Here’s word from three who live west of the Mississippi. I hope to hear more from those who live farthest away.


Bill Muldoon, living in Craig, Colorado, 200 miles northwest of Denver, has returned to racquetball competition with a flourish. He placed fourth in the senior world games, thereby earning a spot in the 75-79 bracket at the Racquetball National Tournament in Houston.


In 1960, taking a break from graduate studies in architecture, Harry Tuft worked in a club in Georgetown, Colorado, as a dishwasher, busboy, waiter, bartender and janitor, and “if there was a lull in the work,” he would sing in the bar. Within two years he had given up architecture to found the Denver Folklore Center. It’s still going and so is he—with a new folk music CD due out. He also founded Swallow Hill Music Association, a combination performance site, recording studio and music school for folk singing. See www.denverfolklore.com and http://swallowhillmusic.org.


Mel Britton has retired from practicing medicine. He recently completed a Dartmouth trip to Lisbon, Oporto, et al., and sees Bill Davidow often. I hope this column appears in time for those who live nearby to take advantage of Mel’s belief that Bill speaks at Dartmouth in October.


(And for those in and around N.Y.C., I’m doing a concert at the New York Society Library at 53 East 79th on Sunday afternoon, October 30.)


Al Rollins and a half dozen friends identifying themselves as the Geriatric Adventure Society left Montreal in the middle of July for two and a half weeks “of paddling, portaging and fishing” in the Arctic. Among those on the trip was honorary ’57 Will Lange, who e-mailed the others about the Rae: “It’s probably a river we can handle even at our advanced stage of decrepitation. It may well be our last.”


Most of us are fortunate that we face only the normal aches and pains of aging, but more and more classmates and spouses struggle with illness and decline. Few have addressed the subject more forthrightly than Tom Herlihy in a long e-mail explaining his move to a new address, Country House Apt. 4654, 4830 Kennett Pike, Wilmington, DE 19807. Here’s part of what he wrote: 


“I have moved but not to other climes. For a while I was reluctant to give the details of why we moved because of sensitivity to my wife’s situation. Now I think differently. My wife, Connie, suffers from an incurable and fatal disease known as Lewy body dementia. I had never heard of this disease. I describe it as a combination of Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s, but the tragedy is that the medications that slow down these diseases do not work with Lewy body dementia. With the exception of the necessary painkillers, there are no medications to help her. Shortly after we moved in, Connie had to be placed in the healthcare section, and I have remained in independent living. I go into this detail because I now believe in increasing the awareness of Lewy body dementia.”


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