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Class of  1955 Home Page

Howdy “Ole Army” and welcome to the Class of ’55 homepage.  Our old website was discontinued but some of the information was transferred to this new web site mainly by a member of the Aggie Association Data Processing Assistant, which was very much appreciated. 

The contents of the Home Page are Announcements, Reunion Information and Photographs, Names of Classmates recently passed away. 

Keep checking back as this web site will continue to be updated and improved, as I continue to get familiar with the new coding system.  I will continue to update our “Silver Taps” section and will note on the bottom of this page the Classmates that have most recently passed away to facilitate locating these falling Classmates.

As you know our Class of 1955 Memorial Scholarship was established in the memory of the following Viet Nam fallen Classmates:

Captain Russell Condon ’55
Major Hadley Foster ’55
Major Richard “Dick” Steel ’55

                                                                                                                                                                      Contribution to the fund can be made at any time, and for any reason, to:
Texas A&M- Foundation                                                                                                                      401 George Bush Drive
College Station, Texas 77640-2811
(979) 845-8161 or (800) 392-3310         https://giving.tamu.edu/foundation


1955 Aggie Sweetheart Ring found with a name of Joy O’Shields by Dr. Clifford Dorn ’81.  Notify him if you have any information.

From: Clifford Dorn <cgdorn@gte.net>
Sent: Thursday, April 22, 2021 3:47 PM
Subject: Class of 1955 Aggie Sweetheart Ring Howdy

I know that this is a long shot, but I am going to give it a try. I recently got hold of a 1955 Aggie Sweetheart ring with the name Joy O’Shields inscribed. The Association Ring Office is trying to track down the original Aggie that bought the ring, but it is a difficult task. I was hoping that someone from the Class of ‘55 might happen to know Joy O’Shields. If you have any insight or can send out this info to others from the class of ‘55 I would appreciate it. God bless and Gig ‘Em

Dr. Clifford Dorn, 81                                                                                                                  Rafter D Genetics                                                                                                                        7750 Raymond Stotzer Pkwy                                                                                               College Station, TX 77845

Class Agents Ambrose Boubel and Mike Trotter’s Resignations 

Class Agents Resignations  (Please Click on this link for details and pictures)

They have been replaced by Tom Stevens as Romain Slabbaert’s  ’55 Co-Class Agent . Please view Tom’s information in the Class Agent section.

PS Tom has retired from his Co-Class Agent position in 2021.


SRG Bulletin Four
14 August 2020
To our SRG Class Agents and their Classmate SRG Members,
Emailing our letter to the Texas A&M President after the vandalism of Sully’s statue, and the protest that followed, enabled us to inform our members in a more timely way as opposed to a paper newsletter that is not so timely. We believe we are at a juncture where we need to do the same with these email Bulletins as the needs arise, so that you can lend your support and share it as you see fit. We have decided that we need to “institutionalize” this Bulletin process for continued use.
The Association permitted us to use their system to send the 11 June letter to President Young, but not the follow-on Bulletins. So we devised our own “workaround” system. The way it works is that the SRG will send Bulletins (like this one) to the Class Agents of our SRG classes for distribution by them to their respective classmates (using their class mailing lists). We kindly request that you DO NOT call The Association and ask them to distribute it for you. You can reach us at srgpresident@aggienetwork.com. Thanks.
If you wish to comment to those who are the campus leaders, below are the addresses for you to voice your opinions:
Michael Young (President, TAMU: PresidentYoung@tamu.edu)
1246 TAMU
Texas A&M University
College Station,

Keeping Sully’s Statue in front of the Academic Building!

Sul Ross Group (SRG) Bulletin One
9 July 2020
To our SRG Class Agents and their SRG Members,
Most (if not all) of you well know that there has been a lot going on at Aggieland in the month of June. We emailed a copy of our letter to the Texas A&M President after the vandalism of Sully’s statue and the protest that followed. This enabled you to be informed in a timely way as opposed to a paper newsletter that is not so timely. We believe we are at a juncture that we need to do the same with this email Bulletins so as to keep you informed again, and possibly lend your support and share it as you see fit. And, we have decided that we need to “institutionalize” this Bulletin process for continued use. The way it will work is that the SRG Board of Directors (BoD) will send Bulletins (like this one) to the Class Agents of our SRG classes for distribution by them to their respective members (using their class mailing lists). In advance, we thank the Class Agents for your help.
We have received a ton of your phone calls and emails about, “What is going on and who is doing what about what?” So, the SRG Board decided to send you this Bulletin One (with more to follow in the future).
If you wish to comment to those who are the campus leaders, below are the addresses for you to voice your opinions:
Michael Young (President, TAMU: PresidentYoung@tamu.edu)
1246 TAMU
Texas A&M University
College Station, TX 77843-1246
John Sharp (Chancellor, TAMU System: chancellor@tamus.edu)
Moore/Connally Building, 7th Floor.
301 Tarrow
College Station, Texas 77840-7896
Thank you and gig ‘em,
Your SRG Board

