1912
Dartmouth College lost a loyal alumnus and the Class of 1912 one of its most enthusiastic supporters in the death of "Pike"Childs on October 23, 1963. Pike put up a stubborn fight against that arch enemy cancer but failed to survive the last onslaught of the surgeon's knife in an effort to prolong his life. Those who were fortunate enough to be present at our 51st last June will remember Pike always on hand with a smile and a cane. Representing 1912 at the funeral were Jo and Ben Adams, Lyme Armes, Grace and Doc Burnham, Randy Burns, Bertha and Quech French, Hal Fuller, Florence and Roy Lewis, and Henry Viets. An eloquent and moving feature of the funeral was Dartmouth music exquisitely interpreted by the organist.
More casualties! Hal Belcher recently had a flirtation with the angels and landed in the hospital with a ruptured appendix. Recovery is progressing satisfactorily and his only terse comment is, "the surgeons sure do a fine job but I wouldn't want to be one." Doc Worcester is now home from the hospital following another bout with his heart, the third in ten months. The snapshot of the grinning '12ers was contributed by him. Background - Quechee's sugarhouse. RollieLinscott has had a second relapse from his cerebral accident and is now in a nursing home in Somers, N.Y. He would welcome a cheery note from any one. Sonny Buell seems to be posing a difficult diagnostic problem for the M.D.'s. Ait the time of our 51st he was hospitalized and now back home talks about going to the Lahey Clinic or the Pratt Diagnostic Clinic to find out what ails him. Meantime he is walking as much as possible "to keep what muscles I have left limbered up."
In a lighter vein - Dora and Husky Farnum celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary on August 26 in Lynn, Mass., and Ellaand Mark Allen followed on October 6 with an open house at their 50th out in Seattle. Lynda and Pike Childs were rewarded on September 26 with the arrival of their 8th grandchild, Scott Matteson Childs, son of the John Childs of Manchester, N.H. The Holy Cross game found 29 on hand for the pre-game picnic for '12ers in the New Field House, the first affair of its kind in that spacious building. Boss Geller and Warren Bruner traveled the farthest, the former from Owego, N.Y., and the latter from Geneva, N.Y. Only one other class, 1911, showed up and was counted with three couples at the tables.. No news from the Harvard game as my reporter, Eddie Luitwieler, had to take the weekend on Cape Cod to recuperate from acting as accountant, secretary to himself, factory superintendent and for two other absentees from his plant, all of whom took to the hospital.
Bill Shapleigh still loves the choo-choo trains! He joined in on a train full of railroad buffs on October 10 when, with their best gals, families and guests, they made a 240-mile excursion to view the foliage and mountains in Maine and New Hampshire. Nine cars, air conditioned with reclining seats and full view windows from the Canadian National, and twin diesel engines from the Maine Central. About 600 passengers from all around, some even from Michigan and Ohio! From that famous cranberry country came a note from Ruel Gibbs. Wife Hazel was in the hospital in June so they missed our 51st. Latest report is that she is improving. Gibbie has one daughter Sallie in Lyme, Conn., an executive of New York Telephone Co. with her husband in Chase Manhattan Bank. Another daughter married John Garretson '42 and is raising cranberries along with three growing children. Gibbie, still in the cranberry business, was recently the recipient of a 50-year pin from his Masonic Lodge.
Alice, Freddie Day's widow, writes from Phoenix where she is "anchor man" for daughter Joan, that she can now record her 29th grandchild. One of the number, Fred III, was recently married so Alice is anticipating some great-grandchildren. Joan Day, after her discharge from the U.S. Army Nurse Corps, went to Phoenix and married Herbert Mallamo, attorney at law. Joan is studying for her master's degree in Social Service at Arizona State University at Tempe.
Sweden has decorated our Syd Clark with the Order of the North Star, which in that country is a knighthood, in recognition of three books he has written on Sweden and Scandinavia. The occasion was marked by a luncheon in Washington on October 15 given by Sweden's Ambassador Jarring. This honor rates a loud Wah-Hoo-Wah. Word has come in from another 1912 traveler, JoePaul. Edna and Joe sailed from New York on the S.S. Constitution via the Sun Lane route to Europe last March. One-day stops were made at the Madeira Islands, Gibraltar, Naples and Genoa, finally disembarking at Cannes. Then they traveled by train, visiting 25 cities in 14 countries from Naples, Italy to Narvik, Norway, leaving Naples on April 7 with fruit trees in bloom and arriving in northern Sweden June 3 when the Arctic flowers were putting in an appearance. At Narvik they found extensive building had erased nearly all traces of war damage. Stores had ample supplies of merchandise and appeared to have a lot of buyers. Men and women were well dressed. Good food was plentiful and reasonably priced. For the most part merchandise prices seemed very similar to those in New York where they finally set foot on June 18, just too late for our 51st.
Dates for 1912's 52nd Informal Reunion: June 15, 16, 17, and 18. Headquarters: Brown Hall. Final event: Farewell Frolic and Brunch Thursday noon, the 18th at Floppie and Roy Lewis' Lebanon estate, caterer, the maker of that famous onion pie.
New addresses: Robert D. Baird, 3306 N.E. 15th Street, Fort Lauderdale, Fla.; Carl S. Wells, 39 Prospect Street, Marblehead, Mass.
Secretary, 136 Steele Rd. West Hartford, Conn. 06119
Treasurer 4 Bank Building, Middleboro, Mass.
