In Memoriam
Remembering members of the Williston Northampton community

Brian F. Kernaghan ’63

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Brian Kernaghan, most recently of Clemson, SC, previously of Mt. Pleasant and Pawleys island, SC passed away suddenly at home on May 27, 2018. He was 73 years old. Brian was born in Bronxville, NY on September 17, 1944 to Mary and Charles Kernaghan. Brian grew up in Upstate, NY and Pittsburgh, PA enjoying summers on Lake George, NY with his friends and family. He attended both St. Edmonds Academy and Williston Northampton School, where he excelled in baseball and basketball but also told many stories of stealing grapes to ferment wine in his room. Brian finished his senior year of High School in Schenectady, NY (Linton High) where he was elbowed in the face blocking out Pat Riley for a loose basketball. He was always willing to show the scar on his eyebrow to prove his brush with greatness.
Brian moved on to Siena College in Loudonville, NY where he finished in 1968. As a graduation gift, Brian received a free trip to basic training from the US Navy. He spent 4 years in the Navy as a writer and photographer but his greatest moment was meeting his future bride and love of his life Jane Huey in Maryland while stationed there. They married in 1971 in Rock Hill, SC.
After finishing up his stint for Uncle Sam, Brian moved on to Law School at the University of South Carolina where he excelled in the classroom. After graduation and still having a year of free tuition left from his GI Bill, Brian was accepted to NYU Law School where he earned his LLM in Tax.
Brian enjoyed a distinguished career in law that lasted over 40 years and included an 8 year stint as president and general council of Wild Dunes and Dunes West. Brian worked the last 24 years as a partner for Nexsen Pruet representing clients all over the United States.
Brian wasn’t just a great lawyer, he also enjoyed photography and playing guitar at church. Brian was a very active member of St. Andrews Episcopal Church in Mt. Pleasant, Church of the Resurrection in Surfside, SC and most recently Christ The Redeemer in Pendleton, SC.
Brian is survived by his wife Jane of 46 years, his sister Sheila Germain of Williamsburg, VA and her three daughters, Elizabeth, Cindy and Katie and their families. His son and daughter in law Charlie and Stephanie Kernaghan of Clemson, and his two favorite grandchildren, Eli and Blair.

Posted in: 1960s

Martha Peck Burgess ’48

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Martha (Mardy) Burgess, age 86, of Annapolis, MD, passed away peacefully at home on Thursday, May 10, 2018, surrounded by family and loved ones.

Mardy was born May 24,1931 to George Francis Peck and Edith Gertrude Peck in Scranton, PA. She married Newton A. Burgess in 1952, and from that union she was blessed with her beloved children Cynthia and Kenneth.

Dr. Burgess received her PhD and Masters degrees in Education from the Union Institute in 1993 and BA from Middlebury College in 1952.

In 1976 she met Albert Brown, the love of her life. Initially, they resided in Bethesda, MD, and then moved to Baywoods of Annapolis. They shared many interests and traveled extensively throughout their lives together.

She used her interests in the environment, conflict resolution, science, and spirituality to make the world a better place. She was a dynamic member of Annapolis Friends Meeting and an active member of her Baywoods community.

Mardy is survived by her devoted life partner Albert Brown, her daughter Cynthia Cosbey (Steve); son Kenneth Burgess, stepsons Geoffrey Brown (Patria) and Michael Brown, six grandchildren, and five great-grandchildren.

Posted in: 1940s

C. Lawrence Reece ’53

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Christopher Lawrence “Larry” Reece III 81, of Sun City Center, FL, passed away April 28, 2017 in South Bay Hospital. He is survived by his wife, Mary; his two children, Alison and Jennifer; grandchildren, Nicole, Echo, and Delta. Larry and his wife Mary were longtime residents of Longmeadow, MA. Once retired, they moved to Sun City Center where Larry was an active association member.

