Peter Keenan Smalley (known at CHS as Peter Hoff)

Kit was a very smart and reliably witty member of every class. He taught himself to play the guitar, but being left handed, played it strung upside down and fingered the chords accordingly. He used to quip that Kit Rust was only a nom de guerre and that his real name was Christopher Corrosion. The sudden loss of both Kit and Damon was devastating to the school, the town, and most of all their mother who lost her only sons in that tragic moment.

   So sorry to hear of the loss of yet another Claremont alum. My wife says I’m lucky to receive these notifications, sometimes I’m not so sure about that.

   Charley and I knew each other from kindergarten at Oakmont Elementary, thru El Roble Junior High, CHS, and finally Pomona College. We were closest friends, and neighbors, in the elementary grades.

   Balch and Savage have his number alright, he was always the smartest and most thoughtful student in and out of class.

   A memory from about third grade has stayed with me and I have told many people of it over the decades. Our teacher polled the class with the question, “What is your most prized possession?” Many similar answers were given, bicycle, record player, roller skates, and when it came to Charley he said without hesitation “My plant press.” I’m certain he left behind an extensive collection of botanical specimens, dating all the way back to that early time.

  And thanks for the link Marc. Quite nice to see him and hear his voice again after a very long separation.