Colonial Williamsburg
Mini Reunion
October 22 - 25, 2019
Historic Colonial Williamsburg, Virginia
Where history never gets old
Our Hosts
Carol & Phil Wright John & Betsy Davis
If you have never been to a Mini (or even if you have), be sure to check out the Feedback at the end of this page.
Introduction
Attendees included 15 classmates plus 12 significant others for a total of 27!
Doug + Becky Laipple
Jay + Mona Owen
Bob + Nannie Sue Sindelar
Dee Gleason Stinson + Bill Evans
Rocky + Twink Wayburn
Penn + Margarida Williamson
Phil + Carol Wright
Dan Baker
Howie Bridges
Rick Carpenter + Sally Ross
Tom + Catherine Cooney
John + Betsy Davis
Mitch Fry + Janyce Dean
Craig + Karen Kennedy
Brad Laycock
Our Headquarters Hotel was the Hampton Inn & Suites at 1880 Richmond Road, Williamsburg, VA.
Not the fanciest place we have ever used for a Headquarters Hotel, but fit our needs at an excellent price point ... and it had a great location (e.g., just yards away from the local SAS shoe store [inside joke]).
Taken after our Thursday night dinner on the patio of the Second Street Restaurant
Standing (L to R): Jay Owen, Margarida Williamson, Karen Kennedy, Penn Williamson, Brad Laycock, Dan Baker, Carol Wright, Howard Bridges, Rick Carpenter, Phil Wright (partially hidden), Bob Sindelar, Craig Kennedy, Rocky Wayburn, Becky & Doug Laipple, Mitch Fry (not looking at the camera) and Janyce Dean (with Mitch)
Sitting (L to R): Mona Owen, Sally Ross (with Rick Carpenter), Twink Wayburn, Nannie Sue Sindelar, Betsy & John Davis
Missing: Tom & Catherine Cooney; Dee Gleason Stinson and Bill Evans
Observations:
"Wide Angle" on Jay's new iPhone 11 has its pluses and minuses.
Upon seeing the picture above, Dan Baker offered this comment: "It looks as though everyone in the entire front row is seated in wheelchairs". Rest assured, we did not walk THAT much during the Mini, and no one is actually in a wheelchair.
Monday, Oct 21 (Pre-Mini)
After spending a couple of days enjoying the hospitality of Phil & Carol Wright at their gorgeous home in Hebron, MD (remember the hurricane-shortened Delmarva Mini Reunion?), John & Betsy Davis helped Phil & Carol load up their Ford Expedition with all the items that were deemed necessary for putting on the Mini (e.g., beverages, mixers, appetizers, snacks, goodie bags, ice chests, seasonal and Culver decorations, extra chairs for Social Hours, ... oh, yeah, and their personal luggage).
(BTW: That license plate should be read as "SAS Shoe" (as in "San Antonio Shoes") ... not "SASS-hoe".)
(Not shown in its fully-loaded glory: The trailer behind the Expedition that was needed to haul all the stuff that would not fit inside the vehicle.)
During their drive to Williamsburg, the Wright and Davis clans queried other expected attendees about joining them for dinner at Giuseppe's Italian Restaurant. Dee Stinson & Bill Evans and Rick Carpenter & Sally Ross accepted the invite for what was an excellent way to start the Williamsburg adventure. No pictures, but it was delicious food.
Tuesday, Oct 22
Although the Mini did not officially start until late in the afternoon, several folks arrived early to spend time sightseeing places not included in the Mini's schedule. For example, Craig & Karen Kennedy and Penn & Margarida Williamson were joined by Howard Bridges checking out Jamestown.
Howie Bridges, Craig Kennedy, and Penn Williamson
Karen Kennedy and Margarida Williamson
Aboard the Susan Constant
Craig Kennedy, Penn Williamson, and Howie Bridges
Karen Kennedy, Howie Bridges, Ship Crewperson, Penn Williamson, and Craig Kennedy
Howard Bridges in the Pulpit of the Jamestown Settlement Church
... reliving his days as Chaplain's Aide? ... or emulating Doug Neumann in days gone bye???
The official kick-off for the Mini started at 5 PM with a Welcome Gathering of appetizers, drinks, and socializing at the Wright's time-share unit in Williamsburg Plantation Resort.
Appetizers and Decorations
Carol Wright making some final adjustments to the table.
Phil Wright and Betsy Davis in the background
A Goodie Bag
When the bag was full, it included a pumpkin ornament, a bottle of sweet tea capped with a Christmas topper, a candle, a bag of cookies, and a bag of nuts! Design and content courtesy of Carol Wright.
One of those group pictures with too many people to individually identify.
Phil Wright, Rocky Wayburn, Howie Bridges
Craig Kennedy, Phil Wright, Rocky Wayburn, Rick Carpenter
Sally Ross (with Rick), Mitch Fry, Janyce Dean (with Mitch).
