Occupation: Cabinetmaker Website: leinigercabinetmakers.com Marital Status: Married No. of Children: 2 From Jeff: Ever the procrastinator, I have waited until the day OF the reunion to post....
It was great to see everyone at the Deer Park last night. What a turn out and what a great group of people !
I got quite a few blank expressions last night when asked what I do for a living so if you want to see what I've been up to career wise, have a go at my web site.
On the personal front, I fell in love with a beautiful girl (now beautiful woman) from Christiana High School ('67) when I first saw her across the dance floor at the Firehall. Susan (Kosey) and I have been married for 37 years (Jan, you beat us by two weeks). Susan is a school nurse (28 yrs & counting) in the Colonial School District.
Our two grown sons, Eric & Daniel both live in New Orleans (bad parenting?) where they write & play music in their own band ("Complicated Math Problems" , good luck figuring out how to get on that website). In order to eat, Eric is a post- doc scientist at Tulane researching limb regeneration and Dan (Tulane business grad) owns & operates the #2 painting business in New Orleans. No grandchildren yet but Eric's engaged so we're hopeful....
We have been bitten by the travel bug in the last few years and have recently visited England, Paris, Italy, US Virgin Islands, Costa Rica, and Thailand. Would love to hear about others' travel experiences and suggestions....
We got into sailing about 10 years ago and most warm weather weekends you'll find us down around Annapolis on a 20 yr old sailboat (Beneteau 345) with our dog, Ginger, (she followed me home, honey, can we keep her?) trying to keep from running aground. So far we've stuck to the Chesapeake, but I'm hoping to talk Susan into trying New England next summer (?)
Well, enough already. It was great seeing everyone last night & we look forward to the "real" reunion tonight.
John Moncure
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Occupation: Director of Operations,
The Montessori Foundation Website: www.montessori.org Marital Status: Married No. of Children: 3 From John: It's a long way from Newark, Delaware to Beijing, China and I took an especially circuitous route. After retiring from the Army I became head of a Montessori school, first in South Carolina and then in China, and my work still involves the Montessori community. Anne and I have 3 children and 2 grandchildren. I'm grateful that, although we can't make it to the reunion, at least I can read the stories and look at the pictures on line and make Anne suffer through my my nostalgic and therefor highly embellished reminiscences. By the time the next reunion rolls around I hope we'll be close enough to attend.
Marital Status: Married No. of Children: 1 From Peggy: Let me start by saying what an awesome reunion weekend it was...if you want to email any of the wonderful Reunion Committee, go to the original mailing piece included on our web site and view all committee members and their emails! One complaint? Participants needed MORE time to chat! Doesn't having a website make an enormous difference in being able to communicate...and the pics from the events are still coming in.
Many people marvel that we have such interest in our reunions and that so many attend...not the case with their lives and/or high schools. This puzzles me because it has always been this way with our class. I have pondered why this is and for me, there are really three factors: my high school experiences were terrific (or at least my memories are that they were); I still live here in Newark (been here since second grade); AND I have a corps group of high school friends who remain my closest friends (as Billy Crystal would say "you know who you are, and, my dahlings, you look mahvelous!)
Being at the Newark Country Club reminded me of Belles' Balls and cotillions...and more memories include Tri-Hi-Y (YEAH IFIX) and Hi-Y, hayrides, pep rallies, football games (what would you expect from the mascot?), proms, senior banquet, assemblies, graduation (remember the famous Conway "tip"?), Halloween parades, the juke box in the cafeteria, Sadie Hawkins, AND the fact that we got to spend FOUR years at NHS!
Tom Barr's poem was magnificent. For me, it brought to mind three of our classmates who are no longer with us: Nancy Wright, Dickie Kelley, and Brenda Billingsley. Here are TWO important lessons we can learn from them: get an annual mammogram AND GET A COLONSOCOPY! Could save YOUR lives. In truth, cancer has claimed a distressing number from all three classes.
After NHS, I, like many, went to UD where I was involved with student government activities and an activist. Historically, what an extraordinary time to be in college with massive changes in the local "rules" and nationally, "the times they were a-changing". Try explaining that to today's students...they have no clue.
My career was largely at UD where I worked as Associate Director of Alumni Relations and as a Conference Specialist at Clayton Hall. I utilized many NHS classmates as Chapter Coordinators for geographic areas of UD alumni, including Annie Stegner, Dave & Sherrie Widdoes, Rob Wilson, Madeline Reidinger, Linda Robinson and even our former faculty member Suzanne Marvel!
