Kingswood Oxford Magazine Fall 2020

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KO Magazine • Fall 2020

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KO MAGAZINE • FALL 2020

We Journey Forward

In this issue: River Of Learning Hasta Que Nos Encontremos De Nuevo, Señora Semmelrock In Full Stride Innovation, Opportunity & Connection

Ta b l e o f C o n t e n t s 4 From the Head of School 5 Around the Green 29 Alumni Receptions 37 Athletics 57 Commencement 63 Hasta que nos encontremos de nuevo, Señora Semmelrock 67 River of Learning 71 In Full Stride 75 Down On the Farm 79 Reflection of School During Wartime 81 Innovation, Opportunity & Connection 86 Planned Giving 87 Class Notes 102 In Memoriam

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KO MAGAZINE • FALL 2020

Editor: Jackie Pisani, Director of Marketing & Communications Contributors: Elizabeth Fahy Bellingrath ’78, Meghan Kurtich, Rob Kyff, Jackie Pisani, Frances van Huystee Morris ’90, Kristen Weldon Graphic Design: CashmanKatz Printing: Allied Printing Services, Inc. Photo Credits: Highpoint Pictures, David B. Newman, Jackie Pisani, Shutterstock, Kristen Weldon Please direct inquiries or general comments to Jackie Pisani pisani.j@kingswoodoxford.org Class notes or obituary information to Meghan Kurtich kurtich.m@kingswoodoxford.org Address changes to Hope Cameron cameron.h@kingswoodoxford.org Mission Statement: Kingswood Oxford inspires students to excel and to lead lives of integrity and involvement by nourishing their talents in a community of teachers, friends, and family.

Notice of Nondiscriminatory Policy as to Students: Kingswood Oxford admits students of any race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national or ethnic origin to all the rights, privileges, programs, and activities generally accorded or made available to students at the School. The School does not discriminate on the basis of these characteristics in the administration of its educational policies, admissions policies, scholarship and loan programs, financial aid programs, and athletic and other school-administered programs.

KO Magazine is published by Kingswood Oxford School. © Kingswood Oxford School. All rights reserved.

2019-2020 Board of Trustees Meg Cahill Becker ’97 Mark D. Conrad ’96 Thomas Dillow P ’21, ‘22, ’26 Head of School Bonnie L. Dobkin P ’19 Helen Eatherton P ’11, ’14 Joseph R. Gianni ’78, P ’14, ’14 Jeffrey S. Gitlin ’85, P ’11, ’13, ’17 Derek P. Green ’81 J. Douglas Harris ’77 I. Bradley Hoffman ’78, Chair Gilbert E. Keegan III ’88, P ’22, Alumni Council Chair Fred J. Krieble ’91, P ’21, ’25 Jean C. LaTorre P ’12, ’14, ’19, Treasurer Paul A. Lewis P ’05 Patrick J. Maloney P ’11, ’14, ’16 Bruce A. Mandell ’82, Vice Chair Merrill Mandell P ’21, ’22, ’26 Mary S. Martin ’77, P ’17, ’20 Megan Ouellette P ’18, ’20 David R. Quick ’92 Ann Coolidge Randall ’73, P ’13, Secretary Marc T. Shafer ’75, P ’08, ’15, ’17 Garfield & Melissa Vaughn P ’20, ’21, ’23, Ex-Officio, Co-Presidents, Parent Association Lori Satell Wetsman ’85, P ’12, ’15 Lewis K. Wise ’65, P ’94, ’00 Keith J. Wolff ’91, P ’20, ’23 Mark Wolman P ’14, ’16, ’19

Trustee Emeriti Sherry Banks-Cohn ’54, P ’78, ’82 Thomas J. Collamore ’77 George L. Estes III ’67, P ’98 Laura R. Estes P ’98 Frederick S. Farquhar ’59, P ’83, ’86 Robert M. Furek P ’96, ’99 Karen Koury Gifford ’62 Marilyn Glover P ’05, ’07, ’11 William H. Goldfarb ’64 Cheryl W. Grise P ’99, ’02 Stephen B. Hazard P ’89, ’92 Alyce F. Hild P ’80, ’82, ’91, GP ’07, ’11, ’14, ’19 Timothy Holt P ’99, ’02, ’07 Lance L. Knox ’62 Thomas D. Lips P ’93 Baxter H. Maffett ’68 P ’02, ’06 Kimberly Collins Parizeau ’75 Agnes S. Peelle P ’01, ’03 Michael J. Reilly P ’04 ’08 Avery Rockefeller III P ’00 ’02 Anne H. Rudder P ’68 G. William Seawright ’59 Richard J. Shima P ’89, ’00 Karin Stahl P ’95 Les R. Tager P ’00, ’03 Alden Y. Warner III ’76 John A.T. Wilson ’56, P ’84, ’86 Martin Wolman P ’80, ’82, ’84, ’88 Joan Safford Wright ’53

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From the Head of School

Dear Wyverns, As of this writing, the senior administrators and I just held a virtual Zoom Town Hall with our parents regarding our plans for reopening school for the 2020-2021 school year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This past year we’ve all become very accustomed to these virtual meetings where I venture to guess that just last winter we never even considered them.

Back in January, we announced our Strategic Vision for the School, reimagining a school that brings authentic problem solving and interdisciplinary learning into each of our classes while maintaining the rigor and integrity of our curriculum that sharpens writing skills, develops core competencies and shapes students into principled young adults.

And then 2020 happened.

Although we are still focused on and committed to our vision, our attention necessarily shifted in mid-March to online learning. I believe we all thought that this was a temporary blip, just a few weeks, and then we would gather together as a community on campus once again and celebrate the end of the year with all the festivities and fun for our Class of 2020.

Instead, we all made quick turns adjusting ourselves to learning remotely, wearing facing masks, following the one way directional stickers in our local grocery stores, and getting very creative in feting our seniors of which you’ll see more in this issue.

This year we also became aware of another type of pandemic whose remedy is as urgent and necessary for the health of our country: the scourge of continued discrimination and systemic racism. George Floyd’s murder and centuries of mistreatment of Black people in this country set in motion worldwide protests to call our nation to account for its failings. Kingswood

Oxford, too, has work to do to become a more inclusive and just community for all of our students. For starters, this summer we formed a permanent Board Committee on Equity and Inclusion, and in the coming year we will reevaluate our curriculum, mission statement, and core values to ensure that KO graduates understand the underlying causes of discrimination and racism and go out into the world empowered to effect change. In my commencement speech to the Class of 2020, I charged them to “not stand idle in the march towards a more just and equitable society - that there is still much work to be done to build a society based on justice, equal opportunity, and love.” These are the first steps, and we will walk this long road together to build Dr. King’s “beloved community” at KO. This issue of the KO Magazine brings the past year into focus − both live and remote.

You’ll see photos of our outstanding stage performances that fortunately were not disrupted by the pandemic as well as our inventive and meaningful approaches to online teaching. I am deeply proud of what we accomplished this year − students, faculty, families, and staff. It was not an easy lift, and yet we all did the work together as we will moving forward.

We hope this issue bridges the social distancing gap, draws the KO community a little closer, and brings the comfort of a familiar face. Although the KO Magazine cannot replace the hugs and high fives that accompany a reunion, we believe the magazine can still nurture the essential connections that we crave, especially in anxious times.

All the best!

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Around the Green

Best Musical in Connecticut Thoroughly Modern Millie Seeking to establish our theater program as a vehicle to promote student awareness, cultural competency and courageous conversations in both an entertaining and educational manner, KO formed a collaborative musical committee to tackle the staging of Thoroughly Modern Millie. Members of the committee included Director of Equity Joan Edwards, former Dean of Students Will Gilyard, Upper School Head of School Dan Gleason, International Coordinator Naogan Ma, Choral Director Steve Mitchell, Creative Arts Department Chair Todd Millen, Director of Theater Kyle Reynolds, and School Counselor Chastity Rodriquez ’91.

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Though many musicals deal with controversial material (West Side Story, Hairspray, Grease), Thoroughly Modern Millie presents feminism and racism in the 1920s flapper era. A quick Google search of recent performances of Millie shows the controversy surrounding the stereotypical portrayal of Asians in this musical. (The play’s villainous Mrs. Meers impersonates a Chinese woman who attempts to kidnap young women and traffick them to the Far East.) Rather than sidestep the issue, the collaborative musical committee decided to lean into discomfort and assert that the production was an opportunity to explore the challenges created by the controversy.

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Around the Green The desired outcome, according to a presentation at a faculty professional development workshop, was to “create strategies to cultivate our productions in a mindful manner that is proactive in the before, during and after the process of artistic presentations to our community.”

Reynolds opened a faculty meeting with an engaging musical “Jeopardy” where the faculty had to name musicals with the sensitive subject matter. One slide posed the question: Can’t we just do Annie again? Reynolds offered thoughtful reasoning behind his choice for Millie as the featured production this year. He felt that Millie not only shows the 1920s history (Chinese immigration, human trafficking, flapper era feminism) but also its correlation and relevance to the present day. The play forces the audience to bravely name unrealistic and inaccurate stereotypes and to engage in discussion regarding portrayal, seeking acknowledgment rather than endorsement.

Reynolds looped our international students into the production since two of the characters in the musical

are Chinese (Bun Foo, Ching Ho) and one character pretends to be Chinese.

The play presented an opportunity for our international students to portray a powerful and historically accurate story as well as a chance for the students to play roles rooted in Chinese culture who also speak Cantonese and Mandarin.

After the groups of international students viewed Thoroughly Modern Millie, they discussed the portrayal of the characters, asked to alter the Chinese characters’ hairstyles and include costuming to reflect authentic Chinese culture.

Actress and opera singer Janelle Robinson, who was the first African American woman to play the role of Miss Flannery in Millie, spoke at an assembly regarding the show and representations of race in musicals in which people of color were portrayed in a degrading light. When dealing with offensive subject matter as an actor she said, “Our job as an actor is to tell the story. You are making a commitment to your craft. A lot of stuff comes at you that’s controversial. You need to decide what works for you and your integrity.

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In telling this particular story, you are enlightening the audience and igniting them to have more conversations...The play allows you to talk about racism and sexism that is still happening in today’s society.” She asked the audience members who will be our next leaders to decide what type of future they want for the world.

Prior to the show, all the advisory groups engaged in two workshops. Session one reflected on the purpose of theater: What makes a “good” play? How do you think art can influence change? Session two deepened our understanding of the power of stereotypes. What is the difference between portraying (to represent dramatically, as on the stage) a stereotype and endorsing (to approve, support or sustain) a stereotype?

Following the musical, advisee groups debriefed about what aspect of the show made them laugh and what made them uncomfortable.

Around the Green

Thoroughly Modern Millie And then it was show time.

Bobbing hair, raising hemlines, rewriting the rules. Once again, the awardwinning Kingswood Oxford theater program did not disappoint but instead, raised the bar another notch with the musical. The incredibly talented cast brought energy, intensity, and passion to the stage that had the audience on their feet. Literally. The production received a standing ovation during its performances in Roberts Theater.

Set in New York City in 1922, Thoroughly Modern Millie tells the

story of young Millie Dillmount (Remy McCoy ’20) from Kansas, who comes to New York in search of a new life for herself, and most definitely a rich husband. Within a short period of time in the city, she is mugged and (literally) bumps into Jimmy Smith (Joey Fago ’20), a handsome, carefree young man who tells her to go back to Kansas but gives her the name of a hotel where struggling young actresses take refuge.

Unbeknownst to Millie, Mrs. Meers (Braeden Rose ’21), the sinister owner of the dingy hotel and a jaded former actress who works for a slavery ring in Hong Kong, kidnaps young orphan girls

staying at the hotel and sells them to the Far East. Early on in her stay, Millie meets wealthy Miss Dorothy (Maggie Eberle ’20), who is on a mission to find out how the other half lives and the two women room together and become friends.

In the Hotel Priscilla laundry room, two Chinese immigrants, Ching Ho (Frank Pu ’23) and Bun Foo (Cecilia Wang ’20) are working for Mrs. Meers to earn enough money to bring their mother from Hong Kong over to the United States. An early plan involving a poison apple by Mrs. Meers (believing Miss Dorothy is an orphan) is foiled by

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Around the Green Ching Ho who falls for Miss Dorothy the first time he lays eyes on her. Millie finds a job as a typist at Sincere Trust with the typing pool managed by Miss Flannery (Sadie Margolis ’21) and sets her sights on Trevor Graydon (Elan Stadelmann ’20), the company’s boss, to be her husband. To celebrate her new job she and the other Priscilla girls (Gloria: Olivia Pear ’21, Ruth: Sattah Phouthakoun ’23, Rita: Avery Schiff ’23, Alice: McKenzie Campbell ’23, Cora: Mary Kaliszewski ’21, Lucille: Faith Potter ’23, Ethel Peas: Morgan Siegel ’22) from the hotel attend a speakeasy, where they meet Jimmy again.

They enjoy a fun and rowdy evening until the club is raided by the police.

While waiting for his release in the jail cell, Jimmy realizes that he loves Millie.

A few days later Millie attends a party with Jimmy hosted by famous singer Muzzy van Hossmere (Kyleace Hunter ’22). After the party, Millie and Jimmy argue but, as they exchange words, Jimmy suddenly grabs Millie, kisses her, and then runs away. Millie realizes at that moment that she loves Jimmy, but when she returns to Hotel Pricilla she overhears a conversation between Miss Dorothy and Jimmy that leads her

to believe the pair have their own latenight affair. Confused and heart-broken, Millie decides she never wants anything to do with Jimmy ever again.

At the beginning of Act II, Miss Dorothy visits Millie at work and Mr. Graydon is immediately smitten with Dorothy and asks her on a date, ruining Millie’s plan to marry him for his wealth. Jimmy, unable to get Millie to return his calls or see him, breaks in through the window and convinces Millie to go to dinner with him. Back at the Hotel Priscilla, Mrs. Meers furthers her conniving plan and uses Ching Ho and Bun Foo to drug Miss Dorothy, but Ching Ho refuses because he loves her. Jimmy finally declares his feelings for Millie. Millie, still confused by her feelings and desire not to be poor, runs to Muzzy, who tells her the story of her late husband and impresses upon her that she is a fool for throwing away true love for the sake of money. Just as Millie returns to Jimmy to confess her feelings, they encounter Graydon, who was stood up by Miss Dorothy for their date, relaying that Mrs. Meers told him Miss Dorothy had checked out of the hotel.

Millie realizes that these disappearances have happened to other tenants and the trio recognizes Mrs. Meers’ scheme.

They persuade Muzzy to pose as a new orphan in town to trick Mrs. Meers, who takes the bait and exposes the slavery ring. Meanwhile, Ching Ho had already rescued Miss Dorothy and won her heart.

Jimmy proposes to Millie, and she accepts, “because if it’s marriage I’ve got in mind, love has everything to do with it.” Jimmy turns out to be Herbert J. van Hossmere III, Muzzy’s stepson, and one of the most eligible bachelors in the world. And Miss Dorothy turns out to be his sister, who chooses Ching Ho over the dismayed Trevor Graydon. Muzzy

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reveals that to help Jimmy and Dorothy avoid ensnarement by fortune-hunters, she sent them out into the world so that they could find spouses who weren’t gold diggers. In a final scene, Bun Foo joins Graydon’s company as a new stenographer, and Bun Foo and Ching Ho are once again reunited with their mother.

Swift, smooth, and embodying the 20s flapper era with a talented cast that made one experience a gamut of emotions, Thoroughly Modern Millie had the Broadway razzle-dazzle and the songs and dances to boot brought to life by the young thespians and hoofers.

KO took home the big prize at the annual Halo Awards for “Best Musical in the State” - the first time in KO history.

The Halo Awards are presented by the Seven Angels Theatre and celebrate the best in high school theatre. This year over 81 high schools from across Connecticut participated. McCoy and Fago won for “Best Musical Duo,” and the stage crew earned “Best Running Crew.” Reynolds was thrilled with the win. “We spent hours of prep time, rehearsal, and set building on the show. More than that, we had an entire educational curriculum built around the Chinese Exclusion Act and other discriminatory practices... It was a really holistic way to do a show. Theater is a tool for engagement and education.

It’s not just about the applause,” Reynolds said.

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Around the Green

Cum Laude Society Members Inducted

From row from left: Esha Kataria, Alma Clark, Jenna Blocher, Lily “Cai” Kuivila, Juliana Kulak, Hannah Shames, Molly Jones Back row from left: Kush Kataria, Ethan Pinkes, John McLaughlin, Vishal Kumar, Yusuf Rashid, Aiden Borruso, Brandon Stake, Spencer Schaller, Matthew Marottolo, Nicholas Traver, Luv Kataria

On Tuesday, Feb. 11, 19 members of the Class of 2020 were inducted into the Cum Laude Society. The society, whose motto is Areté, Diké, Timé, which translates from the Greek into “Excellence, Justice, Honor,” was established by independent schools in 1906 to promote learning so that scholars could use their minds for noble purposes.

The following students were inducted: Jenna Blocher, daughter of Lori and Barry Blocher Aiden Borruso, son of Kristina and Michael Borruso Alma Clark, daughter of Amy and Brian Clark Joseph Fago, son of Laura and Kevin Fago Molly Jones, daughter of Kerry and Peter Jones

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Esha Kataria, daughter of Divya and Rahul Kataria Kush Kataria, son of Divya and Rahul Kataria Luv Kataria, son of Divya and Rahul Kataria Lily “Cai” Kuivila, daughter of Barbara Tsumagari and Ronald Kuivila Juliana Kulak, daughter of Debbie Dietzer and Gregory Kulak Vishal Kumar, son of Kavita Saxena and Aneesh Kumar

Matthew Marottolo, son of Elisa Griego and Paul Marottolo John McLaughlin, son of Jillian and Paul McLaughlin Ethan Pinkes, son of Suzanne and Andrew Pinkes Yusuf Rashid, son of Zahida Farid and Shamoon Rashid Spencer Schaller, son of Trish and Arthur Schaller, Jr. Hannah Shames, daughter of Elizabeth Deckers and Brian Shames Brandon Stake, son of Denise and Johnathan Stake Nicholas Traver, son of Susan and William Traver

high marks in my classes and thought that I had the skills to make the best decisions all of the time.”

Head of School Tom Dillow impressed on the inductees that their academic achievement was remarkable and that this honor was the beginning of continued growth for them as students and as scholars.

She noted three perspectives and values that have developed her both personally and professionally since graduating. The first was being thankful for her time at KO. She recognized that, while oftentimes it was hard to appreciate school while in the thick of it, it wasn’t until she was helping a friend in college edit a poorly-written paper that she realized what an incredible foundation KO had given her.

“Our highest ideal,” he said, “ is that you graduate not just with high GPAs or lots of things to put on your resume, but a genuine and authentic love for learning and a curiosity about the world.”

Brenda Semmelrock, the president of the school’s Cum Laude Society, introduced Jessica Anavim ’09 who served as the evening’s keynote speaker. Semmelrock described her former student as someone who always “loved learning for the sake of learning, who went above and beyond in the classroom.”

At Kingswood Oxford, Anavim embraced the opportunity to be involved in many different ways: a varsity swimmer, an executive committee member of Shield and Dragon, and the yearbook editor.

“I was a presumptuous teenager who thought I knew it all.” Anavim saaid, “My senior year before graduating KO, I had cultivated relationships, achieved

She smiled thoughtfully before adding, “What I didn’t realize was that there were life lessons I needed to know, that only experience would bring and ultimately guide my personal growth.”

Anavim described how deeply KO shaped her experience beyond high school. She encouraged the students to reflect on their core values and how they have shaped and will continue to shape, the person they will become.

She challenged the soon-to-be graduates to venture beyond their comfort zones. An avid swimmer upon entering college at the University of Connecticut, Anavim realized she didn’t want to swim anymore. She stepped away from the pool and became involved in other activities, including joining a sorority, becoming a member of several clubs and serving as a tour guide on campus. “By opening myself up to new opportunities and experiences,” she said, “I was able to meet people that would become lifelong friends.”

She encouraged students to attend interesting meetings, speak up, introduce themselves and get to know people. “It might be hard at first….but I promise it will be worth it,” she said.

Lastly and arguably the most important lesson she imparted was the ability to be okay with failing. Anavim arrived at college with prescribed, definitive plans. She was enrolled in a pre-med track and was determined to be a practicing medical doctor by 2020. Three-and-a-half years later, after countless hours and conversations with professors, she changed her mind. She realized she much preferred leading public affairs and spearheading marketing efforts. She applied to the UCONN School of Business and was accepted as a marketing major. She set her goal post-graduation to work for a boutique advertising agency. Instead, she accepted an internship establishing a social media program from scratch for a top-three industrial distribution company in her hometown of Bloomfield. She excelled and quickly worked her way up to the corporate level where she managed all internal and external communications for several divisions of the company.

Most recently, she accepted a position as a digital workplace and internet manager at a tech company in Fairfield County. Her new role will take her all over the world to the company’s 23 global offices. “I couldn’t be happier,” Anavim said. “All of those moments that I considered failures at that time meant more to me than the successes would have if I had attained those original goals.”

She challenged seniors to identify what their values are, how they will change as they grow, and what experiences have and will continue to shape them as individuals. She assured them that “the experiences at Kingswood Oxford have provided you the foundation upon which to build.”

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Around the Green

It’s one of the most beloved spaces on campus. Just as Proust’s madeleine dipped in tea unleashes a torrent of memories for the author, so, too, does the mere sight and smell of House One to our alumni.

House 1 Inspires College Project

When Olivia Coxon ’19, a rising sophomore at Northeastern University majoring in architecture, was assigned an architectural conservation project asking students to stage an architectural “intervention” on a historic site, much as I.M. Pei had done with his glass pyramid at the Louvre, she knew in an instant that House One would be the center of her work.

As a Shield and Dragon tour guide at KO, Coxon was always drawn to the quirky charm of House One, with its steeped

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eaves, wooden staircase, and fireplaces.

“I had my first class at KO with Mr. Baker in House One, and I was always interested in the space in its relation to the other buildings on campus. It’s representative of KO’s history. It’s more than just architecturally interesting and serves a meaningful reminder of the school’s values,” she said.

Coxon connected with archivist Brenda Semmelrock who supplied her with drawings and elevations of the building.

“I didn’t want to change the building, and this is only supposed to be a temporary fix to inform the prospective students of the significance of the house and the school’s mission,” she said.

Coxon wanted to emphasize not only the history of the school but also the

role it played in the gender equality movement. Her project went through various iterations until she landed upon one that satisfied bridging the concepts of the school’s history and gender equality. Drawing her inspiration from the Vietnam Memorial which employs granite to create a reflective element, Coxon utilizes arches to tell KO’s story. When students walk through the arches, they see their reflections in the wall, feeling more isolated from the other side and more submerged in the intervention. Adding this reflective element would communicate the true isolation that boys and girls had from each other in education prior to the merging of the Kingswood School and

the Oxford School. Again, after walking past this wall, the students would reunite and enter through the next arch and into the House, demonstrating that House 1 is a place where all genders learn together,” Coxon wrote in her paper.

Coxon believes her final version does the best job of highlighting Kingswood Oxford’s history of gender equality in a subtle but powerful way. It allows students and teachers to “walk through time” from arch to arch and appreciate the history of the School.

1969

Kingswood Oxford

Pre-1969 Boys Girls

The House

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Around the Green

Melancholy Play: A Fantastical, Surreal Free Fall This play was nuts. Literally.

Melancholy Play by Sarah Ruhl, Kingswood Oxford’s Baird English Symposium author who visited the school in February, was a challenging, avant-garde work that required the audience to suspend common sense and free-fall into a world where people transform into almonds. Yes, almonds those tasty morsels packed with protein.

