Current News 2010 to 2011
Current News Archive 2012 to Present
Current News Archive 2007 through 2009
December 4,
2011 AM
New construction
pictures from the new high school have been posted. The exterior is starting to
look pretty good, for a prison.
November 12,
2011 PM
Susan Johnson and
Connie Miller have new email addresses. The Class List has been updated.
Earlier today, I
sent a broadcast email to all Class of 59 classmates containing a link to
YouTube. It was not my intent to offend anyone. I normally do not forward any
of these Internet floaters, even to my family, but this one struck a chord. I
thought most of you, being of the same age and having a similar background,
could relate. I wasn’t making any political statement nor will I in the future.
So, I will refrain from using this email list in the future for anything that
is not NHS, class or classmate related.
November 12,
2011 AM
I received the
following email today from Ken Poole.
“Al,
After 37 marathons....finally, finished in First Place in age group in the New
Hampshire Marathon in Manchester (Manchester City Marathon) over the
weekend.. OK...., I was running with a bunch of old guys....70+ folks who
really belong in a retirement home and the time wasn't all that great, but I'll
take it. A tough run, more like the Alaska Iditarod, it traversed every bad
road in the state including trail runs thru woods, field and frozen streams. We
were scheduled to run the Cape Cod Marathon in Falmouth, but with rain and
winds at 45 mph off Nantucket Sound, we wimped out an hour before the start and
rebooted to run New Hampshire. It was a good choice although the temperature at
the start was 23 degrees. Cold for t-shirt and shorts, but it warmed up
into the 50's before the end so it was all good. It was a Boston Qualifier run
and I am signed up to run Boston in April. Stay tuned.”
This would seem to
indicate that Ken Poole holds the record for the most marathons run by any
other member of the Class of 1959 and with this win maybe he also has the most
wins by any member in our class.
I’m waiting to
hear from anyone who can contradict this. Like maybe Ray Kent???
Congratulations to
Ken and to anyone else who has been able to run even a single marathon. Mama
Lucia.
November 8,
2011 PM
I received a Thank
You Note from Joan Fitzgerald, Coach Fitzgerald’s wife, on behalf of the Class
of 1959. You can access it from his In Memoriam Page or by clicking here.
Robert Roth has a
new email address. The Class List has been updated.
October 27,
2011 PM
Dean Webb has a
new address. Phone number and email are unchanged. Class List has been updated.
October 21,
2011 PM
We probably all
remember the old Colonial Movie Theatre, but how many of you know it’s history, the beginning and the end? Take a little time
and read this history. Click here.
October 21,
2011 AM
Dick Soby and I
attended Coach Fitzgerald’s Wake yesterday afternoon. I have updated his In
Memoriam page to include two cards that were available at the funeral home in
his memory. I have made both of these pictures savable. Just click on each
picture and then do a right click for the Save As feature. This link will take you
directly to the In Memoriam Page.
Never missing an
opportunity to take more pictures of the new high school construction, Dick and
I took a nostalgic swing through our old neighborhood and so I have up to date
pictures of the construction progress.
October 18,
2011 AM
Anna Thompson has
moved. Her new address has been updated in the class list.
October 18,
2011 AM
Dear Classmates,
The information
below comes to us from Dick Wells’ daughter Suzanne. Please take the time to
click on the links and follow Dick’s progress during this difficult time in his
life. Many thanks to Judy Buckler Klein for providing me with this information.
|
|
Connecting Family and Friends When Health Matters Most |
Dear Family and Friends,
A CaringBridge website was created to share health news and receive support. Show
your support. Visit to keep up to date and leave a message
in the guestbook.
Visit online
Find Richard (Dick)’s site at www.caringbridge.org/visit/DickieWells.
Visit on mobile
Find Richard (Dick)’s site at m.caringbridge.org/visit/DickieWells.
Or, enter DickieWells on your CaringBridge app for iPhone or
Android.
CaringBridge is a free, nonprofit web service that connects people experiencing
a significant health challenge to their family and friends, making each health
journey easier.
Sincerely,
Suzanne
October 18,
2011 AM
One of the
teachers that we honored at out 50th reunion has passed away. Coach
Gerry Fitzgerald died this past Saturday, October 15, 2011. His obituary page
can be seen by clicking here. I expect to be in
attendance at the Wake. Not sure of the time yet. I may also send some flowers
from our class, no donations necessary.
