Class Notes

NEWS OF 1979

From Steve Vanya:

I want to thank all those who helped with the Alumni Reunion Weekend Committee. Though our class may have been a bit short on quantity, we made it up in quality! I hope it rekindled old friendships. There was enthusiastic talk about getting together rather than waiting another five years for such an event.

Participants included Greg Colella and his wife, Deb; Joanne Marman Nigito; Ken and Anne McCandless Rampolla; Stu Lubow; Joanne Garbarini '80; Judith Packerton Rosen; Candy Barr Heimbach; Mary Monaghan Ritterbush; Pete Marion; Robert Honor and his wife, Lorie; David Ricciardi; Kris Jones Groller; Mary Ellen Sahaydak LaDuke; George and Cindy Wiktor '81 Kurtz; Laurie DiFelice Jabbour; Roberta Dini Kulp; Cindy Trotner Stein; and me with my wife, Maryann.

NEWS OF 1978

From the Alumni House:

Corrine Fusco Patt was elected secretary of the Maryland PTA.

Brian Henkelmann, who also has a 1983 degree from Moravian Theological Seminary and has been teaching organ and sacred music for the Music Department at the College, married Marika Kyriakos, an assistant professor of voice at Tarleton State University in Stephenville, Texas. Their wedding was June 26 in Borhek Chapel, and the reception was in Peter Hall, where everyone was taken with the stained glass and elegant atmosphere, Brian said in an e-mail. He moved to Stephenville in August and is minister of music at First United Methodist Church. It's a fun ministry, he wrote, and I enjoy working as a team with my wife, who is serving as choir director.

NEWS OF 1977

From Kathy Ozzard Chism:

An e-mail from Gwen Thomas Bolger says she is working too many hours at her job in Newtown but has managed to squeeze in some time for a watercolor class, which she loves. She went on her annual pilgrimage with her mother to Moravian's Vespers last Christmas and never ceases to be awed by its beauty.

Gwen said Kathy Kichline Parks is still substitute-teaching and very happy with her life in Montrose. I got a note from Kathy about her participation in the American Cancer Society's Relay for Life, which she runs every year. This year it raised $68,000, which is awesome. She and her husband, John, will head for Las Vegas for a week in October. Hope you win big, Kath!

Susie Hyer '76 sent beautiful postcards of shows that her work is in at galleries in Denver.

NEWS OF 1976

NEWS OF 1975

NEWS OF 1974

From Cyndee Andreas Grifo:

It was great seeing so many of our classmates at Alumni Weekend in May. I visited with Susan Chapman Boehret and Wendy Perry Hartung '73. If you weren't able to attend, I hope you'll get to the next one. In the meantime, watch this column for updates on your old friends.

Jim and I moved to Cincinnati a year ago when he became president of Touchstone Funds. We have three grown children. I have not been teaching but fill my time with Italian classes and caring for our yellow lab and cavalier King Charles spaniel.

Leon Bird in New Oxford is retired after 33 years of pastoral ministry and five years as a missionary in Korea. He is the father of four and grandfather of eight.

Ruth Smallwood Cella and John live in Philadelphia. She is director of development and public relations at Pennsylvania School for the Deaf. Ruth's son, John David, entered Harvard University this fall.

David Burt, a dentist and president of Castle Dental Practice, was appointed to the provisional staff of the department of surgery/oral surgery at St. Luke's Hospital in Bethlehem. He and Lorri live in Center Valley with their 7-year-old son, Jordan, and 5-year-old daughter, Makenzie. Dave rides a motorcycle, snowboards, and sky-dives.

Charlie Heidecker and Sharon live in Bethlehem. He is an English teacher and a football coach at North Hunterdon High School. His daughter, Keri, is an English teacher at Parkland High School.

Keene Jabbour, an attorney, and his wife, Laurie '79, live in Easton with their young son, Keene Joseph.

Mary Jane Hall Jacoby and her husband live in Allentown. Mary Jane has taken a break from the business world and is busy with interior decorating and home-improvement projects. She enjoys writing, antiques, travel, and her dog, Mandi.

Charles Johnson resides in Coplay and is a researcher at Air Products and Chemicals.