The story pivots around the main character, Tilly, Mary Kaliszewski ’21,

whose melancholy nature charms and seduces those around her: her hairdresser, Frances, Morgan Siegel ’22, her tailor, Frank, Thomas Vitarelli ’22, her therapist, Lorenzo, Jaedan Curcio ’23 and Frances’ roommate, Joan, Elsa June Ciscel ’22. By merely spending time with Tilly, all those in her orbit are distracted by her energy to the point where Frank collects her tears in a vial and Lorenzo begs for a lock of her hair as a keepsake.

Frances is equally enthralled and wants to take care of her, and Joan yearns to stroke her hair.

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Eventually, as Tilly’s mood changes into a joyously manic one, the other characters begin to withdraw from her.

Meanwhile, unexpectedly, the public is afflicted by an ailment that turns people into almonds, and Lorenzo steps on a few on his way to work. This fantastical fate befalls Frances, too, as she becomes a tiny almond resting upon a couch pillow.

When Tilly begins to cry, Frank collects her tears and the cast who surrounds Frances (now an almond) drinks Tilly’s tears. The stage fades to black, and, when the lights return, all the characters are together, again, including Tilly. The

the program’s liner notes, ‘it clicked for me.’ It makes sense. Our behavior is simply contagious. We are both drawn and distracted by certain emotions and energies. In fact, I have found that if you were to walk into a room of strangers, their energy has the potential to be toxic, if not poisonous to your energy. How could this be? This play answers this question for me.”

characters question whether they are now almonds. Emotions drive the play, and the transformation of the characters into almonds is intentional and metaphoric.

The amygdala (the Greek word for almond), is the almond-shaped segment of the brain that controls emotions.

Director of Theater Kyle Reynolds admitted that the play proved elusive upon his first reading due to its randomness, complete with intermittent singing by the characters reminiscent of a Greek chorus. “Once I started working with our actors,” he wrote in

The cast delivered fine performances.

Kaliszewski’s spiraling enthusiasm required high energy to maintain; Curcio with his hard-to-define European accent provided comic relief in the over-thetop proclamations of his love for Tilly; sharp-witted, sassy Siegel deftly acted on her feet; Vitarelli effectively portrayed someone freshly smitten with newfound love; and Ciscel showed great depth as the emotionally invested and witty Joan.

The set was an ingenious use of the space in the Black Box Theater. The stage, divided into quadrants representing each main character, was linked by a pebbled path. Off-stage, but within plain sight was a cellist whose mournful playing provided the connective tissue from scene to scene.

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Around the Green

Storytelling Through Dance It’s next to impossible to capture the mood, movements, and music of the Choreographer Showcase if you weren’t fortunate enough to see Wyvern talent on display this past November. No one knew quite what to expect but only to anticipate a firstclass program conceived by Director of Theater Kyle Reynolds whose aim is to transform the performing arts curriculum into a true “triple threat” that’s singing, dancing and acting - in theater parlance. The dance program

took a big step forward this year with the installation of a Marley floor on the Roberts Theater stage, through the generosity of the Temkin family. A Marley floor is a performance surface that provides traction to dancers.

Broadway performers, dancers, musicians, photographers, arts advocates, athletic dancers, ballerinas and street dancers.

Reynolds hired four top-notch choreographers - Mary CadoretteDaly, Avery Casasanta, Rosie Karabetos, and Geo Mantilla - to work with our students for ten weeks. These choreographers are working actors,

At the Choreographer Showcase student-dancers performed five pieces, Mantilla performed “No One Knows Me” and Karabetos performed “Do It Without You.” Prior to the show, the students viewed a news

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clip of a newscaster ribbing Prince William’s son’s interest in ballet. In response, Reynolds choreographed “The Appropriate Response,” a piece that critiqued the newscaster’s view head-on, showing how limiting the media can be to young man’s selfexpression. In this piece, Joey Fago ’20, sat blindfolded on a chair while four dancers wearing costumes of newsprint fabric surrounded him.

Toward the end, Fago removed the blindfold and danced dramatically in a

powerful performance. Reynolds said, “I knew I wanted to respond to that newscaster using dance. It was the only way I could appropriately respond.

There are so many articles about how boys shouldn’t be dancing and how it’s toxic, so when we have someone as talented as Joey, I wanted to make sure we utilize his talents and take a stand.”

“Love and Hate,” choreographed by Mantilla, portrayed racial injustices.

Cadorette-Daly’s beautiful work to the song “Bridge Over Troubled Water” S E P T E M B E R 2 0 2 0 • K O M A G A Z I N E • 1 87

Around the Green

demonstrated friendship, bridging gaps, and lending a hand to those who need it. Casasanta’s “Light Company,” a technical piece, showcased the Merce Cunningham technique, in a light, upbeat manner that featured each dancer’s individuality, especially Kate Beck’s ’21 extraordinary expression and great precision. The piece de resistance of the showcase was the finale “Awoo!” by Karabetos, a highenergy number with a stand-out solo

by Frank Pu ’23. .

“Rosie is so smart about the way that she choreographs from a human perspective,” Reynolds said about Karabetos. “She’s able to get out each kids’ perspective of their own passion.

When I would watch her rehearsals, I was consistently amazed by her focus on the kids. It was all about them.

‘What are you feeling right now, and how can you add that to the dance?’”

“Not every independent school has this opportunity to bring in professional choreographers and work with kids. The showcase was truly a piece of art that was puzzled together by kids who have never done dance before in their lives to kids who dance 40 hours a week. To get that opportunity at KO is new and groundbreaking for us. Some of these kids, I’ve never seen them happier as when they are dancing.”

“The Appropriate Response” by Kyle Reynolds Dancers: Joey Fago ’20, Sadie Margolis ’21, Alyssa Temkin ’23, Maggie Eberle ’20, Danielle James ’23 “Love and Hate” by Geo Mantilla

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Dancers: Frank Pu ’23, Danielle James ’23, Olivia Pear ’21, Samhita Kashyap ’22 “Lyrical Jazz Piece” by Mary Cadorette-Daly Dancers: Remy McCoy ’20, Sadie Margolis ’21, Madeline Pelletier ’20, Sneeha Ram ’21 “Light Company” by Avery Casasanta Dancers: Joey Fago ’20, Kate Beck ’20, Sadie Margolis ’21, Danielle James ’23 “Awoo!” by Rose Karabatos Dancers: Frank Pu ’23, Joey Fago ’20, Kate Beck ’20, Sadie Margolis ’21, Maggie Eberle ’20, Alyssa Temkin ’23, Danielle James ’23, Emily Lemkuil ’20

Chips Off the Block

A favorite tradition is our breakfast with our newly enrolled students and their parents who are alumni of KO. Seated left to right: Austin Perkins ’26, Adam Gold ’26, Deacon Prince ’25, Alex Doering ’26, Paloma Peck ’26, Sam Lewis ’26, Jane Morris ’26

Standing left to right: Evan Levy ’93, Shoshana Levy ’22, David Azia ’85, Samantha Azia ’23, Austin Perkins ’92, Lee Gold ’90, Tenley Fisher Prince ’91, Jack Gold ’23, Samantha Pease Doering ’96, David Peck ’92, Jill Pollack Lewis ’85, Frances van Huystee Morris ’90, Els Morris ’25, Meryl Mandell Braunstein ’87, Alex Braunstein ’25

SEP T EMBER 2020 • KO MAGA ZINE • 20

Around the Green

Mock Trial Co-Winners!

Kingswood Oxford's Mock Trial team was declared Co-State Champions in the state’s Mock Trial competition, an extraordinary achievement for the team along with Weston High School. The finals, which were to be held in Hartford Superior Court on March 30, were canceled so KO and Weston High School were named co-winners. (This is a first for our school!)

Coach Lynne Levine said, “Credit mostly goes to the 14 intelligent, dedicated students, and to the three parent/ lawyer/coaches, Theresa Ravalese P ’15, ’17, ’20, Matthew Budzik P ’21, and Melinda Rose P ’21. Also to Ryan Costantini who began this program more than a decade ago. The kids deserve this honor!”

The case, which was released in September to the competing schools, involved the death of a high school student. Advisor Lynne Levine said this was a torte case, and each year Civics First tries to make the case more relevant to the students. In this instance, a parent was suing a school and its track coach

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because his/her son died of a steroid overdose. Additional background information was provided to give context, and Levine said there was plenty of evidence for both sides to use.

The schools represented both sides of the case. “We have to know it all,” Levine said.

She shared that the KO students memorize their lines and arguments rather than read off their papers so that they present as compelling a case as possible. Each time they moved forward in the competition the team became more refined and stronger as they inhabited the roles of the characters they were portraying. Carolyn Boardman ’22

“ It’s an academic strength. It gives a lot of confidence and poise” Lynne Levine, Advisor

student-attorney loses the objection they respond, ‘Thank you, your honor.’

Losing or winning the objection doesn’t count, but how you defend it does.

Students learn the terms such as duty of care, breach of duty, proximate cause, and proponderance of evidence.

was especially effective as the grieving mother, and Matthew Marattolo ’20 convincingly played the dead boy’s anguished best friend. “You had to see Matthew on the stand. He was saying, ‘I knew that going to an adult was the best thing. I told the coach that he was taking steroids. And he did nothing! He killed my best friend!’ They really got into the

role and became that person,” Levine said. She recommended that novices in Mock Trial begin as witnesses to develop their skills and later move to become lawyers when they are more adept.

Levine asserts that Mock Trial helps students think on their feet, solve problems and support their thinking with evidence. One of her Mock Trial students attested that Mock Trial helped him read his English books and helped him find the points that teach you to read more critically and find what’s important. “It’s an academic strength.

It’s a great experience even if they don’t continue. It gives a lot of confidence and poise,” she said.

Decorum in the proceedings is carefully considered, and the attorneys must stand to address the judge. Even if the

Levine also advises the Middle School Mock Trial team with the support of three parent coaches who are lawyers.

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Around the Green

“ I have a vested interest in preparing the next generation of young adults for the world” Krista Sahrbeck, Dean of Students

Krista Sahrbeck has been named the new dean of students at Kingswood Oxford School, effective this July.

Sahrbeck Named New Dean of Students

Sahrbeck brings a diverse array of both teaching and administrative experience in schools. A highly collaborative leader, she is passionate about the challenges and opportunities that are part of the high school experience and how faculty and wellness teams on campus can effectively support young adults.

Sahrbeck comes to KO from Kent Denver School in Englewood, Colo., where she served as class dean where she facilitated the academic, athletic, and social-emotional development of a

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specific graduating class for the duration of their time in the upper school. While class dean, she served as an advocate and liaison for students and their families, including managing healthy student development and implementing student support plans. Prior to that position, Sahrbeck served as an admissions associate, career internship coordinator, and upper school diversity liaison. In addition to her many responsibilities, Sahrbeck was Kent Denver’s head girls’ soccer varsity coach and assistant boys’ varsity coach. She was named Metropolitan League Coach of the Year (for all sports) in 2013, 2014 and 2020 and Metropolitan League Women’s Soccer Coach of the Year in 2014, 2016 and

2019. She is being inducted into the Metropolitan League Hall of Fame.

Head of the Upper School Dan Gleason said, “Sahrbeck is a wonderful addition to our senior administrative team. She’s bright, upbeat, energetic and she will make a difference for our students. She is a terrific role model and athlete who can bond easily with students due to her positivity and her great listening skills.

She understands the importance of cultivating relationships with students and their families, recognizing that family life is an integral component to who each student is as an individual.”

At KO, Sahrbeck will help continue to foster the development of students, address the expectations of the parents, promote and cultivate the vision of the school and the concerns of the faculty.

In the role of dean of students, Sahrbeck will provide a safe, understanding, and thoughtful haven for students

while holding them accountable with high expectations in their behavior and social-emotional growth.

Sahrbeck said in her education statement, “Early on in my career, I realized that I have a vested interest in preparing the next generation of young adults for the world ahead of them: to enable them to have the confidence, ingenuity, and creativity to look at a problem and feel comfortable solving it. Whether it was through independent thought, collaboration, or asking for help, my goal has always been to equip my students to handle whatever life threw at them.”

Sahrbeck holds an MEd in educational administration and leadership from Boston College: Lynch School of Education.

She attended Bowdoin College as an undergraduate where she majored in government and legal studies, environmental studies, and was a standout performer on the women’s varsity soccer team.

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Around the Green Likening her students’ anticipation of KO’s latest Baird English Symposium author Sarah Ruhl’s visit to campus as waiting for the ‘beat to drop’ due to a postponement in her plans, Upper School English Symposium teacher Michelle Caswell said, “Our students are so often criticized for their want of instant gratification and in the last few months I have witnessed them in the buildup of this joy. Our students and colleagues have forestalled their satisfaction. Sarah’s impending visit reminded us how to wait...the sweet feeling of arrival and intellectual indulgence.”

Sarah Ruhl, playwright, essayist and poet, marked the 38th visit of an acclaimed author to KO’s campus to work with a senior class who reads the works of the author exclusively. Cai Kuivila ’20 shared that the class began with reading Letters to Max, a collection of emails, letters, and poems, from Ruhl to her former student at Yale, Max Ritvo, who since passed away from cancer approximately three years ago at

THROW OUT THE RUHL BOOK

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the age of 25. Kuivila said, “Ms. Ruhl’s layered writing fabulously juxtaposes the seemingly ordinary workings of daily life with greater themes of death, love, technology, the extremes of emotions, and human connection. Her works are perfectly absurd. Her stage direction is creatively provoking, and she actively challenges the audience to be comfortable with the uncomfortable.”

Kuivila described the class discussions on Ruhl’s work to be both wonderfully profound and outrageous.

English Department Chair Cathy Schieffelin compared the act of reading aloud to a children’s story circle group and invited the audience in Roberts Theater to revel in the time that Ruhl was to read excerpts from Letters to Max. Ruhl shared that Max was a funny poet “a rare and wonderful species of human.” What followed were vignettes, musings, and poems from the book that were spiritual and metaphysical as her relationship deepened as Max’s cancer recurred. “Our conversations about

life and art took on a new urgency,” she said. Describing him as a colleague with his teachers, the first poem he sent her depicts being in an MRI scanner.

Following her reading, students and faculty from the audience asked questions about Ruhl’s process and themes. She finds love and death to be the great motifs. Death informs her work because “art is making a little bridge to those who have passed,” she said, “Plays are a fitting place for ghosts because we conjure the invisible on stage.” Her use of windows in many of her works is a metaphor for both being inside and outside. In a lighter moment, one student asked her what her favorite soup was since soups figure prominently in her work. Although she is an equal opportunity soup slurper, Ruhl favors potato leek, chicken soup, and spicy Moroccan tomato bisque.

Although Ruhl writes across many genres, she tells many of her stories through plays instead of novels. “There’s something about the book that is intimate and closed and feels really cozy and it feels like you can go anywhere with ideas; you don’t have to move through time in a compressed way. I think what intrigues me about a play are things that have to live on stage. Things that have spectacle. Music. Where you really want to unearth something emotional and make a present connection with the audience,” she said.

Ruhl commended so many of the students for coming forward to ask her questions, something that she said she could not have done at their age. “You are an extraordinary group of students that give me hope for the future. We live in cynical times, and you give me hope.”

One student inquired about Ruhl’s process for creating memorable characters. “Being a playwright is being somewhat schizophrenic because you are trying to hear all these different voices you hear in your head. You are the happiest when characters write themselves and when you don’t feel like you’re puppeteering. For me, character is about finding the voice. Once you find the voice, you just follow,” she said.

Upper School teacher Stacey Savin asked Ruhl who her favorite writer was, and Ruhl responded, “Everything is in Shakespeare. The whole world is in Shakespeare. Everything you could ever want to know is already in Shakespeare.

The plots are strange and weird. He is who I go back to time and again.” She cited contemporary playwrights as deeply important who were her teachers: Paula Vogel, Maria Irene Fornes, Mac Wellman, and Nilo Cruz.

SEP T EMBER 2020 • KO MAGA ZINE • 25

Around the Green strong sides. They don’t lean too far to the left or to the right. I think that is very important,” she said.

KO STUDENT SELECTED AS CT REP TO TOP JOURNALISM CONFERENCE

It takes a self-aware and introspective young student to understand her strengths and weaknesses and then pivot to find her passion. Enter Madeline Arcaro ’21 who was just selected to be the representative for Connecticut at the 2020 Al Neuharth Free Spirit and Journalism Conference. The conference is for rising high school seniors who are interested in pursuing a career in journalism and who demonstrate qualities of a free spirit. Each state and the District of Columbia sends one representative to the conference.

When Arcaro was younger, she considered herself an actor and participated in several performances, pursued theater with gusto, and believed acting was her path. After taking a journalism class in her freshman year, Arcaro reconsidered her options. “Theater is really unreliable. I thought that

the move from theater into journalism made sense since I can still be creative,” she said.

Arcaro is now the managing editor for news, sports, and investigative journalism of the KO News.

“Now more than ever journalism is important. People have a lack of trust in the media.

The media does have faults, and it’s really important to evaluate what they are. As someone who is actively participating in the media, I think, ‘How can I help fix that?’ including bias reporting,” she said.

To sidestep bias, Arcaro writes about topics she is passionate about but not overly so.

Since she feels very strongly politically, she believes that she will never become a political writer. “People who are the best political reporters are invested but they don't take superbut

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Arcaro cites Elisabeth Bumiller, the Washington bureau chief for The New York Times, as a role model. “She does an amazing job running the whole staff, especially in the political climate we are in today. Being a woman in charge of a liberal newspaper, you get attacked so often. She’s very resilient, and she knows exactly what she is doing,” she said.

After New York Times reporter Mark Mazzetti spoke at KO in an assembly, the resourceful Arcaro asked to shadow him during spring break at the paper.

The willing Mazzetti met with her in D.C., and he arranged for Arcaro to meet with Bumiller and sit in on some staff meetings. “It was astounding seeing her work. The way she handled such a big staff. That was before coronavirus

really took over. The first thing she said to me was, ‘You know this is off the record, right?’ I was definitely a little intimidated, but it was so cool.” The staff discussed the coronavirus related articles, how parents can make their children safe during the pandemic, and the presidential press briefings.

A methodical planner, Arcaro bookmarked the application on her computer for the Al Neuharth Free Spirit and Journalism Conference for two years. “I had it in all capital letters ‘Apply for this your junior year so you don’t forget.’ It was something I really wanted to do,” she said.

her essay, she summarized, “Even though {teachers’} comments as a kid were made to pull me down, I’ve become even more of a free spirit, and if it is considered an imperfection by my second-grade teacher, it’s an imperfection I’m proud to have.”

Due to the pandemic, the June 19-June 24 all-expenses trip down to D.C. was held virtually on Zoom meetings. “I’m just thankful to be chosen anyway,” Arcaro said. She plans on exercising her improved skills in the year ahead on the school paper.

Arcaro wrote two essays for the coveted slot, one involving why she considered herself a free spirit. As a child, some of Arcaro’s teachers commented that she was a free spirit, difficult to control. In

Madeline Arcaro (left) works with Ishaa Sohail ’20 (right) on the school’s podcast.

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Alumni receptions Shortly before the country went into quarantine in the late winter, Head of School Tom Dillow was able to travel to Florida to attend receptions in Naples, Vero Beach, and Palm Beach.

The receptions, hosted in Vero Beach by Anne and Bill ’59 Seawright and by Laura and Geo ’67 Estes and Janet and Paul Lewis P ’05 in Palm Beach, were attended by alumni, parents, grandparents, and other friends of the school.

This page: Palm Beach Bob Stiehler P ’87, ’91, Nancy Weinstein, Vicki Rosenthal P ’09, ’11, ’12, Ed Hoberman P ’10, Director of Institutional Advancement Dina Plapler, Head of School Tom Dillow Palm Beach Reception Hosts Janet and Paul Lewis P ’05, Deirdre and Tom Dillow P ’21, ’22, ’26, Laura and Geo ’67 Estes Tom Dillow P ’21, ’22, ’26 and former faculty member Bob Stiehler P ’87, ’91 Opposite page, counter-clockwise: Vero Beach Vero Beach Reception hosts Bill ’59 and Anne Seawright Head of School Tom Dillow shares news of the school with guests in Vero Beach Naples Steven Falk ’81 and Reisha Brown, Doreen and Joe Wall ’70, Elizabeth Fahy Bellingrath ’78, and Paul ’60 and Betsy Eschholz enjoy a reception in Naples with Tom and Deirdre Dillow Tom and Deirdre Dillow visit with Linda Quick P ’92 in Naples

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Palm Beach, Vero Beach, and Naples, FL

5.

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Football Tailgate Before the November 8 Varsity Football game vs Hamden Hall, a group of alums who played football gathered for a tailgate-style reception.

The gentlemen reminisced about their KO Football days, and received a pre-game chalk talk from Head Coach JB Wells P ’23. They heard about KO’s key plays and players and got a preview of the game to come.

Left to Right: Coach Wells P ’23, Sharreiff Grice ’15, John Burke ’84, Joe Jeresaty ’84, Rob Sarkisian ’84, John Derham ’83, Tom Nonewicz ’84, Jonathan Stolzenberg ’67, Dan Clark ’98, Kevin Purviance ’96, Jason Sardilli ’94, David Hild ’80

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Power of Women The Power of Women Forum is designed to ignite an open dialogue between KO women and students on the issues of women’s leadership.

A community of KO’s female students, parents, faculty, staff, and alumni were set to explore the ever-changing role of women in power in April, but the event had to be postponed due to COVID-19.

However, student chairs collaborated on a video that featured panelists and their advice on how to overcome obstacles.

More events are planned for the upcoming school year.

Left to Right: Power of Women Student Chairs Sloan Duvall ’21 and Risha Ranjan ’21 with Director of Leadership Giving Jayne Rotter P ’22

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REMAINING CONNECTED IN ISOLATION B y F R A N C E S VA N H U Y S T E E MORRIS ’90, P’25, ’26

Connection. Whether we talk in terms of a family, a circle of friends, a network of colleagues, or social media followers, our society is grounded in our connection with others.

For many of us, the lines between these groups have blurred as friends become family, colleagues become friends, and others stay on the fringes of social media, but the need to maintain these relationships is universal.

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As a school, Kingswood Oxford is its own community full of these same groups - friends, family, classmates, colleagues, acquaintances - but those groups are somewhat generational as well, as students become alumni and their relationships with their classmates, teachers, and the school change.

COVID-19 has forced all of us to change most of our day-to-day behavior and has all but eliminated in-person interactions with others, and as a result, our need for personal connection has increased to offset the worries and stress of living in isolation during a global pandemic. Therefore, we have all had to work harder to maintain our relationships and find creative ways to remain connected.

Social Media While my daughters have spent the last few months learning at least a dozen new TikTok dances, I’ve relied on social media to keep track of how others are coping in quarantine and to learn from their experiences. I had no idea there is a hiking trail running through my neighborhood, for example, nor had I thought to use this extended time together to teach my children how to play Liar's Poker and Set Back like we used to do in the Common Room during free periods. Thanks to my Facebook friends, we found an excuse to get outside on pretty days and an inside activity for rainy ones.

KO has used its social media platforms to keep our community students, parents, colleagues, alumni - connected to the school as it went through the process of understanding the scope of the pandemic, coming to terms with its implications for our inability to conduct classes safely on campus, making the transition to online learning, and fighting to uphold

as many of the end-of-year traditions as possible while remaining socially responsible.

Posting several times a day, KO’s Instagram and Facebook pages have tried to share pertinent information, but have also provided a “slice of life” look at the students, faculty, and campus. A screenshot of a class being held over Zoom is posted next to a video showing a lacrosse team exercise challenge, which is posted next to an idyllic photo of Alumni Hall amid the spring bloom. Profiles of students finding ways to give back to their communities are shared along with a video of KOKO the Wyvern mascot looking lost and lonely on an empty campus and a photo of a virtual Junior Prom that was organized and run by the Student Government.

It has been a difficult balance to maintain, but the result is an honest record of the spring of 2020. It acknowledges the loss of

the experiences we expected and were denied, while maintaining the knowledge that the campus and all it represents will be there for all of us whenever we can return to it. Though we were not able to walk on the Senior Green this spring, rest assured that it is just as we left it, and can be viewed on Instagram.

