Sweet Briar Alumnae Magazine | Vol. 87, No. 2 | Fall 2017 by Sweet Briar College

Fall 2017 volume 87 no. 2

Meredith Jung-En Woo the College’s 13th president

Dear Alumnae and Friends:

utumn at Sweet Briar is nothing less than spectacular. The early morning view from Sweet Briar House, looking south across campus toward the Blue Ridge Mountains, is of a gentle mist hugging the mountain range. It is October, and the temperatures are beginning to dip, even as humidity remains unusually high. We can thank the trees for the “blue” in Blue Ridge—they release isoprene that deepens the hue. As shades of yellow, orange, and red begin to emerge, I am reminded that there is both a science and an art in the turning of the leaves, a combination of environmental science, biology, chemistry, physics, human psychology, and visual arts. This cycle in nature drives internal reflection. It is a temporal landmark of change and in particular new beginnings. This fall, the College embarked on its own set of changes and new beginnings. As you know, in September the College announced that our faculty are designing a new core curriculum focused on leadership and three centers of excellence dedicated to addressing contemporary problems in our increasingly complex global society. We recognize that much like the art and science of the autumnal season, the liberal arts must be increasingly interdisciplinary, collaborative, and interdependent. With your support, Sweet Briar will continue to produce women of consequence, as the College has done for over a century, by preparing students for a world that is now more diverse, global, and with power and influence more decentralized and multitudinous—a world that needs more Sweet Briar alumnae. Very sincerely yours, Meredith Woo President

volume 87 no. 2

Contents New Branding

Back to School Events

France Awards the Chevalier of the Legion of Honor to Claude Becker Wasserstein ’82

Sweet Work Weeks

Meet Our New Students

MAGAZINE STAFF

Fletcher Oak Lives on in Academic Mace

Phyllis Watt Jordan, editor

Meredith Woo: Envisioning the Path Forward

The Plan: Academic Repositioning and Tuition Reset

Living with Art Initiative

With a Scholarship and Her Upcoming Autobiography, Anna Chao Pai Pays It Forward

Stewardship of Campus Lands Translates to Student Learning

Honors Summer Research 2017

Thank You for Being a Friend

Curating the Senate: Through the Eyes of an Art Historian

Capturing the White House in a Souvenir Spoon

Going, Going, Gone for SBC!

Meredith Woo, President

Talbots Joins the Cause

FIND SWEET BRIAR ONLINE

Women of Consequence

SWEET BRIAR COLLEGE MAGAZINE POLICY

The magazine aims to present interesting, thought-provoking material. Publication of material does not indicate endorsement of the author’s viewpoint by the magazine or College. The Sweet Briar College Magazine reserves the right to edit and, when necessary, revise all material that it accepts for publication. Contact us at any time.

Jane Dure, editor Clelie Steckel, director of annual giving/ Sweet Briar Fund, managing editor Nancy Marion, lead designer Cassie Foster, photographer Contributors: Jennifer McManamay, Janika Carey, Sarah Clement, Amy Campbell Lamphere, Fran McClung Ferguson, Lorie Teeter Lichtlen, Ethel Ogden Burwell, Patty Snodgrass Borda Mullins, Eleanor O’Connor, and Amy Leigh Campbell Contact information

Office of Alumnae Relations and Development P.O. Box 1057 Sweet Briar, VA 24595 (800) 381-6131

sbc.edu

Departments: On the Quad

In Memoriam Class Notes

At Reunion, from left: Elizabeth Kistler ’88, Christina Lytle ’88, Lezlie Pinto ’87, Kristen Lowrey ’87, Heather Buerger ’88, Jill Stryker ’87, Pam Barkley ’87

35 38

Find your FIERCE. At Sweet Briar College, you’ll uncover everything that makes

you amazing — and own it in ways you never thought possible.

Meet our students at sbc.edu/fierce

This fall, Sweet Briar launched “Find your FIERCE,” a new marketing campaign and fresh look, to update our unique brand.

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A contemporary blue now complements Sweet Briar’s pink and green colors, while high-impact photography and compelling messages announce to the world: We educate women who are smart, confident, unafraid to take on big challenges, and who lead lives of consequence in their homes, communities and in the world.

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Back to school events

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Oscar Besson

France Awards the Chevalier of the Legion of Honor to

Claude Becker Wasserstein ’82 4

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n October, Claude Becker Wasserstein ’82 received the Chevalier of the Legion of Honor, one of France’s highest awards, at a ceremony at the French Embassy in New York. Pinning the insignia, French Ambassador to the United States Gérard Araud said, “A thoroughly global citizen, Claude Wasserstein has demonstrated a strong commitment to international and Franco-American relations and has consistently served as a bridge between our two cultures. We are extremely pleased to recognize her outstanding achievements, which have been profoundly charitable and have served to foster dialogue between France and the United States.” The ambassador highlighted organizations for which Claude has been an active fundraiser—the Met International Council, WNET Channel Thirteen, The Brick Church Summer Steps Program, the King Hussein Cancer Center in Amman, Jordan, and the American Hospital in Paris Foundation, among others. He also noted that she has spearheaded many of her own initiatives aimed at enhancing various communities. “Both the U.S. and France are profoundly lucky to have someone like you who is so devoted to supporting charitable efforts in the community,” Araud said. Indeed, speak with Claude for any length of time and the words you’ll hear most are “analysis,” “engagement,” and “impact.” These are her hallmarks, her approach to life, her strategy in business. They are qualities she cultivated as a

young Parisienne at Sweet Briar, as a foreign correspondent and producer for CBS News, and as the wife of one of the most well known bankers in the world. Claude continues to rely on them now, as a mom looking at college options for the children in her care and as an angel investor looking for ways to make the world a better place. With an American mother and a French father, Claude was raised in a cozy Paris suburb and the French school system. She arrived at Sweet Briar to connect with her American roots. Her mother had heard about the College from a women’s association in Paris, where it was known for its academic excellence and Junior Year in France program. The college’s small size and rural location provided a safe setting for a young woman to start discovering the world. At Sweet Briar, Claude majored in art history, minored in math, and learned to live with classmates from the Middle East and South America, as well as from Europe and across the U.S. “Sweet Briar was very diverse and cosmopolitan for a small women’s college,” she notes. “It’s a place where interesting people come together.” She adds, “Coming from Paris, I had to adjust to a different culture and learn how to navigate among people with different backgrounds and perspectives. It broadened my own perspective and made me interested in the wider world.” She also learned to ask questions and express her thoughts—something not encouraged in French schools—and subsequently built an international career

on those skills. She spent 10 years at CBS News, notably covering the Iran-Iraq war from Dubai and the conflict in Northern Ireland from Belfast, before moving to New York as a producer for the program “48 Hours.” There, she covered societal issues, including poverty and gun control, and won an Emmy Award for a segment on healthcare. What else did she get from her experience at Sweet Briar? She lists, rapid fire: deep friendships, analytical capabilities, and an appreciation for art in all forms. “My art history teachers at Sweet Briar were more demanding than those for my master’s studies at the École du Louvre or Sorbonne,” she says. “They taught me to analyze works from multiple perspectives, to try to understand the influences, the context and the artists’ objectives. That approach served me as a journalist and continues to serve me as an investor.” Claude’s company, Fine Day Ventures, focuses on disruptive technologies with potential for positive social impact. To date, it has stakes in 50 startup companies, in fintech, medtech, energy and aerospace—“sectors with the potential to reshape the world,” as Claude puts it. Like most alumnae, Claude realized how important Sweet Briar was to her when she heard about the planned closure. “I thought, ‘This can’t happen!’ Sweet Briar is such a great college and more relevant than ever today, when women are still fighting to be treated equally. It’s a place where your voice counts and you can help shape the future.”

“

Sweet Briar is such a great college and more relevant than ever today, when women are still fighting to be treated equally. It’s a place where your voice counts and you can help shape the future.

”

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Quad on the

News and Notes Around Campus

New Computer Science Program Receives Accreditation The Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC)—the regional accrediting body for higher education institutions in the South—has notified Sweet Briar’s administration that the new Computer Science program has been approved. The approval means the computer science degree is included in the scope of the College’s current accreditation. The computer science major will complement Sweet Briar’s strong science, technology, engineering and mathematics offerings, including the B.S. in engineering science. SACSCOC’s approval comes on the heels of a successful search for a fulltime computer science professor, says mathematics professor Steve Wassell, who spearheaded the program’s development. He never doubted accreditation, but finding a highly qualified candidate proved challenging in the current job market, he says. “We were

able to accomplish that as well. I am happy to say that we are all set.” The College began working early in 2016 with Harvey Mudd College—a leader in STEM education among liberal arts colleges—and Silicon Valley companies to develop a focused curriculum that will provide Sweet Briar graduates with a competitive edge in the workplace. Computer science majors will take two semesters of Python, one semester of Java and one semester using C/C++ and Linux. Sweet Briar continues to explore collaborative opportunities with Google, and in February, hosted a National Engineers Week dinner with a presentation by one of the company’s lead software engineers. Electives include the use of Swift, the new and upcoming language developed at Apple, as well as R. Upper-level electives include computer security, computer vision and data science. First-year courses for computer

science majors include engineering design, which features some Arduino programming and a team-based approach to problem solving, as well as calculus and statistics. Majors will complete a two-semester capstone project in their senior year. Although the computer science major requires 47 credits, students will have the opportunity to take a broad array of liberal arts courses, the hallmark of a Sweet Briar College education. “Employers need skilled programmers who can also write well, communicate their ideas coherently, and think about the larger issues for their company and society,” said Wassell. “This is a lean and mean major. Our students and eventual employers want practical coursework. Practical is the program we are building—because job growth in this field is strong and only getting stronger.”

Joshua Harris Scores Indie Film

years after graduation—whether it’s ten years or thirty—we may be stuck with the same issues we had before crossing that stage at Commencement,” according to the festival’s synopsis. Harris created all of the sound for the film’s music using computer software. Sweet Briar guitar instructor Eric Hollandsworth contributed the only recorded sound. Out of the film’s 95 minutes, there are 11 different musical cues, totaling 25 minutes and 36 seconds of original music. A composer for more than 20 years, Harris says his music has been heavily influenced by the studio techniques

Joshua Harris, an assistant professor of music at Sweet Briar and director of the College’s Sound Art Production and Analysis Studio, created the score for a film shown at the 2017 Indy Film Fest in Indianapolis. The movie was written and directed by Henry Johnston, a friend and former colleague, who asked Harris to consider writing the music for the new movie. In “King Rat,” a graduating college senior befriends his commencement speaker, an alumnus of the school, in his last few days on campus. The movie “examines the possibility that 6

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Sweet Briar Joins the National Collegiate Equestrian Association Sweet Briar College has joined the National Collegiate Equestrian Association (NCEA), becoming the NCEA’s first Division III member to participate in regular season competition and be eligible for the post-season. The College’s director of riding, Mimi Wroten ’93, says membership in the NCEA fits with Sweet Briar’s traditional foundation while creating more opportunities for riders at the highest competitive level in college sports. It potentially clears the way to ride for national NCEA titles—and maybe one day, NCAA championships. The format is head-to-head, with two riders showing against each other on randomly drawn horses. Wroten will act as the head coach for the team. Sweet Briar is also a member of the Old Dominion Athletic Conference, the Intercollegiate Horse Shows Association and the American National Riding Commission, and participates in other U.S. Hunter Jumper Association-affiliated shows throughout the year. Wroten says there’s a big difference between showing as an individual and as a team, so adding USHJA-affiliated team competitions at the collegiate level to the riding program’s schedule is of great benefit to students. And the NCEA format adds another dimension. “Two riders being judged against each other on the same mount is

unlike traditional equitation classes, where groups of riders are compared to one another,” Wroten said. “NCEA meets will not only test our riders, but will give them another team experience.” Joining the NCEA is a logical step, says Sweet Briar’s president, Meredith Woo, but it reflects the College’s spirit, too. “We have a long history of competitive riding, attracting women from around the country who want simultaneously an excellent education and the chance to compete as equestrians at the highest level,” Woo said. “Joining the ranks of the NCEA is a point of pride for Sweet Briar—espe-

cially as the first Division III school.” The NCEA is equally happy to bring a quality team into its fold, says Haley Schoolfield, president of the association. “[We are] thrilled to welcome Sweet Briar College to the head-tohead format of collegiate competition,” Schoolfield said. “SBC has a rich history in the collegiate equestrian world, and we are excited to begin competing with them this year.” For the schedule of NCEA and other riding events, go to http://sbc.edu/ riding/calendar-of-events/ or follow Sweet Briar Riding on Facebook.

of electroacoustic composers. It’s also how a lot of the soundtracks for movies, TV and video gaming are made today. That’s why, when a $10,000 grant from Chegg became available to the College’s music department in 2016, Harris pitched the idea of using the money for the Sound Art Production and Analysis Studio. He saw it as a way to get young women excited about composition using computers. “This studio is going to be a way in for a lot of students who might not have thought of music composition before—especially if they’re thinking about it in terms of writing classical

music,” he said at the time. Harris, a North Carolina native who holds degrees from Appalachian State University, Brigham Young and the University of North Texas, has had his works performed all over the U.S. and in South Korea. He has been commissioned by the Barlow Endowment for Music Composition and the Nova Ensemble at UNT. His recordings are available on the SEAMUS label. He’d never thought about scoring a film, though—until Johnston asked him. “I watched the movie and loved it, suddenly feeling excited about doing something new,” he recalls. “Henry’s

biggest instruction to me was that he didn’t want the music to tell the audience how to feel. That surprised me at first, because I had always thought that was a film composer’s job.” The more Harris thought about it, the more his friend’s direction made sense. “Audiences don’t have to be told how to feel. The best art just tells its story, and the audience feels what resonates with their own experiences,” he says. “I think that’s exactly what this film does, and I’m thrilled to have played a small role in that.”

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Randy Cash, Buildings and Grounds Francoise Wackenhut, Parent ’98, ’02, ’08

John Pegues, Parent ’00

Ellen Reed Carver ’85 and Sally Old Kitchin ’76

Mary Whitney Earnhart ’14

M. C. Elmore Harrell ’64 and Martha “Tuck” Mattern Harvey ’64 8

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Sarah Preston Clement ’75

Right, standing: Barbara Hastings Carne ’69, Jonna Creaser Clarkson ’70, Ann Gateley ’70, Debbie Ohler Bowman ’70, Molly Woltz Carrison ’70; seated: Jane Rush Davenport ’70 and Kate Schlech ’70. The Class of 1970 had the most participants at Sweet Work Weeks with nine classmates.

Kathy Garcia Pegues ‘71, Sweet Work Weeks coordinator

Jill Gavitt ’97

Katie McCardell Webb ’70 (in tree) and Ann Gateley ’70, Sweet Work Weeks grounds supervisor

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Ellis Carroll ’20

Kim Dickey Melcher ’90 and Nicole Balding Roca

Lynne Manov Echols ’71 10

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Linda Uihlein ’77

Kate Schlech ’70

Ann Tedards ’70 and Brendy Reiter Hantzes ’81

Sweet Work Weeks painting supervisors, Alexa Schriempf ’97 and Vikki Schroeder ’87

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Meet Our New Students

Sweet Briar College welcomed

new students this fall including firstyears and transfers. The Class of 2021 is strong in academics as well as diversity, represented by:

22 states* and 1 country** 24% self-identified as minority 18% first-generation college students 15% legacies 31% student-athletes 33% qualified for Honors Program 12

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*top states: Virginia, Maryland, North Carolina, Pennsylvania

**China

Fletcher Oak Lives on in Academic Mace It happened around 10 a.m. on Aug. 9, 2005. For members of the Sweet Briar College community, it was the passing of a dear friend. As the news quickly spread, people came to pay their respects. The Fletcher Oak—still in full summer foliage and festooned with clusters of green acorns—had fallen. Since 1906, students, faculty and staff had passed beneath the massive canopy, taking comfort from its imposing presence. In 1991, Mary Oliver, then the College’s Margaret Banister Writer-in-Residence, wrote a poem about it: “There is a tree here so beautiful it even has a name. …” The red oak, named for the College’s founding family, stood on the northwest corner of Fletcher Hall. It was at least 200 years old, and even on its last day, sprawled across a rain-drenched Sweet Briar Drive, its grandeur and magnitude were on display. The jumbled branches dwarfed the workers who scrambled over them with chainsaws and trimmers to clear it from the road. Some of the harvested wood of the beloved tree remains, tucked away in a barn on campus. From these remnants comes the Fletcher Oak’s latest contribution—and perhaps its most significant—to the Sweet Briar story: a ceremonial mace handcrafted by woodturner Tom Boley. The elaborate piece was used for the first time at the inauguration of President Meredith Jung-En Woo on Sept. 22, 2017. The Sweet Briar College Mace is a gift from a group of unnamed donors to celebrate the investiture of the College’s 13th president. It is marked with the following inscription: Crafted with wood from the Fletcher Oak First used at the Inauguration of President Meredith Jung-En Woo September 22, 2017 Given in honor of the Alumnae of the college, who kept the Faith An academic mace is a symbol of an institution’s authority to confer a degree. It traces its history to the medieval battle mace, a weapon of war and, again, representative of authority. A king’s or queen’s scepter is similarly a symbol of authority. Each element of the Sweet Briar Mace represents something significant to the College. Starting at the bottom, the small ball at the tip of the tailpiece represents Sweet Briar’s origin; the widening of the tailpiece represents its ongoing growth. The large ring ascending from the base reflects the core curriculum of a liberal arts education centered on students, on learning, on thinking and on doing. Three rings below the shaft represent the College’s newly created “centers of excellence” that make up the curriculum: Engineering, Science and Technology in Society; Human and Environmental

Sustainability; and Creativity, Design and the Arts. The shaft is enclosed by five flutes along the sides, representing the four undergraduate classes and the graduate degree program. The five upper rings surrounding the student body represent growth in writing, speaking, critical thinking, proficiency in areas of study, and acquired life skills and attributes, including leadership, confidence, resilience and adaptability. The engraved collar between the shaft and the upper section commemorates the inauguration of President Woo and honors the alumnae of the College. The ball at top of the shaft represents the board, faculty and staff, who have significant influence on students in their academic journey, and holds medallions with the seal of Sweet Briar College. Just above it are two rings representing the College and the alumnae, which are joined together always. The pointed finial at the top points to Sweet Briar’s future. The finished piece is 44 inches, with a 5-inch medallion at the top. It was made with care befitting Tom Boley’s reverence for the wood and the story behind it. “The Sweet Briar mace is No. 51 for me,” said Boley, who lives and works near Manhattan, Kan. “While for me it is a business, I also think it is really special making something like this for colleges and universities, which should last well over a hundred years.” The alumna who commissioned the mace explained to him what the tree had meant to the campus community. “I have had a couple schools ask to incorporate a piece of a campus tree in their mace and it has worked well,” he said. “It is quite a responsibility, as you know. Using wood from the Fletcher Oak has made this one pretty special.”

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Meredith

Woo:

weet Briar’s path has never been easy. Its creation was contested by relatives of Indiana Fletcher Williams who opposed her will establishing the women’s college. It began with just enough wealth to fulfill the founder’s vision and give us Ralph Adams Cram’s architecture, which is lovely but was extremely costly. Filling the iconic new buildings with students and faculty—which had to be done quickly—was left to Mary K. Benedict, the College’s first president, using what little remained. She did, led by her own conviction that the board’s charge for a first-rate liberal arts college was the right one. It was not the last time a Sweet Briar leader would have to improvise without compromising on the quality, nor the last time one would take measure of the times and do what was necessary. On Sept. 6, 2017, new College president Meredith Jung-En Woo rolled out a plan to reimagine not just Sweet Briar but the whole of the liberal arts. The announcement did what she had hoped: It garnered national headlines and positioned Sweet Briar as, quite possibly, an innovator in higher education. Woo is Sweet Briar’s 13th president.

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Envisioning the Path Forward

There is no denying she has come to the College at a vulnerable juncture. Sweet Briar has experienced difficult times in its history, requiring tough leaders. Woo must now be one of them. To come to Sweet Briar, she left two jobs she describes as “the best in the world.” She was on leave from a tenured faculty position at the University of Virginia—after stepping down as dean of the College and Graduate School of Arts & Sciences in 2014— during which time, she was directing the global higher education program for the Open Society Foundations. From her two offices, in London and Budapest, she oversaw one of the world’s largest operations for supporting higher education around the globe, especially in the Middle East, Eastern Europe, Southeast Asia and Central Asia. With her team, she focused on delivering higher education to vulnerable populations. That took her to refugee camps and shantytowns in Jordan, Turkey and Lebanon that housed people who had fled their homes in Syria. Woo’s group helped create an “underground railroad” for the Rohingya women in Myanmar. The Rohingyas carry the unfortunate distinction of being one of the most persecuted minorities in the world.

She and her team helped to provide these women with an education at an international women’s college in Chittagong, Bangladesh. Other improbable tasks included supporting the Belarus University-in Exile, now situated in Vilnius, Lithuania, and helping relocate the students and faculty from a university in the Russian-occupied Donetsk to a safer part of Ukraine. Woo is a prolific scholar and an expert in East Asian politics and international political economy. She cut her teeth as an administrator at the University of Michigan, where she was a chaired professor in political science, then a divisional dean in charge of the social sciences—arguably the crown jewel of a university she considers exceptionally well run and one of the finest in the nation. “Because it is a premier research university with good governance—democratic, transparent, mission-driven, big thinking—it is also a feeder for the nation’s university leaders,” she says. It wasn’t long before UVa tapped her as dean of the College and Graduate School of Arts & Sciences, where she spent six years making large-scale changes and raising financial resources to supplement dwindling state funds.

She didn’t want to know how big Sweet Briar should be or what programs to cut to be “sustainable.” She asked, instead, what needs to be done to make Sweet Briar education President Woo with delegates representing women’s colleges at her inauguration

Because of her time at UVa, Woo knew of Sweet Briar. She knew its academic reputation, that it had a not-insubstantial endowment, and that it had one of the most beautiful campuses in the nation. She was also deeply involved with higher education in developing and advanced societies around the world. She has grappled with the questions of education for women, who often outnumber men in colleges and universities but remain underrepresented in positions of power. She raised these points in her inauguration speech, concluding: “Women’s colleges are a good idea—it is one whose time has come, and not gone. Around the world, people look to the United States—and excellent small women’s colleges like Sweet Briar—to meaningfully provide the kind of education that allows women to find their place in the sun.” So, her background—and her conviction that Sweet Briar represents a solution to an ongoing problem in the world— brought her to this place. But it wasn’t just that. “I admire resilient people,” she said during an interview. “I admire people with moxie, who routinely beat odds. And at Sweet Briar, I am surrounded by them.”

n July 2, 2015, Woo’s predecessor, Phillip C. Stone, took over an institution that had all but closed. He brought it back by restructuring debt and balancing the books, by reviving key programs, and by making sure the school could deliver the full liberal arts experience. But Stone and Woo both knew Sweet Briar needed a new course to overcome the conditions that led to the previous board’s

vote to shut the school down. She began planning changes even before she arrived full-time on May 15, 2017. Within days of her arrival, she convened a faculty-led task force that included staff, students and alumnae to consider sweeping changes to Sweet Briar’s academic curriculum, calendar and organizational structure. Her charge was to take Sweet Briar’s “givens”—small size, single-sex, rural campus, proximate resources and programs of distinction—and devise a new liberal arts model for women leaders that is affordable, excellent, relevant to the times we live in and identifiable as something Sweet Briar does better than anyone else. “The obstacles and issues in the way of women becoming leaders and staying as leaders are legion,” Woo says. “It’s very complex. It’s social, it’s economic, it’s political, it’s psychological, it’s cultural. So we want to be sure that we educate women who are strong enough, smart enough, savvy enough to deal with these myriad challenges that lie in the way of them becoming and staying leaders.” She didn’t want to know how big Sweet Briar should be or what programs to cut to be “sustainable.” She asked, instead, what needs to be done to make Sweet Briar education excellent and relevant? She believes once you figure that out, you can begin thinking about the “critical mass” of faculty needed in a department and of students in a class. There is no “magic number,” she would say when asked how many students Sweet Briar needs. It’s not your size, it’s what you do with it, her philosophy goes. “When you’re small, you don’t wear clothes that are made for a big person,”

excellent and relevant? Woo says. By mid-July, the task force created by the president delivered recommendations to replace general education requirements with a core curriculum focused on women’s leadership through project-oriented learning. It also recommended replacing academic departments with three interdisciplinary and interdependent centers of excellence where faculty and student collaboration flows unimpeded by administrative constructs. To accommodate these changes, the academic calendar will add two three-week short terms dedicated to experiential learning to the two 12-week sessions. That will allow students to start internships early, or take short, intense courses in areas of interest. Majors continue to be offered within the centers of excellence, which include engineering and STEM, human and environmental sustainability, and the arts. Woo said the three centers are drawn from Sweet Briar’s strengths. “We have one of the only two accredited engineering programs among women’s colleges. It’s a given,” she said. “We will build on it. We have thirty-two hundred acres of laboratory for sustainability. It’s a given. We will build on it. And then we have the VCCA [Virginia Center for the Creative Arts] across the street. It’s a given. We’ll build on this relationship and make Sweet Briar a destination for young people.” At the same time, Woo led the charge to revise the business model for private higher education by making the College’s pricing simple and transparent, while curbing the alarming escalation in discount rates. When the curricular and tuition “resets” were announced in September, compreSWEET BRIAR MAGAZINE | SBC.EDU

underway to select and frame some 350 works of original art from the College’s collection to hang in students’ rooms. She believes that great and original works of art will have a transformative impact on the way students see the world.

W President Woo with son Ben and husband Bruce Cumings

Alumnae at the inauguration

President Woo and Mary Pope M. Hutson ‘83, VP for Alumnae Relations and Development, get in on the painting during Sweet Work Weeks. 16

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hensive costs for 2018-2019 were set at a 10-year low: $34,000, down 32 percent from this year’s sticker price of $50,055. The comprehensive costs at Sweet Briar will be about the same for in-state students at the University of Virginia. The idea is to make it clear to American families that excellent private education is a viable alternative to public institutions. While all that was taking place, Woo roamed campus, going into residence halls and offices, often unannounced, absorbing what needed to be done. Unpretentious and plain-spoken, she would simply show up at someone’s door if she needed information. In May, she determined that the dormitories needed to be cleaned up and refurbished. By summer’s end, money was raised to replace the flooring in several residence halls, and more than 170 alumnae, faculty and staff had volunteered to paint more than 220 rooms, parlors and hallways in four dormitories. Another initiative was

oo was born in Seoul, South Korea, and educated there until age 14, when her father took a diplomatic post in Japan. She attended an international high school in Tokyo and went on to study history and English literature at Bowdoin College, graduating magna cum laude in 1980. She earned master’s degrees in international affairs and Latin American studies and a Ph.D. in political science at Columbia University. Woo became a U.S. citizen during her 12 years teaching at Northwestern—where she says she would have been happy to stay had Michigan not called. She’s also taught at Colgate University and Columbia University. In addition to writing or editing seven books, she served on President Bill Clinton’s Presidential Commission on U.S.-Pacific Trade and Investment Policy in 1996 and has consulted for several international organizations. She was also the executive producer of an award-winning documentary—“Koryo Saram—The Unreliable People.” The film grew from her research of 200,000 Soviet-Koreans who were deported from Vladivostok, in the Soviet Far East, to Central Asia—Kazakhstan, Uzbeskistan and Tajikistan—during the height of Stalin’s Great Terror. When she’s not working, Woo enjoys driving to take her mind off things, and reading. She reads widely, but these days a collection of poems by the Portuguese poet Fernando Pessoa’s work is by her bed because “even I can actually finish a poem or two before falling asleep.” She also likes cooking, but only if she has “friends to cook for.” She says she often fed the entire political science department at Northwestern, numbering more than 50 faculty. “I suppose that’s more people than the entire regular ladder faculty at Sweet Briar. I look forward to entertaining students, staff and faculty at Sweet Briar House.” Her son Ben Cumings is a Charlottesville High School alumnus and a recent graduate of Bowdoin College. He lives in Chicago, where he performs in improv theaters. Woo’s husband, Bruce Cumings, is the Gustavus F. and Ann M. Swift

Alumnae representing nine decades of classes participated in the inauguration procession behind students bearing banners commemorating each decade.

Professor Linda Fink, who carried the ceremonial mace at the inauguration, with her sister, Rachel Fink

Distinguished Service Professor in History at the University of Chicago—as well as an avid sports fan and car buff. “I think one of the reasons he wanted to come to Sweet Briar is that his antique cars were being reworked, of all places, in Lynchburg,” Woo says with a laugh. “He is very fond of the area, and he loves Sweet Briar.” Woo’s older son, Ian Cumings, was a rising senior at the University of Chicago when he was killed in an automobile accident seven years ago. He was majoring in German language and literature, admired by his professors and classmates alike for his wit, warmth and acumen. Woo has difficulty talking about Ian but shares that he was “a gifted person, with a strong sense of justice. “It used to outrage him to see people treated unfairly. He was also very funny in a gentle, understated way,” she says. “After [he died] I suppose I became far more interested in young people—their interests, fears, needs, aspirations. I am at Prothro every day, sometimes for breakfast too. I like eavesdropping on their conversation; I like to check out what they are wearing, what their T-shirts say. They also tell me what I need to know to run the College— they are my best informants.”

s long as she knows what to do, Woo says she doesn’t worry about things. And the path forward is a matter of thinking through the problem. “I never thought for a moment that I would fail, or that Sweet Briar would fail. It’s not nuclear science. I mean, you worry if you don’t know what to do, but we know what needs to be done,” she says. Woo owes this pragmatic optimism to her father and others like him: people who turn adversity into something unexpectedly interesting. In Korea, her father was an

official in charge of creating and implementing industrial policy. “I was fascinated by the way people, much like my own father, took a daunting and even bleak situation after the Korean War and mapped out a future, step by step, in a succession of multiyear indicative planning,” she says, noting South Korea went from ruins to being one of the wealthiest countries in the world in half a century. “I once asked my dad, ‘What is economic development?’ and he said, ‘It’s a deeply creative process where you look at problems and then you ask yourself, ‘How do you do end-runs around obstacles to get to where you need to?’ ’ And I think that really influenced me and that’s oftentimes how I look at life and problems.” Is that why she came to Sweet Briar? “I suppose. You know, where other people give up, I see possibilities, that’s true.” There’s a suggestion, though, that this ability is a luxury most people don’t have. Coming from an exceptionally cosmopolitan family, living and traveling throughout the world, she has been exposed to experiences, cultures and relationships that allow her to see possibilities where others may not. “I think that I have something to offer because I have had interesting experiences. It’s been a rich life, and if there’s something I can do to be useful, that’s great.” Woo joins the pantheon of practical visionaries whose leadership has carried Sweet Briar before—women like Benedict, Connie Guion, Meta Glass and countless alumnae. Leaders with gumption, grit and, most of all, a sure sense of what to do next.

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T HE PL A N

Academic Repositioning and Tuition Reset On Sept. 6, 2017, Sweet Briar announced two major strategic initiatives. The first focuses our liberal arts curriculum on the theme of women’s leadership capable of meeting today’s challenges, while also looking ahead. Recognizing that the liberal arts must be increasingly interdisciplinary and oriented toward problem-solving, these innovations go into effect in fall 2018: • A new core curriculum with a focus on women’s leadership

The New Curriculum

Our faculty are designing an innovative liberal arts curriculum that builds on Sweet Briar’s unique strengths in the sciences, arts and humanities.

The Leadership Core

The core curriculum takes the place of general education requirements. The leadership core is a set of required courses designed to prepare women to be effective leaders for today’s society. Courses from across the three “centers of excellence” develop the skills and habits of the mind that are the hallmarks of liberal arts excellence. Through them, Sweet Briar women learn to speak and write compellingly; to make ethical decisions; to be adept at logic and reasoning; and to be able to synthesize information, take action with confidence and manage projects and complex situations. Components of the leadership core may include a first-year research experience, ethics of leadership, financial literacy, rhetoric and communication, and a capstone requirement.

Centers of Excellence

Beginning with the 2018–2019 academic year, three centers of excellence will replace current academic departments and divisions. Majors will be offered within the centers, and study will be more intense, hands-on, collaborative and interdisciplinary—the building blocks of the career and life skills the liberal arts are known for: critical thinking, written and verbal communication, ethics and awareness, and adaptability. These centers are designed around 18

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• The creation of three interdisciplinary “centers of excellence” dedicated to solving contemporary problems in place of traditional academic departments, while maintaining majors that are critical to liberal learning • A flexible 3-12-12-3-week academic calendar that maximizes experiential learning opportunities The second initiative revises our tuition model to make the true cost of tuition, room and board transparent to students and their families.

Sweet Briar’s existing strengths, both its resources and programs of distinction. Engineering, Science and Technology in Society: This center builds on being home to one of only two ABET-accredited engineering programs among women’s colleges in the U.S. Human and Environmental Sustainability: This center capitalizes on one of our greatest assets—our campus and its vast nature preserves that serve as a laboratory. Creativity, Design and the Arts: This center takes advantage of the natural synergy with the Virginia Center for the Creative Arts, one of the nation’s largest artist colonies, located just across U.S. 29.

Academic Calendar

The new 3-12-12-3-week academic calendar incorporates two short terms dedicated to experiential learning opportunities such as research, internships and study abroad. Every undergraduate student will be eligible for up to $2,000 to fund these experiences. Summer courses also will be added to allow students opportunities to complete a bachelor’s degree in three years. The three-week short terms may be used for intensive courses taught by guest instructors who bring practical lessons from their everyday jobs. Such guests may be policymakers and legislators, working artists from the VCCA or accomplished alumnae. These are opportunities for lifelong connections and mentorships.

Tuition Plan Features Reducing the tuition discounts while providing merit and need-based scholarships so as to make the cost of attendance affordable. Transparency improves access to a broader pool of applicants. A new comprehensive price of $34,000 for two full semesters, which includes: • Tuition and fees—$21,000 • Room—$7,000 • Board—$6,000

A 32 percent reduction from equivalent costs in 2017–2018, which resets tuition to a level from over a decade ago Makes costs competitive with selective public universities for Virginia residents and much more affordable for out-ofstate students—i.e., a private school liberal arts education at public university pricing Continued scholarships and need-based financial aid reduce tuition even further. More than 200 scholarships currently offered will remain available for eligible students.

Students choose art for their dorm rooms from a selection of newly framed pieces from the College’s art collection.

Living with Art Initiative

weet Briar’s Living With Art Initiative aims for educational depth while enhancing living and working spaces with vibrancy, color and beauty. Shortly after President Meredith Woo arrived at Sweet Briar, she devised an unusual plan: hang art everywhere, including in students’ residential rooms. This fall, the Living With Art Initiative was announced in a letter to students explaining that they would be able select a framed work of art for their rooms through a lottery. “You—and every student— will have the opportunity to have your own private exhibition space,” she wrote in August. Woo’s goal is to display more of the thousands of objects in the Sweet Briar College Art Gallery’s permanent collection. The collection is an integral part of the teaching curriculum. Works are shown in Pannell Gallery each semester, and art history students routinely use it to curate museum and gallery exhibitions. Some pieces are also exhibited in administrative buildings, but Woo saw an opportunity to

go much further. “I want visual art to be a major part of the Sweet Briar experience for each student,” Woo wrote in her letter. “I believe a more proactive display and use of artworks in all residence halls—in your rooms and in the parlors—will add depth to your education outside of the classroom. “Art collections in a collegiate setting should be in service of learning, whether in classrooms, in galleries, or as we plan to do, in the halls and rooms of residence buildings.” Beyond enhancing the liberal arts curriculum, Woo believes the “vibrancy and color” that the art will infuse throughout campus is a way to both “lift our spirits” and fulfill our mission. Laura Pharis will attest to both. Pharis, a studio art professor and multimedia artist, is helping with the enormous task of selecting, cataloging and framing about 350 pieces. It’s painstaking work to safeguard both the provenance and the condition of the art. Registrarial assistant Nancy McDearmon is providing guidance on museum practices and procedures.

Pharis recently came home after a day of combing the collection, feeling exhausted but curiously happy. She puzzled over her mood, she said, until the reason dawned on her. “Looking at the art just kind of puts you in a better place. I hope it will be a good experience for students and I hope they will research their piece. I do believe that being around art changes you—that it can be fulfilling.” Beyond the pleasure of looking through the collection, Pharis likes imagining the kind of student who would enjoy a certain piece. “I might think a music student would like this or a [medieval and Renaissance studies] student would like to have a certain medieval print. We have some really old prints in the collection.” Although the process is still ongoing, Pharis says some Peter Milton prints are among the selections by living artists. She also picked a work by Giovanni Battista Piranesi, an 18th-century Italian known for his etchings of Rome. The work is from a series of 16 prints known as the “Carceri d’invenzione” or

the “Imaginary Prisons.” “It is powerful,” Pharis said of the latter. “It would take the right student to like that piece, but I think students will like it.” All of the art will be selected, framed and installed in student rooms by the end of the fall semester. Seniors will receive theirs first, then juniors, sophomores and first-years. Pharis said they are taking care to use UV-filtering plexiglass and safety hangers to protect the art. About 350 additional works from Sweet Briar’s decorative collection also are being hung in the residence hall parlors, Prothro dining rooms and other public spaces. Many of these are by contemporary professional artists, faculty members and Sweet Briar students. Pharis says she is glad to see art from both collections going up around campus, especially after what had been in public spaces was removed in 2015. “I’m a visual artist. If you ask me if I would rather my work be in a drawer or on the wall, I’m going to say the wall every time,” she said. “So I’m excited about the project. I think it’s an audacious plan.”

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With a Scholarship and Her Upcoming Autobiography, Anna Chao Pai Pays It Forward

hen Anna Chao “Chips” Pai sat down to write her autobiography, she had a lot of material to work with. After all, her grandfather was a warlord who controlled all of Manchuria in the 1920s and was assassinated by the Japanese, who wanted control of the region. Her uncle became a historic figure in China who once staged a coup against Chiang Kai-shek and paid for it with an extraordinary 50 years of house arrest. But several chapters of her forthcoming book, “From Manchurian Princess to the American Dream,” focus on Pai’s time at Sweet Briar and the impact the College has had on her life as a noted geneticist. A 1957 graduate, she recently endowed a scholarship named for her and her late husband in hopes of supporting other Chinese or other Asian students who want to attend the College. “Sweet Briar did a lot for me. I’m just paying them back,” Pai says. She began her book project as a memoir she could leave behind “for my very American children and grandchildren.” She wanted to make sure they knew the role

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their ancestors played in history, as well as her own path from immigrant to college professor and researcher. And she hopes the book will bring her observations about Chinese and American cultures to readers and improve understanding and tolerance on the part of both peoples. Her uncle, Zhang Xueliang, better known as “the Young Marshal,” was a Chinese warlord who controlled Manchuria in the 1930s. He and his Manchurian army joined Chiang Kai-shek. But to his dismay, Chiang ordered him to use his army in the fight against the Chinese Communists rather than the Japanese in Manchuria. When his army left Manchuria, the Japanese flooded in, seizing control and committing atrocities against the Chinese residents. Zhang wanted to use his army to fight the Japanese, but Chiang would not let him, worrying about the Communist movement. Eventually the Young Marshal, together with another general, engineered a coup to convince Chiang Kai-shek to stop fighting the Chinese Communists and join them in fighting the Japanese, who had begun to advance into the rest of China. Once he obtained Chiang’s agreement, Zhang

released Chiang, feeling that he was the only person who could unite China, and flew with him to his headquarters to keep another general from shooting down the plane. The Young Marshal ended up in house arrest that lasted even after Chiang had lost power and died. Pai’s husband, David, also had connections to the Chinese conflict: His father, National Revolutionary Army general Bai Chongxi, fought both the Japanese and Chinese Communists and is respected as the most brilliant military mind—whom Chiang unfortunately ignored.

hips Pai’s family lived in China until she was 3. Once in the United States, her family moved frequently: She attended 12 different schools before she reached college. In place after place, she and her brothers were the only Chinese students in the classroom. “Moving from one school to another, being the new kid on the block, it was terror each first day of school,” she recalls. “They treated us like aliens because there were so few Chinese in the U.S. at that time.” When it came to college, she chose

Sweet Briar because the College gave her a scholarship and the promise of a job on campus as a student waitress. When she first arrived, she filled out a form asking if she had ever had a nickname. She remembered a high school classmate who teased her about her love of potato chips. Pai wrote “Chips” on the form. And that has been her nickname with classmates ever since. At Sweet Briar, she made the dean’s list and played varsity sports. More important, she found a place where she could belong. “Just in that freshman year, I felt that I was accepted as a person,” she says. “I was voted in a class officer, and was an officer every year. It made me feel some self-confidence where I had none. Being at Sweet Briar was the best thing that could have happened to me.” Carol McMurtry Fowler, a classmate, remembers how Chips quickly became a leader of what was an extraordinary class. “Chips Chao is probably one of the most outstanding leaders I have run across in all my 80-plus years,” she says. “We were a very unique group of young women in the 50s. We have very smart girls. We had a number of girls who were very talented athletically. We had serious scholars. Chips was all of these.” Beyond the friends she made, Pai forged bonds with her professors, including Jane Belcher, who taught biology. “Miss Belcher saw something in me and told me about a laboratory training program in Maine,” she says. “I learned for the first time what real scientific research was.” After graduation, she earned a master’s degree in embryology from Bryn Mawr College and a Ph.D. in developmental genetics from the Sue Golding Graduate Division of Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York. She spent nearly three decades as a professor and researcher at Montclair State University in New Jersey. She wrote a genetics textbook, “Foundations of Genetics: A Science for Society,” in 1974 for non-science majors

Pai delivers the greetings from the alumnae at President Woo’s inauguration.

and a course in what she believed was a vitally important subject for the general public. After retirement she wrote a science fiction novel, “Choices,” about genetic engineering, published in 2009 under the pseudonym A. C. White. Her autobiography should be published in the next few months, perhaps early next year. Throughout the years, she stayed connected to Sweet Briar, serving on the Board of Directors from 1984 to 1992 and helping to develop the honors program. She was named a Distinguished Alumna and inducted into the Athletics Hall of Fame. Her class remains one of the most tight-knit in a tight-knit alumnae base. They draw a big crowd at five-year reunions and keep in touch throughout the year. “It’s been sort of a seamless journey with our class,” Fowler says. When the board voted to close the College in 2015, it was no surprise that Pai and her classmates joined the fight to save their alma mater. “I listened to the so-called conference call and was really dissatisfied with anything that was said,” Pai recalls. She began hearing from alumnae and faculty who discounted the administration’s arguments. She wrote a long post on Facebook that questioned the logic of shutting down the College, one of the first older alumnae to speak out so publicly against the decision. “I was told that the letter I posted was effective and gave the young alumnae inspiration.” Now that Sweet Briar is back on its feet and recruiting from schools in China, Pai is hoping her scholarship will help attract students. “Sweet Briar to me would be an ideal place for Chinese students, since I know something about how they are raised. The safety of the College, the fact that there’s no sexism here, and the strength of the science and technology area of our curriculum are just ideal for Chinese women.”

From pai’s book, “From Manchurian Princess to the American Dream” At the end of my senior year, I knew I would be devastated to have to leave my first home in the United States. And I would leave my sister students at Sweet Briar. Shortly after graduation, I wrote an essay about how much I was affected by graduation. This is what I wrote near the end of the essay: “The hood has been placed around my shoulder and my tassel is on the left side of the mortarboard. We stand now, and they are playing the recessional. The back row of seniors—now graduates—begins to file out. I see it is almost time for us to leave. I turn to June to tell her I would not say goodbye, and yet knowing it is goodbye to one of my best-loved friends, I must leave abruptly, for the sadness comes. . . . And now the time has come, the very hard time that we have shuddered at and put off in our minds for months saying, ‘Won’t it be terrible?’ And it is. I shall long remember my well-loved and loving friends as my companions at work and play, revolutionizing all philosophy and religion, or dancing like idiots in the refec before we served the dinner-dance of a big weekend, sharing sad and happy news and moods. But I shall remember them as I see them now, too, on the day of our departure for different worlds. I shall remember them returning and sharing my unhappiness. We are unable to say anything—we could not even if we were not choking and crying—as we had resolved not to do. We can only look hard at each other, silently asking that we not be forgotten, putting everything we feel in this look. Look my eyes, hold them my heart—hold, hold, hold.”

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Stewardship of Campus Lands Translates to Student Learning

Grants fund five sustainability interns to focus on the community garden, alternative fuels and carbon budgets, and an invasive water plant.

his summer, five Sweet Briar students worked around campus as sustainability interns, concentrating on three projects: growing produce in the community garden; focusing on carbon budgets, forests and alternative fuels; and monitoring an invasive water plant. The internships were funded by a half-million-dollar grant from the Judith Haskell Brewer Fund of The Community Foundation Serving Richmond and Central Virginia, which supports Sweet Briar’s environmental programs, and a federal grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. According to Dorys McConnell Duberg Professor of Ecology Linda Fink, who supervised the interns, each intern focused on one project, designed to fit each intern’s interests, knowledge and abilities, for part of each week and contributed to other projects. The students involved in the program were Shannon Skeffington ’19, a double major in environmental studies and international affairs; environmental studies major Chelsea McKinney ’18; and rising sophomores Valeria Gofigan-Ramirez, Blake Newton and Brianna Garcia—all of whom are leaning toward majoring in biology. In the community garden, the interns grew produce that will eventually find its way onto plates at Prothro, the College’s dining hall. “The ultimate goal is learning to produce healthy, local food and market it to our dining services,” Fink said. “One of the things we have to work out is our business plan, to see how students will sell stuff back to campus. We are also aiming to install a hoop house to expand our production and extend our growing season.” The community garden members, most of whom are Sweet Briar faculty, staff and retirees, tend individual plots and maintain

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shared plots of flowers and herbs. The students took responsibility for a number of plots that were not in current use. All told, they intended to plant about 4,000 square feet—one-tenth of an acre—with bell peppers, tomatoes, green beans, cucumbers and ornamental sunflowers for summer harvest. The fall crops were selected in collaboration with the sustainability director at Parkhurst Dining, which provides food service at Sweet Briar. “We will figure out what vegetables to grow that would be the highest yield to sell and produce,” said intern Chelsea McKinney ’18. McKinney, who lives in Lynchburg, is familiar with farming. Her grandparents raise cattle, corn and grapes in Danville, and she has cultivated her own garden. Her interest was further piqued by a sustainable agriculture course she took last spring at Sweet Briar. “Having my foot in the door with the sustainable agriculture class, I wanted to see our work in that class come together,” McKinney said of the internship, “selling food to [dining services] and bringing more people to the community garden, because it’s beautiful.” The second project students worked

“This is a prime example of students being involved in federally funded research that helps inform questions of environmental sustainability and biofuels research, which is really cutting edge on the national and global scale.”

on built on the 2016 Honors Summer Research project of Katie Ferguson ’17, who spent eight weeks studying Hydrilla verticillata, an invasive water plant that inhabits Sweet Briar’s Lower Lake. Ferguson, then an instructor with the Sweet Briar Outdoor Program, became interested in studying hydrilla after noticing its impact on recreational activities, such as canoeing. Around the same time, the College was introducing sterile grass carp to the lake, in the hope the fish would help to control the hydrilla. To determine whether the carp were doing their job, Ferguson, a biology major and chemistry minor on the pre-vet track, spent the summer developing standard methods to map the distribution and density of the hydrilla. She developed three different methods, including aerial drone photography and a sampler she invented using a five-gallon bucket. This summer, the sustainability interns continued Ferguson’s work, using two of her methods to determine what effect the carp are having on the invasive plant. The third project the interns worked on involved alternative fuel sources, namely loblolly pines and switchgrass, both of which grow on campus. In 2014, the College converted about 300 acres of its hayfields to switchgrass, which is harvested and sold to a company that converts it into an environmentally friendly heat source. The warm-season grasses take a few years to mature, and last year’s harvest was the first to produce revenue, Fink said. “It’s looking good now. It’s growing up pretty well.” Tom O’Halloran, a former Sweet Briar environmental studies professor who now is a research faculty member at Clemson University, is leading the project. Scientists at Virginia Tech also are collaborating with Sweet Briar. One thing the interns

Clemson University research technician Jim LeMoine, Professor Linda Fink, and the interns examine a phone app used to record data from field instruments.

looked at is the “different services the pine trees and the switchgrass are providing the environment,” O’Halloran said. “Both are potentially biofuel—pine can be ground up into pellets and burned—but holistically, which one is a better biofuel? We’re looking at, how do these two things interact with climate, specifically? They’re both supposed to be good for the climate. Which one is the most good?” There are two land-atmosphere research stations—called LARS, for short—on campus. O’Halloran and some of his Sweet Briar students established the first one in 2014 in a pine forest. He collaborated with colleagues at Virginia Tech in 2016 to erect a second smaller research tower in one of the switchgrass fields. An array of equipment affixed to the towers monitors biosphere-atmosphere interaction in the two environments. O’Halloran defined this as the “cycling of water, carbon and energy

between the land—forest versus switchgrass—and the atmosphere,” adding, “This helps understand how weather and climate affect how well these systems grow and function, but also in turn, how the land affects the climate.” This summer, O’Halloran said the interns used a soil respiration sensor—“a pretty fancy gadget,” he added—to “measure how much carbon dioxide is coming out of the soil” in both areas. “We want to understand the total amount of carbon dioxide that each ecosystem takes out of the atmosphere. We’re trying to figure out what the carbon footprint is of each of these ecosystems.” Shannon Skeffington ’17 came to Sweet Briar after two years of community college and more than four years in the U.S. Marine Corps, including a tour in Afghanistan. An interest in sustainability—“actual sustainability, not just the word

that’s tossed around”—is what attracted her to the internship. “I want to know how energy ties into sustainability,” Skeffington said. O’Halloran says the fact that Sweet Briar students are doing this kind of research, funded by a federal grant, is a “big deal,” but also something that aligns with the College’s commitment to finding educational uses for its 3,250-acre campus. “The College has always looked for ways to use the land, because that’s one of its unique assets,” he said. “They’ve utilized that resource, and now that resource is translating into student learning. This is a prime example of students being involved in federally funded research that helps inform questions of environmental sustainability and biofuels research, which is really cutting edge on the national and global scale.”

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Honors Summer Research 2017

Pursuing independent projects ranging from analyzing the effects of NAFTA on Mexico’s corn producers to designing and building a robot to fabricate polymer thin films, eight students earned fellowships to participate in the Honors Summer Research Program. ination of surviving coroner’s records for the city and surrounding county.

Chanel Friedrich ’19

(advised by J. Key, Government, and L. White/M. Micheledes, Economics)

Professor Jessica Salvatore with Chanel Friedrich April Boyd ’18

(advised by J. Key, Government, and L. White, Economics)

“Interventions for Healthy Eating through Farm-to-School Programs: A Behavioral Economics Approach to Identifying Effective Strategies” Interventions that promote healthy behaviors can combat the problem of childhood obesity in the United States. Farm-to-school (F2S) programs may be successful at addressing this public health problem while improving local economies. The research will advance applications of behavioral economics to F2S programs and will result in a recommendation for behavioral economic techniques that can increase the effectiveness of F2S programs.

DaZané Cole ’20

(advised by J. Salvatore, Psychology)

“Exploring Recent Stereotype Threat Interventions: The Start of a Meta-Analysis” Stereotype threat is an experience that negatively affects the performance of members of negatively stereotyped groups (Steele, 1997). Many researchers have 24

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designed and tested interventions to help impede and combat the effects of stereotype threat. The majority of interventions focus on the individual and often place no importance on staying connected to a valued—if negatively stereotyped—ingroup. This research reports on the beginning phases of a meta-analysis of stereotype threat interventions, in which interventions are categorized by whether or not they required distancing from the ingroup, in preparation to compare the effectiveness of these two types.

Anna Davis ’20

(advised by L. Laufenberg, History, with help from A. Lilly, English)

“Dead of a Death Other than Their Rightful Death: The Roles and Rolls of Medieval English Coroners” In medieval England, the duty of recording an unnatural death fell to the local coroner. With the help of a jury of twelve local men, he would inquire into the cause of death and take legal action if necessary. This research presents findings concerning the nature of “unrightful” deaths in 14th-century Oxford, based on an exam-

“The Effects of NAFTA on Mexico’s Corn Producers: A Political Economic Analysis” This research analyzes the comparative advantages and disadvantages of the United States and Mexico in corn production and investigates how these advantages and/ or disadvantages in each country affect one another’s corn production. Research was conducted through two vehicles, a literature review and a data analysis on economic indicators over the 45-year time period from 1971 to 2016.

Jessie Meager ’18

(advised by K. Morse-Jones, Art History)

“Japonisme and Its Role in Indiana Williams’s life”

(See “West Meets East,” next page)

Rylee Runyon (left) and

Erica Orr ’18

(advised by A. Yousef, Chemistry)

“Optimizing a Multi-Step Synthesis” This project sought to develop a novel, multi-step synthesis experiment that will serve as a capstone experience for undergraduate students who take second semester organic chemistry at Sweet Briar. The experiment exposes students to the concept of green chemistry, which stresses the use of biologically benign reagents and the minimization of hazardous waste products. The following two students worked as a team, jointly advised by K. Leake and H. Yochum, Engineering:

Rylee Runyon ’20

“Design and Build a Low-Cost Automated System to Fabricate Polymer Thin Films”

Clara Rogers ’20

“Assessing a Low-Cost Automated System to Fabricate Polymer Thin Films” Ionic self-assembly is a thin film fabrication technique in which a substrate is submerged into charged solutions. To streamline the fabrication of these thin films, an inexpensive microcontroller-based robot was designed and built. To assess the performance of the robot, robot-dipped slides were compared to hand-dipped slides.

