Sweet Briar College Magazine - Fall 2018

SWEET BRIAR
COLLEGE

Dear Sweet Briar alumnae and friends,
It was a busy spring and summer here at Sweet Briar, where our faculty and staff
diligently developed an almost entirely new curriculum and new course descriptions.
I could not be more proud of what they accomplished and can’t wait to see their hard
work put into practice.
As we launched our first-ever three-week intensive session, more than half of the
student body took the first course in our leadership core, Design Thinking, meaning that
not only did all of our first-year students take it, but about 60 of our upperclasswomen
chose to transition to the core, as well. They are just as excited as we are to see where our
innovative curriculum leads. You can learn more about our Design Thinking course on
page 6.
The rest of our students took courses in a variety of topics — from business negotiation
to the love story; from smartphone photography to the ways in which the ancient
world can provide solutions to contemporary problems. I was able to teach my first class
at Sweet Briar during the session and I was pleased — though not at all surprised — by
the thoughtful discussions we had. I expect nothing less from the intelligent and insightful
young women who make up our student body.
Like the academic faculty and staff, the alumnae relations and development staff had
a busy summer. Their hard work — and your generosity — led to another successful
year of fundraising, exceeding the College’s goal for the third year in a row with a total of
$18.4 million in gifts and pledges. My second Reunion was just as wonderful as the first,
with more than 300 alumnae on campus remembering their college days and celebrating
successes — their own and Sweet Briar’s. You can see pictures from Reunion on page 18.
On page 10, you’ll read a story by guest author Repps Hudson, the brother of Ginnie
Toone ’53, who enjoyed a road trip to Sweet Briar from St. Louis to attend Reunion.
As summer came to an end, dozens of alumnae came to Sweet Briar to clean, weed,
paint and more, getting our beautiful campus ready to greet our new and returning
students.
In the life of a college, we often talk about the end of the year, commencement, as being
a time of new beginnings. And of course it is. But the start of a school year is also a time
of renewal. For Sweet Briar, that is especially true this year.
While there is much new about the College, there is much that remains true to her
heritage. It’s still a place where women of grit, courage and consequence come to learn
and build a foundation that will lead them into the future. It is still a community that
supports its members while also encouraging them to take risks and seek out new experiences.
Thank you for being part of our community.
Sincerely,
Meredith Woo

Fall 2018, Vol. 88, No. 2
This magazine aims to present interesting and
thought-provoking news about the College
and its alumnae. Publication of the material
does not indicate endorsement of the author’s
viewpoint by the College. We reserve the
right to edit and revise all material that we
accept for publication. If you have a story idea
or content to submit for publication, contact
the editor, Amy Ostroth, at aostroth@sbc.edu.
Magazine Staff
Amy Ostroth, Editor
Clélie Steckel, Director of Annual Giving and
the Sweet Briar Fund
SilverLining Design, Lead Design
Cassie Foster Evans, Photographer
Contributors: Janika Carey ’10, Jane Dure
’82, Fran McClung Ferguson ‘80, Clara Barton
Green ‘89, Alex Grobman ‘12, Repps Hudson,
Phyllis Watt Jordan ’80, Maggie Saylor
Patrick ‘07, Suzanne Ramsey, Gracie Tredwell
Schild ‘82, Jenn Wiley Schmidt ‘06, Sybil Slate
Contact Information
Office of Communications
P.O. Box 1052
Sweet Briar, VA 24595
434-381-6262
Office of Alumnae Relations and
Development
P.O. Box 1057
Sweet Briar, VA 24595
800-381-6131
Parents of Alumnae
If this magazine is addressed to a daughter
who no longer maintains a permanent
address at your home, please email us at
alumnae@sbc.edu with her new address.
Thank you!
Find Sweet Briar Online
sbc.edu
MAGAZINE
CONTENTS
2
6
10
12
26
28
32
40
The Arts at Sweet Briar College
The arts at Sweet Briar are going strong. Learn about the Center for Creativity,
Design and the Arts and get to know the center’s director, Carrie Brown.
Learning by Design
The Sweet Briar’s Leadership Core Curriculum got started this fall with
CORE 110: Design Thinking.
Ginnie Toone ’53: On the Road to Sweet Briar
Ginnie Toone and her brother, Repps Hudson, took a road trip to Sweet Briar
this summer to be on campus for her 65th Reunion.
Outstanding Alumna Karen Hartnett ’70
At Reunion Convocation, Karen Hartnett was recognized for her dedicated
service to Sweet Briar.
Teresa Pike Tomlinson ’87: Charting a Fierce Legacy
Teresa Pike Tomlinson completed her service as chairwoman of the Sweet Briar
College Board of Directors this summer. We asked her about her Sweet Briar story.
Makayla Benjamin ’18: Riding Forward
Makayla Benjamin became Sweet Briar’s first Cacchione Cup winner this year.
Dorothy Venter ’35
Dorothy Venter shares her memories of Sweet Briar.
In Memoriam: Lincoln Brower
Renowned monarch butterfly expert and Sweet Briar faculty member dies, but
his legacy lives on.
DEPARTMENTS
14
On the Quad
38
Alumnae
43
Briefs
35 Giving 42 In Memoriam
Class Notes

THE ARTS
SWEET BRIAR
COLLEGE
sbc.edu
The arts have long been a part of the culture at Sweet Briar.
From its earliest days, students took music and drawing classes
to supplement their required classes in English, languages,
history, philosophy and mathematics.
The arts are no less a part of the College today. In acknowledgment
of their importance, both in their own right and as
part of a comprehensive liberal arts education, President Meredith
Woo announced last fall that one of the College’s new
centers of excellence would be devoted to the arts: The Center
for Creativity, Design and the Arts. Longtime faculty member
and author Carrie Brown serves as the center’s director.
Brown notes that the center is a natural extension and
expansion of Sweet Briar’s ongoing commitment to the arts
as a critical part of a liberal arts education and to the College’s
commitment to interdisciplinary learning. “We want to
encourage students to think broadly about creative experience,
discovering how art and the making of art — often a
problem-solving experience in its own right —positions them
to become leaders, advocates and innovators in a variety of
realms.”
2

Students from across the curriculum
— no matter their program of study —
benefit particularly from the College’s
relationship with the Virginia Center
for the Creative Arts, one of the nation’s
largest residential artists’ communities.
Minutes away on Sweet Briar’s sister
land of Mount San Angelo, VCCA
hosts more than 400 fellows a year from
around the world, artists with honors
ranging from the MacArthur Fellowship
and the National Book Award
to the Pulitzer Prize and fellowships
from the National Endowment for the
Arts, the American Academy in Rome,
the Guggenheim Foundation and the
Pollock-Krasner Foundation, among
others. Last spring, Brown launched a
series of salons featuring fellows from
the VCCA. The fellows visit campus for
readings or to present or perform their
work to members of the campus community
— faculty, staff and students
alike. Not only do these events add to
the cultural experiences available at the
College, but they also give students a
chance to learn directly from working
artists. Those events will continue
throughout the 2018-2019 academic
year.
In spring 2019, the center also will
launch an interdisciplinary section of
the Expression and the Arts course in
the leadership core curriculum to be
taught by a cross-genre team of fellows
from VCCA. “We’ve begun reviewing
the applications and are delighted by
the overwhelming number of artists
who want to participate in the fellowships,
as well as by the thrilling range of
exciting proposals,” Brown says. “We’re
very grateful to our partners at VCCA
for helping to make this truly unique
opportunity available to students.”
The idea of creativity at the College
is broad and shelters a wide range of
creative endeavors under its umbrella.
This fall, for example, Medford Taylor
taught a class in smartphone photography
during the College’s initial threeweek
session, teaching students to use
the tools in their pockets as a vehicle for
creative expression. One of the courses
in the College’s leadership core curriculum,
The Mindful Writer, encourages
students to use their creative inspiration
to write in the range of rhetorical styles
found in The New Yorker magazine.
In October, New Yorker staff writer
Rebecca Mead visited campus to give
students an inside look at the workings
of the magazine.
Teaching students to exercise their
creative talents in a broad range of
pursuits, Brown believes, will help them
become more empathetic leaders and
problem-solvers, but also more elastic
ones, comfortable with and confident
about thinking in original ways. She’d
also like to see the College’s arts curriculum
become more engaged in the
future with public service and policy.
“I’d like to see Sweet Briar students
who don’t necessarily arrive on campus
thinking of themselves as creative
people to leave [campus] deeply valuing
the arts and their own creative impulses
and experiences, whatever their chosen
profession,” she says. “My hope is that
the arts curriculum at Sweet Briar will
be a significant piece of educating more
innovative, flexible, exciting and excited
thinkers.”
fall 2018
3

THE ARTS
GETTING TO KNOW
CARRIE
BROWN
Brown is the author of seven acclaimed
novels, most recently “The Stargazer’s
Sister,” which won the Library of Virginia’s
2017 People’s Choice Award — and
a collection of short stories. She has
won many awards, including a National
Endowment for the Arts fellowship, the
Barnes and Noble Discover Award, the
Janet Heidinger Kafka Prize for work
by an American woman writer, the
Great Lakes Book Award and, twice,
the Library of Virginia Award for fiction.
Her short fiction and essays have appeared
in many journals, including Tin
House, The Southern Review, One Story,
Glimmer Train, The Georgia Review
and The Oxford American.
sbc.edu
When President Meredith Woo
launched the College’s centers of
excellence, she knew they would need
talented and dedicated leaders. It is perhaps
no surprise, then, that she tapped
longtime faculty member Carrie Brown
as director of the Center for Creativity,
Design and the Arts.
Brown grew up in New England, but
because of her father’s job, she also
spent some of her childhood in England
and Hong Kong. She attended
Brown University as an undergraduate
and completed her Master of Fine Arts
degree at the University of Virginia.
She’s now lived at Sweet Briar longer
than she’s lived anywhere else, and her
work as a novelist is rooted on the College’s
campus. She worked as a journalist
for many years but began seriously
writing fiction when her husband —
John Gregory Brown, director of Sweet
Briar’s English and creative writing program
— accepted a job at Sweet Briar in
1994. Brown published her first novel,
“Rose’s Garden,” four years later.
Though her first novel didn’t appear
until 1998, she actually wrote her first
fiction in middle school, when she and
her classmates were given an assignment
(“Not a very imaginative one, I might
add,” she says) to record the events of
their daily lives in a journal. “My daily
life was pretty dull,” Brown admits, “and
before long I began to make things up
in order to liven up my entries. This
made the assignment far more entertaining
for me, but my anecdotes grew
increasingly dramatic, and eventually
my parents were called in to school, and
my imaginative excesses were discovered.
Now everyone in my family thinks
that’s a funny story, which I suppose it
is — I made up some pretty outlandish
stuff — but in some ways, even though
I’d always loved books, it was also my
first serious taste of the pleasure of
invention. I’ve wanted to be a writer
ever since.”
That long-ago assignment may have
seemed boring to the young Brown,
but she seems to have taken the idea to
heart, perhaps helped along by some
advice Henry James once gave to an
4

THE ARTS
Carrie Brown teaching “The Love Story,” one of Sweet Briar’s fall 2018 three-week courses
aspiring writer, and which she cherishes:
“Try to be one on whom nothing
is lost.” Now, daily life often provides
the inspiration for her writing. For
example, the idea for “The Stargazer’s
Sister” came while she was listening to
a radio program about 19th-century
astronomer William Herschel and his
sister, Caroline, who was not only his
assistant, but also made some of her
own important astronomical discoveries.
Although it took several years to
write the novel after hearing the story, “I
could never shake the sense that there
was something extraordinary there,” she
says. She’s also inspired by the ordinary
people she sees in the world going about
their everyday lives. “You never know
what gifts the world is going to give you,
if you’re looking out for them.”
Of course, Brown is more than an
accomplished novelist. She’s also a
teacher. For her, though, the two aren’t
in conflict. In fact, she says, “I often feel
like my teaching feeds my writing. I’m
most awake then to all the resonances
of language, and to the many things I
love about fiction, when I’m trying to
transmit them to my students.” She
acknowledges, however, the difficulty
in finding enough hours in a day to
do all the things that are important to
her. Her advice to students and other
aspiring writers? “There are things that
sometimes are just more important than
writing: caring for a child or a parent
or a friend in need, cooking a meal for
friends, taking a long walk, dispatching
one’s duties to a job other than one’s
creative work,” Brown says. “Sometimes
you just have to live your life and trust
that the writing and the time for it will
come.”
She enjoys the opportunities she has
to work one-on-one with students at
Sweet Briar. Through her teaching, she’s
had the satisfaction of getting to know
some amazing young women as writers,
thinkers and people, and to watch their
writing and understanding develop over
the course of a semester. “There’s almost
nothing quite as wonderful in the classroom
as watching a student discover a
writer she loves, or to suddenly ‘get’ a
story or poem that might have eluded
her a year before,” Brown says. “The
experience of watching students carry
what they’ve learned forward into further
study and then into the world, and
to have that kind of ongoing intellectual
relationship with them, is perhaps my
favorite part about teaching writing at
Sweet Briar.”
The sense of community that is an
essential part of her classroom is a
thread that winds through Brown’s
entire Sweet Briar experience. She and
her husband have raised three children
on campus — all of them now grown
— and she’s grateful for the community
her children had at Sweet Briar. Their
family benefited, not just from the students,
many of whom served as babysitters
over the years, but also from the
faculty and staff at the College. “It’s been
a supportive place to pursue our work
as writers, just isolated enough from the
world to give us the space and quiet a
writer needs, but close enough to keep
us in touch with the broader literary
world,” she says. “We’ve always felt lucky
to have colleagues we like and admire,
many of whom we’ve now known for
nearly a quarter century.”
It’s a community that is nurturing,
but also dynamic, and it stretches far
beyond the borders of Amherst County
into the extended world of alumnae artists
who have made some part of their
life at Sweet Briar. She says her favorite
memories of the College are of the
gatherings they’ve hosted at their house
when a writer visits. “It might be a mild
fall evening or one in spring, when
the dogwoods are in bloom,” she says.
“There will be tables and chairs set up
on the lawn, and white tablecloths, and
flowers on the tables, and candlelight,
and good food and drink and conversation,
with students and faculty and our
guests mingling together. Soon we’ll
leave the dishes and the fireflies beginning
to blink in the field and walk up to
campus for a reading.” There have been
many such gatherings over the years, she
says, and each time, their guests remark
about how lucky the Browns are to live
and work in such a place. She agrees.
She’s excited about what lies ahead for
Sweet Briar. “With the establishment
of our centers, the re-envisioning of the
College’s core curriculum and an increased
focus on educating women who
are meaningfully equipped and devoted
to being innovative, ambitious and
compassionate leaders in today’s world,
I think we’re embarking on a deeply
important chapter for the College.”
fall 2018
5

FACULTY PROFILE
CORE 110:
LEARNING BY
DESIGN
sbc.edu
Design thinking is a phrase that describes one way that human beings can approach problem-solving.
Sweet Briar isn’t the only college that teaches it, but there’s still a lot of uncertainty about what it really
means. “I had no idea what it was when President Woo came on board,” says Joshua Harris, assistant
professor of music. “But when I learned more about it, I knew it would be relevant to what I do.
Artists sometimes get paralyzed thinking that they have to create a masterpiece, but that’s not true.
Iteration is part of composing and there’s a lot of overlap between creative arts and design thinking.”
6

FACULTY PROFILE
CORE 110: Design Thinking is the first class
in the College’s Leadership Core Curriculum.
It was team-taught by four faculty members:
Josh Harris, music; Christopher Penfield,
philosophy; Jessica Salvatore, psychology; and
Kaelyn Leake, engineering.
One reason it’s the first course in the core is because it can
be applied to so many different fields. Kaelyn Leake, assistant
professor of engineering, says that although there’s already an
engineering design process, design thinking can be complementary
and both processes are based on similar principles. “I
think anyone who truly learns design thinking will see their
field in it,” she says.
All of the faculty teaching the class went to Stanford last
winter to train at its design school. For them, design thinking
is as much about defining problems as solving them. In order
to design anything, you first have to know what problem
you’re trying to solve, a skill Jessica Salvatore, associate professor
of psychology, says can be applied to almost every aspect
of college. For example, she says, “It’s a universal experience
to be assigned a paper for a class and to not know where to
begin because you can’t describe the problem you’re trying
to research. If students can learn to define problems, they’ll
be able to apply that skill to every project in every class they
take, as well as to the professional problems they’ll solve after
graduation.” Penfield agrees. “You can’t solve any problem until
you identify the issue,” he says. “Learning to locate, identify
and define the problem is an important first step in becoming
a problem-solver.”
One thing that makes design thinking at Sweet Briar different
is that it’s a required course that everyone has to take. “We
often heard from the students that the class didn’t feel ‘like
college,’ so clearly, it’s not what everyone is doing,” says Salvatore.
“I’ve never heard of anyone teaching a framework of
defining problems in a systematic way to every single student
in an incoming cohort. That makes it different.”
For students, although the class may have been strange at
first, it was worth doing. “I really did enjoy the class,” says Iris
Williams ’22. “The subject matter is relevant to my engineering
aspirations. The process was a little slow at first, but it was
worth learning about it in depth.”
Perhaps the most defining part of design thinking is that
it is an iterative process. You talk to someone and empathize
with them. You define the problem. You come up with ideas
for solving that problem. You build a prototype of that solution
and then you test it. But the process doesn’t end there
and it’s not linear. Sometimes you think you’ve defined the
problem, but during the testing phase, you discover some unthought-of
aspect that changes the way you think. Sometimes
you test something and it doesn’t work, so you have to come
up with new ideas and develop a new prototype. Sometimes
your idea works great, but during the process, you discover a
different problem you want to solve.
To be sure, design thinking has its skeptics. Salvatore was a
skeptic until she took the Stanford course. Penfield notes that
critics sometimes say that “design thinking doesn’t involve a
moment of critique,” but he argues that critique is an inherent
part of the iterative process. “It’s important to know when, in
the creative process, to apply that critique,” he says.
On the first day of class, the students were given a box
of items: aluminum foil, tape, pipe cleaners, sticky notes,
Play-doh, string, popsicle sticks, straws, colorful circular
stickers and more. At first glance, such a box might seem like
materials for summer camp, but the items were tools that
the students used to prototype designs. On the day that we
visited, students were using the materials to test their ideas
fall 2018
7

THE ARTS
DID YOU KNOW?
The term “design thinking” was probably coined in the
1960s. IDEO, perhaps the company best known for
developing consumer products using design thinking
tools, was founded in 1991. Stanford University
launched the Hasso Plattner Institute of Design, better
known as the d.school, in 2005.
sbc.edu
for a better study space. Using the items in that box, they
prototyped things as different as a calming spa space to a
smartphone application. According to Hank Yochum, associate
dean of academic affairs, “You could probably find a box
similar to that in many offices at Google, and there are a lot of
people over there making a lot of money using the tools we’re
teaching our students.”
The faculty noted that a lot of people don’t think they’re creative.
Design thinking, Leake says, is a framework that allows
people who might not feel creative to come up with innovative
ideas. “It’s not about a creative moment of inspiration,” says
Penfield. “Anyone can use this process to work collaboratively
and come up with innovative ideas and breakthroughs that
they might not have come to otherwise. It’s a set of skills that
is not often taught in a structured way.”
The class is pass/fail, and as a result, doesn’t have an impact
on a student’s GPA, but that’s by design, says Lynn Rainville,
dean of the College. “Solving problems is a process that by
definition involves failure,” she says. “We don’t want our
students to be afraid of that or to be concerned that failing to
solve an assigned problem will have a negative impact on their
grade. We want them to fail — and we want them to learn
from those failures.” In fact, taking risks and learning from
failures is one of the primary goals of the class.
Students in the class work in teams. Salvatore says the
notion of teams — not just “groups” — is important. For
students, group work can be an annoyance, but Salvatore
explained that the projects they were doing could not be actually
done by an individual — she used the example of raising
a barn: even if she wanted to, she could not build a barn by
herself, just like the projects the students were working on
in the class. Unlike a group, a team is a collection of people
focused on a common goal, and everyone on the team has a
sense of identity and a shared mission. During the course,
students worked in several teams, and some of the students
acknowledged that they didn’t always get along with other
team members, but that, too, is a learning experience in itself.
Learning to work with others wasn’t the only skill the students
learned. Because the first step in the process is empathy,
students had to learn to talk to someone and really listen to
what they had to say. While the students were practicing empathy,
they were also learning interviewing and listening skills
— and that’s before they’d solved any problems at all. CORE
110 gives students an opportunity to learn these skills so that
they’ll be prepared to go into the workforce and collaborate
with people of various skills and knowledge. And they’ll be
able to work effectively with those people and come up with
truly innovative solutions.
8

THE ARTS
HOW DESIGN
THINKING
HAS LED TO
INNOVATIVE
SOLUTIONS
It’s a question that gets asked regularly over kitchen tables when kids are doing their
homework: “Why do I have to learn this?” And it was one obstacle the faculty of CORE 110
had to overcome with their own students, so one of the first things the students did was to
look at some case studies about how design thinking had led to innovative solutions.
One such case study was the story of Doug Dietz, a designer for high-tech medical imaging
systems for GE Healthcare. Dietz noticed that though his machines were technological
marvels, the kids were so scared to get in them that they had to be sedated. Dietz realized
there had to be a better way. He took Stanford’s course on design thinking and learned
skills that helped him understand a human-centered approach to design.
He had to find a way to make the machines less scary. One of the prototypes he designed
turned the MRI machine into a pirate ship and after the voyage was complete, there was a
small bit of “treasure” waiting for the child in a pirate chest. Children were now less scared
and the hospital had less need for anesthesiologists. Everybody won.
Some critics of design thinking argue that anyone could come up with these simple-seeming
solutions; it doesn’t require a complicated process. But the truth is, before Dietz, nobody
had come up with a solution to this particular problem. Simple doesn’t always mean easy
or obvious.
fall 2018
9

ALUMNAE PROFILE
GINNIE
TOONE ’53:
On the Road to Sweet Briar
We love it when guest writers submit stories
to the magazine. Here, Repps Hudson, brother
of Ginnie Toone ’53, tells us his sister’s story.
You can reach him at reppshudson@msn.com.
sbc.edu
She couldn’t meet Rice University’s language requirements
for entering freshmen. So Virginia “Ginnie” Hudson Toone
’53 turned to Sweet Briar, from which her mother, Ida Virginia
von Sandmeyer, had graduated in 1917. Valedictorian of
her Carrollton, Mo., high school class, Ginnie had no problem
being admitted to her mother’s alma mater.
She became a physics major — the only one in her class and
a bold step for a woman in the 1950s — and spent 20 years
as an engineer for Sigma Instruments Inc. in South Braintree,
Mass., one of the high-tech companies of the day. After graduating,
Ginnie got higher-paying job offers from Bell Labs
and General Electric. Sigma “had a more appealing flavor,” she
says. It was, she recalls, “far ahead of its time with women as
heads of many departments, profit-sharing, year-end bonuses
and so on.”
She’s said she was fortunate to have worked at Sigma, where
she was a project supervisor like men who’d graduated from
MIT, Harvard and other elite schools. Early on, Ginnie was
working on “electrical contact problems such as their ability
to conduct current at very low voltages and their ability to
carry large surge currents without welding.” She graduated
to “designing magnetic amplifiers …, highly reliable low-level
[direct current] amplifiers used to monitor nuclear reactors”
at N-Reactor at the Hanford, Wash., nuclear complex on the
Columbia River.
Later, she helped develop photocells. At one time, she was
one of the country’s experts on that infant technology. “The
tricky part of the photocell was getting reliable production
to useful sensitivity,” she says. Years later, she set up a photocell
manufacturing line in Rio de Janeiro. She was the only
10

ALUMNAE PROFILE
In this picture, taken several years after
graduating Sweet Briar, Virginia “Ginnie” Hudson
Toone ’53 stands by nuclear reactor safety
equipment she had worked on before it was
shipped to the now-decommissioned Hanford
Nuclear Works in Hanford, Wash.
student in some physics classes. She says she didn’t realize how
many unasked questions from other students she had missed
because she was in a tutorial.
In the 65 years since she graduated, Ginnie has returned to
campus several times. She’s long been a passionate supporter of
all things Sweet Briar. When the College was about to vanish
in 2015, she was devastated. Since her mother had died when
she was 3, Ginnie had long nourished an emotional tie to the
College. Long after she graduated, she found her mother’s
textbooks. Writing inside noted her mother had lived in room
212 of Grammer Hall, the same room Ginnie lived in one year.
It seemed like her mother’s spirit was watching over her.
Ginnie’s my big sister — half-sister; we share our father —
14 years older, my third parent, the one person who has raised
my sights, challenged me to get off the family farm and into the
world. I’ve done that, as a newspaper journalist who made a
living reporting and writing and traveling to countries far from
home — and teaching — for nearly 50 years.
As the Sweet Briar Reunion (May 31-June 2) approached,
Ginnie asked me to drive with her from my home in St. Louis
to the campus for a three-day visit. Eight of her classmates had
signed up to be there.
I said yes, even though the distance was nearly 1,200 miles
each way, almost all by interstate, through the green rolling
grasslands of Illinois, Indiana and Kentucky, then the mountains
of West Virginia and Virginia. We were carrying precious
cargo: 12 red commemorative plates her mother had left her
showing Sweet Briar House and her mother’s blue Sweet Briar
signet ring, which Ginnie had worn for years.
She and I had done road trips before. In 1961, when I was 15,
I flew to Boston so we could drive in her 1959 baby-blue Triumph
TR-3 from Boston to our farm about 75 miles northeast
of Kansas City. I remember little, except that I was proud to be
sitting down low in her British sports car as we headed west on
U.S. 40 in that pre-interstate era. I could touch the pavement
while sitting in my seat beside Ginnie, who drove the whole
way. That was the summer Ernest Hemingway killed himself. I
remember seeing The Indianapolis Star by the door of a Howard
Johnson with my hero’s picture under a headline declaring
his self-destructive act. So, our recent road trip to Sweet Briar
was an honor for me. There we were, on the road again, learning
more about each other than either of us had known.
Ginnie Toone and her brother Repps Hudson
Many of the things I’ve achieved, I credit to Ginnie’s insistence
that I make the most of my life and talents. We are
coming to the end of our life’s journey and are reflecting more
on what we have done, why we did those things and what
they have meant for ourselves and our families. As we moved
around the campus from one event to another — usually by
van — I asked Ginnie: Did you live in this building? Did you
take a class here? Was this building here when you were a
student? The kid brother again bugging his big sister again.
We enjoyed the meals and what we learned, particularly
President Meredith Woo’s plans for reviving Sweet Briar and
preparing it for its unique role in educating women for the
21st century, as it had when Ginnie was a student. As I look
back over Reunion weekend, two things stand out. First is
the way Ginnie and her classmates fell into close, comfortable
conversations about their lives today and years past. For
instance, her senior roommate in Gray Hall, Harriett Hodges
Andrews, of Statesville, N.C., told me, “Seeing Ginnie again
is the reason I came to this reunion.” Harriet remembered
“Doubtful Diplomacy,” the senior play Ginnie wrote with
Mary Littlejohn Belser of Auburn, Ala., and the performance,
which my parents didn’t make because of a snow storm in
eastern Tennessee. Many of these accomplished women had
been in touch with each other in the weeks before Reunion.
Then there was the hour we spent with two professors in the
engineering department, Dr. Hank Yochum and Dr. Bethany
Brinkman. I could see my engineer sister was following the
discussion closely. What she wanted to inspect, though, was
the machine shop where students make parts and tools with
their own hands. She heard there was no machinist on duty.
The young women students were learning to fashion things
themselves from metal. “I was so impressed that students
were taught how to use the machinery safely,” she says.
“Working on a milling machine or metalworking lathe is so
enabling to carry out one’s designs.”
fall 2018
11

ALUMNAE PROFILE
KAREN
HARTNETT ’70:
RECOGNIZED FOR DEDICATED
SERVICE TO SWEET BRIAR COLLEGE
sbc.edu
In March of 2015, Karen Hartnett ’70 heard
Sweet Briar College would be closing in the
same way most alumnae did — through email.
And like most of her Sweet Briar sisters, she
couldn’t believe it. “Most everybody started
calling their friends,” Hartnett, of Fulshear,
Texas, said. “No one could believe it. Sweet
Briar was always going to be there. It was
incomprehensible.”
A month later, Hartnett was in Florida with her three
best friends from the Class of 1970: Kay Parham Picha,
Pam Piffath Still and Susan Lykes Mueller. For days, she
said, they sat on Mueller’s porch “talking and talking and
talking about ‘How could this happen?’”
In the 45 years since they’d graduated, Hartnett said the
foursome had been “very, very tight,” but they’d lost touch
with Sweet Briar. They didn’t go to Reunion. They didn’t
do what Hartnett called the “official stuff.” They just kept
close tabs on each other. “Who expects your college to
close?” she said. “It was crazy.”
Hartnett returned home determined to do something.
“There had to be a way I could plug in and be helpful,” she
said.
By 2015, Hartnett had been a human resources executive
for more than four decades. After a few years spent
12

ALUMNAE PROFILE
working in Sweet Briar’s admissions and financial aid offices,
Hartnett left the College in the mid-1970s for New York,
where she worked in HR for Mobil Oil Corporation.
In the 70s, she said, Mobil was “intent on creating a much
more diverse workforce” and started recruiting from women’s
colleges and historically black colleges and universities.
They made a stop at Sweet Briar and met Hartnett. “I made
arrangements for Mobil to interview students and wound up
turning that connection into a job,” she said.
During her career, Hartnett worked in the banking and
financial services, energy and other industries. She served on
the executive management committees of four regional banks.
She helped take two companies public.
She also had a soft spot for nonprofit organizations — the
Houston Ballet Foundation, the San Jacinto Battleground
Conservancy and others — and has offered her services to
them at a rate she describes as “far, far less than my corporate
clients.”
Shortly after returning home from the Florida trip, Hartnett
started working with Sweet Briar 2.0, a grassroots organization
of alumnae who were fighting to keep the College
alive. Also, by that time, three separate legal cases had been
launched in an effort to halt the school’s closure.
Considering herself more of an “organizational person and
manager” than a fundraiser, Hartnett wanted to help alumnae
prepare for what she hoped would be the eventual legal victory.
“What do we need to do to get the alumnae ready to be
helpful to Sweet Briar when we win the legal case?” she said.
“What needs to be in place so that the alumnae can be helpful
to the new administration?”
A negotiated settlement was reached in June 2015, enabling
Sweet Briar to stay open and make a go at survival. Soon
after, Hartnett got a call from then-president Phil Stone. He
needed help.
“Specifically, Phil said, ‘I need HR help. Can you come up
here and work with me?’” Hartnett recalled. “I called him
about two hours later and said, ‘I’ll be on a flight tomorrow
night and I can stay for about 10 days. I’ll find out what’s
going on with your HR department, see if you have management
or staffing issues and if you have any real legal risk, and
I’ll help take the temperature for you at the College.’”
Within 24 hours, Hartnett was on a plane. She flew from
Houston to Charlotte, where her flight to Lynchburg — the
last of the day — was cancelled. In a rented car and without
her luggage, Hartnett drove from Charlotte to Sweet Briar,
stopping en route at a drugstore for makeup, a hairbrush, a
toothbrush and toothpaste.
Hartnett returned home
determined to do something.
“There had to be a way I could
plug in and be helpful.”
The next morning, wearing her travel clothes and her
drugstore makeup, Hartnett showed up at Stone’s office and
announced, “I’m Karen Hartnett and I’m here to help you.”
And help she did. Over the next 10 days, she gathered
information and did an audit of the HR department. She
talked with faculty and staff, and said the stories they told her
about the previous 10 or 15 years were shocking. “Nobody
knew what was happening,” she said. “We thought everything
was daisies and pink and green, but the College was slowly
strangling.”
After that initial visit, Hartnett returned to Sweet Briar a
few more times. Working from Texas, she helped Stone recruit
his senior leadership team. In the process, she and Stone
came to a conclusion:
“We realized pretty quickly, Phil and I, that we couldn’t
build ‘forever,’” she said. “We had to build for survival. We
hired all the people into the critical jobs, so the College could
stand up straight again. When Meredith [Woo] came in, she
had a strong platform to begin building the forever college.”
At Reunion this past June, the College formally recognized
Hartnett’s efforts with the Outstanding Alumna Award.
Claire Griffith ’80, senior director of alumnae relations and
development, presented the award and later called Hartnett
an “unsung hero” in the fight to save Sweet Briar.
Praising Hartnett, Stone said she was “more than my
advisor. She became a dear friend and confidante. She was
solicitous of my welfare and always supportive. She was truly
one of the heroes in the miraculous rescue and renewal of
Sweet Briar College.”
Recently, when asked about the College’s future, Hartnett
said she is “rock solid sure that we’re going to make it” and
that “there’s no doubt in my mind that Sweet Briar will graduate
a Class of 2050. No doubt at all. We may have a couple
of rough years ahead of us and we can’t lose faith when things
are hard or difficult to do. We have to keep pressing forward
and I know we’ll be successful. We are Sweet Briar fierce!”
fall 2018
13

ON THE QUAD
on the
QUAD
news & notes
around campus
Friends of Art Award Leads to
VCCA DREAM INTERNSHIP
FOR SWEET BRIAR GRAD
sbc.edu
Thanks to the Friends of Art, recent Sweet Briar grad Alexa
Dahlin ’18 didn’t have to look far to find her dream internship.
Dahlin is the first recipient of the organization’s graduate
internship at the Virginia Center for the Creative Arts, an
international artists’ colony adjacent to campus.
A $5,000 stipend allowed the former business major with an
Arts Management Certificate to spend 10 weeks this summer
working on a number of projects with VCCA staff. One of
them: developing a plan and strategy for the VCCA’s upcoming
50th anniversary in 2021. A big chunk of her time was
spent compiling the center’s history.
“Being able to do some archival work is great because that has
always been an interest of mine,” Dahlin said when we spoke
with her over the summer. “I’m super happy that I’m getting
hands-on experience with that.”
She also worked with Kirsten McKinney, the VCCA’s director
of communications, on several other projects, including,
as McKinney put it, “magically” organizing a “tremendous
backlog of processed applications,” posting fliers around town,
helping out with the VCCA’s Open Studios in July and with
day-to-day operations such as greeting fellows in the office,
sitting in on staff meetings and keeping track of entries to the
VCCA’s annual Instagram contest.
“Much of what Alexa has done, to us, is a Herculean
achievement,” McKinney admitted. “Given our small staff and
demanding mission of providing creative space to 24 fellows at
any given time, certain tasks can fall by the wayside as we respond
to more immediate needs. We are so appreciative to the
Friends of Art for establishing this internship and for Alexa
and the time she has given to us this summer.”
Dahlin loved the variety, but that wasn’t the only thing: “One
of the most exciting parts about my internship is being able to
be a part of a women-led arts organization,” she said. “With
all my work experience I’ve had over the past four years, I have
never worked for a practically all-female staff. The open communication
and leadership are truly refreshing and remind me
a lot of the atmosphere at Sweet Briar.”
For Dahlin, this was internship number five. Focusing on the
arts has meant a steady buildup of skills, and she’s learned that
she’s on the right track. “All of these experiences have given me
a well-rounded foundation that I’ve been able to use here at the
VCCA,” she explained. “Being at the VCCA this summer has
made me confident in my passion of being an arts advocate, as
well as working for a nonprofit organization.
“After I complete my internship at the VCCA, I am looking
to move south — either Birmingham or Atlanta — and work
in development or marketing in the nonprofit sector,” she said.
With a résumé like hers, that next step should be easy.
14

ON THE QUAD
A group of Sweet Briar students visits the studio of a VCCA fellow
New Joint Sweet Briar & VCCA Fellowships
Sweet Briar College and the Virginia Center
for the Creative Arts, one of the nation’s
largest residential artist communities, have
long been collaborative partners. Now, they’re
also teaming up in the classroom, thanks to
the College’s innovative core curriculum and
brand-new fellowships for VCCA artists.
Through the College’s Center for Creativity,
Design and the Arts, a team of fellows will
teach an interdisciplinary section of Expression
and the Arts, the foundational arts course
in the College’s new core curriculum.
The course will take place during a threeweek
session — part of the College’s innovative
new calendar — in spring 2019. Center
director and professor of creative writing Carrie Brown,
who has been a VCCA fellow herself, says the SBC/VCCA
fellowships will “give students brand-new models of what
it means to be creative and an exciting look at the fusion of
artistic disciplines.”
The opportunity to work with VCCA fellows will expand
the kind of experiences students will have in the classroom.
“Not only will students be exposed to new voices from
throughout the world, thereby enlarging and enriching the
academic community at Sweet Briar,” says Brown, “but they’ll
also have the opportunity to participate in an experience of
The entrance to VCCA
learning about and making art that will be unique. They’ll
collaborate with each other and with a team of distinguished
artists who themselves will be collaborating.”
Joy Heyrman, VCCA’s executive director, observes that this
is an exciting moment in VCCA’s partnership with Sweet
Briar College. “We are giving new form to the rich exchange
of creative thinking and creative production that has distinguished
a shared history of nearly 40 years,” she says. “VCCA
has been enriched by Sweet Briar’s support, collaboration
and proximity and we are looking forward to opening up new
avenues of creative exchange for our extended network of
artist fellows.”
fall 2018
15

ON THE QUAD
Rainville, Yochum Appointed
Dean & Associate Dean
sbc.edu
Dean Lynn Rainville
Sweet Briar President Meredith Woo announced this summer
that the new dean of the College would be a familiar face:
Lynn Rainville.
Since taking over as acting dean in March, Rainville has
been exercising financial and administrative oversight of the
library, sponsored research, institutional effectiveness, the
Honors Program and study abroad. More recently, Rainville
also steered the “complex work of curricular realignment,”
Woo said. “She has been actively involved in faculty recruitment
and promoting excellence in research and teaching. As
historian, archaeologist and anthropologist, she will continue
to champion the centrality of the humanities and social sciences
in the liberal arts education at Sweet Briar. This mission
builds on her decade of public outreach as the director of the
Tusculum Institute, dedicated to local history and historic
preservation.”
Rainville has been a member of the Sweet Briar community
since 2001. After receiving her Ph.D. from the University of
Michigan in Near Eastern archaeology and spending more
than a decade directing projects in Turkey and Syria, she
has spent the past 17 years uncovering Virginia’s forgotten
histories, including research into African-American cemeteries,
enslaved communities, segregated schools, town poor
farms and the role Virginians played in World War I. Her
grant-funded work has appeared in four books and more than
two dozen articles. Rainville frequently shares her research
through lectures, online databases and social media.
“It is rare to find a scholar who can bridge this gap between
the academy and the public,” Woo wrote in a letter to the
community. “Her research demonstrates the importance of
the humanities in designing research to connect our shared
history to our common future.”
Engineering professor Hank Yochum is supporting Rainville
in his new capacity as associate dean. Yochum has been
a member of the Sweet Briar community since 2002. He
has taught courses in engineering and physics and led the
Margaret Jones Wyllie ’45 Engineering Program since 2007.
Yochum earned his Ph.D. in physics at Wake Forest University
and his B.S. at the College of Charleston. His research is
in photonics and nano-engineering, most recently focusing on
developing new processes to fabricate polymer-based optical
devices.
As director of the engineering program, Yochum led the first
accreditation review, which resulted in Sweet Briar becoming
one of only two women’s colleges in the country with an
ABET-accredited engineering program. Part of his work
included developing assessments of learning outcomes so
that faculty members can ensure students gain the skills and
knowledge to be successful and identify areas for improvement.
Together with program faculty, he founded Explore
Engineering, a series of spring, fall and summer courses that
has brought more than 500 high school women to campus to
create compelling, hands-on engineering projects.
Yochum has served as chair of the faculty senate and the
Personnel Committee. An advocate for undergraduate
research, he served as the director of the Honors Summer
Research Program and was an elected councilor for the physics
and astronomy division of the Council of Undergraduate
Research (CUR). As associate dean, Yochum’s duties include
being the point person for the Honors Program and institutional
assessment. While he remains involved with the engineering
program, Bethany Brinkman took over as director.
Associate Dean Hank Yochum works with participants at Explore
Engineering
16

MEET THE
CLASS OF 2022
ON THE QUAD
Enrollment
up
39 %
from
last year
Students from
22 states
and 6 countries
110 3.53 1098 42
first-year
students
compared to
79 last fall
mean grade
point average
compared to
3.34 last fall
SAT
(combined)
compared to
1071 last fall
Presidential
Scholarships
the College’s merit award
for the highest academic
achieving students
Source: Fall 2018 Sweet Briar College census. Oct. 1, 2018.
fall 2018
17

ON THE QUAD
REUNION
2018
Reunion 2018 welcomed more
than 450 alumnae and their
families back to Sweet Briar’s
campus, honoring those classes
ending in a “3” or an “8” and
celebrating the sisterhood of
generations of alumnae.
sbc.edu
18

ON THE QUAD
The weekend came with traditional events such as class picnics; special
dinners for those celebrating their 25th and 50th reunions; and Reunion
Convocation, during which classes received awards recognizing their
attendance as well as giving amounts and participation. The Alumnae
Alliance Council continued their now three-year tradition of a festival on
Saturday afternoon, which showcased the volunteer opportunities and
accomplishments of the council’s working groups.
fall 2018
19

ON THE QUAD
REUNION
2018
sbc.edu
20

ON THE QUAD
fall 2018
21

ON THE QUAD
Survey Affirms
SWEET BRIAR
Values and the
Importance of Alumnae
Maggie Saylor Patrick '07
sbc.edu
This summer, Sweet Briar sent a survey to its alumnae
to find out how they felt about where the College was
heading and what they wanted from their relationship
with the College in the future. Maggie Saylor Patrick ’07
was hired to lead the project and analyze the results. Here,
she shares her initial thoughts from that survey.
In 2017, Sweet Briar College welcomed
President Meredith Woo and
introduced her to us through a series
of letters, videos and events around the
country. At one of these events, Mary
Pope Hutson ’83, Sweet Briar’s vice
president for alumnae relations and development,
shared with me the College’s
belief that alumnae play a critical role in
fostering and sustaining Sweet Briar’s
success, as they have since the College’s
inception.
The overwhelming interest in our new
president and in the College’s future
made clear the need for an inclusive
and comprehensive review of the needs,
perspectives and hopes of the alumnae
community. I was delighted to be asked
to lead this process by executing an
alumnae-wide survey — the College’s
first in over 10 years.
Alumnae, with their usual Sweet Briar
gusto, responded by the hundreds with
significant representation from all decades
and locations. Beyond answering
the questions carefully and thoughtfully,
many alumnae spent significant time
and energy sharing stories, recollections,
hopes and desires. Some of you even
mailed in photos or articles pertaining
to your responses. It could not be clearer
that Sweet Briar alumnae continue
to be active thinkers who care greatly
about the future of their alma mater.
The Sweet Briar Board of Directors
and the Alumnae Alliance Council,
along with the Office of Alumnae
Relations and Development, will spend
significant time in the coming months
reviewing this data and creating plans
to act upon the information. We are
excited to share those insights and new
projects with you over the coming year
and will share additional details of the
survey responses over time. As we prepared
for publication of this magazine,
however, some key themes emerged
from the results and we were eager to
share them with you right away. The
first is that our alumnae are overwhelmingly
hopeful about Sweet Briar’s future
and proud of and grateful for their
experiences at the College.
22

