Wheatley Alumni Newsletter

Number 21:  August 12, 2018

Dear Wildcats and Other Interested Persons,

Welcome to The Wheatley School Alumni Association Newsletter # 21.  Thanks to our fabulous Webmaster, Keith Aufhauser (1963), you can regale yourself with the first twenty newsletters (and other Wheatley data and arcana) at WWW.WHEATLEYALUMNI.ORG.  Alternatively, if you are completely uninterested in Wheatley matters, please don't hesitate to ask me to remove you from my general distribution list.  Once again, I have allowed myself the liberty of editing all submissions, even material in quotes, for clarity and concision, without any indication thereof.

Graduates:

1961 – Deborah Kerstein Brosowsky – We Are Everywhere
“In the category of small world, my husband Fred and I were recently in Denver on a visit. He contacted a dear college friend, Linda Kessel, who lives there. We met for dinner with her and her husband, who turned out to be Andy Morris, Class of 1967 from Parkway Drive. Here is a photo of our very fun reunion:

1961 – Bari Mittenthal Mears – Cheerleader
In a recent newsletter I saw a name that brought back such fun memories.....Lucy Mullman! We were Wheatley cheerleaders together! In 1960 Lucy was the captain of the cheerleading team, and I was the co-captain. We had such great times singing on the bus to go to the games..... and laughing at life and ourselves!!! I cannot do a cartwheel these days, but I can still do many cheers! I loved Lucy!!!

1960 – Lucy Mullman – Reply to Bari
Thanks for your nice remarks Bari. I too remember our team fondly. Hope you are well,
Warmly, Lucy

1962 – Richard Buzen - Inspiration
I am still inspired by everyone who suffered through teaching and coaching me at Wheatley, especially Mr. Stewart Doig, who inspired a lifetime love of history.

1966 – Richard Harvey – Greeting
Richard says hello to all classmates.

1966 – Claude Levy – Appreciation of Ted Tchack
Scrolling down Newsletter # 20 I was sorry to read about the “widow of Ted Tchack, legendary Wheatley English teacher.” That’s how I just learned that Ted (I wouldn’t have dreamt of calling him “Ted” back then) passed away. As a French foreign student in 1965-66, I loved attending his classes and now totally understand his being called “legendary.”

1966 – Suzanne Stone – Friend and Helper
Suzanne and I became friends while helping to plan some alumni events.  Lately, she has worked hard to help locate some of her classmates, and I want to thank her publicly for doing so.

1967 – Arthur Engoron – In the News
http://spectrumlocalnews.com/nys/rochester/news/2018/08/03/parole-board-laurie-kellogg-murder-hearing

1967 + 1969 – Successful Offspring
Sam Presti, the General Manager of the Oklahoma Thunder in the NBA, is the son of two Wheatley Grads, Rhoda Garfinkel (1969) and Steve Prestigiacomo (1967).

1967 – Robert A. (“Bobby”) Scandurra – Retires after “illustrious” judicial career.
Bobby Scandurra recently retired after 24 years as a Probate and Family Court Judge in Barnstable County, Massachusetts. Immediately below is a link to a few testimonials, from lawyers who appeared in front of him, about what a wonderful judge he was and person he is. None of which surprise me, as I had the pleasure of being his classmate. He was a terrific wrestler (Coach Bill Stevenson could always count on Bobby for a win), and just the nicest guy you could imagine.
https://www.lynchowens.com/blog/2018/july/cape-attorneys-pay-tribute-to-hon-robert-a-scand/

1967 – Bobby Silverstein – Landmark Legislation
Twenty-eight years ago Senator Tom Harkin delivered a speech in sign language on the Senate floor in support of passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act, commonly known as the ADA. Senator Harkin was the chief sponsor of this landmark legislation. I had the privilege and honor of serving as the staff director and chief counsel of the Subcommittee on Disability Policy, which he chaired. The young guy sitting next to Senator Harkin in the YouTube video below is ME! Please join me in celebrating the enactment of the ADA, the 20th century emancipation proclamation for people with disabilities.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BomPo6fPOOo. 

1968 – Laurie Schiller – Fencer and Historian

I keep meaning to do my autobiography before, as you say, it turns into an obit...

So, after graduation I went to Rutgers in New Brunswick, fenced and sang in the glee club, toured Europe twice with them, and graduated with a degree in African and Afro-American studies. While waiting for the draft board in Great Neck to decide my fate, I went to graduate school at Northwestern University to get my Ph.D. in East African history. This rather decided the course of my life, as I met my wife, Cathy, a graduate of George Washington University, in Swahili Club, married in 1974, studied in England and Kenya on a Fulbright, and then returned to Evanston in 1978 to write up my dissertation. The draft board didn’t reach my number, but only by 5. Whew...

