Clowning Around

The 45th Reunion

We gathered at Mercy on October 4, 2009 for lunch in Rist Hall. Shown above are (left to right using maiden names) in the front row: Miss Irene Creps, Charlotte Watson, Nancy Sarlatte, Barbara Pape, Kathy O'Brien, Bernie McCabe, Carol Roberts, Sue Weiser, Lynn Bali, Sr. Marilyn Gouailhardou, Sr. Marian Clare Valenteen, Lillian Ecgazenza, Arlene Nuss, Diane DaCosta, Joanne Hicks.

Middle row: Sonja Dahlberg, Rita Smith, Sue Bird, Marsha Butler, Sr. Nancy O'Brien, Sheila Cotter, Sue Kiep, Rita Asturias, Jenny Warnick, Margaret Ahlbach, Lucene Thomason, Janet MacDonald, Elizabeth McLoughlin behind Janet, and Yvonne Mathieu.

Top Row: Jodi Dee, Cathy Guthrie, Sr. Barbara Moran (Sr. M. Christine), Sr. Barbara Henry, Sr. Katie (Judy) O'Hanlon, Maureen Fleming, Sr. Elene Egan.

Kathy Krause: Greetings from Anchorage

Alex & Kathy Monterrosa in Antarctica

Hello to all of my classmates in the Trojan Class of 1964! I loved seeing you for our 40th and hope to see you at our 50th in 2014. We have a building project that is going on at our lake property about 65 miles outside of Anchorage. We're moving from a small, cozy cabin with no running water and a porta-potty to a lake house with all of the amenities. Hooray, no more porta-potty!! I can't leave the project right now so will be unable to attend our reunion. Sure would be nice to meet with some of you for lunch when I do come down to the Bay Area early next year.

I retired from teaching here in Anchorage in 1996. Since then, Alex and I have been educational consultants mainly teaching social skills. We work for Princess Cruises and Tours during the summer both on the train and at the terminal. In fact, I was delighted to see Kathy (O'Brien) Harais and her sister Delores and their husbands aboard one of the trains. We got a chance to "catch up." I am also involved with the Usher-in-the-Arts program at the Anchorage Performing Arts Center. We are finishing a run of The Lion King which has been a successful show here. So many people from the outlying villages have come to see it.

Alex (St. Ignatius '64) and I have lived in Alaska now for 34 years. We have one son, Antonio, who is a writer. He and his wife, Willow, have three children and are also living in Anchorage. Like many of you, we have grandparent duty.

Besides the cruising benefits from Princess, we've had a chance to see a lot of the U.S. in our Roadtrek camper van which we keep stored in San Jose. Visiting our national parks is a priority for us. We love San Francisco, though, and will always be Giants and 49er fans!

Please let me know if any of you are coming up this way for a visit. Our number is (907)333-0916. There is always room in the house for a fellow Trojan! God bless you all!

Greetings from our teachers

We're happy to report that Sister Marian Clare Valenteen, Sister Barbara Moran (Sr. M. Christine), and Sister Marilyn Gouailhardou will be joining us at the reunion.

Sister Rita Fantin (Sr. M. Modesta) extends her best wished to the class and regrets that she will not be able to attend this reunion. However, she is looking forward to coming to our 50th reunion.

Sister Marguerite Buchanan sends the following message:

Thank you so much for the invitation to the Class of 1964 45^th Reunion! I would love to have attended. As it is I will be in Europe from September 28 to October 6. You were a very favorite class so it saddens me not to be be present. Perhaps at the 50th. Give my love to all.

Pat White Update (Sr. Pauline Mary of Jesus)

Dear Trojans, Class of 1964!

In the words of the ancient monastic traditional greeting, 'Praised be Jesus Christ!' -- (a greeting now used in Russia among members of both the Catholic and Orthodox Churches; when a person is greeted they respond, 'Now and Forever.'

I am with you all in spirit as we celebrate another milestone together. How many happy memories I have our High School years --how significant those years were.

You are all invited to come to Wales. We have a bungalow guesthouse and a small flat and if these are not available, there are many B&B's in our peaceful little town of Dolgellau, which dates back to pre-Roman times, located near a scenic estuary, by the coast, nestled in the Cader Idris (means 'Arthur's Chair) mountain range.

Below is the link to our Monastery's website.

• http://www.carmelite.org.uk/Dolgellau.html

I have many photos of Russia, the Volga area, so if any of you want them, I can send them later to Yvonne.

My love to each and all of you -- and, of course, prayers too!

In Jesus,

Pat White (Sister Pauline Mary of Jesus, OCD)

Judi Poli update

Hello Everyone!

Well, 45 years later I find myself teaching at Ursuline High School in Santa Rosa. Faith and Christian Lifestyles are the courses and my students are seniors from both Ursuline and Cardinal Newman, our brother school.

You can check us out at www.ursulinehs.org

I love my work and the students. I have 3 great sons and one grandson. I live in Cloverdale and have a place on the Big Island of Hawaii. I am truly blessed!

Greetings from Patricia Sullivan Thorsen (Sister M. Rosaleen)

You are most gracious to invite me to your 45th Reunion. Truly, I would love to attend.

