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Class Notes from the September 2001
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Did you miss last month's class notes? Visit the Shipmate Archive (on the class Web site) or click the To Alumni Only link if you are a current member. If not a current member, refer to bottom of this page. |
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55
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Annual Membership: 34% Life Membership: 35% |
A small contingent of ’55 Classmates attended the swearing-in ceremony for the Class of 2005 during Induction Day on 29 June. We were welcomed, informally, by the Commandant of Midshipmen, RADM Sam Locklear III ’77, USN and George Watt ’73, the president of the Alumni Association. It was a solemn, but heartwarming ceremony and brought back many memories of some of the same challenges that we faced 50 years ago. Some took the opportunity afterwards to congratulate some of the new Plebes who were unaccompanied. Reporting of this event, via the email circuit, brought out a number of positive and negative responses. This demonstrates again that we are not all of one mind, particularly on some USNA issues, e.g. ethics/leadership training, character-building, and the implications of societal influences. Paul Grozen attended and submitted the following:
| Phyllis and I had the thrill of attending Induction Day at the Academy on 29 June and watching our granddaughter, Rebecca Smith ’05, enter with the Class of 2005. Our son-in-law, Bruce Smith ’77, and I were able to swear her in Memorial Hall. Watching her make the transition to Midshipman made it seem like just yesterday, and not 50 years ago, that we had made the same transition. That is, until I remembered the recent comment made by a friend, "When you start to give her advice about USNA remember how much you appreciated the wise counsel you received from members of the Class of 1905." Really puts things in perspective! |
Denny Sullivan writes:
| In June, I had a great experience—sailing the Chesapeake Bay with Bill Kennington in his 35-foot Endeavor, CLEAN SWEEP. John Ganey joined us for a grand tour of the middle bay. We sailed from Annapolis to St. Michaels on the first day with an overnight at the Marine Museum there. Next day we sailed to Tilghman Island at the mouth of the Choptank River and then on to Solomons Island in Calvert County, MD (near Joannie and Dick Morgan’s home). The following day we sailed up the Potomac and spent the night with friends near St. Mary’s City—one of the oldest English settlements in the country. From there, a long, tough sail back to Tilghman for an overnight and then back to Annapolis the next day. It was a good week, sailing most of the time with fair weather and no rain. Bill was fine-tuning his boat to sail in the Maryland Governor’s Cup Race in August from Annapolis to St. Mary’s. He is recruiting professional sailors to help him with that. |
Just before the sail, I attended the reception and dinner party that marked the kickoff of the Naval Academy Foundation’s Campaign, "Leaders to Serve the Nation." It was a gala affair with speeches by the Superintendent, the President of the Alumni Association, and Co-Chairs Roger Staubach ’65 and Dan Akerson ’70. Classmates Bill Anders, Mel Fisher, and Ernst Volgenau could not attend, but all were recognized as already having made substantial contributions to the Campaign.
The goal of the Campaign is to raise $175 million over the next four and a half years to fund key priorities and programs in the Superintendent’s Strategic Plan to enhance academics and the quality of the Naval academy experience (all members of the Alumni Association should have received a pamphlet describing the Campaign and its goals). The Class will be solicited by letter and by phone to contribute to the Campaign. Class contributions can be directed toward our 50-year Class gift to the Academy. All contributions, whether general or directed, will be part of the enduring legacy of the Class of 1955.
We have some 75 Classmates who for some reason have let their Alumni Association membership lapse. All will be getting letters from me, but if you know anyone who has not renewed, please encourage them to rejoin—they are missing a lot of Class and Academy news. And there are almost 200 "hard cases" who have never joined the Alumni Association. If you know any of these, please tell them it is never too late. There are great things happening at the Academy and in the Class of 1955’s relationship with it.
Ray Hine catches us up on the golf goings-on in the nation’s capitol:
| The Class of ’55 golf season is well underway in the Washington Metro area. All three events to date have had their own personal stamps of individuality and, of course, a good complement of characters. Our first outing was at Maryland’s Worthington Manor Club on 17 April. It will forever be called the cold chill as we played in 35-mph winds with temperatures in the mid-to-low 40s. It even snowed by the time some of us got home. In the meantime it was a memorable day for the eight hearty Classmates who survived it all: Hartley Holte, Dick Morgan, Tom Schultz, Tony Bracken, Denny Sullivan, Monroe Hatch, Ray Hine, and Joe Chmelik. Monroe Hatch was the low scorer for the day and seemed to be least influenced by the wind. Following golf, we were treated to warming libations and a family sit-down dinner at the lovely home of host Joe and his wife, Pat Chmelik. Pat did a wonderful job in preparing and serving an All-American roast beef dinner with homemade lemon meringue pie for dessert. |
| Our second event was the Class challenge at the Fawn Lake Country Club outside Fredericksburg, VA. Unfortunately, we lost this fifth challenge for the second time in a row after winning the first three years. The final score in this modified scoring system was 19.5 to 17.5. Jack Renard and Joe Dunn came in from Wintergreen and Glen Bates, from the Fredericksburg area, joined the ole faithfuls. It was a wonderful day with a great layout and wonderful planning by Fred Dunbar and Jim Poole from the Class of 1957. While we came close, we will have more opportunities in the future. In the meantime, the Class of 1957 deserves a BZ. |
