TO BEGIN AT THE BEGINNING

I must have had frozen brain on February 2, 2009 when Cynthia Isdanavage, GCU's very capable Director of Alumni Relations called to ask if I would chair the Reunion in June. Those of you who were in Comp I with me might remember Sr. Demetria's frustration when she said, "Miss Hartigan, if an atom bomb dropped in the middle of this classroom, when the dust settled, you would probably still be sitting, hands, folded, not a hair out of place, and I would still never have heard your voice. How can I give you an A?" Well, she did, but I never have become much more adept at speaking.

Anyway, Cynthia sounded reassuring and I said "Yes.".... and felt humble and honored. At the time it seemed that a POWER POINT presentation of images and words from the 50 years might be fun and enlightening. However, I didn't take into consideration several things ... that there would really be relatively few of us attending ... time and space and health of us and/ or spouses having intervened; that few of us who did attend would be there overnight. This was to be the PAJAMA PARTY event, complete with everything but Patrick calling out "ORDER!"! In response to my letter inviting "entries" I received not very many answers ... and late ... so I jettisoned that idea and concentrated on trying to display the letters and photos I received ... especially those from you who were unable to join us.

I am going to try to include everything in this BLOG ... the real estate market being, as it is, S-L-O-W.... actually, I got busy shortly before leaving for New Jersey ... the way one of my bosses always said... "You can count on things popping whenever Maryanne is going away," but the year is a disaster as in many places!

In April the phone rang one night and, lo and behold, ANA CHAN SIU was on the other end! I had seen her and Cesar once or twice many years ago when they were in NYC. In 1993 they came to Albany on business and we had dinner; the next day their business took them to New England and they had dinner in Connecticut with KATHY FLAHERTY and CHARLIE MC GOWAN.

So, it had been many years and I was overjoyed to learn that they planned to come to Lakewood for the reunion. Add to that that I was watching the numbers .... and I knew at last that Kath and I would NOT be the only representatives of the Class of 1959 at the show!

ANA came to GCU from Panama at just 16. Her sister, Maria, was then entering her senior year. Kath and I, Ana and Emily became fast friends because we remained on campus most weekends...movies at the STRAND (now the historic STRAND)...Kath will remember Sr Assumpta's reaction when we saw PICNIC with Kim Novak!...Sylvia's for tuna fish sandwiches, kosher dills, and, for Kath, cheesecake. (I couldn't conceive then of anyone enjoying cheesecake & wish I'd never experimented!)...a 7:30 and a 9:30 curfew...the sporting life.
Ana married Cesar ... a real keeper ... and they have three wonderful children ... many grandchildren ... and have just celebrated 50 years of marriage. They travel the world. There is a picture in the collage of Ana at 16, Thanksgiving of our freshman year, when she visited my home in Troy NY and presented her wishes to Santa Clause at our family department store! Then a picture of Cesar and Ana at their wedding and a jump fifty years forward to their recent golden anniversary surrounded by their children, grandchildren and Ana's mother!

NEXT CHAPTER: THE RUN UP