Edward Lentz and Claudia live in Bethlehem. He is a lawyer and senior partner of Fitzpatrick Lentz and Bubba. Ed has two sons, Christopher, 22, and Michael, 21. In his free time, Ed enjoys playing tennis.

Edward Lester, Allentown, is a purchasing agent for CemcoLift. He enjoys gardening and sports.

Rev. Gary Marsh is pastor and director of stewardship at East Hills Moravian Church, Bethlehem.

Vivian Denofa Matyas, Bath, is an associate teacher at I.U. No. 20.

Michael Mraz, his wife, and two daughters live in Pennington, N.J. He's a teacher for Mercer County Special Services at Yardville Presbyterian Church.

Rev. Scott Schantzenbach, in Oxford, N.J., is assistant to the bishop at the New Jersey Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.

William Urban, Ansonia, Conn., has been a conservationist and wetlands scientist. He is now executive director of USI/Connecticut Conservation Association.

Deborah Kracht Weissbrodt lives in Muskego, Wis., with her husband, Mark. She is a bar manager at the Elm Grove Inn. The Weissbrodts have two golden retrievers and enjoy gardening, sports activities, and fishing.

Thomas Werley and Bonnie live in Davenport, Iowa. Tom is a business analyst for John Deere. They enjoy traveling with their fifth-wheel camper and their dogs, Chloe and Belle.

Bonnie Boscia Wismer is a French teacher at Moravian Academy in Bethlehem, where she and Earl live. Their daughter Lacey, 20, and son Eric, 19, are both students at Quinnipiac University in Connecticut.

Ann McKittrick Claussen and her husband, Dick, returned to the Lehigh Valley after having lived in the Midwest for more than 20 years. Ann is director of the HUB, student activities, and event management at Moravian College. Ann and Dick's daughter, Katie, a Wells Scholar at Indiana University, is studying in Denmark this fall.

Patricia Owens Debiasse and her husband, Timothy Debiasse '73, live in Murrysville. They have two daughters, Kimberly, 20, and Trisha, 23. Patty works as a bookkeeper in Tim's pediatric practice. Her hobbies include miniature-room boxes and painting, and she enjoys the company of her two cats.

NEWS OF 1973

From the Alumni House:

Lynn Hunsicker has been promoted and relocated from Washington, D.C., to Raleigh, N.C., as manager of field information systems development and support for the United States Postal Service in that region.

NEWS OF 1972

From Terrell McMann:

Quite a bit has happened to Jim Ingalls. Two months after the alumni reunion of 2002, he inherited a 180-acre Christmas tree farm to be held in trust for his granddaughters. As trustee, he took over its business management, and that, coupled with his job as a financial manager for the State of Connecticut, keeps his plate full.

Then in January 2003, he had a heart attack, which required a drastic lifestyle change. He's taken up running, he's 20 pounds lighter, and he feels great. He and his wife, Mel, visited Dale Ginter and his wife, Deb, in Sacramento, and they had a lot of fun at Lake Tahoe and the Napa Valley. Their son, Eric, is looking at colleges; and their daughter, Laura, graduates from Stonehill College this spring. Jim may retire from the state next year to run the farm on a full-time basis.

Flora Charles Becker and her husband celebrated their 45th wedding anniversary. They are the proud parents of four children who have successful careers and have given them nine grandchildren. Since her husband’s retirement, they have traveled from coast to coast, including Alaska. They hope to have visited all 50 states within the next few years. They have a small home in Florida, where they spend half the year. Flora keeps busy working on her family’s genealogy, knitting items for needy children and adults, and helping her 92-year-old mother.

NEWS OF 1971

From the Alumni House:

Roy Ledbetter's daughter, Anna, is a junior at Florida State University. She plays trumpet in the marching band; and when the Seminoles played University of Miami in the Orange Bowl on New Year's Day 2004, Roy's parish in St. Louis made it possible for him to travel there and spend the week with Anna and the band. He spent two days on the band bus and had a wonderful time, enjoying rehearsals and concerts. He stayed with Rev. Brad Lutz, who serves a parish in Fort Lauderdale.

NEWS OF 1970
Reunion May 20-21

NEWS OF 1969

From Caroline Funk Rabold:

In May we celebrated our 35th class reunion at Moravian, and it was definitely an exciting time for all that attended! We had a wonderful turnout of about 60 people at our Friday night party at the Bethlehem Club, during which we decorated chef's hats and aprons to be worn in Saturday's parade. Our enthusiasm was obvious, as we tied for first place for the most class spirit in the parade. Our class also came in first for the highest amount of alumni giving this year! Forty-two percent of our class gave $64,966.

