Notes
Nonprofit Organization
from
U.S. POSTAGE
Cardigan
Canaan, N.H .
Cardigan Mountain School Canaan, New Hampshire 03747
PAID Permit No. 1
FIRST ISSUE - November 1972
There are many times we would 1 ike to share with you news of what 1 s going on at Cardigan - 1 ittle day-to-day things we think you 1 ll be interested in. As we talk with some of you on the phone, we are able to pass along a bit of our daily activities - but this is just hit or miss. So, we 1 re going to try to send these Notes from Cardigan once a month in the hope that by this method you 1 l 1 feel more a part of the School. This Fal 1 we decided to give every boy some experience with competitive sports and centered our whole athletic program on football and soccer. Boys who were not on varsity and reserve teams played in intramural groups learning the rules and fundamentals of the game as well as daily lessons in good sportsmanship. Boys who had never before participated in competitive athletics were out on the playing fields - and enjoying it. The varsity football team ended their season with a record of two wins, two ties and three losses, while varsity soccer won two, tied one and lost eight. We wish you could have been in the dining hall with us one noontime last month when our new green school bus was delivered. It came up the back driveway with 1 ights blazing and horn blowing and stopped just outside the dining room windows. In an instant, every window was filled with faces anxious to see the fact of what had been so long hoped for. Then 11 May we go out and look at it, Mr. Wakely? 11 from a dozen boys - and the exodus started. They climbed aboard, tooted the horn, sat in the seats, cheered, and left by the back door - almost the whole school joined the parade. Then, with as much decorum as it was possible to muster under the circumstances, lunch was resumed. One of the most delightful aspects of this whole event was knowing that the bus is paid for in full - through the generosity of parents, Trustees and friends. Is Halloween an old-fashioned tradition no longer relevant to today 1 s youth? You wouldn 1 t think so if you could have seen our 2nd annual pumpkin contest. At noon on a Wednesday (free afternoon) we sold pumpkins for carving @ 10¢ each. After dinner the carved jack-a-lanterns were displayed on the back steps of Clark-Morgan - all suitably 1 ighted with candles. At least two dozen were entered in the contest and 11 edible prizes 11 were awarded for the most original, most scary and funniest pumpkins. The degree of originality and the variety of ideas was amazing. Hopefully we 1 ll have some good pictures for the yearbook. On Halloween night itself, boys were allowed to come to dinner in costume. Although some boys concocted a 11 costu'nie 11 just to avoid wearing coat and tie, most of them displayed evidence of considerable thought and work and originality. Probably 3/4 of our student body was dressed up in some fashion for the occasion. Special mention has to be made of Jimmy Douglass who was a 1 iving pine tree completely enveloped in pine boughs from head to toe. He could barely see thru the branches and could move his feet just enough to wa l k. There was no way he could sit down nor feed himself, so he stood in a corner until the judging was done after dinner and had a late supper that night. A number of boys commented that we should do things 1 ike this more often.
The Annual Fund drive is off to a fine start . As of November first, 70 donors have given o r pledged a to t al of $23,290 - well ahead of last year at the same time . I 1 m sure you realize that it costs money to improve the quality of academ i cs - to secure and keep an e xc e ll ent facu l t y. The total cost of providing a Cardigan education keeps rising - and a t a faster rate than tuition can be raised. The widening gap between cost and income i s filled by the generosity of Cardigan Trustees, lncorporators, parents, alumni and friends who support us through the Annual Fund . It is vital to ou r futu r e . In our school calendar are three long weekends . If you live in the Northeast , you know th i s is an opportun i ty for your son to come home for a good visit. You might be interested to know what happens to boys who live too fa r away to get home in this length of time . Vacation started at noon Thursday , Oct. 26th. Those who stayed here had a fun afternoon helping Mr. Marrion put away the floating swimming docks for the wi nter . Then they moved into Hayward Hall where they slept for the weekend. After an early supper, the group went to Hanover to swim in the Dartmouth pool. Early Friday morning, with box lunches in hand , they headed South for an all-day trip to Boston. Among other things they visited the USS Constitution (Old Ironsides) which is permanently moored in Boston harbor, and the Larz Andersen auto museum in Brook] ine. Dinner 1n a restaurant on the way back added more variety to the day. Few boys today know the thr i ll of seeing a huge steam locomot i ve roaring down the tracks, but at Steamtown in Bel lows Falls, Vt. they can not only see them but can climb in and out and a ll over them. Saturday 1 s trip went to Steamtown where they took a ride on an old train and explored the large railroad museum. Afterwards a fun mea l at Macbonald 1 s, bowling and finally to bed. All of this means extra work for faculty members who have to take the ir turn being on-duty over long weekends - but it makes an enjoyable time for those boys who can 1 t go home. Many of our parents saw the article about Cardigan featured on the front page of the Boston Even i ng Globe on Nov. 7th . I t was headed 11 Quiet campus grooms boys i n old image 11 and emphasized the conservative philosophy of the school and our quiet ru r al setting. Reprints will be available shortly. This was made possible by one of our current parents who is on the Globe staff. We are a unique school and the Card i gan story makes interesting, newsworthy copy in case there are any other paren t s with publicat ion connections. We have long felt that the onl y r eason we are not holding a waiting list of applicants is that our existence i s not wi de ly enough known. Under the leadersh i p of Michael McGean, Secretary of Dartmo ut h College, and recently elected to our Board of Trustees , we started l ast year hold in g admissions meetings in various parts of the country. The format i s simple . Someone who wants to help Cardigan agrees to sponsor such a meeting in their home. The y invite educators, guidance counselors and prospective parents f rom their community to meet from 5 - 7 on a weekday evening. Mr . Wakely ar.d Mr. Rich bring slides or perhaps the Cardigan film, and spend their time gett i ng acqua in ted and answe ri ng questions about the School. Usual ly one o r two enthus i ast ic current or past parents are also on hand to sha r e their own exper i ences. Such meet i ngs have been very worthwhile in telling the Cardigan story and prove again that the best advertising i s word of mouth personal recommendation. Recent meet i ngs have been he l d in Englewood , N.J., Riverside, Conn. , Washington, D. C., and Manchester, Mass. More are planned during the next few months.
Notes fro~ Cardigan is published monthly by Cardigan Mountain School . Second class postage paid at Canaan , N.H. 03741 .