⢠ParkBulletinCover - The Park School
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<strong>The</strong> <strong>Park</strong> <strong>School</strong><br />
Fall Bulletin 2009<br />
Annual Report Issue
Board of Trustees 2008–09<br />
Alumni Committee 2008–09<br />
Fall Bulletin 2009<br />
Annual Report of Giving 2008–09<br />
Officers<br />
Kevin J. Maroni Chair<br />
Paula A. Johnson Vice Chair<br />
Richard Banks ’74 Secretary<br />
Lisa Black Franks ’78 Treasurer<br />
Marcus Cherry<br />
Teresa Chope<br />
John Connaughton<br />
William B. Drucker<br />
Richard Edie<br />
Abigail Johnson<br />
Brian Kavoogian<br />
William H. Kremer<br />
Martin J. Mannion<br />
Anne Punzak Marcus<br />
Stuart Mathews<br />
Amy Lloyd McCarthy ’86<br />
Pamela McLaurin<br />
Nicole Murray<br />
Happy Rowe<br />
Carmel Shields<br />
Garrett Solomon ’86<br />
Harold Sparrow<br />
Suzie Tapson<br />
Lanny Thorndike ’81<br />
Ralph L. Wales<br />
Ex Officio<br />
Jerrold I. Katz<br />
Head of <strong>School</strong><br />
Cynthia A. Harmon<br />
Assistant Head for Program &<br />
Professional Development<br />
Jane H. Carney<br />
Assistant Head for Finance & Operations<br />
Board Chairs Emeriti<br />
Kennett F. Burnes<br />
David D. Croll<br />
Charles C. Cunningham, Jr.<br />
George P. Denny III<br />
David G. Fubini<br />
M. Dozier Gardner<br />
John L. Hall II<br />
J. Michael Maynard<br />
Anne Worthington Prescott<br />
Deborah Jackson Weiss<br />
Headmaster Emeritus<br />
Robert S. Hurlbut, Jr.<br />
Minnie Ames ’86 Co-Chair<br />
Ali Epker Ruch ’89 Co-Chair<br />
John Barkan ’85<br />
Peter Barkan ’86<br />
Bob Bray ’53<br />
Lisa Amick DiAdamo ’86<br />
Mark Epker ’86<br />
Rachel Levine Foley ’85<br />
Abigail Ross Goodman ’91<br />
Anne Collins Goodyear ’84<br />
Jennifer Segal Herman ’82<br />
Jeff Jackson ’95<br />
Julia Lloyd Johannsen ’93<br />
Greg Kadetsky ’96<br />
Rich Knapp ’80<br />
Amy S. Lampert ’63<br />
Abbott Lawrence ’85<br />
Nia Lutch ’97<br />
Melissa Daniels Madden ’85<br />
Allison Morse ’89<br />
Chip Pierce ’81<br />
Meredith Ross ’86<br />
Jordan Scott ’89<br />
Rebecca Lewin Scott ’89<br />
Garrett Solomon ’86<br />
Kathrene Tiffany ’96<br />
Anna Sullivan ’95<br />
Eve Wadsworth ’95<br />
Diana Walcott ’85<br />
Phoebe Gallagher Winder ’84<br />
Editor<br />
Kate LaPine<br />
Design<br />
Irene Chu<br />
Photography<br />
Coffee Pond Photography<br />
Kate LaPine<br />
Jerilyn Willig<br />
Printing<br />
Jaguar Press<br />
<strong>The</strong> Bulletin is published twice yearly<br />
for the alumni, parents, and friends of<br />
<strong>The</strong> <strong>Park</strong> <strong>School</strong>. We welcome your<br />
comments and ideas.<br />
<strong>The</strong> <strong>Park</strong> <strong>School</strong><br />
171 Goddard Avenue<br />
Brookline, Massachusetts 02445<br />
To contact the Bulletin:<br />
Kate LaPine<br />
Director of Communications<br />
617-274-6009<br />
kate_lapine@parkschool.org<br />
To report alumni news:<br />
Eliza Drachman-Jones ’98<br />
Director of Alumni Relations<br />
617-274-6022<br />
alumni@parkschool.org<br />
To support <strong>Park</strong>:<br />
Rob Crawford<br />
Director of Development<br />
617-274-6020<br />
rob_crawford@parkschool.org<br />
To report address changes:<br />
Sarah Braga<br />
Development Office Manager<br />
617-274-6018<br />
development@parkschool.org<br />
<strong>Park</strong> is a coeducational school that admits<br />
qualified students without regard to<br />
race, religion, national origin, disabilities,<br />
sexual orientation, or family composition.<br />
Our educational policies, financial aid,<br />
and other school-sponsored programs are<br />
administered in a nondiscriminatory manner<br />
in conformance with applicable law.<br />
Third graders spend an entire term learning about color. To create these small landscape paintings,<br />
they think about mood, season, and color. All paintings are tempera on canvas, 6”x 8”<br />
Front Cover: Matt Kaufman ’15; Inside Back Cover: David Tsai ’15; Back Cover: Caroline Collins-Pisano ’15
<strong>The</strong> <strong>Park</strong> <strong>School</strong><br />
Fall Bulletin 2009<br />
In this issue:<br />
2 Around <strong>Park</strong><br />
Irish Fiddling<br />
Ruby Bridges Visits <strong>Park</strong><br />
Math Carnival<br />
Nancy Faulkner Retires<br />
6 New Trustees<br />
Heidi Johnson<br />
Patti Kraft<br />
Peter Riehl<br />
8 Graduation 2009<br />
Graduation Address: Andrew Ostroff ’03<br />
Class of 2009 Graduation Speakers: Josh Ruder and Carter Smith<br />
16 Reunion 2009<br />
Class of 1984 25th Reunion Biographies<br />
22 Summer Reading<br />
Community Read<br />
Teachers’ Summer Reading<br />
War and Peace on Bread Loaf Mountain<br />
36 Alumni Notes<br />
Alumni Achievement Award 2009: Michael R. Deland ’56
around<br />
Ruby Bridges Visits <strong>Park</strong><br />
I<br />
n May, <strong>Park</strong> students in Grades<br />
VI – IX met a living legend. Ruby<br />
Bridges, the little girl immortalized<br />
in the Norman Rockwell painting<br />
(below), walked up the steps of<br />
the William Frantz Public <strong>School</strong><br />
in 1960 to become the first black<br />
student at the formerly all-white<br />
elementary school in New Orleans.<br />
Now, she spends much of her time<br />
visiting school children across the<br />
country, speaking with students<br />
about her story and the many<br />
lessons to be learned from her<br />
experiences.<br />
Musical Horizons<br />
M<br />
aking good use of the 2009<br />
Horizon Fund grant he<br />
was awarded, Adam Young (math<br />
and social studies 2006– ) spent a<br />
week at a fiddle camp on Thompson<br />
Island in Boston Harbor. Next<br />
summer, he’s planning a trip to the<br />
Emerald Isle to refine his fiddling<br />
skills and jam with experienced<br />
Irish musicians. (Former parent and<br />
trustee, Nel Stoia, established <strong>The</strong><br />
Horizon Fund to provide faculty<br />
members with special opportunities<br />
for personal enrichment, travel<br />
and professional development.)<br />
2 <strong>The</strong> <strong>Park</strong> Bulletin | Fall 2009
High Stakes<br />
P<br />
robability theory came to life<br />
for Dr. Chris Hartmann’s Grade<br />
VII math class in February. Upon<br />
entering the classroom, visiting<br />
second graders each received ten<br />
tickets that they could use at the<br />
Math Carnival. <strong>The</strong> older students<br />
had designed and created presidential<br />
probability games that<br />
cost one to three tickets to play,<br />
based on the chances of winning.<br />
Everyone really was a winner at<br />
this event!<br />
Faculty Updates 2009<br />
R E TI R E M E NT S :<br />
Nancy Faulkner Archivist 1972–2009<br />
D E PART U R E S :<br />
Nell Broley Grade IV teacher<br />
Mary Carpenter Grade IV teacher<br />
Deborah Dean Kindergarten assistant<br />
Garbielle Kyriakides Grade I teacher<br />
Quiana Rudek Kindergarten assistant<br />
Janet Wasserman business office<br />
S A B B ATI C AL S :<br />
Marshall Neilson technology specialist<br />
Alan Rivera French & Spanish teacher<br />
CHANGES:<br />
Rebecca Abrams Grade I teacher — returning<br />
from parental leave<br />
Alison Connolly math teacher and secondary<br />
school counselor — previously Upper Division<br />
head<br />
Alice Perera Lucey ’77, Upper Division head —<br />
previously English/social studies teacher and<br />
secondary school counselor<br />
Jessica Niebuhr, Grade II teacher — was intern<br />
in 2008–09<br />
Amy Salomon Grade II teacher — on parental<br />
leave from 2009–10<br />
APP O I NTM E NT S :<br />
Irza Almonor-Collinson controller<br />
BA Mercy College<br />
Scott Fries After-<strong>School</strong> Program teacher<br />
BS Springfield College<br />
Christine Lindsay technology specialist<br />
BA Trinity College; MS University of Hartford;<br />
MEd Framingham State College<br />
Meg Lloyd ’98 Kindergarten assistant<br />
BA Union College<br />
Shalini Rao Grade IV teacher<br />
BS University of Connecticut; MA University of<br />
Connecticut<br />
<strong>The</strong> <strong>Park</strong> Bulletin | Fall 2009 3
Nancy Faulkner<br />
Bids Adieu to <strong>Park</strong><br />
After six different job titles and at least seven<br />
assorted office locations around the <strong>Park</strong><br />
<strong>School</strong> campus (including the projection booth<br />
and the faculty room), Nancy Faulkner retired in June.<br />
“<strong>Park</strong> has been part of my life for over 45 years, I’m<br />
astonished to realize,” Nancy admits. “I’m a New Jersey<br />
public school girl myself, but my husband, Kim (<strong>Park</strong> ’45),<br />
was one of seven Faulkner siblings who attended <strong>Park</strong>.<br />
Emily (Molly), the eldest of our three daughters, started<br />
in <strong>Park</strong>’s three-year-old Nursery class over on Kennard<br />
Road in the fall of 1964. I could hardly have foreseen the<br />
many ways in which the <strong>School</strong> would come to mean so<br />
much to me as a parent, a volunteer, and as a long-time<br />
employee.”<br />
Recently, Nancy has spent much of her time underground,<br />
managing the <strong>Park</strong> <strong>School</strong> Archives, which<br />
resides, in part, in the old female coaches’ office near the<br />
big gym in the main building. In this and a couple<br />
of other makeshift hideaways, Nancy dealt with all sorts<br />
of <strong>Park</strong> treasures that have been squirreled away: antique<br />
photographs, samples of student work, anthologies from<br />
the 1920s on, trustee records, catalogs, Educational Policy<br />
Committee reports, and even a rather fragrant old football<br />
helmet! But the real treasure-trove of knowledge and<br />
school lore is Nancy herself.<br />
It was the summer of 1972, just after <strong>Park</strong>’s first year<br />
at the Goddard Avenue campus. Headmaster Bob Hurlbut<br />
took up an offer from <strong>Park</strong> parent and neighbor<br />
Nancy Faulkner to help in the office with some of the<br />
<strong>School</strong>’s summer chores. “What serendipity!” she remembers.<br />
“<strong>The</strong> admissions person left, and Bob offered me the<br />
job, curiously expanded and replete with a very fancy title:<br />
‘Executive Coordinator of Development, Alumni, Public<br />
Relations, and Admissions!’” Back then, <strong>Park</strong> used a consulting<br />
group to plan the Annual Fund and create materials,<br />
but Nancy made reports, organized volunteers,<br />
generated thank-you notes (“pre-computers; lots of carbon<br />
paper”) as well as interviewed prospective <strong>Park</strong> families,<br />
arranged applicants’ visits, and took on the myriad<br />
tasks associated with developing an admission program.<br />
“<strong>The</strong>re wasn’t a minute to do anything at all about our<br />
alumni,” she adds with chagrin.<br />
4 <strong>The</strong> <strong>Park</strong> Bulletin | Fall 2009
“So, even though I’m not a <strong>Park</strong> alum myself, you<br />
might say that I’ve been an enthusiastic adult student<br />
here. As admission director, I had great fun learning that<br />
role.” Her challenge was to fill the school with new students.<br />
<strong>The</strong>re were 385 kids who moved into the Goddard<br />
Avenue campus, but the new building was designed to<br />
hold 450, so Nancy set to work — bringing new families to<br />
<strong>Park</strong>, reading applications, and figuring financial aid grant<br />
formulas. “Early on, I went to a weeklong conference for<br />
admission directors. I jotted down 32 interesting ideas,<br />
and it took years to finally tick off most items. Later, when<br />
I put on <strong>Park</strong>’s development hat, I had to learn additional<br />
sets of skills. Expand the Annual Fund, coordinate <strong>Park</strong>’s<br />
Centennial Campaign, help plan the year-long celebration<br />
of the <strong>School</strong>’s first 100 years. All wonderful fun! As was<br />
becoming <strong>Park</strong>’s publications director. I loved going over<br />
to Radcliffe Seminars and learning desktop publishing,<br />
for instance, and getting a dose of layout and design. Even<br />
my part-time archives work was enhanced by a week-long<br />
workshop at Taft <strong>School</strong> one summer. My mom always<br />
said I was eager and loved heading off to school every<br />
Nancy said farewell to her <strong>Park</strong> <strong>School</strong> friends in June, and some of<br />
her family attended the small gathering in <strong>Park</strong>'s library, as well.<br />
L-R: Nancy's sister Susan Goodridge, daughter Apple Faulkner '80,<br />
husband Kim Faulkner '45, Nancy, and Annie Faulkner '78.<br />
morning. I guess ‘going to school’ has continued to stimulate<br />
me, keep me learning and excited about life.”<br />
Nancy spent just a brief period of time away from<br />
<strong>Park</strong>, working at Milton Academy as admission director of<br />
the (former) Girls’ <strong>School</strong> for three years. A hiatus from<br />
full-time employment followed, and she redirected some<br />
of her boundless energy into volunteer posts at a few of<br />
her other favorite schools, serving as president of the<br />
Middlebury College Alumni Association, board member<br />
of Sterling College in Craftsbury Common, Vermont, and<br />
member of the Board of Advisors of <strong>The</strong> Mountain<br />
<strong>School</strong> Program of Milton Academy.<br />
She also served on the <strong>Park</strong> <strong>School</strong> Board of Trustees<br />
from 1980–85, chairing the Nominating Committee and<br />
working on the Tuition Aid, Long-Range Planning, Summer<br />
Program, and Development Committees. “Another<br />
great experience,” she recalls. During this time, the Board<br />
Nancy’s Many Roles at <strong>Park</strong><br />
<strong>School</strong> Secretary Summer 1972<br />
Coordinator of Development, Alumni,<br />
Public Relations, and Admissions 1972 – 1974<br />
Director of Admission 1972 – 1977<br />
Director of Development 1985 – 1992<br />
Director of Publications 1993 – 1996<br />
Archivist 1997 – 2009<br />
developed headmaster and Board evaluations and welcomed<br />
Creative Arts at <strong>Park</strong> to the campus.<br />
A great believer in professional development, Nancy<br />
became a leader in several organizations. She started an<br />
inter-school admission group that continues today, served<br />
as a behind-the-scenes director of several NAIS admission<br />
workshops, and was very active in a group of development<br />
professionals from Boston-area independent<br />
schools. Here at <strong>Park</strong>, we’ve enjoyed her skills as a writer,<br />
proofreader, and editor. She takes an interest in design<br />
and aesthetics throughout the <strong>School</strong> and, ever the loving<br />
critic, she has helped raise our standards in several areas.<br />
“<strong>Park</strong> continues to be an amazing community,” Nancy<br />
explains. “I’ve developed personal relationships with terrific<br />
people over the years. <strong>The</strong> kids’ Kindergarten teacher<br />
is still a great friend as are so many parents of<br />
our girls’ classmates. I’ve really enjoyed working with<br />
parent volunteers and school leaders as well as with my<br />
wonderful faculty and staff colleagues. I feel so lucky to<br />
have been associated with such a yeasty, bright, articulate<br />
bunch of people.<br />
I feel pleased that my efforts, along with those of so<br />
many others, have contributed to supporting our outstanding<br />
faculty and staff. To have been a small part of this<br />
exceptionally fine school…what could be more satisfying”<br />
So, what’s next for Nancy Faulkner “I’ll try not to get<br />
involved in too many projects,” she says. “I envision more<br />
time for reading, painting watercolors, improving at<br />
bridge, keeping up with old friends, and visiting Molly ’76,<br />
Annie ’78, Apple ’80, and their families, including our six<br />
grandchildren who live in north Idaho, New Hampshire,<br />
and Vermont.”<br />
We are assembling a farewell album to commemorate<br />
Nancy Faulkner’s remarkable career at <strong>Park</strong>. Please send a note<br />
with your reflections and recollections about Nancy<br />
by November 1, 2009. Pictures are welcome, too. Thank you!<br />
Album for Nancy Faulkner<br />
<strong>The</strong> <strong>Park</strong> <strong>School</strong>, 171 Goddard Avenue, Brookline, MA 02445<br />
<strong>The</strong> <strong>Park</strong> Bulletin | Fall 2009 5
EW T R U S T E E S<br />
Heidi Johnson<br />
When Heidi Johnson, her husband<br />
Jeff Paquette, and their children<br />
returned from Johannesburg having<br />
helped found City Year South Africa, the<br />
family wanted to be part of a vibrant educational<br />
community that would embrace<br />
their varied experiences. In 2006, their<br />
daughter, Mikayla Paquette ’17, entered<br />
<strong>Park</strong>’s Pre-Kindergarten, followed by their<br />
son, Jonah Paquette ’19, two years later.<br />
“We value the teachers, staff, and parents,<br />
all of whom openly share their<br />
unique skills and extremely interesting<br />
experiences with the children of <strong>Park</strong>. It<br />
continues to be a wonderful ride for our<br />
whole family.” During their first three<br />
years at <strong>Park</strong>, Heidi has been an active<br />
member of the Parents’ Association and<br />
this year will also serve as Co-Volunteer<br />
Engagement Coordinator.<br />
Heidi grew up in New York City,<br />
where she attended the Ethical Culture<br />
Fieldston <strong>School</strong>. As a young person she<br />
had the opportunity to live on a Navajo<br />
reservation in Arizona. After graduating<br />
from the University of Colorado (Boulder)<br />
with degrees in early childhood education<br />
and environmental design, she received<br />
her Master of Architecture from M.I.T.,<br />
which included a fellowship at the Kunstakademi<br />
in Copenhagen. As an architect<br />
at BTA (Ben Thompson Associates), she<br />
worked on large “festival marketplaces”<br />
including South Street Seaport in New<br />
York, Navy Pier in Chicago and projects in<br />
London, Singapore, and Tokyo.<br />
A major focus of her professional work<br />
has been to translate the mission and<br />
values of organizations into experiential<br />
environments, events, and communication<br />
tools—through architecture and graphic<br />
design. Heidi has worked with many social<br />
sector organizations, such as Citizen<br />
<strong>School</strong>s, Oxfam America, and City Year,<br />
where she has served as the founding creative<br />
director for the past 20 years. Additionally,<br />
she has taught at Rhode Island<br />
<strong>School</strong> of Design and served on architectural<br />
juries at both Harvard and M.I.T. In<br />
the past two years, Heidi has served as<br />
creative strategist for ServiceNation, working<br />
on the live broadcast of the Obama-<br />
McCain Presidential Candidate Forum on<br />
Service and the MTV/ServiceNation Presidential<br />
Inaugural Youth Ball & Service Day.<br />
Heidi is in the process of launching a<br />
new venture: Purple Suitcase, an interactive<br />
discovery center and curriculum that<br />
explores the diverse cultures of the world<br />
through craft, cuisine, and music. Purple<br />
Suitcase encourages children to seek<br />
broader cultural understanding so they can<br />
thrive in our complex global community.<br />
Patti Kraft<br />
Since she first stepped onto the <strong>Park</strong><br />
<strong>School</strong> campus as a parent in the fall<br />
of 2001, Patti Kraft has quietly and consistently<br />
contributed to the community. Serving<br />
as a class representative, library<br />
volunteer, faculty/staff appreciation committee<br />
co-chair, and as the co-chair of<br />
Springfest for two years, Patti has woven<br />
herself into the <strong>School</strong>’s fabric. “I’ve come<br />
to appreciate what a special place <strong>Park</strong><br />
is,” Patti says. “Everyone has similar values<br />
and wants the same things for their<br />
kids—and I want to contribute in any way<br />
I can.”<br />
A native Texan, Patti moved to Boston<br />
to work at Bain & Co. after graduating<br />
from Rice University in Houston. While<br />
serving as an associate consultant at Bain,<br />
she hit it off with another young associate<br />
assigned to the same case team. After<br />
three years, her soon-to-be husband,<br />
6 <strong>The</strong> <strong>Park</strong> Bulletin | Fall 2009
Jonathan Kraft (<strong>Park</strong> ’79) went to business<br />
school, and Patti left Bain to attend<br />
Harvard Law <strong>School</strong>. Upon graduating in<br />
1993, she became a litigation associate at<br />
Goodwin Procter and then went to work<br />
for Governor Weld’s Legal Office as a<br />
deputy legal counsel.<br />
In 1996, when their oldest child,<br />
Harry ’12, was born, Patti stayed home to<br />
raise him. Sadie ’14 and Jacob ’17 joined<br />
the family soon afterwards. Ten years<br />
later, Patti opened Bellezza Home & Garden,<br />
a retail store selling Italian ceramics.<br />
Now she takes annual buying trips to<br />
ceramic studios in Umbria and Tuscany to<br />
place custom orders for the shop.<br />
Patti is active in various organizations<br />
in Boston and Brookline. She serves on<br />
the advisory committee of Gateway Arts,<br />
the Brookline Public Library Foundation<br />
Board, the Brookline Community Mental<br />
Health Center Community Council, and<br />
is a member of the Ethics Committee, the<br />
Stem Cell Research Oversight Committee,<br />
and the Patient Care Assessment Committee<br />
at Children’s Hospital. A longtime proponent<br />
of education, Patti also served on<br />
the Rashi <strong>School</strong>’s board from 1999–2002<br />
and on the board of Citizens United for<br />
Charter <strong>School</strong>s from 1999–2008. She<br />
looks forward to increasing her involvement<br />
at <strong>Park</strong> by serving on the Board of<br />
Trustees.<br />
Peter Riehl<br />
Peter and his wife, Allison Horne, live<br />
in Brookline —around the corner<br />
from <strong>Park</strong>—with their four children, Lilly<br />
’18, Myles ’16, Isabella ’15, and Madeline<br />
(age 16). As a child, Peter attended public<br />
schools in New Jersey, and graduated<br />
from the University of Michigan majoring<br />
in economics and history. He was involved<br />
with the Navy ROTC program and after<br />
graduation, Peter served four years<br />
aboard a Navy destroyer on the West<br />
Coast. After his service, he received an<br />
MBA in finance from the University of<br />
Chicago.<br />
Shortly after business school, fate and<br />
a job with Bain Capital brought Peter to<br />
Boston for the very first time. While purchasing<br />
a condo, he met Allison, the<br />
owner of a mortgage lending company.<br />
Peter is a managing director at Bain Capital<br />
and is the head trader for their global<br />
public equity affiliate, Brookside Capital.<br />
Peter is involved with a number of<br />
local organizations dedicated to improving<br />
the lives of children. He is on the Board of<br />
Overseers of Children’s Hospital and is a<br />
frequent participant in the Children’s Miles<br />
for Miracles Marathon Program. Additionally,<br />
he and his wife are supporters and<br />
volunteers for Horizons for Homeless Children,<br />
Stand for Children (a public school<br />
advocacy group) and the Boston Children’s<br />
