I Graduated Albany in June '69. In September I started teaching Chemistry at Sayville HS. In December of that year I married Cheryl Dietz. Subsequently we had two sons, Chris & Scott. Besides being a Mom, a full time job in itself, Cheryl owned and managed a Dry Cleaner plant. I picked up two masters one in Liberal Arts and the other in Computer Science. I started a part time business as a computer programmer. Cheryl went back to school after 25 years and received a degree in Russian History. Both boys are now married and Chris is the father of our first grandchild, Charlotte June. Cheryl and I are both retired and are vigorously pursuing our genealogy among many other avocations including raising roses, which is a challenge in the North East. We have over 75 plants.

 Return to Index

Louis Gallo

After graduation from the SUNY Masters in Social Studies program in June 1968, I prepared for my marriage to Linda Della Villa of Schenectady in August 1968. She attended many of our frat activities, and we've been married now for 34 years. We have 3 children----Sharette, 30; Damon, 28; and Janelle, 25.

After our marriage, I was employed as a Social Studies teacher at Longwood High School, Suffolk County, Long Island, teaching American History, Government, Public Policy, and Economics. I retired from Longwood in June 2001 with 33 years of service----all at Longwood!

For the last 18 years I have been very active in politics in Suffolk County and am now seeking the Republican nomination for a county legislative seat in my district this year. The local newspapers have cited me as the "leading contender" for the nomination. I presently sit on my Town's Board of Zoning Appeals. I am the executive producer and host of a political talk show on local TV every week entitled Republican Perspective.

 Return to Index

George "Guv" Wallace

I got out of SUNYA in January '70 - and started teaching middle school science the following Monday. It was a fill-in for a maternity leave, and lasted a year and a half. I then got another middle school job, got a master's in Ed. Communications and was the district's A-V coordinator for 4 years 'til they ran out of money, and went back to middle school science. The population went down - and I wound p in our high school - teaching physics for 18 years and earth science for 14. I pulled the plug early - with the state benefit in 6/2001 and now sub - occasionally in another district. I got married to a SUNYA Psi Gam gal - and she is a math teacher in my old district. She has another 2 years to go - unless they come up with a good early out package. Our son, Adam is 20 and working on a television production certificate degree.

 Return to Index

Charles "Chas" Young

Judy and I married after my senior year (1968). However, I was 7 hours short of my bachelor's degree and the Army had first choice. I enlisted in Army Intelligence and spent 2 years, 9 months and 10 days in service to our country. I was stationed in Newark, NJ my entire time following basic and advanced training. I wore civilian clothes and did background investigations. After the Army, we returned to Albany and I completed my bachelor requirements in the fall of 1971. I worked for Allstate Insurance for about 8 months until I got a call from the U. S. Treasury Department. I became a Special Agent with the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation Division in Albany. I worked there for just under 2 years and transferred to Los Angeles in July 1974. I worked in law enforcement for the Treasury Department until I retired in July 1999. Judy and I divorced in 1985 without having any children. I met a super woman in 1992 and we were married in 1993. We have 3 daughters, known collectively as "Charlie's Angels." My wife's name is Jill (didn't have to change the towels) and my daughters are - Emily, 8 years old, Anna, 7 years old and Grace, 6 years old. They are truly the joy of my life. We live in Mission Viejo, CA. Emily was diagnosed with retinoblastoma (eye cancer) when she was 2 years old. She went through chemotherapy for 6 months and a year later she had radiation treatments for 1 month. The cancer kept coming back and she eventually lost her left eye. There is a web site for RB. You can read about Emily's story by going to: www.retinoblastoma.com. Click on "Family and Friends" and click on "Emily's" picture.

 Return to Index

Dick "Banana" Hoeth

So, Carl, to answer your question earlier to me: Yes, I still play hearts and pinochle, although I haven't played the latter for some time. As far as the rest of my history since graduating from Albany State, here goes a whirlwind capsule summary. Helena (Gadala) and I did get married after leaving school. She taught for a while in the Niskayuna school system, and I worked as a Systems Analyst for the State Department of Mental Hygiene on Holland Avenue. My purpose in doing that was to eventually pursue a career in hospital administration, for which I heard the state would reimburse you in exchange for an equal amount of time in state service. However, my plan was foiled when I did not get accepted into the program. Apparently, I did not wear wing tip shoes at the time, and did not have the proper bureaucratic brown-nosing skills. (My apologies in advance to any state public servants!) Anyhow, Helena and I decided we could do it on our own, and I applied to the University of Missouri at Columbia Health Services Management Program. They accepted me as a graduate student in the fall of 1969, and Helena obtained a position as a computer programmer, which would lay the foundation for her future professional career. (She currently works as a Systems Analyst for Progressive Insurance Co. in Cleveland, Ohio) After graduating second in the class (Yes, when applying myself I actually was able to do well in my course work), I worked as an Assistant Administrator for a rehab facility in Edison, New Jersey, and then eventually moved to Cleveland, where I had several hospital administrative positions from 1973 through 1983. In the meantime, Helena and I were fortunate to bring two wonderful sons into the world, Greg, who is currently a Vice President for Marketing and Communications at Lubrizol in Cleveland, and Brian, who now is on the NASA weather programming team and lives near Houston, TX. They are the most important "work" I have ever done, and bring me great joy. Unfortunately, the women in my life haven't brought me as much joy, and after years of trying to salvage our marriage, Helena and I parted company in 1983. At the same time, my boss at Euclid General and I decided to agree to disagree, and I found myself self-employed, doing independent consulting jobs, selling furniture, and umping softball games. In addition, I was in an apartment about 2 miles from the boys, who remained with their mother in our (used to be ours) home in Mentor, Ohio (eastern suburb of Cleveland). After flopping around for a couple of years, I accepted a hospital CEO's position in Albion, Michigan, about 3 and 1/2 hours from Cleveland. I continued to visit the boys every other weekend, and I'm glad I made that effort, because we have a very close Father-Son relationship today. Skipping ahead, I met wife number two, Kathleen in Michigan, and when I decided to leave the upper Midwest, and go to a new position and a warmer climate in Tyler (East), Texas, Kathleen came with me. We had some good years in Tyler and Pecos (West), Texas, which was my last administrator's post. Then, when the stress of hospital administration left me with runaway blood pressure, I decided I wanted to live, and switched professions in 1994, when I began to work as a Vice President at the Texas Hospital Association. Along the way, I experienced somewhat of a mid-life crisis, and Kathleen and I separated after 9 years of marriage. Helena and I had been married 15 years, and I dated each of them 4 years before marrying. So, it doesn't sound too bad when I say I was only with two women for a total of 32 years! After spending 9 years at the Texas Hospital Association, I feel very satisfied career wise. In addition, I have a life now and get to travel throughout Texas and around the country visiting health care administrators and attending various meetings. I managed along the way to achieve my Fellowship in the American College of Health Care Executives and also my CAE (Certified Association Executive) status, but in spite of professional success, and having two great sons, I seemed to have problems finding the right companion. Well, the third time (hopefully) is a charm, and since last New Year's Eve I have been engaged to a lovely lady named Debbie West. She is a tall, blonde lady of German descent, with blonde hair and big blue eyes, and is as pleasant as they come. So, it looks like I may eventually have it all.....health, which continues to be excellent, a nice partner, and a satisfying profession....better late than never....I just celebrated my 58th birthday! One last tidbit of information: My Mom, Grace Pratt, just celebrated her 94th birthday. Unfortunately, she is confined to a nursing home in Lake Placid, New York. My sister retired and moved to Arizona, and I am here in Texas. Mom had multiple health problems and there was no way to take care of her in a home-like environment. But she is still the same feisty, intelligent, and humorous lady, who was always there for me, and all of her grandchildren and great grandchildren love her also! Sorry for the lengthy dialogue, but it's been an interesting life! And, since my Grandmother lived to be 95, and my Mom is 94, there is still a lot of living to do! It has been interesting reading the stories of all the TXO bros!! I am hoping to attend the reunion at the end of June, but it will depend upon when it is. Please let me know as soon as dates are selected, as I would love to "Fill the Steins for Theta Xi" and break bread with y'all! (As you can see, I have been duly Texa-sized!). Greetings and Best Wishes to all TXO Brothers from Dick Hoeth

