MHS Class of '76

Thursday, October 21, 2021

October 2021 Edition

Thanks for reading the latest edition of our MHS Class of 1976 blog.

While we did not have a formal reunion celebrating #45 there were a few gatherings that will be shown on this blog.

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Remembering Doug Collums who sadly passed away in June of this year.

I have been unable to find an obituary but I am sure everyone would like to keep

his family in their thoughts.

Lenny Frost sadly passed away in August, here is his obituary.

https://www.echovita.com/us/obituaries/nj/wayne/leonard-frost-13127918

Please continue to keep his wife Judy in your thoughts.

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Condolences also to our classmate Lori Garabedian Meccia on the passing of her husband, Alan. Many of you know Alan, he was in the Class of 75. He will be missed.

Please keep Lori and their family in your thoughts.

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A Celebration of Life was held for Kevin Mariani at the home of his brother

John and wife Nancy in July -

Attendees from our class included John Baker, Karen Beley, Irene Bader,

Joe Fagan and Lynn Savino

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From Jim Goodwine -

"The Mahwah class of 76 held a small reunion at the Mahwah Bar and Grill this past Saturday (August 21). In this picture I am with John Mariani, brother of our classmate Kevin, his wife Nancy Reavely, sister of our classmate Tom, and their daughter Grace. Sadly our classmates Kevin and Tom have passed away but it was an honor to have this family at our reunion. I was fortunate enough to be classmates with both Kevin and Tom from first grade at Immaculate Conception school through our graduation at Mahwah high school. I didn’t have the first grade class picture but below is the third grade class picture. You’ll see Kevin and Tom in the last row on the right. And then there is the picture from our senior class where I’ve circled Kevin in the middle of the picture and Tom in the front row at left. We miss you guys!"

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More photos from the informal reunion on August 21 -

Joe Fagan, Todd Cochran, John Dolan

Back row: Jim Goodwine, Joe Fagan, Jim Bush, Todd Cochran,

Ada Cochran, Mike Grattini

Front: Patty Menz, Paul Lange and Lynn Savino

Todd Cochran, Joe Fagan, Lynn Savino, Jim Goodwine

Jim Bush, Jim Goodwine, Mike Grattini

Back row: Joe Fagan, John Dolan

Front row: Paul Lange, Jim Goodwine, Jim Bush

Back row: John Mariani, Todd Cochran, Ada Cochran, John Dolan

Front row: Jim Goodwine, Patty Menz, Lynn Savino, Paul Lange, Mike Grattini

John Dolan and Lynn Savino

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A classmate who didn't want her name credited shared these thoughts....

"July 2021 But since today Mondelez which was formerly Nabisco is closing. We were the first CLASS NOT TO GO!! Tours were stopped. To this day I regret it.

Also, did you know that our class was the first to graduate as Mahwah High School instead of Mahwah Junior-Senior High. 7th and 8th grades."

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A note from Mark Hansen:

Mark Hansen (MHS '77) is a tour guide at the

Ulysses S. Grant Cottage National Historic Landmark in Wilton, N.Y.

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From Lynn Savino -

Awards ceremony at the Hyundai Dealership in Mahwah~

As a Trustee of the John F. Carty Memorial Scholarship Fund I was invited to this ceremony honoring Mahwah Alumnus Rick DeSilva, Jr. as Time Dealer of the Year. As part of the award, Rick was able to donate to local charitable organizations.

Mrs. Carty, Roger Remo and I accepted a check from Rick for $4,000.

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From Philomena DePalma -

Here are some "animals of the western Colorado high country, just don't feed them!"

"That's why we love it here!"

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Happy Grandfather (or Bampi as he is lovingly called),

Mike Cummings shared these photos with his grandchildren:

Mike and Granddaughter Camie

Mike and New Grandson Grant

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TJ Wilks and Debbie Demeduk welcomed new grandson, Lucas in May.

He joins siblings Ben and Zoe.

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Cathy Swickle Johnson shares these photos of her grandchildren:

Cathy's son Jacob and granddaughter Raegan

Cathy's daughter-in-law Ariel with Raegan

The photos of Jacob and Ariel and Raegan were taken at one of the most recent Eagles' losses...!!! Despite the Eagles' loss, the Basch's had a wonderful time!

