Remembering Suzanne Stewart

Posted on March 11, 2021 by laverill

From Ellen Pawelczak ‘77

It is with great sadness that I inform the Class of ’74 of the sudden death of Suzanne Stewart on March 3, 2021, from heart failure stemming from a recurrence of scleroderma. It was a merciful end – she was at home, in good spirits, and had a much loved home aide staying with her. It was just way too soon. Suzanne was her feisty, funny, demanding, honest, generous self right up until the end. She will be sorely missed by her very wide circle of friends, including her old friends from Mount Holyoke. Suzanne is survived by her brother Bill Stewart of Hollywood, Florida. A memorial for Suzanne is being planned for later this year (probably summer or fall). If you are interested in attending please email Ellen Pawelczak (Class of ’77) at ellenpawelczak@earthlink.net.

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Winter 2021 Message from Melissa Thornton, Class President

Posted on January 25, 2021 by laverill

Dear Mount Holyoke Class of 1974,

It’s a new year…with endless new opportunities to get and to stay connected with our classmates.

Here’s a quick note with reminders of upcoming events and class updates. I expect to send out these notices approximately quarterly to each classmate with an email address on file with the College. They’ll also be posted on our Class of 74 Facebook page and website, thanks to Laurie Averill, our Social Media Coordinator.

  1.  DON’T MISS THE UPCOMING TOWN HALL with Mount Holyoke President, SONYA STEPHENS and her leadership team this TUESDAY, JANUARY 26 FROM 6:30-8:00 PM. https://events.mtholyoke.edu/event/college_update_with_president_
    stephens_and_college_leadership#.YAsNK5NKhBw
  2. FOUR AWARDS WILL BE PRESENTED AT OUR JANUARY ZOOMTAILS MEETING. Please ‘tune in’ and join us this Wednesday, January 27th at 6:30pm to witness this presentation to four of our most active and innovative classmates. Be sure to RSVP at classof1974mhc@gmail.com to receive the meeting link.
  3. ZOOMTAILS SCHEDULE ( Be sure to RSVP at classof1974mhc@gmail.com to receive the meeting link.)
    February 24, 8:00-9:00am Early Bird Zoom, Wednesday: Mary Lyon’s Birthday Celebration
    February 25, 7:00-8:30pm Thursday: Mary Lyon’s Birthday Celebration
    March 30, 7:30-9:00pm Tuesday
  4. MAKE A NEW FRIEND INVITATION: TAKE THE TIME TOREWARD YOURSELF WITH A NEW FRIEND FROM OUR CLASS. As you know, our Class Vice President, Denise McLeod Thomas was unable to join us for our 45th reunion, but she sent the “Make a New Friend” challenge/invitation to us all at that time. “Choose 1 or 2 classmates (more if you wish) and invite them into your life as a friend. Cross all the lines you think our American culture creates and REWARD YOURSELF WITH A NEW FRIEND. We all win because we all have the opportunity to choose someone with whom we can share the core of who we are. My invitation is to get into the life of another classmate on a deeper level than simply sharing a course or dorm or even a dining room table at a meal.  I would encourage each of us to make the first move and/or to be receptive when an invitation for a new friendship is extended.  I think it will be interesting to see at our 50th Reunion what alliances have been cultivated from this purposeful endeavor of making a new friend at our age.  The grace and mercy we extend in friendship to one another are the real connections that will endure going forward.” Carole LaMond, Chair of our Nominating Committee, will be working closely with Denise to roll this out throughout the class. Contact Denise with your updates: dmthomas524@gmail.com
  5. TRIBUTES TO OUR LOST CLASSMATES: Our Class Scribe, Marylloyd Claytor, will lead a new project, based on her own idea, to create a video memorial to the classmates who are deceased, to be shared in many ways, including at the 50th reunion. She is looking for a committee of helpers in order to complete this project. Please reach out to her if you are interested: mclay00@aol.com. Here’s her vision: “I think a way to begin the video memorial could be to scan a photo from the MHC yearbook or any photo the family would like to share and then have a voice-over about the person.”
  6. CLASS DUES: Thanks to the 22 classmates who have paid their class dues in the last 22 days! Attached is our Treasurer, Mary Grantham-Sleet’s updated list, as of 12/31/2020. The most recent 22 classmates will be included on her next list, dated 1/31/21.
  7. CLASS GIVING: Our Class will be participating in a Mount Holyoke Fund Participation Challenge in early March and details will follow…stand by to hear from our Development team: Jane Zimmy. Debby Hall and Leslie Bowen.

