Ashbury News Spring/Summer 2018
Welcoming the World at the
Round Square International Conference
125TH YEAR
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Ashbury
Ball
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Springfest
2018
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Alumni
Profiles
Ashbury News Spring/Summer 2018
Table of Contents
Ashbury News is published twice a year and sent to over 3,800 alumni, parents and friends.
News & Notes
Ashbury News is printed on 35% recycled paper. Online magazine updates are available at ashbury.ca
School News snapshots
Please submit news, story ideas, alumni updates, and any address changes to:
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Around the world in March
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Ashbury College Communications Office 362 Mariposa Avenue Ottawa, ON K1M 0T3 communications@ashbury.ca Phone: 613.749.5954 Front cover: Donny Xu, Love Mbakadi and Radin Masoumzadeh are three of over 50 students who will act as Barazza leaders at this year’s Round Square International Conference.
Welcoming the world at RSIC2018
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Centre for Science & Innovation
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Ashbury Ball 7
Inside front cover: Ashbury’s alumni gathering at London’s Royal Aeronautical Society, hosted by Sir Michael Marshall (’40–42), in May.
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Springfest
Features
Back cover: Junior students compete for house points in the tug of war competition during Springtime Funtime.
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Lessons in leaning in
(The photo that appeared on the back cover of the autumn/winter issue was taken by Chris Miedema. We regret the error in attribution.) Design and layout by AN Design Communications
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‘I never had a snow day’ 10
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Memories of Ashbury in the 1940s
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Ashbury Alumni
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A grand vision 11
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In Memoriam
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Ashbury Chatter
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Turning a page
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NEWS & NOTES
Head of School
From the
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t Ashbury, we often say that the world starts here. This fall, we’re pleased to be welcoming the world to Canada, our capital city and our campus, as we host the Round Square International Conference. As an international school with students from over 60 countries, our students are open minded to the perspectives, values and traditions of diverse cultures, as they develop with global understanding and responsibility. We share a spirit of outreach locally, nationally and internationally, and we send graduates into the world who are committed to making it a better place. We know that Canada is a destination of choice for many around the world, as the popularity of our own boarding program can attest. At last year’s Round Square International Conference in South Africa, I spoke to many students who voiced their desire to visit Canada and learn more about our country. We look forward to sharing our Canadian spirit with student delegates and their accompanying teachers, and we are fortunate that our location in the nation’s capital will provide the very best of an urban and rural experience for these guests. Our own students will benefit from the interaction with these visiting students as opportunities to compare and contrast school and social lives will inevitably arise. Our faculty, too, are looking forward to the professional development conversations that are bound to occur. It’s these
discussions about leadership, diversity, and other issues affecting a new generation that will be the cornerstone of the conference—and indeed, that will be carried on into Ashbury classrooms going forward. Of course, we don’t need an event such as an international conference to be reminded how connected Ashbury is to the world. This spring saw many of our students venture out to several spots around the world to learn new skills or complete community service activities. We held successful alumni receptions in both New York City and London, England, where we caught up with talented graduates who are studying or working in exciting areas, bettering their communities at home and abroad. We will welcome more graduates back to campus on September 22 for our annual Homecoming event. Our newest group of alumni will officially be celebrated at our 126th Closing ceremony, marking the end of what has been a productive and inspiring year for all. We look forward to connecting with these, and all Ashburians, soon—either on campus, or at another location around the world. A bientôt! Probitas, Comitas, Virtus, Norman Southward Head of School—Directeur
NEWS & NOTES
Canadians
Forum for young
Ashbury partners with political education program Billed as a life-changing experience for young leaders, three sessions each spring provide opportunity to learn about Canada’s political landscape directly from current politicians and bureaucrats on Parliament Hill. Forum’s impact has gone well beyond education, uniting students from different parts of the country under a national umbrella. The program has grown since its 1976 inception, with Forum alumni eventually taking over the reins from Ashbury, and then through a not-for-profit charitable organization. More than 22,000 students have benefitted from the Forum experience in the past 40 years, including nearly a hundred from Ashbury. The ties with Ashbury and Forum remain strong, and we recently welcomed many Forum alumni to our campus for a reception to reminisce and share memories of their shared experience. We look forward to creating many more Forum connections in the years to come.
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Grade 10 students Katherine Zucker and Juliana Ye were this year’s Forum representatives.
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Ashbury recently hosted a reception for Forum alumni.
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shbury recently signed an agreement that renews and deepens our historical relationship with Forum for Young Canadians. With this partnership, four partial scholarships are available for deserving Ashbury students, and a Forum Founders Award will be available to a student who demonstrates an awareness of the many aspects of our country: languages, diversity, politics, history and people. Forum for Young Canadians is a non-partisan program for youth aged 15–19 from across Canada, founded by The Foundation for the Study of Processes of Government in Canada. The week-long program provides students with an opportunity to learn more about the importance of public affairs and politics, through a behind-the-scenes, educational experience. The Forum got its start in the 1970s, when Tony German, then director of development at Ashbury College, looked for ways to develop a structured way for students from across Canada to learn more about Parliament, in a procedural, non-partisan fashion.
NEWS & NOTES
snapshots
School News
Junior School students celebrated reading in April as they dressed up as their favourite literary characters for Canada Book Day.
Ashbury celebrated Chinese New Year with dumpling making, learning to write Chinese characters, and a lion dance.
International Day is a perennial favourite on the Ashbury calendar, as students trade uniforms for traditional dress, and enjoy cultural performances and food from around the world.
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Junior School students took part in the sweet tradition of checking sap buckets during a visit to Canada’s only urban sugar shack.
NEWS & NOTES
Inuit historian and educator Louie Kamookak gave one of his last talks to Ashbury Geography and Junior School students in late 2017. Kamookak spoke about collecting oral histories of the Inuit in his hometown of Gjoa Haven Nunavet, and the effects of climate change in Canada’s north. He also talked modestly about his role in the discovery of the HMS Erebus in 2014, one of polar explorer John Franklin’s lost ships. Widely considered the world’s last great Franklin searcher, Kamookak died in March.
A visit from the Kenyan Boys Choir had students and faculty on their feet as they danced along to the enthusiastic performance that became a highlight of the school year.
Posing with Mama Icehog at Ottawa’s 40th Winterlude.
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Ashbury’s Head of Visual Arts, Tamara Doleman won the Secondary Art Educator of the Year award from the Ontario Art Education Association in April. Nominated by former colleagues, Doleman received the recognition for her 20 years of arts instruction, including strong pedagogy, and for her mentoring of alumni. “It’s a huge honour,” she says, “especially coming from the arts education community.”
Students donned jerseys atop their uniforms in support of the Humboldt Broncos on Jersey Day.
NEWS & NOTES
in March
Around the World
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shbury students travelled the world over March Break, with school trips and exchanges in New Zealand, Spain, France and Peru. From soccer training in Barcelona and rugby matches in Auckland, to visiting the love lock bridge in Paris, or paddling a tributary of the Amazon and tagging caimans, the excursions provided learning experiences—and lasting memories—for our students. NEW ZEALAND
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BARCELONA
NEWS & NOTES
PA R I S
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PERU
NEWS & NOTES
Welcoming the world Ashbury hosts the Round Square International Conference September 28 – October 5, 2018
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eptember is generally a busy place on the Ashbury campus. But this September, it will be even busier. That’s because in addition to welcoming 700 of its own pupils, Ashbury will play host to 350 students and teachers from around the world for the 2018 Round Square International Conference. The event will provide an opportunity for international students and educators, as well as Ashbury’s own student body, to explore both Round Square’s IDEALS and Canada.
The road to hosting
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he reasons for hosting are as varied as the Round Square schools around the world. But the main reason comes down to a Grade 12 student. Yasmeen Choudhri has attended four Round Square conferences during her time at Ashbury. She says she found the experiences inspiring, and she wanted to share that with her classmates. “Not a day goes by where I don’t think about how the conferences have changed my perspective, and impacted my life,” Choudhri says. “I wanted my peers to feel the way I did about Round Square, and have similar experiences.” So Choudhri approached the school leadership with her idea that Ashbury should welcome the world. “Ashbury is such a welcoming and diverse school that I thought it would be the perfect fit to host such an amazing conference,” she says. Her idea was immediately championed by Ashbury’s Head of School, Norman Southward. He saw that hosting the international conference presented a unique advantage
for the school, where historically, only a handful of students participate in a Round Square conference or exchange each year.
