Medina
High School - Class of 1966
Medina, New York
Keeping Us Up-To-Date
Our original intent was to maintain and share a list on this web site of classmates addresses, etc. However, in this day of identity theft and other cyber crimes, it has been decided to protect the identity of everyone and not make these public. If you would like to get in touch with a classmate, please contact Barbara (Stork) Murphy at murphypb@adelphia.net. She will put you in touch with that person (after getting permission from them).
Barbara (Stork) Murphy is writing to everyone to get updated information. If you haven't received anything from Barbara please email her (murphypb@adelphia.net) and let her know. We will continue to maintain a "Missing Classmates" list. Check out the link Where did you go? and let Barbara know if you have any info on missing classmates. Barbara has addresses for about 120 of the original class.
Classmate Updates - 2008
SMALL WORLD! Carolyn Malolepszy and Barbara Stork grew up around
the corner from each other, Carolyn on South Avenue, Barbara on South
Main Street. In the early 1970's Barbara and her husband Pat moved to
Auburn. Carolyn and her husband, Jerry Caleb, followed soon after. They
actually connected when Barbara, who was working at the time for Welcome
Wagon, payed a visit on Carolyn. Both the Murphys and the Calebs attended
the same church, and their children attended St. Mary's School, where
both Barbara and Carolyn worked. Barbara's daughter Shannon moved to Schenectady
two years ago, and in September, when her son Brennan began kindergarten
at St. John the Evangelist School, she discovered that Carolyn's daughter
Julie and her family live in Schenectady as well, and Julie's children
also attend St. John's. 
Frank and Sarah Ognibene made the cover of
September's RSVP magazine in Memphis, TN.
"The "Summer of Love" spirit was in full swing
... at a bash hosted by the American Cancer Society®. Flower children
couldn’t have felt more nostalgic than if they were at a Woodstock reunion.
From psychedelic prints and long wigs to tie-dye napkins and gigantic
peace signs, ‘60s memorabilia, style, and music permeated the room. A
faux Austin Powers emceed and had three sidekicks, all dressed as Foxy
Cleopatra in gold lamé and afros, get the crowd to its feet. Fun Fun Fun
enhanced the relaxed vibe with its musical tributes to The Beatles and
The Beach Boys."
That's like far out man! This could be the theme for our next class reunion,
but let's pass on the formalware!
Classmates in the Military.
Over the years, we've come to recognize that approximately 25% of our
class spent time in military service. Some went by choice, others fell
victim to that 60's "sign of the times:" the draft lottery. Nonetheless,
most reported that they proudly served our country.
The Class of 1966 is represented in all five branches; we had classmates
in the Army, the Navy, the Marine Corps, the Air Force, and the Coast
Guard. At least one classmate is still on active duty; many others have
served until fairly recently in the National Guard or Reserves. Many
spent time fighting in the war which had begun around the time we started
high school. Two classmates' names are on the Vietnam Wall in Washington;
both lived less than a year after graduation and they died within five
days of one another.
The civilian members of the Class of '66 salute all of you!
Please take a look at this listing
of military service.
On March 26 we heard that Rick Overholt has a brand new granddaughter, Madison Jo Marie Sanders who joins her two year old sister Lorelei Nicole Mae Sanders.
Carolyn Malolepszy Caleb sent some photos from the St. Mary's
school for use in our next DVD compilation. If you have any class pictures,
individual or group photos that were not in the last DVD or (most elusive
of all) some old 8mm movies, please contact Dave Miller.
click on photo for larger
image.
Classmate Updates - 2007
Mike Crandall, our Class Pres, is a new Dad at 59!! Conor Francis was born March 13; weighed in at 9 lb 8 oz, 20 1/2 inches long. Mom Michele, baby and Dad are doing well.
Fred Jaquin is enjoying his retirement from GM-Delphi, his move to North Carolina (especially the weather) and his new job as an airline customer service rep, and doesn't know why he didn't do it ten years ago.
