1950s

Coming Soon—submit your own Class Note!

From Fred Boyle ’51 for Spring 2025: Hello, classmates. I didn’t receive any news from you, so our column is thin. I’m planning to publish my 14th book, Early Families of Parsonsfield, Maine, later this year. Otherwise, I’m still active and am traveling a bit. I send my best wishes from Sanford, Maine.

From Art White ’52 for Spring 2025: I hope all is well for fellow members of the Class of 1952. As it turns out, no one has returned our plea for news. So, I will tell you about Mary and me. We continue to enjoy our life at the Highlands, a retirement village in Topsham, Maine. We have a two-bedroom apartment in the main lodge. The facility has many activities: there is a heated, saltwater indoor pool, many musical groups entertain us each week, and a gym full of exercise equipment, etc. Also, the food is very good and the staff is very helpful. As Mary is 95 and I am in my 98th year, we need all the help we can get. Yet, we are both quite active. I continue to drive and do the shopping. I walk some but not too far, and I still play a mean game of cribbage. This was a good choice for us. I hope you will let us know your thoughts and news.

From Spring 2025: Lindon Christie checked in from Rumford, Maine. He’s feeling pretty good, he said, and can care for himself. He has a wonderful partner with whom to share each day. ✹ Bob Thurston sends greetings from Englewood, Fla. “The increasing ferocity of what used to be a mild hurricane season is somewhat troubling, but not enough to cause me to move to a safer location. Nate ’55 and Winnie Robertson Miller live nearby, and I maintain frequent contact with them. My daughter, Tracy, lives with me and takes wonderful care of my daily needs. Several months ago, I fell down playing ping-pong but, fortunately, didn’t break any bones. Now I only play shuffleboard, pool, and bocce and ride my three-wheel bicycle. My best regards to all of you.”

From Spring 2025: Richard “Dick” Cole sent along a recent newsletter from the 70+ Ski Club in North Kingston, R.I., that included a photo of Dick and a claim that he is the “world’s oldest snowboard racer.” Dick, who lives in Boston, is 90 and has won his age group at the NASTAR Nationals on both skis and snowboard. He has an impressive collection of race awards, but he hasn’t been a lifelong athlete or competitor. He told the newsletter editor about trying out for the hockey team at Colby, and the coach just looked him up and down and said, “I don’t think so.” He started skiing by watching his two adult sons race. Last season he raced at Snowmass in the nationals on skis, and he admits that he’s a better skier than a boarder. Dick credits his rigorous workout routine for maintaining the strength he needs to snowboard. His advice for younger skiers? “Work out and keep a great attitude.” You’re an inspiration, Dick!

Coming Soon—submit your own Class Note!

From Spring 2025: The editors at Colby magazine collected news for this column after learning that your correspondent, Don Tracy, passed away last November. ✹ Bill Bois leads the news for your class. He said, “Changes in our lives are fewer as the years zip by. Lou, my bride of 67 years and a former employee many years ago at Colby, has had mini-strokes, affecting her short-term memory. Needing to pay closer attention to her needs, we sold our large one-of-a-kind home and downsized to an easier-to-maintain condo in Winslow, Maine. Otherwise, our health is good, ‘for our ages,’ as doctors always add. We no longer winter in Florida, nor do we travel overseas, having already been to Europe nine times, to Alaska, to Hawaii, and to the Caribbean many times. So, this little boy from a farm in Sidney, Maine, feels very fortunate.” ✹ Michaline “Mikki” Chomicz Manno wrote from North Carolina, where she lives a mile away from her daughter and family friends. She reports that “2024 found me up and about with church activities, new interests via the senior center (even playing mahjong), and all of the shows, concerts, and lectures that the UNCW and the city of Wilmington have to offer. The ocean is more than two blocks away, but is still doable if one chooses an occasional ten-minute drive. Highlights of last year include a Panama Canal cruise in February with my California cousin to seven countries I’d never visited before; a week in Ocean Grove, N.J., in July to sing in the town’s annual choir festival; and a Caribbean holiday on the high seas in December with the family (nine of us), plus three friends, to celebrate 2025. I would love to get back to campus and see all the new buildings plus the town of Waterville … ‘wouldn’t that be lovely’(My Fair Lady)!” ✹ Dave Palmer checked in from the central Florida community of The Villages, where he moved in 2013 from Naples. He is still driving but is not fully active, and neuropathy has stopped golf for him. There are more than 700 holes of golf in The Villages, and more than 160,000 people. “Too many,” reports Dave. He has a “wonderful partner,” who moved to Florida in 1993. They now use their golf cart more than the car. Dave says, “Hello to any and all ’57ers left!”

From Spring 2025: Family and social relationships are important to Janice Klem Benicek, who enjoys going to painting class, then visiting Dunkin’ Donuts with class members to sit and talk. Her family enjoyed a cruise to Bermuda, accompanied by her Colby roommate Peg Beebe Ramsay and family. Graduations are coming up—one grandson is finishing high school and another college. “It’s great to live such a long life, but it’s difficult to lose so many friends. I lost two in October who went back to elementary school and high school. We’d been going to lunch once a month for more than 50 years.” ✹ Bruce Blanchard and wife Coleen have been together for 72 years and have four great-grandchildren. He was recently honored as a reader at a kindergarten class and introduced as a great-grandfather. He told the class, “That means I would be a father to your grandfather.” One of the 5-year-olds asked, “Did you know Abraham Lincoln?” Bruce also knows the sadness of losing so many classmates and friends. He recently looked at a picture of the 15 Lambda Chi pledges our freshman year singing to the Bixlers and realized only three of them are still living. ✹ Sally Fritz recently “shed a ton of stuff” when she and her dog moved into a perfect small apartment with only her favorite furniture: her mother’s Boston rocker, the table her dad refinished, and one-tenth of the books. “It’s been cleansing for my soul!” There was a measure of grief to it all, transplanting herself from Cape Cod to upstate New York, but her trusty old VW gets her over the hill to her daughter’s, and “I’m nourished by deepening friendships in this beautiful retirement community.” ✹ Marcia Griggs Atsaves enjoys her neighborhood of “slower, lower” Delaware, where the beach is marvelous, restaurants serve fine seafood, and games of pickleball and tennis are frequent. She even has room for Colby guests, a tempting invitation. ✹ During their first years of retirement, Walter and Maggie Smith Henry traveled frequently to Europe, the Southwest, Maine, Brooklyn, and Manhattan. Now, they enjoy a quieter life in Massapequa, N.Y. The grandchildren are in college, one a freshman at Colby and enjoying it very much. Maggie now sees how much the campus has grown since we were there and gets frequent emails from the school updating her on what faculty and students are doing, “so it’s very nice to be back in touch again.” 2024 was a very busy travel year for Dot Greenman Ketchum. First was a trip to Minneapolis for her grandson’s wedding, then a drive to Burlington, Vt., with Carol Conway Denney and Susan Sherman White, to visit me (Mary Ellen Chase Bridge) for a reunion of the four freshman roommates. Next, a September trip to the beautiful, historic town of St. Andrew’s, Scotland, where two of her grandchildren are going to college, and finally, a Thanksgiving trip to Oregon to visit her daughter and her three grandchildren. “I’m so fortunate to be able to do this roaming around the world!” ✹ In August Ginny Angney Bushee and I stayed with Jane Gibbons in her Airbnb in Sweden, Maine. We borrowed her family’s electric car and drove to Colby, echoing Maggie, to see how things have changed. We toured the Gordon Center for Creative and Performing Arts, the Harold Alfond Athletics and Recreation Center, with its Olympic-sized pool, and the Colby Museum of Art and had lunch at Dana, a far cry from the cafeteria 70 years ago. New dorms are being built along Mayflower Hill Dr., near the ones we knew then. Great to see the campus busy and thriving! ✹ In October family members invited me to join them in Paris, where my son-in-law was honored by his company. Highlights included dinner under the pyramid at the Louvre, a boat ride on the Seine, a tour of the Musée d’Orsay, and the Picasso museum. “Not bad for an 88-year-old,” I told myself. ✹ Best wishes to all, and keep on keeping on!