October 2, 2011
PM
I have posted the latest
pictures from the New High School construction project. Lots of exterior
progress.
October 1, 2011
AM
Ron Therieau has a
new email address. The class list has been updated.
September 11,
2011 PM
While attending the
third day of the Class of 1961 50th reunion, I had an opportunity to
get some pictures of the High School Construction. Plans are to have this done
by the fall of 2012. They are making great progress. Check out the new pictures
in the New Natick High School page.
September 6,
2011 AM
Mary Daly has a
new email address. The Class List has been updated/
August 28, 2011
AM
Sandy Buswell has
a new email address. The Class List has been updated.
August 25, 2011
AM
Current pictures
of both Memorial field and the new high school have been posted. Things are
starting to move along, but I couldn’t help but notice, when looking at the
aerial view of the old school and then the architect’s drawing of the new
school, the stark contrast in character. That old 1950’s school had character
and uniqueness. Take a look at some old prison pictures here.
August 17, 2011
PM
Dean Webb has
provided two new pictures from his earlier days at Marco Island. Check them out
by clicking on his picture in the Then and Now section. What we once did all
night we now do all night, once.
August 12, 2011
PM
The class list has
been updated to reflect Kevin Keane’s new email address and cell phone number.
July 24, 2011
AM
Gloria Jones has
provided a new email address. The Class List has been updated.
July 5, 2011 AM
Spent a lovely day
in Natick yesterday. A great parade as usual.
I did visit the
new high school construction site and the new Memorial field. New pictures have
been posted. These pictures can be clicked on to get larger, more detailed
views.
As we approached
the ball field, we were stopped by a hawk standing in the street. He eventually
flew away, but seemed stunned for a few minutes. The hawk had his picture
taken.
July 3, 2011 PM
A website
chronicling the early history of Natick just came to my attention from the
Class of 1961 web site. After I took the time to view the presentation I was
amazed that this was never taught in the Natick school system OR I wasn’t
paying attention that year. Either case may be true. In any event, take the
time to watch and listen to old Natick. http://www.natickhistoricslideshow.com
June 25, 2011
PM
Well, it looks
like Kevin Keane has stopped his world traveling and settled down again. The
Class List has been updated with his new address. I expect a new email from him
soon.
June 25, 2011
AM
If anyone went
looking for Linda Torti’s new email address during the past 2 days, they would
have found an invalid address. It has now been corrected.
June 23, 2011
PM
Pat Morgan and Linda
Torti have new email addresses. The Class List has been updated. If you cannot
open the MS Word List, send me an email and I’ll send you a pdf of the file. If
you don’t understand what I just wrote, put the computer back in the box and
returned to the store.
June 18, 2011
PM
I have completed
the review of the Vietnam Moving Wall pictures and pamphlets collected this
past June 9th. I have updated the newly added page. If I have made
any errors, please let me know as soon as you can.
June 11, 2011
PM
The Vietnam Moving
Wall Ceremony took place on Thursday, June 9th, 2011, but not as
planned. The ceremony had to be relocated to the High School Auditorium at the
last minute due to heavy rain and thunder. I have added a page to show you all
the pictures taken by our Russ Barber, but have not yet had time to process
them all. So I give you one teaser. More later.
May 30. 2011 PM
I happened to be
in Natick today so I went by the high school to check on the construction
progress. There are new pictures of the school and a few of Memorial Field.
Don’t break any records going to look at them. Progress is painfully slow. The
best I can show you is that the new artificial turf in down on the field.
May 21, 2011 PM
Russ Barber
provided a few pictures of Ron Curtis, Kevin Keane and himself just prior to
the 50th Reunion. They have been added to Ron’s Memoriam page.
May 18, 2011 AM
Georgene Knott has
a new email address. The Class List has been updated.
May 17, 2011 PM
Most of you may
not be aware of an organization called Upstate Young Marines. Russ Barber would
be the expert on that, but suffice it to say that it is an organization that
provides training and discipline for young folks. Russ has and is very
involved. He has provided me with a picture showing the some adult management,
of which he is one, and can be seen by clicking on his picture in the Then and
Now section or clicking directly here. Scroll down to
the last picture.
