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Summer greetings. I’m happy to say that a few people have come out of the shadows!

Ronda Cobb writes:
I’m alive and doing well.  Thanks for updating my website for me and creating a new App.  I feel so modern, now! Time has flown and the kids are grown.  Both are married, college graduates, and out in the working world.  And, no grandchildren so far.  I hope everyone else is doing well.

Mark Hoyle shares:
I retired from the Navy as a Captain after 28 years in 2012 [corrected date]. Though I was a “deckie”, the Navy had me in engineering most of my career. After working my way up the chain of command, I commanded the USS Whidbey Island (LSD 41) and we left one week after 9/11 to deliver Marines to Afghanistan. Afterwards, I commanded an engineering training group, and ended my career as the Engineering Chief of Staff at the Navy’s Board of Inspection and Survey.

I now work for a subcontractor in the Newport News shipyard as a Program Manager for the overhaul of the distilling units on aircraft carriers. Easy retirement work.  I have been married to my wife Linda for 34 years and we have two grown kids, Melanie and Jonathan.

Mark Smith notes:
I attended National Maritime Day Ceremony at MARAD headquarters today (5/22).  Got to talk with Brian Foy and Erin Gantt.  Erin performed the National Anthem and was awesome as always.  Lots of other KPer’s in attendance including Dan Turissini and Mike Hokana – 2 of our Indoc Instructors, almost 40 years ago.

On a personal note I will be retiring from Naval Sea Systems Command in June after 35 years working in Philly (4-1/2 yrs) and DC (30+ years).  Looking forward to enjoying life, continuing my association with Little League Baseball and playing with my grandson.

Mark Suter writes:
I’ve been busy seeing a few of our classmates and participating in an alumni chapter event.
My entire family headed to Miami for a few days during Easter week for some R&R and to see Craig Ellixson.  We met Craig for dinner at Boaters Grill in Bill Baggs State Park on Key Biscayne and he also cooked a fantastic meal for us at his apartment.  Gorgeous views from the dock.  We had a great time and of course my sons loved hearing stories about Kings Point, sailing, etc.  Attached picture below from Craig’s dock with my wife Jeanann and me. Craig is doing great and working at the Port of Miami.

While in DC last week, I caught up with Kent Morton.  Kent and I have not seen each other for a long time and we really enjoyed catching up.  Unfortunately we did not have someone take a picture of us so you’ll have to take my word 😀 that we actually met.  Kent is living in Vienna VA (suburb of DC) with his wife, Julie.  He’s working for Moxie Energy which develops clean energy infra projects.

I also met Brian Foy for breakfast.  Our busy classmate had meetings scheduled that day on the Hill and continues to do a great job for the Academy.  Brian and I had seen each other recently besides the reunion at a NYU/KP Soccer game.

Last but not least, I participated in the service at the Maritime Memorial in Battery Park last Friday in honor of Maritime Day.  Mark Buzby gave a short talk and I had the opportunity to meet the new Superintendent as well as other alumni from KP and Fort Schuyler.  Academy Honor Guard was there and the luncheon afterwards was very enjoyable.

Brian Foy submits a photo:
The one and only Chris Cioni chillin in the hot springs near Mammoth, CA. And rocking the ‘83 USMMA 35th Reunion hat. I propose this go in the next Kings Pointer with a challenge to all ‘83 classmates to send in their best picture with the USMMA ‘83 hat! The Cioni Challenge!
(Published with permission)

Brian adds:
Ray…I hope all is well with the Marathon Man!  In late April, I joined the Myrtle Beach Mafia over three days at Legends Resort.  Lots of exaggerated sea stories and plenty of laughs – all fueled by an adequate supply of adult beverages.  Oh yeah…we played some golf, too.  Bob Ross and I were once again the “guest Deckies” among a sea of engineers, although it was nice to see Quentin Franklin and Andy Dywan stop by. Great to see all of the following classmates: Mike Keane; Jeff Coons; Jim Quern; John Rhatigan, Guy Wilson; Del Lewis; and Mickey Cunningham.  The Deckies once again took down the Engineers in the “match of the year” and we won’t mention any names will we, Bob!  I have attached a few photos for posterity, including one of Mr. Ross impersonating John Daly.

