Association news & class notes
Clifton “Clif” Martin writes that he can’t believe how fast 60 came along. He retired at the end of 2023 as the chief executive officer and president of the Housing Commission and Corporation of Anne Arundel County. He had been with the agency for 32 years and decided to do some part-time traveling around the country to teach, facilitate, and present nationally affordable housing programs and concepts with the National Association of Housing and Redevelopment Officials (NAHRO). He recently became a NAHRO fellow, which was quite an honor, and he plans to be a spokesperson in retirement. Clif and his husband also plan to do a great deal more personal travel this year to see our amazing world.
Jeff Hayman and his wife, Jeane, continue to enjoy rural living in Reedville, Virginia. They bought the waterfront lot next door, so they now extend an invitation to all their WMC friends to come visit by boat! Jeff remains active as the chief information officer of the local college, while Jeane stays busy with their cattle dogs, Rustle and Auggie. Jeff’s parents have been having some health issues, and it is fortunate that they live next door. The Haymans celebrated their 30th anniversary in Paris, and their 31st by attending their niece’s wedding in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, in October 2022. In the spring of 2023, they drove to Arlington to attend the Army retirement ceremony of Melissa “Missy” Ridgely Covolesky ’90. They remain in contact with many Westminster and college friends, including John Haker ’69 and Chris Ginther ’87. Jeff and Jeane continue to go to all Train and Kathleen Madigan concerts, but regret that they have attended their last Buffett event. They extend their best wishes to all their family on the Hill.
Elizabeth “Liz” Gates Haslbeck celebrated 35 years of marriage to the love of her life, Leo, in October 2023. Between rounds of golf, Scottsdale, Arizona, featured some amazing sights for them including saguaros (of course!), but also a boat ride on Saguaro Lake. It’s hard to keep them off the water. Liz and Leo are fortunate to have their two daughters and their husbands living nearby (no grandkids yet!), and Liz is lucky to still have both of her parents living nearby as well. Liz hopes to run into friends from ’85 (plus or minus) between now and the next update.
Jennifer MacLea Arrogancia is still the mathematics department chair at the Bryn Mawr School. Last fall, she coached the varsity field hockey team, which she said was super fun! One of her highlights of 2023 was a weekend getaway to Bethany Beach, Delaware, with Gail Sadler Jones, Cindy Rasberry Minnich ’86, Nairy Ohanian ’86, and Vicky Turner Roden.
Vicky Eliades worked for Quest Diagnostics for 21 years before they restructured and downsized. She was able to remarket herself and landed a job as an Optum HouseCalls scheduling coordinator with United Health Group. Vicky’s goal is to retire at 65. In addition to working full time, she gives back to her community by doing volunteer work. She is proud of her lifetime accomplishments and achievements as well as being a proud graduate of Western Maryland College.
Jeff Rickett and Val Wieder Rickett have taken on new roles as grandparents. Their grandson Malaki was born in August 2022, and they enjoy spending lots of time with him. “He is a true delight!” wrote Jeff (spoken like a true grandparent). Jeff forwarded a few pictures to me, and I can agree he is adorable! Jeff and Val regularly get together with Barb Bailey Collins ’81, M.Ed. ’84; Carol Francies Carrico ’83; and Paul Paulette ’83 and Nancy Turner Paulette ’82. Jeff still enjoys pastoring at Neelsville Presbyterian Church in Germantown, Maryland, and Val is enjoying teaching preschool at Glenelg United Methodist Church Preschool. Last summer, they traveled to Yellowstone with Val’s sisters and husbands and were awed by God’s creation.
Beth Chapman Zimmer retired last June, although she is working part time from home with an extremely flexible schedule that allows her to be available to help with her six grandchildren, ages 1-8. She commented to me, “You know how people say that after they retire, they don’t know how they ever found time to work? I believe it! Truly, I am busier now than I ever was!” Her husband, Tom Zimmer ’84, is set to retire in June 2024 after 40 years in education. They are both looking forward to traveling and spending some time relaxing.
Sending in greetings from Port St. Lucie, Florida, is Jon Ferber, who says retirement is great. He and Steph are learning how to function without a schedule or knowing what day it is; he says every day seems like Saturday. They spend their days cycling, hiking, gardening, or sitting at the pool. The weather is great, and they are 40 minutes from the beach and two minutes from the resort pool and clubhouse. Living in a 55-plus community, Jon has learned bocce (hand and foot) and that people there eat dinner really early! He hopes everyone is doing well and he’s looking forward to seeing everyone at our 40th Reunion!
