Category Archives: 1940s

Harding “Hardy” Reemsnyder ’43

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ReemsnyderHarding E. Reemsnyder, longtime Guilford resident, passed away peacefully at CT Hospice in Branford on Mon. September 14, 2015.

Hardy was predeceased by his wife, Florence (Misbach), and parents C. Victor and Edith (Carr) Reemsnyder.

He is a graduate of Williston Academy and Yale University and was owner of Victor Advertising Service, which was established by his father in 1938.

He was most proud of his Naval military career which began in 1943, retiring as a Commander overseeing Fort Hale, New Haven in 1972. His love of the sea was evident in his lifelong pursuit of boating in Long Island Sound, the Thimble Islands, and a favorite destination, Block Island.

He is survived by his first wife, Gloria (Dickerson) Reemsnyder of Madison, his companion, Jan Jette of Killingworth, his children, Laurie E. Reemsnyder of Mill Valley, CA; Robert (Bonnie) Reemsnyder of Old Lyme; David (Tracey) Reemsnyder of Clinton; Debra (John) Fetherston of Madison; Susan (Derek) Cummings of Durham; and step children, Michael (Kim) Denison of Guilford; Bruce Denison of Guilford; Laura Fellows of Arlington, TX. He was also blessed with 20 grandchildren and step-grandchildren.

Posted in: 1940s, Class of 1943

Eugene Berman ’46

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BermanNoted bankruptcy lawyer and civic leader Eugene B. Berman of Enfield and Woodmont, CT died peacefully at home on September 14 after a long and productive life.

He was born in Holyoke, MA on June 1, 1928, the son of Gustave and Lillian Berman.

Berman was a graduate of Williston Academy, the University of Nebraska and Boston University School of Law, and a member of the Hampden County, MA and American Bar Associations, the bar of the U.S. Supreme Court and the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals and several U.S. District Courts.

He authored the 1972 book “How to Collect a Debt” and served as President of the Commercial Law League of America in 1980. In 2009 the Massachusetts Bar Association and Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly honored him for his work for the victims of the foreclosure crisis and to bring judicial foreclosure to Massachusetts.

Berman is survived by his loving partner Patricia Kozaczka and her granddaughter Taylor, by his son, E. Bruce Berman, Jr. and his wife Patricia, by his daughter Caren Berman Nemtzow, her husband Andy and their sons Zachary and Alexander, and numerous cousins, nieces and nephews. Eugene Berman left the world a better place for his having lived, achieving immortality in the hearts and minds of those who survive him, especially the many descendants of Chonan and Khasia Berman.

Posted in: 1940s, Class of 1946, Uncategorized

Frank Schwelb ’49

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schwelbFrank E. Schwelb, a onetime Justice Department civil rights lawyer who became a D.C. judge for more than three decades, known for his sometimes floridly written judicial decisions, died Aug. 13, 2015 at a Washington hospital. He was 82. He had Parkinson’s disease and complications from cardiopulmonary ailments, said his wife, Taffy Schwelb.

After fleeing his native Czechoslovakia with his family on the eve of World War II, Judge Schwelb grew up in England before coming to the United States in his teens. He served as an attorney with the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division from 1962 to 1979, when he was appointed to the D.C. Superior Court. Judge Schwelb quickly became known for his lengthy and sometimes verbally inventive writings from the bench. He turned to Shakespeare to brighten a decision on juvenile justice, John Keats in a case about trash collecting and composers Gilbert and Sullivan in a landlord ­tenant dispute. Quoting from the operetta “The Mikado,” Judge Schwelb wrote, “My object all sublime / I shall achieve in time / To let the punishment fit the crime / The punishment fit the crime.”

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Posted in: 1940s, Class of 1949

Joyce Stedfast Taylor ’47

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Joyce StedfastJoyce Stedfast Taylor, 86 of LaConner, passed away Monday July 27, 2015 at Island Hospital with her loving husband, Ted at her side.

She was born in Winthrop, Massachusetts to Albert M. and Marion T. (Tabor) Stedfast.

Joyce grew up in the Boston area, attended Northampton School for Girls and then went on to Mt Holyoke College, graduating in 1951 with a B.A. in Economics.

A desire for new horizons took her to Southern California, where she worked for Douglas Aircraft and the Rand Corporation.

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Posted in: 1940s

Paul Bechard ’44

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BechardPaul Bechard, CDR, USN, C.F.P., joined his beloved, Polly in heaven, July 11, 2015.

Born September 8, 1926 in Holyoke, Ma. to Joseph and Zelda Bechard, and survived by his three daughters; Paula (David) Hirst, Pamela (Cole) Hanner and Marie-Anne (Ted) Layne, grandchildren Avery (Joel) Solomon, Adam (Dorothy) Willis, Townshend Hirst, Phillip (Rebecca) Hanner, Ginnie (Greg) Stawicki, Whitney (Nate) Heatwole, Paul and Renee Layne, 7 great grandchildren and many family members and friends.

After graduating from Williston Academy (44), Ma. Maritime Academy (47), he served as a Merchant Service Officer for a year before being called to active duty in 1949 on USS Midway until 1951.

