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MORGAN PARK ACADEMY - C HICAGO, ILLI NOIS 60643
STORIES
M AY 2000
PAGE
Barry Kritzberg: "Robert Innes, a glass of
lemonade and Horatio Alger" ........................................... 1
C. W. "'Bill" Getz: "Dec 7,1941: It started like any other day " ..••...••...•........•.•.••.•• .•••••..........•••..•..•...•.•.•••• 3
Gregor J. Gentleman Jr.: "The pillars of MPA: Haydn Jones and Harry D. Abells" .................................... 5 Jack Tadanier: "The Irrepressible Captain Gray: not quite the image of a mathematical Mr. Chips" ...... ........ 11
Robert Langston: "Making cow-dung cakes with a Fulbright artist-In-residence on a sunny afternoon" •••.••••••...••....•.....•......•....••.••....•..••. 12
"Still life/still lives" ................................. ,... ",.,." .. ,.,.,., 15 "Tiffany Lis: hands and minds" ...................................... 15
Larry Brown: "Gifts given; gifts received
(Commencement address, June 5, 1999)" ......••......... .... 16 Becky Frontera: "Pre-School Magic" ............................. 19
Panang cuny, posoie, or pierogi? MilA's international day is an an nual rem ind er of th e am azi ng ethn ic divers ity of t he Academy and the cover phot ograph nicely illustrates that paint. Robert Th o mas (on the ri ght) , de monstrates the fun ction of some Cherokee implements for (left-toright ) Ja mes Han sen (Mexico), Marques Ga ston (Liberia) and And rew Sylora (C hina). int ernational day is abo ut food, 100, about sharing those ethnic trea ts th at swe ll one (figura tively and lit erall y) with pride. Whenever my wife and I can' t decide wh ..11 to have for dinner, we le t our fin gers do the walking. We let th em wander over th e llli1p of the world in our min ds until they come to a count ry \vhere the mere idea of the cuisine sends shi vers to the brai n and waves of anticipa ted de li ght to the stollli1ch. Pm la l'S CIIrf)" poso/e, or pierogi, it doesn't m atte r: o nce we get the right signa ls, we swi ng into 'ICtion. It is a drill we have lirelessly practiced to perfecti o n, and in grea t dining-o ut city like Chicago, one can practice every night' if o ne is reall y dedicated. At MilA's in ternational day, however, one doesn 't have to use the im agi nati on: th e anticipated de li ghts are spread ou t o n table after table, fro m one end of th e dining hall to the ot her. One can sampl e food, in one all -t ao-b rief lu nch period, from some two dozen co untri es. The o nl y thin g MPA's inte rn atio nal day can bc compared to is the fo rmer Chicago Folk F,lir, which flouri shed und er the admini stration of Mayor Ri chard J. Di1l ey. It was held annually, first at Navy Pi er, and then at the Donnelly Hall Annex of McCo rmick Place. The much-mo re commerciali zed Chicagofes t, the apparent successor to the Fo lk Fair, offers nonc of th e surpri se and deli ght of the Donn ell y Hall Annex eve nt. One does n 't find Moldavi an dumplings or Ecuado rianYIllt'icuchos at the Gran t Park sum m er extrav.lga nza kn own as C hicagofest. At MilA, however, o ne iust might find such things. One sec tion o f th e o ld Folk Fair was devoted to ethnic crafts and another to ethnic music and dance (continuous performances fo r alm ost twe lve ho urs), but my rea l reason for going was th e food. There, in little boot hs, were the part icular delights of m o re countries than one could nam e. We had rules. One cou lcln't sample anything, no matter how tempting, unti l we rni1de a visual survey of all the o fferi ngs. One also had to try something th at o ne had never had before. I once wondered alo ud to my wife wh y we never saw i1ny of o ur fri ends at the Food Fair (whi ch is what I called the Folk Fair). "How coul d you see an yone?" my wife reto rt ed . "You never look up from the food." I behave in the sam e shameless fashion at MilA's internatio nal clay. I c1o n't apologize. I just love it. - - Barry Kritzberg
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Peggy Gatsinos: "The old teamwork brings a volleyball surprise: wins " ................................. 20 Sarah Seifert: " Famous Last Words: 'I don't play softball, plus I need a break' ................................. 22
Basketball Player of the Week: Shaneah Taylor ............................................................... 24
Wendy Heilman: "Six Years on the Seven Seas" ..•....•.....•...•.....•.....•.....•.....•••.....•...... 25
"Alumni Briefs/Taps" ..................................................... 30 Becky Frontera: "Humanity + heritage + hearts sharing == International day at MPA" •....•...••.. (back cover) CONTRIBUTORS: WilHam Adams, Robert Eichinger, Peggy Gatsinos, Sherry Grutzius, Mary Kay Marmo, Sandy Williams . The Academy Magazine is published by the Office of Development and Alumni Affairs. All news items shou ld be addressed to : Academy Magazine 2153 W. 1.1.1th Street - Chicago, Il 60643 Printed for Morgan Park Academy by PrintSource Plus 12128 S. Western Ave. - Blu e Isl and, Il 60406 Editor : Barry Kritzberg
Robert Innes [:52], a glass of letnonade, and Horatio Alger by Barry Kritzberg It start ed with a simple offer of a
glass of lemonade on a hot da y. a became the kind of success story that might have ri va lled Ho rati o Alge r's finest rags- ta- ri ch es fi cti o n. But thi s was n't fi cti o n . This ,vas reaJ. And it happe ned ri ght he re a t Mo rgan Pa rk Military Aca de m y just about th e tim e th e na ti o n was spi ra lin g into the gloo m of th e depressio n. Wh en Robe rt Inn es 1321 WilS just a few years old, his fath e r d ied in th e influenza epidemi c that swe pt th e co untry in 1918. The fath e r, whose assets \II,Ic re tan gled in various business ventures, had n ot provid ed for his famil y. Th e widow and her two yo ung children were forced to move into a
much small e r dwe lling, wh e re th ey li ved in virtual po ve rty. "We lived off chi cken s we ke pt in O Uf back yard and we sold vege tables from o ur gard en ," Do roth y Innes Yo ungqui st, Ro bert's o lde r sister, rem embered . "I made a fe w penni es sweeping out coa l dust and Ro bert de li ve red newspa pe rs. We put card· board in our sh oes and jacke ts to kee p warm. My mo th e r, you sec, wasn 't prepared to do an ythin g wh e n m y fath e r di ed. Sh e had graduated from Marsha ll High School in about 1898 o n e o f only two g irls in th e class - b ut sh e was brought up to be a lady, and ladies didn' t wo rk, o f co u rse. O h, she did th e odd baby-sitting jo b, and eve n was matron at a swimming pool fo r a few ho urs now a nd th en, but that was it. We fe lt wo nde rful if we go t a pe nn y fo r a stick o f gum . And if we we re eve r fortun ate eno ugh to get ice· cream, we learn ed to eat it fa st, fo r we didn ' t have a refrigerato r," Bo b attend ed Arlington Ino w Clisso ldJ ele mentary sch ool and didn't d ream o f atte nding a p lace as
lofty as Morgan Park Mi li tary Academ y, whe re th e tu ition for da y stud e nts was $350 and th e mandatory un ifo rm s $'195. He got in with a ro ugh crowd, Ci S boys are wo nt to do, and it is possible th a t he might have go n e o ff in th e wron g directi o n altogeth e r if it had no t bee n fo r two ve ry fo rtuito us mo me nts w he n h e was in e ighth grade. Some o f Bob's class mates had been arrested fo r stealing a car, Do roth y Youngquist explained. Mr. Wh ite, th e Arlington principal, attended th e tria l, and learned that Bob moved in that c ircl e o f boys, even t hough he had no t bee n impli cated in th e th eft. Mr. White call ed Bob into his o ffi ce, o ffered him o range juice, and h ad a h eart·to·h eart talk about his future. It was a turning po int in Bob's life, a lth o ugh he didn 't reali ze at th e tim e. The seco nd fo rtuitous mom ent cam e with th e glass o f le mo nade. Bo b's newspaper delive ry route included MPM A supe rinte nde nt Col. Harry D. Abe lls, assistant superinte n· de nt Haydn Jon es, and quartermaster Fred eri c L. Wilde. It was t he quarte rmas ter who invited Bob to rest fo r a mo ment, to ha ve a glass o f le mo nad e, befo re he co ntinu ed his round o f collections. Wilde, wh o li ved at 110th and Oa kley, asked Bob (pe rhaps merely to m a ke co nve rsati o n) if he wo uld like to a tt end a sc hool like MPMA fo r hi gh sc hool. He wo u ld like to, Bob said, but it was impossible, for he didn ' t ha ve th e m o n ey. Enter Horatio Alge r, stage le ft. Wild e, a fri e nd e>f Ar li ngto n p ri ncipal Wh ite, took Lip th e matte r with Abcll s a nd Jo nes and, fa ster than
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Robert S _ Innes Robert S. Innes ... "Bob" Born July 4, 1914, in Chicago. Entered M.p.M.A. in 1928 from the Morgan Park Elementary School. Private Co. C. (1 , 2); Sergeant, Staff (3); 1st Lieutenant (4); Bantamweight Football ( 1); Heavyweight (3); Hare and Hound (2, 3, 4); Rifle Team (1 , 2, 3); SKIRMISHER (3); R.O. T.C. Camp (3); Bela (3, 4); Honor
(3, 4). uBob" is Sergeant Nolan's head man and has made his reputation as a worker in the position of a first lieutenant on the staff. He is one of the members of th is class who has put much into his school work and consequently has gotten much out of it.
