The Wheatley School Alumni Association Newsletter # 146

Featuring The Class of 1961

Arthur Engoron
April 20, 2024

Dear Wheatley Wildcats and Other Interested Persons,

Welcome to The Wheatley School Alumni Association Newsletter # 146.

According to Substack, in the first 24 hours after publication, Newsletter # 145 was viewed 2,838 times, was “liked” 13 times, and received five comments. In all, 4,735 email addresses received Newsletter # 145.

All underlined text is a link-to-a-link (or, occasionally, an email address). Clicking anywhere on underlined text, and then clicking on the link that pops up, will get you to your on-line destination (or address an email).

The Usual Words of Wisdom

Thanks to our fabulous Webmaster, Keith Aufhauser (Class of 1963), you can regale yourself with the first 145 Newsletters (and much other Wheatley data and arcana) at

Wheatley School Alumni Association Website

Also, thanks to Keith is our search engine, prominently displayed on our home page: type in a word or phrase and, wow!, you’ll find every place it exists in all previous Newsletters and other on-site material. I use it frequently; it works usually!

I edit all submissions, even material in quotes, for clarity and concision, without any indication thereof. I cannot and do not vouch for the accuracy of what people tell me, as TWSAA does not have a fact-checking department.

We welcome any and all text and photos relevant to The Wheatley School, 11 Bacon Road, Old Westbury, NY 11568, and the people who administered, taught, worked, and/or studied there. Art Engoron, Class of 1967

The Class of 1985 40th-Year Reunion is Scheduled for June 21, 2025…..That’s 2025, not 2024

Wheatley Class of 1985 40th-year reunion webpage

For further information contact Jared Goldstein, JAREDG@PIPELINE.COM.

Free Concert by Wheatley Graduate

Saturday, May 18, 2024 at 2 PM

Afternoon Mojito

DAVID HEUSER
JOSE LEZCANO
MAX LIFCHITZ
SHELI NAN (our very own Shelley Nan Hershcopf, 1968)

Concerto Grosso
Mojito Concerto
Four Tango Sketches
Backlash

Jose Lezcano, guitar
Max Lifchitz, conductor
The North/South Chamber Orchestra

This concert is at:
St. John’s in The Village
218 W 11th St; New York, NY 10011

San Francisco Bay Area Wheatley Reunion Update

Writes Larry Rosenthal (1965): “Larry Weiss (‘73) and Lizzy Lynn (‘64) will be joining Peter Siegel (’66), Roy Nierenberg (’63), Barry Gordon (’65), Rich Weissman (‘72), and yours truly (’65), at The Third Annual (?) Unofficial San Francisco Bay Area Wheatley Reunion Potluck—TTA(?)USFBAWRP-- Sunday May 26, 2024, 12:30 - 4:00, in my Berkeley back yard. Interested Wildcats, please email me at larros99@gmail.com.”

CORRECTED Partial List of Wildcats at Carnegie Tech/Carnegie Mellon (sorry for the earlier errors of inclusion and exclusion)

Judkoff Popolow, Patricia 1958 (Deceased)

Jalonack Blum, Carol 1961

Brautigam Carter, Betsy 1965

Gordon, Barry 1965

Levine, Andrea 1965 (Deceased)

Orling, Jeffrey 1965

Bregman, Judy 1967

Janowitz, Ken 1967

Summers, Andy 1967

Bernstein, Alan 1968

Fromm, Mark 1969

Goldsmith, Bruce 1970

Oppenheim Darrah, Judith 1972

Struhl, Cliff 1974 (“Great school. Loved Pittsburgh”)

Yaffe, Robert 1982 (College of Fine Arts)

Tibrewala, Neal 1994

Jain, Arihant 2016

Graduates

1960 - George “Dixie” Howell - Deceased (further information will be forthcoming)

1961 + 1967 - Peter Calderon and Art Engoron\

Marie Blachere Bakery - Middle Neck Road, Great Neck - Sunday, April 14, 2024

Writes Jerry - To some it might seem crazy: My train trip to upstate New York, and back in the evening. That’s about 15 hours of train traveling for 3 minutes of solar total darkness.

