Notre Dame Class of 1968 Notes         Contact: Tom Figel, 312-223-9536 office

February 3, 2014                                                     tfigel@lake-effect.com

State of the Great 68 Address

                        President Tom Weyer’s State of the Class address delivered to the class council during late January included a call for continuation of a hallmark of the Weyer administration, class contribution inequality.  “Looking in the rear view mirror or 2013,” the President said, “we had a fantastic 45^th reunion, wonderful get-togethers at our tailgates, and we suffered the loss of dear classmates.  During 2014, the year the Class of 68 turns 68, this administration pledges itself to protection of all the high average contribution rate privileges created by the recent generosity of Matt Walsh and Joyce.”  His administration, the President said, will support the plans for stadium enlargement while paying great attention to any encroachments that threaten the Mary Weyer memorial plantings honoring her parents and Honest John and Annie Weyer. 

                       January ended with an Evanston, IL get-together occasioned by the death of Moose Krause’s daughter Mary Carrigan, who succumbed to cancer six months after the death of Sandy Carrigan. 

Mary Krause Carrigan
Aug 17, 1946 – Jan. 16, 2014

The four Carrigan sons and their sister Jill amused and saddened the memorial service audience with reflections on a lovely woman who had raised her own family while being Mom (“Mombo” in the Carrigan family) to many others.  The 68 contingent – Tom Weyer and Mary, Tom Gibbs and Sheila, Dave Kabat, Tom Moore, Bryan Dunigan,  Dennis Toolan and Mary Lou, Tom Figel and Nancy – heard son Chris remember that the romping Carrigan kids “tested the laws of physics, Mombo’s patience, and the limits of our health coverage.” 

                        Bryan Dunigan, of a family with generations of ties to the Krauses, said that his grandfather had known and helped the young Moose.  The grandfather, for whom Bryan is named, was in charge of printing for the Sears Roebuck catalog (“like being in charge of the Internet,” said Bryan.) Bryan’s own immense email directory shows that management of contacts is in the Dunigan DNA.  Frank Leahy, who took care of the grandfather’s yard work, was being recruited from Boston College when Notre Dame asked Grandfather Dunigan to help with the wooing.  Bryan said his grandfather flew to Cleveland for the successful pitch. 

                        January also saw a Chicago get-together organized by Shaun Reynolds and his family in memory of Shaun’s brother Damien, whose world-roaming, friend-gathering life included appearance in a Life Magazine photo taken at Woodstock.  Dave Hirschboeck, John Walsh and Dia were there with Nancy Figel (still Nancy Carlin SMC69 to Shaun, and to me).  . 

                        John Walsh and Dia organized a dinner evening with John Flemming, when John came to Chicago from New Orleans for presentation of his art at a December show.  The onset of Chicago winter had no apparent effect on John’s happy spirits and laughs about the late Eddie Kurtz’s novels as John visited with Geof Thornton and Christine, Peggy Barber O’Rourke, the Walshes and Figels. 

                       An Evanston, IL high school class seeking to interview U.S. war veterans during January received help – and powerful remembrances – from classmates Gene Cavanaugh, Tom Condon, Bill Brennan, Pat Collins, Joe Kernan, Mike Browning, and Mark Lies as well as Tom Nerney, three years behind us.  Gene Cavanaugh, seeking respite in Chicago from the cold of South Bend, visited the classroom during some days spent with his daughters and grandchildren in Evanston.  The reflections of people then slightly older than the Evanston students were revealing, generous and often painfully assembled.  . 

                       Pat Collins was one who called Tim O’Meilia, the former Observer editor and popular Palm Beach County, FL journalist whose cancer has him confined to home, though typically upbeat.  A couple classes behind us, Tim was a reporting godsend when Pat was Observer editor.

                      After considering the magazine pages devoted to class notes, John Grima sent this optimistic reflection: “It strikes me that, in magazine terms, the life of a Notre Dame class might be said to be 26 pages; that we have lived 18 of them and still have eight to go. That feels pretty good for a bunch of 67 and 68 year olds.  A lot of time gone by, still plenty to look forward to.”

Mike Baroody, Gonzaga High School, 1964, Washington, D.C.

                        In addition to photos, including a bow-tied Mike Baroody from the Gonzaga High School yearbook, our blog has instructions about using Notre Dame’s database for simple location of all alumni friends.  If you enjoy seeing old men and their young wives, see www.ndclass1968.com. 

                        Stay in touch – Tom Figel, 1054 West North Shore, Apt. 3-E, Chicago, IL 60626, tel. (off) 312-223-9536, tfigel@lake-effect.com.

Jan. 29, 2014: Tom Gibbs, Tom Weyer, Gene Cavanaugh, Dave Kabat, Dennis Toolan, Bryan Dunigan, Tom Moore, Tom Figel

Blue angels practicing on November 1, 2013 for stadium flyover the following day (Navy game).  Tom Misch sent the two photos by way of Bryan Dunigan.

