1921
Laura Herrick Irish, March 2, 2004
For the report on her class’s 60th Reunion in 1981, Laura Irish wrote apologetically to the editor of the magazine, “The above isn’t much, but at 80 years old we no longer crave excitement and we’re happy to settle for a relaxed but happy close of our 60th anniversary!” She had done plenty before that significant Reunion, however, having taught high school English in Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and at the Leavitt Institute before marrying her husband, the late Gilbert Irish in 1929. They raised their two children in Massachusetts, where her husband worked for the Department of Agriculture. Laura was always a doer at Bates as well, having been vice president of her class, president of the women’s student government her senior year, and spending a year in Washington, D.C., “in war work.” She later served as secretary/treasurer of her class, was on the Reunion committee for her 60th and attended her 70th Reunion in 1991. A lover of literature who was proud of her Maine heritage, Laura Irish is survived by son Frank Irish; she was predeceased by daughter Martha Farnum. Five grandchildren and five great-grandchildren also survive her.

1922
Rosalia Knight Ott, Sept. 8, 2004
A French and English major, Rosalia Ott did postgraduate work at Middlebury, Boston University, and The Sorbonne before teaching high school French in the Boston area for several years. After her marriage to the late Rollin Leland Ott in 1928, they made their home in Indiana, where they raised their children. She was a member of First Presbyterian Church in Franklin, Ind.; Franklin Chapter 439, Order of Eastern Star; Charlotte Emerson Study Club; and the American Association of University Women. Survivors include daughter Sue Moore and son Leland; four grandchildren; 12 great-grandchildren; and nephew Herbert T. Knight ’46, who wrote to the College that his aunt “donated her body to the Indiana Univ. School of Medicine. Under such an arrangement the university works with the undertaker on body prep. Once research is completed, the remains are cremated and returned to family. Yep, she was quite an old gal.” Brothers Elton E. Knight ’18 and Howard G. Knight ’21 predeceased her.

1929
Shirley Brown Kilbourne, June 28, 2004
Shirley Kilbourne graduated from Farmington State Normal School in 1926 before she matriculated at Bates, where she majored in French. She went on to teach languages at Hollis, Richmond, and Gardiner high schools. Generations of students knew her as “Mis’swithee,” from her first marriage to the late Rev. Oscar Withee, who was pastor of First Baptist Church in Gardiner from 1937 until 1943. She was treasurer of the Gardiner Federal Credit Union from 1955 to 1976 and handled deposits and withdrawals, wrote loans and took payments at her kitchen table. She married the late Samuel Kilbourne ’30 in 1976. An active civic volunteer, she accumulated more than 1,000 hours as a Red Cross volunteer at Togus Veterans Hospital and served for 20 years at Midcoast Hospital, Brunswick. She was finance secretary at the First Baptist Church in Gardiner for many years. Survivors include son David Withee and stepsons S. Richard Kilbourne ’67 and John H. Kilbourne; sisters Irene Fairfield and Ruth Dickinson; two grandchildren; and two great-grandchildren; step-granddaughters Kristin J. Kilbourne ’97 and Cynthia D. Kilbourne ’00; step-daughter-in-law Ellen M. Kilbourne ’69; nephew Laurence A. Brown ’66; and many other nieces and nephews. She was predeceased by her brother and her sister-in-law, Arthur ’27 and Nathalie Benson Brown ’27; and by brother-in-law William C. Kilbourne ’29 and sister-in-law Anna Saunders Kilbourne ’36.

Raymond E. Nilson, Sept. 21, 2004
Retired Lt. Comdr. Raymond E. Nilson, U.S. Naval Reserve, was born the son of Swedish immigrants in Worcester, Mass. He was a physics major at Bates, where he was captain of the football team and a hammer thrower for the track team. In 1928, Harry Rowe ’12, assistant to President Gray, wrote a recommendation letter for a summer job, describing “Swede,” as he was called by his Bates teammates, as “a great, big, overgrown, good-natured boy, who has good stuff in him and isn’t afraid to work. He has usually a broad grin and sometimes gives the impression of the ‘proverbial bull in the china shop,’ but I am sure that for straightforward honesty and downright faithfulness he would come through in fine shape.” Nilson earned a master’s in education from Boston Univ. and during World War II he was a pioneer in physical rehabilitation, serving in the Navy rehabilitation program in the Aleutian Islands. After the war he worked for many years with paraplegics and mentally ill veterans to build their strength through innovative techniques. He worked at the Cushing Hospital in Framingham and as physical therapist and chief of corrective therapy at Bedford Veterans Hospital from 1948 until his retirement in 1972. A man who inspired many as a model in physical and athletic prowess, he was a frequent swimmer at the YMCA in Framingham until age 96. Husband of the late Katherine Nilson, he is survived by daughter Kristina Nilson Allen, two grandchildren, two great-grandchildren and a niece.

1930
Dorothy Clason Thomas, Sept. 30, 2004
Dorothy Clason Thomas attended Bates College for two years and then transferred to Nasson College, Springvale, graduating with a business degree in 1930. She was an office worker in Lewiston before marrying George E. Thomas in 1935 and moving to Portland. From 1940 to 1960 she was an office worker and retail salesperson for Loring, Short & Harmon, W.T. Grant, and Porteous, Mitchell & Braun. Her husband predeceased her. Survivors include daughter Judith C. Merrill, two grandchildren, brother E. Freeman Clason, and several nieces and nephews, grandnieces and grandnephews. Her father was the late Ernest Fairlie Clason 1902, Trustee from 1919 to 1929, for whom Clason House is named.

Rachel Ellis Dyke, Sept, 28, 2004
Rachel Ellis Dyke was a doer throughout her life. She had a dizzying record of activities at Bates — Outing Club, Lambda Alpha, Delta Phi Alpha, archery, hockey, basketball, and baseball. She taught Latin and French at Jay High School and coached girls’ basketball. She fit in a wedding to the late Charles Newell Dyke in 1934, and after he was appointed state director of Municipal Audit, they moved to Augusta where she had two teaching stints at Cony High School, until 1972. She attended the Universalist Church and was a life member of the Order of the Eastern Star, Washburn Chapter. In 1985 she was still busy, “continuing to work in a craft store called Where It’s At,” a title expressing her own enthusiastic involvement in arts and crafts. Children C. Richard Dyke and Janice Dodge; six grandchildren; seven great-grandchildren; and one niece and one nephew survive her. Her brother was the late Donald A. Ellis ’27, and the late George E. Stone Sr. ’32 was her cousin.