However my husband and I are already committed to participate in a Golf Tournament here in Oakmont.

Then later that day we will rejoice with a young Chinese couple as they exchange marriage vows.

I had a wonderful experience at Mercy High School and congratulate all of you who attended and graduated!

Love, Patricia Sullivan Thorsen (Sister M. Rosaleen)

Mary Altmann's update

Hello to my fellow classmates. I wish I could be at our 45th reunion. It would be great fun seeing everyone. I will be traveling in Ireland the last part of September and the first few days of October with a quick stop in Paris to visit my niece and her family before coming home. I will be using the French I learned in classes at Mercy! My husband, Bud, and I are doing well enjoying the “retirement years”. My son, Kevin, a graduate of the University of Santa Barbara, is a golf pro. His last assignment was on the island of Lanai in Hawaii. It was great fun to visit him there. My daughter, Annie, recently finished her studies in Communications at the University of San Francisco. We moved to Marin after many years living in the fog. We spend a lot of time in Arnold, CA. where we have a place. I wish all of you well and I hope to see you at our 50th.
Mary Altmann Bresnahan

Diane Dacosta's family

This is a photo of my son, Eric, Cindy and Jenna. He and Cindy were recently married at Our Lady of Angels (OLA) in Burlingame. I am enjoying my new daughter and step granddaughter. I'm looking forward to seeing all of you on October 4.

Update from Esther (Parker) Perica

I will be with you in spirit at the reunion, but the rest of me will be on my way to West Africa. I am commencing a two month, seven country trip this weekend starting in Senegal, and going to The Gambia, Mali, Ghana, Burkina Faso, Togo and Benin.
I still live in Arlington Heights,IL with my husband Joe. We are both retired from education and enjoying life. He golfs, I do volunteer work and travel. I continue to work with street/abused/homeless elephants - mostly in Thailand but have done some work in India too. We love being retired and still miss the Bay Area!
At the top is my favorite photo of my mom and me at the Mercy Mothers Tea during our senior year.
In the next photo, I am trying to help Phom Phet relax by reading to her. She was rescued during Thailand's horrible tsunami and I was on a team to assist with the elephants left homeless. I worked and re-trained her and she now lives at the Four Seasons Hotel in Chiang Rai giving elephant rides to children.
The lower photo was taken in Roatan, one of the Bay Islands of Honduras.

Reflections from Jodi Servatius (Joanna Dee)

Reflections from Jodi Servatius (Joanna Dee)

When I enrolled at Mercy, I knew only one other person in the class, because I had come from the public school system. I enjoyed my three years at the school. In Sept. of 1963, my family moved from our home in S.F. to a new home in Los Altos Hills—their escape to the country. While I regretted leaving Mercy for senior year, I was open to new adventures. I completed 12^th grade at a large (now defunct) public high school in Palo Alto. It was quite a shock going from Mercy to a school with over 2000 kids--and co-ed, at that.

I attended Santa Clara University, which I enjoyed, but found a little bit stifling and definitely male-dominated. After my junior year I left and got married to my (still) husband of 42 years. I worked as a secretary for a year, while he finished law school at U.C. Berkeley. After that, I returned to U.C.B. to complete my bachelor’s degree. Soon thereafter I took a job as a teacher and I stayed in the education field my whole career, completing two more degrees along the way.

I was a teacher, counselor, site administrator, assistant superintendent of schools in the East and South Bay for almost twenty years. Then, in 1986, I joined the faculty at CSU Hayward (now East Bay) from which I have just retired from serving as interim dean of the Education college. I am now learning to slow down, enjoy some significant discretionary time, and “smell the roses”.

For the first 21 years of our marriage, we were “child free”. In 1988, however, we adopted a family of four little sisters from the foster care system and life changed forever. Those girls are now 22-27 and are doing well. We have one grandson, born in March, 2009.

When I look back on our Mercy days, I am sorry to have to admit that I have forgotten many things. But a flood of disconnected memories does come to me...an alarm clock ringing early in the morning, pleated skirts and white buck shoes; fog; the M streetcar; a huge statue of the Virgin Mary; brown paper bag lunches eaten on hard benches in cold weather; a grouchy old nun in the library; taking tests; a quiet little chapel; lots of bells and not enough passing time between classes; going to Stonestown after school; standing when a teacher entered the room; holy water fonts; Sister Mary Lillian teaching us Spanish; heavy text books; typing on new-fangled IBM Selectric typewriters; having laughing fits; saying “Stir” for “Sister”; father-daughter dances at Valentine’s Day; being sent to the ladies’ room to wash off my eyeliner; being happy we didn’t have to take Gym class; beanies; a ceremony for getting our school rings; cleaning my shoes with a chalkboard eraser; looking forward to dressing up for the occasional dance; our being sweet, innocent and obedient; always feeling safe, respected, supported and welcomed at school.

