personalized correspondence and replacing it with form letters, as most organizations were doing in the interest of efficiency. George Sloan was among those who argued persuasively for continuation of the personal letters as a reflection of the club’s character. In April 2026, George kindly interviewed Tony, now 85, at his retirement home in Schenectady, for this article. Following are short edited excerpts from that lengthy interview: George Sloan: How did you and Jane meet? Tony Solomon: The Clifton Park Senior Center offered a bus trip to the GE Museum in Schenectady. Guess who sat next to me? We discovered a common interest in motorcycling and hiking; I was a 46er, and she was working on her list, so we did some hiking together. GS: Were you helping Grace at that point? TS: Yes. I was told, “You gotta behave with Grace, do this, do that.” So I was very careful at first. But Grace said, “What’s the matter with you? Just relax; I’ll tell you what to do.” GS: How did you get into hiking? TS: I was in the Boy Scouts and we would go to Vermont. Then I got a summer job helping in the kitchen at the state (Department of Environmental Conservation) education camp at Ray Brook. We used to take the kids on hikes up Whiteface and my job was to carry a pack basket with everyone’s sandwiches. I think I climbed Whiteface once or twice when I worked at the camp. Later, I went to Adirondak Loj and started in, not knowing anything. I joined people who were heading for Marcy, Skylight, and Gray. On Gray, they showed me the canister with the log. I said, “What is this?” I don’t think I signed it, but that was my introduction to the 46, and the 46ers. GS: I have some great memories of you and Jane at your house. TS: I remember the time when you brought a huge bottle of wine to our Thanksgiving dinner but couldn’t get the cork out. I got a mammoth electric drill and drilled it out. GS: What attracted you to the historian’s job? TS: I was bored in retirement. I was looking for something to do! GS: When you started working with Grace, what was the biggest challenge? TS: It was organizing ourselves. So many people came to the office to help, I can’t remember them all. We had a team, you know. We called us “the Grace Committee.” She was letting more go. We decided that somebody needed to be an office person, not just a historian. Joe Busch ran the numbers every year, Mike Becker compiled the finishers list and Mike McGill did general office chores. GS: Why do you think it’s important for the 46ers to have a historian? TS: I believe in the history of From left: Tony Solomon, Mindy Jatulis, Jane Nye, L. John Van Norden Jane Nye and Ted Davidson Barnett congratulate young finisher Nathaniel Ball in 2013 Mindy Jatulis and wife Linea Visiting Grace at her nursing home are (from left) Jane Nye, Linea and Mindy Jatulis, and Tony Solomon “I believe in the history of the club. A lot of people don’t know that history.” TALKING POINTS 12 | ADIRONDACK PEEKS
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