New submissions for Spring 2026: Irving “Skip” Tolette was presented with the Distinguished Service Award at the 2025 The Thousand Islands Lands Trust Volunteer Awards. In their Fall 2025 newsletter, he is described as someone who “has given generously of his time and heart” as well as “an invaluable part of the TILT family.”

From Spring 2025: Art Goldschmidt continues to lecture and write, mainly about the Middle East. He has given 10 lectures about the Gaza War, Egypt, and Syria. The fifth edition of his Historical Dictionary of Egypt came out in 2023, and the 13th edition, this time coauthored by Ibrahim Al-Marashi, of A Concise History of the Middle East was published by Taylor and Francis in October 2024. His Brief History of Egypt (second edition) has been published by InfoBase Publishing in an online version. He also writes his memoirs and occasional articles for Miscellany, the literary magazine of Foxdale Village Retirement Community, where he and his wife, Louise Robb Goldschmidt ’60, live. ✹ Margaret Lippincott Brezel was excited to be going to a 100th birthday celebration of a family member with her daughter last winter in Boston. They planned to spend a few days after the celebration going to the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, Harvard Glass Flowers collection, and other sights around town. At age 87, she didn’t think she would ever fly again. Living in Hawaii, just two blocks from the beautiful beach in Kailua, 20 minutes to Honolulu, is living in paradise. Although she grew up in Newton Center across from a 21-acre park, where she thought she lived in paradise, Hawaii beats them all. Over the years she has traveled to most places in Europe and Asia. She is happy to live in Hawaii. Great weather, friendly people! Aloha to all! ✹ John and Denny Kellner Palmer went out to Monhegan Island last fall, and on the way out from Port Clyde they went past Benner and Allen Islands, which were previously owned by the Wyeth Foundation and are owned by Colby and known as the Island Campus. She could see quite a few buildings that belonged to the Wyeths. Denny hopes to get out there one of these summers to see for herself! ✹ For 18 years Ed Goldberg has lived in Bozeman, Mont., which has changed from a ranching community to an upscale enclave for people from California and elsewhere. It is sad to see but a trend that is occurring throughout the West. Ed plans to return to the Thar Desert in India to participate in a healthcare mission. It is a strenuous trip but worth the effort. He has travelled to Vietnam twice this year to join his wife’s family and for the children to reconnect with their culture. Ed wonders if anyone is planning to return for reunion on campus this year. ✹ Mike Ferber follows the latest news on the woodsmen’s history. The following people, in addition to Mike, were all on one of the first teams to compete for Colby: Skip Tolette, Capt. Andy Sheldon ’60, Ian Tatlock, George Auchincloss ’60, and Doug Thompson ’60. They were members of the Woodsman’s Club. ✹ Wendy (Ihlstrom ’61) and Robert Nielson are hoping to visit Colby this year and maybe tour the new buildings (athletic center, performing arts center, etc.). They are in contact with Mike Wormser and hope to see him, too. “Retirement has been good, and Wendy and I are well!” ✹ I am well and have recovered from my fall last year. I’m always glad to hear from you.

• Philip P. Dine ’50, April 28, 2024, in Kingston, Mass., at 97. Before coming to Colby, he served in the U.S. Army during World War II in Panama. After Colby, he spent his career in retail and finance, including with Gorin’s Stores, a Boston-based department store chain, where he served as general manager and company credit manager. During retirement, he spent 10 years as a volunteer at Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital in Plymouth, Mass. He leaves his wife of 57 years, Barbara, three children, nine grandchildren, and eight great-grandchildren.
• Elisabeth Maley ’50, P ’81, ’86, Feb. 15, 2026, in Orange, CT, at 97.
• Elwood “Woody” Gair ’51, June 28, 2024, in Ojai, Calif., at 94. He served as a lieutenant in the U.S. Army and then earned an M.B.A. from Harvard University in 1956. He went on to become a successful marketing and advertising executive, working for Colgate-Palmolive, Burry Biscuit, and later for Foote, Cone, and Belding and SSC&B in New York City and Los Angeles. He had a lifelong love for horses, which he enjoyed through the Fairfield Hunt Club and on ranches in Montana and New Mexico. He was an avid competitor in tennis, skiing, ocean competitions, sailing, water skiing, and swimming. In the Pacific Palisades, he was dubbed “the Old Man of the Sea” for his participation in ocean competitions. He leaves four children, including Debbie Gair ’77, seven grandchildren, and five great-grandchildren.
• Robert E. Hartford ’51, Aug. 29, 2019, in Duxbury, Mass., at 92. His matriculation at Colby was delayed when he was drafted into the U.S. Army Air Corps at the end of World War II and served in the South Pacific for two years. After Colby, he was a lending officer at insurance companies and eventually became an investment officer with the John Hancock Life Insurance Company. He raised his family in Topsfield, Mass., and later moved to the Berkshires. He read history and traveled to locations around the country where geological history influenced human history. Survivors include two children, six grandchildren, and two great-grandchildren.
• Philip C. Heywood ’51, Nov. 17, 2024, in Portland, Ore., at 95. He enjoyed a 40-year career in the insurance and financial services industry, beginning in Indianapolis and then in Cincinnati, where he became president and CEO of Inter-Ocean Insurance Company. In 1983 he moved to Worcester, Mass., and was named vice president of brokerage sales at State Mutual, retiring in 1991. In Worcester, he was active with the First Baptist Church as treasurer and a board member. He also served on the boards of Elder Services of Worcester, Mass Care Home, and Salem Community Corp. He was also a docent for the Worcester Art Museum. Active with the American Field Service student exchange program, he served as president of both the Cincinnati and Wellesley, Mass., chapters. He was a host father in 1974 and maintained a 50-year friendship with his German host son. Along with his wife, he loved traveling and gardening, was an avid card player of bridge, cribbage, and Oh Hell, and was a devoted father. At age 94, he moved to Oregon to be near his daughter. He leaves three daughters and six grandchildren.
• Deborah Smith Meigs ’51, July 24, 2024, in Farmington, Conn., at 95. For the first 10 years after college, she worked jobs in Boston and New Jersey. She married in 1958 and moved to Danville, N.H., buying an 1849 farmhouse, later adding a 19-acre woodlot. She worked for 31 years as the librarian of the Danville Town Library, having earned a library science certificate in 1968. Following a small fire at her house in 1969, she joined the volunteer fire department and by 1979 earned her certification, becoming New Hampshire’s first female certified firefighter. She also served as secretary and treasurer for the Danville Historical Society, as a member of the Village Improvement Society, as a ballot clerk, and on the scholarship committee for the Timberland Regional High School in Plaistow, N.H. She enjoyed genealogy, chair weaving, playing cards (especially bridge), camping, and making memories at the family lake house on Pawtuckaway Lake. She leaves her husband of 68 years, Peter; three children, including Ellen J. Meigs ’88; nine grandchildren; three great-grandchildren; and a brother, Steven Smith ’63.
• David W. Miller ’51, March 7, 2025, in Brewster, Mass., at 95. Inspired by Colby’s geology professor Donald Koons, he went on to a career as a geologist with a focus on groundwater. After earning a master’s degree in geology at Columbia University, he founded a groundwater consulting partnership, Geraghty & Miller, which was involved in the development of water supplies internationally in developing and underdeveloped countries. They expanded to water supply development in the U.S. and provided consulting services on water supply management to municipalities, industries, and government agencies, including the EPA. In the late 1970s, the company broadened its practice into cleanup at contamination sites, including many Superfund sites. Eventually, the company grew internationally and merged with the worldwide Dutch engineering firm Heidemij in 1993, later renamed Arcadis. Known as a pioneer in the field, he authored seminal texts and guidelines for groundwater management, lectured extensively, and was recognized by the National Ground Water Association (NGWA) in 1979 with the M. King Hubbert Award and in 1996 with the NGWA Life Member Award. He retired in 1997 and continued consulting work from his home on Cape Cod. In 2000 he designed and built a 12-acre horse farm and equestrian facility, Lever 2 Late Farm, in Brewster, which he owned and operated. A loyal Colby alumnus, he donated paintings to the Colby College Museum of Art and was awarded the Distinguished Alumnus Award in 2001 at his 50th Reunion. He played tennis and golf throughout his life, enjoyed cross-country skiing and snowshoeing at his New Hampshire condo, and was an avid sailor. Survivors include his wife, Paula, five children, including Andrew Miller ’80 and Judith Miller Thomas ’82, 10 grandchildren, and four great-grandchildren.