Jane Knapp Elliott is enjoying a new grandson born last September.
Dennis and Sharon Vanill are great-grandparents of Hunter Scott, born in February and loving every minute of it!
Al
Cobb
visited by Barb (Stork) Murphy
"Hey,
thought you'd all like to see who I had dinner with in Washington. Attached
is a pic of me and the long-lost Alan ("I'm Al now") Cobb, who met me
for dinner at my son's restaurant in Old Towne Alexandria. His wife declined,
although she was kind enough to set me and Susy up on a tour of the Capitol
after Senator Clinton's office couldn't do it (my son in law, who works
in the Federal Building one floor below her office, went to the office
to ask about tickets for us-they told him to go to the website....he did:
it says: "stop in our office anytime." He went back up to point that out
to them and they said they didn't know anything about it....your government
in action). Susan works for Senator Orren Hatch; she said we could go
on a private tour if we didn't mind being with a bunch of Utah-ans, which
we didn't. Alan called the next day to make sure we enjoyed ourselves,
which we did (although the tour group left me behind while I was taking
a picture of a statue of Father Damien and we played cell phone tag around
the Rotunda for a while). He works for the Dept of Energy now, right in
the main bldg on the Mall."
Many thanks to Sue
(Gardner) Knights for finalizing our Class Memorial Project. Donations
totaling approximately $800 were received at the 35th Reunion and a Bur
Oak tree was purchased and placed at Oak Orchard Elementary School. The
teachers at Oak Orchard are working on a patio garden with a walkway,
and thought that the oak tree with its acorns would be a good learning
tool. There is enough money left to purchase a bench, which Sue will do
when they are ready for it. Hopefully our gift will inspire other classes
and individuals to do the same.
Sue and her committee have been tending to the garden; future plans include
a commemorative plaque from the Class of '66. Pictured here in the garden
are Terry Holihan, Vicky Albone, Dawn Meland, Barbara (Stork) Murphy,
Sue (Gardner) Knights.
Many thanks to all our classmates who donated money for this gift,
which will last for years and be dedicated to all members of the class!
Updates November 2005
40th Reunion
Planning Sessions
The Reunion Committee met on August 5 at the Grove to begin plans for
the 40th reunion. The committee from the 35th has continued to stay in
touch and keep our files up to date, chasing those retirees who move south!
Meeting for dinner were Dawn Meland, Sue (Gardner) Knights, Barbara (Stork)
Murphy, Duane Payne, Fred Jaquin, Terry Holihan, Alan Bushover and his
wife Patty, and Vicky Albone. We were joined by Larry Szatkowski and his
wife Nancy, who happened in for dinner. After a lovely meal we took our
rowdy selves to the VFW and crashed the reunion of the Class of '65. (they
all look terribly old)
A small band of classmates met to brainstorm (and eat) on August 28 in Medina (see picture on Home page). Everyone left with a list of missing folks and promises to make phone calls. We welcomed David Miller and his wife Gail back to Medina after 30 years of living near New York City; they've relocated on Telegraph Road.
The committee will be meeting periodically throughout the next few months to finalize plans for our 40th reunion, which will be held the weekend of July 21-22-23, 2006. Put those dates on your calendar now! We want everyone there; spread the word to anyone you know who may not be on our list. We have reserved the Niagara-Orleans Country Club for Saturday night, and plan an informal icebreaker for Friday night. A possible golf tournament is in the works for Saturday morning.
Classmate Updates - December 2005
Jay Beeton reports that things are wonderful in Colorado. He has a new job as the marketing and public relations director for the American Numismatic Association and he's frantically trying to learn all about coins, paper money, medals and tokens. The wife and kid (Alexis is 13) are fine and Colorado remains close to paradise.
