Groton School Quarterly, Fall 2008

Groton School Quarterly September 2008 | Vol. LXX, No. 3

alexander farewell 48 years of service to Groton

September 2008 | Vol. LXX, No. 3

Contents Circiter | Featured on Campus

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Prize Day June 1, 2008 Speeches, Awards, Diplomas, College Matriculations

20 Reunion Weekend

Distinguished Grotonian and Cui Servire Awards

24 Memory, Forgiveness, and Gratitude

A Chapel Talk by William Polk ’58

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26 Alexander Farewell Dinner

34 Gallery News

Full coverage of the festivities

Fall de Menil Exhibit, Fall Brodigan Exhibit

36 Spring Drama Production

Stepping Out, by Richard Harris

Per Circulum Locuti Sunt | Voices on the Circle 26

37 The Grand Design

A Chapel Talk by Ceci Nicol ’08

39 Seizing the Opportunity

41 Math & God

A Chapel Talk by Theodore Frelinghuysen ’08

43 Baccalaureate Homily

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A Chapel Talk by John Jacobsson ’86

A Chapel Talk by Rick Commons

Groton School Quarterly

Personae | People of Note

45 Yvette Ross ’93

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Profile by Edward Davies ’89

Grotoniana | All Things Groton 47 To Sir and Ma’am, with love

Teaching at The Doon School in India

52 Spring Sports

58 New Releases

60 School News

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In Memoriam | As We Remember

64 Jackson Chang ’84

67 Donald Lea, Former Faculty

Notabilia | New & Noteworthy

69 Form Notes

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FROM THE EDITOR:

Groton School Quarterly September 2008 | Vol. LXX, No. 3

The Power of Gratitude

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V. Winchell

he spring weeks at Groton are always filled with complex emotions, brought out in us by the seasonal beauty of the campus, the anticipation of the end of term, the promise of summer, and the departure of graduates and faculty for new destinations. Spring 2008 was a particularly special one for many of us, as the weather was consistently good, the spirit on campus remarkably spunky and positive—Spring Fling was never more colorful—and the ceremonies of tribute to Charlie and Ann Alexander, the Baccalaureate Service for the Sixth Form, and handshaking itself were more poignant and emotional than in many of my 18 springs at Groton.

We heard many voices around the Circle this spring in various settings. As they described memories, recounted stories, and focused our attention, a remarkable number of the presenters came round to the notion of gratitude or drew their remarks from that emotional source.

We include several of them in this issue.

Whether they were thankful for an experience, a friendship, or an opportunity, the voices have something to say that is deeply authentic drawn from their life on the Circle, whether it dates from the early years of this century or the middle years of the last.

“Gratitude,” Melonie Beatty, best selling author and journalist, writes, “turns what we have into more than enough. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos into order, and confusion into clarity. It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend. It turns problems into gifts, failures into successes, the unexpected into perfect timing, and mistakes into important events.”

To borrow from Charlie Alexander’s remarks to us this spring, “The ultimate test of a school is how its graduates contribute to the world into which they enter and live over their lifetimes.” (See ­Charlie’s remarks; page 33.) In the pages that follow, we are happy to present examples of graduates and others who, because they have been connected to this school, have developed a deep capacity to be thankful and have kept the notion of gratitude central in their lives.

In closing, I offer my own expression of gratitude for the opportunity to oversee what makes Groton Groton in each issue of the Quarterly. As we enter a new publishing cycle, I look forward to your submissions, correspondence and ongoing feedback.

Editor John M. Niles Graphic Design Jeanne Abboud Contributing Editors Julia B. Alling Amybeth Babeu Elizabeth Wray Lawrence ’82 Erin E. Lyman John D. MacEachern Melissa J. Ribaudo Rachel S. Silver Photography Cover photo by Amanda Harris All other photography by Arthur Durity unless otherwise noted.

Editorial Offices The Schoolhouse Groton School Groton, MA 01450 Phone: 978-448-7506 E-mail: quarterly@groton.org

Other School Offices Alumni Office 978-448-7520 Admission Office 978- 448-7510 The views presented are not necessarily those of the editors or the official policies of the School.

Groton School of Groton, MA 01450 publishes the Groton School Quarterly three times a year in late summer, winter, and spring, and the Annual Report once a year in the fall.

John M. Niles, Editor Quarterly@Groton.org

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Facing page photo: Vaughn Winchell

Circiter | Featured on Campus

PRIZE DAY 2008 Eighty six students in the Form of 2008 received their diplomas on the first day of June in splendid sunshine which actually lasted through the hand-shaking ceremonies. The form, representing 21 states and five foreign countries, will attend 51 different colleges and universities in the fall. Forty members of the form received Prize Day awards for their excellence in academic fields, leadership contributions, and/or artistic or athletic excellence. Congratulations to the Form of 2008.

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PRIZE DAY June 1, 2008

Richard B. Commons, Headmaster

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efore we begin the honors and awards of Groton School’s 122nd Prize Day, I want to welcome once again the families and friends of the graduates, who have come from near and far to celebrate the accomplishments of this remarkable group of students. My first duty and privilege today is to introduce the President of Groton’s Board of Trustees, Jamie Higgins (parent of James ’02 and Palmer ’06), who will hand diplomas to the graduates today.

James H. Higgins III, P’02,’06 President of the Board of Trustees

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ou know, graduations are very special. You can feel the excitement and anticipation in the air, but I am pretty sure it is not born of a yearning to hear from the President of the Board. The focus is, as it should be, on you, the Form of 2008, so I promise I won’t be long!

As I stand here looking out at all of you in these front rows, I cannot help but be struck by the symmetry between the wonderful event you are about to experience and the precise place you will be experiencing it.

Here we are on the Circle—the very center of Groton life.

Circles don’t end, of course. This one, in fact, was planned to be a symbol of continuity, giving you changing perspectives of the School as you move around it, each view different but just as beautiful as the last.

It is the same with being a Grotonian. That, too, is meant to be continuous, not to end with today’s last handshake and a diploma.

Graduation is more like moving along to a different place on the Circle, I think. You will have new perspectives of the School, each one different from your student days, but just as challenging and rewarding nonetheless.

Almost a century and a quarter ago, Groton was founded on the basis of an ideal—one inspired by a vision of extraordinary intellectual challenge, of intentionally intimate support, of a dedication to spiritual grounding, and of a deliberate focus on personal character. It promised to be unique, it promised to be annealing, and it promised to transform the lives of its students. You, the Form of 2008, are proof that that ideal still thrives.

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“Graduation is more like moving along to a different place on the Circle, I think. You will have new perspectives of the School, each one different from your student days, but just as challenging and rewarding nonetheless.”

But, you have only felt Groton’s touch because those who have gone before you have, upon their graduations, continued to be…

Grotonians. They have continued their commitment to the School, to its ideals and to its progress. Most importantly, they have insisted that Groton be continuously ready for each new generation when it arrives—still vibrant, still intensely challenging, and attuned to changing times.

I know that now, with your own graduation, you will look forward to joining them on this next part of the Circle, and to helping them shoulder the responsibility of ensuring that Groton’s promise is carried forward.

You will hear many thoughtful words of wisdom from others today, so let me finish, as I have each year since I have had the privilege of being on this dais, with an observation of sentiment instead.

President of the Board of Trustees, James H. Higgins III, addresses the Form of 2008.

Prize Day I have found that there are very few times in life when one is surrounded by so many family and friends who, simultaneously, admire you so greatly, love you so much, are so appreciative of your friendship, are so proud of your accomplishments, and who wish you so much success in your future.

This Prize Day at Groton School is one of those times. Drink deeply of today; it will sustain you for the rest of your lives.

On behalf of the Board of Trustees and the entire Groton community, I salute you, the Form of 2008.

Richard B. Commons, Headmaster

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he celebration today includes a fond farewell not only to members of the Sixth Form, but also to those members of the faculty who will not be with us next year. We will begin with two who are not with us today but who deserve a word of appreciation: Cynthia Tripp served as a sabbatical replacement in visual arts, where her dynamism and energy taught us new ways of seeing the world and expressing it, while bringing out the best in students and colleagues with her wisdom and her sense of humor.

Suzy Joseph came all the way from France to serve as a sabbatical replacement in French for the fall and winter terms, bringing to Groton all the experience of three decades of teaching at Andover and all the grace of her native tongue and country. Please join me in applauding these two.

The spring term of the sabbatical opening in French was filled by a Groton legend, one who is here on the Circle for a few more classes, a few more conversations, and a few more expressions of appreciation for all she has given to Groton over the years.

Micheline Myers re-entered seamlessly, and her students knew from her first moments in the classroom that there were things to learn from this teacher that go far beyond the proper accent. The sparkle in her eye conveys a deep understanding of the capacity of young people for learning, for joy, and for mischief. Meanwhile, her irrepressible delight at being back at Groton was a daily gift to her colleagues and friends. Micheline, the greater delight has been ours, and we hope that you and Warren will be back often. Will you please stand and be recognized?

It was a special pleasure for me to welcome John Nagler to the Groton faculty this year, because John welcomed me five years ago when, as Hundred House Prefect, he was involved in interviewing and selecting the new headmaster. An intern in the History Department, John was a natural from the start. He engrossed students in the movements of people, the intrigues of politics, and the philosophies that guide nationhood. In addition, John coached soccer, ice hockey, and tennis and was, by multiple accounts, the faculty member most likely to volunteer when something extra needed doing. This is part of John’s fundamental ethos—not only for himself, but for his School and for his students. John, we wish you well as you move next year to Greenwich Academy, where your enthusiasm and commitment will make you a favorite of students and colleagues there, as you have been here.

Headmaster Rick Commons (on right) stands with 2008 graduate Mary Cooper and her father, Prize Day speaker, the Honorable James H.S. Cooper, ’72, Member of the U.S. House of Representatives.

When Henry Walters joined the faculty as an intern in Classics, we knew we were bringing a scholar into our midst. We did not know that we were also bringing a sort of writer-in-residence, one with a gift not only for words, but also for pulling a classroom, a common room, or a lunch table into intense consideration of what is most beautiful, meaningful, and true. In addition to teaching Latin, Henry offered fascinating tutorials and electives in English that drew students in droves, as they recognized the opportunity of studying with him. He also coached cross country, basketball, and baseball, role-modeling, in his understated way, the important notion that true scholarship in no way precludes athletic prowess.

He is off next year to Ireland to study poetry and falconry—words and birds. We have those here, Henry, and we hope they might one day lead you back to the Circle.

Maria Bechis arrived in September as a one-year sabbatical replacement in chemistry, and brought to Groton a deep interest in young people, a strong belief in academic rigor, and an abiding love of teaching. Her classes were notable for their depth of preparation, creative use of technology, and anecdotal bits from her prior work in industry that gave real-world application to the science of Quarterly September 2008

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Mr. Cooper awards his daughter, Mary, her diploma.

the textbook. Despite living off campus, Maria has been wonderfully accessible to her students this year, not only in her classroom but in the life of the community. Maria and her husband, Dennis, were omnipresent at games, performances, and other School events, making connections with students and colleagues alike. Maria, we will miss your teaching and your friendship, and we are grateful for all you have given us this year.

Conventional wisdom in faculty recruitment holds that if a candidate is hired twice by the same school, she must be good. Liza Williams was hired three times at Exeter (as a teaching fellow, a summer intern, and a sabbatical replacement) before we lured her to Groton as a sabbatical replacement in our History Department.

In her short time here, Liza has distinguished herself as an instructor who brings out the very best in her students with her inspiring passion for history. In addition to her work in the classroom, Liza coached soccer and crew, in which she established high expectations for performance and teamwork. She also served as a dorm head, where her expectations for caring behavior were equally lofty and instilled a true sense of community. Liza, as you head to Columbia University to pursue an M.A. in Political Science, we will miss your wide, bright smile that never fails to convey how much joy real commitment can bring.

Mike Mastrullo came to Groton four years ago as Associate Director of Admission and coach of Boys Varsity Hockey. In the Admission Office, Mike is one who has made immediate connections, beginning relationships that have extended into the Groton career of many a student whose first handshake was with Mr. Mastrullo. While some might assume that a hockey coach and former NHL player would exemplify the rough and tumble aspects of that sport, Mike has been chosen as an advisor by any number of students who have no connection to hockey but know that Mr. Mastrullo is a wonderful source of wisdom, caring, and kindness.

While Mike will be leaving the Admission Office to return to his previous career in Environmental Consulting and Management, he will remain the Head Coach of Boys Hockey. Even more impor-

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tantly, he will remain the devoted father of Michela, who is a rising Fourth Former. Mike, we thank you for all you have done in the Admission Office, we are glad to know you will be no stranger to the Circle, and we look forward to another great hockey season next winter.

Over the course of the last seven years, Groton’s drama program has grown up under the care and feeding of Sue Clark. The visible signs of the program’s development are in the spectacular shows she has produced and directed, making full use of the magnificent facility she helped to envision, design, and build. Groton will never forget productions like Metamorphoses, for which the stage was a body of water, an unimaginable feat in most high school theaters, much less the Schoolhouse Hall. But it is not the building or even the Broadway-quality shows that will be Sue’s legacy. Her casts and crews will tell you that she is first and foremost a teacher, one with a gift for helping budding actors find confidence and voice. Sue’s teaching is exacting and empathetic, insistent and open, intense and often very funny. Over the years, Sue’s ingenious casting has included football captains alongside faculty children, staff alongside students, and rookies alongside seasoned vets. Under her direction, Groton’s theater has been like Shakespeare’s Globe—bringing disparate parts of our community close together. Sue and her partner Amy head to Choate, where Sue will be the Executive Director of the Paul Mellon Arts Center and Chair of the Arts Department.

Sue, will you give us one more curtain call and take one last bow?

Kate Matwychuk arrived at Groton seven years ago and distinguished herself immediately as a demanding teacher of English, forever pushing and inspiring her students to produce clear, concise, and convincing prose. As a coach of rowing and swimming, Kate has brought about tremendous success and camaraderie, building a swim team from literally nothing, and leading her rowers to multiple NEIRA championships. In addition, for her entire time at Groton, Kate has run a dormitory, embodying the triple-threat model that is so crucial to the functioning and the ethos of our

Charles and Ann Alexander receive “a piece of Groton history” from Headmaster Commons.

Prize Day

From left to right: Hunter Treacy stands with his family which includes Parker Treacy ’02 second from right. Ceci Nicol ’08 with her family, including brother Zack ’11. The Klein family with Alex ’08 and brother Adam ’11. The Adams family stands with graduate Katie flanked by Josh ’96 on the right and Rachel ’01 on left.

School. How she has managed to do all this while continuing to pursue her Ph.D. in Education from the University of Pennsylvania is a wonder, unless you live in her dorm, row in her boat, or teach in her department, in which case you have come to know a person whose dedication and sense of purpose enable the accomplishment of almost anything. Kate, as you head across the country and the ocean to Punahou School, in Hawaii (where many of your Groton colleagues are planning friendly visits in February), you depart with our deep gratitude and lasting affection. * * * Lest there be any question about the historic quality of our final faculty farewell, The Circle Voice published a full page tribute to Charlie Alexander, detailing his life and his career at Groton School in two sections—Ancient History and Modern History.

The timeline begins with this: “753 B.C.—Rome is founded, Mr. Alexander celebrates.” Modern History began, according to the CV, in 1960, when Charlie and Ann Alexander arrived on this Circle, forty-eight years ago. In the storied annals of Groton School, this is indeed an historic date. Charlie and Ann’s fortyeight years of service to Groton are second only to the School’s founder, Endicott Peabody.

The length of their tenure, however, is not their primary mark upon the School. They are what we might call “mission-keepers.”

In the classroom, in athletics, in the dorm, in the Chapel, and in their home, Charlie and Ann have embodied and enacted the mission of Groton School. They have defined what it means to lead a teaching life, not only for all of us at Groton, but also for generations of teachers at independent secondary schools around the country. The Alexanders are known and admired by “school people” everywhere for their remarkable commitment to one institution and to the experience of all of its students, past and present.

On May 16th we held a gathering to honor the Alexanders’ five decades of commitment. There were nearly 500 people under the tent that evening, nearly as many as there are here today, and the tributes were deeply moving. Here are a few excerpts:

From Gussie Bannard, trustee, former Groton faculty, past parent, and recently retired head of St. Catherine’s School in Richmond: “Of course, Charlie taught in every sphere of his life: on the fields; on the D.C., which he called the most rewarding work he did with students; on the Studies Committee where he helped to steer the curriculum between the Scylla of trendiness and the Charybdis of the tired, tried and true; and in his role as college advisor, where I saw some of the most eloquent and passionate advocacy I have ever seen. He was famous among the great college admissions deans who valued his trademark honesty, knowledge and humor, and, I would venture, feared disappointing him. Charlie would rarely admit it, but I witnessed this: his relationships caused deans to listen and take seriously what he said. He made them want our students.”

From Caroline Earle Walsh, Form of 1983: “Ann Alexander’s was the first face I saw and the most welcoming voice I could imagine—a voice whose lilt I would recognize anywhere. I knew I was bound forever to Mrs. Alexander when she referred to my new school as “the Chatham Hall of the north.” A little piece of my mother, her alma mater, and her…southern ways had…invited [me] to join…in my first real venture into New England—I was almost home. Making people feel at home is certainly something the Alexanders are very good at doing.”

From Bill Orrick, Form of 1971, past Trustee, and past parent: “During those halcyon days of the late ’60s and the early ’70s, when the cultural revolution in America hit Groton School, Charlie was not on the side of the rebels. Nonetheless, he did serve on the committee that brought coeducation to Groton School. And he had the capacity to reach out to all of us…

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Circiter | Featured on Campus …Charlie and Ann are part of a great tradition of caring faculty at this school. They look and act about the same way they did when I first came to [Groton], because they have lived out their values here. In the words of the Graduate’s Prayer, their hearts are still warm with the flame of their youthful ideals, their faith unshaken, their principles immovable. They made a life out of enriching, supporting, and serving the people associated with this place. Groton School will never repay its debt of gratitude to Charlie and Ann. Neither will I.” It was announced on that evening that Charlie and Ann’s mark on the School will be indelible not only because of what they have given, but also because of what others have given in their honor, creating two endowed chairs that will be called: The Charles C. and Ann W. Alexander Faculty Chair, and The Charles C. Alexander Football Coaching Position Graduate Morgan Smith stands with mother and sister Samantha ’06 on her left.

In addition, I am pleased to announce today that our teaching intern program, which Charlie initiated in 1977 and which has trained and inspired over 30 years of promising teachers, will hereafter be officially known as the Charles C. Alexander Teaching Intern Program.

Finally, I offer a meaningful token of the School’s esteem, appreciation, and affection. The place at Groton that has always meant the most to the Alexanders is St. John’s Chapel. How many hours has Charlie spent in his accustomed Chapel seat? How many hymns, anthems, and carols has Ann sung as a part of the choir? Those are countless. We know, however, that all four of the Alexander children were baptized in St. John’s Chapel, and one, daughter Sarah, was married there.

The School has an early photograph of the Chapel, which our archivist, Doug Brown, believes was taken for William Amory Gardner, the man who gave the funds for the Chapel to be built.

The photograph must have been taken just after the building’s completion, as it depicts the Chapel with no plantings in the foreground and no other buildings in the background. This photograph hung for a while in Ann’s office, and moved from there to a safe place in the archives. Now, with Doug’s blessing and assistance with proper reproduction and framing, I present this remarkable piece of Groton history to Charlie and Ann Alexander. * * * And now I would like to address the Form of 2008, to whom this day belongs. Let me begin by speaking to your accomplishments, some of which were highlighted last night, and more of which will be recognized by the prizes and diplomas we will award shortly. But there are other achievements that deserve some mention.

Consider St. Mark’s. Groton’s record in this year’s varsity contests was a dominant 14 and 5, due to the leadership and talent of this VI Form. When the cold winds begin to blow across the Circle next November, thanks to you, I will be quite toasty on the sidelines in the always-stylish, if slightly musty, Raccoon Coat. Consider the theatrical productions led by your Form— Metamorphoses, Into the Woods, the One Acts, Stepping Out. Has the Campbell Performing Arts Center witnessed a more dramatically spectacular year? Consider the music that has reverberated from the Chapel to Gammons to the Open Mike in the Webb—the preludes and postludes, anthems and carols, concerts, recitals, and jam sessions. From last summer’s Choir tour of South America to this summer’s jazz band tour of Australia, you have made exquisite music an unmistakable feature of who we are as a school.

Allow me a few more words on your legacy as a Form. Speaking to members of the faculty, I found a consensus that you have taken particularly seriously the responsibility of being prefects. You

“You are a bit restless; you are not content with simple formulas for achievement or happiness or meaning. And that, of course, is what we admire about you.”

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Prize Day These images suggest the importance of the Chapel to your form, not only as the one building on campus tall enough for a hundred foot poster. Its image is even more prominent in your Chapel talks.

As I said when I spoke at the Baccalaureate, they are a breathtaking collection of ideas and beliefs, and they will remain with us in various distillations—our memories, our prayers, and our lives.

You are a Form of searchers, in the Chapel, in the classroom, and even in your relationships with the School and each other. A number of you have observed that your Form has not seemed to be always unified, but I think that is a direct result of your constant, earnest, and worthwhile searching. There is no settled notion in your Form of what constitutes fulfillment at Groton, much less beyond it. You are a bit restless; you are not content with simple formulas for achievement or happiness or meaning. And that, of course, is what we admire about you, and what we will so greatly miss. You have encouraged us to be searchers—to think about what we believe, how we live, and why. There is no doubt that you have left your mark on Groton, and we will long be tracing it as we run our fingers over the cover of your yearbook and as we remember you. Congratulations, Form of 2008, and thank you. * * * And now it is time for another voice to speak for the Form, one whose presence, whether in the dorm, at the pulpit, or on the stage, has a wonderful way of Stepping Out, Eveey Amoh–Tonto.

James Anderson, Choir Cup winner, with mother Eliza Storey Anderson ’79, and father, Michael.

Eveey Amoh–Tonto ’08 have cared deeply for your younger peers and given your dorms a sense of identity and unity, on bright display at Spring Fling last Wednesday. You have given a sense of purpose to the student organizations that give this place its personality, and you have given leadership to your teams, regardless of wins and losses. In fact, the few teams that truly struggled for success this year might have been the most unified, and the most committed. That is a pure reflection of your leadership and your character.

And then there is the Chapel. When one thinks of the Chapel and the Form of 2008, it will be a long time before our first thought is of something other than a poster, six months in the making, stretching from the spires to the steps, over a hundred feet long, thirty feet wide, comprised of 1500 sheets of paper, pasted to 17 plastic tarps, secured with 800 feet of rope and 3000 feet of tape.

What maniacal geniuses were behind this feat? How did they keep it a secret even as they built it and tested it? And what were Nancy Hughes and Kathy Leggat doing on that poster anyway? Who said anything about big sisters?

Like everyone else on campus, I spent some time on Friday afternoon looking through your yearbook. It struck me that not only is the Chapel the image embossed into the cover (no other yearbook in the long shelf in my office bears that image), but also the Chapel appears again on the first page of the book—a full-page photograph of the building in the evening, with a dark sky and dark trees, but a brightly lit door and a bicycle leaning against the lamppost, glowing in the pool of light.