• Jean MacDonald Peterson ’51, Dec. 29, 2024, in Santa Cruz, Calif., at 96. After college, she worked as a secretary at the Harvard Business School until she decided to drive out to San Francisco with three of her co-workers. There, she got a job at Crown Zellerbach and met her future husband, Richard Peterson. They married in 1958 in Carmel but moved back to the Boston area, where she started her family. After several more moves, she settled in Rio Del Mar, Calif., and raised their family in a beautiful home she and her husband planned and built in Aptos, in Santa Cruz County. She worked for years as a secretary, and then as an office manager for her husband’s private architecture firm, Richard Peterson Associates. She developed a love of weaving and was active with the local community of weavers and craftspeople. She walked Seacliff Beach nearly every day and loved sitting on her deck in the sun listening to the radio. Survivors include two children and her sister, Nancy MacDonald Cultrera ’52.
• Charles W. Tobin ’51, Feb. 4, 2025, in Dennis Port, Mass., at 99. He enlisted in the U.S. Navy as a Marine Corps combat medic at the age of 17 during World War II. After three years of service in the South Pacific, he attended Coburn Institute and Colby. In 1953 he earned a master’s in education from Bridgewater State College. He was a biology teacher at Randolph High School for several years and then shifted to sales, where he spent the majority of his career at Boston and Taunton Transportation. He retired in 1993 and bought a large home overlooking Nantucket Sound that had been a guest house for many years. He and his wife opened it as a B&B, the Old Wharf Inn. He enjoyed his role as innkeeper until his retirement last summer at age 99. He spent summers on Cape Cod and winters in Florida for decades. Survivors include a brother, five children, and seven grandchildren, including Jonathan Amadei ’08.
• Sally Shaw Cameron ’52, Oct. 28, 2024, in Snyder, N.Y., at 94. She was a devoted and loving wife, mother, and homemaker in Pompton Plains, N.J., where she lived for 40 years. She also volunteered for many years at Dial-a-Ride. In 1994 she and her husband retired to Snyder to be near their children and grandchildren. The last 30 years of her life were spent caring for her growing brood. Predeceased by her husband of 54 years, Donald O. Cameron ’52, she leaves four children, eight grandchildren, six great-grandchildren, and a brother.
• Russell A. Dixon Jr. ’52, Nov. 19, 2024, in Westchester, Ill., at 93. After Colby, he earned a D.D.S. from Howard University Dental School in 1956. During his senior year, he joined the U.S. Air Force’s Strategic Air Command, spending three years on assignment in England, earning the rank of captain, and developing an interest in oral surgery. Back in the United States, he earned an M.S. in pathology from Northwestern University Dental School and a certificate in oral and maxillofacial surgery from Cook County Hospital in 1966. From there, he worked in the Veterans Administration and established a distinguished career as chief of oral surgery at the Jessie Brown VA Hospital for 50 years. He leaves two children and two grandchildren.
• Dorothy Thurber Lamphere ’52, March 23, 2024, in Uncasville, Conn., at 93. A homemaker and mother for many years, she began teaching while her children were young. She taught English in Uncasville’s first high school, became certified, and earned a master’s in English from Southern Connecticut State University in 1975. After a 25-year career at the school, she retired to enjoy friends, family, and travel. Survivors include three children, four grandchildren, and two great-grandchildren.
• Herbert S. Nagle ’52, Feb. 24, 2025, in Bridgewater, Mass., at 95. In September 1952, he joined the U.S. Army and spent most of his two-year stint in Germany. He also played for an all-star baseball team for the Army. Most of his working life was spent in the family shoe manufacturing business, Victory Shoe Company in Brockton, Mass., which he took over from his father. The factory employed between 150 and 200 people, many of them new immigrants. It closed in 1969 with the advent of imported footwear, and he helped to find jobs for people now out of work. For a period, he worked on a part-time basis with a local shoe importer. A standout athlete in high school and college, he was inducted into the Brockton High School Sports Hall of Fame. Later, he played competitive tennis and volleyball. He was active in his community, serving as president of the Young Men’s Hebrew Association, member of the Rotary Club, and fundraiser for the YMCA and Boys & Girls Club of America. A loyal Colby alumnus, he served as president of his class for its 50th Reunion and as head class agent for its 60th Reunion. Survivors include his wife of 67 years, Judy Nagle, three children, five grandchildren, and six great-grandchildren.
• Barbara Gifford Whitepine ’52, Nov. 18, 2024, in Brunswick, Maine, at 94. She moved to Germany after graduation to live with her husband, returning to the States in 1954 and starting her family. Fifteen years after being a hausfrau, she began working as a secretary to a team of biologists at Brown University. In the 1970s she was introduced to writers Carolyn Heilbrun, Doris Grumbach, and May Sarton, which changed her worldview. She divorced, moved to Maine in 1985, and legally changed her name to Whitepine to honor her love of Maine’s state tree. She worked for eight years as an administrative assistant in the Music Department at Bowdoin College while pursuing a fulfilling life of travel, children, writing, and music. She practiced yoga, played her euphonium horn in community bands, and worked part time for a group that provided services to the elderly. Survivors include her partner, Catharine M. Chase, three children, and three grandchildren.
• Quintilio Berasani Jr. ’53, Oct. 26, 2024, in Peabody, Mass., at 94. He enlisted in the U.S. Army and served for two years at Ft. Campbell in Kentucky and Ft. Jackson in South Carolina. He spent his career in the insurance industry at the Insurance Company of North America, living first in Melrose and then in Marshfield, where he was closer to the ocean. He enjoyed traveling, square dancing, bowling, golfing, playing cards, family camping trips, volunteering at church, and celebrating milestones with family. He leaves his wife of 70 years, Ruth Sheehan Bersani ’53, five children, eight grandchildren, seven great-grandchildren, and a brother.
• Carolyn English Beane Caci ’53, Jan. 18, 2025, in Peabody, Mass., at 93. She married her high school sweetheart, Joseph Beane, in 1955 and settled in Stoneham, Mass., where they raised their five children. She worked as a librarian at the Stoneham Public Library and attended Salem State University, studying library science. She continued sharing her passion for reading in her next job at the Billerica Public Library, serving as a librarian on its mobile library called Bebo. While at the library, she brought an up-and-coming writer named Stephen King as a guest speaker to promote the opening of the new library. Following her husband’s death, she remarried, to John Caci. They enjoyed their blended family and spent time sailing. In retirement, she worked part time at UMASS Lowell in its Department of Diversity and later moved to Brooksby Village in Peabody, where she continued her passion for music—begun as a child and fostered at Colby, notably through the Colbyettes—by participating in two choirs. She also ran a book club and volunteered. She leaves five children, two stepchildren, 11 grandchildren, and five great-grandchildren.
• David W.H. Harvey ’53, May 4, 2024, in Warwick, R.I., at 96. He served in the U.S. Army Medical Corps after high school, from 1946 to 1948 during the Korean War. After Colby, he earned a master’s of education in guidance from Harvard in 1956 and joined Mitchell College in New London, Conn., as a counselor and psychology instructor the same year. He left to earn his doctorate in education from the University of Connecticut in 1971 and then returned to Mitchell, where he was named dean of students and eventually dean of the college. He retired in 1989 after 28 years at the college. He also served as deacon for the First Congregational Church in New London, and he enjoyed research and writing. A lover of nature, he enjoyed hiking with his grandsons and was an active tennis player. He leaves three children, two grandchildren, and a great-grandchild.
• Helen L. Osgood Keeler ’53, March 26, 2024, in Duxbury, Mass., at 92. A homemaker, mother, volunteer, and philanthropist, she was active with the Alliance of First Parish of Norwell, Seaside Gardeners of Marshfield, and the “Bookworms” of the James Library. She was also a board member, volunteer, and supporter of the South Shore Natural Science Center in Norwell. She loved gardens, nature, reading, and spending time with family at their Cape Cod cottage. Three children, eight grandchildren, and two great-granddaughters survive her.