Ho ra ti o Alger's h eroes advanced, a scho larship was es tablished at MPMA fo r Robert Innes, newspaper boy to th e move rs a nd shakers at the military acade my. At MPMA, Bob followed th e workhard·and·you·sha ll· succeed pattern o f Horatio Alger: he waited on tab les in th e m ess hall, worked in th e tailor shop, and eve n put in ex tra hours on Saturda ys. Bob lived at ho m e, but he still had to take tim e every day to polish butto ns and sh oes and to make sure that unifo rm was pro perly pressed and read y fo r m o rning inspect ion. Do ro th y recalls that h er brother was o fte n e nvied by th e boarding stude nts simply because he was no t restri cted to a e1iet o f m ess hall food. Bo b was o ne of a q uartet of
stud ents, locally celeb rated as th e Four Bobs - Robert Cleveland, Robert Dud ley, Robert Innes, and Robert Kin g - beca use th ey were often o ne-twothree-four in man y acti vities at MPMA. Bob Inn es, fo r exa mple, was selected to fire th e can no n to signal th e beginning o f th e MPMA Sunday parade of cadets. It was quite a social occasion, accordin g to Dorothy. "If yo u wanted to ta lk to anyo ne," she said, "all yo u hact to do was go to the Sunda y pa rad es. " The cadets were regularl y taug h t mann ers at th e Friday dinn ers, and were carefull y instructed in t he p rope r use of different sil ver and glassware. There were some boys who begged eve n pa id - Bob to cha nge places at th ose Friday dinn ers. They wo uld rather have waited on tables than be taug ht manners, apparently. Dorothy, who attend ed Morgan Park High School, fo un d tha t th ere were ce rtain advantages in ha ving a brother at MPM A. Dances were held o nce a mon th a nd bays were required
Lt. Colonel Hayden E. Jones
for a history fa ir project . She had seen a photograph of her late uncl e Robert Innes in his MPMA unifor m and though t of finding out mo re about the sc hool he atte nded. Her pa rk dist ri ct swim mi ng teammate, Ca roly n Hahn [98 [, suggested th at she co n tact me. During one of o ur discussions abo ut MPMA/M PA history, Sa m said, "you sho uld talk to m y grandmoth er. She knows som e good stori es about the school. " Sa m was ri gh t. Q
Major Frederic Wilde
to come wit h a lady, and neighbo rhood cadets were ex pec ted to find dates alllong the loca l girls. "The boys were also requi red to take dancing lessons, " Dorothy said, "a nd it \路vas qu ite a show to see the cadets in the ir full dress unifo rms and th e girls in their fo rmals." Her brother went on to stud y mec hanical and electri cal engineerin g at th e Unive rsity o f Michi ga n and th en had a very successful ca ree r as an engi nee r. Robert Innes died in 1996. I interviewed Dorothy Innes Youn gquist in the Va nderpoel Ga llery of th e Beve rly Art Center one rainy Ma y afternoon. liTh e arm ory used to be here [in o ld Blake Hall] ," Dorothy said, "and do v路m in th e base ment there was a shoo tin g ga llery, where I took classes fo r ad ults and lea rn ed to shoot qui te we ll. " Do ro th y Younquist's story of how her b roth er came to MPMA might not have reached print, howeve r, if it had not been fo r th e cu riosity of her g randdaugh ter, Sama n tha "Sam" Yo un gq uist. Sam, who attended Morgan Park High School, was sea rchin g for a topic
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Colonel Harry Delmot Abells
Sunday, 7 December 1941:
It started like any other day c. W
by "Bill" Getz [42J
Sund ay, 7 December 1941 started li ke any other Su nday. QUi et. Sin ce half of th e school was day students, Sund ays \·vere devoid o f th e no rmal weekday hu bbub of hundreds o f cadets doing all t he t hi ngs cadets did in those days. There were no Sunda y parades in tile wi n ter, fo r exa mple. Th e actual bo mbing of Pea rl Harbor did no t beg in un til 12:55 "Reverend" p.m. Ch icago time. Charles William Getz III \·vas after th e This Bill directed the band for two years as a usual ch urch hours colorful drum major with the rank of first sergeant. Th e Reverend was forever giving and we ll into (uncll. advice to some freshman who really did not I was probably care for it. When not browsing around 95th, do ing KP duty in he was seen touring the campus in his the di ni ng hal l. I "snappy" trench coat. Born in Fort Wayne, Indiana, on March 8, wo rked eve ry meal, 1924. Entered MPMA in October, 1939, from delive red lau ndry Central Catholic High School, Fort Wayne. and dry clea nin g, Company A: Private , 1-2; Company Band ; and wo rked the Drum Major, Corporal, 2; Drum Major, First Sergeant, 3, Grenadiers, 2-3 . Lightweight s\v itchboa rd at ni gllt Football , 1. Ligh tweight Basketball, 1. Track, (w hi ch gave me 1-3. Goll. 3. Academy News, 1. Ski rmisher, 2. opportuni ty to Debate Club, 1. Rifle Club, Captain, 2-3. Quill te lepho ne my girl and Scroll, 2. fri end). I was o n a sc ho larship that req uired work to pay for part of my tuiti o n . If I was do ing KP wo rk at th e time, I was probably also th in kin g about th e afte rn oo n and spending it with my special friend of two yea rs, Shirley Anderson, who li ved so mew here aro und 104th, as I recall. (I later nam ed my P-Sl airp lane Salley Sh irley after her, but alas, she proved 1'00 "Sa ucy," an d fo und ano th er "friend" while I was ove rseas in co mbat. My memo ry is cloudy as to when and how \.ve first heard of th e Pea rl Harbo r attack, but I wo uld ve nture to say
it was probably via radi o in ou r room in Hansen Hall later that day. My roo mma te, Jim I-iume (a st ra ight A student) was probab ly stu dy ing and ma y ha ve had th e radio on. To be sure, th e ne\·vs passed around campus very quickly, eve n for a Sund ay, but my recoll ec tion is that it was later in th e aftern oon befo re we rea ll y go t an y d etails. Mo nd ay morn ing \·V3 S a sober time. The entire cadet cor ps asse mbled in Blake Hall to listen to Preside nt Franklin Delano Roosevelt deli ve r a talk to a jo int sessio n of Congress. It was th e speech when he asked th e Co ngress to recog ni ze tha t a state of war has existed between the Empi re of Japan and t he Unti ed States since the day before, and that it was a da y that wo uld li ve in infam y. I remembe r clea rl y that scene in Blake Hall. There was an ee ri e si lence before th e p residen t's speech. It was not t he usual din of co nversa ti o n one hea rd prior to an y formal act ivity. Not t hat mo rn ing. As soo n as the President began to speak, all eyes we re riveted to the fron t, and t he yo ung boys lining the ti ers of th e assembly ha ll we re intensely co ncentrat ing on the rad io. To day, we wou ld say th eir eyes \overe glued to t he tube. It was a dra matic and traumatic moment. I can not spea k for all th e cadets, but I have no do ubt that at least th e seni ors and ju niors knew in their hea rts and minds tha t what th ey were listeni ng to \·vould change th eir li ves forever. \,y hcn t he Preside nt fi nished his speech, t he radio played Tile Star Spallgled Ballller. O n th e very first note, and withou t any command, t he en tire cadet co rps snapped to attentio n and stood t here - ri gid t hro ughou t th e moving, melod io us me lody. It was o ne of th e memo rab le mo men ts of my life and, eve n toda y, I get goose bumps whe n I t hink about it. Duty, Ho no r, Country. That was th e day those words took o n a who le new mean ing fo r th e Class of ] 942. As a postscript, I enlisted as an av iat io n cadet in th e United States Arm y o n May 5, 1942, sho rtl y aft er my eigh teen th birthday, th e required mi ni mum age. The Academy graduated so me of LIS ea rl y because of th e war. fl ew two comba t tou rs with th e Eighth Air Force out of England, as did my classmates and fri ends, Bobby Goss an d
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Walter Gehrke. The first tOUf was as a 1l-24, four-engine crew commander (pilot), and th e second to ur in a P-51, a singleengi ne fighter. I was a captain and on my way ho me before I was o ld enough to vote Of dr in k. War is started by o ld men, and fought by th e you ng.
The enemy fa iled to decimate all th e Class of 1942, but tim e is succeeding. Let me conclude with th e choru s from one o f th e ea rli est (circa Wo rld War I) Air Force so ngs, borrowed, in turn, fro m the from the British Army (circa 1857): Here's a health to th e dead already, Hurrah for th e next man to di e.
n
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The pillars of MPA: Haydn Jones and Harry D. Abells by Gregor J. Gentfeman Jr. [46} (Editor's note: Gregor Gentleman Jr. died in November 1999, before
spea k, pe rhaps m y o bse rva t io n s abOUt"
he had the opportunity to make
inte res t.
final corrections in the following
article., Haydn Eva n Jo n es and Ha rry D. Abe lls were college stud ents duri ng
William Rain ey Ha rper's ten ure as president of th e (then newly fou nded) Un iversity of Chicago. Jones and Abclls were both also members of t he
un iversity's champion baseball tea ms of 1896 and 1897.
Later, of course, th ey became the p illars that sustain ed Mo rga n Park Academy for more than forty years.
Since I was at MPM A when these two great gentlem en I' hung it up", so to
t hem in 1945 and 1946 wou ld be of Let m e provide a little backgro und before I get to Jones and Abe lls. Prior to World Wa r II, when o ur nati on was st ru ggling th ro ugh th e years of th e Great Depressio n, people of very h igh qua li ty m igrated in to teach ing. It was also a period whe n teac hers were paid fa r less in rela ti o n to t he ir worth than is eve n th e case toda y. Th e Chicago public schools, fo r exampl e, pa id th eir teac he rs with "scri pt" fo r so m e t im e - IOU's tha t g roce rs were reluctant to accept beca use th eir supp liers wo ul d n ' t take th em.
