As I write these notes due in Hanover by December 28 there are 18 inches of snow on the ground (with more to come) and the temperature right now is 9 degrees. Even so, things have begun to turn toward spring as you read this, although up here on the southern shore of Lake Ontario no self-respecting daffodil is quite ready to stick its nose up out of the mud. In other words there’s a six-week delay between the writing and publishing of Class Notes. Several classmates have asked me to help publicize class events. Gladly—but please remember that I need a lot of lead time.


As a Mets fan it kills me to write this, but 2010 was a good year for an old Phillies fan like Pete Vitella,who’s been rooting for the team since 1946. He is virtually retired from his second career in financial planning after teaching at both the high school and college levels and working for 25 years at Educational Testing Service. That’s the organization that concocts the annual College Board exams. 


Although he’s kept his feet on the ground in real estate for 25 years John Blades was also a private pilot for just as long. Since he can’t aviate any more, he’s exploring the possibility of gliders in the Palm Beach, Florida, area.


Jigger Clark was a medical trainer for ships at sea, flying out to teach crews such helpful techniques as CPR. He’s still helping people as a substitute teacher. 


Keeping not-for-profits going in tough times is never easy but Herb Ellis is heavily involved in raising money for the Park Playhouse in Albany, New York. Its most recent production was Irving Berlin’s Annie Get Your Gun. 


When Dick Welsh isn’t skiing in and around Utah’s Deer Valley he and Charlotte do a lot of volunteering for Christian and arts organizations.


Larry Selig gets around. He writes that for the last dozen years he has been a guest lecturer on Bible studies, archeology and religious experience in Tiberias and Jerusalem, “so I read about the recent class trip to Israel, the West Bank and Jordan with great interest.” Bruce Bernstein is considering a second “Seeds of Peace” trip; anyone interested should contact him at bruce.h.bernstein@verizon.net.


It always helps to have classmates who keep their antennae pointed in the right direction. So thanks to Dick Handy, who noticed a New York Times story about the Black Death that quoted medieval historian Les Little, an “expert on the subject.” 


Thanks also to Dan Searby, who sent word of an article in Women’s Wear Daily that observed, “Seventh Avenue is known for bustling buildings, congestion, push racks—and some very lively personalities.” One of the half dozen “lively” examples was Bud Konheim. Founder and CEO of Nicole Miller Ltd., Bud is best known in the fashion industry for relying on American manufacturers throughout his career.


Note the change in my e-mail address.


—Michael Lasser, 164 New Wickham Drive, Penfield, NY 14526; mlasser@rochester.rr.com