Shirley Rasmussen and Chris Dixon.
Several people from The Landings gathered in Ludington, Michigan in late September/early October to help Shirley Rasmussen celebrate her 100th birthday.
In addition to Shirley’s immediate family members Tom, Steve, Anne Marie, and granddaughter, Annika; friends from Schooner Village included Donna Henderson, Chris Dixon, Chuck and Nancy Perkins, and Hank and Deb Lawrie. Others from The Landings joining were Doug and Mary Ann Slaggert, John and Joan Moore, and Mike and Carol Kuehnls.
All were hosted by Hank and Deb Lawrie for a cocktail party the evening before the big celebration. The birthday party was held at Lincoln Hills Golf Club from 3:00-6:00 p.m. on October 1, which is Shirley’s actual birthday. A multitude of friends and acquaintances from the Ludington area attended.
Meanwhile Maria and Phil Aponte had a great two-week vacation visiting their daughter, Laura, her husband Jim Riehl, and their grandchildren who live in Overland Park, Kansas.
Special highlights included celebrating their grandson’s James Riehl’s 31st birthday and visiting his new home in Bella Vista, Arkansas.
Helaine and Grover Moore are among the first snowbirds to return to Schooner. Grover has shared news that his son, Jeff, and our neighbor (4496 – 2A) is the recent recipient of the prestigious Enzyme Engineering Award. Jeff is Senior Principal Scientist in Enabling Technologies at the pharmaceutical company MSD (known as Merck & Co., Inc., in the U.S. and Canada). A pioneer and influential leader, he has been the driving force behind implementation of enzymes for the synthesis of pharmaceutical products and their chiral intermediates. From his graduate studies through a distinguished 30-year industrial career, he has transformed biocatalysis from a promising concept into a standard and indispensable tool in modern pharmaceutical synthesis. Notably, he is one of the very few industrial winners of this award, recognized for his exceptional ability to translate innovative theory into practical solutions to deliver medicines to patients worldwide. Congratulations, Jeff!
On a lighter closing note, my niece, Sabrina Cox, came from California to visit for a few days to help out at 4488. She brought out our holiday decorations including the tree. She got carried away and decorated it, then decided it was a bit premature for the season and converted it to a giant ghost!
