Loomis Chaffee Magazine Winter 2025

Story Time

Freshmen James Lynch, Aiden Pliszka, and Tidal Fisher read to students at a local elementary school during the freshman community service day in the fall.

Cover: Senior Rachael Lantner and her dog, Piper, after a cross country meet on the Island this fall. Piper is one of Rachael’s and the team’s most loyal fans. Photo by Stan Godlewski

Winter 2025 | Volume 88 | No. 1

FEATURES

Storytelling

What do a journalist, a cartoonist, a fiction writer, a historic preservationist, a choral historian, a comedian, a quilter, a performer/entrepreneur, and a raconteur have in common, besides their connection to Loomis Chaffee?

Teaching Techniques

The school’s culture of curiosity starts with the faculty, who have ingenious ways of engaging students and keeping things fresh.

Smithsonian Storyline

“Unbound: Narrative Art of the Plains” is the latest acclaimed museum exhibition designed by Andrea D’Amato ’01 of the Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian.

EDITORIAL & DESIGN TEAM

Lynn A. Petrillo ’86 Director of Strategic Communications & Marketing

Becky Purdy Managing Editor

Kelley Albert

Senior Graphic Designer

Jeff Otterbein Obituaries Editor

CONTRIBUTORS

Jeff Otterbein, Emma Lange, Mary Coleman Forrester, Paul Thompson, Paige Abrams, Heidi E.V. McCann ’93, Lisa Salinetti Ross, Mitch Linker Chelsea Stuart, Deidre Swords

PHOTOGRAPHY

DEPARTMENTS

4 From the Head

5 Island News

22 Faculty and Staff News

24 Pelican Sports

61 Faculty Desk

62 Object Lesson

64 News from the Alumni/Development Office

70 Obituaries

80 Reflections

SUBMISSIONS/STORIES & NEWS

School community members may contribute items of interest to:

Loomis Chaffee Editors

The Loomis Chaffee School • 4 Batchelder Rd • Windsor, CT 06095

860.687.6811 • magazine@loomis.org

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LinkedIn (The Loomis Chaffee School)

Stan Godlewski, Ludmila Zamah, Courtesy of Brian Rooney ’70, Defining Studios, Skip Brown, Makhala Huggins, Megan Du Plessis, Kelley Albert, Jeff Otterbein, Matt Kammrath, Courtesy of junior Claire Kietduriyakul, Jessica Ravenelle, Courtesy of Kendra Waters ’11, Lisa Keating, Ajay Suresh, Wrenne Evans, Courtesy of Sheilah Zielinski, Lee Klawans, Brian McConkey, Loomis Chaffee Archives, Wayne Dombkowski Photography, Lisa Salinetti Ross, John Groo, Lynn Petrillo

Visit Loomis Chaffee online at www.loomischaffee.org for the latest school news, sports scores, and galleries of recent photos. You also will find direct links to all of our social networking communities. For an online version of the magazine, go to www.loomischaffee.org/magazine.

Printed at Lane Press, Burlington, VT

Printed on Sterling Ultra Matte

CORRECTION

Because of an editing mistake, a feature story published in the Summer 2024 issue of Loomis Chaffee Magazine contained an error about Head of School Jody Reilly Soja’s college sports participation. Jody played lacrosse at Tufts University as a freshman and did not play lacrosse at Bates College after transferring.

Sampling from the Book Buffet

Iam a person who always has struggled with a menu. It always seems like there are so many good choices, creating great difficulty in selecting just one entree. This is generally why I love a buffet, where you can take a little bit of what you want, sampling different tastes and flavors — maybe something a little savory and something a little sweet.

I am also a person who loves to read. Typically, I have two books going at the same time. One nonfiction, usually schoolor work-related, referred to as “vegetables,” and another, fiction, I think of as my “dessert.” This fall, I have been gifted many great books — mainly nonfiction — from members of the Loomis Chaffee community related to conversations we were having about school and the future of education generally. The challenge of having all these great books in front of me, all of which are deeply intriguing, is that I have struggled to read just one at a time. As a result, I find myself reading them all, bouncing from book to book, reading in increments of about 10 pages at a time. I feel I am sampling the “book buffet,” taking small bites of various books. And, as my grandmother would often say to me at a buffet, it’s possible my “eyes are too big for my stomach.” However, even though I can’t often remember what I took from each book separately, I am finding that they complement each other nicely and in interesting ways.

These books are all related to the broader theme of the future of learning and the role of schools like Loomis Chaffee. Most of these books are focused on the human condition of feeling, learning, and experiencing. Belonging: The Science of Creating Connection and Bridging Divides, by Geoffrey Cohen, articulates the conditions in community that we all need to find to thrive, to support both our personal and communal well-being. The Awakened Brain: The New Science of Spirituality and Our Quest for an Inspired Life, by Lisa Miller, explores our human need for “meaning making” and how essential this is for wellness, particularly for adolescents. While

This is an exciting moment to be an educator. We have an opportunity to affirm many of our practices while also thinking about how to enhance our understanding of what true learning looks like and will require in the future.

not necessarily focusing on a specific religious sense of spirituality, Miller investigates the deep need we feel for purpose and connection — to something or someone. In my most recent sample from the buffet, I have just started The Most Human Human: What Artificial Intelligence Teaches Us About Being Alive, by Brian Christian. Early in the book, Christian explores the distinction between what both humans and computers can do from what makes us uniquely human, the traits that technology cannot replicate.

Similarly, in The Extinction of Experience: Being Human in a Disembodied World, author Christine Rosen explores the existential dilemma of living in a highly digitized, isolated, screen-focused world, void of close human relationships, patience, and authentic experience. In Rescuing Socrates: How the Great Books Changed My Life and Why They Matter for a New Generation, Roosevelt Montas makes the case for the relevance of classic, liberal arts education, particularly in relation to the “Great Books” he read in his first year of undergraduate study at Columbia.

Montas notes in these “old books,” he was “observing and absorbing styles of expression, accents, quirks, tones, turns of phrases, ways of being a person. Yet the insights … were more often about [himself] than about the books [he] was reading or the peers [he] was watching.” He writes further, “I didn’t know then that this is precisely where the greatest value of a liberal education lies: in turning students’ eyes inward, into an exploration of their own humanity.” And the last book, seemingly the most different from the others, is Brave New Words: How AI Will Revolutionize Education (and Why That’s a Good Thing), by Salman Khan. In this book, Khan explores the opportunities that artificial intelligence provides, particularly in the field of education. Rather than expressing concern about the demise and undoing of classical education, he argues that A.I. can be an empowering tool for reframing our approach, while remaining focused on deep and transformational learning.

This sampling of my “book buffet” has started to illuminate, for me, what the future of learning — and schooling — may look like: taking an innovative, inclusive approach to artificial intelligence and other technological advances with a continued focus on the skills and proficiencies we need as humans using these tools. We need to balance the responsibility of empowering our students to be creators and ethical consumers of these tools while at the same time helping them learn to communicate, reflect, and think critically about the information they encounter. This is an exciting moment to be an educator. We have an opportunity to affirm many of our practices while also thinking about how to enhance our understanding of what true learning looks like and will require in the future. I am inspired by my recent reading and know that this exploration will only lead to more sampling from the buffet while still saving some room for dessert.

Bon Appetit!

Above: Jody and freshman Alice Yu discuss Our Missing Hearts by Celeste Ng, one of several summer reading Book Chats.

ISLAND NEWS

Jody Reilly Soja Installed as Eighth Head of School

Jody Reilly Soja, standing just steps away from the Loomis Family Homestead and all that it invokes, was installed on September 20, 2024, as the eighth head of school at Loomis Chaffee, with her family, friends, students, faculty, staff, alumni, members of the Board of Trustees, and two former heads of school among the participants and witnesses.

In her address, Jody spoke about getting to know the school and community. “For me,” she said, “the way through a transition like this is to remain curious. In a new setting or situation, curiosity is my guide, my steadying force.”

That curiosity has led her, since arriving on the Island in July, to meet with broad swaths of the school community, asking questions, listening, and learning. She has attended many campus events, hosted students in her home, even shadowed a student for a day. Jody also has started a strategic planning process, seeking input from students, faculty and staff, parents, and alumni.

During the installation ceremony, senior Sara Feged, the Student Council president, spoke about her first meeting with Jody. From that moment, Sara said, “I knew the future of our community would flourish with such a strong, compassionate, and bright leader. ... She was an active listener and showed genuine interest in getting to know me as a person.”

Associate Head of School Webb Trenchard welcomed all to the installation. Sara and Kitty Johnson Peterson ’72, the school’s senior instructor, provided greetings. Junior Shane Lischin, a student at Indian Mountain School when Jody was head of school there, addressed the crowd, as did David Rogan ’76, a Trustee and co-chair of the search committee that brought Jody to the Island.

Duncan A.L. MacLean ’90, chair of the Board of Trustees, gave the charge, which formally outlined the task ahead while invoking the history of the school. Sheila Culbert, standing not far from the new dormitory named in her honor, presented the symbolic gavel of leadership to her successor. Sheila retired as the seventh head of school in June. “It is my honor,” Sheila said, “to pass the gavel of leadership to you, as Russ Weigel passed it to me 16 years ago. Know that you have our best wishes and support.” Russ, the sixth head of school, also was at the ceremony.

Sheila noted that having the installation “in the light cast by the Loomis Family Homestead” was fitting since 150 years ago “the five Loomis siblings, whose children all died before reaching 21 years of age, channeled their grief into the promise of a school for the children of others.”

Duncan quoted the school’s Founders, who stipulated that “no officer, instructor, employee, or student would be made eligible or ineligible for or by reason of his or her religious or political opinions, nor would any student be denied admission due to his or her family’s financial circumstances.”

“Think about those words in today’s world,” he said to the crowd of more than 1,000

spectators, “and recognize the Founders were way ahead of their time when they created this school as an inclusive and diverse community where the free exchange of ideas and cultures would flourish. Today the Loomis Institute is a school of opportunity, a school of ideas, a school of rigor, and a school built on a strong and diverse community, just as the Founders envisioned.”

Jody’s life has been shaped by those principles. She shared a story about an experience in eighth grade that became central to her life. Her mother took her to see Sarafina!, a musical about a young woman in Soweto, South Africa, which for Jody led to a deep curiosity about the country. Nine years later, as a junior at Bates College, she spent a semester in Durban, South Africa. “I was suddenly so aware that my perspective was extremely limited, that other people saw the same world in a completely different way ... and I wanted to know more about all of it.”

As Jody was packing to move to Loomis last summer, she found letters she had sent to her parents from South Africa, one of them saying, “I have realized how large and diverse the world is and how easy my life is.”

She told the audience at the installation that “my eyes were open to all of it, but more importantly, because of the love and warmth I was embraced with while I was there, my head and heart were also open.”

She spoke of a book she read last summer, I Never Thought of It That Way: How to Have Fearlessly Curious Conversations in Dangerously

Above: Newly installed Head of School Jody Reilly Soja; her predecessor, Sheila Culbert; and Chair of the Board of Trustees Duncan A.L. MacLean ’90 recess from the Installation ceremony.

Divided Times by Mónica Guzmán. “One statement jumped off the page for me: ‘Live life in the form of a question,’” Jody said.

“For me,” she said, “the closest experience to the continual growth I experienced in South Africa is being part of a boarding school community. Here at Loomis, we are at the confluence of diverse people, cultures, ideas, and backgrounds. All the conditions are in place for us to deepen our compassion, our empathy, and understanding of perspectives that differ from our own. We have created a deliberate community that is designed to keep us curious. But we have to lean into our conversations with each other. We need to listen from a place of openhearted curiosity. ‘Help me understand why you think that.’ ‘Can you say more about why that feels true to you?’ Then listen. Listen with the intention of understanding, not countering, not shutting down, not shouting down.”

In a nod to this year’s storytelling theme at Loomis, Jody said everyone should share their stories. “But storytelling is a duet, not an aria, not a solo,” she said. “Storytelling requires listening. Story hearing and feeling. It is always some form of call and response, heart to heart. It is that exchange between us that will serve us well in our pursuit of community-building and connection-making. We can explore not just new ways of bringing people together, but also new ways of being people together. The South African saying is ‘Umntu Ngumntu Ngabantu’ — we are people through other people.”

The ability to connect with others was a trait that David Rogan quickly saw in Jody during the interview process. He said the search committee was drawn to Jody’s emphasis on community, belonging, understanding another’s perspective, and cultivating a sense of joy in learning. “Jody’s interaction with the students who interviewed her truly stood out and brought her philosophy on community-building to life through her ability to connect, engage, and build trust,” he said.

Shane, too, remarked on Jody’s ability to connect, to care, and to build community when she was at Indian Mountain School. He said she greeted students at the door in the morning — and her door was always open,

seeking students’ opinions and ideas. Shane said Jody was not just an administrator, but also “our biggest fan, the most enthusiastic supporter of everything we did. Whether standing on the sidelines at sports games, cheering loudly for every goal, or sitting front and center at performances, her presence was felt everywhere. You could always count on her to be there.”

True to form, Jody was out and about on campus this fall. True to form, students

were heavily involved in the installation ceremony, from speakers to musicians. Wind Ensemble Director David Winer conducted the event’s ensemble, which included student musicians and Orchestra Director Netta Hadari on violin.

“You have readily embraced this place as evidenced by your warm greetings to everyone you meet and your eagerness to get to know us all better,” said Kitty.

continued on page 23

Lischin, and Religious Life Coordinator Ryan Heckman Bottom: The school community enjoys a luncheon in Grubbs Quadrangle after the ceremony.

Above: Installation ceremony presenters: Co-chair of the Head of School Search Committee David Rogan ’76, senior and president of the Student Council Sara Feged, Associate Head of School Webb Trenchard, faculty member Kitty Johnson Peterson ’72, Chair of the Board of Trustees Duncan A.L. MacLean ’90, Head of School Jody Reilly Soja, former Head of School Sheila Culbert, junior Shane

A Year of Sharing Stories

The Power of Storytelling” is the all-school theme at Loomis Chaffee for 2024–25.

“We will be creating opportunities throughout the year for storytelling within the Loomis Chaffee community, on the Island, and beyond,” Head of School Jody Reilly Soja said in a message to the LC community at the start of the school year.

One such opportunity is Chapel Talks, which began in October and are taking place once a month through the school year. Two to three students, faculty, or staff members each share a story in Founders Chapel, and a school community member performs a musical piece. Each Chapel Talk is followed by a reception at the Head’s House.

Convocations throughout the year will provide other examples of the power of storytelling, from poet and filmmaker Max Stossel’s talk on September 30 to the English Colloquium convocation scheduled for the spring.

Teachers across the curriculum also have been incorporating the storytelling theme in their classes and assignments.

Each year Orchestra director and music teacher Netta Hadari does a composition project with the Orchestra “so the students feel they are creators and not just interpreters,” he explains.

Last year the project was movie trailers. “This year, they will be writing music for children’s stories,” Netta said. “Simple children’s stories like The Very Hungry Caterpillar, for instance.

They [will] create the music and narrate that story at the same time.”

The Writing Initiatives program’s theme this year is “point of view, and hopefully that will serve as a nice complement to the school theme,” said the program’s director, John Morrell. “I’m working on a collaboration with the Visual Arts Department as part of that, and I have a few other ideas floating around.”

Narrative accounts figured prominently in this year’s all-school read, which students and faculty completed over the summer. Each participant choose a specific nonfiction book, fiction book, podcast, or documentary. The piece of nonfiction was How to Tell a Story: The Essential Guide to Memorable Storytelling from The Moth, a leader in the modern storytelling movement.

The author of that book wrote, “When you choose to share a story, you share a piece of yourself. Stories explain your heart, decode your history, decipher who you are, and translate it all to whoever takes the time to listen carefully. … They’re both ordinary and exquisite. Stories are the currency of community. They tear down walls, unite

cultures, and help people realize they are more alike than different, all while celebrating what is unique to you.”

Jody said she is eager to hear as many stories as possible in her first school year on the Island.

“As someone who is new to the community, this theme selection is a gift,” she wrote in her summer message to the school community. “I plan to spend a year listening to the stories of Loomis Chaffee — the stories of individual community members past and present, the stories of Loomis’ traditions, and of course, the rich history that builds the foundation of this institution.”

Once upon a time there was a family with a vision ...

“The Loomis Institute was chartered in 1874 by five siblings who had lost all their children and selflessly determined to found a school as a gift to the children of others. ... Their story continues to resonate in a remarkably contemporary, even timeless, way,” reads the Loomis website.

Yet another chapter is being written in the 2024–25 school year.

Top: Head of School Jody Reilly Soja speaks at the Opening Convocation. Above: Students, faculty, and staff fill the Olcott Center for the convocation.

Speakers Address Issues of the Day

Convocations this fall with guest speakers addressed two topics being grappled with across the country: the effects of social media and political polarization in today’s world. Both presentations left those gathered with plenty to process.

Max Stossel spoke at a convocation in September about the ways technology is used by companies to be addictive and distracting, and he provided advice for combatting technology’s negative effects.

His goal, he said before the convocation, was that students “leave being more intentional about their technology and social media use, that they think about whether they are using technology or it is using them, and that they come away with a different understanding of how social media impacts their lives and relationships.”

Mr. Stossel is the founder and chief executive officer of Social Awakening, an organization “dedicated to helping young people survive and thrive in the modern world.” He once was on the other side, working in the social media world, including designing notifications to distract users.

One way to resist being used by technology, he told students, is to ask themselves which apps and games make them feel good during and after using them, and which ones do not.

Mr. Stossel said he was a “gamer” growing up. He’d play Halo for four hours at a time and, if asked, would have said he liked the game. “If you asked me how it made me feel during and after, that would have been a better question,” he said, “because for the first hour [I was] into it, having a good time, but for the next three hours I was stressed and angry trying to get to the next level, and then afterward [I had] this drained and empty feeling of ‘What just happened?’”

The impact of technology isn’t all bad, he said. “If you were able to tell us 100 years ago we could have face-to-face conversations across oceans, our ancestors would have had their minds absolutely blown. ... We have a camera, a stopwatch, a calculator, a flashlight, and every song ever invented in our pocket. That is magic. … So how with this magical device are we seeing such an increase in stress and anxiety, depression, chaos, conflict? How can something so awesome also be making such a mess?”

He did his best to answer that question.

Political polarization was the topic of a convocation in October with guest speaker Kent Lenci. Mr. Lenci, who taught middle school history and social studies for 20 years, said he was always interested in politics, having interned on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., and political polarization has been on his mind for years.

About five years ago, he left the classroom and started Middle Ground School Solutions to help students and faculty understand the challenges of political polarization and the potential to overcome it.

Part of Mr. Lenci’s convocation address was about “different levels of listening,” including listening but not really hearing.

“[We] need to listen to the people we disagree with because, when we feel we are heard, that is the only point at which our defenses lower and we are able to engage in conversation that might change our mind a little bit,” he said.

In an interview before the convocation, Mr. Lenci said he hoped to encourage students to be curious about people with whom they think they disagree and “reach across the lines.” As he told students at the convocation, “Think about the potential we have if we get a bunch of people who are a little better at this than the adults are right now — the problems we could solve.”

The speakers were part of the Hubbard Speaker Series, made possible by a gift from Robert P. Hubbard ’47.

Top Left: Mr. Stossel stresses a point during his talk. Top Middle: Mr. Stossel speaks with freshman Ruby Hoffman after the convocation. Above: Mr. Lenci delivers his convocation address.

THE MAKING OF CULBERT HALL

The school’s newest dormitory, Culbert Hall, opened this fall and houses 27 students and two faculty families. Named for former Head of School Sheila Culbert, who retired last summer, the building was made possible by a gift from Trustee Mary Bucksbaum Scanlan ’87 and her husband, Patrick J. Scanlan. Construction began in the summer of 2023 with clearing and excavation of the site and concluded in September with attachment of the final portico railing. The project also involved renovation of Warham Hall, which connects to the new dorm.

Opposite page: An aerial view from the east of Culbert Hall, with Warham and Founders halls beyond. Above: The Business Office had to be razed to make room for the new dorm. Top Middle: To clear the construction site, grounds crew members prepare to move a tree to another part of campus. Top Right: 39,220 bricks were used for the outside of the building, which has 82 windows. Bottom: A construction crew works on the slate roof. Bottom Right: View from Grubbs Quadrangle looking east toward Culbert Hall with Warham Hall on the right. Below: All the comforts of home.

Delivering on a Shakespeare Play

William Shakespeare’s Measure for Measure, the fall play in the Black Box Theater, followed the Duke of Vienna as he took a leave of absence, disguising himself as a friar to examine how his kingdom functions. He appointed his deputy, Angelo, to be in charge, and Angelo ruled as a tyrant. In the end, the Duke revealed his dual identity and passed judgment on some of the characters in the play.

Measure for Measure was written by Shakespeare around 1604. The show, directed by faculty member David Edgar in the John D. and Alexandra C. Nichols Center for Theater and Dance, was a production with freshmen and sophomore actors who brought the characters to life 420 years later.

“It was a new experience for me, my first Shakespeare play,” said sophomore Joy Smith, who played the Duke of Vienna. “I remember early on in the rehearsal process, we had to take one or two days to translate what exactly were the lines trying to say. That part is really important to me because you don’t want to just be saying words. … If you know what you’re saying, you can put different emotions into your lines ... It really brings a whole new meaning to the lines. This has been fun and very interesting.”

As in any play, the actors had to keep track of many things — among them the inflection in their voices, their facial expressions, their movements, where they were looking, their marks on the floor, the lighting.

Freshman Zieozi Olen, who played one of the main characters, Isabella, said it was all about “practice, practice, practice.” And all that practice — which began shortly after school started in early September — came to fruition on the stage in performances in October.

When the school day was over and Zieozi was on the stage, she said, she had to “empty her thoughts of school” and “breathe into the character.” That could translate in various ways. “If I am really excited, I straighten my posture,” she said. “If the character is panicked, something bad is happening, I quicken my breathing more, feel the tension, so that I can convey that.”

Freshman Phoenix Olen, Zieozi’s brother, played Lucio, who provided comic relief, which Phoenix certainly delivered, from what he said to his facial expressions and body movements.

“Playing Lucio was really fun,” Phoenix said after opening night. “I had a blast. The entire cast — we all had a fantastic time. I got a role I enjoyed, just enough scenes. I go for characters that aren’t too big but aren’t too small. The character I got was perfect.”

Joy kept in mind the word “fun” when she was performing.

“Once I memorize my lines — which is a whole process in itself — I really do try to have fun on stage,” Joy said. “That’s the whole thing for me, really getting to know my character, so that can help me make character choices. How does this person speak? How does this person walk around?”

Vincentio (sophomore Joy Smith), Lucio (freshman Phoenix Olen), Elbow (freshman Olen Baker), and Isabella (freshman Zieozi Olen)

Top inset: Angelo (sophomore Vivaan Chaturvedi) Left inset: Isabella (Zieozi Olen) Right inset: Lucio (Phoenix Olen)

THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING

arnestE

ISLAND NEWS

Wit, Satire, and a Journey Back in Time

“Oscar Wilde, truly a master of wit and satire, is celebrated for his unwavering and humorous critique of Victorian society,” wrote Theater Director David McCamish in the playbill for The Importance of Being Earnest, produced this fall in the Norris Ely Orchard Theater. “His works, which continue to resonate for their unique comedy and insightful sagacity of relationships, have delighted audiences for well over a century.”

