Del Lewis writes:
I played golf with Joe Walsh in the LA/Long Beach Blue & Gray golf tournament last week. Joe is a the West Coast Managing Partner for his law firm Clyde & Co. We had a great time, although our foursome score of 6 under was woefully inadequate. Sometimes I wonder if some participants believe our Honor Code doesn’t apply to golf scores! – Just kidding, the winning foursome could actually be considered “golfers” as opposed to guys like Joe and me!

– Del continues to manage and create new business enterprises. I’ll have him update us next time.

Mickey C shares happy news:
I’ve attached a photo from my oldest daughter (Amanda) wedding in October. The wedding was in Old City Philadelphia and the reception in South Jersey. KP 83 was represented by John Rhatigan, myself, Jim Quern and Mike Keane. My cousin John Coleman ’78 (far right) joined us as well. The short handsome young man in the middle is my nephew Aidan Kirby who is also the son of Kevin Kirby ’94 (my brother in law). Kevin was at sea so Aidan agreed to stand in. Fun was had by all and it continues as our second child will be getting married in early February.

Bill Kraynik writes:
I now have 32 years in the federal government, all in Philadelphia, and am eligible for retirement. My son, John, is now a junior at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) and doing very well pursuing a degree in Mechanical Engineering. My daughter is a senior in high school and looking at a career in architecture. I guess I won’t be retiring anytime soon.

Al Reeves writes:
I recently retired from General Electric and currently living in Houston. No plans to go back to work – just enjoying life, traveling a little, and spending time with my daughters (when they let me). I do plan to go back to school for a Masters in History – it is a hobby of mine and U-of-H has a campus nearby. To my chagrin I failed to keep up with very many classmates over the years. Jeff Coons was with GE for a lot of years but now is with ABB living in Pittsburgh. I ran across Chris Hart a few years back at my daughters track meet – he seemed to be doing well as a lawyer here in Houston. I did a little Facebook with Heberle, Ellixson, Konstantinos, Dave Anderson and few others who are all doing well. I got sick of Facebook and closed my account so that all stopped. I would love to hear from some of the Friday Afternoon Club guys so give me a call at 832-530-9475.

Dan Rohde writes:
Carrie and I were lucky enough to have the entire family up in CT in May for our middle daughter’s graduation from the USCGA. Despite being surrounded by (oldest daughter and son-in-law both class of 2011, and youngest daughter class of 2018) I am still comfortable sporting some KP bling.

Carrie and I were back up in the NY area in September and although it was not a reunion year for us, we did support one of Sailing Team Mates.

Allen Lindsey ’85 was inducted into the Athletic Hall of Fame by his brother Peter Lindsey ’86, also a Sailing Team Member (photo below).

It was great catching up with those guys. We have the entire family in town for Thanksgiving and are looking forward to a fun few days.

John Prien writes:
Here’s a recent photo of me and “my” plane (“I only travel in style”). I’m also attaching a photo of the family and I at my best friend Tim’s recent Navy retirement ceremony where I was the guest speaker. That’s Cindy and I, Benjamin 13, Zachary 10, Grayson 7, and Madison 15. Ben plays center on the middle school football team; Zach is our singer, dancer and actor; Grayson is our all-star baseball and basketball player; and Madison is our prima ballerina and a Daddy’s girl. What a handful! We are all doing well. I’m still trying to figure out how we are going to put 4 kids through college… unfortunately I don’t think I’ll be able to talk them into considering KP.

Very sad news about Steve Shultz and the El Faro. Steve was a good shipmate.. He and I were in the same company as plebes. Always down to earth. Well spoken. He died doing what he loved… being at sea.

– Thanks John! Life is certainly a series of highs and lows. I didn’t immediately realize that Steve was a classmate (Dualie) for much of our time at KP. When there was still hope, Scott O’Connor had posted on our FB Group:

“Glenda and I have had 3 sleepless nights keeping watch on the fate of our fellow alum and classmate. I piloted El Faro in and out of Jax the prior week. Steve has recently been promoted to C/M. climbing down the pilot ladder I looked back up to Steve’S smiling face and waved good bye. He was happy for his new position, one he had on the West Coast on a sister vessel. Every time I go up on El Faro and see Steve Shultz, its always ‘Hi, Shipmate’ from him. We enjoy being retired Navy Reservist O-6 together and he looks forward to gaining that benefit and heading to Tennessee forever. God’s face has always smiled upon this gentle man.”