ON THE QUAD
ALUMNAE
SURVEY
OVERVIEW
Distributed to alumnae
in August of 2018.
Alumnae of all years and backgrounds
have affirmed these common
values: that Sweet Briar provides an
excellent, challenging education for
women that is grounded in the liberal
arts and in its small, close community.
It would seem these values are ones
in which the alumnae body and the
College administration are in strong
alignment. In announcing Sweet
Briar’s tuition and curriculum reset,
President Woo identified Sweet Briar’s
three most defining characteristics as
its rural location, its small size and
close community and its commitment
to educating future women leaders.
You also indicated a belief that
critical thinking, intelligence and
leadership are core aspects of the
Sweet Briar identity. As such, alumnae
also recognize the complicated path to
success.
In open-ended responses to questions
about the curriculum and tuition reset,
alumnae indicated a sense of “holding
their breath.” Many of you reflected
the importance of the liberal arts and
of excellent, well-supported faculty,
and a recognition of the challenging
financial situation presented by the
near-closure and within the higher
education market in general. You
hope that the College will emphasize
growing enrollment, ensuring financial
viability and recruiting students who
are a good fit for Sweet Briar: smart,
talented, driven and eager to become a
part of our unique community.
As Sweet Briar embarks on its new
path, the College will face obstacles
and challenges. As alumnae, we may
especially struggle with this fact. New
interpretations of our identity may feel
unclear or uncomfortable. Your voices,
expressed through this survey and
across other forms of media, as well as
statements from the College, assure us
that Sweet Briar continues to embody
the ideals and values that we, as alumnae,
cherish.
I believe in the character of Sweet
Briar women. I know that if we believe
in these common values and work
toward them with a common character
— as women of consequence — our
common goals cannot help but be
realized. I have faith in our future and
I look forward to sharing more results
with you from the alumnae survey in
the months ahead, and to the path
we will continue to forge together for
Sweet Briar’s success.
More results of the survey and information
about the implementation of
its findings will be released in future
issues of The Briar Wire and in the
spring issue of the Alumnae Magazine.
Thank you for participating!
Received more than
1,000 responses, electronic
and hard copy.
Alumnae of all ages
and backgrounds affirmed
that Sweet Briar provides
an excellent, challenging
education for women that
is grounded in the liberal
arts and its small, close
community.
Alumnae
believe that
Sweet Briar’s
identity rests
in critical
thinking,
intelligence and
leadership.
fall 2018
23

ON THE QUAD
SWEET WORK
WEEKS
sbc.edu
24

ON THE QUAD
Sweet Work Weeks, which just finished its fourth year, has become an annual tradition
to bring alumnae and friends of the College back to serve as volunteers to keep Sweet
Briar beautiful. In the summer of 2018, more than 140 participants returned to campus
to weed, trim, paint, power wash, work in the library and celebrate the beauty of these
3,250 acres. Alumnae participants ranged from the Class of 1958 to 2018, and they
brought with them their classmates, family members and even a friend from Hollins.
fall 2018
25

ALUMNAE PROFILE
Teresa Pike Tomlinson ’87:
Charting a Fierce Legacy
sbc.edu
One of the leaders in the Saving Sweet Briar movement, Teresa
Pike Tomlinson ’87 became chairwoman of the Sweet Briar College
Board of Directors in 2015 and just completed her three-year
term. The 69th mayor of Columbus, Ga., she has been named
among the “100 Most Influential Georgians” for the last six consecutive
years. We’re grateful to Mayor Tomlinson for all of her
hard work on behalf of the College and recently asked her to tell us
a little bit about her Sweet Briar story.
How did you find out about Sweet Briar?
A postcard in the mail. It was the most beautiful picture I
had ever seen and on the back it said something to the effect
of: Where we create women leaders. I didn’t even know there
was such a place. Needless to say, there was only one college
for me after that.
What was your major and what did you plan to do when
you graduated? Did you always intend a career in politics?
I double-majored in government and economics and
obtained a certificate in business management. I never had
any intention of going into politics until I decided to run for
mayor of Columbus, Ga., in 2010. I wanted to be a lawyer,
and I loved practicing law.
How did your SBC experience prepare you for your career?
My Sweet Briar education prepared me for all that I wanted
to do in life. It taught me to think and to love knowledge.
What is your favorite memory about your college days?
The campus, the women, the professors and the support and
encouragement to do big things.
Who was your favorite professor?
Not fair! There are too many to list. Probably Tom Gilpatrick
(government) or Chris Pikrallidas (economics).
What was it about your experience that led you to be such
an active voice for Saving Sweet Briar and your tenure on
the Board of Directors?
Sweet Briar offered a type of education that is particularly
relevant for today’s world and today’s women. We need Sweet
Briar now more than ever. I happened to have the skill and
26

ALUMNAE PROFILE
experience that was useful to the effort to save Sweet Briar,
and I was honored to be part of the movement, along with too
many other soldiers to mention like Nancyellen Keane and
the entire Atlanta crew.
What are you most proud of in terms of your involvement
with the College?
Most people mention the 2015 commencement speech as
the effort I should be most proud of, and I am. However,
there have been so many other critical efforts along the way:
• Finding the higher education experts (General Charles
Krulak, Linda Flaherty-Goldsmith, John Gibb) who
would testify in the Saving Sweet Briar litigation and
give us the credentials to challenge the decision of the
prior Sweet Briar leadership;
• Instituting the “Tomlinson Challenge,” which started at
an Atlanta event and turned into a national fundraising
tidal wave, ultimately resulting in hundreds of alumnae
contributing millions of dollars in three- and five-year
pledges;
• Working with the great Phil Stone, devoted faculty and
staff, and some awesome board members to reorganize
the College, retool our budget and get the word out to
prospective students that we were open for business so
the College could survive and thrive;
• Assuring that the stakeholders from alumnae to students
to faculty received transparency, respect and access to the
board through our bylaws; and
• Leading an incredible search process for our next
president, Meredith Woo, while maintaining a sense of
stability and steady leadership among our stakeholders
and the media.
I am grateful the commencement speech had that effect in
that moment and helped push the SSB movement to victory.
Yet, the truth is, as with any epic effort, many critical moments
and pivotal decisions occurred outside the reach of
the cameras and the microphones, and I am so very proud of
those.
What about in your professional life?
As mayor, there are those achievements the media cites
like reducing crime and saving tax dollars, but the proudest
moment is when a 4-year old little girl looks at you and says:
“When I grow up, I want to be the ‘mayor.’”
How would you encourage other alumnae to get involved
with the College?
Continue to be engaged. Know about your alma mater. Never
lapse into the complacency we had before. A college is like
a living organism. We are all connected and we are each an
integral part of Sweet Briar’s success. Don’t forget that.
fall 2018
27

ALUMNAE PROFILE
USEF/Cacchione Cup Winner
Makayla Benjamin ’18
MAKAYLA
BENJAMIN ’18:
RIDING FORWARD
Jan Benjamin still remembers her daughter’s first
hunt trail ride. Makayla was about 4 years old,
she recalls, perched proudly on top of her pony,
Marshmallow. “How was it, Makayla?” the field
master asked her. Makayla sighed. “A little bit slow,”
she replied.
Seventeen years later, Makayla Benjamin ’18 would
be the first in her family — and the first Sweet Briar
student — to win the coveted Cacchione Cup, the
nation’s highest honor for a collegiate rider. It was the
first time she’d even qualified, during her senior year
at Sweet Briar.
sbc.edu
28

ALUMNAE PROFILE
Sweet Briar taught me how
to fight for something I love
and believe in, how to be
a good leader, how to face
challenges and overcome
them, how to be involved,
and how to manage it all.”
But her historic victory had been long in the making.
“Makayla started riding when she was a baby,” Jan says. “I
would put her in front of me on a horse, between my arms.”
It’s no surprise the two have been best friends ever since,
bonding over their shared passion. Jan herself had owned
horses since she was a child, so they’d been a staple of the
Benjamin family and their home in Lucketts, Va., from the
start.
There might not have been a Benjamin family without horses
— after all, it’s how Jan met her husband, Andrew: The
two competed together on Purdue University’s Intercollegiate
Horse Shows Association team when Jan was a freshman.
Andrew graduated the next year, but as soon as Jan finished
college, they got married. Seeing their former Purdue coach
again at this year’s IHSA nationals — and grabbing him for a
group photo with Makayla — was “really neat,” Jan says.
Did she expect Makayla to win the Cacchione Cup? Nope.
“I mean, it’s the top riders in the country,” Jan says. “I was
hoping for her to be in the top 10, you know. When we were
there watching it, and once they announced the fourth-place
rider, I turned to my friend and said, ‘She won it.’ I knew the
other two riders, and I had taken notes through all of the
classes. I was like: ‘She won it. They can’t beat her.’”
“We were all shocked and crying for joy,” Andrew Benjamin
says. “All I could think of was, ‘What a year, and this is the
best possible way to cap her college career!’”
Makayla was 5 when she entered her first horse show. Jan
didn’t want her to show until she asked to do it. “It was more
important for her to learn how to ride, and how to take care
of horses first,” Jan explains.
And Makayla did.
“I think I was so involved with horses from the get-go that
each moment just reassured my interest in horses and the
sport,” she says. “I liked to be able to see my own progress
with a horse. It was always challenging and frustrating, but so
rewarding at the same time. I think being able to work with
horses my entire life gave me such an appreciation for being
patient and humble. And I loved that about them, so I think
just being able to learn so much about them developed my
deep interest in them.”
Makayla showed ponies for several years and competed in
the Pony Finals when she was 11 and again when she was 14.
Soon after, she moved on to horses and throughout high
school, learned the ropes of equine care as a working student
at Gavin Moylan Stables. At 16, Moylan put her in charge
of all the horses he left at home while going to Florida for
the winter. “He had a horse that was pretty much broken
mentally, that no longer would jump,” Jan remembers. “That
was her project over the winter — to work with him and get
him going again.” By the time Moylan returned, his horse was
jumping just fine. Makayla kept the horse from December
until August and, in partnership with Moylan, made enough
money selling it to import a new horse from Germany.
In order to work with her new horse, Makayla completed
her high school credits early and spent her final semester in
Florida. Then the Benjamins sold the horse and she was off to
Andrew Benjamin speaking at Founders’ Day convocation
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29

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Sweet Briar — a place she had fallen in love with as a flower
girl when she was 6 years old. A few campus visits confirmed
it was still as magical as her memory. And that magic continued.
“My experience at Sweet Briar was phenomenal,” Makayla
says. “I will forever cherish the friendships I made there, and
the relationships I had with my professors, who were always
so supportive. The entire environment truly made it seem
like you could accomplish anything you dedicated yourself to.
Sweet Briar taught me how to fight for something I love and
believe in, how to be a good leader, how to face challenges and
overcome them, how to be involved, and how to manage it all.”
Her first semester was a blur of equitation finals, with little
time for academics. She was planning to catch up over the
summer, her mother remembers, to make sure she’d be in
good shape to major in engineering. And then March 3, 2015,
happened: Halfway into her second semester, Makayla — and
everyone else in the Class of 2018 — found out the College
was closing. Or was it? Makayla took action. On April 20,
she and one other student filed a lawsuit against Sweet Briar’s
previous board.
Her father, now vice chair of the current board of directors,
remembers it well. “When she testified in court and was asked
to explain her thoughts about the closure, the first thing she
said was, ‘I have lost my home.’ To me that made it worth
fighting for in earnest,” he says.
While painful, the near-closure and subsequent saving of
the College played a huge role in Makayla’s personal development.
“I did not know that I was going to have to take the
stand, but I am so thankful that I did because it helped me
to believe that I could fight for something, and I would be
heard,” she says.
The summer’s uncertainty put her behind academically, so
Makayla had to change course: She dropped her engineering
major to a minor and went for a mathematical economics
major instead, with another minor in business. But she’s glad
she was able to stay at Sweet Briar. So is Jan.
“We looked at other colleges, and all it confirmed for us was
that [with] Sweet Briar, we made the right choice the first
time.”
And 2015 wasn’t over yet for Makayla. That winter, she
qualified for the AIEC-SRNC World Finals in Marburg,
Germany — as one of three riders on Team USA. And she
ended up winning the show jumping competition. Back home,
then-President Phil Stone organized a special awards ceremony
to greet the champion. “President Stone was amazingly
supportive,” Makayla remembers. “I was overwhelmed by all
the support from my classmates, alumnae, board of directors
and parents, and I wanted to do all I could to help the school
be recognized.”
Over the next few years, Makayla did just that: She won lots
of ribbons and was crowned high-point rider at nearly every
IHSA show. Her parents were right there, cheering her on.
She became part of Sweet Briar’s first National Collegiate
Equestrian Association team in 2017, competing as the only
Division III school against Division I schools. And each year,
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ALUMNAE PROFILE
“My parents are
the biggest influence on
my life. They are such
a wonderful example of
everything I want to
be throughout my
life. They have always
encouraged me to work
hard for what I want,
fight for what is right,
and remember to stay
grounded while
I do it all.”
- Makayla Benjamin ’18
Makayla Benjamin with her parents and the Cacchione Cup
she’d always be just short of qualifying for IHSA nationals.
But her Sweet Briar experience was about so much more than
just ribbons.
“The riding program was always very supportive of me and
helped me to emerge as a leader on the teams,” Makayla says.
“Honestly, the skills I learned being a team leader have stuck
with me the most.”
Nevertheless, when she rode to victory in May, it was a
moment she had been waiting for her entire life.
“Winning the Cacchione Cup for me was like the fairytale
ending to my college riding career,” Makayla says. “It truly
helped me recognize that hard work and determination can
pay off in the most incredible ways possible. I was ecstatic
to finally have made it to the national final. It was three long
years of fighting it to the bitter end and being just short of
it each time. And when I was there, I just wanted to leave it
all out there. In the moment, I just wanted to give the horse
I was on the best ride I could, so that it would leave the ring
more confident than it walked in. The overlying motivation
was that I wanted to prove that Sweet Briar was still around
and still relevant. That the attempted closure hadn’t shaken us
in our renowned riding program. That was my motivation.”
Since her historic win, Makayla has been working as a
wrangler at Bitterroot Ranch in Wyoming with her friend
and classmate Courtney Barry, who found the job online —
a dream job for both. When she’s done, she’ll head back to
Germany to work for two months at the riding facility in
Marburg-Dagobertshausen before she starts her first “normal”
job in accounting back in the U.S.
“I think I am in a fascinating place in my life and career,”
Makayla notes. “I have had wonderful opportunities, but also
time to explore what I want to dedicate my time to. I will be
exploring many more opportunities to decide which one suits
me best!”
And who knows what might come next? Winning the
Cacchione Cup has definitely given her an extra push. “It
reignited my big fat dream of going to the Olympics — and
believing in myself that I could get there with more hard work
and determination,” Makayla says.
There’s no doubt in her mother’s mind she’ll find her way. It’s
in her personality.
“She has always been an old soul and extremely comfortable
in her own skin,” Jan says. “She doesn’t care what other people
think. She does what she wants to do and doesn’t let anything
get in her way. I think a lot of that, too, is Sweet Briar.”
fall 2018
31

HISTORY
Dorothy Barnum Venter ’35 came to Sweet Briar
from Connecticut in the middle of the Depression.
She now lives in a retirement community, where she
enjoys visits from two children, eight grandchildren,
13 great-grandchildren and Ellie Plowden Boyd ’74,
who kept her informed during the Saving Sweet Briar
days. We thank her for sharing her memories of her
time at the College. These are her words.
Dorothy Venter in her junior year at Sweet Briar
DOROTHY
VENTER ’35:
GRADUATE OFFERS
GLIMPSES INTO OUR
SWEET BRIAR HISTORY
My best friend wanted to go to Wellesley, so I
thought I should go to Wellesley, too. Then all
of a sudden, in the spring of my senior year in
high school, I decided I would like to go somewhere else. My
mother went to play bridge with some friends, and one of
them was Charlotte Alford MacVicar ’26, who had gone to
Sweet Briar. Charlotte had loved Sweet Briar and told Mother
I should look into Sweet Briar. I talked to Charlotte on the
phone a few times and that’s how I decided to go. In those
days, I didn’t even get a visit. I just decided to go.
I got to Sweet Briar by train. Mother put me on a sleeper in
New York to go down to Sweet Briar, and I got there in the
morning. I was put into a suite with a junior and a senior and
was overcome, being a new little freshman. The dean then put
me in Manson with a sophomore whose roommate had not
come back, and she turned out to be my roommate until she
graduated and became my very good friend — Emily Marsh
Nichols ’34.
We didn’t do much on weekends. If you knew boys at
Washington and Lee, VMI or the University of Virginia,
you’d go visit them, but I didn’t happen to know any, so I had
kind of a dull time with dating down there. Mostly we stayed
on campus, made do with being there and enjoying what you
did in college: studying, hiking, whatever. We used to hike
to a house in Amherst where we were served tea. We went
on the road, about two miles; there wasn’t a lot of traffic on
the road in those days. We also would hike to a mission and
deliver supplies to the people who lived nearby.
I played field hockey and was a member of Paint and Patches.
I wrote articles for the Sweet Briar News almost every
week — often reviews of lecturers who came to the College.
By my senior year, I was the assistant editor.
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32

HISTORY
Quad Road in 1935
I was also in the dance group, and my senior year I was head
of lake, and I was in charge of all things going on on the lake.
I used to swim in the lake, although it was muddy, and people
didn’t really like to do that. The main thing I had to do was to
run sort of a regatta at the end of the year — each class had a
float and there was a faculty committee that awarded prizes.
Meta Glass was president of the College. I admired her
immensely; she was a very good president. There were about
450 students total; the goal was 500 students.
I majored in psychology and philosophy. I took a lot of philosophy
courses from Lucy Crawford and psychology courses
from Elizabeth Moller, English from Ethel Ramage and art
from Miss Virginia McLaws — I think she was the daughter
of a Confederate general* in the Civil War. I took all of the art
Sweet Briar offered, and Miss McLaws was very good. I have
maintained my interest in all of these fields, as I read a great
deal, and it shapes my thinking today.
[After graduating] I was a bookkeeper at a bank, taking care
of accounts. I knew I didn’t have much of a future there. It
The Reading Room of Mary Helen Cochran Library in 1935
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33

HISTORY
was still the midst of the Depression, but I was able to live at
home. I wouldn’t have been able to survive on my salary if I
hadn’t been able to live at home. I saved my pennies and went
to a small secretarial school in NYC and learned typing and
shorthand. That’s what it was like then, to get a job I had to
go to secretarial school.
In my day, there were
no openings for women
unless you knew shorthand
and typing. And
actually, I hardly ever
used my shorthand. I had
always thought it would
be lovely to be a secretary
for a professor at Yale. So
I wrote to Yale, hoping
I’d get a job. I ended up
getting a job at Sterling
Memorial Library at
Yale, working in the serial
records department, handling
the publications of
other universities.
I have given to the Annual Fund every
year and attended Reunion. My last was
in 2005. Attending Sweet Briar was a
good experience. It is such a beautiful
place, and I was very susceptible to it. I
loved the countryside, and I would not
have gone to a college in the city. I made
some good friends. I am grateful for that
experience, grateful for my teachers.
At the beginning of my senior year,
I had an extra hour that I didn’t know
what I was going to take. My advisor,
Lucy Crawford, said, “Well, you have
taken all of this art. Don’t you think it
might be wise to take a music appreciation
course?” So I took the course and
learned a great deal. After I graduated
from college and was working at the
bank, a friend of mine was going to the Woolsey Hall Concert
Series at Yale University and asked me if I’d like to go, too.
Well, if I hadn’t taken the music course, I never would have
considered going, but I did. They had already gotten their
tickets, and I would have to sit alone. I called the box office
and there were only two seats left at the price I wanted to pay.
I asked the girl at the box office which was the better seat, and
Clockwise from left: Dorothy Venter’s senior portrait; Mary Helen Cochran Library in 1935; Lillian
Cabell, Ethel Shamer and Dorothy Venter from the 1935 Briar Patch
she thought the balcony seat was better, so I took that. I sat
next to a couple—the man eventually became my husband. I
often think, if I hadn’t taken that music course and if I hadn’t
taken that particular seat, I never would have met him.
* She was the daughter of Confederate Major General Lafayette McLaws.
sbc.edu
34

GIVING
2018-19 Sweet Briar Fund Priorities:
You Make the Difference
The 2017-18 fiscal year marked another year of unprecedented support
for the Sweet Briar Fund, or the College’s unrestricted giving program.
With a total of $18.4 million raised, $13,077,000 was for current funds,
$4.5 million was made in future-year pledges and the remainder consisted
of contributions to Sweet Briar’s endowment, which continues to increase
in scope and in its diversified investments.
This past fiscal year marks the third year that alumnae, parents, faculty,
staff, students, foundations, corporations and friends have provided
extraordinary levels of support for their college. In her year-end message to
alumnae and donors, Mary Pope M. Hutson ’83, vice president for alumnae
relations and development, said, “I’m in awe of the generosity of our
alumnae and friends. Their generosity not only ensures that we’ll be able to
fall 2018
35

GIVING
sbc.edu
continue to educate fierce women,
but also that we’ll be able to be
a leader in the future of higher
education.”
Corporate and foundation giving
increased by 15 percent over
fiscal year 2016-17. Highlights in
notable foundation giving include
a grant provided by the Lettie
Pate Whitehead Foundation and
renewed commitments by the Andrew
W. Mellon Foundation, the
Jessie Ball DuPont Fund and the
Roller-Bottimore Foundation. In
addition, the College continues to build streams of auxiliary
revenue. The 2017-18 fiscal year saw a major refresh of The
Florence Elston Inn & Conference Center. The funding for
the refresh was made possible by an endowed fund.
The impact of giving on the College is broad. Donations
allowed Sweet Briar to renovate several residence halls and
volunteer hours provided by alumnae as part of Sweet Work
Weeks extended the impact of those dollars. Gifts last fiscal
year made the Living With Art Initiative possible, enabling
students to select pieces from the College’s art collection to be
hung in their residence hall rooms. This program continues
in fiscal year 2018-19. A grant by the Judith Haskell Brewer
Fund of The Community Foundation Serving Richmond
and Central Virginia supports the College’s environmental
programs, providing support for a student internship and its
community garden. More than 250 scholarship funds bolster
the College’s recruiting efforts.
As the College’s financial health improves, the reliance on
revenue from fundraising decreases. For the 2018-19 fiscal
year, the College’s goal for unrestricted funds is $10 million,
or 39 percent of its projected budget. This is down from its
all-time high of 82 percent in 2015-16.
The alumnae relations and development office continues
to implement strategies based in major gifts and leadership
annual gifts, corporate and foundation relationships and by
supporting class leaders who reinforce the messages of the
College to urge classmates to continue making their best gifts
every year, not just in their anniversary reunion years.
Each year, the Sweet Briar Fund provides the all-important
core support that enables the College to create and maintain
an environment in which excellence can thrive, underwriting
“I’m in awe of the
generosity of our
alumnae and friends.
Their generosity not only
ensures that we’ll be able
to continue to educate
fierce women, but also
that we’ll be able to be
a leader in the future of
higher education.”
— Mary Pope M. Hutson ’83
scholarships, a distinguished professoriate,
stewardship of the land
and facilities, and now, a groundbreaking
academic framework that
U.S. News and World Report has
ranked as among the most innovative
in the nation.
No matter the year, no matter
the goal, and no matter what
compels alumnae and friends of
the College to make their gifts, one
fact remains the same: every gift
matters. An unrestricted gift to
the Sweet Briar Fund is the greatest
demonstration of confidence and trust in the College
that any alumna or friend can show to Sweet Briar.
Priorities for the 2018-2019 Sweet Briar Fund
With the start of the 2018-19 academic year, President Woo
and members of the Board and President’s Cabinet identified
priorities essential to Sweet Briar’s continuing renewal,
strength and position as a leader and innovator in liberal arts
education.
Every gift made to the Sweet Briar Fund will directly
impact the College’s capacity to:
• Launch activities for each of Sweet Briar’s centers of
excellence. For example, the College has launched a new
partnership with the Commonwealth of Virginia’s Center
for Innovative Technology to demonstrate projects
in sustainable agriculture. The Center for the Arts, Creativity
and Design is welcoming well-known authors,
like Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie and Beth Macy, to
campus to discuss their writing. Other activities are sure
to follow as these centers become more established over
the next year.
• Recruit the next generation of Sweet Briar women.
The College is implementing a number of marketing
activities — print and digital — to tell the Sweet Briar
story. These nationwide efforts feature the award-winning
“Fierce” campaign and deploy the College’s staff
as well as alumnae admissions ambassadors to achieve
Sweet Briar’s goal of 20-25 percent enrollment growth
each year over the next four years.
36

• Successfully implement 10 new courses comprising
the leadership core curriculum. The core is supported
by both resident and visiting faculty who are deploying
the latest teaching methods. These faculty members are
continually assessing and refining to ensure students are
not only having an amazing experience while at the College,
but are also prepared for their futures. Of course,
the leadership core will not only benefit students who
are on campus today, but will also lay a sound foundation
for future classes of Sweet Briar women.
• Conscientiously care for the campus’s natural and
built environment. Sweet Briar’s campus is one of its
most valuable assets, and the College is committed to
stewarding and maintaining it. College leadership is
pursuing a comprehensive plan for the campus that
will focus on issues of deferred maintenance, address
the needs of a growing student body and align capital
expenditures with Sweet Briar’s strategic vision.
• Address the needs of the “whole student.” There’s more
to college than what students learn in the classroom.
The Office of Student Life supports programs and
activities beyond the classroom that help students cultivate
wellness, engagement and a sense of community,
from service projects in Amherst County to gatherings
and special events with neighboring colleges, to reactivating
the College’s Outdoor Program.
Your gift to the Sweet Briar Fund will support all of these
initiatives and help make sure that Sweet Briar College is
prepared to meet the needs of every student and is an example
to colleges around the nation.
To make a gift to the Sweet Briar Fund, visit sbc.edu/give.
Making a monthly gift to Sweet Briar allows you to support
the College throughout the year. To make a gifts of securities
or a wire transfer, call 800-381-6131. Should you need a gift
agreement established for a pledge, our gift officers will be
happy to set up any reminders for you to support the College
before June 15, 2019.
What Can You Do to Support
Sweet Briar?
• Make a gift to the Sweet Briar Fund
• Wear your Sweet Briar colors
• Tell your Sweet Briar story
• Sign up to be an admissions ambassador
• Recruit a student
• Read the latest news at sbc.edu/news
Make Your Gift
sbc.edu/give • 800-381-6131
fall 2018
37

ALUMNAE BRIEFS
WELCOME TO THE
CLASS OF 2018
sbc.edu
On May 12, 2018, 61 new graduates of Sweet Briar joined
the ranks of some 14,000 alumnae. Three recipients of the
M.A.T. degree processed across the stage in the Quad with
these women; all of them received a charge from President
Meredith Woo as they embarked on the next steps of their
journey:
“As I stand here, I am reminded that sometimes where you
study is as important as what you study,” she said. “As the
Class of 2018, you studied at a place which is a significant
part of American cultural history. … Sweet Briar is an important
American legacy. Year after year after year, it produced
women of strength and talent — women who carried
all before them, in their families and communities, always
being ‘useful members’ of their societies as in Indiana Fletcher
Williams’s charge to us.”
She continued: “Cherish the history and beauty of this
place, and carry it in your heart. Remember all the things you
loved here — your long walks, the horse whispers, the mist
that rises over lakes, the shouts from the bleachers — that
helped form who you are today. With the exquisite sensibility
formed in these beautiful surroundings, and the capacity for
love and hope that you have shown, may you go forth, touch
many lives and change them for the better.”
The Class of 2018 is as fierce as any. From Cassie Fenton,
who is pursuing a master’s degree in musicology at the University
of Oxford; to Mackenzie Crary, who has stayed in the
Amherst, Va., area working at GoMeasure3D making 3-D
CAD models; to Jessie Meager, who is now earning a master’s
degree at the University of Virginia in architectural history;
these alumnae are showing the world what Sweet Briar women
are made of.
These young women, who bravely began their sophomore
year in the fall of 2015, have been shaped by Sweet Briar at a
critical moment in her history. As senior class president Annabeth
Griffin said, “We are so proud to become alumnae; we
are so proud to join the warrior women who came before us.
Wonder Woman has nothing on them, although she would
totally fit in here.”
38

ALUMNAE BRIEFS
Alumnae Artists
Come Together for Show
Mimi Holland Dinsmore ’86 has had a career in arts administration,
thanks in part to the arts management certificate she
earned while a student at Sweet Briar. She’s worked in galleries
and museums in Washington, D.C., Mississippi and London.
Most recently, she has served as the gallery director and a guest
curator at The Art Store in Charleston, W.Va. As part of her
work there, she had the opportunity to curate a show for Elisabeth
“Dolly” Wallace Hartman ’53.
Hartman earned a master’s degree from Marshall University
in 1990 and has studied at the Arts Students League in New
York City, the Madison School of Art in Connecticut and
Columbus School of Art in Ohio. She has participated in numerous
workshops led by noted American artists such as Wolf
Kahn, Katherine Liu and Charles Reid. She has a lengthy
exhibition history of solo and group shows around the county
and has won numerous awards in juried exhibitions. Her work
is held in a number of public and private collections, including
at West Virginia University, Farnsworth Library, Morgantown,
W.Va.; Marshall University Graduate Center, South Charleston,
W.Va.; Glenwood Estate in Charleston, W.Va.; and the
Charleston Area Medical Center in Charleston, W.Va. Sweet
Briar also owns several of her pieces.
Dinsmore extended an invitation to Hartman and her daughter,
Mary, an accomplished artist in her own right, to do a joint
show. Together, Dolly and Mary created new works for a show
called “Lines and Lineage.” Mother and daughter made two individual
bodies of work, but the pieces are linked through the
relationship the women share, as well as their use of line. Their
approach “allows for spontaneous dialogues between strong
linear marks and the powerful use of negative space,” according
to the official description of the show.
“The show reflects maternal lineage and an artistic lineage as
seen in their expressive use of line work,” Dinsmore said. “The
near sell-out show was very well received. Dolly's gracious
manner and everlasting talent really is an inspiration to all who
come in contact with her.”
A Better Way to Stay Connected
This fall, Sweet Briar will introduce alumnae and friends of
the College to iModules, a new platform on the College’s website
for engagement and giving. Powered by Encompass, this
platform exchanges data with Banner, the alumnae relations
and development office’s database, ensuring that records in
the Alumnae Directory continue to stay up to date and are
available in a user-friendly, accessible way.
The College embarked on a search for a new platform for
alumnae and friends in the fall of 2017. Taking into consideration
Sweet Briar’s existing systems and needs for alumnae
to be able to engage with the College and with each other, the
alumnae relations and development office evaluated several
different software products and services. Ultimately, the
choice was clear when iModules made their demonstration,
as it uses the College’s existing technology while also being
user-friendly for alumnae and friends.
The first phase of the project migrates the existing alumnae
relations and development website to a microsite. In addition
to finding information about alumnae clubs, class leaders,
admissions ambassadors and publications for alumnae and
friends, the site will have two giving forms (one for unrestricted
gifts and one for restricted gifts) and will have two
additional modules to generate excitement about giving: Days
of Giving and Crowdfunding. Each of these components will
allow alumnae and supporters to follow fundraising progress
toward goals in real time, which is especially exciting for
days like #GivingTuesday (Nov. 27, 2018) and Sweet Briar’s
March Days of Giving (March 1-10, 2019).
In addition to fundraising information, alumnae will be able
to see a listing of upcoming alumnae club events around the
country and register for ones nearby. In future phases, classmates
will be able to email each other directly from the new
alumnae portal and can submit their class notes there.
As Sweet Briar implements the new alumnae platform
throughout the fall, alumnae should make sure the College
has their most updated information.
Vsit sbc.edu/alumnae-development/update-yourinformation
or call the alumnae relations and
development office at 800-381-6131.
fall 2018
39

In Memoriam:
Renowned Monarch Butterfly Expert Lincoln
Brower Dies, But His Legacy Lives On
sbc.edu
The Sweet Briar community was saddened to learn of the
death of Lincoln Brower, a world-renowned entomologist and
research professor at the College. Brower died peacefully at
his home in Nelson County in July after an extended illness.
Brower came to Sweet Briar in 1997 after retiring from the
University of Florida as Distinguished Service Professor of
Zoology, Emeritus, joining his wife and research collaborator,
Dorys McConnell Duberg Professor of Ecology Linda Fink.
Born in New Jersey on Sept. 10, 1931, he was well-known internationally
for his research on the chemical and physiological
ecology of monarch butterflies, and was an ardent conservationist
on their behalf. He worked tirelessly to protect the
monarch’s overwintering habitat in Mexico, raising awareness
through his research reports and dozens of interviews with
national and international media organizations.
“I feel keeping it on the front page is really important,” he
said in a 2013 interview for the Sweet Briar Magazine. “To
me, the monarch is a treasure like a great piece of art. We
need to develop a cultural appreciation of wildlife that’s equivalent
to art and music and so forth.”
During his two decades at Sweet Briar, his work also provided
unique opportunities for students, exposing them not only
to the rigors of field and laboratory research but to the scientist’s
role as a communicator. But to students and colleagues
alike, Brower was more than “just” a scientist.
“His prodigious and pivotal contributions to biology were
exceeded only by his humility,” says John Morrissey, a longtime
professor of biology at Sweet Briar. “In fact, I knew him
for two to three years before I realized that he was the Lincoln
Brower who had authored all those amazing papers that I
read as a student! He was simply too warm, too generous,
too gregarious and too thoughtful to be that famous! Simply
stated, he is one of the finest humans that I have ever met.”
Morrissey says he’ll especially remember Brower’s “infectious,”
“unfettered enthusiasm” for the natural world. He
recalls the first time he had dinner at Brower’s home, eagerly
awaiting an evening of interesting conversation about insect
biology. “Instead, he chose to show me a small sampling of
his collection of geodes, complete with his poetic, awe-struck,
nearly tearful description of their beauty,” Morrissey remembers.
“To me, the only thing more beautiful than the accumulation
of crystals lining the cavities of those rocks was the
joy that Lincoln exuded while sharing them with me. I am a
better person for being inspired by him.”
Brower’s impressive career began in 1953, when he received
a B.S. in biology from Princeton University. At Yale University,
he worked with Charles Remington, earning his Ph.D.
in zoology in 1957. A Fulbright Fellowship allowed him to
spend a year in E.B. Ford’s ecological genetics lab at Oxford
University before joining the biology department at Amherst
College, where he rose from instructor to the Stone Professor
of Biology. In 1980, he moved to the zoology department at
the University of Florida.
Brower authored or coauthored more than 200 scientific
papers and produced eight films. His early research on insect
adaptive coloration led to collaborations with chemists and
40

ecologists in exploring the chemical
ecology of milkweeds, monarch butterflies
and bird predators.
When the winter location of eastern
monarch butterflies was announced
by National Geographic in 1976,
Brower’s focus turned to studying the
extraordinary winter colonies and to the
microclimatic protection provided by
the forests. On his first visit to Mexico
in 1977, he recognized that the colonies
could be lost to deforestation, and his
work expanded to include conservation
of this endangered phenomenon.
It was during one such visit in 2005
that he met Medford Taylor, a renowned
photojournalist who now
teaches at Sweet Briar College. Taylor
had decided to photograph the monarch
butterfly sanctuaries in Michoacán.
Brower connected him with the right
people, Taylor says, in addition to briefing
him on his work.
“I was fortunate to climb and ride
horses up the mountains to those
colonies with Lincoln [after that],”
Taylor recalls. “Standing in those fir
tree forests bursting with millions of
butterflies with this world-renowned
scientist was a spiritual experience for
me. Lincoln never talked about Lincoln;
it was always about his work, photography,
politics, the environment — and
he listened. He was a gentle soul, a man
of high intellect and a gentleman of the
highest order. I feel honored and very
humbled to have called him friend. His
work and his spirit will live on.”
Brower conducted field and laboratory
research to understand the monarch’s
habitat requirements, worked with conservation
organizations and government
agencies to design the monarch butterfly
reserves, and encouraged the public to
care about monarchs through innumerable
public lectures and consulting for
dozens of articles, books and documentaries.
In 2013, President Jimmy Carter
joined him on a visit to Mexico to learn
more about the monarchs — one of
the highlights of his life, Brower said.
In 2015, Brower was a signatory on the
petition to the U.S. Fish & Wildlife
Service to designate the monarch butterfly
as a threatened species.
Brower’s awards include the E.O.
Wilson Award of the Center for Biological
Diversity, Reconocimiento a la
Conservacion de la Naturaleza from the
Mexican federal government, the Marsh
Award of the Royal Entomological
Society, the Wilbur Lucius Cross Medal
from Yale, the Henry Bates Award of
the Association for Tropical Lepidoptera,
the Distinguished Animal Behaviorist
Award of the Animal Behavior
Society and the Linnaean Medal for
Zoology. He was a fellow of the Royal
Entomological Society and Explorers
Club, the Entomological Society of
America, an honorary life member
of the Lepidopterists’ Society, and a
research associate of the Smithsonian
Institution and the McGuire Center
for Lepidoptera at the University of
Florida.
Brower is survived by his wife, two
children, two grandchildren, his brother,
three German shepherds and two
cats. His professional family includes
research collaborators, former graduate
and undergraduate honors students
and conservation professionals around
the world. A celebration of his life was
held at Sweet Briar’s butterfly research
garden in September.
fall 2018
41

inMEMORIAM
sbc.edu
1933
Margaret Milam McDermott
May 3, 2018
1936
Arnold Susong Jones
December 16, 2016
1939
Dorothy Langdon Timmons
August 25, 2018
1940
Olive Whittington Ehrich
September 8, 2015
Eleanor “Ellie” Snow Lea
August 26, 2018
1944
Betty Farinholt Cockrill
May 22, 2018
Lucille Randall Southerland
May 3, 2012
1945
Anne Macfarlane Clark
July 8, 2018
Nancy Ellen Feazell Kent
April 19, 2018
Sally Martin Manning
April 26 2018
1946
Lucy-Charles Jones Bendall
September 5, 2018
1947
Shirley Small Edwards
August 23, 2018
Aimee Des Pland McGirt
June 25, 2018
Suzanne Fitzgerald Van Horne
June 29, 2018
1949
Nancy Ellen Craig Carter
June 6, 2015
Mary Goode “Goodie” Geer DiRaddo
May 29, 2018
Sarah Gay Lanford
June 25, 2018
Margaret Towers Talman
September 5, 2018
Anne Fiske Thompson
July 10, 2018
Nancy Jones Worcester
April 27, 2018
1950
Frances Martin Lindsay
August 5, 2018
Julia Freels Chwalik
January 4, 2018
Sally Lane Johnson
July 31, 2018
Elsie Landram Layton
June 6, 2018
Louise Streeter Smith
May 16, 2018
1951
Julie Micou Eastwood
Date unknown
Jean Duerson Bade
June 19, 2018
1952
Mary Barcus Hunter
August 15, 2018
Jane Ramsay Olmsted
July 14, 2018
1953
Anne Elliott Caskie
April 22, 2018
Martha Moore Cuenod
May 23, 2018
Caroline Miller Ewing
September 8, 2018
1955
Marcia “Sandy” Rhodes Berglund
April 30, 2018
1957
Patricia Lodewick
May 25, 2018
Elynor “Suzy” Neblett Stephens
August 13, 2018
Jane Rather Thiebaud
April 29, 2018
1958
Elizabeth “Beth” Mears Kurtz
August 13, 2018
1959
Ann Smith Heist
Date unknown
Trudie Jackson Smither
Oct. 19, 2016
1961
Suzanne Taylor Gouyer
August 25, 2018
1962
Judith Abernethy Kyle
December 3, 2017
1963
Carol Crowley Karm
June 29, 2018
Cynthia “Cinnie” Hooton Magowan
August 23, 2018
1964
Jillian Cody Jones
June 5, 2018
1972
Edith “Edie” Duncan Wessel
January 22, 2018
1973
Gwendolyn Ferguson Bates
February 1, 2018
Lucinda Young Larson
January 11, 2018
1975
Laura-Hope Walton Griffin
May 1, 2013
Gale Hirst
September 3, 2018
1980
Anna Carter Kendall
June 6, 2018
1995
Kelly “Pepper” Coggshall
September 23, 2018
1996
Rebecca Arkus
June 21, 2018
2016
Meredith Haga Fox
July 20, 2018
42

