Herbert Francis “Herb” Philpott died suddenly on June 13, 2025, while hiking Mount Greylock in Williamstown MA. Herb had lived in Acton since 2020, and previously lived in Waltham, Medford, and Canton, Massachusetts, as well as in San Jose, California. He was the beloved husband of Sandra (Metcalf) Philpott, whom he married on April 12, 2008. Herb was a proud member of Sigma Phi Epsilon (SigEp) fraternity. His professional life was spent in high-tech industries, beginning in California, where he worked for Steve Jobs at NeXT Computer and later at Apple. A full obituary can be found on Legacy.com

It is with heavy hearts that we announce the passing of Ratha (Tito) Tan of Malden, Massachusetts. Tito passed away on April 21, 2025, at the age of 62 from pancreatic cancer, surrounded by loved ones.

Devoted father to his 2 daughters, Alicia and Isabelle Tan, and devoted husband to Davy Tan (née Lek).
Tito was born on January 18, 1963, in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, to the late Tang Tan and Kim Sean Tan (née Ing). He spent his early childhood in the Battambang province of Cambodia with his siblings, Chhourath (Roth) Tan, Patrick Tan, and Sophie Rueda (née Tan).

In 1975, at the age of 12, Tito and his brother, Roth, fled to Thailand to escape the genocidal regime of the Khmer Rouge. From Thailand they were taken to the United States where they were adopted by Edward P. O’Donnell of Boston. As Tito grew up under Ed, he learned and inherited many of Ed’s practices and beliefs in kindness and faith. Tito’s journey through faith was guided by St. Padre Pio, whom he unfailingly prayed to until his last days. Through his prayers, 4 years later, Tito reunited with his family in Boston, all of whom had survived the Khmer Rouge regime.

Tito received a bachelor’s in Chemistry from Dartmouth College, where he attributes his affinity for Green Eggs and Ham. He continued on to earn a master’s in International Relations from Lesley University.

While working on his master’s, he simultaneously was a visiting lecturer at Cornell University’s Southeast Asia Summer Studies Institute (SEASSI) program. Some of his most notorious moments stemmed from his work in 1990-1992 with the SEASSI, teaching his students Khmer in eclectic ways, including the use of water guns and flash mobs.

With the courage to restore the beauty of his homeland, Tito served as an electoral officer for the United Nations Transitional Authority in Cambodia (UNTAC) from 1992-1993. Not only did he use his time there to find the love of his life, Davy, but he also helped establish a free and fair electoral process.
Upon returning to America, Tito dedicated his career to computer science, becoming a principal support software engineer at Siebel Systems from 1999-2008, a senior production support engineer for Intuit from 2009-2017, and then an IT specialist for Vestmark from 2018 until his Pancreatic Cancer diagnosis in January of 2024.

He was known for his kindness and the empathy it inspired, his devout faith and belief in God, his wicked sense of humor, and his stories that kept the history of our family and culture alive. Not only do we lose a husband, father, uncle, grandpa, friend, but we lose the history and the unique perspective that he carried and shared. Tito enjoyed advocating for the less fortunate through his work with various Cambodian charities that provided supplies for children in poverty, funds for St Padre Pio’s foundation, and so much more. When he was not telling stories or working with charities, he could be found cooking and eating good food inspired by YouTube videos, planting tulips with his favorite (and only) granddaughter Alice, or coaching his youngest daughter on her tennis serve.

Tito is survived by his wife, Davy Kim Tan, his daughters, Alicia and Isabelle Tan, his mother, Kim Sean Tan, his siblings Chhourath Tan, Patrick Tan, and Sophie Rueda, his granddaughter Alice, his many dear nephews and nieces, and a wide circle of devoted friends.

Sad news about our classmate Joe, who passed away in January. From his obituary page (where you can leave tributes and pictures): “Joe Koniszewski, 62, of Peckville, died peacefully after a long battle with pancreatic cancer on the evening of Thursday, January 30 surrounded by his family. He is survived by his wife of 28 years, the former Anne Mary Yanni, and his three children – the loves of his life – Joseph, Julia, and Alissa. Joe’s family was the most important thing in life to him, and he will miss them dearly. He couldn’t thank God enough for his three wonderful children and couldn’t be prouder of them.