I also ran into Mark Suter in Washington, DC and we had breakfast at the Ritz. Mark is doing well, works for SS&C GlobeOp in the financial world and still resides on Long Island. It was great catching up.  I also recently met Dave Ferchau in DC and we spent one morning working the House of Representatives. Dave and I got a picture with his Congressman, Andy Kim (NJ-3).

If any of you are going to be in DC and are interested in meeting for coffee or want to go to the Hill, give me a shout!

Maureen McKeever reminisces:
I hope everyone has had a great spring! Things in Pittsburgh are good – lots of rain and warm. I am looking forward to my youngest nephew graduating from high school this month. I have been going through old boxes and found some old photos – I took a picture of one, a Plebe dance class. Remember those? All of us girls had to dance every dance, so you think I’d be a better dancer! At least it was a way for us to meet more classmates early in our stay at KP. When I get my scanner working better I’ll send more. I am also sending a picture of me at the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto back in 2017. I hope that every one of our classmates and their families are healthy, happy and enjoying life!

John Carbone shares:
May 4th kicked off the 2019 wedding season for this jolly group of KP83’ers!  John & Donna Carbone, Mickey & Mary Kay Cunningham, Jim & Anne Quern, John & Elaine Rhatigan and Michael & Jeanne Keane all joined Jimmy Goulden in Cape May to celebrate the wedding of his daughter Katie.  Needless to say a terrific time was had by all- Stay tuned for more frivolity in the months to come!

Erin Gantt sings:
I received a last-minute request to sub for a celebrity who could not make it on a float honoring Korean War vets for the 2019 Memorial Day Parade.

* I can be heard around singing (where video will start) 1 hour 18 minutes into the parade however, the announcers & short video clips by celebrities drown me out a bit.  I shouldn’t feel bad because the announcers completely ignored Dean Martin’s daughter and 1970s TV actor Tony LoBianco who were also in the Korean War segment.  He was in a jeep but she was riding in a convertible with her name on the side.

Notify me when you do something exciting or get together with classmates or if you’ve got news or email address of  Patricia Dubois, Eric Duepen, John Green, or William Winget, just to mention a few. View color photos at KP83.org.

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Facebook 6/21/19

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Typical Winter weather in Delaware brought us just a few 1-2 inch dustings of snow and mainly above-freezing temps. Not bad for my 4-5 weekly 5 mile runs in the park near my house. I’ve been making the 4 hour drive to the Catskills every 3 weeks to see family and particularly my mom with Alzheimer’s. Only because I built her website and mobile app do I know that “Money Coach” Ronda Cobb’s weekly podcast can now be heard on iHeart Radio. Nice job!

Bruce Garrott writes:
Attached is a photo from our Christmas Vacation (note my hat!). We spent 11 days in Tanzania, the highlight being a six day Kilimanjaro Climb, via the Machame Route. We reached the summit on the morning of the 27th, after leaving our 15000 foot camp at 0030. That 4000 climb to the roof of Africa took us six hours and 45 minutes. We also hiked to a waterfall prior to the climb and then enjoyed a day safari to the Enduimet Wildlife Management Area, after the climb.

Brian Foy shares:
Ray…I recently had the opportunity to catch up with Capt. Scott O’Connor. Scott is a St. Johns River (Jax) pilot and he invited me to tag along as he hosted Florida 4th District Congressman John Rutherford as he piloted a vessel into the Port of Jacksonville.The occasion was “Take Your Congressman to Work Day.” Also joining us was fellow Kings Pointer Ben Christian ’07, Tote Shipping. The Master of the ship, who couldn’t be more welcoming, was Capt. Kevin Stith ’96. I have included a few pictures. Always great to catch up with Scott, my Florida neighbor to the north. It was a great experience and a nice break from “piloting” the Halls of Congress!