Virtual Events The disruption caused by COVID-19 meant that everyone has had to sacrifice important experiences because they could not safely be held in person. For KO students, those experiences included concerts, recitals, proms, and all of the usual ceremonies surrounding graduation (see page 57). Though all of us would prefer to have kept things as they were, the prevalence of technology in our lives has given us the ability to hold some of these events online and create some new virtual opportunities as well.

What happens to musicians when they

Members of the KO Class of 1988 gather for a group social hour via Zoom

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Creative Arts Department Chair Todd Millen shared the process of creating shared music while in isolation

are unable to practice with the other members of their groups? Well, for KO students and faculty members, the existence of Zoom and some clever video editing software, the various bands, orchestras, and choral groups on campus were able to collaborate and produce music together. Student musicians recorded themselves singing and playing their parts in their living rooms and bedrooms and then those individual performances were edited together to create a single, complex song. In fact, the ability to share their work via social media meant their performances were available to a wider audience than if they had their concerts in Roberts Theater as planned.

For alumni, KO was also unable to host regional gatherings in Boston, New York, San Francisco, or Los Angeles, and was forced to postpone the entire Reunion Weekend to Spring

2021 (when it will be celebrated jointly with classes ending in 0,1, 5 and 6 ). Not willing to go without the chance to spend time with some fellow Wyverns, several classes took to Zoom to meet and reminisce amongst themselves about time spent at Oxford, Kingswood, or KO. In addition, the Alumni Office, with the help of David Baker ’04, hosted its first Virtual Alumni Trivia Challenge.

With 12 teams and participants representing 50 years of KO alumni, the game tested the knowledge of everyone involved. In the end, two teams tied for first place - one from the KO Class of 1979, and a mixed team with members from a range of classes from 1971-2004. The two winning teams plan to take on the faculty, who have regular contests throughout the year.

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Wyvern Tales Wyvern Tales, KO’s Alumni Newsletter, has been providing a glimpse into campus life as well as news and notes of alumni for several years. The newsletter is typically emailed monthly to all alumni and parents of alumni who have provided their email address, but was increased to a weekly publication beginning in March.

Using the newsletter to provide up to date information on how KO has responded to the pandemic, it has provided examples of how our students have adapted and excelled in virtual learning (see page 81), and spotlight some of the alumni who have gone out of their way to help others in need.

Wyvern Tales Alumni Newsletter aims to bring news of the school to all alumni and friends of the school

KO Connect Alumni Network

Keep in Touch

And we will gather in person again.

In the last year, KO has switched to a new Alumni Network called KO Connect. Through the expanded platform, registered alumni can search for fellow Wyverns by geographical location, industry, or class year and can also connect with those who are willing to provide professional guidance.

Although so much is still uncertain in terms of the duration of our forced isolation, we can ensure that none of us is in this alone. By taking advantage of the many ways KO families from all generations can remain connected, we can share our experiences and maintain our relationships online until the time comes when we can gather in person again.

To follow KO on Instagram, look for @koalumni @wyvernnation @wyvernathletics

For younger alumni, KO Connect is an efficient way to expand their professional networks at a time when these connections are even more important. As all KO students are “Wyverns Forever,” many of the alumni who have registered with KO Connect have indicated that they are willing to help other Wyverns in their professional development. Having other professionals with KO as a common experience is an excellent resource for young alumni and those looking to further their careers.

On Facebook, follow @KOalums @kingswoodoxford To update your address (to receive invitations to local alumni receptions) or email (to receive Wyvern Tales and other communications) email Hope Cameron at cameron.h@ kingswoodoxford.org. To become part of the KO Connect Alumni Network visit koalumni.org. To update your classmates on important life events, send Class Notes to Meghan Kurtich at kurtich.m@kingswoodoxford.org.

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KO AT HL E T IC S

2019 -20 20

SEP T EMBER 2020 • KO MAGA ZINE • 38

Varsity Athletics 2019-20

FALL FOOTBALL Coaches: (Head) J.B. Wells (Assistants) Brandon Batory ’10, Will Gilyard, Matt Kocay, Noah Lynd, Jack Murphy Record: 3-5 Captains: Joey Aiello ’20, Samuel Capodice ’20, Wesley Pierce ’20, Samuel Smith ’21 Seniors: Joseph Aiello, Stacey Beasley, Samuel Capodice, Jaden Lovelace, Wesley Pierce, Nicholas Stolfi M.V.P. Award: Samuel Smith ’21 M.I.P. Award: Michael DeMio ’21 Coaches Award: Wesley Pierce VOLLEYBALL Coaches: (Head) Scott McDonald (Assistant) Carolyn McKee Record: 16-5 Captains: Sydney Smith ’21, Kathryn Westrick ’20 Seniors: Audrey Decker, Trinity Hudson, Isabella Leuschner, Kathryn Westrick M.V.P. Award: Sydney Smith M.I.P. Award: Audrey Decker Coaches Award: Kathryn Westrick FIELD HOCKEY Coach: (Head) Nicole Blake Record: 12-5 Captains: Ciara Chagnon ’21, Alexandra D’Addabbo ’20, Keegan McMahon ’20 Seniors: Amelia Boardman, Alexandra D’Addabbo, Amelia Levine, Anusha Memon, Madeleine Pelletier, Hannah Shames M.V.P. Award: Keegan McMahon M.I.P.: Margo Dowgiewicz ’21 Coaches Award: Abigail McLaughlin ’22 Four Year Award: Anusha Memon, Amelia Levine ’20 GIRLS’ SOCCER Coaches: (Head) Tracy Deeter (Assistant) Kathryn McCarthy Record: 2-13 Captains: Jamie Scarpantino ’20, Ainsley Vaughn ’20

Seniors: Murphy Kearney, Mai Lin Pomp-Shine, Jamie Scarpantino, Ainsley Vaughn, Jillian Wells M.V.P. Award: Jamie Scarpantonio M.I.P. Award: Ava Radmanovich ’21 Coaches Award: Mai Lin Pomp-Shine Four Year Award: Jamie Scarpantonio, Mai Lin Pomp-Shine, Ainsley Vaughn BOYS’ SOCCER Coach: (Head) Hikmet Aslan Record: 7-6-3 Captains: Kyler Dzielak ’20, Jackson Wolff ’20 Seniors: Nicholas Cannata, Tim Cotter, Shane Dawson, John Doar, Kyler Dzielak, Nicholas Hamzavi, Benjamin Iozzo, Jack Risley, Nikolas Rodriguez, Hayden Smith, Brandon Stake, Nicholas Traver, Jackson Wolff M.V.P. Award: Kyler Dzielak M.I.P. Award: Carter Meshanic ’21 Coaches Award: Jack Risley Four Year Award: Shane Dawson, Kyler Dzielak, Jack Risley, Nikolas Rodriguez GIRLS’ CROSS COUNTRY Coaches: (Head) Tricia Watson (Assistant) Natalie Lynd Captains: Olivia Reynolds ’22, Stella Risinger ’22 M.V.P Award: Ashleigh Stepnowski ’22 M.I.P. Award: Sanyu Liu ’22 Coaches Award: Stella Risinger ’22 BOYS’ CROSS COUNTRY Coaches: (Head) Fritz Goodman (Assistant) Alexander Hoerman Captains: William Burstein ’20, Ethan Pinkes ’20 Seniors: William Burnstein, Ethan Pinkes, Elan Stadelmann M.V.P. Award: Ethan Pinkes M.I.P. Award: Samuel Merkatz ’22 Coaches Award: Elan Stadelmann Four Year Award: William Burnstein, Elan Stadelmann

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WINTER BOYS’ BASKETBALL Coaches: (Head) Brad Seaman (Assistants) Mark Beloin, Ronald Garcia, Matt Mazzochi Record: 12-10 Captain: Jackson Wolff ’20 Seniors: Nicholas Cannata, Calvin Schumacher, Jordon Walker, Jackson Wolff M.V.P. Award: Gavin Griffths ’23 M.I.P. Award: Michael DeMio ’21 Coaches Award: Carter Meshanic ’21 Four Year Award: Jackson Wolff GIRLS’ BASKETBALL Coaches: (Head) Quinn O’Brien (Assistants) Terese Cerins Record: 6-14 Captains: Audrey Decker ’20, Molly Jones ’20, Angelina Maselli ’20 Seniors: Audrey Decker, Molly Jones, Angelina Maselli, Sidney Taffe, Kathryn Westrick M.V.P. Award: Angelina Maselli M.I.P. Award: Molly Jones Coaches Award: Audrey Decker Five Year Award: Angelina Maselli ICE HOCKEY Coaches: (Head) John Hissick (Assistant) Michael Wolff Record: 8-9 Captains: Shane Dawson ’20, John McLaughlin ’20 Seniors: Aiden Borruso, Shane Dawson, Karstain Lang, Aiden Marchand, John McLaughlin M.V.P. Award: Cohl D’Addabbo ’21 M.I.P. Award: Mitchell Autorino ’21 Coaches Award: Aiden Borruso Four Year Award: Shane Dawson, John McLaughlin BOYS’ SWIMMING Coaches: (Head) Alexander Kraus (Assistants) Kata Baker, Megan Farrell, William Martino, Clay Miles (interim) Record:5-4 Captains: Walter Kraus ’21,

Marwynn Somridhivej ’20, Nicholas Traver ’20 Seniors: James Amell, Ethan Brown, William Layden, Rohan Naik, Hayden Smith, Marwynn Somridhivej, Nicholas Traver, Benjamin Zamstein GIRLS’ SWIMMING Coaches: (Head) Kata Baker, (Interim) Clay Miles, (Assistants) Megan Farrell, Alex Kraus, William Martino Record: 4-4 Captains: Lily Kuivila ’20, Risha Ranjan ’21, Esha Shrivastav ’20 Seniors: Lily Kuivila, Esha Shrivastav BOYS’ SQUASH Coach: (Head) Robby Lingashi Record: 4-5 Captains: Nicholas Choo ’20, Henry Krieble ’21 Seniors: Nicholas Choo, Aidan O’Loughlin, James Ravalese M.V.P. Award: Nicholas Choo M.I.P. Award: Henry Pelletier ’22 Coaches Award: James Ravalese Four Year Award: Nicholas Choo, Matthew Marottolo GIRLS’ SQUASH Coach: (Head) Cameron Biondi Record: 12-3 Captains: Isabel Berckemeyer ’21, Sydney Smith ’21 Seniors: Amelia Levine, Mai Lin Pomp-Shine M.V.P. Award: Isabel Berckemeyer M.I.P. Award: Mackenzie Caruso ’22 Coaches Award: Mai Lin Pomp-Shine SPRING BASEBALL Coaches: (Head)Steve Cannata (Assistant) Ryan Radmanovich Captains: Nick Cannata ’20, Tim Cotter ’20, Jack Marshall ’20 SOFTBALL Coaches: (Head) Jason Bradley (Assistant) Sarah Nolan Captains: Caitlin Budzik ’21, Olivia Pear ’21, Alexis Vail ’22

BOYS’ LACROSSE Coaches: (Head) Brett Garber (Assistants) David Hild ’80, Ted Garber GIRLS’ LACROSSE Coaches: (Head) Judy Lindsay Bailey ’82 (Assistant) Erica Bromley BOYS’ TRACK AND FIELD Coaches: (Head) Alexander Kraus (Assistants) David Baker ’04, Frederick Goodman, J.B. Wells GIRLS’ TRACK AND FIELD Coaches: (Head) Tricia Watson (Assistant) Natalie Lynd GOLF Coach: (Head) Scott Dunbar BOYS’ TENNIS Coach: (Head) Andrew Krugman ’86 Captain: Jacob Schwartz ’21 GIRLS’ TENNIS Coach: (Head) Ron Garcia Captain: Jenna Blocher ’20

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, spring sports were canceled. We have noted team captains and coaches when information was available.

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was with odd numbers 1, 3, 5, and 7.

Teddy Keegan ’22 won his first match convincingly 11-3. In his next match, he went on to dominate the center of the court and made his opponent run all over the court. He won the match 3-0. After a rough start leading to a 0-2 deficit, Matt Marottolo ’20 found his pace and began winning. In the fifth game, the score went to 10-9, where Marottolo finished a short rally to win the game 3-2. Captain Nick Choo ’20, faced an opponent who was ranked higher than him in the U.S. Squash rankings. That didn’t stop Nick from giving his best performance. His opponent challenged every part of his game; Choo fought hard but lost 3-0.

Aidan Dillow ’22 played an incredible game of squash, with a clean sweep 3-0 match score. He continued to improve in his play as he widened the winning score of each game.

Boys’ Squash Wins Class D Title The varsity boys’ squash team won the Class D New England tournament in March, an impressive culmination of a terrific season filled with great competition and a lot of hard work.

Out of the eight teams that participated, Kingswood Oxford was seeded number one. Scheduled to play against Buckingham Browne & Nichols to kick off the tournament, the opposing team pulled out at the last minute so the Wyverns filled in the break with an hour practice to ensure that players stayed sharp physically and mentally.

They faced St. Luke’s School in the semi-finals later that day. The match started with the even numbers 2, 4, 6, and 8. Number two spot Henry Krieble ’21 opened up with a win. He played an impeccable match, finishing off his opponent in a 3-0 victory and winning game three with a score of 11-1. Carter Smith ’22 played reserve

as number 8, winning the match 3-0.

In the third game, he dominated the entire game-winning 11-2. Co-captain Henry Pelletier ’22 played number 4 in the team. After a tough first two games, with game scores of 11-13 and 10-12, Pelletier came back and won game three. Games four and five were blowouts; in game five, Pelletier held a 10-4 lead before winning the game 11-6, completing a 0-2 comeback. In his opening game, James Ravalese ’20 played more traditional squash by hitting the ball to the back. This led him to win 3-0. The next set of play

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The team met on Sunday morning at KO to drive to Westminster School as a team for the finals. Listening to music during the ride to get pumped up, they were there early to ensure that they could get enough warm-up in before the match. Coach Robby Lingashi said, “It was encouraging to see all the players taking the right steps to warm up before the match.” It so happened that Kingswood Oxford was playing against rival Greens Farms Academy in the finals. Greens Farms defaulted number 8 position which made Smith get a pass. Keegan opened the match with a 3-0 win.

He was in full control, winning game one 11-4, game two 11-2, and game three 11-6. Ravalese had a tough game one. Using some of the new shots he learned in practice, he came back to win game two 11-2. After that, the match became more back and forth but he was able to clutch up in game five winning his match 3-2. In a very competitive match, Pelletier pulled

out a win 3-1. After the opponent tied it up in game two, he came back to the next game with new energy and continued to win the next two games.

Up against a tough opponent, Krieble played very well, going point for point most of the games. Unfortunately, the final match score ended 0-3.

Up against a tough opponent, Choo put in a valiant effort, but sadly lost with a match score of 0-3. Marottolo, unfortunately, lost 1-3, but he played very well. Dillow was playing the deciding match which stretched the team’s win to 4-2. When he was playing, the overall match score was 3-2. In both games one and two, Dillow played well but unfortunately lost in close matches both times In game three, Dillow approached the match with a new intensity. He played extremely well the next two games and ended up winning the match for the team 3-1 which gave Kingswood a 4-2 win.

Lingashi said, “I would like to offer a huge congratulations to the boys. It seems like it only took two days to win the championship for a second time but in reality, it took a whole season for the good work the team has been doing. As a coach, I am very proud to be part of Wyvern Nation. We go up against schools that recruit kids from all over the world and yet we remain more competitive than any of them. It gives me great honor to see this happening at Kingswood Oxford.

Thank you to the athletic department for giving us all the support we needed for practice and schedule. And a huge thank you to all the parents who traveled with us during the entire season. It can’t get better than this. Go Wyvern Nation!”

Boys’ Basketball Wins K.I.T Tourney Led by Gavin Griffiths’ ’23 31-point effort, the varsity boys’ basketball team defeated a strong Storm King team 75-58 to win the K.I.T. tournament. It was a wonderful culmination of a great team effort throughout the three-day tournament. Carter Meshanic ’21 had another outstanding game (17 points, 13 rebounds) not only statistically but in terms of leadership and selfless play.

Hunter Meshanic ’21 contributed 11 points and good defense, despite battling flu-like conditions. Jackson Wolff ’20 added 11 points and was awarded the tournament’s Most Outstanding Player award for his fantastic threegame effort. Ben Merritt ’21, Jordon Walker ’20, and Calvin Schumacher ’20 were key players for the Wyverns on both sides of the ball.

Volleyball Team Finishes Second in NEPSAC Finals If one had the pleasure of watching one or more of the girls’ varsity volleyball team’s matches, it was clear this team exemplified the true meaning of teamwork, both on and off the court, and raised the level of competition for every team they played. The girls swept third-ranked Tabor Academy in three sets on Nov. 16 in front of a packed gym to advance to the New England Prep School Athletic Council (NEPSAC) Class B finals. On Sunday, Nov. 17, the team

faced off against the number one seed King School. King (19-3 overall) had played the Wyverns back on October 5 and narrowly escaped with a 3-2 victory.

Despite a strong team effort by KO, the Vikings swept the Wyverns 25-14, 25-21, 25-15 in the final at Erickson Gym at Loomis Chaffee School to capture their sixth consecutive New England Prep School Athletic Council (NEPSAC) Championship and first Class B title.

KO (15-5 overall) last won a NEPSAC title in 2007 and advanced as far as the quarterfinals during

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the last two seasons before being eliminated.

This year marks a litany of successes for the Wyverns, both on and off the court, and varsity coach Scott McDonald couldn’t be more impressed. “This group, this year, was a team-minded set of girls,” he said.

“There wasn’t any ego, and there was an excellent group dynamic. Their mindset was spot on. They believed they could do it and went into every match with that mentality. I am incredibly proud of them for all that they accomplished this season.”

Captains for the team were Sydney Smith ’21 and Kathryn Westrick ’20.

Left to right: Scott Dunbar, Tracy Deeter, Paula Hagopian ’12, Peter Jones

Dunbar Inducted into Soccer Coaches Association Long-time Kingswood Oxford School faculty member and coach Scott Dunbar was inducted into The Connecticut Girls’ Soccer Coaches Association (CGSCA) 17th Hall of Fame on Jan. 19, 2020.

The ceremony took place at the Aqua Turf, and the award was presented by his Kingswood Oxford colleague and close friend Peter Jones.

Jones spoke on Dunbar’s behalf at the induction and shared his sentiments in front of friends, family, and other inductees in attendance. “Scott has dedicated his entire adult life to the education of young people,” said Jones. “His commitment of over 40 years to the education of high school students encompasses much more than the soccer field. As a coach, Scott instilled in his players a strong sense of self, which included consistent

improvement, sportsmanship, and a dedication to the team dynamic both on and off the field. He excelled at mentoring younger coaches by means of his guidance, patience and most positive example.”

Dunbar’s coaching career at Kingswood Oxford has spanned more than 40 years. In addition to girls’ soccer, he has coached boys’ soccer, ice hockey, basketball, and lacrosse. He also led one of the most successful golf programs in the state for the last 25 years. His career totals an impressive 81 seasons of interscholastic, 13 seasons of intramural and 94 seasons of coaching overall.

In addition to Dunbar’s contributions to girls’ soccer, he has a long-standing dedication to education and to those he teaches. He has been an icon in the classroom for over 43 years at Kingswood Oxford School as an innovative and impactful history, geography, and cultural anthropology teacher.

but much appreciated,” Dunbar said.

“The girls’ soccer program was one of a few central experiences of my time at KO. I have many fond memories of the colleagues and students with whom I shared some memorable and transformative moments. It is hard for me to imagine what my life would have been without the lessons I learned every day from such a caring and generous group.”

Dunbar was inducted into the CGSCA Hall of Fame together with Paula Hagopian ’12, Yale ’16.

The CGSCA was established in 1989 by a group of dedicated high school girls’ soccer coaches, with the mission of promoting and strengthening the development of girls’ high school soccer in Connecticut.

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Eli Brandt ’23 Takes First Place in Diving With strong and steady dives spanning his eleven dive performance, Eli Brandt ’23 took first place in the 2020 boys’ diving competition in the Founders League. Brandt scored over 30 points on ten of his 11 dives, a remarkable feat of consistency.

points. Relying on a list of advanced and challenging dives that he has practiced in competition throughout the season, he maintained his poise and focus throughout the four-hour competition. Brandt’s performance marks the first time that a KO diver has won the Founders League.

His final score of 369.60 edged out the second-place finisher by just two points and established a new 11-dive school record for boys’ one-meter diving. Brandt set the previous record in 2019 with 342.95 46 • KO MAGA ZINE • SEP T EMBER 2020

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2020 SENIORS

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KINGSWOOD OXFORD CELEBRATES CLASS OF 2020 WITH NEW & OLD TRADITIONS 50 • KO MAGA ZINE • SEP T EMBER 2020

It was certainly not the senior year that anyone expected, but each and every faculty and staff member at Kingswood Oxford was committed to making sure that the Class of 2020 had a month of May they wouldn’t forget, including a variety of special touches to celebrate this incredible group of students, athletes, musicians, and thespians.

As Tammi Terrel and Marvin Gaye sang, “There ain’ nothing like the real thing,” however, KO tried to preserve as many traditions as possible in a meaningful way.

Wednesday mornings were “Senior Wednesdays.” On May 6, Kingswood Oxford seniors drove through campus to pick up a special breakfast made by Kingswood Oxford’s Brian Woerlen and his team at SAGE dining. Students were greeted by chalk drawings of each of their names around the circle entrance, messages of “We miss you!” and "We love you class of 2020!”, as well as a group of faculty, staff and the

school mascot, KOKO, who presented them with a box of pastries and a cup of hot chocolate. There was no shortage of smiles, waves, virtual hugs, and some bittersweet tears as they waved to one another and caught up in conversations through car windows. The following Wednesday students drove their cars through the center circle lined with their photos to receive special items and treats from the Alumni Office as an unofficial welcome into the Alumni Community. On a final Wednesday, students received their Senior Week t-shirt which was worn by many at the Schaller Event (page 55).

One staff member who was handing out treats said, “It was such a special morning. It was wonderful to see faces and smiles we have only seen through Zoom for so long now!”

Two other senior traditions, the signing of the senior rock and the burning of their initials into class plaque were

accomplished through staggered times, social distancing measures, face masks and gloves. Though these groups were necessarily smaller, seniors were eager to see the traditions continue and happy to spend time together, however brief and distanced.

Normally, these events are a group affair where the students huddle closely together and cheer one another on when it’s their turn. Other events like Class Night where the students perform songs and speak to their classmates and the Senior Prefect Skit which parodies the facility in a lighthearted way, and the Prize Assembly were pre-recorded.

During her speech to her classmates on Class Night, Cai Kuivila ’20 acknowledged the sense of loss that the senior class had experienced, but she stressed the profound lessons learned during quarantine.

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“But, I encourage you to find the silver lining. This is a test of character. How are you choosing to face adversity?

There is no doubt in my mind that we will come out on the other side of these events as changed people, it is up to you to decide who that person will be. Take this time to find your better self, to connect with classmates you consider strangers and acquaintances, or call that friend who you’ve fallen out of touch with, mend a broken relationship, email your teachers to thank them for everything they have done for you.

Remember what you haven’t lost: the memories, the relationships, and the mark that you have left on the Kingswood Oxford community. And remember that this is temporary. We will adapt, we will grow, and we will survive.”

And yet another novel idea to commemorate this senior class was hatched by Art Schaller P ’20. Instead of assembling on the Senior Green on

what would have been graduation, KO created a slideshow of senior yearbook photos on the Schaller company electronic billboard. Cars parked in the VFW lot in New Britain to watch the tribute to the Class of 2020. Schaller generously offered to run photos of graduating seniors for several high schools in their area and Kingswood Oxford was the first school to be granted this opportunity and the only school allowed to gather in the VFW parking lot to view the slideshow as it debuted. The Senior Week parent committee handed out gift bags and breakfast treats before parking.

