The Wheatley School Alumni Association Newsletter # 117

Photos, Appreciations, Obituaries, and More

Dear Wheatley Wildcats and Other Interested Persons,

Welcome to The Wheatley School Alumni Association Newsletter # 117.

According to Substack, in the first 25 hours after publication, Newsletter # 116 was viewed 2,805 times, was “liked” 18 times, and received four comments (all positive). In all, 4,653 email addresses received it.

All underlined text is a link-to-a-link. Left-clicking anywhere on underlined text, and then left-clicking on the link that pops up, will get you to your on-line destination.

The Usual Words of Wisdom

Thanks to our fabulous Webmaster, Keith Aufhauser (Class of 1963), you can regale yourself with the first 116 Newsletters (and much other Wheatley data and arcana) at

Wheatley School Alumni Association Website

Also, thanks to Keith is our search engine, prominently displayed on our home page: type in a word or phrase and, wow!, you’ll find every place it exists in all previous Newsletters and other on-site material. I use it all the time; it works!

I edit all submissions, even material in quotes, for clarity and concision, without any indication thereof.  I do not vouch for the accuracy of what people tell me.

We welcome any and all text and photos relevant to The Wheatley School, 11 Bacon Road, Old Westbury, NY 11568, and the people who administered, taught and/or studied there. Art Engoron, Class of 1967

Publication Notice

I plan not to publish at all in August (and this time I mean it!). Instead, I am going to go all-out on having my screenplay, Viktor Glaser’s Holocaust, made into a Major Motion Picture. I haven’t seen Barbie or Oppenheimer, but they have some serious competition coming down the ‘pike. Feel free to submit material, but don’t expect to see it published until September. And let me know if you want a link to the screenplay, which is on-line.

Wheatley School-Harvard College Grads - Addendum

Other Wheatley Wildcat-Harvard College graduates include:

1965 - Arden Aibel Rothstein

1967 - Shep Messing

1967 - Benjamin Ross

1967 - Dean Sheppard

1968 - Steve Orlins

1981 - Rebecca Guthart

1992 - Paul Baez

1993 - David Alpert

1989 - Jason Holzman

2000 - Joanna Holzman

2006 - Yu Ting Chiang

Writes Art Engoron (1967) - I hereby apologize to Shep Messing, Ben Ross, and Dean Sheppard, MY OWN 1967 CLASSMATES, for unintentionally omitting them from the original listing of Wheatley-Harvard graduates. Sorry, guys. I’m reminded of the saying, “The Cobbler’s Children Have No shoes.” I was going strictly by my Excel Spreadsheet, which many years ago messed up my 1967 data, and I fell victim to “tunnel vision.”

I’m also reminded of my own journey through “higher education.” I went to Columbia College, and the joke was that we were all Harvard rejects; but that didn’t bother me, because I hadn’t applied to Harvard. Then I went to Boston University School of Law (“BU”), and the joke was that we were all New York University School of Law (“NYU”) rejects; and that bothered me a little, because I was one. I did well enough at BU to transfer to NYU, and the joke was that we were all Columbia Law School rejects; but that didn’t bother me at all, because I had already graduated from Columbia University. (Incidentally, BU was, and I assume still is, a wonderful law school, and I transferred for geographical reasons.)

Writes Joseph Bookbinder (1979) - Dear Art, Many thanks for the shout-out to my twin brother Ron and me about Harvard.  We had a great high school education and were proud to represent Wheatley there.  We only wish we made a better impression, so the school didn’t wait four years to take another Wildcat….. 

Best, Joe

Joseph Bookbinder, Director, Office of English Language Programs, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, U.S. Department of State

Wheatley Football - Some History from the Expert Historian

Writes Paul “Spirit of ‘76” Giarmo (1976) - “Hi Art, I enjoyed reading Scott S. Kramer's (1994) piece on ‘Football and Fencing,’ in Issue # 114. It reminded me of a similar complaint voiced by a Jericho H.S. father back in 2018 at a football game up in Oyster Bay.

