Farewell to the Oddens Farewell to the Oddens - The Taft School

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S P O T L I G H T position could anyone know personally so many people of all ages and nations and contribute to their individual lives? For those alumni less familiar with the new Taft, the questions may remain: How did this partnership manage to pilot such a traditional school into the vanguard of secondary education for the 21st century? How did Lance become the president of the nation’s Headmasters Association in its Centennial year, and Patsy, the leading advocate for women’s hockey in the U.S.A.? Colleagues and trustees have known the answer for years: The Oddens, both of them coaches at heart, created a worldclass team from all constituents, then led it with the wisdom and grace of premier statespeople day by day. It is difficult to realize all the qualities necessary for great statesmanship. The list is ponderous, if not interminable. Of course, integrity, fortitude, and joy of duty must quickly come to light; composure and compassion often take longer; and, for the less rarefied leaders, humility may take forever. Therefore, it is with some amusement that older colleagues recall which quality Lance may well have developed first. Mystically, the day that he became the youngest headmaster in the nation, at age 32, Lance impressed the faculty as “experienced.” At the same time he appeared no older than the day he shaved off that black beard, cultivated on sabbatical to Wisconsin University five years before. One afternoon, while picking up papers in the main hall (Mr. Cruikshank style), Lance noticed a candidate for admission treading time in the Harley Roberts Room. Apparently the parents had gone off for their interview. Lance welcomed the boy to Taft, then inquired, “Is there something, in particular, that you’d like to see?” The boy answered quickly, “I’d like to meet the headmaster.” Hardly pausing, Lance said, “I am the headmaster.” The boy’s eyes grew dim. “You are?” After a brief, one-sided conversation, Lance returned to his office and told his secretary about the encounter. She was so tickled that he, too, had to laugh. Then he added reflectively, “I think this young man expected to see Horace Taft.” Of course, the irony is not lost on the “Old Guard” who once knew the A champion of women’s athletics, Patsy annually presents the Marion Hole Makepeace award at graduation. Former Taft faculty at the Washington, DC, party in 1975, from left, Bob Poole ’50, Fred Clark, George Boggs ’65, Henry Welton ’35 (son of Paul Welton), Dave Miller, and Lance Odden Welcoming old boys back to campus on Alumni Day, boater and all, in 1982 The Oddens’ first grandchild: Margot, daughter of Karen and Jake ’86
A succession of headmasters and their wives: John and Katherine Esty, Paul and Edith Cruikshank, and Lance and Patsy Odden Hockey coaches Lance Odden, Len Sargent, and Mike Maher A natural athlete, Patsy joins her team out on the practice field in 1978. Influence and Ideals When Lance and Patsy announced their upcoming retirement this June, letters poured in by the hundreds. Parents, grandparents, old colleagues, and especially alumni wrote in to express their joy for the Oddens and their great sadness at the loss for the school. All remarked on the incredible influence Lance and Patsy had on their lives and those of their children, as well as their strong moral example in a time when heroes often fail to live up to our expectations. —Editor Any individual who has ever worked with Lance has to recognize his keen mind. In addition, in my days with the association, he stands out as the single most significant president who had the admirable ability to cut through rhetoric and always see the big picture. Everything he did was done with a vision as to how best to serve the total association family…. —Richard J. Bradley former executive director, New England Association of Schools and Colleges Years ago I spent a day in Washington calling on congressmen with Lance Odden and a few other school heads from Connecticut. “Our” side needed a few more votes, and our task was to persuade those votes to come our way. Lance clearly was in his element. And, as the hours passed, I began to see one of the reasons he has been such an outstanding school head. Not only is Lance bright and well informed, committed, articulate, and incisively thoughtful; he loves to be involved in the process of persuasion! —Peter B. Tacy executive director, Connecticut Association of Independent Schools Headmastering can’t be all bad if part of the job is hanging out with Jeff “Skunk” Baxter ’67 of the Doobie Brothers and Adam Bronfman ’81 at the Los Angeles dinner in 1991. Taft Bulletin 15
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