Taraneh “Terri” Tahari Tuckey also wrote in saying how much she’s enjoying retirement from the school system. She spends time playing pickleball, attending yoga classes, and getting together with family and friends (especially her friends and sorority sisters from WMC). Many of those get-togethers include Jeannie White Kane, Polly Goethe Shoemaker, Barbara Lawson Foreman, Joanne Hogan Frazier, and Mary Ellen Miskelly Kelley. Her husband, Brian, continues to work full time at his physical therapy practice and is teaching his Fascial Counterstrain technique around the world. They recently built a house in Estero, Florida, on the Gulf Coast and enjoy relaxing there with friends and family.
Andrew “Andy” Mehl’s big news is he has retired after 30 years at Knox College. He and his wife are eventually planning to move to the Florida Panhandle where they can enjoy the warmer weather.
Ed Ripley and Elizabeth Hedges Ripley are still living in Wasilla, Alaska, which has been their home for 31 years. They’re navigating the crossroads of aging parents on the East Coast while they spend as much time as possible with their 2-year-old grandson in Anchorage. He’s the light of their lives, and they’re blessed to support his parents as they navigate working full time and parenting. Ed and Elizabeth travel and play as much as possible whenever Elizabeth can break away from her job at the Mat-Su Health Foundation. They relish all Alaska has to offer in terms of adventure.
Adjusting to their newly empty nest is Tom Heil and his wife, Jessica, as their children, Xander and Olivia, are well on their way with their own lives — Xander is a doctor of pharmacy and Olivia is a cardio-thoracic physician assistant. Tom and Jessica are very proud of them both and tell them all the time how honored they are to be their parents. About five years ago, Tom stepped out of his management role in the fastener business and chose a more relaxed role within the same company. He was tired of the 70-plus hour weeks and the endless travel and now loves the freedom of making his own schedule with no nights, no weekends, no airports, and no hotels. In Tom’s spare time, he enjoys quiet moments with his wife at the beach, watching movies together, thrifting, tending to their yard and numerous houseplants, and playing with their two goldendoodles, Obi and Isaac. After collecting vintage watches most of his life, three years ago Tom finally took the next step and studied horology. So now, to relax, he buys and repairs vintage watches dating all the way back to the early 1900s. Last year he was able to repair his great-grandfather’s pocket watch, from when he was an engineer on the Lackawanna Railroad. The watch is well over 100 years old and is a very important piece of family history. Tom says, “While my wife and I were simplifying our lives, I came across photographs from my time at WMC. Those young faces of friends and relationships long past brought back many memories both good and some unfortunately not so good. The bittersweet emotions I felt reviewing these moments in time helped me realize how important each and every interaction I had helped form who I have become. This life has been a fast one that seems to get faster every day. I appreciate and miss everyone I ever laughed with, cried with, and even cried over, more than they will ever know. I hope each of them are well and I hope they too have found their peace as I have through this rollercoaster called life.”
2023 was a year of travel for Sandra “Sandy” Carlson Alexis and her husband, Lans. They went on a cruise to Alaska for their 35th wedding anniversary and then a month later, they headed to Europe. Their first stop was Sweden to celebrate Midsommar with some Swedish relatives. Then, they went to Germany where Sandra served as pastor-in-residence for the Wittenberg English Ministry for two weeks. They also got to visit friends in Bavaria and a niece who lives in Paris. Ever since Sandra’s mother died in 2022, she’s been trying to do those “someday” goals, and she hopes other classmates are seizing the day and enjoying every drop of life. Sandra continues to serve First English Lutheran Church in Baltimore and her children (Lara, Abby, Sara, and Erik) are all healthy and looking for jobs or for better jobs. The only alum Sandra keeps in touch with is her wonderful roomie, Julie High Sawyers ’86, M.S. ’87.
Diane Culver Borucki is on the move! After selling their Columbia, Maryland, home of 30 years and moving to Bethany Beach, Delaware, in 2020, Diane and her husband, Dave, have been on the go. They’ve been to Atlanta, Georgia; Key West and Delray Beach, Florida; Playa Del Carmen, Mexico; Italy; Ireland; and London to cheer the Ravens to victory! Di still works in Columbia from Monday morning through Wednesday evening and then heads across the bridge for the remainder of the week. The bonus part of her commute is that she still gets to see her 1985 Purple Cow besties on a regular basis. Last spring, she enjoyed a long weekend trip to Savannah, Georgia, with Laurie Chance, Lisa Wyble Arens, Lisa Turner Horn, Susan Cooke Meurer, Kristin Lathroum Lister, Debbie Reda Brown, and Karen Gallagher Ames. The trip was to commemorate their 60th birthdays and make even more memories together. Diane says, “The words to our alma mater are certainly true because the friendships we made at WMC will not be broken. Friends come and go, but my college girlfriends stay connected and we love sharing our lives together long after those wonderful days spent on the campus of WMC.”
