AMERICA - The Taft School

B U L L E T I Nj College Counselingj My Life with Julia Childj Angel of DenalicrisscrossingAmericaFall 2009

in this issue16CollegeCounseling TodayA conversation with Terry Giffenh Seniors Galen Sanderson, Jan Stransky,Sam Fifer ’11 and Max Frew were among thenearly three dozen Tafties who volunteeredto help set up and organize the W-A-L-K forJuvenile Diabetes in Litchfield in September.Some even left Taft at 6 a.m.! Peter Frew ’75

22CrisscrossingAmericaby John Gussenhoven ’65B u l l e t i nFall 200932My Life WithJulia ChildQ & A withAlex Prud’homme ’8036Angel of DenaliLowell Thomas ’42by Mike Macy ’69Departments2 From the Editor3 Letters3 Taft Trivia4 Alumni Spotlight8 Around the Pond40 From the Archives

from the EDITORA movable feast. That’s what I called theplan to keep us fed here at Taft while thedining hall undergoes a major transformation.The biggest news on campus this fallhas been the opening of the new “servery”(see page 9). Although the view of the oldkitchen corridor this fall, as seen from thepond, has looked more like a scene fromBeirut than it has the Gund Partnership’sbeautiful sketches, arriving at the newmarket-style serving area to select ourmeal each day has been a welcome lightnear the end of our construction tunnel.To be honest, the process has gone farmore smoothly than anyone anticipated.Using the Jigger Shop as a second dininghall until the new spaces are completedhas eased the crowding and been a verypleasant spot for faculty and studentsalike. If all goes well, seniors are hoping tohave the Jig and adjacent student unionback for part of spring term.In any event, Horace Dutton Taft Hallshould be looking mighty fine by AlumniWeekend in May. So please come backand see it for yourselves. You’ll find detailsabout the weekend, and specific reunionplans as they unfold, on our website:www.TaftAlumni.com.On the CoverB U L L E T I Nj College Counselingj My Life with Julia Childj Angel of DenalicrisscrossingAmerican John Gussenhoven ’65 parks his Harleyto capture this image of the Anza-BorregoDesert, east of Julian, California, for his book,Crisscrossing America (p. 22). “Even thoughthere is no visible water source for miles acrossthis imposing landscape,” writes John, “thesecolorful, healthy ocotillo plants oddly flourish inthese dry, desert climes.”2 Taft Bulletin Fall 2009Fall 2009—Julie Reiff, editorThis is the fourth issue of TaftBulletin published on 100 percentpostconsumer recycled fiber. Pleasenote that we’ve also lightened theweight this issue. What differencedoes that make? Well, this issue consumesnearly five tons of paper. Notusing virgin fiber translates into thefollowing savings:130 trees, which supply enoughoxygen for roughly 65 people ayear59,236 gallons of water, orenough to take 3,444 eightminuteshowersenough BTUs to power yourhome for more than five months3,596 lbs. of solid waste thatdoesn’t go to a landfillEnvironmental impact estimates providedby Neenah Papers and are based onthe U.S. EPA Power Profiler and otherpublicly available sources.WWWTaft on the WebFind a friend’s address orlook up back issues of the Bulletinat www.TaftAlumni.comFor more campus news and events,including admissions information,visit www.TaftSchool.orgWhat happened at thisafternoon’s game?Visit www.TaftSports.comDon’t forget you can shoponline at www.TaftStore.com800.995.8238 or 860.945.7736B u l l e t i nFall 2009Volume 80, Number 1Bulletin StaffDirector of Development:Chris LathamEditor: Julie ReiffAlumni Notes: Linda BeyusDesign: Good Design, LLCwww.gooddesignusa.comProofreader: Nina MaynardMail letters to:Julie Reiff, EditorTaft BulletinThe Taft SchoolWatertown, CT 06795-2100 U.S.A.ReiffJ@TaftSchool.orgSend alumni news to:Linda BeyusAlumni OfficeThe Taft SchoolWatertown, CT 06795-2100 U.S.A.TaftBulletin@TaftSchool.orgDeadlines for Alumni Notes:Winter–November 15Spring–February 15Summer–May 15Fall–August 30Send address corrections to:Sally MembrinoAlumni RecordsThe Taft SchoolWatertown, CT 06795-2100 U.S.A.TaftRhino@TaftSchool.org1.860.945.7777www.TaftAlumni.comThe Taft Bulletin (ISSN 0148-0855)is published quarterly, in February,May, August and November, by TheTaft School, 110 Woodbury Road,Watertown, CT 06795-2100, and isdistributed free of charge to alumni,parents, grandparents and friends ofthe school. All rights reserved.This magazine is printed on100% recycled paper.

LettersI’ve just finished reading the latest issue.It is an excellent publication fromall points—the recycled paper, the photographs,the layout and the many andvaried stories. You and your associates dida great job and I thought I would send youa note, both of appreciation and of praise.I look forward to many more issues.—Frank Martin Reichenbach ’52I was surprised to open the cover to seeJack, Marlene, and me leading the parade.It was especially clever of you to includethe Lincoln head with his newboy tie onpage 25. Thanks again for making our???Taft Triviareunion a success. My job as chairman ofthe directory turned out to be one of themost rewarding things that I have done ina long, long time.—Bruce Powell ’59I have noted the statement that this summerBulletin is the third issue on 100% postconsumerrecycled fiber. The weight of the paperseems quite a bit heavier than I rememberthe two earlier issues and I am curious why.Frankly, the heavier pages makes the wholeBulletin a little more difficult to handle. Bethat as it may, I enjoyed going through it.—Dan Van Soelen ’42Can you identify the year students all received a day off from classes to schlepstacks of books, in Dewey decimal order, from the Woolworth Library of CPTinto the newly constructed Hulbert Taft Jr. Library? Not only did the school saveon moving costs, but the books also stayed in perfect sequence.A sleeve of Taft golf balls will be sent to the winner, whose name will be drawnfrom all correct entries received. Please send your replies to the editor at the addressor e-mail at right.Congratulations to Julian Erde ’52, who correctly identified The Taft Oracle asthe literary magazine that debuted in 1906. Thanks to all who wrote in.Printing the Taft Bulletin on recycledpaper seems to make good sense in someways and I also prefer the matte finish tothe shiny high gloss stuff. As a professionalforester, however, I call into question thefigure of 103.18 trees being “preserved forthe future.” I doubt the trees have beenpreserved, and I wonder why you wish tospare trees from the saw and really wonderwhy you wish to spare a pulpwood-qualitystem. Sound forest practices coupled withtimber harvesting provide landownerswith income incentives not to sell out todevelopment. My focus is on preservingthe land base and stopping urban sprawl,not preserving trees. In New England,many of our forests have suffered froma “cut the best, leave the rest” philosophy.Are the figures provided to make usfeel better about our massive amount ofconsumption?—Peter T. Hasler ’84Editor’s ReplyThe figures in that issue are from theNeenah Green Eco-Calculator and arebased on information from publicly availableinformation sources like www.Savatree.com.You may notice that we also lightened thepaper weight on this issue.Love it? Hate it?Read it? Tell us!We’d love to hear what you thinkabout the stories in this Bulletin.We may edit your letters for length,clarity and content, but please write!Julie Reiff, editorTaft Bulletin110 Woodbury RoadWatertown, CT 06795-2100or Reiff J@TaftSchool.orgTaft Bulletin Fall 2009 3

Yuma CrossingThe Colorado River, known asAmerica’s Nile, is arguably the mostimportant river in the Southwest. Formillions of years it flowed unchecked,flooding annually, and creating someof the most incredible landscapes onthe planet. Yuma’s strategic location atthe only practical crossing point on thelower Colorado River assured its importanceas a transportation hub in bothprehistoric and modern times.But soon, the river, “bounded by leveesfor flood control, choked by non-nativevegetation, a haven for illegal activity andthe homeless, and starved of an adequatewater supply, this 1,400-acre area becamea ‘forgotten land,’” says Charlie Flynn ’70,“a parched patch of river bottom whereonce cottonwoods and willows grew,where the Quechan Indian tribal membersonce hunted and fished, and where hundredsof birds nested.”For decades, the community of Yuma,Arizona, sought to improve a five-milestretch of the Colorado. Then, in 2000,their efforts got an enormous boost whenCongress created the Yuma CrossingNational Heritage Area and authorized upto $10 million in federal matching fundsfor a 15-year period to conserve, enhance,and interpret the natural and culturalresources of the community. And Flynnserves as the project’s executive director.The Yuma Area is rich in historicalresources, buildings, bridges, neighborhoodsand archaeological sites, but manyoriginal structures on Yuma’s Main Streetwere destroyed in flooding.“The highlight has been the YumaEast Wetlands,” says Charlie. “It seemedtechnically impossible from a restorationstandpoint, but even more gratifying hasbeen helping bring historically distantgroups together to achieve restoration—alumni Spotlightparticularly, my work with the QuechanIndian tribe. I also want to give credit toour consultant, Fred Phillips, who is nowconsidered the leading environmental experton the lower Colorado River.”Over the last eight years, the Yuma EastWetlands has evolved from a trash-strewnjungle of non-native vegetation into oneof the largest, most ambitious restorationprojects in the Southwest. “The story ofthe East Wetlands is the story of a growingpartnership among the Quechan IndianTribe, the City of Yuma, private landowners,federal agencies and the HeritageArea,” says Flynn. The partnership betweenthe City of Yuma and the QuechanIndian Tribe was greatly strengthenedwhen they agreed to jointly fund therestoration and reopening of the Oceanto-OceanBridge.For more information, visitwww.yumaheritage.com.4 Taft Bulletin Fall 2009h Charlie Flynn ’70at the Ocean-to-Ocean Bridge, partof the Yuma CrossingNational Heritageproject. Gene Doten

