OCHS Class of 1966 returns

Tom Williams AT LARGE:

Last month, members of the Ocean City High School Class of 1966 got together for their 50-year reunion. The class includes people who now live all over the area – in fact, all over the country. Here is an update on some of them.

Larry Allegretto: Enjoys being the bar manager for Stoneybrook Country Club and own a boat rental business in Sarasota, FL.  His daughter teaches school in Winchester, KY.  His son, Nickolas, lives in Silverthorne CO and is product manager for a mining company. He has four grandchildren.

Michaele Anderson Mason: Lives on a 54-acre farm in the Knoxville, TN area with her husband, Darwin.  An avid gardener, she is always planting something.

David Andrew: Lives in San Diego with wife, Barbara. They’ve been married 31 years.  They have five sons and one daughter who have provided 14 grandchildren.  They are both retired and are active in the church.

Dan Beyel: Co-owner of Boulevard Super Liquors and retired Cape May County Freeholder. He and wife, Cheryl, have three children.

Bob Blevin: Married to Gail for 40 years. Both are retired from the City of Ocean City. Daughter Melissa lives in Somers Point.  Son, Christopher is married with two children and lives in Parker, CO, just outside of Denver.

Marilyn Creighton Buck: Retired this year, has four sons and eight grandchildren. 

Barbara Butler D’Ottavi: Married to Jim. She’s a retired teacher living in Marmora.  They have two daughters and three granddaughters.

Joe Carew: Married to Carol, they have two children. They live in Egg Harbor Township where they work at and own Windward Sports Marketing.

Larain Cassidy Betts: Graduated from Brandywine College, married 48 years with three children and eight grandchildren.

Bob Darby: Retired in 2014 after 38 years practicing law in Los Angeles.  In May 2015 he and his wife, Wendy, moved to Orcas Island WA.

Rosemary DelCorio Bonner: Lives in Upper Township and is happily married to Doug, who designed and built the OCHS letters that now stand behind the high school. They have one daughter Carrie, and two grandchildren. Volunteers for the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games, met President Jimmy Carter and his wife, Roselynn, stayed overnight on the battleship USS NJ, then went to mass the next day with Pope Francis, and our Newfoundland dog “Steel,” won an award at the prestigious Westminster Dog Show.

Cindy Dimon Hendrick: Lives in Poway, CA, a suburb of San Diego.  Kristin, my older daughter, is an artist who lives on Long Island.  Merissa, the younger one, lives in San Diego and teaches Special Ed in elementary school.  Ken Ferrier: Retired from Verizon after 32 years. Still working at Kline Construction Safety as a flagman. Married 45 years to Alice, they have four children and seven grandchildren; Served four years in the USMC, including two tours in Viet Nam.

Bertha Field: Retired from AtlantiCare Medical Center in 2012 after 41 years working as a lab tech. Volunteers with Auxiliary 18 for Ranch Hope for Boys non-profit Christian School and home for wayward youth. Graduated from Baldwin-Wallace (OH) College.

Ed Fugee: His grandson is currently performing in the National Tour of “The Sound of Music”.

Mary Gardner: Studied art at the Art Students League, Parsons School of Design and School of Visual Arts. Moved to the Hamptons in the 90s continuing to paint and exhibit. Worked for the Bridgehampton Museum before moving to Hendersonville NC in 2013. Currently semi-retired. Her son, Murt, is a teacher and lives in Charlotte NC with his wife Frannie. You can see her art online at ArtByGardner.com.

Peggy Gleeson Tamamian: Became a beautician right out of high school and worked in that capacity for over 20 years. Then received a CAN and is currently a private nurse for the elderly. Has three children and one grandson. Her youngest daughter just married a man with a son and a daughter so she now has two new grandsons and a granddaughter.

William F. Goetz: Is an emergency physician, specializing in disaster medicine, emergency medical services and evidence-based medicine. Most of his career in ERs at Bellevue and Columbia Presbyterian in NYC. Was director of medical field operations at Woodstock II. Handled 7,000 patients in five days. Married 25 years to June, a Wall Street analyst. Both are now retired more than 20 years and live in Fort Lauderdale FL. They have two sons who are both senior IT/marketing/operations specialists.

Ron Goodman: Married to Mary, they have three children and seven grandchildren, He’s retired from Verizon after 31 years and now works part time at Twisted Dune Golf Club.

Bob Gray: Lives in Ocean City and has been married to Marilyn for 37 years. Retired from the U.S. Coast Guard/U.S. Coast Guard Reserve as Lieutenant Commander serving over 38 years. Also retired from the Ocean City Board of Education as a Media Specialist and Computer Technician after 39 years. Son graduated from Virginia Tech and is working as a Civil Engineer.

Ginny Haug Gifford: Married to Ron for 49 years, they have two children and three granddaughters. They are both retired and live in Ocean City.

Lea Hetrick Larson: Retired, she and Andy, her husband, have one son and one daughter with three grandchildren. Her favorite activity is being a member of the “Jersey Girls of Smith Mountain Lake.” There are 70 members.

Chris Hilferty Nash: Married to Michael – four children (3 in NJ, 1 in FL), eight grandchildren.  Retired from teaching then took a training position with Ticketmaster and concert planning at the Electric Factory..

Kathy Holland Major: She and husband, George, have two kids and four grandkids. Retired to Williamsburg, VA in 2011.  They summer seven weeks in Ocean City every year and spend a few months in Naples, FL in the winter.

Rick Howell: Retired with wife, Gail, to Isle of Palms, SC. They have four children and five grandchildren. He was a PE teacher at Williamstown, NJ for 27 years and was the basketball coached for seven seasons. Owned and managed Rainbow Gymnastics in Sewell for 10 years.