The chap on the left is Brian; he's the one who graduated from Texas A & M's School of Meteorology Program, lives in the Houston area and works for NASA.  The tall fellow on the right is Greg, who does Marketing and Community Relations work for Lubrizol, a 4 billion dollar international manufacturer of chemical and petroleum products and additives. Lubrizol's headquarters are in Cleveland, O.  I think Helena and I did a pretty good job with these two, and, of course, they deserve all the credit for making the most out of their opportunities.

I think the reunion idea is great, but I just don't think I will be able to make it. My Mom is 94, and I just wanted to make sure we visited her. This trip has been planned for several months.

 Return to Index

Gary Levitz

Well, it is a pleasant and wonderful surprise to be discovered out here in Iowa.  I graduated from Albany in 1969.  Randi Schumeister (class of 1970) and I were friends at Albany and we married in 1972.  We got our Master's Degrees at Albany and worked in Albany for a few years - Randi in University College as an Academic Advisor and I worked at the Dept. of Mental Hygiene.  We even lived on Crooked Lake in a small cabin for our last year in Albany!

We went to Ann Arbor, MI, in 1973 and completed our Ph.D.s at the U. of Michigan. Somehow I managed to overcome the undergraduate experience!   Randi is from Minneapolis/St. Paul and in Ann Arbor I fell in love with mid-west college towns.  We moved here to Iowa City, a great University town, in 1978, and have been here ever since.

I joined The University of Iowa in management at The U. of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics and also was on the faculty in Hospital and Health Administration.  Randi started out at ACT and in 1984 left to start her own business which was sold to Sallie Mae a few years ago.  I joined the business in 1991 to help grow it and sell it - left it in 1997 and retired from Merrill Lynch last August.  Randi retired the year before.  Randi and I have three daughters:  Lauren, 15; Carly, 14; and, Alyssa, 14 - yes, twins.  Right now Randi and I are involved with community organizations and volunteering.  We also are developing properties in Florida at a beautiful place - St. George Island - which is located in the Pan Handle between Tallahassee and Panama City.

 Return to Index

Steve Kichen

In the summer of 1969 I shared an apartment on Livingston Avenue with Ron Pisani, George Patterson and a few other frat brothers. That summer I worked the graveyard shift at the Fun Bun bread factory with fellow brother Ernie Lamberti (has anyone heard from Ernie?) and a bunch of other misfits. I’ll never forget the cows that Ernie and I nearly ran over during one of our midnight “lunch” breaks from the bread factory.

I graduated in the chaos of 1970, and the summer of 1970 was probably the most miserable summer I ever spent in my life. Dead broke, with no girlfriend, no backup plan after I didn’t get into veterinary school and, with shoulder-length hair, and unable to get a any kind of job except at Pine Hills Taxi, I shared a hellhole of an apartment on Morris Street (near Albany Medical Center) with Ron Pisani and a few other guys. Had any of us known better, we could have written the pilot for Beavis and Butthead out of our misadventures on Morris Street.

My first ten years out of college were a financial struggle. After the taxi stint I spent a year at Albany Medical Center as a lab technician, a year out in Utah as a graduate student studying aquatic ecology, and the bulk of the 1970s as a producer and product manager for an education publishing firm in Westchester, New York. In 1980 I finally made a career move that brought me above the poverty line when I joined Forbes Magazine. And in the mid 1980s I picked up an MBA from Long Island University. On May 1 I celebrated my 23^rd year at Forbes, where I am now an assistant managing editor in charge of the statistics operations. Most of the big lists published by Forbes—the Forbes 500s, Private Companies, Mutual Fund Survey, Platinum 400, etc.—come out of my department. I edit most of the Stock Focus articles on Forbes.com and in Forbes Magazine and I also edit the Web columns for well-known auto industry expert, Jerry Flint. Who would ever have thunk that I’d end up at the “Capitalist Tool?”