Left: Cecily Cardew (junior Natalie Pereira), Algernon Moncrieff (senior Iris Sande), Gwendolen Fairfax (junior Nina Gitlitz), Jack Worthing (junior Zane Habig), Dr. Chasuble (junior Evan Thomen), and Miss Prism (senior Victoria Kenton) Above (clockwise from left): Lady Bracknell (senior Zaryjha Harrison); Gwendolen and Jack; Miss Prism and Dr. Chasuble; and unevenly burdened butlers (seniors Syd Robinow and Bill Zhou)

The Loomis Chaffee student production of Earnest by juniors and seniors was yet another example of that delight. Insightful sagacity. Check. Wit and satire. Check. The 11-member cast played off each other expertly. The set design, lighting, and costumes all helped to transport the audience to England in the late 1890s.

Act I takes place on an early-autumn afternoon in 1895 in Algernon Moncrieff’s flat on HalfMoon Street in London. Senior Iris Sande, a veteran of LC performances, played Algernon with high energy and flair.

Act II is set on the following afternoon in the garden of Jack Worthing’s English manor house in Wilton, Hertfordshire. Junior Zane Habig played Jack Worthing, whose alter ego is Earnest. Zane got to say one of the most famous lines of the play as the plot thickened at the end: “It is a terrible thing for a man to find out suddenly that all his life he has been speaking the truth. Can you forgive me?”

In an interview after the show, Zane discussed forming a “connection with the other actors. And we had an amazing crew, and Mr. McCamish is an amazing director. All-around this is a great experience, and I’m glad I did it.”

Members of the cast talked about the work that went into playing their parts. Zane described the process as “feeling what the character is feeling, putting myself in his shoes. And the character background — I put a lot of time into making my version of Earnest. Because I have this personal connection with him, it’s a lot easier.”

Junior Nina Gitlitz, who played Gwendolen

Fairfax, explained her approach. “I always like to write down the physical traits of the character first and think about their relationship with other people and how they see the world,” she said. “Once that happens, it becomes easy to fall into the mindset of the character.”

Nina’s words were almost drowned out as each actor walked into the lobby of the John D. and Alexandra C. Nichols Center for Theater and Dance to a large round of applause. “The community of the NEO is wonderful,” Nina said.

Junior Natalie Pereira’s role, Cecily Cardew, was listed in the character breakdown for

auditions as “a simpler, more innocent country contrast to Gwendolyn Fairfax’s sophisticated city girl, but in her own way, formidable.”

“I loved how playful she was,” Natalie said. “She’s very expressive, which is fun for a show.”

Like the others, Natalie had her way of getting into character.

“I like journaling as my character, whatever the character is feeling or past memories they may mention in the text, just so I have something to connect with when speaking,” Natalie said.

Left: Fashionable and witty Algernon (senior Iris Sande) savors bachelorhood. Above: Junior David Shim, assistant stage manager, works in the control booth. Below: The actors prepare backstage: senior Syd Robinow (in back), junior Nina Gitlitz, senior Zaryjha Harrison, and senior Iris Sande.

Artistic Perspectives

Guest artists in the visual and performing arts this fall brought inspiring new perspectives and ideas to the student experience in the Richmond Art Center, Hubbard Performance Hall, and Nichols Center for Theater and Dance.

Sergei Upkin, the principal dancer of the Estonian National Ballet, led two-hour workshops in the dance studio of the Nichols Center during his two-day visit to campus in September.

“It’s a wonderful opportunity for our students to work with an incredibly talented and high-caliber artist,” reflected Dance Director Kate Loughlin during Mr. Upkin’s visit.

A dancer, choreographer, and teacher, Mr. Upkin graduated from the St. Petersburg Vaganova Ballet Academy in 1999. He was the principal dancer of the Estonian National Ballet from 1999 to 2005, worked at the Staatsballet Berlin from 2005 to 2007, and returned to Estonian National Ballet in 2008. He also has a teaching degree from the St. Petersburg Vaganova Ballet Academy.

The workshops at Loomis were challenging and fun. “Working with someone new is energizing and helps you refocus and put forth your best effort,” Kate said.

“I loved the experience,” said senior Rachael Budd, one of the Loomis dancers in the workshops. “He was able to give me corrections that shape who I am as a dancer. I loved his teaching style [and] think he is really engaging.”

Mr. Upkin has been dancing since he was 10 years old. “I love to do this,” he said, “and to give joy to the public.”

Mr. Upkin visited Loomis while he was instructing for several weeks at the Nutmeg Ballet Conservancy in Torrington, where his manager, Joan Kunsch, is an instructor. She came with him to Loomis to introduce him to the LC dancers.

Mr. Upkin has been a medalist in seven international classical ballet competitions and has performed every major male role in classical ballet, Ms. Kunsch said. This is his final year as a full-time ballet dance company member, she said, noting that in June he will turn his full attention to teaching and choreography. Two gala performances are planned in his honor in the spring.

ARTIST IN RESIDENCE

Visiting Artist Brooke Toczylowski did not have to search far for the ingredients she used for her demonstration to students in a printmaking class in October. Her work is about what surrounds us, and she used plants and weeds gathered from Loomis Chaffee property to make the demonstration prints.

She also used some of her natural inks, including one she made from the pokeberry plant, the color of which blended vibrant red, purple, and mauve.

Ms. Toczylowski spent a week in residence in the Richmond Art Center working with and alongside students. The longtime educator and artist described the week as a gift. “To have space and time away from everyday life is critical for an artist,” she said.

Among the gifts for the students was the opportunity to watch the artist transform what they might see around the Loomis property into beautiful art, striking in color, made from natural ink.

Ms. Toczylowski started gardening during the COVID-19 pandemic as an antidote to the pandemic’s isolation. Four years later she uses what she calls her “dye” garden to grow plants from which she makes natural ink.

Sergei Upkin leads a workshop in the Jocelyn Marshall Wallace Dance Studio.

“This is going to sound corny in a way, but I found a bit of comfort and community and friendships from the plants,” she said. “So I started learning and reading — tons of research.”

Through her reading, Ms. Toczylowski came to feel that humans are part of, not more important than, our ecological surroundings. She invokes Indigenous culture and wisdom to explain. “In English we use an ‘it’ pronoun for a hill or a plant, but in many North American Indigenous languages, there is a pronoun of ‘he’ or ‘she’ or ‘they’ that is used, so that really engages your mindset around how that entity shows up in your life, and you do treat it differently. You treat it with more respect.”

Ms. Toczylowski’s visit was part of the Adolf and Virginia Dehn Visiting Artist Program.

role in Ms. Palmer’s work. “There are about 59 recorded color systems, a majority of which are scientifically based,” she said in her artist statement. “I am captivated by exploring the possibility of a color system that centers history instead.”

Ms. Palmer has produced large-scale works that focus on various colors. Her fuchsia series came from learning about the fuchsia plant. “I was really interested in using a color that could maybe describe rage or intention rather than the color red that we might expect to use, and that was a response to color history and Black feminism histories and everything in between.”

GUEST MUSICIANS

Oboe Duo Agosto & Friends visited Loomis Chaffee in October as guest musicians. From the stage in Hubbard Performance Hall, Ling-Fei Kang (oboe), Charles Huang (oboe and English horn), Lisabeth Miller (soprano), and Patrice Newman (piano) performed four songs that each in their own way told stories of love.

Ling-Fei, who teaches oboe at Loomis, and Charles founded Oboe Duo Agosto in 2009, and they are married to each other. They met at the Hartt School of Music.

There are stories behind what artist Destiny Palmer creates. She researches, writes down thoughts, and creates art that is rich in color and deep in meaning.

As was evident in her exhibit, “Spoken in a Language You Can’t Ignore,” in the Sue and Eugene Mercy Jr. Gallery, color plays a huge

Her black-and-blue series, she said, came at a time when “a lot of folks were investigating equity in the healthcare field. ... I came across an article around people researching what a bruise looks like on a black body rather than white skin or fair skin. What was interesting to me is I know what a bruise on my body looks like, and down that rabbit hole I uncovered other artists trying to think through the use of black and blue as a symbol, as a tool, as well as all of the other things that can be associated with it.”

She was researching and contemplating these ideas as the pandemic struck and George Floyd was murdered by police, setting off protests around the country. These events led to Ms. Palmer’s black-and-blue installation in the exhibit, focusing on Emmit Till, who was 14 in 1955 when he was brutally killed by white men in Mississippi — a murder that helped galvanize the civil rights movement.

When they were enrolled at Hartt, Charles said, students were encouraged to play in small groups with one another. “We realized this was something we really enjoyed,” he said, “and it was unique, and we would have to find our own repertoire because there is not a lot of music written for this combination. When we include other instruments, it gets easier and more fun, and we decided to make this concert happen involving our friends.”

Lisabeth gave voice lessons at Loomis from 2005 to 2011, but she had never performed on the Hubbard stage. “This is quite an honor,” she said. She has sung on both opera and concert stages and is the artistic director of the Hartford Opera Theater.

Patrice specializes in chamber music and art song, and she both performs and teaches.

The guest musician concerts were sponsored in part by the Joseph S. Stookins Lecture Fund.

Top right: Ling-Fei Kang, Patrice Newman, Lisabeth Miller, and Charles Huang of Oboe Duo Agosto & Friends

Loomis Chaffee

SINGER/SONGWRITER

Jeff Verney said he was following what he called the traditional arc of life for many — school, college, get a job, get married, have a family, work, retire — until the night of December 23, 2007.

Jeff and his wife, Pam, parents of Sam ’14, had gone out to dinner with friends. Shortly after coming home, Jeff collapsed, and on Christmas Eve he had surgery that lasted more than four hours and required 45 staples in his head. Jeff had suffered a brain aneurysm, and the odds of living a normal life moving forward were low. He beat the odds, but that brain aneurysm did cause him to wonder, “What is my purpose?”

Since then, Jeff has been writing and performing songs and stories of gratitude, positivity, happiness, and hope. In October, he stood on the Hubbard stage to share his music — and his story — with students in a guest musician workshop.

C“We are all building our lifelong stories,” he told the students who sat on the stage with him. “We have interesting chapters. We’re a part of other people’s stories. There are plot twists.”

Jeff had a long career in health insurance, but for the last couple of years, he has concentrated solely on his storytelling music. He says his passions are creating and performing, and he wanted to align these interests with his purpose, thus making the endeavor a

full-time effort. He has written songs, produced a picture book for kids, and created a 90-minute workshop called the “Perpetual Happiness Tour.” He gave a condensed version of the workshop in the Hubbard Performance Hall, talking about happiness, awe, purpose, people, and things one can do to bring more happiness.

Above: Guest musician Jeff Verney speaks with students on the Hubbard Performance Hall stage.

YOONJEE KWAK: “Times of Contemplation”

eramics teacher YoonJee Kwak has exhibited her work all over the United States and in various places around the world. This fall she had a show in the Sue and Eugene Mercy Jr. Gallery, just steps away from the classroom in which she teaches and the studio in which she creates most of her work.

“I feel very privileged, very honored, to be able to show my work,” YoonJee said when the exhibit opened. She calls her studio in the Richmond Art Center “my happy place” and her work there “very meditative.”

In her artist statement, YoonJee explained her preference for hand-building ceramic

techniques. “The inherent beauty of coilbuilding lies in its ability to reveal progressive growth throughout the artistic journey, akin to nurturing a plant from seedling to blossom. Just as a plant requires water, sunshine, and time to flourish, my works demand patience and time. By incorporating memories of patience and time into the very fabric of my pieces, I create a meaningful record of my artistic practice.”

YoonJee is in her third school year of teaching at Loomis. All of the pieces she exhibited were completed during her time on the Island. She said her work considers her interactions with students, the atmosphere in which she works and teaches, and the community of people at Loomis Chaffee. “I am capturing my memory into the coils,” she said.

Left: YoonJee works in her studio in the Richmond Art Center. Above: “Times of Contemplation,” YoonJee’s exhibition, in Mercy Gallery this fall

ISLAND NEWS

Where the Norton Fellows Roam

Back home in Bangkok, Thailand, Claire Kietduriyakul saw the construction site camps for migrants, with poor living conditions and young children going unschooled, and she wanted to do something about it. So last summer she taught math and English to children of migrant workers in Bangkok as a Norton Fellowship project.

“I am glad I was able to give the children that experience,” says Claire, now a junior. “They do not have proper access to education, so seeing how schools can be reformed is interesting to me.”

Three other Norton Fellows also completed projects over the summer. Senior Rachael Lantner designed a STEM project to create and test rockets with underserved youth in Hartford. Senior Sally Hayes taught environmental stewardship to children in New York state. And senior Georgia Biasi taught piano to kids at the Stamford, Connecticut, Boys & Girls Club.

The fellowships, administered by the Norton Family Center for the Common Good, enable selected students to pursue their interests and become more engaged with their local communities over summer break. Students must apply and, if chosen, each receives up to $1,000 to help complete the project.

The construction industry in Thailand employs about 700,000 migrants, and about 60,000 children live with parents in construction site camps, according to the Baan Dek Foundation, which says “these children and their parents face critical challenges in accessing essential services such as education, healthcare and child protection.”

Claire says her experience of planning lessons for the children helped her think ahead. She says she also had to adapt to the needs of the children.

Rachael calls her experience in working with children on STEM projects “amazing.”

“A lot of students out there are interested in STEM but haven’t had much exposure,”

The fellowships, administered by the Norton Family Center for the Common Good, enable selected students to pursue their interests and become more engaged with their local communities over summer break.

Rachael says. “A lot fell in love with what I was doing [such as 3D printing], and it was great to see them light up when they started to understand. I wanted to expose younger people to the idea they could follow what

they love ... and to inspire them to follow their passions.”

Sally’s fellowship included working on an environmental program with young children at the Boys & Girls Club of America in Poughkeepsie, N.Y., where she read to them and then offered activities connected to the reading. She also was part of a one-day farmer’s market and did a STEM lab at a local museum.

“I was happy to see the kids get excited about this, bringing their attention more to the environment, especially as climate change is becoming more important,” Sally says. “So it was fulfilling to know I am helping someone see this, too.”

Sally says she always has enjoyed being outdoors with her family and was aware of the importance of environmental stewardship from a young age. These interests have coalesced at Loomis Chaffee, where she is in the Global & Environmental Studies Certificate program, serves as an environmental proctor, and is enrolled in a College-Level Guided Research Project in Environmental Sustainability.

Georgia started playing the piano in the second grade. “It has been a way I have bonded with others, challenged myself, and learned it was OK to make mistakes,” Georgia said last spring before embarking on the Norton project. “As I reflected on the joy and fulfillment the piano brings me, I couldn’t help but acknowledge that musical education is often inaccessible due to its high cost, depriving many children of the opportunity to experience the joys of music. I chose this project because I wanted to take a step toward making musical education accessible to all.”

Top: Georgia, Sally, Claire, and Rachael last spring after being selected for Norton Fellowships Left: Claire teaches math to children of migrant workers in Bangkok, Thailand.

Pauline Chen: See, Feel, Learn It All

Surgeon and author Pauline Chen ’82 had a message for the Loomis Chaffee students who attended her talk this fall about pursuing a career in healthcare.

“When you’re in college, experience your life with an open mind and an open heart,” she said. “See everything, feel everything, learn everything … because it will enrich your life, and it will make you a better caregiver.”

About 30 students gathered in Gilchrist Auditorium for the evening talk, sponsored by the student club HOSA-Future Health Professionals. Pauline, a member of the Loomis Chaffee Board of Trustees, recounted her life path from growing up in Windsor; through her years at Loomis, at Harvard University, and at the Feinberg School of Medicine at Northwestern University; to her training at Yale University, the National Cancer Institute, and UCLA; and her work as a liver transplant surgeon, author, New York Times columnist, and surgeon at the Boston Veterans Affairs (VA) hospital.

Pauline also talked about her explorations and detours along the way, led by her curiosity and an effort to keep an open mind. She spent a year between college and medical school studying medical anthropology in Beijing, interviewing people about aging. At that point, she said, she thought she’d specialize in geriatrics or psychiatry. But when she did a surgical rotation in her third year of medical school, she thought she wanted to be a surgeon. She began her surgical training at Yale and, leaning toward cancer surgery as a specialty, she took a two-year break from her surgical training to do cancer research.

Then one night, after returning to her training at Yale, a trauma case changed the direction of her medical career again. Pauline was the chief resident on call at the hospital, and an older man was brought in after a car accident.

“It was pretty clear from the CAT scan that he was bleeding in his belly,” she said, “so we brought him to the operating room that

night, and fortunately, the senior attending [physician] who was working with me that night was really skilled, really one of the best, so I felt pretty calm going into this as the trainee.” But when they opened the man’s belly, they discovered that the patient had ruptured the portal vein, which carries large amounts of blood to the liver. “This senior surgeon that I worked with, I had never seen him sweat,” Pauline continued. “He was sweating that night, and we couldn’t save [the patient]. We couldn’t save him. He died.”

After that experience, Pauline decided to become a liver transplant surgeon. She received a fellowship in organ transplant surgery at UCLA and for two years performed liver transplants there.

“It was a wonderful experience. It was a crazy experience,” Pauline said. “Back then we were doing a couple hundred transplants a year. … We would go out in helicopters in the middle of the night for organ procurements. We’d bring the organs back... and then we’d transplant into people. People would be helicoptered into us because we were a [transplant] center. People with liver failure were typically among the sickest people at the hospital. They were near dead, and they would have these Lazarean [recoveries].”

She described with wonder the moment when a liver transplant begins to work. After surgeons attach the healthy donated organ in the patient, a tiny bile duct starts secreting bile again.

“It was amazing because I got to save lives,” she said. In 1999 Pauline received the UCLA Outstanding Physician of the Year Award.

Meanwhile, Pauline still had an interest in writing, which she traced back to her Loomis days. She took writing courses at UCLA while she worked there, and she realized that she wanted to write about the grief she felt when patients died, a project that became her 2007 book Final Exam: A Surgeon’s Reflections on Mortality, which was a New York Times best-seller. She also began to write for the “Doctors” column in The New York Times.

Around that same time, Pauline changed her medical practice. She wanted to keep writing and to help parent her twin daughters with her husband — roles that can’t be juggled with the all-consuming work of a transplant surgeon, she said. So she began working in Boston at the VA hospital and clinic, where she continues to work.

During a question-and-answer session after her talk, a student asked about Pauline’s experience working at the Boston VA. Veterans Affairs hospitals, the student noted, have a reputation for backlogs and lack of sufficient funding.

Pauline replied that she loves the work. Veterans who are treated at the VA often have multiple medical issues stemming from their military service, she said, and many also are experiencing homelessness and other life difficulties and can’t afford medical care elsewhere.

“The reason I went into medicine and health care is I wanted to help people. I love the VA because I’m able to give to people who need it most,” she said. “Every day when I leave there, I can say that I’ve done something to help someone.”

AAll the Ingredients for Success

classroom kitchen opened for “business” this fall on the third floor of the Clark Center for Science & Mathematics, and it is available for classes, dorms, advisee groups, affinity groups, teams, and others to use.

The new kitchen aims to “enrich education in and out of the classroom and provide opportunities for people to be more engaged, whether it is an affinity group looking to share a common meal or a course that is looking to deepen whatever unit of study it is doing by engaging the senses more and making the learning opportunity more meaningful,” says Sarah Griggs, an associate director of the Alvord Center for Global & Environmental Studies. “The more hands-on and the more senses we engage, the greater retention [of information] there is and the greater impact there is.”

honey- and maple syrup-production programs, explains Marley Matlack, the Christopher H. Lutz Director of the Alvord Center. These popular and expanding programs needed a place to process honey and maple syrup.

Environmental Studies Certificate program have been food-related. Last year, for instance, there was a project about healthy dorm snacks and another about African cuisine.

“Food,” Marley says, “is such an amazing vehicle, just a great entry point to open students’ eyes to different cultures, different stories, different concepts. It’s a great opportunity for place-based education, to have a hands-on experience that changes your perspective on what you’re learning and doing.”

Plus there’s bonus at the end, she says: “You have a tasty treat.”

Add a dash of honey from the Loomis apiary. Mix with a spoonful of maple syrup from the campus sugarhouse. A recipe for success has been started.

The idea for the classroom kitchen initially sprung from the Alvord Center’s on-campus

“Also, in the past five years, there has been a real uptick in the interest in food from a lot of different students and organizations here on campus,” Marley says. Many capstone projects by students in the Global &

Faculty and Staff News

Jeff Dyreson, girls volleyball head coach at Loomis Chaffee since 2004, was inducted into the Connecticut Women’s Volleyball Hall of Fame in November, recognizing his significant contributions to the sport and his impact on players. The induction celebrated Jeff’s dedication, passion, and success in shaping the Loomis volleyball program into one of the most competitive programs in New England prep schools. During his tenure, Jeff’s teams have earned nine Founders League titles, four appearances in the finals of the New England Prep School Athletic Conference (NEPSAC) Class A Tournament, two NEPSAC Class A championships, and an undefeated season in 2023. His team advanced to the tournament semifinals this fall. In addition to coaching volleyball, Jeff teaches

science, is associate director of the Alvord Center for Global & Environmental Studies, and coaches boys JV golf.

Loomis Chaffee Orchestra director and music teacher Netta Hadari conducted the Hartt Conservatory Orchestra in a November performance at the Lincoln Theater at the University of Hartford. The program included works by Paul Ben-Haim, Gabriela Lena Frank, and Richard Strauss.

Fifteen new faculty members arrived on the Island this fall. They include science teacher Mike Armstrong; Spanish teacher Maria Arroyo-Contreras; science teacher Amy Cornell; Interim Director of the Center for Diversity, Equity & Inclusion and Special

Assistant to the Head of School for Inclusive Excellence Roland Davis; economics and statistics teacher Scott Doyle; Director of Sports Performance Shaun Fishel; Dean of Community Life Chris Howes; English teacher Maggie Howes; psychology teacher and head of the Social Science Department Doug MacLeod; history teacher Caroline Murphy; English teacher Wyatt Prominski, who also works with the Communications Office; Spanish teacher and head of the Modern & Classical Languages Department Eera Sharma; science teacher Fahmeed Sheehan; and two new Penn fellows, Spanish teacher Gigi Hodes and history teacher Sanaea Simmons, who are pursuing master’s degrees through the University of Pennsylvania’s Graduate School of Education.

Left: Banks of windows and skylights create a bright space for the classroom kitchen.

THAT’S ABSOLUTELY BRILLIANT!

THIS LITTLE GIRL IS ME

In honor of International Day of the Girl in October, the Chaffee Leadership Institute organized the #ThisLittleGirlIsMe Challenge. More than 100 students participated in the challenge, which involved attempting to identify the 15 female faculty members who submitted photos of themselves as girls along with an inspiring quote or story. The challenge, designed by the international organization Inspiring Girls, was created to highlight the power of women serving as role models for girls. The Chaffee Leadership Institute, which each year brings together selected sophomore girls working with two faculty advisors, aims to develop leadership skills and empower young women at Loomis Chaffee and beyond. Former institute members — seniors Sydney Hallowell, Amy He, Sydney Robinow, and Hannah Smith — organized the challenge.