• Helen Connolly McAuliffe ’53, March 7, 2023, in Mansfield, Mass., at 91. She was a mother, grandmother, and homemaker who volunteered in her community. Predeceased by her husband, Robert E. McAuliffe ’54, she leaves four children, including Robert E. McAuliffe Jr. ’76; five grandchildren, including Meghan Moynihan ’09; and three great-grandchildren. Her son Mark A. McAuliffe ’79 passed away Oct. 21, 2023.
• Anita A. Schlosser MacIntyre ’53. Feb. 14, 2026, in Redding, Ct. She was the widow of Malcolm MacIntyre. She will be buried in Kensico Cemetery, Valhalla, New York.
• Alden C. Sprague ’53, Oct. 5, 2025, in Huntington Station, N.Y., at 94.
• Paul E. White ’53, Jan. 19, 2024, in Portland, Ore., at 92. A Fulbright scholar at the University of Vienna from 1953 to 1954, he received his doctorate in social anthropology from Harvard in 1964. He joined the School of Public Health at Johns Hopkins University, where he taught and researched inter-organizational cooperation in health. He conducted fieldwork in Pakistan and was director of social studies and advisor to the government at the Research Evaluation Center in Lahore. In 1974 Colby awarded him an honorary doctorate of humane letters following his appointment as chair of the Department of Behavioral Sciences at Johns Hopkins’ School of Hygiene and Public Health. Later, he taught at Memorial University of Newfoundland, where he had homes in Herring Neck and St. John’s. He laughed often and made others laugh, and he attracted friends who savored his wisdom, stories, and debates on topics such as insulation, etymology, tree pruning, art, and architecture. He leaves his wife of 60 years, Caroline, his former wife, Jean, three children, and four grandchildren.
• Robert M. Anderson ’54, June 24, 2024, in Fishers, Ind., at 91. He participated in the ROTC program at Colby and joined the U.S. Air Force as an officer after graduation. He was honorably discharged in 1957. After his military service, he worked with Deluxe Check Printers as a sales representative, eventually becoming a sales manager and recruiting manager. He retired in 1993 after 35 years of service. Hobbies in retirement included restoring his father’s 1912 Stoddard Dayton automobile and woodworking. He was a member of the Second Presbyterian Church, Players’ Club, and the Contemporary Club of Indianapolis. He joined Rock Steady Boxing following his Parkinson’s disease diagnosis. He leaves two children, a granddaughter, and a sister.
• Judith Weeks Dolan ’54, Nov. 28, 2024, in Peabody, Mass., at 91. She married in 1957 and settled in Middleton, where she raised her family in the historic Ebenezer Styles House, which she painstakingly restored to its original splendor. She was active in the Middleton community and a member of the historical society. Following her husband’s untimely death in 1975, she began a career and business in the antique world. She was proprietor of several North Shore antique shops, beginning with Courtyard Antiques in Topsfield, then a shop in Essex, on Charles St. in Boston, and finally Middleton Antiques. She was well respected in the industry for her keen eyes, professional acumen, and passion for antiques. She was also a journalist and regular contributor with the Tri-Town Transcript and Lawrence Eagle Tribune during the 1970s, writing columns on local Middleton news and antiques. An intelligent woman and lifelong learner, she was an avid reader who enjoyed daily newspapers, Time magazine, and The New Yorker. She took great delight in completing the daily crossword puzzle. She enjoyed animals, cooking, gardening, watching birds, and going to museums. She moved to Brooksby Village in Peabody in 2018. Survivors include two children and five grandchildren.
• Gertrude “Trudy” Jefferson Hummel ’54, Dec. 30, 2024, in Findlay, Ohio, at 91. She married in 1956 and entered the working world at the U.S. State Department, helping to settle European refugees. A firm believer in lifelong education, she earned an elementary teaching certificate from Glassboro State College and established the first nursery school in Ocean City, N.J., teaching there for many years before joining the emergency room staff at Shore Memorial Hospital in Somers Point, N.J. She lived with her family in Ocean City for almost 30 years before moving near her daughter in Ohio. She enjoyed riding her bike, gardening, reading, watching wildlife, and caring for her grandchildren. Predeceased by her husband, Henry Hummel ’52, she leaves four children, seven grandchildren, three step-grandchildren, and four great-grandchildren.
• John D. Krusell ’54, April 27, 2024, in Kissimmee, Fla., at 91. After Colby, he served in the U.S. Army for four years and learned to fly while stationed in Texas, including crash landing a plane, learning the life lesson “fly it until it stops.” After military service, he became an insurance agent and broker, running Krusell Insurance Agency in Brookfield, Mass., for more than 50 years. He enjoyed antique cars, especially the 1932 Ford fire truck he restored and drove in countless parades and celebrations. He served his community on the zoning board, historic society, and First Congregational Church and as an election warden. He was a dedicated Rotarian, recording decades of perfect attendance and earning the designation of Paul Harris Fellow. Survivors include three children, including sons Jay ’81 and Stuart ’85, six grandchildren, and four great-grandchildren.
• Benedict A. Leerburger ’54, Mar. 6, 2026, at 94.
• Janet Fraser Mitchell ’54, Dec. 16, 2024, in Waterville, Maine, at 93. She married in 1973 and began her family. She completed her degree from Colby after years of summer school, graduating in June 1974. While raising her seven children, she worked full time as an elementary school teacher for 25 years, retiring in 1991. Her passions revolved around her love of literature, art, and gardening. She served as a docent at the Colby College Art Museum and was active with the Waterville Women’s Club, Waterville Area Art Association, Waterville Historical Society, and Central Maine Garden Club. She served on the board of directors of the Senator George J. Mitchell Scholarship Research Institute and the Waterville Women’s Association and as the warden for Waterville’s Ward 3. She was a voracious reader and member of the Readers Epicurious book club, an accomplished tennis player, and an enthusiastic traveler. The centerpiece of her life was her large family, rich with Scottish and Lebanese heritage and strong Colby ties, including her parents, Paul “Ginger” Fraser, Class of 1915, and Phyllis St. Clair Fraser, Class of 1913, who predeceased her. Two siblings, Mary Louise Woods ’45 and Haddon Fraser ’51, also predeceased her. She leaves seven children, including Mary Mitchell Friedman ’79 and Peter M. Mitchell ’82, 30 grandchildren, and 25 great-grandchildren.
• Abraham Allen “AA” Sandler ’54, Nov. 18, 2024, in Hollywood, Fla., at 91. He worked in sales, first for a shoe manufacturer, later for a clay and ceramics importer, where he was a vice president and sales manager, and then ran his own company, A. Allen Sandler Associates. He leaves three children and six grandchildren.
• Sherman H. Saperstein ’54, April 16, 2024, in Scottsdale, Ariz., at 92. After Colby, he joined his father to run the family business, Fairfield Lumber Company, which prospered under his leadership, thanks in part to the clever and humorous advertisements he wrote for the local newspaper and radio. He married and raised his children in Waterville until his retirement in 1997, when he became a permanent resident of Scottsdale. A man of many talents, he was an artist, poet, and humorist. Survivors include his wife of 59 years, Linda, two children, and a sister.
• Janice Stevenson Squier ’54, Aug. 14, 2024, in Boise, Idaho, at 91. After graduating from Colby, she worked for a period in the Boston area, including for the Fogg Art Museum at Harvard. While a student at Harvard Graduate School of Education in 1957, she met and married a fellow student, following him to Ann Arbor, Mich., and then Boulder, Colo. A skilled pianist, she began teaching piano in Boulder and continued for the next 36 years. She was also a talented composer, writing for the piano, piano and voice, and violin and piano. An adept artist in writing, illustration, painting, cooking, and pottery, she became a skilled potter working in porcelain. She was a longtime member of the Boulder Potters Guild and served as its board secretary and president. She was also a member of the Boulder Bach Festival’s board of directors, serving as secretary for nine years. She maintained a lifelong friendship with her Colby Delta Delta Delta sorority sisters. In 2015 she moved to Boise to be closer to family and became active by teaching art classes, performing music, and participating in learning opportunities. She leaves two children.
