Page 132 - Complete Final Book2

Class Profiles
by Carol Biliczky Levandoski

Linda and Scott Febus

th
When Scott Febus turned around in his seat and made faces in Mrs. Shapiro’s 10 grade English
class, Linda Perkins thought, “What a jerk.”But Scott didn’t let that get in the way of pursuing
her. “She was the nicest looking girl in the class,” he recalls. And she came to appreciate his
sense of humor. By the end of their sophomore year, they were dating. And such was the start of
one of the most long-lasting relationships in the Class of 1970.

Today the Febus’ have been together for more than 50 years, building a close-knit family of two
children and three grandchildren, all of whom live in Medina. They have continued to work when
many of their classmates have retired. Linda, a successful Realtor with Howard Hanna and its
predecessors for 42 years, has sold many classmates’ homes and was president of the Medina
County Board of Realtors in the mid-1990s.

Scott is a civil engineer and project manager for Walsh Construction, the largest bridge builder
nationwide. He’s now working on the new Valley View Bridge on I-480 in Cuyahoga County.
They travel a couple times a year with their extended family. That meant a ski trip to Montana last February. While Linda was a little on the
edge because of covid, she was more rattled that she would break a leg on the slopes. (Neither happened.) And the couple has plans to go
to Captiva Island in Florida in May. They have a home on Lake Erie, their go-to getaway in the summer.

That’s not to say there haven’t been some bumps along the way. Linda, originally from Pittsburgh, is a Steelers fan and Scott, a Browns fan.
And the couple did split for about three years, but remained close, vacationing with their children and celebrating holidays as a family. The
split didn’t last though: “We like each other,” Linda said. “We laugh a lot.” It helped them to realize what is really important in life – family.
Now more than ever they share that spare time with their aging parents, as well. While Scott’s mother passed earlier this month, his father
lives at the Western Reserve Masonic Community; Linda’s mother is still in her own house. With increasing age and health concerns, they
have proved to be “a challenge,” Linda said. “But we’re very lucky to have two of our four parents living.”

What’s the secret to their long-term love affair? “You’ve got to work everything out as you go along,” Scott said. “You’ve got to roll with the
punches.”

Cheri (Cheryl) Gorfido Harney

When it comes to overseas trips, Cheri (Cheryl) Gorfido Harney forgoes crisp white sheets
and spas for sleeping on concrete floors and eating rice in huts with her fingers. Cheri has
made an avocation out of Christian missionary trips to third world countries. That has meant
some daunting living conditions and visiting at least one African country that does not take
to Christianity. She has been shocked by the abject poverty of the people with whom she
works, the lack of even simple comforts like an extra set of clothes or dishes on which to eat
dinner. She got started with mission work when she led a team that cooked in Dearborn,
Mich., for aspiring missionaries heading overseas. The experience of being in a multicultural
city like Dearborn, combined with the Christian zeal of the trainees, spurred her to go on her
own trips. “I wanted to go places where nobody has heard of Christ,” she said. “I realized I’d
been sleeping. It began the hunger in me to take the gospel to other people.”

Her first assignment was a relatively easy one, to London to do what she calls “cold street
evangelism,” or walking the streets with others offering New Testaments to passersby and
striking up conversations with those who showed an interest. That led to more challenging
missions to Haiti, two countries in Africa, Cuba and Jamaica. As she is a trained occupational
therapy assistant, she often works with children with autism and cerebral palsy and leads
seminars for teachers on the special needs of developmentally disabled children. She has
helped to paint an orphanage in 100 degree-plus temperatures in Haiti, taught rudimentary
English and brought the dietary staples of rice, beans and oil to those who need it,
evangelizing along the way. She pays for the trips through her own savings or appeals to
church, friends and family. When she’s back in Medina, she continues to work part-time in
the Medina schools as an occupational therapy assistant for kids with special needs. In her
spare time, she has family – lots and lots of it – to keep her company. While she is divorced,
Cheri has five children and 12 grandchildren, some of whom live within walking distance of
her home, a mother-in-suite attached to a daughter’s home. A member of the Copley Covenant of Grace church, she aspires to take more
trips to Africa and also to the Middle East. She appreciates the comforts that come with living in the rural community of Weymouth in
Medina Township. “People don’t know how good we have it here,” she said. “I am content.”