60th Reunion

Please remember to keep up-to-date on the plan and programs for our June 2010 Reunion on the Breaking News link at http://alumweb.mit.edu/classes/1950/

Joe D’Annunzio took three of his grandchildren, Jeffrey, Christopher, and Victoria, on a cruise to the Greek Islands in June. They flew to Rome on June18 and flew back from Rome ten days later. In between, they visited Croatia, Corfu, Katacolon, Santorini, Kusadasi and Ephesus, Piraeus (Athens), and Messina.
Joe keeps a journal-biography and he sent me the portion that includes this trip. It is about 8000 words – too long to include in these notes – but here are some excerpts:

CORFU

As I am writing this on board the Ship USS NOORDAM, on June 21 2009, (Father’s Day) we are docked at the island of Corfu. The kids went on a shore trip this morning as it was too much walking, I will meet them at noon time.. It is now eleven and we got an emergency horn whistle for the part of the boat because of a fire. It couldn’t be too bad because we were asked to stay put. I walked outside my door and noticed that the floor lights on each side of the hallway were on and I walked outside too see if there was anything going on at the dock but all was calm. I went back to the room and continued to write. I can hear the crew members yelling with most answering in a cadence like a captain of a ball team.

ON BRIDGE

The first day we were out to sea and I played several games of Scrabble with my grand children and also played two hours of bridge when they had bridge on board for a couple of hours. It is about the only time I actually play bridge except for the papers I read every morning with their bridge column. The only time I really played bridge was in French Morocco in 1952 where I won a duplicate tournament and never have played in one since. None of my family plays bridge so I try to play whenever I get a chance. When I am asked what convention do you play, my answer is the D’Annunzio convention. I play the cards I have and know the point scores and 4 no trump bids, but that is it. I do play a pretty good hand, once I am playing.

CROATIA

Our first stop after leaving Italy was to Dubrovnik, Croatia. It was a very lovely city surrounded by a wall, and very clean. Since there was a lot of walking we took a regular cruise tour, I hired a car and we had a great day with a personal driver and guide. At times when the kids wanted to go up in certain areas, I sat. I had a travel seat but because we had a car, I didn’t take it so whenever I could I sat on steps. They took us up to the top of the mountain, after which we went out of the town and had a delightful lunch of local fish dishes and salads. After lunch, we went to the beach.I took off my shoes to see what the Aegean sea was like but after putting my foot in the water, I decided to sit and read while the kids went swimming. It was a gorgeous day in the high seventies under a hot sun but the kids had a ball. Then it was back to the ship at 5:00 PM, shower and dinner. We went to the show but left early and played a game of scrabble.

SANTORINI

This southernmost of the Cyclades is the most spectacular and fascinating island in the Aegean – and perhaps in the Mediterranean. Before the enormous volcanic eruption here nearly 3,500 years ago, Santorini was circular. The eruption caused an estimated 25 miles high cloud of ashes and stones which fell back to land in the form of ferocious hail. What remains today is a croissant- shaped island almost enclosing a vast bay. The bay is the volcano’s collapsed crater, a caldera measuring 7 miles by 4.7 miles, Two black forbidding islets lie in the middle of the bay, forced to the surface by more recent explosions. The almost desert island of Thirasia blocks off most of the western horizon. Strung out along the top of the cliffs are the gleaming white buildings of the capital, known as Thira. From the tiny landing stage below, a zigzagging stone staircase leads you to Thira or a 2 minute ride by cable car. Outside of the capital, a thick layer of pumice covers the island. But the plain sloping away from the cliffs east towards sea level, is unexpectedly green. The island has thirteen villages and over 300 churches and chapels. The kids are taking two trips today as we don’t leave Santorini until 9:00 PM tonight. Chris had ordered breakfast and they didn’t have to leave to go ashore until 9: AM so I had breakfast in the room with Chris. I stayed in bed for another hour and then went to the computer room at 10:30 AM and stayed till 1:30 PM. At about 12, the boys came over as they had returned to the boat for lunch before the afternoon trip. Then they left on the afternoon trip where they all got on donkeys. Whereas years ago we took a donkey uphill, the kids walked up and took the donkeys downhill. Then they went to the beach where there was black sand (volcanic fines) and took a sample to bring home Tomorrow we will be renting a car and a guide in Messina and will go to the top of Taormina where some twenty years ago we went with a group from the Utility and Transportation Contractors of New Jersey. There is a beautiful small restaurant there. It is a shame that is a small layover. I would have preferred more time in Messina than we had at some of the Greek sites. Last year, Vi and I visited the Reggio in the Calabria section of Italy, an area across from the straits where I am presently waiting to get off the boat and bring the grandkids to Taormina and from there we go to the top of the mountain which is 1500 ft high in the city of Castelnelo.