1931
Harriet Green Karplus, Jan. 15, 2004
A note from her home in Belmont, Mass., in March 1981 summed up Harriet Green Karplus’ perspective: She sent best wishes to her Class of ’31 on the occasion of their 50th Reunion, but noted there were “too many comings and goings here at Reunion time for me to attend. Edward died August ’79. Children and grandchildren well and busy.” After graduation from Bates and before her marriage in 1934, she had been a teacher and an editor. She is survived by her daughter Elizabeth Bradley, sons John and Alan, and her grandchildren.

1932
E. Elizabeth Best, July 25, 2004
Elizabeth Best once misplaced the reply envelope for her annual gift to Bates. She quipped in a letter that accompanied her gift, “However, I can assure you that my loyalty to Bates is not misplaced in any sense of the word.” She did graduate work at UConn and UMaine-Orono. Retired from Enfield (Conn.) High School after 37 years of teaching, she was a member of the Calvary Presbyterian Church, where she sang in the choir and was on the Sunday school staff for 40 years. She also was a life member of the DAR, a 50-year member of the YWCA, a charter and life member of the Enfield Historical Society, and held memberships in state and national retired teachers associations.

Wendell Augustus Ray, July 1, 2004
Professor emeritus of chemistry at Colby College, Wendall Ray was a summa cum laude graduate of Bates who earned his master’s and Ph.D. in chemistry from Harvard University. For his doctoral work he developed a precise modification of the capillary rise method of measuring surface tension, which proved significant in the theory of solutions and surface phenomena. In addition to his teaching career at Colby — he taught at both the downtown campus and later on Mayflower Hill — he had been an instructor at Harvard before World War II and again in 1944. He was also instructor in mathematics for Air Force cadets when they came to Colby for training in the 1940s. When he married Charlene Blance in 1956, they worked together on his research in a privately contracted lab in Waterville as well as a laboratory they set up in their home. Things mechanical and things done by hand came easily to Wendell: woodworking, metallurgy, photography, darkroom work, and camera repair; and bicycle repair. He loved to explore Maine, too, and day trips on his motorcycle would take him around the state. A member of Phi Beta Kappa and Sigma Xi, he was past chairman of the Maine Section of the American Chemistry Society. He is survived by his wife and several nieces and nephews.

1933
Robert L. Ness Sr., Sept. 27, 2004
As field secretary in central Maine for the Federal Land Bank, Farm Credit Administration of Springfield, Mass., for 41 years, Robert Ness worked with farmers from the New Hampshire border to Eastport. Married for 67 years to Frances Macintosh Ness, who survives him, the couple had two children, Sally and Robert. Other survivors include his brother Gordon Ness; four grandchildren; three great-grandchildren; and a nephew, Ryan H. Spring ’98. Brothers John ’29 and Norman ’33 predeceased him.

Helen Parker Saunders, Aug. 9, 2004
A daughter of Brooklyn as well as of the late Horatio Perkins Parker, Class of 1897, Helen Parker Saunders was a homemaker who retired with her husband Leonard Hammond Saunders to Dingley Island, off the coast of Harpswell, Maine, in 1957. She cared for the mothers of the family preceding their deaths and for her husband before his death in 1987. She enjoyed traveling to Europe, the Caribbean, and Alaska with her brother Charles O. Parker ’40. She also enjoyed cooking, entertaining, and flower gardening. Her sons Lee and Charles survive her, as do her brother, eight grandchildren, and 13 great-grandchildren. Her nephew is Kenneth W. Saunders ’56 and niece is Diane Parker Burbank ’76. She was predeceased by an uncle and aunt, George H. and Edith P. Johnson, both Class of 1900, and by a sister-in-law, Geraldine Wilson Saunders ’32.

Mary Swasey Stewart, Dec. 31, 2003
Mary Swasey Stewart is remembered by her family and friends as a woman who cared about family and community and was always looking for ways to enrich the lives of those around her. Before her retirement to Sun City, Ariz., she was employed at the Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Co. She was married to the late Walter G. Stewart, who taught chemistry at Springfield College, and she and is survived by her son Charles, three grandchildren and two great-grandchildren. Bates survivors are her cousins Charlotte Dolloff Turadian ’41 and Miriam Dolloff Chesley ’45.

1934
Daniel B. Hickey, Sept. 25, 2004
A photo of the 1927 Cony High School football team shows Dan Hickey, and he has the look of a tough young Irisher. The photo and story about Dan appeared in the Kennebec Journal on March 17, 1995 — ordinarily St. Patrick’s Day — but that year celebrated as Dan Hickey Day in Augusta, honoring this grandson of Irish immigrants. He attended Bates for two years, meeting his wife Rita. He needed some toughness when he, and so many other young men, left his wife and young son in 1943 to join the Army and fight in World War II. “It was something that, if you ducked out of it, you wouldn’t feel right about it,” he is quoted as saying. “I do know it was hard on Rita though…as far as I am concerned, my wife was a hero.” He fought in North Africa and in Italy and returned after the war and worked as a mail carrier for the next 28 years. When he retired in 1974, he went to work at the State House as a doorman and two years later was elected to represent Augusta in the Maine Legislature. He served there until 1990. On the day of his recognition, a longtime neighborhood friend, Mike Burns, said, “So many people put charity in an envelope and send it in; Dan did things.” Those “things” included supporting youth hockey for local kids, mentoring younger politicians and working with the American Lung Assn. Survivors include wife Rita; sons Daniel B., Thomas H., John P., and Timothy; sister Rose Johnson; six grandchildren; one great-grandchild; and several nieces and nephews.