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raduation is a ceremony where, at most private schools, the seniors wear white and proceed down a walkway of some sort and receive their diplomas; however, what sets us apart from those other schools is the week leading up to graduation. It is done the Groton way, having classes up until the very last minute, which shows how much we value education, but it does not help when you have a

Messrs. Higgins, Cooper and Commons respond to 2008 Valedictorian, Eveey Amoh–Tonto’s remarks.

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Circiter | Featured on Campus speech to write. Having written a total of zero graduation speeches, I naturally sought help from my fellow form mates. I got plenty of advice and took part in many interesting conversations like the following: “Hey, Eveey, you know what you should do for your speech?”

“What?”

“Give everyone in the form a shout-out.”

“Wait, you want me to give personalized, individual shout-outs to everyone in the form? All 86 of us?”

“Yeah!”

“Next!”

“Hey, Eveey, this is seriously really easy. All you have to do is (are you listening?) all you have to do is have the perfect balance between funny and not funny.”

“The perfect balance? Wow, want to tell me the key to life while you are at it? That was it. That is all I needed to hear. My speech is practically written. Thank you!”

Those tips were ridiculous, but they gave me a good laugh and made feel less stressed about the whole thing. There were some good ones including “Keep it short,” duly noted, and “include a memory or two about the form.” That was a good idea and it got me reminiscing about all the fun times we have had as a form. I remember the first night we had 10-to-12. It was a new privilege, because we were the now responsible seniors. Of course, being the mature young adults that we were, we spent our first night playing Hide and Seek. Well, it was a more elite version known as Sardines, so we raced around the Schoolhouse looking for places to hide, even trying to cram ourselves into one of the Schoolhouse desks because “they’d never find us in here.” We were thinking in the heat of the moment, disregarding the fact that it was physically impossible to fit in there, so pardon us.

After a fun, terror-filled hour, we were thrown out the of Schoolhouse by the night watchman for disturbing the peace: instant joy-kill. Disappointed, and pretty sure that there were people still hiding unaware of the fact that the game was over and would figure it out a whole thirty minutes later, we as a form ventured over to the student center for an impromptu senior dance.

Graduate Gordon Glougau addresses faculty members, Mary Ellen Sweeney, Hoyt Taylor, and Beth VanGelder during Prize Day Handshaking.

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Senior Prefects, Ceci Nicol and Brendan Fogarty, lead the Sixth Form from Prize Day Chapel service.

Amidst the fun of dancing to the quick techno beats of an overplayed Cascada song, we thought the night watchman was coming so we abruptly ended the dance with the shout, “The night watchman is here. Run!!!!!!!”

There is nothing I can say to adequately describe the frenzy that took place. People were running like the Po Po was after them. It was like a stampede of rabid elephants. I saw people flying over couches and rolling into dirty corners using dust as camouflage. I mean it was shocking, but then there was silence. No one dared to breathe or move in the slightest. We heard the bell tower begin its 12 beat countdown to the end of our first night. We stood, dusted ourselves off and laughed about the whole episode all the way back to the dorms.

Remembering this, sitting in front of the computer a few nights ago, I felt my eyes begin to water. I realized how much I love my form and how we will never be able to live these years together again. I just don’t see a bunch of adults playing Sardines any time soon. I want to help you all preserve the feelings we have right now, so I have some advice to give you, since everyone else has been giving me advice for the past week or two.

To the seniors, when you remember Groton, remember all of it.

Haven’t you noticed that when you think of an event from the past, you tend to remember only the fun parts? For instance, on my elev-

Prize Day

“I told him I was nominated to be the prize day speaker and asked him for some ideas…

One thing he said really stuck with me: ‘brighten the corner where you are’.” enth birthday, my father surprised me with a trip to Dorney Park. I rode Talon, the newly built death-defying roller coaster three times in a row and had vertigo the next day. Fun times. However, I tend to forget the fact that the car broke down along the way, and Dada had to have the alternator fixed. According to Mr. Q, this is known as Retrospective Falsification. Do not be plagued by that.

Each memory, good and bad, has affected you in some way.

Whether it is doing the Macarena on a cruise for your form or crying over a formmate’s early departure, you have been affected.

The good and the tough times have made you the person you are today. You have certain values and goals now because of Groton.

They will be your drive for success.

The one piece of advice I received and truly appreciated was from Dada. I told him I was nominated to be the Prize Day speaker and asked him for some ideas, because I had no idea what to talk about. One thing he said really stuck with me: “brighten the corner where you are.” At first I was confused. “What did he mean by that?” I asked myself, and then I got it. Because of the values that have been instilled in you and your drive for success, no matter where you are in your life you will be able to make a difference; you have been prepared for life. So fix your tie, smooth out the creases in your dress, and put a big smile on your face, because you are graduating. You are going head-first into the real world, and you are not scared, because you came from Groton.

Richard B. Commons, Headmaster

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hank you, Eveey. It is fitting that we begin the awards to students by honoring our Senior Prefects, Ceci and Brendan.

Anybody who knows Ceci knows that she has a way of making the most difficult circumstances seem completely manageable—not easy necessarily, but well within the reach of her graceful grasp. I will long remember asking for her advice one Sunday evening after Chapel, and taking a walk with her around the Circle to talk through the issue. As we finished our walk, Ceci turned to me and smiled and said, “It’ll be OK, Mr. Commons. Really.” And I knew then that it would.

Brendan, by contrast and by his own admission, wears his ferocious work ethic on his sleeve. You know when you give Brendan a task that he will tackle it like a lineman, wrestle with it until he has it subdued, and then, with sweat on his brow, dirt under his fingernails, and sleeplessness in his eyes, produce a solution that is undeniably right and good.

What a combination they have been. Ceci and Brendan, remember the applause for you at Roll Call that would not stop—­neither

will our respect, affection, and gratitude. The Charles Lanier Appleton Prize is awarded to members of the Sixth Form who have greatly served the School. The 2008 prize goes to Cecilia Elizabeth Willoughby Nicol and Brendan Michael Fogarty.

And now I have the distinct honor of introducing our keynote speaker, The Honorable James H.S. Cooper. Mr. Cooper was born in Nashville, Tennessee, where he currently resides, but he came north to New England for his formative education, joining Groton School’s Form of 1972 as a Second Former.

While at Groton, Mr. Cooper was a member of the Band, the Bell Ringers, the Chess Club, the Choir, the Debating Society, the Glee Club, and Dramat. He was the manager of the football team, and a member of the varsity squash and crew teams. He was also editor of The Circle Voice and The Grotonian.

It is a wonder he had any time to study! Perhaps he simply did not sleep, for he was chosen by the University of North Carolina as a Morehead Scholar. There, he earned a B.A. in history and ­economics in three years, while serving as editor of The Daily Tar Heel and founding the undergraduate literary magazine.

Mr. Cooper was then awarded a Rhodes Scholarship, through which he earned his M.A. from Oxford in 1977, before returning to New England to earn his J.D. from Harvard Law School. He ran for the House of Representatives in 1982 and was elected in Tennessee’s 5th District. At age 28, he was the youngest member of the United States Congress.

After serving in the House for twelve years, he spent a hiatus in banking before being elected again to Congress in 2002. Mr. Cooper currently serves on the Armed Services, Budget, and Oversight and Government Reform Committees. He also serves as an adjunct professor at Vanderbilt’s Owen Graduate School of Management, where he has taught a course on health care policy for ten years.

Mr. Cooper and his wife, Martha, have three children, Mary, Jamie, and Hayes; and Mary is a proud member of the Form of 2008. Please join me in welcoming back to Groton Jim Cooper.

[Introductory information quoted from The Online Office of Congressman Jim Cooper, www.cooper.house.gov]

The post-graduation celebrations begin. Naya Friel embraces Josephine Ho as Piers McNaughten and Ian MacClellan look for their boaters!

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Circiter | Featured on Campus “Groton is a half-step between your family and the world, a precious interlude, a gentle meritocracy.”

The Honorable James H. S. Cooper addresses the Form.

The Honorable James H.S. Cooper ’72

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o Mr. Commons, President Higgins, Members of the Board of Trustees, Faculty, Staff, and especially to the Sixth Form of 2008 and your families and friends, thank you. I am deeply honored to speak on such an important day. I feel as if I were asked to give thanks at a large family reunion: everyone is already grateful…but will be even more grateful if I keep it short.

Allow me a moment of personal reflection. My father died before he could attend my Prize Day, so I am doubly thankful to experience the pure joy of my daughter Mary’s graduation. Fortunately, my mother was always there for me and my two brothers, and is here today for her granddaughter. Mama is 89 years old and is particularly close to Mary, because Mary is the only girl born into the Cooper family since 1892. That’s right, the only girl in almost 100 years.

Of course, Groton waited almost as long for its first girl.

Co-education was unthinkable in my day—actually, that’s not quite right: girls were all we thought about—but it’s wonderful to see young women enhancing all aspects of school life. I just wish that the brilliance and beauty of this day could last forever.

I also want to pay tribute to Charlie Alexander, who is retiring after 48 wonderful years. He and Anne are exemplars of Groton’s greatness. He not only taught me Latin, but about life—although we called it football, sit-down dinner, parlor, squash, and college admissions. Mr. Alexander, along with Mr. Sackett, Mr. Choate, Mr. Brown, and Warren and Micheline Meyers, are part of what my generation will always view as the Golden Age of faculty masters, that is, the age before cell-phones, iPods, and texting.

Thirty years from now, you Sixth Formers will celebrate your own memories—such as Mr. Goodrich’s class on Moby Dick, Madame Coursaget’s costumes, or Andy Anderson’s miraculous crew coaching. You’ll revere your teachers like Messrs. Belsky, Black, and Das, just as my generation cherishes Paul Wright, Dick Irons, Corky Nichols, Mel Mansur, Charlie Shearin, Norris Getty, Harvey Sargisson, and other great souls. Their classrooms, conversations, and, yes, quirks were, for a brief moment, the center of our universe. In other words, I can still mimic each of them.

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My topic today is, as Mr. Lyons knows better than I, perhaps the most famous sentence ever used in oral argument before the U.S. Supreme Court. The attorney was Daniel Webster. The year was 1818. The Supreme Court was meeting in a rented house in Washington, D.C., near the burned-out shell of the U.S. Capitol, torched by the British in the War of 1812. The case was Dartmouth College v. Woodward. Webster was defending the rights of the small, private college against takeover by the New Hampshire legislature.

Webster concluded his argument with a phrase that brought a tear to the eye of Chief Justice Marshall: “It is, Sir, as I have said, a small college, and yet there are those who love it.”

“A small school…and yet there are those who love it.”

The word love is seldom used in law, and even less frequently in Supreme Court argument. But Webster’s alma mater was beloved, despite…or perhaps because of…its diminutive size.

Just like Groton. Of the finest schools in the world, Groton is one of the very smallest, and deliberately so. “And yet, there are those who love it.” We few, we happy few, we band of brothers and sisters know that Groton is so intimate and excellent that it grabs your heart and never lets go. We love it more because it is so small.

Groton can be inspiring, infuriating, nurturing and annoying, but is, above all, completely consuming.

Underformers, Mary Kinsella (leading), and Emanuel Adeola and Alex Southmayd (with candles) process from Prize Day Services

Prize Day

Good cheer under the tent.

At Groton, you are a whole person, never a number. Here you are needed on each team, and on the field, and sometimes to shovel the snow off the field. You are needed in the Choir, and in plays like Metamorphoses, and in the Green Cup Challenge. Here you say hello to everyone; you even shake hands in your dorm at night.

You are very close to all the students in your class and those three or four years ahead of and behind you. Your Groton friends will turn out to be some of your best friends for life, no matter how uncertain or improbable that may seem today.

For example, just last month, my Senior Prefect, arch-rival and sometime nemesis stopped by for a visit with his wife and kids from Tokyo. In my day, he could have been as good a classicist as Dr. Reyes. I was overjoyed to see him, although, of course, I still tried to act cool. And just last week, after thirty years, I resumed a conversation with a Sixth Former that began when I was a measly Fourth Former. He now holds the Henry Kissinger Chair at the Council on Foreign Relations in New York. And I eat dinner regularly with someone whom I remember as a lowly Third Former but who is now an internationally-renowned transplant surgeon.

Groton is a half-step between your family and the world, a precious interlude, a gentle meritocracy. Most young people are thrown directly from their families into college; Groton cushions the blow. My Chapel Hill dormitory held more students than all

of Groton; my class at Harvard Law School was three times larger, Congress is considerably larger. It is easy to lose your way in these larger institutions, and many people do. Think of Tom Wolfe’s Charlotte Simmons, New York’s Eliot Spitzer, or California’s Duke Cunningham. Fortunately, Groton gives each of us a moral compass that allows us to remain, as Chaplain Fidler urges us, “unspotted from the world.” In Harry Potter terms, Groton stays small because it only needs room for Gryffindor, not Slytherin.

The Trustees worry, as they should, about Groton’s ability to maintain its extraordinary ratio of faculty per student. Thank goodness for the endowment, but the school’s real wealth lies in the continued loyalty of its alumni and alumnae and their families. And that loyalty is best measured, as Daniel Webster knew, by love.

The key is not the ratio of square feet per student, but how much room Groton students have in their hearts for others. Are you working in your dorm or “burn” room for yourselves, your own resumés, or to make the school a better place? A recent op-ed in the Washington Post by a Princeton grad, now a freshman at Yale Law, notes that many of her classmates with perfect resumés just aren’t very nice: they won’t loan you a textbook or give you a ride in their car.

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The Form of 2008. Congratulations!

“Margaret Meade was right: ‘A small group of thoughtful people can change the world.

Indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has’.”

pool. You belong here unconditionally, and will always belong here.

Your name will live at the tables down at Dory’s, on the walls of the Schoolhouse, and, one day perhaps, on the walls of the Chapel. The Circle will never forget you, and you will never forget the Circle.

Even my classmates who were expelled come to all the reunions because the school left such a mark on their lives. Groton is as indelible as a tattoo. But it’s one that you’ll never regret or cover up.

Of course, strong communities do not happen automatically.

Much give-and-take is required, especially the giving part. When everyone does that—even if it’s just giving your neighbor the benefit of the doubt—everyone grows stronger together. Groton builds the spirit, the confidence, that challenges you to excel by serving others. “Cui Servire Est Regnare.” Not even Mr. Tulp’s students can translate the phrase perfectly. To serve is to rule? No, too imperialistic. Service is perfect freedom? That’s what we were taught, a type of servant leadership. This can be as simple as an extra scoop at Johnson’s, as grand as “Citius, Altius, Fortius” at the Olympic Games, or as world-changing as “above and beyond the call of duty” on the citation of the Congressional Medal of Honor.

We need more of that spirit in the world. America has never been as unpopular or overstretched than it is today, Washington as parti-

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san and small-minded, or our cities as fragmented into gated subdivisions and lonely lifestyles. But change is coming. I don’t know if you can feel it yet, but young people nationwide are rising up and demanding it. They are plugged into the news and registered to vote like never before. They are blogging and running campaigns and new businesses. They are demanding new answers, now.

The Class of 2008 is now ready to supply Grotonian solutions to these problems. Never think that what you have learned at Groton doesn’t matter; everything that you’ve experienced here, inside or outside the classroom, can help others, even if you don’t believe it now. The Duke of Wellington said that the Battle of Waterloo was decided on the playing fields of Eton. I bet the newly-elected Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, would agree. On this side of the Atlantic, America is a better, stronger nation because of the playing fields of Groton. I am hopeful that more of you will choose careers in public service, and in government, so that you can effect change directly. America needs more than your taxes; it needs your talents, and sometimes your total commitment.

Young people often underestimate themselves. The world looks large and random, and schools like Groton seem very small. As you grow older, the Circle will look smaller still. You will doubt your ability, your significance, but not if you remember your Groton strengths. Margaret Meade was right: “A small group of thoughtful people can change the world. Indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.”

On this day of days, we are so proud of you Sixth Formers, graduates of this small school. The world needs each one of you, starting this afternoon. Carpe diem.

Prize Day

GROTON SCHOOL PRIZES

CHARLES LANIER APPLETON PRIZE Awarded to a member of the Sixth Form who has greatly served the School.

Cecilia Elizabeth Willoughby Nicol and Brendan Michael Fogarty

THE DENNIS CROWLEY DRAMA PRIZE Given by Todd C. Bartels ’01 to a member of the Sixth Form who, through her or his commitment, achievement and promise, has made the greatest contribution to the theatre program during her or his time at Groton.

Naya Thomay Vissiliki Anthimida Friel

THE HISTORY AND LITERATURE PRIZE Given by the late Rt. Rev. Julius Atwood to the best scholar in the combined fields of History and Literature.

THE GEORGE LIVINGSTON NICHOLS PRIZE Awarded for the best essay on an historical subject.

Tucker Stuart Fross

Gillian Armstrong Evans

THE ROGERS V. SCUDDER CLASSICS PRIZE In memory of Rogers Scudder who was a distinguished teacher of Classics at Groton and other schools and was a much loved member of this community.

THE MODERN LANGUAGES PRIZE

Andrew Bronson Fulham THE ROSCOE C. THOMAS MATHEMATICS PRIZE Given by the Sixth Form of 1923, and awarded to a member of the Fifth Form for excellence in Mathematics.

Shanna Han-Chi Hsu and William Lawrence Stone THE HUDSON MUSIC PRIZE Given by the friends of William Clarke Hudson ’56 to show the recognition of serious effort and real progress in music during the school year.

Cynthia Sheng Qi Liu and Arjun Aggarwal

Josephine Ho and George Christopher Pitsiokos

PERRY HISTORY PRIZE Given by Mrs. Eliza Endicott Perry to the best scholar in the field of History.

The Choir Cup Awarded each year to the sixth form chorister who has exhibited musical growth in sightreading and vocal technique.

Alexander Nelson Klein

James Gordon Anderson

THORPE SCIENCE PRIZE Given by Mrs. Warren Thorpe to that member of the Sixth Form who has been the most successful in developing an appreciation of the spirit and meaning of science.

THE ISSAC JACKSON MEMORIAL PRIZE Awarded to the best mathematics scholar in the Upper School.

Kyla Delaney Sherwood

Soon Kyu Park

BUTLER PRIZE FOR EXCELLENCE IN ENGLISH Given by Mrs. Gilbert Butler.

THE REV. FREDERICK R. KELLOGG UPPER SCHOOL ART PRIZE Given by Frederick R. Kellogg ’60 in memory of his father, in recognition of distinguished work in art.

Emma Britton Miller

Haruka Aoki and William Edward Castelli Quarterly September 2008

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Circiter | Featured on Campus THE ENDICOTT PEABODY MEMORIAL PRIZE Was given in memory of the Rev. Endicott Peabody by the Sixth Form of 1945 for excellence in the field of Religion and Ethics.

Ian Scott Brennick and Manasa Venkatapuram Reddy REGINALD FINCKE JR. MEDAL Was given by the Sixth Form of 1928 in memory of 1st Lt. Reginald Fincke, Jr. Awarded to a member of the Sixth Form who has shown in Athletics his qualities of perseverance, courage, and unselfish sportsmanship.

Christian Colby Mattheson

Christian Padilla ’10 and Madeline Hicks ’10 in English Class.

THE PHOTOGRAPHY PRIZE Ian Scott Brennick and Django Peterman Broer-Hellermann THE UPPER SCHOOL SHOP PRIZE Piers Iain Iso Octavian MacNaughton and William Dickson Seidler THE HARVARD BOOK PRIZES Awarded through the auspices of the Harvard Club of Boston and given to two members of the Fifth Form who exemplify excellence in scholarship and high character combined with achievement in other fields: Given by Harry Eldridge ’20 in memory of his brother Francis H. Eldridge ’24.

Christopher Henry Mumford Given by Mark A. Medlinsky ’76 in memory of his father.

Arjun Aggarwal FRANKLIN D. ROOSEVELT DEBATING PRIZE Given in memory of Franklin D. Roosevelt 1900, by W. Averell Harriman 1909.

Emma Britton Miller and Ward Hunt Goodenough III

THE CORNELIA AMORY FROTHINGHAM ATHLETIC PRIZE Given by her parents and awarded to a girl in the Sixth Form who has demonstrated all-round athletic ability and has shown exemplary qualities of leadership and sportsmanship.

Morgan McDonnell Smith O’BRIEN PRIZE Given by the Hoopes family to a member of the Lower School who has shown qualities of integrity, loyalty, enthusiasm, and concern for others.

Zachary Arthur Kemeny Nicol THE GADSDEN PRIZE Was given in memory of Jeremiah Gadsden of the form of 1968 by his classmates and friends and awarded to a student who has demonstrated inspirational leadership encouraging social and interracial understanding in the Groton community.

Jun Hyung Cho THE TRONIC AWARD Given in honor of Michael G. Tronic, and awarded to a member of the Sixth Form who has made especially good use of the resources of the Library and who has shown strong interest in the life of the mind.

Eric David Valchuis THE ELIZABETH AND MARGERY PEABODY AWARD Given to a member of the Sixth Form, other than a School Prefect, whose contributions to the community demonstrate sensitivity, strength of character, leadership and integrity.

Mary Argentine Adams Cooper

GROTONIAN CREATIVE WRITING PRIZE Given by the Grotonian board of 1946 to a member of the Upper School for the best example of prose fiction written in the past year.

THE MONTE J. AND ANNE H. WALLACE SCHOLAR In recognition of scholastic excellence as well as those qualities of character and commitment so important to the Groton community.

Manasa Venkatapuram Reddy

Jane Jaiwon Bang

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Prize Day THE LAURA J. COOLIDGE ’85 POETRY PRIZE Given in her memory by her husband Peter Touche to a member of the Upper School who has shown a love for the power of poetic expression and a sustained interest in writing and reading poetry.

The Williams Book Prize

Joanna Elizabeth Hamer

Bausch & Lomb Science Award

Heather MacCasler Mayer

Cynthia Sheng Qi Liu THE ASMA GULL HASAN 1993 CIRCLE VOICE JOURNALISM PRIZE. Acknowledges outstanding leadership in creating, editing, and producing the School’s newspaper.

Gillian Armstrong Evans THE CARROLL AND JOHN KING HODGES PRIZES Given in memory of Carol Hodges, Form of 1905, and John King Hodges, Form of 1910, to be awarded to Sixth Formers who have distinguished themselves in capacities to be designated by the Headmaster.

Hopkins Science Award Ian Robert MacLellan Rensselaer Medal Arjun Aggarwal New England Science Teacher’s Award Andy Joel Surinach

In recognition of their particularly caring and effective leadership as dormitory prefects Josephine Ho and Sahin Naqvi In recognition of their particularly ambitious and inspiring Chapel talks Haruka Aoki and Theodore John Frelinghuysen JOHN JAY PIERREPONT PRIZE Awarded to the best Mathematics scholar in the Lower School.

Jisoo Min THE LOWER SCHOOL STUDIO ART PRIZE Yoon Hae Ahn THE LOWER SCHOOL SHOP PRIZE Nils Christopher Martin THE LOWER SCHOOL CREATIVE WRITING PRIZE Given in recognition of excellence in Creative Writing in the Lower School.

Ward Ellis Scott THE FELS SCIENCE PRIZE Given in honor of Stephen B. Fels, (Groton School Form of 1958) is awarded each year by the Stephen Brook Fels Memorial Fund, and presented to that member of the Lower School who has demonstrated exceptional enthusiasm for and proficiency in the experimental aspects of scientific inquiry.