Attack on the Sully Statue and Some Turbulent Days in Aggieland
On May 25, George Floyd, a black man, was murdered in Minneapolis while being taken into custody by a city policeman, Derek Chauvin, while his three colleagues, Thomas Lane, Alex Kueng and Tou Thao, looked on and did not stop him from committing this horrific and despicable act. While Chauvin has been charged with second-degree murder, and his three colleagues with “aiding and abetting,” in the aftermath of this very sad episode, demonstrations erupted

The Class of ’55 has presented their petition to leave Sully’s Statue where it is, in front of the Academic Building.


13th Bi-Annual Reunion (1018) of Aggie Pilot Class UPT 56-U

(62nd Year After the USAF Wing Ceremony)

Pete Kopecky, John Dewalt, JB Riley, Del Castle, Frank and Bob.

AAF – A Night of Celebration with Ed Wulfe

Distinguished Alumnus Award To Ed Wulfe ’55

The Distinguished Alumnus Award is the highest honor bestowed upon a former student of Texas A&M University, awarded since 1062 to only 270 of Texas A&M’s 459,000 former students.

Presently jointly by the University and the Association of Former Student this award recognizes Aggies who have achieved excellence in their chosen professions and have made major contributions to Texas A&M and their local communities.  Our Class of ’55 representative to receive this honor is Ed Wulfe, founder. CEO and Chairman of the Wulfe and Co. real estate firm, was recently named a “Houston Hero” by the Houston Chronicle, which cited his “tireless effort toward making Houston a better place to live” through his developments, civic leadership and volunteer service that included steering the Houston Symphony out of a budget deficit.  He learned of his honor when surprised March 21 during a meeting.


Veterans Endowment Fund

That Veteran Endowment is a development program for the Veteran Resource & Support Center. The driving force is Col. Gerald Smith ’82 and the funds are held at the Texas A&M Foundation. The goal is to get $6-7 million in the endowment so the interest each year can be used by the VRSC to provide consistent services and support to veterans. 

The Classes of 1982, 1971, and 1968 as well as a few individuals have been involved in supporting it so far. We understand the 50th anniversary gift of the Class of 1968 will be a donation to that fund; Shady Groves ’68 has been driving that effort. For additional information: VRSC Director Col. Jerry Smith ’82, USMC (Ret.);979-845-3161. Email: gsmith@tamu.edu If you are interested in the Class of ’55 supporting this fund with a Class donation, please contact our Co-Class Agents.

 

Class of ’55 Ring Day Recipients

Fiala Bumpers and Brose

2019 Class of ’55 Ring Day Recipient Fiala Bumpers ’19. 

Dear Members of the Class of 1955.

My name is Fiala Bumpers, and I wanted to thank you for choosing me to be the recipient of this year’s Class of 1955 Aggie Ring Scholarship.  To tell you a little bit about myself, I am a senior Ecological Restoration (ECOR) and Renewable Natural Resources (RENR) double major with a Japanese minor. I work with the Department of Wildlife and Fisheries Sciences, assisting in research to determine how fish species distributions in the Gulf of Mexico have changed over the past 35 years due to ecological factors.  My job has made me proficient in “R” programming and is currently providing me with the opportunity to write a senior thesis as part of the Undergraduate Research Scholars program this year!

My time at A&M has helped me realize my love for research and the school environment. I plan to continue my Master’s under the guidance of my current lab professor, and PhD in an environmental science field to become a university professor in the future.

Once again I would like to express my thanks to you for giving me this chance to receive an Aggie Ring.  Thank you for creating this opportunity for someone that you do not even know.  Your generosity makes me feel so grateful and is truly inspiring.  If you wish to contact me, my phone number is (254)-735-6323, and my email is “arespostale123@gmail.com”.  I hope that I will have a chance to meet some of you at the scholarship dinner on February 9th.

