I am in fine shape with good family help when I need it. My family celebrated my 90th birthday in April.
1940
David Vogel
Appearing in FSS productions of "Patience" and "Pinafore" prepared me for a career in show biz. Last equity contract in '94.
1947
David Collier
Greetings to my classmates.
Thekla Sacksteder
I became a great-grandmother in June. It’s hard to believe my daughter is a grandmother.
1948
Melissa (Missy) Blair DayMy husband and I remain active in our community arts, theater and music. I'm an avid duplicate bridge player. My husband, a gifted pianist, active Kiwanian.
1954
Suzanne RootBest regards to all at FSS.
1955
Joann Soloff Breuer Joann hosts classmates on Martha's Vineyard, September 2011.
(From left): Carol Hancock Mills, Judy Love Keogh, Joann Soloff Breuer and Sarah (Darcy) Headly Maxwell.
Frances IsraelI am busy as ever in California and “retired” in June 2010. I am still working and teaching classes at the college and pursing my hobby playing tournament bridge. I hope all is well with my FSS family.
Ann KrupnickI am involved at OLLI (Osher Lifelong Learning Institute) at Temple University, a terrific resource for seniors. Also, I am working with the Holocaust Archives at Gratz College in Elkins Park. There are about 1000 interviews over a 32 year period. Copies are now being sent to the Holocaust Museum in Washington and Yad Vasheim in Israel. They are digitized in Israel for research purposes. Greetings to the Class of '55.
Sarah (Darcy Headly) MaxwellAfter 25 years, I have come back to Philadelphia, which I love! I have moved into Riverfront, a new kind of retirement community affiliated with the Quakers. My condo overlooks the Delaware River, and is an easy walk to everything. I have become active with Friends' Center City, which facilitates programs for the aging; the Franklin Inn Club, which provides stimulating events; and the Philadelphia Society for Botanical Illustrators, which will have a booth exhibiting our artwork at the Flower Show. Last year I went three times to Ecuador to visit my daughter in Cuenca. The city has a vital retirement community due to the beauty of the Andes and the colonial architecture as well as the cheap dollar. In April, I will be going with Judy Keogh (FSS '55) to Cuba. So, life is good!
Bob GammonEditor's note: Spring through early winter, Bob and Doris live in New York State where he and his son Scott run an orchard and two roadside locations featuring apples, peaches, blueberries, apple cider and pies. You can check it out at
www.woodsideorchards.com. During the winter they head to Florida where Bob loves to fish.
Jane Finerman-Hutman Editor's note: Jane reports that she happily living in Boca Raton and is enjoying her very busy children and 13 grand-children. Her daughters Leslie, Stacy, Karen and son Mark are investment bankers. Karen is a panelist on CNBC's
Fast Money. Her daughter Wendy produced nearly a dozen feature films. She was one of three producers who won the Academy Award for Best Picture for
Forrest Gump in 1994 and a BAFTA Award for Fairy Tale in 1998. She has also produced such popular films as
The Fan,
Stepmom,
Drumline, and
The Devil Wears Prada.
Donald S. McCartyI have been retired as of July 1, 2011 after 20 years. My youngest son, David and his wife Kathryn gave birth to twins on May 20th and 21st. One child was born at 11:54 p.m. on May 20th and her brother came at 1:57 a.m. on the 21st, which just happened to be my wife’s birthday. We just missed having both born on the 21st of May by minutes.
John WielandWe continue to be blessed with a wonderful life, family and friends that surround us. Our project for this year was to install artificial grass in our front yard and of course a putting green with five holes. This year we traveled to Puerto Vallarta with Ina & Denis, good friends of ours, who live in Prescott. We also spent some time with friends and family in Mission Bay, California and Williamsburg, Virginia. We stayed in our time share that was on the thirteenth hole of the golf course and played golf everyday. We took another week in Las Vegas and one in Sedona, and played some scenic golf courses in Northern Arizona. Best wishes to all for the coming year.
Editor's note: John is still working as Chief Financial Officer for Randall & Richards, Inc., Tucson, Arizona. Just this year, Wells Fargo Bank nominated his business for the Cooper Cactus Award which honors businesses for "Best Place to Work in Tucson."
1960
Douglas ClarkI am looking forward to our 55th reunion.
1962
Jayne Jones OasinI am retired from my former position with the Episcopal Church Center in New York City and am now the Associate Priest at The Associated Parishes of St. Stephen in Riverside and Beverly, NJ. I have become an avid quilter! I still keep in touch with Biz and Lyn.
