class notes
News for and about the members of the UNC General
Alumni Association. Want to submit an item? Look for the
“Keeping in Touch” form on page 76, post news online at
alumni.unc.edu or send e-mail to alumni@unc.edu. The
deadline for the November/December issue is Sept. 1.
’20s ■ obituary
Kathleen Elmore Patterson
(’ 27 AB), 99, of Rocky Mount; Feb. 27, 2007.
Patterson taught high school French and Spanish for more than 30 years, including positions
in Wilmington, Hickory, Rocky Mount,
Atlanta and Wilson, where she was the first
instructor to use language laboratories. When
she retired in 1972, she was chair of the modern language department of Wilson’s Fike
Senior High School. At UNC, she performed
with Playmakers. She was among the first
women to live on campus in the then-new
Spencer Dormitory.
’30s Jane Ross Hammer (’ 36
AB, ’ 37 MA) of Mitchellville,
Md., a retired teacher, author
of Protector: A Life History of Richard Cromwell
and editor of two volumes of the writings of
Horace Williams, has been included in Who’s
Who in the World. Hammer has been invited to
attend the July 2007 World Forum of the
American Biographical Institute and the
International Biographical Centre as an ambassador representing the U.S.
■ obituaries
Clyde M. Andrew (’ 32 BSCOM), 98, of
Greensboro; Feb. 25, 2007. Andrew founded
U.S. Label and was chairman until 2001. Before
starting his company, he was an executive for
Wrangler. At UNC, he belonged to Phi Sigma
Kappa. In his senior year, he was voted Best
All-Around Student. George Williard
“Dunc” Armfield Sr. (’ 37), 89, of Colfax;
April 3, 2006. Armfield was president of Marsh-Armfield Inc. In WWII, he was a flying instruc-
tor with the Army Air Force. Marcellus
James Best (’ 34 BSCOM), 94, of Goldsboro;
April 28, 2007. Best was involved with family
businesses, which included W.H. Best & Sons
Inc. Among his community activities, he was
on the boards of the Salvation Army and
United Church Ministries. At UNC, he was a
member of Zeta Psi, Gorgons Head Lodge and
Philanthropic Society. Bern F. Bullard
(’ 30), 99, of Raleigh; March 26, 2007. Bullard
was one of two founders of Taylor Biscuit Co.
and was its president and CEO until 1968. He
also founded a property development company
with his son. He played football at UNC on
the first team to play in Kenan Stadium in
1927. He also played baseball. Gabriel M.
Cohen (’ 30 AB), 98, of Indianapolis; April 19,
2007. Cohen was founder, editor and publisher
of The National Jewish Post & Opinion, a weekly
paper, for 75 years. He was founding chairman
of the American Press Association. A professional boxer after college, he was on the boxing team, ran track and field, and belonged to
the Dialectic Society and Phi Alpha at UNC.
Richard Lewis Cotton (’ 49 BSCOM), 83,
of Raleigh;April 17, 2007. Cotton retired as a
manager with General Motors Acceptance
Corp. In retirement, he was an adviser at
Meredith College and owned and operated the
food and health facility at a health club. In
WWII, he was in the Army and, at UNC,
belonged to Sigma Chi. Josephine Cureton
Duell (’ 36), 93, of Signal Mountain, Tenn.; Jan.
30, 2007. Duell, a writer, had lived in Signal
Mountain since 1988. At UNC, she belonged
to Chi Omega. Cornelia Maslin Grier
(’ 38), 90, of Vienna, Va.; Feb. 24, 2007. Grier
was a social worker who was honored by her
undergraduate college, Converse College, with
its Distinguished Alumna Award. She was
active in the Junior League of Washington,
D.C. Peter Wilson Hairston (’ 33 AB, ’ 35
LLB), 93, of Advance; Feb. 4, 2007. Hairston
served three terms in the N.C. House of
Representatives and was elected a Superior
Court judge. He served in the Army in WWII
and received the Bronze Star, Purple Heart and
five Battle Stars. At UNC, he graduated Phi
Beta Kappa, belonged to Sigma Nu and Phi
Delta Phi and, in law school, served on the
board of the Law Review. Shelby Edmund
Horton Jr. (’ 39 AB), 89, of Asheville; Feb. 11,
2007. Horton, along with his wife, practiced
law in Asheville for 50 years as Horton &
Horton. He served as a domestic relations
judge and was involved in numerous civic
organizations, including the Lions Club and
the board of Asheville-Biltmore College, now
UNC-Asheville. He served in Army intelligence in Alaska during WWII, then served in
the Air Force Reserve. Robert Starling
McCollum (’ 36 BSCOM), 90, of Marion,
S.C.; Feb. 25, 2007. McCollum retired as
owner and operator of a Western Auto associate store. He served in the Army in WWII and,
at UNC, belonged to Delta Tau Delta.
James Cranford Montgomery (’ 36), 93, of
Trinity; March 23, 2007. Montgomery retired
as a supervisor with the U.S. Postal Service. He
served with the Navy in WWII. He was an
Eagle Scout and started a troop in High Point
and was its first Scoutmaster. At UNC, he was
on the track and field team and was a member
of the Marching Band. Kenneth Ray
Noble (’ 36), 94, of Kinston; March 5, 2007.
Noble was a farmer and land surveyor who
worked for the U.S. Soil Conservation Service
for more than 35 years. In WWII, he was in
the Army Air Force. George Thomas
Noulles (’ 36), 92, of Tulsa, Okla.; March 10,
2007. Noulles retired as a district manager with
Gulf Oil Co., which is now Chevron. He was
a Navy engineer in WWII. Kathleen
Fennell Steidtman (’ 32 AB), 94, of Virginia
Beach,Va.; May 8, 2006. Steidtman retired after
40 years as a special education teacher. She
graduated Phi Beta Kappa from UNC.
Lynwood Yates Taylor (’ 37), 93, of
Richmond, Va.; Jan. 18, 2007. Taylor retired as
the owner of a sales and management compa-
