1953

The fall progresses. These articles with personal profiles of our class leadership highlight the personal and collective strength of the class of 1953. Most of us are proud of our association with the class and with the College. Yet, there is a certain pall that falls over that feeling caused by the poor showing of Dartmouth teams. Given the applicant numbers, wouldn't you think that we could do better?

On a more upbeat note, the College survived our lack of athletic prowess. Our team records gave no indication of greatness. And yet, here we are describing the strength of a distinguished class.

Dick and Jane Lombard lived for 28 years in Westchester County before moving this spring into New York City. Dick has served Dartmouth over the years and is a distinction among a distinguished class. He was the first trustee from the class, serving 11 years until 1981. His election as a charter trustee followed a successful term as chairman of the Alumni Fund. Now, he continues as a member of the College's investment committee and chairman of the Overseers of Hopkins Center and the Hood Museum. This position has been particularly rewarding as he has seen two Dartmouth dreams materialize. Jane also maintains a high level of outside activity, being chairperson of the Citizen Exchange Council, which fosters a people to people exchange with Russia, as well as being a serious photographer. Notwithstanding Dick's apparent career at Dartmouth, he also has had a financial career. In the sixties he was in partnership with Bill Vitalis and PaulPaganucci and later with Leo McKenna. He presently is described as a private investor. Jane and Dick have great joy in their two children son Richard, who is a freshman at Dartmouth, and daughter Sarah, who is living and working near Hanover.

Dick Dunham, Hanover, N.H., has had a lifelong interest in sports. From the time that he accompanied his father, who coached and taught at the University of Maine, to his present involvement in the DCAC, there has been a clear pattern. He followed Choate and Dartmouth teams while in school. Coming out of the navy in 1959, he became a volunteer worker at Squaw Valley Winter Olympics. This led to a position in the 1960 Olympics and subsequently to a career with the U.S. Olympic Committee. The 1984 Olympics have given us a better appreciation for the logistics and organization of the games. Dick was a vital part of that process through 1974. At that time the infighting between the Olympic Committee, the AAU, and the NCAA discouraged a number of staff who resigned. Dick continued his involvement in sports by consulting and by managing U.S. participation in overseas events, particularly rowing. He has been at Henley 14 times. His lifelong interest has been his vocation. Along the way he has also participated in the direction of a family business, a valve manufacturing concern in Cincinnati. The privately held company has been in the family since 1860 five generations. Dick moved to Hanover in 1979. He has been an alumni representative to the DCAC and now serves on the development committee.

Bill Vitalis, Cornwall, Conn., seems to have spent much of life in transition. His early career years were spent in moving through various phases of the investment community. This included a partnership as noted above with Dick Lombard and PaulPaganucci. When Bill ended this phase in 1975 he was an officer at Smith Barney, although the transition to the next phase had begun. Vastly different, it involved a fledging fruit farm in Sharon, Conn., a short distance away from a second home that Bill and wife Jean have in Cornwall. This transition is now complete. The farm has 150 acres, 6,000 trees producing apples,pears, and peaches, an ap pie cider capacity of 100,000 gallons, a huge strawberry patch, and a roadside store under the name of Ellsworth Hill Farm. Further, Bill and Jean have moved from New York to Cornwall.Jean has received the training to earn her credentials in special education for learning disabilities. Bill still maintains an interest elsewhere in business by consulting and through serving on a number of boards. Bill and Jean have two children: Bill, who was '81 at Dartmouth, and Rita, who graduated from Macalester. Bill has been a stalwart on the Alumni Fund, chairman of the DCAC, and has maintained an ongoing interest in Dartmouth athletic facilities.

Fred Stephens, Dover, Mass., as we all know, is a person with strong loyalties. He is intensely loyal to his family, his friends, and his profession, including his employer, Gillette, and to the institutions that have been a part of his life church, Harvard, where he received an M.B.A., and Dartmouth. He has served in more capacities of leadership than are possible to enumerate. Among the most notable are on the Alumni Council, as chairman of the Alumni Fund, and as our class president from 1973 until our 25th reunion in 1978. Recall that those were the heady years when our records were first set and our leadership position established. Married in 1970, he and his wife, Thelma, have two children: Nancy, who is 13, and David, who is approaching 11. Fred's a corporate officer at Gillette, vice president of business relations. In achieving that position, he has lived in a number of cities and in Canada. A common thread throughout has been Gillette and Fred's involvement in major sports events such as the baseball World Series and the Olympics. This year was no exception. Fred took great joy in spending two weeks at the Olympics with his family. He threw the San Diego Zoo and Universal Studios in for variety.

The profiles will continue, but let me bring you up to date on some recent news. Our adopted classmate Jean Kemeny has written a second book, a novel, Strands of War. Published by Houghton Mifflin, it was edited by Dave Replogle. John Hurley has been appointed a director in the data processing function at Travelers, Hartford, Conn. He is responsible for automating dental and medicare claims. Pete Mattoon has been elected to the board of trustees at Widener University. Dick Giesser has been appointed to the Massachusetts Port Authority by the governor.

Holiday greetings to all!

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