Category Archives: Class of 1939

Kendall Lewis ’39

Kendall LewisKendall Lewis died peacefully, after a brief illness, on Thursday, October 30, at Piper Shores in Scarborough, ME.

Mr. Lewis was born in Abington, PA, the son of James McKeen Lewis and Alice Kendall Lewis. He first met his wife of nearly 66 years, Betsey Converse Lewis, when they were both teenagers living in Stony Creek, CT.

Mr. Lewis graduated from Williston Academy in 1939, and went on to Yale College, but left to serve in the Navy during World War II. His service was mostly in the Pacific aboard the light cruiser, the USS Denver. After the war he returned to Yale and completed his degree in Industrial Engineering, graduating as a member of the class of 1943. During the war Mr. Lewis re-encountered Betsey Converse and asked for her hand. They were married on December 4, 1948 at St. Thomas Episcopal Church in New Haven, CT.

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Sally Gavin See ’39

Gavin SeeSally Gavin See ’39 died on April 4, 2014. She was born on July 27, 1922 in Taunton, Massachusetts, the second of four daughters.

She was the niece of Sarah B. Whitaker, co-founder of the Northampton School for Girls. Sally graduated from Northampton School for Girls in 1939. Also graduates of NSFG, her sisters Phyllis Robinson and Caroline Arnold survive her; sister Mary Brenneman preceded her in death. Sally had four children: little Sally (Sarah Helen Seigel ’62 – deceased); Tess (Ellen Hope Durant ’64); Sheena (Pamela Hathaway See ’69); and Randy (Randolph Bartlett See ’75). She had six grandchildren: Michael Pitts(’91) and Eric Pitts; Phoebe and Poppy Durant; and Gloria and Rebecca See; and six great-grandchildren: Charlie and Crosby Pitts; Natalie and Perry Shen; and Harlow and Charlie Decunto.

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Dr. William David Michael, Jr. ’39

Williams David MichelDr. William David Michael Jr. passed away Saturday, May 3, in Weymouth. He was 95 years old.

Dave was born in Quincy, in 1919, to William David Michael Sr. and Mary (Alexander) Michael. He graduated from Thayer and Williston Academies and received his Doctor of Optometric Degree from Pennsylvania State College of Optometry.

After serving in the Navy during World War II, he joined his father’s Optometric practice in Quincy.

He married Marion Ross Scudder, his childhood sweetheart, in 1942. They settled in Weymouth and later moved to Hingham. Dave continued his Optometric practice in Quincy until retirement, when he and Marion moved to Hilton Head, S.C., in 1978. In retirement, they pursued their love of travel and Daves dream of golfing year round.

Dr. Michael was predeceased by his wife of 65 years Marion, his parents, a daughter, Marion Leslie Michael, and a grandson, David Monroe. He is survived by his three daughters, Joan Monroe of Weymouth, Wendy Mauch of Lochmere, N.H., and Meredith Schubach of Tucson, Ariz. Dave is also survived by six grandchildren and three great-grandsons.

Kermit George Pratt ’39

PrattKermit George Pratt, 92, of Newport News, died Thursday, Sept. 19, 2013.

He was born Sept.12, 1921, in Windsor, Vermont, the son of George Henry Pratt and Mary Patterson Pratt of Windsor, Vermont. Survivors include his son and daughter-in-law, Colin and Ann Pratt of Newport News; his daughter, Kay-Lyn Pratt Merritt of Ashland; five grandchildren, Lindsay Zanol (Max) of Gloucester Point, Adam Pratt of Henrico, Robin Merritt Liesfeld (Kenny) of Montpelier, Rebecca Merritt of Ashland, Catherine Merritt Blanche (Bradley) of Glen Allen; and three great grandchildren, Luca and Bella Liesfeld of Montpelier, and Abel Blanche of Glen Allen. He was predeceased by his wife of 57 years, Marilyn, who died in October, 2000.

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Honour Buell Edgerton ’39

Honour EdgertonHonour Edgerton was an extraordinarily thoughtful and caring person. She listened, and you became the center of her universe. She was courageous. Blind for several years, she never wavered in her good humor or positive outlook. She is gone but her spirit remains.

Honour Buell Edgerton died on Nov. 10, 2013, at HillHouse Assisted Living in Bath from congestive heart failure.

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Robert T. Gabriel ’39

GabrielRobert T. Gabriel passed away on October 21, 2013. Born and raised in New Haven, Conn., he was a former resident of Bedford, Mass. and Lexington, Mass. After graduating from Yale in 1943, he served as an officer in the Navy and took part in D-Day in 1944.

After the war, he joined the Yale Alumni Fund as Secretary of that organization for 13 years. Following that he became Director of Radcliffe College Fund. In subsequent years he worked as a fund raising consultant winding up as Vice President of American Fund Raising Services whose clients consisted of hospitals, colleges and other philanthropic organizations.

He was a member of the Pilgrim Congregational Church of Lexington where he was a member of the governing council for a number of years. After retirement he joined the Peace Corps and went to Botswana where he became loan officer in the National Development Bank.

He was predeceased by his first wife, Margaret Bell (Miller) in 1979, his second wife, Isabel (Maxwell) in 2007, his brother, John C. Gabriel and sister, Susan Cunliffe. He is survived by his one son, Robert T. Gabriel, Jr. and daughter Anne C. Dunn of Long Island. He also leaves three grandchildren: Meghan Durkee, Stacey Gabriel and Heather Dunn.

Robert Wallace Riedel ’39

Robert Wallace Riedel, 92, passed away on Monday, Aug. 26, 2013, at Wing Memorial Hospital in Palmer following a short illness. Born on June 2, 1921, he was the son of the late Wallace Edwin and Marjorie Smith (King) Riedel of Easthampton.

After graduating from Williston Academy, he earned the Bachelor of Science Degree in Chemical Engineering from Yale University in 1943.

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Bethia Smith Currie ’39

Dr. Bethia S. Currie died peacefully at the Sharon Health Care Center on July 3, 2013, after a long battle with Alzheimer’s disease. She was born in Meriden, Conn., in 1922, but had lived in Cornwall since 1955.

She attended Northampton School for Girls and Vassar College, graduating cum laude in 1943 with a degree in English literature. She taught briefly at Pratt Institute in New York City before marrying and starting a family. In the 1960s she attended the New School for Social Research, studying philosophy and political science. She obtained a masters in philosophy in 1970 and her doctorate in 1971 and served as a graduate assistant teacher. She went on to teach philosophy and comparative religion at the University of Connecticut in Torrington as an assistant professor until her retirement in the mid 1980s.

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