Dear Reader,

"Dear Bob/Dear Tom" is a compilation of letters between two college students who became
fast friends the first week of their freshman year at Mount Carmel High in Chicago.  Four years  later, Tom, who is on his way to Dartmouth College in Hanover, N.H., stops in Manhattan and
writes the first letter to Bob.  Bob has started his freshman year at Notre Dame University in
South Bend, IN.  They are both 17 years old.

The letters do not end with college, but go on through Bob's Army years, and Tom's service
in the Navy.

The two maintained their close friendship until Tom's death in June of 2009.

Much could be said about the times, the events mentioned, and people who populate these
pages, but it's best to let Bob and Tom speak for themselves.

Please enjoy the letters for the glimpse they give us of their lives and of the times.  The letters are also highly entertaining.

Thank you!