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And yet, eve n in t ha t tim e o f econom ic d istress, I-larr y D. Abe Us was abl e to attract and retain qua li ty fa cul ty. If a young up and co me r, like Jean Lando n Taylo r, o r a grea t sc holar like Roy S. MCin tosh, could find a job
teac hing that o ffered free room and boa rd (a nd eve n if th e sala ry we re on ly a pittance), th ey felt most
fo rtun a te indeed. After Pea rl Ha rbo r, however, so me o f th e lIyoung mi dd le-aged " characters (like Jean La ndon Ta ylor) found th eir
II breve t" arm y comm iss ions - plus teac h ing at a sc hool that was grind ing out seco nd li eutenants - a llowed t he m to co ntinu e thei r ca reers with o ut active se rvice.
That ended in 1945, of co urse, and that is when, I believe, a substa ntial chan ge in the chara cter of the school co mmenced. Post-wa r Califo rnia was booming, and teachers everywh ere were in ve ry sho rt supp ly. All of a sudd en, being o n th e faculty at MP MA was not as att racti ve as it o nce was. H certainl y wasn 't finan ciall y lucra ti ve and fewer stood read y to endure th e hardships that teach ing at th e academy im posed on a man and h is fa mil y. One never got awa y from th e job. A teac her di ned with a gro up of kids each n ight, acti ng as a surrogate parent. The job in variabl y entailed more tha n teaching. One coached, o r advised the A caderny N ews and Skirmisiler, o r su pervised the Ge m Po lishers, o r whateve r. One lived in a house th at one's wife never sto pped complaining about. Often, the wife had to work too - as til e li brari an, fo r exa mp le. And th e bachelo rs had it no bett er. They vve re expected to supervise th e do rms. Fran cis S. G ra y, th e bes t of the lot, spent hours every night, fo r exa mple, su pervising the lesser stud ents in a req uired stud y hall.
Ad ministrato rs were n't much better off. Principa ll-l ugh G. Pri ce, fo r example, was a member of a pro minent Baptist fa mil y in Mo rgan Park that had sent th eir male ch ildren to th e Academy fo r years. He was ve ry intell igent, but confin ed to a wheelchair and al ways suffering a good deal of pain. It surely must ha ve affected h is relat io nship with his subo rdin ates. He was, nevert heless, a grea t science (especia lly chem istry) teacher hi mself and his ad ministrat ive dut ies were simply added on to his teachi ng load. Price was another ill ustrat ion of the o ld truism th at great teachers do n't make great ad m ini strato rs - he too often expected his teachers to do it his way. It almost goes without saying th at he was grossly underpaid. jean Lando n Taylo r, who m we have all heard so much of because he lasted so lo ng, was quite bitter about MPMA in 1945. He had reigned high in th e English departm ent fo r years, and was very po pu lar with stu de nts because he was so mllch closer to their own age th an man y o thers 0 11 the fa cul ty. He had confrontecl the salary pro blem with no sllccess. Taylo r was alwa ys ve ry in terested in the media, such as it was, and he had subscribed to newspapers he
Mr. Hugh G. Price
路6.
considered Am eri ca's best - the New Yo rk T imes, th e D es JV!o;lfes Resister, th e New Or/ealls Times Picayulle, amo ng o thers - to expose us to q ua lity edi torial wri ti ng an d repo rting. He defin itely d id n't care fo r Colo nel Berti e McCo rm ick, ed ito r of the Chicago TriiJul1e o r Frank Knox of th e Chicago D a ily News. He was Illost im pressed, however, with th e Trib /m e and its vert icall y integrated stru cture as a very well-run business. But when it ca me do wn to America n literatu re, his specia lty, Taylor re lied wa y too m uch in 1945 on a text book (th ough excellent) ca lled Adventures ill A merican Literat l/re. He would give us aSSign ments, to be read, for the most par t, right in class. He, mean while, put hi s feet up on his desk and com menced read ing the great da ily newspapers. When we completed an assignment, he passed o ut multiple-cho ice qu izzes prod uced by the tex t book publishers. We we re th en give n an allo tted amount of time to mark down o ur choices. Then we exchanged o ur q uiz with the stu dent across the aisle, and j ean wo uld reacl off the answers. We marked dow n what the fellow across the aisle go t righ t, ta ll ied it up, and th en jea n read
o ff each of o ur names and the person grading us read off the score. Jea n recorded that in his book, picked up the tes ts, and class was over - no discuss io n, no comment, no teachi ng. jean kept all his tests in a two dra wer metal filing ca binet, but onceju st o nce - he fai led to lock it. A nimble-fingered member o f o ur class got th e ansv路,rer book, transcribed it, and returned it to the drawer. The miscrea nt was a member o f ou r "smoke r" crowd at th e time, and was per ha ps anx io us to be amon g the most popular, so he passed ou t t he answers th ere. In no time, need less to say, every student had access to t he answe rs. just the answers, mind YOll just T, F, Yes, No, 1, 2,3, o r 4no thing about th e q ues ti o n. The future va ledictorian, howeve r, was dead against using the answe rs. His intention was to stud y enou gh to do as well without crib notes as his classmates with th em. He sat across t he aisle from a Mexican lad who had great difficulty with th e English language. Most of ou r Mexica n boarders were pretty in telligen t peo ple, but this poor guy was n't among th em. Our qu iz ,路vas o n a poetry section, including poems by Em il y Dickinso n
Capt. Francis S. Gray
and Edgar Allan Poe. Such a qui z, one might imagine, mi ght be confu sing to one with a solid grasp of th e English language. But when th e sco res were read off, eve ryon e, incl udin g the Mex ican, got 100. Th e va ledicto ri an got a 98.
jean, who had a great se nse o f hum or, o bviously must ha ve kn ow n what happened. But to t he amusement of eve ryo ne - except th e va ledi ctorian - Ta ylo r inqui red sha rpl y, "What happened to yo u, Ge n tleman? " My moth er, alas, did no t share Ta ylo r's sense o f humo r. She was Phi Beta Kappa, was pursuin g a doctorate, had bee n an inspired hi gh sc hool teac her fo r 15 years and was an assistant princi pal at Chi cago's larges t hi gh SCl1001 at the time. J made th e dreadfu l mistake of telli ng her about Tayl or's qui z. She
didn't find it til e leas t bit amusing. She ca lled Hugh Pri ce at 11 0 m(' 1'l1at ni ght and let h im kn ow what she thought of the qua lity of our American li terature in structio n. The nex t mornin g al l o f us were hustl ed into Blake Hal l and given another test a ll til e sam e materi al. The valedicto ri an go t eve ry question ri ght, but th e nex t h ighest sco re
Capt. George A . Mahon
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wasn't eve n above fift y pe r ce nt. Jean Landon Taylor decided to
move to Ca li fornia shortly thereafter an c! so did h is lo ng-tim e colleague and close fr iend, Roy S. Mcintosh. Bot h were m issed in 1945. Roy McI nt osh was a most unusua l langua ge teacher. He was a grea t scholar "v ho rea ll y loved teaching. He special ized in Latin, but he also taught Gree k, whi ch att racted membe rs of that ethni c group to his classes. Those Gree k boys we re am o ng our mos t agg ressive stuci ents and raised th e competiti ve level many notch es. He had ve rb co nju ga ti ons, printed o ut in Ill ultip le colo rs, suspended on \Nindow shades all around his roo m. He'd pull o ne clow n, anc! we wo uld recite" Amo Amas Amatis" until we co uld remembe r it 55 yea rs later. Tll cre is no doubt ti1at he did a great c1ea l to make th e school a more elite instituti o n. Iloy was also a tireless handyman. He built unbelievab ly deta iled models of man y of Caesar's battl e machines, wh ich I rem ember as we ll as the declen sio ns. He eve n included th e dead men Caesa r wo ul d bury at th e base o f t he tow n's \va lls! I remember th e wind lasses, bu ilt to scal e of course,
Lt. Howard G. Wilcox
th at were used to drag th e siege towers up to the tow n walls. They had covered roo fs, made o f mul tiple layers of lea th er, which wo uld deflect missiles whi le th e batterin g rams blasted th e doo rs and ga tes. His catapults, to th e same scale, had thei r ow n stock of missiles, and
denying that when we return ed to M PM A in fa ll of 1945, we had lost our
they worked!
Roy also const ructed a centur ion's sh ield, using th e same rna teria ls that had been used by Caesa r's ar mylayers of leather, curved, and bou nd in a me tal frame with a bro nze ball and spike at its cent er. This was not a scale model, but full size. He also te n'l pered an d sharpened a copy of their sho rt, razo r-sharp swo rds \路\l ith his own sma ll fo rge and eq uipment, co mplete with a bron ze head o n the hand le to smas h in the fa ce of the enemy. He'd sho w us just how the cent uri o ns lined u p fo r batt le, shieldto-s hield, and ex plain ed wh y the sho rt swo rd was mo re effective in close-up com bat. It alm ost made one feel so rry for th e poo r barbari ans. Roy, in add itio n, was a grea t racon teur - a nd he never forgot an off-color joke. It was th a t q ua lity, perha ps, which suggested th at the "Roy S. Mcin tosh Rea l Es tate Subd ivi-
sion" was just th e ri ght na me to give
Colonel Sanford Sellers, Jr.
to th at no man's land wes t of \Nes tern and ru nnin g perhaps a half-m ile south of 111 t h Stree t.
