After a business career, Mel Bender pursued his passion for the liberal arts and, at age 80, earned a Master of Arts from St. John’s College. He has been active in Anne Arundel County community life. He has facilitated many PLP courses and has a special interest in U.S. Constitutional law, the history of the American Revolutionary period and poetry. Bender has often said that his discovery of peer learning at AACC changed his life in retirement. He is a member of the PLP board and leads the Educational Outreach initiative.
Mary “Tiz” Benedict grew up in a medical family and has a continuing interest in medicine, although her advanced degrees are in social work (MSW) and public health (MPH, DRPH). Until retiring in 2001, she was a research scientist at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. Introduced to the PLP several years ago by a friend, she has enjoyed a variety of history and other courses. Her interest intensified in the area of war and the medical care for soldiers over time and across cultures. She is excited to repeat Part 1 of “War and Medicine,” which begins with Egypt and Mesopotamia in about 3500 BCE and ends with the American Civil War. Benedict is a member of the Curriculum Committee.
Margaret Brinsley received a Bachelor of Arts in History in her native England. She was awarded a Fulbright scholarship for graduate study in the U.S. where she earned a Ph.D. in American Colonial history. She retired from a full-time career in higher education, helped start the PLP in 2004 and served as its first president. Her favorite period of history is the 17th and 18th centuries in England and America, but she has offered many PLP courses in other historical areas as well. She loves history and wants to make it come alive for herself and others. She serves on several PLP committees.
Susan Callis worked for the federal government as both a civil servant and as a contractor for almost 50 years. She was a manager/supervisor for over 30 of those years. During her career, she read many books to understand human nature (and her employees), keep growing as a good person and manager, and learn how to deal with difficult people. She mentored several younger women working in the same environment as she. At this point in her life, she wishes to share her experiences and knowledge gained through the years so that others may benefit. Callis grew up in St. Louis, Mo., and moved to Maryland in 1989. She lived in Silver Spring and worked for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration for many years. She retired to Annapolis several years ago.
John Cochran holds a Bachelor of Arts in political science (University of Texas, Arlington), a Master of Science in computer science (Johns Hopkins University, Whiting School), and is a Vietnam veteran. He flew helicopters In the Army followed by a career in the civilian federal government working with computer systems. Cochran is new to PLP, but is a seasoned and popular teacher of yoga and Pilates, teaching eight classes a week in person or via Zoom. An accomplished ukulele player, he is organizer for the local ukulele group UkeAnnapolis and leads workshops and jams. He began studying Spanish in 1995 because of the beauty of the language and he believes it is becoming the second language of the U.S. He also enjoys hiking, sailing, ham radio and dancing. Cochran has traveled in Spain, Mexico, Puerto Rico, Costa Rica, Peru and Ecuador. He especially enjoyed the Galapagos Islands.
Steve Cohen holds a doctorate in physics and devoted most of his 38-year career to studying plate tectonics and earthquakes as a senior research scientist at the Goddard Space Flight Center. He joined PLP in 2006 and has been president, Curriculum Committee chair and Fridays with Friends coordinator. Cohen facilitates several PLP courses and has presented a variety of Fridays with Friends talks. His interest in history, current events and comparative culture dates back to his participation as a teenager in World Affairs Council activities in Philadelphia. Cohen also teaches current issues classes at county senior centers.
Don Dement developed his career in communications engineering as a systems and program manager for the DOD and NASA HQ, followed by consulting in design of satellite communications systems. He was a co-founder of the Digital Photography Club of Annapolis, and has been an AACC adjunct faculty member for 14 years. He has taught photography courses at AACC, five senior centers and other locations. As a professional photographer, he uses Adobe Lightroom daily for clients’ products, his own works and for many presentations. His website displays more than 50,000 images. He has presented travel programs for Fridays with Friends and facilitates Lightroom courses for PLP.
Jim Diffley received a Master of Arts in English Literature from Columbia University and a Master of Science in Education from Hofstra University. He worked in Vocational Rehabilitation at Human Resources Center (Albertson, N.Y.) before moving onto staffing and resource management positions at Northrop Grumman, eventually becoming director of Business Management in IT Solutions Management. He joined PLP in 2015, and has enjoyed many courses in the liberal arts area. Diffley was a member of the 2019 Program Development Review Committee and joined the Curriculum Committee in fall 2020. He also facilitated his first course in American Short Stories in fall 2020 and hopes to facilitate other PLP courses in the future.
Bert Drake, senior scientist, emeritus, Smithsonian Environmental Research Center, had four decades of studying plant responses to rising CO2 and in natural environments. His PLP course on rising CO2 and global warming has been offered since 2016. He became interested in the fur trade in Canada while growing up in northern Maine and extended this interest in native American culture during a decade living, studying and teaching in the southwest. He is grateful to Margaret Brinsley for the opportunity to indulge this interest in a joint effort of facilitating a prior course with her.
