Charles Brumfield

Ray's passing comes as a shock!  We were UMUC (UMGC) friends in absentia, de tempore in tempus, from way back in 1968 when he first joined the program until I took the buyout in 2014 and left UMGC forever (after exactly 25 years).  I had joined UMUC in August 1965.  I remember meeting Ray in Vida's office in 1968.  He was on his way to an assignment somewhere in Spain--Rota I think--and I was on my way to an assignment at Moron AFB in Seville, Spain.  My memory of the details is somewhat fuzzy after all these years, so don't hold me to any "fact".  Since Rota and Seville were relatively close, I and my first wife, Margot, (now ex, but we're still best friends) and Ray and his first wife, Donna, agreed to get together from time to time.  I remember our trip traveling around Portugal in our car (or theirs) during term break quite well.  Our last assignment together was in the summer of 1969 at Wiesbaden, Germany.  I left UMUC, in 1969 (after a 4-year stint, although--in contradition to the maximum 4-year clause in all of our contracts back then--I was offered a 5th year) to return to the States to enter the Ph.D. program at USC in LA.  But, Ray and I stayed in touch after his return to the States in the early 1970s.  I was teaching at Cal Poly, Pomona and he was teaching at either the Univ of Wyoming or the Univ of Montana, I forget which.  I was still ABD at a different USC, and I think he had already finished his doctorate.  After I resigned from Cal Poly in 1978 to take a position in the Bay Area as VP in charge of the Northern Division of my brother's corporation, while also teaching as an adjunct at Cal State East Bay, Ray and I lost touch completely.  I heard somewhere along the way through the grapevine that he had returned to a position at UMGC.  I returned to a position with UMGC in 1993 (Europe, then Asia) and stayed until 2014 when I took the buyout.  I had heard that Ray divorced Donna and remarried and was working for UMGC off and on in the Middle East.  Then in the spring of 2014 at a faculty gathering in Seoul, there was Ray, looking the same as when I last saw him in 1969.  I was delighted to see him again.  But he was just passing through Seoul, as I remember it, and was not teaching for UMGC at the time.  Don't quote me on that.  I think he was on his way back to the Middle East after a visit with his Korean wife's family but was thinking about moving to Korea to teach for UMUC.  I don't remember the details.  But, that was the last time I ever laid eyes on Ray or even communicated with him.  I moved to Thailand with my Thai wife, Pla, and changed email addresses. I guess I forgot to give him my new email address or he forgot to give me his.  We never communicated or got together again after 2014.  I'll miss just knowing he's out there somewhere.  He was a great and talented guy.     

I got to know Jay on Okinawa, but I got to know him better in Seoul, S. Korea.  Needless to say I liked him a lot, as everyone did.  I thought he retired to Seattle, but I heard through the grapevine that he had moved to an assisted-living retirement community in San Diego County where I also live now (not in a retirement community).  I didn't know where he was, and didn't go to great lengths to find out.  I moved to Thailand after I took the retirement buyout from UMGC, and we didn't stay in touch after retirement.  I had not heard from or of him in 10-12 years, until I heard he passed away a while back.  R.I.P. Jay.  

I worked for Irene in Korea and liked her very much.  She was warm and efficient in her job.  I cannot claim to have been her close friend, but certainly we were friends.  In short, I really liked Irene.  I wish her well as she embarks on her ultimate adventure.  I know she will fare well.

I only met Rosemary once when she was passing through Bangkok, Thailand.  We had lunch, and I found her very delightful.  Though that was at least 20, maybe 25, years ago, I remember the restaurant and the gist of a great conversation.  I communicated in writing with Rosemary occasionally after that, but I never saw her again.  I am very sorry to hear of her passing, but very pleased to hear of the interesting and wonderful life she had.