Sincerely,                                                                                                                                                        Fiala Bumpers

 

Zachary and Brose ’55

2018 Class of ’55 Ring Day Recipient Zackary H. Barnes ’20

Howdy Class of 1955,
I am writing to let you know that I am both extremely grateful and honored to be awarded my Aggie Ring from the Class of ’55.  This past year has been difficult financially for my family because of Hurricane Harvey, so this scholarship a is a great help for us.  I am a finance student with a passion for small business. 
Because of this passion, I have concentrated my studies in commercial banking, which will allow me to meet with many small business owners daily and advice them on how to improve their companies.  I have been lucky enough to land an internship at Texas Capital Bank in Dallas for the summer. 
Before I wrote this letter, I took a look at the Class of ’55 website to get a better idea of   who it is I am thanking.  I was happy to see pictures from your 60th year Class Reunion.  I then moved on the Silver Taps page and quickly realized that I have much more to thank you for then my Ring :  your service to our School, Nation and the World.  Thank you.               
 Gig’Em,
Zackary H. Barnes ’20

2017 Class of ’55 Ring Day Recipient Ms. Esther K. Lee ’18

Ms. Lee wrote the following thank you note:

Thank you, Class of 1955, for your generous gift!  Without it, I may not have been able to get my Aggie Ring. 

I have had to fund my entire education as a Biomedical Engineering major through scholarships, a feat that would have seemed impossible without the support of my family, friends and professors. With their guidance and encouragement, I have become treasurer of the Biomedical Engineering Society and the Director of Construction of Aggie Habitat for Humanity. 

Using the leadership and experience I gained from those positions, I accepted an extended internship at Ethicon, Inc, a subsidiary of Johnson and Johnson.                                                                                                                                                             

Best Regards,                                                                                                                                         Esther K. Lee ’18 – 11661 Foxford – San Antonio, TX  78253-6027 ck1447@email.tamu.edu


2016 Class of ’55 Ring Day Recipient Ellen Wimmer ’17

Today was ring day at TA&M. Here is the recipient, Ellen Wimmer ’17 having been given her ring by co-class agent, Ambrose Boubel. Thanks Aggies Class of 1955!! 

aggie-ring-2

        Ellen Wimmer ’17 Thank You Letter and an explanation of her major and future plans, et al.

Aggie Ring Award Winner

From: Ellen Wimmer [mailto:ellen.wimmer@gmail.com]                                  

Sent: Monday, September 26, 2016 3:50 PM                                                               

To: Doreene Boubel <dfboubel@suddenlink.net>                                          

Subject: Re: Howdy

Hi there!

I’m more than happy to give you more info about myself! I’m an honors psychology major with a 4.0, I’m planning on attending psychology graduate school next year to pursue a track in clinical mental health counseling with a focus on womens trauma recovery, sexual assault counseling, and LGBT+ advocacy. I was an intern for SARC (Sexual Assault Resource Center, prev. Brazos Valley Rape Crisis Center) during the Summer of 2015, and learned a lot about the issue. The experience further confirmed my decision to pursue a career in women trauma counseling and recovery.

At A&M, honors students complete a university capstone which is a yearlong project with a focus on service, research, or leadership. I decided to do a service capstone, something that I could leave this university with long after I’m gone. I’m in the process of working with the Department of Student Life, the Office of Title IX, the Department of Student Affairs, the University Conduct Office, and the University Police Department to create a website for students that consolidates all of the sexual assault and harassment resources that A&M can offer, including an online report form utilizing trauma-informed rhetoric. Victims of sexual assault at A&M deserve better, and in their broken, traumatized state they are likely to give up pursuing recovery resources if the process becomes too beurocratic or legalistic. Studies show victims are exponentially more likely to report assault and seek help if they have to spend less than 1 minute searching. It has been a very challenging process but I am confident I can have the website completed and available to students by this Spring.

You might be interested to know that I am a transfer student from the University of Texas at Austin. Before you harangue me I’d like to point out that I did end up at the RIGHT university in the long run. I was a classical music major at UT. I play French horn and spent most of my life aspiring to play professionally with the New York Philharmonic or the Berlin Philharmonic (my two favorite orchestras). Once I began my music degree, I realized that I was spending 6 hours a day in a practice room working on arpeggios instead of seeing what the world around me had to offer. Playing became work, and it stopped being my passion. I found myself checking my watch to get out of rehearsals 30 minutes after they began. I shared this with my French horn professor, a wonderful man who selected me out of hundreds to be in his program at UT, a man whom it pained me to disappoint. He didn’t even flinch, and suggested that I take a break from playing to figure out what I wanted. I had always had a passion for psychology, but with my focus being solely on music I had never explored my desire to be a scholar. I spent virtually the next year studying, reading, taking Psychology courses at UT, speaking to psychologists about their field… and absolutely fell in love. I excelled in my studies and (I know it sounds corny) but discovered my love of learning. I really do love immersing myself in a topic and finding out as much as possible.

