Bridging the Gap

Class Notes
Gigi Gould ’70 Forges New Path
Class Notes
Gigi Gould ’70 with class of 1970 friends (L-R) Lynn Schadt Thomas,
Susie Hudson, and Susan Hall Wilson.
During her 15-year tenure as Assistant Director of
Advancement/Alumnae and Special Events, Gigi
Gould ’70 rejuvenated the way St. Mary’s maintains
relationships with alumnae. As a school with 2,700
graduates, finding ways to stay in touch with everyone
is not simple. What may be daunting to some,
however, was simply all in a day’s work to Gigi.
After graduating from the University of Mississippi
and living in Biloxi where she raised her two
children, Louis and Heather (who teaches 2nd grade
at St. Mary’s), Gigi eventually found her way back to
Memphis and St. Mary’s in 2000. As Gigi herself says,
she spent 40% of her life at St. Mary’s.
During her tenure, St. Mary’s enjoyed a complete
revitalization of the alumnae association; Alumnae
Weekend became a highly attended event, with each
year breaking the previous year’s attendance record,
thanks to Gigi and her compatriot, Lisa Morrow
Morten ’76. Gigi’s dedication to the alumnae program
and the school resulted in fun gatherings that
brought together not only alumnae, but many friends
of the school – both here in Memphis and far away,
from the many out-of-town alumnae gatherings to
the 2015 trip to France. Parties hosted in Memphis
were typically filled to capacity, and other out-oftown
events allowed alumnae across the country
to meet and mingle with each other and often with
Gigi and Head of School Albert Throckmorton. Gigi’s
myriad other contributions to St. Mary’s include
strengthening alumnae giving in support of the
Annual Fund, creating a strong and active Alumnae
Board, directing the Council of Advisors, and
scheduling alumnae speakers for Chapel.
Gigi Gould will always belong to St. Mary’s – both as
a graduate and as a very dear friend – and we are all
the richer for her service to the school. We wish her
well as she joins her family’s business in Memphis.
–1940-1960
Elizabeth Taylor Shindler
elizshnd@gmail.com
Sarah Loaring-Clark Flowers
’47 said all is well at Trezevant
Manor. She enjoys all of the
activities and loves being
there with so many St Mary’s
friends. Betsy Ross Rucks ’47
has initiated a new program
at Trezevant Manor called
“Trezevant Explores” featuring
many venues of music and
speakers on history or current
events. Master gardener Sue
Gray Burgess ’52 is a member
of The Historical Society of
Marietta, Ga., and is in charge
of the lovely gardens of a home
built in 1850. She plans to compare
gardening notes with Kitty
Perry Taylor ’53, who is known
for her beautiful gardens in
Collierville. Kitty said she has
a new laptop and is having fun
learning all the new techniques
involved. While Naomi
Gray May ’47 is in rehab in Little
Rock recovering from a fall,
she is using this time to learn
new computer skills from a tutor.
Anne Perry Stamps ’57 is
looking forward to a visit from
her daughter in Pensacola. Punk
Aycock Davidson ’57 is on her
way to Raleigh, N.C., for her
grandchild’s birthday party.
Mary Walton Glass Walker ’54
is celebrating the arrival of
her fifth great-grandchild. Her
sister, Lynne Glass Rice ’57 was
there after a marvelous trip
to Atlanta where she enjoyed
visiting with many of her
friends. After nightfall, Mary Joy
Prichard Knowlton ’57, an avid
gardener, was recently out in the
dark of night with her flashlight
to see the white flowers of her
lovely Cereus plant, which only
blooms annually. Mary Joy expects
to have knee surgery in the
coming months in the Memphis
area. Elizabeth Taylor Shindler
’57 is recovering from spinal
surgery in Cleveland, Tenn. She
is now on the upswing.
–1962
Carolyn Bullard
wildcom@aol.com
–1963
Tina Heslep Ciliberto
ciliti@aol.com
Eight of us were able to meet at
Jenny Emison Ewing’s home on
Watts Bar Lake near Ten Mile,
Tenn., to celebrate our 70th
birthdays together. Asimoula
Julia Alissandratos came from
S. C., Sara Sorsby Dennis and
Tina Ciliberto arrived from
Calif., Jackie Whiteleather from
Colo., and Patty Ozier Riffel from
Ark. They were joined by Memphis
classmates Donna Lansing
Plumer and Canon Thomas
Hall. Joyce Wilkerson Kaplan
and Carolyn Collier Johnson
were unable to attend and were
much missed. We also missed
our late classmates Evelyn Perry,
Ann Rooke Archer, and Ginger
Lee Sayle, but were grateful to
have so many of us together.
We shared good conversation,
memories, laughter, and amazing
food along with Jenny and
Ward’s incredible home and
hospitality. We ate our meals on
the open back porch overlooking
one of the large lawns and the
lake, including BBQ from Corky’s
contributed by the Memphis
alumnae as well as Jenny’s
mouthwatering preparations.
Julia contributed a homemade
baklava to the festivities. We
celebrated with a special dinner
one night with cake and candles,
birthday hats and beads. We also
had a wonderful outdoor yoga
class, swimming and kayaking
on the lake each day, and a trip
to Sweetwater for lunch and
antique shopping. One evening
we were treated to a sunset boat
ride, seeing beautiful birds on
the peaceful lake. The evening
ended with a campfire, s’mores,
and singing. What we lacked in
talent, we more than made up
for with enthusiasm. It was hard
to say goodbye to each other, but
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