Then and now

Just received my Virginia Tech Magazine [Summer 2007]. I am always awed by the news from Tech. It is so much greater than it was during my years there.

This issue ended with your column about Dean Price. He was a great friend of my foster dad, Leo Beamer, and my neighbor in town, L.B. Dietrick, dean of agriculture during the late '50s. After reading the article, I was confused between Harvey Lee Price and "Flopsie" Price, both of whom were known to my Dad as well to Dean Dietrick. I had a conversation with Dean Dietrick's son, Dr. Ron Dietrick, who set me straight: Harvey Lee Price was an earlier dean of agriculture, whereas "Flopsie" was at the time in something akin to public relations for VPI and an elder in the Presbyterian church, which is where I knew of him. In any case, your article resulted in the renewal of correspondence with my former neighbor in Blacksburg, which is good.

At some future date, I would like to see an "In Retrospect" article about J.B. Jones, the longtime head of mechanical engineering starting in the '20s--and another neighbor of mine at Tech.

Benton (Ben) Lindamood '53 | Howell, Mich.Carol Senger-Korynta '72

During a recent adventure through Italy and Greece, my friend Katie Van Gilst (history '05; M.A. EDCI '06) and I were proud to wear T-shirts and sandals supporting our beloved university. No matter where we were, whether touring the Roman Coloseum or the ruins at Pompeii, hiking the Cinque Terre, or dining in Sorrento or at a taverna in Athens, people noticed our attire and spoke to us about how wonderful Virginia Tech is. We were encouraged by their support and connections to the university; a tour guide at Pompeii stopped us and said that he not only leads Hokies on tours of the ruins but he even has a "Hokies United" shirt. We already knew that the Hokie family is tight and we learned on our trip just how far that family extends--internationally!

Amanda Prettyman '03‚ '05 | Roanoke, Va.

Hundreds of players from the 66 alumni chapter teams playing in the 11th annual Capital Alumni Network (CAN) softball tournament in Greenbelt, Md., on Aug. 4 took a break to form this 300-foot-wide "VT." This was just one of many gestures of support for Hokies shown by alumni from the 200+ CAN member schools with chapters in the D.C. metro area. The National Capital Region Chapter of the Virginia Tech Alumni Association has fielded a team for many years and won the title in 2000.

Hokies in space

It was most enjoyable to read your fine article "To the moon" in the summer issue of Virginia Tech Magazine. I felt it a worthy reminder that I had the good fortune and honor of being an active participant in our space program as an employee of North American Rockwell at Cape Kennedy (formerly Canaveral) during the heyday of our space exploration during the '60s and early '70s. Many of us today share the opinion that we had it all together in those days, the spirit and enthusiasm of the space program employees matching that of a Hokie homecoming game. At that time, we had or were actively testing the current and future hardware (e.g., testing the Nova rocket and engine in the Everglades), software, knowledge, and the desire to continue space travel and exploration. Then, Congress and the president decided that we could not continue the program, and after Apollo 17, there was a five-year hiatus before the Skylab program. It was during that time that I reluctantly left the cape and went to optometry school.

The sad conclusion: We as a nation are 30 years behind ourselves, today trying to pursue the same goals that we could have achieved before when we had "the team" together. I had to throw this in so you’ll know that many Hokies have been there, done that--we sat at the consoles during the launches of Saturn V and knew many of the astronauts--and would love to see our country get with the program again!

Gil Davis '60 | Richmond, Va.

Extra copies of the Memorial Issue of Virginia Tech Magazine are still available. To request a complimentary copy, send a note to Virginia Tech Magazine, 105 Media Building, Blacksburg, VA 24061, or send an e-mail to vtmag@vt.edu.