Embedded Files
I have been on a roller coaster, so to speak, since June 1973. I went to a small Liberal Arts college and graduated with a BA in music performance. Not the most practical degree but that is how things fell out. I married my husband, John in August of 1977. We lived in Decorah Iowa for ten years. John taught general music and choir in Calmar Iowa and I taught Suzuki violin in my home. Our oldest son was born in Decorah. But, Wisconsin and especially Madison called. We packed up and moved to Madison in 1987.
John was hired by the Madison Metropolitan School District as a general music teacher. I continued to teach violin, viola and piano in the home. Our second son was born in Madison. But, life has a way of sending us on detours…John passed away from cancer. I returned to school to obtain my teacher certificate. Currently, I am teaching general music in Milwaukee. Never did I think that I would end up in Milwaukee. But, like a previous writer, I have grown to like Milwaukee. The walks along Lake Michigan are amazing. The city has a cultural life, diversity, and its own special character. I still think that there is no place on earth like Madison, but Milwaukee will do.
Lizbeth (Beth) Erickson Getman
We created this page so that classmates would have the opportunity to share what they have been up to since high school. We would love to hear from you, too!
June 30, 2015
Dear Classmates,
It has been great fun seeing so many of you the past three years at our gatherings. I have not lived in Wisconsin since 1977 and I love any time I can get to Madison.
My husband Dean and I got married right after I graduated from UW-Madison in 1977. He did Army ROTC and our first assignment was in Germany. We loved being able to travel for three years all over Europe, like an extended honeymoon.
Dean retired after 20 years and we spent time at Ft Gordon (Augusta), Georgia; Ft Campbell, Kentucky; Ypsilanti, Michigan; Ft Wainwright (Fairbanks) Alaska; and Ft Harrison (Indianapolis), Indiana. We are still in Indianapolis and hope to retire in about 5 years and move closer to our kids in the Chicago area.
We have 2 grown children. Anne, 33, is married with two adorable little girls, 3 and 3 months. She teaches high school English. Our son, Greg, 31, works in IT and is engaged to be married to a wonderful girl we love! Wedding is planned for the fall of 2016.
I work part time for an insurance agent and am president of the Indianapolis Wisconsin Alumni chapter. The Indy Badgers are an awesome group of people.
My husband works for the Defense Accounting Service and is very involved in volunteer work dedicated to saving the environment and also to helping veterans.
I would love to hear what all of you have been doing over the past 40 plus years!
Kathy Reese Farr
Hello All! June 5, 2015
Thanks for inviting me to the reunion....how time flies! Unfortunately I won't be able to attend lots of activities going on here. Wonderful to hear about so many of you: your lives, jobs, etc.
That's just GREAT!
Since graduation '73, I have worked for the State Dept of Administration, Administrative Services, then Federal Property Program, got married in 1974. Had first child in 1975, moved to Stevens Point, WI in 1979. By 1983, Was blessed with three more children. Have been employed at CAP Services
(non-profit, Community Action Agency) for the past 36 years! Still married to Jude [41 years]
All our kids are grown,married and have children of their own. My husband had a heart
attack and massive stroke 10 years ago, he lives in a Adult Family Home, cannot work and is in a wheelchair. I see him twice weekly.
Our 15th grandchild was born 6 weeks ago and are expecting grandbaby Number 16 in August! We are enjoying being grandparents immensely! Our oldest daughter and our son live in Madison.
The other two live here in Stevens Point.
Wow! ....and life goes on. Have a great summer everyone!
Mona (Kozicki) Aubut
February 11, 2015
Since graduation, I spent time in PR at The American Red Cross in Chicago. Had two sons, Patrick and Peter, and worked in freelance and as a substitute teacher. Moved to Salt Lake City in the nineties and on to Leawood, Kansas where I volunteered on the Alumni Board for UW. Been here 18 years and have worked as a congressional intern and committeewoman. Last year, we scaled down to the old people villa in Olathe, Kansas, and I became a grandmother to Brenna who lives in Seattle with her parents, both PhDs. My older son is a post doc in biomedical engineering at U of Washington. My other married son is a private equity associate and lives in Newport Beach, CA ,but will soon be moving back to Chicago to attend the Kellogg Business School at Northwestern.
I miss all my old friends from Madison.
Ann Noll McGah
February 7, 2015
I'm afraid I'm going to miss out on the reunion once again this year - my orchestra season runs until late July and I probably won't be in the US until mid-August. I'm hoping to make a swing up through Madison before returning home to France in early September, so perhaps I'll have a chance to run into some of you at that time. My daughter is planning on going to college in the U.S. next year and much of our travel plans will be around settling her in. Now we have to wait until early April for application results. UW is one of her choices, so we'll see how things go. Thanks for all of the work you have been doing to try to keep contacts alive. I hope that I will be able to attend one of the class gatherings in the future!