Although this was a trying time for the Class of 2020, they handled their disappointment with grace, fortitude, and the perspective that came from their shared experience. One senior spoke for many and advised the underclassmen, “Don’t take anything for granted. Enjoy every minute you are here with your friends and teachers.”

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SENIOR BILLBOARD EVENT

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108th COMMENCEMENT

“not only master the world, but heal it.”

After tens of hours of planning and overcoming logistical challenges that would have created headaches for most skilled military generals, Kingswood Oxford held a historic sociallydistanced 108th Commencement for its 93 graduates on Sunday, June 7. Originally set for June 6, even the weather failed to cooperate as heavy (and surprisingly punctual) thunderstorms predicted for Saturday afternoon pushed the celebrated day to the following one.

School administrators were motivated to uphold as many of the KO traditions that make the day so special to legions of Wyverns while abiding by health recommendations from the state.

Prior to the graduation, students and their families scheduled time on the Senior Green to receive their customary red rose bouquet and

boutonnieres and have a quick photo shoot. The soon-to-be graduates and their families waited in the Trout Brook parking lot to begin the procession in their cars through the campus, to the wyvern-guarded front gates decorated with a congratulatory banner and onto the softball field.

Normally, Commencement occurs with seniors and their families assembling on the Senior Green. However, due to social distancing guidelines, the event moved to the athletic field next to the turf which accommodated one car per family, heavily festooned with red and black balloons, photos, congratulatory messages, and even one with wyvern wings and tail, to surround a stage.

Two bagpipers opened the ceremony followed by a smaller orchestra and chorus playing “Hail, Kingswood Oxford.” History teacher Ted Levine led the Invocation and reflected that

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although times had changed over the past several months, the “essentials of community are really the same.” He encouraged the class “to do good things in these interesting and challenging times...times when we will all confront who we really are...bring caring and generosity to your worlds.”

Remy McCoy ’20 introduced the graduation speaker, Upper School English teacher David Hild ’80. Hild reflected on the school’s core values of integrity and involvement and expanded upon their true meaning to lead a purposeful life with a list that included: • These people don’t overthink their decision to choose to live this way.

They didn’t weigh the costs and benefits or give in to fear.

• They had a mentor, someone who planted an ideal in their mind’s eye.

Somebody set a high example for them of what a good life looks like.

• They ignore material rewards. Their identity is not based on a title or a paycheck. We see them serving others and it looks like self-sacrifice, but it doesn’t feel that way to them. They’re just being true to themselves.

• They constantly expand their goals.

They are to moral life what lifelong learners are to intellectual life.

• They expand their ambitions in the face of hardship. They’re willing to be uncomfortable, physically and emotionally. Think about what we’ve been through this spring... what we’re going through right now.

This is a REALLY hard time in this

country, so perhaps we should heed the advice of writer James Baldwin: “Not everything that is faced can be changed, but nothing can be changed until it is faced.”

Each senior sat in front of the family car that was marked off with a poster of the graduates, and families remained in their cars. As each students’ name was called, the student took a lengthy walk to the stage where Head of School Tom Dillow conferred a diploma to each graduate. Instead of polite applause as each student received their diploma, Dillow encouraged the attendees to honk their horns which they did with enthusiasm.

Dillow offered the Charge to the Senior Class and expressed that although the students are entering a world with more uncertainty, the students should focus on the “many blessings you have today” He remarked that we are in a powerful moment of anti-racism and justice in history that we should not let our indifference be a default measure. “Read and study, gain a fuller understanding of why these inequities exist, consider what you could do to make a difference.

It may be that you decide you will no longer stay silent when you witness hateful language...We should not be silent bystanders to history or stand idle in the march towards becoming a more just and equitable society.”

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108th COMMENCEMENT

Upper School history teacher Rob Kyff read the Farewell to the Class: “Kingswood Oxford Class of 2020: In times of great hardship, we find out who we truly are. During the past three months, as our nation has experienced the tragedies of deadly disease, economic privation, and racial injustice, each of you has discovered your own inner courage, fortitude, and resilience. Sustained by this powerful core of character, may you now go forth, not only to master the world, but also to heal it.

Godspeed!”

Of the 93 graduates of the Class of 2020, 53 received honors, and 18 will play sports at the collegiate level.

As the students recessed in their cars, they traveled back to the Trout Brook parking lot which was lined with faculty members shouting the graduates’ names, fist-pumping, cheering, and waving red and black pom poms. Although the customary warm hugs and handshakes among faculty were missed, there were countless blown kisses suspended in the air and several tears shed.

Although not a typical KO graduation, parents and students appreciated the measure the school had gone to create a memorable and joyous event to celebrate the class. As one parent shared with the Head of School, “Whoever was on the logistics team for graduation were brilliant. Assembling

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in the parking lot, the “car parade”, and the actual field arrangements were phenomenal. While it did not completely replace the tradition the kids were looking forward to, it really made them feel special about their accomplishments. I am sure in a few years at an alumni event they will even brag and say “we were the only class to have a “car parade - tailgate” for graduation.”

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108th COMMENCEMENT

This year’s graduating class Chips Off the Block include: This page: Keith Wolff ’91 and Jackson Wolff ’20 Mary Martin ’77, Jamie Amell ’20, Grace Amell ’17 Heidi Hoffman Gostyla ’87, Troy Gostyla ’20 Opposite page, clockwise: Mindy Collins Eberle ’91, Maggie Eberle ’20 John Kaufman ’85, Charna Bortman Kaufman ’85, Sophia Kaufman ’20 Jennifer Papa Kanaan ’87, Julia Kanaan ’20, Jack Kanaan ’25, Joseph Kanaan, Jenna Kanaan ’25, JJ Kanaan ’22

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Hasta que nos encontremos de nuevo,

Señora Semmelrock

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You have to be a little crazy and step out of the box.

By Jackie Pisani

Brenda Semmelrock’s classroom is a happy hodge podge of artifacts collected over 38 years of her teaching Spanish at KO: a Spanish fan or pericón, Día de los Muertos figures, a stuffed squirrel (we’ll get back to that), sombreros, Mayan masks, flags, pottery, muñecas quitapena or worry dolls, photos of her advisee groups and postcards from former students who shared their trips to the Picasso and Dali Museums. Included in the miscellany is a cherished Goya painting from the late art teacher Pat Rosoff. “I look at that painting every day, and I think of her. I treasure that friendship,” Semmelrock said.

Now, after decades of coaxing the Spanish language out of a small army of Wyverns, Semmelrock is hanging up her castanets to spend more time with her newborn grandson, travel and enjoy life.

“When people ask me how long I’ve worked here, they’re shocked,” she said. “‘Who works in a place that many years?’ When you wake up and you have a smile on your face and you can’t wait to see your kids − I didn’t say ‘students’ I say ‘kids −,’ I think that’s a really special thing. This place is like a family. You treat your students and your advisees as you would your own kids because you want the best for them in every way possible. You’re here to support them and be a little tough on them because you want to teach them real life skills.”

Even as a second grader, Semmelrock knew her vocation was to be a teacher.

She would spend time in her basement with a small chalkboard teaching the neighborhood kids. When her favorite first grade teacher gave her old teacher 65 • KO MAGA ZINE • SEP T EMBER 2020

editions of textbooks with the answer key, Semmelrock thought she had won the lottery because she could better teach her friends. Initially, when she entered the University of Connecticut, she planned on a career in pharmacology but soon learned that her heart was in teaching. She enrolled in the school of education and spent a semester in Mexico perfecting the language.

Semmelrock will stop at nothing to connect her students to the language, from dancing with the students to standing on a desk imitating a speech.

“You have to be a little crazy and step out of the box,” she said.

late. I can’t believe this happened! A squirrel attacked me! He saw the bread in my hand and look at these scratches.”

She laughed while recollecting how the students suggested she go to the nurse.

Seven years later when that class was ready to graduate, a student appeared at her door holding a squirrel stuffed animal, a gift from her former class. He said, “Senora, we still talk about that time with the squirrel. Could you tell us now? Did that really happen?”

“ I didn’t say ‘students’ I say ‘kids.’”

Brenda Semmelrock

“I just smiled at him. That squirrel is going with me when I go out the door,” she winked.

While at KO, she was instrumental in starting an annual exchange program with a school in Venezuela, and she accompanied six Middle School Wyverns to Venezuela. Unfortunately, due to the political instability in the region, KO students no longer visit Venezuela, but the Venezuelan students visit KO for a time in the spring each year. She has coached junior varsity soccer, Middle School basketball and Middle School lacrosse and gamely served as the robotics coach. “My kids have taught me so much,” she said. “That’s been the most amazing experience. The kids are showing me CAD, and we’re sitting down together and figuring it out. Everyone was on the same plane.”

And about that stuffed animal? She recalled losing track of time during lunch several years ago and rushing to her class, while still holding her sandwich. As she opened the door to her class, the students pointed to their watches and said to her, “Llegas tarde” or “You’re late.” At the time, she had scratches on her hands from her new little kitten so she told the class, “You’re not going to believe why I’m SEP T EMBER 2020 • KO MAGA ZINE • 66

River of Learning Seventh Graders To Embark on Interdisciplinary Expedition

By R ob Kyff and Jackie Pisani

The Middle School years, when students are brimming with energy and curiosity, offer the perfect opportunity for exploratory or “expeditionary” learning. It’s the ideal time for them to take a deep dive into learning that’s experiential, immersive and interdisciplinary – learning that allows them to explore new ideas, connect concepts from different areas of study, and to examine the region and community where they live in an entirely new way. By breaking down the silos between classes and working across curriculum, the KO Middle School is expanding learning opportunities for students to become active participants in their own learning and in their own world.

This fall, seventh graders and their teachers will embark on an expedition to create just such an experience. For the entire semester, they’ll be intensely engaged in an interdisciplinary study of the lifeblood of human civilization and culture in the Connecticut River Valley: water.

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The Source Last year, several members of KO’s science department visited the Watershed School in Boulder, Colo. to observe their expeditionary learning program through a hands-on facilitation process with the goal of implementing some of these concepts into the KO curriculum. The program, according to the Watershed, is “targeted to teachers and academic leaders and explores how school can prepare young people to work on real-world problems - messy, ambiguous, and transdisciplinary challenges in their community and across the world.”

When Middle School science teacher and outdoor enthusiast Josh Garrison first learned of the Watershed program, he brought the concept to the administration’s attention. Garrison, who gets his kicks ice climbing in New Hampshire for hours at a clip in sub-freezing temperatures, infuses his teaching with his deep appreciation for the outdoors.

“From the moment you set foot on the KO campus, you get the feeling from the teachers and administrators that they want you to grow,” he said.

“I was encouraged to check out Watershed and bring the knowledge back in whatever shape or form. For me, my curiosity for learning stems from the love of the outdoors, and I’m able to impart that to the students.

So much of what I do deals with the environment and making observations about mountains and rivers. Learning in an interdisciplinary way really hooks students. And you want to get the students excited about things that matter to them. By developing an authentic curriculum, you are able to create avenues to ask questions that students are actually interested in.”

The Expedition The Connecticut River Watershed will become the students’ classroom. They will follow the river wherever it takes them to ask the essential question: What is the power of water?

Like any authentic quest, this expedition will lead them into the unknown and generate a range of emotions, including real and perceived risk, discomfort, surprise and exhilaration. Our students will make this voyage of discovery as crew, not passengers. They’ll be relying not on teachers, but on their own collective

knowledge and problem-solving ability.

They will experience both successes and failures.

Director of the Middle School Ann Sciglimpaglia said, “I want people to understand that it’s an expedition. The interdisciplinary teaching team is doing some planning but, like any expedition, we don’t know what is exactly going to happen. As the students visit places, discover, collect data, and talk to people, we as teachers and they as students don’t know what we’re going to uncover. And so, while there is a plan for what we are going to do, we don’t know what those results are going to be, which is exciting.”

Sciglimpaglia said the goal is not to collect a set of data points and knowledge, but to activate dispositions that empower students’ innate curiosity.

This open-ended, cross-disciplinary work is intellectually demanding and lively. Some of the study is already embedded into the seventh grade curriculum, such as early American history and the reading of certain literary texts. However, the guiding motif of water will permeate the study for a more authentic learning experience. Students will not be passive receivers of information but instead will be seekers of knowledge who are engaged in the process of inquiry.

Garrison explained, “As teachers we are really excited because we know that at the end of this study, the kids are going to have a better understanding of the world around them. This is an invaluable way to learn.”

Authors Jal Mehta and Sarah Fine describe this type of dynamic teaching and learning in their book In Search of Deeper Learning. “Teachers are encouraged to draw on their areas of expertise,” they write, “but the school’s emphasis on creating original work means that one of their primary tasks is to help students explore the unknown, leaving behind the security of being the one who defines all the questions and knows all the answers...Rather than seeing knowledge as something preexisting that can be transmitted as a whole, it holds knowledge to be provisional and imagines students to be active participants in its developments...

Teachers must be able to think not only in a given discipline but also about a given discipline - to think about how knowledge is created and to invite students into the process of doing that work.”

Through the lenses of science, history and literature, students will examine the biological, chemical, geological and hydraulic features of water, its role in sustaining and shaping the economic,

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political and societal structures of indigenous peoples and European and African settlers in the region, and the cultural and metaphoric meanings and interpretations of rivers as expressed in myths, legends, writing, and art.

Most important, this process will build and strengthen their skills as thinkers, readers, writers, researchers, analysts, and synthesizers.

H-2-O Odyssey As scientists, students will investigate questions such as: What are the sources of water in the Connecticut Valley?

How has water shaped and carved the landscape? How have humans sought to use, control and distribute water, and what effects have their efforts produced? What does a healthy watershed look like?

They’ll take a canoe trip from Hartford to Long Island Sound, conduct field work to collect data on the quality of water and the flora and fauna in the watershed, and assemble field guides describing and cataloguing the river’s environment.

Plunging into the Past, Present and Future As historians, students will ask: How did water shape the farming, hunting, fishing and trading patterns of Native American and European settlers in the region? What role did water play in the slave trade, the Pequot War and King Phillip’s War, and the American Revolution? How did waterpower lead to the development of manufacturing in the area? They’ll take field trips to archeological sites, dams, former factories and canals, and historical museums and homes.

They’ll also assess the state of the river today and discover how local, state and

federal laws and public opinion affect how we currently use the river. They’ll analyze the impact of current policies and practices and on the future of the Connecticut River Valley.

Lapping Up Literature As readers and writers, students will examine the inspiration that rivers have furnished for myth and literature.

What is the role of rivers in legends and origins stories? How have novelists, essayists, poets, musicians and artists such as Walt Whitman, Gary Paulsen, Mary Oliver, Langston Hughes, and Billy Collins drawn on rivers as metaphors and sources of meaning?

Students will keep personal journals and write their own narratives and creative responses to their experiences.

They’ll create a literary magazine and podcasts featuring their writing.

River Keepers During the course of their journey, students will interview key stakeholders in the river’s fate –

farmers, hydrologists, naturalists, environmentalists, engineers, public officials, including Chris Hayes ’04 of Riverfront Recapture, state archeologist Nick Bellantoni, former state historian Walt Woodward, WNPR environmental reporter Patrick Skahill, master fly fisherman Iain Sorrell, Connecticut Poet Laureate Margaret Gibson and Benjamin Bachman ’64, author of the book Upstream: A Voyage on the Connecticut River, as well as curators, scientists and conservationists at the Connecticut River Museum, the Connecticut River Conservancy, the Connecticut Audubon Society, and Trout Unlimited.

Journey’s End As the expedition approaches its conclusion, each student will present their answer to the question “What story is the river telling?” in one of three ways: by writing a literary journal, producing a podcast, or devising a computer application. Collectively, they’ll compile an ethnographic study

based on their interviews with the river’s stakeholders.

The expedition will culminate with a showcase event where students will share their experiences, discoveries and reflections with the wider Kingswood Oxford community through exhibits, maps, art work, and verbal presentations.

Venturing Into Terra Incognita The process of conceiving, designing and implementing this new experience is a step into the unknown for both

students and teachers. How can we bring three academic disciplines to bear on one subject? What resources can we identify, devise and access? Where will we go physically, intellectually and emotionally?

But it’s this very sense of challenge and risk-taking that makes this quest exciting, stimulating and, yes, a little bit scary for both the teachers and the students – and that’s exactly what learning should be.

*Due to the pandemic this curriculum may be altered to reflect new realities and health protocols.

Teachers are developing alternatives to allow students to continue to receive the benefit of this expedition.

both the return game and on offense.

One of his proudest moments came against Buffalo in a back-and-forth game where, judging the placement of an opponent’s shoulders and head, he hurdled over an opponent to score a touchdown. This move was so notable that ESPN highlighted it on air. Adept thinking like this earned Wright the reputation as a “sparkplug” who turned games around.

IN FULL STRIDE

By JACKIE PISANI

If you were to pass Isaiah Wright ’16 walking down the street and observe his 6’2” frame of well-defined muscles, confident stance, and tattoos, you would no doubt think to yourself, “This young man must be a pro athlete.” And, you’d be right. Wright just signed with the Washington Football Team as a free agent this past spring.

While Wright played football at Temple University in Philadelphia, his versatility and explosiveness were on full display; he made quick moves in

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Wright’s NFL Draft and Combine profile reports that “he played 12 games with one start as a true freshman (eight receptions, 74 yards, 9.3 average; 42 carries, 232 yards, 5.5 average, one touchdown; 11 kick returns, 278 yards, 25.3 average. He led the team in receptions as a sophomore (46 receptions, 668 yards, 14.5 average, four touchdowns) while still producing as a returner (13 kickoff returns, 324 yards, 24.9 average, one touchdown; 11 punt returns, 109 yards). Wright returned a kick and punt for a touchdown again during the next season, becoming one of just three players in the FBS to do so in 2018. He was also named first-team All-AAC as a return specialist.”

But the stats don’t tell the full story of Wright. The tats do. Down-to-earth, thoughtful, focused, and wise, each of Wright’s tattoos conveys special significance that defines who he is, where he is from, and where he is going.

His first tattoo, emblazoned on his chest, says “blessed” because he said he overcame many obstacles in his path at a young age. The next tattoo, tiger eyes, conveys Wright’s attitude of being alert and ready to attack everything he sets out to do. The image of heaven (where Wright intends to retire) is a constant reminder of the right decisions he needs to make in his life.

The words “To whom much is given, much is required” and the woman with roses for eyes tattoos provide more guideposts for him to follow. “I learned at a young age that people who are given a lot of things, should give a lot of things, too,” Wright said, “That’s how it works. To have a lot, you have to give a lot. The lady shows me how easy it is to get distracted. I’m trying to stay straight and narrow to accomplish my goals.”

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Wright started playing football in his hometown of Waterbury, Conn., when he was 12 years old. Initially, his parents wouldn’t allow him to play for the youth teams because he was getting into mischief. Watching his friends come home from practice scuffed up, laughing, and wearing their equipment was his punishment. His proactive parents, Nina Wright and Randy Smith, focused on his academics and demanded much of the young Wright.

When he wasn’t playing football, his dad was taking him to the basketball courts, teaching him to shoot. Wright played football at J. K. Kennedy High School in Waterbury and knew the head football coach Jason Martinez at Waterbury’s Crosby High School, who served as KO’s football coach starting in 2011. Martinez knew raw, explosive talent when he saw it. But more importantly, he saw in Wright a principled young man with leadership qualities that could make a positive impact on the players around him.

“I was already considering going to a different school,” Wright said “I was at Kennedy, and I didn’t know exactly where I wanted to go, but I had a good relationship with Jason Martinez. He was selling the KO program and it was hard not to like everything I was hearing – to get the opportunity to go to KO and see the facility and be around the people who are demanding and care about you. You don’t meet many people like that, so it was easy for me to be sold on the program.”

Wright soon settled in at KO, making his mark in football, and learning some important lessons along the way. He played wide receiver and defensive back for Coach Martinez.

During his career at KO, Wright caught 91 receptions for 1,917 yards and 19 touchdowns. A three-time allconference honoree, he also rushed for

330 yards and one score on 24 carries.

Defensively he brought down 74 total tackles, 47 solo with four interceptions and two fumble recoveries. In 2015, the Wyverns took the New England title.

“Honestly, I didn’t expect to win New Englands,” Wright said. “I wasn’t playing for accolades. It was something that I loved to do, and I was continuously getting the opportunity to do it. I was always excited to go on the field and do what I do. And I was learning new techniques from the coaches. I was excited because I was always getting better at practices, but at the games I could really see how good I was getting. It was just me going out there playing my best, and my goal was to get to college. That was the big accolade for me ” “It goes back to ‘hard work beats talent.’ You can be as talented as you want, but in life, you need to be prepared. I learned at KO that the better positions I put myself in, the easier it was for me to be successful.

For instance, the homework. I was frustrated because I wasn’t doing the homework when I should have been doing it, so I always had to scramble the morning before class. I was getting tired of getting in those predicaments.

My grades weren’t showing my actual abilities. So, I had to lock in and start doing the small things so I was in a better position to be successful. That’s when it came full circle. That’s when I started to learn that. It was a life lesson.”

Wright’s teachers attest to his growth as a student. Upper School Spanish teacher Ron Garcia said, “He really worked hard, became a solid student and wanted to be viewed that way.

He was great for the class and raised the level of learning for everyone.”

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Whereas some seniors experience the ‘senior slide,’ Garcia witnessed Wright digging deeper and not letting up throughout his final year at KO. Upper School English teacher Jackie Rubin recalled a discussion of Brave New World where Wright challenged the class to think about the final image in the novel. “He was always interested in bringing the class along and engaged them to participate.” She noted his excellent work on an assignment where the students were charged to write a “fake” college essay. In Wright’s case, he penned a satirical piece about the benefits of athletics, a nuanced bit of self-awareness and self-deprecation.

Ed Wasielewski ’91, owner of EMG Sports based in suburban Philadelphia and an NFL agent, represents Wright. Wasielewski is familiar with the athletes coming through the KO football program and paid special attention to Wright’s career by watching games, reviewing highlight reels and reading newspaper articles about his latest creative plays.

Wasielewski said he looks for position and versatility in his players. With Wright, he’s got both. “Isaiah’s very dynamic and he’s got a lot of talent,” he said. “Typically, I’m looking for a blue-collar, hard worker. A smart guy that can play a long time in the NFL. Are they smart enough to know that they have to play on special teams and play wide receiver? Sometimes guys get drafted, sometimes they don’t. But, that doesn’t change the skill set it takes to make it.”

This past spring, Wright trained in Fort Lauderdale at the XPE Sports facility to prepare for the East-West Shrine All-Star game and the NFL predraft process. Wright stayed in Florida until one week prior to his pro day scheduled for March 16. Wasielewski explained that Wright didn’t receive

an invitation to the NFL Combine that ran from February 23 through March 2 in Indianapolis. Each year, the NFL invites up to 330 players to the Combine, and 230 to 240 of these players get drafted, while another 25 to 35 who, like Wright, aren’t invited to the Combine but still get drafted by NFL teams.

When COVID-19 hit in mid-March, Wright’s opportunity to showcase his talents at the Temple pro day for scouts was shut down. His pro day was rescheduled to a private facility in northern New Jersey, but that, too, was canceled as different states rolled out various health guidelines. So after a call from Wasielewski, Wright came back to where it all began and held his pro day workout at KO. On a blustery 45-degree day, April 1, Wright strode onto the Hoffman Field wearing his Temple and EMG Sports gear, ready for his virtual shot in front of NFL eyes. After the trainer took Wright’s height and weight, he performed a set of tests to judge his speed, nimbleness, and agility. Not satisfied with his initial numbers, Wright kept grinding to eke out another few inches on his jump or shave off another few seconds on his run. In all, Wright performed a threecone test in 6.69 seconds (2020 WR NFL combine rank second), the 40yard dash in 4.58 seconds, the short shuttle in 4.12 seconds (2020 WR NFL combine rank first), and broad jump of 9’ 9”.

