Spring Gala 2022

BACK IN-PERSON!

Antilles put the “fun” back into fundraising at Spring Gala 2022, with more than 200 guests enjoying an evening of dinner, dancing, and entertainment benefitting the school’s students, faculty, and programs. The Mark C. Marin Center was transformed for the event, with festive Carnival décor matching the energy of dancers and moko jumbies in an opening show sponsored by the USVI Division of Festivals. Following a sitdown dinner, the sounds of Cool Session Brass rounded out the evening, pulling attendees to the dance floor until midnight. The generous support of sponsors, donors, and guests also helped Antilles exceed its overall fundraising goal, including more than $100,000 brought in for financial assistance.

Gala Sponsors

Presenting Sponsor

Alpine Securities

Diamond Sponsors

ProSolar Systems, LLC Theodore Tunick & Company

Platinum Sponsors

Budget Rent A Car Custom Builders Norcarib Group

Gold Sponsors

Baker Magras & Associates, Inc. Bluewater Construction FirstBank VI International Private Bank

Silver Sponsors

D. Iverson, DDS Dudley Newman Feuerzeig, LLLP Fintrac Keswick Insurance Partners 4 Kids & Children's Dental Care Seaglass Properties Seven Seas Water Something Another, USVI

Silver Sponsors

St. Thomas Properties, LLC The McClafferty Foundation VI Oncology and Hematology Virgin Islands Ear, Nose, and Throat

Bronze Sponsors

Merchants Commercial Bank Paragon Surgical Center TOPA Properties Webbe Construction, LLC Gala In-Kind Sponsors

88 Bottles/Artistic Jewelers Ashley Lauro Augustin Holder Barbara Young Barefoot Buddha Ballerina Jewelers Big Planet Bobby Kim Bolongo Bay Beach Resort Carambola Beach Resort Drs. Marilyn Braithwaite-Hall and David Hall Chris Brewer Coral World Dog House Pub Easterly Elin Hildebrand Fleagale By Design Garden by the Sea Heidi Windel High Tech Water Sports Jackson Fitness Jazmibelle Jessica Rosenberg Eden Jewelers Kekoa Sailing Leatherback Brewing Left Lane Charters Longboard Lovango Cay Resort Love Spa Rev It Up Nutrition Miss Naturalista Grand Jewelers Neressa Ford Nicci's Boutique Shannon Harris Oriol Nick Heinemann Orchard Inn Over the Line Charters Point Wellness Spa Prana Spa Prime Pro Solar Caribbean Ritz-Carlton St. Thomas Robin Fredey Rock City Pole Fitness Serafina Wellness & Alchemy

Gala In-Kind Sponsors

Shen Dragon Sibs Cafe Silk Greenery Kay's Jewelers Sonic Charters St. Thomas Yacht Club St. John Catering St. Thomas Restaurant Group Synergy Tammi Pearl Nail Salon Tap & Still The Buccaneer - St. Croix The Hideaway at Hull Bay Twisted Cork VI Craft Distillers VI Ecotours Virgin Island Coffee Roasters Virgin Islands Shooting Equipment Wala Ice Westin - St John

Stand Up for Kids

Ananta Pancham '01 and James Gardner '00 , P'26, P'28 Perfected Claims LLC Beverly and Allie Petrus P'12, P'27 Lynn Rabinovici Park and Andrew Park P'33, P'34, P'35 Jorie Roberts and Daryl J. Dodson P'09 Genevive Ryan Pedram and Hooman Pedram P'32, P'37 Annalise Setorie '06 Springline Architects Claire Starkey and Tom Klotzbach P'09, P'21 Switlik Foundation Cindy Talbert Kelly '99 and Ryan Uszenski P'30, P'33

Stand Up for Kids

Anonymous Carol Baker-Robinson and Donovan Robinson P'18 Dr. Denita Boschulte and Jeffrey Boschulte, Sr. P'26, P'30 James T. Boschulte Jr. Katrin and Mark Bradell Jeanne Brennan Wiebracht and Matias Wiebracht P'07, P'09, P'14 Budget Car and Truck Rental Cathy Chase and Dr. Jeffrey Chase P'11 P'28, P'28 Tina and Vick Chugani P'35 Pash Daswani Cecile and John de Jongh P'07, P'09, P'16 Gail and John Detweiler Katarina and Richard Doumeng '74, P'09 Cass and Chip Harris Shannon Harris and Jean-Pierre Oriol P'25, P'28 International Global Company Erika Kellerhals Carrie and Morgan Locke P'35, P'37 Sarah and Elliot Loewenstein P'24, P'27 Ian McPhee Heather and Jason Meringolo Joanne Moorehead '95 Frannie and Bill Newbold P'02, P'05 Scott Newland '04

FOND FAREWELLS: PUNKY SHARP '67

In 2021 and 2022, the Antilles community bid a happy retirement to Carol Malo and Punky Sharp '67, who each served the school for more than 30 years. Mrs. Sharp has always attributed her desire to work at Antilles to the strong bond she shared with her teachers, particularly Martha Christensen, with whom she later became friends. After receiving an offer from former Head of School Albert Prendergast upon her graduation from college, Mrs. Sharp joined the staff where, over the course of 44 years, she served in a range of capacities and helped launch several traditional activities and events, including the annual Holiday Bazaar. While she's perhaps best known by families as the manager of the school store, Mrs. Sharp has also been a member of the Business Office team, an extra pair of hands in the Early Learning Center, a founding member of the Antilles Booster Club, and - perhaps most importantly - a parent to three alumni. In April of 2021, Mrs. Sharp was inducted into the Antilles Chapter of the International Thespian Honor Society, an homage to her decades of contributions behind the scenes - often times with set design and costumes - at Antilles School plays.

