News From Fort Schuyler

February 1, 2002 - Volume 6, No. 4

SUMMER PLANS SHAPING UP - The tentative itinerary for the Summer Sea Term 2002 includes the Dry Tortugas, New Orleans, Dublin, Bergen, and Freeport. The EMPIRE STATE VI is scheduled to depart Fort Schuyler 18 May and return 18 July.

MEMORIES OF ED GRAHAM - "Back in the Fall of 1977, when I was a 4th classman", writes MIKE MORRIS, Class of 1981, "some of my classmates and I had Dr. Graham for a first semester Humanities course. Although I am not a smoker, I recall the very pleasant aroma of Dr. Graham's 'Captain Black' pipe tobacco, as he lit up a bowl. As well, I recall Dr. Graham's encouraging words to some of my classmates who were less than enthusiastic about the Humanities. He reassured them that, at the very least, someday what they learned in his classroom would come in handy at a cocktail party." (See also NFFS 6:2 and 6:3)

GREAT NEWS FROM THE COLLEGE - Check out the updated news section of the college webpage (www.sunymaritime.edu) There is information about the very important fact that the SUNY Maritime College's regional status program for in-state tuition rates, now covers 15 states, adding GA, FL, AR, LA, MS, NC, SC - all the more reason for alumni in South and Gulf Coast states to recruit all those bright, seaworthy high school students in their neighborhoods.

NEWS FROM JOISEY - The research and manufacturing operations of the pharmaceutical firm, Merck, are located in Rahway, New Jersey, hometown of Abraham Clark, a signer of the Declaration of Independence (www.colonialhall.com) and the birthplace of your NFFS editor. CHARLES HUDSON, Class of 1990, works at Merck as the head of the Engineering Information Systems Department, with responsibilities that go from SOP's to nuts: "One of the duties my department is tasked with, is maintaining the site library. Not the fancy one with scholarly scientific research journals, the plant one with maintenance manuals, CAD drawings, vendor documentation, preventative/predictive maintenance records and the like. We maintain hundreds of thousands of items in both print and electronic media. We support a Computerized Maintenance Management System, Document Management System, CAD system and Intranet. The Intranet gives employees access to everything from SOP's [Standard Operating Procedures], MSDS's [Material Safety Data Sheets] and even what's for lunch in the cafeteria. I meet many Fort Schuyler grads who work for engineering design and construction firms that our company hires, as they utilize our library and systems." [For Merck 's public Internet site go to: www.merck.com ]

EBB TIDE - DAVID STEELE, Class of October 1946, died on January 12 2002, according to death notices in Newsday and the NY Times. Dave is survived by his wife Patricia, daughters Deborah and Ann, and granddaughter Claire. A funeral service was held on January 17 at the Roslyn Presbyterian Church. Memorial donations may be made to the church [www.roslynpresbyterian.org] or to the Roslyn Fire Department [www.roslynrescue.org] (Thanks to JOEL COX, Class of 1947, for bringing this death to the attention of NFFS, as well as those below. Joel also noted that "For many years Dave was active in his family's steel fabricating business in Long Island City.")

ALVIN Z. RUBINSTEIN, Class of 1947, Professor of Political Science at the University of Pennsylvania for 44 years, died on December 18, 2001 following a stroke he had suffered on 6 December. He was 74 years old. The author of numerous books and articles, Professor Rubinstein's research focused on Russian foreign policy, conflict in the Third World and national security affairs. The December 19 issue of Penn's 'Almanac Between Issues' reported that: "He was planning to retire at the end of this semester..." According to the December 20th Philadelphia Inquirer, he "was stricken... while dining in the faculty lounge shortly after teaching the final class of his career." He is survived by his wife, Frankie, and a sister. For much more go to www.upenn.edu/almanac/v48/n17/Rubinstein.html

CHARLES NOSTRAND, Class of 1947, died of cancer at the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Center in New York on December 18, 2001 at the age of 74. According to an impressive tribute posted in the 'Celebrity Obits' section of VoyForums: "A virtuoso clarinetist who for half a century or more stubbornly kept alive the music of the Benny Goodman era, Charles Nostrand became known as Long Island's King of Swing. But Nostrand's talents transcended the bandstand. A trained electrical engineer, he was equally as proficient at coaxing a sweet sound out of a combustion engine [sic] as he was on the Buffet - the only clarinet he's ever played - the one his father bought him when he was in fourth grade." While in high school he was offered a scholarship to the Eastman School of Music "but Nostrand declined because he had enrolled as a cadet midshipman at Fort Schuyler in the Bronx....While studying engineering there, he played in the school's dance band and marching band." He shipped out with Standard Oil of New Jersey after graduation and "played for crew members as he traveled the world to far-flung places including Saudi Arabia, Buenos Aires, and Stockholm." He later returned to Fort Schuyler to obtain his degree when the college moved to a bachelor's degree program. "Excelling as an engineering student, he kept playing gigs with Dixieland bands locally. Nostrand sat in wherever and whenever he could, juggling music with a variety of jobs, including a stint designing high-fidelity sound systems with a major area distributor." He is survived by his wife Gloria, three sons and three step-daughters. For the full tribute go to www.voy.com/45481/2/ and page back to the 12/22/01 postings.)

JAMES P. SMITH - No further information available at this time. Please contact NFFS if you have details.