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Tusculum College
Class of 1952's 60th Reunion
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Some good news for all of you coming down to the 60th Reunion of the Class of 1952 next September! But first, let's tell you about our weekend.
In reality, we actually had a successful Mini-reunion as there were only 7 Classmates there: Connie Parker Sinkway and husband Bob, Joan Becker Starnes, Hugh Jaynes and wife Eleanor Tom Jaynes, Ralph McKnight, Jean Oakes Olcott, Joan Mackey McKnight and Ken Wander and wife Marge. Below there is a short description, from each of the attendees from our Class who cared to provide one, of their weekend at the Reunion. Their viewing of the weekend may have a different slant.
Here is Ken Wander's view of the weekend:
While the weekend (Thursday, 22 September through Saturday, 24 September 2011) is still fresh in my mind, I thought I would just sit down and reminisce about our Homecoming weekend at Tusculum. I realize that some of your were there, so this may seem to be a little overkill, but, perhaps you didn't experience things with the same feelings that I (and vice versa) and hence this may give you a little different slant on things that happened as seen through my eyes. But the Reunion started well before that. The Sinkways drove down from Glenrock, NJ, to Bowie, MD, on Tuesday morning and later that afternoon, they joined me at the local Golf Course for a quick round of golf to prepare for Friday's Golf Tournament at the Links Golf Club in Greeneville. After breakfast, Wednesday morning, Marge and I drove with the Sinkways as far as Wytheville, VA, on Route 11, everyone remembers Route 11, I think, where we spent the night, but not before having dinner at "The Log House." Then on Thursday, following a leisurely breakfast, we headed to Tusculum, arriving just after noon. We checked in at the Jameson Hotel, got a couple of No-Smoking Rooms, freshened up and headed over to the campus to register. Prior to registering, however, we stopped at the Tusculum Eatery for lunch. Some of you might remember it in its prior life as Dobson's Grocery Store. Just before paying our check, I recognized Lynn Battle, a younger brother of our deceased classmate Stan Battle. He will probably be the next President of the Alumni Association, succeeding Ken Pollock. Then, off we went across the highway to the campus. The four of us checked in at the registration desk, met a few alumni friends and, of course, some of the Alumni Office Staff. After picking up a few give-a-ways, we moseyed around campus and struck up a few other conversations with Alumni. One of the Alumni, with whom I had a brief conversation, was the Chairman of the Board of Trustees, Dr. Ken Bowman, Class of 1970. He has held that position since 2006 and I suspect that he will be there for a few more years. He indicated that the College is in great financial health and is planning to offer 3 new Academic Programs, probably in the fall: a Master’s degree program in Business Administration and undergraduate programs in Nursing and Criminal Justice. Earlier this year, while preparing for our weekend, we invited those who were staying at the Jameson Hotel to drop by my hotel room for cocktails prior to going to Fatz's Restaurant for a gathering dinner. Besides those who were staying there, Joan Becker Starnes and Barbara Serral joined us there for Cocktails and Dinner. You might remember Barbara. She was married to Fred Serral, my first roommate at Tusculum. Joining us at Fatz's for dinner were Hugh and Eleanor Tom Jaynes. After dinner, we all said goodbye and went our separate ways, promising to meet on the morrow. Friday turned out to be a beautiful day and Connie, Bob and I went to the Golf Tournament and came away with 3 Gold Medals! NOT! We had a great time there though and were joined by Mark Stokes, who is on the Staff of the College. Unfortunately, the tournament didn't start until 1:30p.m., so, by the time we were done playing, we had to really rush to get to the General Morgan for dinner. We missed the cocktail hour, but fortunately, those who did not participate in the tournament, did get there on time and held a table for our Class participants. After dinner, we headed back to the hotel. Saturday came early the next morning. After breakfast, I must admit that it seems that we were continually eating, we went to the Annual Alumni meeting and heard the usual good news from the Presidents of the Board of Trustees, the College and the Alumni Association. There was a presentation from the Golden Pioneer Class of 1961, as well as others. Then off to the Parade and the Tailgate Party (the food was very good) but the football game that followed, while exciting, did not turn out with the right team winning, Yup, we lost! We then gathered later in the day for a jaunt down to Joan Starnes' home in Bulls Gap, for cocktails, dinner and conversations. In a matter of a couple of hours, we relived the past 63 years, starting with our arrival at Tusculum in September, 1948 and ending with our visit to the campus in 2011. After saying our goodbyes, we drove back to the hotel, exhausted, but happy! Sunday, after breakfast, we found ourselves on the road once again heading back to Bowie. Connie and Bob stayed the night and, in the morning, headed back to Glen Rock, NJ. We just hoped that more of you would have been there to share the weekend with us.
The following is from Jean Oakes Olcott:
On Sunday, before we left Tusculum and headed to Asheville, Joan Mackey McKnight. and I had numerous conversations with various members of the Class and enjoyed our trip down memory lane. We have already made our reservations for next year at The Jameson for 3 nights. We had no trouble doing this and they seemed happy to accommodate us one year in advance. As much as we have enjoyed the General Morgan in the past, we were really taken aback by what transpired this year and so elected to return to the Jameson. We find the personnel there very friendly.
Combining a few classes for our BIG 60th Reunion seems to be a good idea. We knew many of them pretty well and would love to catch up. As always, the evening at the General Morgan was a lovely idea; however, the food did not live up to our expectations and many of us were disappointed. I do not know if anything can be done about it, shy of a new chef there.
Joan and I loved gathering for the tailgate party, as always. That food was tasty and there seemed to be plenty for everyone. The breakfast Sunday morning on the outdoor patio of the library was delicious and we especially enjoyed mingling with a more intimate group of attendees on that beautiful morning with the mountains in the background.
All in all, the weekend was a success and full of variety. I have written a note to Joan Starnes for opening up her house to our group. Hopefully, the Brogdens will join us next year!
What do you think? Is it too complicated?
I want to tell you about our 59th Class reunion that just took place last
Yes it is getting
By the way, some of you might remember Ed Kormondy, a member of Tusculum’s Class of 1950. He was elected to be Vice Chair of the Board of Trustees for the upcoming year.
I had another thought on the subject of food for our special group next year. Inasmuch as many restaurants are serving gigantic portions, it might be better to have just a cocktail party with some interesting hors d'oeuvres rather than an "official dinner" at formal tables. I give a party every holiday season for my past clients with this type of fare and in a more relaxed setting with chairs and end tables. This enables people to mill about and intermingle, rather than being glued in one place. The food is delicious, finger-size and very healthy. Raw veggies with special dips, fresh shrimp, marinated mushrooms, mini hot dogs, etc. are all good examples of what I have in mind. We would have to have it catered by someone capable of pulling this off - maybe Slim's could handle it and bring it next door to the Jameson with a server or two.