I had been fencing with the little fencing club at NU before my field work, and when I returned I was asked to take it over, which I agreed to do for a couple of years until I finished my Ph.D. Well, long story short, I built a program that became one of the major elite programs in the US, and I stayed as Head Coach for 38 years, retiring in September 2016 as the second- winningest fencing coach in NCAA history. I am not sure how all that happened, but happy that coaching is a different skill set from competing, as I was never more than an average fencer. Also, ironic that Northwestern’s mascot, like Wheatley, is a Wildcat. I also got to teach as an adjunct history professor at a wonderful school for 4 decades, teaching Africa, the Middle East, Europe, and especially the American Civil War.

In retirement, I am a national fencing referee for US Fencing, where I served on the Board of Directors for 8 years, run a few
clinics, am writing a book on the Evolution of Civil War cavalry tactics, 1861-65, travel a bit, and work for the Democrats in Illinois. I think I’m busier than before retirement! I hope I have the time to write a few more books on the American Civil War, as I enjoy my life with Cathy, with whom I will celebrate 44 years of marriage in August. We continue to live in Deerfield, IL and have no plans to move.
Best to all. Laurie Schiller

1970 - Jonathan Gold – Second-Time-Around Dad
It might be a good idea to engage the new generation of the Wheatley community and give a bit of perspective to the greatness that has come out of our community over the many decades.
I have been blessed as a second time around dad; I have a son that is currently attending The Willets Road School as a sixth grader. I tell the current families the old story of how Willets Road was one elementary school and The North Side School was the other, and we never knew our East Williston classmates until seventh grade. As I read the newsletters, I see what amazing and talented people attended Wheatley. I believe they could give a better sense of community to the current and future students!
Hope all is well
Go Wildcats!!!

1970 – Deborah Silverman Sloyer – Retired Attorney
I attended George Washington University, the Hofstra School of Law, and raised my three children in East Hills, Roslyn (they were graduates of Roslyn High School). I am divorced, have four grandchildren, with another one on the way, and live in Manhattan. I retired from the practice of law and now do some travel work, mainly for the perks. I am an avid traveler.

I am still extremely close with Joanie Shacter, Denise Goodson Scheir, and was very friendly with Gail Yarnell, prior to her untimely demise. I remember some teachers with great fondness: Mr. Fradkin (Latin) who instilled in us to "always go with our gut,” Mr. Nixon (English), Mr. McCormick (Statistics) and I don't think I ever laughed as much in high school as I did during my driver’s ed classes. I don't remember the name of the teacher who took his life in his hands, nor most of the students in the car, but it was quite an experience!
Anyway, I am in good health for a 65-year-old (boy, is it hard to type that!), and hope that my name won't be mentioned in your column (except by fellow students) for quite some time.

1972 – Seth Katz – Good Guy, Good Genes
My Dad (who was both a Pack 262 Scoutmaster and an East Williston Little League coach) will be celebrating his 100th birthday on September 5th - he and my Mom are married 76 years this past June.

1976 – Paul Giarmo, and 1966 – Harold Whack – Dialogue
Writes Paul Giarmo - I have a problem with Hal Whack's letter (Wheatley Alumni Newsletter # 20, http://www.wheatleyalumni.org/BlogPost/Blogpost-20180626-20.html wherein he proudly proclaims his resistance to the draft and to the Vietnam War - positions which to many of us exemplify the worst of the 1960s.  For the record, I have two cousins who patriotically served our country during that conflict. One was a Navy corpsman who treated wounded Marines and soldiers, and the other was a Marine sergeant who fought his way out of a Vietcong ambush and returned home to briefly serve as a Marine drill instructor.

Hal's proclamation that he would NOT serve his country and in fact would actively support those who would defy their country is symptomatic of many radical leftists, people who spat in the faces of our returning G.I.'s and accused our troops of being "baby-killers.” For him to publicly declare his resistance to serving after all these years is deeply troubling to those of us who respect our country and OUR troops and the sacrifices that they made. His statement is particularly disturbing to those of us who read the moving tributes to William Nuebel's service in an earlier issue of the newsletter # 16 ((http://www.wheatleyalumni.org/BlogPost/Blogpost-20171231.html)

I never knew Mr. Nuebel, as I graduated from Wheatley in 1976; but after reading about his service I paid my respects to him at Holy Rood Cemetery, and I would suggest to Mr. Whack that he do the same.

