Summer 2022 VOLUME 85 | NO. 3 Magazine
A double rainbow appears over Lake George while students on an Alvord Center trip to the Adirondack Mountains in June cruise the lake with former faculty member Al Freihofer ’69. Read the full story about the Alvord Center's “Close to Home” trips this summer, beginning on page 30.
PHOTOGRAPH BY Lillian Corman
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2 Loomis Chaffee Magazine Summer 2022 summerContents2022|Volume 8 5 | No. 3 FEATURES
30
Close to Home
Seven Seniors
Students embarked on educational travel programs in June on the Connecticut River, on Buzzards Bay, and in the Adiron dack Mountains and discovered they didn’t have to travel halfway around the world to encounter cultures, heritages, and landscapes that offer lessons about place and about themselves.
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Return of Reunion
After two years without in-person reunions, alumni flocked to the Island in June to celebrate with their classmates and reconnect with the school.
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Andrew, Aidan, Corey, Lillie, Mercy, Pilar, and Will — seven members of the Class of 2022 — share their Loomis Chaffee experiences and perspectives.
ON COVER: Paul Mounds Jr. ’03, chief of staff to Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont, delivers the Commencement address on May 29. Photo: Jessica Ravenelle
John Cunningham
The Loomis Chaffee School 4 Batchelder Road Windsor, CT 06095 magazine@loomis.org860.687.6811
CONTRIBUTORS
Becky Purdy Managing Editor
Junior Sophia Prendergast
Deidre Swords
Heidi E.V. McCann ’93
Matt Ruffle
Paige Abrams
SUBMISSIONS/STORIES & NEWS
Alumni may contribute items of interest to: Loomis Chaffee Editors
Obituaries Editor
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Director of Strategic Communications & Marketing
Lynn A. Petrillo ’86
Lisa Salinetti Ross
Chelsea Stuart
Matt Ruffle
loomischaffee.org 3 DEPARTMENTS 4 From the Head 5 Island News 24 Faculty & Staff News 26 Pelican Sports 76 Object Lesson 78 News from the Alumni/ Development Office 84 Obituaries 92 Reflections
EDITORIAL & DESIGN TEAM
Cassandra Hamer Graphic Designer
Tim Struthers ’85
Mary Coleman Forrester
recent photos. You also will find direct links to all of our social networking communities. For an online version of the magazine, go to PrintedPrintedwww.loomischaffee.org/magazine.atLanePress,Burlington,VTon70#SterlingUltraMatte
Continued on page 19
By Sheila Culbert
Creating a Community Where Everyone Can Thrive
The first survey was administered in the spring of 2021. We asked Derrick Gay, an internationally recognized diversity and inclusion consultant, to conduct an inclusivity survey of students, faculty, and staff. He posed a series of questions designed to ascertain the sense of belonging and connectedness among community members. Dr. Gay presented a broad definition of diversity, making it clear that diversity represents and benefits us all. He noted the “Big 8 identifiers: age, ability, ethnicity, gender, race, religion, sexual orien tation, and socioeconomic background”—but also noted that other identifiers, including political or ideological viewpoint, neurodi versity (the idea that there is a range of ways of seeing and learning about the world), and resident student status (day/boarding), are also relevant at Loomis Chaffee. JED Campus, a program designed to guide schools through a collaborative process of analysis and program development to support student mental health and well-being, conducted the second survey in October of 2021.
4 Loomis Chaffee Magazine Summer 2022 From the Head
Over
What stood out in both surveys is that students who identify as LGBTQIA+ feel the most isolated of all the groups. Generation Z, born between 1995 and 2012, which includes all our students and a small proportion of our faculty and staff, is recognized as the queer est generation yet, so it is not surprising that our campus demographics reflect that reality. Approximately 18 percent of Loomis students identify as LGBTQIA+, as do many members of the adult community, including faculty, staff, parents, partners, and alumni. But while we have a growing population of queer students, many of whom report very positive experiences at the school, they also note hostile behavior directed at their peers who identify as transgender and genderqueer and as lesbian, gay, and bisexual. Both surveys also identified
the past two years, the school has undertaken two major student surveys, each of which surveyed over 650 students and had a 90 percent response rate. Together they have given the school a wealth of information on our students’ mental health, how they coped with COVID-19, and their general sense of belonging. Armed with the survey data, the school is well equipped as we look for ways to further support our students.
members look out for each other. Emotional health is seen as a campus-wide topic of importance, with involvement from multiple campus offices and programs to support the well-being of students, including the advisory system, a 24-hour/seven-day-a-week Health Center, the Counseling Office, peer mentors, and student groups and activities, all of which help students connect to adults in the commu nity and to each other. Finally, students feel a commitment to helping each other during difficult times, with 95 percent of respondents feeling a responsibility to help a friend who is struggling.Notsurprisingly, the surveys also high lighted areas of concern. These included students who feel anxious, tired, depressed, and overwhelmed. Students who identify as members of the LGBTQIA+ community do not feel as included in the wider school community as many of their peers, and some Asian and Asian American students, Black and Brown students, conservative students, and students from more modest socioeconomic backgrounds also face challenges at the school. Many of these students do not see themselves reflected in the curriculum, for example, or in the teaching ranks.
Both surveys found several positive aspects of the school community. Students find much to appreciate, including their classmates and friends, the faculty, the academics, athletics, and the advisor system. Ninety-six percent of students are proud to be members of the Loomis community, and a similar percentage finds that the school is a supportive commu nity and that they can find help when they need it. Eighty-five percent of students feel that Loomis is a campus where community
Inclusion
I sland N ews
loomischaffee.org 5 From the Head RavenelleJessicaPhoto:
Officially a Loomis Chaffee graduate, Tallula Johansen ’22 receives congratulations from classmates as she carries her diploma back to her seat at Commencement.
Loomis Chaffee celebrated its 106th Commencement under the canopy of trees between the Head of School’s House and the Loomis Homestead on May 29, the Sunday of Memorial Day weekend.
Ben urged his classmates to embrace change. “Don’t avoid the unknown for the sake of your own self-doubt and unease,” he said and encouraged his classmates “to take the risks necessary to develop into exceptional adults.”
Paul Mounds Jr. ’03, chief of staff to Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont, started his address by observing that the people of Loomis Chaffee, including teachers, coaches, alumni, classmates, teammates, and friends, transformed his life. “I hope … they have transformed and broadened yours, too,” he said to the seniors.
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Through recollections of his four years at Loomis, Paul evoked the power of friendships with classmates and faculty members. “We came to
A Send-offJoyful
Photo: Jessica Ravenelle
“I know what it feels like to sit in your seats as your Loomis experience comes to an end, to feel nostalgic and the mix of emotions from this momentous day,” he said.
Ben and all of the day’s speakers touched on the idea that the members of the Class of 2022, like other Loomis Chaffee alumni, have a responsibility to make good use of the lessons they learned on the Island and to work to make the world a better Commencementplace.Speaker
ABOVE: Class Speaker Ben Radmore addresses his classmates.
The Class of 2022 became Loomis Chaffee’s newest alumni at a jubilant Commencement ceremony brimming with optimism and sage reflections.
After the opening processional, a greeting from Chair of the Board of Trustees Duncan A.L. MacLean ’90, and the presentation of Commencement prizes by Head of School Sheila Culbert, Class Speaker Ben Radmore addressed his peers. To laughter and cheers from the audience, Ben spoke of the strong bonds the class formed over their four years on the Island despite the disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, social unrest, and the war in Ukraine. “The outside world can be a divisive force, but our unity shines through,” he said.
Surrounded by proud family, friends, faculty, and staff on the sunny morning, the 185 members of the Class of 2022 rejoiced in their individual and collective accomplishments, heard thoughtful insights and sage advice from keynote speakers and school dignitaries, and, one by one, received their much-anticipated diplomas.
In her concluding remarks, Sheila thanked the graduates for their patience, flexibility, and good humor through the turbulence of the last few years and commended them for their hard work. She expressed hope that they would find happiness and purpose in their lives, and she urged them to come back to visit. Kasumu Usman gave the benediction.
Paul, who was president of his senior class and a three-sport captain at Loomis, has devoted his career to public service. He has worked in the administrations of Governor Lamont and previous Governor Dannel Malloy, on the staffs of U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal and U.S. Congressman John B. Larson, and for the nonprofit Connecticut Health Foundation. A 2007 graduate of Trinity College in Hartford, Paul was named Person of the Year in 2021 by the Trinity Club of Hartford, which honors Hartford-area graduates of the college who have given outstanding service to the community or the college.Following
ABOVE: Seniors cheer on their classmates during the Commen cement ceremony. BELOW: Members of the Class of 2022 with alumni family members: (front) seniors Payten Wawruck, Zennon Briggs, Lucas Hall, Edward “Luke” Budd, Tallula Johansen, Grace Thompson, Margaret “Maggie” Sanderson, and David “Davis” Hanson; and (back) James Wawruck ’88, Maria Gluch Briggs ’85, Elizabeth “Lisa” Pinney Hall ’88, R. Stevens “Steve” Hall ’86, David Budd ’79, Clarissa Horowitz ’89, Brian Thompson ’87, Mau reen Sanderson ’88, and William Hanson ’87. Missing from photo: senior William Cleary (grandson of the late William M. Hedeman ’54), Kelly Cusson ’83, senior Giovanni Grassi, Matteo Grassi ’91, Robert Hall ’56, Peter Horowitz ’64, senior Grace Morganthaler, and Victor Morganthaler ’79. Photos:Jessica Ravenelle
Commencement prize recipients were: Sean Lee, Loomis Family Prize; Andrew Park, Charles Henry and Mary Chaffee Willcox Prize; Pilar Wingle, Ammidon Prize; Jasper Gitlitz, Florence E. Sellers Prize; Mercy Olagunju, Jennie Loomis Prize; and Corey Plummer, Nathaniel Horton Batchelder Memorial Prize. Sellers Faculty Prizes were awarded on Class Night to William Cleary, Rachel Cranston, Mariapaula Gonzalez, and Grace Thompson.
Paul reflected on the 19 years since his graduation from Loomis Chaffee. “Great opportunities were ahead of me,” he said. “I didn’t realize that Loomis gave me the keys to help change the world. Now you have them too.”
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Paul’s speech, Dean of Faculty Andrew Matlack read the names of the graduating students, who stepped onto the podium and received their diplomas and congratulations from Sheila.
understand each other’s intent and purpose, but, more importantly, we learned to understand each other’s souls,” he said. “Thanks to Loomis’ nurturing yet challenging environment, we each, individually and together, uncovered our best selves and learned to work for the common good.”
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Beth, who has bachelor’s and master’s degrees in education, also taught the course Self and Society from 1984 to 2015 and mentored many of her colleagues who taught the class. The course name later changed to Moral Development and most recently to Introduction to Ethical Issues.
“Moral D students could be seen ferrying their uncooked egglets carefully around campus, could be overheard discussing which parent’s turn it was to ‘eggsit’ and warning the fellow parent to handle their charge gently so as to avoid dropping and thus scrambling the little dear,” Kitty said.
Everyone on campus could tell the students who were taking “Moral D,” as students often called the course, because of an iconic assignment, faculty member Kathleen “Kitty” Johnson Peterson ’72 recalled at the retirement ceremony. The
Beth was appointed as registrar in 1990, and her skill, attention to detail, unflappable style, and no-nonsense willingness to lend a hand defined the work of her office through her final day on the job this spring. Among many changes in school-keeping through the years, Beth helped the school transition from hand-written grades and comments and transcripts typed in triplicate through at least four software systems for recording, collating, and distributing this essential information.“WhatLoomis Chaffee is also saying goodbye to as Beth retires is an invaluable institutional memory, an unequaled treasure trove of school history, its people, traditions, storms, and triumphs,” Kitty said.As head athletic trainer, Don attended to the health and wellness of thousands of Loomis Chaffee athletes over the last 33 years.In everything he did, from responding to emergency injuries to taping ankles and from training lifeguards to leading a dorm of freshman and sophomore boys, Don was known for his winning combination of professional skill and genuine compassion. His calm demeanor reassured an athlete in pain as instantly as it settled a room of anxious underclassmen. And Don had a similar affirming effect on his colleagues.
influence as both a student and a fellow faculty
Photos: Cassandra Hamer
assignment required students to pair up and co-parent a raw egg for 24 hours and then write about the experience of being responsible for this fragile “life.”
A decade later, Adrian was a new faculty member and athletic trainer at Loomis and set up his training table alongside Don at the first away football game of the fall, at Andover. Don and Adrian worked at a feverish pace to tape, wrap, and otherwise prep the Pelican football players for their game, Adrian said. “In the middle of all that chaos, Don patted me on the back and
Among her many roles, she recorded and distributed grades and comments and student transcripts, stewarded and safely stored student records, handled many of the details of enrollment and course registration, coordinated Class Night and Commencement for many years, taught the course Moral Development, served as a dorm affiliate in several residence halls, and advised generations of students.
Two longtime faculty members, Registrar Beth Fitzsimmons and Head Athletic Trainer Donald MacGillivray, began their well-earned retirements this summer.
Beth was first hired in December 1980 as secretary to then Directors of Studies Dorothy Fuller and Frank Merrill. A few years later, she became assistant director of studies, which was a three-quarters time faculty position. For the other one-quarter of her full-time job, Beth continued as secretary to the Academic Office.
Farewell MacGillivraysto and Beth Fitzsimmons
“Themember.firsttime I met Don, I was a senior in high school,” Adrian recalled at the retirement celebration in June.
Adrian Stewart ’90 experienced Don’s
“If the school is a yacht, Beth is its keel, largely invisible but literally essential to the operation of the boat,” wrote Ruth Duell, retired former director of studies, in a tribute to Beth shared at a retirement celebration in June.
“I remember walking into the athletic training room some time early in the fall of 1989 … . He greeted me the same way I’ve seen him greet just about every student he’d just met, with a big smile, strong handshake, and a warm welcome. I don’t really remember why I went in there that day, but I do remember when I left thinking, ‘Wow, he’s a really nice guy.’”
Beth worked at Loomis Chaffee for 42 years, including the last 32 years as school registrar, and her caring, level-headed influence reached students and faculty well beyond the walls of the Academic Office.
Mr. Goldfinger spoke about the BICEP-Keck array (BICEP stands for Background Imaging of Cosmic Extragalactic Polarization, and Keck represents the W.M. Keck Foundation, a major contributor to the multimilliondollar project). BICEP-Keck array experiments are used to detect and measure the polarization of the Cosmic Microwave Background found in space, he said. These devices are extremely sensitive to interference from electronic devices and therefore were placed at a scientific base in Antarctica. Mr. Goldfinger also spoke about working and living conditions at the laboratory complex at the South Pole.
a Daytime Conditioning instructor, and a supervising mentor for athletic training interns from local colleges. He spearheaded the school’s head injury management system, which, Adrian noted, “established Loomis as a leader in this regard among NEPSAC [New England Prep School Athletic Conference] schools.”
The 2021–22 Evenings of Science series concluded this spring with discussions led by astrophysicist David Goldfinger, observational cosmologist Clara Vergès, and Yale University physics professor John W. OrganizedHarris. by Loomis Chaffee’s Physics and Astronomy Club, the presentations and conversations were facilitated by senior Lillie Szemraj, the club president this year, and sophomore Fedora Liu, the incoming clubMr.president.Goldfinger and Ms. Vergès, both of whom are post-doctoral students at Harvard University’s Center for Astrophysics, made a joint presentation for students and faculty in April via videoconference. Among other topics, they discussed cosmic microwave background radiation, the early days of the universe, and a telescope program that promises to reveal new answers to ancient questions about the beginning of the universe.
Professor Harris is the D. Allen Bromley Professor of Physics at Yale. He earned a bachelor’s degree in physics from University of Washington in Seattle, Washington, and his doctorate in experimental nuclear physics from Stony Brook University in Stony Brook, New York. He has received numerous honors and awards for his work, including the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation Distinguished Senior U.S. Scientist Award in 1994. He was elected a fellow in the American Physical Society in 1996.
Professor Harris, an experimental high energy nuclear physicist, visited in May, leading a guided tour of the universe from the Big Bang to the formation of elements, planets, stars, black holes, and galaxies. Using computer simulations, images, and graphs, he explained the beginning of the universe, connecting the atomic makeup of cosmic dust to the formation of the galaxy. He also spoke about unknown matter and energy and the formation of black holes.
At the ceremony honoring the retirees, Head of School Sheila Culbert reflected on these two faculty members’ decades of service. “When I think of both Don and Beth, I think of the thousands of students that they have had an impact on and the kindness, the nurturing support, always being there for these students, year after year after year,” she said.
When Don arrived at Loomis in 1989, he had an immediate impact, professionalizing the athletic training services and bringing positive energy to the training room itself. His work and influence not only assured the best care for student athletes at all levels, but also made a difference in the success of Pelican teams. During his years as an athletic trainer at Loomis, the school won 216 Founders League championships and 48 New EnglandDuringtitles.histenure, the school honored Don with the Ralph W. Erickson Instructorship in Physical Education for his dedication to the health and wellness of Loomis Chaffee students.
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Ms. Vergès completed her undergraduate and master’s degrees in physics at École Polytechnique in France and earned a doctorate in cosmology
Don and his wife, Aimee, who retired this summer from her position as a library assistant at the school, were integral members of the Loomis community, and
from Université de Paris. Mr. Goldfinger earned a bachelor’s degree in physics from Washington University in St. Louis and a doctorate in physics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Ms. Vergès’s research centers on the
said, ‘It’s so cool to be working with you,’” Adrian recalled. “That made me, as a brand new faculty member, feel really good. And that’s Don. He effortlessly enhances the environment around him.”
An instructor for lifeguard, CPR, first aid, and AED (automated external defibrillator) certification, Don trained hundreds of students and faculty in these skills. And on one Saturday years ago, he saved the life of a Loomis parent who collapsed on campus. At the time, few people knew how to use an AED, but Don did. When police arrived in response to the emergency, they brought an AED with them, and Don, already on the scene and administering CPR, used the device to help re-establish the parent’s heartbeat.
In the summers, however, they could be found at their home in Vermont. And there Don and Aimee have returned to begin their retirement and to indulge, deservedly so, in their pursuit of woodworking (Don) and gardening (Aimee) projects among many other interests and talents for which they will now have ample time.
In addition to his role as head athletic trainer, Don served as head of physical education, a Fitness and Wellness teacher,
their sons, Ross ’09 and Tyler ’14, grew up on campus. After serving as a dorm affiliate in Warham Hall for 11 years, Don and his family lived in Kravis Hall for 15 years, including five years when Don was dorm head. The MacGillivrays later moved to Chamberlain House, where they lived until their retirement.
Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB), which is the residual radiation from the Big Bang, the event that created the universe. When the universe was born, she explained, it underwent a series of rapid inflation, expansion, and cooling. The CMB represents the heat left over from the Big Bang. By studying it, scientists can better understand the chemical makeup of the beginning of the universe.
MattersCelestial
Photo: Jessica Ravenelle
The Nichols Center was made possible by many generous donations from the Loomis Chaffee community, Sheila said in her remarks. She thanked the Nichols family for “this beautiful facility and all they have done to support the project.” The couple donated the lead gift for the project.
“What brings us the most joy is that for years and years to come, students, families, and community members will be able to come and enjoy this facility.”
ABOVE: View of the Nichols Center from the Ratté Quadrangle, with the lobby entrance toward the center and the newly renovated Norris Ely Orchard Theater on the left.
The Loomis Chaffee community dedicated the school’s newly-opened John D. and Alexandra C. Nichols Center for Theater and Dance in April with a ceremony in the gracious new space.
Members of the Board of Trustees, students, faculty, staff, and parents gathered in the lobby of the new building for the event, which included remarks by Chair of the Board of Trustees Duncan A.L. MacLean ’90; Head of School Sheila Culbert; Trustee Doug Lyons ’82, P ’16, ’19, who chairs the Board’s Buildings & Grounds Committee; architect Caitlin Getman, an associate partner of Robert A.M. Stern Architects; Kraus Instructor for Theater David McCamish; senior Aidan Cooper; junior Jade Silverstein; and Alexandra Nichols, who spoke on behalf of her husband, John ’49, who could not attend.Before the ceremony, students led guests on tours of the 17,000-square-foot building, which houses the renovated and
expanded Norris Ely Orchard (NEO) Theater, a black box theater, a dance studio, a state-of-the-art control booth, a suite of backstage spaces, a gallery, and a spacious lobby.
Alexandra was joined by the couple’s daughter, Trustee Kendra Nichols Wallace ’91; their son, John Nichols III ’94; and their granddaughter, sophomore Mandarin Wallace.Alexandra spoke to the gathering about the meaning and power of the performing arts in her and John’s lives. “What brings us the most joy is that for years and years to come, students, families, and community members will be able to come and enjoy this facility,” she said.
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Curtain Rises on Nichols Center
— Alexandra Nichols
LEFT: Trustee Kendra Nichols Wallace ’91, sophomore Mandarin Wallace, Head of School Sheila Culbert, Alexandra Nichols, and John Nichols III ’94 gather in front of the building's entrance. Photos: Anna Vdovenko
RIGHT: Sheila speaks at the dedication, thanking the supporters of the project.
Other generous contributors to the project included the MacLean family; Jeffrey and Nancy Hoffman, parents of Lara ’04, Lindsay ’06 and Olivia ’10; the Wallace Research Foundation (the Gilchrist family); the Harry E. Goldfarb Foundation (Bob
In addition to the Nichols family, Sheila thanked the many other supporters of the project, including attendees Trustee Jamie Widdoes ’72; Brad Lewis ’83 and his brother Graham, father of Rhys ’19; Jacqueline and Kevin Magid, parents of senior Vanessa; Jennifer Rhodes ’88; David ’76 and Rebecca Sayles and their daughter Nina ’13; and Tim Schwartz ’79.
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In his remarks, theater director David McCamish spoke of the stories “embedded” in the old NEO and the importance of keeping those stories alive as the new space was re-imagined and enhanced. “Our students find a sacred space in the NEO,” he said. “Theater is about sharing experiences and finding truth in the performance on stage. This building will continue to support our students in the years to come.”
Aidan and Jade shared personal reflections about the meaning of the performing arts in their lives, and they expressed gratitude that students will use and enjoy the facility long into the future.
Photo: Makhala Huggins
and Frankie Goldfarb, parents of Lynn ’86, grandparents of Sam ’18 and Emma ’20; and Bill Goldfarb, father of Laura ’91 and Paula ’96); Jed Cohen ’05; Christopher and Soojin Lee, parents of Elizabeth ’14, Joseph ’16, and Julianna ’19; the Rinaldi family; and Betsey and Jay Rebello, parents of Avery ’19 and Anna ’21.