Best wishes,
Kevin Cleary
February 1, 2015
My novel "Ye Shall Kill" is in final editing and should be out in March. I also have my sculptures in several states. kmiotekart.com
Mike Kmiotek
"In every author let us distinguish the man from his works."
Voltaire
June 16, 2014
I'll make it to one of these someday, but not this time. I've lived in Minneapolis area since about 77. I've been a mental health/drug counselor, medical software designer and executive, and am now enjoying a relatively mellow encore career as a project manager for Allina Health Systems, which affords me much time for my passions: jazz guitar and novel writing. I've been married for 32 years - two boys and one granddaughter. I have many fond memories of the West High years (really I can remember a lot...), not to mention good old Cherokee Junior High.
Best, Peter Crist
Hello Class of 1973, June 4, 2014
I did not make it to the *Big* reunion in August--family matters kept me in Minneapolis.
I am currently traveling in Europe and will not be able to attend. June 3, 2014
Just as an update, I have worked at GE for 23 years as a trustee of their pension plan and International Equities Chief Investment Officer for our Asset Management business. Prior to that I was a portfolio manager for Templeton. I have 5 children, 3 girls and a boy with my first wife,who went to Memorial a year behind us, and one girl (7 years old) with my second wife who grew up in Singapore and I met in Hong Kong .
We live in Greenwich, CT and spend time in Park City, UT. The older kids are in Wisconsin and Colorado. My oldest ( one of my twin girls) is getting married this summer. Her older sisters are standing up for her and her youngest is a flower girl. My father, who many of you knew, is doing ok at Oakwood, but my mother passed last October.
I am doing well, I "jog marathons" once a year for the last few years .... trying to stay young for my little one, and keep up skiing, road and mountain biking with the older ones .... who are swimmers, triathletes, white water raft guides, and a Tae Kwan Do instructor.
Hope all is well with everyone.
Ralph Layman
Hi, sorry I cannot make it to the reunion. I should be starting a new job at that time. Since leaving High School I was a business owner, then an EMT on a Fire/Rescue unit, then graduated RN school in Boston in 1996.
I now live in SW Florida doing Legal Nurse Consulting. Best wishes to you all! Anyone who wants to reach me can do so at Diggercat17@gmail.com.
Judith Klutzow RN, CLNC
"Three things in human life are important. The first is to be kind. The second is to be kind. And the third is to be kind." Henry James
Hello to everyone,
A big thank-you to those of you who are involved in organizing the reunion and trying to track everyone down. The upcoming reunion brings back many happy memories of friends and events that marked our passage at West.
Unfortunately, I will not be able to attend. I will be in Madison August 1-11 with my daughter, but must return home to France before the reunion weekend. It would have been fun to see how we have all evolved over the major part of our working lives and how the yearbook predictions have turned out for each of us.
Since graduation from the UW, I have been living and working in France. Music won out over law and I have held my current position of principal horn in the Strasbourg Philharmonic Orchestra and professor of horn at the Strasbourg National/Regional Conservatory since 1984 following stints in Paris and Marseilles. Strasbourg is a Madison sized city with a Franco German flavor, but is also the seat of a large university, the European Parliament and the Council of Europe.
Please give my very best wishes to anyone who may remember me. If anyone asks, please feel free to give them my e-mail: kevin.cleary@wanadoo.fr
Best wishes to all and good luck with the reunion!
Kevin Cleary
Hello Madison West classmates,
Kudos to the organizers. Thanks so much for your sleuthing and finding me after 4 decades! I never had a yearbook so now perusing the photos for the first time seems like a another life-time ago. It's clearly us and yet so much has transpired, it seems like a dream.
I’ve had many reincarnations. I began as political organizer for progressive causes, spent 2 years traveling the world, settled in NYC teaching history at an international high school, married a French woman (divorced after 13 years), moved to Mpls where I now teach at Seward Montessori. Proud papa of a beautiful high school senior. (full circle; in 41 years she’ll have her 40th reunion).
Teaching an MBSR retreat on the 18th, so I’ll be unable to make it. A bow to our 36 peers who have preceded us on this amazing journey of life.
Love to hear from you.
Robert (Robb) Reed 2brobb@gmail.com
From Randy Miller rmille7600@aol.com:
Randy still has no kids ,no marriage, no divorce ok guy still with some issues I guess.
Hi fellow graduates,
Sorry to not be there to celebrate with you all. I will especially miss the golf outing. Hope you sank all of your putts.
I met and married a Park Ranger with the National Park Service while working on an Internship at the University of Wisconsin. We lived in Arizona briefly and moved to Alaska in 1980 where we have raised our family. I stayed home to raise our kids and did oodles of volunteer work. All those volunteer hours led to a sweet job years later. Our busy time is during the summer which is why I am not at the reunion.