Hannah Cross Reeve and Sung Won Cho

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AWARDING OF

DIPLOMAS Form of 2008 Cathryn Anne Adams Ji Hwan Ahn cum laude Evelyn P. Amoh-Tonto James Gordon Anderson Haruka Aoki Kayla Anne Barbour Caroline Marie Boes Magna cum laude Ian Scott Brennick Django Peterman Broer-Hellermann RenĂŠe de Pelleport Brown William Edward Castelli Hannah Margaret Cheever cum laude Hye Jung Cho cum laude Jun Hyung Cho Christine Jiwon Choi Magna cum laude Samuel William Clayman cum laude Mary Argentine Adams Cooper Anne Elizabeth Corey cum laude Lacarnly Akim Creech Emma Davol Curtis cum laude Jefferson Davis Deming Gillian Armstrong Evans cum laude Deanna Louise Ezzio Brendan Michael Fogarty Magna cum laude Amalia Jeanne Francisco cum laude Theodore John Frelinghuysen cum laude Naya Thomay Vassiliki Anthimidou Friel Tucker Stuart Fross cum laude Andrew Bronson Fulham cum laude Lauren Jessica Garey Gordon Baj Glogau Ward Hunt Goodenough III John Samuel Goodlander Alexandra Stafford Gray Joanna Elizabeth Hamer cum laude Katherine Elizabeth Hamm cum laude Sol Ah Han Kimberly Anne Herring Elizabeth Sawyer Higgins Josephine Ho Caitlin Nala Alexandra Holmes cum laude Woo Suk Hong Summa cum laude Shanna Han-Chi Hsu Summa cum laude Hannah Millet Jeton Ashley Min-Ae Kang Magna cum laude Elise Min-Ji Kang Magna cum laude Alexander Edward Karwoski cum laude Alexander Nelson Klein Magna cum laude Belinda May Liu Matthew Yidar Luk cum laude Robert Samuel Lyon Charlotte Eve Lysohir

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James Alexander Spencer MacGregor Ian Robert MacLellan Piers Iain Ivo Octavian MacNaughton Christian Colby Mattheson Matthew William Cusack Midon Emma Britton Miller cum laude Samuel Siegfried Minifie Kaitlin Marie Mitchell Diana Morales Sahin Naqvi Magna cum laude Cecilia Elizabeth Willoughby Nicol cum laude Clarissa Evelyn Perkins Michael Vincent Phillips George Christopher Pitsiokos cum laude Manasa Venkatapuram Reddy Magna cum laude Tyler Elliot Rodriguez Diego Sebastian Russell Trelsie Hunter Sadler William Dickson Seidler Kyla Delaney Sherwood Summa cum laude Gardner Richard Smith Morgan McDonnell Smith Rodney Louis Smith Jr. Madeline Marshall Steim William Lawrence Stone Magna cum laude Andy Joel Surinach cum laude James Hunter Liu Treacy Magna cum laude Stephanie Lowell Tumlinson Eric David Valchuis cum laude DesireĂŠ Senami Vodounon Cooper Benjamin Warner Hannah Parker Wellman cum laude Natalie Carolyn Youkel

Prize Day

COLLEGE PROFILE

Cathryn Adams Marymount Manhattan Adetoro Adeyemi Carnegie Mellon Christopher Ji-Hwan Ahn Georgetown Evelyn P. Amoh-Tonto University of Pennsylvania James Anderson University of Southern California Haruka Aoki Hamilton Kayla Barbour W. Washington Univ.

Caroline Boes Wellesley Ian Brennick Virginia Tech Django Broer-Hellermann Yale Renee Brown University of Virginia William Castelli Fordham Hannah Cheever Davidson Hye Jung Cho Carnegie Mellon Jun Hyung Cho University of Illinois Christine Choi Columbia Samuel Clayman Yale Mary Cooper UNC, Chapel Hill Anne Corey Duke Lacarnly Creech Tufts Emma Curtis Wellesley Jefferson Deming Vanderbilt Gillian Evans Georgetown Deanna Ezzio Connecticut College Brendan Fogarty Harvard Amalia Francisco Middlebury Theodore Frelinghuysen Duke Naya Friel American University of Paris Tucker Fross Georgetown Andrew Fulham Harvard Lauren Garey Babson Gordon Glogau UC, Berkeley Ward Goodenough University of Edinburgh John Goodlander University of St. Andrews

Alexandra Gray Joanna Hamer Katherine Hamm Sol Ah Han Kimberly Herring Elizabeth Higgins Josephine Ho Caitlin Holmes Woo Suk Hong Shanna Hsu Hannah Jeton Ashley Kang Elise Kang Alexander Karwoski Alexander Klein Belinda Liu Matthew Lu Robert Lyon Charlotte Lysohir James MacGregor Ian MacLellan Piers MacNaughton Colby Mattheson Matthew Midon Emma Miller Samuel Minifie Kaitlin Mitchell Diana Morales Sahin Naqvi Cecilia Nicol Clarissa Perkins Michael Phillips Christopher Pitsiokos Manasa Reddy Tyler Rodriguez Diego Russell Trelsie Sadler William Seidler Kyla Sherwood Gardner Smith Morgan Smith Rodney Smith Madeline Steim William Stone Andy Surinach James Hunter Treacy Stephanie Tumlinson Eric Valchuis Desiree Vodounon Cooper Warner Hannah Wellman Natalie Youkel

Wake Forest Vassar Columbia Carnegie Mellon Lake Forest Boston University Wellesley Cornell Stanford Brown Dartmouth Harvard Harvard Trinity Yale Rutgers Vassar Wofford College Hobart & William Smith Purdue Tufts Tufts Rhodes Villanova University of Virginia George Washington Villanova Dickinson Princeton Georgetown University of Rochester Trinity Kenyon Brown Brown Middlebury Washington & Lee George Washington Stanford Franklin & Marshall Franklin & Marshall George Mason Alleghany Dartmouth Columbia Duke Georgia Tech Georgetown Kenyon Washington & Lee Tufts University of St. Andrews Quarterly September 2008

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REUNION WEEKEND

On Saturday morning, May 17, 2008, reuning forms gathered in the Hall of the Schoolhouse to honor the recipients of the Cui Servire Est Regnare Award and the Distinguished Grotonian Award, and to hear remarks from Headmaster Rick Commons on the state of the School.

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Reunion Weekend

Reunion Weekend Awards Cui Servire Est Regnare Award Theodore Caplow, Jr. ’88

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he Cui Servire Est Regnare Award is presented annually to a younger alumna or alumnus in recognition of service to the world beyond the Circle. This year’s recipient is Theodore Caplow, Jr., a magna cum laude graduate of the Form of 1988. While at Groton, Theodore was a bell ringer and active in baseball and the drama program. A 1992 graduate of Harvard with a B. A. in Sociology, Theodore went on to earn a master’s in Structural Engineering from Princeton and a Ph.D. in Environmental Engineering from Columbia. Dr. Caplow turned his education to environmental entrepreneurship in 2004, founding New York Sun Works, where he is Executive Director. New York Sun Works is a non-profit organization dedicated to sustainable engineering and promotes sustainability by building and testing ecologically responsible systems for the integrated production of energy, clean water, and food. The company believes in shaping a world where human and natural ecosystems flourish side by side.

The company’s first project is the Science Barge, a sustainable urban farm and environmental learning center that floats on the Hudson River. Dr. Caplow developed the project’s master plan, enabling mobility and visibility to encourage, inspire and educate others. Ted, you have exemplified the purpose of Groton School— “to prepare students for the active work of live” through learning leadership and service to others. Congratulations.

Distinguished Grotonian Award Wick Simmons ’58

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he Distinguished Grotonian Award, which was established 20 years ago, recognizes annually a graduate whose life of service reflects the ideals of Groton School. It is my great honor to present this year’s award to Hardwick Simmons, a member of the form of 1958, which is celebrating its 50th reunion this weekend. The parent of two Groton graduates, Tack ’84 and Taylor ’07, and one current student, Reed ’09, Wick is also the grandson of Huntington R. Hardwick, Groton Form of 1911, and the grandfather of Benjamin Ames, a second former this year who will graduate in 2012, 101 years after his great great grandfather.

At Groton, Wick played football, basketball, baseball and tennis and was active in the Debate Society and the Groton School Camp.

After Groton, he earned an A.B. Wick Simmons ’58 in History from Harvard and later earned from Harvard an M.B.A., launching him into a spectacular career in finance. After a stint at Hayden Stone and leadership of Private Client Group at Shearson Lehman Brothers, Wick became President & CEO of Prudential Securities, then Chairman and CEO of the NASDAQ stock market. In the midst of all this leadership in business, Wick served on the boards of: The International Tennis Hall of Fame Rippowam Cisqua School The National Academy Foundation Garland Junior College South Street Seaport Museum Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute and Groton School.

Ted Caplow ’88 receives his award from Rick Commons.

At Groton, Wick served as President of the Board from 1996 to 2006 and then finished his third four-year term retiring from the Board this past April. Twelve years of remarkable leadership and service. Arriving on the Board in a time of turmoil, Wick was made president after the first meeting and set to turning the Board back to unity and forward to the largest capital fund raising effort in the history of the School—$109 million. He saw the school through the transition in the Headmaster’s Office from a 25-year revered veteran to a wide eyed rookie, helped to develop a strategic plan to guide my first five years, and orchestrated the transition in the leadership of the Board that built on strength and unity, enabling Jamie Higgins P’02, ’06, to begin his first meeting with leadership that has been all about progress.

It is hard to overstate the impact of Wick’s leadership and service to Groton. Personally, Wick has managed to give me guidance and confidence, challenge and support, leadership and friendship.

He has given these qualities and these gifts to institutions and people throughout his life and career. It is my honor to award the 2008 Distinguished Grotonian Award to Wick Simmons.

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Clockwise from Top Left: Cecilia and Bill Hoyt ’43 look for names in the Schoolroom. Top and Middle Right: The weekend offered splendid weather for lounging on the Circle or jogging down the boathouse road.

Bottom Right: Sage Redman ’11 performs at music recital for reuning forms. Bottom Left: Colby Matheson ’08 brings the heat versus Rivers on Saturday afternoon. Middle Left: David Bingham ’58 and Ivar Schacke ’58 converse at the tea on Saturday as Randy Daley ’53 looks on.

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Reunion Weekend 2008

Reunion Weekend

Clockwise from Top Left: Brendan Fogarty ’08 circles the crease versus Rivers.

Top Right: Ringing changes in the tower of St. John’s Chapel. Middle Right: Headmaster Commons speaks with Marguerite and George Bartlett ’48 at the Saturday tea. Bottom Right: Remembering formmates in the Form of 1948.

Bottom Left: Future of the Performing Arts panelists address audience in the Hall on Saturday morning. From L to R: Zana Lawrence ’03, Ashton Crosby ’58, Haley Willis ’09, Ben Pyne ’77, P’12 and Gus Rogerson ’80. Middle Left: Former faculty Warren and Micheline Myers dine with members of the form of ’73.

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MEMORY, FORGIVENESS, AND GRATITUDE

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Reunion Weekend Homily

by William M. Polk ’58 May 18, 2008

used to think those celebrating their 50th reunion looked old. I was wrong!

The Form of 1958 arrived as new students at Groton during the McCarthy witch hunt years and graduated the year the Russians launched Sputnik. That event intensified the already intense Cold War competition between Russia and the United States, a competition that dominated not only our formative years but also much of our adult lives.

In the mammoth book The Complete Cartoons of the New Yorker, a 1958 entry pictures a father holding up his son’s report card and snarling at the quivering lad, “Do you think a C+ is keeping up with the Russians?” After reviewing my report cards, I must confess that I did not help my country in its fight for competitive advantage.

Reunions are a time of remembering, remembering the good and the bad, the triumphs and the struggles, and, most of all, the people: teachers, friends, and fellow students (unfortunately, during our time all students were fellows).

Let me say here, parenthetically, that as Headmaster, when I described to students life in the good old days—the cubicles, heatless dorms on winter nights, one dance weekend a year, and so on—they would look at me in shocked disbelief and exclaim, “Why would anyone live that way?” And with even greater disbelief, cry, “You actually liked it?”

In my youth, the star of a popular detective show, Jack Webb, would say to someone he was questioning, “Just the facts, Ma’am; I just want the facts.” Memory is more than just the facts, more than an accurate account of events. In an essay, “How To Write A Memoir,” William Zinsser says, “Your biggest stories will often have less to do with their subject than with their significance, not what you did in certain situations, but how that situation affected you and shaped the person you became.”

It is interesting to contemplate what we remember and what we forget, and especially what meaning we assign to circumstances, experiences, and relationships in our lives. We make connections and we miss connections, and the results shape the people we are as well as the future possibilities we see for ourselves. Our identity is rooted in memory.

Looking down memory lane, some wear rose colored glasses and wax nostalgically about the good old days, which to them look better than the present or the future. They live life looking over their shoulders, stuck in the past and unable to view it from

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Bill Polk ’58 chats with formmates at Saturday afternoon tea.

the perspective that comes with new circumstances, new experiences, new relationships.

Reading the responses to reunion questionnaires over the years, I have been struck by how a few, and thankfully it is only a few, respondents are mired in the past. Their anger at the hurts and slights of formmates, at the actions and words of teachers and coaches remain vividly real 20 and 30 years later, and as one put it, “clearly affects me to this day.” It is as if they cannot rearrange or unpack the emotional baggage they have been carrying around for so many years, which affects how they see their lives, how they relate to others, and how they view the future.

Thirteen when his alcoholic father died, the young man was angry about the alcoholism, and he was angry about his father running out on him. For over a decade, unable to forgive his father, he buried the anger and the hurt within, where it polluted his emotional life and limited relationships. He once said, “I don’t trust emotions.” Only after he dealt with his unresolved anger at his father could he begin to trust feelings and could he see new possibilities in relationships.

George Valliant, in his longitudinal study of Harvard graduates in the classes 1941 through 1943, reports on what individual life choices determine the happy/well group at age 80. At one point Valliant writes, “A simple lesson of the grant study is to worry less about cholesterol and more about gratitude and forgiveness.”

Forgiveness is not that easy. Some invest a lot in resenting others and making them feel guilty. The problem, of course, is that the resentment usually consumes the one who cannot forgive, and the hardest person to forgive is oneself. Like the 13-year-old lad, those who cannot forgive get stuck and can’t move on.

To get unstuck, to move on, we must forgive and be forgiven.

That is the point of today’s Gospel reading. The master forgives the servant’s enormous debt, an unconditional act on the master’s part. He overcomes his pride by giving up his anger and claims to requital, and is thus liberated. But the servant cannot give up his pride, cannot accept the gift of forgiveness, and ends up in jail, a fitting image for those who cannot accept the gift of forgiveness, forgive themselves, and forgive others. If not physically in jail, they are still living mentally behind bars.

Reunion Weekend It is telling that in the New Testament, when Jesus says, “Your sins are forgiven,” people are healed and their lives are changed. Liberated from emotional jail, a crippled life becomes one of wholeness and fulfillment. Forgiveness unfreezes memory, opening up new possibilities for the lives we lead and will be leading in the future.

A good example of this comes from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission in South Africa. Many victims of the brutal apartheid system were abducted, tortured, murdered. The Truth and Reconciliation Commission attempted to bring about reconciliation rather than the separation of vengeance. When released after 27 years in prison, remarkably, Nelson Mandela sought reconciliation rather than vengeance. It is interesting to note that in Nelson Mandela’s native Xhosa language no word exists for “vengeance.” We learn from him and from Archbishop Tutu, the head of the Commission, and from many families of victims and survivors of atrocities important lessons about forgiveness and memory.

future open up. According to Paul, if our focus is on God and His love in the world rather than on ourselves, a transformation takes place within us, equivalent to a new creation affecting how we perceive the world and how we relate to others.

If we are open to God’s love and embrace it, our hearts are transformed and our perspective changes, making forgiveness— giving it and receiving it—possible. A 43-year-old woman says of the transformation, “But I’ve learned that as I forgive, I am forgiven, and in this practice, I find the peace, compassion, and gratitude that always brings me home to myself.”

Peace, compassion, and gratitude. Gratitude, George Valliant tells us, should concern us more than cholesterol. This is not easy.

Our culture does not encourage an attitude of gratitude. We are citizens of a consumer society that tells us what we need to own, that we need to purchase upgrades, that certain brands are the making of us, that no salary is too high.

“To get unstuck, to move on, we must forgive and be forgiven.”

Breaking the patterns of violence involves not denying the past but facing it squarely. The following comes from Pulma GobadoMadibizele, a member of the Commission: When perpetrators asked for forgiveness from their victims it was as much about restoring the victim’s dignity as it was about perpetrators rescuing their own sense of humanity. Pearl Faku’s husband was killed by a bomb in an operation masterminded by Eugene de Kock, the man nicknamed ‘Prime Evil’ because of his role in the apartheid atrocities.

When de Kock asked for Faku’s forgiveness, she extended her hand of forgiveness. Faku later explained why she forgave de Kock: ‘I was profoundly touched by him. I felt the genuineness of his apology. I would like to hold him by the hand and show him there is a future, and that he can still change.’

Victims who were able to forgive perpetrators describe their encounter with perpetrators as a transformative process that helped them to unburden years of anger and hatred. Perpetrators spoke about the cleansing power of a victim’s forgiveness. Thus, victims need perpetrators’ honest expression of apology to move beyond their anger as much as the perpetrators needed the victims’ forgiveness to reclaim their sense of humanity, which was lost in a life of destruction.

Forgiveness makes possible reclaiming a sense of humanity and a new future. Antjie Krag, a journalist who covered the Commission, summarizes its work this way: “I wrap you up in words so that the future inherits you. I snatch you from the death of forgetfulness.”

Snatched from the death of forgetfulness, the future inherits you. In the words of Paul’s Second Letter to the Corinthians, “The old is past away, behold, the new has come.” People are no longer trapped by the good old days; new possibilities for the present and

But in the final analysis, gratitude has little to do with the world’s trophies. Alice Trillin once wrote of her experience working at a camp for severely disabled children. She became attached to L. Although L had two genetic diseases, one that kept her from growing and one that kept her from digesting food, she was, in Alice’s words,” … spectacular … the most optimistic, most enthusiastic, most hopeful human being I had ever encountered.” How could this be, she wondered. The answer came when she read a note L’s parents had written to L: “If God had given us all of the children in the world to choose from, L., we would only have chosen you.” Alice turned to her husband and said, “Quick, read this. It’s the secret of life.”

L’s parents knew what they had; they were grateful, and what a difference that made to them and to their child. What we should be most grateful for in life cannot be measured on a balance sheet or with trophies: love, trust, faithfulness, family, friends, meaningful commitments, and a Creator who not only cares for us but also nurtures us into our fullest selves when we acknowledge that Creator’s love and share it with those around us. It’s the secret of life.

A reunion is a time of reflection and, for me, gratitude: gratitude for the many friendships forged more than 50 years ago at this school and have continued for lo these many years. They are not stuck in the past but embrace current passions, interests, and future hopes; gratitude for this school which has nurtured me and educated me, whose lessons, never static, I continue to mine as a rich vein of new insights and perspectives; and gratitude too that for me the School has been and remains a source of sustenance and hope.

A reunion, like a graduation and a summer vacation, is a time of reflection. These are times to unpack and rearrange the memories we carry with us, to liberate ourselves from the old hurts, the anger, the unforgiving and the unforgiven, and to celebrate the continuing possibility of God’s on-going creation in our lives and to say with Paul, “Behold, the new has come.”

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Charlie and Ann enjoy one of many light-hearted moments.

a farewell fÊte

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n the evening of Friday, May 16, 2008, over 500 alumni, friends, faculty, and staff gathered in the Reunion Weekend tent to honor Charles and Ann Alexander at a spectacular farewell dinner. So much was conveyed by so many, the spirit and humor of the night can only partially be caught in the excerpts and images that follow. The formal remarks came from Master of Ceremonies Richard Marr and from five speakers: former trustee William Orrick ’71, P’04,’09, trustee and former faculty member Auguste Bannard P’01, ’03, Robert Peabody ’73, P’11, Caroline Earle Walsh ’83, and Henry Nuzum ’95. Headmaster Rick Commons made a formal presentation, and Charlie Alexander closed the evening with his remarks. Congratulations to Ann and Charlie on their 48 years of service to Groton!

Photos by Amanda Harris

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Alexander Farewell Dinner

Ann and Charlie Alexander’s Retirement William Orrick ’71, P’04,’09

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t is humbling to be asked to honor Charlie and Ann Alexander and the extraordinary service they have given to this School. I have a few words to say, but in the tradition of one of Charlie’s old colleagues in the classics department, Norris Getty, first I will tell you what I am not going to tell you.

I am not going to tell you that Charlie taught me everything I know about Greek and Latin, because despite three years of Latin here I don’t know any and Charlie never taught me anyway. I will not tell you that he taught me how to block effectively, tackle ferociously, or hit a curve ball, because I did none of those things, even though I tried. I will not tell you that he lent a sympathetic ear to my plans to revolutionize the School—the estimable Jake Congleton, Frank White, and the late, great Peter Camp did that.

And I will not tell you that Charlie was the last teacher hired by Endicott Peabody, because Doug Brown, the School archivist who was hired by the Rector, told me it wasn’t true.

I will tell you that when I arrived at Groton School in the fall of 1967, Charlie Alexander, who was barely 30 years old, was clearly ensconced as part of the Old Guard of the School, where with white hair and lit pipe he has resided to this day. He revered Paul Wright, then the senior master. During those halcyon days of the late ’60s and the early ’70s, when the cultural revolution in America hit Groton School, Charlie was not on the side of the rebels. Nonetheless, he did serve on the committee that brought coeducation to Groton School. And he had the capacity to reach out to all of us. Chuckles, Chuck-a-buns, Chuckie A.—whatever we called him—he cared about our character and where we were going in life. He learned about us and connected, sometimes with

“This community refers to itself from time to time as “the Groton School Family”.

Charlie and Ann understand that those are not just words.” a joke, sometimes a word of encouragement, and sometimes a barked order when we transgressed. And he worked really hard to get us into college, if only to get us off the campus.

Ann connected with us in a different way. She was raising Beth, Sarah, Chris, and Katie, which on its own was quite a feat. She still made her influence felt around the Circle—in Dramat, the Dining Hall, the choir—because she is one of the kindest and most empathetic people I have ever met. Ann nurtured students far from home with her natural, warm, supportive self.

My friendship with Ann and Charlie blossomed much later, after the death of our mutual great friend, Jack Ryan, when Sarah, my oldest child, went through Groton, and it strengthened while I served on the Board. To my delight, I found that Ann was not only the warm and kind person I recalled, but that she had fiercely

Rick Commons bestows a bound book of reflections and thanks sent by Alexander’s former students, colleagues and admirers.

held views, an occasional sharp tongue, and the capacity for deep friendship, on which I, and particularly my wife, Linie, have come to rely. Charlie was still Charlie—same caring, same jokes, same character.

I should mention two unique attributes about Charlie. He is obsessed with collecting seashells. I don’t really get that, and I have nothing more to say about it. And the human connections Charlie makes and maintains are mind-blowing. To spend an evening watching the Celtics, Bruins, Patriots, or, best of all, Red Sox, with Charlie is to guarantee that the genealogies of scores of people connected in some way to independent schools, colleges, and sports will be revealed throughout the game. His passion and

William Orrick ’71 was the lead-off speaker of the night.

