November, 2009 Notes, Class of 1968            Contact: Thomas Figel, 312-223-9536 x301 (office)

                                                                        Tfigel@lake-effect.com

ALL ABOUT TOM . . . AND DAVE KABAT

                        With their fresh good looks, intelligence, and warmth, the Toms made the sunny afternoon of the Navy game memorable for the quality of the party.  Class President Tom Weyer arrived early and was soon joined by other Tom notables: Tom McKenna (of Carmel, IN), who is likely to run for Secretary of State on the Democratic ticket; Thomas A. Durkin, Thomas S. Moore, Tom Gibbs, Tom Misch,  and Tom Cuggino.  There were some other people there, too, but they were not Toms, even though, like the rest of us, they spoke of cousin Tom McKenna in Chicago, Tom Condon in West Hartford, CT, Tom Fitzharris, the artist and television producer in New York, musician Tom Wishing, Tom Chema, Tom McCann of Oak Park, the quarterbacking of Tom Clements and so on.

                        Toms are the dragons’ teeth of the class of 1968: more than 90 of us plus the toe-in-the water variety who have T. , probably for “Thomas”, as a middle initial: John T. Fowler of Louisville; George T. Horn, who came from Columbia, PA; Richard T. Kelly of Chicago; Peter T. King of Jamaica, NY; John T. Kries of Dallas; Michael T. McGarry of Schenectady, NY; John T. Slankas of Lawrenceburg, TN; and Thomas P. Kingston, Jr. of Staten Island, NY.  Then there is T. David McGovern of Barrington, IL.  Imagine all the Toms – Tom Goodenow, Tom Gubanich, Tom Krull, Tom McDermott, Tom O’Reilly, Tom Spinrad and, of course, Tom Umphrey – all vying on the limited phone lines for the chance to talk with Mary Ellen, Mary Margaret, and Mary Clare each Friday at St. Mary’s. 

                        Though they share many good attributes, the Toms are far from homogeneous.  Some are named for Thomas the Apostle, while others are named for Thomas Aquinas, Sir Thomas More, Thomas Jefferson, and maybe Tommy the Iceman.  Some you can stack like cordword: witness Tom Weyer, Tom Condon and Tom Gibbs in the melee of a 40th reunion alligator pile; others with the same name keep their sensible distance. 

                        The name is so popular in the records of our class that those not named Tom are probably the younger sibling of an older brother who had already taken the prize.  The majority of the Toms in our class share another quality: they don’t send news for these records, though Tom Ferratt, it is true, signed his name on the attendance list at the Michigan State game.  In that way, the Toms are like the Mikes, Johns, Steves, Joes and Kevins in our ranks.

                        For the record, and witnessed by many of the Toms, Dave Kabat was at the tailgate before and after the game.  Also enjoying the company of the Toms were Jay Schwartz and Laura along with son-in-law Randy Cornett, Megan, and their son Owen, all visiting from Baltimore.  In the Schwartz group was Jim O’Donnell, another son-in-law, who came from Seattle for a get-together with his Carroll Hall friends. Nearby were Brian Schanning and Susan from Marblehead, MA when they are not on the open sea.  John Mulligan, who used to be under the sea with Brian during their Navy submarine days, came from Cleveland. South Bend dignitaries Chris Murphy, Gene Cavanaugh, Jim O’Rourke and Joe Kernan made the tailgate an afternoon stop. Bob Ptak, Roger Guerin, Bryan Dunigan, and Brian McManus were four who came from the Chicago area.  Jim Hutchinson brought his big (pre-game) smile from Rochester, NY. 

                        Mike Baroody and Muff are awaiting the birth of their twenty-first grandchild.  Other grandfathers who will soon announce repeat business are John Walsh and Jay Schwartz.

                        Joe Blake, Mike Baroody, Bill Brennan, Monk Forness, Ed Kickham and I had fun discussing the draft and the U.S. Military forces on November 11th.  If you want to see the email, let me know.  Now that we have solved that problem, we will turn to new challenges: healthcare reform, economic stimulus, and the understanding of women.  Join in.

                        The class blog has these notes and prior ones, along with photographs and correspondence: http://www.ndclass1968.com.   Please let me know your news: Tom Figel, 1054 West North Shore, Apt. 3-E, Chicago, IL 60626, tel. 312-881-7391, tfigel@lake-effect.com.

