1917
Flans are proceeding full speed for a grand weekend with 1918 and 1919. so let's all get aboard.
Expecters: Karl Stillman, Jim Montgomery, Bob Adams, Frank Lagay, Howie Shaffer, Bob Chase, Frank Huntress, Meredith Brill, Bill Wooster, Ed McGowan, Charles Wolff.
Additional reunioners for sure GeorgeClark and Howie Steel. Still no word from the Californians however. What's stewing out there or is it just plain "smog?"
Received a letter from Charlie Wolff, from the Compania Rayonera Cubana, S.A., Havana, Cuba, as follows:
"After I returned from overseas in World War 11, I quit business and went to Florida to thaw out. While there I married Ethel Fitz Patrick, the daughter of life-long friends of my family in New York. Between us we have five children; the two unmarried ones living with us in Havana.
"After loafing for almost a year in Miami, the Hedges family offered me the job of taking charge of their rayon project in Cuba. The rest is in the article which I will send you.
"Almost everyone I have known in a social or business way during my life, has looked me up in Cuba, except my classmates. It might be a good idea to put in the ALUMNI MAGAZINE that my mail address is Apartado 2876, Havana, and that my home telephone is B-8682."
John T. Wooster has been elected treasurer and a director of the Spool Cotton Co., distributors of J. & P. Coats and Clark's "O.N.T." threads and Crown zippers.
Received a very newsy letter from VicSmith, which more than made up for lack of letters from him in the past year. He informs that his daughter Virginia and sons Larry and Vic Jr., are all married and doing very well. Following are excerpts from his letter:
"Businesswise, 1952 was a very good year for us. We sell various types of building specialties principally doors and metal partitions, and the construction business generally was good in 1952. Prospects for '53 don't seem quite so good at the moment less volume and stiffer competition seems to be in store for us.
"Regarding extra-curricular activities, I'm pretty well loaded up. The Union Methodist Church in Brookline is one of the chief interests of Irene and myself and I have several responsibilities there, among them the presidency of the Board of Trustees. In 1952 I was president of the Dartmouth Alumni Association of Philadelphia, and have just been re-elected to that job for another year. (Congratulations! -Ed.)
"I've been interested in Boy Scout work for 26 years, at first in our local unit as Assistant Scoutmaster and then in various other connections at District and Council levels. At present I'm Chairman of the Eagle Board of Review for Valley Forge Council, B.S.A.
"Regarding Dartmouth activities, I usually manage to interview one or two prospective students each year, and I alternate with Bruce Ludgate as Assistant Class Agent. Bruce contacts the 1917 boys in Pennsylvania one year, and I contact them the following year in the interest of the Alumni Fund.- I get to see Bruce occasionally; he is. very busy with business and outside interests, and our paths don't cross too often.
"Hal Clark was in town recently and called me on the phone, but his schedule was too full for me to get a glimpse of him.
"I've just sent Gil Swett my card to say that Irene and I are planning to be at Reunion. We haven't missed one for a long time, and we are both looking forward to this one. It should be a big one!"
(Seems as though you have a pretty full schedule, Vic, and we enjoy hearing from you.)
Louis Cunningham saw Sum Emerson in New York City, and occasionally sees VicSmith. He plans to attend Reunion and expects to have a great time. Louis sent along the snapshot printed this month and also the following information about himself:
"Sales representative of Janney & Cos., in Philadelphia, B.S., University of Wisconsin —19l7, member 'The Bradford Club,' Bradford, Pa., the Y.M.C.A., Altoona, and the First Presbyterian Church, La Crosse, Wis. Still married to the same girl, the former Beulah Irene Master. Doing reasonably well selling bonds and stocks, enough so that I purchased the best located burial lot, 144 steps from the Arch of Entrance, Spey Memorial Arch, Oak Grove Cemetery, La Crosse, Wis. The parents of Wallace Montague, president of The Borden Company, owned it until released in June 1951. I am conniving to return to my boyhood city before I meet my maker, Providence providing, but great as the great commonwealth is, the scenes of my youth are very urging. We have two daughters Phyllis and June."
Sherm Smith dropped a line, and everything is going well with him and his family. (Thanks, Sherm, for the kind words.)
Meredith Brill writes as follows: "Well, I seem to be living a rather full life these days. My job as Assistant Gen. Secretary-Treasurer of Alpha Omega Alpha, national Honor Medical Society absorbs most of my time; there are 63 chapters in AMA approved Medical Schools in this country and Canada, 20,000 members all over the world whose addresses I keep up to date. Editing the Society's official publication The Pharos is another interesting part of my work.
"As for extra-curricular activities, as president of the local Community Council, my interest in youth activities and community welfare in general has had free play. I headed the procurement committee for local Blood Bank, cooperating with the Red Cross, was chairman for several years of township Community Chest and find time to work with Boy Scouts, having been connected with Scouting locally and in the Scout Council for 16 years. At present, am chairman of the local Troop Committee." I don't know how interesting this is, but I'll keep going! I am a Director of the Ithaca Consumers' Cooperative Society (we did a business of $1,400,000 last year) am on county USO committee and county Mental Health Committee of the TB and Public Health Association.
"My two children are now grown and away from home. The elder, Hasseltine Chaplin III, was graduated from Cornell (A.B. 1946) took Master's degree in Psychiatric Social Work at Smith in 1949, married a young M.D. The enclosed snapshot is their first child and our first grandchild. Her name is Beth Ann. We are completely fatuous grandparents you will note the silly look on our faces, especially mine. They now live in Denver where our son-in-law continues his training at the Medical Center there. We think it's good news that he's interested in becoming a general practitioner.
"Our son Meredith II is very mechanically inclined and after graduation from Cascadilla Prep, went to Binghamton Tech. He now has a job as research technician at the Carrier Corporation plant in Syracuse. We see him now and. then.
"I am trying to make plans to attend the 35th reunion in June. Although I attended Dartmouthbut one year, I have always felt the strong attraction of the place. Hope to see you and the rest of the '17ers then."
Hazel added the following P.S. to the letter: "This is from the other half or shall I say the last quarter? On reading over this letter (with permission) I am struck with my husband's mild statement 'I have always felt a strong attraction of the place.' That, my friend, is really the understatement of the year. His 'attraction' as he put it, is considered by some to be a mild form of insanity. The children could say Dartmouth before they were teething well, almost!, and I shall never forget the tears in our daughter's eyes when she learned, finally and irrevocably that Dartmouth is not and never was co-educationally inclined. When Dartmouth is playing football, we walk on tip-toe and have spirits of ammonia handy in case they don't win a smashing victory. When that now famous fifth down business occurred, I nearly called an ambulance.
"A few years ago, it was my privilege to have a' brief visit in Hanover with my husband and our kids. It's impossible to describe how we felt about it. I can only say for myself that the feeling I was treading on hallowed ground was very real indeed. How I'd love to spend weeks just in Baker Library, roam at leisure around the campus, admiring those many-windowed buildings of colonial beauty and sturdiness, have dinner at Hanover Inn before a big fire, and watch my husband's happiness "at being with Dartmouth again. We'll do it all some day!"
DON'T FORGET REUNION-JUNE 19, 20 and 21.
HIS PLANS ARE MADE: Louis Cunningham '17 snapped outside his home in Altoona with his wife Beulah is looking forward to attending his 35th reunion next month.
Secretary, 408 Frelinghuysen Ave., Newark 5, N.J. Class Agent, 205 Broadway, Cambridge, Mass.
