Review of the MIT Class of 1950 57-1/2 Year Mid-Course Reunion Sunday September 23 to Wednesday September 26, 2007 in Annapolis, Maryland

By Mel Gardner MIT classes do not normally hold mid-course reunions, but our class is different! The idea for our gathering, about half way between the 55th and 60th reunions, developed because of Ray Kretschmer. As our 55th was winding down and we were getting ready to depart the Black Point Inn in Prouts Neck, ME, Ray commented that it was too bad that we had to wait another five years to get together again. That sparked our thinking and decided that it would be a good idea to organize the reunion that just concluded. Then only requirements that were set forth were that the reunion be away from New England, and that it would not involve fund raising. We considered several options for what type and where to have it, and finally agreed that Annapolis would be an appropriate local, well located in its own right and convenient to get to by car, plane, and train. Stan Martin and his wife, Beverly, who live on the outskirts of Annapolis, agreed to co-chair the reunion. They recruited Tom and Maria Keane and Ozzie and Margaret Kincannon who live in Wilmington area and Guy and Susan Bell who live outside of Philadelphia. They did an outstanding job, worked for well over a year, met monthly in Annapolis and Chestertown, MD involving long drives from their homes. They expended substantial time and effort for which we applaud and thank them for their tremendous and effective efforts.

The Committee-L-R (seated)-Stan and Beverly Martin, Ozzie Kinacannon.

Standing Joe Gildea, Susan Bell and Guy Bell, Fred Clemens, Karen Trueblood, Margaret Kincannon, Bill Trueblood, Tom Keane

We understand from the Alumni Association that several other classes have held similar get-togethers, but ours attracted the largest attendance at this first one held in Maryland. Now we gather that other classes are considering holding similar reunions in the same venue.

Annapolis, http://www.annapolis.com, proved to be a terrific choice. It is an attractive community with many interesting sightseeing opportunities close to the downtown. The Annapolis Waterfront Marriott Hotel, http://www.annapolismarriott.com, was chosen as the reunion’s headquarters. And Stan attributed the marvelous bright, sunny, and near perfect weather we experienced to the influence of Beverly with the weather powers. Agreed!

The Reception Committee-Margaret Kincannon, Susan Bell and Karen Trueblood

On checking in the hotel and for the reunion, we were presented with an appropriately decorated bag of goodies that included snacks, Annapolis tourist brochures, souvenir magnifying glasses – there was a not so subtle message there – a reunion booklet described below, and name tags.

The tags had our names in very large letters – also a message there – and on the back our pictures from our 1950 yearbook. What happened to those good looking younger men? Well they just morphed in 57 years to good looking older men.

The reunion committee published a handsome booklet which included on the cover a picture of MIT from the Charles and several from the Annapolis area,

pictures of the class officers, a schedule of events, a list of all the attendees and their contact information, restaurant suggestions, the words to the song “In

Praise of MIT, a list of the reunion committee members and a group picture of most of them.

WELCOME!

MIT Class of 1950

MID-COURSE

Daily Events

Sunday, September 23 anytime after 3:00 p.m.Hotel Check-in & Reunion Registration at the Annapolis Waterfront Marriott Hotel. Receive reunion information kit.

(Monday, Sept. 24 - continued) 3:00 p.m. Harbor Cruise on "Woodwind" Schooner (2 hrs.). Assemble on back deck of Marriott Hotel. Soft-soled shoes required. Suggested: hat, windbreaker, sunscreen, sunglasses.

COURSE REUNION

57½ years

September 23-26, 2007

Annapolis, MD

6:00 p.m. Join Classmates for a welcoming Cocktail Party (cash bar) & Buffet in the Waterfront Marriott Hotel. Music by Sam Raymond's jazz trio. Monday, September 24 9:45 a.m. Walking tour

of U.S. Naval Academy. Assemble at the Main Gate of the

Naval Academy on King George Street.

Your guides: Bill Trueblood & Joe Gildea, USNA & MIT graduates.

Please be prompt, we enter as a group. Because this is government property, photo ID is required; penknives not permitted or held for you. 12:00 noon Lunch (cash bar) at the

USNA Officers Club. Speaker:

Betsy Hicks, Executive Director, MIT Student Financial Services. Casual

attire permitted.

Dinner on your own. Tuesday, September 25 9:15 a.m. Trolley tour of historic

Annapolis (1 hour)

plus guided tour of William Paca House &

Gardens. (45 mins.) Assemble in front of Marriott Hotel. Lunch on your own. 1:45 p.m. Guided tour presentation at Chesapeake Bay Foundation Environmental Center. Assemble in front of Marriott Hotel for bus. 6:00 p.m. Cocktails and Class Banquet at Annapolis Yacht Club next to Marriott Hotel (cardinal blazers suggested). Speaker: Professor Ronald Prinn of MIT. The US Naval Academy Barbershop Quartet. Wednesday, September 26

Bus transportation provided

from Marriott Hotel to Officers Club

8 - 10:00 a.m. Farewell Breakfast at the Marriott Hotel. (at your own expense). Marriott Hotel check-out by 11:00 a.m.