“We have an opportunity to have our entire school community be impacted by an exchange experience on our own campus.” In 2017, Southward approached the Round Square organization to enquire about the possibility of hosting a conference at Ashbury. The first choice, especially given Ashbury’s highlyinternational community, was to host an international conference that would provide an even more varied demographic on campus. The challenge then became about numbers, as Round Square’s international conferences typically attract about 700 attendees—numbers Ashbury couldn’t support, especially with school in session. So, the search began to interest other Round Square schools to share the hosting duty. “Splitting the delegate population between schools is common,” explains Southward. “It makes the conference a more personal experience for attendees, and delegates get to have a Canadian experience in local home.” After much discussion, two other schools signed up for co-hosting duties: Appleby College in Oakville, Ontario, and Lower Canada College, in Montreal, Quebec. Each school will host its own delegates in late September and
NEWS & NOTES
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early October, with its own programming, under the umbrella theme of ‘Bring Your Difference.’
global connections our children will have because of a simple act of hospitality.”
Billeting
Program and schedule
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ackling the program for a conference of such magnitude has been a challenge for the Ashbury faculty and students tasked with the planning. Once the conference theme—Bring Your Difference—was established, the schedule began to take shape. Central to most Round Square conferences is an array of speakers and activities that both promote student leadership, and describe the host country. The organizing committee has worked diligently to curate a speaker list that representative of Canada’s past and present. “We are fortunate to have an abundance of speakers at our disposal,” says Southward. Delegates will be treated to presentations from Arctic explorers, Aboriginal leaders and gender diversity experts. Student committees have helped inform the content for the conference, while adhering to the structure stipulated by the Round Square organization. Most of the conference programming will take place at Ashbury, with visits to offsite facilities for adventure and service days. Each day will be themed, and will incorporate aligned activities. Sprinkled in between larger group presentations will be a variety of activities and workshops, dinner and a dance, and all of which are focussed on Round Square ideals while appealing to teenagers. Delegates will gather in student-led groups—called Barazzas—to explore and learn. Some of the programming includes a refugee simulation exercise, an opportunity to explore Ottawa ‘amazing race’ style, hiking
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he opportunity to billet with Canadian families is a huge bonus for Round Square conference delegates. It’s also one of the more challenging elements for conference organizers. For over a year, Ashbury volunteers have been hard at work recruiting families willing to host one or more students in their home for the duration of the conference. It has been a daunting task, but to date, almost all of the 300 beds required have been accounted for. “The number of people who have come forward to billet has been a happy surprise,” says Southward. “The biggest fear was that we could find enough beds, but the Ashbury community has stepped up in droves to help.” Billet families are asked to provide bed and breakfast to students (accompanying teachers will stay in hotels) for the duration of the conference. Most days will be full of conference programming, but there is an opportunity for the billet family to spend time with their delegates on the conference’s third day, and they are encouraged to show off some Ottawa sights during that time. Ashbury parents are used to the ins and outs of billeting and those who have hosted visiting students in the past, they know how memorable it can be. “We’ve hosted many students, and it’s been a delightful experience every time,” says parent Parmoun Eatemadi, who will be welcoming Round Square delegates into her home in September. “What I appreciate the most about these exchanges are the long-lasting friendships, and the
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NEWS & NOTES
ABOUT ROUND SQUARE
Founded in 1966, Round Square is a global network of innovative schools in 50 countries on six continents that share a passion for experiential learning and character education. The Round Square approach is built around six IDEALS of learning: Internationalism, Democracy, Environmentalism, Adventure Leadership and Service.
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and whitewater rafting, and a service day where students will do trail building, canoeing and build a camp fire. “It’s part of the Canadian model to go to camp and spend time outdoors, and we’re looking forward to sharing that,” says Ashbury’s Director of Partnerships and Programming, Padme Raina. Conference organizers are keen to show off the national capital, as well, which will be in its prime at conference time during the transition from summer to autumn. “Delegates will be awed by Ottawa,” says Ashbury teacher and Round Square Coordinator, Éric Lavergne. “As a city, we are often neglected in favour of Montreal and Toronto, but we have a lot to offer here.” Brian Storosko, Ashbury’s Deputy Head Teaching and Learning agrees, and adds that Ashbury’s advantage over the other host schools is in its location. “Being in Ottawa, not only are we bilingual, but we can give students an urban and rural experience at the same time,” he says. Southward, who attended the 2017 Round Square International Conference in South Africa, knows that Canada is at the top of the list when it comes to destinations students want to visit. “The ability to access the outdoors so quickly and the open concept lifestyle we have here in Canada are highly appealing to international students,” says Southward. “The sense of space will shock a lot of students.”
Students at the centre
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hile the conference delegates will be the ones who directly benefit from the conference offerings, there will be many opportunities for Ashbury students and faculty
to be involved. Fifty Ashbury students have signed up to act as Barazza leaders during the event, where they will lead conversations on a variety of topics, including diversity and global stewardship. Indeed, students are at the heart of any Round Square conference. Ashbury’s students will also be part of some of the speaker presentations, help with logistics for much of the conference organization, and will interact with the many international guests on campus. Ashbury faculty will also interact with their international counterparts as an exercise in professional development, and learn more about the Round Square framework (teachers have been asked to consider how they might include the Round Square IDEALS in their classroom teachings, while other teachers will lead conference activities).
Membership of the Round Square network offers schools a framework for excellence and continuous improvement, along with structured opportunities to collaborate and share experiences with like-minded peers around the world. Ashbury College is one of 180 Round Square schools around the world, and has been an active member since 2007. Round Square schools share a passion for experiential learning, and are characterized by a shared belief in an approach to education based on six pillars known as IDEALS, drawn from the theories of education philosopher Kurt Hahn.
IDEALS Internationalism: Students learn to see themselves as global citizens and to look beyond gender, class, race nationality and culture to understand human nature. Democracy: Freedom of thought and speech is greatly encouraged and appropriate forums and channels of communication are set in place. Environmentalism: Students learn about the fine balance needed to maintain a healthy independent relationship between human beings and the planet Adventure: Students offer activities that foster a spirit of adventure and allow students to discover that they are capable of more than they might have imagined. Leadership: Students learn that true leadership is serving others and is found in those whose convictions are rooted in personal responsibility, kindness and justice. Service: Students come face-to-face with the plight of those in most need around the world and discover how they can make a positive and sustainable difference through service.
“For our teachers and students who haven’t experienced a Round Square initiative before,” says Storosko, “this is an opportunity to learn how what international relationships bring to a school.”
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NEWS & NOTES
Legacy
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reparation for the conference will continue right up until the event begins in late September. Organizers say that although the planning has been a challenge, the task has been made easier by many hands. “It’s a huge task to manage everything, in terms of logistics, moving pieces, and people,” says Lavergne, “but we’ve been overwhelmed with people who are willing to help.” Lavergne adds that he’s hopeful that Round Square will be part of the dialogue of the school after the conference. “I think Round Square will become part of our DNA after this,” he says. Storosko says the conference will help Round Square become known to families who previously had not had an exchange, or international, experience. “This conference will be a catalyst for building awareness and will put Round Square on the radar of the community. With so many opportunities for students and parents to be involved, Raina says she is most excited by the engagement potential of the conference. “The Ashbury community will come together in ways they haven’t before,” she says. “Students will be pushed out of their comfort zone.” With fall colours complementing the agenda, Southward is hoping the conference experience will be memorable for visitors and hosts alike. “We’ll forge friendships and understandings by creating an international dialogue on issues facing a new generation,” he says. And what of the hope of the young woman who sparked the idea in the first place? Choudhri says she aims to strike the perfect balance between inspirational keynote speeches, Canadian adventures, meaningful service, and student connections. “We have a full and exciting schedule planned, and I hope every students and staff member makes the most out of every day, because I know it will go by very fast.”
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CONFERENCE THEME
11 1 2 Student performances allow students to share their 3 4
culture.
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for students to learn from presentations and discuss issues.
7 8 Visiting students will explore the Canadian wilderness as part of the conference.
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Square conferences, and delegates participate in community building in each host country.