ABOVE: David ’76 and Rebecca Sayles were among the celebrants at the dedication.
The French defend their castle from King Arthur and his Knights by catapulting a cow over the ramparts.
Inspired by the classic comedy film Monty Python and the Holy Grail , Spamalot made its Broadway debut in 2005. The Grammy and Tony award-winning musical was written by Eric Idle, an original member of the Monty Python comedy troupe, with musician John Du Prez.
Spamalot is an irreverant, slapstick parody of Arthurian legend, telling the story of King Arthur and the Knights of the Roundtable and their quest to find the Holy Grail, embellished with singing, dancing, and killer rabbits.
The cast of outlandish characters included senior Ben Radmore as King Arthur; senior Aidan Cooper as Sir Lancelot; senior Vanessa Magid as the Lady of the Lake; senior Grace Thompson as Patty, King Arthur’s servant; senior Kate Shymkiv as Sir Bedevere; junior Jade Silverstein as Sir Robin; and sophomore Brigham Cooper as Sir Galahad.
NEO ReopensTheaterwith Spamalot
Presented by the Loomis Chaffee Performing Arts Department, the show was the first production in the newly opened John D. and Alexandra C. Nichols Center for Theater and Dance, which includes the renewed and enhanced NEO.
PHOTOS BY Anna Vdovenko
More than 50 student actors, musicians, and tech crew members produced the musical comedy Spamalot in April to fullhouse audiences in the newly renovated Norris Ely Orchard Theater (NEO).
Sir Lancelot (senior Aidan Cooper) and members of the Ensemble perform the hilarious and heart-warming number “His Name Is Lancelot” as Lancelot embraces his authentic self.
LEFT: Lady of the Lake (senior Vanessa Magid) sings “Whatever Happened to My Part?”
MIDDLE: The Knights of the Roundtable try, and fail, to infiltrate a French castle using a “Trojan Rabbit.”
BOTTOM: Herbert (junior Nathan Ko), in white, and his father (sophomore Michael Hoffman) disagree over Herbert's impending arranged marriage.
TOP: King Arthur (senior Ben Radmore) and his Knights listen as Sir Bedevere (senior Kate Shymkiv) describes an ill-fated strategy for retaliating against the French soldiers.
Among those stepping off the Board in June were two past parents. Reginald R. Paige Sr., father of R.J. ’13, Maia ’19, and Leah ’21, was a Trustee for three four-year terms. During his 12 years, Reg served most recently on the Committee on Trustees; the Committee on Diversity, Equity & Inclusion; the Committee on Mission & Program; the Admission, Financial Aid & College Guidance Committee; and the Audit Committee. He also chaired a Governance Task Force earlier in his tenure.
Reginald Paige
Ariel, of New York City, is a vice president and investment advisor at Goldman Sachs, where she focuses on high net worth clients, endowments, foundations, and other nonprofits. She has served on the school’s Head’s Council, is a Black alumni mentor, returned to campus to speak with students during a financial literacy seminar program a few years ago, and has joined economics classes through Zoom to discuss her career and investing. Ariel holds a bachelor’s degree from Williams College and a master’s in business administration from Columbia University.
Marc, of Lexington, Massachusetts, is a partner in the life sciences practice group at the law firm of Ropes & Gray. He has been a member of the school’s Head’s Council and was an overall co-chair of the 2021–22 Annual Fund. In addition, he co-chaired the Class of 1982’s 40th Reunion this year. Over the years, he has served as a host for various alumni functions, including Boston area receptions and phonathons. He earned his bachelor’s degree and law degree at Cornell University.
NewsTrustee
Also joining the Board are current parent Unsoo Kim, alumni Marc A. Rubenstein ’82 and Ariel N. Williams ’06, and Martin E. Vulliez ’90, who is both an alumnus and a current parent.
James Walker ’91
Unsoo, mother of rising junior Duhee Lee, resides in Seoul, South Korea, and will be the school’s first female international Trustee. She is also a trustee of Fessenden School, and she is the incoming chair of Loomis Chaffee’s Korean Parent Association. She attended Concord Academy and is a 1990 graduate of Skidmore College.
Cynthia Citrone
Martin, of New York City, is a partner and head trader at Cadian Capital Management. He has been a member of the Head’s Council, and he and his wife, Tricia, chaired the parent portion of the school’s 2021–22 Annual Fund. Martin and Tricia, parents of rising senior Oliver and rising junior Simon, have hosted various admission functions for the school in New York City. Martin holds a bachelor’s degree from Columbia University.
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James R. Walker Jr. ’91 served one four-year term. In addition to his membership on the Investment Committee, the Buildings & Grounds Committee, and the Committee on Trustees, James served as co-chair of the Development Committee.
Rejoining the Board is Pauline Chen Halsey ’82, mother of Isabelle ’20 and Natalie ’20. Pauline is a physician and best-selling author. During her one-year hiatus from the Board, she served as a co-chair of the Class of 1982’s 40th Reunion and joined the Head of School Search Committee. She earned her bachelor’s degree at Harvard-Radcliffe College and her medical degree at Northwestern University.
Cynthia L. Citrone, mother of Nick ’12 and Steele ’20, served on the Board for one four-year term. As a Trustee, Cindy was a member of the Buildings & Grounds Committee, the Committee on Mission & Program, and the Salaries & Benefits Committee. She was a supportive advocate for the school’s mental health initiatives and financial aid.
Martin Vulliez ’90
Three Trustees rotated off the Board in June while four new Trustees were elected and one former Trustee was re-elected, the latter five beginning service on July 1.
Marc Rubenstein ’82
Ariel Williams ’06
Unsoo Kim Pauline Chen Halsey ’82
NewsOutsideAdvantages
Her visit to campus combined Loomis Chaffee’s year-long theme of “The Pursuit of Happiness” and the school’s celebration of Earth Week.
“The data shows that living a long, healthy life not only depends on the food that you eat or the exercise that you do, but also the actual geographic location of your home,” she said.
Professor Jimenez’s visit was part of the Hubbard Speakers Series, made possible by a gift from Robert P. Hubbard
Researcher’47.
Marcia I. Pescador Jimenez, a Boston University assistant professor of epidemiology, has some simple advice for anyone who wants to be happier and healthier: Get outdoors.
Other Earth Week activities included a film festival, a pancake breakfast with Loomis Chaffee-made maple syrup, creation of an Earth Day-themed mural, and a student panel discussion. In addition, environmental writer David Rome ’76 met with student writers for a “Dinner and a Draft” event during the week. The Alvord Center for Global & Environmental Studies organized the week of events in cooperation with a variety of other offices and student groups on campus.
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As Professor Jimenez explained to an allschool convocation in April, her research has found a correlation between cognitive health and development of children, adolescents, and adults and their proximity to green space.
In studies using geographic data obtained from Google Street View along with deep learning algorithms, Professor Jimenez and her team found that exposure to green space early in life promotes good health later in life, she said. In addition, they found a positive correlation between levels of green-space exposure and scores on cognition tests.
“Go outside,” she urged the convocation audience. “This will have a huge, positive impact on your health and happiness as you grow older.”
After the convocation, Professor Jimenez visited psychology, environmental science,
Convocation speaker Marcia I. Pescador Jimenez
Discusses Health Benefits of Living Near Green Space
statistics, and biology classes, answering questions from students regarding her research andProfessorbackground.Jimenez earned a doctorate from the Brown University School of Public Health and completed a postdoctoral fellowship in cardiovascular disease and environmental epidemiology at the Harvard T.C. Chan School of Public Health.
Photo: Makhala Huggins
Island News Bee expert Steve Rogenstein ’88 spent a week on campus in May as the school’s first Visiting Environmentalist.
Steve emphasized the vital role that pollinators play in creating and maintaining habitats and ecosystems that humans and many animals rely on for food and shelter. “A quote attributed to Einstein is that if the bees die out, four years later, we are going to follow their fate,” he said.
“A highlight of Steve’s visit was having so many students visit the apiary and participate in planting our new pollinator garden,” said Marley Matlack, the Christopher H. Lutz Director of the Alvord Center. “For many students, this was their first time having class ‘outside
Build Insect Hotels, Plant Pollinator Garden
Steve is the founder of the Ambeesadors, a group that helps to connect bee community members and spread awareness and appreciation for bees and all pollinators. Steve also helped launch honey and pollinator festivals in New York City, Barcelona, and Berlin, Germany, where he now lives. In addition, he curates and produces an online speaker series, “Bees, Dreams, and Medicine.” He earned his undergraduate degree in political science from the University of Vermont and began his career working as a successful arts marketer before taking his skills to the world of
the Loop,’ and it was fantastic to see how excited they were to get their hands dirty and engage in place-based learning.”
Sponsored by the Alvord Center for Global & Environmental Studies, Steve’s visit included classroom visits, work at the Loomis Chaffee apiary, an evening discussion, a honey-tasting event with school leaders and members of the Board of Trustees, and work with students on planting a pollinator garden and building insect“Beeshotels.have been around for 100 million years and are the most efficient pollinators,” Steve said in an interview. “Basically, everything that’s green outside has been touched by a bee.”
Steve Rogenstein ’88 at the apiary on campus
WelcomePollinatorsbees.AlumnusHelpsStudents
Photo: Jessica Ravenelle
Visiting Artist Sarah Lutz ’85 Exhibits Work in Mercy Gallery
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University. She has exhibited her work in galleries across the United States and Central America. A former Loomis Chaffee Trustee, Sarah lives and works in upstate New York.
String Theory, an exhibition of recent works by artist Sarah Lutz ’85, was on display this spring in the Sue and Eugene Mercy Jr. Gallery in the Richmond Art Center.
The exhibition featured 32 small-panel and triptych paintings, prints, and fiber art sculptures, including several pieces created in collaboration with other artists.
Artists with whom Sarah collaborated for several of the pieces in the String Theory exhibit include master printer Maria Ancona of Ten Grand Press; La Nueva Fábrica; and artist Eve van Rens, who is Sarah’s daughter.
RIGHT: Freshmen Helen “Nellie” Kenney and Iris Sande peruse the String Theory exhibition. BELOW: Sarah in the Mercy Gallery Photos: Cassandra Hamer
Sarah spent the week before the exhibit opening as a Visiting Artist on campus.
Sarah, an abstract painter and printmaker, spent the week before the exhibit opening as a Visiting Artist on campus, working on new pieces, demonstrating her printmaking and painting techniques, and spending time with Printmaking, College-Level Studio Art, and Painting classes. Students also painted alongside Sarah and helped her to install part of her exhibition, said art teacher Mark Zunino, who directs the Visiting Artist program.Speaking to students, faculty, and staff gathered in the gallery for the opening, Sarah reflected on her journey back to the Island and the Mercy Gallery while describing the works on display.“Theexhibition was scheduled for the Spring of 2020, and then it was postponed, twice,” she said. The postponements and the pause in everyday life caused by the pandemic “provided an incredible opportunity for me to work in my studio and have some interesting collaborative experiences with other artists,” sheSarahadded.earned her undergraduate degree in studio art from Skidmore College and a master’s degree in fine arts from American
The Sebastians and the Luques Curtis Trio
musicians. In the evening, the group played in concert in the Hubbard Performance Hall, with Mr. Lee on violin, Ms. Stone on cello, and Jeffrey Grossman on harpsichord. The concert featured works by classical composers J.S. Bach, Elisabeth Jacquette de La Guerre, Johann Jakob Froberger, and Alsoothers.inApril, guest musicians the Luques Curtis Trio performed an evening concert of jazz music in TheHubbard.guestmusician visits and performances were funded by the Joseph S. Stookins Lecture Fund.
ArtistsGuest
The Luques Curtis Trio — pianist Damian Curtis, bassist Luques Curtis, and percussionist Richie Barshay — and a guest from the audience, who joined the trio on the saxophone for the final number.
Chamber music ensemble The Sebastians worked with Loomis Chaffee music students and per formed a concert of Baroque music in April during a visit to the Island. The group, based at Yale University and in New York City, performs with a core quartet of two violins, cello, and keyboard, adding other strings, winds, brass, singers, and more as the repertoire requires.
GUEST MUSICIANS
On the day of their visit, ensemble members Daniel Lee and Sarah Stone spoke with cham ber music students about composition, musical theory, and their experiences as professional
Photo: John Cunningham
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If we are to live up to our mission statement and to the promise that we make to every student, family, and community member, we must make issues of inclusion and student mental health priorities. We need to continue to work on our institutional
loomischaffee.org 19 Island News
the too frequent use of LGBTQIA+ and racial slurs by students. While these slurs are not usually used in a targeted way (aimed at an individual), they are nonetheless upsetting to large numbers of students and adults, and their use is antithetical to our community values.For the LGBTQIA+ community in the United States, the past two decades have brought significant progress in terms of soci etal acceptance and legal status, most notably in the 2015 Supreme Court decision on gay marriage. Recent Gallup Polls found that 71 percent of Americans support gay marriage, 66 percent support transgendered men and
women serving in the military, and 93 percent support equal rights for gays and lesbians in terms of job opportunities. Recent legal gains, however, are under threat and the national climate is becoming more hostile toward LGBTQIA+ individuals—and this, in turn, is having a negative impact on the campus climate and well-being of the members of these communities and their allies.
Sophomore Katie Fullerton and Sarah Larson ’91 discuss the writing process during the Dinner and a Draft event.
and observations about each piece. “I want to read all of these full-length pieces,” she told the students after all had shared their drafts. “I hate that I’m not going to see you all Sarahtomorrow.”alsooffered the students several tips on writing, including the suggestion that they keep the creative and the editing parts of their writing process separate, rather than editing themselves while writing. She said she must remind herself to follow this practice every time she writes.Organized by Loomis Chaffee Writing Initiatives, Sarah’s visit was sponsored by the Ralph M. Shulansky ’45 Lecture Fund. Former faculty member John Shulansky ’72 joined the group for the dinner and conversation as a representative of the family. Also attending the evening event were former faculty member James Rugen ’70, who was Sarah’s advisor at Loomis, and members of the Writing Initiatives faculty.
4
Sarah Larson ’91, a staff writer at The New Yorker , engaged in discussions and workshops with students during a day on campus in April.
Photo: Mary Coleman Forrester
Sarah worked with seniors in a College-Level Creative Writing class, met with sophomores in a Seminar in the Common Good, conversed with theater students over lunch, and joined 13 student writers for dinner, discussion of their craft, and an informal writing exercise.
During the Dinner and a Draft event, Sarah read excerpts from a column she wrote commenting on the popularity of podcasts about the television series The Office , and she invited the students to draft a critique of a book, podcast, show, or other entertainment form they had encountered recently. She encouraged them to connect their chosen topics to broader ideas, as she had done in the column.After a few minutes of writing, the students read their drafts for the gathering. Sarah responded with interest
On Writing, PodcastsCommentary,Socialandabout The Office
plan for diversity, equity, and inclusion and coordinate those efforts, when appropriate, with our focus on student mental health and well-being. Chief Diversity Officer Ashley Augustin, the Center for Diversity, Equity & Inclusion, the Counseling Office, and the Student Life offices are leading our efforts in this ongoing work, and I look forward to sharing more about their work over the course of the year. Our collective goal is to ensure that all students, and all members of our community, feel that they belong here and that they can thrive so that they can become their best selves and make a positive differ ence in the world. page
Inclusion | Continued from
At the conclusion of each client’s approximately twoweek challenge this year, the students presented their
recommendations to company officials. Recommendations included ideas for a new website and marketing initiatives for Nutmeg Kettlecorn, strategies for drawing more people to Funnybone Records on its event nights, and suggestions for engaging with the town of Bloomfield to help The Writery grow interest in the programs it offers.
economics for business and management from Occidental College then worked for several companies in finance before discovering his expertise and keen interest lay in operations and managing people.
Andrew and his Bombas partners began developing the idea for a company whose driving force was helping people in need while Andrew was in business school at Babson College.
Senior innovators and their teachers in this spring’s I-Tri program.
In its fourth year, the I-Tri program each spring enables a selected group of Loomis Chaffee seniors to spend their final term outside of their regular classes and instead tackle challenges faced by businesses and organizations, mostly in Greater Hartford. The program, run by the school’s Pearse Hub for Innovation (PHI), offers a hands-on learning experience in which the students practice human-centered design, learn project management techniques, and hone their presentation skills.
Connecting Entrepreneurialan Mindset to the Pursuit of Happiness
Seniors in the Innovation Trimester (I-Tri) program this spring helped five businesses keep their customers and communities happy and engaged with their products.
Happy Customers
Photo: Cassandra Hamer
“You really can’t go wrong if you do things that make you happy,” Andrew Heath ’99, told Loomis Chaffee community members gathered in April in the Olcott Center for his convocation address on this year’s school-wide theme, “The Pursuit of Happiness.”Anentrepreneur, business leader, and co-founder of the Bombas sock and apparel company, Andrew spoke to students about the founding of his company, his professional journey, and how to use an entrepreneurial mindset in their daily lives.
Bombas has grown into a multihundred-million-dollar company with more than 220 employees worldwide and a mission to support the homeless community. The company has more than 3,000 giving partners and has donated more than 75 million pairs of socks and other clothing items to people who are homeless.Andrew’s convocation was part of the Hubbard Speakers Series, made possible by a gift from Robert P. Hubbard ’47. During his visit to campus, Andrew also met with economics classes and worked with students in the Innovation Trimester (I-Tri) program in the Pearse Hub for Innovation (PHI).
After graduating from Loomis Chaffee, Andrew earned a bachelor’s degree in
“My journey to success was far from linear,” Andrew said. Through difficulties as well as achievements in his career, he learned and grew. Importantly, he said, he learned to adapt to change, find his passion, and do what makes him happy.
Identifying challenges and finding solutions related to this year’s school theme, “The Pursuit of Happiness,” the students worked with Connecticut-based Catherine Johanna Photography, founded by Catherine Dunlavey ’13; Bombas Socks, a national brand co-founded by Andrew Heath ’99; Nutmeg Kettlecorn, based in Wallingford, Connecticut; Funnybone Records, a record label out of Hartford, Connecticut; and The Writery Inc., a publisher and bookstore in Bloomfield, Connecticut.
“We started our company when we found out that socks were the No. 1 most requested item in homeless shelters,” Andrew said. He and his business partners saw an opportunity when they realized that the basic design of socks had not changed in 50 years. They spent two years on research and development to engineer the perfect sock and built a brand around the high-quality product and a commitment to giving back.
“The I-Tri is scaffolded in such a way that the solutions to each business challenge become progressively harder,” explained Associate Director of Innovation Jennine Solomon, who coordinates the program. “Students can therefore learn the design process early on, then take on the bigger challenges as they learn more throughout the semester.”
20 Loomis Chaffee Magazine Summer 2022 Island News
Photo: Mary Coleman Forrester
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Corporate ethics and moral responsibility were the topics of a special meeting of the Shultz Fellowship this spring with author and management professor Jeffrey Sonnenfeld and Tyler Shultz, a whistleblower in the Theranos corporate scandal.More than 70 students and faculty members gathered for the discussion in the Nee Room in Founders Hall. The Shultz Fellowship, a bi-partisan, student-led club inspired by the legacy of statesmanship and diplomacy of the late former U.S. Secretary of State George Shultz ’38, meets regularly to discuss politics and current events.
Despite scandals in the corporate world, business leaders are the most respected leaders in society after the military, Jeffrey said. “Sadly, federal and state politicians, the media, clergy, and even school officials, teachers, and academics have fallen in
Jeffrey, parent of sophomore Lauren Sonnenfeld, is a senior associate dean for leadership studies and a professor in the practice of management at Yale University’s School of Management and is the
Mr. Shultz, chief executive officer of Flux Biosciences, a company he co-founded in 2017, joined the conversation via Zoom from his home in California and spoke about the importance of standing up for what you believe is right, despite obstacles you may face.
author of books and scholarly articles on corporate leadership. Mr. Shultz, grandson of Secretary Shultz, was an employee at Theranos and has been a guest speaker in Jeffrey’s seminars on corporate leadership.
Even though he and another whistleblower, Erika Cheung, thought that they would not be able to win against Theranos in court, Mr. Shultz said, they knew they were right in stepping forward and exposing the medical technology company for allegedly fraudulent actions. “We did what we did to try to protect patients,” he said.
Corporate leadership expert Jeffrey Sonnenfeld and entrepreneur Tyler Shultz (via video conference) discuss corporate responsibility with students and faculty in a special meeting of the Shultz Fellowship.
Shultz Fellowship Examines Corporate Responsibility
Photo: Cassandra Hamer
public trust,” he commented. However, business leaders have ascended in public opinion, giving them a more significant role and responsibility in society.
Jeffrey spoke about the history of U.S. corporate responsibility and recent corporate responses to divisive political and social issues. It is in the best interest of corporations to understand and help to solve such issues for everyone to “have a more harmonious society” that benefits all of us, he said, paraphrasing the French philosopher Alexis de Tocqueville.
Capping off the mini reunion, the group convened around the Cow Pond in the Meadows and launched floating lanterns on the pond to signify the journeys they began into the wider world in May 2020.
Class of 2020 CELEBRATION
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Class of 2020 celebrants gather on the Senior Path for the first time since the winter of their senior year. Photo: Defining Studios
Greeting each other with embraces and delighted smiles, members of the class gathered for an afternoon of fun, celebration, and tradition. The classmates caught up with each other and with faculty members who stopped by to see them in Grubbs Quadrangle during the afternoon’s festivities and a casual dinner.
Two years after the pandemic cut short their senior year on campus and necessitated a virtual graduation ceremony, the Loomis Chaffee Class of 2020 reunited on the Island on June 4.
In keeping with a treasured tradition usually observed on the day before Commencement, the class members climbed up into
LEFT: Lily Tapsoba, Cate Hughes, and Ambrozine Daring. BELOW: Eric Gua man and Noah Weiss Photos: Defining Studios
the Founders Hall cupola to sign their names, see the signatures of generations of their predecessors, and enjoy the spectacular view. They also toured new and renovated spaces on campus, including the John D. and Alexandra C. Nichols Center for Theater and Dance. Class members said visiting the theater green room named for Marahyah “Richie” Richardson ’19, who died in 2020, was especially poignant and meaningful.
Game Day
Students celebrated the last day of classes at the annual extravaganza that is Springfest, featuring bounce-house games, four-square volleyball, a slip ’n slide, live music, snow cones, and other games and treats on Sellers Field.