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Circiter | Featured on Campus knowledge on these topics is prodigious. And he uses those connections to make others’ lives better, whether as contacts for college admissions, jobs or shared passions.

This community refers to itself from time to time as “the Groton School Family.” Charlie and Ann understand that those are not just words. They are the foundation for an institution that stands in the place of parents for the adolescents charged to its care. That causes Charlie to chide students who pay insufficient attention in Chapel from his customary seat in the back. It makes Ann reach out to younger faculty wives, to light their path in a demanding environment. It is the source of Charlie’s wisecracks on the football field, and his steadfast approach to all things Groton, from the inviolate Groton school transcript to disciplinary issues. Charlie and Ann have a strong moral sense, which they have not betrayed in their time at Groton.

Charlie and Ann are part of a great tradition of caring faculty at this School. They look and act about the same way they did when I first came to this School because they have lived out their values here. In the words of the Graduate’s Prayer, their hearts are still warm with the flame of their youthful ideals, their faith unshaken, their principles immovable. They made a life out of enriching, supporting, and serving the people associated with this place. Groton School will never repay its debt of gratitude to Charlie and Ann. Neither will I.

To Charles and Ann with Love Auguste Bannard P’01, ’03

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hat a treat to be here amidst celebration of love given and received! Tonight we will take home a treasury of stories of Charlie and Ann, some we share from this podium; many more, I suspect, will come from your own rich memories. As for me, as Lefty said, I realize that I came to Groton because of Charlie, I stayed thanks to Ann (and then David, of course!), and I left when I had learned enough to go home again.

I arrived here in 1977, one of Charlie’s first interns, a complete stranger to New England and Groton School. I had never heard of Groton School, but I liked Charlie. Andover may have offered more money and more interns to play with, but I liked Charlie. He just exuded love of his work, the school, his students, his coaching. Like any Virginian, I liked his respect for tradition, as well as his begrudging acknowledgement that the world had to change. Of course, he did harbor these misperceptions about the superiority of Williams and Harvard, to this day referring to my alma mater as Tiger Prep, but I hoped (in vain, I now note) that that was just a question of education—or evolution!

I kept a teaching journal that year, 1977, which I dug up recently. It is a tired green spiral, but it contains little treasures

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Gussie Bannard on her way to the podium.

every two to three pages, square scraps of paper on which Charlie wrote his evaluations of my teaching every day for my first eight weeks. Imagine yourself being evaluated by Charlie every day for six weeks, sitting in the back of your classroom (HIS, actuallyI was assigned to his classroom) methodically enumerating the points he would teach me after class. It was both terrifying and exhilarating. At no other time in my professional career would I get such helpful, attentive and kind feedback with no political or personal agenda attached.

Of course, Charlie taught in every sphere of his life: on the fields; on the D.C., which he called the most rewarding work he did with students; on the Studies Committee, where he helped to steer the curriculum between the Scylla of trendiness and the Charybdis of the tired, tried and true; and in his role as college advisor where I saw some of the most eloquent and passionate advocacy I have ever seen. He was famous among the great college admissions deans who valued his trademark honesty, knowledge, and humor, and, I would venture, feared disappointing him. Charlie would rarely admit it, but I witnessed this: his relationships caused deans to listen and take seriously what he said. He made them want our students.

Now, all these accolades behind us, there are some who might claim that our Charles could be a bit inflexible, and indeed I saw some hints of that. He fought Applied Math for years until Harvard lauded it. He practically sputtered in disbelief when I showed up for a meeting with a new baby in tow, and he had daggers for me when I accepted Bill Polk’s invitation to bring the same (sleeping) to the opening faculty meeting at three weeks. But Ann and I just saw it as grandfather training. Deadlines, professionalism, school responsibilities, issues of respect, and integrity—intractable would be an accurate description and we are the better for it.

But, that said, when it comes to understanding and supporting any individual student, when it comes to loving that ne’er-do-well advisee, when it comes to caring for his mother and nursing his brother with compassion, you can count on Charlie.

Ann Walling Alexander—who can know all you have been and done for Groton School? When I first entered the warm

Alexander Farewell Dinner embrace of your home and family, you worked for nothing for Groton School. You lived the unacknowledged and demanding life of a faculty wife, a life that meant caring for family at home and showing up for School events, planning them, taking care of the Chapel and hosting events, having your home (and children) ready for all manner of School visitors, taking in Charlie’s advisees and their parents, pouring at form teas—the list could go on for pages. I saw you bridge that generation of thankless work to an era of professional life as an admissions professional, a transition that you managed with extraordinary grace and your customary energy, creativity and wisdom. While playing all the old roles of faculty spouse, you added travel, interviews, advising, and board committees. And somehow along the way you were friend and mentor, fellow chorister, and you nurtured us, David and me, in our young romance, including us at your table to enjoy the family,

“The last piece of scrap paper stapled into my journal of 1977 is a brief grammar lesson on Charlie’s favorite constructions, expressions of purpose.” the sheer fun, the rich life that you and Charlie shared together.

You, Ann, have always lived a ministry of hospitality that is greater than any roles by which society defines us as women, and that is both gift and example, which I toast and feebly try to emulate.

The last piece of scrap paper stapled into my journal of 1977 is a brief grammar lesson on Charlie’s favorite constructions, expressions of purpose. You might have a legatus coming to give a message or you might have a girl coming to drink wine (my favorite), but either way, you would know how to express the purpose in five different ways.

I laughed when I saw it written in Charlie’s clear hand. Purpose has long been his focus, Groton School just one stop along the way. I have been trying to compose the new purpose clauses. He goes to Nonquitt to torture his wife? Did I say that? I meant, they go to Nonquitt to fulfill their lives! Charlie, Ann, here’s to you!

Richard Marr, Master of Ceremonies.

Top: After his impromptu remarks, Jake Congleton congratulates Charlie.

Middle: The evening program set out before the tables filled.

Bottom: Ann and Charlie enjoy Robert Peabody’s ’73 remarks.

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Circiter | Featured on Campus Charlie and Ann’s Farewell Robert Peabody ’73 —delivered from notes below

Football “Fire out” “Stay low” “Stand your ground” “Keep your guard up” “No resistance --- turn hard to the inside” For the linemen in our midst Know what these words mean And who said them—CCA—stood on sled/push him I never good at heeding his admonition Big dumb slow tackle Joe Restic saw fit to move me to offense CCA’s words had meaning not just on the football field Frankly, more meaning off the field Challenges lie ahead and how to handle them “No free lunch” “Prove yourself everyday” “Can’t rest on laurels” “Doesn’t matter if your name is” “Judged on your hard work you do and effort you give” Old chestnuts but they apply today

Mentorship by teacher/coach CCA’s impact mentorship of me resonated Son graduating from Belmont Hill next month Seen how important influence/guidance of his teachers/coaches adult men (and women) affected him Doesn’t want to hear from me Same for me with CCA Irritating at times—James Q Wilson Chub was not the type Forever grateful

Ann Happily…thankfully…there was Ann Warm, non judgmental, loyal, organized Home always open Someone to talk with Also friend to this day Honor you both 48 years Extraordinary service to the school Selfless efforts Responsible: young boys and girls…young men and women

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Charlie surrounded by the 2008 varsity baseball team and coaches.

Honor you both My class Cotty Ma and Pa—1972 Betsey and Margery Peabody

This was their home

Part of the school all their lives

Loved you and for all you did for Groton All of us are in your debt

Tribute to the Alexanders Caroline Walsh ’83

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o all of you gathered—Grotonians, Alexander admirers, Alexander family and friends, Beth, Sarah, Chris, and Katie, and of course, Mr. and Mrs. Alexander, what a really wonderful honor it is to be a part of this event. Every member of the Alexander family has played such a wonderful role in my life and that of so many other people—here and elsewhere. When John MacEachern called and kindly, thoughtfully, and pointedly invited me to contribute to this great night, the thought of speaking to a huge gathering made me feel truly sick to my stomach—a feeling not so dissimilar from the many times I sat on the other side of the desk from Charlie Alexander, whether it was for college counseling or just good old counsel. John ended his request by saying, “So, Caroline, are you game?” The reply that emerged from my mouth prior to my thinking (not unusual) was, “No way, of course I’m not game. But will I do it? Of course, I will ... Declining would defy all that Charlie Alexander instilled in me while I was at Groton. He would think that I was a wimp. Yes, John, I’m definitely game,” I happily contradicted myself.

And, so here I am…

Twenty-nine years ago, I arrived on the Groton campus to begin a wonderful four-year journey. Ann Alexander’s was the first face I saw and the most welcoming voice I could imagine–a

Alexander Farewell Dinner voice whose lilt I would recognize anywhere. I knew I was bound forever to Mrs. Alexander when she referred to my new school as “the Chatham Hall of the north.” A little piece of my mother, her alma mater, and her idiosyncratic southern ways greeted me in my first real venture into New England—I was almost home. Making people feel at home is certainly something the Alexanders are very good at doing.

I spent a lot of time after Sixth Form literally in the Alexander’s home. And while they weren’t always home, when I was in their “home,” somehow even in their absence, I felt at home in their home. I spent many hours at their wonderful old kitchen table staring at the wall of pictures and imagining life in the Alexander family—lots of blonde hair, lots of energy, and above all, lots of clear tangible love. Though I didn’t know Beth as well as the others, between the photos and the anecdotes, I felt as though I did. So, I really did feel at home. How else might Chris and I have earned their blessing to peruse Rolling Stone magazine, take some quick Polaroid head shots, and enlist for magnificent fake i.d.’s? And when they were home, I can truly say it was even more fun. Mr. Alexander’s “grill” skills were constantly challenged and critiqued in his presence, and lovingly praised and adored in his absence.

This contradiction, in fact, is not unlike Mr. Alexander himself.

Liza, I direct this little bit to you, as the oldest of the Alexanders’ grandchildren. Whenever you were around as a little person, your grandfather would tease you and pretend that your many numerous visits to Nini in Nonquitt, particularly your night-time tiptoes into the master bedroom, were nothing short of a nuisance. But the moment your little ears were out of hearing, and you found yourself marching down the long dock to launch your adorably bikinied 6-year-old body into Buzzards Bay, your grandfather never took his eyes off you. Every single word uttered from his lips was one of admiration, adulation, and dare I say, unconditional objectivity.

At one time in my life I found this unconditional objectivity to be a little scary.

Let me venture back to the fall of 1982—it was time for me to apply to college, and what I needed was lots and lots of good oldfashioned subjectivity (a la Ann Alexander) and perhaps a little bit of objectivity (a la Charlie Alexander). For every kind gesture and word of encouragement that Mrs. Alexander ever offered with her smiling eyes and gentle touch, Mr. Alexander would chime in with a “Well, not really, Ann,” or a reminder that “She’s really not all that!” Though oftentimes contradictory in their remarks, so too were they complementary.

As Mrs. Alexander was determinedly helping each of us feel great, Mr. Alexander was ferociously instilling the values of selfknowledge and self-confidence. By looking his students in the eye and speaking to them with his inimitably reverent sarcasm, Charlie instilled as well as elicited absolute respect. We all knew that respect for others was important, but what was conveyed ultimately was that there is nothing so essential to one’s success than her own respect for herself. Mr. Alexander taught us this.

“We all knew that respect for others was important, but what was conveyed ultimately was that there is nothing so essential to one’s success than her own respect for herself.

Mr. Alexander taught us this.”

What Mrs. Alexander gave us was the courage to push ourselves beyond what was comfortable. Her gentle words of encouragement seemed so benign, and yet upon reflection, I realize there was no opportunity to do anything other than whatever she was instructing. I remember so vividly as a Third Former happily playing on the J.V. Tennis team under the guidance of the nicest coach on campus—Ann Alexander. No sooner had I found my contented rhythm on this team than my “really nice” coach sought me out at Roll Call to “encourage” me to play with, in her words, “the big girls.” Little did I know she had signed me up to play a challenge match against a Fifth Former. “That’s OK, Mrs. Alexander,” I said happily, “I like you as my coach.” And smiling kindly, Ann Alexander said, “That’s nice, Caroline,” and she paused, “You’ll like Doc Irons, too, even though we’re not very much alike.” And that was the understatement of the year, but it got me to exchange comfort for terror… and apparently, between Mr. and Mrs. Alexander I had come to the conclusion that this was a good thing!

So many stories, so many thoughts, and so very, very much appreciation. Ann and Charlie, thank you, thank you. Thank you for all you have given to so many for so long. Of all the people gathered tonight, I feel I am perhaps if not the most fortunate, certainly one of them, as I have all the confidence in the world that your new year-round address will allow me to see more of you than I have in the past, and for that and so much else, I am grateful. Here’s to you.

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Circiter | Featured on Campus Henry Nuzum ’95

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hank you, Mr. Marr. Thanks to the School for this wonderful tribute to the Alexanders, which gave me an excuse to return for my auspicious 13th reunion.

When John MacEachern invited me to speak, the first memory that popped up was Mr. A, in khakis and a black Groton windbreaker, presiding over us linemen in football practice. We were a proud group, stubbornly refusing to believe the essence of our fate—in the ISL, you do not play line because of your size; you play line because of your speed. Every day we would hit the sleds and the bags under Mr. A and Mr. Black’s instruction. Now most of practice was controlled chaos wreaked by Jake Congleton. But our line drills had a comforting ceremony. Down we would go in our stance, Mr. A would assume a sort of stylized center’s crouch: doff his black Groton baseball cap, with that mighty Green Bay G, and hold it in front, bend slightly at the knees, and rumble “Team Down…Set…Hut…Hut…,” and at some point, simulate the snap with his hat; and we would all uncoil, with no synchrony, into the bags. “Drive the hips,” “focus,” “eyes forward,” as he formed these boys, who were not by any stretch football naturals, into a team.

I might not have been out on that field had it not been for Mrs. Alexander, whose warmth during admissions (along with a rejection letter from Exeter) had helped convince me that Groton was the right place. She shared my Chapel Hill roots with Mr. A, who quickly took a jab against my Tarheels on behalf of his Blue Devils, opening a war of words we still wage today. When I spent Fourth Form year in Seattle, Mr. Alexander patiently sorted out credits and requirements, smoothing my return. On many occasions, I would join Mr. A to watch one of our favorite spectator sports—the verbal jousting of Pauline Hamel and Rogers Scudder.

We maintained a safe distance, lest we get caught in their friendly fire. In Sixth Form, on the Discipline Committee, his sense of balance led my young mind through several quandaries. After Prize Day, Mr. A ensured that John MacEachern was my Harvard freshman advisor, easing my transition into college.

As time passes, I conflate my memories with those of others, and I can hear Mr. A, orchestrating a Second Form Latin class, imploring a befuddled Mike Gingras ’95 to “use your head for something other than holding up your glasses.” In Fifth Form, illness sidelined Freddy Erazo ’95, our starting center, for a game, but no matter, Mr. A still yelled at him for a broken play. Freddy, watching with me in equal dismay from the same section of the bench, quietly replied, “I’m right here coach.” The retort—“Well I’m so used to yelling at you, it’s become second nature.”

Mr. A brought the classroom out to the field. Dave Cusack ’95 fondly recounts catching fly balls during practice to a nonchalant “Q, vincare, present subjunctive.” Of course, sports had a deeper educational value than conjugation drills—Darren Van Blois ’95 recalls a baseball game when Mr. A bellowed “Ohhhh, compete!!”

Darren noted, “I never saw him get upset when we lost, but he would get upset when we weren’t putting out our best.”

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“That such gracious people had chosen to dedicate their lives to this place, and had risen into its revered ranks, gave us faith that… fundamentally, Groton is a good place.”

The Alexanders embraced their role as advisors. Teebie Bunn ’94 raves about the “popovers at Easter, the chili before the choir concerts… It was so great to feel like I had a family and home during special times away from mom and dad.” She continued that, “Mrs. Alexander will always be my advisor…she went from an adult in my life, to a mentor, to a friend, to a soul mate.”

Mr. A added guidance “with humor, uncensored candor, and yet always with a sense of care.” Teebie credits the Alexanders for her career in education.

One of the greatest blessings I’ve received is a Latin tutorial, arranged by Mr. A, during my Third Form fall with Dr. Scudder.

The venerable Master once shared a story. Bedridden with the flu at age five or six, his mother entered his room “and told me that the Tsar had died. And I cried and cried because it was the saddest thing I had ever heard.” Doc. Scudder retained an affinity for monarchy throughout, explaining that royalty gave a country two qualities horribly absent from the revolutionary and reactionary ideologies that drove the 20th century—dignity and stability.

Seated together in that side pew, Mr. Alexander’s majestic white mane and Mrs. Alexander’s unfailing elegance (which led my father to assume she was a trustee) do lend the couple a regal, though never inaccessible, air. More importantly, it is certainly this

Alexander Farewell Dinner stability and dignity that the Alexanders have brought to Groton.

I don’t think many of us students knew the exact length of their tenure—only that they had been at the School quite a while. And that was very important. That such gracious people had chosen to dedicate their lives to this place, and had risen into its revered ranks, gave us faith that, no matter the challenges of the French barrier, the assignment of tackle dashing the hopes of a tight end (those aren’t very lofty dreams, Jake; I wasn’t gunning for quarterback), or the trials of a sometimes cruel prep school social scene, that fundamentally, Groton is a good place.

This School is special—firmly rooted in the past to prepare children for their futures. Of course there is often tension between this traditional foundation and transformative mission. With folks like the Alexanders leading the community, we are reassured that the sustained traditions are right, and that the selected changes appropriate. Daily Chapel, Shop, and Fives still color our lives; and thanks to Mr. Alexander’s work on the Co-Education Committee, this evening is twice as joyous for all. Their model that combines wit, empathy, and counsel has made the Circle a kinder home. So while a half-century reign will close in a couple weeks, I’m sure that the enlightenment of the Alexander Era will guide Groton for a long time. Thank you both from all of us.

Response from Charles Alexander

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n behalf of Ann and myself, we want to thank the Development Office, John MacEachern et al, the staff (who do so much to take care of Groton School), alumni, family, and friends who have been kind enough to come this evening—we are fully aware that Friday nights are complicated for all who work. Groton has been our home for 48 years, and we are blessed with many warm memories.

Groton has been our workplace for many years. Ann almost single-handedly worked full time as a mother of four children while I went off to school to work six and a half days a week and assumed she would take care of everything at home, which she did admirably. She also threw herself into Groton School as a hostess, parlor

leader, and athletic fan. As our fourth child reached her teens, Ann became a faculty member who gave much to her JV tennis teams, advisees, and the Admission Office. Only I can be crass enough to highlight her success as an interviewer who produced applications that in turn often became acceptances, along with the personal paragraph she wrote for the letter, and most impressively her yield was phenomenal. She also was the first Groton admission representative to visit Southeast Asia.

I have been fortunate to wear many hats here. I particularly enjoyed my Second Form Latin classes and Vergil classes. College Advising, helping coach football and baseball, chairing the Discipline Committee, and running the Intern Program provided incredible opportunities to work closely with students, faculty, coaches, and people outside of the Circle.

As a teacher, I was fortunate to be influenced by numerous strong mentors: my father, Frank Benton at Andover, Paul Wright, Jack Crocker, Jim Waugh, Herman Hall, et al. As I finally began to mature, I also recognized the wisdom of accomplished women: my mother, Gussie Bannard, Kathy Giles, and most of all Ann Walling Alexander. They introduced me to a foreign idea called consensus!

I thank all of them for their patience with me.

We have loved being a small part of Groton, which, at its best, has the potential to support her students in myriad ways. As a wellendowed small school, we have to demand much of ourselves. I hope Groton will continue to see the Chapel as the center of its existence, and to stress that much is required from those to whom much has been given. I hope Groton will continue to take pride in providing a demanding academic program, e.g. six and a half courses including two languages for Third Formers. Finally, I hope Groton will continue to see as its number one mission the responsibility to support, sustain, and emphasize the importance of character and integrity. The ultimate test of a school is how its graduates contribute to the world into which they enter and live over their lifetimes.

In closing I will share with you one of my favorite lines from Hymn 541 [Ora Labora]: “No arm so weak but may do service here,” which perhaps explains why I have been employed here.

Ann and I thank you profusely for joining us. May you all have a wonderful weekend.

A fitting close to a festive evening.

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Circiter | Featured on Campus

Gallery News The de Menil Gallery fall

E xhibit

Crucible of American Modernism: The Provincetown Art Colony in the 20th Century

Blanche Lazzell, “The Lumber Wharf,” 1929

September 15 - November 23, 2008

The de Menil Gallery gratefully acknowledges that the short history below of the Provincetown Art Colony first appeared in an article written by William Morgan in the Hartford Courant on April 6, 2006, as part of a review of the new additions to the Provincetown Art Association and Museum and appears with his permission.

F

or many, Provincetown is best known as a gay resort—New England’s answer to Key West, another sand spit at a tag end of the continent. The Pilgrims made landfall at the tip of Cape Cod before moving on to Plymouth, but until the early 20th century, Provincetown was an isolated fishing village. Its picturesque poverty made it appealing to writers and artists who transformed it into a major art colony. It is this artistic legacy that the Provincetown Art Association and Museum seeks to preserve and bring before the public.

Charles Hawthorne opened the first of many summer art academies in 1899, and he and a few friends founded the art association in 1914. American expatriate painters including Stuart Davis, Charles Demuth, and Mardsen Hartley fled the war in Europe and headed for the outer Cape. Hartley recalled 1916 as “the remarkable and never repeated summer,” because much of New York’s Greenwich Village seemed to have migrated to Provincetown.

Literary luminaries such as Eugene O’Neill, e.e. cummings, and Edna St. Vincent Millay came, too, followed later

by Tennessee Williams, Jack Kerouac, and Norman Mailer.

But painting is the soul of Provincetown, although its history has been a constant sibling squabble between traditionalists and modernists. Hans Hofmann founded his own school in 1934, and he became the magnet for leading abstract expressionists such as Jackson Pollock, Robert Motherwell, and Helen Frankenthaler. Regardless of their styles, some 600 artists have worked in Provincetown, and the Town of Provincetown owns nearly 300 works by many of them—a who’s-who of 20th-century American art, given either by the artists themselves or collectors. The Provincetown Arts Commission has generously made available over 30 highlights from its collection for this exhibition.

Gallery Hours: Open weekdays 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. daily except Wednesdays and on weekends 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.. The de Menil Gallery is free and open to the public. For more information please call 978-448-7ART or Groton School at 978-448-3363.

Oliver Chaffee, “Sea Life,” 1932 All illustrations are by permission of the Provincetown Art Commission.

34 | Quarterly September 2008

Pauline Palmer, “The Lumber Wharf,” n.d.

Ada Gilmore, “The Heron,” 1934

Gallery News

Christopher Carey Brodigan Gallery fall

E xhibit

Paintings by Ma Qingxiong

September 22 - November 8, 2008

T

he Brodigan Gallery fall exhibition features paintings by Ma Qingxiong. Originally from Guangdong China where he studied with the great master painters, Ma immigrated to Boston in 1991.

Inspired by travel, nature, and music, he considers the brushstroke the “essence and language of Chinese painting.� Since 1991 Ma has taught art in the Boston area and has shown his work at the Art Complex Museum, the DeCordova Museum, and in venues in Los Angeles and New York City.

His signature style blends the philosophy and technique of Chinese painting with western art concepts. He works in gouache and ink on rice paper, and acrylic on canvas.