After his results were submitted to NFL teams, Wright got the call from the Washington Football Team that they wanted to sign him as a free agent.

Wright considers this the opportunity of a lifetime, and he is objective about what talents he brings to Washington’s NFL franchise. "I have a good sense

of emotional intelligence and know how to approach different scenarios and situations with other people,” he said. “I can work with others; I’m hardworking and genuine. What separates me from others is my makeup. Not a lot of guys have the same body type as me. Most of the time, when you have a bigger body guy, he can’t do the same things that skilled and skinnier guys are doing. That helps me, as well as the fact that I learned at a young age that the more you believe you can do, the more that you can do. I always put myself in a lot of positions to be able to do a lot of things because it creates a lot of opportunity. Those two things, my body make up and my hard work, how I go about things and my desire to be better every day.”

“Honestly, I always had the dream to go to college. In my head, you couldn’t convince me that I wasn’t going to college. A lot of people have the mindset that we can’t do the things we actually can do. People allow themselves to stay stuck instead of trying to venture out and test themselves on what they can do. I didn’t want to be in that position. If I could, I wanted to bring back hope and faith. Instill the things in kids that I had instilled in me. That was really my goal.”

Due to the pandemic, now, instead of training with the Washington Football Team in Virginia, Wright is keeping fit closer to home, working out in his room with weights on a bench, running hills, and eating a low-fat diet full of fish and salads. As for the fall season, that’s a big question mark due to the pandemic, but Wright takes it all in stride.

I can control is my playbook, my conditioning and making sure I’m trying to be a better person every day.

Those are what I can control and work on every day.”

With that type of singular focus and drive, Wright is destined for success in the game and in his life.

“I just worry about what I can control,” he said. “I can’t control that. I can’t be getting stressed about that. What SEP T EMBER 2020 • KO MAGA ZINE • 74

DOWN ON THE FARM

By JACKIE PISANI

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In perhaps the finest piece of cinematic Bildungsroman, Benjamin Braddock, an aimless recent college graduate in The Graduate, is cornered poolside at a party by a well-meaning Mr. McGuire sharing his business acumen: “I want to say one word of advice to you. Are you listening? Plastics.”

But imagine, in this scenario, the money ticket is pumpkins.

And it’s your own idea.

While a freshman at Trinity College, Owen Jarmoc ’14, a fourth-generation farmer, contemplated how to thrive and stave off the fluctuations in the tobacco market, the primary crop on his family’s 1,500 acres of farmland in Enfield and other towns in northcentral Connecticut. All the tobacco produced by Jarmoc Tobacco is used

for the outer wrappers of premium hand-wrapped cigars; no tobacco is farmed for chew, snuff, or cigarettes. It is a narrow, highly-specialized market that faces intense competition from Latin and South American countries.

As an economics major, Jarmoc understood that diversification was key to maintaining the success and longevity of the farm.

“I thought, let’s plant some pumpkins and see what happens. I wish I could say that it’s hard to grow and it takes artistry like growing tobacco, but that’s not the case,” Jarmoc said.

The plan was a simple one that paid huge dividends. Initially, Jarmoc planted 10 acres to test the viability of the crop. Apparently, there is remarkably high demand for the burnished orbs on the East Coast. Five years later, Jarmoc now plants 300 acres of pumpkins and serves some of the biggest grocery retail chains in the country: Trader Joe’s, BJ’s, Aldi, Target, Market Basket, and Kroegers.

The pumpkins the farm sells currently provide 25 percent of the volume that these stores move on the East Coast in a given season.

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How did Jarmoc get such an impressive line-up of customers?

“I reached out to them,” Jarmoc said.

“It makes for a good story. I am a 20year old, and I plant pumpkins so I can go to college, right? And then it was off to the races!”

Clearly, you’d be some sort of monster to turn a resourceful kid like that away.

How could you say no?

“Every year we double or triple the size or volume of what we move,” he said. “Now we move hundreds of tractor trailers of pumpkins a week.

We send them out as far as Wisconsin and Florida. It makes no sense why we would truck pumpkins down South since we see some pretty good farms on the way down there.”

Although the pumpkin business was thriving over the years, logistics impeded the hauling of product.

Arranging for transportation was a big struggle, so the farm purchased two tractor-trailer trucks a couple of years ago, which evolved into their nascent transportation business, Connecticut

Valley Transportation (CVT).

Currently, their transport business operates 15 tractor-trailer trucks and employs 25 full-time drivers. Servicing a BJ’s warehouse in Rocky Hill and a Trader Joe’s new facility in Bloomfield, CVT trailers burn rubber 24/7. Each day, CVT sends five trucks to the Lower East Side of Manhattan to the busiest Trader Joe’s in the country, one that turns over its inventory every 24 hours. In addition to major retailers, CVT counts Eversource as one of its top clients. Jarmoc’s trucks carry Eversource’s environmental timber masks, huge wooden planks that lie beneath high-tension lines.

Putting his entrepreneurial minor from college into overdrive, Jarmoc said, “You don’t know what will happen until it jumps in front of you.

If you told me two years ago that we would have a trucking company with all these trucks, I would say that you’re crazy. Things evolve pretty quickly, and, if we see an opportunity we think we’re well positioned for, we jump on it. We’re always looking for new stuff to do. In a perfect world, you have a bunch of different businesses that all

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make a little bit of money – not one business that makes a lot of money.

We’re always looking for fun and new exciting things to do.”

So when the 2018 Farm Bill passed allowing farmers to grow hemp as long as they hold a grower’s license from the Department of Agriculture, the Jarmocs pivoted to their next bold move. A variety of cannabis, hemp is a plant that contains less than 0.3 percent THC and has no psychotropic effects. Cannabidiol (CBD) oil derived from hemp is not a controlled substance and thus may be manufactured and sold in the state.

Considered to have therapeutic value, CBD oil is ingested by individuals to treat anxiety and depression and may provide a natural alternative to relieve pain and other symptoms suffered by cancer patients.

Partnering with Edible Arrangements, which plans on infusing CBD oil into their fruits, Jarmoc shipped 100,000 lbs. of hemp biomass to be extracted for CBD oil. Running the numbers while working on his John Deere tractor, Jarmoc calculated that every

1,000 lbs. of hemp biomass material converts to approximately 40 kilos of crude CBD oil.

Although he is a self- described risk-taker, Jarmoc realizes that age is on his side. “I would say that I’m young enough now that I could take stronger positions that may be riskier,” he said. “I hopefully have a lot of time to make up for those mistakes, where maybe someone who is in their 50s in the same line of work would be more conservative.”

“KO helped me greatly. The whole KO atmosphere teaches you to be a dynamic team player and adapt readily to change. That’s what being in business is. That’s the big takeaway.

Well-rounded. Someone said you have to be a Swiss Army knife to do multiple different tasks. That’s what KO teaches you how to do. I played soccer, lacrosse, and basketball. I loved [KO teacher Tracy] Deeter’s AP Econ course, and I dove into math and science classes.”

With juggling this many plates in the air, one would think that Jarmoc

would slow down. But, that’s not how Jarmoc rolls. Next up is a venture with Nexera Energy which owns Florida Light and Power, an energy powerhouse with an $18 billion dollar market cap. In partnership with Nexera, Jarmoc is building a 20-megawatt solar facility on 120 acres of his family’s farmland, an array that is expected to power approximately 5,000 homes. Nexera owns the lease on the land for the next 40 years.

would have good reason to be cocky, but he’s as down to earth as, well, a farmer. He good naturedly admitted that not all is as rosy as it appears.

“I make little mistakes every day, but I’ve never made a big mistake that cost $100,000 or more,” he said. “I hit a car the other day with a tractor. She hit me but that’s a different story.”

“We approached them when solar was getting hot in Connecticut,” he said.

“At this point, the solar programs have run out as of 2019, so actual solar generating clean power via sunlight in the field and then selling it doesn’t generate enough revenue for it to make sense. What makes it profitable is the different renewable energy tax credits.

That’s what does the trick.”

Jarmoc has enjoyed a remarkable run of late and thrives in the uncertainty that each day brings. He credits his father for trusting him and allowing him significant autonomy. With all this success at a young age, Jarmoc

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Reflections of School during Wartime

By Jackie Pisani

Nothing stops Hazel Vail ’44. Well, perhaps that’s an overstatement. ALMOST nothing stops Hazel Vail. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic’s social distancing guidelines, Hazel missed her appointments to the beauty parlor, and playfully insisted on meeting at KO only after she had her hair coiffed. She declined my offer to pick her up from her home and instead drove her Cabin Cruiser-sized Buick to the campus. Living independently, gamely going about her day, Vail doesn’t want to miss anything. She has always been positive, has always loved life and is always busy.

Her calendar is full, and her life is complete with her volunteering for a few local organizations.

Vail is one of the four remaining members of her class at Oxford. Like our Class of 2020, her class also lived through tumultuous times in their high school years. For the Class of ’44, although World War II may have raged overseas, Oxford students

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endured the emotional strain and weight of the war in their day-to-day lives. Instead of receiving a barrage of 24/7 reports from the front on the internet and television, news was limited to the radio and to photos of the battlefield from Life magazine.

“First of all there were more rules and regulations from the school and our parents,” she said. “We were at Oxford to learn, not to play. At the school, we had to make changes because of the war. For example, there were blackouts in the evening, so school was closed early every day. The school week was reduced to only four days to save heating oil.

Most of us rode our bikes, walked, or took the bus to and from school. This was because gas was rationed. Only a few girls had their license.”

Each day began with chapel. Headmistress Elizabeth Fitch stood in the back of the hall

inspecting the cleanliness of the girls’ shoes and the length of the girls’ skirts, which needed to cover their knees.

Vail said the students wore brown-andwhite Spalding saddle shoes because they didn’t make your feet appear ungainly. “Shoes had to be clean, and if they weren’t, your parents were charged 10 cents on their monthly bill for cleaning your own shoes. I always had clean shoes. I knew enough not to be fined,” she said.

Austerity measures to support the war effort crept into the food supply as well. Hazel recalls that fortunately the students received a big meal at noon because the government rationed food.

Individuals were assigned points for meat, butter, and sugar, which was a scarcity. Families compensated for the rationing of meat by eating more

chicken and fish. For community service, the students journeyed to the Old State House and rolled bandages.

Despite the war, there were certain traditions that continued. The Oxford girls would always remember Greek Games in the spring - the chariots with classmates as horses, discus hurling, and javelin throwing.

There is very little woe-is me attitude from Vail when speaking about the past. Born during the Depression, Hazel did not expect things to be handed to her. “I remember that you did not ask for things. For example, if you went to the movies you got a nickel for a candy bar. That was it. You never said, ‘I want a dime candy bar.”

During the war years, Oxford’s social life contracted. Although there were occasional gatherings with the Loomis and Kingswood boys, there was a pall over the get-togethers. “Kids in 2020 feel that they got more or less cheated out of their senior year, we did also. There was no enthusiasm because you knew that the boys were going off soon to the war, some of them never to come back. It was very sad. You didn’t want to play,” Vail said.

Lighter moments included dances featuring the polka and fox trots with soldiers from the U.S. Navy’s V-12 unit stationed at Trinity College. “These boys were interested in studying because, if they flunked out of the program, they went into active service. As long as they stayed in college they were safe,” she said.

Frank Sinatra provided entertainment as he performed in downtown Hartford at The State Theater. “He wasn’t that much older than we were,” Vail said.

After speaking with Vail, one cannot help but admire her graceful acceptance of the mix of happiness and sadness in her life. Her life serves as a comfort and a reminder that although our current times may be difficult, “this too shall pass.”

“Yes, we will always have change and we will adjust. In the past few months, we have had to adjust to Zoom and other such technology. It allowed students everywhere to complete the school year.

Adults could work from home which was a completely new experience for most. At 93, I did experience this wonderful and exciting new technology. I was able to go to virtual meetings, a fundraiser wine tasting party, and a funeral.”

“As you read this article, remember that 75 years ago I graduated from Oxford.

That is a long time ago. The brain does not always remember things exactly as they were. Please take this with a grain of salt,” Vail said.

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Innovation, Opportunity, & Connection KO community rallies and succeeds in distance learning

By Jackie Pisani

The news came slowly and then all at once. In early March, KO made some tough decisions about canceling our cherished trip to Tobati, Paraguay and the Model U.N. trip to Italy over spring break due to the pandemic.

Concerns mounted that students would be stranded overseas as international borders were shutting down. While enjoying lunch in the dining hall before the spring break in the cafeteria, some teachers discussed the

unlikely event that school would move online as the pandemic’s momentum was building.

As the numbers of COVID-19 cases surged in the tri-state area, KO announced on March 12 that our curriculum would move online. And just like that, it did.

With extraordinary agility, decisiveness and thoughtfulness, administrators and faculty worked through spring break to create meaningful,

mission-driven curriculum so that students wouldn’t miss a beat. And they haven’t. Remember the school’s motto?

Vincit qui se vincit. ‘One conquers by conquering oneself.’ That’s what Wyverns do, and the entire school pushed through and pivoted to online learning within a two-week period.

Everyone stepped up and supported one another - faculty, staff, students, teachers, and parents - under these extraordinary circumstances.

Academic Technology Coordinators, a crackerjack team of savvy and adept educators with a deep knowledge of tech tools, fanned out and held Zoom meetings to help teachers navigate new learning tools like Formative, Peardeck and other materials for creating an effective online experience. Faculty training was held on March 23, and classes began the following day.

Rather than look at this online format as a problem to be fixed, KO leaned into the format and asked, “How do we take advantage of this moment and what can we optimize?” “How can we build in more student research and inquiry” and, “How can we capitalize on students’ ingenuity that this unique situation poses?”

It was business as unusually usual at KO. There is not an easy transfer of a brick and mortar school to an online format, but tremendous learning took place and expectations did not waver. Students needed to dig into the material and demonstrate their learning in a new way. So, KO reviewed the practices of schools in Asia, which had moved to online learning prior to the United States due to the pandemic, and the school adapted some of their models, learned from their mistakes, and leaned on adolescent brain science to determine the optimum means to deliver meaningful and engaging learning.

KO thoughtfully considered how students learned best and created a schedule that was conducive to deep project-based learning and a student’s social and emotional health. For example, the school day began at 9:00 a.m. because brain science tells us that a student’s cognitive function operates better when the day starts later for pre-adolescents and teens due to their circadian rhythms.

KO continually surveyed the students about their online learning experience and assessed the schedule based on their feedback and needs. In a recent survey, 81% of the students validated the schedule and said that it “felt right.”

There was a full range of positive, forward-thinking ideas as the school determined what gets our students to be as creative and intrinsically motivated as possible.

Classes were not held on Wednesdays which allowed students time to step back, reflect, create, dig deep, and catch up. It also allowed for one-on-one meetings with teachers for extra help or one-on-one guidance, time to complete their homework, and the opportunity to continue assignments they started

in class or work on long-term projects.

Wednesday morning began with advisee group meetings, which allowed students to connect for a half hour and plan their day to make the most productive use of their time.

Due to the online learning format, KO understood the importance of stepping away from the screen for 30 minutes in between classes. Extended periods of screen time have been associated with vision issues, “computer vision syndrome,” with symptoms including strained, dry eyes, blurred vision, and headaches, neck and back pain, less efficient information processing, and poor sleep. The blue light from digital devices suppresses the sleep-promoting hormone melatonin, keeping us from having restful sleep.

Moving away from final exams to a final project model took advantage of asynchronous learning. Additionally, we reduced students’ stress levels for preparing to take that one high stakes test. The longer format project model gave students the ability to be more creative and hands-on. In order to tackle authentic academic challenges, students engaged in design thinking.

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More time was necessary to ideate, problem-solve, test the feasibility and viability of their concepts, and rework them.

Each department adjusted and made choices depending upon their content area very much in line with the goals of our strategic plan to provide more engaged learning and interdisciplinary opportunities. Rather than only focusing on material, we asked, “What is the essential content for the students to know?” and “Where are places where we can emphasize depth over coverage?” It was a winning trade-off and one that we feel was right.

KO prides itself on its deep personal connections between its students and teachers. Keeping that spirit alive was a big piece of everything we did as we moved to an online school. Our advisee system is the spine that holds the students’ connections in place and offers a safe space for a student to work out their challenges and celebrate their accomplishments in a supportive and nurturing manner so we continued to have those daily moments of engagement to energize.

Throughout the week, KO provided online opportunities for the students to decompress and connect virtually through activities and interesting classes such as cooking classes, yoga, mindfulness training, cartoon drawing classes, and athletic training. In true KO fashion, many student leaders have stepped up and initiated their own online events like bingo, movie night, and trivia events.

George Santayana proved powerfully relevant, “Those who do not remember the past are condemned to repeat it.”

Students in Rob Kyff ’s AP American History class poured over original source documents, newspapers and other materials to research the Great Pandemic of 1918 which cost the lives of approximately 50 million worldwide and 675,000 within the United States alone. By drawing parallels between the two epidemics, the students could observe how our actions or inactions, both individually and institutionally, can impact the containment of a virus.

The students divided into teams to drill down on several issues concerning the Pandemic of 1918 (role of the media, healthcare, federal and local government responses, economic fallout, and social impact) and then discussed the ways in which today’s pandemic mirrors or departs from the past. All students presented their findings in a Zoom room.

The reports were well-documented, and the students engaged in robust discussions about the comparisons to the current pandemic.

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Art recreations Upper Prep students in Katherine Nicholson’s art class took on the art history challenge where the students researched their favorite artist and then recreated the artist’s image in a nonpainting, non-drawing material.

Broadway at KO In June, KO theater devotees planned to enjoy four Broadway performances and workshops with professional actors. But, like much of the world, Broadway shut down too. Instead of heading to NYC, Broadway came to KO. Director of Theater Kyle Reynolds delivered a show-stopping virtual lineup of Broadway actors and actresses nothing short of jaw-dropping.

For an entire week beginning April 27, Reynolds lined up one Broadway star a day who presented a virtual masterclass to KO students. The week, coined Broadway at KO, after the already in motion masterclasses students have been participating over the course of the year, featured some of the biggest names on the stage: Lesli Margarita (Matilda, Dames at Sea, Zorro),

Chris Fitzgerald (Wicked, Chicago, Waitress), Taylor Louderman (Mean Girls, Kinky Boots, Bring it On), Grasan Kingsberry (Once on this Island, The Color Purple, Motown), and Kate Baldwin (Thoroughly Modern Millie, Big Fish, Hello Dolly).

Cartooning Middle School art teacher Katherine Nicholson recruited cartoonist Rick Stromoski, the illustrator of Soup to Nutz, to work with KO students in hour-long cartooning workshops as a co-curricular activity. Armed with several sheets of white paper and a thin-tipped black marker, the students followed the directives of the illustrator in a Zoom room. Stromoski shared his screen - a virtual whiteboard - and the students saw his speedy notations, as he transformed emotions with a mere flick of his pen.

Cooking Classes Students in all forms opted in for co-curricular activities and tapped into their inner Julia Child for some caloric and fun treats with Lindsay Perkins. Each week three virtual cooking classes were held during the 90-minute free/lunch break. Mondays were food “demos” where Perkins

showed basic cooking skills like how to chop an onion or make poached eggs. Wednesdays were baking classes -- everything from biscuits, scones, pound cakes, bar cookies, crepes, and cinnamon rolls. Fridays were slated for cooking: omelets, focaccia bread, pizza.

All from scratch! Perkins made sure that most of the ingredients were in a family’s pantry to ensure that it was an easy, no-fuss delight to make at home.

Dance Students in Director of Theater Kyle Reynolds’ drama class danced, hopped, twirled, kicked, shuffled, and spun their way through an authentic look into an average clip of their day. The assignment was based on the concept of physical storytelling, with no speaking allowed to describe the scene.

Instead, students used their bodies, facial expressions, and the art of camera angles to tell a story with the quest to answer the essential question: Can you use your body to tell a story? The students danced in their bedrooms, living rooms, hallways and kitchen.

Even some moms joined in on the fun.

The recordings were shared in a Zoom class.

Engineering and 3D Printed PPE Due to shortages in PPE, UCONN Health provided KO’s Technology Director Dan Bateson with a specific facemask adaptor design they needed printed, and Bateson 3D printed hundreds and delivered them to the hospital using the school’s 3D printer.

As a parallel project, students in the Introduction to Engineering class attempted to make prototypes themselves in Google Sketchup. This proved challenging as none of the students had any background CAD knowledge, but they continued to problem solve to create masks that were efficient and functional. Real, authentic learning in real time!

Music Performances The choral group Outlook worked hard to polish and record a virtual choir performance of “A Maiden is in a Ring.” The students spent countless hours recording multiple takes in total isolation, getting feedback from the teacher and each other in each class.

They recorded voice part by voice part, with the basses recording first and then creating layers of baritone, tenor, alto, and soprano voices.

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David Baker ’04 mixed and mastered the sound using GarageBand and then put together an iMovie slideshow of performances from the past year along with photos of our singers to highlight all their hard work and to thank them for a great year of singing.

Heal the World Virtual Choir Choir Director Steve Mitchell shared a virtual choir project from our KO Concert Choir, a very challenging and time consuming process for the students. Just imagine the pressure the students felt singing alone in their room and trying to get every note right in one take. David Baker ’04 wrote the arrangement, and the singers never heard or sang this song together before this quarantine.

Jazz Bands The Upper School jazz band performed “Autumn Leaves” and the Middle School jazz band performed “Sunflower” under the guidance of Creative Arts Chair Todd Millen. This was no easy feat as there are delays and connectivity issues so students couldn’t perform the pieces all at one time. Instead, students practiced on a backing track, Millen made a recording of himself playing on the backing track, and then cued the student to record his or her solo. Millen video edited the individual performances together for a seamless performance.

Photography Members of KO’s Upper School Photography 1 class, taught by Greg Scranton ’94, were assigned a final project documenting how their lives have changed in quarantine by creating a photo essay. The assignment stated: “You may be as creative as you wish so long as the body of work communicates a sense of what you are feeling and how life has changed for you.” The results showed a slice of life from the point

of view of our students. Photography became reflective and healing palliative.

Speakers’ Forum Form 4 students took part in an annual tradition of the Speakers’ Forum finals.

This year it was a webinar, emceed by Braeden Rose ’21 and Christina Lu ’21.

As J.K. Rowling notes: “There’s always room for a story that can transport people to another place,” and five of our sophomores gave us glimpses into other worlds through their interpretive readings. The finalists included: Koby Braunstein - Wonder by R. J. Palacio, Natalia Correa - “Distractions” by Simon Rich, Aidan Dillow - “Riding Solo, The Oatsy Story” by Simon Rich, Katharine Doar - To Kill a Mockingbird

by Harper Lee, and Daniel Raymond - The Things They Carried by Tim O’Brien. Gathering around our laptops and other electronic devices the finalists treated us to both some dark and light moments in the lives of their characters.

The Speakers’ Forum was established by the legendary KO teacher Bob Googins who worked at the school for 42 years as an English teacher, Forensic Union and Mock Trial founder, and sports coach. Correa placed first.

Wyvern Fit Challenge To keep the sense of community alive while we quarantined, the athletic department devised a friendly competition among eight different teams. The challenge took a team approach to building healthier lifestyles within our KO community. The participants on each team strove to be more physically active within their own comfort zone and keep track of each day’s workout. Congratulations to Coach Brandon Batory and Form 4 for winning the challenge. Form 4 led all teams with 3,205 points and edged out the Staff/Faculty team by 40 points. The top four overall performers for Form 4 were Alexis Vail, Allison

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Wildstein, Mackenzie Caruso and Shoshana Levy.

ALL THE FEELS Parents Comment on KO’s Online School Thank you Mr. Dillow and to all the teachers and staff that have made the transition to online learning possible. This may not be the best situation but you have all helped to make the best of the situation.

We are truly grateful for all of you.

Thank you! Proud to be a part of the Wyvern family!