Clara Rogers

Professor Kimberly Morse-Jones and Jessie Meager

West Meets East Seeking a better understanding of Japan’s role in how we see art today, Jessica Meager ’18 focused on Indiana Fletcher Williams’s collection of Japanese artifacts for her Honors Summer Research project. “I have a list of the artifacts that we have, which I have to keep in mind: I’m not only studying the broad art historical movement, I’m also trying to see how much we know about our specific artifacts,” Meager explained one summer day at Sweet Briar’s museum. “This archaeological side is more complicated, because we don’t have much in the way of records. So, I’m reading as much as I can and taking copious amounts of notes.” It’s a good thing Meager had eight weeks this summer to focus on nothing else. “I love working in the Honors Summer Research Program because I can just sit down and extensively research one topic that I’m interested in,” she said. “I also set my own schedule, so I can wake up when I want to and work when I’m most focused.” During the academic year, however, Meager embraces the opportunity to delve into various subjects. It’s another perk offered by the Honors Program. “I took an honors class on the history of marriage, of all things; I’ve taken one on the role of biology in fiction, despite knowing very little about science/biology; and just this past semester, I took one on the art of comic books, when the only exposure to the world of comics I’ve ever had is through Japanese manga. The Honors Program always has a selection of interesting classes!” Meager’s intellectual curiosity led her to declare a minor in medieval and Renaissance studies. It also lured her to the museum, where she came up with the idea for her project. “I had been thinking of doing summer honors research, but didn’t know what I

wanted to do,” she said. “The Japonisme artifacts stood out to me immediately. I was fascinated by the story behind these perfectly ordinary artifacts: it’s this story of imperialism and East versus West, and these radical changes in art at the time. And also, at its heart, is this more personal story of a lonely woman whose daughter died young. These Japonisme items were something like a fad, so I was interested in why Indiana Fletcher Williams would keep them after her daughter died, if they only served as a reminder of a happy day at the fair years earlier.” Most of the items, said Meager, were likely purchased by the Williams family at the 1876 Centennial Exposition or soon after. Meager wanted to understand the fad of Japonisme among wealthy American families of the 1870s. The artifacts in Sweet Briar’s collection, she said, will help her connect the local history with that of a wider societal trend. “Indiana’s artifacts can provide us with a case study of the influence of Japanese decorative arts in 19th-century America,” she said. But she’s also interested in something else. “More broadly, I hope to get a better understanding of Japan’s role in how we see art today,” said the Chesterfield native. “Japan was only opened up to trade in the 1850s; I’m looking at objects that were probably bought in the 1870s. So, this period is really a beginning, in which Japan is struggling to become a major player on the world stage, and they used exported art and domestic goods to establish themselves. And the West is immediately obsessed with this novel style of art that is being introduced to the public for the first time; consumers, artists, art dealers, museum curators, fashionable wives—everyone became obsessed with this new Eastern way of looking at art. “I want to know more about this story.”

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Thank You for If you have a passion for the College’s art collection or for furthering the mission of the Mary Helen Cochran Library or the success of the athletics teams or the riding program, consider joining one of the Affinity Groups. The members of the Affinity Groups, aka “Friends of,” are visionary leaders who act as stewards of particular areas of the College, providing funding that stretches tight budgets and championing the individual programs within and

beyond the campus borders. They serve as ambassadors by fundraising and “friendraising,” providing additional support to programs that are key to Sweet Briar’s mission. Donations to any of the Friends groups are considered restricted gifts, meaning that the gift can only be used by that particular program, whether it is for the arts, the library, athletics, or riding.

Friends of Art

Friends of Athletics

The Friends of Art is the longest-standing Affinity Group at Sweet Briar, having been formed in 1937. According to its mission statement, “The Friends of Art of Sweet Briar College actively supports the acquisition, preservation and presentation of the visual arts in service to education at the College and in the broader community. The Friends of Art recognizes both the benefits and joys that knowledge of the

The mission of the Friends of Athletics is to sustain and promote the College’s commitment to intercollegiate athletics by funding enhancements to the varsity teams, including team travel, the annual Athletic Awards Banquet, uniforms, equipment not covered in the budget, and communications to build enthusiasm and increase attendance at students’ games and other community-building efforts. Friends of Athletics members have supported team training trips, provided funding for unbudgeted needs, and most recently sponsored the College’s Athletics and Riding Hall of Fame induction

arts can bring to one’s life. It advocates study of the arts to develop understanding of the present and historical world and to foster a disposition to think critically and creatively.” In addition to supporting

the acquisition, preservation and presentation of the visual arts at the College, the Friends of Art funds an annual writing prize for currently enrolled Sweet Briar students to recognize excellence in academic and creative writing about or inspired by works in the permanent collection and a similar prize recognizing excellence in studio art work that references in some manner works in the permanent collection. The Friends of Art also offers two stipends to support currently enrolled Sweet Briar students in summer internships; one in a museum, and one for an apprenticeship at a creative visual arts organization such as an atelier, retreat, or studio. Nan Dabbs Loftin ’81, president of the Friends of Art, is “delighted to say that the visual arts are alive and well at Sweet Briar, and that the Friends of Art continue to work hard to ensure that the College’s 80-year-old art collection is carefully nurtured.” The Friends of Art also annually publishes “Visions,” a magazine highlighting the arts at Sweet Briar.

2017 Hall of Fame inductees 26

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ceremony in the spring of 2017. Katie Hearn ’85, long-time member of the Friends of Athletics, says, “I love supporting Sweet Briar’s athletics programs. Some of my favorite college experiences happened on the lacrosse field, and I support Sweet Briar’s teams because I want current and future athletes to have opportunities for similar experiences.” A signature event of the Friends of Athletics is the annual Sweet Briar Classic, a golf tournament held at the Poplar Grove Golf Club and benefiting the Friends of Athletics. Mark your calendars now and plan to play on Saturday April 14, 2018!

Being a Friend All of the Friends groups are open to anyone so you can join the Friends of Art whether you took Joe Monk’s ceramics class or not. The minimum membership level for each group is $25, and you can join any of the groups (or all of them!) by using this link: sbc.edu/alumnae-development/affinity-groups/ or you can just follow the activities of the groups by joining these Facebook pages: Friends of Art/Sweet Briar College, Sweet Briar College Cochran Library, Sweet Briar Athletics, and Sweet Briar Riding.

Friends of the Library

Friends of Riding

The Friends of the Library was created in the spring of 1966 through the efforts of then-president of the College Anne Gary Pannell. The Friends of the Library seek to encourage an understanding of the needs of the Mary Helen Cochran Library, as well as its available services, and to attract resources through gifts or bequests that may include

The newest of the Friends groups is the Friends of Riding, formed in the past two years by a group of former riders who wondered why it didn’t already exist. Good question! Just like the other Friends groups, the Friends of Riding provides both financial and other support to the riding program, augmenting the budget with funding for special clinics, team costs, and other special needs of the program. Ellen Ober Pitera ’93, cochair of the Friends of Riding, says that “the leaders of the Friends of Riding are excited to offer a platform for riders

lege. Its recent renovation in 2014 has increased the demand for our library facilities like never before. It’s wonderful to see so many members of the campus community take advantage of the opportunities that this building provides,” said interim director of the library Joe Malloy. Friends of the Library members receive: • Borrowing privileges (if you don’t already have them) that apply to all circulating library collections • Personal reference services from dedicated, knowledgeable librarians

to connect, raise awareness, recruit students, fundraise, and rally around Sweet Briar’s renowned riding program. Being a rider at Sweet Briar was a unique experience and one that holds many special memories for all involved. We hope that the creation of the Friends of Riding group will provide a fun place to connect for everyone who loves Sweet Briar riding.” The Friends of Riding also helps in organizing on-campus riding events, attends off-campus competitions to support the student riders, assists in recruiting, and communicates regularly with alumnae riders.

• In-house use of the Special Collections, including W.H. Auden, T. E. Lawrence, George Meredith, Virginia Woolf, and the Sweet Briar College Archives monetary donations, books, manuscripts, or other appropriate materials. Through the efforts of the Friends of the Library, the Mary Helen Cochran Library’s collection is constantly evolving and meeting the needs of its faculty, students, and wider community. “The Mary Helen Cochran Library is the gem of the Col-

• Invitations to the fall and spring Friends of Library meetings (the spring meeting includes a catered dinner and lecture) • Subscription to the “Library Gazette,” which includes news of the members’ various activities and achievements and recent acquisitions (purchased collection materials) of the library.

Emily Schlosberg ’19 on AATE, Summer 2017 SWEET BRIAR MAGAZINE | SBC.EDU

U.S. Senate

Amy Burton and Henry Clay in the U.S. Senate, in situ, U.S. Capitol

Curating the Senate: Through the Eyes of an Art Historian

my Elizabeth Burton ’90 sits on a historic wooden bench in one of the nation’s most historic buildings and gestures toward the murals that decorate the corridor. Benjamin Franklin, who was the first postmaster general, hovers over the room in the U.S. Capitol that once managed the Post Office. Robert Fulton, inventor of the steam engine, sits atop the room that once handled patent law. “He’s pointing to the Hudson River, which was the scene of the successful 28

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steam engine line,” Burton explains. “And look, you can see the steam engine. You can see that billowing steam or smoke coming out of the stack to pronounce its power, that there is a ship that’s able to power upstream.” Burton brings an art historian’s eye to the Capitol as one of 10 staff members in the Curator of the Senate’s office. For the past 16 years, her work has involved managing and interpreting the artwork, sculpture and historic chambers on the Senate side of the building.

“There is no such thing as a typical day,” she says. “One day I might be asked to acquire artwork. I might be asked to produce a video. I might be asked to write a book. I might be asked to post something on the website. I might be asked to interpret a portion of the Capitol. I might be asked to give a tour to a celebrity or historian. I might be detailed to the inaugural committee. You just never know what is around the corner, and that’s what has made this so exciting.” She walks from the Patent Corridor with the Franklin and Fulton murals to a nearby stairwell featuring an oversized painting of Kentucky senator and orator Henry Clay. She counts the painting as one of her chief acquisitions. A decade ago, a relative of the artist, Phineas Staunton, contacted the Senate curator’s office for help in identifying the other senators in the portrait. Burton flew up to New York, where the painting was housed at the Le Roy Historical Society. She was both delighted and dismayed by what she found. Here was a rare painting of Clay in the Old Senate Chamber, complete with the historic desks still in use. Famous for his stirring speeches, Clay was pictured in a classic orator’s pose and surrounded by some of the leading statesmen of the mid-19th century, among them William Seward, Daniel Webster, Sam Houston, and General Winfield Scott. “Most portraits of Henry Clay are a bit more idealized and polished,” Burton says. “This one shows a care-worn face with wrinkles. The artist had seen Henry Clay.” But the painting was in terrible condi-

Burton in the elaborately decorated Brumidi Corridors decorated ca 1857-59

U.S. Senate

ment for a Spanish class that taught her one of the most invaluable lessons. The class was asked to translate part of the text of “Don Quixote.” “At the time I thought, ‘Well, that’s odd because people have already translated “Don Quixote.”’ But when we went to the original and studied it ourselves, there were words that could have been interpreted in a different way. And that taught me such a lesson, because people have looked at this artwork for 150 years, but we’re able to look at it anew, afresh.” Burton had that opportunity in the Senate after a restoration project that began in 1996 brought back the original colors and images that Italian artist Constantino Brumidi had painted in the 1850s and 1860s. When Burton first arrived in the Capitol, the walls were a sallow, olive brown. The details of murals were obscured. In some places, lesser artists had painted over the images. “It looked cartoonish,” she says. After the restoration, she

U.S. Senate

tion, with tears and holes. “It looked as if Corn Flakes had been rubbed on the canvas because every piece of paint was flaking,” she recalls. The historical society, which had been trying to find a home for the painting, agreed to donate it to the Senate, which restored it. Burton recalls the day the restored painting was hung. “As they walked the canvas through the Capitol, all of a sudden, we all got chills. We heard the most mellifluous tinkling. The art handlers must have grazed a crystal chandelier, but none of us saw them do it. It was as though, we all knew, it was the ghost of Henry Clay and his beautiful voice.” As an art history major, Burton revels in her good fortune at finding such fulfilling work in her field. “Sweet Briar is here with me every single day,” she says. She recalls one professor who gave her the foundation in interpreting art, one who really brought out the soul in the artwork, others who piqued her curiosity. But it was an assign-

Burton examining Henry Clay in the U.S. Senate, during restoration

The newly discovered source of inspiration for Brumidi’s landscape medallions: Congress’ Pacific Railroad Report

could see not just images of American heroes but also the birds, fruits and other symbols decorating the walls. She puzzled for years over one set of iridescent blue birds below the image of a Revolutionary War hero. Burton was able to identify the birds as motmots, native to Central and South America. (She took an ornithology class at Sweet Briar.) But she didn’t know how Brumidi, an artist trained in Italy, knew anything about motmots. Her research led her to a 1850s report to Congress. After the Mexican-American

War, Congress had sent a survey team down to explore the land along the Mexican border. The Smithsonian sent naturalists and artists along with them. They returned with images of the flora and fauna they encountered there, all included in a bound report. Brumidi had mined that report to decorate the Senate space. Burton made a similar discovery in the Senate reception room, which features murals of scenic landscapes, rushing rivers and snow-capped mountains. Clearly the artist hadn’t visited these locales. Architect of the Capitol

One of Brumidi’s motmots, right, and his inspiration from a report to Congress, left. SWEET BRIAR MAGAZINE | SBC.EDU

Where did the images come from? She found her answer in the 12-volume Pacific Railroad Report. In the early 1850s, Congress had commissioned teams to survey four possible routes for a transcontinental railway. Again, naturalists and artists accompanied the surveyors. And the paintings in the reception room came from the reports generated. “These are the kinds of things as an art historian I get to do,” Burton says. “Someone said, ‘Amy, you’re an art detective,’ and that’s kind of how I feel, that I get to be an art detective.” Burton darts around the hallways, going through a door that reads Closed to All Tours and into a tiny elevator that barely fits two people. She makes her way to the Old Senate Chamber, where century-old furniture and artwork still sit. Her office is responsible for maintaining the historic spot, which ranges from interpreting the furnishings to making sure there’s no gum on the carpet. Tour groups come in and out, marveling over the Rembrandt Peale painting of George Washington or the spot where one senator beat another senseless with a cane. She acknowledges the Capitol is not a typical museum. “An older building like this certainly has its challenges, in that, there’s no direct route from here to there, and that we aren’t a museum. Our furniture, the historic desks are used every day in the Senate, in the chamber. These are our historic benches used by visitors every single day.” And she acknowledges that her job is not typical for one of America’s most political buildings. She is here to interpret art, not politics. “Every day has been something enriching and new,” she says, “and you still see things—you still see things, at least one thing, every week that you hadn’t noticed before, even when you’ve been here all this time.” 30

Capturing the White House in a Souvenir Spoon

t started with a single spoon showing the image of the White House. Rebecca Yerkes Rogers ’52 was spending a lot of time at antique shows in her role as acquisitions chairman for a historic house in St. Augustine, Florida. She bought the White House spoon for herself, then found another one and bought that too. Before long, Rogers had a collection of 26 antique spoons depicting the White House and other monuments around Washington. Earlier this year, Rogers donated her collection to the White House Historical Association. “It would seem to be a universal truth that every traveler who finds a notable site to visit will also discover a place nearby where souvenirs may be purchased,” Rogers wrote in the summer edition of White House History magazine, which features her spoon collection. Echoing a trend in Europe, the late 19th-century spoons were created as souvenirs of trips to Washington, D.C. Some commemorate presidential inaugurations with images of such presidents as Grover Cleveland and William McKinley. Others reflect monuments around Washington: the U.S. Capitol, The Washington Monument, the State, War and Navy Building and the Post Office headquarters. “The extravagant popularity of souvenir spoons coincides with the exuberant growth and transformation of the capital city of Washington from a small, not overly impressive town, into a city filled with beautiful buildings, monuments and elegant mansions,” Rogers wrote. “Washington was becoming a capital well able to compete with its international peers.” Rogers was a drama major at Sweet Briar and a member of Paints ’n’ Patches. “It was a wonderful major,” she says, “because it encompasses so many things.” She went on to receive her master’s in speech and drama from Catholic University. Afterward, she returned to her native Jacksonville, Fla., where she married and raised three sons. “I spent a lot of time working for free,” she recalls. One of those volunteer positions was working with the National Society of the Colonial Dames of America as acquisitions chairman for the Ximenez-Fatio House home in St. Augustine. The home was an early boarding house for upscale tourists, who came to Florida for the winter in the early 1800s. In restoring the house, she was on the lookout for antiques from that period.

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Photographs courtesy of White House History

The spoons were just a side interest she developed. Forged by some of the leading silver companies at the time, the souvenirs sold for $1.25 to $4.50 in the period from the 1890s to the 1920s. Rogers recalls spending $40 to $50 per spoon while she was collecting. “There were a number of spoons of the Washington area, but I did not buy anything that did not have the White House on them.” After her husband’s death this past July, she started downsizing her home. The White House Historical Association was pleased to accept her donation, calling it a “remarkable collection of silver spoons, which not only depict the White House but also commemorate the city’s architectural superlatives and such historic events as presidential inaugurations.”

Going, Going, Gone for SBC!

rom telling alumnae and friends of Sweet Briar “Happy birthday!” on Facebook, to joining the Alumnae Alliance Council as interim co-chair of the Clubs working group, to representing Sweet Briar at college fairs around the southeastern United States, it’s no surprise that Norma Valentine ’93 also successfully ran two online auctions in 2016 and 2017 for the benefit of the College and is already preparing for a third. Valentine, a real estate broker specializing in equestrian properties in Wellington, Fla., says she had been “hounding” Kathryn Yunk ’91 to give her something to do for Sweet Briar in 2016. She organizes auctions

for other non-profit organizations so “I think Kathryn thought I’d be good at it.” To say that Valentine is good at online auctions would be an understatement. In its first year, the auction raised almost $50,000 for Sweet Briar, and in the 2017 fiscal year, it raised $38,400. A low-cost venture, the auction requires only Valentine’s time and a small fee for software. And she gives plenty of her time. Valentine promotes the auction on Facebook, asking alumnae and friends of the College to donate items to put up for bid. She also manages all of the behind-the-scenes processes for the auction operations, putting in descriptions and photos of each item and arranging the

shipping from seller to bidder after the auction closes. Items for bid have run the gamut. One of the most popular items was a watercolor of the Bell Tower. Sweet Briar memorabilia tends to be popular as well, such as a cow tag from the Sweet Briar Dairy. However, one of the most interesting items in 2017 was the dulcimer donated by John Morgan, father of Susan Morgan ’94. Morgan said that he’d donate the instrument, which was an antique Jethro Amburgey dulcimer, only if it would go for $350 or more in the auction. Valentine was determined to meet Morgan’s condition, and she got creative on Facebook to do so. After researching what a dulcimer was, she joined all of

the dulcimer pages she could find on Facebook and promoted the auction and the Amburgey dulcimer there. One of Jethro Amburgey’s cousins was determined to get the dulcimer back in the family. A bidding war began, and by the time the auction closed at Reunion, Amburgey’s family won the dulcimer for $1,870! Valentine called Morgan and asked him to sit down before she told him the good news. “God bless you and God bless Sweet Briar!” he responded. Amburgey’s cousin continues to send Valentine updates on the dulcimer. Have an item for the 2018 online auction? Contact Norma Valentine ’93 at normav_0@yahoo.com.

Talbots Joins the Cause When Talbots district manager Polly Crawford ’93 was given the opportunity in 2016 to host a “Fashionable Fundraiser,” she knew exactly which cause she could easily get behind and raise funds for: Sweet Briar. Thanks to the help of Nancy Mortensen Piper ’74 and Brendy Reiter Hantzes ’81, the 2016 fundraiser was a great success, raising $1,000 for Sweet Briar. “We were thrilled with not only the money raised, but with the enthusiasm and energy that was exchanged among everyone who attended,” said Polly. “We knew that in our own way we were contributing to a cause worth fighting for.” In 2017, Brendy suggested

that the fundraiser could be executed on an even larger scale. Within a few weeks, 28 stores, from New York to Texas, were ready to host parties, and on May 4, the stores raised more than $6,700. “The big success was putting Sweet Briar on the minds of a broader audience,” Polly explained. “There’s something really important about making the effort to connect, and who knows how many seeds we planted for future Sweet Briar students?” For Polly, Sweet Briar has impacted her life and career over the almost 25 years since she received her psychology degree from the College. The lessons in leadership, curi-

osity, self-awareness, how to be bold and how dig deep stay with her. She spends her time networking, interviewing, hiring, developing leaders and empowering a team of mostly women to be their greatest selves. “Both Talbots and Sweet Briar have legacies worth believing in and fighting for. Talbots’ CEO Lizanne Kindler says, ‘Yes, we are in business, but we have a higher calling. When we make women feel confident, they have the power to change the world.’” Sweet Briar calls it creating women of consequence. Mary Pope M. Hutson ’83, vice president for Alumnae Relations and Development, agrees. “The relationship with

Brendy Reiter Hantzes ’81 (l.) Suzanne Petrie Liscouski ’91 Talbots has been tremendously rewarding for our alumnae. Seeing all the photos of our alumnae and club leaders in stores working together to promote Sweet Briar was truly inspirational. We are so grateful to everyone who participated, and especially to Polly.”

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Women of Consequence: Sweet Briar College—Yesterday,Today, and Tomorrow

weet Briar College was founded with a vision to provide young women an education at a time when the mere idea of women educating women at the college level was innovative. Across more than a century, thanks to the fierce commitment of our alumnae and the dedication of its faculty and staff to the College and its students, Sweet Briar remains an innovative, 21st-century leader in women’s education. Sweet Briar students can be engineers and athletes, while simultaneously taking on campus leadership roles. Our students epitomize what it means to be women of consequence and proficiency, regardless of their chosen endeavors. In fact, Sweet Briar students conduct research with faculty at more than three times the rate of students at other colleges, with 80 percent tackling original research. Our students are also broad-minded and enterprising, with 40 percent studying abroad and 80 percent completing at least one professional internship before graduation. But Sweet Briar women don’t stop there. Six months after graduation, 90 percent of students are employed or in graduate school. And not only are these women successful in their own lives, they return in force to mentor current Sweet Briar students, help them find internships or jobs, and offer career advice at a ratio of 15 alumnae to every 1 student—because Sweet Briar women, of every generation, are committed to each other and our community. This fall, Sweet Briar recruited 95 new members to its campus community. With 81 first-year students and 14 transfers, on-campus enrollment is about 300. They come from 23 states, 16 percent are minorities, 19 percent are first-generation college students, 14 percent are Sweet Briar legacy students, 31 percent are student-athletes and 36 percent have an interest in riding. At Sweet Briar, young women discover their capabilities, are given the tools to achieve their goals and learn how to push themselves to go beyond and fulfill their potential. Sweet Briar’s women of consequence have done it all … and we’re not finished yet.

The Vision for Sweet Briar’s Future

In 2017, the College recruited a new president with a bold vision for its future: President Meredith Jung-En Woo, an experienced and global leader, instructor and administrator in higher education. “It is a privilege to have the opportunity to work with a college so beloved,” said President Woo. “Educating women is like educating generations. Around the world, I have seen the demand for superior women’s education and the demand for the graduates of those institutions. Here at Sweet Briar, we have a real opportunity to recast the significance of single-sex higher education in today’s world, and I’m excited to be a part of that effort.” We will realize the brilliant future of the College by undertaking key major initiatives. A new core curriculum will prepare Sweet Briar students to be leaders in society. Focused on cultivating the skills and habits of the mind that are the hallmarks of the liberal arts, our “leadership core” will position students to speak and write compellingly, to make ethical decisions, to be adept at logic and reasoning and to manage complexity and take action with confidence. Three centers of excellence will take the place of current academic departments: Engineering, Science and Technology in Society; Human and Environmental Sustainability; and Creativity, Design, and the Arts. Majors will align with the centers, and study will become more intense, hands-on, collaborative, interdisciplinary, and focused on the challenges of our time. A 3-12-12-3-week academic calendar will incorporate short terms dedicated to experiential learning opportunities, such as research, internships and study abroad. Every student will be eligible for up to $2,000 to fund these experiences. Also, Sweet Briar will offer summer courses, which will allow students to complete a bachelor’s degree in three years. A tuition reset will lower the costs of tuition, fees, room and board to $34,000: $21,000 for tuition and fees and $13,000 for room and board. This marks a 32 percent reduction from 2017–18, makes a Sweet Briar education competitive with state institutions, and opens the door to more qualified students than ever before. More than 200 merit and need-based scholarships remain available.

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What’s Next for Sweet Briar

By December 15, 2017, the leaders of the centers of excellence, the dean of the College and the academic repositioning committee will finalize the courses and programs of study within Sweet Briar’s revised curriculum. And these bold plans will create new opportunities to attract students. In support of enrollment, we have been deploying the College’s strongest recruiters, including parents, students, faculty and alumnae, working together with staff to build a pipeline for prospective students who are at the earliest stages of the college search process. Our approach will be relationship-based, strategic, intentional, results-driven and highly personal for each prospective student. New strategies combine online outreach, in-person cultivation of relationships with high schools by staff and 200-plus Alumnae Ambassadors, and early targeting of high school sophomores and juniors to build relationships that facilitate the selection of Sweet Briar as their college of choice. Based on recent data trends in states that yield the highest numbers of students for Sweet Briar, the United States has been divided into geographic centers for prioritization. The highest priority is Virginia. Maryland; Washington, D.C.; North Carolina; Georgia; Florida; Texas; California; New Jersey; Pennsylvania; New York; Tennessee and South Carolina make up the secondtier priority list, followed by key states in New England and the Midwest. The College has also identified individual and institutional targets on which to focus recruiting efforts. These include guidance counselors, heads of schools, top-ranked public schools, private schools, the Yellow Ribbon Program and STEM feeder schools. Sweet Briar will use existing events such as Back to School Days (a tactic activated this summer) and Sweet Briar Days as opportunities for prospective students to meet Admissions Ambassadors and volunteers in recruiting leadership roles.

A Formula for Success: Sweet Briar Fund and Investments for the Future

To support these important strides toward Sweet Briar’s new vision and to strengthen operations for the 2017–18 academic year, approximately $13 million, roughly half of the College’s annual budget, must come from the generous contributions of individuals and institutions who believe in that vision. Investors in Sweet Briar’s future—alumnae, friends, and other supporters—recognize that communities, businesses, government, the nonprofit sector, and society overall benefit from the presence and leadership of women who embody the College’s values, drive, and awareness—women who embrace their fierce. Toward this $13 million goal, the College seeks support through the Sweet Briar Fund both for Sweet Briar today and for laying the foundations of opportunity that will carry the College across generations to come. Your support for the Sweet Briar Fund will ensure that today’s students have a campus experience that reflects the best Sweet Briar has to offer—a robust curriculum, talented instructors, a lively calendar of events, an experience attentive to the whole student, and a campus environment in which excellence can thrive. Your support will also provide venture capital for what’s next, offering critical resources to Sweet Briar’s leadership and faculty as they translate the College’s new strategic vision into a roadmap to future success. At this time, perhaps more than ever, the College needs the ability to articulate detailed plans for the development of its three new Centers and Leadership Core Curriculum, as well as develop new experiential learning opportunities underpinning the revised college calendar. Lastly, in this time of change, the College needs flexibility to explore and test new ideas to ensure Sweet Briar’s next chapter resonates fully with the aspirations of a new generation, while remaining anchored in the legacy of Sweet Briar’s women of consequence.

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A Time for Focused Financial Stewardship and Discipline

With each year, Sweet Briar takes important steps toward longterm sustainability, bringing revenue and expenses into balance with the scale and aspirations of the institution. In fall 2017, departments across the College took steps to consolidate expenses and align operations to a student body of just over 300, anticipating that future expenses will track with enrollment growth. With these disciplined steps, the board of directors confidently approved a budget of $26 million for the year, with revenue from contributions, grants, auxiliary sources, investments, and enrollment totaling $24 million, combined with anticipated receipt of funds from prior-year pledges and other new gifts. Understanding that increased enrollment is essential to both fiscal strength and mission advancement, for 2017–18 and beyond, Sweet Briar aims to reach a tuition-to-contributions ratio more typical of a private liberal arts college. The graphs below depict 2017–18 expense categories and revenue sources.

How You Can Help

The continuing support of alumnae and friends, in concert with the academic and admissions strategic initiatives described above, are the foundation of Sweet Briar’s future success. 1.

People who know Sweet Briar can describe the benefits it provides far better than a brochure can. You can help the College by sending an email, making a phone call or writing a note to young women of high school age or to your friends who may know a potential member of the Class of 2022 or beyond. Word of mouth is the easiest, most economical and most effective way to help recruit new students to Sweet Briar.

Make your best gift to the Sweet Briar Fund today. You can make a gift online at sbc.edu/give or use the envelope enclosed in this issue of the Alumnae Magazine.

Ask your classmates and your friends to support Sweet Briar’s future, both through recruiting students and making a financial gift to the College.

3% 18%

17%

16% 3%

Expenses

revenues

FY 2018 Budget: $26 million

52%

14% 38%

27%

10%

Net Tuition and Fees New Gifts and Grants Prior pledge receipts endowment spending allocation Auxiliary enterprises other sources

total payroll & benefits total department budgetS interest total operations/ maintenance plant contingency

You Make the Difference

As alumnae and friends of Sweet Briar well know, the success of the College is the result not only of the admission of new students but also of donations from alumnae, parents, and friends of the College. Over the past two and a half years, the College has raised an unprecedented $44.6 million from individuals, corporations and foundations. Many of these dollars have been used to address the costs associated with the attempt to close the College and fund other operational needs. These funds have primarily been designated to the Sweet Briar Fund, which supports: Current students, through scholarships based on merit and financial need; Academic programs and faculty, which draw prospective students to the College; Sweet Briar’s natural and built environment, a cornerstone of students’ campus experience and much of their academic curriculum. For the 2017–2018 academic year, the College’s financial goal is $13 million in support of the Sweet Briar Fund. 34

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You can make a difference to Sweet Briar. Together, we can accomplish amazing things. The pieces are in place: The new, visionary leadership of President Meredith Woo, who is supported by a fully engaged, highly qualified Board of Directors; a bold, revised curriculum geared to the needs of women of this generation and those that follow; a stellar faculty committed to ensuring the success of their students; an innovative financial model that places a Sweet Briar education within reach of more middle-class families; and a results-driven, vertically integrated plan to recruit students using our best ambassadors—all undergirded by the engagement and financial support of you, our dedicated alumnae and friends. It’s an unprecedented combination that will propel Sweet Briar forward.

Will you join us in helping to realize this vision? If so, make a gift today at sbc.edu/give or by calling (800) 381-6131.

Patsy was honored with the Distinguished Alumna Award in 2008. In her acceptance speech, she recalled having to “buy a raincoat to cover my Bermuda shorts,” adding that they were “just so racy.” Patsy also said Sweet Briar helped her “find the self-confidence to succeed.” She was a well-respected member of the alumnae community as evidenced by the following sentiments expressed by alumnae who knew her. Patsy Ticer ’55 at a July 2015 Saving Sweet Briar, Inc., event at Top of the Town in Washington, D.C. Photograph by Robin Templeton

Patricia S. “Patsy” Ticer ’55 By Bridget Reed Morawski Patricia S. “Patsy” Ticer, a liberal Democrat who served as the first elected female mayor of Alexandria, Va., and later spent four terms in the Virginia state Senate championing health, social services and environmental concerns, died Aug. 7 at a hospital in Alexandria. She was 82. The cause was complications from a fall, said a daughter, Margaret Janowsky. Mrs. Ticer, who was the wife of a former Alexandria City Council member, John “Jack” Ticer, was a neighborhood activist, hospital volunteer and real estate agent before she moved into electoral politics. She served three terms on the City Council in the 1980s, making early childhood development, education and affordable housing her priorities. She was regarded as a consensus builder—“power,” she once said, “is being able to get things done without having to raise your voice.” She was serving as vice mayor under James P. Moran Jr. when he won a seat in Congress in 1990. Mrs. Ticer ran to succeed him as mayor, beating Republican Ann Stone, a marketing and political consultant. A year into the job, she withstood pressure by then-Virginia Gov. L. Douglas Wilder (D) and Washington Redskins owner Jack Kent Cooke to build a new stadium for the team in Alexandria’s Potomac Yard. Some Alexandrians were against the proposal, chiefly because of parking and traffic concerns. Others said it was a giveaway to the sports franchise at

the expense of taxpayers. Mrs. Ticer was elected to the state Senate in 1995, unseating moderate Republican Robert L. Calhoun in a district that included parts of Arlington and Fairfax counties as well as Alexandria. She supported Chesapeake Bay cleanup efforts and chaired the Senate’s Agriculture, Conservation and Natural Resources Committee. She did not seek reelection to a fifth term in 2011. “She could have had a very comfortable life but chose the messy world of politics,” Moran said. “She was always able to be a political leader without really treating anyone badly nor compromising her integrity.” Patricia Keyser Smith was born in Washington on Jan. 6, 1935, and grew up in Alexandria. She graduated in 1951 from George Washington High School and in 1955 from Sweet Briar College, an all-women’s college in Virginia, with a bachelor’s degree in political science. In 1956, she married Jack Ticer. She became a block captain in civic associations, participated in several PTAs and local charitable and civic groups, and helped form the Alexandria Commission for the Arts. She said her husband urged her to run for the council in 1982. He died in 2007. Besides Janowsky, of Alexandria, survivors include three other children, John T. Ticer Jr. of Vienna, Va., Catherine Ticer of San Jose and Virginia Baechler of Alexandria; and five grandchildren. [Reprinted with permission from the Washington Post]

“One of my first jobs in journalism was covering the Alexandria City Council, and one of the Council members back then was Patsy Ticer, before she was mayor or state senator. It didn’t take long to establish that we were both Sweet Briar grads, and I liked her for that. I also admired the way she did her work. She was gracious and empathetic to the people who came to speak before the City Council, but she was steely and penetrating when it came to addressing policy and budget issues. There were some who mistook her Southern charm for softness. They didn’t make that mistake twice.”

— Phyllis Watt Jordan ’80

“Patsy was just awesome. She was that perfect combination—a strong, confident woman who was also vibrant and feminine. She built a rewarding career and cherished her family. She could run with the big boys, but did it her own way. Many sought out her advice and endorsements and listened carefully to her take on things. She understood that listening was important. She was always interested in what was going on with her family, friends, residents of our city, and with her beloved Sweet Briar. I remember us first connecting at reunions and other alumnae events, since we were both in Alexandria/D.C. After I moved to Alexandria, we ran into each other more often. When Sweet Briar was threatened, she was very interested to know what was happening, and we talked about the whole situation as we rode together to and from alumnae ‘Save’ events. I am lucky to be able to say that Patsy was my friend. She was a wonderful role model for all of us. Though I dearly wish she were still here, I’m grateful for her friendship and will treasure the memories of the time we spent together.”

—Christina Savage Lytle ’88.

“Patsy was a member of my church and a mutual friend introduced us and we sat together at a church potluck. She was lovely and gracious and we talked about SBC and I offered to give her a ride to the next alumnae event. I didn’t find out until later that she was the former mayor of Alexandria. She was quite humble and never mentioned it. A pretty big deal for a woman of her generation. Sadly, I never got a chance to give her a ride as her health was failing, and she passed away before we could carpool. She was well loved by all the members of our church and everyone in Alexandria.”

—Kearsley Rand Waggoner ’81

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1934 Mason Daniel Barrett February 3, 2017 1940 Hortense Powell Cooper September 18, 2017 Marjorie Peggs Perry September 27, 2008 1941 Phyllis Carr Beinhorn May 14, 2017 Charlotte Davenport Tuttle September 18, 2017 Emily Peyton Higgins May 18, 2017 Jane Loveland Byerts April 16, 2017

Preston R. “Doc” Brown with Paul Cronin and Mimi Wroten ’93

Preston R . “Doc” Brown Preston R. Brown, affectionately known as “Doc,” suddenly departed from this life on September 27, 2017, at his residence. He was the son of the late Nathan and Adlean Brown. Preston is remembered by the Sweet Briar community as an outstanding horseman. “As a student and a colleague, my being able to see his smiling face in the stables was a blessing. He taught us how Horsemanship involved being compassionate with the horses, having the knowledge needed to care for top performance horses and paying attention to details. Every horse person I meet will forever be compared to the high standards Preston demonstrated daily. I am very thankful to have known Preston and pray for peace for his family and friends,” says director of the riding program Mimi Wroten ’93. Tracy Walters Fox ’96 says, “He had a way about him that just drew you in. I’ll never forget the hat he would wear and the cigar that he always had in his mouth. He was so gifted with both horses and people. I always looked forward to seeing him at the barn. He will be missed. RIP Preston!” Preston retired in 2001.

He was born August 13, 1941, and attended Lynchburg Public Schools. He was preceded in death by two sons, Preston “Chip” Brown and Victor Brown; a brother, Douglas Brown and two sisters, Marie Johnson and Robin Brown. He is survived by his wife of 56 years, Barbara Brown of Amherst; his daughters, Tracey Brown of Amherst, and Dana (Randy) Brown-Hall of Madison Heights; his sons, Stacey (Fredia) Brown of Madison Heights, and Shawn (Maribel) Brown of Sterling, Va.; a daughter-in-law, Lucy Brown of Keller, Texas; 13 grandchildren; eight great-grandchildren; an aunt, Mary Johnson of Amherst; three brothers, Nathan (Francis) Brown of Fayetteville, N.C., William (Theresa) Brown of Gainesville, Va., and Thomas (Rose) Brown of Appomattox; four sisters, Bertha Jackson of Lynchburg, Eleanor Brown of Lynchburg, Patricia (Otis) Shippy of Georgia and Mary (Brodie) Lytes of Philadelphia, Penn.; devoted brother-in-law, Carson Warrick; a devoted cousin, Bob Brown; three devoted friends, Paul Cronin, Margaret Simpson and Keedie (Kyle) Leonard and a host of nieces, nephews, other relatives and friends.

1942 Elizabeth “Betty” Blackmer Childs February 8, 2017 Hildegarde “Judy” Rose Dahl October 3, 2017 Elizabeth “Elsie” Diggs Orr May 4, 2017 1943 Lucy Kiker Jones February 28, 2017 Marjorie “Shug” Shugart Short August 13, 2017 1944 Mary Jane Brock June 6, 2017 Florence Loveland Swanbeck April 16, 2017 Janet Staples Munt July 19, 2017 Nancy Eagles O’Bannon September 14, 2017 Hazel Fellner Tuttle September 12, 2017 1945 Esther Cunningham Shay October 2, 2017 Amanda Parsley Worth June 24, 2017 1946 Jessie Strickland Elcock June 28, 2017 Jane Richardson Vieth April 10, 2017 1947 Margaret “Peggy” Robertson Christian August 12, 2017 Anne Lile Bowden March 22, 2017 Virginia Illges Norman October 13, 2017 1948 Judith Perkins Llewellyn June 21, 2017

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1949 Mimi Semmes Dann July 29, 2017 Sarah “Sally” Melcher Jarvis September 15, 2017 1950 Carolyn Taylor September 14, 2017 1951 Lynne McCullough Gush May 1, 2017 Carol Rolston Toulmin May 1, 2017 Ann Red Barstow February 6, 2012 Cynthia Wyman Richardson March 13, 2017 1952 Elizabeth Stamp March 24, 2017 Catharine Kinnear Train June 3, 2017 Frances “Fay” Pratt Gray April 3, 2017 1953 Jane Westbrook May 9, 2017 Nancy McGinnis Whitehead July 20, 2017 Betty Thomas Rahv April 15, 2017 1954 Laura-Nancy “Lanni” Garner de Langavant August 23, 2017 1955 Elaine Pendexter Hare October 9, 2015 Martha Hedeman Buckingham July 2, 2017 Susan Downs Bill December 22, 2001 Patricia “Patsy” Smith Ticer August 7, 2017 Mary Scott “Scottie” Daugherty January 5, 2016 Emily “Emmy” Coxe Winburn August 22, 2017 Emily Thompson Gable April 11, 2017 Ann Taylor Tenser June 15, 2017

Margaret “Tutti” Cuthbert Broaddus October 9, 2017 1956 Mary Thornton Oppenhimer April 30, 2017 1957 Virginia Marks Paget April 26, 2017 Joan Lawson Kuhns July 16, 2017 Eva Villaran Chesneau August 31, 2017 Cecile Dickson Banner October 9, 2017 1958 Dianne Chase Monroe May 22, 2017 Mary Ely Seals April 20, 2017 1959 Sally Martin Kohrs June 16, 2017 Elisabeth Chambers Burgess June 11, 2017 Sally Hale Riggs February 19, 2017 1960 Judy Barnes Agnew September 17, 2017 Judith Hunter McCann March 31, 2016 Ann Smith Bretscher September 14, 2017 1961 Eleanor Boothe Smith September 8, 2017 1962 Mig Garrity Sturr January 10, 2017 Heather Edgar Carter April 24, 2015 Jane Bryan Brockenbrough May 2, 2017

1967 Penelope Titter Symes November 6, 2015 Caroline Mueller October 29, 2016 Elizabeth Gawthrop Riely February 23, 2017 1968 Suzanne Torgan Weston October 12, 2017 Helen Goodman Benjamin February 16, 1996 Mary “Polly” Townes July 6, 2017 1970 Virginia “Ginny” Klise Kidd August 14, 2017 1971 Susan Crandall December 23, 2015 1972 Cynthia Conklin August 20, 2017 Jennifer Linsley Alphin September 20, 2017 1975 Mary Morrissett Martin March 27, 2017 1977 Tracy Thompson Bodkin October 20, 2016 1981 Laine Vaughan Richardson Cooper May 5, 2017 Audrey Kaune Restani-Smith July 4, 2017 Karen Holda September 28, 2017 1983 Amanda Beauchemin April 21, 2017 1984 Kathryn Marion August 30, 2017

1963 Joan Newhall March 2, 2017

1987 Anne Hales Wanamaker February 14, 2017

1964 Anne Pruitt Everett June 10, 2017 Susan “Sue” Corwin Gary June 21, 2017

1988 Jeanne “Michele” Smith July 2, 2017

1965 Julie Bearden Adams May 14, 2017 Margaret “Tutti” Cuthbert Broaddus October 19, 2017 1966 Carolyn Billingsley Smither June 4, 2017

in memoriam

Sally Smith Williams July 30, 2017 Avery Draughon Helm Date Unknown Martha Rowan Hyder August 17, 2017 Anne McCaffrey McBrian September 2, 2017

1991 Patience “Pat” Richeson June 23, 2017 1999 Kathryn “Katie” Whitlock Summers March 19, 2017 2006 Marguerite “Marge” Massie Stiemly May 8, 2017 SWEET BRIAR MAGAZINE | SBC.EDU

Class Notes 1949

Carolyn Evans 21045 Cardinal Pond Ter. Apt 119 Ashburn, VA 20147-6124 703-729-1133 ccevans49@icloud.com For fourteen years, Ann-Barrett Holmes Bryan has lived independently in her own home in a continuing care community in Fellowship Village, Basking Ridge, N.J. Her husband, Bob, died two years ago. She still drives and enjoys the village and her daughter, who lives 30 minutes away. She has a granddaughter in Chapel Hill with two great-grands: a girl and a boy. Elizabeth “Trip” Corddry is feeling great! At age 89 she lives independently in her apartment in New York City and has a little help once a week. She is very busy writing a novel! Patricia Brown Boyer is retired in Winter Park, Fla., and playing bridge. Although she is not traveling, Pat would like all classmates’ addresses. She is very proud of her great-grandson! Alice Dahm Crane was excited about seeing the eclipse of 2017! She manages her vertigo using a walker. Without children nearby, she reads a lot and uses books on tape to supplement her poor eyesight. She also stays happily in touch with Libby Trueheart Harris. Unable to evacuate, Frances Pope Evans e-mailed her news in the midst of Hurricane Harvey from her home in Houston, Texas! She keeps busy with her oil and timber companies, and maintaining her antebellum home built in 1833. She is also a great-grandmother. Being in a “chair,” Nancy Franz Davies considers herself “housebound” in her home in Enid, Okla. Her family, with four great-granddaughters, lives nearby, and she has many widowed friends who visit and share books with her. Carolyn Cannady Evans lives independently in her apartment in a retirement community near Ashburn, Va. Her health would be better if she got 7-8 hours sleep, but she has no serious problems and walks her dog every day. She is busy playing bridge, Wii bowling, making pottery, and writing for a quarterly magazine in her community. She also works with the Fellowship and Congregational Care committees at her church. Two daughters live nearby in Great Falls, Va., two more in Raleigh, N.C., and a son in Baltimore. She has ten grandchildren and five great38

grands. In the fall of 2016, she visited Ireland and hopes to travel again. Ruth Garrett Preucel is leaving Pennsylvania to move to Sante Fe, N.M., to live in an apartment in her daughter’s home. With her great health (she weighs 95 lbs.!), she’s planning to live to be 100! Ruth has worked at Harper’s Bazaar magazine, but is looking forward to gardening. Margaret Lawrence “Larry” Simmons in Midland, Texas, reports that, outside of hearing problems, she is in fine health. She has retired from Trinity Day School, where she was headmistress. She volunteers at the school, delivers Meals on Wheels, and reads to a class at her church. She has just finished an endowment fund drive for her church’s chapel and will do a similar fund drive for the Midland Festival Ballet. Her children and two redheaded grandchildren are scattered over the East and South. Her youngest daughter has two children in graduate school at the University of Georgia, and she was able to travel to Georgia for a granddaughter’s college graduation. A daughter and stepdaughter in New York City are having great success with their careers! Larry usually spends Thanksgiving with her brother and his family, who live in their parents’ family home in Ohio. Margaret “Peggy” Cromwell Taliaferro says she is fine other than that she can’t seem to remember anyone’s name! She and June Finney stay in touch, but June’s health issues have been interfering, and Peggy doesn’t drive anymore. Peggy rode to Sweet Briar with Judy Waxter’s daughter Susan for the yearly Julia B. Waxter Environmental Forum. Peggy’s four children, six grandchildren, and one 2-1/2 year old great-granddaughter had a family reunion in early August. She is proud of Sweet Briar’s SBC freshman class! Joan McCarthy Whiteman no longer plays golf, but does play a lot of duplicate bridge. Her daughter and son both live near her in Northfield. Her two grandsons and two granddaughters are also in the North-Midwest. The granddaughter in Ann Arbor is expecting Joan’s first great-grandchild in September. All are busy and love to visit their grandmother! The class of 1949’s four ladies in Richmond, Va., all reside in Westminster Canterbury. Caroline Casey Brandt sent word that a highlight was the 90th birthday of Kitty Hart Belew. Margaret Towers Talman and Libby Trueheart Harris are in the Health Care Unit. Caroline’s happy news is that her son Stephen McGehee, now

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an Episcopal priest after 30 years in banking, is the priest at her home church, St. Stephen’s in Richmond. The Miniature Book Society honored her for “outstanding contributions to the world of the miniature book,” and she has given her personal collection to the University of Virginia, where 15,000 titles are housed. Caroline attended the weddings of two granddaughters and spent much of her summer at her river cottage. Katie Cox Reynolds and husband Phil, now 90, celebrated 60 years of marriage. They took their family to Ireland last summer. Recently, Katie fell and fractured her pelvic bone, necessitating time in the health unit at her retirement residence and then recovering in their apartment. They are hoping to take a postponed trip to Montana to see a grandson in October. Katie enjoys golf and choral singing. June Eager Finney resides in a wonderful retirement facility in the Baltimore area. Ongoing physical problems keep her in the Health Unit, but she is in great spirits. She is returning to her artwork, now watercolor, as she had given her pastels to a talented granddaughter. Her daughter, who teaches special ed, stops in most days, and her two sons come often. June has eight grandchildren and several great-grandchildren. Marilyn Hopkins Bamborough continues to live on the shores of Lake Michigan in Macatawa, a small resort community (about 100 families) that dates from the early 1900s. Marilyn and her late husband retired there, and she is one of the few yearlong residents. Her sons live in Grand Rapids, some 45 minutes away. Marilyn walks to the lake and dunes each day and continues her volunteer work. She keeps in touch with her roommate, Mary Fran Brown Ballard, who, with husband Don, has moved to a retirement community in Austin, Texas, to be near a child. Sally Melcher Jarvis is in independent living in a retirement community in Lancaster, Pa. John died, but Sally continues volunteer activities, delivering meals to the homeless, tutoring at a school, and joining her scattered family at their two cabins in the Poconos each summer. She has eight grandchildren and five great-grandchildren. In spite of ongoing orthopedic problems and a bout of shingles, Preston Hodges Hill has had a busy year. She continues living in her home of 55 years in Denver, but made trips to Florida in March with daughter Margaret, and to the graduation of 18-year-old twins Michael and Karen Martinson in Ojai, Calif. Michael is now enrolled at the University of Colorado at Boulder in aerospace engineering, and

Karen is pursuing jazz piano at Berklee in Boston, a first-time separation for the two of them. Her oldest grandchild, David Hill, graduated from St. George’s University Medical School after two years in Grenada and two in New York City. Preston got to meet her first great-grandchild, Enzo Dylan Hill, and see that family depart for an Emergency Medicine internship in Chicago. While in New York, she visited the very moving 9/11 Memorial and then went on to Nantucket with Gene and Joan Hill, who summer there. Preston’s daughter, Margaret Hill Hilton, has one child who is in his third year at Chapel Hill Law School.

1951

Patty Lynas Ford 5555 Montgomery Drive, #23 Santa Rosa, CA 95409 pford@sonic.net This has been a busy and happy summer for Patty Lynas Ford. August 15 was Dick’s birthday and their 64th wedding anniversary. Their daughter and her husband and Patty’s great-grandson flew out from Virginia for the celebration. They stayed with Patty’s local daughter and her husband: “It was lovely to be all together, an all-too rare experience.” Their life at Spring Lake Village (in a lovely area of Santa Rosa) continues to be happy, busy and enriching. Sue Lockley Glad left her house in smoky Oregon at Black Butte Ranch following a Level One evacuation notice, and came home to Bend, where the smoke was almost as dense but a full evacuation was never declared. They have been evacuated three times over the 20 years they have owned that house and still love it. They are enjoying life at Touchmark (resort retirement!). Sue spends Saturday nights watching grandson Justen (20) play professional soccer on TV or computer and wishing she understood the game better. Justen plays for Real Salt Lake, the U.S. teams for his age group, and in Japan, South Korea, and other parts of the world. Other grandchildren have all finished college and are exploring their new worlds, but so far, no weddings or great-grandchildren. Jane Moorefield has moved to Still Hopes, her local Episcopal retirement home! She has a lovely apartment and there are loads of activities; so she plans to be very happy. With her son and his family in Orlando, Joan Warren Davis kept an eye on Irma’s path, but all was well. She says, “My government professors would be beside themselves with all the political going-ons!” She says the changes at Sweet Briar are interesting and very innovative. Lynne McCullough Gush passed

away recently but at least did not have to suffer the flooding in Houston. Her home was in harm’s way of the hurricane. She had been diagnosed with lung cancer last fall. Lynne is remembered for her love of literature, music, and dogs. I have been thinking about Lynne since her death. For her, the timing was right and she didn’t have to deal with the ghastly destruction of so much of Houston. I remember that she met her English husband at one of the annual New Year’s Eve parties given by her mother. He died several years ago. For those of you familiar with British customs, he was an OBE, an honor awarded for his increasing the commercial trade between Houston (with its port) and the U.K. The last name “Gush” rhymes with “Bush.” Last fall, Lynne wrote to say that she had been diagnosed with lung cancer. “I never met a cigarette that I didn’t like.” Cancer appeared in her brain in the spring. At first she was hospitalized (which she did not like), and then she came home, continuing to be under hospice care. One of her care-givers was a wonderful person, Dean, who had been with the family for 40 years. She was the one that I first talked with. I talked to Lynne briefly while she was still hospitalized and then began home phone communications through Dean or one of the other hospice helpers. The phone was held up to Lynne’s ear so that she could hear me. Once in a while, I referred to some mutual experience or said something else, after which Dean said that there were tears in her eyes. We had had a long correspondence (via the U.S. Postal Service, as she did not have e-mail). (I don’t know if any of you has read “An Invisible Friendship” by Joyce Grenfell (I think), about two women who shared many ideas and interests, who decided that they would not meet but continue the correspondence until one of them died.) I still have all of Lynne’s letters, which are a joy to read. Her energy and willingness to be so involved in the local musical scene kept her busy as she had many piano students, both children and adults, and the occasional recitals, and did her walks with Kensington (her Weimaraner) along the bayou. I felt very fortunate to have been a member of her “hospice team” and a couple of the hospice helpers called me after she had died to thank me for my participation. (For years, Dick has been involved with hospice care, so it was something that was not unfamiliar.) I was not a close friend of hers at Sweet Briar, but her friendship in these later years meant a great deal to us both and we enjoyed our literary connection, love of music and dogs, and found enjoyment in our correspondence.