May 10, 2011 PM
By now, you should
have all received a couple of emails concerning the Vietnam Moving Wall coming
to Natick on June 9th. Russ Barber, Kevin Keane and I will be given
the honor of placing a wreath next to Allen’s name on this wall. The ceremony
starts at 6PM and shouldn’t last much more than an hour. The location is on
West Street across from the Baseball Field, right next to the Football field.
There is an
outside chance that one of Allen’s niece’s will attend. Should that happen, she
will be part of the wreath placing activity.
I hope some of you
will be able to make it.
May 10. 2011 PM
Irene Grady Foley
has a new email address. The class list has been updated.
May 8, 2011 AM
The General has
died. Paul “General Joe” Saponaro, one of our most colorful classmates died
suddenly this past Thursday, May 5th. His obituary has been posted
to the In Memoriam page. I expect to get around to putting together my own early
life experiences with Paul. I will add that to his memorial page soon.
May 5, 2011 PM
We have an updated
email address for Richard Brown. Check the Class List.
That leaves me
with Fred Rogers and Jackie Higgins with bouncing email addresses. If anyone
has been in contact with either of them, please let me know.
April 19, 2011
PM
It turns out that
the Biography Word file is so big that it takes forever to download. Be
patient, I will split the file into several smaller chunks so that it will be
easier to download. I’ll also leave the complete file out there so you can
download it once if you like. It is recommended that you save the download on
your computer for faster reference in the future. Whenever anything changes, I
always post that information in the Current News Blog.
April 18, 2011
PM
Just came back
from Natick to see Ken Poole running in the Marathon and I also checked in at
the new high school to check on its progress.
Ken can be seen in
the Marathon Page.
The High School
pictures have been posted to the New
Natick High School Page. Big changes at Memorial Field.
April 16, 2011
PM
The Boston
Marathon is Monday, April 18th. Ken Poole will be running again.
This time, he has a special surprise for anyone lucky enough to be in downtown
Natick when he makes his way towards Boston. See the SURPRISE
HERE. You can track Ken by his number 19617.
April 16, 2011
PM
I have finally
created a Bio Word file that is password protected. Same password as for the
Class List which is unchanged from the very beginning. It is a large file so be patient and give it time
to download. I suggest that once you download it, save it to your computer. It
isn’t expected to change over the next several years. You will get a
request for a password once it has completed the download. If you don’t
remember the password or failed to write it down, send me an email. If you
can’t open Word files, ask and I shall send you a pdf file. Everyone can open a
pdf file, even Mac users.
April 14, 2011
AM
I have managed to
convert the Class List to a password protected Word document. Same password as
before. I should have the bios done soon.
If you have any
problems with this conversion, let me know.
April 11, 2011
AM
In order to make
your personal information(address, phone number, email
address and biography) more secure, I am reformatting the Class List page. In
the future, this page will only contain a password protected MS Word document.
If you can’t open MS Word docs, you can email me and I will send you an Adobe
PDF version. I should have this completed soon, especially if it rains later
today.
March 30, 2011
AM
Ray Kent has
provided a new email address. Check the updated Class List.
February 26,
2011 AM
George Williams
has a new email address. Check the class list.
During this past email
broadcast, several emails bounced back. If anyone has updated contact
information for these classmates, please let me know.
Dan Donovan(friend of the class), Jim Teague(over quota?),
Richard Brown, Jackie Higgins, Fred Rogers, Joe Fahey.
February 24,
2011 PM
I have received
some new pictures of Dick in his later life that I have added to his Special
Biography page linked in his In Memoriam page. Many thanks to the fine people
at Plumb House for providing this material during this most difficult time.
February 23,
2011 PM
For all you loyal
readers of this blog, I am announcing to you and you alone that the Dick
Anderson In Memoriam page has been updated to show
some new information. Take a few minutes and look around.
February 13,
2011 PM
NEW High School is
being built. We have some pictures. Go to the New Natick High School page and
click on the picture of the new school rendering.
Admittedly, the
pictures of the new high school under construction are difficult to understand,
but they at least show the steel going up.