Photo: Jessica Ravenelle
Junior Sofia Mansilla created a French comic book that school children in Senegal are now reading. Titled Félix Holmes et Le Mystère du Mille-Pattes (Felix Holmes and the Mystery of the Millipede), Sofia wrote and illustrated the book in 2021 and attracted the interest of ADIFLOR, an organization that promotes reading and makes books more accessible in Francophone countries in Africa and Eastern Europe. Sofia worked with ADIFLOR to adapt the book to the e-reader device that the organization uses to provide books to school children.
Reem Aweida-Parsons, a teacher in the History, Philosophy & Re ligious Studies Department, was chosen by the Student Council as the 2022 Teacher of the Year. The Student Council chooses a recipient each year based on nominating essays from students. Announcing the honor at the all-school Awards Assembly in May, Student Council President Evan Caulfield shared several student comments from the nominations of Reem. One student wrote that Reem is an “energetic and engaging teacher who cares about you as both a student and a human being.” An
Ten faculty and staff members marked 20 years on the Island this spring. They are housekeeper Edgar Almodóvar, English Department
The Student Council hosted its annual Benefit Concert in March, raising money to support Come Back Alive, an organization whose mission is to supply technology, training, and needed supplies to help save lives of Ukraini ans. More than two dozen students performed in the concert.
BENEFIT CONCERT
To Be Free, a one-man-show, written, directed, and acted by junior Nathan Ko, premiered to a packed house of Loomis Chaffee faculty and students in May in the new Black Box Theater in the John D. and Alexandra C. Nichols Center for Theater and Dance. “Dealing with the themes of climate change, politics, and the desire to be free, To Be Free tells the story of the inner conflicts of a U.S. senator and his son and their struggles with the idea of freedom,” according to Nathan’s summary of the show. A standing-room-only crowd of more than 85 students and faculty attended the perfor mance.
other student wrote that Reem has changed how they view education “both inside and outside the classroom. She always makes me smile and knows how to make learning fun regardless of whether you are having a good day or a bad one.”
THAT’S ABSOLUTELY BRILLIANT!
MILLIPEDE MYSTERY
During a “Take Action Celebration,” the par ticipants planted fringed sedge grass, a native wetland plant, on the banks of the Cow Pond in the Meadows. The plants will help to remove toxins, such as heavy metal, from the water.
24 Loomis Chaffee Magazine Summer 2022 Island News
Faculty & Staff News
Thirteen members of the Class of 2022 earned Global & Environmental Studies Certificates, a special designation on their diplomas that recognizes their multi-year commitment to broadening their global and environmental awareness and striving to address issues related to these topics. Each recipient also completed a capstone project this year and assembled an online portfolio of their work.
Student dancers and choreographers show cased their year’s work in the Spring Dance Revue in May. Solos, duets, trios, and larger groups performed 26 pieces in a variety of dance styles, including contemporary, hip hop, jazz, tap, and flamenco. Students choreo graphed 14 of the pieces, and nine others were created collaboratively in dance courses and groups under dance teacher Kate Loughlin’s direction. The LC Step Team performed several pieces choreographed by faculty member Petagay Rowe ’95, who advises the group. Student musicians and dancers also per formed collaborations of live orchestral music and dance. Held in the Norris Ely Orchard Theater in the John D. and Alexandra C. Nich ols Center for Theater and Dance, this year’s Spring Dance Revue was the first indoor dance performance since the onset of the pandemic in 2020.
BLACK BOX DEBUT
C. Nichols Center for Theater and Dance. The Senior Projects program each year engages a selected group of seniors in self-designed, independent learning exercises for their last two weeks on the Island, with a goal of inspir ing their creativity, innovation, passion, and self-discovery.
DANCE REVUE
TAKE ACTION CELEBRATION
SENIOR PROJECTS
Ten seniors engaged in intensive indepen dent projects during the last two weeks of classes this spring. Andrew Park created a machine that can intake waste created from 3D printing, melt it, and recycle it into filament that can be used again for 3D printing. Hazel Le and Aidan Cooper created a handbook and lesson plans for teachers to integrate gender, sexuality, and consent dialogue into their class materials. Emma Dear made designs for small businesses in the local area that need strategic branding and logos. Isabella Jiang researched terminal diseases and mental illnesses and composed music expressing the emotions of patients going through these struggles. Justin Wu and John Sihn developed a course on modern Asian history. Lillie Szemraj photographed nebulae, galaxies, and the sun then shared her findings with an Astronomy class. Jasper Gitlitz and Kate Shymkiv wrote, produced, and performed a play in the Black Box Theater of the new John D. and Alexandra
• History teacher Rick Taylor received the Austin Wicke Prize. Established in memory of Austin by his parents, the prize is awarded each year to a faculty member of less than 10 years of service who has demonstrated dedication to the discipline of teaching and commitment to fostering the growth and development of young people.
Head Stephen Colgate, Thomas Denno of the Physical Plant, science teacher and Associate Director of the Alvord Center Jeffrey Dyreson, Director of Digital Communications Mary Coleman Forrester, Da tabase Manager Patricia Loomis of the Alumni/Development Office, Information Technology Technician Gary Masamery, math teacher Stu Remensnyder, science teacher Ewen Ross, and Senior Associate Director of Admission Elizabeth Stewart
loomischaffee.org 25 Island News
• The Cutler Faculty Chair went to mathematics and science teacher, Palmer Hall dorm head, and boys varsity swimming and diving coach Elizabeth Bucceri ’07.
Faculty & Staff News
• Science teacher and Associate Director of Innovation Jen nine Solomon was awarded a Palmer Fellowship, a multiyear grant for curricular and professional development. The Keller and MacLean families established the Palmer Fel lowships in honor of former faculty members Ann and Keith Palmer to recognize superb teaching at Loomis Chaffee, with the specific goal of fostering innovative pedagogy.
Current and former faculty made up a happy contingent of Pelican guests at the May wedding of Jake DeConinck ’07 and Sarah Wheeler in Narragansett, Rhode Island. Jake, who grew up on campus, is the son of faculty members Ginny and Bob DeConinck and the brother of Chris DeConinck ’07. Ginny is the standardized testing coordinator and an administrative assistant in College Guidance. Bob is associate director of studies, dorm head of Richmond Hall, and head coach of the girls varsity swimming and diving team. Pictured are math and science teacher Liz Bucceri ’07, retired English teacher Fred Seebeck , Kevin Fitzpatrick ’07, Katie Shushtari Fitzpatrick ’07, faculty members Molly and Ed Pond , psychology teacher Mimi Donegan, former dorm head Deidre Dyreson, Ginny, science teacher Jeffrey Dyreson, the groom, Director of Studies Tim Lawrence, Chris, Paige Bray (Law rence), the bride, retired English teacher Jeffrey Scanlon ’79, retired staff member Vicky Scanlon, Dean of Students Michael Donegan, and
HistoryBob.
• Mathematics Department Head Lauren Riva was named to the Clark Foundation Instructorship in Mathematics.
• Physics teacher, water polo coach, and former dorm head Edward Pond received the Lena M. Chen M.D. ’87 Faculty Prize for Mentoring. Created in 2020 by her family in loving memory of Lena, the annual award honors a faculty member who excels as a mentor to students.
• History teacher and school archivist Karen Parsons was presented with the Distinguished Teaching Award in honor of Dom Failla. Named for Dom, a former longtime philos ophy teacher, the award recognizes an outstanding teacher with more than 10 years of service to the school.
Faculty members who departed the school for other ventures at the end of the academic year included economics teacher Mat DeNun zio, science teacher Catherine Dunlavey ’13, English teacher Pierce Ellinwood , Latin teacher and Batchelder dorm head Jackson Fleming, head of the Visual Arts Department Jennifer McCandless, English teacher and Kravis Center faculty member Miles Morgan, science teacher Dave Samuels, College Counselor Jed Stuart, English teacher Andrew Watson, and English teacher Chiara White-Mink . History and economics teacher Alexander McCandless departed at the end of the winter term.
Several faculty prizes and honors were announced at the annual Community Honors celebration in June:
teacher Rick Taylor and his wife, former faculty member Emily Cranshaw Taylor, welcomed daughter Marlowe Frances Taylor on June 20. She joins her big sister, Olive, in the family.
• Service to the School Awards were presented to eight em ployees: Campus Safety Officer Michael Begley, house keeper Jeff Eades, groundskeeper Eric Gustafson, James Jubrey of the Physical Plant, Associate Director of Athletics and head varsity baseball coach Donald McKillop, Dean of International Students and history teacher Molly Pond , Di rector of Alumni & Parent Relations Lisa Ross, and Head of Physical Therapy and varsity girls basketball head coach Adrian Stewart ’90.
26 Loomis Chaffee Magazine Summer 2022 Island News P ELICAN S PORTS
GodlewskiStanPhoto:
Photos: Stan Godlewski
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BASEBALL GLORY
The varsity baseball team capped off a great season by winning the inaugural Founders League Tournament title in May in front of an ecstatic home crowd at Sellers Field. The Pelicans, under head coach Donnie McKillop, defeated Avon Old Farms 5-3 in the championship game.
28 Loomis Chaffee Magazine Summer 2022 321 VARSITY RECORDS BASEBALL 18-2 Founders League Tournament Champion BOYS GOLF 9-10 GIRLS GOLF 10-5-3 Founders League Championship, 2nd Place BOYS LACROSSE 8-9 Founders League Tournament Semifinalist GIRLS LACROSSE 9-7 Founders League Tournament Semifinalist SOFTBALL 10-5 Western New England Tournament Quarterfinalist BOYS TENNIS 10-6 GIRLS TENNIS 3-6 BOYS TRACK & FIELD 7-2 Founders League Champion Division I New England Championship, 4th Place GIRLS TRACK & FIELD 9-1 Founders League Champion Division I New England Championship, 3rd Place GIRLS WATER POLO 10-2 New England Tournament Semifinalist 4 4321
Senior Cam Miranda Junior Daisy Xu Freshman Sydney Huttner Junior Olivia Beauvois
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Junior Drew Biller Freshman Trey Dodd Senior Pilar Wingle
910
Sophomore Eli Velepec Junior Sophie Powless Sophomore Orion Browne
farther-flung domestic trips that are slated to resume next spring after a two-year, pandem ic-induced hiatus. The school’s Alvord Center for Global & Environmental Studies, which marks its 10th anniversary this year, organiz es the travel programs as part of its broader mission to develop globally and environmen tally engaged leaders in the Loomis student community.It’snotnecessary to travel halfway around the world to encounter cultures, heritage, and landscapes that offer lessons about a place, explains Marley Matlack, the Christopher H. Lutz Director of the Alvord Center. Nor is it necessary to fly to a far-away locale to see poverty or delve into environmental challeng es, experiences that also inform place-based learning and offer opportunities for engaged citizenship.Byallaccounts — including personal sto ries, journal entries, photo and video chron icles, and blog posts along the way — the 41 participants in the Close to Home trips in June gleaned powerful lessons and profound insights while also simply having a blast.
On Summer Trips with the Alvord Center, Students Explore the Connecticut River, the Adirondacks, and Buzzards Bay
On the morning of June 8, 13 Loomis Chaffee students and two faculty members hiked along the U.S.-Canadian border to visit a pond that forms the headwaters of the Connecticut River and to embark on a 10-day journey, mostly by canoe, to the river’s mouth on Long Island Sound.Onthat same morning, 14 other students and their faculty leaders explored the docks and commercial fishing vessels of New Bed ford, Massachusetts, the first stop on the group’s nine-day adventure to discover iden tity, diversity, and sense of place on Buzzards Bay.Meanwhile, a third group of 14 students roamed the ruins of a fort on Lake George and learned about local place names as they and three faculty leaders started the first full day of their week of exploration and leader ship-building in the Adirondack Mountains of New York state.
BY Becky Purdy
CloseHometo
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The three simultaneous trips pioneered an expansion of the school’s educational travel programs to include “Close to Home” adventures along with the international and
PHOTOGRAPH BY Marley Matlack
The Northeast Kingdom and Con necticut River trip focused on the sense of place created by the river and the importance of the river’s watershed.Thegroup spent the first few days of the trip based in Averill, Vermont, a stone’s throw from the Canadian border. “Our favorite part of the day was hiking along the Canadian border to the 4th Connecticut Lake,” wrote rising junior Sofia Rincón and rising senior Will Howley in a post on the trip’s blog. “We thought the lake was cool because it is the official start of the Connecticut River, which we interact with every day at Loomis and at our respective homes in Glaston bury, Connecticut. The trail was quite muddy and rocky, and we tripped a couple of times, but we thoroughly enjoyed the adventure! Now that we have seen where the river starts, we can’t wait to continue our journey along the river to gain a greater per spective.”Inthose initial days, the students considered a variety of perspectives on the river’s importance and impact. They visited a fish and wildlife refuge, discussed environmental stakeholder analysis with a Dartmouth professor, met an elder of the Abenaki people to consider an indigenous view of environmental efforts, and enjoyed a sunset poetry reading by Matt Miller,
From Headwaters to the Sound: The Connecticut River
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PHOTOGRAPHS BY Marley Matlack
LEFT: Rising junior Sofia Rincón and rising senior Elliot Shani navigate the waters.
RIGHT: At the end of the second day of paddling, the tents are set up at the Lyman Falls Campsite in Bloomfield, Vermont.
The group packs their canoes and prepares for a 16-mile day of paddling.
RIGHT: On day three on the river, the travelers enjoy the perfect spot for a picnic lunch and swim in Maidstone, Vermont.
RIGHT: Sunset on the Connecticut River
Hammocks are a campsite luxury after a day on the river.
author of Tender the River, a collection of poems about the Merrimack River Valley of New Hampshire and northern Massachusetts. They also mountain biked in the pouring rain, plunged into the cold waters of Forest Lake, made camp fires, listened to loons, and geared up for their six-day canoe trip.
LEFT: The Cow Pond is the back drop for the final night of camping at the journey's end.
LEFT: Rising senior Sandro Mocciolo paddles on the Connecticut River in Vermont.
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sophomore Brighton McMahon and rising junior Duhee Lee along with a drawing of Brighton and rising senior Bridget Hickey setting up hammocks at the campsite.
Pushing off from the riverbank in Cole brook, New Hampshire, on the first day of their river journey, the group paddled to Lyman Falls, where they camped for the night. “12 miles, 4 sets of rapids, 2 rainstorms, 1 bald eagle, 0 cell phones, and 13 happy students!” the day’s blog post“Everyonereported.became a lot closer today, facing challenges together,” wrote rising
Over the following five days, the stu dents, faculty, and their river guide pad dled another 63 miles on the Connecti cut, camping along the way and stopping at various points to meet with a wildlife photographer; learn about wastewater treatment in Hanover, New Hampshire; and speak with the director of the Con necticut River Conservancy in Holyoke, Massachusetts.Thestudents were able to learn about the landscape as they canoed through it, says Marley, who was one of the faculty leaders on the trip, along with Myunggyo
the canoe and getting better at it,” Laura and Alex continued. “To prove this point, no one has capsized today! Our challeng es today were keeping it consistent while paddling and staying with the group. We are excited to paddle 21 miles tomorrow and getting closer to Loomis. We are determined to achieve our goals.”
The students write and draw in their journals around the campire at Lyman Falls Campsite.
On the final paddling day, the group canoed the 10 miles from their campsite on King’s Island in Suffield, Connecticut, to the familiar Meadows at Loomis Chaf fee. They pitched their tents next to the Cow Pond for their last night together, and the next morning, the group drove to Old Lyme, Connecticut, where the river empties into Long Island Sound. Com pleting their journey, they reflected on what they had experienced and learned before bidding farewell to each other until the fall.
Kim. Passing by farmland, wilderness, small towns, and rural settlements, they discovered the multitude of connections between the river and life in and around it, including both the people and the ea gles, herons, fish, and other wildlife they encountered.“Welearned the importance of leaving no trace on the beach when we got rid of any traces of fire. We learned to be respectful of private lands of farmers and camping with their generosity,” wrote rising sophomore Laura Phyu and rising senior Alex Ahn in the trip journal entry for June 12. “After running out of fresh water, we learned the different ways of purifying water,” they noted.
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Through the physical and teamwork challenges of the trip, the students also made discoveries about themselves. “We are all mastering our different strokes on
The students spent much of their time on the waterfront, where they witnessed a seafood auction, toured commercial fishing boats, learned about the changing workforce in the
The Buzzards Bay trip touched on many of the same themes as the Con necticut River program but through a different lens. In partnership with the school’s Center for Diversity, Equity & Inclusion, the Alvord Center designed the Buzzards Bay itinerary to focus on identity and how it creates a sense of place. The trip leaders, Courtney Jackson and Stacy-Ann “Ro” Rowe ’97, both are faculty members in the Center for Diversity, Equity & Inclu sion along with their teaching and other roles at the school.
Power of Place: Buzzards Bay and Martha’s Vineyard
Beginning with several days in New Bedford, the top fishing port in the United States and a city known for the ethnic and racial diversity of its residents, the group learned about the commercial fishing industry, vis ited historical and cultural sites, and experienced some of the rich mix of cultures in the city. A capital of the whaling industry in the 19th century, New Bedford has attracted immi grants for hundreds of years. More than half of the city’s population is of Portuguese descent, and the city also has significant Puerto Rican, Domin ican, Polish, and French-Canadian communities, among others.
PHOTOGRAPHS BY Stacy-Ann Rowe ’97
TOP LEFT: During a visit to Woods Hole, Massachusetts, the group learns about the impact of climate change on Buzzards Bay and explores the Coonamessett River Restoration project with Christopher Neill, senior scientist at the Woodwell Climate Research Center. TOP RIGHT: Rising senior Rebecca Fowler, Aquinnah Wampanoag tribe elder Kristina, and rising senior Rene Russell on Martha’s Vineyard. ABOVE: Rene, Rebecca, rising seniors Mattie Wright and Sophia Prendergast, and rising junior Lauren Patterson enjoy the group’s sunset cruise off Oak Bluffs, Martha’s Vineyard, an adventure that elicited jokes and laughter as the students watched their peers take turns steering the boat.
loomischaffee.org 35 Island News
“I was really grateful that we got the opportunity to meet with an organiza tion [that works] with immigrants in the area and helps them find jobs, along with dozens of other things they need help
final full day in the city, the group delved into the Black history of the area, taking a tour with the New Bed ford Historical Society, visiting a house where Frederick Douglass lived, touring an underground railroad site, and joining a drum circle at the Cape Verde Commu nity Center. “We also learned about the 54th regiment. It was a [Civil War infan try regiment] that enlisted Black men, and we saw their representation through murals, statues, and a park,” wrote rising juniors Jazmyne Ahipeaud and Lauren Patterson in their blog entry for the day.
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“I enjoyed learning about the inner workings of a fish auction, especially watching one in real time,” wrote rising senior Maggie Hamel in the trip blog. “I also had a great time learning how to sail with my friends!”
After their adventures in New Bed
The group shared an outdoor meal with Aquinnah Wampanoag elder Kristina (seated third from right) at Orange Peel Bakery, a native-owned business, where they ate fresh fish and other traditional dishes prepared in an outdoor oven, seen behind the group.
A food tour of the city was a major hit with the students, who raved about the variety of foods they tried, from stuffed clams to Cape Verdean dishes.
with,” wrote rising sophomore Phoenix Ahipeaud.Ontheir
city, and took sailing lessons for firsthand experience at navigating ocean waters — or at least the harbor. They also explored the New Bedford Whaling Museum, learned about support for im migrants and other residents at a com munity economic development organi zation, and ate dinner at a local seafood restaurant, where the owner discussed the restaurant’s mission of sustainability.
me in the way it did,” wrote ris ing sophomore Zack Donohue in a blog post at the end of the day. “I felt a connection with Kristina that cannot be described with words. Very rarely, if ever, have I walked away from an interaction a different man. I do not know how to describe it, but Kristina’s words changed“Listeningme.”to Kristina tell stories and give advice during our IN CREDIBLE dinner was a one-of-akind experience, and I’m very hap py to have met her,” wrote rising senior Mattie EnvironmentalWright.issues were the focus on the group’s final full day on Martha’s Vineyard. The students spent the morning volunteering with and learning about Island Grown Initiative, a local program that works to provide affordable, locally-grown food in the commu nity. The students helped to sort food at a food pantry and gleaned strawberries at a local farm. (Gleaning is the practice of har vesting produce that a farm, for a variety of reasons, is not planning to sell.) After volunteering, the stu dents took a cooking class togeth
On one particularly ac tion-packed day, the travelers further learned about Black history on the island as they explored the African American Heritage Trail, visited the town of Oak Bluffs, and conversed with heritage trail staff and the vice president of the Martha’s Vineyard NAACP. Later that same day, they delved into the history of the Wampanoag tribe, spending time at a cultural center in the town of Aquinnah and shar ing a traditional indigenous dinner with Wampanoag elder Kristina Hook, whose stories and advice made a strong impression.
FAR LEFT: The students learn to sail on Buzzards Bay off the coast of New Bedford, Massachusetts. NEAR LEFT: The group was fascinated to climb aboard Lagoda, a half-scale model of a whaling bark, at the New Bedford Whaling Museum. BOT TOM: The students and their faculty leaders tour a working scallop boat in New Bedford harbor after witnessing a scallop auction and walking through the auction house.
A spectacular sunset welcomed the travelers to the island, and they checked in to a hostel in the village of OverMenemsha.thenext four days, the group learned about the history of Martha’s Vineyard, including its Black and indigenous history, and about environmental and food issues on the island. A Martha’s Vineyard Historical Society muse um visit, walking tour, and sunset cruise introduced the students to the variety of cultural and environ
ford, the group traveled to Woods Hole, Massachusetts, where they visited a climate research center and learned about an environ mental restoration project on the Coonamessett River. Then they loaded onto a ferry and departed for Martha’s Vineyard, where they would spend the rest of their trip.
“Kristina shared wisdom with me that I never thought could touch
mental influences on the island and the roles of the whaling industry and the treacherous seas in Mar tha’s Vineyard history.