Getting back to happier items, fresh out of KP, Brian Foy and I were shipmates in the Navy – for my entire 3 year career 😉 Three other Ensigns came on board at the same time, and one of them just retired as an Admiral! Big thanks again for everyone’s input! See our website for color versions of all the photos. Be safe
and make every day count.
—– Ray Christensen

John Rhatigan, Mickey C, Jim Quern, Mike Keane, John Coleman ’78 with Mickey’s daughter & Kevin Kirby ’94’s son Aidan

Bill Kraynik & some youngsters aboard USNS Brunswick (T-EPF-6) for Sea Trials

Dan and Carrie Rohde & family – click to enlarge

Dan and Carrie Rohde with Allen Lindsey ’85 (plaid shirt) & Peter Lindsey ’86 (left)

John Prien: me and “my” plane (‘I only travel in style’)

John Prien & family

Bumper Kunkle writes:
Attached is a picture of Me, Maria, Steve Dear, Ella Brennan, Pete Brennan, Tom Bodman, and Sue Bodman at Riverwinds restaurant in West Deptford, NJ. We had a good time talking about old times at KP and our families. We are going to make an effort to get together more frequently so anyone that wants to join us can feel free to do so.

Tom and I are still working at NAVSSES. Other classmates here include Bill Higgins, Dan Hicks, Dave Ferchau, Kevin Fauvell, Dave Heinbockel, John O’Brien, and Bill Kraynik. Dan Gieschen works for a local contractor that supports NAVSSES so we run into him once in a while.

Pete Brennan works for Cardinal Health where he is some sort of big wig. Pete and Ella have 2 sons, one is going to Penn State, the other attends Boston College.

Steve Dear (KP ’85) works on an oil drilling ship in the Gulf of Mexico. Steve has 2 daughters, one in high school and the other is going to be in the 5th or 6th grade this fall.

Tom and Sue have 2 daughters, one is in Washington DC and the other is in south Florida.

As for me and Maria, our daughter graduates this December from Kean University. She will be a history teacher. My son is entering East Carolina this fall as a junior where he will major in business management. Frank Amend has agreed to keep an eye on him since he and his wife, Mel, live relatively close to ECU.

I see Donna and Tom Aufiero once in a while. They have a home in Jersey and on Lake Norman in NC. Tom’s daughter in a nurse in NC and his son is attending Rowan University.
– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

Mickey C writes:
My youngest daughter Sarah graduated as an electrical engineer from The Catholic University of America in Washington DC. She is employed by the local utility (PEPCO)
while continuing her education at Catholic pursuing a masters degree in electrical engineering. Present at the ceremony were my sister Mary Susan and brother Pat, myself and son Brian. Dr Nguyen (the Dean of EE), my father (Mike) who received his Civil Engineering degree 60 years ago from Carnegie Tech (now Carnegie Mellon), Sarah the graduate and my lovely wife of 30 years Mary Kay. Our oldest daughter Amanda missed the ceremony as she received her MBA from LaSalle University in Philadelphia the same day. Good times!

Jim Quern sent a photo:
My father is Al Quern, class of 1944. We got together this June 6th and took a picture. He’s doing quite well; lives in Buckhead, GA, and is coming to my son’s wedding on July 4th in New Orleans.

Stueart Mill writes:
I just pulled back in to Portland Oregon on the Global Sentinel. We were out for 47 days doing survey work on fiber optic cables near California and Oregon. My relief is here and I fly home tomorrow!
[See KP83.org for “photos of some odd critters seen down around 700 m depth.”]

Bill Rupy is back in the USA:
I’m now living in Philadelphia, having returned from Italy last fall.

