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CLASS NOTES
COLUMBIA COLLEGE TODAY
COLUMBIA COLLEGE TODAY
CLASS NOTES
the news of his former roommate’s
death, sent this note: “As I read
Columbia College Today, I’ve thought
how lucky we are to be alive. More
and more of the short notes from
classmates list the everyday things
that they are doing, what their kids
have done or are doing, who they
have lost and who their friends
were at Columbia. Memories
are vivid, nostalgia is obvious,
thankfulness is apparent. We were
so lucky to be at Columbia after
the end of one war and before the
beginning of the next. We should
not waste a minute of any day and
live every hour as best we can, as
long as we are able. Time passes,
more quickly than we realize. Live
your life as best as you can, as long
as you are able. Bob did.”
Richard Impola writes, “After
retirement from teaching at SUNY
New Paltz, I began to work on
Finnish, the language of my parents
and their friends. I have translated
20 Finnish works, the most notable
being a trilogy titled Under the North
Star by Finnish realist author Väinö
Linna. It was probably that book
that won me the civilian Order of
the White Rose from the Finnish
government.”
Harvey Gardner, who describes
himself as “’48 ex-’45 still extant,”
sent this note: “With Jean (married
in 1947), travel only between Nyack
home and second home in South
Egremont, Southern Berkshire
County, Mass. In touch weekly with
Marcel Gutwirth ’47, ’50 GSAS and
Charles Simmons.”
Still active with the Virginia
Medical Reserve Corps, Dr. Sidney
Fink ’52 P&S “otherwise spends
his time hiking, playing bridge and
visiting his extended family, which
includes 15 grandchildren and five
great-grandchildren!”
Robert DeMaria is “doing
research for a new novel that
takes place in summer 1936 in
Europe, especially Berlin where
the summer Olympics took place.
I welcome any good anecdotes or
rare information about this event:
debobaria@aol.com.”
Frank Marcus writes, “This
year promises to be a busy one. I
practice, teach and pursue research
at the University of Arizona. I was
an invited speaker at a pediatric
cardiology conference in Orange
County in January; later that month
I was, at this writing, to present
grand rounds in a hospital in Miami.
I am scheduled to give a talk at
the American College of Cardiology
meetings in March in San Francisco.
In April, I plan to travel to Paris to
give a talk at the European Cardiac
Arrhythmia Society. In May, I plan
to give a presentation at the Heart
Rhythm Society in Denver. That
same month, I will be pleased to
receive the Lifetime Achievement
Award from the Pima County
Medical Society in Tucson, Ariz.
“In addition to the above, I try to
keep in touch with my three grown
children and six grandchildren,
who range in age from 19 months
to 21 years.”
CCT is sorry to report the death
of Bernard W. Wishy ’58 GSAS,
a history professor who taught at
Columbia and who resided in San
Francisco, on April 28, 2012.
CCT needs a class correspondent
to write this column. If you are interested,
please contact Alexis Tonti
’11 Arts, managing editor: alt2129@
columbia.edu or 212-851-7485. In the
meantime, please send updates to
CCT at the postal or email address at
the top of the column or via CCT’s
easy-to-use webform: college.colum
bia.edu/cct/submit_class_note.
49
John Weaver
2639 E. 11th St.
Brooklyn, NY 11235
wudchpr@gmail.com
Let me begin with an apology for
the following rather poor excuse
for content. By the time you are
reading this, I am confident that
I will be back to my “old” self
and will have more in the way of
regular news to share.
As for what’s happened, here
in Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn, we
felt the power of the storm named
Sandy. Heretofore that name invoked
the charm of a lovable mutt
who accompanied Little Orphan
Annie. No longer is that so. The
devastation in the Rockaways and
Breezy Point, Queens; on Staten
Island; in Red Hook, Brooklyn;
and along the Jersey shore is all too
familiar through the news reports.
But on East 11th Street, while our
house still stands, our basement
was flooded by the backup of the
sewers at the height of the surge
and at this writing we are only
beginning to restore normalcy after
the damage. It is encouraging to
be able to report that FEMA was
on the job quickly and was a great
help. Nevertheless, it has been a
great distraction.