When I "retired" in '94 because my father died suddenly, I moved home with mom and started concentrating on volunteer activities. I served as Campaign Chair for Phase II fundraising for the Newark Senior Center (before I was old enough to belong!), and also on the Campaign Cabinet for the Delaware Sports Museum and Hall of Fame. GO VISIT THIS...located at Frawley Stadium (Blue Rocks) in Wilmington and see NHS inductees Coaches Hoffman and Ciesinski, plus our own Conway Hayman (and many more).
For almost 20 years, the Delaware Blue-Gold All*Star Football Game occupied my #1 interest...serving on the Committee and as a Trustee of DFRC. In 1991 (FIRST NIGHT GAME) and 1997, I chaired the game. For 10 years, I have volunteered at Christiana Hospital.
In 1999, my mom passed away. BUT my wonderful husband, Joe Morrissey came into my life exactly then. He and I had both been divorced singles for a long time and accepted that this was how our lives would be. I say that Cupid shot us in the ___. We share interests such as sports, travel (running out of places to see on the East Coast and just returned from an enjoyable mid-west tour), movies, and seeing our friends and family. His grown children, Tim and Megan are local. We are truly blessed.
My daughter (from 1st marriage) Paige Sullivan also graduated from NHS...in 1993 which was the 100th graduating class (and she was a cheerleader!) She has a delightful, happy little guy, Ryne (my grandson!) and they live close-by, too.
When people say that their high school years were the best times of their lives, I disagree. For me, they were one of the best, as were my college days, and my years working at UD. BUT I must say, I LOVE the present! My life with Joe is better than I could have wished for, I get to see my pals frequently, we are active participants in our community, my daughter and grandson add a dimension I could not even imagine, and WE ARE HEALTHY! LIFE IS FUN!
Thanks for listening...hope to see you all in 2012!
Mark Rothacher
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Occupation: Commercial Real Estate
Loan Officer Marital Status: Married No. of Children: 2 From Mark:
I am still married to a fine young lady I met at the University of Utah, Patricia (Pat) from Ogden, Utah. We have been married since October 1979. We have two boys Nick and Jack that graduated from the University of Utah and the University of Arizona respectively. Nick is working in the New York area in sales and Jack is an accountant with Deloitte Touche in San Francisco.
I work for a bank here in Salt Lake making Commercial Real Estate Loans on apartments, shopping centers, warehouses, and office buildings. Pat works for our local transit system preparing environmental reports for their new rail lines.
I love living in Utah with all its outdoor activities. We ride mountain bikes and hike in the summer in the mountains and ski and ride our mountain bikes and hike in the deserts of Southern Utah in the winter.
The photo of our family was taken last Christmas at the elementary school behind our house. The tallest boy is Jack 21. Nick is 24.
Life goes by fast.
Hope all is well with you.
Mark
Mary Ann Berger (Ryan)
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Occupation: French Teacher Marital Status: Married From Mary Ann: A lot has happened in 40 years, but I still have a passion for French, which started in 9th grade at Newark High. My husband and I have visited France many times. We both love to travel. I have often ended up teaching Spanish because it is more popular than French, but I changed from Salesianum to Christiana High School to return to my first love, French. I hope to see you at the reunion in September!
Marital Status: Married No. of Children: 1 From Phyllis: Retired from IBM. Married, 1 daughter, 1 grand-daughter. Travel quite a bit with my grand-daughter. Live in Laurel, MD. Beginning to miss Delaware.
Robert Wilson
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Marital Status: Married No. of Children: 1 From Robert:
Ok NHS grads, the reunion is coming up, let’s see some real bios ! Everyone has an interesting story to tell. Here is a humble account of my charmed life so far... After graduating from The University of Delaware’s new Media Arts Program (and a post grad degree from RUM in Philadelphia (really Ronnie’s University of Mixology) I strode off to New York City, where I knew no one, to pursue (with a little dose of hubris) the lofty goal of running a Graphic Design Firm. I took off my sophomore year off to attend East Carolina University (rated #2 in the county for party schools) before getting back to business, coming out of a 9 month hangover and 50's Frat decadence.
Since 1973 I have been blessed to be a resident of Lower Manhattan in this grand, noble and spectacular mayhem that is New York City.
