Class Acts
CLASS OF 1937
Wylma Woolard, Charlotte, N.C., taught in a
North Carolina high school for one year before she
received a degree in Library Science from U.N.C.
Chapel Hill. She retired in 1989 from a career
including work in Germany as a librarian for special
services with the U.S. Army and director of media
services for dependent schools. She later served as
an educational consultant for World Book Encyclo
pedia and functioned as a media specialist for a
Charlotte high school. Woolard is a member of
Delta Kappa Gamma.
CLASS OF 1951
Betty Jean Condrey Appleby, Franklin, Va.,
married “Smokey” Appleby of Texas. Retired and
“enjoying the good life,” the couple has 4 grand
children. Appleby reports that her two sisters,
Polly Condrey Cook and Alice Condrey, both
retired, are former Chowan graduates as well.
CLASS OF 1955
Jean Carol Parker Sailer, Stella, N.C., retired
in 1994 afler working for the federal government
for 36 years. She is married to Edward R. Salter
and will soon become a grandmother for the first
time.
Tommie Ruth Worrell LehrschaU, Wilmington,
N.C., completed her degree at Meredith, married
and had 2 children. She returned to college at Virginia
Tech to obtain B.S. and M.S. degrees in horticulture.
She has been living in Wilmington for 13 years where
she is involved with her church as both secretary and
organist. Recently retired, she looks forward to
spending time with her granddaughter.
CLASS OF 1958
Clyde G. Morgan, Elizabeth City, N.C., retired
from Elizabeth City’s Northeastern High School after
teaching in the system for 32 years.
CLASS OF 1959
Willard “Bill” C. Meiggs, Jr., Chesapeake, Va.,
is the retired vice president and part-owner of Meiggs
Bail Bond Service serving as a bail enforcement agent
for over 20 years. He has also been vice president
and part-owner of Meiggs ACE Hardware, Chesa
peake, since 1973. Meiggs holds membership in the
Virginia Historical Society. Deep Creek Volunteer Fire
Dept., Lake Drummond Lodge #178, Cradock Royal
Arch Chapter #72, Portsmouth Scottish Rite Bodies,
Fayetteville Council #27 R.& S.M., Khedive Temple,
Portsmouth Commandery #5 and Chesapeake Shrine
Club. He is a member of the National Press Photo
grapher’s Assn., Virginia News Photographers Assn.,
Chesapeake Kiwanis Club and Great Baptist Church
where he has served as deacon. He and his wife,
Carol, have 2 sons and 3 grandchildren.
Lightning Quick
Technology speeds data collection,
allows shared results for students
Employing a CBL (Calculator-Based Labora
tory) and a colorimeter probe linked to a calculator,
students in Chem 102L watched intently as 90 pairs
of absorbance data, from the fading of Crystal Violet
in a basic solution, was collected at high speed in a
matter of minutes. Utilizing equipment to collect a
data point every 2 seconds, students can study
fleeting reactions that were previously much too
difficult to study, especially for beginners, and
realize the benefits of long-term data collection
comparisons.
Afler linking information to the computer,
students save data files to a shared directory on the
campus network server. “When the student is
ready to treat the data, it is a simple matter to
access the shared directory, copy and paste data and
perform immediate graphical tests to determine the
relationship of the concentration of crystal violet to
the speed of the reaction,” explains Phyllis Dewar,
associate professor of chemistry.
Dewar elaborates on the subject with excite
ment, “You’ll recognize my prejudice. However, if
a student were required to perform this experiment
without technology, it would be necessary to write
180 pieces of data (90 data pairs) during the
laboratory performance. After that, some decision
would need to be made as to how the graph(s)
should be done. With graphing software, data must
be supplied somehow. Therefore, if the data was
written on a sheet of paper, the likelihood is that
the student would need to type the data into the
computer, an error-inviting activity.”
“More significantly, chemistry teachers have
known for quite some time that undergraduates tend
not to collect as much data as is really needed to
see trends or relationships; a collection of ninety
data pairs in a general chemistry course was almost
unheard of—imtil technology came along.”
With data literally untouched by hiunan hands,
Dewar says, “Some would, no doubt, consider that
sterile and very mechanical. However, my thinking
is that ease in data collection and treatment gives
the student more time to consider the chemical
meaning of the data. I think that’s very much the
gist of a chemistry laboratory, not just collecting the
data, but also thinking about what it means.”
While other schools are collecting data with
CBLs and graphing it with a calculator, Dewar is
quick to point out the deficiencies of not utilizing a
Lftlllzing a CBL (Calculator-Based Labora
tory) to collect absorbance data from the
fading of Crystal Violet in a basic solution
are (l-r) Ngenarr Goree-Ndiaye ‘00, Chris
tina Washington ‘99 and Robin Whitfield ‘99.
shared network for results. “While I would not
consider that a bad approach, there’s no way to
pohsh the output. It can be printed but it’s very
small. When the output is pasted into a full
laboratory report, it’s clearly clunky.” “Perhaps
more important, scientists are often interested in
saving data over longer periods of time,” she says.
Noting that most experiments of any value are not
finished during one laboratory period, she elabo
rates, “If the data is left in the calculator, the next
user will probably erase it. Our collection,
however, will be stored on our server. Therefore,
we can have the privilege of comparing data over
long periods of time—consider the comparison of
an 1848 collection versus 1997. Putting all the data
together, we might be plotting 1800 pieces of data
instead of 180. Our shared directory allows ahnost
unlimited options of treating data and considering
the chemical meanings.”