1952

Pat Layne Winks 312 Arguello Blvd., Apt. 3 San Francisco, CA 94118 415-221-6779 plwinks@earthlink.net Our 65th reunion enabled us to reconnect with old friends, admire the beautiful campus, and celebrate Sweet Briar’s remarkable rebirth, made possible by the unwavering commitment of loyal alumnae, students, and staff. Our class was represented by Joanne Holbrook Patton, Jane Russo Sheehan, Nancy Hamel Clark, Nancy Morrow Lovell, Betsy Wilder Cady, Laura Radford Goley, Kitchie Roseberry Tolleson, and me. It was a particular pleasure to meet family and friends of classmates. Nancy Hamel Clark came with daughter Ann. Jane Russo Sheehan came with daughters Diana and Carolyn, as well as granddaughter Julie. Joanne Holbrook Patton was accompanied by her sister Marnie. Joanne never ceases to amaze me. Never once has she taken advantage of her serious illness to excuse herself from her obligations as our class president. Instead, she exceeds all obligations! Before Reunion she tried to reach every member of our class by mail or telephone. Illness, distance, and previous commitment played significant roles in the absence of many we had hoped to see. Benita Phinizy Johnson was in Durham, NC, for the wedding of her granddaughter. Pauline Wells Bolton, sister Jo, and their daughters were together elsewhere—in an apartment on the Ile St. Louis in Paris. Regrettably, more and more news comes of the loss of dear friends and family. Cathleen Kinnear Train passed away in June. She is survived by her husband of 67 years, Admiral Harry Train II, four daughters and four grandchildren. Katie Babcock Mountcastle lost her dear husband, Ken, after 66 years of marriage. John Gray sent word that his wife of nearly 50 years, Frances Pratt Gray, passed away in April. Ngoc Linh Nguyen, the former husband of Lillian (Thu) Pham Nguyen, passed away in April as well. He had an amazing life: captive of the Viet Minh, cabinet member in South Vietnam, and after the war, service to the Vietnamese community in the United States. Our senior play, “Resting on Our Laurels,” written by Joanne Holbrook Patton, Keir Henley Donaldson, Mollie McCurdy Taylor, and Josie Sibold, has enjoyed several successful revivals, most recently at Stage 284 in South Hamilton, Mass., and then at the Clara Rose Playhouse in Patchogue, N.Y. The appreciative audience at the

Class Notes Stage 284 performance included Josie Sibold and niece, Pat Beach Thompson and husband Calvin, Nancy Morrow Lovell, Jane Russo Sheehan, and Betsy Wilder Cady. Did you catch the wonderful picture of them in the August Briar Wire? I’m sure all went home humming the tunes, which are still happily familiar to our ears. David Link, son of Joan Crouse Link, reports that Joan has moved to an independent facility in Plano, Texas, near David and his sister. Helen Graves Stahmann sent greetings from her home in Australia. Nancy Hamel Clark’s daughter Ann retired as superintendent of the Charlotte-Mecklenburg, N.C., schools. Nancy introduced her at a farewell conference, where both mother and daughter garnered a well-deserved standing ovation. (Suggestion; Google “Ann Clark” to read a terrific interview she gave the Charlotte Observer.) It’s a relief to be able to report that Pauline Wells Bolton sustained no loss or injury from Houston’s horrendous storm and flood—she lives on the sixth floor of a high-rise apartment there. Her grandson, Preston, a high school senior, was engaged in relief work. I look forward to resuming contact with you in the years to come. Surely many of you wonder—Whatever became of? Please ask Joanne or me how to get in touch with friends you miss hearing from. And please, please, send us news of yourselves. It’s a joy to realize that despite our recalcitrant body parts and senior moments, we’re as young in spirit as we were 65 years ago.

1953

Florence Pye Apy 40 Riverside Ave., Apt. 6Y Red Bank, NJ 07701 floapy@verizon.net I am sorry to report the loss of two of our classmates. Nancy McGinnis Whitehead died on March 1, 2016 at Glenbridge Health and Rehab, Boone, N.C. Adopted at birth by Dr. and Mrs. Russell McGinnis, she was raised in Cleveland, Ohio. She was born with a congenital heart defect, and at the age of 14 she became the 65th person to have open-heart surgery. This was one of many surgeries. Nancy lived a much longer and fuller life than most thought possible. She had three sons by her first husband, William Piccard, a daughter by her second husband, Schuyler Haskell, and was predeceased by both husbands as well as her third husband, Thomas Whitehead IV. During these years she was a den mother for the Boy Scouts, was Girl Scout cookie chairman, and headed up the school carnival for the PTA. Her study of piano, voice, and opera enabled her to partic-

ipate in community musicals, including Sweet Adelines. She is survived by 10 grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren. Jane Lou Westbrook died on May 9 in Bennington, Vt. She never married but is survived by her older siblings, Jack and Janet, as well as seven nieces and nephews, 14 great-nieces and nephews, and one great-great-grandniece. She spent many years as resident caretaker to her parents, during which time she enjoyed many trips with her father, an antiques dealer. After graduation from Sweet Briar College, Jane began her professional career at the Sterling-Winthrop Research Institute. Following the sale of the company by Kodak to Sanoti Aventis, a French pharmaceutical company, in the early 90’s, she began working for Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, from which her father and brother graduated. She was a community activist. She was a lifelong member of the Rensselaer County Historical Society, co-sponsor of the Rensselaer Garden Club, was an avid weaver and knitter, and as a rug hooker founded the Happy Hookers Club. She lived a very fulfilled life. A debilitating stroke in 2002 forced her to move from the 18th century farmhouse she had been lovingly restoring since 1979 to assisted living facilities in Bennington, Vt. Jack and Kirk Tucker Clarkson have moved to an apartment in Vicar’s Landing retirement community in Ponte Vedra Beach, which is 12 miles north of their present condo; they plan to keep the condo as a guest house. The new address is 1000 Vicar’s Landing Way, #E206, Ponte Vedra Beach, FL 32082. They live near their children and two married grandsons; a third grandson just graduated from Darden Business School and has moved to New Orleans. Kirk and Jack’s granddaughter and her husband, parents of a little girl, live in Pavones, Costa Rica, where they run a surfing B and B, Rancho Cannatello. Kirk had left knee replacement in early August and was in the rehab unit at Vicar’s as she wrote. Fortunately, she is doing well and presumably back on her feet when you read this. Three notes from our President Virginia Hudson Toone: #1. Ginnie was fortunate enough to be in the path of the recent eclipse and attracted seven members of her stepfamily from New Hampshire to view it with her in Missouri—a wonderful, but exhausting visit. The rain that day cleared a minute or two into the event and remained clear during the remaining hours of the eclipse. #2. A quote from Ginnie: “There is a senior exercise class at the Y once a week and I qualify as the oldest there. The leader wears one of the cute little outfits and I feel that I could do better if I could wear one of

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Class Notes those cute little outfits, but they don’t come in my size.” (Obviously Ginnie has retained her sense of humor.) #3. She reports that she got a phone call from Harriette Hodges Andrews and Jay Wells Rodgers who met somewhere in the Carolinas while visiting respective children. During Hurricane Harvey, Ginnie phoned Jay and Tom at their home in Houston. Fortunately, they live on the 9th floor of a retirement community that was not affected by flooding or loss of power. From Dale Hutter Harris: Dale and Ted are enjoying their retirement community in Durham, N.C. Barbara Blair, who taught chemistry at the College, also resides there. Although the Harris’s traveling days are limited, they try their best to keep up with their children’s activities. The children live in Virginia, England, Hawaii and North Carolina; their six grandchildren range in age from 5 to 27. A note of praise: our class did very well in the percentage of class members responding to the recent college fund drives. Keep up the good work. Hope to see you at our 65th in June.

1954

Bruce Watts Krucke 201 West 9th St. North Unit 184 Summerville, SC 29483 bwkrucke@gmail.com I learned a bit too late for the previous issue about the passing of Jean Croker McMillan, last February. Jean was living in Summit, N.J. We send condolences to her daughter, four grandchildren, and sister-in-law Faith Rahmer Croker. Jeanne Stoddart Barends sent a nice long note earlier this year. She is living in a retirement home now but still drives to nearby places, especially her beloved church, where she has been active since 1971. Some of her travels this year have been to Dayton to see the National Air Force Museum and to hear the Dayton Philharmonic Orches-

Merrill Underwood Barringer ’54, Shirley Poulson Broyles ’54, Kirkland Tucker Clarkson

tra accompanying a huge choir made up of men and women from Dayton’s 81 African American churches. She also visited the Noah’s Ark replica in Kentucky and the Creation Museum in Cincinnati. Her longtime good friend from church is her driving companion. Jeanne also spent a nice week at a lake in northern Ohio. Jeanne does see Ellie Matchneer Vorys, and I see occasional bits from them both on Facebook. Jeanne mentioned that her charitable gifts now go to her church. I’m sure that’s the case with many. I would like to encourage your sending a little something to Sweet Briar College, literally $5.00 or $10.00, because the number of alumnae who give is nearly as important as what they give. Our class is among those with a high participation, but we could be tops! Shirley Poulson Broyles and I message on Facebook too. They took a big trip to Europe with the whole family to celebrate Norris’ birthday. Sorry that I seem to have deleted the details. Shirley sent a nice picture with Merrill Underwood Barringer and Kirkland Tucker Clarkson, ’53. Caroline “Kobo” Chobot Garner and her daughter Laurie took a 10-day cruise to Alaska in May. They are now members of the 30% Club, made up of tourists who get to see Mt. Denali, which is usually clouded over. She’s decided she prefers our southeast weather. Me too, except when hurricanes come. Like Jeanne, Kobo uses a walker for balance. Hard to believe we turn 85 this year! Last summer the whole family went to her granddaughter’s wedding in Costa Rica, where son Kevin works at the embassy. Kevin’s other daughter lives in Arlington and is the mother of Kobo’s first two great-grandsons. Scott, Kobo’s younger son, and family live in San Francisco. His eldest son is at Seattle University and the middle son is at Stanford University. The youngest son is still in high school. There will be a family reunion with them in San Francisco at Thanksgiving, which will include the Stanford-Notre Dame football game. Jerry Driesbach Ludeke, who still runs the archives at Bakersfield College, had several trips this year. The first was a Road Scholar trip called the Heart of the Civil Rights Movement, which included Atlanta, Selma, and Montgomery. She said, “We went to all the places we heard about at the time and heard from many people who experienced the joys and mostly the horrors of those days. There were amazing encounters … remarkable people who survived and thrived and forgave, but didn’t forget.” The second trip was to the Canadian Maritimes, including Newfoundland, and she thought of Anne of Green Gables on

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Prince Edward Island. Other trips included a week with the family at Camp Mather near Yosemite, and with friends to see the amazing orange bloom at the Antelope Valley Poppy Preserve. Mary Hill Noble Caperton went to a reception to meet President Woo and heard her speak about the new curriculum, which Mary Hill (and I) thinks will be a very good thing. Mary Hill recommends that everyone, while you still are able, go see Sweet Briar, “still one of the most beautiful spots in the world.” Regarding Sweet Briar’s new Fierce campaign, she says she’s not so very fierce anymore, but I bet she is. Mary Jane Roos Fenn writes that her daughter Susan is still in complete remission and Susan’s daughter Dana was married in April in California. Mary Jane, Susan, and Dana spent a fun week in Bermuda in August, where they enjoyed snorkeling, sailing, and using a Boston Whaler. As I write this, we are just getting over Hurricane Irma, which wasn’t so bad here. We are just west of Charleston, S.C., where the flooding was very bad. Mary Jane spoke to Maggie Mohlman Degler, who lives in Naples, Fla., where it was much worse. Maggie said she is okay, but never wants to go through another hurricane again.

1955

Emily Hunter Slingluff 1217 North Bay Shore Drive Virginia Beach, VA 23451 757.428.6167 emilyslingluff@aol.com Hello all wonderful classmates. Here are the names of those who have died this year … with sadness: Emily Thompson Gable in April, Ann Taylor Tenser in June, Marty Hedeman Buckingham in July, Pat Smith Ticer in August, and Emmy Coxe Winburn in August. We are so appreciative of the friendships we had with them. We are so appreciative of those that we still have now. Catherine Cage Bruns is living in the same house in Houston where she has been for over 20 years. She has a son who lives in Minneapolis but

Elise Wachenfeld de Papp ’55, Centurion Ride

comes to visit. She is in good health and still doing Garden Club and other organizations but taking it easy, she says. After Hurricane Harvey, I checked on her and she is all right! Elise Wachenfeld de Papp, who we all surely remember as a beautiful rider at Sweet Briar, recently has become a poster person for the U.S. Dressage Foundation that encourages older people to ride and join by becoming Centurions. Elise became a member several years ago when she became eligible because the combined age of Elise and her horse was 100! Her horse was 20 years old! She can be proud of her many professional years as a doctor and also of her riding prowess. She has also been involved with Osher Lifelong Learning Institutions, where she has taught the Pathology of Cancer and other courses. Elise’s children are Anne, an endocrinologist in Bryn Mawr, Pa., and associate vice president of Merck; John, an electrical engineer in Chappaqua N.Y.; and Erika, a veterinarian in Dedham, Mass. Jeannette Kennedy Hancock is enjoying life in Birmingham with her husband, Jimmie, a retired federal judge. They have a daughter who lives in Montgomery, Ala., with her husband and three children, and two sons who both are lawyers living in Birmingham, each with their wives and three children. Jeanette seems so kindly involved in Birmingham life, with various organizations, helping people. Some years ago, she helped start Pre School Partners, to help youngsters who were not learning much before going to Kindergarten. A requirement for attending this learning group was that each child bring along to the weekly programs the main person who takes care of him or her. The organization has grown so much that it is now recognized as one of the best preschools in the country. Jeannette

Husband, son, and grandson of Jeanette Kennedy Hancock ’55. On April 13, 2017, all three generations were acolytes at St. Luke’s Church in Birmingham. (L-R) James Hancock III, the Rev. Rich Webster, James Hancock, Jr., James Hancock, Sr.

Class Notes sounds so mature and happy. She sent me a photo of her husband, son, and grandson, who were all acolytes at a church service the same Sunday! What a grand picture of three handsome generations it is. Betty Byrne Gill Ware writes that she and Hudnall have had a busy spring and summer. There was young Hudnall’s wedding in Middleburg in May, then Memorial Day weekend at Smith Mountain Lake, then Wrightsville Beach with her family in June, then Ware’s Wharf with Hudnall’s family over Fourth of July weekend, then a trip to Charlottesville with “girls” who have lived in Roanoke, and then another trip to Roanoke and Smith Mountain Lake another time. She plays duplicate bridge once a week, works out three times a week, does yard work, and plays some golf, too. She sees Peggy West Valentine, but misses our classmate, Betty Sanford Molster. I plan to see Betty Byrne in a few weeks. It is always such a treat to be with her. Ethel Green Banta is still doing a little bit of bed and breakfast in her wonderful old Natchez house, which has lovely “cottages” where several of us stayed several years ago and loved it! She says that she sees or talks with her sister, Ruth Ellen Green Calhoun ’57 every day. Ruth Ellen also is in a wonderful house in Natchez. Ethel’s children are in Seattle, Wash., in Northampton, Mass., and two in Richmond with six grandchildren there in Richmond, too! Also, Ethel said she recently saw Jane Feltus Welch and her “wonderful” son Jimmy, when they came from Louisville for a family wedding in Natchez. Phyllis Joyner is moving around as usual in New York City and beyond. In August, she went on a five-day retreat in Pennsylvania that she said was enriching and educational. And then, almost immediately was leaving

The son of Emily Slinghuff ’55, Dr. Craig Slinghuff, a surgeon, cancer researcher and professor at UVa, was tapped to give remarks to UVa’s first-years about the importance of the university’s honor code.

for a trip in the mountains, in the Catskills. As always, she was so interested in other classmates, too. Anne Williams Manchester, still living in Cohasset, Mass., sounds as happy as ever. She and Eli are beginning to boat a bit less but enjoying life, and they have both daughters and their families living close by. Three of their grandchildren will be in college this fall. They will be at Williams, Wesleyan, and Dartmouth. It was a treat for me to spend some time with Anne and Eli several years ago at High Hampton Inn in the mountains of North Carolina. Sandy Rhodes Berglund phoned from Stuart, Fla., where she lives after living many years in Roanoke when she was first married and where she said she enjoyed seeing our classmate Betty Byrne Gill Ware and also Betty Byrne’s now-deceased older sister Edith Page Gill Breakell ’45. Sandy said she is not well, but we talked about Sweet Briar and she said that she has two daughters who also graduated from Sweet Briar, Sigrid Carlen Veasy ’81 and Elise Carlen Robison ’84. That might be a record for one of our classmates! Newell Bryan Tozzer, in Atlanta, as always, sounds wonderful. She sees a lot of Sue Lawton Mobley, as usual, too. Newell’s son is married to Sue’s cousin. Both Newell’s son and daughter live nearby, and her four grandchildren—one of whom is only 14—are all being educated at Southern schools! They are at the University of Georgia and Washington and Lee University, and one is a graduate of Agnes Scott College. Always a close friend, Newell was wonderful when my daughter and her husband and young children lived in Atlanta for a few years. What a treat it was for me to reconnect a lot with Newell, Sue, and Camille then! Camille Williams Yow has recently moved from her gracious house on West Andrews Drive in Atlanta to a grand condo nearby. She says she enjoys the “beautiful new lifestyle—love the elevators and fabulous service and looking out at a gorgeous church.” She said one of her three grandsons is being married soon in a pasture in Alabama! All sounds nice and Southern and happy! I, Emily Hunter Slingluff, am enjoying life at Virginia Beach, taking it a little bit easy occasionally, going to Charlottesville a lot, swimming in the ocean, and being on radio shows and giving talks about parenting. I was even on a sort of political debate, an hour-long show out of New York, discussing why some people choose to be protestors. I say that almost everything goes back to the formative years of life, which are called formative because they are formative, but all influences

matter, including those of wonderful Sweet Briar College.

1959

Ali Wood Thompson 89 Pukolu Way Wailea, HI 96753-7710 808-874-8028 travisnali808@gmail.com Dear 59ers, It is always such a pleasure to hear from all of you. There were many of you that I missed hearing from, but next time, in the Spring, don’t forget to write in so we can all be in touch with each other. It really is important! As I write this, we are right in the middle of the storm, Irma. We have eight classmates living in various places in Florida and one classmate living in Houston. I pray that they all will be safe! Passings: Sally Hale Riggs—February 2017 Elisabeth (Liz) Chambers Burgess—June 2017 Sally Martin Kohrs—June 2017 Notes: Pat Davis Sutker has a new email address: patriciad@gmail.com Ann Turnbull Lowry has a new email: annlowry@gmail.com Jane (Puss) Moore Banks has a new email: janiebinks@msn.com. Val Stoddard Loring has moved. Contact me for her new address. Mary Harrison Cooke (Cookie) Carle Does anyone know the whereabouts of Cookie with address, email and phone number? Please let me know. Betsy Duke Seaman Not much news here, but we still have our SBC ’59 Second Tuesday Book Group: Tricia Ware, Mary Blair Valentine, Tabb Farinholt, Cay Weimer, Sorrel McElroy, Mary Ballou Williams, and me. We would welcome visits from any ’59ers who might come this way, especially anyone who might teach us to hula! Am so happy to read good news from Dr. Woo. She is certainly impressive. Alice Cary Farmer Brown Best wishes to all of you who are turning 80 this year. We are fortunate! I celebrated my birthday in March on the Irrawaddy River in Myanmar on a lovely small boat with some British friends. This was quite an adventure for Lee and me! On the home front, I really enjoy seeing Gay Hart Gaines in Florida. She is our “baby,” she says. Lunch in New York with roommate Jackie Heckma and Betsy Wiegers and Di Spurdle is always long and hilarious! We are all wishing good luck to President Meredith Woo and sending gratitude for coming to Sweet Briar. Penny Fisher Duncklee [Ed. Note:

Penny, my roommate came out to visit me on Maui in March] The biggest fun event of my year was to visit you. After I returned from Maui, I drove up and back to La Crosse, Wis., to take a watercolor painting workshop. Mostly I went just to see the scenery. It was beautiful driving across Kansas and Iowa. I did a painting when I got home. I called it Kansas Green Sea. Gay Hart Gaines I am excited to tell you that I am a great-grandmother, as of April 2, when our first granddaughter had a baby boy! We took 13 children and grands to Italy, a truly fabulous trip. We started out in divine Venice and after four days, boarded a Silver Seas ship the Silver Spirit and made many fascinating stops in Italy, Croatia, Greece, Sicily, and then ended up with four days in Belissima Rome. It was a mind-expanding trip for nine grandchildren and our grown children, and Stanley and I adored it too! Am planning another Founders Series at The Four Arts in Palm Beach during 2018 and have a great line up of historians to speak. Anyone can see this year’s series on C-Span 3 called the Founders and Us. The David McCullough lecture was one of his greatest ever. Try to get it and I know you will enjoy it. At the end of the morning he sang, “Hey good lookin’. What you got cooking ...” to me! What fun it was. Elizabeth Johnston Lipscomb I was especially distressed to hear about Liz Chambers Burgess’s death. I remember well all the hours we spent together working on the SB News. It’s hard for me to believe how long ago that was. Lloyd and I are more and more aware of how important it is to be grateful for every moment we have. We have just returned from a 10-day cruise from Montreal to Boston. It was interesting and fun—and not too strenuous. We continue to enjoy family visits, most recently to attend our grandson Burke’s high school graduation. Please extend my thanks to all of our classmates who continue to support Sweet Briar financially and in many other ways. Virginia Mackethan Kitchin Liz Burgess died at Harbour’s Edge in Norfolk. Although never a smoker, she found out six years ago she had lung cancer and not much longer to live. So, she beat the odds by surviving not six months, but six years. I will miss her. I knew her all my life, since we were babies and our parents were friends. Just got back from my third annual trip to Cincinnati, where I visited son Cameron and his family and went to the eight days of the Western and Southern Open Tennis tournament. Heaven. Judy Nevins LeHardy We are still on the Northern Neck of Virginia—do-

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Class Notes ing some sailing and lots of traveling. I enjoy my local Music Study Club and any concerts or operas we can get to. We will probably be out of here in five years or so—maybe moving to Kiawah Island, S.C. Two of our granddaughters made us very proud this year. Sally’s daughter Charlotte graduated Phi Beta Kappa from UVa with a degree in anthropology, and Annie LeHardy, our champion runner from Roanoke and a UNC ’15 grad, started working in the White House as a press assistant! She recently went to Poland and Paris with the president. Her picture has been in some papers, and we have often spotted her on TV at press conferences. Her brother, Barrett, an army captain (West Point ’12 and also a champion runner), commands a dive company at Ft. Eustis. Daughter Sally and family live in Crozet, near Charlottesville. She teaches French at Alliance Francaise in Charlottesville and also on the Internet. We are lucky that so many of our family live in Virginia. Happy 80th everyone! Ward gave me a lovely birthday party in June at Ft. Myer, Va., with lots our family, many St. Agnes classmates, and West Point ’56 couples attending. Fleming Parker Rutledge Another book deadline looms. Barbara Sampson’s husband, Fred, died. He was a good man. It might be fun to find out what everyone is doing for their 80th birthday. My husband, Dick, and daughters Heyward and Elizabeth are going to London, Canterbury, and Winchester for 10 days in Sept. Will send photos after the fact! Betsy Smith White’s family gathered in Brevard, N.C., for the eclipse, which was on the very day of her 79th! I hope a lot of you saw Mary Blair’s wonderful meme “Get Off My Lawn” overlaid on a photo of the Rotunda, just after the tiki torch KKK march. I went out and bought some tiki torches for our back garden because I heard that their business was off, through no fault of their own. I guess my big news is that I have joined Twitter and have 1700+ “followers” so far, mostly young (very young) pastors! Ann Pegram Howington My oldest child, Jack Lyle, died last Christmas season; so the merry went away.... Nina Hopkin’s sweet daughter Mary lives next door here and is giving Nina a birthday party soon. My beautiful daughter Martha Lyle is doing one for me too, and I can’t remember who we invited—or, accidentally, didn’t. Rew Price Carne I moved out of my place by the beach into a retirement community two weeks ago. Not the only ’59er to do this—stress! So I lie on the couch and watch my daughter unpack boxes. Don’t know how much longer I can get away with this division of duties. Other stuff—wedding reception in Chicago for my niece and Guillermo. They were married in 42

Lima in March. So, this was for those who couldn’t make it to Peru. Another niece getting married Dec. in Dallas. Barbara Sampson Borsch My news is sad. My husband, Fred, died in April from complications of myelodysplastic. A form of leukemia. Love to you all. Mary Blair Scott Valentine Thankfully, Stukie is recovering from coronary surgery, quintuple bypass. He is at the seventh month at this writing. Ann Smith Heist After a delightful cruise ending up in Le Havre, John and I spent a month driving through rural France, staying at Relais & Chateaux whenever there was one in the area. Chunneled back to England for a few more days before taking the Queen Mary back to NYC. Fortunately, our daughter lives in Connecticut; so she can pick us up on returns like this. Having a fabulously supportive and clever husband has enabled me to travel like that in spite of being on oxygen for 20 years. Enjoying four grandchildren, to whom we have introduced cruising, has been grand. Recently thought we should move north, but my old homestead beach house would be hard to leave. Never get this view again. Now, however, we are praying for no hurricanes as we have been extremely lucky over the years. I’ve been intending to look up Sally Mayfield in Ft. Myers when we take a trip to west Florida. The days go awfully fast, it seems, and accomplishments are few. John stays on the forefront of anything electronic. It is a great hobby. Hope that any of our Florida SBC sisters will call and come by when they find themselves on I-95 heading north. Judy Sorley Chalmers-Simpson I have no news—except that my English grandchildren come to visit me often (everyone wants to see The Lion King; so I think they should put my name on one of the seats!!)— and I’m going to visit my triplets in Atlanta—actually in Ware Neck, Va., in mid-August. We rent a darling cottage very close to Tabb—such a bonus. Tabb Thornton Farinholt We spent a month at MD Anderson in Houston. While there, we were gloriously cared for by our daughter’s SBC roommate Harriet McNair Alexander ’86, daughter of Becky Towill ’60. At the end of it, my sister Mimi ’56 died; so it has been a tender time. I had a wonderful lunch with Tricia Coxe Ware and Betsy Duke Seaman to celebrate my 80th birthday. Grandchildren scattered all over now; they are in NYC, Boston, Ithaca, N.Y., Madrid, Charlottesville, and Philadelphia, but we’ll all be together here for the Thanksgiving weekend. Kathy Tyler Sheldon We have had a lovely summer here in Newfoundland with many, many fabulous icebergs in

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May and June. We did hit a rock in our sailboat (actually I hit the rock), and I went flying forward, cracking two ribs but am now mostly mended; so we are hoping to get out again in September. Other than that, no news except grateful to be alive and well, as well as two old people can be with many, many visits of family and friends. Ali Wood Thompson This is the year of everyone’s 80th birthday and each one of us will have different experiences. Mine happened in June—a Maui Sunset Cruise out in Ma’alaea Bay. My sister came from N.H. with her three children and their children. My daughter, Lynne, flew in from Maine and my son, Tarn, flew in from Texas. And of course, there had to be some hula dancing to CDs with five of my hula mates. It was one of those perfect sunsets with calm seas, good food, fun entertainment and wonderful friends! A few months earlier, we ventured to Panama and then to San Miguel de Allende in Mexico to visit friends. My doctor says keep traveling as much as you can while you are healthy. So, in October we are off to Africa again (fifth trip)—just can’t get enough of those wonderful animals! It is like eating popcorn!

1960

Lura Coleman Wampler 1406 Thomas Rd Little Place Farm Wayne, PA 19087-1318 lcwampler@comcast.net Gwen Speel Kaplan: Anne Clarke comes down from Connecticutt. to visit me in Richmond every May. We’ve gotten a group of classmates together for lunch at the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts for five of the past six years! See the photo. Anita Perrin Towell: [Referring to the same mini reunion in Richmond] I always look forward to being with everyone and I enjoy our lively conversations. We certainly do not look like we graduated 57 years ago!! Barbara Murphy Hale: The big event this past year was having all the children here to celebrate Phil’s 90th birthday at Thanksgiving, including our first great-grandchild. We are looking forward to having the Department of Fish and Wildlife plant 25 acres of wildflowers on the farm, a project to create a pollinator pathway from Delaware Bay down the Eastern Shore. Teddy Hill and Liz Penfield: We weren’t able to do much this year, but grandchildren made up for it while we enjoyed a long summer in Colorado looking at birds, chipmunks and feeding squirrels. Daughter Louise took a monsoon trek in Nepal with granddaughters Julia and Sophie. Julia is spending a year in Nepal on a Fulbright. Sophie, back from an NGO

in Laos, has been invited to join John Kerry’s new graduate program at Yale focusing on international problems. Her son, Elliot, just graduated from Colgate. Karen’s son, Hill, is a senior at Harvey Mudd in California, and her daughter, Margot, is a sophomore at Eckerd College in Florida. Come to think of it, all that adventure makes looking at birds, feeding squirrels and reading good books sounds pretty good. Rhett Ball Thagard: Enjoying long walks in California with my daughter and granddaughter. My new knee works well! Gail Hayman Wilson: We’ve talked about a change for several years, and finally we did it; we decided to downsize and move closer to one of our children (in either the Boston or Northern Virginia areas). Climate and housing choices led to choosing Virginia. We sold our big old house in Binghamton—we had lived there for 47 years—got rid of mountains of “stuff,” and moved to a new condo in Ashburn, Va., in May. We are just a couple of miles from our daughter’s family. That’s a sufficient distance to foster separate lives but close enough to see our 15-month-old grandson often. We enjoy frequent visits to or from our Boston family (including 5- and 7-year-old grandchildren). The adjustment to such a significant change has been remarkably easy. Gail Lloyd: I have retired from my position of 27 years as executive director of a private foundation that was involved with many city and international facets and which had a collection of 18th and 19th century prints, now given to Yale. Since the foundation closed, I have been catching up on personal matters and with my organizations. This summer, being in the city has been enjoyable, attending the ballet and visiting with friends. Jane Tatman Walker: Frank and I just returned from our family trip to California. We had all of our 16 children, grandchildren and a granddaughter-in-law. Fun time in San Francisco, Yosemite and Monterey Bay. We have enjoyed our Hoosier summer otherwise and look forward to a Florida winter. Mickey Oliveri Svoboda: My daughter and I just returned from a wonderful UVa Lifetime Learning trip to France with 2 professors from UVa’s architecture school. We followed Thomas Jefferson’s footsteps as we visited the buildings and gardens that inspired him and even had dinner at Le Procope, a restaurant that was open during that era. We spent most of July at our house on Figure 8 Island in N.C. I have also been in Savannah many weeks as my son moved there last year to begin his first year at Mercer medical school. Linda Sims Newmark: With my

Class Notes

(L to r): Gwen Speel Kaplan, Betty Forsyth Harris, Mickey Oliveri Svoboda, Grace Suttle, Anita Perrin Towell, Anne Reinecke Clarke, Patti Powell Pusey and Ginger Newman Blanchard granddaughter a rising sophomore at SBC, I enjoyed three campus visits her freshman year. Saw three wonderful plays (Mary Grace had parts in all) and loved seeing our campus alive and well. Was in Atlanta for Talbot’s SBC benefit day. Ann Lemmon and I enjoyed shopping at the Phipps Plaza store, where we ran into Teresa Tomlinson’s (’87) mother. Sandy Schuhmacher Lawrence: My life is easy and delightful living here in Southlake, Texas, near my daughter Sharon and her family. My dear hubby has dementia, a challenge, but we’re making it day by day. I’ll never forget my two years at SBC and love every bit of news from you. Becky Towell McNair: Who could not be proud of the financial contribution from our Class of ’60? Congratulations to us! Have so enjoyed photos and reports of 1960 mini reunions around the country. Keeping in touch is heartwarming. On our trek to Virginia last spring we enjoyed seeing Susan Hendricks Slayman, Carolyn King Ratcliffe, Patti Powell Pusey and Ginger Newman Blanchard. Emailing with A Massie Hill keeps me updated on classmates I love to see also. If all goes well, our family plans to join the masses at Machu Picchu this Christmas. Altitude pills ordered! Katie Mendelson McDonald: HOLA! Here in Madrid for a month or so, enjoying our old home, and lots of old friends, loads of art exhibitions, food and wine! I am a member of American Women’s Club since 1967 and held book club meeting last week. A SURPRISE when Ginny Carpenter ’67, a member whom I had met once before, said she had been back to Sweet Briar for her 50th Reunion! We have become new friends, shared many memories about our happy times on campus, and look forward to seeing her on my next visit. Returning to West Palm Beach, Fla.—anyone who can brave summer heat in Florida and visits the Sunshine State, please give me a call! Elizabeth Meade Howard: My new book, “Aging Famously: Follow Those You Admire to Living Long and

Well,” was published in September by Jefferson Park Press. The book includes my journey after my father’s death, inspired by the examples of some 30 intrepid and instructive role models—Walter Cronkite, Gordon Parks, Hal Holbrook, Carol Channing, Richard Wilbur and Stanley Kunitz. Nina Newton Farriss: Happy for the great revival! God bless! Barbara Beam Denison: Still here in the same Bethesda, Md., house where we settled in ’66—George still active as a self-employed lobbyist and consultant working with Japanese nuclear issues on Capitol Hill and I with painting, golfing, charity committees and working out to keep the tired old bones in some kind of shape—actually, “bones” is a misnomer as many have now been replaced with titanium! Children and grandchildren all in California though oldest spent summer here with us while interning. Autumn travel to Portugal and occasional travels to California to visit family—altogether, life is good. Ginger Newman Blanchard: We bought a house in Amherst last year, spending half of the year here and half in Vero Beach, Fla.; we still have Kenmore farm right around the corner. I’ve been playing a lot of golf, weeding and keeping up with our family that is spread out. We enjoyed visiting with Patti Pusey and seeing Carolyn Ratcliff and Clyde, who gave us a boat tour with Becky McNair and Bill and Susie Slayman and Kelson. We have met Meredith Woo and her husband; matter of fact, they came for dinner, which was fun. Nancy Corson Gibbes: I had a nice visit with Heidi Wood Huddleston in early July at my place on the coast of South Carolina. Later that month, Martha Boyd McFadden (who was in our freshman class) and I took a trip on the mail ship, The Hurtigruten, taking in the fjords of Norway—great trip, delicious food and beautiful scenery. Maline Gilbert McCalla: I do see Maydelle Foster Fason all the time and keep in close touch with Lee Cul-

Lura Coleman Wampler and Lucy Martin Gianino and their shared grandchildren, Coleman and Adelle Wampler lum who is still active in a PBS series that she created. I still travel to Mexico as often as I can justify it; working on a book project serves as my excuse. Carol Barnard Ottenberg: Summers in Maine, the rest of the year in Seattle, with the occasional winter week at a Tucson ranch. That’s the way the world turns for us Ottenbergs. Isabel Burch: I have six grandsons and one granddaughter whose name is Isabel. My grandchildren range in age from 7 to 21, and I thoroughly enjoy being with them whenever it happens. My younger son, Charlie Hall, is the drummer in an Indie Rock Band called the War on Drugs. They are about to release their new album and start touring in this county and abroad. I am going to Portland, Maine, for the start of the tour and will also go to Charlotte with my sister-in-law, Patricia Coxe Ware ’59, to hear the concert there with her daughter Mary Ware Gibson ’83, who lives in Charlotte. Gale Young Walker: Warm greetings from Vancouver, Canada, to my sister classmates of 1960. Here is a speed-bio: after graduating, I taught in NYC for 14 years, I met and married a Yorkshire physicist and moved to Canada. David and I have a daughter Elizabeth. I taught on a part-time basis at University of British Columbia, supervising student teachers. I travel about often, delightfully crossing paths, from time to time, with classmates Norris Smith, Kadri Niider, Grace Suttle with whom I e-correspond regularly, plus Elizabeth Howard—enriching connections, thank you SBC. These days I have a new assignment: explaining U.S. political paradoxes to my neighbors. Now there’s a challenge! Lee Cullum: Most of my time at the moment I spend on “CEO,” a series

of interviews with business leaders that I host on the PBS affiliate here with rebroadcast on the NPR station. I contribute occasional columns to the Dallas Morning News and also do some writing for a couple of arts magazines. Lucy Martin Gianino: I am still in real estate in NYC, I do some acting when called and am very active with my church, St. Bart’s. I was on the committee to find a new minister, who is now fully established. Jack and I spent the summer on Fire Island, where we have had constant visitors, mostly our three children and their children, who now number six. Both Lura and I are thrilled with our class giving total of $606,691, representing 42.4% participation for the fiscal year ending in June 2017. Bravo to all who pitched in!!! And, yes, my hair is still purple! Lura Coleman Wampler: I am happy to say Fred and I also visited Jack and Lucy for a wonderful weekend on Fire Island in August. Back in June, we enjoyed meeting President Meredith Woo at a reception at the Devon Horse Show here in Pennsylvania. She is extremely impressive and spoke enthusiastically about some of her visions for SBC. We’re hanging in

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Class Notes at our little farm and have no plans to move into a retirement community!

1961

Bette Hutchins Sharland 1724 Aberdeen Circle Crofton, MD 21114-1628 besssharland@verizon.net Julie O’Neil Arnheim 41 Pitt Street Charleston, SC 29401 jarnheim@princeton.edu Janie Arensberg Thompson volunteers for the Carnegie Museum of Art, the Carnegie Science Center and her alma mater, the Winchester Thurston School. Now that husband Harry is retired, they can travel, enjoy their children and grandchildren and take occasional jaunts to New York for theater and museum exhibits. Of course, the Pittsburgh sports teams always rate enthusiastic cheers. Mary Denny Scott Wray asks if any of us will be in N.Y.C. the first weekend in December, as some were last year. She declares, “Growin’ old ain’t for sissies.” Due to arthritis, one of her partial knees has been replaced with a total one. She used to love to travel, but now “I love my house even more, and treasure every day at home and the chance to be with family, friends, and, sometimes, even alone.” She looks forward to Molly Haskell’s visit to the Women’s Club, where Molly will discuss her new book on Steven Spielberg. Happy with her three sons and daughter-in-law, as well as three grandsons and three granddaughters—three ending boarding school and three in college—and each one inspires her. She urges, “Please, all, be healthy.” Also in Richmond, Susie Prichard Pace says, “Hi to all my SBC classmates! Those were some of the best years of my life! Great memories!” Now, in Midlothian, Va., she’s enjoying friends and family and proud of her six grandchildren. One granddaughter, a graduate of Virginia Tech, is in grad school at William and Mary, and another has graduated from VMI. Susie monitors her investment properties when not playing tennis, volunteering or reading. Suzanne Seaman Berry was seriously injured in a three-vehicle collision the day before Thanksgiving 2015. Hip surgery followed in September 2016, a knee replacement last August, and “they think the other knee will need to be done. They are not sure I will ever be able to walk unaided.” She and Fritz had already decided to sell their house and move to Westminster Canterbury in Charlottesville. Fritz has some memory issues; so, despite missing their house, they know “it was time” to leave their 44

Despite a neck fracture, acquired in September 2016 by falling off a ladder, the show went on: The home of Julie O’Neil Arnheim continues on the Charleston, S.C., Preservation Society tours. Formerly the Plymouth Congregational Church, a black church built in 1870, it was renovated and converted into a home by the Arnheims in 1998 following years of neglect after the church outgrew it in 1950 and its subsequent tenant, the Association for the Blind, moved to larger quarters. mountain home. Suzanne sends best wishes to her many classmates facing the same “reality checks!” Penny Stanton Meyer works part-time at a garden center on Maryland’s Eastern Shore and volunteers in a first-grade classroom. In August, she visited son David and watched granddaughter Cassidy “hike up 14,000 footers” in Colorado. In September, she visited Ireland. “Life is Good.” Last summer, Lou Chapman Hoffman saw Stuart Bohannan Evans in North Carolina and Celia Williams Dunn in Georgia. In June, Sheila Haskell Smith and Lynn moved into a condo, bringing memories of all the happy times in their home in the same beloved northeast Ohio neighborhood. Sheila adds, “We were so ready” to make their annual fall trip to New England in September. Linda Macarthur Hollis and Bob enjoy their home near Asheville, N.C., where they both golf, Linda paints and works in clay, and Bob sings. In September, they visited New England, calling on their son and daughter-inlaw and friends in Connecticut, then on to their timeshare at the Trapp Family Lodge and friends in Vermont. Another stop was at the Continuing Care Retirement Community, where Bob’s older brother and his wife reside, a visit with their nearby niece and nephew and on to Boston to call on a former roommate from her N.Y.C. days. Near the Hartford airport, they spent time with two granddaughters, one a high school English teacher and the other a senior at Vassar. An Arizona resident for 16 years, Susan Robinson Syquia has joined the Society of Mayflower Descendants, as have her younger daughter and her daughter, the latter two being residents of Durjsholm, Sweden; all

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Marion Lucas Fleming at the “Antiques Roadshow” in Orlando with a Boulle clock that had been a decoration in her grandfather Arthur Lucas’s Fox Theater in Atlanta. When the theater was remodeled, it was given to her grandmother. As an English copy from 1880 of the more-antique French ones, it is only valued at $6,000 to $8,000. It strikes as though it is worth millions!

belong to the same chapter. Also in Sweden, her eldest daughter, Helena Cloie Syquia Skarne, was 2016’s Miss Green Universe Sweden, and president of the student council at the University of Stockholm. Before graduating from Andover, her eldest grandson won a scholarship for two years’ study in Germany. Now stateside, he’s at the University of Chicago. Having had “many” joint replacements, she’s known as “the bionic woman” out in the Grand Canyon State. From New York, Molly Haskell writes that her latest book, “Steven Spielberg: A Life in Films,” was published by Yale University Press in January. Molly is on the lecture circuit now; and we, her classmates, will spend careful moments with her “lively, deeply informed” (NY Times) volume. Nancy Coppedge Lynn and Jerry spend three and a half months in Maine every summer. “We are on a delightful spot, right on the water— Mere Point, just 25 minutes out from Brunswick. Nearby is Rue Wallace Judd, who summers at East Boothbay. “We try to meet up several times for lunch. She is as lovely as ever! This past December I was visiting N.Y.C. and had a mini-reunion with several classmates—Bee, Rue, Catherine, Mary Denny, Jeanie and Celia, plus others I know I must be omitting. Great fun! I keep busy playing mahjong once a week, reading, and just taking care of Jerry and myself. Winter well, everyone!” Margaret Wadman Cafasso recently moved from Long Island, N.Y., to Delray Beach, Fla. She and Bisou, her Chihuahua, escape the hot summers by renting—until mid-October—in the Berkshires near Tanglewood. From North Carolina, Scottie Small Johnson notes, “It has been a

Julie O’Neil Arnheim and Martha Ann Chandler Romoser cool, rainy summer in Cashiers. I have kept up with Sweet Briar through my goddaughter, Mary Pope Hutson ’83. We are very proud of all that has been accomplished at the school. We’ve had good visits with Celia Williams Dunn, Stuart Bohannan Evans, the Storey twins and Louise Chapman Hoffman. Great connecting with old friends!” Julie O’Neil Arnheim resumed her interest in French and took a College of Charleston summer internship class in Paris from mid-May to mid-July, where she worked as a translator for a French non-governmental organization. She translated survey responses written by rural Afghans in English into French and translated for Afghan speakers at conferences. The latter drove her to purchase hearing aids, as “one needs to hear well in order to translate well.” Last year, she organized a successful reunion of her ’59-’60 Junior Year in France group

Class Notes in Charleston and maintains their blog and Facebook presence. Martha Ann Chandler Romoser and husband Bill visited with Julie O’Neil Arnheim in Charleston, S.C., on a Thanksgiving get-away visiting Southern friends, leaving their own horses but connecting with Charleston’s counterparts for an open carriage ride and history tour of the old city. Both Faith Bullis Mace and Julie have visited their mini-ranch in the Blue Ridge Mountains. Julie informs us that Kay Prothro Yeager received the 2015 Woodrow B. Seals Laity Award, from the Perkins School of Theology at Southern Methodist University, honoring her many contributions there. She notes that Kay, a chemistry major at SBC, supports humanities and social science programs in broad-based philanthropic efforts championing education. Her current activities include chairing Yellowstone Forever, the merged entity of the Yellowstone Association and the Yellowstone Park Foundation, which she had chaired, and serving as one of three mentors for the Air Force Civic Leaders Group. Kay’s lifetime of community leadership and service, e.g. as mayor of Wichita Falls, Texas, from 1996 to 2000, is rare indeed. She is the mother of two daughters and has four grandchildren—all in college. The oldest, a graduate of University of Michigan, is a second-year graduate student at University of Georgia playing the tuba. A granddaughter is in her first year of a master’s in public policy at Ohio State University; she graduated from Southwestern University in Georgetown, Texas, last spring—Southwestern being the oldest university in Texas. A grandson is a senior at Texas A&M majoring in mechanical engineering, and her youngest grandson is a freshman at the University of Michigan majoring in fiber arts. Since the near closure of Sweet Briar two years ago, Lynchburg resident Judy Greer Schulz recounts “most of my volunteer energy has been focused on whatever I can do to help there.” Last year she taught as an adjunct piano teacher, played a piano recital in the Gager series, participated in the Sweet Work Weeks of campus cleanup, planned to attend the inauguration of Meredith Woo, and now looks forward to the new initiatives for the College. She keeps up with Mary Denny, Celia, and Jane Garst Lewis, as well as many Lynchburg alumnae. She adds, “Steve and I enjoy the 44th year in our Lynchburg home and our many local activities and friends. Cecily is teaching law at Boston University, where her son is a freshman. Garth has his own financial consulting business in Rye, N.Y., and a son at SMU. Though not close in distance, we visit the five

grandchildren often and are grateful all are thriving.” From New Hampshire, Bee Newman Thayer tells us that, after 54 years of marriage, she placed Brad in “the experienced, gentle hands” at a Continuing Care Retirement Community in Hanover. They’ve taken an apartment nearby, so she can visit daily. Bee was joyfully present at the September inauguration of Sweet Briar’s new president, Meredith Woo, who will bring Sweet Briar into the twenty-first century.” Sue Aborn Cunningham is in assisted living in Cape Cod Senior Residences in Bourne, Mass. Julie visited her on Jan. 22, 2015, just before a great blizzard snowed the area in; together they visited Martha’s Vineyard, where Sue had lived for many years. Maria Garnett Hood believes that staying affiliated with Camp Greenbrier is keeping Bob and her young. “After the flood of 2016 that devastated Greenbrier County, W.Va., even the lovely Greenbrier Hotel, we had a perfectly beautiful summer this year! Although last year we had yet to begin camp when the flood hit, we were entirely set up and had our staff of counselors there in training for the season. A faulty state gauge left us somewhat unprepared, but all we had to do for safety was to walk out of our gate and up the hill to a beautifully equipped shelter, which took care of the staff for a few days as we dug out in preparation for the ’16 session of camp. An incredible staff, businesses that rushed such things as making new tents and delivering new mattresses, and lovely campers made everything run well, and we were among the lucky ones in the county. Restrictions on some water sports was our only drawback for the first session.” Fall finds Maria back one the eastern shore of Virginia on their small farm, now almost entirely wooded. She volunteers at a new local hospital and at the schools. “I still miss teaching after twelve years of retirement, but I enjoy tutoring to keep my hand in what was a fantastic career. We have fourteen grandchildren, including the steps; are in the same couples book club for 44 years; and feel very lucky to be able to have winters in the country on the eastern shore of Virginia and summers in West Virginia.” A week spent with Knoxville friends at Camp Greenbrier’s House Parties after-camp session reacquainted Julie and Maria and together they phoned Laura Conway Nason in Arizona. Julie reports the sad news that Jack, Laura’s husband of 55 years, passed away last May, after a long struggle with spinal stenosis. Julie adds, “We all remember seeing Jack’s gray Mercedes 190SL convertible arrive almost

nightly from Charlottesville our senior year to court the love of his life, then living in Dew with roommate Maria.” Laura is singing at the Taizé ecumenical prayer service on Mondays at the beautiful Chapel of the Holy Cross in Sedona. Bette Hutchins Sharland attended her high school class reunion in Charleston, mostly to visit with her co-secretary, Julie, over a long dinner. After all the rains that her neighborhood, like many in the country, received last summer, Bette is thankful her house hasn’t slid down the hill onto the flood plain below it.

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Parry Ellice Adam 33 Pleasant Run Rd. Hemington, NJ 08822 (908)-782-3754 peaba@comcast.net The biggest news event was our 55th reunion! It was a wonderful weekend buzzing with enthusiasm about our school’s revitalization under the outstanding guidance of President Meredith Woo. Classmates in attendance were Martha Baum Carlton, Ginger Borah Meislahn, Laura Connerat Lawton, Mary Hannah, Brooke Hamilton Mackinnon, Ann Carter Lee Gravely, Fran Oliver Palmer, Jocelyn Palmer Connors, Kim Patmore Cool, Betsy Pearson Griffin, Mary Jane Shroder Hubbard, Barbara Sublett Guthery, Bettye Thomas Chambers, Mina Walker Wood, and yours truly. The inspiring, positive outlook was evident in every corner. Please join in celebrating the fantastic future of our alma mater.

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Allie Stemmons Simon 3701 Guadalajara Ct. Irving, TX 75062 asimontc@verizon.net Sadly, I must start with the news of the death of our classmate, Joan Newhall, on March 2, 2017. We extend our sympathy to her family. Hurricane Harvey is on everybody’s mind—almost every one of you I heard from expressed sympathy for Texas and wanted to know how badly I had been impacted. Thanks for your concern, but being in the Dallas area, we only got a lot of rain and a lot of evacuees from the south. Others were not so lucky. Marta Sweet Colangelo wrote on Aug. 31, “Currently flooded out of my house, but safe and dry with friends and grateful to have the warm support of family and friends and flood insurance!”