H. Robert Johnston, July 26, 2004
Hagel Johnston, better known as “Rob” to his friends and co-workers of later years, arrived at Bates at age 23 having already experienced life adventures. After graduating from high school in Long Branch, N.J., Hagel, his brother, and a friend set off on a trip to California in a Model T sedan. The boys rigged a hammock over the vehicle’s side so one of them could sleep. The 18-day trip included flat tires, one-lane mountain roads, and pushing the Model T over a mountain. He stayed in Los Angeles a couple of years, then hitchhiked back to New Jersey, where he chauffeured for a woman whose generosity enabled him to matriculate at Bates. He married Florris Lillian Kurtz in 1933, and they moved to Litchfield, Maine, in 1946, after visiting friends and falling in love with a century-old brick house on 60 acres. Hagel was a selectman and eventually Litchfield’s first town manager. In 1957, he became city welfare director and assessment administrator in nearby Gardiner. Hagel attended the Federated Church in Litchfield and Highland Avenue United Methodist Church, Gardiner, and was a member of Litchfield Grange. After his wife’s death in 1998, he moved to Bradenton, Fla., living with his eldest daughter, Florris Bly. He enjoyed swimming and riding his adult trike up to five miles at a time at age 95. At 96 he could flawlessly recite from memory “Gray’s Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard,” and his final recitation was videotaped by his granddaughter, Sharon. He is survived by daughters Florris Bly and Mary Johnston Emerson Parker and son Charles; nine grandchildren; 20 great-grandchildren; six great-great-grandchildren; and several nieces and nephews.

1935
Beulah Wilder Staples, July 13, 2004
As noted in the 1935 Mirror, Beulah “Bunny” Wilder Staples “was the one member of the class who had her thesis finished long before deadline.” The conscientious student went on to earn a master’s degree in library science from Simmons College and was later employed at both the Library of Congress and the Maine State Library. She served as Oxford town manager in the 1950s and raised her children alone, after the death of husband Roscoe E. Staples II. He was killed by a sniper in the Solomon Islands in 1943, after which he was posthumously awarded the Silver Star. Another piece of valuable metal figures in the Staples’ marital history. As an anniversary gift, Roscoe Staples had purchased a 1793 Strawberry Leaf large cent, an extremely rare coin. After Beulah’s death last summer, the coin was auctioned for $360,000 on behalf of the Staples family, and during the auction she was applauded for recognizing the coin’s “significance both as family heirloom and numismatic rarity.” Survivors are sons Roscoe and Everett and daughter Mary A. Gatchell; six grandchildren; and nine great-grandchildren.

1936
Arthur Axelrod, Sept. 11, 2004
A trumpet player since elementary school, Arthur “Archie” Axelrod played in numerous marching and dance bands at Bates and in the Salem, Mass., area, including the Bobcats, the Dick Hingston, Dick Boisvert, and Larry Drouin bands, the Salem State College Band, and later the Salem (Mass.) Philharmonic Orchestra. He led the Bobcats his senior year, and the quote “Play it once — oh play it some more” is next to his Mirror picture. After graduation he used his economics degree when he joined his father’s dry goods business, R. Axelrod & Sons Inc. After marrying Minnie Stern in 1938, the couple and his brother Saul turned the business into a retail clothing store. He was active in Temple Shalom in Salem and a member of the Jewish Community Center at Marblehead, where he served two terms as president. He did volunteer work with handicapped and retarded children. In the ’60s he was secretary-treasurer of the Knights of Pythias Local 126, a musicians’ union, a post he held for more than 40 years. He is survived by his brother; daughters Judith Arnold and Linda Wall; three grandchildren; and one great-grandchild.

Dorothy Staples Fredland, Sept. 18, 2004
Dorothy Staples Fredland was certified as a qualified seaman and small boat skipper, apt skills for the wife of a professor at the U.S. Naval Academy, the late J. Roger Fredland ’36. Dorothy earned a master’s in journalism from Columbia and worked for the Boston Herald as a feature writer and personal advice columnist for three years before the couple married and moved to Annapolis. They and their five sons spent summers in Siasconset on Nantucket, moving to Punta Gorda in 1978. A volunteer with the American Field Service, she was an avid swimmer and enjoyed cycling and walking. Her survivors include her sons Eric, Peter, Mark, Kurt, and Robert and seven grandchildren, including Blake Fredland ’03. A nephew-in-law, John D. Maxwell ’66, also survives her. Her niece Jean Staples Maxwell ’66 predeceased her, as did in-laws Guy H. Swasey ’14 and Sanford L. Swasey ’19.

Eleanor Wilson Niedringhaus, Aug. 1, 2004
Eleanor “Jerry” Wilson Niedringhaus was a connector, and she made those connections in a variety of ways. When she moved from North Carolina to Florida in 1987, she formed a beginners’ bridge group that developed into a weekly duplicate bridge game; she ran the community library for more than 10 years; she wrote for the Press Journal for seven years about the activities of Countryside South; and she was secretary for the homeowners’ association for many years. After graduation, she taught high school in New Jersey and worked in the toy department of Gimbel’s. She traveled extensively in Europe and Asia, and at the age of 80 was in the first group touring Croatia after the Balkan War. She is survived by daughter Judith Ranson and son Charles; sister Janet Wilson Geist and brother Elwood Justin Wilson; and five grandchildren, who affectionately called her “Baby Doll.”

1937
Irene Cook Putnam, July 1, 2004
Irene Cook Putnam’s humor is evident on one of her Reunion surveys. In answer to the question, “What Bates Reunion traditions are most important to you?” she checked the alumni luncheon and class banquet, noting, “Sounds like all I want to do is eat. Not so! It’s a chance to see everyone.” An English major at Bates, she married Elmore K. Putnam ’45 and earned her master’s in English from the Univ. of Hartford in 1964. She taught for 21 years in the Rocky Hill Junior and Senior High School, was head of the English department there and later served as guidance director. A 40-year member of the Rocky Hill Congregational Church, she was the founder of the Rocky Hill Mental Health Assn. In 1975 she moved to Thompson Lake in Poland, Maine, where she had summered for many years. Her husband predeceased her. Survivors include son Kendall Cook Putnam ’69 and daughter-in-law Linda Halleck Putnam ’70; sister Olive Skinner; three grandchildren including Sarah Putnam Budney ’00, and a great-grandchild. Two cousins, Louise Otis Smith ’44 and Marion Otis Donnell ’45, and a niece, Kathryn Skinner Sever ’71 also survive her, as does her grandson-in-law, Alexander Budney ’99.