With not too much news, I felt compelled to include this Facebook posted photo of Art Burns wearing a classy hat.

Also lifted from that platform is the following…
Craig Matteson posts:
“This day I give a HUGE shout out to Joey Gallagher as Deb and I attend the Winter Classic at Notre Dame in South Bend … May 2019 be a good year for us all …!”

Prevent me from trolling social media and pirating content by sending content for next edition, especially if you’ve got news or email address of Jeff Ciampa, Phil Custer, Roger Foster, Mark Hoyle, Ed Napoli, or James Wei, just to mention a few. View color photos at KP83.org.

KP Magazine Online Edition
We need our Legislative Outreach Coordinator Brian Foy to launch our reunion column:
Our 35th Class Reunion was the best one yet. They just seem to get better with age!  It was a blast working with Lisa Fields, Ray Christensen, Al Reeves, Jim Quern, Mickey Cunningahm and of course, our fearless leader Chris Cioni, in planning all the details. It was good to see everyone and catch up. 35 years is a long time…but the friendships we forged while we were at school allow us to pick back up right where we leave off every five years. I hope to stay in contact with many of you (I promise!) and i hope you’ll do the same. Life is moving by way too quickly and our 40th will be here before we know it.  Maybe each one of us can reach out to a classmate we haven’t seen or heard from in years and encourage them to come.  They won’t regret it!

Congratulations once again to Ray for becoming our inaugural Class of ’83 Acta Non Verba awardee.  Well-deserved!  Thanks for all you do in keeping our class connected.

Randy Johnson and Chris Thayer received Outstanding Professional Achievement Awards at the Thursday dinner.

Maureen McKeever also helped out during the weekend and writes:
I had a great time at Homecoming seeing everyone and everyone looked great! We are aging well. I was happy to spend time with my former roommate Lisa Fields as well as the other ladies of ’83, including Cathy (Giguere) Coseno & Lynn (Craddock) Melin in photo. I also enjoyed talking to midshipmen around campus. They are worthy of following in our footsteps.

I am still in Pittsburgh, and am now working for Dollar Bank, doing phone customer service for customers with debit/credit card issues. I really enjoy my job especially when I can help someone and leave them happy. Or at least not too upset!

John Carbone chipped in with a great Homecoming shot in the tailgate area, “back where it all began!”

Mike Curtiss  also supplied a photo, adding “Hi Ray,  great to see you and the rest of the gang at the reunion. Thanks to you for the great work keeping the column going and thanks Chris Cioni and the reunion committee for putting on an awesome event! What a blast to reconnect with everybody!”

A.J. Murphy writes:
It was great to see everyone at the homecoming festivities.  Congrats to everyone who helped plan that event and for all who came from the four corners to catch up with our classmates!  As we were flying to NY, our delayed second grand child, Adalyn was born and we got the news upon landing at LGA.  That made for a good day, despite NY traffic.  Was able to enclose a picture of me and my older brother Jim, a class of 1973 grad (see kp83.org).  It was our first time in 35 years we were on campus at the same time since graduating – since I did not make the 30th and it was his first one to attend.  Also provided a Jim Proce sighting photo as well, since he is so rarely off the island!  It was good to catch up and his daughter Nora came and listened to a lot of us tell stories.  Was able to head to Big Bend National park the week following the homecoming for some good hiking and fresh air.  As we get older, these hiking trips do take a toll.  Who would believe there are almost 7000’ mountains in Texas!  Another fun time was getting my grandson, Aiden (16 months) underway for his first boat ride on Lake Ponchatrain in New Orleans. It was a nice day and he liked the boat and looking around, but did not like wearing the life jacket.  I could sympathize with that.  Just back from New Orleans area again for Thanksgiving and was able to have a nice lunch visit with Jim and Anne Quern.  Always good to see them while in town.  For all of us with loved ones in the service, let’s make sure we keep them in mind, doing jobs that are not always easy.  My oldest son Sean, is on a recall to active duty and is in Kabul, Afghanistan until May of 2019.  In the picture (at kp83.org), he is on the right, along with a technician and an Afghani soldier on a small mountain top camp.  Caught grief from Quern and some others, since I didn’t submit anything last edition, so trying to get back to being a regular provider.