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The selected theme for the 2018 Round Square International Conference is Bring Your Difference representing the fact that multiculturalism is a fixture of Canadian society. Canada was the first country in the world to adopt multiculturalism as a national policy in 1971. As a population, Canadians embrace the mosaic of cultures—in essence the differences—that make up our nation. The diversity of this country is a source of strength, and this conference hopes to express these principles through daily themes.
NEWS & NOTES
RSIC2018 Delegate Representation
GREENLAND (DENMARK) ALASKA (USA)
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IC
CANADA
5 UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
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YASMEEN CHOUDHRI
Yasmeen Choudhri, Grade 12, is an experienced conference goer, and was the impetus for Ashbury’s decision to host a Round Square conference of its own. Though she’ll have graduated by the time the conference is held, she has vowed to return from university to see the event in action.
AZORES (PORTUGAL)
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MADEIRA I (PORTU
CANARY ISLA (PORTUGA
MEXICO
THE BAHAMAS
CUBA HAITI DOMINICAN JAMAICA
REPUBLIC
PUERTO RICO (USA)
SAINT KITTS AND NEVIS
BELIZE GUATEMALA
CAPE VERDE
MONSERRAT GUADELOUPE DOMINICA
HONDURAS
MARTINIQUE
EL SALVADOR NICARAGUA
SAINT VICENT
THE GA
BARBADOS
GUINEA-
How many RS have you attended while at Ashbury, and where were the conferences? I have attended four Round Square Conferences: a conference of the Americas in Colombia, and three international conferences in Singapore, Germany, and South Africa.
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How do you think the conference will affect Ashbury’s students and faculty? Leading up to the conference, so much anticipation has developed among our school community. We have already been able to start training young leaders, and introduce aspects of the conference theme and the Round Square IDEALS into our curriculums. Our school is becoming an even more tight-knit community as we prepare for an exciting and well-rounded conference experience. The amount of enthusiasm brought to a Round Square conference from international students and teachers is also contagious. I think when the conference is in full swing, our entire school community will leave every day feeling inspired and proud of what we have accomplished.
VENEZUELA
PANAMA
GUYANA
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SURINAME
COLOMBIA
FRENCH GUIANA
ECUADOR
BRAZIL
PERU
What have your experiences as a RS delegate given you? Travelling as a Round Square delegate has allowed me to try things that I would have otherwise been afraid to try. From living among colourful snakes and spiders in the Amazon to sailing in the rocky waters of Germany, Round Square has given me a new sense of adventure, and I am now more willing to put myself into new situations and be more independent. The people involved with Round Square, including the keynotes, teachers, and other delegates, have challenged me to think from different environmental, social and political perspectives. What is your goal for RSIC2018? I hope that RSIC2018 allows students to realize their leadership potential and make lifelong friendships and connections. I hope the theme, Bring Your Difference, along with the amazing lineup of keynote speakers, effectively communicate the importance of diversity and inclusion in Ashbury and in Canada. Most importantly, I hope that the Ashbury community develops a stronger connection with Round Square, and future students become just as excited as I was to sign up for the international and regional conferences every year.
TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO
COSTA RICA
BOLIVIA PARAGUAY CHILE
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URUGUAY ARGENTINA
FALKLAND ISLANDS (UK) SOUTH GEORGIA (UK)
International School
Country
Anania Shirakatsy Armenian National Lyceum Woodleigh School Westminster School Scotch Oakburn College Radford College Geraldton Grammar School Bunbury Cathedral Grammar School Strathcona-Tweedsmuir School St. Mildred's-Lightbourn School St. Clement's School Lakefield College School Bishop's College School Ashbury College Cayman International School Craighouse School YK Pao School Colegio Los Nogales Schule Birklehof The Private Realschule Gut Warnberg International Community School, Kumasi
Armenia Australia Australia Australia Australia Australia Australia Canada Canada Canada Canada Canada Canada Cayman Islands Chile China Colombia Germany Germany Ghana
NEWS & NOTES
SVALBARD (NORWAY)
CELAND
RUSSIA
SWEDEN
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FAROE ISLANDS
FINLAND
NORWAY
ESTONIA LATVIA
IRELAND
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BELGIUM
BELARUS
POLAND
NETHERLANDS
GERMANY SLOVAKIA
FRANCE
LIECHTENSTEIN
AUSTRIA
MOLDOVA
HUNGARY
SWITZERLAND SLOVENIA
ROMANIA
CROATIA BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA
SERBIA
UZBEKISTAN
PORTUGAL
GEORGIA
MACEDONIA
ITALY
ARMENIA
ALBANIA
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TUNISIA
MOROCCO
TURKMENISTAN
TURKEY
GREECE
SYRIA
MALTA
ISLANDS UGAL)
AZERBAIJAN
CYPRUS
AFGHANISTAN
IRAN
IRAQ
LEBANON
ALGERIA
LIBYA
PAKISTAN
MAURITANIA
MALI
NIGER
CHAD
SENEGAL
-BISSAU
GUINEA
SIERRA LEONE
ERITREA
QATAR
BANGLADESH
INDIA
UNITED ARAB EMIRATES
OMAN
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YEMEN DJIBOUTI
TOGO BENIN
NIGERIA
LIBERIA D’IVOIRE
CAMEROON
CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC
UGANDA KENYA
EQUATORIAL GUINEA SAO TOME
GABON CONGO
ETHIOPIA
SOUT SUDAN
BIOKO (EQUATORIAL GUINEA)
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SAUDI ARABIA
SUDAN
BURKINA FASO CÔTE GHANA
NEPAL BHUTAN
EGYPT
WESTERN SHARAH
AMBIA
KASHMIR
KUWAIT
DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF THE CONGO
BURUNDI
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1 MYANMAR (BURMA)
TAIWAN LAOS
1
THAILAND VIETNAM
CAMBODIA
1
INDONESIA
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COMOROS
ZAMBIA
MALAWI
ZIMBAWE
NAMIBIA
BOTSWANA
MOZAMBIQUE
MAYOTTE (FRANCE)
1
MADAGASCAR
PAPUA NEW GUINEA SOLOMON ISLANDS
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MAURITUS REUNION (FRANCE)
VANUATU FIJI
AUSTRALIA
SWAZILAND
SOUTH AFRICA
GUAM
PHILIPPINES
ADAM AND NICOBAR ISLANDS (INDIA)
MALAYSIA
SEYCHELLES
TANZANIA
ANGOLA
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JAPAN
SRI LANKA
SOMALIA
RWANDA
CABINDA (ANGOLA)
SOUTH KOREA
CHINA
ISRAEL JORDAN
ANDS AL)
NORTH KOREA
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BULGARIA
MONTENEGRO
SPAIN
1
MONGOLIA
KAZKAHSTAN
UKRAINE
CZECH REPUBLIC
LUXEMBOURG
LESOTHO
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FRENCH SOUTHERN AND ANTARTIC LANDS (FRANCE)
HEARD ISLAND (AUSTRALIA)
NEW CALEDONIA (FRANCE)
NEW ZELAND
International School
Country
International School
Country
Woodstock School Vidya Devi Jindal School The Scindia School The Sanskaar Valley School The Punjab Public School The Emerald Heights International School Scindia Kanya Vidyalaya Rajkumar College Mody School Miles Bronson Residential School KC Public School HIM Academy Public School The Doon School Assam Valley School The British School Jakarta Yakumo Academy Tamagawa Academy Starehe Boys' Centre & School Epsom College in Malaysia (ECiM) Elaraki School
India India India India India India India India India India India India India India Indonesia Japan Japan Kenya Malaysia Morocco
The Chandbagh School Christ's College Stanford Lake College St. George's Grammar School St Andrew’s College Bridge House School SEK International School Ciudalcampo Aiglon St. Constantine's School Regents International School Pattaya Latymer Upper School Gordonstoun School Box Hill School AKS Lytham The Marvelwood School Hotchkiss School Fountain Valley School of Colorado Cate School Buckingham Browne & Nichols School Renaissance International School, Saigon
Nepal New Zealand South Africa South Africa South Africa South Africa Spain Switzerland Tanzania Thailand UK UK UK UK USA USA USA USA USA Vietnam
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UNITED KINGDOM
1
LITHUANIA
DENMARK
NEWS & NOTES
Centre for Science & Innovation
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rogress on the development of our Centre for Science & Innovation continues, with incredible support from the Ashbury community. From current families, past parents, alumni and our Foundation Board, there is palpable excitement around this project. In early February, we marked an initial milestone, which will allow us to break ground on this $10-million dollar renovation and upgrade. There is still much work to do in the coming months to realize our final goal, and we want to extend a sincere thank you to our campaign chairs, who will be instrumental in helping us to secure the remaining funds needed to deliver this essential centre to our students. Major gifts, first-time donors and reoccurring gifts from community members are all commitments that will contribute to the success of the Centre for Science & Innovation Campaign. It is important to recognize that each and every gift Ashbury College receives, regardless of size, is contributing to a significant milestone in the 127-year history of our school. The Centre for Science & Innovation will truly change the way our students think and learn about science and technology, skills that are increasingly valued in the 21st century. Ashbury continues at a vibrant pace, with students recently presenting their scientific and technological knowhow at the Ashbury Innovate showcase and an Ashbury trip the NASA Space Centre in Houston, Texas, a school first. The Junior School Science Symposium, Ottawa Regional Science Fair, and the Senior School’s Ashbury Innovate are all examples of recent events that showcase
out exceptional students and their appetite for science and innovation both on and off campus. A major highlight of the campaign to date has been the enthusiasm that many donors have shown towards financial assistance. Ashbury College’s most recent strategic plan focused on access to the Ashbury experience for all mission-appropriate students, regardless of the candidate’s socio-economic background. Our donors recognize this challenge, and remain committed to providing the Ashbury College experience to all deserving students. In 2018–19, Ashbury College will award over 75 deserving students bursaries and merit awards through our financial assistance program. As we continue to focus on meaningful financial assistance, students receiving need-based funding account for the majority of these awards. The momentum around science, technology and innovation is strong, and with the continued support of people like you, we look forward to opening the doors to our Centre for Science & Innovation in 2019. If you haven’t already committed to making your gift, please do so now. We need your help to complete this critical project.
