1962

When I first took on the role of class secretary some five or six years ago my predecessor, Richard Hannah (also known at the time as “Sundance”), informed me that the job came with “the gift of prophecy for all things green.” As I now approach the end of my term and we stand as a class on the brink of our 50th reunion, I feel strangely prescient. Even though it is only April when I write this, I can safely report that our June reunion was a huge success. Bill Pierce and Dick Brooks did an ace’s job of putting together an event to remember, even as managing editor Kent Hutchinson and his stalwart team of tireless scriveners superbly prepped us for the occasion with a magnificent 573-page keepsake reunion book, ’Round the Girdled We Roamed, the accolades and testimonials for which are still rolling in. Prophetic powers notwithstanding, I’ll leave the reunion details to my successor and focus instead on the book itself that most recently made its way to my doorstep.

The gradual reveal of what Frank Kehl so aptly christened “the mother of all coffee-table books,” arriving as it did in irregularly timed batches across the country, contributed to a flurry of angst and eager anticipation among our online community of constantly in-touch classmates. Frank posted an early partial synopsis of content that David Smith, in turn, deemed a “titillating hors d’oeuvre” to the main course—“a fitting and masterful summation of the legacy of the great class of 1962.” Dick Maynard similarly praised the book as an “impressive feat” and “a great addition to our coffee tables.”

But the most effusive praise came from Ros “Bunny” Whedbee, who emoted loud and long: “I, who am never at a loss for superlatives of a hyperbolic nature, am simply speechless at our yearbook! The only word to adequately describe the gargantuan effort that produced this noble manuscript is ‘stupendous.’ Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!—to every staff member, assistant, wife, significant other or anybody else involved with or connected to or supportive of this massive enterprise and undertaking!” The intensity of praise reached such a crescendo that Paul Weinberg, one of the last to receive his copy of the book, cried out like the proverbial voice in the wilderness: “The ‘titillating hors d’oeuvre’ has me waiting impatiently to dig into the rest of the meal. May I assume that the books are being sent out in batches over time? Or am I the only one who has not yet received his?”

The story, as I foretold you, has a happy ending. The reunion book had a great rollout, to the eventual delight of all. And the reunion itself could not have been better. Magically, for a few golden days, we reconnected with our friends and our youth. It has been a joy and a privilege to act as your class scribe during these past few years and to help record, however briefly, some fleeting moments that have gone by much too quickly. Thanks for the memories.

307 Sewickley Ridge Drive, Sewick ley, PA 15143; (412) 741-9088; jbhaines@comcast. net; 4312 Bretton Road, Rockville, MD 20853; (301) 460-4523; dnbarnes62@ verizon.net