Thayer School

As this is written, the expected-headline NCAA ski championship meet in Hanover has lost out to a show-stealing spring thaw- flood. At first the most serious consequences appeared to be the postponement, rescheduling and moving of the ski events to not-so-nearby locations still favored with snow. The flood development, however, has brought more damaging effects including the collapse, apparently under the impact of flood- carried ice blocks, of the highway bridge across the White River at "Whitetown." And this in turn has recalled to mind the November 1927 flood after which this writer and a thousand other undergraduates, including a 1964 Presidential candidate, were transported from Lewiston to "the June" on railroad flatcars to dig that community out of several feet of very muddy silt.

Turning to more welcome news, we should like to extend our congratulations to Allison Dunn '22 who brought new honor and recognition to Dartmouth and Thayer School at the Honor Awards Convocation of the U.S. Department of the Interior in February where he received the Department's highest honor, the Distinguished Service Award, on the occasion of his retirement after more than 35 years of outstanding service. In bestowing this honor, secretary Udall said, in part, "His comprehensive and scholarly research on water resource development and utilization was instrumental in protecting Service areas from damage or destruction through adverse uses or diversion of needed water to competing demands." Al, with characteristic modesty, has said, "As a matter of fact, my careful evaluation of the citation convinces me that the award should have been to Dartmouth and the Thayer School as well as to me. I just happened to become a small valve in the government machine, with functions for which my broad engineering education provided excellent qualifications." Again, heartiest congratulations, Al.

A recent visitor to Thayer School was George Gendron '50 in his official capacity as Director of University Relations of the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory. George was engaged here in the welcome activity of talent hunting.

A postcard from Larry Goldthwait D'36 in St. Petersburg, Florida, tells us he's feeling fine and thoroughly enjoying himself —perhaps at shuffleboard which is the activity pictured on the card.

Friends of the Byron McCoys '34 will be happy to learn that Louise has recovered from the very serious injuries received before Christmas in an automobile accident near Rutland, Vermont, where they live. We are grateful to Louise for news of the family. She reports that Byron is "at business some twelve hours a day at least ... son Roger is at MIT on a U.S. Steel Research grant ... and Allen happy and successful at Ripon College where he's initiated a hockey rink and a ski club." The McCoys attended the ASCE convention in San Francisco last fall.

At the more recent ASCE convention in Cincinnati in February, which I attended for purposes of chairing a panel on "Education for Transportation Engineering," I enjoyed a reunion with Chuck Way '48 and his wife Stella recalling events of business and pleasure some fifteen years ago when he was a graduate student at Thayer School.

A mouth-watering view of the Matterhorn and a do-it-yourself poem featured a Christmas card received from the Tom Tylers '56 in Luzern, Switzerland. In their new location, "We speak new words, greet new friends, eat new foods and learn new trends ... Terry learns to mountain climb, Kay shops with francs ... Steve skis with a will ... Tom travels Europe here and there."

Having started this column with the announcement of an honor, it seems appropriate to end also on a high note, so it is with pleasure that I congratulate former Thayer School Professor T. Y. Chen for having been voted the outstanding instructor in the Civil Engineering Department at Ohio State University last year.