here - Suffield Academy

The Suffield Bell
www.suffieldacademy.org
Established 1833 October 2005
Vol. LXIIV, no. 1
Suffield lost an adored staff
member and friend on August 2, 2005.
Mr. Fred George, 75, lost a valiant
fight with cancer. He came in 1992 as
a staff member with the official title of
“School Support.” Ms. Thomas noted
that the “title that was both a perfect
description of his duties and entirely
inadequate in expressing the breadth
and depth of Fred’s love of Suffield and
commitment to the school and students.”
Many knew Mr. George in
different contexts: friend, mentor, coach,
father, team chauffer, fellow Red Sox
fan, and that man whose presence made
it impossible to be in a bad mood. This
man was omnipresent on campus; he
could be found organizing the laundry
service, watching over the Student Union,
making spirited lunch announcements
that drew rapturous applause, motivating
the work program inspectors, and
attending Suffield sports contests.
Watching Suffield students
compete was one of his favorite activities.
A Farewell to a Beloved Friend
Cole Archambault ’06
While he traveled with and coached the
baseball and softball teams, he loved
attending all Suffield sports activities,
pointed out Mr. George’s son Mike who
is a guitar teacher here at SA. “He was
saddest when school was out of session
and there weren’t any students on
campus,” said Mike George who feels
that his father’s greatest contribution
to SA was his love for all students.
A memorial service was held
for Mr. George on Bell Hill on August
6, 2005. The softball field was lined
in honor of the fallen coach, and those
who knew him best shared their stories.
The service concluded with everyone
singing “Take Me Out to the Ballgame.”
During the memorial service, it became
apparent that everyone had a special Mr.
George story. In an effort to remember
the man whose presence on campus
was important to so many people,
the staff of The Bell has collected a
few stories from the people who had
special experiences with Mr. George.
Fred D. George 1930-2005
Mr. George gives encouragement to the Class of 2005 at the annual
50th Night Dinner on April 9, 2005. photo: Kaitlin Thomas
Every day as I walked by the
POD office, I heard the same question.
“Did you see that game last night?”
I would reply, of course, and the
next ten minutes, usually when I had to be
in class, I would spend discussing the Red
Sox game with Mr. George. I would sit
next to him and we would talk about how
the Red Sox performed, inning by inning.
After discussing the game in full
detail, he would ask about everything.
From school, to sports, to family, just
in case there was something I needed
to talk about or he could help me with.
That’s the kind of person Mr.
George was. He always wanted to make
sure everything was going well and always
wanted to help. Mr. George represented
everything that makes Suffield great.
His love for Suffield was unparallelled;
he lived, breathed, and bled orange and
black. He instilled the same ideals in me.
When I look back at my time at Suffield,
Mr. George will always be one of the
first memories that comes to my mind,
not as an adult who criticized me, or an
overbearing teacher, but as my friend,
someone I could talk to, even if the
Red Sox did lose the night before.
- Ron Bathrick ’06
Every practice, Mr. George
would seat himself next to the pitching
machine safely behind a net to start the
day’s hitting practice. And each day,
he came to practice with a smile that
could cheer up even the saddest person.
When someone on the team would hit a
screaming line drive that would hit the
net right in front of him, his eyes would
light up with extreme delight and he
would say “Wow, that was a good shot!”
It was during those moments
when I could see his passion and love
for softball, that I couldn’t help but
smile. Mr. George was also our first
base coach. It didn’t take much to make
him nervous and hear the famous, “Back,
back!” that sounded like the Aflac duck.
Whenever I reached first base, he never
failed to tell me how many outs there
were and which bases were occupied.
I didn’t realize the true impact he had on
our softball team until the season was over.
He hosted our softball party and it was
there that we all realized how his presence
alone drove us to become not only better
softball players, but better people as well.
Although Mr. George is irreplaceable,
I know that there will forever be a part
of him in each and every one of us.
- Melissa Carey ’06
Fred George was a colleague,
mentor and friend to me for the past five
years. While I only knew him for a short
time, it sometimes felt like I had known
him a lifetime. Fred’s compassion for the
Suffield Community was unrivaled, and his
desire to help people continually amazed
me. The consummate planner, Fred
always wanted to be part of organizing
holiday parties, cookouts, and faculty
gatherings. Beyond his compassion,
Fred was someone who simply loved life.
I roomed with Fred in Florida
during our annual baseball spring trip. I
can remember thinking the very first time I
stayed with him that he’d certainly want to
get to bed early and that I’d have to be careful
not to wake him up. Well, as it turned out,
Fred was the one that wanted to tell stories
late into the night as I tried to get some
sleep! I still vividly remember sitting next
to him on the flight home one year. I used
to make him sit with me so that I could get
the elderly discount on my tickets. He made
a three hour flight seem like a blink of an
eye with his stories about his childhood, his
days at USC, and his foray into the restaurant
business. His best story was the one about
being in Ford’s Theater when Lincoln was
shot... just an amazing first hand account!!!
The greatest lesson Mr. George
taught me was to enjoy life to the fullest
each and every day. Even when Fred was
battling cancer this past year, he kept a
positive attitude and even managed to
smile every time I saw him. I have no
doubt that I am a better person today
because of my friendship with Fred George.
- Bryan Brissette
Highlights
Editorial / Opinions - page 2
Laramie Project
Letter from the Editors
Chapel
Orientation
Features - page 3
New Studen Orientation
Published Suffield Author
Marginalization
Fozzie
Whatʼs Hot/Whatʼs Not
Art - pages 4 + 5
Theme: Women
New Faculty - page 6
News & Sports - pages 7 + 8
Summer Sports Report
TA Retreat
New Schedule
Sports Psychology
Fall Sports Photos
Our Community’s Personal Response to Hurricane Katrina Victims
Bianca Molta ’07
It’s hard to watch the news
or read a newspaper without seeing
or reading about the aftermath and
devastations of Hurricane Katrina.