Additional
pictures will be forthcoming in the weeks ahead. This is a two year project, so
I won’t be taking pictures all that often.
February 12,
2011
Russ Barber sent
me a couple of pictures of Kevin Keane that I have added to his Then and Now
picture. Just click on Kevin’s picture and the new page should open. For many
of you who do not know, Kevin’s wife, Brenda, passed away recently. Kevin has
been visiting with some friends and just recently made it to Russ’s area of the
world, South Carolina.
December 7,
2010 AM
Please take a few
minutes and view this video of Dick Anderson. This was created at a family reunion
a few years ago that included the Anderson’s and the Tozer’s. Some of you
should remember Bill and Sue. Bill was in the class of 56 and Sue from 58. They
were Dick’s cousins.
I don’t know how long this will be online, but
it is available today.
December 4,
2010 AM
I do plan to put
together some kind of special tribute to our Class President for Life, Dick
Anderson. I haven’t quite put a plan together just yet. Anyone with thoughts as
to what we should do, please send an email to me at allanross@comcast.net.
November 19,
2010 PM
I have posted the obituary
for Dick Anderson in his memorial page.
November 19,
2010 AM
It is with a great
deal of sadness that I must tell you of the passing of Dick Anderson. Dick died
in the early morning hours of November 17th. Exact details of his
death have not yet been confirmed, but I have been told that he was taken from
his home in Westboro to the UMass Medical center in the early evening hours of
the 16th. He died shortly thereafter.
His obituary
should be in the local papers tomorrow, Saturday the 20th. I will
post that on the web site.
For anyone
planning to attend his wake and funeral, the times and locations are listed
below.
Both the Wake and the
Funeral will take place at the Chapel of the Cross, 160 Flanders Road,
Westboro.
Viewing hours are
Monday, November 22nd from 4PM to 8PM
Funeral will be
Tuesday, November 23rd at 10AM
A memorial page
has been added to the In Memoriam section.
October 30,
2010 AM
I have added a new
link to the New Natick
High which shows the proposed layout of the entire site.
October 18,
2010 AM
I have added a new
page to the web site today. It contains information about the Natick Wall of
Achievement which has been in existence since 1996. There is an upcoming
induction ceremony scheduled for November 23rd, 2010. Our esteemed
History teacher, Emmett Shea, is being given a very special award. Please take
a look at the invitation and let me know if you are interested in attending.
October 8, 2010
AM
As a result of the
broadcast email about the 40th reunion pictures provided by Sandy
Skeans, I heard from David Buckingham’s daughter, Sarah. She informed me that
David passed away suddenly this past September 21st. His obituary
has been posted in his In Memoriam page. Sarah may be sending me some photos to
add to the page.
October 6, 2010
AM
All of the
pictures provided by Sandy Skeans from our 40th reunion have been
processed and posted on the 40th Reunion Summary page.
Hopefully, more
people who took pictures will respond to my email plea and send me some. I have
already heard from one person who has promised to send me some pictures soon.
September 21,
2010 PM
It has only been a
little over 3 ½ months since the First Hall of Fame dinner took place. I
finally processed a few pictures to prove that our class was well represented.
See the Link on the main page, First
Hall of Fame Dinner.
September 16,
2010 AM
Ron Curtis’s wife
Caroline informed me today of Ron’s passing. His obituary has been added to the
In Memoriam page
September 12,
2010 AM
Dick Wright has
provided an updated address, phone number and email address. The Class List has
been updated.
September 5,
2010 PM
I have added the
Class of 1976 web site link to Other Natick High School Links page.
September 2,
2010 AM
I have added a new
link on the main page that points to other web pages that are connected to
Natick High School. As I learn of more, I will add them to the list. For the
moment we have:
·
Class of 1961
·
Class of 1985
·
Natick Athletic Hall of Fame
They are all very
interesting. Take some time and browse through them.
August 31, 2010
PM
Phil Rierdan’s
former wife, Ginger, sent me a picture of Phil from the 80’s. She also made a
few corrections to his obituary. I have updated his In Memoriam page.
August 26, 2010
AM
I received a notification
today from Robert Graham announcing the passing of Richard Casaly. Richard had
been living in the Albany, NY area for most of his life. His obituary has been
posted in the In Memoriam section.