He met his wife Polly in Norfolk and married her in 1951. She predeceased him two years ago after 62 years of marriage.

Paul lived in Plymouth, Ma., after his marriage, completing his MS from Babson (53) and running the family insurance agency. While living in Norfolk (1954 to 1969) he ran Brown, Bechard Insurance agency, was active in Kiwanis, and had an unsuccessful run for House of Delegates. The family moved to Birdneck Point in 1969 where 40 years of making wonderful memories and having fun were spent. His career included serving on many financial boards as well as starting a Mutual Fund Company, owning an insurance agency, serving in the Navy reserves as an intelligence officer. He was a scrabble and chess aficionado and very difficult to beat, a wonderful husband, father, grandpa, uncle and friend. He leaves a legacy of life lessons.

Paul was lovingly cared for by Hazel, Maribel, and Mila during his extended illness.

Posted in: 1940s

Anne Phelps Dodge Herbert ’48

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HerbertAnne Phelps Dodge Herbert was born on March 28, 1931 in Colorado Springs, CO and died on July 16, 2015 in Mobile, AL after a long illness.

She was the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Stuart Phelps Dodge of Colorado Springs, CO. She was preceded in death by her parents, her two brothers Stuart and Peter and her first husband John Wesley Geary, Jr. She is survived by her second husband Donald Edmonds Herbert, Jr. to whom she was happily married for nearly fifty years and her daughters Hillary Herbert and Emily (nee′ Wason Geary) and her husband Victor Maskey of Mobile, AL a son John Wesley Geary, III and his wife Stacy (nee′ Hill) of Atlanta, GA and two grandsons Jack and Riley also of Atlanta.

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Posted in: 1940s, Class of 1948, Uncategorized

Bruce Yarber ’48

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Bruce YarberBruce A. Yarber passed away on July 9, 2015 at the Holyoke Soldiers Home.

The beloved husband of Suzanne (Patterson) Yarber, he was 85 years of age. Born and raised in Holyoke, Bruce was the youngest of three children born to the late Clifford Yarber and Ida May (MacMonegle) Yarber.

Bruce attended Holyoke schools until the eighth grade, when he went to the Williston School for Boys in Easthampton. He graduated from Williston in 1948. Following Williston Bruce attended Brown University, graduating in 1952. Upon graduation he enlisted in the United States Army serving during the Korean War.

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Posted in: 1940s, Class of 1948

Robert LaPrade ’48

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Robert LaPradeRobert M. “Bob” Laprade passed away on June 17, 2015 in Leeds, MA surrounded by friends.

He was born in Easthampton, MA on June 22, 1924 to Peter Ovide and Aurore (Michaud) Laprade.

He was educated in Easthampton schools, graduating from Easthampton High School and after service in the U.S. Army in WWII, he graduated from the Williston Academy. Robert graduated from the University of Pennsylvania, Wharton School of Business with a degree in accounting and received a Doctorate in Jurisprudence from Boston College.

Robert lived for over 40 years in Washington, DC practicing law for the Securities and Exchange Commission, the Central Intelligence Agency and the U.S. Federal Court System. In 2009 he returned home to Easthampton.

He is survived by his niece, Catherine (Kitty) Maxey and her husband Dee of Dallas, TX and many friends across the country.

Robert was predeceased by his parents; sisters Georgette L. O’Connor and Pauline C. Jurkowski; brother-in-law Jerry O’Connor; and nieces Maggi O’Connor and Joni A. Jurkowski.

Posted in: 1940s, Class of 1948

Nancy Morse Willeson ’45

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Nancy MorseNancy Lee (Morse) Willeson, A.K.A. Nancy Maxwell-Willeson, aged 87 went to be with her Lord April 18.

Nancy was living in Palm Harbor, FL. She was born January 20, 1928 in Wellesley Hills, MA, to Roger Earle & Gladys Carr Morse. She spent summers as a child at the family farm in Francestown, N.H., and also at the family cottage in Chatham, Cape Cod, MA. She graduated from Northampton School For Girls, in Northampton, MA, and she also graduated from Principia College in Elsah, IL.

She married Ronald (Max) Maxwell-Willeson Sept. 6, 1952, and brought up her four children in Wayland, MA and later in Chatham, MA.

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Posted in: 1940s, Class of 1945, Uncategorized

Richard E Waite, Sr. ’42

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Richard WaiteRichard E. “Dick” Waite, Sr., 91, of West Brandywine, passed away on Saturday, May 30, 2015.

He was the husband of the late Ruth A. Waite, his beloved wife with whom he shared 65 years of marriage.

Born on May 13, 1924, in Winchington, Massachusetts, Richard graduated from Williston Academy in 1942 and received a BA degree in economics from Bowdoin College. His college studies were interrupted by service in Europe during WW II as a combat infantryman with the 84th Division. He fought in some of the most significant battles, the Battle of the Bulge and The Siegfried Line and participated in concentration camp liberations.

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Posted in: 1940s, Class of 1942