In 1984 I met Ina, who was first attracted to my motorcycle and my dog, and finally warmed up to me. We tied the knot in 1989. When we were thwarted in our attempts to start a biological family we went the adoption route. In 1994 we adopted Luan, our son, when he was 3 ½ years old. We now have 3 kids, Luan (12), Hoan (girl, 11) and Huyen (girl, 18). Adopting old kids is a challenge but it is also quite rewarding. I am happy to say that all 3 kids are thriving.

We spent most of the 1980s and 1990s living in Yonkers, New York, but moved to Shrewsbury, New Jersey, on the Jersey shore in 1998. We’re now 10 to 12 minutes from the beach, and there’s a guest room for any brothers who want to visit us on the shore.

 Return to Index

Bill Schusler

I joined NY State Police in Oct. '68. I went to Attica Prison riot in '71. I made Sgt. in '79. I was Station Commander at SP Williamson and SP Newark. I was promoted to Z/SGT IN '90 and retired in 2002 after 34.5 years. I went to New York City 4 times after 9/11. I am married and have 3 kids, oldest is Nancy who lives in Cal. I just drove her dog cross country. Next is Lora who is a 3rd grade teacher here in Newark, NY. She is getting married this Aug. A son David who is an accountant for Piedmont-Hawthorne in Rochester NY and might be getting promotion to go to Dulles Airport. I had a great career and got to see a lot of our great New York State. I now drive a school bus.

 Return to Index

Gary Guzouskas

After my short military training during 1968-69 in preparation for US Army Reserve duty I came back to Albany and finished the credits I needed for graduation and also took the courses needed to receive a teaching credential in New York. I have been in the field of education for the past 33 years. I taught high school driver education for 8 1/2 years in several school districts in eastern and northern New York. I then went to Missouri (Central Missouri State University) to complete my Masters degree and became employed by the West Virginia Department of Education to assist in developing curriculum for their driver education and school safety programs. I came to the New Hampshire Department of Education in 1980 to work as the curriculum specialist responsible for supporting the safety and driver education programs throughout the state. I have been a member of the Department since then and 4 years ago accepted an opportunity to move into the office of the Deputy Commissioner to manage a statewide program to assist schools in developing and implementing locally designed school improvement strategies. That project is now finishing and I am going to be leading the Bureau responsible for creating a support system to aid schools which will be identified as needing assistance because of the federal "No Child Left Behind" act. I have also periodically been an adjunct instructor of traffic safety studies for one of the state colleges (Keene) in the University of New Hampshire system. I have been happily married to Glenda (met her at SUNYA) since 1970. She is a special education teacher, specializing in working with pre-schoolers through the early elementary grades in our local school district. We have a 26 year old daughter, Tracey, who works as a web site developer and webmaster and lives about 40 miles from our home. We live in a small, very traditional New England town (Henniker, NH) which is about 20 miles west of Concord where I work. We enjoy boating, jet skiing and snowmobiling and are NASCAR enthusiasts.

 Return to Index

Ron Pisani

I graduated with a BS in Accounting in June 1970.  That Fall, I want into active duty with the Army Reserve (464th Engineers). Upon returning to Albany the following Spring, I worked several part-time jobs and finally took a sales job with Met Life until 1973. I began my career as a staff auditor with the NYS Comptroller's Office in December 1973. Though the position was based in Albany, I traveled much during the early years. I currently supervise a staff of auditors/computer programmers dedicated to audits of the State's employee health insurance program.  My staff, essentially, use mainframe computer programming techniques to identify erroneous or overpaid claims processed by the insurance carriers who are under contract with the State. Our typical audits identify and recoup millions of dollars from these companies.  I have been happily married for over 28 years to the former Peggy Fitzmaurice and we reside in Albany, NY.  Peggy works as a secretary in the Albany City School District, and comes home almost every night with stories about the crazy activities of the day.  Peggy and I have a son, Aaron (24) who graduated from Union College and now lives and works in Brooklyn for Bear Stearn. We also have a daughter, Andrea (21), who is currently a student in the Music Department at Schenectady Community College.  Andrea is singing in two operas this summer with the Glimmerglass Opera (the summer home of the NYC Opera) in Cooperstown, NY.   During the summer, we escape many weekends to our RV trailer permanently parked in a camping co-op near Schroon lake in the Adirondacks. (Does that officially qualify us as " trailer trash?")  I enjoy fly fishing for anything in fresh or salt water that is dumb enough to be duped by my hand-tied creations.  I also still strum and pick a left-handed acoustic guitar, although I never took a lesson. I can't sing to save my life; but luckily, Andrea, bails me out with her strong and beautiful voice.  I think it would be a real "kick" to see some of the brothers, again.  Hopefully, we have all survived mid-life crisis by now.

 Return to Index

Gary Milford

I married Mary Patrick, who I had dated at SUNYA since my sophomore year, in 1971 shortly after her graduation. I was then drafted into the U.S. Army in late 1971. I was trained as a medic and then as an operating room technician at Brook Army Medical Center in San Antonio Texas. Mary and I both enjoyed the City of San Antonio. I went on to serve at Tuttle U.S. Army Hospital in Savannah, Georgia where I ended up becoming the NCOIC (Non Commissioned Officer in Charge) of the Operating Room Suite. This was a great experience, and I have many funny stories about my time in the operating room. While I was stationed in Savannah, Mary worked as a teacher in the Savannah City School District during its first year of integration. Following my discharge from the service, Mary and I returned to SUNYA. Mary earned her Masters in Reading in 1975 and I earned a Masters in Speech Pathology and Audiology in 1976. Mary went to work at the Schenectady City School District as a Remedial Reading Teacher at the Junior High School level. I worked for one year at BOCES before I took a job at Wildwood School in 1977, a local special education school for learning disabled, neurologically impaired and autistic children. At Wildwood, I became the chair of the Speech and Language Department and then the Director of Camp Wildwood, a summer program for handicapped children. I went back to SUNYA for courses in Education Administration and in 1984 became the Business Administrator for Wildwood School. Wildwood has expanded its services to adults and now services over 650 individuals and families in the Capital District. I am currently the Chief Financial Officer for Wildwood. Mary has worked for the Schenectady City School District since 1974 as a remedial reading teacher. Mary is currently an Academic Intervention Services Consultant working to assist teachers in bringing student test scores up to the New York State Standards. Mary and I have three children. I have been very involved with my kids' activities over the years being an Indian Princess and Indian Guide chief, baseball and football coach, and Boy Scout leader. Michelle, age 22, is attending Siena College as a marketing major. Mike and Matt are twins, aged 18, who will be starting college in the fall. Mike will be attending the University of Notre Dame, and Matt will be attending Cornell University Mary and I love to dance and are currently taking a variety of ballroom dance classes. I am looking forward to visiting and sharing memories at the end of June with everyone.

