Class Note 1964
Issue
January-February 2021
Dartmouth Night this fall rekindled virtual flames in the hearts of alums socially distanced across the globe. Hunt Whittaker called us together with a virtual Zoom meeting to celebrate the occasion. Twenty-eight classmates tuned in and swapped stories in breakout sessions. We all agreed we should try it again. Hunt says he celebrated by “humming the alma mater and marching around his kitchen island.”
As a band of brothers, we were all hurt by Don Mutterperl’sreport of his severe struggle with Covid. He and his wife, Nancy, tested positive during the last week in March. Neither “had a clue as to how they became infected and at the time of testing our symptoms were very mild.” Don writes that in his case, that changed rapidly. He “developed a fever that increased daily until it reached a high point of 104.” He suffered “chills, a mild cough, shortness of breath, and uncontrollable shaking.” Nancy experienced less-serious symptoms, but they both were frightened by the physical and emotional strain. “As for the virus’ effect on my outlook, it simply made me understand how truly fragile we are. The virus scared the hell out of me because I never knew what the next day would bring either for me or Nancy and the anxiety I felt was greater than at any other time in my life.” We are happy it’s over, Don!
Derick Denby writes that he “was diagnosed two years ago with Alzheimer’s, a disease for which there is no cure and that afflicts more than 5 million Americans. It is the sixth leading cause of death in the United States.” To slow the disease’s progression, Derick plays “pickleball, golf, and brain games while sticking to a Mediterranean diet.” He and his wife, Brenda, recently organized a fundraiser to put dollars to work on research. He writes, “I imagine that there are many ’64s who have Alzheimer’s. Perhaps some are involved in research. I am hoping we can communicate to support each other as well as to support our oh-so-valuable caregivers.” Derick can be reached at dbkdenby@comcast.net. Let’s give him a rouse!
—G. Jay Evans, 512 Winterberry Lane, Duxbury, MA 02332; gjevans222@gmail.com
As a band of brothers, we were all hurt by Don Mutterperl’sreport of his severe struggle with Covid. He and his wife, Nancy, tested positive during the last week in March. Neither “had a clue as to how they became infected and at the time of testing our symptoms were very mild.” Don writes that in his case, that changed rapidly. He “developed a fever that increased daily until it reached a high point of 104.” He suffered “chills, a mild cough, shortness of breath, and uncontrollable shaking.” Nancy experienced less-serious symptoms, but they both were frightened by the physical and emotional strain. “As for the virus’ effect on my outlook, it simply made me understand how truly fragile we are. The virus scared the hell out of me because I never knew what the next day would bring either for me or Nancy and the anxiety I felt was greater than at any other time in my life.” We are happy it’s over, Don!
Derick Denby writes that he “was diagnosed two years ago with Alzheimer’s, a disease for which there is no cure and that afflicts more than 5 million Americans. It is the sixth leading cause of death in the United States.” To slow the disease’s progression, Derick plays “pickleball, golf, and brain games while sticking to a Mediterranean diet.” He and his wife, Brenda, recently organized a fundraiser to put dollars to work on research. He writes, “I imagine that there are many ’64s who have Alzheimer’s. Perhaps some are involved in research. I am hoping we can communicate to support each other as well as to support our oh-so-valuable caregivers.” Derick can be reached at dbkdenby@comcast.net. Let’s give him a rouse!
—G. Jay Evans, 512 Winterberry Lane, Duxbury, MA 02332; gjevans222@gmail.com