620+ Card Pickup

As I continue to locate current addresses for all, I have tried to be cognizant of the horrible storm damage left behind by Irene, and tried not to bother folks in the affected states. Well, hoping against hope that our classmates were lucky enough not to live in a floodplain or on a riverbank, I started to call folks in Wayne and surrounding areas and in New England with a few West Coast and Florida folks thrown in the mix too.

So I called Judy Wackwitz Gerasimenko, who recognized me, spoke long enough to say she wanted in the directory and to let me know that although she was done wading in water, she was now wading in contractor estimates for repairs to her home, so she couldn't chat and didn't know when she would be back on line to send a current photo. I thanked her, wished her good luck and went on my way. I also spoke with Janice Peck Klear who was somewhat surprised to hear from me, thought the directory was a great idea and wanted to be listed. Sometimes it is like holding a deck of 620+ cards and tossing them in the air and picking them at random to try and locate or call. Just like the old "52 card pickup" game. You push the calls into the pipeline and then you get calls or emails back. It took a second to realize to whom I was talking, but I finally came out of the fog and talked to Donna Hohnarth Van Lenten who was of immense help and just flooded me with names and possible locations for folks.

Almost forgot that I had talked with Mike Scalzo last week who rather sadly mentioned that his best friends, Ron Haggar and John Iraola were gone and that he hadn't really been in touch with anyone else since their passing. I suggested being listed in the directory might change that and he agreed. It's pretty much the same story for many. You have people you were close to. Now you are either still in touch with 40+ year friendships, or you've lost touch and don't know if it was your fault or not and so even if you had contact information you don't know if you should get in touch because of embarrassment or some other self perceived blame or fault. Been there, done that. Make the call. Send the email. I can't say it enough - there were reasons you were friends in the first place. Unless either you or they have changed and become completely different people, those reasons are still there. Once the directory is up and on line, you'll have that choice to make. Choice is good, for the Class of '67 and good for you.