I look forward to seeing many of you at this Wednesday evening’s 6:30pm Zoomtails!

Warmest wishes for the best year yet,

Melissa Thornton, Class President

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Class of 1974 Year End Letter by Melissa Thornton

Posted on January 1, 2021 by laverill

Dear Members of the Class of 1974,

It’s time for my year-end class letter–to report on all that we’ve been doingduring the year, despite challenges, limitations and loss…to happily say goodbye to 2020, which will most certainly go down in history as a turning point for the planet…and to say hello to 2021, which will be filled with exciting and challenging new beginnings of every kind.

It gives me joy to write this letter, because this class has shown its courage, its commitment to staying connected, its creativity and its refusal to bow to limitation. We have been in touch with as many as 130 of our classmates at a time, seven times this year! We have laughed together, talked together, brought each other up to date on our lives, shared recipes for great food…and recipes for keeping our sanity. And we have even sung ‘together’ at theholiday meeting December 15th!

Here’s how we’re going to keep up the connection in 2021.

I. VIRTUAL GATHERINGS

    A. ZOOMTAILS: We will kick off 2021 with our Wednesday, January 27 gathering at 6:30pm. Please note the varying EDT times, as we are attempting to make it easier for all classmates to attend as often as possible.
Upcoming formats will include classmate travelogues, classmate presentations on topics of interest (see below) and MHC trivia games. Other ideas are welcome.

Here are the upcoming dates of our next three evening and our new ‘EarlyBird’ morning Zoomtail Gatherings: 
January 27, 6:30-8:00pm Wednesday
February 24, 8:00-9:00am Early Bird Zoom, Wednesday: Mary Lyon’s Birthday Celebration
February 25, 7:00-8:30pm Thursday: Mary Lyon’s Birthday Celebration
March 30, 7:30-9:00pm Tuesday

As you know, we have our own class Zoom ‘Pro’ account, and we do need to have your RSVP to let our Co-Hosts know whether to buy an add-on for any specific meeting. We DO NOT want to turn anyone away. This is our major means of gathering, until there’s a real transition in containing the spread of COVID-19.

Also, as you know, we have our own MHC Class of 1974 email address: classof1974mhc@gmail.com. Please make a note of this, as this is the email address to which you’ll RSVP if you can join us for Zoomtails.

CLASS PRESENTATIONS: I haven’t had any response over the last 18 months to my requests to have someone start up a “Story Corps” type video project, mirroring the “Farm to Fashion” event at our 45th Reunion. BUT NO WORRIES! We’re going to ask for classmate volunteers to make 15-20 minute presentations at future Zoomtails on a topic within their area of expertise, and of interest to our class. And then we’ll break into smaller groups to discuss each topic. Please reach out to our class email address with topics you’d either like to present, or you’d like to hear about.

    B. MHC WEBINARS: We plan to organize some simultaneous attendance at MHC webinars, followed by Zoom meetings to discuss.

    C. MAKE A NEW FRIEND: Just a reminder of our Class VP’s suggestion to reach out during these next years to make a new friend of a classmate that you didn’t know before…we’ll hear more from DeniseMcLeod Thomas about this in the new year.

II. LOCAL GATHERINGS: When traveling becomes part of the ‘new norm’, we will be looking for classmates to suggest short, local gatherings throughout the country (and world), such as walks/hikes, museum and historical site visits, botanical garden explorations, etc. with safe, distanced enjoyment and perhaps outside food options. Please be thinking about what might be planned in your area.

III. LONG WEEKEND MINIS: And we haven’t given up on the idea to hold MHC minis in wonderful places, attended in person with overnight stays, when the world is safe.

IV. KEEPING OUR CLASS SCRIBE UP TO DATE: Marylloyd Claytor, our Class Scribe, has the challenge of keeping us up-to-date on a quarterly basis. Please reach out regularly to her with updates about you and classmates you know. (mclay00@aol.com ) And please help her with the difficult job of finding class friends to write tributes to our classmates who have died. Please take a moment to read the attached list of classmates who are no longer with us, and to hold them in your thoughts. Hopefully, none of our deceased classmates died due to COVID-19!

V. OUR CONNECTION CLASS, 2024: As you may know, each 50thReunion class connects with the class that will be graduating when we are holding our 50th Reunion. Ours is, of course, the Class of 2024. In Spring, 2021, their Class Board will be elected and our Alumnae Association representative will introduce me to them, after which we will connect in whatever manner is safely possible. Your Class Board will be putting together a plan to support them in their last three years at MHC.

