The Wheatley School Alumni Association Newsletter # 248

Holiday Greetings; Carol Leifer; Heidi Mok Sorenson; some of the crowd at Wheatley's 60th-Year Anniversary Celebration; Canine Companions; Appreciations

ARTHUR ENGORON

December 27, 2025

 

Welcome to The Wheatley School Alumni Association Newsletter # 248.

Holiday Greetings

Rick Simon (Wheatley Principal 1995-2008) Writes - “Happy holidays to the incredible Wheatley family.”

Art Engoron 1967 Writes - “Happy holidays to my faithful readers. The subscription rate will remain the same in 2026.”

Graduates

Carol Leifer - Found on Facebook

Top Photo - Carol is in the middle.

Bottom Photo - Carol is in the right.

Carol Leifer is with Lori J Wolf at The Wiltern.

snSdtrooep4hgmgil6993l3a975062t04ul6m41u7t15ag861at32a4t91t0 ·Los Angeles, CA ·

HILARIOUS show tonight at The Wiltern!

Best way to celebrate the last night of Chanukah.

🕎

Backstage with Modi & Michael Rapaport. & Elon Gold, too!

1975 - Heidi Mok Sorenson - Found on Facebook

No photo description available.

Wildcats in the Gym, Lining Up For a Group Shot at the 60th-Year Anniversary Celebration in 2016

I am not going to try to identify everyone, but here are some IDs, by row

1st - David Abeshouse, 1975 (blue shirt, looking to his left)

2nd - Donna Kenton, 1963 (near middle, glasses, big smile, dark jacket)

2nd - Elizabeth Stone Matho (?), 1963 (toward the right, looking right, dark jacket)

3rd - Marcia Friedman Mayer, 1963 (third from left, white jacket)

3rd - Lauren Jacobs (?), 1963 (just right of center, looking right, green jacket)

4th - Ellen (“Ellie”) Senft Kochek (just left of center, white jacket, glasses)

4th - Neil Firetog, 1965 (just left of center, standing. red shirt, dark jacket)

7th - Alex Tisch, 1989 (middle, dark jacket, looking 90 degrees left)

The WildCAT Pets Gallery

Molly, Rick Simon’s (Principal 1995-2008) 14-year-old street dog from Ecuador.

Teddy, Rick Simon’s dog, who was found wandering the streets of Brooklyn and rescued from the North Hempstead Pound, and who passed away in the fall just after turning 17.

Rusty, Rick Jalonack’s (1966) 15-year-old chocolate Lab/Shepard mix rescue dog. “He enjoys the Newsletter and says, ‘Thank You for all you do.’”

L-R - Poochie, Seraphim, Cocoa, Angel, and Alphie are poodles. Poochie belonged to Howard Kirchick (1967) and family. Poochie’s sisters (Seraphim and Cocoa) and mother (Angel) belonged to Howard’s brother Calvin Kirchick (1964). Poochie’s brother (Alphie) belonged to Howard and Calvin’s mother, in whose home the photo was taken in the late 1970s.

Phoebe - Robin Halpern’s (1970) New Year’s Eve Dog - “Sending wishes for grounding and resilience in all facets of your life…..”

Fan Mail

1960 (Joanne Festa) - ❤️

1962 (Michael Weizenegger) - ❤️

1964 (Richard Ilsley) - ❤️

1965 (Mady Land) - “Thanks so much for all you’ve done for Wheatley graduates.”

1965 (Sharon Neely Halm) - ❤️

1966 (Frederick Hammond) - ❤️

1974 (Melanie Artim) - ❤️

1974 (Ellen Barnett Diana) - ❤️

1979 (William Behan) - ❤️

1990 (Kathryn Apicella Jozef) - ❤️

The Official Notices

All underlined text is a link-to-a-link or a link-to-an-email-address. Clicking anywhere on underlined text, and then clicking on the text that pops up will get you to your on-line destination or will address an email.

The Usual Words of Wisdom

Thanks to our fabulous Webmaster, Keith Aufhauser (Class of 1963), you can regale yourself with the first 247 Wheatley School Alumni Association Newsletters (and much other Wheatley data and arcana) at our website:

The Wheatley School Alumni Association Website

Also thanks to Keith is our search engine, prominently displayed on our home page: type in a word or phrase and, wow!, you’ll find every place it exists in all previous Newsletters and other on-site material.

I edit all submissions, even material in quotes, for clarity and concision, without any indication thereof. I cannot and do not vouch for the accuracy of what people tell me, as TWSAA does not have a New Yorker style fact-checking department.

We welcome any and all text and photos relevant to The Wheatley School, 11 Bacon Road, Old Westbury, NY 11568, and the people who administered, taught, worked, performed, and/or studied there. Art Engoron, Class of 1967

Closing

That’s it for The Wheatley School Alumni Association Newsletter # 248. Please send me your autobiography before someone else sends me your obituary.

Art

  Arthur Fredericks Engoron, Class of 1967

  WHEATLEYALUMNI@AOL.COM

  ARTENGORON@GMAIL.COM

  WWW.WHEATLEYALUMNI.ORG

  646-872-4833