Happy Last
Days of Summer!
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Dear
Friends,
First, we want to clear
up a misconception on the part of some of you--the 50th reunion is
scheduled for
October 14, 15, 16, 2011.
We're sorry if our
early planning has led some of you to think it is this
October.
No need to panic!
It's a trio of events,
and you can do one or two or all three:
October 14th, 2011: Friday night will be an open house cocktail party
at the Bethesda Marriott Suites on
Democracy Blvd. (Mighty Mos,
pictured above in case anyone has forgotten, will be available all
weekend in the hotel's restaurant.) "Cocktail
Party" simply means a cash bar and light refreshments, not a full
meal, and there will be lots of sodas and nonalcoholic beverages
besides the "drinks."
October 15th, 2011: Saturday is a dinner/dance at Congressional
Country Club. Yes, it's fancy, "black tie
optional" and if you're male and wear a jacket, you'll be fine. Back
by popular demand, the Wombats (classmates John Dunton, Richard
Smith, and their bandmates) will provide
great music for the dinner/dance.
October 16th, 2011: Sunday is a picnic at Smokey Glen Farm
Park in
Gaithersburg.
Relax in a beautiful setting with plenty of food and lots of time to
catch up with old
friends. 
At right, your hard working Reunion Committee doing some taste
testing at the Bethesda Marriott, making sure those Mighty Mos are up
to snuff. (They were!)
From left to right: Angus (Tony) McKinnon, John St.
Peter, Barbara Johnson, Eric Seline, Mary Ann
Maines Greenburg, Sandy Badian
Weiss, Judi Druskin Goozh,
Mary (Freshman) Brett
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Why is this wombat smiling?
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And just
in case you would like to know a bit more about wombats' sex lives (the
animal, not the band), it appears to be a physically demanding
process--a complicated
dance, a bite on the rump and ferocious backward kicks are all part of
the wombat's lovemaking repertoire.
(This
item submitted by a scientifically inclined member of our committee.)
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Back to serious matters:
Reunion
costs can't be determined until we know how many of you will attend.
That's one of the reasons we keep asking, like a broken record, who
will be at the reunion. To see a list of those fabulous
classmates who have said they will attend, you can click on our website.
Of course, we hope to see all of you there. And if you could let
us know now if you hope to attend, it would help us greatly with our
planning. Haven't told us yet? Please click RSVP and send
a simple "Yes and 1 guest" or "yes" or
"no" along with your name so we can keep counting.
And we'd love to start
collecting your bios and photos for the reunion booklet
NOW. Please email that info
and photo by clicking here: BIOS AND PHOTOS or mail to Barbara
Johnson, 7500 Shadywood Road, Bethesda,
MD 20817.
You can write as little or as much as you want. The idea is just
to tell your classmates what you've been up to, and whatever you'd like
to share about your life. Thanks!
On Saturday, October
15th, 2011, during the day, there will be a guided tour through the
"new" B-CC. Judy Druskin Goozh is working on this idea, and we will have
more details very soon.
 We still need donations to help
defray the costs of putting on this momentous gathering, our 50th Reunion. Every little bit helps, and
many of you have been very generous with your
contributions. Each check, no matter how big or small, is
received with much gratitude. The checks should be made out to Smith
Barney and mailed to Barbara Johnson, 7500 Shadywood Road, Bethesda, MD
20817.
As always, we welcome any
news, photos, adventures, misadventures, or whatever you'd like to
share with your classmates. We'd especially like to hear stories
of reconnections or new connections. Have you found new friends
through the reunions or reunited with old ones? Tell us about it.
We
need to know if you changed your home address, email address, or phone
number. This information can be sent to us by clicking on:
Classmate Updates
All
four of the panoramic photos of previous reunions are now available at
our website, by clicking on: Class of 1961 Website
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Letters, we get
letters....
From Leslie Cooper
Leven:
"
. . . as
a journalist (and former editor/publisher of weekly newspapers in the
area), I'd like to congratulate you on the great job you
are doing as newsletter editors, writers and
"social coordinators." While I haven't yet
attended the reunions or otherwise reached out to
many childhood friends from this class, I have loved
reading news of the alums digitally, as well as tried
to match reunion photos with those stored in my mind's eye.
Admittedly, the captions have helped more than I care to
admit (smile)."
Leslie also told us
that she is planning on attending the 50th. This will be her
first B-CC reunion! And many other classmates who have responded
also mentioned this would be their first.
From Sitheris Chebithes:
Si (as he is known
now), a lawyer in Orange
County, recently
let us know about a professional dinner party he attended.
He struck up a friendly conversation with the judge who was seated next
to him, and after a bit of chit chat, determined that the judge a. had
lived in the DC area, b. Bethesda specifically, and c. River Road even
more specifically. Then Sither asked, "You didn't, by any chance, happen to be in the
BCC class of '61, did you? "
The judge
said yes, in fact, he did. It was Derek Hunt! The Honorable
Derek Hunt, that is! The other dinner guests were amazed.