Visit ashbury.ca/csi-give or call 613-749-9630 ext. 299 to make a gift
NEWS & NOTES
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achel Baxter, past parent, is a lawyer with considerable experience in advising on federal legislative and regulatory regimes, particularly in the area of environmental law. Recently retired from the Department of Justice, Rachel joined that Department in 1993, serving as counsel to the Dispute Resolution Project, the Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency, Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Canada, Environment Canada and Transport Canada. As acting Deputy Director at Environment Canada Legal Services, Rachel was lead counsel for both the Climate Change and the Commercial Law teams. She has a B.Sc. in Biology and Ecology from McGill University, a Juris Doctorate from the University of San Francisco, and a Bachelor of Civil Law from McGill. She is a member of the Bars of Quebec and California. Rachel is a member of the Faculty Advisory Board of the McGill Faculty of Law and is active in community affairs in Ottawa.
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ohn Lindgren, current and past parent, became CEO of IPVALUE in August 2017. Prior to IPVALUE, Mr. Lindgren was the President and CEO of Conversant Intellectual Property Management, where he grew the company to become one of the largest and most highly-regarded patent monetization platforms in the industry. Earlier, Mr. Lindgren enjoyed a 20-year career with Texas Instruments Incorporated focused on intellectual property enforcement. Mr. Lindgren holds a JD from Southern Methodist University School of Law, where he graduated magna cum laude and was editor-in-chief of the SMU Law Review. He earned an MSEE from Southern Methodist University School of Engineering and Applied Science, and a BSEE from Duke University School of Engineering. Mr. Lindgren is a member of the Texas, Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, and the U.S. Patent and Trademark bars.
NEWS & NOTES
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he 2017 Ashbury ‘Once Upon a Time’ Ball presented by Sezlik.com and Star Motors of Ottawa/Ogilvie Motors Ltd was a magical evening filled with dazzling decor, amazing entertainment and delicious cuisine! The Ashbury Guild enlisted co-chairs extraordinaire, Jenny Shinder and Micheline Saikaley, to create a storybook event that raised over $215,000 to help fund the new Centre for Science & Innovation, meaningful financial assistance and much more! A sincere thank you to Jenny and Micheline for their enthusiasm and leadership, as well as the entire Ball Committee for their tireless work in ensuring the success of the 17th annual Ashbury Ball. This evening would not be possible without the support of our event sponsors, corporate guests and entire Ashbury community. Rapunzel aerial artist dazzling guests before dinner.
SPECIAL THANKS TO OUR GENEROUS SPONSORS FOR THE EVENING PRESENTING SPONSORS
C O R P O R AT E S P O N S O R S
Sezlik.com Star Motors of Ottawa/Ogilvie Motors Ltd.
Jamilah Taib Murray
1251 Capital Group Dilawri Auto ExcelHR Ginsberg Gingras Great West Life Smith and Bradley’s Insurance
SUPPORTING SPONSORS
EVENT SPONSORS
Claridge Homes District Realty
Bassi Construction LP Arthur J. Gallagher The Hicks-LeGallais Family Tamarack Homes
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BAND SPONSOR
Vittoria Trattoria The Shallowbrook Group Avenue Lock and Security MSi Corporation The Strachan-Hill Wealth Advisory Group Top Shelf Distillers Elyse and Dr. Eddy Malouf ‘08 Preston Dental Centre The Laquerre Family Big Rig Brewery Rent frock Repeat DG MacDonald Moving & Storage Artistic Landscape Designs Ltd.
NEWS & NOTES
2017 Ball co-chairs Jenny Shinder and Micheline Saikaley.
Ashbury student, Isabella Nicole, serenades guests during the cocktail hour.
Guests enjoying the Harry Potter-themed station.
Emcee and auctioneer Stuntman Stu Schwartz with his wife, Connie Bernardi.
Presenting sponsors Cindy and Charlie Sezlik ’86 and Dominique Laframboise of Sezlik.com.
SAVE THE DATE 2018 ASHBURY BALL
Some of the amazing silent auction items up for grabs.
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Presenting sponsors Vicki, Arnie ’78, Jeff ’82 and Tara Leigh Mierins representing Ogilvie Motors Lt. and Star Motors of Ottawa Inc.
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Our volunteer ball organizing committee contributed to an unforgettable event.
NEWS & NOTES
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Springfest 2018
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ur annual Springfest was a sun-filled day ready to usher in the season! The morning started off with the Guild Plant Sale and our now-famous Colour Run. Students, staff, alumni and our Head of School all participated in this fun and colourful activity around Rockcliffe Park and Ashbury’s campus. Rugby rounded out the afternoon with games from our Junior School, Varsity girls, Junior and Senior boys teams. Visitors enjoyed another delicious BBQ lunch prepared by Brown’s and the Guild-run canteen. A reception followed, where alumni and parents enjoyed catching up after an exciting day. Thanks to everyone who came out to celebrate!
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The final colour burst.
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Alumni from the ’80s gathered at the Springfest reception.
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Grads connecting in the alumni tent.
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Junior School alumni with Norman Southward and Brian Storosko at the reception.
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Young alumni gathered at the reception.
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Varsity girls rugby.
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Junior School flag rugby.
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Senior boys rugby.
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Dedicated volunteers.
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Kids Zone fun.
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Students full of colour after the run.
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F E AT U R E S
l eaning in
Lessons in
Tessa Lyons-Laing ’07 and the journey from Harvard to Facebook
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any of us read inspiring books that end up changing our lives in one way or another. For Tessa Lyons-Laing ’07 picking up a copy of Lean In, by Sheryl Sandberg, COO of Facebook and founder of LeanIn.Org, not only added fuel to her life-long passion of supporting women and children—it led to a career. Lyons-Laing was working at a management consulting firm in New York City in the fall of 2013, and planning a return to Harvard (she graduated magna cum laude in Social Studies in 2011), to attend business school. The passages she read in Lean In, Sandberg’s book about empowering women to succeed in business, and whose title has now become a catchphrase in itself, resonated. “I had never met Sheryl, but I’d read about her and admired her career,” says Lyons-Laing. “When one of my mentors asked me what I would do if I could do anything in the world, I told him that I wanted to work for the Lean In foundation that Sheryl was starting to help women achieve their ambitions.” Those words proved prophetic. With the help of connections at her then employer, McKinsey & Company, and a contact who knew Sandberg, Lyons-Laing received a secondment to move to San Francisco from New York to work for LeanIn.org. She took a position leading the organization’s grassroots program, called Lean In Circles, where she worked with academics to develop educational curricula aimed at women. After about nine months in the job, her success caught the eye of Sandberg, who encouraged Lyons-Laing to apply to be her Chief of Staff at Facebook.