Herb Frey earned his doctorate in Astronomy from the University of Maryland in 1977, then undertook a short postdoctoral at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center before joining Goddard’s civil service staff in 1979. At Goddard he continued comparative planetary research, studying the early crustal evolution of the moon and Mars and what it teaches us about the early Earth. He also researched crustal dynamics, geomagnetism and topography. Frey has facilitated PLP courses on “Exploring Planets,” “Exo-Planets: Worlds Around Other Stars,” “Exploration of Mars and the Search for Life” and “Life in the Solar System.” He is chair of PLP’s Curriculum Committee and co-host for the weekly astronomy interest group, AstroZOOM.
Liz Grimes received a B.A. in physics from Mount Holyoke College in Massachusetts and pursued a career in integrated circuit design for Northrop Grumman. Following her early retirement, she has been able to pursue her real passions, which include art and many outdoor activities. Her strongest interests are in the natural world, including ecology, evolution and genetics. She has been a member of PLP since retirement, taking courses in a wide variety of subjects. She is also an active member of the Annapolis Watercolor Club.
Arnold Gruber received a Bachelor of Science in Geology from Brooklyn College, and a Master of Science and Ph.D. in Meteorology from Florida State University. After retiring from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration where he conducted research on weather satellite data, he was a visiting professor at City College New York, and a senior research scientist at the University of Maryland. He is a Fellow of the American Meteorological Society, and a member of Sigma Xi. Since joining the PLP he has made several presentations at Fridays with Friends and facilitated PLP courses in Meteorology. He is vice president of the PLP board.
Matilda Jane Kraemer earned her Bachelor of Science in Music Education from Nazareth College of Rochester and her Master of Music from the University of Notre Dame. She has taught music at all levels, from kindergarten through college. She joined PLP in 2010, taught her first PLP class that fall and has been teaching ever since. She has taught courses on genres and forms, music history, and American music, among others. Kraemer serves as secretary on the board of the Londontowne Symphony, and loves writing, composing songs and painting watercolors. She recently received a 2019 Annie Award from the Anne Arundel Arts Council. The awards recognize lasting, significant and inspiring contributions to an art form, an arts organization and/or to the wider community of Anne Arundel County.
JANET LABELLA spent the bulk of her legal career advocating for low-income persons at legal aid offices in Washington, D.C., and Anne Arundel County. She managed Maryland Legal Aid’s Anne Arundel County office for 14 years. LaBella focused on housing preservation, housing development and the improvement of housing conditions for low-income persons. She retired in 2017 from the Legal Services Corp., where she led the office responsible for ensuring that legal aid organizations provide high-quality legal services. Currently, LaBella consults on legal aid delivery and grants administration.
Judy Mauriello holds a Bachelor of Arts in mathematics, a Master of Science in math education and a Master of Science in computer science. Her career includes stints as a computer analyst, a secondary mathematics teacher and the developer of an instructional technology program for AACPS. She enjoys new experiences and continuing to learn – through travel, volunteering and taking courses. She also enjoys outdoor activities, particularly hiking, cross-country skiing and kayaking. In PLP she has served on the Educational Outreach and Long Range Planning committees. Her interest in "Alice in Wonderland" comes from a desire to learn more about Lewis Carroll, a mathematician and photographer.
Jerry May is a retired lawyer, having engaged in the general practice of law in Annapolis for 35 five years. He attended the Graduate Institute at St. John's College and received his Masters of Arts degree in 1992. While not overwhelmed with the responsibilities of a grandfather and the activities of a beekeeper, he is actively involved with PLP. He has facilitated classes on the U.S. Constitution and readings in economics. He has served as an at-large member of the board of directors and as a member of the Long-Range Planning Committee.
Rob McEachern studied astrophysics in college and received a Master of Science degree in physics. He spent most of his career developing mathematical techniques used in communications engineering. He is the author of the book, "Human and Machine Intelligence," and facilitated a PLP course on it. After retiring, McEachern joined PLP in the summer of 2008. He enjoys reading and discussion courses at St. John's College, and has facilitated dozens of similar courses in PLP. He has given many Fridays with Friends presentations and has been the chair for Fridays with Friends.
DENNIS MCGEE, a retired public relations officer, has a background in intelligence and journalism as well as PR. His interest in World War II originated in his youth while listening to stories from parents of playmates and uncles who served during the war. One uncle flew 52 missions in B-25s from Italy; another spent Christmas Day 1944 in a raft awaiting rescue after his Navy supply ship was sunk by a Japanese submarine. McGee has read extensively about the war's causes, history and politics, has studied every major battle in the war, and has visited the Normandy beaches as well as several European battle sites, including those around Leningrad and Moscow.