h In between cartingand toting, Bill Crane’76 captured someamazing photos of hisdaughter’s crew, left,racing in Italy.Kings’ Ransom on ESPNDirector Peter Berg ’80, who first gainednotoriety as a hockey-playing doctor onChicago Hope (and is now better knownfor his work on Friday Night Lights), hasturned his attention to the ice again.His documentary on NHL legendWayne Gretzky, whom he’s knownsince the ’90s, premiered at theToronto Film Festival and aired onESPN in October.“Knowing Wayne,” Berg toldwww.NHL.com, “is like knowing one ofthose rare human beings like MichaelJordan or Tiger Woods, who are so utterlydominant in their sport that it’smesmerizing to be around them. Thetrade to the Kings was not only a hugemoment in his career, but also a verycontained and interesting way to look atthis incredible athlete’s life.”In his interview with Berg, Gretzkypoints out that he was newly married andalready living in Los Angeles at thetime of the famous trade to the Kingsin 1988.“Through the years, I went to lotsof Kings games,” Berg adds, “and weplayed lots of golf and poker together.”h Peter Berg ’80interviews hockeylegend WayneGretzky forESPN’s 30 for 30.Courtesy of ESPNBill CraneWhen Bill Crane ’76 introduced hischildren to his passion—sailing—littledid he know one day he would becometheir “head Sherpa.” Last summerhe “carted and toted for 16-year-olddaughter, Olivia,” at the International420 World Championships in Riva delGarda, Italy.She has been sailing on the internationalcircuit for about four years, andshe and her crew were the youngeston the U.S. team. “They representedthemselves and the U.S. well and had areally exciting regatta.” Not long after,she competed in the Buzzards BayRegatta and then sailed in the C420North American Championships inMacatawa Bay, Michigan.“In the midst of this, my wife, Tory(sister of Tonia Falconer ’79), was inCalifornia with our two sons at theOptimist National Championshipsand then in Newport, Rhode Island,for the Optimist New EnglandChampionships. And, yes we are nuts.”Bill still finds time to sail himselfas well, competing most recently inSeptember at the Lightning WorldChampionship at the Mallets Bay BoatClub in Burlington, Vermont.Taft Bulletin Fall 2009 5

alumni SpotlightIn PrintCrisscrossing America:Discovering AmericaFrom the RoadJohn Gussenhoven ’65Rizzoli, 2009n Freddy Gonzalez ’05 plays trombone on the New York Subway.Discs or DownloadsClassmates Mia Borders, Freddy “Fuego” Gonzalez and CyrusMcGoldrick ’05 have all been busy making music and have twoalbums out this fall to prove it.Mia released her debut album, Southern Fried Soul, in Augustunder her own label, Blaxican Records. The album features elevenoriginal songs written by her and composed by the band.A New Orleans native, Mia played at the Blue Nile this fall andsang with Big Sam’s Funky Nation at the Voodoo Music Festivalon Halloween. Her band, who played under the title MNSKP, hasbeen hailed as “New Orleans hottest buzz band” by Where Y’atmagazine. Take a listen at www.miaborders.com.Freddy chose an online release of his debut album, the NewYork Chapter. And an auspicious date: 09.09.09. And listenersreturned to the site for a new song each week.Cyrus, a New York saxophonist who plays under the nameCyrus Khan, lent his talents to both endeavors.“This first album is a compilation of the first songs I’ve everwritten,” says Freddy. “I was always hesitant to turn my ideas intosongs because I never felt that I was ‘ready,’ that I had to reach acertain level of musicianship before I could allow myself to makemy own music.Freddy studied at Boston’s Berklee College of Music and hasreturned to New York to actively pursue his music education.“Music is the simplest formof self-expression,” he adds.“It’s a universal form ofcommunication that has allowedme to break barriersof race, language and socialstanding.”To have a listen,visit www.myspace.com/freddyfuegoTowards a GeneralTheory of SocialPsychology:Understanding HumanCruelty, Human Misery,and, Perhaps, a RemedyWendy Treynor ’93Euphoria Press, 2009The LastFounding Father:James Monroe anda Nation’s Call toGreatnessHarlow Giles Unger ’49Da Capo Press, 2009A History ofModern Britain:1714 to the PresentEllis Wasson ’66Wiley-Blackwell, 2009v Mia Borders’ new CD,Southern Fried Soul6 Taft Bulletin Fall 2009

Who has not been tempted to escape thedaily grind, hit the open road and trulyfind America? Crisscrossing America is suchan odyssey—a photographic journal of atwo-year, two-leg, 27-state epic crisscrossingof the United States—from MountVernon, Washington, to Naples, Florida,and then from San Diego, California, toEastport, Maine.It all started with a Harley-DavidsonRoad King Classic. In 2004, Gussenhovenpurchased his first Harley and almost instantlyconceived a plan to crisscross thecountry. For someone who was born ofAmerican parents, but in Mexico City, hespent most of his childhood and youth inSouth America and missed growing up inthe United States. As an adult he yearnedto know this country that was “foreign”to him and did so by taking off on anAmerican bike to complete a genuinelyAmerican journey.The author’s quest to experienceAmerica has resulted in this photographicallystunning view of this nation’s richlydiverse landscape, roadside attractions,small towns and oddities that can be discoveredonly by traveling the open roadsone mile at a time.The unique coupling of ground andaerial photographs highlights details thatmost of us would miss if we were to seethem from only one perspective. The images,as supplemented by the author’stravel logs, arouse a beautiful and poignantvision of America.An excerpt can be found on page 22 ofthis issue.After ten years of intensive inquiryand research, Treynor offers scientificallyinformed answers to long-standingquestions about human nature that philosophershave debated for centuries. Sheoffers insight into how wartime atrocitiescan be committed with a clear conscienceby well-meaning individuals, and how thepeer pressure process is the culprit.Treynor earned her Ph.D. in social psychologyat the University of MichiganKirkus Review called Unger’s latest biographya “cogent reexamination of a relativelyneglected American icon…. Unger makesa solid and cohesive argument forMonroe’s importance in the early years ofthe United States…A worthy attempt torescue Monroe from obscurity for a mainstreamaudience.”Decorated by George Washington forhis exploits as a soldier, Monroe becamea congressman, a senator, U.S. minister toFrance and Britain, governor of Virginia,secretary of state, secretary of war andfinally America’s fifth president. The countryembraced Monroe’s dreams of empireand elected him to two terms, the secondtime unanimously. Mentored by each ofAmerica’s first four presidents, Monroewas unquestionably the best-preparedpresident in our history.Unger has also written biographiesof Lafayette, Washington, Hancock andother early-American icons.A History of Modern Britain: 1714 to thePresent presents a lively introduction tothe history of the modern British Islesfrom the Hanoverian succession to thepresent day. The book conveys the broadsweep of the period’s major events withparticular emphasis placed on observingBritain’s past from a global context,including imperialism’s role in shapingsocial, economic and political developmentsat home. Ellis Wasson exploresthe relationships between Great Britain’sthree nations—Scotland, England andWales—and Ireland, and the developmentof their unique national identities. He alsodiscusses controversies that remain in disputebetween historians today and reflectson new perspectives in British history.The story is punctuated throughoutwith description of fascinating personalitiesfrom Britain’s past, from celebratedstatesmen to lesser known characters,including the 18th-century shopkeeperThomas Turner, the arsonist JamesAitken, the female adventurer JaneDigby, the celebrity footballer GeorgeBest and the writer Dorothy Sayers. Thevignettes complement the broader storyand give the reader a sense of the richvariety of British life during the modernera. The book is accompanied by acompanion website, including onlinesupplements and a preliminary chaptercovering events from 1688.A History of Modern Britain providesreaders with a firm understanding of theperiod of Britain’s history that defined itsrole in the modern world.Taft Bulletin Fall 2009 7

For the latest newson campus events,please visitTaftSchool.org.around the PondBy Sam Routhierh Dance teacher MeredithLyons received summergrant funds to participatein the Bates Dance Festivallast summer. Arthur FinkFaculty Make the Most of SummerWhile summer break marks a respitefrom the intensity and pace of theschool year for some teachers, morethan 25 Taft faculty members used thevacation to help develop their curricularpassions and the depth and breadth oftheir own learning and experience.Dean of Faculty Chris Torino awardedmore than $125,000 in grants fromthe school’s endowed funds for professionaldevelopment.Assistant athletic director GingerO’Shea used the new Sheppard FamilyGrant to explore one of her passionsand one of the many areas in which shehas a significant impact at Taft: the potentialfor athletics to empower youngwomen. O’Shea traveled to Irelandfor 12 days in June to network withgolf coaches there, in hopes of puttingtogether an international tournamentfor independent school girls. O’Sheahas directed the Pippy O’ConnorIndependent School Girls’ Golf Classicfor the past five years and used that roleas a starting point for establishing relationshipswith schools overseas.“With potential for global understanding,growth for female athletes, andlessons in sportsmanship and competition,”she explains, “this opportunityseemed to fit well with the Portrait of theGraduate. It was a fantastic opportunity.”8 Taft Bulletin Fall 2009

