I have a complaint. Fewer and fewer of you are writing to report on what’s happening in your lives. Yes, there are fewer and fewer of us, but surely the very fact that we are elderly and still upright is a cause for celebration. So, let’s hear from you. Soon.
Marianne Mattucci Escaron is living in San Diego, CA where she was a volunteer with special advocates in Ventura County for 21 years. She has stepped back to more fully enjoy family and friends. She proudly reports that the first of her four grandchildren has graduated from high school! Happy Anniversary to Marianne and her husband Pierre who were planning to celebrate 60 years of marriage in July with a cruise on the Aegean Sea in September. They met in 1962 on a ship in the mid-Atlantic bound for France!
Retired veterinarian Robert Schmitt of South Deerfield, MA spends his days enjoying his family and as a veterinary volunteer.
Having traveled the world and lived in Paris, NYC, Bermuda and Los Angeles, Jim Harre, who lost his wife in 2020 after 54 years of marriage, is now living in a senior living complex in Rancho Cucamonga, CA where he enjoys playing with his model railroads: Z, N, HO and O scales. He proudly reports that he has three children and 11 grandkids!
Mike Miller writes, “Just as my community in Allentown, PA gave so much to me, so too do I want to give back to my community. I have been serving on the Board of an Allentown economic development authority for about 50 years and am so proud of what the economic development has accomplished in significantly increasing the tax base and bringing good jobs to Allentown. Over the last 10 years, I have served as the Chairman of the Lehigh Valley Jewish Foundation Investment and Endowment Committees. Over that time, I have enjoyed using my expertise in investments and estate planning to help increase our community endowment fund and our distributions to provide for services to the elderly, education of children, and community athletic and social activities.”
William Stevenson writes, “I am the President of a historic preservation organization that has restored, preserved and opened to the public a 1730s brick home in Hertford, North Carolina. It is the oldest example still around of a brick home in North Carolina. The home was built by a Quaker for his family that included 6 children and 4 slaves, so we are able to discuss how they lived, the Quaker faith, and how Quakers came to deal with the issue of slavery. As a part of our mission, we host a program called “Living History” for first and fourth graders that helps them understand what it was like to live about 300 years ago. Our new project is to reassemble a Plank House that we believe was originally built in the 1700’s. We are about halfway to having the house back together using mostly volunteer labor.”
From John Curtis of McKinney, TX: “Janie and I have had a busy spring. As I completed my year as Rotary District 5810 Governor we attended the International Convention in Singapore. It was busy with presentations and parties and opportunities to meet and chat with folks from all over the world. And to visit the spectacular city of Singapore, with its skyscraper skyline, the Skypark and beautiful gardens. We also enjoyed a few days in Indonesia. Just before we left on this journey, we sold our lakeview home that we designed and built 18 years ago, to downsize. Soon we will be in a little casita with only some of our things we’ve acquired over the years. Fulfilling our bucket list will rise in priority as long as we continue to enjoy travel.”