Ever since late August, the hurricane
in New Orleans and the Gulf Coast
has been the talk of the news.
Aside from the stories of the
many celebrities donating money or
physically helping with relief, many
charities and communities are giving
to the cause as well. But what about our
Suffield community? By now, new and
old students alike are most likely not
shocked to learn that the community
has already worked towards relief.
One of the groups on campus that has
done a great deal of work towards the
relief effort is Community Outreach.
Led by a new member of the faculty,
Mr. Ayinde, the group of students
started a clothing drive to help those
who had fallen victim to the hurricane.
In particular, those being
helped include two families, in-all a
total of nineteen people, who were
kindly taken in by a former employee
of Mrs. Stowe’s husband. The family,
being housed in Temple, Georgia, was
in desperate need of staple necessities.
Mrs. Stowe has been very impressed
by the amount of student dedication in
the Community Outreach group. “I see
a lot of personal drive,” she said. One
student out of the many in the group
with a lot of personal drive is Bintou
Ojomo ’07. “This was definitely a task
that all of the members of Community
Outreach took to heart,” she said.
Numerous announcements
notified the community of the goal to
collect 500 pieces of donated items,
which could be anything from clothing
to money. Headmaster Cahn agreed
to grant a day of relaxed dress-code
if this goal was reached. Lucky for
everyone, the goal was surpassed thanks
to the generously large amounts of food,
clothing, and money given by students and
faculty. When the time came to sort through
the donations, over $200 and 54 bags of
donated goods were counted. The Outreach
group sorted clothes into piles of men’s,
women’s, and kids’. After being folded,
they were boxed and ready to be shipped.
“The shipping company is shipping
the donations for free and a company
that makes boxes donated the shipping
supplies for the drive,” Bintou said. In
total 900 pounds of items were shipped.
The outcome of the clothing drive
was a huge success, one that shows what
a difference Suffield can and is willing to
make. The hope of the community enabled
a large sum of donations to go to those in
need, and as the American Red Cross says,
“Hope is more powerful than a hurricane.”

2 - The Bell October 2005
Editorials
Community Growth Through This Fall’s Drama: “The Laramie Project”
We’ve all heard about The
Laramie Project as Suffield’s fall play
this year, but are we all ready for it? There
won’t be hilarious backstage scenes like
in Noises Off; there won’t be crazy fight
scenes like in Macbeth; and there won’t
be energetic musical numbers like in
Grease. However, The Laramie Project
will give us plenty to think about, and
will hopefully have an extensive and
lasting impact on our community.
The powerful subject matter
of The Laramie Project is the reaction
of the town of Laramie, Wyoming
to the hate crime committed against
teenaged Matthew Shepard. He was
brutally murdered, likely because of his
homosexuality. This kind of act seems
to be something so hateful and cruel that
many of us do not want to think that it
could happen. However, the death of
Matthew Shepard is very real and it isn’t
something that we can ignore because
of the difficulty of dealing with it.
This destructive act raises
a great host of issues to think about
globally, but by performing The Laramie
Project, Mr. Galvez and the actors in the
play look to bring these issues to focus on
a community level. The Laramie Project
will hopefully spark a higher level of
awareness and understanding at Suffield
with respect to not only sexuality, but
also all kinds of marginalization. As
Mr. Galvez stated, “This is a modern
Chapel: Back for Another Season
Sarah Brislin ’06
The students and faculty of
Suffield Academy meet for Chapel
most Wednesdays to listen to speakers
and recognize achievements. The
Chapel Committee, a group of
students that works with Headmaster
Cahn, has been working hard to find
interesting programs and speakers for
the Suffield Academy community.
The first meeting for Chapel
was for Underclass Prize Day.
The awards honored the academic
achievements of the past year. The
prizes, which were voted on by faculty
before the end of school last year,
were given from every department and
recognized feats from most improved
in freshman English student to
achievement in advanced Mathematics.
The second Chapel was
completely different. Mr. Gotwals talked
with the community about the history of
This September, 145 new
students were welcomed on Orientation
Weekend. Teaching assistants and
dorm proctors orchestrated the
ceremonies under the direction of
Suffield’s new Director of Student
Affairs, Mr. Eckhardt. These junior
and senior leaders, festooned in bright
orange “Need Directions?” t-shirts,
kicked off the weekend with the
traditional singing of the school song.
From there, the TAs and
proctors performed skits about Suffield
Academy traditions, the bell and the
seal. On Saturday morning, Orientation
continued with more group activities
aimed at getting new students to get to
Another Year at Orientation
Cole Archambault ’06
Kristen LaPlante ’06
day tragedy from which I see many
hopeful things emerging.” Among
other things, Suffield should emerge
from the performance as both a
tighter and a more open community.
Due to the power and magnitude
of The Laramie Project and the issues it
raises, it is an event that no person in
this community should miss. However,
this play is different from those we all
might be used to. Before seeing the
play, we need to prepare ourselves with
certain knowledge and understanding.
The GSA and other students have
formed the Laramie Organization that
is working hard to bring awareness
to the community about the issue
of how the world today deals with
homosexuality. The more information
we have before the play, the more
powerful the experience will be, and,
trumpets and treated us to a performance.
He brought in his collection of trumpets,
ranging from one made out a sheep’s
horn to a piccolo, to show just how much
they can vary in size, shape, and sound.