Meredith Lyons, now in her secondyear directing Taft’s dance program,spent six weeks at two nationally renowneddance festivals at Bates Collegein Maine as a recipient of a grant fromthe Davis Family Junior Faculty Fund.For the Young Dancers Workshop, shebrought Taft seniors Ally Hamilton andThu Pham and worked as a counselor.The second, more geared toward Lyons’own advancement, was the Bates DanceFestival Professional Training Program.“I was able to step away from the Taftcampus and fully immerse myself withfellow professional dancers and enjoy ourpassion for dance,” Lyons says.With the help of the Penny andMichael Townsend Faculty Fund,Lowermid Class Dean and English teacherBob Campbell ’76 returned to theclassroom as a student, taking a courseon 19th-century American literature atYale University. Although he was initiallysurprised at sharing a classroom with sixundergraduates, he reaped significantrewards from the course.“My professor made me realize howto think as a student,” says Bob, “and myhope is that I can engage my kids as effectivelyas he engaged me.”Twelve endowed funds now supportprofessional development for facultyin the summer. (There are 47 endowedfunds for faculty support overall.)Although the pursuit of graduate degreespredominates, faculty also traveled, attendedconferences and workshops ordeveloped new curricula.Two teachers completed degrees:Chamby Zepeda earned an M.A. inSpanish literature, language and cultureat Middlebury College, and RickLansdale finished an Ed.M. in educationalleadership studies at Columbia.“Summer opportunities for teacherssupport Taft’s credo of producinglifelong learners,” says physics teacherChris Ritacco, who pursued graduatework at Wesleyan with support fromthe Drummond and Ruth BellFellowship, “by helping its faculty belifelong learners themselves.”Hardhat HeadlinesMaking HeadwaySince Spring 2008, the Bulletin hasbeen updating readers on the progressof the HDT Dining Hall RenovationProject. This marks the latest installmentin those updates.After more than a year of construction,the progress on the HDT DiningHall renovation is still igniting excitementamong the Taft community.As athletes rolled in for preseason inearly September, the school rolled outthe new serving area to accompanythe east dining hall. With almost toomany options as well as enhancedquality of food, the dining hall hasalready gone a long way in bringingthis community together.“I didn’t realize how big a deal itwas going to be to have a new dininghall,” says Head Monitor Bo Redpath’10, “For a long time, construction justfelt like something constantly going onat the school, but now that we can seewhat’s turned out, all the waiting wastotally worth it.”“The food here is so good,” uppermidChiamanka Anonyuo says, “andthe atmosphere of the dining hall is reallyhappy. It’s made the start of schoolmore fun I think.”While most attention has certainlybeen focused on the dininghall renovation, plenty of other workhas occurred around campus thanksto Jim Shepard and the facilitiescrew. Bingham Auditorium got anupdated sound system, 27 facultyapartments and houses were paintedor received other renovations and theSecurity Office upgraded its camerasurveillance system. Additionally, theWoodward Black Box Theater has anew, more polished look. With new,more comfortable chairs and a freshcoat of paint, spectators will enjoy atrue theater-in-the-round experience.“The Black Box renovations arereally exciting,” says acting teacherHelena Fifer. “I’m hopeful that thenewer space will have effects in raisinginterest for the arts and buildingeven more camaraderie in my classes,improv group and theatrical productions.We’re even more excited aboutthe arrival of David Kievit, our newperforming arts technical director.While the success of constructionprojects is certainly astounding, theTaft community looks forward to theircontinuation and culmination. Thewest dining hall looks to open up inJanuary, when finish work resumes onthe east dining hall. By spring, the entireschool should be able to eat in onelocation and the Jigger Shop will returnto its former role as a student union., The dining hall’s new servery, whichopened this fall. Other sections of theHDT dining hall renovation will openprogressively throughout the year.Peter Frew ’75Taft Bulletin Fall 2009 9

around the PONDThe Princes of Denmarkn The combined “football” teams after Taft’s scrimmage with FC North Zealand, north of Copenhagen, in August. New middler Alexander Bang fromDenmark joined the team there for his first Taft game. Chip OrbenFor Will Orben ’92, there are few greaterpassions than the Taft soccer program andthe culture and discipline of Europeanfootball. When the varsity boys’ coach got achance this summer to combine the two, heand 20 Taft soccer players took it and ran.Orben has close ties with Danish soccer.Seven years after his graduation fromTaft, he joined FC Copenhagen, wherehe played until 2001 under FlemmingPedersen, who currently coaches at FCNordsjaelland, a top-flight Danish professionalteam. During Orben’s first year asTaft’s head coach, in 2004, he took histeam to Denmark for a training trip, andwas excited to head back this year.“There is no better way to cultivate passionfor soccer than to immerse yourselfin the European game,” Orben says. “I wasso lucky to have that experience, and Iwanted to share it with my players.”The team arrived in mid-August inLondon, where their tour included amix of soccer and sightseeing—TrafalgarSquare, Piccadilly Circus, BuckinghamPalace and the Tower of London. Theirintroduction to English soccer includedwatching clubs Tottenham FC and WestHam United compete in preseason matchesand playing against an U-17 Englishteam called Euro Dagenham.After London, the team headed toCopenhagen for three days, where theyworked with former colleagues of CoachOrben. Further treats included a Q & Asession with U.S. National Team memberMichael Parkhurst, who plays forFC Nordsjaelland, as well as a trip to aDenmark-Chile friendly match.“It felt like every Chilean in Europe wasthere!” said Orben.Rounding out the trip, the teamcrossed the Oresund Bridge to Malmö,Sweden, where they spent their final twodays. Orben noted a huge improvementNew Facultyas they played their last match of the tripagainst Malmö F.F., and he was delightedto enjoy the vibe of the Malmö festival.The team visited three countries,watched three pro matches, played in fourtraining matches and had four trainingsessions with some of European soccer’sfinest. The trip included eight varsityreturners, seven new players, and five playersfrom both the JV and thirds levels whocertainly represented Big Red well.New arrivals this fall are Ozzie Parente, Alex Kelly ’05, Kisha Watts, Emily Fontaine, KendallAdams ’05, Johnny Webster, Ashley Goodrich-Mahoney, Kristin Honsel, Shannon Tarrant andNick Smith. Peter Frew ’7510 Taft Bulletin Fall 2009

h Uppermid UjalSantchurn enjoys sometime on the beach with hiscousins in Mauritius.NamesakeLooking out as the blue waves crashedonto the yellow sand while sipping waterfrom a coconut, I sat on the beachin the company of my extended familyin the beautiful island of Mauritius.Mauritius is a small island nation in theIndian Ocean roughly 600 miles east ofMadagascar. A popular tourist destination,Mauritius combines its rich andvibrant culture, beautiful landscapeand wide array of people whose backgroundslie primarily in India, as wellas China, Africa and Europe, to createa utopia. In fact, Mark Twain once saidafter visiting the island, “You gather theidea that Mauritius was made first andthen heaven, and that heaven was copiedafter Mauritius.”My story is similar to that of GogolGanguli, the main character in Taft’sschool-wide summer reading book, TheNamesake, by Jhumpa Lahiri. Gogol’sstory relates to tension with identity,as his family is Bengali but he yearns tofit in with his American peers. Born inLondon, I have lived in the U.S. sinceI was seven, but my parents have livedthe majority of their lives in Mauritius.Navigating cultural pride with immersingmyself in Western culture has beenchallenging but also exciting. UnlikeGogol, who is reluctant to hop on a longhaul flight to see his homeland, I havegrown fond of Mauritius with its tradition,culture and way of life. Throughmy summer experiences, I have learnedto incorporate some Mauritian culturein my life, as well as bring someAmerican culture there.Mauritius runs deep in my veins. Ican speak the native tongue, French-Mauritian Creole, and I look forwardto eating Mauritian cuisine—which hashints of Indian food—and listening toMauritian Sega music. I spend only a fewmonths a year with my family, so I try tomake the most of my time there, whetherit is playing soccer with my cousins orcooking with my grandmother. I continueto be amazed at the importanceof courtesy, hospitality and decorum inMauritian society.Through my cousins, I learned thatcommunity service was a rare activitythere. This lack of support stunned meas it is so prominent in American societyand is even the focus of Taft’s motto, so Idecided to go to a shelter for the elderlyand disabled called Human ServicesTrust. There, I spoke to the directorof the program and I asked about thevolunteering situation in Mauritius. Heinformed me that it is not a commonactivity and most schools do not incorporateit in their missions. Therefore,I proposed to create a volunteeringprogram, whereby it would encouragestudents to serve their community more.To my cousins in Mauritius, they seevisiting America as a thrilling experiencethat holds much excitement, butas I reflect on my summer expeditions,I realize that I feel the same way aboutvisiting Mauritius. Come fall, though, Ido miss my family and the attraction Ifeel for Mauritius.—Ujal Santchurn ’11Taft Bulletin Fall 2009 11