And a final topic of importance, MONEY:
First, DUES. If you haven’t yet paid your Class Dues–$50 for 5 years—please send a check to Mary Grantham-Sleet at 8710 Cameron St #407, Silver Spring, MD 20910. It’s easy to forget whether you did pay dues, so the list of paid classmates is attached to this email. Please let us add your name, if it’s not already there.

Second, DEVELOPMENT: Here’s the fund-raising update from our Co-Chairs, Jane Zimmy and Debby Hall: Through mid-December, our class has raised more than $350,000 toward our 50th Reunion Gift, with 52% of us participating.  Since July 1, 2020, 104 classmates have made gifts amounting to nearly $184K. Please support scholarship aid at Mount Holyoke  www.mtholyoke.edu/go/mhcgive

And there’s always a big push to gather larger-than-normal amounts of money to commemorate our 5oth Reunion. To that end, the Co-Chairs are looking for additional help and they have designated Leslie Bowen as Vice Chair. If you think you’d be a good fit for this project, please reach out to Jane Zimmy at her email: janezimmy@gmail.com.

I hope that your holidays have been filled with joy and that you join me in great anticipation for the New Year.

 

With gratitude to be part of this remarkable class,

Melissa Thornton, Class President

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Class Presidents’ Letter, November 2019

Posted on November 6, 2019 by laverill

 

Hello Classmates –

What a wonderful 45th reunion we had! As always we had a great turnout and won both the Margaret Caskey Cup for highest total number of attendees and the Alumnae Association Cup for highest percentage of attendees.  In addition, the Alumnae Association presented the Achievement Award to two of our classmates – Mary Platt and Barbara Dombkowski Desoer. We missed those of you who could not make it this time and hope that you will plan to come to our 50th!

Highlights included a breakfast round table discussion on retirement facilitated by Mary Feeney, the Farm to Fashion panel moderated by Susan Moch, the V-8s performance in our dorm, and a special performance by Michelle Hurst and Bonnie Panson at the Rooke Theatre. (The class of 1989 helped us sponsor Michelle and Bonnie’s performance, and it was great being able to spend some time getting acquainted with them.) And of course the parade and other reunion activities. New to us was the singing of Bread and Roses and the twining of roses at Mary Lyon’s grave.

At our Class Meeting we said goodbye to outgoing officers Vice President Mary Feeney, Treasurer Nancy Marks Arcieri, Scribe Lynn Massman Mordan, and Nominating Committee members Denise McLeod Thomas and LaVida Dowdell; and of course yours truly.

We voted in Melissa Thornton – President; Denise McLeod Thomas – Vice President; Doris O’Keefe – returning as Secretary; Gail LaBroad LaRocca – returning as Reunion Chair; Mary Grantham-Sleet – Treasurer; Marylloyd Claytor – Scribe; Laurie Averill – returning as our Web expert; Jane Zimmy and Debby Hall – returning as Head Class Agents; and Carole LaMond, Beth Connor Gibson and Nancy Marks Arcieri as members of the Nominating Committee.

We also voted for new and revised bylaws – see our Class webpage for a copy. A highlight of the meeting was the reading of a message from Denise McLeod Thomas (who was unable to attend) encouraging each of us to make at least one new friend during reunion. This resonated with many of us and led us to reach out to classmates outside of our usual groups of friends with very positive results.

It has been my privilege to serve as your president for the past five years. Looking forward to what will happen under Melissa’s leadership.

Diane Claffey

Dear Classmates,

It truly was an awesome 45th!! Gail LaBroad LaRocca and her committee achieved another magical event. Every moment of their hard work was mirrored in a memorable moment for a classmate. Classmates who had never missed a reunion to classmates who had never before attended a reunion gathered together for this sunshine-filled weekend in lovely South Hadley…and every moment was beautifully planned and executed.  Please read Gail’s reunion letter here. 

With a little bit of magic, the Class of 1974 did stay in the dorm we requested, the ‘new’ Creighton Hall, with lakeside views and suite-style living. The dorm was a pleasure, the new dining facilities required a steep learning curve, but had such a breadth of choices as to support every classmate in her eating preferences.

The campus was truly beautiful; the weather was perfect. The choices of classes, tours, events and gatherings had something for everyone. And all of that was the jewel case for the real gem…the friendship and caring energy that was generated between and amongst the women who reunited…within our class and between classes.

You could see the spark as we marched in the parade. We did look terrific as we paraded with our elegant red and black umbrellas!

You could feel the spirit as we gathered in ever-changing groups for each meal. With all the catching up, the din in the dining hall was tremendous and filled with positive energy.