Museum.<br />
Peter and Allison found <strong>Park</strong>’s diverse<br />
and active community, committed and<br />
enthusiastic faculty, rigorous academics,<br />
and spacious campus very attractive and<br />
were thrilled when the opportunity arose<br />
to become part of the <strong>School</strong> last year.<br />
“<strong>The</strong> transition to <strong>Park</strong> last year went<br />
unbelievably well for our whole family,”<br />
Peter explains, “thanks to the genuine<br />
friendliness, openness, and spirit exhibited<br />
everyday by the faculty, students, and parents.”<br />
Peter looks forward to helping to<br />
make a positive impact at <strong>Park</strong> through<br />
his service on the Board of Trustees.<br />
<strong>The</strong> <strong>Park</strong> Bulletin | Fall 2009 7
— Class of 2009 —<br />
GRADUATION 2009<br />
8 <strong>The</strong> <strong>Park</strong> Bulletin | Fall 2009
Each year, an alumnus/a with six years of post-<strong>Park</strong><br />
experience addresses the graduating class. Although Andrew<br />
Ostroff came to <strong>Park</strong> somewhat reluctantly as a sixth grader,<br />
he was eager to return as the graduation speaker this June.<br />
Andrew received <strong>The</strong> Ellen Fowler Award for his good<br />
citizenship at his graduation in 2003 and continued to stand<br />
out at Phillips Academy, Andover. Now a double major in<br />
Spanish and economics at Middlebury College, he spent the<br />
spring semester in Madrid as part of the college’s study abroad<br />
program, and he looks forward to returning to Vermont<br />
in the fall.<br />
2009<br />
GRADUATION<br />
ADDRESS<br />
by Andrew Ostroff, Class of 2003<br />
Good morning, everyone: members of the Board, Mr. Katz,<br />
faculty, staff, students, alums, current and former families,<br />
friends, and especially to the Class of 2009. Congratulations!<br />
You have successfully survived the most difficult years of adolescence,<br />
and that in itself is worth celebrating. I promise that the<br />
hard work is over. . . until, of course, you get to college applications.<br />
When Mr. Katz invited me to speak at this year’s graduation<br />
ceremony, I breathed a sigh of relief. Many people dread public<br />
speaking, but the truth of the matter is that I have been secretly<br />
hoping to give this speech for nearly six years. Why, you may ask<br />
Because <strong>The</strong> <strong>Park</strong> <strong>School</strong> instilled in me certain values that are central<br />
to my core beliefs, values that shape the person I am today and<br />
how I view the world. I am a firm believer in paying homage to<br />
those that have helped me along the way, and although my remarks<br />
and advice are directed primarily towards the Class of 2009 this<br />
morning, I must admit that I approached this speech with a second<br />
agenda: to thank the <strong>Park</strong> <strong>School</strong> family for welcoming me with<br />
open arms nearly ten years ago, for embracing my curious intellect,<br />
and most importantly, for helping me to find my moral compass.<br />
I am certain that my life would be quite different had I not<br />
attended <strong>Park</strong>, and in considering this reality, I hope to use these<br />
next few minutes to share with you how my <strong>Park</strong> education continues<br />
to help me tackle the most difficult of hurdles even today, but<br />
more importantly, to articulate how your experiences here have<br />
prepared you for the years ahead and the responsibilities you must,<br />
therefore, undertake.<br />
My <strong>Park</strong> <strong>School</strong> career began in the fall of 1999 – a timid,<br />
redheaded boy with a face full of freckles and an oversized backpack<br />
unhappily trudged up the steps to the Upper Division. Don’t get me<br />
wrong; I was excited and ready to begin a new chapter in my life,<br />
but I desperately wanted to follow in the footsteps of my family by<br />
attending a school not too far from here that had welcomed my sister<br />
four years prior, both of my parents in the 1970s, and each of my<br />
grandmothers nearly sixty years ago. Little did I know at that time<br />
that the educational path I would choose was unique and truly my<br />
own – something I am grateful for today because one attaches a certain<br />
degree of pride to his school mascot, and after four years as an<br />
oak tree, I much prefer being a panther today than a camel, like my<br />
father was thirty years ago. I eventually got over the oak tree situation,<br />
and although I did not understand my parents’ sound reasoning<br />
for choosing <strong>Park</strong> for me ten years ago, I have long been able to<br />
appreciate the benefits of a <strong>Park</strong> education.<br />
Life after <strong>Park</strong> is a gift: students leave this school with an<br />
appreciation for the world far more advanced than others their age.<br />
I know this is a big statement, but my experiences in high school<br />
and college have allowed me to view different cultures, to be a member<br />
of various communities, and to meet a fascinating cross-section<br />
of our world, all opportunities that warrant my arriving at such a<br />
conclusion. One of the cornerstones of a <strong>Park</strong> <strong>School</strong> education is,<br />
undoubtedly, a respect of, and appreciation for, diversity. Students<br />
here learn to make friends regardless of our differences, which<br />
are known to divide us later in life. That said, the ease with which<br />
we coexist at <strong>Park</strong> is something I took for granted in my four years<br />
at this school.<br />
➢<br />
<strong>The</strong> <strong>Park</strong> Bulletin | Fall 2009 9
What the Ninth Grade will<br />
Take and Leave Behind<br />
Alex Barden<br />
I will take friendship and self-confidence.<br />
I am leaving the best four years of my life.<br />
Sam Bloch<br />
I will take leadership experience.<br />
I will leave an aura of diligence and a<br />
willingness to do everything the way it is<br />
supposed to be done.<br />
My journey after <strong>Park</strong> took me to<br />
Phillips Academy, Andover, an institution<br />
that holds diversity to be of great importance,<br />
and whose mission calls for a student body<br />
comprised of “youth from every quarter.”<br />
Andover is undoubtedly able to achieve this<br />
goal thanks to a rich history, many generous<br />
donors, and throngs of alumni living all across<br />
the world. Its pool of applicants comes from<br />
every walk of life, and Phillips Academy is<br />
fortunate enough to have many resources to<br />
allow it to select a well-rounded, incoming<br />
class every year. I offer this background<br />
because the reality of the situation is surprising.<br />
Yes, Phillips Academy brings “youth from<br />
every quarter” year after year; the student<br />
body is socially, economically and racially<br />
diverse, coming from 50 states and territories<br />
and 37 countries; 37 percent of students are<br />
self-identified students of color, and 42 percent<br />
receive some form of financial aid.<br />
While such a global reach is impossible for an<br />
elementary school like <strong>Park</strong>, its other admis-<br />
sions statistics are strikingly similar to those<br />
of Andover. So what is the takeaway from all<br />
of this Simply stated, the <strong>Park</strong> <strong>School</strong><br />
achieves admissions statistics not far off from<br />
those of an internationally known boarding<br />
school twice its size, one that highlights its<br />
diverse student body as both a unique asset<br />
that separates it from its competition, but<br />
also as a selling point to prospective students.<br />
In other words, the <strong>Park</strong> <strong>School</strong> experience,<br />
in various ways, is something many of the<br />
next schools you will attend strive to achieve.<br />
You will move on to those schools, and what<br />
appears as a simple continuation of your <strong>Park</strong><br />
education is, in reality, a totally new experience<br />
for many of your peers. Diversity is<br />
commonplace at <strong>Park</strong> because we understand<br />
its role in promoting a just society. This, in<br />
itself, allows each of you the opportunity to<br />
be a leader in your new communities next fall<br />
because not only does each or you understand<br />
the merits of diversity, but more importantly,<br />
you appreciate the rewards of a community<br />
that values and celebrates our differences.<br />
Many of your future classmates will be charting<br />
new territories. Class of 2009, lead by<br />
example: you are now the experts.<br />
<strong>The</strong> truth of the matter is that a <strong>Park</strong><br />
<strong>School</strong> education is much more than meets<br />
the eye; students here graduate with a skill set<br />
far more advanced than that of other students<br />
their age. I invite students, faculty and parents<br />
to reflect upon and consider some of the<br />
simplest, yet most important aspects of your<br />
own, your students’ or your child’s Upper<br />
Division education. I draw upon a daily tradition,<br />
one that for many students (myself<br />
included) was a mere formality, and in my situation,<br />
often made me late for soccer practice,<br />
drama, or the bus to the Green Line:<br />
afternoon shake-out. At this point in my<br />
speech, I must recognize Ms. Studley [Dana<br />
Welshman-Studely ’85], my sixth grade advisor,<br />
for crushing my hand on a daily basis.<br />
Thanks to her, I understood the importance<br />
of a firm handshake and eye contact following<br />
my first week at <strong>Park</strong>. She never allowed me<br />
to skip out on shake-out, and on the rare<br />
occasion that I failed to make it up to the<br />
fourth floor, I could always count on her asking<br />
where I had been the previous day.<br />
Shake-out, as far as I am concerned,<br />
serves a number of purposes. In its simplest<br />
form, students learn how to properly shake<br />
hands, something I promise helped you as<br />
10 <strong>The</strong> <strong>Park</strong> Bulletin | Fall 2009
Allegra Borak<br />
I’ll take a strong sense of self.<br />
I’ll leave behind four years of my life,<br />
and what I’ve done with them.<br />
Nikoi Coley-Ribeiro<br />
I will take away a higher dedication to<br />
bettering myself.<br />
I will leave behind my inhibitions that<br />
held me back.<br />
Eliza Cover<br />
I’ll take my amazing memories.<br />
I’ll leave behind a closed-minded way of<br />
thinking.<br />
you interviewed with secondary school<br />
admissions officers earlier this year. I cannot<br />
stress how important a firm handshake is, and<br />
the number of times the person with whom I<br />
shake hands has complimented me on my<br />
ability to do so. Shake-out, however, in a<br />
more general form, to me speaks of maturity.<br />
<strong>Park</strong> students learn to interact with teachers<br />
not only on an academic level, but on a personal<br />
level as well. Said differently, students<br />
here are incredibly fortunate to develop relationships<br />
with faculty members that extend<br />
beyond the classroom, relationships that, for<br />
example, encouraged me to spend four summers<br />
working in <strong>Park</strong>’s Summer Programs to<br />
continue learning from my academic mentors<br />
here. I realized how much I could learn outside<br />
of the classroom, and the ability to interact<br />
with faculty members in a different<br />
context is an asset to any student because it<br />
extends one’s education in unconventional<br />
ways. Teachers assume additional roles in<br />
your life, and it is these relationships<br />
throughout my education that I believe have<br />
propelled me to succeed. None of my friends<br />
had a middle school math teacher who came<br />
to their high school soccer games, nor can<br />
they maintain an hour long conversation at<br />
Starbucks with a former teacher even though<br />
six years have passed since they last worked<br />
together. I implore you: recognize the efforts<br />
of your teachers and how they have prepared<br />
you for life beyond <strong>Park</strong>, both in and outside<br />
of the classroom.<br />
I speak as if my four years here were<br />
nothing short of bliss, but life at <strong>Park</strong> was by<br />
no means easy for me when I arrived in the<br />
sixth grade. My first two years here were an<br />
emotional challenge, and there were many<br />
days when my alarm would sound and I<br />
wanted nothing more than to roll over and<br />
fall back asleep. I feared that I was at the<br />
wrong school, but the truth of the matter is<br />
<strong>The</strong> <strong>Park</strong> Bulletin | Fall 2009 11
Tyler Dillard<br />
I’m taking the early mornings and<br />
unexpected friends.<br />
I’m leaving the excellent teachers that<br />
made my <strong>Park</strong> experience so great.<br />
Jess Franks<br />
I will take with me my leadership experience<br />
that I gained through my role as<br />
leader of Helping Hand.<br />
I will leave behind my two little sisters.<br />
Mary Fulham<br />
I will take with me all of the good times<br />
and new things I learned about my classmates<br />
on <strong>Park</strong> bus rides.<br />
I hope that I will leave behind the message<br />
to younger students that the best way to<br />
have fun is to be yourself and to take risks<br />
because you can’t lose anything by just<br />
being who you really are.<br />
that I was just where I needed to be. A dear<br />
friend, Ms. Wanda Holland Greene, who<br />
relocated to San Francisco last summer, was<br />
always there for me, and when times were<br />
hard, she proved to be my greatest fan and<br />
loudest cheerleader. Her exemplary morals,<br />
winning spirit and concern for my overall<br />
happiness willed me through some very<br />
difficult days. I would imagine many of you<br />
sitting in the audience right now could think<br />
of a similar person from your school days.<br />
Apart from my parents, she taught me more<br />
about life then anyone I know, but I only<br />
recently realized the most important takeaway<br />
from our time together: she taught me<br />
to be a good listener.<br />
We all love to talk, some more than<br />
others, and our words naturally serve a myriad<br />
of purposes: to teach, to call to action and<br />
to vent, among others. Listening, simply<br />
stated, is an art, and also an asset to those<br />
capable of offering their undivided attention<br />
to those with something to say. On an individual<br />
level, my closest friends are those that<br />
know how to listen, and our friendship is a<br />
two-way street, a mutual relationship in<br />
which we are always available for each other.<br />
Listening, to me, symbolizes respect, and<br />
respect is a black-and-white concept, one that<br />
requires no formal definition because the<br />
theory of respect is ingrained in a child’s<br />
mind in his formative years. With time, one<br />
grows to realize, as I have, that the most<br />
important things we learn come from other<br />
people, and that we attain these pearls of wisdom<br />
through listening to others. A keen listener<br />
will earn the respect of his peers, but<br />
more importantly, will gain knowledge many<br />
others might overlook. Our vocabulary is an<br />
indicator of our own character; we learn each<br />
other’s tendencies by internalizing their<br />
words. Parents, friends and teachers speak to<br />
disseminate information and advice, and listening<br />
allows us to identify with their words,<br />
but it also shows the respect one holds for his<br />
speaker and allows for one to better understand<br />
that person as well. A good listener will<br />
not only gain knowledge, but also will better<br />
appreciate a person’s character, and ultimately,<br />
always be one step ahead of everybody<br />
else. So, if you haven’t really been listening up<br />
to this point, start now, because my last piece<br />
of advice this morning is the most important.<br />
My life to date has been a series of<br />
curve balls, one after the next. I take a few<br />
practice swings, step up to the plate, take a<br />
good stance, and prepare for the pitch. Far<br />
too often I begin my swing, ready to crush<br />
the ball out of the park, but then the ball<br />
begins to curve, and I am forced to adjust at<br />
the last second. Instead of the home run, I<br />
settle for a single, or find a gap and manage a<br />
double. Yes, at first I am disappointed<br />
because, let’s be honest, a home run feels so<br />
much better than a base hit; but, as baseball<br />
fans are well aware, a base hit is often more<br />
effective than a solo shot in that my reaching<br />
first requires the team in the field to change<br />
its position. If the next batter gets on base<br />
thanks to gaps that otherwise would not have<br />
been created, and this, in turn, leads to a<br />
string of successful hits, my first single is ultimately<br />
more effective than a solo home run.<br />
So here’s the question: why is this baseball<br />
analogy the most important advice I can<br />
share with you this morning Because the<br />
most difficult decisions I have had to make<br />
in life have come after being repeatedly<br />
thrown curve balls. I am disappointed at first<br />
because, at crucial points in my life, I wanted<br />
the fastball, but was forced to adapt and<br />
adjust to the pitch I received. I only reached<br />
first base when, in reality, I wanted to touch<br />
all four. I had no control of the pitch, and<br />
settled for what I considered to be, at that<br />
time, second best. Fortunately, a teammate<br />
has always managed to drive me home, and<br />
my team tends to win the game. Don’t be<br />
afraid of curve balls – they make you<br />
stronger and you will be faced with many of<br />
them in the years to come. Try not to be disappointed<br />
if you find yourself settling for<br />
what you believe to be second best. When<br />
something is out of our control, how we<br />
approach a seemingly undesireable situation<br />
will, in the long run, build character. And in<br />
12 <strong>The</strong> <strong>Park</strong> Bulletin | Fall 2009
Andrea Galligan<br />
I will take the compassion and patience<br />
<strong>Park</strong> has taught me.<br />
I will leave the hope that other students<br />
will experience the same wonderful<br />
things.<br />
Mercedes Garcia-Orozco<br />
I will take away the experience of coming<br />
as a shy girl and leaving as a proud and<br />
confident individual, along with the self<br />
esteem I’ve created in my five years here.<br />
I am leaving the hope that more kids<br />
will stay for ninth grade because it is an<br />
AMAZING opportunity and experience.<br />
Anna Rose Hale<br />
I’m going to take my voice.<br />
I’m going to leave running down the<br />
hallways singing.<br />
2 0 0 9 G R A D U AT I O N AWA R D S<br />
THE ELLEN FOWLER AWARD FOR CITIZENSHIP<br />
Mary Olney Fulham<br />
Julian Anthony Sayhoun<br />
THE ISABELLA T. GROBLEWSKI ARTS AWARD<br />
Tyler Sheridan Dillard<br />
my experiences, these curve balls have<br />
rewards far greater than those that would<br />
have come from hitting a solo home run earlier<br />
in the game.<br />
I close this morning with the following:<br />
your <strong>Park</strong> <strong>School</strong> education, both inside<br />
and outside of the classroom, has positioned<br />
each of you to be leaders in your new communities<br />
next fall. Much of the advice I have<br />
shared with you this morning, like that of former<br />
graduation speakers, is intended to provide<br />
you with a head start, and I ask that you<br />
take my words to heart, apply it towards<br />
future endeavors, and in the years to come,<br />
use it to think not only of yourselves, but of<br />
others as well. You graduate this morning<br />
overcome with enthusiasm, and everybody<br />
here celebrates your accomplishments to date.<br />
I ask of you but one thing: do not forget your<br />
roots. Remember the role that <strong>Park</strong> has<br />
played in your development and how the core<br />
values of this school have contributed to your<br />
own personal character. To the Class of 2009,<br />
I speak for everybody this morning when I<br />
say how thrilled we are to be able to share this<br />
day with you. Congratulations on a job well<br />
done, and we wish you nothing but the very<br />
best as you move forward, and bring a little<br />
piece of the <strong>Park</strong> <strong>School</strong> to your new communities<br />
next fall. Thank you.<br />
THE HEAD OF SCHOOL’S AWARD FOR<br />
ACADEMIC EXCELLENCE<br />
Cary Allain Williams<br />
THE CURTIS E. SMITH ATHLETIC AWARD<br />
Samuel Bendit Bloch<br />
Nzingha Emmani Rawlins<br />
THE JOHN T. SPICER AWARD FOR UNIQUE SERVICE<br />
Maria Mercedes Garcia Orozco<br />
<strong>The</strong> Joan Crocker Award for Community Service<br />
Terry Hamilton<br />
EACH YEAR, the Parents’<br />
Association presents this<br />
award in honor of former<br />
<strong>Park</strong> parent Joan Crocker,<br />
who exemplified the kind<br />
of devotion and steadfast<br />
zeal this award recognizes<br />
in its recipients.<br />
< Terry Hamilton (left) with<br />
P.A. President Teresa Chope.<br />
<strong>The</strong> <strong>Park</strong> Bulletin | Fall 2009 13
Ben Logan<br />
I will take away my confidence in my<br />
opinions.<br />
I will leave a tight-knit community.<br />
Henry Lucey<br />
I’m taking my self-knowledge.<br />
I’m leaving my teachers.<br />
Isa Moss<br />
I’m taking the kind words I received from<br />
my teachers and classmates.<br />
I’m leaving my childhood experiences in my<br />
nursery to fifth grade classes.<br />
Class<br />
Graduation<br />
Speaker:<br />
Josh Ruder<br />
W<br />
hen Mrs. Connolly asked<br />
me to come into her office<br />
this spring, my first reaction was to<br />
think, what did I do wrong As I<br />
was walking in, I realized that<br />
there was nothing that I had done<br />
wrong, so I was wondering why she<br />
wanted to talk to me. I was utterly<br />
shocked and honored when she<br />
asked me to speak on behalf of my<br />
amazing class at graduation. I<br />
didn’t even have to think before I<br />
answered that I would of course<br />
accept. Leaving the office and for<br />
the rest of the day, I spent every<br />
free moment that I had thinking<br />
about what to speak about. I came<br />
up with appreciation.<br />
I think that sometimes the students<br />
who go to <strong>Park</strong> don’t appreciate<br />
how special a place this is, and<br />
how lucky we are to come here each<br />
and every day. You might think that<br />
school is boring or not fun, but here<br />
you are surrounded by adults who<br />
want to help you enjoy school as<br />
much as possible while also teaching<br />
you things that will remain part of<br />
who you are forever. At many other<br />
schools, there is more emphasis on<br />
work, work, and more work, and not<br />
on using effective and interesting<br />
methods of teaching. <strong>Park</strong> does its<br />
best to make school engaging for<br />
everyone and is open to new ideas. I<br />
can tell you from experience that at<br />
other schools, students have virtually<br />
no say in what they would like<br />
to learn or what would be good ways<br />
to keep class interesting.<br />
Entering <strong>Park</strong> after a terrible<br />
sixth grade year in public school,<br />