around the PONDClubThe Taft PapyrusThe Taft Papyrus, the studentnewspaper that has been a forumfor campus discussion since1893, has hit the presses for thenew school year. The organization is comingoff the heels of an extremely successful springseason, as its first April Fools edition complementedsome fiery editorial pieces to create allkinds of stir at Taft. In this vein, editors-in-chiefCaroline Castellano ’10 and Hailey Karcher ’10are excited about the upcoming opportunitiesand challenges.“We plan to expand our creativity when itcomes to our articles,” Caroline says, “rangingfrom serious matters to silly ones and from traditionalformatting to new, innovative techniques.”The group hopes to put out three issues forthe fall semester, with the help of its staff andfaculty adviser John Magee. Caroline praisedMagee’s ability to push them as editors to “takerisks, stir controversy and just have fun.”Running the Papyrus is an exciting opportunityfor both seniors. The staff includes ninesection editors, who each select and mentorcontributors to the paper and report back to theeditors-in-chief.It is a real challenge to get such a big groupof busy students together in order to publishit, explains Hailey, but they are confident thateveryone views the Papyrus as a high enoughpriority.“We are proud of the dedication of our entirestaff,” she says, “and look forward to sharing intheir enthusiasm for our paper.”Spotlightx Editors-in-Chief CarolineCastellanoand HaileyKarcher ’10.Andre Li ’11Prep for PrepCampus plays host to Prep For Prep’s3-day summer programThe campus played host to Prep for Prep in August. Nearly 100 studentsentering grades 7 and 8, along with 23 advisers and 21 other staff, arrivedat Taft for three days of bonding, taking advantage of the opportunity tohelp build on their sense of community.Prep for Prep students complete a rigorous 14-month course of studyto prepare them for independent-school success. Once placed, Prep offerssupport services and leadership development opportunities thatfoster success at whatever students choose to pursue.“Taft has had a long and wonderful relationship with Prep for Prep,”says Headmaster Willy MacMullen ’78, “in part because John Vogelstein’52 and Lance Odden were both such committed leaders in creating a relationshipthat has thrived to this day. I was delighted that we could hostthem this summer.”Prep for Prep students meet on Wednesday and Saturdays throughoutthe year to build their academic readiness for private schools. The time atTaft also gave them the opportunity to meet their post-placement counselors.Facilities director Jim Shepard and Angela Lamond from the BusinessOffice coordinated the visit. “They were extremely accommodating andpleasant,” says Prep for Prep’s Jeff Roth. “They were always asking if therewas anything more they could do.”The appreciation was mutual. “These kids were absolutely wonderful,”says Business Manager Gil Thornfeldt. “You couldn’t have asked for anicer group.”Angela Lamond12 Taft Bulletin Fall 2009

around the PONDNEW TRUStees2009–10 Music For A WhileConcert Series In Walker HallYee-Fun YinSarkis D. Izmirlian ’90www.Mettawee.orgYee-Fun YinSeptember 25Beyond the High Valley—A Quechua StoryMettawee River Theater CompanyRalph Lee ’53, Director40 North Streetwww.Mettawee.orgOctober 2Basically BaroqueTaft School Music FacultyOctober 16Five PlayJazz Quintetwww.Divajazz.com/FiveplayNovember 6Hudson ShadMen’s Vocal Sextetwww.HudsonShad.netDecember 4Chris NormanWooden Flutewww.ChrisNorman.comDecember 15Taft School Annual Service ofLessons and Carols7:30 p.m., First CongregationalChurch, WatertownJanuary 8Rani Arbo and Daisy MayhemFolk/Blueswww.Raniarbo.comJanuary 22Darmon Meader QuartetJazzwww.DarmonMeader.comFebruary 12Manhattan String Quartetwww.ManhattanStringQuartet.comFebruary 26Art From the HeartTaft School Music FacultyApril 9Divi ZheniBulgarian Women’s Choirwww.Divizheni.netUnless noted, all performances are at 7:00 p.m. on Fridays and last approximately onehour. Concerts are free and open to the public. No tickets are required.Timothy A. andNancy N. O’Neill, P’11Julie ReiffG. Carter Sednaoui P’10,13Dylan T. Simonds ’8914 Taft Bulletin Fall 2009

In addition to welcoming Steve Turner ’86 as the newly elected alumni trustee, the board welcomes the following new members this fall.Sarkis resides in the Bahamas with his wifeand children. He is a 1994 graduate ofGeorgetown University with a b.s. degreeand a double major in international businessand finance. From May 1994 to June1996 he was employed in the New YorkPortfolio Management Department ofJP Morgan. He has been actively involvedin his family’s businesses since 1996. Suchbusinesses include commodities trading,agricultural equipment manufacturing,commercial real estate investment anddevelopment and financial investments.He is also a board member of the IzmirlianFoundation, which contributes regularlyto various projects in Armenia in suchfields as education, health care and varieddevelopment assistance.Tim graduated with a B.A. from ColgateUniversity in 1978 and an M.B.A. fromColumbia Business School in 1983. Afterbusiness school, Tim worked for the FirstBoston Corporation, Lehman Brothersand Bear Stearns, where he held variousmanagement positions in capital marketsand corporate finance. Tim is a foundingpartner of Parsonage Point Partners inRye, New York, and a managing partnerof Golden Seeds. He is on the board ofCSI Group Holdings and currently serveson the board of the Rye YMCA.Nan is a 1978 graduate of St.Lawrence, and formerly worked in securitiessales and trading. She serves onthe board of the Carver Center in PortChester, New York, and is involved withother charitable organizations.Tim and Nan live in Rye and havefour daughters: Ellie ’11, Caroline ’11,Maggie, 14, and Jarvy, 11.Carter lives in Skillman, New Jersey, withhis wife, Staley, and their son Carter,while Coco ’10 and Betsy ’13 attendTaft. He has been an active alumnus andsupporter of St. Albans School, includingserving on the Governing Boardfrom 2002 to 2008 and as co-chair ofits $80 million Centennial Campaign.He received a B.S. in economics fromthe Wharton School of the Universityof Pennsylvania and then worked forMarine Midland Bank in New YorkCity, where he specialized in loan workouts.After an M.B.A. degree from theUniversity of Virginia’s Darden School in1986, he joined the San Francisco officeof Eastdil Realty, a New York-based realestate investment-banking firm. For theeleven years ending in December 2001,he served as CFO, administrative partnerand general partner of Accel Partners, aSilicon Valley-based venture capital firmspecializing in information technologystart-ups. He is currently chairman ofPremium Power Corporation, a Bostonarea cleantech company that producesthe world’s lowest-cost, grid-scalable flowbatteries based on proprietary advancedenergy storage technology.Dylan began his career at the Oregonnonprofit, Ecotrust, developing programsin sustainable forestry and greenenterprise. During that time, he alsohelped to establish a regional chapterof the Good Wood Alliance, working topromote environmentally conscientiouswood use and to strengthen regionalforest-dependent businesses. He workedsubsequently for an oil and gas developmentjoint venture in Texas, where he ledresident leasehold negotiations, supervisedenvironmental compliance efforts,and oversaw investor relations. Currently,Dylan invests privately in a wide arrayof early-stage green businesses, rangingin focus from home furnishings toalgae-derived chemicals for the renewableenergy, industrial chemical, andspecialty ingredient markets. Throughthe Dylan Todd Simonds Foundation,he supports environmental and civicprojects in Pennsylvania and on the WestCoast. He serves on the boards of theHeadlands Center for the Arts in MarinCounty (California), the PittsburghbasedElsie H. Hillman Foundation, theBrooklyn-based Cardamom Project, andQ Collection, a leading environmentallysound furnishings company. He is anadvisory board member of both Ecotrust,where he previously served three termsas a director, and the Center for Businessand the Environment at Yale University.Dylan holds a B.A. from MiddleburyCollege, a master of environmental managementdegree from the Yale Schoolof Forestry and Environmental Studies,and an M.B.A. from the Yale School ofManagement. He lives in Mill Valley,California, with his wife, Dorlon, andtheir sons Will, 2, and Andrew, 1.Taft Bulletin Fall 2009 15

College16 Taft Bulletin Fall 2009

“Once I gothere, it waspretty clearto me that Taftwas a specialplace. There’s asense of familyhere that wasdifferent thanlots of placesI’ve been.”How did you become interested incollege counseling?I was in my third year at the Kiski School nearPittsburgh—teaching English, coaching, livingin the dorm—when the headmaster asked meto become their college counselor. I said to him,“What’s a college counselor?”Becoming a college counselor literallychanged my life. It has provided me with notsimply a job, but also a career that I have loved.Two years into that stint at Kiski, the dean ofadmissions at Allegheny, my alma mater, askedme to consider coming over to that side of thedesk and to join the staff there, which I did.You’ve been around schools mostof your life. Can you give us asnapshot of your career?Apparently I was doing fairly well because Ihad a few college and university presidentsstart to call me to ask me to take over theiradmissions operations. I passed on severalof them initially because I didn’t think I wasready for that challenge.When the president of Coe College inCedar Rapids, Iowa, called me, I went outand took a look at it, and ultimately made adecision to move the family from northwesternPennsylvania to the heart of the Corn Belt. I cutmy teeth on the admissions world out there. Ialso learned a great deal about what it meantto be of service to students and families as theywere in the midst of the college search and selectionprocess.Ultimately I found that college recruitingwas not necessarily where I needed or wantedto be; I really, truly, enjoyed working with kidson a day-to-day basis. So I looked for an opportunityto get back to college counseling. Iliterally applied through an ad that I found inthe Chronicle of Higher Education for the directorof college counseling position at ChoateRosemary Hall. I spent 11 years there, raised myfamily there, educated my children there; andmade friendships that continue to be strong.In 2000, after my kids went off to college,we went across the pond, and I became headof the upper school at TASIS The AmericanSchool in England. After the first year, I becamethe assistant headmaster for externalrelations and dean of admissions, but I missedbeing a college counselor.Looking to come back to the States, I acceptedthe job as director of college counselingat Montgomery Bell Academy in Nashville, andfor the next six years had a great time.CounselingtodayA conversation with Terry GiffenTaft Bulletin Fall 2009 17