Modern Catholic Writers

                         Class President Tom Weyer, in reviewing financial records of our class with Treasurer Joe Kernan, noted that the recent, immense gift from Matt Walsh and Joyce had a big effect on our average giving.  Matt and Joyce deserve the appreciation they have received.  Great as their resources are, the Walshes probably gave to Notre Dame the way they give to many causes: that is, at a level beyond what is comfortable.  As one consequence of their generosity, the Walshes are now in a position to move into the 50 yardline football seats Rich Rogers had to vacate a few years ago, when the University discovered an error.

                        Rich Rogers is annually on campus for a game or two.  Such was the case on the September afternoon of the Temple game.  Retired FBI agent that he is, Rich had interesting things to say to Jay Schwartz, Jay’s guest Maryland legislator and former Temple player Mike Busch, and me about the U.S. surveillance revelations resulting from contractor Edward Snowden’s actions.  The suddenly prominent NSA, its budget revealed in Congressional questioning, used to be called “No Such Agency,” Rich said.  “They are good guys.”  Rich is acquainted with some of the threats coming at the country from various sources.  That same afternoon, Jim Smithberger was a well-received Florida visitor.  Steve Anderson was keeping tabs on him because Jim, readying for some heart care procedures in coming days, had made the trip against the judgment of some Florida advisers.  Jim and his wife Debbie stayed with Larry Forness, who says that everything went well for Jim, who is now on the mend. Jim told of his chance recruitment by the new football coaching staff in 1964.  Jim was receiving attention as the regional player of the year in West Virginia.  At the same time, an alumnus who subscribed to the South Bend paper was aware of coaching conversation about a running back need.  The alum called the coaching staff, talked up Jim, Jim visited and went home to tell his father that Notre Dame was his choice.  “You tell the other school (Kentucky?) you’re not taking their scholarship then,” Jim’s dad said.  Larry Forness remembers that Jim was a successful scholar as well as a player: Jim was an Academic All-American, too, for a couple of years. 

(Says Tom Misch of above photo: Interesting point about Father Hesburgh from his autobiography and this interview: Hesburgh called in a favor to Jimmy Carter stating he wanted to fly in the SR-71 and set the new speed record at 3.25+ Mach. While taking the photo with Fr. Hesburgh, Matt Cashore said Hesburgh was sure to remind the Angels of his own flying experience.)

                        A few weeks later, Larry wrote that he “hosted Tom Condon and Mike Long ‘64 for the Oklahoma game. On game day, first thing we did was go to the formal dedication of the new rugby field, NE of the Stepan Center. Given that the place was full of former rugby players, I expected the newspaper story to have the lead-in: ‘Among the injured were…’ Had a whole bunch from the Great ’68 there — too many to recall.  While at the Great ’68 tailgate party, four vehicles down, somebody collapsed, and Dr. Steve Anderson rushed over and stabilized the patient until the EMTs and ambulance arrived. Well done, Doctor! At first, I thought the patient may have had some of my ex-wife’s cooking. Saw former gridders Dave Martin and Kevin Rassas. They both look like they could still play. Given how we played against OU, we could have used them.”

                        When Beth Ann Fennelly ’93, the poet and now novelist, came to Chicago in October for a booksigning of The Tilted World, she was able to acknowledge the familiar Tom McKenna from Carmel, IN, Tom McKenna of Chicago and an embarrassed but interested Mary Pat as “my Notre Dame hecklers.” Mary Pat knew what she was in for: she knew of the banter when Beth Ann discussed her poetry during our 40^th reunion.  Tom McCann was supposed to round out the Toms trio but failed to appear.  This recent disinterest in a modern Catholic writer reveals the same failing Tom showed years ago in Professor Frank O’Malley’s class, when Tom McCann dragged Tom Etten down with him.  Whether this lack of interest extends to the modern Catholic writers among the classmates is uncertain. We have numbers of poets: Michael R. Ryan, Pat Hermann, the prolific Don Hynes ’69, occasional writers Forrest Hainline, Ken Beirne, and Jim Davis.  Jim O’Rourke is an oft-published sage of marketing communication.  John O’Connor wrote about Watergate.  Tom Condon of the Hartford Courant recently added to his list of awards for editorial writing.  Larry “Monk”) Forness is the straight-talking author of books on sports medicine and U.S. security subjects.   One of our novelists is recently deceased Eddie Kurtz, whose seven novels include Sex and Gravity. Anyone reading that novel in a public place should sit with people wearing Big 10 clothing so that no one is able to read over a shoulder.  If Eddie was following the adage “write about what you know,” the boy had given himself quite an education.  A chapter that has the Eddie hero going to confession on a whim in St. Patrick’s Cathedral is Catholic, but not quite in the spirit of the late Professor Ralph McInerny.
(Eddie Kurtz’s brother Tommy has created a posthumous website containing all of Eddie’s films, novels and other works:  See http://eddiekurtz.homestead.com/index.html .)

                        Jim Hutchinson, making a good recovery from surgery in Rochester, NY has been sending play suggestions to Coach Kelly – and, in mid-season, with good effect.