Robert M. York, June 17, 2004
In 1956, then-Maine Gov. Edmund Muskie ’36 turned to Robert M. York to improve the sad state of Maine’s historic preservation efforts. Appointed to the volunteer position of official state historian by Muskie, York became “a one-man band,” spearheading creation of the Maine State Archives and the Maine Historic Preservation Commission, assisting state parks in developing educational programs, and supporting the creation of some 20 local historical societies. Upon his 2003 retirement, the Legislature’s official sentiment saluted his “dedication, diligence and delight in the education of three generations of Maine students across half a century…. [H]e has well personified the motto of his beloved State of Maine: ‘Dirigo’ — ‘I guide.’” A World Wa II Navy veteran, York earned his master’s and Ph.D. degrees from Clark. He joined the faculty at UMaine-Orono and developed the first Maine history curriculum there. Asked to teach Maine history, York told department head Edward Dow that his knowledge of the subject came from four weeks of study in eighth grade. Dow replied, “You are a Mainer. You know the state of Maine.” That he did, teaching for more than 50 years in the Maine system. In 1943 he married Virginia Blanchard, and in 1975, he married Jeanette “Jan” Goodwin. In Bates affairs, he was a member of Reunion gift committees and served as class agent, Bates Club officer, and president of his class for many years. An Orrs Island resident in recent years, he was president of the Harpswell Historical Society, trustee of the Pejepscot Historical Society, vice president of the Maine League of Historical Societies, and chairman of the Christian Education Commission of the Maine Conference, United Church of Christ. He is survived by his second wife; children Anne Agan and Paul; sister Lucy Goggin; a grandchild; a nephew and three nieces, including Susan Oliver Withers ’72 and her husband David A. Withers ’71.

1938
Ruth Bowditch Payne Merritt, Aug. 7, 2004
Prior to her 50th Reunion, Ruth Merritt indicated what had guided her life to that point: “Caring about people — about the meaning of life to individuals, about the things that trouble people, things that hurt and leave scars, caring about those thoughts down underneath that we find hard to share lest they not be acceptable to others. So often in this world of hurry, people talk only about surface things. But…I shall continue to care.” She was a medical and psychiatric social worker, having earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees in social work from Simmons College. She served on the staff of medical and social service departments of several New England hospitals, including New Haven Hospital, where she taught students in Yale Medical School as well as social workers and nurses in training. A cellist who also studied sculpture, she was the director of financial aid for 11 years at Mount Holyoke College. Widow of the late Robert E. Merritt, she leaves her children from her marriage to the late Groverman Payne: Carolyn Payne Tigh, Douglass, Jonathan, and Lucinda Payne Pollack. Other survivors include four grandchildren and her son-in-law, Thomas G. Tighe ’68.

1939
Katherine Gross Macdonald Walker, Aug. 30, 2004
Katherine Gross Macdonald Walker earned her master’s in education from UMaine-Orono with a focus on reading, psychology, and guidance. She combined that education mastery with her sociology and economics degree from Bates to make a career that included stints as a school psychologist in Massachusetts, and a consultant with the West Hartford School Department in Connecticut. She also taught psychology at Cape Cod Community College. Past president of the Junior League and The Good Samaritan Home in Bangor, she was married to the late Donald F. Macdonald before marrying the late George R. Walker. Sons Robert and William and daughters Jane Caruso and Judith Fueyo survive her. Stepchildren Scott Walker and Carol Byram also survive her, as do brothers John Gross ’35 and William Gross ’43 and sister Rose Gross ’43. She leaves 15 grandchildren, including Bradford S. Macdonald ’94 and Whitney A. Macdonald ’97, and eight great-grandchildren.

Robert F. Malone, July 14, 2004
After graduation, Robert “Bob” Malone signed a contract with the New York Yankees. A “powerful twirler,” Malone led Bates to the state title that spring, then pitched for the Lisbon Falls Worumbos before heading to the Yankees’ Cape Cod farm team with Bates teammate Stan Bergeron ’39. The record is silent about his professional baseball career — perhaps he had the kind of epiphany that Doc Graham has in Field of Dreams — but Malone soon chose medicine as a career, graduating from Tufts Medical School in 1943. He did his internship at St. Vincent’s Hospital in New York and his residency at St. Vincent’s Medical Center in Bridgeport. He served 1944-1946 in the U.S. Army. He was a member of the Professorial Assn. of the Connecticut Medical Society, the New Haven County Medical Society, and the Milford Medical Society. He was chief of medicine at the Milford Hospital for many years. He is survived by wife Letitia Martelon Malone; son Robert; and three grandchildren. Three stepchildren, George F. Martelon Jr., Katherine Martelon and Cynthia Eadie also survive him, as do two step-grandchildren. He was predeceased by his first wife, Joan E. Malone.

1940
Philip L. Archambault, June 15, 2004
The youngest of nine children, Philip Archambault graduated from Tufts School of Medicine in 1943. He interned at Worcester City Hospital and performed his general residency at Central Maine Medical Center in Lewiston. He practiced general medicine from 1948 to 1955, served an orthopedic residency in the Veterans Administration Program in Boston, and then limited his practice to orthopedic surgery from 1958 to 1983. He was a captain in the U.S. Army Medical Corps from 1944 to 1946 and was appointed Diplomate of the American Board of Orthopedic Surgery in 1960. At Central Maine Medical Center he was chief of the medical-surgical staff and chief of orthopedic surgery. He was on the senior orthopedic service courtesy staff at St. Mary’s. He served on boards of Blue Cross/Blue Shield of Maine, the Funeral Consumers Alliance of Maine, and the Lewiston Fire Commission. An avid fly fisherman, he was a member of Trout Unlimited and the Atlantic Salmon Federation. A tennis player and skier, he was a National Master in the American Contract Bridge League. Other interests were gardening, boating, canoeing and furniture making. In Bates affairs, he served as president of his class and on Reunion committees. He is survived by his wife of 58 years, Helen Choate Archambault; four children, Philip, Thomas ’69, Andrew, and Ann; and eight grandchildren, including Kathryn B. Archambault ’01. Daughters-in-law who survive him are Laura Bowers Archambault ’73 and Linda Handrich Archambault ’82. His niece is Kay Stevens, longtime secretary to Bates presidents.
 
