Due to my own error, I temporarily "lost" thirteen letters from alumni that should have appeared in the last
issue of the Oak Leaf. Unfortunately, several of these letters were in memoriam for John Alman '33, maggot number 110.
It was with the deepest regret that I discovered one of these letters had been written by Dick Nimmons '35 #142 in
March, 1996, three months before he passed.
My apologies to all affected by my oversight. -Paul
 Walter Wm. "Zib" Zabriskie '32 #109
Brothers and friends of Johnny Alman!
For those of you who may not have heard yet, Johnny Alman '33 #110, whom each of us will remember in our own
particular way as a hard-hitting varsity tennis player, as the pitcher on our championship fraternity softball
team, as a mathematically oriented poker player, as a Naval officer assigned to high level security research on
the development of radar in WWII, as a loyal brother in Nu Alpha Phi, and in many other ways, died on Tuesday,
March 5, 1996.
For those of you who would like to write a remembrance about Johnny for the Oak Leaf or make a contribution to the
Nu Alpha Phi Memorial Scholarship Fund, the address is:
Nu Alpha Phi
Pomona College Alumni House
333 North College Way
Claremont, CA 91711
Richard T. Nimmons '35 #142
John lived a full and eventful life and was a joyous companion to all who knew him. I am sending a memorial gift
to the fraternity.
Glad to see the Oak Leaf is still alive, and I hope well, after the disturbingly long hiatus.
Spring is pushing up and bursting out all around us and this is a welcome time of year. It also means the golf
course opposite which we live will dry out and be suitable for the late afternoon, early evening 9 holes that
Shirley and I enjoy. I keep busy by editing our every-two-month newsletter for the some 400 residents of our
community, LakeLand Village, and being currently vice-chairman of the Area Agency for Aging which serves three
counties in our area. Washington is a remarkably well advanced state in its care of seniors and others.
Jack J. Rimel '32 #121
This really was a shock to me since John has been coming into the office every once in a while when he traveled
to the West Coast to see my daughter, Jacquelyn, on some matter she was doing for him. I saw him occasionally,
and the last time he certainly looked the picture of health.
I roomed with him in the Clark Dorms at Pomona my last semester there.
After 60 years of marriage, I lost my wife in November of 1993, but hers was not so sudden as Johnny's. I enclose
a check to the Nu Alpha Phi Memorial Scholarship Fund.
Comf Higman '33 #116
Johnny and I were "best friends" for 71 years, since we first met as 10th graders at South Pasadena High School.
We played together on the high school tennis team, stayed out a year to work between high school and college (and
honed our tennis skills by night play three or four times a week). Thence to Pomona College as suite-mates in Clark
Hall; waited tables four years at Frary; accepted bids to Nu Alpha Phi; played first doubles for four
years on the conference championship tennis teams (John was the #1 singles player on all four teams); majored
in math; eventually got into teaching; and each spent about three years on active duty with the Navy during
WWII as radar officers. (Sounds like a couple of twins!) Even when separated geographically by the width of our
continent we kept in touch and enjoyed the warmth of especially close friendship whenever we got together-which
was fairly often.
The best thing we ever did for the Fraternity was to invite Dr. Chet Jeager (our math prof) to join Nu Alpha Phi.
He accepted and for four decades and more was an active member of the Fraternity and a leader in promoting its good
works. Chet was responsible for initiating the Nu Alpha Phi Memorial Scholarship Fund during WWII and we all know
how many Pomona students have been helped financially by it over the years.
John was "special" with me-just a GREAT GUY. He will be missed by his many friends.
Robert N. Shaffer '34 #135
It was good to see the Oak Leaf again.
Kris "Fess" Reierson '91 #1033
[Those who frequently use e-mail call the U.S. Postal Service "snail mail," an unsubtle jibe at the length of time it takes a letter to arrive. -Eds.]
I just got the November '95 Oak Leaf. Dues, etc. are coming via snail mail. I'm living in Boston (actually Somerville, "The Paris of the 90s," which is accurate in as far as both Paris and Somerville are filled with dog excrement, people who think parking spaces are private property, and crazy drivers. But I like it.)
This winter has been brutal. 100+ inches of snow, interspersed with warm-ups that create huge ice-mounds, sheets of black ice and that famous Boston attitude toward parking spaces! Thankfully I bike everywhere, though it can be difficult to lock up your bike when the rack/lamp-post is buried. But, on the first day of spring, I saw the first snow-drops, so there is hope!
Personally, my life is fairly simple, most of my free time is spent either home-brewing (Paul Mathus '93 #1043will attest to my beernosity) or biking. I should be going to 24 hours of Canaan this Memorial Day Weekend, so if anyone else is planning on going, let me know. (Note: It's a 24 hour, 4-person mountain bike race held in the Green Mountains of West Virginia-Can you say "Camperoo?" I knew you could.) I say "should" because my teammates might not be able to get time off, and more importantly we haven't started training yet.
If anyone's in the Boston area, give me an e-mail/drop by.
