AndoverMagSpring2015

www.andover.edu/intouchby my parents, was in 1964, so we celebrated the50th anniversary of that with a special dinner anda super video of photos taken at Silver Bay from1964 onward. Unbeknownst to [husband] Frankand me, that event morphed into a celebration ofour 50th wedding anniversary, with many speeches(including some from our grandchildren), games,and general hilarity. It was a splendid surprise!The second wedding anniversary party (not asurprise) was a dinner here at Frank’s golf club,organized by our kids, on the actual weekend. Thisincluded many members of the Iacobucci familyfrom British Columbia, as well as other family andfriends, both local and from as far away as England.We were delighted that two Abbot classmates,Kathy Lloyd and Eleanor Easton Flaxen (both ofwhom we have been fortunate to see often over theyears), were with us, as was Nancy Swift Greer ’56,whom I have known since we were about 4 yearsold. The event was marvelous, with humorousspeeches by our kids, musical presentations byour grandkids, a video of our lives, and of coursemuch conversation!I apologize for going on about my year, butI have warned you that I would do that unless Ireceived news from others. So to avoid a repeat, dosend me something about you!PHILLIPSTom Lawrence1039 1/2 SweetzerWest Hollywood CA 90069323-654-0286323-804-4394 (cell)yogi@earthlink.netMike Bell’s retirement project smacks of déjàvu; he has been dictating more than two hours oforal history of folk music on KGNU, Boulder’scommunity radio station. He founded the thenone-month-oldstation’s weekly hour of what’snow called “Americana” in May 1978 and hostedit weekly for four years and then less frequentlyuntil 2008, when he retired from the ColoradoUniversity faculty and from radio.His show, Highway 322, named after his CUFolklore 322 course and for Highway 322, which ranthrough his hometown of State College, Penn., isstill running and has even spawned a Sunday morningspinoff, Roots and Branches.Family Thanksgiving, last November, revealed toDave Harrison the “beats everything” joy of grandfathering,so he is trying to persuade employerKaiser Permanente to find him a niche somewherecloser to Redondo Beach, Calif., and the ladies whohave stolen his heart—6-year-old Courtney and4-year-old Amanda.An e-mail from San Diego after my last massmailednotes shared the sad news of the deathof Luis Santaella. Luis’s life partner, DennisMcCormack, supplied the details of Luis’s extraordinarylife, and the following relies heavily onDennis’s tribute.Luis was born in San Juan, Puerto Rico, andattended local schools before entering PA in 1952;at Andover, he was active with the Bridge Club,French Club, Spanish Club, and Phillips Society.He made frequent appearances on the honor roll,graduating cum laude. After Andover, he earned anundergraduate degree at Yale University. He spenthis junior year abroad studying at the Sorbonnein Paris, making friends and traveling in Franceand other countries while gaining a proficiency inthe language.After Yale he received his medical degree fromJefferson Medical College in Philadelphia. Hesubsequently met and married Suzanne Chartrandand enlisted in the U.S. Army. Stationed at theArmy Medical Center in Landstuhl, Germany, hespecialized in pathology and cared for many of theVietnam casualties who were sent there.During the years Luis and Suzanne spent inGermany, they traveled extensively and began theirfamily. By the time he was transferred to El Paso,Texas, where he earned a major award for settingup an Army pathology lab, Luis had attained therank of lieutenant colonel and was fluent in Spanish,English, French, and German and able to managein Portuguese and Catalan.Luis enjoyed the Army and always said hewould have stayed, but Suzanne was not interestedin being a career military wife, so he retired andestablished a private practice in Encinitas, Calif. Hispatient list consisted largely of Spanish-speakingpeople, legal or illegal—he never asked or caredabout their immigration status. An extremely compassionatedoctor, he charged very little for officevisits, often giving free care or even, occasionally,accepting a chicken or such as payment.His medical expertise and linguistic prowessattracted to his practice the French staff andowner of the prestigious restaurant Milles Fleurs inRancho Santa Fe, members of both the local Germancommunity and the nearby Self-RealizationFellowship, and the occasional surfer from thenearby “Swami’s surfing spot” at the foot of the Self-Realization Fellowship Temple.At our 30th Reunion in 1985, Luis confessed tome his profound discontent and frustration withhis lifestyle, but this as-yet-closeted class secretary,dazed at that time by the ravages of a new andinexplicable epidemic picking off his friends, couldbe of little comfort.In 1989, Luis and Suzanne divorced and Luis’slife began a second chapter, as he decided to betrue to his nature as a gay man. In 1994, he metDennis McCormack, with whom he spent therest of his life as a registered domestic partner.They were together for almost 20 years and werecontemplating marriage when, on Sept. 5, 2013, atthe age of 75, Luis died peacefully in his sleep of anapparent heart attack.Health problems had caused Luis to retire in2000, and there was much sadness among hispatients, by whom he was treasured for his caringnature and generosity. At an early age, Luis wasfascinated by nature, particularly birds. He learnedtaxidermy as a lad and stuffed some bird specimensthat are still on display at the natural historymuseum in San Juan. His passion for birds andbirding continued throughout his life. He was fondof travel and especially traveling to bird-watch. Heand Dennis birded extensively in South Americain the Atacama Desert, the Amazon rainforest, theAndean heights of Machu Picchu, and as far southas Tierra del Fuego.They also traveled in Europe quite a bit, andLuis was especially fond of Ireland. He possessedan encyclopedic knowledge of birds and evenamazed the professional birding guides with hisinstant recall of the Latin names of birds! Heamassed lists of thousands of birds seen, muchto the envy of other birders. He was almost neverseen on trips without his binoculars hanging fromhis neck.He had an engaging personality, a dazzlingsmile, and a huge range of knowledge and was agreat conversationalist—in six languages, no less.He enjoyed fine dining, wine, and conviviality. Hewas a big fan of opera and musicals and quite awhiz at bridge. Through Dennis, he became adeptat blackjack on cruises, daringly “doubling down”as often as not.Luis leaves behind his devoted partner, hisyounger brother and sister in San Juan, three sonsand a daughter all living in the U.S., eight grandchildren,and his former wife. He was cremated andhis ashes laid to rest in the Santaella family cryptin Santa María Magdalena de Pazzis Cemetery––one of the oldest Christian cemeteries in the NewWorld. Vaya con Dios, Luis...Y.1956ABBOTAnne Woolverton Oswald7862 East Greythorn DriveSuperstition Mountain AZ 85118480-374-4281317-502-0339 (cell)Woolvie56@gmail.com[Editor’s note: Class secretaryAnne Woolverton Oswald has asked if anyclassmates from the Abbot Class of ’56 wouldlike to share the job of class secretary with her.Please contact Laura MacHugh at 978-749-4289or lmachugh@andover.edu if you’re interested inhelping out.]Where did another year go? And where is morenews about what occurred in 2014? Sorry not tohave more to report. Can you help me out here?For the Oswalds, 2014 brought a summerof travel. My husband and I drove more than10,000 miles throughout the West and Midwest,with a flying trip to the Midwest and Northeastin September. We got to spend special timewith Eleanor “Boat” Rulon-Miller York inScarborough, Maine, where we got a full tourand lobster experience, much appreciated by usAndover | Spring 201577