In the issue of fairness, Art, I hope that you print my letter in an upcoming issue of the newsletter as a counterpoint to Mr. Whack's offensive diatribe.

Responds Harold Whack - My opposition was to the policy of America waging war against the people of Vietnam when we as a nation had not been attacked. I suggest Paul read some history, and he will see that our fear of communism lead our leaders to take a misguided view that any nationalist effort aligned different from our perspective was an existential threat to America. Vietnam had actually fought against the Japanese in WWII and expected their independence would be recognized by the West. It was not, and thus my opposition to an unjustified war.

I was never threatened by the draft, as when I graduated college in 1970, the draft was governed by a lottery. My number was so high that I was not even called for a physical. Many of my friends served; one, Ralph Johnson, a Marine, gave his life and was posthumously awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor. I have supported a scholarship bearing his name at The Citadel, the Military College of South Carolina, in Charleston. I had another friend who served and came down with a lung infection from agent orange and died as a result. I would never deign to be so stupid or disagreeable as to spit on another person. Never did that. I respect all men and women, but that war was a bad policy, and we lost over 60,000 Americans and saw the proliferation of PTSD in communities all across the US. I’ve known returning soldiers who committed suicide and developed serious drug addictions. Over the years I’ve even ministered to homeless veterans on our streets.  I respect that we men can have differences of opinion, but on policy, not people or personal.

So, I would suggest that my views are based on fact and actual commitment to people and not feigned sympathies. Was Paul a patriot who served in the military, or does he solely look at the lives of others that have served, some who’ve paid the ultimate sacrifice? I respect such men.

1970 – Pam Panzarino Hyde - Playwright
I am the playwright and co-producer of Bipolarity, a new, avant-garde musical.  It deals with two late teen boys who are battling
erratic conditions of their mental illnesses.  Through their journey to recover, they find each other.  Spitting lyrics becomes
the therapeutic dynamism in their lives.  Until, one day, it isn’t.  Bipolarity is loosely based on a true story.  The impetus for the
story was the ten innovative songs, co-written during a three-month hypomanic phase.  The play became the vehicle for
popularizing the songs.  Each song represents a varying symptom of bipolar disorder, such as grandiosity, hyper sexuality, magical thinking, paranoia, addiction, cosmic universalities, and a deep alliance with underdogs. Below is the website page for more info. If you happen to be in Denver between OCT 25 and Nov 17, it would be very cool to have any and all Wheatley alumni attend the show. The show’s promise is that you will leave singing the finale and talking about the subject matter on the drive/flight home!  Best, Pam Hyde
https://bipolarityplayers.wixsite.com/mysite

1976 – Michael R. Jaff – Doctor
Michael R. Jaff, DO, professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School, became the President of Newton-Wellesley Hospital in October 2016. Prior to that, Dr. Jaff was the inaugural Paul and Phyllis Fireman Endowed Chair of Vascular Medicine and Medical Director of the Fireman Vascular Center at the Massachusetts General Hospital. He remains an active clinical consultant in all aspects of vascular medicine, including peripheral artery disease, venous thromboembolic disease, aneurysmal diseases, and all diagnostic strategies in vascular medicine.

1981 – Robert Walzer – Eagle-Eyed Editor
Robert is a Wall Street Journal editor, which may be why he noticed that the NY Times Gordon Ambach obituary in Newsletter # 20 erred when it stated that The Wheatley School is in East Williston (of course, it’s in Old Westbury, albeit is part of The East Williston School District).

1983 – Takemi Ueno – Upcoming Free Concerts
On Thursday., October 18, at 7:30 PM, Takemi will play with the Doctors' Orchestra at Norman Thomas High School at Park Ave. S. & 33rd St. The program consists of Bizet's Jeux d'enfants Suite, Mozart's Flute Concert No. 1 in G Major (the soloist plays in the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra), and Franck's Symphony in D Minor. Admission is free; no tickets required.  Takemi will play in another free concert with the orchestra on Thursday, December 20, also at 7:30 PM at Norman Thomas. That program will consist of the overture to Wagner's Tannhauser; Chopin's Piano Concerto No. 2 in f minor; and Shostakovich's Symphony No. 1 in f minor.

Fan Mail:
Faculty (Karen Bartscherer) - Hi Art. These exceptionally robust and engaging Alumni Newsletters are always such a pleasure to read. Although I feel so immersed in the WHEATLEY community, as I taught English there for 38 years (1977–2015), most of those named and current contributors tend to pre-date me. I so enjoy learning about pre-me Wheatley lore. It would be great to hear from Wheatley folks of other years, but I’m sure you’ve reached out to everyone. Thanks for your amazing efforts. Karen Bartscherer (Israel). [Editor’s note – Karen is married to retired Wheatley English teacher David Israel.]