CLASSnotes
1947
Linda McKoy Stewart
18 Osprey Lane
Rumson, NJ 07760
lmckstewart@verizon.net
A note for our 1947 graduates
from Mary Ames Booker ’82: I
would like to share that my Aunt
Suzanne Fitzgerald VanHorne ’47
passed away in June at the age of 92.
She majored in art history and was a
fine pianist and did both as careers
while raising two sons. She was my
mother’s (Kay Fitzgerald Booker’s)
twin sister, and passed away on the
same day, 18 years apart. I’m sure
they visit the SBC campus together
now! They are sorely missed here.
1949
Preston Hodges Hill
3910 S Hillcrest Dr.
Denver, Colo. 80237
edhillj@earthlink.net
Katie Cox Reynolds reports
that she and Phil have moved into
a smaller more conveniently located
apartment in their retirement home.
New address is 60 Loeffler Rd. P316
Bloomfield, CT 06002. They had
several visits with their children
this summer and most accompanied
them to a memorial of a dear friend
held on Cape Cod. A granddaughter
is in graduate school in Boulder, CO,
for a year’s study in Early Childhood
Education. Her bother is living in
Denver.
Caroline Casey Brandt, our
class president, reports that all of our
Richmond ’49ers live in Westminster-Canterbury
Retirement Home,
as does she. Libby Trueheart Harris
is in the Health Care unit and is in
failing health, Margaret Towers Talman
is doing well, Kitty Hart Belew
is there as well. All have recently celebrated
90th birthdays. Caroline has
given her outstanding collection of
miniature books to the UVA. The
Miniature Book Society met recently
in Charlottesville, and Caroline,
accompanied by most of her family,
attended a celebration honoring her.
The Society has published a catalog
of the 100 most important books
in the collection. She has given a
copy of it to Sweet Briar. Caroline’s
ex-banker son is now an Episcopal
priest in Richmond, serving at their
family church. He recently had successful
cancer surgery. She has a married
granddaughter living in Boulder
and another living in France. The one
in France had a very premature baby,
but after months in neonatal care,
the baby is at home and doing well.
Carter Van Deventer Slattery
lives in Knoxville, TN. She visits
her house at Hilton Head Beach,
N.C., or Tennessee, and she is blessed
with eight grandchildren and a
great-granddaughter named “Carter”!
Ruth Garrett Preucel lives in
Santa Fe, N.M. She recently moved
there after living fifty years in Philadelphia.
She is living in an “adobe”
(clay) house her architect daughter
designed and built for her. Ruth
also has a son who is a professor at
Brown University and one who lives
in California. She is more interested
in the future than the past!
Carolyn Cannady Evans still
(10 years) lives in a large retirement
home 15 miles from Dulles Airport.
She welcomes “en route” overnight
guests! Two of her four daughters
live nearby, two in Raleigh, N.C. Her
son is in Baltimore. They gather frequently.
Carolyn enjoys working in
clay, sculpturing, and making pots,
etc. She walks her dog daily and is
in good health. She and her children
take a “Sibling & Mom” trip around
the country every year!
Sarah Melcher Jarvis passed
away on Sept. 15, 2017. She raised
four children and wrote children’s
stories for Humpty Dumpty magazine
that were later published as two
books, “Little Plays for Little People”
and “Fried Onion and Marshmallows.”
Sally taught English for several
years at Lancaster County Day
School and was a writer and editor at
Continental Press. As the assistant
director of the North Museum from
’74 to ’92, she initiated the “Rambles”
travel program, leading local excursions
as well as expeditions to China,
Egypt, Russia and Scotland. Sally
was a 50-year member of First Presbyterian
Church, where she served as
an elder, and helped write its history
on its 275th anniversary. She was
a past board member of Demuth
Foundation, Planned Parenthood,
Lancaster Summer Arts Festival,
Friends of Lancaster County Library,
and a member of the National
Society of The Colonial Dames of
America. She is survived by four
children, eight grandchildren, and
five great-greatgrandchildren.
I continue to live in my home
of 54 years in Denver. My children
are out of state but come often, and
Margaret’s close friend from prep
school has moved to Denver, which
is great for me. My son Gene continues
his work in health care, his wife,
Joan, lectures on her book Chasing
Miracles and does a blog monthly
on health issues. Their oldest son is
an ER doctor in Chicago and has
my year and a half old great-grandchild,
Enzo Dylan. Alyssa Hill is
an attorney in NYC and Greg Hill
works in the wine industry in Napa,
CA. Margaret Hill Hilton is a Senior
Sales Executive for Cox Communications
in Las Vegas. Her son
Palmer finished law School at UNC
Chapel Hill. I joined that family for
the graduation in May followed by
a delightful few days in Charleston
& Myrtle Beach. Ginny Hill Martinson
and Lowell live in Ojai, CA.
(fortunately their house survived the
fires last fall). Ginny is enjoying renewed
interest in art and has joined
the Patel Society there. Her 19-yearold
twins have just finished freshman
year at the University of Colorado
Boulder for Michael (in aerospace
engineering) and Boston at Berklee
School of Music for Karen.
All of us are thrilled with our
percentage of giving to the Annual
Fund.
1952
Pat Layne Winks
312 Arguello Blvd., Apt. 3
San Francisco, CA 94118
415-221-6779
plwinks@earthlink.net
Trips I’ve taken this year have
enabled me to connect with some
of you. A June visit to Boston, current
home of my granddaughter,
included a special added attraction:
seeing Joanne Holbrook Patton
at her home in Topsfield. After so
many years regretting my inability to
join many of you at one of Joanne’s
summer picnics at Green Meadows
Farm, I finally made it! Joanne and
I settled in for happy reminiscing,
looking through photograph albums.
Joanne continues to stay active, undeterred
by physical limitations.
In the spring she went to D.C. for
a women’s leadership conference
at George Washington University,
where she was honored for her years
of outstanding service. Recently, the
sailing ship once owned by the Patton
family was put to shore near the
Hamilton museum, which houses
the Patton archives. Joanne, with her
equipment, was hoisted aboard, then
photographed at the helm beside the
captain, as if they were ready to sail
off to sea.
Another trip I took this year – to
London and Paris – was brightened
by Pauline Wells Bolton, former
roommate and Junior Year in France
companion. Pauly had recommended
a London hotel that was a real gem.
She and her sister Josephine Wells
Rodgers ’53 go to Europe nearly every
year. Once Sweet Briar’s Junior
Year in France has cast its spell, we
stay spellbound! Recently fellow
JYF’er Ann Whittingham Smith
attended a theater presentation of
Cyrano de Bergerac in the company
of an Alliance Francçaise group. Ann
and I observed that people seem to
speak French so quickly these days!
Ann has resumed playing the piano
and has joined a chamber music
fall 2018
43

sbc.edu
group. She also sings in the church
choir and participates in a choral
group that visits nursing homes.
We continue to lose beloved
classmates and their spouses. The
obituary for Jane Ramsay Olmsted
reminds us what a remarkable woman
she was. After Sweet Briar, Jane
studied at the Corcoran School of
Art. Her paintings are in numerous
public and private permanent collections.
She was actively involved
in garden beautification as a floral
designer and judge of flower shows.
A member of Les Dames d’Escoffier
(an organization of women in
the culinary industry), she wrote
restaurant reviews and pursued her
passionate interest in the cuisine and
culture of Italy. For many years she
planned receptions for club members
and international dignitaries at
the Sulgrave Club in D.C. Definitely
a Renaissance woman!
Nancy Hamel Clark is recovering
from hip replacement surgery
with the loving help of her children.
Her daughter Ann, an educational
consultant, is working with University
of North Carolina’s chancellor,
Margaret Spellings, on ways to improve
the quality of teacher education
and recognize its importance.
Nancy has a project of her own:
She writes articles for her retirement
community newsletter, and especially
enjoys interviewing residents and
researching the community’s Quaker
history.
Pat Beach Thompson, at her
home outside Mt. Kisco, N.Y., not
only gardens but dredges the stream
that leads to their pond! We agreed
that California could benefit from
the rain that has been inundating her
part of the country. Pat has a wonderful
plan to prepare a set of SBC
classmate photographs with brief
commentary for each. If we can’t reunite
in person, we can still see and
greet each other. What I have found
especially rewarding in acting as your
secretary is picking up that old-fashioned
instrument, the telephone –
no smart apps needed – and talking
to classmates. Try it! I count on you
to keep in touch – with each other,
with me, and with the College.
1953
Florence Pye Apy
40 Riverside Ave, Apt. 6Y
Red Bank, NJ 07701
floapy@verizon.net
Our 65th Reunion has ended.
Although the number of classmates
attending was fewer than we had
hoped for, the nine of us there were
happy to be back to our beautiful,
renewed campus and visit with one
another. Here’s who came: Ginnie
Hudson Toone, Flo Pye Apy and
Chet, Maggie McClung and David,
Harriette Hodges Andrews, Jane
Perry Liles, Katzy Bailey Nager
and C.J., Kirk Tucker Clarkson and
Jack, June Arata Pickett and Dolly
Wallace Hartman. Family members
added another welcomed dimension
to the gathering. The Apys had four
members of the family there: son
David and wife Tricia, and granddaughter
Emily Bera with husband
Danny. Ginnie and her brother,
Repps, drove all the way from Carrollton,
MO, and Dolly was transported
by son John. I heard from
several other members of the class,
including M.A. Mellon Root and
Jeanne Duff, both of whom wanted
to come but could not find appropriate
transportation. Unfortunately,
the Southern Railroad and trains
no longer stop at Monroe station as
they did when we were there.
I will be returning to Sweet Briar
the last weekend in October with my
granddaughter, Marissa Apy, where
she will take part in an engineering
demonstration program for prospective
students.
Too frequently this column ends
on a sad note. Unfortunately, since
our last alumnae gathering, two of
our classmates have died, Anne Elliott
Caskie and Martha Moore
Cuenod. Anne fell down steps while
exiting the Sunday service at her
church in Richmond, on Sunday,
April 15. Sadly, she died a week later
as a result of her injuries. Anne
was born in Birmingham, AL. She
married Challen Ellis Caskie, who
predeceased her, as did her brother
George. During the course of her
marriage to Challen, she moved
many times, ultimately settling in
Richmond, where she was a member
of St. James Episcopal Church, the
Senior Board of Children’s Hospitals,
the Country Club of Virginia,
and the Junior League. She is survived
by her daughter, Trudy Caskie
Porter, and her husband, Cliff; three
grandchildren, Anne Pulliam and
husband Dave, Caroline Porter, and
Borden Porter; and her brother John
Elliot. We will miss her.
Martha Moore Cuenod died
May 23, at age 86. She was born in
Houston, TX. She graduated from
Lamar High School, attended Sweet
Briar, and graduated from the University
of Texas at Austin. She married
Marc Cuenod in 1954 at Christ
Church Cathedral in Houston,
where they started to raise their children.
Later they moved to Galveston.
In both cities she served on the Episcopal
Altar Guilds, the Board of Directors
of the American Red Cross,
and as an active member of the Junior
League. In 2008 she and Marc
returned to Houston to be closer
to their children and grandchildren.
Martha is survived by her husband,
two daughters, one son, one granddaughter,
one grandson, and two
great grandchildren. Our sympathy
goes out to her entire family.
P.S. In an uncontested election
Ginnie and Flo were returned to office
as president and secretary of the
class.
1954
Bruce Watts Krucke
201 West 9th St. N.-Unit 1844
Summerville, SC 29483
bwkrucke@gmail.com
The good news is that there are
no new obituaries to start these brief
notes. The other good news is that
our class is very near the top in percentage
of giving to the most recent
fund drive. The bad news is that I got
few responses to my recent email requesting
to hear from you. I am not
able to handwrite to all you ’54 people;
so if you have an email address
and don’t hear from me, please send
your email address to mine above,
and you’ll get occasional notes from
me. Thanks.
Shirley Poulson Broyles writes
that they are hoping to move into a
new active adult retirement community
that will be ready next year. She
doesn’t look forward to the de-cluttering
and downsizing process!
Norris took his children and her
children on a cruise to the Western
Caribbean last November to celebrate
a birthday of Shirley’s ending
in “5,” which will remain undisclosed.
Then she and Norris went in February
to Belmond Maroma in Mexico
to celebrate their 25th anniversary.
This Christmas they are going with
a group of friends to the Eastern
Caribbean, since their children are
all with their own children at Christmas.
They still go to Hilton Head
when the children are not using the
beach house. Shirley is giving up her
apartment in Baltimore in late September,
and they will stay in a hotel
when visiting family there. She says
they are slowing down a bit but still
having fun. Both of them are doing
yoga and have physical and massage
therapy to keep the bods in shape!
Shirley says she has to keep moving
with seven great-grandsons, one
great-granddaughter and number
nine due next February.
Thinking about next year being
our 65th reunion, Sweet Briar can’t
locate our class banner. Do any of
you have it or know where it might
be? It’s not at Sweet Briar, and none
of your class officers have it. They are
expensive to replace, so we’re hoping
it can be located.
Caroline “Kobo” Chobot Garner
writes that in May 2018 her
daughter Laurie, granddaughter
Caroline, and she flew to Calgary,
British Columbia, rented a car, and
toured the Banff/Lake Louise area.
It was a six-day trip, and they were
pleased to still be speaking to each
other at the end! Laurie remarked
— “Have you ever planned a trip for
an 80-year-old, a 50-year-old, and a
20-year-old??”
No, I haven’t, but Mary Jane
Roos Fenn has. She got back in
August from a week’s vacation with
her daughter Susan, and Susan’s
daughter Dana, at her old stomping
grounds, her beloved Shelter Island,
N.Y. Last year they all went to Bermuda
together, and the threesome
plans to take an annual trip together
from now on.
Mary Hill Noble Caperton
writes that she is happy in her retirement
condo community, keeping
very busy on several committees
44

there and doing things in town as
well. She still goes to water aerobics
at one of the city pools five mornings
a week and walks her Jack Russell
terrier 3 to 4 times a day. The views
from up on the hill there are wonderful,
and she feasts on them every
time she ventures out or looks out
the windows, which is often. There
are mountains to the east and west
and the landscaping is beautiful
there at the complex. Landscaping
is one of the committees she’s on.
Mary Hill hopes we are all dealing
with our advancing age well. We are
sending our hopeful and prayerful
thoughts to Mary Hill’s son Doug,
who underwent a nine-hour surgery
for pancreatic cancer in late August.
The prognosis is good.
We can always count on Jerry
Driesbach Ludeke for some interesting
adventures. In July she treated
herself to a month-long trip with all
transportation paid for with points.
She first flew from Bakersfield to
Charlottesville for a week’s visit with
her sister Georgia. From there she
took Amtrak to Arlington for a week
with a granddaughter, her husband,
and the two great-grandsons (one of
whom she met for the first time). Jerry
finds that spending time in Washington,
D.C., is always fun. Her new
great find was the Hillwood Estate,
Museum, and Gardens of Marjorie
Meriweather Post. They are extraordinary!
(I wonder if there’s any connection
with our late classmate Meri
Hodges Major.) From there, Jerry
flew to Pittsburgh, where she took an
excursion to Frank Lloyd Wright’s
Falling Water, which exceeded her
expectations. In Pittsburgh she
boarded the American Line’s Queen
of the Mississippi for a ten-day trip
down the Ohio River to St. Louis.
The day she got off the boat she
boarded the Texas Eagle Amtrak for
a four-day ride back to Bakersfield.
That train goes right along the border
with Mexico. Jerry pronounced
all this a fun trip!
Bill and I join those mentioned
above who are happy in their retirement
communities. We too are very
involved here. I’m half-way though
my term as president of the Residents
Council. We don’t meet in
July and August, and I have pages
of things that people have come to
me about during those free months.
There have been huge changes here
this year with the opening of a new
18-apartment residential building
and a new 88-bed medical and rehab
center. We also have just gotten
a new executive director — hope he
doesn’t change everything. In July
we joined my sister Virginia Watts
Fournier ’44 for a few days at North
Topsail Island, N.C. Our families
have been meeting there for 20 years,
but this is probably the last one —
we have aged out.
If you don’t see notes about anyone
you remember or yourself, you
know why! I can’t write what nobody
tells me. Please send me emails or little
letters about you and your family.
Inquiring minds want to know.
1955
Emily Hunter Slingluff
1217 North Bay Shore Drive
Virginia Beach, VA 23451
emilyslingluff@aol.com
Starting with deaths of classmates:
Patricia Collins Massa
passed away in February and Rosemary
Mancill Berry in April. We
send much sympathy to their families.
Mary Reed Simpson Daugette’s
daughter kindly wrote about her
some months ago, saying that her
mother had the flu last winter and
was in the hospital, followed by four
weeks of rehab, and that it had been
a setback for her. She can no longer
use the telephone and will probably
remain in a wheelchair. She had
traveled to two of four weddings of
her grandchildren in 2017 and was
thrilled to have a great-grandchild
born in Birmingham in October and
named Mary Simpson Nolan.
Nella Gray Barkley gave the
commencement address at Sweet
Briar this year.
Dede Harrison Austin is “alert,”
said her husband, Larry. She can see
and read but cannot talk or eat or
move. Seven years ago, a church van
ran into the car she was driving, with
Larry by her side, as they were going
to their house in the North Carolina
mountains. She is staying in a
hospital bed in her beautiful living
room, facing the fireplace. Various
machines are connected to her, along
the wall, so hardly noticeable in the
lovely setting. Larry seems to be by
her side much of the time but also
has professional care for her at all
times. Her children seem to come
often, too, and I saw many good,
happy photos of them when I was
there. When I first looked at Dede, I
immediately thought, “You still look
like you did at Sweet Briar!” It seems
that lying in bed nonstop keeps
wrinkles away! The scenario there
keeps coming to my mind. Larry is a
gold star husband. Dede is gold star
too, always has been, and still is. It is
a terrible situation, but also heartwarming
to see the loving care.
Kay Roberts McHaney phoned
and what a treat it was to reconnect
with her! Her life sounds most interesting
although her husband has
Alzheimer’s. Kay was only at Sweet
Briar for two years, feeling a desire,
as many of our Texas classmates did,
to also go to the University of Texas.
However, she has fond memories
of SBC and went back for the 1954
graduation to see her good friend,
Cathy Munds ’54, graduate. After
that, she said she went on a driving
trip across the country and then
even on to Hawaii for a while, too,
with three of our classmates, Nancy
Douthat, Jane Lindsey, and Susan
Seward. Kay’s father had owned the
newspaper in Victoria, The Victoria
Advocate, since the early 1940s. It
is Texas’s second oldest continually
operating paper. Since his death
some years ago, Kay and her brother
have been involved with the paper.
She still participates on the editorial
board and the ethics committee. She
and her husband, Jim, met when they
were both living in Victoria and were
in second grade. He became a chemical
engineer, and they lived in California
and in Ohio for 10 years before
moving back to Victoria, where
her husband became involved with
the paper. When in Hudson, OH,
she was friends with Mary Ann Mellon
Root ’53. Kay and Jim have three
sons and a daughter, and all are living
in Texas. One son is in Longview,
with the paper the family bought six
years ago. Another son is an attorney
in Austin. Her daughter and another
son live in Victoria with their families.
There are 12 grandchildren,
the oldest is 24 and the youngest are
twins age 8. She has been involved in
many organizations. She helped create
the history museum on the Victoria
College campus, where she was
the first woman on the board and is
still serving on that board after 30
years. She worked closely with the
Victoria Symphony and is still chair
of the endowment, she was a part of
creating the Bach Festival, now in its
43rd season, and was the first woman
on the Victoria County Hospital
board where she was also chairman.
She loves traveling, which she thinks
may go back to that trip across this
country with SBC friends! She has
also taken two Sweet Briar trips, one
in 2005 to Peru, Machu Picchu, and
the Amazon and another in 2007
to other places in South America.
Also, she has traveled with her husband
and on separate trips with her
children to India, Egypt, Morocco,
Spain, and Alaska. As she said, life is
busy, and also happy.
Newell Bryan Tozzer is happily
staying in her house where she has
been for many years. Son Brent and
his wife, who is the daughter of Sue
Lawton Mobley’s first cousin, also
live in Atlanta. Brent works with
the bookstore at Emory University.
Newell’s daughter, Ellen, and her
husband and their three children
have recently moved to Callaway
Gardens, a resort town a little over
an hour from Atlanta. Newell is involved
at All Saints Church and on
the board of Historic Oakland Cemetery.
Ethel Green Banta is still living
in her nice historic house in Natchez,
MS. This summer, she went
to Seattle to visit her youngest, Kate,
and “her wonderful family.” Ethel
said it was a long trip, but worth
it! She has another daughter, Alice,
in Richmond, who is the vet for the
city of Richmond, and a son, Jim, in
Richmond, where he is VP of Capital
One Bank. Between the two of
them, she has six grandchildren; so
she says she really enjoys her visits to
Richmond. Her oldest child, Ruth,
lives in Northampton, MA, where
she is CEO of Pathlight, an organization
to help people with special
needs. Last Christmas, she visited
Ruth and was caught in the Atlanta
airport shutdown: 100,000 people
in the terminal and no power except
from their cell phones! But, as she
said, somehow, they all survived!
Jane Feltus Welch writes, since
leaving Natchez years ago after her
marriage, she is feeling older. She
said she has had pneumonia and that
fall 2018
45

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she pulled some tendons or muscles
in one leg. But, Jane felt she would
be better soon! Also, she said that
she had been in New York City the
week before, for a week, and was able
to see The Iceman Cometh and My
Fair Lady. She enjoyed being in her
apartment there, which she recently
had upgraded to be fresher and more
“with it!” She says she can enjoy relaxing
there, while at her house, Jessamine
Hill, in Kentucky, something
is always going happening! In April
she went with son Jim and daughter
Lucy and Lucy’s husband to San
Francisco for the marriage of another
daughter, Eliza, who lives there and
is a chaplain for Hospice. Among
other things, Jane belongs to a foreign
affairs group that meets every
month and requires preparation and
to a book club. She mentioned that
she had the Sweet Briar Open House
at her house last winter and enjoyed
that, and shortly after, met our new
Sweet Briar president and was very
impressed with her.
Ginger Chamblin Greene came
with her friend, Fred Landess, to a
party that my friend Doug Mackall
had at his Charlottesville condo
during the University of Virginia
Law School Reunion in May. Fred
and Doug were classmates some
years ago. Ginger looked fabulous
and seemed so happy. It was a treat
for me to have a small visit with her.
We feel so connected as do most of
us from our wonderful class at Sweet
Briar.
Pam Compton Ware our May
Queen, writes, “We can’t be this old!
In my head I don’t feel it, but the
body tells it like it is. ‘Life is swell
when you keep well.’ Remember that
one? It’s the current game plan. I feel
blessed with my wonderful sons,
their wives, and nine grandchildren,
eldest graduated, two in college, six
in high school/junior high. Hobbies
remain as before: gardening (joints
permitting), reading, church activities,
and bridge (unremarkable).
However, genealogy has captivated
me, and I’ve spent hours researching
several family lines, but I won’t bore
you with that. Dig into your own,
though; it is fascinating. As an SBC
government major, I was long ago
bitten by history as it is happening,
and heaven knows there’s been a lot
of that going on. Yes, I’m an addicted
news junkie, as well as a Jersey Shore
worshipper, where our annual Pilgrimage
takes place with as many as
we can crowd in. Often I think of our
idyllic time at SBC and am so grateful
it is still alive with new direction
and purpose. I miss the wonder of all
that and especially all of you.”
Emily Hunter Slingluff is enjoying
life in the same house on the bay
and close to the ocean for about forty
years. Her daughter is several houses
away and her son nearby in Charlottesville.
It is a thrill to stay in touch with
wonderful Sweet Briar classmates. I
enjoy playing bridge and spend lots
of time speaking and writing about
parenting. My first book, A Present
to the Newborn, has just come out in
audio, with a sympathetic narrator,
and is available on Amazon. This is
exciting for me, and I hope will help
parents with a child of any age. At
one of our convocations, our Sweet
Briar president, Anne Gary Pannell,
said, “When you educate a woman,
you educate the world.” Yes, mothering
matters. Sweet Briar mattered,
too.
1956
Mary Ann H. Willingham
P.O. Box 728
Skyland, N.C. 28776
hicklinw@bellsouth.net
Thanks to each of you who either
sent an e-mail or a real letter!
You make my job fun! You all are
great! I have always maintained that
old friends are the best; so especially
good to hear from you – and we are
old!
Ann Greer Adams was treated
to a “step back in time” last spring
when her son and his wife included
her on a trip to Virginia to pick
up their daughter, who was finishing
her freshman year at W&L.
She says Lexington looked just as it
did 60 years ago, when she was last
there. They took her to SBC, where
they walked the whole campus. Particularly
interesting she says is the
columbarium around the perimeter
of the Monument, where several of
our friends are buried: Mr. Hapala,
Dr. Nelson and Helen McMahon.
Then on to Charlottesville for the
full Virginia tour, loving every minute
of “remembering.”
Bunny Burwell Nesbit writes
that she is living a wonderfully full
life in a continuing care community
in Sarasota, FL. A highlight of the
year was the 100th Reunion of her
dad’s family in Upperville, VA, which
lasted 11 days! Lots of other SBC alums
(’52,’55,’58,’66,’82, &’84) we’re in
attendance, making it a super special
event!
Macie Clay Nichols shared
lots of Kentucky news. Meredith
Smythe Grider spent the summer
in Michigan, having previously sold
her gift-ice cream shop there. Each
of her three daughters spent some
of the summer with her. For the past
two summers Macie has followed
campers to Beaufort, N.C., where
she enjoyed good times with Mishew
Cooper and her husband, Murray
Williams, who now live there in a
condo with a marvelous ocean view.
She also reconnected with some old
UNC friends. Macie tells us that
Norma Davis has moved from Tunica,
MS, to a retirement community
in Memphis, where Norma is very
content. Norma had called Macie for
a Derby tip, and no doubt Norma
was delighted with the tip, Justified.
Macie and Robert celebrated their
57th wedding anniversary this year
and have lived in the same house for
55 of those years. Her daughter and
her children live nearby. Son Rob
and family live in Spain; so Macie
is hoping to win the lottery to buy a
plane for more “togetherness.” Macie
recently attended an SBC gathering
at the beautiful home of Jane Feltus
Welche ’55 for an inspiring update
by SBC Board Member, Mason
Rummel. Macie laments that our
class giving participation is low. [Be
of cheer, Macie: this past fiscal year
we are up to 31.3 percent, up from
25 percent the previous year, See? I
said you all are great! Now, if we had
a class fundraiser, think how marvelous
we could be! And here is my
plug: Please, please send something
— large or small — to SBC when
the next solicitation arrives!] Sudie
Shelton Moseley lives fairly close to
Macie in Kentucky; whereas Sudie’s
two sons live in Louisville. Sudie attends
an annual seminar each year at
Cambridge, joined by other perpetual
students of many nationalities.
Lee Chang Crozier wrote that
all is well with her and hers in California,
although definitely concerned
about the August fires. She is still involved
in “committee responsibilities,”
helps coordinate the music at church,
and plays the piano and sings in the
choir. She and Al are coming up on
their 59th wedding anniversary! Lee
and I exchanged a couple of e-mails
reminiscing about painting posters
and decorating for our Spring Dance,
the theme for which was “Occidentally
Oriental.” Remember?
Janet Monroe Marshall writes
that she is settled into her new retirement
home in Ellicott City, MD,
having moved there from Pennsylvania.
Much to do there, so much so
that she finds it hard to find chunks
of time to read, contemplate, and
keep up with family. For her, the biggest
change that she has seen since
we left college is the speed of everything:
film, talking, soundbites versus
discussion; brief flashes of information
to stay with shorter and shorter
attention spans of everyone. There is
also more and more online activity, as
in anything involving the oxymoron
called “Customer Service!”
Nancy Ettenger Minor has recently
moved from Savannah, Ga., to
a continual care community on Hilton
Head, S.C. She is still playing a
lot of bridge and is rapidly adapting
to and enjoying her new location and
all it offers.
Nancy Howe Roberts continues
enjoying traveling, recently taking a
delightful trip to the Gulf Coast with
Jim’s two sons and their families. She
still lives in a retirement community,
enjoying a very active life there. She
plays bridge and golf and plans to go
to Chicago for Christmas.
A wonderful note from Peggy
Ann Rogers recapping her fascinating
life. An English Lit major at
SBC, she went on to receive a Ph.D.
from Oxford. She attended the Coronation
of Queen Elizabeth in 1953
and had a day with Mother Teresa in
Calcutta in 1989 with Medical Missions
of NY (1985-1989). She was
with the Philadelphia School Board
for 35 years and taught in England
for 30 summers with The Institute
of International Education. She has
generously donated many books to
Sweet Briar. Now about 85% deaf,
she is active with organizations focusing
on deafness. She would love
to hear from classmates: 635 Alexian
Way #805 HC, Signal Mountain,
TN 37377.
46

Karen Steinhardt Kirkbride is
delighted with the progress Sweet
Briar is making! Still in Annandale,
VA, her husband is undergoing extensive
therapy for which Karen is
deeply grateful. She is the sole driver
now for extra safety, meaning double
appointments and extra errands, but
their life together is as wonderful as
ever. Their three sons and their families
are a major source of joy. Steven
lives nearby; however Kevin is in Seattle
and Trevor is in NYC.
Joan Broman Wright loves
reading the class notes! Nothing astounding
to report, she says. She is
valiantly trying to landscape her yard
in Coral Gables, FL, in the excruciating
hot summer sun! Her son, Jim,
who lives in Raleigh, recently spent
a week with her. Daughter Elise and
family live nearby in Coral Gables,
where Elise is busy with her Interior
Design Company.
We in Western N.C. are excited
that Louisa Hunt Coker is soon
moving from Franklin, VA, to a retirement
home in Hendersonville,
N.C., about 15 miles from me. This
way, she will be much closer to her
family.
As for me, I stay quite busy!
Fortunately, I’m still enjoying good
health; so I can do a lot of gardening,
which I love (always welcoming
winter, however!). I do some traveling
still, but mostly to visit daughters
and their families in NYC, Atlanta,
and Baltimore. The last NYC grandchild
is off to college this fall, and the
oldest Baltimore grandchild is visiting
colleges this fall in preparation
for next fall. Wow! The years just
fly by!
Please, please remember to send
money — any amount — to SBC
when the solicitation arrives! I am so
proud of our improving percentage!
And many thanks to each of you
who has made all this news appear!
1958
Eleanor St. Clair Thorp
3 Stoneleigh #6D
Bronxville, N.Y. 10708
schatzethorp@gmail.com
Our 60th Reunion was a very
special time for all the alumnae, especially
those from our 1958 class.
There was a large turnout, but ours
was especially well represented.
Though we missed many of you, 20
made it, with an assorted number of
husbands. We all had time to visit
with one another, hear very good and
informative words from President
Woo, and get a very positive update
on the College and its future.
At the meeting for class elections,
Claire Cannon Christopher
was elected our new president, M.L.
Bryant our treasurer/fundraiser, and
I was elected secretary. Our heartfelt
thanks to outgoing president Mollie
Archer Payne and secretary Jane
Shipman Kuntz. Now some news
from our classmates:
Beedy Tatlow Ritchie and her
husband, Bruce, moved from Los
Angeles to Palm Desert, CA, and are
enjoying life there in “Paradise.” Son
Hank and his wife, Meredith Hobik,
live in Bethesda, MD, and son Chad
is engaged to Katherine Nedelkoff
and lives in NYC. Daughter Laura
and her offspring, AJ, live in Beverly
Hills. Beedy and Bruce spend three
months in Traverse City, Mich., and
they welcome any of you for a visit
any time.
Winnie Leigh Hamlin was delighted
to be at Reunion and writes
that her first grandchild Winborne
Leigh Hamlin, graduated cum laude
with a degree from UVa in bio-medical
engineering! Winborne’s two
brothers and two cousins will be
at UVa next year, two in each class.
Winnie underwent surgery to remove
a kidney stone and is still recovering.
Ina Hamilton Hart was given
a fabulous surprise 80th birthday
party by her children, with relatives
from near and far attending. Ina has
been writing stories and now is writing
poetry as well. As she says, it’s a
great outcome for an English major.
Peggy Smith Warner and her
husband, John, are currently in their
vacation home in Cashiers, N.C.,
and will return to Nashville in the
fall. Grandson Blake will enter Vanderbilt
as a freshman this fall, but
she says her real connection to Sweet
Briar is her son John’s marriage to
Jane Shipman Kuntz’s niece Jane
Shipman. John is a surgeon in Lexington,
KY.
Adele Caruthers is now living
in Santa Fe with her second husband,
Harry, whom she married two
years ago after having been divorced
and widowed. She and Harry just
returned from a fabulous Viking
Cruise around the Mediterranean.
Tibby Moore Gardner had a
great time at our reunion and suggests
we get together more often
than every five years! Agreed, Tibby.
She and Bill are in their Virginia
Beach home, where her oldest son
Ryland and wife and her parents
came to visit for a few days.
Eleanor Humphrey Schnabel
has moved to an assisted-living
complex in Salem, MA, to be nearer
her daughter Ellie ’85, who lives in
Woonsocket, R.I., with son Nathan
Henry, who is five years old. Hump
is now retired and works with a needlepoint
group and is definitely enjoying
her new life.
Mimi Garrard writes that she
has been very busy the last few years
creating dance for video and showing
her work on television, in festivals,
and in galleries around the world.
She won six first-place awards for
her video work. She and her husband,
James Seawright, had a show
in Kentucky and will have another
in the fall at the University of Tennessee
in Knoxville. They also had
a concert at New York Live Arts in
May. We should all go online to read
her newsletter, at The Mimi Garrard
Dance Company, Inc.
Betty Rae Sivalls Davis and
her husband are very excited about
the country western party that her
children are hosting for their sixtieth
wedding anniversary in September,
replete with a country band and
Southern food. They are also taking
their first cruise this month.
Mary Johnson Campbell says
she keeps “busy doing nothing noteworthy”!
She stays in touch with
Ruth Carpenter Pitts, whose granddaughter
was married in August.
Patty Sykes Treadwell lost her
husband, Dick, on February 13. Patty
regularly attends her grandson’s
soccer games in the San Francisco
area and keeps Mary {Mary who?]
informed about his victories.
Jane Shipman Kuntz loved being
at our reunion and sends the
good news that her herniated disk
was operated on, repaired, and that
she is now recovering. Prior to Reunion,
she and a friend took a long
and fascinating trip through the
many parks in the western United
States. Her grandchildren are all
thriving and busy with more activities
than can be listed here, but lots
to make Jane very proud.
Thanks to all of you who responded
to my email asking for your
news, and I look forward to hearing
from more of you for the next edition.
In the meantime, keep in touch
and enjoy the fall.
1959
Ali Wood Thompson
89 Pukolu Way
Wailea, HI 96753
808-874-8028
travisnali808@gmail.com
A big reminder that next year
(2019) is our 60TH REUNION!!!
The reunion dates are May 31-June 2.
If you are ever going to go to a reunion,
THIS IS THE YEAR TO DO IT!
Car, bus, train or plane (SBC does
pick you up at Lynchburg airport) …
Di Doscher Spurdle ’59 and family! Doug and his brood (Sophia,
Savannah, Mason and Lincoln) from CA on the left, Craig, Brooks and
Mij from FL on right . Our two great-grandsons are on the far right and
far left
fall 2018
47

sbc.edu
Val Stoddard Loring ’59 and husband Stephen
Plan to make it a trip and bring your
spouse along or a companion to help
you get here. For those of us going, we
should book at the Elston Inn early.
Just a thought. We will need some volunteers
to run this reunion, I believe.
Joanne Bossert Thompson: We
are going to our 3rd grandson‘s wedding
on Sept. 15 in Vail, CO. 5 days
later we leave for Vancouver, BC, to
take the Rocky Mountaineer train
to the Canadian Rockies. We will
be gone a total of three weeks. Will
send pictures from our trip. Other
than that, things are pretty stable.
The other exciting thing is that I
have reconnected with my roommate,
Sally Bertelsen Maguire, and
we are getting together the beginning
of November.
Mary Boyd Davis: I have nothing
much to report from Ponte Vedra
Beach, but as frequent hurricane
evacuees, we hope all is going OK for
you. I’ve never heard of so much water
in such a short time! Hope you’ve
been able to stay dry! The most exciting
thing in our life right now is
that our 3-year-old great grandson
took off on a 2-wheeler bike a few
days ago. He was apprehended, but
they may have to hide the bike!
Mary Harrison Cooke Carle:
(ed. note: I don’t know where she is.
I seem to have lost her. Does anyone
know where she is?)
Tricia Coxe Ware: Judy Sorley
Simpson invited Betsy Duke Seaman,
Tabb Thornton Farinholt
and myself to join her for a few days
while she vacationed in Gloucester,
VA. It was fun to catch up on news
and share pictures.
Di Doscher Spurdle: Just got
back from Red Mountain Ranch in
Idaho with the whole family (minus
two). Couldn’t have been a more
perfect vacation. With West Coast
and East Coast, it’s not easy to get
together. I ran into an SBC grad,
class of 2017, who thanks all alums
who helped keep things going so she
could graduate.
Deborah Dunning: I’m competing
with Ruth Bader Ginsburg for
being the woman works longer than
any of her friends and loves what
she’s doing. At 81, I’m having a great
time developing training that enables
all types of enterprises reduce their
waste, water and energy use so we all
can leave to our grandkids a healthy
and sustainable environment. I feel
blessed to live in Providence, Rhode
Island — a beautifully restored city
where most people can walk to work.
And we all have access to some of the
best beaches and best restaurants in
New England. And my grand-kids
all live nearby. Hope to see you at
our 60th!
Alice Cary Farmer Brown:
Greetings everyone! President Meredith
Woo has been engaging our
oldest son Lyons to advise her on
sustainable farming for Sweet Briar.
She knew him when she was at
UVA and he was teaching at the
Darden School there. Lyons and his
wife live on a lovely farm in Batesville,
VA, outside of Charlottesville,
where they have over 200 bee hives.
They sell the honey, and it is DE-
LICIOUS! [check them out: www.
elysiumhoney.com] To date, Lyons
has put 20 bee hives at Sweet Briar
and is instructing interested students
in their care. He says he had never
been to Sweet Briar in the daylight!
I can’t wait to see all of you at our
60th reunion — especially Travis
Thompson.
Penny Fisher Duncklee: Fun
June this year. I helped a friend take
his annual student trip to a bunch of
National Parks. 8 kids: 5 girls and 3
boys, all just finished 9th grade. His
school and kids are from Lexington,
VA. We all flew into Phoenix and
piled into one large van with our
camping gear. Drove to Grand Canyon,
Zion, Bryce, past Death Valley
and on to Mt. Whitney. We camped
a couple of nights at each National
Park. We sure do have a beautiful
country. Then we drove over to
Yosemite, before the fires started!
Lucky us. Then we drove down to
Disneyland for a fun day, and back
to Sky Harbor Airport in Phoenix,
AZ. Really fun 2 weeks. And, my
good luck with the weather held out
one more time. Whew! Here are just
a few of the almost 300 pictures I
took. The last picture of all the traffic
on the way down to Disneyland
shows one reason I do not want to
live in California. Of course, now
that California is all burning up, I
guess that would be another reason
I don’t want to live there.
Meriwether Hagerty Rumrill:
My news is mostly my grandkids
and that’s the best. Attended the
last high school graduation of my 3
South Dakota grandsons. They all
have full scholarships to college and
2 may go into medicine. In Chris’
yearbook, in the ‘most likely’ dept.,
it was said about him: “most likely to
find a cure for cancer.” WE WISH.
My 4 Virginia (Richmond and Fairfax)
grandkids are the littlest - sweet,
adorable and funny, love music and
dance, animals, sports. My 2 New
York granddaughters both gave me
joyful visits this spring and summer
and one is with me at this moment.
I took her from the plane to a dance
(waltz) and later contra - 4 hrs. of
dancing. Have to admit I did not
dance every one (I’d driven up from
Tidewater, my excuse), but she did
and was ecstatic. Love having a relative
as nuts about dancing as I am.
Gay Hart Gaines: Stanley and
I are winging our way home from
Sitka, AK, to Seattle tonight and
then Seattle to Florida tomorrow.
We have had a marvelous trip with
our son Ralph and family and some
friends and their family. It was a great
success on a National Geographic
ship, and we all so enjoyed the
eagles, orcas, humpbacked whales,
seals, puffins, and on and on! I am
working hard on the Ron DeSantis
race for Florida’s governor as well as
Rick Scott for US Senate, to replace
Sen. Bill Nelson who is a dinosaur!
On Feb. 20, Stanley had a new aortic
valve operation and also a stent, at
the Cleveland Clinic in Ohio, which
was a huge success! It is the number
one heart hospital in America and
we were mighty impressed!
My “Founders and Us” series at
The Society of the Four Arts has
been a huge success for the past two
years and I was asked to do it again
in 2019. Next season we will have
four lectures on the “Founding Documents
“and I have four outstanding
historians and scholars coming: Gordon
Wood, Akhil Amar, Jon Meacham
and Rick Brookhiser. They are
all brilliant and sensational speakers!
Love to you wherever this finds you!
Trudie Jackson Smither: (ed.
Note: this is an email from Judy
Welton Sargent)
“In reading the newsletter I saw
Trudy’s name listed. I guess SBC
is unaware of her death. She and I
shared a long and close friendship.
She was a very caring person and
48

dear friend. ou may remember that
she came with me to our 2009 SBC
Reunion.
Elizabeth Johnston Lipscomb:
I spent several hours in the Sweet
Briar Library during Sweet Work
Weeks, helping identify 1950s photos
in the archives — a delightful
nostalgia trip through our college
years. There were a number of
alumnae on campus doing much
more strenuous work (painting
and gardening) than I was willing
to attempt. The Lynchburg paper
reported this week that an enthusiastic
freshman class has just arrived.
Lloyd and I continue to enjoy traveling
and participating in many activities
here at Westminster Canterbury.
I’m looking forward to having all our
children and grandchildren here in
late December to celebrate my 80th
birthday. I am also looking forward
to our class of 1959 60th reunion at
Sweet Briar. I hope that many of us
will be able to gather for that.
Jini Jones Vail: I have been preparing
my “Rochambeau, Washington’s
Ideal Lieutenant” book for
Audible.com. The process is a blast,
if a little more time-consuming
that hoped. My daughter, Heather,
helped me with the computer
“stuff,” and through ACX we put up
an ad for a narrator who is fluent in
French. Can you believe there were
over 100 applicants? Finally chose
one from CA. After a few weeks of
listening and checking it was finished,
and my book is now available
on Audible.com. All my fun reading
has been on Audible for years. If you
like listening to books performed by
actors, you will enjoy it. Also preparing
to publish: “Summering in Loire
Valley: A Decade of Art” and “Cuisine,
History and Music.” Will meet
with dear SBC buddies, Erna Westwig,
Sarah Jane Moore, Mary Davis
and Polly Taylor at Sandy Sylvia’s
daughter Lisa’s, summer home on
Buzzard’s Bay, MA, Sept. 14. We are
still kicking, but not jitterbugging!
Virginia MacKethan Kitchin:
Watching Roger Federer play at the
1,000 level tennis tournament outside
Cincinnati, OH. Also saw the
Terra Cotta Warriors at the Cincinnati
Art Museum where son Cameron
is the director.
Judy Nevins LeHardy: Ward
and I have gotten together with Cay
Ramey Weimer and Ben a couple of
times this year. They are at Rappahannock
Westminster Canterbury,
which is near us.
All four of our children and their
families have been here for weekend
visits this summer, Sally’s being the
latest. I hope to go to the 60th Reunion
and hope many others will
too!
Ann Pegram Howington: No
news really. I didn’t even try to go
to the new and returning students
tea party. As lucky as usual, I took
a beach house and had myriad children
in globs. It was fun but . . . shhh .
. . I noticed not REALLY liking having
very small children around for
extended periods. Don’t you think
we are excused at our wonderfully
long age? That, by the way, is only 2
weeks. I do see Betsy Brawner Pittman
pretty much and Nina’s daughter,
Mary, is next door down through
the woods so I really can’t SEE her
sans appointment. A sweetie, though
. . . sounds like SBC is going to be
OK, a good thing. Do send girls and
money, though. I would LOVE to
see any of you all coming to Atlanta.
Rew Price Carne: Moved from
retirement community to condo
mid-June. My daughter lives in same
building. We can take care of each
other if necessary. Health improving.
Life is good. Stay safe.
Debbie Von Reischach Swan
Snyder: Another beautiful summer
in Boothbay Harbor, ME. Just
returned to Maine from fabulous 2
1/2-week Baltic Cruise on 2-year
old Regent Explorer: Denmark, Berlin,
Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, St.
Petersburg (don’t go in the summer;
too crowded with cruise ship passengers
but wonderful to see), Finland,
Sweden and the highlight of 3 days
with Norwegian friends in Oslo.
Back to Naples mid-October after
visits to friends in Williamsburg,
VA, and son and family who just
moved to Raleigh, NC.
Mary Blair Scott Valentine:
Our granddaughter, Taylor Redd,
headed off to Yale this weekend. She
is also the granddaughter of the late
Marylew Cooper Redd ‘57. I am laid
up with a new hip. Too much running
on hockey field and lacrosse and
tennis court.
Ann Smith Heist: (received from
her husband, John): Just wanted to let
you know that Ann passed away. She
dealt with a very rare lung disease,
Ali Wood Thompson ’59 and husband, Travis
lymphagioleiomyomatosis for over
20 years. Her disease never slowed
her down from world travel, though
she used oxygen 24/7. She loved her
GCA Garden Club and being able
to judge shows around the country.
She owned a wonderful women’s
store for 30 years and enjoyed all
the fashion markets. She had such
an eye for design. She’s survived by
her husband John of Ormond Beach,
FL,and a daughter Amanda Grant of
Ridgefield, CT, and 4 grandchildren.
Judy Sorley Chalmers-Simpson:
I have some great SBC news: I
just spent a week in Ware Neck, VA,
near Tabb’s home, and Tabb, Tricia
Coxe and Betsy Seaman spent three
days with me there. Pure bliss. I hope
to host this class “mini-reunion” every
summer the 4 of us, all widowed,
spent time reminiscing, sharing, and
talking about life “then” and “now,”
our children and grandchildren. It
was a very positive experience for
each of us.
Polly Space Dunn: I am doing
ok. Still having residual problems
from broken shoulder 1.5 years ago.
Golf is not good and painting takes
too much impetus. Good news: kids
and grands doing great. Am still in
our summer home in North Carolina
and am enjoying the cool. Discovered
Mahjongg last summer and am
addicted!
Val Stoddard Loring: We
moved to the OceanView Retirement
Community, Falmouth, ME, in
June 2017. With the closing of our
Holden, MA, house on July 31 this
year, we look forward to more fully
taking advantage of all it has to offer.
To celebrate my 80th and Steve’s
85th birthdays plus the college graduations
of 3 grandsons, we took our
family to Jackson Lakes Lodge in
Grand Teton National Park where
the photo was taken. It was a fabulous
place to gather our 3 active families,
18 of us ranging in age from 13
to 85!
Susan Taylor Montague-Reese:
I have moved to a retirement home:
Goodwin House, in Alexandria. I
am not a happy camper. My new
fall 2018
49

sbc.edu
address is 4800 Fillmore Ave. #201,
Alexandria, VA 22311. Phone and
e-mail have not changed.
Nina Thornton Asgeirsson:
Right now, I am at our Cape Cod
family house in Falmouth. My parents
retired here in the 1960s, and
my brother, 2 sisters and I have kept
it as a family retreat. My brother and
I shared the 4th of July week here
with 4 of our offspring and 12 of our
grandchildren. This week my son
and his wife and four girls (aged 11,
8, 7, 4) sailed up from Long Island
to Nantucket. Along the way they
stopped here to pick up my daughter
and son-in-law and their 3 girls
(aged 16, 13, 9). So, I have really
been enjoying my 7 granddaughters;
they sure are all a lot of fun! I
love getting all those cousins from
the next generation together — an
amazing highlight of my fabulous
summer. Thanks for keeping us all
connected; hope to attend our 60th
reunion next year! I’ve attended a
few of the Sweet Briar Boston Club
gatherings, but I’ve never attended a
class reunion.
Tabb Thornton Farinholt: Had
a wonderful visit with classmates
Betsy Duke Seaman and Tricia
Coxe Ware with Judy Sorley Simpson,
our hostess, when she was visiting
again in Ware Neck, VA. Really
look forward to our book club’s
reconvening in the fall. Hope Mary
Ballou will be able to join us. She
is bravely recovering from a mishap
which resulted in her having to get
an elbow replacement. I have purchased
a condominium in Richmond
but don’t seem to be able to leave my
river house for very long. I have managed
to confuse myself utterly and
probably my descendants with my
peripatetic ways.
Mary Todd Singh: My husband
and I have sold our house and moved
to a condo in Kailua. The address is
408 Kailua Road, #7110, Kailua, HI
96734. The driving required to live
in a rural area was getting to us. At
this location we are able to walk or
bus to most desired destinations and
visiting family has access to the car as
needed. My husband is available to
teach more training sessions and will
do one next month with the military.
I continue to have no significant activities
but am trying to settle into a
new location. Moving is emotionally
difficult.
Kathy Tyler Sheldon: In the last
6 months we seem to have gotten a
great deal older, leading us to finally
part with our sail boat which we will
give to our middle grandson who is
on one of the large vessels servicing
the oil rigs and so enjoys sailing with
us. We had two university graduations,
our granddaughter in theater
after she was a female Hamlet and
worked in an outdoor theater in
Toronto this summer. Our eldest
grandson in robotic engineering
who has already been sent to Norway
and Norwich, England, clearing
the ocean floor in robotic machines.
What a world we live in. We continue
on much the same in same place,
now enjoying the fruits of John’s garden
and the fish and seafood abundantly
again around us.
Judy Welton Sargent: I am celebrating
my 80th birthday all year
long! First: I took my family of 6
on safari to Kenya and Tanzania in
March over my 10-year-old grandson
John Paul’s spring break. We
had a fabulous time! Second: My
daughters Susan and Catherine had
a lovely party for me at the time of
my birthday. Third: I flew to New
York where Di and I went to Yankees
vs. Astros game at the beautiful
new Yankee Stadium. It was
such fun, and the Yankees won! We
also went to the ballet and to “The
Band’s Visit”, not to mention dining
at fine restaurants, including lunch
at Majorelle! Next: daughter Susan
and her Beau Regan took me to a
Paul Simon Concert! Then, daughter
Catherine, husband Tom and
grandson John Paul took me to see
“Hamilton” in DC. This week Ann
Turnbull Lowry and I went to San
Antonio to a Lyle Lovett concert. A
return to NYC in September for a
Yankee vs Red Sox Game, a couple
of ballets, theater and fine dining
plus an Elbe River Cruise with Di
the end of October from Prague to
Berlin will conclude the celebrations.
So wonderful to be 80, to be well and
to do fun things with great friends
and family. How fortunate I am!
Ali Wood Thompson: In May,
Travis and I headed east to have a
visit with our daughter in Windham,
ME. Then we drove down to
Providence and watched our youngest
granddaughter graduate from
Providence College (1,000 graduates!
- but it all went smoothly). We
hopped the train down to N.J. to
spend a few nights with Travis’ sister
and then flew off to Germany to
explore that country for about two
weeks. Back to N.J. to attend Travis’
65th high school reunion and then
we were homeward bound. It is always
great to get back home though.
A few days ago, we headed off to
Hana (on Maui) for a “stay vacation”
to celebrate our 60th anniversary
and had a great time. Just to let you
know, we are not affected by the Big
Island’s volcano spewing. Only when
the wind shifts and sends us “Vog”
(like smog). Hurricane Lane missed
us on Maui thank heavens but as of
today (Sept. 9), we are going to experience
Hurricane Olivia. (P.S. Since I
am resending this letter: Hurricane
Olivia didn’t touch us where we live.
I think our 10,000 foot mountain
protected us.)
1960
Lura Coleman Wampler
1406 Thomas Rd
Wayne, Pa. 19087
lcwampler@comcast.net
Jane Tatman Walker: En route
home from Florida in April, Frank
and I had a lovely stopover visit in
Atlanta to see Linda Sims Grady
Newmark, Bill and Nina Wilkerson
Bugg and Phyz and Ann Crowell
Lemmon. In late, July my family
surprised me with a most special
dinner, complete with a 32-page
tabloid called The Gran Gazette, featuring
articles each family member
and some friends submitted focusing
on my life and shared experiences.
Turning 80 did not seem so bad.
With 18 out of 19 family members
present, it was a wonderful and fun
evening with many surprises.
Norma Patteson Mills: Olan
and I have just returned from spending
most of the summer at our house
at DeBordieu Beach on the coast in
South Carolina. We enjoyed many
family members rotating through
but had some lazy days too.
Becky Towill McNair: My current
hobby is keeping up with my
grandchildren. Hard to believe that
four of them are experiencing college
life (University of Texas, University
of Georgia, and W&L). I want so
much for them to have the positive
experience and lasting memories I
treasure. The other four are not far
behind. Am also enjoying memories
of our Christmas trip last year to
Peru. Hope to see Teddy and Liz
someday soon, as they have retired
to the same Savannah community as
my sister.
Winkie Wimbish Chalfant: Ed
and I have returned to Ponte Vedra
Beach following a lovely July in
Maine. We were fortunate in March
to enjoy a visit from President Woo
and learn of the exciting plans for
Sweet Briar’s future.
Carolyn Gough Harding: I don’t
have much news: same home, same
husband, no additions to the family.
We traveled to Toronto to visit
friends, and I thought about Pat and
wished she were there to visit also.
We are looking forward to a Mediterranean
cruise at the end of September.
Carol Barnard Ottenberg: We
have been in Maine for much of the
summer, with family members coming
and going. Highlights of our trip
from Rochester, N.Y., where I had a
jigsaw puzzle meeting, explorations
of the Erie Canal and catching “West
Side Story” at Glimmerglass Opera
in Cooperstown.
Anne Rienecke Clark: I helped
Gwen Speel Kaplan celebrate her
80th in Richmond last February. I
flew up from Florida, and my daughter
(who has been good friends for
years with Gwen’s daughter) and her
husband flew down from New York
City. Gwen had all her family there
too. Then, to reciprocate, Gwen and
Ellie came up to NYC, and we “girls”
celebrated mine in the big city. We always
joke that Gwen is two months
older; so at 80 I really rubbed it in!
Rhett Ball Thagard: Greetings
from Chautauqua, in beautiful upstate
New York. Next, lovely Hudson
River Valley to celebrate with
West Point grandson as he receives
his senior class ring. Then dinner in
the city with NYU grandson. Finally,
back to Sweet Home Alabama.
Barbara Murphy Hale: We
just had our first gathering in 18
years of all children at one time at
Virginia Beach. Much fun. Caring
for the farm is becoming very
challenging, but we still love living
in the Maryland marsh country.
50