I was so glad to get away from<br />
that school, and I immediately fell<br />
in love with this one. Project<br />
R.E.A.S.O.N. is probably my best<br />
memory of my first year at <strong>Park</strong>,<br />
because it allowed me to connect<br />
with and learn more about my<br />
sensational classmates. Project<br />
R.E.A.S.O.N. is a trip that the seventh<br />
grade takes to a camp in New<br />
Hampshire; they climb Mt. Monadnock,<br />
play games, and do group<br />
bonding activities. <strong>The</strong>re are countless<br />
other memories that I have<br />
of this school that give it a special<br />
place in my heart: Stump Sprouts<br />
and the trip to Spain, to name a<br />
few. For both of these events, I have<br />
amazing memories of hanging out<br />
with everyone in our class and doing<br />
funny and sometimes stupid things.<br />
At Stump Sprouts, we would all<br />
go lie down in the field and just<br />
stare up at the sky and the stars.<br />
We played manhunt in the complete<br />
dark, played tons of “catchphrase,”<br />
and so many other things that<br />
brought us closer as a class. In<br />
Spain, I remember sitting in the<br />
plaza in Salamanca, drinking Fanta<br />
and eating ice cream, talking and<br />
laughing, and all of the people<br />
who lived there were walking by<br />
probably thinking that we were crazy<br />
Americans, but we didn’t care,<br />
because we were enjoying spending<br />
time together.<br />
It’s not only the trips and bonding<br />
time I spent with my classmates<br />
that I will remember, but also the<br />
big projects that I did and other significant<br />
pieces of my learning experience<br />
at <strong>Park</strong>. One project that I<br />
remember was the poetry anthology<br />
that I did in eighth grade. A memory<br />
that stands out is, the night before<br />
it was due, I stayed up until about<br />
midnight putting the finishing<br />
touches on it, gluing things<br />
together and making the cover. It’s<br />
these moments that we will remember,<br />
not what we did in math class<br />
on April 15 th , and they are also what<br />
make <strong>Park</strong> such a special place. <strong>Park</strong><br />
gives us all a unique experience that<br />
we would not have at any other<br />
school, and it is important to appreciate<br />
everything that the faculty,<br />
other staff members, and parents do<br />
to make every moment that we<br />
spend here fantastic. For all of the<br />
effort and time that they put into<br />
organizing events for us, I think<br />
that we have to give them a hand<br />
for doing everything in their power<br />
on our behalf.<br />
<strong>Park</strong> does its very best to instill<br />
its values in each and every one of<br />
its students, whether your first year<br />
is in Nursery, eighth grade, or anywhere<br />
in between. <strong>The</strong>se values<br />
include that friendships should not<br />
be affected by racial, economic, or<br />
religious differences, a love of learning,<br />
being yourself, taking risks; I<br />
could go on for much longer, but I<br />
won’t. <strong>Park</strong> has left its mark on all<br />
of us, and once we realize how much<br />
it has done to make us who we are,<br />
we will fully appreciate its impact<br />
on our lives. Finally, I would like to<br />
thank everyone who has made it<br />
possible for me to be here speaking<br />
in front of all of you: my parents,<br />
grandparents, other family members,<br />
teachers, friends, and the phenomenal<br />
Class of 2009.<br />
14 <strong>The</strong> <strong>Park</strong> Bulletin | Fall 2009
Sophie Moss<br />
I will take with me memories of singing<br />
and dancing down the hallway.<br />
I will leave my childhood memories.<br />
Emmani Rawlins<br />
I will take my ever-growing sense of<br />
self that <strong>Park</strong> has helped me establish<br />
in my seven years here.<br />
I hope to leave behind an image of<br />
myself as a decent human being.<br />
Josh Ruder<br />
I will take with me all of my incredible<br />
memories and friends.<br />
I will leave behind the adults who have<br />
taught me so much.<br />
SECONDARY SCHOOLS<br />
FOR THE CLASS OF 2009<br />
Alex Barden<br />
Boston University Academy<br />
Sam Bloch<br />
Buckingham Browne & Nichols <strong>School</strong><br />
Allegra Borak<br />
Newton South High <strong>School</strong><br />
Nikoi Coley-Ribeiro<br />
Buckingham Browne & Nichols <strong>School</strong><br />
Eliza Cover<br />
St. George’s <strong>School</strong><br />
Tyler Dillard<br />
Phillips Academy, Andover<br />
Jess Franks<br />
Concord Academy<br />
Mary Fulham<br />
Newton Country Day <strong>School</strong><br />
Andrea Galligan<br />
Cambridge Rindge & Latin <strong>School</strong><br />
Mercedes Garcia-Orozco<br />
Lincoln-Sudbury High <strong>School</strong><br />
Anna Rose Hale<br />
Chapel Hill-Chauncy Hall <strong>School</strong><br />
Ben Logan<br />
Beaver Country Day <strong>School</strong><br />
Henry Lucey<br />
Brookline High <strong>School</strong><br />
Isa Moss<br />
Brookline High <strong>School</strong><br />
Sophie Moss<br />
Brookline High <strong>School</strong><br />
Emmani Rawlins<br />
Milton Academy<br />
Josh Ruder<br />
Milton Academy<br />
Julian Sahyoun<br />
Concord Academy<br />
Carter Smith<br />
St. Paul’s <strong>School</strong><br />
Lexie Sparrow<br />
Beaver Country Day <strong>School</strong><br />
Lily Steig<br />
Milton Academy<br />
Cary Williams<br />
Milton Academy<br />
<strong>The</strong> <strong>Park</strong> Bulletin | Fall 2009 15
Julian Sahyoun<br />
I will take lifelong friendships and unforgettable<br />
experiences.<br />
I will leave teachers who have taught me<br />
more than just curriculum.<br />
Carter Smith<br />
I will take with me eleven years of<br />
memories and complete confidence in<br />
myself.<br />
I will be leaving the comfortable <strong>Park</strong><br />
environment that I have become so<br />
accustomed to and venture out into<br />
something new.<br />
Lexie Sparrow<br />
I will take the confidence that <strong>Park</strong> has<br />
given me to act as an individual.<br />
I will leave behind the laughs on and off<br />
stage.<br />
Class<br />
Graduation<br />
Speaker:<br />
Carter Smith<br />
W<br />
hen I sat down to write<br />
this speech, the first<br />
thing that came to mind was how<br />
much I have changed since entering<br />
in Nursery [now Pre-Kindergarten],<br />
eleven years ago. If you<br />
didn’t know me as a six-year-old,<br />
you just have to ask any teacher in<br />
this school. <strong>The</strong>y all seem to have<br />
an infamous “Carter story” about<br />
my, let’s say, demanding personality<br />
that they love to tell. I can’t count<br />
how many times I have heard, “Oh,<br />
I remember....” Many love to reminisce<br />
about the smocked dresses<br />
and signature Smith family bow,<br />
which I wore everyday to school.<br />
Mind you, these bows were probably<br />
the same size as my head. I<br />
think the reason people found my<br />
outfits so amusing is because they<br />
created a sweet, innocent facade<br />
that I must say was very deceiving.<br />
For example, when I was in Kindergarten,<br />
we were asked to jump rope<br />
in P.E. and I didn’t want to, so I<br />
went up to Ms. Knight and said, “ I<br />
don’t want to jump rope and you<br />
can’t make me!” and then I proceeded<br />
to stomp out of the gym.<br />
Another one of my favorites is when<br />
I was in music class with Mrs. Allen<br />
and I started to cry. When Mrs.<br />
Allen asked me what was wrong, I<br />
said, “I just want my way Mrs.<br />
Allen. Why can’t I just get my way”<br />
<strong>The</strong>se were trying times for my<br />
teachers, as well as for me. <strong>The</strong> reason<br />
I am sharing these stories with<br />
you is because over my years at<br />
<strong>Park</strong>, they have dwindled and have<br />
gradually transformed into more<br />
positive ones, and I can tell you<br />
that it never would have happened<br />
if it weren’t for the faculty who<br />
believed in me and worked so hard<br />
to help me reach my full potential. I<br />
credit so much of who I am today to<br />
these men and women who shaped<br />
me and became my role models and<br />
friends.<br />
It was seven years ago, but I<br />
still remember every detail of my<br />
oldest sister, Pearson’s, graduation.<br />
I was in the second grade at the<br />
time, and I remember her wet face<br />
and red eyes as she sobbed on the<br />
same risers up behind me. I remember<br />
so clearly someone next to me<br />
handing me a tissue and telling me<br />
to go give it to Pearson in the middle<br />
of the ceremony. As a second<br />
grader, I didn’t really understand<br />
that I was interrupting anything.<br />
<strong>The</strong>n something happened that I<br />
have never forgotten. As I turned<br />
to go back to my seat after the<br />
laughter had died down, Mr. Katz<br />
went to the podium and said, “I<br />
can’t wait ’til you graduate, Carter.”<br />
Me, graduate This was something<br />
my second grade mind couldn’t<br />
really comprehend, but now here it<br />
is today, and to tell you the truth, I<br />
am still not quite sure if I fully<br />
comprehend it. It is so crazy to<br />
think that after this day, I will no<br />
longer be a <strong>Park</strong> student. <strong>Park</strong> has<br />
always been my little stage and I<br />
have always felt comfortable being<br />
exactly who I am on it. I am looking<br />
forward to the adventures ahead<br />
of me at my next school, but this<br />
day is very bittersweet. I am<br />
excited but nervous to have to go<br />
on without my little support system,<br />
my home away from home,<br />
which has always been there, backing<br />
me up every step of the way.<br />
It is impossible to choose what<br />
I will miss the most, because I will<br />
miss it all. Walking down the hall<br />
dying of laughter due to one of<br />
Lexie’s ridiculous inside jokes, acting<br />
like a total fool on T.O.T.A.L.<br />
Day, even our random conversations<br />
in English class prompted by an<br />
“out of the blue” Mary comment.<br />
Over this past year, our grade has<br />
bonded more than I ever thought<br />
possible. Our class has been<br />
through a lot this year, but we have<br />
always come out stronger, proving<br />
our compassion for each other and<br />
tight knit grade. So, as our time of<br />
being <strong>Park</strong> students winds down and<br />
our paths begin to split and lead us<br />
in different directions, I am realizing<br />
how much I am going to miss<br />
every single one of you. Many of<br />
you I have been with since Nursery<br />
or Kindergarten, and we have spent<br />
basically our whole lives together.<br />
So much of our past is this school,<br />
and there are memories in every<br />
single nook and cranny of every single<br />
room. During our trip to Stump<br />
Sprouts in the fall, the most enthusiastic<br />
event was definitely figuring<br />
out what we were going to put on<br />
the memories page in the yearbook.<br />
We all sat together in the living<br />
room and talked about all the<br />
things we remembered throughout<br />
the years. This event was very<br />
adrenalized and very loud, and it<br />
took a very long time since our<br />
escalating volume made it very hard<br />
for anybody to explain or hear anything<br />
clearly over our excited<br />
shouts. Even though we will all be<br />
moving on, I will always look back<br />
and picture those fond memories<br />
and all of my amazing classmates<br />
who I shared them with.<br />
And to the faculty, who have<br />
helped mold me and the rest of my<br />
class into the people we are today,<br />
all I can say is no matter how many<br />
years go by, you will always be an<br />
important part of why I am who<br />
I am, and you will never ever be<br />
forgotten. Now, I will end with a<br />
quote from the wise philosopher,<br />
Hannah Montana, who once said,<br />
“Life is a climb, but the view<br />
is great.”<br />
16 <strong>The</strong> <strong>Park</strong> Bulletin | Fall 2009
Lily Steig<br />
I will take a strong sense of intimate<br />
community.<br />
I will leave half a bottle of spilled<br />
glitter that remains on the floor of the<br />
costume shop.<br />
Cary Williams<br />
I will take with me my passion for literature<br />
and theater that I have acquired over<br />
my decade at <strong>Park</strong>.<br />
I will leave behind my childish immaturity<br />
that <strong>Park</strong> has helped me to outgrow.<br />
<strong>The</strong> <strong>Park</strong> Bulletin | Fall 2009 17
Class of 1974—35th Reunion Top (L-R) Alex Bok, Kitta Frost, Sarah<br />
Henry Lederman, Margaret Smith Bell, Chris Randolph, Rodger Cohen,<br />
Heather Crocker Faris Bottom (L-R) Tina McVeigh, Polly Hoppin, Beth<br />
Haffenreffer Scholle, Shady Hartshorne, Jim Bynoe<br />
Alumni from the classes ending in “4”<br />
and “9” came back to <strong>Park</strong> from far<br />
and wide on the Saturday of Mother’s<br />
Day weekend. This year, Reunion took place in<br />
the newly-renovated library, which turned out<br />
to be a wonderful party-central.<br />
Early birds were treated to a campus tour<br />
around the building’s old and new spaces.<br />
Head of <strong>School</strong> Jerry Katz, Alumni Committee<br />
member Ali Epker Ruch ’89, and Director of<br />
Alumni Relations Eliza Drachman-Jones ’98 all<br />
spoke briefly to the assembled crowd before<br />
Reunion photos commenced. <strong>The</strong> party finally<br />
broke up when the different classes departed<br />
for further revelry at their class-specific reunion<br />
dinners.<br />
Many thanks to the dozens of reunion<br />
volunteers who helped to make Reunion 2009<br />
a memorable event for all who attended.<br />
We look forward to seeing the “5s” and “0s”<br />
next spring!<br />
Class of 1979—30th Reunion Top (L-R) Nadia Belash McKay, Cary Godbey<br />
Turner; Middle (L-R) Sally Solomon, Wendi Daniels, Madeleine Rains; Bottom<br />
(L-R) Tony Mack, Lalla Carothers, Holly Dando, Steve Georgaklis<br />
18 <strong>The</strong> <strong>Park</strong> Bulletin | Fall 2009
Class of 1984—25th Reunion Top (L-R) Caron Lipsky Savenor,<br />
Kate McNay Koch, Laura Church Wilmerding, Tara Albright Robinson;<br />
Bottom (L-R) Phoebe Gallagher Winder, Adam Weitzman, Anne Collins<br />
Goodyear<br />
Top to bottom: Jim Bynoe ’74; <strong>The</strong><br />
women of 1979: Nadia Belash McKay,<br />
Sally Solomon, Wendi Daniels, Madeleine<br />
Rains, Holly Dando, Cary Godbey Turner;<br />
Grace Faturoti ’99 and Carrie Pierce ’99<br />
check out some clay masks in the art studio<br />
Top to bottom: Bizzy Glasser Riley, Emma Jacobson-Sive,<br />
Sara Langelier—all Class of 1989; Brian Swett ’94,<br />
Ed Downes ’59, Hilary Sargent ’94, and Jenny Shoukimas ’94;<br />
Julie Henry, mother of Sarah Henry Lederman ’74 enjoyed<br />
catching up at the party in the library<br />
Opposite page (L-R): 1999 classmates Grace Faturoti,<br />
Sam Oates, and Ben Hindman; Shady Hartshorne ’74<br />
embracing a classmate at Reunion<br />
Class of 1989—20th Reunion Top (L-R): Sara Langelier, Adria<br />
Linder, Kate Westgate, Allison Morse, Ali Epker Ruch and Bizzy Glasser Riley.<br />
Bottom: Jonathan Mitchell, Emma Jacobson-Sive, Jacob Freifeld,<br />
Cate O’Connell and Jason Spingarn-Koff<br />
<strong>The</strong> <strong>Park</strong> Bulletin | Fall 2009 19
Polly Hoppin ’74, Chris Randolph ’74, and Caroline<br />
Cunningham Young ’74<br />
Class of 1994—15th Reunion Hilary Sargent,<br />
Jenny Shoukimas, Brian Swett, Zach Stuart<br />
Ben Hindman ’99 enjoys a laugh<br />
Class of 1999—10th Reunion Top (L-R) Lindsey Segar, Caitlin Tierney,<br />
Liz Weyman, Cat Foley, Carrie Pierce, Jessica Freeman-Slade, Sam Oates, and<br />
David Kenner; Bottom (L-R) Alex Goldstein, Grace Faturoti, Ben Hindman,<br />
and David Cavell<br />
20 <strong>The</strong> <strong>Park</strong> Bulletin | Fall 2009
<strong>The</strong> <strong>Park</strong> <strong>School</strong> Class of 1984<br />
Twenty-Fifth Reunion Biographies<br />
Natascha Geilich Armleder<br />
I went to Nobles, then UVM, and upon graduation,<br />
I moved to Geneva, Switzerland (my mother<br />
is Swiss and I have a passport). All of those years<br />
of suffering under Monsieur Planchon finally<br />
paid off and I actually do speak French!<br />
After working in finance for a long time, I<br />
moved to Sotheby’s auction house where I<br />
enjoyed a saner pace of life working with collectors<br />
and dealers from all over the world. Currently,<br />
I am doing my master’s in counseling<br />
psychology. In 2003, I married Sébastien Armleder,<br />
who is from Geneva, (Laura Church<br />
Wilmerding actually made it over to the wedding<br />
despite her son’s first day of school!) and had my<br />
son, Tassilo, in 2004 and my daughter, Cosima,<br />
in 2006.<br />
We try to get to the States as often as possible<br />
(thus a recent Easter trip to Miami/Palm Beach)<br />
but sadly I don’t think I will make it back for the<br />
Reunion as I will just have returned from Florida<br />
on April 15. I have enjoyed chatting with some of<br />
you on Facebook and hope, if I do not make it,<br />
that someone will send me photos of the<br />
Reunion! I am in the Boston area every summer<br />
and would love to catch up.<br />
Sarah Kennedy Flott<br />
Can it really be 25 years! I can’t believe I am<br />
old enough to have a 25th Reunion from anything.<br />
I am currently living near Frankfurt, Germany<br />
with my husband, Jon, and three children,<br />
Thomas (13), Sophie (9), and Noah (7). <strong>The</strong><br />
three children and I all go to the International<br />
<strong>School</strong> of Frankfurt; they are students and I teach<br />
3rd to 5th grade English. We have lived overseas<br />
for a few years now both here in Germany and in<br />
Shanghai, China. We love the traveling it allows<br />
us to do and hopefully our children will become<br />
“Global Citizens.”<br />
I received my master’s degree in teaching<br />
from Lesley University in 1999 after completing<br />
three years with the Teach for America teaching<br />
corps in rural Louisiana. Unfortunately, I will be<br />
Top: Andre Netter, Tim Friedman<br />
Bottom: Hannah Swett, Robbie Sprill,<br />
Natascha Geilich, Dan Kornfeld.<br />
unable to attend the Reunion in person but look<br />
forward to reading about what my classmates<br />
have been up to.<br />
Tim Friedman<br />
Hello to everyone from Chicago! 25 is just too<br />
many years to write (or think) about so I’ll keep<br />
it to the most important recent ones! My wife,<br />
Paula, and I are living in Chicago with our nineyear-old<br />
son, Cameron, and our seven-year-old<br />
daughter, Madeline. After graduating from<br />
Lehigh in 1991, I went to George Washington<br />
Law <strong>School</strong> and worked as a lawyer long enough<br />
to realize it wasn’t for me. In 1996, shortly after<br />
Paula and I married, I dragged her out to<br />
Chicago so I could go to Northwestern University<br />
for my MBA. Although I promised her that<br />
we could come back to the East Coast, Chicago<br />
ended up being a perfect fit for us and we have<br />
been here ever since. After business school, I<br />
worked as an investment banker for 7 years and<br />
then set out on my own with my own small<br />
investment company, Heracles Holdings. I guess<br />
Greek mythology stuck with me after all these<br />
years. Our kids go to Francis <strong>Park</strong>er <strong>School</strong> in<br />
Chicago. It really reminds me of <strong>Park</strong>, and as I<br />
wander the halls at drop-off I reminisce about our<br />
years together in Brookline.<br />
Anne Collins Goodyear<br />
At the time of our twenty-fifth reunion, I am<br />
living with my husband, Frank, outside of Washington,<br />
DC. We both work at the Smithsonian’s<br />
National Portrait Gallery. (We didn’t meet there,<br />
<strong>The</strong> <strong>Park</strong> Bulletin | Fall 2009 21
P A R K S C H O O L C L A S S O F 1 9 8 4 2 5 T H R E U N I O N B I O G R A P H I E S<br />
however. We met in graduate school at the University<br />
of Texas at Austin.) <strong>The</strong> past five years<br />
since our last reunion have been busy. During<br />
that period, I co-organized two substantial exhibitions<br />
with catalogues. One, “Inventing Marcel<br />
Duchamp: <strong>The</strong> Dynamics of Portraiture,”<br />
focuses on Duchamp’s important role in modern<br />
and contemporary art and his impact on the construction<br />
of self and other; the other exhibition,<br />
“Reflections/Refractions: Self-Portraiture in the<br />
Twentieth Century,” looks at the changing idioms<br />
of self-representation during the past century.<br />
<strong>The</strong>se projects and many others repeatedly<br />
cause me to think back on my years at <strong>Park</strong>.<br />
Travel to Paris to organize the Duchamp show<br />
brought back fond memories of the 1983 trip to<br />
France made by those of us in the eighth grade<br />
studying French as well as the rigorous ongoing<br />
study of the French language through our<br />
acquaintance with M. Thibaut and his family!<br />
I also think back frequently to the special trips<br />
several of us had a chance to make to the Boston<br />
Museum of Fine Arts on Tuesday afternoons<br />
once a month when we had half-days so that our<br />
teachers could pursue their professional development.<br />
What magical afternoons! I particularly<br />
recall those spent in the company of the Egyptian<br />
antiquities.<br />
It’s amazing to think how much impact those<br />
ten years at <strong>Park</strong> had and continue to have,<br />
especially twenty-five years after we received our<br />
diplomas. “<strong>The</strong>re are places I remember...”<br />
Looking forward to catching up with everyone!!<br />
Top: Cam Naimi, Noah Herzog<br />
Bottom: Phoebe Gallagher,<br />
Joshua Dalsimer, Dwight<br />
Dunne, Nancy Venator, Mary<br />
Kay Beuntan, Music Teacher.<br />
Brad Moriarty<br />
My memories of <strong>Park</strong> go from racing around at<br />
recess in grade two to foursquare in the covered<br />
back entryway past the old woodshop. Since then<br />
I’ve done a number of things, rowing competitions<br />
in school and out, working for and starting<br />
up small businesses and, finally, back to teaching.<br />
I married a woman I met in high school (she<br />
would be quick to point out we were not high<br />
school sweethearts) and watched with awe as she<br />
gave birth to our two boys, Tucker (4.5) and<br />
Silas (1). When Tucker was born we moved to<br />
Milton Academy to live and work in a girl’s<br />
dormitory. I teach physics and engineering and<br />
am part of the faculty governance committee.<br />
I’m looking forward to seeing some familiar <strong>Park</strong><br />
faces this spring.<br />
Cam Naimi<br />
<strong>The</strong> 25th Reunion Wow! It makes me think I’m<br />
getting soft, because I have been living in San<br />
Diego for almost seven years now. I have been<br />
teaching math and science to middle and high<br />
school students for eight years, undoubtedly subconsciously<br />
inspired by ten formative and happy<br />
years spent at <strong>Park</strong>. I do come “home” to Boston<br />
for the summer, which is just one of many aspects<br />
of teaching I enjoy. In fact, I ran into Alex Heard<br />
on the way to Nantucket not too long ago. It was<br />
a brief reunion as the threat of fog had him<br />