Ruth Hawkins Sullivan, Sept. 27, 2004
Ruth Hawkins Sullivan served with her late sister Genevieve “Gennie” Hawkins Hamann ’40 as a WAVE in World War II. She earned a master’s in education from UMaine-Orono, then taught in high schools throughout the state, including at Stephens High in Rumford, where she met her husband, James Sullivan. They moved to Delaware, where her two daughters were born, before returning to South Portland, where she worked retail for 10 years before teaching English in the basic studies department at the Univ. of Southern Maine. Her passions were traveling, gardening, and reading, and she and her husband, who predeceased her, took many trips. She is survived by daughters Vicki A. Sullivan and Kaye McDevitt; sister Joyce Hawkins Parker ’47; and several nieces and nephews. Another sister and her husband, Methyl and Richard Willits, both Class of ’45, and her brother-in-law, Robert D. Hamann ’40, predeceased her.

1941
Carolyn Moyes Briggs, Dec. 20, 2000
Carolyn Moyes Briggs left Bates in 1938 and married Austin E. Briggs ’39 in the Bates Chapel in 1939. She served on her 60th Reunion Social Committee in 2001, and had the joy of having grandson Benjamin Lamanna ’02 assist the class as a BatesStar volunteer. She was past president of the Visiting Nurses Assn. and had volunteered at the South Shore Hospital in Weymouth for many years. A golfer, she was also treasurer of the Women’s Golf Assn. at Pembroke Country Club. She is survived by her husband; sons Frederick, Stanley, and Austin Jr. and daughters Beverly B. Lamana, Susan B. Richardson, and Carol Ann B. Richardi; sister Ruth Delano; 17 grandchildren; and nine great-grandchildren.

Gladys Ford McFarland, Oct. 30, 2003
Gladys Ford McFarland worked for Filene’s in Boston after graduating with a degree in English. She married the late John McFarland in 1943 and moved to the Washington, D.C., area after World War II, where she worked for the Arlington County school system for 17 years. After retirement, she was involved with the Red Cross, the Arlington Symphony, and American Assn. of University Women. Survivors include daughter Kathleen and sons Steven, Thomas, and John.

1942
Daniel J. Desjardin, Feb. 18, 2004
Daniel J. Desjardin attended Bates, Arizona State University, and was a 1949 graduate of the Illinois College of Podiatry Medicine in Chicago. He served in the U.S. Army Air Corps as a bombardier with the 8th Air Force in Europe from 1942 to 1945. He practiced podiatry from 1950 until his retirement in 1988, was past president of the Maine Podiatry Assn. and served on the Maine State Board of Podiatry. He was a member of the American Legion Post 153 of New Auburn and past member of the Lewiston Auburn Rotary Club. Survivors include wife Lorraine Caho Desjardin; son Gregory and daughters Dorothy D. Foote and Katherine J. Thorburn; brothers Clement and John and sister Margaret Chevas; and seven grandchildren.

Robert L. Paine, Aug. 2, 2004
Robert L. Paine attended Bates College until he was drafted into the Army during World War II. After the war, he returned to Rhode Island and completed his college education at Bryant College and married Deborah Coggeshall. He worked for New York Life, Pillsbury, and Stickney & Poor Spice Co., for which he served as vice president of the Northern New England branch. He was later employed by Waltham Chemical until his retirement. A member of Woodfords Congregational Church for almost 50 years, he was a Sunday school teacher and a deacon. His survivors include daughter Jean Koster and sons Richard and Mark; eight grandchildren; and a nephew, Frederick Burton.

1943
Martha Burns Keefe, Sept. 21, 2004
Martha Burns Keefe’s adventurous spirit and love of travel took her to all but four of the United States and on four trips to Europe. When she wasn’t off on one of her junkets, she would be holding court at the family camp on Square Pond, and summers weren’t complete without as much company as possible from around the country. She taught history and physical education at Sanford High School for one year and served in the Navy as recreation and welfare officer of the Potomac River Naval Command. She met and married John Lyle Keefe, an army officer, in Virginia, and they came to Maine, where she worked in sales for the Goodall Sanford Mill before raising her family. She was president of the local community health association while her children were young and taught at St. Ignatius School before becoming assistant librarian at Sanford High School, retiring in 1995. She played bridge, knitted afghans and sweaters for family and friends, belonged to College Club, Senior College, and participated in community learning opportunities. A class officer, she was elected a member of the College Key in 2003. Survivors include son J. Lyle Keefe ’83 and daughters Katharine Porter, Paula Edmonds, and Janice Keefe; four grandchildren; and two great-grandchildren.

Arlene Chadbourne Zink, May 21, 2004
Arlene Chadbourne Zink attended Bates for two years before transferring to Katherine Gibbs Secretarial School. She worked at the Colton Insurance Agency in Westfield, Mass., for 40 years. She was a past president and member of the Business and Professional Woman’s Club, a member of the Western Hampden Historical Society, of the Noble Hospital Auxiliary, and of the First Congregational Church. She leaves two daughters, Barbara A. Kanzinger and Beverly J. Nielsen; four grandchildren; and two great-grandchildren.

1944
David E. Haines, July 4, 2004
David E. Haines played on the undefeated 1946 Bates football team that appeared in the Glass Bowl. A government and history major, he earned a master’s in education from Boston Univ. and taught social studies at Canton High School for 32 years. He also coached football and basketball and was the former athletic director and chair of the history department. As a representative of the Cultural Affairs Office of the Department of State, he taught and coached basketball in Chad and Ethiopia in 1963 in preparation for the African Games. He was a World War II veteran who served with the 815th Engineer Battalion in North Africa and Italy and in Army Intelligence during the Korean War. He was a member of the American Legion Post 1 in Rockland, having retired to that city in 1985. He played bridge and belonged to the Rockland Golf and the Canton Town clubs. Survivors include wife Ruth Wyer Haines ’42; children Linda, Janet ’75, Kevin ’75, and Alan; and six grandchildren.

