February 2008 Class Notes

Robert A Cesari died January 8, 2008 in Boston. Bob was a valued and active member of our class. He served on many reunion committees including the present (2010) one, chaired the 25th reunion, and served as Class Agent. Many of his classmates saw him for the last time on December 8, at the annual Endicott House holiday party of our Class. We have lost a dear friend.

As an intellectual property attorney and a founder of the firm, Cesari & McKenna, Bob Cesari helped to shape the landscape of the technology industry in Massachusetts.

Lucille & Bob Cesari, 12/8/07

Bob leaves his wife of 54 years, Lucille, his three children, Robert, Jr. of Cambridge, Mass., Carol Tourgee (MIT '79) of Morristown, N.J., and Richard of Dallas, Texas, and his brother, Gene and sister-in-law Judith, South Ryegate, Vermont and three grandchildren

Mrs. Cesari sent the following: “Would you please also mention there is an MIT scholarship established in his name , The Robert A. Cesari Scholarship Fund. Bob thought the world of MIT, and would be pleased to enable a bright, economically disadvantaged youngster to attend. Thank you so much.”

Gerald A. Ferguson Jr. passed away on Monday, Dec. 31, 2007. He was a resident of Basking Ridge, NJ.

In 1950, Jerry joined Long Lines Inc., a division of AT&T, as an electrical engineer. As an R.O.T.C. graduate, he was called to active duty during the Korean War and served four years of active duty at Kirtland AFB in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

After his military service, he returned to Long Lines in 1955 before transferring a year later to Bell Laboratories. He worked primarily in Murray Hill and Holmdel until his retirement in 1997 after 47 years of service. During his the tenure at Bell Labs, Jerry worked on various projects including missile guidance systems and the first Telstar Communications Satellite.

We have been notified that John B. Wilbur, Jr. died on January 14, 2008. Jack was a long time resident of Worthington, OH, where he served on the City Council from 1972 to 1985. In the mid 1990’s, Jack and his wife, Nancy, had moved to the Cleveland area. His last known address is 22701 Lake Rd.,Apt 103A, Rocky River, OH 44116. Jack's father wrote the words to our alma mater " Arise ye men of MIT" later revised to " Arise all ye of MIT"

On December 5, 2007, we were notified that Charles Butler Swayne died on Sept. 1st, 1979. His preferred mail name was CAPTAIN Charles B. Swayne. His last known home address was Portsmouth, VA 23704.

President Mel Gardner writes:

SUNNY SAN DIEGO REUNION UPDATE – SUNDAY AND MONDAY, MARCH 30TH - 31ST

Our reunion will be headquartered at The Coronado Island Marriott Resort, across the bay from San Diego, Please see the resort's web site: http://www.coronadomarriott.signonsandiego.com . It is an attractive, well located place to stay, easily accessible to San Diego and La Jolla, and close to the Coronado downtown area with lots of interesting things to do and see.

There, we will have a pre-dinner reception, and dinner on Sunday and breakfast the next day. On Monday late morning we will take a two hour San Diego harbor cruise. See http://www.sdhe.com/san-diego-harbor-tours.html

After the harbor tour, we will have lunch together at Anthony’s, a popular restaurant close to the cruise boat dock on the San Diego side of the Bay

Because of a change in my plans, Henry (Hank) Simmons, a California resident, has graciously agreed to manage this reunion. He already has arranged for special rates at the Marriott for our group.

Please contact Hank at hsimm94556@aol.com if like to join this special class get-together.

This is a great opportunity to visit with classmates who live in the Western part of the country. We look forward to seeing you there.

Mel Gardner

This is a reminder to those of you who haven't voted yet. Our Classmate, Stan Martin, is a candidate for the National Selection Committee, one of MIT's most important committees. I (Tom Keane) served on the recent Mid-Course Reunion Committee under Stan's chairmanship. I can personally attest to his excellent leadership, and I and the other officers of our Class strongly urge your support for Stan.

Stan is from Region 6 (DC, MD, VA, NC). You may vote whether or not you are a member of Region 6, because all alumni are eligible to vote for all regional candidates. A total of four new members will be elected to replace four outgoing members.

The ballots close Friday, February 15. You can get more information (as well as vote) by logging on to http://alum.mit.edu/about/elections/nscb/index.html

Herb Sontag writes:

My email address has changed to joherb@att.net .

Regards, Herb Sontag

A note from MIT Reunions:

Happy 2008! Make it your resolution to save the dates of June 5 - June 8 for MIT's annual Tech Reunions.

Every year is a reunion year for the Cardinal and Gray Society, our alumni who have already passed the 50th anniversary of their graduation. Get out your red jacket and resolve to join your fellow alumni for a stimulating weekend on MIT’s Campus.

We’ve created a special program just for the Cardinal and Gray group. You’ll get the chance to celebrate the traditional events, like the annual Tech Night at the Boston Pops or the Cardinal and Gray Dinner Dance. We’ve also scheduled the Cardinal and Gray Academy--a back to the classroom Friday morning with great seminars perfectly suited for alumni and their guests. There’s much more--just check the schedule online at http://alum.mit.edu/ne/reunions/class-pages/cardinal-gray/index.html .

The registration form will be posted on the Web in mid-March, but you can find a schedule of events, and information about hotel and dorm rooms on our Web site. You should make your hotel reservations now for the June activities. View the accommodations at http://alum.mit.edu/ne/reunions/accommodations.html

Finally, don't forget to contact your friends about attending the Cardinal and Gray reunion. You can find email addresses and phone numbers for your classmates, coursemates, and people from your living group using the Online Alumni Directory: https://alum.mit.edu/user/directory/Index.dyn .

Email: reunions@mit.edu
Phone: 617-253-8824
http://alum.mit.edu/reunions

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