This exhibition will run from September 22 to November 8. There will be an opening reception in the Christopher Brodigan Gallery on September 25 at 7:15 p.m.

Quarterly September 2008

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Circiter | Featured on Campus scenes

from

Stepping out

T

his spring, the School drama program produced Richard Harris’s Stepping Out, an upbeat saga of a church basement dance class, where all the participants get a chance to bare their souls while studying dance, in this case, tap dance. The play won The London Standard’s Best Comedy award in 1986. Although the student performers did a terrific job over three performances, a key to the show’s success was the piano player role of Robert Humphreville ’76 as the hapless Mrs. Fraser. Delightful!

Counter-clockwise from bottom right: Dance class in rehearsal, actors: (Front) Caitlin Holmes ’08, Back (from left to right) Adetoro Adeyemi ’08, Naya Friel ’08, Josephine Ho ’08, Ian Anderson ’10, Annie Bergen ’11, Eveey Amoh-Tonto ’08, Hannah Wellman ’08, and Laura Zhang ’10. Above right: Top Hat strut—Caitlin Holmes ’08 and class. Top right: Dance class in performance. Top Left: Dancers surround Mrs Fraser played by Robert Humphreville ’76. Below left: Mrs. Fraser takes a break.

36 | Quarterly September 2008

Per Circulum Locuti Sunt | Voices on the Circle

THE GRAND DESIGN A Chapel Talk by Ceci Nicol April 2008

C “

onceiving like rabbits is the only option if women are not educated,” or so I learned at age 11 from my grandmother, Dr. Marjorie Nicol.

Eleven years old, I had glasses and braces and had worn my hair in two braids for my whole life—thankfully I have learned to vary my hairstyle. I was at a very impressionable age, so when my grandmother would tell me of her life in Sierra Leone and how she wanted to educate Sierra Leonean women so that they might go on to better things, I would take it all very seriously. I wanted to be a doctor like her or a news anchor like Peter Jennings.

My little brother, Zachary, on the other hand, had several professions in mind ranging from Carmen Sandiego to a background dancer for the Spice Girls. One time, when Dracula was a very possible option, Zach accompanied my mom to the grocery store proudly sporting a black cape, a pair of handsome fangs, and of course, dripping blood. He really was a manic seven-year-old, but he was truly enchanted with the world and everything in it.

Well, my grandmother must have had a time of it living with her two grandchildren, the 11-year-old with the big dreams and the seven-year-old with the premature career crisis. In the summer, when my mom and dad went to work, Nana, Zach, and I would be left to our own devices. We would sit, three of us, at the kitchen table and eat bologna sandwiches or pasta with ketchup or any of the other foods beloved by picky eaters. Sometimes we would have capital quizzes when Nana would say “Norway” and the first person to reply with “Oslo” would get a point. We actually got pretty good! However, I always thought that the best days were those on which Nana would tell us about a life before cell phones, before Barbie, a life that once belonged to her—and to many, but was now lost in memory.

My grandmother was born in 1920 two years after the end of the First World War. This was the age of jazz, of Gatsby and his twilight tea dances; a time when Groton boys were still taking very cold showers. In 1922, King Tut cursed those who opened his tomb. Charles Lindbergh flew the Atlantic in 1927, and in 1929 the stock market crashed, leaving so many stranded in its wake.

My grandmother received a British education in Trinidad which, at the time, was a British colony. Known then as Marjorie Johnston, she was the eldest of four, born to Chinese and African parents.

Often the headmistress at her school would punish a young Mar-

jorie for sneaking peppermints in assembly. Imagine if Mr. Commons boxed our ears every time he caught a glimpse of someone with M&Ms or perhaps a Snickers in the Campbell Performing Arts Center? Well, needless to say we would be going to the Health Center for other reasons…

In the ’30s, Gandhi was making waves in the British Empire with the salt march and on April 5, 1930, two days from now 78 years ago, after walking 250 miles barefoot, Gandhi arrived at the Arabian Sea ready to confront the Brits and their monopoly on salt.

Meanwhile, in Trinidad, my grandmother put her confectionary hijinks on hold and won a scholarship to a prestigious high school where she met a German girl named Irene. It was only later that my grandmother learned that Irene and her family had escaped

“Here is to Groton, which has given us enough education, enough judgment, and maturity to be able to look at the world and appreciate and embrace the constant change. And here’s to my grandmother, who with her stories taught me that the most exciting part of life is its uncertainty.” from Germany. It was 1934 and a man named Adolf Hitler, a fairly new player on the world stage, was looking to take over Europe and everyone in it. My grandmother remembers the 1936 Berlin Olympics, when Hitler refused to shake hands with the Black athletes, including Jesse Owens, who ran 100 meters in 10.3 seconds and set four world records in the span of only 45 minutes.

When my grandmother was 16, she went to the doctor’s office to explain that she had a pain in her heart. The doctor asked, “Well Marge, how do you know exactly where your heart is?” My grandma was so irritated at this doctor that…well, she decided to become one herself.

En route to England to study medicine in 1942, my grandmother had to take a train from Miami to New York. On this train she was refused access to the dining car because she was colored.

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Per Circulum Locuti Sunt | Voices on the Circle

Ceci Nicol ’08 works with Mary Cooper ’08 in the library.

Coming from Trinidad where everyone really looks a lot like me, this was her first experience of Jim Crow. It would be 20 years until Rosa Parks would refuse to give up her seat on a Montgomery bus.

Returning to the ’40s though, England was a total and complete disaster. In World War II London, my grandmother was awoken many nights by terrific roars—the advice being “go back to sleep— if a bomb hits, you certainly won’t hear it.” What was England’s aim?

I think Sir Winston Churchill said it best: “It is victory. Victory at all costs—Victory in spite of all terrors—Victory, however long and hard the road may be, for without victory there is no survival.”

Now, rations were a funny thing. A favorite in World War II London was carrot flan pie—if you can imagine a pizza with carrots instead of cheese. Rations have followed my grandmother into the 21st century. She insists on cutting recipes in half, making off with bread from restaurants, and never letting food touch the inside of a “rubbish bin.” Cooking is especially unfortunate. We enjoy a variety of pita bread at my house on a regular basis. Suffice it to say there is no substitute for eggs and/or yeast.

In England, Hitler was coming to occupy and he would have succeeded if it hadn’t been for the Americans. Franklin D. Roosevelt, President of the United States and a Grotonian who once sat in the very seats you sit in now, entered World War II on account of Pearl Harbor being bombed by the Japanese in 1941.

In 1945 Truman dropped the atomic bomb, which was the equivalent of 12 to 15 thousand tons of TNT, on the city of Hiroshima in Japan and another, a few days later, on Nagasaki. The year 1947 saw the partition of India as it split into two parts, India and Pakistan. At the end of the Second World War, Germany was also split into two parts, dividing the capital city into eastern and western sectors by a great divider that we know as the Berlin Wall.

In 1950, my grandmother was married to Davidson Nicol, a young student from Sierra Leone who she thought was the absolute

38 | Quarterly September 2008

cat’s whiskers. They shared the goal of educating women so that they did not in fact “conceive at the drop of a hat.” Actually, my grandmother started the first Planned Parenthood clinic in Sierra Leone. It was her special interest, her “baby” if you will. My father, Charles, was born in Nigeria two years later.

Well, at this point in our stories, Zachary and I would interrupt with all sorts of questions, like what it meant to conceive, etc.

Zachary would want to know where he could get his hands on an atomic bomb and/or if Nana knew how to make one. I wanted to hear more about my dad when he was growing up in the ’50s and ’60s. When rebellions were the trend and liberty the goal. About the Bay of Pigs invasion to overthrow Fidel Castro, and how it was planned by many a Groton graduate. In 1960, the first presidential debate was aired on television between vice president Richard Nixon and inspiring newcomer John F. Kennedy who would be assassinated only three years later; when that happened, as my grandmother puts it, “the bottom fell out of the United States.”

The ’60s saw the Civil Rights Movement, when Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. proclaimed that he had a dream. Mao’s Cultural Revolution began in China; man landed on the moon, and of course, Sergeant Pepper was born. In 1969, my father, spending the summer here from boarding school in Ghana, was desperate to go to Woodstock, but he was forbidden by my grandmother who, medically speaking, did not want her 17-year-old son traipsing around this “free love festival” making friends with hippies and imitating Jimi Hendrix.

I do not intend to make another Forest Gump out of my grandmother but rather to show you all how the world has changed. And it will change just as much, if not more, by the time we are grandparents. What if there is another FDR sitting in this very Chapel?

Maybe he is the next Babe Ruth and she, another Madame Curie.

Maybe even Marilyn Monroe, James Dean, or perhaps sitting next to you right now is the next Elvis. Who ever is sitting next to James Anderson should feel very lucky.

So here’s to all the dreamers, the intellectuals, and the leaders.

The revolutionaries and those who dare to think differently. To the businessmen and the bombshells, those who are so sure and those who just don’t know. Here is to future kings and future fools. To Winston! Here is to Groton, which has given us enough education, enough judgment and maturity to be able to look at the world and appreciate and embrace the constant change. And here’s to my grandmother, who with her stories taught me that the most exciting part of life is its uncertainty.

Throughout her 87 years, my grandmother has seen the world only through rose-colored glasses. She taught me that when people grow, both in height and in mind, they eventually find a reason for the grand design. When we are children, ignorant of those who have gone before and of those who will go ahead, we do not yet know our place. Surely in time, we will. We will know where we fit on this earth, in this age, and we will find that there is a reason we have been put together in this place. And when our names are faded and we feel as though the world has started to change even more than we ever imagined, our pasts will linger and our history remain. What lovely afternoons those were.

SEIZING THE OPPORTUNITY A Chapel Talk by John Jacobsson ’86, Trustee April 25, 2008

The side aisle of St. John’s Chapel.

H

ere’s something to consider. What if the best by the mail room, which used to be up in the area outside the days of your life… were already behind you?

Schoolroom. He opened his own mailbox, and a hand popped More about that question later. out holding his mail. He took it and moved on as if nothing had When Mr. Commons asked me to give a Chapel happened.

Talk, I was both relieved and terrified. And both for the same Then they went to Brooks House, where a couple of us had reason. It’s because I have never given a Chapel Talk, and that been working for about a half an hour to set up the next gag. Ira has bothered me ever since I graduated. The only other time I opened a door to one of the third form studies, and suddenly 10 ever stood in this pulpit was at Lessons and Carols in 1985. I was frantic faculty dogs came bursting out. This went on and on: they the vice president of the Choir, which I guess meant that I was watched as a student on a bicycle ran down another student who standing at the ready just in case the Choir president was suddenly was already on crutches; they went into the Chapel and my friend, incapacitated or something. But for Lessons and Carols, my role Pegram Harrison ’85, was playing music from “Phantom of the was to read from Genesis 3. Here’s the part I really loved (this is Opera” on the organ.

God speaking to Adam): My favorite was the full court, five on five, jockstrap-only bas“…Who told thee that thou wast naked? Hast thou eaten of the ketball game being played in the gym. (Stephen Hill ’80, pertree, whereof I commanded thee haps you can keep this in mind for that thou shouldst not eat?” the next alumni basketball game.)

Now in those days, I was really And Jackson Chang, Form of into Monty Python, so I was des1984, somehow managed to meet perate to add on to the end of the them seven times, in seven differreading: ent locations, in seven different “And the Lord did grin and the outfits and to introduce himself by people did feast upon the lambs seven different names. and sloths and carp and anchovies The point of this story, other and orangutans and breakfast cerethan memorializing a truly great als, and fruit bats” (Armaments prank, is that, given a tiny window John Jacobsson (in football jersey) with members of the Form of ’86.

Chapter 2, Verses 9-21) of time—because these tours were But like a thousand other bad assigned only about two days in ideas, I never went ahead and did it (although I guess I have gone advance—Ira pulled together a whole cast of characters and creahead and done it now). ated the Tour to End All Tours. If he hadn’t done it, nobody would I’ll tell you a story about a similarly silly idea that a friend of have noticed, but we would all have been the poorer for it. mine did follow through on.

So back to my never giving a Chapel Talk. As a student, I had Back in the ’80s, admission tours were conducted by all stuscores of great ideas for Chapel Talks, but out of laziness or fear dents, randomly assigned. Every student was supposed to do two or for whatever reason, I never actually gave one. And, of course, tours a year. there are other things I regret never doing at Groton. Some are So one day, an evil genius in the Form of 1985, named Ira small things, like why did I never ask out a particular girl? Or why Hochman, decided that he would give the tour he had always did I never take at least a year of Greek? dreamed of, and he enlisted about 20 of us to help. As soon as Ira Some I think were more significant. For example: In 1986, and the prospective family left the Admission Office, they went Jonathan Minifie, who was a terrific teacher and the faculty adviQuarterly September 2008

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Per Circulum Locuti Sunt | Voices on the Circle sor to The Circle Voice, arranged for a group from The Circle Voice to spend a day at South Boston High School. South Boston High School was not just a typical urban public school; it had been the scene of one of the most divisive struggles in the Northeast during the period of desegregation of public schools. Mr. Minifie brought our group to Southie to see, firsthand, what the school was like during the 20th anniversary of desegregation.

My recollection of what we saw there is still vivid. The school was comprised mostly of three ethnic groups: White, African

“So what was my regret? It wasn’t about what other students had written. It was about what I hadn’t written. You see, I had written nothing.”

American and Southeast Asian. Each of the groups seemed to have their own identity, but they all worked together, in classrooms, on committees and on sports teams. Maybe we were expecting to see National Guard troops at the front door or something, but what we saw instead was more like the lunchroom scene in the movie Mean Girls. Basically, it was like any other urban public high school, with some kids planning on going to college, and a small subset—it is true—who hardly showed up for class at all.

The problem was that The Circle Voice coverage ended up sounding like this quote: “School for ‘Southie’ means being checked for attendance. As long as they are in class, that’s all that matters. Learning is not important. The teachers recognize this attitude and reflect it in their approach towards their jobs. Seemingly, they too, are there just to be there and get paid.”

This appeared in our school newspaper.

The reaction from the teachers and students in South Boston was furious. They wrote letters to the editor of The Circle Voice, one of which actually thanked us, albeit sarcastically. A teacher wrote, “May I thank you for uniting our student body to an unprecedented degree. It was truly gratifying to be swamped with students crying out in umbrage, supporting one another and their teachers, after reading your unjust article.”

Needless to say, all of the goodwill we were trying to spread, any attempt to forge ties with that school or to work together to form a deeper common understanding, all of that opportunity was lost.

So what was my regret? It wasn’t about what other students had written. It was about what I hadn’t written. You see, I had written nothing. I suppose I was busy doing other things, and we all know Groton students are always busy. But even though I had had this rich experience at this school and with these kids, I had missed the deadline for that issue of The Circle Voice, and I never got around to finishing my article. Basically, I just blew it off. In my defense, it was my Senior Spring and I was only the sports editor—just as Sam Minifie is this year.

But because of my inaction, all the “Southies” ended up read-

40 | Quarterly September 2008

ing was this other article, which was so biased and insulting. They never got to hear how much I had found them to be in some ways inspiring but in most ways pretty much the same as we were. In my mind, my own silence was as damaging as anything that had been written.

People sometimes use the term carpe diem meaning “seize the day.” For all of you who have actually made it to fifth year Latin, you know it comes from Horace’s Odes. Number 11, I think. It begins, Tu ne quaesieris, scire nefas, quem mihi, quem tibi and ends with: aetas: carpe diem, quam minimum credula postero.

I found a reasonably good summary of this Ode, which is this: “Give up trying to learn what is in the future. Live today; time is swiftly flying.” (C. H. Moore) Still great advice, of course, over 2,000 years later. Sixth formers, you have about five or six weeks left as students on this campus. So if you aren’t “carpe-ing” the “dies,” by all means please start now.

For the rest of you, you have a lot more days here at Groton to seize.

Should you spend the majority of them worrying about what college you’re going to, or should you spend them getting the most out of the friendships and the faculty you have around you right now?

Even as I was writing this, I knew how hypocritical it was going to sound. I still blow off things and live to regret having done so.

Like in 2004, when I went to St. Louis for Game Three of the World Series. The next morning, I flew home because I felt obligated to get back to work, rather than staying to see the Sox finally win the Series. Now I do believe that there was a causal relationship there, and that if I had stayed for Game Four, the Sox would have lost, so maybe that’s a bad example.

My point is that no matter how busy we are or how many things seem on the surface to be important, we shouldn’t forego opportunities that may have less superficial but more fundamental value.

Now back to the line I opened with. It comes not from 2,000 years ago but from Prize Day in 1982. The Prize Day speaker was Louis Auchincloss ’35, father of one of the graduating seniors and also author of about 50 books. I remember him saying to the Sixth Form something like: “Keep in mind, the best days of your life may already be behind you.”

Now that’s not exactly fair advice on Prize Day. What were the graduates supposed to do with this conjecture?

I honestly don’t believe any of your best days are behind you.

Of course not. But why not make choices as if today just might be your best. Why not write the article, or the essay or the poem that you thought you might blow off? Why not ask the girl out—or the boy? Why have any regrets about what you could have done but never got around to do.

We all know that we will always, on occasion, do things that we will end up regretting. It’s unavoidable. But why leave things undone that you could have done?

It’s the things I could have done but never even tried to do, those are the things that bother me the most. So thank you for being here—yes I know it’s mandatory—but thank you for enabling me, finally, to do this one thing.

Math & God

MATH & GOD A Chapel Talk

by Theodore Frelinghuysen ’08 May 13, 2008

I

had much more spare time when I was younger than I do now, but I never struggled to find ways to entertain myself. One of my favorite activities (I must have still been in preschool) was counting with a calculator. I’d press one— plus—one—equal and a two would pop up on the screen. Then I pressed equal again and a three came up. Equal—four. Equal— five, six, seven. I usually got into the thousands before I got too bored to continue. I had some other games, too: I would take the square root of a number again and again and again, and I would watch, delighted, as the display on the calculator screen slowly approached one. I also found this cool trick where I would multiply strings of ones by each other, like 111 times 111, and get digits counting up and then down: 12321. Sometimes if I didn’t have a calculator, I would multiply a number by two over and over in my head until I lost count.

Probably because I spent so much time fooling around with numbers, I developed a vivid map of them in my head. There’s one through twenty in a row out in front of me, and then the numbers twenty-one to one hundred are organized into groups of ten above ten-twenty: twenties, thirties, forties… For all the other hundreds, the numbers are still organized into more groups of ten piled on top of each other. Then the thousands families are spread out next to each other: one thousands, two thousands, three thousands… Finally I get to one million. After this it just keeps going up: millions, billions, trillions, quadrillions, quintillions, sextillions, septillions, octillions, nonillions, decillions, vigintillions, trigintillions, up until centillions, which is a one followed by 306 zeros. In case anyone here is wondering, I could count so high because I looked up all these terms in a dictionary one day in fifth grade. I’m not sure how others map the numbers (I am sure there are more effective ways) or if anyone else pictures the numbers like this at all, but this is how my mind works.

I suppose you have heard of people who can multiply 10 digit numbers in their heads. I can do nothing of the sort, but I would imagine that these people have a clear map of all the numbers too, just maybe a little better organized and more easily navigated.

As much comfort as I have found in ordering numbers, one concept has confused me for as long as I can remember: infinity.

It has no definite place in my map of numbers, and I has had difficulty wrapping my head around it. Maybe none of you has ever really troubled yourself thinking about infinity, or maybe like one math teacher, Trevor O’Brien (most here will remember him), you consider infinity to be the same thing as zero, (I’ll come back to this later), but I fear the truth is much more worrisome.

Theo Frelinghuysen receives his diploma on Prize Day.

As a primary school student, I would have nightmares about infinite amounts of things to be done or places to be visited or work to be completed or simply about an infinite amount of things that existed. The dream would start out in a reasonable way.

I would at first picture and count all these things with a large, but finite number. But then, there would be one last twist, one final turn of the screw that turned it into a nightmare. The amount would jump from the finite to the infinite, and this scared me more than I can express. I remember waking up covered in sweat and semi-delusional (the dreams seemed so real to me) and hiding under the covers, mixing nightmares with reality, or even running to my parents’ room to be comforted.

I was not safe while I was awake either. I remember the one day after third grade when I first consciously realized that the world was infinite, in terms of space and in terms of time. I was lying down in the room at home we called the playroom, thinking about the afterlife I guess, and my life suddenly seemed so pointless in the grand context of the now infinite world. A sense of utter despair descended on me, which I could not shake.

Picture a fraction: the numerator of the fraction represents the value of a person’s life. The denominator represents the grand scheme of things, the value of the world. The fraction as a whole represents our individual contributions to the world. (From now on, whenever I mention the fraction, this is what I am referring to.) For me, before I started thinking about infinity, my fraction had a smallish positive number as the numerator, and some enormous number as the denominator. Something like, twenty over forty duovigintillion. This fraction has a tiny value, but it is a non-zero value. It is worth something.

Now imagine taking that enormous number in the denominator and making it infinity. Suddenly the whole fraction no longer has any value. It is just zero. Even if one leads a great, fulfilling life, and his numerator is not just a smallish positive integer like twenty, but a thousand or a million, the value of the fraction is still stuck at zero. A million over infinity is zero. I could not find any way around this realization. I just sat motionless on the brown leather couch in the playroom, slowly gathering dust.

I did not see a solution then, but I have done some thinking more recently, and I have some considerations. I have pondered: How can the meaning of life be greater than zero? What is the answer to my fraction of denominator infinity? What over infinity Quarterly September 2008

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Per Circulum Locuti Sunt | Voices on the Circle does not simply reduce to zero? The answer: infinity. Infinity over All of the first civilizations were brought together in such a way: infinity is indeterminate. (For those of you not yet in calculus this the Egyptians, the people of the Indus river valley, the Mesopotameans that it could reduce to any number.) And it is certainly mians, the Mayans, the Greeks, and the Romans all had common much more pleasant to think that the meaning of life is indetermibelief systems. How many times in history has a society united by nate, instead of just zero. The next question of course is: how does religion conquered and civilized the “barbarians?” For example, two one make the numerator of one’s fraction infinity? One cannot do of the most important goals of colonization have been the civilizaan infinite amount of good deeds in a finite life, and eventually tion and indoctrination of the native people. The freedom to hold even the biggest waves become smaller waves, and different religious beliefs than the leaders of one’s then ripples, and then nothing. Here is a possible “Picture a fraction: country is a relatively recent development in human answer: the way we can make the numerator of our history, and is still withheld in much of the world, the numerator fraction infinity is through religion. because many have realized religion’s significance in of the fraction Think about it: in Christianity, we are promised holding a society together or in dividing it. eternal life after death if we try to follow in the way Where does this leave us with religion in the represents of the Lord. Since Christians believe they continue present? Can or should it coexist with math and scithe value of a living for an infinite amount of time, the numerator ence? Or is it simply an outdated remnant of natuperson’s life. The ral selection? We already are civilized; our society is of their fractions is infinite, and it does not reduce to zero. This is their solution of sorts, a hope, a light more connected than ever before; and our connecdenominator at the end of the tunnel. Additionally, many Christions are becoming increasingly interreligious. represents the tians believe in a “final judgment” of sorts. This For many people, religious identity allows them grand scheme of to gain a network of friends. By believing together, judgment is imparted from God and, due to the infinite nature of God, it also has an infinite value things, the value people not only feel more secure about their beliefs and can never be reduced to zero. but they have a place or a community through of the world. The which they can identify themselves in the world.

