Class Notes
Legacy Society Member Debbie Ohler Bowman ’66 shares why she has included MFS in her estate plans. I wanted to contribute to the life of Moorestown Friends School because MFS made such a positive contribution in my life. I am also grateful to our parents who provided the experience for me and my sister because they believed in the Friends philosophy, values, faith and education. I’d like to share a bit of what the MFS experience has meant in my life. First though, I’ll define what I mean by the MFS experience because I think it’s different for each of us, and this is just what it has meant to me. The MFS experience encompassed the Quaker values that, to me, lead to a balanced, full and meaningful life. They were embodied in compassionate, thoughtful and challenging teaching and lived by the people involved. These Friends/friends walked their talk. Most powerful of all, for me though, was the open, honest discussions or as we now say conversations - meaningful ones about important life issues fostering decision-making skills. All of us were equal and could contribute our thoughts. As one friend said about Friends schools, “They taught you to think,” so true for me. We also learned from our mistakes, weren’t humiliated by them and didn’t fear them. For those of you at MFS in the sixties (Go class of ’66!), some examples of the activities at MFS included the Religious Life Committee assemblies on Monday and the relaxed assemblies on Fridays and work camp to clubs and teams, dances, class plays and many essay tests. (I think it was so emblematic that there were multiple teams. I remember hockey teams, from the First team all the way to the Sixth team, to enable everyone who wanted to play to do so.) There was something else, though, and it is the intangible spirit of the School, more than atmosphere. I attribute that spirit to the recognition of the Inner Light in all who went there. There was fun, joy and balance in growing up with MFS for me. Oh, and tough moments and disappointments from which to learn. So how did I apply what I experienced? I have to admit that I absorbed the experiences and didn’t realize that I had until freshman year in college. I was walking across a grassy lawn at Sweet Briar on a Thursday and I was suddenly startled by the realization that I missed (longed for) Meeting (when we were at MFS it was on Thursdays). But I didn’t really ponder that feeling then. Though I guess I incubated all I had gained, and I know I referred to my Quaker school experiences and the faith in action that I had seen. During my sophomore year my roommate asked, “Why don’t you major in what you’re really most interested in?” It was Religion so I changed my major from Psychology to Religion. I believe both fields served me well in my work as a school psychologist and special education supervisor through some challenging, difficult times when special education was implemented in public schools. They have helped me subsequently in my volunteer work. The MFS experience has been my core, and I finally began to realize that after I had lost both parents (within a year and a half of each other). I was 25 years old at the time, and I believe I had little personal insight at that point, and that was when I relied on the core automatically. I grew more reflective with help and became so much more aware of the influence of the experience. As I grew personally through missteps and fortunate ones, the Friends mercy and direction steadied me and helped me continue through the rest of my life. Watching MFS continue to grow, talking with development staff over the years, meeting with our Head of School virtually, reading about the wonderful students, outstanding graduates and wanting others to benefit from MFS, I knew I wanted to give a financial bequest. In some small way I want to help the school to continue to flourish.
Debbie Ohler Bowman ’66
To learn how you can include MFS in your estate plans, visit https://mfriends.plannedgiving.org/ or contact Steve Zakroff, Director of Development at szakroff@mfriends.org
Spring 2021
AMONG FRIENDS
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