COLOR RUN

The Pelican Service Organization (PSO) hosted its annual Color Run in September, raising money to create care packages for people experiencing homelessness this winter. The Color Run offers the opportunity for students to unleash their playful side while supporting a worthy cause. As clouds of colorful paint filled the air, participants either dodged or ran headfirst into the vibrant mess. Shirts designed and printed by PSO officers in the Pearse Hub for Innovation (PHI) added to the fun.

MODEL U.N.

The Loomis Chaffee Model United Nations organization sent a delegation of students to the University of Connecticut Model U.N. conference in November, and several students earned awards. Junior Aanum Khan received a best delegate award, and sophomore Rodrigo Castroparedes Cuevas and junior Triet Nguyen earned outstanding delegate awards. Upcoming Model U.N. events for the group include conferences at Columbia University and Yale University, the Boston Invitational Model U.N., and the National High School Model U.N. at U.N. Headquarters in New York City.

HUNGER ACTION

Members of the Photography Club worked with the Community Engagement program and the Windsor Hunger Action Team to raise awareness about food insecurity at the Windsor Farmers’ Market in September.

The students were working on a video series that explored the impact of hunger by asking people to finish the phrase “On an empty stomach, I can’t...” The videos were shared later in September as one of the team’s initiatives for Hunger Action Month.

DEBATE KUDOS

The debate team completed a successful fall season in November with an impressive showing at the Choate Invitational Tournament. With 20 participating schools, the event was the Debating Association of New England Independent Schools’ largest tournament of the fall, and Loomis Chaffee debaters compiled an 8-4 record. Junior Claire Cen was the top novice speaker, and seniors Luke Han and Julius Kim went undefeated and were the top two-person advanced team. Luke was the top advanced speaker in the tournament and, for the second year, earned a bid to compete at the World Individual Debate and Public Speaking Championships, to be held in Kuala Lumpur. At another large tournament this fall, Luke and junior Alex Park won a team award and qualified for the state debate championships.

CLIMATE SOLUTIONS

Senior Idil Doğa Türkmen was part of a team of students that presented at the United Nations climate change conference, COP29, in Azerbaijan in November. Selected from more than 1,000 entries from 58 countries, Idil’s team and four other teams were invited to the conference for the finals of the Oxford Saïd Burjeel Holdings Climate Change Challenge. Idil and her teammates, whom she met at an astrophysics program last summer, presented their proposal “to combat the effects of drought in agriculture by implementing chemically improved gelatin-chitosan-PVA hydrogels as a nonprofit,” Idil said. “Our solution targets Somalia, Kenya, and Ethiopia.”

Installation

continued from page 7

“As a graduate of The Chaffee School who returned to join the faculty of The Loomis Chaffee School, I have been witness to the fine leadership that has advanced this outstanding institution,” Kitty said, addressing Jody. “Having known Barbara Erickson and Fred Torrey while a student, then working under John Ratté, Russ Weigel, and most recently Sheila Culbert, I can attest to our school’s being blessed by excellent leadership. And now, I must say that we, the faculty and staff, are quite confident that you, without a doubt, will continue this strong tradition.”

Before becoming head of school at Indian Mountain in 2015, Jody was the head of the middle school and director of faculty development at National Cathedral School in Washington, D.C. She previously taught at Millbrook School in New York, and in her first, 10-year stint at Indian Mountain, she worked in a variety of roles, including history teacher, dormitory head, assistant athletic director, girls soccer and lacrosse coach, and dean of faculty.

Now her story, which has taken her from Middlebury, Vt., where she grew up, to South Africa and beyond, continues.

The Rev. Ryan Heckman gave the benediction for the ceremony, noting the “beauty of new beginnings all around us.”

Above: Jody and her husband, Kevin, with their sons, Russell and William

VARSITY RECORDS

1: Senior Katie Sigrist and field hockey teammates

2: Senior Zeke Conley, junior James Higgins, and football teammates at a home night game

3: Senior captain Trey Walsh and freshman goalie Ben Liu

4: Junior Josiah Blake

BOYS CROSS COUNTRY 4-2

Founders League Champion

New England Division I, 3rd Place

GIRLS CROSS COUNTRY 6-0

Founders League Champion

New England Division I, 2nd Place

FIELD HOCKEY 12-5-1

New England Class A Quarterfinalist

FOOTBALL 4-4

BOYS SOCCER 15-4-1

New England Class A Semifinalist

GIRLS SOCCER 12-3-2

New England Class A Quarterfinalist

VOLLEYBALL 16-2

New

BOYS WATER POLO 5-11

5: Seniors Sara Feged, Alex Rhodes, and Emma Gregorski

6: Juniors Joseph Hurd and Miles Gackstetter

7: Junior Maleah Cogle, freshman Neve Rugette, and junior Freida Bilezikian

8: Seniors Emma Wierzwa and Liv Westfort

As an office space for a detective agency, Alex Foster’s tree house was not, perhaps, perfectly practical. As a tree house, however, it was practically perfect. It was built in a giant oak in the Fosters’ backyard, a grandfatherly tree with a thick trunk and sprawling branches made for climbing. The tree house had everything a tree house ought to have:

a number of unique amenities: a wall lined with bookshelves, a cozy hammock strung up in a corner, and a single solar panel that powered a heat lamp in the winter and a fan in the summer.

a rope ladder and a trapdoor, wide floor planks that smelled of cedar, a periscope that peeked out through the leaves for spying on passersby—as well as

By Jeff Otterbein

Everything is a story.

And stories are everything — central to who we are. We tell them to each other. We tell them to ourselves. We tell them before huge audiences. We tell them through words and music and art and everyday life. They make us feel. They make us think. Over the years, technology has allowed us to deliver these stories in many ways.

The all-school theme this year is “The Power of Storytelling,” so it was fitting that one of the choices for the all-school summer reading at Loomis Chaffee this year was How to Tell a Story: The Essential Guide to Memorable Storytelling.

Written by The Moth, a leader in the modern storytelling movement, the book includes the following contemplation: “When you choose to share a story, you share a piece of yourself. Stories explain your heart, decode your history, decipher who you are, and translate it all to whoever takes the time to listen carefully. … They’re both ordinary and exquisite. Stories are the currency of community. They tear down walls, unite cultures, and help people realize they are more alike than different, all while celebrating what is unique to you.”

In the following pages, we talk to alumni and members of the Loomis community who have demonstrated the power of storytelling in their own ways.

Text border on opposite page: First paragraph of The Fairfleet Affair by Kate Saxton

TELLING US ABOUT OUR WORLD

BRIAN ROONEY ’70

Brian Rooney ’70 says he has no single favorite story that he has told over the years in the various mediums in which he has worked. It’s easy to see why. There are so many.

“I have done everything from writing about school board meetings, the mafia, western wildfires, and the Los Angeles riots. I covered wars in the Middle East and rode on Air Force One,” Brian says. “When I look back at old newspaper and television stories that I did, they are now like grains of sand in the desert, buried in the drifting piles of information.

“My favorite stories have been the ones that have no great meaning or importance. They just tell about our world. I did a story about a lightbulb in a California firehouse that had been burning for 100 years, street dancing in Oakland, and a profile of professional ski bum Glen Plake, who wears his hair in a neon-colored Mohawk.”

Brian’s ride has been colorful, too. In his long career as a journalist, Brian has worked for newspapers and television and now has a daily news bulletin, The Rooney Report. He won four Emmy Awards and two Edward R. Murrow Awards for excellence during his years in television news.

Brian’s father, Andy Rooney, came into the TV rooms of Americans on Sunday nights for 33 years with short commentaries at the end of CBS’s 60 Minutes. Time magazine called Andy Rooney’s career one of the “more fantastic runs in TV history” and said he became “cemented in the minds of his audience as a curmudgeon raising his bushy eyebrows in skepticism at a foolish world.”

Brian says he obviously was influenced by his father, who began his career as a reporter for Stars & Stripes newspaper, covering World War II.

“He flew in bombers over Germany, landed at Normandy, and followed the war across

Why is storytelling such an important part of our lives?

“Stories are what connect people to each other. Stories are what tell us what we have in common, what we don’t, and what we should know about each other and our world. Stories can erase ignorance. I do not consider myself to be a ‘storyteller.’ The title has taken on popularity, but it has a self-importance that makes me uncomfortable. I am a journalist, a writer who observes and records human activity and experience. I think there are no more admirable titles than journalist and writer.”

— Brian Rooney, journalist

France,” Brian says. “He was there when Charles de Gaulle returned to Paris and a German sniper opened fire. Growing up, my father’s best friends were journalists who had covered the war. Walter Cronkite used to come to dinner. It seemed to me a great way to live, witnessing events, meeting interesting people, traveling, writing about it all, and getting paid to do it. My professional life became a grand adventure.”

One filled with memories and meaning.

“It is rare that any particular story has dramatic impact,” Brian says. “Journalism in particular is a steady drip of stories and information that over time can change the world. In my lifetime, stories have brought dramatic change in civil rights, voting rights, women’s rights. Stories have made us aware of differences in humanity … sexuality, religion, and motivation in life.”

At times, Brian was part of that steady drip of information that eventually becomes a stream and then a relentless wave.

When Brian worked at the Providence (R.I) Journal, his reporting helped uncover municipal corruption. He also helped bring down the city’s colorful mayor, Vincent A. “Buddy” Cianci, breaking the story in the 1980s that the mayor had assaulted a man who allegedly was having an affair with Cianci’s wife. Cianci had his police chauffeur bring the man to Cianci, according to published reports. After the story broke, Cianci resigned from office.

Brian says he moved from newspapers to television “partly for the money and opportunity. Newspapers were stodgy and editors were arrogant. I was having a hard time moving to a bigger newspaper, and within weeks of going into television, I was getting unsolicited job offers.”

He knew the reach of TV, too.

the storyteller says, and doesn’t say. Telling stories in print allows you to deliver more information and detail, but television has more reach. When I started at ABC News, we had 14 million viewers, an audience far greater than a hundred newspapers.”

Now, Brian says, he is “worried about the concept of truth in an age when technology gives everyone license to tell stories, true or not. If I were to speak to a group of young people today, I would tell them that one of the biggest challenges of their lives will be to sort what is true from what is not.”

“When the internet came on,” he continues, “it was heralded as the dawn of the information age, and what we got along with it is the age of misinformation as well. In my early professional life, there were certainly rumors and conspiracy theories, but they had limited circulation because they couldn’t get through the screening of professional journalism. Today’s technology allows anyone to become a ‘storyteller’ without being held to standards of truth and accuracy. Unvetted ‘stories’ spread over the internet have convinced people that a school shooting is a hoax, federal agents spawned the January 6

insurrection, and that horse medicine can cure COVID.”

He says The Rooney Report came about when his “older daughter went to college and said she had no idea what was happening in the world. So I told her I would write her a daily news note, which she then forwarded to friends and their families, and I decided to make it into a subscription service.”

The report, he says, allows him to keep his mind working and stay in the business while providing a little bit of “play” money as he lives off investments and retirement accounts. The report also provides flexibility. “It is a digest of the day’s news with a few wisecracks, and I admit that it has little influence but loyal followers,” he says. “The pleasure of having my own publication is that I can throw in some personal prejudices and wisecracks while still aiming to tell the truth.”

“In television,” he says, “you tell a story with an interplay of pictures, sound, the words of your subjects, and your own narration. Telling a story with video is putting together a puzzle of what you see, what you hear, what

Above Left: Reporting for World News Tonight on an advancing wildfire in the Western United States

Above Right: Covering the red carpet at the Oscars in 2008 Right: After the fall of Kuwait to Iraq in 1990, Brian (center) spent part of a day with Kuwaiti militiamen who were friendly to U.S. forces.

QUICK ON THE DRAW

DAVE LONDON ’86

After graduating from Tufts University, Dave London ’86 worked various jobs to support himself as a cartoonist.

“I taught cartooning at a summer camp, taught SAT prep courses, worked in an ad agency, performed data entry, did landscaping, waited tables, and more,” Dave says. “I eventually migrated to Plan B to survive.”

Not a bad Plan B. The Boston College Law School graduate is an attorney for the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. So how does that play into his other work?

“I don’t know that my day job informs my thinking as a cartoonist per se — although an office job is certainly fodder for humor — but it does inform my writing [for cartoons],” Dave says. “Writing, in my view, is mostly about editing for effectiveness. The goal, whether legal or humor writing, is to be descriptive and concise. Some powerful gag cartoons have no text — just a visual that conveys the joke.”

There’s little Dave doesn’t do as a cartoonist. Humorous illustrations. Single-panel gag cartoons. Comics strips. Send him a personalized request and he’ll act on it, according to his website.

He may work for the government, but he is not averse to having a little fun at government’s expense. There’s his cartoon of two men standing in front of a huge machine with the caption: “This piece of equipment cost the taxpayers $30 million. We have no idea what it does.” Or another cartoon of his showing men throwing tea overboard. “Taxation with representation isn’t so hot either,” reads the caption.

Dave’s work has appeared in publications ranging from Reader’s Digest to Women’s World. For years Dave has teamed with

Peter Chianca on comic strips. Their latest, “Pet Peeves,” started in 2016. Dave and Peter met when they were freshmen at Tufts and had joined the school newspaper.

“The back page of the paper was called the ‘Etcetera Page,’ and it was dedicated to humor and cartoons,” Dave says. “By way of serendipity, the Etcetera Page’s humorist was a graduating senior, and the editors were looking for a replacement. They matched Pete [humor writer] and me [artist] and gave us free reign for the next four years.”

They have been collaborators and good friends since.

“‘Pet Peeves’ … is the latest incarnation of our work. We’ve had several prior strips, including ‘Grey Matter,’ which was published in approximately 100 weekly newspapers in the U.S. and Canada for a bit of time. Pete writes a series of strips, usually four to six at a time, and sends me the scripts via a Google doc. After review and some rare editing, I draw the strips.”

Why is storytelling important to the human experience?

“Storytelling is inextricably woven into our fabric. Before there was the written word, the annals of human history were passed down through oral stories. It is a direct link from teller to listener, and the most effective storytelling is about shared experiences. As a result, it creates a communal bond between members of a generation, and from one generation to the next.”

— Dave London, cartoonist/humorous illustrator

Top: Peter Chianca and Dave London

They publish “Pet Peeves” three times a week on social media and at www.petpeevescomic.com. “We also have published four Pet Peeves books: three volumes of strip compilations and a separate book of Pet Peeves ‘singles,’ which is an offshoot of the strip in the form of single-panel gag cartoons,” Dave says.

A comic strip, “is extremely powerful because it is an immersive experience,” he says. “And it’s a medium that speaks to all ages. Many kids resist reading chapter books but will readily pick up a graphic novel.”

Dave says “editorial illustration is interesting in that the cartoonist needs to capture the essence of someone else’s words.” In political cartoons, he says, “the artist contributes to and, in some cases, influences societal discourse. The creator is presenting a specific viewpoint, often on a hot-button issue. It engenders a passionate response to the message, making political cartooning one of the most powerful examples of storytelling.”

All of what he does gets some sort of reaction.

“With respect to gag cartoons and comic strips, I view it similarly to stand-up comedy — writing a joke that gets a laugh. That may be an oversimplistic goal, but there it is,” he says.

Dave is always shifting with the times. He has a podcast.

“I’m a cartoonist,” he says, “but also a fan

of cartoons. The podcast [Strip Search] became a way to connect with other cartoon-

ing professionals and interview them about their work, how they got into cartooning, and their creative process,” he says. “The interviews run approximately 30 minutes, and we try to post a new episode monthly. Every guest has a unique voice — their own stories — that comes through in their work.”

Dave says he has migrated to full digital creation on an iPad for the “Pet Peeves” strip, using drawing apps such as Comic Draw and ProCreate “to lay out, pencil, and then digitally ink, and sometimes color, the strip.”

Gone are the days when every newspaper ran comic strips.

“For gag cartoons, it used to be that you submitted, unsolicited, to various print magazines,” Dave says. “Good cartoons got you a sale. The most famous market, of course, is The New Yorker. But there were numerous other markets as well. For comic strips, the holy grail for national and international marketing was syndication, historically with extremely low percentages of acceptance. Today, many of these print markets are either defunct or don’t publish cartoons anymore. As a result, cartoonists and writers need to discover untapped markets to self-promote their work. The advent of the internet has been a blessing and a curse. It offers the means for anyone to bring cartoons to the masses in diverse formats, but there’s a dilution of quality out there as a result.”

Top: “Beasts!” by Dave and Pete was accepted for exhibition at the 2024 Galway Ireland Cartoon Festival. “Quite an honor to be included with some extremely talented cartoonists from the around the world,” Dave says. Above: A classic “Pet Peeves”

PUTTING THE PIECES TOGETHER

KATE SAXTON

When Kate Saxton was 11 years old, somewhere in her mind was the thought of one day writing a book.

“I’m sure I thought of it, but my recollection of what I got down on paper when I was 11 was thinking about a lot of characters and settings. I feel like I started a lot of books but never continued. ... The discipline to flesh out a whole arc of a story came to me much later.” says Kate, who is an associate director of studies, registrar, English teacher, and former director of writing initiatives at Loomis Chaffee.

Today Kate is the author of two books geared toward that 11-year-old she once was: The A&A Detective Agency: The Fairfleet Affair and The A&A Detective Agency: The Grimthorpe Grave, written with kids ages 8 to 12 in mind. They are mysteries, and along the way readers go on a ride with the 12-year-old detectives as they “follow clues, solve puzzles, crack the code,” as the inside of The Fairfleet Affair says. Puzzle-building, with its twists and turns, is central to the books.

Kate, whose pen name is K.H. Saxton, became more serious about creative writing in college. She graduated from Yale in 2012 and began teaching at Loomis in 2014. Like many English teachers in the working world, she says, she had some manuscripts she was working on, “one in particular that is not published.”

“What I was finding," she continues, “was that I was in between a young adult voice [considered 12 to 18 years old] and a middlegrade voice and thought it would be interesting to try to lean into the middle-grade side of things for a slightly younger audience. At the same time, I was re-reading The Westing Game. Those two things came together, and the result was the first draft of The Fairfleet Affair.”

The Westing Game is a widely acclaimed

What is it about books, that form of storytelling, that you enjoy?

“I love storytelling in a lot of different forms. I think storytelling is special not just in a book but in film, narrative video games, oral stories. ... I really love narrative in general. So if there is a kind of storytelling that appeals to someone, they should embrace that and lean into it. Books are one of those for me. I do like the permanence and transcendence of books and the written world in general that spans time and place in a unique and wonderful way. When I read Shakespeare, I am across the oceans and across the centuries, and it still is transmitted. And I do like books as objects.”

— Kate Saxton, faculty member, author

mystery written by Ellen Raskin and published in 1978 that won a Newbery Medal and was made into a film.

Kate eventually got a two-book deal, with The Fairfleet Affair coming out in 2023 and The Grimthorpe Grave in 2024.

Kate was shopping around The Fairfleet Affair during the COVID-19 pandemic, cold-calling, cold-emailing.

“Everyone always says being a writer is about persistence and getting comfortable with failure, and it is fine to hear that, but another thing to live that,” Kate says. “Certainly, I had ups and downs, times when I felt really energized and optimistic about the process and other times where you are facing a lot of rejection, and that does not feel as optimistic. I guess it’s the compulsion to keep going that gets you through.”

That and all the encouragement she received from co-workers, including those who gave her feedback on the first draft of the first book even before she shopped it around. And all the support she received from her husband, Neil Chaudhary ’05, the head of the Science Department at Loomis. She was working on the second book while pregnant with a future reader of her books, daughter Rosie, born in April 2024.

“There is a glamorous view of having something published that just focuses on the success of it, but there is so much work that goes into it and so much worry that goes into it, so for me having my family — and my husband in particular — and my friends in my community all behind me is important because the process would not always feel exciting and joyful if it wasn't for that support,” Kate says.

Kate might wake up in the middle of the night with the baby, but not with flashes of creative genius about what she is writing.

“When I am in my best habits of writing, I am writing a little every single day, so it is more of a consistency rather than a burst of getting everything out at once,” Kate says. “I usually know structurally where a chapter or scene is heading, but I always find characters are doing unexpected things as I write them — so that is always fun. … I don’t wake up with eureka moments in the middle of the night. Maybe sometimes with puzzle-building. Those take a little longer for my brain to craft.”

The craft of writing books is now part of who Kate is.

“One of the other things that drew me to writing middle-grade [books] is that was a time in my life when books were a real source of pleasure and satisfaction, and I was reading a lot,” Kate says. “It shaped who I was as a young person and who I became as a student. So I hope kids reading these will find that

sort of joy in reading and want to continue to be a reader and see themselves as readers and problem-solvers.

“I had loved this genre as a kid. ... I’ve always loved puzzles and puzzle-solving. That’s a particular kind of subgenre. There are all sorts of mysteries and detective fiction, but there is the subgenre where there are codes and ciphers and puzzles.”

Her advice for 11-year-old aspiring writers, just like she was one day: “The only thing that defines a writer is writing,” Kate says. “If you are writing, you are a writer. If you want to be a writer, you have to write. ... Many times I have been writing and I have no idea if anything will come from this, but I am putting words on a page and creating characters. ... So starting their own process of storytelling and putting words on a page is important.”

Kate now has established relationships with her agent, Erin Clyburn of Howland Literary, and her editor, Ardyce Alspach of Union

Square Kids, and she says she enjoys working with both. Her books have been reviewed by Kirkus Reviews, which has been in the industry for 85 years. Kirkus describes The Grimthorpe Grave as “a smart, standout mystery that’s cleverly delineated with equal parts charm and care.” The Fairfleet Affair, says Kirkus, is “a complex, cinematic, and eclectic page-turner.” Kate says she is

“honored and humbled” to have been reviewed by Kirkus. She knows reviews are part of the emotional roller coaster of writing.

“It’s hard not to put stock in reviews, and I have been fortunate to have had good reviews,” she says. “When you get a good review, you celebrate it, but you have to remind yourself that is not the point because the next time it might not be such a nice review. And we live in a digital age now, so it’s not just the trades [that can review a book]. Anyone can post something, so that is kind of nerve-wracking. You have to distance yourself from that a bit and have a thick skin.”

Kate is still an avid reader, and she enjoys reading a physical book, turning the pages. But sometimes life’s necessities and technology intersect. “I would say, having a baby [in 2024], the Kindle has been really key,” Kate says. “You don’t have to turn the pages while rocking the baby.”

IF BUILDINGS COULD TALK

KENDRA WATERS ’11

When Kendra Waters ’11 graduated from Wellesley College in 2015, she took a teaching job in rural North Carolina, but she quickly decided that she would pursue a master’s degree in historical preservation, which she earned from Clemson University in 2019.

“I had just received my Bachelor of Arts in Architecture, which was a combination of art history and studio art classes,” Kendra says. “I fell in love with how art, including architecture, always had a larger context and story surrounding it. While in eastern North Carolina, I saw that even the simplest historic structures were important to the communities that cherished them. These stories are not often the ones discussed in an undergrad art history program, though, and I was interested in digging deeper into understanding how our physical spaces hold space in our collective history. I had always thought I would go to graduate school to become an architect, but I was more drawn to historic preservation programs. I wanted to know how to help tell the stories of these places for all communities, as well as how to help continue the stories of these spaces.”

