 members of the college departments were awarded diplomas on the steps of Smedes Hall. With stairs on either side of the Smedes steps in the days before the center railing, graduates crossed the steps of Smedes Hall, which served as a stage, to receive their diplomas. The June 1971 alumnae bulletin reports that a “May shower did not dampen the spirit of the crowd at the junior college graduation held in the afternoon, as graduates and guests sat staunchly through the rain.”
The prospect of rain also loomed during an earlier commencement week in 1883. The June 1883 St. Mary’s Muse recalls that “heavy showers of rain during the commencement exercises in the large parlor made it doubtful whether we could go in the procession to the Chapel; but the clouds rolled away just in time and the long line, longer than ever before, passed into the sacred building around which the dearest of St. Mary’s memories cling.”
The Class of 2009 was not so fortunate with the weather. Saint Mary’s awoke to a rainy day on May 17, 2009, with no sign of the clouds rolling away. The graduates of the Class of 2009 politely declined the rain plan for Pittman Auditorium, refusing to be the first class in the outdoor commencement era to not graduate in the Grove. The graduates marched and sat through a steady pouring rain with their gowns and dresses drenched to the point of ruin in many cases. Waterlogged guests sat patiently through the heavy rain. Commencement speaker Sylvia Hatchell, UNC women’s basketball coach, good-naturedly abandoned her speech midway as the paper became too soaked to read. The rain never stopped but the graduates’ spirits did not dampen, and the Class of 2009 happily enjoyed a graduation day to remember.
Weather of a different kind changed the course of commencement in 1996 when the ceremony was relocated from the steps of Smedes into the Grove. When an extreme heat wave hit Raleigh during commencement week 1996, concerns arose about the wellbeing of all with the predicted near 100-degree temperatures for commencement Saturday – particularly those attending the 2 p.m. junior college ceremony in the hottest part of the day. The planned seating for the graduates was directly in front of the Smedes steps on the ground level covered by the slate that soaks up heat through the course of a day. Concerns arose about potential heat distress for the graduates, faculty seated on the porch in black robes, and guests baking in the hot sun. Prior to the destruction of 100 campus trees by
Hurricane Fran in the fall of 1996, there were even more massive oak trees in the Grove. Director of Development Henry Read, who led the commencement team, stood in front of Smedes in the week leading to graduation discussing the situation with Saint Mary’s President Clauston Jenkins and Director of Communications Mary Virginia Swain ’77C. Mr. Read, who was the college commencement speaker that year as he retired, gazed out at the Grove and said, “We’ve got this canopy of shade out in the Grove – why don’t we put it to good use?” A stage was quickly ordered and set up, commencement was held under the stately oaks, everyone loved it, and graduation has remained there ever since.
It was not weather, but the COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns in 2020 that led to the cancellation of commencement – the only year since 1879 not to have a formal commencement ceremony. For the first time since the tradition began, the handkerchief did not drop in 2020. A June day was set aside for the graduates to drive through to pick up their diplomas and snap cap and gown photos in front of Smedes Hall, but it was a lost milestone for the Class of 2020 that we will always lament.
Saint Mary’s commencement has evolved, adapted, and even relocated since the first diplomas were awarded in 1879 and yet remains remarkably true to its time-honored purpose and tradition. On Sunday, May 19, 2024, the graduates once again gathered for their last time together in the Chapel Sunday morning. The long line of white-robed graduates carrying irises once again marched to the sounds of Pomp and Circumstance from Smedes Hall through the Grove and across the stage to receive their coveted Saint Mary’s diplomas. The graduates once again turned their Saint Mary’s rings outward to point the school crest towards the world beyond our gates. Dignitaries and outstanding students once again delivered their poignant commencement addresses. Special honors and awards were once again presented. The School Hymn once again was sung by the graduates, arm in arm. And the chief marshal once again stood regally under the lantern on Smedes porch, delicately dropped the lace handkerchief, and gracefully declared the 182nd session of Saint Mary’s School to be officially closed.
Commencement 1968
High school commencement 1981
Final college commencement 1998
A Message from Our Chairs:
The Saint Mary’s Forever Campaign has been a historic undertaking, driven by the collective efforts of our school community. From scholarships to facilities to bolstering our financial position, Saints have answered the call to propel our school's campaign vision forward.
Over the past seven years, we've witnessed remarkable milestones. From kickstarting the Forever Campaign with $9 million in commitments to now exceeding $65 million raised to date, it is a testament to the collective dedication of our community.
And, while we celebrate our achievements, our journey is far from over. We press onward, with fundraising efforts aimed at securing final funds for the Blanche Center and continued fundraising for the new academic building. Progress on the Blanche Center is underway, with phased construction leading us towards completion by Fall 2025. Once completed, we’ll invite you to campus for a big celebration!
As we embark on the final leg of the Forever Campaign, we stand alongside exceptional leaders: William and Aurelia Monk P'15, Nancy Kerr Thomason ’73HS ’75C, and Anna Zevenhuizen ’07, and welcoming Mike and Gloria Taft Becker ’92HS P'21 '24 to guide us through the public phase. Together with our Head of School Dr. Adam Holden and our vast network of more than 9,000 alumnae, parents, grandparents, and friends, we are poised to achieve our goals and close this historic chapter with resounding success.
We thank you in advance for saying yes when a campaign volunteer reaches out to you, or a giving opportunity comes before you. Your invaluable and generous support will be instrumental as we enter this pivotal phase of our campaign. Together, we can ensure that our institution remains a beacon of excellence for generations to come.
With our most sincere thanks,
Frank and Ruth E. Perry Holding ’81C P’09 Saint Mary’s Forever Campaign Chairs
FOREVER
FRIDAY
Stay informed about all campaign developments! Tune in to Instagram or Facebook on the first Friday of each month for the latest campaign updates.
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An Update on The Blanche Center: Pittman Auditorium
The latest update on the Blanche Robertson Bacon Performing Arts Center, home of the Eliza Battle Pittman Auditorium, reveals considerable progress across various fronts. Firstly, the truss repairs in the attic of Pittman Auditorium have been successfully completed, ensuring structural integrity. Work on the new basement mechanical room, situated at the north end of the building, is nearing completion. This addition will accommodate essential systems such as HVAC, electric, and fire protection, enhancing operational efficiency and safety. Footings have been poured for the level above the mechanical room, slated to house expansive dressing rooms, backstage facilities, and enlarged stage wings, facilitating smoother performances and production logistics. Underground utilities and stormwater systems have been installed on the north side of the building, further augmenting the venue’s functionality and resilience. These developments mark significant strides towards the enhancement and modernization of Pittman Auditorium, promising an enriched experience for all who enter her doors.
Million
Two alumnae headline 2024 Young Women’s Leadership Institute
Jane Singleton Myers ’92HS and Sarah Blake ’10 inspire young women at
YWLI
Saint Mary’s School hosted the Young Women’s Leadership Institute (YWLI) for its second year in June 2024.
The institute, which provides a unique opportunity for young women to experience to a wide range of workshops, training sessions, and activities aimed at expanding their leadership skills took place this past June 2024. Throughout the 14 days of this immersive leadership program, participants were exposed to course work provided by Dr. Molly Goldwasser, associate provost for academic affairs at Duke University, on leadership development. The coursework was coupled with activities aimed at fostering self-awareness, collaboration, and communication skills. It also included a lineup of well recognized women leaders who have made a difference in their field.
This year, we were happy to host two of our own alumnae, Jane Singleton Myers ’92HS, executive director for TreesCharlotte and Lieutenant Sarah Blake ’10, U.S. Naval officer who currently serves as a Senate liaison in the Navy’s Office of Legislative Affairs. They completed a lineup which included Jill Heinerth, cave diver and explorer-in-residence for the Royal Canadian Geographical Society; Dr. Josephine M. Kim, senior lecturer on education at Harvard University; Karin Kildow, cofounder of Content Capital Group; Renee Chou, WRAL news anchor; Vernice Miller-Travis, executive vice president and environmental justice lead at Metropolitan Group; Dr. Elenor Tomczyk, plastic and reconstructive surgeon; and Gayle Lanier, president of corporate services for Progress Energy. Dr. Valerie Hillings, director and CEO for the North Carolina Museum of Art, and Susan LaSalla, retired NBC News producer. Their presentations and conversations on leadership and the journey each one took, provided powerful messages for the girls who participated in this program.
Students participating in the program included girls from Namibia, the nation of Georgia, Singapore, California, Texas, Maryland, Maine, South Carolina and, of course, North Carolina. This diverse student body provided opportunities for students to listen to different voices and learn from different perspectives. Throughout the two weeks, students participated in activities that allowed them to explore, reflect, and take risks in a supportive environment. Students took a tour of the Duke University campus and visited BaySix, a female owned imprint and branding company. They also participated in the N.C. State Outdoor Adventures High/Low Ropes Course, the Escape Room, and in several activities which included capture the flag, raft building, and trivia.
This year we introduced the Fellows Program, which was sponsored by alumna Hannah Smith ’12 on behalf of her mother Tracy Fodor Smith, who believed in and was an advocate for women leadership. Five students who had participated in the program the year before were selected to form part of the Fellows program. The Fellows acted as mentors to the current students, providing an added layer of support. They also prepped, planned activities, and interviewed the speakers during the two weeks. With the help of a communications and a diversity and inclusion ambassador, both current students, YWLI continues to provide opportunities for students to cultivate their leadership skills.
Our goal is to challenge participants to embrace, explore, and reflect upon women’s leadership at the highest levels, with a vision of making a positive difference in the world we live in. We are so fortunate to have the support of our Board of Trustees and Saint Mary’s community, and we look forward to next summer and impacting a new cohort of girls in a positive way.
Jessica Holden, Ed.D Head of Strategic Initiatives
Jane Singleton Myers ’92HS
Sarah Blake ’10
New Community Garden Takes Root at Saint Mary’s
Led by graduating senior Bella Kalkbrenner ’24, a new community garden has taken root on Saint Mary’s campus. The new garden, which consists of five raised beds, is located on the south side of Chan-Poyner Hall. It is the newest iteration in a long history of the Saint Mary’s gardening tradition that dates to 1842.
Saint Mary’s first had a vegetable garden in its earliest years in the 1940s, when the school garden provided year-round vegetables in season as a primary food source. When food shortages plagued the South during the Civil War, no one went hungry at Saint Mary’s, due in large part to the school’s garden, along with campus livestock.
In the early 1900s, the Rev. Theodore DuBose Bratton, rector/head of school, kept four cows, a few pigs, and a five-acre vegetable garden. According to The Heritage by Martha Stoops, “All of those projects not only helped to provision the table but altogether netted a profit of over $350 in 1903.”
During World War I, food prices soared and the food in the dining hall suffered in quality and appeal. In 1918, the students pitched in around campus to tend to the maintenance of the grove, the dirt tennis courts on front campus, the playing field, and a large vegetable garden. “Young Lucy Lay, toiled all summer canning produce from the garden for use in the dining hall,” writes Stoops in The Heritage
As the decades passed and the student body grew, a community garden could no longer feed the entire school community, and modern practices have relied on institutional food service vendors instead of home cooking. But in 2011 ground was broken on a new community garden on the southeast quadrant of campus just inside the school’s wall along Hillsborough Street. Stiles Rader ’11 was instrumental in the creation of the new community garden, taking it on as the focus of her Senior Pathways project. That organic garden was maintained for years by students, faculty, and staff, and contributed fresh vegetables to the Inter-Faith Food Shuttle’s Plant a Row for the Hungry program, campus residents, and, on occasion, to the dining hall.
In 2024, a new concept for a school garden was launched, inspired, and led by Saint Mary’s senior Bella Kalkbrenner ’24, who took on the garden as part of her independent study on women's holistic and hormonal health. She hopes the garden will help educate members of the school community on how healthy food is produced and grown and how our food gets from farm to market to table. Bella’s interest in gardening and sustainability was inspired by her aunt, Lindsey Kalkbrenner, director of the Center for Sustainability at Santa Clara University in California. Bella’s interest in natural holistic health and wellness came through her personal journey struggling as a teenager with body image and the quest for external perfection.
“Working in this garden at Saint Mary’s has been a fantastic experience,” says Bella. “I hope it brings the SMS community lots of joy, new opportunities, and fresh produce.”
The club she founded, Sustainable Saints and Garden Club, won the Club of the Year Award at Saint Mary’s for the 2023-2024 school year.
“The work of the Sustainable Saints and Garden Club this semester has been extraordinary,” says Head of School Adam Holden. “The creation of the garden beds and the hours of work that have gone into building, preparing, and planting the gardens has been wonderful to witness. This relatively new club has also worked on a solar panel project in East Park Science Building, brought a speaker from Towards Zero Waste to campus to discuss sustainability and zero-waste initiatives, and led our Earth Day Vespers celebration. Their dedication to increasing sustainability on campus has been so motivating to many of us who call Saint Mary’s our home.”
Learn more about our Sustainable Saints and see what’s growing in the garden by following @sms_sustainable_saints on Instagram. You can also follow Bella’s blog at bellaswholesomelife.com. Bella attends the North Carolina State University College of Design where she is studying archietecture.
Bella Kalkbrenner ’24, center, and friends work in the new Saint Mary’s community garden.
Saint Mary’s Remembers
Mary Lou Jones
Dean Emerita
April 29, 1932 – September 22, 2024
Mary Lou Jones, beloved professor and dean emerita, died peacefully at her home on her farm, Twelve Oaks, in Sanford, North Carolina, Sunday, September 22, 2024.
Jones served Saint Mary’s College and High School from 1961-1998 as professor of physical education, chair of the physical education department, coach, faculty representative to the board of trustees, dean of students, and dean emerita. The Eure-Jones Tennis Courts are dedicated to Jones and her friends Alice and Thad Eure, great supporters of Saint Mary’s and its tennis program.
A North Carolina Tennis Association Hall of Famer, Jones recorded 330 wins as head coach of Saint Mary’s college and high school tennis teams from the 1960s into the 1990s, including 12 undefeated seasons, the 1980 North Carolina Independent Schools Athletic Association (NCISAA) high school state championship, six consecutive North Carolina Women’s Colleges State Tournament championships (1984-1989) of five women’s college teams (St. Mary’s, Salem, Peace, Meredith, and Queens), and numerous NCISAA high school conference and district and North Carolina Association of Intercollegiate Athletics for Women (NCAIAW) collegiate district championships.
She held her legendary summer tennis camps at Saint Mary’s for 25 years from 1974-1998. She built the modern-day athletics program at Saint Mary’s, moving the school from an intramural athletic program to intercollegiate and interscholastic competition at the highest levels.
As a player, Jones was the winner of more than 200 tennis tournament championships since 1948 in singles and doubles throughout North Carolina and the South, including North Carolina Tennis Association (NCTA) state championships and number one state rankings in singles and doubles. She was highly ranked in the Southern Tennis Association in singles and doubles, including number one in the South in women’s doubles. She was a five-time Eastern Carolina Tennis Association singles champion and won numerous Raleigh city championships. She was a trailblazer in women’s tennis as the first tennis player in North Carolina to use a steel racket, the T2000, through a promotional sponsorship deal with Wilson Sporting Goods in 1967. She drew a large crowd of interested spectators in her firstround match at the state tournament in Greensboro that year as she competed with it for the first time – a curiosity in the age of wooden rackets that pioneered the next phase in the evolution of the tennis racket.
Jones was inducted into the North Carolina Tennis Hall of Fame in 1979, was named North Carolina Pro of the Year by the North Carolina Association of Tennis Professionals in 1989 and was the Piedmont Athletic Conference of Independent Schools (PACIS) Coach of the Year in 1987. Jones served as coach of the Junior Wightman Cup Team for North Carolina in 1958.
Off the tennis court, she served as Raleigh’s community ambassador on a mission pilgrimage to Israel in 1963 through the Experiment in International Living, was inducted into the Wake County YWCA Academy of Women in 1990, was recipient of a Distinguished Women of North Carolina Award from the N.C. Council of Women in 1999,
Mary Lou Jones and Mami Harada ’89C
received the prestigious Friend of Agriculture Award from the Lee County N.C. Cooperative Extension Center in 2016, and is a member of Who’s Who of American Women and Who’s Who of the South and Southwest and the Order of the Long Leaf Pine, among other honors. She is a two-time recipient of the Richard G. Stone Distinguished Service Award at Saint Mary’s and was given the distinction of honorary alumna by the Saint Mary’s Alumnae Association in 1999.
Jones earned her bachelor’s degree in physical education and master’s degree in education from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where she was president of the Women’s Athletic Association and later honored in 1988 by the UNC Physical Education Department as an outstanding alumna.
She is preceded in death by her parents, Joseph Barton Jones Sr., and Mary Etta Saul Jones; sister Henrietta Jones Vaughn; brother, J.B. Jones Jr.; nephews Jody Jones and J.M. Hall; and nieces Mary Lou Jones Rutherford and Jennifer Jones Mott. She is survived by niece Teresa Vaughn Stephens ’72C and husband Craton Stephens; four great-nieces: Emily Stephens, Mary Ann Rutherford, Paige Mott, and Whitney Mott Scott; two great-nephews: David Stephens and J.E. Rutherford; two step-great nieces; three great-great nephews; two great-great nieces; one great-great-great niece; and cousin Mark Boone.
A celebration of her extraordinary life was held in Saint Mary’s Chapel, Sunday, September 29, at 2 p.m., followed by a reception, catered by the Angus Barn, in Smedes-Emory Parlor. The Rev. Pat Ormsby Witt presided. Those offering remembrances of Ms. Jones included Lynn Jones Dixon ’79C, Van Eure ’73HS ’75C, Margaret McGlohon ’81C, Seth Holt, and Mary Virginia Swain ’77C.
Ms. Jones asked that any memorial gifts may be made to Saint Mary’s School, 900 Hillsborough Street, Raleigh, NC, 27603, in support of the Mary Lou Jones Hall of Fame. To make a gift in memory of Dean Jones to the Hall of Fame or to the Annual Fund, visit www.sms.edu/maryloujones..
Mary Lou Jones coaching a Sigma-Mu softball game in the 1970s
Mary Lou Jones in 2017 in the Athletics Hall of Fame.
KATIE BRADBURY WELLMAN
Director of Enrollment Management and Financial Aid 919-424-4013
cwbwellman@sms.edu
TAYLOR DEAL LEMAY
Manager of Admissions Systems and Data 919-424-4003
tdeal_lemay@sms.edu
MARY MILLS
Director of Day Recruitment 919-424-4006
memills@sms.edu
WYNNE OVERTON
Head of Boarding Recruitment 919-424-4080 roverton@sms.edu
EXCELLENCE
Harvard Medical School's MedScience Program at Saint Mary’s School
The Harvard Medical School (HMS) MedScience Program, a groundbreaking initiative designed to provide students with a hands-on, active learning experience like no other, has begun at Saint Mary’s School. Ms. Lauren Marquez’s Human Body System Students and Ms. Jennifer Hummel’s Principles of Biomedical class participated in realistic and dynamic simulated medical emergencies, offering a unique opportunity to explore the fascinating world of healthcare firsthand. From clinical skills to insights into diverse healthcare careers, this program goes beyond traditional classroom learning, providing participants with an authentic taste of the challenges and rewards of the medical field.
What sets MedScience apart is its commitment to active learning. Students are not just observers; they are active participants in simulated medical scenarios with physicians. This hands-on approach allows them to develop clinical skills, think critically, problem-solve, and work effectively in teams—all essential attributes for success in the dynamic field of healthcare.
The program also brings students face-to-face with medical professionals actively practicing in the field. By engaging with experts, participants gain valuable insights into various healthcare careers, helping them make informed decisions about their future paths. This exposure to real-world scenarios and interactions with professionals enhances their understanding of the diverse opportunities within the healthcare industry.
The MedScience Program at Harvard Medical School is not just about learning; it's about igniting a passion for science and healthcare, fostering critical thinking, and inspiring the next generation of leaders in the medical field. As we continue to emphasize the importance of STEM education, this program stands as a beacon for those eager to explore the vast and everevolving landscape of healthcare.
New Leadership Immersion Lab
Saint Mary’s School is pleased to unveil the addition of an exclusive Leadership Immersion Lab, a pioneering initiative tailored specifically for our boarding students in grades 11 and 12 for the 2024-2025 school year. This program is a unique opportunity for young women to gain essential leadership skills through a collaborative and experiential learning approach within the vibrant residential community setting and for life beyond Saint Mary’s.
The Leadership Immersion Lab is a distinctive opportunity for boarders to engage in monthly sessions led by instructors with doctoral degrees in leadership, as well as guest speakers. Topics covered include negotiating, speech delivery for large crowds, how to make courageous decisions, artificial intelligence, and more. The program provides boarding students with diverse perspectives and insights to guide them on a transformational leadership development journey in real-world scenarios.
PERSONAL ACHIEVEMENT
Music Students Win High Honors at NCMTA festival
Saint Mary’s music students excelled at the North Carolina Music Teachers Association Performance Festival this spring.
Emily West ’26 was awarded highest honors for voice at the NCMTA district festival in February. She sang an Italian piece, Vittoria, Vittoria, and A Change in Me from Beauty and the Beast. She advanced to the State East NCMTA festival district level in April in the voice category where she earned highest honors for her performance of A Change in Me.
Selina Cao ’26 won highest honors in the State East NCMTA annual piano performance festival held at Meredith College, April 6. She qualified for the state competition after winning highest honors at the district festival in February. Requirements for the festival include performance from memory three classical pieces chosen from a list representing the 18th, 19th, 20th, and 21st centuries.
Seven Saint Mary’s piano students won honor ratings in the 2024 Young Artist Auditions at Meredith College in March. Two pieces of contrasting styles performed at high level from memory were required for the competition. Congratulations to Caroline Yu ’25, Morgan Kerr ’24, Isabella Fang ’24, Jenny Wu ’27, Selina Cao ’26 (standing left to right), and Colleen Eveson ’26 and Amy Lu ’24 (seated, left to right).
Emily West ’26
Selina Cao ’26
Four Class of 2024 Saints to Play College Athletics
Congratulations to recent graduates Anna Barber ’24, Addie Bowen ’24, Garland Gould ’24, and Kinsley Smith ’24 on their commitments to play college athletics. Each student signed their letter of intent in a ceremony sponsored by the athletics department at Saint Mary’s:
Kinsley Smith ’24, 2024 Triangle Independent Schools Athletic Conference co-champion and NCISAA all-state golfer, will play golf for Creighton University.
Anna Barber ’24, an North Carolina FC Shield Award winner as well as a Stats Sports Player of the Month honoree, will play soccer at the University of Cincinnati.
Garland Gould ’24, NCISAA all-state golfer, will play golf for the Elon University Phoenix.
Addie Bowen ’24, all-state North Carolina Independent Schools Athletic Association (NCISAA) selection, will play softball at Randolph College in Lynchburg, Virginia.
Saint Mary’s Earns College Board’s AP®
Computer Science Female Diversity Award
Saint Mary’s School is one of only four schools in North Carolina and one of 225 schools nationwide to have earned the College Board’s AP® Computer Science Female Diversity Award for 2023, which recognizes schools who have expanded young women’s access to AP Computer Science A (CSA).
This award honors the outstanding work Saint Mary’s School is doing to engage more female students in computer science. Providing female students with access to computer science courses is critical to ensuring gender parity in the industry’s high-paying jobs and driving innovation, creativity, and representation.
Saint Mary’s Earns GuideStar’s Platinum Seal of Transparency
Saint Mary’s School has once again earned the Platinum Seal of Transparency for 2024, the highest level of recognition offered by GuideStar, the world’s largest source of nonprofit information. In 2023, fewer than one percent of U.S.-based nonprofit organizations were recognized with the Platinum Seal. This award recognizes the highest level of transparency, including comprehensive details about finances, board of directors, staff, and overall demographics. A Platinum Seal is the preeminent symbol of nonprofit transparency and accountability, demonstrating the school’s good stewardship of Saint Mary’s resources and donor gifts and intent.
NEWS BRIEFS
Faculty & Staff News
Patricia Sasser chosen Fulbright Specialist
Assistant Head of Academic Affairs Patricia Sasser has been chosen as a Fulbright Specialist by the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs and World Learning. Fulbright Specialists are selected for academic prowess, leadership, and fostering U.S. and international collaboration.
The Impact Educator program, administered by the MoreheadCain Foundation, recognizes 445 educators who have dedicated themselves to inspiring curiosity and molding the future leaders of tomorrow. Chris Bradford, President of Morehead-Cain, expressed gratitude for the honorees, stating, "Their dedication, passion, and impact shape hearts and minds and lay the foundation for a brighter tomorrow. We thank these teachers for being architects of hope."
Ms. Marquez's commitment to fostering a love for science and learning has not gone unnoticed. She has ignited the spark of curiosity in her students, leaving a lasting impression that extends beyond the classroom. This recognition is a testament to her exceptional dedication and the positive impact she has made on the lives of her students.
“Please join us in congratulating Ms. Marquez on this well-deserved recognition,” says Head of School Adam Holden, Ed.D. “Her passion for education and dedication to our students exemplify the values we hold dear at Saint Mary's.”
The Morehead-Cain Foundation is home to the first merit scholarship program in the United States, established at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill—the first public university in the country. The foundation's mission is to identify, empower, and invest in a community of dynamic, purpose-driven leaders.
Saint Mary’s Science Instructor Lauren Marquez has been selected as a 2024 Morehead-Cain Impact Educator. This prestigious initiative celebrates K-12 educators from around the world who have played a pivotal role in shaping the lives and leadership skills of outstanding high school seniors.
Saint Mary’s School Counselor Aisha Burton, pictured left, collaborated with LaToya Robinson, an educator and workshop facilitator, on a presentation at the 2024 National Association of Independent Schools (NAIS) Conference, held February 28-March 1, in St. Louis, Missouri.
