The Youngs

Dorothy '51 (Hartwick) and Ralph Young '51

Ralph and Dorothy (Hartwick) Young '51 met at Willimantic State Teachers College and retired after 25 and nearly 40 years of teaching respectively. At their 2016 reunion, the Youngs saw the names of faculty members and staff on various Eastern facilities — Geissler Gymnasium, the Betty R. Tipton Room, the J. Eugene Smith Library, Noble Hall, Beckert Hall, and the Paul E. Johnson Sr. Community Room — and remarked that they were "all fine people who put their all into making us teachers."

During their time at Eastern, Dorothy was a cheerleader and Ralph "dabbled in sports." Ralph later served as an Army officer in the Korean War, and the couple visited England as part of a Fulbright Teacher Exchange. They chaired committees in charge of the 1977 National Skating Championships and the 1981 World Championships in Hartford, with their children becoming national Ice Dance Champions. The couple celebrates their 67th wedding anniversary in July: "We met at 'Willi' and have been happy ever since. Great school!"