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Ivo Ucovich '65 Helps Peruvian Students Find Way to College Hill Ivo Ucovich '65 remembers interviewing a student who had written a letter to Lafayette explaining why he wanted to attend the College. That letter, written 15 years ago, reminds him why he continues to serve as an alumni admissions representative (AAR). “He was a teenager who had lost his father and inherited the business and had to manage it,” recalls Ucovich, who has been an AAR in Peru for 20 years. “The maturity with which he expressed himself in that letter and the correct English used were astonishing to me.” Helping Peruvian students find a home at Lafayette mirrors Ucovic's own experience as an undergraduate student. Faculty support helped ease his cultural and academic transition.
Oct 05, 2009
Don Sellers '66 Helped Millions in China through Hepatitis B Clinical Trial
Don Sellers '66 resisted corporate constraints at SciClone Pharmaceuticals in the mid-'90s to conduct a groundbreaking clinical trial. "I was testing an immune system modulator which resulted in the approval of a drug for hepatitis B, an infection affecting tens of millions in China but almost no one in the U.S.," says Sellers, SciClone's CEO for a decade and now CEO of CardioPharma. "The board of the company had wanted the full attention of mental and financial resources applied to U.S.-based clinical studies….A negotiation ensued, I got my way, and the result was the successful introduction of Zadaxin into China. The initiative saved many, many lives over the next decade and generated tens of millions of dollars for the company."
Sep 29, 2009
William B. Bingham '66 Has Helped Guide Over 300 Levee and Dam Projects
From eating a tomato to watering your lawn to making a cup of tea, many activities we take for granted depend on the careful manipulation of tons of dirt and concrete. William B. Bingham '66, who has been honored with the U.S. Society on Dams' Lifetime Achievement Award, has been involved in more than 300 levee and dam projects during his 43-year career. His efforts have not only ensured that homes and farms across the country receive clean drinking and irrigation water, but his ongoing campaigns for dam repair and safety have quite possibly saved thousands of lives. He has made numerous visits to Congress to help secure funding for critical dam rehabilitation. He’s also had to stand up to powerful agencies to get them to spend large sums to fix aging infrastructure.
Sep 16, 2009
Robert C. Smith ’65 Running for U.S. Senate in Florida
Republican Robert C. Smith ’65, who represented New Hampshire in the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives, is running for the open U.S. Senate seat in Florida. Other Republicans seeking the seat are Gov. Charlie Crist and Marco Rubio, a Florida House speaker. Smith served in the House from 1985 until resigning in 1990 upon his appointment to fulfill an unexpired term in the Senate. He also had won election for the seat that year and was re-elected in 1996. He served as chair of the Select Committee on Ethics as well as the Committee on Environment and Public Works. He made a brief run for president in 1999, first as a Republican and then as an independent before returning to the GOP. He lost his bid for a third Senate term in the GOP primary.
Jun 10, 2009
Frank Bason ’65 Works Toward Energy Independence in Denmark
Frank Bason ’65 is the founder, owner, and manager of SolData Instruments, which produces devices that help control and evaluate solar energy systems. “The significance of my work in Denmark over the past 30 years has been more and more independence from imported oil,” he says. SolData boasts more than 3,000 instruments in use worldwide that measure solar irradiance, the level of solar energy. It also writes computer programs, consults for industry and government, and manages research projects. Bason participated in Galathea Expedition III, a 100,000-kilometer journey around the world aboard the Royal Danish Navy vessel Vaedderen. He attended conferences in Riga, Latvia, and Beijing in 2007 and Lisbon in 2008 to discuss his work with the research trip.
May 31, 2009
A New Beginning at the Top of Mount Fuji
May 20, 2009
Foote’s Calling Moves Thousands of Feet
In his 43-year career, Ed Foote ’63 has told more than half a million people in a dozen countries what their next step will be. The professional square dance caller has called in the U.S., Europe, Australia, and New Zealand. At his peak, he was traveling 40,000 miles year and calling more than 400 dances. Today, though Foote and wife Marilyn stay closer to their native Pittsburgh, he still travels to California, Florida, and the New England states to call. For 20 years he has penned a monthly column for American Square Dance Magazine and he also contributes to The Northeast Square Dancer Magazine . He’s authored books on the subject, published his own newsletter, and recorded instructional videos and audio tapes used worldwide.