The three-hour presentation, Supporting Educator Retention: How to Implement Effective Mental Health Opportunities for Professional Development, focused on the critical issue of mental health and wellness of teachers and educational professionals dealing increasingly with job-related stress.
“Over the years, mental health concerns have increased at high levels, especially related to teachers, which has led to decreased retention rates and shortages in schools nationwide,” says Burton. “Very little professional development has been done consistently to focus on mental health and wellness of teachers/educational professionals due to stigmatization regarding the topic and a lack of effective tools/resources for continuous improvement.”
Gallup research by Stephanie Marken and Sangeeta Agrawal found that more than four in 10 K-12 workers in the United States say they “always” or “very often” feel burned out at work, outpacing all industries nationwide.
Burton and Robinson’s workshop was designed to promote ideas and concepts that contribute to the mental and emotional wellness of the entire school community, with the goal of increasing educator retentional levels. Attendees included heads of schools, administrators, trustees, and seasoned educational professionals interested in addressing mental health within their institutions.
The workshop provided resources and tools demonstrating the implementation of small learning communities. Burton and Robinson provided valuable insights and actionable strategies for enhancing the well-being of the entire school community. Attendees left equipped with practical tools and resources to foster a healthier learning environment within their institutions.
Aisha Burton, a licensed clinical mental health counselor associate, is
school counselor at Saint Mary’s School, bringing years of experience and wisdom in her field to the school.
Laurel Young earns membership in exclusive Cain’s Jawbone Club
Saint Mary’s own “Queen of Mystery,” Instructor of English Laurel Young, Ph.D., has been recognized among an extraordinarily small group of people who have solved Cain’s Jawbone, dubbed “the world’s most fiendishly difficult literary puzzle.”
Cain's Jawbone is a murder mystery puzzle written by Edward Powys Mathers under the pseudonym “Torquemada.” The puzzle was first published in 1934 as part of The Torquemada Puzzle Book. In 2019, crowdfunding publisher Unbound published a new stand-alone edition of the puzzle in collaboration with The Laurence Sterne Trust. Cain's Jawbone has been described as “one of the hardest and most beguiling word puzzles ever published.” Only four people solved the puzzle while the competition was active.
Unbound explains that the challenge of the puzzle involves six murders, one hundred pages, and millions of possible combinations with only one correct solution. “The pages of the novel were printed in an entirely haphazard order, but it is possible – through logic and intelligent reading – to sort the pages into the only correct order, revealing six murder victims and their respective murderers.”
Dr. Young was challenged to take on the puzzle by the students in her Detective Fiction class at Saint Mary’s.
She says, “My research focus for many years has been mystery novels from the 1920s and 1930s, which was the subject of my doctoral dissertation. So, I’ve really been training for this challenge for many years. I also have several publications to my name about mystery fiction and, of course, I named my dog for Agatha Christie.”
CALENDAR HIGHLIGHTS 2024-2025
November 20
The Cardinal, Raleigh, alumnae and friends
December 15
Lighting O’ the Grove and Advent Lessons and Carols
Photos with Santa
March 14
Grandparents and Grandfriends Day
March 13-14
Spring Musical
March 21
Auction Gala
March 30
Chorale Spring Concert
April 3
Orchesis Spring Concert
May 2-3
Reunion Weekend for classes ending in zero and five
May 12
Saint Mary’s 183rd birthday
May 18
Commencement for the 183rd session
$25,000 Matching Gift
$25,000 Matching Gift
Make a gift of any size on or before our Galentine’s Day of Giving on February 13, and your gift will be matched dollar-fordollar thanks to a $25,000 matching challenge gift from an anonymous alumna.
Give in honor of... Give in honor of...
If you make a gift in honor of your “gal pal” BEFORE February 1, we’ll send her a Galentine’s card letting her know you gave to Saint Mary’s in her honor.
Make an impact Make an impact
Your gift supports Saint Mary’s School’s curriculum enhancement, the visual and performing arts, athletics, student activities, buildings and grounds, the Chapel, and provides additional dollars for scholarships not covered by the endowment.
ALUMNAE EVENTS
COLUMBIA, SOUTH CAROLINA | OCTOBER 24, 2023
Home of Carol Redding DuBose ’70HS
Carol Redding DuBose ’70HS, left, Jean Redding ’72HS, right
Carolyn Foy Evans ’91HS, left, Martha Murphy ’76HS ’78C, right
Jean Redding ’72HS, left, Anne Chamberlain Fowler ’64C, right
Mardy Gray Choate ’67HS ’69C, left, Carol Redding DuBose ’70HS, right
CHICAGO | NOVEMBER 1, 2023 & APRIL 23, 2024
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA | JANUARY 14, 2024
Little Dom’s
Lauren Gerber, Linda Branscome ’81C, Hannah Ueland ’17
Bronwyn Russell ’23, left, Eileen Nedoma, right
Left to right: Lauren Gerber, Jennifer Collins ’81C, Alicia Sedwick ’78HS, Kathryn Nanney Alice ’78HS ’80C, Sarah Archie Griffin ’83HS, Michelle Malecha ’00
ALUMNAE EVENTS
N.C. STATE FOOTBALL TAILGATE | NOVEMBER 4, 2023
Carter-Finley Stadium
Anna Carlyle Spears ’20, Margaret Ivy Johnston ’20, Emily Smith ’01, Martha Luck Johnston ’20, Sally Sandridge ’20
Left to right: Julia McNamara ’21, Emily Smith ’01, Joyner Rascoe ’21
Ran Johnston P’20 ’20, Joan Comer Johnston ’87C P’20 ’20, Julie Ricciardi, Jennifer Locke McCann ’97C, Ran Johnston
CHARLOTTESVILLE, VIRGINIA | NOVEMBER 9, 2023
Willow Tree
Left to right: Adam Holden, Justin Wiley P’25, Nancy Wiley P’25
Left to right: Grace Arendall Rice P’80 ’83, Sally James ’65HS ’67C
Left to right: Carrie Coleman Paxton ’12, Adams Paschal Lent ’09
Left to right: Anne Dickson Bowen ’61C, Jessica Holden
ALUMNAE EVENTS
TARBORO, NORTH CAROLINA | FEBRUARY 8, 2024
Berry and Bud
Left to right: Debbie Edwards P’14, Ann Barwick Whichard ’75HS ’77C, Emily Smith ’01, Katie Bradbury Wellman, Sara Williamson Castellino ’09
Left to right: Louise Johnson Clement ’81HS ’83C, Ann Diedrick Dill ’81HS ’83C, Hanna Bell Diedrick ’60C P’81 ’84
Left to right: Stuart Anderson ’11, left, Caroline Edwards Flythe ’15, right
Left to right: Martha Weeks Daniel ’64C GP’26, left, Martha Crawley Gallop ’65HS ’67C, right
CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA | FEBRUARY 12, 2024
Quail Hollow Club
Left to right: Pell Williamson ’18, Adam Holden, Lizzy Crumpton ’18, Julia Coleman ’06, Lindley Spears ’18
Left to right: William Taylor P’08, Adam Holden, Dee Williamson Marley ’77HS
Left to right: Grier Paulson ’15, Lucy Mae Rascoe ’15, Maddy Sullivan ’15
Left to right: Pell Williamson ’18, Kee Hood Marshall ’75HS, Lizzy Crumpton ’18
Left to right: Julie Coleman ’06, Elizabeth Williams Ellington ’11, Jefferson Ellington
Left to right: Elizabeth Bonner Covington ’08, Katie Matthews Darling ’08, Lee Archibald Taylor ’78C P’08
ALUMNAE EVENTS
BIRMINGHAM, ALABAMA | FEBRUARY 26, 2024
Interior Elements
Left to right: Jean Redding ’72HS, Merritt Atkins ’99, Catherine Loflin Hogewood ’86HS, Alleen Cater ’63HS ’65C
Merritt Atkins ’99, left, Lizzie Lowder ’07, right
Hayden Rizer Stricklin ’11, left, Esther Taati ’13, right
Left to right: Jean Redding ’72HS, Merritt Atkins ’99, Jessica Holden, Adam Holden
NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE |
FEBRUARY 27, 2024
Hillwood Country Club
Front row, left to right: Blair Poirier ’17, Sara-Kinard Moyd ’14; second row, Maggie Collier ’15, Catherine Langston ’17, Jessica Holden, Adam Holden, Madison Isaac ’13, Elizabeth Martin ’12, Taryn Travis ’15
Left to right: Malone Gilliam P’24, Mary Gilliam P’24, Jessica Holden, Adam Holden
ALUMNAE EVENTS
RICHMOND, VIRGINIA | MARCH 8, 2024
Quirk Hotel
Left to right: John Hyslop, Linda Glass Hyslop ’71C, Elizabeth Kerns Roberts ’11
Left to right: Emily Smith ’01, Sallie Bailey Plumley ’11
Left to right: Emily Smith ’01, Julie Burson P’23, Eileen Nedoma
NEW
YORK, NEW YORK | MARCH 11, 2024
Left to right: Todd Eveson P’26 ’26, Erin Eveson P’26 ’26, Jessica Holden, Adam Holden
Left to right: Sharon Li ’23, Emily Smith ’01, Elsa Zhang ’23, Eileen Nedoma
Left to right: Jessica Holden, Adam Holden, Carson Clay ’15, Emily Smith ’01, Annalise Franchina ’14
Left to right: Chip Morris P’98 GP’25 ’29, Adam Holden, Jessica Holden, Marian Morris Godwin ’98HS P’22 ’25 ’28, Coble Adams
Left to right: Andrew Stark P’26, Scott Jackson P’26, Valerie Jackson P’26, Meghan Stark P’26
Left to right: Lindsey Johnson ’11, Charlotte Niemann ’13, Abbey Dale ’13, Sienna Gilbert ’23
Left to right: Jessica Holden, Matt Wilson P’26, Liam Wilson, Kristen Wilson P’26, Adam Holden
ALUMNAE EVENTS
CINCINNATI, OHIO | APRIL 3, 2024
Boca
WILMINGTON, NORTH CAROLINA | APRIL 15, 2024
Landfall Country Club
Left to right: Adam Holden, Dabney Johnston Mann ’60HS ’62C, Ann Penton Longley ’52C, Jessica Holden
Lauren Gerber, left, Roshni Jain ’11, right
WELCOME
TO THE ALUMNAE
ASSOCIATION
EVENT | APRIL 22, 2024
The Class of 2024 gathered April 22 for the annual Welcome to the Alumnae Association event.
ALUMNAE EVENTS
WRIGHTSVILLE BEACH, NORTH CAROLINA | JUNE 27, 2024
The Surf Club
Front row, left to right: Lee Lee Kirkland King ’86HS ’88C, Marsha Dotson Bonner ’81C, Kathy Sawyer Mann ’78HS ’80C, Gray Clark Stoughton ’78HS ’80C, Leigh Wilson Venters ’86C; second row, left to right: Stella Keller Black ’89HS, Hope Saunders Hackler ’78HS ’80C, Mandy Johnson Spears ’84HS ’86C, Robin Ballard Earp ’84HS ’86C, Angela Sutton Furniss ’89HS
Larry Snider, Susan Wilson Snider ’77HS ’79C, Ann Thornton Sneeden ’74C
Julia Barfield ’70C, left, Hilda Cameron Edwards ’79C
Left to right: David Sneeden, Katie Jo Lawrence Redhead ’71HS ’73C, Sally Dillard Cohen ’78C, Elizabeth Stewart Long ’78C, Lee Archibald Taylor ’78C, Tommy Long
ATLANTIC BEACH, NORTH CAROLINA | JULY 13, 2024
Crystal Coast Country Club
Mary Hannah Wyman Jones ’84HS ’86C, Kelly Seymour P’23’25, Betsy Morrison P’25, Hannah Smith ’12
Bonny Harris Herrington ’81C, Catherine Joyner Hoft ’76C, Coles Hines Jones ’81C, Katie Zevenhuizen ’78HS ’80C
Willa McKimmon Dickens ’65C and Lindsay Smith Newsom ’63HS
Host committee, left to right: Melissa Morrisette Tillman ’88HS, Ann Beland Brooks ’73C, Elizabeth Patteson Dixon ’80HS, Charlotte Versfeld P’23, Diane Gupton Becton ’77HS, Margaret Williams Williams ’78HS ’80C, Margaret Cheatham Williams ’50HS ’52C, Jennifer Locke McCann ’97C, Joan Comer Johnston ’87C, Bess Knotts Walker ’76C,
Jane Hight ’73C, Terri Starritt Haywood, Audrey Wall Black ’65C, Betsy Haywood ’73C
Reunion Weekend 2024
The Granddaughters Club
2023-2024
The Granddaughters Club consists of students whose mothers and grandmothers attended Saint Mary’s. Founded in 1909 by Kate McKimmon, Class of 1867, the Granddaughters Club is the oldest existing club on campus. New member inductions are held each fall.
• Marian Anderson Adams ’25, daughter of Marian Morris Godwin ’98HS
• Anna Parham Barber ’24, granddaughter of Ruth Watkins Barber ’54HS ’56C and great-granddaughter of Margaret Brown Barber ’32C
• Marion Porter Barber ’24, granddaughter of Ruth Watkins Barber ’54HS ’56C and great-granddaughter of Margaret Brown Barber ’32C
• Brooke Elizabeth Barger ’24, daughter of Amy Preiss Barger ’96HS
• Chesson Louise Becker ’24, daughter of Gloria Taft Becker ’92HS and granddaughter of Cheryl Lee Taft ’68
• Mahala Kathleen Bell ’25, granddaughter of Sara Frances Walters Borden ’70C and the Rev. Frank Pisani, former President of Saint Mary’s from 1969-1976
• Elizabeth Blair Bycura ’26, daughter of Gina Keller Bycura ’88HS
• Lydia Carroll Bryan ’26, granddaughter of Barbara Hauser Bryan ’58C
• Alice Thornhill Edwards ’27, great-granddaughter of Julia Drake Chatneuff ‘34C and great-great-granddaughter of Sophie Elva Drake 1911HS
• Millage Julia Edwards ’26, great-granddaughter of Julia Drake Chatneuff ‘34C and great-great-granddaughter of Sophie Elva Drake 1911HS
• Margaret Cameron Ellerbe ’26, granddaughter of Martha Goode Ellerbe ’56HS
• Julia Dawson Forbes ’27, daughter of Ashley Dawson Forbes ’95C, great-granddaughter of Edna Jones Nixon Dawson ’25C, greatgreat-great-granddaughter of Cornelia Townsend Nixon (circa 1840s), and great-great-great-granddaughter of Isa Benedicta Gordon Granbery (circa 1860)
• Martha Amelia Shaw Garrison ’27, daughter of Tate Tattersall Garrison ’95C and granddaughter of Martha Hardee Tattersall ’65C
• Lillian Gray Harris ’27, daughter of Tyler Harris ’95HS
• Foster Calloway Hutchens ’27, granddaughter of Pat Slater Holscher ’66HS ’68C
• Olivia Stanfield Jones ’26, granddaughter of Olivia Grimes Roberson ’70C and great-great-great-granddaughter of Charlotte Bryan Grimes 1848HS
• Mary Louise Riddick Kasper ’27, daughter of Josey Harris Kasper ’97HS, granddaughter of Boyd Gregory Harris ’70C, greatgranddaughter of Mary Louise Riddick Gregory ’38C and greatgreat-granddaughter of Louise Josey Riddick 1911C
• Grace Hubbard Kerr ’26, daughter of Laura-Burke Davis Kerr ’96HS ’98C and great-granddaughter of Elizabeth Hubbard Kerr ’34HS
• Eugenia Louise Waters Larson ’25, daughter of Allison Poe Larson ’90HS
• Julia Borden Long ’25, granddaughter of Georgia Cobb Joyner ’59C, great-granddaughter of Sara Elizabeth Borden Cobb 1918C, great-great-granddaughter of Sallie Smith Jones Borden and great-great-great-granddaughter of Georgia Whitfield Borden
• Katherine Woodall Maddison ’26 (Kate), granddaughter of Martha Weeks Daniel ’64C and Clare Garden Maddison ’64C and great-granddaughter of Jane Purrington Maddison ’31C
• Bryn Claire Montgomery ’24, daughter of Ann Jones Montgomery ’92C
• Carter McKinnon Morrison ’25, great-granddaughter of Helen Holt Morrison ’39C
• Lucy Scott Nogas ’25, granddaughter of Cece May Scott ’68C and great-granddaughter of Betty Barnes Scott ’44C
• Martha Reeves Parrott ’24, granddaughter of Martha Hall Michaels ’67HS
• Katherine Hanna Pulsifer ’24, granddaughter of Susan Russell Denniston ’62HS
• Sarah Anderson Smith ’24, daughter of Ashley Langley Smith ’90HS
• Sally Pierce Spruill ’26, granddaughter of Nancy Brimage Gillam Spruill ’66HS ’68C and great-granddaughter of Lucy Rascoe Outlaw Gillam ‘42C and Nancy Scull Taylor Spruill ‘36HS ‘38C
• Sarah Hunter Spruill ’26, granddaughter of Nancy Brimage Gillam Spruill ’66HS ’68C and great-granddaughter of Lucy Rascoe Outlaw Gillam ‘42C and Nancy Scull Taylor Spruill ‘36HS ‘38C
• Virginia Elizabeth Sprunt ’25, granddaughter of Elizabeth Harriss Sprunt ’50C and great-granddaughter of Frances Hoggard Harriss ‘28C and Annie Gray Nash Ruffin Sprunt 1904HS
• Marion Allen Suiter Stowe ’24 (Suzie), great-granddaughter of Virginia Clark Jenkins ’34C and great-great-granddaughter of Martha Louise Wilson Clark 1917HS
• Emma Maria Teague ’25, daughter of Cindy Ross Teague ’89HS
• Catherine Wallace Thomas ’26, daughter of Wallace Batten Thomas ’95C
• Virginia Davis Varnum ’25, daughter of Ginny Griffin Varnum ’86HS ’89C
• Margaret Borden Vermillion ’24, great-granddaughter of Margaret Banes Gold Borden 1918C, great-great-granddaughter of Sallie Smith Jones Borden, and great-great-great-granddaughter of Georgia Whitfield Borden 1848
• Helen Dana Wein ’25, great-granddaughter of Mary Augusta Taylor Long ’41C
• Caroline Elizabeth Wellman ’27, daughter of Jennifer Covington Wellman ’94C and great-granddaughter of Elizabeth Holmes Wellman ’39C
Margaret Wilkins Carver ’48HS ’50C December 8, 2023
Roz Senseney Davis ’49C December 23, 2023
Nancy Magruder Spence ’49C September 26, 2023
Louise Bonin Flowers ’49HS ’51C March 31, 2024
Patty Starr Willis ’50C
January 30, 2024
Anne Stewart Harris ’50HS ’52C June 17, 2024
Barbara Dixon Clements ’51C May 24, 2024
Merre-Lyn Lynch Dow ’51C November 22, 2023
Lytle Batchelor Wooten ’51C April 26, 2024
Lula Sturges Cheatham ’51HS
March 17, 2024
Claire Boone Morley ’52C
January 25, 2024
Lois Perry Sawyer ’52C
January 27, 2024
Lane Harvey Montgomery ’53HS
January 31, 2024
Barbara Dearing Howar ’55C
August 2, 2024
Kitty Campen Field ’55C
August 20, 2023
Pat McQueen Spruill ’55C
September 23, 2023
Mary Lee Breece Tart ’55C
July 29, 2024
Mary Penton Maliga ’55HS
December 5, 2023
Betsy Duke Seaman ’55HS
October 4, 2023
Helen London Hill ’56HS ’58C
June 18, 2024
Ruth Brock Roberts ’57C
June 16, 2024
Meredith Lumpkin Marchant ’57HS
January 28, 2024
Betsy Lipford Delionback ’57HS ’59C
September 27, 2023
Jane Bellamy Venters ’58C
September 4, 2023
Josie Ehringhaus Ayers ’58HS ’60C November 1, 2023
Agnes Lawler Ambler ’59C
November 8, 2023
Molly Ellerson Durden ’59C
September 17, 2023
Caroline Hamilton Ervin ’59HS February 28, 2024
Sally Upton Gammon ’59HS ’61C November 15, 2023
Ginger Lang Llewellyn ’60C October 7, 2023
Mary Chiles Ware ’60C October 26, 2023
Anne Heath Hardage ’60HS
April 30, 2024
Evelyn Topping Crawford ’62C December 11, 2023
Mary Illges Mobley ’63C
October 26, 2023
Barbara McKenzie Scott ’63C
September 1, 2023
Linda De La Rama ’64C
December 22, 2023
Susan Spangler Hendricks ’64C
July 2, 2024
Kathy Cannon Morgan ’64C
February 23, 2024
Inez Coke Tudor ’64C
January 4, 2024
Joan Cochran Legette ’67C
September 30, 2023
Sherrie Wallin Aldridge Moore ’67C
December 15, 2023
Cary Scott Battle ’67HS
April 3, 2024
Kathy Baley Atkinson ’68C
February 28, 2024
Beverly Randolph ’68C
November 8, 2023
Lide Doffermyre ’71HS
January 8, 2024
Lynn Miller Eber ’73HS ’75C
December 26, 2023
Betsy Newman Brabson ’74C
October 7, 2023
Cornelia Howell McMillan ’74C
January 11, 2024
Becky Davis Morlok ’74HS December 24, 2023
Gene Cowper Highsmith ’75HS
January 3, 2024
Beth Ingram Jennings ’76HS
October 30, 2023
Lucy Gidley ’77C
March 17, 2024
Hayden Blackwell Quattlebaum ’78C
September 20, 2023
Meriwether Hill Fentress ’85HS
March 1, 2024
Michelle Mason King ’85HS November 30, 2023
Beth Battle ’88HS
April 30, 2024
Maridee Waterworth Cleland ’94C
July 27, 2024
Chandler Mason ’12
July 1, 2024
Delores Lado, Ph.D.
Former Faculty Member December 15, 2023
Tracey Fodor Smith Former Trustee
March 9, 2024
George William Joyner Jr. Former Trustee
June 6, 2024
Kay Lupton Durden
Former Library Staff Member
June 21, 2024
Marriages
Meg Stacy ’03 married Matt McCallum
April 29, 2023
Mary Brown Taylor '08 married Walt Gray
March 9, 2024
Maia Evans ’09 married Bennett West
September 30, 2023
Mary Stuart Smart ’10 married Wilson Fortune
May 11, 2024
Lansdell Edwards ’11 married William Pruden
June 28, 2024
Caroline Hunt ’11 married Drew Gorham
March 17, 2024
Stiles Rader ’11 married Kevin Rockey
June 1, 2024
Margaret Blincow ’12 married Greg Notermann
October 21, 2023
*Catherine Bryant ’12 married Isaac Brown
June 1, 2024
Currie Bryant ’12 married Joseph Wiggins
March 18, 2022
Mia Schneider ’12, married Sam Josefsberg
April 13, 2024
Anna Bridgforth ’13 married Justin Olderman
July 23, 2022
Marion Brown ’13 married Mitchell Jester
October 7, 2023
Catherine Carter ’13 married Banks Ferrell
April 20, 2024
Alex Mahoney ’13 married Danny Brennan
August 12, 2023
*Savannah Reynolds ‘13 married Kevin Snyder
March 18, 2024
*Paden Earnhardt ’14 married Phen Harris
October 21, 2023
Ann Moore Robertson ’14 married Trace Markwalter
April 20, 2024
Vaughan Poole ’17 married Pierce Lee
June 8, 2024
Mary Hannah Sigmon '17 married Jason Parker
January 20, 2024
Bonnie Smith ’17 married Jack Riordan
June 28, 2024
Virginia Wood ’17 married Mac Blum
May 4, 2024
Qiwen Susan Su ’18 married Zhenyu Wei
June 2, 2024
Madden Robinson ’20 married Davis Fogle
July 27, 2024
*Anna Amelia Weaver ’22 married Justin Graham
June 30, 2024
These milestones were compiled based on information received by August 15, 2024. Every effort has been made to include everyone for whom we have an official confirmation by this date. If we have missed you or your loved one, please send an official announcement to ersmith@sms.edu or mail to Emily Smith ’01, Director of Alumnae Engagement, Saint Mary’s School, 900 Hillsborough Street, Raleigh, NC 27603 for inclusion in the next magazine.
*Married in Saint Mary’s Chapel
Catherine Bryant ’12 married Isaac Brown in Saint Mary’s Chapel, June 1, 2024.