 Return to Index

Vic O'Valle

I have been married for 30 years to my wife Marty. We have two sons, Jason 29, who is an architect in Virginia and Nathan 26, who is a sports editor for a small newspaper in the mid-Hudson valley.

My wife and I are both retired. I retired from SUNY Plattsburgh last December. I was the Bursar at the college at the time I retired but had worked for them for 20 years in a variety of positions. I did leave the college for a 10 year period in the middle of those 20 years to work as a civilian employee for the Air Force, but returned to the college in 1993.

Right after graduating from Albany (the ink was hardly dry on the diploma), I was drafted into the US Army where I spend the next 2 years. A few months after that in April 1972 I went to work at SUNY Plattsburgh. Along the way I picked up a master's degree in educational administration.

Currently, although retired, I still work a couple of days a week at the college.

 Return to Index

Tom O'Connor

Prior to arriving at Bouck Holloway in 1979, Tom O'Connor was a successful Assistant District Attorney, and later Chief Assistant District Attorney for Schenectady County, New York. Tom has since successfully defended insurance companies in actions involving first-party coverage. Tom O'Connor has tried over seventy-five cases to verdict, achieving success in the vast majority. He has been given an "AV" rating by Martindale Hubbel and is a member of the New York State and Albany County Bar Associations.

 Return to Index

Kevin Magin

Greetings to the Brothers of Theta Xi Omega from the most humble Brother Kevin Magin After leaving Albany State in January 1968 (3 ½ year graduate - loved summer school), I spent a year as a VISTA volunteer in the State of Washington. My college sweetheart and I broke our engagement in 1969 just in time for me to meet a wonderful coed at the University of Portland who went on to be my lovely young bride of now over 31 years. From VISTA I taught school in Washington for 2 years, returned to Albany (remember, I was a townie) and joined the USMC reserves in Sept 1970. Thirty years and one month later I was forced by Department of Defense directive to retire or I would still be in now.

I returned to the Pacific Northwest in April 1971, was married in March 1972 and did a variety of things including teaching at the State School for the Blind, getting a Masters in Special Education and having a daughter, Heather. In 1980 I moved my Northwest born and bread wife to Michigan for a job - but only for a couple of years (we're still here and I still hear about it.). In Michigan I spent 8 years a consultant with the State Department of Education, 11 years as a special education director for 5 local school districts, a year as an elementary principal and two years as a special education director at a county level. Since July 2003 I have been superintendent of school for Lewis Cass Intermediate School District - in NY it would be a BOCES. The problem is my office and house are 110 miles apart. Due to Sue's job I commute Mon-Fri. It's only 2 hours so sometimes I come home in mid-week for dinner, etc. or Sue and the good looking dog in the photo, Corky, come down for a few days. We've been doing this for 3 years and expect to do is a few more before retirement. Along the way we had a son who is now in the USMC and thank God did not see combat in the recent conflict. We still pray for his fellow Marines and servicemen and woman every day.

Since my folks still live in the Albany area, we get back there about once a year. I've watched the old campus and new campus change over the last 35 years and have seen the demise of Olendorfs, O'Heanneys, Yezzi's, Mike's Log Cabin and some other watering holes we used to frequent. But lest our wives and children be exposed to the seamier side of our educational careers, we'll leave that for June.

Can you identify the brothers making potato salad in my mom's kitchen in '67 or getting ready for a night on the town that winter?

Looking forward to seeing all the old brothers soon.

Speaking of old guys- I did run into a brother from the last year of the fraternity several years ago. I think his name was Albright or Albrecht and he was from NJ. Has anyone hear of the classes that followed us?

 Return to Index

Barry Northorn

Dear Brothers of TXO; I look forward to seeing you again. For me it has been a wonderful 34 years. God has given me so much. I have Wendy, my wife of 34 years (class of `69) and our daughter Krista, now 19, and a wonderful home on Long Island. For 25 years I was in NYC up and down Madison Avenue in advertising sales, but for the past 6 years I have a new career in Emergency Restoration Services - Fires, Floods, Puff-backs and more - I love helping people. I still love to draw and paint, garden, fish and golf! See you soon to raise the steins! Barry

 Return to Index

C.W. (Chip) Sullivan III: TXO 1962-1966.

After graduating and marrying Ann Barry, I went straight on for my MA in English at Albany and then, after a year of teaching high school, taught at Albany for three years. In 1971, Ann (who had been teaching high school English at Colonie and had earned an MLS from Albany) and I packed up ten-month-old Jason and moved to Eugene, Oregon, where I received a PhD in 1976. In 1977, Ann and I packed up Jason, now almost 7, and Aaron, just 5, and moved to Greenville, NC, halfway between Raleigh and the coast, so that I could take a job in the English Department at East Carolina University-and I have been here ever since.

My arcane interests in such things as medieval Welsh myth and legend have enabled me to travel to England, Scotland, Ireland, and, most of all, Wales to do research and have led to such publications as Welsh Celtic Myth in Modern Fantasy (1989) and The Mabinogi: A Book of Essays (1996). More recently, I have become interested in nineteenth-century Irish political prisoners, researched in Ireland and Australia (to which many of them were transported), and have published Fenian Diary: Denis B. Cashman on board the Hougoumont, 1867-1868 (2001). While I have been doing that, Ann has been a librarian, first in the public schools and now in the county library, Jason has received an MS in computer engineering, is married, and works for IBM in Raleigh, and Aaron has received an MS in mechanical engineering and works for GM in Detroit (if "playing with cars" is work).