August 15, 2010
AM
Thanks to an old
South Natickite, Edie Hopf, Class of 1961, for finally clearing up the mystery
as to the name of the old drug store opposite the Bacon Free Library. The name
was Cooper’s. The picture
has been updated.
August 13, 2010
AM
I have been in
touch with Phil Rierdan’s former wife and finally found out his date of birth.
Not the biggest news in the world, but I seem to be addicted to collecting ALL
the information about our classmates. Don’t be surprised if I manage to finally
find Lee Richard(nee Arthur Leo Richard).
Anyway, Phil’s
former wife has agreed to review his obituary and provide some additional
information about his life’s trials and triumphs.
August 12, 2010
AM
We have a slight
change to the email address for Carol and Charlie LePage. Check the Class list
for the new address. One letter has been deleted from the .com name.
August 8, 2010
PM
I was saddened
today to find Ron Harlow’s obituary in the Metro West Daily News. His obituary
has been added to the In Memoriam page.
July 29, 2010
AM
Today marked the
official end of the NHS Class of 1959 50th Reunion Activities. I had
been called by the library to retrieve the material we had on display honoring
Allen Loane. So that task has now been completed. Many thanks to Russ Barber
who was 100% responsible for making everything happen.
On a slightly
different note: Over the past year several classmates have either moved,
changed phone numbers, changed email address or have gone undercover in some
other sort of way. Some folks have kept me updated while others have not. Let me be clear about the following, keeping the class list up to
date and accurate now falls to each and every one of you. If you don’t want to be bothered in the future, don’t
bother to let me know your new contact information. But, if you wish to be
included in future news and plans about classmates and other Class activities,
then give me a call, send me an email, send me a letter, drop by the house, do
something.
June 28, 2010
AM
I have had several
requests for a Data CD of the web site. They have all been sent out. Anyone
else wishing to have one should contact me via email or phone. Cost is $10, all
of which will be donated to the fund for the next reunion.
Ann Phinney has
moved. Her new address is updated in the Class List. If you have forgotten the
password(again), drop me a note and I’ll send it
along.
June 14, 2010
AM
It seems that
Cynthia Pierro Martin gave me a new address to post some time ago and I was
remiss in taking care of business. The Class List has now been updated.
I am in the
process of putting together a Data CD of the web site for classmates to
purchase. I should have all the pieces put together either today or tomorrow
and will send out an email asking for anyone’s interest. All proceeds will go
towards our next reunion.
May 26, 2010 PM
I finally had a
chance to locate Allen Loane’s grave at the Dell Park Cemetery in Natick. I
have added a new link in his In Memoriam page that shows both sides of the
grave marker.
Click here for a direct link to
the new page.
If you would like
to see the marker in person, it is located in the western most area of the
cemetery, almost all the way back near the woods.
May 12, 2010 AM
Included in the Program
handed out at the Hall of Fame Ceremony was a page showing the old high school
and an artist rendering of the new. I think I will have to reserve judgment
until the school is built. Here are the
two pictures.
May 7, 2010 AM
The very first Natick Hall of Fame Ceremony
was quite an event. I had hoped to spend more time taking pictures, but the
room was so crowded that it just wasn’t going to be easy. I took the coward way
out and just watched and drank. The Hall of Fame website, http://www.natickathletichalloffame.com/home.html
is the place to go to see the bios of everyone who was inducted and the
committee should be putting up some pictures and video clips in the coming days
or weeks.
I offer no
editorial comment on the proceedings other than to say that I’m glad to have
been part of the very first ceremony and will probably attend next year as
well.
Members of the
Class of 1959 to attend in addition to me were: Dick Anderson, Ken Poole, Kevin
Keane, Dick Wells, Scoop Jones and Lenny Megliola. If any others were there, I
didn’t see them. We did have one of our Reunion teacher guests attend with us,
Coach Gerry Fitzgerald.
May 6, 2010 AM
We have two
changes to the class list. Susan Johnson Rieve has a new email address and John
Dowst has moved back from his contract job out west. The Class List has been
updated.
Check here in the
next day or so to get an update on the Natick High School Hall of Fame
induction ceremony. I hope to have some pictures.