Harold N. Sparks, April 5, 2004
Successful in business, Harold Sparks had advice for someone starting out: “Bright young people who are willing and able to work and to build on cement rather than sand will always have a successful career.” He served in the U.S. Army Air Corps, 1943-1946, before founding Fashion Neckwear Co. Inc. of Nashua, N.H., then serving as president of Genesco’s-Apha Retail and Turnstyle Corp. He was on the board of trustees of The Arts and Science Center in Nashua before he retired to Palm Beach. Survivors include children Cynthia, Rebecca, and Kenneth; and a grandchild. His brother Albert B. Sparks ’49 also survives him.

1947
Phyllis Burke Cronin, July 21, 2004
A biology major at Bates, Phyllis Burke Cronin also studied at the University of Virginia, UC-Long Beach, and California State College at Dominguez Hills. She taught mathematics and worked in banking as an account specialist for World Savings. Husband James Cronin Jr. ’47 survives her, as do children Linda Lyle, Andrea Rost, Brian, James III and Michael; and her grandchildren.

Marjorie Lorenz Pederson, April 24, 2003
Marjorie “Lori” Pederson’s graduation cum laude from Bates with a degree in sociology, her election to Phi Beta Kappa and her marriage to Donald Pederson, all in the space of two weeks, launched her into a non-stop life of involvement in family, church, school and politics. She helped establish the Unitarian Fellowship in Marshfield, Mass., where she and her husband settled after he finished medical school. She served the Unitarian Universalist Assn. at the local, regional and national levels and was recognized for her contributions when she received the Jane Kapuscik Award. After relocating to Wisconsin, she was instrumental in establishing the Wisconsin Hemlock Society, serving as its president for 10 years. Her survivors include her husband; and her children, Julie Spielberger, Christine Jacobs, and David, Mark and Stephen. Many grandchildren, great-grandchildren and her brother George Lorenz also survive her.

1949
George F. Disnard, Sept. 3, 2004
When asked once what he hoped people at his funeral would say of him, George Disnard replied, “He always did the best he could; he enjoyed his wife.” As a schoolboy he overcame a physical handicap to set a record for cross country; as an Air Force gunner in World War II, he flew 76 missions in Burma and India and 70 in the Korean War, and he was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross, Purple Heart, Air Medal with four clusters, and theater ribbon with four battle stars. He worked 34 years in the field of education as a junior high school teaching principal and as assistant superintendent of schools in Claremont, N.H., before becoming superintendent. After retirement in 1984, he served in the New Hampshire House of Representatives and state Senate. His self-described “major accomplishment” in the Senate was being prime sponsor for the establishment of technical high schools in Claremont and Newport. He and his wife Mary DuBois Disnard ran Sunapee Yacht Club for many years. He was also a member of the Knights of Columbus, American Legion Post 29, Claremont Elks Lodge 879, Claremont Moose Lodge 1201, and he had been active with Claremont Kiwanis Club. His wife survives him, as do sisters Mary Jones, Dorothea Powers, and Helen Wersosky; and nieces and nephews.

Ruth Hancock Gilmour, Aug. 13, 2004
Ruth Hancock Gilmour grew up on Martha’s Vineyard before coming to Bates, where she earned her bachelor’s in sociology. She loved music, including playing the piano and singing in the choir of the Trinitarian Congregational Church in Wayland, Mass. She worked with her church’s cassette ministry for 20 years and was a member of the Gideon Auxiliary. Her own grandchildren were among the piano students she taught over many years. Her husband was William Emerson Gilmour ’44, a POW in Germany for a year during World War II who finished his degree at Bowdoin. Besides her husband, she leaves daughters Jill Johnstone, Betsy Ramsey, and Nancy Quinn; sister Marjorie Hancock Phillips; and eight grandchildren.

1950
Harry J. Bardi, Aug. 5, 2004
Harry J. Bardi attended Bates for two years before leaving for Pomona College, where he earned his B.A. in writing and literature in 1950. He earned a master’s in education from Boston University, and taught English and speech and was senior class advisor at Portland High School until his retirement in 1977.

1952
B. Lawrence Lalonde, June 13, 2004
A sales representative for the New England Telephone & Telegraph Co., Lawrence Lalonde was an economics major at Bates. He was a veteran of World War II and worked at the phone company for 31 years before retiring. His survivors include children Mark, Kathy Cole, Barbara Abrams, and Mary Derby; and seven grandchildren. His cousin Daniel R. Lalonde Jr. ’84, also survives him.

1953
F. James Welch, March 5, 2004
James Welch attended Bates and graduated from Merrimack College. He served in the Army, 1954-1956, and was employed for many years in his family’s construction business, James J. Welch Inc., established by his grandfather. An outdoor enthusiast, he enjoyed cycling and hiking. After retiring he became an active member of the North Shore Cyclist Club and the Appalachian Mountain Club and participated in many trips with both organizations. He is survived by daughters Lisa Ann Grande, Sheryl Ann Leveroni, and Christine Devoky; sisters Rosemary Gilligan and Margaret Martin; nine grandchildren; and many nieces and nephews.