There were also guest faculty trumpet
players including Mr. Krasemann, Mrs.
Vianney, Ms. Smith, and Mr. Sullivan.
We have five more chapels
before Thanksgiving ranging in
topic from a performance from Yale
University’s improvisational comedy
troupe to a preview of the fall production
of The Laramie Project. Other speakers
include Rich Drorbaugh, who will
speak about using emotional energy to
have a positive influence and his work
fighting cancer, and Jamie Binnall,
who will talk about his encounter with
drunk driving. All of these Chapels
promise to be interesting and to spark
discussions about important topics.
know one another. “It was really nerveracking,”
said freshman Liz Monty,
adding, “Starting classes helped me
meet more people than Orientation did.”
While some students believe
that the Orientation activities are
humdrum and ineffective in acclimating
new students to the school, some
returning students disagree. “Orientation
is such a valuable tradition for Suffield.
Every student here has gone through it,
and the activities welcome new students
to the Suffield culture,” says Sarah Brislin
who is one of the senior TAs who ran
the weekend’s events. For this reason,
Orientation, in the way we have all been
through it, is presumably here to stay.
hopefully, the more lasting its effects.
Things that we should all be
prepared for include mature themes,
some mature language, and an intense
and emotional experience. Returning
students may remember a chapel toward
the end of last year when former drama
teacher Mr. Dimond shouted out a series
of different kinds of slurs, which was
very hard to listen to. The experience
of The Laramie Project will have
moments of this intensity and difficulty.
However, all this contributes greatly to
the overall importance of the play and
its themes. Mr. Galvez declared, “No
one should feel frightened or uneasy
because of the subject matter. This is a
great play. It’s serious, but entertaining.
It’s a performance, not a lecture.”
The Laramie Project is unlike
any production Suffield has ever seen.
It is daring and controversial, but the
fact that it was chosen as the fall play
shows a trust in the maturity of this
community. We will get to know the
people of Laramie, Wyoming as they
truly reacted to this tragedy. We will
likely understand a greater sense of
harmful things that we do and say here
at school, and through this become
a more accepting and understanding
place. In the words of Mr. Cahn, “It is
great that we are pursuing this event.
It is a very powerful statement about
the level of tolerance at school today.”
Join the Laramie Project
Discussion Group!
Email Chelsea Lessard
Editors In Chief
Cole Archambault ’06
Kristen LaPlante ’06
Layout Editors
Yiannis Gazis ’07
Navid Obahi ’06
Andrew Teich ’06
Photography Editors
Brooke Beatt ’06
Caitlin Cahill ’06
Erin Meehan ’06
Jill Furman ’06
Art & Poetry Editors
Jane Fuller ’06
Nancy Fuller ’06
Features Editors
Ned Booth ’06
Rob Logan ’06
Luke McComb ’06
News Editors
Brie Beaudette ’07
Bianca Molta ’07
The Letter from
the Editors
Cole Archambault 06 and
Kristen LaPlante ’06
As the fall season sets in
around us, we welcome the foliage
and relief from the heat. It really is
a time for transition for most of the
Suffield Community. For many, the
experience is that of a new school.
For returning students and faculty, it
is a transition to new classes and new
students. For the Bell, the fall has
brought an almost completely new staff.
This new staff is enthusiastic and hardworking.
We are proud of their work
thus far and think that you will be too.
Just as we are happy
about all the new changes of the new
school year, we also have taken this
opportunity to say goodbye to an old
friend, Mr. Fred George. We hope
you all have taken the chance to read
the emotional contributions of Ron
Bathrick, Mr. Brissette, and Melissa
Carey. Their writing, based on their
unique experiences with Mr. George,
gives all of us an understanding for
how much Suffield meant to Mr. George
as well as how Suffield Academy
will never be the same without him.
The Suffield Bell
A Member of the Columbia Scholastic Press Association
Sports Editors
Kristen Bautz ’06
Sarah Ellerton ’06
Meara McCarthy ’07
Faculty Advisor
Elizabeth Stowe
Contributors
Chris Bae ’07
Ron Bathrick ’06
Sarah Brislin ’06
Bryan Brissette
Aubrey Butcher ’06
Melissa Carey ’06
Matt Doup ’07
Hannah Frank ’09
Christina Fraziero ’07
Tsuneko Jarris ’09
Kay Kim ’06
Monica Markowski ’07
Serena Reynolds ’06
Josh Scheinblum ’07
Ana Santos ’07
Kaitlin Thomas
Hae Rin Yoon ’08
photo Anonymous
Suffield Academy does not discriminate on the basis of sex, race, color, religion, creed, national or
ethnic origin, citizenship, physical attributes, disability, age, or sexual orientation. We administer
our admissions, financial aid, educational, athletic, extra-curricular, and other policies so that
each student is equally accorded all rights, privileges, programs and facilities made available by
the school.

Features
3 - The Bell October 2005
Imagine being stuffed onto the
bleachers in an auditorium on a nearly
90-degree day with 100 other kids you
have never met. A scary set up for a
16 year old entering a new school. The
people surrounding me were either just
as skeptical as I was or stunned by the
heat. I sat back and waited for the older,
experienced, and intimidating proctors
to begin their introductory show.
My nerves calmed down a bit
when the proctors came gallivanting
onto the gym floor dressed in bright
orange and singing a cheer about tigers.
Their enthusiasm and willingness to
act goofy made me think to myself,
“Hey, maybe they don’t bite!”
After this show of spirit, I was
ready to show a little of my own. We
were split up into groups of around ten
people, and went out onto the lawn.