New Babies
Bierrie Bindeman King ’00, a son April 14, 2022
Cori Samuels Nadeau ’01, a daughter October 31, 2023
Meg Duncan ’02, a daughter February 2, 2024
Molly Southard ’03, a daughter May 21, 2024
Cottie Barber Williams ’03, a daughter November 20, 2023
Charlotte Smith Jeffers ’04, a daughter November 18, 2023
Dhwani Shah Aspell ’05, a son September 5, 2023
Gabe Bratton Hall ’05, a daughter November 28, 2023
Alexandra Speros White ’06, a son April 23, 2024
Capel Kane Brendel ’07, a daughter January 16, 2024
Callie Eberly Ciencin ’07, a son February 24, 2024
Adrienne Fitch Costin ’07, a son and a daughter April 13, 2023
Jennifer O'Neill Mestril ’07, a son November 4, 2023
Sarah Nolan Nolbaum ’07 a daughter January 14, 2024
Scottie Springer O'Herron ’07, a daughter January 16, 2024
Margaret Matteson Richards ’07, a daughter December 31, 2023
Margaret Cheatham Williams ’07, a son May 10, 2024
Crutcher Nash Battin ’08, a son May 24, 2024
Katherine Sloan Eatman ’08, a son May 28, 2024
Claire Murray Goolsby ’08, a son April 8th, 2024
Elizabeth Mills Grantham ’08, a son April 22, 2024
Coltrane Milholen Henderson ’08, a son November 3, 2023
Laura Skinner Mason ’08, a daughter September 11, 2023
Julia Nutt Ratliff ’08, a daughter
July 9, 2024
Greyson Kane Sidebotham '08, a son
November 16, 2023
Abby Richmond Anderson ’09, a son May 22, 2024
Lizzie Capel Baldridge ’09, a daughter
December 20, 2023
Sydney Johnson Beasley ’09, a daughter
June 14, 2024
Arrington Clark Caison ’09, a son September 4, 2023
Sara Williamson Castellino ’09, a son April 18, 2024
Maggie Bratton Dillon ’09, a daughter July 24, 2024
Elle Fulenwider Engstrom ’09, a daughter March 10, 2024
Caroline Mayberry Huang ’09, a son January 4, 2024
Betsy Bryan Pitts Mandl ’09, a son March 2, 2024
Carolyn Bacchus Stapleton ’09, a daughter February 9, 2024
Allie McDonald Atkinson ’10, a son September 03, 2023
Gabie Craig Frantz ’10, a son June 26, 2024
Susan Heyman Lukens ’10, a daughter December 22, 2023
Morgan Edrington Maddrey ’10, a son February 22, 2024
Rachel Finney O’Brien ’10, a daughter
June 15, 2024
Molly Bryant Phillips ’10, a daughter March 25, 2024
Cameron Crawford Walton ’10, a daughter September 1, 2023
Becca Humphrey Blackwell ’11, a son June 27, 2024
Emily Harmer Childers ’11, a son
December 1, 2023
Anna Boyce Rankin Crosslin ’11, a daughter March 21, 2024
Virginia Fulenwider Edwards ’11, a daughter
December 30, 2023
Anderson Stark Jensen ’11, a son
January 4, 2024
Elisa Benton Richter ’11, a son May 22, 2023
Abby Daniel Vallecillo ’11, a son November 28, 2023
Kassi Wehbie Saieed ’12, a son
October 9, 2023
Currie Bryant Wiggins ’12, a son
March 16, 2024
Wesley-Neal Stallings Jenkins ’13, a son
March 3, 2024
Catherine Blair Polak ’13, a daughter
September 26, 2023
Alex Dozier Bothma ’14, a son
March 7, 2024
Cameron Little DiVincenzo ’14, a daughter November 12, 2023
Freddie Woronoff McAlhany ’14, a daughter November 13, 2023
Maddie Wood O'Neill ’14, a son October 22, 2023
Alex Nolley Gruninger '16, a son
July 25, 2024
CLASS NOTES
CLASS NEWS
It’s all here – the latest and greatest news from alumnae in odd-year classes. Saint Mary’s extends a special thanks to the dedicated class secretaries who compiled and crafted these class newsletters, many who have served for decades.
Even-year classes will be featured in the spring 2025 magazine. Alumnae in these classes will receive information to facilitate the reporting of news to class secretaries or directly to the school.
POLICIES
Due to the uncertain nature of certain types of news, Saint Mary’s does not publish news of wedding engagements or pregnancies. We publish news of marriages, births, adoptions, or deaths, based on published news reports or direct phone or e-mail contact with the Alumnae Office from the parties or immediate families. Please remember to include Saint Mary’s in your wedding announcement in the newspaper and please send birth announcements to the Alumnae Office for inclusion in the milestones section.
Saint Mary’s Class Notes are published for each class once each year. Due to the extended nature of the production schedule for the magazine, class news is meant to be a once-a-year general update of your news for the previous year. We cannot guarantee the exact timeliness of your news, so please keep our advance deadlines in mind when submitting news.
Saint Mary’s School reserves the right to edit class news for content, length, and timeliness.
Photographs may be submitted for consideration for the class news to mvswain@sms.edu or Mary Virginia Swain, 900 Hillsborough Street, Raleigh, NC 27603. Photos must be high-quality prints or digital .jpeg photo files of at least 300 dpi. Group shots should include Saint Mary’s alumnae (and spouses and children) only and must include a detailed listing of everyone pictured, including full names and class years.
1939 COLLEGE
Helen Holt Morrison '39 sends greetings. Helen is 103 and living at Taylor Glen Retirement Community in Concord, North Carolina, with the love and support of her family. Her daughter, Margaret Morrison Hamilton ’67HS, reports that Helen still has happy memories of her student days at Saint Mary’s. Helen is so proud of great-granddaughter Carter Morrison ’25 who is Saint Mary’s chief marshal for 2024-2025.
1947 HIGH SCHOOL and 1949 COLLEGE
Anne Townsend Overman writes from Virginia Beach, Virginia. She enjoys time with her children: Ellen Sinclair, Louise Overman, and Bill Overman. She has five grandchildren and three great-grandchildren.
1947
COLLEGE
Chubby Covington Rice is 96 and living in a skilled nursing facility at Still Hopes Episcopal Retirement Community, where she has enjoyed the friendships of many Saint Mary’s “girls.” Chubby’s four daughters are always amazed at how the Saint Mary’s spirit and enthusiasm still gives her joy.
1951 COLLEGE
Louise Milliken Howard ’51C
Mary Tom Battle Shannon has moved to a memory care facility near her daughter’s home, so she enjoys frequent visits. Grace Gordon Pless writes from Asheville with the sad news that her husband, Cecil, passed away earlier this year. “I have a thankful life, very full, with a granddaughter’s wedding to look forward to in the North Carolina mountains in June. God is good.” Saint Mary’s has received word that Louise Bonin Flowers ’49HS ’51C died March 31, 2024, in Arbor Acres Retirement Community in Winston-Salem. Survivors note that she always spoke fondly of her years at Saint Mary’s. June Bullard Winston ’49HS ’51C sends greetings and love to her classmates. She continues to enjoy her role as greatgrandmother to 15 great-grands (ages 2-16). Louise
1953 HIGH SCHOOL and 1955 COLLEGE
Margery Lindeman Wright ’53HS ’55C of Petersburg, Virginia, writes that she was quite surprised when reading the November 2023 issue of Britain Magazine to see a letter to the editor from Joan Wickham Sugg ’65HS ’67C with a reference to Saint Mary’s and to Dr. Mabel Morrison. “In that same issue, there was an article
about staying in hotels with gardens, one of which was Leonardslee, which I visited in 1990 with my sister. It was magnificent!”
1953
COLLEGE
Haffye Sewell Cox ’53C
Barbara Carter Ladd writes that she is still enjoying life at Beaumont Retirement Community and is so happy to be near her greatgranddaughters. She sends fond wishes to all. Sara Fair is looking forward to visiting friends in Greenville, South Carolina, and traveling to Paris to visit friends made while working with The American School there. She hopes to visit with St. Mary’s class of 1951 and 1953 friends in 2024. “Friends are an important part of life!” Rebecca Hoggard shares that she is still very happy at the Cedars, a retirement community in Chapel Hill. “My husband Dicky and I moved here five years ago, and unfortunately, he died in December. Would love to see any Saint Mary’s friends coming this way.” Nancy McIver Chaffe and husband, Black, live in Pass Christian, Mississippi, midway between New Orleans and Mobile, Alabama, where her youngest daughter and oldest son live with their families. Her oldest daughter is in Gulfport, Mississippi, just a half hour away, and her youngest son is in Dallas with his wife and son. “We are truly blessed to have each other and family nearby.” Joy Pittard writes “I am very happy to report that I will be a great-grandmother in June.” As for me, Haffye Sewell Cox, I feel fortunate to be living at home. All things considered (being 90) life is good, but memories are even better. Here are a few of mine: field hockey, Third Smedes, Chapel caps (never could find mine), Toddle House, hats and gloves, The Circle, The School Hymn, Dee Dee on the piano, Sunday evening Chapel, concerts at Memorial Auditorium, formal old girl/new girl reception, The Grove, The Honor Code, saddle shoes, pedal pushers, May Day, being campused for skipping breakfast (quite often), school rings, afternoon dates on campus from 5:00 - 6:00, Jack Cox, Saturday football games with us “dressed to the nines,” Dr. Stone, Mr. Broughton, Mrs. Hornbeck, and the best friends I’ve ever had. Haffye
1955 COLLEGE
Patsy Moore Upton writes in with the sad news that her husband, The Reverend John Upton, died December 9, 2023. She continues to live in their home in Hillsborough, North Carolina.
1957
HIGH SCHOOL
Lambeth Walker Marshall writes from Waxhaw, North Carolina. She is still working as a professional painter/teacher of impressionist art and part time as a landscape designer. She also teaches art at Brookdale Memory Center in Charlotte, which she truly enjoys. She says she is thankful that she and her husband are in good health and very active.
1957 COLLEGE
Ann McWilliams Cayton writes from Aurora, “I still keep the books for the farm. Would love to hear from the ones who were at Saint Mary’s when I was there.”
1959
COLLEGE
Eliza Southall Johnson writes, “April in Birmingham — now, lovelier than ever. Think flowers, fragrance, and a large lilac bush as I gear up for my potted tomatoes and vegetables. Larry Johnson, Sr., a retired physician and professor emeritus at UAB, assists as needed when not working on a medical project, playing, or practicing golf! Lawrence, Jr., an attorney in Birmingham, has recently fallen heir to a handsome antique roll-top desk displayed in his office and previously used by three generations of Southall lawyers in Virginia: a great-great uncle, who served in the Virginia state legislature and was later a U.S. congressman in Theodore Roosevelt’s House of Representatives; his grandfather, Judge Valentine W. Southall, Sr., a Commonwealth’s attorney in Virginia; and his uncle, Judge Valentine W. Southall Jr., who served five counties in Southside, Virginia.” Joyce Batchelor Parks writes that she had a wonderful trip to Belgium and the Netherlands in April with her daughter and granddaughter. “The tulips were beautiful! Fun time with my girls!”
1961 COLLEGE
Gay Davis Gaston writes, “March brought sad news in the loss of two lifelong friends and Saints, Caroline Hamilton Ervin ’59HS, and Irene McGuirk Mayer ’61C. They will be missed. We are enjoying living in Greenville, South Carolina, which is growing very fast! I stay busy with interesting classes through OLLI, garden and book clubs, DAR, flower guild at church, and yoga. I keep in touch with Martha Pat Bell ’59HS ’61C, and Margaret Midyette Peery.” Betty Lynch Hammond reports that she is still at Westminster Canterbury and enjoying new friends and activities. “I keep up with Becky Elmore Clement and G.G. Saunders Buxton. I go to our family beach house at Litchfield Beach in the summer. And I remember Saint Mary’s and the good friends I made there.”
1963
HIGH SCHOOL
Alleen Cater ’63HS
Perry Grimes Van Dyke writes that she and her daughter, Elizabeth Van Dyke Morgan ’91C, moved to Raleigh from Wilmington in August 2023. “We love being here, connecting with old friends, and meeting new ones. My granddaughter, Perry Morgan ’20 will graduate in May from Texas Christian University, which she has loved, especially her Kappa sisters. My grandson is a sophomore at East Carolina University, where he enjoys his construction management courses as well as his Phi Kappa Tau brothers. My son, Chris Van Dyke and his wife, Alston, have two active and precious children, Burke (7) and Mary James (3), in Charlotte. Happy trails!” In June 2023, Louise Clark Ravenel hosted an unforgettable long weekend visit in Charleston and Wadmalaw Island, South Carolina, with husband Dan driving boat rides and showing off great skills with the grill. It was delightful to spend time with Helen Wright Redwine, Linda Connelly, and Monica ‘Bo’ Gouboud, who had been absent for too many years. Alleen
1963
COLLEGE
Sue Battle Moore ’63C
Dear Class of ’63, There’s not much to report this year but I am always thankful to get any news. Sada Mason Huggins was ecstatic about her hometown of Augusta, Georgia, bursting forth in beauty with azaleas and “putting on the Ritz” in preparation for the Masters golf tournament week in April. Our personal class “Energizer Bunny,” Flo Pitts Carter, in Nebo, North Carolina, is back to normal! She’s in the gym three days a week, golfing twice weekly, and getting excited about summer activities of boating and swimming. Her travel plans included a trip with the WNCMC and Wesley Seminary to Poland, Slovakia, and Hungary in May. Don’t forget about her trip to Cat Island in June! Julia Taylor Milton informed me that she’s residing in Tampa, Florida. The news from Nina Thiem Jackson in Raleigh is that both she and husband Jerry are having some health issues. Not surprisingly, most of us can identify with that. The positive news from Nina is that she has been busy and successful with her painting. She was so happy that she could create a painting of the Saint Mary’s Chapel as a graduation present for a friend. More good news from her is that she and Jerry are taking a trip to Croatia in August. Kay Miller Pollard writes from Virginia Beach, Virginia, “Still hangin’ in. I live in the same house, on land where my ponies grazed, and my two children grew up. They have married and given me seven grandchildren, now grown, and seven great-grandchildren. Still gardening, reading books, doing volunteer work, and traveling a bit in my car. I keep in touch with Marty Fales Stanfield, Flo McNeer Hamilton, and Anita Strickland Christopher, as well as old friends from Virginia Episcopal School and St. Margaret’s in Tappahannock.” It saddens me greatly to report the recent death of two of our “faithful friends and comrades sure.” Belle Williams Smith of Roanoke, Virginia, passed away on August 7, 2023, and Barbara MacKenzie Scott of Charlotte passed away on September 1, 2023. Lastly, the news from your class secretary is limited. Ben and I are still living in Rocky Mount and still “kicking,” although just not as high as we used to! I remain busy with gardening, civic, and community activities but unfortunately, I have nothing to show for it at the end of the day! Until next time, all my best to you and yours, Sue
1965
COLLEGE
Trudie Turner Arrington ’65C
Carol Wilson Brewer Conner lets us know that her family is fine (all 21). Her granddaughter, Brewer, is a freshman at N.C. State (4.0), oldest grandson Caden’s high school wrestling team won the North Carolina dual championship, and the other four are into anything athletic. Carol hopes all is well and shares that her husband just celebrated his 90th birthday on Christmas Day. Audrey Wall Black stays in close touch with Ann Adair Calamos and Willa McKimmon Dickens. She also keeps in touch with Michelle Bratton Parker and goes to the same church as Gretchen Fracher Hardage. She’s hoping to see more of us next year at our reunion. Mary Stephenson Vidaurri is reaching out after almost 30 years with the Panama Canal. She has been retired for 26 years. Her four grandchildren bring her much joy and their accomplishments make her proud. She looks back on SMJC as time of fulfillment. Gretchen Fracher Hardage can’t believe that we have been out of Saint Mary’s almost 60 years. She says that she was so lucky to have worked in admissions for 26
years and to see all the wonderful things happening there. Her three grandsons live in Winston Salem (20, 17, 15) and are her heart. She’s looking forward to a get-together in the fall with Margaret Jackson Weatherly, Chris Collester Wolf, Lawton Davis Kasey, and Betsy Wilson Bradley (Faculty House). Gretchen reports that Perry Grimes Van Dyke has moved to Raleigh and she loves seeing her. Margaret Jackson Weatherly shares that all is going well with her family. They enjoy spending summers on the Pamlico River in Little Washington. Her oldest granddaughter graduated from Carolina in May, and little sister Kate completed her first year at N.C. State University (the Final Four!). Margaret just returned from a wonderful trip to the Pacific Northwest with their youngest daughter, Mary Lindsay, and her family. She was especially impressed with the beautiful flowers in Butchart Gardens in Victoria. Alleen Cater says that her life has been blessedly quiet for some time, though she did have a misadventure in Japan in November. She managed to get COVID-19 and was kicked off the trip. When she got home, her 20-plus Japanese maples were just as colorful as the ones in Japan. I’m delighted to hear from Jan Finney Maurer. Jan was my roommate all those years ago. She now lives in Colorado. We have wonderful memories of our time at Saint Mary’s — super good friends. Prayers and love for all, especially ones with health issues. Everyone stay safe and in touch. Trudie
1967 HIGH SCHOOL
Martha Hall Michaels ’67HS
It was wonderful hearing from so many classmates! Hannah Craven sent a stash of wonderful old photos from our Saint Mary’s days. She says, “I’m getting used to my husband being home more. (He retired in April.) I thought I was going to retire in January 2023, but I have continued to work a few hours each week. With the increases in free time, we have more travel planned—a tour of part of Eastern Europe and then a river cruise in France with my college roommate. I’m still in Arlington, Virginia, though the rest of my family is still in North Carolina, and we try to have a beach week each summer in Atlantic Beach. Our children are far-flung—one in Florida and the other in Colorado.” Like so many other classmates, Hannah mentioned how sad she was to hear of the death of Cary Scott Battle, who died April 3. Joslin Schwartz LeBauer also expressed shock at Cary’s death. She lives in Atlanta. Jane Melton writes that they are still happy living in Asheville. “Still working on a ’60s house we bought, with the latest renovations being a new front sidewalk and railing. Also happy with a rescue dog of mixed parentage.” Jody Friedberg Pagano reports that all is well at The Cedars of Chapel Hill. “This place is heaven!” Margaret Morrison Hamilton writes, “How can it be that we are entering our fourth quarter? Not only are my husband and I turning 75 this year, we’ve been married 50 years, which somehow adds up to 200 years! It gives one pause to consider how far we’ve come. We are happy grandparents of six adorable children. Son Jeff and his wife, Katie, have Winn, James, and Ellie in Boston. Daughter Caroline and her husband, Eric Langerman, have John, Margaret, and Louisa in Charlotte (ages 3-9). We still have a great life in Wilmington and are able to escape from summer heat to Manchester, Vermont. Bridge, golf, and books keep me buzzing. My mother, Helen Holt Morrison ’39C, is 103 and living in Concord. She still has happy memories of her student days at Saint Mary’s. Our family has set up a fund at Saint Mary’s in her honor that will benefit boarding life.” Lesley Mann has lived in Washington State since 1978, when she headed west for graduate school in Seattle. She met husband David
there and they now live in a small town. Daughter Lindsay has two children (1 and 6) with husband Matt. “They live in Bellingham, and we see them frequently, despite the seven-hour drive to the west side. I love small city life there! Son Peter got married last summer and he and his husband, Felix, live in Seattle. David and I are grateful that life is pretty good as we age. He skis, bikes, and maintains our property, which is no small feat. I am in two book groups with dear friends, practice yoga, play a bit of pickleball, and travel as much as possible while I still can.” Lesley and Margaret Highsmith Dickson had a lovely visit last summer. Ellen Norwood Braddy writes, “In March, I celebrated 18 years with my kidney transplant and enjoyed a visit in Atlanta with my donor. My children and grandchildren visit often and I need more energy—the youngest is almost three! They are too much fun and visits are full of art projects, learning to sew, a few science experiments, and lots of outdoor fun. The gift of life!” Monte Parsons Gaillard and her husband live in Asheville. They moved there in 2017 to be close to her son, Will Heinitsh, wife Susie, and their two boys, Tommy (7) and William (9). “We spend summers in Highlands and also time in Charleston. We love the mountains! We attend Trinity Episcopal Church.” Susan Sidenberg Padgett learned to play mahjong a few months ago and is having great fun playing twice a week and making new friends. Betsy Bittle Eubanks says her husband decided to retire in February, at age 75. “Every day, he retreats upstairs to his ‘office’ to work on his ‘projects.’ He absolutely refuses to get on an airplane anymore, so our adventures are limited to the North Carolina mountains and coast.” Like all of us, Betsy says the death of Cary brought her up short. She says she is really grateful for our time at Saint Mary’s. “I honestly think we were a unique bunch. I wish everyone a flicker of joy every day.” Kay Kramer Currin reports that she is having a wonderful experience living at the manor house at Hayes Farm in Edenton. “I grew up just down the road, in the gate house, so I very much feel at home. I’ll be the caretaker and event manager for Hayes as long as I can do 50 steps about 20-30 times a day! It’s hilarious, really! So much fun though. I hope anyone coming to Edenton will let me know! My children are scattered, but I get to see my newest, Zoe, often. We are getting to the age where we are losing friends and classmates. Let’s make the most of our time with love, joy, peace, and friendships.” My news is that Paul and I downsized in July to the Charleston Ridge neighborhood in Raleigh. All our family live close by, so our big house wasn’t necessary. We travel often and will go to France and Switzerland soon. Our granddaughter, Martha Parrott ’24, graduated from Saint Mary’s in May! Love, Martha
1965 HIGH SCHOOL and 1967
COLLEGE
Joan Wickham Sugg ’65HS ’67C
Christina Block Terrell reports that she decided to downsize and moved to a one-story home in Charlotte, where their younger son lives. “So far, I really like it. I’ve joined a book club and the handbell choir at our church. Only bump in the road: knee replacement surgery this spring. Ouch!” Meredith Maynard Chase writes from Columbia, South Carolina. She was planning a crossing cruise from Barcelona, Spain. Meredith spent time in Hilton Head Island, helping her brother-in-law. after her sister, Holly Maynard Caldwell ’74C,
was attacked and killed by an alligator while walking her dog near her home on Hilton Head. “I am blessed with great neighbors and a loving family who have helped me through this grief.” Clarine Pollock Powell writes, “We are still missing our son, Graham, and always will, but have been buoyed up by so much love, much of it from Saint Mary’s friends. Thank you. We have two sets of grands. Our oldest, Jackson, is a freshman at the University of South Carolina. Gibbon is a second year at Woodberry Forest School. Bill is finishing seventh grade at St. Peter’s School here. My girls’ school potentials are Caroline, who will start Ashley Hall in the fall, and Libby (8 months), who lives in Pennsylvania. Her mother works at the Baldwin School. My husband Rob has a pacemaker. I have tap dancer damage in a knee and hip, but otherwise we are doing well. Of course, always missing Lander and Margaret Burgwyn. We are thankful and grateful for our many blessings; among the greatest is Rob’s 101-year-old mother, Catherine Gant Powell ’40HS, who is active and driving.” Barbara Wall Fraser reports that life is moving happily along. “My husband, Norm Jones, and I celebrated our 21st anniversary in Paris in October and had a wonderful time. We enjoy my five and his four grandchildren ranging in age from seven to 17. Our home in St. Louis is exactly 1,000 miles door-to-door (wave?) from the ocean and we recognize that our yearly trips to Atlantic Beach and North Carolina are a vital part of our sanity and joy.” Susan Hannah and Betsy Crawford live in New York City and are board members for the non-profit Nurturing Minds in Africa. Betsy writes, “Please visit the website nurturingmindsinafrica.org. to learn more about the SEGA Girls School in Morogoro, Tanzania, where our mission is to ‘Educate a girl and change the world.’ If anyone is interested in traveling as a volunteer, please let us know. Volunteer opportunities are described on the website. We also have opportunities for high school groups to travel to the school and /or become part of our School Partnerships Program and International Coalition of Girls Schools. There is a lovely guesthouse on campus, surrounded by the Morogoro mountains and game parks are nearby. We do have fundraising events in Boston, New York, Washington, and San Francisco two times per year. If any of you are living near these cities and are interested in attending one of our events, please let us know.” Ann Mary Stirling sent this update from Hanahan, South Carolina. “After I graduated from UNC with a double major in history and English, I moved to Manhattan. I went to a Sewanee alum party and was told of an SMJC alum who worked at Hearst Publishing. That was my first job in NYC!” After law school and a brief stay in Aspen, Ann took a job in Charleston, South Carolina. In 1977, she formed her own firm and practiced law until retirement in 2015. She married Michael P. O’Connell in 1977 and they had three children: Patrick (1980-1994); Ian, who is married, lives in WinstonSalem, and has produced three grandsons; and Molly, “our reality tv child,” who came in second in season 16 of America’s Top Model and has been on Project Runway and Below Deck Thailand. Molly will also be a cast member on Southern Charm later this year. “I love being retired. I knit, read, play bridge (go figure), and take long walks with our miniature golden doodle, Bucket. Amazingly enough, I have left all my vices behind and still laugh a lot and have a lot of fun!” Chris Hurst Copley has two granddaughters (3 and 6) who live in Athens, Georgia. Last fall, she went to Morocco a couple of weeks after the earthquake. “Although I had some reservations right after the event, I decided to go forward with my plans. It turned out to be a wonderful trip. I highly recommend Smithsonian Tours. I currently have plans to travel to Southern Spain this fall, as long as they don’t schedule me to fly on a Max 9. My time is spent between visiting my
grandchildren and caring for my rescues: two dogs and two cats. I am also continuing to take Tai Chi classes, which I enjoy. I am not in touch with anyone from Saint Mary’s, although I saw Jane Shuping Tyndall at the Carolina reunion several years ago, and she looked great. I would love to hear from Jane, Sue, and Gretchen.” Jean Healy Neville moved to Fearrington Village in Pittsboro, North Carolina, about two years ago and she loves the bucolic setting. “We love the walks and busy village life. Lots of Chapel Hill friends are moving this way, which is fun. I am still playing tennis and volunteering. Serving on the board of the Friends of the UNC Libraries has been most satisfying. Travel for us has mostly been in the state since COVID-19, but it is nice to explore sites we have never visited. Hope everyone in '65 and '67 are doing well and planning to attend our next reunion. Go Saints!” As for me, Joan Wickham Sugg ’65HS ’67C, I took a tour of WWI and WWII battle sites in the summer of 2023 which inspired a program in May 2024 for Readers Theater, WWI and WWII: Heroes Known and Unknown. In December, Tar River Players presented A Christmas Carol with yours truly in my usual roles. In March, a trip to Spain had to be cancelled due to a totally unexpected emergency pacemaker implant. How wonderful it was to receive a note from Margery Lindeman Wright ’53HS ’55C, expressing her surprise when reading the November 2023 issue of Britain Magazine to see my letter to the editor reminding everyone that Dr. Mabel Morrison told us “Shakespeare was not an historian. He was a playwright employed by the Tudors.” Joan
1969
HIGH SCHOOL
Patsy McLaurin Hoch writes, “It was so much fun to catch up with Salem roommate Miriam Manning Sauls at the 50th class reunion last April! Ask her who she portrayed in the Golden Girls skit! Hope other classmates stop by for a visit in our Murrell’s Inlet home.