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er, making spring rolls for lunch. The group enjoyed another stun ning sunset on their last evening on Martha’s Vineyard. “I couldn’t have asked for a better way to end the day with picking and then making our own dinner, [eating] ice cream and watching the sunset on the beach. I am so grateful for this trip and the people I have grown closer to,” wrote rising senior So phiaThePrendergast.studentsand their faculty leaders alike described the Buz zards Bay and Martha’s Vineyard trip as a powerful experience. “We focused on the ‘Power of Place’ on this trip, so the activities and itinerary focused on everything from people being displaced, living off of the land, trying to hold onto one’s culture and language, food, environmental issues, and simply connecting with others. Every day brought a deeper understanding of the people and the land that we were privileged enough to visit,” Ro wrote on the blog at the end of theRo,trip.who coordinated the trip blog, was surprised by many of the student participants’ entries. “What I believed to be the activity that everyone would write about as their favorite of the day was not always accurate. It was great to see which aspects of the trip really had an impact on each person,” she reflected.
TOP LEFT: Carrie Camilo Tankard, an Oak Bluffs resident and vice president of the Martha’s Vineyard NAACP, and faculty member Stacy-Ann “Ro” Rowe ’97 pause during a walk on the Martha’s Vineyard African American Heritage Trail, where the group saw houses and historic markers honoring Black history on the island.
TOP RIGHT: The students join local children for an outdoor yoga session in New Bedford. BOTTOM LEFT: The travelers participate in a Cape Verdean drum circle as part of a cultural exploration of the New Bedford community. BOTTOM RIGHT: Rising senior Sophia Prendergast makes a new goat friend at the Farm Institute of Martha’s Vineyard, where the students harvested greens and took a “cooking for climate change” class, preparing spring rolls for their dinner and leaving the scraps for the farm animals.
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Home base for the trip was a lake side YMCA retreat center in Silver Bay, New York. But before leaving Loomis Chaffee for their Adirondack adventures, the group engaged in a place-based learning activity on cam pus to prepare for similar activities
Leadership Learning: The Adirondack Mountains and Lake George
PHOTOGRAPHS BY Lillian Corman
TOP: A double rainbow greeted the students over Lake George. BOTTOM PHOTOS: Al Freihofer ’69 treats his guests to rides in his 102-year-old boat on Lake George during the group's visit to Al's home on the lake.
The third Close to Home trip this summer brought 14 students — all girls — and three faculty members to the shores of Lake George in the Adirondack Mountains of New York. Leadership development was the fo cus of the six-day experience, and the success of the all-girls trip “proved the power behind a sisterhood,” the faculty leaders wrote at the trip’s conclusion. “Fourteen students, not all friends, came together and worked through their own group dynamics … in a variety of different settings. Not to mention, too, the opportunity they had to just be kids, which they often don’t get the chance to do in our busy schedules back on the Island.”
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The Alvord Center organized the trip in partnership with the school’s Norton Family Center for the Com mon Good. Matt Kammrath, the Keller Family Director of the Norton Center, and Lillian Corman, the Norton Cen ter’s associate director, led the trip along with Dean of Students Michael Donegan. The inaugural director of the Norton Center, Al Freihofer ’69, also made a cameo appearance.
during the trip. The students exam ined the history of the school and the surrounding land and learned about indigenous tribes that lived on the land before the Loomis family settled there. In the context of this history, they discussed the significance of place names and the importance of leadership.
A white-water rafting excursion awaited the students the following day. While chasing the rapids and enjoying the scenery, the students and faculty also talked about the name of the Indian River on which they were rafting and how it could be Afterrenamed.their rafting adventures, the group visited Al Freihofer and his partner, Peg McCarty, at their lakeside house. “Al and Peggy spoiled us with boat rides on Lake George in a 102-year-old boat, a homemade dinner, and porch con versations,” the trip blog reported.
After the long drive and their first overnight at Silver Bay, the students spent a morning with Pete Nelson, a North Country Community College professor and a co-founder of the Adirondack Diversity Initiative, a local orga nization that works to make the Adirondacks a more welcoming and inclusive place for residents and“Wevisitors.built off yesterday’s lesson about the importance of place names in leadership by visiting the ruins of Fort St. Frederic at Crown
Al Freihofer ’69 and his partner, Peg McCarty, hosted the group for a homemade dinner, boat rides, and porch conversation at their home on Lake George.
Point and by presenting our find ings about the true name of Mount Marcy,” rising seniors Avery Martin and Karly Saliba reported in their blog entry for the day. “We discov ered that indigenous tribes, espe cially the Mohawk, occupied the area before many people originally thought. Although this mountain is now named after William Marcy, the state governor at the time, it was originally called Tewawe’estha, meaning Cloud Splitter. Through our conversations, we learned about equity and empathy in lead ership.”Thegroup followed up the morning of exploration and discus sion with a mindfulness exercise on a labyrinth at Silver Bay. “Mindful ness helps leaders be calm in the face of problems — which we soon found out! After pizza, we head ed downtown to an escape room,”
wrote rising seniors Madison Oh and Ellie Abrams. The teamwork, problem-solving, and creativity re quired to “escape” from the roomsized puzzles helped the students identify their strengths and weak nesses, practice their leadership skills, and have fun.
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Rain? What rain? Rock-jumping added to the fun of white-water rafting in the Hudson River Gorge.
NEAR RIGHT: The group’s evening at Al Freihofer’s home was also an occasion to celebrate 10 years of the Norton Family Center for the Common Good with Al, the inaugural director of the center. Pictured are Dean of Students Mike Donegan, Norton Center Asso-ciate Director Lillian Corman, Keller Family Di- rector of the Norton Center Matt Kammrath, and Al.
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TOP LEFT: Josie Foley, Hana Bois, Karly Saliba, Avery Martin, and Loden Schweizer, and faculty leader Matt Kammrath begin their white-water rafting adventure. TOP RIGHT: Madison Oh, Avery Martin, and Ellie Abrams enjoy an evening on Lake George. MIDDLE RIGHT: Inari Barrett and Delaney Denno like their stern seats on the 102-year-old boat owned by Al Freihofer ’69.
“While reflecting under a beautiful double rainbow, we realized how valuable it is to slow down and ad mire the world around you.”
In the ensuing days, the students participated in a mixture of ac tive outdoor challenges and more introspective lessons and activities. They hiked, did trail work for the Lake George Land Conservancy, navigated a low ropes course at Silver Bay, and braved a high ropes course. Insights into leadership and community-building emerged as the students reflected — often around campfires or in camp chairs looking out on Lake George — on all of the group activities. After navigating the high ropes course, rising senior Hana Bois reflected, “I thought it would be much less
leadership style based on whether her personal characteristics de fined her most as a “harmonizer,” “driver,” “energizer,” or “analyzer.” The students discovered that no single leadership type is best, as rising juniors Liv Dunlea and Elena Higgins noted in their June 10 blog entry: “We learned about how dif ferent leadership styles are import ant and bring different skills that balance each other.”
The faculty chaperones looked back on the trip with pride in the students’ good work and person
After six days of adventure and discovery, the group packed up and loaded into their Loomis Chaf fee “toaster” — a term of endear ment for the school’s mini-buses — for the drive back to the Island.
teamwork compared to the low ropes course. After, I realized it was not an individual activity and we worked together. Working our way through levels one to four was difficult at times. We needed to recognize when others were strug gling and needed help.”
As they considered what worked and what didn’t work in the group’s efforts to overcome challenges, they practiced key skills such as offering and receiving constructive criticism, perceiving group dynam ics, and resolving conflicts. And they discussed the importance of both leadership and followership and the different approaches to theseOneroles.fireside exercise helped each student identify her own
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Loden Schweizer and Hana Bois place new trail markers on trees for the Lake George Land Conservancy.
OPPOSITE PAGE: The group tackles the Spider Web challenge at the low ropes course at Silver Bay. BELOW: Hana Bois, Loden Schweizer, and Avery Martin traverse the high ropes course at Adirondack Extreme Adventure Course in Bolton Landing, New York.
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al growth. “These 14 rising juniors and seniors were already qualified to lead and to follow with pur pose,” they wrote. “Now, though, with some more introspection and intentional reflection and group discussion, we are confident that they will return to campus in the fall ready to serve our community and leave behind a legacy from which their peers will benefit.”
The Alvord Center plans to resume its international education programs in the coming year, but, based on the success of the sum mer’s Close to Home trips, Marley says the center also hopes to in corporate more domestic programs among the future offerings. After all, adventure and discovery are just a toaster ride away.
Island News
BY Matt Ruffle PHOTOGRAPHS BY Jessica CassandraRavanelleHamer
Budding scientists, leaders, communitybuilders, actors, poets, athletes, changemakers. These attributes begin to describe the Loomis Chaffee Class of 2022. For a closer look, we introduce you to seven of these newest alumni and ask what led them to the Island, what they learned in their classes and about themselves, and what lies on their horizons.
loomischaffee.org 45 Island News Seven
Seniors
EXTRACURRICULARS
College-level English IV: Shakespeare; Collegelevel English IV: Satire; College-level English IV: Contemporary Literature; College-level Multivariable Calculus; College-level Physics II; College-level Astrophysics; College-level History: Seminar in Immigration and Ethnicity; Computer Science Independent Study
J. Newfield Senior Science Prize; Junior Science Award
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Equestrian Team; Girls Track & Field; Physics and Astronomy Club President
ACCOLADES
SENIOR COURSES
NEXT YEAR Princeton University
HOMETOWN Northbrook, Illinois
Lillie Szemraj
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Lillie improved considerably as an eques trian athlete in her years on the team. “We have wonderful coaches in the barn that support and help us to achieve our goals. When I came here, I could jump cross rails (a jump with two poles that form an “x” shape) but I moved up to three-foot rails, which is a dramatic difference when you ride. I have been able to grow so much as a rider, and in my final show as a senior, I won first place.”
Reflecting on her time on the Island, Lillie says she was able to be herself. “Loomis caused me to grow as a person and helped me to develop into a leader, which allowed me to share my passions with the communi ty.”
Even before Lillie enrolled at Loomis, she felt comfortable on campus. She became fa miliar with the Island when her older sisters, Kalina Szemraj ’19 and Emilie Szemraj ’16, were students, but Lillie says she also felt a connection of her own to the school. “When I visited, it really felt like home. I loved the emphasis on science, history, and writing, and I wanted to challenge myself,” she says.
Outside of the classroom, Lillie gravitated
As someone who loves to gaze at the stars, it’s only natural that Lillie Szemraj’s favorite place on the Loomis Chaffee campus would be in the Meadows. Lillie would often go there to sit during the day and watch the sky at night. “There is a little bench out in the fields that’s beautiful in the fall” she says. “This past year, I also brought my telescopes there at night.”
Lillie’s interest in the night sky drew her to the study of astrophysics at Loomis, and in her senior year, as president of the Phys ics and Astronomy Club, she found and scheduled astrophysicists from colleges and universities around the United States to share their wisdom with students and staff members during “Evening of Science” pro grams. She also incorporated her passion for astronomy into her senior project where she studied the stars, creating a presentation, “In theHerStarlight.”academic interests extended well beyond the sciences, however. “One class I loved was my CL [College-Level] U.S. Histo ry class with Mr. [Harrison] Shure,” she says. Lillie took the class in her junior year, during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, so classes were online for part of the year. But even over Zoom, Lillie and her classmates bonded. “We had very intense discussions about history, and Mr. Shure encouraged us to express our ideas, and we had interest ing discussion prompts as well,” she recalls. “When we were in person, it was even more amazing. It felt like a family because we all supported each other.”
to the school’s equestrian program, a sport with which she had some previous experi ence. “Even though it’s an individual sport, the team really encouraged each other and created such a team atmosphere that it real ly felt like we competed together,” she says. “I love being around horses, and the eques trian team was a great way for me to relax. It’s challenging because the horse has feel ings and emotions too, and you must create a bond with the animal that you’re riding.”
College-Level Statistics; College-Level English IV: The Harlem Renaissance; English IV: The Graphic Novel; English IV: Voices of Dissent; Spanish IV; Ceramics; Introduction to Economics; Macroeconomics; Microeconomics; Topics in Ethical Theory; Middle East: History of Peace and Conflict; Developmental Psychology
NEXT YEAR
University of Connecticut
Corey Plummer
EXTRACURRICULARS
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Boys Track & Field; Boys Cross Country; Head Tour Guide; PRISM Co-President; Co-President of Brothers in Unity; Peer Mentor; Pelican Support Network Mentor
ACCOLADES
SENIOR COURSES
HOMETOWN Windsor, Connecticut
Nathaniel Horton Batchelder Prize, awarded at Commencement; Matthew Whitehead Award, in recognition of contributions to creating and supporting an inclusive community at Loomis Chaffee
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A Windsor resident, Corey has known about Loomis Chaffee for most of his life, and he admits that part of his reason for at tending Loomis was “convenience” since the Island is close to his home. What sealed the deal for him, though, was attending a revisit day for accepted students. “Interacting with students and faculty members, Loomis felt a lot more welcoming than the other schools that I visited,” he says.
“It’s great that students have a lot of op portunities to improve themselves through speaking at events,” he says. “Having those opportunities would not necessarily happen elsewhere.”Academically, Corey considers math and science his strongest fields of study, but he says English and writing are the areas where he grew most as a Loomis student. “I look back on my work as a freshman and think that some of the papers that I wrote were awful,” he reflects. “But my teachers always took the time outside of class to help me succeed. I scheduled a lot of one-to-one meetings with them, and all my teachers were open to helping me improve as a writer and a person.”
When he first came to the school, he says, he was a quiet student and was not comfort able getting up in front of a crowd of peo ple and speaking his mind. Now, leadership and speaking skills are two of his abilities that he values most. He says he developed these skills through his Loomis experiences.
The school will soon be a family affair for Corey as his younger sister, Lauren, will attend next year as a freshman. “She knows a lot of people on campus and feels very connected to the school already,” he says.
Running the Loop is one of Corey Plummer’s favorite things to do on the Island. A cap tain of the Loomis Chaffee boys track and field team and a standout 400-meter run ner, Corey says he finds traversing the Loop especially fun “when you run with a friend or two, listening to music, jogging and having a laugh.”Itfollows that Corey also loves being around people. A head tour guide, president of the student multicultural organization PRISM, president of Brothers in Unity, and a leader of the Pancake Society during his senior year, Corey thrives on meeting peo ple and feels comfortable talking in front of them. That was not always the case; his outgoing nature is a trait he discovered after entering Loomis as a freshman, and it took time for him to grow into a leader.
NEXT YEAR
College-Level French IV; College-Level Economics; College-Level Statistics; CollegeLevel English IV: Creative Writing; CollegeLevel English IV: Satire; College-Level English IV: The Harlem Renaissance; College-Level Biology II: Cell Biology; College-Level History Seminar: United States Immigration/ Ethnicity; Topics in Ethical Theory
Ammidon Prize, awarded at Commencement; Founders Prize
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University of Pennsylvania
HOMETOWN
ACCOLADES
Pilar Wingle
Farmington, Connecticut
SENIOR COURSES
EXTRACURRICULARS
Captain, Girls Water Polo; Captain, Girls Swimming & Diving; Captain, Girls Cross Country; Tour Guide, President of Pa’Lante; Marketing Director for Student Activities; Peer Mentor; Model U.N.
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Ask Pilar Wingle where she most likes to spend time on campus, and she will mention two precise spots: the Adirondack chairs in Rockefeller Quad and the shady grass under a Sycamore tree on the far side of the track. She associates both locations with commu nity.“It’s the idea of having the chairs in little circles outside,” she explains. “That is why I also like the big tree over by the track that we used as a meeting place for cross coun try. … It’s a place that a lot of people are drawnDrawingto.” people together is a recurring theme in Pilar’s Loomis Chaffee experi ence. Throughout her time on the Island, she worked to bring people together, as the president of the Pa’lanté affinity group, as co-vice-president of the Student Council, as captain of three varsity sports in her senior year, and as an Alvord Center Global & Envi ronmental Studies Certificate earner.
Representation also is important to Pilar. “I came from a school where there was no conversation about race and identity,” she says. “I have grown in the last four years by coming into who I am and recognizing my ownAnidentity.”international education program through the school provided a springboard for Pilar’s personal growth.“I went to Peru with the Alvord Center [for Global & En vironmental Studies] when I was in 10th grade and felt like I belonged there in Latin America,” she reflects. “When I came back, I sought leadership in Pa’lante.”
Loomis Chaffee’s emphasis on balance in life attracted Pilar to the school, and she was not disappointed. “We are a school that values students who can do a lot of things well. You can be so much more than just what you are good at,” she comments. “You are supported and valued by everything you choose to do.… The school encourages you to be Pilarmultidisciplinary.”sumsupherLoomis experience as a personal journey. “I’ve grown as a writer and a student in my formulation of who I am and my identity. I have a good understanding of who I am as a person and what my strengths and weaknesses are. Now I feel like I can look outward and ask, ‘How can I use college to find a way to improve the world?’”
She also saw an opportunity to further the Loomis community’s understanding of Latin America and its culture through changes in the school’s history curriculum, and last summer she helped to create a resource bank of sources on Latine culture to be used by the History, Philosophy, and Religious Studies Department.
SENIOR COURSES
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Cum Laude Society; Norris E. Orchard Senior English Prize; J. Newfield Senior Science Prize, Junior English Award
EXTRACURRICULARS Theater; I.D.E.A. Film Festival; Editor-in-Chief of The Loom
ACCOLADES
NEXT YEAR Amherst College
HOMETOWN Rutland, Vermont
Aidan Cooper
College-Level Statistics; Advanced Physics; College-Level English IV: Shakespeare; CollegeLevel English IV: The Harlem Renaissance; College-Level English IV: Creative Writing; College-Level History Seminar: Race in American History; Topics in Ethical Theory; College-Level Biology II: Microbiology; CollegeLevel Biology II: Cell Biology I; College-Level Biology II: Cell Biology II; Neuropsychology
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Being on stage is nothing new to Aidan Cooper. He has been a fixture in the Loomis Chaffee theater program since he arrived on theWhenIsland.he visited Loomis as a prospective student, one of the first places he stopped was the Norris Ely Orchard (NEO) Theater. “I walked into the NEO with my dad, and we talked with Mr. [David] McCamish [the theater director] for about 45 minutes,” he says. “I got a glimpse into life at Loomis... The connection felt natural.”
Aidan looks back on his Loomis expe rience and sees how much he has grown. “I can communicate my ideas, beliefs, and interpretations in a stronger way,” he says. “I have met a lot of great people, and I am coming out of Loomis with a better sense of myself than when I entered it.”
cryptic and metaphorical. This allows the audience to try to figure it out,” he explains. Aidan was chosen to read an excerpt from his essay on William Shakespeare’s A Mid summer Night’s Dream at this spring’s En glish Honors Tea.
As he gained confidence in his ability to express himself, Aidan also explored social issues that interested him. In a culminat ing endeavor, he and fellow senior Hazel Le worked together on a Senior Project during their last two weeks on campus. They cre ated a handbook and a series of lesson plans to help teachers integrate discussions of gender and sexuality into their curricu lum. “We did this to offer help to teachers because we think it’s a discussion worth having,” he says. Aidan and Hazel also orga nized a student discussion of their project to encourage other students to share their views and “feel empowered when these top ics do arise in the classroom.”
In Aidan’s three years on the Island, he played a prominent role in the Loomis Chaf fee Performing Arts Department productions of Macbeth, Antigonick, The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, The Love of Three Oranges, and Spamalot Loomis wasn’t all glamour and curtain calls for this talented, hard-working student, however. Spring term of 2020–21, his ju nior year, was difficult, he says. “There were moments where I was at my lowest. I was struggling with a class. I was not sleeping as much as I wanted to, and I was also in volved in the Putnam County Spelling Bee,” he says, referring to that spring’s musical theater production. The play had two casts that alternated performance days, and Aidan was the only junior in a cast that was other wise all seniors, students he had looked up to since coming to the Island. “What helped me move past that moment was listening to music,” he says.
Taking in the view of the Meadows from his favorite bench also brought Aidan peace of mind whenever he needed it. “I go there all the time to sit and listen to music and look out over the Meadows,” he says. “It is the most calming place. At the bench, I can just be and listen to myself.”
A gifted writer, Aidan received multi ple accolades for his prose and poetry at Loomis. He says he especially enjoys writing poetry. “I like being able to express myself in a way that is unique and vulnerable, but
Editor-In-Chief of The Log; Captain, Robotics Team; International Student Ambassador; Boys Track & Field; Boys Cross Country; Integrated Refugee & Immigrant Services Tutor
The Charles Henry and Mary Chaffee Willcox Prize, awarded at Commencement to the second scholar of the graduating class; Cum Laude Society; Norris E. Orchard Senior English Prize; Sara Ribicoff Senior Journalism Prize; Chéruy Modern and Classical Language Prize (Chinese); J. Newfield Senior Science Prize; Founders Prize; Junior English Award; Junior Mathematics Award; Junior Modern and Classical Languages Award (Chinese); Junior Science Award
EXTRACURRICULARS
College-Level Chinese V; College-Level Linear Algebra; College-Level English IV: Contemporary Literature; College-Level English IV: Satire; College-Level English IV: Creative Writing; College-Level Astrophysics; CollegeLevel Organic Chemistry II; Neuropsychology; Forensic Science; Science Independent Study: Quantum Mechanics
Harvard University
Andrew Park
NEXT YEAR
ACCOLADES
HOMETOWN Suwon, South Korea
SENIOR COURSES
54 Loomis Chaffee Magazine Summer 2022 Island News
A member of the robotics team since his sophomore year and a captain as a senior, Andrew also challenged himself in some of the school’s most advanced math and science courses. In addition to taking Col lege-Level Linear Algebra, College-Level Astrophysics, and College-Level Chemistry II this year, Andrew also completed a science independent project in quantum mechan ics. Astrophysics with Steve Stewart was his favorite class. "We learned ideas and equa tions that aren’t normally taught at the high school level,” he says.
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Andrew Park is in his element in the Pearse Hub for Innovation (PHI). Surrounded by tools made for brainstorming, creating, and inventing, his mind and his hands are in high gear. And no one is telling him what to do.
Andrew’s comfort in being alone was a benefit during the COVID-19 pandemic. He spent much of the 2020–21 academic year at home in South Korea, attending classes on line, but returned to campus this fall. “I am more of a social recluse, so quarantine was fine,” he says. “And masking was easier for
Along with that daunting course load, An drew served as an editor-in-chief of The Log this year, ran on the cross country team, and competed in the triple jump for the track and field team, among other pursuits.
Andrew’s journey to Loomis Chaffee was, by his own description, “unconventional.” He attended elementary schools in Bellev ue, Washington, while his family lived in the United States then attended middle school in South Korea when his family moved back there. His two older sisters, (Yujin “Rosie” Park ’18 and Yujung “Stacy” Park ’19), went to Loomis, and Andrew knew he wanted to be a part of the Loomis community when he was old enough to come here. Andrew says he has learned the importance of forming strong relationships with his classmates, coaches, advisors, and teachers, which is something he will take with him for the rest of his life.