Here is my contact info if you want to say hi or have questions about visiting Alaska.
Warm regards Madison West Class of 1973,
Jeni Smith Taylor BSFJeni@gmail.com
Dear friends,
I would not be able to make it to the West High 40th class union as planned due to family matters. Also, I have just found out that my VISA has expired and that it would take more than 4 weeks to renew it. This is very sad for it probably is the last chance that I can visit friends and relatives in Madison. Anyway, will see. If I can still make it, I will just show up. If anyone will visit Thailand, please let me know. Hope to see you then.
All the best to you.
Pong
Polboon Nuntamanop
Thailand.
"Hey West Grads!"
Hello all, I'm hoping to be able to make it to the event on Friday night but am heavily involved with my daughter's non profit organization "Tri 4 Schools" and we have a Kids Triathlon on Saturday so Friday-Saturday I'll be herding 500 kids plus spectators through a swim-bike-run event in Middleton. It's an incredibly fun event and we need more volunteers so those of you not golfing but are looking for something to do Saturday morning sign up at http://www.tri4schools.com/
I'd love to hear from you -
Mary Stich Lewitzke mlewitzke@gmail.com
Dear Fellow Regents of 1973!
I do so wish I could be there for the reunion but unfortunately Life and obligations say no to the prospect. To fill you in on a little of what I've been up to, I've had an amazing career in Education. I got my B.S. from UW-Madison and my M.A. and doctorate from the University of Georgia. It's taken me across the country--I've worked with students from pre-school through university, taught general (regular) classrooms, special education (primarily gifted populations), and been an administrator too. I'm completing the last few years of my career teaching middle school at an academy in Colorado Springs. Have a wonderful and happy gathering there in Madison!
Very best wishes,
David Sinha
I am still living in Washington State. After 30 some years I have finally finished my education and am a full fledged RN. I have a great job and learn something new every day. I am still married to my husband of 37 years and our two daughters are grown (we started later in life!) We have recently been blessed again, with the birth of our first granddaughter. I will share my e-mail and would love to hear from friends whom I have lost contact with. It seems amazing that it is already 40 years since we graduated! My sore bones may realize it on some days but the heart hasn’t caught up yet! Wishing you all the very best,
Mary Doyle Kurzawa (marog@charter.net)
Hey, '73 graduates
Even though I'm not able to make it to reunion, I appreciate Nancy and also Greg getting in contact with me about it. ( I would've felt bad if you had a party without letting me in on it!)
It's been interesting to read the comments from others and remember those that have passed on.
Well, I have been married almost 30 years and living in Milwaukee for last 20. Looking back, I never thought I'd end up living here. When I met my husband (Dave) long ago in Madison and found he was from Milwaukee, a red flag went up. i remember thinking, "too bad, he seems like a nice guy." Now here I am with him, and 3 grown daughters later. I have learned to really appreciate Milwaukee (even become a baseball fan). There are many wonderful things I could say but what I love most about this city, is that it is on Lake Michigan. The lake front is so expansive! It seems you could walk forever. Beginning at Lakeshore State Park behind SummerFest grounds heading north to Bradford Beach, takes about an hour or more to walk. That's one way, all spectacular lake front, all IN the city of Milwaukee. Walking parts of the lake front is almost daily thing and always amazes me.
For those that haven't seen me in last few decades, maybe I've left you with a nice image. Me in my youthful form, smiling, breeze in my hair and in a perpetual stroll along the beach. You could just keep it that way or you could visit ! There are a few Brewer games left. We're just a 15 minute walk down the hill to Miller Park. I think it's safe for this season any way, to say all are welcome to save a few dollars and park in our drive way for a game. It would be nice to say hi.
Enjoy the reunion
Jean (Parker) Spella
Email - familyspella@sbcglobal.net
I am truly bummed that I will not be able to attend the reunion. I appreciate all the work that the organizers have done and hope the reunions will continue. As for my whereabouts for the past 40 years, I have lived in Minneapolis Minnesota, Madison Wisconsin, Decatur Illinois and Annapolis Maryland before finally setting roots in Oshkosh Wisconsin back in 1990. Most would expect my career to be in pyrotechnics or beer sales or organizing parties in the Wisconsin countryside. Instead accounting became the career and has paid the bills along the way. My son is 30 and my daughter is 28, and I’m very proud that each has a great foundation for success in what they love to do. I have 2 grandkids, but of course, just like many classmates, I am way too young at heart to be a grandpa – papa Rob will do. I come home every night to beautiful lake views and continue to be active outdoors downhill skiing, boating, waterskiing, kayaking, biking and running (including duathlons).
Anyone that would like to reach out can get in touch at robwalla@yahoo.com
Wishing everyone the best of health until the next reunion
Rob (Bob) Wallace
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