Betty Stanly Cates heard from Susan Alexander that she stayed high and dry and did not even lose power, but many of her friends have lost everything. In August Betty attended the 100th anniversary of Skyland Camp in Clyde, N.C., where she spent 13 summers. Her cousin is now owner of the camp. Betty reports that Helen Murchison Lane ’46, was also a Skylander and was in attendance at the reunion. Speaking of reunions, Betty plans to be at our 55th in June 2018 and urges everyone to come too! Nancy Dixon Brown intends to be there and is looking forward to seeing classmates and meeting President Woo. Julia Fort Lowe and Bob moved to Nashville in 2013 and are happily situated there. About a year and a half ago, Julia had a stroke but says she is doing pretty well with therapy three times a week. She uses a walker and can “get out and about and do pleasant things” and is hoping to attend Reunion. Laura Lee Brown and Steve had an “amazing time with Ginger Cates Mitchell and Mitch, visiting their farm and sharing agrarian projects and advice.” Laura Lee says their vegetable garden and orchard continue to supply their hotel restaurant in Louisville. They opened their seventh hotel in Nashville in May and continue to travel nationally and internationally to buy art for their hotels. Nerissa vom Baur Roehrs writes from Germany that she visits a different European city every year sponsored by the Leipzig Art Museum—most recently Istanbul, London and Lisbon— and was looking forward to Barcelona this fall, but her husband fell and broke his leg; so they had to cancel. Nerissa stays in touch with Cathy Detmar Nicholls in Somerset, England—they visited last year. Cathy recently had knee surgery. Harriet Reese Jensen has been on the move. In July she, her daughter and two teenaged granddaughters visited family and friends on the East Coast. In August she and two friends enjoyed opera evenings in the old Roman Arena in Verona—they saw/heard “Aida” and “Nabucco.” Shortly, she is going to the Greek island of Simi. Harriet says that will be her final trip of the year but “at our age one can’t afford to wait too long.” Pricilla Langley Pay’s sister lives in Houston so she is carefully watching that situation. Her granddaughters are grown—one is a geologist working for a U.S. oil company, one a geophysicist, one a sailmaker about to join the merchant Navy, and the last is starting university to study astrophysics! Impressive group! Her grandsons are still in school. Lynn Carol Blau is having a milestone year—one daughter just

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Class Notes had her 50th birthday, Lynn turned the big 75, and her mom will be 100 in November! Lynn and Jeffrey visit daughter Alex and family in Nashville, where Alex has an exhibition of her latest art work in a gallery, and plan to visit daughter Elizabeth and her family, who are moving to Vancouver, B.C., for a year while Elizabeth opens the Parc Vancouver Hotel and restaurants. Cynthia Hubard Spangler and Charles have combined travel and family—they joined her son and family on a trip to London and Edinburgh, then visited his daughter and family in Stockholm and Oslo. Recently they were at their cabin on Lake McDonald in Montana when they were evacuated because of a nearby forest fire. Fortunately the cabins are safe. McNair Currie Maxwell and Bob spent September in Wrightsville, N.C., where they rented a house and invited friends and family. Then they attended the Highland Games in Laurinburg, N.C., an area full of Scottish descendants where different clans will show their wares. McNair has had two banners made for “McNair” and “Currie.” Katharine Blackford Collins recently completed a four-day backpacking trip in the Wind River Mountains, where she and John ventured for many years. She was encouraged by family and friends to take it up again and says the amazing light-weight gear on the market and freeze-dried food have enabled her to trim her load to 25 pounds. She trekked in Peru last fall for five days, going as high as 16,600 ft. Katharine lives mostly in Seattle with her younger son and two grandsons (10 and 7) and spends some winter months with her older son and another grandson in La Manzanilla, Jalisco, Mexico. She also has her Wyoming home, which fell into the “total darkness” zone during the recent eclipse, and she had a full house for that special experience. Too late for our last class notes, Betsy Parker McColl told of a visit from Katharine last November during which they went to Greenville to visit Penny Pamplin Reeves, who lives in an Alzheimer’s home. Betsy said, “We were not totally sure she knew who we were, but she joined us in the chorus of “Build Me a Cabin in the Corner of Glory Land” and that was enough. She is being well taken care of by a staff that loves her.” Pat Calkins Wilder says, “I don’t know about the rest of you, but I am quite stunned to find that I have reached the elevated age of 75! The number does not seem to have any connection to me at all!” Pat is still traveling and photographing on her own “in places which are becoming a little more dodgy, both the general areas and the specific back streets,” but is loving every minute of it. She has 46

completely closed down her barn “after 50 years of (happy) chores,” which is quite a big change in her life— doesn’t miss the winter chores though. Prue Gay Stuhr and Ed took their annual trip to the Williamstown, Mass., Theatre Festival—one play they saw was “Actually,” which deals with sexual consent vs. sexual abuse on college campuses and is scheduled for off-Broadway. Prue says it would be a fine play to be presented on college campuses. In August they had family birthday celebrations with two of Ed’s daughters and five grandchildren—a junior in college, senior in high school and one in 8th grade, plus 11-year old twin boys. They continue to be involved with the annual dog show for the regional Dalmatian Club and while they lost their 13-year-old Dalmatian, Cole, they still have 7-year-old Ticket. Cynthia Livingstone Gibert continues to work at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Washington, D.C. This past summer she visited a girls’ school in Kenema, Sierra Leone, which is supported in part by her church. Cynthia says there are few all-girls schools in Sierra Leone and visiting the girls in their classrooms reminded her of the benefits of an all-girls school. Jane Yardley Amos is having fun with her fledgling one-woman cottage industry: “Jane’s Animals.” Check it out on Facebook or Instagram. She’s also walking daily, doing water aerobics and learning “shape singing.” Huh? Explanation please, Jane! Jane Goodrich heard President Woo speak in Richmond and thought everyone there was favorably impressed with her and her message. Lee Kucewicz Parham sent as her contribution to these notes “No one can top your bear story!” So here goes. Heinz and I (Allie Stemmons Simon) spent the summer at our home in Snowmass Village, Col., almost 9,000 ft. up in the mountains. Keitt Matheson Wood and Frank came to visit for a few days and were sitting downstairs reading early one morning when a large black bear came strolling across our patio right outside the windows where they were! They both grabbed phones and iPads and took pictures. This bear, or one of his relatives, has apparently adopted our street because everyone has seen him/her and he has returned to us several times and torn down a number of choke-cherry trees and service berry bushes in our yard. It’s one of the joys of living in the mountains when the bears are getting ready to hibernate. Keitt and Frank went on to visit daughter Helen in Denver and son Gordon in Kansas City, where they witnessed the eclipse. Grandson Graham has just started college and his brother Kenton is a freshman in high school. My only travel

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this summer has been back and forth to Sweet Briar for board meetings while we prepare for the roll-out of curriculum revisions and tuition reset—exciting, innovative and long overdue changes at our college. And after a dogless year, we have become the proud owners of Sophie, an 8-year-old Golden Retriever who is quite possibly the sweetest dog on the planet! Life is good. Everyone please support the annual fund and make your plans to attend Reunion. Best to all - Allie

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Keenan Kelsey 101 Hawthorne Avenue Larkspur, CA 94939-1305 keenankelsey@comcast.net No one on the West Coast knows what Chautauqua, N.Y., is—but most of you will know! In August, myself and SBC roommates Susan Sudduth Hiller, Jane Nelson, and Penn Willets Fullerton joined Marcy Fisher as guests of Suzy Mosley Helm and Nelson. It was a grand reunion. Others that Suzy hosted during the summer include Makanah Dunham Morriss, and Betty Booker Morriss. One night at dinner, I asked Suzy, “Do you collect anything?” “People.” she answered. And so she does, as an active participant in Chautauqua’s embracing and cultured lake community and an active host and friend for many people. We had a wonderful time. And Nelson is still a honey! For me, it was the final trip of a very busy summer, starting with SBC reunion in May, then France (Burgundy) on a cathedral pilgrimage, July 4 in Tahoe, Hawaii with 11-year-old grandson to explore the active volcano, then Mexico for my daughter’s 40th birthday, and finally N.Y. Back in March, I realized that I’d been telling myself, “I won’t be able to go here or there; I won’t ever see this; I can’t do this.” My world had gotten very small. I needed perspective, I needed to change the narrative, so that inevitable age and body breakdowns don’t define me. All the travel helped! I am also politically active, having been one of thousands at the Women’s March in D.C. Jane Nelson and Randi Miles Long were also there. Jane writes, “Quite a momentous—and perhaps historical—day. WOW as to how many there! It was great being with Randi - and joined by Melissa and granddaughters.” (She also did a few days of Sweet Work Weeks on the SBC campus and was thoroughly pleased but thoroughly exhausted!) Jane is involved with some challenging work with the Vestry at St. Paul’s Episcopal in Richmond. She hosted a large bi-annual family reunion at her family home in Culpeper, and it was wonderful!

It made me particularly appreciative of news from Cherry Brown Peters: “I am busy, but not climbing mountains or accomplishing great things! I am, however, VERY excited for my darling niece, Heather Mathews. Heather is a film editor in L.A., and her most recent work, a documentary, won the Social Justice Film of the Year Award from the Southern Poverty Law Center, among other awards. It was shown on MTV in October, and it has been shown at numerous film festivals around the country. I’m happy here in Richmond, and I’m also really proud of Sweet Briar!” I am writing this in 106* weather, and no air conditioning—who says there is no global warming complicating our weather patterns? Many of us had travel in our news, with health and family as runner-ups: Jane Utley Strickler wrote: “Had a great summer traveling from Atlanta to Highlands, N.C., Lake Burton, and Santa Fe & Taos New Mexico. Playing tennis, going to ballet classes and working part-time for St. Philips bookstore. Daughter Kathryn is a pediatrician with 4 children in Augusta. My oldest granddaughter is a freshman at Georgia Tech. Daughter Leigh, a chemical engineer, has a good job with DHL and lives close by.” Martha Madden Swanson: I had my second knee replaced, so spent much of this spring dealing with that with lots of time at physical therapy. I recovered in time for us to take a North Cape cruise up the coast of Norway all the way to the northernmost piece of land in Europe. The scenery was amazing the whole trip with lots of fjord cruising. Last fall we spent two weeks in Italy visiting friends in the very north and then in southern Tuscany. We followed that up with a week in London with our daughter, taking in an NFL game while we were there. We’ll be back in London this year for Christmas. Otherwise, we go to the theater and sporting events and classes taught by retired Georgetown faculty. Happy to be reasonably healthy and mobile. Mary Anne Calhoun Farmer (aka “Coon”): This year went by so fast! Or, are we just getting older??! We did manage to get our whole family together (16 of us now!), at Tybee Island, Ga. It was happy chaos, and, oh, the childhood joys of time at the beach! Tom and I also managed a relaxing, long weekend in beautiful Bermuda. We were there right before America’s Cup Challenge and were able to watch some of the teams practicing their sailing. But I guess the trip we looked forward to was a river cruise up the Hudson River Valley in October: our 50th anniversary!! It has been a good year, with newest grandson Henry Fisher Breaux turning ONE. But it’s

Class Notes amazing how problems or crises pop up—as soon as you solve one, another comes along—so my quote is I.A.S.: It’s Always Something! Excited for SBC and the new president. Abby Patterson Shultis: A wonderful week in Seattle with my grandkids went by too fast. I stay busy with horse activities and lawn and garden work when I am home. I plan to go to Raleigh soon for a reception for President Woo. I did drive through the SBC campus on my way back from seeing family and friends in N.J. earlier this summer. It was wonderful, of course! Natalie Roberts Funk: We’ve been busy traveling, mostly to Williamsburg and the Tidewater area of Virginia. Last year we cruised through the Panama Canal and just returned from a cruise from Boston to Montreal via Nova Scotia. The thing I liked least about this past year is losing my mother to congestive heart failure. The good thing is we were able to spend her next-to-last week with her, watching ships off the Virginia Beach coast. She really loved that—and sending me to the Internet to find out which ship it was. We also welcomed two new great-grandnieces and are expecting another in a couple of months. Both Jeff and I are fairly active in our church and are keeping busy with family. We now have three grandchildren in college and one graduating high school next year. Kathleen Sheahan Reid: Kemble and I live in Santa Barbara, Calif., to this day. He is practicing law still, and I do the frequent development consulting for universities and private schools, especially in capital campaign planning. We travel across the world enjoying Maui with family most, and enjoy the benefit of three adult children and five grandchildren. Our Houston family just underwent the fury of Harvey. They say that they are down to a loaf of bread. We suffer for them and know that they are strong. My son, Jim, went to the Cornell School of Hotel and Restaurant Management and is a smart and fair manager in a large L.A. hotel with restaurants. We dine there a lot and for free. We nearly saw Gracie Butler on a recent visit here, but I was to have surgery on my kidneys, which were damaged, so we’ll hope for another visit. I keep up with Cindy Paugh, Di Simrell, late Shelley Turner’s family, Peg Minnick, and where are Tolly Greer, Vicki Chainski, Nancy Conkle and Sheila Mahoney? Lin Campbell stabilized me through seizures before the kidneys faltered and I am grateful. I can see all of your faces now, and feel that we were the best quality class Sweet Briar ever had, or have—Ph.D. in history just this year at age 72! Welcome new president. I

have always wished I had been able to graduate with our class. Never have I known such smart, kind, creative and spirited women! Remember that Kemble White was my boyfriend at W&L when I was 18 and 19. Second marriage is delicious for both of us, 17 years. I will make another gift to SBC. Hooray for Philip Stone. Did we ever think he could outdo even himself. Sally Kalber Fiedler: Hope everyone enjoyed Reunion as much as we did! SBC is thriving and the future looks bright! We did another cross-country drive in June for our grandson Alex’s graduation from middle school, in Portland, Ore. Drove nearly 8,000 miles and visited five National Parks as well. We feel so blessed. Hope the year ahead is a happy, healthy one for all! Kit Snydor is traveling, though not by her choice. She writes: Big change for us, moving after 43 years on the mountainside—to Lynchburg, Va. Sad, but time. Susan Sudduth Hiller writes about three F-words: Family: I was able to spend last Christmas with daughter Penn and family in New York City; then we all joined husband Chuck for skiing at Snowmass. Penn and her two were with us in Little Rock in July for almost a week of swimming, shopping, horseback riding, dining, etc. How I do love those people!!! The annual Hiller reunion took place in Gatlinburg. The results of the horrible forest fire were still evident in spots. I will have my usual Thanksgiving trip to New Hampshire to be with my brother and his family. Our precious Cardigan Corgi, Finian, is now more than 16 years old and unable to walk. However, as my grandson says, he is still a “sprighty” boy. Faith: I made a major decision to join St. Margaret’s Episcopal Church last spring; how thrilled I was that SBC roomie Jane Nelson came for my confirmation!! I lump into the “faith” topic the work that I do as a lay chaplain, hospice volunteer and grief counselor. Friends: The annual roommates reunion was at Chautauqua this year, and has already been described. A number of other friends, both here in Little Rock and in other locations, are so very important to me, as well. So … one word: blessed. Penn Willets Fullerton also emphasizes family: “It’s been a great year, full of many blessings: grandkids, reunions with friends, time to spend in my rose garden, fly fishing adventures, and good health to enjoy all of these. Chautauqua was a perfect venue for a mini-reunion, with a tantalizing array of speakers and concerts to choose from each day to enjoy together. We feel lucky it’s worked out for us 4 to meet somewhere every year! I think that my mantra might be: Seize the Day! There are so many things I want to do. Yet

I feel pulled towards being near my grandkids too, as much as possible. Do any of you experience this same “pull”? I was not prepared for the tsunami of feelings they evoke. I enjoy still keeping my hand in with teaching creative writing part-time in the local school and in my home. It is such rewarding work. Keenan and I have vowed to set up a two-person “Writer’s Support Group” this fall to keep us going with our own writing projects. Stay tuned-ha! Each time I read of the exciting things going on at Sweet Briar, I am filled with pride. And I am also more deeply aware of how important it is for us not to falter in our support of the school. With Meredith Woo taking up the helm this fall, I feel so much confidence in the future of our beloved college. Sending love to all of you and can’t wait to catch up with you in the magazine!” Eleanor Griggs Diemar echoes feelings we share about SBC: “I was very impressed with our President’s recent letter. It all sounds very positive, fingers crossed.” She continues, “We have five children. The boys (four of them) are married and have given us 11 grandchildren! Oldest is 15 and just got her driving permit! Our youngest is one and she just started walking! They are all scattered and live in Florida, Colorado, New Jersey, D.C, and St. Louis. If anyone is still in St. Louis, my family there would love to meet you! I work pretty much full-time doing a variety of things that I love at our local library. Bob has Parkinson’s, which is challenging. I keep up with and see occasionally my roommate Evie Day Butler. Gracie Butler and I live very near each other, and our husbands went to Princeton together—we keep talking about getting together. Maybe this year! Penny Steketee Gooch has somehow been omitted from our news updates, and that has been our loss. We had a gap in publication, but for whatever part I had, I am so sorry. She too has been coping with her husband’s health, as he is dying of lung and bone cancer. She writes: “I continue to support SBC. I hope Wick Nalle is ok what with Hurricane Harvey. I send my prayers to Houston.” Marcia Pace Lindstrom wrote: “It was special for me to be one of three classmates at Reunion 2017 in June. There I was, a transfer after two years, with Keenan, our class representative, and Gracie Butler Johnson, our fund agent. After being inspired with Saving Sweet Briar and attending our 50th Reunion in 2016, I was compelled to go back to celebrate Phillip Stone and meet our new president. It was wonderful to be on our gorgeous campus with perfect weather. Exciting times are ahead for our beloved college. Jeannie Jackson Exum and I love meeting

at duplicate bridge tournaments and will be on a Baltic Sea cruise with our husbands in September. We think there will be bridge on board!” Randi Miles Long: I finally got together—on Shutterfly, in two volumes with 450 pictures and lots of text—my Swedish family history, including a mountain of research on the emigration movement from Sweden. The docents at the Family History Center at the nearby Mormon Temple campus were so helpful as I made my way through so many of the parish books online. I was motivated to do this project that I have put off for years as a very good friend developed early-onset Alzheimer’s. A trip to Sweden this June with husband Herb, my sister Becki and my nephew, enabled us to meet over 75 relatives (about 45 new relatives). Other news: Jane Nelson and I went together to the Women’s March in Washington in January. Being part of an Interfaith group now has meant so much to me. And I am looking forward to catching up with Penn Mullin Fullerton after a busy summer. Harriette Horsey Sturges included a response about favorite books: “Life continues to be fascinating and challenging. Milestones include our granddaughter getting her learner’s permit and a younger sister turning 70. One sister is still in her sixties. A refugee family with 11 children our church helped in the 70’s are becoming grandparents. I am the matriarch of the family now. Sound familiar to anyone? Books I love: ‘Anything’ by Louise Penny, who writes mysteries based in Canada. Her chief character, Armand Gamache, is a great role model of how one should live. Her prose is beautiful as well. The Right Reverend Steven Charleston, a bishop in the Episcopal church, wrote a short but fascinating non-fiction, ‘The Four Vision Quests of Jesus.’ If you are interested in Native American Culture and perhaps seeing the ministry of Jesus through a different lens, this is worth reading. Enjoy.” Thanks to all who responded, blessings to each of our class. And thanks to Gracie Butler Johnson for being our class fund agent. She confesses to being the person who always says yes; so her plate is often over-full (sound familiar to anyone?) But she continues to inspire us to continue to give, for the SBC story is extraordinary and its future is bright.

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Class Notes

1967

Gail Robins O’Quin 2651 Kleinert Ave Baton Rouge, LA 70806-6823 cgrobins@ix.netcom.com What a wonderful 50th we had in June! The Class of 1967 really shined. We won the attendance award with the most alumnae attending Reunion as well as the award for the highest percentage of classmates giving. Well done, ladies (I did have to laugh—the class was presented with a large silver bowl for each of the awards. Judi Bensen Stigle and I accepted the awards. I noticed a funny expression on Judi’s face; she was concerned about where she would put the bowls as well as keep them polished! Fortunately, the awards stay at the College!) Carol Randolph Barr sent comments prior to the reunion: “What a great group ... so I looked at the picture of the Class of 1966 in the latest publication from SBC—the honor roll of donors—and I could only identify about five of them. Even got the year book out and still didn’t recognize many of them, and I knew and was friends with a bunch of them. Think we have changed that much too ...? probably ... but if I don’t look in the mirror, I am still the 23-year-old we all are, right?” Most definitely—and I partied at Reunion like I was 20—hope nobody took pictures! Susan Sumners Alloway also sent news before Reunion. She made sure she correctly used a semi-colon. Her first paper for Miss Sarah Ramage came back with 13! semi-colon errors, the same error, committed 13 times! Such fun to remember Miss Ramage’s teaching—what an impression she made on all of us freshmen! Susan is a widow, mother of Nick, grandmother of River, retired Presbyterian minister, painter and watcher of Gulf coast shorebirds. Susan also sent an update: “Night before last, Harvey, a category four hurricane, made landfall at my home, Rockport, Texas. Now a tropical storm, it has stalled over land and is dumping torrential rains. The resulting floods will almost certainly enter my home (if they have not already done so), which is six feet above sea level on the Gulf of Mexico. I expect to lose everything. The good news is that in December I am moving to Maui, and now do not face the agonizing work of deciding which Navajo pots and rugs, which antiques, which artwork to sell, store, or ship. [What a positive outlook!] I imagine this disaster has touched many of our Sweet Briar sisters. I am very blessed, with family in Austin, and with resources. Many are not so fortunate, and I grieve with and for them. P.S. I don’t know anyone in 48

Maui; if anyone out there has a contact they will share, I’d appreciate it!” Our prayers are with you, Susan. My son has been in Houston working claims for State Farm; his reports of the devastation are terrible. Dolly Caballero Garcia sent regards to everyone. She could not come to the reunion because four of her grandchildren graduated around that time. How wonderful! I’m just hopeful my last will get out of kindergarten! Sandi Hoag Ippolito “cannot believe that it is 50 years … time has flown! I was only part of the class for one year, but I still feel the tug. I was back for a moment, this past spring. I brought funds from a quilt raffle that I had held, and I accompanied a good friend, Katrina Bills, to pick up a horse to carry into retirement. I won’t be able to be there for the reunion but I’d LOVE to hear all the happenings and I’d love to hear from anyone who remembers a red head, Sandi Hoag, from our first year.” We had another one-year-er, Susan Soriero Galbreath—“I was only at Sweet Briar for a year, but my husband and I are planning to attend. I went back for our 25th, but haven’t seen the campus since then. I am really looking forward to the weekend! Sweet Briar does get into one’s blood!” Bonnie Mary Jackson had already planned to host her girl cousins on our reunion weekend so could not get away. Lynn Gullett Strazzini celebrated Beach Week XXIX rather than come to the reunion. I do believe this written report might excuse her: “Another girlfriend from my FAA work days and I (we call ourselves the Biennial Girls) take a 30-day USA road trip together every other year. We have driven as many as 9,000 miles on one 33-day trip. Our primary destinations are national parks, national historic sites, and presidential libraries, but we do stumble onto other fun stops like the Corvette Museum and ski resorts in the off season! We began doing this in 2009. This summer will be our fifth trip. We are headed from my home in Charlottesville to Devil’s Tower in SE Wyoming, then on to Missoula, Mont., to pick up another friend for

Lynn Gullett Strazzini

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our drive through the Cascades and other NW national parks. We’ll stop in Bellingham, Wash., to visit our friend and my former FAA manager before we start south into Oregon then Northern California to visit friends of my traveling companion, Genia. Next stop will be Santa Barbara to visit yet another FAA friend plus the Reagan and Nixon libraries. We’ll swing southeast into Death Valley as we begin our trip home, with a stop in Houston to visit 2 more friends before the final 3-day push to Virginia by August 24.” Wow! I’m worn out reading! Lang Lloveras came to Reunion with her daughter, Lucia Gomez Sherman, who flew to Dulles International Airport from her home in SW Florida, picked Lang up and drove them both to SBC for the class party on Friday night and the Saturday breakfast. The family are all big-time soccer players and had play-offs on Sunday; so they were unable to make the gala Saturday night. I enjoyed visiting Lang and Lucia—who, btw, is darling—Lang and I giggled about some of our train trips from New Orleans to SBC. Norvell Jones reports that Reunion was Grand—as we all know! “I had a perfect time and loved seeing everyone and am so very glad that I went and especially that Sweet Briar is still on the map. AMEN! Love and cheers to everyone!” Bill and I had a wonderful time visiting with Virginia Stanley Douglas. She so enjoyed our time together—as did we. Afterward, she went to visit her sister in Roanoke for some chilling time. It poured down rain, which was fine following the gorgeous weather we had for our weekend. Great that she got the chilling time because the family went on a Scotland family trip with National Geographic in mid-June. “We had so much fun … canoeing Loch Tay, kayaking with seals in the Sea of Arisaig, and hiking Glen Nevis. We all rode the Harry Potter Train with kids in costume! Our group was such fun and we have all made great new friends. One family from Dallas is joining us for Thanksgiving in Sacramento. Truly a blessed summer!” Judi Stigle fills us in on some

of the reunion particulars: “We had a wonderful reunion and surely missed those that could not attend. There were 54 of us ’67ers there plus 10 family members, special friends and husbands. What a turnout!! We even won an award for largest attendance for the 50th ever and were the biggest % of givers to the college fund. Gail and I were very proud to accept these awards for the class (and not have to store and polish them). Reunion started Friday night with a Memorial Service to honor our former classmates to be followed with a weekend full of wonderful meals, much chatting and catching up and very interesting alumnae colleges on campus. Bonnie Blew Pierie even went to the barn to enjoy rides. We cheered her on! My dear friend Ross was totally enchanted by the campus and the special ladies of the class. We thank Maria Wiglesworth Hemmings and Janie Willingham McNabb and Toots Dalton for their pictures to come and beautiful scrapbook. We were off for a two-week cruise of the Rhine and then home to await for the ‘snowbirds’ return to Florida. Hugs to all!!” We all hope you had minimal damage from Irma! Peggy Patterson Pittman was “so sorry to miss the 50th, but had a mini-Reunion in San Francisco with Judith Haskell McCarthy and Anne Kern Uher, with Margaret Williams Hurt on the phone. We had five days of sheer fun ... sightseeing, eating, laughing, and talking, talking, talking (can you imagine!). I am now settled in the East Bay, ‘retired’ as an Episcopal priest after 28 years.” Jane Stephenson Wilson reports, “The reunion was fabulous. It was wonderful to see so many classmates. All looked beautiful, and so did the campus.” I’ll have to say we do look pretty good for 72-year-olds! Maria Wiglesworth Hemmings was a mainstay during the reunion, always ready to take on another task! She is “finally taking a drawing class at the Silvermine art guild and loves it!! And after 2.5 years of just working per diem, I just may be adjusting to the ‘R’ word. Time for more classes! Meanwhile I continue to work per diem and

Virginia Stanley Douglas and family

Anne Kern Uher and Judith Haskell McCarthy (front), Peggy Patterson Pittman (back)

Class Notes

Peggy Handly Fitzgerald and Dick, and Martha Meehan Elgar and Tom we are traveling while we can still walk ... and hike and ski ...” Way to go, girl! Eleanor Marie Crossley has exciting news: “David Rees (a good Welshman) and I are getting married Sept. 23 in our local Methodist Church, and all our children, grandchildren, and God willing, his sisters from the U.K. will be here. It will be such fun all being together. My last wedding, to my late husband, was decades ago; so I feel lucky that at this age, I will still be able to make my vows standing up. We are planning a honeymoon trip to India in the month of February. Will try to send wedding pictures later.” Blessings to you and David! Peggy Handly Fitzgerald and Dick joined Martha Meehan Elgar and Tom in Marietta, Ga., to celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary June 24, 2017. Congratulations! Barbara Tillman Kelley also thinks “we had a wonderful reunion - I wish every member of our class could have been there. I think we all looked great - after all, 70 is the new 50! No news really. We have been traveling a lot as always and I continue to enjoy my volunteer work. Just waiting for the awful summer weather to go away so I can get back outside to my garden.” Victoria J. Baker: “Lee and I had a wonderful cruise to Hawaii last spring. But even more enjoyable was reconnecting with old friends at our 50th SBC reunion and seeing how our alma mater is flourishing with new energy and ideas. It was a joy to reminisce with Ginny Carpenter (whose mom had put me up in N.Y. before my

Lynn Lyle and Victoria Baker

departure for 21 years in Holland in ’67), Lang Lloveras (who came to my wedding in Holland in ’67, and whom I had not seen since then), and Lynn Lyle, with whom I have fond spring break memories. It’s still a blessing to be able to travel and explore the world, teach an occasional anthropology course, ballroom dance, and enjoy retirement with my dance partner / life partner Lee. Will be lecturing on a cruise to Cuba at the end of September if the hurricane season allows.” Lynn Lyle agrees that our reunion was special. “Yes, the 50th was a blast! It started early for me when Ginny Carpenter Delgado flew from Madrid to Raleigh-Durham airport. We had a wonderful visit for several days before heading up to the reunion. We were roommates senior year and hadn’t seen each other since 1970, when I visited her and Rafael and Kabu in Madrid. We had a lot to catch up on. At the reunion it was great to spend some time with dear friends Glory McRae Bowen, Vicky Baker and Lee, Maria Wiglesworth Hemmings, and Stephanie Ewalt Coleman and Ron, and others. This is been a very good year for Jamie and me. We continue to split our time between his home near the St. Lawrence River in upstate New York and my home in Raleigh. Luckily, we have the same perspective on current affairs. After the election we were energized to resist, especially in the area of the environment. We belong to a Sunday school class called Care of Creation, and I joined an Indivisible group. The most fun has been organizing a small, informal interfaith lobbying group that met with environmental staff of both our U.S. senators to push for legislation that would mitigate climate change. Sorry to go on about all this, but it has become my life’s passion. It will be exciting to watch SBC under Woo’s promising leadership. I’m hoping to see everyone back at our 55th and toasting the College’s great success.” Bonnie Blew Pierie claims, “It seems like we were just together, so I expect everyone thinks their news is known. But for Tim and me, it has been a summer of helping my brother and his wife after he had a stroke

Lang Lloveras and Victoria Baker

during heart bypass surgery—all when they were in the midst of downsizing from 40 years of living in their large home near Boston. Otherwise, our oldest granddaughter is heading off to college, at Oregon State U, as far away as thinkable because she wants something very different. Our 2nd granddaughter is turning 16 tomorrow, thus starting on the road to driving herself. That will be good since without the oldest helping out, their mother (our daughter Elizabeth) will be going crazy due to the fact that there are also twin 13-year-old granddaughters bring up the rear in the family. I am getting in a little riding as Elizabeth has a horse, which is especially fun because we spend time “in the barn” together around the riding times. We’ll be here in Massachusetts getting our bearings before heading south in late October for our Venice, Fla., residence. We are looking forward to seeing Judy Bensen Stigle down there, as she has been busy traveling overseas rather than making her usual visit to her sister in Nantucket. Hope you are doing well and not affected by this storm season! Our Venice area got some flooding, but I believe our home is ok. Harvey was one bad dude, and our hearts go out to all the people coping with the aftermath [of Harvey and Irma].” Priscilla Blackstock Kurz “was thrilled to see so many classmates at our 50th Reunion! So wonderful to hear President Woo speak on two occasions and see the great work of the Alumnae Alliance. In August Rick and I cruised on the Danube, then spent extra time in Budapest and Prague. We came back through Boston, went to Jacob’s Pillow and visited relatives before returning to St. Louis and our two terrific grandsons.” Carroll Randolph Barr “thoroughly enjoyed our 50th Reunion and agrees that it just couldn’t be that we are in our seventies and that it has been 50 years since we graduated from SBC. We were most impressed with our new president, Dr. Meredith Woo, but sad to see President Stone depart. I feel sure that he will remain near and dear to SBC. We need to continue to support our college and make sure that we do our part to help sustain this wonderful institution. Personally, we spent the summer in Michigan and loved being in the climate of cool nights and warm days—not the hot and humid summer that Virginia offered. The only change in our lives is that Angus and Erin adopted a precious Beagle?? puppy, and we now have a grandpuppy, who is precious.” Congratulations! Victoria S. Jones writes, “I am so glad I attended our reunion with my wonderful classmates Judy Powell Martin and roommate Jane Stephenson Wilson. It was cathartic

to visit the alma mater for the first time in 50 years and to find an instant connection even to classmates I had never known well. Also to revive and embrace the awkward, embryonic me that walked those beautiful surroundings all that time ago, slogging slowly toward adulthood. The fire and focus of the presenters at the reunion renewed my interest in Sweet Briar, as I am sure it did for many others (hence this first-ever contribution to Class Notes!). Hard on the heels of the reunion came a rare visit from my conservationist son, Daniel, flying in from his home in Cambodia to see friends and family in New York and Shelter Island. My husband, George, and I spent the rest of the summer helping him with the paperwork to obtain non-profit status for his organization, Fauna in Focus—very exciting for us all. Since we are both retired, we have the luxury

Jacquelin Stephenson Bennett and her family on their sailboat

of being masters of our own time, with the exception of that awful gym!” Stephanie Ewalt Coleman hopes everyone avoided any fallout from Harvey! “Ron & I are going to hunker down soon with supplies & oil lamps while awaiting Irma & perhaps a tropical storm to follow! Ron so enjoyed meeting our classmates! Now he understands our deep feeling for SBC!!!” It does seem as though every summer that I do Notes, we have a hurricane— coincidence? Marion MacRae updates us on her life since SBC: George Washington Law School; Harvard Business School, Program for Management Development (1979); Bank of American Trust Dept., San Francisco; Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft, Washington, D.C. Retirement: Tennis three to four times a week, Bible Class, substitute teacher (I was not a success), volunteer for Alexandria History Museum, board member of Alexandria History Museum, volunteer for Alexandria Antique Show, gardening—I have a miniature par terre in my townhouse backyard, grass

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Class Notes paths and 6 different perennials.Travel to Turkey, Africa, Morocco, Seychelle Islands and Egypt next spring! Here’s a busy retiree! Katharine C. Barnhardt Chase says, “Seeing so many classmates in June at our 50th really made my summer! I recognized how being together was a part of healing for me from the recent past events. Our energy and creativity are still so apparent! Our beloved college is now poised for the 21st century and, indeed, has taken off under new leadership with exciting announcements about innovations in the curricula and academic year! August and September have been full with a trip to the Scottish Highlands and to Iona—thin places, for sure. Our only grandchild is a high school senior in Lynchburg, Va. After two summer experiences with Camp Up with People, he has been accepted in the cast for Up With People, starting July 2018, to dance, sing, and lift up our common human connections, no matter the cultures or places. It is my honor and joy to have been asked to participate as chaplain for various parts of the Founders’ Day and Inauguration festivities. Please return soon to SBC—don’t wait for the 55th!” Page Munroe Renger says, “The reunion was just fabulous and I loved seeing some classmates I have not seen since 1967—i.e., Jane Stephenson, to name one. We had fun reminiscing about Latin classes. The campus looked great and I am so impressed with our new president. I feel we are in good hands at the moment. Lindsay Smith Newsom and I always enjoy our time together during reunion time. We stay in touch and do get together usually at least once a year. And then there’s my fun visit with Judi Stigle whom I hardly even knew during my 4 years at SBC!!! As for my days after the reunion, I spent 3 weeks at the beach over the week of the 4th of July and another 2 weeks ending on Labor Day. It was simply glorious and now I am sweating this darn lady (or shall I call her a bitch)—Irma!!! Please keep your fingers crossed a miracle will happen and she’ll disappear from the face of this earth!!!! (Not to be!) Did watch the eclipse in the ocean off the coast of Georgetown, S.C., which was awesome. Although it did not get totally dark, it looked like dusk and the lighthouse light and buoy lights all came on. The fish started swimming backwards and . . . well, maybe I’m fudging on that statement!” Here’s Linda Fite’s typical report: “There’s nothing much to report since the reunion—that’s the situation. I mean, like, I got a replacement cat for the one that got run over when I was in Paris, but that’s not really ‘news’ that my dear classmates give a hoot about, 50

right? The cat’s name is GARY, by the way—named by my Brooklyn grandsons, who found the cat on the street. I do love that name. After Reunion, I flew down to Memphis to visit my sister; then ALL of my sisters and I drove over to Heber Springs, Ark., to spend a few days on that big lake/reservoir. We were joined by two sister-husbands, plus three cousins—one from Baton Rouge, one from Shreveport, the third from some little town in Mississippi with a most unusual (probably Native American in origin) name that I can’t remember. Such a good time. Then there was the annual family week in Bethany Beach, Del., where we now have to rent two houses to contain all the grandchildren (again, joined by a couple of my sisters). I planned a trip to London Oct. 7-14, along with Pam Ford Kelley and Joanne Tumolo Bario ’68 (graduated from GW) and partner, plus the Memphis sis—but Pam had to bag it, then, like four days ago, Joanne and her semi-husband had to cancel because of a health crisis and a family tragedy. SO ... my sister and I have been asking EVERYBODY we know (and care to spend time with) if they wanna join us in London that week. Because we now have all sorts of extra space in the big (sleeps 8) house we rented. Want to go??? Ah, it’ll be fine, right? I’ll report on THAT trip in our next class notes!” Toni Naren Gates has excitement in her family! “A few days ago my daughter delivered huge news! She’s 42 years old, on her second marriage, her husband is 60, her only child, a son, is 12, and she announced she is pregnant! So that’s my news! It’s a game changer. We will all excitedly await March 5, 2018, when a new little life will enrich our entire families on both sides.” Just in time for our spring news! O’Quin’s news: Bill and I got back from the reunion and immediately took off for a 3-week trip to the Swedish Fjords—fabulous! I was just about traveled out, but we had to go on the family trip to Galveston Beach (that might have been our swan song after Mr. Harvey paid Texas a visit!). We’ve adopted a cat—to which I’m highly allergic—but the dog and cat adore each other and both insist on sleeping in the bed with us. My ex-husband, John, died in August; his death has been hard on the children—no matter how old, you’re just not ready for these events. Everyone is doing fine now, I hope. Bill and I made it to Cashiers, N.C., for the eclipse and although it was cloudy, we did experience total darkness for a couple of minutes (maybe the fish swam backwards, but it was too dark to tell)! We had quite a celebration on the Sept. 6. Bill and I do a lot of work with Volunteers of America; the

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agency dedicated our local homeless shelter to David Jackson O’Quin, Bill’s son who died in prison from not getting proper treatment for his schizophrenia. (It just happened that the 6th would have been his 46th birthday—there are no such things as coincidences!) We’re hoping to raise awareness of the needs of those with mental illness, drug and alcohol problems. Currently there is no local facility to house these individuals; we’re doing our best to change that situation. If anyone is in the Baton Rouge or New Orleans area, please let us know. We love company and have car, will travel! Thanks to everyone for such great support for SBC. It was exciting being on campus and knowing that our class did our share to keep our alma mater open!

1968

Anne Kinsey Dinan 8 Peter Cooper Rd Apt 11-F New York, NY 10010-6711 akdinan@rcn.com As always, many thanks to everyone who submitted news and photos. After you all read, enjoy, remember, and wax nostalgic about your Sweet Briar years, please contact your roommates and your best buddies and make plans to attend our 50th next June! Betsy Wolfe: I acted as interim director and acting chief of the University of California San Francisco Division of Infant, Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at San Francisco General Hospital until September 2015 (following the unanticipated death of a colleague and friend who held that position) and retired from my position as director of clinical training there Jan. 1, 2017. I loved working there and was also fatigued and therefore relieved when our national search found an excellent new division director, and now there is a search to fill my training director position. My husband, Ed, is struggling with Alzheimer’s disease, so that is where my responsibilities are focused now. Having a visit with Martha Bennett Pritchett Conner was a real treat, as we haven’t seen or communicated with each other for years. Amy Thompson McCandless: I retired as graduate dean and professor of history at the College of Charleston in July 2016 and have been enjoying the extra time to travel and work on history projects. Steve and I have visited family and friends and attended conferences in Tennessee, Florida, Mississippi, Arkansas, California and Oklahoma and took a wonderful vacation to Alaska in July. Son Colin lives and works in Charleston, and son Alastair in South Lake Tahoe. Brenda Darden Kincaid: I have been retired for five years, and I have enjoyed the chance to travel with hus-

band Doug. The big news with us this year is that we moved to Lynchburg at the end of May to be near our daughter and her family. We have eight grandchildren that range in age from 5 to 21. On July 2 we celebrated our 50th anniversary! We had a belated celebration on the Outer Banks of North Carolina with our children and grandchildren. We have vacationed there for over 50 years. Hope to see many classmates at the 50th Reunion next June! Thank you to Nancy, Frances, Anne, and Ann for your work in planning this event! Suzanne Torgan Weston: Our big news involves our grandson, Reid, who was married last December to a lovely young lady who is a perfect match. Reid then left in August, on his 30th birthday, for Budapest, Hungary, for a competitive year-long immersion program in Hungarian. Danielle plans to join him in January. We are so proud of him. Kate Buster: I obviously am still hiking at 71 and loving it. I lived in Silverton, Colo., in the San Juan mountains for the month of July. I moved to Snowmass, Colo., near Aspen, for three weeks in August, doing some hiking, guiding and volunteering for the White River National Forest. I love to talk to visitors at the famous Maroon Bells, answering questions and writing reports. Following my birding interests, I traveled to Costa Rica this past February and hope to go to Ecuador in late October. Tropical birding has me hooked. I also hope to spend a month or two in Green Valley, Ariz., again this winter, where birding and hiking can be done easily year-round. I base out of Grand Junction, Colo., where I love to hike in the Colorado National Monument and visit nearby Moab, Utah. Barbara Baur Dunlap: I have loved visiting SBC the past two Junes and showing some grandchildren our beautiful campus. We have 13 grandkids; so taking them on trips and showing them new places keeps us busy. During the school year, I co-facilitate a group of about 40 friends in a weekly Bible study. Charlie and I just celebrated our 51st wedding anniversary and look forward to seeing many of you next year at our reunion. It was such a blessing to reconnect with Sally Paradise, my freshman roommate, on the top floor of Randolph, but I missed out on Vicky Pitts, Ashley Jones, Marilyn Givens, Susie Grinberg, other top-floor Randolph buddies, when I did some phoning for SBC. I am also still able to care for my mom in her 96th year in St. Louis on a monthly basis. Sending along a picture of our tribe which numbers 24! Donna Tankersley, Susie Somerville—where are you? Love to all in our marvelous class! Sophie MacKenzie Belouet: Life is good! We spend our time between

Class Notes

1968

Brenda Darden Kincaid and husband Doug visiting New York City

Blair Walker Lawrence’s husband, Bob, with their granddaughters, “Birdie” and Josie

Anne Kinsey Dinan, Nancy Hickox Wright, Frances Kirven Morse, Ann Biggs Jackson kicking up their heels at Reunion 2017! Just wait til next year . . .

Pembroke Herbert Kyle and Sally Lawrence Watkins, forever friends!

Nancy Hickox Wright and Libby Harvey Fitzgerald exploring St. Simon’s Island, Georgia, with the mermaids—May 2017

Kate Buster in the Ice Lakes Basin, San Juan Mountains, Colo., July 2017

Barbara Baur Dunlap and Charlie with their five children, spouses and 12 of 13 grandchildren Amy Thompson McCandless and Steve Wilson

Frances Kirven Morse and Pembroke Herbert Kyle modeling Degas Hats in San Francisco—great look!

Bonnie Pitman with granddaughter Frannie

Frances Kirven Morse on Monument Hill, June 2017

Anne Kinsey Dinan still shamelessly advertising the new SBC book with Frances Kirven Morse!

Ann Biggs Jackson, Frances Kirven Morse, and Nancy Hickox Wright at Reunion 2017! SWEET BRIAR MAGAZINE | SBC.EDU

Class Notes our apartment in Sceaux, near Paris, our house in Cancale on the northern coast of Brittany, and our apartment in Portsmouth, Va. We hosted Hallie Darby Smith ’67 and family in June and are looking forward to hosting Adaline Allen Shinkle and Brad. I just missed seeing Penny Oliver Hawkins. Please let me know if you come to France! See you at Reunion! Frances Kirven Morse: The past several months, I have been electronically tethered to Anne Kinsey Dinan, writing our wonderful book! Thanks for your support. Traveled with John to Portland, Ore., for the Chamber Music Northwest Summer Festival, which featured music by women composers. Had a fun 24 hours with Pembroke Herbert Kyle and Bill (in California, visiting their granddaughter Nell), exploring the Golden Gate Bridge and the Presidio in San Francisco. We traveled back East for a grand two weeks with our granddaughters (Ella, 13, and Xylia, 10), starting in Boston with some fun U.S. history and then up to Vermont for a grandparent-grandchild Road Scholar summer theater workshop. Expect to see our resulting film “Vermont Saga” at Sundance! Conover Hunt: After a career of writing nonfiction—with footnotes—I have taken the plunge with a historical mystery novel called “The Constitution Murders.” Both major heroines are strong, brainy, rich Sweet Briar graduates! Look for it in soft cover from Amazon in October, and on Kindle. See you at the Reunion! Suzanne Little: Thankful to have made it through Harvey high and dry, but heartbreaking to see the devastation. Libby Harvey Fitzgerald: Prayers that the coastal islands and mermaids survive the storms. And, yes, planning to be at SBC for our 50th next year .... Class of ’68 needs to make lots of noise! Nancy Hickox Wright: Have survived Irma, even though I sheltered with a Hollins grad in Atlanta! Frances Kirven Morse and I attended President Woo’s inauguration. Meredith Woo is just amazing! Blair Walker Lawrence: I’m unbelieving but so excited about our 50th reunion, coming up next June, and keeping my fingers crossed that we will have great attendance. Our being there is especially sweet because of the “late unpleasantness!” I don’t have any exciting news to share, but life is good. Bob and I have two grown sons and two granddaughters almost 5 and 7, who live in Annapolis. Bob has two more years before he will have practiced law 50 years, at which time he promises to retire. Please come next June! Pembroke Herbert Kyle: We had 52

so much fun when Sally Lawrence Watkins’ husband, Jim, daughter Emily, and son-in-law Kirk visited us on Nantucket the week after Labor Day! Anne Kinsey Dinan: Now that Bonnie Pitman has two darling grandchildren in Manhattan, I get to spend museum and lunch and/or children and lunch days with her every few months. This has been so much fun over the past couple of years and a wonderful reminder of the lifelong friendships developed at SBC! As you have surely read by now, Frances Kirven Morse and I spent most of January through June and then some, writing, rewriting, illustrating, rewriting, and finally publishing (hurray!) our new book: “The Little College That Could: The Story of Saving Sweet Briar.” We also had an absolutely wonderful time at Reunion 2017 with Nancy Hickox Wright and Ann Biggs Jackson. All I can say to all of you is come on down, up, or over—Reunion 2018 is ours! Can’t wait to see you all! And again, please note that Frances Kirven Morse, Nancy Hickox Wright, and I are still working to find contact information for many “missing” classmates. To that end, I repeat my request that anyone in the Class of 1968 who receives this Alumnae Magazine but did not receive an email from me requesting news, please email or write to me with your email and/or mailing address at: akdinan@rcn.com or Anne Kinsey Dinan, 8 Peter Cooper Road, Apt. 11F, New York, NY 10010.

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Nancy Crawford Bent 96 E. Taylor Hill Road Montague Center, MA 01351 ascb614@comcast.net As some of you may notice, Peter and I have finally, after a year of looking in three counties, moved into an 18th century house a few towns north of Amherst, Mass. I bet all of you have your own news to report. So please do for the next Alumnae Magazine, so we can catch up with each other well before our 50th reunion in 2019.

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Kristin Herzog 550 Teryl Road #7 Naples, FL 34112 kherzogart@hotmail.com Hi, Everyone! Wow! Before we get started, there is something important for you to check out. I’ve been as excited as everyone to welcome President Meredith Woo, but a few things had gone over my head until last night, when I stumbled upon a short article in the Lynchburg News and Advance. You need to read

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this, if you haven’t! They describe her as a “rock star,” adding, “And the fact that someone of Woo’s stature in global academic circles agreed to take on the job speaks just as loudly about the future of Sweet Briar.” Double wow! Now, for us, Class of ’70. Well Candace Buker Chang summed it up best with, “It’s been quite an eventful spring/summer ...” She finished with “for me.” But after reading all our notes, I think most of us would sign on to “for all of us.” If you are reading this in the magazine, then at least we haven’t been blown up yet. So that is good. However, by the time you get your mail, we may be annexed by Russia. Though perhaps we already are, and there is just enough fake news out there that we don’t know it? In any event, change is everywhere, and I have to say it’s getting a bit daunting, though probably all older people start to feel this way. I’m just kind of new at being old; so I don’t know for sure. But I digress. Back to Candace: “It’s been quite an eventful spring/summer for me—starting in May, when, within the space of three weeks, I sold my house, got diagnosed with metastatic breast cancer, totaled my car, and moved. I’ve had better months. The house selling and moving was a good thing. I didn’t move far, pretty much around the corner to the apartment in my daughter’s two-family house. My grandchildren (ages 2 and 4) now visit daily, bringing much joy to my life, and giving their parents a little welcome respite. Everybody wins! My other two grandchildren (3 and 7) live in the Virgin Islands—so visiting family and going to the beach are just always good. I am looking forward to retiring at the end of December. Meanwhile, it is a challenge to keep working while pursuing a pretty aggressive course of treatment. On the plus side, all this got me an extra visit from old roommate Jo Shaw Lawson, who flew up from Memphis. I also see Laura Sickman Baksa, who lives on Cape Cod. Her daughter is currently in China doing legal work; so now Laura stays with me when she comes to Boston, and I’ll see her in October when I go to the Cape.” Candace also has surgery scheduled for October, so please send her all your healing thoughts. And speaking of grandchildren, Barbara Offutt Mathieson hit the jackpot this year with twins. She visited the D.C. Metro area in July to see Jane Gott, who sent us a wonderful photo of Barbara and the little ones. Jane writes, “Ron and I have been remodeling all summer to make our house safer for aging in place. We spent March on Kauai and plan to go back next March to celebrate my 70th birthday. I am involved as usual in watercolor painting

with the Potomac Valley Watercolorists. Ron was diagnosed with early Parkinson’s disease in April. He is responding well to physical therapy and medication. Life is good.” Another new grandchild, Charlie, arrived for Kim Mitchell Bethea. She writes they have also been enjoying their new golfing hobby in the Wisconsin summer. “In the fall, we are headed to the village of Pennecamp, one of The Villages, Fla. And, yes, we did it again; we adopted Bear, a chocolate lab puppy, who is buddy to our full-grown lab, Izze. I am still teaching information technology students online part-time and volunteering with Izze (therapy dog trained) in assisted living/memory support homes. Hope to see some of you on our trek south from Wisconsin to the Villages. Cheers!” “It’s pretty special to be with these little ones whenever I can,” Betsy Anderson reports of her two grandkids. “I am still in Charlotte, but travel to Atlanta and New York to see my children and grandchildren. I am happy that Sweet Briar is thriving. The new president will visit Charlotte in September so I look forward to meeting her.” Cruising on Facebook, I found Heather Tully Click also enjoying her kids and grands while watching a sunset on Cuttyhunk Island, Mass. “Had a very special week on this unique and lovely island, accessible only by passenger ferry or private boat.” Meanwhile, Bonnie Palmer McCloskey has been making up for those of us who forgot to reproduce with a whopping seven grandchildren. “I am very involved as a grandmother. It’s a career, and we love it!” She and Tom have two sons and two daughters, ages 42 to 33. “We base out of San Francisco, Belvedere specifically, and Aspen (full-time for 35 years) and Cabo (the private Fazio golf club Querencia). Three of our children and their families live in San Francisco, and one daughter’s family is in Aspen. Tom loves working, and I am very active on the Aspen Institute board. I still ride our horses in the mountains and play golf. All is well with us.” Bonnie continues, “Right now, Tom and I are on an Alaska cruise ship. Our 46th anniversary is next Monday, and we have decided to celebrate it all the time from now on. Why not! Grateful we are all healthy and love life. Look forward to hearing from any other Sweet Briar classmates. Especially if any of you frequent San Francisco and Cabo, we would love to know.” Sally Adamson Taylor says they are “bouncing between San Francisco and Powhatan, Va., trying to save an old family property there. Got a good chunk of time in Paris this spring. I see Christy Love and Katie McCardell Webb and May Humphreys Fox.

Class Notes Webb McCardell, Frances Gravely, Connie Haskell, Lorie Harris Amass, Fran Griffith Laserson, and Pat Sweeney Koufman, as they all gathered in Barbados in May for a weeklong celebration of Mary Jane Hipp Brock’s milestone birthday! Wallis says, “Eight of us have been carpe dieming together since our 50th year! This trip, we swam in the sea, did downward dog, shopped, walked, talked, and giggled a lot, all while living in style in a beautiful villa on the Caribbean. Thank you, MJ, for bringing our dear SBC friends together for such a memorable reunion and for our continued 50 years of friendship!” But wait! Wallis also seems to be working undercover. Get this: I spotted her on Facebook, despite the pink wig!! disguise in the Fenway Park pit, at a Lady Gaga concert. Don’t tell anyone. And last, but not least, some more of our classmates have this year seemingly found themselves in a place just right. After having retired and moved to the Northern Neck of Virginia last fall, Betty Glass Smith and Bill are gradually completing renovations and getting settled in: “Love retired life and the beautiful location we now live in. Since this is where Bill is from, there are lots of family and local friends close by to catch up with and enjoy. Hope to do some exploring by boat around the Chesapeake Bay and Tidewater in the near future.” Betty Rau Santandrea and Bob are having a glorious time in Sante Fe, frequenting the Sante Fe Opera and just settling into their new digs. “In July, monsoons, which provide a good part of the 10 inches of rain we get each year, arrived in New Mexico. We’ve watched storm clouds pass by, leaving

1970

So grateful to be alive and kicking!” While others have been buzzing around, Mary Kelley, ever cheerful, has had to stay put after a foot accident. But she is recovering well and gingerly getting back in the action as travel to see friends in Tennessee beckons. Also healing, Deb Jones says, “No great trips or visits with SBCers. Shoulder surgery in January kept me out of trouble, and then we got stuck in an elevator and the pulling on both arms to get out of it was a set-back for recovery. OSHER Lifelong Learning classes start next week; so there go the carefree days of summer.” And Ann Gateley, of course, is still on her bike. “I’m traveling a bunch with my sweetie. Cycled in Croatia, Germany and Holland. This summer was mainly three weeks at Sweet Briar Work Weeks, followed by a cycling and hiking trip to Colorado. All is well.” She and Kate Schlech are regulars at Sweet Work Weeks, which is a code name SBC gives to the most fun summer campus party ever, in an effort to keep the crowds down. It’s a great way to help the College, meet other classes and just hang out every night at impromptu wine downs. Jonna Creaser Clarkson, a little north of SBC in Shipman, has found joy, too, in another way of helping, with her mission work. “We are reminded of what is truly important in life by the gracious people of our youth mission in El Salvador. Dubi, our mission representative in [El Salvador] and her daughter, Abi, stayed with us in May. They experienced many ‘firsts’: first travel anywhere, first flight, first sight of Virginia beauty in spring, homes with more than one room, indoor water, flush toilets, showers, indoor kitchen, electric stove. Relationships are what is most important to them.” And back at SBC, Frances Schafer, Debrah Denemark, Sandy Hamilton Bentley, with her husband, Bob, represented the Class of 1970 at Reunion in June. Frances says, “Debrah and I thought the campus looked much better than it had for our 45th reunion in 2015. We all are hopeful that Meredith Woo will be successful in recruiting students. “I had a meeting in Las Vegas in June, so my son, William, joined me from Bozeman, Mont., and we visited the north rim of the Grand Canyon, Bryce Canyon and Zion. I just returned from a wonderful visit with Sandy and Bob in their lovely home, near Chapel Hill, N.C. In August, I headed west, again with William, to visit North and South Dakota, my last two states, and to see the total eclipse.” Wallis Wickham Raemer was also on the move, along with Jessica Holzer, May Humphries Fox, Katie

Having too much fun in Barbados. Front row, from left: Katie McCardell Webb, May H. Fox, and Connie Haskell. Standing: Jane Trombley (not SBC), Jessica Holzer, Jeffrey Zeller (not SBC), Pat S. Kaufman, Wallis W. Raemer, Lorie H. Amass, Mary Jane H. Brock, Fran G. Laserson, and Frances Gravely

Ann Gateley, left, and Ann Tedards at Sweet Work Weeks this summer

Barbara Offutt Mathieson with twin grands

Class of ’70 at Sweet Work Weeks. Standing, from left: Barbara Hastings, Jonna Creaser Clarkson, Ann Gateley, Debbie Ohler Bowman and Molly Woltz. Sitting, from left: Jane Rush Davenport and Kate Schlech

Katie McCardell Webb, left, and Ann Gateley on campus, pretending there are no cases of wine hidden under that mulch

Jane Gott, left, and Barbara Offutt Mathieson in Washington, D.C. SWEET BRIAR MAGAZINE | SBC.EDU

Class Notes but a few drops at a time. Today, however, it hit with full force. A lot of people collect runoff from their roofs with rain barrels—ours (of course) are being delivered tomorrow.” Fortunately, Betty remembered that they had some five-gallon buckets in the garage. “We donned our foul-weather sailing gear and ran bucket brigades to thirsty trees for a couple of hours until we had enough. Local tomatoes from heirloom to Cherokee have come in and are at the local farmers’ market. A wonderful day in Santa Fe ended with tomatoes bread, cheese, and margaritas on the portal.” And me? I’m stumbling crazily through the wildest, most event-filled, 10-month total life makeover ever. If you have not yet downsized, just a word of advice: Take anyone who mentions that word and have them shot. My Virginia house sold in three days, and all my stuff was suddenly in storage. Luckily, I managed to grab the cats from the movers’ clutches before they shut the van door. I raced down to Naples, Fla., to find a home there, and yikes! Have ended up with new construction. So, the girls and I are cooling our heels and paws in a lovely rented condo, which, thanks to monsoons, has become waterfront property, bringing a parade of gorgeous herons and egrets, flocks of ibis, and fat ducks to our window every day. KoKo and I are entranced. Meanwhile, I got a spiffy new minivan, so I can paint big, and have found a gallery. But, oh, wait! This is embarrassing. I have no art. It’s all in storage. Ditto for clothes, desk, cat food, files, shoes, mouthwash and paints—which has kept me busy buying lots of stuff I already own. In case you missed it: Downsizing does NOT work. My fourth day here, I was heading somewhere, when my GPS lady up and croaked on the spot, leaving me totally stranded, with no idea how to get home. Desperately trying to buy a map, I was met by clerks in 13 stores who stared blankly. Maaaz? ... Mats? Maks? In Target, they sent me to the greeting cards. I didn’t think to look in a museum. Just felt very old. I’ll move into my new home in mid-September, where I can unpack at my leisure. Or not. Virginia Center for the Creative Arts just awarded me another art residency for the month of October. So, by the time you read this, I’ll be back on campus. Unless we get blown up. In parting, Jonna sends us all a much-needed “Blessings!” Bring on 2018.

