Phyllis Seybolt, Former Faculty


Phyllis Seybolt of Boynton Beach, Florida and Gouldsboro, Maine passed away on Saturday, July 13, 2019.

Born on December 7, 1923 in Holyoke, Massachusetts to Willard and Helen Allen, Phyllis graduated from Holyoke High School and entered Penn State. Her college career was put on hold during WWII due to the need for women in the war industries. She worked on airplane production during the war years and then focused on raising her five children. Her husband, James L Beekman II, a career officer in the U.S. Air Force, was stationed in post war Europe where they resided in Chateau-Roux, France. James premature illness and death left her as sole support of her children, a challenge she surmounted by returning to college at University of Massachusetts, Amherst where she earned a Master’s degree in mathematics and initiated a long career in teaching high school algebra and calculus. She initially taught at the Northampton School for Girls and acted as director of admissions. Later she accepted a position at the Williston Academy in Easthampton, MA where she met her husband and life partner, Dr. Stephen Seybolt. Steve’s degree in English literature and Phyllis’ passion for math enriched the lives of generations of high school students.

Phyllis is survived by: her sister Marjorie Yount of North Carolina, her husband Stephen of Boynton Beach, FL, as well as all children: Candace and her husband William Matthew of Hopkington, MA, Dr. Robert Beekman and his wife Ellen of Ellsworth, ME, James Beekman of Portland, OR, Allen Beekman and his wife Sandy of Bend, OR, Laurie and her husband Dana Parker of Plymouth, MA. She is survived by grandchildren: Aria Baker, Brian, Benjamin and Samuel Beekman all of Bend, OR, Julie Matthew of East Greenwich, RI, Allison Miseph of Indianapolis, IN, Michael Miseph of Holyoke, MA, Kimberly Kleinpeter of Gorham, ME, and Andrew Beekman of Boone, NC. She is also survived by 7 great grandchildren: Kiley Shea, Jaya Belle, Jackson Tye, Natalie Kate, Robert Reynolds, Hickson Rudder and George Porter.

Phyllis overcame many challenges in her life, but none so great as her final battle with Alzheimer’s disease. A woman proud of her intellectual gifts, she bore progressive losses with grace and dignity. She taught us all to appreciate the smaller pleasures in life and took great joy in the love and companionship of family and friends.

In lieu of flowers, friends are invited to consider a gift in her memory to the Parkside Inn (Memory Care Center), 1613 SW 3rd St, Boynton Beach, FL. 33435.

Burton J. Landau ’50


Burton J. Landau, microbiologist, medical educator and Associate Dean at Drexel University; loving husband, father, grandfather and great-grandfather, died in his home on October 23, 2018. He is survived by his wife of 61 years, Ellen Segal Landau, his sons Jim (Lesly) Landau and Richard (Hiromi) Landau, his sister Lois Landau Berman and his brother Peter (Roberta) Landau and his brother in-law William (Joanne) Segal. He was the cherished grandfather of Emily (Jared), Jessica, Andrew (Jennine), Katherine, Joey and his great-grandson Gavin, all of whom will miss his many stories and words of wisdom and love. Family and friends are invited to a Memorial Service, Monday, October 29, 3:00 PM, at Joseph Levine & Sons Memorial Chapel, 4737 Street Road, Trevose, PA. In lieu of flowers, please donate to the American Cancer Society in Burton’s memory (www.cancer.org).

 

Thomas H. LaBelle ’53

Thomas H. LaBelle, 95, of Easthampton passed away peacefully surrounded by his family July 2, 2019 at the Elaine Manor in Hadley. He was born in Holyoke, April 2, 1924, the son of the late Henry and Marie (Tagliolato) LaBelle. Tom was educated in the Easthampton schools and was a graduate of the Williston Academy. He was a WWII US Army Air Corp Veteran serving as Radio Operator. Tom owned and operated The Camera Shop as well as Jessie’s Taxi Co., both in Easthampton, for many years. Additionally, he was a self-employed freelance photographer working independently and contributing to the Daily Hampshire Gazette. He was a member of the Easthampton Lions Club, the Easthampton Chamber of Commerce and sang with a local Barber Shop Quartet. Thomas was a scratch golfer belonging to many local country clubs and had eight holes-in-one to his credit. Tom’s beloved wife for 54 years June (Ladnier) LaBelle passed away in 1999. He leaves his daughters, Sandy M. Colpack (Jim) and June “Jill” Prosciak, both of Easthampton, and Barbara “Bonnie” Johnson (Cliff) of Southampton, his 6 Grandsons Thomas, Jarrett, Heath, Michael, Kyle, and Chris, his 8 Great Grandchildren, his sister Shirley Slavas of Belchertown, and his many nieces and nephews. Tom was predeceased by his daughter Janice LaBelle and his son-in-law John Prosciak. Funeral services will be private, the O’Brien Funeral Home has been entrusted with all arrangements. Memorial gifts can be made to Riverside Industry 1 Cottage St. Easthampton, MA 01027 or to the Hospice of the Fisher Home 1165 North Pleasant St. Amherst, MA 01002.