[Press time addendum to Fess' letter below. -Eds.]
I'm about to start a job at NuMega Technologies in Nashua, NH, doing tech support. They write SoftIce (a low-level debugger) and BoundsChecker (a C/C++ debugging tool). The move from Somerville (an appendage of Boston) to Londondingleberry has been quite a shock to the system. It's like moving from Westwood to the Cabin. Haven't been up to much other than the occasional batch of home-brew and the infrequent frost-bike ride.
Hope your New Year was a good one!
email: email_deleted
Andrew Hoyem '57 #464
[Sent dues.]
Bill Tweedie '38 #175
Glad to receive the Nov. '95 issue of the Oak Leaf-I was afraid the Oak Leaf had died from old age. This is a wonderful way to keep abreast of fraternity brothers and the college. Thanks to all who slave and do the hard work of publishing.
To bring you up to date-I moved from Eugene to Ashland, OR last Nov. This was a good move. Ashland is delightful-a small town located in the mountains near the California border. It is the home of the Shakespearean Festival, as well as a number of other theaters, South Oregon State College, many cultural activities, and is a progressive community. Wynne and I are enrolled and taking classes from Bolir-a volunteer organization affiliated with Elderhostel and the college. A remarkable variety of classes are offered. This is a great place for us seniors who are still young at heart. Regards to all.
David L. Leighton '54 #401
The Oak Leaf continues to be an especially welcome piece of mail. It is always a pleasure to learn what the many members of Nu Alpha Phi alumni are doing with their lives. The new format, I should say, is most appealing.
You may recognize my name; I'm the son of Wes Leighton, Class of '23, who participated through the years in many Nu Alpha Phi activities, contributed bits of historical memorabilia to the Oak Leaf, and has been mentioned in almost every issue of the Oak Leaf since his passing in late 1991.
Keep up the good work
P.S. My dues haven't been brought up to date for some time. Enclosed is a check which may help bring me back to good standing.
Stephen Loeb '79 #806
Chris, thank you for all your work on behalf of the Fraternity. [My pleasure. -Chris.]
Ron Sege '79 #838
As serendipity would have it, John Harper '80 #837 and Ron Sege '79 #838 were thrown together recently on a flight from San Francisco to Tokyo. John, coming from Washington, D.C. where he recently joined the "real world" as a financier at the Finnish company Wartsila (no kidding, that's how it's spelled), and Ron, coming from Boston where he recently relocated on his latest assignment with 3Com (as in "3Com Park at Candlestick Point"). John and Ron had 47 hours on the flight to catch up. Here is what they learned about each other:
According to Ron, he is up to super-platinum mileage so far this year in his travels for 3Com. In between trips, he is terrorizing little kids as he wheels around Boston on roller blades, usually in dogged pursuit of sons Christopher (10) and Jonathan (9).
Last year, Ron took the big step of replacing the orange crates in the living room with furniture. At the same time, however, he still spends time playing missile command. For those comparing Chevy Suburbans to Gulf War humvees, Ron suggests that they try surviving Boston winter roads without one. If anyone needs help understanding the computer geegaws of the future, Ron will be a good consultant, at least based on his ability to spout techno-babble (his company is growing like topsy inventing and selling things related to data network infrastructure). I wonder how many other Pomona alums have wandered into the computer industry?
[In fact, see Coming Attractions about an upcoming, related article. -Eds.]
Ron heard from Mart Pearson '80 #829 in Italy; Mart plans to visit the U.S. in his continuing efforts to corner the U.S. market again for fine Italian medical supplies, so keep your eyes peeled for Mart and designer cutlery the next time you go to the OR.
John reports that his new private-sector job is really affecting his volleyball serve due to all the hours he now has to put in at the office. He does still, however, have time for an occasional trip to high-school reunions in California, weddings on remote Greek Islands, and ski trips in Vermont. He also keeps up on what's happening with his old employer by listening to National Public Radio on his 90-minute daily commute in Chevy Chase to his luxurious office in Annapolis (no, he's not at the Academy).
Of course John is not sure how much longer his 10-year old Honda-cum-sewing machine will keep up the pace, but he's committed to finding out. By the way, if you are interested in some major power-generating equipment for your backyard, John's now the guy to see.
On other fronts, John's two boys are growing like weeds, with the oldest Daniel (5) now able to hit a ball out of the backyard (of course that might be because the yard is small). Seth (4) is also practicing hard to achieve said feat. John is in touch with Marty Almquist '80 #840 who is in touch with Jon Kott '80 #814. Marty is doing well in D.C. cornering the real estate market and John is up on Vashon Island in Washington state enjoying the rain.
See you all next time on United flight #837 from SFO to Tokyo! John can be reached via snail-mail only (how retro). Anyone heard from John Estrem '78 #822 recently?
email: email_deleted
Willie Benton Boone '62 #552
[Sent dues.]
Roger H. Soulanille '54 #411
[Sent dues.]
Jim Clark '40 #203
[Sent dues.]
|
![[ Nu Alpha Phi ]](../../NAP.gif)