Peggy (Thistlethwaite) and Bob Tyson, who live in Charlotte, NC: We had a very busy 2005, spending a week in June at the Sandals Royal Bahamian Resort for daughter Kia's wedding - a beautiful wedding in a beautiful setting! Before that, in May, they traveled again to Ireland (for the 3rd year in a row) and to a little known area in England - in the Northwest Yorkshire Dales - where Peggy visited several homesteads of her Thistlethwaite ancestors. The biggest thrill was visiting the home ("Harbourgill") built in the late 1500's by her great-great-great-great-great-great-great grandfather (that's 7th great-grandfather for those who are counting!) Of course, it's been updated with plumbing and electricity since then, but the land around it has been owned and farmed by Thistlethwaites for the last 400 years! The home of her 6th, 5th, & 4th great-grandparents is also standing and they were invited to tea with the current owners. They have lovingly restored "Hobsons-in-Dent" since they bought it in 1972. It was a very emotional time for Peggy visiting an area where the name "Thistlethwaite" is as common in England as "Smith" is in the USA. 2006 is even more exciting as Bob has been awarded a fellowship to do research for 6 months at The National University of Ireland - Galway. It's a wonderful opportunity for a trial run living in the country we love so much! Who knows, retirement in Ireland wouldn't be so bad!
Classmate Updates - February 2004
Bill and Judy (Lacy) Pendergast have changed their lifestyle. After years of commuting, they have sold their house in Virginia and have moved into the city of Washington, DC. They are now just steps from shops, restaurants and the Metro. Judy, a retired flight attendant, has been enjoying being a tourist in her new hometown visiting museums and viewing the magnificent orchids in the Botanic garden. Bill and Judy do NOT miss fighting the beltway traffic!
Albert "Chris" Prawel reports that he retired from Delphi after 35 years. He meets with Fred Jaquin, Terry Holihan and Jerry Pescara every Wednesday at Men's Bible Study. Chris and his wife Patricia live in Gasport.
Dennis and Sharon Vanill report that they're up to eight grandchildren!
Gail Harris Canham has six grandchildren and says that's plenty, thank you!
Barbara Stork Murphy and her family celebrated the birth of their first grandchild, Brennan Russell, on the 4th of July.
John and Tessie Pasnik and their family have been celebrating the birth of their newest granddaughter, Hope Joy, last May. The family suffered a tragic loss when her sister, Skylor Rose, died of Tay-sachs disease last January. John's son Joe and his wife will present them with their first grandson in March. John and Tessie are more used to boys, having had five of their own, all J's" John, Jeff, Jim, Jerry and Joe. Congratulations to the Pasniks!
Picnic @ Jantzi's Bushel & Peck - August 11, 2002
For more pictures click on http://vanill.org/11aug02
On August 11, 2002 class members and some of their spouses gathered at Barb Sanderson Jantzi's store on Ridge Road for a warm mini-reunion. Although there was enough food for all the class members who weren't there, those in attendance managed to make quite a dent in it. Following the meal, the class decided to be sensible and exercise safely; thus, the invention of Lawn Chair Volleyball, as seen in the accompanying photos. A good time was had by all in spite of the 95 degree heat, and everyone agreed that annual gatherings will continue as long as class members want to attend them. We were happy to remove Betty Van Auker from the "missing" list and see her at the picnic. The following other classmates attended:
Gus Blackburn, Willie and Sharon Brady, Mike Crandall, Sue Gardner Knights, Dave Harmer, Terry and Pam Holihan, Ron and Kathy Iorio, Dawn Meland, Rosie Napoli, Don McCauley, Duane and Pat Payne, Pete Pegelow, Gerry Pescara, Ron Polick, David and Ruth Rigerman, Barbara Sanderson Jantzi, Barbara Stork and Pat Murphy, David and Barbara Tuttle, Dennis and Sharon Vanill, and Tinker and Sandy Young.
Many thanks to Sue and Dawn for their work to organize a lovely afternoon and to Barb for hosting us!
Don McCauley
Bob Lojewski at Havasu Falls
-Week of June 18, 2001
Trip to Grand Canyon, Colorado - With Boy Scout Troop 66
Spectacular views all around!