Born in Scranton, Joe was the son of the late John and Theresa Koniszewski. He was a member of the 1975 Carbino Club Little League All-Star team that was 1 game from reaching the Little League World Series in Williamsport. The Pennsylvania State Champions lost to the eventual World Series Champions of Lakewood, New Jersey in the United States Regional Final.

Joe attended Valley View School District and was senior class president, Valedictorian, and played multiple sports including football, track & field, baseball, and basketball. He graduated from Dartmouth College with a Bachelor of Arts in Economics. He was a member of Theta Delta Chi Fraternity serving as house manager, a 3-year football letterman, and the Dragon Senior Honor Society. He graduated from the University of Scranton with an MBA in Finance.”

We’re sad to pass along the news that our classmate, John C. “Sean” Murphy, passed away on July 1, 2024. The cause was complications from Type 1 diabetes. Sean was an English major at Dartmouth and lived in Albuquerque, New Mexico. The obituary published by French Funerals follows:

Sean was born in 1963 in Corrales, New Mexico. He was a graduate of the Albuquerque Academy’s Class of 1981; he earned a BA in English from Dartmouth College in 1985 and completed a Master’s at St John’s College, Santa Fe, in 1994. From his first days as an English teacher to his final two decades as a head of school, he devoted his professional life to the vision and mission of independent schools across the country. He found his true home in leading Episcopal schools, where his faith and love for others found full expression. When he spoke at a school assembly or commencement, gave a eulogy, or wrote for school publications, his gift was to mix the simple and personal with the profound, leading congregations as easily as he did conversations. As a scholar, he loved quoting Aristotle and Shakespeare. As an orator, he was not afraid of tears or silence. 

As an upper school administrator at Albuquerque Academy, associate head at Oldfields School in Glencoe, Maryland, then Head of School at Palmer Trinity in Miami, Florida and finally at St Andrew’s in Austin, Texas, he mentored and inspired a generation of school leaders, who are now transforming schools nationwide. 

Always looking for ways to serve, Sean spent many years on the board at the National Association of Episcopal Schools; he was chair of the board for the Council for Spiritual and Ethical Education; he served on the board of the Florida Independent Schools Association where he chaired the committee on Standards and Accreditation; he was elected to the Country Day Schools Headmaster’s Association; and he was active in the National Association of Independent Schools (NAIS). After his retirement from Saint Andrew’s, he continued to serve on the board of Headwaters School in Austin and had recently joined the board of St. Mark’s Montessori School in Albuquerque. Sean impacted thousands of people over the course of his professional life. This is his legacy. 

Sean loved The Grateful Dead and Bob Dylan, and knew every John Prine song by heart. His favorite act of hospitality was to serve up a rare ribeye steak, a side of green chile, and a homemade blueberry pie. He enjoyed the occasional Cuban cigar. 

He adored his family; they retreated every summer to their lakeside cabin in Cable, Wisconsin. He was a loving husband and a steadfast father, who attended every one of Helen’s cross-country races as well as all of Jackie’s theater performances. He was so proud of them. 

Sean is survived by his wife, Katrina Murphy, his devoted partner in every way. They would have been married 28 years on July 27. His wedding gift to her was to build a horse barn at their Albuquerque home. He pitched hay and shoveled manure, and greeted Katrina in the back alley when she returned from riding in the Bosque. He took the reins and led her through the gate. He would say this was the most important work he ever did. 

In addition to Katrina, he leaves behind his daughters, Helen (24) and Jackie (23), both of Austin, Texas. He is also survived by his brother Tom Blueher and his wife Fran, his brother John Blueher and his wife Kim, and his sister Von Roberson and her husband Robby. 

He is preceded in death by his two brothers Bill Blueher of Telluride and Peter Murphy, as well as his parents: his father John C. Murphy and his mother Joann Cooper Murphy. 

Sean admired and supported The Gazelle Foundation, which saves lives by developing clean water sources in the small African country of Burundi. In lieu of flowers, we hope friends will consider a gift to The Gazelle Foundation through his memorial page at https://www.betterunite.com/gazellefoundation-honorthelifelegacyofseanmurphy .