1958 (Roberta “Bobbi” Kaufman) - Thanks for this ongoing newsletter. I appreciate the effort you put into it.

1960 (Joanne Festa) - The Class of 1960 had its 50th-year Anniversary at the Wheatley Hills Golf Club, in East Williston, on May 10th, 2010.  It was a good evening to see faces we remembered and some we didn’t.  I’m sorry for the losses we have heard about recently.  The Newsletter keeps us ‘in touch’ and for that I wish to say, Thank You Art.  I’m so happy to have reached 75 years young, soon to be 76!  I wish everyone a healthy, good, happy life. The ride has been great! Smiles, Joanne Festa

1960 (Barbara Frankfort Patrick) - Thank you, Art, for keeping the connections alive. I love looking back and remembering the many good times we had. The smile turns downward when we hear about the ones we lost.  Keep up the momentum, it is so appreciated.
1960 (Willi Krauss Royall) - Thanks for all the work you do to keep the Wheatley flame burning.

1961 (Bari Mittenthal Mears) - Always a pleasure to read!

1962 (Richard Buzen) - Keep up the great work on the newsletter!

1962 (Nancy Newman) - Thank you for the update. Enjoy the summer!

1963 (Donna Harmelin Rivkin) - Thank you once again for all your hard work! Wheatleyites live far & wide, and your updates keep us connected.

1964 (Daniel Cohn) - Thanks again for keeping us up-to-date with news about Wheatley.

1966 (Beverly Berman Hornick) - I love, love, love reading these newsletters. It always reinforces how lucky we all are to be part of the Wheatley community. It was such a special place to spend those important years. Thank you so much for keeping the bond alive.

1966 (Ruth Kopelman Greenbaum) - Thank you for the newsletters/updates on Wheatley doings.

1966 (Suzanne Stone) - Thanks, Art......another masterpiece!!!!!

1967 (Richard Friedman) - Newsletter looks great and is great!

1967 (Madeleine Tolmach) - Hi Arthur: Thanks so much for including me on this list. I sure do miss my friends at Wheatley.

1968 (Laurie Schiller) - Art – thanks for a great newsletter.

1969 (William “Bill” Kirchick) - Hi Art—what would we do without you (better not see your name in an Obit anytime soon)? Two thumbs way up!

1970 (Pam Panzarino Hyde) – Thanks so much for keeping the Wheatley Family connected.  Reading the newsletters is always interesting.

1970 (Deborah Silverman Sloyer) - Thank you for composing and sending the newsletters. I know how time consuming it must be to prepare each one, but be assured that all who receive it look forward to reading its contents (except for the obituaries, which are necessary, but not enjoyable, news).

1971 (Carolyn DiGiovanna Stahl) - Thank you for your continued efforts on the newsletter.

1971 (Merraine Sesskin) – Thank you!

1972 (Michele Cashin Krumholz) - Thank you, Art. I appreciate the time and effort you put into the newsletters. Thanks so much for keeping the Wheatley Family connected. Reading the newsletters is always interesting.

1974 (Joyce Comito Friedman) - Thank you, Art, for your efforts to keep us connected to our time at Wheatley!

1976 (Paul Giarmo) - Great job keeping us all informed about Wheatley and our fellow graduates.

1979 (Donald E. Watnick) – The newsletters are great.

1983 (Andrew Peter Saridakis) – Thank you, Arthur!

2003 (Scott Fink) - Thank you for putting this together! Keep up the good work!

Addendum
The New York Law Journal published the following article about an opinion I issued on July 9, 2018.

In a decision punctuated with feisty commentary, such as writing the fee request could be viewed as “highway robbery without the six-gun,” Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Arthur Engoron called on the legal profession and fellow judges to cut down on astronomical fee awards.

“Fees are zooming out of control, and courts should not be complacent; rather, we should be on the front line, not the sideline, leading the charge to keep them reasonable (keeping in mind the considerable costs of running a law practice),” the judge said, in a decision issued Wednesday. “To focus solely on [Greenberg Traurig’s] rates and hours would be to miss the forest for the trees.”

The judge’s comments arose in a suit brought by five residents of a housing complex on the Lower East Side, Seward Park Housing Corp., who were upset over a decision by the co-op’s board to switch to a valet parking system. The residents filed an Article 78 Petition, seeking to annul the board’s decision.