The PHI gives him freedom “to do what I want here,” he says. “I also like this space because we have robotics in here, and I like to tinker and keep my hands busy.”
Despite his multitude of activities and wide circle of friends today, Andrew de scribes himself as being “antisocial” when he first arrived at Loomis. During his time on the Island, he says he “learned how to know people better and to be more outgoing and polite to others.” His role with The Log also helped him to grow as a leader. “I learned how to create strong relationships with peo ple and how to get them to do the work that needed to get done,” he reflects.
me, coming from Korea where many people wear masks because of the sand blowing in from the Gobi Desert.”
ACCOLADES
NEXT YEAR
Charles Edgar Sellers Faculty Prize, awarded on Class Night; Friends of Loomis Chaffee – Grubbs Prize; Social Science Prize; Cum Laude Society; Connecticut Prep Player of the Year for Boys Soccer; Founders Prize; Junior Physical Education Award
HOMETOWN Windsor, Connecticut
Will Cleary
Stanford University
College-Level Spanish V; College-Level Economics; College-Level Statistics; CollegeLevel Biology II: Genetics; Comparative Anatomy; Social Psychology; English IV: Stories of War; English IV: Voices of Dissent; English IV: Banned Books
EXTRACURRICULARS
SENIOR COURSES
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Captain, Varsity Boys Soccer; Varsity Boys Basketball; Varsity Boys Lacrosse; Tour Guide; Peer Mentor
“I have found that I am good at connect ing people and making the people around me better. In soccer, I help the people around me, and I like to do that in the classroom as well, by working in groups and collaborating with my classmates.”
Will Cleary has been a member of the Loomis Chaffee community for a long time. The son of Associate Director of Admission Nancy Cleary and math teacher Joe Cleary, Will has lived on the Island since the day he was born.
Despite living on the Island all his life, Will’s decision to attend Loomis as a student was not set in stone. “I got the sense from the students I spoke to before coming that the teachers really help students to really have balance in their lives,” he says. “Athletics are never more important than academics, but teachers understand when you have an event to go Playingto.”
communication skills, Will was able to grow in other areas. “Over my four years I have learned to take more risks and not worry about what other people might think,” he says. “I also enjoyed the diversity of Loomis and the variety of diverse backgrounds of the students here.”
three varsity sports was challeng ing at times for Will. He lists time manage ment and “figuring out schedules” as two of the most important things he learned as a student-athlete. He needed to learn to take advantage of and make the best use of the time he was given to get his work done; he reflects.Will’s
growth as a student was more than just learning to complete his work with a tight schedule. He also grew to feel more comfortable with subjects that were difficult for him. “Writing was such a huge challenge for me and used to take me a lot of time,” he says. But, with the help of now-retired English teachers Jeff Scanlon ’79 and Fred Seebeck, he was able to improve his writing. “I feel like I struggled as a writer when I first came here, but, because of their help, I was able to improve my writing and am now much more comfortable.”Inaddition to improving his writing and
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“All my role models were Loomis students when I was younger,” he says. He adds that being around the students and seeing them in plays, music performances, and athletic events over the years had a strong impact on Will. “I really idolized the students … but I also saw all the people that came to cheer and support the students.”
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
EXTRACURRICULARS
NEXT YEAR
HOMETOWN Lagos, Nigeria
ACCOLADES
Step Team; Robotics Team; Longman Leadership Institute (recently renamed the Chaffee Leadership Institute); Pelican Support Network Mentor; Managing Editor of The Log; International Student Ambassador; PRISM; Tour Guide; Community Engagement Program
SENIOR COURSES
Jennie Loomis Prize, awarded at Commencement; Norris E. Orchard Senior English Prize; Matthew Whitehead Award; Cum Laude Society; Founders Prize; Abraham Koppleman Junior History Award; Junior Modern and Classical Languages Award; Junior Science Award
College-Level EnglishIV: Shakespeare; CollegeLevel English IV: Creative Writing; CollegeLevel English IV: Contemporary Literature; College-Level Biology II: Molecular Biology; College-Level Multivariable Calculus; CollegeLevel Physics II; College-Level Computer Science; Innovation Trimester
Mercy Olagunju
58 Loomis Chaffee Magazine Summer 2022 Island News
Mercy Olagunju immersed herself in life on the Island from the moment she first stepped on campus four years ago. She dove into campus life, engaging in a full slate of activities in the dorms and in the class rooms. Taking on leadership roles as she grew from a freshman to a senior, she made a positive impact on her teachers and class mates as well as her fellow Loomis Chaffee students.Herinvolvement in the community is more remarkable when you realize that she only “visited” the school through the internet and had never actually set foot on the Island until she arrived as a freshman. “I liked the way Loomis looked online. I liked the feel of the campus, and it had a warm vibe. When I came to campus, the first day of orienta tion was beautiful and I was so glad I chose Loomis.”Fromthere it has been a whirlwind of classes and activities as Mercy forged her path at the school. A resident assistant in her dormitory, a member of the Step Team, an international student ambassador, man aging editor of The Log, and a member of the Longman Leadership Institute are just a few of Mercy’s roles during her time on the Island.Mercy treasures the opportunities for leadership and personal growth that her experience at Loomis gave her. Among those opportunities, Mercy was part of a student/ faculty team this year that researched the lives of 18 people enslaved by the school’s founding families in the 18th and 19th centu ries.The Loomis community played a signifi cant role in her development, according to Mercy. “I have had excellent mentors, both teachers and students, that I have modeled myself after,” she says. “They have helped me with my confidence in general and know ing my Chanceworth.”meetings with faculty and their families in the dorms, in the dining hall, and around campus helped her to get to know her teachers, which made it easier for her
Despite her busy schedule Mercy still found beauty in her moments of respite. Grubbs Quadrangle was her favorite place on campus for reflection. “The light hits at just the right places as you walk down the senior path. This makes me happy that I have had the opportunity to be here,” she says.
loomischaffee.org 59 Island News
to ask them questions in the classroom, she says. And friendships and interactions with peers from a variety of backgrounds broadened her perspective. “I’ve met people from all over the world and gotten to know more about their culture, which makes me feel more enlightened than when I came in,” she says. “I have become a more empathetic person. My best friend is Vietnamese. I have a lot of Asian-American friends. Things that affect their community affect me as well.”
BY MATT RUFFLE
Alumni from near and far returned to the Island June 10–12 for the first in-person Reunion Weekend since 2019, enjoying the chance to catch up with classmates, reconnect with faculty and staff, learn, play, and simply have fun together. Because the pandemic caused the cancellation of re unions for the previous two years, this year’s event celebrated the Chaffee, Loomis, and Loomis Chaffee classes from years ending in 2s and 7s, 0s and 5s, and 1s and 6s as well as alumni who graduated more than 50 years ago.
Reunion RETURNS
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Photo: Jessica Ravenelle
Members of 50th Reunion classes mingled in the garden of the Head’s House during a special reception on Friday evening of Reunion Weekend 2022.
’82 get ready to tee off
5. Bryce
Forrester,
’16, and
1. Nancy
Friday Arrivals
and
2. Twentieth
’16, Sam
’16 and
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’17 1 2 3 4 5
3. Sherly
Festivities began on Friday afternoon with a golf outing at Wintonbury Hills Golf Course in Bloomfield and several on-campus events. As reunion-goers arrived on the Island and convened under the tent in Grubbs Quadrangle, classmates and friends greeted them with smiles, hugs, and gleeful shouts of recognition. The day culminated with dinner and dancing for all classes under the tent. Budd ’82 Laura Steben Van Velkinburgh at Wintonbury Hills Golf Course. Reunion celebrants catching up under the tent in Grubbs Quadrangle on Friday evening include Kevin Wilcox ’02, Joseph DiNardo ’02, and Nell Casey ’02. M. Francois ’16, faculty member Mary Coleman and Sasha Mesmain Cox Kent Charlie Parsons Loomis Helen Williams
’16 4. Sam
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6. Martha
Eichler ’71 and Steve Siegel ’71 7. Jay Mixter ’70, Andy Cohn ’70, Helen Reavis (spouse of Steve Engel), Steve Engel ’70, and Bob Kieckhefer ’70 8. 50th Reunion celebrants gather for the garden reception. 9. Carl Booker ’72 and fellow 50th Reunion celebrants 10. Jean Farquhar McCoubrey ’71 and Suzy Rothfield Thompson ’72 67 89 10
The 50th Reunion reception was held in the Head’s Garden in the golden Friday evening sunshine. This year, members of the Loomis and Chaffee classes of 1970, 1971, and 1972 were invited to celebrate. Anderson
11 12 13
Night Owls and Early Birds
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Alumni enjoyed reconnecting well after nightfall on Friday and soon after dawn on Saturday. For late-night appetites, faculty member Ed Pond flipped burgers and greeted former students on Friday night. And on Saturday morning, events started bright and early with a “Birding on the Island” walk with Head of School Sheila Culbert and a traditional Chaffee breakfast at Sill House on The Chaffee School’s former Palisado Avenue campus.
13. Chaffee graduates outside Sill House on the Palisado Avenue campus of The Chaffee School
11. Faculty member and former Kravis dorm head Ed Pond grills burgers for his former students.
12. Alice Schafer Smith ’57, Anne Schneider McNulty ’72, Fred McNulty ’11, John Elliott ’81, Julia Ivanitsky ’12, and Sheila Culbert with bino culars and cameras at the ready for a bird walk
The morning and afternoon schedules on Saturday were packed with presentations and activities for reunion-goers. Presentations included a mindfulness session led by Rebecca Pacheco ’97; a conversation with Scott Havens ’91, chief executive officer of Bloomberg Media; a discussion of the school's new campus master plan; a presenta tion by the school's archivist, Karen Parsons, about artist Evelyn Longman Batchelder, wife of the school’s first headmaster, Nathaniel Horton Batchelder; a sustainability tour of campus hosted by the Alvord Center for Global & Environmental Studies; student-led tours of the campus; and a State of the School address by Head of School Sheila Culbert. Sheila spoke on a range of topics, from the school’s response to the ever-evolving COVID-19 pandemic to admissions data showing an unprecedented recent rise in interest in Loomis Chaffee among prospective students.
18. Rebecca Pacheco ’97 leads a mindfulness session in the dance studio of the newly opened John D. and Alexandra C. Nichols Center for Theater and Dance.
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14 15 16 17 18
15. Scott Havens ’91, chief execu tive officer of Bloomberg Media, is interviewed by Associate Head for External Relations Nat Follansbee for an audience in the Norris Ely Orchard Theater.
17. Associate Director of the Alvord Center Jeffrey Dyreson speaks to alumni about the school’s solar field during a sus tainability tour of the campus.
16. Susan Wyatt ’81, Kimberly Reed ’81, and Rebecca Pacheco ’97
Saturday Activities
14. Karen Parsons, history tea cher and the school's archivist, converses with alumni outside Longman Hall, originally the studio of artist Evelyn Longman Batchelder, wife of the school's first headmaster.
66 Loomis Chaffee Magazine Summer 2022 19. Members of the 25th Reunion Loomis Chaffee Class of 1997 Kate Sabatini, Kari Dia mond Kayiatos, Nancy Liu, Erin Shoudy Meyer, Kathy Agonis, Sarah Zimmerman, David Ente, Rebecca Pacheco, and Yelda Batur Kalkandelen 20. Kat Kenney Dufour ’02 and Kristina Peterson ’05 21. A bagpiper leads the Alumni Parade of Classes through campus. 22. Jeff Bilezikian ’87, John Bussel ’87, and Andrew Kurian ’87 19 20 21 22
Fanfare and Food Trucks
mini
included
27.
23 27 24 25 26
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25.
26.
At midday on Saturday, the Alumni Parade of Classes wove its way through the campus, taking a new route this year by following “The Way” from the Nichols Center, after Sheila's State of the School address, to Grubbs Quadrangle, where food trucks and family activities awaited attendees. was a popular activity for alumni children during lunch. Other children's activities on Saturday afternoon "Fun in the PHI" in the Pearse Hub for Innovation, and golf and other games on the quad. Food trucks for Saturday's lunch included a firetruck retro fitted to cook wood-fired pizza. Current and former soccer players gathered for a friendly game on Helfrich Field. Alumni lacrosse and tennis matches also drew athletic graduates on Saturday afternoon. Simone Afriyie ’17 reunites with faculty member Ali Murphy.
23. Young alumni gather at the food truck lunch on the quad. 24. Face-painting
Alumni attended a memorial tribute to longtime visual arts teacher Walter Rabetz in the Sue and Eugene Mercy Jr. Gallery of the Richmond Art Center on Saturday afternoon. The gallery featured an exhibition of works by Walter; his wife, Marilyn, who also was a longtime visual arts teacher and gallery director at Loomis Chaffee; and Sarah Lutz ’85, an artist and former student of Walter and Marilyn. As part of the tribute, Mar ilyn and retired philosophy and religion teacher Dom Failla read selected poems from their own collections.
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28. Marilyn Rabetz, Dom Failla, and Sarah Lutz ’85
29. Susan Failla, Liz Failla ’99, and former faculty member Courtney Carey
30. Samantha Rabetz Healy ’89 with her mom, Marilyn Rabetz
28 29 30
Tributes and Memories
31. Alumni and current and former faculty gath ered on the lawn of the Ratté Quadrangle for the rededication ceremony.
33. Family members Catherine Ratté, John Ratté, Lou Ratté, Felicity Ratté, and Meera Miller
After the tribute to Walter, a crowd gathered in the newly remodeled Ratté Quadrangle for its rededication to former Headmaster John Ratté. In his remarks, John reminded attendees of the history of expansion and growth on the Island, in both learning spaces and educational practices. The campus is now “linked in a steady flow ... up and down the river-like Way,” he concluded, indicating the pedestrian pathway that now winds from north to south through the campus. Chair of the Board of Trustees Duncan A.L. MacLean ’90, Sheila, and Karen Parsons also spoke at the event.
34. Duncan unveils a prototype of the new plaque to be placed in the Ratté Quadrangle.
32 33 34
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Saturday afternoon's activities also included an open house at the Center for Diversity, Equity & Inclusion and an alumni remembrance service in Founders Chapel.
32. Head of School Sheila Culbert, John Ratté, and Chair of the Board of Trustees Duncan A.L. MacLean ’90
As the sunny day drifted toward evening, Reunion celebrants turned their attention toward a series of gatherings. In the Scanlan Campus Center, alumni enjoyed a Grapes and Hops event with presentations by Ed Kurtzman ’82 and Peter Cowles ’87. The garden of the Head’s House was the setting for a Reunion Leadership Reception, where the school honored the support and generosity of alumni who contributed their time and effort to ensuring a fun and successful weekend for all. Alumni gathered with classmates for class dinners across the campus, followed by an all-class dessert and dancing to live music from Rick Express under the tent in Grubbs Quad. The weekend concluded with a Sunday morning breakfast, where alumni bid each other farewell until next time.
35. A table of young alumni sample the offerings at the Grapes and Hops event in the dining hall in the Scanlan Campus Center.
37. Leaders of the 5th Reunion Class of 2017 Meghan Cross, Jason Liu, Ifteda Ahmed-Syed, and Skyler Dovi
Many more photos from Reunion Weekend 2022 are available for viewing and downloading at loomischaffee.smugmug.com/Events/Reunions/Reunion-2022.
36. Pauline Chen Halsey ’82, who helped organize the 40th Reunion for her class, speaks at the Reunion Leadership Reception.
Saturday Evening Gatherings
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3635 37
loomischaffee.org 71 41. Former Pelican basketball teammates Samantha Roy ’16 and Stephanie Jones ’15 under the tent on Saturday night 42. Patrick Hogan ’97 on the dance floor 43. Natasha Otton ’16 and Isabella Epstein ’16 44. Sharon Flannery ’82 and Andy Snelgrove ’82 38. Dorothy Smith Pam ’57, Alice Smith ’57, and Joan Thompson ’58 reconnect at a special reception and dinner for the 50th Plus Reunion classes at the Hubbard Music Center. 39. Father and daughter alumni Bill Kronholm ’62 and Jennifer Kronholm ’97 40. You wouldn't know it from meeting Joe Cymerys ’49, but he was the oldest graduate in attendance at Reunion Weekend. 3840 39 43 4441 42
44
Chaffee Class of 1970
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Loomis Class of 1970
Front: David Margolick, Kent Myers, Steve Seligman, Brian Rooney, Tom Kimmell, Bob Kieckhefer, Lee Burton, and Tom Quinn. Back: Rich Lintz, David Harvey, Sig Wissner-Gross, Rich Raymond, George Catlin, Rich Moran, John Bosee, and Jay Courage. Reunion attendees missing from photo: Andy Cohn, Steve Engel, Jim Gleason, and Jay Mixter
50th Reunion
Front: Susan Browne Benzyk, Linda Shea Flanders, Deidre Taylor McGary, Dana Battey Regett, Martha Livingston Bruce, and Margaret Klarman. Back: Diane Fuller, Linda Cartin Hatten, Blanche Savin Goldenberg, Roselle Mann, Jody Moreen, Joan Ross Ruzika, and Joan Blick Alexander. Reunion attendees missing from photo: Linda Bronstein, Diana Dill, Alison Hunt, Barb Smith Noyes, Sally Shulman Rosengren, and Brenda Roulhac Stovall
Chaffee Class of 1972
50th Reunion
Front: Anne Schneider McNulty, Amy Clark, Ellen Kennedy, Susan Hamlet, Karen Polivy, Terry Childs, Cathie Brady Fernandez, Kitty Johnson Peterson, Suzy Rothfield Thompson, and Pam Kneisel. Back: Carol Nussbaum, Carol Bangert Gwatkin, Debra Smith Benard, Jenny Tufts, Beatrice Bastiany, Deborah Dill, Amanda Gilbert Shelburne, Mary Ellen Farrell Cash, Gail Budrejko, Anne Shortliffe, Janet Bailey Faude, and Merle Kummer. Reunion attendees missing from the photo: Nancy Sisitzky Alderman, Sarah Lowengard, Stacey Savin, and Kathy Skelley
Loomis Class of 1972
Front: Barry Bedrick (former faculty), David Russell, John Shulansky, Wesley Gilbert, Greg Miles, Michael O’Brien, Bob Richer, David Low, Carl Booker, and Frank MacMillan. Back: Jeremy House, Carlo Cella, Chris Wallace, Bill Berman, Jon Marks, Larry Brautigam, Bob Cappelletti, Tom Daniells, Tom Rogers, Scott Wallace, and David Anderson. Reunion attendees missing from photo: Andy Bassford, Jim DeStefano, Rick Horan, Peter Kremer, Sean O’Malley, Larry Rich mond, Rick Russell, Rick Sondik, John Staton, and Laurence Waltman
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Front: Seth Shaw, Kate Sabatini, Suzette Lee-Romagnolo, Haverhill Leach, Christie Yamron, Eve Temlock Urrutia, Nancy Lui-Canales, and Jennifer Kronholm Clark. Middle: Brian Andre, David Achterhof, Rebecca Pacheco, Michael Piorkowski, Matt Wax-Krell, Sarah Zimmerman, Patty Piesiur Berky, Kathy Agonis, and David Ente. Back: Rob Scannell, Brian-Logan Reid, Michael Chambers Jr., Derek Marcus, Patrick Hogan, Ryan Belden, Kari Diamond Kayiatos, Victoria Hays, Elizabeth Galbreath Carr, Liz Dunn Marsi, Yelda Batur Kalkandelen, and Erin Shoudy Meyer
Loomis Chaffee Class of 1995 Jason Mulvihill, Jen Hart, Jeffrey Hoffman Reunion attendee missing from photo: George Trumbull
Loomis Chaffee Class of 1997
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Front: Liz Martin, Susan Tynan, Brandy Little, Will Sargent, Erin Champlin Barringer, Tim Hatton, Sam Pease Doering, and Brian Rouse. Back: Chris Mattei, Keith Berman, Lee Saunders Raynes, Amy Haberman Mahoney, Bruce Townsend, and Tyler Purtill. Reunion attendee missing from photo: Bhavna Sacheti Singh Reunion
25th
Loomis Chaffee Class of 1996
Loomis and Chaffee Classes of 1971
50th Reunion
Front: Martha Anderson Eichler, Karen Bradley, Debbie Davis, Jean Farquhar McCoubrey, Barbara Keith Rosengren, Deb King, Mary Lombard Jeppsen, Mary Lowengard, Katy Ramaker Rinehart, Isabel Servici Rathbone, Debbie Shwayka Hunsberger, Susan Wight Craddock, and Nancy Wood Heitz. Middle: Dick McGrath, Steve Siegel, Rick Hood, Bruce Maier, Glenn Shor, Michael Lederman, Phelps Gay, Tom Figgatt, Bill Bernhart, Brad Gewehr, Doug Hargrave, and Andy Gunther. Back: Tim Carney, Jon Goodman, Manny Weiss, Bob Gibson, Rick Otis, Bart Kummer Reunion attendees missing from photo: David Chapman, Susan Cole Halevi, Mimi Cutler Willard, Michael Dannehy, D.B. Gibson, Pete Howe, Paul Murphy, Lisa Silvestri, and Nat Treadway
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Photos: Loomis Chaffee Archives
The original Loomis Institute seal probably dates to the 1880s. After the school charter, written by the five Loomis Founders, gained the Connecticut State Legislature’s approval in 1874, artist and Founder Osbert Loomis created a seal featuring the family’s coat-of-arms. He circulated a sketch drawing in 1880, and while it does not survive, his 1886 letter to his brother John celebrated
Designed by Evelyn Longman, acclaimed artist and spouse of Loomis Headmaster Nathaniel Batchelder, the sculpture is cast in aluminum, a departure from much of Longman’s earlier work done in bronze. Batchelder, on behalf of Longman, sought “preliminary advice” in a letter to the Modern Art Foundry in January 1949. He noted that she was keen to finish the object with the “authentic colors” of the Loomis family coat-of-arms and wondered what metal would produce a surface most suitable for painting. Later that year, he conveyed to artist friend, Georg Lober, “Mrs. B[atchelder] claimed that she retired last June; but…she has made an ornament to go on the pediment of a new building for our girls’ school. She is at the point where she is going to do only what she wants to do.” This was surely a labor of love.