(Top photo: Carol Malo brings in the materials she and Mrs. Sharp need to create costumes for the 2009 production of Grease.

CAROL MALO | A LIVING LEGEND

She started her career on island at Sts. Peter and Paul Catholic School, but it wasn’t long before former Head of School Mark Marin offered Mrs. Malo a job at Antilles in the late 1970’s, where she began working in the main office alongside administrative team members Kaye Knoepfel and Lynn Woodbury. From that point, and over the next three decades, there wasn’t a part of student life that Mrs. Malo didn’t touch. From carefully cultivating the school's archives to organizing pot-lucks and Booster Club events, working behind the scenes at school plays, writing the Hurricane Tracker, and helping to manage the Facilities team, she became a part of the fabric of the School, and continues to be celebrated by students and graduates for her humor, warmth, and generous hugs. The founder of the Antilles School Alumni Association, Mrs. Malo's true passion, however, lay in outreach and engagement - which she demonstrated by the bonds she cultivated with hundreds of alumni.

Mrs. Malo and her husband Steve ’70, are also parents to four alumni and the grandparents of two more - the only legacy family with three generations of Antilles graduates.

EXCELLENCE

Excellence is to do a common thing in an uncommon way. " -Booker T. Washington

STUDENT PROFILE: LUCAS RODRIGUEZ '22

It was in the Fall of 2021 that the National Merit Scholarship Corporation announced that Lucas Rodriguez '22 had qualified as one of 1,600 semifinalists, representing less than one-percent of high school seniors honored nationwide for their academic achievements, community activities, and leadership qualities, among other criteria. Excited to move to the next phase, he immediately began working on his application for National Merit Finalist, noting his passion for volleyball and soccer, his love of music – Lucas plays the trombone with ease – his position as a student government leader through his work with the Upper School Student Council, and his membership in the National Honor Society, TriM - an honor society for music students –and Antilles’ Student Ambassadors.

"It was a lot to balance, " Lucas shared.

"And while I was pretty focused on academics, it's always top priority, I appreciated the balance that also came with spending time with my friends and learning from my parents. I think that is what I most wanted the scholarship committee to know about me, and that I am grateful for being able to grow up in a school environment that helps me achieve that balance, while also excelling and attaining opportunities such as this. graduates that also received the scholarship. In December, Lucas was honored by the National College Board for “Excellence in Academic Achievement” by both the National Hispanic Recognition Program and the National Rural and Small Town Recognition Program, and finished the year as a Presidential Scholar, one of the nation’s highest awards for high schoolers – given to less than 200 a year. At graduation, Lucas - who set off to Johns Hopkins University in the fall - stepped on stage as the salutatorian for the Class of 2022, another honor he accepted with humility as he praised, in his speech, the guidance of his family and teachers, and the support of his friends. “While we have come so far and made so many memories, achievements, and lasting friendships, we still have an arduous path ahead of us filled with conflict, challenge, and eventual reward, ” Lucas said. “But if I had to place my bets on any group of individuals to break through into the world of adulthood in stride, it would be my classmates. When I look at this talented group of intelligent, passionate, intuitive people, the word that will never leave my mind is potential. There is so much greatness within all of us, waiting to unearth itself with the right combination of hard work, perseverance, and a little bit of luck to create the adults that our current class would be proud to be.

Flying in from San Francisco, Google Diversity Specialist Laurie Bennett helped surprise Gabrielle Baa '28 with some exciting news: out of thousands of entries, Gabrielle's was selected as the territorial winner of the annual Doodle for Google competition! The news, which made local headlines in May, was announced during a special Middle and Upper School assembly held on campus, with Gabrielle's classmates, teachers, and family present. Gabrielle was among the 54 state and territory winners whose Doodles went live on the search engine's main page and entered into the final phase of the competition, for a chance to win a $30,000 scholarship. Asked about her Doodle, which reflected this year's theme of "self-care, " Gabrielle said she incorporated some of her favorite activities, such as drawing and dancing, along with some of the things she hopes to do in the future, such as visit Paris. Ms. Bennett also recognized Antilles' Middle and Upper School art teacher Diane Holmberg with an Arts Education Appreciation Award from the company. “We proudly congratulate Gabby on this exciting honor. Seeing her face light up and hearing the thunderous applause from her peers following the announcement - it was truly a fantastic moment to witness, and we're grateful for programs like Doodle for Google, which allows students to showcase their creativity, " Head of School Shannon Harris said after the ceremony.

MAKING HEADLNES:

Google for Doodle

"We also deeply appreciate art educators like Diane Holmberg, who continue to inspire our students to explore these platforms for expression. While the contest has been ongoing for 14 years, submissions from the territory were not always eligible. Hoping to change the requirements, former Antilles history teacher Andrea Gilbert, in 2019, had her seventh-graders create entries for the competition celebrating VI-Puerto Rico Friendship Day, which were sent to Google along with a letter from the class asking that students from the territory be allowed to participate. Seeing one of the Doodle entries profiled online, Antilles alumna Sara Smollett '98 shared the story with her colleagues at Google, and a few months later, the company announced the inclusion of the USVI in the contest. In 2020, Ajay Mirpuri '26 was announced as Doodle for Google's first territorial winner.