| Kenyon Class of 1966 Fall Class Letter
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| Dear classmates,
Kenyon couldn’t be more Kenyon than it is in the fall. I’m recalling cool breezes to balance out the afternoon sun, crunchy leaves blanketing everything in autumn colors and an endless supply of friendly faces to greet you along Middle Path. Whatever the season, I look forward to running into you on the Hill again soon, especially since we haven’t had a chance to reconnect there in some time.
We celebrated a mini-reunion over the weekend of October 1-3 in beautiful, downtown Gambier! Larry Leventon orchestrated a great weekend, including generally exquisite weather, a reading of several of Fred Kluge’s ’64 books and discussion with Fred and Pamela at their home; and a visit with Shawn Dailey and Sean Decatur at Cromwell House. Attending were Larry Leventon, Lou Martone, Tom Mason, Bill Rice, David Perry, Bob Moyer, Mike Bulmash, Jeff Wentworth, Brit Rothrock and Jack Buckley. We missed all of you who were unable to be in Gambier for the 55th, and look forward to seeing you for the 60th in May 2026. As we finished dinner on Saturday night, the theme of the 60th reunion became: “Nifty to do 60!”
And what a campus we saw on our visit. Chalmers Library is open and beautiful. (Have you seen the disco ball-esque skylight feature?) All four classes are studying together again in Gambier. (With a bonus first-year cohort finishing a semester in Copenhagen!) And plans are taking shape for an unforgettable Reunion 2022 on the Hill. (Mark your calendar for the weekend of May 27. All alumni are invited to attend!)
In other exciting campus news, the College just shared its new strategic plan that will guide its planning and actions leading up to the bicentennial in 2024 and beyond. You will be pleased to see it includes core elements like developing a computer science program informed by the liberal arts; enrolling, retaining and graduating a student body that is representative of the talent and diversity of our nation and the world; and expanding its commitment to environmental responsibility.
You have also likely heard the announcement of the Kenyon Access Initiative which will bring more high-achieving students to Kenyon thanks to a $25 million matching grant from the Schuler Education Foundation. Any amount we give through this Kenyon Access Initiative will be matched 1:1 and will go to a new scholarship for students from families with limited means and those ineligible for government aid — up to $25 million.
Scroll on to learn more about Kenyon’s strategic plan and the Kenyon Access Initiative (and how they fit into our 2024 bicentennial celebration).
As you read about what’s in store for Kenyon’s future, I hope you’ll consider supporting today’s students with a gift to the Kenyon Fund and (if you have the ability) making an additional gift to the Kenyon Access Initiative that has the potential to bring 50 additional talented students to Kenyon each year.
Kenyon couldn’t be Kenyon without involved and supportive alumni like us. As the bicentennial draws closer, I challenge each of you to continue to help make Kenyon the special place it is. This could mean becoming an alumni volunteer, attending a College event, submitting a class note or setting up a recurring monthly gift.
It is hard to believe that we have been a part of the history of Kenyon for nearly 60 years, or one third of the college’s history!
Thank you!
Jack Buckley
P.S. Is Kenyon already in your will? Let the College know about your planned giving by emailing daleiden1@kenyon.edu.
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| There's a lot happening at Kenyon today.
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We want you to be a part of it.
The Our Path Forward to the Bicentennial campaign is about building a strong foundation for Kenyon’s third century by growing our endowment and strengthening alumni connections. Get involved by:
Staying connected to Kenyon
You may only be a Kenyon student for four years, but you’re a member of our alumni community for life. The Office of Alumni and Parent Engagement strives to make it easy — and fun — to stay connected. GET INVOLVED
Making a gift
Gifts of all sizes add up: every year, gifts of $100 or less to the Kenyon Fund total more than $250,000. Also, every dollar given to the Kenyon Access Initiative between now and June 2026 will be matched and used to create permanent new scholarship funds to enroll exceptional students with limited resources and those who are ineligible for government aid. MAKE A GIFT
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| Upcoming Events for Alumni
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Save the date for these upcoming events for alumni taking place online and on the Hill.