My orientation group consisted of three
proctors and a few kids who looked
just as out of place as I felt. Our first
impressions were probably all the same;
wondering which of these strangers
HOT
New Student Orientation
Tsuneko Jarris ’08
Marginalization
Matt Doup ’07 & Ana Santos ’07
Have you ever witnessed
someone being treated unjustly due
to how they look, act, or what they
believe? Have you ever been the
victim of such discriminatory behavior?
It is a stereotype of independent
schools that everyone comes from
similar racial, financial, and ethnic
backgrounds; this is a common
misconception. At Suffield Academy,
there are a number of differences among
both students and faculty alike: as our
mission statement notes, we serve “a
diverse student body of day and boarding
students from across the United States
and from many foreign countries.”
Headmaster Cahn observes that
outside the school, “People are excluded
from the mainstream in both overt and
subtle ways.” He wants our community to
tolerate differences. Our theme this year,
marginalization, was chosen in order to
bring sensitivity to these differences and
to make the community more aware of
common behavior that can be offensive.
Many of the events throughout
the school year will be focused on
this central theme. Over the summer,
students, faculty, administrators,
and staff read the community text A
Lesson Before Dying by Earnest J.
Gaines. It focused on aspects of racial
discrimination, which Jefferson, an
African American man on death row,
The First Rule About Fight Club Is..
Cool Eyes
Skunking
Weeks of Six
Risk
Terry Schiavo
Going to the Brook
The Luau
Being a Senior
Still Mario Kart
Hurricanes
would turn out to be our closest friends
and what the year had in store for us.
As the day went on, we played
a series of get-to-know-you games such
as swapping shoes with group members,
figuring out what we have in common
by shouting out interests, and, of course,
the classic Name Game. By the time
our hour was up, we knew each other’s
names and hobbies and were comforted
by the fact that we had something in
common with each member of this
group. (At the very least another kid
in my group also loved the color pink.)
My proctors turned out to be human, not
just The Big Scary Older kids. We joked
around, got familiar with one another,
and laughed quite a bit. As impossible
as it seemed at the beginning of the day,
all this talk about Suffield Academy
being a community was becoming a
bit clearer. The day ended on a high
note, with a scavenger hunt that may
or may not have been fulfilled and a
bunch of friendly faces to get to know.
encounters. A number of other summer
reading books also tied to this theme and
created a way to begin the school year
already immersed in the topic. Other
events, such as chapels, the money from
school charities such as the Dance-athon,
and a senior English Elective
(Literature From the Margin) will focus
on the idea of increased awareness. The
Laramie Project, this year’s fall play,
is about a young man named Matthew
Shepherd who was victimized and
killed because of his sexual orientation.
It is hoped that the accumulation
of all of these events and additional
activities will help raise awareness about
the things that are done intentionally
to offend. Additionally, the objective
is to bring attention to the way in
which people are marginalized through
unintentional acts. Mr. Cahn emphasizes
that “the leadership of our school is not
telling people what to think, but rather
helping them figure out what it is that
they think and being more aware of
things.” Additionally, he feels strongly
that, “exposure to forms of difference is
a great source of strength for our school.”
Marginalization: it’s not a
butter substitute, it can’t be found
on the periodic table, and it doesn’t
grow on trees. However, it is
important to realize that it occurs on
a daily basis – maybe even to you.
HOT or NOT
by Ned Booth ’06 and Rob Logan ’06
NOT
Not many high school
s t u d e n t s
can say that
they have
published,
or even
written, a
book, but
C h e l s e a
Lessard ’06
has done
both. She
completed
a young
adult novel,
entitled Old
Mann Rock,
at age thirteen and published it two
years later. At a recent book signing for
local authors at the Enfield Barnes &
Noble, Lessard spoke modestly about
her book. The story, which takes place
during the 1870s in Vermont, is mainly
a love story, although various events
such as murder, deceit, and a trip down
the Connecticut River to Enfield add
excitement and suspense to the story.
While a thirteen-year old
might take this on challenge only
due to a class assignment, Lessard
had been writing plays and books on
her own from a young age. She had
Fozzie
Welcome Back! Now that we’re
settled in, let’s talk about this year’s
theme: marginalization. I’ve been
musing about it, and have decided
that SA is ready to take on this
serious and controversial subject. In
fact, we can grow from exploring
own responsibilities toward others.
When I first heard about it,
I wondered how could we handle
such a serious theme? The word
“marginalization” reminds me of all of
the various hate crimes, phrases, and
acts I have seen in movies and in real
life. What could one school do to stop it?
I was also skeptical about the
fall play, The Laramie Project. The
play presents interviews performed
by a theater group to the population
of Laramie, Wyoming, the town where
21-year-old Matthew Shephard was
beaten and left for dead on October
6th, 1998. I was unenthused hearing
about the subject matter; then I learned
Matthew Shephard was a homosexual.
This level of controversy isn’t
Robert Paulson
College
Blowouts
Week of B
Monopoly
Helen Keller
Going to Morocco
Not getting your song played
Knowing youʼll be a freshman next year.
Still having college applications
Terrorism
Published Author at Suffield Academy
Sarah Brislin ’06
always loved thinking up new stories and
characters.
While there
was no
specific place
from which
L e s s a r d
r e c e i v e d
inspiration
for Old Mann
Rock, she
was largely
influenced by
the music she
would listen
to while
photo Sarah Brislin ’06 w r i t i n g .
She found meaning behind the lyrics
of the songs, whether it was a country
ballad or ‘80s rock. Writing was only
half the challenge, though. “I ended
up sending it to about forty publishers
before I found one that wanted to publish
it,” Lessard recalled. The process took
two years but was worth the wait.