I do recall, however, that we
had a warm gathering in the tent
at Homecoming. Bob Rosencrans,
Fred Berman, Bill Lubic and
Marvin Lipman all were in fine
form and good health.
Speaking of Marv, we heard
from his wife, Naomi Lipman ’51
Barnard, ’52 GSAS, who is obviously
his press agent: “Marvin has
been honored yet again: The White
Plains Hospital Auxiliary threw
a wonderful party on November
15 celebrating him and two other
longtime members of the hospital
attending staff. It marked Marvin’s
52nd year of service to the community
in many varied voluntary
positions on the hospital board
and committees, and as chief of the
endocrine section and department
of medicine. Of course, it wasn’t a
Joe Russell ’49 and his wife, Charlotte, celebrated
their 65th anniversary on December 20.
retirement party: He’s still going
strong, seeing patients and working
as a writer, blogger, and editor
at Consumer Reports; he’s been
with them for 45 years. Can’t keep
a good man down!”
A real lift to my spirits, I received
an update from Joe Russell, former
occupant of this “chair.” He expressed
admiration for the content
of the latest CCT before turning to
his news: “My wife, Charlotte ’51
GSAS, and I celebrated our 65th
wedding anniversary on December
20. (She is professor emerita
of chemistry and biochemistry at
CCNY and the CUNY Graduate
Center; I also am retired but active
part-time as a hearing officer for the
New York City Office of Administrative
Trials and Hearings and a
busy arbitrator for FINRA.) To mark
the occasion we had a quiet dinner
at home with our son James ’74 (salutatorian,
the Mashtots Professor
of Armenian Studies at Harvard)
and his companion, Dennis Cordell.
Our younger son, Josh ’79 Hamilton
College (history teacher at The Birch
Wathen Lenox School in Manhattan)
and grandson Isaac (seventhgrader
at Oratory Prep in Summit,
N.J.) were unable to join but were
with us in spirit.
“Our marriage took place on
December 20, 1947, the first day
of that year’s Christmas break at
Columbia, allowing us a week for a
wonderful honeymoon in a beautiful
inn some miles up and across
the Hudson River, from which we
returned home to Brooklyn at the
tail end of the heaviest snowstorm
that had hit the city since the blizzard
of ’88. I will not bore you with
the story of our trip from Midtown
that night, or our struggle through
several blocks of unplowed fresh
snow while pulling our luggage on
a borrowed sled. At the very end,
the front stoop of the house looked
suspiciously like a ski jump, but
we conquered it. A wonderful
party hosted by my former roommates,
Bob Gibson ’50 and Gene
Plotnik ’50, was the occasion for
shared joy, just a few days away.”
Thank you, Joe.
I conclude with a wish for all to
keep on keepin’ on. There is much to
look forward to, including reunion.
Mark your calendars now for our
65th Alumni Reunion Weekend:
Thursday, May 29–Sunday, June 1,
2014.
50
Mario Palmieri
33 Lakeview Ave. W.
Cortlandt Manor, NY
10567
mapal@bestweb.net
Bud Kassel had surgery on his
right hand to fix what he calls his
two “trigger fingers,” so that he
can continue two favorite activities.
Now he can grip a tennis racket
and a ski pole with equal comfort
and so be able to continue his hosting
functions in the Stowe, Vt., ski
area. The third main event of his
life is listening to his wife, Ruth,
sing with two choral groups. Bud
adds that he is very envious of her
abilities.
Bernie Prudhomme, after 43
years in Atlanta, half of which
were spent with Coca-Cola, has left
the big city and moved to the small
town of Thomson, Ga., where his
daughter and her husband have
a medical practice. Bernie feels
that his flying days are over and
probably will no longer attend
class reunions and so he takes this
opportunity to send best wishes to
all 1950 classmates.
Arthur Thomas, reminiscing
on the history of Columbia and of
the United States, regards his stay
at Columbia as a high point. A descendant
of a colonist who came to
these shores prior to the founding
of King’s College, he considers it
justifiable that the crown, denoting
stability, remains as Columbia’s
symbol. Arthur notes that Professor
Richard Hofstadter ’42 GSAS’
book America at 1750: A Social
Portrait is a clairvoyant observation
of America at the time the College
was founded.