I have very fond memories of TXO. In the early years, it was home to a bunch of misfits like me who didn't belong in the jock frat, the society frat, or the gross out frat (you figure out which was which). We were such an motley crew that we were able to win the academic trophy and the Christmas sing.

As usual, I have exceeded my word limit.

My very best to all of you.

 Return to Index

John Morabito

After graduation from Albany State, I began my teaching career at Greenwich Central School-located in a rural community in upstate New York. While there, I taught 7th grade social studies and served as a part-time assistant principal. I enjoyed my 34 years of teaching and coaching girls basketball. This June I'm retiring to persue other interests-Such as spending time at our camp called Indian summer, located on Indian Lake. Candy and I have been married for 36 years and are the proud parents of 3 great kids. Kim 33 has a degree in elementary education and mother of our lst and only grand baby- Isabella Sophia (18 months old) Erika 30 is an attorney practicing corporate law in Maryland. Ryan 27 just completed his mba and is employed by the carnegie corp. I'm looking forward to seeing all my fraternity brothers See you soon, John Morabito

 Return to Index

Clif Draper

I am sorry to have to report that Tina and I will not be able to travel north for the reunion. It sounds like a real BLAST!!!! and I was getting really pumped up with one-liners to explain how it is that I haven't aged over these 30 plus years. Maybe I would even have scraped up some cash on my secret formula. Since I am gainfully unemployed for the summer, and still have some wedding bills to pay Tina has determined that I must work this summer instead of enjoying my first summer off since I was about eleven years old.
 
I retired from Bell Labs and started teaching elementary school this past September. I love every minute and the kids seem to really like learning science in the weird way I teach and do laboratories.
 
We have two not children any more, one grand-daughter and one more grandchild on the way. Our son Nathaniel Forest Draper (yes, sort of named after NFG) and his wife live outside of Richmond, VA. He played basketball and Randolph-Macon College and teaches high school. He is the basketball coach and runs his defense with a "tenacious" objective that only Mike Slezak could appreciate. Our daughter Sasha just got married and we (myself, Rabbit, Fugi, Steve B., Phil Hoffman and Walter Weinberg) sang the fraternity beer song. We did have to remind ourselves of the words with a handout, but it sounded pretty good for a bunch of mid-fifty year olds.
 
Tina (girl I dated throughout college years that was a "townie" from Rotterdam Jct.) is the only grandmother playing women's soccer on a central NJ club team. She is also working part-time still as a floral and gift basket designer. She eventually got the 1963 Corvette she always dreamed of having. She still has it but almost never drives it. We tried selling it on EBay last year but did not reach the minimum bid level we knew the car was worth. If you hear of any brothers that are into muscle car restoration pass this email on.
 
Life has been very good to me. I did my tour of duty in the Air Force and saw Vietnam from 35,000 feet. The GI bill paid my way through graduate school. Bell Labs was a great place to work until early retirement and now I just love working with kids everyday. Not having them at home to deal with on a daily basis makes the "loving them" at school pretty easy.
 
That's the Draper update in a nutshell. I will try to attach a picture of our grand-daughter.
 
Clif Draper (class of '70)

 Return to Index

Jeff Faulkner

Thanks for promoting the reunion, I love your site. A lot of names I haven't heard in many years. It should be a great time. Anyway, I will try to make this as interesting as I can. Shortly after graduation, I was captured by space aliens. I was able to negotiate my release by promising to enter the most mundane of careers, to be less funny than Shecky Greene, but funnier than Joey Bishop, and to check in annually with my captors. So, I took a job as a chalk salesman. Whiteboards and the declining nation homicide rate conspired to erase the profitability of the chalk work. At my next checkin, I negotiated a better deal. I could pursue a more creative career, be as funny as Greene. and did not have to return. I embarked on a career designing practical jokes, largely for the rich, breakaway Chippendale chairs, Waterford dribble glasses, fake exotic animal doo-doo, gourmet rubber throwup et al. It was fun while it lasted, but alas, in 1978, I took a job with state government and have been doing the Lord's bureaucratic work ever since. Jeffrey J. Faulkner

 Return to Index

George "Jud" Sabey

I'm with my daughter Kim and my ex at my retirement in one,and my son John and Kim are together at my camp in the other. After school I had a couple of offers, but Dave Smith convinced me I should work for the State. After 35yrs I retired as a Human Resources Manager. I still can't type so this will be real brief. I'm still single-never remarried- and am still good friends with my ex.My hobbies include everything from hiking to hunting. I've been out west and to Canada for game, and have cross country skied most everywhere too. I'm thoroughly enjoying myself and have no plans to go back to work. I'm looking forward to seeing everyone! On the 28th, Jud

 Return to Index

Bob Kelly

I took a look through my old pictures and didn't come up with much but there's one of Molly and me on our first date, a Psi Gam beer party (she was a guest not a member) and one on Jim Flanagan, John Dornbush, and Mike Northrup at our wedding reception. A scary group. See you on the 28th. Bob Kelly

 Return to Index

Kenneth Bernstein

It's hard to believe so many years have passed...until I look at everyone's pictures. So sorry I can't make the reunion, our youngest daughter graduates from high school that weekend. To bring you up-to-date: after graduation I enlisted in the Army; went to OCS and Missile School at Ft. Sill, OK. and spent the remainder of my commitment in Bavaria. Upon returning to the States, I began my career at Tropel Inc. as assistant comptroller and completed my MBA at RIT. After several years, I became comptroller at Bunnington Corp. and was there for four years. In 1981, I went with a division of British Petroleum and held various positions in various cities for the next twelve years. In 1993, it was time to move back to Western NY and I began my current position of CFO/Treasurer of Taylor Devices, Inc. The family stats. are: married Betty Grant in Dec. '69; first daughter Heather was born in '71; second daughter Gretchen in '74; and third Lindsay in '84. Heather graduated from Indiana U. and held various PR positions in the not-for-profit sector before leaving to be a stay at home Mom. She, her husband Gideon, and our one year old pride and joy Ethan live in Austin, TX, where Gideon (a Stanford grad.) works as a team leader in chip design for Sun Microsystems. Gretchen graduated from Ohio State U. and has worked for five years as an ICU nurse at Strong Memorial in Rochester. She is quite an outdoorswoman and plans to be married within the next year. Lindsay will be heading for Geneseo in the fall. As of now she thinks she want to go into law as a child advocate...who knows? Betty (or Elizabeth, as I prefer to call her) has worked in a number of positions, as my transfers have dictated. Most recently in the Williamsville Sch. Dist. for Primary Mental Health Project and also E.L.L. We are finally finding time to travel and I play golf as often as possible...when not caretaking the yard! Please keep me up to date on the brothers and have a great time at the reunion! Ken Bernstein

 Return to Index

Anthony Mele

I believe I told the Guv most he following ....