That year Jericho, a high school with graduating classes of 350-400 students, teamed up with Oyster Bay to field both varsity and j.v. football teams, due to the lack of players.

Our Carle Place/Wheatley ‘Wildfrogs’ met the combined Oyster Bay/Jericho Baymen/Jayhawks, and after we scored a touchdown, an exasperated Jericho father, whose son was on the team, turned to me, shook his head in disbelief, and said, ‘Jericho has no football team, but watch out for our fencing team.’ So Scott is not alone in his sentiment. 

Now, in response to Bill "Buzz" Bosshart's (1974) question in Issue # 115, asking ‘whether the local Quaker Friends Academy football team ever beat the Wildcats?,’ the answer, unfortunately, is “Yes.”

In 11 varsity football games played between 1971 and 1989, Friends Academy won 9 of them. The 2 Wheatley victories, both shut-outs,  occurred in 1983 and 1987. The 1983 victory ended the Wildcats' 25 game losing streak. (Yep, you read that right). The second-longest in Nassau County history, after Clarke's 26 game streak, also in the 1980's.

We did beat the Quakers twice at the j.v. level, in 1972 and 1973.

Also interesting were John Warde's (1967) recollections in Issue # 112. He confirmed much of what I previously wrote about our teams of that era.

My only disagreement with John is that he claims there were only 20 Wildcats on the team, yet the '66 yearbook shows 30 players in uniform in the 1965 team photo, as well as 31 on the '65 junior varsity team.  John may very well be correct in speaking about the '66 team, but I can't tell because of the lack of a team photo of the '66 team. It was the only yearbook not to include a football team photograph.  John, was a team photo ever taken in your senior season?

The numbers did improve for the 1967 season, when 38 Wildcats suited up for the varsity team photo. 

Finally, does anyone have information on the 1959 Junior Varsity Football Team that went 7-0-1? I do know that the 0-0 tie was against the Levittown Division Blue Dragons, but if anyone out there in Wheatley World has the scores for the other 7 games, please let me know. I do know that Martin Tierney was the j.v. head coach. 

BTW, that '59 j.v. team was the second-best football team in Wheatley history, after the immortal 1957 Varsity team that went 8-0. So we have had some excellent teams in our history. 

If only the school administration would let it happen again by supporting the sport, instead of trying to kill it. 

More ‘Hood History

In the case of Francis Skiddy von Stade, Jr., Dean of Harvard College, the “Skiddy,” which may have come from “Skidmore,” was NOT a nickname; it was the name of his maternal grandfather.  His own father (Mayor of Old Westbury 1940-1950) was Francis Skiddy von Stade, Sr. (on the right in this photograph)

[Francis Skiddy von Stade Sr. - Wikipedia] 

“Francis Skiddy von Stade, Jr., Dean of First Year Students at Harvard College, was born of an old German-Irish New York clan (the “Skiddy” is Irish, the “von Stade” is German). He was brought up on Long Island in "the world immediately following the world of the Great Gatsby," as he described it. His home town was Old Westbury, a New York suburb that he said "used to cut a lot of mustard in certain novels."

Faculty

John Lineweaver - Obituary

Lineweaver - John R., of Northport, NY died at age 97, on May 23, 2023. Preceded in death by his wife, Sally Lineweaver. He is survived by his four children, Mark, Charles, Ann Messina, and Nancy, eight grandchildren, and five great-grandchildren. John taught Science at White Plains Junior High School, The Wheatley School, and Cold Spring Harbor High School, NY.

Writes Webmaster Keith Aufhauser (1963) - “With his bow tie; Carolina accent; high, bouncy step; and enthusiasm for Biology, including the recent discovery of the structure of the DNA molecule, and soccer, Mr. Lineweaver made a big impression on this student.”  

