Alum Notes

Alum Notes

We take pride in celebrating the good news of our fellow alumni. Where has life taken you since graduation? Tell the Tech alumni community about career changes, achievements, family news, awards, and more by submitting an alum note using the form below.

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Class of 1964

Howard J. Douglas

November 29, 2022

After 35-plus years of being affiliated with Equitable Insurance and being the Managing and Founding Partner of Equinox Financial Partners, I have retired. During my tenure, I won many production awards and leadership awards.

Now in retirement, I still keep my fingers in the pot with a select group of individuals and small businesses. I am still on three non-profit boards including the American Cancer Society and Nassau County Police Reserves. I support the New Interdisciplinary School in Yaphank, NY by serving on their golf committee.

I am married to my best friend of 54 years, Fran, and have two daughters.

Class of 1964

David Isacowitz

November 22, 2022

I have had two software products copyrighted: Transearch(c) freight traffic database and services, and Harpoon (c) software for TV and film licensing and distribution, used by many studios, networks and distribution companies worldwide. Notable clients: Fox, CBS, Sony, Tribune companies, MTV, Viacom, Televisa sa de cv (Mexico), Paramount, and 50 others.

Class of 1964

David Isacowitz

November 22, 2022

A standout memory is getting off from school twice to go to the NYC Football Championship against DeWitt Clinton at Icahn Stadium, formerly known as Randalls Island Stadium. I believe we won both times!

Class of 1961

William W. (Bill) Schmidt

November 21, 2022

I may have survived more issues than any other Tech graduate. My mom died when I was six months old. My dad died when I was 16 1/2 and a junior at Tech. My dad’s parents took me in but told me there was no money for me to attend college. So, I began working part-time immediately upon my 16th birthday as a stock clerk for the local A&P grocery store while finishing my final year and a half at Tech. In my senior year, AT&T came to Tech recruiting students majoring in Electronics. I began working for them part-time six months before my graduation.

AT&T was an excellent company to work for, especially for someone like me who needed financial assistance to attend college and a living income. As long as I maintained a B average, AT&T paid 50% of my college expenses. As I obtained promotions to management, AT&T also had outstanding training and management development courses. The ironic thing is that while my eventual degree was in Electrical Engineering, I was never rotated through the Engineering department but had various assignments in most other departments. AT&T also had a joint venture with Trenton State University offering a Master’s Program at one of AT&T’s training centers located just a few miles from my home at the time n Somerset, NJ. We had the full support of graphic arts and word processing in the late ’70s. And we were fed dinner on the Tuesday and Thursday class evenings, held from 3 PM – 9 PM. What an opportunity!

I mentioned being a survivor. Here are several of my many experiences. In addition to losing both parents, I’ve been bitten by a snake; shot by a 12-gauge shotgun and also by an arrow’ had a fishing hook lodged in my eye; broken wrists five times (twice at Tech, once on the last day before the Christmas break as a freshman and then as a junior); had a burst appendix along with pancreatitis and sepsis while my heart went into AFib, spending 10 days in the ICU. Required triple-bypass open-heart surgery after two surgeries failed within a year. Had nine major back operations between 1990 and 2008, resulting in my vertebrae being fused with instrumentation over 14 levels in my back. Had COVID that went into long COVID, while having a total blockage of the right coronary artery (RCA). requiring emergency surgery. Have had diabetes for over 25 years, which became unmanageable because my pancreas was only functioning at 10% of normal, requiring an artificial pancreas (aka an insulin pump), not to mention a few other less significant issues.

There’s no doubt in my mind that if it hadn’t been for the excellent start and the opportunities presented to me via Tech, I wouldn’t have made it very far. As it is, I’m the proud father of three amazing daughters: an engineer, a doctor, and a lawyer. When I stand before the Lord for my final judgment and am asked, “How did you get here?”, I’ll mention that Tech started me on the path that led me here.

Class of 1957

Donald Baumgarten

November 18, 2022

After Tech (College Prep), went on to the State University at Farmingdale, and first job after graduation was as a manufacturing technician. Why did I choose to attend Brooklyn Tech? It was the best in the city.
Which lessons learned at Tech have served me well in my profession? Math. What sets Tech students apart from students at other high schools? Brains. Are there specific teachers at Tech who inspired me? All of them.

Class of 1965

Seth Essenfeld

November 17, 2022

After Tech I attended Northeastern University. Although I did not graduate from Northeastern, I did go on to a very successful career in retail. I owned my own business for the last 25 years, then sold it to my son and am enjoying the good life in sunny southern California. The other day I was at the San Diego Safari Park, wearing at t-shirt my wife bought for me that reads, “Of course I am awesome, I attended Brooklyn Tech,” and was approached by a man from the class of ’66. Tech was an awesome experience.

Class of 1947

Morton Horowitz

November 17, 2022

A memorable experience at Tech was the jail break in a downtown Brooklyn prison. We were stuck in school until close to midnight. Crazy experience. Volunteered as a hall monitor.

Class of 1946

Robert Richter

November 16, 2022

My new book, DOCUMENTARIES AND SERENDIPITY,
is available at Amazon.com/books. I am the last, or one
of the last, surviving producers for Walter Cronkite and
the series launched by Edward R. Murrow.

Class of 1962

Howard Last

November 16, 2022

After graduating Tech I went on for my Bachelor’s in Mechanical Engineering and Master’s in Civil (Sanitary) Engineering and my PE License. One of my first jobs was with a consulting engineering firm that specialized in water treatment for steel mills. The first time I went to a mill was with one of the other guys. As we toured the plant he would ask me about different plant sections. The first was the coke ovens and then an open hearth. When I correctly identified them he said, “I forgot you went to Tech.” My boss was also a Tech graduate as were several other of the men.

As a mechanical engineering student I took a machine shop course. The first day of class the professor handed out tool bits. The rake angle was wrong so I went to a grinding wheel to fix it. The professor ran over and said the lab assistant will fix it. You should have seen the look I received when I said we ground tool bits the first day in high school. The class project one day included turning a taper. I got the same look again and he said, “Excellent, you are only off by two thousandths.” I replied, “At Tech I would have lost 20 points for that.”

While working I went on to get my P.E. License then set out to work on my own. My most memorable project was the reconstruction of the World Trade Center in 1993 following the bombing. The blast took out the entire HVAC plant. It is not often that you see 7,000-ton chillers. For those that forgot their thermodynamics that is how much liquid water at 32 degrees a chiller can turn to ice at 32 degrees in 24 hours. Does latent heat ring a bell?

My brothers Mike ’64 and Stephen ’66 are also Tech graduates, as was our father, Irving Last, Class of 1929. Tech definitely runs in the family! Also, I can’t forget taking the GG train for 4 years.

Class of 1984

Fritz Eichelberger

November 16, 2022

Attended BTHS from 1980-1984. Made many great friends and am still connected to a bunch of them, thanks to Facebook. If you’re a member of the Class of 1984, please consider joining our Facebook group. At this link there is another group for all BTHS alumni.

As for me, after Tech, I went on to graduate from Baruch College. Met my wife there. My career has been in sales and I started a recruiting & consulting firm in 2005. If you remember how miserable the winter of 1996-1997 was… well, that drove my wife & I to relocate from Forest Hills to Tampa, FL. If you remember me or you’re ever in Tampa, find me on Facebook, and let’s connect.

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