My older daughter (on the right) is a biology High School teacher. Her mentor , when she first started teaching, was TXO brother Rick Mele. They taught together at Vooresville H. S. . She now teaches in Baltimore County MD. A wedding is coming up.

The wife is a retired RN. I met her at a bar below a steak house on Fuller Road, by the Albany campus. ( as I told you before, she picked me up off the bar room floor , when I fell off the bar stool.)

The youngest is also a teacher in Baltimore County, MD. She teaches science and history. She also has her Masters in Special Ed. She has her certificate in advance education from Notre Dame in Maryland. She can be an Administrator! She has the Masters + 30 and is paper away from a Ph.D..

As I told the Guv, both Daughters are Albany State Alum. ( Masters) , via Potsdam and Cortland.

As for myself, I have been in the employ of Liberty Mutual , or a company now owned by Liberty Mutual, for the past 33 years. I don't plan to retire for a while. May in another 4 to 6 years. I have an SCLA, (see below). I attend trials, mediations and arbitrations. I review coverages and do what ever is necessary. to handle a claim.

I'm running out of time, for I have an appt in 15 min. .

I'll see you on Saturday.

Anthony Mele,
Sr. Claims Law Associate (SCLA)
Sr. Claims Analyst
P. O. Box 4858
Syracuse, NY 13221
Ph: 1-800-443-4000 ext 6153
direct 1 315- 431-6153
email : Anthony.Mele@Peerless-Ins.com
fax: 1-315-431-6102
 

 Return to Index

Bruce Siennick

After graduation in '72, I went to work for Met Life and stayed for 6 months before moving over to Connecticut Mutual. I stayed with CML through the '96 merger with Mass Mutual (specializing in Insurance and Financial Services). April this year marked my 30th anniversary with the company.

In the spring of '73 I met my future wife Maritta. Later that summer she returned to Finland. We kept in touch and in the summer of '74, I took a trip to Finland. We returned to the U.S. in August. (I had to read about Nixon resigning in Finnish.) We married in April '75. Our daughter Sonja was born in 1979 followed by our son Brian in 1983. Sonja is getting married in August this year and will move to PA. She will start her PhD fellowship in Criminal Justice at Penn State. Brian will return to SUNY Albany as a junior.

As a family we have traveled back to Finland several times, crossing the country from the Baltic to the Arctic Circle. On one extended trip, we "side tripped" to St. Petersburg, Russia. The Hermitage is an amazing place to visit. Another trip took us through the fjords of Norway and across Sweden, where we stopped in Gothenburg to pick up a Volvo directly from the plant to bring back to the U.S. We are looking forward to new destinations.

For "fun" I restored a 1945 Willys MB that my father bought as Army surplus in 1949. Any extra weekends we have we spend in the Poconos fixing an old family compound. Nothing like cutting grass and clearing brush for relaxation!

 Return to Index

Ed Hancock

So like many others, the draft board contacted me in June 1968. I didn't have enough credits to graduate since I changed my major from Chemistry which was too smelly to physics, which was much less messy. The draft board didn't care. The pre-induction physical said I was fine for either the Army or Marines and 1 in 10 were being sent into the Marines. My good old mom got busy for me and got me a deferment for another semester, during which time I joined the Navy Reserves, two years active duty, 3 years weekly drills. Very lucky timing, no more Navy folks being sent to Vietnam in Oct 1969 and I spent my time in Norfolk Virginia, (too hot) and 6 months floating around the Mediterranean. I got to see the Acropolis, Agamemnon's tomb, the Parthenon, Mt. Vesuvius, Coliseum, the Vatican, and Barcelona Spain. The cruise ships were a guided missile cruiser and an aircraft carrier. The sleeping quarters on the cruiser were one deck up from the nuclear war heads. It was eerie hearing the warhead being rotated in their racks to keep them at an even temperature. Two years in the Navy provided more memories and experiences than 10 years outside.

After that came back to Albany and found that the end of the space program had created a glut of physicists so, I went for a Masters in education to get a teaching degree. I taught 2 years at a Catholic girls boarding school before it merged with another school and let the new guys go. Fortunately by October the professional careers test came through and I got a job with the State Education Department where I still am. I have been involved with instructional technology for most of my 30 years with the department. While being a physics teacher might have given me some direction, my personal typing class in highschool led to computer training in the Navy and to database development in the Education Department. I am currently an associate in educational television in the Office of Technology Policy.

While I grew up on a dairy farm near Binghamton, I really liked the ocean and took up sailing as a hobby while in Navy. I have sailed from near NYC to Provincetown on Cape Cod, from Florida to the Bahamas and around the Virgin Islands. I strongly prefer the Caribbean for sailing as survival in the water there is a matter of days rather than minutes or hours in the chilly New England waters.

Not one to rush into things, I married my wife Terri about 8 years ago and I now have a 7 year old son, Tommy and a 17 year old stepdaughter Emily who will be senior next fall. At age 50 I learned about the demands of a baby, night feedings, diapers and such. Very cool raising a baby, but incredibly exhausting for a while. We live just about 10 minutes south of Albany tucked a half mile into the woods off route 9w in a rustic county like setting, no cable TV, a modem for the computer and our own well water which means no flushing when the power goes off. That's about it, next more parenting and eventually retired full time parenting.