Th at area had bee n subd ivided in th e 1920s into awful li ttl e lo ts with narrow concrete streets. The streets we re separated ha lf way by a parallel alley, and th e who le mess devised to ge t as man y very small reside nces as possible per block. The 1929 crash ca me along before
develo pers actuall y bu ilt an ythin g. The paveme nts, by the ti me we ca me alo ng, we re overgrown wi th weeds, but they we re grea t places fo r Satu rday mo rn ing marches. We d id a lot of ma rching, fo r the assum ptio n was that we'd all be in th e infa ntry befo re too lo ng. At ni gh t, with no street lights, th e area becam e a "lovers lane," and we wo ul d see, mu ch to ou r collective amusement, mo rning-after evide nce of it as we ma rched. The develo per, I suspect, never knew that we hono red the subd ivision with the name of Roy
science fac ulty, o ur principal, a mag n ifi cent langu age scho lar, and the head of our English depa rtment. We we re for tu nate to have had two excell ent E.ngli sh instructo rs and the new addi tio n, Art GumbreJl, was great. Neither th e school no r Jea n Land o n '1 ~1y l o r rea ll y lost mUC h, th en, unless he co ul d have been motivated by someo ne to be his o ld sel f. In science, however, it was disastrous. Our for mer coach/athletic directo r had ex hi bited his sportsmanship a few yea rs before by taking over physics. Geo rge 1\. Ma ho n, who was last" ex posed to phys ics as a h igh sc hool jun io r, was no ph ys ics teacher. He d id cnj oy charg ing u p his Leyden Jar, hov.'ever. He had us all ho ld hands, and thcn wo ul d actm inisI"er {l charge to us collecti vely to demo nstrate what stati c electri city might be abo ut. But to get any of the real principles of physics out of
George was im possible - o ne had to read the text. Price was replaced in chemistry by Ge ne Marshall, a very conge nial man who m we all enjoyed drinki ng a beer with \",hen we return ed from college. He was o ne of those fe llows
s. Mcintosh. It is certa inly pOSSible, at any rate,
Mrs. Florence E. Van Duyn
that Hugh Price's handling of Ta},lo r and Mci ntos h may have had somethin g to do with his ow n departure. Pe rh aps he, too, was attrac ted by the Ca lifo rnia sunsh ine. vV hatever the reaso ns, there is no
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Lt. Colonel John De Grandpre
who wasn't a bad athlete, fo und himself in a teacher's college, and so decided to beco me a coach. He drea mt of nothing so esoteri c as chemistry. He coached football, baseball, and basket ball. No t a co mpetitive fireball, he was onl y so-so as a coach - but much wo rse in the classroom. The tex t he selected was also awful. A facu lty of nineteen, th en, los t three of its most qualified edu cators in 1945. That, in my opin io n, was the begin ning of the decl ine of th e schoo l as a top-flight ed ucatio nal institution. The slide continued for perhaps ano th er ten years. Harry D. Abells, who had taken ove r leadershi p of the new military sc hool after 1907, "retired " in 1945 to a position as superintendent emeritus. The sc hool t hen hired Sa nfo rd Sellers Jr. to take his place, also sta rting in fall of 1945. Abells sta yed o n to co ncentrate o n selling his beloved school to the Chi cago business co mmuni tysomethin g at wh ich he was ve ry good. During my se nio r year, as a resu lt of Abells' efforts, we got to meet many of Chi cago's big business gUlls. Harr y d id a marvelous jo b of co n vincing that crowd that his sc hool was uniqu e
Lieutenant Arthur J. Gumbrell
in ca ring about its students. That white haired, avuncu lar, ge nuinely warm and pleasant old man clearly loved his boys and projected it ad mirably. He also had up for ex hibit so me bays who looked as if th ey mi ght make so methin g o f th emselves. Harry persuaded WGN's Phil Maxwell of th e virtues of MPMA, and we fou nd ouselves in th e newspapers frequently during th e yea r. Our gradu at io n spea ker was James Cash Penn y, who was a good friend of Harry Abell s. Th e on ly problem was that the sc hool V\'as goi ng to lose Harr y in 1946 when he and his wife (w ho also loved th e schoo l) retired to Veflll o n t. What Harry had hoped to accomplish du ring the 1/75th Anni versa ry" year was to raise funds for a new bu ild ing, th e "Victory Memorial." I remember receiving, as a fres hman at MIT in 1946, a ve ry ambitio us prospectus about it. The re nder ing Sil OWS a large bUilding, with architecture like Hansen and Alum ni Hail s, located so ut h of Alumni. It was to house new labs, (w hi ch we re then in th e basement o f Alumni I-Iall , alo ng with a rifle ran ge, when I was t here). The ne\-\' classrooms in the Victory Memoria l were intended to reli eve dependence on the antiquated Blake and West Halls (th e latte r, located west o f th e gym nasium, also ho used Morga n Park Junior College, whi ch was jammed with GI bi ll students, back from Wo rld War II). A si milar campa ign had res ulted in the co nstruction o f Hansen Hall and Alumni Hall in 192 7 and 1928. By 1946, however, the business community had no t yet fully recovered from th e great depression, and there were no heavy hitters like J. C. Hanse n o n the boa rd. And th e fellow who represe nted what MPM A was all about was retiring to Ve rm ont. The who le concept of military sc hools seemed to have less glitter in that post-war era and th e "Victory Memo ri al" neve r got o ff the ground .
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Lieutenant Gene Marshall
Sa nfo rd Sellers Jr. , it soo n became clear, was no Harry Abell s. His father had bee n fo undin g superintendent of Wentwor th Military Acade my and he had tv.!O brothers who headed similar schools. "Sandy" was known to Harry Abe lls, th erefore, and seemed to have had th e right backg ro un d for th e job. Sellers d id n't even loo k much like a colonel, however. He was qui et, slow moving, and not much o n conversatio n. He projected the image of a person who, in my o pinion, was rathe r dull and do ltish. He didn't show much spark at all and was completely lacking in charisma. He was, in sho rt, a most remarkab le co ntras t to Abells. I kn ow that Sand y d idn 't stay long - he certainl y was go ne by th e time I headed the alumni association in 1952. It was Harry Abells, of course, who encouraged Ha ydn Evan Jones to follow him to Mo rgan Park in 1898. They made a great tea m. Abe lls, th e grea t sa les man for MPMA, also sold people on Ha ydn Jo nes. That wasn't d iffic ult. Jon es ,,vas a great at hlete and an inspiratio nal coach. He was a tall, lea n, imposing character, steeped in scholarship (a Ph.D in Semitic Languages fro m the Uni versity o f
Chicago) and also an o rdain ed minister. j ones was also an excellent speaker and Harry didn 't miss many oppo rtuniti es to o ffer him to th e public as an exa mple of what his great little sc hool had to o ffer. Abel/s, in fact, was a lways ta lking about "Colo nel j ones" and UCap tain Gray" and, bro th er, t hey were so mething to talk about - class acts both. Jo nes, by the time I took wo rld histo ry from him in 1945, had los t some o f his enthus iasm as a teacher, bu t it was ri ch ex peri ence to study t he subj ect under him no neth eless. He had hu ge, graceful hands - with d igits at least twice as lo ng as my ow n - and he would wave th em over us when he wis hed to make a point, o r enfo rce discipli ne. All he had to do was say, "Watch it, now." He neve r sat down in th e classroo m and was alwa ys dressed in his o ld brown unifo rm jacket, a brown leathe r belt with cross strap, and beige ga bardin e slac ks. just prior to his dea th, Hayd n jon es attended th e fune ral of a class mate \v ho drown ed sho rtly after ou r graduation. I was called upon to be a pall bea rer - which meant ,,,earing a full d ress unifo rm with temperatures close to 100 and hum idity to match. I fe lt I was near death myse lf befo re it co ncluded. jones - age 78 at th e tim e - was weari ng his warm Arm y jacket, of course. He took cha rge at th e grave sit e and delive red a lo ng, articul ate eulogy, stand ing t he whil e. By 1946, th en, we had also lost the two MPMA patriarchs, j ones anc! Abe lls. Eve n so, t he school still had somethin g to boast abo ut. Fo rm er fa cu lty member j ohn De Gra ncl pre, who had en listed in th e marin es and return ed a lieutenant co lonel in 1946 and beca me what t he sc hool t hen ca lled its executi ve o ffi cer. They also had th e dy namic Ar t Gumbrell and MPMA sti ll had Francis 5. Gray, th e best math teacher who ever li ved.
They weren't knocked co mp letely fl at, th en. By 1952, however, De Grandpre had departed, much disgusted with th e new superintencient; Gumbrell was go ne, and so we re oth er fin e teachers like Howard Wilcox and Flo rence Va n Duyn. Francis Gray, in his late seventies, was slowing dow n. MPMA had beco me by then, as I see it, a less t han first- rate educationa l institu tio n.