(being the seasoned Nantucket traveler) heading<br />
for the reliable ferry, while I risked the puddle<br />
jumper. Hope this message finds you all well.<br />
Unfortunately, I won’t be able to make the<br />
Reunion, but I hope to run into more of you in<br />
the future.<br />
Lucy Perera Adams<br />
Some <strong>Park</strong> <strong>School</strong> Memories:<br />
• <strong>The</strong> fish wall sculpture in the dining room,<br />
and all those wonderful wooden chairs — where<br />
are they now<br />
• <strong>The</strong> fish tank in the lobby<br />
• <strong>The</strong> smell of curing concrete in the stairwells<br />
• <strong>The</strong> brushed metal door handle, purple and<br />
red doors with the safety glass<br />
• <strong>The</strong> ceilings, which looked like string, set in<br />
papier mâché<br />
• <strong>The</strong> classes: Mr. Bourne’s Latin with lights out<br />
• <strong>The</strong> wall of cut out magazine photos in the<br />
ceramics studio<br />
• <strong>The</strong> skeleton hanging in the science<br />
room—what was his/her name<br />
• See-more-show body<br />
• Loving to watch filmstrips<br />
• <strong>The</strong> closets (were they red) of costumes in<br />
drama room<br />
• <strong>The</strong> race around—and the odd end to it —with<br />
stairs that seemed to lead nowhere<br />
• <strong>The</strong> courtyard and the cooking from Asian fair<br />
—seemed to always be the older students who<br />
did that<br />
• Banjo playing and folk songs during Morning<br />
Meeting — Mr. Smith<br />
22 <strong>The</strong> <strong>Park</strong> Bulletin | Fall 2009
P A R K S C H O O L C L A S S O F 1 9 8 4 2 5 T H R E U N I O N B I O G R A P H I E S<br />
After graduating from Boston University in art<br />
history, I worked as an intern at <strong>Park</strong> <strong>School</strong>,<br />
where I learned that the teachers I once had were<br />
indeed regular people. After a year interning<br />
with the delightful Ms. Fabre and Mrs. Platt, I<br />
returned to <strong>Park</strong> for my first official paid job as a<br />
Nursery <strong>School</strong> Assistant. I then went on to<br />
teach at a Montessori school in Aspen, Colorado.<br />
Two years followed in Providence, while my<br />
husband, whom I met in Colorado, completed<br />
his master’s at RISD. <strong>The</strong>n on to my own<br />
graduate study in art history in Denver followed<br />
by a move to Taos, N.M., where I work as curator<br />
of education and public relations at a small<br />
university art museum. I have been at the Harwood<br />
Museum of Art for 11 years, and during<br />
this time had two wonderful children, Maia<br />
(2001) and Skyler (2007), names I pinched from<br />
students I taught while at <strong>Park</strong>. In addition to<br />
my human family, I have a horse, three dogs,<br />
two cats, and enjoy returning to Boston and<br />
Cape Cod twice a year to visit family, see how<br />
fancy Boston has become, and stock up on shoes<br />
and clothing from a place other than Wal-Mart<br />
or Target.<br />
Hannah Swett<br />
I am living in New York City with my husband,<br />
Mark Brookes. We are expecting a child in July.<br />
I am working in the family real estate business.<br />
We own and operate mostly commercial and<br />
industrial space in Harlem and South Bronx with<br />
some residential in Manhattan.<br />
After leaving <strong>Park</strong>, I went on to graduate<br />
from St. George’s <strong>School</strong> and Brown University.<br />
After leaving Brown, I spent the majority of my<br />
time competitive sailing around the world. Most<br />
notably, I sailed the 1995 America’s Cup with<br />
the Women’s Team and launched two Olympic<br />
campaigns. Mark and I are based in NYC, but<br />
spend as much time skiing in Jackson, Wyoming,<br />
and biking in Jamestown, Rhode Island, as<br />
possible!<br />
Elena Wethers Thompson<br />
Hello to all my <strong>Park</strong> classmates. I hope everyone<br />
is doing well and is happy. I left <strong>Park</strong> at the<br />
end of 8th grade and went to Winsor for high<br />
school —along with a bunch of other former<br />
<strong>Park</strong>ites —Kate Sullivan, Margie O’Brien, Nancy<br />
Venator. After Winsor, I went to Wesleyan University<br />
and majored in English. After graduation<br />
I worked at the Boston Foundation but ultimately<br />
went back to work at Wesleyan in Alumni<br />
Relations, which is what I have been doing professionally<br />
ever since 1992. I moved back to<br />
Boston in 1998 and met my husband. He moved<br />
up from Baltimore, and we married in October<br />
2001. We have two beautiful, fun, and challenging<br />
children, Tessa (4) and Ellis (2). We picked up<br />
and moved back to Baltimore, my husband’s<br />
hometown, in 2007 and are living just outside of<br />
the city in a suburb called Owings Mills. My husband<br />
is a teacher and director of service learning<br />
for the Gilman <strong>School</strong> and I am the director of<br />
alumni relations for the Johns Hopkins Carey<br />
Business <strong>School</strong>. Life is full and busy. Baltimore<br />
has been a big adjustment from Boston but<br />
slowly I am settling in, but I still miss Boston and<br />
Brookline!<br />
I have been lucky to keep in touch with quite<br />
a few old friends from <strong>Park</strong> (I see and talk to Alicia<br />
Lancaster Silva and Jessica Pearlman most,<br />
but also have stayed in touch with Kate Sullivan,<br />
Nancy Venator, Margie O’Brien and Caron Lipsky<br />
Savenor) and to have served on the Board at<br />
Wesleyan and the Alumnae Board at Winsor,<br />
which helps me stay connected to my former<br />
New England life. Maybe it’s my professional life<br />
seeping into my personal life, but I would LOVE<br />
to see so many of you in person this spring! We<br />
all spent so much time together and it has been<br />
far too long since most of us have seen each<br />
other or connected. It would be great to meet<br />
your significant others and families too. I hope to<br />
see many of you at our upcoming reunion. If not,<br />
we’ve started a <strong>Park</strong> Class of 1984 group on<br />
Facebook – it would be great to have others join<br />
and reconnect virtually.<br />
Laura Church Wilmerding<br />
After graduating from <strong>Park</strong> in 1984, I attended<br />
Pomfret <strong>School</strong> and St. Lawrence University. I<br />
continued to play field hockey, ice hockey,<br />
lacrosse, and majored in French and art history.<br />
I spent my junior year in Paris, where I lived<br />
with an incredible French family. <strong>The</strong>y had three<br />
children close to me in age, which made it especially<br />
fun and good for my French. Studying art<br />
history in Paris was a memorable experience. I<br />
fell in love with city living in Paris. It gave me a<br />
strong sense of independence.<br />
After college, I moved to New York City and<br />
worked in the decorating department of House<br />
Beautiful and Country Living magazines. While at<br />
House Beautiful, I developed an appreciation for<br />
modern decorating and architecture. For eight<br />
years, I loved living in New York, a wonderfully<br />
diverse city rich in history and culture.<br />
In 1996, I met my husband, Michael<br />
Wilmerding. We married in 1999 and have two<br />
wonderful children, Ben (8) and Sophie (6), both<br />
of whom are at <strong>Park</strong>. It has been so much fun to<br />
relive the <strong>Park</strong> <strong>School</strong> experience through their<br />
eyes. We live in Chestnut Hill on the street where<br />
my husband grew up. Michael is the owner of<br />
Firefly Outfitters, a fly-fishing shop in downtown<br />
Boston. Michael sells outdoor clothing, fly-fishing<br />
equipment, and guides trips in Boston Harbor<br />
and other destinations.<br />
It has been 25 years since I graduated from<br />
<strong>Park</strong>! My <strong>Park</strong> <strong>School</strong> memories include: making<br />
a map of Africa out of oatmeal cookie dough and<br />
decorating it with chocolate kisses for a social<br />
studies project; passing notes and spending too<br />
much time in the bathroom talking to friends in<br />
7th grade; learning and loving the French language;<br />
Mr. and Mme. Thibault; gymnastics<br />
with Ms. Zifcak and participating in lots of sports<br />
with Ms. Knight; Wordly Wise; Snack time being<br />
held in the dining room with tons of Ritz crackers<br />
spread out on the table for all; playing the<br />
recorder in Morning Meeting; assigned seating<br />
in the classroom by last name; Mr. Bourne and<br />
Project R.E.A.S.O.N. in the rain; playing Fessenden<br />
in ice hockey; lots of friends and supportive<br />
teachers for 11 years! <strong>The</strong> friendships and<br />
memories will last a lifetime.<br />
Phoebe Gallagher Winder<br />
A lot has happened in 25 years! After leaving<br />
<strong>Park</strong> in the 8th grade, I went to Exeter, Vanderbilt,<br />
then on to University of Michigan Law<br />
<strong>School</strong>. So for about 11 years or so, I didn’t<br />
spend a lot of time in Boston, and I lost touch<br />
with many of my <strong>Park</strong> friends. In 1994, I finally<br />
moved back to Boston to work at the law firm of<br />
K&L Gates, where I’ve been for 15 years. I’m a<br />
partner there, and I practice in the area of financial<br />
services litigation, which, as you can imagine<br />
in this day and age, keeps me really busy.<br />
On the home front, I got married to Caleb<br />
Winder six years ago. (He went to BB&N, and he<br />
gets slightly miffed when I tell him <strong>Park</strong> is far<br />
superior to BB&N). He works in venture capital<br />
in the health sciences and medical area. We live<br />
in Jamaica Plain – our house abuts Hellenic College,<br />
near Jamaica Pond, so we live pretty close to<br />
<strong>Park</strong>. We have two children, Avery (age 2.5) and<br />
Charlie (9 months). Having two kids under the<br />
age of three and working full time means our<br />
lives are pretty insane at the moment, but we’re<br />
really fortunate to have all of our parents living<br />
close by to lend a hand.<br />
I’m looking forward to our 25th Reunion.<br />
Since most of us spent many years at <strong>Park</strong>, I feel<br />
we got to know each other’s strengths and foibles<br />
so well. Perhaps no one knows you as well as<br />
your 6th grade classmate It will be great to<br />
see where everyone’s landed, and how their lives<br />
are going.<br />
<strong>The</strong> <strong>Park</strong> Bulletin | Fall 2009 23
Summer reading.<br />
For me, the words conjure up<br />
images of relaxing in a hammock<br />
with a thick book and a glass of<br />
iced tea. Or, maybe sitting in a<br />
beach chair with my toes in the<br />
sand. It’s summer and the reading<br />
is easy.<br />
In this issue, we look at what<br />
people are reading at <strong>Park</strong> in the<br />
summer of 2009. What do students<br />
read over summer vacation And<br />
what about their teachers We<br />
even hear from an English teacher<br />
who tackled War and Peace for<br />
graduate school.<br />
Perhaps you’ll tuck away some<br />
of these titles for next summer—<br />
or perhaps you’ll find some time<br />
In our modern era of 24/7 technology, Twitter<br />
blasts, Facebook, instant messaging, Xbox<br />
360, and all the rest, sitting down with a good<br />
book may seem archaic and passé. Yet, <strong>Park</strong> is<br />
charged with teaching students about the English<br />
language, celebrating learning, and—possibly—<br />
inculcating a love of reading.<br />
<strong>Park</strong> students are expected to read over the<br />
summer, even though kids’ summer lives have<br />
changed over the decades. “<strong>The</strong>y don’t have as<br />
much free time now,” clarifies English<br />
Department Chair Kathy Coen. “It seems that, as<br />
a whole, kids aren’t that comfortable with<br />
reading—they see it as a chore. With camps and<br />
sports and other sorts of commitments, parents<br />
started complaining about how much time<br />
summer reading was taking. So, we’ve made<br />
some accommodations.” Instead of requiring<br />
students to complete scores of books each<br />
summer, the English Department, working closely<br />
with the <strong>School</strong>’s librarians, have compiled<br />
annotated lists of books that are sorted by genre<br />
and grade level. Students must read two books,<br />
and are encouraged to read more.<br />
Summer reading provides a wonderful<br />
opportunity to have a common conversation in<br />
the first week of school. <strong>The</strong> assignments are<br />
designed to be a fun way to talk—and get the<br />
kids talking—about reading. “It’s a good way for<br />
us to assess the students,” Kathy says. “Did they<br />
read the book Did they get it” <strong>The</strong> discussions<br />
and activities analyze the material in ways that<br />
are appropriate for each grade level.<br />
this fall. . . .<br />
Kate LaPine<br />
editor<br />
24 <strong>The</strong> <strong>Park</strong> Bulletin | Fall 2009
S U M M E R<br />
3<br />
R E A D I N G<br />
GRADE VI: BOOK COVERS<br />
Juliet Baker, a legendary English teacher at <strong>Park</strong>, initiated this project<br />
nearly 20 years ago for all students in Grades VI – IX. In time, the<br />
project has evolved into an exclusively sixth grade undertaking. “This<br />
assignment is developmentally appropriate for the newest students<br />
in the Upper Division,” explains Alice Perera Lucey ’77, who has<br />
taught English and social studies to sixth graders for many years.<br />
(This year she assumes a new role as Head of the Upper Division.)<br />
Without requiring deep analysis of passages, students create beautiful<br />
and compelling covers of their favorite summer reads, which are<br />
displayed in the halls.<br />
BOOK COVER ASSIGNMENT:<br />
1. choose one book to promote<br />
2. brainstorm reasons why you enjoyed reading it<br />
3. write a well-organized paragraph that gives potential readers<br />
a general overview and entices them to read the book<br />
4. select a compelling quote from your book; cite page number<br />
5. compose 3 “blurbs” from invented reviewers<br />
6. design your book cover following template provided<br />
Because the Grade VI curriculum exposes students to a variety of<br />
literary genres and styles, rising sixth graders are given no restrictions<br />
in choosing books for summer reading, as their resulting book covers<br />
demonstrate.<br />
<strong>The</strong> <strong>Park</strong> Bulletin | Fall 2009 25
S U M M E R<br />
3<br />
R E A D I N G<br />
GRADE VII: CLUE<br />
In anticipation of studying Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s <strong>The</strong> Hound of<br />
the Baskervilles and selections from Edgar Allan Poe in class, rising<br />
seventh graders are required to read a mystery over the summer.<br />
<strong>The</strong> sixth grade English teachers invite librarian Dorothea Black to<br />
review the 35 mystery and suspense titles on the summer reading<br />
list. “I have to remind them that not all mysteries are bloody,”<br />
Dorothea explains. “That is a relief for some kids!”<br />
On the first day of class in the fall, seventh graders receive this<br />
assignment:<br />
Your homework tonight requires that you dust off your<br />
MYSTERY book you read over the summer. Take some time<br />
to flip through and remind yourself of the (following) details.<br />
Write the information in note form.<br />
Check your spelling!<br />
Title, Author, Sleuth, Who Done It, Crime Scene,<br />
Significant Object<br />
Kyra Fries, who helped design this assignment, explains, “We wanted<br />
to get students thinking about all the elements of a mystery story, and<br />
who doesn’t like playing Clue” On the second day, students create<br />
six clue cards about their mysteries with these instructions:<br />
• Make them colorful and bold<br />
• Spell correctly<br />
• Make sure it’s legible<br />
• Do NOT write your name on it<br />
• Make each one significantly different—in other words,<br />
it should not look like it belongs with the others. Change<br />
colors, handwriting, etc… try to be mysterious! Add designs<br />
if you want!<br />
What’s different about reading in the summer<br />
is that I am constantly outdoors playing sports,<br />
so I don’t read during the day.<br />
Whenever I get a chance to read before bed, I do,<br />
and since it’s summer, I can stay up late and read.<br />
—Oliver Kendall (Grade VII)<br />
R E A D I N G L I S T S<br />
GRADE VI<br />
<strong>The</strong> lists on the <strong>Park</strong> <strong>School</strong><br />
library website<br />
(www.parkschool.org/library)<br />
—far too long to reprint<br />
here —allow students and<br />
their parents to browse titles<br />
appropriate for grade levels<br />
V–IX. <strong>The</strong> comprehensive<br />
booklists, which suggest<br />
hundreds of titles, are created<br />
with different kinds of<br />
readers in mind. A few<br />
samples, based on the genre<br />
required by grade, follow:<br />
Summer Reading Choices:<br />
Any book from this list and one<br />
book from any source (including<br />
this list, which features popular<br />
favorites, classics, and books that<br />
will enliven and extend your school<br />
studies. (Grade levels are suggestions,<br />
not limits).<br />
Crispin: <strong>The</strong> Cross of Lead<br />
by Avi (Historical Fiction)<br />
For Grades V and VI<br />
In this adventure story set in the<br />
Middle Ages, an orphaned boy flees<br />
his tiny village when he is accused of<br />
a crime he didn’t commit. As he is<br />
leaving, he discovers his real name<br />
and some mysterious information<br />
about his parents.<br />
George Washington, Spymaster<br />
by Thomas B. Allen (Non-Fiction)<br />
For Grades V and VI<br />
George Washington was the secret<br />
spymaster of the Revolutionary War<br />
and delighted in espionage tricks such<br />
as planting false information for the<br />
enemy to discover. Read about spies,<br />
counter spies, double agents, codes<br />
and ciphers, and other tools and tricks<br />
of the trade.<br />
Helen’s Eyes: A Photobiography<br />
of Annie Sullivan, Helen Keller’s<br />
Teacher by Marfe Ferguson Delano<br />
(Autobiography/Biography)<br />
For Grades V, VI, and VII<br />
Annie Sullivan’s early life gave no<br />
indication that she would become<br />
famous. She was wild tempered and<br />
almost blind. Her father abandoned<br />
her when her mother died, and she<br />
spent much of her childhood in a grim<br />
institute for the poor. Determined to<br />
get an education, she eventually found<br />
a place at the prestigious Perkins<br />
Institute. At the age of twenty, she<br />
took on the almost impossible<br />
challenge of teaching Helen Keller,<br />
then six years old.<br />
Into the Volcano by Don Wood<br />
(Graphic Novel)<br />
For Grades VI, VII, VIII, and IX<br />
Two brothers travel to the island of<br />
Kocalaha to visit family and end up on<br />
a harrowing adventure inside an<br />
erupting volcano.<br />
Last Shot by John Feinstein<br />
(Mystery/Suspense)<br />
For Grades VI, VII, and VIII<br />
Aspiring journalists Steven and Carol<br />
discover a conspiracy to “fix” the last<br />
game of the NCAA Final Four men’s<br />
basketball tournament.<br />
26 <strong>The</strong> <strong>Park</strong> Bulletin | Fall 2009
S U M M E R<br />
3<br />
R E A D I N G<br />
Reading in the summer is great because<br />
it’s more of your own choice. You can pick up<br />
any old book and if you don’t like it<br />
you don’t have to finish it.<br />
I can’t read as much during the school year<br />
because of sports and homework.<br />
—Matt Johnson (Grade VIII)<br />
Five girls in my class started a<br />
book group last year. Its fun to discuss books<br />
with your friends, but we don’t do it<br />
over the summer.<br />
—Catherine Hemp (Grade VIII)<br />
GRADE VIII: SHORT ESSAY<br />
As students mature, their summer reading assignments become<br />
increasingly difficult. Knowing that they will begin the year reading<br />
John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men, <strong>Park</strong>’s newest eighth graders<br />
are required to read a historical novel over the summer. Upon their<br />
return to school, they must write a short essay for homework in<br />
the first week.<br />
Over the summer, each of you read a novel, which can be<br />
categorized as HISTORICAL FICTION. Tonight, write a<br />
paragraph in which you explain WHY your book qualifies<br />
as a piece of historical fiction. First you need to define<br />
historical fiction for yourself and your reader and then<br />
explain with examples from the text why your book falls<br />
under that category. Be sure to:<br />
• Grab the reader with your first sentence<br />
• Have a clear, compelling topic sentence<br />
• Cite the title and author of the book you read<br />
• Give three or four specific examples from your book<br />
• Conclude your paragraph in a thoughtful manner<br />
This is NOT a standard book report; take care not to oversummarize.<br />
This can be hand-written or typed. Be sure to<br />
closely proofread for correct spelling, punctuation, diction,<br />
and syntax.<br />
Shakespeare Bats Cleanup<br />
by Ron Koertge (Poetry)<br />
For Grades VI, VII, and VIII<br />
Prevented by a case of mononucleosis<br />
from pursuing his passion, baseball,<br />
Kevin reluctantly starts a poetry<br />
journal with the encouragement of his<br />
father, who is an English teacher. In<br />
free verse, with occasional excursions<br />
into haiku, sonnet, and ballad form,<br />
he writes about family, school, girls,<br />
and, of course, baseball.<br />
GRADE VII<br />
Summer Reading Choices:<br />
One mystery from this list and<br />
one book from any source<br />
(including this list, which features<br />
popular favorites, classics, and<br />
books that will enliven and extend<br />
your school studies).<br />
A Thief of Time by Tony Hillerman<br />
(Mystery/Suspense)<br />
For Grades VIII and IX<br />
Navajo Tribal Policemen Lt. Joe<br />
Leaphorn and Officer Jim Chee solve<br />
the mystery surrounding murders<br />
at an ancient Indian burial site.<br />
Beautiful, valuable Anasazi clay pots<br />
are among the few clues.<br />
Behind the Curtain by Peter<br />
Abrahams (Mystery/Suspense)<br />
For Grades VI and VII<br />
Eighth grader Ingrid Levin-Hill, who<br />
has practically memorized all the<br />
Sherlock Holmes stories, uses observation<br />
and logic to solve crime cases<br />
in her hometown of Echo Falls. In this<br />
page-turning adventure, she discovers<br />
a steroid selling ring, but can’t tell<br />
the police because her brother might<br />
be involved.<br />
Half-Moon Investigations by<br />
Eoin Colfer (Mystery/Suspense)<br />
For Grades V, VI, and VII<br />
Fletcher Moon, after he earns a real<br />
detective’s badge from an Internet<br />
course, is passionate about solving<br />
criminal cases. When the head of a<br />
girl’s clique hires him to investigate a<br />
theft at school, he finds himself far too<br />
involved in the business of the town’s<br />
notorious crime family.<br />
<strong>The</strong> London Eye Mystery by<br />
Siobhan Dowd (Mystery/Suspense)<br />
For Grades VI, VII, VIII, and IX<br />
Two siblings take their visiting cousin<br />
sightseeing to the London Eye. <strong>The</strong>y<br />
watch him go into the ride, and they<br />
watch all the passengers leave, but<br />
