In Memoriam
I compiled this list primarily from the Niles West Class of 1976 classmates in memoriam who passed away. Thank you to the superb sleuth work of Steve Nagelberg, Greg Sprague, and Don Schmidt. I only included Lincolnwood kids here as a follow-up to my prior tribute to Lincolnwood classmates gone too soon.
Top row, left to right:
Joseph Gumola, died in 2003, age 45. I didn’t recall that Joe was a Lincolnwood kid until I looked at my Lincoln Hall yearbooks. I vaguely remember him from Niles West.
Leslie Wexler, died in 2007, age 49 of breast cancer.
Catherine Ann Torp, died in 2013, age 55.
Todd Chapman, died in 2013, age 54 after a long battle with cancer. While I wrote how Todd was a bully in junior high and others also recalled this, thankfully people change, as evidenced by the lovely tribute comments in his obituary.
Bottom row: left to right:
Mark P. Eissman, died in 2020, age 62. In a GoFundMe, it said that Mark was a formidable journalist, editor and lawyer, and a wonderful person with a warm and generous spirit. He passed away after a battle with cancer.
Bruce Weiner, died in 2022, age 63 of cancer. I remember Bruce razzing me in 8th grade about “going steady” with Jim Berggreen and asking why I wasn’t wearing his ID bracelet.
Dan Spielman, died in 2022, age 65. Every time I visit my mom in Lincolnwood, I drive past Dan’s childhood home on Pratt. I remember that he went steady with a girl in 5th or 6th grade and gave her an ID bracelet – a proper one, not like the homemade job I got from Jim.
Sandy Lichten, died in 2023, age 65, suddenly. I remember Sandy lived close to Proesel Park and although she was popular in junior high and high school, she was sweet and down to earth.
Top Row, left to right:
Jim Berggreen, died in 2023, age 65 after a serious car accident, followed by contracting pneumonia while in recovery. Jim went missing in November 2022 from the In-Ko-Pah Spirit Retreat, with a missing person’s alert released by the San Diego Sheriff’s Office. Somebody posted on Facebook that he was found safe. Then I found this document, indicating he died about 7 months after the incident.
Jim didn’t graduate with the Niles West class of 1976 because his family moved to Wisconsin after our junior year. I remember when Jim told me (with some trepidation) that he and his sister Elise (NW class of 1974) were born to poverty-stricken parents in Appalachia and adopted by a much older couple.
Every time I drive past Niles West on the way to visit my mom, I see the tree where he broke up with me during our junior year. Apparently, he fell in with the wrong crowd, got into drugs, and looked to be homeless when he went missing. His long-estranged son David told me he barely knew his dad, but was kind enough to inform me about his cause of death.
Julie Bennett Carson, died in 2024, age 66 after a lengthy battle with metastatic breast cancer.
Barry Arons: If recall correctly, Barry had a long struggle with MS, but I couldn’t find an obituary.
Mark Stoller, died in 2009, age 51, I am guessing from a heart-related issue since he was born with a congenital heart defect. Larry Kagan informed me that Mark had passed away and also told me that Mark moved to Lincolnwood in 1969.
Group Photo, left to right: David Miller, Ian Goldman (died in 2010), Joanne Bernstein, Todd Chapman (died in 2013)
Lincolnwood Kids in Junior High School
Group Photo top row, left to right: Sharon Miller, Robin Gussis, Bobby Mittel; bottom row, left to right: Mitch Harris, Susan Ash
Group Photo, left to right: Marlene Braude, Henry Kalter, Debi Baron (died in 2020), Steven Cohen (died in 2003)
Group Photo, left to right: Julie Gettleman, Steve Sorkin, Maurice Dayan, Karen Sherwood (seated)
Left to right: Sandy Lichten, Andrea Nitsche, Debi Baron, Dan Spielman, Steven Cohen – all but Andrea have passed away (Source: Larry Goldstein Facebook)
Lincolnwood Potpourri
Richard Powers (Born June 18, 1957)
My close college friend is a longtime book designer at Penguin Random House and has designed two books for Richards Powers. She told me that the Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist often mentions Lincolnwood in his novels. His dad, Richard Franklin Powers was principal of Lincoln Hall during the mid-1960s and they lived there for a few years. In 1968, he left when he accepted a position at the International School of Bangkok, moving his family to Thailand for five years.
Random School Day Memories
I entered the science fair in 7th grade and 8th grade and received first place in 8th grade. My oddball project was a series of line drawings of dogs slowly morphing into cats. I asked different demographic groups to say at what point they saw a cat and then graphed this to detect any trends based on age and gender.