April 17, 2010
PM
The very first
Natick High School Hall of Fame induction ceremony will take place on May 6,
2010 at 6:30PM at the Crowne Plaza Hotel on Route 9.
At the present
time there are 7 members of the Class of 1959 who will be in attendance. We
will report back on the festivities. If anyone wants to attend, please contact
me by April 23 at the latest.
April 5, 2010
AM
We have a new email
for Joe Geneseo. The Class List has been updated.
April 3, 2010
AM
I finally got out
of the house and took some pictures of the South Natick Dam. Lots of water as
one would expect, but impressive nonetheless. The picture of the blue house
that isn’t labeled was built on the flood plain. Hello! Click here to see the pictures.
March 31, 2010
AM
Anna Thompson has
a new email address, The class list has been updated.
March 23, 2010
PM
Below is the
latest thank you from the Leonard Morse Hospital. You all done good.
Allan,
Hi! How are
you? Thanks again for sending us the pictures and newsletter. I did
pass them on to Beth Donnelly as well as our CEO, COO and the Director of
Rehab. The staff really enjoyed seeing them as well.
I wanted to touch
base with you again about the extra funds your group donated to the Rehab Dept.
I can’t tell you how fun it was to strategize how best to use the
money. We purchased a Body Blade and some office chairs. The Body
Blade is tool used to improve strength, balance, coordination, and core
stabilization. It looks like a 4’ bar that is weighted more heavily in
the middle. Some of the staff here have found them very helpful with
shoulder patients. It is supposed to be delivered Friday, hopefully, so
we are looking forward to “playing” with it.
We also purchased
a group of office chairs for the staff. Everyone feels like they just got
a present and are delighted with the chairs. I can’t tell you how nice it
is to have chairs that are very comfortable, are matching and clean. What
a novel idea in furnishing!
Please send our
regards to your Alumni group. We certainly enjoyed meeting you all.
Please feel free to visit us at any time!
Karen Gross
Leonard Morse Hospital
Rehab Unit
March 16, 2010
PM
Today, the NHS
Class of 1959 received a heartfelt thank you from the Leonard Morse Hospital
for our donation in Allen Loane’s memory. That note has been added to the Allen
Loane Memorial page located in the 50th Reunion Summary and can also
be seen by clicking here.
March 13, 2010
AM
All too often
these days when I bring you news it isn’t always good news. Well, today is not
one of those days. This is a happy bit of news.
Remember the
“babe” that Jim Walters brought to the reunion? Well, he did the right thing
and married the lady. Here is a picture
and here is a YouTube link. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VJb8KTb1l8k
I don’t
know how long the link will stay active.
March 7, 2010
AM
Well, that hiatus
didn’t last long. Lois Cohen has moved. Her new contact information has been
updated in the Class List. Email remains the same.
February 28,
2010 AM
Well, all good
things have to come to an end. What started out as a little curiosity on my
part in the summer of 2007, turned into a 2 ½ year journey like none I had ever
been on before. It has been a really fun time for me and I don’t regret a
single moment. However, with the conclusion of the Allen Loane Memorial project
at the hospital, the job is done. I thank all who have helped. I didn’t do this
by myself.
This web site will
remain intact as long as I maintain my Comcast account and they don’t change
any rules. There may be additions from time to time, but hopefully they will
not be very frequent.
So, say good night
Gracie. Good night Gracie.
February 27,
2010 AM
The Allen Loane
Memorial Donation project with the Leonard Morse Hospital is now complete. The
hospital is happy. We are happy. We have made a difference and honored Allen in
a very fitting way.
I have extracted
the text from the on line version of the Natick Bulletin article. Click here to view it.
For those who want
to see the article on line, here is the link to the Bulletin. I don’t know how
long this link will work.
http://www.wickedlocal.com/natick/features/x49441675/Remembering-a-Marine-s-sacrifice
I am still
collecting pictures from the ceremony and will update the Allen Loane Memorial
page in the 50th Reunion Summary section during the next several
days. I will probably send out an email once I have everything complete.
I will be sending
all this information off to Allen’s brother, Jeff.