Dave Newman received his Bachelor of Arts in political science from Brooklyn College and is a certified internal auditor. His auditing career was spent in oversight of the IRS. Newman joined PLP in 2011 and has facilitated his "Baseball in America" course at PLP and county senior centers. Currently, he is chair of PLP’s Communication Committee, a member of the Curriculum Committee, and has served as PLP president and board member on several other committees and projects. Newman is a member of the Society for American Baseball Research, has performed research on baseball history and is an unapologetic Yankees fan.
It’s unclear when Max Ochs first became besotted by the blues, growing up with classical music in Annapolis. By 1955, his violin teacher told him he had to choose between the guitar and the violin. He bid the fiddle adieu. Perhaps it was thanks to slide guitarist Harry Banks, an African American hitchhiker from Arnold he picked up in 1957. Ochs brought him home and Banks taught him a few licks in open tunings. In the 1960s Mississippi, John Hurt lived for a few weeks in his home in New York City, where Son House also crashed. Blues may just be in his bones. Ochs attended Carleton College in Minnesota but finished his undergraduate work at University of Maryland (English and philosophy), then got his master's in humanities from St. Johns College. In 1981, he published "The Annapolis Anthology," a compilation of Annapolis artists, poets and writers. Well-known in the music and poetry community of Annapolis for having run the 333 Coffee House at the Unitarian Church, Ochs later became the emcee for the Quiet Waters Park summer concerts. A “primitive American” folk guitarist with several recordings, Ochs occasionally performs in public.
Suzanne O. Ochs [B.S., M.S., P.A.] With undergraduate and graduate degrees from Johns Hopkins University, Ochs' background is in medicine, first, as a nurse, then, returning to school at age 50 to become a physician assistant and working as a PA in the local emergency room for 15 years. She taught nursing in Utah and was key in starting up the Physician Assistant program at AACC. An avid reader, she is in two book clubs, one in Annapolis that has met for 50-plus years as well as a neighborhood group for 25 years. Her interest in Spanish is partly based on her heritage; her maternal grandfather was Mexican. As an immigrant, he never spoke a word of his native tongue to his norteamericano family. Ochs has enjoyed many PLP courses in the past. Now retired, she studies Spanish, digs in her gardens and writes just so-so poetry.
Although ANTOINETTE “TONI” PUNZAVITZ began her career as a high school English and French teacher, she spent most of her working life as a writer in diverse venues and retired in 2013 from NSA’s Office of Public Affairs. Coming full circle, Punzavitz, who holds a Bachelor of Arts in French and a master’s degree in administration, finds herself again in front of the classroom, facilitating courses on the ‘50s and ‘60s. She enjoys presenting these retrospective classes where participants can share their experiences and perspectives, which enrich the classroom experience.
BRENT SEABROOK is a former community sports program administrator and mental health program manager who currently works as a writing consultant. Being raised in unstable circumstances gave him an inherent appreciation for the need to examine power structures and social paradigms. After years working menial jobs, he was able to enroll at The Evergreen State College and was awakened to the transformative power of critical theories as tools for such analysis. Seabrook’s approach to education is based on active engagement, alternative perspectives and questioning of assumptions, fostering an environment conducive to learning and growth.
Paul Schatzberg holds a Master of Arts in Chemistry from Duke University, and a Master of Arts from the St. John’s College Graduate Institute. He was a part-time graduate student at Baltimore Hebrew University for over a decade, studying the Hebrew Bible, Jewish philosophy, history and literature. Schatzberg joined the PLP around 2004, and has taught a variety of courses such as “Stress and the Body,” “Israel in the Middle East: 1917-1967,” “Modern American Poetry,” “Mindfulness Meditation as a Way of Life,” “Emergence of the Ancient Israelites” and “Health, Laughter and Humor.”
Art Smookler culminated his 40-year government career as the U.S. Navy’s Research and Development program manager for the shipboard auxiliary machinery and environmental protection programs. As adjunct faculty he taught graduate statistics at George Washington University. He later retired from the private sector as a vice president of an engineering technology firm. Smookler enjoys learning and has facilitated numerous courses on science, literature, and world and national affairs, including the Seven Deadly Sins series, and now Great Decisions in Foreign Policy. He leads Fridays with Friends discussion groups on Current Events and Art History, and has been a frequent presenter on Science and Technology, Economics and Travel.
Jane Timberg earned her B.A. in English, M.S. in Special Education and M.Ed. in School Counseling. Her career has spanned teaching special needs children, owning and operating a child care center, serving as an elementary school counselor and practicing as a licensed professional counselor. Since joining PLP, she has served on the Board of Directors, the Avid Book Readers Committee and the Educational Outreach Committee. She has facilitated book discussions and co-taught courses in poetry and Dr. Seuss. Her interest in "Alice in Wonderland" reflects her love of children, imagination and literature