1969 COLLEGE
Liz Burleson Hudson ’69C
Well, this was certainly a big year for our class. Can you believe we have been out of Saint Mary’s for 55 years? Thank you to all my classmates who took the time to send me news. It just takes a minute, ladies, and I know your classmates would love to know how you are doing. Let’s all put April 2029 on our calendars so we don’t miss our 60th! Debbie Ayscue Whitley says she and husband David are loving life now that they have turned over their business to the kids. Debbie and David had a wonderful trip to Edinburgh and St. Andrews, Scotland, and to England. Debbie lives in Monroe, North Carolina, but has a beach house where she escapes whenever possible. Ashley Mawyer Byrd says she was sorry to not be at the reunion and missed seeing all her friends. She and husband Sam love seeing their three grandkids: a five-year-old grandson, a two-year-old grandson, and a granddaughter (2). Sam is still practicing dentistry part time (41 years!). Susan Summers McDuffy says that after 40 years of being a designer of women’s clothing, she is now only working occasionally. She lived in Georgia for 50 years, lastly in a 135-year-old farmhouse. She and husband Jay, who graduated from N.C. State in ’69, have now moved to Asheville. They are loving the area and the great mountain views. Susan said she would love to meet up with any ’69 alumnae in her area. Josie Peoples Dixon was also sorry to miss our
reunion, but she and her husband were in Italy most of April, partly on their own, and also with a Road Scholar trip to the lake area near Milan. (Josie, I am jealous!) She promises she won’t miss our 60th and sends her best wishes to all. Ann Cooper Schout writes that she cannot believe that we have been out of school for such a long time. How time goes by! She is currently living in New Bern, North Carolina. Sue Willingham Upchurch lives in Blairsville, Georgia. She says, “life is good in the north Georgia mountains!” She had a wonderful trip to Hawaii to watch the whales frolicking. She also enjoys going to Sapelo Island on the Georgia coast. Vaughan Earle Justice lives in Charlotte and has published a memoir titled, Repercussions, My Sister’s Story, which is available on amazon. Kay Whetmore Stallings says she has finally retired after working in healthcare administration for 30 years. She has been volunteering at her church, where she is on the wedding guild and the vestry. Her granddaughter goes to N.C. State University, so she is lucky to see her often. Her grandson is preparing for college and has visited UNC, NCSU, and Duke, so he may be close-by soon! Other grandkids (5, 7) live in Raleigh, so life is good. “Wishing all of our class a happy birthday as most of us turn 75 this year!” I, Elizabeth Burleson Hudson, took the plunge this year and moved into a retirement community in Winchester, Virginia. Our house on the mountain with six acres was just too much for me to keep up by myself. I love Westminster Canterbury and was fortunate to get into one of the new villas that just opened. I have two Bichon Frise dogs, named Graci and NaNa, to keep me company. I go to North Myrtle Beach several times a year to my timeshare and enjoy just sitting and listening to the ocean. I was not able to make our 55th reunion as I was still getting organized, but I promise to make the 60th! Wishing you all a happy, healthy and fun year. Love, Liz
1971
HIGH SCHOOL
Caren Threshie Camp ’71HS
Caren Threshie Camp is still working as a meeting planner for HelmsBriscoe. She has been there 23 years and loves it. “My husband, John, and I live in Alexandria, Virginia, and I would love to know if you are ever in this area!” One son, Jack, lives in Raleigh and the other son, Webb, lives in Philadelphia. “I love biking and working out in the gym. I wrote a book called, Life Lessons of an American Woman, which is on amazon.” Janet Burhoe reports from Swannanoa, “I have one daughter in Colorado and one in New Bern. I enjoy good health, aromatic flowers in my garden, and canoeing at my lake house.” Ann Reesman Fisher lives in Durham, North Carolina, and is the proud grandmother of four grandchildren and one granddog. Son Sam and his wife, Carolyn, have two boys, Rankin (8) and Witt (7), and live in Columbia, South Carolina. Daughter Marjorie "Randall" lives in Durham and is a nurse at Duke. Ann dog-sits for Pip, her maltipoo, when she works. Daughter Lee lives in Grosse Pointe, Michigan, and has two children, John (6) and Emmy (4). “I am a retired educator and spend time playing duplicate bridge, reading books for several book clubs, doing lots of needlepoint, and enjoying my wonderful family and friendships.” Kathy Byars Knight writes, “Love living in Waynesville, on top of Eagle’s Nest Mountain. Enjoy having company of family and friends. My son lives in Melbourne, Florida, with his family and is a test pilot for Grumman. Anne and her family are in D.C., with the foreign service, but will be choosing new location soon. Sarah is close, working at UT hospital in Knoxville. My sister Susan and I had a nice trip to Iceland before the volcanoes and earthquakes!”
Harriett Cowper Bobbitt says, “Bo and I love living in Fearrington Village, just south of Chapel Hill. Son Bill and his husband, Diogo, live in Durham; daughter Julia, her husband, Sam, and their two children live in Southern Pines. We're delighted to be right in between! Granddaughter Claire is attending summer camp at Saint Mary's. Where did the time go?” Ann Brigham Pace writes, “I am still working, although very part time (a handful of days every five to six weeks). I have been a nurse at a hospital in Birmingham, Alabama, for 37 years. I'm a mother-baby nurse, love it, and just can't seem to let go, despite pressure from my kids to fully retire. I moved to Greenville, South Carolina, in January of 2023. (Yes, I commute to Birmingham for work!) I live with my youngest child, whom I now call my ‘roommate.’ So far, it's been a good experience. I am on the road or in a plane, visiting kids and grandchildren, every couple of months. I have kids in Minneapolis, Chicago, Birmingham, and, of course, South Carolina. My four kids have given me six grands, ranging in age from 13 to five. Of course, they are the loves of my life! I went to Raleigh last April for the ’73 class reunion and had a fun time. I got to see some of our ’71 class. I will make sure to come to our next reunion--whenever that is?” Elizabeth Propst is enjoying Washington, North Carolina, and Atlantic Beach and seeing friends from Saint Mary’s. Trina Johnson Blanton is still in Raleigh. “My best of this past year was celebrating my 70th birthday with a trip to Paris in October with my daughters, Kate and Frances. Ten days with just the three of us. No husbands or children. We had the most glorious trip. Tom and I enjoy being at Atlantic Beach from May to September. Our girls and their husbands and grands join us for the month of July. We have five grandsons (ages 2-7) and are lucky to have the girls and their families near us and get to see them and help with the grandsons. I keep up with Ann Lindley Proctor, Nell Jordan McCarren, and Elsie Thornhill James, often. Visited Nell and her husband, Kenneth, in N.Y.C. in December of 2022.” Jane Best Grandbouche lives in Sarasota, Florida, on 10 beautiful acres with husband Brad. “We have every kind of fruit tree you can think of. We love gardening. We have a wholesale book business and I have a consulting and coaching practice, The Next Chapter…Living a Created Life. I have two beautiful daughters and three granddaughters, all living in Sarasota. I have lived a blessed life and I am forever grateful for the life I get to live. It is a great time to have graduated high school in ’71 and be 71 years old. Yea, we made it!” Caren
1971
COLLEGE
Betty Anne Queen Bush ’71C
Greetings from some of our class! We moved to Nashville, Tennessee, in November, updated a condo, and moved in right before Thanksgiving. We were unpacking during everyone else’s Christmas vacation. We had lots of help, yet still felt like we were hit by a truck for weeks on end. I would not suggest moving — much less to another state. Ha! We love Nashville and I love playing Mimi! Lauren has two miracle babies. An 18-month-old and a five-monthold. Life is abundantly full. We are grateful. I love hearing from all you precious friends and covet your news. We do need to keep in touch, and at least this is one way. Jane Moore Lazarus was the first to contact me. Jane does a great job keeping up with us! Kate Ballagh Young came down to Miami with her daughter and cute son-in-law. Kate lost her hubby, Jimmy, last year after a long illness. Seems they were reminiscing about a trip many years ago. Jane recalls, “There was a group of Saint Mary’s seniors and N.C. State SAE’s who were
to board a ship called the Flavia for a cruise. I was not going on the cruise. And a huge problem arose. The Flavia had to leave a day later than expected. My dad’s company had a large condo in Ft. Lauderdale which I had asked for a small group of girls to use since most of our friends were going on a cruise. Well, as it turned out everyone ended up sleeping in this condo the night before the cruise! It was loads of fun! I kinda’ got in trouble but the parents understood the circumstances were unavoidable. Crazy!” Jane has been all over! She met Susan Carroll Alexander in Gastonia for lunch and then had a lively dinner with Kate, Mollie Bridger Vandiver, and Peaches Rankin ’70 HS ’72C. And both Winston Cobb Greene and Susan came to visit Jane in Cooper City, Florida. I bet Jane’s a good cook! Winston said no monumental news. Her grandson is headed to Parris Island in July — gulp. (No sissies there!) Her middle son is a Marine and they have one grandson who is graduating from Special Forces training in June. Winston is a hoot! She said since her passport will expire soon, she scooted to Amsterdam, Belgium, Normandy, and Paris last fall and this fall, she’s off to Portugal and Spain. Big news: Betsy Blee plans to retire in July and has decided to head back to North Carolina and spend time in Southport, maybe Raleigh. She is considering traveling on Viking or Roads Scholar cruises. “It is just time.” And I want everyone to note that Betsy has developed a scholarship at Saint Mary’s, as well as UNC-G. We are so proud of you Capt. Blee! Love your generous heart! Beth Harrison Todd is deep into wedding plans! Beth and Robin are still in Laurens, South Carolina, and head to St. John’s Island to visit son Robert with two daughters. Kathy Pace Bozeman and Jane Darden Brown both responded but had no news. Molly Bridgman Roush is still in Wilmington, North Carolina, and loves being the doting grandmother to Audrey and Eddie. She is retired but delivers Meals on Wheels for St. James Church and looks forward to her summers in Maine! Laura Norris Raynor and husband Hurley just downsized from their wonderful home into to a condo in February. She totally agrees about how awful moves are — and Hurley had just had back surgery! She’s getting back to normalcy — loves walking, playing canasta, and mahjong. Last time I played cards it was “Old Maid,” and my granddaughters ended up each crying when they got the Old Maid card! I guess I have talked to Laura Bruce Hadley Nichols the most recently. LB and I were Marshall partners and she is dear to my heart. Her husband, Grady, passed away a couple years ago but they had just moved into a smaller home so she could maneuver herself more easily. She always sounds so grateful when we talk, never complaining about her MS, even though she is now in a wheelchair all the time. Her children live nearby and talented grandson Jay will be headed to Liscomb College here in “Music City” next year. Lipscomb is a noted Christian school with a very competitive music department! Give Laura Bruce a jingle if you want to be uplifted! And need a blessing. Thank you to all who were able to get news to me. Love, Queenie
1973
HIGH SCHOOL
Barbara Egerton Tillery ’73HS
JoAnn Nance Small writes that it was “such a pleasure to attend our 50th high school reunion and stay connected with these old friends. Our electronic world can’t replace the person-to- person contact! I echo many others in saying it did not seem like 50 years ago we were in that special place. I know we all remember Dr. Martha Stoops (history teacher). Some years ago, I bought her book, The Heritage ¬— The Education of Women at St. Mary’s College, as a
gift for my Saint Mary’s high school grad daughter. After reading it myself, I appreciate even more the privilege of being a graduate of Saint Mary’s. I hope to see some of the four-year girls again at our college reunion next year!” JoAnn also added a postscript that she would be happy to serve on the committee for our 55th high school reunion. Lucie Jones Badham, are you paying attention? (She offered to chair the reunion committee). Jaquelin Jenkins Perry reports that she is painting a lot and was delivering some of her paintings that day to Torrey Green Stroud ’68HS, who owns City Art Gallery in Greenville. Peg Corbitt Hardee, from our class, used to be co-owner of the gallery with Torrey. Jacquelin said she was getting ready to participate in a group show there in May, along with classmate Hunter Stephenson Bretzius, whom she declared is an “excellent painter.” Jaquelin mentioned that the SMS class of ’78HS came to Edenton that week, and she helped host a dinner for them. She says, “It was great to see them. A wonderful group of girls who have been keeping up for over 40 years. The other hostesses, also SMS graduates, were Tra Jennette Perry ’62C of Colerain, Ann Harrell Perry ’69C, and Anne Detgen Ellis ’71C, both from Edenton.” Martha Woodard Pearlman writes that she became a grandmother in December and now has a grandson named Henry. Her daughter is engaged. Martha enjoys traveling back to UNC-Chapel Hill and going to basketball, baseball, and football games there whenever possible. Gina Doty DeMarsh writes that she continues to enjoy playing her piano and is asking for a recording device for her birthday in order to record some of her music. She was judged in a piano recital about ten years ago by Saint Mary’s faculty member Terry Thompson and caught a glimpse of Terry on campus at our 50th reunion last year. Gina also enjoys needlework, especially knitting and cross stitch. Susanne Owens Logan reports that she is enjoying retirement. Between pottery, yoga, canasta, reading, cooking, gardening, spending time in Atlanta, or traveling with her husband and trying to get rid of “stuff” that no longer “sparks joy,” she stays busy. She says, “I have realized in retirement how task-oriented I am from years of practicing law, as I enjoy marking things off my many lists.” Susanne says that she is happy to report that she is mostly healthy and that it is always good to focus on gratitude. You never know what will be in the next chapter! She added that she lost a dear friend in January whom she’d met the first week of law school in 1977. They moved to Atlanta in 1980, together with a third law school classmate. Her friend had relocated to Maine, where Susanne’s husband and she have spent increasing amounts of time over the past decade or more, renting houses on the mid-coast nearby. She says, “Like so many losses, there are bittersweet parts along with the grief of losing such a close friend. I now have a house in Maine for my lifetime that is right on the rocky coast, with a view that is amazing. I will always feel a connection to her there.” Like Susanne, I, Barbara Egerton Tillery, lost a dear person in my life when my sister Alice passed away in December. She and I were very close, and I helped move her to Mississippi in 2019, from Georgia, to be closer to me when she was suffering from health and mobility issues. We enjoyed some really good times together, and I was so blessed to have her in my life. Other than that, I continue to work full time because I enjoy my job at William Carey University, but Tim and I are both planning to retire in the next year or so. Our daughter, Laura, is living in Hong Kong now, and our grandson is now four. We hope we can plan a trip over there later this year. They move all over the world, so it’s hard to keep up with them! Barbara
1973
COLLEGE
Lynn Johnson Titchener ’73C Whoa! Did this past year just whoosh by or what? Time flies, especially after celebrating our 50th SMS reunion! Hard to top the news from that gathering, but it’s worth a try! Hands down, we must recognize Elizabeth “Bibba” Bost Hock right off the bat. Bibba’s epiphany wins the “She Gets It” award. Having attended only one reunion, our fifth, in 1978, Bibba returned to campus from Orlando for our 50th last spring and voila! She and her “old friends” from Smedes reconnected at the speed of light and guess what? They all made new friends as well! Plans were made to meet again this spring in Georgia. Now that is what it’s all about, girls! Ponder this one: Gwen Howard Temple now has a second home in Ocean Isle Beach! What a great idea to make new memories with her two children and three grandchildren at the seashore! She is still singing in the choir and helping with crisis ministry at her church, between hiking and yoga. Ann Beland Brooks finally met her orphaned elephant, Nyambeni, in Nairobi, Jane Hight gave birth to a new book (her words not mine), and Suzy Maynard Barile and John have a niece for her nephew and a nephew for John’s nephew, making eight in all. I assume she means children. Jane’s book is titled, The Winning Difference: How to Get What You Want, Need, and Deserve. Might be too late for me, but you can find it on amazon. Ann beats a path to and from Emerald Isle and Chapel Hill with Candy Currin Taylor, and the two of them are now planning their long-awaited journey to Ireland and Scotland this summer. It’s a toss-up between the Dean Dome and Africa as to where Ann is happiest. Don’t forget that Suzy has a book, too. She authored, Undaunted Heart: The True Story of a Southern Belle and A Yankee General. Once a month or so, Libbie Hall Farias and Suzy meet in Winston-Salem to tour historic sites and wineries. Who needs the former if the latter is close by? Libbie and her husband (a.k.a. Mimi and Pop Pop) are into UNC football, Bible study, and babysitting two grandsons, Hank (5) and Jack (3). Moore on the grandmama scene, Mary Legg Moore (get it?) has a new grandson, John Michael Moore, who joins his big brother, Charlie, in Wilmington, North Carolina, and his cutie-pie cousins, Caroline and Kate, in Pinehurst. Mary and husband Mike are holding down the fort in Raleigh for the time being. Rumor has it they are cruising around the world this fall. Also welcoming a new little one, Sharon Seago has another granddaughter, Claire Corinne, who was not only born on Sharon’s mother’s birthday, but who also shares her greatgrandmother’s name. Brothers Jesse and Luke are thrilled to have a new sister! They all live in Greenville. Sharon is still traveling to all the National Parks she can and was on her way this spring to Assateague National Seashore, Great Sand Dunes National Park, and four parks in Alaska in July. In her leisure time, she and Pam Clark (Jacksonville, Florida) met in Oakmont, Pennsylvania, to visit Dixie Wilson Anderson and husband Sam. Dixie set up a bookstore in the library where she works. Is that legal? Lisa Tull, Margie Younts Klinge, and the aforementioned Jane Hight, all call Wilmington, North Carolina, home. Lisa is settling in after 40 years in the wine business in New Orleans, where her daughter, Allison, still lives. Sometimes Lisa goes on long holidays to multiple spa retreats, but never alone! Margie loves being so near Wrightsville Beach, spending lots of time boating, swimming, and walking her doggie. Volunteering with NC Feeds and wherever needed also keeps her busy. Visitors to Wrightsville Beach include Katie Jo Lawrence Redhead and me on a regular basis.
This past winter, KJ and John flew down to Florida for some R&R and to visit some old friends. She is grateful and honored to have been awarded the top individual producer in sales volume title for 2023. This marks her 13th year in a row being named such for Tyler Redhead & McAlister Real Estate in Greensboro. The CEO’s Circle Status Award is another notch in her belt. Hip hip hooray! Kathryn Houghton Schreier and husband Frank are in Beaufort, North Carolina, after driving across God’s country to Tacoma, Washington, to visit with friends and family. They squeezed in Mount Rushmore, Yellowstone, and other amazing sites along the way. Best wishes to Frank, who was always the lone husband who dared come to our reunions! See you at our next one in 2028 and Godspeed! River living suits Nancy Armstrong Murray best in Chocowinity, North Carolina. “Nature” is retired after 24 years of teaching six- to eightyear-olds at Washington, North Carolina. Montessori School. With five grandchildren, she and Gray are quite busy entertaining on their new yacht, cruising here and there with their huge family. How exciting! Margy Perdue Price has a very cozy home in Williamsburg, Virginia. I know — I’ve been there. It’s lovely. This lady still holds the record for the most grandchildren! Her oldest is a junior at VCU and the youngest little one is in kindergarten. What a span! All the inbetween grands are old enough now to be fascinating and fun to be around. When she’s not traveling with a rather handsome younger man, Margy takes classes at William and Mary and enjoys yoga and tai chi. I heard from Amanda Brantley Anders. She and Bob have a new home in Blowing Rock and a new condo in Charlotte that keep them happily busy. And busily happy. There was a long story about a fire, a flood, a family of six, and moving around a lot. I couldn’t keep up. She lost me around paragraph four. But Amanda survived the utter chaos and they are now settled and relaxed. Late breaking news: Anne Brigham Pace enjoys driving from South Carolina to Birmingham, Alabama, to keep her foot in the door at the hospital where she has been employed for the last 37 years. Retiring is not for sissies. An extended journey to Scotland and London with her son is in the works. As for me, life is good. I’m still covered in paint, ink, and garden dirt, and I reek of chlorine — but who doesn’t? My precious grandchildren, Marshall (3), and his sister, Kit (1), keep me entertained and I just live for those snuggly hugs. Early in April, my devoted mother, Mary Lynn Lewis DeLany ’44C, passed away at age 98. What will I do without her? She leaves a legacy of stories, memories, and lessons learned for all of us. Mother served as her class secretary for almost 70 years, and she taught me how to make writing the
news fun. If you noticed a few exaggerations and absurdities in this report, that’s a nod to my mom, who often concocted the news for those in her class who didn’t send in the blue sheet! Thanks to my dear, sweet girls, Winnie and Liza, I am learning to live with beautiful memories, as we share tall tales together. Take care, everyone, and keep sending your news! You know I love you. Lynn
1975
HIGH SCHOOL
Betsy Bullington Hale writes, “I am happily retired and living in my hometown, Roanoke, Virginia. I have a granddaughter who turned three in June. They live outside of Raleigh, so I am lucky to visit often. They opened a business in December on Oberlin Road in Raleigh near Cameron Village. It is a play café for children named Bumble Brews. So, bring your grandchildren and have a playdate!” Verna Gates writes, “It has been a good year! Two organizations kindly handed me awards: the Eagle Award from Alabama State Parks (for my nonprofit work) and Birmingham’s Top Fifty Over Fifty. I would prefer to be top 40 under 40, but at this age…. The 2023 Rotary International Peace Conference gave me a speaker spot. I am still on the board of Global Ties Alabama, which my family founded. It is an affiliate of the U.S. Department of State and I have had a blast entertaining people from all over the world. Somehow, I got elected president-elect of the Alabama Symphony Volunteer Council; still not sure how that happened! My book, 100 Things to Do in Birmingham Before You Die, is doing well. The non-profit I founded, Fresh Air Family, served more than 1,500 children in summer camps last year. It keeps me busy, if not sane. I keep up with Annette Kerlin McBrayer. Patricia Kerlin just moved to Texas.” Susan Scruggs Rudkin ’75HS ’77C loves being retired from a long career in nursing. “COVID-19 was the icing on the cake, get your vaccines! I live in Raleigh with two kitties and try to be outside walking and gardening as much as possible. I am blessed to have daughters Mary Rudkin '00, and Emily Rudkin Day '03, grand dog Della, and grandsons Henry (5) and Miles (2) in Raleigh as well. Besides volunteering in Open Door Clinic, I love long weekend trips exploring wherever.” Annette Kerlin McBrayer writes that she retired in December 2022 after 40 years of practicing law. She then had knee surgery for a torn meniscus. “Not a good way to start off retirement!” In 2024, she visited twin sister Patricia Ann Kerlin in Texas and enjoyed a trip to Normandy in France. Annette and husband Steve celebrated their 39th anniversary this year. Dana Promin Tydings writes, “My husband and I continue to live in Rockville and St. Mary's City, Maryland, with our Frenchie, Madelaine. Our daughter, Alix, and her husband, Geoff, who live in Charleston, South Carolina, gave us our first granddaughter, Liv Mayhew Dailey, this past Christmas. Our son plans to be married in Colorado this summer. My interior design firm, Tydings Design, is celebrating its 30th year with projects throughout the continental United States. I stay in touch with Louise Overman, Betsy Bullington Hale, Sheila McLamb, Lisa Norwood Nesbitt, Carol Sermons Samuelson, and Margaret Hicks Holmes. We are looking forward to seeing each other at our next reunion!”