• Joanne Bailey Anderson Campbell ’55, March 11, 2025, in Damariscotta, Maine, at 91. She married Wells Anderson in 1954 and worked at Harvard University while he was in law school. They settled and raised their family in Concord, N.H., where she was a member of the Unitarian Universalist Church, the Lamplighters, and a garden club. During this time, she traveled and camped with her husband and children across the United States and Europe. She divorced in 1977 and spent several years helping both of her parents in Maine in their old age. She remarried in 2003 and enjoyed three years with William Campbell before he passed. She then moved to Newcastle, Maine, where she was active with the Miles Memorial Hospital League, Coastal Senior College, and Old Bristol Garden Club. Predeceased by her father, Nelson Bailey, Class of 1928, she leaves two children and two grandchildren.
• Dorothy Couillard Carlson ’55, Oct. 1, 2024, in Pikeville, Ky., at 90. A lifelong scholar and educator, she earned a master’s in education from the University of Missouri, St. Louis in 1971 and a doctorate from Louisiana State University. Her career took her to Pikeville, where she taught at Pikeville College and later Prestonsburg Community College, where she was recognized multiple times as Teacher of the Year. She was also the first director of the Harlan Head Start program and a tireless volunteer in reading education. Active in her community, she was a proud member of the Daughters of the American Revolution, taught water aerobics at the YMCA, worked in the garden club, and volunteered at the farmers’ market. She was also a master gardener, jewelry maker, animal lover, and exuberant hostess who threw unforgettable parties. She leaves three children, four grandchildren, two great-grandchildren, and two sisters.
• Susan Franklin Chapman ’55, Nov. 16, 2024, in Northfield, Ohio, at 90. As a young woman and throughout her life, she embraced independence and learning. After Colby, she studied abroad as a Fulbright Scholar at the University of Paris. She met her husband while working at the Harvard Observatory Library, and together they moved to Los Angeles, where both of their children were born. The family eventually settled in the newly established Columbia, Md. In 1964 she earned an M.S. at Simmons College School of Library Science and went on to enjoy a career as a librarian for the National Agricultural Library. She served as a role model for many in her family. She loved art, literature, and playing bridge. She is remembered for her warm and loving spirit and the generosity she showed others. Survivors include two children, two grandchildren, and a sister.
• Janet Dick ’55, April 1, 2024.
• Virginia Eilerston ’55, Sept. 25, 2022.
• Mary “Peggy” L. Nutting Emerson ’55, June 16, 2024, in Freeport, Maine, at 91. She earned a master’s in education from the University of Maine at Orono in 1959. After teaching one year at Clinton (Maine) High School, she transferred to Freeport High School, where she taught mathematics for 36 years, retiring in 1992. She was active with the Woodfords Congregational Church in Portland and a member of the Golden Sheaf Chapter #114 Order of the Eastern Star. She leaves two brothers and 11 niblings.
• Leon “Lee” Fernandez ’55, April 1, 2025, in Boston, Mass., at 92. After graduating from Colby, he earned a living selling advertising for the Nuclear News and other publications. Later, he became president of New England Media Sales and then started Northeast Media, all while pursuing his interests in art and music through his involvement in numerous endeavors. He hosted an annual jazz party in his Charleston apartment with a jazz band and many festivities. In 1974 he donated 87 Winslow Homer graphics to the Colby College Museum of Art, which were first showcased in the exhibition Winslow Homer: Wood Engravings Portray America, 1854-1874. Colby had a significant impact on his life, and he stayed involved with the College and his classmates in numerous ways throughout his life. In 1980 he was awarded a Colby Brick to acknowledge his contributions. He was also named Member of the Year by the Theatre Historical Society, a national preservationist group, for his 15 years volunteering with Boston’s 1928 Keith Memorial Theatre. He leaves extended family, including his nephew Dave Fernandez ’89.
• Elisabeth “Betty” Dubord Goulette ’55, Nov. 25, 2024, in South Paris, Maine, at 91. She left Colby after her first year and transferred to Forsyth School for Dental Hygienists in 1954. She married a sailor who had a 25-year career in the U.S. Navy, moving with him and her family 19 times in 21 years, from Brunswick, Maine, to Subic Bay, the Philippines, and many stations in between. They eventually settled in Waterville, where her four children attended Waterville High School and where she accompanied the chorus as an accomplished pianist. She was also active in local musical theater, took art classes and creative writing workshops, and was a prolific knitter and cross stitcher.
• Richard C. Hodgson ’55, December 21, 2025, at 92.
• Nancy Ives ’55, P ’81, April 13, 2026.
• Carol MacIver Murphy ’55, June 12, 2024, in Lenox, Mass., at 90. After Colby, she moved to Boston and worked for the telephone company and later in public relations at the Arthur D. Little Company in Cambridge. In the mid-1960s, she enrolled in Simmons College, earning a master’s in library science. She worked in libraries for the rest of her career, first at the Milwaukee (Wis.) Public Library and then the Bridgeport (Conn.) Public Library before moving to Northampton, Mass. There, she worked in school libraries before becoming manager of circulation at Forbes Library, a position she held until retirement in 1997. She was an accomplished pianist and played in the bell choir at her church. She also volunteered for the League of Women Voters, the parent-teacher organization, and the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill. She enjoyed museums, walks in parks, cooking, baking, cross-country trips, swimming, and skiing. Survivors include her husband of 58 years, Keirnan Murphy, and two children.
• Dorothy “Dot” Dunn Northcott ’55, Nov. 13, 2024, in Trumbull, Conn., at 91. She continued her education at Tufts University, earning an M.Ed. in 1957. She taught kindergarten in Fairfield, Conn., until 1960, when she left to raise her family. She lived in New York, New Hampshire, and for four years in Tokyo, Japan, finally settling in Trumbull in 2018 to be closer to family. She enjoyed tennis, exercise classes, walking, her dog, and socializing with her many friends. She leaves three children, including Evan Jones ’82, and seven grandchildren, including Grace Jones ’25.
• Anne Burbank Richards Palmer ’55, March 25, 2024, in Augusta, Maine, at 90. A wife and homemaker in Miami, Fla., starting in 1957, she moved with her family back to her hometown of Waterville in 1972. She went back to college and earned a B.A. in nursing from the University of Maine at Augusta, subsequently enjoying a successful career with Maine General Medical Center. After retirement, she worked in the office at Waterville Burger Corporation, her family’s Burger King franchise. She devoted more than 20 years serving on the Waterville Planning Board and Zoning Board of Appeals while championing community service projects, including the North Street Playground and South End Skate Park and the purchase of a rescue ambulance for the Waterville Fire Department. She single-handedly raised funds for these projects by applying for grants and asking for donations. She also helped raise funds for the Humane Society of the Waterville Area’s new animal shelter and worked diligently to help restore the Blueberry Hill lookout in Belgrade. Survivors include two children.
• Mary C. Dundas Runser ’55, March 17, 2024, in Scarborough, Maine, at 91. While enrolled in a master’s program in education at the University of New Hampshire, she met her future husband, ending her studies. They returned to her hometown of Waterville with their four children, and she worked as an ed tech in the public schools. To fulfill her dream of living near the ocean, she moved later in life to Scarborough, where she spent many happy years. She was energized by the vitality of her grandchildren, loved fashion and culture, and had a soft spot for animals. Her children and grandchildren survive her.
• Lora Sheridan ’55, April 1, 2026.
• Elizabeth “Betty” Harris Smith ’55, Jan. 14, 2025, in Arlington, Mass., at 91. For several years after graduation, she worked as the assistant to the president of MIT. She left that position when she married Harold Smith and became a homemaker and mother. Later, she continued her education at Radcliffe College and established the Lincoln Review, a local magazine she co-owned and edited that published thousands of news stories, artwork, poetry, historical articles, letters to the editor, and more. A talented writer and editor, she encouraged new writers and poets from the area. She enjoyed international travel, played tennis and served on the Lincoln Tennis Committee for many years, and loved anything to do with Betty Boop. She also worked with the Lincoln Scholarship Committee, which established a scholarship in her name to support students after high school. She was also active with her Colby Class of 1955, helping with fundraising and serving as the class correspondent. She leaves four children and five grandchildren.
