1944

Back in February, Howard Gilman broke into the papers when he came to the rescue of a stranded Soviet ballet troupe. The Donetsk Ballet from the Ukraine opened in Baltimore, but a sponsors' snafu left it high and dry after four performances. Howard and others jumped in to provide meals and housing and hastily organized a half-dozen appearances at the City Center Theater in New York. Rave reviews for both the ballet and Howard.

We meandered south in March and made some memorable stops en route. It was sleety and cold in Pinehurst, N.C., but we sure got a warm reception from Bob andJoan Riebow. You couldn't hit a golf ball for the ice, but we did some handsome touring in the area. Reeb retired to Pinehurst two years ago to keep his spirits up and get his handicap down, but the weather wasn't contributing much in either direction.

Also in Pinehurst we got on the horn to retired General Adolph Schwenk, who chose the area after he ran into BillMcClos ky at a member-guest golf tournament. "We hadn't seen each other for 41 years," said Dolph. "Bill was living in Pinehurst and he raved about the place so much we went down, looked it over, and bought a house. Then, son-of-a-gun, McClosky moves to Florida a couple of years later!" Dolph's last post in 1980 was in Norfolk, where he was with the Fleet Marine Force, Atlantic. He and wife Midge have two sons and four grandchildren; they love Pinehurst and Dolph shot his first hole-in-one in May 1988.

We checked with McClosky, who said he retired to Pinehurst in 1980 after 40 years with Otis Elevator. "But it got too crowded," he said, "and so we pulled out for Ft. Pierce. We've got a nice little villa on a golf course, and I manage to keep my handicap at a steady 10." Bill said that he and Dolph won a member-guest tournament in Pinehurst a year ago, and he was going up again for another try.

In Charleston, S.C., Fran and JuliaDougherty, in addition to a scrumptious bed and breakfast, gave us a royal tour of that loveliest of cities. Fran is retired after a career in importing; he's busy civically, as is Julia; he teaches elderly illiterates; and he keeps his golf swing tuned.

Twitch and Sheila Miller have a winter condo at Sea Pines Plantation, Hilton Head, S.C., but with 27 golf courses to choose from, we opted for walking the beach. And a little putting on a nearby practice green.

In Lynchburg, Va., we wined and dined with Bruce and Puss Thomson and Earland Betsy Owen. Bruce is retired, but he and Puss are busier than any ten people. The Thomson house is full of antiques, but they are replicas, all made by Bruce highboys, lowboys, tables, chests, grandfather clocks, you-name-it. He is % master furniture maker. Earl is still practicing surgery and Betsy is an active and exhibiting painter.

Sadly, two more deaths: Matty Shea died of a heart attack March 14; and Bill Jacoby died of cancer March 18. And two wives: Frank Parker's wife, Barbara, died last December 18, of emphysema; and Bill Barrett's wife, Joan, died March 10 of cancer. Our sympathies.

That's it. Blessings.

P.O. Box 24, Lovejoy Hill, Cornish Flat, NH 03746