their cousin has disappeared.<br />
Montmorency by Eleanor Updale<br />
(Mystery/Suspense)<br />
For Grades VI and VII<br />
Montmorency is a small time thief<br />
until he discovers the possibilities of<br />
London’s new underground sewer<br />
system. He develops a split identity:<br />
Scarper, the virtuoso thief who<br />
escapes crime scenes through the<br />
sewers; and Montmorency, a gentleman<br />
with fine taste and a betterdeveloped<br />
sense of honor. This is the<br />
first of four books in a popular<br />
mystery/spy series.<br />
<strong>The</strong> <strong>Park</strong> Bulletin | Fall 2009 27
S U M M E R<br />
3<br />
R E A D I N G<br />
GRADE IX: PASSAGE ANALYSIS<br />
Reading requirements for ninth graders<br />
are more traditional and are designed<br />
to push adolescents into adult literature.<br />
In the summer before their<br />
ninth grade year, every student reads<br />
<strong>The</strong> Book Thief by Markus Zusak,<br />
and Latin students read Virgil’s<br />
Aeneid (in translation!), which is<br />
supplied for them by Latin teacher<br />
Greg Grote.<br />
In addition to tying into the<br />
ninth grade English curriculum,<br />
which examines the style and<br />
structure of the memoir, <strong>The</strong><br />
Book Thief, a multi-award winning book that is<br />
set in Nazi Germany and narrated by Death, also has direct links to<br />
the social studies curriculum. <strong>The</strong> ninth grade course, which is based on<br />
the materials and methods of Facing History and Ourselves, uses the rise<br />
of Nazi Germany and the Holocaust as a springboard to confront the<br />
origins and persistence of anti-democratic ideas and events in Europe.<br />
For their first assignment in the fall, ninth graders are asked to write a<br />
passage analysis about <strong>The</strong> Book Thief.<br />
A “passage analysis” is a paragraph that focuses on a passage<br />
extrapolated from a text. It is a close examination! <strong>The</strong> passage<br />
usually has a good deal of importance when looked at on its<br />
own and can shed light on the text as a whole, as well.<br />
Some tips:<br />
1. Convey immediately why you chose your passage and make<br />
this a creative and energetic sentence.<br />
2. Use compelling phrases and words right from the passage in<br />
your paragraph.<br />
3. Type out your passage and them skip some lines and write<br />
your analysis. This way you can keep looking at it closely as<br />
you write!<br />
4. Think of this as a paragraph that digs down deep and presents<br />
this passage under a microscope. You are the expert!<br />
I find reading in the summer much easier than during the school year.<br />
<strong>The</strong>re is a lot more free time to sit down in the sun and read in the summer because there is<br />
much less work and pressure. Summer is a great opportunity to read some amazing books.<br />
—Emily Hoyt (Grade IX)<br />
R E A D I N G L I S T S (continued)<br />
GRADE VIII<br />
Summer Reading Choices:<br />
One historical novel from this list<br />
and one book from any source<br />
(including this list, which features<br />
popular favorites, classics, and<br />
books that will enliven and extend<br />
your school studies.)<br />
A Northern Light by Jennifer<br />
Donnelly (Historical Fiction)<br />
For Grades VIII and IX<br />
Mattie has a talent for writing and has<br />
won a scholarship to Barnard, but her<br />
ambition conflicts with loyalty to<br />
family and courtship with the boy next<br />
door. Mattie’s African-American friend,<br />
Weaver, has similar ambitions and<br />
faces different challenges. <strong>The</strong>ir story<br />
is interwoven with a celebrated<br />
murder case of 1906.<br />
Eagle of the Ninth by Rosemary<br />
Sutcliffe (Historical Fiction)<br />
For Grades VII, VIII, and IX<br />
Roman Centurion Marcus Flavius<br />
Aquila tries to solve the mystery of the<br />
disappearance in Britain of his father<br />
and the Ninth Legion Hispana, last<br />
heard from near Hadrian’s Wall. Aquila<br />
also hopes to locate the Ninth Legion’s<br />
military standard, the missing Eagle,<br />
and return it safely to Rome.<br />
My Mother the Cheerleader by<br />
Robert Sharenow (Historical Fiction)<br />
For Grades VIII and IX<br />
Every morning Louise’s mother<br />
dresses up and goes to stand with a<br />
group of neighborhood women known<br />
as the Cheerleaders, who taunt sixyear<br />
old Ruby Bridges as she enters<br />
the elementary school. Louise never<br />
questions the situation in the Ninth<br />
Ward of New Orleans until a likable<br />
New Yorker with radical views<br />
becomes a boarder in their house.<br />
Revolution is Not a Dinner Party<br />
by Ying Chang Compestine (Historical<br />
Fiction)<br />
For Grades VI, VII, and VIII<br />
Ling, the only daughter of two<br />
doctors, leads a happy and<br />
comfortable life in the city of Wuhan<br />
until the beginning of the Cultural<br />
Revolution in 1972. <strong>The</strong> family is<br />
forced to share their apartment with<br />
an official of the Communist Party,<br />
food and supplies become scarce, and<br />
worse hardships follow.<br />
<strong>The</strong> Snows by Sharelle Byars<br />
Moranville (Historical Fiction)<br />
For Grades VII, VIII, and IX<br />
In each of these four interwoven<br />
stories, a member of the Snow family<br />
of Jefferson, Iowa, makes a pivotal<br />
decision at the age of sixteen. <strong>The</strong><br />
events take place over four<br />
generations, spanning the Great<br />
Depression, the World War II and<br />
Vietnam War eras, and a time close<br />
to the present.<br />
28 <strong>The</strong> <strong>Park</strong> Bulletin | Fall 2009
S U M M E R<br />
3<br />
R E A D I N G<br />
<strong>The</strong> Informed Teacher<br />
Reading List 2008–09<br />
<strong>The</strong> White Tiger: A Novel by Aravind Adiga<br />
<strong>The</strong> Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing,<br />
Traitor to the Nation. Volume II: <strong>The</strong> Kingdom<br />
on the Waves by M. T. Anderson<br />
A Universal History of the Destruction of Books:<br />
from Ancient Sumer to Modern Iraq by Fernando<br />
Báez<br />
What It Is by Lynda Barry<br />
2666 by Roberto Bolaño<br />
<strong>The</strong> Year We Disappeared: a Father-Daughter<br />
Memoir by Cylin Busby<br />
<strong>The</strong> Taste of Sweet: Our Complicated Love Affair<br />
with our Favorite Treats by Joanne Chen<br />
<strong>The</strong> Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins<br />
This Republic of Suffering: Death and the<br />
American Civil War by Drew Gilpin Faust<br />
<strong>The</strong> Forever War by Dexter Filkins<br />
<strong>The</strong> Lincolns: A Scrapbook Look at Abraham<br />
and Mary by Candace Fleming<br />
Relentless Pursuit: A Year in the Trenches with<br />
Teach for America by Donna Foote<br />
In Search of Our Roots: How 19 Extraordinary<br />
African Americans Reclaimed <strong>The</strong>ir Past by<br />
Henry Louis Gates<br />
<strong>The</strong> Hemingses of Monticello: An American<br />
Family by Annette Gordon-Reed<br />
<strong>The</strong> Lost City of Z: A Tale of Deadly Obsession<br />
n the Amazon by David Grann<br />
Pictures at a Revolution: Five Movies and the<br />
Birth of the New Hollywood by Mark Harris<br />
<strong>The</strong> United States Constitution: A Graphic<br />
Adaptation by Jonathan Hennessey<br />
<strong>The</strong> Northern Clemency by Philip Hensher<br />
<strong>The</strong> Thief at the End of the World: Rubber,<br />
Power, and the Seeds of Empire by Joe Jackson<br />
Unaccustomed Earth by Jhumpa Lahiri<br />
<strong>The</strong> Selected Works of T. S. Spivet by Reif Larsen<br />
<strong>The</strong> Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Steig Larsson<br />
How We Decide by Jonah Lehrer<br />
American Lion: Andrew Jackson in the White<br />
House by Jon Meacham<br />
Twilight by Stephenie Meyer<br />
A Mercy by Toni Morrison<br />
<strong>The</strong> Life of the Skies by Jonathan Rosen<br />
Beautiful Boy: A Father’s Journey Through His<br />
Son’s Addiction by David Sheff<br />
American Wife: A Novel by Curtis Sittenfeld<br />
Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout<br />
Note by Note: A Celebration of the Piano Lesson<br />
by Tricia Tunstall<br />
Hands of My Father: A Hearing Boy, His Deaf<br />
Parents, and the Language of Love by Myron<br />
Uhlberg<br />
Traffic: Why We Drive the Way We Do (And<br />
What It Says About Us) by Tom Vanderbilt<br />
How Fiction Works by James Wood<br />
<strong>The</strong> Story of Edgar Sawtelle: A Novel by David<br />
Wroblewski<br />
Teachers’ Summer Reading<br />
“W<br />
hat do you read” That’s what Christian Porter’s colleague, Alison<br />
Webster (English and social studies 2001–2006) asked a few years<br />
ago. Christian and the other librarians were busily preparing summer<br />
reading lists for students when Alison planted the seed about adult reading. She<br />
said, “Christian, you should read for you,” he explained. “I started thinking about<br />
what all the teachers would like to read.”<br />
As a librarian, Christian has to read what’s just been published, what’s<br />
getting a lot of buzz, and know what’s on the back list in order to put the new<br />
books into context. In November, the National Book Award winners are<br />
announced, along with the Pulitzer, and the Booker Prize. “I tracked every single<br />
list I could find,” Christian says. <strong>The</strong> same books would keep coming up—<br />
appearing on multiple lists —and Christian began narrowing them down. “Every<br />
year,” he says, “there are about 50-75 books that are being talked about. I know<br />
that <strong>Park</strong>’s library can’t purchase that many, so I try to pick the best in poetry,<br />
biography, fiction, and non-fiction for our collection.” His selections are based<br />
on the titles that make multiple lists as well as ones that relate to the<br />
curriculum. “I know second graders study Colonial America, so we ordered this<br />
fabulous graphic adaptation of the Constitution.”<br />
Before the faculty left for the summer, the library hosted its third annual<br />
“Informed Teacher” event. This year, Christian put together a slide show that<br />
featured a variety of the 36 titles chosen for 2008–09. After scanning book<br />
covers, Christian asked a few colleagues to help with the presentation. Alison<br />
Connolly, who worked with deaf students before teaching math at <strong>Park</strong>, read<br />
and signed an excerpt from Hands of My Father: A Hearing Boy, His Deaf<br />
Parents, and the Language of Love by Myron Uhlberg. Likewise, Brian Cassie,<br />
who now teaches science to students in Grades I-III, has led dozens of Audubon<br />
trips to far flung places in search of birds. He was the perfect pick to read from<br />
<strong>The</strong> Lost City of Z: A Tale of Deadly Obsession in the Amazon by David Grann.<br />
“Now, people come to me during the year with recommendations,”<br />
Christian says. “<strong>The</strong>y look forward to the presentation— I’m so glad that I’ve<br />
been able to do something for my colleagues. I know this is a tradition that can<br />
go on without me.”<br />
<strong>The</strong> <strong>Park</strong> Bulletin | Fall 2009 29
S U M M E R<br />
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R E A D I N G<br />
Christian Porter’s Bookshelf<br />
(Librarian, 2002– )<br />
50 picture books<br />
5 young adult chapter books<br />
1 adult novel<br />
I’M A HUGE FAN of Stephen McCauley (Alternatives<br />
to Sex), and Elinor Lipman was mentioned in several of<br />
his reviews. So this summer I’ve read <strong>The</strong> Family Man<br />
and <strong>The</strong> Inn at Lake Devine.<br />
Steve Kellogg’ Bookshelf<br />
(Math, 1983– )<br />
I’VE ALWAYS LOVED to read and I look at summer as<br />
my chance. When I’m not traveling, tutoring, or watching<br />
the Red Sox, I’m out on my screened porch with a book.<br />
Emily* and I have been in a book group for 22 years.<br />
I get told what to read. <strong>The</strong> last choice for the group<br />
was a book of short stories, Oblivion, by David Foster<br />
Wallace (who committed suicide this year). That led me to<br />
read another book of his: Everything and More:<br />
A Compact History of Infinity. This is a really complex,<br />
really hard math book. I have to intersperse it with<br />
others. It’s part of a series of nonfiction books written by<br />
non-scientists called Great Discoveries. Another book<br />
in the series is Uncentering the Earth: Copernicus and<br />
<strong>The</strong> Revolutions of the Heavenly Spheres by William T.<br />
Vollmann, in which the author explains Copernicus’ great<br />
work with some tangents about Ptolemy and others.<br />
Other books on Steve’s bookshelf<br />
<strong>The</strong> Plague of Doves by Louise Erdrich<br />
<strong>The</strong> Master Butchers Singing Club by<br />
Louise Erdrich<br />
<strong>The</strong> Color of Lightning by<br />
Paulette Giles<br />
Dairy Queen by Catherine Murdock<br />
Netherland by Joseph O’Neill<br />
<strong>The</strong> Book Thief by Markus Zusak<br />
* Emily Kellogg, Steve’s wife, is also a<br />
librarian at <strong>Park</strong>.<br />
W<br />
ho’s ever judged a book by<br />
its cover Really, the question<br />
is, who hasn’t Dan Eberle, a<br />
29-year-old English teacher holds<br />
up a dog-eared copy of <strong>The</strong> Dark<br />
is Rising. He stands on the stage<br />
of the <strong>Park</strong> <strong>School</strong> theater and<br />
addresses 250 students in Grades<br />
V-IX at a Morning Meeting in May.<br />
“I noticed this book on my mom’s<br />
bookshelf,” he says, pointing out<br />
a drawing with dark, creepy eyes.<br />
“Do you dare read it”<br />
Susan’s Cooper’s classic <strong>The</strong><br />
Dark is Rising is one of five books<br />
chosen for the 2009 Community<br />
Read. <strong>The</strong> titles are compiled, not<br />
by the English Department, but by<br />
an ad hoc committee that includes<br />
English teachers, librarians, and<br />
math teachers, among others. “It’s<br />
a heated debate each spring,”<br />
admits Alice Perera Lucey ’77.<br />
“We argue about what is classic<br />
and what is dated. <strong>The</strong> books<br />
have to be appropriate for sixth<br />
through ninth graders in terms of<br />
language and content.” <strong>The</strong> committee<br />
tries to choose books that<br />
students wouldn’t read on their<br />
own. This year’s final list includes<br />
fiction, non-fiction, historical fiction,<br />
and poetry.<br />
In the spring, different teachers<br />
present each book at Morning<br />
Meeting. “I love the idea of giving<br />
five choices to the kids and making<br />
them pick one,” says Steve<br />
Kellogg, who presented <strong>The</strong><br />
Wednesday Wars, a novel by Gary<br />
D. Schmidt about a seventh grade<br />
boy reading Shakespeare in the<br />
Vietnam era. “It says a lot that the<br />
<strong>School</strong> buys these books for everyone—it<br />
shows we really value<br />
reading as a community.”<br />
On the first Friday afternoon in<br />
September, every student in the<br />
Upper Division gathers to discuss<br />
the book he or she has chosen.<br />
<strong>The</strong> groups that span ages 11–15<br />
30 <strong>The</strong> <strong>Park</strong> Bulletin | Fall 2009
S U M M E R<br />
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R E A D I N G<br />
Alice Perera Lucey ’77’s Bookshelf<br />
(Upper Division Head, 1984– )<br />
BASICALLY, I LOVE TO READ. If I weren’t a teacher,<br />
I’d want to work in a bookstore – preferably a children’s<br />
bookstore. Here’s what I love about summer reading:<br />
Getting up early and reading when no one else is awake;<br />
Reading at the beach (later my book smells of sunscreen<br />
and has sand between the pages); Being able to read in<br />
the evening when during the school year I’d be correcting<br />
papers; Having the time to think about something I might<br />
not have thought about before as I journey along with a<br />
character; Having the time to marvel at good writing and<br />
to wonder how on earth the author thought of “that”! I<br />
treasure the time I get to read.<br />
Some adult books in no particular order:<br />
Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout<br />
<strong>The</strong> Guernesy Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society<br />
by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows<br />
Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese<br />
Beginner’s Greek by James Collins<br />
<strong>The</strong> Color of Lightning by Paulette Giles<br />
<strong>The</strong> Plague of Doves by Louise Erdrich<br />
<strong>The</strong> Poetry Handbook by Mary Oliver<br />
<strong>The</strong> White Tiger by Aravind Adiga<br />
<strong>The</strong> Story of Edgar Sawtelle by David<br />
Wroblewski<br />
Alice’s favorite books for kids from the summer:<br />
Where the Mountain Meets the Moon by Grace Lin<br />
Folk tale/adventure story of a girl in China on a journey<br />
to find the place where the moon lives. BEAUTIFUL<br />
color illustrations.<br />
<strong>The</strong> Evolution of Calpurnia Tate by Jacqueline Kelly<br />
Story of a girl in Texas in the late 1800’s who spends a<br />
summer learning about Charles Darwin’s Origin of<br />
Species (and more!) with her eccentric science-loving<br />
grandfather.<br />
are organized around the titles:<br />
in addition to the books by<br />
Cooper and Schmidt, students can<br />
choose Dairy Queen by Catherine<br />
Murdock (a 16-year-old farm girl<br />
trains for football), Diamond Willow<br />
by Helen Frost (poetic story of<br />
an Alaskan girl and her sled dog),<br />
or Escape!: <strong>The</strong> Story of <strong>The</strong><br />
Great Houdini by Sid Fleischman<br />
(biography).<br />
As its name suggests, the afternoon<br />
is intended to serve as a<br />
community building exercise,<br />
helping to “break the ice” and get<br />
students back into the swing of<br />
things at school. “<strong>The</strong>y’re also<br />
learning a great life skill,” says<br />
English Department Chair Kathy<br />
Coen, “Learning to talk about a<br />
book intelligently.” Students benefit<br />
from meeting in groups; the<br />
incoming sixth<br />
graders love to be<br />
with the older students,<br />
she says. “We<br />
suggest that everyone<br />
have a question to raise<br />
or an inspiring passage to<br />
discuss. <strong>The</strong> moderator (a<br />
teacher) ensures that everyone<br />
gets a turn, and the<br />
cookies and lemonade really<br />
help, as well.”<br />
<strong>The</strong> <strong>Park</strong> Bulletin | Fall 2009 31
S U M M E R<br />
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R E A D I N G<br />
Kathy Coen’s Bookshelf<br />
(English, 1986– )<br />
1. <strong>The</strong> Art of Racing in the<br />
Rain by Garth Stein<br />
This is my number-one pick<br />
for the beauty and artfulness<br />
of the narrator —a<br />
dog! I have not, for many<br />
years, read such a compelling<br />
novel in terms of<br />
the narrator. Stein took<br />
his opportunity with<br />
“Enzo,” a loyal lab, and<br />
gave us an amazing<br />
perspective on human<br />
behavior as well as<br />
the inner workings of<br />
a dog’s mind and wisdom. Enzo’s<br />
thoughts are so simple that they are complex and close<br />
to a real philosophy of life—and the synergy when<br />
Enzo and his master understand each other produces<br />
remarkable literary moments.<br />
2. Autobiography of a Wardrobe by Elizabeth Kendall<br />
Here too, another unbelievable idea for a narrator—a<br />
wardrobe! Kendall uses this narrator to look back upon<br />
herself and it is a wonderful writer’s exercise! This<br />
book took me back all the way to my first memory of a<br />
lavender robe when I was seven and my favorite onepiece<br />
bathing suit with a rose on it when I was<br />
five...even my purple suede ankle boots in college, or<br />
my trusty Doc Martens when I was in my 30’s. This is a<br />
memoir that highlights the way we find ourselves,<br />
define ourselves, and even lose ourselves through specific<br />
items of clothing. Kendall unravels a memoir of<br />
her life through short chapters highlighting these memories.<br />
A skilled writer and a fabulous way to look at<br />
one’s own “clothesline” and remember. . . .<br />
3. <strong>The</strong> White Tiger by Aravind Adiga<br />
I loved this novel because of its guts and courage and<br />
because—yes—the narrator could barely contain<br />
himself and stay on the page! <strong>The</strong> inner workings of his<br />
mind and the sensory-rich mine of his language make<br />
for an unbelievable psychological and physical journey.<br />
Mired in the often putrid “darkness,” the underbelly of<br />
India, our narrator writes about his rise to the top—<br />
from chauffeur to entrepreneur, and about an act of<br />
murder that allowed him a moment of freedom and<br />
turned his life right-side-up. A novel of ironic perspectives<br />
and choices. Reminds me of the narrator in Dostoevsky’s<br />
Crime and Punishment.<br />
4. <strong>The</strong> Shadow of Sirius by W.S. Merwin<br />
This collection, named after the brightest star in the<br />
sky, also called the dog star, was published in April<br />
of 2009 and won the Pulitzer Prize. Merwin is a master<br />
of brevity and a zen-like compression of language. I<br />
have followed him for my adult life and he is one of<br />
my free verse role models. He is in his 80’s, he is sage,<br />
and we should listen to him. In keeping with an emerging<br />
theme this summer, he has a section of poems<br />
dedicated to his many dogs that have died, and they<br />
are the most lyrical and beautiful love poems I have<br />
read in decades.<br />
5. Ballistics by Billy Collins<br />
I guess I just love Collins for not only his readability,<br />
but for the way he eases you into a conversational<br />
poem, as if it was just that easy to write. In fact, I used<br />
this book all summer as a catalyst before I wrote – kind<br />
of like stretching before a game of tennis with my son!<br />
I heard him read this year and was taken by his erudition.<br />
This collection references all the shadows of<br />
poetry including Ovid, Dante, and Valery. Collins is a<br />
brand unto his own and smartly American. From<br />
August in Paris, he asks the reader:<br />
But where are you, reader,<br />
who have not paused in your walk<br />
to look over my shoulder<br />
to see what I am jotting in this notebook<br />
This summer, Kathy has been walking along the shores<br />
of Jamaica Pond with her own notebook. This is an<br />
excerpt from a poem entitled, June on Jamaica Pond.<br />
<strong>The</strong> surface of the pond, like the summer itself<br />
is as new tonight, as the idea of the first circle is perfect<br />
as if the three sailboats discovered themselves upon this water<br />
the way they stroke it, so delicately parting<br />
what they love<br />
a thin wake opens and closes as if never there<br />
I know something deeper is below<br />
but not what darkness, or just how thick<br />
their white sails so pure, like the people on the boats<br />
who live forever in this silhouette<br />
as if their thoughts have never been thought<br />
like the summer itself,<br />
lost in a blue day<br />
signaling something that is here, then gone<br />
hold onto this edge<br />
this hint of you.<br />
32 <strong>The</strong> <strong>Park</strong> Bulletin | Fall 2009