| The most recent golf outing was held at the Army-Navy course in Arlington. We had eight Classmates once again with an honorary one in Stuart White, who designed and installed our Class wall gift and remembrance in Alumni Hall. It was a great day with wonderful, but hot weather with much opportunity to cool off in the after hours clubroom hosted by Tony Bracken, who also carded the low score for the day. When I left, Holte and Morgan were attempting to work out a deal with Sullivan as how they could spend a few more hours drinking, eating or whatever, before they got on the road to their distant homes in Maryland and thereby miss the traffic at that time of day. Steve Ruth, the good professor from George Mason University, was able to join us. |
| Our next outing was on 17 July at Bell Haven Country Club hosted by Don Kellerman with dinner following—a much anticipated event on the Metro area tour. On 21 August, Denny Sullivan hosted an outing at the Army-Navy course in Fairfax, a very nice layout and a fun event. |
Angelo "Chick" Cicolani sadly reports that Paul M. Hoff Jr. (11) died suddenly on 13 June of a heart attack while on a business trip to New York City. His remains will be scattered in the Big Horn Mountains of Wyoming. Eula, his wife of 37 years, can be reached at: 3800 E. Long Road, Greenwood Village, CO 80121-1914. A few of Chick’s recollections are:
| Paul was my roommate for most of our time at Mother Bancroft. We were the ’55 version of the "Odd Couple." Paul was an honored member of the radiator squad during those days, but grass never had a chance to grow under his feet after he left USNA and he never looked back. Paul went right into Navy Air and flew F3H Demons in VF-41 from INDEPENDENCE. He had the most night carrier landings when he left to fly F-102 Delta Daggers in the 325th Interceptor Fighter Squadron at Truax AFB. He was an exchange pilot to the Air Force and became locally infamous for buzzing the housing area and shattering windows. Soon, Paul left active duty to fly A-1 Skyraiders in Reserve Squadron VA 732 (a real comedown for a jet-jockey). He resigned in 1961,which was best reflected in his one line "biography" for our 30th anniversary book: "Look forward, not back"…which is exactly what he did! |
| Paul went to Harvard Business School in 1962; in 1964 he married Eula Harmon, daughter of the Air Force Academy’s first Superintendent (USMA ’15), thereby joining USMA, USNA, and USAFA in one family. In 1966 Paul earned his doctorate in business administration and promptly retired to Denver. Thereafter, life was as adventurous as can be imagined. He frequently logged 100k flying miles in successive years for both business and sightseeing to every corner of the world. |
| Paul was the consummate private tour arranger for groups of friends whom he prodded to get off their butts for unusual adventures. I had the pleasure of joining Paul, Eula, and his 92-year old mother for a three week safari to Kenya in 1996…it was their fourth safari. |
| Paul was a very successful investor and businessman. He was extraordinarily loyal to his friends and generous beyond any concept of a fault. The world is a whole lot less lively and colorful without Paul. |
Walter Herman Schulze II (2), of Glenview, IL, who continued a family legacy as part of the Schulze & Burch Biscuit Co. of Chicago, died of cancer on Friday, 1 June, in the Cleveland Clinic Hospital in Ft. Lauderdale, FL. Walt served in the Navy for four years before returning home to help continue the successful family business in Comiskey Park since 1939 (the company introduced the Saltine cracker and also makes the Toast’em pastry brand). In 1980, he started a commercial finance firm, Schulze & Associates, which initially provided asset based loans and equity funding for start-up companies. The company began financing feature-length films and videos in 1991. Schulze is survived by his wife of 40 years, Leona Kenders Schulze; a brother, Paul Schulze III; three daughters, Laura Campbell, Rev. Constance Rose, and Paula DeLaughter; and a son, Walter H. Schulze III.
Articles from Classmates who have led adventuresome lives are always welcome. Fred McLaren certainly qualifies:
| I thought I would finally make an input that might be of interest in our Class column in Shipmate. The enclosed picture shows me emerging from the Russian deep diving submersible MIR-1 following a 12 and a half hour dive to 15,700 feet beneath the sea to thoroughly examine and photograph the German battleship BISMARCK as part of the first manned dives to BISMARCK earlier this month. BISMARCK still looks quite formidable and is remarkably well preserved! I am now convinced she was scuttled by her crew, of whom two survivors joined us on the expedition. Both National Geographic and IMAX teams joined in this operation organized by Deep Ocean Expeditions and the P.P. Shirshov Institute of Oceanology, Russian Academy of Sciences. This is my fourth expedition with them as a team leader, scientist, and lecturer. I have also made dives to RMS TITANIC at 12,500 feet and the newly discovered "Rainbow" hydrothermal vents along the Mid-Atlantic Ridge at 9,000 feet during 1999 and 2000. An extremely interesting new career! We hope to make a series of dives to the bottom at the North Pole and the Gakkel Ridge, an extension of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge into the Arctic, during the late summer of 2002. |
| I recently stepped down, after four years, as 33rd president of the nearly 100 year old Explorers Club. The Club has about 2,900 members with the basic criterion for membership being that the candidate has taken part in expeditions that have brought back new knowledge for mankind. I am now emeritus and serve as vice president for Chapters. Other Classmates involved are George W. Martin and Francis Stokes. |
| I enjoyed meeting many Classmates and old friends at the 45th Reunion, but look forward to the 50th with mixed emotions. |
Carl Peterson and his wife, Trudi, attended the First National Come-Around of the RV Chapter in Bardstown, KY.
| There are several ’55 members, but those attending were Jean and Darrel Westbrook, and George Atkins. This picture of us was taken before one of the many "Happy Hours" at the RV park. While there, we watched the races at Churchill Downs from the Skye Terrace, better known as "Millionaires’ Row," toured the Makers Mark and Jim Beam Distilleries, visited the Patton Museum at Fort Knox, and tried unsuccessfully to get some gold from The Depository at Fort Knox. Churchill Downs welcomed "U.S. Naval Academy Alumni" on the large announcement board—there were about 30 Alumni attending. |
Enclosed is a photo of a recent meeting of the "Southern Shores Chapter" USNA ’55. Looks like a contented group to me!
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