Kendra worked for other firms before she and a former boss launched Verity Works in May of 2024. The firm helps property owners with historic buildings. The majority of Kendra’s work, she says, revolves around historic commercial properties undergoing full rehabilitation, such as turning former mills into apartments, old manufacturing buildings into offices, and older office towers into mixed-use developments. She helps the property owners seek federal historic tax credits, which are granted if the building becomes listed in the National Register of Historic Places, overseen by the National Park Service.

“Every building has a story,” Kendra says. “Some stories may be more interesting to

the general public than others, but every building has a collection of people who helped fund, design, and build the structure, and a whole other collection of people who used the space.”

Kendra’s work requires her to be a researcher, a detective, a stickler for detail — and eventually a storyteller. She pores over maps, local historic photos, city directories, newspaper archives, anything that can help tell the tale.

Some stories from her career so far:

A small brick building in Greenville, S.C., just looked like a mid-20th-century house to most, Kendra says. “But the building was built by a local African American doctor as his medical clinic that catered to his Black neighborhood,” she says. “Unfortunately, much of the surrounding neighborhood has been lost to new apartment complexes, so

we worked with the local community to formally tell the story of the building and help preserve it. Our work telling the story with a historic preservation lens allowed the Urban League of the Upstate to save and rehab the building into their offices for the McClaren Institute for Health and Quality of Life.”

Then there is the 1920s brick building, a former bakery in an Atlanta neighborhood, undergoing a rehab. The bakery went out of business in the 1960s, Kendra says, and after a few other commercial uses was converted into artist lofts and studios in the 1980s. “The building eventually housed different commercial tenants, and the current rehab is focused on updating all of the spaces for some continued tenants and many new businesses,” she says. “While anyone outside of the neighborhood might not be that interested in this somewhat nondescript building, it has served its neighborhood in many different ways over the past century. Being able to tell that story creates a connection between the building and the community, and the rehab takes on a larger meaning than just another commercial space.”

Another client owns more than 50 buildings in downtown Atlanta, which were part of the late-19th-century and early-20th-century retail district of Atlanta, but have been in disrepair since the 1980s. “Different developers have been trying to revive the area for decades, but this current effort has been really grounded in understanding the story of the district and working on creating the next chapter that they can be proud of,”

How do you help people tell the story of a place that should be preserved?

“My storytelling is anchored by the physical building, but it extends beyond to the people who built, used, and enjoyed the space. We do not often think of recording our physical spaces while we are in them, but after a building has been standing for 50, 100, 150, or more years, it has witnessed at least one of the larger patterns in our society and has a story worth telling.”

— Kendra Waters ’11, architect specializing in historic preservation

Kendra says. “As we’ve been uncovering the stories of these buildings, we’ve found so many significant and interesting things. One of the buildings held sit-ins during the civil rights period to desegregate their lunch counters.”

Her company was hired by the Atlanta Preservation Center to write the National Register of Historic Places nomination for South-View Cemetery. South-View was founded in 1886 as a cemetery for Blacks. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was buried there before the King Center was built. Hall of

Fame baseball player Hank Aaron and U.S. Senator John Lewis are buried there. “Our role is limited to ensuring the story of the cemetery is recorded in the federal National Register, as there have been many African American scholars who have researched and preserved the space,” Kendra says. “Listing on the National Register opens additional grant and funding opportunities for the continued preservation of the cemetery, so our role is to compile the work of other scholars into the very specific storytelling language of a National Register nomination. We are a very small piece in the story of the

cemetery, but we are lending our specific expertise in order to help continue the preservation of the cemetery.”

Not all places end up being saved.

“As for when things do not go well, it is always hard because no matter how involved I have gotten, the stories of these spaces mean something to someone,” Kendra says. When things don’t go the way she and her colleagues hope, it is often because of governmental obstacles or lack of funding, “which is never why you want something to fail,” she says. “The heart and desire are always there, but the funding and government red tape are always the hardest to overcome. And a community should not lose a space just

because it was allowed to fall into disrepair and now it is too costly to rehab.”

Yet so many buildings get to live on in new ways while preserving history.

“It is always so rewarding to get to visit the new businesses and tenants in buildings I have worked on,” Kendra says. “While I love seeing the physical building preserved, what is often more rewarding is seeing life brought back into these spaces. Most of the buildings I work on have been abandoned for a significant amount of time, and their stories are lost in time. I get to come in and piece together the building’s story and allow the story to continue. And that is a really gratifying feeling.”

Left: A colorful building at 79 Broad Street SW in Atlanta is part of a larger South Downtown project for which Kendra is the historic preservation consultant. Above: South-View Cemetery in Atlanta, founded in 1886 as a cemetery for Blacks. Kendra’s firm was hired to write the National Register of Historic Places nomination for the cemetery.

TELLING A “BIGGER STORY”

MARIKA C. KUZMA ’77

Afew months before February 24, 2022, the day Russia started its full-scale attack on Ukraine, Marika Kuzma ’77 signed a contract to write a book about Ukrainian music.

A conductor, choral historian, and professor emerita of the Department of Music at University of California, Berkeley, Marika was well-suited to write the book. As she says, she has had a multi-faceted career in music, including concerts in prestigious venues, collaborations with renowned orchestras, workshops with choirs of all sizes, and teaching. And she is of Ukrainian descent with rich family traditions and roots in the country’s culture.

The book, however, had to wait. Once the war started, it became “all-hands-on-deck for everyone related to Ukraine,” Marika says.

“For over a year,” she continues, “I avoided writing the book and just organized concerts. But when I finally hunkered down, I felt the need to write more than sweet descriptions of individual carols and basic biographies of composers. Something broader and deeper. First, along with the rest of the world, I was witnessing how much Ukrainians sing through crises: I saw footage of a village community gathered in the middle of a road singing at a Russian tank to fight back, TikTok clips of soldiers singing in their cars as they drove to deployment, rock bands gathered in metro stations during the bombing of Kharkiv and Kyiv. Singing as a form of political resistance: it’s ‘a thing.’"

She couldn’t travel to Kyiv to research archives on Ukrainian music, so she researched all she could in music libraries and storage facilities at Harvard, Yale, UC Berkeley, and the New York Public Library. She says she discovered there was a dearth of print information.

“Conductors from across America were

asking me about Ukrainian choral music, and I wished I could refer them to something,” Marika says. “So I felt called to tell a bigger story.”

The book, Carols of Birds, Bells, and Sacred Hymns from Ukraine: An Anthology and Cultural Companion, was published in September 2024. Part I of the book includes the history of

Ukrainian choral music as well as biographies of composers from the 18th to 21st centuries. Part II includes 26 choral scores.

“The book gathers so much of my personal love of this music and objective research in one,” Marika says. “Information on folk rituals, classical choral composers, Ukrainian history, and my family history all come

together in this book. It’s both an anthology and a book about the music. I wanted to create a resource for both Ukrainians and non-Ukrainians, for musicians and nonmusicians. These short carols — the famous ‘Carol of the Bells’ among them — carry so many stories within them. Each is kind of a musical prism through which you can understand Ukraine and its people as a whole.”

It is also a personal story.

“The cover of my book includes embroidery by my aunt, a chapter on rituals includes an excerpt from my mother’s memoir,” Marika says. “Many of the songs within the anthology section are carols I’ve sung my whole life.”

She knew the importance of music in Ukrainian culture, but she says she did not know all the historical and political factors in the background.

“For example, during the Russian Empire, when Ukraine was colonized and Ukrainians

were serfs to the czars, the government forbade Ukrainians from printing anything in their native language: no book, play, or poem. Nothing. Ukrainians were able to preserve their language and their stories by singing them. For centuries, itinerant musicians sang epic, historical songs (and still do) in Ukraine. Composers wrote short songs and carols in Ukrainian that could be taught by rote and transmitted by traveling choirs.”

Through her research, Marika discovered what she calls “a kind of choral activism,” especially in the early 1900s.

“The power of song wasn’t lost on the Romanov czars or, later, Soviet commissars,” she says. “There are so many tragic stories of Ukrainian composers being exiled by authorities because they were keeping their language and ethnic identity alive. For example, the composer of the iconic Ukrainian ‘Carol of the Bells’ was assassinated by the Bolshevik secret police. My own grandfather was part of an organization that worked as

Why is storytelling an important part of our life?

part of a kind of cultural guerrilla warfare (and was on Stalin’s hit list).”

The book was not easy to write. Storytelling took Marika on an emotional journey, long before she took readers down that road.

“When I was researching and writing the book, I had to take walks and take deep breaths to process this history, the stories of each composer,” Marika says.

Her roots in all this history would pop up, and Marika’s mind would take her places.

“Within my own family, I think singing often took the place of telling stories: It was somehow safer for my parents to sing a melancholy song about missing Ukraine than to tell the horrors they endured during War II,” she says. “It was a way of communicating the grief they still felt but couldn’t speak. We all use the term ‘giving voice’ a lot, sometimes casually. In Ukrainian culture you literally give voice to your experience and identity in song.”

Marika says she has been struck by how little the world knows about Ukraine and by the fact that “history is typically told by the victors, and Russia has dominated and distorted the narrative about Ukraine for centuries.” She hopes her book and other authors’ recent books about Ukraine will give a “fuller, more grounded perspective.”

“Storytelling is vital. Life can feel extremely isolating. We can go a bit nuts when we keep our stories to ourselves and don’t bounce our emotions and thoughts and life experience against other people. During the pandemic, we all binged on Netflix because we needed to at least see stories and human relationships on a screen if not in our daily lives.”

Despite the ongoing war, she says, Ukrainians “know who they are and who they want to be.” She explains this point with a story. “Last December [2023], in a phone call with the husband of a composer who died in the first days of the war, I could hear the grief in his voice,” she recounts. “I surmised that his apartment was going without power or hot water for long stretches of time, too. Nevertheless, at the end of the call, he took a breath and offered his well wishes to me and my family for happy holidays and a healthy, prosperous new year. This is the spirit within these carols, these stories, and within these vibrant, generous people. Like any epic story, this one and these characters carry a global message.”

— Marika C. Kuzma, conductor, choral master, author

Left: The cover of Marika’s book includes embroidery by her aunt.

RIFFING ON LIFE … LOL!

On a whim, says Shannon Fiedler ’10, she took a stand-up comedy class one day. That’s all it took. Funny how these things happen.

“I always say that I found comedy by accident,” Shannon says. “It wasn’t something I set out to be, but instead something I got into because it was the perfect melding of my two passions — performing and writing. I have an acting background and had spent years working as a copywriter at an ad agency. I loved my work as a copywriter, but I missed being on stage and connecting with an audience. So on a whim, I took a stand-up class at The Comedy Cellar in New York City, and from the first day, I just felt in my bones that this is what I was supposed to be doing.”

At first it was a hobby, she says. Now it is a career.

Shannon is known for her short TikTok comedy skits, such as her “city girl” videos, including “Connecticut girl.” Her debut stand-up special, “Thirty, Flirty & Crying” is on YouTube. Its overarching theme, she says, is “I’m too young to be this old.”

“Stand-up is equal parts what you’re saying

and how you’re saying it, so for me, it felt like the natural medium to tell my story and share my point of view with the world,” Shannon says.

She has taken advantage of today’s digital world.

“Social media has played a huge role in my comedy career, and so I’ve also adopted a digital style of comedy, in the form of oneperson sketch videos,” she says.

Her “city girl” series includes “Connecticut girl plays pickleball,” “Manhattan woman in Boston,” and “Rhode Island girl at the beach.” You can hear her riff on all parts of life that strike a chord with many. Searching for a dress to wear to a wedding, overthinkers packing for a vacation, how she imagines men wrap gifts. And what living in New York can mean, from making a dinner reservation to finding a public bathroom. Shannon says she has more than 500,000 followers on TikTok and Instagram and has produced hundreds of videos.

Storytelling is important in everyone’s life, she says, because it “is how we know we’re not alone.”

“Whether it’s silly or sad,” she continues, “hearing someone else share something that you’ve also felt or experienced is an incredible way to feel seen. It’s why we laugh so often at what we call ‘recognition jokes’ — the moment when you go ‘Oh my God, that is so me!’ Because you realize you’re not the only one who does that/thinks that/feels that —

and that is incredibly comforting. At the risk of getting too saccharine, I believe we’re here on this earth to connect with one another, and the best way we can do that is by sharing our stories.”

Laughter also can be a universal unifier. “When two people laugh together, they share something, and it brings them closer — even if they’re strangers in the audience at a stand-up show,” Shannon says.

Stand-up is not an easy career, and Shannon has some dos and don’ts related to her medium of choice:

“When it comes to storytelling, the most important element of stand-up is brevity. You need to be able to get your point across as quickly as possible, and in as few words as you can. By nature, I am long-winded, so this is something I’m always working on — and every time I cut the fat, the joke gets better.”

“Another ‘do’ is to be personal. It can be tempting to distance yourself from a joke, and rely on just an observation. But if you bring yourself into that observation and share your personal experience with it, it’s going to resonate more fully with your audience. It may seem counterintuitive, but the specifics are what make it feel real and honest.”

“A big ‘don’t’ I believe in is to never punch down. Inherently, there’s a butt of every joke, and we’re always making fun of someone or something. Just make sure that those jokes aren’t mean-spirited — because no one likes that.”

What is the power in telling a story in the way in which you do?

“Comedy is a way for us to explore a wide range of emotions and experiences through the lens of entertainment, and I think jokes are especially important when we’re talking about things that, on the surface, don’t seem so funny. I think that finding the humor in darker or more complicated topics makes it easier to work through them. It’s almost like coating your dog’s medicine in peanut butter. Because when you can laugh at something, it becomes a little less daunting.”

— Shannon Fiedler, comedian

Above: The Comedy Cellar, where Shannon took a stand-up class on a “whim” that tuned out to be a win. Opposite Page: Shannon at The Cutting Room in New York City. She says stand-up is a way to tell her story and share her point of view.

SHANNON FIEDLER ’10

A STITCH IN TIME

SHEILAH ZIELINSKI, P’16

When Sheilah Zielinski volunteered to make a quilt to commemorate the Loomis Chaffee Centennial in 2014, she didn’t know all that she was taking on. But she did know that quilting is a way in which she expresses herself, and there was an opportunity to tell a story about the school.

Sheilah, parent of Laurie Zielinski ’16, spoke with school archivist Karen Parsons, who loved the idea and suggested that Sheilah involve other parents in the process if they wanted to help. So Sheilah made kits that could be turned into squares that would eventually make up the quilt. She mailed them far and wide. On the back of the completed quilt are the names of all who participated.

“I love how the old photos of the founding members are prominent and the way we showed how the campus evolved through the years,” Sheilah says. She also mentions the 100 Pelicans — the bird taken from the Loomis family coat-of-arms to be the school’s mascot — that are part of the quilt, even a few hidden ones. A friend of Sheilah’s did embroidery work, such as the Loomis crest.

It all came together in a nine-month process that she describes as “excitement, a little bit of trepidation, and then relief at the end. ... I had the deadline coming up. I made it. I made it in time, and everything worked out really well. It really came out beautiful, and I was very, very happy with the results.” The quilt hung in the library for all to see as the school celebrated its first 100 years.

There is permanence in the Centennial quilt, but the story of the school continues to evolve.

“Someday, maybe someone will want to make a future quilt to tell a new story,” Sheilah says.

Quilting, whether it be to simply provide warmth and comfort or to tell a story through the work — has a long history, stretching back centuries. Sheilah is a part of that history. She took a beginner’s class about 30 years ago and figures she has made 400 to 500 quilts since then. “I just started loving it more and more, and I still love it,” she says.

Suggesting a quilt for Loomis came naturally. “I have always celebrated big events with quilts, whether it be for someone’s wedding or someone’s anniversary,” she says. “But I had never done anything as intricate as the Loomis Chaffee one.”

Over the years she has made T-shirt quilts for her children as well as the children of friends. These repurpose various T-shirts to tell a story of growing up. She made a quilt to celebrate her nephew’s becoming an Eagle Scout. She also has worked with a group that

provides quilts to veterans, personalizing them with a photo on the back of the vets during their service time.

“I love making people feel good whether it is a quilt to someone I don’t know or a quilt to a friend or family member,” Sheilah says. “They have it forever. ... I have made quite a few for family and friends, and I get to see them in their homes and see them enjoy them, and I think that is very satisfying.”

She also works with Quilts2Heal, an organization that provides “comfort and healing through quilts created for individuals and families who have suffered a loss, illness, or challenge in their lives.”

“We have given away about 3,000 in the past 11 or 12 years I have been with them,” Sheilah says. These, she says, are quilts of comfort.

“Quilts2Heal began as a group of people who got together to create quilts for the families of the Sandy Hook elementary school shooting,” Sheilah says. The group made 32 quilts, each one personalized, for the children and teachers who were killed, the first responders, and one for the school. “It was a very emotional project that took about one year to complete. … It brought us joy to create the quilts and hopefully provided some comfort to the victims’ families.”

Central to the design of the Loomis Chaffee Centennial quilt were the five Founders — Abby, James, Hezekiah, John, and Osbert Loomis — who knew tragedy all too well. All of their children died before the age of 21.

What is the significance of making a quilt for someone, and for yourself?

“There is permanence in creating quilts. They usually last for generations if cared for properly. It brings me joy to create quilts for special occasions. It also brings joy to the recipients, knowing how much time and effort goes into creating them.”

— Sheilah Zielinski, storytelling quilter

Osbert painted portraits of his siblings, probably in the 1870s, and a self-portrait, too, noted Karen in an article about the quilt for a 2014 issue of Loomis Chaffee Magazine. Karen says the photos of the paintings were scanned for the quilt, and Sheilah printed them on fabric.

A photo of Richmond Hall, the dormitory that was dedicated on September 20, 2014, the day of the Centennial Celebration, is part of the quilt. So, too, are a photo of Mason

“The importance of having the quilt in the Archives collection is that it is one of the most unique and special ways the Centennial was celebrated and honored,” Karen says. “Created by Loomis Chaffee parents living in many parts of the world, with so many Loomis Chaffee symbols embedded in the quilt design … and made with such authentic generosity and loyalty (literally, hands-on) to the school, it contains layers of meaning and historical significance.”

The Centennial quilt “speaks on many levels

being 100 years old can mean to an institution, and about how making a physical statement of gratitude to the Founders brought people together in creativity,” Karen says. “I think the Founders would be delighted.”

Their story lives on, not just in words, but in fabric and artistic expression.

Below: The Centennial quilt, a project organized and stitched together by Sheilah Zielinski in 2014 for the school’s 100th birthday.

THE POWER OF WORDS AND MUSIC

STEPHANIE ROGERS ’85

Have you heard the one about a mailman, a piano, and a police officer? Well, Stephanie Rogers ’85 lived it, so she tells it.

“It was 2022 and I had never told a story at The Moth,” she says, referring to the nonprofit organization that is dedicated to the craft of storytelling. “Yet I had been teaching storytelling techniques for four years and producing a storytelling show for eight.”

So Stephanie finally signed up for a Moth StorySLAM event.

“I shared a story about how one day, I came home only to see police officers and concerned neighbors on my front lawn,” she recounts.

Apparently, she says, her neighborhood mail carrier had been assaulted in front of her house, “which was very bizarre for our sleepy town.” He usually delivered the mail while she was practicing the piano, and she would see him standing and listening to her songs, she told the crowd at The Moth event. After the assault, Stephanie felt compelled to help regain the mail carrier’s lost income since he would be out of work a while. “What happened next was straight out of a true crime docuseries!”

$2,000 — which she brought to the mail carrier’s house. When the door opened, there he was, bruised and swollen in the face and neck. Strangely, his wife also had a black eye and tried to cover it by saying that the cat had scratched her. Stephanie began to doubt the mail carrier’s account about a stranger beating him up. In hindsight, the tale about an attacker asking if he was a mailman made no sense. He wore a uniform when working; of course he was a mail

blamed the cat for her black eye, just like he blamed some random guy for his attack. And I blame myself for always wanting to see the best in people.”

Stephanie is not only a good storyteller. She is the creator of Story Jam Inc., which leverages her many skills — acting, writing, singing, and a good dose of empathy — into a storytelling enterprise. The company produces two live storytelling shows: Story Jam, with customized original music played by a band; and Story Serenade, with improvised songs that respond to the stories.

As she recounted at the StorySLAM, Stephanie talked to the mail carrier by phone, and he told her, “‘Some man asked me if I was a mailman, and when I said yes, he beat me up and ran away.’” Stephanie took up a collection in the neighborhood —

Above: The Story Jam Band: Dave Hiltebrand (guitar), Dan Stanton (vocals), Shannon Wright (vocals), Stephanie (singer/producer), Chuck Lacy (drums), Samotta Acklin (vocals), Lamar Jones (bass), John Bowes (sax), and Fred Simon (keyboard)

carrier. Stephanie somehow mustered the nerve to ask his wife if he had hit her. The wife said “no.” Stephanie pressed the issue once more. The answer remained no.

She wasn’t sure what to do, but she handed over the money and a card to the mail carrier. She didn’t report what she saw or tell the neighbors. “Because I’m not sure he hit her,” she told the audience. “I have no proof. If I call the police or post office, and if I happen to be wrong, I could get an innocent man fired ... or something worse could happen. So I go home. Because she

“Story Jam harnesses the power of personal narrative storytelling using story crafting techniques in the spirit of The Moth on NPR or podcast series like This American Life,” Stephanie says. “We have learned through research that people are deeply impacted, both emotionally and neurologically, when they hear — and see, if one is on a stage — a well-told story. The more exciting the story, the more engagement from the listener. This builds empathy and understanding and allows people from all walks of life to connect in a meaningful way.”

Stephanie also leads storytelling classes for Story Jam Studio and works with companies and groups. “Some of the teams we work with are in sales, some give presentations, some are just hoping to make stronger connections with employees or customers,” she says. “I customize a plan for each group, then share storytelling techniques and exercises to help further their goals.”

Before launching into the storytelling business, Stephanie was in various bands and had some acting jobs, including an appearance on Saturday Night Live.

By the way, the mail carrier still delivers her mail. “Needless to say,” she says, “he doesn’t stand and listen to me practice anymore.”

STORYTELLING

DOS AND DON’TS

Storytelling Don’ts:

1 Don’t bore your audience with unnecessary detail or linguistic grandeur. We are not James Joyce!

2 Don’t think you need a “big” story to tell a great story!

3 Don’t mistake an anecdote for a story!

4 Don’t give away the story before you tell the story (e.g. “Let me tell you about the time I lost my pet fish Salomon. …”).

Storytelling Dos:

1 Have a problem to solve in your story. And another!

2 Tell your story in the present continuous tense [also known as present imperfect tense] — like present, but in action (e.g. “I am sitting at the foot of the Eiffel Tower...”).

3 Combine the Journey of Events with the Journey of Emotions (a phrase/idea coined by Story Jam coach Arlene Malinowski). This means: bring us into your world through your inner monologue, sharing your worries, thoughts, and feelings while also sharing the plot line.

4 Land the plane! Make sure your ending is as compelling as your opening.

— Stephanie Rogers ’85, founding producer/creative director of Story Jam

KEEPER OF THE CASTLE

SUE JOFFRAY

Oh, the stories she could tell. And the stories she does tell.