Al Jeter: Married for 25 years to Carol Ann, retired RN in Montgomery TX. Have eight children, 17 grandchildren and one great grandchild.

Bill Jones: Retired in 2011 as a partner in a CPA firm. Has one daughter, one son and three grandchildren. Significant other for 13 years is Elziane.

Andy Klain: Married to Margie, OCHS Class of ’67. They have three daughters and four grandchildren. He was a carpenter/builder and retired after 25 years with Atlantic County Schools. She retired from AAA. They live in Corbin City.

Jim Lavis: A retired OBGYN, he taught OBGYN at University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey and at Oklahoma State University. In “retirement” has started a business providing in-home elder care. Has three children. His oldest daughter is Vice-President of a public relations firm in Lancaster, PA and has given him an eight-year-old granddaughter. His son is a Cape May Tech graduate and his younger daughter is a senior at Stockton majoring in elementary education.

Meredith Martindale Gehrke: Living seven months in Boynton Beach, FL and five months in Ocean City. Son just moved to Connecticut from New Orleans, which means they can see him and his family more often.

Bill Maurer: Financial Advisor with the “Maurer Financial Group” for the last 44 years. Married to Brenda for 44 years. Two children and six grandchildren with one more on the way.

Alice May: Taught in Upper Township for a few decades. Still lives in Tuckahoe. Has one daughter and two grandsons. Her passion is gardening.

Barbara Mayer Johnson: Received a Bachelor’s Degree from University of Central Florida in 1971.  Identical twin sons were born in 1972.  Received a Master’s Degree from Eastern Michigan University in Ann Arbor in 1987. Retired from teaching in 2009.  Has lived in Brighton, MI for 40 years with husband, Gerry.

Linda Migliaccio Madara: She and husband, Lewis, have two children and three grandchildren. They are both retired and are able to travel frequently.

Candace Morgan Moleff: Lives in Estell Manor. Has two grandchildren and enjoys quilting and trail riding.

Melodie Morrison Perri: Retired in 2011 from teaching at the Ocean City Primary School.  Her teaching career spanned 33 years. Summers are now spent working in the 53-year old family business, The Forum Motel.  One daughter and one son are both living in Los Angeles.

Artie Palermo: Has five children and four grandchildren. Resides in Vero Beach, FL as a realtor with Kolbe Williams.

Ruth Pangburn: Was married to Francis Corcoran for 42 years. Raised two children and have seven grandchildren and one great grandchild. She has lived in Tuckahoe for the last 33 years. Still working, driving a school bus.

Linda Paul Worth: Married to Tony for 44 years – met at the Anchorage in Somers Point on her 23rd birthday.   Lived in Anaheim CA since 1980. She worked as a legal secretary for many years before retiring in 2008; Tony is a retired optometrist.  They have a 32-year-old daughter in LA.

Scott Ping: Owner of Boyar’s Food Markets for 30 years. Councilman at Large in Ocean City for eight years. Member of the Ocean City Planning Board for three years. Worked with the Ocean City High School After Prom for 10 years. Attended Penn State University. Has six children, six grandchildren and two great grandchildren.

Bonnie Richards-Ryan: Retired from the FAA after 37 years of service. My two dogs are my babies, Nicky and Maddy – both are Malteses.

Shirley Robinson Herbert: She and husband, Ron have four children. For the first 24 years or so she was a stay at home mom who was involved in numerous sports and youth activities in Deptford Township. They had 15 grandchildren, though two of them died. After her children all reached their teens, she spent 23 years in the court system.

Jane Rossi Hackney: Retired two years ago from Partners Healthcare after 16 years. Was a Billing Coordinator. Enjoys gardening and working on her genealogy. Has two children, seven grandchildren and will be a great-grandmother around the end of January.

Rich Russell: Still a Judge at OC Municipal Court after 36 years. His wife, Effie, is an English Professor at ACCC.  Son is an Associate English Prof at ACCC.  Daughter is a music mixing engineer living in Brooklyn.

Caroline Shaw Vliet: Still living in Marmora.  Raised my son, a Captain in OC Fire Department for 15 years. Have two grandchildren. She has been office manager for FBK-CPAs in Marmora for 30 years.

Sue Stethers White: Son Jonathan working and living in NYC, daughter Kelly is working and living in Rhode Island.

John Stuempfig: Retired to Big Pine Key in Florida.  Two sons, both married, two grandsons and another grandchild on the way.

Rev. Rina Terry: Has two sons and a daughter, who is a doctor. Two grandchildren. Has had a distinguished career in the church.

Helene Tolson: Attended New England School of Art. Still working as a paralegal. Has one stepdaughter, two stepsons, six grandchildren and one great grandchild on the way. Has lived in eight states and visited Canada and traveled almost all of Europe.

Pam Whittaker Wright: Married 42 years.  Living in Virginia since September 2009.  Oldest son, Jeffrey, has three children.  Middle son, Chris and his wife are expecting a baby girl.  Youngest son, Andrew is married and all three sons are living within a 45-minute drive.  She volunteers at local schools and has time to do gardening and biking and reading.

Bob Young: Married to Taimi 48 years in September. They have two daughters and three grandchildren. Both are both retired teachers for 12 years. Taimi taught mainly kindergarten at Upper Township for 34 years, Bob taught elementary physical education for 34 years in Ocean City.

Special thanks to Helene Tolson for her efforts in gathering information about her class.

While the Class of 1966 was in high school, a president was assassinated, Beatlemania came to the USA and the battle for civil rights intensified. The conflict in Viet Nam also continued and, after graduation, many of them served in the military.

In the last five decades, as you can see, these people made significant contributions to society and helped make the world a better place. That is what most graduating classes set out to do and this group succeeded.