Swarthmore H.S.
Class of 1959

Fiftieth Reunion 2009

  News and Views 

 

The Good and Bad News

Nov. 29 2009. We are so sorry to let you know that Peggy Russell Stenstrom died on November 27th.  Her husband said she went peacefully in her sleep and was in no pain.  Our thoughts and prayers are with her family.

Margaret Stenstrom "Peggy"
Published in the Star-Ledger on November 29, 2009

Margaret Williston Stenstrom, 68, known as Peggy, died Friday evening, Nov. 27, 2009, at her home in Summit, surrounded by her family. Relatives and friends are invited to call Monday, Nov. 30, from 7 to 9 p.m. and Tuesday, Dec. 1, from 2 to 4 and 7 to 9 p.m. at the William R. Dangler Funeral Home, 309 Springfield Ave., Summit. Memorial services will be Wednesday, Dec. 2, at 11 a.m. at Central Presbyterian Church, Summit. Interment of ashes will be Saturday, Dec. 12, at the Newton Cemetery, Newton Centre, Mass. Born in Portland, Maine, Mrs. Stenstrom was raised in Brunswick, Maine, and Swarthmore, Pa., and had lived in West Newton, Mass.; San Francisco, Calif.; West Hartford, Conn., and Medfield, Mass., before moving to Summit, N.J., 31 years ago. She also enjoyed spending time on Cape Cod at her home in Sagamore Beach, Mass. Mrs. Stenstrom earned her BA in sociology from Penn State University in 1963. She had worked as a first grade teacher in California, Connecticut and New Jersey, and spent the last 18 years of her tenure as a teacher with the Central Presbyterian Church Nursery School in Summit, NJ . She retired in 2008. Mrs. Stenstrom loved children and the profession of teaching. She was an avid bridge and Scrabble player. Survivors include her husband, Stephen; two daughters, Karen Stenstrom Sauers and her husband, Jonathan, and Elizabeth Margaret Stenstrom both of Summit; a sister, Emily Russell, of West Newton, Mass., a brother, Stephen Russell of Wausau, Wis., and three grandchildren, Andrew, Thomas, and Margaret Sauers. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to The Jimmy Fund, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, 10 Brookline Place West, Brookline, Mass. 02445.

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May 9, 2009. We are all grieving with Dawn Boyer Roxby who recently lost her eldest son.  Brian survived a bone marrow transplant for lymphona seventeen years ago and went on to become a doctor.  For the last two years he was in and out of the hospital. Last December he underwent a heart transplant .  His whole system gradually gave out, and he recently died of massive bleeding in the brain.  It is hard to imagine what Dawn has been through during two years of anguish and frequent trips between Arizona and Indianapolis.  Our prayers and thoughts are with her. 

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May 8, 2009, Message from Joe Moran.

Classmates, Yesterday I received a call from a friend of Bill Glaser in Virginia.  He was responding to a letter I mailed to Bill and several others about the reunion. Bill died of cancer in a Veterans Administration hospital in Virginia on Nov. 3, 2002.  Bill served in the Army for four years during the Vietnam war.  No other information is available.

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We have learned with regret that Dan O'Brien died in 1994 of complications from exposure to Agent Orange while serving in the Marine Corps in Vietnam. Thanks to Jim Hueston for tracking this down through Dan's sister Maggie.

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Susan Preston Martin has passed along the sad news of the death of Meg Colafemina Douglas on February 16 after a long illness. Her husband Dennis indicates that a memorial service will probably be held at a later date. Meg will be greatly missed by all of us.

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 Ann Cooper Leonard and her husband John celebrated their 41st Wedding Anniversary in 2008.  They have a 36 year old daughter with an MBA from Drexel specializing in computer languages. (MIS/SAP)   Ann would like to attend the reunion but she has chronic osteoporosis and is beginning to have memory problems.  Her travels are limited to Doctors appointments and the hairdresser.  Ann and John are retired in Sun City, Florida half way between Tampa and Sarasota on the Gulf Coast. (see photo page)

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Betty Gemmill reports on the loss of Carol Honnold. , “There were 5 of us at Carol's funeral in   Kennett Square, Pa. the summer of 2004 - there was Gene Melcher, John Thurman, Thad Adams, Barbara Adams and me.  I am sorry I could not reach more classmates—please  forgive me—I  want to apologize. Since I no longer drive a car, I had to plan carefully.  Luckily an old boy friend (we played together in the Harvard Radcliffe orchestra in 1960 Brahms 4th symphony) met me in Kennett Square and we drove to the cemetery near Longwood Gardens together.  Carol wanted to die before her mom and dad - and God answered her prayer. Both her mom and dad were there at the funeral - Carol had a very difficult life - we kept in touch by telephone. 

Carol's funeral was very beautiful - Heidi's husband Dr. David Spencer played the violin - and a friend of Carol's daughter played and sang a Bob Dylan song "I am Released."

More by Betty Gemmill: “Luckily my old friend drove me to Swarthmore after the ceremony at the cemetery. We talked with my brother Bruce (now 73, Class of 1952) and I took the train back to New York City. Stayed one night in Swarthmore at Bruce's home on Muhlenberg (built by some relatives of Ada Kroon).  My mom was also Dutch and she loved that house.  I kind of missed Vassar Ave. where there were so many kids to play with—but  it was already our Junior year when we moved - so all that "Capture the Flag" stuff was over by then."

Mini-Reunion Spring 2008

The news that Elsa Stradley Johnson was coming in from the west coast set off consultations leading to a recent gathering organized by Gene Melcher at the Towne House in Media. Pictures follow...

 

Janet (Peters) and Warren Pickersgill, Nancy and Joe Moran, Thaddeus Adams.

Gene Melcher, Bill Medford, June Melcher, Betsy (Hicks) Medford, Barbara (Adams) Rickards.

Back l to r:  J Thurman, J Turner, B Medford,  H Valentine, J Moran, J Lewicki, R Taylor;
Middle l to r:  G Melcher, T Adams, J Peters,  M Turner, C Smith;
Seated l to r:  C A Smith B Adams,  E (Stradley) and S Johnson.

June 11,2008: Rendez-vous in California click here

CLICK HERE FOR A GALLERY OF OTHER RECENT PHOTOS OF CLASSMATES

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