Class Note 1985
Issue
November-December 2023
Maybe it’s just me, but I don’t know many women with nicknames. Sure, there are notable exceptions such as our own Kathy “Babs” Jeavons or Sue “Stella” Finegan Vasu or even Karen “Tref” Wolcott (anyone actually call her Karen?), but how many women are known as Sully, Murph, or Smitty? Case in point, several Alpha Chis gathered in Winter Park, Colorado, in July for the wedding of Russ Mitchell’s son. Who was there, you ask? Well Mitch, obviously, along with “BTed,” “Dog,” “Fiend,” “Mulls,” and “Yak.” For the uninitiated, celebrating a spectacular weekend were Russ Mitchell (with wife Kathy Bowler ’83), Pam and Barry Bass, me and Cindy Bergman, Jim Newman and wife Annie Thrush, Chris Mulligan, and Jack Sylvia (with wife Eileen Lynch ’83). Also, great to see Scott McDonald and wife Susan Ford, even if they didn’t reveal any nicknames. For those who have read this far, Fiend actually has several nicknames.
Many 60th birthday celebrations are taking place. A Green Card from Henrietta Hung: “We’ve been getting together regularly for more than 30 years! This year we celebrate our 60th birthdays and our 30th wedding anniversaries!” Pictured (though not here, so you’ll have to use your facial recollection powers) are Sue Finegan Vasu (Stella, in case you didn’t read the first paragraph), Mimi Reilly Eldridge, Joanna Tsiantas, George Eldridge, Paul Perry, and Henrietta Hung (which makes sense).
From the “Don’t Let the Facts Get in the Way of a Good Story” department comes communication from Gretchen Townsend Buggeln, who wrote, “After reading our alumni notes I asked ChatGPT to write a 150-word update for my alumni magazine.”
If you ever want to feel good about yourself, ask artificial intelligence (AI) to update your profile—what Gretchen received in return was, admittedly, full of hyperbole and details of debatable veracity. That said, thanks to Gretchen for our first AI-generated submission and the interesting conversation it fostered. In fact (verified by WriteJTM), Gretchen is the Phyllis and Richard Duesenberg Chair in Christianity and the Arts at Christ College, the honors college at Valparaiso University, having taught humanities there for 20 years after starting her career in museum work.
With sadness, I am sharing the news of the passing of our classmate Cynthia Ildiko Boyer. Cynthia was born in Ohio and grew up in Tampa, Florida. She attended medical school and later worked as a chief resident and fellow in radiation oncology at the University of Miami. Cynthia was an accomplished radiation oncologist for over three decades and served communities in South Florida and Louisiana. Cynthia loved traveling the world with her family, running marathons, scuba diving, and swimming. Cynthia met her husband, Dwayne Anderson, during medical school. They were married for 33 years and lived a wonderful life in Florida and Louisiana with their two children and their dog Keta.
Let me know if anyone really wants a nickname. Enjoy the start of our seventh decade!
—John MacManus, 188 Ringwood Road, Rosemont, PA 19010; (610) 525-4541; slampong@aol.com; Rebecca Blake Osborne, 42 Olive St., Newburyport, MA 01950; (603) 381-4164; rosborne29@comcast.net
Many 60th birthday celebrations are taking place. A Green Card from Henrietta Hung: “We’ve been getting together regularly for more than 30 years! This year we celebrate our 60th birthdays and our 30th wedding anniversaries!” Pictured (though not here, so you’ll have to use your facial recollection powers) are Sue Finegan Vasu (Stella, in case you didn’t read the first paragraph), Mimi Reilly Eldridge, Joanna Tsiantas, George Eldridge, Paul Perry, and Henrietta Hung (which makes sense).
From the “Don’t Let the Facts Get in the Way of a Good Story” department comes communication from Gretchen Townsend Buggeln, who wrote, “After reading our alumni notes I asked ChatGPT to write a 150-word update for my alumni magazine.”
If you ever want to feel good about yourself, ask artificial intelligence (AI) to update your profile—what Gretchen received in return was, admittedly, full of hyperbole and details of debatable veracity. That said, thanks to Gretchen for our first AI-generated submission and the interesting conversation it fostered. In fact (verified by WriteJTM), Gretchen is the Phyllis and Richard Duesenberg Chair in Christianity and the Arts at Christ College, the honors college at Valparaiso University, having taught humanities there for 20 years after starting her career in museum work.
With sadness, I am sharing the news of the passing of our classmate Cynthia Ildiko Boyer. Cynthia was born in Ohio and grew up in Tampa, Florida. She attended medical school and later worked as a chief resident and fellow in radiation oncology at the University of Miami. Cynthia was an accomplished radiation oncologist for over three decades and served communities in South Florida and Louisiana. Cynthia loved traveling the world with her family, running marathons, scuba diving, and swimming. Cynthia met her husband, Dwayne Anderson, during medical school. They were married for 33 years and lived a wonderful life in Florida and Louisiana with their two children and their dog Keta.
Let me know if anyone really wants a nickname. Enjoy the start of our seventh decade!
—John MacManus, 188 Ringwood Road, Rosemont, PA 19010; (610) 525-4541; slampong@aol.com; Rebecca Blake Osborne, 42 Olive St., Newburyport, MA 01950; (603) 381-4164; rosborne29@comcast.net