By Tommy Bourgeois
On their way home from lunch on a September afternoon, Nancy Young and Paul Ford happened to see Michael Carlisle on the Madison Avenue uptown bus. I’m sure, aside from appreciating the serendipity of this sighting, some of you are simply astonished that these folks were taking the bus. Thanks to Nancy’s post on the class Facebook page, there is pictorial proof.
Continuing under the heading of chance encounters, Scarsdale native Stephanie (Brilliant) Wald ’76, wife of our own Stephen Wald, was back in her hometown in early November to attend a party marking the 99th birthday of a friend’s father, where she spotted a familiar face that she couldn’t instantly place. It turned out the face belonged to longtime Scarsdale resident BK Munguia!
Turning to planned encounters, Ann and I had our own rendezvous with BK at another birthday celebration, held in October in honor of husband Jon Mark at the Mount Washington (Los Angeles) home of their daughter Ramona and her husband Jason Orley. Also in attendance was Arthur Greenwald’s widow Wendy Garen, a friend to many among our number.
During a September trip to Georgia to visit some of my favorite in-laws, we joined Decatur resident Chip Carey for dinner at Pho 24, a modest but soulful Vietnamese restaurant on the Buford Highway in suburban Chamblee. Chip described the highway as “the most international road in the Atlanta area,” where one can find almost any variety of ethnic cuisine. We discussed parenting, which hardly ends when our children grow into adulthood, the shifting landscape of Georgia politics, and the fractious state of the wider world. We also traded Yale stories, during which Ann graciously remained wide awake despite the subject matter and the late hour, and we met Chip’s spirited rescue pup Nash, of whom he says, “She’s a runner.” I guess that’s okay, because Chip is still running, too. He’s also still working as professor of political science at Georgia State and editor-in-chief of the Journal of International Organizations Studies.
In late October, four fifths of Diamond Reo 75—Paul Baumgartel, Bill Oppenheimer, Chris Kee ’77, and yours truly—met in Los Angeles with Paul’s guitarist son Joe to rehearse for our March 1 appearance at the Monroeville (Alabama) Literary Festival, where we’ll be the opening night’s entertainment. We had a splendid time renewing what we call “the age-old purpose,” which is approaching its 50th anniversary. If March finds you anywhere near Monroeville, which became famous as the home of novelist Harper Lee, please contact me for details. We’d love to see some familiar faces.
On November 4, Matt Fragner, Bruce Kagan, Seth Walworth, and your faithful correspondent met at the legendary Nate & Al’s Deli in Beverly Hills for a small but spirited class lunch. If you’re in or around L.A., stay tuned for announcements of upcoming lunches. Since the 2020 onset of COVID, these gatherings have become, if I may borrow from Hamlet (Act I, scene 4), “a custom/[m]ore honor’d in the breach than the observance,” but I intend to bring them back.
In Memoriam:
William Davis died last August 17 in Mendham, New Jersey. A native of Pueblo, Colorado, Bill graduated as valedictorian of his class at Roncalli High School, where he excelled as a scholar, athlete, debater, and clarinetist. At Yale, he majored in economics and played football. He worked in investment and commercial banking at B of A, and later in private equity, and appraisals and liquidation, at the Great American Group. Above all, Bill was a devoted husband and father. With Eileen, his wife of over 40 years, he raised seven children and welcomed 11 grandchildren into the world. He became an accomplished youth basketball coach, his teams often including his own kids. In addition to Eileen, his survivors include children Chris, Justin, Jackie, Ryan, Matthew, Michael, and Meagan, brother Kevin, and sister Patty. The family asks for donations in Bill’s memory to the Huntington’s Disease Society of America or the Sisters of Christian Charity.
Marguerite “Marguey” Tabor Yates succumbed to a high-grade glioblastoma on September 9, passing away peacefully in her sleep at her Paris home. Marguey lived a life of learning, adventure, wide-ranging professional achievement, and loving devotion to family and friends. Born in Cambridge, England, and raised both in Todt Hill, New York, and on New York City’s upper west side, she spent most of her adulthood abroad. Her interest in classical languages gave way to an intense curiosity about the Middle East, and her early work experiences included stints as au pair for an Iranian family in Teheran, English teacher in a remote Lebanese Druze village, and Canadian Broadcasting Company journalist during the Lebanese civil war. She studied Arabic as a Fulbright fellow at the American University of Cairo and earned her MA at NYU.
She and David Chaffetz married in 1984. Her career path had veered from Arab studies to finance, including wealth management, and Chase supported her MBA studies at NYU. She worked for Paribas and later for the French regulatory agency AMF. She and David raised sons Edward and Simon in Paris’s Les Halles neighborhood. Her advocacy for the mentally ill, inspired by the struggles of her brother Jeremy, led to her helping establish the Paris branch of Fountain House, which was founded in the US and uses innovative methods to treat manic depression and schizophrenia. In the last decade, she left the AMF, becoming a consultant for the IMF and the World Bank. Her diagnosis came in May 2022, and her response to radiation and chemotherapy enabled her to live life to the fullest during her last 16 months, which included a 70th birthday celebration and cross-country skiing in the Dolomites. In addition to David, Edward, and Simon, she is survived by Edward’s son Rami, mother Marguerite, sister Natalie Yates Cacciato, and brothers John and Christopher.
Our hearts go out to Bill’s and Marguey’s families and friends.
As always, I invite you to share your news.