Class Note 1982
Issue
May-June 2024
It is hard for me to picture a world without a Matt Yee singing. Most of you know that Matt died on December 2, 2023, after a courageous battle with liver cancer. As his husband, Paul, shared on CaringBridge: “Matt enthusiastically embraced life during his final year and cherished sharing his joys and setbacks with a circle of family and friends that was so dear to him.” I imagine that Matt has taken over all of the musical arrangements in heaven.
To honor Matt, I thought I would check in with classmates who live in the Aloha state. The list includes Mary Alexander, Lisa Davidson, Leslie Fleming, J.B. Friday, Katie Stearns Friday, Darryl Kan, LaMont LaMotteo, Jim Steiner, Dianne Vogel Boucher, and Tim von Herrmann.
Mary Alexander writes: “I’ve lived on Kaua’i since 1990, when I was hired to teach writing and literature at this island’s community college. My job has challenged me, as many of the students come from families in which English is not the first language and many live below the poverty level. One of my greatest joys has been to introduce students to writers from their own cultural and ethnic backgrounds and (I hope) inspire them to share their voices as well.”
Dianne Vogel Boucher has lived on the Big Island since 2010. “I was attracted by its elemental beauty, wonderful weather, and the opportunity for water sports. Since then the island has given me an appreciation for those things and so much more. I met my husband, Marc, shortly after I arrived. Together we have built a life filled with a range of outdoor activities. I have learned much about the Hawaiian culture and its history, which has inspired me to begin creating Hawaiian-themed custom rugs and other textile-based artworks.”
Leslie Fleming grew up on Oahu and often visited Maui, where her grandparents on both sides lived. She attended the Punahou School (along with Matt and Jim Steiner and someone named Barack Obama). Leslie adds: “My husband and I both commute to Honolulu for work on a highway that goes up mountains, through tunnels and a beautiful rain forest that often has waterfalls. Returning to Hawaii as an adult I have been revisiting and rediscovering Hawaiian history and culture and re-thinking its challenges.”
Finally, J.B. Friday shares the following: “Here in Hawaii our native birds go away during the summer, not winter. Every spring I go down to the shoreline to see the kolea (plovers), akekeke (turnstones), and ulili (tattlers) put on their breeding plumage. The plovers have their little black-and-gold tuxedos, and the turnstones are decked out in mottled russet and inky black. Then one day, they are gone. We will next see them coming in, one by one, in late summer as they come home from their summer breeding grounds in Alaska.”
I’ll close with an example of synchronicity. Cindy Willett Sherwood lives in Williamsburg, Virginia—about a mile away from Becki Ambrose’s mother. Becki lives in Davis, California, where Cindy grew up and where Cindy’s parents still live. And their mothers share a birthday….
—David Eichman, 9004 Wonderland Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90046; dme4law@sbcglobal.net; Philippa M. Guthrie, 2303 Woodstock Place, Bloomington, IN 47401; (812) 325-7512; philippaguthrie@yahoo.com
To honor Matt, I thought I would check in with classmates who live in the Aloha state. The list includes Mary Alexander, Lisa Davidson, Leslie Fleming, J.B. Friday, Katie Stearns Friday, Darryl Kan, LaMont LaMotteo, Jim Steiner, Dianne Vogel Boucher, and Tim von Herrmann.
Mary Alexander writes: “I’ve lived on Kaua’i since 1990, when I was hired to teach writing and literature at this island’s community college. My job has challenged me, as many of the students come from families in which English is not the first language and many live below the poverty level. One of my greatest joys has been to introduce students to writers from their own cultural and ethnic backgrounds and (I hope) inspire them to share their voices as well.”
Dianne Vogel Boucher has lived on the Big Island since 2010. “I was attracted by its elemental beauty, wonderful weather, and the opportunity for water sports. Since then the island has given me an appreciation for those things and so much more. I met my husband, Marc, shortly after I arrived. Together we have built a life filled with a range of outdoor activities. I have learned much about the Hawaiian culture and its history, which has inspired me to begin creating Hawaiian-themed custom rugs and other textile-based artworks.”
Leslie Fleming grew up on Oahu and often visited Maui, where her grandparents on both sides lived. She attended the Punahou School (along with Matt and Jim Steiner and someone named Barack Obama). Leslie adds: “My husband and I both commute to Honolulu for work on a highway that goes up mountains, through tunnels and a beautiful rain forest that often has waterfalls. Returning to Hawaii as an adult I have been revisiting and rediscovering Hawaiian history and culture and re-thinking its challenges.”
Finally, J.B. Friday shares the following: “Here in Hawaii our native birds go away during the summer, not winter. Every spring I go down to the shoreline to see the kolea (plovers), akekeke (turnstones), and ulili (tattlers) put on their breeding plumage. The plovers have their little black-and-gold tuxedos, and the turnstones are decked out in mottled russet and inky black. Then one day, they are gone. We will next see them coming in, one by one, in late summer as they come home from their summer breeding grounds in Alaska.”
I’ll close with an example of synchronicity. Cindy Willett Sherwood lives in Williamsburg, Virginia—about a mile away from Becki Ambrose’s mother. Becki lives in Davis, California, where Cindy grew up and where Cindy’s parents still live. And their mothers share a birthday….
—David Eichman, 9004 Wonderland Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90046; dme4law@sbcglobal.net; Philippa M. Guthrie, 2303 Woodstock Place, Bloomington, IN 47401; (812) 325-7512; philippaguthrie@yahoo.com