Corinne Rogers Honkalehto ’46


Corinne Rogers Honkalehto, of Hamilton, NY – beloved mother and friend, dedicated swimmer, reader, gardener, and crossword aficionado – died peacefully in her sleep on March 29, 2018, at her daughter’s home in Boise, Idaho, after several months battling heart failure and vascular disease. She was 89.
Corinne was born to Virginia Thompson Rogers and Reginald B. Rogers on March 9, 1929, in Manhasset, NY, and grew up in the Long Island town of Huntington. She and her sister Judy attended Adelphi Academy in Brooklyn, NY, while their mother attended library school at Pratt Institute. Later the family moved to Northampton, MA, when her mother became Head of Circulation for Nielson Library at Smith College. Corinne graduated from Smith in 1950 with an A.B. in Sociology and later earned a Masters in Library Science from Pratt Institute in Brooklyn.
Corinne’s professional librarian positions included school, business and academic settings. While working as a reserves librarian at MIT in Cambridge, MA, she met a handsome Finn from Quincy, MA, Oswald Honkalehto, who was pursuing a Ph.D. in Economics. They married in 1953 and lived in Brookline, MA, and also in Princeton, NJ, while Ozzie worked at Princeton University. In 1957, they moved to Pittsburgh, PA, (Carnegie Mellon) where their daughter, Taina, was born, and next to East Lansing, MI, (Michigan State) where their 2nd daughter, Liisa, was born.
In 1962, Ozzie was recruited to teach Economics at Colgate University in Hamilton, NY, where they settled as part of a cohort of young faculty who arrived in the 1960s – most of whom raised families and stayed in Hamilton for many years. Corinne worked as full-time mom, then on and off in the Colgate Language Lab, as a substitute librarian at Hamilton Central School, and as librarian at the American Management Association. She also served on the board of the Hamilton Public Library.
The family enjoyed playing tennis, spending summers at Colgate Camp, Old Forge, and Speculator, NY, with close family friends, and visits with relatives and friends on Cape Cod. Corinne and their daughters also accompanied Ozzie to England over several fall semesters with the Colgate London Economics study group. Later, after he retired the two of them enjoyed many trips to New York City, to Europe and elsewhere with the MIT Alumni Association, and on South American and south Pacific voyages aboard the Queen Mary II.
Corinne was active in the women’s Hamilton Fortnightly Club, and she loved swimming almost anywhere, especially in the ocean or with friends at the Colgate pool. In addition to tennis and swimming, she played guitar and sang, and later took up the piano. She enjoyed dancing, reading books, traveling, and became a master at Sunday New York Times crossword puzzles.
Corinne was thoughtful, kind, and patient, and delighted in experiencing both the quiet outdoor beauty around her in Hamilton and the culture of world cities. She maintained strong friendships with long-time friends, and welcomed new friends from her travels with ease. Her last years were spent enjoying reading, movies and art in Hamilton, Manhattan, Boise and Seattle with her daughters and their friends. She had a knack for remembering little jokes and rhymes, and she shared them with family, friends and caregivers into her last days.
Corinne was preceded in death by her husband, Oswald, in 2013, and sister, Judith Rogers Atwood ’45, of Kingston, RI, in 2001. She is survived by her daughters, Taina Honkalehto (Ed Melvin), of Seattle, WA, and Liisa Rogers, of Boise, ID, and two nieces.
The family wishes to thank Treasure Valley Hospice of Nampa, ID, for their expert care and services during her last weeks.
A remembrance gathering for Corinne will be held in Hamilton in late spring or early summer 2018.
In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to the Colgate University Lineberry Natatorium, Colgate University Gift Records, 13 Oak Drive, Hamilton, NY 13346.