Dan & Carrie Rohde add:
And a good time was had by all.!!  Great catching up with some many great people, looking forward to our 40th. Carrie and I took some heat for having some of our CGA Family at the reunion so I enclosed a picture of us up at the CGA sailing building (Jacobs Rock) with “our colors” flying proudly. 

 
Pete Lafontaine writes:
Judi and I will not be able to attend the reunion this year as we will just be returning from a Cape Cod vacation that weekend. It’s been a busy few months with a college graduation and a wedding.  Our son youngest Connor graduated from Norwich University and is now an Army Second Lieutenant.  (see photo from graduation).  His older brother Trevor who is a First Lieutenant administered the oath of office at the commissioning ceremony the next day.  Not long after that, Trevor and his new wife Sami were married.  (second photo)  So Judi and I are now taking a late season vacation to the Cape before things get busy again in October.

Both our sons are continuing their post-college running careers.  We’ll be heading to Washington, DC in early October to watch Connor race at the Army 10 Miler where he’ll represent the Army team from Fort Lee, Virginia.  Then in late October Trevor will be running the Marine Corps Marathon in DC again – a race that he won in 2015.  Trevor recently finished fourth at the Redmond, WA half marathon with a time of 1 hr 9 min.  The three guys who beat him – including his training partner who finished third – had all previously met the Olympic Marathon qualifying time.

On a more somber note, Judi and I were sad to hear that Coach Bill Olmeltchenko passed away.  He coached Cross Country and Track all four years when I ran at Kings Point and had a distinguished coaching a career that spanned many years. We were also sad to hear of the passing of Peter Rackett ’61 who more recently was very instrumental with the success of the KP Cross Country and Track team. Peter and then head Track coach Greg Lott actively recruited both of our sons to run for KP, but alas Trevor went to West Point and Connor choose the military college at Norwich University.

Bob Bennett provided a few nice Homecoming photos. (including a great retro shot at our website)

 
Steve Keating writes:
I continue to work in the Office of General Counsel for the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency where I work on international maritime law issues such as the South China Sea and the Arctic.  My work on the South China Sea was recently published in Volume 9.3 of the Journal of National Security Law and Policy, and I recently participated in an international, multidisciplinary working group to develop policy recommendations for the Arctic.  My wife, Cynthia, and I live in Alexandria, Virginia.  I enjoy kayaking, sailing, and playing Celtic music.

Joe Bishop writes:
I’m out working on the Great Lakes; sailing 2nd Assistant aboard the Philip R. Clarke, a bulk carrier hauling iron ore, limestone and coal for the steel industry. I’m still regretting missing the reunion this year and I’m doubly determined not to miss the 40th. Here’s a couple of pics. John Diegoli stopped by back in March on his way to Charleston from South Florida and we spent some time catching up and having a few brews at my favorite pub. I think we’ve become the graybeards everyone warned us about. The other is one of my current hobbies: a 2002 Harley Davidson Road King (Police model) that I hope to start restoring and customizing in the upcoming year.

At the reunion, class artist Susan Pawlukiewicz distributed a number of very cool custom sew-on / iron-on patches she created for our class (see photo).  She’s offering to mail one or more to anyone who’d like, so email her at .

Thanks everyone for again coming through and giving me plenty of content for this column. Visit our website for full color versions of the photos and to put a smile on your face as necessary.

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