Sean died of complications from Type 1 Diabetes, which he had battled since childhood, so another organization he cared about was Breakthrough T1D, formerly JDRF, at https://www.breakthrought1d.org/ whose research surely had a role in extending his life.

We mourn the loss of our classmate Rebecca Hartley on October 16, 2022. She is survived by her husband, Paul Amman ’83, and her son Matthew. At Dartmouth Becky was a government major and a member of the women’s crew team. She spent many years practicing law, and was most recently Assistant Vice President, Research Integrity and Assurance, in the Office of Research, Innovation, and Economic Impact at George Mason University. For more about Becky’s life and more photos and remembrances, visit https://rememberingbeckyhartley.com. (images via the memorial site)

Our classmate Brian Goldner has died. Brian just recently took a leave of absence from his role as CEO of Hasbro, and Rich Stoddart ’85, who is a Hasbro board member, had stepped in as interim CEO. Brian transformed Hasbro, an old-school toy and game company, by retooling many of its brands into films, television series and online games. He died at his home in Barrington, R.I. He is survived by his wife, Barbara (Genick) Goldner and their daughter, Brooke Goldner. His son Brandon predeceased him. More on Brian and his remarkable career can be found in this New York Times obituary.

From Doug’s obituary: “It is with shock and terrible sadness that we share the unexpected death of Douglas “Doug” Eric Tillman, 57, on Monday, July 5, 2021 due to a cardiac event. The only son of Carol and Raymond Tillman, Doug was born on October 29, 1963 in Englewood, NJ. A graduate of Ardsley High School ‘81 and Dartmouth College ‘85, Doug was a Petty Officer Second Class in the US Navy from 1991-1996. It was during his stint in the Navy that he discovered a love of programming which led him to his successful career in computer programming at Grainger, Textura, and lastly as Director of DevOps and PMO for the Construction and Engineering Global Business Unit at Oracle, based in Deerfield, IL. 

Doug and his charismatic energy will be deeply missed. He had an insatiable curiosity, deep intellect and a love of life. He was passionate about his dogs Sassy and Shiloh, books, travel, piano, cooking, great wine and spirits, and languages including Hebrew, Spanish, Russian and Arabic. He was always up for an adventure.”

https://www.dignitymemorial.com/obituaries/gurnee-il/douglas-tillman-10260434

With great sadness we pass along news of Clemente’s passing. He died of a heart attack on January 17, 2021. The grandson of muralist José Clemente Orozco, Clemente had a remarkable career as a typographer, book designer, printer, and artist.

With great sadness we pass along the news of Charla McMillian’s passing. Charla was diagnosed with MS in 2010. A tribute can be found on Forever Missed, and includes some beautiful writing about Charla’s life and lots of pictures. Those who knew Charla at Dartmouth will remember her spirit, her love of music, her good humor, and how all around great she was. After Dartmouth Charla became a Marine, then went to law school and practiced law, and finally started her own company, FitBoot, one of the first military-style fitness programs. She will be missed.

We are saddened to report that our classmate Suzanne Powers passed away on September 16, 2020.

Her sister, Jennifer Powers, was kind enough to share some thoughts about her big sister.  A memorial service will be held next spring.

“Yesterday, my big sister Suzanne Powers passed into spirit. She had been in more than one battle with cancer during the last three years, and if will alone could have defeated this disease she surely would have won. 

In my younger years, I regarded my big sister with both admiration and envy. Naturally more extroverted, she was my example of how to be an intelligent, charming, and successful woman. My own path took me to the West Coast, and distance and circumstance limited our relationship. In light of her illness, I am so grateful that we had made the effort to reconnect in recent years.

Suzanne touched many lives. Her voice rang clear and strong whether through song or spoken word on stage. She had the ability to be adventurous, creative, and fun, while also being the essence of reliability and strength. Despite being both an artist and a professional, she was always driven to be more. Life challenges at times constrained her natural ebullience, but her spirit would inevitably break through those grey clouds.

Safe journey, sis. I  expect the angels will have a stronger soprano section (maybe mezzo-soprano?) section now that you are singing your heart out up there.

Love you.”