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“I learned so much from Sheryl about inspiring teams, serving partners, and always showing up prepared,” says Lyons-Laing. “I picked up little tricks that have stuck with me, like Sheryl’s three rules for meetings: coffee and food in the room, lights on all the way, and partners speak first, along with core skills that serve me well every day, such as communicating with simple and clear language.” Working for Sandberg took Lyons-Laing around the world, including India, Korea, France, and Germany, among others. She says one of her most memorable trips was accompanying Sandberg to the World Economic Forums in Davos, Switzerland in 2016, where the pair met with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. Beyond the international press that meeting garnered, it also turned out to be personably notable for Lyons-Laing. “At one point I heard someone in the press area calling my name, and I realized that my Ashbury classmate, Adam Scotti (’07), was travelling with the Prime Minister as his photographer,” she says. “Having my two worlds—Facebook and Sheryl on one hand, and Canada and Ashbury on the other hand—connect in Switzerland was pretty memorable.” Lyons-Laing worked for Sandberg for three years, but recently transitioned to a new role at Facebook. She’s now a product manager on News Feed. “I spend my days working with engineers, data scientists, and designers to ensure that the experiences people have on News Feed are authentic and meaningful to them,” she says. Many of the skills Lyons-Laing uses in her career today were honed at Ashbury, she says, where her favourite classes were English and Peace and Conflict studies.
F E AT U R E S
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Lyons-Laing speaking to Prime Minister Trudeau with Facebook’s Sheryl Sandberg at the World Economic Forums in Davos, Switzerland in 2016.
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Lyons-Laing in Tel Aviv with her mother, Deborah A. Lyons, Canada’s ambassador to Israel.
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Lyons-Laing at her 5th Harvard Reunion with Sheryl Sandberg, who was attending her 25th Harvard Reunion. Sandberg was Class Marshal, and Lyons-Laing was part of her Honor Guard.
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Lean In, published in 2013 by Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg, was a source of inspiration for Lyons-Laing.
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Speaking at a Facebook event.
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“Ms. Novick’s history classes were perfect preparation for working with Sheryl,” she says. “I learned to always show up prepared and never get flustered under pressure.” Other skills were polished on the stage in the Ashbury theatre. “Mr. Simpson’s theatre program prepared me for my career in ways I never could have imagined. I learned to empathize, to really listen, and to improvise.” After graduating from Ashbury, Lyons-Laing studied at Harvard, where she balanced academics with co-curriculars, serving as co-president of Harvard’s largest undergraduate student organization, Women in Business—an experience that no doubt aided her work with Sandberg. After her sophomore year, Lyons-Laing spent the summer working as a production assistant in Hollywood, where she connected with the idea being a producer. One of her mentors at the time suggested she get some business experience, and recommended she apply to a management consulting firm. The following summer she interned for McKinsey & Company in New York. “I ended up loving it,” she says. So enamored was she with the work, that she decided to return to the firm full-time after she graduated. Her work involved advising clients in both the US and Brazil on strategy and operations. “Most of my clients were in media and tech, and I realized how much I loved working in those industries,” she says. Throughout her career, one element has remained consistent for Lyons-Laing: her passionate support for women and girls. “That passion was what made me move from New York to San Francisco to work for Sheryl’s Lean In foundation, and it’s continued to drive my service work,” she says. Lyons-Laing recently joined the board of CARE USA, a humanitarian organization that fights
global poverty by empowering women and girls. CARE operates in 94 countries reaching more than 80 million people through nearly 1,000 lifesaving projects. “This summer I’ll travel to Jordan and Syria to see our work with refugees firsthand,” she says. “I know from my mother, from Sheryl, and from the work of countless researchers that the most effective way to change the world is to unlock the potential of women and girls.” Ten years after leaving Ashbury, Lyons-Laing has embraced the opportunities that have come her way. What’s her advice for young graduates just starting on careers of their own? “Make decisions based on two things: people and problems,” she says. “Find people who inspire and invest in you. Follow them. Find problems that excite and terrify you. And try to solve them.”
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‘I never had a snow day’ For Michael Barnes ’73, living on campus meant never missing a day of school
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s a young boy, Michael Barnes looked up to his older brother Charles, a boarder at Ashbury. By the time he was 9 years old, Barnes successfully convinced his parents to let him join his brother and become an Ashbury student, too. Despite his parents’ proximity to the school—the family home was in Ottawa’s west end—the lack of bussing options at the time, his father’s work at National Defence and N.A.T.O. during the Cold War meant he was often out of town, and his mother rarely drove, making boarding a good option for the Barnes boys. “Being from England, my parents were very familiar and comfortable with boarding schools,” says Barnes. “They put a very high value on a well-rounded education, and they continually encouraged my brother and I to learn.” Barnes became an Ashbury boarder in Grade 3 and stayed until he graduated Grade 13 in 1973.
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“My first impression of Ashbury was that I had entered a land of giants” “In the dining room, and walking in the old narrow basement corridors, Senior School students loomed over us little students. As I got older I had the lingering impression that the upper year students were steadily shrinking year after year.” Barnes shared a room with three other boys where the current Memorial Wing is now. “That’s up the winding staircase from the old gymnasium in my era,” he says.
He remembers a plain dresser, a table with a chair, and a set of drawers provided storage under the bunk beds. A radiator gave off noisy heat, and the room was painted white with a large, double-hung window. “In the winter, we would pour water in the wooden windowsill and let it freeze,” Barnes says, “then take a soft drink bottle cap turn it upside down and use it as a puck to play hockey on our miniature frozen rink.” When Barnes progressed to Senior School, a move to the boarding rooms at the front of the school accompanied the transition. “It was good place to be to see what was going on day or night,” he says. Barnes remembers one particularly memorable event, where his boarding windows provided an outlook of Canadian history in the making. “During the 1970 FLQ (Front de libération du Québec) Crisis, the army arrived in the middle of the night to collect some firearms used by the Cadet Corps Honour Guard,” he says. “The next day the annual cadet corps inspection was
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F E AT U R E S
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Barnes’ determined spirit carried over to house competitions, where he represented Connaught House proudly. By Grade 13, Barnes was a prefect, and recipient of the Southam Cup. Following graduation, Barnes attended Queen’s University in Kingston to study economics. But Ashbury was never far behind. “University residence was natural place for a boarder, and I made some good friends along the way,” he says, “including, believe it or not, a Grade 3 classmate from Ashbury!” Armed with a university degree, Barnes entered the civil service, where he has spent the last 33 years working for the federal government doing policy, analytical and program work. He has done everything from running the inspection program for gold, silver and platinum articles sold in Canada, to working on the telemarketing do not call list, anti-spam legislation, and sitting on the committee to develop a national standard for home inspections in Canada. His personal life has been equally as fruitful, with a marriage to Josée that has spanned 28 years and pro5 duced two daughters: Sara and Sophie. Looking back at his boarding years, Barnes says it taught him to be adaptable. “You had to deal with your own situation, and all those around you.” It’s that life skill, and the relationships formed during his time at the school, that he carries with him today. “I had a lot of good friends at Ashbury,” Barnes says, “and whether I was with them for a year, or 10 years, I remember them very well.”
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Cadet Day 1970. Michael Barnes ’73, left, with his father Leslie, and brother Charles ’70.
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Barnes with Ashbury’s current Head of School, Norman Southward, and his 1973 classmates, Nigel Macleod, Richard Plummer.
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Barnes at play during an Ashbury vs Sedbergh School soccer game in 1965. Barnes with a friend’s dog in 1963, shortly after he started at Ashbury.