Alan Alvey and his wife, Sandra Brant Alvey ’87, have spent the past couple of years immersed in spending time with family and friends. Sandra’s mother passed away in May 2022, and fortunately the family was able to be with her during her last hours. The COVID-19 pandemic lessened the time family was able to be with her at the nursing home, but they are grateful for the time spent prior to mandated COVID-19 restrictions. In October 2022, Alan’s daughter Samantha was married in an outdoor mountain wedding ceremony in northwest Georgia. The weather was picture perfect and everything went smoothly for the happy couple and especially the parents! Alan had a chance to travel to the Netherlands and Belgium, while Sandy traveled to Chile, Argentina, Antarctica, and Columbia. The Alveys sold their 46-acre home in Forest Hill, Maryland, and now only have one house, 21 acres, and two cats to manage.
Caroline Benson Tringali and her husband, Brian, are officially empty nesters enjoying condo life in Alexandria, Virginia, and Marco Island, Florida. She loves walking everywhere and has learned to grocery shop like a city dweller, buying only what they will eat or cook in the next few days. Happy memories of living in London during her junior year of college keep flooding back. Volunteer work on the church vestry and condo board keep Caroline busy, along with singing in the choir, attending Washington Nationals games with Brian, and knitting with friends.
Last year, yet another group of college girlfriends celebrated their 60th birthdays. Sandra Michener Lazar wrote that a weekend in Bethany Beach, Delaware, and a weekend in Front Royal, Virginia, for wine and good times was how she celebrated with Dee Kennedy, Fran Ward ’86, Amy Barnes-Elliott ’84, Susan Wallace ’86, Carrie Miller Parker, Mary Ellen Miskelly Kelley, and Deirdre O’Neill. Sandra is still working at JPMorgan Private Bank and hoping to join Amy Barnes-Elliott ’84 in retirement. Her daughter moved from NYC to Charleston, South Carolina, so when she goes to visit her, she gets to enjoy the nice warm weather.
I received a quick note from Lucrezia “Lu” Di Fiore Krolikowski because she and Dan Krolikowski ’84 were getting ready to head to Florida for a few weeks. They are now grandparents, and Lu said her 1-year-old grandson is the light of their lives. He is their only grandchild, but they have a granddog from their daughter. Their son and daughter-in-law moved near Princeton, New Jersey, about a year ago and are about 20 minutes away from Lu’s daughter and her boyfriend. Lu and Dan are getting ready to downsize and move closer to both of their kids. Recently, they had dinner with Ola Monastyskyj-Colon and her husband; they all try to get together every few weeks. Also, Lu mentioned they went to an alumni gathering in Haddonfield, New Jersey, at a brewery where they saw Debbie Dale Seidel ’84 and Ethan Seidel. They also did some traveling last year to Memphis, Tennessee; Bethany, Delaware; Ocean City, New Jersey; and Cape May, New Jersey.
Kathy Goldsborough is still living in Silver Spring, Maryland, and still working at DRB Homes. Most of her time is spent visiting family and friends — places like Chicago; Asheville, North Carolina; Fair Haven, New Jersey; Lake Wawasee, Indiana; Sandestin, Pennsylvania; and Lexington, Kentucky — and going to graduations, weddings, and celebrations of life (due to many of our parents now passing). Kathy attended a mini Delt reunion at the McDaniel alumni event at Lone Oak not too long ago. Those attending were Terri Davis Milne; Wendy Bartko Libert ’86; Terri Taheri Tuckey; Jeannie White Kane; Lynn Fangmeyer Lang ’87; Leslie Stinchcomb Dolan ’86, M.S. ’88; and Maureen “Mo” Martin Carroll ’86, who planned the event. They all had so much fun catching up with one another and they’re looking forward to a big Delt/Phi Mu gathering at Homecoming.
Hitting the big 60th milestone had John Douglas wishing to get back to the Hill to remember what it was like to be 20, while trying to forget how foolish he was in his early years. He and his wife, Kathy, still work and live near Philadelphia, but they bought a Queen Anne Victorian fixer-upper in Jim Thorpe, Pennsylvania, for an additional challenge. John saw his roommate, John Palmer, in Florida last year and commented to me that he’s as clever as ever!
Lisa Wyble Arens has been working at Northrop Grumman for 39 years and is still going strong. Lisa and her husband, Jeff, spend lots of time visiting their daughters. Brittany is a physician assistant in Charlotte, North Carolina, and Lexi is in physical therapy school in Louisville, Kentucky. Last May, they finally made it to the Kentucky Derby, and her advice is if you get the chance, do it! Lisa said time is flying by and it’s hard to believe we are 60! She had a great time celebrating a group 60th trip to Savannah last April (see Diane Culver Borucki’s paragraph for the ’85 Phi Alphs that were part of the trip).
