Summer 2009 - Sewickley Academy

CLASS NOTES
Steve is practicing law, with his two sons
in college and his daughter in elementary
school.
1975
Father Joseph Codori ’75 received news of his
reassignment as the new parochial vicar for
St. Patrick’s Roman Catholic Parish in Canonsburg,
Pennsylvania. “Stop down and visit
sometime – of course Canonsburg is known
for Sarris Candy! God Bless you all!”
1976
Andrew Schmid ’76 lives in southern Vermont
with his wife, Polly, and children, Nicole (10)
and Xavier (5). Andrew is a dentist, while
Polly teaches and trains horses. Andrew
writes, “We have ducks, chickens, pheasants,
and peacocks and we’re happy to have any
class members visit if ever in the neighborhood.”
1977
Missy Hall Nicholson ’77 replied, “Big year
of milestones for the Nicholsons!” Missy
S E W I C K L E Y S P E A K I N G S U M M E R 2 0 0 9 S E W I C K L E Y S P E A K I N G S U M M E R 2 0 0 9
celebrated her 50th birthday and 20th wedding
anniversary. Their daughter, Kat, will be
attending Simmons College in the fall and son,
Will, starts fourth grade.
1979
Mary Carroll Weiss Ryan ’71 and Missy Steers Wilich ’72 took
some deserved time off together.
Celebrated 30th Reunion in 2009
Angela Carrera Cooper ’79, husband Jeff,
and sons Chris (15) and Will (13), hosted a
Slovakian high school exchange student for a
semester.
Missy Hall Nicholson’s ’77
children, Kat and Will.
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Anthony DeJong ’79 shares, “I have just
completed a mid-life career change from
electrical engineering for Intel to patent attorney.
I graduated from Lewis and Clark Law
School in 2005 and I’m practicing patent law.”
Anthony and his wife reside in Austin, Texas.
They have two sons living in Sacramento,
California, and a daughter attending the
University of Arizona.
Whitney Snyder ’79 will be inducted into the
United States Tennis Association Middle
States Hall of Fame in October 2009. He will
Angela Carrera Cooper’s ‘79 family and Slovakian exchange student Ivana at a 3-D movie in Atlanta, Georgia.
Andrew Kendrick ’80 and his bride, Lebritia,
honeymoon in the Dominican Republic.
join 73 prior inductees in the prestigious Hall
of Fame, which welcomed its inaugural class
in 1994.
1980
R. Evans Gebhardt ’80 writes, “Always being
a fan of the grape, I’ve started an online wine
business called www.wiredforwine.com.”
Andrew Kendrick ’80 married Lebritia Parker
in November 2008. Lebritia is a former ballerina
from Miami and is currently a dance
professor at the local college. Andrew is the
founder of Kendrick Consulting LLC, providing
a broad range of services to the oil and gas industry
with offices in Pittsburgh and Atlantic
Beach, Florida.
1981
Mimi Ross Blank ’81, Hilary Rose ’81, Leslie
Lewis ’81, and Malcolm Nimick ’81 got
together in April at the Sewickley Hotel for a
mini-reunion. Mimi and her husband and two
kids, 12 and 15, were visiting from Spokane,
Washington. Mimi creates custom, handpainted
tile murals commissioned through her
website www.tilesbymimi.com.
Hilary Rose, Mimi Ross Blank, and Leslie Lewis
gather for a mini Class of 1981 reunion at the
Sewickley Hotel.
FIVE-STAR SERVICE FOR MAN’S BEST FRIEND
Jonathan Tracy ’81 and Del Gosuico
started O’Paws, a boutique day care
and bed and breakfast for dogs, in San
Francisco after Jonathan left the financial
services sector in 2002. O’Paws
began with the idea of building an au
pair service for dogs. Their vision was
crafted around how well their two dogs,
Os and Sy, were cared for by their dog
walker. They jokingly called her their
dogs’ “au pair,” which is how they came
up with the name O’Paws. Wanting
to provide their dogs with the same
level of fun and attention they received
during the day with their dog walker,
it only made sense for Jonathan and
Del to build a business doing just that.
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Jonathan Tracy ’81 (left) and partner Del
Gosuico with their O’Paws pals.
In creating O’Paws, Jonathan and Del broke the model of a standard day
care and kennel to create a place that feels like home. “You have to have an
extreme passion for dogs to truly understand.” They purchased a building
specifically for the dogs. The O’Paws facility has three floors and a backyard,
and they use a Land Rover to ferry the dogs to the parks for their daily runs.
When not running around, the dogs are resting on sofas covered with down
pillows and blankets. As Jonathan says, “Our hounds are kind enough to let
us live on the third floor and make it our home, though they regularly invade
and plop themselves down in the middle of our bed!” Although Sy passed
away last October, they still have two Vizslas of their own, Os and eightmonth-old
Igby.
“I have one of those jobs that they don’t tell you about when you are a kid.
I always thought that I would be an attorney, an architect, or even go into
politics. After six years of working with dogs, I can’t imagine doing anything
else.” Del’s “day job” as the primary web site programmer for The Men’s
Wearhouse allowed the two to take on the adventure of starting their own
business. His web design skills are also beneficial in marketing their own
business. “If you take a look at our web site (http://opaws.com) and think it
is a bit over the top for a small business, it is!”
Their B&B clients are not just the lucky canines who are with them every day.
They have also had the occasional human visit them, like Diane Ring ’81 and
Meghan Toth Strubel ’81. “O’Paws is always open to guests of any species,
human or canine, so if you are in San Francisco, give us a ring. Unfortunately
for the human guests, just don’t expect to be pampered as much as the canine
ones!”
The future is bright for Jonathan, Del, and their four-legged friends. They see
their passions and efforts focusing on a fresh food line for dogs. Dabbling in
the dog treat line several years ago, they created Canine Crostini, a dog treat
made with only fresh ingredients. “What we really want now is to create a
fresh daily meal for dogs that you can buy at the grocery store deli.”