Posted in: 1950s

Sarah Parker Cave ’72

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Sarah “Sally” (Parker) Cave, 64, passed peacefully on Thursday, May 10, 2018. The daughter of Joseph S.W. and Joan (Falvey) Parker, Sarah grew up in Marblehead, MA where she enjoyed competitive sailing, serving as Secretary at Pleon Yacht Club in her teens. She also taught sailing at Madison Beach Club in Madison, CT and Cape Cod Sea Camps in Brewster, MA, where she spent much of her time on the ocean and developed her love for the sea. Sarah graduated from Williston Northampton School in Easthampton, MA (’72) where she was the first woman to sail on the varsity sailing team and receive a varsity letter. She then studied English and Business at Elmira College, Elmira, NY (’76). After college, Sarah worked for Foster Dykema Cabot in Boston. She was married in 1978 and in 1979 moved to New London, NH for a brief time before making her home in Wilmot, NH. Sarah worked at New London Trust Co., her first introduction to the close-knit Lake Sunapee Region. Sarah was a devoted mother, and instilled a sense of community within her family. With her husband Michael, she owned and operated Gourmet Garden in New London, NH for 30 years. Throughout her career Sarah dedicated her professional life to passionately supporting New Hampshire’s artisans and businesses. In an on-going effort to support the community, Sarah created a line of ornaments with proceeds going to regional non-profits and community organizations. She was an active member of the Lake Sunapee Area Chamber of Commerce for 29 years, and she and Michael were active members of the Parents Association and Board of Trustees at Proctor Academy in Andover, NH. Along with her love for her family and entrepreneurship, Sarah enjoyed traveling, spending time on the coast in Southport, ME, caring for her dogs, and rooting for her beloved Red Sox. Sarah is predeceased by her parents and is survived by her husband of 40 years, Michael G. Cave of Wilmot, NH; two sons, Parker Cave of Boston, MA and Chris Cave of Beverly, MA; a sister and her husband, Meg and Jon Rand of Laconia, NH and their children, Jennifer and Charlie; a sister, Lisa Parker of Marblehead, MA; a brother and his wife, Joe and Libby Parker of Marblehead, MA and their sons, Sam and Will; an aunt Nancy P. Parker; an uncle Donald Falvey Jr.; and many beloved cousins.

Posted in: 1970s

Sarah Sessions Chapin ’49

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Sarah Sessions Chapin, born in Massachusetts in 1931, who lived most of her life in Concord, died peacefully on December 6th, 2017. She was raised on the family farm in Hadley, Mass. and earned a B.A. from Smith College and later in life an M.Ed. from Harvard. Sarah was a music teacher, educator and the author of several books, which include a history of Concord. Sarah had many pursuits and interests including art, botany, social work, support and work at the Concord Library. She leaves a son, grandson, sister, niece, many cousins, and dear friends. Her wit, humor and fierce spirit will be greatly missed.

Posted in: 1940s

Lynn Harrison Cheney ’71

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Lynn was born on February 5, 1954 in St. James, New York. It was there she spent her childhood, excelling at school and athletics. She was a member of the first graduating class of Harbor Country Day School in St. James where she was the top scholar and athlete, earning the Trustees Prize at her graduation. From there she attended the Northampton School for Girls, achieving the highest academic rank in the school and recognized as a National Merit Scholar. She attended Colorado College, graduating with a B.A. in Political Science, Summa Cum Laude and Phi Beta Kappa. Lynn was never one to bring any attention to her remarkable accomplishments. She was reserved, genuine and without guile. She had a radiant smile that powered a quick and infectious sense of humor that she instinctually used to spark laughter or to diffuse difficult situations.

Lynn was unabashed about expressing her point of view with disarming frankness and insight. Her sense of values and integrity were unassailable. She was well respected for her leadership as Chairman of the Cornwall Consolidated School Board in northwest Connecticut, and on the Boards of the Cornwall Conservation Trust and the Cornwall Library Association. Her membership in two local book groups and weekly Scrabble games were evidence of her love of words, reading, and the expression of her thoughts that were out of the ordinary and well-stated. It was a common day for Lynn to play tennis with friends, work hard in her beautiful gardens, and purge the day with a long swim across Cream Hill Lake. Evenings were spent either immersed in a book, working a crossword puzzle, or pestering her husband.

Of all aspects of this life that brought her joy, Lynn’s greatest pleasure was her family. Lynn met Hugh at Colorado College and they married in 1976. Their children Hope, Rusty, Ted, and Tyler soon followed. Lynn’s children and her husband received the benefit of being raised by a mother and a spouse who combined her humor and strong sense of values to develop individuals who are kind, honest, and loving as she was. Her love of her husband, children, and grandchildren had no bounds, a love she expressed by a loyal and active interest in their lives. While Lynn made them work and study, she tempered her discipline by playing board games, pitching baseballs, and rolling about on the ground with her children or several of her eight grandchildren. Lynn intuitively knew when to intervene or stand aside to let mistakes educate. She was fiercely competitive, even with her children, and they loved her for it. It was a wonder to see Lynn together with her three sisters Gay, Sandy, and Marian and the love they held for each other. They easily fell into childhood rank and mannerisms, yet Lynn would scatter them in terror when her competitive nature surfaced over some slight she felt in a game of cards or Scrabble.