• Henry A. Taron ’55, April 12, 2024, in Manchester, Mass., at 92. His Colby ROTC training took flight after graduation as he joined the U.S. Air Force and became a navigator and then an airborne radar control officer. After his military service, he settled in Manchester-by-the-Sea and embarked on a business career with Travelers Insurance Company, specializing in employee benefits administration. He retired in 1993 and joined his wife in running Tradewinds Antiques in Essex, an exclusive purveyor of fine antique canes and walking sticks, which he became a world-renowned expert on. A lifelong sportsman, he coached youth baseball, harbored a lifelong love of tennis and fishing, and was a diehard Red Sox fan. He leaves three children, including Douglas Taron ’79 and Christopher Taron ’90, and three grandchildren.
• Barbara Duer Arnstine ’56, April 13, 2024, in Sacramento, Calif., at 89. Her extensive academic career included receiving a master’s of education at Harvard and a doctorate in the philosophy of education at the University of Wisconsin. She taught at the University of Tennessee, the University of Wisconsin, and Boston University before becoming a professor of education at California State University, Sacramento. During her 25-plus years there, her major focus was teacher preparation and the role of philosophy of education in training and sustaining teachers. She also helped to create and coordinate a master’s program emphasizing women’s studies and women in education. Beginning in 1994 and continuing until her retirement, she served as editor and moderator of the LegiSchool Town Hall meetings, televised throughout California and nationally. She traveled globally and had a passion for harness racing, which began in 1972. She owned dozens of horses and won hundreds of races across the country. In her last few years, she began to breed horses and loved watching her young horses grow and train. Survivors include four children and six grandchildren.
• Hope Palmer Bramhall ’56, July 13, 2024, in Falmouth, Maine, at 90. An engaged and joyful homemaker, mother, grandmother, and hostess, she was also an active volunteer in Maine, serving as president of six organizations: Junior League of Portland, Portland YMCA, National Society of Colonial Dames, Society of Bowdoin Women, Colby Alumni Association, and her Colby Class of 1956. In 2006 Colby honored her with a Brick Award for the multiple ways she supported the College and her classmates with decades of service. She also received the Roll of Honor from the Colonial Dames, and the Junior League created the Hope P. Bramhall Volunteer of the Year Award in her honor. She was the longest-tenured member of the Portland Yacht Club, serving as chair of both the decorating and the cookbook committees; a 35-year member of the Maine Medical Center Board of Corporators; and chair of the medical center’s Patient Survey Team for 50 years. Favorite pastimes included sailing the Maine coast with the yacht club, ski trips with her family, and barge cruises in Europe. She was also a painter, inspired by time cruising the waters of Maine. She leaves four daughters, including Faith Bramhall Rodenkirk ’81 and Sarah Bramhall Reynolds ’92, and her husband, Joshua Reynolds ’92; six grandchildren, including Adrianna Twombly ’13 and Hannah Twombly ’16; and a brother.
• Roland J. Breton ’56, Dec. 23, 2024, in Topsham, Maine, at 90. After serving in the U.S. Army in England and Germany, he returned to Maine in 1958, working for Prudential Insurance in the Portland office, and then in Brunswick as sales manager while living in Topsham. He retired from Prudential after more than 30 years. While helping his wife raise their six children in Topsham, he stayed active volunteering in the community, including elections and Meals on Wheels. He also served as a pastor in a New Gloucester church during this period. He loved being a grandfather and was active in his grandchildren’s lives, and he enjoyed walking the neighborhood with his dog, Benji. Survivors include his wife of 68 years, Jeanette Breton, six children, including Leslie Breton ’81, seven grandchildren, and a brother.
• William E. Haggett ’56, March 1, 2025, in West Bath, Maine, at 90. He served three years in the U.S. Air Force as a radar controller, rising to the rank of first lieutenant. After his service, he returned to his hometown of Bath, Maine, and started his remarkable 28-year career at Bath Iron Works, holding many titles before being chosen to lead the company as president and chair of the board. He was awarded the Fleet Admiral Chester W. Nimitz Award for exemplary leadership in the maritime defense industry. He also served on a Presidential Commission on Merchant Marine and Defense under Presidents Reagan and George H. W. Bush. In 1992 he moved with his wife to Saint John, N.B., and became president of Irving Shipbuilding LTD, which was building 12 frigates for the Canadian Navy. When they returned to Bath five years later, he raised funds to construct a new 55,000-square-foot YMCA in Bath and for the Y to expand childcare facilities in the Bath area. In the early 2000s, after his shipbuilding career, the Libra Foundation asked him to manage several of their Maine businesses. Until he was 85, he was chairman and CEO of Pineland Farms Natural Meats and Pineland Farms Potato Company. He also served on numerous boards, including the Bath City Council, Colby College, Maine Maritime Academy, Maine Sports Hall of Fame, and Maine Maritime Museum. He helped establish the Hyde School in Bath. At Colby, he was a campaign volunteer, Colby Fund head class agent, and a member of the Alumni Council, the Board of Visitors, and the Board of Trustees, serving from 1982 to 1985. He served his class as its president and chaired its 25th and 50th reunion committees, and he was an active member of the C Club. The College honored him with an honorary degree in 1982, the Distinguished Alumnus Award in 1989, and a Colby Brick in 2011. He established the Raymond ’36 and Ruth Farnham Scholarship Fund for Maine Students at Colby and was instrumental in establishing the Bath Iron Works Scholarship Fund as well. Predeceased by his brother, Robert D. Haggett ’60, he leaves his wife of 68 years, Sally, three children, six grandchildren, and two great-grandchildren.
• Joan M. Harlowe ’56, Feb. 1, 2026.
• Franklin E. Huntress Jr. ’56, July 4, 2024, in Marblehead, Mass., at 91. He served in the U.S. Army Medical Corps from 1956 to 1958 and then went to the Berkeley Divinity School at Yale, earning a degree in theology in 1962. He spent his career as an Episcopal priest, his ministry spanning New England, New York, and Great Britain. He leaves a brother and extended family.
• Photinie Karris ’56, April 2, 2026.
• Roger Landay ’56, April 8, 2026, in Chestnut Hill, Mass., at 91.
• Ruthann Simmonds MacKinnon ’56, April 13, 2024, in Damariscotta, Maine, at 89. She went on to earn a master’s in educational psychology in 1957 from Harvard, where she met her future husband. They moved to Edinburgh, Scotland, during the “swinging ’60s” and welcomed two sons. She built a career in educational psychology working overseas and lecturing in universities in Edinburgh, Uganda, Malaysia, and Toronto, Canada. Through her travels, she acquired a special knowledge about African masks and sculpture. She returned to her home in Maine upon retirement and remained active in public service through volunteering for an adult literacy program, area food pantry, and historical society. She was also a reader at the Jefferson Village School. Survivors include two sons and three grandsons.
• Joan Williams Marshall ’56, Feb. 19, 2025, in Melbourne Beach, Fla., at 90. An educator, poet, and devoted mother and life partner, she began her career as an English teacher and then worked for decades promoting health and wellness as a women’s fitness instructor at the Westfield (Mass.) YMCA. She was also the front woman at Brownies Cabins, a family business she led for 30 years. Later, while spending summers in Truro, she volunteered at the thrift shop and the historical society. A proud snowbird, she enjoyed winters in Melbourne Beach. She will be remembered for her animated storytelling, can-do attitude, and uplifting energy. She leaves her husband of 66 years, John C. Marshall ’56, two children, five grandchildren, and a brother.
• Nancy Stagg McCarthy ’56, Feb. 6, 2025, in Franklin, Mass., at 90. Her career in healthcare began after Colby in Boston at Mass General, where for many years she ran their clinical lab. She married in 1967, retired from Mass General, and started her family in Medfield, Mass. She was seen all around Medfield, running errands, working at the school library, or at her sons’ sporting events. She was quick to have a conversation and was known for her beautiful smile. She enjoyed time on Orr’s Island, Maine, soaking up the sun, reading, and watching her boys and granddaughters play on the rocky coast. Later, when she moved to the Medfield Senior Center, she was an avid bridge player. She leaves two sons, four granddaughters, and a brother.
• Shirley Verga Montini-Turiansky ’56, Aug. 15, 2024, in Waterbury, Conn., at 96. She taught nursing in New York City for many years before moving to the Dominican Republic to study medicine in the late 1970s and early ’80s. Her dream was to do missionary medicine. Later, in 1991, she earned a degree from Harvard University. She married twice and had two children.
