Bridging the Gap

Mary Long Merritt ’82 and Carol Gilliland Jordan ’82 both have daughters
at Vanderbilt who are both Chi-Os. From left, Annie Bradford, Carol, Mary,
and Katherine Merritt at Parents Weekend in September.
Dr. Catherine Robilio Womack ’82, front left with daughter Elizabeth ’07
after her Alum Chapel talk, and classmates (from left) Mary Kavanagh
Day, Sarah Willmott Cowens, Elizabeth Simpson Alrutz,
Andrea Weiss Tomes, and Lisa Cook.
has finished her cancer treatment
and is feeling well. She
continues to run the office at
Regent’s School in Oxford as well
as help with husband Marty’s
business, Sporting Life Kennels.
Rachel Darnell-Heath, one of
the talented artists from our
class, will be the Louise T. Archer
Artist-in-Residence at St. Mary’s
in January, teaching classes as
well as mounting an exhibit in
Levy Gallery on campus. She is
also showing her artwork at the
L. Ross Gallery on Sanderlin in
Memphis as well as in galleries
closer to her home near Santa
Fe. I’m so proud of our creative,
talented classmates!
–1981
Carey Stanton
careystanton@me.com
–1982
Elizabeth Simpson Alrutz
esa.sms@gmail.com
Many thanks to Lee Anne
Roehm for her 14 years
of service as our Class
Secretary. Daughters Anna
Katherine and Elizabeth are at
St. Mary’s, Senior and Junior,
respectively. Hallie Peyton and
the Roehm family visited Meg
Beeson Wallace’s family in
Michigan this summer and had
a great time catching up and
reminiscing. We have two brides
in our class! Leslie Johnson
Hughes married Jesse Owen
in January and has moved to
Augusta, Ga. Daughter Martha
is at Presbyterian College. Mary
Kavanagh Day also married
in January and has Elizabeth
Thrasher Kantor to thank for
setting her up on a blind date
in 1984. Mary remembers that
Elizabeth’s grandmother had a
party during the debut season
and set up the invitees by height.
Mary’s date was Dan Daniel
and they dated for a while back
then. Now, 30+ years and 5 kids
later, it was love at (almost)
first sight. Mary says, “Of all the
life-changing things that have
happened because of being part
of Class of ‘82, this is the most
unexpected!” Angela Reed Yakel
commutes weekly from Texas
to Utah for her work as a physician
adoption program manager
for an enterprise electronic
medical records program at 22
hospitals across the state. Gail
Jones Mallery is still in Dallas in
the mortgage lending business,
and asks that we check out a pet
project, bontonfarms.org. Cindy
Kremer Bodker’s daughter graduated
from Michigan and moved
to New York for a publishing
program at NYU and is now job
hunting. Carol Gilliland Jordan
was in Guatemala in the mountains
at Lake Atitlan for over two
months last winter. Son Jeremy
graduated from Vanderbilt
Summa Cum Laude and has
moved to Seattle to work for
Microsoft. Daughter Annie is at
Vandy where she is in Chi O with
Mary Long Merritt’s daughter
Katherine and the moms got
a good visit recently. Carol,
Elizabeth Beck Fioravanti, and
Christy Ragen Goss spent a
girls’ weekend together and
had a great visit. After her
divorce, Carol changed her
name to Carol Jordan to honor
her grandmother. Sherronda
Whitmore Johnson was the
stage manager for A Box of Yellow
Stars at Theatreworks, part of
the Women›s Theatre Festival of
Memphis. Bravo, Sherronda! As
for me, I have become an empty
nester. Liza graduated from St.
Mary’s in May and is a freshman
at Northwestern joining Jim who
is a senior. Doug and I love having
them together.
–1983
Bonnie Lopez
bonlopez@aol.com
We have been on the move!
Cissy Bruce Jackson is doing
white-collar criminal defense
work, and has written an article
for the first issue of a new
magazine, Portico, Mountain Brook.
Son Will is a sophomore at UGA,
and daughter Sarah Frances is
investigating colleges now. Posey
Saunders Cochrane wrote to
acknowledge this monumental
year for most of us. Kristi Dart
Tsakir and husband George will
celebrate their 30th wedding
anniversary in May! She has
been a 3-year-old kindergarten
teacher for more than ten years.
Daughter Alyssa graduated from
North Georgia College and State
University with a degree in Art
Marketing and a concentration
in Graphic Design. Son Nick is
pursuing a degree in Music and
Technology at Atlanta Institute
of Music. Kristi stays in touch
with Laurie Bell Lewandowski
and Beth Jennings Kuhn.
Margaret Jones Fraser reports
that daughter Sara is a Freshman
at SMS and a classmate and
friend of Emily O’Toole, daughter
of Jeannie Beauregard O’Toole.
They attended a Freshman
retreat led by Upper School
Counselor Allison Wellford
Parker. Beachamp Hebb is
engaged to Mads Hansen. They
will marry in Norway where
his large family resides. Eppie
Lunsford-Ozen is sharing her
time between London, Istanbul,
WINTER 2015 | 27