Sue Joffray and her husband, Don, lived on the Island for most of their 49 years at Loomis Chaffee, including 29 years in the Loomis Homestead. Their life at the school and in the house that dates back to about 1640 generated lots of stories, and Sue tells them well.

“I came from Southern California, you know,” Sue says when reached by phone at her Old Lyme home. “And I married this guy who had taught for two years at Loomis then went into the Navy, then we came back. So he said, ‘Well, we’ll go back for two years, then we’ll go to California for you.’ He was from New England, but I’m still here.”

She laughs.

“But I will tell you one thing. If it weren’t for being at Loomis, which is so friendly — it’s like taking on a family, you know — if I had been living in some house on a street, I’m sure that would have been the end of that. But it was so warm and friendly.”

Sue was a faculty member and administrator from 1957 to 1990, and Don, who died in 2020, was a math teacher and coach from 1950 to 1999. Sue and Don spent 14 years in dorms on campus before moving to the Homestead. “It was amazing living in the Homestead, I'll tell you that.”

Why?

“My aunt said the only historical things in California were 1938 [one of the largest floods in the history of the region], and here I am living in a house from the 1600s with the furnishings and all the people stopping by saying, ‘I’m just dying to see the Homestead.’ So meanwhile I’m throwing my kids’ hockey clothes in the closet and showing [visitors] the Homestead. I became quite a docent.”

Sue served as a cross between a museum guide and a school ambassador. She never knew when someone might knock on the door.

“I will tell you one of my best stories,” Sue says. “I was over in the office in Founders looking out the window and the secretary, Doris Brechtel, says to me, ‘Uh, oh, look at that [camper]. I bet they are here to see the Homestead.’ So she said, ‘I’ll head them off, and you run around the back.’ So I ran around the back and go inside and throw everything in a closet. I open the door and say, ‘Welcome,’

and this woman and her husband and another woman are there.”

She gives them a tour.

“And then he signs a book at the door, and when he signs he says, ‘Would you like to see my new [camper]?’ And the woman says, ‘She can’t see that. The beds aren’t made.’ And I say, ‘Yes, I can.’ So I went out. It was the only time I ever got back at someone.”

She lets out another one of her laughs that punctuates the conversation, and all those

What is the importance of keeping memories alive and telling stories of one’s life?

Artificial intelligence, or A.I., generated a few thoughts: “preserving identity and legacy” ... “fostering connection and belonging” ... “reinforcing the importance of belonging and shared history.” Thanks, A.I. But we have S.J., and a conversation — yet another storytelling method — with Sue Joffray beats a chat with A.I. any day.

memories. “I thought about traveling the country and saying, ‘Do you mind if I look in your cupboards, in your rooms?’ But living in the Homestead was a very wonderful thing.”

Even when it went beyond simply looking into the rooms.

“They were going to have an exhibit at the Wadsworth [Atheneum in Hartford],” Sue says. “This man comes to the house to look through it. And then I see him, he’s upstairs in the bedroom and emptying drawers out of this wonderful chest. He said, “I think we will put this in the exhibit.’ So off went my chest to the Atheneum for a couple of months, but I was very proud that it was there.”

Always proud, and always willing, to give tours.

“We would have students came through for tours so they could see what it was all about,” she says. “We always had Christmas parties there. We did a lot of things to make people feel at home in the Homestead because it is the seat of the school.”

She also remembers town groups coming in for tours. Much of the house had period

furniture dating back hundreds of years.

She overheard someone saying, evidently quite appalled, “They have one of those bookcase headboards in a bedroom of that old house.”

“I said, ‘Whoops,’” Sue recalls. “So the next time my husband was kayaking on the Farmington River — I’d take him way up by the Hitchcock factory, and he’d go down the river, and I’d pick him up. This day while he was kayaking, I was in the Hitchcock factory, and it cost him $450 to get down the river that time. We got a headboard. ... I tried to keep up with what things were supposed to look like.”

Even by phone, she provides a tour of the house, where she and Don raised three boys, Marshall ’75, who died in 1984; Rex ’76; and Jeff ’85.

“One of the ells was off toward Founders,” she says. “That was our piano room. And our son [Marshall] was a fabulous pianist. He was just so incredible; unfortunately, we lost him when he was 27. The music coming out of that room was wonderful,

and it was the oldest part of the house, the old fireplace and everything about it. Just a wonderful room.”

When she talks about the upstairs, she recalls a closet. “Not just a walk-in. ... You could walk around in there.” Here comes another one of those laughs as the memory comes back. “All kinds of things got hidden in there.” And occasionally forgotten.

“We used to go to Maine for the summer,” she says, “so one year I hid the sterling silver in the closet. When it came to Thanksgiving, I could not find it.” Eventually her husband did when he pulled out a drawer.

“So that’s a room I thought a ghost might have lived in,” she says, “But I’m sure they were all around there.”

Ghosts?

“Absolutely, and I thought they were very welcoming,” she says. “I felt that the hosts of the home were very pleased to have a family back in there. I was sure that they felt that way. It was a very warm, welcoming home.”

Students share one on one, and they are asked to share with the group, point being that in life we must sometimes step out of our comfort zone and connect with others we might not know well.

Teaching Techniques

Ned also asks his students for their walkout songs. He’ll compile a playlist and play it in class.

”We frequently begin class with ‘question of the day’ and ‘popcorn’ around the room, giving our answers.“

Students take turns interviewing one another and then presenting their classmates to the class.

Creating a “Culture of Constant Curiosity” Starts with Faculty

By Jeff Otterbein

ned Heckman attended the summer program for early-career teachers in 2017 at the Klingenstein Center at Columbia University. Eight years later he remembers well the section on motivation that included the importance of students “building relationships with their peers and the teacher, being given agency or a sense of choice, and authenticity — that they feel the work they are doing is not just checking a box, but they are using their works in the world. Those three things stand out

to me, so I always think, how can I leverage those to make the class feel as motivational as possible?”

The daily dose of motivation for the faculty is right before their eyes. Much is demanded of a Loomis Chaffee student, so it follows that much is expected from a Loomis Chaffee teacher.

“We ask teachers to take on some sort of professional growth opportunities every year,” says Sara Deveaux, the director of the Henry R. Kravis ’63 Center for Excellence in

Teaching. “As long as you have that culture of constant curiosity and constant reflection and questioning, it will be a healthier environment. It’s that sense of whatever I am doing is in the service of student learning, so I want to make sure my students are getting the best education.”

Opposite page: Destiny Pond ’24 uses visual shift goggles to test perceptual adaptation during the “Perception Olympics” day in Laura Schulte’s Neuropsychology course last spring.

Teaching, wrote an Oregon teacher in 1979 for English Journal, “is a great form of learning.” That form of learning starts for the faculty members when they walk into the classroom on the first day of the school year.

They are not unlike their students. They, too, are there to learn. They will watch, listen, and develop a sense of the class.

Reading The Room

In her Comparative Anatomy class, Liz Bucceri ’07 says she is always changing lab activities and the videos that she shares with the students. When she gets a feel for the class, she says, she adjusts to suit the “culture of the class. If it is an overly chatty class with lots of questions, I adjust my lessons to that. If it is a class that needs to be up on their feet more, I try to get more lab activities in. Even though I know what I am teaching heading into the term, I still try to adjust on the fly to best suit the mix of students.”

Matt Johnson teaches English and computer science courses and is an assistant director of the Kravis Center. His office is in the Pearse Hub for Innovation (PHI), the center led by veteran teacher Scott MacClintic ’82, the director of innovation. Matt invokes Scott’s name.

“Scott likes to say you don’t teach your subject, you teach students,” Matt says. “The students change every year, so by necessity the way in which you are reaching and engaging those students changes. In my English classes there are some years I have a very talkative, very verbal group, excited to dig in around the Harkness tables. I know those discussions skills will be different than the ones where I have a more quiet, inward, reflective group that might want to do more personal or reflective writing.”

Orchestra Director Netta Hadari might have students in the Orchestra all four years, but only once in a music theory class.

“There are new personalities to interact with, to mentor and to be patient with and to be inspired by,” Netta says. “In a class such as music theory, I am trying to do it better each time. I’m very aware I am teaching different students. There is a different energy, a different pace, different interests. I try to accommodate that and be flexible. I think that is the work of being a teacher — being flexible.”

Building Community

Jen Solomon, the associate director of innovation and a biology teacher, says most of her students are new to Loomis Chaffee — either ninth-graders or students who have come in as new 10th-graders. “They don’t know each other, so I like to start off the year with activities that get the students talking to each other and working collaboratively so we can build community in the classroom from day one,” Jen says. “I find that the vibe in a classroom makes a huge difference in the way learning happens throughout the entire year, and laying that groundwork from the beginning is key. So my students have to speak to each other and solve a challenge in order to find their seats in class.” Jen has students change their seats every couple of weeks so that they interact with different students.

Jen says students also work together to use the scientific method, analyze new information, and learn about the content of the first unit so that they can get used to “leaning on each other and learning from each other.”

Ned says he starts on the relationship front “early and often” with what he refers to as “check-in questions.” When students arrive

“I like to start off the year with activities that get the students talking to each other and working collaboratively so we can build community.” [

— Faculty member Jen Solomon

48 Loomis Chaffee Magazine

”If it is a class that needs to be up on their feet more, I try to get more lab activities in.“

for class each day, they receive an overview of what will be discussed that day. Then comes the check-in question. Students can pass but rarely do, Ned says. “They want to know each other, and they want to know me.” So he’ll answer the question, too. The question might be as simple as “What’s your favorite dessert in the dining hall?” Whatever the question is, he is looking for some back-and-forth banter and a bit of fun, which he says helps build relationships. Ned also asks his students for their walkout songs. He’ll compile a playlist and play it in class. “One thing I say all the time when I’m teaching,” Ned says, “is it is really important to learn at least one new thing, hopefully more, a day — but also laugh at least once a day.”

Rachel Nisselson, an associate director of the Kravis Center and a member of the Modern & Classical Languages Department faculty, engages students quickly in getting to know one another in her classes. In Spanish I, she says, students take turns interviewing one another and then presenting their classmates to the class. On the first day of her CollegeLevel French V class this year, students engaged in a “speed dating” style exercise. “They rotated around the room,” she says, “talking to a new partner each time, attempting to find people who fit into certain categories on a worksheet I prepared (e.g., find someone who watched the Opening Ceremonies of the Olympics this summer.). We frequently begin class with ‘question of the day’ and ‘popcorn’ around the room.” “Popcorn” is a term for quick, random questioning.

One of the questions during the first week: “What’s your favorite sport to play, and what’s your favorite sport to watch?” The ball is in the students’ court, so to speak, as they build a sense of community.

And then there’s a group juggling exercise in Rebecca DiSciacca’s Seminar in the Best Self, a required course for freshmen that emphasizes themes such as health and wellness, leadership, equity and inclusion, and the intersection of the best self and the common

good. For the juggling exercises, the students gather in Grubbs Quadrangle.

“I use the game to simulate a good conversation and overall group rapport,” Rebecca explains.

On another day, students gather in a circle outside of Founders Hall with Matt Kammrath, the Keller Family Director of the Norton Family Center for the Common Good, who teaches the Seminar in the Common Good, a sophomore requirement. Students share one on one, and then they are asked to share with the group, the point being that in life we must sometimes step out of our comfort zone and connect with others we might not know well.

Head of School Jody Reilly Soja often talks about connection, community spirit, and joy, including the joy of learning. These topics are at the heart of a freshman orientation activity in the Katharine Brush Library. A scavenger hunt enables them to meet the library staff and explore the library and the library’s website. The reward? Besides getting to know more about the resources of the library, there are prizes.

Getting Creative

Liz, who teaches math as well as science, says in the past two years the Mathematics Department has incorporated more cumulative projects, rather than cumulative tests, in Precalculus. Last year, she says, students got to choose a game such as blackjack or Uno or poker and find the probability of a certain outcome for a scenario they created. “These kinds of projects allow for creativity,” she says. “Students can pick something they are interested in so that they want to invest their time and curiosity. It also allows the students to understand how the math can be used outside of the classroom. It keeps the math fresh, even though it is the same math from year to year.”

1: Lauren Williams guides her history students during a brainstorming session in the PHI, where white-board tables encourage collaboration. 2: What does the world look like through a bird’s eyes? Laura Schulte helps her Neuropsychology students investigate this question using aerial drones. 3: Leah Ozgun ’24 presents her final project for the Harlem Renaissance course last winter. 4: Science and math teacher Liz Bucceri ’07 helps Comparative Anatomy students as they conduct a lab in the fitness center. 5: Senior Laura Phyu and classmates in Mike Donegan's Positive Psychology class assemble puzzles made from photos that Mike collected from their parents. 6: Crazy Creek chairs and other supplies are available from the Alvord Center for teachers to hold class outdoors for a change of pace and place.

Ned also is a big believer in giving students agency, a sense of choice. “How can I build an opportunity for students to choose what they want to do?” he says. In the fall for his College-Level Environmental Science class, a yearlong course, he might ask his students to choose a national park and design a story map, which combines maps, multimedia, and text to tell the story. “You’re still doing a story map, and you’re still doing a national park,” Ned says, “but you have the choice of which one, which is motivating.” At the end of the year Ned asks his juniors in the class to propose “research questions about waste and figure out a way Loomis Chaffee could in some way act on the topic of waste.”

This thought exercise leverages authenticity, the third aspect of a motivational class that Ned first heard about at the Klingenstein Center. “What can we do with what we know?” he says. “That is a popular Alvord Center refrain, and I think about it a lot.”

Ro Clark ’97, head of the Visual Arts Department, assigns a project called “Package the Intangible” in her graphic design class. She says students are challenged to design and package an intangible concept like love or privilege. “This pushes them to think deeply about abstract ideas and how to visually communicate them, encouraging innovative thinking and personal expression,” Ro says. “It’s a fun yet meaningful way to show them that design can be both thought-provoking and impactful.”

In her Introdution to Glass course, Ro uses projects that allow for personal expression, such as “creating simple yet unique glass suncatchers. By starting with something accessible and rewarding, students quickly see the results of their efforts, which boosts their confidence and keeps them excited about learning more. I also incorporate unconventional methods, like adding decorative elements or combining glass with other materials like wire or beads, to show them that glass art is versatile and can be a lot of fun. This approach makes the process enjoyable and helps them feel comfortable experimenting, proving that new ideas can lead to great results.”

Karen Parsons, a history teacher and the school archivist, uses her knowledge of objects and documents in the Archives collection “to engage students more authentically in the study of history.” She says when students spend 10 or 15 minutes looking at the details

of an object that is 100 or more years old, they are “more deeply engaged and more curious,” resulting in probing questions. “This seems to result in very deep learning, a tangible sense of wonder and curiosity, and a bit of awe about the people of the past,” Karen says. “It also creates learning that ‘sticks’ or is indelible in their future engagement across the course’s curriculum.”

Courtney Jackson, an English teacher and the school’s director of gender and sexuality, says “pulling in things from life outside of campus that connect to what we are learning” keeps things fresh in the classroom.

internet went wild with people responding to [purported] screenshots of conversations he and his girlfriend had and if what he said was manipulative or unhealthy,” Courtney recounts. “Students see those kinds of viral conversations, so when we read a memoir about an abusive relationship and were talking about healthy relationships and how to spot warning signs of unhealthy behavior, treatment, and patterns, bringing in the … example [of the actor and his girlfriend] got my students really engaged in the topic, seeing it as something happening around them ... rather than just something in a book.”

”Package the Intangible“: design and package an intangible concept like love or privilege.

“This helps make the learning process and the material feel relevant to students,” Courtney says, offering an example from a class discussion last year. A famous actor had recently been accused of “weaponizing therapy talk to control his girlfriend. The Loomis teachers also make academic subject matter relatable for their students through place-based learning. “Anytime, anywhere learning. It can be on campus, it can be off campus, it is bringing alive learning in a way that is applicable to students,” says Sarah

Above: A student’s “Package the Intangible” project for Graphic Design class. Top Right: Sara Deveaux works with teachers in the Kravis Center for Excellence in Teaching. Bottom Right:

Loomis Chaffee Magazine Winter 2025

Teacher David Edgar listens to student discussion around a Harkness table in his English classroom.

Griggs, who fosters place-based learning in her role as an assistant director of the Alvord Center. The center’s custom artificial intelligence persona was created last year in collaboration with students and faculty and has information about the campus and the surrounding Windsor community to support place-based learning.

Kevin Henderson’s World History class takes advantage of place-based education right in the school’s backyard. On a late summer bluesky day on the first week of school, his class walks to the edge of the Meadows, part of a campus tour on the early history of Windsor.

They look at the Homestead and the view of the Farmington River from Founders Circle and talk about Founders Hall and the historical map on a wall of the lobby. They end up at a commemorative plaque by the doorstep of what was the Plymouth Trading House, built in 1633 and, Kevin notes, “the oldest permanent structure built by Europeans in the state of Connecticut.”

The class also looks over the Meadows “at

the locations of the two archaeological dig sites from the 1970s which uncovered a site from about 4,000 to 6,000 years ago in the Archaic Period, and another one further north which is from the Middle Woodland Period, which dates to about 2,000 years ago,” Kevin says. “We then note the differences in the artifacts found at each site and what this tells us about the development of the societies that resided at the confluence of the two rivers and what this can tell us about the development of their societies and ways of life.”

Looking back can tell us much. So can looking ahead. What are the emerging trends? Certainly, one is how best to incorporate the use of artificial intelligence for teachers and students.

Loomis Chaffee is using Flint, an A.I.-tutoring platform that Matt says “facilitates, rather than disrupts, student learning.”

“Imagine,” Matt continues, “I’ve assigned a reading on a tough concept for homework — students might read it, struggle a bit, not do much with that struggle, and then come to class 24 hours later and have forgotten some or parts where they got confused or lost. What if instead I also assigned them to chat with an A.I. tutor for 10 minutes about that tricky concept — one that could identify the gaps for them, fill in where they need support, and help them come up with good questions to bring to class the next day? Flint can do this and allows students to productively struggle — a key piece of learning — rather than passively taking in content. Teachers can see the transcripts of the chats and even aggregate feedback about student performance to impact the next class’s lesson plan. It’s a tool that can simultaneously embrace and manage the messiness of learning and is emblematic of our overall approach to AI.”

Collaboration and Conversation

Netta is a professional musician who has played violin all over the world. He also conducts the Greater New Haven Youth Orchestra, and this year he will be a guest conductor at the Hartt School, a leading music conservatory in Connecticut.

“Finding interesting artistic collaborations with other people is empowering,” Netta says. “The more I speak with others, the more ideas I get about repertoire. I am always looking for new repertoire, new ideas, new ways to present material and new ways to get students out of their comfort zone.”

A tradition at Loomis is Open Classroom Week, when teachers are encouraged to spend time in other classrooms, where they learn by observing and might discover something new to incorporate in their own classrooms at some point.

“It does not matter what discipline you teach because you can always pick up something from someone else’s classroom,” Sara says from her office in the Kravis Center.

David Edgar, who teaches across three disciplines, says that for many, Open Classroom Week extends well beyond a week, whether it is sitting in another class or simply talking about the profession.

“I have a list of probably 12 teachers I go to regularly to talk about lesson plans, something I want to try out, or to hear their cool new projects,” David says. “Teachers here light up when they talk about what they’re teaching.”

Like David, Sara is thankful for her peers.

“What if ... I also assigned them to chat with an AI tutor for 10 minutes about that tricky concept — one that could identify the gaps for them, fill in where they need support, and help them come up with good questions to bring to class the next day?”

— Faculty member Matt Johnson

“I never run short on people to reach out to and talk to,” Sara says.

The Kravis Center, with its stated mission of sustaining in the faculty the same passion for lifelong learning that Loomis seeks to instill in its students, provides many external and internal opportunities for personal development. For the 2024–25 school year there are seven internal offerings, ranging from leadership development to nurturing reflective practices. Newer teachers can request an instructional coach, and about 30 current teachers have served in that role. Teachers in their first year at Loomis also meet regularly, as do teachers in specific departments. The weekly “Monday Musings” e-newsletter from the Kravis Center provides a wide range of information and motivation for faculty. One recent topic: How are the desks arranged in your classroom? How do these arrangements affect the dynamics of students’ interactions? Do they facilitate active engagement and eye contact?

Another topic: Dovetailing with this year’s school theme, “The Power of Storytelling,” engage the students in their stories. What are they experiencing? “Offering students opportunities to share pieces of their personal experiences at their discretion will foster a deeper sense of connection,” Ned wrote in the newsletter, “reinforcing the idea that ‘students don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.’”

Classroom Crossover

Pulse, rhythm, meter. We associate them with music. But they also extend to writing. Thus, one day in the 2023–24 school year Netta worked with students in the CollegeLevel Creative Writing class taught by Writing Initiatives Director John Morrell. “I love the idea that part of what Netta is bringing to this is writing as something to be performed,” John said at the time. Netta told the students to read a poem to themselves, notice the rhythm and inflection, and underline the most important words to get to what feeling the poem evokes in the listener.

Netta says he is always interested in taking music outside of the Hubbard Music Center. “As a composer I want people to know what it is to write music and to work with music and words together because they have to be intertwined to have a good song,” he says.

For the past three years Fiona Mills, an English teacher and an assistant director of the Kravis Center, has brought her CollegeLevel Harlem Renaissance class to the PHI to cap off the course, a study of an important period in American literature, art, and culture. The Harlem Renaissance spanned the mid-1910s to the mid-1930s, a time when mass migration to northern cities brought

that linguists employ to read tone from word choice. Then the students compared the sentiments that the French-posting people expressed versus those of the Englishposting people on topics related to the environment. The project provided a realworld application for the statistics students and new insights into the French culture for the language students.

Learning and doing are also at the heart of the PHI, which routinely is used by classes. In fact, on a Friday in November, 21 classes across five departments during four periods came through the PHI to work on various projects. The place was buzzing like a bee hive.

together numerous African American writers, artists, scholars, and musicians in the Harlem neighborhood of New York City.

For their final project, students are asked to create an object or some representation of an aspect of the course. Last year another layer was added: The class worked together to develop overarching themes and topics that would allow one project to tie into the other.

“I really appreciate the design-thinking aspect of the PHI, and while our course is housed in the English Department, it is very interdisciplinary due to the nature of the Harlem Renaissance,” Fiona says.

Students in the course examine literature, artwork, music, theater, history, and the politics of the time.

“So it seems fitting, given the nature of the course, [that] the students would come here and make a project that is beyond the confines of a traditional English essay,” Fiona says.

And, one might say, a bit more fun than a traditional essay, and a creative use of the PHI, which on many days is one of the busiest places on campus.

Rachel’s College-Level French V class and students in a College-Level Statistics class partnered in an exercise in which they downloaded 500 posts in English and French from the social media platform X and analyzed the expressed sentiments using a library

Working with the various centers on campus is a key component to the Loomis learning experience. The Biology I course, for instance, takes full advantage of what the centers offer.

Biology I students use the PHI for their fall-term final project, for which they build a cardboard prototype of a plant growth chamber to bring plants to Mars. “One of the things that we talk about a lot in the PHI is that what you are making is simply a model, and what we are really interested in are the decisions you made in your design,” Jen says. “Those design decisions demonstrate your understanding — why did you choose this or why did you choose that — and that is how we assess the student understanding of the project.”