1975
COLLEGE
Patricia Holt Parker ’75C
Greetings to all ’75C classmates! I hope everyone is enjoying life to the
Sally Pridgen Spiegel ’89HS, Ann Beland Brooks ’73C, and Josie Rawl Hall ’74C played in the spring pickleball fundraiser for the junior class’s prom budget this spring on the Eure-Jones Tennis Courts on campus.
fullest and having a wonderful year. Sallie Shuping-Russell recently joined the Saint Mary’s Board of Trustees and also continues to serve on the SMS investment committee, where she works alongside old friends Nancy Kerr Thomason ’73HS ’75C and Palmer Peebles Garson. She sees her SMS “big sister,” Josie Rawl Hall ’74, at a lot at SMS events, so sometimes it’s like a homecoming. Sallie retired after a long career in investments, ending her career at BlackRock out of New York, although she was able to work in North Carolina. Now she is happily spending time with her husband, three daughters, their families, and her three grandsons-. Sallie is still in Chapel Hill, so call her when you are in town! Lynne Fetner Knowles has lived in Raleigh since 1991 and owns Pigfish Lane Antiques & Interiors, which Lynne and husband Robert opened in the old Wayside Furniture building at 5425 Hillsborough Street almost six years ago. They also purchased Boone’s Antiques in Wilson several years ago, and have Classic Consignments there also, along with selling by appointment the inventory at Boone’s. They have five grandchildren: Will, the oldest at 17, was just accepted at UNC-Charlotte for the fall and Oakley, the youngest, turns two in July! Three boys, two girls, with one granddaughter living in Athens, Georgia, and the rest in Raleigh. Lynne has enjoyed reconnecting with old classmates who come in as customers in her shop and hopes to see many more of us in the future! I am planning a shopping trip soon, Lynne! Deborah Walter just finished a cross-country road trip with her sister. How fun! Great sights: Grand Canyon, Painted Desert, Sedona, White Sands Monument Park, Carlsbad Caverns, and ended up in the Smokey Mountains, hiking. She was looking forward to Lou White ’76C and Sarah Lewis coming to Beaufort, South Carolina, for a visit with her in May. Toncie Smart George is happily retired, single, and blessed to have all her children and grandchildren living within a 45mile radius. She is enjoying family, food, sewing, flower gardening, friends, and quiet time — just not necessarily in that order! Sounds lovely, Toncie. Life is wonderful in Pinehurst but busier than usual, as the USGA preparations for the men’s U.S. Open in June are in full swing. I continue to enjoy teaching meditation classes at First Health, treating red foxes for mange, and volunteering for Moore Humane Society. Please reach out if you are in the area! Much love and many hugs to all. Trish
1977
HIGH SCHOOL
Marty Ward Andress ’77HS Hello Class of ‘77HS! I’m excited to hear from you. And happy to try to get us all reacquainted. It’s been a while! Several Saints enjoyed a recent art gallery show by Molly Peebles Squires ’77HS ’79C. In addition to Molly, Nella Fulton Timmons, Dial Baker Love ’79HS, Janie Parker Pinney ’80HS, and Torrey Moss Munford ’81C were all in attendance. Mary Francis Hartshorn Comer writes, “Fred and I still live in Hickory. Our younger daughter, Caroline, lives in Asheville with her husband, two dogs, and three chickens. She is an amazing wedding photographer, so contact Wilder Weddings Collective if you need a photographer in Western North Carolina! (She also does family photo sessions.) Our older daughter, Mary English, lives in Raleigh with her husband, two children, and golden doodle. Emma Kate (3) and Charlie (infant) are, of course, the most wonderful grandchildren ever! Mary English teaches fifth grade at Underwood Elementary. I've worked in the Hickory City Schools system for over 20 years and plan to retire in July. After a cancer scare and BRCA2 ‘diagnosis’ this
year, I decided it is time to have more family and travel time! It's going to be fun! But I'll be able to substitute when I'm available, so best of both worlds! I recently ran into Melanie Hood Rankin. It was great catching up with her.” Pam Bratton Breem says she and Jamie have purchased the waterfront lot beside where she grew up in New Bern, and they plan to build a summer river house, with completion anticipated for 2026. “Our plan is to still keep a home in Atlanta where my daughter, Audrey, and Jamie's son, Beau, still reside. Our other two children are in Brooklyn and Camden, North Carolina, so it will be nice to have residences near most of them as their families grow. Jamie plans to swim the English Channel in August 2026 so we are in full-fledged training mode, waking at 5 a.m., eating protein, protein, protein. Let's see if we can keep this pace up for two more years, but sights are set on the swim.” Nella Fulton Timmons is enjoying traveling to New York and Denver to visit her two new grandchildren. Nella sees Margaret Barber Wood and Marty Ward Andress when in Charlotte visiting her son and his wife. She recently had lunch with Pat Gentry Barnard in Raleigh, and visited Mary Jane Given Devins at her vacation home in South Carolina. She and Georgia Worthington Sullivan keep in touch and occasionally travel together. Nella walked the Camino Way last September with a group of women from all over the country. She and husband Jeff enjoy fly fishing and hiking at their vacation home near the Homestead. Mary Craig Timberlake Brown ’77HS ’79C, says she is loving her four grandchildren and spending lots of time in Morehead. “Life is great, and we are very blessed.” Georgia Sullivan Worthington lives in Alexandria, Virginia, and has been happily married to Jay for 38 years. They have all three children nearby, plus one grandson (3). She says life is sweet! She stays active and is feeling very young at this crazy age of 65! She summers in Nags Head and welcomes reconnecting! As for me, Weston and I have been married 40 years. We live in Charlotte and travel whenever possible. I’m deep into retirement following an awesome sales job with Lee Industries. We have two grandchildren, Ward (3) and Weston (2). They live around the corner and provide endless hours of entertainment and fun. I’ve taken up golf, fly fishing, and bridge, all of which could consume a lifetime to master. Other sports interests may be waning. I water skied last summer in Maine. Definitely pulled a hamstring. I heard from Pooh, aka Katherine Herring Christophe, who says she has too much news and to just say, “Pooh says she still has a green raincoat.” All joking aside, Pooh does mention caring for her mother, who is now 97. Mary Foy Ragsdale sends similar news. She and her sister, Liza Ragsdale ’79HS, take turns caring for their mother, Carolyn Foy Ragsdale ’54HS ’56C Margaret Barber Wood says hello. She is in Charlotte. Joan Andrews Holder had her hands full with a leaking roof but says hello. Luanne Johnson Reynolds ’77HS ’79C sent the most beautiful handwritten letter full of love, thanksgiving, and grace. Luanne reports she and Bob have been married 45 years and have three grown children and eight happy, healthy grandchildren. Luanne closes her letter as follows: “Thank you, Saint Mary’s Saints, for being such an important part and memory of my life!” It feels so good to hear voices from afar. Please reconnect. Best, Marty
1977
COLLEGE
Mary Virginia Swain ’77C Happy summer, Class of 1977! Thank you to those who sent in news. Corneille Little is happily retired from teaching 20 years as an art
educator in Raleigh. She is teaching day and evening small group classes from her home studio in Raleigh. She has two grandchildren – Dylan is 12 and Leyla is three. She says, “What a blessing it is to love and to be so loved and called Nana.” Corneille spends her free time painting, gardening, and walking through nature. She continues to paint pet portraits. She is looking forward to our next reunion in 2027. Kim Austin Parrish is retired from real estate sales and living on the Currituck Sound on Church’s Island on the “Inner” Banks of North Carolina. She says, “Lots of gardening, wildlife, peace, and quiet. Two dogs, three cats, an occasional possum. If you are on your way to the Outer Banks, stop by!” Holly Harpe Lee writes from Waycross, Georgia, where she has completed her 44th year teaching. She has five grandchildren with ages ranging from one to nine, with another one on the way. She also celebrated her 40th wedding anniversary last November. Patti Haygood writes from Harrisburg, North Carolina, to report that she retired from Duke Energy in April 2021 after 41 years of service. On a sad note, we have lost two classmates. Amy Basten Heppner died in February 2023 in Lynchburg, Virginia, after a lengthy battle with Alzheimer’s Disease. Her obituary captured her generous spirit, saying, “She volunteered at each school her son attended, was an avid soccer mom, and hosted legendary birthday and holiday celebrations for family and friends. Amy was a lifelong member of and was dedicated to First Presbyterian Church, serving as deacon, elder, and Sunday school teacher. As her disease progressed, she delighted in walks and visits with her walking friends. She rode horses in her youth and, in later years, found joy again in riding at Brook Hill Farm. To help and educate others on the struggles of this awful disease, she joined the Virginia Alzheimer’s Advisory Group and shared her story in a candid interview with Lynchburg Magazine. Rest in peace, dear Amy. We also lost Lucy Gidley this spring after her two-year battle with cancer. Lucy was living in her hometown of Clemmons, North Carolina, with her husband, Vinnie Whitt. Lucy’s obituary mentioned that she had been a proud member of the Cold Cuts musical ensemble at Saint Mary’s College. Lucy enjoyed working in several careers throughout her life from designing and selling custom swimming pools to planning events with grace, style, and flair for Salem College, Bermuda Run Country Club, and the Winmock event center in Davie County. Morgie Towler Duke and I traveled together to Winston-Salem in March for Lucy’s lovely memorial service at St. Timothy’s Episcopal Church. After Saint Mary’s, Morgie and I continued our friendships with Lucy as Kappa Delta sorority sisters at UNC, where Morgie and Lucy were roommates in the KD house. We also saw Saint Mary’s girls Susan Bridger Ricks ’76C, Leesa Lybrook Goodson ’76C, and classmate Chris Gilliam ’77C at the memorial service. Susan remained close friends with Lucy through all the years and was a tremendous support to her through her cancer battle. Leesa and Lucy had grown up together as neighbors, and they and their families were lifelong friends. Our classmate Chris, loyal friend to Lucy, traveled from Tennessee to be there for the service. Barbara Johnston Bush and husband Cameron, Jean Bridger Konitzer and husband Bob, and I enjoyed a festive visit over cocktails at our beloved Carolina Yacht Club at Wrightsville Beach overlooking the Atlantic Ocean in June. We look forward to our visit with Jeannie when she comes to the beach every summer! I am still working at Saint Mary’s, where I am now writing and editing a book about the history of the school and continuing to edit this magazine. The book will bring the history of Saint Mary’s up to the present day, just over 40 years after Mrs. Stoops’ masterpiece, The Heritage, and will hopefully present our history in
a new way with archival and scenic photos and new stories. Again, if anyone ever wants to take over class secretary duties, please let me know, or look forward to hearing from me again next year. Wishing a happy and healthy year ahead to all Saint Mary’s College Class of 1977 friends! Mary Virginia
1979 HIGH SCHOOL
Charlotte Sharp Lucas has been living in France since 1994. She and her French husband are enjoying retirement in the Basque Country, on the French side of the Pyrenees, where they settled in 2003. She and husband Daniel met while working in Niger, West Africa. Dial Baker Love enjoyed seeing old friends at Reunion Weekend. “I stay in close touch with Lucy Peebles Power, Molly Peebles Squire ’77HS ’79C, Eva Atwill Robbins ’79HS ’81C, and Marjorie Fairey Small. Had a long-overdue catch-up in Marco Island, Florida, with Elizabeth Davis Treanor ’79HS ’81C and her sweet husband, Gregor, last fall and a two-hour, merged call with Cindy Holland Anderson and Lucy on the line. I have been selling real estate in Richmond, Virginia, for eight years and enjoy it very much. Please reach out should you or anyone you know be interested in buying or selling in the area. My most exciting news is the arrival of my precious granddaughter, Nellie Grace Love, born on the 4th of July. A real firecracker, so loved and so perfect. Nellie’s parents are my son, Baker, and my precious daughter-in-law, Kate, to whom I am forever grateful.”
1979
COLLEGE
Windy Tillman Pratt ’79C
It is hard to believe it has been a year since the last news update! I hope you are all doing well and that applying for Medicare is as fun as you hoped it would be! As always, it was great to hear from many of you. Dana Darden Copeland is a brave soul to still be teaching elementary school in Virginia Beach. Next year she has first-graders, which is where she started her career. Fran Snyder Jones reports that she and Roland will see Stevie Nicks in concert in Hershey, Pennsylvania, when they go visit her son, Manning, this summer. Manning is doing a post doc in clinical chemistry. Fran says it will be her fifth Stevie Nicks concert in two years. You go girl! Kendall Page continues to practice law in Chapel Hill and enjoying the challenges of that successful career. They get up to Hound Ears regularly and enjoy being outdoors and relaxing in the mountains. They are heading to Scotland in September. Mary Foy Ragsdale is busy sharing in the care of her sweet mom, Carolyn Foy Ragsdale ’54HS ’56C. She and her sister, Liza Ragsdale ’79HS, faithfully share in this sweet ministry to their mom. Molly Peebles Squire sent a happy report that life is full and they are all fine. She says Hall is still doctoring and riding his bike and she is painting every chance she can. They are enjoying their grandkids and happy to finally have a baby girl born in November. It was great to hear from Julie Ann Cook Stewart. She and Jimmy are living near St. Simons Island, Georgia, where they can boat and fish. Their four grandkids are in Blackshear, Georgia, and they have a son in Valdosta, Georgia. Julie Ann has been receiving chemo treatments at the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville. She asks that you keep her and her family in your prayers. What a great thing to hear from Beth Watkins Walters who, having retired in 2022 from a long career in various educational institutions, including
Saint Mary’s, is enjoying mountain life in Troutman, Virginia. She is traveling, seeing friends and family, and loving on two grandchildren. Elise Ward Rasmussen writes, “I currently live in the U.K. and have for over 30 years. I work as a publisher for two magazines based in Raleigh that relate to tobacco and vaping, as well as chairing Women in Tobacco and directing the GTNF, a forum that I founded. However, I have become increasingly involved in the City of London and was invited in 2013 to join one of the 111 Livery Companies based in the City of London: The Worshipful Company of Tobacco Pipe Makers and Tobacco Blenders. I was awarded the Freedom of the City of London that same year. In 2023, I was elected as the second woman master of the company in 400 years. I was honored that my wonderful friend and SMC alum, Bess Knotts Walker ’76C, attended my livery dinner in January, along with her family and other amazing friends from North Carolina. Her daughter, Ila Walker Bittner ’05, made her first visit to London for my event. The night before my livery dinner, I arranged for our group to attend the ceremony of the keys at the Tower of London. Out of 111 masters, only 20 are women. It has been a huge honor to be master, especially a working master. By the time my year ends, I will have attended over 160 events in my official capacity. These include dinner with the king and queen at Mansion House last October and dinner with Princess Anne next week at Buckingham Palace. We first dined together last summer at Drapers Hall. I will also be attending the garden party at Buckingham Palace in May. My daughter, Courtney, is my consort, along with my son, William. Courtney graduated from UNC-W and William from Wake Forest.” As for me, Windy Tillman Pratt, Mike and I are keeping busy in Southern Pines. I am still working at Stifel. Our son, Guion, and his beautiful wife, Abby, happily welcomed Lucinda Faye Pratt (Lucy) into the fold in February. Her brothers, Moses and Felix, are delighted...mostly. Our other son, Win, and his beautiful wife, Tracy, are in Raleigh and enjoying living downtown! By the time you read this, the class of 79C will have celebrated its 45th reunion. Can’t believe it has been so long. I pray you all stay well and walk in peace. Fondly, Windy
1981
HIGH SCHOOL
Madeleine Gilbert ’81HS
Condolences go to Mary Hunter Martin and her sisters on the loss of her mother, Jean Martin, and to Tricia Moss Le Carpenter and her family on the loss of her mother, Patti Moss. Congratulations to our mothers of the brides and grooms. In October, Holly Connell Tehan’s daughter, Anna Tehan, married Wendon Walker in Raleigh. My sister, Allison Gilbert Holmes ’81C, and Cindy Henderson ’83C were part of the group giving the bridesmaid luncheon. Also in October, Mary Duke Sanders Grubbe ’81HS ’83C’s son Will married Lucy Melbinger. The reception was at the Darcy in Chicago. Attending the wedding were Louise Johnson Clements ’81HS ’83C, Suiter Whitehead Coxe ’81HS ’83C, Scotty Grine Frantz ’81HS ’83C, Sallie Harris Glover ’81HS ’83C, and Gigi Johnson. Also in October, Harriet Ashby Bonds’ son, Robert, married Dylan DeJames in Columbia, South Carolina. In January, Harriet’s other son, Jack, married Ana Olbrych in Charleston, South Carolina. And in January, Scotty Grine Frantz’s son, Adam, married Georgia Keith in Charlotte. Louise Clemmons, Suiter Coxe, Sallie Glover, and Mary Duke Grubbe attended the wedding. Ruth Cox Choiniere ’81H ’83C writes that she and her husband have been enjoying traveling this year as they are now empty nesters, but the traveling may be slowing down now that she is a first-time grandmother. Her oldest daughter is in Charlotte, her middle daughter and grandson are in Greensboro, where Ruth lives, and her youngest is a freshman at SCAD. Ruth and her husband travel to Raleigh to see family and friends and she enjoys it when she gets to see Saint Mary’s friends. Margaret Norris writes that she is still pastoring and coordinating a family vegetable garden with more vegetables than pests. Margaret Jones writes that she has moved to Hot Springs, North Carolina, where she has a horse farm with glamping. She splits her time between Hot Springs and Charleston. Congratulations to Mary Duke Grubbe’s son, William, on earning his doctorate. Bettye Davis Roller, husband Jim, and friends had the right idea. They went to the U.S. Virgin Islands on a catamaran after Christmas! Bettine Bikle Boyd ’81H ’83C writes that she is officially retired after 30+ years in the hospitality industry. She looks forward to seeing classmates at Atlantic Beach this summer. I went to Bangkok, Thailand, last July with my company, Jim Thompson,
Elise Ward Rasmussen ’79C, pictured center in the red and gold robe, who has lived in the U.K. for more than 30 years, works as a publisher for two magazines based in Raleigh that relate to tobacco and vaping. She joined one of the London livery companies, the Worshipful Company of Tobacco Pipe Makers and Tobacco Blenders, and was elected as the second woman master of the company in 400 years, currently among only 20 female masters in those 111 livery companies based in London. She has received the Freedom of the City of London Award in recognition of her work. Among the events she has attended in her official capacity are dinner with the King and Queen at Mansion House, dinner with Princess Anne at Buckingham Palace, and the garden party at Buckingham Palace in May. Saint Mary’s friend Bess Knotts Walker ’76C, Ila Walker Bittner ’05, and the Walker family attended Elise’s livery dinner at Drapers’ Hall in London in January 2024, among the group of Elise’s friends and family pictured here.
to see where they weave the fabrics and to visit Jim Thompson’s house museum, and the Jim Thompson stores. It was an amazing trip minus the flights there and back. In August, I stayed with Marilee Eagles Reed at her house in Valle Crucis and we went to the Saint Mary’s alumnae party in Blowing Rock at the home of Carol Biggers Dabbs ’55H ’57C. We had a great time talking to alums from the different years. Please keep in touch with your news. Madeleine
1981
COLLEGE
Allison Gilbert Holmes ’81C
I ran into Valinda Dubose Coates in Morehead City this summer. She told me about her grandsons, Jameson Gray (10) and Jackson Coates (18 months). She said that they are so sweet. The boys love each other so much. Suzy Dunaway Riley’s mother passed away on June 28, 2023. Margaret Taylor Kendrick’s daughter got married on July 22, 2023. Lauren Elizabeth Kendrick married Connor John Liggett in Atlanta. Elizabeth is a senior consultant with Booz Allen Hamilton. Connor is a captain in the U.S. Army and is in his second year of residency at Walter Reed in pediatrics. They live in Bethesda, Maryland. The SMC girls attending the wedding were Emily Winfield Bondy, Catherine Winfield Pfeiffer, and Nancy Brooks Newlon Elizabeth Brooks Little wrote that she has moved from Charlotte to Southport. She said that it is bittersweet and she will miss her friends in Charlotte but is looking forward to her friends coming to see her in Southport. Her daughter, Emma, is at UVA getting her master’s degree. Mark is in Greenville, South Carolina, with TD Bank. Ellen Fussell Policastro’s father passed away on September 24, 2023. Coles Hines Jones is a grandmother. Her grandson, Hubert Reid Jones IV, was born on September 22, 2023. They call him Hubey. His parents are Jennah and Reidy Jones. Coles says he is the cutest baby ever. Ellen Rodman Hathaway also has a new grandbaby. Her granddaughter was born on November 16, 2023. Her name is Clark Carrington Lau. Clark was Ellen’s father’s name, and her daughter is named Anne Clark. Her husband, Eric, loved the name Clark and was resolute that they call her Clark. Ruth E Perry Holding wrote that she and Frank just had their 40th wedding anniversary. They are enjoying their three grandsons (ages 2, 3, and 5). Her daughter, son-in-law, and grandsons live around the corner from them. Suzy Dunaway Riley has a new grandson, Rhodes, born September 19, 2022. Suzy’s grandmother name is Granny. Dean Gresham Holt had a COVID-19 wedding for her son, Clay. Also, in celebration of his 30th birthday, they had a murder mystery dinner. Deane said that all had a blast. Beth Mann went on a girl’s trip to Blowing Rock, where they went on some great hikes and ate at some wonderful restaurants. Gwyn Cooley Pearce and her husband, Gary, went on a Danube River cruise in May 2023. Their favorite place was Budapest. James and Maggie both live nearby. They have a new dog named Lola. Gwyn has several trips planned for the new year. She still has her fabulous jewelry business. You can shop from her gorgeous items at gwynpearcedesigns.com. Jeannie Teasley Kyle is a broker with Berkshire Hathaway, where she has worked for 22 years. Jeannie and Mary Jeannette Mardre Moseley and their husbands went to St. John’s in March 2024. Ashley Richardson Allen sends news of time with family and watching various grandchildren’s activities. Her needlepoint continues to give her a creative outlet, time for reflection, and creating heirlooms for her children and grandchildren, too. She writes that she is thankful for all the love, support and prayers after
her father’s passing last March. Since then, Ashley and her mother have “girl’s night sleepovers” several nights a week and it has been healing for both of them. Karen Apostolou Gliarmis still works for the North Carolina Office of Rural Health. She loves spending time at Atlantic Beach and Wilson. Her husband, Soc, has retired from Dick’s Hotdog Stand. His nephew took over the family business. Bonny Harris Herrington’s son, Russell, is a UNC senior, majoring in journalism and public relations. He sings in an acapella group. He is a DJ at WXYC. He volunteers for the medical school alumni correspondence. His mother and father were not quite as involved when they were students. Elizabeth Hardy Hogan is a stylist with Pearl by Lela Rose. She and John are still in Raleigh and both boys are there as well. She recently became a great aunt. This is the first greatgrandchild on her side of the family. Elizabeth enjoyed a wonderful trip to the Bahamas with some wonderful Saint Mary’s buds. She loved cheering on the Tarheels, but she did cheer for the Wolfpack in their tournament run. The NCAA tournament was so exciting and kept Raleigh hopping with excitement. Catherine Winfield Pfeiffer writes that she is still working as a school nurse. Richard and Catherine are still living in Little Washington. Here is an update of her children: Anna is a pharmacist in Lexington, Kentucky; Charles just got his wings in the Navy and is flying helicopters in San Diego; and Emily is in commercial real estate in Raleigh. Emily Winfield Bondy sent word that she and husband Paul are moving right along. Paul is still working and president of Boice-Walis Cinne. Emily is still teaching yoga and Pilates, gardening, and enjoying seeing their girls, Courtney and Tyler. Malone graduated from Meredith in the summer of 2023 and is job searching. Paul and Emily traveled to Alaska for a cruise with Margaret Taylor Kendrick and her husband, Steve. Margaret McGlohon writes, “Gathering near and far with members of ’81C has been a highlight this past year. I know our friendships continue to grow stronger. I have also had a few great trips since our last class news edition: the holiday markets in Switzerland and Germany; Sante Fe, New Mexico; and Madrid and Barcelona. And exciting family news — I am now a great aunt! My best to all alumnae!” Allison
Coles Hines Jones ’81C with grandson Hubert Reid Jones IV, born on September 22, 2023.
1983 HIGH SCHOOL
Mary Beth Hughes ’83HS Hope everyone is having a great summer! Dabney Mann Hollis ’83HS ’85C is a consultant for Cox Curry & Associates in Atlanta. Their children have launched: son Tift is in IT in Atlanta. Daughter Suzanne works for Moondance in Nashville, Tennessee. Dabney and Sam have been traveling and enjoying family homes in Highlands and Sun Valley. Suzanne Via Dillon writes that she is finishing up the renovation of her home and has been busy with her son's weddings! Patrick married Taylor Davis in September 2022, and Alexander married Milee King on March 23, 2024. She visits with our classmates, Elizabeth Rouse Borden, Sterling Talley Wheless, and Ellen Toler I saw lovely pictures of all at the weddings on Facebook, where I occasionally keep up with everyone. Suzanne enjoys her time at her Blowing Rock home. She and Ellen Block Englehardt went to the Chelsea Flower Show in London in May. Penny Hare Taylor writes that she is the sole healthcare provider at Med First Urgent Care & Family Practice in Thomasville, North Carolina. She and husband John spend lots of time in the mountains in Ashe County and are enjoying Grace Episcopal Church in Lexington, where John is the facilities manager and which she calls "his version of retirement." Pride Edmunds Owens and husband Tim are grandparents now to Lucy Bonham Owens, born December 3, 2023. She says it is fun to have a girl after raising their three boys. Her son, Brooks, is married and living in Charlotte. Son Shand was married in Granada, Spain, in May and son Julian is a law student in Columbia, South Carolina. She spends time with classmates DeAnna Williams Huffines and Anne Rice Putnam. They occasionally hang out with Scotty Grine Frantz ’81HS ’83C, who attended the wedding with them in Spain. Sydney Kepley Kempson writes, “Our youngest, Izzy Kempson ’20 graduates from UNC in May with a degree in advertising and public relations with a minor in public policy from the Hussman School of Journalism. Four years flew by way too fast! She is off to Jackson, Wyoming, for a year, where many of her friends are also headed. Grace Kempson ’18 continues to live in the Asheville area and recently began a new job she loves, working with St. Gerard House, a non-profit that provides support for those affected by autism. She also continues to give her time to the Boys and Girls Club. "Her kids" are near and dear to her heart. Sydney and Craig are still in Raleigh, where she sees many SMS friends. They continue to enjoy spending time at Wrightsville Beach and in Saluda as much as possible. I continue to live in Richmond, Virginia, and work in oncology molecular genomics at Natera, covering from Richmond to Wytheville. I yack with Gray Cunningham Lynn, who also works for Natera, on occasion. I began renovation on an 1883 farmhouse on the Rappahannock River in Urbanna, Virginia, this past December. So, if we're friends on Facebook, you've likely been amused by the "Pandora's box house" and never-ending surprises that will likely be my retirement project for years to come! We had a great turnout for last spring's 40th reunion and I loved seeing everyone, especially Dabney Mann Hollis, Caroline Johnson Douglas and Elizabeth Rouse Borden, who I hadn't seen in many years. Let me know if you're passing through Richmond or the Middle Peninsula or Northern Neck of Virginia. My attempt at downsizing to my condo was short-lived, so I hope everyone caught my new house address update in time to make our newsletter! Mary Beth
1983
COLLEGE
Cammy Bailey Hodges writes, “Fred and I continue to travel the Carolinas and Virginia, selling great products to all types of retailers. It is always fun to connect with SMC friends along the way! We ran into Julia Bunton Hunt in Wilmington and had a great visit. Our daughter, Sara Worth, married Mark Whitley on February 10, and it was a great weekend celebrating them!”