I can now cross “go to great lengths to become an Army postal clerk” off my bucket list! Wife’s still over there while she awaits a new stateside gig, so for now we’re in the long-distance relationship club. I’m back to living the exciting life of a Database Geek as I try to not annoy my new neighbors with my accordion practice and learn to interact inoffensively with that most mercurial and unpredictable of creatures known as the American Driver. Looking forward to reconnecting with Philly-area classmates! I’m on that blasted Facebook.

Here’s a photo of Rick Wood, with his 2 Kings Pointer sons.

Phil Mueller sent this fine photo: Rachel passed her RN exam!!

Bruce Garrott writes:
After a memorable family vacation to Norway in June, our daughter, Mikaela, reported to Annapolis on July 1st. We visited with her during Plebe Parent Weekend, at the conclusion the Naval Academy’s six week Plebe Summer. Our older daughter, Kara, is working on her PhD in Biomedical Engineering at GWU.

See our website for color versions of all the photos. Thanks for all of the great reports. Next time, I hope to hear from everyone else!
—– Ray Christensen

Bumper & Maria Kunkle, Steve Dear, Ella & Pete Brennan, Tom & Sue Bodman

Mickey, Sarah, Mary Kay & Brian Cunningham

Al ’44 & Jim Quern

Rick Wood, with sons Ryan & Liam at KP

Phil Mueller w/daughter Rachel

Bruce Garrott & family

Please drop me a line or call if your name hasn’t appeared here in a while.Otherwise I’ll force you to read more about my latest running adventures. I ran a marathon along Susquehanna River in PA that had just 69 participants! Luckily, the scenery was nice. See link to my recap and video at Class Notes page of KP83.org. I’ve run a couple 5K’s recently, but my times are over 4 minutes slower than the 19 minute times that the truly fast Pete Lafontaine can still do!

Pete writes:
I am currently sidelined with another injury and haven’t run in four months. Judi and I are true ‘empty-nesters’ now. The attached photo is from Thanksgiving. Our younger son Connor on the left is a “Rook” (freshman) at Norwich University in Vermont and is on a 4-year Army ROTC scholarship. Norwich is the oldest private military college in the U.S. and is where ROTC began many years ago.

Our older son Trevor is a senior at West Point, and Judi and I are making plans for graduation week in May. The four years have gone by so fast. Trevor’s first 6 month duty assignment will be as a grad assistant for the West Point athletic department. He’ll be responsible for coaching the Army prep school cross country and track team distance runners. His ultimate duty assignment will be with the Engineers of the 2nd Infantry Division at Fort Lewis, WA. With a 5K time of 14:22 and 10K time under 30 minutes, he’s been asked to be a member of the Army distance team that will compete in a 10-mile race against the other armed service branches this summer.

Pete also noted that his wife Judi recently coached the local high school girls cross country team to their fourth straight Connecticut Class M state championship and also won their second straight State Open title with the fastest team time in state history. — That’s one fast family!

Rick Wood shares:
My son Liam Wood will join the class of 2019 on June 30. His brother Ryan Wood is class of 2017 and is recently back from his first sea year. Ryan is active with the sailing team and also an EMT at the academy. The leaves Kate and I with 2 girls left at home. We are living in Budd Lake, NJ.

Art Burns writes:

I was in the Houston area in late March and visited with Mike Curtiss. Mike is a Houston Pilot. I sail as Chief Mate with American Maritime Officers on government contracts with MSC.

Mike Safina & Erin Gantt informed me that former 1st CO officer, Ken Lyons passed away from complications of leukemia earlier this month. He was a 1968 USMMA graduate and worked for over 20 years at MSC HQ in Washington after serving at KP.

Thanks to all who’ve sent info! Nothing is too boring (except maybe my own running adventures?). This is the 10th year of my web design business. I’ve also just started a partnership focused on getting businesses to the first page of Google results with a prominent listing that stands out from the competition. See www.LocalResultsNow.com. If you’re a business owner, share your latest progress with us! Share photos with me and/or our Facebook Group.
Take care.
—– Ray Christensen

Pete Lafontaine & family

Karen & Brian Foy, with son Connor

Dave Ferchau (pic stolen from Facebook)