SomehOW, howeve r, the school managed to pull through, surviving even demilitarizatio n. I suppose it was th e dedicatio n of people li ke Art Baer, a trustee and president of the Beverly State Bank, who helped pull it t hrough . I wou ld be wi ll ing to bet, however, tha t there was no thin g very easy about it.
n
In memoriam: Gregor J. Gentleman, Jr. 1929-1999 Born in Chicago, Illinois, on 1 January, 1929. Entered MPMA in September, 1942 from Sutherland School, Chicago, Illinois. Company D: Private 1, Corporal 2, Sergeant 3, Company C: Captain 4, Staff: Captain Adjutant 4, Heavyweight Football Manager 3, Bantamweight Football 1, Heavyweight Basketball Manager 3, Company Basketball 1-2-3-4, Company Baseball 3 -4, Baseball 1-4, Baseball Manager 3, Boxing 13-4, Bowling 2, Emblem Club 34, Academy News, News Editor 4, Skirmisher Sports Editor 3, Debate Club 1, Guardians 1-23-4, President 4, Quill and Scroll 3-4, Class Scholarship 2, First Academy Scholar 2, Class Scholarship 3, Third Academy Scholar 3, Honor Graduate 4, West Point Appointment (principal) 4, Wrestling 4. ~ Greg" was the b rain of the senior class . Not only was he outstanding in his academic work but also in hi s military and extra-curricular pursuits. We know that with his reasoning abi lity and qualities of leadership, success will be his for the asking.
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The irrepressible Captain Gray: not quite the ilnage 01= a nlathenlatical Mr. Chips by Jack Tadanier [48]
In the first three minutes o f m y
de nts, n o ne of wh o m h ad th e sli ghtest idea of how to proceed , let a lo n e ha vin g eve n heard of th e proble m, Capt. G ra y los t路 his patie nce. Sta rtin g at the le ft of th e fi rst rovv a nd working to th e right h e had eac h man stand a nd as ked eac h if he h ad done his ho mewo rk . Eac h answered, wit h th e convictio n of inte nse fear, "Yes Sir." f\11 of th em, with th e possib le exceptio n of Jul es Perlberg w ho had not yet been ca lled o n to recite, ,ve re of course lyin g th ro ugh th e ir teeth. Cap t. G ra y kn e,v thi S, and eac h ma n kn ew he knew thi s. My sea t was th e first in th e seco nd row, to th e le ft o f th e grea t man , next to th e wind o w and o n th e far side o f the room away from th e door. As m y turn app roa ched wh en I would be co n fronted wi th tile dreaded questi ons, I faced a dil e mma . Sho uld I fo ll ow th e appa rentl y successfu l co urse of m y p revaricating predecesso rs, at the ri sk of bei ng exposed a nd immedi a tely slaug htered in my sea t, o r sho uld I take the high road of ho no r and integ rity a nd co nfess? The latter course had a hvays bee n successful for Roddy McOmve ll in his chil d hood film s. At last th e mo me nt of truth a rrived. "No Sir," I res po n ded. T here was th e prove rbi a l preg nant pause, during wh ich tim e th e fa ce o f m y inquisito r made th e t ransition from red to purpl e and his eyes widened in iI rage no rmall y rese rved as a res ponse to a n o ffe nse of infinit"e evil. Slowly he rose, po inted hi s fin ge r first at m e and th e n at th e door, and in a vo ice ca lcu lat ed to co ngea l th e blood of an Ac hill es, he roa red, OOO-UU U:ITr! !! My ex it from the roo m , behvee n th e rows of seats occ upied by qui ver in g, qu ave ring cadets, was certai nl y a prev iew o f a prese nt day space la un ch . My examp le was, a pparentl y, a pp reCiated by th e rest of m y class mates. To my kn owledge n o o n e e lse was ejected. Som eh ow I survived th e year. Afte r a summe r of rest and re hab ilit a tion I return ed, bu t thi s tim e to th e secure and co mfortab le classroo m o f th e ge ntl e Mr. Bea rdsley's fo urth pe ri od geo m etry, ,路v hi c h, if no t as ri goro us and exciting as th e class o f Ca pt. G ra y, was co n side rabl y mo re co nducive to my mental h ea lth .
first class, in my first" da y o f my first" yea r at Morgan Park I
realized that my new algebra teacher, Capt. Gray, d id no t pro ject t he image of a mathematica l M r. Ch ips. In fact, he JACK TADANIER inspired in me seve ral in 1947 orders of m agnitude of more anXiety, abject fear and shee r terror than did my ki nd ly com manding officers in Co mpa ny B: Captain Gilbert and Lieute n a nt Ga lli gan. O ne Moncla y m o rnin g, to wa rds th e middl e o f th e year, Ollf math e matics class bega n with th e goocl ca ptain calling on members of th e cla ss to solve th e first of th e problem s assig n ed as homework th e previous Frida y. After calling o n abo ut five o r six stu-
Did you ever cut through Captain Gray's yard, or sit under his piano? "Captain G ray," th e Academy News reported on October 30, 1929, " h as m oved from his residence he had made his hom e for th e last three yea rs. He has moved into the Academy's n ewly acquired property on 11 Oth place, adjoining Blake Field on the West." Captain Gray lived in that house for m o re than four decades. The present owne rs, Mark and Reb ie Kinsella, are gathering information about the history of th e IICa ptain Gray Ho use" and would be interested in any anecdotes MPMA/MPA a lumni might have about th e pro perty at 2 145 W. llOth Place. If you have any stories (such as th e one above) about Ca ptain Gray and his hou se, please send th em to ... Barry Kritzberg Editor, Academy Magazine Morgan Park Academy 2153 W. 11 th Street Chicago, Illinois 60643 ... who would be interested in them, too, and will glad ly pass them a long to the Kinsellas.
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Making cow-dung cakes with a Fulbright artist-in-residence on a sunny afternoon by Robert Langston They di rected us to their n eighbor, who had just returned from the cou nty fair with his livestock. Oddly, ne ither he nor his ,vife asked about our rath e r unu sual quest. That Prasanta and I we re artists explained it all! apparently. He did offer that th e re was plenty of fres h manure left behind at the co unty fair, if we \'vere so inclin ed. Prasan ta Mukherj ee, an accomplished scu lptor and art teach er in India, creates large sca le fibre glass sc ulpturesfine exa mples of contemporary art in India and an important part of Asia's co ntribution to th e inte rnational art scene. During Prasanta's sta y, we talked abo ut t h e con tempo路 rary arts in different parts of the wor ld, and the different co n cerns o f artists world wide. For instance, he "vas very interested in th e Far East. He had rece ntl y visited Singapore to ove rsee the insta llation o f his sculpture in an international show. There, with a population that is bursting at the seams, space is at a premium. Issues of what is private and w ha t is publiC, and what o ne can do with space that is inescapa bl y co mpressed beco me dominant" themes in til e socia l co n sciousn ess of th e artist. For Prasa nta, work ing as an artist in India, socia l concern for the environme nt was solidified in his O\vn perso nal ex perience of li ving and working in Delhi, one of the most polluted cities in th e world. IIW he n I came hom e o ne day cough ing up blood from d ri ving down the st ree t, I rea lized that I had perso nal respo nsibility to add ress this problem with my art and raise people's awareness o f th e need fo r change," h e said. Prasanta also teac hes art at Sarde r Pa te l Vidya Ja ya in De lhi, a K-12 sc h ool not unlike MPA and we also shared ideas about educati o n in the arts, and we shared our observa ti o n s abo ut students he re and in India. We bo th agreed that Indian students a re better d isciplined and respect their teachers more. Of Ameri can students h e sa id, "They seem to want to do their own th ing." Having tau ght American students, and havi ng been one myse lf, I co uld o nly regard that as an incredible unde rstatement. Prasanta Mukherjee One may ask w hy
We h ad ch osen th e rooftop of the
BAC to mix, shape and dry o ur cowe1ung cakes.
It was a clear su nn y da y in Jul y a nd I th o ught that the ex pos ure to sun and heat from the roof wou ld dry the ma nu re and grass clipping mixture qui ckl y.
I had also hoped that our presence 011 the roof wou ld not ROBERT LANGSTON att ract the bubbly attention of th e young and ultra-curiolls MPA summer school students w ho were roaming th e campu s at th e tim e. I had become Prasa nta Mukher jee's wi lli ng a nd enthusiastic cow-dung co-worker. He was here fro m India on a
Fulbright grant to be artist-ill-residence fo r MPA's sum me r program. Prasa nta was reminded, he said, of making cowelung cakes as a c hild on h is family 's farm in Ben ga \. That pl eased me, because initia ll y he seemed skeptical about this wh o le affair. I bri e fl y thought of t he su mm e rs tllat I had spent with my grandpa re nts in Texas as a child, particul arl y with the swea t dripping dow n my nose a nd th e unmi stakable barn yard odor. In India, he expla in ed! one ca n buy cow dun g cakes as ready-made fuel for heati ng and cooking. The grass and manure mi xture burns slowly and effici en tl y to a high temperature. O ur efforts were aimed at rep li ca tin g a t rad it iona l Indian firing meth od using a form of fu e l that had probably not been used in the United States since the da ys o f the G reat Depression. Afte r shaping o ur tart-si zed disks for a cou ple of hours, we co unted about thirty. We would eventually need about four or five times that man y. But Prasanta appeared to be ""a rming up to the project, so thi s didn't seem to be an insurmountable problem. Al th oug h Prasanta works mostly in fibre glass, I knew he had used this particular firing method on occasion with his own stud e nts in Delhi. I had insisted, therefore, that we try this m ethod during his stay he re. Beca use there are no readymade cow dun g ca kes for sale here in the States, we had to sta rt from sc ratch: asking Illinois farmers for cow dung, asking local lawn crews for grass clippin gs. It was a bit like a scave nger hunt. The clippings from lawns were easy e nough to find in th e c ity, and not man y questions were asked. Prasan ta a nd I then visited my a unt and uncl e in Ch estnut, Illinois.