It is difficult to convey the core of this extraordinary woman who endured two of life’s most daunting challenges. With unfailing grace and remarkable courage, Lynn shouldered the death of her son Rusty in 2015 and the glioblastoma that took her life on May 7, 2018. Lynn was not in a battle with her brain cancer. Rather, she treated it as an inconvenient intrusion in her life, and she simply adapted to it with resilience and without complaint. While these two events cast a shroud over the last three years of her life, there is so much more about her that defined how she lived.

Lynn’s death has unraveled some of the fabric that held her close-knit family together, and we feel diminished by her absence. Her deep love of family and our love for her have made this a hard grief. In time, however, we trust that our memories of her remarkable life will eclipse grief. At times, we will miss her more than we can bear, yet we are thankful for this life she shared so generously with us all. Now may she be at peace, with no more hard challenges to conquer.

Our family would like to thank a large community of friends and neighbors for their consistent kindness, care and support of us over the past three years. We are convinced that, as a result of all the love that embraced us, Lynn far outlived her prognosis. We felt secured by all of you and lifted above the worries. We have experienced the best of humanity.

 

Posted in: 1970s

John M. Gibbons ’41

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Captain John M. Gibbons of North Falmouth, MA, passed away peacefully at home on May 8, 2018 surrounded by his loving family. He was the husband of the late Doris (McGavin) Gibbons; the two had been married for 56 years at the time of her passing in 2003. He was 95.

John Gibbons grew up in Granville, MA and graduated from Williston Academy in 1941. Having an ambition to attend Massachusetts Maritime Academy (MMA), he worked at Colt Firearms in Hartford, Connecticut, earning much needed money to assist his widowed mother. Granted admission in December of 1943, John arrived at the Hyannis campus for a war time accelerated matriculation that included sea days aboard the SS AMERICAN PILOT cruising in Long Island Sound. After graduating in May 1944, John was commissioned and immediately deployed as Assistant Navigator and Boat Officer aboard the USS PRESIDENT HAYES (APN 20). He was promoted to Navigator during deployment in the Pacific. Serving during the Leyte Gulf landings, John witnessed General Douglas wade ashore and earned the Asiatic Pacific 1 Star and American Area Victory Philippine Liberation 2 Stars amongst other honors. It was aboard the President Hayes, he met Doris McGavin. She was serving as a commissioned Navy Nurse. They were married on August 1, 1946 in the Navy Chapel on Treasure Island in San Francisco. The couple moved to Holbrook, MA that September.

John joined Pocahontas Steamship Lines as Second Mate aboard the coal collier SS JONANCY in May of 1947 – thus beginning a 30-year career that included promotion to master in 1952. In 1967 Captain Gibbons joined Maritime Overseas Corporation as Master aboard bulk carriers and tankers. The walls of Captain John M. Gibbons’ North Falmouth home tell the tale of a well-traveled life. Above the chair in which he often sat is a hat, one he got while he was in Leyte. He often remarked that there was only a small section between Singapore and Saigon that he hadn’t been to.

Having summered in New Silver Beach for 20 years, it was natural for Doris and John to retire to Wild Harbor in 1978. The Wild Harbor Yacht Club was a great way to sail and fish with his family. As often as possible, he would hunt. A 2015 photo shows results of his skillful deer hunting.

In January of 1978, John took on a new role as a professor at Massachusetts Maritime Academy where he became well-known for stringent adherence to every exact word in the Rules of the Road – a stance that earned an appointment to the United States Coast Guard Rules of the Road Advisory Council. He worked tirelessly in unifying the “Inland Rules of the Road” with the newly established international “Collision Regulations”. Captain Gibbons was Master of the TS Patriot State for four cruises from 1988 to 1991.

Captain Gibbons was honored by the MMA with the Alumnus of the Year Award in 1992, Gold Membership in the Boston Marine Society in 2004, the Navy League of Boston in 2009, and the Massachusetts Maritime Academy Alumni Association Special Recognition Award in 2016 for naval and merchant service.