College counseling“...here I thinkone can stillbe a wellroundedstudent, beinvolved inart, music,and theater,academics,student life.That makesTaft different.”What attracted you to Taft?What initially drew me to Taft was both personaland professional. My wife and I had lostboth of our remaining parents and being morethan 1,000 miles away from both of our childrensuddenly began to feel too far. We also missedliving in a boarding school community.As luck would have it, there were majorchanges going on here at Taft. Andy McNeill,whom I’d worked with at Choate, had beenlooking to step aside to devote more timeto his four kids, and as it all unfolded WillyMacMullen ultimately offered me the job asdirector of college counseling here in 2008, andI jumped at the chance.What are your impressions nowthat you’ve been here more thana year?Once I got here, it was pretty clear to me that Taftwas a special place. There’s a sense of family herethat was different than lots of places I’ve been. Weall work in and off this main hall here at school sowe see each other constantly. That ability to seemy professional colleagues every day, to talk aboutstudents, and to get to know students in several differentways, has made this place very, very special.The college counseling world has changeddramatically. It’s become big business, so Tafthas really put its money where its mouth is insupporting this office. We now have four fulltimecollege counselors in the office and our jobis to work day-to-day with our students as theynegotiate the college process.Can you tell us about how you work?I’ve tried to build a strong team approach intothis process. Having four full-time college counselorshere with more than 85 years of collectiveexperience in both college admissions and collegecounseling, including a former financial aidofficer, is awesome. We meet twice a week as astaff here in the college office, the first time to talkabout the nuts and bolts of what’s going on, planningfor deadlines, programs, travel and the like.But we also meet a second time every week totalk exclusively about students.What stands out most for youabout Taft students?There’s a balance here that I really appreciate.We frequently see students who arevarsity athletes become involved in the plays,students who are phenomenal vocal and instrumentalmusicians be involved with otheractivities like a math team or be involvedin leadership roles on the newspaper or theyearbook. At larger places you find pockets ofspecialization; here I think one can still be awell-rounded student, be involved in art, music,and theater, academics, student life. Thatmakes Taft different.What about the faculty?I really am struck by the collegiality of thisplace. The fact that we are one school undervirtually one roof allows us all to work together.I sit in on the department head’s meetingsonce a week, and one thing with which I havebeen particularly impressed has been the levelof collegiality and support for one another.Here I see an educational community wherepeople are working together with the ultimategoal of helping kids move through this placeand be prepared for college.Willy MacMullen’s support and confidencein me has been tremendous. I am also verygrateful to the faculty for the superb work theydo on behalf of our students. I’d also like tothank my college office colleagues: our officemanager Cheryl Gatling, who helps keep allthe pieces together, and the other counselors,Andy McNeill, Catherine Ganung and JasonHonsel, who all work tirelessly on behalf of Taftstudents.Can you describe your philosophytoward college counseling?What we do is not college placement, assome people call it, it is college counseling.We are here to help support students in whattruly is a rite of passage. The applicationprocess has gotten very complex, so as fulltimecollege counselors we follow that changingworld carefully.18 Taft Bulletin Fall 2009

What we strive to do is to work together withstudents, parents and faculty to assure that ourstudents have done all that is possible to maximizetheir ability to be admitted to our nation’sbest colleges and universities. I want our kidsto get into the best schools possible for them. Iwant to help our students find the best place forthem, a school where they can continue to grow,and where they can take this incredible Tafteducation, to use it as a foundation for furtherlearning on this journey that is our life.How do you get started withstudents?In some ways, the college counseling processstarts when students enroll at Taft, by encouragingthem to branch out, to try new things.We begin the formal college counselingprocess here at Taft in January of the uppermidyear. We start by asking students to completea self-assessment that gives us extensive informationabout their educational background,their academic strengths and weaknesses,their extracurricular involvements, and theirthoughts about potential colleges. From there,students begin to meet individually with theirassigned college counselor and we work carefullywith them to help shape their academicand extracurricular programs.What does the “calendar” of theprocess look like?The ultimate goal for us is to create, by theend of the second semester, a working list ofcolleges that students can research more fullyover the summer—hopefully making visits toa number of these schools so that when theycome back to school in the fall of the seniorPhotography by Peter Frew ’75Taft Bulletin Fall 2009 19

College counseling“I want to helpour studentsfind the bestplace forthem, a schoolwhere theycan continueto grow, andwhere theycan take thisincredibleTaft education,to use it asa foundationfor furtherlearning onthis journeythat is ourlife.”year we can quickly work toward creating afinal list of colleges to which they will apply.We’ll also work very carefully to help themfinalize work on college application essays thatwe encouraged them to write during the summer.After January 1 or so, most of the applicationsare—have been—submitted and itbecomes a little bit of a waiting game until theadmissions decisions start to appear in lateMarch and early April. We are there to supportkids all the way through this process, to counsel,to comfort, to celebrate as the decisions start toappear and then throughout the spring to workwith students as they strive to make the bestchoice possible as to where they might enrollgiven the options that are presented in April.In some cases, kids are placed on waiting listsand we work very carefully with them to helpthem build a wait-list strategy, so to speak, tokeep their name and face in front of the colleges.What are the important trends inthe admissions landscape?Throughout the year we certainly monitortrends in the admissions landscape, and therecent trends that have been interesting for us tomonitor have really related to the financial crisisthat our country has faced.x The College Counseling team includesDirector Terry Giffen, SeniorAssociate Director Andrew McNeill(right), Associate Director Jason B.Honsel (left) and Associate DirectorCatherine Ganung.20 Taft Bulletin Fall 2009

Other trends we see are the increasing levelsof sophistication with regards to admissionsmarketing and that the process is becoming apaperless one. So much so that this year we willbe submitting virtually all the application materialsfrom Taft to colleges in electronic form.How did the most recent seniorclass fare? And how do youmeasure success?The 170 members of the Class of 2009 submittedwell over 1,200 applications to over 240colleges and universities and now attend 90different schools in 25 states. (See “Where DidThey Go?”)I believe that we’ve been successful when ourstudents feel that they’ve been supported. Myultimate goal, as I mentioned earlier, is that kidshave choices come April.In what ways does Taft standout to colleges?What makes Taft unique in today’s world is thebreadth of focus that our students have. Whilewe know that many colleges are admittinglots of kids with really sharp points (less wellrounded),with strong academics and strongspecial skills in many, many areas, I think Taftcan still hold its head up very proudly by sayingwe do educate that whole person, as ourmission states. And that we are preparing studentsfor a lifetime of learning. We’re preparingthem to become contributors to a campuscommunity both in the classroom and out ofthe classroom. We’re preparing kids who reallyvalue serving others as Horace Dutton Taftmade so clear; that’s something we value.And that’s something I tell colleges all overthe country. I think if a college takes a studentfrom Taft, they can know that that student iswell prepared for the classroom; they’re goingto engage with the faculty, they are going to beout there in the community participating and inmany cases leading teams and clubs and groupsthroughout their college careers.Where Did They Go?The top ten percent of the most recent graduating class attendsthe following colleges and universities:1. Princeton2. Columbia3. Cornell4. Amherst5. Carnegie Mellon6. University of Virginia7. Dartmouth8. Stanford9. University of PennsylvaniaHow does your experience helpyour work here?Given the gray hair I have, it’s pretty obviousthat I’ve been involved in this business for along time. I believe that I’ve built a nationalreputation among my peers and pride myself oncontinuing to build and maintain relationshipswith college admissions officers around thecountry. In many cases that includes the deansand directors of admission, but it’s equallyimportant to get to know the younger staffmembers. They are very likely the first reader ofa Taft application. Our other counselors do thisas well, so when we phone a college, we can assurefolks that when someone takes a call fromus, our story is going to be heard.I plan to set deep roots here at Taft. I’ve feltimmediately welcomed into the community,and it’s my full intent to be here as long asthey’ll have me, finishing out my career here,providing counsel and mentorship to my colleagues,and keeping the seat warm for myeventual successor.I’m glad to say that, with many people’s help,we have put together one of the strongest counselingoffices in America—I will hold them upbeside anybody. I’m proud to be at Taft and lookforward to helping many Tafties in their collegehunt for years to come. j10. Columbia11. University of Pennsylvania12. Yale13. Notre Dame14. Stanford15. Johns Hopkins16. Columbia17. Vassar“I think if acollege takesa student fromTaft, they canknow that thatstudent is wellprepared forthe classroom;they’re goingto engage withthe faculty,they are goingto be outthere in thecommunity....”Taft Bulletin Fall 2009 21

crisscrossingAmericaby John Gussenhoven ’6547°51’28.61”N,121°42’05.47”WGold Bar, WashingtonThis stationary train at the western foothills of theCascade Mountain Range was a welcome taste ofwhat was to come: a daily encounter with east- andwest-bound freight trains conducting commerceacross America. Here, only the familiar rhythm of steelwheels rolling over the track seams was missing.22 Taft Bulletin Fall 2009

It began with the purchase of a Harley-Davidsonmotorcycle on November 2, 2004.…Taft Bulletin Fall 2009 23