And here is Cathy's newest grandchild and her daughter Beki:

The photo of Beki and Noam Joni is one of my favorites and just goes to show Beki's immediate grasp on motherhood. She is smitten beyond belief,

as is daddy, Brian...and all of us!

Noam was born on a Saturday morning, August 21 and

is joined by big doggie-sister, Evie!

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John Sepp, Jim Schattschneider, Paul Hydrean and Jack Lansing got together in northern NY for their annual reunion.

John says, "Our golf games haven’t improved!"

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Donner Tevis shares some photos:

This is JJ the 20 year old horse with Kinley & Tegan and Donner's husband Morrill

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Donner also shared these pictures:

On her 63rd birthday

Another great day riding, looking for stray cows

And...there was no gas available! July 2021

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Monday, March 29, 2021

March 2021 Update

As we continue the journey through Covid-19, please stay safe and well and follow guidelines set out by your local health authorities. Thinking of everyone!

Reunion News -

After receiving the comments from classmates, John Dolan and I are looking at the idea of holding some kind of reunion, possibly an informal gathering. Due to Covid, we are still not firming up any plans at this point and will revisit the possibilities in a month or two. We welcome comments and suggestions from those who didn't respond previously so that more classmates' opinions will be taken into consideration.

You are welcome to contact us by email at mahwahhighschool1976@yahoo.com to let us know your feelings regarding a reunion.

We will keep everyone advised. Please stay tuned for further information by email and via the class group on FB. In these uncertain times we want to be safe, first and foremost. Thanks!

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From Lynn Savino~

Dear Classmates,

Kevin Mariani passed away peacefully on January 29 with family by his side. He will be deeply missed by his sisters Gerri and Ricia and his brothers Marty, Ron, Tommy, John, James, Anthony and Michael and his many adoring nieces and nephews. Kevin had many friends who he considered family. A celebration of life will be held at a later date. If anyone is interested, please feel free to contact me.

Love, Lynn

(If you would like to connect with Lynn, email Sue at the address at the end of the blog and it will be forwarded to Lynn.)

Thank you to Joe Fagan for this photo memory.

Kevin, (front, in blue shirt) joined The Fagans - Ann, Shane, Colleen, Jack and Joe.

Thanks to Lynn Savino for sharing this photo of

Kevin from our yearbook.

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From Debbi Karpowich O'Connor comes this submission:

Greetings from Rockaway, New Jersey! There is really no new news to report from this past year. As with the rest of the world, we have been living through covid with a healthy dose of fear, disbelief, and renewed thankfulness for blessings previously taken for granted. My husband, Brian (class of 1974, Waldwick High School) retired in September so we are both on the other-side of full-time jobs. We've managed to keep healthy and sane during this year, and have gotten our Pfizer vaccines. Having lost a cousin and an uncle to this killer, we were ECSTATIC to receive our shots and happily exchanged a sore arm, a day of tiredness, and a headache for peace of mind. During the pandemic, I continued to work part-time in our cute little Rockaway Borough Public Library. The library is housed in a historic house on Main Street in Rockaway, so, considering the size, we have been open to patrons by appointment only. I've been using my past teaching skills to help create take-home craft bags that can be picked up curbside. This job totally fits my life as a retired teacher, since I love books and I always enjoyed creating what I thought were cool science lessons for my middle school students.

At home, Brian and I are missing our two grown children terribly. Melissa is doing well in Brooklyn, working from her apartment since the start of the pandemic. Luckily her boyfriend lives two miles from her apartment, so they have kept each other sane. We haven't seen her for six months; she is waiting for her shot before we visit. My son Kyle is finishing up his third year at Moody Air Force Base. We haven't seen him for 15 months. To be honest and emotional about this, my heart hurts from how much I miss hugging my kids and physically seeing them. Kyle has had his Moderna vaccine, so we are hoping that we will be able to see him in the near future.

I hope and pray that all reading this are in good health and safe. I am looking forward to the time when we can all share smiles and laughter again. Until then, everyone stay well!

Proud Grandpa Mike Dooley is pleased to welcome a new granddaughter. Sloane Mila Upham was born on February 24, 2021. Sloane is the first child of their daughter Morgan and her husband and they reside in Nashville.