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It's Summertime, Summertime.....
sum sum
summertime......remember when?
Can you identify these carefree youths in Ocean City,
circa 1958.....?
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Please scroll down to the bottom of the
newsletter for answers.
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 Doug (and Regan) McNair to the Rescue
The Exciting Conclusion
Previously on "Doug to the Rescue"
It was the night after the Haitian earthquake, when Doug and his
wife Regan were called by a relative to deliver some cash to Dulles
Airport for some rescue workers about to leave for Haiti. They
were instructed to pick up some "cash transfers" either at
CVS or Shoppers Food Warehouse. On the way there, however, the
instructions about where to get the cash kept changing, until Doug and
Regan felt they were driving around in circles. To add to the
challenge, in order to access the transfers, there was a code word to
use. It turns out the code they were given was missing a number. Time
was running out. Finally they got the cash, and another call came
in saying they were supposed to go to a Fairfax County
Fire Station, (not Dulles) go around to the back and ask for a man
named Keith.
We now join Doug and Regan as they speed to Fairfax. It's very late by
then and pitch black. They drive around
to the back of the fire station, where there's lots of activity. Doug
takes the cash, which is now wrapped in bubble paper, and gives it to
an officer, who wants to know what's in the "package."
Not sure who he's talking to, Doug says, "I'd rather not
say." The guy looks at Doug like he thinks this calls for a full
cavity search and says, "Never know what's in a 'package' these
days." So Doug says, "$2,300 for Keith." Out comes
one the the tallest, biggest firefighters
imaginable--completely bald with a huge drooping mustache. There
is gear hanging all over him--flashlight, radio, microphone, medical
stuff, knee pads, knife, head light, and on and on. Doug figures
this will be the safest $2,300 in Haiti.
Back out to the parking lot. The relatives are on the phone
wanting an update. In the process Doug manages to back Regan's relatively
new car into a trailer hitch on a black pick up truck. Not much
damage but still a royal pain. Doug says, in inimitable fashion,
"We had a ball. We wanted to make a donation, so what better
way than cash on the ground in 24 hours."
Next morning Doug gets a call in his office from a guy saying he's with
the World Council of Credit Unions. Doug hears "Credit
Union," says he is not interested, and hangs up. Guy calls
back immediately and says he's the CEO of the charity and wants to
thank the McNairs for their adventure.
Next night, at about 9:30, pitch black, Belle (the McNair Redbone
Coonhound) is baying non-stop. Two knocks on the door (not the
buzzer, the knocker). Doug turns on the porch light and Belle has
this great big guy cowering up against the front door. He isn't
actually crying, but it's close. He's
holding a fruit arrangement from WCCU and pleading for Doug to open the
door.
Doug says he wishes all their charity contributions could be this much
fun.
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 Looking on the
Bright Side
When we send
the sad news of classmates' obituaries, it might give the impression
that an abnormally high number of us are passing on. Actually, or
actuarily, our mortality rate is not as bad
as it may seem: Although it is, of course, too many, our
mortality rate is way below the national average. To give you a
ballpark figure at our age based on Social Security mortality tables,
for males 76% would still be alive and for female 85%, so let's just
give a rough order of magnitude and say we would expect 80% of us to be
alive.
We have 68 on
the In Memoriam List (four did not graduate with us but were there for earlier
grades). On the other hand there may be a few on our missing list that
are deceased, so let's say that number is a wash. Then close to 90% of
us are alive, or put another way we might expect out of the 660 to have
to have about 132 deceased
classmates.
The good news is that our life spans have
been way above the national average. (Note: We have found
obituaries for many classmates and are working to get them on our
website. This effort is an ongoing project. Please click the
url below for more information, and if you
click on the underlined names, you can read the obituary for that
individual: http://webstoriches.net/bcc/memoriam.htm)
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Missing Classmates
Finally, if you have any information or leads that would help us find
our missing classmates listed here, please send an email to Classmate Updates or
to Sandy
at slw00@hotmail.com.
Penny
S. Capshaw
Timothy
Sheahan Cardany
Karen
Anne Forrest
Jurgen Ganser
Shirley
Colleene Giles
Rogelio
Yanez Gonzalez, Jr.
Elizabeth
Frances Sanders
Constance
Lucille Swindell
Michael
Robert Williams
Thanks
for your support!
1961
Reunion communication Team
Barbara,
Jan, Sandy and Tom
Visit the website to find email addresses of classmates
and lots more information about all sorts of things!
Our Class of 1961
Website
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P.S. Those cute kids at the beach are John Grolig
and Judy Johnson, Susie Davis and Warren Crosby, Peggy Worthington and
Jean Colison, and Judy Johnson and Jean Colison.
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