Tom Cooney and Margarida Williamson
Brad Laycock, Dan Baker, Howie Bridges
Mona & Jay Owen, Rocky Wayburn
Tom Cooney
Rocky Wayburn, Bob & Nannie Sue Sindelar
Sally Ross (with Rick) and Betsy Davis
Karen Kennedy and Phil Wright
Dee Stinson, Howie Bridges, Carol Wright, Penn Williamson, Sally Ross
Becky & Doug Laipple (Why so serious???)
Bill Evans (with Dee) and Bob Sindelar
Mona Owen, John Davis, Howie Bridges
Following the Welcome Gathering, everyone was technically on their own for dinner. However, in advance of the Mini, Doug & Becky Laipple had decided they wanted to eat at the historic Christiana Campbell's Tavern in Colonial Williamsburg ("GIVING satisfaction to Travelers and Townspeople with a Taste for SEAFOOD" is its slogan.). Not believing in unintended consequences, Doug gamely announced that "If anyone would like me to include them in our dinner reservations, ...". A total of 19 accepted his invite!
(Photographing by candlelight presented some challenges.)
Doug & Becky Laipple
Left side of Table: Catherine Cooney, Tom Cooney, Nannie Sue & Bob Sindlar - - - - - Right side of table: Twink Wayburn (turned away), Rick Carpenter, Sally Ross (blurred)
Dee Stinson & Bill Evans
Catherine Cooney (profile), Rocky & Twink Wayburn (WAY in the background), Rick Carpenter, Sally Ross
Wednesday, Oct 23
Following breakfast at our Headquarters Hotel, we all motored over to the Group Entrance of the Colonial Williamsburg Visitor Center.
Once at the Visitor Center, we met our guide (Ira), who led us to the bus to take us into the heart of the historic part of the town.
Mona & Jay Owen
Twink & Rocky Wayburn
Mitch Fry & Janyce Dean
Rick Carpenter & Sally Ross
Karen & Craig Kennedy
Rick Carpenter, Margarida & Penn Williamson, Jay Owen, Twink Wayburn, Carol Wright
After getting off the bus, our guide led us on a 2-hour tour of the highlights of the area including the Governor's house plus the shops of a silversmith and milliner.
John & Betsy Davis attentively listening to our Guide
Twink & Rocky Wayburn ... also listening
Twink & Rocky Wayburn, Mona & Jay Owen, Phil Wright
Margarida & Penn Williamson, John & Betsy Davis, Catherine & Tom Cooney
Silversmith
Our group listening to our Guide
Lafeyette on his horse ... having a apparently fluent conversation in French with Margarida Williamson
The Milliner Shop
A Townsperson with Rick Carpenter
Walking and listening on Duke of Gloucester Street
Colonial Williamsburg is VERY much into Halloween
After the tour, we all gathered at the Blue Talon Bistro on the edge of the historic area for lunch.
Betsy Davis, Carol Wright, Dee Stinson, Bill Evans, Phil Wright
Margarida & Penn Williamson, Karen & Craig Kennedy, Dan Baker, Rocky Wayburn
Facing camera: Jay & Mona Owen, Rick Carpenter, Sally Ross
Back to camera: Howie Bridges, Mitch Fry, Janyce Dean (see next image)
Janyce Dean, Mitch Fry, Howie Bridges
Brad Laycock, Catherine & Tom Cooney
The afternoon was left as free time for shopping and other desired exploring ... and for Phil/Carol/John/Betsy to move all Social Hour stuff from the Plantation Resort to the Hampton Inn!
As if we had not had enough food and drink, at 4:30 PM we gathered back at the Hampton Inn where the Davis and Wright suites (across the hall from each other) served as the site for our Social Hour: Mixed drinks in the Davis suite; wine and beer in the Wright suite; appetizers in both places. (The following pictures are a mixture of images from the Wednesday and Thursday Social Hours. Too hard to tell the difference between them!)
One of the suites ("before")
The “Welcome Mats” were out for each of the suites that we used for the Social Hours.
John Davis and Howie Bridges
Jay Owen, Mitch Fry, Rick Carpenter, and Craig Kennedy
Rocky Wayburn, Bob & Nannie Sue Sindelar
John Davis, Rick Carpenter, Doug Laipple
Karen Kennedy and Betsy Davis
(Note the “cool” seating provided by the hosts)
Dinner for this evening was at the phenomenal Le Yaca Restaurant.
Our room
Mitch Fry and Janyce Dean
Bill Evans & Dee Stinson
Jay Owen
Mona Owen and Carol Wright
Penn Williamson
Phil Wright and Doug Laipple
Bob & Nannie Sue Sindelar
Thursday, Oct 24
After breakfast again at our Headquarters Hotel, we headed to Yorktown. Our initial stop was the spectacular American Revolutionary War Museum. Everyone was on their own to tour the museum at their own pace. Allowing only 2 hours for the self-guided touring was regrettably far too short.
There really was a WHOLE lot more to see and do than sitting next to a statue of George Washington, these are sadly the only pictures anyone took.
Craig Kennedy, “George”, Penn Williamson
Betsy & John Davis
Betsy Davis and Carol Wright
Lunch for this day was at the Riverwalk Restaurant, with its beautiful waterfront view of the York River.