KO nation ROCKS!!! So happy Matthew is part of it!!! You guys are awesome! You have gone above and beyond for our kids to make the transition easy not only for them but for us working parents. Thank you!!!

I feel the power of this incredible community from my desk at home!

Thank you #wyvernnation.

Just want to thank all my kids wonderful teachers! I heard my kids laughing and saw them smiling! My upper school son said he had a great day seeing his friends! KO you are doing this right!

Thank you to the teachers for making the online learning seamless!

I am amazed at how wonderfully the KO teachers and staff have pulled this new way of teaching and connecting off so quickly.

Thank you!

Making a Big Impact with a Future Gift

Why is a KO education special?

Many friends of Kingswood Oxford have shown their commitment to the school by joining the NicholsonMartin Society of Legacy Donors and including KO in their Estate Plans. Such plans, including making a bequest or charitable income gift, offer our donors the opportunity to make a lasting impact on the lives of KO students.

Two members of the NicholsonMartin Society, Jean LaTorre P ’12, ’14, ’19 and Keith Wolff ’91, P ’20, ’23, have shared their reasons for including KO in their Estate Plans. For more information on Planned Giving, please contact Director of Institutional Advancement Dina Plapler.

Jean LaTorre P ’12, ’14, ’19

Why do you support Kingswood Oxford?

Jean: I know from personal experience that education can be the great equalizer in society. Our children’s educational foundation often sets the trajectory for their future. I support KO because of the passion and success the school brings to this essential mission.

Keith Wolff ’91 with his family Devin ’23, Jackson ’20, and Kris

Keith: Kris and I have always said the greatest gift we can give to our children is a high-quality education, as we believe it is the foundation of a child’s future. We feel blessed to have our boys educated at KO, and we want to support the school in continuing its mission to help other students and families so they can have the same opportunity.

Jean: A KO education is bespoke.

Students and their families can shape their journeys with academics, sports, arts, and community involvement.

Students are encouraged to flex different muscles on their journey of self-discovery.

Keith: What makes the KO education so exceptional is its faculty and staff.

KO is a nurturing environment that teaches the students how to become confident, caring and independent individuals. To see teachers that have been at KO since I first attended the school almost 30 years ago is a testament to the dedication the faculty and staff have for the students.

What is your vision for the future of KO? Jean: Our world is changing with unprecedented velocity. Many vocations of the future are yet to be defined. Head of School Tom Dillow and his team recognize the need to provide a program that teaches our students how to continue to learn and adapt to our dynamic world.

Keith: KO can be at the forefront of a dynamic learning environment where students will move beyond the classroom by collaborating and researching projects in the greater Hartford community. Students will still experience a sense of place and connection that is at the core of KO as a school. KO is an expansive place where students have opportunities to shine in athletics, arts, music, public speaking and more so that they may reach their full potential. We believe in welcoming a diverse community of thinkers and doers who elevate and support one another intellectually, socially, and emotionally.

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Class Notes KINGSWOOD 1940 As a result of a bequest to MoMA in NYC, a tree in the sculpture garden, along with a memorial marker, was dedicated to Charles Merrels.

KINGSWOOD 1950 Burnham Gould says, “I attended Kingswood for five years, graduating with the class of 1950. It was a wonderful experience for me. In particular my command of the English language rose from weak to above average, a very important improvement. As a consequence, I was able to do well at Princeton and at grad school at M.I.T., marry a wonderful woman, and enjoy a productive, fulfilling life. I give great credit to George Nicholson, the headmaster, and to several of the Kingswood teachers, especially Chick Jacobus (math and soccer) and Doc Crawford (English). Now we live in a delightful area on the North Carolina Outer Banks and travel extensively throughout the world.”

OXFORD 1950 Sally Churchill Currie writes, “As for me I am chronologically 87, organ-wise 77, and joint-wise about 104! I had a stem-cell injection and feel about 60 most days. I had a ‘nose job’ when I was 81, have two replaced hips, a replaced shoulder, and a pacemaker with a ‘watchman.’ However, I sometimes walk three miles just doing errands and take only one medication.

Had to give up my car last May due to macular degeneration and glaucoma.

“I live in an over 55 ‘independent living’ building and do all of my own shopping, cooking and cleaning. I can walk to almost everything I need and manage my own affairs. In normal

times I have a masseuse who comes to the house once a week.

“My older son, Steve, lives about 40 minutes away, and my younger son, David, lives in San Francisco. My grandchildren, Patric and Sienna, live mostly in San Francisco. Sienna graduated from Wesleyan, where my father and brother went, last June.

My brother, Ned, died in 2013. His widow, Jo-Ann still lives in Pittsburgh.

I lost my husband, Tom Hardman, in 2012.

“I continue to write poetry and enjoy performing it. Have been busy putting it into an album for my heirs.”

“My special friend is an astrophysicist next door who worked on the Spitzer space telescope. How cool is that! We want to play chess when we can stop social distancing.”

Bobbie Wood Mowry is living in a large senior complex in Gaithersburg, Md. She is recently widowed with sons and grandchildren in D.C., Boston and Tampa. Bobbie enjoys the many activities there, including a garden plot, yoga classes and a pool. She has some vision and arthritis issues but manages well considering. Bobbie is looking forward to news of her classmates!

Sylvia Holman Newton says, “I don’t really have any ‘latest news’ to report.

I’m still living in Simsbury but moved to a retirement community at McLean several years ago. I’m still working at Continuing Education in town running the adult evening classes. My sons live within driving distance and the grandchildren are all scattered across the country. So basically things are good with me!”

Betsy Stedman Russell writes, “Who would have thought in 1950 that we would be writing news for our 70th Reunion, during a pandemic to boot.

One husband, four children, and ten “grands” is what I am most proud of.

Unfortunately, Peter died six years ago. I am living in a senior facility, Duncaster, in Bloomfield, Conn., and am very content. Ruth Kaufman Shulansky is also here.

My health has remained good, for which I am very fortunate. I enjoy summer in Madison, Conn., and the month of February in St. Croix.

I’m in contact with Cinny Brewster Clifford, Sylvia Holman Newton, Connie Wiley Cross, Bobbie Wood Mowry, and Ruth Kaufman Shulansky regularly.

Seventy years have not dimmed the fun memories we had together. I have lots of photos to remind me of all the good time. Love to all.”

OXFORD 1951 Class Correspondent: Sallie Barr Palmer Frannie Steane Baldwin always has lots of news, even during lockdown!

Her granddaughter welcomed a baby girl in April, making Frannie a great-grandmother for the third time.

Meanwhile, she keeps up with Oxford news and classmates. Just before everything closed down, she, Gara Van Schaak and Vivian Hathaway Crouse met for lunch. Being confined to home has given her time to catch up on her reading, and she highly recommends The Splendid and the Vile

by Eric Larsen.

Pem Donegan Schultz reports

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everyone in her assisted-living facility is wearing a mask to stay safe. Her two great-grandsons are thriving in New Zealand, where their grandmother, Pemmie’s daughter Lucy, frequently baby-sits them. Lucy is senior chaplain at the Diocesan Assisted Living facility. Pemmie urges everyone to take care!

Barby Gowdy Tongue hopes everyone is doing well. Her daughter Katie and family are all Alaskans, while son Ben commutes between Massachusetts and an island in Maine.

Anne Carter Peck Mahaffey has made yet another move, this time across the country to California, where she is living in a senior community in Oakland, about 20 minutes way from her daughter Lucy. Among the residents are two more Oxford alumnae – Carolyn Young ’49, and Mary Ellen Blumenfeld Doyle ’56, who was in Betsy Peck’s class. Carter’s new address is: Anne Carter Mahaffey, 100 Bay Place, Apt 1020, Oakland, CA, 94610.

I talked with Dinny Duffield Whiting a couple of weeks ago. Doing fine, but of course her usual activities have been curtailed, as everything in the main building is closed down. Even the dining room, although meals are still being delivered to the front door.

The Palmers are keeping busy. I’m clearing out old paper, pictures and miscellaneous junk from my office. I figure about six more months should do it! Peter is keeping up with his veterans’ correspondence, plus rereading his entire collection of Louis L’Amour westerns – three shelves’ worth. Last October we attended the lovely wedding of youngest son, Mark,

to an absolutely wonderful lady! In January we took a cruise on the QM2.

Highlight of the land tours was Petra, the ancient city in Jordan carved out of the rock. I had been there over 50 years ago, when I was young and spry, so did not do the walking tour. Rode by golf cart to the main square, took a few photos and rode back. Peter went the whole way on foot – well, until he ended up virtually on his hands and knees at the end! Somewhat less strenuous – trip to the Dead Sea. Again, I had been there years ago, so stayed on the beach and took pictures as Peter tried to stand up after floating for a while. Finally had to go over to a small pier to pull himself up. Flew home from Dubai, just in time to avoid airline restrictions.

OXFORD 1956 Class Correspondent: Sandy Martin McDonough Sally David Ardrey says, “Greetings to all in this terribly frightening time.

For the past year I have been working as a paid companion to someone who has dementia. Fortunately, this lovely woman lives a six-minute walk from my apartment. I am grateful that employment is helping me to pay the rent, which enables me to remain in my beloved New York City and stay out of the guest room in my daughter’s home in New Canaan. Who knows about the future? I feel most fortunate to report that my family are well. High hopes that you and yours are too.”

Mary Ellen Blumenfeld Doyle says, “I moved to Oakland, Calif. in June 2019, and in December my husband, John Doyle, died of a heart attack. He had not been in good health for the last two years, but we hoped that being close to our son and his family would

help. I am painting and am inspired by the beautiful view of the Oakland hills from the apartment we chose. There is an interesting coincidence that two other Oxford School alumnae live in this residence, Saint Paul’s Towers: Anne Carter Peck ’51, older sister of Betsy Peck ’56 (deceased), and Carolyn Young ’49. We have had fun sharing Oxford memories.”

N.B. Our love and sympathy go to Mary Ellen on her loss.

Before Nancy "Boots" EdwardsCogswell passed away in June, her husband Richard sent her love and affection to her classmates.

Cynthia Kohn Hobart says, “Since I’m now 81, the question I’m most often asked is how I am doing regarding my present state of health.

I am happy to say that so far, I can answer, ‘Thank you, I’m doing quite well.’ I’d like to explain that I think that my present state of good health is due mostly to the good care my integrative doctor gives me. About 10 years ago I read in an alternative health newsletter that thermograms were preferable to mammograms for preventing breast cancer since they would show warm areas – potential breast problem areas – earlier, when they could be treated to prevent future breast cancer. I was particularly concerned about breast cancer because my sister, Betsy, had it several years ago and my mother sadly had died from it. Ten years ago the only doctor I could find who offered thermograms was in St. Louis; she is my integrative doctor. She is very thorough in her care, testing her patients three times a year, the results of which determine the supplements and prescriptions she prescribes. I’d like to also mention

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that I regularly have acupuncture treatments here, and a few years ago several months of frequent treatments cured my sciatica. Otherwise, I have been enjoying a relaxed pace of life.

Over the past 22 years I’ve created many stained-glass pieces, although recently my interest has diminished. I am still active in the local Presbyterian Church and recently retired after nine years serving as Clerk of the Session, a big job. I also sing in the choir there.

After experiencing a stress fracture in my foot three years ago, I no longer dare to go on the week-long hiking trips I previously enjoyed. In past years I also enjoyed many trips overseas, but find I no longer am interested.

I currently just travel in the U.S. to visit my sister and family. Here in Rolla, Mo., I regularly enjoy spending time with Kathryn, my 8-year-old grand-daughter, as well as visiting family and friends, volunteering in the community, walking, hiking a bit, doing yoga, puttering around my yard, and reading.”

Alice Butler Mendell says, “For the first time in 59 years I have cut Seth’s hair! I did not do too bad a job. He has trimmed mine in the back, but the rest of my silver mop is doing its own thing. We regrettably missed

our spring lunch in West Hartford and our Avon Old Farms Alumni Weekend. Also, we have slowly and sadly come to the full realization that there will be no going north to a rental in Mattapoisett, Mass., for two to three months to see family and old friends. What happens if we get sick?

The answers never added up in favor of going. So we will remain in our hot, tropical, retired paradise and pray that there will not be a hurricane and enjoy the amenities offered by Shell Point Retirement Community of which there are many. Stay safe, stay well and vote by mail; (one of the ways I am keeping busy is urging people via snail mail to vote by it). Love to you all.”

Nancy Austin Reed writes, “Hi to all you fellow gals!! Hmmm . . . Hi to all you ’56ers!!! I hope by the time you read this, all the coronavirus will have passed . . . and you’re all O.K.!!! Here at Seabury (retirement community in Bloomfield) we residents are ALL staying secure . . . no one going out and no visitors coming in. (My daughter did get some needed groceries by bringing a bag to the main entrance and the security guard delivered it to the front desk for me to come down to pick up.) We have no one so far infected with the virus.

“I moved here five years ago. I am so glad that I DID make the BIG decision to move.!! So many new friends, lots of activities, and no shoveling snow, washing windows, dusting, vacuuming, ETC.!!! Any and ALL the help one needs. Yup!! This was the right choice . . . and as I age I can move to the assisted living section and then on to the nursing quarters . . . and finally: Rest in Peace. The kids don’t have to worry about anything or what to do as I age. Yup!! I’m well taken care of and a Happy Camper!!

Now let’s read news from your other classmates!!”

Patty Hanson Rodgers says, “Hi all.

Update from the Rodgers clan! At this point each of our two sons and their families are working and studying from home. One family in Old Greenwich, Conn., and the other in Wappingers Falls, N.Y. Our four grandkids are ages 10-13. Fortunately, John and I have just moved to a retirement community in Lexington, Mass. Brookhaven is perfect for us! We are in a new apartment building on their campus and have all the advantages offered including many lectures, concerts, etc. We are fortunate to have a great apartment on the top fifth floor with terrific views of woodlands and mountains in the distance. There are now about 40 people in our building as many have left for vacation homes for the time being. We are lucky to have many good friends here. Look forward to hearing from all of you.

In the meantime love to all and be well!!!”

Bobbie Deeds Schaus writes, “Well, hello there everyone! It is so great to look back on fun times at Junior SCHOOL (!!!!) and KO, but I think

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spend the winter. She is finally back in mid-May.

Bobbie Deeds Schaus ’56 and her family in Park City, Utah

I left you all too quickly. I missed a lot of fun and games in the West Hartford area! We are now in Vero Beach, Fla., and stay here for the winter. Our other spot is Essex Meadows, Conn., a retirement community that you must come and check out! We love it there too. This winter I decided it was time to gather as many of our family who were willing to meet at a convenient ski mountain for some skiing and giggles. We decided Park City, Utah, was the easiest to reach from Florida, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Denver, Boston, New York City, Connecticut and Providence. So there I rented an Airbnb for two weeks, where everyone came in and out as they were able.

We have 13 grandchildren. All four children, plus Deedo’s husband Chris, came for the beginning, then Maddy, Charlotte, Trevor Brown, Sam Philip,

Charlie, Margot, and Alex Painter all came for two or three days at intervals. We had the time of our life, cousins together, children together, grandmother enjoying every bit.”

Susie Taylor Smith has lived in her house for 53 years. She and husband Phil have over 1,000 daffodils with tulips to bloom this spring. Phil spends most of his time gardening, while Susie has become a housemaid during this period of being homebound. She will not only miss our luncheon but her 60th Smith College reunion. The Smiths also have family members working in direct care at a Boston hospital.

Sandy Travis Zieky and her beau got stuck by COVID-19 in California where they wintered. A nice place to

Sandy Martin McDonough says, “It’s always wonderful to hear from classmates and know so many are vibrant and involved in their communities. For me, again my life has gone to the dogs. Another litter was born mid-May and will go to their forever homes in July.

I was inundated with requests for puppies this year because so many people are now working from home (and expect to do so for a long, long time) and decided a Samoyed would be the best companion. And, yes, I am still working. Connecticut’s governor closed the courts, creating havoc for divorcing clients. Support, custody, and other aspects stood by as only domestic violence got court attention. We’ve learned how to work remotely and process divorces remotely with agreements ‘on the documents’ filed with the court.

Progress! Daughter Lora had a ‘C’ scare this year, but the surgeon says he got it all. Granddaughter Caroline and her husband live in Westchester County and ply their music trade.

Grandson Toby and his wife continue to live on Maui. He teaches, builds and repairs musical instruments, and Amelia is sadly off her dance schedule due to COVID-19. Brother Steve and wife, Jeanette, are in their third year in a wonderful retirement village in Memphis. The apartment is spacious, the food delicious, and more activities than time in the week.”

OXFORD 1958 Class Correspondent: Sue Mather Dabanian As I write this, we are still in the grips of this devastating coronavirus. All my

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children, Sarah and Edward have been very supportive.

Elise Hooker Sirman and David made do with waving to their sons and grandsons through the kitchen window then decided they’d had enough. They packed up the pets and headed for their place in Sandgate, Vt., – very small and quiet. Elise also reported the death of Suejay Shapiro Glazier, who was our classmate in grades 7-9. I remember Suejay very well and even visited her when she lived in Massachusetts on a lovely lake with her beloved dog, Sushi.

Sandy Martin McDonough’s ’56 litter of Samoyed puppies

regulars who reported in said that they were doing well and staying safe. How about the rest of you?

Sherry Campbell Benton’s younger son and his wife welcomed twins in April. VERY exciting news! Her older grandsons, ages 2 1/2 and 6, are also nearby.

Penny Hoffman McConnel reported that she and Jim spent their usual two and a half months in California but had to retreat to Vermont when the virus reared its ugly head. Now it is gardening and birdwatching. She wonders when she will be able to see her kids and grandkids again in France, Arizona and California. To answer your question, Pen, no one else outside of Oxford calls me Smather . . .

Betsy Swinehart Riel has been doing a lot of reading, jigsaw puzzles and walking within her apartment complex. Her grandchildren do her grocery shopping since she doesn’t have a car.

I had a FaceTime call, inadvertently, from Anne Proctor! Surprise! Of course I had to curl my hair and look presentable before I returned her call.

Don’t even START with the hair situation. It was great SEEING and talking with her after what, 60 years?

Naturally, we didn’t recognize each other . . . She has a new grandson, John Henry. Heavens, all these gals with new grand babies! I’m almost ready for GREAT grandkids! Annie lives on Long Island, her sons are nearby, and her daughter is in Minnesota. With the new baby, she has four grandkids.

Lisa Shaffer Anderson is unfortunately going through a divorce. She has been sheltering-in-place in Delray Beach, Fla., with her sister Trina ’56, who herself has been unable to return home to Cape Cod because of the virus. Lisa’s art collection has added to the challenge as they decide what to keep, sell or donate to museums. Her

Sarah Duffield has been “Zooming” (great invention!) with the family to keep in touch. Emily, her youngest, is an EMT in Yonkers, N.Y. Tough job, especially these days. Granddaughter Aine is a typical two-year-old – always on the go.

Pat Waring was recently laid off from her main freelance writing job, so without those frantic deadlines, all is very relaxed. It is so relaxed that she has become less motivated to do the many home projects that keep getting postponed (your writer can relate!)

Anne Van Winkle-Denne is anxiously waiting for the day when she can resume playing tennis. She makes do with an easy jog every day. As restrictions are being lifted, she will finally be able to see her daughter across the Bay in San Francisco, who teaches kindergarten in a French school.

As for me, with this virus situation I’ve been working in the back yard (aka weeding) and exercising my knee after a total replacement in January.

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It’s been a slow process, much more difficult than hips. Just before my knee surgery I found out that I was diabetic.

For someone who use to faint at the sight of needles and blood, it’s now my everyday encounter. The only benefit?

A 12-pound weight loss! The kids and grandkids are all doing well, some working from home. Granddaughter Rachel is working as an RN in the ER at a hospital near San Diego and loves it. On that note I’ll sign off and hope that everyone will continue to stay safe and healthy in this our BIG 80TH year. No big celebrations this year, that’s for sure!

OXFORD 1959 Class Correspondent: Zélie Calvocoressi Tourais Janice Cianci Castillo writes, “Who would have imagined that I would be writing my class notes this year while living through a pandemic, specifically the COVID-19? My very active lifestyle has come screeching to a halt. However, Richard and I have thankfully readily adjusted to the stay-at-home orders and wearing our masks. We venture out only for groceries, the vet, bike riding, boating, doctor appts, etc. Since I’m ‘older,’ had a stroke this past year, and walking pneumonia the year before, I have to be extra careful. I sure miss tennis, bridge, concerts, etc. My camera club is holding its meetings on Zoom for its monthly lectures and contests. My family is even holding Zoom birthday parties with friends joining in from around the country. Our cruise this weekend for our friends’ celebrations and our Christmas market tour along the Danube were both canceled.

However, this ‘time at home’ has given us the opportunity to get pushed-

aside projects done. One of these is that, over these last weeks, we’ve been tackling sorting, purging, and distributing our many thousands of photos taken before digital photos came about. In 2018 a girlfriend and I enjoyed a fantastic trip around Sicily with Overseas Adventure Travel.

Then in 2019 I went on a tour of Cuba with Richard’s cousin, meeting so many wonderful Cubans just two weeks before travel from the U.S. was closed. In the fall, daughter Dawn and granddaughter Makenzie from California met us, along with Richard’s sister and two nieces from Cocoa Beach in NYC for a long weekend of family fun. I managed to get in over 28,000 steps each day! LOL.

Janice Cianci Castillo ’59, left, and her husband's cousin at Valle de los Ingenios or Valley of the Sugar Mills outside of Trinidad, Cuba

“Sadly Susan Cohen Casden and I couldn’t connect for our ‘traditional’ dinner together. Finally, Richard and I chose New Orleans to spend our Christmas. Richard couldn’t get enough of their charbroiled oysters, especially those at Drago’s! Wishing everyone to stay healthy and safe!”

him develop. Nineteen-year-old granddaughter Eliza just finished her freshman year at the University of Montana at home online, and it’s been great to catch their whole family together, with them all home in Bozeman. Best to everyone!”

Kathie Whitcomb Dudzinski writes, “Paul and I are keeping ourselves busy at home and enjoying our nearly rural environs during this long COVID-19 interval. He does get out daily on his new electric assist bike, while I enjoy getting around pretty normally, having recovered much from my 2019 bike accident and cancer treatment with the help of Zoom workouts, Tai Chi, and a daily walk. Our best news is the birth to Mark (age 51) and his 37-year-old wife Miriam of our grandson Gábor (Hungarian for “Gabriel”) on Feb. 10, 2020, in Bellingham, Wash. We got to hold him in the very beginning, but still feel thoroughly lucky to have Face Time and Zoom to watch

Debbie Mahoney Swenson says that she is “so grateful that I was able to travel on two wild adventures with my new life partner, Larry, before COVID-19 – a rafting trip down the Colorado River in the Grand Canyon and an amazing safari in Tanzania and Kenya. Winter spent in Vero Beach where I saw lots of Susan McClure Harris and husband Tony and one evening with Charlotte Buck and David Miller. Biking, tennis, walking, bridge and new golf fill my time. Love Zooming with Ellen Jones Wood, Julie Peck, Charlotte, Susan and Zélie Calvocoressi Tourais. Grateful for good health and happiness.”

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One new word has certainly come into our vocabulary: “Zoom.” It and Messenger Kids have enabled Patrick and me to stay more in touch with family and friends. Stay safe everyone.

KINGSWOOD 1960 After 66 years at Camp Pasquaney and 61 continuous summers as a counselor, Robert Bulkeley has finally retired.

It has been a rich and rewarding experience. He has been living in Campton, N.H., for the last 20 years.

OXFORD 1960 Class Correspondent: Jane Anderson Innerd As always Jennifer Ripple Akridge was the first to send in news for the Bulletin. She writes that her husband, Ed, had a health setback late in September when tests showed a small spot of cancer in his colon.

Fortunately, his surgery validated that the cancer was contained, his lymph nodes were clear, and he didn’t have to be referred to an oncologist. All good news, but his two-day stay in the hospital turned into more than two weeks to get his system working again.