1954
William F. Hobbs, Oct. 25, 2004
For a 25th Reunion yearbook, William “Bill” Hobbs wrote, “I have known more of joy than of sorrow, of pleasure than of pain, of laughter than of tears. I have been moved by a religious vision of shalom and a divine-human hope of community. I have invested self and resources imperfectly in struggles for justice and liberation. I have been disillusioned by the strength of greed and fear that disrupts life and deflects potential; but in the face of all evil I affirm life.” He was a philosophy major at Bates, earned a bachelor of divinity degree from the Chicago Theological Seminary, and a Ph.D. from the St. Andrew’s University in Scotland. An ordained minister in the United Church of Christ, he served in several churches and as director of the Craigville Conference Center on Cape Cod before finishing his career of ministry at Spring Glen Church in Hampden, Conn., where he was retired senior minister and pastor emeritus. In Bates affairs, he served on the Alumni Council, as class officer, career advisor, class agent, and member of Reunion Gift Committees. His survivors include wife Barbara Hobbs; daughters Alison, Sharon, and Cynthia Hobbs ’81; four grandchildren; brother Raymond Hobbs ’47; and sister Carolyn Hobbs Holgerson ’49. He memorialized his parents by establishing the Blanche and Walden Hobbs ’18/’18 Scholarship Fund at Bates.

Carolyn Snow Wyman, July 16, 2004
Carolyn Snow Wyman once concluded a Bates class note with the rhetorical question, “Won’t it be fun seeing what the next generation does?” Ever the teacher and always interested in others, she taught for more than 20 years in schools in Massachusetts. She was on the dean’s list at Bates and was a member of the College Key. After she retired in 1994, she and her husband William H. “Bill” Wyman ’53 were busy buying and selling antiques and collectibles. They also traveled throughout the United States and Europe, a pattern established at the beginning of their marriage, when Bill was stationed in Germany and Carolyn joined him there. Besides her husband, she leaves sons David, Stephen, and Charles; five grandchildren; and two nephews.

Richard B. Weber, June 6, 2004
An honors graduate in English from Bates, Richard Weber earned an M.A. from Iowa State University and Ph.D. from the Union Institute. A paratrooper who served with the U.S. Army 82nd Airborne Division, he later taught at Skidmore and the Univ. of Louisville before finishing his career in teaching at Southampton College of the Univ. of Long Island. He conducted poetry and creative writing workshops for many years, acquiring signed copies of books from visiting writers, which are part of a several-thousand volume library he bequeathed to the Ladd library. He was active in the writing and publishing community on Long Island and participated in the artist-in-residence program at Yaddo. An award-winning writer, he published Poems from the Xenia Hotel in 1980. He was a mentor to young writers and poets and a civil rights activist during the ’60s who also supported environmental causes. A traveler, he had a special love for Prince Edward Island, Canada, where he spent many memorable summers with family and friends. In Bates affairs, he served as a career advisor for 10 years and as a class officer for five. Survivors include wife Olga Abella; daughters Julia Lee Garbowski, Karin Macphail Weber, and Roberta Laurie Weber Taft; four grandchildren; and many cousins.

George W. Whitbeck, Sept. 20, 2004
After graduation from Bates, George Whitbeck served with the Marines in the Korean War. He returned to earn a master’s in history from Columbia and his Ph.D. in library science from Rutgers. He worked in the library at the State University of New York and from 1988 to 2004 was a professor of library information science at Indiana University. He also served as assistant, associate and acting dean of the Graduate School of Library Science at that university. He was a member of the Kiwanis Club and the Masonic Lodge and was active in the Boy Scouts of America. Survivors include wife Ruth Evelyn Myers; children Margaret Ruth Shelton and Paul; brother David William Whitbeck; and two grandchildren. He was the son of G. Paul Whitbeck, who taught English at Bates for 41 years before retiring in 1969.

1957
Edgar M. Thomasson, July 22, 2004
Expatriate Ed Thomasson lived in Denmark for the past 30 years. A face familiar to every book dealer in Copenhagen’s Latin Quarter, he had a nose for good English books —and a stickler for those in mint or near mint condition — in the field of humanities. His collection was considered one of the largest collections of its kind in Denmark that was still in private hands. Raised in New York City, he was a dean’s list graduate from Bates College, where he majored in history and government. He earned an M.A. from New York Univ. and worked for CBS News on education documentaries before becoming an award-winning secondary school teacher of American history in the slums. He moved to Denmark with his Danish wife, Elin A. Anderson Thomasson, in 1973, and taught political leadership and urban problems at the International Peoples College in Elsinore. He then worked for 24 years as information officer and librarian at the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES) in Copenhagen. His book Study of the Sea, a collection of marine science papers, was published in England in 1981. Folia Press published his second book, Danish Quality Living: The Good Life Handbook, in 1985. He was awarded the ICES History Award in l996 and the Certificate of Appreciation from the Danish International Study (DIS) program in the same year. His wife and his son Mark survive him.

1958
Dennis N. Skiotis, Oct. 19, 2004
Dennis Skiotis captained the Bates soccer team, having mastered the sport as a child at the Marist Brothers School in Tianjin, China, where he was born. When U.S. Marines occupied areas in north China late in World War II, the soldiers were pleased to meet Dennis, then 9, as he spoke English and Chinese. They gave him a uniform, which began a lifelong interest in military history, the story goes. Employing his skills internationally became a life’s work. Having won a scholarship to Athens College, a secondary school, in Greece as a young man, he later served as president of that institution. He earned a master’s in international relations from Lehigh and another M.A. and his Ph.D. in history and Middle Eastern studies from Harvard, where he was a longtime faculty member. From 1974 to 1976 he served a U.S. Senate appointment as head of mission to Cyprus, where he investigated refugee issues and other issues associated with Turkey’s invasion of part of the island. Sen. Edward Kennedy said of him, “All of us in Congress who knew him and worked with him over the years had immense respect for his vast learning and wisdom on issues in the Middle East…. In a sense, we were all his students.” He received the Dean’s Letter of Commendation for Excellence in Teaching for his teaching at Harvard College and in the Harvard Extension School. He commented on military affairs for the BBC, CNN, PBS, and NPR. He leaves wife Mary Paouris Skiotis and daughters Litsa and Anna Maria Skiotis of Boston and Athens; and sister Maria Skiotis, of France. His first wife was Heda Triefeldt Skiotis ’59.

1960
Bruce W. Manning, July 31, 2004
A biology major who was a founding member of the Deansmen at Bates, Bruce Manning earned a doctorate in dental surgery from the Univ. of Pennsylvania with a further master’s in endodontics from Tufts. He retired in 1995 from private practice at Burns, Moore and Manning Endodontics in San Mateo, Calif., but continued to teach as assistant clinical professor in the School of Dentistry at UC-San Francisco. A captain in the U.S. Army Dental Corps before entering private practice, he was a member of the Olympic Club, the Shivas Irons Society and a life member of the American Association of Endodontics.
 