It’s interesting to look back and try to examine what was most formative about the Mercy experience. For me, I think the all-girl experience was important in building self-confidence, teamwork and leadership skills. I felt most of the sisters who taught us were supportive, encouraging and held high expectations for our achievement. They drilled us pretty hard, but I felt quite able alongside other college students, so I guess they did something right. It seems, looking back, that we were almost solely focused on academics. I have no recollection of sports events, social clubs, or other extracurricular activities.

Today, I am a vegetarian, Unitarian, hybrid-driving, liberal, suburban, active and mostly-healthy retiree. (The day after the reunion I will undergo the first of two total knee replacements, though.) I have been fortunate to have received a great education, be married to a wonderful man, have four lovely daughters, have had a long and successful career in a field I so enjoyed, have travelled much of the world, and have made so many dear friends. I have a deep gratitude for memories of many happy days gone by—some of them, perhaps, with you. I look forward to the 45^th reunion and hope to renew acquaintances with many of you there. I am very interested to hear your post-Mercy life stories.

Joanna (“Jodi”) Dee Servatius

Walnut Creek, CA

Yvonne Mathieu's first granddaughter,Alexis Arianna

Born August 12, 2009 to daughter, Michelle.

Nancy's New Husband

I will not be at the reunion on October 4th. Last June 20th I got married in Loma Rica, CA. My new last name is Umland.

In 1963, when I was 16 I met a young man, Art Umland, who was working during the summer for the U.S. Forest Service in Oregon. He was a Sophomore at the Univ. of Connecticut. Over the next 6 years, we corresponded and saw each; I went to Connecticut to meet his family when he graduated. He accepted a position with the U.S. Forest Service in CA after graduation and I moved to Atlanta when I joined Delta Airlines. We went our separate ways about 1969, married and had families. Last year I was working with a young woman with her Russian genealogy. It seems her mother's maiden name was Umland, so I asked if she knew Art. He was her cousin. He was divorced for 12 years, retired..........she gave me his email, telephone number and address. I contacted him and the rest is history. I was coming to San Francisco for Christmas and he lived in Marysville. He came down for four days and it took him two days to propose. This is one of those stories that you read about and now you can say you know someone who experienced it.

Attached are three photos.............one of Art and I, the cake (which was a big surprise........Art arranged it since I was in Florida), and Art and I with my parents.

Have a wonderful time. We are putting my Florida house up for rent and we're driving to California the end of October. We bought a home in Marysville, CA. Next reunion I'll be there! For those of you who went to St. Cecilia ES, I'll be at the next reunion next year "When I'm 64"!

Picnic for Sr. Jean Evans

September, 2006, we had a picnic at Junipero Serra Park in San Bruno. Sr. Jean Evans was home from South Africa, and since it's difficult for her to make our reunions, we had a "mini-reunion" with her. From our class, in addition to Jean, were Elizabeth McLoughlin, Marlene McCann, Janet MacDonald, Donna Revelli, Bernie McCabe, Bonnie Blachley, and Joanne Hicks. It was a beautiful day in many ways!

Sr. Pauline Get-together

In March, 2008, Pat White, or now, Sr. Pauline Mary, visited the Bay Area. Some of our class got together with Pat at Janet MacDonald Heikel's home to hear about Pat's amazing experiences as a Carmelite sister working in Russia. We were all impressed with her courage and dedication, and happy to see she's kept her sense of humor.

In the group photo are, in front, Janet MacDonald, Sue Kiep, Rita Asturias, Clarene Vella , and Barbara Pape. Standing are Arlene Nuss, Stacia Horn, Joanne Hicks, ? a friend of Pat's, Pat White, Janice Clark. Seated are Diane DaCosta and Charlotte Watson.

Senior Fashion Show

Click on the pages to make them larger.

Remember the fashion show the sewing class put on?

Carol, did you wear the bridal gown you made when you got married?

'64 Republican Convention

The 1964 Republican Convention was in San Francisco and, as I recall, our government teacher (Miss McDonagh?) encouraged us to get involved and see the political process up close. I think about 6 -8 girls from our class agreed to participate and somehow we got connected with the Senator Margaret Chase Smith for President campaign. We were going to be part of the floor demonstration after her name was put into nomination. This was going to be pretty exciting - streaming on to the convention floor, waving our Margaret Chase Smith sign, amid all the cheering. I didn't know anything about her platform, but nominating a woman for president was revolutionary. Her campaign supporters were called "Rosebuds" because the Senator frequently wore a rosebud. The flower was on her campaign button. I remember waiting in a side hall of the Cow Palace as the convention droned on. They were getting way behind schedule. Finally I had to leave to attend a rather dull party that I'd committed to. I took my sign with me which is still hanging in my garage. I never heard how the convention went so would love to hear about it. By Joanne Hicks McGlothlin

Europe trip with Mrs. Bennett (1963)

Nice, France with sailors, sharing a cocktail,

Venice, French bar (Bernie got a kiss!), the Blarney stone in Ireland, Lisbon, Portugal.

Janet MacDonald Heikel's newest granddaughter, Aezya Marie, age 5 months

Yvonne Mathieu's youngest grandson, Jackson

Jackson was a miracle baby and Michelle is expecting again in August. I'm hoping for a girl after four grandsons.

Dance tallies - example of momentos