• William W. Pennock Jr. ’56, April 30, 2024, in Fryeburg, Maine, at 90. After Colby, he graduated from Officer Candidate School in Newport, R.I., and served as a U.S. Navy forward air controller aboard the U.S.S. Interceptor with the Pacific Fleet, earning the rank of lieutenant commander. He later found success in the financial department of the pharmaceutical company Hoffman LaRoche in New York City. He earned his realtor’s license, moved to Maine, and sold property with Pike, Lovejoy, and Howe Realty in Fryeburg for many years. Active in his community, he was a volunteer rescuer, member of Kiwanis and the Masons, and supported music and theater organizations. He leaves three children, five grandchildren, and four great-grandchildren.
• Donald “Coach” N. Rice ’56, April 5, 2025, in New London, N.H., at 92. He was a coach and teacher at Bucksport (Maine) High School from 1956 to 1958 and then moved to Greenfield, Mass., to work in the family business, Rice Oil Co. He worked with his father and son and grew Rice Oil into the preeminent energy company in Franklin County. He sold the company in 2010 after leading it for more than 30 years. In 1991 he started the Rice Family Foundation, which championed his belief in giving back to the community by funding organizations within the county. He was an outstanding athlete in high school and college, and he had invitations to play professional baseball. He was a fixture in local sports leagues, was inducted into the Governor Academy’s Athletic Hall of Fame, and was named Colby’s C Club Person of the Year in 2016. He was a mentor, source of inspiration and encouragement, and “coach” to his children and grandchildren. Predeceased by his first wife, Ann, he is survived by his second wife, Sherry, eight children, eight grandchildren, and six great-grandchildren.
• Julie Brush Wheeler ’56, Feb. 12, 2025, in Milwaukie, Ore., at 90. She studied education at the graduate level at Portland State University and taught elementary school for 25 years in the Portland, Ore., area. She was a founding member of the organization Ceasefire Oregon, which educated people about health and safety issues relating to gun ownership. She was also active with Educators for Social Responsibility. She fished with her husband, traveled to Mexico several times, and made her own soap. Along with her husband, Andrew, she raised three children.
• Robert “Larry” Zullinger Jr. ’56, Dec. 22, 2024, in Newtown Square, Pa., at 91. After Colby, he attended the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School of Business and took classes in the M.B.A. marketing program. His first career was in Pittsburgh at the U.S. Steel Training program, which helped him become the sales and marketing manager of Phoenix Steel. His second career began in 1985 in industrial real estate as vice president of Bushar Corporation and a broker for Liberman & Earley, where he continued to work part time until 2023. He was an avid golfer, playing courses across the U.S. and in the UK and having three holes-in-one in his lifetime. His most endearing membership was with his beloved Divotees, a local Quaker golf group. In the 1980s, he and his wife became enthusiastic cyclists, taking seven European riding trips and accomplishing two major U.S. rides, Portland, Maine, to Orlando, Fla., and a 49-day cross-country adventure from Los Angeles to Boston. He was involved with several local organizations and clubs over the years, but his most fulfilling was as chair of the board at Hayes Manor, an affordable retirement and personal care residence in Philadelphia, from 2010 to 2017. Survivors include his wife of 68 years, Diane Schnauffer Zullinger ’57, four children, nine grandchildren, and 11 great-grandchildren.
• James S. Greenlaw ’57, March 13, 2025, in Surry, Maine, at 95. Before enrolling at Colby, he served as a Marine in the U.S. Army during the Korean War, where he was recognized for his role in intelligence while stationed in Korea. He came to Colby on the GI Bill, majored in business, and then established a long career in information systems, starting with mainframe computers. His career spanned jobs with Pitney Bowes, Keyes Fiber, Bath Iron Works, and Lukens Steel. After living on and off the coast of Maine, he retired to Isle au Haut in 1991 and began a second career fishing for lobster. In later years, he and his wife, Martha, loved sitting on their deck with cocktails, gazing out across Penobscot Bay. He was also an avid sportsman who enjoyed hunting and recreational fishing. A man of few words, he had a dry sense of humor, quick wit, and propensity for practical jokes. Part of a three-generation family of Colby graduates, he was predeceased by his father, Aubrey Greenlaw, Class of 1920, and two brothers, Charles ’50 and George ’55. His survivors include three children, including Linda Greenlaw ’83, six grandchildren, a great-granddaughter, and his dear friend and caregiver, Nancy Peers.
• Eleanor “Ellie” Jones Rogers Luopa ’57, Aug. 20, 2024, in Peterborough, N.H., at 89. She married her first husband the same year they graduated from Colby, eventually settling in Salem, N.H., to raise their children. Here, she was a church secretary and instrumental with the founding group of the Hilltop Nursery School. Retiring in 1992 to Fitzwilliam, N.H., she was a volunteer member and president of the town’s garden club and earned a lifetime membership to the National Association of Garden Clubs. Later, she opened a small business, Lilies of the Field, out of her home. Following her husband’s death in 1998, she explored new passions, traveled, and eventually remarried in 2010. Her final years were spent in a retirement community in Peterborough, where she rooted for the Red Sox and established meaningful friendships. Predeceased by her first husband, James M. Rogers ’57, and her second husband, she leaves four children, including Chris Rogers ’94, seven grandchildren, and six great-grandchildren.
• Beverly A. Colbroth Moor ’57, Jan. 15, 2025, in Darien, Ill., at 89. After Colby, she taught French at Williamstown (Mass.) High School for three years. She met her husband-to-be there and started a family, moving from Washington, D.C., to Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Illinois. They traveled together, designed and constructed two of their homes, and kept in touch with lifelong friends. Later, as an empty-nester and widow, she devoted her time to classical music, continuing education, and travel. An alto, she sang with the Festival Chorus in Palatine, Ill., for more than 30 years and was an avid supporter of musical education and performance throughout the Chicago area. She continued to travel domestically and internationally until limited by illness in 2021. She leaves two daughters, including Cynthia “Cindi” Moor Young ’82, three grandsons, a great-granddaughter, and a sister.
• S.D. Tillis ’56, Feb. 21, 2026.
• Donald S. Tracy ’57, Nov. 14, 2023, in Rockport, Maine, at 88. Following graduation, he joined the U.S. Air Force and served as a captain until 1964. He married during this time and also met two Jehovah’s Witnesses, engaging in a conversation that spoke to his intellect and heart. He spent the rest of his life studying the scriptures and building his faith in them. He also worked a number of careers, including as a tax accountant and preparer. He was a people person who extended generosity and hospitality to those he met. Survivors include his wife, Linda, six children, four grandchildren, and a great-grandson.
• Burton M. Angrist ’58, May 17, 2024, in Kingston, N.Y., at 87. He earned a medical degree from the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in 1962 and launched a research career focused on the origin and treatment of psychoses. For nearly 50 years, he was a member of the New York University Medical Center’s Department of Psychiatry, working at Bellevue Hospital or the New York VA. While in medical school, he was introduced to rock climbing, which grew into a passion and lifelong interest. He also enjoyed backpacking, skiing, and canoe camping. He was drawn early to the Shawangunk Mountains in New York State’s Hudson Valley, and after spending weekends there for decades, he became a full-time “Gunks” resident following his retirement. He leaves his wife, Anka, and a daughter.
• Thomas S. Drummond ’58, Oct. 4, 2017.
• Owen “Ron” R. Haley Jr. ’58, Jan. 13, 2025, in Fort Kent, Maine, at 87. Post Colby, and after a few years of teaching, he went on to earn an M.Ed. at the University of Maine, Orono. He taught history at Fort Kent Community High School for 35 years and retired in 1997. He headed the Social Studies Department for many years and shepherded generations of students through this formative stage of life. He also enjoyed teaching night courses for many years at Loring Air Force Base in Limestone. He grew to love his small town, teaching with a cohort of young colleagues who became lifelong friends, holding leadership roles in community organizations, such as Jaycees, the Lions Club, the local library board, and the Knights of Columbus, and serving as moderator at town meetings. He leaves a considerable legacy as he inspired both his children and students with a love of reading and music, and his vast knowledge of the history of the world and its great conflicts. Always an avid golfer, his family wished that “he finds peace on the back nine.” Survivors include his wife of 60 years, Jeannine; four children, including Laurie Haley Allen ’87 and her husband, Jay P. Allen IV ’86, and Kristen Haley Chamberlain ’99 and her husband, William Chamberlain ’98; and 10 grandchildren, including Elizabeth Allen Mahan ’15, Charles Allen ’21, and Meredith Allen ’21.