Elito Bongarzone - Bongarzonisms

Writes Joel Blumenthal (1968) - “Hey Art – Thanks to Paul Riefberg for reminding us of one of Mr. Bongarzone’s great adages. (Bongarzonisms?). He was was full of them. One of his sayings I remember well (and still use often to this day) was the response to any student who began a question with, ‘But what if…..’ He would often begin his answer with, ‘IF my grandmother had wheels, she’d have been a trolley car…..’”

Graduates

1960 - Ann Paster Brody Cove - Deceased

Adored wife, mother, grandmother, sister, and friend, Ann Brody Cove, died on July 6, 2023, after over a decade of living with MDS, a form of blood cancer.

Ann was born in Brooklyn, New York in 1942 to Alfred and Hortense Zeltner Paster. She had a life-long passion for cooking and food that was nurtured by both her mother and grandmother. She grew up in a family that often planned a week's worth of dinners while eating one.

Ann settled in Westport, Connecticut in 1968. While caring for her young family, she began food styling and photography, catering, and teaching cooking, starting what would become a career in the food industry. In 1977, she moved her family to Washington, DC, where she then worked as a catering manager and director in hotels.

In 1982, Ann began a career in specialty food. Giant Food hired Ann as the Food Coordinator to help create their first upscale supermarket, known as Giant Gourmet, Someplace Special. Many family recipes became part of the menu of prepared food on the shelves of this and other Giant stores.

In the late 1980s, she launched her own firm, Ann Brody Enterprises, consulting with supermarkets across America that were developing their own prepared food lines, specialty food start-ups, and new identities.

In the spring of 1990, Ann became senior vice president at Sutton Place Gourmet and stayed there for five years. When Whole Foods entered the DC market in 1995, she worked with them on forging their identity in that market. Ann taught "The Business of Specialty Food Retailing" at the Fancy Food Show for over a decade and was inducted in the Specialty Food Hall of Fame in 2015. Ann continued to consult until she retired in 2018.

Ann's career also included eclectic, creative, entrepreneurial roles, such as owner and operator of Zeltner's Delicatessen, spokesperson for Grand Marnier Liquor, and founding executive director of the Jean-Louis Palladin Foundation. Ann co-founded and then co-managed Bethesda Central Farm Markets for many years. As the internet began, Ann worked with online food startups.

Ann was the widow of Laurence A. Cove, MD, with whom she enjoyed over 30 years of marriage. She is survived by her children Amanda Mitchell, David Brody (Perry), Allison Brody (Peter Jones); sister Stephanie Paster and sister-in-law Gail Paster and their children; and grandchildren Jack (Andrea), Tucker and Lily Mitchell; Samuel and Truman Brody-Boyd; and David Owen and Perry Ann Brody. She was predeceased in death by her brother, Howard Paster, and son-in-law, Mark Mitchell as well as her beloved dogs Benjy and Daisy.

Shiva was in early July, 2023. In lieu of flowers, please make a donation to the Ann Brody Cove Fund at DC's Humane Rescue Alliance

(https://www.humanerescuealliance.org/special-funds);

Martha's Table

MARTHASTABLE.ORG

or any cause demonstrating compassion, reproductive freedom, and equal rights under the law.

Ann Paster Brody Cove Obituary in the Washington Post

1965 - Jeffrey Orling - “Thanks Art, Reading your Newsletters is always a hoot.  It's something that the generations before the internet could not enjoy.  Imagine typing up one of these articles and using a mimeograph or a Xerox and then snail-mail?  Forget about photos!

I, like perhaps most grads, don't get back to the old neighborhood(s) these days, and if they did/do they would likely not recognize a thing.... except maybe the schools, synagogues and churches... but I bet that almost all houses have morphed into something different.  It would be amazing to see any houses that were in the original built state (aside from re-painting and the growth of trees and bushes).  I am of a mind to take a drive out to Roslyn, East Williston, Old Westbury etc., to see how things look. I am sure there are some graduates who still live there or very close and have witnessed the slow metamorphosis.  I do have a vague memory of the ‘S Section’..... before the trees and shrubs grew in.….that you could see a long way.  And of course we walked right through the yards to take the shortest path to wherever we were going.  I do have some memories about where some people (friends) lived.