A senior now, Lessard plans to write
more books and plays when she is older.
For now she is focusing more on the
performance aspect of theater and hopes
to major in theater in college. You can see
her in the fall play The Laramie Project
or performing in Chamber Singers.
illustration: Christina Frazerio ’07
something I’m accustomed to facing at SA.
Now that my mind was opened
to the possibilities of the theme of
marginalization, many ideas came into
my head. By thinking in terms of how
marginalization affects a community, I
realized that it is more involved in our
school’s life than I thought. For example,
what right do seniors have to enact their
power upon the new students? I, myself,
am a four year senior, but I do not feel it is
necessary to degrade students by banning
them from the senior corner, by cutting
them in the snack bar line, or merely calling
them “freshman” in a derogatory way.
As seniors, we should not simply
walk around with our heads held high.
New students need guidance more than
anything else in their first months at
Suffield. Without becoming comfortable
in their environment, how will they cope
in the next four years? Being a senior does
give us some power in the community, but
it should ultimately give us the right to be
the best citizens Suffield has. Remember
when you were a freshman and were
treated unfairly; it wasn’t a good feeling.
So I leave you all with this: Being
a senior has its benefits, but you should
be mostly concerned with your new
responsibilities. New students of all ages
need our guidance, and just because we
get to leave early to get food at the hot bar
or that we get our own little room to hang
out in, we should not push them away.
We only have eight months, but they have
four years. Our time is almost over, but
theirs has just begun. Let’s have a good
year, and let’s be seniors, with class.
Fozzie

4 - The Bell October 2005
Art
Future Ma st erpiece s
Annonymous
“Fruits”
Oil Pastels
Josh Scheinblum ’07
“Healthy Diet”
Oil Pastels
Current Art
(Art that can be found in Tremaine Art Center)
Serena Reynolds ’06
“I love this town”
Photograph
Luke McComb ’06
“Tobacco Barn”
Photograph

Art
5- The Bell October 2005
Featured
(The Theme of this issue of the Bell is Women)
Aubrey Butcher ’06
“Women with hat”
Oil on Canvas
Chris Bae ’07
“Anatomy”
Charcoal
Kay Kim ’06
“Copy of Matisse”
Acrylic Paint

6 - The Bell October 2005
Six of Suffield’s New Faculty Members
Compiled by Kristen Bautz ’06, Sarah Brislin ’06, Sarah Ellerton ’06, Jill Furman ’06, Tsuneko Jarris ’09, and Monica Markowski ’07
Photos by Brooke Beatt ’06, Jill Furman ’06, and Erin Meehan ’06
New
News
Faculty
Name: David Eckhardt
Birthday: March 30 th , 1967
Sign: Aries
Subject: Mr. Eckhardt teaches freshman and
sophomore leadership in addition to his duties as
the Director of Student Affairs, which, according
to him, is a “horrible title, because students
should not be having affairs during school. Or
any other time, for that matter.”
You can find him... In his office in the Union
(next to the POD office).
Sports: Boy’s junior varsity soccer and lacrosse coach.
Interesting Facts: Mr. Eckhardt is in fact a graduate of Suffield. According
to rumors that have been well substantiated, his yearbook (1986) is in the
library.
He also claims to have a reoccurring nightmare about Suffield Academy
–– one that involves not being able to open his mail box, or even remember
the combination.
If he could be one flavor of ice cream, Mr. Eckhardt would be: Ben and
Jerry’s Chubby Hubby.
Name: Florante Galvez
Birthday: November 17
Hometown: New York City, NY
Subject: Acting, Technical theater, &
Playwriting
You can find him: Seaverns Performing Arts
Center
Previous Job: Working on plays in NYC, recently finished Driving on the
Left Side.
Clubs: Directing two plays (Laramie Project), and overseeing stage crew. Mr.
Galvez will also be advising the Multicultural Association this year.
Favorite Music: Reggae (classic) and Latin.
Hobbies: Enjoys reading and film (martial arts films).
Ice Cream Flavor: Rocky Road, for the journey of being an artist, but Cherry
Garcia when satisfied.
Favorite Color: Purple
Name: Amy Healy
Birthday: April 8th
Hometown: Wethersfield, Connecticut
School: Williams College
Official Title: Senior Library Assistant
Can be found in...the faculty apartment building when school is out of
session
Clubs advised: JOS
Favorite Author: Douglas Copeland’s Generation X (but she likes all of his
work)
Favorite sports team: Red Sox
Hobbies: Reading, walking with my husband, and visiting with friends and
family
Unknown facts: I speak Mandarin Chinese (I spent a semester in China
in college). I was also on National TV (on 20/20) doing a psychology
experiment that I was working with a professor with during college.