TAORMINA

While in Taormina, our guide took us to a beautiful park overlooking the Aegean city with gorgeous views. The park was donated to the city by a British woman aristocrat that had married the mayor of the city. Almost every turn was a picture taking moment. When we got there in the morning, we had a clear view of Mt Aetna with smoke coming out of the active volcano but could not see the active lava flow as we didn’t stay overnight. As we left at noon time to return to the ship, we could no longer see the top of the volcano as clouds had moved in. The height of the volcano was 3500 feet and you can still see some remnants of snow near the top of the volcano.

Thanks Joe – a great trip and a great journal.

Dr. James E. Archer, ScD’50 died June 1, 2009 in Palo Alto, CA. His last known address was 184 Vista Verde Way, Portola Valley, CA 94028-8145. He married Reta Faye Turner on November 8, 1942 in Abilene. Following service in World War II, he graduated from Texas Tech in 1947, and then was awarded a Ph.D. in Physics from M.I.T in 1950. He joined the M.I.T. faculty for two years, before entering industrial research for what is now PPG Industries, rising to Director of Research of the 300-person laboratory in four years. In 1962, J. E. joined Texas Instruments in Dallas as Corporate Director of Management Systems. In 1968, he and Reta moved to Lubbock, where they lived until Reta's death in 1996. At Texas Tech, J. E. started a new department, Systems Engineering, whose name was later changed to Systems and Computer Science. He taught there until retiring in 1996. He is survived by his son, James Jr.; his son's wife, Loren; and his grandson, Benjamin James, all of Portola Valley, CA.

Edward A Fox passed away on June 10, 2009. His last known address is 900 Adams Xing # 10200, Cincinnati, OH 45202-1666. He was 84 years old. Ed served in the Air Force during WWII and the Korean War. After graduation in 1950 with a degree in mechanical engineering, he began a 44-year career with Procter & Gamble in Cincinnati. Ed is survived by his wife Patricia and daughter Anne.

David S Laity, SM’50, died on July 27, 2008 His last known address is 96 Silverwood Dr, Lafayette, CA 94549-3336. He retired from Chevron in 1992.

Dr Joseph R Lane, ScD’50, died May 19, 2009. His last known address is 4325 Sugar Ridge Road, Hillsborough, NC 27278-8319. He was retired from the National Academy of Sciences.

Dr Warren L Larson, ScD’50, passed away on June 14, 2009. His last known address is 76 Strand Cr. Cromwell, CT 06416-2147

Charles Sherman

Dr Charles Henry Sherman died June 4, 2009 in Wakefield, RI. His last known address is 73 Oceanwoods Drive, North Kingstown, RI 02852-7100. After MIT, Charlie received master's and doctorate degrees from the University of Connecticut. He became a prominent expert in underwater transducers and arrays, presenting and publishing more than 30 papers related to underwater acoustics. He also worked at Parke Mathematical Laboratories in Carlisle, Mass., and taught advanced acoustics at the University of Connecticut and in the ocean engineering department of the University of Rhode Island. He received the prestigious Decibel Award, which is presented to a scientist or engineer for outstanding contributions to sonar and underwater acoustics. After his retirement from the Sound Lab in 1988, he worked for Image Acoustics, Inc. and co-wrote "Transducers and Arrays for Underwater Sound," a technical monograph commissioned by the Office of Naval Research and the most comprehensive treatment to date of underwater transducers and arrays.
He was predeceased by his first wife, Beverly M. Sherman. Charlie is survived by his wife Elizabeth, two children and two grandchildren.

Joseph Wilton

Joseph W Wilton passed away on June 19, 2009, at his home at 22 Ridgewood Rd, Wallingford, CT 06492-2117. He was 89. After high school graduation two years early, he began working on Wall Street. At this time, he met the love of his life, Dorothy, at her 15th birthday party. Joe enlisted in the Army Air Force seven months before the declaration of World War II. He served as a medic with the famed 307th Fighter Squadron of the 31st Fighter Group, 8th Air Force. He saw action in North Africa, Gozo, Sicily, Anzio, Naples, Rome and France. He was honorably discharged in 1945 at the rank of Sergeant, and awarded a 7-star EAME Theater Ribbon, American Defense Ribbon and Service Medal, World War II Victory Medal and Presidential Citation. In 1994, Joe was honored by the President of Malta, when he was awarded The Malta George Cross 50th Anniversary Medal for service during the war in defense of the island nation of Malta. Following the war, Joe graduated from M.I.T. He earned an MS at Yale. He helped establish and lead the metallurgical quality control lab at Wallingford Steel Company for many years, continuing his career in metallurgy at Allegheny Ludlum and Ulbrich Stainless Steels & Special Metals. Over the years, he was awarded several patents for treatment and production of stainless steels. Joe taught courses in physics and chemistry at the University of New Haven and Central Connecticut State University
Joe is survived by five children, nine grandchildren, and three great-grandchildren. He was predeceased by his son Joseph and by Dorothy, his wife of 64 years.