Mother always said, “time flies as you get older.” I think we’d all agree that is so true now. And just like that, it’s time for the summer column, and a Facebook plea once again turned up a few updates from classmates. Here they are —
Pat Strauch received a Distinguished Alumni Award last fall from the School of Forest Resources at UMaine. The award recognizes graduates of the school’s programs who have made significant contributions to the forest resource professions and society. Pat is currently the executive director of the Maine Forest Products Council, where he leads a diverse membership involving all aspects of the industry. He develops consensus that is used to influence legislation and policies in Augusta to support the forest products community in the state. He was a key partner in developing the Forest Opportunity Roadmap/Maine, a blueprint for future development and support of Maine’s forest products industry. He received his M.S. in silviculture from UMaine in 1990. Congrats, Pat! Susan Bradstreet Englert writes that her business, Bradstreet Englert Creative, continues to thrive in Spartanburg, SC. She hired a part-time designer to help with the workload and also remains active in BNI. She ventured outside her comfort zone and joined a film production club and has acted in a short film, as well as a feature-length film, playing the role of a legal secretary.
Mary Archer Stuart retired in February after 36 years as the technology director for the city of Brewer. She says it was “an amazing career!” She’s still living in Brewer and enjoying life. That’s quite a run, Mary! Bill Fraser, of Aroostook Hall and Delta Upsilon fame, may have also set a record in city government, chalking up 28 years as city manager in Montpelier, VT. He’s just completed a three-year term as Northeast Regional VP for the International City/County Management Association. Bill’s wife, Anne, is an instructional assistant at Montpelier Elementary School and they have four grown children — an elementary school teacher, law student, special needs instructor, and a landscaper. They’re adjusting to the life of empty nesters with their two rescue dogs!
Stan Eames, who enjoyed his four years in Dunn Hall immensely, sold his software company in 2007, but still does some consulting work. He and his wife, Jennifer, spend winters in Fort Myers, FL, and summers in Standish on Sebago Lake, where they enjoy Italian sandwiches and fried clams! Ben Kassel, former resident of the Gannett Hall Penthouse where Pete Labbe was the RA, now resides in Burtonsville, MD. He retired after 37 years with the Naval Sea Systems Command. He started there in 1981, at the David Taylor Naval Ship R&D Center. He currently works as a visiting principal faculty specialist and research engineer at the University of Maryland Applied Research Lab for Intelligence and Security, specializing in Advanced Manufacturing Technologies. Linda Smith Bradley, a York Hall resident for four years, retired from IBM/Global Foundries in Burlington, VT, in 2022. She’s been in Vermont since ’81 and enjoys all the state has to offer including skiing, cycling, and golf!
It’s all in the bag, according to Sandy Greenwood Thomas of Cumberland Center! She was out shopping in 2013 and forgot her reusable bags, so she wound up purchasing one. At that point in time, they weren’t sold in many stores, so she started pondering an idea. Being a teacher, she envisioned a bag designed for kids shopping with their parents and illustrated with fun facts about the great state of Maine. Kids could read and learn and even take a quiz that’s found on the bag! It also makes a great Maine souvenir for travelers. The bag has been very successful and is carried at the iconic Maine department store, Reny’s…a Maine adventure!
Hope you all have an enjoyable summer! If you’re near campus, be sure to take a tour and see all that’s new — the gorgeous softball field and new batting pavilion that opened this spring; more improvements to the athletic complex thanks to the Alfond Foundation; the 3D printed house; and conversion of Coburn and Holmes Halls into an on-campus boutique hotel! And, if you can’t swing through Orono in the summer, mark your calendars for Homecoming 2023!