All religions propose some answer to the infinite fraction as a which gives their believers lives with a non-zero I know from personal experience that the Greek value. Hindus, for example, believe in continuous whole represents Orthodox church in Tucson provides an instant reincarnation until the Atman, the personal soul, is and important circle of friends for any Greek who our individual reconnected with the Brahmin, or world soul, which comes there. Without this establishment of religion, will exist for infinity time. Here, too, lives become contributions to many newcomers would have difficulty finding infinite, so the fraction does not reduce to zero and those with similar culture or backgrounds in their the world.”

Hindus find meaning in life. new environment.

Allow me now to jump to Darwin’s theory of There is still room for religion mathematically as evolution. If this problem of infinity over infinity could cause so well. As I mentioned earlier, while logic and reasoning can explain much grief to mankind (well at least it caused grief to me), why all the numbers up through the tretrigintillions, my rational self would our brains still be wired to even consider this notion of will always be at a loss when dealing with the infinite. Religion infinity at all? Wouldn’t it be simpler if we did not have to concern on the other hand is, by nature, illogical and indescribable. (How ourselves with this problem or its answer for that matter? After all, many times in sacred texts has a god been characterized as “imposreligion has been behind many of the world’s bloodiest wars. sible for humans to comprehend?”) Infinity is the same way. Now This is only one of many effects of religions on mankind. All that I think about it, since religion and infinity are basically the major religions have a strong communal aspect to them. Some same, I just proved that Trevor O’Brien is an atheist. examples: Jews attend temple together; Christians everywhere all Anyway, I am in no way saying that religion is the perfect read the same lessons each Sunday, as Mr. Row and Mr. Fiddler answer to my infinite-denominator fraction. I, like many others, have reminded us; and all Muslims face Mecca when they pray. have found it very difficult to put my faith in Christianity wholeThe cause of these communal aspects is that many people take heartedly, and sometimes I do some pretty darn ungodly things. comfort in knowing that many others ascribe to the same solution But regardless of how successful I am at truly believing, I will still to the fraction that they do. The main effect of these communal share a sense of community with over two billion other Chrisaspects has been the rise of civilization. tians who also seek to make Jesus the numerator in their infiniteConsider: in order to first become civilized, humans needed denominator fraction. farming and diversification of employment, as well as an exchange Only two percent of the world’s population call themselves system. This all required much communication and a group that atheist; some of them are sitting here in this chapel. I do not could be held together to look out for the common good. Religion know how they can face the infinite abyss of space-time without served as the adhesive, holding civilizations together for nearly five any hope of faith in an afterlife. For the majority of the world’s thousand years. In our shared fear of the infinite, be it conscious or population, the infinite is too dark, too terrible. Without religion, unconscious, humans have been forced to group together, united I fear human-kind would simply be too depressed with this eterby religion. nity to survive.

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Baccalaureate Homily

BACCALAUREATE HOMILY A Chapel Talk by Richard B. Commons May 29, 2008 Mr. Commons addresses the School.

A

week ago, I walked to our final sit-down dinner of the year thinking about how to pray. We had heard Piers’s Chapel Talk that morning, and I generally try to reference the morning’s Chapel Talk in my sit-down dinner prayers. Some of you have told me that you appreciate my efforts, if only because it can be amusing to consider how I might incorporate a certain talk into an appropriate prayer. There was quite a lot of speculation along these lines on the evening after Caitlin gave her talk about the Chinese Mafia. It was, said one witty Sixth Former, a dangerous night for prayer.

I’ll tell you how this particular practice of referencing Chapel Talks began. It was September of 2003, almost five years ago, when the current Sixth Formers who began as Second Formers climbed the Dining Hall stairs for their first sit-down dinner at Groton. It was also my first sit-down dinner.

Remember your first Sit-Down? You might have felt some butterflies about what you were wearing, about whether you would spill your grape juice on the senior prefect, about the possibility that Mr. Lyons would ask you to comment on the war in Iraq while your mouth was full of broc-chick. Imagine if, in addition to those anxieties, you entered your first Sit-Down, spiraling up those shiny stone stairs knowing that you would have to wait until the Dining Hall was full, ring a glass until everyone fell silent, and then offer into the on-again-off-again microphone a prayer appropriate to the occasion.

I do not remember feeling butterflies. It was more like birds.

Big ones. I didn’t have butterflies; I had condors. I had tried writing down my prayer, but I decided that I didn’t want to read it, even though everyone would presumably have their eyes closed.

Somebody might look, and then they would know that my prayer was scripted.

“What’s wrong with scripted?” you might ask. I’ll tell you. The finest deliverer of prayers I’ve ever heard anywhere is my late grandfather, whom I called Poppy. My dad would ask him to pray before a meal, and, with no time to think, Poppy would offer an oration that was epic, melodic, and specific to the moment and to the people in the room. Even last summer, in the month before he died, he could pray like nobody else. He was almost 102, he

couldn’t hear anything, and he could barely see, but before every meal, my dad would still call on him (usually following that with a nudge, because Poppy hadn’t heard him), and Poppy would say, “Oh? Time to eat?”

And then somehow, from somewhere, he would summon up a prayer the Pope would be proud of—an original one that referenced current events, recent triumphs and tragedies, and the particular cares and concerns of people at the table. His prayers always made me suspicious about his deafness, because he seemed to know things about the guests at the table that would have required serious listening—who in their families was in the hospital, who was traveling where and how, who might have died in the last year. And he would mention these things with just the right words, so that everyone was comforted, uplifted, blessed.

Poppy was a preacher, and so he had had a lot of praying practice in his life, but still, he had a gift. He could go on for three or four minutes with food getting cold on the table, and no one would want him to stop. Finally, he would reach his familiar conclusion: “in the name of your son, our savior, Jesus Christ we pray—Amen.” My mom would wipe away a tear, and my brother and I would look across the table at each other and shake our heads wondering in a whisper we believed that Poppy couldn’t hear, “How does he do that?”

So, if you were the grandson of Ted Williams, and you were stepping up to the plate to take your first major league at-bat, your butterflies might be condors too. You wouldn’t want to go down looking. I knew I was no preacher, but I sure wanted to take a decent swing at that first Sit-Down grace. I rang the glass, I closed my eyes, I thought of Poppy, and I prayed. Mrs. Commons said to me afterwards that it didn’t entirely make sense, but I got through it. Without notes.

After the meal a few of the then Sixth Formers came to the Headmaster’s Table and asked for a word. Certainly, I said. “Your prayer, Mr. Commons, it was nice and all, but that’s not how we do it here. You’re supposed to say, ‘Bless this food to our use and us to thy service, and keep us ever mindful of the needs of others.’ That’s all. It’s really easy to memorize, and that’s the tradition.”

I thanked them for the information and the advice. I thought about the tradition of prayer at Groton, and I thought about its Quarterly September 2008

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Per Circulum Locuti Sunt | Voices on the Circle purpose. And I thought about my grandfather’s prayers, and I thought about their purpose. And at the next sit down, I decided to try to combine them. The morning Chapel Talk had been a good one, worth remembering I thought, so I tried to echo its theme in my prayer, and then I closed with the traditional blessing, which I had dutifully memorized. For better or for worse, I’ve done it that way ever since. * * * So last Thursday, as I walked to the Dining Hall for sit-down, I was thinking hard about how to pray. I had a rather perplexing challenge before me if I was to echo Piers’s Chapel Talk in the prayer, because, you might recall, Piers had spoken about the visible futility of asking God to help with human affairs. And while that was not his entire point, it was certainly a memorable aspect of his talk, and so I was facing a theological paradox—how to pray about the possibility that prayer itself is pointless.

As I stood at the head table, contemplating this while the Dining Hall filled up, Piers himself came up to join me, which might have been helpful, had he not been wearing a sleeveless floral print dress.

Joining him and me at the table were Sahin, with tufts of chest hair sprouting from the plunging neckline of his dress, and Tucker, Ross, and Hannah Jeton in equally arresting attire. New paradoxes crowded into my mind, and then the dining hall was full, and then it was silent, and I was unready to do anything other than thank God for the Sixth Form and their memorable leadership style.

But I have continued to think about the prayer paradox that Piers introduced. You will recall that he gave us a vivid portrait of Haiti, where he, Joelle, Jovan, Hannah Kang, Steve Mello, John Noh, and Mr. Creamer spent spring break in service to a village there, building a wall around the schoolyard and playing with the children. Central to his portrait was an Easter service in a cinderblock church in which the villagers prayed to God for help.

They were uplifted by their communal faith, by singing, clapping, and extending their hands to one another in happy overtures of peace. The service, as Piers described it, defied and even denied the persistent hardships of the people; it provided hope against the reality of their profound poverty. But in the week that followed, there was no divine miracle. The hunger, the drought, and the poverty remained.

Divine intervention, however, was not the primary point of their gathering. Piers went on to observe that, despite the apparent futility of their prayers: …they supported each other, drawing upon the Christian ideals they had committed to memory. This is how God approaches tangibility, from people and through people, pouring out of their mouths and gestures, until that torrent sweeps us onward.

It is difficult to reduce a richly textured, deeply layered, carefully constructed Chapel Talk to a few lines in a prayer before sit-down, but I think it is worth trying to listen to the talks actively and worth trying to take away something expressible. If I had offered a prayer last Thursday at sit-down that had sought to capture the theme of Piers’s talk, it might have been something like this:

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God, we pray to you this evening conscious that prayer alone is not enough. It is not enough to change those things in our world which most need changing.

We pray tonight as a call to human action, a call for the strength and courage to devote the best in each of us to the needs of others. We pray in the hope and faith that such devotion will heal us, feed us, comfort us, and save us. Dear God, we ask not for divine miracles this evening, but for human ones. Amen. * * * I need hardly remind the Sixth Formers in the Chapel this evening that your time here is reaching its end. There are many things about your Groton experience that have been unusual, distinctive, even formative. One of them is that most days begin here with a Chapel Talk. Another is that most days make room somewhere for singing. And most days at Groton also include the act of prayer.

What is said in Chapel, how we sing together, and how we pray—these are not small elements of your Groton experience. Ideally they will coalesce. Has it happened to you yet that you have found yourself suddenly remembering or even singing a line from a particular hymn at some seemingly random moment? And as it repeats in your head, you recognize that it might not have been random after all? It has begun to happen to me often, now that I have been here, singing most mornings for five years. I am guessing that most members of the Sixth Form have had this experience.

Members of the Choir must have it incessantly.

The line that came into my head as I was thinking about Piers’s Chapel Talk was this one: “Help us this and every day to live more nearly as we pray.” I couldn’t place it, so I asked Mr. Smith. It turns out that it is the last line of the first hymn in the Canticum Novum. The more the line repeated in my head, the more it captured my sense of one enduring purpose of placing the Chapel at the center of your education. What we are doing here, in our readings and songs and Chapel Talks and prayers, is giving language to our beliefs, with the intent that those expressions do not expire upon their utterance, but continue within us, helping us to live more nearly as we pray.

I have a file folder in my First Class mailbox full of Chapel Talks from this Sixth Form. I re-read them all this week. They are a breathtaking collection of ideas and beliefs, each in some way suggesting how we might more purely live. They are a window, as brilliant as the stained glass that glows above us now, through which we can see the light of your leadership of the School. That window will remain with us, both in our prayers and, I hope, in our lives.

Sixth Formers, I also hope that what has filled this Chapel each day will remain with you, no matter where you are. As you prepare to leave us, as you descend the time-worn Chapel steps and enter that familiar but newly unknowable distance, this is my ending prayer for you: May you remember the things you have heard and spoken here, and may you echo them, again and again and again, in how you live. Amen.

Personae | People of Note

IF YOU DO WHAT YOU LOVE A Profile of Yvette Ross ’93

by Ed Davies ’89

T

here is a popular saying that goes: If you do what you love, then you’ll never have to work a day in your life. By that standard, and the recent career change that she has made, Yvette Ross ’93 has just retired from work at the ripe old age of 33.

Yvette recently left her job at William C. Smith & Co., a realestate development firm in Washington, D.C., to become the new Executive Director of Project Match. For over 25 years, the organization also based in Yvette’s hometown of Washington, has been assisting gifted and talented students of color gain admittance to boarding schools across the country. Since then approximately 500 students have been placed at 85 independent boarding schools.

Project Match was started by Wanda Hill, former Groton trustee, as a means of matching gifted and talented students of color from the Washington metropolitan area to boarding schools that fit their academic and personal interests. She became familiar with boarding schools when her sons Stephen ’80 and Gary ’83 expressed an interest in applying. Soon afterwards she began assisting students and families with school visits, filling out applications and forms, and preparing them for the boarding school experience. Project Match also gives its students the opportunity to network and forge relationships with each other.

For Yvette, a Project Match alumna herself, the opportunity to lead the organization that was so instrumental to her success in life was the perfect match between her desire to have a meaningful career and the values of service leadership instilled in her at Groton.

“I received an M.B.A from Duke University, and I have learned many lessons while working in corporate America, but it’s the commitment to service that I learned at Groton that has stayed with me the most.”

Entering the fourth form, she was excited about the prospect of going to Groton, but apprehensive about how she would fit in on campus. Although a motivated student, would she be smart enough to succeed? A self-described introvert, would she make any friends? How would a black girl from the concrete landscape of Washington, D.C. adjust to the lush green fields at Groton?

She was leaving a setting where she was in the majority, always at

Yvette Ross speaks with formmate Kate Demong after Chapel on Reunion Weekend.

the top of her class, going hundreds of miles from home to a place where she was a minority in more ways than one, where she was surrounded by students at least as capable as she. And the myths she heard only reinforced her fears.

“When my friends and family found out I was going to boarding school, I heard all kinds of stories and warnings. Things like: ‘Only white people send their bad kids to boarding school. Everybody will be driving Porsches or getting dropped off in limos.

Don’t act like anyone’s servant. What are you going to do with your hair? They won’t know what to do with your hair.’ Well that one was kind of true.”

Yvette’s experience was not unlike many other students of color about to go to boarding school for the first time. She credits Project Match with not only helping her get to Groton, but with making it through.

The discussion groups she attended with the new, current, and former Project Match students and parents helped debunk the myths and prepare her for the reality of boarding school life. Mrs. Hill also bolstered the students’ confidence about attending school.

“She made sure we knew that we weren’t second-class students, or guests at the schools; that we belonged there as much as anyone else because of what was between our ears, not what was in our parents’ wallets. I carry that with me to this day.”

Even with all the preparation and support along the way, it was Yvette’s friendships with other Project Match students that helped her through the most. She forged friendships with twin sisters Michelle and Jennifer Lipkowitz ’93. They pulled her out of her shell and helped her navigate life around the Circle. Her “adopted” parents, Mildred and Connie Wells, provided an extra Quarterly September 2008

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Personae | People of Note

At a recent Smart Connections conference hosted in early May by Prep for Prep, a camera captured from left to right: Sharon Thompson ’89, Yvette Ross ’93, Ed Davies ’89, Connie Yepez ’91 and Staci Williams Seeley, former faculty. All are now engaged in education-based, non-profit work.

layer of love and support. Mildred, a long-time institution in Groton’s mailroom, and her husband opened their hearts and home to Yvette. Their relationship continues today. Yvette calls to update them regularly on her life, get advice, and visits as often as possible when in the Groton area.

“Yvette’s experience was not unlike many other students of color about to go to boarding school for the first time. She credits Project Match with not only helping her get to Groton, but with making it through.”

As she looks back now, and is poised to give back, Yvette realizes the profound impact Groton has made on her. “I had no idea how I was going to adjust to being so far from home; no idea how Groton was going to influence me.” The evidence is clear now.

Since Groton, Yvette has always been involved in service activities, including tutoring and mentoring while at Wellesley, and being active in local Washington, D.C. political campaigns.

She also feels Groton has prepared her for this next phase in life.

She says she learned many leadership skills during her time on the Circle, although she never held a formal leadership position. But those experiences made her want to lead later in life.

Why Project Match? Why now? She saw an opportunity—not for herself, but for others. At William C. Smith & Co., Yvette managed several of their low-income housing development projects. She saw first-hand how that lack of opportunity severely limited the residents’ options. Recognizing her achievements were possible due to Project Match and Groton, Yvette wanted to make sure other youth had the same opportunities and supports to change their futures.

When Mrs. Hill decided to retire from her labor of love, effectively ending Project Match, Yvette decided to leave the comfort

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and security of her corporate job, and “retire” to the uncertainty of running and growing a small non-profit. The decision was surprisingly easy. “How could I not? Mrs. Hill had put in countless hours and 20-some years of blood, sweat, tears, and money to help me and so many others. I had to keep that legacy alive, carry on the torch.”

So Yvette is now enjoying her “retirement,” and pursuing typical leisure activities—enhancing the organization’s infrastructure, traveling to schools, hosting meetings with students and families, walking families through the admissions and financial aid process, as well as raising money to fund Project Match operations. Mrs. Hill has helped her with the transition, making herself readily available for questions and advice, but careful to let Yvette make her own decisions. She has tapped into the Groton alumni network. Former Groton headmaster Bill Polk ’58 and classmate William Webb ’93 have also been extremely helpful in providing support and advice. Gary Hill ’83 serves on the Project Match board of directors.

The ideas of leadership and service and the passion to give young people the opportunities she had live on in Yvette. She hopes to pass them on to even more Project Match students, whether they attend Groton or not.

“There are times when this is tough. There are times when I feel overwhelmed. But it never feels like work. What I do is such a part of me, a part of my core. It feels like I’m finally living my life. I feel extremely lucky to make my passion my life, not just a career.”

Yvette began assisting her first group of students this past fall.

“To see students begin to picture themselves on a campus, to hear the excitement when they get their acceptance letters, to see their proud faces when they finally graduate, to get the phone calls and letters about what they are doing with their lives, to pass the torch to someone else down the line; I live for those moments.”

One can only hope Yvette stays retired for a long time.

Author Ed Davies ’89 is also a Project Match alumnus. Because of his experiences with Project Match and Groton, he runs a non-profit similar to Project Match, the Baltimore Educational Scholarship Trust (BEST).

Danielle Rainer ’09 and Casey Conway ’09 collaborate on a math problem.

Grotoniana | All Things Groton

“To Sir and Ma’am, with love.”

Teaching at The Doon School in Dehradun, India

by Tom Lamont

S

ir, where are you from, sir?

“Sir, you must try the butter-chicken, sir.”

“Sir, you should not hold a cricket bat like that, sir.”

“Sir, will ma’am be joining us on our trek, sir?”

“Ma’am, thank you for giving us so many cookies again, ma’am” “Ma’am, how many marks will this quiz count toward our grade, ma’am?” * * * Claiborne Thompson ’07 and faculty member Tom Lamont P’09,’12 heard a lot of “sir” and “ma’am” this past year while working at The Doon School in India. And often it was they who were being addressed. Every morning as Tom walked to class, the school guards, who monitor all comings and goings at the school gate near Tom’s bungalow, would dutifully salute him and say, “Good morning, sir.” When Claiborne entered her classroom for her first class of the term, all of the students promptly stood up at their desks and announced in unison, “Good morning, ma’am.”

Even other teachers called Tom “sir” and Claiborne “ma’am,” perhaps because they had trouble pronouncing or remembering their names. No doubt, Tom and Claiborne had far more trouble with theirs.

This past year, from January until June, Claiborne and Tom taught at The Doon School, perhaps India’s most distinguished boarding school. Claiborne was enjoying a gap year before heading off to The University of Edinburgh, and Tom was on sabbatical. At Doon, Tom taught medieval history to eighth graders and helped coach basketball, while Claiborne taught English to the same boys and helped direct some school plays and started a singing group. Their sojourn was kindly arranged

by Groton faculty member Nishad Das, whose father is a former headmaster of Doon. The school was founded by Nishad’s great grandfather in 1935 in Dehradun, at the time a small and pleasant city that was a gateway to the summer retreats of wealthy Indians and bureaucrats of the British Raj in the nearby foothills of the Himalayas. Rudyard Kipling was a frequent visitor to the city in the late 19th century, and during the 1920s the British built in Dehradun one of the largest buildings in India from that era— The Forestry Research Institute—a colossal red brick edifice

Tom Lamont teaching students at Doon.

that makes Groton’s Schoolhouse look like a token booth. Today, Dehradun, like much of India, is vastly changed. It is a bustling city of almost one million, and like better known Indian cities such as Delhi and Mumbai, it has a preponderance of traffic jams, pollution, noise, and dire poverty. However, Dehradun also possesses a strong and growing middle class whose aspirations and energy are emblematic of India’s rapid and impressive economic development. The city also can boast that it is India’s educational hub, with its many fine schools, state and private, old and new, scattered about the city and nearby.

The Doon School campus sits on a hill in a part of Dehradun called the Cantonment, essentially an old British military base that still houses many active and retired Indian army personnel.

The rigors and routines of military life punctuate student life at Doon as they have for decades. Each and every day, a hand-pulled bell atop the red brick schoolhouse alerts students to every change in the day’s schedule including meals, classes, and bedtime. The first bell rings before sunrise, when within minutes almost all of Doon’s five hundred boys are lined up on the main cricket ground wearing shorts and t-shirts. There the oldest boys lead the rest of them through PT (physical training), or what we would call calisthenics. The boys learn to stand at attention, stand at ease, turn “quick right” and “quick left,” and basically follow orders.

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Grotoniana | All Things Groton is no easy task. After PT the boys take a brief communal shower, usually a cold one since the electricity, as in much of India, is erratic, especially during the winter. At 7:30 a.m. it is off to first “school,” Doon’s term for class. At breakfast at 9 a.m., the boys sit with their formmates and housemates, and, after grace is said, they shovel down cold toast, hot cereal, sweet tea, and perhaps some fruit. Matrons, or dames, who are responsible for the boys’ well-being, cajole them into eating properly, and, of course, the boys protest feebly: “Ma’am, must I drink my milk, ma’am? My stomach is not quite right today.” Tom occasionally conspired with the boys to spare them having to eat or drink any dastardly concoctions, especially one of the porridges which the boys had christened “frogs’ eyes” because of its unappealing texture and appearance. Boys who serve as waiters jostle at the kitchen for more food until a bell announces that ten minutes have passed and they can ask a master or dame for permission to sit and enjoy

“Doon can be a very confounding and chaotic place, especially for a foreign visitor. From the mysteries of the job description to the seemingly ever-changing schedule, Doon demanded both careful attention and patience from Tom and Claiborne. They both learned the value of being adaptable and flexible.”

The Tata House Junior field hockey team gets advice from one of their coaches at halftime during a game.

It all seems very English and very “old school,” and, not surprisingly, many features of Doon are lifted consciously and directly from Eton circa 1900. The school’s first headmaster was a science teacher from Eton, and many of its original masters as well as its early financial benefactors were educated in Britain. Yet Doon is distinctly Indian in many important ways. Meals are at common Indian meal times: 2 pm for lunch and 7:30 for dinner.