CrissCrossing america47°52’01.52”N, 121°44’54.85”WStartup, WashingtonThe ironic starting point of the first leg of my journey. Sure, I was disheartened that mybike was not waiting for me when I arrived in Seattle, Washington, in 2005.However, if not for this delay I might not have enjoyed how fitting it was to beginmy northwest-to-southeast trip in Startup, Washington.Have you ever ridden a Harley? I hadn’t, so this would be a new experience for me, one that many people might findrisky or puzzling for someone who had spent his entire corporate life dressed in a suit and tie. But, yes, here I was, almost 60,buying a Harley—with the express purpose of exploring a country, which until 2005 was truly “foreign” to me.While I am an American citizen, as are my parents, I was born in Mexico City. Because of my father’s work, I spent most ofmy youth in South America. I attended schools in the United States starting at age 14 and began my business career living andworking primarily in the Northeast, save for a seven-year stint in the Midwest and a few years abroad. It was not hard to see why,after all these years (almost a lifetime), I had an intense curiosity about the vast sections of America that I had never seen.24 Taft Bulletin Fall 2009

I planned the trip by placinga map on the table and drewan “X” across the country, liketwo traversing plumb linesthat crossed in the middleThis crisscross served as myguiding itinerary and expandedthe scope of the geographyand riding experience morethan if I had traveled along amore horizontal route.Facing my own personal crossroads back in the winter of 2004, I made the decision to travel across the United States.I created a two-legged “discover America” itinerary in which I would cross the country in west-to-east journeys that wouldoccur in two separate two-week excursions. On the first leg of the journey (May 2005), I would travel from the Northwest to theSoutheast, and on the second leg of my trip (May 2006), I would ride from the Southwest to the Northeast. Somewhere in themiddle of the “X” that would be formed by these two trips, I would find myself in the center of the country. I was drawn by theurge to make the crossings by motorcycle. That, in my mind, would be the best vantage point from which to capture all that onecould see from the road—unobstructed by roof posts, tinted windshields, headrests and rearview mirrors.Taft Bulletin Fall 2009 25

Photography had always been one of my great passions, and I wanted to use this opportunity to record my impressions ofthe country. Fewer than six months after I purchased the Harley and Jim Wark had signed on for the aerial photos, I shippedthe bike from my home in Naples, Florida, to Seattle, Washington, where I launched the first leg.I intentionally began each journey on May 15 so that I could capture what was left of the colorful new growth of springand witness the rebirth that this glorious season represents. It would also be the time of year when our roads and highwayswould be largely devoid of summer travelers. I oriented both legs of my trip from west to east so that I could keep the afternoonsun and evening sunset at my back—the time of day when fatigue would usually set in.26 Taft Bulletin Fall 2009

32°50’46.71”N, 90°24’50.87”WNorth Main Street,Yazoo City, MississippiThis is a fine example of America’s quintessential Main Street—memoriesof yesteryear that we long for and strive to recreate in our urban renewals.Yazoo City has restored its historic district with dazzling color that preservesthe charm of its architecture. If you’ve never visited a Hollywood movie lot,this is a dead ringer. The linear, functional layout of the buildings can beespecially appreciated in Jim Wark’s aerial photograph above Yazoo City!I’d never heard of it, but leave it to me to happen upon this extraordinarylittle town as I made my way toward Jackson. What struck me most was thewildly creative, artistic use of color that embellished some of the town’smost dignified commercial buildings, located on South Main Street.Though the experience was unforgettable and life altering, the book is not about me. It is about what I saw through thelens of my camera. I photographed images without people in them so that you could become the observer that I was and sothat you could see America through your own eyes.Ironically, the book is as much about what I did not see as it is about what I saw. If you could hover above the ground at500 or 1,000 feet as you traveled across the country, you would see what Jim Wark captured from his airplane—vistas or sitesthat were only hundreds of yards from the main road, but that I was unable to see even from that close distance. I achievedthis by marking and recording every ground shot on a GPS device.Taft Bulletin Fall 2009 27

CrissCrossing america31°58’20.14”N, 87°29’10.86”WA Weyerhaeuser lumber mill on Highway 10,in Yellow Bluff, AlabamaFrom my limited roadside viewpoint, I imagined that behind the security fencethere would likely be a traditional manufacturing plant. But this aerial imagereveals something far more intriguing: the uncanny symmetry of neatly circledpiles of uncut tree trunks waiting to be stripped of their bark and cut into floorboards.Had I not known better, I might have thought this was the underside ofan industrial floor polisher, with its twin-bristle brushes. Call it nostalgia, but of allthe pictures I took during my trip, I was almost always mesmerized by abandonedfactories and old mills that you could see from the roads leading into the larger,industrial cities, especially in the Midwest and Northeast.I crossed a total of 27 of the 49 continental states, passing through only two of them twice: Oklahoma and Kansas.The total mileage recorded on my Road King Classic for the two legs was 8,556.5 miles.I welcomed the idea of traveling on some of these lesser-traveled roads, since it would be in the spirit of my quest for discovery.While the interstates were unavoidable (albeit safer, in my view, for motorcyclists), they offered generous opportunities forunique and memorable pictures. I did not select in advance the precise route for each leg, but did so on a day-to-day basis,depending on weather and traffic conditions, road construction and my personal stamina. For many who have wondered aboutthe safety of such an expedition, I made the entire trip without accident, traffic violation, flat tire, spill, bruise, bump or hangnail.28 Taft Bulletin Fall 2009

34°11’41.01”N, 91°54’31.97”WSoutheast of Pine Bluff, ArkansasThe mounds of dirt in the rice fields are made to contain the water used to flood these fields. The green is paler because the lightreflects from the shallow water covering the ground. This mesmerizing image looks like a delicate, Italian-designed silk fabric.As I read through the daily logs I had kept, I couldn’t help but remember the extraordinary hospitality and generosity ofthe many people I had met on the road. Each encounter had its own story, but the common theme that linked them all wasthat of genuine kindness and courtesy. You might think of these complete strangers as Good Samaritans, especially since whatstruck me most about their memorable contributions to my trip (delicious, home-cooked meals; assistance with my Harley;evenings spent in local bistros and bars hearing about families and local folklore) was that most, but not all, of these generouspeople seemed to be just getting by, yet gave freely of what they had. All of them, however, were rich in character and spirit.Collectively, they helped me realize that this kind of goodwill and kindness is the essence of America’s greatness.Taft Bulletin Fall 2009 29

In large part, thanks to these good people, I began to understand that this book could have a greater purpose thanbeing merely a vehicle to share my passion for photography. I came to see that Crisscrossing America could acknowledge,if even in a modest way, people who quietly touch the lives of others without seeking anything in return. So in April of2006, I funded a trust from which money or gifts could be directed to those who were in need, or who deserved someform of recognition or a lift.The book is dedicated to my beloved twin sister, Nini Gussenhoven (Westover Class of ’65), who passed awayunexpectedly in October 2006. She lived the journey with me vicariously from her New York City apartment through30 Taft Bulletin Fall 2009

44°56’46.49”N, 67°11’44.65”WWest of Pembroke, MaineThings looked pretty quiet at this roadside motel on a post-holiday weekendday. Nevertheless, the shoulder-wide motel rooms look appealing andcomfortable, given the few choices in this most remote eastern part of Maine.32˚03’20.75”N,87˚48’28.26”WEast of Marengo,AlabamaAs I traveled at more than 60 mph,I would capture a scene from thecorner of my eye, then take a secondor two to decide if the subject wasworth photographing. If so, I wouldslow down my bike, check for trafficbehind me, then circle back to theobject I had spotted. I repeated thiscycle hundreds and hundreds of times.The journal entries in the bookdescribe the only “close encounter”on the trip at this package store.telephone conversations and e-mails during both legs of my trip. I had planned to surprise her with the first proofs of thebook on our 60th birthday, but she left us just a month before this milestone celebration. While I have had a few willingriders on the back of my motorcycle, none was more enthusiastic than Nini on her first and only Harley experience. I willcherish that one ride with her forever. jPhotographs and excerpts are from John Gussenhoven’s book, Crisscrossing Americ. For more, visit www.crisscrossingamerica.orgwhere you will see photographs and journal entries, in their entirety, that are not included in the book.Taft Bulletin Fall 2009 31

Christopher Hirsheimer32 Taft Bulletin Fall 2009

My Life with JuliaQ&A with Alex Prud’homme ’80Fans of the popular summer movie Julie & Julia may already know that the film is based on two true stories:Julie Powell’s Julie & Julia and My Life in France by Julia Child with Alex Prud’homme.For the growing number of Julia fans, here’s the rest of that story…Q: what was your originalconnection to Julia Child?A:Julia’s husband, Paul, was the twin brother of mygrandfather, Charles Child. So she was my great-aunt. Igrew up knowing her on TV and in person; the two Juliaswere one and the same. The personality you saw on TVwas the same personality I saw at home—funny, smart andhappiest when cooking something delicious for an appreciativeaudience.Paul had been a diplomat, was an accomplished artistand was an essential part of Julia’s success. In fact, our bookis dedicated to him. He was ten years older than she was,knew all about wine and entertained us with unusual tricks.He and I shared a love of bacon and bananas, and Juliathought we looked alike—which is probably one reasonshe liked me.Q: how well did you knowJulia and Paul Child growing up?A: Quite well. Although they lived in Cambridge,Massachusetts, and we lived in New York, they were frequentlyin Manhattan as Julia’s career flourished. We’doften have Thanksgiving together, and we’d see each otherin Maine during the summer, where Paul helped my grandfatherbuild a log cabin.They never had children of their own but were close toCharlie’s children (my mother, aunt and uncle). They weren’tquite another set of grandparents to us—Julia was a celebrity,and they were always flying off to exotic places like Franceor California—but they were very down-to-earth people,and always curious about what WE were up to.Julia and Paul were generous, and would pass on gifts offood and cookbooks they’d been given from well-meaningfriends. But their biggest gift was to live their lives in anexemplary way: they taught us the importance of passion,doggedness, creativity and humor.Taft Bulletin Fall 2009 33