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Mary Frances Oakey Aiken jmaiken4@me. com Anne Milbank Mell anne.mell@yahoo.com Beverly Van Zandt beverlyvz@gmail.com Marilyn Boyd Silar is happily retired and has been loving living in Naples, Fla., for the past four years. Lendon Gray is loving both traveling throughout the U.S. and giving dressage clinics for younger riders. She has found another goal, which is to fix up her home in Bedford, N.Y., which has proved to be challenging since she is never at home! Amanda Megargee Sutton’s adopted Corgi, Henry, is a wonderful pup! Amanda has taken yoga with Anne Wiglesworth’s sister and is involved at church—even went on a mission trip to Ariz. with Peter Daniel’s son. Small world! Her life has certainly changed since she came North! Amanda did a Sweet Work Week of service last summer and loved every minute of it, especially spending time with the other women and men who love our college. Amanda urges everyone to try to come if you haven’t. We need to work hard for our 50th; it will be here much sooner than we think! Anne Milbank Mell has loved her first year of retirement, especially since it’s given her time to enjoy a few new grandchildren. The entire family spent a week in N.H. in August, enjoying beautiful weather and great fun! As these notes go to print, she is packing her bag for a two-week trip to Scotland. Wendy Norton Brown’s passion, which is to spend time with her three precious grandchildren, has worked out well! Since Mother’s Day her 6-year-old grandson, two granddaughters (2 and 4) and their parents have been living with Wendy and Lee while their house is getting new floors. Wendy loved going back to Sweet Briar for our 45th and is encouraging classmates to put the 50th on their calendars now! Michela English retired from her full-time position heading Fight For Children at the end of last year but is still busy with a number of nonprofit and corporate boards. She splits her time between D.C. and Gwynn’s Island, Va., on the Chesapeake Bay. She welcomed her first grandchild this summer in Dallas to daughter Eleanore and son-in-law Breck. They all visited in Va. this summer, and Martha Holland ’72 and Charlene Sturbitts ’72 were there as honorary “aunts.” Son Will is a chef in Brisbane, Australia—very far away but a fun place to visit. Barbie Gracey Backer and husband Ron had a wonderful trip to Iceland this summer and have recently

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returned from Kanuga—an Episcopal Conference Center in Hendersonville, N.C. It was a fun reunion of cousins, all her children and their spouses, and grandson Jack (almost 2). Many of the cousins also attended Sweet Briar, including Connie Haskell ’70, Judith H. McCarthy ’61, Sally H. Richardson ’67, and Laura H. Phinizy ’65. All three of her children were married within the last year so it has been busy! Meredith Mill, Becky Randolph Boyers, Jeanie Mann, and Kari Andersen Shipley attended at least one of the events. She is scaling back charity and club organizations but still works. Her children live nearby, and she considers Jack a huge joy! She is looking forward to our 50th SBC Reunion. Pamela Henery Arey wrote that she is enjoying her first year of retirement. She has taken short weekend trips, completed deferred maintenance on her home in Severna Park, Md. (do squirrels eat your houses, too?), attended her 50th high school reunion in Farmington, Conn., and has begun participating and volunteering at the local senior center! Mary Frances Oakey Aiken still spends half the year in Naples, Fla., and half in Richmond, Va., with husband John. She is enjoying the newest addition to the family—grandson Hugh Henry Snyder (Hank) born last Feb. That makes seven grandchildren and lots of joyful activity when everyone gets together. She is active in two Episcopal churches and loves knitting newborn hats for local hospitals. Bev Van Zandt spent the month of Aug. caring for her first grandchild, Evangeline, in Houston, and then flew to NYC to be with her younger daughter and her husband. In NYC she visited with Anne Holler and Mimi Fahs. Bev’s family in Houston escaped flooding, and when she returns there, she will help with the Hurricane Harvey cleanup. Barbara Wuehrmann wrote from Frisco, Col., where she now spends her summers. She spends the rest of her time in Green Valley, Ariz., hiking in the mountains, birding, and making new friendships. In Green Valley she is

active in the hiking club and does yoga twice a week with her “Yoga Chick” friends. In Oct. Barbara is going to N.J. to attend her 50th high school reunion from Chatham Township HS. “I can’t believe we are all that old!” Marguerite Smith Willis sent greetings from Florence (home), Columbia (office), and Travelers Rest (get-a-way), S.C. She is still practicing antitrust law with Nexsen Pruet. Having ended her term as president of the SC Women Lawyers Association, she will soon be starting her term as president of the Litigation Counsel of America. In her “spare” time, her husband, Frank, and her three Labs, Cotton, Bella and Mr. Bojangles, keep her “amused.” Marguerite sends “Cheers to all.” Roseanne Woodroof participated in Sweet Work Weeks from Aug 4 - 8 and enjoyed the interaction with multiple SBC classes. She first worked painting Carson and then in the library. She wrote, “Every now and then I got lost in a book I was supposed to be processing, but I felt good about making a contribution.” Roseanne also enjoyed meeting President Woo at a dinner at the Boat House.

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Jill Johnson jilljohnson@isisllc.us MarySue Morrison Thomas msuethomas@gmail.com Class email: 72sweetbriar@gmail.com We are sorry to report that we have lost two classmates recently. Cindy Conklin (Cynthia Dickerson Conklin) of Sharon, Conn., passed away on Aug. 20, 2017. Cindy was with us freshman year and then transferred to University of New Hampshire. She was very accomplished in her nursing field and community. The Northwest Connecticut Community Foundation is the charity she requested to support. You may also wish to remember Cindy at Sweet Briar through our ’72 Memorial Scholarship Fund. Here is a link to Cindy’s obituary: http://www.kennyfuneralhomes.com/obituaries.html Jennifer Linsley Alphin of

Anne Wiglesworth Muñoz says Hi! and sent a photo of her latest batik

Class Notes

Susan Snodgrass Wynne ’72 and her husband, Dubby, with their six grandchildren in Virginia Beach can believe we graduated from Sweet Briar more than 45 years ago! She continues in her “day job” as an associate professor of education at Luther College, where she also is charged with working with the faculty to ensure the education department is both state (Iowa) and nationally (CAEP) accredited. She will retire to Amherst/Sweet Briar in less than two years and in the meanwhile has to be content with supporting Sweet Briar mostly from a distance. MarySue Morrison Thomas also raves about being on campus for our 45th Reunion in June. She encourages everyone to make plans for yearly events and especially for our 50th Reunion in 2022. (Did she actually say, “2022”?!) It’s never too early to start making plans and setting that special date aside. She also hoped all who could did attend the Inauguration of our new President Meredith Woo in Sept. It seems that “Happy Days Are Here Again!” DeDe Conley is in Miami, having dodged the big bullet with Hurricane Irma in Sept.—electricity back after two days, but the Internet was out for several days. SBC grads in Fla. and Texas are reportedly fine. DeDe was in full-swing during Sweet Work Weeks in Aug. assisting in amazing, professional work on campus, making painted dorms sparkle and having fun with everyone! DeDe remarks that it was like a long multiclass Reunion! She had a great lunch with Marty Neill Boney in Wilmington, N.C., on her way home. DeDe is truly enjoying good press on the positive changes at SBC! Georgene Vairo continues to spend most of her time working with the SBC Board and President Woo. She served on President Woo’s Advisory Committee, which helped formulate the new curricular repositioning and tuition reset that she is confident will ensure that Sweet Briar leads the way

Friday Night Celebration at Reunion

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Lexington, Va., passed away at the University of Virginia Hospital on Sept. 20, 2017. Jennifer was very supportive of Sweet Briar College and had been with as recently as June for part of our 45th reunion. The family suggested donations to the Rockbridge Area Relief Association (RARA). You may also wish to remember Jennifer at Sweet Briar through our ’72 Memorial Scholarship Fund. Here is a link to Jennifer’s obituary: http://www.thenews-gazette.com/ taxonomy/term/11 Jane Powell Gray reports that she and Frank have enjoyed trips to the Ore. wine country and the Canadian Rockies this summer. They have N.Y. on the agenda for fall. They also sold their beach home in Emerald Isle and are building a sound-front home in nearby Indian Beach. “We’re crazy, I know, but look forward to the sunset views!” Grandson Hunter started kindergarten in Aug., while little brother, Reid, enjoys his nursery school. Dale Shelly Graham and James are still in St. Louis and report that it was a great place to view the eclipse since they were right in its path. There was true darkness with some stars and with night bugs chirping, and then birds tweeting as it finished. There’s another going over St. Louis in seven years; so they said to mark your calendars and plan to come visit. Dale reports Fielding (30) and Lily (27) both have wonderful significant others; so they are hoping for marriages and grandchildren someday soon, but in the meantime they are content to dote on their granddogs. Speaking of marriage, Dale and James celebrated their 45th anniversary in Aug. Seems like only yesterday we all played the Ring Game with Dale’s engagement ring! Jeannette Pillsbury conveys she is happy to have the opportunity to be in touch with so many in our class. She loved being at our 45th Reunion—who

Meeting President Meredith Woo at a special Friday Night Dinner at Reunion Painting the Boathouse before Reunion: DeDe Conley, Cynthia Heye Hopkins, and Dottie Courington

Engineering students at Reunion! Marion Walker and Martha Holland SWEET BRIAR MAGAZINE | SBC.EDU

Class Notes in reinventing the liberal arts in the 21st century. Mary Pat Varn Moore is sorry to have missed Reunion this year but greatly enjoys communicating with long-time SBC friends—and definitely plans to be there for our 50th!! She and husband Paul decided recently (as empty nesters) to downsize and build a new home in Tallahassee, Fla. The home they have lived in for nearly 25 years sold after only ONE day on the market. Because the new house will not be completed until mid-Oct., they are temporarily leasing a condo in a high rise in downtown Tallahassee, just one block from Mary Pat’s office. Although they are grateful for their temporary “adventure” as urban dwellers, they are very ready to settle in to their new home soon! They continue to enjoy being grandparents to Adalyn (8), Arabella (5), and Anne Katherine (2), who all live in close proximity to MeMaw and Poppa’s house. What fun it is, Mary Pat reports, to have all these granddaughters after raising two sons!! What a joy they are!! It has been a long time coming, but Ellen Apperson Brown finally has had a chance to do some public speaking this past summer, promoting her new book (“John Apperson’s Lake George,” by Arcadia Publishing) in museums and book stores all around New York’s North Country. After working on a biography of her great-uncle for dozens of years, she is jumping at the chance to publish a book featuring his amazing documentary photographs and now hopes this project will reach a wide audience. She has been invited to speak at the Friends of the Library meeting in Oct. and hopes to speak to students interested in environmental history to tell them how a few ordinary people became leaders and activists and saved the most beautiful lake in the world. For those who cannot come to campus to hear her talk, she has launched a new website, a digital archive featuring letters and photographs from the Apperson archives, at www. adirondackactivism.com. Peggy Hoy McFadden and husband John are both now retired. Now they get to turn their attention to actively developing income-producing activities on the open areas of their tree farm. This is in anticipation of the return of daughter Fiona (’12) from New Orleans in a couple of years to live and work on the farm. John and Peggy attended a presentation by Meredith Woo of the strategic initiatives and curriculum restructuring being implemented at Sweet Briar. President Woo is traveling to various areas of the country to present this information in person. If she comes to your area, don’t miss the opportunity to hear her speak and ask her any questions you have. John and 56

Peggy will also be joining the Parents Council in support of these initiatives and recruitment.

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Evelyn Carter Cowles PO Box 278 Free Union, VA 22940 ecc52@icloud.com Renee Sterling Busy with work, participating in an Economic Forum this week and just celebrated the 25th anniversary of establishing my practice with Morgan Stanley. Went to the premiere viewing for D’Andra Simmons Lock ’91; she is the newest cast member on “Real Housewives of Dallas” on Bravo. Fun! Kathy Pretzfelder Steele My husband, Dave, and I are enjoying our retirement in Lake County, Fla. We watch our two darling granddaughters frequently and spend our “free” time working on community committees, traveling, volunteering, playing pickleball, golf, and bocce, or swimming. Recent travels include trips to Utah and Hilton Head, Amelia, Sanibel/Captiva, and Hutchinson Islands. I hope to make it to our 45th reunion in 2018! Robin Harmon O’Neill I’m in Richmond with my niece. She’s just had her first baby! Lois Means Duchene I and my husband of 28 years, Al Duchene, are happily retired and thinking about doing some traveling. I have lived in Charleston, S.C., for about 40 years and sometimes cross paths with Jane McFaddin Bryan. She handled my sister’s divorce. It was great to have someone I know handle the nasty situation so well. Debbie Pollock Arce I’m still happily living in a suburb of Portland, Ore., and working at my CFO consulting practice, but slowly winding it down so I have more time for travel and grandchildren. My daughter, Cory and her husband, Jeff, live an hour south and have two children—Eva (3) and Will (1). My oldest son, Ross, lives about 90 miles away and manages a Farm to Table restaurant in Eugene. My youngest son, Reed, is a Navy ensign based in Corpus Christi, Texas, where he is in advanced flight training and expects to earn his wings later this year. He will be flying the military version of 737s and will move to Jacksonville, Fla., for training in that aircraft in Nov. or Dec. He made it safely through Hurricane Harvey, as he evacuated to the west; Corpus Christi thankfully was spared the worst of the storm. My thoughts are with all who live in Houston and New Orleans as they endure the difficulties of this monumental storm. I stay in close touch with Kathy Pretzfelder Steele,

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Weezie Blakeslee Gilpin and family

Robin O’Neill

Scottie O’Toole and husband Ed Goss

Renee Sterling (2nd from r.) with D’Andra Simmons Lock ’91 (r.) who lives only a few hours from Jacksonville, so I’m looking forward to seeing her more frequently too! I would love to see any classmates who make it to the Pacific Northwest. When Kathy came for a visit in 2015, we met up with Mary Danford for lunch. Good times! Ginger Woodward Gast In June I spent a lovely weekend with Sue Dern Plank and Laurie Norris Coccio and

Laurie’s daughter at her lake house in Saratoga Springs, N.Y. We had such fun visiting and even posted pictures on the SBC website. We thought we looked pretty good for senior citizens! I’m still more than old-fashioned but am hoping one day to break through to the 21st century! Anita McVey O’Connor I continue to work at a senior center but dream of retiring, preferably as a snow bird,

Class Notes between Pa., where most of my family resides, and Fla., where winters are wonderful! My husband enjoys semi-retirement. When I finally do retire, I hope to help SBC during the Sweet Work Weeks; it seems like a great way to give back to my beloved school. Kathleen Cochran Schutze Steve and I are enjoying our retirement on the Barnett Reservoir near Jackson, Miss. Our daughter, Emily ’11, has moved in with us, and we appreciate the help she provides. Both of our sons are married: Taylor lives in Little Rock, Ark., and Walker in Fredericksburg, Va. No grandchildren yet, but life is pretty simple and we are enjoying the ease of travel that precedes the advent of little ones. I’m so proud of our alma mater! Linda Lipscomb Where are the years going? I am still in Dallas and working (gasp!) as a consultant for arts organizations. I try to find time to travel as much as possible and have started to work down the bucket list and just returned from viewing the eclipse in totality. Through volunteering on the board of Friends of Art, I have been to the campus a couple of times and am so encouraged to see students and the campus beginning to thrive. Betsie Meric Gambel With my PR firm, Gambel Communications, I have launched The New Orleans 100, an e-newsletter, in partnership with the local CBS station. An affiliate of The 100 Companies, The New Orleans 100 contains 100-word stories and 100-second videos. Visit theneworleans100.com. I enjoy my beach house in Pass Christian, Miss., and I have twin grandsons in Philadelphia and a granddaughter and grandson in Greenville, S.C. I am totally loving life, not missing a beat . . . am very blessed. Charlotte Ann Evans Not retired yet! Currently working full-time providing medical care in the N.C. prison system at maximum, medium and minimum security male facilities . . . not what this English major anticipated as a career! Still happily married, my wife is Katherine E. Klett now (used to be Larry); so same spouse, new name and gender! Still in Yadkinville, N.C., visitors always welcome! And love being “The Doctor,” just want a T.A.R.D.I.S. !!! Glenys Dyer Church I retired June 30, 2016, after 34 years with Northrop Grumman. I spent the rest of 2016 trying to get the house back together after our kitchen renovation. This year I am able to spend more time on things that I enjoy, like scrapbooking and making cards. Diane Dale Reiling Our two children are both married now, and I was delighted to see our happy photos in the last Alumnae Magazine! I am focused on Reunion June 1−3, 2018. I love the pre- and post-Reunions that

others have done, and I want to do a road trip of my own; so I am scheming on it now. If you want a spot in my convertible heading off on Route 29, let me know. I’m heading out to Lexington, Greenville, Charleston and maybe Savannah. Also, please check your Facebook for 1973 friends and direct them to “SBC Class of 1973” on Facebook to get connected! Not too soon to be planning for our 45th! Jane Potts I’m still working part-time and traveling while I still feel like it! Went to Provence, France, in May for two weeks with a friend from Charleston. Pascale Boulard Dutilleul took the train down from Paris and spent two days with us. She looks great and we had a wonderful visit with her. Spent one day at the Pont du Gard, which was really interesting. Going to Croatia and Slovenia for two weeks with Melinda Williams Davis the last two weeks of Sept. Hope to see everyone next June for our 45th Reunion. Have made plans to be there with Betsy Perry and Deborah Ziegler Hopkins. Weezie Blakeslee Gilpin Bob and I moved to Martha’s Vineyard in June 2016, fulfilling a long-time dream. I am loving being here yearround and have a part-time job at our wonderful local library along with volunteering at the thrift store in Vineyard Haven and frequent trips to our Y. Bob is still working as an independent college counselor and is off-Island more than either of us would like. We had all three children, two of their spouses, and all six grandchildren here in early June, a reunion only slightly marred by an intestinal bug that had no mercy. Alexa is in Leesburg, Va., with Elizabeth (4 1/2), and Daniel (1). Blake, who teaches at Tulane, has Bear (5), and Bommer (3). Christopher is still in Sydney with Tillie (6) and Lucy (3 1/2). The family photo is clearly not staged with everyone in their finest, but that is no surprise. I am loving semi-retirement and our beautiful Island. Scottie O’Toole After being single all of my life, I married Ed Goss Sept 2016. Ed and I built a new home in Flowery Branch, Ga. He has four grown/married children and will soon have eight grandchildren. I’ve inherited a terrific family. Life is good! Susan Plank Dern Spending time in Fla. with Elena’s family as her husband travels quite a bit; she works full time, plus has a 2- and a 5-yr-old. We babysat in Nov. 2016 when she attended a high school friend’s wedding in Moscow, then spent Thanksgiving week in Cairo. I also have been traveling: drove to Ore. and back last summer for a niece’s wedding and saw Diane and Chuck. Went kayaking in Maine in Aug., celebrating our 40th wedding anniversary.

Susan Bundy I have now celebrated 12 years of marriage with Andre. I, Evelyn Carter Cowles, have had a very busy year traveling with Reynolds in his one-year position as president of the AAEP (national equine veterinarian organization). Went to Grand Cayman, Spain, Saratoga, N.Y., and now we are off to England and then Mexico. Great fun but looking forward to staying home more next year. Still fishing, painting, hiking and riding. I hope to see a lot of you at our 45th!

1974

Nancy Mortensen Piper 28 Newbold Sq Rehoboth Beach, DE 19971-1875 npiper@virginiasoftware.com Wendy Cherry says, “Thank you, Sweet Briar family, for giving me the liberal arts foundation for an abundant life: an internship with the Guggenheim Museum, three years as a Peace Corps volunteer (in a mud hut) in Zaire, an MSW, 10 years as a financial advisor with The Ohio Company, 15 years a financial advisor with Edward Jones.” The phenomenal female role models of Dr. Stevens, Dr. Laing, and Dean Sims taught her “I can do hard things.” Jan Renne Steffen is enjoying living in the country. Fallbrook is a small community, and to meet more townsfolk, she joined the Chamber of Commerce. Jan was featured in the local newspaper for her jewelry. Jan’s jewelry can be seen on her website: www.jrsdesigns.com. Currently she is president of the San Diego chapter of the American Sewing Guild. Jan sewed most of her clothes in college and continues to sew. She is also dating a neighbor “who helps me around the house.” According to Jan, “I don’t think I can change a battery in the smoke detector without him. Life as a senior (and playing the widow card) has its benefits.” Tracy James has been on an eclectic journey through the arts—now completing the 36th year of a law practice that started with the Colorado Attorney General’s Office and now enjoying freedoms of being a solo practitioner. Mediation services comprise an increasing portion of her work. Her husband of 44 years and two adult sons are doing well. In August a five-day point-to-point horseback ride across southwest Scotland offered phenomenal scenery and quick runs on sandy beaches. Tracy said SBC’ers are always welcome. Holler when you’re in the Denver area. Liz Thomas Camp reports that the Boxwood girls welcomed The Grands in 2017! Plans in the works for “Redneck Riviera The Next Generation 2018.” Ashton Cole Schiller is grandson to Barb Ashton Nicol. “Foxy” Mae

Camp, Liz’s granddaughter, registered for the SBC Class of ’30. Class portrait artist, Ellie Plowden Boyd, memorializing cherubic faces for posterity. Harrison Whiteman, Edie McRee Bowles’s grandson, beats tiny toes thru Brooklyn, shadowing Big & Carey Bradshaw. “Nanny” Lea Houghton on a firstname basis with pilots on Albuquerque-Dallas flight path (“Coffee, tea or cheese straws?”) to cuddle “Little Miss Charlotte Rose.” Emory Furniss Maxwell in Atlanta, as I write, awaiting Le Petit Enfant Harris (Christy Maxwell ’03 and Jeff). “Nervous Nellie” calls to Dr. Mary Witt Will for pediatric advice, making all of us wonder, “How did our own kids ever reach maturity?” “Aunt Ruthie” Willingham Lentz feted Stewart Ryan’s summer marriage, with his mother, Robin Christian Ryan, of Boston. Stewart’s Christian grandfather, of Richmond, served as SBC member of the board of trustees in our era. Paula Hollingsworth Thomas squeezing in “Nanny-hours” between exotic Viking cruises with Preacher Steve in retirement. On top of all that, Mary Bush Norwood, aka “Bush,” to us, is in the run for Mayor of Atlanta. Liz says, “As we used to say in my Ole Neck of the Woods, C H I C A G O, “Vote Early and Vote OFTEN.” Bonnie Chronowski Brophy announces that she and her husband welcomed their first grandchild, Connor Brophy Persutti, on Nov. 10, right after she returned from a pilgrimage to Poland and the Czech Republic, and enjoyed introducing him to Nantucket in August! She is looking forward to her 10th year facilitating a bible study in her parish. She sends love to all her classmates. MaryLee Burch Doering reports that she and Dean bought a new-build home and downsized in Folsom, Calif., near Sacramento, where they have been living the past 12 years. She enjoyed a fabulous vacation in Maui this past winter. MaryLee is making her usual trips to Rochester, N.Y., to see her family and granddaughter (3). Loving her French class at the local Alliance Française. She tutors 15 students in private sessions each week, which keeps her young and busy, and spends some hours every week at the local Starbucks and Panera Bread, where she often gets free coffee since she is a teacher. She would love to make it to Sweet Briar before our big 50th. Not sure that will happen, but she will be at Sweet Briar for our 50th, God willing!! Love to everyone in the Class of 1974! Debbie Bigum Debbie and Randy are enjoying retirement. They spilt their time between Destin, Fla., and Boone, N.C., homes. “Our sweet granddaughters, Natalie and Alexandria, provide us lots of laughter and love. Our daughter

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Class Notes

1974 Bonnie Chronowski Brophy and Helen Travis

Betsy Hellmuth’s Five Little Lobstahs

Liz Camp & Emory—Save SBC sign sent by Ellie P. hangs over my back door in Handy Crossroads, GA

Barb Ashton Nicol holding Ashton Cole Schiller, Labor Day Weekend 2017

Paula Hollingsworth, Barb Ashton, and Liz at Mobile Bay near Ft. Morgan, AL, Spring 2017

Seated L to R: Ellie P., Liz, Barb A & Mary W. Floor L to R: Lee Wilkinson Warren, Ruthie W. Lentz, Robin C.

Pam Graham, Sue Castle Rolewick, and Debbie Hooker Sauers at Sue’s house on Lake Geneva in July

MaryLee Doering and daughter, Deanna, Carmel, July 2017

Liz Camp and Barb Ashton Nicol at Christmas 2016 58

Tracy James

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Nancy Baggett Howell ’92, Liz Thomas Camp ’74, and Lee McEachern Collins ’94

Class Notes

Bonnie Chronowski Brophy and grandson

Liz & Emory on Lake Martin, AL

Debbie and Pam

Maureen, Sue, and Pam

Liz Camp’s granddaughter, Mae Camp, Class of 2030

Lindsay and her husband, Dan, will be moving to Norfolk, Va., this fall. Courtney, the youngest, is in Atlanta. We are touring Massachusetts, Maine and New Hampshire this September.” Vicki Bates’s big news is that she and her husband retired in May and have moved to sunny Oceanside, Calif. Their house is about four miles from the ocean, and on a clear day, they can see it in the distance. She can see beautiful sunsets from their deck. Before heading west, they drove from Florida up to Sweet Briart to see the campus and some of her childhood friends, including professors Glenn and Gil Van Treese. Leslie Elbert Hill has been blessed to travel several times this year with wonderful girlfriends. Joining Susan Stephens Geyer and Jane Hutchinson Frierson, Leslie visited Elizabeth Watts and Bobby on the Eastern Shore and enjoyed their beautiful waterside home and the Norfolk Garden Tour. Later, she was able to see the Grand Canyon with five other “first-timers.” Perhaps loveliest of all are the grandkid-snuggling trips to N.C. Finally, girls! Fortunately, her grandson lives only six miles away :) Betsy Bigger Hellmuth and Ted just welcomed their fifth grandchild! In July, little Charlie joined Ruby (7) and Cole (5) in Beacon, N.Y., where her oldest daughter, Katie, and husband David Martin live. Betsy and Ted love living in the Hudson Valley area. David commutes to N.Y.C., where he is a locations manager for films and TV shows. Son TJ and his wife, Lily, travel a lot from home base in Santa Monica, primarily filming promotional work for the ROLI website in London, helping them launch their amazing electronic computerized keypads, now available at Apple Stores. The digital equipment was used in concert in the film “La La Land.” Betsy’s youngest, Kimberly, is currently way high up on the 89th floor of the Willis Tower, in Chicago. Over the rainbows, she claims. She can barely see cars below. She is devoted to her efforts raising funds and awareness for corporate social responsibility with the law firm Sayfarth Shaw. Her husband, Jack McClain, is a photographer producing videos for weddings as well as for corporations. They have two little girls Evie (4) and Graysie (1) and a big lovable dog, and live near Oak Park, Ill. Ted is still traveling often as an investment advisor for Boyd Watterson in Cleveland. Needless to say they are traveling often, trying to keep up with the grandkids as much as they can, driving usually with her springer spaniel, Buddy, who is always by Betsy’s side. This summer Betsy loved stopping by Southbury, Conn., to visit Ellie Plowden Boyd and finally see her stu-

dio on their way to Maine, where Ted’s family has been returning for seven generations. This year Ann Smith and Betsy just missed each other on Rt. 1 in Maine—each summer they try to find a mutual week where we might meet up along the coast of Maine if they’re lucky. In Cleveland, Sarah Johnston Knoblauch has been hosting the local alumnae from all decades to keep them all informed with all that has revived at Sweet Briar. She appreciates all those that help keep us informed on various pages on Facebook. Elizabeth Andrews Watts reports a highlight of her year was a visit with Jane Hutchinson Frierson, Susan Stephens Geyer, and Leslie Elbert Hill. “They came to our house on the Eastern Shore of Virginia in April, and we enjoyed time together while attending two of the annual Garden Club of Virginia tours. Bobby and I are still enjoying retirement and plan to take a two-day sailing class in Annapolis on our 40th anniversary. This summer we had fun with our children and grandchildren. Betsy, David and their daughters, Laney (5) and Grace (3), live in Atlanta. Rob and Alden, and their sons, Chip (8) and Pete (6), spent last year in Princeton while Rob was in a master’s program. Now they are awaiting news about Rob’s next Navy assignment. Chris Weiss Pfeil and her mother, Betty Weiss, enjoyed dinner in August with Mary Scales Lawson ’70, and her husband, Jeff (W&L ’68), talking all about Sweet Briar! Mary is a Greenville, S.C., friend of her sister, Wendy Weiss Smith ’71, and they were meeting for the first time while she and her husband were visiting Cleveland. Mimi Hill Wilk announces they have #2 Grandson News. Her daughter-in-law Heather and son Beau (Kenneth Walter Wilk, Jr.) had Mimi’s second grandson, Heath, on August 12. Brother Georgie (3) is over the top with his new baby brother. Mimi sends thanks to Penelope Lagagkos Constantinidi’s amazing family business of KEVOO from Greece; she had fun selling Kastania Extra Virgin Olive Oil at the Plaza luncheon with daughter Liz! Mimi and Greg enjoyed seeing Emory Maxwell and Charles, and they shared grandparent stories. Georgie turned 3 on Groundhog Day!! Go Greek for EVOO! Mimi sends hugs, love and warm wishes from Arizona. Mary Bush Norwood is running again for mayor of Atlanta. By all reports, she is the front-runner. She will be a great mayor. Sue Castle Rolewick had some minireunions this year with Debbie Hooker Sauers, Pamela Cogghill Graham and Drea Peacock Bender. One reunion was at the New Jersey

wedding of Hook’s son, Graham, in October 2016. They all had pre-wedding cocktails with Bonnie Brophy. Another was at Pam’s lovely home in Palm City, Fla., in January. Fortunately, Pam’s home was spared from Hurricane Irma. The next was in July at Sue’s house on Lake Geneva in Wisconsin but without Drea and Maureen Hynes Brouse, who usually go too, but couldn’t make it this year. The Sweet Briar five call themselves the unofficial Sweet Bread. This group gets together at Sue’s every July and have for the past few years. Sue graciously extends an invitation to anyone else in our class to join them. There is plenty of room and tons of fun. Barb Ashton Nicol writes it has been a busy couple of weeks. Her biggest news is that her grandson, Ashton Cole, was born September 1 in Mobile, Ala., to Ben and Jenn Schiller. She and Robert had just returned from two weeks in England, Ireland and Scotland. They took a cruise around Great Britain and had a wonderful time. Robert’s son, Sage, got engaged in June and then to test the relationship, they rode out Hurricane Harvey in Corpus Christi. Luckily, they had only minor wind damage. Other two sons are doing well and grandchildren in Atlanta are great! Helen Travis works at The LiRo Group (now six years)—www.liro.com. She travels to Beirut, Lebanon, to see her sister, who cares for her brotherin-law with late-stage Alzheimer’s. A book was just published by her uncle about the homestead farm, an 1810 “Jones” property and in the family since 1909. “I manage the place alone now. Will celebrate my 65th birthday—better than the alternative, as they say.” Susan Stephens Geyer and Mark just returned from a three-week trip to Australia and New Zealand. It was their first time to visit both countries, and they had a remarkable time and soaked in the beauty and learned about the cultures. Last April, Leslie Hill, Jane Frierson and Susan joined Elizabeth Watts and Bobby at their home on the eastern shore of Virginia for a wonderful visit and garden tours in Norfolk. Susan moved back into her home after a long remodeling process, and she plans to host the Sweet Briar Friends of Art Board when they meet in Dallas in November. As usual, they had family gatherings in Colorado at Christmas and in July. Her dad passed away on July 30, which has been a sad element for her this year. Tricia Barnett Greenberg reports that all is well in Florence and Charleston, S.C. Tricia is loving having two grandsons from two children, 16 and 17 months old. She is still doing her antiques business, on Instagram as Patrician Antiques, and is amazed at

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Class Notes the power of the Internet for sales. She is excited that Rossie Ray Spell will join her in Charleston in about a year!! Tricia has been traveling and is so thankful to be an SBC graduate! Paula Hollingsworth Thomas and Steve are still in Lewisburg, Tenn. Steve retired this year, and they are enjoying their free time. They have two granddaughters that they love spending time with. And, I, Nancy Mortensen Piper, had trips to New York City, North Carolina, Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, and Sweet Briar for President Woo’s Inauguration and the leadership training weekend. My older daughter, Kate, is living and working in Berkeley, Calif. My youngest daughter, Liz, is a junior at Elon University in North Carolina. She will be in London for the spring semester, and I am looking forward to visiting her while she is there. Liz had an internship in N.Y.C. this summer, and it was fun to spend some time there with her. Thanks to all of you who sent me news and photos.

1975

Anne Cogswell Burris 1437 Headquarters Plantation Dr Johns Island, SC 29455-3120 acburris@comcast.net Karen Bewick Susan and I still are renovating the farm. This fall we hope to finish a guest house that was a blacksmith shop/horse run in. In the process we will finish updating the main house kitchen. Then we move to the master bath. I have retired from teaching 12th-grade English and am excited to restart my residential real estate career in suburbia Virginia. Sharon Mangus ’74 has been out several times to help us harvest honey from our hives. Sarah Clement, Ellen Mouri ’80, Ellen’s husband, and I drove to see President Woo speak in Charlottesville about her new vision for SBC. Very exciting! If you’re coming to the D.C. area, please come visit! Mary Dubuque Desloge I love hearing about the 75’ers! Two of my three sons are married, and William and Holly had a future SBC’er in April (Halsey René Desloge). I invited my 92-year-old mother to live with me, and now wondering if I can keep up with her! I think she might have to give up the car (what dents?!) so I can Uber !? Best to all!! Sarah Clement I’m still working for the Federal government as an administrative judge but looking to retire in 2019 when I—and most of the rest of us—turn 66 and are eligible for full Social Security! Can you believe we are in our 60’s? I recently heard our impressive new President Woo speak of the new vision and plan for Sweet Briar and was thrilled. This is the bold, 60

new reinvention we have been waiting to see. I can’t wait to be a part of Sweet Briar’s future. I joined 160 others at Sweet Work Weeks in August to paint singles and quads in Manson and Carson. It was as much fun as hard work, and I enjoyed meeting alumnae from a huge range of class years and hanging out with new friends I’ve met online and now in person since we all came out of the woodwork during The Troubles of 2015. Reunion is fun, but Sweet Work Weeks is like a super-reunion across all classes that lasts for three weeks! Our class should organize to come as a group next summer. There is gardening, sewing and office work for anyone who can’t paint! Bet Bashinsky Wise Got to check off several bucket list items this year. Was able to fly to Cuba for three nights with friends to old Havana—an amazing journey back in time. The city is decaying from lack of maintenance for the past 50 years but still beautiful. The people of Cuba are energized, friendly, and welcoming. Got to hike to Sperry Chalet in Glacier National Park before it burned in the Sprague Ridge Fire. I also checked off another bucket list item by day-hiking up to Shangri La above Iceberg Lake. My best to all friends in Texas and Florida. Harvey and Irma will not win! CeCe Clark Melesco David and I are enjoying his retirement and spent the entire summer at our home on Smith Mt. Lake. We usually have some of the kids here on weekends along with their four-legged children. Of our five children, two are married, one is divorced and the other two are in great relationships. Two are in the Roanoke area, one in Charlottesville, one in NOVA and one in Charleston. Life is good. Janis Csicsek Dodge Still working as a member of the executive management team at a bank. I love it, but retirement is just around the corner. Recently was honored as a Community Bank Hero. Our children are all over— Baltimore, Philadelphia, Kansas City and Australia—but all arrive at our “Maine” cabin throughout the year. Also enjoying eight grandchildren and spending time raising funds for a rare disease. I have many Sweet Briar grads in hometown of Wenham/Hamilton, Mass. Betsy Burdge Murphy I don’t really have much personal news other than my health issues, which is as boring as all git out. I spent a wonderful mini-reunion weekend in April at Chris Hoefer Myers’s family beach house on Isle of Palms, outside of Charleston, S.C. Wonderful memories were made with Chris, Anne Cogswell Burris, Wendy Wise Routh, Ann Wesley Ramsey and Beth Montgomery. Coni Crocker Betzendahl Exciting year. Another grandson born to our eldest daughter! Taking painting

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Betsy Burdge Murphy shared a mini-reunion with Anne Cogswell Burris, Wendy Wise Routh, Ann Wesley Ramsey and Beth Montgomery lessons with Karl Keurner (Keurner farm, Andrew Wyeth, Helga paintings). We still have a boat in Cape May, N.J. Toured Iceland for a week, and then I stayed for a week trek on Icelandic horses with a loose herd of fifty. Adrenaline rush! Surreal countryside! Still have my horse, but like us all, getting older. Stay happy and healthy, all! Cecelia Robertson Queen Mike and I are going to Houston for our nephew George’s wedding in October. Don’t know what we’ll find there, but God bless the people in Texas! Irma affected us here in parts of South Carolina somewhat, but nothing anywhere near like she did in Florida. God bless those in Florida also. My hometown of Augusta, Ga., experienced much damage too. I’m volunteering to help raise $$ for Harvey and Irma victims, and then we’re heading to our house in Cashiers, N.C., to survey the damage, if any, there. My thoughts are with all of you who were affected by these storms. Denise Montgomery I think it has been a couple of years since I have submitted to class notes; so this goes back at least to spring 2015. I made three trips back to SBC to attend the Friends of the Library meetings in the spring and fall of 2015, as well as my 40th class reunion. I’ve had some good trips with friends for both business and pleasure: a library conference at The Stanley Hotel, in Estes Park, Colo., where Stephen King had the nightmare that resulted in “The Shining”; American Library Association conferences in Boston and Chicago; two house parties at Sea View, the house that provided the exteriors of Collinwood on the TV show “Dark Shadows”; and going to San Francisco for this past Fourth of July weekend. Within the last few months I was hospitalized with what I thought was a heart attack and which turned out to

be stress. And I rode through Hurricane Irma in my home, with my cat, Dusty, and fortunately sustained no damage beyond small tree branches and other debris in my yard. Still, these events are turning me toward the idea of retiring a year early. I’ve started downsizing my possessions with an eye toward moving to my desired new hometown of Staunton, Va., and looking at possible places to live there. Randy Anderson Trainor Still working in the interior design industry and still loving it. Tom and I went to Martha’s Vineyard for five days in June. I had a broken toe, and he had had his knee replaced a month before. We looked like a couple of old fa—s walking down the beach, but it was just what we needed. Visited our son and his family in Castine, Maine, where they live. Our 3 1/2-year-old granddaughter is so much fun! Daughter Cary is still living on her boat and is now director of finance at the Newport, R.I., Marriott. It’s a good thing her house is mobile! She just had to motor down the coast from Boston to Newport! Tom is loving retired life, though he is now VP at our local golf club. I’m still teaching skiing at Cannon. I get to ski for free once I turn 65. Maybe I’ll stop teaching then. Looking forward to our next reunion. Beverley Crispin Heffernan I retired from Federal government service in April 2016, and don’t know how I ever had time to go to the office! In addition to volunteering for Sweet Briar, I am state treasurer of Back Country Horsemen of Utah, an officer in my new sport of archery on horseback, a board member of Les Amis du Vin Utah, and a volunteer theater manager at Sundance Film Festival, though I think that I am retired from that now! Still one husband and two sons; all doing well, as are the two horses and two dogs. Jim and I have traveled to India and Cuba in the past year and headed to Ireland in

Class Notes October. In September I got together with roommates Cynde Manning Chatham, Robin Singleton Cloyd, and Nancy Haight for a fun visit in Cape May, N.J. Ann South Malick Hey, youz guys! Hello from the city of champions! Mark and I have had significant porch time as he continues to recover from openheart surgery. I have been continuing my Weight Watchers journey. It works if you work it! I have been participating in sheep-to-shawl contests while honing my spinning skills. Nothing to report on Kacer and Mary Frances. I’m just trying to stay out of their way as they find their ways in life! Hence the mad spinner!!! Catherine Cranston Whitham Happily, I stay in regular touch with SBC/JYF roommate Terry Starke Tosh as well as SBC roommates Libby Whitley Fulton and Randy Anderson Trainor. Took a great walking trip along the Dorset Coast of England last September and a Mediterranean trip this past winter. This stage of life brings lots of volunteer work plus good “tending to,” with my mother (87) and two grandchildren nearby. Whit retires this year from practicing law for forty years. I am thankful each day for energy and good health. Anne Ross Shipe Not much in Charlottesville that no one doesn’t already know about from the news. I am still working, Jim retired and I may next December (2018). Biggest news is that my son, Ross, and his wife, Rachel, gave us Levon Welford Shipe on Dec. 29, 2016, and mother passed him in the night, passing away on Dec. 30, 2016 (one floor apart the hospital). We know she stayed around to see him as she was 97. Miss the SBC days of old with all of you. Hugs to all. Carroll Waters Summerour Added grandchild #6 on February 8—William Michael Reynolds. Now we have four in New Orleans and two in Knoxville. They keep me busy babysitting. We had a successful season at Toby’s Summer Chapel in the Cashiers-Highlands area—average attendance was 225, with 390 the Sunday before the eclipse. Things are great here at Lake Toxaway, N.C.! Cynde Manning Chatham I had a fun roommates reunion with Beverley Crispin Heffernan, Nancy Haight, and Robin Singleton Cloyd at Cape May, N.J. Great weather in between Harvey and Irma. All well with us! Terry Starke Tosh I went to Staunton with Sarah Dowdey to celebrate the birthday of Louisa Dixon’s mom, Doris, who turned 99 in July! Wendy Wise Routh Our house in Florida survived Irma surprisingly well, and we are repairing what damage there was, for the season. I had a fabulous time at Isle of Palms with

first-floor Meta Glass reunion including Ann Wesley Ramsey, Elizabeth Montgomery, Betsy Burdge Murphy, Anne Cogswell Burris and our hostess Chris Hoefer Myers, who had lost her husband earlier this year. Patty Tucker O’Desky and Gray Thomas Payne had to cancel last minute due to family emergencies and were sorely missed. Lexie is working at the The Broadway League and thrilled me by asking me to be her date for the Tony’s!!!! Fabulous weekend! JohnCarlos is going from the TriBeCa Film Festival to the U.S. Open to Fashion Week in N.Y.C.; so everyone is busy and happy. His foundation JC for JD (JohnCarlos for Juvenile Diabetes) had another successful FUNRAISER to fund the cure because “a cure is forever.™” Carlos and I retreat to Florida November 1 for golf and warm weather. So all is great here; thanking God for our blessings! Marsha Decker Powers So grateful that we made it through Hurricane Irma here on Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla.! I am still working and am the CEO of Tenet Healthcare’s Coastal Division. Absolutely love what I do. I am also on the board of trustees at the University of Florida and chair the UF Audit and Compliance Committee. I certainly understand the challenges the SBC Board faces! Just returned from a trip to Machu Picchu and the Galapagos. This fall, we are off to Iceland to see the Northern Lights. I see Bobbie Hauck Gribble ’76 a couple times a year and had mini-reunion at her daughter Katie’s wedding in June. Hope everyone is in good health. Linda Lucas Steele Retirement has been a wonderful adventure with time for home, family, friends, museums, books, boxwood, trees, gardens... travel. Heading to Spain tomorrow to help daughter move from Madrid to Valladolid. Both sons live in Virginia: the elder is a big-time cattle rancher with his father and the younger works for a successful Richmond economic research firm. They surprised Roger and me with an awesome 40th anniversary celebration. Mary Henningsen Collins All is well with us in Stamford, Conn. We have become grandparents to Austin, born in Texas, to my oldest, Mayde, in October 2016. Wonderful, but they are far away at the moment! Other two daughters doing well, and my mom—Mayde Ludington Henningsen ’48, turned 90 last year and is still celebrating SBC success. I saw Carol St. John for a quick lunch some time ago, and she looks her usual stunning self. I see my cousins Leslie Ludington Ordendorf ’73 and Felice Ludington ’76 often, and we all are thrilled at the positive direction the College is headed in. Thanks to class president Dorsey

Tillett Northrup for pushing us to continue the efforts. Hope we will all connect again for a reunion. The last one was a blast! Ella McPherson Magruder Mark and I are still teaching dance at SBC, and our students are phenomenal. (Thanks, alumnae, for saving the school for these focused and amazing girls!!!) The “impossible being just another problem to solve,” as future SBC grads, they will do us proud. Have loved seeing all our former students, peers, friends and supporters of Sweet Briar—too many to name here, but hugs to all—return these past two years since the closing attempt. On the home front, our daughter, Mia, was married last summer, and we love our jazz musician/composer son-in-law Chris. They live in Keswick, and Mia supplies us with organic veggies on occasion. She is still with the Jefferson Foundation, at Monticello. Our son, Conan, continues to teach high school government in Farmville and loves the challenge. No grandchildren yet, but we do have a grand-puppy named Freya. We love our two adorable cats and our dog, Gracie; we adopted them from the Charlottesville-Albemarle SPCA, all on the same day. That was a very interesting drive back home! Cathie Grier Kelly I am enjoying teaching at St. Martin’s Episcopal School in Atlanta. This is my fourth year as a Kindergarten assistant. At that age, our children are still very sweet, can do a lot and are fun to be with. I like the faculty members too. I needed something constructive to do outside of the house. My husband, Bill, continues to work in finance in banking. We had a fabulous cruise through Scandinavia last summer through the W&L Traveler Program—always so well planned with such nice travel companions. This was our third trip with W&L; we highly recommend its programs. In October we will celebrate our 30th anniversary. We are going to N.Y.C. for a weekend and will have a bigger trip later. Our oldest son, Thomas (24), lives in Charlotte and works as an auto mechanic. Our younger son, Stuart (18) is a freshman at College of Charleston (what a fun place to visit). Like Dorsey, I started working out with a personal trainer about four years ago and have remained faithful to my workout routine. My workout includes cardio and strength training; it makes a world of difference in how I feel. Elizabeth “Beth”/“Liz” Montgomery I had a fabulous time at Chris Hoeffer Myers’s beautiful ocean-front house on Isle of Palms with Cogs, Wendy Routh, Ann Ramsey, and Betsy Burdge Murphy. Cogs organized a tour day in Charleston, and our conversations were reminiscent, funny and spiritual. Then on to France and

Italy to check off more on my bucket list—Eze, Cap St. Jean Ferrat, Amalfi Coast, Umbria and Capri. Organized an arts fundraiser for the American Cancer Society. Was on Conan twice as Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and filmed “Do You Want To See a Dead Body?”—as a homeless woman—I’m such a versatile actress! LOL Louisa Dixon I live in my hometown, Staunton, Va., with my 99-year-old mother, whose memory and energy are better than mine! I am still coordinating French-American exchanges with people in Virginia and Franche-Comté, especially those in sister cities Charlottesville and Besançon. I had fun catching up with classmate Kathy Osbourne Spirtes this month when Kathy came through Staunton with her dog, Cream Puff, and I regularly sees classmates Terry Starke Tosh and Sarah Dowdey, who both live in Richmond. Because I couldn’t get away this winter to clear out her Besançon loft apartment when my French landlady decided to sell it, Terry was kind enough (crazy enough?) to spend a week there, sorting, organizing, dispersing, disposing and bringing some things back to Virginia in a superbly efficient manner. Shari Mendelson Gallery From the hills of West Virginia I have been busy with my vacation rental guesthouse, Just Far Enough Getaway—lots of guests means lots of laundry and cleaning. Also shearing Christmas trees for the retail business with our sons in Alexandria, Va., Almost Heavenly Christmas Trees LLC (hope to see some SBC folks stop by our lot at Landmark Mall). When others laughingly post “just 15 weeks ’til Christmas” on Facebook, it has a different meaning for us). Got in a little bit of artwork (seems so long ago I was a studio art major at SBC) at Common Ground on the Hill, an annual music and arts camp our family has been involved in for the past 23 years. Dorsey Tillett Northrup I’m volunteering overtime these days—Parkersburg Art Center—doing guess what??? Fundraising! Painting some. Frank (mostly retired) and I went on a man’s dream trip (Cleveland Indians, two games—I made him stop at Niagara for one night, Saratoga, N.Y., three days of horses running around in a circle—Cooperstown, N.Y., two days Baseball Hall of Fame . . . drove many miles . . . actually fun!). Taking seven-day ride on Queen Mary 2 from N.Y.C. to South Hampton in October. (Three formal nights . . . Anyone have any gowns I can borrow??? $661 per person!!! Swimming back!) Started Weight Watchers Jan. 28 with a buddy . . . stuck with it . . . I’ve gained only 138 lbs. since birth!! I have dropped 21 pounds and 15 years!!!, feel super, hope you can follow

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Class Notes suit if you are feeling like a slug! Second son just married lovely gal from Nova Scotia—wedding was in Halifax, cool location! Oldest son married, in Houston, with my one grandchild, Max (3). Maggie is a tour guide in the Grand Canyon, but moving to Asheville, N.C., soon. Anybody have kids there? Working hard for our Art Center, serving on the board, and loving it! Noticed I am getting older: knee replaced 2014, have lots of boo-boo’s in joints, but nothing serious . . . still think I’m young until I pass a mirror. Frank is fine, taking lots of buddy trips. That’s all, folks! Anne Cogswell Burris I lost my mother in November 2016, at the young age of 92. She was the last of Lon’s and my parents. Oldest son, Scott, moved back (from LA) to the Charleston area in September 2016 with wife Harriet and son Thomas (4). Daughter Carrie and Sam welcomed baby Ben Little in May 2017, a week after Lon and I returned from 12 amazing days in Israel and Jordan (one check off bucket list!!). We spent some time in July with son Will and his wife, Katie, and daughter, Birdie (1), before heading to a wedding in Deer Valley, Utah. Now, while in the middle of renovations to our house, Will, Katie and Birdie have moved in with us until they find a place of their own. The 200-mile outskirts of Irma welcomed them on their second day with two feet of tidal surge in our driveway and garage/basement. Unfortunately, we had to cancel/postpone the 9th Ben Burris Memorial Golf Tournament and BBQ because of Irma, and we hope to reschedule before the end of the year. I enjoyed a mini-reunion in April with Wendy Wise Routh, Ann Wesley Ramsey, Betsy Burdge Murphy, Beth Montgomery and our host Chris Hoefer Myers. Needless to say there was much laughter and lots of memories. Lon is still loving his position as a financial advisor at Wells Fargo Advisors. I am entering my 10th year as the bookkeeper for a small law firm in Charleston. When I think about retiring, I ask myself, “Why quit a job that allows you to work when and where you want as long as the job gets done?” I am playing golf (if that’s what you call I do) when weather cooperates and am enjoying playing bridge. I MUST be turning into a 60+ person!! Most of all, I am loving having all three of my grandchildren in the same area. Many thanks to Dorsey for her assistance in getting class notes together as my procrastination did not include delayed house renovations, son and family moving in and a hurricane near the deadline. My hopes are to be much more vigilant with the next class report. And most of all, thanks to you who have given me something to submit this time!! 62

1976

Peggy Weimer Parrish 862 Main Street Danville, VA 24541 peggyparrish@gmail.com Marsha Taylor Horton’s son started college this fall and daughter started high school. Last fall she was the keynote speaker at an international conference on early childhood education held in Seoul, Korea. It was an awesome experience, especially spending time in a recently created enterprise zone that 10 years ago was nothing but sea and sand! She and her husband, Bobby, traveled to California for a business trip, where she reconnected with a friend from graduate school and dined on some of that wonderfully fresh San Francisco seafood! Yum! Meg Shields Duke writes that her daughter Margo (JYF ’05) has a bouncing toddler named Maddie and is looking forward to welcoming a new Vixen to the family when her nephew Benjy Duke marries Clarkie Woods ’12 in Virginia Beach Oct. 28. “While there I plan to have dinner with Lisa Nelson Robertson, Sally Old Kitchin and Ann Kiley Crenshaw.” Her son, Jamie, and wife Jesse welcomed baby girl Heidi (Von) Duke into the world on May 18. Her youngest, Caroline, recently became engaged to Wake Forest grad Tyler Ashley, with a Vail wedding planned for July. Amy Troxell Stein Fucini lost 35 pounds on Weight Watchers from January to May. She and her husband, Peter, took a 17-day cruise in May to several northern European capitals as well as cruised in their yacht for 66 days from June to August, thankfully returning home prior to Hurricane Irma, starting in Punta Gorda, Fla., through Lake Okeechobee, to the East Coast, Cocoa, St. Augustine, St. Simons Island, Beaufort, Charleston, Pawleys Island, Myrtle Beach, to name a few. “Peter is the Captain & I am the Admiral.” They just joined the Isles Yacht Club in September and are looking forward to enjoying its groups (bridge and water aerobics, woot woot!) plus the Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year’s festivities. Karina Halverson Schless just returned from Red Rock Ranch in Kelly, Wyo. She had a great time ... good friends, horses, views (near Jackson Hole and the Tetons). Susan Ray Karlson and husband Ron are celebrating their 40th anniversary this year and feel very fortunate that they have a couple of charming grandboys. She reported that partial retirement is fabulous and her little Medicare insurance business has expanded to the point she had to hire

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Daughter Olivia, Lynn Rogerson, new husband Steve, and Lynn’s father, Don

Kate Kelly Smith and Treacy Markey Shaw

Tricia Cassidy O’Callaghan, Treacy Markey Shaw, and Sally Mott Freeman

Lola Brock Meakin ’77, Jennie Bates Hamby, Tennessee Nielsen her first employee. Since she can work from the road, she and Ron venture from Maryland three to four months each year, camping in their VW pop-top van, visiting the nooks and crannies in this amazing country, hiking and playing golf. Gail Ann Zarwell Winkler and husband John enjoyed a wonderful trip to the U.K. in June for her daughter Laura’s graduation with a master’s degree from the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama in Cardiff, Wales. Son William was able to go, so they enjoyed two weeks of castles, handpulled ale and general adventure. Not to be outdone, in August William announced his engagement to very special Bridget, and plans a wedding in Neenah next year.