Arnold J. Veek, May 18, 2004
Arnold “Arnie” Veek co-owned A. Veek & Son Insurance Agency with his father in New Bedford, Mass., for many years. He was a stockbroker from 1969 to 1973, and later joined Merrill Lynch in Boston. He retired after 26 years with the company and enjoyed playing golf, cheering on the Red Sox, and spending time with his family at their beach house in Fairhaven. He is survived by wife Pamela; sons Arnold ’86 and Robert and daughter Amy Lennon; and two grandchildren.

1964
Henry F. Oliver, Sept. 5, 2004
Henry F. “Hank” Oliver, a graduate in mathematics, was vice president of U.S. Trust Co. Data Services. He later worked for John Hancock Mutual Life Insurance Co. An avid reader who enjoyed outdoor activities, he is survived by children Douglas, Carrie, and Jacob; three grandchildren; and aunt Daryl Henson.

1973
Jeffrey H. Butland, Aug. 1, 2004
In Jeffrey Butland’s first year at Bates, his father died, and although his mother’s work at an oil company helped to support him, the financial burden was great, and after three years he left Bates and joined the Marines. But he returned after four years of military service to finish his studies, and he once noted that the most valuable thing he had learned at Bates was “to be liberated — to be open-minded.” That legacy served him well in a political career that began with the Cumberland (Maine) Town Council and concluded with four years in the Maine House of Representatives and six more in the state Senate. He served as Senate president from 1994 to 1996, the first Republican to hold the office after 10 years of Democratic control. “Jeff was just an amazingly committed, dedicated public servant,” said a Senate colleague. “He was a terrific Republican leader who kept focused on what unites our party — the desire to see our economy prosper and jobs created and hopes and opportunities presented to the people of our state.” He was New England regional administrator of the Small Business Administration at the time of his death of an apparent heart attack. He worked in Boston, and he would rise at 4:30 and get on the road so he could return home to Cumberland a little earlier in the evening to be with his family. Many Maine leaders commented on his death, as did those who saw him every day in Augusta. A Senate secretary recalled coming in to work an occasional Sunday and seeing Butland at work, too, but he’d always try to bring his children. “He always treated his staff with respect,” she told the Press Herald. He had worked for 13 years with L.L. Bean, his last three as a systems analyst. He leaves wife Nancy and children Jennafer, Meghan, Jeffrey, and Hannah.

1974
Susan L. McIntyre, July 21, 2004
Susan McIntyre majored in biology, but she discovered her calling during a Short Term to England for an up-close-and-personal experience of the theater. She was a dean’s list student and a member of the Robinson Players, the Choral Society, and the concert and marching bands. She earned an M.F.A. in directing from the Univ. of Connecticut and taught theater at New England College’s campus in Arundel, U.K. She worked in the computer industry and as a tour director in New England and the United Kingdom. She was active in New Hampshire community theater, primarily as a director at KISTheater and Theater by the Pool. She once presented a one-woman show, The Hollow Crown, at the American Center for the Performing Arts in Boston. She volunteered as an interviewer for Alumni-in-Admissions for the last four years and served on a Reunion committee in 1999. She died after a brief illness and is survived by her brother Kim, sister Robin, and three nephews.

1977
Valerie Dieter, July 27, 2004
A French major at Bates, Valerie Dieter earned her master’s in French literature at Middlebury. She taught at several high schools in Maine, New Hampshire, and Massachusetts before her last teaching position at Tolland High School in Connecticut. She taught more than a language, sharing and instilling in her students a passion for the culture as well. In recent years she focused on raising her two sons, and she taught them a respect for learning and the power of family. She taught by doing, and her activities included quilting, swimming in Caribbean seas and Maine’s Atlantic waters, traveling near and far, and experiencing music, theater, art, movies, and books. She was secretary/treasurer of her class from 1977 to 1982. Valerie died after a two-year battle with cancer, and she is survived by husband Peter Leeds; sons Connor and Casey Dieter-Leeds; mother, Beverly Slafky Dieter; brother Michael; sister Mary Pennington; stepson Jason Leeds; and several nephews and nieces.

1978
Peter M. Snow, Aug. 4, 2004
Peter Snow earned a 4.0 in his first semester at Bates. His brilliance continued, and he graduated summa cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa with a major in biology and chemistry. Yet honors meant little for this research scientist, who would earn his Ph.D. in immunology from Harvard Medical School in 1984, studying a key cell-surface protein involved in the immune response to viruses. Subsequently, he was a postdoctoral fellow at Stanford, where he purified rare cell-surface proteins that define neural pathways in developing organisms; subsequent research on two genes identified through his efforts helped to define current knowledge of mammalian development. From 1990 to 1996 he was a professor at SUNY-Albany, then moved to the California Institute of Technology. At his memorial service at Caltech, where he established and served as director of the Protein Expression Center at the Beckman Institute, Peter was remembered as a scientist who “was not motivated by a desire for recognition, money, papers, or glory. He spent most of his waking hours engaged in what made him happiest, doing hands-on experiments.” His work at Caltech was in profound service to his fellow scientists, and researchers came from as far away as Germany and Hungary to use the center, which provided purified proteins for experiments. An avid bicyclist who biked around Pasadena for hours every night regardless of weather, he was on vacation in Old Orchard Beach, Maine, riding his bicycle on Route 1 in Saco when struck and killed by a truck. He is survived by his mother, Catherine Snow; sister Susan Clark and brother Timothy; and a niece and nephew.

1980
David H. Kampelman, Aug. 25, 2004
A history major, David Kampelman traveled widely in his younger life. His father Max Kampelman received an honorary degree from Bates in 1986. Besides his father, David’s survivors include his mother, Marjorie Kampelman; his sisters Anne K. Wiederkehr, Julie K. Stevenson and Sarah Kampelman; and his brother, Jeffrey.