1985
HIGH SCHOOL
Rebecca Pace ’85HS
Usually, I try to write a few amusing stories and anecdotes about people in our class, but instead, today I must make myself write the sad news of the passing of two of our classmates. Sadly, we lost within a few months Michelle Mason King (December 5, 1967 – November 30, 2023) and Margaret Meriwether Hill Fentress (March 23, 1967 –March 1, 2024). Meriwether was five days older than me, and I had hoped we might be able to celebrate our shared birthdays and her good health when she left the hospital. Both girls (as I still refer to my Saint Mary’s friends) were day students, but what I found to be warm and inviting during my time at Saint Mary’s was that the friendships between day and boarding students went beyond the gates or dorm rooms. I can still remember first meeting the two of them and enjoying that they were both up for adventures. After graduating from Saint Mary’s, Michelle went to Carolina, and Meriwether went to the College of Charleston. Later, they both shared further study at N.C. State (but not at the same time). Michelle met her husband, Kevin King, at N.C. State. Meriwether, after adventuring to Antarctica and other continents, gained her master’s in landscape architecture. They both loved music and spent time together at Michelle’s Wrightsville Beach house. At Meriwether’s memorial service, before her brother Jim gave the eulogy, the Grateful Dead’s Sugar Magnolia rang out, causing quite a few chuckles to spread through the pews. During the service, a friend of Meriwether’s sang beautifully Pat Benatar’s Hit Me With Your Best Shot! Meriwether loved Pat Benatar and attended many of her concerts with Eleanor White Hunter ’87C and Elizabeth Anderson Purrington. Both women loved their families (including
The Class of 1985 High School mourns the loss of classmates Michelle Mason King and Meriwether Hill Fentress, pictured here in recent years, from left to right.
Meriwether’s mother, Margaret Brunson Hill ’56C, and her sister, Charlotte Hill Wickham ’82HS), friends, and most importantly, their children: John D. Fentress, Jr., Mason S. King, and William W. King. We will miss them dearly and I hope we can all keep their sons in our prayers, as they move through life without their loving and devoted mothers. Switching from sad news to more positive accounts, I didn’t hear from many of you. Hoping you write in with some cheery news next year – which will be our reunion year! Elizabeth Anderson Purrington enjoys currently being on the board of CAM Raleigh (Contemporary Art Museum), as she has been on most of the art boards in Raleigh! She is also active at the North Carolina Museum of Art. Mary Mac Ogden Motley’s children are definitely not waiting for their next Greek grilled cheese or Time Out biscuit in college. Mary Laci Motley is a 2021 graduate of UNC-Chapel Hill, where she was a Robertson Scholar. She was named to Forbes 30 under 30 this January for her company Eats2Seats and was the commencement speaker for the Kenan Flagler Business School on May 11. Mary Mac is justly proud of her and wanted to share the news. (Maybe Mary Laci can hire me.) Her older daughter is a captain in the Marine Corps and has been stationed in Asia for the past four years; Mary Mac’s husband is deployed to the Middle East. Following not too far behind, Mary Mac is a professor for the Ph.D. program in history at Liberty University and works as a resident historian for Viking and American Cruise Lines as a “side hustle.” Maybe if I play my cards right, I can be a stowaway in Mary Mac’s suitcase on a cruise. Hoping all of you are in good health and spirits, mes amies! See you next year at our 40th – egads! – reunion! Rebecca
1987
COLLEGE
Chrissy Bolin Rand ’87C Everyone must be too busy to write in this year. And I was too busy to send out an email to remind y’all. Kathy Respess was the lone sweet soul to send an update. Kathy writes, “My news is I got married in May of 2023 and had my amazing SMC sisters to be with me! Still love my work with Travis & Co., calling on North Carolina and South Carolina interior designers. Love living on the Pamlico River in Washington, North Carolina, with my sweet husband, Vance Moore, and our fur baby, Beau!” Will and I are living in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, and try not to watch the news. Love y’all, Chrissy
1989
HIGH SCHOOL
Heath Dalton Parker ’89HS ’91C
Travis Brady’s book, Make Room For Healing: 40 Tips from a Breast Cancer Survivor, will be published by Penguin Random House this fall, October 8. Pre-orders are available now at all major retailers. “I wrote this book to make breast cancer treatment easier for the ones we love. You can read more about this at TravisBrady.com.” Kathryn Falls Roberts still lives in South Boston, Virginia. Her oldest, Virginia, graduated from Roanoke College in May 2023, spent three months in Italy as an au pair, and is now in New Zealand for a year doing the same thing. Her youngest, Talley, is a junior at Wofford College and will be working at A Bar A ranch in Wyoming this summer. Kathryn travels a lot just keeping up with them! She also spends as much time as she can at Hatteras on the Outer Banks. In February, she spent two weeks in India traveling with Alice Boggs Schroeder and had
the best time! Kirke Hooper Pate ’89HS ’91C lives in Wake Forest, North Carolina, where she and her husband are very active in the town. Their new love is supporting the local collegiate summer league baseball team, the Wake Forest Fungo! Heath Dalton Parker ’89HS ’91C lives in Raleigh with her husband, Thad, and children, Kate (16) and Owen (14). Kate has just started driving, and Owen is living his best life after recently joining a high adventure Boy Scout troop. Although we live in Raleigh, we spend a lot of time traveling to the Asheville area for fun. If you are in Raleigh, please be in touch. I look forward to getting the local ’89HS SMS girls together for an outing soon! Heath
1989 COLLEGE
Lawson Armes ’87HS ’89C
Greetings to the class of ’89! Michelle Baba Raiford is enjoying life in Asheville with her husband, James. They have no children; however they love their two rescues dogs, Cooper and Penny. Michelle enjoys not working and sends her love to everyone. Ginny Griffin Varnum and husband Jamie are forever the beach natives. They continue to embrace life on their farm. Ginny manages property while Jamie still has his “day job” in construction, however with 27 honeybee hives, his hobby might become a full time job. The oldest daughter, Carter, lives close-by on Oak Island and continues to grow her horse business, Honalee Stables, at their farm in Bolivia, North Carolina. Second-born daughter, Griffin Hewett ’10 is now Dr. Griffin Hewett, DVM. Youngest daughter, Davis Varnum ’25 is a boarder at SMS. As a new junior this past year, she acclimated quickly by joining the theater department for last fall’s production of Treasure Island. She also enjoys spending time in Bratton Hall (the art building), working on her art and music. Ginny enjoys being back on campus and is grateful for Robin Conklin ’93HS and her family for helping Davis feel at home. Ginny had a great time when Dena Blount Gearhart ’87HS ’89C visited her last summer, along with a surprise visit from Christine Austin James ’87HS and her husband, Reece, who came to visit from Florida. The Saint Mary’s force was strong last year. Wendy MacKinnon Hadley and husband John live in Charlotte, where Wendy works in residential real estate and John works in commercial real estate. Oldest daughter Ella graduated from Myers Park High School in June and will attend Winthrop University this fall. Daughter Sally is a rising junior at MPHS. Their latest family adventure was to the Turks and Caicos in the spring. Elizabeth Allen Womack and husband Clark are excited and proud that their oldest child (my godson), Wills, graduated in May from N.C. State. Their son, Davis, will be a senior in the fall at Broughton High School in Raleigh. Dara Evans Brownlow stays busy with daughters Jacqueline and Annie. Jacqueline pledged KD this spring at Wofford College in Spartanburg, South Carolina. Annie completed her freshman year at Myers Park High School in Charlotte as a member of the JV soccer team and on student council. As for me, I’m loving life in Pawleys Island. I stay busy working, along with dog and house sitting, not to mention working on my “tan.” I enjoy seeing and keeping up with some classmates on a regular basis along with other Saint Mary’s alumnae. If you are in the area, please reach out and say hello. Lawson
1993 HIGH SCHOOL
Claudia Bishop Stubbs ’93HS Hi, Class of ’93! I hope that everyone is doing well. Fran Kennedy Seaman writes, “I’m still in Smithfield with my husband, Craig, and our kids, Daniel and Afton. I own my own business, The Mad Knitter, and I also work as a social media manager for some Raleigh-area businesses.” Jennifer Boleman Ford writes, “I’m still at Bank of America and recently got a promotion. Our daughter, Carson Ford ’22, is a sophomore architect major at N.C. State and competed on their club gymnastics team this year. Our family loved cheering the Wolfpack on their road to the Final Four! Our two sons (high school junior and seventh-grader) keep us busy at home with year-round baseball. Our family’s bucket list is to see all 30 MLB stadiums and we crossed off #10 and #11, Kansas City and St. Louis, during spring break. Robin Conklin is in her seventh year at Saint Mary's and is the director of the Binder Health Center. “I love being a school nurse and helping our students grow into their healthiest selves. My husband, Erik, and I live on campus with our two dogs (Darby and Johnny) and two cats (Dee Dee and Stormy). The house behind the Chapel is where I live and work. The Health Center is in the front and our apartment in the back. Anyone is welcome to stop by for a visit. It was wonderful to see so many of you at the reunion last year.” Heather Gibson Harmon writes, “Lots of changes in 2024! Our girls continue to grow up too fast. Anne Gibson will be four in June, and Arrington will be two. They are keeping us old parents young as we take on new adventures. We bought a new house and are opening a new business. While we open our Chicken Salad Chick, I will continue to keep my job in medical device sales while my husband runs day-to-day operations. I continue to stay in touch and get out occasionally with the local SMS Raleigh girls. I love seeing our friends who have daughters continuing the SMS legacy. I'm looking forward to seeing our SMS beach friends this summer, as well. Sending much love to all our classmates and love reading about what everyone has been up to this past year.” As for me, I am still staying busy working virtually as an SLP for an area school system. I am also working as a personal assistant for a local startup called Sherah. It is a company dedicated to helping working families get it all done! It has been a fun and rewarding way to earn a little extra income. The company is planning to branch into the Northern Virginia area next. There is also talk of expanding to North Carolina (possibly Raleigh). So, be on the lookout! Jim and I stay busy with our three kids, James (16), John Bayley (13), and Sarah Claxton (7), and all the activities that come along with three kids. We are looking forward to spending some time at the beach this summer in between camps! Jim continues to spend lots of time in Lexington at their family vineyard. They have recently built and opened a much larger tasting room in hopes of holding weddings and other special events, along with a recently refurbished/renovated home on the vineyard property. The house will also be available to rent soon. If you are ever in the area, check out Curran Alexander Vineyards. I was able to spend a long weekend this winter with Cassie Warrington, Cameron Dixon Currie, and Jennifer Boleman Ford in Annapolis, Maryland. Lots of good food, drinks, and laughs were had by all. It was so nice to spend some time with my SMS girls. I hope to see more of you over the summer. Be well, my friends, XOXO, Claudia
1993
COLLEGE
Dow Perry Crowder ’91HS ’93C Valerie Van Oosten Cline and family are still in the D.C. area. She got out of the mortgage business last year and has spent a lot of time traveling and reconnecting with friends in Singapore, Denmark, Palm Beach, Mexico, the Outer Banks, and New Orleans for her first Jazzfest — it has been such a gift! But she now needs to get back to work and in the throes of searching for a new job. Mimi Pinner and daughter Weatherly (12) came for a visit with Val this year. Weatherly, along with Val’s children, Aidan (13) and Coco (9), had a BIG time. Val says it saved her because her husband had been out of town on trial duty for six weeks, and she was really needing Mimi. Isn’t it wonderful how our SMS friendships truly are forever friendships? Ashley Shelton ’91HS ’93C enjoyed three weeks exploring Italy last August with her husband and son, celebrating big birthdays and their anniversary. They were married in Siena 10 years ago. Catherine Dalton Feldman is still in Wilmington, North Carolina, and absolutely loves living at the coast. She’s a portrait photographer and enjoys working with high school seniors. Her daughter is graduating this year from East Carolina and her son is at N.C. State. Andy and Catherine will be celebrating 25 years of marriage this summer and she reports that life is good! Like a lot of us, Jen Stocks turned 50 recently. She says she thought it was going to be the start of the best decade ever. She’d been told your 50s are amazing, it’s when you stop caring what everyone thinks, and you can just say whatever is on your mind. While that part is true (people close to her might say that’s become a bit too true), the part that really sucks is that every joint in her body seems to be yelling at her 24/7. So, she is trying all the supplements Instagram tries to sell her and every support contraption amazon recommends. She has embraced athleisure, especially matching sets, and she happens to think she looks pretty darn cute in them! She is still producing unscripted TV for TLC, living in Pittsboro and raising a 14-year-old daughter and 10-year-old son. Jen says her daughter didn’t like her for about a year, but she’s come around now and sees Jen for the wise old lady that she is. Her son is an angel straight from heaven. Jen recently started taking piano lessons again, and when her 20-something instructor asked her about previous experience, of course she told him about playing with the amazing washtub band, Cold Cuts. Turns out, that’s a weird concept to explain to a younger generation! She reports that she’s still married to the same man, in spite of the previously mentioned new habit of saying whatever’s on her mind! I can say that Jen’s sense of humor has only gotten better with age! She sends us all love! Jamie Brantley Fernandez de Castro writes that it’s been a busy year! Miguel is still busy at work. They are taking on an exciting renovation project in Sarasota, Florida. Their oldest son, Alex, a junior at Elon, is studying business. Nicolas graduated this spring from high school and is headed to Boca Raton to attend FAU. Son Tristan is a rising junior in high school and just got his license. Having three drivers is exciting and terrifying! Natalie is a new teen. She enjoys playing basketball, volleyball, tennis, and golf — she’s busy! Their sweet, little Brayden started middle school this year. He’s doing great and enjoys basketball and golf with his brothers and sister. As for Jamie, she stays busy sharing time between Sarasota and Kiawah, with lots of design and fun in the sun. She wishes us all well! Ann Lee Johnson has had some big changes. She’s living in Sumter, South Carolina, and really likes it. She is active with her church and is working at a beautiful
home décor shop, which she loves. Little Gill is happy at the College of Charleston. Ann loves being close to Smyth who is at the University of South Carolina. Having seen her a bunch this past year, I can report she is great and living her best life! She loves and misses us all! Sara Apple Wolcott has the most exciting news. She’s in the throes of wedding planning and house hunting! Daughter Madeline was accepted to Syracuse and will be studying fashion marketing/ merchandising. Son Tad, a rising junior at University of Puget Sound in Tacoma, Washington, is studying writing and philosophy. He has applied for a grant to do research over the summer. Sara reports that she saw Kate King Evans in Asheville this winter. They had so many laughs and it was like no time had passed since they last saw each other (1993!). Sara also ran into Betsy Harrison at a funeral in Virginia Beach, saying it was so great to see her and wishes they’d gotten to chat longer! (I, too, ran into Betsy at a funeral, and didn’t get to chat long enough). Sadly, Sara’s sweet mother, Bonnie, passed away this winter from dementia. Bonnie lived with Sara before she needed 24hour care, and Sara is at peace knowing her family is being watched over from above and her mother is not confused anymore. She speaks highly of Capital Caring Hospice, which made the process so much easier and provides grief counselling for a year after your loved one has passed. Our thoughts and love are with you Sara! Mary Louise Talley works at Powell Elementary in Raleigh as a kindergarten assistant. She also teaches art at Arts Together Preschool in the summers and at her home. Mary Louise’s daughter Rainey (11) is a rising seventh-grader. She attends Camp Cheerio in the summer. Mary Louise and I ran into each other a few years ago at a Camp Cheerio mother/daughter weekend. It was great to see her and Rainey and catch up! Kasey Waters Amburn and family decided to take an adventure and move to Ocracoke two years ago. They are enjoying the beautiful island and its people! Daughter Grace (14) is headed to Saint Mary’s in the fall! She’s excited, as she has always wanted to go! Kristan Ford Dewey reports that her three children are doing great. Scarlet and Holden live in Burlington, Vermont. Sam is at VES in Lynchburg, Virginia. Her divorce from Eddie was finalized in December, and since she is an empty nester now, as she wrote this, Kris was sitting on a plane on the way to Europe for a month (personally, SO very jealous of that adventure!) She is living her best life, with lots of “firsts!” We all wish you the very best, Kris! Kate King Evans has a daughter (16) who is driving, and already looking at colleges. Kate says she is so kind and smart, Kate wonders if maybe she was switched with another child at birth! Kate has been dating a great guy for four years now. They are happily living under separate roofs, and she attributes their great relationship to this. They are fortunate enough to travel a lot. This spring they went to the British Virgin Islands with his family and hers. She feels truly blessed! Tyler Hill Ford reports that daughter Gray graduated from grad school at High Point University in May and is hoping to find an internship in the Raleigh area, with hopes of a full time offer. Son Maxwell is finishing his sophomore year, also at High Point University. He is hoping to do an internship with a financial advisor in preparation for when he graduates in May of 2026. Other than that, her life is great and she’s always happy to hear what’s going on with all of us. She loves and misses us all!
Kristi Moyer Davis is doing well and is the CEO of Water Guard Inc. in Wilson. Daughter Kensly graduated with honors from UNC-Wilmington in May with a major in communication and a minor in integrated marketing. Son Corbin graduated from high school in June. Kristi wishes us all the best! Betsy Harrison is still in Virginia Beach. She’s with a new company, Harrow, Inc., launching a
new eye medication and traveling a ton throughout the state. Betsy has joined a pickleball league. (She says that what’s you do when you turn 50! Well, she can speak for herself! Dow Perry Crowder is NOT joining a pickleball league but hats off to you Betsy!) In the winter, she travels to Puerto Vallarta for long weekends as often as she can, or to Colorado to ski. In the summer, she’s either at the beach or on her bike! She misses us and wishes us all well! Ann Akers-Douglas writes that all is well in Florida. She is going to be an empty nester starting this fall. She says it’s hard to believe that all three of her sweet boys will either be in college or working in the real world! She says that she’s starting to plan her second chapter: a move, a new job, more travel — we can’t wait to find out what’s next for you, Ann! Jennie Minges Hobbs reports that her oldest, Betsy, is graduating and heading to Baylor in Texas this fall. Son William is in third grade, so Jennie is a long way from an empty nest! She hopes to continue to travel near and far. She’d love to get together with a group (me too) sometime. Julie Thomas Growney reports that it’s a big year for the Growneys! Sarah graduated from high school in May. Mary Braxton was accepted into the nursing program at East Carolina. Julie and John will be empty-nesters and they are looking forward to some travel and some down time. She says that life is good, and she is very blessed! Charlotte Stephenson Hagman says that her family has had a roller coaster of a year. Her mother-in-law passed away in December, and while it was peaceful, it’s been a lot for Charlotte to process as for the past four years, she was the primary caregiver. She thought she’d have some free time but things amped up with the twins last year in elementary school. All the things Charlotte said she’d never do: troop leader, PTA, driving to various activities, etc. She figures that as long as they want her around, she will do it! The girls will be 13 this summer. Cat is a blackbelt, Sally is one belt away. They also do aerials, strings, and seemingly every school-involved activity. Unfortunately, Charlotte’s family attended the Kansas City Chiefs Super Bowl victory rally and were very close to the shooting that happened. Sally and Charlotte’s husband, Rob, were knocked down, but other than a “messed up knee” for Rob, they were thankfully unharmed, though terrified! This spring, they had a fun trip to Disneyland. Charlotte is now trying to figure out if she wants to go back to being a therapist and try a new venture! Ashley Jones had a fun trip to Key Largo last summer on a Raleigh Chamber fundraiser trip. While there, she went paddle boarding for the first time with her boyfriend, Charles, and fell in love with it! Last fall, she attended the national Commercial Real Estate for Women, better known as CREW, for their national conference in Atlanta. She met so many impressive businesswomen from around the country. She practices her Ashtanga yoga six days a week — it’s perfect for physical and mental strength! Another fun thing is that Ashley learned how to fly-fish with her boyfriend last fall in Asheville. She reports that she’s still working as a commercial banker at Pinnacle Financial Partners in Raleigh. Her family recently celebrated her mother’s (Joeanne Jones) 80th birthday at the Angus Barn. It’s so great to hear from all you ladies! I’ve been lucky to spend some time with Ann Lee Johnson this past year. She makes me laugh, which is good for my soul. Jason is great, and Lilly (11) is an absolute wonder. She’s like a surprise package that I get to open every day — much like a beautiful, cuddly, new puppy that smells wonderful and is nothing but joy and brightness. But then one day you open the door and find a snarling animal you don’t recognize, the blinds are torn down, the cushions are all messed up, everything in the pantry is torn open, and every pair of shoes has been chewed. She is all tween and very well may be the end of me.
On a whim, Jason bought season tickets for N.C. State women’s basketball this past year. It turned out for it to be the best year for us to get into it, because they had a really good year! We had such a great time, going to all the home games, and a few of the ACC tournament games, and the beginning of the NCAA tournament games, which were played in Raleigh. Seeing them go to the Final Four was so exciting! Lilly has been inspired to try out for basketball next year and will be going to N.C. State basketball camp this summer. Well wishes would be appreciated on all fronts. She’s also going to Camp Cheerio, which evidently slays. We will spend lots of time at Nags Head, and that slays too. Other than that and needing to strengthen the RX on my progressive lenses (which does not slay), all is well! Hugs and kisses, ladies, hugs and kisses! You all slay. XO, Dow
1995
COLLEGE
Tate Tattersall Garrison ’95C
Hope this finds all of you well. There was not a lot of news from our class this go-round, but our dear friend Heather Gibson Harmon wrote, “Lots of changes in 2024! Our girls continue to grow up too fast. Anne Gibson will be four in June and Arrington is two. They are keeping us old parents young as we take on new adventures. We bought a new house and are opening up a new business. While we open our Chicken Salad Chick, I will continue to keep my job in medical device sales while my husband runs day-to-day operations. I continue to stay in touch and get out occasionally with the local SMS Raleigh girls. I love seeing our friends who have daughters continuing the SMS legacy. I'm looking forward to seeing our SMS beach friends this summer, as well. Sending much love to all our classmates and love reading about what everyone has been up to this past year.” Ashley Dawson Forbes was so pleased this year as her daughter Julia Forbes ’27 had a great 9th grade year at Saint Mary’s. As for me, we have so enjoyed Amelia’s first year at Saint Mary’s. It is like walking back into time, bringing so many happy memories. We are already too busy with Thatcher and his upcoming senior year. Make time slow down! Hope to see some of you soon. With much love, Tate, XO
1997 HIGH SCHOOL
Alice Manning Touchette ’97HS Jesssica Nance Rushing writes, “I’m living in Rock Hill, South Carolina, with our twin boys, Hayes and McCall (8), and daughter Dorsey (11). We’ve been married for 20 years!”
1999
Elizabeth Moerman Davis ’99
Laura Chilton Midgette lives in Wilmington, North Carolina, with husband John and daughter Parker (7). “I recently made a big career change, taking on the role of risk advisor with SIA Group. I have enjoyed collaborating with Jane Fleury on some mutual clients. If you have any insurance needs, feel free to contact me! Looking forward to partying like it’s 1999 at the reunion!”
