“Other” Class Notes

Luke Fox (Engr ’15) and Paige McGraw, a graduate of Texas Christian University 2015, are engaged to be married on Nov. 6, 2021, in Austin, Texas. They met while attending UVA’s Semester at Sea, Summer 2014. Both have earned master’s degrees; Luke from Old Dominion University and Paige from University of Texas. Luke is the managing engineer and director of operations at Hampton Roads Executive Airport and Paige is employed as an international business development manager with the Virginia Beach Economic Development Department. The couple lives in Virginia Beach. 

David A. Thompson (Engr ’51 CM) writes: “Just checking in on the 70th anniversary of my UVA graduation. I received a BME in mechanical engineering in June 1951. I was in the Naval ROTC Squadron that graduated that yaear and was launched into the active Navy upon graduation and sent to sea to fight the Korean War. I found my UVA engineering training very valuable in my service as a Naval Officer, both in gunnery operations and in command and control duties. Upon return from wartime operations, I put my GI Bill credits toward advanced graduate work, earning a PhD from Stanford University, and was awarded and emeritus professorship in the management sciences and engineering department. As i went through my active military involvement in the Korean War, graduate work and a 27-year professorship at Stanford, I would find problems similar to and extensions of my UVA training, and appreciated the timely assistance of that earlier training. So, thank you again, Virginia, for a great start in a very complex world.”

Dawn Newton (Educ ’87) recently published two books. Winded: A Memoir in Four Stages (2019) chronicles her journey with stage IV lung cancer while taking targeted therapy for the vulnerable EGFR mutation. The Remnants of Summer (May 2021), a literary novel, explores the guilt and grief of 14-year-old Iris Merchant, who must deal with the aftermath of her younger brother’s drowning death in southeastern Michigan in the 70s. Both books were published by Apprentice House Press of Loyola University Maryland. 

Mark Apelt (Col ’00), a stay-at-home dad in Richmond, Virginia, recently invented a new gadget during COVID to help bring back a little normalcy for everyone. The Blowzee preserves the tradition of blowing out birthday candles without involving germs. It was recently aired on several news outlets: https://wjla.com/news/local/blowzee-henrico-dad-blow-out-candles-not-germs. Apelt writes: “The Blowzee keeps your cake clean while bringing back birthday joy and wishes. Kids love it. Parents love it. Guests appreciate it. How does it work?  Blowing into the open end of the Blowzee activates a battery-powered fan. The device blows clean air to extinguish the candles while redirecting your breath away from the cake. Spread joy, not germs!”

John Weckerling (Col ’54 CM) lives in Frankfurt, Germany, after serving 30 years in the U.S. Army, during which he received the Legion of Merit, and graduated from the NATO Defense College in Rome, Italy. He also received the Federal Cross of Service of Germany from the president of Germany. He spent eight years as manager of the Steuben-Schurz Society for eight years, which includes 850 members from several cities in Germany.

Frank B. Connolly (Arch ’72 CM) has published two books on local government after a career in Connecticut local government as a town planner, town manager and school business manager. Local Government in Connecticut, 3rd Edition, has been used as textbook in the state, and Hidden Agendas: Inside Town Hall, is novel about the shenanigans that take place in local government. He was recently featured in Bow and Stern, a publication of his flotilla in the U.S.Coast Guard Auxiliary for his work as a certified instructor teaching boating safety. He attended UVA’s Senior Executive Institute. 

Wes Jackson (Col ’95) was elected to the board of trustees of the Brooklyn Public Library, which recently merged with the Brooklyn Historical Society. Jackson previously served on the board of the historical society and was featured on ABC’s Soul Of A Nation. He discussed the depiction of African Americans in film and media over the years as well as the importance and rise of sneaker culture in the Black community. 

Suzanne Miller (Engr ’60) published her third book: Walking in Love: Why and How? She retired a few years ago after a career in aerospace and intelligence as a scientist, program manager and executive at Lockheed Martin, TRW and the U.S. Department of Defense. She also served for 10 years as president of her own consulting firm. A lifetime Episcopalian, she attended seminary at the Claremont School of Theology and served for five years as the licensed lay vicar of a Baltimore Parish. She also is a retired Navy Commander. Her career focus now is on her singing and writing career. As a singer she is a member of several choral groups, performing both locally and internationally, and recently released two albums of her solo songs. The title of one of them, It Ain’t Over ‘Till It’s Over,  sums it all up. Her website is suzannermiller.com. 

Bud Mayo (Educ ’75 CM) is in the process of completing some family research and needs help. He writes: “My family spent numerous summers at the Breezy Hill Farm Tourist Cabins of Rt. 29 during the 1950s. I am attempting fine the exact location and any information on this site.” Anyone with information can reach him at mayo5304@cox.net.