Richmond’s Class of ‘60 met
for lunch in May, beginning at
Mickey Svoboda’s house and
then to lunch across the street
at the Country Club. Not bad for
80-year-olds, or almost so. Front
row: Jane Ellis Covington, Micki
Oliveri Svoboda, Anita Perrin
Towell. Second row: Gwen Speel
Kaplan, Carolyn King Ratcliffe,
Grace Suttle, Isabel Ware Burch.
Back row: Susan Hendricks
Slayman, Ginger Newman
Blanchard, Patti Powell Pusey,
Mary Ellen Dohs Acey
Sandy Schuhmacher Lawrence:
Few in our class may remember me
because I transferred to University
of Texas after our sophomore year.
I am living in Southlake, TX, now.
Husband has dementia, but we’ll
celebrate our 55th anniversary in
October, and our three children and
five grandchildren and pets are the
joys of our lives.
Gwen Speel Kaplan: This is the
sixth year that our Richmond-area
alumnae have gotten together in May
to celebrate SBC ’60. Mickey Oliveri
Svoboda hosted us for a lovely lunch
at the Country Club of Virginia. No
one would guess that some of us
have already celebrated, or will soon
celebrate, 80th birthdays!
Teddy Hill and Liz Few Penfield:
We are still spending winters at
The Marshes, a retirement community
on Skidaway Island, which is a
few miles from Savannah, and summers
in Carbondale, CO, in a homesteader’s
log cabin Liz and her husband
bought and resurrected 40 or
so years ago. Another favorite place
of ours is New York City; last year
we were lucky enough to spend some
time there with classmates Grace
Suttle, Norris Smith, and Kadri
Niider. The only thing missing these
days is an animal friend, dog or cat,
unless you count the mice in the cabin
and very friendly raccoons at The
Marshes.
Nancy Corson Gibbes: A favorite
was a trip to Portugal and
Spain staying in the posados and
paradores. Finding the pension that
I lived in for a month in Sevilla was
a full circle.
Lee Cullum: Currently I host a
program of interviews with CEOs
on the PBS affiliate in North Texas.
The one who’s gotten the greatest
response in recent months is Mark
Cuban, owner of the Dallas Mavericks
who also appears on Shark Tank
on ABC. Watch out for him, he may
run for president.
Heidi Wood Huddleston: I continue
to divide time between Kentucky
and my home in Hilton Head,
S.C. I was fortunate to have all three
girls and all grands visit me this summer.
So it was back-to-back guests,
which I loved. The biggest news is
that I will be a great-grandmother
in a couple of months! My grandson,
who just got his master’s in divinity,
and his wife who got her bachelor’s
in biblical studies/counseling at the
same time, are proud parents-to-be.
Granddaughter Alexandra and husband
live in Knoxville, where she is
a labor and delivery nurse. And Sophia,
my other granddaughter, just
returned with Kristina, my youngest
daughter, from their yearly visit back
to Vienna and a trip to northern Italy.
Sophia just started high school! I
plan to accompany them next summer
— still mulling over where to go.
Elizabeth Meade Howard: Enjoying
peddling my books near and
not so far…. En route, happy to run
into some friendly Sweet Briar classmates.
Margo Sauer Meyer: I recently
discovered that the Sweet Briar rose
is growing along with a mass of other
“wild stuff ” beside the path leading
to the beach of our summer home.
I photographed the blossom with
its petals and dark green leaves that
when gently rubbed, give off a sweet
apple-like aroma. While researching,
I was reminded of Shakespeare’s love
for the Sweet Briar rose as opposed
to other wild roses that look but
don’t have any aroma at all. (Sonnet
#54). Making the assumption, then,
that as graduates of SBC, we are all
Sweet Briar roses (metaphorically, of
course), my next question would be,
were we simply “flowers fair?” I think
Shakespeare would say that because
the Sweet Briar rose blossom is consumed
by the value of its sweet apple
fragrance, so were we as blossoming
graduates consumed with our own
unique value.
Isabel Ware Burch: I celebrated
my 80th birthday in Philadelphia
with all of my children and grandchildren.
That same weekend my
grandson, Owen, graduated from
the George School and is going to
the George Washington University
School of International Affairs this
fall. In July, I spent almost two weeks
in Austin, Texas, where I was a deputy
to General Convention of the
Episcopal Church. It was an amazing
experience. In August, I enjoyed
visits from children and grandchildren.
My son, Charlie Hall, is still
enjoying touring with his band, the
War on Drugs. They won a Grammy
in January for Best Rock Album of
the Year.
Patti Powell Pusey: Our Richmond
and close-by classmates again
enjoyed our annual get-together.
Mickey Oliveri Svoboda treated
us to appetizers at her home and
then lunch at the Country Club of
Virginia. Several of us attended the
recent beautiful memorial service for
Anita Perrin Towell’s husband. It’s a
true blessing to share all stages of life
with our classmates.
Linda Sims Grady Newmark:
In April Frank and Jane Tatman
Walker stopped in Atlanta on their
way home to Indianapolis from
their winter home in Sarasota. Nina
Wilkerson Bugg and Bill, Ann
Crowell Lemmon and Phyz, and I
had a delightful weekend visit with
them. Ann and Phyz hosted a wonderful
dinner for us all. All hope to
make it to SBC in 2020 for our 60th.
Barbara Beam Denison: Best to
all from Beam & George. Turning 80
has been a blast so far — still painting,
golfing, swimming, and traveling;
so all is well
Gale Walker Young: Most recently
I am in the middle of reading
of classmate Elizabeth Meade
Howard’s Aging Famously. Just
checking in here to recommend it,
highly. It’s engaging to pair readings
— try Bp. Spong with Carol
Channing, or Laurent de Brunhoff
with Gordon Parks. Sparks will fly,
connections made, and the power of
role-models enhanced, this reader
promises!
Melissa Meyers Gibbs: Still going
strong — 55 years in the same
apartment in New York — last year
I celebrated my 80th on a Silversea
cruise to Galapagos. I just returned
from another Silversea cruise to
Alaska. I keep busy by volunteering
at Mount Sinai (Roosevelt) West,
which I have done for over 30 years.
We attend the opera (Met), ballet
(American Ballet Theater), and onand
off-Broadway theater.
Lucy Martin Gianino: Busy,
busy, busy what with six grandchildren
and their parents coming
and going from our beach home on
Fire Island this summer. I continue
my acting career, having shot a Law
and Order Special Victims Unit
segment a few months ago and have
been doing other theatrical projects
in the city. I have taken on a huge
job as co-president of my beloved
nonprofit NYC-Parents-in-Action
organization. We work with 30 to
40 independent schools in the city
to provide parenting education on
everything from preschool concerns,
social media, drugs, alcohol and the
second stage of sending children off
to college! Of course, my heart is always
with SBC and our class. 1960
was and is the best class ever. Thank
you everyone for your continued responses
and good humor.
Thanks to Carolyn King Ratcliffe,
we learned of the death of Anita
Perrin Towell’s husband, Richard,
in mid-August. We send Anita our
love and prayers of comfort.
Lura Coleman Wampler: I feel
so fortunate to be healthy and able to
keep up with the care of the animals
here on the farm as well as the maintenance
of the property. The best
times are when some or all of our
seven grandchildren come to visit! I
sit on numerous committees at my
church, garden club, and the Shipley
School. I also do a fair amount of
judging of horticulture and photography.
In a weak moment I agreed
to have our farm on a garden tour
next spring; so this will require a lot
of preparation. Thank you all who
responded to my request for news;
keeping in touch stirs up wonderful
old memories and lets us make new
connections!
fall 2018
51

sbc.edu
1962
Parry Ellice Adam
908-782-3754
33 Pleasant Run Rd.
Flemington, N.J. 08822
peaba@comcast.net
Laura Connerat Lawton: The
news from Savannah is that Chloe
Fort is moving back to Nashville
after a number of years in her attractive
townhouse in the historic
district. Chloe was always available
for lunch or other activities, and as
the great cook she has always been,
she attracted lots of people to her
house for supper. Chloe has always
been a supporter of the arts and was
a benefit to our local Telfair Art Museum.
She will be missed by all her
Savannah friends who are counting
on her return visits. On my visits to
Charlottesville to see my daughter,
I always enjoy seeing Fran Oliver
Palmer and Ginger Borah Meislahn,
who conveniently live on the
same campus at Westminster Canterbury.
Ginger is often traveling
somewhere with attractive husband
Skip Meislahn, and Fran always has
a place for me in her extra bedroom.
Fran has introduced me to pickleball,
but I explained I didn’t want to ruin
my tennis game. She still wins all the
points at tennis; so it didn’t hurt her
game at all. I get to see Ann Ritchey
Baruch, who lives across the river on
Spring Island, but not enough. She
disappears when the weather gets
too hot down here in Georgia and
South Carolina, but I’ll see her in
the fall.
Mary Jane Schroder Oliver
Hubbard: Just got back with James
from our August at Chautauqua. A
great time: I was asked to sing in the
“Pie Jesu” solo in the Faure Requiem
with the choir/orchestra, performing
in the newly renovated amphitheater.
Went great! Spent part of May
trekking in Scotland, completing St.
Cuthbert’s Way with my same group
who walked the English Way of the
Camino des Santiago through Galatia
two falls ago. Prior to heading for
Chautauqua, James and I were part
of a choir serving a choir residency
at the Cathedral of Gloucester, England,
for a week. A great trip! Kids
and grandkids are all terrific. Son
Jasper is a great teacher with “teacher
of the year” awards; Shelley, my SBC
daughter-in-law, is a very super pharmaceutical
rep.; grandson Loren will
become a teenager in September and
is a terrific soccer and lacrosse player;
his sister, Emily Hamilton, is a stellar
swimmer and lacrosse whiz AND
an artist par excellence. James’ seven
grands are, in fact, quite GRAND,
too. James once again failed retirement
as he has been called to the
Episcopal church in Lexington, VA,
a church that may be known by many
of our classmates. At its founding it
was named Grace Church, but was
renamed “Robert E. Lee” shortly
afterward. With the current political
turmoils through the country,
the parish changed the name back
to Grace Church. The church has
gone through an upheaval over this,
and the difficulties resulted in James
being called as interim rector. He is
very gifted in this sort of work so has
hopes for the best. It does mean the
back and forth trip over the mountain
on Route 60 and lots of hard
work, but we will pray that all goes
well. Also, in October, I had a very
successful art showing that filled the
Academy Center (Lynchburg) main
gallery.
Do stay tuned for all the amazing
progress as it appears from campus.
We all should be very proud and
grateful. - Parry
1963
Allie Stemmons Simon
3701 Guadalajara Ct.
Irving, Texas 75062
asimontc@outlook.com
Greetings, Ladies of ’63! Our
55th Reunion is history and what
a grand time it was! Sixteen of us
were there, plus two husbands, and a
couple of others who came for a day!
Pictures are posted online, including
a couple of McNair and me accepting
three silver bowls for our class’s
43 percent giving percentage (Yes!),
and our over $1 million in gifts to
Sweet Briar during fiscal year 2017-
2018! Congratulations and thanks
to all – and let’s keep it up! The Class
of 1963 is not done!! After that great
news I must move on to some sad
news. The daughter of Carol Crowley
Karm has notified Sweet Briar of
the death of her mother on June 29,
2018. And while I was still digesting
that came an email from Ginger
Mitchell that Cynthia Hooten
Magowan died on August 23 from
a brain aneurysm – suddenly and
unexpectedly.
Our sympathy goes out to the
families of both. And two of our dear
classmates have lost their husbands
of many years. On April 16, Jane
Yardley Amos’s husband, John, had
an unexpected heart attack and died
at their kitchen table. Strong woman
that she is, Jane fired up her RV and
came on to Reunion, picking up four
classmates along the way: Nancy
Dixon Brown, Susan Scott Robinette,
Lucy Otis Anderson, and
Betsy Parker McColl. According to
Nancy, they had a blast! On July 15,
Tom Holmes, husband of Margaret
Millender Holmes, also died of a
heart attack. Tom had suffered from
Parkinson’s for many years and Maggie
had patiently cared for him. Our
bereft classmates are in our thoughts
and prayers.
Now to happier things – practically
every note I received was a
celebration of our Reunion or regret
at being unable to attend. It appears
55th college reunions conflict with
high school graduations of grandchildren!
Or in one case, the birth
of a first grandson, Jack Fontaine
Keown to Stevie Fontaine Keown
and Mark. Everyone seemed to be
traveling the rest of this summer –
the Keowns were off for a trip to
England, Scotland, and Ireland on
a small ship stopping at out-of-theway
ports and islands and ending up
in Edinburgh. Nancy Dixon Brown
followed up her RV adventure with
an Alaska cruise and a trip to Arizona
helping her nephew’s family get
settled after moving from Seattle.
Ginger Cates Mitchell and Ed took
four grandchildren on their own
Alaskan adventure, and according to
Ginger, “we hope it was as memorable
for them as it was for us!” In the
fall Ginger and Ed were planning a
barge trip through the Champagne
area of France.
Jean Meyer Aloe reports that she
just got back from 10 days in Poland,
attending a poetry writing workshop
held in a castle in the countryside.
Her room was in the “tower” up
an old curved stone staircase. Her
12-year-old grandson just spent two
weeks in a gifted program at UVa.
Sue Jones Cansler and Chuck were
among those who missed our Reunion
due to a graduation. Two of
their three grandchildren are now in
college, Southern Methodist University
and Louisiana State University,
and the third is “looking at” Sweet
Briar (fingers crossed). They are off
to spend three weeks at the Chautauqua
Institute in western New
York, looking forward to great programs
and cooler weather! Jane Goodridge,
who drove over from Richmond
on our Reunion on Saturday,
is now going to visit an old friend
in Mission Viejo, CA. Betty Stanly
Cates was lavish in her praise of Reunion
and of President Woo. Betty is
off to North Carolina for her brother’s
80th birthday.
Both Betsy Parker McColl
and McNair Curry Maxwell sent
thanks and congratulations to our
classmates for prize-winning generosity
to the Sweet Briar Fund. Mc-
Nair particularly worked very hard
on the fundraising. Afterward she
and Bob went to a cousin’s birthday
in South Carolina, then to stay at a
famous old inn and a log cabin in a
tree farm in North Carolina. Finally,
they spent the last week of August
with children and grandchildren on
the coast of Oregon.
Keitt Matheson Wood and
Frank (one of the brave husbands
who came to Reunion) had a good
visit with Anne Leavell Reynolds
and Herbert in Louisville before
their trip to Sweet Briar and afterward
visited them again at their
home in Hershey, PA. Then the
Woods continued to Colorado for
what is becoming an annual visit
with Heinz and me, bringing along
their daughter, Helen, who lives in
Denver. They also visited son Gordon
and his family in Kansas City,
where their two grandsons are freshmen
in college and high school, respectively.
A few of us are still working
and refusing to slow down. Irene
Pschorr Belknap writes, “I continue
to work on my paintings, having
done many series. Google “Irene
Belknap” and check out my website
if you are interested. We adore living
just outside of San Francisco. We
look forward to the next “Culture
Vulture” season and attend many
concerts, operas and theatre.”
Pat Calkins Wilder has had a
busy season with a few weeks photographing
in Portugal, showing work
52

MLHA with sons 40 years apart
at seven art shows around the East
Coast, visiting family in Seattle and
other family visiting from England,
and “hours and hours of watering
the gardens just to keep them going
between rare rain events.” Anne
Funkhouser Strite-Kurz sends
news that she and Bill are moving
to Easton, MD, in November to be
closer to their children. Anne will
not be retiring since she is returning
to the region where she started
her embroidery-teaching career but
looks forward to cutting back her
schedule and doing fewer long-distance
seminars. Karen Gill Meyer
and Jim continue to enjoy their work
as financial consultants in Phoenix
and have taken on two partners who
allow them the luxury of flexible
time. They attend quarterly meetings
at Kansas University, where Jim is on
the Chancellor’s Athletic Board.
A last-minute note from Katharine
Bradford Collins says she spent
a lot time out in the woods enjoying
Wyoming summer. Sarah Hitch
Hill and Harvey visited her in late
July, and they had a wonderful time
hiking and catching up. Heinz and
I (Allie Stemmons Simon) spent
the summer on our mountaintop in
Snowmass Village, CO, and feeling
very sorry for our friends who were
frying in Texas. I just attended (by
phone) my last Sweet Briar board
meeting. It has been a privilege to
work with this extraordinary group
of people who have literally resurrected
our College. I am proud of
what has been accomplished and
look forward to a great future. Best
to you all - Allie
1964
Peggy Aurand
26387 Oak Plain Drive
Santa Clarita, Calif. 91321
pegzaloha@yahoo.com
Nancy Banfield Feher and husband
Ted enjoyed a beautiful cruise
on the Adriatic Sea and then visited
Lake Como.
Ginny Debuys relays that her
husband Jerry’s golfing adventures
take her places where, more often
than not, she has a classmate. This
past spring, they went to Mountain
Lakes in Lake Wales, FL. Allison
Jennings McCance is living there.
Always caring Ginny, with the help
of Allison’s caregivers, arranged to
have tea with her. Even though Allison
won’t remember the visit, they
connected while Ginny was there
and had a good time. Ginny played
the video of Claire Hughes Knapp
and the class singing “Fever” for her,
and later sent a copy. It is likely that
Ginny and Jerry will return this
coming spring, and they’ll repeat the
visit. This fall they go to Sea Island,
where Ginny hopes to see Nancy
Hall Green. This past summer she
enjoyed a few days at Sweet Work
Weeks at Sweet Briar, eating very
well as the food is delicious now. After
that, Jerry joined her for a tour of
Hot Springs, VA (the Homestead),
and White Sulphur Springs near
Lewisburg, W.Va., where they took
the Greenbrier Bunker tour. While
there, they went to a state fair, and
Ginny showed Jerry where she went
to Camp Allegheny. Further travel
took them to Asheville, N.C., where
they toured the Biltmore and visited
her sister-in-law. They stopped
in Brevard, N.C., where Ginny was
able to see Mibs Sebring Raney and
Bev. A stop in Savannah, GA, was
Ginny DeBuys ’64 visits Allison Jennings McCance ‘64
where they enjoyed the best food.
Finally, they came to rest at home.
She admits missing the mountains
but very much enjoyed being in the
“Virginias.”
Mary Green Borg is still teaching
a full load of American history
and Colorado history, how to be a
secondary social studies teacher, and
mentoring her department’s student
teachers at UNC. As if that weren’t
enough, she teaches a Writing Your
Life class at the Greeley Senior
Center. She is blessed with five terrific
sons, their wonderful spouses/
girlfriends and 12 grands. The first
grandchild is off to college this fall.
One of her kids just reminded her
that pretty soon she will have been a
widow longer than she was married!
Life for Mary is weird, often unexpected,
but she has found it always
profoundly interesting, challenging
at times, and mostly absolutely delightful
and fun.
Hedi Haug White reports that
she has finally retired — to the extent
one ever retires from a family
business. She and Tom are both well
and looking forward to another ski
winter. She plans to go to our 55th!!
and is looking forward to it! Yes!
Martha “Tuck” Mattern Harvey
says that she and Ralph continue to
spend six months each in Texas and
Virginia. This year, they are leaving
Virginia a little earlier than usual so
she can have her right knee replaced
in Texas. She and Ralph both think
all they do is go to doctors and funerals.
Says Martha: “This old age stuff
is not fun!”
Lynne Smith Crow is still traveling.
Last fall she went to Bangkok
and Myanmar. She says that she
liked Bangkok but that Myanmar,
although interesting, was not her favorite
place. This past spring, she did
a cruise in the Baltic. Luckily, every
day was beautiful. She stepped off
the plane in Newark, and it started
to rain! This past summer she rented
a house on the Cape (Chatham)
with her two married children, their
spouses, and three grandchildren,
with one on the way. She has a lot
of family there, too. She has another
trip scheduled for October. Because
of her traveling habit, Lynne is still
working!
Your scribe, Peggy Aurand, is
enjoying running her vacation rental
in Honolulu. Fortunately, despite
three days of ominous coverage on
the Weather Channel, Oahu dodged
a bullet, remaining unscathed from
Hurricane Lane. She and some California
friends planned to head to
Hawaii at the end of September for
a fun stay. In August, she enjoyed a
wonderful visit from her younger
son, Peter, from Taiwan.
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sbc.edu
1965
Sally Hubbard
47 Parsons Green Circle
Sewanee, Tenn. 37375
sally@hubbard.net
Eugenia Caldwell and husband
Peter are enjoying a cool, sunny San
Francisco summer, marred sometimes
by summer winds and fog!
Classmates are so welcome to visit.
Their big news is that they’re going
on a birding trip to Madagascar for
the month of November. Eighty
percent of the flora and fauna are endemic,
and they’re looking forward
to the 20 species of lemur as much
as the birds.
Melinda Musgrove Chapman is
so glad that our 50th reunion did not
turn out to be our last. She turned 75
on Mothers’ Day and is starting her
fourth quarter! Her family is scattered
all over the country. Her son
and his wife and her oldest daughter
are in Dallas. Her oldest grandson
is out of college and working in San
Diego. His sisters are both college
seniors, one in Boston and one in
Auburn. Their younger brother is a
freshman at King’s College in NYC.
Melinda’s youngest daughter is in
Birmingham; her college student is
at Appalachian State in Boone N.C.;
her daughter, the youngest grandchild,
is in 10th grade. Melinda loves
Face Time. She is still selling houses
and has too much energy to retire.
See you in 2020!
Eileen Stroud Clark says all is
well with her family. They live in
Rehoboth, DE, nine months of the
year and Palm Springs, CA, the rest.
Their three children are married, and
they have 12 grandchildren. After 40
years of working in IT and volunteering,
she is now taking it easy. She
hopes to see Mel Freese Cota at the
end of August.
Foy Roberson Cooley is traveling
from Montana to Utah and back
to New Jersey soon and hopes to see
Mel when she visits Connecticut in
September.
Mel Freese Cota celebrated her
75th birthday with a grand family reunion.
She has six grandchildren and
the oldest is 17. Daughter Vicky and
family live in Mexico City and spend
the summers in Santander, Spain;
Vicky’s daughter just celebrated her
15th birthday. Memo lives with Mel
and Alberto and will care for his father
while Mel travels with son Beto
and his daughters for a visit at their
home in Connecticut in September.
After 50 years in the same house,
Alice Foster Ficken moved to a
nearby cluster-home neighborhood.
She loves the house and has wonderful
friends in the neighborhood,
and her yard is completely taken
care of by the HOA. She hopes to
get together with suitemates Elvira
McMillan Mannelly, Libba Hanger
Luther, and Aline Rex McEvoy in
the fall in the N.C. mountains.
Babette Fraser Hale and her
97-year-old husband, Leon, have
recently traveled to NYC and across
Texas catching up with grandchildren
and far-flung relatives. Her novel
manuscript has been submitted to
publishers by her agent, and she is
working on a story collection. She’s
busy also with fundraising for Winedale
and with voter turnout and
her newspaper column. Leon and
Babette continue to write about their
life experiences and connections, and
recast memory into novel, interesting
shapes. Follow them on Facebook
and Twitter. Babette is in touch with
Marianne Micros, who has written
at least five books, the latest of which
is a fascinating story collection, EYE,
which came out in July.
Bunny Sutton Healy says, “Patience
is a virtue” — and she’s delighted
to see first grandchild Eliza
in Denver every couple of months.
Bunny is healthy, energetic, and busier
than when she was working.
Sally McCrady Hubbard is on
a pink cloud of gratitude for the opportunity
to walk 110 miles of the
Camino de Santiago with daughter
Anna, 52, of San Francisco. She
had drive-by visits recently with son
Hayne and Katie as they took their
daughter Margaret to begin college
at Carnegie Mellon in Pittsburgh.
She’s caring for her brother Waring
McCrady for the next few weeks as
he recovers from foot surgery. Incidentally,
Waring went to France with
Sweet Briar in 1958 so is considered
an SBC alumnus.
After 30 years in Florida, Libba
Hanger Luther and husband
Steve are happily settled in Trilogy,
a 55-and-over community in Denver,
N.C., near 6 of their 10 grandchildren,
who live nearby on Lake
Norman. The lake has 500 miles of
The Cota family celebrates Mel’s 75th birthday! Beto and family are on
the left; Vicky and family on the right, with Memo and Mel’s brother Dick
and wife, Sigrid. Queretaro, Aug. 13, 2018
shoreline and is just north of Charlotte.
They’ve downsized but have a
guest room and invite us all to visit.
She says, “Happy 75th Birthday to
one and all.”
Nancy MacMeekin is enjoying
retirement with family, friends,
church, and volunteer work. She
travels with Vicky Thoma Barrette
to various places, including a recent
“Uncruise Adventure” on the Columbia
and Snake rivers in the Pacific
Northwest.
Mary K. Lee McDonald’s work
as our Class Fund Agent was spectacularly
successful; she and her crew
enjoyed personal contact with many
classmates and inspired a class-giving
percentage of 39.8% and total
contributions of $106,980. Mary
K. still helps clients with real estate
needs. She does house and 20-yearold
landscaping maintenance; she’s
helping sell John’s HUGE model
railroad collection and traveling.
Dasha “Daria” Obolensky Morgan:
Daria has enjoyed local SBC
club get-togethers and would love
to hear from classmates. Her biggest
interests are gardening, music,
and tennis, but she also writes for
and edits family publications, weekly
Tribune newspapers, and her
nephew’s monthly magazine, Capital
at Play. With her brother she is
re-publishing her grandfather Alexis
Obolensky’s memoirs, updated with
photos and other writings. From this
project she has learned details of her
mother’s escape as a baby from Russia
during the Revolution. She and
local cousins recently celebrated the
refurbishing and placement of the
plane her uncle Bob Morgan piloted,
the Memphis Belle, at the Air Force
Museum in Dayton.
Laura Haskell Phinizy continues
caring for Stewart, who has Alzheimer’s,
and once again enjoyed all
the family at their Kanuga cottage in
August.
Carol Reifsnyder Rhoads announces
the sale of their Colorado
house and purchase of a home right
off the Blue Ridge Parkway between
Boone and Blowing Rock. They are
having fun exploring this part of
N.C. They had a great reunion at
Kill Devil Hills in August with their
three kids and their families. She’s
glad to return to the East Coast closer
to their daughter.
After breast cancer treatment in
2017, Saralyn McAfee Smith’s thin
straight hair grew in thick and curly.
She and Hamp are doing okay. Older
granddaughter Sierra lives with
them; she is in her second semester
of college and does deskwork at a
local motel after classes. Younger
granddaughter Cheyenne just entered
middle school. Daughter Laura
is the sales manager and fundraiser
for the Boot Hill Museum and organized
a revival involving more than
15 churches this summer.
After 4 decades, Chris Kilcullen
Thurlow and Steve have moved from
Greenwich, CT, to Grand Harbor in
Vero Beach, FL, for golf, biking, and
beaching. Their six grandmonsters
are still in Connecticut; so they spent
54

much of the summer there, and also
traveled to Niagara Falls and Banff
for golf and over-eating with friends.
For their 50th anniversary, they
plan to take the whole family —
kids, spouses, and grands — rafting
through the Grand Canyon. Health
is good and life is full of blessings.
1966
Susan Sudduth Dodson Hiller
4811 Garrison Rd.
Little Rock, Ariz. 72223
ssdh22@yahoo.com
Congratulations to the Sweet
Briar Board of Directors for their
wisdom in selecting our classmate
Keenan Colton Kelsey to become
a member! We know well that she
will be excellent as she serves in this
position. She writes that she attended
her first Board meeting in August
and says that she “is so pleased” and
“in awe” to be on the Board. While
at SBC, she saw Jane Nelson, who
was there doing Sweet Work Weeks
work. Since Makanah Dunham
Morris came over for lunch on
Sunday, they had a mini-reunion!
Keenan also keeps busy with periodic
preaching, involvement with
kids and grandkids, 12-step work,
and political campaigning and fundraising.
In other words, she “is finally
enjoying retirement!”
Speaking of Jane Nelson … she
says that retirement continues to be
very busy, as she spends time between
Richmond and her home in
Culpeper. Anne Ward Stern, her
sister Dearing Ward Johns ’63, and
Dearing’s husband, Harry, had a
lovely visit with Jane when they came
to Culpeper for lunch in July, when
Anne was visiting Dearing in Charlottesville.
Jane is looking forward
to seeing roommates Keenan, Penn
Willits Fullerton, and Susan Sudduth
Hiller in September for their
annual gathering and also plans to
see Randi Miles Long and husband
Herb on the same trip. As Keenan
noted, Jane was at SBC for Sweet
Work Weeks. Also, she continues
to enjoy her niece, nephew, and their
families.
Penn Willits Fullerton sent her
news from the deck of their cabin
on the Boulder River in Montana,
where they go to fly fishing every
summer. “Golden days shared with
family.” She says that she and her
husband, George, are blessed with
good health and family nearby. She
agrees that it will be wonderful to be
with the three SBC roommates in
Ashland, OR, this fall. Penn enjoys
teaching creative writing in her local
elementary school. “Life is full and
happy.”
Anne Ward Stern writes that
she still lives in Cincinnati with Ed,
her husband of 50 years. He has
some challenging health issues but
continues to direct plays around the
country. She is enjoying retirement
(Is there a theme here?), loving the
time she spends with family and
friends, volunteering at a drug and
alcohol treatment center, and riding
her horse, Dickens. In addition to
the visit with Jane Nelson, she also
caught up with Bunny [aka Bonnie]
Cord and Nel Wheatly Turner.
Bunny lives in Houston and was visiting
family in Cincinnati. They chatted
with Nel in Virginia via phone.
“It is such a blessing that our SBC
friendships are a continual source of
joy and support!” [Amen!]
Makanah Dunham Morris and
husband Bob celebrated their 35th
wedding anniversary at Chautauqua,
along with Betty Booker Morris,
Bob’s brother Dabney, and Susie
Helm, and her husband, Nelson.
The programs while they were there
focused on “how ‘American identity’
needs to stretch and evolve to genuinely
include diversity in new ways.”
Later in July they had a wonderful
trip to England and Scotland with
the Jefferson Choral Society. (Bob
is a member.) They sang in several
cathedrals in Liverpool, Edinburgh,
Glasgow, and also a Benedictine Abbey.
“Very grateful.”
Mary Ann Farmer Calhoun:
“I guess Tom and I are the proudest
grandparents after attending
our oldest grandson Miller Farley’s
graduation from St. Christopher’s in
Richmond. With honors and soccer
awards, he is off to Virginia Tech in
the fall!” Her roommate Jane Strickler
has a granddaughter at Georgia
Tech in Atlanta. She is still enjoying
her dance and tennis and spends
many weekends with friend Bill
Word in Highlands, N.C. Mary Ann
and Tom enjoyed a family (all 16 of
them!!) beach trip on Tybee Island.
They also have planned in August a
riverboat cruise into Puget Sound,
around the San Juan Islands, and to
Victoria, B.C.
Pam Jones Brown and her husband,
Joe, celebrated 52 years of
marriage in August! He still practices
law full time, and Pam has her
Stoneprints Jewelry business and
enjoys sharing with many collectors
and clients. In that pursuit, she loves
working with natural gemstones and
ancient amulets collected from her
travels. She sells privately from her
studio and trunk shows. “We are
blessed with four sons, five grands,
and now a great-grandson! My love
to all of our classmates!”
Susie Moseley Helm and her
husband, Nelson, spent the summer
at their wonderful place at Chautauqua,
N.Y. Son Pen was with them
for a bit, and all is well with Ted
and Steph in Somerville. She truly
enjoyed seeing Makanah Dunham
Morriss, Betty Booker Morriss,
and Marcy Fisher at Chautauqua
this summer.
Barbara D. Van Cleve stays very
busy visiting her grown children and
their families in Seattle, Tulsa, and
central Illinois. Her oldest and family
live nearer to her, in Greensboro,
N.C. She took her daughter and
granddaughter to Paris in May and
will travel to Spain in the fall. It is
easy to see why her friends in High
Point tease her that she is never
home. “They might be right, but life
is good, and there’s so much to learn
and celebrate.”
Sally Thomas Hoffman and
her husband, Paul, live near Seattle
on five wooded acres in Snohomish,
near a large equestrian park, where
they see many animals — deer, raccoons,
coyotes, bobcats, bears, eagles,
herons, ravens, hawks, and owls. Sally
has been retired for more than 20
years from a career as an engineer in
electronics and medical devices. Her
husband worked at Boeing. She enjoys
the Seattle chapter of the American
Sewing Guild as well as her big,
fenced vegetable garden. Her battery-operated
chain saw is kept busy
as she attempts to “neaten up” the
woods. She especially likes the lily
of the valley, trillium, and others that
grow there. They travel to visit their
nieces and nephews and grandnieces
and grandnephews, who live all over
the country and Brazil. Traveling
widely, they have been to Mexico,
Brazil, Argentina, Thailand, China,
Canada, Hawaii, and Australia. Future
plans include Hungary, where
Paul’s father lived, and to Prague,
perhaps also France and Portugal.
Dianna Rankin reports that she
now happily lives in Florida, having
moved there six years ago. Her oldest
son and his family live nearby. All
five children are doing well: oldest
daughter is an attorney, married with
two children, living in Toronto; second
daughter is a teacher/librarian/
writer, married with three children,
living in Wisconsin; oldest son is in
tech sales, married with one child;
youngest daughter is a tech guru, unmarried,
living in lovely Los Gatos,
CA; and youngest son, unmarried,
lives and works in Wisconsin, where
he graduated from the university.
She attended the Kentucky Derby
this past May and got to see close
up the winner, Justify, who went on
to win the Triple Crown. It was her
first Derby and number one on her
bucket list. While in the area, she
also visited Thoroughbred horse
farms in Lexington and the impressive
Kentucky Horse Park.
Randi Miles Long says that she
feels so fortunate to have Penn Mullin
Fullerton and Keenan Colton
Kelsey nearby. Through them, she
gets to keep up with Jane Nelson
and Susan Sudduth Hiller. “ Time
marches on — grandchildren are
getting older” (one graduated this
year from George Washington and
another will be a sophomore next
year, studying engineering). There
are still two younger ones. Randi enjoys
gardening, birding, volunteering
(in community and local Presbyterian
church), and traveling. Being part
of an interfaith group of Christian,
Muslim, and Jewish women is one
of the most meaningful things she is
currently involved in.
This is Susan Sudduth Hiller,
now telling my story. I have truly
enjoyed acting as class secretary and
gathering these accounts. While
assembling and entering them, I
have felt Ms. Ethel Rammage over
my shoulder, making sure that my
grammar and punctuation are correct.
(If you find any errors, please
don’t tell me!) Chuck and I are also
enjoying our retirement years. He
is involved in many activities. I continue
to be especially focused on my
triple efforts as a grief counselor, lay
fall 2018
55