Clearly we recall things about our buddies from our Wheatley days.  I did meet some at a memorial for my brother, Alan (1966), at his house in North Salem.….obviously not the best of circumstances.  At the time, I was still in contact with the my classmates Andy and Bob Halper.  In that vein, I am interested in attending the next school-wide reunion, which I am sure you will write about.  

I recall that we used to walk from The Willets Road School to the Albertson LIRR Station and have lunch at the ‘luncheonette’ there (across the tracks). We'd get a burger, fries and a milkshake for a bit over $1.00.  I also recall that there was a supermarket (A&P?) and a large drug store with a lunch counter.  We also had a ‘Good Humor’ ice cream truck come through the neighborhood. It reached us around dinner time, and we'd hear the "bells".…. ask our parents for money, and run out to buy an ice cream bar or sandwich.

We could hardly wait! Best, Jeffrey Orling”

1969 - Halayne Ehrenberg - Enjoying Hildebrandt’s

Writes Halayne - “Art, I had lunch at Hildebrandt's recently, and it was a real treat; I hadn't been there since before the pandemic, so I figured it was time!  They did a nice lunch business, from retirees to families and everyone in between.

There's an extensive food menu and, of course, an extensive dessert menu (think “ice cream”). My cousin and I made sure to order from both.

I was also photographed with one of Hildebrandt's saviors, Randy Sarf.

ICYMI, a good story about what Randy and his cousin did: https://6abc.com/ice-cream-shop-luncheonette-diner-hildebrandts/12268755/

1970 - Kenny Ruby - Photos

Kenny (R) with his son Ethan, a successful attorney, in Pepolino Restaurant, July, 2023

Kenny and Art Engoron

1971 - Robin Hack Silverberg - Wheatley Updates

Writes Robin - Wheatley hasn’t ranked students for a long time, but in 2006 two of the top students were Yu Ting Chiang, who went to Harvard, and my son, Scott Silverberg, who went to Cornell.

Interestingly, Yu Ting moved to Roslyn Heights from Ohio, where he had been called ‘Patrick.’ When he introduced himself that way, a classmate, Ho Cheng, spoke up and said, "No, they're cool here, they'll call you Yu Ting”; and that was how he was known in the school after that.

Scott recently became the president of the NY Chapter of the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys (NAELA), after being a board member for a number of years. 

On another note, The Wheatley Scholarship Fund was a beneficiary under the will of Joyce Ouchi, wife of the late Edward Ouchi, a Wheatley teacher from years ago. 

1974 - Nicole “Nicky” Pastarnack - “Hey Art, Thank you so much for including my brother-in-law in your Wheatley Alumni Newsletter. John Hughes was the best. I met him when I was 12 years old. My sister, Amy (1967), had just started to date John at Cornell. He was such a special person & was always smiling from ear to ear. At times, it was challenging to understand his thick Canadian accent-“EH?”. While I was an undergraduate at Cornell, Amy & John would frequent Ithaca. John had so many lifelong friends at Cornell, they had to make several trips back to see everyone. 

Even though my family moved while I was in 7^th grade, and I had to change schools (Jericho High School-Class of ‘74), I cherish my times growing up on Stirrup Lane and all the wonderful friends I had while at The Willets Road School.

Here are two photos.

My parents’ backyard party celebrating Amy’s Wheatley graduation in 1967, showing me and my classmate, Nancy Roeder.

That’s me hugging Nancy Roeder Zolezzi, who’s wearing a covid mask.

All my best, Nicky Pastarnack, Seattle, WA”

1980 - Robert Koenig - Musician

Australian Magazine Interview of Bob Koenig About His Music

1982 - Jeff Zaremsky - “Julien Hennefeld (1958), I really enjoyed the video you made ‘Yiddish Hack.’ The story line was very funny, and all too close to being a reality.

I also made a video, a parody of Carly Simon’s “You’re So Vain.”

