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It'll be hard for the Freys to top this month

By Mary Ann Cook

WHAT A JUNE: What a month Lea and Bill Frey have had. First, an incredible 50th wedding anniversary celebration with a sit-down dinner for 70 in the garden of Malcolm and Beverly Leslie. The Leslies had provided this same setting for the 25th anniversary party of the Freys, too, matter of fact.

To no one's surprise music was a major part of the doings, since Lea is the French and German diction coach for Opera San Jose and Bill plays saxophone in several groups. John Bellemer, lead tenor of Opera San Jose, sang songs performed at the Frey wedding in Pittsburgh 50 years earlier.

Layna Chianakas of Opera San Jose and Rachelle Perry Ward of the San Francisco Opera chorus also sang. The pièce de résistance, however--and totally unexpected--was Jeffrey Wells of the Metropolitan Opera.

He sang "If Ever I Should Leave You" to Lea as proxy for Bill Frey. Hard to find a dry eye among the azaleas after that one. "I knew he was coming because he was singing in Das Rheingold in San Francisco the next day and he's an old friend. What I didn't know was that he'd sing," says a still-overwhelmed Lea Frey.

Opening the party and the musical motif was the group Take Two, as in "Take two aspirin and call me in the morning." So named because several of the group are doctors, including Bill Frey, a retired cardiologist.

The next event was granddaughter Megan Frey's wedding to Shane Read, held at the Tahoe-Donner Golf Club. Some 150 guests attended this one, with a heavy contingent from Los Gatos. Megan's father is William C. Frey, local dentist. Which takes us to the third Frey event, which is W.C. Frey's installation as the next Los Gatos Lions' Club president.

ROTARY WHEELS: Julian Rodriguez, who has served as Los Gatos Rotary Club president this year, was named Outstanding Club President for District 5170, beating out 56 other Rotary Club presidents in this district. Rodriguez is a managing general agent for Hartford Insurance Co.

He was named the county's Insurance Industry Person of the Year and serves on the board of the county Red Cross and the San Jose Diocese Catholic Bishops Committee.

Under his leadership the club was recognized for its community service, international outreach and membership. The local club contributed more than $65,000 to local youth and community organizations, as well as to Rotary International causes this year.

The club is No. 1 in the district for foundation giving. Some $53,572 in matching grants programs went to a vision and dental project in Chihuahua, Mexico; $25,000 for hospital equipment for Europe; and $6,000 for Hands for Honduras and counting.

In local projects, 87 Special Ed children carved pumpkins at Vasona, and 85 underprivileged youngsters went fishing at Vasona Park with Rotarian helpmates. Rotary sponsored 25 families for Christmas baskets and 35 for toys (in conjunction with the Salvation Army). Some 75 Easter baskets went to the county children's shelter and $3,000 was raised for Interact.

NIGER-BOUND: Los Gatan Elisa Bosque-Oliva, 22, is off to Washington, D.C., the first stop in her Peace Corps stint to be served in Niger, Africa. She'll work on agricultural projects after three months of technical, language and cross-cultural training.

In special ceremonies in Washington, the 200 volunteers will meet the ambassadors from El Salvador, China, Ghana and Romania, along with Niger. Bosque-Oliva is a graduate of Brown University, where she earned degrees in international relations and French civilization.

Niger was under French rule until 1958. During the 1998-99 academic year, Bosque-Oliva was heavily involved in youth outreach for the Hague Appeal for Peace.

FRONT PAGE: Los Gatan Greg Garnett appeared on the front page of the Washington Post on May 27. Garnett had just graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy and, in an emotionally charged moment, was pictured hugging his roommate, Wallace Frazier.

Garnett is grinning broadly, but Frazier looks as if he is about to break into tears.

Greg is the son of Marty and Carol Garnett and grandson of Bob and Roz Stegman, all of Los Gatos, and is a graduate of Leigh High School, 1995. Grandfather Stegman graduated from the Naval Academy in 1947, so Greg is carrying on family tradition. He will go to flight school in Pensacola, Fla.

NEW OFFICERS: New officers for Saratoga Men's Club are Sandy Frederickson, president; James Wenzel, vice president; and Marlon Smith, secretary/treasurer. New board directors are John "Bud" Armstrong, George Hutchinson and Ed Porter, joining Harold Hodges, Richard Rhodes and Don Sturdevant.

The Spouses' Dinner was held at Bob and Gloria Egan's, renewing an old tradition for the club, which was founded in 1918. Outgoing president Clayton Bruntz and wife Sue greeted the 140 guests.

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