The food is almost exclusively Indian cuisine, such as dhal, rice, and breads, and most people eat their meals using their fingers as is customary throughout India. At the daily assembly, a nonsectarian prayer recited in English is followed by a traditional the meal. Ten minutes later another bell announces the end of Indian song sung in Hindi. The sculptures that dot the campus the meal, and the boys wait for the adult at the table to give them portray various Hindu deities in a distinctly Indian motif. The permission to leave. “Thank you, sir!” “Thank you, ma’am!” campus was originally a tea estate and later home to the original Just like at Harry Potter’s beloved Hogwarts, Doon’s dormitories Forestry Research Institute. Therefore Doon is blessed with many are organized as houses, and points can be earned for one’s house beautiful flower gardens and a large and important collection of in almost every activity from cricket and badminton to theatre trees and shrubs. (There are twenty species of poisonous snake and academics. Students become intensely attached to their fellow on campus, mostly hidden in the clumps of bamboo, but so far housemates, in spite of the fact no student has died from a snake that, or perhaps because, the older bite. In May, enormous fruit boys, especially the seniors, or SC bats descend on campus seeking Formers, wield significant power ripening fruit.) Given the vagaries over the younger ones. It is a very of the weather—near freezing Spartan existence. There is no cold in February and March, heating or air conditioning in the extreme heat during April and dormitories or school buildings, May, and monsoon rains during and so during the winter the boys July, August, and September— huddle under heaps of sweaters the numerous huge shade trees and blankets and during the Doscos performing at the PT (Physical Training) competition between the add more than just character. school’s houses which takes place near the end of the school year. summer they lie under the ceiling They provide a green lung for fans. The students are allowed only the school and the city. Besides a few items that fit into a foot locker or small trunk, cell phones and the large red brick buildings, there are also many white stucco computers not among them. First-year students sleep side by side bungalow style buildings with beautiful courtyards, designed to in one room with little in the way of decorations and amenities. catch breezes and stay cool. Student performances are held in the Parents can see their children only a few times during the school lovely Rose Bowl, an outdoor amphitheatre built by Doon boys, year, and there is even less contact between parents and teachers. with delightful friezes along its exterior. Many of the buildings

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To Sir and Ma’am, with Love are more functional in appearance and reflect Doon’s desire to be more practical than ostentatious.

Despite the English-looking winter school uniform, with its heavy wool coat and cricket sweater, the students at Doon look typically Indian. Claiborne and Tom taught only one blond child during their stay at Doon, Tom’s son, eleven-year-old Johnny Lamont. In April, when the temperature quickly spikes to 90 degrees, the boys put away their woolens and bring out their very thin and very white kurta pajamas to wear to dinner. Although almost everyone speaks very good English, the preferred language of casual conversation among the boys and the adults, especially the staff, is Hindi. Doon’s faculty is also very Indian; only one teacher, a part-timer, is a foreigner, and only a handful of the teachers hold degrees from Western institutions. The curriculum requires classes in Sanskrit and Hindi, and, of course, Indian History is the main focus in social science. Doon’s staff is enormous and, in addition to the usual maintenance and grounds crew, the staff includes cooks, sweepers, laundrymen, seamstresses, and even barbers.

One kindly old workman who helps oversee Doon’s water supply always deferentially offered Tom a greeting of “namaste” with his hands clasped together. When there is construction at Doon, the workmen live on campus in small shacks with their families. For community service, some of the boys and faculty teach the workers’ and the staff ’s little children in a building provided by the school.

The entire campus at Doon appears very well organized and carefully maintained, from the exquisitely maintained cricket

ground to the wooden plaques which proclaim the past winners of various contests ranging from badminton to basketball. However, this being India, Doon can be a very confounding and chaotic place, especially for a foreign visitor. From the mysteries of the job description to the seemingly ever-changing schedule, Doon demanded both careful attention and patience from Tom and Claiborne. They both learned the value of being adaptable and flexible. In late April, Tom introduced himself to a couple of very pale and anxious looking boys from New Zealand who had recently arrived at Doon School to spend a month as exchange students. Tom asked them how things were going, and they replied, “Actually, sir, we find it very confusing here.” Tom replied that he had been at Doon for three months and was still confused almost every day. For the first month or so Tom, in particular, seemed to be missing meetings and events with unfortunate regularity because he either misread the calendar or was simply uninformed.

The announcements at assembly and at meals by both students and faculty were particularly bewildering. They usually included an alphabet soup of initials which represent people and places, and at first Tom suspected that this was some sort of elaborate code. “TLA and CBT needs to see 133 T, 187K, and 22H after assembly outside the MPH.” Translation: “Mr. Lamont and Ms. Thompson need to see Pradeep Singh, Rohan Aggarwal, and Arjun Pranav after assembly in the multi-purpose hall.” Actually, this kind of communication is not really an Indian habit per se but is rather something the British brought to the subcontinent

Workmen at the Doon School bike past Jaipur House, one of the school’s residential houses.

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Grotoniana | All Things Groton

C Formers (eighth graders) from Tata House outside of the CDH (Central Dining Hall).

and, unfortunately, left behind. Finally, it took both Claiborne and Tom some time to get used to uniquely Indian conventions and behaviors such as bobbing the head from side to side instead of nodding the head up and down when signaling agreement or an affirmative.

The other main challenge for Tom and Claiborne came in the classroom. Claiborne, of course, had never taught before, but Tom had not taught twelve and thirteen-year-old boys in almost 20 years, and he found teaching at Doon an enormous adjustment, especially since there were so many boys in each class—as many as 25 of them. At times it was so noisy and hectic in their classrooms that Tom and Claiborne may have felt that all of India’s one billion people were in the classroom. They both scrambled to find ways of managing the remarkable volume and energy of their charges.

They tried patience, reason, trickery, bribery, and sheer terror. They were quite unsuccessful with the last approach, but eventually they found how to keep the lads entertained and engaged. Naturally, the boys tried to and succeeded in taking advantage of their new teachers from America; “Sir, please, sir. I am thinking that this is too much reading for us Indians, sir.” “Ma’am, may we not have homework today because we have so much work to do in our history class, Ma’am.” The boys used the same tactics in the dining hall, and if we were not careful we sometimes found ourselves scrounging for scraps, the boys having already consumed most everything on the table. In India, it pays to be aggressive, and it goes against their nature to expect the Doon boys, Doscos as they are called, to be passive and submissive.

A Dosco’s strength is his resilience and adaptability. This was ably demonstrated for us during the famous “midterms,” when all teachers and students leave campus and head north for four days of trekking in the Himalayas. Tom, his wife, Bobbi, and their son, Johnny, joined twenty C Formers (eighth graders) and one other teacher for a trek up to 10,000 feet. Claiborne went with an older and much more experienced and ambitious group which hoped to reach close to 20,000 feet. After a four hour bus ride along cliff-hugging dirt roads that seemed to frighten no one

50 | Quarterly September 2008

except Tom and his family, Tom’s group reached a lovely mountain valley where their first night was spent on the concrete floor of a small school building. The next morning the group commenced its climb in a light rain that steadily became worse. As the rain got worse and soaked and chilled Tom to the bones, and he watched the children struggle with their packs and complain about the cold, Tom suggested to the veteran teacher leading the group that they turn back. The teacher smiled at Tom and insisted that they would be fine. So on they went. The rain turned to hail and the temperature dropped, and as it became clear that many students were, in fact, in tough shape, the teacher agreed that they should seek shelter. The students in the front of our group located an empty shepherd’s hut with dirt floors, piles of straw and a few dung paddies stacked in a corner. It was good enough, and so we all piled in and lit a fire that soon threatened to asphyxiate us. Yet within an hour, every student was laughing and singing. The rest of the trek was not quite as exciting. However, the entire exercise confirmed for Tom that Doon students are a very impressive group whose personal courage and physical toughness would put most Americans to shame.

There is indeed much to admire about The Doon School. Tom could not help but think that Doon is perhaps much like Groton School was almost one hundred years ago. Students at Doon are expected to endure significant personal hardship and perform well outside of their comfort zone with minimal distractions from their work. It is a tightly knit community that fosters nonetheless an unapologetic competition between the boys in both the classroom and the playing fields. For example, the results of examinations are printed in the yearbook for all to see. Yet as traditional as Doon is, the school, like Groton, is constantly evaluating itself and its situation, and considering ways to improve. One of the most important challenges for The Doon School is how to adapt to the rapid changes occurring in India, including just outside the school’s gates where shops, residences, and vehicles seem to be multiplying each month. Should Doon become coed? Should it alter or end some of its traditions and practices such as Midterms?

Given the strength of the school’s leadership, both Claiborne and Tom think that Doon will continue for the foreseeable future to be an extremely attractive option for parents and students. Like Groton School, The Doon School is adept at finding the right balance between tradition and change because at the heart of the school is a deep commitment to academic excellence and the development of character in its students and graduates. In 40 years, Doscos may not be calling their teachers “sir” or “ma’am,” but in their interactions with adults, they will likely demonstrate the same respect, affection, and intelligence that they do today.

Facing Page: Clockwise from top left: Doscos on an outing wade in the Yamuna River, one of India’s holiest rivers; Doscos and their teacher frolicking in the snow duing their Midterm trek in the Himalaya. (For many students, it is the first time they have seen snow.); Claiborne Thompson ‘07 and a faculty colleague from Doon enjoying Holi, a Hindu festival that celebrates the coming of Spring.; C Formers (eighth graders) from Tata House outside of the bungalow where the Lamonts lived while at Doon.; As part of a community service program, Doon students help build a holding pond in a village of Dalits (untouchables) a few miles outside the city of Dehra Dun.; Bobbi and Johnny Lamont enjoy a rest while hiking in the Himalaya as part of Doon’s Midterm trek.

To Sir and Ma’am, with Love

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Grotoniana | All Things Groton

SPRING SPORTS Girls Varsity Tennis | 10–5 | 10–2, third place in the ISL

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he 2008 season was both fun and successful. With an especially strong group of teams in the league this year and half of our team new to the varsity level, we knew we had our work cut out for us. Knowing this, returning players Trelsie Sadler ’08 (Captain), Ripley Hartmeyer ’09, Renee Brown ’08 and Anne Corey ’08 were quick to embrace new teammates Ali Norton ’12, Nina Milbank ’10, Julia Maguire ’09 and Hannah Cheever ’08, and it was not long before the group got into a rhythm together. Music would often play during the warmup at the beginning of each practice, but when the music stopped, these girls were all business.

We faced some of our toughest competition early on and found ourselves in the unfamiliar position of carrying a losing record (1-3) into the third week of the season. As we got into the heart of the spring, however, the team’s hard work began to pay off.

Improvements to each girl’s game began to show up in match play, and the team ran off seven solid wins in a row before falling to an excellent Exeter squad. The confidence the players built along the way allowed the team to finish with a record of 10–5. Our league record of 10–2, which was good enough for a third place finish

in the ISL, was highlighted by solid wins over strong, deep teams from Nobles, St. George’s and Rivers. Even in their losses, the Groton players proved themselves to be competitive with the best in New England. Only Milton was out of our reach, and even in that match, the play was closer on the court than it ended up on the scoreboard. That loss did make especially sweet the revenge that Ali Norton and Nina Milbank earned when they pulled off an upset victory over a Milton team in the B Doubles bracket at New Englands. The rest of the team also performed well at New Englands, earning Groton a seventh-place finish just behind a tight pack of very strong teams.

It is worth noting that Groton achieved a team record of 10–5 this season, while only the top three players had winning individual records in singles (Sadler went 6–1–5, Hartmeyer 8–4–2 and Brown 11–1–3). As strong as these three were, they could not win matches alone and the rest of the players competed with great focus, each of them finding enough ways to win enough sets to put together an excellent season for the team.

This year’s seniors will be sorely missed, for they have contributed not only a great many sets to team wins but also wonderful, spirited leadership for the team. Their legacy will be ensured, however, as next year’s returning players take to the courts with the same enthusiasm that carried the team to this year’s success.

MVP: Trelsie Sadler (a career record of 77 wins, 24 losses and nine

ties at #1 singles and all but two matches at #1 doubles) Coach’s Awards: Renee Brown and Anne Corey All League: Trelsie Sadler (for the fourth year) and Ripley Hart-

meyer (for the second year) League Honorable Mention: Renee Brown Captain-Elect: Ripley Hartmeyer

Boys Tennis |

T Trelsie Sadler ’08 concentrates on a backhand return.

52 | Quarterly September 2008

8–10 | 8–7 in ISL

he boys tennis team completed the 2008 season with a solid victory against traditional ISL rival St. Mark’s School. During that match, Groton won straight-set singles victories at numbers two (Reed Simmons ’09), four (Arjun Aggarwal ’09), five (Charlie Bolton ’09) and six (Orme Thompson ’11). In doubles, captain Sam Clayman (’08) and Simmons won decisively at number one, while James MacGregor (’08) and Aggarwal did the same at number two.

Spring Sports

2009 Captain elect Arjun Aggarwal ’09 lines up a forehand.

Captain elect Gabriella Flibotte ’09 wins another face off.

The win guaranteed a winning campaign in the ISL, Groton taking eight matches against seven losses. In non-league play, Groton lost contests to Andover, Exeter and Deerfield. It is worth noting that in an age of increasing specialization in the ISL, seven of eight Groton varsity players this year were also starting varsity or JV Groton squash players. The double sport commitment was essential to each team’s success. During the season, Groton competed well against some of the stronger teams in the League.

Groton lost closely to BBN by a score of 6-9. Though the team won two of three doubles sets to begin the match, they struggled early in singles. By the end of the match, only James MacGregor had won both sets, with Sam Clayman and Arjun Aggarwal splitting. The boys mentioned above were joined by Chris Ahn (’08) and Ted Leonhardt (’11) to round off the eight man squad.

Captain Sam Clayman garnered Honorable Mention honors from the ISL coaches on the strength of his very solid record over four years of play. A starting doubles player as a third former, Sam worked his way up the line-up to play number one singles and doubles. A stylish player with a wonderful serve, Sam represented Groton beautifully over his career both on the tennis courts and squash courts. Managers Jeff Deming and Will Stone made certain that all needs of the team were met, whether at home or on the road. They proved to be loyal stalwarts and great boosters of the squad.

Captains-elect are Arjun Aggarwal and Reed Simmons.

to a new coach takes some doing, but the girls responded well, taking the lead from tri-captains Dee Ezzio, Morgan Smith, and Emma Curtis. Assistant coach Marty Elkins proved vastly important in providing continuity with the past and in sharing her many years of lacrosse wisdom with all. New to the coaching staff were head coach Martha Gracey and assistant coach Sarah Mongan.

They gave their all to provide the girls with excellent drills, positive reinforcement, and their offbeat sense of fun.

Playing in the ISL is a challenge as many of the most talented New England girls lacrosse teams are in this conference. Groton held its own this season and finished with an overall record of 7-10.

What those numbers do not speak of are the feistiness and grit of this lacrosse team, a team that showed heart when it lost to Governor’s, being down 10-1 at the half and clawing back into the game to finish at 12-9. Nor does this record speak of the tough-nosed team defense the girls learned how to play this season. Led by Emma Curtis and Michelle Murphy, the defenders worked hard at doubling the ball, driving attackers back, and shutting down the lanes to goal. And Fiona Jevon did well in her first year in the net.

Girls Lacrosse | 7 – 10

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he 2008 Groton School Girls Lacrosse season began with a memorable pre-season trip to Spring Fling in Wellington, Florida. There, players had the opportunity to practice, to play in scrimmages, and to watch some terrific college teams in their opening games. Getting used

2008 tri-captain Dee Ezzio fires home a goal.

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Grotoniana | All Things Groton As we moved through the spring, the attack gelled, being able to run a sound motion offense as well as set plays. The scoring leader, center Gabriella Flibotte (53 goals, 20 assists) is also one of the best center draw specialists in the league; this attack showed its versatility, with Dee Ezzio, Kait Mello, Ali Gray, Christie Colley, and Heather Mayer all being consistent scorers.

Undoubtedly, the most exciting game of the season came with the St. Mark’s contest, our final tilt of the year. It was a wild one, which saw several lead changes. Dee Ezzio had the game of her career in her final contest for Groton, with four goals and one assist, the final goal coming in the last overtime period. This is a game that none of us will forget!

Most Valuable Player: Morgan Smith Most Improved Player: Adrianna Pulford Coaches’ Award: Emma Curtis All ISL: Gabriella Flibotte Honorable Mention ISL: Morgan Smith NEPSWLA All Stars: Gabriella Flibotte and Morgan Smith Co-Captains Elect: Gabriella Flibotte and Kaitlyn Mello

Boys Varsity Lacrosse | 0 – 15

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hough 2008 proved to be another challenging campaign for the boys’ varsity team, the leadership of tri-Captains Brendan Fogarty, John Goodlander, and Matt Midon, as well as fellow seniors Sam Minifie and Gardner Smith, helped instill a spirit, enthusiasm, work ethic, and positive attitude that served as a strong foundation for our perseverance. The tone was set immediately on our annual trip to Cocoa Beach, Florida, and was sustained through our grueling ISL schedule. Coaches Will Webb, Fred Beams, and Bob Low drilled the boys daily on

2009 tri-captain elect Henry Mumford heads for the crease.

54 | Quarterly September 2008

2008 captain Brendan Fogarty fires on goal against Lawrence Academy.

the basic individual fundamentals of the game—passing, catching, stick protection, groundballs, defensive positioning, as well as basic team concepts—offensive spacing and timing, transition and unsettled situations, and defensive teamwork. As a result, this group made remarkable progress throughout the season in ways that are not readily revealed in win–loss statistics.

With only five sixth formers on the squad, youth reigned in every position on the field, with several players logging valuable playingtime minutes. Fourth form goalkeeper Dale Adams anchored the defense, along with Sam Minifie, Matt Midon, Angus West, Billy Larkin, Conor Robinson, and Charles-Eric Boutet. Tom Nagler and Nate Blair rounded out the defensive core.

In the midfield, Sixth formers Fogarty, Goodlander, and Smith led a hard-working group comprised of Evans Grenier, Julian Bloom, Scott Fronsdahl, and third formers Alex Machikas and Nils Martin. Fronsdahl’s intensity and competitive fire often sparked his teammates into action.

Our attack unit of fifth formers Mumford, Jono Turchetta, and Peter Taylor showed much improvement from last year, while Ames Lyman and Alex Gregoire stepped up their play from last year’s junior varsity squad.

Finally, this team showed remarkable resilience all season long.

Though the record and team statistics clearly state otherwise, a closer look reveals a tightly-knit team of hard working, unselfish, dedicated athletes. Without fail, players arrived to practice early on a daily basis, always looking to learn and improve. They practiced with spirit and energy, and their work ethic was indefatigable.

There was a camaraderie that enabled these young men to enjoy each other’s company, love the game of lacrosse, and represent Groton admirably. There are no statistics that measure these traits that characterize an extremely successful team.

The team voted defenseman Charles Boutet as the Most Improved Player, while Captains Fogarty, Goodlander, and Midon earned the Coaches’ Award for their strong leadership throughout the season. We will look to tri-Captains elect ­Mumford,

Spring Sports Taylor, and Turchetta to continue moving our program forward. With these leaders, coaches Low, Beams, and Webb are excited about next year. Fifth form attackman Henry Mumford earned all-ISL first team honors, while sixth form longstick midfielder Matt Midon was chosen as honorable mention.

Many thanks to parents for all the support (edible and moral), as well as to Ashleigh Corvi, Danielle Rainer, and Rem Knight for all their help. The effort and teamwork of junior varsity coaches Bodhi Amos and Peter Fry was much appreciated, as was the teambuilding exercises instilled by Dew Wallace.

Baseball | 7 – 9

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he championship baseball team of the Independent School League came from Thayer Academy this year. They had a record of 13-2 and the Groton Nine accounted for one of their losses, thrashing the champs 9-4 in a game that was indicative of what this team could do when everything clicked.

After this fourth contest of the season, the team stood at 3-1 and hopes soared high. The first act of our season was superb, but the second act was—like many second acts—a bit messy. Four losses in a row followed the Thayer win, but the team came together for act three and finished at 7-9.

This was a young team that started a second former at first base, a third former at shortstop and only two sixth formers. Special notice should be given to Captains Hunter Treacy and Colby Mattheson. Hunter, our lead-off man, did a particularly good job getting on base and Colby consistently made sure that his formmate scored. Colby drove in 24 runs during our sixteen game schedule and he finished with a batting average of .558. ISL coaches recognized his work by naming him the ISL Offensive Player of the Year and reserving a spot for him on the ISL All-League team.

Early spring pick off play.

Luke Deary ’09 makes the tag play at the plate.

An oddity of the club was that it was composed of too many players adept at the same positions and not enough with experience at others. Sander Scott and Luke Deary, were both able catchers who split time behind the plate and in right field. Sean La Liberte and Tanner Keefe have been infielders for much of their youth. They found themselves chasing fly balls in the outfield this year. Ben Sargent switched from first to third. Learning a new position in baseball can be particularly challenging. Clearly, it is good to diversify one’s skills, but it is hard to learn on the job. Of the 90 runs we gave up this year, 39 were unearned. Despite the erratic fielding behind them, our starting pitchers, Ben Lamont and Colby Mattheson, “labored on, dashing away gloomy doubts and faithless fear.” Ben threw two exceptionally strong complete games against Brooks and Milton. Colby pitched beautifully in an 8-0 defeat of St. Sebastian’s, a tough 4-3 loss to Roxbury Latin and two convincing wins over St. George’s and Rivers. “No arm so weak but may do service here” is certainly not a motto for these two pitchers.

Brett Frongillo (Most Improved Award) and Ross Julian had particularly strong years at second and short and were named to the ISL’s Honorable Mention All-League squad. Second Former Joe MacDonald gained valuable experience on the mound and at first. Sean La Liberte delivered clutch hits in key situations. Lorcan “The Professor” McGonigle pitched impressively and coached the bases with Nasty Nat Cutler. Cooper Warner impressed us all with the long bomb he hit against Middlesex and his impressive sprinting during spring training. Sixth formers James Anderson and Gordon Glogau shared the Coaches Award for their remarkably hard work in practices and their selfless dedication to the team’s success. This team was supported by a generous group of parents who ran the scoreboard, cooked hot dogs during our games and even manicured the field. Our season was dedicated to the man who has coached more Groton baseball teams than anyone. He has provided our institutional memory, our heart and, in many respects, our inspiration. Thank you, Charlie Alexander.

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Grotoniana | All Things Groton Girls Varsity Crew | 22 - 25 in dual races, 4th in NEIRA team standing

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e’d all like to have dream seasons, those springs when week after week boats row their best and win their races. The past two years have been like that for the Groton’s girls when we’ve had four New England champion boats. This year, though, was a rebuilding year. We fielded a young, enthusiastic squad sprinkled with novice oarswomen. In every boat except the first boat, there was at least one girl racing who was new to the sport this spring.

Each of the boats had some exciting moments. The First boat beat a good Middlesex boat at home by one second and rowed away from Brooks to win by 12 seconds. Even as the Second, Third, and Fourth boats struggled to find their speed, they remained tremendously enthusiastic. The Third boat opened its season with a one second victory over Miss Porter’s and BBN on the Charles. The Second boat won its heat at the new Wayland-Weston regatta. The Fourth boat won bronze medals at that same event.

But the girls crew has grown accustomed to winning most of its races and the losses that we had, particularly losing to St. Mark’s for the first time in many years and being swept by eventual New England champion Nobles, were tough to take. Co-captains Mary Cooper ’08 and Amy Francisco ’08 helped keep spirits up and energy focused throughout the spring. At the NEIRA, the Second and Fourth boats rowed well to place into the finals, while the first and third boats stumbled.

The First boat had the kind of race in the heats that you’d like to forget; it was more like four kids doing erg pieces than rowing together. They missed qualifying by one second. Relegated to the petite final in the afternoon, they concentrated on learning from their mistake and sped down the course to an open-water victory.