You're So Vain Parody

Does anyone know where I can get a copy of the 1982 Yearbook?”

1990 - Christine Simpson - Christine’s 13 year old daughter, Vivienne Sachs, made her professional acting debut this summer with the premiere of THEATER CAMP. It tells a “we have to pay the rent” story at a theater camp in Upstate New York. Vivienne plays Lainy Fischer, tech protege to Tech Director Glenn Winthrop (played by Noah Galvin). Other staring actors include: Ben Platt, Molly Gordon, Amy Sedaris, Owen Thiele, and Nathan Lee Graham.

Fan Mail

1959 (Tracey Lanthier) - “Another great Newsletter…..Thanks.”

1960 (Raymond Roller - ❤️

1962 (William Cerillo) - ❤️

1962 (Lois Kass Kleinberg) - ❤️

1962 (Karen Strumpfler Tucker) - ❤️

1965 (Arden Aibel Rothstein) - “Thanks for all you do to keep us Wheatley folks connected. It is a great service.”

1965 (Penny Asbell) - “Wonderful, as usual- thanks so much.”

1965 (Clifford Montgomery) - ❤️

1965 (Jeffrey Orling) - “As always... thanks for the memories. All readers should add a memory or two. Your contributions are very much appreciated. Thanks, Art!”

1965 (Laurel Osrow) - ❤️

1966 (Claude Levy) - ❤️

1966 (Diana Noble Rubinger) - “Aways a welcome gift. Thank you for putting the Newsletter together for all of us to enjoy!”

1966 (Suzanne Stone) - “Once again, thanks to you & Keith for an amazing job. You inspire a real sense of community!” ❤️

1967 (Linda Caterino) - “Great job on the Newsletter and keeping everyone informed.”

1967 (Scott Frishman) - “Great as always, Art. Please keep them coming. ❤️🙏”

1967 (Bobby Scandurra) - “Artie, you keep astounding me with your dedication to these fantastic Newsletters! How do you do it? Great job!”

1967 (Jill Simon Forte) - “Another entertaining newsletter; they always gives me a smile 😃.”

1968 (Joel Blumenthal) - “Keep up the good work.”

1968 (Lois Hegyi Goldstein) - ❤️

1968 (Ricki Spier Cohen) - ❤️

1969 (Paula Panzeca Foresto) - “As always, Art, your Newsletters are welcome, informative and bring us all way back to our memorable days at Wheatley! Thank you for all your efforts!” ❤️

1969 (Jill Wattel Stockinger) - “Great work on all the Wheatley Newsletters!”

1969 (Steve Wolfert) - ❤️

1970 (Maria Giordano Gittleman) - ❤️

1971 (Larry Koenigsberg) - ❤️

1972 (Robin Freier Edwards) - ❤️

1972 (Jeffrey Kargman) - ❤️

1972 (Suellyn Karben) - ❤️

1974 (James Elefonte) - ❤️

1974 (Nicole Pastarnack) - “Thank you for bringing back all those memories from Roslyn Heights.” ❤️

1976 (Paul “Spirit of ‘76”) Giarmo) - “Thank you very much for all the great work you continue to do.”

1979 (Joseph Bookbinder) - “Thanks for keeping us all informed and connected.”

1980 (Robert Koenig) - “Thanks for keeping us up to date, Arthur.”

1990 (Christine Simpson) - “Hi, Arthur, Thanks for all your diligence on the Newsletter. I read it every time it lands in my inbox.”

1993 (David Alpert) - Thank you so much, Art. I appreciate all that you do for Wheatley.”

???? (LWEW) - ❤️

Closing

That’s it for The Wheatley School Alumni Association Newsletter # 117.  Please send me your autobiography before someone else sends me your obituary.

Art

Arthur Fredericks Engoron, Class of 1967

WHEATLEYALUMNI@AOL.COM

ARTENGORON@GMAIL.COM

WWW.WHEATLEYALUMNI.ORG

646-872-4833