The Chaffee School opened in 1927 as the girls school of The Loomis Institute, and it seemed natural that the pelican would be mascot for both the boys and girls schools. Two years later, Chaffee students discovered an alternate, lesser-known Loomis family coat-of-arms bearing a greyhound. They saw this as a better symbol for their school, and Chaffee adopted the greyhound as its mascot. The Chaffee School’s spirit of loyalty and ambition quickly became embodied in the greyhound.Theschool’s second director, Jeannette Cloud, envisioned an expanded campus and, in 1934, established the annual Spring Day to raise a building fund. The event grew to feature a Penny Auction, a White Elephant Sale, and a variety of games. Contributions by parents, friends, and the Loomis Institute Board of Trustees added to Spring Day proceeds and boosted planning for Sellers Hall after wartime restrictions and shortages had discouraged virtually all ideas of expansion during the early 1940s. The building’s dedication commemorated Cloud’s and Sellers’ persistence as much as it celebrated new spaces for teaching and learning.
Thismorning.sculpture is one of the most striking and historically rich examples of the Loomis Institute seal. The design bears familiar symbols: a vulning pelican atop a crown; a knight’s helmet; the shield featuring three fleurs de lis; scrolling foliage with cords and tassels; and the Latin motto, “Ne Cede Malis.” The glossy painted finish includes bold contrasts of maroon, silver, yellow, blue, and cream. Light undulates across the rich colors and gracefully sculpted raised forms. One can imagine the object gleaming on a sunny day at Sellers Hall.
the vulning pelican and Ne Cede Malis as symbols of the school’s purpose and suggests these would be prominent elements in his design. An illustration of the seal featuring the pelican, shield, and motto appeared in the Loomis School’s first yearbook, published in 1916. Later iterations included the elegant scrolling foliage and knight’s helmet seen in the Senior Door sculpture.
The Seal Above the Senior Door
The Artist and The Object
Sellers Hall, on The Chaffee School’s Palisado campus, opened in 1949. Honoring the extraordinary leadership of Chaffee’s third director, Florence Sellers, the building expanded classroom and laboratory space, and continued a decades-old Chaffee tradition of the Senior Door, reserved for use by faculty and the senior class. A sculptural rendering of the Loomis Institute seal, set into the pediment above Sellers’s center front entrance, signified the importance of the door and the tradition. One might expect Chaffee’s mascot, a greyhound, to peer out from this prominent and storied location; it was, however, a pelican that greeted seniors each
The Chaffee School
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The Seniors
The Chaffee Class of 1949 featured an enthusiastic, detailed history of Sellers Hall in the 1949 yearbook, noting how its construction shaped their time at the school. “We look back upon the birth and development of this building as a story of earnest ambition and proud fulfillment.” They also included what students today might refer to as a “shout out” to Evelyn Longman, acknowledging her roles as an independent career artist, the working spouse of a school headmaster, and one arbiter of memory and meaning at the Chaffee School. “We are indebted to Mrs. Batchelder for the design and execution of the Loomis Institute seal…for the decoration of the pediment above the front entrance. Chaffee girls, past, present, and future will look with pleasure on this artistic work from the skillful hands of our headmistress.”
Object Lesson
The Loomis Institute Seal
BY KAREN PARSONS
Loomis Chaffee History Teacher & School Archivist
News from the Alumni/ Development Office RavenelleJessicaPhoto:
78 Loomis Chaffee Magazine Summer 2022
RavenelleJessicaPhoto:
Photo: Cassandra Hamer
Annual2021–22Fund thank you! Alumni/Development
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Your gifts represent almost 10 percent of the school’s operating budget and allow us to provide our students with a truly transformative educational experience. Our school would not be the worldclass educational institution that it is — cultivating young citizens to be their best selves and serve the common good — without the tremendous support of the Annual Fund. On behalf of the entire school community,
Thanks to the collective generosity of the Loomis Chaffee community, we raised $4,569,180 for the 2021–22 Annual Fund. We are extremely grateful for the support of our alumni, parents, grandparents, parents of alumni, and friends who believe in the mission of our school and the value of a Loomis Chaffee education.
We structured our gift to Loomis through a Charitable Lead Annuity Trust (CLAT), which allows the donor (or grantor, in trust speak) to set aside assets that will be given to the school over time. In our case, this structure allowed us to achieve some of our charitable giving ambitions while also contributing to our other estate planning goals and realizing near-term tax benefits.
Nick Filipone ’98 and family
www.loomischaffee.giftplans.org
My family and I are gratified to be able to support Loomis Chaf fee by designating the school as a primary beneficiary of a trust we funded. I am very grateful for the education and experience I had at Loomis. In reflecting on my educational journey from nursery school through college, no time has been as academically transforming or as important to equipping me with foundational skills for long-term success as my years on the Island. I know that Loomis’ budget depends on many sources, including the generosity of its community of past and present families and alumni, to provide an exceptional education to its students. Our family is pleased to make a contribution in furtherance of the long-term success of the school.
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For more information about planned gifts and the John Metcalf Taylor Society, please contact Associate Director of Development Heidi E.V. McCann ’93, P ’23, ’25 at 860.687.6273 or heidi_mccann@loomis.org.
— Nathaniel August ’97
Pelicans at the Ballpark
Hartford Yard Goats vs. Portland Sea Dogs, May 15, at Dunkin’ Donuts Park
Bhavna Sacheti Singh ’96 and family
Nathaniel August ’97 with his wife, Kyuhey, and their children, Ned, Ben, and Dee Dee
Nancy Covello Murray ’83, P ’13, Nina Sayles ’13, Sarah Williams Niemiroski ’13, and Tim Struthers ’85, P ’17, ’18, ’21, ’25
Power of Prevention: The Rubenstein Family Invests in Education and Action
“The 1966 trip totally changed my life as I saw first-hand the horrors of the Holocaust and the revitalization of the Jew ish people in Israel as well as the rest of the world,” Richard notes.
The Rubenstein family believes that genocide education is of utmost importance today. “Regrettably, the fund is more germane now with what’s going on in Ukraine because it’s designed not only for Holocaust education but for genocide education,” says Richard, who has visited the former Soviet Union, including Ukraine, seven times. “History is repeating it self in the worst way right now. I hope young people will help take care of these things that affect all of us because it’s their world and, more importantly, our grandchildren’s world.”
“This is Richard’s passion and I’m fully in favor of it,” says Lea, who lived under Communist rule for 20 years in the for mer Czechoslovakia (now the Czech Republic and Slovakia) before coming to the United States in 1966.
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Richard ’65 and Lea Rubenstein visited the Loomis Chaffee campus this spring. Like several other visits over the past 50 years, they spent the better part of a day visiting classrooms, talking with students, and touring the campus. They were once again impressed by the beauty of the campus as well as the classroom instruction, and this year they were particularly taken by the students in the two classes in which the couple participated: the history class Genocide: Media, Remem brance, and the International Community and the college-lev el history seminar Immigration and Ethnicity in the United States.Prior to this spring’s visit to campus, the Rubensteins, who are deeply concerned about the state of current affairs, established The Rubenstein Family Holocaust Education Fund at Loomis Chaffee through the Jewish Community Foundation of Greater Hartford. The fund was created to support teaching and learning about the Holocaust and genocide and thus sup ports the prevention of future genocides through education. The fund will help finance guest speakers, instructors, and teachings for both students and faculty and, combined with other funds at Loomis Chaffee, will periodically sponsor large convocation
“Studentsevents.needto understand why human atrocities happen and how to help prevent them from ever happening again,” says Richard. “Taking action through prevention is easier than fixing it afterwards. The best way we can do this is through education and other types of intervention.”
After witnessing current Loomis Chaffee students’ interest, empathy, and desire to learn from the past and understand what is happening in today’s world, Richard and Lea are hopeful that their family’s new endowed fund will encourage future generations to share their vision for positive action and permanent change.
Richard’s dedication to Jewish service began in 1966 when he was a freshman at the University of Pennsylvania. At his parents’ suggestion, he joined a 10-week summer study mission run by the Joint Distribution Committee, witnessing Jewish rescue and relief operations in Europe, North Africa, and Israel. Not only did Richard meet Lea during his trip, he also gained a meaningful connection to Judaism and deep ened his family’s charitable legacy.
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Anne continues, “Fifty years out is the time to decide what the legacy of our unique class will be.”
Honors Kathleen "Kitty" Johnson Peterson ’72
CreatedScholarship
On page 11 of the 1972 Chaffee yearbook, Kitty Johnson’s ’72 smiling face serves as a warm greeting. If you look a little closer, you will find these words: “Kitty is a beautiful person. Besides having that amazing sense of humor, she is under standing and compassionate. She was (a) friend to all, and she never stopped giving of herself, from the day she arrived until the day she left.”
It is not a surprise, then, that on the occasion of their 50th Reunion, the Chaffee Class of 1972 chose to create a schol arship in honor of Kitty. Anne Schneider McNulty ’72 came up with the idea years ago and brought it to her classmates. Susan Hamlet ’72 and Anne contributed the anchor gifts in order to establish the Kathleen Johnson Peterson ’72 — Class of 1972 Scholarship Fund, and during the past year, Chaffee and Loomis 1972 classmates have contributed toward the fund. Nearly every member of the Chaffee Class of 1972 has participated.“Severalof our classmates thought that for our reunion gift we should honor Kitty in a lasting manner and in a way that she would find appropriate,” Anne explains. “We estab lished an endowed scholarship in her name to help future Loomis Chaffee students with financial need receive the 21st century equivalent of what we were fortunate to receive half a century ago. [This] is something that came from our class mates wanting to honor one of our own by creating opportu nities for tomorrow’s students.”
StayTuned for Alumni Gathering & Receptions information!
Kitty played and continues to play an important role in the history of the school. As a student, Kitty enrolled in the first Black Studies course offered (once the two schools were on the Island campus), which was taught by Bud Porter. As a faculty member, Kitty is the first person of color to be the most senior faculty member (as denoted by her “senior master” title and her role in writing and delivering the Final Motion at the final faculty meeting each year) as well as the first woman and first Chaffee graduate to hold that senior faculty position. At 43 years of service, Kitty is the longest serving graduate of Loomis, Chaffee, or Loomis Chaffee in a faculty position at the school.
And, thus, for their 50th Reunion, the 1972 graduates honored their class and Kitty, who has never stopped giving of herself, with a lasting gift.
Kitty Johnson Peterson ’72 and Carolyn Nussbaum ’72 at Reunion Weekend 2022. Photo: Lynn Petrillo
Fifty years later, these words are even more meaningful. After graduating from Chaffee in 1972, four years of college, and three additional years exploring other things, Kitty returned to Loomis Chaffee in 1979 and has remained on the Island as, among other things, teacher, department head, role model, and friend to many.
loomischaffee.org 83 JOIN LC Connect LC Connect is an online community and resource for alumni that makes it easier than ever for Pelicans to stay connected to each other and with the school. LC Connect is an opt-in networking platform, powered by Graduway, that enables alumni to: Find and re-engage with fellow alumni through the online directory and groups Expand professional connections through mentorship opportunities and a job board Stay up to date with Loomis Chaffee news and activities through an alumni events board and the school’s social media channels Have on-the-go access through the LC Connect mobile app Register at www.loomischaffeealumni.org Loomis Chaffee’s alumni engagement platform Alumni/Development STAY IN TOUCH CONNECT WITH US ON SOCIAL MEDIA facebook-square Page name: Loomis Chaffee Alumni twitter-square Tweet to and follow @LC_AlumniNet linkedin Go to LinkedIn and search for “ Loomis Chaffee alumni.” GO SOCIAL Loomis Chaffee Class Notes
We have changed our approach to helping you share your news with your classmates. Alumni news notes now appear exclusively on Loomis Chaffee alumni social media accounts, which can be viewed publicly. These include the Loomis Chaffee Class Notes Instagram account and the Loomis Chaf fee Alumni Facebook page. Follow us and submit your news today!
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Obituaries
George Elmer Jr., on March 11, 2021, surrounded by his children. A four-year student from Wind sor, Conn., George was involved in the Rifle Club, the Darwin Club, and the Senior Chapel Com mittee. He was active in football, hockey, baseball, and track. George stayed connected to the school as a member of the Common Good Society. After graduation, George enlisted in the U.S. Navy, serving as an aerial ordnance man during World War II. After completing his military service, George at tended the Massachusetts Institute of Technology where he earned a degree in electrical engineering. He began his professional life with DuPont in Charleston, W.Va., where he met and married Rose
Marie Elmer. They relocated to Victoria, Texas, where they raised two children. George retired from DuPont Victoria Plant in 1990 and began tutoring and coaching “Math Counts” in the Victoria Public Schools. He served as an election judge and the First United Methodist Church in various roles. He also volunteered as a tax preparer for several years. In addition, he was an avid wood carver. Preceded in death by his siblings, Bonnie Reynolds, Betsy Harding, Nancy Anderson, and Joseph Elmer and his wife, Rose Marie Elmer, he was survived by his children, Geoge Mitchell Elmer and Laren Rose Abernathy and their spouses; his siblings, Jane Godfrey and Abby Royce; five grandchildren; and three great-grandchildren. Services were held on March 20, 2021, at the First United Methodist Church in Victoria, Tex.
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for 19 years. Jan also served as President of the West Hartford Education Association for three consecutive terms. She took her teaching expertise to the Hough ton-Mifflin Company in Boston where she spent over 20 years as an editor for classroom textbooks. Beyond her editing accomplish ments, she was instrumental in creating and developing a distinctive plan for kindergarten science programs which resulted in the publication of a definitive teacher’s edition with an accom panying materials kit. Her love of learning and books followed her into retirement where she worked part-time at Barnes and Noble in Boston. Jan was a lifelong member of Congregation Beth Israel and remained active and engaged in many aspects of the congrega tion from themed decorating, calling on fellow members who were recovering from illness to challenging the Rabbi to present more thought-provoking sermons. Jan loved all fashion-related things, art, shopping, and relished travelling all over the world with her sister, Ruth. Preceded in death by her brother, William Robert Falkin Jr. ’41, and her sister, Ruth Elizabeth Falkin, she was survived by her cousins. A graveside service was held on May 2, 2022, at the Fairview Cemetery in West Hart ford, Conn.
football, wrestling, winter track, club tennis, and track. Later in life, he served as a reunion volunteer. Samuel attended Yale University before enlisting as an infantryman in World War II, serving in the Philippines. After returning to the U.S., he finished his education at the University of North Carolina, where he worked in newspaper sales and journalism, contributing to major publications nationwide. Moving back to the Northeast, he became the research and picture librarian for Magnum Photos, providing photographs by some of the most famous photographers in the world to prestigious publica tions. He was the photo researcher for John F. Kennedy’s A Nation of Immigrants and collaborated on several other books, including A History of World War I and World War II. He was also a founding member of the International Cen ter for Photography in Manhattan, N.Y. A circus history buff, he contributed to circus newsletters and, in his 50s, studied amateur trapeze. He also spent many years with Gateway National Recreation Area as a ranger in the National Parks Service and was recog nized for his work in educational outreach by the naming of a NYC water taxi, “The Sam Holmes” in his honor. He lived for many years in Sag Harbor, N.Y., before he and his wife, Kate, moved to Mexico and then, finally, to Key West, Fla. Preceded in death by his first wife, Helen Hale Holmes, and his wife, Kate, he was survived by his stepchildren, Helenka Kinnan, Alexander Kinnan, and Peter Wyckoff, and his beloved cousins. A funeral service was held at the Basilica of Saint Mary, Key West, Florida, on March 31.
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Archibald Colville Doty Jr., on January 27, 2021. A three-year student from Yonkers, N.Y., Archibald was involved in Student Council, the Chemistry Club, the photography division of the Darwin Club, the Plumbers Union 37, and served as the president of the Radio Club. He played soccer and basketball and was the assis tant manager of the hockey team and the manager of the baseball team. Arch attended Wesleyan University in Middletown, Conn., where he brought his homemade AM transmitter and helped to establish WESU, which, after 80 years, remains one of the oldest and longest continually operating student radio stations in the coun try. Arch joined the U.S. Army Air Corps during World War II where he flew B-24s, C-87s, and C-109s, often flying the route from India to China. He completed over 150 trips before he was transferred as Operations Officer in Pengsham, China. After the war, he lived in Litchfield, Conn., and married Jane Hanway. He worked for the Torrington Fan Company for several years before moving to the Automobile Manufacturer’s Asso ciation in Detroit, Mich. Arch was a lifelong member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engi neers and held numerous patents. He loved learning, gardening, and taking care of his well-trained dogs. Arch was survived by his wife, Adah; his children, Ann Doty and Susan Ross; grandchil dren; great-grandchildren; and many nieces and nephews. He also added a stepdaughter and her three children, whom he wel comed with open arms.
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Samuel Seymour Holmes, on March 12, 2021, at his home in Key West, Fla. A four-year student from Riverside, Conn., Samuel was involved in the French Club and the Debating Club and was a cheerleader. He served on the En tertainment Committee, as the ed itor of The Log, and the manager of the Athletic Store. He also played
Janice A. Falkin, on April 29. A four-year student from West Hartford, Conn., Jan served as the editor of The Chiel. She attended Smith College and earned a state teaching certificate from Central Connecticut College and a Master of Education from the University of Hartford. Jan had a long career in public education as a teacher in the West Hartford school system
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Peter Sudarsky, on January 27, 2018, in Dunedin, Fla. A one-year student from Hartford, Conn., Peter completed his secondary education at the Forman School in Litchfield, Conn., and attended the University of Connecticut. Stationed in Guantanamo, Cuba, Peter served honorably in the U.S. Navy during the Korean War. He was a reporter for the fami ly-owned Hartford Courant before entering the corporate world at the Superior Stell Ball Company and later, Lydall, Inc., where he served on the Board of Directors. He also served on the board of the Hartford Ballet. After directing his first film, A Child is A Wild Young Thing, he moved to New York to pursue real estate, vaccine development, swimsuit design, and ping-pong. Peter had a passion for the ocean, sailing, and fishing and was the proud captain of the “Mini Mouse,” a boat he built by hand. He loved music, photogra phy, street culture, the Bahamas, and blueberry pie and was loved and appreciated by all those around him. Preceded in death by his brothers, Daniel Sudarsky ’46 and Michael Sudarsky ’42, Peter was survived by his beloved wife,
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Robert Cushing Barber, on April 14, 2021, in Rockledge, Fla. A four-year student from Wind sor, Conn., Bob was involved in the Orchestra, the Freshman Glee Club, and Mitchell House settlement work. He served as a curator of the Darwin Club and was a member of the cast of The York Nativity Play, a member of the Senior Debating Club and the Dining Hall Committee, and a library supervisor. He was active in soccer, hockey, baseball, and football. He earned his under graduate degree in economics at Amherst College and a graduate degree in business administration from Harvard Business School. He married Marcia Bourne of Avon. In 1953 and joined the U.S. Navy a year later, serving on a destroyer and a submarine tender, resigning as a 2nd Lieutenant in 1957. After leaving the Navy, Bob worked as a manager of finance for 11 years at Hamilton Standard in Windsor Locks. He and Mar cia then settled in West Granby with their three children, Ken, Robyn, and Jeff, where he was active in the local parent-teacher association and served as chair man of the school board and as Granby town treasurer. In 1969, Bob accepted a position as the business manager at the Choate School in Wallingford, where he stayed until his retirement in 1990. While in Wallingford, he served as a member and president of the Connecticut Association of School Business Officials of Prep Schools and was active in the Rotary Club. While at Choate, Bob met his second wife, Lynne England, and they married in 1982. In retire ment, Bob moved to Florida and became a member of the Cocoa Rotary Club and sang in the Co
Elmer Johnson Dahl, on May 8, surrounded by his family. A threeyear student from West Hartford, Conn., Elmer was involved in the Concert Orchestra, the Ping Pong Club, Glee Club, Chess Club, The Pelicans, and the Debating Club. He was a member of the Scholar ship and Library committees and Le Cercle Français, served on the editorial board of Loomiscellany and was a cast member of The York Nativity Play. He also played football, basketball, and baseball and was named to the Honor Roll all three years. Later in life, Elmer served as a longtime class agent, a reunion volunteer, and a member of the Common Good Society. He attended Yale University and Harvard Business School before serving as an officer in the U.S. Navy during the Korean War. Elmer and his wife, Hazel, settled in Simsbury, Conn., where they raised their family and lived for nearly 50 years before moving to Cromwell, Conn., in 2016. Elmer had a distinguished career in corporate finance and owned several small businesses. He served
Obituaries
on several boards and sang in a number of choral groups including church choirs and the Hartford Chorale. He was also an avid sports fan and was often found cheering on his grandchildren or giving a little friendly advice to the coaches. He had a lifelong commitment to faith, family, and treasured his many friends. He was a 42-year survivor of acute leukemia, and his family cherished the additional four decades as a great gift. Preceded in death by his brother, Edmund Dahl ’47, Elmer was survived by his wife of nearly 66 years, Hazel; his four children, James Dahl ’76, Peter Dahl ’78, Sara Dahl, and Steven Dahl, and their spouses; 10 grandchildren; and one great-grandchild. A me morial service was held at Bethany Covenant Church in Cromwell, Conn., on June 18.
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E. Michael Ellovich, on April 1, in Hartford, Conn., surrounded by his family. A four-year student from West Hartford, Mike was involved in the Political Club, Ping Pong Club, Jazz Club, the World Student Federalists, Student Endowment Fund, and the Athletic Council. He served as the chairman of the Maher House Committee and the Dormitory Supervisory and Entertainment Committee and was a member of the Chapel Committee, the Senior Executive Committee, and the Senior Path Committee. Mike was active in soccer and basketball and served as the captain of the baseball team. He also served as a class agent later in life. After grad uation, Mike attended Dartmouth College, where he played varsity basketball. He earned a master’s degree in education from Hillyel College (University of Hartford). Mike also spent three years in the U.S. Marine Corps and played for the All-Marine Division basket ball team in Japan. Later in life, he earned a doctorate in psychology. Mike started his career as a psy chologist at the Rectory School in
survived by his two sons, William “Bill” Pope and Robert Johnson; three grandchildren; and five great-grandchildren. Burial was in the Vermont Veterans Memorial Cemetery in Randolph Center, Vt.