Susan Ray Karlson fishing in Homer, Alaska

Class Notes Kelsey Kanady Grice had a great year at work with her family yacht brokerage. She reported that while they worked harder than ever, they played hard too! Since her son Parker has joined the business, she has been able to take time off for great vacations, including rafting the Grand Canyon the first week of August. Daughter McKenzie is back at the beach planning for med school. Kelsey attended SBC Reunion weekend this past spring. Ann Kiley Crenshaw is so proud of all of our alumnae who have not given up the fight to save our College, and attended President Woo’s inauguration in September. She is thrilled to announce the arrival of Carlisle Sullivan Crenshaw, baby sister of Kiley Davis Crenshaw. Tricia Cassidy O’Callaghan and fellow classmates Sally Mott Freeman, Treacy Markey Shaw, and Kate Kelly Smith went to Nantucket for a few days. They stayed at her home and sailed, drank, ate, chatted went to the beach, hiked and thoroughly enjoyed being with each other. Her son, Timothy Higgings, got married last fall on Nantucket to another Holy Cross grad, Liz Conner, and they are happily settled in NYC: he at Goldman Sachs and she at Corcoran Real Estate. Trica is still a government attorney in Westchester County, and she is now a candidate for her LLM (Master of Laws) in environmental law. Melanie Coyne Cody still lives in Winnetka, Ill., works at Y&R Brands and travels to Green Lake, Wis., on summer weekends. She had a great hiking trip in New Zealand in January and sailed in May in the BVI with friends. Her daughter Sarah got engaged and daughter Caitlin received a big promotion to VP group strategy director at Digitas Chicago. Tennessee Nielsen couldn’t say no to Reunion 2017 “when I heard that Lola Brock Meakin ’77 would be there!” She loved visiting with Jennie Bateson Hamby in Charlottesville and seeing her adorable new grandson. Larkin Barnett is opening her own Pilates state-of-the-art equipment studio called “Pilates with Larkin” in Liberty Lake, Wash.! She is writing articles for Thrive Global; her first article was with Dr. Bernie Siegel and an upcoming article is with Robert Andrews, the Olympic training coach for medaling gymnasts. Lynn Kahler Rogerson had a busy year. She celebrated daughter Olivia’s high school graduation and accompanied her to multiple SBC activities—to the fabulous SBC Summer Riding Clinic, prospective students weekend, Sweet Work Weeks, then had the joy of delivering her in August as a proud member of the class of ’21. Lynn was also married

this summer; Olivia was maid of honor, and other SBC alumnae celebrating included Maureen O’Hearn Slowinski, Janet Whitehurst Binder ’75 and Wendy Weiler Chappell ’70. Lynn then headed off to South Africa for her honeymoon. She continues to run her non-profit organization and has taken up sailing with her husband. Susan Verbridge Paulson is still in Colorado Springs and celebrating her last year as an elementary school principal before “really” retiring in June. Connie Radford Butler is celebrating her 29th year of teaching preschool and is just waiting to have a child of a former student! Her son and his wife moved back to Louisville last summer; he is an ER doctor and they are expecting their first baby in October. This new one will join her daughter’s two boys in the town where she lives, and she considers herself SO lucky to have everyone so close! “I had a wonderful visit with Terry Starke Tosh ’75 this summer, both here and in Richmond.” Andie Yellott and husband Ben still work full-time for JHU/CTY in the Distance Online Writing Programs. She had to retire her horse this spring, which in her own words means, “I’m no fun at all to live with.” Son Andrew is working hard to “make it” in the music world; he had a successful U.S. tour in June, then a VERY successful tour in England in July. Son Benet is a Level 1 Cicerone (he’s a beer nerd!) and studying for Level 2. Her two coonhounds, Brosif and Caper, continue to spread love and joy as therapy dogs. She is her 88-year-old mom’s caretaker, with all that entails. She maintains contact with Ann Works Balderston, and she thoroughly enjoyed Sally Mott Freeman’s “most excellent” book. Jennie Bateson Hamby: We have a small house in Charlottesville since our son, daughter-in-law and year-old (in December) grandson live there. We go about three times a year. Lou can do his legal work remotely. My roomie, Tennessee Nielsen, came to C’ville from Dallas to go to the 40th reunion of Class of ’77. One highlight was seeing Lola Brock Meakin ’77, who is just the same! Also, MB Hamlin, Lynn Kahler, Janet Myers ’77, Jean Romanske ’77 and many others! Norma Neblett Roadcap, Teesie Costello Howell, and Peggy Weimer Parrish thoroughly enjoyed having lunch with Sally Mott Freeman at the Women’s Club in Richmond for the launch of her fabulous book, “The Jersey Brothers.” Teesie also had the pleasure of having dinner with Sally Old Kitchin and Lisa Nelson Robertson and husband Tim in Virginia Beach this summer. Congrats to Sally Kitchin and Keedie Grones Leonard on well-deserved SBC alum awards.

In addition to seeing Norma and Teesie at Sally’s book launch, I had a wonderful dinner with Mary Beth Hamlin Shannon and husband Jim in August, and I visit Elliott Graham Schoenig in Charlottesville as much as I can since she has YET to come to visit me in Danville. I am in my fifth year of teaching accounting and law at John Tyler Community College in Richmond, and travel to my second home in Danville whenever possible as it is my happy place.

1978

Suzanne Stryker Ullrich 820 Waverly Rd Kennett Square, PA 19348 suzullrich@aol.com Well, there are more of us becoming grandparents these days, but sadly there have also been some loved ones lost! That “Circle of Life” continues! First, a run down of all of the current and new grandmothers! Anne Taylor Quarles Doolittle welcomed granddaughter Maddy on Nov. 7, along with Maddy’s parents in Fairfax, Va. Between being a dutiful grandmother and riding (Anne is currently horseless, but is looking for a “super chill hunter” to take out with her hunt club this year!), Anne continues to paint, selling one painting a month through Instagram! She has also been volunteering as a crisis counselor since June and is loving it. Husband Bob’s son recently moved to Columbus, Ohio, allowing for great visits with Muffy Hamilton Parsons and Cindy McKay. Deb Davison Klein has a new granddaughter, Brooke Weidner, born Aug. 15 to youngest son Peter and his fiancé. Oldest son Bo got married in Laguna Beach this past March, and Deb was also able to visit daughter Whitney and her husband, Alex, in Atlanta in July. Nothing like crisscrossing the country! Julie Pfautz Bodenstab has also become a grandmother … again! Son Phillip and Sarah welcomed Eleanor (Ella) on Sept. 8 so that Sam (3) can now be a “big brother”! Son Peter and Chelsea are expecting their first child (a girl!) on Thanksgiving Day! Both boys and their growing families live in New England; so Julie has decided to retire in November after many years in the education department at Longwood Gardens. She and Mark will be moving to Lake Winnipesaukee, N.H., where they both look forward to sharing yearround activities with all of their family. Julie and I were able to take a class together at Longwood earlier this year, which was great fun. I will be so sad when she leaves Chester County, Pa., as will she! Katie Renaud Baldwin is in very

dry Oregon! When she wrote in, she was surrounded by fires, safe but with “just lots of smoke, and I am going crazy staying indoors!” Painting the whole downstairs was going to be her next indoor project! Katie retired, AGAIN, after being called back to teach second grade. Now she will be able to spend more time with at least one of her daughters, who is nearby. Granddaughter Addi (third grade) and newest granddaughter Annabelle will be holding her attention now. (Katie sent a picture, and when she says her newest is a “doll” she means it! Envision Thumbelina dolls from your past. That is what Annabelle looks like. Seriously!) Katie’s other daughter is a marketing manager for Cypress Groves Cheese. (Will you be bringing some of that “really good!” cheese to Reunion, Katie?) Katie and hubby are still living on their farm . . . just cows, chickens and another farmer growing mint on their land. There have been lots of renovations, inside and outside. “Getting used to retirement will be interesting and fun, I hope!” All of her family is doing great, including 95-year-old dad, and amazing mom at 93. Becky Mulvihill McKenna was expecting her first grandchild “any day”! “I am beyond excited to be a grandmother!” Second daughter Maggie and her husband, Joey, were “expecting” and living in Minneapolis, where Maggie was doing sustainable community development for a non-profit. Older daughter Katie has finished her family medical residency program in Portland, Ore., and recently started working at a family clinic providing rural, underserved family medicine in Hood River, Ore., doing the work she always dreamed of! Third daughter Erin works as a clinical social worker, doing group work with teens who are dealing with trauma. While on a trip to Paris for her 29th birthday, her boyfriend popped the question! Indeed, wonderful transitions for all three! Becky continues as a psychotherapist working with marriage and family therapy. Still loving what she does, Becky feels “lucky, and so happy, to see our kids growing and doing what they love to do!” Cassandra Smith Babbitt took a major leap of faith last January! She quit her job at the University of Maine to start her own business, Fiddlehead Quiltworks (on Facebook and online)! “And thanks to the great SBC network, I’ve made a start!” From personal experience, that long-arm quilting machine is impressive and Cassandra’s work is amazing. I think Perk would agree! In May, Cassandra made the very long drive from home in northern Maine to Topsail Beach, N.C., to meet 14 others classmates. “I joined the most awesome group of ’78ers on

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Class Notes Topsail Island for a brilliant weekend. It was a wonderful chance to reconnect, remember and update each other on our lives!” Cassandra’s two granddaughters have moved back to North America from Hong Kong, now living in Victoria, B.C. “Hey, at least we are on the same continent now! It’s nice that they always pick fun places for me to visit!” That’s it for all who wrote in about grandchildren! I know for a fact that there are more of you out there. (If I could insert a “wink, wink,” I would!) Why didn’t I hear from you? Mary Gearhart and her son, Cobi (17), had recently returned from another wonderful summer at Raquette Lake, N.Y., where Mary has worked almost every summer since ’75. Her current title is director of waterfront and minister of culture (“a bit like professor emeritus”). Cobi, who worked at the RL Supply Company over the summer, has now entered his senior year at Digital Harbor High School in Baltimore. Mary continues her work with the Community Play Project, which entails “daily adventures with two to five year olds!” Mary also continues to take wonderful photographs during her walks around Baltimore. I expect there will be a wonderful book someday. Catherine Moore’s son, Lee, graduated from the Walker College of Business at Appalachian State University and has begun the master’s program in accounting there as well. Daughter Aynsley is currently a junior at Furman majoring in political science. News also in from Cathy Mellow Golterman! Cathy is still teaching preschool, and baby and dog sitting. (Can the dogs be attached to the strollers?) Her twin daughters are both pursuing careers in education as well. Catherine teaches Kindergarten, and Christen is finishing her master’s in counseling/ education at Webster University. Son Woody has started at Cooley Law School in Tampa. Hubby Chris still involved with the manufacturing of shoelaces. There will always be some of us in the throes of renovation! Cindy Whitley Auman writes that “renovation projects still abound around our old farmhouse after nearly two decades!” She admits that rotator cuff surgery in July did slow her down a bit. Jean Beard Barden came through for an overnighter on her way north from Florida last March … “Lots of Fun”! Whitley was looking forward to a trip to the Outer Banks, N.C., “with friends and countless dogs . . . a welcome break!” Ieke Osinga Scully is still busy volunteering at her local historical society, having fun organizing house tours. Her two sons “launched into working members of society … one in Chicago, one teaching and coaching at The Hill 64

’78ers and other alumnae at the wedding of Lisa Wray Longino’s daughter Fleming (l to r): Claire Dennison Griffith ’80, Ellen Sellers McDowell ’77, Lisa Wray Longino, Barbara Wray Heath ’81, Bridget Wray Gardner ’79, Betsy Ryan Glenn, Mary Page Stewart, and Barbara Behrens Peck

Suzanne Stryker Ullrich, Cassandra Smith Babbitt, Cecilia Garcia-Tuñon Lear Katherine Powell Heller, husband John, both daughters and spouse and boyfriend on a “trip of a lifetime”—a wonderful African safari

Suzanne Stryker Ullrich, Lauren Place Young, Lauren’s daughter Brittany, Marianne Hutton Felch ’79 School in Pottstown, Pa. The third is at University of Denver for his junior year. No weddings, no grandchildren. We notice . . . is this generation slow in this dept.?” Husband Mark retired from the insurance business but stays busy in real estate building a “net-zero” energy home(s) while he and Ieke continue restoring a historic property in Simsbury, Conn. “Life is good!” Jaime Murray lives in Portugal while pursuing its fascinating history and traditions. “I’ve been riding a lot and am in love with the Lusitano horses!” Jamie’s springer spaniel, Merlin, and she swam a lot this past summer. “He’s a great trainer! We’ve also been walking a lot early in the morning as the temperatures here reach 100° dai-

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ly in summer! Roses are still blooming, the cork has been harvested as have the tomatoes, and it’s now time for wine making! We’re all waiting for the Feast of St. Martin and the National Lusitano Horse Fair.” Donna J. Gelaglotis Mihalik Lee has had a number of her poems published! Congratulations to her! “Cloud” and “After Letting the Horses Out” appear in the chapbook “The Lost Sparrow” (Lost Sparrow Press, 2017). Poems “America,” “1984,” and “Cameras” appear in Proteus: A Journal of Ideas (issue: “Privacy and Freedom in the Digital Age”) online. “Lover” appears in Forage (issue: “Poetry of Nature”) online. “Hot Breath” appears in Contemporary Verse 2: The

Mary Goodwin Gamper, Mimi Borst Quilman and Mary Page Stewart at a cancer walk in Baltimore in September honoring Maria Rixey Gamper, who passed away a couple years ago Canadian Journal of Poetry and Critical Writing (CV2), “Hair issue.” Raccoon Prints appears in the tenth anniversary issue (“Out of Time”) of Whitefish Review. Sounds like you’ve been pretty prolific, Donna! Mary Page Stewart sent in news that daughter Ellie and her family lived through Hurricane Harvey in Houston, just as she was awaiting news of Irma’s path! “Hoping that our Florida house survives this one! We are feeling very lucky and are keeping those directly affected in our prayers, as I’m sure everyone else is.” It was a crazy time for many! Lots of news from Anne Stelle! She is still a hospital chaplin and has been busy. The Rehabilitation Institute

Class Notes

The Fab Fifteen at Topsail Beach, N.C. (l. to r.): Cindy McKay, Lynn Spilman Williams (in back of) Muffy Hamilton Parsons in pink, Toni Christian Brown, Ann Yauger, Cassandra Smith Babbitt in corner, with Jane Hemenway Sullivan (white visor). Standing (l. to r.): Betsy Moore Conti, Anne Taylor Quarles Doolittle, Barbara Mendelssohn Price, with Elizabeth Perkinson Simmons seated in front of them. Along the rail (l. to r.): Wendy Igleheart Walker, Suzanne Stryker Ullrich, Carey Johnson Fleming, and Lauren Place Young

of Chicago had been building a new facility 2½ times larger, changing its name to The Shirley Ryan Ability Lab. After moving in last March, they have steadily been increasing their inpatient population as well as the staff. Anne needed to have one of her shoulders replaced in June, and luckily she had a wonderful daughter-in-law-to-be there to help her for the first week, and son Will came the second week. (Will and Chloe will be getting married next spring.) The second shoulder will be done next spring, and Anne mentioned that coming to Reunion will be hinged (no pun intended) on how well her PT goes. (Fingers crossed that it will go well!) “Son Will continues to be challenged in his position at the White House. He was hired under the old administration, and he feels a bit frustrated by the new one. He is in the Office of Management and Budget and, among other things, was in charge of the international portfolio for countries where religion entered into the equation (Will has a degree from a divinity school as well as one in public policy). With a mom having gone to Sweet Briar, he is a real advocate for women’s education and had the privilege of putting the funding together for Michelle Obama’s international education program for girls. Like many other programs, it has been challenged, and he finds this disappointing. This week he moved to taking over the global healthcare portfolio, and he is excited about the change.” Anne said in closing, “It looks like we have a really fabulous new president at Sweet Briar!

Thanks to ALL who are volunteering your time to the school, as well as serving on the staff!” I’ll second that! Kathy Jackson Howe keeps busy helping her mother and always looks forward to getting to High Hampton/ Cashiers, N.C., as often as possible, mostly just weekends. “Lots of W&L folks have purchased homes up there; so we re-hash old Virginia stories and gatherings quite often!” Kathy and still-working hubby Root have a family policy of seeing their children and two grandchildren every two to three months. “It’s fun to find the cheap tickets, the upgraded seats and common ground with our three children located in Shreveport, La., and Park City, Utah!” She also asks, “Would anyone be interested in some sort of educational/ unique class winter weekend in January? Call it SBC Alum Winter Term for the class of ’78?” Hmmmm, we may need to work on that! Fun! Katherine Powell Heller has had a full year. In January she lost her dad, “the last of the generation before us.” Always a sad time. This, on the heels of her unmarried uncle passing away the previous year, left Katherine and her brother to settle both estates. She struggles with the thought of selling the house she grew up in in Halifax, Va., so will keep it for now. A happier event took Katherine, husband John, both daughters, a spouse and a boyfriend on a “trip of a lifetime”—a wonderful African safari. John and Katherine stayed for a few extra days to explore Namibia. John’s 60th was celebrated in Hilton Head with friends including Carey Johnson Fleming and David.

Katherine and John’s daughter, Laura Flynn, and her husband bought their first house in Atlanta. “Lots of work but great to have them in town” . . . and close! Jane Hemenway Sullivan has been bopping around, most recently taking son John over to the University of Saint Andrews in Scotland, where he will be a “Fresher.” Jane calls it “magical” and “will now add to my selling/talking points as an Alumnae Admissions Ambassador that St. Andrews is definitely the place to go for Jr. Yr. Abroad!” Daughter Elizabeth (21) is in her senior year at Williams College. With both kids off to school, there may be time to continue restoration of their 1840 farmhouse in Georgia, at least when she isn’t visiting campus. Jane went to a Friends of Art meeting this past summer at SBC, where she met Dr. Woo. “She is fabulous and I can’t wait to see her again in N.Y.C.!” A “blast” was had in May at a mini-reunion. “Can’t wait for our real one.” (40th?? Hard to believe!) “Jay is well, I am well—both of us are now cancer free!” Hurray! Lisa Wray Longino and George celebrated the wedding of their daughter Fleming to Matthew Huckin in Dallas (May 20) with many Sweet Briar friends in attendance (Ellen Sellers McDowell ’77 and husband Rex, Betsy Ryan Glenn, Barbara Behrens Peck and husband Jeff, Mary Page Stewart and husband Bob, Maria Rixey Gamper’s husband Dickie, sister Bridget Wray Gardner ’79 and husband Jim, Claire Dennison Griffith ’80 and husband Luther, sister Barbara

Wray Heath ’81 and husband Tad). What a lovely and fun event that must have been! Lisa continues to enjoy working with the Alumnae Relations and Development office at school and admits that “it has been wonderful to meet so many extraordinary Sweet Briar women from all ages and stages who have stepped up and supported SBC!” She too is surprised it will be our 40th next year! Cathy Finley Önder was heard from while she was on a wonderful bicycle trip in France during the summer. “We rented a fantastic house in Chinon, France. It has beautiful views and is walking distance to town. It’s especially fun because (children) Sean and Kelly are with us!” Perhaps all of our classmates who have European experience can help us plan a class trip over there? Jeanette Mehl is happy to be in contact with so many classmates via Facebook. It is good to know about everyone and what they are doing. Jeanette spends many months in San Diego, where her daughter lives and works multiple jobs. “I help her with her dog, cleaning the apartment, making YouTube videos for her social media accounts (like a secretary) and as a personal assistant with her wardrobe, costumes, thank-you notes, arts and crafts projects and whatnot.” Life is busy, and like all SBC grads, she is a great “multi-tasker”! It took a lot of planning, but some were able to pull off a mini-reunion this past May in Topsail Beach, N.C., many thanks due to Elizabeth Perkinson “Perk” Simmons! Her family cottage on the beach, along with a cousin’s cottage two doors down made for quite the place to catch up, eat a few good meals, have a few good drinks, and generally just “veg and relax”! Thank goodness there was no one in the house between us that weekend! Lots of laughs ensued! We all arrived by planes and cars, with pick-ups at both of the local airports! (I think Cassandra deserves the award for driving the farthest!) In attendance were Perk Simmons, Cindy McKay, Lynn Spilman Williams, Wendy Igleheart Walker, Anne Taylor Quarles Doolittle, Ann Yauger, Betsy Moore Conti, Lauren Place Young, Cassandra Smith Babbitt, Toni Christian Brown, Jane Hemenway Sullivan, Barbara Mendelssohn Price, Carey Johnson Fleming, my cohort Muffy Hamilton Parsons and myself. What a time we had! While most of the time was spent at the cottages, there was time for a little shopping therapy, as well as a Pirate Cruise along the Intracoastal Waterway! There were many who wished to attend but had conflicts that same weekend (see Lisa’s and Katherine’s notes). As

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Class Notes people had to leave, they were each “sent off” by those remaining waving as they left! (Yes, there were some strange looks by a few passers-by!) The fun didn’t end! I ended up taking Lauren to the airport in Richmond on my way north but was only able to get a half hour away before the call came that Lauren’s flight had been canceled! Back I went! We both then went to pick up my new Siamese kitten (Thai) before racing back to my house in Pennsylvania, where Cassandra was waiting! Both spent the night (oh, what a night!) before heading toward Boston the next day. The stories could go on and on! We all left the beach saying, “We need to do this more often,” and “Why do we just have one reunion every five years?” But the best line I heard? “I really didn’t know some of these people when I was at school. I feel like I have a whole bunch of new best friends!” THAT is what it was all about! May there be many more “mini-reunions”! Where to next? While in Maine for a vacation (ironically with Audrey Townsend Bertram’s cousin Collis and his wife), I was able to sneak down to Bangor to have lunch with Cecilia Garcia-Tuñon Lear and Cassandra Smith Babbitt! A beautiful day to sit outside and catch up. Cassandra was nice enough to run a quilt through her long-arm for me, which we stopped by to pick up on our way south later that week. The coffee was a nice way to start the long trip south. The timing was right to meet up with Marianne Hutton Felch ’79 and Lauren Place Young on Nantucket for a couple of nights. It was too short as always, but we made it to the beach, were able to spend time with both Lauren’s daughter Brittany, who was working on Nantucket, and Marianne’s daughter Sarah and her family, and had some wonderful meals together, before saying our good-byes at the docks. The road was calling to both of us … Lauren was heading to Hanover, N.H., while Rick and I were headed back to Pennsylvania. At the time of this writing, I was getting ready to head down to Lexington to meet with Toni, Muffy, Lynn, and Cindy to do some pre-reunion planning (be on the lookout in the mail!), before heading over to campus for President Woo’s Inauguration, and to meet up with Becky Dane Evans, Sue Griste Russell, Anne Taylor Quarles Doolittle and Lisa Wray Longino! Looking forward to dinner together, or at least a glass or mug of something! As many of us know some of our classmates were recently hit with a rash of sad events. Our hearts go out to them. Ann Key Lucas wrote in about the loss of her husband, Jim, late in August as the result of cardiac arrest. “He was grand in, oh, so many ways. 66

But life moves on.” Ann is fortunate to have all three boys living nearby in St Louis: John (28) is in commercial real estate; Hunt (24), who is between jobs and thinking of moving to Chicago, and William (26), who got married on Oct. 7. After that she says her fall gets busy! “I leave for a biking trip through Normandy, France. It was a trip planned long ago with my sister and her husband and my absolute best friend and her husband; so in the true spirit of life, we will be pedaling on! We have a lot to look forward to, and for that I am grateful. Love and hugs to all.” And with that, I will close. We do have a lot to look forward to! Hoping to see LOTS of you at Reunion! Fondly, Suzanne.

1979

Mary Bingham 1583 Pinhurst Dr Pittsburgh, PA 15241-3201 maryrbingham@gmail.com Ashley Wilson Brook I spend a lot of time with my mother, who is 88 and still going strong but slower. Mary Grayson, UNC ’15 grad, is in the German studies Ph.D. program at Princeton. Sterrett is 21 and attending Wake Tech. I met Day Pritchard for lunch in the spring at Durham; and took a trip to Pawleys Island with Mary South Gabb, Bridget Wray Gardner, Mary Cowell Sharpe, and Kathy Pittman Moore. David and I are both well. Aimee B. Kass During the past year, I practiced law, taught at Paterson charter schools, attended Sweet Briar’s Reunion, and worked my ass off during Sweet Weeks. In my spare time, I’m working on a book. Lauren MacMannis Huyett We built a house in Concord, Mass., that though new, looks old. It will be in the magazine New England Living this fall and is depicted in the new PBS series “Little Women” as Laurie’s house! Still have only one married out of the five kids so far, but all are productive and happy—two girls in Manhattan, two boys in Boston and one son (and daughter-in-law) in Pittsburgh in residency at UPMC. Our youngest did set design for the movie “The Big Sick,” which is out in theaters now. Lauren Huyett Interiors is still going really well, and I am having fun being on several local boards with design capacity being used! Bill is still at McKinsey and Company and also on many boards, including two at UVa; so we get to Charlottesville a ton! Karen McGoldrick I have my fifth book out this fall, a non-fiction dressage book that ties into my novels. It is part memoir, but mostly “notes” gleaned from all my years of riding and study of riding, including at Sweet Briar. I also have other ideas in the works.

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I have a lovely Holsteiner cross mare that I have brought along myself, and she gives me so much pleasure every day. Lawrence (38 years strong) and I still have Prospect Hill Farm, and I love having my horse at home, although the work and upkeep are daunting. Lawrence has been employed at Fisher and Phillips law firm in Atlanta since he graduated from the University of Georgia School of Law in 1983. I stay in contact with my old roommate Prudence Saunders Pitcock. Facebook has been an amazing tool for finding and getting to know the amazing women of Sweet Briar. I am still amazed how it helped us save our college. I know the job of securing Sweet Briar’s future is never finished, but feel good about our present leadership. Nancy White Life is good. John and I are keeping busy with my shop, The Flower Bar, in Larchmont, N.Y. Now that we’ve grown to a certain size, I can actually take a vacation (first one since our honeymoon in 2008). We went to Mexico and to Puerto Rico to visit friends this year. We also won a trip on the Rocky Mountaineer, a “luxury” train ride through the Canadian Rockies. We had a great time combining it with a visit to my sister at her summer home in Montana. I’ve also had the opportunity to do more racing and won in the Ideal 18 class at Larchmont Race Week. We are planning to charter a boat and cruise from Marion, Mass., to Boston, Gloucester, Scituate, and Provincetown and back to Marion. As far as my part for Sweet Briar, I was able to go to one college fair and had an appointment with the counselors at my old high school. I think developing relationships with the secondary schools is the way to go. I also worked with Robbie and Caroline White to try to get our giving stats up. We are so grateful to all who gave and encourage everyone to make a contribution—no matter how small. Every dollar counts! Clara Jackman Garbett I am still living in Glen Allen, Va., with husband Stuart, two horses, goats, and an adorable corgi. I applaud my children’s adventurous spirit. Megan is in Hawaii but will return in January and plans to do the AT and then start real life. Stuart is in Idaho working as a wildlife ranger bordering the Tetons for the summer and usually does a ski resort for winter so he can snowboard. This summer I hiked the Lake District in England and Yellowstone. I continue to teach kindergarten in Henrico County. I have kept up with Pam Ramsdell Mitchell, who is in Maine. We are both teaching kindergarten; so we share ideas and fun stories. Betsy Utterback Jim and I are in Wilton, Conn., and building a house (completion in January) in Bluffton, S.C. We have four grandbabies: Our

oldest is a boy and then three little girls (2 mo. to 3.5 yrs.). Our married children live in Brooklyn, N.Y., Yardley, Pa., and Los Angeles. All are happy, healthy and doing well. We are very proud parents. Jim continues his crazy travel schedule, and I hope to resume my interior design business in S.C. We just returned from a fabulous vacation in Big Sky, Mont., with Sally Ann Bensur and Bill. I played in a “Play for Pink” golf event with Nancy Webb Corkery ’81 at Kittansett in July ... we had so much fun. Beth Tetrault Had lunch with Aimee Kass in Charlottesville as she was heading back north after Sweet Work Weeks. Mary South Gaab This is our sixth move seven years! We are now in DeLand, Fla., and are looking forward to winters without the cold weather and the only white is the sand on the beach! We now have two granddogs. As much as we love the four-legged grands ... looking forward to the twolegged grand. For now living vicariously through Bridget Wray Gardner’s adorable grandson Joe!!! Susan A. Cruess We had fun trips to Phoenix and Kansas City in February. Unfortunately, travel became more difficult since I couldn’t walk or stand for more than five minutes due to my orthopedic issues—back and knee. Tough getting old—maybe my time playing basketball and tennis at SBC started the wear. So the rest of my year has been focused on surgery and rehab. In mid-April, I had back surgery to fix a vertebra. The surgery was successful, and it’s great to be able to stand up straight and walk longer distances again. Now my only limitation on distance is my knee. So next up—knee-replacement surgery on September 1! Soon I’ll be a bionic woman! The dogs will certainly be happy since I’m not allowed to walk them alone right now! Weighing 83 and 70 pounds, they still pull too much for my continued back recovery. Leigh continues as president of Tidal Energy, the energy marketing group for Enbridge, and thinks he’ll retire in a few more years. We’re hoping to get more travel in next year. The boys are doing well. Jim (31) got engaged in March. He and Kate have been together for five years and bought a house in Toronto this year. She’s a great addition to the family, and we’re looking forward to his wedding over Labor Day weekend 2018. Andrew (28) finished his second undergraduate degree, in computer information systems, and is hoping to work as an analyst in a corporate IT department, perhaps focusing on internet security. Robbie McBride Bingham I have been in Pittsburgh since my father died

Class Notes

Janie Clark Morrison, Nancy Hatch Schwartzmiller, Jane Hubbard Sams, and Louise Mueller Cook at Kiawah Island

Quinn on Aug. 22. They live in Acton. Her son, Alex, and his wife, Emily, live nearby in Littleton. Both children went to the University of Massachusetts. Louise Wright Erwin My two daughters, Alison and Emily, are now both in college. Alison just started her musical journey at Susquehanna University, where in the small world category, Jonathan Green is president. He used to be at Sweet Briar. Emily is a senior studying political science at Rutgers, where she swam for several years and is now coaching at a local club, which she loves. My oldest son, Alex, is married and working in the Philadelphia area. As for me, I was working for a brokerage firm, then the YMCA. I am semi-retired and spend my time with my husband, Mark. We live in Philadelphia and we have a summerhouse in Gloucester. Mark is in IT and loves his Gloucester getaway and is the family historian.

1980 Louise Wright Erwin, Robbie McBride Bingham and Karen Alex Bender in 2011. Went to Reunion this year and ran into my first-ever boss. His wife is an SBC grad. Had a great time catching up with him. Went to Work Weeks with Elizabeth McMartin. Had a great time. Have seen a lot of Ann South Malick ’74; we lunch regularly. My son William is working and going to school and loves Pittsburgh. Samuel, my oldest, is a senior at University of New Mexico and will graduate with a B.A. in philosophy and a B.S. in math. Went to visit Louise Wright Erwin and her husband, Mark, in Massachusetts, where Karen Alex Bender met us. Great mini-reunion. Deborah Gibbs I’m still married to Vance, living in Baton Rouge, La., practicing law, and traveling some to get out of our humid summers. Our daughter Elisa lives in New Orleans and is a math specialist for National Heritage Academy; son Parker is in the film business working as an assistant producer (or in any other capacity available!) in various productions and also living in New Orleans. I do get to Virginia regularly, now, since my youngest daughter, Martha, married a young man from Richmond, where they reside. They had our first grandchild in April 2017! Sumner Dalrymple, daughter of Liz Day ’78, was in Martha’s wedding, and Liz and Chris attended. Sarah Daniels, daughter of Sally Davis Daniels ’82, was also in the wedding, and Sally and Mark Daniels also came

to Baton Rouge for the event. I don’t post on Facebook, but I watch, and follow my good friend Mikki Farley Canning’s adventures with a farmevent barn in Kentucky . Margaret Hixon Griffith The writing of this update comes at quite a historic time. Harvey has just passed Houston and is on the way to other states. More destruction is on the way. For those of you who still do not believe in climate change—our ranch is on the Brazos River and has been flooded three times this past year. The previous flood year was almost 25 years ago! On another note, I became a grandmother on Nov. 14, 2016. Amelia Brooks Szoradi was born in Aspen, Colo. I was lucky enough to be able to spend much of the winter in Colorado enjoying my new role in life. I just cannot wait to throw her on a horse! Please visit my website, Margaret Griffith Fine Art at margaretgriffithartist. com when you have a chance. Karen Alex Bender has retired from a career of retail management and running her own company, Jo Karen, LLC. She and Ed, her husband of 35 years, recently sold their house in Acton, Mass., and moved to Lowell, Mass. They are currently doing renovations, and they also have a house in Vermont, where they ski and snowshoe. Karen has just become a grandmother. Her daughter, Catie, and Catie’s husband, Garrett Moynihan, had baby

Myth Monnich Bayoud 6269 Oram St Apt 21 Dallas, TX 75214-6225 mythbayoud@yahoo.com Mary Callahan Arnold writes that she and hubby Chip (W&L grad) visited their daughter, Catherine (a senior at Colgate), who was spending spring of her junior year in Wales. They traveled to cities in Switzerland and France and then went to London. Mary stays busy volunteering for the National Cathedral. The new love of Mary’s life is her yellow lab, Sophie. She was in Vail last August with Diane Dilworth Gates and Myth Monnich Bayoud. Lisa Heisterkamp Davis writes that she is enjoying her psychotherapy and counseling business. She rented an office that is a quick walk from her home! “Josh and I are proud of our children—Augusta (27) finished her graduate degree in social work at Boston College, and Dashiell (25) started law school at Boston College. We are keeping up with travel, reading, church, family and friends!” Ginny Farris Hoffman is still working for the Soil & Water Conservation District. Her daughters live in St. Thomas and made it through Hurricane Irma, but had Maria barreling down on the island as of this writing. Ginny and 10 of our classmates are going to St. Thomas in February to celebrate 60th birthdays, 38 years after our graduation, which is a testimony to SBC! Mary Jo Giambatista gave up her flight attendant job on private planes to take a break and manage a great local Italian restaurant! Phyllis Watt Jordan is enjoying her work at Georgetown University, where she works with two think tanks. She recently wrote briefs on private

school vouchers and the new federal education law. She’s still involved with the Alumnae Alliance and is excited about Sweet Briar’s new direction. Husband Brian is still doing maritime law. Daughter Miranda is in her junior year at Emerson College and son Jake is doing a gap year after finishing high school. Phyllis saw Emily Quinn McDermott when she came to move her daughter to D.C. for her first job. Amy Campbell Lamphere tells us that she got back to campus for graduation and to send off her adopted Vixen of two years. “It was bittersweet saying good-bye to President Stone.” She was looking forward to meeting our new president, Meredith Woo, at her Inauguration in September. “I am still busy dancing Nia and shaping up America with Ruby Ribbon.” She traveled to Hawaii, the Black Hills, Florida Keys, California Coast, and Arizona/ TCP Open Course. Her children are in Chicago and D.C. Carolyn Hallahan Salamon has taken a management position with Leidos, a mainframe computer company that keeps Medicare and Medicaid going. Thomas is a freshman at Hampden-Sydney, and Meghan is a junior in high school. She sends love to all. Sandra Rappacioli Padilla writes to us from Managua! Her youngest son, Felipe, is a junior and Sandra is hoping to visit him for Parent’s Weekend next year. Violeta just graduated from SCAD and is taking some time off at home. Sandra Lucia works in Sarasota and Jorge and Max Carlos are in Nicaragua. Max is still working at the coffee farm. Sandra is working part-time in the family business and has taken up golf. Evangeline Taylor ’00 moved to Nicaragua this summer; her husband works for the American Embassy. Florence Rowe Barnick tells us that the twins returned to Landmark College in January. They each landed internships with Hasbro in Rhode Island. Her youngest son has launched an IT business named Rappahannock IT in Fredericksburg. Richard and Florence are well and dealing with elder-care. Tish Longest Tyler is still at Virginia’s office of the Attorney General. She enjoyed seeing Carolyn Birbick

Janel Wiles and Myth Bayoud

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Class Notes Thomason for a weekend in August. Tish will be traveling to Paris in October for a much-needed vacation. Leslie Williams Summers has been busy caring for her mother and preparing new students for Country Day. She is picking up their foster dog that they rescued during Hurricane Harvey. Leslie wants to be able to get together with old Sweet Briar friends this year! Janel Hughes Wiles reports that she and John are on a cruise to Hawaii for John’s 60th! They are both still practicing law at their firm, Wiles & Wiles. And your class secretary has a freshman, Charlie, at the University of Missouri. He is majoring in sports broadcast journalism. Charlie is on the Mizzou radio, KMOU, doing the play-by-play for football games and the women’s soccer team. I spent a weekend in Atlanta playing golf with Janel Wiles in August. We were also able to sneak out to Vail for a weekend of skiing last February! I see Mary Callahan Arnold whenever I am in D.C. and also see Carolyn Thomason and Tish Tyler. Please stay in touch and let us know how you are! Everyone who has been affected by the hurricanes is in our thoughts.

1981

Claire McDonnell Purnell Five Park Place Apt 408 Annapolis, MD 21401 cpgd@verizon.net May Carter Barger: I’ve returned to school, studying arts leadership at Queens University, Charlotte, with goal of purchasing public art for institutions. In July I spent a week in Chicago with Allison Greene, Nan Loftin and Jane Terry. We saw “Hamilton” (unbelievable!) and just caught up. Daughter Josie just graduated from SMU and son Ben is a sophomore at High Point University. Love serving on the SBC Friends of Art board! Quinn Fokes: Greetings to you all, and please let me know if you’re in

Quinn Fokes’ “Rindo” 68

the SF Bay Area; I’d love to see you! Currently working on capstone project for master’s in human computer interaction (HCI), painting a series around grand prix jumpers, and seeking a role in user research (a form of applied research). Will see my mother and sister in Atlanta over Thanksgiving. Sending love and support to those affected by recent storms and floods. Anne Grosvenor Evrard: Walter and I have moved ... AGAIN! Now we are in Saint-Jean-de-Luz, a small fishing village very near the Spanish border, in the Basque Country. It is going to be a great project to keep Walter busy for a while with renovations, while I enjoy having long visits from our children—and grandchildren! Yes, we are grandparents! Constance had a baby boy last December, and Helene is expecting in November this year! Brendy Reiter Hantzes: No big news from me. I was playing a lot of tennis until July, when I developed a blood clot in my leg. I’m getting better and didn’t let that stop me from attending Sweet Work Weeks in August.

1982

Patti Snodgrass Borda Mullins 15 Tenth Avenue Brunswick, MD 21716 pattibmullins@gmail.com Lynda Leigh Leibel: Based in New York City and commute to S-Vyasa University in Bangalore, India, where I’m completing graduate work in Indian philosophy & Sanskrit. Working on my dissertation, “Eastern Meditative Practices and Their Effect on Cancer,” at New York-Presbyterian/Columbia University Medical Center, where I work with oncologists to design evidence-based mind-body protocols for cancer patients undergoing active treatment. Special interest in women’s sexual health following breast and gynecologic cancer treatments. Created a fashion-focused social enterprise, Vixens and Gypsies (yep—a nod to SBC!) to teach women in India sustainable skills to break the cycle of poverty. V&G was named a finalist in InStyle magazine’s Independent Handbag Designer of the Year Awards 2011—Most Socially Responsible Category. Deborah Bowman: I enjoyed seeing Aimee Nelson Smith in Maryland on my way to pick up my son Kessler from his high school summer program in communications at American University. I was off to Boulder and Fort Collins in September on the way to my cousin’s Montana wedding, and in October traveled to San Francisco and Marin for the wedding of niece Lauren Miller ’10. Meanwhile, Kessler is a junior at White Mountain School in New Hampshire, and Kate is a senior at The

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New School in New York City and has been modeling part-time. Good genes. Lee Watson Lombardy: Hunkered down in her Florida office on a September night, Lee wrote: “I’m writing to you from the City of Orlando Operations Center as we are getting slammed by Hurricane Irma! I enjoyed seeing classmates at Reunion! Husband Warren, daughter Georgia and I enjoyed a quick getaway to Oregon and Northern California in late July. Thanks to Robin Platt Wetherbee for telling us about Crater Lake National Park; it was my favorite part of the trip. Gracie Schild: I finally finished my kitchen remodel—just in time for Christoph to leave again for college! I’m quite proud that I built the whole thing myself (though a contractor installed the cabinet boxes), and if anyone needs help with an Ikea kitchen, I’m your gal. My new boss is not someone I can work with, so I’m looking for a change. It was fabulous to see so many classmates at Reunion—now let’s get some of you out here in Santa Fe for visits! Monika Kaiser: L ots of travel for me this year. First, Germany, to visit my mom; then Cleveland, Ohio, with my mom; then D.C. to catch up with Reem Saifi’85; then the best Reunion so far. I enjoyed not only catching up with my classmates but meeting all those alumnae that I met online during our SBC rescue phase. Next, a 10-day trip to India, because my husband will spend two months working there. Cheers! Jennifer Rae: Attending our class reunion in June was such a special time with our SBC sisters, professors and staff. Watching everyone interacting was a joy as always. When spending time with my sister in Maine, I got to know Bowdoin College, located in Brunswick, where President Woo did her undergrad. So honored she is our new president. Polk Green: Not a whole lot of news from me. Living in Dallas and driving back and forth to Amarillo to take care of my mom and dad. Trying to get a job in Amarillo and make it easier on my life. My wife and dogs will be in Dallas, but you have to do what you gotta do! We have only one set of parents! [Polk’s mom died shortly before the magazine went to press. Much love to you, Polk, from all of us.] Catherine Adams Miller: David and I are doing well. We just moved our youngest daughter, Ali, to Nashville, where she will be starting her graduate studies to become a licensed professional counselor (LPC). Madeline is living in Richmond, completed her master’s in education, and just started her first job teaching kindergarten. My mom just turned 91 and is in good health. Life is good, and we feel very blessed. Rosemary Hardy: For the first

time in more than 30 years, I am enjoying a much more relaxed and flexible daily schedule. As of May 2017, I am fully retired from being a behavior specialist in the public schools and, thus far, really taking advantage of the freedom retirement allows me. Life is definitely good!! Jean von Schrader Bryan: Love living in Amherst! Reunion was a blast! Had Dorinda Davis Trick and Fred, and Gay Kenney Browne stay with us. There is always something going on at SBC! Pool was finished in early June, and we have been enjoying it thoroughly! I’m a class fund agent now; so I’ll be calling you all. So proud of what we raised for our 35th. Can’t wait for our 40th! Love to all! Gay Kenney Browne: I am writing a book on environmental health— should be released in first quarter of 2019. My middle child just graduated from Cate and is taking a gap year traveling and working on a political campaign. My husband and I have separated after 25 years. He is looking forward to playing more golf, and I am reevaluating my long-term residency. It is an amicable split, with our age difference being the leading reason. My next book will probably be the “happy divorce.” My daughter continues to be a show jumper, which keeps us traveling most weekends. In between writing and watching riding, I am working on revamping my company, Greenopia. I couldn’t be happier, although I’m not sure I could be much busier! Katharine “Kit” Parks: Starting Active Travel Adventures podcast (curates adventure travel for fit folks over 50). Have my rental development

Lynda Leigh Leibel in India

Class Notes on the market, and when it sells, plan to go walkabout and explore the world for a few years. Mary Ames Booker: I can’t say I have any real big news for everyone. We are very grateful Hurricane Irma bypassed the southeastern coast of North Carolina. I pray for all who are affected by Harvey and Irma. I’ve completed some fun, new projects at work (Battleship North Carolina) recently and share photos on Facebook. I enjoy following postings on our class Facebook page and appreciate everyone’s efforts for SBC. Patti Snodgrass Mullins: I’ve just begun the second year as public information coordinator for The City of Frederick, Maryland, second-largest city in the state, a thriving business/ biomedical, arts, food destination. Communications work, project management, marketing, production and opportunities for growth in my position suit me perfectly. My daughter, a scholarly, soccer-playing junior at Brunswick High School, said she liked last year’s social studies teacher, who we learned is a Sweet Briar graduate: Patricia Brown (year unknown). Meanwhile, throughout the year, I’ve been living vicariously through husband Earl’s first year of retirement (an Episcopal priest), as he sails his 32-foot Bristol on the Chesapeake, among other adventures.

1983

Cary Cathcart Fagan 329 Kelford Lane Charlotte, NC 28270 cary1983@bellsouth.net Hello, Ladies, I’m happily back! After the craziness of saving SBC in ’15, and the confusion around the reorganization in ’16, I’m afraid I got distracted from my duties. Chris and I have been in Charlotte for 13 years, yikes! As I sit here in my lovely T-shirt that reads “Boiled Peanuts … Baby Food for Rednecks,” I realize that I still haven’t totally acclimated to the South. I suppose you have to be regional to get the peanuts joke. Forever a Cornhusker, married to a Bills fan, rooting for the Panthers, and cheering on the Diamondbacks, I must be multi-regional, multi-twang, multi-polar or maybe multi-partisan. Is that even possible? Anyway, here we go … Alicia Nygaard Formagus and Nace are now proud grandparents of a healthy, happy baby boy. They are busy with their younger son, Thomas McNutt, who is running for the Texas State Legislature. Their son William was in charge of small boat rescues during Operation Hurricane Harvey, resulting in 1,312 rescues! They were greatly relieved when they learned that our classmate Adriana Garza Reed was safe. We all share that feeling with

you, Alicia! Ann Sterling Hart continues working in her life’s passion, organizing dressage shows and showing her mare, Kashmir. She did her first CDI this past year! She’s upgrading her Dressage Tech Delegate license through the USEF and also working as the executive director at Equestria Horse Park at White Fences in Loxahatchee, Fla. (near Wellington). Ann is superexcited about this project. The property encompasses 35 to 40 hamlet barns and an extensive covered arena complex with 6 to 8 outdoor arenas. It is geared for multiple disciplines (dressage, hunter/jumper and cross-country). The build out should be ready for the 2018-2019 show season! Ann writes that her daughters are amazing, working and living on their own with their boyfriends. Ann says she doesn’t have a special man in her life, yet, but she is finally happy! You go, girl! Deirdre Platt wrote that she sends her hugs to any of our classmates who were affected by hurricanes Harvey and Irma. Deirdre has temporarily relocated her family from their home of 12 years on the coast of Ecuador due to the earthquake in April 2016. So, 30 years since she first went to Loja with the Peace Corps, Deirdre, her husband and three youngest children are enjoying all the capital city has to offer: arts, music, literature, education and culture in general. Her daughter May (20) is studying biology at Loja’s UTPL University. Deirdre keeps busy talking on environmental and health issues on several radio stations and also advises biology-ecology SIT students in a private nature reserve, which has spectacled bears and other fun species to study! Her family returned to their coastal home in Puerto Lopez this summer for a two-month vacation, feasting on fresh fish daily. The time there allowed Deirdre to do necessary habitat management in their overgrown forest garden. Maybe someday she will share with us some pictures of her tropical paradise! Diana Duffy Waterman shared fantastic news—she’s cancer free!! Diagnosed with breast cancer in ’15, she spent ’16 going through chemo, surgeries (double mastectomy and reconstruction), and radiation. Through all of this, Diana managed to complete her term as chairman of the Maryland Republican Party and is running unopposed to be the next president of the Maryland Federation of Republican Women. Her kids turned 28 and 30 this year, which makes Diana believe she’s old. Nonsense, girlfriend. You’re unstoppable!! You are 50-something and fabulous. Hey, aren’t we all! Elena Quevedo’s daughter Olivia graduated from RISD last year, and after living a year in New Orleans, she

is considering grad school in textile design. Her son, Sebastian (21), exited the special needs school system, and now is in a private program for young adults like him, learning vocational skills, along with yoga, music, computer science and lots of exercise. Elena’s biggest news is that she left the NYC Ballet in April and is now the SVP of Advancement for the New Jewish Home in Manhattan! They hired her to raise $40M for a totally innovative capital campaign building a new model for elder care. This revolutionary model of care Elena plans to replicate in the future for young adults with autism. She continues to augment her education with travel far and wide, recently Russia, India, the Benelux, and Turkey. Elena loved the two mini-reunions with classmates, one in NYC for the ballet and the other in Asheville, N.C., hosted by Eleanor Bibb. Still going to a lot of artsy things, Elena has now taken to sculling in the East River in an eight-person shell. (Is there anything you won’t try, Elena?) Gigi Harsh Mossburg and husband Mark still live in Edgewater, Md. (near Annapolis). Life is crazy raising two teenage sons! Tyler, the oldest, will be graduating with a degree in business from Ferrum College in Virginia this December. Tyler is the first one ever in Mark’s family to go to college! Tyler assured Gigi that he will walk across the stage with his classmates at the graduation ceremony in May ’18. Gigi’s youngest son, Garrett, just transferred to Salisbury University in Maryland. Gigi wrote that she misses her dear SBC friends and wants us to know that we are in her heart. Silly girl, you’re always in my heart, my Asses comrade “May She Fart.” Grayson Harris Lane is still in Menlo Park, Calif., and enjoying an empty nest with husband David. Her daughter, Virginia, is a senior at U.S.C. majoring in biomedical engineering. Son Robert is a sophomore at Duke studying mechanical engineering. Grayson believes they clearly got their math/science smarts from David! Grayson keeps busy tutoring elementary school students in reading and art. She also organizes events for Stanford’s Cantor Arts Center. If anyone gets out to the SF Bay area, our pretty friend Grayson says look her up! Libby Glenn Fisher is “semi-retired” still living in N.W. Florida. Libby is loving her second career in real estate. Her children are both college graduates, and she’s thrilled to have them “off the payroll.” Both children live and work in N.Y.C.; so Libby and Charlie enjoy visiting them. Libby writes they have plenty of room for visitors if any SBC gals are vacationing in the Seaside/Seagrove/Rosemary Beach area.