My Life with Julia“…their biggest gift was to live their livesin an exemplary way: they taught usthe importance of passion, doggedness,creativity and humor.”Q: what are some of yourfavorite memories of Julia and Paul?A: Mostly about eating, of course. Julia’s kitchen inCambridge was her laboratory, and the center of the house.We’d sit around the big table there talking—about movies,politics, food—while she tinkered with some new recipe onher old Garland stove. There were all sorts of giant knivesand copper pots and exotic culinary contraptions in herkitchen—like the giant mortar and pestle she bought inParis. (Her entire kitchen is on display at the Smithsonian.)This seemed natural to me, and it was only much later that Irealized how lucky I was to spend time with her.In Maine, Julia would join us in picking strawberries, fishingfor mackerel and digging for clams. She’d make chowder,bouillabaisse, lobsters, bread, jams and berry pies, and—ourfavorite—lace cookies.In New York, Julia would sometimes take us along to afund-raiser she was doing, and then we’d go out to a restaurant,where they’d seat us in the middle of the room and feedus way too much food. Afterward, Julia made a point of goinginto the kitchen to thank everyone from the dishwasherto the head chef. Entering a restaurant with her was an experience;I’ve seen near-riots break out when Julia walked intoa room. Once, a woman at a fancy restaurant set her napkinon fire when she knocked a candle over in a rush to get Julia’sautograph. Julia handled the crush of attention very well;Paul didn’t like it much but put up with it for her sake.We visited Paul and Julia in Provence a number of times.Shopping at the great outdoor market in Cannes, Juliaspoke to every vegetable and meat purveyor, and, naturally,they loved her. In 1976, when I was 14, she took us to LaColombe d’Or, a restaurant in St. Paul de Vence, where I hadmy first really extraordinary, three-plus-hour French lunch.Then Paul set up a TV on the veranda, and we watched theMontreal Olympics while Julia grilled the most deliciouschicken I’ve ever eaten.Of course, one of my best memories of all is spendingtime with Julia at the end of her life: we were writing thisbook together, and getting to know each other—and ourfamily stories—all over again. I feel very lucky to have spentthis private, reflective time with her.Q: when did you firstlearn that Julia was writing abook about her life?A: The years she lived in France, Julia said, were“among the best of my life.” It was there that she figured outwho she was and what she wanted to do with herself. Andfor almost as long as I can remember, she talked about writinga book about that time—“the France book.”In 1969, Paul suggested printing the letters that he andJulia had written to my grandparents from France. But thepublishers weren’t interested. Julia liked the idea, though,and kept notes about it. In her desk, I found files of thingsshe had written about her experiences there—her firstmeal in Rouen; how to shop for partridge in Paris, or fish inMarseille; the trials and tribulations of getting Mastering theArt of French Cooking written and published. But for somereason, “the France book” never got written.34 Taft Bulletin Fall 2009

“All right, dearie, maybewe should work onit together.”Talk about the process of writing thisbook with Julia.Q: how did you firstbecome involved in the writingof My Life in France?A: I was a professional writer, and had long wantedto do something collaborative with Julia. But she was selfreliant,and for years had politely resisted my offer.By December 2003, Julia had retired to Santa Barbara,California, and when I made my annual visit, she once againmentioned “the France book” in a wistful tone. She was 91,and growing frail, and I once again offered to assist her. Thistime she surprised me by saying, “All right, dearie, maybewe should work on it together.” I wasn’t especially prepared,but we sat down and did our first interview the next day. Ourcollaboration grew from there.For a few days every month, I would sit in Julia’s modest livingroom, asking questions, reading from a stack of familyletters, looking at Paul’s evocative photographs, and listeningto her stories. Occasionally we’d watch a tape of one of herold TV shows, and she’d tell me about it.It wasn’t always easy, though. Julia could only work fora couple of hours at a time. She didn’t like to talk abouther innermost thoughts. My tape recorder distracted her,so I took notes instead. But after some fits and starts, wefinally got into a good working rhythm. Many of our bestconversations took place over a meal, on a car ride, orwhile I rolled her wheelchair through the farmers’ market.Something would trigger her memory, and she’d suddenlytell me how she learned to make baguettes in a home oven,or how one had to speak very loudly in order to be heard ata French dinner party.When I had enough material, I would write up a vignette.Julia would read it, correct it, and add new thoughts. Sheloved this process, and was an exacting editor. “This bookenergizes me!” she’d say.We worked like this from mid-January to mid-August2004, when she passed away in her sleep from kidney failure.She died on August 13, two days before her 92nd birthday. Ispent the next year finishing My Life in France, and wishing Icould call on her to fill in the gaps.The final product is a true collaboration, featuring thevoices of Julia, Paul and a bit of me. I wrote some expositionand transitions, and used her funny words—“Yuck!” “Plop!”“Hooray!” In some places I have blended Paul’s and Julia’swords. Not only was this practical, but Julia encouraged it,noting that they often signed their letters “PJ,” or “Pulia,” as ifthey were two halves of one person. jTaft Bulletin Fall 2009 35

n Denali from the north by air: the Muldrow Glacier andNorth Summit (19,470’) with South Summit (20,320’)visible behind and to the left. Rising 18,000’ above thelowlands just to the north, Denali has more vertical reliefthan Mount Everest. The cirrus clouds are a good indicationthat foul weather is coming.36 Taft Bulletin Fall 2009

Angel of Denali__A Love For Adventure LuresLowell Thomas To Alaskaby Mike Macy ’69It is about -20 F. The air is smooth. No sign of downdrafts.No snow blowing off the ridges. Just a gentle north wind, 5 to 10 knots.And Lowell Thomas, Jr. ’42 is searching for Japanese climberNaomi Uemura, the first man to summit Denali alone in winter.“I’ve had five forced landings in my career,” says Thomas, “but I’ve never damaged an airplane orinjured a passenger—which I mostly attribute to good luck and The Good Lord. That day in 1984,searching for Uemura, was probably the closest I ever came.“I was at 20,000 feet, on oxygen, in my wheel-skied HelioCourier, on the north side of themountain. The next thing I knew, we were in a free fall. We pulled out of the downdraft less than30 seconds later, at about 14,000 feet, just above the surface of the Ruth Glacier—an incrediblerate of descent, more than 12,000 feet per minute. What probably saved me was that I neverstopped flying. That, and our momentum had carried us just beyond the rock and ice cliffs ofDenali’s east face.”To put Thomas’s Niagara-like plunge in perspective, most small planes are designed to climband descend at rates of hundreds of feet per minute, not thousands.Today, Air Force high-altitude helicopters routinely rescue climbers on Denali. For years, however,Thomas was the only fixed-wing pilot the National Park Service authorized to land high onthe mountain.Uemura, who was forced by weather on his descent to bivouac high on the mountain, wasnever found. Other injured or sick climbers did survive, however, thanks to Thomas’s skill andbravery. All but one or two of his dozen landings at 14,000 feet were evacuations.v Tay and Lowell Thomas with the wheel-skied“Helio,” known for its outstanding short takeoffand landing capability. Rob Stapleton PhotographyTaft Bulletin Fall 2009 37