Jul 10, 2008
Award-Winning Teacher Larry Morris ’67 Brings Past to Life
Larry Morris ’67 thought he was going to be a math teacher. Then he took a history class with Professor George Heath, which hooked him on the subject and continues to influence his teaching career. “His ability to relate anecdotal stories about characters in history made history more alive than just routine, traditional approaches to chronological progression,” he says. “People coming alive made history come alive. He had such passion for his profession." Morris teaches advanced placement American history and world history at Worcester Prep School in Berlin, Md. In 2006, Worcester Prep nominated him for the Maryland American History Teacher of the Year Award, which he won.
May 23, 2008
English Professors Inspire Jay Carson ’63 to Become One
Jay Carson ’63, professor of English studies at Robert Morris University, says he might never have decided to become a professor if he hadn't been inspired by great ones at Lafayette. For example, William Watt, professor of English, "greatly appreciated all poetry and, on occasion, published his own in The New Yorker," he says. "His poetry contained light verse with a depth of meaning that belied its style, much like the works of E.E. Cummings. Watt was quite a character, giving unique personality both to his classes and to the English department. I remember seeing him stop while crossing campus and boom out to Frisbee players on the Quad, “Whenever I see a Frisbee flying, I see intellectual fires dying.”
May 22, 2008
Class of ’68 Will Reconnect at Reunion Weekend
Class Reunion Chair William Messick ’68 believes the weekend will serve as a chance to reconnect with his classmates and reminisce about their years on campus. "I am interested in what my classmates are doing, their families, their lives. Remembering old stories and events embellished as they are," he says. "Gathering on campus this time of year always is an inspiring event." Messick recalls that in 1973, the class viewed old films of football games. He remembers Reunion parades, especially the parade cars like the 1960 Ford Edsel, the Maroon Mustang, as well as the live band party at the old Delta Upsilon house on the Quad, the tour of Chateau Chavaniac, and pub night socials.
May 19, 2008
Class of ’63 Will Turn Back the Clock at Reunion Ronald A. Garfunkel ’63 has been his class’ reunion committee chair for 40 years. He says Reunion is the perfect time for alumni to revisit the great times they had at Lafayette and catch up with classmates. “I am sentimental,” he says. His favorite Reunion was his 25-year one. “We had a big turnout and had a blast,” he says. Garfunkel had recently gone through a divorce, but when he brought his future wife to the reunion, “It was magical.” Garfunkel encourages all of his classmates to come to Reunion this summer, June 6-8. “We are not getting any younger,” he says. In addition, he believes that attending Reunion is a great way to see how Lafayette has grown and changed over the years.
Mar 13, 2008
Meet Cast, Get Discount for D.C. Production of Pirates of Penzance David Williams ’60 is portraying the Sergeant of Police in The Pirates of Penzance Feb. 23-March 9 at the Atlas Performing Arts Center in Washington, D.C. Customers get a 25% discount if they mention Lafayette College when buying tickets for the 8 p.m. Saturday, March 1 performance or the Sunday, March 2 matinee at 2:30 p.m. Any student with ID can get in for $10 one hour before performances if tickets are available at the box office. Williams will be available after the show to greet alumni in the lobby and introduce other cast members. Those wanting to spend more time in the nation’s capital may want to watch the Lafayette men’s basketball team take on American
University the afternoon of March 1.
Feb 22, 2008
Alumni Online Community Connects Peter Veruki ’60 with Long-Lost Friends
Nearly 50 years had passed since Peter Veruki '60 had spoken with his closest friends at Lafayette. "Alan Staats was in mechanical engineering with me," he recalls. "We were close friends all four years at Lafayette because we were in classes and studied together. And Charlie Frederickson was my roommate for a year. The three of us were very good friends." Then Veruki joined Lafayette's Alumni Online Community and in one morning, he spent four hours in it searching, as he says, for "long-lost buddies." The three friends have made plans to meet up on campus at Reunion Weekend. And, Veruki says, they plan to keep in touch in the future. "If other alumni haven’t used the community, they sure are missing out," he says.
Feb 20, 2008
Brent Glass ’69 Appears on "The Oprah Winfrey Show"
Lafayette Trustee Brent Glass '69, director of the Smithsonian Institute's National Museum of American History in Washington, D.C., appeared on "The Oprah Winfrey Show" Jan. 23. He discussed some iconic artifacts in the National Museum of American History, displaying the ruby slippers worn by Judy Garland in The Wizard of Oz, Fonzie’s jacket from "Happy Days," Sylvester Stallone’s boxing gloves in Rocky II, a pair of boxing gloves used by Joe Louis in a 1936 fight, and an iron tool used by Abraham Lincoln in the 1830s. "People come to the Smithsonian Institute and the National Museum of American History to connect with the larger world of art, history, and science," said Glass. The appearance was previewed in a Jan. 22 article in The Washington Post.