It’s been a busy two years for Lee Ann Ware Peck and her husband George Peck ’86 as both of their children have gotten married in that time. First, their son Kevin got married in September 2022, and then their daughter Lauren was married in October 2023. Lee Ann said they are delighted to add their spouses to their family, and that each couple lives about an hour from them so they still get plenty of family time! Aside from all the wedding excitement, George is still working in banking full time at Farmers and Merchants Bank and Lee Ann is working two days a week at her “retirement job” with Weight Watchers. They see friends like Michele Everett Seibel whenever possible, and travel as often as they can.
Chris Gray Aiello and her husband, Scott, recently celebrated their 35th wedding anniversary. They remain in Ohio where Chris works in accounting part time at a local Catholic high school and church. Scott works in Columbus for Mettler Toledo Scales as the industrial division manager. They visit Boston more often now since their daughter works for the Boston Beer Co. Last summer, they visited with Amy Farrell Stern ’86 and her husband, Steve, who live just south of Boston. Then in August, Chris had a little WMC reunion with Amy Farrell Stern ’86, Eve Al-Arnasi Angers ’86, and Jessica Freedman Chapman ’84. It had been almost 20 years since they all had been together because Eve lives in England and raising kids keeps them busy! Chris said it was like they were still back in college — such great ladies and friendships. Chris’ oldest son graduated from OSU as a doctor of veterinary medicine and is now a specialty surgeon. Her youngest son just graduated in December from Denison University, where he played wide receiver in his fifth year for the Big Red football team. In the email Chris sent to me, she mentioned how much Denison University reminded her of WMC. Though it is slightly bigger than our alma mater, it sits on a hill in an adorable city where everyone lives on campus all four years. The setting is beautiful; it has red brick buildings and is a liberal arts school. And on top of it, their alumni magazine is called The Hill!
Kathy Eichelberger Barna and Doug Barna ’86 are still living in Mount Airy, Maryland. Doug works for Lily Pharmaceutical and plays a lot of golf in between knee and hip joint replacements! Kathy works as the volunteer coordinator for BridgingLife Hospice, but her favorite job is selling Scout & Cellar Clean Crafted™ wines and coffee! With three grandchildren and six granddogs, life is full! They occasionally run into and get together with other WMC alumni, and they consider themselves blessed beyond measure.
After 31 years at Novartis, Sue Stevenson has finally retired and is planning her next chapter. Sue is looking forward to spending more time at home and getting involved in her community. When I received her email with the latest news, she had just returned from an extended vacation for most of the month of October. She hiked 205 miles on the Camino Santiago Trail in Portugal and Spain for several weeks. Her children are now 16 years old, juniors in high school, learning how to drive, and researching colleges. Sue continues to be involved on the Board of Trustees for McDaniel and has enjoyed becoming more involved with the college.
Kim Groover Hughes is in her third year as office administrator for The Keyes Co., a Florida-based real estate company and looking forward to retirement in a few years. Her husband, Brian, is still golf program director for Keiser University College of Golf. No grandkids yet, but they added a new dog to the family in 2023. Kim made a trip up to Maryland to visit with her mom, sister, and sister’s family, so a few of us were able to meet up with her for lunch. It was nice to see her since it had been about four years since her last visit back home.
Tracy McHale Kerns was excited to kick off last summer spending time with Lisa Wasshausen; Gretchen Fesche Walter; Robin Sullivan Sharp, M.S. ’08; Beth Conlon Staley; and Carrie Miller Parker at Lisa’s beautiful home in Florida. The group spent a few days lounging, boating, kayaking, and laughing. They definitely missed Anne Guenther Zimmermann and Charlotte Barber Letourneau. Last October, Tracy and Sam Kerns celebrated the marriage of their son Brett and his beautiful bride, Emily. In addition, they were able to cross off a bucket list item of theirs: a trip to Italy. The two of them spent three weeks wining, dining, and touring many regions of Italy.
Yours truly is still in the mortgage business and working in Annapolis, Maryland, for Shore United Bank. Currently, it’s not the greatest time to be in the mortgage industry (I’m typing this in November), but hopefully when you read this in the spring interest rates will be much lower. I still get together frequently with “the girls” and as Diane Culver Borucki and Lisa Wyble Arens mentioned we had a great 60th trip to Savannah, Georgia, which included lots of laughing (and involved our new friend Alice), tons of memories (the number of jumpsuits purchased), and endless smiles (especially when a young bachelorette party thought we were pretty cool; somehow, we didn’t feel 60 then). So many classmates made lasting, lifelong friends while we were at WMC. I constantly read about these friendships in the emails you send to me: getting together with roommates, sorority sisters or fraternity brothers, former teammates, ROTC members, etc. We are all incredibly fortunate to have formed these everlasting connections with one another which all happened in a little town called Westminster.
Laurie Chance1985 Class Reporterlauriedchance@hotmail.com1738 Tarrytown Ave.Crofton, MD 21114