After dueling motions, Engoron in July 2017 dismissed the case for untimeliness, while addressing other arguments raised by Greenberg Traurig, representing the co-op. Afterward, a special referee, Louis Crespo, recommended that the co-op parties be awarded $161,000 in legal fees, reflecting deductions for alleged double billing, lack of complexity, and failure to use more associates rather than partners.
In deciding to award just slightly more than Crespo’s recommendation, Engoron first contemplated the dueling “perspectives” inspired by the firm’s request.  On one hand, it “is shocking and disturbing,” he wrote, “that a law firm is asking for the staggering sum of $464,164 to have prevailed upon a court to dismiss as untimely a relatively straightforward” petition filed by middle-class tenants.
He added, “Such an outrageous figure sounds like a typographical error or an April Fool’s joke; if it is not, it merits ‘fee shaming,’ public humiliation, and possible sanctions. For such egregious overreaching, a court could, and maybe should, award nothing.”

After all, he said, these days, $464,164—more than twice the salary of a New York State Supreme Court justice—could buy a one-bedroom co-op apartment on the Upper East Side with a doorman and onsite parking garage; a one-bedroom co-op in Bay Ridge with a live-in super and high ceilings; or “your very own private house in suburban Elmont, Nassau County, just over the Queens border.”
“The point being that we are not talking mere Monopoly money here!” Engoron wrote.

From another perspective, Engoron wrote that Greenberg’s papers are “beautiful: well-organized, well-written, and well-reasoned.”  And Greenberg “argued just what you would expect, just what it had to, and just how it had to,” he said.  “Fish gotta swim, birds gotta fly, and lawyers gotta litigate. Arguments made in moving papers could also be found in reply papers, ad nauseum, etc., but that is how lawyers usually argue, and sometimes win, cases,” Engoron said. “In short, [Greenberg] did what lawyers do, submitted excellent papers, and prevailed.”

Risking the ’Golden Egg’?
In his analysis in Cruz v. Seward Park Housing, the judge confirmed the referee’s findings that Greenberg’s hourly rates, some of which topped $1,000 per hour, were reasonable and that its attorneys performed the work they claimed. He rejected the findings that Greenberg should have used more associate time. “Experienced partners charge more but work quicker,” he wrote.
But Engoron took issue with Greenberg’s time on its dismissal motion, outside of the time spent on the statute of limitations argument. The co-op would have achieved the same result—dismissal with prejudice—had the timeliness defense been its only argument, the judge said. “There was no need to make a double-barreled motion,” he said.

He added that the nearly half-million-dollar fee request was not in the context of “industrial or technological behemoths battling each other for market supremacy, but in the context of a handful of middle-class cooperators upset with a board of directors’ decision.”
Engoron pointed to larger issues from outsized fee requests and aggressive litigation tactics. “By requesting astronomical fees, attorneys are in danger of killing the goose that laid the golden egg,” the judge said, noting a recent New York City Bar Association report that asked attorneys to eschew litigation tactics like asserting defenses that could burden the parties. “Cultural change may be in the offing.”
This case should have been litigated, and would have been dismissed, solely on statute of limitations grounds, the judge said. “Gold-plated lawyering was not needed. [Greenberg] probably needed two partners to do everything it did as well as it did.

But another approach could have achieved the same result: The partner in charge could have walked out into the hallway, grabbed the first mid-level litigation associate that walked by, and said, ‘Our client is being sued; it’s untimely; get it dismissed,’” the judge wrote.
Such an approach, the judge found, would have resulted in fees, including disbursements, of no more than $175,000—the figure Engoron ultimately awarded to the co-op.  That amount, the judge said, “may not seem like an awful lot of money, but could buy you a 55-foot yacht, equipped with multiple staterooms; a salon/galley/dining area; a washer-dryer; and stall showers.” He added, “To this court, that’s reasonable.”

The residents’ attorney, Joseph Giacoia, partner of Capuder Fazio Giacoia, did not return messages seeking comment.
The co-op was represented by James Perkins, a Greenberg shareholder. A firm spokeswoman said, “We respectfully disagree with the characterization of our firm’s fees in this matter on which our client prevailed.”
https://www.law.com/newyorklawjournal/2018/07/13/blasting-greenberg-traurig-request-judge-says-fees-zooming-out-of-control/
If you ask, I’ll gladly send you a copy of the actual opinion, some juicy details of which the article (which I thought was very good overall) omitted.

Closing
That’s it for the Wheatley School Alumni Association Newsletter # 21.  Please send me your autobiography before someone else sends me your obituary.

Art

Arthur Fredericks Engoron
The Wheatley School Class of 1967

Art Engoron,   Wheatley 1967,   646-872-4833,  WWW.WHEATLEYALUMNI.ORG

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