- Kenyon Women Giving Back
The quarterly event series continues on Tuesday, March 22 via Zoom.
- Kenyon Together
The 36-hour online giving challenge kicks off Tuesday, April 12.
- Reunion Weekend
All alumni are invited to join us on the Hill May 27–29.
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Class AgentsClass agents are your connection to campus. If you would like to learn more about becoming a class agent, contact Terry Dunnavant at dunnavantt@kenyon.edu.
• Jack Buckley
• Burt Dibble
• Jim Foster
• Lowell Gaspar
• Larry Leventon
• Carl Mankowitz
• Tom Mason
• Jerry Reynolds
• Bill Rice
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Richard Smith: Retirement is treating us well. Jeanine and I are healthy and active. Some of our activities include traveling, enjoying our grandchildren, pickle-ball, volunteering and taking classes at the local university. We look forward to many more good years.
Carl Mankowitz: I have been very busy, both at my synagogue and as a member of the board of our apartment cooperative. At synagogue, I was part of an ad hoc committee to determine what set of mitigation procedures would suffice for in-person services. We decided on requiring proof of vaccination, spacing attendees apart, and shortening the services. We also decided to stream services, so the most risk averse members could watch the service online. It was a success: we had many in person participants, and those that watched online felt included.
As to our 101 year old building, as we did an every ten year look at our outside facade, we faced a number of unpleasant surprises: lots of terra cotta on our front facade that needed replacement, and then an exposure of two large horizontal structural steel beams, one that needed complete replacement and the other needing significant patches of new steel. The project started as a $400K project; it's now a $2.2 million project. The coup de grace was our managing agent: we had enough of them, and they had enough of us. I ran a selection process that in three weeks resulted in a new manager for the building. Whoever said that in retirement one would have to manufacture stuff to do?
Dick Nolan: Until this year, I didn’t think much about dying. I had no chronic conditions. All my vital signs were excellent. But then in March, I started getting winded. At first, I thought I was terribly out of shape after too much pandemic seclusion. It got bad enough one night, however, that Gretchen called 911. I spent four days in the hospital with severe blood clots on my lungs. A month later food started hanging in my throat unless I chewed it thoroughly. An endoscopy found I had a cancerous tumor in my esophagus. Five weeks of chemo and radiation eliminated the cancer, but the tumor spot on my esophagus needs to be removed to eliminate recurrence. As I write, I fly in early October to Mayo Clinic for the surgery. Amazing how Covid (now the delta variant), clots, and tumors gets one thinking a lot about mortality.
Lee Bowman: Over here in the U.K. the Covid restrictions are finally lifting and both business and private activities are getting back to some semblance of 'normal'....Sue and I were delighted by the arrival of our fourth grand-child, Sebastian. He joins Lisi's daughter, Anya (4) and Fred's two children, Poppy (6 and named after our Daschund!!!) and Olly (2).....Hopefully, we will be taking our first break outside the UK later this month, and hoping to find some sunshine (This is, after all England!!!) in Italy or Spain!!!! Work is going well.....and our company is recovering after a real 'Covid Jolt' at the beginning of the pandemic!!! Still commuting to London from Sussex by motorbike....and long may it continue!!!
Jerry Reynolds: Greetings 55th-Reunion-Year Classmates! Claudia and I are enjoying a 1-14 October AmaWaterways Cruise down the Lower Danube River. It includes shore excursions into Vienna, Austria; Budapest, Hungary; Croatia; Serbia; Bulgaria; Bucharest, Brasov, and the Transylvania Region of Romania. Wonderful sights, food and people! Best wishes to all.
William Judson: Dr. William W. Judson passed away on July 21, 2021. He was a loving husband and father. He practiced medicine for 40 years in PA.