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One co mpany, interestingly enough, addresses the o n ea rth I was goading our visiting Fu lb right Scho lar to help problem by offe ring a line of m ul ticultural paints. Five hu es me proceed with this tradit io nal Ind ian firing tec hnique. At in all are now o ffered to do what, in effect, "peach" does for o ne point, I was rath er skeptically asked why not use the "white," a ra cia ll y ambi guo us no n-"white" skin ! sc hool kilns if the goa l was to fire ce ramics, or why not use As th e advertisements say, it may be idea l for social good old-fash ioned charcoa l briquettes for that matte r, if I science pro jects, but what is being lea rn ed? insisted so ada mantly o n firing cera mi cs ou tside"! Ye t, no matter how so und any aca clemic or aesth etic For those who do no t kn ow t he satisfaction and joy o f apologies I can o ffer fo r play ing patty-cakes with manure, I baking a ca ke from scratch, o r makin g o ne's own pasta, th e must confess th at th ere was a bit of the Sir Edmo nd Hillary's answer ma y neve r trul y be understood. "I-climbed- it-because-it-wa s-there" att itude that drove me to But Clcimirers of th e Amish, o r 60s back-to-nature hippies do it. (or perh aps eve n th e Unibomber) wo ul d und ers tancl - an d \'V I1 0 was to say, after all, tha t I co uldn 't do a tradi ti o nal perha ps eve n defend - my resistan ce to the evils of technolIndian firing? ob,),. They - Clnd others of like mind - wo uld und ers tand th at All for til e sake o f cow do? I am not alone in fee ling t hat, from t he time o f th e IndusNo, but su rely mo re fo r t he sa ke of CAN DO ! trial Revo lu ti o n, "th e Mach ine" has wrenched us, not only Our visiti ng art ist program had three from our connection to natu re, but fro m ambi ti o us ph ases - o rientation , worksho p o urselves. and develop ment - none of wh ich, howI am certainl y not th e o ne to argue t hat eve r, included traditional Indian firing our wor ld's problems ca n be solved \路vit h methods. gadget ry, but I am not Clnti-tech nology. In th e mean ti me, as we were gettin g True, I get ove rwhe lmed by the amou n t of un der way, th e Su nd ar fam il y provided informatio n in my li fe and, true, I can't fix tempo rary ho usi ng and good chee r for most of th e appliances in my horne. But I Prasa nta until "I campus spot became ca n unde rstancl th ose gadgets better if I ava ilable. Part of Prasa nta 's in troduction to know what th ey do on at least a ru d im enChicago in cl uded visits to standa rd cu ltura l tary level. I also certainly have a deeper institutions - t he Museum of Con tempoap preciation of th em if I know first-hand rary Art, the Art Institu te of C hicago, th e how m uch work th ey perform by trying to Fielcl Muse ulll, the Superior Street" Ga llery do those tasks wi th out the benefit of those d ist rict - and meetings with a var iety of labor-saving devices. loca l artists as we ll (including, among An impo rtant point comes up here. o th ers, j o hn Stoeffe l, j oe CClva lier, Barbara Tec hno lob'Y makes the res ults of comp lex Rossi, Ern est Aryee, Rama Ra o, To m Scarf, processes more predictable. Predictab ili ty creates th e illusion that processes are j ane Hi leman, Ind ira FrietasJohnso n, Hema Rajagopa lan ). simple. That has a direc t impact o n wha t Robert Langston digs into that kind s of questi ons we ask, what kinds of Prasanta especiall y enj oyed seeing th e manure. answe rs we seek, and what kinds o f decicrowd-stop ping, artist icall y embellished sions we make. cows (a ll cast, by t he "'.lay, in Prasanta's favorite med ium) displa yecl in public places all over t he ci ty. My favorite analogy for thi s is th e problem of renderi ng Toget her Prasanta and I wo ndered hm\' "Cows on ski n tones with pa in t. A yo ung stud ent ma y mi x all so rts o f browns, whites, reds, etc., struggling to match th e skin ton e Parad e" would be interp reted if sh mv n in India . Afte r all, he o r she obse rves and wishes to rep rese n t. Gobs o f paint ge t cows are alwa ys o n parade in Indi a an yway. During the wor ksho p phase, Prasanta gave slide presen"'.lasted. A picture that had som ethin g going for it may ge t ruined. Yet, that sam e stud ent t hat may also as k th e teacher tatio ns fo r works hop partiCipants, enjoyed a dinn er party for "peach" and be d o ne with th e matter, neve r minding hosted by t he Sunclars, lec tured at a class on Hin du art that " peac h" doesn't eve n come close to th e skin colo r th e (tau gh t by Dr. Michael Rabe) at the School of th e Art student is rendering. Institute of Chi cago, and spo ke at the University of In th e firs t case t he stud ent makes more mistakes, Chicago's South As ia O utreac h Proj ect (at th e invitatio n of enco un ters more frustrati o n, but lea rn s th e com plex ity of direc tor Emil y Bl och ). colo r bo th in pa in t and in fles h. In th e other case, to reach Prasa nta, at th ese va ri ous ven ues, had the op portunity for "peach " is certain ly sim pler, but ma y be just as problemto int rod uce t rad itio nal and co ntempo rary arts fro m India, atic: " peac h," th e color, implies "white," as in "race." If a including hi s ow n work and that o f his wife, Ela. ski n ton e is represe nted in "peach," a ra cial designation is He also co nducted mon th-l o ng ceramics and sc ulptu re give n despite the inaccura te represe ntati on of th e skin color. workshops at MPA. The wo rkshops we re held in a studiO,
l
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tucked awa y beneath the stage of th e BAC th at had recently been converted from what had long been stora ge for th e
unorgani zed and can n ibalized remains o f stage sets and props of va rious th ea tre groups. Each mo rning, when J came to ass ist Prasa nta with the program, I was pleasa n tly surprised to find a qui et, eager, and self-motivated gro up o f children engaged in th eir projects. I h alf-expec ted to t he find SlIlllm e r sch ool crowd to
be crazed and fren zied , with kids thro wing chun ks o f clay at onc ano th er o r, perhaps, hanging fro m th e ceiling like monkeys. There was no ne of tha t. I believe tha t Prasanta created an atmosphere where the students were mo ti va ted to produce an incredibl y hi gh quantity of work. A ve ritable terra cotta zoo of frogs, crocodi les, elepha nts and d inosau rs was manufactured - and each, I mi ght add, with it s mv n particular design and bui ld ing co mpone nt that could be utili zed towards rea li zing more complex fo rms. Casting techniques we re lea rn ed by using clay, plaster and paper mache. The studen ts also, thanks to Ela Muk her jee, got a chance to work with clay on th e potter's wheel. After aw hile, th ere was no se paration o f junio r and se ni o r classes. The res ultin g inter-ge neratio nal jumbling d id not see m to be a problem fo r an yo ne. It was, in fact, a fine example o f a positive learning eXC hange between diffe rent age levels. Wheth er at all-sc hool eve nts, o r within t he curriculum (such as with upper school studen ts visiting the lower school with science presen tations, or visiti ng the presc hool with music presen tat ions) this seems to be happe nin g more and mo re at MPA d urin g th e regul ar school yea r. But, as Ro bert Burns' fam ous poem remi nd us, the bestlaid pla ns o f mi ce and men o ft go ast ray. All was no t perfec t with our progra m, alas! We had wo rked hard to acq uire those cow-dung ca kes and that sunny day in Ju ly seemed so fa ir, so promising. And th en it rain ed. And ra ined. And rain ed so me more. The cow-d un g cakes, "d rying" on t he roof, effec tively clogged both the BAC roof dra ins ... and the air-co nditio ning system ! Our na mes ,vere temporar il y (''',Ie hope!) removed from t he main tenance staff's list of favor ite peo pl e. Some of the cow-d u ng ca kes, luckil y, su rvived t he rain intact. We qu ickl y moved those to dr y sto rage in th e basement o f the BAC. But ou r troubl es we re not qUite over. The dung-cakes we re inadve rten tl y sto red nex t to th e ki lns and, late o ne afternoo n, we discovered th at th e cakes were happil y smo lder ing awa y! The smoke was th ick a nd profuse, li ke that pouring out of the demo ni c factor y in Fritz Lang's lv lelmpolis. The ki lns were shut dow n . The fire extinguishers were pressed into ac ti o n. Smo ke billmved fro m eve ry o rifi ce o f t he SAC. All doo rs were ope ned-wide. I have drea m-like images of Prasa n ta, bra ve ly attempting to fan th e thi ck fog- li ke smoke o ut of t he buil d ing. I ineffec-
ti vely spra yed two cans o f inadequate diSinfectant, running wild ly throu gh the fog, like someone lost in the woods. The smo ke, meanwhile, continued to billow o ut of the BAC, as though another Mt. Ves uvius had erupted . But I was not d isco u raged. In fact, it made me mo re determin ed than eve r to do a traditional Indian firing with cow-dung ca kes. Another hope that did not dissipa te in th e smoke of the BAC was th e desire to co ntinue makin g wo rld-wide co ntacts for MPA through th e arts. Prasa nata Mukherj ee's visit, as artist-in-residence, was o nl y (I hope) a first step towa rd putting a sometimes insul ar private school like o urs out th ere in th e rea l wo rld. Fortunately, I was no t alone in this ho pe, and I had a lot o f help. So, I wo uld like to thank all o f th e MI'A co mmunity who co nt ributed eno rmo usly to help me make (rain and fire, not withstandin g! ) th e visiti ng artist program for the Slimmer of 1999 a rea lity. Special, heart-felt thanks go to the Aga rwal famil y, th e Catanias, the Sund ars, th e Sayeeds, Sheila Gabler, and Harriet Arn o ld for t hei r suppo rt. Invaluab le help was also provided by Mary Kay Marmo, Ka ren O'Neal, and Lynn Ra ze r, Sa ndy "'''illiams, and Jean Wa ter man. I am most grateful , too, to all t he vvo rksho p studen ts for th eir en th us iasm. And I ca n't eve n begin to thank Ri chie Szka rlat ,lIl d t he buildin gs and gro unds crew for th eir effo rts and, o f course, fo r the ir genera l to leran ce of so me o f th ose best laid plans tha t we nt ast ray. By th e ti me Prasa nta and I had coll ected eno ugh material to make du ng cakes aga in, th e workshop was over, and he and his wife were o n their way back to India. A co upl e of weeks before th e sta rt of reg ular schoo l year, I was allowed to fire so me ce rami c pieces on th e Del Castill o fa mil y's horse ra nch in unincorpo rated Crete, Ill inois. I used the cowe1l1ng cakes th at ha d survived th e various disasters. Th e fir ing took all day and ni gh t. About half of th e ce ram ic pieces turn ed o ut very nicely. The best were the white clay pieces that fired to cool ligh t and d ark grays, wit h inte res tin g streaks of occasio nal jet black. I rea lly can 't wait to try this again.
n Ela Mukherjee and Robert Langston rest after their Herculean labors.
