SPRING-OA 2022

She plays bridge online and during the summer of 2020-2021 played golf since it keeps one outside and meets in a local church with university professors and administrators for a “study” group. Val Wilson Enghauser has moved from her Michigan home of 49 years, deciding upon their Florida residence in Naples. Last May she informed me she was still hanging in there after open-heart surgery for a new aortic valve. She and Jay both have pacemakers now. She shared the news of Joan Reiter Carlsen’s and Ruth Silver Roth’s husband’s dying. Sharon Wruble Miller always sends me appreciative notes when I send emails to her. No other news from her. Thank you. Unfortunately, many of us could not attend our 60 years from graduation. But, thank you Nancy “Nan” Albers Bechert , Carol Jean Kinghorn- Landry , Mary Moloney,SP . Martha Leinenbach Moore , Eileen Haley Schellhammer , Patricia “Patti” O’Dowd Scholl for representing all of us. We congratulate Carol Jean as the recipient of the Saint Mother Theodore Guerin Award. Her outstanding lifetime achievement in her and her husband’s music ministry throughout the world is commendable. “Love children first, then teach them” was her philosophy. Her teacher’s manual “Hi God” has been used since 1979. Nancy “Nan” Albers Bechert , too, lost her husband, Jerry both being diagnosed with COVID on December 28, 2019. He was hospitalized on January 1, 2020 and died nine days later. “I miss that sweet and wonderful guy”, says she. In October she visited four national parks in Utah with a grade school buddy. Her next venture is Jackson Hole, Wyo. Patricia “Patti” O’Dowd Scholl had lots to share when she and Jim visited me on the way to Florida. Their trip to Portugal in 2019 was a lifetime jewel of an event even though “hiking” with suitcases took its toll. She had shoulder surgery upon her return. Following the Reunion, they both went with their church members for a wonderful tour at Saint Mother Theodore’s Shrine in November. The tour guide was Jan Craven, SP . Jean McGregor Lauth visited, coming from Athens, Ga., with her husband, Tom, who just published his book “Public Budgeting in Georgia”. He is the Dean Emeritus of the School of Public and International Affairs at the University of Georgia. Their travels were obviously curtailed during the pandemic, but we had great laughs over both Jim and Tom’s travels to The Woods from Purdue and Notre Dame during our college years. Both the Scholl’s and the Lauth’s were celebrating 60-plus years of marriage. Besides them, Jane Frayser Edmonds and her husband, David just celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary. She is so proud of her family with one grandchild being a writer for NBC Sports- Olympics, others at St Mary’s College in Notre Dame and Harvard. Of course, there are some who decide college is fun and are home working for a while. Jane and David have had some health problems, but they are recuperating in Phoenix. Anne Kaczmarczyk Evans is working as a volunteer for Medicare when the office reopened in August 2021. Then volunteered to work with a local pharmacy to do home visits for COVID vaccine administration at the same time volunteering at her home historical office. She left home from Pennsylvania twice a month to clean and wash her rental houses during the active summer months in Ocean City, N.J. She ended by saying “God’s blessings on all my classmates in 2022.” Mary Jo Stewart McPherson has had challenges in the past few years when it was determined her sister, Nancy Stewart Norgaard had ALS and passed away