Name: Tanya Andrysiak
Birthday: September 18
Hometown: Painted Post, NY
School: Wellesley College, Boston University
(Masters)
Job: Assistant Academic Dean
Previous Jobs: Dean of Students at a private school in MA, started a charter
school in Boston, worked in South America at an independent bilingual school
teaching English
You Can Find Her... In her office in Memorial or in Samii dorm Wednesday
and Saturday nights
Sports: Coaching swimming and timing girls soccer matches
Favorite Music: Classic rock, some pop, country
Favorite Sports Team: Red Sox
Hobbies: Yoga, camping, hiking
What drew her to Suffield Academy: The community feel and enthusiasm of
all the faculty
Name: Gis-Ximena Nahmens
Hometown: Caracas, Venezuela
School: Universidad Católica Andrés Bello
Subject: Spanish I and III teacher
Previous job(s): Human Resources
Name: Gerry Guarriello
Birthday: June 1st, 1977
Hometown: Portland, Oregon
School: Undergrad Oregon State
University, Grad School Middlebury
Subject: Spanish
Favorite Song: “Perhaps Love” by John Denver and Plácido Domingo
If she could be an Ice cream flavor: Cookies & Cream
Book: To Kill A Mockingbird
Movie: Sound of Music
Favorite sport: Brazilian soccer
Something quirky: enjoys eating French fries with vanilla ice cream
You can find him in: Language Department
Previous Jobs: ESL in Spain, Italy, and Mexico
Sports/Clubs: Football Coach, Baseball Coach, Ultimate Frisbee
If he were an Ice Cream flavor he would be: Chocolate and Vanilla (Because
he is a Gemini which means split personality)
Favorite Sports Team: Yankees
His favorite book is: The Never-ending Story

Sports & News
7 - The Bell October 2005
It is evident even to an outsider
that sports are a major priority at Suffield
Academy, and, consequently, numerous
Suffield graduates have gone on to play
against higher-caliber competition in
college. This summer, a new wave of
Suffield students showcased their ambitions
for their futures in sports. Rather than
idling around their homes for three
months, these athletes used their extensive
summer vacation to their advantage,
both competing in and coaching sports.
Laura Monty ’08 has already
proven herself to be an integral part of
the Suffield golf team. Last spring, as a
freshman, she was a solid contributor to
the team. This summer she competed in 19
tournaments, along with her younger sister,
Liz ’09. The majority of the tournaments
were in conjunction with the Connecticut
Section Junior PGA and the Sierra Mist Tour.
Although Laura played in
tournaments for the CWGA (Connecticut
Women’s Golf Association) and the
Connecticut Women’s Amateurs,
making the cut both days in the latter
tournament, she truly defined herself as
a player in the Sierra Mist tour events.
As far as the scoring system,
she says, “you build up points at each
tournament depending on how you place
overall (the girls’ 13-17 division for me).”
Her results for the 11 of 15 Sierra Mist
events that she played in were phenomenal.
“I came in first seven times for
my age group, four of them wins for the
girls division overall,” she says. As a result
of the points she had amassed throughout
the summer, she found herself atop the
standings at the final event, the Tournament
of Champions. She shot an exceptional
77, and earned the title of Connecticut
PGA Junior Girls Player of the Year.
Meanwhile, her younger
sister, Liz, is looking to make a
splash on the golf scene as well.
Liz and Laura played in the
same tournaments, and while Liz did
not win any events, her results were
impressive. In the Sierra Mist Tour events,
she reports that “I came in second and
third place a lot, but no wins (for me).”
She also made the cut at the Connecticut
Women’s Amateurs after two days.
Liz finished just behind her sister
with a 79 at the Tournament of Champions at
Westover C.C. Based on her point totals, Liz
placed fourth in the 18-and under division.
Runners Brie Beaudette ’06
and Chris Pugliano ’07 participated in
the Baystate Games in the track and field
category in late June. The Games consist
of athletes from all reaches of Massachusetts
Suffield Athletes Take Sports to Another Level
participating in a plethora of sports.
“The spring track season had just
ended,” says Brie, “so it was nice to be able to
continue to run and compete against new faces.”
Brie ran the 200 meter and 400
meter qualifying events, placing second in
both races, while Chris participated in the
400. In order to qualify for the Games,
the runners had to place in the top four.
Despite the fact that she qualified
for her events, Brie was rushed to the hospital
with heatstroke-like symptoms. Chris was
also injured- his feet were badly burned.
Brie mused that “although I
was unable to make it to the final games
in July, I still had an amazing experience.
Jeremy Arnold ’06 had an
altogether different summer sports
experience from the other athletes. He had
already worked with the Special Olympics,
an annual national event for disabled athletes.
During his freshman year, he helped with
bowling. It only seemed natural that he
would offer his time again this summer.
He volunteered two to three
times per week, coaching the Special
Olympics Softball team of West
Hartford. Aside from coaching, he did
mentoring, and even played on the team
as a partner of the more disabled athletes.
Along with the other volunteers,
he led his team to a first place finish at an
annual tournament in North Brandford.
“The adults, children, and coaches were
so pleased with our performance, and
the disabled players couldn’t have had
bigger smiles on their faces,” he says.
Even though he was giving
something back to his community, the team
gave him something back, and he came out
of the experience a changed person with a
new perspective on life. “It was an amazing
experience. The type of experience that
makes you feel great about what you’ve done
and the people you’ve helped. I learned not to
take anything in my life for granted and how
lucky I am to have the life I do.” He reports
that he plans to volunteer again next summer.
Khadim Diouf ’06 is already a
standout on the Suffield varsity soccer team,
but this summer, he took his game to an
entirely different level. He attended the Adidas
Elite Soccer Program (ESP) camp at Loomis
Chaffee, along with 136 of the most talented
high school boys from all areas of the country.
When asked if he had been invited
to attend the camp, Khadim responded,
“How did I get invited? It was because I’m
a hardworking player.” He was contacted by
a coach from Bayern Munich in Germany to
say that he had been brought up as a possible
candidate. He began training on his own in
New Jersey in order to be in top form for the
Kristen Bautz ’06
camp. He reported that, “I was still injured
at that time and nervous, because to me that
would not be an excuse for not playing well.”
Over the course of the five-day
camp, the objective is for players to improve
their overall skills, test their performance in
competitive play, and learn how to manage
their time off the field to prepare for life
in college and the professional world.