2001
Louise Beasley Warenda ’01
Austin Nash Coley is a realtor in Raleigh with Dogwood Properties. She and her husband, Cameron, have three kids and she loves to see her SMS friends every chance she gets. Amanda Baker Harris and her husband, George, and son Burns (5), reside in Raleigh and are looking forward to Burns starting kindergarten. They will soon be moving back east to Washington, North Carolina. Kimmi Kresica is still searching for a permanent LIS job but staying busy. In March, she presented a survey of regional library and archive collections at the Southern Conference on Slavic Studies. Currently, she’s co-curating the exhibit Joseph Conrad’s Polish-Ukrainian “Graveyard,” on the author's family photo album, which will be open at Duke University Libraries from October 2024-March 2025. Also exciting, her research and descriptions are now available with the photographs in DUL's digital repository. Cori Samuels Nadeau’s family had a "surprise" in 2023. On October 31, 2023, Lena Mary-Elizabeth Nadeau was born giving them three wonderful children with holidays for birthdays. They have Mother's Day and Valentine's Day children, too. While Cori never thought of herself as a teacher, she has been a dedicated mother/teacher, homeschooling her children since 2019, and it has been a beautiful ride. Every moment is a teachable moment. She says, “All things are possible with God.” Travis Manning Berk says, “I am continuing to enjoy mountain life living in Valle Crucis and working in Boone with my family. The girls are growing fast (9 and 7). We have plans to travel to Rocky Mountain National Park this summer with family, in addition to playing in our local rivers and creeks in North Carolina. Love to all.” As for me, Louise Beasley Warenda, I cannot believe it’s been another year. It’s been a joy reconnecting with many SMS friends in the last year through work and play. Please continue to stay in touch. Joe and I are looking forward to lots of summer fun with Beasley (13), Mary Bruce (10), and Emily (5). I hope my path with you continues to cross. Louise
2003
Shea Vause Gravely ’03
Tatyana Sharoubim writes, “I’m preparing to launch my own brand this year after an over a decade-long pursuit. It’s called True Blue Vibes. It’s a luxury surf lifestyle brand, cultivated around honoring our love of the coastal waters, sustainability, and collaboration. I also have a book coming out soon that coincides with the “why” of the whole brand and my mindfulness journey thus far. Of course, the store is still going strong and turning 20 years old next year! Let me know if you need more info. Sarasota is thriving and life here is a dream.” Meg Stacey married Matt McCallum on April 29, 2023, at the Orchard Inn in Saluda, North Carolina. Reagan Cannon married her partner, Lynzie Adams, on Oct. 14, 2023. Sandy Sawyer married Matt McGlothlin on Nov. 12, 2023 and became a stepmom to her husband's children, Etta and Willis. Sarah Todd McNally and husband Jim welcomed their second precious baby boy, Jagger Todd McNally, on January 10, 2024. Love, Shea
2005
Ila Walker Bittner ’05
Rachael van Beelen Berger and her husband, Brandon, are enjoying life with their two children, Emma and Leo. Leo was born on September 4, 2023, on Labor Day! Alex Crimmins Kaminski and her husband, Kyle, moved to Boca Raton, Florida, this past fall with their
son Ryan, who was born in August of 2022. As for me, Ila Walker Bittner, we have started a foundation in honor of our daughter, Brinn Louise, called the Brave Little Brinny Lou Foundation. She completed treatment for leukemia in May 2023, and we felt inspired to do something. We are working toward throwing our first big fundraiser to support a local Eastern North Carolina family going through childhood cancer treatments, as well as contributing to childhood cancer research at UNC-Chapel Hill. Ila
2007
Elizabeth Lowder ’07
The class of 2007 has several exciting new updates to share. We are starting off celebrating the new baby boys. Courtney Lindt Thompson and her husband welcomed their first son, Nash William Thompson, on November 4, 2023. Cally Eberle Ciencin and husband Brian were overjoyed with the birth of their first son, Henry Francis Ciencin, on February 24, 2024. Maria Slater Cienfuegos gave birth to a second son, Nico Garza Cienfuegos, born July 8, 2023. He joins his big brother Mateo (2). It also looks like we may also have a few future Saints! Read all about the new baby girls. Margaret Matteson Richards and husband Greer welcomed their second daughter, Grace Greer Richards, on December 31, 2023, and Mary Mitchell (2) has been a great big sister! They currently reside in Raleigh with the girls and a black lab, Patton. Scottie Springer O’Herron added another daughter to her family: Katherine “Kate” Scott O’Herron was born on January 16, 2024. Also born on January 16, 2024, was Georgiana Neal Brendel, third child to Capel Kane Brendel and husband Ross. Hannah Allen Myers lives in Chattanooga, Tennessee, with husband Evan and two children, Sadie (7) and Will (4). Hannah opened a community pottery studio two years ago that supports makers in the community. You can find her making pots or teaching adult and youth ceramics classes. (Field trip, anyone?). Leigh Morauer Hammill and her husband, Brian, live in Raleigh with their two dogs and a cat. Leigh's real estate company just celebrated its fifth anniversary. They have added a new member to the pack, a husky-mix named Mabel, in the last year and that has kept life very exciting. Culbreth Jones is a freelance graphic designer living in Raleigh with her husband, Joe Ferla, and their two sons, Jude and Avery. Helen Johnson shares that Joy Zhou and her family visited her last summer and their kids had a wonderful time playing together. As for me, Lizzie Lowder, I am still
in Birmingham, Alabama, working as a multimedia producer for UAB Health System. I usually make a few trips back to Raleigh throughout the year and hope to see y'all soon! Lizzie
2009
Betsy Church Bula ’09
Emma Carol Lewis Moore and her husband welcomed a son, Joseph “Little Joe” Forrest Moore Jr. on July 15, 2023. Shelbey Holmes Esposito and her husband, Michael, recently welcomed a baby boy, McClain, to the family on April 1, 2024. He is very mild-mannered and was thankfully well-received by his big sister, Sloane. Shelbey lives in Atlanta, where she is a senior product manager for Zep, a CPG chemicals company. She’s looking forward to spring as a family of four and is praying that the Saint Mary’s class of ’09 is happy and healthy! Mary Southgate Dickson Simms and husband Peter live in Raleigh with their 14-year-old dog, Nala. After 10 years with Personify, she started a new job this year as an employee experience manager at Constellation Brands. Adams Paschal Lent and husband Will live in Charlottesville, Virginia, with their one-year-old daughter, Pippa. Adams continues to work in marketing for a digital service agency, WillowTree. Becca Vinson Hamilton and her husband, John, are coming up on 10 years of living in Atlanta. Becca is mom to three children, John John (4), Haley (2), and Mary Walker (1). Becca launched a private counseling practice in February 2024 and enjoys trying to find the balance in work and family life! Betsy Bryan Pitts Mandl and husband Michael welcomed their son, Edward, in March. Edward has been such a joyful addition! They are having lots of fun introducing him to family and friends, and Wallace is being a great fur-brother. Caroline Fuqua Owens lives in Mount Pleasant, South Carolina, with her husband, Joe, and two daughters, Sarah Sutton (3.5) and Mills (1.5). Arrington Clark Caison and husband John welcomed their second son, Clark Walton Caison, on September 4, 2023. I live in Raleigh with my husband, Dan, and our daughter, Emory, who turns two in August. I’m in marketing at a software company called GitLab, where I’ve been working for five years. Life is always crazy-busy these days, but so sweet! I loved getting to be back on campus with many of you for our reunion. Such a special group and place. Sending all my love! Betsy
Class of 2010 classmates got together in Raleigh in October 2023. Pictured with their children, from left to right: Sophie Trotter Stanwick ’10, Gates Killian Spilman ’10, Cassie Helda Sagehorn ’10, Katie Mitchell Saieed ’10, and Liza Wooten DeFago ’10.
2011
Elizabeth Ann Carson Blair ’11
Roshni Jain is completing her gastroenterology fellowship at the University of Cincinnati. She will be serving as the chief fellow for her program for the 2024-2025 academic year. Abby Daniel Vallecillo shares happy news of the birth of a son, Luke Vallecillo, on November 28, 2023. Emily Childers and husband Miles welcomed their son, William, this year. Ana Blackman spontaneously moved to London during the pandemic and after working for a year as a 1:1 learning support assistant to an autistic child in a kindergarten classroom at a Church of England primary school, decided to pursue a teaching degree. She attended the University of Reading, receiving a post graduate certificate in education with a specialty in early years education. She is working in her first teaching post as a kindergarten teacher at a primary school in Southeast England. “Life is busy, but I am loving teaching the future generation how to read and write!” Louise Mann Dull lives in Charlotte with her husband, William. She is an interior designer. They welcomed their daughter, Frances, on June 2, 2023, and are enjoying life with a one-year-old. Elizabeth
2013
Catherine Carter Ferrell ’13
Alex Mahoney Brennan and her husband, Danny, were married in August 2023 in Sea Island, Georgia. After graduating law school in May, she will continue residing and working in New York City. Ashby Bonds lives in New York City, where she has been located since college graduation. She is looking forward to more SMS weddings to get together with friends! Catherine Blair Polak lives in Charlotte with her husband, Tom. They welcomed their daughter, Lily Catherine Polak, in September 2023. Charlotte Niemann lives in New York City, where she has worked in HR for Galaxy for the past two years. Elise McKinney lives in Charlotte. Helen Williamson recently started a new job with Asana Partners in Charlotte. Anna Bridgforth Olderman and her husband, Justin, were married in July 2022. They moved to Richmond and bought a house in 2023, mostly for their black lab, Otis, to have a yard. Suejette Black lives in Raleigh, where she continues to own/manage Spenga, a workout studio in Chapel Hill, with her sister, Hutter Black ’12 Cameron Sloan Hodgson and her husband, Sam, recently moved to New Canaan, Connecticut. Abbey Dale lives in New York City, where she has been working at Walmart corporate in advertising for one year now. Wesley-Neal Stallings Jenkins and her husband, Watson, live in Raleigh with their son, Watson (1) and golden retriever, Lou. They also welcomed their second son, Briar Clark Jenkins, in March 2024. Suzi Peak recently received her BSN and is in the process of applying to FNP school. She currently lives in Wilmington, North Carolina, with her dog and two guinea pigs. Marion Brown Jester and husband Mitchell were married in October 2023 in Raleigh. Marion is enjoying her fourth year of law practice with Moore & Van Allen’s financial services team. Marion and Mitchell live in Greenville, South Carolina, and in their free time love exploring downtown Greenville with friends and hiking in the nearby mountains. Catherine
2015
Kayla Gwaltney ’15 and Hayley Scialdone ’15
Kayla Gwaltney and Hayley Scialdone cannot believe it has already been a year since our last update. As usual, our beloved class of 2015 showed up with tons of exciting updates, and we are so proud to be a part of this group of women. As for us, Kayla had a very eventful year finishing Teach For America, moving to N.Y.C. to work for an education technology company, then moving back to North Carolina to live in the Outer Banks and work in hospitality for a moment. She is now back in Raleigh, saving money before she begins graduate school at George Washington University in the fall in its MPA program, where she will focus on education policy. Hayley continues to live in N.Y.C. and works in UX/UI. She also gained a sister-in-law this year and has loved watching her family grow. Kendall Hamilton lives in Los Angeles. She is over the moon that Maryanne Martini and Relia Monk will be visiting later this year and cannot wait to take them to Erewhon. Kendall works at HBO/Max, in subscriber growth strategy, and will be very busy with global product launches and House of the Dragon this summer. Grayson Rodriguez is in the final year of her Ph.D. program in the immunology program at Stanford University. Since her last update, she has co-authored several peer-reviewed research publications and has been issued a patent as a co-inventor of new synthetic biology technology. Outside of her research, she enjoys training in Brazilian jiu-jitsu. Madeline Joslin lives just a few blocks from Saint Mary's and loves her job at the City of Raleigh Solid Waste Services. She has been working on an app to make recycling, composting, and disposing of waste in Raleigh easier. You can find the Raleigh Reuse App in the app store this summer! Hannah Groover graduated from NCSU’s graduate school with a master’s of social work degree and honors standing. She is working as a therapist in the Raleigh area. Carson Buckthal lives and in works in New York City with her husband, Peter Bristow. She works as an account manager at the ad agency, Union. She loves exploring the city and visiting all her SMS friends. Augusta Moran works at Ricci Law Firm, P.A., as a workers’ compensation attorney and is glad to be past the “first year of practice learning curve.” She is happy to be in Raleigh and is always excited to host her friends when they visit, which is happening more and more often! She has continued to direct the Christ Church Christmas pageant after taking it over from her mother, and really enjoys volunteering at Christ Church in the children and youth ministries. This summer, she will go on a trip with a group of high schoolers from Christ Church to volunteer with Glory Ridge in Marshall, North Carolina. In April, Augusta had a blast visiting her younger sister, Isabel Moran ’21, in Italy while Isabel was studying abroad for the semester. Augusta is most excited for all the times she will see other Saints this year, both near and far (too far!). Aurelia Monk is entering her final year at UNC School of Medicine after completing a research fellowship through the Howard Holderness Distinguished Scholars Program at UNC. During her research fellowship, she worked on many projects and published several scientific manuscripts. Though her research year was a nice change of pace, she is excited to return to clinical rotations and apply for residency this summer. Ciera Woodard is making great use of her Doctor of Pharmacy by working at Johnson and Johnson as an oncology risk management senior specialist. She also works part-time at Duke University Health Systems as a clinical IV pharmacist. Outside of her work life, she is helping take care of
her father. She loves to work out at Burn Boot Camp, walking trails, being a part-time cat mom to her boyfriend's two cats, and being a dog mom to her goldendoodle, Snoodles. Ciera continues to love living in Raleigh. Sarah Boyce Young and her husband, Andrew, live in Raleigh together with their dog, Winnie. Sarah continues to enjoy her role as an account manager at Eckel & Vaughan, a marketing and communications agency. Jacqueline Collie Baggett and husband Joseph live in Washington, D.C., with their golden retriever named Motts. Jacqueline is a legislative director for U.S. Congressman Brian Fitzpatrick and is heading into her final year of law school at American University Washington College of Law. Maddy Sullivan lives in Charlotte, working for an interior designer. She is roommates with fellow Class of 2015 Saint, Liddy Blincow, and her dog, Bee. Maggie Collier still lives in Nashville, Tennessee, and works at Bohan Advertising in the business development department. Carson Clay is graduating from NYU medical school in the spring. After graduating, she will relocate to the Bay Area to begin her OB/GYN residency at Kaiser Oakland. Makenzie Fletcher Caycedo is working towards her doctorate in education: curriculum and instruction. She continues to live in Lynchburg, Virginia, with her husband. She works remotely, which allows her to watch daughter Sofía grow every day. Emma Wason still lives in Old Town Alexandria, Virginia, with her dog, Dooley. She works at Georgetown University in the Office of Advancement for Georgetown University Medical Center. Emma focuses much of her time on raising money for research in the areas of neurodegenerative disorders, such as Parkinson’s and Lewy Body Dementia, as well as global health initiatives at the university. Bailey Ham lives in Washington, D.C., where she runs the summer camp division of The Headfirst Companies. She continues to enjoy sailing on the Potomac and is excited for Kayla to join her in D.C. this fall! Abigail Ueland is loving life in San Francisco. She continues to work at Meta, within operations, but has shifted her focus to issues facing their advertisers. She is super excited for her sister, Hannah Ueland ’17, who will be relocating to the Bay Area this summer. Thank you to the class of 2015 for your continued commitment to these annual updates and we look forward to seeing everyone at our 10-year reunion (hard to believe!) next spring! Kayla and Hayley
2019
Lily Katherine Nuckolls ’19
Julia Allen is studying at Campbell Law School. She is serving on the Student Bar Association, currently as a 1L representative and will be a 2L representative next year. She is interning at Gene Davis Law in Raleigh this summer. Hannah Sherman graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in May 2023. Since then, she has moved to New York, where she works for Optimum Sports.
Lily Katherine
2021
Katy Butler Thompson ’21
Riley English was living in St. Petersburg this summer, interning for Founders Professional, an insurance company that is a division of Acrisure, the sixth-largest insurance brokerage globally. Polly Ferrell is interning this summer with Peak City Psychology, with an intended future in child therapy. Julia McNamara is studying textile design at N.C. State and is excited to start her senior collection. She will be working as an intern at Fritz Porter and living in Charleston, South Carolina, this summer with Sims Roberson Saylah Rogers will be graduating in December from North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University. This year, she has had the opportunity to meet and speak with Representative Alma Adams and met former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. She also organized the Law School Expo at her university. Katy Butler Thompson recently ended an internship with Royal Bank of Canada Wealth Management and was recently nominated for a George Washington School of Business student leader award. She loves D.C. and frequently plays tennis with her good friend, Paige Fisher. Paige also interned on the Hill this past fall for Senator Jon Ossoff of Georgia. Jane Caroline Minchew is going to be the outreach officer of the sailing team at N.C. State. She is also the South Atlantic Intercollegiate Sailing Association (SAISA) women’s sailing coordinator and sailed for the State sailing team at nationals this spring. We also have a lot of girls studying abroad this spring. Eliza Ellerbe, Ella Glover, and Sims Roberson are in Florence, Italy. Anna Church is in Paris and Folger Cashion is in Valencia! Katy Butler
Friends gather for the wedding of Susan Su ’18 to Zhenyu Wei in Beijing, June 2, 2024. Saint Mary’s friends in attendance were Isabella Xue ’18, Dora Yang ’19, Clymene Zhu ’19, and Shelley Zhu ’18.
2023
Caroline Bradshaw ’23 and Adele Harris ’23
Sarah Pratt Armes joined Chi Omega sorority at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. This summer, she is working as summer field staff for the Fellowship of Christian Universities and Schools (FOCUS) and is running the SMS Babysitters Club’s summer camps. Betsy Boyd joined Chi Omega sorority at the University of Mississippi. This summer, she is working at Laity Lodge Family Camp in Texas, alongside fellow Saint Mary’s alumna, Anne Haddon Nottingham Caroline Bradshaw joined Kappa Delta sorority at Wofford College. She is working as a senior counselor at YMCA Camp Cheerio this summer. Lilly Bryant joined Kappa Kappa Gamma sorority at Texas Christian University. Lilly plans on working at Paradise Guest Ranch, where she has been visiting as a guest every summer since she was four! Grace Burleson joined Phi Mu sorority at Auburn University. Emma Burson joined Kappa Alpha Theta sorority at North Carolina State University, and she serves as the executive assistant for the vice president of operations and the president. Avery Copstias joined Kappa Alpha Theta sorority at the University of Georgia. She plans on studying abroad and attending the London School of Economics this summer. CC Chiavetta is studying abroad in London this summer. Embree Duffy joined Chi Omega sorority at the College of Charleston. She was selected to be the new member assistant for the fall pledge class. She is working as a counselor in Montreat and looks forward to seeing her sister, Beatrice, thrive as a 9th grader at Saint Mary’s this fall. Sienna Gilbert joined Kappa Kappa Gamma sorority at New York University. Caroline Glenn joined Chi Omega sorority at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She is attending the London School of Economics this summer. Tatum Griffin joined Delta Delta Delta sorority at the University of Kentucky. She works as a marketing intern at the Keeneland Race Tracks in Lexington, Kentucky. This summer, she is working as a senior counselor at YMCA Camp Seafarer. Kee Griffith joined Chi Omega sorority at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She is planning on studying abroad and attending the London School of Economics. Adele Harris was accepted to write for The Daily Tar Heel at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She also joined Blank Canvas Dance Company, the largest dance organization on campus. This summer, she is working as vineyard staff on Martha’s Vineyard for the Fellowship of Christian Universities and Schools (FOCUS). Sibley Hash joined Kappa Kappa Gamma sorority at the University of Virginia. Lilly Larson joined the Chi Omega sorority at Wake Forest University. She plans on working as a senior counselor this summer at YMCA Camp Seafarer. Hayden Lund joined Kappa Kappa Gamma sorority at the University of Alabama. She is studying abroad at the London School of Economics this summer. Aven Murphy joined Kappa Delta sorority at the University of Alabama. Bess Myers is studying advertising and consumer research at the London School of Economics this summer. Emily Norris joined the Kappa Delta sorority at Wofford College. Abbi Powell and Elizabeth Powell joined Kappa Delta sorority at the University of Alabama. Margaret Scoggin began her first season on the lacrosse team at the University of Lynchburg. Sallie Summerlin joined Delta Delta Delta sorority at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She plans on studying abroad at the London School of Economics this summer. Kennedy Thompson joined Kappa Delta sorority at the University of Alabama. Eliza Dunn Tillman joined Theta Kappa Pi sorority at
the University of the South. She plans on working as a counselor this summer at Camp Merri-Mac in Black Mountain. Elizabeth Williamson joined Delta Delta Delta sorority at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She was planning to study abroad and attend the London School of Economics this summer. Isabel Yates is thriving as a student at Princeton University. During her first year, her resources at Princeton have allowed her to grow her love of old books and pursue that passion. This summer, she is studying Latin and completing a research project about children's books. Caroline and Adele
CREATE
CREATE A LASTING LEGACY
A legally valid will at no cost!
Secure your future through a free gift from Saint Mary's & FreeWill
Saint Mary's is thrilled to announce a new partnership with FreeWill and offer this resource as our gift to you. Using FreeWill's secure online resource to create or update your will in just 20 minutes can be done at NO COST. (California residents may also take advantage of creating a free revocable trust.)
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Including a future gift to Saint Mary’s School is completely optional, but would allow you to join The Heritage Society: a group of donors who have documented their intent and left a legacy gift to ensure Saint Mary's forever. Learn more at www.sms.edu/heritagesociety.
FreeWill is available for you to use regardless of what you decide.
www.freewill.com/saintmarysschool
REUNION CLASS PHOTOS
row, left to right: Bonnie Banks Bowen ’69C, Debbie Boyd Pearson ’69C, Helen Anne Alford ’69C, Cille Keedwell Allen ’69C; second row: Susan Foltz Deyton ’69C, Nancy Helms ’69C, Julie Badger Moore ’69C, Kay Wetmore Stallings ’69C, Frances Gilliam Fontaine ’69C
Front row, left to right: Beth Ellington Owen ’72HS ’74C, Susan Gotherman Hortman ’74C, Pam Stroupe Brown ’74C, Tonia Bryan Vary ’74C, Becky Clark ’72HS ’74C; second row: Bebe Aycock Krewson ’74C, Velda Carter Hughes ’74C, Margaret Williams Thomas ’74C, Nancy Raymer James ’74C, Jane Abernathy Hahn ’74C, Emory Rogers Church ’74C; third row: Eugenia Owsley Fowler ’74C, Ann Thornton Sneeden ’74C, Betsy Kempton Dunn ’74C, Gail Goforth ’74C, Margaret Ann Fraley ’74C, Melrose Whitfield Fisher ’72HS ’74C; fourth row: Kathy Rutledge Singer ’74C, Coco Pollard Davis ’74C, Kirt Rendleman Austin ’74, Nancy Hunter Simpson ’74C, Gail Shackelford ’74C, Ellen Henson ’74C, Sukoshi Williamson Roberts ’72HS ’74C, Stacy Curran Lindsey ’74C, Louise Wortham ’74C; fifth row: Jeanne Turcott Clark ’74C, Libba Barbour Shelton ’72HS ’74C, Susan Byers Muir ’74C, Josie Rawl Hall ’74C, Susan Bryan Daniel ’74C, Tish Detgen Murray ’74C; sixth Row: Margaret Stevens Mauney ’74C, Laura Grimes Smith ’74C, Shelley Tosto Snider ’74C, Marcy Berry Dineen ’74C, Anna DuBose Doughton ’72HS ’74C, CC Capehart Baker ’74C, Rachael Holmes ’74C, Susan Meares Robinson ’74C
Mela Royall Lawrence ’54C
Left to right: Clare Garden Maddison ’64C, Sharon Floyd Jones ’64C, Margie Winslow Green ’64C, Martha Weeks Daniel ’64C
Front
row, left to right: Michele Zaytoun Waters ’79HS, Anne Sigmon McDonald ’79HS ’81C, Paige Brown Dubose ’79HS ’81C, Dial Baker Love ’79HS, Tricia Brooks Wilson ’79HS, Margie Johnson Springer ’79HS, Lucy Peebles Power ’79HS, Marjorie Fairey Small ’79HS; second row: Elizabeth William Martin ’79HS, Ellen Rodman Hathaway ’79HS ’81C, Coles Hines Jones ’79HS ’81C, Susan Fleming McCann ’79HS, Betty Lyn Walters-Eller ’79HS
row, left to right: Ellen Zollicoffer Jackson ’84HS, Heidi Mort-Green ’84HS ’86C, Carter Manning Wade ’84HS; second row: Kathryn Ross Pitts ’84HS, Mandy Johnson Spears ’84HS ’86C, Mary Barnett Hale ’84HS ’86C, Robin Ballard Earp ’84HS ’86C, Susan Avent Irvine ’84HS ’86C, Melissa Best ’84HS ’86C
row, left to right: Mary Craig Timberlake Brown ’77HS ’79C, Dotty Worsham Lowe ’79C, Windy Tillman Pratt ’79C, Mary Foy Ragsdale ’77HS ’79C; second row: Clayton Plumlee Fountain ’79C, Joan Andrews Holder ’77HS ’79C, Molly Burton Tull ’79C, Jenette Carver Skipper ’77HS ’79C, Hilda Cameron Edwards ’79C; third row: Elizabeth Lane ’79C, Margaret Longley White ’79C, Betty Smith ’79C, Marian Green Carson ’79C, Sally Pelletier ’77HS ’79C, Denise Landi Cowhig ’77HS ’79C, Fran Snyder Jones ’79C, Melody Lancaster Mitterling ’77HS ’79C
Front row, left to right: Mandy Johnson Spears ’84HS ’86C, Christina Black Kernoodle ’84HS ’86C, Ellen Zollicoffer Jackson ’84HS, Susan Avent Irvine ’84HS ’86C; second row: Candace Harris Belmonte ’84HS, Betsy Diedrick McLean ’84HS ’86C, Amanda Hutchens Williams ’84HS ’86C, Robin Ballard Earp ’84HS ’86C, Kathryn Ross Pitts ’84HS, Melissa Best ’84HS ’86C; third row: Mary Barnett Hale ’84HS ’86C, Carter Manning Wade ’84HS, Amanda Durant ’84HS, Marty Worthy ’84HS; fourth row: Alice Hemingway Baker ’84HS ’86C, Ann Bikle Bissette ’86C, Ann Wallace ’84HS, Muzzy Crute Crumpler ’84HS
Front
Front
Front
REUNION CLASS PHOTOS
Front row, left to right: Jane Fleury ’99, Caroline Davis Braswell ’99, Anna Christopher Danner ’99, Liz Thompson Bowen ’99, Anna Kvanvig Fulbright ’99, Laura Chilton Midgett ’99; second row: Kelli Brooks ’99, Georgia Moore Brown ’99, Joanna Hill Worthington ’99, Merritt Atkins ’99, Katie Baer Beech ’99, LaQuoia Johnson; third row: Taylor Underwood Benton ’99, Mariette Huntly Roland ’99, Kempton Dunn McGrath ’99, Caroline Creech Decker ’99, Stuart Small Beaumont ’99, Megan Ryan Walker ’99, Hoye Bishop ’99
Front row, left to right: Merriweather Raidl Mule ’04, Jenna Nash Hollmeyer ’04, Brittany White ’04; second row: Susan James Fundanish ’04, Katie Whitmore Allred ’04, Fletcher Mebane ’04, Emily Brooks Rowe ’04, Hunter Jackson Sabol ’04; third row: Nia Triantis ’04, Britt Carl ’04
Front row, left to right: Florrie McCard ’14, Dean Gibson ’14, Annalise Franchina ’14; second row: Rachel Powell Maloney ’14, Emily Evans ’14
Ann Green Floyd ’94C
Left to right: Jackson Jordan Dixon ’84C, Elizabeth Sherrill Druga ’84C, Dee Edwards Rainey ’84C
Left to right: Catherine Scott Lackey ’89HS, Cindy Ross Teague ’89HS, Angela Sutton Furniss ’89HS, Lisa Svendsgaard Krise ’89HS ’91C
Left to right: Ginny Griffin Varnum ’86HS ’89C, Cackie Loughlin Stephenson ’87HS ’89C, Lawson Armes ’87HS ’89C, Sallie Thorpe Cahill ’87HS ’89C, Elizabeth Allen Womack ’87HS ’89C
Front row, left to right: Kristy Rawls Overton ’94HS, Jeannine Eason Brown ’94HS, Leslie Wagstaff McKay ’94HS; second row: Eliza Pittman Stephenson ’94HS, Sarah Corbitt ’94HS, Virginia Bullock Crisp ’94HS, Annika Peacock ’94HS; third row: Peri Potkovick ’94HS, Judith Freeman ’94HS
Alumnae in classes ending in 5 and 0 are invited to attend.