Bill Rice: Enjoyed returning to the Hilltop the weekend of October 1st to celebrate "55 ’cause we're still alive". With great organizing by Larry Leventon about a dozen of us made the trek for a very enjoyable weekend which included a dinner at the Kenyon Inn, a "seminar" with author Fred Kluge '64 and a farewell dinner at the Alcove (yes, it is still there). The first thing I saw as I approached the campus was a tall construction crane. While many of the buildings that we knew back in the 60's still exist, the breadth of change is stunning. My classmates and I remember being enlisted to help move into the new library back in 1962 as soon as we arrived on campus; that library is gone and in its place a new improved library stands. Many of us wandered down to the areas surrounding the Lowry Center and were stunned to see acres of fields for every sport imaginable reaching as far as the eye can see. After struggling through the Covid pandemic, it was refreshing to see Gambier buzzing with students and families.
Jake Rohrer: We just returned from my 50th Reunion at Stanford Business School. It was a bit restrained by COVID issues, but still fun to see the few classmates who were able to attend. While in Northern California, we were also able to see our daughters and grandkids for the first time in quite a while. It sure has been a strange year & a half.
The Stanford Reunion did remind me that this year was our 55th at Kenyon. I don’t remember exactly what the plan was, but I was not able to attend. Hopefully, you all had a fun gathering with lots of memories.
Andi & I are enjoying our life on Balboa Island here in Newport Beach, California. Do get in touch if you are out this way.
Bill Campbell: Suzy and I are still hanging on in Hudson, WI, dodging COVID19--successfully so far. I consult with colleges and universities a little and turn a lot of wood into bowls, vessels, bottle stoppers, and other pieces. My local gallery featured my work in a recent show, it was extremely gratifying. And they sold a lot, that's gratifying too.
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If you missed the chance to share your news for this letter, you can submit a class note at any time via class.letters@kenyon.edu.
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Kenyon is grateful to the following donors for their generous support of the College, including the Kenyon Fund, during the 2020-21 fiscal year. An asterisk (*) indicates a donor is a member of the Henry J. Abraham Society for loyal and consecutive giving. An obelisk (†) indicates an individual who is deceased. Please note that as of July 1, 2019 Kenyon’s annual giving societies have changed. Visit kenyon.edu/societies for more information.
1966
Annual Fund Total: $45,377
Class Participation: 43.8%
President's Society
Donors of $50,000 or more
Michael D. Bulmash PhD P'14*
Philander Chase Society
Donors of $10,000 to $24,999
Laurie Jarrett (widow of James
W. Jarrett)
William P. Rice*
Bexley Society
Donors of $2,500 to $9,999
John J. Buckley Jr., FACHE*
Frank B. Dibble*
John C. Jenkins P'99 '03*
J. Dustin Wees*
Kenyon Society
Donors of $1,000 to $2,499
Bruce K. Blocher (Ret.)
John O. Case
Ashby E. Denoon
Lawrence F. Leventon*
David A. McKellar*
John W. Morrison Jr., MD*
Peter A. White P'01*
Donors of $1 to $999
Brian A. Bidlingmeyer P'96 '03*
William E. Campbell*
Stuart W. Campbell
Richard A. Cantine*
John M. Cortelli*
George H. Craig Jr.
Harvey Fernbach MD, M.P.H.*
Gary E. Friedlaender MD*
Lowell S. Gaspar MD*
William B. Gibson*
Norman C. Hartsel
Ken S. Honbo MD*
William W. Judson MD
Martin L. Madorsky MD*
Carl S. Mankowitz MD*
Louis H. Martone MD P'95 '00*
Thomas A. Mason*
Robert P. Moyer*
Richard T. Nolan
Charles F. Peace IV*
John C. Rohrer*
Michael C. Sivitz MD*
John H. Welty*
Christopher F. Wilson
Stephen B. Zinn MD*
George Wharton Mariott Society
These alumni have included Kenyon in their estate plans or have made
other planned gifts.
John J. Buckley Jr.
Michael D. Bulmash
Frank B. Dibble
David W. Foote
Dr. Carl S. Mankowitz
David A. McKellar
William B. McKnight Jr. P'95
Richard T. Nolan
William P. and Dorolyn Rice
John C. Rohrer
Mr. and Mrs. J. Dustin Wees
Peter A. White
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Kenyon College
105 Chase Avenue, Gambier, OH 43022
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