I only placed second in the regional science fair, but this was enough to get a free trip to the Junior Science Fair in Champaign at the University of Illinois. I remember eating in the cafeteria and bowling at the campus bowling alley wearing a skirt. There were three girls to a room and two of us couldn’t sleep because the third girl was snoring so loudly, it sounded like a freight train! One of the other girls actually wrote about this in my yearbook. We had a chance to shop nearby and I bought my mom a cute, little blown glass creamer.
The building at 4000 W. Pratt (where the Lincolnwood Public Library District now stands) was first a Jewel grocery store, and later became one of the original Pier 1 Imports locations. I remember going to Pier 1 after junior high and buying little trinkets.
When I missed the bus to go home after school, my mom wouldn’t pick me up and I walked home part of the way with Susie Slavin. That’s when she told me that she and her two bothers Earl and Eddie were triplets.
I walked over to my dentist’s office above Orlove Drug store numerous times after school. Dr. Harry Shepard didn’t use Novocain and some of my cavities were quite deep – ouch. He was also a smoker and I could smell nicotine on his hands because dentists didn’t wear gloves back then. I usually bought candy at Orlove after my dentist appointment!
I remember Linda Fishman telling us in 8th grade that she swallowed so much chewing gum, she might have to undergo an operation.
When I missed the bus and had to walk home, I would either purposely step on all the sidewalk cracks or avoid them to make time pass.
I loved hitting a piñata in 7th grade with my classmates and getting a lot of candy.
I played basketball with Bobby Mittel and Debby Braun in 7th grade at a park in East Lincolnwood near both of their houses.
Linda Axelrod had the coolest birthday party – turtle races. I won a beautiful, tiny sterling Buddha charm that I still have to this day.
Embarrassing Moments I Would Rather Forget
In first grade, I was friends with Cynthia Graff, who lived in a tiny doll house on Wallen Ave. in East Lincolnwood until her family moved to Evanston in 1968. Our parents became dear friends after they moved, but Cynthia and I lost touch until her mom’s funeral in 2023. Cynthia was always asking me to do weird things, like touching dog doo. In first grade, we were sitting in the courtyard at Todd Hall and she said, let’s pull down our undies and show our privates, albeit ever so briefly. Leslie Wexler witnessed this and said she would tell on us, but never did.
When I was about 4 and he was 5, Terry Sanders came over to my house in the middle of winter and encouraged me to do the same thing as Cynthia. “I’ll show you mine if you show me yours.” This came back to haunt us through our high school years because John Lartz saw us somehow and never missed a chance to remind us. Terry mowed our lawn for a few years during high school and never paid much attention to me.
In early September 1978 after my sister Debbie got married, Terry invited me over to his house and we kissed a little and talked about the past. Of course, he brought up the preschool incident. I was surprised how beautiful his bedroom was – incredibly organized and clean. I was also shocked how tall he was since he was on the small side in high school. I was leaving for RISD two days later so didn’t see him again. I always liked Terry and Chris’ mom Kay – she seemed super chill and their house was lovely and immaculate.
Gym Class
Who remembers playing Speedway at Lincoln Hall?
How about the awful rope climbing that caused blisters on your hands and sores on your legs – kind of sadistic, if you ask me. My friend Stefanie Newman managed to climb to the top.
I have a vivid visual memory of barely managing to get the Presidential Physical Fitness Award due to the 660-yard run. I was so out of breath and was one of the last kids to cross the finish line in the field in front of Lincoln Hall. My dislike of running continued when I competed in field-only events on the Niles West track team.
Kids Who Lived on My Block
Not too many kids lived on my side of Kilpatrick. While technically just across the street on North Shore, I was friends with Peter Wynbrandt who was a year younger than me. This didn’t last more than a year because he soon befriended the Baxter thugs who terrorized the neighborhood.
Gloria and Joey Camilli lived two doors down, but were much younger than me. Danny Kohler lived a few doors down from them, and the Bergers lived closer to Albion. Eve Berger was from the Shetland Islands and Mark was a psychoanalyst colleague of my dad’s, although they weren’t close friends. Lesley was friends with my sister Janet and she had a younger brother Adam who predeceased their dad. They moved out in 1971 and the Persky Family moved in.
On my block, other side of the street, were the Johnsons – Paul, David, Susan, and Nancy. Next to them, were Andy, Jimmy, and Rick Hurvitz, until their folks Louise and Sol moved to Woodcliff Lake, NJ in 1979.