Lucy Chapman Millar and husband Ken have been busy moving houses this past 18 months. They (sort of) downsized in Atlanta, moving to a neighboring county for lower property taxes! Also, they found a lovely place in Bluffton, S.C., which will ultimately be a retirement spot. Lucy had a fabulous time at the Virginia Gold Cup this past April with Wylie Jameson Small, Anne Little Woolley, and Alice Cutting Laimbeer (and their spouses)!!! Alice and husband Rick were extremely generous to host the event. Lucy is looking forward to seeing everyone at Reunion next spring. Back at ya, sister! Mason Bennett Rummel wrote that her youngest daughter has enrolled as a Turning Point student at SBC. She’s studying sociology and has about two years to complete her degree. She lives on Faculty Row with other students in their mid-20s. Mason’s middle daughter, Annie, is in Nashville, and son Bennett is in NYC, married but no children yet. Husband Rick is busy as ever with his medical equipment company and another startup in the cancer diagnostics business. If Mason wasn’t amazing enough to be named CEO of the James Graham Brown Foundation, where she’s been for 29 years, she has also been involved with SBC the past couple years. When our hero, Mary Pope Hutson, transitioned off the board to become the VP of Alumnae Relations and Development, Mason took her place on the board! Mason says she marvels at the leadership, the board and the students who are actively revitalizing SBC, and positioning it to be a leader in women’s education in the U.S.!! Pamela Weekes slipped me a note just before the deadline to write that she has never been more proud to be an SBC graduate than the past year! Pam continues to be our class culinary queen; she opened her fourth Levian Bakery location earlier this summer after a long delay. Needless to say, Pam has had an extremely busy summer/ year. She sends a big Thank You to everyone from SBC who stops in to visit the store when in N.Y.C. Pam loves it!

1984

Marian Wahlgren 1850 Jones Nursery Rd Lexington, KY 40509-9740 mwpointofview@gmail.com After a rewarding career in Environmental Health with the Virginia Department of Health, Elaine Godsey Freim switched careers and will retire after 16 years with Riverside Health System as activities director. Her daughter, Jennifer, teaches sixth grade science and just completed her master’s. Her son, Robb, is pursuing his master’s at Northwestern. Elaine

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Class Notes

Keli Colby and Michael are celebrating 24 years together and enjoying camping and their six grandchildren. Elaine’s other passion is creating original arts and crafts. Louise Jones Geddes and Jim are enjoying their empty nest. Their youngest child, Lucia, is at Tulane, and they hope she’ll graduate in 2020. Giles (Washington & Lee ’16) is in D.C. working for United Bank. Charlie (Wofford ’15) works for Georgia-Pacific in Atlanta. Louise has loved reconnecting with Sweet Briar friends and is so thrilled that the college continues to gain strength. Keli Colby has joined the law firm of Ballard Spahr in its Washington, D.C., office. She is a real estate attorney and works on major real estate projects and transactions both as in-house and outside counsel in the D.C. metropolitan area and nationally.

1986

Alis “Piper” Van Doorn 1896 Park Drive Columbus, GA 31906 alisvandoorn@hotmail.com Alis “Piper” Van Doorn has had a somewhat eventful year thus far. In April, Richard flew over from England and Piper and Sophie enjoyed a blissful week with him in Neptune Beach, Fla. They spent a fun afternoon catching up with Rushton Haskell Callahan. Piper is thrilled to finally be a published author, with seven short stories published in an international anthology! She is also trying to plan a “Girls Get Away” week with Star Hollis Waldron, Ingrid Weirick Squires and Lee Grzybowski Sakowicz. On a sadder note, Piper has spent the past seven months dealing with the fallout (emotional, financial, legal) resulting from her mother’s trusted caregiver stealing an insane amount of money from her mother’s accounts over a year and a half, as well as most of her jewelry. Piper is working closely with the D.A. on trial prep and keeping her beautiful, intelligent and independent 93-year-old mama healthy and ready 70

for the trial. She urges anyone with elderly parents to keep a close eye on their finances and any home health care worker, even if it seems intrusive. Ava Spanier was recently the assistant director of Neil Simon’s “Chapter Two” at the Arizona Theatre Company, directed by the marvelous Marsha Mason. The play opened to rave reviews in Tucson and Phoenix! Ava is becoming a fixture in the Arizona theater scene at both ATC and the Phoenix Theatre. Bella Viguerie Gsell is celebrating surviving another huge storm; first Katrina and now Harvey! But they are safe and sound. Bella is grateful for the many SBC friends who were in touch and sends a big thank you to all! In calmer times they are spending time in both Colorado and Texas, and visit their three children who are away at school. Bella sends love to all! Catherine McNease Stevens writes that summer highlights for the Stevens family included traveling to Kansas for son Henry to compete in the U.S. Track & Field National Junior Olympics outdoor track championships and a great visit with Burke Morrow and Burke’s dear mother in Carey, N.C. Catherine adds, “As we head into Henry’s senior year of high school, we are both excited and wistful. It has happened too fast!” Elizabeth Lindsey is living in Beech Grove, Ind., still working on settling into her new city and finding new friends (any SBC Indy alumnae who’d like to meet her for lunch?). Elizabeth says she wishes she could say her life has been “full of adventure and excitement, but it’s really been quite unremarkable this past year. Sometimes, though, unremarkable isn’t a bad thing.” Piper says, “Amen to that!” Jesse White is entering her seventh year as a school psychologist at Barre City School in Vermont. She loves the challenge, because the reward is the smile of a child, and there is nothing better than that! Jesse loved being back at SBC two years in a row (2015, 2016) and says it felt strange not to be back this year. She is thrilled at our college’s progress and excited for the future, noting the very special bond we have at Sweet Briar. Julia Andrews Milstead is still plugging along as a TV reporter for the NBC affiliate in Raleigh, N.C. The job keeps her on her toes as does son Will (9)! In August Julia got to enjoy her annual “mini-reunion” with some of her SBC favorites: Kira Flores Ector, Christina Babcock, Lee Malley Lowe, Tracy Gilmore and Jenny Jahos Chaladoff. And they are all still as fierce as ever! Karen Harcum Levy writes that life is continuing on an even keel. All

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L-R Jesse White, Mary Beth Miller Orson, Anne Toxey, Karen Harcum Levy

L-R Mrs. Morrow, Burke Morrow, Catherine McNease Stevens Clockwise from bottom left: Jenny Jahos Chaladoff, Julia Andrews Milstead, Lee Malley Lowe, Tracy Gilmore, Kira Flores Ector, Christina Babcock

L-R Jem Bailey-Orchard (W & L ’18), Robyn Bailey-Orchard, Tatt Orchard

L-R Robyn Bailey-Orchard and Kim Houtman (’87)

Leigh Ann White and Karen Harcum Levy painting Grammer 320

Class Notes three of her kids are great, living and doing what they want to be doing. Karen is loving the whole empty-nesting thing. She feels blessed that their business sustains them through an ever-challenging market. Having her garden on the local Garden Tour was a highlight this spring. Karen says Sweet Work Weeks was amazing—everyone should go! Karen Gonya Nickles is beginning her 31st year of teaching special education, all at the same school. She and Lance are beginning to make serious retirement plans and have been looking for the perfect spot near the beach in South Carolina or North Carolina. Karen has had it with the Maryland winters, which is why she escapes every January to St. Maarten with some of her favorite Vixens! Both her kids are finished with college; so life is good. Mary Beth Miller Orson is still living in Scottsdale, Ariz., with her husband, Carl, and children, Caroline (a freshman at Barrett Honors College at ASU) and Eric (a freshman in high school). Mary Beth is a legal consultant. She, her husband and his brother have entered the wonderful world of Arabian horse breeding and will be showing their weaning filly, Kashmira, at the Arabian National Breeders finals in Scottsdale at the end of September. Mary Beth is the president of the SBC Arizona alumnae club and enjoys seeing other Vixens, including Ava Spanier, an up-and-coming Phoenix theater director! Nancy Buckey Rothacker is trying to absorb the shock of her twins starting high school. Husband Jack will turn 50 in May, and they will celebrate their 20th anniversary the day after! Nancy is kept busy by running the youth lacrosse in Dublin, Ohio. There are more than 180 girls in the program, and Nancy coaches the select teams. Her fifth-sixth grade team won all their tournaments this season and are considered the best in the state! Robyn Bailey-Orchard writes that she is content to have “stillness” in her life. She is still teaching eighth grade English, still coaching forensics, still advising the newspaper and still directing plays. Robyn loved visiting Kim Houtman ’87 in Healdsburg, Calif., this summer. Robyn’s older son will be going to culinary school next fall and her younger son will be graduating in May from Washington and Lee; so she is taking advantage of SBC visits this year. Robyn loves the growing SBC connections on Facebook. Susan Mann Levy and Geoff are enjoying his “semi” retirement and spending time in the mountains near Brevard, N.C. Their daughter, Preston, will finish at Wake Forest this year with a major in physics. Where did that come from?—the offspring of two

lawyers! They are excited and proud. Susan sends love to all ’86ers! Terry Cerrina Davis is happy and excited for the future of SBC! Her summer flew by too quickly as always, but she is greatly enjoying her SBC “Step Sisters” weekly Fitbit walking challenges! Beth Ann Trapold Newton, Karen Gonya Nickles, Lee Grzybowski Sakowicz, Sally Engleby Farrell, Carolyn Hepperle Richardson, Julianne Burkhardt ’87 and Terry have been keeping each other motivated and in motion! Holla, Holla! Valerie Winborne just finished co-hosting the National Dance Society Conference closing performance. The NDS is the organization that awarded Valerie the National Master Dance Educator of the Year 2016! Her family is great and all is well.

Kathy Bryan Sanders’ Family Vacation 2017 in Isla Mujeres Mexico

1987

Kristen Kreassig Carter 4589 Church Point Pl Virginia Beach, VA 23455-4364 Kcarter757@icloud.com Ellen Smith 1360 Northview Avenue NE Atlanta, GA 30306 ellensmith10@att.net Deborah Brennan Leslie is about to embark on the beginning of empty-nest syndrome with her daughter attending college, but thankfully close enough for weekend visits. She still has six years until her youngest leaves. Deborah moved to Orange County, Calif., last year and is enjoying the area, one of the easiest acclimations to date in their relocation journey. Another positive this year was reconnecting with some friends from Sweet Briar on Facebook. Kathy Bryan Sanders and her family live in Charleston, S.C., and LOVE it! They are officially empty nesters. Josh (27) lives in Chicago and works for AON, Emily (24) lives in Charleston and works for Nordstrom, Tommy (21) is a junior at the College of Charleston. Kathy and John (W&L ’86) will celebrate their 30th wedding anniversary next year! She is currently the co-director at an early childhood education center, and wishes all her classmates the best! Mary York Oates Robison says life in Charlotte is great, and she loves working alongside Sweet Briar grads Mare Ware Gibson ’83 and Ginger Tripp McAdams ’05 at Charlotte Latin. She sends special thanks to Christina Hoy ’93 for all her hard work invigorating the Charlotte SBC club! Laura Moore Wheless lives in Houston, Texas, with her husband, Bob, and 13-year-old daughter, Hannah. She works in fundraising as grant writer and development director at the

Junie Speight Myers’s daughter Annie, between Stella and Sophie

30th Reunion—Heidi Schultz Figler, Professor Ronald Horwege, Ellen Smith

30th Reunion—Kathy Fons Barkley, Heidi Schulz Figler, Teresa Pike Tomlinson, Kristen Kreassig Carter, Kristen Whitney Lowrey, Vikki Schroeder, Julianne Burkhardt, Lezlie Varisco Pinto, Pam Ythier Barkley, Jill O’Ree Stryker, Priscilla Newton Carroll

30th Reunion—Front row, Lezlie Varisco Pinto, Kristen Whitney Lowrey, Jill O’Ree Stryker, Pam Ythier Barkley, Julianne Burkhardt; second row, Heidi Schultz Figler, Vikki Schroeder, Kathy Fons Barkley, Teresa Pike Tomlinson, Kristen Kreassig Carter; back row, Priscilla Carroll, Ellen Smith SWEET BRIAR MAGAZINE | SBC.EDU

Class Notes

’87 at Sweet Work Weeks 2017

Laura Moore Wheless and daughter Hannah (13) at 2016 family reunion in New Orleans

30th Reunion—Kristen Kreassig Carter

30th reunion –– Kristen Kreassig Carter and Taz pre-ride

Hope and Healing Center & Institute, a faith-based mental health resource for greater Houston. Otherwise, she’s playing golf with her husband or watching her daughter play lacrosse. Teresa Pike Tomlinson is still in Columbus, Ga., serving as mayor, and also continues to serve as the proud chair of the Sweet Briar College Board of Directors. Teresa and her husband, Trip, love being able to travel to Sweet Briar regularly. She says, “It is a joy to work with such great stakeholders in rebuilding Sweet Briar College!” Mary Sue Cate Mays has had a great year. She and Larry celebrated their 30th wedding anniversary. Her oldest, Andy, celebrated his wedding and first job anniversary. Jenny, her youngest, is a junior at Simpson College studying elementary education. Mary Sue is still at ISU, but is changing her specialty from beef genetics to dairy genetics. She says, “Maybe it was predestined. I remember cussing those dairy cows while living in Dew, wondering why they couldn’t sleep in a little later.” Ellen Smith visited Sweet Briar for Reunion in June (first time back in 20 years!). She says, “It was wonderful to visit with classmates, meet President Woo and experience the energy and enthusiasm on campus.” She is still in Atlanta and enjoys a lot of opportunities to travel for work and fun. Life is good for Lee Carroll Roebuck. She has a sophomore at Davidson College and a senior at Vanderbilt. She keeps busy traveling to her daughter’s Davidson field hockey games, doing some part-time work, volunteering, and playing golf. She says, “It was great being at Sweet Briar in April for the alumnae lacrosse game. I truly appreciate everything our fellow classmates and alumnae are doing to keep Sweet Briar alive and kicking!” Kristen Kreassig Carter and Dave are still living in beautiful Virginia Beach and invite everyone to come visit! Scotty is a senior; so they are busy visiting college/university campuses. Much of their social time is spent supporting him as he plays varsity volleyball, basketball, and lacrosse. She is in a new position as CEO of Children’s Harbor, a United Way certified non-profit early care and education agency—very fulfilling work! In June, Page Franson celebrated working at MEDITECH for 30 years. Her softball team won the Dennis Women’s Softball League for the second year in a row, and her hockey team won the Cape Cod Women’s Hockey League for the second year in a row. Leslie McRae Ferguson is happy to report that her younger son, Kelly, married his partner, Marcelo, in Miami. Her older son is getting married September 22 to a wonderful girl. Fergie’s

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Tiny Kitchen is going well. Leslie is currently compiling food pics and coming up with 52 weeks of meals and tips to send to a publisher. Lastly, husband William Patrick has been accepted into the WTC Health Program due to melanoma. Thank God. After spending a fun weekend at Reunion with Jill O’Ree Stryker, Kristen Whitney Lowrey, Lezlie Varisco Pinto, Elizabeth Belser Kistler ’88, Christina Savage Lytle ’88, and Heather Shettle Buerger ’88, Pam Ythier Barkley and Jill returned to Sweet Briar in August during Sweet Weeks. Pam had a great time on campus with Vikki Schroeder and fellow alumnae Alexa Schriempf ’97, Kate Schlech ’70, and Ann Gateley ’70. Pam is excited about Sweet Work Weeks 2018! Junie Speight Myers is ending her second year of being an empty nester as her youngest, Annie, enjoys her sophomore year in a southern Florida university! She continues to love her job as a psychotherapist in private practice, recently receiving certification to share the work of Brené Brown.

1988

Christine Diver Ans 16812 Falconridge Rd Lithia, FL 33547-5823 ubahfla@yahoo.com Best wishes from Christina Savage Lytle ’88! She and JD have been adjusting to life with a college sophomore and a high school junior! Since their daughters’ interests are very different, she has now visited about 22 schools and will fit in a few more this year. Last year, Tina enjoyed using some of this collegiate expertise as a Sweet Briar Alumnae Admissions Representative, helping to recruit students at three college fairs and two horse shows. She says, “It’s always great to interact with students (other than my own) to see what they’re looking for in a college and to help them in their search. I enjoy encouraging them to consider SBC, or any women’s college frankly, when they weren’t considering it previously.” It has been awesome to be able to see roommate Heather Shettle Buerger a few times this year in D.C., Baltimore, and for Reunion. They had tons of fun meeting up with Tina’s roommate Elizabeth Belser Kistler, Jill O’Ree Stryker ’87, Kristen Whitney Lowrey ’87, Lezlie Varisco Pinto ’87 and Pam Ythier Barkley ’87 for Reunion and the celebration for President Stone. They enjoyed spending time together on campus, and meeting President Woo was an added bonus! Another fun surprise was having Kearsley Rand Waggoner ’81 and her husband, Ed, relocate to Alexandria! Tina is

looking forward to seeing fellow Vixens at alumnae events in D.C./Northern Virginia and at Reunion! “Traveling Vixens, do let me know if you’re in the D.C. area! I’d love to get together!” Grace Quirk Thompson says, “Hello from Kansas City! Still considering myself a Houstonian though; my heart breaks for the people of my hometown.” Grace’s family was spared [Harvey’s flooding], but so many of their friends lost everything they had. Their girls have grown and flown: Caroline graduated from the University of Texas in May, and Georgia is finishing her senior year at Wake Forest. Grace and husband Jeff have more travel time with their empty nest. When home, she continues to handle the marketing for Jeff’s orthodontic practice. Through social media, she keeps in touch with so many Sweet Briar friends. “So great to see everyone and their precious families!” In the spring of 2017, Alex Ritter quit her job as an attorney advisor for the Social Security Administration and joined her husband, Rab McClure, and their four cats in Doha, Qatar. He accepted a position as the director of graduate studies at VCU-Q. Alex says, “Living in Qatar has been an exciting and interesting experience. The expat community is warm and inviting.” The weather is extremely hot, but she hears it’s amazing in the winter, mid to low 70’s. The city is teaming with new infrastructure projects, including a light rail system and soccer stadiums for the 2022 World Cup. Alex spends her time sewing, baking, gardening—“Yes, plants do grow here!”—and assisting Rab with art/design projects. In May, they spent two weeks in Holland doing a felting workshop. That trip will be replicated in October with Rab’s students and faculty. After that trip, they look forward to a Viking River Cruise along the Rhine and a week in Prague over Christmas/New Year’s. Brooke Rinehart Dunn officially began empty-nesting, as her son started at Christopher Newport University this fall and will be playing lacrosse (like mother, like son). Her daughter is a senior at James Madison University. “I must say it is awfully quiet around the house!” She is still in Charlottesville and is still doing the bookkeeping for their landscaping business. She even started to play a little golf. Denise Landau-Blind just returned from dropping daughter Chelsea at University of Tennessee-Knoxville for her sophomore year, and visiting with Julie Martin Collins!! Since her daughter goes to school in Tennessee, she gets to spend time with her Sweet Briar roomie at least once a year! She says that it’s always so fun, and their husbands think they are roomies too. It just worked out that they were in the

Class Notes

From left: Elizabeth Kistler ’88, Christina Lytle ’88, Lezlie Pinto ’87, Kristen Lowrey ’87, Heather Buerger ’88, Jill Stryker ’87, Pam Barkley ’87

Heather and Christina in Baltimore in June

Heather, Christina and Elizabeth at the Boathouse during Reunion

also stays in touch with Pawla Tweedy ’90 and Elizabeth Lindsey ’86. All are doing fine. Paige Apple Okun and her family have been in Singapore for 14 years. She recently started a consultancy aimed at providing high-quality marketing communications services priced within reach for start-ups, small businesses, and NGOs. Paige and her business partner seem to have found a niche in the market and have been incredibly busy for the past six months. Paige and family traveled back to the United States this summer and visited California, where she got to catch up with Soja Gruhl Duporque on beautiful Coronado Island, where Soja lives, and then on to Virginia, where she caught up with Christina Savage Lytle and Christina Tellalian Mulvhill. Bennett started his junior year and is thinking about going to university in the U.S., so she suspects they will be back in the U.S. a lot more in the next few years. As always, if anyone is traveling in Southeast Asia, give her a shout … she would love to connect. Tracy Tigerman Shannon writes that she is in her 28th year of teaching elementary school and loves it more than when she first started. Her daughter, Kaitlyn, is 15 and her son, Ryan, is 22. She finds life is always full of wonder, either at home with her family, or in the classroom with a bunch of kids ranging from six to nine. Cheryl-Lynn Horowitz Matheny and family are in Houston and made it through Hurricane Harvey alive and well! Son Tyler is a freshman at Murray State University in Kentucky. Mom and dad are adjusting to being empty nesters!! Caroline Corum decided a few years ago to make a change to a nursing career. If all goes well, she will graduate from her program in May 2018. Between full-time school and full-time work, she is a recluse, which “is getting old.” She keeps in touch with Cecilia Moore, and Beth Stookey Sargent, who is in Loudon County and doing well. Caroline loves seeing classmates’ posts on Facebook. Stephanie Wilt Smirnov just

marked her fourth anniversary at Edelman, the world’s largest PR consultancy, where she oversees the brand marketing practice for the New York office. She says it’s never a dull moment, which she finds both awesome and exhausting (and contributes to the grey hairs multiplying at an alarming rate amidst her “blonde” tresses). She and her husband, Max, celebrated their 16th wedding anniversary this fall, and their son, Terry, just started his first year of high school. He is also officially taller than both of them. They still live in North Jersey, just across the Hudson River from New York City, and enjoy escaping to their place in the Catskills whenever they can (“The place is being overrun by hordes of be-whiskered Brooklyn hipsters, but that’s another story”). She loves keeping up with her Sweet Briar sisters on Facebook, if not in person. She sends virtual hugs to the Class of ’88 ... a holla holla! Laura Ferrazzano says that it has been a busy year of transitions. She still works in solar development, but her former company went bankrupt in 2016 and she found herself on the cusp of losing her job at any moment. Her division made it through and was bought by Mitsui & Co; they are now called Forefront Power. She now works from home full-time, which she finds to be empowering, and her dogs love it the most! She is spending a good bit of time traveling to Aiken, S.C., to visit her 94-year-old grandmother and is grateful to have a flexible job that allows her to do so. She can’t believe our 30th reunion is next year and is looking forward to seeing everyone! Stacey Sickels Locke is delighted to be back at the University of Maryland after a stint at the University of Virginia, living in Charlottesville. Her travels, fortunately, take her to San Francisco, where her oldest son, Kent, just got his dream job doing social media for a start-up. Her youngest son will be a freshman at Principia College. She had a chance to see Lea Harvey in Virginia and, while living in Charlottesville, connected with Beth Ike and Elizabeth Groves Aycock. She planned to attend the installation of President

Woo! She heard rave reviews about her when she was at UVa. Maia Free Jalenak and husband Jay (H-SC ’87) are enjoying being empty nesters in Baton Rouge. Son Jack has begun his second year of medical school at LSU in New Orleans and daughter Nina is a freshman at LSU in Baton Rouge. Maia and Jay are planning to travel to California and Hawaii in the coming months. Maia writes that she had a fun mini-reunion with Kristen Petersen Randolph, Nici Fraley Pechman and Jeanne Rovics Dees earlier this year in Boca Raton, Fla. She hopes to attend our 30th reunion in 2018. Brenda Payne enjoyed doing Sweet Work Weeks with other alumnae at Sweet Briar. She is getting ready to enjoy a trip to Ireland, her first trip ever across the ocean. She writes that life is good and her granddaughter is starting Kindergarten this year. Brenda wants to wish her fellow alumnae the best of health, love and happiness. Lisa Thompson Barnes gives a big shout out to her Sweet Briar friends for their support as she participated in a local charity event to raise money for Healthy Start Coalition—the event was Dancing with Vero Stars. She is superexcited to say that she was the grand champion and proud owner of an awesome Mirror Ball Trophy!!! All else is great with husband Trevon and Yorkie Macintosh. They are recovering from the impact of Hurricane Irma, but grateful—they feel like they dodged a huge bullet in their community. Susan Detweiler continues to chug away at prerequisites toward applying for a master’s in occupational therapy. Over the summer, she completed her 15th season guiding climbers in the Tetons. Recently, she also did field risk management work on a glacier in Alaska for a NASA project related to a landing craft they plan to send to Jupiter’s moon Europa in about 5 years (science support work similar to what she did for 10 Antarctic seasons before returning to school). Down the road, she plans to work as a contract/traveling OT between guiding work and personal trips with her

path of totality for the eclipse as well. Her son, Tyler, graduated from Fairfield University in Connecticut in May and is attending Rutgers Grad School for his master’s in accounting. His job with Price Waterhouse starts in July 2018. They are very proud! She also traveled to Belize and the British Virgin Islands this year, and looks forward to going back to Costa Rica for the New Year— luckily her kids still like vacationing with them! Susanna Broaddus Hickman just returned from Annapolis, Md., visiting her son, Hunter, who is in his first year at the Naval Academy. He survived the summer and is thrilled to be at his dream college. She is very proud of him! Susanna’s daughter, Campbell, is a sophomore in high school and manages to keep the house lively, even with her brother gone, with her busy social life and field hockey career. Susanna is in her 24th year practicing law at Geddy, Harris, Franck & Hickman in Williamsburg, Va. She and her husband, Phil (H-S ’88), Campbell, and golden retriever, Rudy, live nearby and welcome any visitors. Wendy Hastings and her husband, Yefri, celebrated their 11th anniversary and still live in Eagles Mere, Penn. They had a wonderful visit from Anne Merriman Duffy ’86 and her amazing son William and explored some of our county’s most beautiful nature. Wendy is in her fifth term serving as Sullivan County Coroner. Cecilia Moore and her sister, Margaret, participated in a day of Sweet Work Weeks in August. They had a wonderful time meeting alumnae from the various years and generations as they worked to paint dorm rooms in Carson and the Carson Lobby. Cecilia planned to attend President Woo’s inauguration and is looking forward to our class’s own reunion in June 2018. She is still teaching at University of Dayton. She taught at Xavier in New Orleans this past summer and visits her mom in Danville as often as possible. Cecilia is in regular contact with Rapti de Silva, Praka Punniamoorty Sahi, Beth Stookey Sargent, Caroline Corum, and Lee Ann Conard. She

SWEET BRIAR MAGAZINE | SBC.EDU

Class Notes partner, Ned. Kate Cole Hite reports that her son Chase is a senior at the University of Dayton. Mackenzie is a freshman in the Barrett Honors College at Arizona State University. Cole is a freshman in high school. She is running her own business as a consultant with Rodan + Fields. Tucker is awesome. Mary Halliday Shaw retired in 2016 after 16 years of teaching. Her husband, Brad, retired in April 2015 from The Home Depot. They are enjoying retirement, traveling and watching their twins’ band, The Head, tour across the United States and, in November, go to the United Kingdom. Her youngest son and wife just sent their two-year-old son off to preschool two days a week. Mary and Brad have so much fun babysitting their grandson and watching him grow into a little man. She does get to spend time with her Sweet Briar girls once a year for a reunion. They include Katie Keogh Weidner, Beth Bennet Haga, Kate Cole Hite, Whitney Bolt Lewis, Kathryn Ingham Reese, Paige Apple Montinaro. “We all have so much fun together and pick up right where we left off.” Whitney Bolt Lewis is getting married in late September and there will be a posse of Sweet Briar ladies there. She is also renovating a house, has two teenage boys, and is running a veterinary hospital ... “Life is great!!” Katie Keogh Weidner lost her father back in January and thanks all her friends who were so supportive during his long illness. She has two children who graduated from Penn State and a third who is now a freshman there. Her nest is empty, and she is doing some fundraising for Sweet Briar and continuing her addiction to tennis (and paddle tennis in the winter). Dawn Czaplicki Hutchinson and her husband, Mike, have lived in Fort Walton Beach for the past 25 years. Her daughter is in the pre-doctorate program for occupational therapy at the University of Florida. This year is her 17th year serving as a Children’s Minister, as well as tutoring and interpreting for the Spanish-speaking children in the local schools. They are also deeply involved in missions in Z’Orange, Haiti, and take several trips there each year. Jennifer Crawley Lewis has moved with her family to Jacksonville, Fla., for her daughter, Diana, to attend The Bolles School. Her daughter is a junior and toured Sweet Briar last summer. Diana is a competitive swimmer; so they spend most of their time traveling to swim meets in Florida and Chile. As legal permanent residents of Chile, Diana can swim in Chilean Nationals; she swam in her first Chilean Nationals in June and won 74

one gold, four silver and two bronze medals. Jennifer has been the Chair of the Jacksonville Sweet Briar Alumnae Group for the past year and enjoys seeing Courtney Kneece Grimm ’89 frequently at North Florida swim meets. Additionally, Jennifer has been working with Sweet Briar College’s swim coach Donna Meyer Hodgert ’89 to recruit competitive swimmers from Florida for the Sweet Briar Swim Team, with the goal of beating Washington & Lee at the ODAC championships. Jennifer and her family also really enjoy fleeing hurricanes in Florida (Matthew and Irma) so she can travel to Atlanta to spend time with Kelly Iacobelli and her family!! Kelly Meredith Iacobelli is doing category strategy work at Coca-Cola. Her daughter, Kathleen, is now a high school sophomore who enjoys her church youth group, gymnastics and working on her Girl Scout Gold Award project. Kelly and John celebrated their 25th wedding anniversary in Mexico in June. Kelly, John and Kathleen live in Marietta, Ga., with their well-pampered English bulldog, Cordelia (Professor Tamburr would be pleased with the nod to “King Lear”). And sadly, Michele Smith lost her battle with cancer on July 2 holding her mom’s hand. Michele was a proud member of the Class of 1988 and loved Sweet Briar and the many friends she met there. Her service was on July 14 at the Episcopal Church of the Ascension in Seattle. In lieu of flowers, Michele requested donations be made to Sweet Briar.

1989

Emmy Leung 7102 Wynnewood Court Richmond, VA 23235-5619 fan-han@prodigy.net Camelia Washington Gunn and family moved to Ramstein, Germany, in July after her husband was transferred. They are living in Ramstein-Miesenbach, just outside the base. Her son attends the DOD school on base, and Camelia is looking for a position with the DODEA school system. Whitney Bay Shuck and husband Quin have been in Indianapolis, Ind., for 10 years. Whitney has been with Maritz for 23 years and has been a web producer for the past 17 years. Quin is an engineer at Rolls-Royce Aerospace. They just completed a woodworking shop for Quin and a glass studio for Whitney! Abby Carter is living in Fredericksburg, Va., and continues to teach riding and pursue her own equestrian interests. For her 50th birthday gift to herself, she spent a weekend in August in Charlottesville riding for Arthur Kottus, the former head rider at

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Mini-reunion in Old Towne Alexandria (back, l. to r.): Nikki Kosits ’89, Leslie Lemish ’89, Raquel Thiebes ’89; (front) Abigail Carter ’89 (l.), Jennifer Byrd ’89

Heather Daly Jones ’92, Lisa Claypool Stevenson ’89, Gina Pollock Davis ’89, and Kimberly Willock Pardiwala ’89 the Spanish Riding School in Vienna. She also continues to write articles for Practical Horseman. Husband Eric is still working for USAID, and son Alexander is in his second year at Mary Washington University. Raquel Hickman Thiebes and husband George will be headed back to Stuttgart, Germany, for their fourth Army move there. Alex is at the University of Alabama studying aerospace, and Matt just started at Colorado State University in nature sciences. A couple of mini-reunions were held earlier in the summer. Nikki Kosits, Abby Carter, Raquel Hickman Thiebes, Jennifer Byrd, and Leslie Lemish met up for a day in Old Towne Alexandria. Gina Pollock Davis, Lisa Claypool Stevenson, Kimberly Willock Pardiwala, and Heather Daly Jones ’92, celebrated their birthdays on Cape Cod.

1990

Jean Spillane Benning 1120 Walnut Farm Rd Lower Gwynedd, PA 19002 jeanbenning@outlook.com Thanks to all who contributed. We hope to receive more for the next magazine. Kelleigh Klym Friesen: My husband and I are owners and operators of our community paediatric clinic and farm in Millarville, Alberta. Loving what we do; so think of it as a pleasure not a chore (except in the brutal Canadian winter). I had a riding accident this past spring—now just rebuilding strength and confidence. Ava starts fourth grade and hopes to be a Vixen someday. Yay! I stay in touch most frequently with Tracey Thomas Jones. In summer 2016, I dined with alumna Wendy White while visiting for the Calgary Stampede. We met at the 2012 riding

Class Notes reunion. Looking forward to 2020, or maybe sooner for a return to campus!! Rosanna Jones-Thurman: I am still in my practice, Thurman Psychological LLC, and have offices in Nebraska and Iowa. My husband is my office manager after leaving the fitness industry. Our oldest son, John (27), is on his own and working. Derek (21) is a senior at William Jewell College majoring in biology and playing Division II baseball. He has been accepted to the Cleveland Clinic and will go on to chiropractic school in the fall of 2018. Nichollis (18) just graduated from Creighton Preparatory High School and is a national award winning artist and is hoping to get to NYC. Any alumnae with connections to art and NYC or other residencies please contact me! We aren’t quite empty nesters yet! We are trying to travel some short trips around the Midwest and see my mom in Orange County, Calif., and Danny’s family in Redding, Calif., and my dad in Maine and Florida. Anyone passing through Omaha give me a shout! Julie Brooks Nyquist: My son Andrew (8) is in second grade. We have two puppies—a black lab named Lilly (10 months) and a golden retriever named Logan (10 weeks). My husband, Stephen, and I continue to work on projects around our house. This year we’re working on the back yard and the basement. To keep in shape in the past year I’ve completed three sprint triathlons, a half marathon and several 10Ks and 15Ks. This summer we hosted a team of French cyclists for two weeks while they competed in the Intelligentsia Cup series in the Chicago area. Amy Kroeger: I spend a lot of time with Marissa, the daughter of a friend of mine who passed away from cancer. I happily claim Marissa as mine now. I spend much of my free time gallivanting about with her, or we veg with Hulu, watching ID. Our excursions have led us to visit Joie Tankard, Dolly Garcia De Simonet, and Jean Benning; and she eagerly expresses that she is always up for more. I also get to see Meg Caulk and Ann Malone when I travel back East to see my mom. Always a much needed energy boost! I am still working in emergency medicine on the Tohono O’odham Indian Reservation—political hotbed for “the wall.” My patient population remains the sweetest population in the country to work with, and it’s a lot of fun to be out there. Kim Dickey Melcher: A year and a half ago, I left D.C., sold my condo, and left my job at Neiman Marcus to buy a mini-farm in Central Virginia, 45 minutes from campus. Went to see the Violent Femmes with Kristen Hofheimer last summer and recently caught up with Jenny Chambers

Glenn. I now work as a seller of antiques and collectibles from home and tend to my gardens and 22 chickens. Planning on naming the farm Vixen Hollow. Had a great time at Sweet Work Weeks and made some awesome new friends. Feeling blessed to be back in Sweet Briar Country! And just celebrated eight-year anniversary with my husband, Greg! Tracey Thomas Jones: While last summer we were so fortunate to return to England to visit family in Manchester and friends in London, this year we opted for a more low-key Florida stay-cation. We enjoyed Cumberland Island, Itchetucknee Springs and the new Volcano Bay at Universal Studios. My husband, Jonathan, recently resigned from his full-time position as a mental health counselor at Florida State prison to have more flexibility and be able to spend more quality time with our boys; he will be focusing on rebuilding his private practice as a counselor. Our eldest son is a junior at Episcopal School of Jacksonville and a year-round swimmer. We hope to visit several Virginia colleges this year! My youngest is a seventh-grader and is looking forward to playing on his middle school basketball team again. I have continued to teach elementary art (Jr. K through 5th) and am just loving it! I also homeschool my youngest two days a week, but this will probably be our last year doing so. We love keeping in touch with many SBC alumnae on Facebook. Louise Bouldin Carter: Our oldest (Virginia—wonder where I got that name!) is a freshman this year and gets her learner’s permit to drive this week. She plays the flute in the school band and swims with the local year-round club. Our three younger boys are busy with sports—cross-country, soccer, swim, football and so on—whatever is in season. They are all excellent students as well. My husband has been with his orthopedic practice since 2002 here in Huntsville. He coaches the littlest Carter in football. Patience of Job. I see a little of Amanda Priddy Berkey. We have a boy the same age. And she and I have been to some concerts together. I saw Jill Straughan Carter here last fall when her daughter came for a volleyball tournament (her daughter was awesome, and I think her team won the whole thing!). I have been working part-time, off and on, since our oldest was born, as an interior decorator and home stager. I took over the business last May and not really part-time anymore! Many long hours, but it is a tremendous amount of fun even if it does interfere with my tennis. I picked up tennis after the third baby was born and have enjoyed playing very much. I and my old lady teams have even won our local league and competed at “State.” This

makes for a superfun weekend girls trip. As my fiftieth birthday approaches in December, I have been working on five special trips. Sure would love for one of them to include some Vixens. It was so much fun going to Reunion with everyone. Chery Bishop Gilman: Our oldest daughter, Jenna, finished her Adventure in Missions trip visiting 11 countries in 11 months in 2016. Thank you to all who supported her in prayer and financially! Our oldest son, Luke, was married in December 2016 in Baltimore, Md., to his college sweetheart. They are now the grad assistant lacrosse coaches for the Wheeling Jesuit University men’s and women’s lacrosse teams. Our son JEB is living in Annapolis and working. Levi is now a senior year in high school currently playing football and contemplating his future. Chaela is a freshman in high school, running cross-country and competing in Irish dance. We are enjoying the slower pace of life in Kansas City and the ease to see friends and family all over the country. Recently we spent a few days on the front range of Colorado visiting Beth Babbitt Bowen and her family. My home-birth midwifery practice is quite busy, and I love serving all the moms, babies and their families. So glad Sweet Briar is saved! Stacy Gilmore Hanling: We are still living in Mount Pleasant, S.C., a suburb of Charleston. My daughter, Haylee, graduated from Clemson University this past May with a degree in animal veterinary sciences. She started Virginia Tech this August and is working on a master’s degree in dairy science. I’m having a hard time coming to the realization I have a daughter that has graduated college. Weren’t we just recent grads too? My son is 10 and just started the fourth grade. He keeps us busy with his various activities. Over the past four years, we have become die-hard Clemson football fans. We are season ticket holders. If you ever find yourself at a Clemson football game, be sure to look for me. We can always add a little Pink and Green to the tailgate! Beth Jinks: My mom and I are six years out from our breast cancer, and we feel very blessed every day! I encourage everyone to get their mammograms! I still live in Tennessee with husband Derrick and our cat, Crowley! Look forward to the 30th reunion! Dolly Garcia: Doing great down here in sunny Puerto Rico. Miguel turned 21 this past week. He is a senior at Marquette University. Dolly is 18 and a freshman, also at Marquette. Mari is in ninth grade. Mikey and I are taking a trip to Napa this coming September. Holla Holla to everyone. [Editor’s note: Dolly submitted her class note before Hurricane Maria struck Puerto Rico. She is dealing with the

widespread damage to the island and the loss of services. We wish her well.] Chris Carriere Zazulak: Scott and I celebrated our 25th anniversary in May. We are still in New Orleans, raising our five boys. John will graduate from law school in May 2018. Robert will be in Germany for the fall semester, studying at Freie Universitat. David is a sophomore at LSU hoping this is the year they beat ’Bama. Stephen is a junior in high school, and Philip is finishing up his last year of elementary school. Amy Elizabeth Burton: The Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies detailed me to help coordinate the 58th Presidential Inaugural Ceremonies at the U.S. Capitol. I was privileged to work closely with the fabulous Anna Reilly ’95. I keep in touch with Suzanne Szak Sohur and Mary Ellen Naff Philpott. Over the years, I’ve lost touch with Janine Irwin and Taki Kinoshita, but would really enjoy hearing from them. I continue researching, writing, and lecturing for the U.S. Senate Curator’s Office. Amy Donnelly Tobik: I am the editor-in-chief of Autism Parenting Magazine and live in Fort Mill, S.C., with my husband, Steve, and we have two daughters attending Clemson University. I have really enjoyed reconnecting with fellow SBC alumnae at Charlotte events. Brandi Beck: I’m still working as a clinical psychologist in private practice in New York City and enjoying life with my partner, Andy, and our daughter, Dasha (12). I had a wonderful breakfast with Charlotte Cantrell Doran when she was in the city at the beginning of the summer. Love to all Vixens! Charna Manning Falls: I’m a wife to a wonderful loving husband and mom of two sons, one a junior in college and one a senior in high school. Much of my time is dedicated to volunteerism with the Susan G. Komen Foundation. I am a speaker and fundraiser for the Komen organization and a 14-year breast cancer survivor. I’m also active in my church and will be the guest speaker for the upcoming United Methodist Women’s Day. My hobbies include travel, cooking and community outreach. Our favorite family vacation was to South Africa. Holla! Holla! LuAnn Hunt: I’m a grandmother to four great kids! My son, Chris, and his wife, Megan, have Halle (13) and Josh (11). My daughter, Candice, and her husband, Dan, have Olivia (6) and Elyse (3). Larry and I will celebrate 42 years of marriage in December—when I was at SBC, we had been married 10 years. I still work for the City of Lynchburg in communications and marketing, now going on 27 years. In my “spare” time I have a part-time professional photography business, which is truly

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Class Notes my passion. I’m looking forward to retirement from the City (July 2020 is the goal) and will plan to continue my photography business more than just part-time. Whenever I can, I take my clients to SBC for their photoshoots. You just can’t beat the natural beauty of Sweet Briar! Ann Beatty Malone: I just took a new position as the market development manager for the northeast for Johnson & Johnson Vision. I am still living in Alexandria, Va., with my daughter, Alexandra, who is a freshman in high school, and my husband, Bill. My parents have now moved in with us. I spent time with Jean Spillane Benning at the beach this summer for a week. As for myself, I just changed careers after 20 years, now working for Salesforce.com in the Higher Education division as a solutions engineer. I have two girls now in high school and one daughter in middle school. My husband and I are still in the suburbs of Philadelphia, and I keep in touch with Ann, Dolly, Jill Armstrong Tracy and Amy Kroeger. Please feel free to send updates at any time to 1990SweetBriar@gmail.com.

1993

Class Secretary: NONE LISTED Norma Bulls Valentine: Still in real estate. Happy to go to Reunion and see classmates Dianne Doss Hayes, Katherine Polevitzky, and Debra Elkins. Dianne and her son, Dan, stayed with me this summer for a few days as they were looking at colleges. Tracy Imse Thomson visited our farm in S.C. looking for horses in April. She fell in love with my donkey, Eeyore. I’m still splitting time between our homes in S.C., Portsmouth, N.H., and Wellington, Fla.

1994

Molly Morris Flasche 152 N Remington Rd Bexley, OH 43209 molly.flasche@gmail.com Caitlin Sundby Russell 6275 Old Hickory Pt Atlanta, GA 30328 cait@mindspring.com Hello and Holla Holla to all ... not too many notes submitted for this issue of the alumnae magazine since we had a lot in the last one, but there are a few. I’ll get things started: Shannon Hetcel Dykes writes that she and Jim are still in Florida, and she’s still working in the schools, although not as a teacher anymore. She’s the coordinator of her school’s drop-out program, ensuring that at-risk juniors and seniors make it to 76

graduation. She and Jim are about to celebrate their 22nd anniversary (congrats!) and Carter is in his junior year of college. Molly Phemister and her daughter, Daxlin, are living it up (and eating well!) at Molly’s new gig as the coordinator for the first public food forest in Nebraska. The pair swung through Virginia in July and ran into Elizabeth Groves Aycock ’96, Courtney Burkey ’01, Pamela Fine Auble ’98 and Megan Fletcher Parry ’96 on that trip. Vinca Swanson is living in Portland, Ore., with her girlfriend, Lisa, and her cat, Tyrone. They travel all over Oregon and try to get out of the country at least once a year if they haven’t funneled their resources into home projects. She gets to Los Angeles to visit with Jane Rabadi ’95, and she mountain bikes with Melissa Broderick Eaton ’96 when she goes to Bend, Ore. She has built stuff, painted murals, paddle-boarded, climbed stuff and still wishes she rode horses more often. She’s working for a marketing agency as a web-coder—she still can’t figure out how she’s doing that since she’s no good at math. Liz Gilgan has entered the field of paper shredding—she purchased a company this spring that shreds and also recycles electronics. Her kids aren’t as excited as she is (one of their friends’ dad is the mayor), but she’s happy to own forklifts and trucks. Kids Nicholas (9) loves science and sports and Isabella (8) just had a laser-tag birthday party. She spent time a few months ago with Amelia McDaniel, Ashley Henderson Swigart, Corinne Gaillard and Lia DeSimone Colbert. She writes that she “laughed so hard her cheeks hurt and she peed in her pants 500 times.” (Sounds about right.) Katherine Cook writes that she is happier than ever to be single. She sold her house and adopted an off-the-track Thoroughbred instead. She’s enjoying the life of a “crazy cat lady” and has converted the deli drawer of her refrigerator to a chocolate drawer. Now she’s considering witchcraft. Betsy Lanard McCafferty’s girls are in grades 7, 2, and Pre-K this year, and they adopted a pig named Kingston. This past year they visited Disney and Akumal, Mexico, where they got to play with monkeys and lemurs. As for me (Molly Morris Flasche), Eddie just started preschool a block away from home; so Indie (our Goldendoodle) and I are enjoying the silence a few times a week. I’m an active docent at the Columbus Museum of Art, giving tours a few times a month and participating in book clubs and study groups. I’m also really happy that the Columbus alumnae club has become active again. Chuck, Eddie and I vacationed in Hilton Head this summer and spent

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a few great days on the way with Dana Varnado Campbell ’93 and her family. Chuck and I are looking forward to Thanksgiving in Florida with the family and a trip to Mexico in January 2018 to see The Avett Brothers at the Beach. Have a great fall, and Caitlin Sundby Russell and I will catch up with you all this winter!

1995

Katie Maxwell Schellhammer 22914 Goldenrod Dr Brambleton, VA 20148-6967 katie@schellhammer.net Kelly Hall visited Jennifer Parker Raudenbush, Karen Giorgetti, and Cari Miller James this summer up in Pennsylvania, where she said they had a great time in the pool and at an amusement park. Kelly also went to Spain, France, and the U.K. She highly recommends the Peak District and Glencoe! Kelly went to SBC in September for the memorial service for Anne Grimm (wife of retired Prof. Ken Grimm). Tricia Lynn is now an associate professor at Palm Beach State College and enjoying her new home, complete with private pool. Guests are always accepted. When she is not working on her house, she is traveling. She went

backpacking in New Zealand for spring break. Jane Rabadi and her partner relocated from Anchorage down to Santa Monica—polar opposites! She is in the process of setting up a small design studio, Studio Rabadi, where she works primarily with individuals and nonprofits, designs print-based products, and makes art. She has been fortunate to travel to some far-away, cool places; most recent was Moscow and Helsinki—traveling makes life a grand adventure! She wishes everyone health, happiness, and love. Sarah Clifford Weaver is heading into her 11th year teaching art at Osbourn High School, and seventh year as department chair of the Fine & Performing Arts. Her program has grown to 10 full-time teachers, winning an Enterprise Grammy Award and too many student art show ribbons to count. She has been married to Bob since 1995. Her oldest son is a senior in high school and her youngest is a sophomore. Where does time go? Cynthia Harris says, “HOLLA HOLLA and much love to my fellow Vixens from the Class of ’95, from Boise, Idaho! On Saturday, Oct. 21, 2017, I will be turning 45-Years-Young, scary to think about/ponder. HA! For my birthday, I plan to travel to Las Vegas,

Cynthia Harris ’95, with her pride-and-joy trike, Ms. Big Blue

Jane Rabadi ’95 and Lida Anne Elliott ’95 catching up in Denver

Sarah Clifford Weaver ’95

Class Notes

where I will be staying for two weeks’ time, and then it is off to New Orleans for a month, through Thanksgiving AND Black Friday/its weekend. Life is GOOD. God Bless!” Katie Maxwell Schellhammer, after being home with the kids for 14 years, is easing back into the working world by doing some substitute teaching in the local elementary schools. She and Heather Aspinwall Chiles still meet regularly for lunch and shopping, and she lunched with Anna Reilly at the beautiful Salamander Resort, where they visited horses and talked about Sweet Briar. She also Facetimed with Christy Patten Hundertpfund, who lives in England with her husband and daughter. So great to hear from everyone! If you have not been receiving email updates from Katie, please make sure SBC has your correct email. Hugs to all and happy holidays!

braved blizzard conditions in Virginia Beach, Va., for the wedding festivities! Right after the wedding, Laura and Jim moved to Hawaii, where Jim is a commander in the Navy! We can’t wait to visit! The Dolan family is great: Henry is in ninth grade, Mattie is in seventh, and Fred is in third. Laura Lechler Hornef: Lots of exciting changes in 2017!! In January, I married Jim in Virginia Beach, Va. I was lucky to have my Sweet Briar roommates Lee Foley Dolan, Mary Copeland Stockton and Natalie Brown Adee by my side as bridesmaids. Also in attendance were, Jesse Durham Strauss and Janeen Sharma. Immediately following the wedding, we moved to Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, for Jim’s job with the Navy. Abigail Phillips Hinga: After nine years with the Bell Policy Center, I joined the Western Conservation Foun-

1996

Eileen MacMurtrie Zuckerman 42 Rose Ln Glen Mills, PA 19342 Eileen.MacMurtrie@uphs.upenn.edu Happy Fall, Y’all!! I hope everyone had a wonderful summer and is enjoying the fall. As always, it was great to hear from so many classmates with their news, updates and milestones. Please continue to keep in touch via Facebook, email, text or whichever communication platform suits you! Lee Foley Dolan: 2017 started off with a huge celebration as Laura Lechler married Jim Hornef on January 7! Mary Copeland Stockton, Natalie Brown Adee, Jesse Durham Strauss, Janeen Sharma and I

Anne Collins

From left: Lee Foley Dolan, Natalie Brown Adee, Laura Lechler Hornef, Janeen Sharma, Jesse Durham Strauss, and Mary Copeland Stockton with groom Jim

dation as a senior program manager. I’m thrilled to keep doing work I believe in and helping to protect our public lands. I did this while launching James into second grade and Maeve into her first year of preschool. It has been a whirlwind! Anne Collins: After 20-plus years of experience in the market research industry on the technology and agency side with many Fortune 500 companies, Anne co-founded a new company, Panel Consulting Group (PCG), and is already supporting several customers. PCG just debuted a newly redesigned website, panelconsulting.com. Anne is working with potential investors and is also working on PCG’s sister company—a social sharing site that is currently in stealth mode. Robin Bettger Fishburne: We have thoroughly enjoyed our move to Charleston, S.C. I have opened a Charleston branch of the Wondracek Realty Group that I worked for in Greenville for over six years. My husband has expanded his new drone photography business. Our lives seem busier and busier every year with son Parker (5) and daughter Gibbs (12). Check out www.selling-Charleston. com. Sarah Reidy Ferguson: I celebrated my 20-year anniversary of living in Atlanta in August. I recently bought an original shot-gun-style bungalow in the Inman Park neighborhood. I continue to write my lifestyle blog, Duchess Fare, and freelance for interior design magazines. I’m superexcited about participating in the Sweet Briar Alumnae Alliance with social media. Hoping to catch up with friends at President Woo’s Inauguration. Kelly Collins Lear: Things are good in Hudson, Ohio! I do a lot of volunteer work at my children’s schools. Evelyn is 12, Teddy is 10, and Penelope is 7. Aaron and I were married 15 years ago this September, on campus! Monica Paul Dennis: The Dennis clan is still in Michigan; so if anybody is traveling this way, feel free to give a shout! Our daughter, Carson, graduated from high school in June, and we were so lucky to have Abbie McCammon Jeremiah ’98 and her twin daughters, Baker and Mallorie, with us to celebrate. Carson is at Wellesley College playing field hockey and lacrosse. Our boys, Wyatt and Lloyd, are both in high school (a junior and a freshman). It’s hard to believe that I have a child in college, but it is so wonderful at the same time! I stepped down from coaching so Matt and I can travel to Boston to see Carson play, which is awesome. I am lucky to spend so much time with “my guys!”

1997

Melanie Vracas 6641 Wakefield Dr No 608 Alexandria, VA 22307 MEVracas@comcast.net Alicia Allen: I recently relocated to Honolulu for the master’s in education in teaching program at the University of Hawaii. Nessim Al-Yafi: The weekend of July 22nd, I was able to visit Frank, Mary and the rest of the Ludwig family! I was invited to attend their son Jonathan’s wedding, and it was wonderful! I have kept in touch with the Ludwig family, over the years, through Christmas cards and the occasional phone call. Also, the family was so sweet to invite me to various graduations and weddings through the years. It took me two years, but I was finally able to see everyone! What a wonderful reunion! Alicia King Anderson: After six years at WebMD, I am now head of SEO at Hipcamp, a sharing-economy startup dedicated to getting people to camp outside and enjoy nature while also helping landowners keep their spaces undeveloped. I’m also flying to California every month for grad school. I started my mythological studies M.A./ Ph.D. program at Pacifica in September. Brett and I had a blast at Reunion, and it was great to hang out with so many friends! Katrina Balding Bills: We loved coming back for our 20th reunion and look forward to being on campus a lot as niece Katie Balding enters SBC’s gate this fall! I serve as on-campus events chair for Friends of Riding and am an Admissions Ambassador as well. Last spring we celebrated the 30th birthday of my horse, Fella (who also attended SBC), and Paul Cronin came! Please feel free to visit if you are ever out our way! Whether we’re in the barn, the brewery, or MK, we would love to see ya! Courtney Totushek Brown: Two years ago we moved three miles down the street to a new house in McLean, Va. We are still living through settling in and renovations. My boys are now 8 and 10, and we are busy with school. They are into music, writing comics, acting and video games. I have been keeping busy at my job at Fun Bot Lab, a LEGO robotics and media camp, and serving as Chesterbrook Elementary’s PTA president. Gina Miller Brown: Our three boys keep us busy! Mason (10, 5th grade), Garett (7, 2nd grade) and Austin (4, preschool). Mason started travel soccer this year, and Austin tried soccer for the first time this spring. During winter, the boys enjoy being on a club wrestling team. We were also able to enjoy skiing as a family.

