1947

When we glean thru our class survey, we have to be able to read fine print, bold print, even Sanskrit, and an excellent example is John Trethaway. John is a busy man, and thinks and acts in rapid fashion. His news is fairly up-to-date, as he waited a year to send in his response. (Still time for the rest of you to send in if delayed.) John has led two lives, maybe three. After a service career involving V-5 naval aviation, John graduated Dartmouth in 1947, attended Harvard Business School, and then worked in industry in New Jersey, to become a senior marketing executive. He retired early, as his wife, Joy, had signs of illness. They moved to Vermont, with son Thomas and daughter Joy, to be closer to the good life. John purchased a country store in Peru, Vt., which came to be the center of town activity, at least the verbal portion, withjohn somewhere near the middle. Wife Joy was finally diagnosed with Alzheimer's, and John had eventually to sell the store and attend to Joy fulltime, as he did, until she passed on.

He has, over the past ten years, served Vermont at the call of two governors, at the state commissioner level, and he has been active in town politics and civic matters for years. He has been a primary leader in chapters for the Alzheimer's Disease Association in Vermont, in New Hampshire, and at the national level in Washington, D.C., on the national board. He was chosen to testify before Congress on the Alzheimer's condition.

And through it all, John skied; as a certified downhill instructor, as a X-country instructor and guide, and for the fan of it

John has very diverse interests, and his appreciation of art and theater has led to his friendship with Helen Bridge, who accompanied him to several of our class reunions, and to their marriage in the summer of '94. John's observation on life was that Joy's illness taught him to live life to the fullest, as it is indeed precious, and that service to the community of "man can be very rewarding. And, he adds, life as a widower is remembered, but life has taken on new and exciting meaning with his marriage to Helen. And with it is phase three for John.

Norm Falkin writes in the easily legible print of an engineer. He squeezed a lot into his college years: football, golf, and basketball teams plus finishing up at Thayer School of Engineering in 1948.

The next 30 years for Norm and his wife, Judith, were their three children and Norm's association with Long Island Lighting as engineer, purchasing manager, nuclear project engineer, and, finally, manager of fuels purchasing. I like to think Norm kept the lights glowing, and the Big Apple glowing.

Now for the interesting part, retirement. Norm and Judith have attended 23 elderhostel programs, those work/study/play sojourns to other schools and other cultures. He loves retirement in Winter Garden, Fla., by winter, and in Syosset, Long Island, in summer. Grandchildren in Atlanta and in Albany keep them traveling. And tennis, reading, and NYC theater tend to keep dull moments away. Are there any other elderhostel stories out there to be shared? Let's hear them.

A quick response from Tucson, Ariz., where Bob Ferguson & Jean have settled after his retirement from 20 years in the Marine Corps. Bob saw service in WW-2, Korea, and Vietnam and left the corps as a major. Now, he is a controller and smallbusiness consultant. His hobby now is traveling, just as it was for Uncle Sam, only now he pays and comes and goes as he please. They are enjoying the scenic hiking in their beautiful state. See you soon,

63 Maple Ave., Keene, NH 03431-1629