Class Note 1953
Our class has suffered a huge loss. Our dear president, Allen Collins, has passed away. He wore the green with dignity and conviction. To my knowledge he is the only person to have held all of the offices: president of the Alumni Council, president of the Association of Alumni, and head of the Alumni Fund—and that was not all. He was ubiquitous, managing to attend every class function or gathering, always accompanied by his warmth, his wit, and his camera. He was a district enrollment director and very active in the Hartford, Connecticut, club. We shall miss him sorely. His life was celebrated by his family, at which his children, 11 grandchildren, and the following members of our class participated: Put Blodgett, Margie Cook, Cynthia and Dave Donovan, Dick Fleming, Sharon ’83 and Ron Lazar, Dick O’Connor, Donna Reilly, Thelma and Fred Stephens, Joan and Bernie Sudikoff, and Nancy and John Thornley. Put Blodgett had agreed to assume the presidency of the class; but we have since learned that he passed away on March 3, 2020. On the positive side, our class enjoyed two holiday luncheons; one in Hanover at Kendal and the other in New York City at the Dartmouth Club. Both events were well-attended. I am very happy to recommend to you a new book by our newsletter editor, Dave Halloran. Dave combines beautiful photographs as well as videos to produce a novel in ebook format, An Eternity Soaring Through the Universe. The inspiration for the book came from the words of scientist and Jesuit theologian Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, who concluded, “We are not humans having a spiritual experience; we are spirits having a human experience.” You may find it will expand your imagination and perhaps your convictions as to what eternity might be like. This has been a particularly difficult time for our class. In addition to Allen and Put we have lost the following classmates: William Andre, Jim Washburn, Daniel Ernst, Len Gochman, John Buchanan, Herbert Borovsky, and Winfred Case. Our thoughts and condolences go out to their families.
—Mark H. Smoller, 401 Lake Shore Road, Putnam Valley, NY 10579; (845)603-5066; dartmark@gmail.com
