1923

Charlie Zimmerman has just announced the appointment of Howie Sammis as chairman of our 35th Reunion Committee. This is certainly the best news of the month. When Howie tackles an assignment the work certainly gets done, and in a very efficient manner. The class can now really start planning the trek to Hanover Sunday afternoon, June 14. The reunion dates are June 15 thru the 17.

Howie came to Pittsfield in the early 1930's as a bond salesman and in 1932 joined the real estate department of the Berkshire County Savings Bank, specializing in the remodeling and sale of foreclosed properties. In 1946, after service with the Navy in World War II, he entered the real estate and appraisal business. As chairman of the Pittsfield Board of Assessors from 1949 to 1956, he participated in the city revaluation. He resigned last year to join City Councilman John Burbank in the formation of a real estate firm, of Sammis and Burbank, engaged in sales, appraisal and management.

Early in March 1957 Howie was awarded the M.A.I, (member American Appraisal Institute) designation by the American Institute of Real Estate Appraisers, he being the second recipient of this designation in Berkshire County. The institute sets up standards of certification and a code of professional conduct. It conducts annual courses at leading colleges and universities and publishes the Appraisal Journal, a professional quarterly in the field of valuation, land economics and real estate.

Howie's address is: 19 South Mountain Road, Pittsfield, Mass.

On September 21-22-23, Bettye and Sumner Sollitt's farm in South Haven, Mich., was the scene of the annual reunion of the Michigan-Illinois boys and their wives. Irish and Alice Flanigan embarked on the New York Central for Chicago to be picked up by Truman and Bunny Metzel. Alice never did make the party to everybody's regret, as she found herself involved in a family duty visit. But Irish was on deck and in the rarest of forms.

Bill and Dottie Kimball made a long weekend of it. Bill Juergens was very much on deck Karl and Dear Williams flew over from Rockford. Warren and Marion Cook made the mistake of only planning to stay one night, an error they will never commit again. Bud and Connie Freeman, Ted Swartzbaugh, Bob Maxwell, Art Everett, Major Bird and the Chet Bixbys completed the 1923 participants in this round robin of swimming, hiking, croquet playing, archery, cattle calling, calf culling, bridge, poker and gin rummy playing. The Tea House by the pool again attracted the reunioners with its wellstocked bar and comfortable chairs. This weekend at the Sollitts is without question the acme of gracious living. Bettye is a most gracious hostess. Barbara and your secretary flew over to Chicago Sunday afternoon with the Sollitts to witness the dedication exercises of the new East Pavilion of Passavent Memorial Hospital. The Sollitt Construction Company embarked on this $4,000,000 undertaking in August 1956.

Sumner sat on the speakers' stand with the Mayor of Chicago, the President of Northwestern University and the trustees of the hospital.

Bill Juergens supplied some missing data on two Chicago classmates as follows: John Melloy is Assistant Vice President of the Chicago Title and Trust Company. John has been connected with this institution for 25 years. James Pyott is owner of the J. M. Pyott Company in Chicago. Jim is a manufacturer's representative.

Metty and Kay Morse took off for the South recently in their ship, the "Caravan." George A. Morrell is a director of John Morrell and Co., meat packers, of the lowaDes Moines National Bank and the Employers Mutual Casualty Co. of Des Moines, lowa. George writes as follows:

la June 1957, I was elected Chairman of the Board of Trustees of lowa Wesleyan College, Mount Pleasant, lowa, and have recently been re-elected to that office for the coming year. I find that this job goes far beyond the point of being purely honorary! It takes a great deal of my time. Previous to my becoming Chairman of the Board I served as a trustee of lowa Wesleyan College for 28 years, and the College bestowed upon me in February 1957 the honorary degree of Doctor of Business Administration.

Kanky Chun is operating very successfully as customers' man for Dean Witter Co. in Honolulu, Hawaii. In this far away outpost we also have Johnnie Coonley who writes there are forty Dartmouth men on the Island who get together four times a year. The Coonleys have lived in Hawaii for 25 years. Johnnie is with American Factors Std.

Eugene Gay-Tifft is managing editor of "Partners," the monthly publication of the National Labor Management Foundation of Chicago. Gene says he's really the publisher's jack-of-all-trades or man Friday. The Gay-Tifft's live in a "little old country house in the middle of the old village of Lake View, N. Y." Gene's operation is divided between a small suite of its own attached to this house and 600-mile distant Chicago. Gene and Lola plan a trip to Europe in the spring.

Go and Liberty Bliss were one of the many of our class celebrating their 35 th wedding anniversary in September. Go is associated with son Skip in Indian River Beer Distributors Limited of Rockledge and Port Orange, Fla. Once in a while the Blisses "catch a few days on 'Liberty II,'" their sturdy 35-foot cruiser. They hope soon to fix up a 55-footer they bought under the U. S. Marshal's hammer a few months ago. "She's a splendid thirty-six ton sea boat which sleeps ten so we wouldn't need to worry about a crew."

Elijah Allen of Louisville, Ky., represented Dartmouth at the inauguration of President Stephen Wright of Fisk University, Nashville, Tenn., on April 26, 1958. Elijah leads a very busy life in his varied duties as a doctor. He manages the Central Louisville Health Center. This is a public health clinic for preventive medical service. The program includes an extensive schedule of giving protective inoculations to children to control diphtheria, whooping cough, tetanus, poliomyelitis, smallpox and tuberculosis. Elijah writes as follows:

Further activities are the publication of a diabetes study of 901 patients in this clinic in the recently closed Medical Care Division in the book "A Summary of Some Diabetes Screening Projects, 1957 Supplement" issued this year by the Division of Chronic Disease, U. S. Public Health Service, Washington 25, D. C.

It is also part of my program to remain active in some phases of the services of the Jefferson County Medical Society and the projects of Red Cross Hospital of this city. The County Medical Society has gone into interracial integration without an incident. Four years ago, this approach was established. Physicians of all races work side by side in community-wide projects such as mass poliomyelitis inoculation, blood collection on a mass basis to maintain stock in the Red Cross Blood Bank, committee work on city-wide hospital policies, fund-raising for hospital movements and similar activities.

Our staff here includes 10 full time nurses, 4 full time secretarial staff members, a custodial worker, 2 part time dentists, 1 part time physician and 1 full time physician (myself).

Report of the annual reunion of the Springfield area 1923 men comes from BabeMiner who mailed in the following newspaper report:

George Weston is owner and proprietor of the Town Shop, Longmeadow, Mass. All 1923 families who have dropped in on and Jo and have bought their men's, ladies' and infants' wear invariably drive to or from Hanover by way of Longmeadow to buy again. Den Pope is president and treasurer of Mill Brand papers, Inc. Hal McKenna is an engineer with T. A. Pearson Associates Building Construction. Len Truesdell is in the sales department of Celotex Corporation building products. George Ferguson is associated with T. F. Cushing, Inc., distributors of 48 electronics manufacturers. Gus Ryan is manager of a book store at the University of Massachusetts. Babe Miner practices surgery in Springfield.

Members of 1923 who met for dinner at the Yankee Pedlar, Holyoke, Mass., on September 19 were (l to r): George Weston, Babe Miner and Den Pope of Longmeadow, Len Truesdell and George Ferguson of Springfield, Gus Ryan of Amherst and Hal McKenna of Springfield.

Secretary, 170 Washington St. Haverhill, Mass.

Treasurer, Commonwealth Shoe and Leather Co Whitman, Mass.

Bequest Chairman,