I was living with my boyfriend Emery and we decided that it was best for both of our careers to transfer to A&M, a school he originally attended before moving to Austin with me. We both moved to Bryan and here we are. He is an aerospace engineering major, loves restoring old cars, studying ancient roman history and philosophy, and if it’s possible loves learning even more than I do. We have been together for 5 years, he is the love of my life and my best friend. Together we love to go hiking in Colorado. We adore nature and love the challenge of mountain climbing, last month we climbed the tallest peak in the US Rockies, Mt. Elbert.

I know you didn’t ask for a monologue but I felt that I owed you some more information about myself considering the gracious gift you gave me. I wanted to apologize for being a nervous, shaky chihuahua on Ring Day. It had been a stressful day and I had no idea that Ring Day was such a family affair. I’ve had a rough family life and it brough back a lot of emotions. Emery was there with me and he really wanted to meet you both but I wanted to get out of there. I would love to meet with you both for lunch or something and get to know you.

A message for the wonderful class of 1955: I hoped that my thank you letter would reach you all, but in case it did not – Thank You. I cannot begin to express my gratitude for this amazing gift, and I wouldn’t have been able to get an Aggie Ring without your generosity. I had tried to not to devote a lot of emphasis or excitement in getting a ring because I had no idea that one was in my future. I’m so glad that I get to wear it and be reminded of my time at A&M, from the stressful, coffee-fueled finals weeks to the happy, relaxing weekends with friends. I look forward to donning it through my pursuit of psychology graduate school to the establishment of my private counseling practice for women’s trauma recovery. Thank you for my Aggie Ring, it is the best gift I’ve ever had the pleasure of receiving.

All the best, Ellen


2015 Class of ’55 Ring Day Recipient Christopher Lyons

 


60th Mini-Reunion in Fredericksburg, TX


Howdy ’55 Classmates,
We celebrated our 60th Class of ’55 Mini-Reunion on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday (April 29th, 30th and May 1st) in Fredericksburg, Texas with 110 classmates and guests present. In addition to the Hospitality Room activities, we enjoyed the breakfasts and dinners.  Ample time was allotted for sight-seeing. Many of our classmates/guests came from out of state.

The first day was conducted as a joint meeting with the Class of ’56 during which Paul Holladay was the master of ceremony. The second day Mike Trotter took the microphone for the Class of ’55 meeting.  Brose & Doreene Boubel did all “the heavy lifting” with the handling of the welcoming/receiving table and providing the wines, soft drinks/water, snacks and the transportation of all these necessities from College Station.

Among other business items on the agenda, we commemorated those ’55 classmates who have passed away in 2014 & 2015.

It was a very enjoyable and successful mini-reunion with much interaction between our classmates.  Some of the pictures take by Doreene Boubel are shown below:

DSCN1231 DSCN1232 DSCN1233 DSCN1234 DSCN1236 DSCN1237 DSCN1238 DSCN1240 DSCN1241 DSCN1242 DSCN1243DSCN1229

Distinguished Alumnus of Texas A&M Charlie Seely ’55

During the 2014 Sul Ross Group Reunion, our classmate, Charlie Seely, was honored and named as a Distinguished Alumnus of Texas A & M. Join me in congratulating Charlie on this great award and recognition from the school.


      Notice of Classmates added to the “Silver Taps Section”.

The following ’55 Classmates passed away and were added to the “Silver Taps” section:

John Bruce Chapman

Ambrose Bernhard “Brose” Boubel, Jr. (Class Agent for many years)

Hervey Wallace Eversberg

Daniel Patrick Wheat III

Robert Allen Easley, Jr. (Junction Boys) 

Dr. John E. Oliver, Jr. Sidney Joseph Theriot, Jr.  (Junction Boys)

wood Kettler (Junction Boys, Quarterback)

Hugh Lester Byrd (Baseball – Captain)

Robert Anthony Verduzco (1954 Airplane Explosion over the Campus) 

Please let me know of any changes to be made to this web site.
Romain Slabbaert, email: melania@ktc.com or Phone (Res): 830-895-0953

Web Page Last updated: March 24, 2024.