Bill and Ginny Bidermmann,

Jim Geiser and Skip Custer

Claire Kretchmer, Herb and Jo Anne Sontag

Mal and Susan Green

Tom and Maria Keane

Please check the Daily Schedule posted in Marriott front lobby for any changes or additions.

Guy and Susan Bell, Anne Kern,

Jim Geiser and Skip Custer

Hank and Harriett Sharp

Donna Savelli, Our MIT Advisor

Ray Kretchmer, George Krusen, Herb Sontag

and Other Classmates

Carolyn Lack and Mel Gardner,

John Kern, Bill Webster-

Jim Hodges sketching in the background.

Jim Lydon and Phillys Maynard

Tom and Peggy Buchanan Jean and John Kocher

With sketch pad always at the ready, Jim Hodges recorded scenes from our reunion that are quite interesting and provide views different from those taken by most of us using digital photography. He was kind enough to share them with us and a link is provided to access his art.

Hodges Sketching (see Index Page for link to sketches)

Following is a list of the classmates and their guests who attended the reunion:

Ed Adelson Al and Rella Bates Guy and Susan Bell Bill and Ginny Bidermann Tom and Peggy Buchanan Bill Culver and Jacqueline Meers Joe and Viola D’Annunzio Dan Fawcett Bob and Nancy Fisette Mel Gardner and Carolyn Lack Jim Geiser and Skip Custer Mal and Susan Green Jim and Margaret Hodges Tom and Maria Keane John and Anne Kern Ozzie and Margaret Kincannon John and Jean Kocher Ray and Claire Kretschmer Ed Kruse George Krusen Dave and Audrey Levington Paul and Nancy Lobo Jim Lydon and Phyllis Maynard John and Nancy Malloy Stan and Beverly Martin Harold and Lorraine Mills Dick and Alta Poirier Sam and Holly Raymond Hank and Harriet Sharp Herb and Jo Anne Sontag Olaf and Grete Steen Dino and Litsa Tsitera Bill and Ruth Webster Bob and Nancy Whitney We gathered the first night, Sunday, September 23rd, in the hotel for a welcoming cocktail party and buffet dinner with background and dancing music provided by Sam Raymond on the keyboard, his wife, Holly, on the drums, Al Bates on the sax and clarinet, and Olaf Steen on the trumpet.

Olaf Steen, Alan Bates, Sam and Holly Raymond

It was great to see old friends from school and past reunions greet each other with warmth and enthusiasm.

Everyone in the room was introduced or introduced themselves.

Harborside Welcoming Reception

On Monday morning, we assembled at the main gate of the U.S. Naval Academy, http://www.usna.edu , for tours guided by retired Captains Bill Trueblood and Joe Gildea who both graduated from the Academy in 1953 and received Masters Degrees at MIT in 1958.

We got a view of some of this impressive, compact campus which trains classes of 1,000 cadets each to be Naval and Marine Corps Officers; the Academy boasts that it has the largest single dormitory in the world housing all the cadets in that one building and feeding them all at the same time in the basement dining hall. The tour ended in the campus chapel where the Academy organist gave an interesting talk about and demonstration on its conventional and digital organ, one of the largest in the world.

US Naval Academy Chapel

The Amazing Earth Shaking Organ

From there we walked to the Officers club for a delicious lunch followed by a talk by Elizabeth (Betsy) Hicks, Executive Director, MIT Student Financial Services who flew down from Boston that morning with her associate, Susan Wilson, Associate Director, Student Financial Aid and Resource Development. Betsy’s group is responsible for the collection of all student tuition and fees and the granting and administration of undergraduate scholarships and loans and graduate loans, and enterprise that involves the collection and dissemination over one-half billion dollars a year.

Betsy Hicks, Susan Wilson

Betsy’s talk titled “The World is Always Changing” compared MIT in our day to MIT today and outlined some of the new academic developments at the Institute. Included in her presentation was a review of the current status of the Class of 1950 Student Aid fund which has a book value (our contributions of $3.9 million) and a market (endowment) value of $21 million. She answered several questions about MIT and the Class of 1950 Student Aid Fund. (Subsequent to the reunion, we asked how much the class Fund has generated to provide MIT legacies and their families with scholarships and interest subsidies. Susan informed us that it is over $8 million. What a great return so far on our contributions in the thirty-two years since our 25th reunion! The amount needed for interest subsidies is declining since the Parent Loan Program was abandoned at the Institute and most other schools several years ago. So an increasing portion of the income generated from the endowment each year is being allocated to much needed scholarships. ) Her talk can be reviewed by clicking on the link below. The link will connect with the SFS home page (MIT Student Financial Services) which is Betsy’s group. She’s posted her talk on this page as a favor to our class. Start by reading the first page and then scroll down to the bottom and you’ll find the full 21 page presentation available for review. http://web.mit.edu/sfs/about_us/1950/emh1950j8d3g-1.html To acknowledge our appreciation, Stan presented Betsy with a beautiful illustrated book about Annapolis.

