Notes from the Class of 1949

Bill Coburn* (CivEngr’49) and his wife Carol Coburn*(Edu’60) are thrilled for their granddaughter, Emma Coburn, a CU senior majoring in business, who won the women’s USA 3,000 meter steeplechase in June (covered in the September issue of the Coloradan) and who competed in the IAAF World Championships in Athletics in September. The couple lives in Boulder.

*Directors Club member

The nurse practitioner movement was initiated in part by Loretta Pfingstel Ford (Nurs’49, MS’51, EdD’61, HonDocSci’97) as a way to give nurses more responsibility during doctor shortages. For her work she was inducted into the National Women’s Hall of Fame, which includes women such as Oprah Winfrey and former Secretary of State Madeline Albright. Loretta lives in Wildwood, Fla.

On May 24, 1962, Scott Carpenter (Aero’49, HonDocSci’00) lifted off from Earth in NASA’s Aurora 7 space capsule mounted atop a Mercury-Atlas rocket at Cape Canaveral, Fla., climbing to roughly 165 miles in altitude. Scott was the fourth American astronaut to fly in space and the second to achieve orbit of Earth. Last May Scott participated in a two-day event in New York City in honor of the 50th anniversary of NASA’s Aurora 7 flight. He lives in Vail. See the feature on Scott in this magazine.

Masks and Totems: A Northwest Coast Odyssey is Edward Malin’s (Anth’49, MA’61) fourth published book. It describes Indian tribes living on the northwest coast of British Columbia and southeast Alaska and Edward’s observations of their cultures. He lives in Lake Oswego, Ore., and says this will be his last book as he is 89. It’s available at www.amazon.com. Edward writes he is thankful for his glorious years at CU, noting his very best and most influential professor was Earl Swisher.

Last spring Loretta “Lee” Ford (Nurs’49, MS’51, EdD’61, HonDocSci’97) was inducted into the Colorado Women’s Hall of Fame for her work in the nursing profession. In 1965 Loretta began working with pediatrician Dr. Henry Silver at the CU Health Sciences Center to develop a pediatric nurse practitioner program, the first in the nation. Their program resulted in more than 140,000 nurse practitioners working in the U.S. today. Loretta resides with her husband in Wildwood, Fla. See the article, “Revolutionary nurse,” about her online in the September 2012 Coloradan.

Jim Friedlander (PolSci) of Portland, Maine, is writing several books: A memoir, a novel, a collection of short stories and a cookbook. Originally from Manhattan, Jim graduated from high school at 16. His memoir explores his experience running a bed-and-breakfast in Freeport, Maine, for more than 20 years with his late wife Glynrose Friedlander.