Robert F. Graboyes (Col ’76) is senior research fellow at the Mercatus Center at George Mason University. He recently launched a podcast series, Fortress and Frontier: Conversations on Healthcare and Innovation. For his first episode, “Different, but Not Less: Temple Grandin and the Economics of Neurodiversity,” he interviewed animal scientist and autism advocate Temple Grandin. During the pandemic, he also launched a YouTube channel featuring his musical performances and compositions—often in collaboration with the visual art of his wife, Alanna. Graboyes was previously a clinical professor in UVA’s School of Nursing, teaching health economics from 2005 to 2014.

Latané Conant (Col ’99) has published a book, No Forms. No Spam. No Cold Calls: The Next Generation of Account-Based Sales and Marketing.

Claude R. “Bud” Mayo (Educ ’75 CM) is currently serving as director of Hunt Test Preparation. Hunt is the oldest independently operated preparation program in the Commonwealth of Virginia.

David Massey (Col ’81, Law ’84 CM) released his fifth album, Island Creek. As of the first week of March, the six-song EP was at no.18 on the Roots Music Report’s nationwide Top Fifty Americana/Country Albums chart, and three of the songs on the album were on the RMR’s nationwide Top Fifty Americana/Country Songs chart. The record was also at No. 1 on the RMR’s Top Fifty Albums chart based on nationwide airplay for Maryland artists in any genre. Island Creek is available on most streaming sites and at his website: www.davemasseymusic.com. Massey retired from his law practice as a mergers and acquisitions partner at Eversheds-Sutherland in Washington, D.C., at the end of 2017.

Jessica Dunne (Engr ’00, ’03) was re-elected this past fall to a second term as a councilmember for Dunellen Borough in New Jersey.  She serves as council president for 2021.

Paul Hodskins (Col ’12 CM) earned a master’s degree with highest distinction in 2018 from the U.S. Naval War College in Newport, Rhode Island. That September, he married Katherine Jane Waro near Villanova University. Katie graduated from the Ithaca College Roy H. Park School of Communications and is a director of marketing at a global travel conglomerate. Paul and Kate now live in Leesburg, Virginia, where they recently purchased a home and hope to plant family roots. In 2021, Paul will mark ten years as a federal civil servant in foreign relations and national security.

Attison Barnes (Col ’15 CM) co-founded Captain Experiences, based out of Austin, Texas. The company aims to improve and streamline the booking process for outdoor sports guides, from fishing to rock climbing and more, to get “more people out of the office and off the couch and into the outdoors.” 

Thad Long (Law ’63 CM) published a book, The Impossible Mock Orange Trial, based on a case he tried as an attorney. Long is an elected member of the prestigious American Law Institute and has been an Adjunct professor of Law at two different law schools. He has tried many memorable cases, and the one that inspired The Impossible Mock Orange Trial was rated by the National Law Journal as one of only several most outstanding defense verdicts of the year. He has recently been awarded Marquis Who’s Who in America’s Lifetime Achievement Award. The Impossible Mock Orange Trial is a gripping anatomy of a huge high-stakes trial, with an unexpected turn at the end that spotlights the question: “What is Justice?” The book is available on Amazon.

Frederick Wilbur (Col ’70) recently published his second poetry collection, Conjugation of Perhaps. The previous collection is titled As Pus Floats the Splinter Out. For 35 years Wilbur was a self-employed architectural woodcarver participating in the restoration of such historic properties as Montpelier, Blandfield, and the Maryland Statehouse in Annapolis. He carved several details for the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts. His ecclesiastical carvings appear in churches nationwide. During his career Wilbur wrote many articles and three books on decorative woodcarving; Carving Architectural Detail in Wood: the Classical Tradition; Carving Classical Styles in Wood, and Decorative Woodcarving: Accessories for the Home. Wilbur received a M. A. from the University of Vermont. He still lives in central Virginia with his wife of fifty years, Elizabeth (Educ ’87), with two daughters and three grandchildren nearby.

Bill Lawson (Darden ’72) writes: My wife Cathy and I started 2020 with a three week stay at a Viila (Fregate) in St. Barthelemy. Marc Christman (Darden ’72) and his wife Dierdre joined us there for a week. David Vondle (Darden ’72) and his wife, Debbie, invited us to join them for the “Full Monte” at Mardi Gras in New Orleans. We stayed at the Royal Bourbon Radisson with a second floor balcony overlooking Bourbon Street. I threw beads from a float in one of the major parades; we attended an unforgettable gala, brunches, the Gay Parade, brunches and late nite gatherings. If you haven’t done Mardi Gras–put it on your bucket list.

We then canceled our week long train trip on the Belmond Royal Scotsman and a London stay. Also Longboat Key in Florida and recently our annual sojourn to St. Barthelemy this month.

Our summer home on Lake Charlevoix in northern Michigan has been a wonderful place of refuge from the pandemic these last couple of weeks. We are returning to Indianapolis where we are remodeling our home there, replacing our 60 plus year old swimming pool, and constructing a pool pavilion. We are staying three houses down the street at a relative’s house until March when our projects will hopefully be completed.

Please all Wahoos stay HEALTHY and Happy 2021!