From the Winter 2006 Andover Bulletin

FACULTY EMERITI

Carroll and Elaine Bailey

137 Avenida Messina #3

Sarasota FL 34242

941-346-5184

cwerbailey@aol.com

We trust you all had a good holiday season and that winter is treating you well. Before we left Andover for sunny Sarasota, we saw a number of you at the memorial ceremony for Frank “Skip” Eccles ’43. Tom Lyons eloquently presented the image of the Skip most of us knew. Skip’s loving family greeted us all. We have seen Helen “Mrs. Skip” Eccles several times and find her as invigorated as ever. She, Carroll and Elaine had lunch in Newburyport at the home of Tom and Eleanor Lyons, the latter of whom volunteers as a SHINE (Serving Health Information Needs of Elders) person with Elder Services, helping other seniors understand and apply for Plan D of Medicare. We’ve always thought Eleanor came close to being an angel, but this latest role in her life proves it! [Editor’s note: See the ’43 and ’78 class notes for more about Skip Eccles.]

Dalton McBee also lives in Newburyport and, when we talked with him, we learned his new pacemaker ticks along encouragingly. He also told us of the death of former teacher William Markey, who left PA about the time we came.

When we notified Norma Pieters about Mr. Skip’s death, we received an e-mail from a friend saying Norma, too, had suffered a stroke. A few days later we received a notice of her death on Nov. 3 in Sun City, Ariz. Norma learned to use her computer in order to write the histories of her life and husband Richard Pieters and her life together. She had to be proud of the marvelous job she did researching and presenting their stories.

Peter Capra’s wife and daughters gave him a surprise birthday party in early November (his real birthday was in the summer!) at the Hartford Club in downtown Hartford, Conn. We enjoyed meeting Peter’s PA ’53 roommates, family members and neighbors. Others representing the emeriti were Karen and Hale Sturges, who commented that during the faculty trip to China it was Peter who wandered off into the fields or the shops to take pictures or get into conversations with the locals, yet always got back to the bus on time!

In conversation with Bill Brown we learned that, as he approaches his 90th year, he is in good health and continues to live in Bath, Maine, in the same house he’s been in for 27 years. For many years Bill has taught at Senior College in Bath, offering courses on topics as diverse as Shakespeare, Hemingway, Dos Passos and Henry Adams. This fall he has enjoyed teaching Sound and Sense, a poetry course, which should echo experiences that some of his Phillips students might have had. While different, Bill says of his experiences at both Andover and Bath that he “was where he should be.” We also learned that while at Phillips Academy he had roomed with Bob Sides, whom we saw at a Boston Museum of Science event this fall. Robert Maynard’s daughter, Christine Maynard, is a member of the Andover Garden Club along with Elaine Bailey. When Elaine asked how Christine’s mother Clara Maynard is, Christine reminded her that Clara is over 98 years old and considers herself the oldest emeritus spouse. Any contesters?

Peter and Jean McKee visited the Canadian Rockies this summer with Karen and Hale Sturges. Karen and Hale then joined Jack and Wendy Richards on an Alaska adventure. Don and Ursula Bade took a trip this summer, first to Branson, Mo., and then onto a Western Conference of River Restoration, which Don found informative and useful as a trustee of Parker River Reservation.

In a phone call, Ed Germain updated us, reporting he is chair of the Dublin, N.H., Planning Board. The board, working with the state geologist, is creating a state-of-the-art aquifer study to protect the town’s water supply. Sara Germain serves as chair or as a member of several art boards.

Bob and Susan Lloyd met friends of ours from Ft. Myers, Fla., who summer in Vermont and who sent us several pictures of Bob and Sue on their farm. A note from Mary Chivers alerted us to a poetry reading at the Andover Historical Society featuring Ted Deppe (current writer in residence at the academy) at which she would also be reading. She tells us husband John Chivers is well.

Fred Stott read from his recent book about the Appalachian Mountain Club at the Boxford, Mass., library, where he found “an audience comprised of many hiking enthusiasts who listened with the air of camaraderie that comes from a shared passion,” as was reported in the local Village Reporter in August.

After these notes were submitted, we learned of Peter McKee’s death on Dec. 14, 2005, of complications following surgery. Our thoughts and prayers go to his wife, Jean, and their daughter, Patricia ’77. [Editor’s note: Please see the In Memoriam section.]

As we look forward to writing our February notes, why don’t those of you from whom we’ve not heard in a long time jot down some thoughts for us to share?