Roseanne De Marco Sudarsky; his four children, Julie Gross, Laura Sudarsky, Jennifer Sudarsky, and Noah Sudarsky; and his six grandchildren.
coa Senior Center chorus. He and Lynne also joined a gourmet club, and their home was “frequently filled with friends and family visiting from afar,” according to the family’s obituary for him. Bob loved to sing, enjoyed listening to music, birding, was a skilled carpenter, and enjoyed a good puzzle. Predeceased by his first wife, Marcia Bourne; his second wife, Lynne Barber; his brother, Donald Barber ’45; his sister, Elizabeth Barber Doughtery ’50; and his stepdaughter, Kelley England, Bob was survived by his two sons, Kenneth W. Barber and Jeffrey S. Barber; a daughter, Robyn C. Miller; and two step daughters, Kathleen L. England and Elizabeth S. England, and their spouses; three grandchildren; four step-grandchildren; and eight great-grandchildren. A family cel ebration of Bob’s life and a private burial will take place in Connecti cut at a later date.
Robert Douglas Johnson, on December 19, 2019, in Middle town Springs, Vt. A four-year stu dent from Chappaqua, N.Y., Bob was involved in the Rifle Club, the Glee Club, the Political Club, the Foreign Policy Association, the Student Federalists, and was in the chorus for school plays. He was also a military drill medalist, a member of the Spring Dance Committee, the Endowment Fund, and the Fire Fighting Squad and served on the Palmer Dorm Committee. He was active on the rifle team, tennis, and football and was awarded the Osborn-Gillett Rifle Award during his time on the Island. After graduation, he enlisted in the U.S. Air Force, serving during the Korean War. Bob worked for Mack Truck and was self-employed as a business consultant until his retirement. He was also an avid West Point football fan and a member of the Grace Congregational Church of Christ in Rutland, Vt. Predeceased by a son, Geoge Johnson, Bob was
Angelo L. Barisone, on Octo ber 8, 2019, in Webster, N.Y. A four-year student from Windsor Locks, Angelo was involved in the Rifle Club and the Farm Work Club and was a member of the Senior Dining Hall Committee. He was active in football, hockey, and baseball during his time on the Island. Angelo was a sailor in the U.S. Navy during the Korean Conflict. He was also an electrical engineer for the Xerox Corpo ration and a proud resident of Webster, New York. Predeceased by his wife, Margaret, Angelo was survived by his children, Michael Barisone and Susan Gilson, and their spouses; and two grandchil dren.
1954
Obituaries
1953
Ed and Harriett moved to the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina, where they gardened and grew Christmas trees until moving to Alaska in 2005 to be closer to family. Ed was survived by Harriett, his wife of 63 years; his brother, Watkins Saunders; three children, Allen Saunders, Katie Haeussler, and Bill Saunders, and their spouses; six grandchildren and three great-grandchildren.
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Ivar Pelle Aavatsmark, on January 1, at his home in Lebanon, Tenn. A four-year student from Brooklyn, N.Y., Ivar was involved in the Student Endowment Fund, Jazz Club, Library Com mittee, Student Council, and the Intramural Athletic Council. He also served as the chairman of the Allyn Club and was a cast member of The York Nativity Play and Harvey. Ivar was also a member of the winter track, football, and the undefeated 1952 wrestling team. In his later life, he served as a class agent. He attended Middlebury College and Transylvania Univer sity. In 1957, he married Chloe Cisco. He then served in the U.S. Army for a year in Aschaffenburg, West Germany. Most of Ivar’s career was in the clothing industry. He was a talented salesman and manager and eventually became the chief financial officer and part owner of Ely Walker, a western shirt company based outside of Nashville. A pivotal moment in his life was the accidental shooting death of his son, Erik, in 1978. For the rest of his life, Ivar would reach out to bereaved fathers to help them find resources to heal. After retiring, he dedicated himself to his grandchildren and volunteered at a local elementary school. Predeceased by his wife, Chloe, and his son Erik, Ivar was survived by his children Julie, Chris, and Andy; six grandchil dren; and three great-grandchil dren.
William Carl LaFleur, on April 5, in Westerly, R.I. A three-year stu dent from West Hartford, Conn., Carl was involved in the Political Club and served on the Elections Committee and the Sophomore
Edward Shipp Saunders, on March 14, at his home in Chu giak, Alaska, with his wife and daughter by his side. A three-year student from White Springs, Fla., Ed served as the secretary of the Student Council and president of the Endowment Fund and was a member of the Library and Dining Hall committees. He was involved in football, wrestling, baseball, and basketball. Ed was awarded the Charles Edgar Sellers Memorial Prize at Commence ment. Ed attended the University of Florida, from which he graduat ed as the salutatorian for his class with a degree in agronomy. Upon graduation from college, Ed joined the U.S. Army and was stationed in Germany for two years. After his discharge, he returned to the University of Florida and earned a graduate degree in agronomy. It was there that he met the love of his life, Harriett Henry, and the couple married. In 1960, Ed joined the Dow Chemical Company, where he worked both domesti cally and internationally for 25 years. After his retirement in 1985,
Raymond E. D’Antonio, on April 12. A four-year student from Windsor, Conn., Ray was involved in the Glee Club, Loomistakes, the Endowment Fund, and the Pelicans. He also served on the Sophomore Reception Commit tee, the Spring Prom Committee, the Senior Sports Committee, Senior Scholarship Committee and was president of the Spanish Club, secretary of the Student Council, and chairman of the Entertainment Committee. Ray also served as head cheerleader. He played football and hockey and
Pomfret, later working at the For man School in Litchfield, Oxford Academy in Westbrook, and the Marvelwood School in Kent. He also maintained a private practice through an office in his home and later in Bloomfield, where he met and helped “thousands of children and adults with his easy going, insightful manner” over his long career, according to his obituary. Mike was an avid golfer, voracious reader, and enjoyed watching the New York Yankees. He was an ever-present sight at his grand children’s dance and piano recitals, hundreds of soccer, basketball, and baseball games, and held a special relationship with each of them. Mike is survived by his wife, Lois; his children, David Ellovich and Karen Binkhorst and their spous es; his niece, Lorie Berson ’78; and six grandchildren. A memorial service took place on April 5 at the Congregation Beth Israel in West Hartford.
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Paul Harold McKay, on April 10, in Simsbury, Conn. A four-year student from West Hartford, Paul was involved in the Jazz Club, the Political Club, and Student Council. He was a member of the Senior Day Student Committee, the Senior Ethics Committee, the Senior Nominating Committee and was a cast member of The Madwoman of Challiot. Paul also played football, basketball, soccer, and tennis. Paul attended Brown University before starting his ca reer in investment banking, which lasted for more than 40 years. An avid reader and historian and a fan of the Los Angeles Dodgers, the New York Giants, and UConn basketball, he loved gardening, classical music, bridge, tennis, and spending time with his family. Paul was involved in town organi zations and served as president of the ABC House and treasurer of the Simsbury Rotary. He was also the Powder Forest Homes first treasurer. According to the family’s obituary for him, Paul “was always generous and kind, and eager to be there for family, friends, and neighbors whenever they needed help.” Preceded in death by his sister, Shirley Taubeneck, Paul was survived by his wife of 59 years, Linda McKay; three sons, Tim McKay, Peter McKay, and John McKay and their spouses; and nu merous nieces and nephews whom he adored.
was captain of the baseball team during his senior year. At Com mencement, Ray was awarded the General Prize. Ray later served as a class agent for many years as well as a reunion fundraising volunteer. He was also a member of both the John Metcalf Taylor and the Common Good societies. Ray attended Wesleyan University before beginning a more than 35-year career at Southern New England Telephone company as Connecticut district manager. He then transitioned to his true call ing, launching a successful career as a licensed real estate broker, and creating Pilgrim Realty of Wall ingford and later Cheshire, where he continued to practice well into his 80s. He met his wife, Judy, on a blind date at the urging of his best friend, Irving Smith; they were married in 1958. His devotion to Loomis Chaffee helped lead the school to transform the ice hockey program and build the current hockey rink. Ray served as a fea tured speaker as the oldest living Loomis hockey player at the 100year anniversary celebration of the Loomis Chaffee hockey program in 2017. According to the family’s obituary for him, “Ray opened many doors so others could pass through this life, punctuated by friendship, honesty, confidences, and most of all, happiness. His class and selfless demeanor, taught by his parents, always held that door open for others every time, without fail.” Predeceased by his loving wife, Judy, his daughter, Suzan D’Antonio ’78, and his brothers, Albert “Bud” D’Antonio and Richard D’Antonio, Ray was survived by his brother, Dr. Wil liam D’Antonio (former faculty member from 1949-1954) as well as his son, Mark D’Antonio ’79.
1956
Thomas John Dickinson, in Pembroke, Bermuda. A three-year
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Frank Lewis Ryan II, on January 18, surrounded by his family in his home in Richmond, Va. A threeyear student from Toledo, Ohio, Frank was involved in the Sailing Club, the Ski Club, the Student Endowment Fund, the Elections Committee, and the Student Council. He was active in football, basketball, tennis, and track and served as a cheerleader. He attend ed Brown University, the Universi ty of Toledo, and the University of Michigan. He served with the U.S. Coast Guard on the ice breaker Mackinaw, on the buoy tender Redwood, at several lifeboat sta tions, and in President Kennedy’s funeral honor guard. Upon earning his master’s degree in business administration, Frank enjoyed an internship with ESSO of Ireland prior to joining the W.R. Grace & Co. Steamer Division in New York City. After a one-year assignment abroad with the Callao, Peru, stevedoring agency, he joined the Grace Line Budget Department as a financial analyst in New York. In 1971, Frank moved to Mem phis, Tenn., with his new bride,
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student from Pembroke, Tom was involved in the Student Council and was a member of the Sopho more Reception Committee and played soccer, tennis, basketball, and hockey. Preceded in death by his sister, Mary Lou Holmes, Tom was survived by his wife, Elaine Dickinson; children, Robert Dickinson and Stephanie Carey, and their spouses, and Samantha Dickinson, and Daniel Dickinson; grandchildren, Christopher Joyner, Tyler Dickinson, Ashley Dickin son, and Andrew Loy; and several nieces, nephews, great nieces and nephews, and great-great nieces and nephews. He was fondly re membered by special friends John Carey, Jim Caverly, Ed Kay, John Dufresne, and Philip Simpson including many cousins, extended family and friends in Bermuda and abroad.
as a special education teacher at Torrington High School in Torrington, Conn., administered two regional centers for develop mentally delayed youth and adults in Connecticut and New Hamp shire, and taught special education at Jaffrey-Rindge Middle School in Jaffrey, N.H. After retiring to Rhode Island, he was drawn into the role of principal of the Sacred Heart School in Groton, Conn. Carl also studied at St. Thomas Seminary and was ordained to the permanent Diaconate in 1977 by the Rev. John F. Whealon, Roman Catholic archbishop of Hartford.
Reception Committee. He was also elected president of the Stu dent Council and vice president of the Book Exchange. He was a cast member of A Slight Case of Murder and The York Nativity Play. He played football, basketball, and track. At Commencement, he received the Gwendolyn Sedgwick Batchelder Prize. Carl attended Dartmouth College, earned a graduate degree from Southern Connecticut State College in 1973, and earned an administrative certification from Fairfield Uni versity in 1979. Over the course of his teaching career, Carl served
Carl served for 45 years in this role until his passing. Carl was survived by his wife of 60 years, Dawn La Fleur; his brother, David LaFleur ’60; daughter Susan LaFleur and son Douglas LaFleur and their spouses; three grandchildren; and many beloved nieces and nephews. A funeral mass was celebrated on April 11 at St. Clare Roman Catholic Church in Westerly, R.I.
Susan Levin, on March 7. A four-year student from Bloomfield, Conn., Susan was involved in the Political Club and served as the assistant editor of The Chiel. Susan earned an undergraduate degree in fine arts from the University of Michigan and worked as a re search associate in genetic testing at both Yale and Rockefeller uni versities before pursuing a career as a pastry chef in San Francisco. She was a great lover of books, had a pilot’s license, and was an avid sailor. Predeceased by her husband, Jeff Kuhn, she was survived by her siblings, Joel, David, and Jane; and by her nieces and nephews, Rachel, Lily, Peter, and Alec.
Carole, where he became a senior analyst for the W.R. Grace & Co. Agriculture Chemical Mining and Production Division. In 1980, the family relocated to Dallas, Texas, where Frank joined Grace’s Natu ral Resource Group’s Coal Mining Division as vice-president of finance, and he and Carole raised their three daughters. He spent the last two years of his career as the general manager of Grace Energy. After retirement, Frank volunteered for a Dallas outreach program, tutoring and mentoring underprivileged teens and working with local food pantries. He was an avid reader and loved sailing and the outdoors. Preceded in death by his siblings Nathalie M. Ryan, Burt T. Ryan Jr. ’40, Sarah R. Donnelly, and David M. Ryan ’52, Frank was survived by his wife, Carole Sattler Ryan; his brother Joseph Ryan ’45; his three daugh ters, Nathalie Ann Ryan, Cynthia Ryan Robertson, and Kerry Ryan Walters, and their spouses; his five grandchildren, Molly McCorkle Robertson, Erin Shiloh Robert son, Caroline Ryan Robertson, Kherrington Dane Walters, and Madilynn Paige Walters; and many nieces and nephews, includ ing Isabel Yordan Troncoso ’03. A Mass of Christian Burial was celebrated in Toledo in the spring.
was held at St. Gregory Armenian Apostolic Church in Philadelphia, Penn., on May 11, 2022.
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survived by his immediate family; his siblings, Martha Herrick and David Antos and their spouses; and nieces, nephews, great-nieces, and a great-nephew. A celebration of life and memorial service was held on June 12 at the United Methodist Church of Hartford.
1958
Suzanne Sherwood Cane, on March 29, at her home in Balti more, Md. A four-year student from West Hartford, Conn., Suzanne was involved in the Tutoring Committee, Commit tee X, and Le Cercle Français. She was the business manager of The Epilogue and on The Chiel reportorial staff. Later in life, Suzanne remained connected to the Loomis Chaffee community as a member of the Common Good Society. Suzanne earned a bachelor’s degree from Wellesley College with a major in French language and literature and a master’s degree in library science from Simmons College. After living in Zurich, Switzerland, for three years, where she served as the librarian at the Inter-Com munity School, Suzanne moved with her husband to Providence, R.I., where she began a 25-year career as the lower school librarian at the Lincoln School, where she also taught Great Books. In 1990, she expanded her teaching to introduce courses in French language for students in elemen tary school as well as Advanced Placement French to high school seniors. After her retirement in 2000, Suzanne continued to tutor students in French and taught English as a Second Language to recent immigrants. Suzanne was an avid reader, participating in several book groups, and enjoyed rollerblading, hiking, swimming, cross country skiing and gourmet cooking. She also participated in the R.I. Lifelong Learning Col laborative as both a student and a course organizer and as a member of the Curriculum Committee. She loved the U.S. National Parks,
Arsine Rustigian Oshagan, on April 28, in Philadelphia, Pa. A four-year student from Hartford, Conn., Arsine was involved in the Glee Club and the Ten Pointers Society and served as the Student Council secretary. She later stayed connected to the school as a mem ber of the Common Good Society. Arsine attended Mount Holyoke College, graduating with distinc tion with a bachelor’s degree in mathematics. She went on to earn a master’s degree in mathematics from the University of California, Los Angeles, and a doctorate in mathematics from the University of Connecticut. Her honors in cluded Phi Beta Kappa and Pi Mu Epsilon for mathematics. Arsine learned Armenian at the Palandji an Jemaran of Hamazkayin in Bei rut, Lebanon, during her years as a student. Over the course of her career, Arsine directed academic programs in three Armenian schools. She recently complet ed a 21-year career in business management consulting with Gap International of Delaware County, Pa., where she was appointed as a vice-president, specializing in research and development and promoting business and individual transformation. According to the family’s obituary for her, Arsine was a “prominent force in the Philadelphia Armenian commu nity and engaged in organizations and efforts at the local, national, and international level.” She was also a supporter and contributor to the Philadelphia Armenian community, serving on the Board of Trustees of St. Gregory Arme nian Apostolic Church, singing in the church choir, and dedicating more than 20 years to teaching Armenian to adults. Preceded in death by her husband, Vahe Oshagan, Arsine was survived by her brother, George Rustigan, and a sister, Jackie Rustigian, and their spouses; stepsons Hayg Oshagan and Ara Oshagan and their families; and several nieces and nephews. A funeral service
Obituaries
Peter Moore Antos, on March 20, in Farmington, Conn., with his wife and daughter at his side. A four-year student from West Hartford, Peter was involved in the Library Committee and the Senior Scholarship Committee and served as a medical aide and geometry tutor. He was active in golf and Allyn senior soccer. Peter attended Tufts Universi ty, graduating with a degree in economics and psychology. He then earned a master’s degree in business administration from the Columbia University School of Business along with doctoral studies in finance. He began his career with Arnold Bernhard & Company in 1971, where he was a senior analyst/editor for Value Line Investment Survey. In 1976, he joined Connecticut Mutual, working his way up to senior port folio manager from 1989 to 2000. During that time, Peter and his team were recognized in various investment publications for their successes, and he was dubbed “The Lord of Discipline” due to his investing approach. Before retiring in 2002, he spent two years as senior vice president of equities at One Beacon Insurance. He was also a chartered financial analyst since 1980. During his retirement he took up lawn bowling, enjoyed tending indoor plants, volunteered at Stanley-Whitman House and Museum’s dooryard gardens, and read three newspapers daily and books of various genres, but espe cially science fiction. Peter was a member of the United Methodist Church of Hartford and served on its Board of Trustees as a chair man and a treasurer. He was also a member of the church council, the church finance chairman, webmaster, and Sunday services sound operator. During the 1980s he also coached in the West Hartford Soccer League. Peter was
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1960
Cleveland Bradford Horton, on October 8, 2021, in Barrington, N.H. A one-year student from Brussels, Belgium, Cleve grew up in Europe, attending schools in Switzerland and Belgium before coming to the Island for his senior year. After graduation, Cleve earned a bachelor’s degree in English from Vassar College. He became a bureau chief at Advertis ing Age magazine in Los Angeles, Calif., and was a co-owner, with his then wife, Lindy Cobb Horton, of Calef’s Country Store in Bar rington. Cleve and Lindy restored and expanded the store that had remained in the Calef family since 1869. Under their leadership the store came to serve as a gathering place for the community, putting on annual events such as the Truck Show, chili cook-offs, and crafts fairs. It also became a regular stop for politicians and a tourist destination for travelers. Cleve was a passionate journalist and an avid reader, and he was interested in theater, sports, and politics. He was survived by his sisters, Hilary Douglass Horton and Lydia Stuart Horton; his brother, Christopher Wells Horton; his sister-in-law, Jo Ann Van Reenen; and his brotherin-law, Charles Otto.
90 Loomis Chaffee Magazine Summer 2022
Yellowstone in particular. Along with her friend and colleague Janet Chapple, an authority on Yel lowstone National Park, Suzanne translated into English from the original in French a 19th-cen tury account of an early visit to Yellowstone National Park written in 1886 by a Belgian judge and travel writer, Jules Leclerq. Their work was published as Yellowstone, Land of Wonders in 2017. Suzanne was survived by her husband of 55 years, David Cane ’62; her sister, Marjorie Freeman; her children, Rachel Cane and Eli Cane and their spouses; three grandchildren; and many nieces and nephews.
Bruce Dawson, on April 9, at home surrounded by his family. A four-year student from Westport, Mass., Bruce was involved in the Darwin Club and competed on the wrestling and golf teams. Bruce later served as a reunion volunteer and was a member of the Common Good Society. He was a lifelong resident of Westport and was the chief executive officer for Central Tools in Cranston, R.I. An avid golfer, Bruce was a member of the Acoaxet Club in Westport and was a collector of ceramics. He also served on the board of the Watershed Center for the Ceramic Arts; loved his dogs, Toffee and Isabeau; and enjoyed grilling with his “green egg.” Preceded in death by his father, Alec Dawson, Bruce was survived by his mother, Nancy Dawson; his wife, Rose Esson; and his siblings, David “Scotty” Dawson ’80, and Anne Marshall Brown.
Samuel Whitefield Stevenson Jr., on March 28. Steve attended Princeton University, where he taught Italian for a year after grad uation. He was appointed to the Loomis Chaffee faculty in 1960, initially teaching French before switching to teach English, which he continued until his retirement in 2006. In addition to teaching, Stevie served as a dorm head for decades and coached several sports, including track, football, and basketball. He especially enjoyed his years coaching girls JV basketball. Former student Patri cia D. Novak Kroll ’77 remembers Steve as “the first teacher who spoke to me as if I were an adult with valuable insights – and I have heard other students say the same. He was the first person to tell me that while we should all evolve and improve, there was no reason to
Vijay Mansukhani, in April. A three-year student from Kingston, Jamaica, Vijay was involved in the Debate Society, International Students Association, and Cricket Club. He played lacrosse, club basketball, and ultimate frisbee. Vijay earned a bachelor’s degree in economics at Trinity College in Hartford, Conn. He was in the process of completing a master’s degree in business administration at Pace University’s Lublin School of Business in New York City at the time of his passing. Accord ing to his family obituary, Vijay was “ambitious and persistent,
1984
2012
and his partner, Virginia Passey, he was survived by his siblings, Raymond and Nathalie, and their spouses; his nieces and nephews; his colleagues at Sherwin Wil liams; and his many close friends. An online memorial was held on June 4, 2022.
honing his knowledge and skills to become proficient in financial research, financial forecasting, ana lytical thinking, data management, and project management.” He had diverse interests, talents, and hobbies and embraced adventure, traveling across the globe, tasting different cuisines, and spending time with his family and friends. Vijay was a philanthropist who grew by serving others and was loving, caring, and inclusive, treat ing everyone he met like family. Vijay was survived by his parents, Gui and Mala Mansukhani; nu merous loving relatives; and many friends.
1977
Obituaries
Charlaina Ann Wilson, on April 20, surrounded by her family at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medi cal Center in Lebanon, N.H. A two-year student from Guilford, Conn., Charlaina was involved in Spectrum and the Spanish Club and served as a tour guide and a member of the Student Council. She was involved in soccer, tennis, track, and swimming and diving. Charlaina attended the University of Connecticut and worked as an artist and jewelry maker. She enjoyed tennis, mountain biking, and loved her Maltese dog, Zak. Preceded in death by her father, Edward F. Wilson Jr., Charlaina was survived by her sisters, Vanessa Wilson, Donna Barker, and Serena Wilson; and her brother, Edward F. Wilson III ’83. A Mass of Christian Burial was celebrated on April 29 at St. George’s Church in Guilford.
