“Retirement” Class Notes

Bill Chapin (Col ’76 CM) of See Rock City, Inc. is thrilled to announce the succession from fourth generation family ownership to fifth generation, as his son Doug Chapin is set to purchase the outstanding shares of the company.

“We have always had a focus on hospitality, as well as on conservation,” said Bill. “In the last 90 years we have protected the geological wonders of Rock City Gardens for everyone’s enjoyment, and for future generations of the next 90 years. Rock City is a unique outdoor attraction that allows visitors to experience what has been created by God and enhanced by man.”

See Rock City, Inc. has seen outstanding growth under Bill’s leadership, including consistent increases in profitability and attendance despite economic downturns, the acquisition of Battles for Chattanooga museum, Grandview, Starbucks, Clumpies Ice Cream Co., RiverView Inn and GOOD DOG, as well as multimillion-dollar renovations alongside the creation of several restaurants and shops inside Rock City Gardens. Bill has received two separate lifetime achievement awards in tourism, one from Southeast Tourism Society in 2019, and another during the Georgia Governor’s Tourism Conference in 2017.

See Rock City, Inc. is a hospitality and entertainment company that features the world-renowned Rock City Gardens high atop Lookout Mountain. Visit www.seerockcity.com for more information.

Photo 1: Bill Chapin at Carter Cliffs; photo credit to the Chattanooga Times Free Press

Photo 2: Bill Chapin, Susan Harris and Doug Chapin at iconic Lover’s Leap; photo credit to the Chattanooga Times Free Press

Photo 3: Doug Chapin and Bill Chapin at the See Seven States Flag Court; photo credit to Rock City

Mosby Garland Perrow III (Col ’63 CM) has completely retired after 17 years practicing law and over 23 years as Circuit Judge in Virginia. Mosby has been married to his wife Holly for 56 years, and two of his daughters, Hellen Perrow Carrington (Col ’91 CM) and Alexandra Perrow Wood (Com ’93) are UVA graduates. Four of Mosby’s grandsons, Will Carrington (Com ’22), Sackett Wood (Col ’22 CM), Hugh Wood (Col ’24), and Woody Carrington (Col ’25), are current UVA students, and his granddaughter Holly Carrington (Col ’20 CM) is a UVA graduate. Mosby also has five grandchildren, two in Virginia and three in Texas, that are yet to enroll in college.

Ellsworth K. “Kenny” Johnson III (Col ’92 CM) retired from the U.S. Army at the rank of Colonel on September 30, 2020.  He served in the Army for 28 years and was awarded the Defense Superior Service Medal at his retirement ceremony, which was held on August 6, 2020.  His last military assignment was as the Program Manager for the Missile Defense Agency’s X-Band Radars Program Office at Redstone Arsenal, Alabama.  COL(R) Johnson, his wife, Terri, and their sons live in Madison, Alabama.   

Jeffrey Ryan (Col ’80) retired after 25 years as a family physician at Ryan Family Medicine in Albany, New York. Dr. Ryan’s practice was varied and included conventional as well as non-traditional approaches. Among these were acupuncture (Medical Acupuncture – UCLA) and integrative medicine (Integrative Medicine Fellow – University of Arizona). Jeff’s practice was evolving to include an emphasis on geriatric care. Jeff then experienced manifestations of an inherited addictive disorder fueled in part by childhood trauma. It signaled the need for interruption of career and modification of certain life and career goals. Treatment of this is ongoing and is as deeply meaningful as it is profoundly challenging.

Kevin B. O’Connell (Col ’78 CM) retired in April after 35 years with Delta Air Lines. He flew his final crossing of the Atlantic, from Madrid to New York City, after accumulating more than 17,000 hours on the 757/767 aircraft alone. Prior to working for Delta, O’Connell spent eight years on active duty with the U.S. Navy. He participated in combat operations off Lebanon in 1983-1984, and he was recalled to active duty for the first Gulf War as an A-6 pilot.  During the air war in Kosovo he provided expeditionary logistic support to the Sixth Fleet and NATO units while operating at forward support sites in both Greece and Italy. He completed his naval service with more than 2,000 hours in the A-6 Intruder and 401 carrier landings and retired as a captain in the Naval Reserve in 2001. With his wife of 35 years, he is retiring to East Orleans, Massachusetts. on Cape Cod, where his retirement goals include not being attacked by a great white shark while surfing at Nauset Beach. He would also like to avoid falling off the family tractor while mowing the fields on Pochet Island and injuring himself severely. Finally after 43 years of being subject to random alcohol and drug testing at work he would like to blow as much dope as is humanly possible.

George Morrow (Engr ’83 CM) retired from the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center as acting center director in December 2019. He received NASA’s highest award, the Distinguished Service Medal, the same year. He joined ASRC Federal in January 2020 and is now vice president for robotic exploration and weather in the space operating group.

