Association news & class notes
1978
Craig Merkle and his wife, Paula, still live in Baltimore. Their three boys are spread out geographically, with one in Los Angeles, one in Vienna, Austria, and fortunately, one still local. Their one grandchild is in Austria, so they visit there yearly. Craig is still practicing law, but at a substantially reduced schedule, and will probably be fully retired within the next two years. He is not yet sure what he will do with his time, but all his friends who have retired say that it will not be a problem. Craig sees Keith Appler and James “Bruce” Whitney ’79 from time to time.
Sally Stanfield sends warm regards to all. She wrote that our 45th Reunion in early June of this year provided a poignant, important reminder regarding the enduring connections with each other and with our alma mater. The years quickly melted away as laughter and stories galore filled the room. Although still “learning” the art of retirement, a word that she did not contemplate until marriage in May 2021, she experienced firsthand the joy of seeing how dear friends have engaged and transformed their lives as they transition away from their full-time careers. Now “practicing” retirement, Sally no longer represents children and adolescents with special education needs and has significantly reduced her role in her family’s agricultural businesses, Edrich Lumber and Edrich Farm. A co-owner of both businesses, she has redefined her role to focus on special projects and customer retention for the next couple of years. Deb and Sally share her childhood home on the family’s farm in Randallstown, Maryland, and a condo in Dunedin, Florida, which they purchased in April 2022. They returned from two glorious weeks in Geneva, Switzerland, in early July, where Deb lived while a consultant with UNHCR (the UN Refugee Agency) for two years and, thereafter, during her regular travels between New York and Geneva while director of the U.S. Office for the World Council of Churches from 2003 to 2009. They were blessed to reconnect with dear friends and colleagues about whom Sally had learned so much and had not yet met. Next up: visits with family and friends in the Northeast, Midwest, and Mountain West, all of which were deferred due to COVID-19, and their return to Florida by mid-November to happily avoid the charm of a Maryland winter.
After a lifetime of living in Montgomery County, Maryland, and following retirement in 2019, Trudy Walton Schwarz and her husband, Dave, moved to Reisterstown, Maryland, in Baltimore County in 2020. She still can’t believe that some of you would drive from Westminster to Reisterstown to go to the Jack in the Box. It has been fun exploring this area once COVID-19 restrictions were lifted. Dave plays golf at McDaniel about twice a month. Their first grandchild was born in the spring of 2022 and lives only 10 minutes away! After five brothers and three sons, it is very special to have a granddaughter. Trudy enjoyed seeing everyone at the 45th Reunion!
After raising three sons, Chris Mosberg and Jamie Dryden Mosberg now have three granddaughters! Tess, 11, and Ruth, 7, live in Asheville, North Carolina, and the latest addition, Avery, was born in April in Denver. So, they have lots of places to visit with their Winnebago RV, including their site in Myakka River Motorcoach Resort in Florida. Over this past year, they have been working on adding a casita and lanai to their RV site to make room for visitors and create an office area for Jamie. Luckily, Jamie can recruit for his GRN business from anywhere in the country. Chris spends a little time helping with QuickBooks and enjoys some tutoring. Their favorite activities are now pickleball, trying new restaurants, finding sharks’ teeth, and come winter — taking a nap on their new lanai!
On Sept. 24, 2011, Rosalie Kasper Foster married Paul E. Foster. Rosalie was assigned as a Christ Servant Minister to Hamorton United Methodist Church on July 1, 2022. She is currently taking Certified Lay Minister training.
In the spring, Adele Weinberg Connolly fell down some stairs, bruised the left side of her body and face and broke her right wrist. She didn’t let her injuries stop her though. She had her 6-year-old granddaughter visit from Georgia for most of the month of June, and they had a blast! Between the zoo, swimming, and visiting family, it is safe to say it was the first in what will be annual visits. The cast on her wrist came off in late June, and now she is focused on rehab and a 2024 family wedding.
Keith and Karen Keenan Good live on the farm where Karen grew up in Westover, Maryland. They are both retired, and Karen has a booth at a local antiques mall, which provides her with a lot of fun. Their daughters, Katie and Kristen, and their families live close by. They love seeing their five grandchildren, who range in age from 1 to 16, on a regular basis. They were sorry they were unable to come to the Reunion, but said that it would have been great to see everyone.
Carl Gold happily reports that his coin of the realm has increased, and he and Sally Keck Gold now have three grandchildren. He recently discovered that he is one-eighth Ukrainian — “Slava Ukraini” — but does not have the math skills to figure out what that makes the grandkids. He joined the Gunpowder Valley Conservancy as member of the board of directors in May of 2023 and spends countless hours as a trail guide at Cromwell Valley Park and Marshy Point. He was recently promoted to duck handler at Cromwell Valley. Carl is contemplating using what remains of his legal skills to file a defamation suit on behalf of Mr. John McGregor. John has been slandered and libeled since 1901 due to his efforts to combat Peter, Flopsy, and Mopsy. Their lineal heirs, along with deer, groundhogs, rabbits, and squirrels enjoy the fruits (no pun intended because there are no fruits left) of Carl’s garden. Free McGregor! Sally Keck Gold, meanwhile, is struggling to maintain sanity at home now that Carl is mostly retired from his law practice. She has retired from her many years as director of Maryland Destination Imagination and spends much time with her grandchildren, who are all local. She is enjoying being a horse show grandmom for her daughter’s daughter, something only other horse show moms can understand. She and Carl loved our 45th Reunion and hope that more classmates will be able to attend the 50th. Sally administers the Western Maryland College Class of 1978 Facebook group and encourages all classmates to join so they can keep up with each other and future Reunion news.
