Spring 2013 - Oglethorpe University

alumni
New
Frontiers
When the news broke last year about
one of the greatest scientific discoveries
of all time, the so-called “God particle,”
The New York Times wrote that the
“discovery will change our view of
ourselves and our place in the universe.
Surely that is the hallmark of great
music, great literature, great art….and
great science.” And one Oglethorpe
alumnus was a part of it.
Ronald Charles Remington (Ronny) was born
and grew up in Daytona Beach, Fla., where
his parents still live. He attended Seabreeze
High School, which is where he first learned
about Oglethorpe University in 2002. Ronny
was impressed with what OU had to offer and
was particularly attracted to the Core program.
Competing against a large number of other
students, he was awarded the JEO (James
Edward Oglethorpe) scholarship, which paid his
tuition, room and board for four years.
Ronny first became interested in physics while
studying for the JEO competition. Although he
had not studied physics in high school, he was
drawn to the subject by being required to read
and discuss Thomas Kuhn’s philosophical work,
The Structure of Scientific Revolutions. His college
advisor, Dr. Michael Rulison, spent many hours
with Ronny and was a major influence on his
approach to understanding physics, one that
Ronny and his wife, Jeanette, stand in front of
the Large Hadron Collider in Switzerland.
remains with him today. Ronny also received
significant guidance from Dr. Nardo in the math
department and from Dean Doyle. Both of these
mentors took a personal interest in his success.
Ronny feels that he could have “fallen through
the cracks” at a larger university that doesn’t
have the close student/professor relationship
that exists at Oglethorpe.
In addition to excelling in the classroom, Ronny
was involved in various extracurricular activities
at Oglethorpe. He played varsity soccer and was
a member of the Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity.
Ronny graduated from OU in 2006, earning a
B.S. in physics with honors and a second major in
mathematics. After completing his undergraduate
degree, he enrolled in the graduate school of
physics at the University of Florida in Gainesville.
There he joined the Compact Muon Solenoid
Experiment (CMS) to pursue his Ph.D. research in
high energy particle physics.
CMS is one of two massive particle detectors
built to search for new particles produced by
the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) at CERN
laboratory in Geneva, Switzerland. The LHC is
the world’s most powerful particle collider and
is designed to steer beams containing trillions of
ultra-relativistic protons into each other at a rate
of 40 million times per second. The energetic
debris that rapidly emerges from these collisions
is captured by very sophisticated detectors like
the CMS experiment, and studied with the aid
of high-performance computing resources by
large teams of scientists. Ronny was among
these scientists for several years, designing
algorithms to help make sense of the data and
By Sydney Mobley Moss ’59
Ronny Remington ’06 discovers a smashing career path
search for signals. The most sought-after signal
among the scientists working on CMS was that of
the Higgs boson, also known by its more popular
name, the “God Particle.” The Higgs boson is
tied to the mechanism that gives mass to all of
the fundamental particles. It has eluded scientists
for decades, and its discovery would vindicate
the prevailing theory of particle physics, known
as the Standard Model. The CMS collaboration
made headlines in early 2012 for publishing the
first observation of the Higgs boson. Ronny is
very proud to have played a small part in that
momentous accomplishment during his years at the
University of Florida.
It was at the University of Florida in 2008 that he
married his high school sweetheart, Jeannette,
who is a strong supporter of his scientific
endeavors. Ronny gives Jeannette a great deal
of credit for his success. During their first year of
marriage, they moved to a location near CERN
(the European Organization for Nuclear Research)
in Geneva, Switzerland, and the home of the
Large Hadron Collider. They lived in a small
French village on the Swiss border. While working
on CMS, Ronny made significant contributions
to several papers that were accepted by wellrespected
scientific journals.
Ronny and Jeannette now live in Bethesda, Md.,
where he is a senior research scientist at the Johns
Hopkins University Applied Physics Lab. Although
he had an opportunity to return to Geneva for
additional work, he chose to stay in the U.S. and
pursue his career goals. Ronny is an excellent
example of someone who is “making a life,
making a living and making a difference.”
