Winter 2009

It's with great sadness that we note the passing of John H. "Josh" Emery last June. Born in Chatham, NJ, Josh was a Beta Theta Pi member and a baseball standout in the '76 and '77 seasons. He was a PE major and received his masters in '78. Kevin McGrath kindly provided additional details: "This is difficult class note to write. Our good friend Josh Emery passed away on June 17, 2009. The sadness this news has caused his friends and family is hard for me to put into words. I consider myself fortunate to have had such a good friend. [A picture of Josh with Sam Veraldi is attached.]

"We had a memorial service for Josh at Gunnison Chapel on September 26th during the Athletic Hall of Fame Induction Weekend honoring the Saints 1976 Football Team's 8-1 record (which earned SLU's first NCAA tournament berth). Josh and Paul Fuzak were co-captains of that team. Josh’s sister and brother, Leigh ’73 and Jeff ’78, along with his three children made the long trek to the North Country for the service, Hall of Fame induction, and football game. The 2009 football team did their part to add to a festive weekend by winning the storied Hoffman Cup. The service was wonderfully conducted by fraternity brother and current President Bill Fox ’75. Jay Ireland '77, Josh’s teammate and Beta brother, delivered an emotional eulogy bringing tears of joy and sorrow!

"The weekend also marked the return of Beta Theta Pi to campus. Over 50 brothers, mostly from the 70’s and 80’s, returned to campus and attended the service along with 29 new pledges. This was particularly meaningful to Suzy '80 and me because our son, Brendan ’11, was one of the pledges. With the resurgence of this great institution, it was also a wonderful testimony to the spirit and friendships forged at SLU many years ago. Paul Skomsky ’77 did a wonderful portrait of Josh for the locker room which will remain as a fitting tribute to a wonderful person and a fantastic team. A fund has been established in Josh’s memory: donations to St. Lawrence can be made in his name.

"It's a great feeling to see so many friends with children on campus now. And what wonderful leadership they have in President Fox and his wife, Lynn.
In closing, I wanted to mention another SLU event held a few weeks later in Captiva, Florida: Mark '78 and Gail Allen Garrow's son, Matt, a Colorado College grad, married a wonderful girl and SLU grad, Natalie Gladd ’07. I’m sure we’ll be seeing the photos soon."

Thanks for all the news Kevin, and for your heartfelt tribute to Josh.

Peter Forbes recently wrote to report that he enjoyed seeing a number of classmates at a mini-reunion held in September at the Mountainside Farm B&B in Jackson, NH; the farm and bed and breakfast are owned and operated by Joany Gray White '76. Peter writes, "This reunion was the third consecutive September I've gathered with several classmates for hiking, canoeing, music and general good times. We were joined by Joe Hetko '78 and Paula Weiss of Albany, NY; Glenn and Teri Woythaler of Minneapolis, MN; Kam Ghaffari and Susan Hurley of Westerly, RI; Tom Wood of Newton, MA, John Mumford; Houston, TX, and Kathy Hanlon Bonham '76. Activities included hikes up Black Mountain and Mt. Eisenhower, canoeing on the Saco River, and a trip to the Stone Mountain Arts Center in Brownfield, Maine for dinner and to enjoy music performed by folk singer David Mallett." Peter works as a biostatistician at The Children's Hospital in Boston and lives in Quincy, MA with his wife, Sue, and their two future Laurentians. He'd love to hear from other classmates - you can contact him at peter.forbes@childrens.harvard.edu.