Rudy Weingartner has filed
for divorce from his second wife
and sold the home in Pittsburgh in
which he lived for 25 years. After
disposing of its contents, Rudy
flew to Mexico City to move into
the home of his daughter, Eleanor,
who has been the principal clarinet
of the Orquesta Sinfónica Nacional
for more than 20 years. Now he
much enjoys hanging out with his
two teenaged grandchildren and
continues to write compulsively.
Sadly, we have three deaths
to report: Emmett C. Harris of
Bloomington, Ind., September
2012; Dr. Robert C. Runyon of
Concord, Mass., January 2012; and
Dr. Harold Tapley ’51E of Bakersfield,
Calif., August 2012.
51
George Koplinka
75 Chelsea Rd.
White Plains, NY 10603
desiah@verizon.net
As we begin the New Year let’s
review our list of class officers and
how we keep in touch with them.
Robert T. Snyder continues as
class president. He and his wife,
Elaine, live at 150 E. 61st St., Apt.
12H, New York, NY 10065-8530;
212-751-1106; robertsnyder@
gmail.com. Bob faithfully attends
Columbia football and basketball
games, supports alumni activities
and represents our class at campus
events such as the recent Columbia
University Athletics Hall of
Fame induction ceremony and the
Dean’s Scholarship Reception.
Class v.p. Elliot Wales and his
wife, Fran, reside at 52 Riverside
Dr., Apt. 15BC, New York, NY
10024-6501; 212-787-2309; elliot
wales@aol.com. Elliot, although
mostly retired from the practice
of law, keeps busy with part-time
work. He leads an intellectual life
with frequent visits to museums,
art galleries and music halls. He
has a strong interest in the Columbia
College Alumni Association
and traveled recently with the
University’s Alumni Travel Study
Program on excursions to Spain
and Turkey.
Class treasurer Willard Block
and his wife, Roberta, recently sold
their home in Sands Point, N.Y.,
and now reside in two locations. In
addition to their summer apartment
in NYC they have homesteaded at
1512 Pelican Point Dr., Apt. BA 164,
Sarasota FL 34231; 516-972-8385;
willardblock@aol.com. If this plan
does not work out, the Blocks plan
to become gypsies, visiting family
and friends around the country and
especially in Vermont.
Class secretary George Koplinka
and his wife, Peg, live at 24 Mayfair
Way, White Plains, NY 10603; 914-
592-9023; desiah@verizon.net. In the
summer months try 802-425-3257
for the Vermont connection. The cell
phone back-up is 914-610-1595.
Donald A. Beattie keeps in touch.
He has been a jet pilot, a geologist, a
NASA researcher and manager, and
consultant for both government and
private industry. Don is the author
of numerous articles in professional
journals as well as several books including
History and Overview of Solar
Heat Technologies and Taking Science
to the Moon.
Recently Don sent along a copy
of his latest publication, an autobiographical
account of his life
and multi-faceted career, No Stone
Unturned — A Life Without Bounds.
Here is an amusing excerpt from
the Columbia days we all shared:
“Freshmen were required to wear
a small Columbia-blue cap for the
first months. One of the hazing
rituals was placing a cap on top of
a tall, thick pole planted in South
Field. If the freshman class could
figure out a way to climb the pole
with no mechanical help and
remove the cap, the requirement
to wear the silly looking cap was
rescinded. The pole must have
been at least 20 feet high and was
covered with heavy grease. No
freshman class in Columbia’s 193-
year history had ever succeeded
in removing the cap. Class of 1951
became the first to accomplish the
impossible. A quickly assembled
gang with several NROTC freshmen
([Ollie Van Den Berg, Jay Dee
Battenberg and Wendell “Doc”
Sylvester,] all on the freshman
football team) among those at the
bottom locked their arms around
each other and the pole and hung
on. I was in the next tier, standing
on Doc’s shoulders, also holding
on to the pole. Others stood on our
shoulders and we built a pyramid
of yelling guys. Little Al DeBartolo
[now Al Bart] climbed over all of
us and grabbed the cap. As far as I
know no other class accomplished
this amazing feat.”
If you would like a copy of
Don’s book, contact him at 904-287-
0222 or db1030@bellsouth.net.