With the only senior a cox, all four rowers will return next year.

Having rowed well in the early season, the First boat decided to continue their season and race overseas at the Reading Regatta and

at the Henley Women’s Regatta. At Reading they won the Senior C event and at Henley posted the fastest time in the first round of racing and then rowed a great race and vanquished St. Peter’s School, York, in the best race of the season. In the semi-final, Groton came up short in a howling headwind to event winners, St. Neot’s, a boat that boasted four Great Britain junior internationals. It was a wonderful trip where the girls learned a great deal about racing.

Second Boat stroke Jillian Howe ’10, Rebecca Brown ’11, Amy Francisco ’08, bow Hannah Reeve ’11, not visible is coxswain Jane Bang ’10.

This marked the last season of coaching at Groton for Kate Matwychuk, who has coached the girls Third and Fourth boats for six seasons and the First and Second boats in 2004. In 2004 she led the team to a New England team title. In every year she has been a huge part of the crew’s success. Her technical skill and her intensity have been complimented by her sense of humor and fun.

She will be missed.

Next year’s co-captains will be Ali Maykranz and Alex Morss.

First Boat stroke Alex Morss ’09, Julia May ’10, Bryn Garrity ’10, bow Ali Maykranz ’09, not visible is coxswain, Mary Cooper ’08.

56 | Quarterly September 2008

Spring Sports

Boys Crew | 23 – 18 – 1,

4th in NEIRA Team Standing

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oming off 2007’s very successful season, hopes were high that the crews would achieve a similar level of speed and competitive success in 2008. In fact, the three lower boats met preseason expectations, each having strong winning seasons against all opponents, which this year included schools and clubs outside the ISL as a new regatta in early May, the Wayland-Weston Regatta, was added to the racing schedule. Unfortunately for First boat, in the head to head racing during the first five weeks of the season, lost to four ISL crews by a sum total of 5.8 seconds. Overall, First boat’s nine losses accounted for half of the programs losses this season. Such circumstances would prove demoralizing for a lesser group of oarsmen. To their credit, they stayed positive, worked hard and gained speed, aiming for a redemptive showing at the NEIRAs at Lake Quinsigamond.

The seedings for the NEIRA, which are based on race results through the season, had Fourth boat seeded third, Third boat was seeded second, Second boat was seeded fifth and First boat was seeded ninth of 18 competing schools. As we moved through the morning heats, Fourth and Third boats qualified for the afternoon finals with Fourth boat winning its heat. Second boat came down in its heat, wobbled, and crabbed as it went into its sprint, finishing fourth and failing to make the final. Showing the speed of which it was capable, First boat came second in its heat and qualified for the final. The afternoon finals were speedy in tail-wind conditions. Fourth boat finished in the medals taking bronze, Third boat just missed medaling as it finished fourth by .2 ­seconds. First Boat finished fifth in New England behind ­Belmont Hill, Choate, Nobles, and Deerfield. The team points tally put the 2008 boys crew fourth in New England behind Belmont, Choate and Deerfield.

Second Boat stroke Diego Russell ’08, Seppi Colloredo Mansfeld ’09, Alex Karwoski ’08, bow Gordon Dean ’09, not visible is coxswain Eric Valchius ’08.

Although 2008 was not as dominant in terms of wins and losses, the season brought valuable experience to a game group of rowers and coxswains, many of whom have committed to summer training and rowing clubs with summer competition as their goal.

With captains Kerri McKie and Seppi Colloredo-Mansfeld, we look forward to next spring and to improving upon the record garnered this season. Many thanks go to coaches Madden, Row, and Viacava for their excellent work with the crews. Finally, we appreciate the spirited support we have received from our parents and alumni over the season and look forward to fast boats in 2009.

First Boat stroke Mike Phillips ’08, Cole Papakirykos ’09, Django BroerHellerman ’08, bow Henry Hofstott ’09, not visible is coxswain Kerri McKie ’09.

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Grotoniana | All Things Groton

New releases John V. Gould ’43

Escape to America: A Tale of the Great Emigration from Central Europe to America in the Mid 1800’s March 27, 2007 | AuthorHouse

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historical/adventure novel, this tale is built around two young lovers who face serious—even deadly—hazards to find freedom from despots and a better life in America. Unlike most history, filled with dry facts, I have chosen the novel format to better portray the courage and adventurous spirit of our ancestors.

Wilford H. Welch ’57

The Tactics of Hope: How Social Entrepreneurs Are Changing Our World 2008 | Earth Aware Editions

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he Tactics of Hope is a call to action for individuals around the world who are concerned about global issues such as poverty, human rights, social justice, and environmental sustainability, but are not clear what steps they might best take to move from concern to effective action.

The book recounts the inspiring stories of 27 social entre­preneurs, offering readers innovative approaches to tackling the pressing issues of our time themselves. Wilford Welch’s global mosaic brings together stories of disparate individuals who are, each in their own way, helping to create a shared vision of progresss. Social entrepreneurs see opportunities where ­others see barriers. Daring to think outside the box, they are part of the fastestgrowing grassroots movement in human history. This book is both a cele­ bration of the individual successes of today and a guide for what is ­possible tomorrow. Also, see www.tacticsofhope.org.

Thurston B. Clarke ’64

The Last Campaign June 1, 2008 | Henry Holt and Company

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he definitive and exhilarating account of Robert Kennedy’s 1968 Campaign for President. The parallels between 1968 and 2008 elections are profound. In 1968 we were a nation morally wounded, unable to deal with problems of war, race and poverty, with presidential candidates promising to heal those wounds. In 2008, Mr. Clarke brings new research, interviews and an intimate sense of Robert Kennedy to his timely and historical narrative, telling us how Robert Kennedy understood a campaign for the White House should be run in a time of moral crisis, and how Kennedy became one of the most beloved and iconic political figures of the American Century.

58 | Quarterly September 2008

New Releases Robert W. Stallman ’64

Mozart-Stallman: New Quintets for Flute & Strings October 1, 2007 | Bogner’s Café©

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nternationally acclaimed flutist/arranger Robert Stallman now breaks new ground for chamber music with his own label. Exquisitely recorded in Prague with the Martinu Quartet and violist Untermüller, Stallman’s loving and scholarly recreations of some great Mozart (four-hand works K.521, K.497, K.358), were featured on NPR (Performance Today, Weekend Edition) and are creating a stir at over 100 stations nationwide. Available at Amazon.com.

William S. Patten ’66, P’92

My Three Fathers— and the Elegant Deceptions of My Mother July 7, 2008 | Public Affairs Books

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personal memoir, based on numerous letters, biographies, and memories, of my family. It is partly the portrait of a world and social class that no longer exists. Two of my three fathers attended Groton School. I am grateful to the kind assistance I received from Douglas Brown ’57, School Archivist.

Sherman Baldwin ’82

Growing Up with Harry: Stories of Character May 28, 2008 | iUniverse

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rowing Up with Harry gives generations to come a sense of values and a sense of place. By writing so vividly about Harry, a remarkable father and person, Sherman Baldwin presents his children with a solid foundation of who they are and who they might become. To other readers, he presents a wonderful memoir that will inspire memories of their own families.

– William M. Polk ’58, former Groton School Headmaster

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Grotoniana | All Things Groton

SCHOOL NEWS GWN

W

ith several new faces, both new to the group and in new roles, and many volunteers continuing service to the School, the Groton Women’s Network is gearing up for a busy 2008–2009 year.

In April, Merrill Stubbs ’95 assumed the role of GWN Chair when Sarah Casey Forbes ’86 completed her three-year term at the helm. With the support of Sarah and Eliza Storey Anderson ’79, P’04, ’06, ’08, ’10, Merrill, previously a city co-chair in New York, jumped in with both feet to lead her first in-person meeting and to initiate some committee recommendations to enhance GWN internal and external communications. One of these enhancements is the start of a social networking link with a GWN group on Facebook (enter in ‘Groton Womens Network’). With more than 100 members, this group site is intended to complement the current GWN outreach to alumnae, mothers and grandmothers of students and graduates, female faculty and staff, and spouses of alumni to share event news, initiatives, and provide a resource for members if needed.

Given Merrill’s new role, the New York team needed a new co-chair. Brooke McFerran Bancroft ’96 joined forces Mr. Capen with Fourth Form English class.

60 | Quarterly September 2008

with Emily Colby McLellan ’94, and they hosted their first event together at the Lower East Side Tenement Museum.

This educational get-together included a private tour led by a costumed guide representing an early 1900s immigrant from Turkey. The attendees, all alumnae from the 1980s to 2001, finished off the evening with good cheer, laughter, and Groton reminiscing at dinner at ‘Inoteca.’

Washington, D.C. welcomed Katherine Trainor ’99 to a city chair position to help Abbie Stubbs Burke ’97. Erin Kelly ’01, a city co-chair for over a year, stepped down to pursue a law degree at the University of Virginia. Erin and Abbie had rounded out the D.C. 2007–2008 event offerings with an informative National Gallery tour of the “In the Forest of Fontainebleau: Painters and Photographers from Corot to Monet” exhibit in mid-April. Many thanks to Erin for her hard work, and welcome to Katherine as she and Abbie join forces to host a plethora of exciting events this coming year.

The annual cocktail event in Los Angeles at the Casa Del Mar hotel was another great chance for southern Californian Groton family members to come together.

Amy Baughman ’99 with city co-chair

Sara Clark ’99 coordinated this GWNGSAA gathering which included graduates from 1989 to 2000. Given the continuing success of this annual event, Sara and Amy plan to host this reception again in 2009 as well as offer other options including a community service project.

Boston city chairs Tiverton Smith McClintock ’92 and Hannah Davis Wood Wick ’93 planned another walking tour this spring, this time focused in Boston’s Chinatown. The group learned about Chinese immigration history while sampling treats from area bakeries and a Cantonese barbeque shop, and finished the tour with a dim sum lunch. All agreed that the tour, while educational, was also a lot of fun despite the rain and chilly weather of the May morning. One attendee, Christine Baharozian P’10, ’12, enjoyed the morning so much that she has volunteered to help plan events going forward. Welcome to the Boston city chair team, Christine.

With Merrill and Eliza’s guidance, the GWN city chairs are all actively planning events for this upcoming year that will provide Groton family members with an opportunity to gather together to learn, help their communities, and get to know others in a casual setting.

Groton School Annual Fund 2008–2009

cui servire est regnare

“The power of a School lies in its teachers.”

—Endicott Peabody, Headmaster 1884 - 1940

“Often when I ask Groton students what their favorite class is and what their hardest class is, the answer is the same. The reason? Great teachers present challenges and make rising to meet them a thrilling endeavor.”

—Richard B. Commons, Headmaster

A gift to the Groton School Annual Fund helps toattract and retain Groton’s exceptional faculty and enriches all other aspects of life at Groton. Please consider a gift today.

To make a gift or complete a pledge, please go to www.groton.org and click on Giving to Groton; send a check to the Annual Fund, Groton School, P.O. Box 991, Groton, MA 01450; or call the Development Office at 800-396-6866 to make a gift of securities.

Quarterly September 2008

| 61

The Groton Circle

Own a print of this beautiful illustration prepared by Laszlo Kubinyi for Groton School. Framed dimensions approx. 22 X 30 inches. Unframed approx. 18 X 26 inches. For ordering information visit the admission home page of www.groton.org or call the admission office at 978-448-7510.

In Memoriam | As We Remember I N

M E M O R I A M

JACKSON CHANG ’84

1 October 25, 1965 – November 21, 2007

by Bobby Han and Chris Rhoads

J

ackson Chang ’84 died last November 21, 2007, of complications from a liver ailment in Beijing, China. He was a son, a brother, a husband, and a father to a young son. He was also our formmate and friend. He was 42 years old. His wife had notified the School that Jackson had died, and a short note was printed in the Quarterly. Not too many of us noticed the short announcement. Perhaps we were unaccustomed to scanning the death notices quite yet. In any case, when Chris Rhoads ’84 sent out an email to inform our form in late March, it came as quite a shock to many people.

What followed in the aftermath of that first note was a torrent of emails and phone calls and an outpouring of many different things—memories, grief, nostalgia, laughter, pain, and loss. But in the end what remained was a vivid portrait of Jackson as a young man—of his seemingly unending sense of humor, of his joyful spirit, of memories of his youthful antics and pranks. This is a small sampling of what people wrote and how they remembered him. Not surprisingly, we heard from all corners of our form—from people we hadn’t heard from in over 20 years, from people who knew Jackson well and from those who had forgotten how well they knew him. And although the

full breadth of our memories and stories are better left for a different forum, we hope you can see what an impact he had on our lives. This chain of emails began with a certain sadness collecting memories of Jackson that we could pass on to his family, but what came about in the end was a great deal of happiness for all of us as well. There was grief of course, but there was also a lot of good memories and laughter, and Jackson would have been laughing loudest of all. As always. Chris Alexander ’84 probably summed it up most succinctly, “I feel lucky to have known Jackson and all of you, too!”

—Bobby Han ’84 & Chris Rhoads ’84

* * * From the 1984 email chain: “I guess the Chinese will have to find another liberator. That is my favorite memory of Jackson: a couple days into fourth form and he is up in front of the School giving a Chapel Talk about using America so he can go back to China and liberate the Chinese people from the evil Communists. One of a kind.”

—Gregor Former

“Jackson had more energy than three humans put together.

You always felt like you needed to slow him down or calm him down, but maybe we shouldn't have. He lived his life in overdrive.”

—Stacey Symonds

At Bobby Han’s wedding in 1999: From L to R Alfred Morgan, Mark Pardo, Esther Harper, Jackson Chang, Peter Harper, Bobby Han, James Socas, Devereux Socas, and Amy Morgan.

64 | Quarterly September 2008

“I will miss Jackson’s laugh. He always seemed to be laughing.

I remember senior year he would visit Harps, Hutch and me while we were trying to study, and he would want to listen to Eddie Murphy’s Delirious. In effort to keep the room quiet he would put on head phones but all we would hear then was Jackson laughing by the stereo, no other noise, just Jackson laughing and laughing loud.”

—Alfred Morgan

In Memoriam I N

M E M O R I A M

“I remember Jackson smiling. Was he ever not? I remember the quick pace with which he spoke. Everything urgent. Khakis and a blue shirt. Did he ever wear anything else?”

—Chris Alexander

“Jackson was warm, generous, bright, and, as many of these threads recall, possessed of a completely infectious enthusiasm, which is making me smile as I write.”

—Nicholas Butterworth ’85

“I was always so impressed and charmed by Jackson’s ability to laugh at himself, regardless of the situation. Perhaps someone else remembers a certain soccer game where Jackson got the ball and steamed off ahead of the pack towards...the wrong goal?!....

I do remember the screaming laughter from the sidelines. He, as much as anyone else, found the entire episode HILARIOUS. ACTION JACKSON! No better nomenclature.”

—Andrea Bruce

“Jackson was many things: a natural comedian, a ‘gifted’ hackey sack player, (occasionally) a royal pain in the ass, and always a great friend. I will miss him a lot.”

—Mark Pardo

“[B]eing a new student in fourth form was exciting but a little intimidating. Jackson—who was one of the first people I met at Groton on that first Sunday—was the perfect person to be new with, because he was friendly with everybody, would speak up when nobody else wanted to, and could always be counted on to break tension (whether or not intentionally).”

—Chris Oldham

“My … memory is of course of the annual (didn’t he do it more than once?) ‘Beautiful Taiwan’ Chapel Talk. Jackson was so proud of his home country and so earnest in his description of it. I’ve never been to Taiwan, but thanks to Jackson, ever since then, when I read about it, I imagine a beautiful sort of island paradise, filled with patriots like Jackson who understandably want to protect their independence. I'd forgotten the bit about conquering the Chinese....”

Members of the Form of ‘84 and ‘85 getting ready to celebrate a victory over St. Mark’s.

“What I am left with most of all is the fact that Jackson Chang was always himself, just pure presence. He didn't know any other way to be and I think there must have been a freedom in that, not only for him, but for all of us. What I hope is that in remembering Jackson's spirit, I will stop censoring myself and live more in the moment. I am starting to think Jackson was a truly enlightened soul!”

—Joy Frelinghuysen de Vink

“Jackson’s passing has certainly brought a flood of emotions here to me in Alaska. I sometimes feel so detached living so far away, but it is comforting to know that there is still a thread that connects me to the remarkable group of people that were the Form of ’84.”

—Tad DeGray

“Jackson was infuriatingly funny, in part because he lacked the inhibitions most of us had to adapt to life at Groton. This lack of a ‘circuit-breaker’ often led to outlandish comments and exploratory arguments that often touched on politics, fashion, flora, Chinese philosophy and many other topics that none of the argument participants knew anything about—‘always certain, seldom right’ seems to capture the tenor of the day. As one of you said, he loved to laugh at himself and that made him such an endearing friend.”

“I don’t know about you all, but I refuse to believe that Jackson Chang was killed by ‘liver complications.’ The sketchy details surrounding Jackson's death, and the fact that he died in Beijing (and, after all, it is Jackson we are talking about) leads me to believe that he was poisoned by the Chinese Ministry of State Security while working undercover for the government of Taiwan. Of course, I couldn't know what mission he was on, but can only guess that it involved a beautiful scientist trying to defect, high-stakes gambling in a glitzy Triad casino, a really fast motorcycle, expensive cigars, and a white suit. That's my theory and I am sticking to it! [And another thing] while I have heard the expression many times, Jackson was the first and only person I have met who literally (and often) laughed until he cried.”

—Lanny Thorndike

—Dexter Mead

—Jessica Perera Vitrouk

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In Memoriam | As We Remember I N

M E M O R I A M

“To me, Jackson will always remain the same old Jackson— happy, laughing, full of energy and full of drama. Jackson was like a child—enthusiastic, eternally happy, always moving, hopping along, and always talking. Whether he meant to be or not, Jackson was often the center of attention—funny, foolish, loud, argumentative, distracting, and always, always good for a laugh.”

—Bobby Han

“When I think of Jackson, what remains is a strong sense of his warm, funny, often annoying and usually over the top, but well intentioned behavior. I vaguely recall showing Jackson how it sounds to sing, ‘Hey Mickey, you’re so fine...’ into my room fan and then wondering two hours later if I should break the fan or just hope for a power outage so he would stop.”

—Chris Wagner

At a graduation party in June 1984, from L to R: Chris Alexander, Jackson Chang, and Emma Rosen.

“One thing that comes to mind was Jackson’s strength. Looking back, I have the feeling we were not exactly diplomats when it came to Jackson’s Taiwanese heritage, on occasion making fun of his accent, etc. This teasing no doubt hurt on some level, particularly for someone as proud as Jackson was of his country. His way was to laugh with us, but I can imagine this was not always as easy as it appeared.”

“He seemed larger than life—then and now. When I think of ‘Action’ Jackson, I am reminded, more than anything, of his passion, intensity and the sense in which he operated at full volume. ... What I so admired was that he seemed brave and totally unafraid to put himself out there in every way. I will always appreciate that about him, as well as his kind and generous spirit.”

—Chris Rhoads

—Amy Barrett Lindholm

Early on in the chain of emails, Renee Noto ’84 noted that Jackson had more than a passing fondness for Come on Eileen by Dexy’s Midnight Runners. And more than a few people affirmed this, so it seems more than fitting to end with a few lines (faithfully transcribed by Amy):

“These people round here wear beaten down eyes Sunk in smoke dried faces They’re so resigned to what their fate is But not us (no never), no not us (no never) We are far too young and clever Remember Go too-ra-loo-ra too-ra-loo-rye aye Eileen I’ll hum this tune forever....”

66 | Quarterly September 2008

In Memoriam I N

M E M O R I A M

DONALD LEA

1 August 20, 1927 – February 26, 2008

L

ast February, we were saddened to hear of the death of Donald Lea. Don was a fifteen year member of the faculty at Groton, starting in 1981 as a teacher of chemistry and retiring in 1996 after many years as a member of the science department. Over his years of service, Don’s self-effacing, humorous manner touched many students, as he coached three sports, taught his challenging chemistry classes and electives like “Stretching the Limits.”

It was, perhaps, as the School’s scheduler that Don worked his magic most. With the proliferation of courses and sections year by year, Don enhanced hundreds of student schedules as his efforts provided Groton students access to preferred courses within a labyrinthine puzzle of conflicts and priorities. After his retirement, Don lived in the Groton area with his wife, Ellie, and he returned to the School to teach chemistry on two occasions. A memorial service was held for Don in St. John’s Chapel in early March. Two former students, Alex Mevay ’97 and John Rogers ’91, have written brief remembrances.

Alex Mevay ’97

P

hysics was my middle-school crush, and when I arrived at Groton in the fall of 1993, only one thing stood between me and bliss: chemistry. The gruff man that

Don Lea tutoring in the early years.

Don in a chemistry demonstration in the 90’s.

presided over my first chemistry class seemed to reinforce the notion that I would just have to wait it out.

As fall turned to winter, though, I found myself engrossed first by the riddles pinned up on the wall, then by potassium burning in water, and later by the dropped mercury manometer that instantly amalgamated a fellow student’s gold watch, leaving silver spots. Donald Lea’s demonstrations and discussion taught us chemistry, but his stories and examples taught us why we were learning chemistry.

Some parts of Mr. Lea’s class had even become the stuff of legends. Several rumors were confirmed the day Mr. Lea showed up to class wearing the tattered “Sodium Sweater,” which still bore the scars of an annual lecture demonstration gone slightly awry years before.

Mr. Lea’s effectiveness as a teacher and mentor stemmed from his love of logic and learning. After one class, when asked how he could stand working out the schedules for all of Groton’s classes, Mr. Lea replied to an incredulous student, “Well, I like puzzles.” Although chemistry turned out to be one of my favorite classes, it was Donald Lea’s fearless and honest intellect that made the deepest impression.

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In Memoriam | As We Remember I N

M E M O R I A M

An engrossing chem lab with Mr. Lea circa 1985.

John Rogers ’91

M

ath and Science were my things at Groton, but I was a latecomer to Chemistry. Call it scheduling and you would only get 10 precent of the truth. Ninety percent of the reason that I had come late to the subject was that I feared the class because it was taught by this infamously tough teacher, Don Lea. I had a strong record in my other classes, and I was afraid of failure. My sister had taken his class and often told stories of how hard it was.

Because I knew I was going to apply to college for engineering, I was finally forced to take the chemistry plunge. It is no overstatement to say that my life has never been the same since. I entered Mr. Lea’s classroom on the first day and met in my teacher one of the great scientific role models I would ever know. A firm, fair, brilliant instructor with always a hint of a smile creeping out behind his stone visage. He taught me to titrate and to trace certainly, but what he taught me more was organization and attention to detail that has served me well in college, work, graduate school, Marine combat operations, and now in running my own company.

Late last year, after 17 years of toting around my Groton School papers, my wife and I decided to weed out some of the bulk. We threw out textbooks and binders, notes and notes of long-forgotten declensions, and so much more, but when I came across my Lea Chemistry Lab notebooks, I showed them to her with pride and set them aside for safekeeping forever. To me they are a symbol of an even strain in my life that started with Don Lea. At that moment, I thought that I would make a special trip to reconnect with him and to thank him for his teaching, and now that trip will have to wait. Until we meet again, thank you, Don for all that you have given me and so many others.

68 | Quarterly September 2008

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