v One of the last Westerners to visit Tibet in 1949 beforethe borders closed, Lowell Thomas ’42, left, is pictured acrossthe valley from the Potala, one of the wonders of the world,with interpreter Rimshi Kyipup, Luishahr Dzaza and LamaDorje Changwaba from the Tibet Foreign Ministry, andLowell Thomas, Sr.The saw is that Alaska has old pilots, and bold pilots, but noold, bold pilots. And for good reason: Alaska’s weather is hostileand fickle; until recently, navigational aids were scarce and unreliable;and the terrain is unforgiving. But Thomas, now 86, is asignal exception: In an aviation career spanning six decades, hespent nearly two flying Denali, one of the world’s most challengingaviation environments.At 20,320 feet Denali—or Mount McKinley as it is officiallyknown—is North America’s highest. Like all great mountains,Denali makes its own weather. But the world’s other greatmountains are closer to the Equator, where the atmosphere issignificantly thicker; consequently, Denali’s effective altitudeequals that of a 24,000-footer in the Himalaya. Furthermore,Denali’s position on the boundary between the North Pacific/Bering Sea and Arctic/Continental weather systems means thatbad weather can come from two directions, sometimes at once.If you press Thomas about his flying record and his emergingunscathed from those five forced landings, the most that he willallow is that, “Well, I always knew what to do.”Thomas grew up on a dairy farm in Pawling, NewYork. His dad, Lowell Thomas, Sr., author and radionews commentator, was one of the most recognizedvoices in America and a friend of many explorers. Andso it was that as a mere 16-year-old, Lowell Jr. joinedthe great mountaineer and photographer BradfordWashburn, his wife, Barbara, and four college seniorsfrom the Harvard Alpine Club on the first ascent ofMount Bertha, in Alaska’s Fairweather Range. Thomasdidn’t get a shot at the summit; nonetheless, he “fell inlove with Alaska, its mountains and glaciers.” He also becamelifelong friends with the Washburns.In 1942, during his senior year at Taft, a classmate’s fatherbuzzed the school in a Grumman Wildcat, which would becomethe Navy’s preeminent fighter during WWII. The Wildcatthen landed on the athletic fields. “That was really exciting!”recalls Thomas, who went on to Dartmouth the following year,before enlisting in the Army Air Corps. He trained to fly B-25Mitchells, the twin-engine, twin-tailed medium bomber thatcarried Jimmy Doolittle in his 1942 raid over Tokyo. Thomasproved so adept with the B-25 that he spent the rest of the wartraining others to fly it.He graduated from Dartmouth in 1948 and joined forceswith his dad, filming and producing movies. In 1949, the Tibetangovernment made an exception to their policy of excluding foreignersand invited Thomas father and son to Lhasa in the hopesthat the Thomases’ reports would help persuade the U.S. governmentto defend Tibet against the Chinese. The journey by footand donkey from Sikkim across the monsoon-drenched, leachinfestedHimalaya took 40 days, with taped reports dispatchedback to India by runner every day.The Thomases became the last Westerners to reach Lhasa beforethe Chinese. On the way home, Lowell Jr. had to evacuate hisdad after Sr. was thrown from his horse, breaking his hip in eightplaces. Published in 1950, Out of This World, Jr.’s book about theexpedition, became a best seller.Though both father and son continued to write and lectureabout Tibet, the U.S. largely declined to intervene. In the face ofSoviet hostilities and with war looming in Korea, the U.S. wasleery of tangling with an increasingly belligerent China. CBSv A good day at the office: Thomas is a signal exception to the Alaskan sayingthat there are old pilots and bold pilots, but no old, bold pilots. He haslanded numerous climbing parties and personally made several first ascentson Denali’s Tordrillo Range.38 Taft Bulletin Fall 2009

did not broadcast the resultant film, Expedition to Lhasa, Tibet,until years later. Lowell Jr. had been the cameraman. Althoughthe results were not as hoped for, the Tibetans remain gratefulfor the Thomases’ efforts; in 2005, the Dalai Lama bestowedthe International Campaign for Tibet’s Light of Truth Awardon Lowell Jr.Thomas followed his Tibetan adventure by taking his youngwife, Tay Pryor (whose own Taft connections are numerous),on a 45,000-mile flying odyssey by Cessna 180 through Europe,Africa, the Middle East and South Asia. Throughout the 1950s,he continued to film and produce movies. In 1958, with statehoodimminent, Thomas and his dad returned to Alaska to filma series about whether a wild place like Alaska could supportyoung families from elsewhere in the U.S. Lowell Jr. flew wife Tayand first child north, again in a Cessna 180.Tay immediately fell in love with Alaska, so the family stayedon after the project. [Tay has written six books about their lifeand three National Geographic features, including “Night ofTerror,” her hair-raising account of the 1964 Alaska Earthquakethat destroyed their neighborhood.] While making films, Lowelland Tay met and befriended Alaskans from many walks of life,some of whom persuaded him to run for public office.“They needed cannon fodder, I suppose,” says Thomas, whoat the time was a Republican in a Democratic state. After two unsuccessfulruns for Congress, the second ending in a recount, hewas elected to the State Senate, eventually serving two terms.From the outset, Thomas’s mission was conservation. At therequest of Alaskans seeking protection for the mountains inAnchorage’s backyard, Thomas introduced legislation to createChugach State Park. Despite stiff opposition stirred up by theconcurrent battle to protect federal lands, the legislation passed.Today, the half-million-acre Chugach State Park is universallyacclaimed as one of Anchorage’s greatest assets. A generoussupporter of conservation, Thomas made a million dollar bequestto Alaska Conservation Foundation in 2000, still theirlargest ever.He had another target: end bounty hunting, which heviewed as ethically and environmentally wrong. Right orwrong, many Alaskans were habituated to receiving governmentmoney for killing predators and therefore vigorouslyopposed his proposed legislation.Thomas had an unlikely ally in Charles Lindbergh, who wasappalled by the notion of using aircraft to slaughter defenselesswildlife. When Lindbergh heard that prospects for Thomas’s billwere bleak, he volunteered to help. Within days, Lindbergh wasin Juneau, addressing the legislature and governor behind closeddoors. Ultimately, the legislature scrapped bounty hunting. Twoyears later, Thomas flew Lindbergh over the Chugach and Kenaimountains, landing on several glaciers in the process. Few aviatorscan claim to have piloted one of the most famous of them all.In 1972, Jay Hammond ran for governor and asked Thomasto run with him as lieutenant governor. “I liked Jay Hammond.I would have done whatever I could to help him,” says Thomas.They won and he served one term before retiring from politics.“Throughout my time in Juneau, I kept flying and landing onglaciers at every opportunity,” says Thomas.Very few climbers fly; even fewer flyers climb. Again, he wasthe exception. He helped explore and climb the most prominentsummits in the Tordrillo Range, the glaciated peaks andvolcanos dominating Anchorage’s southwestern horizon. Overseveral years, Thomas landed a score of climbing parties abovethe mudflats and alder thickets that guard the Range’s flanks andpersonally made several of the first ascents.Looking for a post-political career, he was already thinkingabout glacier flying when the guide Ray Genet asked if hewas interested in helping shuttle his climbing clients on and offDenali. After seven years flying climbers as owner of TalkeetnaAir Taxi, Thomas spent another 12 years flying guests of CampDenali/North Face Lodge around, and sometimes landing on,the mountain.“Everyone wanted to fly with LowellThomas, Jr.,” says Wally Cole, CampDenali’s owner during that period andstill a good friend today. “For many ofour guests, flying with him was the highlightof their Alaska trip.”And for a few, it was a flight that savedtheir lives. jA craniosacral therapist, Mike Macy ’69,who lives in Anchorage, first moved toAlaska in 1976.n The National ParkTrust honored Thomaswith its first AnnualBruce Vento PublicService Award in2001 for his lifetimecontributions toconservation. Thomashelped establishChugach State Park andalso led the fight toend bounty huntingin Alaska.Taft Bulletin Fall 2009 39

from the ARCHIVESThunder and Stagecraft for Sun-UpOn February 24, 1935, the Taft DramaticAssociation, under the direction of science teacherRobert Olmstead, put on Sun-Up (1932), a playby Lula Vollmer. This was the Golden Age of dramaticstagecraft at Taft (with apologies to RickDoyle), when English teacher and “aesthete” RolloDeWilton directed set design, taking full advantageof the new, state-of-the-art Bingham Auditorium’sbackstage apparatus. The results were always elegantand real-life. An article in the Papyrus of thetime describes the effort to create the World War I-era, North Carolina log cabin interior and theatmospheric effects of the mountain setting.“…flats are divided into doors and windows…and painted. The fireplace…is made of boxescovered with canvas frames, with bulges here andthere to give it the lifelike appearance of hewnstone…Lighting effects are created from an intricateswitchboard system, by throwing certain lightson an external blue cyclorama in order to suggestbright daylight…”Stage crew made the sounds of a heavy windstormby turning a drum of slats at high speed overa canvas-covered frame. “Thunder is created bymerely pounding on a sheet of tin.” And to completethe sensory experience, “members of the castwill cook bacon and other food…on a small electricgrill placed inside the fireplace.”—Alison Gilchrist, Leslie Manning Archivesn The hillbilly WidowCagle (played by RobertChapman ’36), grievingthe death of her son inthe war, hears his voicetelling her to sparethe life of the stranger(Henry Bertram ’36),whose father killed herhusband, since the actwould only be of thesame blind nature. Alsoshown are Bud (CharlesCoit ’35) and Emmy(John Packard ’37).40 Taft Bulletin Fall 2009

Mark W. Potter ’48 Gallery 2009–10 SeasonBlake Joblin ’13September 1 to 26Taft Visual Arts Students2008–09Taft Student Work in Drawing,Design, Painting, Sculpture,Photography and CeramicsOctober 2 to 31Susan Mastrangelo: Slice of LifeRockwell Visiting Artistwww.susanmastrangelo.comNovember 6 to December 4Ubuntu: I Am Because We AreArt from the Juvenile JusticeSystem and Beyondwww.artisticnoise.orgOpening reception November 6December/January2009 Student WorkTaft Student Work in Drawing,Design, Painting, Sculpture,Photography and CeramicsJanuary 29 to March 5, 2010Greenswards, New Workby Nancy FrieseTremendous Trees, BendingSkies and GreenswardsRockwell Visiting Artistwww.nancyfriese.comThis exhibition is funded bythe Andrew R. Heminway ’47Endowment Fund.Opening reception January 29March 26 to April 24Celia Gerard ’91: Drawingswww.celiagerard.comOpening reception March 26April 29 to June 29Eladio Fernandez ’85Caribbean LandscapePhotographywww.eladiofernandez.comOpening reception April 29

Taft BulletinThe Taft School110 Woodbury RoadWatertown, CT 06795-2100860.945.7777www.TaftAlumni.comNonprofit OrgU.S. PostagePAIDBurlington, VTPermit No. 101Change Service RequestedSuper SUNDAYThad Reycraft ’10 happilytackles the Crisco slidefor the light blue team onSuper Sunday in September.Held on one of the openingweekends of school, SuperSunday is a longstandingtradition at Taft. Can anyoneidentify the year it began?Peter Frew ’75