Jennifer and Ed were able to get to Arizona just in time for Thanksgiving, and Ed began to improve in the warmer climate and in the sunshine.

This winter Jennifer became fully engaged in their special church, Gloria de Cristo Lutheran Church. She began classes in Stephen Ministry, which culminated in her commissioning at the end of March. Stephen Ministers are lay people who walk with members of her church and community who are going through a crisis, so that the individual is not alone.

Then in February their first great-

grandchild, Ryker Haze Collins, was born. Within a couple of days, their healthy little baby began a struggle for life with heart problems, numerous blood clots, etc. The doctor had never seen anything like what happened to Ryker. He recovered and is now at home with his mom and dad, thriving and a very healthy little baby boy.

Jennifer and Ed are looking forward to holding him but, because of the pandemic, it will be a while. For now, they are content to see pictures of him and know that he is healthy and happy.

Because of the virus, they elected to stay longer in Arizona, where there are fewer cases than in Washington.

However, when temperatures began to climb (it was 115º F on their deck recently), they decided it was time to go home. As she wrote this, Jennifer was looking forward to planting flowers. They are managing isolation by being outside in their garden, walking the dog, doing her coloring and lots of time for reading.

Jennifer said that recently Mary Lew Stearns Kelly reached out to her and that they are both enjoying reconnecting. Jenny ends by saying that this virus will pass, “be kind to each other and, most importantly, to yourselves.”

Barbara Hamilton Almy writes that, like most of us, she has been in isolation. No one has been in her house for over two months. And she has been nowhere except to walk her dogs twice and day, and she spends time in her garden. To keep busy Barby has done “a million” jigsaw puzzles and she has read lots of books. However, she has not used the time to declutter.

Barby’s daughter Kate is about to have her third child, a girl after two boys

who are now four- and two-years old.

Kate was due to give birth the day Barby wrote and she was waiting for news. (Camilla Lovering Bane was born on May 9.) Kate and her family live only 10 minutes away, so Barby sees them a lot, although currently only outside and at a distance, which she finds frustrating. Her son Nick lives in South Boston and is working (now at home) for an investment bank. He lives with two roommates.

Barby’s three stepchildren are all doing well in Rhode Island, California and Oregon. One of her step-grandsons is graduating from the Naval Academy and, sadly, will have no real graduation.

Her other step-grandchildren are all either just out of college or in college, and all are quarantined at home just now.

Barby wonders if we will ever be normal again. Somehow, she says, she doubts if things will ever be as loose as before, which may be a good thing.

She hopes some lessons will be learned from all this, particularly climate-wise.

There have been some wonderful things that have come out of this lockdown: no smog in California, visible Himalayas, and visible fish in the canals of Venice. It was a pleasure to hear from Barby; the last time she wrote, Kate was about to have her first child.

From Virginia Scotty Dwyer Benson writes that she has returned to work (on May 18) after a two-month layoff. She was furloughed because of her age and risk factor of catching COVID-19. What she learned in that two-month period was that she is not ready for full retirement at this moment.

Scotty was planning on returning to Connecticut for our 60th reunion but

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will put that on hold until next year.

She says that she really has nothing exciting to report since the last bulletin. She hopes we all stay safe and looks forward to seeing everyone at our delayed 60th reunion.

This was a year of transition for Prilla Smith Brackett. Trying to care for George at home and feeling increasingly trapped in their condo, she decided, with her sons Ethan and Matthew, to move George to Rogerson House, a wonderful assistedliving place in Boston for people with Alzheimers. She was fortunate to have her sons close by because she could not make and execute this decision by herself. Since July 2 when he went into Rogerson House, George’s anger has diminished, and he as made a fairly OK adjustment to being there.

For Prilla, learning to live alone hasn’t been easy and has been exacerbated by this social isolation. Her contact with George is now limited to a 10-minute FaceTime call per week, and occasionally a 10-minute window visit.

She sends notes to him by mail almost daily. Prilla feels that she is incredibly blessed to have her sons’ two families here in Boston with whom she has been having weekly socially distanced and masked adventures in the parks and reservations in their area. Such a connection to her children and grandchildren is a joy. Although George is very much on her mind, Prilla has regained her independence, a life, and some creativity prior to COVID-19. Last summer included going to Martha’s Vineyard with her families for a week and to the Stratford Shakespeare Festival with Jane and Wilf.

“We are continuing to shelter in Sarasota,” Jane Keller Herzig writes,

“for now returning to New Jersey is not wise.” She writes that they are very fortunate because both she and Ed and their children are doing well.

Their daughter Carolyn is a member of DCD’s international infectious disease control program, and as such was deployed to Yokohama to repatriate U.S. citizens who were on the Diamond Princess cruise ship.

Last July Carolyn moved to Atlanta to commence her career as a public health officer. Carolyn’s daughter, Viola, completed her senior year at Kenyon College while sheltering in Atlanta with her Mom. She will be participating in an online celebration on May 29 with her fellow classmates during which she will officially become a graduate. An actual in-person commencement will occur at a later date. In June, Viola will begin training for her job as a K-12 Spanish teacher in the Teach for America program.

She will be living and working in Washington, D.C. Jane’s son Michael and daughterin-law Rachelle live in New Jersey, and, for now, they are very busy with home schooling, Zoom piano lessons, FaceTiming friends, bike riding, etc., for their three children. Michael works from home and Rachelle works both from home and also goes to NYC to Presbyterian Hospital three to four times a week where she is an attending physician. Jane ends by saying that she and Ed are so fortunate to be safe and healthy and in touch with family and friends as we all continue to navigate a world upended by the pandemic.

Several of Mary-Lew Stearns Kelly’s family have had the virus but have all recovered well. Mary-Lew says that, as far as her neck issues go, they have not gotten any better, but she is still so

thankful that she is not paralyzed and can walk and work in their gardens.

Their mini-Aussie, Kai also keeps her on her toes and has become so spoiled that Bill even talks about another.

Not! Their incredible grandkids are doing well despite their virtual classes.

Bridget’s daughter Ailis (her oldest), who was a freshman at Trinity in Dublin, had to return home early due to a contact in her school building in Dublin. After a nightmare getting a flight back to the U.S., she had to self-quarantine for two weeks at a friend’s house on the Cape. She has now completed her freshman year on line and plans to return for the fall semester.

Mary-Lew and Bill watched their youngest son’s daughter graduate from Denison University in Ohio in a virtual ceremony. (It brought tears to Mary-Lew’s eyes!) She has already gotten a job and has started her master’s degree, thanks to her employer. Their other grands are doing well, including their oldest granddaughter who is moving to Denver, Colo., from Nashville, Tenn., to start a new job. They hope to visit her in Colorado when possible.

Her biggest job now is keeping their birds happy. Never have they had so many and so many different species.

Mary Lew prays that all of our classmates are safe and healthy.

Ann Faude Newbury sends a thank you to ALL who reached out to her following Sam’s death in January. She writes that they had 30 very special, wonderful years together. They were able to travel all over. Highlights included Rovos Rail through Africa,

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reminiscent of the idyllic 50s and 60s.

Sue writes, “May we never forget this opportunity we have had to enrich our relationships with our families and loved ones.”

Maggie Redfield graduated from West Point in 2020. She’s the daughter of LTC(R) Daniel Redfield ’86, niece of Elizabeth Redfield Friedman ’84 and granddaughter of Susan Lowe Redfield ’60 and Daniel Redfield ’59

the Trans Siberian Railroad from Vladivostok to Moscow, exploring the Mayan ruins, and hiking Machu Picchu en route back from Antarctica.

Sam was the one who initiated each trip. She writes that she is so grateful for their life together. And she hopes to see everyone next year.

The past few months have been difficult for each of us, Susan Lowe Redfield writes, but she hopes we will come away with some positive thoughts and new lifestyles. Each day in her neighborhood, parents and their children joyfully ride their bikes, with laughter and smiles on their faces. Boys and girls race around in packs, giggling, learning how to ride their bikes “no handed.” Gone are the carpools to the nearest lesson or sporting event. Families seem to be enjoying one another again. It is

This is Sue’s 14th year of retirement!

Her focus has turned to North Carolina, which is now home to Beth ’84 and Todd, who have moved from the Chicago area to Denver, N.C., near Charlotte. Their area is exploding, making it a fun place to visit. Megan has moved to Sydney to work with autistic young adults who have aged out of the system. She is in the process of securing Australia’s version of a green card, which is difficult and extremely costly. Zach and his fiancée have also moved to the Charlotte area, and like Todd, he works for Allstate. They are hoping to marry in November.

After 22 years of service, Danny ’86 retired eight years ago as a U.S. Army lieutenant colonel. He lives south of Raleigh and works as a civilian at Pope Air Force Base (next to Fort Bragg), where he is director of defense development. Maggie is in the class of 2020 at West Point and, as I write this, we are awaiting the logistics of her graduation. Trey finished his first year at the Newhouse School of Broadcasting at Syracuse. He has his sights on ESPN someday!

The pressure is on for Sue to move to North Carolina, too, but she feels anchored in West Hartford with friends and meaningful volunteer efforts. She has relocated enough families in her career to know that moving is a painful experience!

Sue and Ann look forward to welcoming our class for our delayed 60th reunion. If anyone has any ideas

for a fun celebration, please share them with Sue and Ann. In the meantime, Sue asks us to be safe and well.

Cindy Baird Roberts said that she had nothing special to report, adding, “All my classmates are in my thoughts.”

I asked Gay Willcox Squire how she and Roger were doing. “How are we doing?” she responds, “Well, considering the rest of the country, especially the urban areas, I’d say pretty well.” Living in rural Vermont, Gay and Roger are able to go outside any time they wish (without masks) to take long walks, during which they often see friends and neighbors with whom they can talk and catch up, from six-feet away, of course, and now that the weather is slowly turning spring-like, Gay is able to get into their gardens. She says it is always restorative to see everything appearing again after the long winter. And there are always maintenance tasks for the two of them.

They play lots of bridge online (and probably will for a long time), spend lots of time reading, and have lots of fun cooking!

They were very lucky that they had planned their trip to Africa with Gay’s sister and her husband when they did. They left the U.S. on Jan. 23 and returned on Feb. 13. Using their global entry documents, they sped through customs on their return to the U.S. and the only thing they were asked, aside from did they have anything to declare, was “Have you been to China recently?” How things have changed!

Their trip, primarily to Tanzania and Kenya, was wonderful, but also exceptional in that, although Africa had experienced drought conditions

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for a few years, while they were there, they had unprecedented rain during what was supposedly the non-rainy season. They were unable to reach their first campsite on schedule because the terrain was impassable. Afterward, the four safari vehicles in their group got stuck in mud every day, often more than once, which meant that digging each other out became part of the daily experience. But everyone took it all with good humor and, luckily, after the first day or two, all the rain came at night. Lions, giraffes, cheetahs, wildebeests, rhinoceros, glorious birds, and, mud!

After two weeks on safari, several of their group traveled on to the island Lamu, off the coast of Kenya. They stayed at a lovely, fully staffed guest house right on the water, walked on the exquisite beaches, swam in the Indian Ocean, went for sunset sails in the ubiquitous dhows. Probably the highlight event on Lamu was being invited to a lavish dinner party hosted by an expat from Detroit who moved to Lamu, converted to Islam, bought and restored a 400-year-old house in the heart of Old Town, and now runs it as a B&B. They had much to talk about! After they returned, they were hoping to make their usual trip south in March to visit friends in Florida and Texas, but of course that didn’t happen. So they feel fortunate to be living where they are, waiting like everyone else to see how this all will play out. Gay believes that much of life as we knew it is gone, but she is hopeful that it will be a brave new world that emerges from this terrible time. Gay sends best wishes and, above all, good health to all our classmates and their families.

Joseph Baratta, Virginia Swain Baratta ’61 and their son Tad, grandchildren Alex (16) and Isabelle (13), and daughter-in-law Karen

Last summer Wilf and I had our usual week in northern Ontario on the Bruce Peninsula. Meals in the lodge, a saltwater pool, the warm water of the shallow bay and the company of friends from Windsor made it again a wonderful vacation. We then had our usual week in Stratford, Ontario, at the Shakespeare Festival, seeing eight plays. We enjoyed Prilla’s company for perhaps the 11th or 12th year.

Wonderful productions and the pleasure of our friendship made the week special. I must say that we did miss George who had a good sense of humor and often made an astute comment about a play we had all just seen. Until isolation we enjoyed our usual activities, the symphony, opera in the cinema, meals with friends, and so on, but, since January, Wilf and I have lived in isolation. We are fortunate that our condo is across the street from the Detroit River bordering 5 kilometers of park, providing a

beautiful view and a place to walk. But the city has been quiet, and, when I walk out, usually I do not pass anyone.

We spend wonderful quiet evenings reading and listening to music. We Skype with our children in St. Louis, Waterloo and Vancouver. Our two grandsons in St. Louis are now 11 and preteen 12. They are a joy. I did finish a large quilt, which has over 2,000 pieces, and after careful consideration, I have decided that I will never do that again. At first, in isolation I decided that, since I had time, I should spring clean our condo, but the enthusiasm for that passed quickly.

I wish to send my love and sympathy to everyone in our class who has lost a loved one during the past year. I trust that the disappointment of not meeting this year will make our delayed reunion more enjoyable next year.

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KINGSWOOD 1963 Class Correspondent: Brewster Boyd While I do not remember studying about the Spanish Flu Pandemic of 1918 in Drew Langhauser’s American history class, I do remember his rigorous attempts to teach us the art of note taking. Who would have thought that six decades later, we would be experiencing a new pandemic named COVID-19?

Our classmates continue to be thriving from coast to coast. On the West Coast Bob Litter takes daily walks on the beach after retiring three years ago.

He and Nancy have two of their three grandchildren nearby and see them often.

Skip Schoolnik lives near the original Getty Museum. The fire of October, 2019, came within a few blocks of his home, but luckily they had no damage.

He is retired from the television and movie business.

Bob Gruber sold his consulting business three years ago but still does some work for the firm. He is just glad not to be managing 70 employees. His two replacement knees still allow him to fish and hunt.

Heard from Charlie Irwin from Austin that he has retired from careers in library science and math teaching.

However he has not retired from his true passion that of being a professional musician with his bass guitar.

On the East Coast from Annapolis, Flip Walkley and Franny had a great trip to Switzerland to see her daughter and son-in law, who works for the state

Oxford 1967 on one of the canals in Amsterdam.

Left to right Terry Cavalier Trapani, Lyn Patton Simmer, Deni Denton Garabedian, and Lory Hervey Pearson

department. They then went on to spend some time in France.

Al Baumert and the whole family went to the Pan Am Games in Peru last year to watch his daughter ride for the American team.

Tom Bitter still resides near Burlington, Vt. Last year along with his son and son-in-law he had a very memorable and emotional trip back to Vietnam where he had served as an engineer in the army. He said that for the most part the Vietnamese could not have been more friendly and gracious. Time does heal the wounds of war.

Helen and I were in Vero Beach for part of March but had to leave early due to COVID-19. We missed a planned mini-reunion with the Florida Wyverns (Barlows, Battersons, Hines, Saccos) but hope to reschedule for next March.

Best wishes that you and your families stay well in this historic time of COVID-19. I am sure it will be studied at KO in the decades to come.

KINGSWOOD 1967 Jonathan Stolzenberg writes, “I live in West Hartford in the house in which I grew up, single, with my housemate, ex-wife and dear friend Gretchen and a small menagerie. I am a docent at the New Britain Museum of American Art and do volunteer work for several organizations. I serve as a trustee of the Fernleigh Lawn Bowling Club and the Wheeler Clinic and take literature, art and writing courses, and am a member and leader of several discussion groups.

I frequent museums and theater, enjoy traveling, lawn bowling and the natural world, movies, good TV, and cherished friends. My brother Rafe ’65, and I have daily contact – he is a professor of sociology at the University of Chicago. I am grateful for my life and thankful for my Kingswood education. I would enjoy hearing from fellow Wyverns.”

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OXFORD 1967 Terry Cavalier Trapani says, “Several years ago I shared stories about a small group of us in the Class of ’67 who have continued to stay in touch, gather for luncheons, overnights, and even longer trips. In May 2016 four of us celebrated the “Class of ’67 turning 67” by taking a trip to Oxford, England. This year we all turned 70, and the same four celebrated with a trip to Amsterdam; we just got back yesterday.”

KINGSWOOD 1968 Steve Nelson retired in May from a wonderful career manufacturing computers and medical devices at Digital Equipment Corp. and Boston Scientific. He’s keeping busy playing lots of golf, skiing, curling, and spending more time with the grandkids in Duxbury.

Bill Bulkeley is mourning the death of his younger brother Jonathan ’72. Bill is retired from his writing career, traveling frequently with his wife Debra, while living in Back Bay, Boston, with summers in Bailey Island, Maine.

OXFORD 1972 A note from German exchange alumni Sabine Kraschutzki Schölmerich who is still grateful for the experience of one year at KO way back in ’71-’72: “By now I have ended my career as a teacher of English, French and Spanish in German high schools and retired at age 65. I still keep close contact to my host Eloise Biscoe, and we visit back and forth every couple of years. On my last trip to see her in the U.S., I was very happy to also meet up with some former classmates at Katie Newell’s.

John Masker ’74 in Fiordland National Park on the South Coast Track.

Yes, those are ferns, and, yes, they are taller than John’s 2-meter height.

It was like coming back to the days of joyful gossiping in study halls . . .

Very nice.”

“I have a family of a wonderful forester husband and two daughters who have finished their studies. The first one is a psychologist in a consulting firm in Berlin and lives with her friend from Kamerun and their 2-year-old son, our first lovely grandchild. The second daughter lives in Kiel near the Baltic Sea and works as a pediatrist in a big clinic. We love to see them all, but they are busy and a number of hours of traveling away. We keep contact as close as possible.”

“I have begun my old age with an intense teacher training in yoga, so now I am still a teacher, but in a very different field which fascinates me and keeps me occupied and happy.”

“If any of my old classmates happen to come to Germany, please contact

me or drop by. You are most welcome here!!”

KINGSWOOD 1973 After 43 years in independent school teaching and having gotten his start teaching and coaching at KO, Bruce Collamore retired from the classroom at the conclusion of the school year.

KO 1974 While in Dunedin, John Masker’s wife, Sharon, was writer-in-residence at the Castelberg Trust House, and John was a visiting scholar at the University of Otago. This photo was taken in Fiordland National Park on the South Coast Track. Yes, those are ferns, and, yes, they are taller than John’s 2-meter height.

KO 1979 Bill Demarest says, “I’m working as a treasury analyst for a French IT company called Atos IT Solutions and

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Services for 13+ years now.

My husband of almost 25 years now is still stuck with me, through thick and thin (life and waistlines).”

KO 1981 Rick Arnold has joined the venture capital firm Altos Ventures as its general counsel and chief compliance officer.

Rick has now been practicing law in Silicon Valley for more than 25 years.

KO 1988 Mark Milewski summited Indonesia’s 16,024-ft. Mount Carstensz Pyramid on August 15, 2019, thereby completing his goal to summit the highest mountain on each of the seven continents, including Mount Everest in 2016.

KO 1996 Sarah Hewes Overton writes, “We are so blessed this past year as we got married in Wilmington, N.C., on Sept.

28, 2019, and welcomed our son Hudson Hewes Overton on Nov. 16, 2019 – he was 6.09 pounds. and 20 1/4 inches.”

KO 2005 Matthew Semmelrock and his wife, Kathryn, announce the birth of their first child, Connor Roy, on January 11, 2020. Matthew currently works at Bloomberg in NYC, and Kathryn is an APRN in

Kathryn and Matthew Semmelrock ’05 with their son Connor

Sarah Hewes Overton’s ’96 son, Hudson

Mark Milewski ’88 summitting Indonesia's Mount Carstensz Pyramid

Sarah Hewes Overton ’96 on her wedding day

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a surgical office. Matthew earned his MBA from Fordham University in May 2020. They reside in Park Ridge, N.J. KO 2008 James Dowling-Healey is working as an associate attorney at McCalla Raymer Leibert Pierce, a financial services and mortgage banking law firm with offices in 10 states. James works in the firm’s Hartford office.

James was also recently elected to join the Bates College Key and continues to serve as the legislative liaison for the Franchise, Distribution & Dealer Law Section of the Connecticut Bar Association. James is also an active member of The Beardsley Zoo’s education committee.

Kacie Gent married Patrick Meggers on Aug. 31, 2019. The ceremony and reception were at Gurney’s Resort & Marina in Newport, R.I. Classmates Sarah Gagnon, Hannah Glassman Mactas and Jeff Pinciak were in attendance.

Kacie and Patrick currently live in Stamford, Conn. Kacie currently

Kate Bradley Doman ’98, Rachel Abrahamson Wollner ’98, Brenda Chiaputti ’98, Lida Terry Mullarkey ’98, and Liz Bradley ’95 at Kate's wedding in the summer of 2019

Kacie Gent ’08 marries Patrick Meggers in August 2019

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Paula Hagopian ’12 elected into Connecticut Girls Soccer Coaches Association Hall of Fame.

Pictured with her are KO teachers and coaches Scott Dunbar, Tracy Deeter, and Peter Jones.

works at Cummings & Lockwood in Greenwich, and Patrick, a former lieutenant in the U.S. Coast Guard, now works at DAZN in New York City.

KO 2011 Caroline Lange graduated from Barnard College in 2015 and has been working in food since then, most recently as a food stylist and a recipe tester/developer for cookbooks and publications, such as the New York Times, The Kitchn, Bon Appetit, and Epicurious. She lives in Brooklyn, N.Y., with her rascally cat.

KO 2012 Paula Hagopian ’12 was elected into the Connecticut Girls Soccer Coaches Association Hall of Fame. Surrounded by her classmates and introduced by her coach Tracy Deeter, Hagopian was a player who earned All-League, All-State, All-New England and AllAmerican status during her time at KO and was named the Gatorade State Girls Soccer Player of the Year in 2012.

the 2019-20 Block H Awards were announced. The forward earned the Kent Butler ’54 Memorial Basketball Award as the most improved player.

Jackson was also named the Liberty League Men’s Basketball Performer of the Week in January 2020.

KO 2018 Hobart College sophomore Jackson Meshanic was the recipient of one of the basketball team awards when

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In Memoriam KO expresses condolences to the families of those who passed away between July 12, 2019 and July 12, 2020 or whose deaths we learned of during that time.

