Skidmore College - Scope Magazine Fall 2018

39 SKIDMORE COLLEGE Sara Kroll Rubloff is “trying” to retire from clinical social work. She loves her practice so much that she is taking the exodus slowly and volun- teers at a nearby prison and domestic violence center. Husband Gary is not even thinking of retiring. The couple tries to get to Berlin, N.J., at least once a year for a month with her son and daughter. Being a grandpar- ent has been “an unexpected thrill,” notes Sara. She sees Joan Minard Scruggs when she and Joan’s sister Ellen visit Maryland for an annual sheep and wool festival. Sara met up with Barbie Fisher Hall at Longwood Gardens outside of Philly a while back. Sara encourages anyone living or traveling in the Baltimore and Washington, D.C., area to contact her at skrubloff@gmail.com. Juliette Willis and husband George Davidson were look- ing forward to participating in September’s Bugatti car rally in Saratoga, showcasing cars dating from the 1920s and ’30s. The couple drives a Bugatti Type 35B, the model that won the 1929 French Grand Prix at Le Mans! Carolyn Bates works for Vermont Magazine , taking ar- chitectural photos of a unique house in Vermont five times a year. If anyone would like a year’s gift subscription, con- tact her at cbatesbt@gmail. com. Carolyn contributed three stories and the cover photo to the book Family Cabin , published by Taunton Press. She invites classmates to join her mailing list on www.carolynbates.com . Joan Agisim Odes has been visiting with Mary Loveland Wasserman and husband Marty during her annual trips to see daughters Naomi ’94 and Rebecca and their fami- lies in South Hero, Vt. Jane Gronostalski Zapka says what we all know: “Time flies.” After about 50 years as a professor at the University of Massachusetts (Amherst and Worcester) and the Medical University of South Carolina, Jane retired in June 2017. She and David will cel- ebrate their 50th anniversary in December. They enjoy their home in Hatfield, Mass., where for decades they have taken in rescue dogs. Dottie and Jesse, their latest two standard poodles, love riding in the couple’s new RV. While some health issues are chal- lenging, Jane looks forward to this new phase of life. Lana Feldshuh Master is eager to host Jill Fuller Crowley, Anna Hoehn Kline, Marianne Mayer Phillips and Beth Wardwell at her home in Flagstaff, Ariz., later this year. She and Linda Prince Smith and Judy Clauson Holmes traveled to Capetown, South Africa, for the wedding of Jill Fuller Crowley ’s son, Luke. While there, they joined a safari! ’68 Laurie Sammeth has been back in NYC for the last six years and has been acting, mostly in off-Broadway productions and other projects. Her daughter, Anna Campbell, is a television producer at PBS. Laurie has joined the 21st-century showbiz world; check out www.lauriesammeth.com. June Massell reports that daughter Samantha had a sold- out show at Broadway’s 54 Below theater in August. June is quite proud of her daughter, who won an Outstanding Actress Award from the Con- necticut Critics Circle in Rags with Goodspeed Musicals. Bonnie Blades Andre de- scribes Reunion as wonderful and over too soon. “It was a lot for my aging brain to han- dle, especially keeping track of keys to the apartment and rooms.” Bonnie and her sister Betsy ’71 toured Scotland this year. One of the highlights was a cross-country excursion on horseback above Loch Ness, and they spent two beautiful days on the Isle of Skye. Bonnie’s roots are Scot- tish on her mother’s side; she was particularly interested in checking out Clan Fraser sites. Cheryl Smith Major enjoyed Reunion’s opportunities to explore Saratoga Springs and the Skidmore campus. She was thrilled to spend time with fellow nursing majors, who are planning an interim reunion in two to three years. “Five years is too long to wait!” notes Cheryl. In June she and husband Harvey celebrated their 50th anniver- sary with their three children and six grandchildren in Sea- side Heights, N.J. Retired from neonatal nursing at Vanderbilt University Children’s Hospital, Cheryl remains active in health, family and residential challenges in the growing Nashville community. Nancy Baroff Dinar and her husband, Richard, had a “ter- rific time” at Reunion. Richard, who had spent a considerable amount of time on campus in student days, knew many of our classmates. Shortly after- ward, the couple celebrated their 50th anniversary in a Tuscan villa with children Josh, Meredith and Sami, along with their spouses and five grandchildren. An Icelandic AFS student who lived with them 35 years ago also joined the party. What a great celebration! In February 2019, Nancy and Richard plan to head to Antarctica. Andrea Fenton Campbell and husband Bill have relo- cated to Saratoga Springs from Delhi, N.Y. They are thor- oughly enjoying the transition and now live just down the street from son Andy, Skid- more’s director of gift plan- ning, daughter-in-law Ashley, and grandchildren Cruz and Holland. At Reunion, Andrea co-hosted our hospitality suite with Foxie Henn Mason . Jane Dow Friedman has reconnected with Skidmore (she says my postcard helped). A resident of Manka- to, Minn., she started several civic groups there, including the Mankato Area Fair Trade Initiative, now in its 25th year and the first of its kind in the state. Jane is an advocate for sustainable practices in waste management. She often travels to California to visit her son and daughter. Her daughter works with the homeless as a resource person; her son, who has a doctorate in neuroscience from Berkeley, is researching a new medication to treat memory loss and brain injury. Jane loves spending time with her 3-year-old grand- daughter, Ava. Sue Sobel Kaufman was happy that she returned for our 50th. Her picture with Dean Olds is quite a treasure! Sue is very glad to have attended Skidmore in the 1960s and also pleased with how the College has evolved. After our big week- end, she and her husband headed to Stockbridge, Mass., for their yearly reunion with Anne Kantor Lynn and her husband. Foxie Henn Mason returned from Reunion to the large for- est fire that began in Durango, Colo. Her community was saved by the remarkable ef- forts of firefighters and other responders. We were relieved to learn from several class- mates that Foxie was fine. She says, “It was wonderful to see all of you at Reunion!” Nickie Nickles Kates says politics and weather are getting scary, but life is still good. All three of her children and grandchil- dren live nearby, which is a great luxury. Also, she has reconnected with some high school friends, which is fun. Linda Gibson Stoner retired from Stoner Architects in Seattle this year. She plans to spend more time with her 7-year-old grandson and to pursue printmaking and painting in her studio. Barbara Allen Nearpass was sorry to miss Reunion due to family obligations. She now has four grandchildren, three being added quite recently. Last year Barbara drove to the Northwest for a wedding and stopped to visit Yellow- stone and the headwaters of the Mississippi in Minnesota, in addition to about 80 per- cent of the solar eclipse! Fires last year prevented her from touring Washington and Ida- ho, where she had planned to visit Glacier National Park. Bobbi Bell Liepolt and I had fun reconnecting at Reunion. Bobbi’s jewelry was featured in the Alumni Art Exhibition, along with photographs by Nancy Baroff Dinar . Bobbi, who does a lot of rowing, participated in three sprint races this summer. She and her husband are experiment- ing with beekeeping by host- ing a hive for friends. She’s not sure how much honey they will harvest, but says the bees are “fun to watch.” If you are on Facebook, you can view images of Bobbi’s ’66