Former Faculty
Photo: Loomis Chaffee Archives
1973
John Parkhill Lowe, on March 1, after a long and courageous battle with cancer. A two-year student from Hartford, Conn., John was involved in the Student Council and was a member of the lacrosse and football teams. After attending Boston University, John spent time traveling, exploring, and flyfishing across the western United States. John settled in St. George, Utah, where he met the love of his life, Virginia. A creative entrepreneur and devoted customer relations professional, John started multiple businesses, including a shipping company called The Mail Place. He also worked for Sherwin Williams in his later years. John loved playing tennis as a young man and was a devoted golfer and fisherman his entire life. He enjoyed long road trips, gardening, photography, and admiring the natural world around him. Preceded in death by Lindsay Altschul and Joel Casey, his true and loyal friends of many years,
Harvard Vaughn Knowles, on March 24. Harvey taught English on the Island from 1962 to 1974. Over the course of his 12-year tenure, he became the English Department head. In addition to
Obituaries
Jamaal Alphonzo Brinson, on March 17, in Hartford, Conn. A Flik Independent School Dining employee, Jamaal worked in the Loomis Chaffee dining hall until his untimely death. Jamaal was well-known and liked in the school community. His fami ly obituary describes him as a warm-spirited, gentle-natured, fun-loving person who raised everyone’s spirits and brought humor and laughter to everyone he met. An active member of the St. John’s Full Gospel Deliverance Church in Bloomfield who loved to play the drums, Jamaal was also on assignment as a drummer with the Sanctuary of Faith and Glory Church in Windsor at the time of his passing. Preceded in death by his father, Joe Whitman, Jamaal was survived by his mother, Barbara Brown, and step-father, Raymond Brown; his brother, Ter ence Brown; and numerous friends and family members.
Former Staff
More News
The Alumni Office has learned of the passing of Anthony Regensburg ’45 on March 2, 2022; Donald D. Borden ’46 on October 17, 2020; former faculty member Elaine Title Lowengard ’46 on June 21, 2022; Joyce Elizabeth Greene Wilson ’48 on July 23, 2020; William Monteth Vibert ’48 on June 10, 2022; Francis Wickham Kraemer ’50 on May 20, 2022; Frank Wells Langbehn ’55 on January 30, 2022; Harriet Palmer Shea ’57 on July 3, 2022; John Wibel ’61 on May 4, 2019; Janet Susan Scharr Gochberg ’81 on March 9, 2022; former employee Karl G. Schweiger on June 27, 2022; former employee Ursula Uhlig on June 8, 2022; and former library staff member Jamie Vernon on June 25, 2022. More information, as available, will be printed in future editions.
loomischaffee.org 91
change who I inherently was – a shy introvert, telling me he was also one. Not because it was inher ently good to be one, but because it was me, and I should always be who I was. After years of hearing I should be more extroverted, this changed my mindset and made me begin to embrace my own self (also funnily enough, mak ing me less shy). Steve took his own advice on evolving and was always thinking about and trying to improve his teaching. He loved all his students, especially those who initially struggled but whom he found a way to help. He told me not long before he died that he felt that by teaching he had done with his life just exactly what he was supposed to do, and that made him happy.” After retiring, Steve divided his time between a longtime home in South Yar mouth, Mass., where he loved to kayak and fish, and a new home in his hometown of Richmond, Va., where he was delighted to be near his family. His love of reading and opera continued no matter where he was, and he always had multiple books in progress. He was always happy to meet former stu dents and hear their updates. An English teacher in the classroom, he was much more than that as his real goal was to teach his students to think, and he was delighted when his students figured that out. Preceded in death by his wife, Helen Holbrook Stevenson, and son, Philip Carlyle Stevenson ’79, Steve was survived by his sister, Ruth Stevenson; his nephews and nieces, William Hendricks, Andrew Nicol, Genevieve Hendricks, Sarah Hendricks, and Heather Nicol, and their respec tive partners; his five great-nieces and -nephews; and several cousins. A memorial service was scheduled for August 20 in Founders Chapel.
Photos: Loomis Chaffee Archives
Carlton Martin “Marty” Perkins, on February 4. In his retirement, Marty took care of the Savage/ Johnson Rink and mowed the lawns on the Island. Marty gradu ated from Windsor High School, received his associate degree, and went to work for the Travelers In surance Company. While working there, he was drafted into the U.S. Army and was stationed at the Presidio in San Francisco, Calif. After serving his country, Marty returned to his job at Travelers, where he was employed as a super visor/data processor, retiring after many years of service. Marty was remembered as a man who was giving, caring, and appreciated the simple things in life. He loved the Yankees, often traveling to Florida for their spring training. Mar ty also loved spending summer vacations in Castine, Maine, where he had a small family cabin on the beach, and he enjoyed taking his sailboat out on the ocean and visiting with family. A well-re spected community member, one of Marty’s greatest joys was being a member of the Windsor Volunteer Fire Department. He was a trained firefighter, drove the fire trucks, trained new volunteers, and was an all-around wealth of knowledge and a resource for the entire fire department. Upon his retirement, his role became more administrative, and he kept the fire department running smoothly, making sure the department had the right supplies and equipment. Preceded in death by his parents; his aunts Doris Lovely, Anita Mortimer, and Mary Emma Clark; his uncles Alan and Glenn Perkins; and his cousins Sally Phillips and Jean Kerns, Marty was survived by his cousins Ann Lovely, Bruce Mortimer, Fran ces Clark, Robert Clark Jr., John Clark, Andrea Perkins Dyer, Chris Perkins, and Ted Perkins; his close friends; his “brothers” at the fire station; and other extended family. A memorial service was held on March 10 at the Carmon Funeral Home in Windsor, Conn. He
his teaching and coaching respon sibilities, Harvey found time to attend graduate school, earning a master's degree in English from Duke University in 1968. His passion, and the focus of his thesis, was the plays of William Shakespeare. In 1974, Harvey joined Phillips Exeter Academy in Exeter, N.H., where he was an instructor and department chair as the Thomas S. and Elinor B. Lamont Professor of English. Among many other awards, he was the recipient of the Brown Teaching Award (1993) and the Outstanding Teacher Award, U.S. Department of Education (1999); and he was named a Klingenstein Fellow at Columbia University (1978–1979). Harvey enjoyed teaching his favorite works of literature, including Shakespeare’s Hamlet, Ernest Hemingway’s For Whom the Bell Tolls, and Herman Melville’s Moby Dick. During his retirement, he taught several summer programs on Moby Dick for Exeter faculty and alumni. In addition to teaching, Harvey loved to travel in the United States, Europe, and Africa. According to the family obituary, when asked if he was ever sad that he never had children, he responded, “But I had had children. Thousands of them. And all from my classroom.” Harvey is survived by his sister, Marlene Dubay; and several nieces and nephews. (See page 92 for a “Reflections” essay about Harvey’s lasting influence.)
was buried with military and fire department honors.
than about his favorite butter rum Life Savers. There was much commentary from him about the wart atop Harvey’s head. I came to know he hailed from Skowhegan, Maine. And, like most of us here, I suspect, I knew his name spelled backwards was Selwonk. Who says we never listened to our teachers?
Reflections
By David Margolick ’70
So when I wrote a tribute to Updike and his article, I got Harvey’s email address from Jim Rugen, and sent the piece to him. It was really an excuse to tell him I was thinking of him. Maybe, I thought, he’d feel a smidgen of pride that a former student of his could string together a few respectable sentences. Besides, it would be nice to be back in touch with him.
When John Updike died in January 2009, two people immediately came to my mind. The first was Ted Williams, whom Updike wrote about so mem orably in his classic New Yorker piece, “Hub Fans Bid Kid Adieu,” half a century earlier. The second was Harvey Knowles. It was he who’d introduced me to Updike in his English class 10 years after that.
Like others in my class, I’d heard a lot about Harvey Knowles when I first got to Loomis, long before I’d ever met him, courtesy of Mr. Stevenson, whom I had for freshman English. He talked about Harvey even more
On Harvard Knowles: A Personal Essay
Photo: David Margolick ’70
In our day it was a bit unfashionable to like teachers any more than was ab solutely necessary. A few were exempt; they were charismatic. Harvey was different: at first blush, he didn’t stand out. But in his own quiet, determined way, he won our respect. By the end of our time at Loomis we’d come to know how special he was, which ex plains why The Loomiscellany our year was dedicated to him. Our yearbook has taken its licks at this reunion for deviating from the time-honored norm – all the usual, solemn Deford Dechert mug shots – but in this respect, it was “spot on,” as Harvey himself might have put Oppositeit. that dedication ran the
picture you see here. I’ve always loved it, and not just because I took it, sometime in the spring of 1970. (I can tell because on the same roll are pic tures of Batchelder Road flooding.) I love it because it captures the essence of Harvey Knowles. His gestures, like his thinking and his diction, were sharp, crisp, precise. I loved the intense and determined expression on his face, and the firmness of those pointed fin gers. Maybe it’s because I knew him, but I also see in it his joy, and wit. He was having a good time teaching that day, and so were those of us learning from him. Just look at the expression on Phelps Gay as he raises his hand, and Rick Horan huddling over his notes.Ibrought a copy of this picture to give to the school. Like most of us, I don’t know anyone here any more, and I was going to say I hope the folks who run the place hang it somewhere in Harvey’s honor and now, as of this past March 24, his memory. Then I noticed there’s already a picture of him hanging in the row of distinguished teachers in Founders. But with all due respect, this one is better. As foreign as he may now be to everyone here, Harvey Knowles is eternally relevant: he was everything a teacher should be, including durable. He taught me well at Loomis, and even better after I left. I liked and admired Harvey here, but we weren’t especially close. The truth was, I always found him a bit intimidating. Though he’d once praised a poem I’d written — part of a con scientious teacher’s mandate is to spot even the faintest glimmer of promise in a student, and tell him or her about it — I worried that I had nothing of consequence to say, or write. Once, a
few years after we'd both left Loom is, I spotted him walking by as I sat outside Lincoln Center, but pretended I hadn’t seen him. Only long afterward did he reveal that he’d seen me that day. And that he still remembered that poem of mine.
icably. “Steve and Helen Stevenson (and Joel Sandulli) always called me Harvey; most people have always called [me] either Harv or Harvard,” he replied. “The latter is more common at Exeter, partly I suspect because so many students, obsessed with Harvard, find my name a great source of amuse ment.” He quickly moved off that and onto Katharine Brush, then to a piece I’d written eight years earlier. Turns out he’d been reading me all along, and remembering. I was flattered.
That would be nice — another bar rier broken. But there was one slight hitch: in my note to him I’d called him “Harvey” but he'd signed off as “Harvard.” So which was it? Such things matter when you make that difficult transition from “Mr.” to first names. I stuck with “Harvey” on the next round, but now with an asterisk attached. “Please let me know if you prefer ‘Harvard’ or if I’m grandfathered in with ‘Harvey’ (which probably dates back to Mr. Stevenson),” I wrote at the bottom.Hefielded my awkwardness am
But then Updike gave me a sec ond chance with him. An old teacher may be like a parent, but there’s one difference: they don’t have to take you back. Harvey, though, quickly did. “It is good to hear from you,” he wrote back. In my original note, I’d men tioned Rabbit, Run, the Updike novel we’d read in his class. He'd continued to teach it at Exeter, he said, and ex plained why. “It’s not an easy book for adolescents, but books that pose tough questions, and Updike always does, and drive us inside ourselves for the answers are not designed to be easy,” he said. I could see he hadn’t changed, that those qualities apparent in the picture were still intact.
That June of 2010, he came to our 40th Reunion. Seeing him there, I wrote him afterward, had been one of the high points of the experience for me. Again he didn’t pick up on that, but he told me how special Loomis had always been for him. “It was a great place to learn how to teach, and for most of the students I suspect it was a great place to grow up,” he wrote. “It was a very forgiving place in lots of ways.”
I wonder what he meant by that, but I knew I felt something similar — that as prep schools went, Loomis was humane and tolerant. The cruelty per capita was low. Teachers like him, Ben Meyers, Al Wise, Mo Brown, and Bill Westfall, to name just a few of my favorites, embodied that. It’s why I’d come here in the first place: even at 13 years old, I sensed it. And why, incidentally, John Horne Burns, an Irish Catholic who’d been told by the headmaster of Andover — where he’d finished at the top of his class,
Reflections
We were now up to March 2010; now it was J.D. Salinger who had just died. Maybe it’s macabre, but to me every literary death was an excuse to write him. “I just re-read Catcher in the Rye, and enjoyed it more than ever,” I said. “Does this mean I’ve never grown up?” “It doesn't mean you never grew up,” he assured me. “It’s that the book is finally an adult novel after all.”
He thanked me for my piece, though without offering any opinion on it. So he was still tough, too. He then suggested that when I was next at Loomis, I introduce myself to the newly named head of school, Sheila Culbert. He’d backed another candi date for the job, he acknowledged, a former Loomis student of his, in fact, but when he’d learned Sheila was in the mix, “I knew the old boy was up against tough competition.” “She’d have been perfect for Exeter, and that’s precisely why they would never have hired her,” he added cryptically. Some time when we saw one another, he promised, he’d tell me why.
That prospect — seeing him, not hearing about the politics at Exeter — pleased me. “I am glad that Jim gave you my email address,” was how he closed. “I am alive, very well, and a tar dy respondent, but a responsible one.” What a gracious way to say he’d like to
hear from me again.
So, a few days later, I wrote back. I confessed that my copy of Rabbit, Run was disconcertingly clean, like all those books in Gatsby’s library. And I told him about something I’d hoped to write: a piece on Lucifer With a Book, the scabrous 1949 novel about Loom is by John Horne Burns that some upperclassman had whispered to me about freshman year, the one which, nearly twenty years later, was still banned from the old library, the one I’d never stopped thinking about af terward. But the archives, I lamented, were pretty much bare on the subject. “I wonder if it was all tossed,” I wrote him.Burns had left Loomis long before Harvey got there, but of course he knew all about Burns and his book, just as I’d have predicted he would. “You can be sure they did have lots of stuff about him, but it was destroyed or put somewhere in sealed files,” he speculated. “I go with the latter pos sibility because so many people there were very angry at him.” He then said he’d long been meaning to visit Sag Harbor, where I told him I lived and which figures in Moby Dick, a book to which he’d regularly devoted an entire semester at Exeter. When he came by, he promised, he’d buy me lunch.
Even now, I marvel at that sentence, which was so much better a summary of the man than anything I’d written. Equally impressive, even moving, to me was the compassion and sympathy he had for someone so unsympathet
When another book of mine, about the Little Rock schools crisis of 1957, came out, Harvey quickly bought him self a copy, and touted it to his friends. And then, in February 2012, he ar ranged for me to give a reading at his favorite bookstore in Exeter. Making it even more special, Sam Stevenson joined us. It was quite a feeling for me to look out that night and see two men who, so many years earlier, had tried to teach me how to write listening to me read from something I’d written.
“Did the manuscript suddenly take a nose dive? Are you celebrat ing all twelve days of Christmas and then some?” I derived great pleasure fashioning such phrases for him, while taking care not to write anything too ornate or
He elaborated in a second email later that night. “I have to say I found Burns a difficult personality but biog raphy has to work with what it’s got,” he wrote. “The book is a sympathetic portrayal and especially about his ho mosexuality and his deep struggle with it. The irony of his trying to disguise what he reveals so blatantly suggests how little control he had over his life.”
He soon finished, and told me he liked the book, but spared me the empty praise. Instead, he addressed my concerns, like a complaint from anoth er reader (a Loomis grad, in fact) that I’d quoted from Burns’ letters exces sively. “Burns has so many problems, is so tormented, so thoroughly unpleas ant to so many people, that it is best to let him define himself,” he wrote. “And you did that.”
94 Loomis Chaffee Magazine Summer 2022 Reflections
We had a great dinner, but the next day something thing gnawed at me. “These are special bonds — so special, filled with so many memories for me that I fear, in my exuberance, I got a little bit catty and mean in some of my comments on old Loomis figures,” I confessed. “I felt bad about that afterward and hope you can forgive me for“Nothat.”need for any apologies,” he quickly assured me. “Jane Austen taught us long ago that without gossip morality is compromised, for what saves most of her heroines is informa tion from a steady stream of gossip. Neither Steve nor I heard anything mean in what you said. Indeed, we had a great evening, and I am happy you did
“Did I say something wrong?” I asked him anxiously 10 days later.
Photo: Loomis Chaffee Archives
In our ensuing exchanges, Harvey played many roles. When I asked him to suggest a book to read, he not only recommended one but specified the proper edition of it, which he described as “cheap and attractive.” He gave travel tips: he’d just spent a weekend visiting the homes of Edith Wharton and Melville in Western Massachusetts, he related, and sug gested I do likewise. And he told me how to spend my summer produc tively. “Wherever you are, ‘stretch out and haul in,’ as Henry James said,” he counseled.ThatDecember, I wrote him to say I’d finished a draft of the Burns book. “I forget: did I ask you whether you’d be willing to take a look?” I added. “What good news,” he replied. “I would love to.” And he recruited Mr. Stevenson — “He is a superb editor, and over the years he has saved me much grief,” he said of him — to read it, too.Harvey had already gone through a big chunk of the book, and promised he’d quickly read the rest. “I am still responding to holiday mail, but will get back to the book soon,” he wrote on New Year's Eve. “I am deliberately avoid ing reading it in short stints.” When I didn’t hear back from him immediately, I panicked.
just as he went on to do at Harvard — not to bother applying for a teaching job there or at any top New England school. Better to apply in the Boston public schools, he suggested: that’s where the Irish went. But Mr. Batch elder had hired him anyway. It makes me proud of this place.
Imaginetoo.” forgiving someone, while imparting some literary history and wisdom in the process. As if that wasn’t enough, he added one final thought. “I hope you are thinking about another visit to the Bookstore when the Burns book is published,” he said.
showoff-y. I knew he wouldn’t have approved. I never stopped trying to meet his high standards.
How lucky was that?
“Thanks again for sending me a copy and too for allowing me to play a very small part in its production,” he concluded. Imagine: him thanking me. Eight minutes after he’d sent that note to me, I forwarded it to my mother. Then I wrote him back. “In an experi ence with many of them, having you involved in this was one of my greatest pleasures,” I told him.
“You probably did read the Hous man poem in my class,” he promptly replied. “I also did ‘Dulce et Decorum est.’ Both great works. Incidentally, when on my walk this morning the Housman poem fell into my head, and I discovered that I had lost some of the lines, so once home I pulled the book down from the shelf and committ[ed] it to memory again.” He’d long since retired, but still felt he had to keep up.
We actually spoke in March 2019, when I began exploring a piece on Sewall Arnold, the guy we’d all have been clustering around these past 24 hours had he not died young, and bru tally. “I always liked him,” he told me that day. “He was just wonderful com pany, witty and full of laughter. Now a kid can be in a dark place and doesn’t have to be there all by himself the way Sewall probably thought he was.”
paperback edition was about to come out, and would include a photo I’d take of Mrs. Adams, the person who’d allegedly barred Lucifer from the Loomis library. “I can’t wait to see the picture of Winnie,” he replied. Feeling a bit sorry for myself, I complained of laboring over improvements no one would ever notice. “You and I think alike,” he observed. “We need to be prepared for the guy who will notice. When you have been trained in a rigorous prep school, you learn that all detailsThreematter.”yearslater, I came across a reference to the Housman poem “To an Athlete Dying Young.” “Wasn't it in your class that we read this?” I asked him, in September 2017. “Funny how poems read when young touch you so: in another class (I don’t remember whose) we read ‘Dulce et Decorum est’ and I never forgot that one, either.”
loomischaffee.org 95 Reflections
Only, I soon learned, he could no longer do that. Or answer any more of hisAccordingemails. to the obituary on centralmaine.com, Harvey Knowles was asked once if it saddened him that he’d never had children. “But I have had children,” he replied. “Thousands of them. And all from my classroom.” I was one of his children at Loomis, and then, years later, he gave me a second childhood with him.
When I revised the book, he asked to read the revisions. He studied, and commented upon, the photographs, offering his analysis of the young Burns’s posture, and smile, and eyes. When I complained of having finally to let go of the manuscript, he coun seled, “Your wistfulness will pass and then you’ll expand to the joys of your newFinally,creation.”Isent him the finished book. I don’t remember my inscrip tion, but I’m sure I labored over it and hoped it worthy but worried that it wasn’t. He didn’t mention that, but said he’d been “reading around” in the book since receiving it. So he was still pondering it, and probably mulling over how it could have been better. He had kind words for the unorthodox title — could there be better ammu nition for an unfriendly reviewer than calling a book Dreadful? — and the cover. But what pleased me most was that he thought it fair.
reunion, I wrote him again. I said I hoped he was well and staying safe, wherever he was. I added that I still fantasized about what Charlie Pratt or George Adams or Squirrel Norris or Tom Finley might have told me about Burns had I caught them in time. And how I still hoped to write something about Sewall, though it would be hard journalistically and maybe even ethi cally, to do. “If we ever see one another, I’d enjoy discussing it with you,” I said. “Also, there’s a great essay in the cur rent New Yorker on Faulkner and race,” I noted. “You’d enjoy it.”
“I'm glad we talked,” he wrote me a few days later. “Let’s stay in touch.” And I tried. In November 2020, a few months after our first aborted
David Margolick is an author and long time contributing editor at Vanity Fair He has held similar posts at Newsweek and Portfolio, and he was a legal affairs correspondent for The New York Times for 15 years. His books, including Dread ful: The Short Life and Gay Times of John Horne Burns and his most recent book, The Promise and the Dream: The Untold Story of Martin Luther King, Jr. and Robert F. Kennedy, are in the LC Authors Collection of the Katharine Brush Library. A first edition copy of Burns’s novel Lucifer with a Book is also part of the LC Authors Collection.
Our correspondence slackened after that. But when my one of my French teachers at Loomis, Barrett Dower, wrote me in July 2013 with a correction — the American poet I’d mentioned in the text was Edwin, not Edward, Arlington Robinson — and then added, “I’m surprised Harvey K. didn’t catch that!” I thought Harvey K. should know about what Mr. Dower said.A year later, I informed him the
ic. Harvey was as open-minded and decent as he was keen.
Photo: Defining Studios
Members of the Class of 2020 launch floating lanterns on the Cow Pond during their long-awaited class celebration on June 4, two years after the pandemic forced the campus to close for their senior spring.
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The Loomis
A crew of Loomis Chaffee community members works with bee expert Steve Rogenstein ’88 to build insect hotels and inspect the campus bee hives. Photo: Jessica Ravenelle
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