ALUMNI 1940s Samuel S. Haviland ’41 January 4, 2020 Husband of Frances Beekley Haviland ’46; father of Samuel S. Haviland Jr. ’81, Lindsey Haviland ’82, David C. Haviland ’85 and Susan F. Haviland ’85; brother of Winthrop A. Haviland Jr. ’36 and Mary Haviland Carey ’37; uncle of Helen Carey LaFaive ’68 and Ann Coolidge Randall ’73 Allyn Seymour ’41 March 11, 2020 Father of Robert W. Seymour ’72 George L. Smith ’41 October 14, 2019 Julia Ann Keeney Walton ’41 July 16, 2019 Grandmother of Amanda F. Marikar ’00 Robert E. Carroll Jr. ’42 February 12, 2020 Father of Robert R. Carroll ’76; and brother of Benjamin C. Carroll ’52 Ann Beecher Underwood ’42 July 8, 2019 Sally Erdman Belding ’43 November 22, 2019 Wife of Maxwell M. Belding ’40; mother of Sally Newell Huss ’63, Helen Newell Douglas ’66, Robert L. Newell ’70, Katharine Newell ’72 and William H. Newell II ’81; and sister of Joan Erdman St. John ’46 and Anthony W. Erdman ’47 William S. Glazier II ’43 February 5, 2020 Brother of Patricia Glazier Kreis ’35

Frederica Marindin Kaltenthaler ’47 January 22, 2019

Sali Godard Riege ’43 January 29, 2020 Sister of Barbara Godard ’48 Sylvia Alvord Creedon ’44 June 5, 2020 Wife of Alexander W. Creedon Jr. ’44; mother of Alexander W. Creedon III ’69, Katharine G. Creedon ’71 and Suzanne Creedon Walsh ’78; and aunt of John D. Creedon Jr. ’86 and Hillary Creedon Lyons ’89

Homer G. Scoville ’47 July 16, 2018 Grandfather of Jenna M. Scoville ’09 and James H. Scoville ’10 Betty Lee Harrington Armstrong ’48 August 29, 2019 Sister of William H. Harrington Jr. ’37 and Peter B. Harrington ’40

Shirley Loomis ’45 December 22, 2019

James B. Lyon ’48 February 11, 2020

Jane Carpenter Pitcher ’45 June 12, 2018

Lucy Davis Troxell ’48 October 12, 2019 Sister of Dorothy Davis Estarellas ’46 and Molly Davis DePatie ’53

Edward S. Carrier ’46 November 18, 2019 Beverly Vanderbilt Dobbin ’46 June 15, 2019 Mother of Benson H. Dobbin ’73; and sister of Margaret Vanderbilt Shepard ’44 and Elizabeth Vanderbilt McAllister ’51 Arthur B. French ’46 May 4, 2020

Marion Swearingen Baldwin ’49 March 24, 2020 Eileen Buckley Newell ’49 October 9, 2019 Sister of Richard C. Buckley Jr. ’47; and aunt of Mary Susan Buckley Muirhead ’78, Richard Buckley ’80, Marc S. Buckley ’85 and A. Kathleen Buckley ’88 Robert E. Tucker ‘49 April 1, 2020

Elliot R. Green ’46 March 20, 2017 Brother of Julia T. Green ’54

1950s Isabelle Cox English ’50 June 11, 2020 Mother of Alice English Johansson ’75 and Margaret English Unsworth ’77; and sister of Margaret Cox DeVane ’50

Cecelia Maccabe Parks ’46 November 7, 2019 Sister of Frederick Maccabe ’42 Earl C. Henderson ’47 January 27, 2019 J. Gregory Hickey ’47 November 30, 2019 Father of J. Gregory Hickey Jr. ’73 and Jeffrey L. Hickey ’75; and grandfather of Conor M. Hickey ’04 Burton L. How Jr. ’47 March 22, 2020 Ann Poindexter Ives ’47 February 19, 2020 Mother of Linda Ives ’73 and Ralph E. Ives ’77; and wife of John E. Ives ’47

Alexandra Felty Hanson ’50 April 26, 2020 Sister of Jean Felty Kenny ’49 and Isabel Felty Gililland ’55 Thomas A. Westbrook ’51 February 24, 2020 Brother of Dale E. Westbrook ’48 and Willa Westbrook Smith ’49 John H. Barter ’52 May 17, 2020 Janice Pike Wasserman ’52 February 21, 2020 Sister of Robert C. Pike ’49

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Sally Gershel Title ’53 July 7, 2020 Mother of Diane Title Harris ’77 and Betty Title Feigenbaum ’82; and aunt of Mary Lowengard ’71 John R. Suisman ’55 September 9, 2019 Father of Lisa Suisman Parsons ’84 and Carolyn Suisman Shaughnessy ’85; and uncle of Sherry J. Suisman ’85, and David M Suisman ’88 Nancy “Boots” Edwards-Cogswell ’56 June 22, 2020 Tenison W.L. Newsom Jr. ’56 November 1, 2019 Brother of Patricia P. Newsom ’59 Murray H. Rome ’57 May 5, 2020 James P. Connolly ’58 March 13, 2020 Father of Peter S. Connolly ’84; brother of Pamela Connolly Bartlett ’54; and uncle of Sarah Bartlett Neighbours ’81 Susan J. Glazier-Shapiro ’58 May 8, 2020 Jane Wright ’58 May 17, 2020 Sister of Douglass B. Wright ’59, Hamersley S. Wright ’62, Elizabeth Wright Temple ’64 and Arthur W. Wright ’67; and daughter of Jane Hamersley Wright ’34 Bancroft F. Greene ’59 December 22, 2019 Brother of Richmond K. Greene ’48 and Ainsworth M. Greene ’51 Mary Mann Mason ’59 October 13, 2019 1960s David W. Quarrier ’61 April 6, 2020 Brother of Sidney S. Quarrier ’56 Nancy Shepard Nation ’63 November 8, 2019 Sister of Charles B. Shepard ’60; grandmother of Connor S. Zieky ’09;

and daughter of Mary Beach Shepard ’39 James L. Howard III ’64 April 7, 2020 Brother of Julie Howard Lewis ’67, Saralee Howard ’70 and Holly T. Howard ’79; and son of James L. Howard Jr. ’35 and Sallie Roberts Howard ’36 Jerome F. Odlum ’64 February 27, 2020 Brother of Brenda Odlum Dailey ’61, Judith Odlum Pomeroy ’66 and Michael G. Odlum ’70; and uncle of George B. Odlum ’83 and Geoffrey M. Odlum ’85 R. Tucker Merritt ’65 December 29, 2019 Brother of Polly Merritt O’Leary ’59 and Michael P. Merritt ’61 1970s Nina Hughes Delaney ’70 November 2, 2019 Richard E. Bergen ’71 April 9, 2020 Brother of E. Hunt Bergen ’69, Gordon C. Bergen ’72 and Elizabeth Bergen Von Kohorn ’74 Jonathan A. Bulkeley ’72 November 30, 2019 Brother of William M. Bulkeley ’68; and son of William E. Bulkeley ’32 and Grace Morris Bulkeley ’36

Jane Bartlett February 7, 2020 Mother of Richard R. Bartlett ’68 and Douglas H. Bartlett ’71 Priscilla Brogie June 29, 2020 Bruce G. Dix July 24, 2019 Father of staff member Brittany Dix Susan M. Haberlandt November 6, 2019 Mother of Peter M. Haberlandt ’95 and Elizabeth A. Haberlandt ’99 Joel E. Lorden July 11, 2020 Father of Joel E. Lorden Jr. ’74, Brenda Lorden Leith ’76, Timothy E. Lorden ’80, Kimberly Lorden Mosher ’83, Kristen Lorden DeQuattro ’87 and Craig A. Lorden ’92; and father-in-law of John B. DeQuattro ’87 Rosalie M. Lynch May 9, 2020 Hugh C. Macgill February 13, 2020 Husband of former staff member Nancy Rankin

Scott M. Schley ’73 March 27, 2020

John Ollweiler May 3, 2020 Father of faculty member Laura A. Doyle; and grandfather of Caroline H. Doyle ’18 and Michael T. Doyle ’20

Melinda S. Walsh ’73 August 13, 2019 Daughter of Raycroft Walsh ’41 and Louise Shepard Walsh ’49

Arthur V. Pellerin March 17, 2020 Husband of former staff member Frances Clarke

00s Allison Thorington Shepherd ’02 June 9, 2020

Helena Sarr December 24, 2019

Steven R. Reid ’04 August 22, 2019 Brother of Molly E. Reid ’06

CURRENT & ALUMNI FAMILIES

FACULTY & STAFF

Daniel G. Blume April 30, 2020 Father of Jared M. Blume ’86

Jeanne Auerbach October 14, 2019

Maxine Charette November 10, 2019

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In Me mor iam

Grandmother of Claire Charette Spencer ’05, Tucker J. Charette ’14 and Elizabeth H. Charette ’18; and motherin-law of Lynn Mather Charette ’82 Elaine B. Coleman June 12, 2020 Mother of Debra Coleman Hyde ’68; grandmother of H. Holbrook Hyde III ’99, Christian C. Hyde ’02 and C. Zachary Hyde ’04; and mother-in-law of H. Holbrook Hyde Jr. ’58 Allen V. Collins December 17, 2019 Father of Kimberly Collins Parizeau ’75, Wylie A. Collins ’79, Tristram E. Collins ’82 and Jared A. Collins ’88 James F. English Jr. June 2, 2020 Husband of Isabelle Cox English ’50; and father of Alice English Johansson ’75 and Margaret English Unsworth ’77 Richard S. Cuda October 10, 2019 Father of Fred B. Cuda ’79 and Beth Cuda Baker ’80 Richard J. Fairbrother December 19, 2019 Husband of Virginia Curry Fairbrother ’80 Richard C. Friedman March 31, 2020 Husband of Susan Matorin ’60 Diana L. Galik November 18, 2019 Mother of Nicole M. Galik ’17 Sebastian Gianni January 22, 2020 Father of Joseph R. Gianni ’78; grandfather of Katherine A. Gianni ’14 and Sarah E. Gianni ’14; and father-inlaw of Mary Ann Pearson Gianni ’81 Peter W. Gillies August 7, 2019 Father of Stephanie Gillies McMurray ’83 Thomas J. Godar December 31, 2019 Father of Lynn Godar-Mollica ’83

Louise T. Healey February 13, 2020 Mother of James T. Healey Jr. ’78; grandmother of James T. DowlingHealey ’08; and mother-in-law of Pamela J. Dowling ’78

Randall S. McAboy ’83

Naomi R. Hoberman June 7, 2020 Mother of Jeffrey A. Hoberman ’74

John G. O’Hurley February 1, 2020 Father of John G. O’Hurley Jr. ’72

Elizabeth L. Hughes October 25, 2019 Mother of Audrey Hughes ’76 and Robert Hughes ’77

Jane Painter September 30, 2019 Mother of Mark D. Painter ’77 and John A. Painter ’80

Martin F. Ill November 6, 2019 Father of Charles M. Ill ’79 and Catherine Ill Skelly ’86

Bobby Pierce March 14, 2019 Grandfather of Wesley M. Pierce ’20 and Greyson Pierce ’26

Ann K. Lebed August 15, 2019 Mother of Jay A. Lebed ’77

Tracy Rich August 1, 2019 Father of Dana S. Rich ’05

Adam Leshem February 20, 2020 Grandfather of Jake N. Leshem ’14, Ariel D. Leshem ’16, Joshua Leshem ’19, Alec J. Leshem ’22, Ethan Z. Leshem ’23 and Ava J. Leshem ’24

Harvey L. Spaunburg Jr. October 10, 2019 Father of Martha Spaunburg Church ’70

Matthew March January 5, 2020 Father of Samantha March ’17 Jessica R. Marone June 30, 2020 Mother of Michael A. Marone ’90 Sally Marvin February 25, 2020 Mother of Jonathan W. Marvin ’74 and Richard C. Marvin Jr. ’77; and motherin-law of Sarah Crosskey Marvin ’81

Paul E. Mersereau August 17, 2019 Father of Pamela Mersereau Dickinson ’82 and Christopher J. Mersereau ’87

James Staunton December 25, 2019 Father of John P. Staunton ’90 and Brigid Staunton White ’91; and fatherin-law of Molly Wentworth Staunton ’92 Anthony W. Tabell April 27, 2020 Father of faculty emeritus Meg Kasprak; and grandfather of Alex H. Kasprak ’04, Nicholas A. Kasprak ’04 and Christopher J. Kasprak ’08 Howard J. Travers June 24, 2020 Father of John H. Travers ’77

Sandra J. Mather July 21, 2019 Mother of Lynn Mather Charette ’82, Susan Mather Gagne ’79 and Todd S. Mather ’88; and grandmother of Tucker J. Charette ’14 and Elizabeth H. Charette ’18

John M. Washburn December 8, 2019 Husband of Barbara Unsworth Washburn ’53; and grandfather of John M. Washburn IV ’08, Samuel C. Washburn ’10, Benjamin G. Washburn ’12 and Nathan B. Washburn ’15

Thomas H. McAboy May 6, 2020 Father of Carolyn McAboy ’80 and

William W. Wilcox April 27, 2020 Father of Priscilla T. Wilcox ’70

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Tribute teachers who display excellence in teaching. The award was named for his own father, Charles W. Collins, who dedicated his life to education in the Massachusetts public school system.

The first recipient of this award was art teacher Patricia Rosoff.

Allen V. Collins P ’75, ’79, ’82, & ’88 Trustee 1980-1997 Board Chair 1992-1996 Emeritus since 1998 Allen Collins had a long and distinguished tenure at KingsowodOxford. He was a dedicated parent, trustee and Board Chair, serving an unprecedented 25 years of trusteeship.

As a trustee and Chair, Allen witnessed many changes at Kingswood-Oxford.

A few examples include, the hiring of Lee Levison as Head of School in 1992, the 75th anniversary of the school, the first Baird English Symposim in 1983, the addition of Upper Prep in 1985, and the expansion of the renovated Seaverns and Tomasso buildings in 1987. In 1993, Allen established The Collins Award, awarded to KO

Allen and his wife Nancy founded Allen Collins Inc., a clothing store in West Hartford Center. The store became an integral part of the greater Hartford community, and for 43 years, was known for its iconic whale logo, a nod to Nancy's Nantucket heritage.

Allen Collins, Inc. was a genuine family business with all four Collins children, Kim, Wylie, Tris and Jed (all KO graduates) working the sales floor and wrapping gifts during vacations and holidays. Al and Nancy created a real community in their store, as loyal customers often stopped in to chat with longtime employees who had become friends. Always dapper, Al was well known for his bold and one-ofa-kind suits. His bright red and green Christmas suit was legendary.

A devoted member of the Dartmouth College community, Al was a leader in the "Great Class of '53." He served as Chair of the Dartmouth Alumni Fund, President of the Alumni Council, and President of the Class of 1953.

Al connected people. He was the definition of a good friend, always thinking of others and quick to reach out. His optimism and energy were contagious. Al was quick to share memorable stories that were both funny and filled with great life-lessons. His eternal enthusiasm, gregarious sense of

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humor, compassion and guidance as a father, grandfather, friend, and adviser will be deeply missed.

Tribute Electric's Marketing Training Program, working first in Evanston IL before transferring to West Hartford, Conn. where he raised his family.

Richard S. Cuda P ’79, ’80 Trustee 1981-2000 Emeritus since 2006 Kingswood Oxford mourns the passing of Richard Sebastian Cuda of Boca Grande, Fla. and East Orleans, Mass. who was an active member in the KO community serving as a Trustee for 19 years and a Trustee Emeritus since 2006.

He was a loving husband, father, and grandfather, talented entrepreneur and philanthropist, and enthusiastic fisherman, hunter, and art collector.

He graduated from the University of Pittsburgh in 1954 with a B.A. in Finance, then joined the Army before entering Harvard Business School, graduating in 1957 with an MBA in Marketing. He then joined General

A businessman’s businessman, he specialized in selling electrical distribution equipment to the construction industry. In 1967 he bought Blake Equipment, a family company which sold and serviced industrial boilers, and expanded into water systems and pumps. He later acquired another business, Yankee Equipment, which he eventually sold to United Rentals. In his later years, he and his wife Ellie revived Babcock Plantation, a family tree farm and wildlife habitat in Georgia. Dick also became Chairman of Babcock Lumber Company as well as Babcock Florida, which consisted mainly of cattle ranching and leased farmland. In 2006, he supervised the sale of the property, which became an environmental preserve and America's first solarpowered town. A businessman to the end, he co-owned S&C Cattle, a cattle ranch in Florida where he enjoyed spending time with cattlemen and riding his horse Doc.

Cod Museum of Art, the Barrier Island Park Society, and the Hartford Golf Club, and also belonged to Eastward Ho! Country Club, Gasparilla Golf Club, and Lemon Bay Golf Club. He enjoyed charitable work throughout his life, culminating in his and Ellie's founding of the Cuda Women's Health Center, part of the Cape Cod Healthcare system. In 2018, Dick and Ellie were honored with the Outstanding Philanthropist Award from Philanthropy Partners of the Cape & Islands.

Dick was also the proud father of Fred ’79 and Beth ’80, and both he and Ellie have been devoted members of the Kingswood Oxford community.

The Cuda family enjoys spending on Cape Cod. Their place there, Lucky Stone, has provided three generations of joy to Dick and Ellie's family and remains the deepest root of the Cuda family tree. In their later years, Dick and Ellie also resided in Boca Grande, a place near and dear to Ellie's family.

Dick and Ellie were active with the Asylum Hill Congregational Church in Hartford and the Boca Grande Lighthouse United Methodist Church.

Dick was a board member of the Cape

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Tribute “which aimed to increase the mirth of the class.”

After graduating from Georgetown University in 1951, he was deployed to the Korean Conflict where he served as a rifle platoon leader with the rank of First Lieutenant in Baker Company of the 23rd Infantry Division and was awarded a Bronze Star.

J. Gregory Hickey ’47 P ’73, ’75 GP ’04 Trustee 1989-1992 Emeritus since 1994 Greg graduated from Kingswood School in 1947 and was a Trustee Emeritus of his alma mater upon his death.

He was inducted into the Kingswood Oxford Athletic Hall of Fame as a member of the 1945 undefeated Kingswood football team that scored 143 points and gave up only six points during a five game season that was truncated due to the burdens of WWII. Hickey cherished his memory as a member of this formidable team.

In addition to his football career at Kingswood, he participated in winter sports, track and tennis and was a charter member of the Jokers’ Club,

Greg entered Georgetown Law School in 1954 and was married to Joan Powers Hickey, his wife of 63 years before her passing, in that same year.

His J.D. degree was bestowed in 1956 and he was admitted to practice law in the state of Connecticut. His legal education notwithstanding, Greg spent the entirety of his professional life working in public accounting. He was admitted as a partner to what was then known as Ernst & Ernst in 1965 and became the managing partner of the Hartford office in 1974.

During the course of his career, he served a term as President of the Connecticut Society of CPAs as well as a term as President of the State Board of Accountancy. Ample participation during and succeeding his working years on numerous charitable and commercial boards included being an Incorporator for Hartford Hospital and a member of the Board of Directors of Webster Bank. Hickey, a past president of the Hartford Golf Club, was an avid golfer. He also spent many years skiing at Stratton Mountain in Vermont and sailing on Long Island Sound where he maintained a summer cottage in South Lyme.

Greg loved watching his sons Greg ’73, and Jeff ’75 and grandson Conor ’04

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compete in athletics at KO. He was a devoted father, grandfather, and great-grandfather.

Tribute

Joel Lorden P ’74, ’76, ’80, ’83, ’87, & ’92 In 1961, Joel Lorden arrived at Kingswood School as a math teacher and head football coach. For the next 43 years he would demonstrate what a wise and fortunate decision it was to bring him aboard. Coach Lorden always set high expectations for his teams, and his players lived up to them because he always tempered his suggestions for their improvement with encouragement and praise for their efforts and accomplishments. He was never a coach who simply directed criticism at failed plays. His enthusiasm and knowledge of the game and how to best use each player's abilities combined to make every practice and game an experience his players looked forward to. He modeled positive and technically precise

coaching in all facets of the game.

Over time, knowledge of Joel’s prowess spread, and many outstanding local athletes chose to come to Kingswood and play for Coach Lorden. On Saturdays, his teams displayed talent and discipline as they routinely overwhelmed postgraduate-laden teams from prominent boarding schools.

Occasionally on Wednesdays, his teams took on college freshman teams comprising older, more experienced athletes from schools like Amherst and Trinity. As the remembrance page honoring him makes abundantly clear, playing for Coach Lorden was a deep and meaningful experience for his athletes. He brought out whatever hidden talents his players possessed, contributing to their future success long after they graduated.

In his math classroom, Joel ran the show with the same competence and enthusiasm he displayed on the field.

In his entire career he missed only one day of school. As was noted when he was named Senior Master, he outdid even stalwarts Lou Gehrig and Cal Ripken, who set records for continuous major league starts. Joel often nudged his students with good-natured humor, sometimes professing to students struggling with a problem that “Even my dog could solve this one!” He always encouraged students to keep at it and emphasized that ultimate success depended on showing up prepared every day. He didn't preach. Quite the contrary, he was an exemplar of what was possible. Joel’s commitment to the classroom was matched only by his willingness to work one-on-one with students for extra sessions, as well as tutoring countless students from Hartford-area schools every afternoon

and late into the night. His desktopsized calendar was crammed with scheduled appointments. When he ultimately considered retirement from tutoring, parents implored him not to holster his pencil, vowing that they would rent space for his continuing efforts to rescue their math-impaired kids.

Reaching into youngsters’ lives with his characteristic warmth, competence and patience certainly characterized Joel’s 43 years at Kingswood and then Kingswood Oxford. The remarks of alumni speak to Joel’s capacity to affect so many: “endless perseverance and patience”; “gentle soul, positive with a spirit of generosity”; “changed my life trajectory to become a better student athlete and a better person”; “what a gift.” And more than once, “a legend.”

Of all the personal qualities Joel Lorden possessed, quite likely his greatest was his humility. As profoundly suited as he was for being a school guy, bringing excellence and accomplishment to the table every day, he was the absolute last person to seek recognition for the many successes that followed him.

When he was being thanked for his positive influence in someone’s life, he invariably aimed the gratitude back or in some other direction. In coaching, he continually credited his teams’ successes to his assistants Bob O’Brien, Dave Van Dyck and Drew Langhauser.

As talented as his lieutenants were, there was never any question about who was Head Coach. And so he remains in all of our hearts, beloved for what he gave so generously to so many.

Written by Dick Caley ’62

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Tribute No one who met Jim will ever forget him. Bow-tied, cordial and courtly, yet always with a touch of the rumpled professor about him, he was a ubiquitous figure at the school’s leadership dinners and galas. A brilliant man and a voracious reader, he was always eager to discuss his latest ideas, perspectives and passions. Talk with Jim about a topic, and two days later you’d receive a hand-written note from him with his further ideas on the subject.

James B. Lyon ’48 Trustee 1961-1991 Board Chair 1975-1978 Emeritus since 1991 No Kingswood alumnus was ever more loyal to his school than Jim Lyon. He demonstrated his deep devotion, not only with his prodigious financial contributions, but also with his generous dollops of time, wisdom and leadership. A 1948 Kingswood graduate, he joined the school’s board of trustees in 1961, serving at one time or another on nearly every one of its committees, and as chairman of the board from 1975 to 1978. He played a critical, behind-the-scenes role in initiating and accomplishing the successful merger of Kingswood and Oxford during the late 1960s and early 1970s.

Jim excelled academically and athletically at both Kingswood and Amherst College, where he captained the football team and graduated Phi Beta Kappa in 1952. He loved football so much that, while attending Yale Law School, he served as assistant football coach for the Bulldogs. The rumor that he once tried out for the New York Giants has never been verified, but he proudly displayed a poster of legendary Giants linebacker Sam Huff inscribed, “To my friend Jim Lyon. I hope you make a better lawyer than you do a football player.”

Jim did indeed make a good lawyer.

He joined the Hartford law firm Shepard, Murtha & Merritt, now Murtha Cullina, becoming a partner in 1956 and specializing in advising nonprofit organizations with tax issues. But legal help wasn’t all he provided for these often struggling institutions. He contributed financially to and served on the boards of innumerable Hartford-area schools, museums, hospitals and charities, including the Noah Webster House, Wadsworth Atheneum, and the YMCA, among others. He especially enjoyed

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making anonymous contributions to organizations needing money for a special project, whether it was fireworks for Hartford’s First Night celebration or a new hockey scoreboard for Amherst College. His response to almost every request was, “How much do you need?”

Jim had his lovable quirks. Though generous to others, he was frugal in expenses for himself. Though sartorially fastidious, he shocked his fellow Duncaster residents by wearing Bermuda shorts to formal Saturday dinners. Though his work routines were meticulously organized, his law firm desk was so littered with scattered papers that the Hartford police, upon investigating a suspected break-in, assumed his office had been ransacked by burglars.

Many times during my 43-year career at the school, a scribbled note would arrive from Jim. It might be a compliment for my role in a student’s success, a bit of information about the school’s history for an article I was writing, or a suggestion for a story in the school newspaper I advised. Receiving these messages always reminded me that a benign and paternal presence was watching over my school, my colleagues and me. Though Jim is gone, Kingswood Oxford continues to be the beneficiary of his generous, protective spirit.

Written by Rob Kyff