sbc.edu
chaplain, and Hospice volunteer. I
was truly humbled by being named
Volunteer of the Year for Arkansas
Hospice and have now been asked to
join their board. Also, I am working
in a number of capacities with St.
Margaret’s Episcopal Church. Even
though still heavy-of-heart over the
passing of our precious 16.5-yearold
Cardigan Corgi Finian in October,
we are blessed to have sweet
puppy Drea (short for Andreas,
Welsh for Andrew), who came from
the same kennel. My daughter is still
amazingly busy being an attorney,
mom to dear Katie, Andrew, and
Ethan, wife, gardener, skier (hmm…
where did she get that interest?),
traveler, etc. etc. I am so proud of her.
I do thank each one of you who sent
me your wonderful information. I
have thoroughly enjoyed getting a bit
caught up in your lives.
1967
Stephanie Lucas Harrison
5458 Lynbrook Drive
Houston, Texas 77077
sharrison@coatsrose.com
Gail Robins O’Quin: “ We’re
back from Alaska and still cannot get
back in the grind. We had a grand
trip; I had no idea of the majesty of
the state. We did hear a presentation
on the Iditarod Race. Back in the
70s, I had a plea from an SBC graduate
(several years ahead of us) for
money to support her poodles in the
race; I sent her $50 that we did not
have, struggling with family, school
tuition, etc. I finally found out that
there was a team of poodles that actually
finished the race, but the head
musher was a man. Had to have been
the same team. One of the presenters
did assure me that the poodles died
because their coats froze; I didn’t
sleep for two nights, sure that I had
killed poodles, but she was obviously
just pulling my leg! Does anyone remember
any of the story of an SBC
graduate being involved with this
race with poodles? We’re off to Costa
Rica in November; Bill and I decided
that we’d better get in all the traveling
that we can while we’re still able!”
Pat Neithold Hertzberg: “Mike
and I have done a lot of celebrating
this summer: For the big 50th anniversary,
we were in the mountains in
Susan Tucker ’67 (center), honorary chairman of the Forward Arts
Fashion Show Luncheon in Atlanta with co-chair Duvall Fuqua (left) and
co-chair Aimee Chubb
southern Spain with Diana Cassidy
Rich ’69 and husband Sandy. Celebrated
our nephew’s high school
graduation in Niagara Falls. Relaxed
in North Topsail Beach, N.C., where
Mike and my brother commiserated
their adjoining birthdays. In Florida
for seven months, starting in December.
Have seen Pat Sadtler Baxter
and Maria Wigglesworth Hemmings
there.”
Karen Schwabenton Shipper:
“Reporting from the Colorado High
Plains, where we haven’t viewed
Pikes Peak all summer because of
smoke from wildfires out West, but
not nearby. I am delighted with last
year’s hip replacement and the fact
that otherwise I am not arthritic.
Getting back to riding my horses,
gardening, and chores without pain
was wonderful. Alas, I am currently
healing nicely from stable pelvic fractures
from falling from my very ‘Irish’
Connemara. The local hospital said I
was in great shape for a ‘horse injury.’
Meanwhile, husband John cares for
my two horses and our persnickety
barn cat.”
Carroll Randolph Barr: “All is
well with the Barr family. Spending
summer in Michigan is our usual
M.O., and we do love it, though we
are always happy to go back to Virginia,
our home on Lake Latane, our
friends, UVa athletics, and everything
that happens in Virginia. The
children and grandchildren plus lots
of cousins, nieces, and nephews, and
their friends were here for two weeks
in July; our house on the lake with
boat and other water toys was camp
headquarters! We loved it, and when
they left, I got out my blower and
blew the sand out of the house. Hesitate
to say that our health is good …
Mike still struggling with his knee …
the small percentage of people whose
knee-replacement surgery has not
been ‘the best thing I ever did.’ He is a
very good sport, but I dread another
operation, which is a possibility.”
Mary Gillespie Monroe has a
new address: 3615 Hawthorne Avenue,
Richmond, VA. 23222.
Judy Benson Stigle: “Florida has
not been a summer thrill this year
with heat, humidity, Red Tide, and
constant rain and thunderstorms.
Hoping for a nice trip but so far only
Knoxville and Indianapolis. Gotta
work harder on my guy. Working
three days a week, and life is good.”
Linda Fite: Since our last class
notes (I think), I have been to Ireland
and Scotland with two of my
three sisters plus one of their pals, a
very nice trip during which I backed
into only one stone wall. My nextborn
sister has Alzheimer’s, and
she had requested that I take her on
perhaps her last foreign journey. She
wanted to visit Northern Ireland. It
went well, she did amazingly well,
and even though I am a lazy sod, I
am very glad I was able to do that
for her. I visited Pam Ford Kelley
in Newport twice this summer (in
case you hadn’t heard, her beloved
husband, Brendan, died on May 18),
one time along with Joanne Tumolo
Bario ’68 (she transferred to George
Washington University after sophomore
year). We had a good visit,
including a terrific chamber music
concert by the Imani Winds at the
Breakers ... what a venue!! My surviving
chickens made it through the
summer, none killed by predators (I
still have five hens and Brewster the
Rooster, whose beauty makes up for
his annoying crowing). All my children
(remember that soap opera?)
seem to be doing well. And their
children, ditto. We all spent a week
together in mid-August at Bethany
Beach, DE, which is an annual
tradition going back decades. My
deal: I pay, but I don’t shop, cook, or
clean! And I just hosted a weeklong
Grammy Camp for my two Brooklyn
grandsons, which also went well
(no trips to the hospital, no poison
ivy, only one fistfight, lots of swimming,
Legos, and video games). I’m
excited to be going to Cuba in October
... a longed-for visit. Health OK.
Job good. Cars are both still running
fine (one is a 2003 Mini Cooper; the
other, a 2003 Subaru -- I like ‘em old,
like ME!). I may not be aging gracefully,
but I am aging gratefully!
Carole Munn: “Wish I could
weigh in with something fab but
got nothing new! Still living in Cape
Canaveral, FL, working as flight attendant
(48 years now), and flitting
around the world on fun trips like
parties, cruises, various causes and
donor trips. Sorry to say, no pets, not
even plants, since I’m seldom home
but so enjoy living on the beach
when I am.”
Gracey Stoddard: “Still retired
as a paid social worker but otherwise
working as a volunteer head of
a foundation (African Dream Academy
Foundation) that supports a
tuition-free, co-ed school in Liberia
West Africa. Reaching the end of
my fifth year as president, I am now
making the transition back to vice
president, while my VP becomes
the new president, a good move
for me, since eventually I will have
more time for travel, painting (new
hobby), and other, as-yet-to-be-discovered
adventures. This summer, I
enjoyed traveling to the West Coast
to visit Yosemite National Park and
San Francisco with my two sons for
a week, just before the fires got started;
visited with a group of painting
friends in New Hampshire, where
we painted au plein air, except when
there was plenty of rain to dampen
our enthusiasm; and visited with my
56

sister and her husband who live on
Lake Champlain in northern Vermont.
Plans were to travel to Maine
in mid-September to paint with my
same group of friends; and finally, in
mid-January, to travel solo to Vietnam
and Cambodia on a Rhodes
Scholar walking tour and to see a
high school classmate who lives in
Hanoi. Would anyone like to join
me?”
Bonnie Blew Pierie: “Tim and
I have spent the summer trying to
catch up on taking care of our Grafton
place and visiting with friends
who have come through at various
times as their travels permitted. It
seems like downsizing has come into
view here as we find we can only do
about half a day’s work compared to
our younger days. And, it sure has
been a warm summer. Still, we enjoy
it here and hope to slowly make the
dreaded ‘transition.’ I am voting for
a yard service, but Tim is adamantly
against such ... thinks we should
give it all up before he could stoop
so low! I am also wanting a new tractor
for Christmas or my birthday or
his birthday or any other occasion I
can drum up, but that it not a present
I will receive; I will have to give
it instead. He continues to row, and
I continue to ride (my daughter’s
horse). Our granddaughters are now
19 (out at Oregon State) and 17
and the twins are now 14. We had
our 50th anniversary in June with
no fanfare and had a little trip out
to see the races at Saratoga and plan
another to Vermont next week to see
friends who have rented a home near
Woodstock. There is also hope for
time to get to Cape Cod for another
chance to see old friends, but Florida
calls and may interfere.”
Ginny Stanley Douglas: “Bill
and I now have a 10-week-old puppy,
a mini Australian Shepherd we’ve
named Kipling. He is doing well
sleeping through the night; however,
he has started chewing up the
drip system in our garden with his
puppy teeth. Getting to be a very
expensive puppy. Our grandchildren,
Genna and Miles, visit us more often
so they can see Kip! They live
four blocks away, fortunately. I had
a fun trip with girlfriends to Southern
Italy in April and to Japan in
June. And I am about to leave for
Northern Italy in mid-September.
Early October was to be my 50th
reunion at the University of London.
My London roommate called me
from her home in Calgary and insisted
that I join everyone. Amazing
fun to have so many 50th reunions!
My husband, Bill (who has decided
he hates dealing with our airports),
will hold down the fort. Daughter
Rebecca, who amazingly has turned
45, is such a joy, and we are blessed
that she and our grandchildren live
so close. Can’t believe our SBC Reunion
was just over a year ago. So
much learning and living since we all
gathered in September 1963! I am
very thankful for good health and
good doctors, who have been amazing.
Joy and Good Health to all!”
Barbara Annan: “I am enjoying
life in the Black Hills of South
Dakota. I finished the restoration of
my historic home in Rapid City and
have started my application to the
DAR after years of procrastination.
Last year I completed an MFA in
creative nonfiction at Goucher College,
thus bringing my degree tally to
five. Sweet Briar’s seeds were planted
deep and numerous! The other degrees
were two in religion and two in
psychology. With that background
I have written a book on Mongolia,
looking at the cultural impact of
the Communist repression on folk
beliefs. I balance that with hiking,
hunting, and time with my Siamese
cats.” Barbara is proud of SBC for
rallying and continuing to flourish
as the flagship of women’s education.
Peggy Minis Trethewey: “Last
May, we were in Greece with me attending
my annual board meeting of
the Anatolia College of Thessaloniki.
Before that we spent one night-day
in Athens & five days in beautiful
Santorini. Honestly the sky was
so blue & the buildings so white it
looked just like the postcard pictures
you see of the Greek islands. Since
then we’ve been in Sonoma with
a nonstop stream of houseguests.
We’ve had family from Australia,
godchildren from Cleveland, and I
get more family from Savannah. It’s
been fun but exhausting. As we’ve
decided to put our Sonoma property
on the market, I think everyone is
racing to get one last visit in before
it’s gone! We will be heading back to
Palm Beach in late October & stay
there until late May. But in January
we will go to Australia for our annual
visit of one month to see Peter’s family
and to catch up with our friends
down there. We are excited because
we have tickets to the men’s semifinals
at the Australia Open (tennis).
That’s about it from me; I’m happy
to say Peter and I are healthy, as are
our families, which is such a blessing
at this age.
Maria Wiglesworth Hemmings:
“I am sitting on a plane as we are on
our way to see Emery (Wyoming) to
hike and chill and help her with her
new house. Summer was quiet, and
I loved it. Worked eight hours every
week and took a watercolor class,
which was fun and interesting. I am
trying to paint at least one painting
a week. We are back to traveling
domestic and international, then to
Florida for several months.”
Beth Glaser Isaacs: “We are
traveling like nomads! Canada, New
York (for “Hamilton”!), London, and
then Italy: Naples, Capri, Sorrento,
and the Amalfi Coast. So fortunate
to have the time, resources and energy
for all of this. President Woo is
awesome!”
Sandi Hoag Ippolito: “Hi all!
Don’t know how many remember
me, after all these years. Lou and I
have been living in Virginia for over
20 years now. We have four kids,
five grandchildren, five horses, three
cats, and three dogs. Lou is retired
but still teaches a couple of courses
a year in the graduate program
of George Washington University.
Our youngest and her husband have
moved back to the farm so they can
help with all the animals … and with
some free time, Lou and I are about
to embark on a new adventure. We
camped a lot when the kids were
young and loved the spontaneity of
it; so we have an RV on order, and
we will be tripping the light fantastic
on trips around the country. We will
visit places on our bucket list, visit
old friends, have new adventures.
This was something we spoke of,
even before we were married … only
took us 52 years to get around to it,
lol. Love hearing what everyone else
is doing!”
Susan Tucker: “Being named
Honorary Chair of the Forward Arts
Foundation annual Fashion Show
Luncheon was very special. The
foundation has supported the visual
arts in Atlanta since 1965. Saks Fifth
Avenue sponsored the event with a
runway show of designs from the
house of Oscar de la Renta. It was
so wonderful of fellow SBC alumna
Flossie Mobley to organize a table
of Sweet Briar friends. I continue to
enjoy work at Tucker & Associates
PR and have the best clients ever.”
Eleanor Crossley Rees: “I am
writing this from Wales at the end
of a month-old long trip around the
U.K. My husband is Welsh, and my
background is English and Scottish;
so we have had a marvelous trip in
spite of the hot weather. Our first anniversary
is next month, but we had
a two-week trip to India to celebrate
our marriage. I am blessed to still be
fit enough to travel. Life is good!”
Ted and I spent the summer
as substitute parents to our granddaughter
(10½) and learned an
enormous amount about what unsupervised
kids can find on the Internet
that you cannot block. We also
had terrific fun with her and miss
her. My older son and his family
were here over Labor Day, and my
younger son and his family live here;
so we had a blast with four consecutive
days of four little boys and happy
chaos. I am thoroughly enjoying
my work — it’s interesting and fun.
Life has been mostly work and family,
hoping someday our master bath
renovations will be finished. It’s is
very happy, and I am very blessed.
1968
Anne Kinsey Dinan
8 Peter Cooper Road, Apt. 11F
New York, N.Y. 10010
akdinan@rcn.com
As always, many thanks to everyone
who submitted news and photos.
Jule (Julie) Seibels Northup:
I officially retired in 2017 from the
practice of law but have enjoyed pro
bono work for Pisgah Legal Services
as well as having time to visit our
children in Houston and Seattle and
be at our house in the Virgin Islands.
The fact that I was unable to attend
the SBC Reunion was mitigated
when we got together with a group
of 10 alumnae from the class of 1980
celebrating their 60th birthdays on
Water Island! Fred and I celebrated
our 50th wedding anniversary in
June. We met while attending Sweet
Briar Junior Year in France, lived in
France twice after that, and are head-
fall 2018
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sbc.edu
ed back to France in October.
Leslie Bissell Hoopes: Glad
that the 50th Reunion was such a
success! The highlight of my year
was getting a knee replacement (!),
which has enabled me to continue to
give museum tours. Our son had his
hip replaced this spring — now that
really makes me feel ancient! We’ve
lost both kids to the West Coast —
La Jolla and San Francisco. Toby
spent six weeks this summer sailing
in Newfoundland. We’re going to
Iceland to celebrate his 75th.
Frances Kirven Morse: Since
our wonderful 50th, I have done a lot
of traveling. John and I traveled with
Pembroke Herbert Kyle and Bill to
the Paso Robles region of California
and saw Hearst Castle, beautiful
Morro Bay, and lots of interesting
wineries. John and I also took each
of our granddaughters on weeklong
vacations — Ella to Yosemite
National Park (yes, with smoke!),
and Xylia to Southern California
for Universal Studios (exciting rides
and Harry Potter), beaches, and the
traveling King Tut exhibit. After all
those motion simulation rides, we
are glad to be land-based again. Still
admiring my pink and green feather
boas and that nifty ’68 Apron designed
by Pam Burwell Benton.
Jennie Lyons Fogarty: Spring
2018 brought retirement and grandchild
number nine. I spent August
traveling with a few of the other
eight and am now ready to go back
to work — for the lower activity level
and the income! Was sorry to miss
the 50th and look forward to helping
plan a mini-reunion.
Bonnie Pitman: Summer is a
time to reconnect with friends and
family and to have new experiences
to celebrate our lives. Joyfully, I was
able to accomplish two visits to see
my dear family at Lake Oscowana in
New York. Hugging grandchildren
Franny and Clark renews my body
and spirit. My son, David Gelles, is
thriving at the New York Times in
the business section with his regular
interviews of CEO’s in Corner Offices
as well as other feature stories.
I was able to attend many museum
shows in NYC — The Met’s “Heavenly
Bodies” show is a spectacular
new assessment of the collection and
the amazing couturier and roles of
the Catholic Church. A new activity
for me was attending my first Texas
Ranger’s game in 103º heat. My
book is moving forward and research
on the neuroscience of observation is
opening new ideas for my teaching.
Conover Hunt: Well, my return
to the SBC campus for our 50th was
a real eye opener, and great fun! The
Book Shop had copies of my murder
mystery, The Constitution Murders
(thank you, Diane Hunt!), and I
got to jump in the lake without being
thrown! I re-retired in April and
have spent a relaxing summer doing
nothing constructive except enjoying
Buckroe Beach and feeling confident
that SBC will survive and thrive.
Mulling another novel; I will keep
you all posted!
Nancy Hickox Wright: We just
completed a family and friends summer
odyssey across the country —
starting with seeing so many of you,
dear classmates, in June.
Linda Pattberg Meixner: I’m so
sorry to have missed the Reunion
— sounds like a great time! Life is
good in Washington, D.C. (politics
aside!). I’m still working as development
director for Woodley House,
a nonprofit residential program for
people with mental illness. Will
probably retire next year but for now,
it’s still fun. Five grandchildren, with
three close enough to visit often, and
happily in touch with Celia Newberg
Steingold and Sally Ruth May
— old friends to the max.
Toni Wikswo Best: Genie Carr
ventured out to California recently,
and we had a wonderful time. She
had great things to say about the
Reunion and friends she saw there.
I am attaching a few pictures — one
is from Genie’s visit when we went to
Arts Visalia, a local gallery that had
a show of the children’s work from
seven weeks of classes offered. She
is standing in front of wings created
by the students so they can look
like they are flying. I no longer am a
musician. Gee, no one ever said that
you had to be able to survive on your
chosen work. Instead, I am a basket
weaver and gourd artist. Many people
don’t know that I started basketry
when I was in the 8th grade. Now,
I teach classes around the country. I
was invited to teach at Arrowmont
School of Arts and Crafts in Gatlinburg,
Tenn., two years ago and
Pocosin’s School of Fine Craft in
Columbia, N.C., as well. Since then I
have taught in Washington, Nevada,
and around the state of California.
My pieces have been featured at the
National Basketry Organization’s
conference in 2015 and Handweavers
Guild of America at their Convergence
in Reno. Attached are a
few examples of what I create. My
website is tonibest.online, and you
can also see my pieces at Toni Best
Art on Facebook. I do not drive very
far since my eyes play tricks on me;
however, the train works well for
most places in California. If any of
you are in the area, I would love for
you to come by and visit.
Catherine Porter: Loved our
50th Reunion! So many great
friends came back. Have been enjoying
a wonderful summer in Aspen
but returning to D.C. for the fall.
Amy Thompson McCandless:
Steve and I had a wonderful trip
to Amsterdam and the Norwegian
fjords in June. Unfortunately for
Amy Thompson McCandless
’68 and husband, Steve, in
Whitesands, NM
Genie Carr ’68 at Arts Visalia in Visalia, CA, visiting Toni Wikswo Best ‘68
Marshalyn Yeargin-Allsopp ’68 with daughter Whitney and
granddaughter Isabel
58

Catherine Porter ’68 with
classmates Sally and Pembroke,
at their 50th Reunion
Julie Seibels Northrup ’68
celebrating Mardi Gras in the
Virgin Islands
50th Reunion LAKE LEAPERS: Libby Harvey Fitzgerald, Nancy Hickox
Wright, C’Anne Anderson, Pembroke Herbert Kyle and Conover Hunt
Anne Kinsey Dinan ’68 and Terry
at 50th Reunion
Charlie and Barbara Baur
Dunlap ’68 in smoky Canada and
enjoying golf in the Canadian
mountains
Nancy Hickox Wright, Class of ’68, husband, Gil, with their Montana
family: son Prescott and grandchildren Emerson, Fisher and Quinn
Brenda Darden Kincaid ’68 and Doug’s wonderful grandchildren. Front
row: Kate (6), Jimmy (9), Rett (9); Back row: Jack (18), Ellie (21), Hardt (15),
Crawford (13), Ann Everett (12)
Frances Kirven Morse ’68, Bill Herbert, John Morse and Pembroke
Herbert Kyle visiting Morro Bay, CA in August
fall 2018
59

sbc.edu
Bonnie Pitman and Ann Biggs Jackson at 50th Reunion
Anne Stoddard and Susie Brush Croft at 50th Reunion
Frances Kirven Morse ’68, Anne Kinsey Dinan ’68 and Nancy Hickox
Wright ’68 enjoying their 50th Reunion
us, the timing was during our Reunion,
which we hated to miss (keep
posting photos from the weekend,
please). It was nice to leave the sweltering
Charleston weather for the
temperate clime of Scandinavia, and
we were blessed to have beautiful
sunny days for the entire trip.
Mary Matheson: I have moved
and am happily ensconced in my
new apartment, still in North Carolina
and close to lots of family. I’m
heading up to Washington, D.C.,
soon to visit old friends, and will be
spending Christmas in New York
City this year with Anne Kinsey Dinan
and her family. Am looking forward
to spending a lot of time with
my godchildren and grand-godchildren.
Barbara Baur Dunlap: Charlie
and I were in British Columbia
when they had more than 600 forest
fires burning. We met a forest ranger
watching planes take load after load
of water from Lake MacDonald in
Glacier National Park to fight the
fires, and we played golf in smoky
Canada. Canada in the summer does
prescribed burns (no longer called
‘controlled’ burns since they get out
of control) to protect the environment.
Lesson learned: Don’t go to
N.W. Canada in August unless you
like smoke! By contrast, Sweet Briar
in June was beautiful, fun, and
heart-warming — loved our 50th.
The weekend was just wonderful.
Brenda Dardin Kincaid: Loved
being with so many friends from
the Class of 1968! After five years
of retirement I have returned to the
classroom teaching Honors Math
Analysis as a part-time faculty member
at Virginia Episcopal School. My
grandson is one of my students! My
SBC education gives me confidence!
Marshalyn Yeargin-Allsopp: I
am still at CDC, continuing to work
on the epidemiology of developmental
disabilities with an interest in
children outside the United States.
Thanks again for voting for me for
the Sammies Award. I am still a finalist,
with final decisions in October.
I look forward to participating in
Sweet Work Weeks in 2019; I had a
glimpse during a recent Board meeting.
Ralph and I stay busy grandparenting.
Hope all of you are staying
healthy.
Kristin Kuhns: “Altar Rock,”
the feature thriller, is finally set for
release next summer. I wrote, produced,
and raised the funds for this.
It stars KJ Apa, a hot young star who
was in “A Dog’s Purpose” and “Riverdale.”
My next project is a TV series
about a woman dedicated to saving
wild creatures.
Susan Hinner Avesian: Retired
and living in Canton, Ga. We left our
beautiful lake house due to an ongoing
illness that necessitates my being
close to Atlanta and my doctors. We
have 11 awesome grandchildren and
enjoy watching their sporting events.
Sorry, I cannot travel. Would love to
see you all.
Anne Kinsey Dinan: The Class
of 68’s 50th Reunion was indeed
terrific: 48 hours of connecting and
reconnecting with old friends and all
of us reminiscing for hours on end.
It was especially joyful to watch as
our very own classmate Bonnie Pitman
received Sweet Briar College’s
Distinguished Alumna Award! And
here’s to Ann Biggs Jackson for the
outstanding pink and green boas and
Pam Burwell Benton for our marvelous
SBC aprons!
Please remember that Frances
Kirven Morse, Nancy Hickox
Wright, and I are continuing our
efforts to find contact information
for “missing” classmates. To that end,
I once again 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, N.Y. 10010.
1970
Mardane McLemore
719 Jones St.
Suffolk, Va. 23434
jlmmrm39@gmail.com
Thank all of you who sent notes
and pictures. I enjoyed hearing from
you! Those of you who didn’t make
it this time, be thinking of what you
want to include in the next set of
notes — Remember you can email
me or Kristin any time with news!
Fundraising for SBC: thank
all of you who have given. SBC appreciates
your donations. It would
be great if our class participation
60

percentage was higher (looks good
on grant requests), so if you haven’t
given this year, think about giving
something — Please!
Congratulations to Karen Hartnett!
Because of her efforts to save
Sweet Briar, she received Sweet Briar’s
Outstanding Alumna Award for
2018. She was recognized for her
work with Phil Stone to stabilize
SBC and bring in a management
team that could move the College
forward. Thank you, Karen!
Ann Gately and her husband,
Ira, had lots of fun and good food
celebrating their 70th birthdays hiking
and cycling around Europe for
three weeks in April and May (Italy,
Holland & CR). Ann, who has been
so faithful, again completed a several-week
stint at SBC Sweet Work
Weeks ... an “always gratifying & satisfying”
experience — a reunion with
a purpose! Her gardening fashions
included a special T-shirt provided
by Kay Parham Picha and Karen
Hartnett. The T-shirts were well-received
by her (much younger) fellow
weeders. Ann is still in New Mexico.
If you go to there, give her a holler!
Katy Warren Towers thought
life would be settling down at this
point but says it almost seems to be
accelerating! She still misses Charlie
a lot but feels very blessed to
have good health, dear siblings and
friends, nice trips, and meaningful
experiences! In April Katy went on a
Viking river cruise on the Rhine and
then spent several days at the gorgeous
Cloister at Sea Island — both
places were a ball! In May she and
two graduate school friends from
Nashville went to Santa Fe for several
days to celebrate their 70th birthdays.
In late June and early July, she
spent a couple of weeks in the North
Carolina mountains — her favorite
place in all the world — and since
then she has been sweltering in the
Florida heat and being very thankful
for AC! In early September she plans
to go to Colorado for a Christian
conference and then visit and hike
with her roommate, Mary Jo Murphy
(hopefully these plans won’t
have to be canceled as they were last
year due to Hurricane Irma!).
Jonna Clarkson is still working
with a mission to alleviate the water
crisis in El Salvador. She also had fun
at Sweet Work Weeks. She worked
with Deb Ohler Bowman and enjoyed
meeting some alumnae from
other classes. She notes that Gately
is totally amazing and reminds us all
that 70 is not old. It’s not what you
have; it’s what you do with what you
have! She, Deb, Deb’s husband, John,
and Barbara Hastings Carne have
all been friends since graduation and
will be celebrating their friendship
together for Labor Day.
Elizabeth Holloway Playforth
just returned from the beach visiting
son John and Krupa, his wife, and
their three-year-old granddaughter
and eight-month-old grandson.
Elizabeth says they are the best part
of being a bit older. She and her
husband are selling their farm and
planning on spending more time
with these youngest grandchildren
and doing more traveling. They have
loved being “farmers” but find now
that it is time to move on to other
interests. There is an invite to anyone
visiting Lexington, Ky. She is proud
of SBC for surviving.
Phyllis Blythin Ward also celebrated
her 70th in a big way with
a trip to Egypt in February. She
and John followed in the footsteps
of King Tut, Howard Carter, Ramses
II, and Agatha Christie, traveling
from Cairo to Abu Simbel and
sailing the Nile from Aswan to the
Valley of the Kings on the SS Sudan,
fulfilling her bucket list wish
since the days of ancient art history
classes at SBC! Not long after, they
spent a fun weekend in Atlanta with
Stuart Davenport Simrill and her
husband, Spenser. In the spring they
traveled to Lexington for John’s 50th
reunion at W&L and spent three
weeks in Ontario in the summer —
a nice respite from the hot weather.
She and John are still in Louisville;
so if anyone ever gets that way (Derby
weekend maybe?), don’t hesitate
to get in touch.
Jane Gott and her husband, Ron,
spent a month in Kauai for her 70th
birthday — before the massive rain.
She has enjoyed taking watercolor
classes and staying active in the Potomac
Valley Watercolorists. Ron
had surgery on his Achilles tendon
in May and has recovered better than
expected. Recently she met Ruth
Stokes for lunch. She and Ruth lived
with the same family in Paris their
junior year. Ruth is an equine veterinarian
in Maryland. Jane notes the
entire group from Sweet Briar Junior
Kristin Herzog ’70 in front of her
painting at the Laoshan Museum
in China
Ann Gately at 2018 Sweet Work
Weeks
From left, front row: Katie McCardell Webb, Lorie Harris Amass, May
Humphreys Fox, Jessica Holzer, Wallis Wickham Raemer. Back row:
Connie Haskell and Frances Gravely
Year in France 1968-69 is meeting
in NYC the weekend of September
29 to celebrate their 50th reunion.
There will also be a reunion in Paris
at Reid Hall in October. If any of
the eight other women from SBC
who spent that year abroad have not
received information on the planned
reunions, email Jane at janegott@
verizon.net. Jane is excited that Barbara
Offutt Mathieson’s son and
family moved this year to Great Falls,
VA — now she will see roommate
Barbara even more often. She and
Barbara had a wonderful visit in May
and in early September and are flying
to Boston for a reunion on Cape Cod
with classmates Laura Sickman
Baksa, Candace Buker Chang, and
Jo Shaw. Candace is now cancer free!
Candace Buker Chang sold
her condo in Boston a year ago and
moved around the corner into her
daughter’s first-floor apartment. She
is happy to say it is working out very
well. Unfortunately, she was diagnosed
with metastatic breast cancer
a week before moving; so Sonia (who
is the state senator for Boston) and
her husband were great support, and
the two grandchildren a great joy on
a daily basis! After a year of chemo
plus surgery and radiation, she is
now happily cancer free and hoping
to remain so. It was a pretty rough
year — her daughter Jean and her
family live and own a business on St.
John (Virgin Islands), which was hit
by Cat. 5 hurricanes Irma and Maria.
Fortunately, they and their business
are okay, but it was a stressful time
wondering. The island, which has
become Candace’s second home, was
just devastated. Jean’s family (two
more grandchildren) was without
power for 80 days, and everyone on
the island is still struggling to recover.
Candace encourages everyone
to take their vacation dollars to the
Virgin Islands. Since tourism pretty
much their entire economy, they
need people to come! Worn out by
fall 2018
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sbc.edu
Convocation at Sweet Briar in May 2018 honoring Karen Hartnett as the
Reunion Outstanding Alumna. From left: Susan Lykes Mueller, Heather
Tully Click, Karen Hartnett, Kay Parham Picha, Debbie Ohler Bowman
and husbands
all the cancer treatment, Candace
retired in January, earlier than originally
planned; but now that she is
feeling much better, she will be keeping
her brain active by starting a very
part-time new job in September doing
intensive case reviews for Mass-
Health (Medicaid in Massachusetts)
on services purchased for families of
children with serious mental illnesses.
Hopefully the new job will fund
at least one more dive trip to Fiji
with Jo Shaw Lawson. They both
took up scuba diving when they were
over 60 — never too late for new adventures!
Candace was so appreciative
of the support she received from
Jo during the past year — Jo flew up
from Memphis several times keep
her company. Candace, Jane Gott,
and Barbara Offutt Mathieson will
be having a mini SBC reunion with
Laura Sickman Baksa on Cape Cod
just after Labor Day. Those friendships,
made freshman year in the
Meta Glass dorm, have been enduring!
Candace reports seeing Laura
more frequently since they are both
in Massachusetts.
Betty Glass Smith is still very
much appreciating the quieter, country
life and retirement. She’s busy
with quite a few ongoing projects
at her new place but is also taking
time to smell the roses and enjoying
a little slower lifestyle. She loves the
Northern Neck of Virginia in all its
beauty, especially the river vistas and
waterfowl. She and Bill have seen as
many as four bald eagles at the same
time up close to their property, and
Betty now wishes she had taken ornithology
at SBC from Mr. Edwards
(as do many of us)! Betty has learned
mahjongg and plays regularly. She
attributes her success to her logic-math
background and dear Miss
Lee. It’s interesting how frequently
thoughts go back to SBC these days.
Francis Dornette Schafer spent
a wonderful weekend with Debrah
Denemark in Dallas on the way
back from speaking at the AICPA
Advanced Estate Planning Conference
in Las Vegas. In July she joined
Sandy Hamilton Bentley and her
husband, Bob, for a trip to Asheville,
N.C., to see the Biltmore, which had
a special exhibit of Chihuly glass in
the house and the gardens.
Wallis Wickham Raemer is
fully retired and looking forward
to travel, biking, and hanging out
with dear SBC friends in the next
decade. She is proud to report this
past June Mary Jane Hipp Brock
was honored by the Interfaith Center
of New York City for 20 years
of service and leadership promoting
human dignity for all peoples and
creating peace in New York and beyond.
Wallis recently had a blast at
Frances Gravely’s lovely cottage in
Maine. They had a great weekend of
traveling together, sailing, shopping,
dining on lobsters and wild blueberries,
talking endlessly, and laughing
lots with dear friends! Carpe, carpe
to the last diem!
Jessica Holzer is still not retired,
working at Citi, welcomed her first
grandchild, is still occupied with
Shakespeare Festival St. Louis, and
enjoys cooking for friends.
Lorie Harris Amass celebrated
the big 7-0 in Montana with her
precious family and was treated to a
special birthday book of good wishes
and surprise fireworks on the lake!
May Humphreys Fox fills her
days post-retirement with travel,
children and grandchildren, board
work, and some consulting. Reunions
with her SBC Carpe Diems
fill her heart too!
Katie McCardell Webb sends
her thanks to all her classmates for
their support of the Alumnae Fund!
Connie Haskell is still tap dancing.
She had a great trip to Portugal
and Northern Spain with Jim and is
going to Bulgaria with her sister in
September.
Frances Gravely is roosting near
Franklin Street in Chapel Hill with
children and great friends nearby.
Happy as a lark!
Kristin Herzog traveled to
China in June with an art group.
The highlight of her tour was an
international watercolor show at
the Laoshan Museum, where she
enjoyed seeing her painting on display.
She also visited many local and
regional art collectives, galleries and
painting studios, which was a huge
treat. Kristin is still unpacking boxes
at home in Naples, FL, and can’t
believe it’s been almost a year since
she moved into her new home. She
has a great neighborhood community
and has already met up with five
SBC alums in the area. She’s received
another fellowship to attend VCCA
over Thanksgiving and can’t wait to
be back on campus!
Betty Brewer Caughman has
been in a whirlwind this past year.
On August 20, 2017, her son, David,
married Shannon O’Grady on
Bainbridge Island, a short ferry ride
from downtown Seattle. Among the
guests were Suzy Yates Cahill and
husband Bob. David and Shannon
are now happily ensconced in Brooklyn,
a short commute to jobs in
Manhattan, where Shannon works
in finance (Blackstone) and David
in management consulting (Simon
Kucher). It’s a great place to visit!
Two days after the wedding, she
traveled with yoga buddies to Peru
for a week in the Sacred Valley and
Machu Picchu and then was off to
the Amazon jungle with friends and
fellow birdwatchers. In February, after
a few days in Mexico City, friends
and Betty went to Macheros to visit
two monarch butterfly reserves
— she saw hundreds of butterflies
open their wings, turning the trees
orange, as they took off and began to
fly down from the mountains. Truly
an amazing sight! In September, she,
Suzy Yates Cahill, and Bob will celebrate
their 70th birthdays with several
days in Paris and a barge trip on
the canals in Burgundy. Joining them
will be Betty’s sister Carol Brewer
Evans ’75 and Jim Evans. When not
traveling, Betty stays busy with yoga,
book clubs, bridge, church work,
lunch with friends, dinner with
friends, drinks with friends ... Life
is good!
I have loved reading notes and
emails from our SBC classmates.
I’m enjoying traveling, and am planning
trips to Detroit and Mackinaw,
Jackson Hole, and Arizona this fall.
I have also been enjoying duplicate
bridge — very, very slowly accumulating
some of the master points.
Lately I’ve been overcommitted and
overwhelmed with volunteer work,
but I do enjoy it all. I’m sure that
Suffolk, VA, is not a major stopping
point on most travel agendas,
but just in case you’re in the neighborhood,
please stop by! KEEP
THOSE NOTES COMING!
1971
Beverly Fonville Van Zandt
San Miguel de Allende,
Guanajuato, Mexico
beverlyvz@gmail.com
Lynne Manov Echols and her
husband, Frank, enjoyed a trip to
London and SE England last fall,
and Lynne notes that a tour of Dover
and the subterranean command
center for Dunkirk is a must! In November
they head to Portugal with
a group. Lynne has begun teaching
riders again and has written a book!
Visit www.facebook.com/Rider-
SeatMD for a preview!
Mimi Fahs, our SBC Board of
Directors secretary, continues to
teach public health policy and economics
at the graduate level. She is
excited to be “mother of the groom”
62

next Memorial Day. Mimi continues
to love playing fiddle with her band,
the Mudflats. The name reflects the
oyster ponds at low tide near her
home in Orient, Long Island —
along with the band’s desire to keep
expectations low!
Maggie Mather Feldmeier is still
working, yet manages to go on many
travel adventures — an expedition to
Alaska this June and one to Ireland
this fall. She and her husband are
thrilled that their younger daughter
has moved closer, and they can now
see lots of Maggie’s granddaughter,
Mather, her namesake. She reports
that they are busy and healthy and
couldn’t ask for more!
Carol Remington Fogelsong is
still finding new ways to enjoy retirement
— lots of leisurely lunches and
quick adventures to new places (from
riding a monster truck to new-to-me
art museums). Carol travels often to
Baltimore to see 95-year-old Mom
(Ann Moore Remington ’44), and
she enjoys connecting with classmates
by email and phone.
Pam Henery Arey wrote that
she loves the freedom that retirement
allows and that she sees Bonnie
Moe Stook ’72 in the neighborhood
regularly. Pam is the president of the
board and trip chairperson at her local
senior center, where she also takes
exercise classes. She recently had
successful surgery and treatments for
melanoma and is having to spend too
much time indoors right now!
Dee Kysor is still enjoying being
music director at Grace Episcopal
Church and is looking forward
to riding again now that Badger is
sound. This summer she and her
husband, George, led a storytelling
workshop. George taught storytelling,
and Dee sang songs to go along
with the stories. Their performance
team is called “Woven Yarns.”
Kathy Wilson Lamb reports
that life in Lexington and Northern
Michigan continues to be good. She
and Rex loved two weeks of children
and grandchildren in the Straits of
Mackinac and continue to enjoy the
cooler weather. They are heading to
Alpine Europe for a couple of weeks
in September.
Sally Uptegrove Lee and her
husband, Bob, retired and moved
to San Antonio to be closer to their
daughter, Rachel, and her husband,
Nathan, and two grandchildren. A
third grandchild is due in November.
Sally and Bob remodeled/rescued a
1920’s house that they love and write
that if anyone travels to San Antonio,
they have two guest rooms and
would love to see you.
Anne Milbank Mell has really
been busy this year — births of two
granddaughters and the fun of helping
their families negotiate the addition
of “child #2.” She and John had
kids and grandkids with them for
five weeks this summer, the last week
of which all 15 (five under the age
of three) were together in a cabin in
N.H. In September she and John are
traveling to Italy, her first visit since
Junior Year Abroad, 49 years ago.
Anne Wiglesworth Munoz
wrote that she and Milton went to
Morocco last winter and are going
to India and Nepal this November.
Then they will head back to Arizona
to visit their daughters and grandson.
They are even thinking of moving
to Arizona to be closer to them.
Jacque Penny had a wonderful
time in Canada recently, spending
two months with her mum (now
90) at their home on Prince Edward
Island. Jacque is now home and says
hello to all with much love.
Alisa Yust Rowe and I had a
wonderful visit this summer. She
and Richard still live in Houston
and look great. Alisa enjoys spending
time with their grandchildren
and going to the country. She is still
helping with an arts non-profit for
children. She has recently picked
back up a manuscript that she wrote
some years back and has been revising
it for fun.
Wendy Weiss Smith has really
been on the “go” recently — she and
her husband biked in Munich, hiked
for a week in the German-Austrian
Alps, and flew into Cape Town to
board the Royal Mail Ship for its
final sail to St. Helena. This spring
they enjoyed Susan Greenwald’s
company on a W&L trip to the
Languedoc area of France. Wendy
also celebrated her mom’s 102nd
birthday with her SBC ’74 sisters in
July.
Bev Van Zandt continues to
love living in Mexico and is having
fun working with Anne Holler on
Anne’s “Rebellious Nuns of San Miguel”
seminar. She is now headed to
Marblehead to watch daughter Roberta
race in the J70 Worlds. There’s
Cissy Gott ’72 and DeDe Conley ’72 at Cissy’s home after Reunion 2018
Jean Chaloux Miani ’72 and DeDe Conley in Milan with cards for Jean
signed by many classmates
nothing like getting a “sailing fix”
through your daughter! Daughter
Beverly is in her fourth year of med
school, and her family is doing well.
1972
Jill Johnson
MarySue Morrison Thomas
98 Pine Bluff
Portsmouth, Va. 23701
72sweetbriar@gmail.com
Once again we are extremely
proud to acknowledge another super
classmate who has given so generously
of her time, talents and energy to
Sweet Briar. Please enjoy the information
found at sbc.edu/president/
board-of-directors chronicling the
amazing life and accomplishments of
the class of 1972’s own Georgene M.
Vairo, who was elected chairwoman
of the Sweet Briar College Board of
Directors during its August meeting.
Deirdre “DeDe” Conley expresses
that she is grateful and so impressed
with the results of everyone’s
hard work for SBC culminating in a
42% increase in enrollment! She has
enjoyed SBC for the past 12 months,
especially Sweet Work Weeks, which
she highly recommends. DeDe was
also in attendance at Founders’ Day
activities and President Woo’s Inauguration
— to whom she refers as
a Super Star for us. After our 45th
Reunion, she enjoyed a good visit
with another classmate, Cissy Gott,
in D.C. DeDe spent the summer
in Europe and is delighted that her
husband finally got his green card
renewed. The highlights of her summer
included visiting with Jean Chaloux
Miani in Milan, attending several
college fairs, and keeping us all
informed with the AA news. In the
fall, DeDe plans to recruit more students
for SBC and continue with her
extensive travels. Thank you, DeDe,
for keeping us all in the loop!
We are thrilled to have heard
fall 2018
63

sbc.edu
All my SBC roommates — together again after 45 years. From left: Kathy
Pretzfelder Steele, Debbie Pollock Arce, Linda Lipscomb, Lisa Fowler
Winslow
from another classmate, Claudine
Clarke Elian. She writes that in
conjunction with her ongoing art
projects, she continues to divide her
time between Lucerne, New York,
Seattle, and Los Angeles! Claudine’s
life in Switzerland is spent with her
longtime companion, Fabian Bautz,
who teaches music at the University
of Applied Sciences and Arts in
Lucerne and at the Conservatory in
Zurich. Together, they contemplate
returning stateside upon his retirement
but for now continue to shuttle
back and forth. Perhaps we can
convince them to come back for our
50th Reunion!
1973
Evelyn Carter Cowles
PO Box 278
Free Union, Va. 22940
ecc52@icloud.com
Joan May Harden: Jill Heptinstall
and I so enjoyed Reunion. I
think it was my favorite one so far.
Rick and I are expecting our fifth
grandchild in January. It will be Bill
and Jessica’s first baby. We went
to Croatia, Slovenia, Montenegro,
Bosnia and Venice in Sept., where
we rented a car and explored. It was
our first time using AirBnBs, so the
whole trip was an adventure.
Allison Baker: I live in midtown
Atlanta, still trying to live the Artist’s
Life. My memories of directing our
senior play “Toad of Toad Hall” is
one my favorite memories of being
part of the Class of 1973!
Cindy Bekins Anderson: My
news revolves around our two granddaughters
— one is 22 and the other
is 4! We have four kiddos (48, 47,
28 and 26), three of whom are here
in Omaha, with the youngest away
in pharmacy school, and we hope
he returns at some point! We had a
wonderful family trip to celebrate my
hubby’s BIG birthday in the mountains
of Colorado this summer and
looking forward to fall and winter
travels as well. I keep busy with being
a master gardener, and with a local
garden club and church, and we’ve
had our 4-year-old granddaughter
every Thursday since she was an infant!
Ginger Woodward Gast: My
husband, Paul, and I spent a wonderful
week with Susan Dern Plank
and her husband at their house
in Belize in January. It was hard to
come back to “winter” after walking
around in shorts. Paul and I headed
over to Italy this fall to teach English
in the Italian schools for six weeks.
He was in the middle school, while
I preferred the younger students
in elementary school. We still have
so much fun visiting with our six
grandchildren and our four adult
children in South Carolina, Florida
and Virginia.
Kathy Pretzfelder Steele: Dave
and I continue to enjoy our life in
Florida, where we live not too far
from our daughter Kelly and her
family, and help care for our two
precious granddaughters (3 and 6).
Our other daughter, Tracy, was married
in August in a glorious rooftop
ceremony and reception in midtown
Atlanta. Dave and I continue to enjoy
an active life of golf, pickleball,
traveling as often as possible to our
favorite beach in Hilton Head, S.C.,
and exploring the many interesting
places in Florida.
Renee Renata Sterling ’73 supports families in jeopardy. Pictured here at
a Family Place event with Gretchen Carlson
Lisa Winslow: It was a busy
spring and summer for me. My son,
who lives in San Diego married a
lovely woman in April — really a
fun wedding. Then my daughter and
I took off for two weeks in France,
staying in Paris and the Riviera. We
had a fabulous time — constantly
on the go. I then went to our SBC
Reunion and had a wonderful time
with fellow classmates. SBC looks
really good. I relocated this spring
to Orange County to be closer to my
mom (95 years old!) and my kids in
Laguna Beach. I’m loving total retirement
after being a law librarian for
42 years and involved in all kinds of
new activities including sailing. Life
is good.
Kathleen Schultz: Steve and I
retired and moved to a waterfront
home near Jackson, MS. We are really
enjoying the slower lifestyle of
retirees with lots of visitors! We have
time to explore the waterways by
pontoon or kayak, which we claim is
a great replacement for exercise. We
welcomed our first grandchild last
March and our second one is due in
September. We have also enjoyed the
opportunity to travel and are moving
up the cruise levels! I accepted the
presidency for a local women’s club
for 2019; so I’m keeping my toe in
the quasi-working world. We were
so sorry to miss our Reunion but
look forward to the next one.
Deirdre Conley: I enjoyed getting
back in touch with my graduating
class and helping to organize
73’s 45th Reunion. So much fun to
reconnect! Seeing so many friends
after so long, hanging out at the barn,
taking the eco walk with Professor
Fink, sharing a dorm room — felt
like 1973 all over again. I hope to see
even more classmates for our 50th in
2023. Put it on your calendar now!
Ann Major Gibb: I enjoyed a
quick overnight visit with Anne
Billings McDougall at her home in
Orlando in February. This summer,
our son David finished his work at
Yale and moved to L.A. to open a
research lab at Cedars Sinai Hospital.
Our daughter Emily was married
to Steve Ciotonni in Philadelphia in
July. California and Philadelphia are
in our fall travel plans!
Betsy Meric Gambel: This
summer I spent three weeks in Africa
(Tanzania, Zanzibar and Cape
Town). From a Serengeti safari to
sailing in the Indian Ocean to the
breathtaking Cape of Good Hope,
I experienced so much and realized
that I could, indeed, take that much
time off due to my incredible staff.
Gambel Communications continues
to grow, and The New Orleans 100,
with affiliates in 18 cities, has been so
rewarding. Life is the best ever!
Diane Dale Reiling: I had a marvelous
Reunion week, with a stop before
heading to the College with Jane
Potts in Charleston. She and I also
visited Savannah and visited with my
daughter’s in-laws. I then headed to
Salem, S.C., outside of Greenville, to
stay with Karol Kroetz Sparks. She
and I had toured the Biltmore during
the Chihuly Glass Exhibit before flying
to Reunion. After SBC, I took
the train to Philly to visit another
friend. Fabulous!
Roberta Culbertson: I tend
chickens, goats, and fence lines at
Farm Colony, a 300-acre farm outside
Stanardsville, VA. Daughter Lea
is associate chair of the VCU Dance
Department and also a poet and
dance critic. Daughter Kay married
64