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Still life/still lives The wag who said the pun was the lowest form of humor didn't anticipate the depth of meaning that might be found in artist (and former MPA board member) William H. Anderson's "Still Lives," an exhibit of pastels and watercolors mounted recently at the St. Xavier art gallery. A still life, as everyone knows, is an artist's rendering of selected inanimate objects, but the still lives" of Anderson's exhibit had a much deeper resonance than simply a series of paintings in a particular genre: it meant he still had breath, still painted, still lived. II
The fervency of Anderson's powerful pun becomes more apparent when one realizes that a 1991 stroke almost ended the artist's life. He did not paint for more than a year and, when he took up his brushes once again, it was almost like starting from the beginning. "I couldn't see very well," Anderson recalled, "and I couldn't think very clearly, so I started copying paintings - just as a beginning art student might. There was a difference, however. I didn't concern myself with color, form, or anything. I just wanted to see if I could still do it."
And do it he did. He copied and copied, concerning himself only with technique - until one day he found himself absorbed and fascinated by the shape of a pear. The result of that fascination with a pear was something that was not merely a copy, but a new work of art a still life - by the still living artist William H. Anderson. Since his stroke, Anderson readily acknowledges, he does not think linearly, but he begins each day by attempting to see the world through the eyes of the past masters - Roger VanderWeyden, say, or the PreRaphaealites.
TIffany Lis: hands and minds "I like to work with my hands," Tiffany Lis [95] said of her art work, yet it is clear from the very title of her exhibit - Allegory of the Change" that her work involves a good deal more than manual dexterity. Her work - which has been on view in recent months at Oesterle Library Gallery in Palos Hills, North Central College and Morgan Park Academy - has a cerebral quality as well. The title of her exhibit, for example, is a playful allusion to II
Plato's celebrated Allegory of the Cave" in The Republic. These recent exhibits have been organized around the primal elements of earth, fire, water, and wind, but Tiffany is quick to point out that she does not intend to confine her works to programmatic interpretations. Some of the pieces derive, she acknowledges, from powerful memories associated with the primal elements. A near-drowning experience at an early age was the source of inspiration for one piece and a Christmas fire that destroyed her II
grandparents' cabin led to another work. She does not title her pieces, however, for she does not want to confine the imaginations of her viewers. "If I were to do that," she said, "it would be my interpretation, and not that of the viewer." Her preference is for ceramics and sculptures, for she likes the way that three-dimensional objects invite the viewer to interact with the works of art. Art for Tiffany Lis, then, is derived from ideal Platonic world where hands and mind work together. .Q
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Gifts given; gifts received (Commencement address, June 5, 1999) by Dr. Larry Brown ThiS la st
c la ss o f th e 1900s is al so th e thirty-
second class I have seen graduate from
DR. LARRY BROWN
Morgan Park Acade m y. W hen Headmaster Adam s
asked m e to address you , my first reacti o n was Sll ock. I finall y too k thi s ass ig nm ent becau se I kn ow man y of yo u qUite well and th e re are e no ugh co-co nsp irat o rs o n th e faculty to find out in forma ti o n I do n 't kn ow.
VVe at MPA fo rm a conlmunity. vVe are a collection of famili es, smaller un its held toget h er by relatio nships. One c ha racte ri sti c o f fam il ies is th e giv ing and receiv ing o f
gifts. Amo ng til e most important gifts
are those th at d o n't come in a box, wrapped w ith pretty ribbon: action s, atti tudes a n d re latio nships. What can be said a t thi s t im e o f de parture that leaves us w ith so m et hing to reme mber? W hat gifts were \ve ab le to give you? Wha t d id you give u s? Let's see ... Tasha Chrctiau, you gave yo urself to g row in g and maturin g as both stud en t a nd athl e te. Yo ur sen se of hum o r and loyal fr iendship ha s given comfo rt a nd enco urage me nt. Yo ur ability to think criticall y and to exp ress yourself h as e nri c h ed our com muni ty. Heather Lis, sin ce we met, nea rl y fo u r yea rs ago, yo u ha ve co n tinued to grow in to a kind and ge n tle yo ung wo m a n, with a ca lm demeanor a nd a non-cr iti cal ear. Yo ur gent le sp ir it is a gift. Reenla Lalnba, yo ur qui et pe rsona lity scarcely has hidd en yo ur forcef-ulleade rship. Yo ur influence ha s
stretc hed from athl etics to publi cati o n s, from stud ent governm ent to Acad emic Chall enges. Exce ll e nce is a wond erfu l lega cy. Christiana Shollshtari, as your fo ur years passed, your g rowth and maturity are very rewardin g to us wh o watched yo ur prog ress. Your in fecti o us laug h , even durin g se rio us wo rk, is pa rt o f a successful life. W he th e r it be acad emic o r just li vin g, yo u've thrill ed us. Anllp Patel, o ur fo ur years togeth e r have been yea rs o f gr o wth. You have a de mon strated clear unde rstanding and course conce pts have taken root in yo ur ferti le mind. Steffanie Triller, o ne of the m a ny quiet but fo rceful peo p le in th is class, yo u' ve le ft yo ur m ark on o ur com munity. It sh owed in every thin g fro m th e lowly aSSign men t o f p ickin g up t he first peri od atte nd a nce sli ps to editin g o f Academy News. Yo ur fa ithfuln ess te lls m e who YO ll reall y a re, in addit ion to yo ur obvio us aca de mi c prowess. By now, Stacey Dugan, you probably wis h yo u had been th e a utho r of thi s ta lk beca use yo u are re ported to be o n e o f th e fin est writers to co m e o ur way. Yo u have had to give mu ch o f yo ur tim e to thi s e nd eavor, because writing is hard wo rk. Passio n with ho nesty makes life excitin g. Richard Danielewicz, o ur gift to YO ll was th e atm osphere to ma ture into a youn g man \"'ith a realisti c view of w hat yo u wa nt to do with yo ur life, pattern ed afte r your fa mil y. You gave us of yourself from th e socce r fi eld and particularl y th e baseball diam o nd to th e musical stage, from Key Club to t he lab. It was you wh o m I co uld co unt o n to ge t so m e needed c ho re clo ne.
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Mike Better, w ith a des ire to walk yo ur ow n pa t h , you ga ve us th e chall enge of p roviding you a structured environm e nt in which you co u ld devel o p. Yo u' ve lent us some of your co nsiderabl e talent, bo th in th e class roo m and in o th e r acti vities, such as th e Acad emi c C hall e nge tea m . Ankur Sbah, wh e n the re is a n eed fo r excitem e nt, m a ny of us thi nk of you . Fo r th e three years before I had YOll in class, I kn ew w ho you were becau se of your ve ry prese nce in th e sc h ool. You r ab ili ty to leael bo th inside and o utside of the classroom has bee n a particular ly we lco med gifL Yara Koht, your powe r o n athl eti c tea m s de mo nstrated an abili ty to give and lead . Yo u r in te res t in ph ys ics, just th e fac t th at you took the co urse, was a gift to m e . Your gave co mm itm e nt and leadersh ip . Kai Wilsoll, yo u r ability with lan g ua ges ha s led you t hroug h En glis h to Span ish to French and even lcompu te rl C++. Yo u ha ve th e ability to wr ite a ncl ex p ress your ideas in ways tha t eve n th e Kan sas City Mi lkm an can u nde rsta n d . Q uiet invo lve m ent is you rs. Erica Enright, th rough o ut the fo ur years since we m et, I have see n you contribute to organi zation s for th e ir be ne fit. Ma n y have bee n to uch ed by yo ur w illingn ess to lead and co ntribute qUi etl y to make sure th e wo rk was fi nished, w h eth e r it be th e Rube Go ldberg tea m , music Of a se rvice pro ject. Sanler AI-Khudari, I h ave kn own of yo ur abilities, sin ce yo ur fres hman yea r at MPA. Yo u have been growing acad e mi ca ll y ove r th ese fo ur years and ha ve been persistent in athl eti cs. Yo u appli ed yourself to so lving proble m s and und e rstan d ing t he co n ce pts, achi eving as YO ll we n t.