William D. MeansLife is a wonderful excursion. I am looking forward to retirement or semi-retirement.
BenSeltzerI left Boston and Harvard (for the second time in my career) to go to Phoenix in the fall of 2010. I am now Director of the Division of Cognitive and Behavioral Neurology at the Barrow Neurological Institute and Clinical Professor of Neurology at the University of Arizona.
1967
Pat MahinSince leaving Friends it seems I've had many lives. After 20 years in the Navy as a hospital administrator, we moved to my wife's hometown of Minneapolis. After living all over the states and one overseas assignment, we settled down in Minnetonka, a suburb of the TwinCities. We've been here 18 years now. After more health care admin work, I gravitated to church administration and then to seminary for a theology degree. For much of my time in the Twin cities I've worked in Christian non-profits or churches. Now I work for Daystar US. We raise funds for student scholarships at Daystar University in Nairobi, Kenya. My wife Cheryl and I have four daughters and have been married now for 38 years. We have one grandchild and grand baby twins on the way. One of the girls married a Philadelphia boy, so maybe now we will get to Philly more often. Two of the girls are teachers, one is an unemployed democrat after losing her job at the legislature after the Dems were clobbered in the last election. The youngest is off figuring out life in San Diego. We love to travel and having a job that takes me to Africa periodically is a great benefit. Seeing those magnificent animals on the savannas of East Africa is incredible. Seeing how our Daystar graduates are transforming Africa is equally amazing.
I had a great visit with many of the classmates for our 40th reunion. Hopefully I'll make it to the 45th.
Pat Mahin with students in the Kibera Slum School, Nairobi, Kenya.1968
Susan Stein KesslerI recently joined the full time medical staff of George Washington University, Medical Faculty Associates as an assistant clinical professor of surgery.
1970
Christian RoopI’m now called a “Process Improvement Consultant” while I continue to do the corporate thing. Life is pretty stable; I’m paying attention to the “here and now” while the rest of the world appears to spin out of control. Sorry I missed the last reunion. I would have liked to see those that attended.
Susanna LachsEditor's note: Susanna Lachs was elected to the Board of Directors to the Philadelphia Mural Arts Advocates, the non profit arm of the City of Philadelphia Mural Arts Program.
1973
David LevitMy wife Ruth and I continue to find our careers as clinical psychologists to be quite fulfilling. The biggest transition is our new status as empty nesters: our son is a freshman at Wesleyan University, where our daughter is a senior, and where I once went many moons ago. Ruth and I continue to enjoy our community and life here in Amherst, MA. Living in our house for about 12 years now, we are embarking on two major projects: installation of geothermal heat system and solar PV panels. Despite having no kids at home, we nonetheless find ourselves way busier than we had anticipated, between professional commitments, the home front, and just managing life in general. We certainly find it a work in progress to seek the balance between doing and being.
1974
Dan ScheffeyEditors Note: Dan was recently assigned Director of Communications at Fairchild Fashion Media (FFM), a fashion news source for the global fashion community. FFM brands include Women's Wear Daily, Style.com and Footwear News.
Bill ScottEditor's Note: The Hollis Taggart Gallery is exhibiting 20 pieces of Bill's artwork until October 8th, 2011. The gallery is located at 958 Madison Avenue in New York City. More information about the gallery and exhibit can be found at
http://www.hollistaggart.com/exhibitions/detail/bill_scott/1980
Deanna McRae KingEditor's Note: Deanna was recently appointed Senior Finance Manager of Billing and Revenue Assurance at Intersections Inc., a leading provider of consumer and corporate identity risk managment services. Deanna and her husband are also the proud ownders of Rita's Sully Station, in Centreville, VA.
1982
Wendell PritchettEditor's Note: Wendell was appointed a seat on the Philadelphia School Reform Commission by Mayor Michael Nutter in September, 2011. A University City resident, Wendell has been the chancellor of Rutgers-Camden University since June, 2009. He was the recipient of the FSS Distinguished Alumni/ae Award in 2010.
Amy McMichael-ThomasI continue to live in Greensboro, NC with my family which includes my husband, Ralph, daughter Jessica and son Jacob. My work as an academic physician keeps me busy as well.
Saranne RothbergI am the founder of The Comedy Cures Foundation, and received The Fearless Factor Woman of the Year Award in New York City for surviving stage IV cancer and serving comedy and inspiration to more than 700,000 patients and caregivers.