It was crucial that players put forth
total effort all the time, because, in addition
to being under the instruction of elite coaches,
upwards of 70 college and professional
coaches stopped by for scouting purposes.
The participants were divided
into teams, and, as is typical at the
majority of sports camps, competed in
daily games and scrimmages; there was
also an all-star game that took place
towards the end of camp that served as
a showcase for the best players at camp.
The teams had a final game on the
last day of camp, and then had an instructional
period with top international coaches.
Representatives from two of the world’s most
successful clubs, in Germany and Italy, have
headlined the list of guest coaches in the past.
Khadim said that the camp was so
different from others he had attended in the
past because “they were all talented players,
which was a great experience for me.”
When asked where he hoped
to take his soccer career in the future,
he profoundly declared, “only God
knows where I’m going with soccer.
I hope He leads me to the right path.”
As for Sydney Greenberg (’07), her
summer sports experience found her halfway
around the globe, competing in the World
Maccabiah Games in Israel. The American
version of the Games is comprised of young
Jewish athletes aged thirteen to sixteen, and
are held annually. Athletes compete in one
event each, and the Games are largely modeled
after the Olympic Games. Sydney had
previously competed in the American Games
through her local JCC (Jewish Community
Center), but unexpectedly, something out
of the ordinary caught her eye last year.
“One day, when I was in my
JCC, I saw a poster up for the world games
and noticed that field hockey was a sport
offered.” Sydney has played field hockey
since coming to Suffield, and she had
genuine interest in competing. However,
there was no age limit, meaning that girls
from college would be allowed to try out
as well. She worried that she would not
stand a chance against girls who had been
exposed to higher-caliber field hockey.
Despite Sydney’s initial qualms,
her parents were cautiously supportive. She
says that “they tried to make sure I didn’t
get my hopes too high. We were all pretty
convinced that I wouldn’t even make the
team, at best an alternate.” Still, the idea
of competing in Israel was very attractive.
When asked whether she had had
any significant worries about traveling to
a region so notorious for its violence, she
said that “I really had no worries about
traveling. While I do realize that there are
a lot of problems in Israel (there ended up
being a suicide bombing at a mall located
three blocks from my hotel), I really wasn’t
worried, because the security was so tight.”
“We had to have credentials to go
anywhere. At opening ceremonies, they had
snipers circling the stadium in helicopters.
There were armed guards on our buses, and at
least 25 security guards at each of our games.”
She is extremely grateful to The
Harold Grinspoon Foundation, which was
in part responsible for her being able to
go on the trip. They provided much of the
money needed to pay for it, and the rest
came from within Sydney’s community.
She is eternally grateful for those who
donated even the smallest amount of money.
Other than one other girl from
her town who participated in swimming,
Sydney did not know anyone, and she was
one of only three high schoolers on her
team. Nevertheless, she said, “the girls
and coach were so supportive of me and
helped me improve my game ten-fold, and
the age gap was no problem at all. It was
most definitely a bonding experience.”
She still keeps in touch with the
girls on her team, and they are hopeful for the
chance to play together again. Even though
she was not a starter, she still improved
and was embraced by her team. Their hard
work paid off in the form of a gold medal
after facing solid competitors from the
Netherlands, South Africa, and Australia.
She said that she had significant
interaction with the other athletes, both
in their hotel and simply walking down
streets brimming with Maccabiah Games
competitors, identifiable by their credentials.
Even though much of her time was
spent competing, she had time to reflect on
what the experience meant to her. She said
that, “by forcing myself to be with people
better than myself, I will improve, and I can
use this in life as well.” Also, “you pretty
much know no one there, and unless you
put yourself out there and make yourself
open to others, you won’t meet anyone.”
She also fell in love with a country and
its people. “It’s an amazing country
full of wonderful people who were
so welcoming. It had a beautiful
landscape, and is filled with history.”
Camping Out at the TA Retreat
Jenny Schnaak ’07 & Brie Beaudette ’07
New Fall Schedule
Monica Markowski ’07
What’s better than being a TA
and going out to the SOLO barn? A TA
retreat at the SOLO barn! The TA retreat
brought the junior and senior TAs together
in a common leadership experience to
prepare for the approaching school year.
Over thirty teaching assistants gathered
outside the SOLO barn with a handful
of faculty members leading the way.
The two-day long camping
excursion began with ice breaker activities,
which the students could later choose to
use with their leadership classes. Also,
the weekend was filled with scheduled
skill-building activities. A lot was
learned about giving effective feedback
in our classrooms after activities and in
homework assignments. The participants
learned to create successful lesson plans,
while having fun at the same time.
Mr. Eckhardt, the Director of
Student Affairs and the event coordinator,
reflected on the weekend by saying, “It was
one of the richest professional experiences
of my life.” The future TAs spent the
night playing games like flashlight tag and
sleeping in tents set up nest to the barn.
Erik Osbourne ’07 said, “It was awesome!”
The highlight for many participants was
climbing the indoor rock wall completely
blindfolded while being belayed by a fellow
TA. All the students had to come to school a
little early this year to take part in the retreat,
which took place on September 4 th and 5 th .
Several faculty members joined the thirtysix
students for the weekend including Mr.
Rockwell, Mr. Goodwin, Ms. Ostberg, Ms.
Obelsky, Mr. Eckhardt, and Mr. Biederman.
All of the TA’s are now better prepared to lead
freshman and sophomore leadership classes
and they look forward to next year’s retreat.
Why was it created? Will it be a
permanent change? Is class time really lost?