You could join the momentum at our Class meeting, led by Class President Diane Claffey. She and her officers have handed the Class to me and our new officers in good shape. Check out our Treasurer’s report and Class minutes here.

Thanks to you, Diane, as President, and to all your Class Officers for taking excellent care of the interests of the Class of 1974. And thanks to Doris O’Keefe, our long-standing Class Secretary, for keeping track of the minutes of our journey together.

You could feel the spark in the supportive interest we all gave to the fascinating career stories of the presenters at the Farm to Fashion Event.

It WAS a record-breaking gathering and we are hoping that even more of our classmates gather together during the next five years at our mini-reunions, our spontaneous gatherings and, of course, for our awesome 50th in 2024. Our mission is Getting and Staying Connected.

Many thanks to Laurie Averill for her ongoing commitment to keeping us all in touch and up to date in our various channels of social media. (The College actually changed her title to Social Media Coordinator!) 

To that end, please place a link to the Class of 74 website on your desktop or other device and please consider joining the Class of 74 Facebook page–so far we have 210 ‘friends’. The Facebook page is a closed page to protect our privacy, so do reach out to Laurie at ljaverill@gmail.com to join. Also, please help the College to find our missing classmates and to update their records, so that more and more of us are in regular touch.

And many thanks to Jane Zimmy and Debby Hall and the Class Agents for their tireless leadership in gathering monetary support for the College. We raised over $200,000! Here’s Jane’s summary of 2018-19 Annual and Reunion Giving.

Now, on to NEW BUSINESS.

I am delighted to be working with an exceptional set of Class Officers—listed in Diane’s letter above. Most of us remained on campus after the 45th Reunion to attend the brand new “Newly-Elected and Re-Elected Class Officer Training”. It was a great way for ‘newbies’ to get a view into the opportunities and requirements of our positions, and for returning volunteers to be updated by the college professionals. We had some collaborative discussions and have been in action ever since. Look for updates and Class of 74 information on our website page.

Lots of exciting ideas were generated from the Reunion attendees, and I’ll share a couple of them here…to get our creative juices going.  I also want to reach out to all of our classmates, whether you were able to attend or not, to hear what you’d like to have happen between now and our 50th, as well as what events you think would ‘make’ our 50th once we’re back on campus in 2024. Please email me at boldcolorlife@gmail.com.

MINI-REUNIONS to bring us together over the next five years.

Mary Feeney and I volunteered, at Reunion, to be Co-Chairs of the Mini-Reunion committee and we’re excited that Denise McLeod Thomas has recently joined as third Co-Chair. So far, our committee includes Cindy Polk and Flo Chichester. We’d love to have you join us if you have a special interest in mini-reunions.

NOVEMBER 6, 2019: Jane Zimmy and Tracy Thompson are spontaneously gathering classmates in San Francisco as I write this. Hope your hike and drinks are terrific!

DECEMBER 6-7, 2019 BOSTON VESPERS: The first planned mini is for Boston Vespers this December 6-7th. As usual, Mary Feeney is planning a dinner before the concert, but she’s also looking to hear who’d like to come and stay over in the area Friday night to attend a brunch and a museum tour on Saturday. If you’re interested, please be sure to reach out to her at mfeeney@bowditch.com and she’ll include you in her email updates. Please remember that Vespers tickets can only be purchased through the mail…and they sell out early.

MAY, 2020, BOOTHBAY, MAINE: The second mini-reunion we’re planning will be held at my place, the Bold Colorful Life Inn and Estate in Boothbay, Maine next May, 2020. The Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens, the Farnsworth museum with the Wyeth family works, art galleries, schooner trips, lighthouse tours, whale watching, lobster bakes, seaside walks, yoga, etc. will be on the schedule for that mini…not to mention ‘milk and cookies’ as we catch up and re-connect. 

I just volunteered for a day at the Class of 1972 mini-reunion at the Frances Perkins Homestead, about 20 minutes from here in Damariscotta, Maine, to assess the outing for our reunion. It was very moving to experience Frances Perkins’ life through her grandson’s eyes, as Tomlin Perkins Coggeshall gave us the tour of her home and the history of the grounds. That will definitely be one of the options for the Maine mini. More information will follow.

OTHER SITES: And about a dozen other classmates have volunteered to host minis all over the country, including Chicago, Ann Arbor, MI, DC, Portland, OR, San Diego, Cape Cod, MA, California Wine Country, Albuquerque, NM, Asheville, NC, Atlanta, GA…and even Paris, France. Would you like to suggest a location…or offer to host one?