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set to take place, but someone spray painted FLQ onto a brick wall. The graffiti was promptly covered over by a Canadian flag.” Canadian political climate aside, Barnes remembers the 1970s as a period of transformation for Ashbury as a school. “There was a change in orientation, with Ashbury gradually shedding its historic academic model and attributes— like mandatory cadets—and searching for a different benchmark for delivering outstanding education,” Barnes says. At that time, Ashbury was much smaller than what it is today. Classrooms featured basic wooden desks and chairs (often etched with graffiti), and some of the teachers wore black academic gowns. Barnes remembers a focus on university admission, and an English private school atmosphere. “Arts and performance curricula were still in the distant future, although joint musicals were held with Elmwood,” he says. “Only gradually did purpose-built science and library space appear.” In addition to the soccer and football fields tennis courts and undedicated grassy areas surrounding the school, there was a practice cricket pitch for batting and bowling, Barnes says. “In the winter, we had a full-size hockey rink with a skating oval around it,” he says. “With no electronics, we lived outside, and played in frequent inter-house competitions.” With so much activity around him, Barnes remembers life was busy as a boarder. “The school worked on a predictable schedule, which started at 7:15 a.m. rise and shine, a run around the front drive before breakfast, weekday chapel, classes, sports, an evening home work session called prep, and ended with lights out.” As is the case with Ashbury boarders today, life on campus was a mix of academic, social and co-curricular activities. “The tuck shop and nearby Junior and Senior common rooms were the social centres, especially in the evening,” Barnes says. “There we watched the Beatles first perform on Ed Sullivan, and the original six NHL teams’ games, with only a couple of TV stations to choose from!” Whether on TV, or on the field, sports played a big part in Barnes’ time at Ashbury. “I played basketball, cricket, soccer, track, skiing, volleyball, cross country running, and more,” he says. “Sports were perhaps both my major and minor.”
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F E AT U R E S
Ashbury College
Memories of
in the 1940s
During the Second World War, Roger (Tony Bidwell) ’43, moved to Canada from his home in England, to begin a new life that started at Ashbury
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y family moved from England to Canada in 1940, and took up residence in Rockcliffe Park, an eastern suburb of Ottawa at the time (my father being a naval officer, we went wherever the government sent us). This was a most delightful move— no more bombing and cross-channel gunfire! Rockcliffe was a lovely place to live, and I enrolled in a super school. At that time Ashbury was flooded with wartime refugees, and the classrooms were full. The whole school used to gather in the Assembly Hall every morning and sit respectfully while the Housemaster, Mr. A. D. Brain, took a roll call. Everyone’s name was read out, and a notation was entered if there was an absence. If anyone was noisy or disobedient, Mr. Brain would roar, “You’ll regret that—as sure as my name is Arthur Douglas Brain!” I found out later that he was a delightful gentleman, and we became great friends long after I had graduated from Ashbury. The Headmaster, Mr. Archdale, was a real gentleman, and many years after I left Ashbury we met and spent a most interesting afternoon discussing the delights—and the problems—of wartime school. The Science Master at that time was a German gentleman who had escaped in time to immigrate to Canada: Mr. Wilhelm Schultz Tigges. He was rather roly-poly with a strong accent, and some of the boys teased him unmercifully (which really didn’t bother him at all). I was deeply interested in science, and I owe to him my long and most enjoyably career in scientific research and university teaching. He had a laboratory-classroom on the second floor above the gym, and I spent many enjoyable afternoons in his lab after classes. At that time, we had a very fierce military gentleman (I regret to say that I have forgotten his name) who organized and ran the Ashbury College Cadet Corps. We were lined up on certain afternoons after class, and marched around the playing fields, and later (when we got a bit more organized) around Rockcliffe Park. We were made to march very militarily. I was used to walking four or five miles in the countryside, so I didn’t march quite correctly, and was strongly reprimanded. I pointed out that I could walk much further and faster with less effort, but I was firmly informed that marching was marching, NOT walking. After some discussion, I was discharged from further military duty. Figure out who won THAT battle!
Altogether, I believe that my time at Ashbury was one of the most important and effective parts of my education. It put me into the middle of a group of people of my own age (more or less…) and taught me how to study and learn—and how to get along with the many people, students and masters, that I lived with. It was also a most enjoyable time and I made good friends, some of whom I have met—usually unexpectedly—in later years. I reckon I got a first-class education, not only in schoolwork, but in the much more important capability to get on with, and learn from, all the people with whom I have had to live and work. I’ve had a very enjoyable life as a university professor in Toronto, Kingston, Halifax and Cleveland, Ohio (a three-year desertion of my homeland!) and published around 100 scientific papers and a couple of books on plant physiology. Now my wife, Shirley, (also a Dalhousie graduate—that’s where I met her) and I relax, explore the countryside in rural Nova Scotia, visit and entertain friends and neighbours, and enjoy life. Thanks, Ashbury, for a really good start in real life!
Roger G. S. Bidwell, B.A., B. Sc., M.Sc., Ph.D., F.R.S.C., Isaak Walton Killam University Research Professor (Retired), Dalhousie University.
ASHBURY ALUMNI
Home and Away
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shbury alumni kicked off the 2017 holiday season with another fantastic alumni holiday party at the Canadian Tire Centre for an Ottawa Senators game in December. Successful receptions were also held in Boston at the Back Bay Social Club, in Toronto at the Gallery Grill, in New York City at the Penn Club, and at the Royal Aeronautical Society in London, England, at a reception hosted by Sir Michael Marshall, who attended Ashbury as a wartime evacuee. 2
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London:
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Vicky Wilgress, Ashbury Relations Ambassador with Lady Sibyl Marshall, Norman Southward, Head of School, with reception host, Sir Michael Marshall ’40–42.
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Carina Siegmund ’03, Genevieve Friesen with her husband, Troy Puddington ’03.
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Norman Southward with Sir Michael Marshall, Edward Cahn ’74 and Stewart Wooles ’67.
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Alumni spring gathering in London, England at the Royal Aeronautical Society, kindly hosted by Sir Michael Marshall.
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Edward Southward ’17, Mi Yen Ho ’17 and Misko McGregor ’17.
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Kathy Boate ’99, Deane McRobie ’08, Ryan Near ’99, Michael Wang ’81, Kevin Massie ’98 and Nanakarina Kwofie ’98.
Boston:
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Alumni gathered at the Back Bay Social Club. Back row: Norman Southward, Spencer Griffin ’16, Ashbury friend, Anthony Zhong ’17, Dylan Si ’12, Christina Rizk ’12. Front row: Milan Roberts ’17, Karina Wang ’17, Emma Brandeis ’17, Olivia Zed ’13.
Holiday:
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Sean Murray ’82, Brian Morrison ’82, Jeff Mierins ’82, Rand Peppler ’82.
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Naomi Niznick ’10, Michelle Holman, Anita E ’09.
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Jake Ruddy ’07, Ian Middleton, Riley Taggart ’15, Andres Beltran ’96, Bryan MacKinnon, Jacquie Lovatt-Stern ’05, Danial Taggart ’05.
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Alumni gathered at the Canadian Tire Centre.
Toronto:
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Alumni gathered at the Gallery Grill.
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Ian Mutter ’08, Chris Noel ’08, Caroline Ross ’08, Olivia Taggart ’08, Dana Achtemichuk ’08, Keegan Butler ’08.
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Amelia von Finckenstein ’14, Patrick Glinski ’00, Dickson Wood ’63, Mitch Kurylowicz ’15.
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Norman Southward, Ian McLaine ’90, Patrick Bartlett ’91.
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Rt. Hon. John Turner ’47, Teddy Taggart ’11.
NYC:
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Nikola Ruddy ’09, Sam Chandan ’92.
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Erin Williams ’99, Ole Book ’54, Norman Southward.
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Caroline Mierins ’10, Christine McLellan ’07, Erin Williams ’99, Peter Volynsky ’02.
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Alumni gathered at the Penn Club.
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Cyrus Boadway ’00, Sophie Lemieux ’15, Duncan Lemieux ’17, Norman Southward.
Visit ashbury.ca/alumni or find us on Facebook at facebook.com/ashburians to find out about future alumni receptions!
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SAVE THE DATE HOMECOMING SEPTEMBER, 22!