Happy hour Friday night, Reunion 2018
Rishi Patel this autumn in a joint
Indian/Western wedding. They then
returned to Geneva, Switzerland,
where Kay works for the United Nations
High Commissioner for Human
Rights, and Rishi for CERN.
It’s all good!
Renee Renata Sterling: Enjoyed
a respite from the brutal Texas summer
heat up in Victoria and Vancouver
this August. My financial planning
practice continues to blossom
in its 26th year — hard to imagine
26 years! Boyd Zenner, Linda Lipscomb
and Cary Davis King and I
keep in close contact.
Susan Dern Plank: Lots of travel
this year: Belize for vacations (joined
by Ginger W. Gast and husband
during a soggy week) and a friend’s
high school graduation as salutatorian
of her class, Texas to see my
younger sister and Florida and Tennessee
to play with grandchildren.
Sadly, my sister lost her 7+ yr. battle
with breast cancer in April. I finally
completed 300+ dives as a “palm
tree” (warm water) scuba diver. See
everyone in 2023!
Anita McVey O’Connor: My
life hasn’t changed much since the
last time I corresponded, but I am so
happy and proud of all the alumnae
who helped to save my beloved college.
I’m grateful to former president
Stone and current president Woo
for successfully leading SBC into the
future.
Debbie Arce Pollock: I had such
fun at Reunion and hope many more
classmates come to our 50th. Kathy
Ptretzfelder Steele, Betsie Meric
Gambel, Lisa Fowler Winslow,
and I extended the fun by driving
down and back together from D.C.
I was reminded again how special
the bond we all have is, as I instantly
felt like I was with my best friends,
in spite of not seeing them for many
years. See you all in five years!
Evelyn Carter Cowles: I am
pretty much the same. Riding, painting,
gardening, fishing, and hiking
still fill my leisure time. I visited Missy
Leib Veghte ’74 in Nantucket in
August and have traveled to Hawaii,
England, and of course Montana as
well. Planning a trip to Cuba to fish
next spring; so life is good. Reunion
was fun rooming with Linda Lipscomb
and seeing many others I haven’t
seen in years. Everyone should
try to come for our 50th!
1974
Nancy Mortensen Piper
28 Newbold Sq.
Rehoboth Beach, DE 19971
703-371-5583
npiper@virginiasoftware.com
JoanBarb Ashton Nicol: We had
another wedding this year. Robert’s
son, Sage, married Marilyn Keller in
Corpus Christi, TX, in July. All 12
of us were there! Robert and I are
enjoying retirement with 3 grandchildren:
Parker (4,) Grace (2 1/2),
and Ashton (1). Enjoyed a Caribbean
cruise in February and a trip to
the beach with Liz Thomas Camp
and Emory Furness Maxwell in May.
Hope to make our 45th Reunion!
Mary Witt Will: Who knew one
could be so busy in “retirement”??
I’m a busy volunteer: in the endoscopy
unit at a local hospital, broadcast
reading for the visually impaired, and
lots of time with the UVa School of
Medicine as a trustee and class representative.
We just had out UVa
40th reunion, and it was so much
fun! I also love more time to spend
with family and friends. I’m so lucky
to have Sandra Taylor in Richmond,
and we get together every few weeks.
Hope all is well.
Sandra Taylor: I was just with
Mary Witt. I have retired but stay
very busy with family and my other
volunteer activities. I did get a
chance to visit with Elizabeth and
Bobby Watts. Had a lovely visit on
the Eastern Shore!
Cathy Weiss Thompson ’74,
Wendy Weiss Smith ’71 and Weiss
family members gathered for Betty
Weiss’s 102nd birthday celebration
at the end of July.
Elizabeth Watts reports that a
highlight for her this year was a trip
to Kiawah and Charleston with Jane
Hutchinson Frierson, Leslie Elbert
Hill and Susan Stephens Geyer.
“Susan has a lovely home on Kiawah,
where we stayed and enjoyed the
many activities the resort island has
to offer. We also attended some wonderful
events at the Spoleto Festival
in Charleston.”
Leslie Elbert Hill had a wonderful
mini-reunion with Elizabeth
Watts, Jane Frierson and Susan
Geyer at the Geyer vacation home
on Kiawah Island. Dolphins, biking,
swimming, lots of cooking, as well as
several trips into Charleston for the
annual Spoleto festival and garden
tours made for some classic memories.
These reunions get more special
each year as the memory sharing increases
and the makeup decreases.
Mitch Dore: “Ola! JoAnn, my
partner, and I grow many heirloom
vegetables in our garden, and this
year has been extremely hot so some
things made it and others ... well, we
know there is no such thing as a master
gardener, just a practicing gardener.
However, what we have is quite
wonderful. Our favorites are purple
Viking potatoes and our onions.
This year has been relaxing for the
most part. Jo and I have been in our
current house for 13 years so that I
could work on my art and we could
grow our own food. On the flip
side, we are finding that we are not
IMMORTAL! In other words, we
have found parts of our bodies that
appear to have been asleep all these
years ... and now they are awake and
rearing their ugly heads! Who knew?
We are thinking of moving within
the next two years from Prescott
Valley, AZ. The places we are examining
are Boise, ID; Bentonville,
AK; Wyoming; and Montana. We
want a TINY YARD! No fires or
floods, bending or stooping! Good
luck, Mitch! Little weather humor
here! I find that the main thing for
me and for Jo is to laugh a lot and
to tell jokes (even the ones that don’t
quite make it). Laughter can get you
through just about anything (maybe
not through what is going on in
Washington ... that requires the 2
Ls: liquor and laughter). I love to
cook and Jo likes to eat — nice partnership!
The peaches this year were
limited, but the ones we got I made
into cobbler. We grind up the pears
and freeze them. That pear sauce is
so darn good on just about anything,
especially pork tenderloin.”
Mimi Hill Wilk: “I just celebrated
my second grandson, Heath’s, 1st
birthday! Heath’s big brother, Georgie,
was a double jackpot winner;
so it was super fun watching all the
action at the pizza place! Love that
age!!”
Wanda Cronic Howell: “Our
21-year-old middle daughter, Jessica,
graduated from Furman University.
Mom, Dad, and her two sisters
(Nicole and Destiny) all went to
Greenville to celebrate her accomplishment.
Jessica is now embarking
on the newest chapter in her book of
life, working on staff of Young Life
in Greenville, S.C. Nicole is in her
last year at Kennesaw State University
and Destiny is in her junior year
of high school. To celebrate Jessica’s
graduation (and because it had been
three years since we had gone to Europe),
we spent two weeks “riding
the rails” through Italy, Switzerland,
Austria, Germany, and The Netherlands.
Jessica had a great deal of
input into our itinerary because she
has wanted to go to Salzburg and the
Alps ever since she saw ‘The Sound
of Music’ when she was small.” Wanda
is a car dealer, and based on her
sales performance, she was one of
only a handful of dealers in the Zone
– Georgia and parts of Alabama and
Florida – to receive the Mark of Excellence
award from Buick. She and
her husband, Lee, were then treated
to a vacation in Vail, CO, with other
top performing dealers.
Andria Francis: “It’s been 4
years since I retired from CTB/
fall 2018
65

Wanda Cronic Howell (to the right of the graduate) with her family at
her middle daughter’s graduation from Furman University
Bonnie Brophy ’74 (far left) at Cliffside Beach with her family
Boxwood Quad triplets, Liz
Thomas Camp, Emory Furniss
Maxwell and Barb Ashton, ‘sans’
Dr. Mary Witt Will, partying at
Perdido
Liz Thomas Camp and Ellie Boyd,
artist of EllieBoydPortraits.com,
hangs work, “The Kayaker,” with
Reid Freshman Roomie, Liz Thomas
Camp, on a 2018 visit to Handy
Crossroads, Ga. Acquisition, the
SBC online auction
Mary Witt Will ’74 and Sandra
Taylor with Sandra’s niece and a
friend
Cathy Weiss Thompson ‘74, in
white behind the birthday girl
in pink; Wendy Weiss Smith ‘71
(second from right)
sbc.edu
McGraw-Hill after 28 years of service
there developing educational
achievement tests, and I LOVE retirement!
I continue to volunteer at
Animal Services (my 15th year!) I
also volunteer weekly at Meals on
Wheels and have been doing taxes
for low-income persons for the
United Way for the last three years.
My daughter Ashleigh graduated in
2015 with her Ph.D. in Archaeology.
I’ve been to England several times to
visit with her in the last few years.
She and her husband bought a home
in England. They were here for a visit
last Christmas, and I will be going to
England in December to spend the
holidays with them this year. I can’t
believe that we are now “seniors”
on Medicare and Social Security!
HAPPY Belated 65+ Birthdays
Classmates of 1974!”
Sherrie Snead McLeRoy: “Sorry
I haven’t been able to keep in touch.
My husband of 44 years has endured
several major illnesses over the last
few years, and I haven’t even been
home to Amherst except for a long
weekend for my high school reunion.
Had to give up writing after my last
book (on Texas women). On the
good news side, our daughter (only
child) and her fiancé are expecting
a daughter in October, which probably
makes me the oldest first-time
grandmother in the class! Of course,
I keep in touch with Jane Piper
Gleason. In fact, she visited us for a
few days in June before going on to
a conference in Dallas. Have been
much encouraged by the reports
from Sweet Briar!”
Nancy Mortenson Piper: “My
family is doing well. My daughter
Liz just started her senior year at
Elon University in N.C. She just accepted
a job offer with Phillips 66 at
their headquarters in Houston. She
will start right after her graduation
in May. My oldest daughter, Kate, is
living in Berkeley and working in San
Francisco and loves it. Both girls will
be home for Christmas. I had some
health issues this year that resulted
in heart surgery this summer. There
were complications which resulted in
a 2nd surgery. But I am healing well
and getting stronger every day. My
husband, Chris, has been a huge help
during this time. I hope to be well
enough to get to SBC in September
for the Leadership Conference and
Founders’ Day. Plan for our 45th Reunion
next June. I hope to see many
of you then. Thanks to everyone who
submitted news and photos.
1975
Anne Cogswell Burris
1437 Headquarters Plantation Dr.
Johns Island, S.C. 29455
acburris@comcast.net
Bet Bashinsky Wise: I finally
hung up the spurs and am traveling
more. Doug and I did a fantastic REI
trip to Croatia in May, then headed
to Montana for the summer. Wild
fire smoke was pretty bad in the
Flathead Valley. We then dashed to
Wisconsin in August to help Gail
Ann Zarwell Winkler ’76 with her
son’s wedding, followed by a visit to
Nashville with my son Case before
Elizabeth Watts ’74 with Jane
Hutchinson Frierson, Leslie Elbert
Hill and Susan Stephens Geyer
during a trip to Kiawah Island, SC
Cece Clark Melesco’s 2015
wedding of son Clark
66

heading back to smoke in Montana.
Doug cheated and rented an E bike
to ride during our BackRoads River
Boat Bike trip along the Duoro in
September. Life is full, and it’s good
to catch up with old friends.
Cece Clark Melesco: David and
I are spending most of our time at
our home on Smith Mountain Lake,
VA. He is retired but still does some
substitute judging and mediations.
I spend a lot of my time with my
mother and his mother, who are in
assisted care near the lake. Life is
good. Our children are happy and
healthy and love each other, and we
are in good health. My daughter Alex
and her fiancé bought a house in Old
Village of Mt. Pleasant, S.C., and
are planning a 2019 wedding. My
oldest son, Todd has a 15-year old
son — only grandchild at this time.
Daughter Cameron and her husband
are in Roanoke, VA; son Clark and
his wife are in Falls Church, VA;
and son John is in Rocky Mount. I
keep in touch with Kathy Osborne
Spirtes and see her when she stops
by on her way to N.C.. I’d love to reconnect
with other classmates.
Carol Clement: I got married
last year to Richard Knapp. After we
went on a lovely honeymoon in Europe,
we bought a new home together
in Palos Verdes Estates, Calif., and
redecorated. He is adopting my two
sons, and life is so sweet right now.
I love teaching yoga and baby-sitting
my first grandbaby. If you are coming
to L.A., let me know, so we can show
you around.
Sarah Clement: I am planning to
retire from Federal service February
2019, following my 66th birthday. I
have no immediate plans except to
join fellow retirees on weekday bike
rides and sign up for more volunteer
activities. I’ve been on SBC campus
more times in the past couple of
years than I managed in the past 40.
I am so impressed with the progress
the new leadership has made in setting
the College on a course for the
21st century. Presidents Stone and
Woo have my everlasting gratitude
for accepting the challenge and insuring
that SBC continues its mission
begun more than 100 years ago.
I have especially enjoyed four summers
of Sweet Work Weeks, begun
in 2015, where alumnae help with
painting, power washing, gardening,
and office projects around campus in
preparation for the new school year.
Meeting other alumnae from a wide
variety of class years is rewarding and
fun! We should organize a ’75 class
effort for SWW next summer!
Coni Crocker Betzendahl:
Richard and I are both doing well.
Blessed with two more grandchildren!
Keeping busy with family,
painting, gardening, skiing, boating,
and riding. We took a trip to Iceland,
toured for a week, and I trekked on
horseback for a week. Fabulous trip!
I ended up buying one! Icelandic
horses are super fun to ride and the
ground is much closer, as they are really
ponies but they call them horses!
Looking forward taking both horses
up to our place in Vermont for fall
riding and fox hunting, where I am a
whipper in with the hunt.
Lisa Hall Isbell: I continue to
reside in Fairfax, VA, and work as
a paper conservator at the National
Archives in College Park, Md.
Ellen Harrison Saunders:
Whitney and I are still in Suffolk,
VA, enjoying our daughters and
their families, who live in Norfolk,
including a 2-year old granddaughter.
Our son and his family with
a 3-year old granddaughter live in
Philadelphia. I am still active with
the Free Healthcare Clinic, Sweet
Briar Alumnae Admissions, and
church. We traveled to Vietnam and
Cambodia in the spring. Life is busy!
I love seeing Betsy Brooks Jones
and Kathy Rose Rawls whenever
possible, and it is great having Penny
Czarra in the Norfolk area and to
see her at Sweet Briar events.
Ann Henderson Stamets: We
have retired to Arroyo Grande on
the California central coast. Our
son, Jon, graduated from Cal Poly
in 2005 and never left the area. He
found a good job and married Jamey
in 2011. We decided to move to the
area to be closer to them and our
granddaughter, Rylee. Granddaughter
# 2 will arrive in early Oct. We’re
enjoying some traveling and will be
visiting New Zealand and then Peru
in 2019.
Chris Hoefer Myers: I am adjusting
to life without my beloved
husband, Jim, who died in February
2017. Still a fulltime fundraiser at
USC (South Carolina, not Southern
Cal) and grandmother to five. I devote
my free time to gardening (garden
was featured on the 2018 Columbia
Green Tour of Gardens) and
to training my handsome solid black
German Shepherd puppy, Elvis.
Christine Kjellstrom Douglas:
I still live in Syracuse, N.Y. One
twin daughter is working at MUSC
Charleston, and other twin daughter
is a PT in Richmond, having gone
to MUSC for PT school! I have
met up with Linda Lucas Steele in
Richmond, as my son also works
there. While at Whole Foods in Mt.
Pleasant, S.C., in July, I just happened
to be looking at this “girl” who
was checking out; long story short it
was, indeed, Chris Hoefer Myers!
45 years since SBC!
Susie Lilley: I am still teaching
AP Literature at Trinity Prep
in central Florida. Big news is I am
serving as Orlando’s first poet laureate!
It’s challenging and fun to try
to bring the joy of creative writing to
more people in my community. Also,
I have a new book of poems coming
out in Spring 2019, The Green
Hand of Venus. I’ve been enjoying
sharing life adventures on Instagram
with my old partners in crime, Patti
Tucker O’Desky and Missy Nesbitt
Voigt! Although I only had one year
at SBC, I remember so fondly the
Meta Glass gang of the early ’70s.
Linda Lucas Steele: I am celebrating
life with friends & family.
I recollect special times with Claiborne
Gooch Hammond, who
personified the essence of friendship
— she passed in March 2018.
Retired from marketing, I travel with
purpose, preferences defined over
time through experiences — Chihuly
in Asheville, N.C.; Napoleon
in Richmond; Gehry’s Guggenheim
in Bilbao, Spain; gardens in Charleston;
and wineries in Haro, heart of
Rioja, Spain. Thanks to technology,
Roger and I watched every game of
the men’s soccer World Cup, enjoying
the championship in Valladolid,
Spain, with daughter Molly. Son
Austen follows my marketing/sales
career path in Richmond, while son
Evan follows Roger’s in cattle ranching.
Beth Montgomery: I left Hollywood,
CA, and moved to my
hometown, Richmond, and LOVE
it. Have enjoyed being back in touch
with Ann Wesley Ramsey, Gray
Thomas Payne, Catherine Cranston
Whitham, and Betsy Rawles.
Thoroughly enjoyed my trip to Morocco
in the spring with the Virginia
Museum of Fine Arts. Best to all.
Ginny Shipe Cameron: It has
been a tough year! I lost my mom in
October 2017, then my brother-inlaw
in January 2018, followed by my
cousin’s son who was murdered in
Virginia. Medicare coming in handy
since I was diagnosed with cancer in
July. I have undergone chemoradiation
treatment at Hopkins. Meanwhile
enjoying some beach time in
Ocean City, MD, with my son Andrew,
my grandson Colton, and sister
Jan. Still working full time running
this crazy insulation business and
trying to sell my parents’ homes and
contents. Someday, I’ll slow down,
but for now I’ll enjoy living life to the
fullest. Hope everyone is doing well.
Barbie Tafel: I am still in Louisville
with my own business as an
exterior designer and contractor. I
have had my real estate license for
several years, so that now I can help
clients with the whole process of
finding a home and adapting it to fit
their needs while adding curb appeal
and value. I still make time for tennis,
and my life is very full with activities,
family, and traveling to see grandchildren
in San Diego, Denver and Ft.
Lauderdale. I am very involved with
a local Breast Cancer Organization,
Derby Divas (it has been nine years
since my mastectomy, chemo, and radiation),
and now we have partnered
with Churchill Downs for the Kentucky
Oaks Day “Pink Out.” It has
been a phenomenal experience. It is
hard to believe we are all turning 65,
but life has never been better for me!
Dorsey Tillett Northrup: Frank
and I enjoyed a three-week trip to
Alaska in August. However, it was
the beginning of the rainy season;
so go in July if you can!! We are enjoying
good health and hope that the
rest of the Class of 1975 is too. Our
children all live far from us — most
young people leave West Virginia
— so we keep busy visiting N.Y.C.,
Houston, and Flagstaff, AZ. If you
go to the Grand Canyon, get my
daughter Maggie Northrup to be
your tour guide. Love to all!!
Patti Tucker O’Desky: Greetings
from California! After 20 years
in our home in Newport Beach,
husband (of 40 years) Billy and I decided
to downsize to a townhome in
Corona del Mar, so we can live the
“European village lifestyle” and walk
fall 2018
67

sbc.edu
to the beach, restaurants, and shops.
After five months of paying for two
residences, we decided to lease our
townhome. Naturally as soon as the
tenants moved into the townhome,
our house sold with a quick escrow,
leaving us 15 days to do everything,
including finding an interim place to
live. We ended up on the bay front
of Newport Harbor. (Purging and
packing nearly did us in!) Now we
sit on our lanai and watch the sailing
races, outrigger canoe fleets, paddle
boarders, and bay cruisers go by each
day. It’s a great life, and we aren’t sure
if we ever want to move to our townhome.
We even have a big guest bedroom
for anyone who wants to visit!
Moral of the story: Flexibility pays!
You never know how things will end
up until you get there! Precisely what
I learned in 1971, when I traveled
3,000 miles to SBC freshman year.
I ended up on second-floor Meta
Glass and made the most awesome
life-long friends!
Carroll Waters Summerour:
Toby and I took the whole family
(14 of us) to the Tryall Club in Jamaica
for my 65th birthday — same
place we went for my 60th, just more
people! The latest addition to the
family is William Michael Reynolds
(Will) — Kaki and James’ second. I
think everyone is done; so we have
six grands ranging in age from 12
to 1. Toby continues as the chaplain
for Whiteside Cove Summer Chapel
in Cashiers/Highlands area of
North Carolina, averaging 200 each
Sunday. I continue to do volunteer
work (several boards and the vestry
at Good Shepherd) when we are not
babysitting grands. We are planning
a trip down the Danube from Budapest
to Prague to celebrate our 45th
wedding anniversary.
Ann Wesley Ramsey: Highlight
this year was celebrating 40 years of
marriage with a trip to Africa. Travel
certainly helps to have a better world
view and reminds me to appreciate
the good ole USA. I have loved seeing
SBC friends in Maine, Charleston,
and Richmond. Old friends
make the best friends! Rocket and
I will hopefully be blessed with our
5th grandchild Dec. 26 (the 27th anniversary
of my 39th birthday)! All
is good!
Libby Whitley Fulton: It has
been a busy year with the business
I started in 1996 after I left Washington,
D.C., which means I am
approaching my 25th anniversary
as a “minority business owner.” My
company, Mid-Atlantic Solutions
Inc., has grown to be the largest
provider in the U.S. of workers under
the temporary/seasonal H2
visa program. We work with 1,200
employers in 46 states providing
30,000 seasonal agricultural and
non-agricultural workers, who come
to the U.S. on legal visas. On the
home front, husband Dave and I still
live on the farm in Nelson County,
VA, which I bought in 1989. After a
major reconstruction of the ca. 1820
farmhouse in the early 2000’s, I’m
now into a re-do of some of the interior.
I also still import/breed/show
Dartmoor ponies, a British rare
breed. We are holding steady at 12
dogs at the farm (and office), including
German Shepherds, Catahoulas,
Havanese, and Dachshunds, three
cats, and one donkey. I stay in touch
with Randy Anderson Trainor and
Catherine Cranston Whitham on a
regular basis. Randy’s second daughter
is getting married in the spring,
but you’ll probably hear that from
her. Go SBC!
Ashton Williams Harrison: I
live in Richmond (have downsized
to the city) with my husband. We
travel between a river house (White
Stone,VA) and a mountain house
(Wintergreen, Va.) when I am not
working at my current job (a turnaround
for a company I invested in):
Brass Beds of Virginia (and yes, we
manufacture a lot more than brass
beds!). I came out of retirement (I
sold my lighting business in 2011) to
save this company. Could be the subject
of my next book! I keep up with
Christine Kjellstrom Douglas, Ann
Wesley Ramsey, and Gray Thomas
Payne. Call me if you are in the area!
Wendy Wise Routh: The past
year was full of highs and some lows.
Carlos spent the year perfecting his
golf game at Gulfstream and Shinnecock.
Luckily for us, Lon and Anne
Cogswell Burris joined us in Florida
for the member-guest! I was working
on some projects; so I flew back and
forth, managing to be in Water Mill
for every Nor’easter. Lexie is at the
Broadway League. If you tuned into
the Tony’s, that was me in the 2nd
row orchestra pit in the pink and turquoise
in every performance shot on
TV. We went to the after-party and
then onto The Band’s Visit Celebration
for sweeping all the awards. We
Ubered to bed at 4 a.m.! John Carlos
worked the TriBeCa Film festival,
the U.S.G.A. Open at Shinnecock,
the U.S. Open tennis, and Fashion
Week. So, pretty fun year! The pups
are great, and if you are my friend on
Instagram @Wisestwendy, you will
see how cute they are! ’Til next year.
Beverley Crispin Heffernan retired
from the Federal Government
in April 2016 and doesn’t know how
she ever had time to go to the office.
Still riding the horses, had two but
just bought a third, and lately, competing
in the fun sport of mounted
archery. Husband Jim continues to
work as an administrative law judge
for the Department of the Interior.
Sons Jimmy and Chris are doing
well. She and Jim have been able to
enjoy lots of travel in recent years, including
Italy, Hungary, and Austria
this past May; Canada in June; and
they will be off to China in October.
Getting together with college
roomies Nancy Haight, Robin Singleton
Cloyd, and Cynde Manning
Chatham in North Carolina in September.
And I, Anne Cogswell Burris,
continue as your mediocre class secretary
with last- minute newsgatherings!
Lon is still at Wells Fargo Advisors.
I am still part-time bookkeeper
at a small law firm in Charleston,
which allows me to make my own
schedule, so I can enjoy golf, bridg,e
and grandchildren (Thomas, 5, Birdie,
2 and Ben, 1). As I write this,
grand #4 is due any day! Enjoyed a
brief but fun visit with Beth Montgomery
and Ann Wesley Ramsey
while at a family wedding in Richmond
in December 2017. Had a
fun time in Florida last spring with
Wendy Wise Routh, as husbands
played in a member-guest golf tournament.
Instead of retiring, we are
building a house, which should be
ready by early 2020. Thanks to all
for submitting news. It is good to
hear from everyone! And to those
who have reason to come to the “#1
City in the World,” look me up and
we can catch up over lunch or a glass
of wine!!
1976
Margaret Weimer Parrish
862 Main Street
Danville, Va. 24541
peggyparrish@gmail.com
Lynn Kahler Rogerson was
married last summer, and husband
Steve and she honeymooned in
South Africa and went skiing in Italy
in January. They acquired a classic
36-foot sailboat and have enjoyed
much sailing this summer. Daughter
Olivia attended SBC as a freshman
last year, Class of 2021. Sadly, she
has decided to spend her sophomore
year at Sewanee (the small
student size at SBC was a concern),
but she hopes to return to SBC for
the Jr. Year in France program. Lynn
hosted a bridal shower for Maureen
O’Hearn Slowinski’s daughter and
celebrated the happy event with her
at the wedding in November. Sally
Mott Freeman and Lynn have enjoyed
getting together, including a
fun evening of ’50s dance lessons.
Caroline Bickel McLoughlin is
a grandmother. Her daughter had a
baby boy on April 11, and they just
had a baptism in the chapel in Hyannis
Port, where her daughter was
baptized as well as married. Caroline
was on the Cape for the summer, enjoying
sailing in her grandad’s classic
67-year-old wooden sailboat, playing
golf and tennis. Husband Hollis has
retired, and they went on the Windstar
cruise from Greece to Italy and
then explored Italy on their own for
another 10 days. Last Thanksgiving,
they took a road trip south to see
family in Alabama and stopped to
see Ookie Hayes Cooper in Nashville.
Caroline also saw Meg Shields
Duke in Delray, where Meg has
beautifully renovated her beachfront
condo. The spring was filled with
her new grandson, who luckily lives
a few minutes from Caroline outside
of D.C. In June she took a group trip
to Israel with the minister from St.
Mark’s Church in Ft. Lauderdale.
Connie Radford Butler has just
begun her 30th year of teaching preschool
and is delighted to still be
able to sit cross-legged on the floor!
Third grandson joined the family last
October, born to son Robert and his
wife, Alex. Connie says she is blessed
to have both children and their families
living in Louisville. Children’s
68

equipment, toys, and games once
again fill the house and yard!
Teesie Costello Howell enjoyed
a fun lunch with Peggy Weimer
Parrish, Norma Neblett Roadcap,
Lochrane Coleman Smith, and
Elliott Graham Schoenig in Richmond
when Lochrane was visiting
relatives there, and she entertained
us with stories of her antics to raise
funds for charity, à la SBC “Asses,”
complete with wig and boa! Glad
to know she hasn’t changed. Teesie
is still working as a mortgage loan
officer, with retirement not yet in
sight. Husband Chris retired in the
spring and plays a lot of golf. She is
getting ready to go to Nashville with
a bunch of high school friends for a
few days.
In addition to the aforementioned
lunch, Norma Neblett Roadcap
and husband Richard traveled to
Dallas this summer to see one of her
roommates from senior year, Anne
Simonds Lowe ’78.
Melanie Coyne Cody is still
working as VP of director of talent
for Y&R /Wunderman Chicago.
Daughter Sarah was married April
7 at the Deerpath Inn in Lake Forest.
Missy McNatt flew out for the
festivities. The wedding was their
“big trip” this year; so no travel adventures
to share. Daughter Caitlin
received a promotion: VP of group
planning director at Digitas.
Catherine Farrar Adams is
still working with Christine Fox in
her ladies boutique in Warrenton
by the same name. She’s retiring in
December; so she will have ample
time for other endeavors. She went
to see daughter Sally in Colorado
Springs this summer and, as of this
writing, just returned from a visit
with her cousin in Maine who is a
Hollins girl. Son Preston is a chef in
Asheville, which he loves. Her aunt,
Frances Brooke ’38, turned 101 on
June 7 and is still living at home in
Lexington ... sharp as a tack!!
Ann Kiley Crenshaw welcomed
granddaughter Carlisle Crenshaw
into the family in September. Son
Clarke and his wife, Whitney, live
in Dallas with big sister Kiley Crenshaw.
Son Gordon received his MBA
from Wharton in May. He and his
wife, Hannah, live in Richmond. She
enjoyed a family vacation this summer
and plans to celebrate family
Christmas at the Greenbrier. Sally
Old Kitchin, Lisa Nelson Robertson,
Susan Snodgrass Wynne, and
Ann hosted President Woo’s visit to
the Virginia Beach area.
Debbie Mutch Olander is once
again heading into the hurricane season
after two rough years in a row.
She has been forced to become a
sports fan of sorts, with two brothers
in pro golf and a nephew with the
NFL — so that’s exciting. Mostly
she is concentrating on ridding her
life of stress.
Gina Spangler Polley and her
husband, David, are still importing
LVT from China for the hospitality
market, and at the age of 84, David is
still going to Korea and China. Gina
just competed in the world championship
horse show in Louisville
and got 2nd place in the junior fine
harness mare class. Son Frank and
his wife, Mariya, just graduated with
MBAs from Stern (him) and Wharton
(her). Gina and David took them
on a cruise of the Greek islands.
Ann Works Balderston spends
4 months in Jackson, Wyo., in the
summer, riding, hiking, and enjoying
the wildlife! Her two daughters,
both SBC graduates, live there —
Maggie is the Head Kid Wrangler
at the R Lazy S Ranch, and Sarah
is a nurse at the Jackson hospital.
Her son comes out from NYC for
a couple of weeks each year. Her
husband, Biv, is inching toward retirement,
but not there yet. The rest
of the time they are in Pittsford,
N.Y. Ann stays in close touch with
Andie Yellott, saw Christy Sauer ’77
a couple of times in the past year, and
has enjoyed catching up with Dede
Alexandre LeComte. She loves all
of her Facebook connections too. If
anyone heads to Wyoming, please be
in touch for wine and a view.
1978
Suzanne Stryker Ullrich
820 Waverly Rd.
Kennett Square, PA 19348
suzullrich@aol.com
Well, WHAT a 40th Reunion
it was! We were 62 strong! That
pushed us to win the Nancy Godwin
Baldwin Award for highest Reunion
attendance, named for Cannie
Crysler Shafer’s aunt, so it was appropriate
that we were able to pull
off THAT coup! The descriptions
sent in by some were ‘epic’, ‘a blast’,
‘awesome’ and ‘amazing’ and everyone
arrived by ‘Planes, Trains and
Automobiles’! It was so much fun to
have so many back on campus, but
we wished we could all have been
there. Life takes us to far-away places,
bringing in those life experiences
that force us to choose, always wishing
we could be in multiple places at
one time! Those that could not be
there in person were greatly missed,
but hope you got a sense of the excitement
from the many pictures
that were submitted and compiled!
(Please contact Muffy or me if you
would like that link again.)
And, did I mention the pre-party
at Toni Christian Brown’s farm in
Lexington? The weekend was kicked
off in grand style with 36 classmates,
and some hubbies, in attendance!
(Yes, there were 10 brave souls in
all!) There was food and fun galore,
and maybe a few drinks, with friendships
being rekindled and memories
rehashed! Those who were able to
come to Virginia a day early stayed
in Lexington and at Toni’s, complete
with Lauren Place Young and Jean
Beard Barden pitching a tent! The
weather cooperated beautifully! Toni
and Jim were gracious to host what
has over the years become a bit of a
tradition started years ago by both
Toni and our Robin Jones Eddy,
each of them taking turns hosting.
“Pre-Reunion helped me get lots of
little projects cleared up!” It was also
Toni’s birthday, so there were many
cards and balloons! “The horse and
pig were a big hit with the ‘grands’!”
Toni took a birthday ride the next
morning while the rest of us sat and
drank coffee on the porch! (Be sure
to free up your calendar to attend in
2023!) Fortunately, this early start to
the weekend allowed Betsy Moore
Conti to see some classmates before
heading of to hubby, Gene’s, 50th
Reunion at Georgetown.
Deb Davison Klein came into
Baltimore from CA for Reunion,
and was able to spend extra time
with Mary Page Stewart, and after
picking up Cannie at the train station,
and Kathy Jackson Howe at
the airport, the four of them headed
south to VA. What a ride that must
have been! Once back in Baltimore,
Deb was able to spend time with
Mary Goodwin Gamper, and visit
with Freshman and Sophomore
roomie, Suzy Gillette Chewning
who is teaching riding in Monkton,
MD. “Laguna Beach has been beautiful
this summer, I’m still selling
real estate and riding horses, and
of course partying! Missing my ’78
Crew!”
Katie Renaud Baldwin has finally
retired, again, but says she
seems busier than ever! There is “lots
of home remodeling and babysitting
my granddaughters, trips to Michigan
to see my parents, and many
friends have stopped by the farm.
All in all, life is good but sad to have
missed Reunion!” You too were
missed Katie!
Lee Carollo Boyes keeps thinking
of retiring from teaching science
at Petaluma HS in CA, but ‘I
love my teaching, so I don’t!” Riding
keeps her busy, along with ballroom
dancing for fun. “Two big dogs to
walk keeps me in shape.” Bet the
dancing does too!
There were a few weddings
recently. One of Cathy Mellow
Golterman’s twin daughters was
married in June. Christen and Peter
Grote are now living 5 minutes away
and Christen will be teaching at The
Special School District in St Louis
with her twin sister, and bridesmaid,
Catherine. Son Woody is in his 2nd
year of law school, does Bike for
the Cure for Kids with Cancer and
is working part time at a bike shop
in Tampa, FL. Cathy continues to
teach, nanny and dog sit on weekends!
A couple of summer getaways
included a trip to Wisconsin and to a
nephew’s wedding in TN.
Muffy had the most wonderful
time scheming with Suzanne, helping
take care of details, ordering the
fun cups, napkins etc. Afterwards,
she kindly sent out select pictures
from Reunion to all who attended!
Always so thoughtful! The fun that
created was reflected in the many
notes that followed! (We are really
trying to keep ‘the glow’ going!)
Janet Rakoczy wrote that Maggie
Laurent Gordy had been in
town and got together, as well as
always being in touch with Paula
Brown Kelley and Anne Riordan
Flaherty. Janet was very much looking
forward to seeing Carrie Ruda
in late September, to listen to those
wonderful wedding bells chime! A
fun tidbit from Janet...” I ran into
fall 2018
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my vet at the farmers market. His
daughter was with him. I had never
met her before. He had told me that
his daughter loved going to farmers
markets while she was away at
school so they decided to check out
some of the local ones while she was
home for the summer. Turns out she
is at SBC, has her horse there and
is loving it. I was the first alum “in
the wild” (outside of a Sweet Briar
event) that she ever met.” Great
minds think alike! Janet closed with
“It so makes me smile to think of
everyone!” Reunions will do that to
you! Maggie spent a lot of time this
summer in her oasis of a garden in
St. Augustine, FL (Pictures don’t lie!
It’s gorgeous!), along with the mosquitoes!
“I start at about 7:30 or 8 to
be done by 10, when dear old Mother
Nature turns up the dial on her
oven from “bake” to “broil”. Then I go
inside and play house.” It’s been that
kind of a summer for many!
Jane Hemenway Sullivan was
unable to attend Reunion, as there
was a conflict with her daughter
Elizabeth’s graduation from Williams.
Later in June she was busy
continuing training with the Empire
Dragon NYC Dragon Boat team
(breast cancer and cancer survivors
all!) for competition in the Dragon
Boat crew races in Florence, Italy!
The races were in early July, and Betsy
Moore Conti was there to cheer
her on in Florence, while Ieke Osinga
Scully was able to be part of her
cheering section at races in Harford,
CT, last August. (For more information
on the Florence races and
Dragon Boat races in general, go to
https://thetablet.org/breast-cancersurvivors-inspire-on-the-water/).
Cannie Crysler Shafer’s daughter,
Francie, was also married this
past Spring!
Becky Mulvihill McKenna was
also busy planning a late summer
wedding for her daughter, Erin. The
new couple moved to Seattle, which
is fortunately fairly close to oldest
daughter, Katie. Katie finished her
Family Medicine residency and lives
as a Family Doctor in Hood River,
OR. Glad Becky is able to catch her
breathe since she will have to dive
right into planning Katie’s wedding
for next March in Guatemala where
she had worked in the Peace Corps!
Second daughter, Maggie, “gifted us
with a beautiful, redheaded granddaughter,
who is just one. We are
loving the whole ‘grandparent’ thing!”
Along with all of this, Becky is still
working full time as a Marriage and
Family Therapist in St Louis. She
also continues as an adjunct professor,
teaching school professionals
about families. Husband Ken still
works as a counselor at a local HS,
while spending as much time with
his passion, traditional Irish music,
as possible. “We are busy and enjoying
being a part of our daughters’ life
transitions!”
And news from Carrie Ruda! As
of Sept. 29 she became Mrs. James
Carlsen! Congratulations to the new
couple! “Jim is certainly my blessing
– we are having so much fun and
finding love in our sixties so surprising.
We enjoy watching my sister-inlaw
at National Symphony concerts,
dancing at Glen Echo, and definitely
eating out too much!” Carrie is still
working so they “mostly enjoy simple
things like talking after sunset on our
screened porch and watching the fire
flies. I’ve learned to plan fall weekends
around Notre Dame football…
Jim even took me to South Bend for
the Navy game!” Jim retired from
Northrup Grumman after 25 years,
was USMC JAG, and also practiced
with McGuire Woods. “We are still
getting settled in our new home but
try to spend weekends at Jim’s place
on a creek off the Chesapeake Bay,
where there are also fire flies….and
osprey, geese and herons!”
Jamie Anne Murray Ferreira:
Wishing all well. A turbulent year for
me but now in good hands medically
and feeling much better. Our house
is almost completely renovated, and
we spend a lot of time in the garden.
Merlin, our Springer keeps me busy.
Still riding, if not as often. Portugal
is lovely. Always enjoy hearing from
alums and students, adore SBC.
Kim Hershey Hatcher: My
husband, George, and I celebrated
our 40th anniversary in June! Our
son, Georgie, and his wife are living
in Denver, CO, where he is working
at the University of Denver. Our
daughter, Lynn, graduated from Gettysburg
College in May of 2017 and
is now a communications assistant
with Nahigian Strategies, located in
the Willard Hotel in Washington,
D.C. We visit Sweet Briar often and
stay with George’s aunt, Mary Brugh
’57, in Clifford.
Lenore Cox was delighted to see
everyone at Reunion, “especially my
Roomies – Katherine Powell Heller
and Lisa Spruill Darby.” Lenore
will be moving back to Lynchburg at
some point in the future. No excuse
for not getting to campus from there!
A wild time was had by Ieke
Osinga Scully and Cassandra
Smith Babbitt after Cassandra
picked her up in Connecticut to
head down to Virginia for Reunion
festivities, complete with a roadside
picnic on the way! With all three
boys and an empty nest, Ieke and retired
hubby Mark have taken on an
historic renovation project in their
hometown of Simsbury, Conn. They
are trying to update it with as many
energy-efficient features as such a
project will allow. Ieke enjoys her
trips back to SBC and “feeling the
good energy there, especially during
Sweet Work Weeks! Always more to
do than I have time for, but the sense
of accomplishment each time for
that special place each time!” Thanks,
Ieke! Those weeks are really amazing!
Perhaps a class group next year?
As for Cassandra, life is too busy!
Her quilting business is really taking
off, her mother recently moved in,
and Jim will again be traveling back
and forth from Riyadh. “The best
part of this year was touching base
with so many classmates as ‘hands’
flooded into my life! I had the BEST
time!” She had a short visit with
grandchildren last summer, and was
hoping to visit them again in Victoria,
BC this fall. “Right now, I make
do with reading books via Skype!”
Great idea! Another highlight was a
visit with Becky Burt ’76, who was in
Maine last summer.
Lu Litton Griffin reflected joyfully
about all of the activities of the
Reunion weekend, remarking on a
special get-together for lunch with
Margaret Simpson and most of the
’78 Bio Majors! Sadly, Anne Stelle
couldn’t make it at the last minute after
breaking a leg (ironically the same
leg she had broken in school!). Here’s
a twist: bio major Nancy Robinson
Lindberg, turned family practice
doctor, retired, is now weaving and
hiking! Nancy surprised all of the
biology majors, and Miss Simpson,
with lovely pale pink and green bamboo
scarves that she had woven! Talented
lady! There were lots of tales
told, and memories stirred, complete
with The Cut Up Crew! Lu had been
busy with all of the festivities and
special events around her church’s
125th Anniversary. Daughter Sarah
finished her Community Pharmacy
Residency at Wake Forest Baptist
Health this past June and is now
working for them in Winston-Salem.
Son Ivey is living life in Raleigh
working for Infosys as a software
engineer, has bought his first house,
and plays percussion with a band
that had their first public event in
late summer! That’s exciting! “Alan
works in Linville and Morgantown
with his custom home construction
business while I continue to be as
busy as ever! We, like many our age,
have elderly parents and relatives
that increasingly need assistance.”
True!
Donna Mihalik Lee writes
“Thank goodness for my studies in
English and creative writing from
Sweet Briar!” Hermanuscript Intersection
on Neptune has won the Prize
Americana for Poetry 2018. The
book is to be published by The Poetry
Press of Press Americana. http://
www.americanpopularculture.com/
prizeamericana.htm . She has another
book, On the Altar of Greece,
which is now available at The Book
Shop at Sweet Briar! “Thank you,
Anne Doolittle and Lynn Lewis!”
And an interview with Donna was
just published in the Rappahannock
Review. “In it, I talk about Sweet Briar
and creative writing. I thought you
might be interested. Here’s the link:
http://rappahannockreview.com/
issue-5-3/interviews/donna-j-gelagotis-lee/
. Donna has a long list of
published poetry! If you are interested
please contact her or me!)
And it seems we now have two
ordained ministers in our class! Cindy
McKay, who gave thanks and a
lovely tribute to those we have lost
in our class during Reunion, (and
kept us all laughing!), is now joined
by Beth Cone Preston. Beth was
ordained July 15th and is living in
Spencer, Iowa. A lovely write-up of
the event can be found at http://
www.dickinsoncountynews.com/
blogs/1954/entry/71765 . Congratulations,
Beth!
Elizabeth Perkinson ‘Perk’
70