February 25,
2010 AM
Two things today
#1 Jim Teague
reports an update to his email address. The Class List has been updated. If you
forgot the password – AGAIN – don’t hesitate to ask – AGAIN –
#2 The official
dedication ceremony for the Allen Loane Memorial at the Leonard Morse Hospital
took place yesterday, the 24th.
We had quite the attendance by the hospital management. Russ Barber
presented a ceremonial check to the CEO in the amount of $4536. I’ll get his
name once the article gets printed in the paper. We also had both a reporter
and a photographer for the local paper there. The article and some pictures
will be in the Natick Bulletin this Friday, the 26th. I will post
the link once I get it. This ceremony was a great way to put a cap on the 50th
Reunion. I really have to thank every one of you again for supporting all the
reunion activities. You made all the work that was done worthwhile. I have
updated the Allen Loane Memorial page in the 50th Reunion Summary
section with a few pictures from yesterday. I will have more shortly.
February 17,
2010 AM
The date for the
official ceremony for the Allen Loane Memorial Donation to the Leonard Morse
Hospital is February 24th and Russ Barber will be there. Once we have
this ceremony, I will get some pictures on the web and notify everyone via
email.
This reunion has
been a long road and this ending couldn’t be more appropriate.
February 8,
2010 PM
Charlie Jones has provided this link to the
Vietnam Virtual Wall. http://www.virtualwall.org/iStates.htm
I have extracted
the information on Allen Loane and placed it in his memorial page.
Be aware that at the time of his enlistment, he was living in Framingham.
February 6,
2010 AM
I have an update
on the Allen Loane Memorial at the Leonard Morse Hospital. The equipment has
arrived and installed. See it here. We
have made our donation to the hospital. They really are extremely grateful for
our generosity. But we still have a few final details to finish.
The plaque is
being produced. I should have a proof next week and the actual plaque the week
after. Once the hospital staff gets the plaque installed on the back of the
chair as shown in the picture, we will have a formal donation ceremony.
I am hoping that
Russ Barber will be in attendance for this ceremony as well as the local paper.
The staff writer(Charlie Breitrose) has expressed
interest in doing a follow-up to the library piece and he should have a
photographer with him. The target date is for February 24th.
My thanks to all
of you for your help in making this happen. I have been in touch with Allen’s
brother, Jeff, and his niece, Christi. They have expressed their very pleasant
surprise and sincere gratitude for what we are doing to honor Allen.
January 27,
2010 PM
The memorial to
Allen Loane is coming to fruition. I sent out an email announcing the status of
that project as of today. It is shown here just in case you browse the web and
not your email.
Dear Classmates,
You should all be extremely proud of what you and your classmates have accomplished on behalf of our fallen comrade, Allen Loane
We are in the process of making a sizable donation in his memory to the Leonard Morse Hospital Rehabilitation Department for an Upper Body Exercise machine. The hospital is overwhelmed by our generosity.
I would like to take just a moment of your time to offer my personal big THANK YOU to Russ Barber. He was instrumental in making this all happen. He orchestrated the memorial at the reunion which provided the material for the library display which led to the notion of doing something more permanent for Allen.
So here we are. Our very own Leonard Morse Hospital. The Rehab Unit was in dire need of some equipment and we had the solution. Seems like a perfect fit.
I can now tell you that we have received enough donations to cover the cost of this equipment and it has been placed on order.
Once it arrives, we will determine the location and size of a suitable plaque that will be affixed to the equipment.
I expect to have some pictures taken which will get posted and if we are lucky, another article in the local paper.
I know I have thanked each of you as I received your donation, but I am compelled to thank you once again. Your generosity has been outstanding. You are and always have been one heck of a bunch of folks. I am honored to know you and to have been a classmate.
This plaque will read as follows:
In the memory of:
2nd LT Allen R. Loane
US Marine
KIA September 27, 1967, Vietnam
Donated by
Natick High School - Class of 1959
January 2010
January 25,
2010 AM
Two quick little
updates
#1 Paul Gelly, the
once thought deceased classmate has provided a Now picture. Check out the Then
and Now section, Page 2.
#2 The Allen Loane
Memorial Donation to the Leonard Morse Hospital is coming together very nicely.
I will have a more extensive update soon which will be sent via email as well
as an update in the web site.
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