1986
Julie Kreloff-McGinnisI am the owner of The Gluten Free Bistro in Boulder, CO.
http://www.theglutenfreebistro.com/1991
Aaron MatzkinEditor's note: Aaron and his friend Dean Kitagawa opened up Rotisseur, a new cafe-takeout on 21 Street near Rittenhouse square. They specialize in reasonably priced and healthy foods from local farmers. Check it out!
Aaron Matzkin's Rotisseur on S. 21st. between Sansom and Chestnut.Alyce GruntEditor's Note: Alyce is teaching art at Penn Wood High School in Landsdowne, PA. She was features in a front page photograph of the June 29, 2011 Philadelphia Inquirer, which accompanied an article regarding how Alyce helped discover the school owned an oil painting created by Walter Emerson Baum in the 1930's. The painting was estimated to be worth several thousand dollars and the William Penn School District has decided to sell it to raise money.
1994
David WaxmanEditor's note: David and his business partner created the Vitaband, a durable bracelet with the capability to virtually hold identification, medical information, and a contactless payment technology. David is also part owner of MM Partners, LLC., a local real estate development company responsible for the creation of apartments and retail spaces in the Brewerytown section of Philadelphia.
https://vitaband.net/home1996
Gabriel Kuriloff Editor’s note: Gabe Kuriloff was appointed CEO of Arise Charter School in Philadelphia. He recently gave the keynote talk at the 2011 Cum Laude Society Induction Ceremony.
2001
Maggie Brady LasotaI married in August of 2011 during Hurricane Irene. Classmates Megan Roe and Sarah and Walker Allen were in attendance for the wet but festive event. I live in Elkins Park with my husband Stephen.
2002
Bart KeaneyEditor’s Note: Bart is now working for the Philadelphia Water Department after obtaining a Masters in Environmental Engineering from the University of Tennessee.
2005
Ahron WassermanAharon was recently featured as one of Forbes magazine’s "30 under 30." He is a co-founder of NationalField, a company responsible for building private social networks for the Obama campaign, CNN and Oxford University. With the signing of the UK National Health Service eight months ago, NationalField is expected to become the largest private social network in the world. To read the article Forbes featured on Aharon and his achievement, access the following link
http://www.forbes.com/sites/kashmirhill/2011/12/19/30-under-30-nationalfield-thinks-your-business-needs-its-own-social-network/2006
Sara LeatherbarrowI love teaching the 4th grade! My students are mostly Korean, with one from Iran and one from Myanmar. Starting a new school from scratch is hard, but very rewarding.
Monica KeaneyI am now working for International HQ of "Dress for Success" in NYC after graduating from Macalester College in St. Paul, MN.
2007
Will SteinbergerEditor's Note: Will directed InVersion Theatre's production of Dutchman, presented at the First Unitarian Church in September as part of the Philadelphia Fringe Festival.
Anna Abhau-ElliottI graduated with honors from The Tisch Theater School of New York.
Amir HardyEditor's Note: Amir J. Hardy of Boothwyn, senior communications/journalism track/music business major at Albright College, received the Edward Flagg and Miriam Cornelius Trayes Journalism Award in Journalism for Writing, given for excellence in journalistic writing. He also earned the Gold "A" Award, given to a senior for outstanding leadership in campus activities other than athletics; for contributions to the intellectual, literary, musical, artistic and/or social life of the college; for enriching the cultural life of the College; and for promoting a more congenial atmosphere.
2011
Oliver IngramI hope everything is going well in Philly. I've started my Italian classes; I'm taking the 4-hour-a-day intensive course so I'll pick it up pretty quickly, especially while living in an apartment in Italy and rowing at a boathouse where only a select few people speak a small bit of English. I heard something about FSS planning a trip to Italy. Is that definite? If so, where will the group be in Italy and when will they be over here? I hope they will be in Florence when I am! This is picture of me on the river. Right under the green stuff growing on the wall is the boathouse, which is just under the Uffizi.
In Memoriam
Reid Barber ’48, on February 28, 2011
Carole Springer Schoettle '53, on October 12, 2011
http://articles.philly.com/2011-10-18/news/30292846_1_philadelphia-area-inquirer-society-editorJ. Kirk Russell, Faculty, on September 27, 2011
http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/philly/obituary.aspx?n=jas-russell&pid=153900538&fhid=4664