Congratulations!

Some exciting news from Cathy Swickle Johnson -

I am so excited to be a grandparent as of November 25, 2020...our brightest spot in a very weird year! My granddaughter, Raegan Allen Basch, was born to my son and his wife, Jacob and Ariel Basch and they have been asking me, even before she was born, what I would like to be called...never really thought about it and my first reply was, "whatever comes out of her mouth!" Looks like we have settled on Mimi...but who knows...that could change! She is, of course, the cutest thing ever (!!!) and it's rather surreal...and wonderful.

One of my favorite pictures of Raegan...on the phone...just like me at work...every day! She is already, by default, an Eagles fan and we are also introducing her to the Flyers!!!

Congratulations to the Johnson, Swickle and Basch Families!

From Joe Cuhaj -

I wanted to share some exciting news about my granddaughter, Cora, who just turned 13. You may not know, but she was born with a rare disease called Syngap1, an intellectual disability and neurological disorder. She is one happy kid, even has her Gramps bad sense of humor. She dances with the local special needs dance troupe here in Daphne, Alabama, and loves to sing, especially Broadway show tunes. Her favorite show right now is Hamilton and can rip off one of the tunes at a moment’s notice.

Alabama is extremely fortunate to have a program that was patterned after the national Make-a-Wish program. It’s called Magic Moments, a program that grants wishes to children in the state with chronically life-threatening medical conditions. My daughter sent Cora’s wish in.

Well, a few weeks ago, a van pulls up in front of my daughter’s house and out pops a group of girls dressed to be on Broadway with a surprise – her wish was granted! Cora, my daughter Kellie, son-in-law Michael, and grandson Stevie, have an all expense paid trip to NYC! They will see all the sights – the museums, the Empire State Building, Yankees’ game, the usual touristy things and then have front row seats to see Hamilton in person! They “may” even have a meet-and-greet with Lin-Manuel Miranda. That’s under negotiation, or so they tell me.

This is such a great gift for Cora. I can’t wait for them to go and hear all about it. In the attached photo, Cora is the tall girl standing to the left of the girl with the Statue of Liberty crown.

As for me, I have quite a few books that will be released in the coming months and in the works. I have two new outdoor recreation guides coming out – Paddling Alabama 2^nd Edition in April (no, it’s not about corporal punishment!) and Hiking Waterfalls Alabama in June. A third outdoor guide, Hiking Alabama 5^th Edition, will be released early next year. The first edition was released 20 years ago! Apparently, somebody liked it.

So, if you ever come to Alabama and want to hike or kayak, look me up. I know a guy. One day I’ll write “60 Hikes of New Jersey”.

And I am really thrilled to have a new historical non-fiction book coming out next spring for Prometheus Books titled, Space Oddities: Forgotten Tales of Mankind’s Exploration of Space. I have been a space geek since I was a kid (used to fly model rockets with the Mahwah Model Rocket Club at Ramapo College) so this book is a real treat for me. There are some incredible stories I’m uncovering. Be on the lookout for it.

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A blast from the past...I was looking for some interesting "old news" and thought this would bring back some memories.

Here is some football news from Bergen Passaic Football website ~

1975 (8-2/8-1, 248pf, 49pa)
Midland Park \ W \ 26-0
Bergen Tech \ W \ 44-6
at Elmwood Park \ W \ 13-9
Hawthorne \ L \ 9-13
at Manchester \ W \ 24-0
Glen Rock \ W \ 42-0
at Passaic Tech \ W \ 35-6
Waldwick \ W \ 42-0
*Rutherford \ W \ 7-12 \ Playoffs
at Ramsey \ W \ 6-3

1975 \ 1st Team All-County \ Ron Kort \ T \
1975 \ 1st Team All-County \ Walt Michaels \ LB-K \
1975 \ 1st Team BPSL \ Joe Fagan \ LB \
1975 \ 1st Team BPSL \ Brett Hardman \ G \
1975 \ 1st Team BPSL \ Frank Longo \ DB \
1975 \ 1st Team BPSL \ Kevin Mariani \ DL \
1975 \ 1st Team BPSL \ Terry Porter \ DB \
1975 \ Honorable BPSL \ Dick Bjurstrom \

Sadly Dick and Kevin are no longer with us but the memories remain.