Steve, Phil, and Mark Graubart lived next to them. My sister Janet was selling comic books on the curb and I think it was Steve who said to her, “How could you be so beautiful and have a dog of a sister?” I was extremely hurt by this and I never could confirm if Janet was just being mean or this really happened. But I thought Steve was snooty and Phil was the nicest brother.
When I was very young, the Newmans lived next to the Graubarts, but I think they moved closer to the little park on Kilbourn (Arthur Goebelt Park). David was a year older than me and worked at Turin Bicycle when they were on Davis Street in Evanston. I found him a little intimidating, but he was actually a nice guy who ended up teaching in Chicago Public Schools. When I was 2, I fell off my bed when one of his much older sisters, either Betty or Bobbie was babysitting for me and ended up at St. Francis Hospital getting stitches on the bridge of my nose.
Ross, Jody, and Gina Cohan lived with their grandparents. If I recall correctly, tragically, their parents both passed away in a car accident in California and their grandparents raised them. Chris and Terry Sanders lived next to the Cohans, and next door to them were the LaPaks – Cindy and Chris, whose parents died of heart attacks in their 50s – a disease that briefly killed Chris.
Hi Betsy. I really enjoy reading your posts. Today’s was especially good. It was somber at the start and ended on a cute almost whimsical note.
I’m not sure if your first part was intended to include all our classmates who have passed away. You did omit, Alex Lafita, Steve Rosenberg and Mitchell Tarczynski. All were Lincolnwood residents and all very good friends of mine, along with Ian.
I didn’t know Joe Gamola was a Lincolnwood kid. I thought he lived in Skokie, but may be wrong and he was a resident for a short time??
Thanks again for posting and I look forward to your next blog.
Ooops sorry, as I re-read your opening I see that this is a follow up to your previous post and in that one I know you did mention others who had passed away including those I mention in my above comment.
No problem – nice to hear from you, Larry. Hope all is well with you and your family.
I am a little older than you. I started high school in 1963. My family lived in West Rogers Park in Chicago until our family moved to Lincolnwood in 1968 when I was already in my second year of college. You were talking about noteworthy things that happened in grammar school
Anyone that went to Chicago Public High Schools in the early 60s will remember that all boys were required to swim naked. It still bothers me to think about it more than 60 years later. Before we went in the pool, the gym teachers would make us 14-year-olds sit naked on benches in a line next to the pool. They would have their clip board with them, would go down the line taking attendance and would look us up and down to see “if we took a shower”.
Once I had a wart removed on my foot and the doctor wrote a note to get me out of swimming. I changed the date on the note so many times, I wore a hole in it. I am still friends with a guy who was in my class, and we were just talking about this. He told me something I hadn’t heard before. He said when he took Red Cross lifesaving training in high school, they made him do that naked also. If any of these things happened today, they would arrest the gym teachers.
That is truly horrifying, demeaning, and downright awful! The closest thing to that was wearing threadbare swimsuits at Niles West, each time getting a different one on loan. Nothing much was left to the imagination.
An amazing update Betsy – thanks for all the work that you have done! Makes me sorry we weren’t close friends growing up since we lived so close to each other.
Thanks, John – that’s very sweet of you to say! I hope you didn’t have problems with the Baxter boys since you lived in the same block. I heard when their mother decided to sell the house that it was pretty much destroyed inside.
Thank you for all of your continuing hard work on this website, Betsy! I always look forward to your posts when I open Facebook. I grew up on Fitch between Hamlin and East Prairie. My two older sisters, my younger brother and I all went to Todd, Rutledge and Lincoln, then Niles West. I was Lincoln Hall class of ’78 then Niles West class of ’82.
Cheers to you and to the nostalgia and memories you bring to us here every day!
I loved climbing the rope! In those days, I aspired to being a gym teacher, never imagining I would wind up at an artsy school which had a soccer team (the only organized sport) that regularly lost to the local high school. I have missed Consumer Grouch and was so happy to see it again.
Thank you. You were always very athletic – an excellent skier and so good at climbing that darn rope. Plus a talented runner on the NW Track team. RISD also had one team – the NADS, a pretty mediocre but fun ice hockey team that got beaten by townies.
I remember the Baxters. They were nuts!
Thanks Betsy for the post. Your post was a bit before my time, however, I did grow up in Lincolnwood during the 1970s/1980s so I like to read anything about Lincolnwood that comes up. Sad to see how many of ours have passed away.