Jan 24, 2008
Robert L.G. White ’64 Heads Industry Leader for Helicopter Rescue Equipment
As president and CEO of Breeze-Eastern Corp. in Union, N.J., Robert L.G. White '64 is instrumental in ensuring that the hoists, hooks, and lifting devices used in helicopters for rescues are strong and perfect. The equipment is complex and dangerous. Helicopters must be outfitted carefully to support the equipment, which, White says, are the only components that do not have a backup system. The price of failure is the main reason that the industry is small, with just one other major manufacturer. Providing the equipment includes giving operators intensive training to keep rescuers safe in 50-foot seas of 30-degree water. Breeze-Eastern also makes lifting devices that help transport and equipment that loads missiles and other weapons onto aircraft.
Dec 28, 2007
Robert L. Simon '63 Named Among 100 Most Influential Sports Educators Robert L. Simon ’63 has something important in common with Tiger Woods, Hall of Fame baseball player Cal Ripken Jr., Duke and U.S. National Team men’s basketball coach Mike Krzyzewski,Penn State football coach Joe Paterno, and Emmy Award-winning sportscaster Bob Costas – all have been named among the 100 Most Influential Sports Educators in America by the Institute for International Sport. Simon is a professor of philosophy at Hamilton College, where he has taught for nearly 40 years. An expert on ethics and social values in sports, he is the author of Fair Play (Westview Press), now in its fourth edition, and a past president of the Philosophic Society for the Study of Sport.
Dec 28, 2007
World Traveler Ed Auble ’61 Settles Down
Ed Auble '61 has visited more than 70 countries since graduating with a business administration degree. Military service at the dawn of the Vietnam War contributed to his world travels. Auble flew Grumman S2 Tracker aircraft for the Navy, and landing on pitching carrier decks may have been his life's toughest challenge, he notes. He's now managing partner and cofounder of Broker Resource Center, an insurance agency, and also runs Auble Financial. He received the President’s Cup in 2007 for championing the ideals of the Greater Philadelphia Chapter of the National Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors and was voted Citizen of the Year by Paoli, Pa., in 2006. He is a member of Lafayette's Alumni Council, chairing the International Alumni Committee.
Dec 17, 2007
For Paul Eugene Thurston '60, Teaching Career Was Full of Satisfaction Paul Eugene Thurston ’60 retired from Texas Southern University after 34 years as a member of the chemistry faculty – a career filled with purpose, accomplishment, and satisfaction. “As an African American, teaching at a historically black university like TSU was icing on the cake. Although I’m sure I could have made a lot more money working for some big chemical company, I doubt that I would have gotten the satisfaction from the work as I get from being a professor. Seeing students each year grow, then come back later to thank me” is a great joy, he says. Many former students are now pharmacists, dentists, and medical doctors whom he encounters in his travels around the Houston metroplex.
Dec 05, 2007
Capturing Freshman Dinks Among Fond College Memories for Scott Hunt '65 In the 1960s, at the beginning of the fall semester, first-year students were expected to wear dinks, or beanies, as a freshman custom. For Scott Hunt '65, the memory is a fond one. "It was a great thing to be able to snag dinks from other schools,” says the executive director and CEO of the 13,000-member Endocrine Society. “Especially Lehigh. I was very proud to get dinks from the University of Pennsylvania, Muhlenberg, and Gettysburg. We would work out a strategy to get one from some unsuspecting student. And I am happy to say that I kept my own!" Hunt participated in ROTC. "It taught me leadership. I was one of the youngest in my class and somewhat immature. I found the ROTC experience to be maturing."
Nov 27, 2007
Alumni Online Community Helps Ed Auble ’61 Plan for Class Reunion Ed Auble '61 is a very active alumnus. When asked about his involvement with his alma mater, Auble responds, "Here goes!" and begins his extensive list, including former president of the Philadelphia alumni chapter and a three-time member of the Alumni Council. Still, when the opportunity presented itself for him to join Lafayette’s Alumni Online Community, he didn't hesitate to register. "I want to be connected with my classmates and others in the Lafayette community," says Auble, managing partner of Broker Resource Center in Paoli, Pa. "As reunion chair for our 50th, I want to have more contact with classmates." He encourages other alums to join the online community. “It was easy to sign up,” he says. And the benefits are well worth the time.
Nov 05, 2007