Donner Tevis is happy to share these photos:

Hard at work - Here is Donner on the last big gather off High Country.

Then they herded them in a snowstorm in December down the highway.

Here is her new Appy horse.

Now it's vacation time!

Donner and her husband Morrill in Puerto Vallarta in February.

On their trip they enjoyed a private whale watching boat where they spent 1/2 a day.

There were lots of humpback moms and calves playing in the ocean.

Male whales breach to show off for females.

A wonderful trip was had by all!

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News from Joe and Ann Fagan regarding their son Shane -

"So happy for Shane. He has been accepted to the USNA Economics Honors Program for his senior (Firstie year). Participating in the Honors program gives midshipmen the chance to work with a faculty mentor on a research project of their choice. This opportunity allows in-depth research, outside of the traditional classroom structure. At the end of the project, midshipmen present their research findings to the faculty. These experiences can be very valuable in the scholarly and professional development of participating midshipmen. Upon successful completion, he will be awarded a Bachelor's of Science in Quantitative Economics with Honors."

Classmate Joe Cuhaj also shared this blast from the past for our enjoyment:

I also found a partial newspaper clipping I’ve attached from the old Home and Store News the day after our graduation. It was in a box of old stuff I was rummaging through. My mom had clipped it out and saved it. She started underlining the names of our classmates she knew. Glad she underlined my name!! LOL! Wish I had the other half to see who else she knew. During the last reunion, I was shocked to find out how many of our classmate’s moms she knew that I didn’t know about.

Thank you for reading this edition of the blog. And big thanks to those who submitted pictures and news and allow it to be shared with our classmates.

If you have any questions or comments, send them to mahwahhighschool1976@yahoo.com If you would like to connect with Lynn Savino, please email me and I will get that set up.

Please keep us up-to-date with your contact information so we can keep you in the loop about news and events. If you know of anyone in the class who hasn't received any info, please have them email mahwahhighschool1976@yahoo.com so we can add their information to the database so they receive the mass emails and such.

Reminder, we have a class group on Facebook - if you aren't a member yet but are on FB, let me know and I will add you or put in a request to join the group. Here is the group link - https://www.facebook.com/groups/47889678341

There is also a group - You Know You're From Mahwah If and there are posts about the town, old memories and current news and events. You can find it here - https://www.facebook.com/groups/46650173906 You can request to join.

The next edition of the blog is in October; should there be any news of importance before that I will send out a mass email to the class.

Thanks again. Happy Spring! Be safe and stay well!

Sue

Thursday, October 29, 2020

October 2020 Update

And we can't forget those who have may have been affected by the fires in California and Colorado and those hit by hurricanes and flooding. Yes, sadly it has been a tough year for many.

Reunion 2021 update

John Dolan and I have discussed the possibility of a 45th reunion for next year. Currently we have put the planning on hold. The responses to the survey that we sent out in March were positive and people were looking forward to meeting up for our 45th celebration. Due to the pandemic we are waiting as the reunion plans could be dampened due to capacity issues for public gatherings and such. Travel may be affected as well. There are a lot of unknowns at this time so please keep a reunion in mind but we cannot guarantee anything at this point. You will be updated as we know more, we will revisit the idea of a reunion in the springtime and we'll just go from there. I imagine a new survey can be created and sent out for your input should we be able to proceed. Thanks for understanding!

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From Joe Fagan:

Donner and her partner in crime

Donner, Morrill and Annie

Donner with grandkids Kinley age 9 and Tegan age 3

Donner on a fall ride

With sadness we report that classmate Elaine Junta passed away on December 6, 2019. Her husband predeceased her. Here’s her obituary:

https://www.tributearchive.com/obituaries/9399334/Elaine-Ross

"It is with great sadness that we want to let our friends and family know of the passing of our dear sister Elaine. She leaves behind a devoted mother Ruth Junta, her 3 siblings Ken Junta, Donna Beekman, Karen Van Grouw, their families and her best friend of 43 years Dot Emanuele. We will all miss her dearly. Elaine spent her entire life working with adults with severe developmental disabilities, first at the Eastern Christian Children’s Retreat and then at Spectrum for Living where she became the Administrator/Program Director. Her love for those she cared for was amazing and encouraging to them and all others who witnessed it. Elaine was always funny mixed with a little feisty if she thought someone was being mistreated. She loved God, her family, her dogs, fishing and spending time in the Adirondacks. We have so many wonderful memories and lots of crazy stories. As she took her last breath, she exclaimed “aahh” as she got her first glimpse of Heaven. I know she would encourage all of you who don’t have a relationship with Jesus to seek Him. In her room, just before she left, we played a beautiful song our niece Laura sent to bring us comfort. We thank you all for your prayers as we will miss her with us. Elaine would also want to remind us to all be kind to the less fortunate and help others in need. If you would like to make a donation in her memory to Spectrum for Living, you can do that at www.spectrumforliving.org."

Please keep the family of classmate Bonnie Artsma Roleau in your thoughts. The following is the sad news of her passing in May.

Information and photo from Vermont Obituaries - Lincoln:

Bonnie Jean Roleau, 61, passed peacefully after a brief illness on May 23, 2020, to be with the Lord and her mom. She was surrounded by her family.

Lynn Wandelmaier Connell shares this happy news:

"Our daughter Lauren got married on September 12, 2020 in London, England where she lives. The whole family traveled there to be by her side. There were only eleven of us, but we had the best time!"

"Me and my two daughters"

"The bride and groom"

News from Cathy Lehmann Reiss -

"In November I was elected as a member of Newtown, Connecticut’s Legislative Council. While having lived and volunteered in Newtown for over 30 years now, this is my first foray into serving in our town’s government.

"I’m attaching a photo taken after the swearing-in ceremony for all of Newtown’s elected officials, on November 30^th, 2019. Since it was right after Thanksgiving, my whole family was able to join me. Left to right is my husband, Scott, me, our daughter Morgan, and our son Kevin. (Yes, Morgan and Kevin are both quite tall, Morgan’s about 5’11”, and Kevin’s about 6’3”. I guess I fed them well.)"

"For the last 7+ years I’ve been coordinating our church’s comfort dog ministry with the church’s comfort dog, Maggie, and her dozen trained handlers. (I’m one of Maggie’s handlers, too.) Maggie was one of the Lutheran Church Charities comfort dogs invited to serve Sandy Hook Elementary School when they reopened their doors following the shooting. Maggie has been serving Sandy Hook School (and many other places, as well) ever since. So, with that background…a book was published about a year ago called Extraordinary Dogs (author John Schlimm), featuring about 40 dogs that do extraordinary work for humans, and Maggie is one of those featured dogs. I was interviewed for Maggie’s chapter. The book made for some good Christmas presents to family members last year.

"As for some updates about my kids:

"Our daughter Morgan earned her Master of Social Work from University of Connecticut (UConn) in May, and she’s currently working for the Connecticut Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services. She had graduated summa cum laude from UConn in May 2018 with a bachelor’s degree in Psychology with three minors.

"Our son Kevin is a junior at Boston University (BU) studying physics as a BU Presidential Scholar. This spring he was named a Goldwater Scholar in Mathematics, Science and Engineering, one of only 396 Goldwater Scholarship recipients nationwide for 2020. In November 2019 Kevin had his first physics research paper published in Chaos: An Interdisciplinary Journal of Nonlinear Science.

"Although 2020 had many challenges, indeed, we had plenty to celebrate and to be thankful for. I hope you’re well."

"Tin Barn is a new establishment in Sugar Loaf, NY.

There was live music and food from The Helm

which is one of our favorite restaurants on Greenwood Lake."

Photo by Ada Cochran.

Back to front: Todd Cochran, Patty Menz, Lynn Savino, Paul Lange and Jim Goodwine

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Thank you to the classmates who have contributed this time around!

The blog exists because of submissions by folks each time.

That is it for this edition. As a reminder, if you change your contact information please send the updated info to me at mahwahhighschool1976@yahoo.com so that I can keep the database up-to-date. Thanks! It makes it much easier to contact classmates.

I have gotten some emails returned when I sent out the mass email about this edition so if you haven't had an email from me about the blog this month, please send me a note and I can get your email address changed.

All the best as we wind down 2020 and get ready for a much better year ahead.

The next edition will be in March 2021.

Take care.

Sue

mahwahhighschool1976@yahoo.com