ASHBURY ALUMNI
grand vision
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Former board member Bill Teron left his mark on the Ashbury campus
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hen William (Bill Teron) died in March at the age of 85, he left behind a legacy imprinted on the city of Ottawa, and on Ashbury. Teron is credited for helping to shape postwar Ottawa through his building technology firm, Teron International, and was a lifelong advocate of good community design. He also held the role of Ashbury parent—three of the Teron’s four children attended Ashbury— and sat on the Ashbury Board of Governors for many years. His oldest son Chris, who graduated from Ashbury in 1976, now carries his father’s torch, both on the business front, and on the Ashbury board. He describes his father in three words: designer, planner and visionary. “That’s a simple explanation of who he was at his core.” The Teron family’s first connection to the school started with Chris, who arrived at Ashbury in 1968 when his parents sought a more fulfilling school experience for their son. “Prior to Ashbury, Chris wasn’t inspired at school, and nothing excited him,” says Jean Teron, Bill’s wife and Chris’ mother. “Ashbury gave us back a new young boy, but it took the teachers and personal attention to bring that out.” Chris Teron remembers his father’s acute attention to detail, whether it was in the design for a small family home, or an entire suburb (Teron senior was known as the ‘Father of Kanata’.) It was that creative attribute that made Teron an asset to Ashbury from the beginning. In addition to his involvement as a parent, Teron joined the school’s Board of Governors in the 1970s. “When Bill was asked to join the board, he said yes, because he wanted to give back to the school as much as he could,” says Jean Teron. At the time Teron joined the board, the Ashbury campus consisted of two main buildings: the Heritage building, which is today’s front of school, and the Memorial Gym and Argyle Wing at the back. The buildings were for the most part separate, with students travelling between the two outside, or on rare occasions when the weather was poor, underground through a tunnel. The school’s leadership at the time were keen on a construction project, and had a goal to unite the buildings. That’s where Teron’s planning abilities came into play. “My dad drafted a conceptual plan to connect the two separate parts of the school and to create what is now known as the Joyce Wing,” says Chris Teron. Construction on the project started in 1974, and the two buildings remain joined to this day. A decade later, Teron once again became involved in a major school build; this time the gymnasium that now bears the name Anderson Gym. Beyond lending his construction guidance, Teron also donated the long span 2
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pre-cast concrete beams for the ceiling, which were unique to the Teron company. Bill’s tenure with the Ashbury board eventually ended, but years later, his wife Jean upped her commitment at the governance level, and she remains an active Serving Life Governor today. In the years following his graduation from Ashbury, Chris also became involved in the board, starting first on the property committee, where he was active in exploring plans for a music and arts building. As he did regularly in his work life, Chris consulted with his father to pick his brain about what might be possible. “Bill said almost immediately, ‘oh, I have an idea for that,’” remembers Chris, “and he came up with plans for a two-storey building with music rooms on the bottom, art studios on top—with a bridge connecting the Joyce Wing to the library.” Those initial plans evolved slightly as the school’s needs changed, most notably adapting to include a learning commons. Both Bill Teron’s initial ideas are reflected in what is now the Creative Learning Centre, the doors of which opened in 2014. That innate ability to provide solutions sums up Bill Teron, says his son. “Show my father any type of problem, and he quickly had an idea of how a solution could be found,” says Chris Teron. “Bill always had a grand vision, whether he was working on a single-family home, planning a community, or designing Ashbury. He always asked for the main vision, and then asked, what are we going to do to solve that?” Bill Teron is survived by his wife Jean, children Chris ’76, Kim, Will ’86 and Bruce ’87 and seven grandchildren, including Briar ’04 and Heather ’07.
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Bill Teron at work in 1957.
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Bill and Jean Teron in 1995. (All photos courtesy of the Teron family)
In
Memoriam
Robert Alyea, past parent William Baskerville ’35 Robert Burder ’44 Henri P. Eschauzier ’55 Liz Kane, past parent Bruce Ogilvie ’56 John F. Smith ’46 John Steenbakkers, past parent Ronald H. Sumner ’51 Bill Teron, past parent, former member of the Board of Governors Joan Thompson-Valle, past parent
Liz Waddell, past parent, former board member
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Anthony Tross ’76
ASHBURY ALUMNI
Chatter
Ashbury
Michael Shenstone ’45 saved many items from his days at Ashbury College, including the old crest, a silk pennant, invitations to dances, and photos from 1941 to 1945. Of particular interest was a weekly printed publication called Panorama, which he donated back to Ashbury, and has been a wonderful addition to the archives. (Photo: Michael with his wife Susan, and Vicky Wilgress, Ashbury Relations Ambassador)
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rad Hampson ’82 had an article published by the Duke of Ed Ontario Award Holders Association in December about his experience with the Duke of Ed (DOE) Award Program. He received his award from the Duke of Edinburgh himself, Prince Philip.
“As an Ashbury College grad in 1982 I was the first Gold Award achiever in the history of the school. While I was certainly proud of this accomplishment, it would not have happened without the leadership of teachers Dave Morris and John Beedell who coordinated the program at the school. As a teenager with not a lot of wisdom yet or life experience, I
could have easily strayed away from the DOE program without these teachers keeping me on track. Teenagers often think about five seconds into their future when strategizing on the future and that was me. One aspect of the program was to have great impact on me and still does to this day. Community Service is an important DOE pillar in volunteering to give back and improve the communities we live in. I recall Mr. Morris counselling me on this in terms of choices and he guided me towards visiting the elderly and infirmed in hospitals and retirement homes. I recall accepting this challenge with some reticence and asking him what I would say to these lonely people whom I did not know. He told me to speak from the heart, to ask them questions about their lives, to tell them a little bit about my own life, hopes, fears, and expectations. I took up the challenge and was introduced to a local Ottawa retirement nursing facility where I started
my visits. Weekly I was introduced to elderly folks who had no family and were nearing the ends of their lives in some form of loneliness. I was very nervous on my first visit but soon discovered that these visits of mine seemed to add quite a bit of excitement in their lives. So much so that they would request to meet me again and again. All I did was to tell them who I was, and start asking them questions about their lives. The stories I heard often kept me riveted with their interest and variety. I learned that opening up to those we do not know and listening with keen interest to their life stories increased my own wisdom quotient. I heard about life in an earlier time, challenges they faced with courage, exciting moments, sad times, and so many things I wanted to know more about. And by listening and building a relationship with these people, it made them feel important again. There is something about the happiness that comes from sharing life experiences with another when nearing the end of one’s life I believe. There is a certain comfort that comes, a sense of peace and happiness, in taking interest in another’s life. After several months of weekly visits, I’d reached my required hours to fulfill DOE requirements, and while I did not continue my visits to that particular facility, this experience changed me. My life focus solidified on service to the community in the form of police work (OPP, Ottawa Police, RCMP, UNPOL). A police officer’s role is most often one of a social worker in crisis situations, and I have spent the last 32 years doing so around the world. My career took me to rural eastern Ontario, Ottawa, Indigenous reserves, Inuit communities in the Arctic, and the Sudan with
ASHBURY ALUMNI
the United Nations. Among so many other things, I found myself often building relationships with and listening to those in need to provide some form of comfort and help in trying times. Thank you to the Duke of Ed Award Program, Dave Morris and John Beedell for sparking a fire within a young teen which changed my life.”
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r. Joseph Mikhael ’90 has joined the International Myeloma Foundation as Chief Medical Officer. Dr. Mikhael will be working closely with the IMF’s Chair of the Board to advance the mission of the organization in research, education, advocacy and patient care to improve lives of patients with multiple myeloma.
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arcy Walsh ’95 hosted another group of summer interns at Edelman this past summer. From left to right: Darcy Walsh ’95, Matt Salvatore ’00, Hugh Graham ’18, Kai Eckford-Vea ’18, Chris Vivone, Julia Fottinger ’11.
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aleed Qirbi ’91 connected with Ashbury French teacher Dr. Ben Hérique and classmate Colin Murty ’91 in February.
Sal Spadafora ’84 had the pleasure of working with Malcolm MacKenzie ’11, a third-year medical student at University of Toronto, in November. The two met at Ashbury’s alumni event in Toronto, and reconnected by chance in the operating room at Mount Sinai Hospital.
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yman Elfar ’87 enjoyed his first visit back to Ashbury with his son Jordan.
ashim Amlani ’90 caught up with Brian Storosko, Ashbury’s Deputy Head Teaching and Learning, at the Ottawa airport.
Vanessa Smith ’96 and Sean Dempsey are pleased to announce the birth of their daughter Drew Thea Mary Dempsey, born June 15, 2017 in Ottawa.
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aju Ruparelia ’95 with Padme Raina, Ashbury’s Director of Strategic Partnerships & Programs, in Hong Kong.