Gradually I built up enough clients to give up bartending several nights a week at the great spots of Greenwich Village where I had moved to (oh if those cocktail shakers could talk !). At different times my client base was restaurants, the Housewares business and general small business with a package of Graphic Design, Illustration. Publicity and Advertising. Eventually I grew tired of this and began to design and market erudite products, primarily for the Gift Industry. My most notorious line was the InfoTees, T Shirts with Language Translation Guide for travelers and illustrated nature and cultural guides for the curious, all printed upside down, so when you wore the shirt you could look down and access the information... uh .. "I would like a room for two" or more importantly "Where is the bathroom?" I was traveling a lot then and invented these to get around. The line had 16 different language shirts and dozens of guides to Garden Bugs, Hand Tools, Tree Leaves, Blackjack tables, etc. Ah, my first dose of fame. Additionally my product line contained Computer Screen stick on Greeting Cards, Placemats, Spice themed gift packages, etc.
I then moved to real estate (real estate is to New York what oil is to Houston) since I had moved into an 1843 stable house duplex in Soho and oversaw the renovation and legalization of that building. I was involved in development, property management and brokerage. Currently I am buying and developing investment rental properties in the beautiful Pocono Mountains (where they reluctantly call me "The Robert"... hardly!) and am a Real Estate Consultant for numerous law firms and organizations.
FAMILY LIFE: I married late at 37 to Barbara Wise, who had grown up in London and Paris, but had Quaker roots in Germantown, PA. With my travels and work lifestyle I had never planned to have a family until I got one of those blissful telephone calls ..."Are you my daddy?" Stacy Lyons adopted at birth and now 23 years old in 2004 had finally found me and her birth mother in Nashville after an exhausting 3 year search. She is a gorgeous (of course ) graduate of George Washington University and a soulful care giver – she is a certified Doula and Yoga teacher and also works as a counselor to the Brain Injured of New Jersey where she resides in Montclair.
I am thrilled to now have a new best friend and email buddy! As my friends say (during the Baby Shower they threw me) you did it the right way ... no diapers, hormones or tuition!
PLACES TO REST MY HEAD: For 25 years I have spent summer weekends in Fire Island a magical barrier island of Long Island. It is the largest undeveloped Barrier Island in the US with no roads, no cars only boat access - 5 miles off the mainland. We also have a home atop Mt Pohopoco in the Pocono Mountains to balance the seasons.
HAPPY FEET: I have done a lot of traveling throughout the states, Mexico, Latin and South America, Europe and Africa. Walking above the spectacular water drop in Brazil’s Iguacu Falls, wandering back in Biblical times in the endless labyrinth of the souks of Marrakesh, dining with the mayor in a tiny "Brigadoon" style Mediaeval village in Southern France, celebrating Bastille Day with the Parisians, discovering my Great Great Grandfather’s grave in Glasgow - all vivid memories of the this great planet.
HELPING: In NYC my volunteer work has mostly be centered on the elderly. Working with Village Visiting Neighbors, I spent most Thursday afternoons visiting homebound seniors and teaching craft classes in numerous organizations. I have also adopted a school in Southern Mexico and am starting a new helping organization here call SchoolDirect, where one can adopt a school directly and contribute to them without all the money lost in charitable organization’s operating costs and expenses, all the money goes directly to the teachers to fulfill their requests to you for soccer uniforms, art supplies, books, etc. All the kids send you wonderful letters and pictures.
REDISCOVERING THE PAINTBRUSH: At Delaware I also studied painting but years of applied art drained me. In the past few years I have been painting again in watercolors and showing my work. Now I am finishing up a series for a show on Labor Day. I am proud to have been admitted to the fabled Salmagundi Club here.
A LIFE OF CLUTTER: Since my junior high days of painting plastic models of songbirds, I have always had a passion for collecting. After 20 years I now have one of the worlds greatest collections of American Vintage Poster Stamps, and also collect Japanese 1950's battery operated toys (Thank to Peggy for the Haunted House Toy contribution) and vintage wind up toys. I also have a small museum of Natural and Cultural Artifacts and Relics. Barb was successfully influential in my disposal of my collections of Kitsch (it took awhile although it was disturbing).
DELAWARE FAMILY: My mom will be celebrating her 88th birthday in September and she still is on Briar Lane compulsively tending her lawn and garden, vacuuming the driveway and caring to the needs of UD foreign students who reside in the two mini apartments there. My sister Melanie (1972) is a school psychologist who decided to tackle her mid life crisis by starting Medical School in Philly.. isn’t it time to slow down now not think about 2000 hours of internship. My older sister Joan (who never recovered from being the chaperone/overseer of Tau Zeta) has retired from being the librarian of a Sussex Co library.
VOYEURS: I know you are out there.. Our loft was featured on National Television on the House and Garden Network and I downloaded the segment on YouTube.com – just type in "Shin Bone Alley Loft" in the search box and you can see it. Let me know if I should keep my day job or am a budding TV star!
WHEW: So there it is NHS grads, post your bio or email me at rbluehen@aol.com..
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