Cassandra Smitth Babbitt and Becky Burt ‘76 in Maine
Beth Cone Preston ‘78 was
ordained July 15
Lauren McManus Huyett ‘79 and
Suzanne Stryker Ullrich ‘78
Lots of smiles at 1978’s Class Welcome in Grammer Lounge Friday night
at Reunion.
We are off to Reunion! Class of ’78 members: Cindy McKay, Muffy
Hamilton Parsons, Ann Key Lucas
The Cut-Up Crew of ‘78 reunites! Suzanne Stryker Ullrich, Lu Litton Griffin, Carey Johnson FLeming, Prof.
Margaret Simpson, Nancy Robinson Lindberg, Katherine Powell Heller and Susan Negaard Harley
Jane Hemenway Sullivan ‘78
and Betsy Moore Conti ‘78
celebrating after the Dragon Boat
Races in Florence
Simmons misses everyone from
Reunion! “Don’t feel like we hardly
got there before we were all leaving!
Love rekindling my real estate career
here on the NC Coast with Coldwell
Banker Sea Coast Advantage
and Carolyn Birbick Thomason ’80.
They use the latest, most up-to-date
technology so I am in a steep learning
curve and having a grand time!”
You’ve got this, Perk! During trips
to Topsail Beach this summer, and
always, come wonderful memories
of fun times from May 2017! Might
there be another mini-reunion in our
future? (stay tuned!) As I was writing
these notes I was able to catch
up with Carey Johnson Fleming.
She and her extended family rented
Perk’s cousin’s cottage in Topsail
Beach in September! Lots of fun
times! (This was the same house
we rented for the Mini-Reunion in
2107) Gus was very much looking
forward to his return visit to the
beach as well! Carey and David have
been between houses during most
of the summer, renting a house next
to the new house being renovated in
Pendleton, SC. Feel free to ask Carey
about the unwanted visitor in the
rental house during all of those rainstorms
last summer! Again, wonderful
memories from Reunion, and
catching up with so many!
Lauren Place Young has been
bopping all over New England,
down to school and back, fitting in
visits and time with as many as possible!
In her words…. “I had so much
fun camping out under the stars and
fireflies with Jean Barden at Toni’s
fabulous party and farm. Thank you,
Toni, for hosting our class! It was a
blast seeing and reconnecting with
so many classmates at reunion. Since
March I have traveled to Nantucket
once a month visiting Marianne
Hutton Felch ‘79 and my daughter,
Brittany, who both live there yearround.
Marianne’s husband Bob
Felch reached out to Jean Beard
Barden to cater Marianne’s 63rd
Birthday party on July 31st. Jean, her
daughter, my two daughters, myself
and sous chef Suzanne Ullrich, all
fall 2018
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Class of 1978: Cannie Chrysler Shafer, Lisa Wray Longino, Mary Page Stewart, Becky Dane Evans, Kathering
Powell Heller, with Lynn Spilman Williams and Cassandra Smith Babbitt in the background
helped transport from the mainland,
prep, cook, then serve the yummy
‘Jean’s Cuisine Specialties’ in ‘Sconset.
Thumbs up and very good job,
Jean! You outdid yourself. A special
thank you to Suzanne for picking up
the THREE forgotten layered birthday
cakes in CT. (Can you imagine
the looks crossing on the Ferry?)
‘Hut’s’ party was a special reunion for
us all. We made a Hollins graduate at
the birthday party very jealous of our
fierce SBC group and bond. I had a
fun overnight visit on 8/1 with Barbara
Peck at her beautiful Hartland,
VT, home. My commute to work the
next day was only 20 minutes so we
are stoked that we are so close and
look forward to many more get togethers!
Ironically, I just moved to
Hartland myself to be closer to my
job and work week to avoid the daily
1 1/2 hour drive.” Lauren works
in Hanover, NH, at ‘The Greens at
Hanover’ running an independent
retirement home which has 28 condos.
“Last Fall I sold a condo owned
by an SBC graduate from ‘48 to another
SBC ’50 graduate, “Jo Grant”
who now calls her condo the ‘Briar
Suite!’ How is that for keeping it in
the SBC circle?! Cassandra Babbitt
and husband came to visit me at The
Greens during our Friday hospitality
Happy Hour(s)! I hope to reconnect
with more SBC friends this summer
and fall” During her late August visit
to Nantucket, Lauren was able to reconnect
with ‘lost, now found’ classmates
Margaret Meads Nordlinger
and Lindsley Matthews. Margaret is
in NYC and looking forward to reconnecting
with more SBC friends,
while Lindsley now lives on Nantucket
selling real estate after having
lived in VA and NYC. Lauren ends
in typical Lauren fashion. “For now
I am still smiling and laughing from
our 40th! Hugs to all of you. Aloha!”
Yes, we all get around, hopefully
always connecting with SBC sisters,
near and far! On my travels back from
Nantucket I was able to have some
blueberry pie at the Hot Chocolate
Sparrow in Orleans, on the Cape,
with again new grandmother, Anne
Taylor Quarles Doolittle. Daughter
Betsy had a ‘little’ 9lbs 12oz baby girl
in August. Thank goodness she was
taken a bit early! Guess we know
where ATQ will be for a while! Keep
those thoughts and prayers flowing
their way! Life throws challenges at
us, which gives us a chance to rise to
the occasion! (ATQ, you are strong
and will get all through this!) Maybe
that is why we are all so good at finding
new passions in life as we? Or is
it that we got to test the waters in SO
many areas while at school? Keep on
painting, Anne! Another treat while
on the Cape was a visit with Lauren
McManus Huyett ’79 in East Falmouth.
Eating, sitting on the beach,
ice cream and relaxing…just a great
time catching up!
I continue to travel with Rick periodically,
sometimes he even travels
for vacation! We went to Ireland for
a nephew’s wedding, as well as seeing
a friend we met in New Caledonia
and another friend whom I have
remained friends with since second
grade. Ireland was experiencing a
drought, so the weather was consistently
warm for us, while the Irish
were ‘sweltering’! It was glorious! It
was also a treat to spend some time
in Scotland. Think ‘Outlander’! Castles,
haggis, black and white pudding,
kippered herring….and of course,
a ‘wee bit ‘o whiskey’! Two out of
the three boys are nearby with the
‘grands’, one each, while the youngest
is in AL. Ned decided to take a hiking
trip that has been in the works
for many years with his friend (since
pre-K!) to Zion, Escalante, and back
country hiking in Grand Canyon
Nat’l Parks in Sept. Oldest Alex has
taken on any and all sorts of cycling
activities, making this mom a little
nervous on a regular basis! His
1-year-old son, Leo, is the apple of
his eye! Second son, Andrew, is also
smitten and stays busy with 2-yearold
Laurel. On a personal note, I cannot
fully express my total surprise
and gratitude for the amazing quilt,
and book of the collection of notes
and chronological pictures from all
our Reunions that so many of you
contributed to. A special shout out to
Muffy for taking the time to compile
the lovely personal notes and pictures
into such a treasured keepsake!
I find I need a tissue nearby every
time I look through it! It was such
a hoot, conspiring with Muffy on
everything leading up to our 40th!
(Thank goodness we don’t have ‘long
distance charges’ of old to deal with!)
The hours of planning were all worth
it just to see everyone’s faces as they
chatted and laughed all weekend!
We already have a few more plans
up our sleeves, so…Watch out! For
those of you not in the Class of ’78,
a little background… Instigated by
Cassandra Smith Babbitt (‘Quilter
Extraordinaire’), and Muffy Hamilton
Parsons, brainstormed with
various other classmates, classmates
were asked to submit a picture/scan
of their hands. A total of 72 hands
came streaming in by mail, email,
and FB from across the country,
and around the world, to Cassandra!
Keeping track of it all was (I’m
sure!) controlled chaos! Each hand
silhouette (many with hidden special
meanings, one with our 4-legged
Mini Reunion 2017 mascot, Gus’s
paw print and another with a spoon
from Chef Jean!) was then made into
a fabric block and used to create a
unique, and oh! so special quilt for
this Class Secretary! I was in shock,
in tears, somewhat speechless, and
more than a little touched! The black
and white ‘newsprint’ fabrics (appropriate
from a ‘notes’ perspective~),
accented with pink and green (of
course!) were put together in such
a way that during a recent period of
‘stuck in the house’ I truly felt all the
hugs from the arms attached to those
hands! It was so very comforting,
and I can’t thank you all enough! It
will be treasured for MANY years!
Cassandra also presented Muffy
with a well deserved, magnificent
quilt for being my cohort in crime
during the past couple of years, and
now our Class President! Being your
class secretary is an honor and a joy,
but I haven’t done it alone! Over the
years there have been others…Paula
Brown Kelley, Janet Rakoczy, Michelle
Tarride Frazier, (did I miss
someone?)… and all of you! Thank
72

you for being true SBC Sisters! Keep
reaching out to each other, re-kindle
friendships and support each other.
You never know who will need that
little something extra, putting a smile
on their face, or lending a shoulder to
cry on. As always, sending Hugs!
1979
Robbie McBride Bingham
773 Shady Dr. E
Apt. 101
Pittsburgh, PA 15228
maryrbingham@gmail.com
Louise Mueller Cook: Both of
my sons are out of undergrad school.
One is applying to grad school. The
younger one is engaged! I am feeling
a bit old and irrelevant. [Fortunately,
she is great and we love her.] Both
boys, the fiancé and I are going to
Utah for a horseback trip to three
national parks. Longest day is 9
hours in the saddle. We are going to
be sore. Can’t wait for every aching
minute of it. I see Claire Cartwright
Vaughn once in a while. Also Diane
Dillworth Gates. Really looking forward
to our 40th. I hope many of us
will be there.
Susan Andrews Cruess: Leigh
retired on March 31 and is enjoying
the relaxed lifestyle. With no limit
on vacation days, we have had the
following adventures: just returned
from 5 weeks in Ontario at Leigh’s
family cottage; drove out to Deep
River, taking the northern route
through Canada on the way out
and the southern route through MI,
MN, and N.D. on the way home. At
least we missed the worst smoke in
Calgary from the wildfires in British
Columbia. We were home for a week
before flying to Toronto for our son
Jim’s wedding. We adore his fiancé
and are looking forward to sharing
in the celebration with friends and
family from across North America.
Looking forward to trips to France
and Palm Springs this fall. And of
course the highlight for 2019 travel
will be Reunion! Can’t wait to see
everyone in June.
Vicki Wingate Wilkes: I’m still
working in S.C. state government
handling real estate needs for the
intellectually disabled. Husband
Craig has retired from being a pastor
at First Presbyterian Columbia.
Together we shuffle bio son George
(10th grade) and adopted daughter
from Russia, Susannah Kate (7th),
to school, golf, and gymnastics. Our
schedule isn’t our own with things
to do for our elderly parents, 2 cats,
and 2 dogs. We’re the “poster” couple
for the “sandwiched” generation! Our
favorite family times outside home
and church are UGa football, times
in N.C. mountains and south GA
timber farm, and any historic site
in-between. Have squeezed in trips
to Alaska, Arizona/Utah, and New
England. Hope to make 40th both at
SBC and UVa (where I finished), but
reunions coincide with kids’ exams
week. Who would have thought at
my 40th I’d be hindered by such!
Lauren Huyett: We are doing
great up here in Massachusetts. Bill
and I both still work full-time — he
is at Ironwood Pharmaceuticals in
Cambridge, and I am still working a
ton for my own decorating company.
All 5 kids are doing well. Kate is
in Manhattan working for Bombas.
Phil and Megan are in Pasadena for
a fellowship year (he is an ENT surgeon).
They are expecting our first
grandchild any day! They will be back
in Boston next June. Peter and Chip
live together in Boston and work for
451 Research and Wayfair. Susan is
off to London for a graduate program
in production design. She had a lot
of fun working on the TV show “Billions”
last year. Anyone near Concord
or Falmouth, please come visit!
Robbie McBride Bingham: Sold
the condo, William moved closer to
work and in with his girlfriend, and
I am in a wonderful 1929 apartment.
Sam graduated from UNM with a
B.S. in math and a B.A. in philosophy.
He got an internship with the
Air Force and is starting a master’s
program of his own design. I spent
the summer catching up on my act 48
continuing education hours and went
to Nags Head, N.C. and Sweet Briar
for SWW, with stops in Washington,
D.C., where I caught up with Megan
Morgan ’76. Lots of fun.
Susan Lineburry: I recently
joined Cindi Little Townsend to
celebrate her birthday. It was a very
entertaining experience in a salt
cave spa. I wish it had made all the
wrinkles go away. Finally, I am truly
looking forward to seeing everyone at
Reunion in 2019. It’s hard to believe
it has been 40 years.
1980
Myth Monnich Bayoud
6269 Oram St.
Apt. 21
Dallas, TX 75214
mythbayoud@yahoo.com
Florence Barnick writes that
“gasp” 2020 is our 40th reunion, so
we need to make a big effort to be
there. She has been trying to fit in
Sweet Briar Work Weeks and almost
made it this year.
Felecia Bernstein attended
Sweet Briar Work Weeks for the
second year. It’s work, but such good
work. If you have not been back —
the food service is great and the campus
still needs some work, but it has
life in it.
Leslie Bires in San Francisco
has a new job working for the dynamic
young female president of
First Republic Bank. Her oldest son,
Alex, heads off to Cal Poly in September.
Colin is a freshman in high
school. Her active, golf-playing Dad
turned 90 on Labor Day, and her ever-youthful,
on-the-go Mom (SBC
’53) will be 86.
Lind Robinson Bussey has
crossed over into her 60s. She saw
Ireland via horseback with husband
and friends this summer. All
of her children are married and she
is expecting her 5th grandchild at
Thanksgiving. She would love to
cross paths with Sweet Briar classmates.
She stays busy playing golf.
Martha Freuhauf spent a fabulous
weekend with Georgia Schley
Ritchie and Beth Fletcher Lubin at
Georgia’s mountain retreat in Highlands,
North Carolina.
Charlotte Gay Gerhardt writes
that 2018 has been an exciting and
very busy year. She became a firsttime
grandmother, and like many
of us turned 60! Oldest daughter
and her husband welcomed Emmaline
into the world this spring, and
youngest daughter is off to get her
MBA at Oxford this fall. All three
joined forces from Salt Lake City,
Richmond, and NYC to throw a
party for Charlotte with an Elton
John theme. On top of that, they
recently sold their home of 21 years
and are dramatically downsizing.
Lisa Heisterkamp Davis writes
that life is good. Augusta (28) is a
bona fide social worker and Dashiel
(26) is a law school student at Boston
College. Lisa and her husband,
Josh, went to Morocco and the Canary
Islands to celebrate their 30th
anniversary. She met up with Sarah
Skaggs ’79 and Mary Gearhart ’78 at
Christmastime and went to see the
choreography Mimi Garrard ‘58, in
NYC. Aimee Kass’79 joined them
for a spirited walk on the High Line
and they passionately reminisced
about Sweet Briar!
Ginny Hoff says we need to
plan a reunion for the Class of 1980
during Sweet Briar Work Weeks in
2020. She has been for the last three
years and really enjoyed meeting alums
from other classes. Ginny, Amy
Campbell Lamphere and Myth
Monnich Bayoud discussed making
something happen at the Boathouse.
Phyllis Watt Jordan is officially
an empty nester, with son Jake starting
his freshman year at the University
of Vermont and daughter Miranda
a senior at Emerson College
in Boston. She’s working at Georgetown
University, helping think tanks
translate their research for a broader
audience. She met up with Emily
Quinn McDermott, Lisa Ward
Connors and Cindy Stover Motyko
at Emily’s home near Narragansett
in July.
Tinsley Place Lockhart’s son
Beauregard and his wife Beatriz had
a daughter in June, Elodie Lockhart.
At two months old, she’d already
been to Azerbaijan and travelled on
a train from Baku to Georgia (not
the US state!). Tinsley and husband
John have travelled a lot this
year: Bermuda in May, London and
Isle of Wright in July, home in Edinburgh
seeing great comedy at the
Festival Fringe in August, then the
beach outside of Venice for a couple
of weeks in September. She enjoyed
seeing Laurie Newman Tuchel,
who spent part of the year at Leith
College of Art in Edinburgh. They
all caught up with Georgia Schley
Ritchie when she was passing
through as part of her travel agency
business.
Richard and Ellen Clement
Mouri are in Rixeyville, VA, daughter
Sarah and her husband Erik are
in Paris, KY, and son Cameron is in
Boulder, CO. Ellen writes that Cameron
is a sushi chef at Sushi Zamni
fall 2018
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sbc.edu
John Wiles, Janel Wiles ’80 and
Myth Bayoud ’80 in Vail
Myth Bayoud ’80, Janel Wiles ’80
snowshoeing around the vail golf
course
and loves everything about living in
CO. Sarah and Erik just returned
from a trip to Norway in July. Ellen
kept the “grand dogs” while they were
gone and they fit in with Ellen’s Dobermans.
She stops and visits Monument
Hill on her way to dog shows
several times a year. Her youngest
Doberman is one major win away
from an AKC Championship. She
is still riding and took her OTTB to
his first dressage schooling show last
month. She writes, “Life is busy here
on our little farm and the animals
keep us humble!”
Judi Noel is retired now and enjoying
her farm in Bedford, VA, with
her husband and two spoiled dogs.
Life is good.
Ann Conolly Simpson writes
that 2018 has been great! She was in
Mexico In December, hiking in Utah
in June, and boating this summer…
plus LOTS of tennis. She is still at
the Dragon’s Nest selling toys like
crazy and Hannah (29) is a teacher
at a middle school.
Myth Monnich Bayoud, your
class secretary, has been busy! Her
son, Charlie (who now calls himself
Chuck Ryan on the radio) is a
sophomore majoring in Journalism
at Mizzou. She is now a Mizzou Tiger
fan! In February, she was in Vail
with Janel Hughes Wiles and her
husband John. They skied and took a
long snowshoe trek on the Vail Golf
Course in the wet snow. The back 9
was even closed! She spent Memorial
Day in Kennesaw, Georgia, at the
Wiles’ playing golf and swimming.
She sees Carolyn Birbick Thomason
and Tish Longest Tyler about
twice a year. If you have a new email
address, please email it to her at:
mythbayoud@yahoo.com.
1981
Mary Claire Purnell
Five Park Place, Apt. 408
Annapolis, MD 21401
cpgd@verizon.net
Susan Pinkard Morgan is still
teaching 6th grade math and living in
south Florida. Married 28 years this
May, her daughter will be 23 soon.
She loves living with two cats, one
dog, “and the folks mentioned above.”
Quinne Fokes is busy doing
UX research projects, looking for an
on-going gig, painting, doing Kempo,
almost done with MS in HCI
(two more classes to go), and she put
up a blog called ConversationsWith-
MyCat.com.
Susan Graham Campbell moved
to Medford, NJ, this past spring to
be closer to her horses after nearly 30
years in center city Philadelphia. She
has been semi-retired for 20 months
and is just now starting to think
about re-entering the workforce in
some capacity. Her daughter, Sarah,
lives and works in Philadelphia so
she gets to see her regularly which
is very nice. She just spent a week in
NE Harbor, ME, with her wonderful
parents. Life is good!
Anne Grosvenor Evrard and
husband, Walter, are grandparents
again: Helene gave birth to Mathide
last November. Raphael is now 16
months and is walking and talking!
Anne is about to begin renovating
their house in the Basque Country.
She will be in Memphis for Thanksgiving
to see her daughter Clotilde
who now lives in Tennessee.
Carol Hays Hunley and Tom
are loving Charlotte, NC. Tom has
retired and Carol continues to enjoy
her role at Ally Bank. They are excited
for their daughter Chrissy’s wedding
in Gloucester, MA on September
2 and I can’t wait to see Vickie
Archer there! I have become active
in the local MS Society chapter and
enjoy connecting with others dealing
with MS. “I am blessed to be living
a full life surrounded by loved ones.”
Hillary Lewis Bennett lives in
Alexandria, VA, and is still close
with Dana McBride Jackson. They
even went hiking this summer on
Mt. Rainier. She retired from teaching,
but is still singing, cycling and
enjoying theatre and Bible Study.
“Look me up!”
As for me, Claire Purnell, our
big news is that our daughter Mary
(24) married Paul Hearding last
May in Telluride, CO. It was a wonderful
weekend with all kinds of
weather including a little snow on
the wedding day. Liz (21) is a senior
at Fordham U and is studying
Sustainability. I am headed to Pittsburgh,
PA and am excited to stay
with Liz Winson Sweeney. I also
stay in touch with Kearsley Rand
Waggoner who is as witty as ever.
1982
Patti Snodgrass Borda Mullins
15 Tenth Avenue
Brunswick, Md. 21716
pattibmullins@gmail.com
Patti Snodgrass Borda Mullins:
I am vicariously enjoying my husband
Earl’s retirement; with his boat
moored in Annapolis, we frequently
sail on the Chesapeake Bay. We were
part of a chartered flotilla in February
from St. Lucia to ports in Martinique
and thereabouts. Novice sailor
that I am, I enjoyed the opportunity
to handle a 51-foot ship in 10-foot
waves and 30-mph winds. Daughter
Virginia is a rising senior, who
soon will start applying to colleges
(and knows only at this point, that
she wants a “big” school). My job as
communications coordinator for
The City of Frederick, Md., continues
to engage me in familiar and new
endeavors that are quite fulfilling.
Fundraising kudos: Our class had
a final participation rate of 25.7 percent
and raised a total of $168,799 to
all funds at Sweet Briar. Thank you,
classmates, who are able to support
beloved SBC financially, and to those
who find other ways to sustain our
alma mater.
Jean Von Schrader Bryan: Loving
life in Amherst. Empty nest is
nice! New pool has made me very
happy this summer. I’m so proud of
our class for its increased giving percentage!
Turning 59 [in September]
... Sliding down toward 60 next year.
Deborah Price Bowman: My
children are both seniors — Kate in
college at the New School in Manhattan;
Kessler at White Mountain
School in New Hampshire. I’m enjoying
N.J./NYC, tennis, paddle,
running singles social and tennis
groups locally, and possibly helping
my mom move. Observing her Marie
Kondo-like “Swedish Death Cleaning,”
I am inspired to start on mine
now rather than later!
Ruth Fowler Whitlow: I still live
in my great hometown, Athens, GA
(Remember Michelle & me blaring
out B52’s and newly-famous REM,
Athens being the birthplace of those
icons?). Bruce and I enjoy our summer
wake surfing and veg gardening.
Ready to embark on a bicycle journey
through Slovenia and Croatia in
September. I see Michelle when in
Chi — and Lisa Blake, too. My oldest
boy works in California; youngest,
Magill, is studying and punts on
football team at Georgia Southern
University. Life is GOOD!
Monty Tripp: Year 1.5 of retirement
continues to be fabulous,
and SBC remains an amazing connection!
With the help of Professor
Paul Cronin and SBC alumna Jane
Frierson ’74, I have found a fabulous
new riding instructor in Northern
Virginia. Between riding, travel,
volunteering, and the publication of
husband Don’s second book this fall,
life is full and truly wonderful.
Jennifer Rae: Not so much news
from me, which is a good thing, for
things have stabilized in my life. I
adopted a rabbit, Oatmeal, from the
Alexandria Animal Welfare League,
and he is the ripe age of 10. I continue
to drive for Lyft and Uber, which
I thoroughly enjoy. I recently signed
up for TaskRabbit. Reading the new
board bios, one of the new board
members is the founder of Task-
Rabbit. The economy has changed
74

so from what we knew, but I do try
to keep up with the trends that will
secure paying work.
Monika Kaiser: If I could describe
this year, it would be a year
of travel and construction. I went
to Germany three times this year —
first picking up Mom, taking her to
her school luncheon in Ohio, then
to take her back, and finally for my
hometown’s festival, which I celebrated
with the family and friends.
The kids, Richard, and I took a fun
cruise, and I finally visited Cuba.
Home construction’s a nightmare,
but we’re almost done.
Lizbeth Kauffman: Keith and
I are getting the Kentucky farm in
shape (new horse fencing, new tractor
and hay baler, automatic waterers
in paddocks, seeding pastures, etc.).
Going to breed several mares this
spring; so hoping for some beautiful
foals in 2019!
Rosemary Hardy: Life is grand
— continue to thoroughly enjoy retirement,
with the best part being
creating my own schedule of my
own activities for each new day. I find
there are not enough hours in a day
still. Home improvements continue
to be done; much easier to arrange
for contractors without a 9-to-5
work schedule interfering.
Liz Hoskinson: It’s just keepin’
on, keepin’ on here, as I continue to
spend the days with the horses, caring
for and riding my own, serving
on committees at the U.S. Eventing
Association, and working each July
as co-chief dressage steward for the
Millbrook, N.Y., Horse Trials. I’m
taking advantage of some drawing
classes, am ensconced in a knitting
group and a book club, gardening
like crazy, staying in touch with
family and caring for an elderly
parent, enjoying the company of
a step-granddaughter, and slowly
updating the weekend house. I am
so, so grateful for the efforts of our
classmates, which are my link to
what’s developing with our beloved,
restored SBC.
Alice Dixon: Alice didn’t send
this news, but it was all over Facebook,
so it must be true: On Oct. 19,
2018, the Richmond chapter of U.S.
Lacrosse celebrated the induction of
the 2018 Hall of Fame honorees, including
our own Alice Dixon!
Mary Ames Booker: I would
like to share that my Aunt Suzanne
Fitzgerald VanHorne ’47 passed
away in June at the age of 92. She
majored in art history and was a fine
pianist and did both as careers while
raising two sons. She was my mother’s
(Kay Fitzgerald Booker’s) twin
sister, and passed away on the same
day, 18 years apart. I’m sure they
visit the SBC campus together now!
They are sorely missed here.
1983
Virginia Claus Buyck
414 Seminole Ave.
Florence, SC 29501
vbc414@aol.com
Would like to start our class
notes with a big “thank you” to Mary
Pope Hutson, whose incredible,
immediate, passionate response that
raised multi-millions for Sweet Briar
was one of the main reasons our college
was saved. In addition to raising
money, she generated energy and enthusiasm
to make Sweet Briar great
again. But — more importantly —
she hosted the after-parties at Red
Top during Reunion – so much fun!
Elena Quevedo wrote what so
many of us said – that it was so nice
to see everyone at the 35th Reunion.
She also said she hoped the annual
mini reunions keep going! Elena’s
daughter, Olivia, who graduated
from RISD, is back home working
for the Gagosian Gallery and writing
for them on Instagram. Her next
stop is grad school in Textile Design.
Bobbie Serrano Black shared
happy wedding news! Her daughter
Anna was married at Sewanee
on April 7, and the family gained a
wonderful son-in-law, Jack Rogers.
They live in Atlanta. Bobbie’s oldest
daughter, Lizzie, married Franklin
Pogue last July, and they live in
Nashville. Youngest daughter Gracie
lives in D.C. Amid all this joy, sadly,
Bobbie lost her sweet father on Dec.
21, 2017. She was most thankful her
parents made Lizzie’s wedding.
Kim Howell Franklin writes
that when she graduated from SBC,
she moved to London for a year to
participate in the Sotheby’s Works
of Art program, headed by Derrick
Shrub. Fast forward 35 years, and
she has just joined TTR Sotheby’s
International Realty as the D.C.
Class of 1983
franchise’s director of relocation and
referrals and her boss’s name is Derrick
with a last name staring with
“S”! Kim is hoping this coincidence
is the bookend to her working career!
Miriam Morris Baker missed
Reunion because she was singing
with her choral group in Italy! Clay
and Miriam are in Birmingham, and
Miriam keeps busy playing tennis,
learning bridge, tap dancing, singing,
attending a Discipleship class, and
napping whenever she can. She has
enjoyed seeing Suzy Turner Brennan,
Virginia Claus Buyck, Lee
Anne MacKenzie Chaskes, Ellen
Clare Gillespie Dreyer, Heather
Willson Flaherty ’84, Mary Pope
Hutson, Elizabeth Cahill Sharman
’84, Laura Morrissette Clark ’85,
and Lesly Allen Bell ’85 over the past
year.
Wendy Chapin Albert and Tolly
will be celebrating their 33rd anniversary
this year! She is proud of her
girls – Eleanor graduated from High
Point University in May, and Annie
is pursuing her Master’s Studies in
Historic Preservation and City Planning
at UPenn. Wendy has a 1-year
old standard poodle with tons of crazy
energy and race horses in training
(cross your fingers for them!)
Katie Grosvenor has just moved
from Chattanooga to Memphis, as
her youngest graduated from Mc-
Callie. Katie said that she welcomes
all SBC visitors – call if you are in
Memphis!
A shout out to Lee Anne MacKenzie
Chaskes who encouraged us
to give, and give often, as our Annual
Fund leader. Lee Anne loved
gathering with Ellen Clare Gillespie
Dreyer, Miriam Baker Morris,
Suzanne Turner Brennan, and Elizabeth
Cahill Sharman ’84 when she
invited everyone to spend the weekend
at Mimi Kitchel DeCamp’s
beautiful home in Nashville (not a
joke, ask Mimi). Their night at the
Blue Bird Café was truly memorable!
Lee Anne also had a wonderful
time celebrating the marriage of
Heather Willson ’84 and Mark Flaherty
in Newport, R.I.
Ann Hart Sterling still runs
dressage shows in Florida, and just
did her first International Show
(CDI-Prix St. Georgies/Intermediaire
1) last year with her mare,
Kashmir.
Ann shares good news of her
daughters: Stephanie is engaged to a
very nice young man who is an International
Engineer, and Ali is living
in Shreveport, La., and working as a
biology professor, while her significant
other is finishing his residency
for dental surgery.
Polly Parker McClure and her
husband have a son who is a freshman
at the University of Alabama
and a daughter who graduated from
college a year ago and lives in Columbus,
Ohio. Polly works for Allstate
Insurance and loves to travel in her
spare time.
Life is good for Mason Bennett
Rummel – she and Rick both enjoy
their work and life in Louisville. Mason
has enjoyed trips to Cumberland
Island, Georgia, Maine, and to SBC
for board meetings. Their youngest
child, Emma, is a Turning Point student
at SBC and graduates in spring
2019. Bennett is married and living
in N.Y.C., and Annie is in Nashville.
Adriana Garza Read and her
husband, Tom, are finally enjoying
being empty nesters after an entire
year of recovering from Harvey.
They dropped their son, Will, off
at Texas A&M a year ago and the
dam release flooded their home the
following weekend. Adriana said she
was thankful they were able to evac-
fall 2018
75

sbc.edu
Bobbie Serrrano Black ’83 family wedding
uate and save some of their things.
Daughter Christina graduates next
May from Belmont University in
Nashville, and Will is now a sophomore.
Heather Riegel Harper and
family are in New York – check out
her company Harper-Lawrence –
her Italian handbags are beautiful!
If you aren’t Facebook friends
with Amy Osaki Boyce, you are
missing some beautiful photos of her
hiking tours! Amy is celebrating 22
years of being self-employed (Mountain
Hiking Holidays, and Art
Tours by Amy) with husband John.
Their daughter graduated from high
school and will start in September
2018 at the Clark Honors College
at the University of Oregon. Amy
saw SBC friends Marijtje van Duijn
from the Netherlands in the U.S.
this summer, and Desiree Bouchat
last summer. She continues to enjoy
Portland, Ore., and hiking and travel.
Ellen Chaney Webster has been
working as a sales associate for J.Jill
since 2015. She also works as a freelance
writer and editor, and encourages
anyone who needs help with
writing and/or editing documents
and fiction/non-fiction manuscripts
to contact her. Ellen’s sons, Andrew
and Robbie, now 17 and 15, are
about to start school. Andrew loves
astronomy, and Robbie is a tech
guru.
Big changes on the way for Leslie
Wright Root and her husband,
Randy (W&L’83). With their sons
grown and out of the nest, they have
sold their house in Dallas, Texas
(home for the past 30 years) and
moved to Telluride, Colo. They are
enjoying the active Colorado lifestyle,
and plan to spend lots of time traveling,
volunteering, and visiting family.
Leslie Malone Berger — our
new class president! — works as
a speech language pathologist and
started at a new school this fall. She
loves working on the newly formed
Pre-School Assessment Team. Leslie
said their biggest news was son
Alex’s wedding last October to his
lovely fiancé, Elena – two W&L
alumni! Pamela Dickens Sellars
attended the wedding and provided
wonderful support — There is nothing
like a Sweet Briar sister! [PHO-
TO – Pamela Dickens Sellars and
Leslie Malone Berger at the wedding
of Alex Berger and Elena Dorogy in
Macon, Georgia]
Cary Cathcart Fagan, our fabulous
class secretary for the past 10
years, sent a beautiful note about
how wonderful it is to stay connected
and the value of our friendships.
In case any of you think she has lost
her sense of humor, she signed off
with “Now, enough sap, Whip it,
Whip It Good.”
Wylie Jameson Small and her
husband, Stuart, have done a lot of
traveling this past year, to their second
home in Hilton Head, S.C.,
Napa, and England. They remain
busy with son Rudy (24) and dogs
Peyton (11) and Cleo (5). Wylie has
been playing a lot of golf and continues
to train for her first-ever elusive
half marathon.
Tracy Gatewood is living the
college town life in Tuscaloosa, Ala.,
where she started a completely new
career at the youthful age of 50 as a
commercial real estate broker. She
also dabbles in residential investment
property. Tracy is writing her
second book and has a blog www.
sacredramblings.com. Tracy said she
loved seeing Bobbie Serrano Black
and Janet Lewis Shepherd at Anna
Black’s wedding.
Alicia Nygaard Formagus and
her husband, Nace, are working
to retire in two years. They have a
17-month-old grandson who brings
them tremendous joy.
Bet Dykes Pope loved catching
up with everyone at Reunion and celebrating
our own Mary Pope Maybank
Hutson! Bet writes that both
of her boys are happy and OLD!
Carter, Jr. married two years ago and
works in real estate in Atlanta. Ross
is getting his MBA at UNC-Chapel
Hill and is newly engaged. Bet is
busy with the arts in Atlanta and
continues to flip houses. She has
enjoyed seeing Ellen Clare Gillespie
Dryer and Mimi Kitchel DeCamp
at the beach, Virginia Claus Buyck
when she darts into town for dinner
and laughs, and Mary Pope Hutson
when she comes to Atlanta on SBC
business. She also sees Jewett Winn
Rothschild, but only when she’s not
busy with her two adorable grandchildren
and buying the boutique
where she’s worked for several years.
Blair Redd Schmieg also loved
seeing everyone at Reunion and welcomes
any and all to Marblehead,
Mass.!
Leigh Cox Garry has lived continuously
in the U.K. since 1990.
Now that her elder daughter has
started studying for a Ph.D. at Princeton
and her younger daughter is
starting at the University of Bristol,
Leigh and Peter will be empty nesters
and hope to visit the U.S. more
often. If anyone is in London or near
the South Coast, please get in touch
with them.
October 2018 will mark the 33rd
year Cate McNider has lived in
N.Y.C. She writes, “This poem in my
growing second collection of poetry
about sums it up:”
Crossroads in the Garden of
Being
A flower cannot be rushed
To blossom; leave it to the sun,
The soil and the rain,
To realize it already has
Grayson Harris Lane is still living
in Menlo Park, Calif. Grayson
and David are empty nesters and
travel often and have fallen in love
with scuba diving. Their daughter,
Virginia, graduated from U.S.C. in
May and is working as a medical
device engineer in San Jose. Their
son is a junior at Duke University,
also studying engineering. Grayson
is very involved tutoring young children
in reading and art.
It was great to hear from Deidre
Platt, who lives in the highland city
of Loja, Ecuador, with her family.
She was on summer holiday with
her two sons in their house in Puerto
Lopez on the seaside, enjoying their
spacious wild garden and lots of fresh
fish daily. Deidre’s eldest daughter,
Tanya, who studied at Sweet Briar,
is happily living in Nashville. Deidre
expects to live in Loja for a few more
years while her children study, and
she can discuss environmental issues
and toxic chemicals on a number
of radios, and also receive SIT students
in ecology. She said she is still
a nature girl and enjoys hikes in Podacarpus
National Park, where over
30 years ago she worked as a Peace
Corps volunteer.
Sarah Babcock happily lives in
Richmond on a tiny farm with lots
of animals and endless projects to
keep her busy. She is the chief of education
& training for the Richmond
SPCA (17 years now) and currently
teaches 20 dog agility classes each
week. She continues to do plenty of
clicker training with her dogs, but
also now with one cat, two horses,
three ponies, a mule, and a new parrot!
Virginia Claus Buyck: Mark
and I live and work in Florence, S.C.
It was fun to attend both the 35th
SBC and W&L reunions this year
– a great group at both. Our daughter
Elizabeth is an accountant in
Charleston, and we have two (Mark
and Brooks) at the University of
South Carolina. Been very lucky this
year to have seen many SBC friends
in many fun places.
76

1983 celebrating the marriage of Heather Willson ’84 and Mark Flaherty in Newport, RI. Virginia, Mimi, Lesly,
Elizabeth, Ellen Clare, Suzanne, Lee Anne, Laura
Ann Hart Sterling’ 83 with Kashmir
Thomas McNutt, Julie McNutt, Alicia Formagus ’83, Nace Formagus,
Michelle McNutt, Will McNutt
Sarah Babcock ’83 and her parrot
Annie, Tolly, Eleanor and Wendy Albert ‘83
Grayson Lane ’83 family
Pamela Dickens Sellars ’83 and Leslie Malone Berger ’83 at the wedding
of Alex Berger and Elena Dorogy in Macon, GA
fall 2018
77

sbc.edu
1985
F Caperton Morton
30 E 55th Street
Kansas City, Mo. 64113
cape1916@gmail.com
Kim Knox Norman and husband
Bart are happily adjusting in
Atlanta to being empty nesters with
both Sally (22) and Joseph (18) in
college. After four years as Conservator
at the Georgia Archives, Kim
is thrilled to be back at Emory University
as Head of Library Conservation.
She spent a great week with
Leah Humenuck ’15 in Charlottesville,
attending Rare Book School at
UVa. Kim will see classmates Katie
Hearn, Lenetta Archard McCampbell,
Christine Corcoran Trauth,
Ann Martin Gonya, and Karen
Gonya Nickles ’86 later this year, and
again for their annual beach trip early
next year.
Barbara Tragakis Conner is
still the director of college counseling
at Foxcroft School. She loves
living in Middleburg, VA. Barb is a
grandmother! “It is as wonderful as
everyone says. My little grandson has
brought enormous joy into our lives.”
Each year, she visits college campuses
around the country. This March,
she’ll be visiting schools in the south:
Tennessee, Mississippi, Texas, Alabama,
Florida, Georgia, South Carolina,
and North Carolina. She would
like to meet up with Vixens during
her travels. Email Barb if you’d like
to grab lunch or dinner. She’d like
to catch up with you! Barbara.Conner@foxcroft.org
Caperton Morton is still enjoying
gathering stories for her upcoming
podcast. She and Chris crossed
off some major items on their list
with their trips back East to Cherrywood
Farm (just down the road
from Sweet Briar). Cape gets to go
back in September to paint some
more fences. Anyone want to help?
It’s SO much fun! ;) On the Fourth
of July, DeAnne Blanton and Dick
Higgins drove down to meet Caperton
and Chris at the Blue Mountain
Barrel House in Arrington, VA, for
some good music. Mitzi Morgan
joined her husband, Chris Caragher,
on his business trip to Kansas
City, Mo., in June. Cape and Chris
enjoyed the heck out of their stay!
Mitzi went down Memory Lane as
they visited her first childhood home
near K.C. Madge Hall Vosberg and
husband Paul’s daughter Vaden left
Green Bank, W.Va., for grad school
in Boulder, Colo., in August. Cape
and Chris were thrilled to have her
stay with them in Kansas City and
enjoyed their walk to the Plaza for
dinner with their lovely, first bundle
of joy.
1989
Emmy Leung
1011 Oakdale Rd NE
Atlanta, GA 30307
fan-han@prodigy.nem
Raquel Hickman Thiebes is still
living in Stuttgart, Germany, with
her Army husband! Kids have grown
and flown with one in Alabama and
the other in Colorado attending university.
Empty nesters unite! Two
years from retirement and trying
to decide where to retire. Anyone
retired yet in AL or FL? She is currently
writing a book and doing tons
of traveling. Many friends use their
home as home base, so let her know
if you roll thru the area!
Camelia Washington Gunn and
family have also settled into life in
Germany and Camelia now has a
teaching job with DoDEA. Having
enjoyed one year as a stay-at-home
Mom, she was looking forward to
getting back to the classroom. She
ran into a fellow Vixen all the way
over in Ramstein, Tiffin Fox. She
said she also has two younger sisters
who are alumnae. Small world!
Kimberly Brookes Driver and
husband, Barry, are still living in
Apex, N.C. They recently celebrated
their one-year wedding anniversary!
The kids keep them busy as they
range from 13-30. Live music is
their passion and she loves showing
off Sweet Briar to friends each year
when they go to the Lockn’ music
festival in Arrington, VA. Kimberly
recently left her position at Duke
and returned to nurse practitioner
school this fall for a post-master’s in
psych mental health.
Lisa Claypool Stevenson, Gina
Pollock Davis, Kimberly Willock
Pardiwala, and Heather Daly Jones
’92 managed another get together in
July (fourth year in a row), this time
At Heidi Belofsky Turk Cromwell and Douglas Cromwell’s wedding
reception. Ellen Weintraub ’72, Martha Swanson, Rebecca Young
Metro ’86, DeAnne Blanton, Ginger Ryan Church, Suzanne Weaver
Zimmer, Heidi, Kate Byrne, Christine Corcoran Trauth, Karen Williams,
Joan Byrne Voss and Vicki Vidal Blum
Heidi Belofsky Turk Cromwell ’85 wedding photo from May 27, 2017.
From left: Wesley and Cynthia Junker, Heidi and Doug Crowmell, Devin
and Grant Turk, our beloved goldendoodle Tyson
at Kimberly’s home in Larchmont,
NY.
Emmy Leung: I was happy to
have a mini reunion in Richmond in
August with JoAnn Bogolin, Sherri
Brockwell Dyman, and Richie
Boyd McGuire. I am looking forward
to our 30th reunion next summer!
Hope to see you there!
1993
Norma Bulls Valentine
206 Four Oaks Rd.
Wagener, S.C. 29164
Norma_v0@yahoo.com
Dianne Hayes Doss No changes
... and big changes. Bill and I continue
with our jobs, but Dan has
started college, and Jenny has started
high school. Great fun to see those
who could make it to Reunion! Love
you all!
Norma Bulls Valentine: Still
working in real estate, mainly in
Wellington, FL. Went to Sweet
Works Week at SBC & brought my
step-granddaughter, Grace, who is
16. Had a great time!
Sabryna Roberson: I happily
call Northern California home —
NE of Sacramento, between San
Francisco & Lake Tahoe! Day-trip
areas: Napa, Sonoma, Lodi, Yosemite,
Monterey. Come visit! During
my REUNION East Coast Trip, I
was graciously hosted by Katherine
Schupp Zeringue ’94, Kelly “Dr.
Pepper” Coggshall ’95, Laura Warren
Armstrong and Mimi Davies
Wroten. So enjoyed our 25-year Reunion
— we missed those not present
and see y’all in 2023, if not before!
78