                        Please send news to: Tom Figel, 1054 West North Shore, Apt. 3-E, Chicago, IL 60626, tel. 312-223-9536 (Lake Effect Communications, LLC), tfigel@lake-effect.com.  

On to the 50^th!

                        While the rest of you were home, forced to miss the reunion because you couldn’t trust the neighbor kid to feed your goldfish named Huarte and Snow or because you didn’t want to miss your spam mail about mobility solutions, we, the self-selected good-looking, slim, hirsute, unchanged class members had quite a time.  Here are some repeatable parts:

                        First of all, the St. Mary’s women all asked about you, as in “What about that cute (your name here)?  Did he ever get married?”

                        The reunion began with parallel events: Bryan Dunigan, Tom Gibbs and the Michigan City/Chicago crowd hosted a couple of days of golf, dining and shenanigans in Michigan City and another group met Thursday evening at Sunny Italy for dinner.  With us were Professor Don Costello and Kristine, and the late Professor Ed Goerner’s widow Iris.  By the time the groups converged in O’Neil Hall, our class had a hospitality outlay that later gained Tom Weyer the presidency of the appreciative class of 1973. 

                        Thanks to Skip Strzelecki, the Friday night class dinner featured vigorous, animated Ara Parseghian as guest speaker and official member of the “Great 68.”  Enjoy listening to Ara by paging down to the following item (at www.ndclass1968.com).  The 20 minute recording captured by Dennis Reeder includes Tom Weyer’s introduction.  When you listen, you will have the flavor of our reunion – at a safe distance.  Find on this blog, too, Dennis Reeder’s videotape of a succession of greetings his friends sent to Dick “Sandy” Carrigan, who would not give up to ALS or anything else that blocked his zest for life with his family.  In making the video, Dennis had to work with what he was given: a mix-up in the order for body doubles produced members of the class of 1908 instead of 2008.  Fred Ferlic, with the leadership skill he displays as the senior member of the Ferlic bloc in the South Bend Common Council, allied with Pat Barth and successfully blocked Joe Kernan’s wish for entertainment by a popular polka group.  Instead, we had quite a group playing fine Mo-Town.  Trouble is, while we had beauty among us in the persons of Anne Condon, Susan Schanning, Sheila Gibbs, Carmie Murphy, Elise Reeder and other young spouses, we had about as many of them as we used to find around on us on Thursday nights in January.  This gave our reunion the feeling of a smoker, and certainly put a crimp in any plans for a toga party.

                        Other events went according to pattern – with a Saturday picnic on the North Quad, O’Neill Hall visiting, various seminars, and walks (or in the case of Tom Condon and Anne, bike rides) around the campus.  On Saturday night, though, we were in two camps again, with some attending another class dinner program and the rest of us at a Covaleski Stadium dinner Fred Ferlic and Steve Anderson arranged.  When we all met later, Bill Gormley told a story about Lloyd Adams and Pete Adams gaining a fourth place result (a whisker out of medal territory) as the South African luge team in the 1976 winter Olympics.  (“Born to luge,” said Tom Condon.)

                        Turnout was decent, about 200 of us, mostly stag and all happy to be together.  Fortunately, Father John Sheehan, S.J., is becoming a regular at these reunions and so is Pat Keenan, who arrived from San Francisco this time with a preference for being called Jake.  Between the two of these classmates – with John displaying his actor’s force and Jake chortling, dancing and enjoying mischief with his rugby club buddies, our reunion had plenty of life.  Jake had enough left for a so-called Alternative Reunion organized by Betty Doerr (SMC69) in San Francisco over the July 4^th weekend.

                        Our class Mass officiated by Father John Sheehan, S.J. included a sobering, respectful memory of many, many departed classmates.  The list has been placed on our blog.

                        Unfortunately, we continue to add names – with mourning and with appreciation for the time we’ve had as friends.  Sandy Carrigan died on July 6, 2013.  At just about the same time, Bill Kenealy’s son Jay, 33, died after a brief battle with cancer. We lost John Stafford, father of four, husband of Judy, on May 11, 2013.  Louisville gentleman John Fowler’s December 18, 2012 passing came to light in the deceased list Notre Dame prepared for our reunion.  Ralph Moore, who began with us, died in May, 2013.  Richard Reddy sent news of former Bengal boxer and Pennsylvania State Senator Michael P. Shaefer’s death on January 21, 2013.  Gerald A. DeAngelis died January 12, 2003.  Lawrence R. Lange’s death occurred March 8, 2013.  John B. Tracy’s memorial service took place at the time of our reunion.  Thomas G. Wendel died April 10, 2013.  John H. Glorieux died on May 12, 2013.  Please remember these friends and their families in your prayers.

                        In addition to photos, our blog has instruction about using Notre Dame’s database for simple location of all alumni friends.  See www.ndclass1968.com. 

                        Stay in touch – Tom Figel, 1054 West North Shore, Apt. 3-E, Chicago, IL 60626, tel. (off) 312-223-9536, tfigel@lake-effect.com.