Earlier in the fall, after Biology I students complete their first lab, they write lab reports. The students spend time in the Writing Studio not only for the report but also to learn what is offered by the studio through John Morrell and English teacher Zach Grobe. “We want them to know they can go there not just for science,” Jen says. “We want them to know this is a resource.”

Last year the biology teachers read Outsmart Your Brain by Daniel T. Willingham, which was a personal development offering connected to the Office of Learning Access & Student Achievement (LASA), which helps students and faculty develop fundamental skills and strategies that enhance academic achievement.

talk about maple sugaring with a walk to the sugar house where syrup is produced

“Our classes are informed very much by the work that comes out of the Learning Access & Student Achievement office,” Jen says.

“We work directly with them to talk about how the brain works and what strategies we can show students in our classes to get them prepared for their first quizzes and tests.”

The bio classes also work with the Center for Diversity, Equity & Inclusion, with which Ned is associated. For instance, there have been student projects that highlight scientists from underrepresented groups.

Sarah Griggs has spoken with biology classes about maple sugaring and taken the students on a walk on campus to the trees that are tapped and the sugar house where syrup is produced. She also talks with classes about the school’s apiary and honey production. That growing effort in part led to the creation of a classroom kitchen, now open on the third floor of the Clark Center for Science & Mathematics, as another place for learning by doing. (See story on page 22.)

Learning and doing are also at the heart of the PHI, which routinely is used by classes. In fact, on a Friday in November, 21 classes across five departments during four periods came through the PHI to work on various projects. The place was buzzing like a bee hive.

“Teachers here care so deeply about their students and their subject,” Sarah says. “When anyone is that passionate about something, it is going to ignite the interest of people they are around.”

And on that day in the PHI, the sparks of innovation did indeed ignite many ideas.

1: The PHI buzzes with activity during a class day in November. 2: With guidance from science teacher Ned Heckman, biology students Chidi Moemeka and Larkyn Domer-Shank conduct DNA fingerprinting for a mock murder investigation. 3: As part of the on-campus maple sugaring process, environmental proctors Maddie Shani and Sally Hayes stoke the fire for boiling down collected sap. 4: Emma Lange, Hannah Goodrick-Armstrong, and Ned Heckman collaborate with colleagues in the Kravis Center. 5: Jen Solomon’s Biology I class visits the Writing Studio. 6: Sophomore Juliana Bang, junior Sai Vereen, and classmates in Drawing I. Rapport among students helps to create a classroom community where learning flourishes.

Smithsonian Storyline

BY ELLEN RYAN

If your image of a Native American exhibit involves a tiny, buckskinned Owen Wilson behind glass in Night at the Museum, it’s a bit out of date. In fact, in their own way, real museums offer almost as many surprising complexities as the movie these days.

Just ask Andrea D’Amato ’01 — or better yet, take a walk through her work for the Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian, where she’s been senior exhibition designer since July 2020.

“Unbound: Narrative Art of the Plains,” which has moved from New York to Washington, D.C., juxtaposes historical hides and muslins with takes on contemporary topics (motorcycles, Afghanistan) in new media, even incorporating cartoon figures.

A typical review celebrated the show’s structure, presenting Plains native art as a continuity, “without strict chronological progression … emphasizing the lived connection with tradition and the past that Plains narrative artists embody today.”

Pointing out the deerskins, painted dresses, and colored-pencil art, Andrea says, “I tell

my daughter: Artists, no matter who they are, use the tools at their disposal. It’s relatable. Indians don’t just live in the past, but they are inspired by it.”

The girl who all but lived in the Richmond

Art Center at Loomis Chaffee immersed herself in then-faculty member Linda Fellows’s printmaking class and guest artist Sol LeWitt’s mass wall-drawing of silhouettes in the Sue & Eugene Mercy Jr. Gallery. Now she plays with more professional tools and collaborates on bigger walls — and floors and ceilings and beyond.

A designer’s toolbox

Take Andrea’s first major exhibition site job — shifting several Alexander Calder mobiles from the “kind of dark” subterranean level of the Smithsonian’s National Gallery of Art, where they’d been for decades, to a rebuilt space just below a broad skylight. This included the massive untitled mobile commissioned for the building’s opening. The months-long project involved working with the Calder Foundation and curators on how and where to place paintings, displays,

The NMAI developed out of the 1989 National Museum of the American Indian Act to “establish a living memorial to Native Americans and their traditions.” The name was decided through conversations with many native and tribal consultants, Andrea says, though there were and are varied opinions about the name among native communities. This is especially the case, she adds, because NMAI seeks to represent cultures not just in the United States, but also through Mexico and into South America as well as “the past, present, and future.”

The National Museum of the American Indian

This page: Artifacts in the “Unbound” exhibit. Photos by Skip Brown. Opposite Page: Andrea’s sketches and inspirations for the “Wild Designs” exhibit.

and explanatory materials.

“I loved giving it new life and letting it all breathe and move in natural light,” she says. Now the world’s largest display of Calder’s works is “a fun surprise at the top of the tower in the East Building.” Her favorite part was watching “Finny Fish” rise at last and hearing its glass pieces clinking.

Sound, light, tactility, even the movement of air — these and other elements of the visitor’s experience, more than just the visual, are part of a museum designer’s toolbox. A designer works with a wide range of fellow experts, from those in collections and conservation to curators; project managers and professionals such as architects and engineers; graphic designers, lighting people, perhaps muralists and interpreters, and production experts and craftspeople, among others.

“Often a designer comes up with several options to present to a larger group,” Andrea explains. These fall into general categories of a conceptual design, design development, and the phase of final construction through installation.

The throughline on a D’Amato project — what she aims for and what pulls all her creations together — is “communicating the passion and the story, taking people on a journey where they come out having learned something.”

Challenges and solutions

The goal of “Wild Designs,” one of her favorite exhibition projects, for the Peabody Essex Museum in Massachusetts, was to “explore bioinspired innovations in design, technology, and art that either model or engage nature to generate more sustainable

solutions.” Andrea used a series of curved, open-slat walls to mount illustrations of the concepts and challenges to visitors; people could see through them, but they had to go to their other side to learn more.

“I gravitated toward the pattern of tree rings,” explains Andrea, who earned a master’s degree from the Rhode Island School of Design. Whether or not visitors realized it consciously, “overall your sense of your surroundings was in forms of nature and biomimicry.” The “walls” were “light and airy and natural, using materials in alignment with the exhibit’s theme.”

Completely different walls were necessary when Andrea came up with “Exploration Starts Here,” an orientation exhibit for Washington’s National Geographic Museum, a relatively tiny space displaying the work of National Geographic explorers, scientists,

and photographers at no cost to the public.

“With Jane Goodall to Robert Perry to explorers on every continent, their collection is not as deep as the Smithsonian’s but important and exciting and reflecting everything you see in the magazine,” Andrea says. Fitting all that into an interactive timeline in less than 2,700 square feet was a challenge in itself — let alone having just open floor to work with.

She and her colleagues hit on repurposing metal piping of the sort used as handrails in sports stadiums. They could hang and support materials on these and move them around easily.

“A good chunk of this job is about creative problem-solving, and I love that part,” she says.

Ideas and insights

Inspiration comes from anywhere and everywhere — from stadiums to theater to, unsurprisingly, other museums. One thing Andrea likes to do is watch visitors interact with exhibits: what they stare at, what they touch and spend time with. What does her family enjoy? Can smaller people and those of different abilities take in the messages?

“Universal design is important,” she notes. “When you conceive for different senses, when you add audio for blind people or sensory elements for people to feel, you’re enhancing the experience for everyone.”

In off-hours, Andrea occasionally has brought the lessons of an architecture degree from Roger Williams University —

58 Loomis Chaffee Magazine Winter 2025

Opposite Page Top: An element that engaged the senses in the “Wild Designs” exhibit Left: Metal piping formed the framework for free-standing displays in “Exploration Starts Here,” an orientation exhibit for Washington’s National Geographic Museum. Bottom: “Wild Designs: Innovations Inspired by Nature,” an exhibition Andrea designed for Peabody Essex Museum in Massachusetts in 2018

“A good chunk of this job is about creative problem-solving, and I love that part.”

— ANDREA D’AMATO ’01

including a semester in Florence — to the Little Theatre of Alexandria in her Virginia hometown.

Inspired by Broadway’s Wicked, she designed and built for A Christmas Carol a 21-foot arched clockface that spanned the stage, ticking off the hours until Scrooge’s doom or awakening. For Dirty Blonde, about iconic filmmaker and actor Mae West, a reviewer described her “breathtaking set that uses both rear projections and marquee projections through a large-screen television.”

Andrea is grateful that Loomis Chaffee “gave me a worldview larger than most highschoolers got,” which in turn has informed her work for the public. As for where that might go, “I dream of making an exhibit on sustainability, native plants and so on, that travels and teaches people beyond the museum walls.” Goodbye dioramas!

Above: Andrea designed the set for a community theater production of A Christmas Carol in 2014. Top Left: The preliminary set design reflects the concept of time as a theme. Top Right: Using a computer-controlled milling machine, Andrea created the giant clock frame for the set.

Loomis Chaffee

Head of the Performing Arts Department and Choral/Vocal Director Susan Chrzanowski jokingly refers to her desk as “a tornado.” In reality, it is a tableau of her work and inspiration as an educator and musician. Since arriving at Loomis Chaffee in 1998, Sue has directed the Concert Choir and

Faculty Desk

SUSAN CHRZANOWSKI

Chamber Singers; taught hundreds of music students; served as the music director of dozens of musical theater productions; led the Performing Arts Department and the former Music Department; and infused the Hubbard Music Center and the campus with her positive energy.

A treasured photo of Sue and her husband and accompanist, David, at Sue's first vocal recital at Loomis Chaffee in January 1999.

A card that Sue received from Daniela Rakhlina-Powsner ’13 depicting a feline version of “The Singer”

Recognition as the William C. Card Instructor in Music, the first of two instructorships that Sue has been awarded in her 26 years at Loomis.

Atop a stack of teaching materials, this book is one of the resources Sue uses with her Beginning Piano class.

Sheet music under consideration for sight reading practice with the students in Concert Choir

This photo was taken when the Chamber Singers performed at the Delamar Hotel in West Hartford for a Loomis Chaffee alumni and parent reception in 2017.

Musical whimsy. “I like uplifting things around my desk,” Sue says.

OBJECT LESSON

Osbert and the Volcano

By Karen Parsons

Loomis Chaffee History Teacher, School Archivist & Curator

Osbert Loomis departed New York in June 1871 for a months-long European Grand Tour. While Osbert considered this tour de rigueur for his career — as did many professional artists of his time — his voracious zeal for learning framed the journey as one of wonder and edification as he encountered great works of art, architecture, and aweinspiring landscapes.

By mid-September, he had reached Naples, Italy, the southernmost location on his tour. On what must have been a clear evening, he took in a view as fascinating as it was sublime. In a letter to a friend, he described the moment: “The window of my room looked down upon the bay and upon Vesuvius & one night I saw a bright light open in its side and the lava flow from it.” Seven months later, and after Osbert had continued his travels north and then home to New York, Mount Vesuvius erupted in one of its more sensational events of modern history, spewing lava, ash, and molten stone. David Forbes, a writer for the science magazine Nature noted in 1873,

“the telegraphic bulletins received from the fiery mountain [during this eruption] became the subject of general inquiry and discussion in all parts of the … world.”

The intense appeal of Vesuvius may have encouraged Osbert, an artist, entrepreneur, and one of the Founders of the Loomis Institute, to transform his written memory into a painted landscape, this time setting his view of the mountain and bay in daylight with shimmering waters, the city’s densely built neighborhoods, and residents dancing on a terrace joined by onlookers. A group of three, dressed in formal clothing and perhaps travelers, are depicted on the terrace’s edge, the male figure pointing towards Mount Vesuvius and its white plume rising against a bluegreen sky. Showing this less dramatic image of the volcano’s capabilities made a gentler backdrop for the joyful scene of local daily life, even if it seems a more imaginative tableau rather than faithful recording from the artist’s easel. Osbert’s landscape, which resides with his correspondence in the school’s Archives, also differs from that of

many artists before him who sought to capture Vesuvius’s spectacular, menacing flare-ups or the busy maritime trade of the bay.

Vesuvius’s most historic eruption loomed large for Osbert during his visit to Naples. He traveled 16 miles to Pompeii and 10 more to Herculaneum to tour the ruins of towns destroyed by the volcano’s two-day eruption in 79 A.D. The Roman-built structures of Pompeii had been covered in nearly 20 feet of ash and pumice stone caused by a fastmoving current of hot gas and volcanic matter. A sea of molten lava submerged

Herculaneum. Both cities were engulfed and sealed when the volcano spew hardened; by the year of Osbert’s visit, historians’ research and archaeologists’ excavations presented to tourists remarkably intact ruins of buildings and their decoration. Osbert noted the deep impressions these made on him: “[A]ll modern structures … dwindle into insignificance by the side of the remains of Ancient Rome & Greece; or if we speak of the ornamentation of … our day — then we have to look for their models in those which have for more than 1,800 years been buried from our sight at Pompeii, Herculaneum &

many other places. … When walking the streets of Pompeii and passing the galleries out in the solid lava of Herculaneum…, I felt there is nothing new under the sun.”

While in Naples, Osbert journeyed to Virgil’s tomb, the resting place of one of his favorite authors. He had special fondness for The Aeneid and had spent the summer of 1862 tutoring his nephew Jimmy, then the last surviving child of his siblings, on the text. It was among the verses of The Aeneid that Osbert found the family’s motto, especially poignant after Jimmy’s death in 1867 and

the family’s decision to found a school as they faced the prospect of no successive generation. Osbert wrote to his brother, John, in 1886, of his admiration for Virgil and for a single phrase from The Aeneid. “In our case it is an exhortation … a family proverb ‘never yield to evil’ in the most extended sense of thought, word, or deed.” It was also Osbert’s wish that ne cede malis would serve as the Loomis Institute’s motto, as it has, steadfastly, for more than a century.

ne cede malis

NEWS FROM THE ALUMNI / DEVELOPMENT OFFICE

Loomis Chaffee Magazine Winter 2025

ALUMNI GATHERINGS

Boston Reception

OCTOBER 22, 2024

Top left: Chief Advancement Officer Tim Struthers ’85, host Trustee Marc Rubenstein ’82, Head of School Jody Reilly Soja, host Jill Hai, and Trustee Jonathan Kelly ’81 Left: Ileana Jimenez Garcia P’22, Sophie Zhuang ’21, Annah Clymer ’21, Madison Carr ’21, Paul Wingle P’22 Bottom left: Stephanie Anklin, Parker Repko ’08, Rob Shapiro ’08, Amanda Harris Shapiro ’08, Claire Melley ’08, and Kris Damiata ’08 Above: Mau Arellano ’09, Eugene Mironets ’09, Peggy Bermel ’09, and Taegan Williams ’09

Submit a Class Note

Email the Class Notes Editor at magazine@ loomis.org to share news with classmates and friends. High-resolution photographs are welcome; please clearly identify all people. Class Notes appear on the school website and social media channels.

Loomis Chaffee Alumni

Loomis Chaffee Alumni

ALUMNI GATHERINGS

Hartford Reception

DECEMBER

10, 2024

1: Mike Stubbs ’04, Kyle Storms ’04, Brian Popek ’04, Ray Carta ’04, and Peter Meggers ’04 2: Eric and Jane Rosenberg P’05, ’07 3: Host and Trustee Britt-Marie Cole-Johnson ’00, P’27 and Head of School Jody Reilly Soja 4: Jessica Shi P’28, Lihua Zhao P’24, ’26, and Fei Zeng P’24, ’26 5: Sue Fisher Shepard ’62 and Kate Dixon P’89, ’92, ’95 6: Dick Shectman ’58, Head of School Jody Reilly Soja, and Robert Irving ’58

John Metcalf Taylor Society's Newest Members and an Invitation to Join

Please join us in welcoming the newest members of the JMT Society, which honors alumni, parents, and friends who have remembered Loomis Chaffee in their estate plans through charitable bequests, trusts, or other provisions.

Jean Parmelee Sodaro ’45*

Anonymous ’64

Peter L. Saviteer ’71

Diane Elizabeth Alfano ’74

Bruce T. Hamilton ’74

Kevin E. Hunt ’74

Susan Tracy Moore ’74

Anonymous ’77

Gary M. Morin ’79

Anonymous ’81

Anonymous ’99

Jed R. Cohen ’05

Anonymous ’09

Alexandre S. Zilkha ’16

Anonymous (Former Faculty and Parent of Alum)

Linda Loomis (Friend)*

* Deceased

We invite you to join the JMT Society if you have made, or plan to make, a commitment to support Loomis Chaffee through a gift in your will or other planned gift.

www.loomischaffee.giftplans.org

CHAFFEE BOOK CLUB

November 10, 2024

Wild Girls: How the Outdoors Shaped the Women Who Challenged a Nation by Tiya Miles

Head of School Jody Reilly Soja hosted a gathering of the Chaffee Book Club in her home that featured one of Loomis Chaffee’s summer reading Book Chat selections — Wild Girls: How the Outdoors Shaped the Women Who Challenged a Nation by award-winning historian Tiya Miles. History teacher, school archivist and curator, and Associate Director of Writing Initiatives Karen Parsons facilitated a lively discussion of Miles’s book about girls who found self-understanding in the natural world and became women who changed America.

ATTENDEES: (front) Betsy Mallory MacDermid ’66, Anne Schneider McNulty ’72, Priscilla Ransom Marks ’66, and Lynn Hayden Wadhams ’61 ; and (back) discussion leader Karen Parsons, Anne Shepard King ’68, Jenefer Carey Berall ’59, Lisa Silvestri ’71, Kate Butterworth Valdez ’67, Head of School Jody Reilly Soja, Sue Fisher Shepard ’62, Martha Ritter ’66, and Carey Shea ’78

Scanlan Financial Aid Initiative

In 1874, the Loomis siblings incorporated The Loomis Institute to provide a free education for academically qualified students. In 1914, the school’s first headmaster, Nathaniel Batchelder, brought life to the Founders’ vision of the school — a community of students from diverse socioeconomic, political, and religious backgrounds.

While the intent of the Founders was for the institution to remain tuition-free in perpetuity, 50 years into the school’s journey, their noble commitment became financially unsustainable. To honor the spirit of the Founders’ vision of enrolling students based on their talent and character rather than their financial circumstances, the institution initiated its financial aid program.

Since Loomis Chaffee began charging tuition in the late 1960s, the school’s financial aid funds have served thousands of students who would not have been able to attend otherwise. Furthermore, financial aid has allowed the school to sustain this commitment to accessibility, thus fostering a diverse and culturally vibrant community benefiting the entire student body.

Loomis Chaffee’s dedication to financial aid is inextricably linked to the Founders’ dream of cultivating a community of inclusion, and the school is proud to steward their vision. That said, the demand for financial aid exceeds what is available.

To bolster Loomis Chaffee’s financial aid resources and create life-changing opportu-

To honor the spirit of the Founders’ vision of enrolling students based on their talent and character rather than their financial circumstances, Loomis Chaffee initiated its financial aid program in the 1960s.

nities for students with financial need, in 2023 Trustee Mary Bucksbaum Scanlan ’87 generously created the Scanlan Financial Aid Initiative, an extraordinary opportunity for Loomis Chaffee.

In this initiative, gifts and pledges of $50,000 or more are matched at 50 percent until the available pool of $4.5 million in matching funds is utilized. Nearly two years since the launch of this initiative, the Loomis Chaffee community has enthusiastically embraced this special effort.

The Giacco family took advantage of this opportunity to add to an existing scholarship. “After our great experience attending Loomis Chaffee,” Brett Giacco ’10 explains, “Our family thought giving students with financial need the same opportunity was a natural fit with our family’s values. We are grateful for this matching gift opportunity, and we are happy to be a part of it.”

More than 60 percent of the initiative’s matching funds have been allocated, and the expectation is that the program will be completed in the coming months.

So far, there have been 46 additions to existing funds with commitments of $50,000 or more, and seven new funds created with commitments of $100,000 or more. (While a commitment of $150,000 is required to establish a named endowed fund at Loomis Chaffee, with the 50 percent match, a fund can be created with a commitment of $100,000.) Commitments can be paid over one to five years.

For more information about how you can support the Scanlan Financial Aid Initiative, please call or email Tim Struthers ’85, chief advancement officer, at 860.687.6221 or tim_struthers@loomis.org.

SAVE THE DATE

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 27, 2025

I LANTH R OPY DA Y Challenge!

Mark your calendars! Every February, the Loomis Chaffee community rallies together to make an extraordinary impact on the lives of our students and faculty for Philanthropy Day. This year, we’re thrilled to celebrate our 13th Philanthropy Day, and we invite all alumni, parents, and friends to join the fun. Together, let’s make it the best one yet!

For more information on Philanthropy Day or to show your early support, visit www.loomischaffee.org/philanthropyday or simply scan the QR code above.

Volunteers are the heart of our Philanthropy Day success. To learn how you can make a meaningful impact as a volunteer, please reach out to Director of the Annual Fund Deidre Swords at deidre_swords@loomis.org. Thank you in advance for helping us achieve something extraordinary!

Reunite, Reconnect, and Reminisce • June 6–8 SAVE THE DATE

Classes ending in 0s and 5s — this is your year! Mark your calendar for Reunion Weekend and join us on the Island for the festivities.

Visit www.loomischaffee.org/reunion for more information or call 860.687.6815.

REGISTRATION OPENS THIS SPRING!

GET LINKED

LinkedIn is now our primary tool for alumni networking and engagement.

The platform’s extensive network allows for dynamic and interactive connections among the thousands of Loomis Chaffee alumni who have already joined our LinkedIn group. By joining this group, you enhance your ability to take full advantage of this growing network.

To join the private Loomis Chaffee Alumni LinkedIn group, go to www.linkedin.com/groups/68181/

www.loomischaffee.org/philanthropyday

Be sure to update your LinkedIn profile to include Loomis Chaffee in your education section.

Loomis Chaffee Alumni Group

1945

John “Jack” H. Litter Jr., lifelong resident of Windsor, Conn., on July 4, 2024. He was a four-year student who played football each year, basketball and baseball his first three years, and hockey as a senior. He also was in the Rifle Club, the Boxing Club, and the Ping Pong Club and on the Founders Committee. After graduation, he joined the U.S. Army Air Corps during World War II and earned a bachelor’s degree from UConn in 1950. He was employed by G. Fox & Company, now Macy’s, as comptroller, retiring in 1987 after 37 years. He then owned his own retail audit and tax accounting business, retiring in 1992. Jack joined the Windsor Police Department on October 1, 1949, as a supernumerary officer, retiring on February 28, 1981, and served as treasurer of the Windsor Police Mutual Benefit Association for 50 years. Jack enjoyed golf, hunting, fishing, and traveling. He was a member of the Bishop McAuliffe Council #3181 Knights of Columbus, the Hartford Surf Fishing Club, and the Windsor Republican Town Committee; a charter member of the Windsor Elks Lodge #2060 BPOE; and past president of the Windsor Rod and Gun Club. Jack and his wife, Carolyn Brooks Litter, traveled to Europe multiple times; a special trip to Ireland included meeting many of his Irish cousins. They also spent many years traveling in the United States in their trailer along with Jack’s cousins from Maine. Beginning in 1994, they spent winters in Florida, first at a campground in Debary on the St. John’s River, where they made many wonderful friends. In 2007, they moved to their winter home in Port Orange, Fla., and made many more great friends. Jack left four children, Robert J. Litter ’73, John B. Litter, Janet L. Foley, and Susan Jerwann and her husband, Keith; five grandchildren; sisters-in-law Dorothy A. Brooks and Lila D. Litter; and

OBITUARIES

several nieces and a nephew as well as cousins. Jack was predeceased by his brothers Donald P. Litter ’47 and Richard P. Litter ’50 and his granddaughter Katie Foley. A Mass of Christian Burial was celebrated July 10, 2024, at St. Damien of Molokai Parish-St. Gabriel Church in Windsor.