The York River
Jay Owen, Janyce Dean, Brad Laycock, Mitch Fry
Bob Sindelar, Tom & Catherine Cooney, Twink & Rocky Wayburn, Nannie Sue Sindelar
Rick Carpenter, Sally Ross, Dan Baker, Howie Bridges, John & Betsy Davis
Dee Stinson, Bill Evans, Margarida & Penn Williamson
Again, we seem to be fascinated with having our pictures taken with statues. Go figure ...
Dee Stinson, Bill Evans
Phil Wright and John Davis
Dee Stinson and Brad Laycock
Mona & Jay Owen
After lunch, it was only a very short stroll down the waterfront to the dock for our 2-hour afternoon cruise of the York River on The Schooner Alliance.
Catherine Cooney and John Davis
Phil & Carol Wright
Catherine Cooney
Becky & Doug Laipple
Bob & Nannie Sue Sindelar
Dan Baker and Doug Laipple
Betsy Davis
Brad Laycock
Howie Bridges
Janyce Dean & Mitch Fry
Penn Williamson
Sally Ross & Rick Carpenter
Under Full Sail
For our "last night in the wilderness", we dined at the Second Street Restaurant back in Williamsburg.
Jay Owen, Rick Carpenter, Phil Wright, Dan Baker, Bob Sindelar, Mitch Fry (partially hidden), Doug Laipple, Penn Williamson (mostly hidden), Craig Kennedy, Rocky Wayburn,
Brad Laycock, Howie Bridges, John Davis
Girls' Table #1: Becky Laipple, Margarida Williamson, Betsy Davis, Mona Owen, Karen Kennedy, Janyce Dean
Girls' Table #2: Carol Wright, Sally Ross, Nannie Sue Sindelar, Twink Wayburn
Devon ... Our incredibly talented and efficient server! Amazing how she accomplished splitting the checks with the boys and girls not next to each other.
Friday, Oct 25
The only semi-official event this day was to show up around 9 AM in the breakfast area of the Hampton Inn to bid farewell to each other. Sadly, no one made the time to capture the departures on their cameras.
Acknowledgements
Thanks to all the attendees who supplied all the pictures that are included on this web page.
Your webmaster's apologies to those who feel they were under (or over) represented in the images included, or whose images may not be as flattering as they might wish. But even with the 700+ images to chose from, some people were under (or over) represented ... or not in the best focus. Next time, we collectively need to remember to take more posed shots (vice candid ones) to be sure more high quality pictures of everyone are captured.
Feedback
A common thought expressed by attendees as departure approached was that they want to return to Williamsburg. There is SO much more to see and do than we had time to experience on this trip.
Here is some unsolicited feedback received about this Mini Reunion:
Howie Bridges: A huge thank you for what will be a very well remembered class mini. Always enjoy seeing everyone but also for the historical destination; a place most of us probably should know more about. You four (Phil & Carol, John & Betsy) have outdone yourselves and left the "mini bar" very high.
Betsy Davis: I think I can speak for the significant others who attended this and other Class of '62 mini reunions. It is fun for us to learn about our partners' Culver experiences but equally important are the friendships we have made with so many of those associated with the Culver Class of '62. In fact, at the last supper in Williamsburg, all the ladies chose to sit together for some final female bonding before departing.
Tom Cooney (A first-time Mini attendee): Thanks to all for making our first Mini so Much fun!! Everyone was so friendly and treated us like family from the first minute we walked into the condo on Tuesday afternoon. We could not have had a better time.
Mitch Fry: Thank you all for waking me up to my youth, our wonderful Culver experience, and old dear friends.
Craig Kennedy: Karen and I both want to thank [John], Betsy, Phil and Carol for a 1st class mini-reunion. We thoroughly enjoyed every moment of it.
Doug Laipple: Williamsburg was great and the efforts that went into preparation were perfect. It was nice seeing old friends, especially Rocky, Mitch, and Dee, not meaning to slight any of the others. Becky enjoyed meeting the significant others, and the dinners were very sociable. The fact that the food was good was waisted (sic) on me. We are looking forward to another one, even if Neumann does come.
Bob Sindelar: Wow, another great mini. The events, happy hours and restaurants were all fantastic. Nannie Sue and I had a wonderful time being with so many classmates and spouses and are looking forward to the next mini.
Rocky Wayburn: Twink and I had a great time at the Williamsburg mini. The Wrights did a wonderful job in organizing and planning our time together. It was nice to see new faces and hope they will be encouraged to come to future events.
Here are some additional, lengthier comments from Tom Cooney:
I am writing as a CMA graduate of the class of 1962 who had not attended a class reunion since our 10th - until October's Mini Reunion in Williamsburg. My wife Catherine and I couldn't have had a better time making new friends and renewing old friendships.
The Davises and the Wrights planned the perfect balance between fun and interesting activities with lots of time to rehash experiences at Culver and to get to know each other all over again. As the new kids on the block, we were concerned that we might feel like outsiders, but we did NOT!
From the first greetings to our goodbyes, we were loved on and treated as though we had always been part of this super interesting group of people. I urge you to arrange your schedule to be part of a future Culver mini reunion and our 60th Reunion in 2022.