Links to photos from Ken Briers and a video of Nancy Welker's talk from Beverley Brown Bryant are here and below. Please send other recollections and photos to Mary Ann Weiss or Steph Smith.

Ken has created two albums in Flickr.   They can be accessed via the following links.  The link to the short album is https://flic.kr/s/aHsmX6p8wk.   The link to the long one is https://flic.kr/s/aHsmX24DAf

Ken Briers, Sally Donner's husband and our photographer

Video 

Beverley Bryant had the foresight to record Nancy Welker's Wednesday evening talk and we are grateful to her (and her son) for enabling us to post it here. https://youtu.be/4lK6lVDz3kc

Classmates at Roddy's National Gallery talk 

MHC Class of 1963 Washington, D.C.. Mini-Reunion

October 18-21 2021

From Suzanne Eberson Adams

Eighteen illustrious and determined members of the class of 1963 gathered in Washington, D.C. for our mini-reunion on October 18th. There had been a question whether there would be enough of us willing to brave the dangers of Covid to make the reunion viable. Fortunately there were. Those of us lucky enough to attend enjoyed an epic few days, beautifully planned and executed, and graced by perfect weather.

Some of us stayed at the elegant Cosmos Club, a Belle Epoque mansion, built in 1858.
Others lived in the vicinity or stayed with other classmates. A few of us arrived early enough to dine together at Ricci, a gourmet Italian restaurant. The main events began with brunch on Monday at the Cosmos Club followed by either a visit to the National Gallery, with a talk by Roddy Pratt Mack (see photo above), or a trip to Woodrow Wilson’s home around the corner from the club. Dinner Monday night was hosted by Ruth Gramlich at her elegant home on Connecticut Avenue. Drinks and appetizers were served in her apartment. Dinner was served in a special dining room in her building and it was delicious. It was a relaxed atmosphere in which we were able to reconnect with friends, and also chat with classmates not so well known to us.

Being able to walk to many events from the Cosmos Club, including Ruth’s apartment, helped burn off some of the added calories from the great food we were served throughout the three days in D.C.

Tuesday Ruth took some of us on a tour The Phillips Collection, art from 19th and 20th century, and later on, those of us who had not been to the National Gallery or heard Roddy Pratt Mack’s discussion of The Feast of the Gods, were able to do so. Our next feast was
held at the Cosmos Club and we were fortunate to hear Naomi Barry-Perez ’96, Director of Civil Rights at the Department of Labor, speak, and introduce three Mount Holyoke students participating in the MHC Semester Program in D.C.

On Wednesday we traveled by bus to beautiful Mount Vernon for a specially arranged tour, thanks to Ellen Boer. Besides George Washington’s famous home, we saw the museum and many interesting outbuilding and gardens. We could have spent the day there, but next on the agenda was a luncheon at Ellen Boer’s spectacular home, situated high above the

Potomac, on land that had once been gifted to a friend by George Washington himself. We were treated, not only to a sumptuous lunch, but also to a delightful actor in period dress impersonating the original owner, and a tour of Ellen’s home, art and porcelains. It was quite a day.

Wednesday night’s dinner was held at a lovely restaurant, and featured our illustrious classmate, Nancy Welker, who was recently inducted into the Maryland Woman’s Hall of Fame. Nancy spent her long career at NSA, where she helped create and manage NSA’s Microelectronics Research Laboratory. She broke many boundaries for women and credits her education at Mount Holyoke for much of it.

For many of us Thursday was departure day, but those with foresight enough to stay, visited the National Museum for African American History and Culture.

Those who organized this four-day event, Elaine Cox Jacoby, et al, deserve a huge amount of credit. Thanks to their tireless efforts it was regarded by all of us as a big success in every way. I wish all of our classmates could have been there!

Susie Adams, our correspondent

The Cosmos Club in Washington, DC. 

Seen on the way to Mount Vernon early in the morning...

 

Ellen Boer welcomed us to her beautiful home on the Potomac.

 

Special thanks to:

2021 Mini-Reunion Planning Committee

Alice Godfrey Andrus, Cyndy Rapp Curry, Judy Mills Courter, Karel Mortenson Koenig, Mary Ann Searles Weiss, Susie Fickel Kroeger, Stephanie Smith, Elaine Cox Jacoby, Sally Nunneley, Libby Meehan Short

Washington DC Host Committee

Ann Kotting Sadowsky, Ellen Strauss Boer, Rosamund Pratt Mack, Ruth Brown Gramlich, Sally Donner, Nancy Welker