S U M M E R<br />
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R E A D I N G<br />
War and Peace on Bread Loaf Mountain<br />
When I started working on this issue of<br />
the Bulletin, and it became clear that<br />
I would look at summer reading, a<br />
chorus of voices cried, “You have to talk with Kyra—<br />
she’s reading War and Peace this summer!” Kyra Fries<br />
first came to <strong>Park</strong> in 2001 as an intern. During that<br />
year and the next, she became a fixture in the English<br />
Department, working closely with Juliet Baker and<br />
Curt Miller in the English and Drama Departments.<br />
After teaching high school students at Gould Academy<br />
in Bethel, Maine, Kyra returned to <strong>Park</strong> in 2006.<br />
She teaches English to Grades VII, VIII, and IX, and<br />
co-directs <strong>Park</strong>’s drama program with Curt Miller.<br />
This summer, Kyra Fries completed her fourth<br />
year at Middlebury College’s Bread Loaf <strong>School</strong> of<br />
English. In August, I traveled up to the idyllic mountain<br />
campus to ask Kyra about her experiences at<br />
graduate school. In particular, I wanted to learn more<br />
about her course on Tolstoy’s War and Peace, which<br />
seemed to take summer reading up several notches.<br />
—Kate LaPine, editor<br />
Tell me about War and Peace<br />
I signed up for the course, a close reading<br />
of Tolstoy’s masterpiece, in February and<br />
bought the book the day after. <strong>The</strong> course<br />
description in the catalogue said, “It is<br />
important to have read the whole novel<br />
before the class begins,” and besides, I<br />
wanted to be able to do the work of the<br />
class rather than simply keeping up with<br />
the reading. So I got to work. <strong>The</strong> new<br />
translation by Richard Pevear and Larissa<br />
Volokhonsky has 1,215 pages.<br />
On a normal day in Boston, my alarm<br />
goes off at 6:00 a.m. I press snooze a few<br />
times before getting up to walk my dog,<br />
Basket, and get home in time to eat<br />
breakfast before heading off to <strong>Park</strong>. But<br />
I had to adjust my morning routine to<br />
accommodate the reading. All spring, I<br />
got up at 5:15 and read for 30 minutes.<br />
I figured out that I could read ten pages<br />
in that time — with my pen, of course.<br />
After teaching the skill to students for so<br />
long, I think I’m a pretty good active<br />
reader. I knew I had to mark passages,<br />
note events, circle characters—how else<br />
would I be able to remember what I’d<br />
read in June On weekends I’d try to read<br />
more, but by graduation I still had about<br />
500 pages left! Obviously, I had to change<br />
my schedule slightly . . . with a simple<br />
division problem I discovered that in the<br />
<strong>The</strong> <strong>Park</strong> Bulletin | Fall 2009 33
S U M M E R<br />
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R E A D I N G<br />
six days between <strong>Park</strong> meetings and<br />
Bread Loaf classes I had to read 83 pages<br />
a day. Minimum. I am proud to say that I<br />
arrived having finished the book.<br />
<strong>The</strong> Bread Loaf program is very<br />
intense. You have two classes everyday<br />
and it feels as if the whole world goes<br />
away while you’re here. My two classes<br />
started at 10:00 a.m. So I’d wake up at<br />
6:00 and read what I needed for classes:<br />
whatever chapters I needed to be ready<br />
to discuss in War and Peace and whatever<br />
was on the agenda for my other class.<br />
I also had writing to keep up with; both<br />
of my professors wanted a short paper<br />
each week, and both had major projects<br />
due at the end of the term.<br />
What course did you pair with War<br />
and Peace<br />
My other class, a seminar called “<strong>The</strong><br />
Language Wars,” examined the struggle<br />
about linguistic power and how gender,<br />
race, and class have shaped and<br />
responded to the English language in<br />
recent years. It was equally amazing in<br />
terms of content—although much more<br />
varied. We read everything from heady<br />
linguistic theory to Junot Diaz’s Nobel<br />
Prize winning novel, <strong>The</strong> Brief Wonderous<br />
Life of Oscar Wao.<br />
Describe the Bread Loaf program.<br />
How did you choose it<br />
Initially, I was undecided about whether I<br />
should pursue a master’s in English or<br />
drama. I wasn’t all that interested in<br />
going to ed school—I really wanted to<br />
learn the material that I was teaching.<br />
One of my mentors at Gould Academy,<br />
who is a Bread Loaf graduate, suggested<br />
that I look into this program. <strong>The</strong> sixweek<br />
summer term enables students to<br />
earn a degree over five years, which<br />
works well for those of us who are teachers.<br />
While the main campus is in Vermont,<br />
there are also locations in Asheville (North<br />
Carolina), Santa Fe (New Mexico), and<br />
Oxford (England). I actually spent my first<br />
summer in Juneau, Alaska; now they’ve<br />
discontinued that one. Some of my peers<br />
spend a summer in each place, but I’ve<br />
stayed in Vermont both for its incredible<br />
professors and the special addition of<br />
theater.<br />
<strong>The</strong> professors here are truly masters<br />
in their fields. With no undergrads, and<br />
an idyllic setting, the program attracts a<br />
lot of high caliber scholars. <strong>The</strong> curriculum<br />
is divided into five groups: 1) Writing<br />
and the Teaching of Writing; 2) English<br />
Literature Through the 17th Century; 3)<br />
English Literature Since the 17th Century;<br />
4) American Literature; and 5) World Literature.<br />
Courses range from “Poetry<br />
Writing” (with Paul Muldoon, the Pulitzer<br />
Prize-winning poet!) to “Metaphysical<br />
and Cavalier: Poetics and Politics in 17th<br />
Century England.”<br />
Up here in Vermont, Bread Loaf has<br />
an acting ensemble that joins the campus.<br />
<strong>The</strong> company is made up of professional,<br />
equity actors who put on a<br />
full-scale production each summer for the<br />
Bread Loaf and Middlebury communities.<br />
<strong>The</strong>y also work with professors to do dramatic<br />
readings and performances of the<br />
material in our courses. I love how English<br />
and drama coincide here; it really appeals<br />
to my interest at <strong>Park</strong>.<br />
34 <strong>The</strong> <strong>Park</strong> Bulletin | Fall 2009
S U M M E R<br />
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R E A D I N G<br />
What has been your favorite course<br />
I love War and Peace. But another course<br />
that springs to mind is one I took two<br />
years ago called “19th Century Fiction<br />
and the Meaning of Space.” It was<br />
taught by the wife of my War and Peace<br />
professor, Isobel Armstrong, and it blew<br />
my mind. <strong>The</strong> reading list was intense—<br />
Charles Dickens, Joseph Conrad, Mary<br />
Shelley, all three Brontës, George Eliot,<br />
Jane Austen, to list just a few. We also<br />
read lots of critical theorists. We did<br />
close reading, specifically thinking about<br />
how details in the physical space can<br />
inform an interpretation of the text.<br />
How do you apply what you’re learning<br />
to your own teaching<br />
This is a great question—it’s amazing<br />
how frequently my experiences up here<br />
“on the mountain” come to mind as I<br />
teach my <strong>Park</strong> students during the year.<br />
Simply put, being a graduate student<br />
helps me understand better what my students<br />
are experiencing. I turn papers in<br />
and feel the same expectation that they<br />
do in waiting to get them back. I have to<br />
craft thesis statements and close read—<br />
two truly tough but thoroughly enjoyable<br />
skills I get to teach my ninth graders.<br />
It’s also fun to hang out with a<br />
bunch of English teachers all summer—<br />
we share ideas all the time. Walking to<br />
lunch, we might plan a lesson on Romeo<br />
and Juliet. After class, we might discuss<br />
whether English curricula could become<br />
less canonical and start teaching lesserknown<br />
world literature. I keep a list at the<br />
front of my notebook about any ideas<br />
that stir in my brain as I attend class every<br />
day—I am, after all, in the presence of<br />
greatness!<br />
Do you remember your own summer<br />
reading as a kid Any favorites<br />
I went to a Waldorf <strong>School</strong> and we didn’t<br />
have specific requirements. I remember<br />
getting ahold of another school’s list and<br />
making my way through it. I read a lot of<br />
Newbury Award winners, all the Nancy<br />
Drew mysteries and, I have to admit, lots<br />
of <strong>The</strong> Babysitter’s Club series.<br />
What’s your next book<br />
I think I need to re-read Anna Karenina.<br />
<strong>The</strong> last time I read it, I had just graduated<br />
from college so I need a refresher.<br />
Tolstoy wrote the book five years after he<br />
finished War and Peace and the final epilogues<br />
set the scene for the familial struggle<br />
in Anna K. But, before that, I’m<br />
making my way through Gone with the<br />
Wind. Somehow I’ve never read the book<br />
OR seen the movie. I’m 300 pages in<br />
(another long one!), and loving it in a<br />
vacationy-summer-reading kind of way. I<br />
think Margaret Mitchell must have also<br />
been reading Tolstoy when she wrote it.<br />
It’s like her response to War and Peace —<br />
but in America.<br />
By the way—I think I might try to<br />
keep up the 5:15 a.m. reading schedule,<br />
at least during the fall and spring. I love<br />
starting the day with a bit of literature.<br />
Here’s to another year of reading!<br />
. . . it’s amazing how frequently<br />
my experiences up here “on the<br />
mountain” come to mind as I<br />
teach my <strong>Park</strong> students during<br />
the year.<br />
<strong>The</strong> <strong>Park</strong> Bulletin | Fall 2009 35
Alumni Notes<br />
1933<br />
Bruce Ehrmann writes that he and<br />
his wife, Nancy, “were blessed with<br />
the birth of a great-grandson, Isaac<br />
Solomon Ehrmann, in January 2009.”<br />
(Isaac is the son of Benjamin<br />
Ehrmann, <strong>Park</strong> Class of 1996.)<br />
1938<br />
Class Representative:<br />
Putty McDowell<br />
781-320-1960<br />
Pbmcd2@verizon.net<br />
1948<br />
Warren “Renny” Little had the<br />
pleasure of serving on the committee<br />
for the 50th anniversary of lacrosse at<br />
the Rivers <strong>School</strong>, where he taught<br />
and coached Varsity and J.V. lacrosse<br />
for six years. “Over 80 graduates<br />
showed up for the Alumni Game, a<br />
BBQ, and then watched the men’s<br />
Varsity team beat Belmont Hill.”<br />
1950<br />
Class Representative:<br />
Galen Clough<br />
812-477-2454<br />
1953<br />
Class Representative:<br />
Bob Bray<br />
617-696-8673<br />
rbray@thebraygroup.com<br />
B E C O M E A<br />
Class Representative<br />
Stay in touch with old friends!<br />
Gather class news for the Bulletin!<br />
Help plan your reunion!<br />
Want to learn more<br />
Please contact Eliza Drachman-Jones ’98<br />
Director of Alumni Relations<br />
617-274-6022 or alumni@parkschool.org<br />
1955<br />
Elizabeth Dane writes, “We are<br />
snowbirds between Tucson and Red<br />
Lodge, Montana, where four grandchildren<br />
live. I am having a wonderful<br />
time playing the recorder with several<br />
early music groups and an old time<br />
band. Music has opened up some<br />
delightful new worlds.” Her husband,<br />
Patrick Clinton, collects Mexican and<br />
South American folk art.<br />
1956<br />
2008–09 <strong>Park</strong> Alumni<br />
Achievement Award<br />
Michael R. Deland ’56<br />
This award is to be given to the<br />
alumnus/alumna who exemplifies <strong>The</strong><br />
<strong>Park</strong> <strong>School</strong>’s values and<br />
educational mission through<br />
distinctive achievement in his or her<br />
community or field of endeavor. This<br />
person’s leadership and<br />
contributions have made a<br />
meaningful impact and inspire our<br />
current students and alumni.<br />
Nathalie Hubbard Bramson let us<br />
know that her son, Samuel Appleton<br />
Bramson, will be a senior this coming<br />
year at Carnegie Mellon University.<br />
Nathalie’s husband, Lee, recently<br />
retired from the National Endowment<br />
for the Humanities. Roger Brown<br />
writes, “I attended Browne and<br />
Nichols <strong>School</strong> in Cambridge right<br />
after <strong>Park</strong> <strong>School</strong>, and we had our<br />
50th reunion this June. It was a great<br />
time and a lot of fun...some classmates<br />
I had not seen for 50 years,<br />
but we all related quite well, sharing<br />
experiences and memories from the<br />
‘old days.’ When I first arrived at<br />
B & N as a ninth grader, I was welcomed<br />
by Gerry “Tish” Tishler<br />
and Bill Bazley ’55 who were with<br />
me at <strong>Park</strong>. We covered both schools<br />
in our stories.”<br />
1963<br />
Class Representative:<br />
Amy Lampert<br />
617-232-4595<br />
aslampert@gis.net<br />
1966<br />
Class Representative:<br />
Wigs Frank<br />
610-964-8057<br />
Emily Burr and her husband and<br />
have been working at <strong>The</strong> Meeting<br />
<strong>School</strong>, a small Quaker boarding<br />
school in Rindge, New Hampshire.<br />
Emily is the lead science teacher, a<br />
houseparent, and admissions director.<br />
She tells us, “Our school is also a<br />
working organic farm. If you want<br />
to know more, check out our website<br />
www.meetingschool.org.”<br />
1967<br />
Class Representative Needed<br />
Heidi Ravven is a professor of religious<br />
studies at Hamilton College and<br />
is working on her book, Searching for<br />
36 <strong>The</strong> <strong>Park</strong> Bulletin | Fall 2009
A lifelong public servant, Mike Deland is both an<br />
environmentalist and an advocate for people with<br />
disabilities. Under his leadership as the New<br />
England Regional Administrator for the<br />
Environmental Protection Agency from 1983‒89,<br />
the Agency filed the landmark federal lawsuit to<br />
clean-up Boston Harbor, as well as precedentsetting<br />
wetlands protection and hazardous waste<br />
litigation. In 1989, Mike was nominated by<br />
President George H. W. Bush to serve as the<br />
Chairman of the White House Council on<br />
Environmental Quality and was unanimously<br />
confirmed by the U.S. Senate. In 1993, with<br />
President Bush’s encouragement, Mike Deland<br />
began working with the National Organization on<br />
Disability, which represents 54 million disabled<br />
Americans. Over six years, he spearheaded the<br />
successful campaign to add a statue of President<br />
Roosevelt in his wheelchair at the FDR Memorial.<br />
From 1993‒2000, he worked in the energy and<br />
power distribution field at American Flywheel<br />
Systems, Inc (now AFSTrinity Power). More<br />
recently, Mike has worked with Robert and<br />
Jonathan Kraft ’79 to make Gillette Stadium the<br />
most accessible venue in the NFL.<br />
Mike and his wife, Jane, live in<br />
Washington, D.C. However, the Delands lived in<br />
Boston for many years, and their twin daughters,<br />
Holly and Melissa are members of the <strong>Park</strong> <strong>School</strong><br />
Class of 1995.<br />
FOR MIKE DELAND, the paths that have<br />
shaped his career are easy to trace. “I’ve spent a<br />
lifetime in public service—a commitment that<br />
was instilled at home.” Growing up in Brookline,<br />
Mike remembers his father, an attorney, attending<br />
the weekly meetings of the Brookline Town<br />
Meeting and the Planning Committee. “From an<br />
early age, I admired his service to the Town.<br />
Later, as the Board Chair of Affiliated Hospitals,<br />
he was patient and tenacious in merging four<br />
hospitals into what is now Brigham and<br />
Women’s.”<br />
“We were brought up in the out-of-doors;<br />
sailing in Marion and subsequently hiking and<br />
skiing. Looking back, I know that fostered my<br />
interest in the environment.” Mike spent Kindergarten<br />
through Grade III at <strong>Park</strong>’s Kennard Road<br />
campus before going on to Dexter. He graduated<br />
from Noble & Greenough <strong>School</strong> and Harvard,<br />
and served as an officer in the U.S. Navy before<br />
obtaining his law degree from Boston College in<br />
1969. In 1964, Mike’s life changed drastically<br />
when he severely injured his back while playing<br />
football in the Navy. For nearly 30 years, he has<br />
used a wheelchair, but that hasn’t slowed him<br />
down a bit. “I still love sailing and until recently,<br />
raced competitively against world-class sailors,”<br />
Mike says. (Twice, he won the national championship<br />
in the Shields Class.) “Now, I have special<br />
winch that lifts me onto the boat.”<br />
Following law school, Mike served in the<br />
enforcement division of the newly formed Environmental<br />
Protection Agency, fighting to clean<br />
up New England’s air, water, and land. After<br />
working at a private environmental consulting<br />
company, he received a call from William Ruckelshaus<br />
in 1983. Mike recalls, “<strong>The</strong> EPA was in<br />
crisis due to mass resignations over the mishandling<br />
of the Superfund clean-ups, and President<br />
Reagan had appointed Ruckelshaus to restore<br />
public trust in the Agency. I knew we had to do<br />
something to stimulate morale in a hurry – the<br />
Agency needed to be resuscitated.” Mike’s first<br />
move was to file a criminal action against the<br />
City of Boston and the Archdiocese for asbestos<br />
in the schools. <strong>The</strong>n, working with Doug Foy of<br />
the Conservation Law Foundation, the EPA took<br />
on the mammoth task of cleaning up Boston<br />
Harbor. “It’s wonderful that people are fishing<br />
and swimming again in the Harbor,” Mike<br />
remarks. “Winning that battle was tremendous<br />
and I’m proud to say that, unlike the Big Dig, it<br />
was the largest public works project to be completed<br />
ahead of schedule and under budget!”<br />
“But likely my most far-reaching endeavor,”<br />
he continues, “Was adding the statue of President<br />
Roosevelt in a wheelchair at his memorial in<br />
Washington.” <strong>The</strong> original, 7.5-acre memorial<br />
dedicated in 1997 omitted any depiction of President<br />
Roosevelt’s disability. Mike credits President<br />
Bush for re-kindling his interest in disability<br />
issues. In January 1993, Mike went into the Oval<br />
Office to say goodbye to the President at the end<br />
of his term. Mr. Bush said, “Mike, you have a<br />
responsibility to do something for people with<br />
disabilities.” He replied, “I know, Mr. President,<br />
but you have to get involved, too.” <strong>The</strong> former<br />
President did assume a lead role in the FDR<br />
Wheelchair statue campaign. “I’ve been blessed<br />
to work with caring and committed leaders like<br />
Elliot Richardson ’35, George H.W. Bush, and<br />
Christopher Reeve,” Mike comments.<br />
Upon reflection, Mike remembered speaking<br />
up for a <strong>Park</strong> <strong>School</strong> classmate who had polio<br />
and had a difficult time getting around the playground.<br />
“Even then, I knew that it was<br />
important to treat all people equally. Some of the<br />
other kids in my class were picking on him<br />
because he couldn’t run. Intuitively, I understood<br />
that equality applied to everyone – able-bodied<br />
or disabled.” Years later, he initiated and led a<br />
six-year battle to add the statue because he<br />
believed “It would be unconscionable for children<br />
not to know that FDR had led this country<br />
through the Depression and World War II from<br />
his wheelchair.”<br />
Mike Deland ’56 will speak with <strong>Park</strong>’s current<br />
ninth graders on Friday, October 9, 2009.<br />
<strong>The</strong> <strong>Park</strong> Bulletin | Fall 2009 37
Josh David ’78 celebrates the opening<br />
of the High Line park in New York City.<br />
<strong>Park</strong> friends hiked on Franconia Ridge this year. L-R: Lisa Frost ’72, Nina Bramhall, Ginny Maynard Swain ’74, Kitta Frost ’74,<br />
Sarah Henry Lederman ’74, and Margaret Smith Bell ’74<br />
Ethics. She writes, “My daughter,<br />
Simha (an only child), finished medical<br />
school and is back in Boston and<br />
doing her residency at the Cambridge<br />
Health Alliance Adult Psychiatry<br />
Residency Program of Harvard<br />
Medical <strong>School</strong>. She is married and<br />
is 32 years old.”<br />
1968<br />
Class Representative:<br />
Vicky Hall Kehlenbeck<br />
781-235-2990<br />
vkehlenbeck@rc.com<br />
1973<br />
Class Representative:<br />
Rick Berenson<br />
617-969-0523<br />
Barbara@berenson.info<br />
1974<br />
Class Representatives:<br />
Margaret Smith Bell<br />
617-267-4141<br />
James_bell65@msn.com<br />
Rodger Cohen<br />
508-651-3981<br />
skiboy@mindspring.com<br />
Beth Haffenreffer Scholle tells us<br />
that, “After 19 years at <strong>Park</strong> <strong>School</strong><br />
(ten for me and nine for Liza ’10),<br />
<strong>Park</strong> has become an important part of<br />
me. I know I’ll really miss being a<br />
‘current parent’ next year! Well, at<br />
least we can all still call ourselves<br />
‘ALUMNI.’” Shady Hartshorne and<br />
his wife, Laurie Ellis, took a road trip<br />
through Alabama. “We went to<br />
Huntsville, Birmingham, Montgomery,<br />
and Mobile and took in a<br />
AA baseball game in each city. I got<br />
to throw out one of the first pitches<br />
for the Huntsville Stars’ game.”<br />
Shady and Laurie write articles for<br />
GoNomad.com. Take a look at this<br />
one on Huntsville, Alabama:<br />
http://www.gonomad.com/destinations/0907/alabama-huntsville.html<br />
1975 35th Reunion<br />
Class Representatives:<br />
Colin McNay<br />
617-731-1746<br />
fivebear@mac.com<br />
Bill Sullivan<br />
978-568-1303<br />
Nancy Nayor Battino enjoyed a<br />
quiet summer in Los Angeles. She<br />
had a wonderful reunion dinner in<br />
L.A. a few months ago with Pharibe<br />
Wise and Didi Belash. Nancy says<br />
that her “latest casting project,<br />
BANDSLAM, a musical film starring<br />
Vanessa Hudgens (of High <strong>School</strong><br />
Musical fame) and Lisa Kudrow,<br />
opened August 14th. An adorable<br />
film that’s perfect for a teen audience—enjoy!”<br />
1976<br />
Class Representative:<br />
Tenney Mead Cover<br />
781-329-5449<br />
Tenney.cover@verizon.net<br />
After six years at St. Paul’s <strong>School</strong> in<br />
Concord, New Hampshire, Barbara<br />
Talcott loves her career as a school<br />
chaplain and teacher and her family<br />
loves the boarding school lifestyle. “I<br />
was ordained by the Episcopal Bishop<br />
of New Hampshire in February, so<br />
my family and I will be moving to St.<br />
Mark’s <strong>School</strong> in Southborough,<br />
Mass., where I will take on the job of<br />
head chaplain and chair of the Religion<br />
Department. It’s a far better<br />
commute for my husband, Doug,<br />
who has been driving to Cambridge.<br />
All is well with our children, now<br />
aged 21 to 12, as well as with our parents.<br />
We are truly blessed.”<br />
1977<br />
Class Representative:<br />
Sam Solomon<br />
781-784-0385<br />
sa.solomon@verizon.net<br />
Marshall Berenson and his wife,<br />