That afternoon, many, but not all of us boarded the 74’ staysail schooner “Woodwind”, http://schooner-woodwind.com/, for a two hour tour of the Annapolis harbor. The wind was light and died out soon after we left the Marriott dock, so the remained of the cruise was courtesy of the ninety horse diesel auxiliary. Everyone on board seemed to have a good time chattering away on this sun filled day.

Woodwind Departing The Marriott

With The MIT Class of 1950 On Board

But On A Calm Day –Sailing Was Not On The Program-

Dave Levington On Lookout

Enjoying the Sail

Dick and Alta Poirier and Classmates

Dinner that night was on our own. So we broke into small groups to experience dining in various restaurants, many recommended by the reunion committee. After breakfast on Tuesday, we boarded motorized trolleys, http://www.discover-annapolis.com/, for guided tours of Annapolis replete with explanations of Annapolis’ history and a drive past many of its more notable buildings and an impressive World War II memorial.

Trolley At The Marriott Through The Streets Of Annapolis

In mid-morning we had a guide tour of the early eighteenth century William Paca House and Gardens.

http://www.annapolis.org/index.asp?pageid=54

Paca House Gardens From A Balcony Of The House

Classmates Touring The Paca Gardens

Classmates Enjoying A Beautiful Day At The Paca House

On our walk back to the hotel, many of us stopped off for lunch, again on our own, at various eateries in Annapolis. Some of us discovered a great ice cream parlor, and satisfied our fat and sugar needs. Buses took us in the afternoon on a short ride to the Chesapeake Bay Foundation Environmental Center, a highly acclaimed “green” building. The Foundation is concerned with and working to improve the polluted and environmentally damaged entire 64,000 square mile Chesapeake Bay watershed, home to 17 million people in six states. It is a daunting, monumental but vital task.

Classmates In The Lobby Of the CBFEC

Sunny Deck On The Chesapeake Bay

Ed Kruse (seated) and Classmates Waiting For The Tour To Begin

Margaret Kincannon Admiring The Foundation Artwork

Paul Lobo, Ed Adelson and Classmates During The Tour

For a bunch of us trained as engineers and our guests, this provided interesting information on energy efficient building design and the group’s efforts to eliminate some of the most egregious Chesapeake’s pollutants. www.savethebay.cbf.org. We had several hours to rest and relax before most of our classmates donned our Cardinal jackets and met at the renowned Annapolis Yacht Club, http://www.annapolisyc.org/ , which was but a short walk from the hotel.

Paul and Nancy Lobo Entering The Annapolis YC

During our cocktail hour, Sam Raymond and his ensemble again provided background music. Several couples from the Washington and Baltimore MIT clubs joined us for dinner and to hear our guest speaker. At about 7:15, the yacht club’s cannon informed us that the sun had passed over the horizon, and we stood at attention while our national anthem was played. Dinner followed. Our guest speaker was Professor Ron Prinn, TEPCO (Tokyo Electric Power company ) Professor of Atmospheric Chemistry, Department of Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences, Center for Global Change Sciences, Director of Center for Global Change Science, and Co-Director of the MIT Joint Program on the Science and Policy of Global Change. He flew down from Cambridge for our event, and gave an interesting, illustrated hour-long talk followed by a question and answer period.

Bill Culver, Ron Prinn, Stan Martin

For more on Ron Prinn, go to: http://mitworld.mit.edu/video/431/ where a video can be viewed of essentially the same talk that he gave to our group. In addition, to view the text of his recent Congressional testimony, go to: http://web.mit.edu/globalchange/www/MIT_R.Prinn.CT07.pdf Stan, who met Ron on an MIT sponsored trip to the Arctic this summer, thanked Ron and presented him with a copy of the illustrated Annapolis book. Since it was late, we dispensed with our plan to have a short sing-along of “In Praise of MIT” and The Star Spangled Banner. We concluded by all standing to applaud the reunion committee for a job very well done indeed. With that the format part of our reunion came to and end.

The next morning, many of us bid each other “good by” at breakfast. An abbreviated reunion is in the planning stage for early in 2008 in the San Diego area which has been requested by several classmates who live in the western states. Everyone in our class will be invited. And, of course, we look forward to our major, it’s hard to believe, 60th reunion in Cambridge in 2010. Keep reading the class notes for news of classmates and developments. Note: Reunion photos were sent in by many of our classmates, and no effort has been made to identify the sources of any shown in this summary report.