I had figured out that if I left on the 8:35 AM Adirondack train I could make it to Port Henry in the middle of nowhere, upstate New York, before the 3:26 Solar eclipse totality. There are only two trains a day: one up and one back down from Montreal. That train was scheduled to arrive in Port Henry at 4:12 PM. So I could take that train back down to New York City, then take the Long Island Railroad back to my house.

That was the plan, and in fact, it happened. I left my house at 6:30 AM and arrived back past 11:30 PM.

I actually thought I was one of the few people who had figured this out. Others were spending thousands of dollars on various forms of transportation and hotels and housing. I would be spending less than $200.

I got on the Adirondack and it was full, sold out. And over 140 of them were planning to go to the tiny town of Port Henry. As the train made its way north, we saw large numbers of cars pulled off to the side of the road.

After a short nap I headed for the café car, where I usually stay when I take the train. There was a festive atmosphere on the train, with a large variety of people, including many families. The train menu was surprisingly healthy a few years ago, but it has gone downhill since then. It is still possible to find some healthy items, such as oatmeal and fruit. But there is no longer a salad without chicken.

It was almost impossible to find the proper dark glasses on Long Island once I decided to go. But, I eventually found two that came in a kit with a children’s book on the eclipse at the science museum in Port Washington. I brought the book with me and dozens of children and parents read the book on the train and passed it around.

The train took a while to unload at Port Henry. This was probably the biggest event there in a long time. Local people had set up tables with food and other goods in anticipation. There was a big hill behind the train station and people started spreading their blankets all the way up the hill.

After about an hour we saw through our glasses that the moon had begun its trip across the sun. The skies gradually began to darken and it was getting colder. But even when the moon had covered most of the sun it was still relatively light out. But when it was completely covered it got so dark that the outside lights of the train station came on, and yes, you could see the stars. Everyone had their glasses on and could see the light outline of the sun, covered by the moon. There was silence. At that point you could look at the sun without the glasses. Then there was applause!

A few feet away from me there was a little boy whose mother later told me he was three-years-old. He looked straight at me and simply said, “Wow!” incredulously.

But then the strangest part happened, and I can’t really explain it. As the sliver of light appeared on the other side of the sun, everything looked eerie and ghostlike. It should have been the same as just before the sun disappeared, but it wasn’t, and everyone I talked to agreed.

Gradually it got lighter, but it was now quite a bit colder and many people put their jackets on.

The train from Montreal was about 15 minutes late, so the platform was pretty jammed when the train arrived. On the way back I sat with a high school student who had walked beyond the hill and down to the lake. His experience was quite special as he described how the seagulls made a lot of noise and then went quiet during totality. As the families left the train on their stops on the way back to New York, many of them said goodbye and even waved at me from outside the train.

I finally got back to my house on Long Island near midnight. I can’t wait until we have the next eclipse—oh wait! I won’t be around. Never mind!

L-R - Peter Yeager (Kathy Kram’s husband); Kathy Kram (1968), Leonard Kram (1963; attended the Gunnery for junior and senior years); Nancy Kram (1963); Marisol Kram (Kathy’s nephew’s widow); Julie Benko (Kathy’s daughter-in-law; NYTimes breakout star on Broadway in 2022.); Jason Yeager (Kathy’s and Peter’s son; rising Jazz pianist in NYC), Bill Stivelman (Kathy’s and Len’s second cousin; lives in LA).
Writes Kathy - “We celebrated Len’s 79th birthday at Il Moro’s in LA.”