Mike Spath and Donna are living in Oregon’s Willamette Valley. For the past three years, they have been developing Five Points Vineyard, and 2023 will be their first harvest. The 10-acre vineyard is farmed organically and planted with Pinot Noir and Chardonnay grapes. Mike has been taking viticulture courses and is on the board of the Eola-Amity Hills Winegrowers Association. As an old Bio major, Mike feels like his life has come full circle because growing grapes and making wine is all about biology and chemistry. Mike doesn’t get back east much but stays in touch with Bob Irvin ’77, Gary Walters ’77, Chuck Boehlke, Mike Modica ’79, Mike Cottingham, and Chris Parr ’79.
David Dickerhoff is attending the American Dental Association fall convocation to receive a fellowship award in the Pierre Fauchard Academy, a dental honor society. Afterward, he travels to Greece with Janice to celebrate 25 years. Dave still roots for the Terps, Ravens, and Orioles, even though he is firmly rooted in North Carolina.
Judy Byrd Fox, M.Ed. ’79 says hello from Martinsburg, West Virginia. Judy and her husband, Chris, have landed in Martinsburg after selling their house in Ellicott City, Maryland, in the fall of 2021. They will travel between their house in West Virginia and their condo in Murrells Inlet, South Carolina. They also enjoy time with their granddaughters — two live in Northern Virginia and one lives in Tennessee. Retirement provides the opportunity to travel and visit with family and friends. Judy tries to get together with fellow WMCers Kim Baugher ’80; Susie Tucker Taylor ’80; Robin Oroian Davis ’79; Johna Ruffo; Loreen Sherwood ’81; Debbie Tull Paulsgrove, M.L.A.’07; Cynthia Longley Kehr ’77; and Peggy Gibson Klein ’80, as often as possible, if not in person, then on Zoom.
Carl Stiegler ’75 and Linda Rickell Stiegler are enjoying retirement in southwest Houston. Linda volunteers at the local senior center teaching line dance classes. They also hike and bike the trails in the surrounding areas and attend lots of free concerts.
Alan Reisinger married his childhood sweetheart, Rae, in 1980, has three wonderful kids and is now enjoying two even more wonderful grandkids, ages 4 and 6. After graduating from the University of Maryland Medical School in 1982 and completing internship, residency, and chief residency at Mercy Hospital in Baltimore, Alan practiced internal medicine in his hometown of Catonsville for 36 years. He served on the board of directors at St. Agnes Hospital for a decade, was president of a 40-physician primary care group affiliated with St. Agnes, then joined MDVIP (the largest “concierge” medical group in the country focused on personalized, preventive care). He also served as chairman of their medical advisory board for several years, and after retiring from clinical practice in 2021, now serves as associate medical director at MDVIP. He currently travels nationally lecturing to physicians, dentists, and dental hygienists on the oral-systemic connection and the aggressive prevention of heart attacks, strokes, and diabetes. Alan previously spent most of his spare time biking, skiing, scuba diving, boating on the Chesapeake Bay, and playing the mandolin in various bands around town, but now devotes that spare time to being a proud granddad!
Ed Ginsberg is enjoying semi-retired life since he sold his interest in his three dental offices two years ago. He keeps very busy continuing to teach at the dental school and treats patients with special health care needs in the operating room at Johns Hopkins Hospital. Ed is halfway through his six-year term on the board of directors of the American Board of Pediatric Dentistry. It is a way of giving back to his specialty and it affords Ed and Jeannie some nice travel perks, too; they visited Ireland and Hawaii this past year. But the best benefit of all is getting to spend more time with their four grandsons. Jeannie and Ed enjoyed catching up with old friends at the 45th Reunion. It’s hard to believe it’s been that long! They wish everyone good health and happiness and are looking forward to the 50th celebration!
After working for Baltimore County government for 38 years, Dave Henderson decided to retire. Twenty-seven of those years were spent working for the police department. Like most jobs, it had its ups and downs. But it did provide a good salary, good benefits, and a decent retirement. “At the end, it changed a lot since I was hired and was no longer as enjoyable and rewarding as it had once been before the pandemic hit,” he says. “After retiring, I decided to just kick back for a few months, but I am looking into volunteer possibilities and hooking up with friends who are also retired. The highlight of my post-WMC connection was back in November 2021. My brother Mark and sister-in-law Judy worked with the wonderful staff of McDaniel to honor my father, Harlow Henderson ’53. It was the 70th anniversary of WMC’s undefeated season back in 1951. Dad was the quarterback on the team for that time. We received an invite for my father to be a co-captain of the Green Terror that day, and we got to sit in President Jasken’s tent for the game. They unfortunately lost to Johns Hopkins, but we still had a wonderful time.”
In addition to a very busy work year and many volunteer opportunities, I had the opportunity to visit Greece in September and early October with family and friends. Lovely. Wishing you all a great end to 2023 and a happy holiday season! Please stay in touch.
Georgeann Morekas1978 Class Reportergnmorekas@gmail.com
In November 2021, Dave Henderson ’78 (pictured below, left) was happy to accompany his dad, Harlow Henderson ’53 (pictured at left and below, center), for a reunion on the Hill to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the Green Terror’s 1951 undefeated football season. Harlow was the quarterback during that season, and he was invited to be co-captain of the Green Terror for the celebration, which was coordinated by Dave’s brother, Mark Henderson (pictured below, right).