Here is a change of address for
Theodore D. Bihuniak: Ted and
his wife, Marilyn, sold their home
in Wilton, Conn., last October and
moved to Florida. Their new address
is 10100 Cypress Cove Drive,
Apt #385, Fort Myers, FL 33908;
239-437-2724.
Myron (Mickey) Winick died
on November 1, 2012. He earned
a master’s from the University of
Illinois and an M.D. from SUNY
Downstate Medical Center in
Brooklyn. Following an internship
in Pennsylvania and pediatrics
training at Cornell he joined P&S
and became a world-renowned
authority on nutrition. A list of
Mickey’s many awards appeared in
our 60th Reunion Directory, reaffirming
his contribution to the world.
He is survived by his wife, Elaine;
two sons; and two grandchildren.
I know it’s late, but this is the
first chance I’ve had to ask: Did you
make a resolution for 2013 that you
would send in news for this column
If not, do it now! Make my days
happy.
52
Sidney Prager
20 Como Ct.
Manchester, NJ 08759
sidmax9@aol.com
As I write this in December, it has
been a difficult couple of months
for New Jersey.
On October 28 and 29, Hurricane
Sandy came ashore. I live part-
time in the Toms River, N.J., area
and was there to witness Sandy’s
arrival. My wife and I are familiar
with hurricanes, as we were in
Florida when Wilma struck five
years ago. We lived in Boynton
Beach and took a direct hit.
Sandy came into New Jersey
at right angles, which is unusual
but more dangerous. Add to that a
full moon, high tides and another
storm coming in from the West,
and you have what they called “a
perfect storm.” The damage from
Wilma and Sandy was extensive.
Fortunately, my wife and I survived
both storms very well. Mother
Nature packs quite a wallop. Lucky
for us all, there is advanced technology
that can detect and follow
these hurricanes and provide the
knowledge we need for defensive
measures.
From Ted Topalian we hear,
“After graduation and commissioning
in the Marine Corps (I was
in the NROTC program) I spent six
months in basic training at Quantico,
Va. Following further training
in California I was shipped to
Korea, where I spent the last four
months of the fighting and the
next seven months of the truce.
The next duty station was MCB
Camp Lejeune, N.C., where I met
Carolyn, who became my wife. We
recently celebrated our 57th wedding
anniversary.
“Leaving active duty in ’55, we
moved to Charlottesville, Va., where
I earned a law degree at UVA. The
next 36 years were spent working
in the home offices of three insurance
companies, including the Prudential,
Mutual of New York and
the U.S. operation of Sun Life of
Canada. Retiring in ’94, we moved
to Syracuse, N.Y., to be near our
daughter, Hilary. Several years later,
work took her away and she now
lives in Chandler, Ariz., with her
black Labrador puppy, Zeppelin.
She works out of her home for
Liberty Mutual Insurance. It must
be in the blood. Our son, David,
lives in northern New Jersey and is
the v.p. of a construction company.
I try to keep up with what’s going
on in Morningside Heights and still
bleed blue for our teams, whatever
the sport.”
Your reporter wishes all the
members of the Class of 1952 good
health and good luck.
REUNION WEEKEND
MAY 30–JUNE 2, 2013
ALUMNI OFFICE CONTACTS
ALUMNI AFFAIRS Nick Mider
nm2613@columbia.edu
212-851-7846
DEVELOPMENT Mara Henckler
mlc2105@columbia.edu
212-851-7494
53
Lew Robins
1221 Stratfield Rd.
Fairfield, CT 06825
lewrobins@aol.com
Incredibly, we’re going to celebrate
our 60th reunion at Alumni Reunion
Weekend, Thursday, May 30–
Sunday, June 2. Ten of our wonderful
classmates serve on the
Reunion Committee: Bill Frosch,
George Lowry, Jay Kane, Lewis
Robins, Jules Ross, Ed Robbins,
Pete Pellett, Jim Steiner, Donald
Taylor and Ary Zolberg.
Thanks to the efforts of George
Lowry, I can report the good news
that the director of Columbia’s
Rare Book & Manuscript Library,
Michael Ryan, has offered to host an
early evening reception on Thurs-
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SPRING 2013
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SPRING 2013
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