1947

Merrill James Hosmer, of Cotuit, Mass., on October 18, 2024. He was a three-year student and an exceptional athlete who played hockey, tennis, soccer, and football. He also was a member of the Athletic Council. Merrill was in many other clubs: rifle, ski, jazz, political, and ping pong, and he was in the cast of Macbeth. He often said his Loomis years were some of the happiest years of his life. Merrill graduated from American International College (AIC). While attending AIC, he met Barbara “Babs” Voelker, and their love story spanned 73 years, including 69 years of

marriage. Shortly after they were wed, Merrill left to serve in the Korean War. Merrill and Barbara raised their family in Wellesley, Mass., and were devoted parishioners of the Wellesley Congregational Church. They were active members of the Wellesley Country Club, where Merrill played golf, his true passion. Upon his retirement, the Boston Professional Golfing Association gave him its highest award for increasing membership in the institution. Merrill had an accomplished 35-year career in publishing at McGraw Hill, working for Aviation Week & Space Technology magazine. His career took him many times to the Paris Air Show and the Farnborough International Air Show in England. He loved traveling for leisure as well, and he and Barbara made many trips exploring the world. Merrill enjoyed his retirement during the winters in Naples, Fla. Summers were spent on Cape Cod in Cotuit, Mass., where he and Barbara eventually settled full time. He was active in the community and was a board member for the Cotuit Library and a volunteer at the Cotuit Historical Society. He and Barbara enjoyed performances at the Cape Symphony and Cotuit Center for the Arts. Though he had many interests, Merrill's greatest joy and source of pride was his family. As an only child, it warmed his heart to raise his three children. Over the years, he was blessed to watch his family grow with four grandchildren, and shortly before his passing, he met his first great-grandchild and was aware that soon there would be two more. Merrill was survived by his son, Peter Merrill Hosmer, and his wife, Andrea Graveline; daughter Martha Hosmer Densberger; daughter Susan Hosmer Collins and her husband, Gary Collins; four grandchildren, and one great-grandchild. He also had tremendous love for his cat, Molly. A graveside service was held November 2, 2024, at the Mosswood Cemetery in Cotuit.

1950

Robert Edward Milliken, on October 21, 2024. Robert was a three-year student who was a member of the track team, Photography Club, Ski Club, Dorm Entertainment Committee, and Library Committee; president of the Stagehands Union; and a driver of the school station wagon. In October 1952 Robert entered the U.S. Army, serving in Korea until October 1954. Upon his return from service, he settled in Hurley, N.Y., and on September 25, 1955, he wed Patricia Lee Shultis of Woodstock, N.Y. They raised a family and were married for 66 years. Between 1956 and 1975, Robert worked as an architectural draftsman at his father’s firm. In 1975 he earned his architectural license, operated the firm Robert E. Milliken and Associates, and continued to practice in Kingston, N.Y., until 2018. Robert was survived by his four children, Lori LaFon, David Milliken, Lyn Milliken, and Gary Milliken; a granddaughter; and two sisters, Jean Westholt and Sue Mitchell. He was predeceased by his wife, Patricia, and a sister, Betsy Giustra. Arrangements were private.

1951

Paul “Peter” Orvis Jr., on October 15, 2024, at Community Hospice and Palliative Care in St. Augustine, Fla. Peter was a two-year student. At age 17, he joined his family in Calcutta, India, where his father had been posted. He attended Mt. Hermon School in Darjeeling, India, and enjoyed watching the tea pickers and views of Mt. Everest, but not the school. Peter returned to the rigors of the Irish Christian Brothers in Calcutta and ended up at the University of Geneva in Switzerland. There he founded a band in which he played the piano and accordion. Returning to the United States, he attended Middlebury College, where he was the social chairman and party planner at Alpha Tau Omega. He earned a bachelor’s degree in history and geography. Upon graduation from Middlebury, Peter joined New Yorkbased Riegel Paper as a sales associate. He summered in Bay Head, N.J., where he met Celia “CeCe” Crouse. They married in 1959. Peter and family moved to Wilton, Conn., in the mid-1960s. Always active in the community, he volunteered at the Wilton Playshop, the Kiwanis Club, the Wilton Congregation Church, the Wilton Historical Society, and Norwalk Community College.

His favorite volunteer activity was coaching Little League baseball. In 1969 he started a long, successful career in the alarm industry. Along with a partner, he opened Watchguard Corporation, and they built the company into one of the largest security firms in the Northeast. In 1978 the two parted ways, and shortly thereafter Security Solutions Incorporated (SSI) was born. Peter’s son Jamie joined SSI in 1986 after college graduation and soon managed the company while Peter focused on the Central Commu-

survived by Cece, his wife of 64 years; his sister, Marlene Shahheint; his brother Jonathan P. Orvis; his son Paul W. Orvis IV and his wife, Dawn; his son James D. Orvis and his wife, Anne; three grandchildren; and sister-in-law Catherine Orvis. He was predeceased by his brother Woodson Orvis and sister-in-law Brenda Orvis. A memorial was held November 23, 2024, at Memorial Presbyterian Church in St. Augustine. A second memorial service is scheduled for the spring of 2025 in Wilton, Conn.

nications Incorporated (CCI) call center, which he had started in 1985. CCI was created to monitor the alarm systems from SSI and to answer calls for local businesses. His son Paul took on management roles at CCI for several years in the 1990s. Both companies flourished under family control; Peter retired from active day-to-day management of the businesses in 2000. Throughout his career, Peter willingly volunteered his time for many industry causes and associations and was the founder of the Connecticut Burglar and Fire Alarm Association. Peter and Cece moved to Marsh Creek in St. Augustine, Fla., in 2000. The final move was to Westminster St. Augustine in 2020. Peter and Cece always supported the arts and many philanthropic endeavors, and Peter was a member of Loomis Chaffee’s Common Good Society, an alumni volunteer, and a reunion fundraising volunteer. Free time was filled with golf and world-wide travel. Peter was

Jane Britton Buchanan, on July 22, 2024. Jane was a four-year student who was raised in Windsor, Conn., and spent childhood summers in Vermont. She was a bright student from an early age, skipped first grade, and graduated first in her class at The Chaffee School, where her mother taught English. Jane was on the staff of the school newspaper and was editor-in-chief. She was in the Glee Club and the French Club and was a Common Good Society member. Over the years, Jane frequently amused her family by reciting at great speed the names of all her high school classmates, often ending with her infectious laugh. Jane loved attending Wellesley College, which was also the alma mater of her mother, Josephine Britton. Jane was managing editor of the college newspaper. After graduation, Jane married Robert M. Buchanan, moved to Cambridge, Mass., and enjoyed working

at Harvard Law School, where Bob was a student. They were married for 67 years. Jane followed in her mother’s footsteps and became an English teacher, as did Jane’s brother, David ’55. In the mid-1960s, with two young children at home, Jane earned a master’s degree in teaching English at Yale University. She was a trailblazer; in those days women were not yet accepted as undergraduates at Yale. In the mid-1980s, as her four children were progressing through high school, college, and graduate programs, Jane earned her doctorate in English and American literature from Tufts University, where she successfully defended her thesis, “Poetic Identity in the New World: Anne Bradstreet, Emily Dickinson, and Derek Walcott.” Jane and Bob raised their family and a succession of well-loved dogs in Weston, Mass., where she lived for 56 years. She enjoyed teaching at Bentley College, where she chaired the Gender Issues Committee and was a favorite with her students. Jane and Bob purchased land in Lyme, N.H., where they built a first, and then a second, log cabin in the woods. The cabins were places of respite, where many books were read and days concluded with a cool swim at Post Pond, then dinner in a restaurant. After their children were launched, Jane and Bob traveled each year to places all around the world. Jane loved shrimp and chocolate ice cream, and enjoyed both of these in her final days. She was survived by her husband, Bob; her children: Robert M. Buchanan Jr. and his wife, Chantal; Jamy B. Buchanan and her husband, Jimmy; Stephen S. Buchanan and his wife, Natasha; and Genevra B. Casais and her husband, John; eight grandchildren; two great-grandchildren; her brother, David Britton ’55, and his wife, Birdie; two nieces; and a nephew. The family gathered in her memory on July 27, 2024.

American Bar Association in 1963. He also served as a justice of the peace for a number of years beginning in 1965. Bob loved the law and felt privileged to practice that profession for more than 50 years in Windsor. He practiced criminal law in his early years but soon developed his own practice largely devoted to real estate, probate, and family matters. Bob was generous with his time and attention and had a long association with Windsor Independent Living Association. He was smart, generous, witty, and loved a good party. Bob also had a passion for sports cars, particularly Porsches. He raced briefly in the Sports Car Club of America (SCCA), meeting actor Paul Newman and cartoonist Charles Addams, before shifting his focus to Flag and Communications for the SCCA and traveling to race venues all over New England, New York, and Canada. He left his daughter, Lindsay Platt; his sister and brother-in law, Elizabeth “Sandy” and James O’Harra; a niece; and a nephew.

1955

Robert A. Platt, of Windsor, Conn., on October 2, 2024, from complications due to COVID-19. Bob was a four-year student who played both football and tennis for three years. He also played baseball and soccer, each for one year, and he was on the Senior Day Student Committee. Bob attended the University of Connecticut, where he was a member of Lambda Chi Alpha fraternity and editor of the school newspaper. He went on to work for the Travelers Insurance Company before deciding to pursue a law degree at UConn Law School. He was admitted to the

Howard G. Hudson, on August 29, 2024, in North Palm Beach, Fla. A four-year student from Fayetteville, N.Y., Howie followed in the footsteps of his father, Fred L. Hudson, Class of 1920; and his older brother, Fred L. Hudson Jr. ’47. Howard’s uncle, Ward Brewer, graduated in 1932. Howard was active in the Student Endowment Fund, Glee Club, and Dining Hall Committee, where he specialized in washing and drying dishes. His record still stands. He was also the short order chef in the student-run eatery in the basement of Palmer, the original SNUG. He played varsity football for three years, one as fullback and two as guard, and lettered in baseball his senior year. He was a painter and worked with art teacher Sanford Low, Class of 1925, for three years. He was given the Art Award upon graduation. In 1959 Howard earned a bachelor’s degree cum laude from Princeton, where he was a letter-earning center and linebacker on Princeton’s single-wing football team, winners of the Ivy League his junior year. At Princeton he met the resident sculptor Joe Brown through the boxing program that Professor Brown coached. Professor Brown worked with Howard through his time at Princeton, and Howard became the first student to receive credit for sculpture, a non-elective at the time. Upon graduation, he reluctantly turned down Professor Brown’s offer to be his apprentice.

Following service in the Marine Corps Reserve and a brief stint as an emergency medical technician and professional ambulance driver in Syracuse, N.Y., Howie moved to New York City, where he ultimately became the head of fixed income investments in Morgan Guaranty Trust Company’s Trust Department. His bond management career moved through several iterations, including his own company and a partnership with friends from Salomon Brothers, before he retired in 2001, having been through one attack on the World Trade Center in 1993 and barely missing the second. He then eagerly took up where he left off with Joe Brown, producing a variety of bronze sculptures, many of which can be seen on his website, www.HGHSculpture.com. In New York, Howie met and married Harriet Thomas Corvo in 1966, and she survives him, along with their daughters, Elizabeth Geer Hudson ’90 and Amy Hudson Kane; and three grandchildren, including Alexander Lydecker ’24.

Duncan Colburn Syme, on May 2, 2024, after a long battle with pancreatic cancer. Duncan was a one-year student. His family moved to Essex, Conn., on the banks of the Connecticut River, when he was young. This immersed him and his brother into a life on the water. This connection to the sea became a cornerstone of his identity. He owned a variety of sailboats, culminating with Aethereus, a custom yawl that he enjoyed for 30 years. Boundless curiosity and a lifelong pursuit of knowledge led Duncan to explore myriad hobbies and interests. He combined his innate sense of form and craftsmanship with unbridled passion regardless of the size or complexity of the project. Duncan earned three degrees from Yale, and he taught sculpture at Bennington College in Vermont. He married Nancy Guy; moved to Camden, Maine; and started Camden Boat Works. He later joined an innovative community of architects and builders on Prickly Mountain in Vermont and engaged in metallurgy, designing an efficient catalytic wood stove that quickly evolved into Vermont Castings. Duncan married Delinda Howell, and together they raised a family on a sheep farm in Chelsea, Vt. He learned horticulture, was a prolific reader, and loved skiing, classical music, and traveling. Later he married DeeDee Olsen and moved to Hanover, N.H. In these later years, he continued to be deeply engaged with designing homes and yachts and with customizing his beloved Volkswagen

Former Member of the Loomis Chaffee Board of Trustees Eugene Mercy Jr. ’55

Served 1981–95, Vice Chairman 1991–95

Former Trustee Eugene Mercy Jr. ’55, died at home on July 16, 2024. Gene was a three-year student who played football, basketball, and tennis. He was in the Press, Photography, and Political clubs, and he was on the advertising board of The Log. Gene was a Loomis Chaffee Trustee from 1981 to 1995. He was vice chairman of the Board from 1991 to 1995 and chairman of the Development Committee from 1988 to 1993. He also served on the Steering, Executive, and Investment committees. A resolution was passed by the board in 1995 recognizing all he had done for Loomis Chaffee. The resolution read, in part, “Whereas he has given generously of his time and resources to the growing Annual Fund, to a variety of special events and projects, and to Loomis Chaffee 2000, the most visible sign of which is the Sue and Eugene Mercy Jr. Gallery in the Richmond Art Center, reflecting his and Sue’s love of art.” Mercy Gallery has been home to many art exhibitions through the years.

Gene graduated from Lehigh University in 1959. Lehigh awarded him the “L in Life Award” in 1988 in recognition of outstanding achievements in business and professional life and for his devotion to the university. After college, he served as a 1st lieutenant in the U.S. Army. In 1964 he joined Goldman Sachs & Co. in the Securities Sales Department and was elected a general partner in 1971. During his more than 25-year career with Goldman Sachs, he was a senior partner of the Commercial Real Estate Department and became the first partner-in-charge of the Mortgage Securities Department. After retirement in 1996, he was appointed to the Goldman Sachs Limited Partner Advisory Committee to represent the firm during the company’s initial public offering. After leaving Goldman Sachs, he became a principal in Granite Capital International LLC and the managing

member of EMJ Development LLC.

“As he was to many Loomis Chaffee faculty members and fellow Trustees, Gene Mercy was a special alumnus and individual for me,” says Nat Follansbee, who retired in 2023 as the school’s associate head for external relations. “When I first stepped into the role of director of development in January 1986 without any fundraising experience, Gene was the chair of the Development Committee and served on the Committee on Trustees, the two Board committees that the office and I directly supported. Given his deep experience as a Trustee at his alma mater Lehigh and his love of Loomis Chaffee, he mentored me thoughtfully and deliberately, even sending me to Lehigh to spend a week in the university’s Development Office to see the work firsthand.”

“He was a generous donor to the school and a host to many receptions,” Nat notes. Gene supported the faculty and students through the establishment of the Sue and Eugene Mercy Jr. ’55 Endowment Fund for Faculty Salaries, the Sue and Eugene Mercy Jr. ’55 Endowment Fund for Financial Aid, and the Marilyn and Walter Rabetz Fund for the Arts.

Mercy Gallery is another of Gene and Sue’s prominent legacies at Loomis Chaffee. “Reflecting the Renaissance couple that they were, they exhibited their fabulous collection of modern art in the spring of 1995,” Nat recalls.

“Gene was a member of a group of Trustees who raised the visibility of Loomis Chaffee and strengthened the school’s reputation and upward trajectory. For his involvement and engagement, we are all grateful; we will miss him,” Nat says.

Gene served on many boards beyond Loomis, including as vice chairman of Lehigh University and Beth Israel Medical Center and as a trustee of Continuum Health Partners, Central Park Conservancy, Rising Treetops at Oakhurst, and Seeds of Peace. As the speaker at Lehigh’s 1998 mid-year Commencement ceremony, Gene told graduates, “Philanthropic giving, whether it is for one’s alma mater, a hospital, church, or synagogue, is a critically important American invention and institution.”

Beyond his professional and philanthropic work, Gene will be remembered as a true gentleman who put people at ease and loved to laugh with family and friends. Whether skiing, playing golf or tennis, dozing at the symphony, or enjoying a good meal with a drink, Gene approached life with enthusiasm and style, impeccably dressed for every occasion. He was survived by his wife Carolyn Mercy; his children, Eugene III (Tod) and Andrew Mercy; daughter-in-law Molly Mercy; his grandchildren, Baxter, Jasper, and Emily Mercy; stepdaughters Emma Goergen and Amy Pilkington; and step-grandchild Otto Goergen. He was preceded in death by his wife Sue Mercy, who passed away in 2010. A memorial service to celebrate Gene’s life was held September 12, 2024, at Central Synagogue in New York City.

Loomis Chaffee

van. Duncan had a commitment to community projects: Upper Valley Guild of Model Boats, Dissmas House, and the Listen Center. He was a member of the Essex Corinthian Yacht Club of Connecticut most of his life. He boasted with pride about his children, Meikle, Thayer, Ewen, and Ceileigh; and stepson Paul Dixon. He was “new dad” to Dee’s children, Damien, Martha, and Stefen Olsen. He enjoyed his 10 grandchildren. Duncan was predeceased by his wives Nancy and Delinda and his brother Lochlin Syme ’52. A celebration of life was held September 7, 2024, at St. Thomas Church in Hanover, N.H.

1956

Michael Philip Rhodes, on May 19, 2024. A four-year student who played football, basketball, and baseball, Michael was in the Political and Glee clubs, on the Sophomore Reception and Dining Hall committees, and in the cast of Androcles and The Lion. Michael received a bachelor’s degree from Trinity College in 1960 and a master’s degree in public administration from Golden Gate University, and he graduated from Air Command and Staff College and the Air War College. Michael served in the U.S. Air Force for 28 years, including two tours in Vietnam, where he flew 350 missions in the F-4 Phantom. He was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross, Purple Heart, Meritorious Service Medal, Air Medal, and Air Force Commendation Medal. He was promoted to colonel in 1981. His final assignment with the Air Force was to Bern, Switzerland, as the air attaché to the ambassador. After retiring, he sold aircraft for McDonnell Douglas and later became a wheelwright at Colonial Williamsburg.

Michael loved baseball and was a lifelong fan of the Boston Red Sox. He loved animals and was never without a pet. His faith was very important to him. He had a passion for automobiles, theater, singing in church choirs, sailing, traveling, storytelling, treasurehunting with his grandchildren, and eating as much ice cream as possible. He was survived by his wife, Jan Rhodes; his former wife Patricia Rhodes; their two children, Scott Rhodes and his wife, Ellen Schooler, and Susan Rhodes Anthony and her husband, Brian Anthony; three grandchildren; and his loyal cat, Gabriel. He was predeceased by his former wife Anne Rhodes. His father was the late D.S. Rhodes Jr., Class of 1929. A memorial service was held on May 28, 2024,

and he was to be laid to rest at Arlington National Cemetery with full honors.

1960

William B. Ebersold, of Upper Marlboro, Md., on October 27, 2024, following complications from cancer. Bill was a remarkable individual who touched many lives with his kindness, wisdom, and stories. He was a four-year student who played basketball, football, and baseball. He was in the Chess and Political clubs, on the Elections Committee, and in the Foreign Policy Association. Bill was an active member of the Boy Scouts, achieving the rank of Eagle Scout at a remarkably young age. He graduated from Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service in 1964. Bill’s distinguished career in international transportation began with the Maritime Administration, and he also served as an economic affairs officer for the U.N. Economic Commission for Europe in Geneva, Switzerland, for three years. Bill spent much of his second career, following retirement, writing and consulting for leading cruise industry publications. Throughout his life, he was a devout Catholic; a member of Saint Mary’s parish in Upper Marlboro, Md.; and actively involved in

parish activities. Bill was survived by his wife of 60 years, Vicki, and their four daughters: Kris McMahon and her spouse, Tom; Mary Bryant and her spouse, Jamie; Karen Pulvirenti and her spouse, Giuseppe; and Jenna Vultaggio. He also left six grandchildren, a great-grandson, siblings Katherine Cunningham and John Ebersold and John’s wife, Mary Kay; and a multitude of other close family. Bill was a loving and attentive husband, father, grandfather, greatgrandfather, brother, and friend who had a passion for travel, writing, and spending time with family. He was always ready with a story. Services were held on November 6, 2024, at St. Mary of the Assumption Church in Upper Marlboro.

William F. Konney, on December 6, 2023, in Reno, Nev. Bill was a three-year student and enjoyed painting in the woods around campus. He went on to study music at Oberlin Conservatory, received a master’s degree in music from the University of Chicago, taught music at Willamette University in Salem, Ore., and had a long career playing with various symphonies in Hawaii and Nevada. Bill will be remembered as a talented musician and artist. He was survived by a brother, Paul E. Konney ’62; and a sister, Elise Konney Weber ’68.

1961

John Blanchard Nolan, a lifelong resident of West Hartford, Conn., on November 1, 2024. Jay attended Saint Thomas School in West Hartford and credited his elementary school teachers — in particular, Sister Pietra and Sister Rita — with his lifelong love of learning. At Loomis, he was a four-year student who played football, hockey, lacrosse, and baseball; was in the Political Club and Foreign Policy Association; and was on the staffs of The Log and Loomiscellany. Jay graduated from Brown University, where he played varsity ice hockey and lacrosse. In 1969, he earned a law degree from Georgetown University Law Center, where in addition to a passion for the law, he developed an abiding love for card games and country music. Jay joined Day Pitney LLP in Hartford in 1969 and became partner in 1976, starting the firm’s insolvency practice. Over

the course of more than four decades as a commercial litigator, he tried virtually every type of commercial case to juries and courts in state and federal courts around the country, securing verdicts or judgments in almost 100 cases. Jay was recognized as the go-to lawyer for bankruptcy cases in the state of Connecticut and was included in The Best Lawyers in America for more than 20 years. At the end of his career, he served as an arbitrator and mediator in commercial disputes. Jay took a special pride in mentoring associates in the field he loved so passionately. Beneath his high standards and direct, no-nonsense approach, he revealed a distinct humanity that engendered a fierce loyalty in those who worked with and for him. Outside of work, Jay was active in the Hartford community, including as a director and member of the executive committee for the Greater Hartford Arts Council. An avid golfer, he was a decades-long member of the

Hartford Golf Club, where he served as president 2006–2008 and enjoyed many long and enduring friendships. Jay was also a parishioner and an active participant at Saint Timothy Church. As a boy, Jay spent time in the summer with his family in Harwich Port, Mass., sparking a lifelong devotion to Cape Cod. As an adult, he enjoyed many summer days at Brooks Road Beach, watching his children and, later, his grandchildren swim in Nantucket Sound and listening to Joe Castiglione call the Red Sox game on his father’s ancient transistor radio. Jay was predeceased by his wife of 32 years, Lillian B. Nolan, with whom he shared both a loving marriage and many interests and adventures, including extensive travel around the world. He was also predeceased by his first wife, Marguerite H. Nolan, the mother of his three daughters. The year before Margie died, Jay took a sabbatical from his law practice, and the family lived in France for a memorable seven months of travel, cultural, and culinary adventures. He was also predeceased by his sister, Suzanne Nolan ’69, with whom he enjoyed arguing endlessly about politics. Jay was survived by his daughters, Suzanne Nolan Vinson ’91, Caroline Christiaens Nolan ’94, and Danielle Nolan McGonegal ’94; stepdaughter Elizabeth Prestley McGrath ’94; stepson Peter B. Prestley; his brother, David S. Nolan; his brother-in-law, Christopher M. Wagner; and sons-in-law James H. Vinson, Benjamin H. Barlow, Kevin P. McGonegal, and Patrick M. McGrath. One of the highlights of Jay’s later life was becoming “Poppy” to his 13 grandchildren. Jay also was survived by many other extended family members and many friends.