Sydney Mobley Moss ’59 is a retired SunTrust
banker. She and her husband, Jack, live in
Flowery Branch, Ga. and enjoy traveling. Sydney
serves on the Alumni Board as a member of the
Communications Committee.
Future Thinking
with Deep Roots
By Linda Sanders Scarborough ’65
Robert Currey ’66 and Suzanne Straub Currey ’65 are
enjoying their retirement by starting another business—one far
different from their original work and a little more “down to earth,”
you might say.
After graduating from Oglethorpe, the Curreys developed the furniture
chain Storehouse, beginning in 1969 with one store on Peachtree Street in
Atlanta. The chain expanded to 28 stores by the early 1980s, when they sold
their shares in the business. After a few years, they opened another store
specializing in outdoor furniture, which grew into the current Currey &
Company, a wholesale business now managed by their son, Brownlee.
For most of these years, the Curreys lived in the Brookhaven area of Atlanta,
not too far from Oglethorpe. They enjoyed gardening in their small backyard,
and they learned about sustainable gardening practices from cousins in
Tennessee. As vegetarians, they appreciated the taste of sustainably grown
produce and heirloom varieties of various vegetables and fruits. In the early
2000s, they visited friends in Hancock County in middle Georgia and
decided to buy a historic home in Sparta. Since they had moved to a rural
area, they were able to adopt sustainable gardening practices for their new
garden in Sparta.
Over time the garden plot grew in size and with the extra acreage available
for further growth, it eventually became a commercially viable business
called Elm Street Gardens. As sustainable gardeners, the Curreys use no
artificial fertilizers or pest control products and employ a “no-till” farming
method. Their garden beds are enriched with natural compost to provide
nutrients for the vegetables and fruits grown throughout most of the year.
Two “hoop houses” (domed greenhouses) provide additional growing space
for both summer and winter crops. They are currently restoring an old cotton
warehouse near the gardens to add shiitake mushrooms to their offerings
and expand wholesale opportunities.
The harvest from Elm Street Gardens is sold through farmers’ markets and
through a subscription delivery service. “Farm Box” is their collaboration
with two other middle Georgia farms to provide
weekly delivery of seasonal produce
to service subscribers. This
differs from other community
supported agriculture (CSA)
programs because it allows subscribers
to add locally raised heritage
breed pork, grass fed beef and farm
eggs to their weekly orders.
Suzy and Robert value the liberal
arts experience they found at
Oglethorpe, which they say has broadened their lives and perspectives in
business and in community activities. The Curreys enjoy sharing their
knowledge with the various groups that visit the gardens. A group of
Oglethorpe students visited in March 2012 as part of the one-day “short
courses” launched by the Campus Life offices last year. And this summer,
several Oglethorpe students will be working onsite at Elm Street Gardens
as part of a new live/work internship partnership program that includes
students from Agnes Scott College.
“It was great to see the interest in and concern for sustainable farming in this
diverse group of young people,” says Robert, who is a former OU Trustee.
“This interest from Oglethorpe ties in well with our vision of engaging more
young people in these practices.”
Elm Street Gardens has also nurtured a sense of community. For the past
three years, Robert and Suzy have hosted a Labor Day picnic for Hancock
County residents with a potluck dinner and games for the kids. More than
300 people attended this year.
For more information about the garden and other farms in the area, visit
www.elmstreetgardens.com, and check out Suzy’s blog about current crops
and activities at the garden.
Linda Sanders Scarborough ’65 was a math and physics major at
Oglethorpe. She worked for AT&T in information technology until her
retirement. She serves on the Alumni Board and volunteers at the Atlanta
Symphony Orchestra and the Alliance Theatre.
(below left) OU students toured Elm Street Garden as part of Oglethorpe “short
courses,” which focus on fun topics and experiences.(below right) Suzanne and
Robert Currey, pictured on the front porch of their Sparta home, received the 2013
Spirit of Oglethorpe Alumni Award, which recognizes alumni who live by the
Oglethorpe motto: “Make a life. Make a living. Make a difference.”
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