1931
Plenty of news this month. First, let me tell you about the meeting of the class executive committee at the Dartmouth Club on Saturday, January 22, in New York. I don't know when anything has given me quite the same kick as that meeting did. It doesn't take much to make me enthusiastic about this class of ours, but if anything had been needed, that would have done it. Gathered around the long table for lunch and confabulation were Bill Benger from Scranton, Pa., Johnny Boermeester from Boston, Sey Burge from Evanston, Ill., Ned Campbell from Pittsburgh, PeteEvans from Philadelphia, Jim Godfrey from Concord, N. H., Bill Steck from Cleveland, Jack Gilmore, Bill Schuldenfrei and Bill Wilson from New Jersey, and the Westchester contingent of Dick Holbrook, Charlie McAllister and myself. Billy Alton, Walt Douglas,Gale Freeman, Bill Minehan, Gregg Moore and Jack Warwick couldn't make it for a variety of reasons (all checked and verified).
The meeting opened with one verse of Men of Dartmouth and it seemed like old times to have Johnny Boermeester knuckling the "88." The secretary's and treasurer's reports were approved, but one item popped up in the latter that probably should be plugged in this column, i.e., the payment of dues. The treasury shows a very minor deficit for the past year's operation, but even this wouldn't be there if everybody ponied up his five bucks for dues. As you know, we have to pay for the ALUMNI MAGAZINE to go to every member of the class, whether we've received the dues from every member or not. It's such a small amount of money that I'm sure anybody who gives it a minute's thought would never let this item go by default. Pete's doing a fine job for the class, and the very least we can do is make his job easier by putting a fiver in the mail just as soon as the first notice goes out. A richly deserved and echoing round of applause was given Bill Steck for his acceptance of the Alumni Fund chairmanship. That's a tough job, and we're lucky to have a guy like Bill to tackle it. Charlie "RubblyDuff" McAllister reported that the Memorial Fund has something in excess of $30,000 on hand, including approximately $10,000 in pledges. We're behind where we ought to be at this point, but '31 hasn't goofed a single job yet, and this will be no exception.
Plans for the Big 25 were discussed, and although there's nothing definite to report, at this time, on who's going to be the chairman, we'll be able to give you the full story on that in the next column. Dick Holbrook and I have taken on the job of putting out the 25-Year Book so you will be hearing from us real soon when we get into the vital-.statistics-gathering department.
The "friendly" class' financial goal for the 25th year has been set up as follows: gift to Memorial Fund $110,000; Alumni Fund $18,000; 25-Year Book $3,000 - total $131,000. That's a lot of government engravings, but it's readily within reach. It just takes the kind of cooperation that '31 has always produced when the need was there. It was enthusiastically agreed that we would have another one of these meetings in the early fall, probably in Hanover . . . and then we joined our ladies for some liquid, caloric and fraternal intake in the Rainbow Room and the Barberry Room. No question about it, that's a great Sang.
A note from Bill Minehan announces, "I can report that I recently returned from a wonderful flying trip of four weeks around the world, spending two weeks of it in India - surely a fascinating experience. In the rather near future, our home office nurse, Mary Castle, and I are going to be married." (Editorial note: I assume this is already a facta complea, although I haven't received the announcement.) "Thus will end the myth of Minehan and I'll try to get even with all you married fellows." (Editorial question - what's that again!) Congratulations, Mary, you've got a great guy.
Our only representative in the pulpit has shed the cloth for a new post in labor relations. Jim McElroy, rector of St. Mark's Episcopal Church in Toledo since 1945, has resigned to become a labor relations consultant in the Toledo area. Jim has an outstanding record as a public member of the Labor-Management-Citizens Committee, and has been a member of the American Arbitration Association. I have written to Jim to get the full story on this, but no reply as yet. Maybe we'll have the story for the next column.
A really great letter from Marty Zinn. Awhile back, word reached me that Marty had been in an accident and had to have a leg amputated, so I wrote to tell him how sorry all of us were to hear it and to wish him well. There's no room in the column for the entire letter, but when it was read to the gang at the Committee meeting in New York, the consensus was "he's quite a guy." Marty says:
"I could have ended up in much worse shape and what with the present facilities in medicine, I shall be back in good shape before too long in the coming year. I'm still going to the doctor biweekly and I've got another session of surgery to look forward to . . . but all in all, it can be considered a very small 'time out' in the space of an entire lifetime. With so many servicemen and civilians in much worse shape, what have I got to complain about."
Marty is now happily in the process of setting up his new home in Houston with his new bride.
The Hanover Plain has shaken in recent weeks under the firm tread of Spence Miller,Bob Oelman, Bill Walsh and Bill Steck. The newspapers have recently carried very good news about some of our illustrious confreres. Jim Lyall has been promoted to assistant vice president of the United States Trust Company of New York. Jim is an active guy in community projects and is treasurer of his school board in Pleasantville. Adrian O'Keefe, prexy of First National Stores, has been elected a director of the First National Bank of Boston. Charlie Nims, in addition to being president of the Attleboro Savings Bank, has been appointed executive vice president of the Manchester Savings Bank. Along with all this, he finds time to be a member of the school committee, Kiwanis Club, and a director of the Chamber of Commerce. Johnny Benson has been elected vice president and comptroller of the National Shawmut Bank in Boston.
There's bad news, too . . . we've lost LauriMyllykangas. Lauri, one of the real fine people in anybody's class, died of a heart attack on December 23. Always pleasant, always a gentleman, always a nice guy to have around . . . that was Lauri.
Well that's the news for now. Start stoking your fires, because between now and the Big 25, we're going to work up quite a head of steam. Meanwhile, keep on being '31. See you next month.
Secretary, Lambert & Feasley, Inc. 430 Park Ave., New York 22, N. Y.
Treasurer,1512 Spruce St., Philadelphia 2, Pa.
Memorial Fund Chairman,224 Beverly Rd., Scarsdale, N. Y.