Captain Gibbons was a member of the Boston Marine Society for 64 years. This long association included numerous committees and terms as President from 1984 until 1987. John received a gubernatorial appointment as Deputy Pilot Commissioner for Massachusetts Pilot District Three, providing oversight and commissioning of state pilots from 1993 until 2008.

John is survived by his loving children, Elizabeth Gibbons of Campbell, California and Fred Gibbons of Los Altos Hills, California; his wonderful grandson, Alexander Will and Alexandra Cole Will of San Francisco, CA; Eduard and Beth Will of Los Angeles, CA; Marco Will of Frankfurt, Germany; the O’Konski family of Bethesda, MD; Lt. JG Alex O’Konski, San Diego, CA; the Schumacher and McGavin families of Upstate New York; the Beattie families of Maryland and California; and many dear friends on the Cape, across the country and around the world. John is preceded in death by his wife, Doris Gibbons and daughter, Mary Gibbons.

Posted in: 1940s

Roma I. Donais W’27

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Roma I. Donais, 100, of Easthampton, MA passed away Sunday, May 13, 2018 in her home with her family at her side. She was born in South Hadley, MA on August 13, 1917, the daughter of Hector and Clemencia Isabelle Huot. Roma attended schools in South Hadley and pursued a profession as a Registered Nurse. She was the widow of Dr. Henry E. Donais ‘27, a well-respected physician in Easthampton, who died in 1997. Roma was active in Easthampton as a member of the former Town of Easthampton Finance Committee, member and Corporator of Emily Williston Memorial Library, member of Tuesday Afternoon Club, Helping Hand Society, Garden Club and a former President of the Easthampton Historical Society.

Roma is survived by son Paul C. Donais and daughter Harriet E. Tatro ‘57, both of Easthampton, two grandchildren Harriet A. DeVerry ‘81 and John H. Tatro ‘87, and one great-grandson Devin DeVerry ’17. She was predeceased by her son Henry E. (Hank) Donais, Jr. ’59.

Visiting hours will be held on Thursday, May 17, from 4pm to 6pm at Mitchell Funeral Home, 15 Park Street, Easthampton.

In lieu of flowers’s, a gift in Roma’s memory may be given to the Williston Northampton School, Donais Scholarship Fund.

Posted in: 1920s, 1950s, 1980s, Former Faculty

Miriam Goldstein Sommer ’46

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Miriam Hilda (Goldstein) Sommer, age 89, of New Haven, Conn., died peacefully on May 9, 2018, at The Connecticut Hospice. She was born on May 2, 1929, in Springfield, Mass., to Nathan and Annie (Ginsberg) Goldstein. Mimi, as she was known to many, attended Northampton School for Girls and Wells College and later earned a master’s degree in art history at Southern Connecticut State College. For many years, she worked in the Department of Music at Yale University. She was proud of her second career as a freelance journalist; her interviews and stories were published in The New York Times and in various travel magazines. She was a champion of the arts and a devoted cinephile. For many years she held a weekly “story hour” for her neighbors’ children. She leaves behind many loving and devoted friends and relatives, including her “French family.” She was predeceased by her three older brothers and is survived by her daughters, Babette, of Forest Hills, N.Y., and Annie (David Rabinowitz) of Hamden, Conn. She was previously married to Leonard Samuel Sommer of Key Biscayne, Fla.

Posted in: 1940s

Alan A. Roberts ’37

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Alan A. Roberts, of Chatham, NJ, passed away April 19, 2018.  He is survived by his sons, Jeffrey ’68 and Christopher ’69.

Jeff writes, “Thursday night Alan Roberts went to another place. After more than 98 years, death was caused by an infection, a brief but difficult illness. You may remember Dad who grew up in Medford MA, was a 1937 graduate of Williston Academy where he lived in the then new Ford Hall. Personally I remember him as an advertising guy commuting on the train to Chicago’s Loop or New York’s Madison Ave, telling stories and quizzing the three of us about the names behind BBD&O. (Batten Barton Dursten and Osborne). But looking at the time line, Dad was a numbers guy building algorithms, like a carpenter needs lumber, Alan needed numbers and industrial scale agriculture has lots of numbers. That’s what he did, an ag numbers guy. Away from work it was local politics, the Bruins, travel, bridge and travel. On the first count, he had a regular place in the local newspapers letters to the editor section and took pleasure in the feedback.”

Posted in: 1930s

Remembering members of the Williston Northampton community