Kathy, sold their floral and event<br />
design business of 18 years. “We are<br />
both studying acting now,” Marshall<br />
writes. “A salute to Ms. Marmarchev<br />
(I think I spelled her name right!). It<br />
was huge fun and very challenging.”<br />
Juliet Lamont reports that her watershed<br />
restoration/protection work in<br />
Berkeley is still going strong. “It is<br />
even more compelling with the focus<br />
on climate change, and (thankfully!) a<br />
new federal administration.” Juliet<br />
traveled to Yellowstone in the winter<br />
for outdoors & wolves, and Panama<br />
in the spring for birds, marine<br />
wildlife, and rainforests. Congratulations<br />
to Stephen Thomas and his<br />
partner, Holli Lopatowski, on the<br />
birth of their son, Kaden Allen<br />
Thomas on June 23, 2009.<br />
1978<br />
Class Representative Needed<br />
Josh David writes, “After ten years of<br />
work, I opened the High Line, a great<br />
new park on top of an elevated rail<br />
viaduct in Manhattan, in June.” He<br />
started the High Line project with a<br />
neighbor, Robert Hammond, back in<br />
1999, when the historic structure<br />
was going to be torn down. Since<br />
June, half a million people have<br />
already been up to visit. “<strong>The</strong> critical<br />
and public feedback have been<br />
38 <strong>The</strong> <strong>Park</strong> Bulletin | Fall 2009
1979 Classmates Nadia Belash McKay Wendi Daniels, Lalla Carothers, and<br />
Madeline Rains<br />
In honor of their 30th Reunion, the Class of 1979 wrote many<br />
haikus, remembering their days at <strong>Park</strong>. Here is just a sampling of<br />
their creativity:<br />
Children on an old porch<br />
Dark wooden churns<br />
Cream to butter, dreams to life<br />
Kindergarten fingers<br />
Smoothing the secret stone<br />
Conjuring a life<br />
Our gymnastics show<br />
Young girls yank on leotards<br />
Flipping over bars<br />
Sicky sweets slide on<br />
Lip Smackers circle classrooms<br />
Sharing smiles and germs<br />
Project R.E.A.S.O.N. tales<br />
Everyone’s back from hiking<br />
Where are those three boys<br />
Whisper, titter, blush.<br />
Monsieur Planchon hears it all<br />
Chalk flies out. Busted!<br />
Winter at <strong>Park</strong> <strong>School</strong><br />
We trudge our feet on carpet<br />
Look; our hair stands up!<br />
Grape yellow sunset<br />
Red so bright it stings<br />
Her Marimeko outfit<br />
Tepid milk at lunch<br />
Watching the cartons perspire<br />
Why can’t we get juice<br />
Reading, writing, math<br />
Fluorescent lights blaze downward<br />
Our little eyes strain<br />
Gallantly in snow<br />
Bill Satterthwaite bikes to school<br />
Steady as he goes<br />
Dance in the small gym<br />
Air guitars reverberate<br />
“More Than A Feeling”<br />
Snickers rise and fall<br />
Spears launch from a thousand stares<br />
I’m on the Black Bench<br />
Deep stairwell beckons<br />
Loose dimes clatter down<br />
<strong>The</strong> noise of swift expulsion<br />
Metal spoon scrapes bowl<br />
Today, vanilla pudding<br />
<strong>The</strong> top part is gross<br />
tremendous —it’s a wonderful place!<br />
I urge <strong>Park</strong> alumni to check it<br />
out” www.thehighline.org<br />
1979<br />
Class Representatives:<br />
Lalla Carothers<br />
207-829-2283<br />
lacaro@maine.rr.com<br />
Sally Solomon<br />
617-354-5951<br />
sallysolomon@alumni.neu.edu<br />
“We had a fab reunion!” says Wendi<br />
Daniels. “Thank you Kevin<br />
McCarthy and Amy Lloyd<br />
McCarthy ’86 for hosting us—it<br />
rocked! Some memorable moments:<br />
Margie Talcott remembered the<br />
entire May Pole dance and brought<br />
music to show her prowess; Cary<br />
Godbey Turner shared her diary and<br />
opened up her historic love life from<br />
the 70’s! Sally Solomon, Madeline<br />
Rains (nee Barbara Roberts) and<br />
others showed us they are still the<br />
Haiku queens! (left) Hilary Hart,<br />
we read a few of yours too! <strong>The</strong>re is<br />
truly something magical about the<br />
friendships we have created at <strong>Park</strong> —<br />
it was great to see all of you!” Nina<br />
Frusztajer reports that she is enjoying<br />
practicing medicine again, and that<br />
the 30th Reunion was a blast. “I’m so<br />
glad I went (what fun reminiscing<br />
about spin the bottle at Nadia’s<br />
house!)” Nina recently returned from<br />
visiting Linda Runyon Mutschler at<br />
her lake house in Milwaukee. “Our<br />
kids all had fun together and, of<br />
course, I always love spending time<br />
with Linda. She is training for a<br />
marathon and so our 6.3 mile run<br />
was at a pace I’m not sure I’ve ever<br />
run!” Linda is also the author of Fast<br />
Track to Fine Dining: A Step-By-Step<br />
Guide to Planning a Dinner Party. Cary<br />
Godbey Turner also shared her<br />
thoughts about the 30th Reunion celebration<br />
at <strong>Park</strong>. “Our 30th Reunion,<br />
hosted by Kevin and Amy McCarthy<br />
in their spectacular home around the<br />
corner from <strong>Park</strong>, was an evening full<br />
of sharing old photos, diaries, yearbooks<br />
and some hilarious stories. We<br />
didn’t realize until now how much<br />
our <strong>Park</strong> years were a “coming of<br />
age” period in all our lives that<br />
involved our parents and our siblings.<br />
<strong>The</strong> highlight for me was reconnecting<br />
with Barbara Roberts (Madeline<br />
Rains, now) after 30 years of losing<br />
touch—we couldn’t stop smiling and<br />
staring at each other. I did remember<br />
the camera and have included some<br />
fun shots of the evening. Everyone<br />
looked exactly the same, actually better!<br />
Glad we had a few patient husbands<br />
along (mine and Nadia<br />
Belash’s) to help with the lack of<br />
male turnout. <strong>The</strong> next day was<br />
Mother’s Day, and for a treat to ourselves,<br />
Barbara and I found the<br />
courage to visit our old apartments in<br />
Back Bay, and the current owners<br />
were nice enough to let us in for a<br />
nostalgic tour!” Cary also updated us<br />
on what she is up to in Vermont. “My<br />
husband Jeff and I still live on Nantucket<br />
year-round with our two kids,<br />
Alden and Jackson, ages 5 and 6, but<br />
we own and operate McAdoo Rugs in<br />
North Bennington, Vermont. With<br />
the help of our operations manager<br />
and a devoted and talented staff of<br />
ladies, our travels back and forth are<br />
more of a vacation than a necessity! I<br />
did take an order online the other day<br />
from the <strong>Park</strong> librarian —what a small<br />
world! McAdoo Rugs makes the<br />
finest hand hooked wool rugs in the<br />
world and has existed to help local<br />
artisans since 1972. In this recent economic<br />
downturn, it’s been a challenging<br />
few years, but we hope to hang on<br />
and keep this cottage industry alive<br />
for years to come.” Sally Solomon<br />
writes, “We really did have a great<br />
class!” Sally’s work is a lot of fun<br />
these days, more academic advising<br />
for college students. “I am enjoying<br />
the fruits of our technology revolution<br />
by keeping in touch with <strong>Park</strong> classmates<br />
on Facebook. Nothing else<br />
new. Looking forward to reading the<br />
Bulletin to learn what’s up with more<br />
<strong>Park</strong> folks.”<br />
1980 30th Reunion<br />
Class Representative:<br />
Andrew Hurwitz<br />
323-468-9276<br />
andreshurwitz@yahoo.com<br />
In March, Sloan Wagstaff-Calahan<br />
Gallipeo and her husband traveled to<br />
Antarctica with Marathon Tours and<br />
Travel, a trip about two years in the<br />
making. Sloan writes, “We had a great<br />
time—my husband ran the full<br />
marathon and I ended up running the<br />
half marathon. It was a brutal course,<br />
having only trained on the flat lands<br />
in Huntington Beach—lots of mud,<br />
rocks, hills, some ice. . . but an amazing<br />
and fun experience. People on the<br />
trip running were anywhere from in<br />
their 20’s to 75-years-old. So I figure I<br />
have a few more years of running in<br />
me! Since I didn’t run the full<br />
marathon I had to make up for it by<br />
running the Eugene Oregon<br />
marathon in early May. I lined up at<br />
the start with one of the “Marathon<br />
Maniacs” who was working his way<br />
up to his 100th marathon. He was<br />
<strong>The</strong> <strong>Park</strong> Bulletin | Fall 2009 39
65-years-old and had just run the Big<br />
Sur marathon the weekend before.”<br />
Sloane and her husband are planning<br />
on heading to Japan in November to<br />
run a marathon near Mt. Fuji with<br />
some people they met on the Antartica<br />
trip. Should be another great<br />
adventure! This summer, Sabrina<br />
Mott drove across the country from<br />
Dana Point, California to Maine. “It<br />
was lots of fun. My kids and dog all<br />
survived. I enjoyed family and tried<br />
to relax a bit before heading West<br />
again in August. I am enjoying being<br />
connected to <strong>Park</strong> friends on Facebook!”<br />
Check out Myra Paci’s new<br />
blog, www.myrapaci.com/blog. “It’s<br />
called <strong>The</strong> Myra Show and features<br />
my ‘undiluted writings, pics and<br />
video’ as opposed to the video production<br />
work I do for hire, viewable<br />
at www.casamadrefilms.com. With<br />
three other women I’m in the early<br />
stages of starting an online artists’<br />
salon for all kinds of writing, fine<br />
arts, moving pictures, etc. Other than<br />
that I send a big hello to everybody. I<br />
hope you’re enjoying life.”<br />
1981<br />
Class Representatives:<br />
Matt Carothers<br />
508-785-0770<br />
Mcarothers88@yahoo.com<br />
Alex Melhman<br />
781-461-8510<br />
amehlman@yahoo.com<br />
Howard Chaffey writes, “I am gambling<br />
with baby ruminids (a.k.a.<br />
cows) on our organic farm in the<br />
Catskills.” It was good to hear from<br />
Beth Wheeler. For an update, go to<br />
her website: www.emmyandbethadopt.com.<br />
Classes of 1980–1986 Reception<br />
March 4, 2009<br />
Stephen Kelly and Joanie Amick Kelly ’83<br />
hosted a festive gathering of alumni from the<br />
Classes of 1980– 86 at their home.<br />
Everyone was thrilled to be together again and<br />
enjoyed hearing Jerry Katz’s highlights<br />
about <strong>Park</strong> <strong>School</strong> today.<br />
REUNION<br />
2010<br />
CELEBRATE!<br />
CELEBRATE!<br />
REUNION 2010<br />
Saturday, May 8<br />
10 th 2000 30 th 1980<br />
15 th 1995 35 th 1975<br />
20 th 1990 40 th 1970<br />
25 th 1985 50 th 1955<br />
If you are interested in helping to plan your reunion,<br />
please contact Eliza Drachman-Jones ’98<br />
Director of Alumni Relations<br />
617-274-6022 or alumni@parkschool.org<br />
1982 classmates Jen Segal Herman and Allison Nash Mael<br />
John Koltun ’81, Diana Walcott ’85 and Jerry Katz<br />
Longtime friends Jennifer Nadelson Gleba ’83, Rob Ball ’83,<br />
and Martina Albright ’83 caught up and reminisced about<br />
their years at <strong>Park</strong>.<br />
40 <strong>The</strong> <strong>Park</strong> Bulletin | Fall 2009
1982<br />
Class Representative:<br />
Allison Nash Mael<br />
617-332-0925<br />
emael@msn.com<br />
1983<br />
Class Representatives:<br />
Lisa Livens Freeman<br />
llivens@hotmail.com<br />
508-878-2953<br />
Elise Mott<br />
978-368-6009<br />
emott@fenn.org<br />
Juliet Siler Eastland is back in<br />
Brookline with her husband, raising<br />
my two lovely daughters (four and<br />
a half and 11 months) and doing<br />
some occasional freelance writing<br />
and even more occasional jazz pianoplaying.<br />
Juliet tells us that she just<br />
had her first gig in years! “After<br />
several peripatetic decades, it feels<br />
wonderful to be finally settled.” Josh<br />
Wolman left Tulsa, Oklahoma and<br />
returned to Sidwell Friends <strong>School</strong><br />
in Washington, D.C., where he is<br />
director of admission and associate<br />
head of school.<br />
1984<br />
Class Representative:<br />
Anne Collins Goodyear<br />
703-931-9016<br />
Acg10@gmail.com<br />
A belated congratulations to Cynthia<br />
Pierce who had a baby last August.<br />
Cynthia writes, “Alison Ginger<br />
McNally, her father, and I currently<br />
live in Bed-Stuy – Brooklyn, New<br />
York.” Classmate Sarah Wolman<br />
gave birth to Jack Benjamin Wolman<br />
Levine on April 16! “Big brother Sam<br />
and big sister Hannah (pictured) are<br />
very proud,” Sarah writes. “I am currently<br />
on maternity leave from my<br />
role as Executive Director of Family<br />
Service League, a community-based<br />
non-profit in Montclair, New Jersey,<br />
which is where we live.”<br />
1985 25th Reunion<br />
Class Representatives:<br />
Rachel Levine Foley<br />
781-559-8148<br />
rlfoles@aol.com<br />
Missy Daniels Madden<br />
781-237-4959<br />
melissadmadden@comcast.net<br />
Jessie Howland Cahill gave birth to<br />
Sarah Louise Cahill on December 10,<br />
2008.<br />
1986<br />
Class Representatives:<br />
Mark Epker<br />
781-326-4299<br />
mepker@beaconcommunitiesllc.com<br />
Jay Livens<br />
978-318-0866<br />
jlivens@sloan.mit.edu<br />
This spring, several members of the<br />
Class of 1986 gathered for a minireunion<br />
at the home of Becky and<br />
Garrett Solomon. See page 42.<br />
1987<br />
Class Representative:<br />
Mary Sarah Baker<br />
Mary.sarah.baker@gmail.com<br />
1988<br />
Class Representative:<br />
Liza Cohen Gates<br />
617-267-6184<br />
lagtes@digitas.com<br />
In April, Andrew and Liza Cohen<br />
Gates welcomed twins Oliver and<br />
Isabelle Gates.<br />
1989<br />
Class Representatives:<br />
Dahlia Aronson<br />
617-734-3026<br />
dahliabeth@yahoo.com<br />
Ian Glick<br />
617-264-7198<br />
ibglick@aol.com<br />
Rebecca Lewin Scott<br />
781-722-1946<br />
Rebecca.scott@earthlink.net<br />
Robert Colby recently moved to<br />
Chapel Hill, North Carolina to start a<br />
new job at UNC’s Ackland Art<br />
Museum. He is working with faculty<br />
to integrate the museum into the academic<br />
life of the university. “I was glad<br />
to see everyone at the 20th Reunion<br />
before making the big move. Thanks<br />
to Ali Epker Ruch, Alison Morse,<br />
Jordan Scott and Rebecca Lewin Scott<br />
and everyone who helped organize a<br />
brilliant weekend!” Rebecca Lewin<br />
Scott and Jordan Scott welcomed<br />
their second daughter, Charlotte<br />
Eloise, in April. She was two and a<br />
half weeks early but nearly nine<br />
pounds! Rebecca writes, “You can<br />
only imagine how big she would have<br />
been if she had been born at term. Big<br />
sister Abby loves having a little sister.<br />
She told me the other day that Charlotte<br />
is the best gift she has ever<br />
received. Something tells me I am<br />
Hannah gives a squeeze to new brother Jack Wolman Levine, children of<br />
Sarah Wolman ’84<br />
Liza Cohen Gates ’88 has newborn twins, Oliver and Isabelle Gates<br />
Rebecca Lewin Scott ’89, Jordan Scott ’89, Abby Scott and Charlotte Eloise Scott<br />
<strong>The</strong> <strong>Park</strong> Bulletin | Fall 2009 41
Mark Epker ’86, Lisa Amick DiAdamo ’86, Minnie Ames ’86, Meredith Ross ’86,<br />
Amy Lloyd McCarthy ’86, host Garrett Solomon ’86 and Jay Livens ’86<br />
Class of 1986 Reception<br />
AP RI L 2, 2009<br />
B<br />
ecky and Garrett Solomon ’86 hosted the Class of<br />
1986 at their home for a wonderful evening of<br />
fun, food and friendship. Head of <strong>School</strong> Jerry Katz<br />
provided the group with an informative update on the<br />
<strong>School</strong> today. <strong>The</strong> highlight was everyone recalling<br />
their favorite <strong>Park</strong> <strong>School</strong> memories.<br />
going to need to try to remember<br />
these days when they are feuding<br />
teenagers.” (photo or in babies) Hats<br />
off to David Wolman on the publication<br />
of his new book, Righting the<br />
Mother Tongue: From Olde English to<br />
Email, the Tangled Story of English<br />
Spelling.<br />
1990 20th Reunion<br />
Class Representatives:<br />
Zach Cherry<br />
212-863-3339<br />
Alex Rabinksy<br />
773-645-4381<br />
arabinsky@hotmail.com<br />
Sadia Shepard’s book, <strong>The</strong> Girl from<br />
Foreign: A Search for Shipwrecked Ancestors,<br />
Forgotten Histories, and a Sense of<br />
Home, has received rave reviews.<br />
1991<br />
Class Representative Needed<br />
After receiving her PhD from Harvard<br />
in 2008, Ally Field moved to<br />
Los Angeles where she is now an<br />
assistant professor of cinema and<br />
media studies at UCLA’s film school.<br />
“I live in Santa Monica, not too far<br />
from the beach, and I love it so far!”<br />
1993<br />
Class Representatives:<br />
Jessica Ko Beck<br />
917-691-3540<br />
jessicako@gmail.com<br />
Jamie Quiros<br />
617-522-3622<br />
qstips@yahoo.com<br />
Ali Ross<br />
646-528-4248<br />
alross@gmail.com<br />
Jessica Naddaff recently launched<br />
her own business, Bite Size Marketing.<br />
“A passionate ally for small business,<br />
new products, and start ups,<br />
Bite Size Marketing is an alternative<br />
to the traditional marketing agency,”<br />
says Jessica. <strong>The</strong> company’s website,<br />
bitesizemarketing.com, is up and running.<br />
That WAS David Walton you<br />
saw on T.V! David was in the television<br />
show “Quarterlife, ”and recently<br />
appeared in episode of the USA Network’s<br />
“In Plain Sight,” where he<br />
played the role of a comedian who<br />
had witnessed a murder and as a<br />
result had to enter the witness protection<br />
program. This fall, you can see<br />
him in a new NBC comedy called<br />
“100 Questions.”<br />
T H E A L U M N I S E R V I C E A W A R D<br />
Established in 1999, the Alumni<br />
Award for Distin guished Service<br />
is presented annually at graduation<br />
to an alumna or alumnus<br />
of <strong>The</strong> <strong>Park</strong> <strong>School</strong> for dedicated<br />
service to the <strong>Park</strong> community.<br />
Board Chair Kevin Maroni presented<br />
the award on behalf of<br />
the Alumni Committee.<br />
Minnie Ames, Class of 1986<br />
I<br />
t is hard to imagine <strong>Park</strong> <strong>School</strong>’s<br />
alumni community and not think<br />
of Minnie Ames. A dedicated and<br />
loyal leader, Minnie has consistently<br />
demonstrated the power of the<br />
strong connection among our<br />
alumni, and between our alumni<br />
and the <strong>School</strong>. In the twenty-three<br />
years since Minnie Ames graduated<br />
from <strong>Park</strong> <strong>School</strong>’s Grade IX, she has<br />
remained an integral part of the<br />
alumni community.<br />
Minnie has been a very active<br />
member of the Alumni Committee<br />
since 2001, including service as<br />
the Committee’s Co-Chair from<br />
2007–2009. During this time, Minnie<br />
played a key role in determining<br />
ways to improve the Alumni section<br />
of the <strong>Park</strong> website, rallied support<br />
among classmates and friends at a<br />
variety of Alumni events, and led<br />
the Committee through two very<br />
successful years of Alumni outreach,<br />
programming and fundraising. In<br />
the fall of 2006, Minnie stepped in<br />
to help <strong>Park</strong>’s Alumni Relations<br />
Office when the former director for<br />
alumni relations was on maternity<br />
leave. During this time, Minnie spent<br />
countless volunteer hours planning<br />
the Alumni holiday party and taking<br />
on many additional responsibilities.<br />
Minnie played a key role in establishing<br />
the Class of 1986 Financial<br />
Aid Fund, which supports Steppingstone<br />
Scholars at <strong>Park</strong>. Minnie’s dedication<br />
to <strong>Park</strong> extends beyond the<br />
campus. As a former co-chair of the<br />
Alumni Committee’s Volunteerism<br />
Sub-Committee, Minnie organized a<br />
volunteer event for alumni at the<br />
Food Project in Lincoln and helped<br />
to facilitate outreach at the<br />
Women’s Lunch Place in Boston.<br />
Now that Minnie’s daughter,<br />
Lucy, is a member of <strong>Park</strong>’s Class of<br />
2018, Minnie’s legacy at <strong>Park</strong> <strong>School</strong><br />
carries on in a multi-layered way. We<br />
are grateful for Minnie’s many years<br />
of thoughtful and dedicated service<br />
to both Alumni and the greater<br />
<strong>School</strong> community, and we know<br />
her future service to <strong>Park</strong> will continue<br />
to be an inspiration to us all.<br />
42 <strong>The</strong> <strong>Park</strong> Bulletin | Fall 2009
1994<br />
Class Representatives:<br />
Alan Bern<br />
781-326-8091<br />
alanbern@tulanealumni.net<br />
Aba Taylor<br />
617-361-6370<br />
Abtaylor829@gmail.com<br />
Upon graduating from Harvard<br />
Business <strong>School</strong>, Alexander Ellis and<br />
his wife, Sarah, moved to Portland,<br />
Oregon where he accepted a job with<br />
a start-up wind/solar project development<br />
and operating company. “We’re<br />
spending our free time biking, fishing<br />
and exploring our new city.” In July,<br />
Meryl Glassman married Peter<br />
Farland in Wellesley. “This fall, we’ll<br />
move to San Francisco, where Peter<br />
will work as a software manager for<br />
Adobe and I’ll be fundraising for a<br />
hospital.” Jake Peters has been living<br />
in London for the past year after joining<br />
an air taxi service start-up called<br />
Blink (www.flyblink.com). He writes,<br />
“I love living in London. I am enjoying<br />
traveling for fun much more<br />
than when I had to travel for work<br />
as a consultant.”<br />
1995 15th Reunion<br />
Class Representatives:<br />
Lilla Curran<br />
lillacurran@gmail.com<br />
Matt Stahl<br />
617-353-0961<br />
Matt.stahl@mtvnmix.com<br />
1996<br />
Class Representatives:<br />
Nick Brescia<br />
nick_e_pockets@hotmail.com<br />
Merrill Hawkins<br />
merrillhawkins@gmail.com<br />
Katayoun Shahroki<br />
Katayoun_shahrokhi@yahoo.com<br />
Kathrene Tiffany<br />
ktiffany@gmail.com<br />
Liz Prives says, “Shalom from<br />
Jerusalem!” She spent three weeks<br />
studying and traveling there. “Before<br />
the trip, I moved to San Francisco<br />
from Menlo <strong>Park</strong> and celebrated<br />
my 29th birthday with Julia Kung<br />
and her brother, Calvin ’99. Gavi<br />
Kohlberg couldn’t make it because<br />
he was on rotation, but hopefully he<br />
will make a cameo at Julia’s birthday<br />
in July.”<br />
1997<br />
Class Representatives:<br />
Suzy McManmon<br />
smcmanmon@svip.com<br />
919-949-8262<br />
Sarah Conway<br />
Sarah.r.conway@gmail.com<br />
617-501-5837<br />
Severine Fleming is merrily farming<br />
herbs, rabbits, pigs, chickens, goats<br />
and vegetables in the Hudson Valley<br />
of New York. Her first documentary<br />
film, <strong>The</strong> Greenhorns, will be released<br />
in December. Apart from the filming<br />
and the farming, she directs a nonprofit<br />
advocacy group for young<br />
farmers and consults on new media.<br />
If you have land in your family and<br />
are looking for young farmers to steward<br />
it, she can help you with that<br />
process. If you have a kid sister who<br />
wants to be a farmer, have her visit<br />
www.thegreenhorns.net. Crystal<br />
Jones writes that she has been just<br />
doing the mommy thing. “I have been<br />
blessed with a four-year-old daughter,<br />
one-year-old twins (a girl and a boy),<br />
and I am expecting a little boy some<br />
time late fall. So, I’ve been really<br />
busy, trying to maintain and build my<br />