 Return to Index

Thomas Egelston

1968 was my graduation year, but I didn't attend the ceremonies since I had an opportunity to go to Europe on the Maritime Academy's training ship, "Empire State". It was a fun trip, I did a little weather observing on the ship, but, in truth, it was mostly a great boondoggle. I applied for graduate school at Albany for the fall, but I got my greetings from Uncle Sam in September. I made the best of it by joining the Air Force with a Weather Officer opening at Officer Training School. I left for School in November of that year.

On Feb 7, 1969, I was commissioned a second lieutenant and headed for my first assignment, Griffiss AFB. As luck would have it, I received a telegram changing my assignment to Langley AFB, Virginia while I was home on leave in Albany. True to form, the Air Force did not even pay me the extra mileage costs from Griffiss to Langley, my first taste of the government bureaucracy. Anyway, that was it, I had no recourse.

I was at Langley for only one year, but I met and married Diane Fisher there. She was a schoolteacher from Parkersburg West Virginia. Roger French was an usher for me at our wedding (in Parkersburg, West Virginia).

My choice of the Air Force was basically to do something along the lines of the career I wanted. I continued my path and volunteered for Thule Greenland because I wanted to experience Polar weather extremes. Thought it would be fun. Anyway, there were no slots for weather officers there (nobody told me!). They selected me for Shemya AFB Alaska instead. Shemya is the second to last island in the Aleutian chain. I left for a year at Shemya after being married only 4 months. That was the last time I volunteered for an assignment. I have to say I benefited indirectly because I didn't have an opportunity to go to Vietnam until after the war concluded. Shemya was also very interesting because of the missions supported there.

I came back to Washington D.C. where we stayed for 4 ½ years. Our son, Scott was born there in 1973. From Washington, I went to Omaha, Griffiss (finally), Blytheville AR, and returned to Omaha. All the time I was in the Air Weather Service. I retired in Feb 1989 as a Lt Colonel.

I tried to come back to Albany, but the State was in the red and cutting back on people. That made the job market nearly impossible for me. So we stayed in Omaha, I found a job with Creighton University. My son went there, too. I took advantage of their benefits and got an Information Technology Master's degree. After my son finished, I joined First Data Resources, the nation's largest third party credit card processor-they do 35% of all the cards issued in the United States. They do them for banks and credit unions under their name and control.

We built a house on Beaver Lake, a lake near Omaha. Diane and I are currently enjoying life at the lake.

As luck would have it, I was laid off last October (Oct 2002). I am currently looking for employment.
 

 Return to Index

John Juckema

Air conditioner is humming and the Northeast is drying out. Steve Kichen says to come on down to Albany for the reunion--freshman and sophomore roomie, he called me "Johnnie vid vooden shoes." Bill Schusler's been living in my hometown protecting my family and friends for over 30 years--we appreciate that. It is great to read everyone's story. I think all our stories probably fall into one of several categories--mine would be multiple marriages and other long-term relationships, moved lots of times--by the time I was 30 I had lived in as many places. And frankly I was surprised to still be alive at 35. And we are all on the downhill slide of years--no getting around that. I'm kind of used to that for myself, but whoa--you guys. See, you did that thing when I wasn't looking. So, yes, we all have our story: the story of Me, starring Me. And maybe our wife, our kids. Because Kathy came with three boys, already grown, into my life about a dozen years ago, I am blessed with a big family to love. And she did all the hard work. And now I've been Opa to four grandchildren their whole lives--a wonderful thing. Kathy says she's not into sharing me, but I wonder if I ever would have had anything to offer without all the prior relationships--so in a way she is sharing me with others--those that came before. I feel there is no Me without them. I've certainly gone through long periods without anyone, and Me wasn't so much fun then--just barely tolerable. I've worked for the past twenty years in various capacities with the developmentally disabled and that has made all the difference--a finer group of people than most. And they never forget a kindness. I will never forget the kindness of my TXO brothers. I was pretty raw then and you guys helped season me some. My best to all the brothers who wrote and can't make it to the reunion--the rest of you, see you Saturday. John Juckema

 Return to Index

Manfred Stoll

Professional

After graduation in 1967 I went on to graduate school at Penn State, and graduate with a Ph.D. in Math in 1971. I have been on the faculty at the University of South Carolina since that time. Currently I hold the rank of Professor and am Department Chair. Professionally I have over 40 research publications and three books. My profession has given me the opportunity to travel all over the world.

Personal

I married my first wife, Linda, in 1966, and we divorced in 1989. In September 1990 I married my second wife, Mary Lee (a good southern name). I have three daughters from my first marriage and Mary Lee has two sons from her first marriage. My youngest daughter and her oldest son are both married, with a child each. Our family gatherings can be rather large.

 Return to Index

Paul Hoffman

I graduated SUNY Albany in 1967 a triple major, in history, Spanish and philosophy and a double major in social science and education. I got to the University of Arizona, where I got an MA in history. I then transferred to the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, where I taught American history for a while before moving to Boston. In a Boston suburb, while working for Dunn & Bradstreet, I met Christine O'Neil, married her, and we have been together ever since 1969. I, or should I say "we", returned to Arizona. Chris became pregnant with our first, Matthew, now a lawyer in Virginia, and I went to work as a teacher in upstate Arizona. We then had two girls, Leigh, a teacher of French and Brooke, a hairdresser. I keep in touch with Lou Gallo and Bill Russell and that is how I wrote my bio to get me up to date. Matt has two children, which, I guess makes me a grandfather, and my eldest daughter, Leigh, just got married to Alexandre, a Frenchman. She spent some time living in Paris. I got my Ph.D. in education and retired from teaching high school in 1999. I am currently enjoying retirement. I live in Tucson with my wife and love seeing the group photo of your get-together.

 Return to Index

Larry Abrams

I live in Saratoga with my wife, Geraldine, who was known as "Amazon" when we dated in college. (she's the one who dumped beer on Bernstien's head for calling her "Amazon". the name stuck, the beer fight ensued, and we were all thrown out of the rented hall.) we have 3 kids; Josh, 27,(who ended up attending SUNY Albany and living in the exact same suite that I shared with Dornbush, Hogue, Coleman, Prestigiacomo.) Arielle, 23(who now attends Columbia) and Naomi, 15,(Girls Academy in Albany)

Right out of college I married Geraldine, and we damn near starved for a few years. then I became a commercial photographer for over 20 years, and photographed Meg Ryan, Paul Newman, Mia Hamm, and other interesting characters. My work took me to Europe, South America and the Caribbean.

