Class Note 1957. Hello, class of ’57. Bruce Bernstein asked meto fill the role of class secretary for DAM, which I am happy to do. There is a wealth of knowledge in our class. We have nearly 250 classmates and with 70 years of experience, that equates to 17,500 years of experience of wisdom. So, as we begin this column, I ask you to share the successes of your careers and what special skills, especially those gained at Dartmouth, helped you. John Phillips graduated with a degree in chemistry. He began a teaching career in Ottawa, Canada, and after five years started teaching in the Purdue University system for the next 30 years. He said the key to success was tenacity in staying with what he liked to do. I spoke with Emmy, Paul Ehrlich’swife of 44 years. She said he is a tiger at bridge and plays every day at the Pacific Union Club, where he is chairman of the bridge committee. They just finished a Panama Canal cruise. Paul majored in European history and, after a two-year stint in the military, graduated in 1959, though he still answers as a ’57. His career was in public relations and he opened and owned Cole Miller designer stores in California. His secret to success and longevity was stay away from situations that cause tensions. Herb Young got his M.B.A. from Syracuse, worked for Mohawk Carpet for 38 years as director of purchasing, and retired in 1996. He majored in history at Dartmouth and belonged to Sigma Chi. His advice is to be honest with yourself and others or it will come back to bite you. Willis Brooks won five awards at University of North Carolina teaching Russian history for 39 years. He enlisted after Dartmouth and was trained in two languages (Ukrainian and Russian) then earned a Ph.D. in Russian history at Stanford. He worked for the U.S. government, translated the tapes of the Russian pilots who shot down the U.S. 007 spy plane, and received a letter of commendation in civilian affairs. He says communicating was an important skill, with a focus on brevity. I received a call from Judy Marks, wife of Keith Marks. Keith passed away February 2. He received his master’s in electrical engineering from Stanford and worked for IBM. If any ’57s would like to share career stories, drop me a note.
—Ron Read, 18711 Monte Vista Circle, Villa Park, CA 92861; (714) 998-1479; ronread1@aol.com