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Class Notes

1997 Dave, Katy, Scott (14) and Anna Ramsey (11) Gilliam Our 20th Reunion

Richard, Madison (6), Jennifer, Montgomery (3), and Morgan (8) Lynes

Kathryn and Casey McMahon at Tryon International Equestrian Center 78

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Annette Dusenbury, Katie Clarkson Robertson, Alison Hall, Katy Seder Karon, Amy Campbell, Melanie Chriscoe Peters, Kerri Rawlings Burtner and Jessica Hiveley

Stephen Karon, Max Karon, Evan Elwell and Edward Elwell

Anne-Claire Wackenhut Kasten ’98 with Jacques and Genevieve, and Tanya Ketchum Young ’97 with Talley and Lilly

Class Notes We took the boys to Gore Mountain in the Adirondack’s in February. This summer Mason had his first experience with sleep-away camp at Camp Cory on one of the Finger Lakes. We also enjoyed some time at our cottage on Great Cranberry Island in Maine. I keep busy as the rental manager. Check out our new website www.cranmerhouse. com. We love it anytime we can get there!! We also went to Sandbridge in Virginia for a week, another favorite spot. This fall I will continue on the preschool board; I have stepped down from the chair position and will work on fundraising. I also help the school PTSA. I was so sad not to make it back for Reunion, but I love keeping up with you all on Facebook!! If you ever have a reason to be near Rochester please come visit. Amy Leigh Campbell: All our classmates have been so kind to me and diligent about supporting me these past two years while I was teaching at Sweet Briar. I am 1,000% grateful for every bit of it. So I will just say that I loved our 20th Reunion—being back in Reid was an absolute highlight. I lost my grandfather shortly after Reunion and am currently taking care of my grandmother. This means I am living in Lynchburg, which allows me to be on campus frequently. I’m enjoying staying connected to the students I taught and volunteering as an alumna. Love to all—my ’97 pride runs deep :) Ann MacDonald Carter: July was a big month for our little family: Michael (W&L ’98) and I celebrated our 17th wedding anniversary; our soonto-be first-grader son, Stewart, turned 6 1/2 and proudly gave up the training wheels on his bike; and I completed a meaningful servant leadership journey and term as board of directors chair and president of the Junior League of Lancaster, Pa. We are moving a little bit south within Lancaster County, from Lititz, Pa., this fall. We look forward to that transition and all the adventures it will bring. Stewart is absolutely thrilled because we’ll be much closer to Strasburg Railroad! Our focus remains on our faith, our family and health and as much live music and laughter as possible. I am so grateful for the Class of 1997, and so intensely PROUD of all alumnae, faculty and staff, parents, students and friends who have relentlessly worked to keep Sweet Briar’s torch burning bright. Long live SBC! Annette Dusenbury: I continue to work as a team lead physical therapist at UVA-Healthsouth. Loving my town of Charlottesville, Va. My free time is often spent in the outdoors, especially on a mountain bike. I began racing last year for a local team and also enjoy volunteering with the junior teams. Two of the highlights this year consisted of seeing my Sweet Briar sisters both on

vacation and at our 20th Reunion! Lisa DuCharme Elwell: Two things to share: Spent a few days with fellow classmate Katherine Seder Karon’s family in Newton, Mass., in August and had a great time! Our four little boys had fun, and Katy and I had a chance to catch up. It was the best! We also recently moved into a new house in London! Please let me know if you are ever visiting London! Katy McCartney Gilliam: Dave and I have lived in Chapel Hill, N.C., for 11 years with our two children, Anna Ramsey (11) and Scott (14). Over the years, I’ve focused my energy on fundraising. I have organized 5Ks, and other fundraising events, for UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, specifically in Breast Cancer and Pediatric Oncology. This January, I switched gears and now work in communications and marketing for the Southern Village Marketing Association. Alison Hall: It was great seeing so many at Reunion and living it up again on Reid 2nd Floor. I still work for the City of Auburn and continue to volunteer with our local United Way and Special Olympics. I was able to spend quality time with Kerri Burtner, Melanie Peters, Katie Robertson, Katherine Karon, Jessica Hiveley, Annette Dusenbury and Amy Campbell last November when we managed to cross the finish line at the Chickamauga Battlefield 5K. Kate Hall: Enjoying working hard, playing hard, traveling spending time with family. I regularly talk to Melanie Vracas and Lisa Hoffman McGeorge. Looking forward to taking my daughter, Grace, on a college tour to SBC this fall! Jessica Hiveley: I’m still living in the Twin Cities, working at Travelers, and playing soccer. I recently began volunteering with a local program where I’m partnered with an elementary school student to work on the student’s literacy skills twice a week, and it has been a lot of fun. I’ve also been taking some great vacations, focusing on my goal of visiting 50 states before I turn 50 (only 6 left!), and I’ve been trying to see as many national parks as I can during my travels. As always, if you’re ever in Minnesota, please look me up; everyone is always welcome to stay with me! Katherine Johnston: I now have two kids, Annie (8) and Ben (4), and am living near Bethlehem, Pa. Last year I left my job at SRI International after 17 years, and I’m now working in a flexible and fun job as a senior research fellow for the Global Wellness Institute. My family has vacationed with Jill Butcher in Hilton Head for the past couple years, and we love seeing her and her family frequently! Amy Tyler Louthan: I am living in

Puerto Rico with my three kids. I train horses and give classes in dressage and jumping. All three of my children ride as well. Lilian made the Puerto Rican National show jumping team and placed in Guatemala recently. Linden is leading the 1.0 meter class this year. [Editor’s note: Tyler submitted her class note before Hurricane Maria struck Puerto Rico. Her home and farm sustained serious damage. We wish her well.] Jennifer Swisher Lynes: I am now working full-time as assistant medical director of Big Bend Hospice in Tallahassee, Fla. I am loving it, but still trying to balance work, family and self. Our three girls are doing great and are excited to start school. The older two attended Reunion with me, and we all had a wonderful time. Overall, it was a great summer. We look forward to participating in Sweet Work Weeks next summer. Kathryn Cunningham McMahon: New home! New Job! Same husband! Casey and I purchased our first home together, in Rutherfordton, N.C., in May. We are completely remodeling the entire home and spending all our free time between Lowe’s and home projects. I was hired by the Tryon International Equestrian Center as their director of community engagement in July. It is a dream job! There is a lot of preparation before we host the World Equestrian Games in 2018. Becky Moats Miller: I LOVED seeing my ’97 Vixens at our 20-year reunion and wish more of you were there to celebrate. As for me, my most important job is being mom to Michael (9), Brent (3) and Baby Steven (1). My husband, Chip, and I continue to grow our real estate business in Warrenton; so if you’re ever driving through, stop in and visit!! Catherine Osuna Neis: We have had another busy summer! Our family took a Disney cruise, and it was great having all of us in one place. My children (Daniel and Penelope) keep us busy between all of their activities! But I wouldn’t have it any other way. I was sad to miss Reunion and look forward to catching up with all of my classmates soon. Kerri Rawlings Burtner: A year ago I began a new career as a freelance writer, and I have no regrets. It has been a great move for my life-work balance. From research and article writing, to blogs and social media posts—please keep me in mind if you know someone in need of writing services. Chris and I keep busy with Abby (14) and Eli (13). I’m extremely jealous of my daughter, who will be traveling to Australia next summer with school. I know she’ll fall in love with it just as I did during my JYA while at SBC. Sending my love to all of you!

Katie Clarkson Robertson: All is well here in Winston-Salem. I can’t believe I have a son who is officially a high school student! I loved attending Reunion and seeing everyone. It seems like yesterday all that mattered was being in Prothro at 5 p.m. I want to share my new personal motto with all of my SBC sisters: Recruit, recruit, recruit! Sara Schmalz: I am living in Portland, Maine, with my husband and sweet terrier. I moved to Maine about 17 years ago for a master’s in social work program and now work as a program manager at Maine Behavioral Healthcare. Maine is a wonderful place to live, especially in the summer! I hope to attend a reunion event at some point in the future. It would be so wonderful to see SBC classmates again! Alexa Schriempf: Hi, everyone! I spent three amazing weeks as a Sweet Work Weeks volunteer and cannot express how much fun it was participating! I encourage everyone to try and make at least one day next year. It is good for the College but also fulfilling as an alumna! In other news, I moved out of Pennsylvania and am now living in my hometown of Alexandria, Va. Back home I often connect with Sweet Briar alumnae Melanie Vracas, Carolyn Leddy ’98, Emily Pegues ’00 and Kate Schlech ’70. And look forward to meeting up with new Alexandria Vixen friends made during Sweet Work Weeks (alumnae I wouldn’t have met if it weren’t for these three magical weeks): Lelee Frank Hazard ’81, Sarah Clement ’75 and Lynn Rogerson ’76. Lisa Tedder Baker: I’m currently relaunching my marketing strategy business, adding coaching for entrepreneurs. I have been spending my free time volunteering and am working to start a nonprofit to end homelessness. My two children (son, 5, and daughter, 9) and I live in Atlanta. This past January, I summited Kilimanjaro and plan to climb all seven summits, starting with Kosciuszko! Melanie Vracas: It was wonderful seeing all my classmates (and others) at our 20th Reunion. This summer has slipped by, and I have been too busy adulting to do much traveling. My fiancé and I have taken a few trips, here and there, to see friends and attend big celebrations. Jennifer Wagner: It has been an exciting year for my family. I deployed to Afghanistan in October 2016 for six months with the Army. There I served as a legal advisor to the Afghan Criminal Court in Parwan, an Afghan court responsible for the criminal trials of Afghanistan’s high-level terrorists. I returned home in late April. The deployment was amazing. I learned a lot. I missed my husband and four kids—Mary Kate, Caroline, Jacob and Joseph—quite a bit, but everyone sur-

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Class Notes vived. I am now assigned to the Pentagon. My family is celebrated being together this summer, and we planned a trip to Bald Head Island, N.C., in late August. I love reading the news about Sweet Briar. I hope to make it down to the Briar Patch in the fall. Kathryn Black Watson: I’m so thankful for Facebook and the ability to keep up with friends who are scattered! Allen and I celebrated our 20-year anniversary in June, we watched our oldest graduate high school during our 20th class reunion, and just recently took her to the University of Alabama, where she is enrolled in their honors college program (ROLL TIDE!)! I’m still teaching PreK and love it! Life is good and even better without my uterus! Ha! Just wanted to see if you were paying attention! Tanya Ketchum Young: My family and I moved back to north Georgia in the spring after spending 15 months in the border town of Laredo, Texas. It was a great experience, and we had made many dear friends. In July, the children and I were able to see AnneClaire Wackenhut Kasten ’98 and her lovely family while they were visiting her parents in the Atlanta area. She had just had sweet baby #3 named Félix. In early August we also welcomed our third child, a baby boy. Sisters Talley (5) and Lilly (2) are over the moon having baby brother Koch here. There’s never a dull moment in this house!

1998

Chantel Bartlett 7775 Tiverton Dr Springfield, VA 22152-2021 pinkgreen1998@yahoo.com Greetings class of 1998! I hope that everyone has marked June 1-3, 2018, down on their calendars. My gosh, ladies, where has the time gone?! I feel like we graduated only a short time ago and yet in seven months we will be celebrating our 20th Reunion. Cynthia Bumgardner Puckett and family are doing great in their family circus. However, Cynthia shared that she has had an emotional summer and has forgotten who she is! If you remember, please contact her immediately. She is desperate to regain some perspective. Adulting is hard. She will be at our 20th Reunion and encourages everyone to attend! Mia Whang Spiker Johnson shared that she was at SBC for two years before transferring to NYU. She, like all of us, is so glad the school has overcome such adversity. She was recently elected to the board of directors of the Prevent Cancer Foundation. She continues her work as an attorney at Covington & Burling in D.C. Mia married Martin Johnson last May, and they 80

live in Potomac, Md., with their blended family of four kids. Scarlett Swain shared the superexciting news that she welcomed a new baby girl on July 25. Her name is Emma Katherine, “Emma Kate.” We get the joy of meeting Emma Kate at Reunion! Britt Sheinbaum married Henry (Hank) Carter in Wrightsville Beach, N.C., in May. Scarlett Swain, Astrid Liverman, Carolyn Leddy, and Isabel Jean-Pierre Myers were all in attendance to cheer the happy couple on and of course to sing “Holla! Holla!” at the reception. A few weeks later, Britt got to celebrate again on a girls trip to Banner Elk, N.C., with Isabel, Joelle Jackson Doss, Gretchen Gravley Tucker, Kelli Scott Uttley, and Mamie Jackson Williams ’99. Finally, Britt got to cuddle Scarlett’s beautiful new baby girl (Class of ’35, here she comes!). WOW, Britt, lots of exciting news to share! It’s going to be such a blast catching up with everyone next year at Reunion. This has been quite a year for Isabel Jean-Pierre Myers, who lives in the Washington, D.C., area with her husband and daughter Safiya (1). “It was so amazing to attend Britt’s wedding and then see the girls on a ‘glamping’ girl’s trip. It was so much fun to see and be with such amazing women at our luxurious cabin.” Another girls trip was organized when Kelly Bowman Greenwood and Dana Bordvick Poleski met up at the beach in Emerald Isle, N.C., this summer for some fun in the sun with Kelly’s daughter Helen (9), sister, aunt, cousins, husbands, and all Helen’s second cousins. They had a lot of fun eating popcorn shrimp, playing Exploding Kittens (card game) and arguing over who had the accent, California or North Carolina??! Bronwyn Beard got married to Dennis Gartland (Youngstown State and Texas A&M) on July 8. Bronwyn is still in HR for Summit Racing Equipment and was making frequent trips to Dallas to open a new facility there in October. The Gartlands will live in Chagrin Falls, Ohio. Bronwyn celebrated her wedding with fellow ’98’ers: Susan Barney, Cady Thomas, Katie Martin, Tonya Grudier Montgomery, Lindsay Culp and Linda May Scherr ’87. Heather Thomas Armbruster volunteered at her third Sweet Work Weeks this summer. The work that was put in is astounding. HAT made a set of curtains and can’t wait to see them when Grammer parlor is redone. Some people spent three weeks painting and pressure washing. Anne-Claire’s parents were graciously there once again (after sending three daughters to SBC, they work with us). If you ever get a chance to do Sweet Weeks, DO! You

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Anne-Claire Wackenhut Kasten and family with newest addition, Félix

Susan Barney, Cady Thomas, Bronwyn Beard Gartland, Katie Martin, Tonya Grudier Montgomery, Lindsay Culp, and Linda May Scherr ’87

Isabel Jean-Pierre Myers, Astrid Liverman, Britt Sheinbaum, Scarlett Swain, and Carolyn Leddy

Anna Meres Wade’s children, June and David

Class Notes live in the dorm and eat in the dining hall. You get to work with alumnae from all eras and make some good friends. You will work hard, but it’s the cheapest vacation you will ever take. HAT started referring to it as a mission trip to explain to others why this week is so important and means so much to her. Anne-Claire Wackenhut Kasten shared the superduper exciting news that their family welcomed Félix Emmanuel Scott on June 16. Although he arrived a few days ahead of his due date, he still managed to weigh in at a healthy 9 lb. 9.5 ozs., measuring 22 inches. Older siblings Jacques (6) and Geneviève (3) dote on him sweetly. While in Atlanta in July, they were able to connect with Tanya Ketchum Young ’97 and her two daughters. Diana Jordan Avery is the sponsorship coordinator for Richmond Synchro!, a synchronized skating team that Diana’s daughter is involved with. She is busy trying to find local businesses to support the skaters. Meredith (7th grade) enjoyed her first ice-skating sleep-away camp this summer and is now an acolyte at their church. Aaron (3rd grade) moved up from recreational gymnastics to the developmental team, as well as playing soccer and taking a goalie clinic this fall—trying to do it all this fall! Anna Meres Wade’s son, David, celebrated his first birthday in October. Anna said that he has been such a joy and that his smile and laugh can warm any heart! June, his big sister, is now 3 and is filled with so much spirit and love. Anna still works at the University of Tennessee and loves every minute of it. Life has been a true blessing! Laura Fitton Pieper shared that it’s hard to believe that her little 28-weeker preemie started kindergarten this fall! Laura continues her hard work of being a stay-at-home mom for now. She’s hoping to make it to Reunion! I continue to work for the National Association of Home Builders; I celebrated five years in May. My mom and I have taken on the adventure of building a house. We will be about five blocks away from my brother and sister-inlaw. I greatly look forward to seeing everyone. Please find below a note from Cady Thomas copied/pasted since these are her very own words: “Class of 1998, it is with a heavy heart that I must resign from my position as class president prior to the end of my term. As we are all aware, life can give us many ups and downs, twists and turns, and as well educated, dedicated, hardworking and motivated women, always a full plate. Thus, I am turning over the reigns to Chantel. She has done a wonderful job as our class secretary and will no doubt be an amazing class president. She will

be reaching out to get some assistance in the coming weeks. Please reach out and help if you can. The 20-year reunion will be here before you know it! Thank you for the opportunity to serve as your class president for the past nine years. It was truly and honor and a privilege. Holla Holla!” Thanks, Cady, for your dedication to our class! So on that note, I am asking for support to help me lead our class over the next eight months until Reunion. I need someone to help me with Class Notes and planning Reunion. Feel free to contact me through email or Facebook.

Erin East ’00, Kris Harris ’99, Josie Beets ’00, at Sweet Work Weeks

1999

Lindsey Neef Kelly 13321 Windsong Way Carrollton, VA 23314 lindseyckelly@verizon.net Sarah Elkins Ince and family are settling into their new home in Concord, N.C. Asa began second grade in August and attended Founders’ Day with Mom. Angel Lindberg ’21, one of Sarah’s students, moved onto campus this fall, and Sarah is working on recruiting a new group of girls for the Class of 2022. Jennifer Schmidt Major graduated with honors from the University at Buffalo’s accelerated bachelor of science in nursing program in May. She is beginning her career as a RN in outpatient dialysis. This summer she and her family spent a wonderful week in the Outer Banks with sisters Abby Schmidt Anzalone ’00 and Kim Schmidt Miscavage ’01 and their families.

Chad & Kim Fella ’00 at Angkor Wat temple in Cambodia

ald Reagan. Kim divides time between Yokosuka and our home in Macon, Ga. Japan has been great for travel—we visited Hong Kong & Bali in December 2016, Cambodia in March 2017, and Singapore in June 2017. We also saw the snow monkeys and Matsumoto Castle in Nagano prefecture in Japan last January.

2000

Marilen Sarian Crump 212 Rock Creek Court Yorktown, VA 23693 artinspiredme@gmail.com Elizabeth Davis Baker: This has been a tough year for our family. We lost my dad to lung cancer on Dec. 12. I’m so lucky that my SBC sisters were there to support me during his illness and death. I’m eternally grateful for their friendship! Brian and I celebrated our 13th anniversary and I will begin my 16th year at Johnston Community College. Come visit me in N.C., Vixens. I miss you all! Josie Beets: Erin East and I participated in Sweet Work Weeks in August, painting dorms and landscaping. I was appointed to the Board of Trustees of United Through Reading, a national organization dedicated to uniting U.S. military families who face physical separation by facilitating the bonding experience of reading aloud together.

Emily Pegues ’00 examining the tomb of the Black Prince, Canterbury Cathedral

2002 Josie Beets and husband Sean Zehtab at the United Through Reading Tribute to Military Families in May 2017 Emily Pegues: I’m in my final Ph.D. year at the Courtauld while continuing to work in the sculpture department at the National Gallery of Art. As part of my research, I conducted the first-ever technical examinations of two medieval tombs: Mary of Burgundy (Bruges), and Edward the Black Prince (Canterbury Cathedral), for which the BBC filmed and interviewed my team and me. Professor Laing (’57) was kept updated from the road! Kimberly Harden Fella: Chad and I are currently stationed in Yokosuka, Japan. Chad is the Assistant Reactor Officer on the aircraft carrier USS Ron-

Kathleen McNamara Brown 2115 Natahoa Court Falls Church, Va. 22043 mcnamara02@gmail.com Aja Grosvenor Stephens is excited to be the Class of 2002 co-president with Amy Mullen. She was sad to miss Reunion but had the good excuse of a new job! She is now living the dream as manager of events and CLE for the Federal Bar Council. She and her family enjoyed a busy summer, and son Jace will be entering Kindergarten in September. Amy Mullen is enjoying life in Arlington, Va., with her husband, Luke, and son, Bruno. She works at Gensler as a technical designer. Amy is also an illustrator; her second children’s board book is out now with Duopress and Workman Publishing. She is currently working on a third book, due out in

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Class Notes

Brook Tucker Buck ’02, Maria Thacker Goethe ’02, and Lori Smith Nilan ’02, and Kelly Monical Goossens ’02 enjoyed a visit at the home of Ashley Johnson McGee ’03

Melissa Cates ’02 with husband Alex Bonesteel and son Delling spring 2018. She is excited to be the Class of 2002 co-president and hopes everyone is enjoying her SBC 2002 Instagram feed! Katie McNamara Brown is still working in Washington, D.C., and living in Falls Church, Va., with her husband and daughters. After several years away from riding, she is happily back in the saddle again! She enjoyed a recent visit to catch up with Tia Trout Perez and had a lovely time at the SBC Alumnae Club of D.C.’s Back to School Gathering hosted by Karen Williams-Wickre ’84. Katie enjoyed seeing friends during Reunion Weekend and is glad to have the opportunity to serve as Class of 2002 secretary. When she’s not working her nineto-five or the art scene in Charlottesville, Va., Joanna Mullen is enjoying the single life, hanging with her peeps, going to concerts, seeing “Wonder Woman” three times, surviving a few comic book conventions, talking to her nephew daily, refusing to watch “Murdoch Mysteries” with her mom, 82

Maria Thacker Goethe ’02 with husband Patrick and daughter Cecilia Maria, “Cece”

Katie McNamara Brown ’02 enjoying Reunion Weekend with daughter Carolyn

and completing her class notes in one sentence! Arney Walker is living on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., where she owns her own wedding planning and calligraphy company, Arney Walker Studio. Melissa Cates lives on Whidbey Island, just north of Seattle, Wash., and is a financial advisor for Edward Jones. Melissa and her husband, Alex Bonesteel, have a three-year-old son, Delling. Melissa still enjoys riding; her current mount is a Thoroughbred named Touchdown Sherman—Go Seahawks! Melissa is the current president of the Whidbey Westside Rotary Club and in the midst of planning a trip to Guatemala to work on an equestrian-themed peace project. Dr. Regan Blackwood recently purchased the Clifton-Centreville Veterinary Practice in July 2017, and it is keeping her quite busy! Regan really enjoyed reconnecting at Reunion with classmates. She enjoyed a full summer of fun with her husband and her young son, Will. Rachel Roth Allred just began her 12th year teaching in Prince Georges County, Md.! This is her fourth year teaching fifth-grade math and science in Hyattsville. She and her husband, Toby, just celebrated their

11th anniversary in August. Rachel will be celebrating her third year as an Origami Owl Independent Designer in October and was recently promoted to senior designer. She is excited to be volunteering with daughter Cristina’s Girl Scout troop as cookie manager. After many years of museum work, Heather Christensen Smith and her sister Alice decided to launch Wazi Shoes. Purchasing Wazi Shoes not only provides steady employment to the Tanzanians who produce the shoes, a percentage of the profits go to The Gretta Foundation to fund nursing and midwifery scholarships in East Africa. Nurses make up 80 to 90 percent of the medical workforce in East Africa, and through this program, Wazi can fund nursing and midwifery scholarships. “Wazi” means “open” in Swahili, and Heather celebrates Wazi open shoes, as well as the open road, open heart, and open mind! Kelly Monical Goossens, Brook Tucker Buck, Maria Thacker Goethe, and Lori Smith Nilan enjoyed a visit at the home of Ashley Johnson McGee ’03 in Lake Wylie, S.C., this past spring. It was their first girls’ trip with all of their children, and it was extremely fun! Denise McDonald Gentry was not able to join but was greatly missed.

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Mary Tassone Dunlevy ’02 cruising with husband Dale in the Bahamas Maria Thacker Goethe and proud daddy Patrick greeted Cecilia Maria Goethe (“Cece”) on Feb. 1, 2017, at 6:18 p.m. Cecilia weighed 7 pounds, 9 ounces and was 20 inches long. Maria and Patrick are thrilled to have their rainbow baby. Brook Tucker Buck is now working in the operating room as an orthopedic nurse. After six years on the floor, it was time for a change! She enjoys watching son James grow and explore daily! He is such a goof ball! She’s looking forward to a calmer fall season filled with weddings and birthday parties! Dr. Nicole McDaniel-Carder Stamant and her husband welcomed their daughter, Juliette Jean, into the world on Dec. 5, 2016. Nicole is still teaching at Agnes Scott College, where she has received tenure and is now associate professor of English. Lindsay Keller Sullivan lives in Highlands Ranch, Colo., with her husband and two boys, Easton (7) and Asher (2). She busies herself with design jobs for theaters and has started a new business as a LuLaRoe consultant, which she really loves! If you ever find yourself in Colorado, her door is ALWAYS open for visitors. Ashley Trantham’s vocal band, Catch 22, released their first EP and continues to perform in North Carolina. She became engaged on New Year’s Eve and will be married in April 2018. In June Mary Tassone Dunlevy traveled with her daughters, Ariana (7) and Lorien (3), to Cincinnati, Ohio, to visit family and meet Fiona, the baby hippo, at the Cincinnati Zoo! In July, Mary and husband Dale dropped the girls off at their grandmother’s house, then drove down to Charleston, S.C., to board a cruise to the Bahamas! Mary’s brother was married on the cruise and afterward they all traveled together to Freeport and Nassau. Now that they are back from the pristine beaches, Mary, Dale, and the children are getting

Class Notes ready to buckle down for another frigid Pennsylvania winter. Alicia Markham Morris is living in Cary, N.C., where she is a teacher at Cary Academy (CA). Alicia credits her studies at Sweet Briar College for her love of African history, which she shares with her world history students at CA. She has been awarded two Fulbright-Hays study abroad trips to Africa with other educators, one to Tanzania in 2011 and one to Morocco in 2015. She is traveling less frequently these days, as she is busy with her twoyear-old daughter, Alice Elizabeth, her husband, David, whom she met during her freshman year at SBC, and their two dogs. During the past two years, Alicia has been thrilled to connect with other Vixens, like Jill Triana ’99 and Cady Thomas ’98, in the Triangle alumnae club. This past summer Kathy Fowler was diagnosed with uterine cancer. She underwent surgery on Aug. 23 and had a complete hysterectomy. According to her GYN-ONC, she has an excellent prognosis with only a 2 to 4 percent chance of recurrence! Kathy has started her 16th year of teaching Latin at Fauquier High in Warrenton, Va. She and her wife, Amy Waller ’04, spent a fun week exploring Philadelphia, Pa., this summer! Kathy also assisted Katie McNamara Brown’s sister on her wedding day, giving her a rose as part of the ceremony—very apropos, isn’t it? Jaime Henna lives in Charlottesville, Va. She has worked for Reality Check Systems for six years, contributing to on-air graphics packages for clients like CBS, MLB Network, NBC, NFL Network, and Univision. In the past year, Jaime traveled to New York, Los Angeles, Washington D.C., Colorado, and Connecticut. Since moving back to Virginia in 2014, she has learned to tap dance, drive stick-shift, and box.

2003

Courtney Arnott Silverthorn 1105 Norris Ct SW Leesburg, VA 20175 courtney.silverthorn@gmail.com Kristin Farris Bergquist 2762 Hollywood Dr Decatur, GA 30033 sbckristin@hotmail.com Claire Affleck just celebrated 10 years of owning and operating her own stable, Claire Affleck Training! Her stable is in the Finger Lakes region of Central New York, and she offers boarding, training, lessons, camps and showing. The barn colors are pink and green, of course! Julia Schmitz was selected to be director of the quality enhancement plan (QEP) at Piedmont College. The

Mercury, moon, sun by Jenny Weitz

From left, Michelle Badger ’06, Catherine Cox Hamilton ’08, Stephanie O’Sullivan Fitzpatrick ’04, Sarah Ruff Gibson ’04, Jozanne Summerville ’04, Suzanne Knouse McReynolds ’05, and Emilie Malone ’04.

Dylan (4) and Sarah (2) Weitz

QEP is a five-year plan required for Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) accreditation that focuses on enhancing student learning. Jenny Neureuther Weitz traveled with her family to volunteer at the Lowell Observatory in Madras, Ore., to view the total eclipse. It was amazing and she can’t wait to do it again in 2024! She started her new role as director of the honors program at Paradise Valley Community College in Phoenix, Ariz., in addition to her astronomy professor duties. She also completed rehab and has been sober for six months! Jessica Shannon completed a long board certification process as a hospital chaplain (BCC) with the Association of Professional Chaplains, and she absolutely loves being a pediatric chaplain at Texas Children’s Hospital The Woodlands. She has two Boston terriers, and her boyfriend has two beagles. They continue to have all sorts of hiking and camping adventures, and they can’t wait until hiking season starts in Texas. I caught up with Kathleen Herndon at her new home in Roanoke, Va., then spent two fantastic Sweet Work Weeks at Sweet Briar, made tons of new friends, and got Anne Lombardi ’01 back on campus for the first time since graduation!

2004

Ginny Wood Susi 7975 Dunstable Cir Orlando, FL 32817 Schyler Ellis Burke and husband Peter will welcome a fifth baby, a girl, due in November. They are still living in Edmond, Okla. Caitlin Webber Mazzucca and husband Tim welcomed baby Enzo on April 22, 2016. Caitlin still works as a political analyst in Washington, D.C., for Bloomberg LP and travels frequently for her job. Caitlin and family live in Arlington, Va. Lisa Moore Walton and her husband moved from Nashville, Tenn., to Chestertown, Md., this past spring. Lisa is teaching high school science at Wye River Upper School. She is also working towards her Master of Science in educational studies at Johns Hopkins University. Stacey Maddox celebrated her graduation from her internal medicine residency with Elizabeth Killiam ’08 in June. She has accepted a position as a hospitalist at Alaska Native Medical Center in Anchorage, starting in January. Stacey is excited about joining the Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium and working for an underserved population. She and her husband, John, are building a house in Anchorage and are looking forward to moving back to the Last Frontier and seeing Russia from their backyard. They took their daughters Beatrice (2 1/2) and Zinnia (1) to Disney World in September before leaving the lower 48. Kelly Gibbons Schell wrote, “I married Walter Schell in Easton, Md.,

on April 1, 2017. Carrie Cann ’05 was a bridesmaid. We also moved from Maryland to Augusta, Ga., in April as well. Next April (2018), we are expecting our first child. Apparently April is a lucky month for us!” Tiffany McCabe Carr gave birth to her third baby boy, Michael, in June. David (8), and Charlie (2), have been excellent big brothers. The family moved to a new city in August for husband Joseph’s job promotion to special agent with the Virginia State Police. Following Labor Day weekend, Tiffany started her 14th year teaching music at two elementary schools in Southampton County, Va. Breanne Leibering Wyman is still living outside of Leesburg, Va., with her husband and two boys, Toby (4) and Sawyer(1). She is expecting a baby girl in December. Sarah Ruff Gibson and husband John got married in May in Boston. Michelle Badger ’06, Suzanne Knouse McReynolds ’05, Catherine Cox Hamilton ’08, Jozanne Summerville, Emilie Malone, and Stephanie O’Sullivan Fitzpatrick were there to help celebrate. Sarah and John still reside in Oakland, Maine, with John’s three children: Campbell (18), Rianne (16) and Jack (13). Adrienne Arnold Ciccarello lives in Charlotte, N.C., with husband Philip and daughters Penelope and Adeline. She has worked for Charlotte-Meck Schools for 10 years and is currently a multi-classroom leader and instructional coach. Adrienne and her family love visiting family in Virginia and making quick stops at Sweet Briar to show her girls the beautiful campus.

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Class Notes Ginny Wood Susi took her husband and two kids on a summer road trip to their house in Maine. On the way, they stopped in Washington, D.C., and NOVA to do some sightseeing, and they had dinner with Bre Leibering Wyman and her husband and two boys. The kids were all instant friends. Ginny loves her new house and celebrated her second full weekend there by suffering through hurricane Irma. She would like to thank Sarah Ruff Gibson for taking care of class notes while Ginny’s ability to communicate was hampered.

2005

Lynsie Watkins Steele 2691 Free Union Rd Charlottesville, VA 22901 savvyshopperlynsie@gmail.com Slavica Klapcic Olujic is living in Zagreb, Croatia, and running an event agency, Katapult promocija. She is raising four sons: Santo (12), Toma (10), Gabrijel (10) and Lav (5).

2006

Victoria Chappell Harvey 8618 Waldon Heights San Antonio, TX 78254 victoriachappellharvey@gmail.com Michelle Badger: Just a reminder to everyone in our class that SBC has a variety of ways to be involved. You can go to a college fair as an Admissions Ambassador (big thank you to Laura Ann Humphrey Toussaint and Maureen McGuire, who are current regional chairs), host an event, go to an event, tell a student about SBC, share stories about our school online, or join a working group of the Alumnae Alliance. Also, don’t forget to make your best gift. Thank you for all that each of you do for SBC! Charis Lease-Trevathan Chase: Since my last update, we have added a new family member. Wesley Scott was born April 21, 2015, and is (mostly) adored by his big sister, Verity. Our family has also moved! We’ve been in Hamilton, N.J., since November 2015, and I am working at Princeton Behavioral Health as a primary therapist. I’m primarily working with adolescents in our DBT program and absolutely loving it. Sneha Sharma: Since graduation and leaving the U.S. in 2007, I am celebrating 10 years in London. This is also another special year for me as I welcomed my baby boy this past June. As for me, Victoria Chappell Harvey, 2017 has been quite a year already! It has been fun re-acclimating to life in the U.S. after life overseas. We are now in San Antonio and bought 84

After about 2 ½ years of living and teaching in Florida, I, Emily Olson, left the Sunshine State and moved to Texas in July. I wanted to be closer to more of my family and a good job opened in Fort Stockton, the same little town where my parents live, so I now I teach and direct theater at Fort Stockton High School. I was sad to miss our 10th Reunion, but I am looking forward to planning visits to some of my SBC friends during this next year.

2008 Heidi Trude at the Googleplex our first home. Would love visitors or if any other Vixens are in Texas, maybe meeting up for fun day-trips. Also, just started a new job with the Department of Labor to assist military members transitioning to the civilian job market.

2007

Emily Nicole Olson 1106 N. Rio Street Fort Stockton, TX 79735 emilynicoleolson@gmail.com Heidi Trude is currently in her 10th year teaching French at Skyline High School. She was recognized as the David C. Cox Foreign Language Teacher of the Year for Virginia on October 7 at the FLAVA conference. Heidi had a busy summer traveling and attending conferences in Virginia, New York, and California. The highlight was going to the Googleplex in Mountain View, Calif. Heidi also started working part-time for the Google for Education team in May. She loves working on the Curriculum Alignment Project. She enjoyed getting to see everyone at Reunion! Megan Meighan has been busy this year with travels to Australia, skydiving, scuba diving and most recently getting engaged and moving to Panama, Central America, to begin wedding planning. She is enjoying horseback riding regularly with her sister (Brianna Meighan de Hanna ’05), and spending time with her nephews now that they live down the road from each other. She also has been enjoying boating, fishing and traveling with her fiancé. She is excited about what the rest of the year has in store. Laura Jane Schaefer is enjoying the same great job with OHSU’s West Campus with its newest sustainability milestone of being a recipient of the county’s Green Business Award! She was sad not to be able to make it to Reunion, but has stayed active with the Alumnae Alliance in Portland, even

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hosting a recent Back-to-School event. This past spring, she was able to visit a unique high school in rural Oregon and share the positive experience of a women’s college education with students considering their futures. She says, “It was inspiring to hear their dreams and rewarding to be able to dispel a lot of myths and stereotypes!” With Kimberly Battad coordinating, Laura helped represent SBC at a college fair at the end of October. “And because I didn’t get to see Maggie Saylor Patrick at Reunion and I miss her, I’m taking little Maisie out to visit her in Northfield, Minn., in a few weeks!” Maggie Saylor Patrick: “Martin and I seem to have settled down a bit since we bought our house in 2015. Same jobs, no new degrees, etc. I was very happy to visit with Natalie Pye in New York and Rachel Reynolds Baxtresser in D.C. in the past year, and Laura Schaefer is coming to visit this fall. Reunion in June was a blast! Our home is always open and we’d love to see you if you’re in Minnesota!”

Mary Dance Berry 614 Lafayette Drive Hillsborough, NC 27278 marysdberry@gmail.com Ginny Moncure got married to Allen Jamerson this past June in Richmond, Va. Classmates Sarah McLemore, Caroline Byrd Dozier, and Kate Skafidas Daskalakis were bridesmaids. Dr. Amanda Wisz Keener writes, “This November marks one year in our new home, Denver, Colo. I took some time off work as a freelance science writer this year to adjust to life as a mom to our little boy, Jonathan, who was born in mid-February. In March, a piece I wrote last year for Nova Next was a runner up for the American Association for Cancer Research’s June L. Biedler Prize for Cancer Journalism.” Dr. Rebecca Penny Humphrey and husband Austen are getting settled in their new home in Grand Rapids, Mich., where she is an assistant professor of biology at a small liberal arts college. They’re also excited to be expecting a baby Humphrey in early April 2018! Katie Tipton Wilson writes, “In June my husband, Brad (VMI ’07), and I moved from Columbus, Ga., to Birmingham, Ala., so that I could accept a

Sarah McLemore ’08, Caroline Byrd Dozier ’08, Kate Skafidas Daskalakis ’08, Squiffy Walker Christopher ’91, Wizzie Christopher ’20, Ginny Moncure Jamerson, Gregor Lee Pickral ’00, Blythe Lloyd ’07

Class Notes 4th/5th grade math teaching position. We are excited to be in this new city and hope to meet some local Vixens and Keydets soon!”

2009

Jenny Walkiewicz Dill 13938 SW Crist Court Tigard, OR 97223 jenny.Dill11@gmail.com Lauren Schwartz Lazaro started a new job in September at Louisiana State University as assistant professor of agronomy and weed science in the School of Plant, Environmental, & Soil Sciences. #geauxtigers. She and her husband moved from Arkansas to Baton Rouge, La. They are expecting their first child, a daughter, in December. Laura Cromwell was able to return for Reunion this year and visit campus for the first time in four years. She was able to visit with Kim Shrader Butterfield, Paige Cantfil, Kaelyn Leake, Megan Behrle, Meredith Newman, and Rebecca Girten while on campus. She also got to meet up with Lauren Guyer Thomas and Rebecca Adams in Charlottesville. In August she had a delightful, spur-ofthe-moment visit with Helen Bradshaw ’10, who visited Denver, Colo., for the first time. Laura has been working on a children’s book that will be illustrated by classmate Mallory Sherwood Engelstad! Mallory Sherwood Engelstad gave birth to her first child on Feb. 1! Theodore (Teddy) Norman is an absolute joy! When not changing diapers and making baby food, Mallory continues to work on her small business, Poco Post. In addition to freelance illustration work, she is working on getting her children’s book about gentrification, “Geri & Gentri,” published! This summer she was thrilled to witness the marriage of Nicole Brandt Turner ’06, as well as visit with Helen Bradshaw ’10! Mallory and husband Jeffrey, still call Denver, Colo., home. They would love to see any Vixens who pass through! Caroline Chappell Hazarian welcomed her daughter, Julianne Taline Hazarian, into the world on June 12 at 6:28 a.m. with her husband, Steve, and their son, Dylan. Julianne weighed 6 lbs., 14.8 ozs. and was 20.25”; she is also the granddaughter of Wendy Weiler ’71, making her a possible third-generation SBC woman. They are tickled pink to be a family of four! Katie Bird Lischick and husband Peter recently purchased their first home in the Annapolis, Md., area. This spring, Katie started a new position as public relations account executive at The Cyphers Agency, an integrated marketing firm in Annapolis. She is loving the Annapolis lifestyle and looks

From left to right: Liz Riedel ’10, Anna Fure ’08, Hampton Lamb Boyko ’10, Anne Porter Pulliam ’09, Preston Wright ’10, Blair Sutton ‘09, Charlotte Gay Gerhardt ’80, Alexis Parker Van Selow ’09, Kory Garvis ’11, Shannon Schalestock ’09, Hallsey Brandt ’16, Courtney LeBlanc ’09, Ashley-Lauren Whitacre ’09, Micaela Weiss ’09

Alexis Parker ’09 married Tyler Van Selow on June 17, 2017, at Sweet Briar College

Erin Coppersmith Atkin ’09 with her husband, Thomas, and their sons, Nolan (1 mo.) and Declan (2)

Theodore (Teddy) Norman Engelstad, son of Mallory Sherwood Engelstad ’09, was born February 1, 2017

Julianne Taline Hazarian, daughter of Caroline Chappell Hazarian ’09 and grand-daughter of Wendy Weiler ’71, was born June 12, 2017

Mallory Sherwood Engelstad ’09 (left) with her son Theodore (Teddy) Norman Engelstad and Helen Bradshaw ’10

Caroline Chappell Hazarian ’09 with daughter Julianne, son Dylan, and husband Steve Shannon Schalestock ’09 got engaged to Matthew Friedman (HSC ’04) in September

Lauren Stephens Andrews ’09 teaching her self-contained autism class during this past summer SWEET BRIAR MAGAZINE | SBC.EDU

Class Notes

2010 Allie Garrison Bridges and husband Kevin announce the birth of their daughter, Karmen Sylvia, on August 19, 2017. Baby and family are all doing well.

Melissa Ramos married Nicholas Jacklin on August 26, 2017, at The Willard InterContinental Hotel in Washington, D.C. Wedding guests included (top row): Lindsey Davis, Sara Buttine Parsatoon ’11, Meagan Oliphant Herman ’11, Huma Manati ’11, bridesmaid Sarah Schofield Wright ’11, Brittney Bolin ’11, Natasha Weiss Huff ’11, Melissa Diehl ’09, bridesmaid Virginia Edahl Molan, Megan Seeley Grasham ’11, Kate Gorman McClung ’11; (bottom row) Nicholas & Melissa Jacklin, Hilary Bowie ’12, and bridesmaid Laura McKenna. Alison Lyons ’81 also attended.

forward to catching up with other Vixens in the area! Alexis Parker married Tyler Van Selow (H-SC) at Sweet Briar College on June 17. In attendance were fellow vixens Liz Riedel ’10, Anna Fure ’08, Hampton Lamb Boyko ’10, Anne Porter Pulliam, Preston Wright ’10, Blair Sutton, Charlotte Gay Gerhardt ’80, Kory Garvis ’11, Shannon Schalestock, Hallsey Brandt ’16, Courtney LeBlanc, Ashley-Lauren Whitacre, and Micaela Weiss. Alexis is in her seventh year living and working in Charlottesville teaching high school studio art at St. Anne’s-Belfield School. Rebecca Olander Christian and husband Will welcomed their first child, James Brahaney Christian on August 15. Rebecca also earned her degree in nursing and is officially an R.N.! It has been a year of celebration! Ginny Lightfoot Gordon completed her M.A. in social entrepreneurship from Carson-Newman University in June. She is staying busy being a wife to Derek and a stay-at-home mom to Kirk, who celebrated his first birthday on Aug. 22. Lauren Stephens Andrews and her husband recently purchased a 15acre farm in Spotsylvania, Va. They are excited to have their show horses with them as they are part of the family! They are blessed with a son, Jayden (6), and daughter Kaela (2). This fall Lauren is starting her teaching career as a special education teacher (autism) in Spotsylvania County Public Schools. Shannon Schalestock is living in the beautiful Fan part of Richmond and is about to celebrate four years at tech company Snagajob as a project manager. She is also thrilled to share that she got engaged in September to Matthew Friedman (H-SC ’04)! They

are planning a June 2018 wedding and cannot wait to begin celebrating with their SBC/H-SC families! In August 2016 Doreen McVeigh moved to be with her husband, Ken, in Canterbury. There she is a biology teacher and riding supervisor at the Senior King’s School, one of England’s oldest and most prestigious boarding schools, which dates back to 597 A.D. It has also been great to see Vixens in the U.K., including Lauren Guyer Thomas and Marcia Thom Kaley. Their home is always open to the Sweet Briar family! Erin Coppersmith Aitken and her husband, Thomas, welcomed their second son, Nolan Kevin, on August 31. Their son Declan, who will be 3 in December, is enjoying his role as the big brother. I, Jenny Walkiewicz Dill, am putting all my time-management skills I learned at Sweet Briar to excellent use! I am home with our daughter Alexa (17 months) and watch three puppies during the week. I also went back to work for Portland General Electric part-time from home. The best part of my busy schedule is getting to sit down and write class notes twice a year! I love hearing from my fellow ’09 Vixens, keep the wonderful submissions coming ladies.

2010

Rosalie Morgan Louis 403 Whitney Ave Apt 5 New Haven, CT 06511 rosaliemorgan02@gmail.com

2011

Heather Marianne McTague

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1065 Brennan Dr Warminster, PA 18974-2124 hmmctague@gmail.com Sarah Jennings Harper and her husband announce a new family member! Lincoln Richard was born in early March and is thriving, exploring, and enjoying his new world to the fullest! Katherine “Mariah” Hoelz, married Benjamin Bradfield Hurt (originally of Charlottesville) in August at her family’s home on Cape Cod, Mass. Ashley Winters Marot and Jocelyn Stephens McDonald were both bridesmaids. Ben and Mariah live in N.Y.C. Mai McCarthy writes: “As I write this my city is underwater, but I am very fortunate that my husband and I are not affected by the Houston floods as much as others are. By the time you read this the city should have dried out a little, but I bet we’re still hurting. If you can, check on us and see what you can do to help, even now. Kennedy Munro is ecstatic to announce her engagement to James (Jim) Pilcher. The couple became engaged at Jim’s family’s summer retreat in Sunapee, N.H., this past July. Shortly thereafter, Kennedy moved to Philadelphia and began her 1L year at Temple University’s James E. Beasley School of Law. Sara Buttine Parasatoon shared that after attending the wedding of Melissa Ramos ’10 in September, she and Brittney Bolin explored the monuments in Washington, D.C. Laura Wolf married Neil Richardson (of Richmond, Va.) on July 10, in a mountaintop ceremony on the Blue Ridge Parkway. They celebrated with friends and family at Bold Rock Cidery in Nelson County, where the couple resides. In attendance were Laura’s sister

Jennifer Wolf ’07 and fellow mountain biking friend Annette Dusenbury ’97. Neil works at Wintergreen Resort and Laura teaches Special Education for Charlottesville City Schools. Laura Wheatley Russell moved to Auburn, Ala., with husband Ethan and their son, Grayson, in Aug. 2016 and began working at the Auburn University Library. In March Laura and Ethan celebrated their 10th anniversary, and Grayson turned 3. They also welcomed daughter Henley! In Aug. 2017 Laura received her Master of Library and Information Studies from the University of Alabama and began her new job as technical and public services librarian at LaGrange College. Melaina Macone accepted the position of director of operations for

Sara Buttine Parsatoon ’11 and Brittney Bolin ’11 in front of the Washington Monument

Class Notes

Jim Pilcher and Kennedy Munro ’11

Ethan and Laura Russell ’11 with their children, Grayson and Henley

Lincoln Harper looking sharp for the ladies!

Annette Dusenbury ’97, Laura Wolf Richardson ’11 and Jennifer Wolf ’07

Maggie Balderston ’11 (l.) and Ebie Baker ’11

Melaina Macone ’11

the Anheuser-Busch Hawaii distribution centers. She moved to Hawaii in May and is based in Oahu. She oversees five facilities across four islands. Ebie Baker accepted a position at St. Mary’s Episcopal Church in Richmond, Va., in March, which has given her the opportunity to combine her love of research and museums with her passion for international mission work. She spent her summer vacation time visiting Maggie Balderston in Jackson Hole, Wyo. Mr. and Mrs. Neil Richardson at Twenty Minute Cliff Overlook on the Blue Ridge Parkway

Katherine “Mariah” Hoelz ’11 and Benjamin Bradfield Hurt

Graham and Laura Shurley ’12 at East Lake Golf Club

2012

Carol Ferguson 1720 Highland Pk Apt 2 Fort Wright, KY 41011 ferguson12@sbc.edu Lydia Marsh Mindling writes, “Sweet Briar roommates always find a way to reunite!” She met up with Caroline Heltzel Overstreet in Heidelberg, Germany, during a recent European excursion. Laura Mooza and Graham Shurley (UGA Undergraduate Class of 2008, UGA Masters Class of 2009) were married March 4, 2017, in Atlanta, Ga. The service was held at Dunwoody United Methodist Church and the reception at East Lake Golf Club. The bridal party included Lauck Harris, Jenness Gough ’13 and Jenny Young ’11 along with her sisters and close friends. The couple currently resides in Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla.

Tim Mindling, Caroline Heltzel Overstreet ’12, Lydia Marsh Mindling ’12

Emily Jones Dent ’12

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Class Notes Kellner Pruett graduated from The Brody School of Medicine at ECU this May and is currently doing her Family Medicine residency at Vidant Medical Center in Greenville, N.C. Emily Jones Dent and her husband have packed it up and moved to Melbourne, Fla (Emily’s favorite shoes are flip flops, how fitting)! She has attended a number of college fairs to represent Sweet Briar in West Virginia and is excited to continue recruiting from her new home town. Emily misses her JBG the most!

2013

Jackie R. Montero 444 Water Lane Tappahannock, Va. 22560 jackiermontero@gmail.com Hi ladies! I hope everyone is doing well. I’m still on the Rappahannock River at St. Margaret’s School, working as an assistant director of admission.

This fall I am off to recruit in Vietnam, Saudi Arabia, Dubai, and Mexico. I’ve also been spending a lot of time at the barn with Woogie, my OTTB. Julie Moorhead is enjoying her new job as legislative assistant for Rep. Sam Graves in the U.S. House of Representatives. She recently got engaged to her boyfriend of five years, Jack (H-SC ’12), and they will be getting married in June 2018 in Leesburg, Va. She currently lives in Arlington, Va., with her fiancé and her dachshund, Marley. Kate Macklin recently moved to Salt Lake City, where she is pursuing a master’s degree in Parks, Recreation, and Tourism at the University of Utah and is also working as a graduate assistant in the University Outdoor Adventures Program. Sarah Fletcher has gotten a position as housekeeping manager at Kitty Hawk Rentals, Beach Realty and Construction.

Jacqueline Comola ’13, Lauren Morgan ’13, Daron Drumheller, Alyssa Doneghue ’13, Catherine Ramos ’13, Ember Fulson, Noelle Ames ’13, and Casey Knott ’13

Katie Roddey, Jessie Edington ’13, Kaitlin Eckenberger ’13, Margaret Johnson ’13

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Over the summer, Julia Green relocated to the Bellingham, Wash., area to accept a position as a tribal auditor for Moss Adams. She has purchased her first home. Yuliya Rigg began a new job as an assistant director of admissions at Converse College and resides in Spartanburg, S.C. She is also engaged and busy planning her wedding! Emily Sickelbaugh is the assistant food and beverage manager at the Omni Hilton Head Oceanfront Resort. Dani Humphrey Daniels is currently working as a court reporter for the Social Security Administration in South Jersey. If any fellow Vixens live nearby, hit her up! Alyssa Berkeley married William Logan Doneghue on July 7, and became official Step-Mom (Missa) to Williams Silas Doneghue. They also bought a house this year! She will be continuing her career as a special

education teacher at Forest Elementary School. Also walking down the aisle: Kaitlin Eckenberger married Matthew Stephens (H-SC ’13) at Sweet Briar College on September 9. Brianna Belter is living in Baltimore, Md., and is working at St. Timothy’s School as the associate director of riding. She works with Jenny Mix ’15 and Matt Payne (former SBC riding instructor and coach). Jennifer Gray graduated with a Master of Science in Library and Information Science and recently started working as a research librarian for the Palm Beach County Library System. Thank you for your notes! I can’t believe that next year will be our five-year reunion. I can’t wait to see everyone back at Sweet Briar!

Yuliya Rigg ’13 and her fiancé, Nathan Daniel Joseph Cormier

Jack Devine (H-SC ’12) proposing to Julie Moorhead ’13 in front of the Washington Monument

Class Notes

Start Planning Your Legacy Become a Williams Associate

In 1899, Indiana Fletcher Williams founded Sweet Briar College through a visionary planned gift. Indiana’s vision of a college for the education of young women inspired her to establish a trust of land and other assets that became her enduring legacy. This planned gift has provided transformational education opportunities for generations of young women for more than 100 years. Please join us as a Williams Associate to ensure that her legacy—and yours— will prosper in perpetuity. N o t s u r e h o w t o g e t s ta r t e d ? Visit: plannedgiving.sbc.edu For questions, contact: Claire Dennison Griffith ’80 SWEET BRIAR MAGAZINE | SBC.EDU 434-381-6479 | cgriffith@sbc.edu

Sweet Briar College Box 1057 Sweet Briar, VA 24595

Non-Profit Org. U.S. Postage

PAID PPCO

Reunion 2018 June 1-3, 2018

All alumnae from all classes (and their families!) are welcome, and we will honor those classes ending in a “3” or “8.” Please mark your calendar now! Go to sbc.edu/reunion for more information.