Dianne Hayes Doss ’93 on a family trip to Alaska
Norma Bulls Valentine ’93 and granddaugher Grace at Reunion 2018
CAPS Playoffs, game 1 watch
party in DC, Sabryna Roberson ’93
with Pepper Coggshall ‘95 -
June 2018 #ALLCAPS
1994
Molly Flasche
152 N Remington Rd.
Bexley, OH 43209
molly.flasche@gmail.com
Amelia McDaniel writes that
she’s still loving life in RVA! She’s
busy with work and kids. Wyly
has started school at St. Margaret’s
in Tappahannock, VA. Amelia is
thrilled that she’s getting to experience
an all-girl’s school. Jed is going
into 7th grade. “God love all mommas
of middle school boys!” She sees
Kristen Osmundsen Boyd often,
and will sometimes see Polly Crawford
’93 and Lyssa Vaught ’95.
Vinca Swanson is in Portland,
OR, dabbling with a comic book
idea about immigration and the
history of American Manufacturing.
She built an “outdoor bathtub/
deck experience” her back yard over
the summer. She’s working on a
small mural and trying to get in
rock climbing and mountain biking
when she can. She tries to avoid social
media (except when I hound her
about class notes!) She’s having fun
with her girlfriend, Lisa, and enjoying
working from home with her cat,
Tyrone.
Linda Lombardo is still loving
retirement and is setting sail in October
for a long-awaited cruise vacation.
She has been retired since 2009
and Tony retired in 2017. They have
been watching their third grandchild
during her first year and Madison
is now in daycare so it is time for a
getaway. They were thrilled to watch
their first grandchild Logan in 2010
and Hannah in 2013. Linda and
Tony’s oldest son, daughter-in-law
and youngest son are still at the law
firm in Charlotte. Their middle son
is a buyer for Whole Foods. They
all live within seven miles so that is
the dream. Linda and Tony manage
properties in Huntersville. They
are considering some side projects
once they get bored. Linda remains
in contact with Leslie Rodgers and
would love to hear from the other
Turning Point students from the
90s. “That program was, and I hope
it continues to be, a blessing to woman
outside of traditional college age,”
she writes.
Last summer Molly Phemister
took a break from the food forest, her
darling three-year-old and the cat she
adopted from Katherine Cook to go
galivanting around the West solo for
two whole weeks, including a short
stint of gardening and hiking with
Melissa Broderick Eaton ’96 and her
passel of handsome sons. The trip
was rejuvenating, and now it’s nice to
be home with the family.
Katherine Cook moved into an
almost-tiny house in October 2017.
She’s happily single and embracing
the role of Crazy Cat Lady. She loves
her dogs, her horse, and her garden
and she’s considering taking up
witchcraft, just to be contrary.
Alexandra Stewart Manwarren
had a great time getting together
with local alumnae ladies. She and
Margaret Frederick ‘93 attended
Diner en Blanc together. She’s still
riding and working at Pegasus Therapeutic
Riding Academy.
Kim Bramley Estep writes that
Morgan is a senior and in full college
exploration mode. She loves JMU,
High Point and Elon so far. She
doesn’t want the SBC experience,
unfortunately. She plans to study
business management and entrepreneurism.
Was just voted field hockey
captain. Ryleigh is a junior and she’s
not interested in a college search yet.
Isn’t sure what she wants to do other
than NOT have a cubicle job and to
travel the world. Scott is her rock as
she continues to grow Convention
Nation. They are looking at being
empty-nesters in only 2 years and are
beginning to think about the second
stage of their lives. She would love to
catch up with SBC classmates.
Amy Biathrow Ross has been
at Red Hat, a Fortune 500 software
company, going on 17 years. She was
recently promoted to senior manager,
global compliance, which means
that her team is responsible for making
sure that all Red Hat companies
comply with laws and regulations
that apply when doing business internationally
(trade compliance, anti-corruption,
establishing entities
in foreign countries, etc.). She feels
lucky to have a fascinating job at a
company that she feels really appreciates
her. She and Craig celebrated
their 21st wedding anniversary
and are still enjoying Raleigh, NC.
She’s got teenagers! Kate will be 15
in November, is taking Driver’s Ed
and is in high school. Reid is in 7th
grade and will turn 13 this fall. The
Ross family is managed by two Bergamascos
(Italian Sheepdogs) who
constantly herd them and follow
them everywhere. She’s looking forward
to our 25th reunion (GULP)
next spring and hopes to see many
1994s there!
I, Molly Flasche, am staying
busy with Eddie (4), who just entered
pre-K. He’s a bundle of energy
and thankfully Chuck and I are still
able to stay a step ahead of him! I’m
still a docent at the Columbus Museum
of Art, and now that Eddie’s
in school every morning, I’m getting
fall 2018
79

Sisi Zirkle Carroll ‘93 (bridesmaid), Katrhyn Czarkowski, Gretchen Vida,
Kara Dickey Moore, Kathy Whitby, Cat Ehlen Breeden, Catherine Orr
Nihem ‘95
Jen Parker Raudenbush ’95, Karen Giorgetti ’95, Kelly Hall ’95 and Cari
Miller James ‘95
more involved with that, and taking
on some new responsibilities. 2018
was a summer of projects on our
own version of This Old House, so we
stayed close to home, but I’m looking
forward to being in Virginia in late
May-early June 2019 for reunion. I
hope you’ll join us!
Clarkie Woods Duke ’12 and Katie Maxwell Schellhammer ’95
sbc.edu
1995
Katie Maxwell Schellhammer
22914 Goldenrod Dr.
Brambleton, Va. 20148
Katie@schellhammer.net
Kelly Hall ’95 in Ireland
Sarah Young Bass and husband
Mike visited Australia, where she
saw friends in Brisbane and then
headed to Cairns. A highlight of the
trip was staying at sea, with frequent
dives in the Great Barrier Reef. Last
year, they moved from Colorado
Springs to Denver, where Sarah is
the HR director for a Fortune 300
energy company. Feel free to visit
them and their yellow lab, Henry,
anytime.
In August, Cat Ehlen married
Jeremy Breeden at her parents’ home
in Durham, N.H. They honeymooned
in Mexico and live in Lake
Tahoe Incline Village, Nev., where
they moved last December for Jeremy’s
dream IT job. She has been
busy skiing, hiking, mountain biking,
and loving the lake.
Kelly Hall is teaching for the
U.S. Navy and had some great port
visits in Batumi, Georgia, and Jordan.
She went to Iceland on her own
for two amazing weeks. (She says,
“Thanks, Jane Rabadi for the good
advice!”) In July, Kelly got together
with Cari Miller James, Jen Parker
Raudenbush, and Karen Giorgetti.
Gwen Hickey Babcock, Beverley
Stone Dale, and Bergen Hall
Daley had a mini-reunion with husbands
and kids over the summer.
Stephanie’s last Virginia Girls’ Night Out. Katie Maxwell Schellhammer ’95.
Heather Aspinwall Chiles ’95, Anna Reilly ’95, Anna’s sister Laura,
Stephanie Pearson Davis ’95
Gwen Hickey Babcock ’95, Beverley Stone Dale ’95 and Bergen Hall
Daley ’95 had a mini-reunion with husbands and kids over the summer
80

Stephanie Pearson Davis and
family have moved to Monument,
CO, where her husband, Rob (VMI
’95) is currently assigned at Peterson
Air Force Base. Their oldest, Page,
started her sophomore year at Young
Harris College. Zack is a freshman
in high school, and their youngest,
Katie Belle, is starting 6th grade. Before
the move out west, Stephanie’s
amazing roommates, Anna Reilly
and Nicole Stewart Fowler, brought
dinner and made plans for a visit out
West in February.
As for me, Katie Maxwell
Schellhammer, I spent a July week
at the A Bar A Ranch in Wyoming,
where I met another alumna, ranch
employee Clarkie Woods Duke ’12.
My daughter Nora adored the horses
and the young W&L & UVa boys/
employees. I think I have a future
SBC girl in the making!
1996
Eileen MacMurtrie
718 Larchwood Ln.
Villanova, Pa. 19085
Eileen.macmurtrie@uphs.upenn.edu
Sarah Reidy Ferguson continues
to write her Atlanta-based lifestyle
blog, Duchess Fare, featuring reviews
of recently published interior design
books, culinary happenings, decor
finds & more. She’s happy to be a
part of the Alumnae Alliance as cochair
for social media and managing
the AA Twitter feed; please follow
along @sbcalumnae. Sarah is super
proud of the Class of 1996 and the
success of our “Wear Your Pink,
Give Your Green” giving campaign,
with over 40 percent class participation!
Robin Bettger Fishburne writes
that her daughter, Gibbs, made the
varsity volleyball team this year as an
8th grader and will start as a rightside
hitter. She and her husband are
super proud! Son Parker started 1st
grade and loves getting hugs from his
big sister every day at lunch. Robin
loves being a room mom for his
classroom and continues to work as a
realtor, which she’s been doing for 18
years! They also have a new addition
to their family, Hunter, a handsome
Bay Holstein. The Fishburnes love
showing people around Charleston;
so let them know if you’re headed
into town.
Heather Baskett lives in Northern
Virginia and is the Animal Care
Operations Manager at Fairfax
County Animal Shelter. She has a
house of animals, and she also lives
with her longtime girlfriend. She
recently saw Mary Gordon Gill
’95 while at Smith Mountain Lake.
Life is busy and good! If you’re in
Northern Virginia and are looking
for a new furry BFF – go and find
Heather!
Beth Ike is still living in Charlottesville
and is glad to see Susie
Gross Leroy and Margaret Brodie
Williams ’97 as often as possible.
This August the three of them went
to the music festival Lockn’, just up
the road from SBC at Oak Ridge,
and enjoyed the company of another
Charlottesville-based vixen, Hobby
Holmes Cole ’98. Sadly, we do not
have any photographic evidence, but
a good time was had by all!
Catherine Lanter Carrick and
husband John traveled to Malawi
over the summer with GAIA (Global
AIDS Interfaith Alliance) to support
this organization that helps
those most affected by HIV/AIDS,
tuberculosis, and malaria. Afterward,
they went on safari to the Ngorongoro
Crater and Serengeti & Tarangire
National Parks in Tanzania. The
last part of their trip was a 9-day trek
to the summit of Mount Kilimanjaro,
Tanzania. Epic adventure!
Ardas Hiribarne Khalsa and
family moved to Las Cruces, N.M.,
for the last leg of her husband’s residency.
Her children, Dharam Inder
(10) and Gian Kamal (6), are doing
well in their new home. She continues
to teach kundalini yoga and perform
healing treatments.
Leah Jorgensen Jean had a pretty
busy year and summer! Leah married
Asa on June 1st at the Red Fox
Inn in Middleburg, VA. Classmates
Meg Magistro Arcadia, Eileen
MacMurtrie Zuckerman, and Cindy
Rakow Readyhough were attendants.
Leah and Asa are also expecting
a baby boy in January. They’re
about to close on a small farm home
in Newberg, Ore., in wine country,
where she produces her wine, just as
they are getting ready to begin harvest.
Meg Magistro Arcadia had a
wonderful time celebrating Leah
Jorgensen Jean’s wedding with
Cindy and myself. Meg and husband
Chris have been living in New
Providence, N.J., for the past three
years with their two children Nico
(12) and Nina (7). Meg teaches 2nd
grade at Montclair Kimberley Academy
and also serves as the diversity
coordinator.
Jesse Durham Strauss writes
that after taking six months off from
being a meeting planner at Strategic
Analysis, Inc. in Arlington, Va., she
now works very part-time, which
allows her to be with their 3 active
children, Anna (6th grade), Audrey
(5th grade), and Ari (2nd grade), as
well as their chocolate Labradors,
Coco and Rosie (named in honor of
the Sweet Briar Rose). She enjoys
grabbing lunch with Rachel Baltus
Price and seeing Janeen Sharma
when she comes east.
Lastly, Laura Lechler Hornef
and husband Jim are thrilled to announce
the birth of their beautiful
daughter, Rhea Jane Hornef, on
June 3, 2018. Rhea was born at the
Tripler Army Hospital on Oahu at
9:49 a.m., weighing 6 lbs., 10 ozs.,
and measuring 20 inches long. Laura
and Jim were overjoyed to welcome
their Hawaiian princess to their
family.
1998
Cynthia Hineline
1613 Finefrock Rd.
Fremont, Ohio 43420
Cyndi.hineline@gmail.com
Class president Chantel Bartlett,
says, “It was such a joy seeing
everyone at Reunion. Y’all save the
date for our 25th! Thank you to
those of you who honored me with
being able to support and serve our
class. All is well in my world, settling
more and more into the new house
with Mom. Lots of painting going
on! Exciting project is underway, will
update soon.”
Heather Thomas Armbruster:
In May, I started full time with
Southern Union State Community
teaching Human Anatomy and
Physiology. These are the same classes
that I have been teaching part time
for 14 years. I have designed and
Rhea Jane Hornef, daughter of
Laura Lechler Hornef
Catherine ’95 and John Carrick,
Uhuru Peak, Mount Kilimanjaro,
Tanzania
April Collins Potterfield ’96, Jesse
Durham Strauss ’96, Rachel Baltus
Price ’96, Jen Beck Locke ’96,
Mary Copeland ’96 and Janeen
Sharma ’96 at Hall Wines in St.
Helena, CA, in November 2017
completed 2 quilts so far this year,
and I’m starting on my first block
of the month quilt, which will be a
king-size quilt. I still strive to learn
something new with every project.
For the first time in many moons,
Cynthia Bumgardner Pucket is no
longer in charge of anything nor homeschooling.
It is definitely a shock
fall 2018
81

sbc.edu
to her system. Darrin is a happy guy!
Kelly Bowman Greenwood
has been traveling: Dana Bordvick
Poleski and I met up in Paris in June
and then spent a week painting our
way through Southern France in a
floating watercolor workshop on a
canal boat. We stayed in Arles and
Aix-en-Provence as well. Hard to
believe it has been 21 years since we
roamed Paris together in JYF! Also
visited Sophie Simonard ’96 and her
sweet baby Lucien this spring!
Alison Burnett has some catching
up to do: I haven’t updated in
forever; so excuse the old news. I had
Tommy (age 5) in 2013. In 2016 the
Cubs won the World Series, which
still thrills me since I literally waited
for them to win my entire life. I
married Joe in 2017. I’m not working
at the moment, but we’ve started
construction on a multigenerational
farmhouse in Wisconsin; so I’m definitely
busy. I’ve really enjoyed seeing
classmates at our Reunions and connecting
with Midwestern alums back
home. My family and I are living in
Chicago. Please look us up if you are
ever in town!
As for myself, Cyndi Hague
Hineline, I just finished a run in
Sondheim’s “Assassins” and am looking
forward to a busy opera chorus
season, starting with “The Magic
Flute.” Alex is starting eighth grade,
and I can hardly believe how much
faster every year flies by! Being brand
new to the class secretary position, I
promise I’ll get better at gathering
and compiling our notes! It was lovely
seeing many of our classmates at
Reunion, and I hope to join some of
you before our next 25th!
2001
Meredith Eads
1905 Vandover Rd.
Henrico, Va. 23229
Meredithk8eads@yahoo.com
The Class of 2001 has had an
eventful year. Our members have
survived floods and wildfires. There
are new babies joining our families
and children heading off to high
school. Many of us are turning 40
this year. Here are updates from a
few of our SBC sisters.
Christina Paolichi was promoted
last year to project manager
within Wood Group, with whom
she has been employed since leaving
the Navy in 2013. Unfortunately, she
was adversely impacted by Hurricane
Harvey, resulting in the need to
gut and rebuild her home. This will
be a long restoration process, but she
is grateful for the aid of countless
work volunteers and the contributions
and/or expressions of concern
by Shweta Sharma Mistry, Elizabeth
Hamshaw Mitchell ’00, Jessica
Shannon ’03 and Jennifer Taylor
Catano ’02, who brought Christina
and her volunteers an awesome
lunch. Christina — we all hope that
your restoration and recovery is going
smoothly, and you are feeling settled
and secure once again!
Jessica McCloskey wrote earlier
in the spring that she was minutes
away (or 4 months, depending on
how you count!) from submitting
her thesis on restorative justice to
earn her doctorate in clinical psychology;
so that is most of her life
right now. She’s still in England, outside
of London, applying for her first
job as a forensic clinical psychologist
to start in the fall. She’s raising a little
miniature schnauzer puppy named
Gerda, who takes beach holidays
without her. By now, I imagine that
her thesis has been submitted. This
is so exciting! Wishing you all the
best, Jessica!
This spring, Amy Tabb let us
know that she is continuing her
work at a USDA lab in W.Va. and
raising two kids (3 and 7) with husband
Dave. She’s had a busy travel
schedule with talks and conferences
this winter but was happy to get
down to SBC for Engineering Week,
where she got to chat with Meta
Glass floormates (from 1997!) Megan
Thomas Rowe and Meredith
Taylor Eads (me!).
Megan Thomas Rowe and her
family recently moved to Fredericksburg,
VA. This was a short move
from Caroline County, but it made a
huge difference for her family. Now
the kids play in the neighborhood
and ride the bus to school. Megan
is still working as a scientist for the
Navy but was recently put in charge
of a new branch requiring her to
spend a lot of time recruiting. It
is new and exciting! Megan and I,
Meredith Taylor Eads, were happy
to join Sweet Work Weeks again this
year in August. We painted rooms
Megan Thomas Rowe ‘01 with her husband, Matthew Rowe (HSC ‘03), at
a 60th Anniversary of the Submarine Launched Ballistic Missile Program
in Reid and are looking forward to
doing it again next year. We’ll be
recruiting classmates to come and
work and play with us as soon as
dates are released.
Julia Kientz Ambersley recently
wrote that she can’t believe that it’s
her 14th year of teaching! This year
she has a new adventure with teaching
second graders. She’s excited to
share that she was chosen as a presenter
at the NCAIS Annual Educators’
Conference in Oct., where she
will be presenting the class Writing
Essays with Elementary Students.
She always loves catching up with
our SWEET sisters, and recently
had the pleasure of spending the afternoon
with Jamie Solimando!
I’ve enjoyed catching up with
Megan, and Amy this year at different
events. I was also able to spend
the year working with Donna Harwood
’99 in Hanover County Public
Schools! She was a great partner on
our Special Education Elementary
Lead Team! After a 6.5-year stint
with HCPS, I decided to head back
to the private sector and now work
full time as a behavior analyst with
Dominion Youth Services in Richmond.
I miss Donna but am enjoy-
Megan Thomas Rowe ‘01 with her family at Isle of Palms, SC, for the
solar eclipse last August
82

ing my new work! Looking forward
to meeting up with Angela Aiken
Cameron for Hip Hop Nutcracker
in Baltimore this upcoming holiday
season!
I know that many of us keep in
touch over Facebook and feel like
we’ve got nothing new to share when
it comes time for class notes. But,
please send in your updates! Tell us
about the new beer you’re brewing,
your new puppy, or that miracle baby
you just had! I know that I love these
old-fashioned updates as much as
the instant ones online, and I’m sure
many of you do, too. :-) With love,
Meredith.
2002
Kathleen McNamara Brown
2115 Natahoa Ct.
Falls Church, Va. 22043
mcnamara02@gmail.com
Amy Mullen is currently illustrating
her next board book with
Duopress — Colors of the Southwest.
Her ABC Animals flash cards will
hit shelves this October. Amy’s flip
book (My First Lift-the-Flap Animal
Book) is at Target stores nationwide.
Illustration aside, Amy loved seeing
Ashley Trantham Saunders, Dr.
Michelle Dunn, and Joanna Mullen,
at the wedding of Meg Fronk
Nice this past July!
Katie McNamara Brown recently
earned her CISM certification
and enjoys the challenge of working
in Cyber. Katie continues to enjoy
being a Girl Scout Troop leader and
reports that her troop of 5th graders
are all phenomenal young leaders!
Between all the kids’ activities and
camps this summer, Katie and her
family did enjoy a relaxing week at
the beach. Katie and her husband,
Adam Leary, are overjoyed to share
that they are expecting a baby boy in
March 2019. Katie, Adam, Emma,
Carolyn, and all the pups and horses
are looking forward to welcoming
the new family member when he
arrives!
In April, Denise McDonald
Gentry and her husband, Temple
(HSC ’03), hosted a get-together
with her SBC girls, their husbands
and kids at her family’s beach house
in Tybee Island, Ga. It was wonderful
to spend time together! Denise’s
son, Graham, had a great time with
all the guests! Attendees included
Lori Smith Nilan, husband Andrew
(HSC ’01), and son Thomas; Brook
Tucker Buck, husband Trey, and son
James; Kelly Monical Goossens,
husband Dustin, and sons Lachlan
and Weston; and Maria Thacker
Goethe, husband Patrick, and
daughter Cecilia. Ashley Johnson
McGee ’03 and her family couldn’t
make the trip, but paper Ashley had
a good time!
Brook Tucker Buck has moved
back to Raleigh to be closer to family.
Husband Trey got a job with IBM
in international tax, and Brook started
a new nursing job in the operating
room at the WakeMed Raleigh
Campus, switching from orthopedics
to neurosurgery! Brook will
be meeting up for a much-needed
girls’ weekend in Oct. to celebrate
the birthday of Lori Smith Nilan!
“We’re headed to N.Y.C. with Maria
Thacker Goethe, Kelly Monical
Goossens, Denise McDonald Gentry,
and Ashley Johnson McGee ’03.
Can’t wait!!”
Stacey Armentrout Fallah had
quite the busy summer this year between
family reunions, several camps
for son Jackson, and the family beach
trip to Topsail Island, N.C. “While
we were at Topsail, Jackson participated
in a great camp where he
worked with sea turtles! Jackson and
our daughter Emma are both getting
so big and growing up so fast — time
needs to slow down!”
Heather Christensen Smith recently
moved back to Santa Barbara
with her husband and 3 daughters!
She is running Wazi Shoes, a socially
conscious company making
handmade sandals in Tanzania and
donating a percentage of sales to
nursing scholarships in East Africa
(www.wazishoes.com)! In addition,
Heather is still curating an exhibit!
Shannon Robinson started a
new job with the Dispensary of
Hope in Nashville, Tenn., this past
February. It’s a nonprofit organization
that coordinates the donation
and distribution of pharmaceuticals
to low-income and uninsured community
members. Shannon reports
that the role has been both challenging
and rewarding! Shannon also
started a family with her partner,
Shawn Capley. Cecelia Ann (future
Top left to right: Lori Smith Nilan ’02, Denise McDonald Gentry ’02,
Brook Tucker Buck ’02, Maria Thacker Goethe ’02, paper Ashley Johnson
McGee ’03, Kelly Monical Goossens ’02
class of 2040!) was born April 19,
and Shannon and Shawn are both
still solidly in the sleep-deprivation
stage of new parenthood.
Donyele Gibson Wilkerson just
celebrated one year in her new home
in Hanover, MD, where she lives
with her husband and 4th grade son,
Earl. She continues to work as an
education and training coordinator
for the Department of Defense, just
finishing an 18-month detail with
the Office of the Director of National
Intelligence. She loves keeping
up with fellow classmates on social
media.
Amanda Davis Stevens was
happy to see Kathlyn Pierce at the
Sacramento Sweet Briar back-toschool
event. Amanda is in her 5th
year at her firm and was named a
Rising Star again! Amanda and her
husband just bought a new house
and are busy making it “home.”
Amanda is also training for her 3rd
marathon; she will be running the
CIM on Dec. 2.
Kathleen Fowler has happy
news to share! Kathy just celebrated
her 1-year anniversary of her
successful cancer surgery — 1 year
cancer-free! Kathy reports that the
change is night and day. She and her
wife, Amy Waller, did a bit of traveling
this summer, down to Asheville,
N.C., for a week, then to visit
family. Kathy’s sister has moved to
Northern Va. with her husband and
her parents have moved to Orange,
where they plan to stay in their retirement.
Kathy loves that they are
all so close by now! She has just
started her 17th year teaching at
Fauquier High School in Warrenton
and reports that she loves teaching
Jackson and Emma, children of
Stacey Armentrout Fallah ’02,
enjoying 4th of July fireworks
Heather Christensen Smith ’02
with sister and co-founder of Wazi
Shoes, Alice Christensen Majid
as much now as she did when she
first began! It might sound silly, but
Kathy’s starting to feel like a proper
“adult” at last — she certainly has
enough white hair! She’s starting a
streak, and she expects she will be
fall 2018
83

sbc.edu
Rogue from the X-Men for Halloween
this year!
Ashley Trantham Saunders
was married on April 14 in Raleigh,
N.C., in a lovely ceremony. Arney
Walker provided gorgeous calligraphy
and Aja Grosvenor Stephens
gave a beautiful reading. Ashley celebrated
the day with fellow alumnae
Melissa Cates, Amy Mullen, Joanna
Mullen, Jee-Yon Park Pae, Dr.
Michelle Dunn, and Meg Fronk
Nice.
Meghan Gregory was promoted
to administrative manager with the
Knoxville General Office of New
York Life and moved to Knoxville in
late April. She is excited about the
new role and is looking forward to
discovering Knoxville!
2004
Ginny Wood Susi
2929 Dorell Ave
Orlando, FL 32814
ginnysusi@gmail.com
Ginny Wood Susi and husband
Phil are expecting their 3rd child.
This baby will join Evie (6) and
Nicholas (2) and 2 chiweenie rescues.
Ginny still lives in Orlando and
looks forward to our 15th Reunion
next year.
Sara Gredler changed careers in
May 2018 and moved from Austin,
TX, to Salt Lake City, UT. She’s
now working as a full-time genealogical
researcher at AncestryProGenealogists,
the research arm of Ancestry.com.
She still presents on various
genealogy topics and is working on
becoming a certified genealogist as
well as exploring her new city.
Mary Morris Park, along with
her husband, Robert, welcomed
their 4th baby boy on 3-1-18, Brooks
Alexander. Brooks joins big brothers
Ethan (12), Davis (10) and Colin
(8). Everyone is adjusting well to
the new addition. Mary continues to
serve as the director of Christian education
at First Presbyterian Church
in Richmond.
Tiffany McCabe Carr finished
teaching elementary music
for Southampton County Public
Schools after 14 years. This year she
joined Suffolk Public Schools and
will be a middle school music teacher.
She lives in Suffolk with her husband,
Joseph, and their three sons:
David (9), Charles (3), and Michael
(1). Tiffany and Joseph celebrated
their 10th wedding anniversary on
7-19-18.
Jozanne Summerville has taken
on a new role as Auntie JoJo to
her fun-loving nieces and nephews.
Their energy keeps her going while
she continues her career as a financial
analyst for the Navy. She misses
her SBC crew and hopes to make the
trip for our 15th Reunion next year!
Stacey Maddox is living in Anchorage,
AK, and working as an
internist at Alaska Native Medical
Center. She and her husband, John
Hetzel, recently drove up the Dalton
Highway above the Arctic Circle to
Deadhorse. They went for a dip in
the Arctic Ocean, crossing an item
off their bucket list. Stacey will be
celebrating her 36th birthday in
Nov. in Hawaii with John and their
daughters Beatrice and Zinnia. They
plan on spending two weeks in New
Zealand in the spring.
Schyler Ellis Burke and husband
Peter relocated to Houston. Peter
accepted a new position as senior
drilling engineer/drilling manager
for Tellurian Energy. They live in
Fulshear, TX, with their 5 children,
1 dog, and 2 cats.
2006
Victoria Chappell Harvey
8618 Waldon Heights
San Antonio, TX 78254
sweetbriarcollege2006@gmail.com
Just a quick reminder that the
Alumnae Alliance needs volunteers
to fill all kinds of positions from Admissions
Ambassadors (join the AA
team!) to Alumnae Clubs and everything
in between. Please consider
volunteering; you can give as little or
as much time as you have. Check out
the opportunities at http://sbc.edu/
alumnae-development/alumnae-alliance/.
Also, make sure to make
your best gift to SBC to help with
our class participation and to help
SBC reach its goals for dollars and
participation.
Michelle Badger has been busy
recovering from ACL surgery in
March, but she has had the opportunity
to travel for work and for fun
since April. In April she was able to
Patty Cole Monroe ’86 and
Michelle Badger ’06 randomly
meeting on an Alaskan cruise
Victoria Chappell Harvey ’06
and Michelle Badger ’06 at The
Alamo, San Antonio,TX
see Victoria Chappell Harvey when
she attended the National School
Board Conference in San Antonio.
In June she visited SBC for Reunion
Weekend, and she hopes more of
our class can attend next year. In July
she went on an Alaska Land and Sea
Cruise, and it was amazing! On the
cruise, she met Patty Cole Monroe
’86, thanks to her collection of SBC
gear — it definitely comes in handy!
Nicole Brandt married Brian
Turner on May 28, 2017. To keep
their first year interesting, they both
went back to school — she started a
graduate program in Fish and Wildlife
at Colorado State University, and
he started an apprenticeship at the
pipe-fitters union as a welder. They
are getting ready to move into their
first home purchase — a 1920’s
farmhouse in Loveland, CO, with
their 3 ducks, 2 chickens, and 1 dog.
Charis Chase Lease-Trevathan
passed her LCSW exam in June!
Now she is making her way through
the paperwork until she’s a Licensed
Clinical Social Worker. She has
really embraced Dialectical Behavior
Therapy working at Princeton
House Behavioral Health, and having
a clinical-level license will give
her the opportunity to have her own
DBT practice one of these days.
This spring, Lindsey Cline left
10 years in communications and
fundraising (and her position as
director of communications and
annual giving at a nonprofit) and
made the career switch to landscape
designer. She has been a gardener
all her life and has always wanted
to leave office jobs for work that is
particularly meaningful to her. She
and her husband, Shrader Stone, together
transform sad backyards into
beautiful spaces across central Virginia.
She kept her favorite client, the
Shenandoah National Park Trust,
with whom she consults on communications
projects, but devotes her
time to designing edible and native
landscapes and earning a master’s
degree in landscape architecture. She
can’t wait to celebrate Joanna Meade’s
wedding this fall and keeps up
with Jenn Wiley and Abby Adams.
Maureen McGuire will be enrolling
in a Ph.D. program in Visual
Studies at the University of California
Santa Cruz.
Victoria Chappell Harvey is
finally settled into Texas life. She
works as a contractor for the Department
of Labor and travels
around facilitating workshops for
military members transitioning into
the civilian workforce. Earlier this
year she had a fabulous reunion with
Michelle Badger, and they loved exploring
San Antonio together.
2007
Emily Nicole Olson
1106 N. Rio Street
Fort Stockton, TX 79735
emilynicoleolson@gmail.com
Danielle Briggs-Hansen, Elsa
Mittelholtz Cannon and Renee
Modzelewski Jauregui ’06 had a mini
reunion to celebrate Renee’s baby
shower in August.
Laura Jane Schaefer visited Natalie
Pye and Margaret Loebe ’06 in
July! Daughter Maisie started pre-K
and is as much a delight as always.
Laura continues to work at OHSU’s
West Campus leading their sustainability
efforts. “I am preparing to take
84

Ashlee Mays Kidd ‘09 with her husband Adam, daughter Skylar, and son
Lucas
Danielle Briggs-Hansen ‘07 guesses Renee Modzelewski Jauregui ‘06’s
belly size at her Aug. 2018 baby shower while Elsa Mittelholtz Cannon
‘07 looks on
Heidi Trude ‘07 was named the
2018 SCOLT World Language
Teacher of the Year in March 2018
the first exam for the International
Society of Sustainability Professionals
certification; so hopefully by the
time this is published, I will have
passed and be scheming on how to
make it to the next level.”
Heidi Trude was named the
2018 SCOLT World Language
Teacher of the Year in March. She
is now one of five finalists for the
title of ACTFL National Language
Teacher of the year. Heidi will compete
for the national title in Nov. at
the ACTFL Convention in New
Orleans. Heidi spent most of her
summer in France traveling with her
students and then participating in
the SPCD program at CAVILAM
in Vichy, France.
Whitney Wheeler lives in Charlotte,
N.C., and loves her new job as
an assistant property manager for
RKW Residential.
2009
Jenny Walkiewicz Dill
13938 SW Crist Court
Tigard, Ore. 97223
Jenny.Dill11@gmail.com
Maggie Nicholson joined the
staff of Georgia Institute of Technology
as event coordinator in Oct.
2017. She graduated from Emory
University’s Landscape Design
certification program in June 2018
and has been accepted to Georgia
State University’s Master of Heritage
Preservation program with
plans to start classes in spring 2019.
Currently renovating her tiny horse
farm house, she will be making a
career change to residential remodeling
in the coming years. Follow
@southernscotch on Instagram for
DIY project updates and to partner
on designs/projects; she’s looking to
build her portfolio to focus on offgrid
equestrian properties! Maggie
met classmates Lauren Ogilvie and
Maeve Tibbets in Rodanthe, N.C.,
for a mini-reunion in May, meeting
Lauren’s daughter Evelyn for the
first time. Maggie also reunited with
Amanda Strickland, Melissa Diehl
Perry, Melissa Ramos Jacklin ’10,
and Gretchen McDonough ’08 in
The Plains, VA, in July for Amanda’s
bachelorette party. She is looking
forward to visiting campus in Nov.
for Amanda’s wedding.
Meagan Bell Bigham and her
husband, Justin, purchased and are
renovating a house in Lynchburg
(there are 3 SBC alumnae on their
street!). Justin and Meagan got engaged
in December and ran off to St.
Augustine, Fla., to get married April
27! On June 3, Meagan had the honor
to stand beside her best friend
and SBC sister Melissa Viars as
she married the man of her dreams!
Meagan is still working at Harris
Corporation and was promoted to
financial planning and analysis manager
in June.
Doreen McVeigh and her husband,
Ken, have just moved into their
new Canterbury, England, home,
Broughton House, with the ruins of
St Augustine’s Abbey (founded 597
AD) in their garden. SBC students
and alums are most welcome to visit!
Heather Theunissen is an account/project
manager at Fathom
Creative, a branding agency in the
heart of Washington, D.C. Heather
is also getting married this fall, tying
the knot with her fiancé, Bradford
Gregg, in Nov.! Heather still dabbles
in the equestrian world and teaches
riding lessons and trains horses on
the weekends, in addition to leading
hikes, camping trips, and exploring
the great outdoors!
Brooke Agee recently moved to
Troy, VA, with her daughter Harper-Page!
Mary Susan Sinclair-Kuenning
and her husband, James Flanagan,
now live with their three cats and
dogs in Largo, FL. James is a 3rdyear
resident physician, looking
to specialize in pulmonary critical
care. Mary Susan is working with
an agency out of Orlando as their
only Volta wheel performer and is
teaching modern dance, Cyr wheel
& Gyrotonic, as well as performing
throughout the U.S. She was
recently on the “Harry” show with
Harry Connick, Jr., performing Cyr,
and has four different performances
coming in Sept.! She hopes to bring
Cyr wheel back to SBC and share
her passion through a workshop
within a year or so.
Ashlee Mays Kidd and her husband,
Adam, welcomed their son,
From left: Blair Sutton ‘09, Shannon
Schalestock Friedman ‘09, Matt
Friedman (HSC ‘04) Laura Jones
Davis ‘10, and Alexis Parker Van
Selow ‘09
fall 2018
85

Brooke Agee ‘09 and her
daughter Harper-Page
Diana Simpson ’08, Jenny
Wakiewicz Dill (with daughter
Alexa) ’09 and Megan Behrle ’09
meet in Washington, DC, in
August
Rebecca Girten ‘09 and engineering professors Hank Yochum, Kaelyn
Leake ‘09 and Bethany Brinkman pause to take in the scenery during
the Explore Engineering summer course
Melissa Viar ’09 (left) and Meagan
Bell Bigham ’09 at Melissa’s
wedding on June 30, 2018
Melissa Ramos Jacklin ‘10 (far left), Gretchen McDonough ’08 (second
from left), Maggie Nicholson ’09 (third from right) and Melissa Diehl
Perry ’09 (second from right) gathered in The Plains, VA, for the
bachelorette party of Amanda Strickland ’09 (far right)
Meagan Bell Bigham ’09 married
Justin Bigham in St. Augustine,
FL, on April 27, 2018
sbc.edu
Lucas Avery Kidd. Their daughter,
Skylar, loves being a big sister!
Rebecca Girten is starting her
third year on staff at Sweet Briar,
orchestrating all things engineering
and happily making new memories
with former roomie and current engineering
professor Kaelyn Leake,
along with the rest of the Guionites.
Her younger self would love that she
finally got that master key to Guion
and this year became advisor for Falls
on Nose. Don’t forget to call her up
when you’re visiting campus!
Laura Cromwell is still living in
Denver and now is working for a
digital marketing agency. She is also
starting her M.B.A. at the University
of Denver in September. She loves
getting to see Mallory Sherwood
Engelstad and had a ball seeing so
many Vixens at the home of Meg
Duke earlier this year.
Shannon Schalestock Friedman
got married to Matt Friedman (HSC
’04) on 6/23/18! It was a beautiful
day in her hometown of Warrenton,
VA — despite lots of mud and even
a tornado! The sunshine came out,
and everyone embraced the mud by
dancing the night away. It was a true
horse country wedding and so much
fun with all of their SBC and HSC
guests!
I, Jenny Walkiewicz Dill, have
had a busy few months helping my
husband, Jon, with renovations on
our house and continuing to work
part-time for Portland General Electric.
This summer Jon and I, along
with our 2-year-old daughter, Alexa,
were able to travel to the East Coast
for a vacation. While in Washington,
D.C., I had dinner with Megan
Behrle and Diana Simpson ’08. I
was also able to have lunch with our
class president (and my sophomore
roommate!) Lauren Guyer Thomas
in Charlottesville. I love getting to
collect class notes every few months,
but nothing beats seeing my Sweet
Briar sisters face-to-face. I am really
looking forward to our 10th Reunion
in June!
2011
Heather Marianne McTague
1065 Brennan Drive
Warminster, Pa. 18974
HMMcTague@gmail.com
mctague11@sbc.edu
Brittney Bolin Casale was married
to Garrett Gerard Arthur Casale
on May 26 in Richmond, VA. The
ceremony took place at St. Peter’s
Catholic Church and the reception
at Lewis Ginter Botanical Gardens.
Brittney and Garrett will remain in
Charlottesville for the duration of
Garrett’s ENT residency. Brittney
86

Eleftheria Treklas ’12. Katherine Paige Tisher Carothers ’13, Matthew
Carothers, Lauren McTague ’13, Yulia Rigg ’13 and Heather McTague ’11
all smiles at Paige and Matthew’s wedding reception in Annapolis, MD
on May 5 2018
Meagan Oliphant Herman ’11 , Sara Buttine Parsatoon ’11, Sarah
Schofield Wright ’11, Brittney Bolin Casale ’11, Melissa Ramos Jacklin ’10
and Natasha Weiss Huff ’10 at the wedding of Brittney Bolin Casale to
Garrett Casale in Richmond, VA, on 5/26/18
Lincoln Harper, son of Sarah Jennings Harper ’11, is proud to announce
that he’s going to be a big brother
Claire Carwile Voss ’11, Baby Isaiah Kai, and husband, Jon
continues her work as a behavior analyst
for the Virginia Institute of Autism.
They look forward to spending
their life together as husband and
wife.
Heather McTague successfully
completed a 120-hour TESOL
Certificate Program. She also completed
separate certificates in Teaching
Business English and Teaching
English to Young Learners. She is
excited to announce her promotion
to Lead Teacher at The Albert Career
School. Heather happily attended
the wedding of Katherine Paige
Tisher Carothers ’13 and Matthew in
May with Lauren McTague ’13, Yulia
Rigg ’13, and Eleftheria Treklas ’12.
Alicia Modzelewski was accepted
to the EVMS Physician Assistant
program and will start in Jan. 2019.
She got married on Sept. 29.
Sarah Jennings Harper and her
husband are excited to announce
they are expecting another baby boy
in Dec.! They also just moved back
to Lynchburg, so they’re closer to
friends and family.
Alexandra Schlomer has completed
one semester of classes at the
School of Library and Information
Science at Simmons University (formerly
College) and has earned another
promotion. She now proudly
works full time as a Library Assistant
II at Lynchburg Public Library.
The saga continues as she begins her
2nd semester of classes and adjusts
to her new role.
Claire Carwile Voss and her
husband, Jon, welcomed their 1st
baby this July, a son named Isaiah
Kai.
2012
Carol Ferguson
978 Ravine Drive
Villa Hills, Ky. 41017
ferguson12@sbc.edu
Greer Gordon married Christopher
Spangler. Lindsay Eneguess
Paulette ’11, Jane Wiley ’10
and Grace Jones Caskey ’14 were
in attendance. Greer also secured a
full-time job as a 7th-grade English
teacher at a middle school for girls
and is excited to groom a new pack
of mini-Vixens!
Alexandra Grobman is excited
to be back at Sweet Briar as the assistant
director of the Sweet Briar
Fund. If you are on campus, please
make sure to stop by the Boxwood
Alumnae House and say hi!
Vicki Bergs recently changed careers
and is starting her first year of
teaching! She is teaching 12th-grade
English at Barbara Cardwell Career
Preparatory in Irving ISD (Texas).
fall 2018
87

sbc.edu
2013
Jackie R. Montero
jackiermontero@gmail.com
Katie Bitting recently defended
her Ph.D. in chemistry at Duke
University. She has relocated to the
Charleston, W.Va., area with her
dog, cat, and horse to start a tenure-track
position as an assistant
professor of chemistry at WVU. She
will be teaching organic chemistry
and biochemistry, starting a research
laboratory, and mentoring undergraduate
students.
Alyssa Berkeley Doneghue is
starting her 3rd year as a special education
teacher with Bedford County
Public Schools. She, husband Logan,
and her stepson, Silas, are excited to
welcome Baby Girl Doneghue to the
family in Dec. 2018!
Madeline Hodges Rodriguez ’13
and her kids at Garden of the
Gods, summer 2018
Madeline Hodges Rodriguez is
busy taking care of her two children,
Amelia (2.5) and Abraham (1) while
her husband, Andrew, is deployed
to Afghanistan for a 9-month tour.
They will celebrate their 5-year anniversary
upon his return. Maddie
also keeps busy running her calligraphy
business, Longhand Edition,
and volunteering for the Colorado
Springs Army Community as the
Family Readiness Group Leader.
2015
Lea Gray
2606 Hanover Ave., Apt 2
Richmond, Va. 23220
Graylm27@gmail.com
Lea Gray graduated from her
master of accounting program at the
College of William & Mary in the
spring of 2017. In the fall of 2017,
she started her job as a tax associate
at BDO USA, LLP, and in July
2018 she obtained her CPA license
in Virginia.
Jesse Schaaf recently became a
member of AmeriCorps through
the Kansas State College Advising
Corps. She is serving at Turner High
School as their college advisor.
Emily Rogers received a grant
from the Polonsky Foundation for
work on the Shadow Lines Project
(shadowlines.org). She was published
in Fwd: Museums and finished
her M.S. and advanced certificate
at NYU.
Marissa Sword and her husband
moved to Tucson, AZ, after getting
married on March 24, 2017. She
works as an RN in one of the top
stroke units in Arizona. She graduated
from UNCC RN-BSN in Aug.
2018. Last Christmas, she and her
husband added Finn, a Vizsla, to
their little family!
Verena Joerger celebrated 1 year
working as a physical scientist at the
Environmental Protection Agency
in January. This past summer, the
Journal of Atmospheric Pollution
Research published some of Verena’s
work from her graduate studies at
Cornell University. Outside of work,
Verena enjoys taking improv classes
and riding her horse, Solei.
Leah Humenuck completed her
1st year at West Dean College, earning
a Graduate Diploma of Book and
Library Materials Conservation and
was accepted to a master of conservation
program starting this fall. She
is currently interning with the U.S.
Army Heritage Education Center
Conservation Department. At a
Rare Book School summer session,
she serendipitously ran into Kim
Knox Norman ’85, who attended the
same week! Kim is a previous conservation
supervisor and an inspiration
to Leah.
Marissa Sword ’15 and her husband, Chris, on their wedding day
Leah Humenuck ’15 and Kim Knox Norman ’85
Lea Gray ’15 at her sister’s
wedding in May
Jesse Schaaf, Turner High School
College advisor
88

Start
Planning
Your
Legacy
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.
Become a
Williams
Associate
Not sure how to get started?
Visit: plannedgiving.sbc.edu
For questions, contact:
Claire Dennison Griffith ’80
434-381-6479 | cgriffith@sbc.edu

Box 1057
Sweet Briar, VA 24595
Non-Profit Org.
U.S. Postage
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CHANGE SERVICE REQUESTED
If this magazine is addressed to a daughter who no longer maintains a permanent address at your home, please email us at
alumnae@sbc.edu with her new address. Thank you!
REUNION WEEKEND: May 31-June 2
Come home to Sweet Briar for Reunion 2019!
Although we will be celebrating classes ending in 4s and 9s in particular, remember that all classes
are invited to attend and we hope you’ll join us!
Find out more at sbc.edu/reunion. Register starting Feb. 4, 2019.