Writes Nancy Gittleson Hodson - Wheatley Class of '64 reunion? Although I am no longer the reunion organizer, some of us are investigating the possibility of a 60th reunion this summer or fall. Please email me to indicate your interest:

1965 - Liz Zoob - “Thanks for another lovely newsletter, Art. I wish I could attend the San Francisco Bay Area reunion. A few people in my class might remember that I went to UC Berkeley (1965-1969 were intense years to be there!), and I lived there for several years after graduating before moving back to the East Coast and settling in Boston. My daughter lived in Oakland for a number of years, and every time I went to visit her it was like returning to a dream state of some kind. - Liz Zoob 1965”

1966 - Sue Sand - “I moved to East Williston in time to start first grade, not knowing a soul. From the get-go, I envied those kids who walked home for lunch. I spent the first few days of first grade eating alone in the cafeteria because I talked while opening my lunchbox (a Dale Evans model). Talking out of turn became a lifelong habit, but at least I’ve always had a voice. Being a North Sider was special. Given parental fears today, I can’t believe that my mother allowed my friends and me to ride our bikes into town (Williston Park) at the age of 6! The neighborhood was diverse (Jews were definitely in the minority, notable on Thursdays when Catholics left early for Confraternity class). Our school burned down, and we attended the Willets Road School for a time for a split session. I spent 4th grade at the newly opened Wheatley. High school kids smoked in the doorways; we got invited to pep rallies; and science teachers showed us their labs. I spent seven years at Wheatley, sometimes feeling completely comfortable and other times completely out of place.

That being said, I am so grateful for the world view Wheatley afforded me. Mr. Davis (my homeroom teacher for two years), didn’t make a fuss about my not saying the Pledge of Allegiance, and Mr. Seiderman didn’t tease me too much about being a cheerleader. Mr. Bentley and Dr. Wills both knew just how to make me feel good enough. Dr. Wills knew I couldn’t carry a tune but encouraged me to join the choir because I liked to sing; and Mr. Bentley knew I’d never sit still in ‘senior space’ so he anointed me some sort of ‘captain’ so that I could wander through the halls without a pass. While I’m not sure I knew myself or how I came across to others, I know I was exposed to thoughtful, challenging peers and teachers who contributed to who I am today.

I have been a practicing psychologist for almost 40 years and hope to retire as soon as I can pull the cord. I’ve been married for 45 years, live in Newton, MA. and spend summers in the Berkshires. Feel free to look me up. Several names from the past that have surfaced in this newsletter and bring back memories are as follows: Nancy Kurshan (1961) was my first babysitter. Jimmy Paley (1964) wrote my name in Braille. Jeff Orling’s (1965) brother, Alan (1966), was a dear friend of mine. Art Engoron’s family carpooled with my family to Sunday School for years. Shout-outs to the members of my Class of 1966 who have shown up at out reunions and recognized how fortunate we were to have lived and learned when and where we did.”

Writes David - “Pam Furst Eysler (1978) and I (1976) have very exciting news to report! Our eldest son, Brent Eysler, celebrated his one-year anniversary to his wife, Kathleen Niegocki. Brent is Senior Marketing for BH Photo. His creativity and knowledge are amazing. Our middle son, Gavin, has two beautiful children: Owen, 3-years-old and Jackson, 4-months old. Gavin is married to his wonderful wife, Kate Gardner. He recently received the news that he matched into Emergency Medicine starting this summer at Good Samaritan Hospital, Islip, NY. Our youngest, Robert is finishing his first-year of Medical School in Spartanburg, SC. He has completed and supervised multiple medical missions abroad and runs a Not- For-Profit Company giving free medical care to those in need both abroad and in the United States.”

1989 - Peter Sultan - Healer and Musician - Between performing hip and knee replacement surgeries at Peconic Bay Medical Center in Riverhead, NY, I like to tinker on the piano. I’m self taught.

Fan Mail

1965 (Jeffrey Orling) - “Thanks Art..….I love to read these.….keep ‘em coming!!”

1966 (Sue Sand) - “I look forward to reading each issue of the Newsletter. Thank you. Places and names from the past make me smile and take me down Memory Lane.”

1982 (Robert Yaffe) - “Keep up the good work with the Wheatley School Alumni Association Newsletter. I always peruse to see if I recall any former classmates and/or neighbors (Paul Giarmo, 1976, is one of the latter).

Closing

That’s it for The Wheatley School Alumni Association Newsletter # 146. Please send me your autobiography before someone else sends me your obituary.