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conversation with Dan Allen , I asked him if he would send me an update . He was kind enough to do that and here is what he wrote .
From Danny Allen : “ I owned a machine shop in New Jersey for 40 plus years . Being retired is both great and not so great . I miss the shop , but not the headaches that go along with running a business . I do miss the challenges of looking at a print and then holding the finished product in my hand or if it ’ s too big , on a skid .
“ Over the years we manufactured component parts that weighed hundreds of pounds or you could hold hundreds in your hand . Our last project was building zip line parts that were shipped all over the world . I still do some design or small lot manufacturing for previous customers in my machine shop in the third bay of the garage in our house .
“ The good part of being retired is I was able to go to North Carolina and help my son-in-law totally renovate the house he and our daughter purchased in Ashville .
“ We also get to travel to western New York to see our other daughter and family . Our two grandsons are very active in mountain biking and scootering . Our 15-year-old has his own bike repair shop in their garage .
“ Thankfully , Kathy and I are in good health and just celebrated our 59th anniversary . We enjoy traveling and I still ski , sail Hobie Cats with my buddies at the Jersey shore , hunt white-tail deer , and golf .
“ I am really blessed with the life I have had and I can ’ t thank Williamson College of the Trades enough for the education I received there which made so much of it possible . I feel we really need to support the school so others may benefit .”
Thank you Dan … and I end with an amen to that !
Stay well classmates , and may God bless you and your families !
Dick
W 67 Steve Nash 205 Red Fox Ct . Middletown , DE 19709 302-376-9680 Cell : 302-383-6860 snash999 @ cs . com
Hi guys , welcome to the 21st century ,
Here ’ s hoping that everyone reading this is in good health and their families are well . This COVID pandemic has created changes to our lives that we could never have imagined .
That being said , let ’ s talk about WTS . For starters , I met up with Dave Parker at school on Alumni Day , June 4 . My first impression was : Wow , look at all the new buildings and equipment they ’ ve installed ! The biggest one is a new sports complex that is under construction down by the area of the football field . I ’ m not sure of the figures or
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dimensions , but that building is HUGE . If one looks out from the top of the steps of Rowan Hall , that is all you can see . As of this original writing , there is just steel super structure , but the size is overwhelming . I thought I had heard the price tag of being around $ 20 million . ( Don ’ t quote me on that .)
Other notables are a new dorm that should be ready for the fall 2022 semester . Another big change is the new curriculum that will have started this fall in the electrical field . This electrical field will be different from the power plant electrical that was being taught . The new class of electricians will be about 20 students strong at the beginning .
Which brings me to the next topic ... an additional 20 or more students in the freshman enrollment . These are just a couple of some of the main changes taking place . WTS has come a long way since we had to salute that fireplug next to the Main Building .
Dave , Pat Owens , and I met up at Delaware Park Casino for lunch some months ago and caught up on a lot of years ’ happenings . We have met up again at the same place for some more “ up to the minute ” news . More on that later .
This past summer , Ron and Charlotte Clark stopped by and we had a nice lunch . Brought back some memories that had long been forgotten . They are in the process of constructing a new apartment for their daughter and granddaughter to live on their property . By the time you read this it may be finished .
On their way to Maine , Rich Strauss and his wife Ann did some camping at Lum ’ s Pond campground about ten minutes from my home . Annick and I went over there and we all went out to dinner . Their grandson was pitching for a local Little League team that was trying to make it into the Little League World Series at Williamsport . Unfortunately , they lost and didn ’ t make it to the big games .
We had a good night of old school talk and Rich “ dusted off some cobwebs ” that had grown since we last go together . We were going to try to get together again before they returned to Florida , but some misfortune at my house caused that not to happen .
There is going to be a mini reunion at the Shady Maple Smorgasbord on Oct . 11 where President Rounds will tell us what the latest news is . I will have sent this in to be published so you ’ ll have to read about it in the next Williamsonian .
Right now , I am waiting on Ian ’ s rain to start falling . It should be here within the next 8-12 hours .
I heard from Ron Clark in South Carolina . They are far enough west that they will be getting only rain . For all you Techies living in Florida , God be with you and hope you are all doing well .
Steve
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W 68 Edgar Speer 1600 Ulster Lane West Chester , PA 19380 610-431-7574 speerhouse7 @ verizon . net
Hello good friends ,
As I write this ( 10 / 2 / 2022 ), Hurricane Ian is sending inches of much needed rain which will definitely help recover our groundwater for the upcoming winter .
I was so happy to hear from some of you - many regular writers , some infrequent writers , and a super-welcomed letter from a previously out-of-contact classmate .