• Susan Bower Henrickson ’58, Nov. 25, 2024, in Delaware, Ohio, at 87. She dedicated 25 years to nurturing young children as a preschool teacher at First Community Church, from 1973 to 1998. Her commitment to education extended beyond the classroom, deeply caring for her students and their families. She was a lifelong learner herself who found joy in writing, hiking, traveling, cooking, gardening, sewing, painting, and reading. She loved word games and crossword puzzles and found great meaning in Jungian concepts. Her passion was her poetry, and she served as senior editor of Pudding House magazine. Several of her poems were published in poetry anthologies. She leaves her husband of 66 years, Everett “Jack” Hendrickson, three children, and four grandchildren.
• Gerald “Jerry” K. Jones ’58, Dec. 15, 2024, in Millbury, Mass., at 88. After graduation, he married his college sweetheart and moved to Boylston, Mass., where they started their family. He served as president of his family’s business, Ken Jones Inc., a wholesale tire and chain distributor started by his father. He instilled a strong work ethic in his three sons, who all joined the business and worked alongside him until its sale in 2020. He also proudly served in the Army National Guard for four years, and was involved in local organizations and his Congregational church, where he served as a deacon, sang in the choir, and led projects to facilitate its growth. His passion was golf, and he won many accolades, including club championships as a member of the Worcester and Bear Lakes (Florida) country clubs. He also enjoyed hunting, fishing, and vacationing on Cape Cod. Predeceased by his wife of 62 years, Rachel “Rae” West Jones ’58, he leaves three sons and five grandchildren.
• Benjamin Frederick Reinmund ’58, June 22, 2024, in Boynton Beach, Fla., at 88. He served in the U.S. Army from October 1958 to March 1959. He started his career in banking in 1959 as a commodities banker with the Bank of New York and had a successful 35-year career on Wall Street, retiring in 1994. A hockey and tennis player at Colby, he continued his love for athletics throughout his life with tennis, squash, platform tennis, golf, and walking. Survivors include his wife of 65 years, Juliet Hallock Reinmund, two sons, including Michael Reinmund ’87, two grandsons, and a sister.
• Edward C. Rushton ’58, Mar. 1, 2026, in Augusta, Me., at 90.
• Mary-Alice R. Symmes ’58, P ’81, March 21, 2026.
• Robert J. Bruce ’59, April 19, 2024, in Edgemont Township, Pa., at 86. His journey in education began teaching and coaching at Kents Hill School in Maine. He obtained a master’s from the University of Massachusetts and, in 1964, won a Fulbright grant to teach in British schools for a year. Upon his return, he worked at Colby as a development officer until 1969. After stints at Bard College—as vice president for development and later acting president—and Clark University, he joined Widener University and was named its eighth president in 1981. Under his 20-year leadership, Widener grew from a small, all-male, regional military college to a co-ed, comprehensive university with six schools and colleges on three campuses, master’s and doctoral-level programs, and the School of Law. In recognition of his efforts, Widener awarded him an honorary doctorate in 1992. Following his retirement in 2001, he authored the book Acting on Promise, Reflections of a University President. He twice served as chair of the Association of Independent Colleges and Universities of Pennsylvania and left a profound legacy in higher education. His philanthropic efforts included board membership with the Crozer-Keystone Health System and board chair of the Crozer Chester Medical Center, helping found the Foundation for Delaware County, the county’s largest philanthropic organization. At Colby, he established the Robert J. Bruce and Judith G. Bruce Endowed Scholarship Fund in 2011, served on the Board of Visitors, and received Colby’s Distinguished Alumnus Award in 1985. Predeceased by his wife of 60 years, Judith Garland Bruce ’58, he leaves two children, seven grandchildren, eight great-grandchildren, and a sister.
• John “Jay” F. Church Jr. ’59, June 4, 2024, in Kingsport, Tenn., at 88. After Colby, he earned another bachelor’s, in 1961, from the Carnegie Institute of Technology in printing management. He spent two years in the U.S. Army and in 1964 started working at Cordage Paper Company as a salesperson. He was elected executive vice president of the company in 1974 and president in 1976, a position he held until his retirement in 1999. He served on many professional, national associations, most notably serving as chair of the National Paper Trade Association and later of the National Association of Wholesale-Distributors. He was a worldwide traveler, a skilled pilot, and involved with the historic Kingsport Carousel, earning him the nickname “Carousel Jay.” He leaves three children, including John “Jay” F. Church III ’86, five grandchildren, and 14 great-grandchildren.
• Carolyn Cummings Crain ’59, July 21, 2024, in Tacoma, Wash., at 87. She married Warren Crain the day before her Colby graduation, and for many years, was a dedicated mother and homemaker. She and her husband served as Baptist missionaries in Alaska for 11 years before moving to Seattle in 1975, when she established a career in adoption services and counseling, earning an M.S.W. degree in 1979 from the University of Washington. For several years, she had an antique business. She thrived in a church community that shared an open-minded spirituality; enjoyed knitting, traveling, and singing; and belonged to a writing group, which encouraged her to publish a book of stories about her father, the Rev. Richard Cummings ’32. Her mother, Barbara Hamlin Cummings ’31, was also a Colby alum. She leaves four children, several grandchildren, and a sister, Barbara Foster.
• Carroll Metcalf Hutchinson ’59, Sept. 13, 2024, in Portland, Ore., at 86. She married shortly after graduating from Colby and moved around while her husband obtained his medical degree. They lived in Montreal, Denver, and Kabul, Afghanistan, finally settling in Oregon. In 1981 she went back to school and earned an M.S.W. at Portland State University while being a single mom. She worked at Kaiser Permanente as a social worker for 20 years. A believer in giving back, she volunteered with her church and cochaired a rummage sale and other fundraisers in her community. Travel and exposure to other cultures were important to her, so she took her family to numerous countries such as Pakistan, Australia, Malaysia, and Indonesia, and later she took intergenerational trips with her grandkids to Europe, South America, and Canada. She leaves three children, four grandchildren, a great-granddaughter, and a brother.
• Judith Roberts Jenkins ’59, Sept. 23, 2024, in Hanover, N.H., at 87. She spent her short career as a newspaper journalist before turning her attention to her home and family. After living in New York for many years, she was thrilled to return to New England and take up permanent residency at Lake Sunapee in New Hampshire. She had a profound love of baseball, notably the Boston Red Sox. Following a significant donation to the National Baseball Hall of Fame, she became a lifetime member. Survivors include two children, five grandchildren, a great-granddaughter, and a brother.
• Stephen B. Levine ’58, April 16, 2026.
• Donald E. Megathlin ’59, P ’86, Feb. 9, 2026.
• Arleen G. Larsen Munk ’59, May 29, 2024, in Spring Hill, Tenn., at 85. A full-time homemaker and mother, she volunteered with area agencies such as Meals on Wheels and the Welcome Wagon wherever she lived, including the suburbs of Chicago, Detroit, and Buffalo. She enjoyed traveling, playing bridge and mahjong, and cooking. She leaves two children and three grandchildren.
• Russell J. Peppe ’59, April 4, 2024, in Lewiston, Maine, at 86. He continued his education at Boston University, receiving two master’s while majoring in social ethics, moral philosophy, and theology. He also studied at the University of Edinburgh, Scotland. He became a clergyman, serving United Methodist churches in Maine towns, including Cape Porpoise, Gorham, Auburn, Bangor, New Sharon, Farmington, and Bath, before retiring in Lewiston. He was named pastor emeritus of the Auburn UMC in recognition of his 50-year association with the parish. He taught as adjunct faculty at Boston University and the University of Maine. He enjoyed hiking, camping, reading, writing, watching horror movies, and photography. He leaves two children, seven grandchildren and step-grandchildren, and two brothers.