To get you in the mood for minis, read about the “74 turns 60” mini-reunions, master-minded by Cathy Trauernicht in 2012! 

CAREER VIDEOS/STORY CORPS: The Farm to Fashion event, facilitated by Susan Moch, was a major hit, allowing us to experience the career trajectories of several of our classmates…on very different and intriguing paths. From that success came the idea to have every interested classmate make a video of their career/life story to be shared electronically…sort of in the ‘Story Corps’ modality. The videos could be done individually or in groups. We’re looking for someone to lead that project…from planning to execution. If this idea calls to you, (and especially if you have the technological know-how) please reach out to me and let me know. And we’d like to invite committee members for the project, as well.

It’s a true honor to be elected as Class President to lead the heart-centered and record-breaking Class of 1974 through the next five years of getting connected…and into our illustrious 50th reunion. Thank you for the privilege! 

Since leaving Reunion, I’ve had the pleasure to be involved in three MHC-related events. Jane Zimmy, Ellie McGrath, Maria Mossaides and I, as well as Class of 1972 members and former MHC President, Lynn Pasquerella met in Damariscotta, Maine where Maria Mossaides was honored by the Frances Perkins Society on Sunday, August 18th. She received the Steadfast Award for her work over the past 40 years in both the public and independent sectors, and gave a very moving talk about how Frances Perkins inspired her to achieve so much for social justice and economic security. 

And Jane and I attended the Mount Holyoke Volunteer Training on campus in glorious September. We rubbed elbows with many MHTs and learned about the intellectual life at MHC, the communications and marketing initiatives, 50th reunion planning, updates from President Sonya Stephens, and Annual Giving techniques. Frankly, I think Jane could have instructed at every session about annual giving!

Then, as I mentioned, I had the good fortune to return to the Perkins Homestead for the MHC Class of 72 event a couple of weeks ago.
Mount Holyoke has been very much on my mind. Every time I share a moment with another Mount Holyoke grad, it’s a pleasurable one…and a memorable one.

I look forward to sharing many moments with many of you during the next five years, renewing old friendships and making new ones!

Warmest regards,

Melissa Thornton

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45th Reunion Recap

Posted on October 31, 2019 by laverill

July, 2019

Dear 1974 Classmates ~ 

Frazzled and dazzled, are the words that describe my feelings when I arrived on campus for Reunion 2. The months of planning and hand-holding with key classmates and the Alumnae team were about to unfold. 

It was easy to get caught up in the minutiae of mistakes: ran out of cream, broken toilet on floor three, earphones found in 352A, over-packed agenda on Saturday, not enough seats for performance and yes, all of that is detailed in my notes for the 50th.  

But the journey to reunion was about reconnecting and remembering. We all had a chance to reflect upon personal and group experiences while students at MHC. I remembered loving bio labs, cookies from Chanticleer, S. Rocky meals, lathering on baby oil and lying on the roof of Prospect with my dormmates. I recalled hating the smell of roasting lamb on Sunday mornings when I was hung-over and regretting that perhaps if I had had a mentor then I would have been a doctor and not a house painter. Yes, a jumble of emotions and much to sort out on the ride home and in the weeks that have followed. Sound familiar?

Forty-fifth reunion attendees seemed more relaxed because many are retired or can see the path to the end of work life. The weekend was packed with activities: back to classes, parade, loud cheering at the alumnae meeting, lively panel discussion, photos, cocktail parties and gatherings for LGBTQ and women of color, dining and toasting, V8s and Phenomenal Woman. There were quiet moments when we were able to sit off to the side or walk uptown for lemonade and converse with a roommate about life experiences, family issues and classmates.

This would have been my mother’s 70th reunion. My Mom and I have not provided a financial legacy to MHC (sorry Jane Z.) and I did not inherit my mother’s intelligence (Phi Beta Kappa, Sarah Williston award winner, major in mathematics/minor in physics), but she instilled the value of hard work and good humor and I like both. I was called the Reunion Chair but it was a cadre of volunteers that made this reunion successful. My thanks over and over. Your personalized thank you note is en route. It is the spirited nature of this Class of ’74 that made 2019 a great celebration!

Whether you came to reunion or not, please follow and get involved in what our current class president Melissa Thornton offers to us over the next five years. The 50th is a culmination of the days spent through the next five years.

As one classmate remarked after reunion: “Having fun is exhausting.” And as another classmate Lane showed in expression during the panel discussion: 

Come to Reunion 50 in 2024 – it’s a full FOUR days of razzle, dazzle. 

Fondly,
Gail
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