One of the First Alumni Couples
I lived in West Hall my freshman year. My roommate was the late, great Brent Beebe. His high school girlfriend was Mary Worth ’72, who was attending Swarthmore. After her first year, Mary transferred to Colgate and became one of the first 10 women at the University.
Mary and Brent broke up during our senior year. I asked Brent if he was OK with me going out with Mary, and he said I should. The attraction was immediate, and we became inseparable. A couple of weeks later, Mary and I announced that we were getting married. Our friends were shocked and told us we were crazy.
That summer, after we graduated, we were married next to the big rock on the road to Chapel House. Rev. Coleman Brown performed the ceremony, and the reception was at Merrill House. Brent was our best man; the maid of honor was Libby Mickley, who would later marry our good friend, Kenny Weinstein ’73.
My draft lottery number was 31. I was one week away from induction when President Nixon ended the draft. We moved to Seattle, where we were neighbors with Brent; Ed Babel ’72 and his wife, Debby; Henry Moll ’72 and his wife, Kathy; and Jake Ehlers ’72. It was Colgate West.
Finding work was difficult, so after a year of menial jobs, we moved back East. I got a job as a reporter at a small newspaper in New Jersey. After several years there, I transferred to the Star-Ledger in Newark. I worked there for nearly 40 years, serving as managing editor for more than a decade.
Mary spent years working as a graphic artist, then became a teacher’s aide at a local elementary school — a job she loved.
We retired a couple of years ago, and last November, we moved to Cape May (aka “Exit Zero”).
In April, we entered a Wildwood amusement park contest to renew our wedding vows and were one of the 50 couples selected as finalists. The ceremony was held in front of the giant Ferris wheel. We received park passes and a champagne toast.
Our two daughters both live in Boston. One is a minister and director of the Massachusetts Council of Churches, and our younger daughter works for Planned Parenthood.
With any luck, we’ll be back in Hamilton in 2022 for our 50th Reunion. It will also be our 50th anniversary.