CLASS OF 1961
Janice A Stotesberry, Pantego, N.C., retired last fall from the A.S.C.S.
office (now Farm Services Agency) after 35 Yt years to work for the family
business known as Donald’s Flying Service Inc. & Donald’s Air Park Inc.
Stotesberry notes that although she really “just changed jobs” she enjoys
working with her husband and two sons.
CLASS OF 1962
Thomas "Tommy" P. Sprouse, Jr., Orlando, FI., is a salesman for Collier
Jaguar/Rolls-Royce of Orlando.
CLASS OF 1963
Jimmy Tkad Hodges, Washington, N.C., retired from teaching with the
Beaufort Coimty School System in July 1996.
Frederick W. Mays, Newport News, Va., was recognized as a local
historian at the 100th aimiversary of the City of Newport News in 1996.
Covered by two television stations and The Daily Press, his acclaimed
collection of local memorabilia was displayed for 2 months in Newport News.
Mays is married to the former Patricia Andrews. They are the parents of son
Erick and daughter Ansley, both students at Christopher Newport University
Donald "Don” Lee Moock, Kinston, NC, is a business consultant and
part-owner of PMl Services Group. His daughter attends East Carolina
University.
CLASS OF 1964
Carolyn VanNess Dooley, Quinton, Va., a teacher at Lee-Davis High
School in Mechanicsville, Va., has taught in Hanover County for 28 years.
She was recently selected to represent the State Department of Education
during a two-week curriculum trip to Germany with Armonk Institute.
Married for 32 years, Dooley has 2 daughters and 2 grandsons.
Larry Harding Hunter, McLeansville, Va., retired after teaching graphic
art, commerical art and photography for 30 years. Hunter is staying busy
with a seminary extension class, woodworking and church work. He is
married to Martha Hunter.
CLASS OF 1965
John Bunch, Henderson, N.C., finished his undergraduate work at
Atlantic Christian College in 1967. After teaching school for 10 years, he
entered the auto parts business. Bunch is president of Standard Motor Parts
Co., Inc., a NAPA auto part store chain of 4 stores. ‘
Mary Slay Swindell Jackson, Greenville, N.C., will complete 30 years of
employment with East Carolina University in November.
CLASS OF 1966
Joan W Reaves, Free Union, Va., is employed as a WIC program planner
for the Division of Chronic Disease Prevention/Nutrition, Vitginia Dept, of
Health. Reaves and her husband, Dudley, principal at Wm. Perry Elementary
School in Waynesboro, are the parents of 19 year-old twins.
CLASS OF 1967
Emily MustaintVestbrook, Henderson, N.C., is serving as a director of
guidance at Northern Vance High School.
CLASS OF 1968
L Dewile North, McLean, Va., was promoted to assistant vice president
in the deposit operations dept, of George Mason Bank, according to a recent
article in The Centerville Times.
Stanford “Stan" limn, Murfreesboro, N.C., won the Virginia State
Championship, the Beech Mountain Hill Climb (SCCA time trials) and the
Dureya Hill Climb in Clubford in 1996. His daughter. Heather ‘97, graduated
from Chowan May 17 and married Jim Wilson of Ahoskie May 31. Son,
John-Michaeal, graduated from Hertford Coimty H.S. and has begun working
in the family business.
CLASS OF 1969
Linda F. Jenkins, Franklin, Va., has been employed by Moyler, Moyler,
Rainey & Cobb in Franklin for 28 years as a certified professional secretary.
Mary Jo Wilson Williams, Chesapeake, Va., teaches first grade in the
Chesapeake Public Schools and is mother to 2 teenage daughters and an 11
year old son. Her husband, O’Max Williams ‘68, is a former school teacher
currently employed in the shipyard business.
CLASS OF 1972
Jerry Franklin Ballard, Roswell, Ga., continued his education at James
Madison College and served as a flight attendant with Eastern Airlines for 16
years. He is currently an e-mail product specialist for 9 states in the
Southeast with BellSouth Cellular Inc. and a real estate agent for Harry
Norman Reality in Atlanta, Ga. Ballard and his wife, Valerie Dizer Ballard,
invite classmates to visit them at their summer home on RackclifT Island in
Spruce Head, Maine.
Gary James Downey, Smithfield, Va., received his B.S. degree from James
Madison University in 1974. A state probation officer for the Common
wealth of Virginia for 22 years, Downey is married and has two children.
Janet Freeman, Williamston, N.C., teaches preschool at Memorial Baptist
Preschool.
Bruce GoUmbiewski, Chesapeake, Va., is employed as a F^iblic Works
Center utility supervisor and recently opened an Aussie Outfitters store in
Chesapeake Square Mall with his wife Lyn. Their motto is “If you wear out
our clothes, we replace them forever.”
Charles H. Watson, Jr., Nags Head, N.C., serves as operations supervisor
for Dare County Emergency Medical Services.
CLASS OF 1973
Phyllis Carr Johnson, Chesapeake, Va., writes freelance copy for
newspapers including The Virginian-Pilot and Byerly Publications. With
poetry and articles in various magazines and leaflets, she recently sold a
feature story to Woman’s World magazine and writes children’s books with
See CLASS ACTS on Page 18
CHOWAN TODAY, June 1997 — Page 15