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

S P O T L I G H T
visits to the infirm and their many
thoughtful letters of praise, thanks, and
sympathy; also Lance’s fun-loving tributes
to compatriots departing; and those
heartfelt eulogies, which are masterpieces
of eloquence and personal loss. Finally,
all these gestures of loyalty and appreciation
have prevailed in the remarkable
continuity of Taft’s teachers.
Moreover, the Oddens have extended
themselves to people as far away
as Southeast Asia. As humanitarians who
have traveled the world, Lance has served
as spokesman for diversity and as a trustee
for several philanthropies; Patsy has taken
her teams to compete in Europe. Their
greatest initiatives, however, have been directed
at the humanity of young people.
The Oddens continue to encourage
students to see a world beyond the mall.
For all their own privileged education in
the ’50s, they want others to have what
they themselves had missed, like the best
in coeducation, community service, and
direct attention to people of all nations.
• • •
The faculty once thought that the
Oddens would leave Taft for Andover,
Princeton, or Washington. (Originally
Lance had come to Taft largely by chance,
and Patsy with, perhaps, less deliberation.)
It was during his announcement
last fall that he told the assembly why he
and Patsy have stayed for all these years.
Between the explicit reasons about
teenagers, opportunities, trustees, a single
sentiment flowed: Lance and Patsy have
always felt a deep affection for Taft people
as their extended family—all the more so,
perhaps, because each of them had lost a
parent early in life, and what better place
than Taft to raise Jake ’86 and Laurie ’89.
Therefore, as we celebrate the luminous
careers of the Oddens in a season
of old and new beginnings, we also pay
homage to Taft. Both the old and new
school are strikingly visible from the
hill—and immensely durable. But for
those leaders to come it will be the statesmanship
of Lance and Patsy, like the
character of Horace and Winnie, that
holds the light. Meanwhile, we the people
are most grateful that Headmaster Odden
has had the best job in the world and his
best friend to share it with.
At a panel discussion in 1990, Lance laughs with New York Times
reporter Steve Erlanger ’70 and former Headmaster John Esty
Lance and Patsy
with retiring faculty
members Susan and
Jol Everett in 1999
Patsy, Lance, Laurie, and Jake
travel with Dinny and then director
of development Fred Genung ’63
and their first child, Alec, in 1973 on
one of Lance’s alumni tours around
the country.
22 Spring 2001