Bill Zarchy's Micro-Reunion Odyssey

Bill Explains the History

Hard to believe it’s been over two years since our memorable 50th Reunion!

Since then, and before the pandemic started, my wife Susan and I visited with a number of members of the Class of ’68. We have seen Ted Bovill ’68 and his wife Barbara Grant at our home in Albany, California, and in Sea Ranch, California. We had brunch with Charlie Karchmer ’68 in New York City, when we there for a performance by Susan’s barbershop chorus at Carnegie Hall. That was the only time we got to meet Charlie’s partner David, who sadly passed away a few months ago. We spent several days in Boynton Beach, Florida, with Marty Keller ‘68 and Lainy Keller (see photo). We had dinner on Bainbridge Island near Seattle last year with Tom Brewer ’68, Fred Appelbaum ’68, and Dita Appelbaum. And I get together for breakfast a couple of times a year with Bob Reich ’68 in Berkeley.

One of the best things to happen at our Reunion was that Bob, Charlie, and I got to update “The Picture.” A bit of history: on our graduation day in June ’68, my dad took a photo of the three of us on the lawn at C&G. We repeated The Picture at our 10th Reunion in ’78 and vowed to continue the tradition. Charlie missed our 25th, so Bob and I took The Picture without him. But we were all at the 50th and delighted to pose together. Unfortunately, we couldn’t remember who stood where. We knew we were in order by height (Reich and me on opposite ends, of course), but who was on the left, who on the right? So we took the shot both ways, and I put the four shots together in a composite (see photo).

Bob’s reaction to the composite: “Apart from hair, no difference.” I’m not sure that’s entirely accurate, but we are still the same heights, relatively speaking. Next on the agenda for The Picture: 2028!

Above: The Picture / Left to right, Bob Reich ‘68, Charlie Karchmer ‘68, Bill Zarchy ‘68 (in 1968, 1978, 1993, and 2018)

Above: In Boynton Beach, Florida / Left to right, Lainy Keller, Marty Keller ’68, Buddha, Susan Zarchy, Bill Zarchy ’68