Left to right: Holden Stanley Clark ’14, Caroline Edwards ’14, Anna Lane Mayo Patterson ’14, Paden Earnhardt Harris ’14, Sara-Kinard Moyd ’14, Mary Haley Brewer ’14, Emily Szyperski ’14, Katie Nash Creech ’14
Front row, left to right: Bridget Sullivan ’19, Phagan Hudson ’19, Janie Jackson ’19, Parker Pope ’19, Lilly Beth Glenn ’19, Aydlett Gwen ’19; second row: Sarah Scott Woolard ’19, Morgan Moore ’19, Lydia Thompson ’19, Hannah Sherman ’19, Hadley Heath ’19, Lola Olagbegi ’19; third row: Stephanie Woods ’19, Maddison Wooten ’19, Cammie Griffin ’19, Josie DeRonja ’19, Ava Blane Spiegel ’19; fourth Row: Naomi Thombs ’19, Eleanor Carroll ’19, Grayson Smith ’19, Katie Paquin ’19, Victoria Seymore ’19, Emily Prater ’19
ALUMNAE AWARD WINNER
The Mazie Strickland Froelich ’51C Distinguished Alumnae Society
MELROSE WHITFIELD FISHER ’72HS ’74C IS 2024 DISTINGUISHED ALUMNA
By Lauren Gerber, Director of the Annual Fund
Saint Mary's Alumnae Council created the Mazie Strickland Froelich '51C Distinguished Alumnae Society in 2000 in honor of Mazie's leadership and service to Saint Mary's School. The ultimate example of a distinguished alumnae leader during her lifetime, the late Mrs. Froelich was the first female chair of the school’s board of trustees.
The 2024 Outstanding Alumna Award, which recognizes an alumna's outstanding achievements in volunteer service to Saint Mary’s, was presented to Melrose Whitfield Fisher ’72HS ’74C during Reunion Weekend on April 27, 2024.
Melrose’s fondest memories are of Saint Mary's, including the friendships and camaraderie she shares with her Saint Mary’s classmates from her high school and junior college classes. She thanks her mother who was responsible for her enrolling at Saint Mary’s. Of her time at Saint Mary’s, she says, “I just loved it. You will never have friends like the ones you have at Saint Mary’s.”
As a student, Melrose blossomed as a member of Beacon and the Legislative Body, as well as serving as chair of the Social Board, head of the hall counselors, and as a member of the college basketball team.
After graduating from Saint Mary’s, Melrose attended the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where she earned her bachelor’s degree in 1976. She later returned to the university to earn a nursing degree.
For 25 years, she worked in the cardiology department at UNC as both a nurse and a research coordinator. Over the years since leaving her full-time position, she has continued to work as an independent research consultant, in addition to running her business, Lots of Luxe, and volunteering her valuable time for Saint Mary’s.
Melrose has served as a dedicated alumnae leader as a member of Saint Mary’s Forever Campaign’s Committee and as a member of the school’s Board of Visitors from 2016-2018. She is a member of the Alumnae Leadership Council and was active on the 175th Anniversary Gala Committee.
She has served as a devoted class secretary for both her high school and junior college classes for many years. As secretary, she created a class prayer list to share the triumphs, tragedies, and life updates of her classmates over the years ensuring the classmates stay abreast of a lifetime of milestones.
Melrose also gives back with annual leadership gifts to the Annual Fund. She supports several endowments and campaigns, and she
helped create the Class of 1972 Scholarship Fund during her 50th high school reunion and helped initiate and fundraise for this year’s Class of 1974 Endowed Scholarship Fund in celebration of their 50th Reunion this year.
This year, she celebrated her 50th reunion having served with distinction at all levels of service.
Melrose often says she owes so much of her life and career success to her time at Saint Mary's. Providing her with her friends for life, the confidence and ability to be agile and change, and to lead.
Originally from Kinston, North Carolina, Melrose is married to Rob Fisher. Together, they share two adult sons, a daughter-in-law, and several grandchildren.
Saint Mary’s School is grateful for this faithful servant and leader of our Alumnae Association!
To learn more about The Mazie Strickland Froelich '51C Society Outstanding Alumnae Award, contact Emily R. Smith ’01, Director of Alumnae Engagement, at ersmith@sms.edu or by phone at 919424-4171, or visit sms.edu/alumnae.
Melrose Whitfield Fisher ’72HS ’74C, 2024 Distinguished Alumna Award winner, pictured with her family at the reunion luncheon where she received the award.
New Endowed Scholarship Fund Honors 50th Reunion Classes of 1974
Members of the high school and college classes of 1974 came together to celebrate their combined 50th reunions during Reunion Weekend.
Thanks to leadership of the 50th Reunion Committee members – Jane Johnson Brady ’74HS ’76C, Liz Baskervill Goodman ’74HS ’76C, Susan Creech Rankin ’74HS, Gwen Barnes Richie ’74HS, Mary Dombalis Winstead ’74HS ’76C, Anna DuBose Doughton ’72HS ’74C, Melrose Whitfield Fisher ’72HS ’74C, Susan Byers Muir ’74C, Tish Detgen Murray ’74C – they set a $25,000 goal to establish the Class of 1974 Endowed Scholarship Fund.
Alumnae from the 1974 high school and college classes achieved their goal and have now created a legacy that helps ensure that future generations of young women have the opportunity to attend Saint Mary’s. Together, they raised $68,025 to endow the
scholarship and came together to make their class gift to the Annual Fund of $35,937 ($18,850 from the high school class and $17,087 from the college class) as of April 30, 2024.
We are grateful to our 50th reunion alumnae who made gifts or provisions in their estate plans to support the scholarship and the annual fund! If you would like to honor or memorialize a member of the high school or college class of 1974 by making a gift to the scholarship, visit sms.edu/1974scholarship.
To notify us of a provision in your estate plan (and to join the Heritage Society) in support of this scholarship, visit www.freewill.com/record/saintmarysschool.
Questions? Contact Lauren Gerber at 919-424-4007 or lgerber@sms.edu.
SAINT MARY'S REMEMBERS
Mary Lynn Lewis DeLany ’44C
LONGTIME CLASS SECRETARY
Mary Lynn Lewis DeLany, 98, who served as her class secretary for three quarters of a century, passed away peacefully on Tuesday morning, April 9, 2024, in Burlington, North Carolina. She was born in Greensboro, North Carolina, January 11, 1926, the second daughter of Lynnwood and McDaniel Lewis.
Mary Lynn graduated from Saint Mary’s Junior College in Raleigh in 1944 and earned her B.S. degree in mathematics from Converse College in Spartanburg, South Carolina, in 1946. She served colorfully as her Saint Mary’s class secretary for 75 years.
Mary Lynn was predeceased by her beloved son, Mark Johnson, and three husbands: Marshall Johnson, Frederic Beil Jr., and the love of her life, her third husband, Walter DeLany Jr., Captain USN retired.
Mary Lynn had a gutsy approach to life’s challenges and whims. When faced with divorce from the father of her three children, she decided to start swimming. Son Mark encouraged her to compete and to join the Nautilus Health Club in Greensboro. He helped oversee his mother’s progress there as well as in the pool. It was a two-way pledge as she attended every one of her children’s swim meets, and all three of her children cheered her on in Masters’ Swim Meets.
As executive secretary for the Community Swim Association in Greensboro and a board member of the Greensboro Swim Association, Mary Lynn took her water interest a step further and authored a small but important book in 1998 on The History of Swimming in Greensboro.
For 22 years, she worked for Greensboro Travel Agency and subsequently traveled the world. Volumes of photographs were painstakingly pieced together for each trip which she enjoyed for years.
An avid golfer, she once shot a hole-in-one at Greensboro Country Club and a trophy was made for her bragging rights. Even in her last days, she was eagerly waiting to watch the Masters in Augusta.
As a member of the Dirt Daubers Garden Club, she won the coveted Hoer of the Year award and proudly displayed the certificate in the kitchen on Dover Road alongside her college diplomas.
She was a voracious reader and a gifted needlepoint artist.
Mary Lynn was “everyone’s mom” and gracefully shared her wit and wisdom with everyone she met. No one delighted more in the accomplishments of her children and grandchildren. She taught them the importance of propriety, manners, faith, and family.
Mary Lynn was loyal and trustworthy, honest, and fair, with no holds barred! You always knew where you stood with her - and she made
herself clear in a most ladylike fashion. She was a true lady and lived her long life to the fullest. Love, hard work, and dignity defined Mary Lynn. She was smart as a whip with a sharp memory all her life.
Her writings of true stories range from her earliest memories as a young mother to the details of football games and crazy memories as a child growing up in Greensboro. The one about how she chipped her front tooth skating on the sidewalk actually hurts to read. That tooth stayed chipped. She never had it fixed. It was a badge of courage, she said.
She sat in the same section and seat on the “sunny side” of Kenan Stadium for over 70 years. When she could no longer make it to Chapel Hill on Saturdays to watch the home games, she cheered the Heels from her TV in her own custom-made football jersey, #80, which was given to her at her 80th birthday party.
Surviving are her daughters Lynn Johnson Titchener ’73C, Carter Johnson Overton ’76C, and husband Ashley, her four beautiful grandchildren: Winnie, and partner Michael, Lewis, and wife Andrea, Marshall, Liza, and husband Jeremy. Three great grandchildren were the absolute apple of her eye. Also surviving are her nephew, Mac, and his wife Cindy.
Tracey Fodor Smith
FORMER TRUSTEE
Former Saint Mary’s trustee and generous benefactor Tracey Fodor Smith died Saturday, March 9, 2024, in Durham, North Carolina.
Born August 30, 1950, to the late Daniel and Maxine (Hepler) Fodor in Westmoreland Hospital in Greensburg, Pennsylvania, Tracey attended Hempfield Area High School, the University of Pittsburgh, and St. Joseph's Hospital School of Nursing in Pittsburgh. Since 1972, she resided in Chapel Hill, Farmville, and Indian Beach, North Carolina.
In 1986, Tracey and Henry Lewis Smith were married. They worked diligently as a team to establish Henry's pharmaceutical manufacturing business. They were blessed to be successful. Their greatest blessing, however, was the birth of their only child in 1994, Hannah Lilly Smith, Saint Mary’s Class of 2012.
Her family remembers the remarkable woman they loved with the following memories.
“A registered nurse, Tracey cared for so many and could befriend anyone. She was the most generous and humble woman, a longtime supporter of so many charitable causes. The list is neverending, but to list some of her dearest groups: she was a supporter of the food banks of every town she lived in, a board member for the North Carolina Symphony and Saint Mary's School, a loyal donor to the Ronald McDonald House, The Oakwood School, Campbell University (where the nursing school building is named in her honor), UNC-Chapel Hill and the Rams Club, ECU School of Music (Four Seasons Chamber Music), and the Autism Society of North Carolina. She was named Farmville's 1993 co-citizen of the year with her husband Henry, also sharing the 2014 Samuel Burrus Award for Community Service given by the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy. She was also the 1994 Chairman of Farmville's annual Dogwood Festival and served as president of the Women's Auxiliary of North Carolina Pharmaceutical Association from 1993-1994.
In 2021, Tracey and Henry Smith gave $7 million to the Saint Mary’s Forever Campaign as a lead gift towards the planned construction of a new academic STEM building at SMS.
“Outside of her professional and charitable endeavors, Tracey was a lover of books, travel, live music, fashion, religious studies, and a supporter of higher education, global healthcare, women's rights, and many sports teams, both professional and collegiate. She battled her illness (Sarcoidosis) with a smile for over two decades and, for that, we could not be prouder of her fight. We will miss her terribly, but we are so proud of the generosity she showed and the mark she leaves on so many people's lives.”
Tracey’s life was celebrated during a memorial service March 18, 2024, at Hayes Barton Baptist Church in Raleigh.
Maria Dolores Pastor Lado
FORMER FACULTY MEMBER AND CHAIR OF THE LANGUAGES DEPARTMENT
Former professor Maria Dolores Lado died in Raleigh, December 15, 2023, at the age of 88. She is survived by Fred Lado, her husband of 63 years, three children, and her grandchildren. She was known and loved as an energetic teacher, scholar, and writer, devoted wife, mother, and grandmother, and a talented expert in the kitchen.
She was born Maria Dolores Pastor Piñeiro on October 4, 1935, in El Ferrol, in Galicia, in northwestern Spain. Dolores grew up in the aftermath of the Spanish Civil War, living with her family first in El Ferrol and later in La Coruña, Spain. She graduated from the University of Madrid with a major in English and received a scholarship to attend graduate school at the University of Florida in 1958. There she studied American history and completed a master’s thesis on Zora Neale Hurston. She subsequently completed a Ph.D. in Spanish literature with minors in French and Italian. Though she intended to return home after graduate school, she instead met and fell in love with Fred Lado, and they were married in 1960. The first of their three children, Fred Alexander, was born in Gainesville, Florida. The couple later moved to Los Alamos, New Mexico, following her husband Fred’s career as a physicist.
Following her husband’s new employment in the Physics department at N.C. State University, Dolores moved to Raleigh in 1968 where she settled permanently with her family. She joined the faculty of Saint Mary’s College in 1970, eventually chairing the department of foreign languages and teaching courses in Spanish language and European history. After her retirement from Saint Mary’s in 1989, she continued inspiring students through teaching part-time at N.C. State University for several more years.
Dolores had a keen mind and enjoyed reading and writing fiction. She was an accomplished cook, mastering both the traditional dishes of her childhood in Spain and contemporary cuisine from many cultures. She loved the beach, especially the Outer Banks, sharing this love with her grandchildren. Through the example of their lives, Dolores and Fred taught their children the value of education, intellect, love, devotion, family, and kindness. From this marriage of mind and heart, her children would go on to careers in medicine and urban planning. She traveled back to Spain regularly to see family and passed along to her children and grandchildren her love of Spanish history and literature.
She is survived by her husband, Fred; children, Fred (Marianne), Karen, David (Faith); five grandchildren; brother, Jesus (Ana); and her beloved dog, Xana.
A celebration of her life was held February 10, 2024, in Smedes Hall at Saint Mary’s.
Lois Perry Sawyer ’52C
FORMER ALUMNAE COUNCIL REGIONAL DIRECTOR
Lois Perry Sawyer ‘52C, formerly of Ahoskie, North Carolina, died Saturday, January 27, 2024, at the age of 91, in her home at Trinity Landing in Wilmington, North Carolina. Lois served on the Alumnae Council in the 1980s as regional director of Area One.
Born in Windsor, North Carolina, in 1932, she was the first daughter of John Cooper Perry and Lois Spruill Perry. She was a graduate of Saint Mary’s Junior College in Raleigh and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where she was a member of the Chi Omega Sorority.
Lois made her debut at the North Carolina Debutante Ball in 1951. She was a member of the National Society of the Colonial Dames of America in the State of North Carolina. Lois dedicated much of her life to Saint Mary’s School as an active alumna spending much time on campus visiting her daughter and granddaughter during their time as students. It was at Saint Mary’s where she made many lifelong friends.
Lois married her childhood sweetheart, Dr. Charles Judson Sawyer III, in 1956. Their children are Katherine Sawyer Mann ’78HS ’80C and Charles Judson Sawyer IV. Their beloved grandchildren are Samuel Austin Mann Jr., Charles Bonner Mann, and Mary Ashburn Mann ’17.
Lois enjoyed teaching, traveling, gardening, church work, and especially her family and friends. Lois spent her early adulthood teaching the sixth grade. She was a devout Episcopalian serving many roles in her church, St. Thomas in Ahoskie, including alter guild and garden guild. She was known for her sharp mind, caramel cake, and love of reading or, most recently, playing Wordle. Lois’s happy place was at the beach with her grandchildren or watching Carolina basketball.
She was preceded in death by her parents, a sister, Frances Perry Peel ’52HS ’54C and her husband, William Robert Peel, her son-inlaw Samuel Austin Mann, and sister-in-law Katherine Sawyer Ward ’60C.
Lois is survived by her husband, her children and grandchildren, and several nieces and nephews.
A memorial service was held February 2, 2024, at St. Thomas’ Episcopal Church in Ahoskie.
Bill Joyner
FORMER TRUSTEE
George William “Bill” Joyner, Jr., former member of the Saint Mary’s board of trustees, died June 6, 2024, following a period of declining health. Bill was born in Asheboro in 1944, the son of the late Dr. George William Joyner and Sue Brewer Joyner. He attended Asheboro High School, where he was a member of the golf and basketball teams. He was named “Mr. Asheboro High School” by his classmates and was class speaker at his graduation in 1962. Bill was twice inducted into the Asheboro High School Sports Hall of Fame, both as an outstanding individual basketball player and with his 1962 state basketball championship team.
Bill then attended Wake Forest College and was proud to be a direct descendant of the school’s founder, Samuel Wait. He was a member of the Men’s basketball team, playing for coaches Bones McKinney and Jack Murdock. He joined Kappa Sigma Fraternity, where he formed many lifelong friendships and graduated with an English degree in 1966. He attended graduate school at Wake Forest and taught English at Appalachian State before returning to Wake Forest in 1969 to work in the Alumni office. For 27 years, Bill worked in fundraising and development for Wake Forest University and built an award-winning program that was admired nationally. Following his time at Wake Forest, he founded G.W. Joyner Consulting, which advised not-for-profit organizations on meeting their fundraising goals.
Bill was involved with many community organizations and institutions, serving on the boards of Summit School, St. Mary’s School, Reynolda House, Forsyth Country Club and the Country Club of North Carolina. In addition, he was a member of Centenary United Methodist Church and a past member of Rotary Club of Winston-Salem and Old Town Club.
He loved being with his friends, on their annual golf trips and at their daily lunches. He also loved spending time with young people. During his time at Wake Forest, he advised and mentored many. Most of all, he loved telling stories. A gifted raconteur, his tales never failed to bring us laughter, no matter how many times he told them.
In addition to his parents, Bill was predeceased by his first wife, Jane Cottle Joyner, in 1998.
He is survived by his wife, Elizabeth Hammerstrom Joyner; his children, George William Joyner III (Christine) and Sara-Peyton Joyner McCormick (Stuart); and grandchildren George, Oran and CeCe Joyner and Wait McCormick, all of Winston-Salem. He is also survived by his sister, Nancy Joyner Jordan of Asheboro; stepchildren Charles Judson Palmer IV of Rocky Mount and Carter Palmer Benton (Ryan) of Wilmington; and step-grandchildren Reilly, Carrington and Liza Mae Benton.
A memorial service was held at Centenary United Methodist Church on Tuesday, June 11.
Leading from the Margins
COLLEGE LEADERSHIP FROM UNEXPECTED PLACES
By Mary Dana Hinton ’88HS
A guide to why people from marginalized backgrounds may be uniquely qualified to become effective higher education leaders— and how they can get there.
Students and faculty in higher education increasingly reflect more diverse backgrounds, but this diversity remains rare in many leadership roles. In Leading from the Margins, Mary Dana Hinton ’88HS celebrates the unique strengths of marginalized individuals, inviting them to embrace their leadership potential and make a difference. Drawing from Hinton's own journey to becoming a university president, this book challenges conventional leadership theories and highlights the value of diverse voices. Whether you're an emerging or established leader, Leading from the Margins will empower you to find your own leadership style and discover strength in unexpected places.
Through engaging personal stories and insightful research, Hinton explores the opportunities and challenges faced by leaders from marginalized backgrounds. She sheds light on overlooked identities and emphasizes the need for leadership that reflects the demographics and needs of those being led. This book is a vital resource for people in higher education aspiring to senior leadership positions who feel unheard or unrepresented in traditional leadership roles.
Hinton offers a powerful voice to leaders from marginalized groups, providing validation, inspiration, and practical guidance. By recognizing and nurturing their unique leadership styles, she encourages readers to make a meaningful impact and drive positive change in their organizations and communities. Leading from the Margins is an essential read for anyone seeking to foster inclusive and effective leadership, bridging the gap between theory and lived experiences. Embrace your identity, and lead from where you are.
Mary Dana Hinton, a 1988 Saint Mary’s high school graduate, is the president of Hollins University.
Published by Johns Hopkins University Press, February 2024
A workday, like any other, juggling projects, managing people, family. And then the telephone rings. A stranger delivers news that changes lives.
Vaughan Earle Justice’s Repercussions begins with that telephone call. She will come to question everything she knew—or thought she knew—about her childhood, her parents and older sister. Old griefs are fresh again and are made more complex. Old joys are fresh again, too, and her family expands and is strengthened because of her efforts to sort memory and truth.
Many readers will hear echoes of their own family’s experience in Repercussions, and yet each family’s story is different. The universality and the individuality draw readers to join Vaughan’s journey.
“When Vaughn Justice answered an unexpected phone call revealing a family secret, she made it her mission to unravel past memories to try to understand the family members who guarded this secret,” writes an amazon reviewer. “Through her meticulous research and astute memory, Vaughn pieced together the truth that had been hidden for many years. She skillfully tells her sister’s story while sharing her family’s journey of understanding, acceptance, and compassion. I loved Vaughn’s style of storytelling and I’m sure that other readers will find her book as compelling as I did.”
Justice was born in Salisbury, North Carolina. After graduating from Saint Mary’s College, she earned a bachelor’s degree in theater from Catawba College. She worked in film production for TV commercials, first as a location scout and later as executive producer at Oasis Films. She has enjoyed taking classes in photography, painting, collage, memoir writing and has traveled in the U.S. and Europe for work and for pleasure. Justice and her husband raised two sons and live in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Repercussions is available on amazon, Barnes & Nobles, and through other booksellers.
Make Room for Healing
By Travis Brady ’89HS
Accessible, heartfelt, and witty, this short collection of simple, practical tips offers self-care, healing, and recovery, from a stage-3 breast cancer survivor.
“Before I started my cancer treatment, I spoke to an oncologist at Johns Hopkins who said, ‘Travis, you must make room for treatment,’ says Travis Brady ’89HS. “He knew by speaking with me for just a few minutes that I was trying to systematically plan each step like a project at work. That was not going to do. I heeded his advice, allowing myself the time and space to check in every day to see how I felt—to see what I needed and how to support myself.”
When Travis Brady was diagnosed with an aggressive form of breast cancer, she sought advice from friends, and their friends, and their friends of friends—women who had been treated before her. She needed tips to make this process smoother, gentler, and more manageable.
With this book, Make Room for Healing, Brady offers you all the information she wished she had when she was first diagnosed — tips and practices that made her feel more in control in an uncontrollable situation.
The organization of this book is designed to walk with you sequentially through treatment. The first section, Support, helps you get started by assembling your care team, seeking a second opinion, and advocating for your health. In the next section, Prepare, Brady shares specific practices that helped her physically cope and find comfort. In Nourish, she gives you a shortcut to the nutritional choices that supported her body. Heal takes you through holistic health practices you may not have considered but might be open to now. And finally, Enjoy reminds you to cultivate experiences where you derive great pleasure and satisfaction.
In the book, you will learn how to:
• assemble your care team;
• numb your port;
• get a second opinion;
• combat “chemo brain;”
• detoxify your life;
• explore sound bathing;
• and more!
“The key to all of this was asking for help and getting answers,” says Brady. I’ve put all that I learned and experienced in this guide. My hope is that it walks with you and helps you on your journey.”
In addition to supporting cancer patients, Brady keeps busy with her 30-year career in marketing and employee relations. She lives in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, with her husband and daughter. To learn more, visit TravisBrady.com.
Published by Penguin Random House, Make Room for Healing is available through amazon, Barnes & Nobles, Target, Walmart, Books a Million and more.
Friday, March 21, 2025
The Pavilion at the Angus Barn 9401 Glenwo o d Avenue | Raleigh, North Carolina
Chaired by Kristen Ange P’26, Josey Harris Kasper ’97HS, P’27, Tiffany Lund P’23,’26, and Courtney Sewell P’26
Accelerated Planned Gift Establishes New Endowment Fund
Throughout the Saint Mary’s Forever Campaign, alumnae and friends have sought ways to make an impact by accelerating their planned gifts. In the early quiet phase of the campaign, an anonymous couple accelerated a planned gift to create an endowed scholarship fund and were able to see their impact in action. In 2021, alumna Betty Copeland Becher ’60C also decided to accelerate her planned gift and make a leadership gift in support of the Debt Reduction Challenge, which was matched by an anonymous donor and helped us receive a $1 Million challenge gift.
In May of this year, Helen Holt Morrison ’39C of Concord, NC, decided to accelerate her planned to gift to Saint Mary’s School in support of the school’s boarding program. As a Heritage Society member, Helen knew she wanted to create a legacy for Saint Mary’s through the John and Helen Morrison Charitable Remainder Unitrust that she and her husband established. However, when Helen learned of the needs of Saint Mary’s boarding program, she decided to make her gift early – at age 102 – through an early termination of her trust agreement. Collaborating with Saint Mary’s School, and supported also by her family and children – Margaret Morrison Hamilton ’67HS, Hugh Morrison, and John Morrison Jr. –Helen created a new endowment called the Helen Holt Morrison ’39C Student Experience Fund
She and her family realized the shared experience that living and learning on campus “provides immeasurable personal and professional growth opportunities for students.” In addition, several members of the Morrison family have benefitted from Saint Mary’s boarding experience, including her daughter, Margaret, and current student, Carter McKinnon Morrison ’25. To sustain and enhance such a valuable experience for future generations, the fund supports community dinners that foster connectivity and promote relationship building; dances and social events, both formal and informal, that provide opportunities to engage with non-students; initiatives that focus on service to others and the betterment of humanity; retreats and trips designed to enhance character building and leadership skills; trips to local and regional destinations and events: cultural, educational, sporting, etc.; upgrades to dormitory and/or other student-oriented common spaces: accessories, equipment, furniture, technology, etc.; and weekend activities and programming that encourage boarding students to remain on, and day students to return to, campus.
If you would like to make a gift in honor of Helen to the fund, you may do so at www.sms.edu/Morrison. If you would like to accelerate your planned gift to Saint Mary’s to see your impact in action, contact Lauren Gerber at 919-424-4007 or lgerber@sms.edu.
address service requested
drops the handkerchief at the conclusion of commencement 2024 to close the 182nd school year in May. May 2024
