CLASS NOTES
Christine Wilbur Jones ‘11 and husband Ian had their frst child, daughter Nikita Danielle, on Sept. 20, 2017. CONDOLENCES ALUMNI DEATHS: Jeanne Weir Ramsey ‘41 Mary Phyllis Sommerhof Burger ‘43 Margaret Mischick Mikolay ‘48
MOTHER OF: Judith Oliver Samson ‘67 ( Erma Negri Oliver) Mary Kay Naccarelli Law ‘83 (Mary Naccarelli) Jennifer Stackpole Piccirillo ‘03 (Doris Engel Stackpole) David Hunter ‘07, Sara Hunter Giammarise ‘08 and Martha Hunter ‘12 ( Susan Gustafson Hunter ‘81 ) Sarah Piasecki ‘14 ‘16M ( Cathy Piasecki) FATHER AND FATHER-IN-LAW OF: Leslie Hafenmaier Armstrong ‘86 and David Armstrong ‘90 (Herbert Hafenmaier) FATHER OF: Anthony Prusak ‘90 (Walter Prusak Jr.) Rebecca Miller ‘06 (Robert Miller) BROTHER OF: Laura Petrasek O’Leary ‘90 ( Mark E. Petrasek)
IN MEMORIAM: DR. RANDY HOWARTH By Elizabeth Eidnier ’12
Virginia Stephens Pompeani ‘48 Lucille Heidt Clark ‘49
All incoming freshmen have ideas of what to expect when beginning college. Challenging classes, fun parties, and the responsibility of living on my
Dolores Fabrizi ‘50 Ruth Beck Bean ‘52 Mary Lou Scalise ‘54
own for the frst time were my expectations as I stepped on campus for the frst time. What I did not expect was traveling to Europe twice, once while walking around the streets of London and Paris dressed as Catherine of Aragon. Thanks to Dr. Randall Howarth, these unexpected moments became some of my fondest memories of my college career. Dr. Howarth was never one to shy away from a challenge. These particular challenges involved accompanying groups of college students on multi-city tours of Europe. As a student of Dr. Howarth, I was given the opportunity to travel to Italy as a sophomore and to London and Paris as a senior. The trip to Italy was awe-inspiring, but the trip to London and Paris solidifed my passion for history. Some of my favorite memories of both Dr. Howarth and my college experience come from this trip. While visiting London and Paris, Dr. Howarth wanted to create a documentary to teach others about the history we learned. This required chaperones and students alike to parade around historic landmarks like Hampton Court and Notre Dame in Renaissance costumes. You can imagine the looks from passersby. When I recall both trips, I often ask myself, “What was he thinking?! What would motivate a college professor to want to take a group of college kids to sophisticated and historical landmarks in Europe?”The answer is quite simple. Dr. Howarth was not content to confne his students to a classroom. Why read about the Colosseum when you can see it? Why debate the impact of the monarchy in England when you can feel its impact by visiting the Tower of London? Dr. Howarth brought history to life by providing his students the opportunity to see it, breathe it, live it. Dr. Howarth challenged us to not only enjoy the sites but to embrace the idea of diving into history. Dr. Howarth was the true embodiment of what it meant to provide his students with the quintessential liberal arts experience. I will never have the words to thank him for giving me these opportunities, but I can smile and think back knowing that he was my brave professor who, occasionally dressed in his Renaissance garb, opened my eyes to the world far beyond the Mercyhurst gates. EDITOR’S NOTE: Dr. Randy Howarth, 62, had always planned to sail around the world after he retired from teaching. Instead, after a terminal cancer diagnosis, he set sail in May 2017 with his wife, Cindy Nimchuk, aboard their 42-foot boat, the Varuna. The couple traveled roughly 4,000 miles, through the Great Lakes and along the Atlantic Coast, before reaching Florida in January 2018. Dr. Howarth died there on March 18. He had taught history at Mercyhurst since 1999. 29
Patricia Egan Langmyer ‘55 Caroline O’Connor Weber ‘55 Patricia Ann Narby Stevens ‘56
Barbara Sislowski Ester ‘58 Patricia Hooper Connolly ‘59 Margaret Walach Conto ‘59 Mary White Guelcher ‘60 Sister Catherine Anne Mesanko, RSM ‘65
FRIENDS OF THE UNIVERSITY: Sister Kathy Green, RSM
Ruth Sennett Watson ‘66 Barbara Kahl Shutes ‘68 Barbara Bradley ‘72 Betty Frank Jones ‘72 John Lawson ‘74 Nathaniel L. Barnes Jr. ‘75 Connie Lysien Sturm ‘76 Robert Kline ‘78 Susan Gustafson Hunter ‘81 Mark Hutchinson ‘83 Mark Petrasek ‘85 Thomas M. Whalen ‘88 Deborah Hardy ‘11
Herbert Hafenmaier, benefactor and friend of the university, for whom the Hafenmaier College of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences is named Sister Rita Kartavich, RSM Robert Miller, benefactor and friend of the university and Trustee Emeritus Larie Pintea, founder of the rowing program, member of the Athletics Hall of Fame and oral historian
Doris Engel Stackpole, former university Trustee
WIFE OF: David Hunter ‘79 ( Susan Gustafson Hunter ‘81 ) HUSBAND OF: Mary Anne Rawa Kingsley ‘53 (Dr. Ross William Kingsley) Elizabeth Coleman Kraus ‘56 (Albert) Audrey Huggler Roberts ‘57 (Allen Roberts) Laurel Ann Tarby Skalko ‘64 (John William ‘Bill’ Skalko) Debra Conley Brown ‘83 (Dean Alan Brown)
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