First in was George Dolan who sent this note , “ Just wanted you to know that I ’ m still hanging in there and will try to make the luncheon in October . Judy will be my driver . George ” See you at the luncheon , George .
Got some news from Joe Shulkitas who wrote , “ I will be 75 on Oct . 16 . Age is catching up with my eye issues and back , but I ’ m enjoying life , not complaining . Will see you at the luncheon . Your good buddy POGO ” Yes , Pogo , getting old is not for wimps as many of us would heartily agree with you .
Our “ inside Williamson ” classmate Stacy Starr sent , “ We started off with 124 freshmen this year , the most ever . The new electrical course is up and running . The new Strine Dorm is open . There are plans to build a new 72-room dorm in the parking lot near Byers . We just received a $ 7 million contribution for this . The new chapel balcony is completed .” Thanks for keeping us inside the loop , Stacy .
Dave Slotterback sent in the following , “ Still getting together with Pogo , Murph , Barry V ., and myself every month for lunch . We ’ re all planning on coming down in October for the lunch . Hope to see everyone there . Dave ” It ’ s good to hear that the lunch bunch is still happening in Schuykill County , Dave .
Dave later sent the following message , “ Almost all of our Seabee get-together conversations have Bob Pelly ’ s name come up at one time or another . Everybody would love to see him or at least hear from him . “ Bird ,” if you ’ re out there , drop a line to me or any of us . d _ slotterback @ yahoo . com , Dave ”
Our classmate from Delaware , George Miles , sent in this message , “ Hope all is well with you and your family . Still not much going on down here in Lower Slower Delaware , and we haven ’ t been doing much . Had my right knee replaced in February and the left is schedule for Nov . 1 . That and some other age-related issues have really slowed me down this year . Haven ’ t been to many car shows this season either , nor have we travelled much . I ’ m now trying to sell all my historic cars , but today ’ s world doesn ’ t want ’ 30s and ’ 40s vehicles . Our youngest grandson started in the new Electrical Program at Williamson this fall and loves it . Our oldest grandson has
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almost completed his master studies in Iowa and hopes to get a job that will pay for his doctorate in marine sciences after graduation . His sister is scheduled to graduate from West Chester in the spring and the other three grandkids are continuing their studies and / or working . Sharon is still volunteering at the local theater and Elks Lodge , as well as with local politicians . ( I ’ m beginning to think she doesn ’ t want to be home .) Hope to see you all in October . George ” It ’ s amazing how fast our kids and now grandkids are growing up . Happening way too fast , for sure !
Got an email note from Fran and Marge Monahan in North Carolina saying , “ We can ’ t make the luncheon this year . I have three speaking engagements that week . They were scheduled in August . I had to cancel and October was the only opening . We ’ re doing fine . I had surgery on my wrist , elbow , and finger . I ’ m doing great , no cancer from the tumor on the finger . Fran is still playing with his trains and driving his ’ 39 Dodge . Maybe next year . Marge and Fran ” Good news on your surgeries and outcomes , Marge . I ’ m sorry you won ’ t be at the luncheon this year , Fran . But looking forward to 2023 for sure .
It was good to hear from Tom Turnbaugh who wrote , “ Marianne and I are doing well and dealing with the challenges of our family members getting older . Her dad , who is a retired attorney from Easton , Pa ., is still with us and we will be celebrating his 96th birthday in October . We have recently had many trips back and forth from Lebanon to Easton , and I am hopeful that someday the construction on Interstate 78 will be completed . That would certainly make the trip easier . Speaking of travel , we will be going to Italy in November . The trip was arranged through the local Chamber of Commerce , and several community members we associate with will also be attending . I haven ’ t been out of the country in several years , however , I ’ m looking forward to this guided excursion . Hope to see you in October . Tom ” I am jealous of your trip to Italy , Tom and Marianne ! We still haven ’ t done any traveling yet - hopefully , soon ! And , I can really relate to your status of elder care .
Dan Maslanik responded , “ I hope all is well with you and your family . Connie and I are doing good , all things considered , for being 3 / 4 of a century old . I always say “ If I knew I was going to live this long I would have taken better care of my body .” Seriously , though , after four children and eight grandchildren , we are truly blessed . We have five of the grandkids in various colleges and two still in high school . So , we are still attending various sporting events . I got an unexpected pleasant surprise on my birthday in August . Terry Lieb called to wish me a happy birthday . We had a nice chat and traded old stories of Williamson Trade . I also got a call from Bernie Minor . Bernie and I call or text
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