in June 2021. After an exceptionally good time at The Woods, she completed her education at Loyola University - Chicago and Northern Illinois University. Prior to this news, Mary Jo was visiting Ellen “Nell” Steers Dana at her home in Boca Grande, Fla., along with Barbara “Barb” Bittorf Brennan and myself and suddenly came down with weakness. She was hospitalized in the middle of the pandemic but had no COVID diagnosis. Thankfully, she recovered but it was a scary time as we all have gone these past two years. Mary Jo and my sister, Nell were instrumental in nominating me for my “educational experience” called a Millennium Club Crusader Award at my high school in Muskegon, Mich. l accepted at a reception in October 2021 which was attended by my family and Mary Jo, Barb and Constance “Connie” Hickey Wahl . Connie is well and busy with her volunteering but was most disappointed in not being able to return to Canada during the summer due to restrictions at the border. I will close with a message from Sally O’Connell. “Amen to the blessings we continue to enjoy because we are linked as classmates of 1961.... the best friendships”. My prayers continue for you all. ’62 Gail Sitzman Westhoven 401 Highland Ave Neptune NJ 07753 egwesthoven@mac.com They say no news is good news, so I guess we are doing well although I had hoped to hear from more of you. Nevertheless, it’s always good to hear from you!! Shari Wigle writes, “After living in California for 75 years, it has been challenging and enjoyable adjusting to Arizona.” The population of Surprise, Ariz., has multiplied rapidly in the year she has been there, including nine family members who are now residents. Shari is involved in her community’s activities and her church’s ministries. Gloria Hemery Duckworth lives an hour from Shari in her new home in Sun Lakes, Ariz. Gloria’s travels included visiting Elizabeth Jacobi ’63 and Carol Sipe Harter in Georgia and a daughter and family in Louisville, Ky. The good news - Gloria’s CT scan showed her lung cancer is stable so she is no longer taking the oral chemo. Carol Sipe Harter met up with Gloria and her daughter in November. “It was great to meet the adult version of my Goddaughter Julie!” Carol continues painting and art classes, singing in the chorus and working on gathering a “raft of photos” from previous Woods Reunions for the 60th. Elizabeth “Beth” O’Connell’s family enjoyed a beach vacation in Virginia, but the big O’Connell Christmas was thwarted by family members exposed to COVID. She visited a friend on Lake Erie and with some of her family in Indiana. Beth volunteers at her parish and the University of Maryland School of Nursing. Ann Sheridan Ruck traveled in August 2021 with a one-way ticket to the Midwest “and decided I would stay until someone said to go home!” Her “wonderful time” abruptly ended in September when she learned that her son needed his leg amputated. Prayers for the success of his adjustment to the prothesis are needed. Madeline Honningford Roe wrote that she didn’t have any news but was hopeful that the pandemic and its variants were on their way out and she was looking forward to spring and travel, including the Reunion. Barbara Saj , w ho lives in New York City, took full advantage of the COVID lull this past year and went 732-859-4335 732-774-6885

on a “Broadway and concert binge!” She saw six Broadway shows and some fabulous music in concert. A quiet holiday with no visits home to Illinois was a disappointing ending to the 2021 year. Mary Rehorst Engelkamp wrote that between the crazy weather and COVID restrictions, they have been housebound this past year. Glenn has been having memory problems, so they are staying closer to home. Meg Gremelspacher Spitznogle’s daughter, Nora, sent word that her mom doesn’t often check her email but has the Reunion weekend on her calendar. Nora says her Mom just celebrated her 82nd birthday and quoted Meg as saying she didn’t realize how slow she’d be moving at 82! I think we can all identify with that! Judy Reich Hoyt’s favorite saying is, “Life keeps happening while we make other plans!” With her large family, that’s a given. She said they were pretty well locked down the past two years, but she volunteers at her parish in Indianapolis, Ind. Their 22 grandchildren range in age from 27 to 3. Six are out of college and working. Louise O’Neill Keefe and husband Bob are doing well and enjoying spending time with their grandchildren “who are growing up much too fast!” They have plans to travel out West this summer with friends. Barbara Millwater Herkner sold her home in Summit, N.J., right after Christmas 2021 and moved to Buck Hill, Penn., – her vacation home of many years. She rents a home in New Jersey and will spend time there since her daughter Lizzie lives nearby. Judith Anne “Judy” Smith now lives in Maryland with her daughter and grandson and is happy to be there. She sends prayers for all “as we deal with challenges of aging, virus and politics in today’s world!” Janet Eva Srebalus, MM, came back to the states from Tanzania in 2021 to attend the 18th General Assembly at the Maryknoll Motherhouse in Ossining, N.Y. She made quick visits to her brothers in Illinois and North Carolina. Janet traveled via bus all over Tanzania in 2021 giving ten seminars and a retreat - still going strong! Celestine “Cel” Hamant wrote that all is well with her and housemate Monica although “we only have one good leg between us!” She bought a new RED car in 2021 that makes driving to her many volunteer activities enjoyable. Having the whole family together for holidays was a bonus in 2021. Wally Shelley Nowicki’s letter was written while on a family holiday last November while at a Florida National Park. Wally has returned to volunteering at her library and at a local free clinic. She continues to sing at church. Health issues have slowed her down, so she stays in touch with family via Zoom. Johanna Reichel Schuller and husband Paul attended several family celebrations of First Communions, Confirmations and graduations in early 2021. Their September Danube River Cruise line visited Budapest, Hungary, Slovakia, Austria and Germany. Afterwards, they traveled through southern Germany. Sadly, a trip to Florida in October was to attend the funeral of Paul’s adopted daughter, Lisa. RIP. The death of Barbara “Muffet” Curran in January 2022 was unexpected and extremely sad for all of us since she was a well-loved and respected classmate. Her funeral in Summit, N.J., was as unpretentious and meaningful as her life which was unbelievably filled with accomplishments. New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy ordered all U.S. and New Jersey flags to remain at half-staff at all state buildings and facilities on February 10, 2022, to honor her.

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