While there are many rumors about the new
fall schedule, Mr. Ellerton and Mrs. Riegel
assert that this fall’s schedule, including
an A and B week, is strictly a test run. Mr.
Ellerton explained that “In an attempt to
evaluate how staff, faculty, and students
alike use their time at Suffield Academy,
the Time Committee decided to first tackle
our daily schedule.” After collecting
close to twenty-five schedules from other
schools, faculty and staff members were
able and to sift through which schedules
might work for our community, and which
ones would definitely not work, all the
while adding their own opinions to the mix.
The resulting schedule’s week
B is the key difference from last year. Mr.
Cahn says, “In the old (week A) schedule,
each class met for 230 minutes per week
(two 45-minute periods and two 70-minute
periods). Under the Week B schedule, each
class now only meets 205 minutes (three 45-
minute classes and only one long period). So
even though it may feel like you have more
class time, in fact, you have less.” (Yes, even
continued on page 8
Ask the Trainer
Sarah Ellerton and Meara McCarthy with collaboration from Trainer Sue
Have you ever had a question that you wanted to ask the trainers, but
didn’t have enough time? If you have and would like your question answered,
email the trainers at askthetrainers@suffieldcademy.org.
We encourage questions that are broad and pertain to the entire Suffield
community, not just one individual. We will select several questions to be answered
every edition, but even if your question is not published, it will be answered.
We need a good amount of participation to make this section of the Bell
possible, so help us out! Thanks!

8 - The Bell October 2005
Sports Psychology
Sarah Ellerton ’06 and Meara McCarthy ’07
Sports
Sports psychology is a relatively
new concept in sports medicine. It involves
using the brain to control bodily actions
in order to perform at a higher level. The
addition of the Vasilenkos to the community
has brought am introduction to this subject.
All of the nerves and muscles are
linked to a control center, the brain. By using
their brain to force their body to perform in the
way that they need it to, athletes can increase
their level of play, sometimes dramatically.
Three fundamental pieces to sports
psychology are goal setting, imagery, and
simulation. By setting goals an athlete is
able to plan out the way he or she would
like to perform. Goals help athletes keep
in mind what they are trying to achieve;
therefore, it is much easier for them to use
their minds to reach their goal. Imagery and
simulation allow athletes to practice over and
over again their event in their minds. When
it is finally time for athletes to perform, they
have already practiced this event hundreds
of times, which allows for them to feel
more comfortable and know everything
about the event. They also simulated perfect
performance, so when the athlete eventually
competes, the mind is so used to having
a perfect outcome that body replies by
producing a close to perfect performance.
Yelena Vasilenko, the newest
addition to Suffield Academy’s math
department, has a close to fifteen year
background with sports psychology.
According to Mrs. Vasilenko, sports
psychology is “the ability to control your
mind through self-hypnosis.” She worked
with her husband in Russia, her birthplace,
with various sports teams. Mrs. Vasilenko
developed an interest in the subject of sports
psychology because it was not something in
the mainstream, and she liked the idea that
it was medical diagnosis with mentality.
She and her husband worked with martial
artists, ice skaters, gymnasts, and fencers.
Unlike coaches who simply yell at their
players Mrs. Vasilenko described her job as,
“explaining reasons and philosophy for the
sport in order to teach self-hypnosis.” The
Vasilenkos were able to produce significant
results with their self-hypnosis technique.
Mr. Vasilenko is still working in
the field of sports psychology, whereas Mrs.
Vasilenko stopped when they emigrated.
Mr. Vasilenko works in Simsbury with
Olympic ice skaters. When the team first
heard about the idea of sports psychology,
they brushed it off as unreliable and
useless. But when the coaches heard the
results that Mr. Vasilenko had with other
teams, Mrs. Vasilenko said, “he got a phone
call the next day, asking him to help.”
For sports like ice skating
and martial arts minor injuries are so
frequent that the main focus of the selfhypnosis
that the Vasilenkos promoted was
lowering the pain barrier, which would
theoretically make athletes more resistant
to pain. Over time with different teams,
coaches, and athletes, the Vasilenkos
have seen very strong results, proving
that their self-hypnosis training works.
So how can this relate to your
life, as a high school student athlete? As
Mrs. Vasilenko said, “Sports psychology
is studying how you react in a stressful
situation. It can relate to sports,
school, dealing with your boyfriend.”
continued from page 7
though some days do not end until 3:20 pm!)
A bigger issue, however, is
one concerning the schedule’s affect on
after school commitments. Getting done
with classes later also means getting to
practices later, while still having to be at
formal dinner at or club meetings. It may
be a concern among coaches and athletes
that loss of practice time will cause teams
to suffer. Another very visible change is
the conference period before, rather than
after lunch. This was created mostly by
the request of the dining hall, whose staff
members and work program workers
need the extra time to prepare for lunch.
Yet, even with these nuisances
resulting from the schedule, such a test
run as this could not have come at a more
convenient time. With multiple Saturdays set
aside for testing, and others that would also
cause disruptions to our regular schedule,
trying something new was a win-win
situation. This way, special schedules can be
avoided, and a new schedule that works well
for our school may become an end result.
While it is still unclear how this
fall’s schedule will fare, Mr. Ellerton says
that all members of Suffield Academy “can
expect to be surveyed in some way at the end
of this trial, at which point the information
will be analyzed and taken into consideration
for future years.” So, what will your opinion
be? Is an extra day of relaxation worth the
tight five day B week? Or do you think
our previous schedule was more effective?
Ned Booth ’06
photo Navid Obahi ’06
Jill Furman ’06
photo Cole Archambault ’06
Ji Won Shu ’06
photo Brooke Beatt ’06