Saturday's luncheon was special as Jeanne Taccarino Guaraldo was presented the 2004 Medallion of Merit by the Alumni Association in recognition of her leadership and service to Moravian.

A wine-tasting, seminars, campus tours, and a cocktail party at the beautiful new Priscilla Payne Hurd building were some of the activities before our class dinner that evening.

The weekend afforded us so many opportunities to reconnect with classmates we may not have seen or heard from in years. Many classmates said it was so much fun to touch base with Moravian that they will definitely come back for our 40th.

One of the highlights of Saturday's parade was a horse-drawn carriage owned and operated by Greg Seifert. Alma Coester McMahan and I rode in it for the parade. Greg taught high school for three years after graduating, then joined the New Jersey State Police. After 26 years, he retired in 2000 to begin another career. He purchased and restored a 36-acre farm in Upper Bucks County. He raises angora goats and llamas for their fleece and pygmy goats for pets and 4-H projects. He farms with draft horses and gives hayrides and carriage rides for parades and weddings. You can learn more at www.mountainpridefarm.com.

Melissa Miller Robbins came to the reunion from Westminster, Md., where she is special education department chair of a small alternative school. She says she has the opportunity to make a positive impact on teenagers who have been thrown away by society. In her spare time, she tutors, goes on antiques and architecture jaunts, and is active in her church. She has two sons, 29 and 26, who live close by. She is looking forward to retiring in five years. Every December she returns to Bethlehem for the Vespers service and the city's warmth, friendliness, and magic.

Chip Turtzo and his wife, Tonya, live in Bangor and have three children and three grandchildren. Chip has been in the real-estate business for the last 32 years. He is now an associate broker with Patt, White GMAC and owns an appraisal business. He's a veteran of the Army National Guard and is very active in his community. Piano and golf are his hobbies.

I'll report on more alums in forthcoming columns. It was wonderful to see so many of you at the reunion!

NEWS OF 1968

From the Alumni House:

Susan White Redfield writes from Long Beach, Calif., where she is the director of development at the University of Southern California. She and her husband, LeGrand, are happy that a new daughter-inlaw is scheduled to come into the family in October 2005.

NEWS OF 1967

From Kathie Broczkowski Klein:

Our own Rev. Al Frank was re-elected to the interprovincial Board of World Mission as one of two representatives from the Eastern District of the Moravian Church in North America. Al is assistant director of the Moravian Music Foundation/North and an adjunct professor at Moravian Theological Seminary. He and his wife, Erdmute, have a blended family of five children.

Terry Beidelman is purchasing manager in Northampton County, where our local newspaper reported that he beat out 50 other applicants for the job.

Laura Bremmer Tidmarch is ready for the next step in her dancewear business. She will be taking over the operation when her partner retires in October. Her shop, the Nutcracker Suite/Dancer's Boutique, is near her home in Scotia, N.Y.

I had a phone visit with Marsha Brooks Burnard, with whom I grew up in South Bethlehem. She still loves teaching kindergarten in the Northern Lehigh School District. Marsha and her husband get to Bethlehem when they tailgate for Lehigh games. Her husband and two sons are Lehigh alums.

Another phone visit was with Darlene Refsneider Borst, who has decided to retire after 14 years of teaching third grade at Moravian Academy. Craig '64 and Darlene have a son, Andrew, a graduate of Boston University, who recently married and lives in Kansas, where he and his wife work in the insurance industry. Their daughter Wendy teaches music in the Bethlehem Area School District and is completing her master's degree at Westminster Choir College.

Sadly, we lost another friend with the passing of Jack Ozimek '70 this fall. Jack attended our 40th Liberty High School class reunion, and it was great to have seen him then. Our condolences to his wife and family.

From the Alumni House:

David Mucka died August 1 while traveling abroad. David indelibly left his mark upon this institution through his membership in our Hall of Fame, wrote Chaplain David Bennett '88 (M.Div.) The College celebrated his life in a memorial service at Borhek Chapel on August 13.

NEWS OF 1966