Marsha McElrath Taylor (Nurs ’77) has moved to Wilmington, North Carolina, with her husband, Brad, after completing a 30-plus-year career as a cardiac operating room and perioperative nurse. During her nursing career, Taylor enjoyed medical ICU experience at Georgetown University Hospital, and served as lead clinical instructor for INOVA Fairfax’s Cardiac Dome Observation Program. She was featured in this role in the Washington Post Magazine article “Hearts and Minds” by Paul Gustafson. Taylor also taught classes on hemodynamic monitoring, disseminated intravascular coagulation and diabetic ketoacidosis. She published several articles including “Atrial Septal Defect Repair” and “Job Satisfaction and Perioperative Nursing.” In retirement, Taylor plans to continue participation in BSF International, and volunteer services. She also hopes to “prepare all those recipes from all those cookbooks I’ve collected over the years!”

James Tyson Currie (Grad ’69, ’75 CM) has reached his final retirement after a nearly 50 years of working. He attended the last two years of U.S. Army ROTC as a graduate student at UVA, the only one in his ROTC cohort, receiving his commission as a second lieutenant in 1970. He spent a total of 30 years in the Army, active and reserve, reaching the rank of colonel. He taught history and political science at the college and university level for many years, including three years at Jackson State University and 18 years at the National Defense University, Industrial College of the Armed Forces, a Defense Department senior service college. He worked on Capitol Hill for almost eight years, serving as associate historian of the U.S. House of Representatives and as a staffer for U.S. Senators Lloyd Bentsen (D-TX), David Boren (D-OK), and John Glenn (D-OH). He was director of Federal Relations for the National Association of State Treasurers and Legislative Affairs Director for the National Marine Manufacturers Association. For the past six years, he was executive director of the Commissioned Officers Association of the U.S. Public Health Service, a nonprofit, nonpartisan entity that represents the uniformed officers of the U.S. Public Health Service. He is a 20-year member of the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists and has appeared as an extra in such series as House of Cards and Homeland. He is the author of three books and 30 peer-reviewed articles and has had two pieces published in the “Humor in Uniform” section of Readers Digest. He lives with his wife, Janis, in Alexandria, Virginia. Their son Matthew is a graduate student in clinical psychology at Chestnut Hill College, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He is currently working on his fourth book, which tells the story of Harry Truman and the World War II Truman Committee of the U.S. Senate.

Michael Coulter (Col ’76 CM) is retiring from a career in software engineering after more than 27 years at Hewlett Packard and 14-plus years at Oracle. He will be staying in San Carlos, California. He is considering the possibility of teaching computer science at the local community college.

Jeffrey Clark (Col ’77 CM) has retired from practicing dentistry. He will divide his time between homes in Roanoke and Topping, Virginia.

David “Tates” Tatum (Col ’71 L/M) retired in 2012 from the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta as vice president of supervision and regulation after 40 years in financial services. Before working for the Federal Reserve Bank, he spent time with C&S/NationsBank, BankSouth and CheckFree. After living in Atlanta for 40 years, he moved to Lake Rabun, Georgia in 2012. He has been married to Jackie for 44 years with two children, Ashley Tatum (Col ’02) and Price. David is now active in Rotary and Habitat for Humanity, and he serves as president of the Lake Rabun Association.

Howard Tripp (Col ’73 L/M) retired from the federal government after 43 years of service as a research analyst with the departments of defense and justice. He now lives in Delaware, where he is an active volunteer with the Del-Mar-Va Council of the Boy Scouts.

Rachel Witmer McTague (Law ’86) retired in early 2019 after a three-part career in Washington, D.C. After graduating from UVA Law, she practiced law for five years, in the General Counsel’s Office at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, sandwiched between a year each in each of two law firms. She then wrote about securities law and regulation as a legal editor and reporter at the Bureau of National Affairs for 15 years. Beginning in 2008, she was a director of communications at the Investment Company Institute, a trade association representing mutual funds and other investment companies globally. She retired after being diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease. Her husband, Jim McTague, retired from a career in journalism in 2015, culminating with 21 years as Washington editor of Barron’s. He is a novelist and regular commentator on The John Batchelor Show on WABC Radio. They live in Alexandria, Virginia, and next year will move to southeast Pennsylvania to be closer to our families (and trout fishing!). They have three children and 10 grandchildren who live far in southern Indiana, Colorado, and Chicago.

Frank R. Scheer II (Col ’72) retired from the U.S. Postal Service Supply Management Department in February 2019, after nearly 29 years. He previously worked at organizations including the U.S. Railway Association and Virginia Electric & Power Co. Scheer continues to teach a supply chain management course for the University of Maryland Global Campus. He also devotes time to the Boyce Railway Depot Foundation and the Railway Mail Service Library Foundation, of which he was the organizing secretary-treasurer.

Charles Platt (Col ’75 L/M) is retiring from the law firm Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr, where he was the head of the firm’s New York office for nearly eight years, and has litigated and tried complex civil cases for large corporate clients around the country. Still thinking he is of youthful mind and spirit, he will be embarking on a new career as the general counsel of a recently-formed specialty finance company, which is in the business of treating litigation as an asset class and monetizing legal risks. He is looking forward to a new adventure and the challenge of learning something new and different.