Class Notes Fall 2022

Unabridged class Note —submitted Sept 2022

 

    Susanna Stevens Hamme, Falls Church, Virginia — After her mother died in 1999, Susanna and her husband, Joel Hamme, converted their walk-out basement guest room into an apartment where her father lived for 13.5 years bridging the high school and college years of his three grandchildren. When he died in 2015, the apartment was vacant for only a year before their youngest and her husband-to-be needed a place to live while in graduate school. After a modest apartment facelift, in 2016, they took up residence for 4 years until they found their dream (starter) house on Capitol Hill. Then, since that time and especially during the pandemic, the two boys and their “significant others” at various times lived in the “Grandfather Suite” for weeks and months at a time. This fall, their daughter and now husband are moving in again for 4 months while their townhouse is expanded and renovated. Anticipating its ongoing popularity, Susanna has completed a renovation of the apartment with the hope that family and friends will continue to visit often.

 

Other Hamme family news includes their completion of the twice-postponed 70th birthday trip planned by son, Evan, for Susanna to The Netherlands to see the Tulips at the prime time of April. The entire family including SO’s—8 adults--traveled to Amsterdam, and also Vienna—an ad-on from the family Bucket List. Highlights included (in Vienna) an Opera at the Vienna State Opera House, The Belvedere Palace Museum, Easter Mass at St. Stephens Cathedral, (in Amsterdam) Keukenhof Gardens, The Van Gogh Museum, a canal boat cocktail tour, a picnic in Vondel Park, The Anne Frank Museum, and a lot of wandering on charming cobblestone streets in both cities. And finally, a highlight of Fall 2022 was the wedding of their son Evan to Alanna Crank at a lovely spot in the Poconos on Sept. 10th ! 

 

     Ann Sutphin Hafer writes that she and Cynthia Kenney Marler got together in May at the 50th MIT reunions of their husbands, where Ann learned the sad news of the death of Stephanie Field Brett-Bell. “Stephanie and I became friends at a Wellesley reunion, maybe 15 years ago. Waiting for the parade to begin, we discovered we each had Type 1 Diabetes. Stephanie was an inspiring person and a kind friend.”

 

      Paula Sonnino writes: Upon graduating from Wellesley, I imagined that I would have a long career in scientific research. After about 25 years in drug discovery research, my “work life” evolved by moving into the field of Information Technology (IT). When I retired in 2015, I took advantage of an opportunity to get back into science and train as a UNH Marine Docent (UNHMD).  I had no prior background in marine science even though I had majored in biology. The UNH Cooperative Extension training program prepared me to volunteer as an informal educator of middle school children, sharing with them wonders of the ocean and the need for conservation. I was able to use my IT skills to advantage during the COVID pandemic when there was a need to repurpose educational materials into an online format that would be accessible to teachers struggling to deliver content remotely.

 

My scientific curiosity extends into the kitchen where I enjoy the chemistry of combining fresh, local ingredients to cook up something delicious. This interest has branched into volunteering to cook meals for food insecure people through a local nonprofit, GATHER for a Hunger-free Community. This program helps to eliminate food waste and sustains community members in need.  It’s been a fun and inspiring learning experience to make nutritious meals on a large scale with whatever food items happen to be available. It was amazing, and gratifying, to learn that a relatively small group of volunteers were able to create 22,500 meals with donated food in 2021. 

 

Aside from my volunteering activities, I pass the time enjoying the outdoors, reading, or knitting with friends.  Now that COVID restrictions have eased I am eagerly looking forward to resuming travel, with an upcoming trip to Greenland and Baffin Island in the fall.

 

          Sadly, we must close with news of the loss of four classmates since January: in addition to Stephanie Field Brett-Bell, we have also lost Kristin Mortimer, Rev. Margaret “Peggy” Holt Sammons, and Carol Rudolph Fromin. (See In Memoriam for more information.) Our condolences to their family and friends.

Please stay healthy, and send your news and photos to me at 1971Notes@Alum.Wellesley.edu !