own business.” Crystal misses her<br />
<strong>Park</strong> buddies and wishes everyone<br />
well. Katherine Jose tells us that she<br />
is living in Brooklyn and working as<br />
managing editor of the New York<br />
Observer, a salmon-colored weekly.<br />
Paul Naddaff is engaged to Ursula<br />
Joy August. “We met while I was<br />
traveling in South Africa five years<br />
ago, she was my waitress. We’ve been<br />
going strong ever since.”<br />
1998<br />
Class Representatives:<br />
Lydia Hawkins<br />
lydiahawk@hotmail.com<br />
Meg Lloyd<br />
Buggs6@gmail.com<br />
Sarah Swett<br />
Swett.sarah@gmail.com<br />
Daphne Johnson and Brandon<br />
Berger were married on June 6 on her<br />
father’s horse farm in Zionsville,<br />
Indiana. 320 guests attended, including<br />
<strong>Park</strong> alums Jonathan Tucker and<br />
Julia Rosenthal ’01, who was the<br />
maid of honor. After honeymooning<br />
in the South of France and Lake<br />
Como, Italy, the couple is now living<br />
in the French Quarter of New<br />
Orleans. Since the presidential election,<br />
Ashley White-Stern has been<br />
keeping busy in Northern California,<br />
including co-founding Citizen Hope<br />
N O M I N A T I O N S S O U G H T F O R<br />
THE PARK ALUMNI<br />
ACHIEVEMENT<br />
AWARD<br />
This award is to be given to the <strong>Park</strong> alumnus/alumna who<br />
exemplifies the <strong>School</strong>’s values and educational mission<br />
through distinctive achievement in their community or field<br />
of endeavor. This person’s leadership and contributions<br />
have made a meaningful impact and inspire our current<br />
students and alumni.<br />
<strong>The</strong> Alumni Achievement Award will be presented at<br />
Reunion (May 8, 2010).<br />
To nominate a <strong>Park</strong> alumnus/a for this award, please<br />
include your nominee’s name, class year, profession, and<br />
reason for nomination. All submissions must be received<br />
by Monday, December 1st, to be considered for the<br />
2010 award.<br />
alumni@parkschool.org<br />
or<br />
<strong>The</strong> <strong>Park</strong> <strong>School</strong> Alumni Office<br />
171 Goddard Avenue<br />
Brookline, MA 02445<br />
WANTED<br />
News From <strong>Park</strong> Alumni<br />
We LOVE hearing from our alumni and<br />
know that classmates are waiting to<br />
learn about their <strong>Park</strong> <strong>School</strong> friends.<br />
SEND IN CLASS NOTES and PHOTOS to:<br />
Alumni Office<br />
<strong>The</strong> <strong>Park</strong> <strong>School</strong><br />
✉ 171 Goddard Avenue, Brookline, MA 02445<br />
℡ 617-274-6022<br />
alumni@parkschool.org<br />
<strong>The</strong> <strong>Park</strong> Bulletin | Fall 2009 43
(http://citizenhope.org), to promote<br />
progressive politics and civic engagement<br />
at the local level. She writes,<br />
“<strong>The</strong> idea behind starting the group<br />
was: ‘Great, we got our President,<br />
but the work can’t stop now.’ ‘Keep it<br />
moving’ is more or less our motto,<br />
and we have had a number of events<br />
since launching.” Ashley has also<br />
been peripherally involved in Kamala<br />
Harris’s campaign for Attorney General<br />
of California. “In June, we had a<br />
big fundraiser for her in Oakland.<br />
Wanda Holland Greene came with<br />
her husband, Robert, so I got to<br />
spend some quality time with them<br />
both, which was totally delightful!”<br />
In her spare time, Ashley is pursuing<br />
her PhD in film studies at Berkeley, is<br />
committed to doing social justice<br />
work, and is helping out part-time at<br />
a legal services nonprofit organization<br />
in San Francisco.<br />
1999<br />
Class Representatives:<br />
Colin Arnold<br />
tanker223@gmail.com<br />
Alex Goldstein<br />
alexjgoldstein@gmail.com<br />
Left: Daphne Johnson Berger ’98 and maid of honor Julia Rosenthal ’01; Right:<br />
1998 classmate Jonathan Tucker attended Daphne Johnson’s wedding in June<br />
Elizabeth Weyman<br />
weymane@gmail.com<br />
Susanna Whitaker-Rahilly<br />
Smwhit02@stlawu.edu<br />
David Cavell continues to enjoy<br />
speechwriting for Governor Deval<br />
Patrick. “If you want me to continue<br />
to enjoy my job, please vote for<br />
Governor Patrick next year,” David<br />
suggests. Fellow politico Alex Goldstein<br />
is currently working as press<br />
secretary for the Executive Office of<br />
Labor and Workforce Development<br />
in Massachusetts. He spends his free<br />
time playing rugby and dabbling in<br />
various political adventures, and had<br />
a terrific time at the 10th Reunion.<br />
Congratulations, Emmy Grote! In<br />
August 2009, she completed her master’s<br />
in medical science as a physician<br />
assistant from Midwestern University<br />
in Glendale, Arizona. She’ll move<br />
back east to work at Rhode Island<br />
Hospital in neuro-critical care. Joy<br />
Kogut teaches Algebra 1 at the<br />
Boston Community Leadership<br />
Academy. She fondly recalls her math<br />
classes with her peers and teachers<br />
at <strong>Park</strong> and hopes “to bring the<br />
same flavors of projects, rigor, laughter,<br />
and all around fun and shenanigans<br />
to my students so they may<br />
also find math too fun to ignore.”<br />
Mira Mehta is living in Abuja, Nigeria,<br />
where she works for the Clinton<br />
Foundation HIV/AIDS Initiative.<br />
“My work is primarily focused on<br />
national policy reform and increasing<br />
access to high quality care and treatment<br />
for HIV-positive children across<br />
the country.” Susanna Whitaker-<br />
Rahilly writes, “I had a terrific year<br />
teaching and coaching at the Holderness<br />
<strong>School</strong> in New Hampshire.<br />
<strong>The</strong> highlight was leading students<br />
on a community service trip through<br />
Sustainable Harvest International in<br />
rural Honduras. I slept through all<br />
of the earthquakes and avoided the<br />
military coup, what a summer down<br />
there! This fall, I will assume a new<br />
position at the Brooks <strong>School</strong> in<br />
North Andover, where I will teach<br />
Clockwise from top left:<br />
Diana Walcott ’85, Allison<br />
Morse ’89 and Dahlia Aronson<br />
’89; Sarah Swett ’98 and Meg<br />
Lloyd ’98; Todd Larson ’77,<br />
Heather Crocker Faris ’74,<br />
Robert Faris<br />
ALUMNI NIGHT<br />
AT FENWAY<br />
T U E S D AY, M AY 1 9 , 2 0 0 9<br />
On a brisk May evening, over fifty <strong>Park</strong> Alumni and<br />
their guests came together at Fenway <strong>Park</strong> for the<br />
Annual Alumni Night at Fenway. With Tim<br />
Wakefield on the mound, the Red Sox beat the<br />
Toronto Blue Jays 2–1. Our group enjoyed<br />
seeing “Welcome <strong>Park</strong> Alumni” displayed<br />
on the Jumbotron, munching on<br />
Cracker Jacks and reconnecting<br />
with old friends.<br />
44 <strong>The</strong> <strong>Park</strong> Bulletin | Fall 2009
COMMUNITY SERVICE EVENT<br />
AT GAINING GROUND<br />
April 25, 2009<br />
Frances Denny ’00 is a photographer in New York City. This is a piece<br />
called, “Self Portrait with Nun’s Chest”<br />
pre-modern world and United States<br />
history in addition to coaching basketball<br />
and lacrosse.”<br />
2000 10th Reunion<br />
Class Representative:<br />
Jessica Whitman<br />
Whitman.jessica@gmail.com<br />
Frances Denny writes that she is<br />
“happily working as a fine art and<br />
portrait photographer in New York<br />
City. My website is www.francesdennyphoto.com—take<br />
a look at some of<br />
my work. I would love to hear what<br />
you think.” Frances took this past<br />
summer off to assist photographer<br />
Joyce Tenneson in mid-coast Maine.<br />
Fellow New Yorker Caroline Goldsmith<br />
is teaching three- and fouryear-olds<br />
at a nursery school on the<br />
Upper East Side.<br />
2001<br />
Class Representatives:<br />
Diego Alvarado<br />
Daalvarado@suffolk.edu<br />
Ben Bullitt<br />
bbullit@gmail.com<br />
Becca Spiro, who will be an intern at<br />
<strong>Park</strong> during the 2009-10 school year,<br />
writes that during the summer she<br />
was in Chicago, interning for the education<br />
department at the Art Institute.<br />
“Since my internship was paid, it was<br />
very time intensive and involved giving<br />
tours to visitors ranging from<br />
kindergarten students to senior citizens.<br />
I felt challenged and rewarded<br />
every day. <strong>The</strong>re were seven other<br />
interns like me and we were each<br />
responsible for doing research on the<br />
objects we presented and creating lesson<br />
plans and/or presentations that<br />
were age-appropriate.” For Becca, one<br />
of the best parts of the job was walking<br />
around the museum before it<br />
opened to the public. “It was such a<br />
privilege to be in an empty gallery<br />
and have priceless artwork all to<br />
yourself!” Becca is very excited to<br />
return to <strong>Park</strong> for the school year.<br />
2002<br />
Class Representatives:<br />
Alex Lebow<br />
alexlebow@gmail.com<br />
Alejandro Alvarado<br />
aalvarado@wesleyan.edu<br />
Katherine Brustowicz graduated<br />
from Bates College in May 2009. She<br />
is now working at Children’s Hospital<br />
in Boston as the data research<br />
coordinator for the Orthopaedics<br />
Department with the upper extremities<br />
unit. In May, Will Faulkner<br />
graduated from Tulane, Phi Beta<br />
Kappa, with honors in linguistics and<br />
Latin American studies. In the summer<br />
of 2008, Will spent a month in<br />
Rio de Janeiro, taking Portuguese in<br />
the mornings and teaching English<br />
in a favela (slum) in the afternoons.<br />
On an unseasonably<br />
sunny, warm day<br />
in April, twenty Alumni<br />
and friends gathered Planting: Deon Wolpowitz P ’18<br />
and Minnie Ames ‘86<br />
at Gaining Ground in<br />
Concord, Massachusetts for a day of community<br />
service. Together, they planted, tilled,<br />
and watered over 100 vegetables plants that<br />
will ultimately be<br />
given to food pantries<br />
in the area. It was<br />
great day of fun, sun,<br />
and giving back to the<br />
community.<br />
Cope Crew: David Wilson ’06,<br />
Eliza Cope ’04, Comfort Halsey Cope,<br />
and a college friend of Eliza’s.<br />
Top Row: Peter Johannsen, Eliza Drachman-Jones ’98, Allison Morse ’89,<br />
Minnie Ames ’86, Amy Lampert ’63, Julia Lloyd Johannsen ’93, Kathrene<br />
Tiffany ’96, Katherine McManmon ’94, Eliza Cope ’04, David Wilson ’06,<br />
Eliza’s college friend, Shanti Serdy ’87 and her two children, Shira ’18,<br />
and Seth. Bottom row: Nina Frusztajer ’79 and her three children,<br />
Hugo, Camilla, and Zeno.<br />
<strong>The</strong> <strong>Park</strong> Bulletin | Fall 2009 45
This fall, he will start a two-year master’s<br />
program in New Orleans at the<br />
Stone Center, one of the top Latin<br />
American Studies centers in the U.S.,<br />
where he received a Dept. of Education<br />
Foreign Language Area Studies<br />
grant. Alex Lebow wrote to let us<br />
know that he is spending the next<br />
two years in New Orleans teaching<br />
high school English through Teach<br />
for America. We learned that Dan<br />
Resnick Ault graduated from Brown<br />
this spring with honors in his two<br />
majors: Hispanic studies and human<br />
biology. After taking a year off, he<br />
will stay in Providence for medical<br />
school as part of Brown’s Program in<br />
Liberal Medical Education. Pearson<br />
Smith recently moved to Lander,<br />
Wyoming, and is working in the marketing<br />
department at the National<br />
Outdoor Leadership <strong>School</strong>. Pearson<br />
says, “Having entered one of the<br />
most beautiful towns bordered by the<br />
Wind River Range, I have taken to<br />
Dan Resnick Ault spent the fall of his<br />
junior year in Madrid, where, in<br />
addition to courses, he interned in<br />
the neonatal intensive care unit of<br />
El Hospital La Moraleja in Madrid.<br />
rock climbing and spend most weekends<br />
at the endless rock climbing<br />
walls that Lander provides.” Julia<br />
Spiro spent the summer in Los Angeles,<br />
where she interned at New Line<br />
Cinema and at a production company<br />
called Temple Hill Entertainment.<br />
“I’m working really hard and so far<br />
it’s been a challenging and rewarding<br />
experience.” Julia loves California and<br />
plans on moving there after graduating<br />
from Harvard next year. “I hope<br />
to pursue a career in film production<br />
and development.”<br />
2003<br />
Class Representative:<br />
Diana Rutherford<br />
drutherford@berklee.net<br />
2004<br />
Class Representatives:<br />
Steven Fox<br />
Steven.fox@richmond.edu<br />
Molly Lebow<br />
mlebow@tulane.edu<br />
2005<br />
Class Representatives:<br />
Lily Bullitt<br />
Lily_bullitt@yahoo.com<br />
Ashley Sharp<br />
asharp@deerfield.edu<br />
2006<br />
Class Representative:<br />
McCall Cruz<br />
Mccall_cruz@yahoo.com<br />
C O L L E G E C H O I C E S<br />
Daphne Johnson wedding photos<br />
Felicia Aikens<br />
University of Pennsylvania<br />
Hanna Atwood Colgate University (Fall 2010)<br />
Daniel Berenson<br />
Abigail Bok<br />
Andrew Canniff<br />
Dylan Coburn<br />
Anneliese Cooper<br />
Nicholas Cox<br />
Camilla de Braganca<br />
Jolie Demuth<br />
CLASS<br />
OF<br />
Yale University<br />
Yale University<br />
Massachusetts Maritime Academy<br />
Bard College<br />
Columbia University<br />
University of Maine<br />
George Washington University<br />
Tulane University<br />
Claire DiSalvo<br />
2006<br />
Noah Donnell-Kilmer<br />
Simon Ebbott-Burg<br />
Chantal Ferguson<br />
Jason Forsyth<br />
Michael Fubini<br />
David Fuller<br />
Jonathan Getz<br />
Matthew Gorski<br />
Catherine Hoyt<br />
Louise Ireland<br />
Kevin Jiang<br />
Rachel Langer<br />
Susan Langer<br />
Madeline Levitt<br />
Boston University<br />
Occidental College<br />
College of Wooster<br />
Wesleyan University<br />
New York University<br />
Vassar College<br />
Harvard College<br />
Bryant University<br />
Haverford College<br />
Davidson College<br />
Brown University<br />
University of Chicago<br />
Denison University<br />
Cornell University<br />
Bates College<br />
Linda Li<br />
Rebecca MacRae<br />
Scott Martin<br />
Alexander Melas-Kyriazi<br />
Elizabeth Mitchell<br />
Kevin O’Block<br />
Irene Pasquale<br />
Samuel Platt<br />
Elizabeth Rappaport<br />
Samson Resnicow<br />
Charles Rugg<br />
Jessica Schlundt<br />
Alexandra Shalom<br />
Daniel Shoukimas<br />
Libby Shrobe<br />
Monica Stadecker<br />
Emma Thomas<br />
Amelia Walske<br />
Tyler Wilson<br />
David Wilson<br />
Evan Winter<br />
Georgina Winthrop<br />
Christopher Zarins<br />
Madeline Zoller<br />
Princeton University<br />
University of Michigan<br />
Claremont McKenna College<br />
Harvard College<br />
Williams College<br />
Boston College<br />
Skidmore College<br />
Northeastern University<br />
George Washington University<br />
University of Vermont<br />
Boston College<br />
Muhlenberg College<br />
University of Rochester<br />
Connecticut College<br />
Tufts University<br />
Tufts University<br />
Swarthmore College<br />
Hobart William Smith<br />
Tufts University<br />
University of Virginia<br />
Tufts University<br />
Harvard College<br />
Washington University, St. Louis<br />
New York University<br />
Please note that the above list, compiled by the Alumni Office, does not include all members of the Class of 2006. Alumni not appearing on this list are either<br />
postponing attending a college or university in the fall, or have not submitted their information to our office. Please call the Alumni Office at 617-274-6022 or email<br />
alumni@parkschool.org with any changes or additional information. Thank you.<br />
46 <strong>The</strong> <strong>Park</strong> Bulletin | Fall 2009
NEXT SCHOOLS FOR<br />
GRADE VIII<br />
CLASS OF 2010<br />
Departing members of the Class of 2009<br />
2007<br />
Class Representatives:<br />
Thomas Cope<br />
thcope@mxschool.edu<br />
Ben Schwartz<br />
bschwartz@benlampert.com<br />
We learned that Harris Williams,<br />
a senior at Proctor Academy, has<br />
verbally committed to Stanford. <strong>The</strong><br />
6-foot-4, 291-pounder from Lynn<br />
helped lead Proctor’s football team<br />
to an 8-1 season and a berth in the<br />
DelPrete-<strong>The</strong>obold Bowl. “A lot of<br />
schools were interested in him,”<br />
said coach Chuck Reid. “But to be<br />
perfectly honest, Stanford was his<br />
dream school.”<br />
2008<br />
Class Representatives:<br />
Manizeh Afridi<br />
Manizeh252@yahoo.com<br />
Marielle Rabins<br />
Marielle_swin@yahoo.com<br />
Current and Former<br />
Faculty News<br />
Amy Salomon (Grade II 2001– )<br />
and her husband, Matt Deninger,<br />
welcomed daughter Norah deVore<br />
Deninger on July 10, 2009.<br />
Congratulations to Liza Talusan and<br />
Jorge Vega (Technology Specialist<br />
2005– ) on the birth of their son,<br />
Evan Eduardo Talusan Vega, born<br />
March 24, 2009.<br />
Peter Bown (Grade III 2005– ) will<br />
marry Paige Largay (sister of Brendan<br />
Largay who taught English,<br />
social studies, and drama at <strong>Park</strong><br />
from 2000–2004) on October 19,<br />
2009 in Hyannisport.<br />
Proud grandma, Emily Tucker<br />
(Math 1979–2007 and currently a<br />
tutor), happily announced the birth<br />
of her granddaughter, Delphine Virginia<br />
Tucker-Raymond, on Saturday,<br />
March 21.<br />
Caroline Ames<br />
Noah Benjamin<br />
Tyler Billman<br />
Oliver Bok<br />
Ginger Brostowski<br />
Katie Cohen<br />
Chimene Cooper<br />
Austin Drucker<br />
Charlie Feinberg<br />
Daniel Fine<br />
Vicki Garcia-Orozco<br />
Danny Getz<br />
Sage Hamilton<br />
Daniel Harris<br />
William Jundanian<br />
Tyler Kavoogian<br />
Henry Kennedy<br />
Eadie Kremer<br />
Kate Maroni<br />
Erica Mathews<br />
Luke Mathison<br />
Julia McKown<br />
Tyler Myrick<br />
Olivia Pincince<br />
Daniel Rubenstein<br />
Jonathan Sands<br />
Liza Scholle<br />
Ryan Simshauser<br />
Eve Wetlaufer<br />
Peter Woolverton<br />
Carina Young<br />
Brendan Yucel<br />
Simon Yucel<br />
Dana Hall <strong>School</strong><br />
Brookline High <strong>School</strong><br />
Milton Academy<br />
Milton Academy<br />
Dana Hall <strong>School</strong><br />
Newton North High <strong>School</strong><br />
Milton Academy<br />
<strong>The</strong> Rivers <strong>School</strong><br />
Belmont Hill <strong>School</strong><br />
Noble and Greenough <strong>School</strong><br />
Lincoln-Sudbury High <strong>School</strong><br />
Beaver Country Day <strong>School</strong><br />
Beaver Country Day <strong>School</strong><br />
Brookline High <strong>School</strong><br />
St. Sebastian’s <strong>School</strong><br />
Beaver Country Day <strong>School</strong><br />
St. Sebastian’s <strong>School</strong><br />
St. George’s <strong>School</strong><br />
Noble and Greenough <strong>School</strong><br />
Milton Academy<br />
Brookline High <strong>School</strong><br />
Milton Academy<br />
Beaver Country Day <strong>School</strong><br />
Milton Academy<br />
Milton Academy<br />
Noble and Greenough <strong>School</strong><br />
St. George’s <strong>School</strong><br />
Noble and Greenough <strong>School</strong><br />
<strong>The</strong> Masters <strong>School</strong><br />
Buckingham Browne & Nichols <strong>School</strong><br />
Milton Academy<br />
Noble and Greenough <strong>School</strong><br />
Noble and Greenough <strong>School</strong><br />
2009<br />
Class Representatives:<br />
Mercedes Garcia-Orozco<br />
Benzgirl727@aol.com<br />
Cary Williams<br />
Zocarebearzo327@aim.com<br />
Classes of<br />
2007, 2008,<br />
2009, and 2010<br />
Save <strong>The</strong> Date!<br />
Yule Festival<br />
and<br />
Bagel Breakfast<br />
Friday, December 18, 2009<br />
9:00 a.m.–10:00 a.m.<br />
<strong>The</strong> <strong>Park</strong> <strong>School</strong> dining room<br />
Former math teacher Bill Walsh’s<br />
CDs are now available on iTunes and<br />
other internet outlets. Look under<br />
Billy Walsh for some great music.<br />
<strong>The</strong> <strong>Park</strong> Bulletin | Fall 2009 47
Braydon McEvoy Khanna, son of<br />
Victoria McEvoy Khanna ’89<br />
Second grade teacher Amy Salomon and husband Matt<br />
Deninger with baby Norah<br />
Kathryn Lee Calderwood, daughter of Audrey Hong<br />
Calderwood ’92<br />
Weddings<br />
1994<br />
Meryl Glassman and Peter Farland<br />
July 18, 2009<br />
1998<br />
Daphne Johnson and Brandon<br />
Berger<br />
June 6, 2009<br />
Arrivals<br />
1977<br />
Holli Lopatowski and Stephen<br />
Thomas<br />
Kaden Allen Thomas<br />
June 23, 2009<br />
1984<br />
David McNally and Cynthia Pierce<br />
Alison Ginger McNally<br />
August 6, 2008<br />
1989<br />
Gautam Khanna and Victoria<br />
McEvoy Khanna<br />
Braydon McEvoy Khanna<br />
Rebecca Lewin Scott and Jordan<br />
Scott<br />
Charlotte Eloise Scott<br />
April 22, 2009<br />
1992<br />
Michael Calderwood and Audrey<br />
Hong Calderwood<br />
Kathryn Lee Calderwood<br />
June 23, 2009<br />
In Memoriam<br />
Joan Ryerson Brewster<br />
July 22, 2009<br />
Mother of Galen Brewster ’59 and<br />
Donald Brewster ’60<br />
Jonathan K. Bynoe<br />
August 13, 2009<br />
Father of Jim Bynoe ’74 and Kevin<br />
Bynoe ’77<br />
Gabriel Feld ’00<br />
April 24, 2009<br />
Peter P. Gudas, Jr.<br />
July 17, 2009<br />
Father of Christopher Gudas ’94<br />
Bill McCarthy<br />
September 15, 2009<br />
Husband of former Lower Division<br />
teacher Heather McCarthy<br />
Jim McDonald<br />
September 13, 2009<br />
Father of Isabel McDonald ’09<br />
Anne Shepley ’45<br />
July 16, 2009<br />
Sister of Henry “Dick” Shepley ’33,<br />
Hayden Shepley ’36, the late Robert<br />
Shepley ’39, and Hugh Shepley ’42.<br />
Cousin of Joan Dunphy ’44, aunt of<br />
Julia Shepley Cohen ’69, and great<br />
aunt of Eleanor Shepley ’05 and Julia<br />
Shepley ’07<br />
Bob Sturgis ’53<br />
February 13, 2009<br />
Charlie Thomas<br />
March 10, 2009<br />
Father of Linda Thomas Terhune ’76<br />
and Steven Thomas ’76<br />
William Wolbach<br />
June 23, 2009<br />
Father of “B” Wolbach ’61, and<br />
Josephine W. Devlin ’65, and grand -<br />
father of Luke Wolbach ’85, Ben<br />
Wolbach ’90, and Anna Wolbach ’93<br />
Kenneth Wolman and Sarah<br />
Wolman<br />
Jack Benjamin Wolman Levine<br />
April 16, 2009<br />
Mary Greene Nelson<br />
April 15, 2009<br />
Faulkner Society member and Grandmother<br />
of Mollie Nelson Webster ’91<br />
1985<br />
John and Jessie Howland Cahill<br />
Sarah Louise Cahill<br />
December 10, 2008<br />
1988<br />
Andrew and Liza Cohen Gates<br />
Oliver and Isabelle Gates<br />
April 1, 2009<br />
Ellen Revelle<br />
May 6, 2009<br />
Mother of former Parents’ Association<br />
president Mary Revelle Paci and<br />
grandmother of Christopher Paci ’74,<br />
Stefano Paci ’77, and Myra Paci ’80<br />
George Rowe<br />
February 12, 2009<br />
Grandfather of George Rowe ’16<br />
48 <strong>The</strong> <strong>Park</strong> Bulletin | Fall 2009
We are assembling a farewell album to commemorate<br />
Nancy Faulkner’s remarkable career at <strong>Park</strong>. Please send a note<br />
with your reflections and recollections about Nancy<br />
by November 1, 2009. Pictures are welcome, too. Thank you!<br />
Album for Nancy Faulkner<br />
<strong>The</strong> <strong>Park</strong> <strong>School</strong>, 171 Goddard Avenue, Brookline, MA 02445
<strong>The</strong> <strong>Park</strong> <strong>School</strong><br />
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Brookline, Massachusetts 02445<br />
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