Association news & class notes
Janet High Lewis enjoyed seeing old friends at the 70-year Reunion last April. She is in good health and spends time painting and playing mah-jongg. She also enjoys her family, including nine great-grandchildren.
Vicki Leister Garrettson writes, “I have made it to 91 years old and attended our 70th anniversary of graduation from college. Where does the time go? I truly miss Patty Burr Austin and Pat Crawford Dejean. We were Cassell Hallers together. We had a special bond and kept in contact with each other until their passing. At this point in my life, activities center around family and close friends. I have two daughters, Pam and Virginia. Pam earned a Ph.D. at Louisiana State University and works as a wildlife research biologist at Patuxent Wildlife Research Center in Laurel, Maryland. Virginia has two daughters. Her daughter Alycia graduated from the University of Maryland Global Campus and is employed at Black+Decker working in marketing. Her daughter Sarah works as a pharmacy technician at Walgreens in Westminster, Maryland, and knows sign language, so she can help customers who are Deaf and hard of hearing. I am happy about that because I am very hearing impaired. I have had a cochlear implant for eight years, and I also wear a hearing aid. The implant and hearing aid are not perfect, but they help me to function better. My mission in life is to help people to communicate with those of us who are hearing impaired. I am not a raving beauty, but I need you to look at me when you speak. Never, never, never yell into my processor or hearing aid. And yes, it happens. As for now, I live alone. I can still walk, talk, eat, and drive, but not very far.”
Roland Fleischer, Hon. D.F.A. ’93 and his wife
Polly-Anne are still living in The Village at Penn State and enjoy it very much. Roland sings with a combo at the retirement center, and he and his wife also enjoy painting there. Roland met a friend there who he had played against in soccer while at Western Maryland College. He was excited to see his classmates at the Reunion, and he keeps in touch with Chuck Hammaker and Harold “Mac” McTeer ’53.
There have been many changes since our 65th Reunion, including a new president. With a Biology degree, I, Sally Griffin Marks, became a lab technician in various hospitals and continued my learning. When raising a family, working regular hours became necessary, so I returned to teaching elementary and middle school students and found it rewarding and challenging. Twenty-five years later, Bill Marks and I retired and spent time traveling and working for service clubs. Our three children have completed college, married, and are raising families. We have six grandchildren and four great-grandchildren making strides of their own, toward families and interests.
Bill and I planned many trips and enjoyed them. Europe, Australia, and the United States were on our list. We made many friends and experienced many cultures. Bill had spent military time in the Far East. But we never made a trip to Japan to visit our classmate who stayed in touch with us as well as visited us after graduation until she passed away. Since Bill’s passing, I live alone in Westminster where friends, church, and activities are all familiar. WMC is still important in my life.
Sally Griffin Marks1952 Class Reportersbmarks61@gmail.com