Kevin Massie ’98 and his spouse, Kaylan, are proud parents of Wilson Arthur Massie, born on September 7, 2017 in London, England. Wilson joins big sister Isobel (Izzy).
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Sandra Rainbow ’93 and her spouse, Mike Madden ’95 were recently in Colorado at Copper Mountain for their daughter’s (Hallie Rainbow) U.S.A. Snowboard Association National Championships. While they were there, by chance they met up with Alfredo Garcia ’93 who was on a ski vacation with his family at nearby Keystone. The two families had a great supper together, and caught up on old times.
ASHBURY ALUMNI
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rin Williams ’99 recently moved to New York City to start a new job at the International Women’s Health Coalition. Erin is now a program officer responsible for managing grants to women-led feminist organizations in Cameroon, Nigeria and Kenya that advance women’s and girls’ sexual and reproductive health and rights.
Alisha Lakhani ’04 married Nilay Patel in Newport, Rhode Island on October 7, 2017 in traditional Ismaili and Hindu ceremonies. The couple lives in Boston, Massachusetts and are finishing their medical fellowships in rheumatology and cardiology respectively. They met at Brown University, from which they both earned undergraduate and medical degrees.
R Adam Taggart ’00 and his spouse, Amanda Taggart, welcomed their baby girl, Savannah, on October 31, 2017 in Ottawa. Since the birth of his first child, Adam has been busy selling houses for Royal Lepage Team Realty in Ottawa to one day fund an Ashbury education.
ebecca Kruser ’05 visited Ashbury College in December. She graduated from Georgetown University in 2009 with a Bachelor of Science in Foreign Service in International Politics. She received a J.D. from Georgetown Law School in 2012. Currently Rebecca works for the Department of Justice in the area of commercial litigation. She was married in November 2016 to Diego Lopez Bloch.
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rooks Hunter ’02 married Chelsea Ogilvie on October 7, 2017 in Ottawa. Alumni in the wedding party included Tarah Hunter ’03, James Kenny ’02, Tim Booth ’02 and Geoff Heintzman ’02. Nick Bray ’06 and his spouse, Leanna, welcomed a baby boy, Lochlan, on November 8, 2017.
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ris Kshonze ’03 won the third annual Poor Chefs Competition, held February 22, 2018 at Ottawa City Hall. This is a fundraising event for Operation Come Home, an organization that provides advocacy and support services for homeless youths, where local chefs use just two ingredients from a list of commonly-donated food bank items and $3.15 of purchased groceries per plate. Kris currently works at Soif Bar à vin in Gatineau.
Elaine Richardson ’05 married Patrick Brisbois on August 26, 2017 in Carleton Place. To celebrate alongside the couple were many Ashbury alumni, including her bridesmaids Kathryn Christie ’05, Laura Richardson ’07, and Katherine McIsaac ’05.
ASHBURY ALUMNI
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ane Scholes ’09 relocated to London, Ontaro to join Lerners Law Firm this winter. She is practising commercial litigation, health and class action law.
T Matthew Burt ’06 and his spouse, Carla Thür, welcomed a baby girl, Ava Winter Burt, on February 13, 2018 in Ottawa.
Alyssia Morena ‘08 married Roberto D’Angelo on December 9, 2017 at St. Anthony’s Church in Ottawa. Ashbury alumni in the wedding party included Bianca Saikaley ’08, Alannah Stevens (Saikaley) ’08 and Pamela Kajjouni ’08.
amara Saikaley Foteh ’10 married her husband, Tony Foteh, on September 30, 2017 in Ottawa. Tamara had her sisters, Alannah Stevens (Saikaley) ’08, Carina Saikaley ’11, Selena Saikaley ’14 and friend Sofia Diaz ’10 in her wedding party. Her husband moved from Houston, Texas and they are now both living in Ottawa.
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ana Achtemichuk ’08 married Simon Wallace on October 7, 2017 in Toronto. Alumni in the wedding party included Stephanie Grand ’08 and Alex Achtemichuk ’10. Dana and Simon met in law school and live in Toronto where they practise criminal and poverty law.
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nita E ’09 was a guest speaker at Ashbury Innovate, a Senior School science event held at Ashbury on April 17. The event featured a number of staff, students, teachers, alumni and parents in the field of science. Anita is a dentist in Ottawa, so she shared the details of a root canal with the audience.
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ohn Biewald ’12 signed with the Toronto Argonauts in November 2017. John had previously attended two Ottawa Redblacks training camps, played at the University of Western Ontario for five years, and most recently was an assistant coach with the Ashbury College senior football team.
Laurent-Olivier Villiard ’08 married Brittany Daigle on October 14, 2017 in Montreal. Alumni in the wedding party included Will Robinson ’08, Peter Sullivan ’08, Quinn Abugov ’08 and Eddy Malouf ’08. The couple live and work in Montreal. They send their well wishes to all the Ashbury family.
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Joey Manley ’06 and his spouse, Danielle Manley, welcomed their first child, Jackson (Jack) Thomas Manley, on February 20, 2018 in Ottawa.
ulia Jones ’08 caught up with Tui Noonan in Wellington, New Zealand while Tui was accompanying the varsity girl’s rugby tour. Julia currently lives in Wellington where she works as an advisor to vulnerable communities for the department of internal affairs.
ASHBURY ALUMNI
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age Szkabarnicki-Stuart ’13 recently participated in the Artist Project Toronto’s Contemporary Art Fair. Sage earned a booth in the Untapped Emerging Artist section where she displayed her photography. Sage’s work was also used for promotion of the show, appearing on billboards in Toronto and in the Globe and Mail. Sage is currently finishing a degree in animation from Concordia. Ashbury’s Head of Visual Arts,Tamara Doleman travelled to Toronto for the show.
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ustin Yan ’13, currently a master’s candidate in Carleton’s architectural studies program, is the only Canadian to have placed in a recent North America-wide architectural competition. The ACSA (Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture) partnered with the AIA (American Institute of Architects) and their Committee on the Environment for a competition based on the principles of green architecture and environmental stewardship/sustainability in design. The ten sustainability goals laid out in the competition brief are the actual green-building guidelines used by practising architects in the U.S. and Canada. Winners received $2000 USD, a trip to New York City in June to attend a conference run by the AIA, and an offer for a summer internship at a sustainability-focused firm. (Photo: Chris Roussakis)
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ennis Anghelopoulos ’14 was named class valedictorian for his Bachelor of Business Administration program at BI Norwegian Business School.
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ichael Cullen ’14 and Ashira Mawji ’17 met each other this past fall when they discovered they were in the same dorm at Amherst College.
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yler Wang ’15, a student at Union College, participated in an undergraduate health care competition at the fourth annual Wharton Undergraduate Health Management Conference and DaVita Case Competition in Philadelphia. Kyler and his teammates competed against students from 18 other schools and gained real-world experience in the health care industry by solving a business problem, and presenting to a panel of judges. Each team had to
give a 12-minute presentation, followed by three minutes of Q&A.
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ilan Roberts ’17 was named to the All American rugby team by The National Intercollegiate Rugby Association. Milan is currently in her first year at Harvard University where she plays for their women’s rugby team.
Peggy Joyce, wife of former Headmaster, W.A. Joyce, celebrated her 100th birthday on December 2, 2017. Peggy has very fond memories of the alumni and former staff at the school. Vicky Wilgress had a visit with her in March, where Peggy shared her best wishes to everyone at Ashbury.
Thank You to our Partners
OTTAWA LUXURY PROPERTIES
On December 20, 2017, Ashbury College hosted a University Information Session for Grade 12 students with an alumni panel. Alumni offered up insight on how to select the university and program that is right for you. Alumni who attended the session and gave their insights were (from left to right): Sarah Ashton ’16, Sophie Lemieux ’15, Ross Graham ’15, Sarah Peters ’15, John Rikhtegar ’14, Emily Groper ’14, Colin Zed ’15, Gigi Nguyen ’14, Justin Huang ’16 and Andrew Burwash ’14.
Artistic Ashburians
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shbury’s creative spirit was on display during this spring’s Senior Art Show and Junior MAD (Music, Art and Drama) events. This sample of talent captures the sense of imagination alive at our school.
Homecoming September 22, 2018 a s h b u r y. c a / h o m e c o m i n g
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Come Home to Ashbury!
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