I'm not going to say a lot about Gary because I don't know a lot about him or his background.  I'll just say that the few times I had with him and his delightful wife Jenny were very enjoyable.  They were both, not only highly intelligent and informed on many topics, but they were also socially delightful.  I have not seen them since my retirement in 2014, but I will miss just knowing Gary is out there.  I wish Jenny a lifetime of happiness,  remembering how happy she was with him and knowing they will someday be together again.  

HAPPY BIRTHDAY CHERYL! You need to patent your Youth Potent!

DIdn't know Melanie.  Never met her.  But now I feel like I know her at least a bit, and I like what I learned.  Very sorry for your loss.  Humanity feels it.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY CHERYL!

I remember you Bill, primarily as VP in charge of the Asian Division. But, we met briefly in Singapore before that. You resigned, Susan replaced you and proceeded to drive the AD into the ground. I retired July 31, 2014 and moved on to other things. I'm pretty old, but still hanging in, partying a bit and working out at the gym 5 times a week. Am in Bangkok at the moment, still feeling the effects of the Halloween celebrations last night. I sincerely hope you are doing well!

I was very sorry to hear of Gary's passing.  I did not know him well, but I remember him as an effective Area Director in Korea.  He helped me in several significant ways during my brief assignment in there in the late 1990s..  He seemed to be in good health at the time.  My sympathies go to his family and friends.

I did not know Merv well enough  to comment on his life in detail.  I learned a lot about him from the obit above.  I met Merv while teaching on Okinawa.  I liked him very much and respected his intellect.  I'm glad I got to know him as little as I did and wish I had known him better.

Maryan and I were assigned to teach in Adana, Turkey and the Azores at the same time, and I got to know her pretty well.  She had just left Bosnia when I was assigned there, but she gave me some good survival tips when our paths crossed in Heidelberg.  I haven't seen Maryan since the mid-1990s, but we communicated for awhile by slow mail.  When I moved to the Asian Division in 1996 and married in 2001, we lost touch.  I was always impressed by Maryan's intelligence and love of life.  I will miss thinking she's out there somewhere laughing and having fun, and someday we'd meet again.  I wish her well as she takes on the ultimate journey.  

I met David when we were both part of the group assigned to Europe in the fall of 1993.  It was a fairly large group, but we took an instant liking to each other.  I was a white kid raised in racist MS, he was a black kid raised in the northeast.  I never developed the racism that was/is characteristic of MS, and I never consciously thought of the difference.  He was simply a very intelligent, likable guy.  I never thought of him any other way.  We both taught graduate courses and had some assignments together in Germany and Italy and did some traveling together to places like Paris, Rome, Luxemburg, and Munich for Oktoberfest (he had my back because he didn't drink alcohol).  We often went to movies or parties together.  David talked about his family but never let on that it was his "adopted" family.  First I knew of that was from the above.

I left Europe for Asia in 1996, and married in Thailand in 2000.   As we led our separate lives, for the most part I lost touch with David.  But I can still remember the last time we said goodbye and all of the good memories in between.  

I could go on and on about how much I liked David, but I'll just say, he was a great friend for the short while I knew him.  I will miss knowing he's in the world.      Charles Brumfield

Posted on: Aug 25, 2016 at 2:33 PM

Good to see you signed up Frank. If you're ever coming to Bangkok, let me or Joe Arden know and we'll be glad to share a meal with you. I miss UMUC, would like to go back, but I don't think that's a possibility. Have fun and stay cool as you are. Charles (Brumfield)

Hi Cheryl,
Great to know you're still out there somewhere. I don't think we've communicated since 1996 when you were headed home from Heidelberg. Would love to hear what you've been up to. I stayed in touch with Maryan for awhile, but haven't heard from her in many years. I retired from UMUC on July 31, 2014. Am now living in Bangkok, Thailand teaching in a struggling international MBA program. I'm a member too and you can see my profile under member profiles to see an outline of what I've been up to. Would love to catch up. Charles (ctbrumfield@gmail.com or this forum).