1969

John E. Kaufmann, on July 12, 2024, from complications of long COVID that he battled for six months. John was a three-year student who consistently made the Honor Roll, graduated with cum laude honors, and at Commencement received a Faculty Book Prize, which noted that he “was a senior whose stamina, discipline, and perseverance have won the admiration of the entire community.” That stamina was evident in his running ability. The Loomis cross country team was 9-1-1 his senior year, during which John broke records on seven occasions. He finished second at the New England cross country championships. He was the varsity track captain as a senior, but an injury ended his season early. By then, the yearbook

noted, “he had become one of the top runners in New England.” John also was in the Radio Club, the Darwin Club, and the Sailing Club and on the Admissions Committee. Doug Marquis, a friend and colleague of John’s, posted this on Facebook: “He grew up in Connecticut, earned an undergraduate degree from MIT, and a PhD from Cornell, both in electrical engineering. He spent much of his professional life working at MIT Lincoln Laboratory, and also worked at Mintera, an optical networking startup. He was a life member of the IEEE, an avid car enthusiast, a multi-time national champion in ham radio, a dedicated fitness enthusiast, avid fan of music, and a champion for Alzheimer’s research, the disease which claimed his mother. His accomplished life was conducted with kindness, humility, insight, intellect, and humor in such a way that many of those who interacted with him in only one domain would never be aware of his breadth.” John was survived by a sister, Suzanne Kaufmann Lim ’70; a partner, Kathleen; and many friends and colleagues.

1971

William J. Tracy Jr., on October 20, 2024. He was a four-student who played football, hockey, and lacrosse; was in the Darwin and Mountaineering clubs; and was a member of the Dining Hall Committee. He was an Eagle Scout and a camping and canoeing enthusiast. Bill graduated from Middlebury College and Lewis & Clark Law School. Bill was a partner at Furey, Donovan, Tracy & Daly, P.C., for 40 years as well as the town attorney of Plymouth, Conn. Bill lived a full and vibrant life. A devoted husband and father, Bill was survived by his wife, Kim Tracy; daughter Meghan Teed and her husband, Billy; daughter Caitlin Tracy; sister Betty Talmadge and her husband, David; sister Susan Tracy Moore ’74 and her partner, Jim Whitters; two nieces, including Mimi Moore ’01; and a nephew. Bill also left, to miss him in the field, his hunting dogs Sawyer and Piper. Bill was known for his passions for hunting, traveling with his family, and bettering the community. He was involved in many organizations, including The Main Street Foundation, Environmental Learning Centers of Connecticut, Harwinton Land Conservation Trust, and Bristol Special Olympics. Friends and family will remember him for his kindness, integrity, and dedication to making a positive impact. A Celebration of Life was scheduled for a later date.

1974

Peter Brian d’Angona, a senior physician in the Emergency Department of the North Shore and Waitakere hospitals in Auckland, New Zealand, on October 17, 2024, after suffering a catastrophic cardiac event. Brian moved to Auckland 12 years ago and not long before his passing celebrated his dual citizenship to New Zealand and the United States. Brian was a four-year student from Windsor Locks, Conn. He was on the swim team, was in the Darwin Club, and was involved in The Log and The Confluence. He was a cum laude graduate and received the Bausch & Lomb Prize for Science. Brian did his undergraduate work at the University of Rochester, where he graduated Phi Beta Kappa and was nominated as a Rhodes Scholar in 1978. He went on to attend the

Yale School of Medicine, contributing several published papers in orthopedic medicine before focusing on plastic and reconstructive surgery. His interest in the intersection of medicine and the aesthetic of the human form prompted Brian to attend the Yale School of Fine Art for an additional year, studying sculpture and portraiture before beginning his career in medicine. Following his graduation from Yale, Brian began his surgical residency at Beth Israel Hospital in Boston just as the AIDS pandemic surged in the United States. He was moved to switch his specialty to emergency medicine to serve the most vulnerable populations — especially those affected by HIV/AIDS or without access to health care — both in the United States and later in his career in developing countries.

From 1989 to 1998, he was a partner at NorthEast Corridor Emergency Physicians, an emergency physician group practice that managed and staffed several communitybased Level II trauma centers in Greater Boston. Brian went on to earn a master’s degree in health communication from Emerson College, and in 2008 he received a second master’s degree in public health from UCLA’s health sciences school. During his time in California, Brian served on the board of Project Angel Food, a nonprofit organization that provides food and services to people with HIV/AIDS, and served as a mentor and volunteer to at-risk homeless LGBTQ youth at the LA Gay and Lesbian Center. He returned to Boston in 2008 after several missions with International Medical Corps in Malawi and in Johannesburg and Cape Town, South Africa. In 2012, while working at Harrington Memorial Hospital in Worcester, Mass., Brian was recruited to move to Auckland to work in the Emergency Department at North Shore and Waitekere hospitals. Brian was not only a brilliant and compassionate doctor who saved countless lives throughout his career, but also was an artist and a writer with a keen sense of architectural design. His love of music, dancing, games, competition, and the outdoors was legendary. His voracious appetite for learning and experiencing new cultures led him to many adventures around the globe. The impact he made on his patients and those who knew him will never be forgotten. But most importantly, Brian will be celebrated and remembered for his sparkly blue eyes, his witty sense of humor, and as a generous, loving, caring son, brother, nephew, uncle, and friend who embodied a love and lust for life and the arts. Brian was predeceased by his parents and his sister-inlaw Sandra D’Angona. He is remembered by his family’s matriarch, Theresa (DiMartino) Norman and her husband, James Norman; his former spouse, Richard Whobrey; his brother, Richard D’Angona, and his husband, Joe; his sister Lynn d’Angona ’81 and her partner, Lisandra Soto; his sister Kelli d’Angona Usher ’84 and her husband, Eric Usher; his siblings’ children; and his large extended family. Brian also was blessed to have an incredible group of caring, compassionate colleagues and loving friends both in the United States and in his adopted home of Auckland, especially Dev Rathore and Patricia Connolly. A private family memorial for Brian was to take place in Connecticut on a date to be determined.

Chris Nicholson, on August 27, 2024. Chris was a four-year student from Manchester, Conn., who loved and thrived on his education at Loomis Chaffee. He especially enjoyed writing and theater activities, commenting often on Loomis as a place where he was encouraged to ask questions. After graduating from George Washington University, he had many roles, including husband, father, playwright, juggler, fisherman, chef, and man of God. Chris was diagnosed with a rare neuroendocrine cancer 13 months before he passed away. A celebration of his life, written, directed, and videographed by Chris himself, was held at Mt. Hope Church, Ashburn, Va., on September 7, 2024. Matthew Hay Brown ’85 reflected on Chris in a submission to Loomis. Matthew remembered an assignment during freshman history in September 1981 in which students were asked to write a 17th-century advertisement to attract settlers to the New World. “One by one, each of us, with our varying levels of preparation, in our varying states of distress, stepped forward to read our scripts, voices quavering, hands trembling,” Matthew wrote. “For many of us, I suspect, it was less an opportunity to impress than an ordeal to be got through. Then it was Chris Nicholson’s turn. In our first weeks at Loomis Chaffee, the slight boy from Bolton had already impressed us as earnest, sincere and, in a way, fearless. He didn’t hesitate to take the stage. He didn’t read. He sang. He danced. I remember juggling. He’d written new lyrics to, I think, ‘You’re A Grand Old Flag.’ In my memory, probably faulty, he’s wearing a sparkly red, white, and blue top hat. There might have been a unicycle. ... In a moment when many of us, I imagine, were trying to figure out how to fit in, Chris was unselfconsciously himself.” Matthew said he was reminded of that day more than 40 years ago at the memorial service for Chris. “On another September morning, decades removed from that Chaffee classroom, before a somewhat larger audience, he again took the stage. ‘Well, hello!’ he said from screens above the dais at Mount Hope Church in Ashburn, Va. ‘If you’re watching this video, it’s for one of two reasons. Either it’s July 16, 2028, and we’re having a massive celebration to celebrate five years after my stage 4 neuroendocrine cancer diagnosis. Or you’re at my celebration of life service. Either way, welcome!’ Before his death on August 27, Chris had planned his service, with himself as master of ceremonies. It was,

as you’d imagine, moving. But also — and unusually, given the circumstances — entertaining. He’d recorded messages to play between the hymns and scripture readings. Standing by a stream, wearing a fishing vest and ballcap, he told stories of his family, he spoke of his faith, he cracked wise. Removing his cap to reveal chemo-thinned hair: ‘I’m not fooling anybody. You can see I’m about a

Charles Dearden “Chuck” Vernon, on October 18, 2024, in Hartford, Conn., from medical complications. In 1968 Chuck began his illustrious career at Loomis Chaffee, serving on the faculty in myriad roles throughout his career in secondary school education, but primarily as the head of the Community Work Program, which he established shortly after his arrival. Chuck’s commitment to athletics and his ability to engage and lead others to perform at their highest level were evident as he coached 135 teams for over 40 years. To honor his outstanding contribution to girls ice hockey, the New England Preparatory Schools Athletic Conference named the Elite Division championship tournament in his honor. Chuck grew up on the campus of the Williston Northampton School in Easthampton, Mass. At Williston, he stood out as an inspiring leader of the student body as president of the Student Council and as a gifted, determined athlete who excelled in football, hockey, and lacrosse, serving as captain of the latter two. In a remarkable tribute to Chuck and his leadership abilities, a teammate’s family donated a Victory Bell to the school in honor of Chuck’s sportsmanship. Chuck was inducted into

week away from Mr. Clean.’ Setting ground rules for mourners who wanted to share memories: ‘Take it easy on the anecdotes. I’m not here to defend myself.’ I wished he had been there to enjoy the laughter.” Chris was predeceased by his sister, Sarah; and was survived by his wife, Eileen; sons Andrew and Michael; many beloved cousins; and his parents, Barbara and Edwin Nicholson-

Williston’s Athletic Hall of Fame in 2023. After Williston, Chuck attended Dartmouth College, graduating in 1966. At Dartmouth he was once again a campus leader and recognized athlete. He was captain of the men’s lacrosse team and was named an All-American. Following graduation from Dartmouth, for a brief time Chuck managed a Dixieland-motif restaurant, Your Father’s Mustache, first in Bay Head, N.J., during the summer and then in New York City the following winter. It was in Bay Head that he met the love of his life, Jamie Sandra Gardner, whom he married in 1968. When he wasn’t coaching during the school year, Chuck, along with Jamie, spent every summer at the Jersey Shore hosting gatherings for family and friends, making furniture in his shop, and body surfing at Bridge Avenue Beach. Throughout his quasiretirement, Chuck continued and expanded his passion for woodworking and his commitment to walking, engaging friends and neighbors to join him. In this latter realm, as in other forums, Chuck’s effervescent personality, punctuated by forceful insistence and a quick wit, brought people into his orbit, summoning them to action and enriching their lives. Throughout Chuck’s life, he was fiercely committed to his family and friends, as they were to him. In his eyes, his wife Jamie, who predeceased him, was the most incredible person on the planet. A loving and present father to Jill and Andrew ’91, he also left Jill’s husband, Todd; Andrew’s wife, Adrianne; his four granddaughters; several cousins and their children; and many friends, especially Ginny Drapeau, who was a constant source of care and strength in the last two years of his life. He was predeceased by his wife, Jamie; and his brother, Kirke. There was a Celebration of Life for Chuck at Loomis Chaffee on November 24, 2024.

Former Faculty and Staff

Jane Mackay Howe ’49 of Keene, N.H., and formerly longtime resident of Marlborough, N.H., and Windsor, Conn., on August 16, 2024. At Chaffee, Jane played field hockey and was a member of the Athletic Association. Under Jane’s senior photo were various phrases, ranging from “radiant personality”

to “popularity plus.” She went on to Skidmore College, where she received a bachelor’s degree in 1953 and worked in the Admission Office the following year. On October 7, 1955, Jane married her love, Glover E. Howe Jr. ’48. Glover and Jane moved to The Loomis School campus in 1956 to begin their long and successful career in private school education and raise their family. Jane was fortunate to be able to stay at home with her four children while they were young. When they were of school age, Jane began working as a librarian in the Katharine Brush Library. Soon after, she transitioned to the Admission Office. When girl boarders came to Loomis Chaffee, Jane took on the responsibilities of dorm head and dean of boarding girls. In 2017 Howe Hall was dedicated in Jane and Glover’s honor. The dorm was formerly known as Mason Hall, a building in which Glover was dorm head when it was a boys residence hall and Jane was dorm head when it was a girls dorm. In a letter of thanks to then-Head of School Sheila Culbert, Jane wrote: “Glover would be highly honored and deeply touched, as am I, to know that Howe Hall will be part of stately Grubbs Quadrangle. … Our years living on the Island were happy, fulfilling, and treasured — even to be envied. Thank you, Loomis Chaffee, for this great honor.” Jane and Glover retired from the school in 1989. Jane continued to be involved in her

high school class as a class agent, coordinating events and reunions. She enjoyed summers with family in Stamford, N.Y., and then at her home in Jamaica, Vt., where she joined the ladies’ group. As they searched for the perfect retirement forever home, Jane and Glover discovered Marlborough, N.H. They quickly integrated themselves and became members of the Marlborough Federated Church. She and Glover enjoyed traveling to Scotland, Ireland, Alaska, Holland, and beyond. Later, when all of their kids had families of their own, they enjoyed an annual four-day summer retreat with the entire family at Lake Morey in Vermont for 18 years. Jane actively participated with the Frost Free Library, the Federated Church, the Evening United Ladies Group, and her local garden club. She enjoyed fishing, home gardening, knitting, and sewing, and she will be forever remembered for her homemade bread, jellies, jams, and pickles. For several months before her death, Jane enjoyed living at American House in Keene, N.H. She enjoyed participating in everything social and musical and loved and appreciated the staff, nurses, and administrators. Jane was survived by her children Ken Howe ’77 and his wife, Michele; Bob Howe ’80 and his wife, Amanda; Judy Howe Gobbi ’83 and her husband, Patrick; her son-in-law Murray Dewdney; her grandchildren, including Tyler Dewdney ’07, Morgan Dewdney ’15; and Erin Howe ’19; and a great-grandchild as well as several nieces, nephews, cousins, and extended family members. In addition to her beloved husband of 55 years, Glover, Jane was predeceased by her daughter Cynthia Howe ’74, and siblings Kenneth, F. Herbert, and Robertson Howe. A memorial service was held September 14, 2024, at the Marlborough Federated Church.

More News

The Alumni Office has learned of the deaths of Margery Schneider Blake ’45 on December 1, 2015; Judith Anne Whitman ’60 on March 28, 2019; Michael M. Singer ’65 on January 26, 2021; Mark W. Thrall ’66 on October 31, 2016; Stan English ’72 on July 6, 2024; Jed Devine, who was on the faculty of the Visual Arts Department in 1969 and 1970, on October 29, 2024; and longtime faculty member Betsy Conger on October 31, 2024. (See “Reflections” appreciation on page 80.)

REFLECTIONS

Longtime Teacher and Coach Betsy Conger: A Friend to All

An occasional look at former Loomis Chaffee community members whose work helped shape the school. This one celebrates Betsy Conger, who died October 31. A Celebration of Life is planned for April 27 at Loomis Chaffee. More details will be announced in an upcoming Alumni E-News.

Shortly after a message went out to the Loomis Chaffee community on November 1, 2024, announcing the death of Betsy Conger, who for 38 years graced the campus in myriad ways, a memorial was set up on the backstop behind home plate on the softball field.

The softball field, where she coached the Loomis Chaffee varsity softball team for 32 years, was one of a number of places on campus where Betsy was at home and had a profound impact. Betsy, who came to Loomis in 1986, was a science teacher, a department head, an associate dean of faculty, a softball coach, a field hockey coach, a dorm head, an advisor to individuals and SPECTRUM, and an LGBTQIA+ coordinator. She also oversaw the assignment of weekend duties for faculty, affectionately known as Conger Duties.

The memorial with a softball at its center included tributes, stones with hand-painted messages, flowers, personal notes expressing memories, thanks, and love. And there was a coffee cup with whole beans inside it. On the outside of the cup, hand-written words spoke to what Betsy meant to the community: Coach, mentor, teacher, friend, ally, advisor, listener, baker, campus mom.

Betsy enjoyed coffee, hazelnut most days, and had a coffee maker in her office, said science teacher Naomi Appel, who shared an office with her in the Clark Center for Science & Mathematics. That office was “like a second home” for Betsy, Naomi said. There

were artifacts and artwork, a blender for smoothies, slippers under the desk.

“Betsy was the motherly figure in Clark in the best possible way,” Naomi said. “She was always there to listen — to me and to many other colleagues who frequently stopped in our office. She was empathetic, nonjudgmental, trustworthy, kind, and patient. She was always willing to put aside whatever she was working on to give her full attention to whoever needed it at the moment. She also made sure that Clark was well-maintained and everyone who worked in the building had whatever they needed. When the copiers needed attention, she attended to them. When the faculty room sink filled up with dishes, she sent an email reminding people to clean them and return them to the dining hall. … When someone didn’t have a (insert any random office supply), she provided it. When a student or colleague needed a snack, she had a bowl of candy that was always full.”

Betsy’s caring side was evident to many, including mathematics teacher Allison

Beason, who started at Loomis the same year Betsy did.

“Her soft, thoughtful voice and many, many kind gestures — whether it was leaving a card at your desk or doing something for an advisee or seeing someone who might need an uplift and dropping off a baked good for them — those thoughtful gestures inspired the same in her colleagues. That was Betsy through and through,” Allison said.

She worked hard “to give students more voice and ownership of what they wanted SPECTRUM to be” and provide a space “where kids could be themselves,” Allison said. She was also a favorite of many faculty children.

Betsy played field hockey, basketball, softball and was on the swimming & diving team in high school. She played field hockey and softball in college, graduating in 1982 from Middlebury College. She was recently honored by the Western New England Prep School Girls Softball Association for her many years as head coach of the Loomis softball program and for her “dedication and

Above: Betsy and her environmental science students examining a flowering tree on campus in May 2016.

longtime effort in helping girls on and off the field.” Loomis softball won New England championships in 2001 and 2003.

School archivist and history teacher Karen Parsons coached alongside Betsy for many years, including those championships in the early 2000s. At the beginning of their time together, the program needed a rebuild. “Betsy was incredibly patient with the kids and the program,” Karen said. Betsy also was a steady advocate for better facilities for girls, Karen said. Today the team plays on Audrey Field, built in 2007, where the memorial was set up.

Betsy helped to make the program special, Karen said, noting two particularly valuable contributions.

“One was to break the team up into families,” Karen remembered. “Older kids looking after new players. We’d do drills and other activities, and psych activities, within those families. And she also would pull the team together for the pregame talk and end with a mantra she would pick. It usually was the mantra of ‘the power to win comes from within.’ She would say it and the kids would say it, and that became a tradition.”

Teaching was at Betsy’s core, in the classroom and on the field, and her enthusiasm never waned.

“She had an ability to get so excited when players picked up on the little things,” recalled Hannah Insuik, who teaches science and coached softball with Betsy. “It was every time — and she’d been doing it for 30-plus years — so her ability to get so excited about the little successes was incredible.”

Betsy challenged herself, too.

fortunate. Her colleagues cherished Betsy as a dear friend and a gentle soul. In a community that places great value on kindness, Betsy was our standard-bearer. She was, of course, an exemplary faculty member, but she was an even better human being.”

Betsy taught a range of science courses in her long teaching career, from introducing generations of freshmen and sophomores to Biology I to teaching upper-level courses including genetics and environmental science.

“Betsy set the example that a lesson should never be exactly the same as it was the year before,” Naomi said. “Even after 38 years of teaching, she arrived early to Clark nearly every morning and stayed late nearly every night to think about and change the way that she ran her classes. She never hesitated to consider new activities, implement strategies in accordance with the latest research on teaching, incorporate the technology of the moment, or rethink her approach to explaining a concept — all in the service of making the experience better for her students. ”

A Loomis Instagram post sharing the news of Betsy’s death was filled with comments, yet another acknowledgement of what she meant to so many.

“She was always tweaking and problemsolving, so she’d text me, ‘What do you think about this or if we tweak this?’’ Hannah said. “She was always thinking, always trying to do the best by the kids.”

Head of School Jody Reilly Soja, in a message to the LC community about Betsy’s passing, wrote: “No matter her role, Betsy was an educator through and through, always keeping her students at the center of her work; it is clear that those who called Betsy their advisor, teacher, or coach were so very

She was forever a student of science, too. “She had a love of nature for sure, and the environment,” Allison said, recalling kayak trips with Betsy in Florida and Maine. “She just expressed such great curiosity and joy in the intricacies of living things, right down to the cellular level. Whether it be coral or shells or whatever little animal we found, she found it to be fascinating, and I just loved her curiosity and joy, but at the same time she felt very inspired by the beauty of the larger picture.”

Betsy received the Distinguished Teaching Award in Honor of Dom Failla in 2018 and a Service to the School honor in 2014.

Her influence is alive in every student she taught and mentored. ... She was the embodiment of what every teacher should be. ... I couldn’t dream of a better advisor, coach, or teacher. ... She was one of the best coaches I ever had on the softball field. She taught us how to be unapologetically tough and fostered grit and hard work. ... Her caring nature encouraged us all to be our best selves.

And there was a message to the school from Molly Perdek, Betsy’s niece. “From the bottom of my heart, it means so much to my family [to have] all of your support,” Ms. Perdak wrote. “I am 25 now, and I remember visiting my aunt and her showing me around the school as a little girl, and the joy and sense of pride it gave her! She loved you all so dearly and it means the world seeing all of the lives she has touched.”

An obituary for Betsy, when available, will be published in a future issue of Loomis Chaffee Magazine.

Top: Coaching the softball team in April 2013. Bottom: Greeting seniors with her signature smile during last spring’s Commencement procession.