Class of 1976 50th Reunion

Karl Stark here. I am just an old retiree living in a nondescript town in the Midwest. Not much to tell except:

• Studied Animal Science at UMass Amherst with the intention of being a veterinarian.
• Spent two years as a Peace Corps volunteer in Tunisia—right out of college, working in agriculture. Learned to speak Arabic.
• Worked at Angell Memorial Animal Hospital in Boston as a surgical technician. Met my Ex there.
• Have one son, Ian, in 1994. No grandchildren yet.
• Managed Firestone stores in Massachusetts and Madison, WI—transferred because the cost of living was too expensive in Boston.
• Began competing as a short track ice speed skater at age 46.
• Wife left in 2012 after 23 years of marriage.
• Met my partner, Barb, one year later in Meetup.
• Lost 63 pounds on Weight Watchers. 2015. Began recreation bicycling.
• Invited to join BCETS—advanced level cycling training at age 61. Began endurance cycling during the summer and short track speed skating during the winter.
• Diagnosed with aggressive prostate cancer February, 2025. Continued to skate and cycle during treatment. Interviewed on television because I persevered even when I felt poorly.
• Cancer in remission since March, 2026. Rejoined the endurance cycling circuit.

A few glimpses along the way

• Graduated from the University of Massachusetts 1980.
• Worked for Omni Hotels and Resorts from 1980 to 1991.
• Moved to Cincinnati in 1983. My forever home.
• Opened and owed Allyn’s Cafe 1991 to 2024.
• Married Karen Mildred Lennon. 1992 to date.
• Fathered three boys. Brandon, Grant and Maxwell. 30, 26 and 24.
• Graduated from The School of Integrated Nutrition 2018.
• Became a Stephen Minister (a lay person’s ministry-care giver) 2019 to 2024.
• Self published We Don’t Just Eat Lettuce Vegan Recipes for Carnivores 2019 and What You Can Do In Three Minutes 2024. Both are self help books based on my experiences with the principles and nuances of The School of Integrated Nutrition.
• Went on a plant based diet. 2012 to present.
• Achieved a Black Belt in Shuri-Ryu Okinawan Karate in 1996.
• Celebrated my 34th wedding anniversary. 2026.
• Grew up in the best place on earth, the Berkshires.
• I continue to bike, hike, and ride motorcycles.
• I do not play pickle ball!

A few glimpses along the way

After MMRHS, Wendy went to the University of Maine at Farmington as a geology/biology/history major. Having fulfilled her life dream of getting a job with the National Park Service, she transferred to Virginia Tech so she could continue to work at Shenandoah National Park year round. Wendy graduated from Virginia Tech in 1980 with a B.S. in geology but left the park service to go work for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in Cincinnati. After a year with the EPA, she worked for a year for the Veterans Administration, then spent the next 13 years at a uranium production facility, which later became the Department of Energy’s first successfully cleaned-up Superfund site.

Wendy is now an award-winning freelance writer and editor, her other life dream. Wendy has published eight books, thousands of news releases, and nearly 300 articles in print and online publications. She has received a baker’s dozen of awards for writing, editing and desktop publishing (remember that term?). Her articles have been published in Writer’s Digest, Cincinnati Magazine, M.D. News Magazine, and elsewhere. In 1994, Wendy started “Beckman Communications,” through which she provides editing and writing services for individuals, educational institutions, and businesses.

Her bachelor’s degrees are in geology and natural science/technical communications from Virginia Polytechnic Institute & State University and the University of Cincinnati, respectively. Wendy also has a master’s degree in English—with a concentration in editing and publishing—and a graduate certificate in professional writing from UC.

Wendy taught “Writing for Business” and “Scientific and Technical Writing” at UC from 1999 until 2004. Also from 1999 until 2004, Wendy taught “Strength Through Cultural Diversity” at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio. Now Wendy gets her teaching kicks by teaching adult learners through many workshops each year for writers who wish to get published, from a few hours in length to weekend-long retreats. Wendy also teaches adult classes such as “Writing to Publish” and “Discover Your Writer Within” for UC’s Communiversity and is an exam prep tutor for Huntington Learning Solutions.

Married in 1988 to Stephen Beckman, Wendy has three sons and two granddaughters. She earned a second-degree black belt in Tae kwon do and was a tournament fighter for a few years in the 80s. Wendy also kept active in the 80s, singing with a Sweet Adelines quartet and chorus. She sang for 10 years for the Cincinnati May Festival Chorus, the official chorus of the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra and the longest continuous choral tradition in the Western hemisphere. Her hobbies are reading, writing, crocheting, knitting, video gaming, and cooking.