            When President Barack Obama and Vice-President Joe Biden prepared for their beers with a Cambridge police officer and a Harvard professor at the end of July, the officials turned once again to pros for instruction in the etiquette.  On behalf of all of us, President Tom Weyer supplied hours of archived police video recorded at the Senior Bar, Corby’s, tailgate parties, and the Linebacker. He also arranged for training led by Jim Hutchinson, Mick Hyland, Bill Clark and Jimmy Powers so that the U.S. leaders would have a composure befitting men knowledgeable about the intricacies of the social beer, ready for anything from the certainty that Republicans do not always add marshmallows to their malt, all the way to the proper moment for “Danny Boy.” They also learned how to charge drinks to Mike Browning’s University Club account, a skill Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke may have overused with some stimulus expenses, especially after he was able to “friend” the accounts of Bob Smith and Jasjit Singh.  Many on the White House staff availed themselves of an extra-credit class taught by Bob Santaloci on besotted completion of important documents such as chem lab reports and trade agreements.  Brien Murphy pressed for a convivial gator but the Surgeon General nixed that.   There was only one slip up, this in the aftermath of some extra instruction from one of the Rogers twins, Neil or Rich, when the Vice-President was approached by some journalists interested in his views on Russia.  Adhering to his training, the Vice-President also volunteered some opinions of St. Mary’s women but the discreet journalists, realizing that he, like our class, had little direct experience with the subject, courteously ignored those remarks altogether. 

            As the training progressed in D.C., many of the rest of us kept our skills fresh at gatherings.  Bryan Dunigan’s choice of the Chicago southside’s Harborside course for his annual June golf outing made a good, mostly dry day for Roger Guerin, Tom Weyer, Tom Gibbs, Dennie Toolan, Paul Eide, Sandy Carrigan, Tom Cuggino, Terry Quinn, Bob Ptak, Rick McPartlin, John Walsh, Skip Strzelecki and Fran Mentone. On August 21, a similar group with similar intentions of fun will get together in South Bend for an evening Silver Hawks baseball game and, for some, an afternoon of golf.  Joe Kernan, Dick Liccini, Chris Murphy and Carmi, Fred Ferlic (setting aside his Chicago Marathon training), Jim O’Rourke and Gene Cavanaugh, as well as retired professors Ed Goerner and Don Sniegowski, will give the day a home town flavor.  Jim Davis, recovering quickly from some health problems brought on by his active bachelor life, keeps in touch about the plans but may have to miss this time.  Now living in Charleston, SC, Jim sent photos taken for the class blog during the visit of New Yorker Rich Sweeney and his wife Pat.

            The University’s Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies has a new director of policy studies, our classmate David Cortright. Dave is an Army veteran and a longtime scholar, teacher and advocate of nonviolence. Author or editor of 15 books, he is an expert on nuclear weapons policy, prevention of conflict through economic sanctions and counter-terrorism.

            Matt Walsh wrote after he and Joyce ran into John O’Brien and Karen in Lake Geneva, WI, the weekend that John would be installed as head of the Illinois State Bar Association.  “I was pretty impressed.  John and Karen have always been a wonderful couple and great  parents.    They mentioned that one of their sons is now teaching law at the law school at ND.   Also pretty cool.” 

            Mavericks owner Mark Cuban’s feud with former coach Don Nelson has kept Nelson’s lawyer John O’Connor busy and given Dallas visitor Ken Howard something to read while in town.  Ken circulated a newspaper article with some of John’s comments in it.  In Mississippi, Tom Durkin, representing Hinds County Circuit Judge Bobby DeLaughter, reached a settlement in the much-followed trial at the end of July. 

            Californian Mike Burgener and his family, always in search of things heavy enough for a worthwhile lift, traveled to Ireland and Scotland where Mike caused less trouble than expected while having a good time. “My no. 2 son Beau Jackson Burgener will on 7 August pin on the Navy trident (symbol of Seal status) and become a member of the elite Seal team 5!!  Very proud of my son!!  (In Europe), I along with son Casey and his wife Natalie 2008 Olympians both of them….and daughter Sage, we did Olympic weightlifting certifications for Crossfit.  Www.crossfit.com.  I encourage all my classmates to check out Crossfit and keep healthy.”

            Keep Tom Condon and his family in your prayers.  Tom’s youngest brother David, a recently married lawyer who made myriad contributions as an elected member of the New London, CT school board and city commissions, died of cancer on June 29th.  David’s funeral was well-attended and David’s memories so extraordinary that a niece overheard one of the ministers saying that he had never laughed so hard at a funeral before. 

            Please remember to check the photos and other notes on the class blog at http://www.ndclass1968.com.  Have information about yourself and others? Send notes to Tom Figel, 1054 West North Shore, Apt. 3-E, Chicago, IL 60626, tfigel@lake-effect.com.