1977 
Scribes: Nancy Herman Jarrett and Andrea Popik Taber
As I (Andi) sit and write these notes in April, I can’t help but wonder what the world will be like when this is published this summer. Will the pandemic be over? Will our lives have resumed at least some sense of normalcy? Summer seems very far away and, of course, everything is a big unknown. So for now, we pray that you and your families and friends are well. That all who have been affected by this pernicious virus have recovered, physically, mentally, economically, and in every other possible way.
From WY, Sylvia Miller Hackl writes that she is still handling prisoner litigation for the US District Court and also studying to be a registered investment advisor. Her legal career has included working as state public defender, chief deputy attorney general, deputy county attorney, city attorney, and legal counsel for a hospital, all in Cheyenne. She is living with her daughter and still able to go to her office since there are very few people there. Sylvia is happy to reconnect with MHC since it has been 15 years since she joined the Alumnae Glee Club trip to England and Wales!
Sending news for the first time, Debra Wilson reports that until 2017 she lived in NYC, working first for Rolling Stone Magazine. Later she was briefly in advertising and then attended law school. Rather than practicing law, Debra gravitated toward teaching and taught in Asia for 3 years. She then moved back to NYC, where she received a teaching fellowship and obtained a master’s degree. For 13 years Debra taught special education in an underserved school in Brooklyn, during which time she married and adopted a son from Russia. She writes that Ari has a number of challenges but has made tremendous strides, both literally and metaphorically. Debra retired in 2016, divorced in 2017, and moved, with her son to NC to be closer to family. She bought property in the country and built a single-wide mobile home. Life experiences include climbing Mount Kilimanjaro, riding horses in Mongolia, trekking in Uganda to observe mountain gorillas and volunteer teach, and traveling to India and Nepal. Debra writes that while she has struggled mightily, she has come to understand that the lows in life just make the highs that much sweeter. Good food for thought!
Ellen Coulter reports that she and her husband of 32 years, Scott Hutton, are retired and loving their freedom. Unfortunately, the current pandemic has temporarily curtailed their planned travel. Ellen writes that prior to moving to CO in 1983, she lived in New Orleans, where she first worked at a luxury hotel in the French Quarter and waited on, among others, Mick Jagger, Mohamed Ali and Don King. She also got to see live performances by Harry Connick Jr. and others. New Orleans has been hit hard by COVID-19, and Ellen was heartbroken to hear of the death of some of her friends there. In 1983 Ellen moved to CO, where she became a paralegal, ultimately retiring a few years ago from LexisNexis. Ellen writes that in Colorado Springs people are being cautious but are still able to go hiking and to stores. She chats periodically with Rosemary McCue, and has FB chats with other MHC friends, especially those with whom she shared the North Rocky basement freshman year.
Mary Stevens writes that she has been sheltering in Nashville, TN, since mid-March. She hadn’t been going out much even before that, but now is missing her daily therapy swim. Her husband is retired from Vanderbilt’s English department, but Mary is still helping to review applications for Vanderbilt’s undergraduate admissions office. Mary’s sons live in NYC and Boston. One is an actor, whose restaurant job vanished weeks ago. One daughter-in-law is a nurse, and the other is 8 months pregnant, so those are the ones she worries most about. Because Nashville is a fairly suburban city, Mary reports that they can socially distance by staying in their own yards. Her street started a daily check-in that has grown into a nightly social hour, with people gathering in a huge (distanced) circle in front of one of the houses, bringing drinks and stools, and catching up for ½ hour or so. Mary has heard from MHC roommate Deb Burnham Mackey and can tell from Facebook that Devon Miller Duggan “is alive and well!”
Carol Davis Jackson writes from Dallas, TX, that she has retired after serving as a PhD educator in elementary schools and universities in the Dallas-Fort Worth area. Since then she has enjoyed being an active part of the MHC DFW club. Their book group, comprised of a multi-generational group of alumnae, meets regularly at the home of Karen Wilbur ’68 and Dorie Crenshaw ’73. Carol also enjoys experiencing the world of art with Lillian (Lily) Williams ’18, who has led the club’s tours at the Dallas Museum of Art and the Arlington Museum of Art, where she is employed.
Susan Saxe sends greetings from NYC, where she has been in self-isolation for 30 days with her daughter Juliana (Hampshire ’22). They have groceries delivered to their door and have not left their apartment, except to go to the building lobby to retrieve mail or takeout. Juliana is participating in virtual classes and Susan is pursuing her consulting work at home and is amazed at how easily 30 days have slipped by. She is concerned about her mother, who lives alone and is managing nicely (and amazingly continues to produce a daily word game which is syndicated to newspapers around the world), but they both miss their weekly visits. Susan is also sad to have missed the chance to be back on campus for the graduation of her niece Emily Damon ’20. Nevertheless, “I recognize how incredibly lucky I am to be safe and I wish the same to all.”
Sue Rittenhouse Sokoloski checked in from Hartford, CT. She semi-retired in 2017, and fully retired last year from her career as a life insurance company medical director, a job she describes as “half-way between being a doctor and a business person.” Both daughters also live in New England, and Sue and her husband Tom now have 2 grandsons, with a 3rd on the way. They are keeping in touch with them and others via Zoom, Skype and FaceTime, much as the rest of the country is doing. Sue had a fun time meeting up via Zoom with MHC friends to celebrate Sandy Jones’s birthday. She described it as “a bright spot in an otherwise dark time in our world.” Sue is looking forward to getting out on their sailboat this summer, and hoping that favorite New England ports will be open for business and welcoming to cruisers.
Finally, Gerri Carr writes that she and husband Rob are sheltering in Chevy Chase, MD, with 2 of their 3 sons. One has been furloughed from a vet clinic job. The other accepted an offer from Deloitte. Son #3 is managing a restaurant and self-isolating in his own home. Life had already changed for Gerri in 2017 when her husband was diagnosed with a chronic disease and unexpectedly had to retire. They have traveled extensively in the past 2 years and had just returned from Eastern Europe on Feb. 21. The customs officer asked about travel to China but failed to inquire about interactions with groups of Chinese tourists or anything else! Gerri is spending time readying their home of 20 years for sale and connecting with classmates and others via Facebook and Zoom. She feels lucky that nobody in her immediate family has fallen ill.
As Gerri put it, we are all experiencing a mix of conflicting emotions: happiness, anxiety and terror. But, as she said, isolation is a small price to pay if it means others will live. I know we also all join Gerri in giving a shout-out and thank you to Sue Echterling for her service in the ER, as well as to all our other MHC classmates and sisters who are healthcare professionals, government leaders, or other essential workers who are selflessly working to keep us healthy and fed, and who are researching ways to defeat this terrible virus. Stay safe, everybody!