We lived in Milford, CT. from 1977 to 1987, then moved to Saratoga. Geraldine became a famous real estate agent (see our website: geraldine.com) and I retired from photography and now work with her. Our # is 518-583-3356 call us!

 Return to Index

William Branick

I attended SUNY at Albany from 1961-1965. I dropped out in my last semester and joined the Navy. I think I was afraid of having to work for a living, or otherwise being held accountable for all the knowledge I missed somehow while I was enjoying college life to the max.

From January 1966 to July 1974, I was a Communications Technician in the U.S. Navy. I spent first 4 years as Morse code intercept operator and last 4 as Russian linguist. The last 4 years were all in Scotland (tough duty, but someone had to do it!). During this period I had 3 stints on aircraft carriers and one on a destroyer. All were temporary duty tours. Interesting note: I had orders to serve on a vessel called the USS Pueblo and missed spending Christmas in North Korea by only 1 week!

From November 1974 to June 1975, I was a maintenance man at apartment complex in No. Virginia, near the Pentagon. I worked for my brother-in-law and got to do neat stuff like clean boiler tubes from inside the firebox!

From June 1975 to December 1977, I was a Personnel Management Specialist at the Naval Research Laboratory in Washington, DC.

From December 1977 to the Present, I have been a Personnel Management Specialist at the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, which is a small (but influential) part of U.S. Dept. of Transportation. During this period I did one 5-month stint with the Federal Aviation Administration in 1981-1982.

I was finally able to leave the boiler tubes by getting my B.A. from the University of Maryland (in Biology, though I never used it) in June 1975. My college career had spanned 14 years from the time I started in 1961, and with 178 semester hours credit (enough for multiple degrees!).

I have been living in the same place and house since November 1975, with the exception of a 20 month period in 1986-1988 when I was separated from my wife. (We're back together again!)

My years of dissolute living caught up with me in early 1988 when I had a heart attack, but I came through it okay.

I'm finally eligible for retirement and continual golf, though I haven’t set a firm date.

My #1 (and only) son, David, graduated from Towson University, north of Baltimore with a Master’s degree in Sport Management. After that for him? Lots of money and women, if I read him right. Apparently the apple does not fall far from the tree!

All in all, I'm doing well and feeling reasonably fine, arthritis aside, and would very much like to see my old TXO buddies everyone again!

 Return to Index

David Crystal

I recently found your TXO website and think it's a gas. It has been a long time since I thought about my fraternity. There were 24 of us in the original group that started TXO in the 1960-61 school year. I can still remember all the discussions at night with Ted Wacker, Pete Peltz, and Jim McAden and then meeting in Dr. Thorne's office pleading for permission to start TXO. He wasn't inclined to let us form, but in the end he relented and allow TXO to get started. Dr. Thorne was filling in as Dean of Students for Dr. Hartley (I think) who was on leave of absence that year. My understanding was that Dr. Hartley hated fraternities and would not have let a new one form. It was just good luck that allow the group to form. I believe that more than 1/2 of the original group never graduated. The only one of the original 24 that I noticed in your group picture was Bob Gibson.  When I get a chance I will write up a little bio and send along before  (if I can fine one) and after pictures.  At any rate, I survived TXO and SUNY at Albany and ended up as a professor of Mathematics and Statistics at RIT. I've been here since 1967 and would love to get into contact with a few of the original group. Do you have any contact information for the brothers from the original group? Thanks for creating the site. David Crystal, Class of '64

I stayed at Albany after graduating in 1964 and got my MS in Mathematics in June, 1965. After my student teaching (on Long Island) I decided that I really didn't want to teach in the public school system so I searched for a job teaching at a College. In August of 1965, I became an Instructor at Clarkson College where I stayed for two years. In my second year at Clarkson, I met my wife, Melissa, an Asst Dean at SUNY at Potsdam. In June 1967, I accepted a job at the Rochester Institute of Techology as an Instructor of Mathematics. Melissa and I married that July and it was all uphill after that. I took some further graduate work at University of Buffalo and spent a year (1970-71) teaching and studying at Montana State University at Bozema but deside to come back to RIT the next year. I then continued to work my way up the ladder until I made full professor over a decade ago. During that time, I became heavily involved with computer graphics and programming. During the 1990's I was part of a group getting a NSF which allowed me to design and build a microcomputer laboratory to support the teaching of statistics. I recreated the lab twice and finally gave up the computer roll and have gone back into the classroom full time.

My wife and I are the proud parents of two fine young ladies. One is married, living in Virginia and she and her husband train thoroughbred race horses. The younger daughter works in the catering business and owns and runs a riding stable in Western New York. Both of them, as well as my wife, became very involved with riding (English) and "roped" me in and I became very involved with 4H and the United States Pony Club. As part of my Pony Club service, I was the Regional Supervisor of Western NY (covers 2/3 of NY) and also served on the National Board of Governors. I recently retired from the organization and have some time for travel.

In the mid 1980's, I decided that it would be nice if I used some of the education courses so when someone resigned prematurely from the Bloomfield School Board I decided to run and won the seat. I spent 13 years on the board, serving as President for 3 of them. During those years I also served as the president of the Four Counties School Board Association. After I resigned from the local school board, I ran for the BOCES board (Board of Cooperative Education) and I am currently serving my second 3 year term. I will be giving it up at the end of this term. Somehow, I think I have made up for not spending my career "maiming youthful minds" by spending 19 years trying to get the school administraters to "do it right."

My wife and are currently own a two year old race horse. She hopefully will go to the track this May and earn us some money. The filly certainly has a good name, "Perfectly Happy" and she is doing very well in training. Even though Melissa and I have retired from most of our volunteer efforts, we are still very heavily involved in one. It is a horse related activity: The Stuart Horse Trials. This particular event has become a very major competition and has established itself as a major player in the sport. If anyone is interested, you can check it out at www.stuarthorsetrials.org/.

 Return to Index

James Hottois