Class Note 1949
Issue
November-December 2021
This column will start with a little fluff—Marshmallow Fluff. Don Durkee, who retired as CEO of Durkee-Mower Inc. a few years ago, lives in Marblehead, Massachusetts, and still plays golf regularly, although he is down to nine holes. Don’s son is the third generation to run the business, and two grandsons will continue the family tradition. Its primary market is the Northeast. I asked Don how a small food company could survive and prosper in today’s environment; he said a family business can thrive on lower margins than large companies will accept.
Bob Goetz is still living with his wife in a private home in Pittsboro, North Carolina, where he retired 26 years ago. Bob spent his career with Lederle Labs, owned by American Cyanamid when he arrived and now by Pfizer. Bob’s specialty was material management, overseeing pharmaceutical product production from beginning to end.
Bob Fitch is doing well in El Prado, New Mexico (eight miles from Taos). After Dartmouth Bob received his Ph.D. in chemistry from the University of Michigan and joined DuPont as a research chemist. He switched to academia, teaching for five years at North Dakota State and 15 as a tenured professor (with a lab and postdocs), as well as consulting, at the University of Connecticut. S.C. Johnson, a client, enticed him to move to Racine, Wisconsin, where he waxed well, ultimately becoming senior vice president for research and development worldwide. After vacationing in New Mexico for years, Bob moved there full time when he retired so he could apply his polymers to his skis on a steadier basis and enjoy the majesty of New Mexico’s mountains.
After making it to 98, Abraham Shalo died on July 18 in Pittsboro, North Carolina, where he retired after a 62-year career practicing estate and probate law in New York City. (Coincidentally, Abe’s retirement facility was across the way from Bob Goetz’s home, although they didn’t know each other.) Abe received his law degree from NYU. He achieved a lifetime goal by becoming chief counsel of the New York City Department of Investigation. He is survived by his wife, Roxana, and daughter Sibyl.
—John Adler, 1623 Pelican Cove Road, BA123, Sarasota, FL 34231; (203) 622-9069; (941) 966-2943 (fax)
Bob Goetz is still living with his wife in a private home in Pittsboro, North Carolina, where he retired 26 years ago. Bob spent his career with Lederle Labs, owned by American Cyanamid when he arrived and now by Pfizer. Bob’s specialty was material management, overseeing pharmaceutical product production from beginning to end.
Bob Fitch is doing well in El Prado, New Mexico (eight miles from Taos). After Dartmouth Bob received his Ph.D. in chemistry from the University of Michigan and joined DuPont as a research chemist. He switched to academia, teaching for five years at North Dakota State and 15 as a tenured professor (with a lab and postdocs), as well as consulting, at the University of Connecticut. S.C. Johnson, a client, enticed him to move to Racine, Wisconsin, where he waxed well, ultimately becoming senior vice president for research and development worldwide. After vacationing in New Mexico for years, Bob moved there full time when he retired so he could apply his polymers to his skis on a steadier basis and enjoy the majesty of New Mexico’s mountains.
After making it to 98, Abraham Shalo died on July 18 in Pittsboro, North Carolina, where he retired after a 62-year career practicing estate and probate law in New York City. (Coincidentally, Abe’s retirement facility was across the way from Bob Goetz’s home, although they didn’t know each other.) Abe received his law degree from NYU. He achieved a lifetime goal by becoming chief counsel of the New York City Department of Investigation. He is survived by his wife, Roxana, and daughter Sibyl.
—John Adler, 1623 Pelican Cove Road, BA123, Sarasota, FL 34231; (203) 622-9069; (941) 966-2943 (fax)