Mikal Stewart, when reliability is a must, whether it be on independent projects, the arts, or writing, you are a chosen one. You have given to us in your qUiet way a presence and reassurance that the project will be completed correctly and well. Kristin Barber, having known you for four years, I agree with one of my co-conspirators who wrote that "though quiet, when she speaks, you'd better listen." I know you use your words sparingly, but they are well chosen. Your actions are even more forceful, whether you are in the physics lab or on the pitcher's mound. Payal Parikh, you have given us your well-rounded leadership in the classroom, publications, drama and music. The Academic Challenge team has gladly received the paints you won. You brought a spirit of fun to serious activities. jenny Salim, your presence has never gone unnoticed, for several reasons. Your gift has been to the arts. This dramatic flair is but one example of the gift of your imagination. Ellen Concannon, we are all aware of your excellence in academics. You have goaded, pressed, surpassed, and insisted upon perfection in yourself and from us. You have given me friendship and warmth that I could trust in this short year we have had together. I know you will never change, but you have changed many of us for knowing you. Jarrett jones, in addition to your athletic abilities, you are known to be very articulate with a depth of understanding that clarifies situations and brings clarity with new insights and ideas. The opportunities you accepted here have allowed you to start a straight path into college and adulthood. I have spoken to and about several of you in the past few minutes. Don't worry, the rest of you will have your fraction of a minute in the sun. As we consider the effects we have on each other, I look back across the forty years since I left high school.
I am seeking one last opportunity to say something of worth to you, something you can take away while holding your head high. As you look back across your time here, I'd like you to remember what you were given and what you gave. Continuing on, then. Enthusiasm and gusto are common traits in this class, but Fritz Kimbrough, you're the king, but never failing to stand for what you believe in. I shall never forget your joining me for a day with Chicago area physics teachers, or seeing you inside the coils of your sousaphone. Your enthusiasm is matched by your ability to lead and learn. Nicolas Prosperpi, you have given us your French flavor, with the gentle but competitive spirit, particularly on the tennis court. Your great smile and genuine sportsmanship has added to our pleasure and has given us joy during your time with us. Emeka Linton, you have been praised for your willingness to go lithe second mile" whether it be on athletic teams or in the classroom. You have given us leadership and friendship with a gentle, sincere and peaceful spirit. Brooke Gintert, you grasped the opportunity to develop your quiet leadership as you learned. You utilized them for the benefit of our community, from publications to the classroom, from Explor-a-vision to Rube Goldberg. We would like to have been able to read your thoughts on those long commutes to and from Valparaiso. Marco Del Castillo, your winning ways with an easy calm, will live on in our memories. You have a wonderful ability to see through concepts with understanding as you have shown throughout this year in physics. joe So, as you progressed through your high school years, you have grown in stature as a student. Your demonstrated ability in the classroom has been echoed on the - 17 -
basketball court. Your quiet demeanor will serve you well as you continue advanced studies. Clara Thornton, talent without bound is a description I've received of you. Your spontaneity has created lasting friendships. This gift has served you and us well. Bonnie Yap, more than once I have graded your work and been impressed by your quick comprehension of concepts and your ability to express yourself. Your gifts, as we all know, have gone beyond physics music, drama, service ... you gave to all. Nina Rogers, with a passion for reading (and just for the pleasure of it, too) that goes beyond any other in your class, you have demonstrated an appreciation for life and learning. Leading on the sports field and forming quality friendships are also among special gifts. Stephanie Gentry, the phrase I use to describe you, even before I sought help from my fellow faculty, is multi-talented, in drama and other arts. You have honored me by taking physics. Your ability to accept new challenges has been your gift to us. Kinnera Bhoopal, several of my conspirators have written that you have a serenity about you, which is a talent that has benefited MPA. You have also used your ability to communicate ideas effectively for our benefit. Christina Cuevas, band concerts were fun for me as I watched that rarity, a girl drummer, keep the other musicians on time. With an ease and sense of confidence, you displayed an enjoyment for what you were doing. Your fashionable future will be filled with many more new experiences. Your soft and gentle nature has been a present to all. Andjill Clark, what can I say to you? Your ability to savor the moment, living in the present to the fullest extent, gives you a special place in my memory. From physics labs to Rube Goldberg to the softball diamond, you gave your all. Your
spontaneity and leadership are important to all of us. Santosh Chandy, you have been quick to become interested in the practical. Your zeal for understanding any item of interest is a driving force, whether it be bicycles or your violin, we all know your welldeveloped sense of humor. Your abilities in music have been recognized as you have used your violin for our benefit. Nitin Bhojraj, your enthusiastic smile and willingness to lead has made it easy for us to afford you the leadership practice that you will use throughout life. You've given us a pleasant blend of fun and serious thought. Leadership, scholarship and friendship are part of the legacy you leave us. Sarah Silhan, I have watched your spirited moments in the computer room as you wrote or visited furiously. I have experienced your music. Talent in ample supply is yours to share. Jenny Nomanbhoy, the energy you expended on the tennis court gave us pride in your accomplishments. Your aggressive play has been matched other contributions, particularly by your writings. You have perhaps grown in stature more than anyone else in the class. John Enright, when serious about a topic, particularly physics, you gave me the opportunity to "talk it." Teachers seek to give understanding within frameworks of concepts. From the athletic fields to the labs, you use your talents well. Ellen Tatro-Mendoza your quiet ways have scarcely hidden your wit and ability serve and contribute to student publications. Your soft-spoken nature has not changed since I first met you four years ago. Quiet strength is your hallmark. Austyo Brickler, as I look back across our four years together, I see Explor-a-vision and the work that went into that project. I appreciate
your sensitivity to others. Your time with us has been one of maturing and preparing for the adventures ahead. Bianca Kodzoman, I wonder how many of your conversations and announcements I have heard, and wondered. "just what did she say?" When you were commenting about any situation, it was clear you had the gift to get to the heart of the matter very quickly. Lisa Schneider, your presence is unmatched. Your spirit is unequalled. When a unique point of view has been needed, someone to "think outside the box," you have filled that role. Your unwavering individualism has made many of us think hard and comprehend concepts from a new perspective. Bennett Kalafut, it is difficult to summarize what you have given us. Your drive, leadership, intelligence, persistence and friendship have given us a rewarding time together. The Academic Challenge team, Rube Goldberg, Student Council, debate and all your classes have experienced the leadership of your forceful personality. Now I have spoken to and about each of you. What have I said? You have been important to us here at MPA - yes, beyond the tuition you brought! We have grown to know each other. I have drawn heavily upon contributions about you from my fellow faculty members, particularly soon-to-be Principal David Hibbs and my long-time colleague, Barry Kritzberg. I thank all of you with deepest gratitude. We do affect each other - for good or for ill. My desire is for all of us to recognize what we have meant to each other. We have formed relationships. We are human. We have that need built into our very souls by our Creator. We are held responsible for our actions. Yet, not every gift has been given nor received. If you receive a gift but do not open it, that gift is as good as no gift. There are gifts our society and - 18-
school are not giving effectively. I note those of kindness, tact, respect, integrity and related wisdom. Many times we have tried to give and nurture them; sometimes they were received and sometimes not. But, whatever the case, relationships are built on interactions. In order to leave you thinking about the wonderful interactions we have had, and those items I have just mentioned, as a parting gift to you, wrapped in words, I quote from Proverbs 3, (New American Standard version), on wisdom:
How blessed is the man who finds wisdom, And the man who gains understanding. For its profit is better than the profit of silver, And its gain than fine gold.
Keep sound wisdom and discretion, So they will be life to your soul, And adornment to your neck. Then you will walk in your way securely, And you foot will not stumble. When you lie down, you will not be afraid; When you lie down, your sleep will be sweet. The gifts that were exchanged among us in these years will not have been in vain if your sleep is sweet. Thank you.
Pre .. school magic by Becky Frontera
BECKY FRONTERA
Magic! It m ystica ll y b lankets a ll th e days of pre-sch ool. Th e m agic of pre-school comes in di ffe rent shapes, sizes, colo rs, and sm ells. It is usuall y brought by an excited little so m eo ne wh o atte m pts to ha nd it to m e abo ut kn ee-level; t h e n I ge n tly bend o r kn eel dow n to ta ke peak at th e ge nuin e, treasured gift that th ey h ave lo nged to share
inqui sitive ly to examine th e puddle of water unde r th e baske t. Alth ough JeTaun 's us h m'\,-n-te W' was eve ntuall y soaked up by a paper towe l, th e magiC o f that sm all ha nd-made snowba ll was a hi ghli ght o f th a I' ritual o f sha rin g that se nse of wo n de r. Eve n a littl e sn owball, th en , ca n be an object of presc hool c h ildren's cu rios ity whe n it sud denl y d isappea rs and t he ir wo nd e r is o n e of t hose m o m en ts o f p resc hool mag iC to be treasu red .
n
with me and t heir cl ass o f peefs. Th e m agiC that was b ro ught by JeTaun Hyatt one day rece nt ly has beco m e th e tO llchsto n e by ,-,,, hi c h all o ther "s how-n -tells" will be measured . Th e "sl1 ow-l1-te ll " she ca rr ied in h er sma ll , ro un d shaped bas ket surpassed th e thirty-eight bags of dirt on e o f my fo rm er firs t grade rs dug with his gra ndfat he r a nd sha red with th e class o ne spring day. jeTaun's "5how-l1- te ll " wou ld be better t ha n t he ki tt ies a nd dogs, th e pet h a mste r, a nd eve n th e pet parakeet I broug ht o ne day. Her "sh ow-n-tell " glisten ed, but th e n mag icall y di sa ppea red, lea vin g be hin d o n ly th e ete rnal preschool question: "why?" I knelt dow n fo r th e ritu a l inspecti o n o f her g ift. It was a small, not very un ifo rm , snowball, c reated by sma ll red Che n ill e-g loved han ds and ge ntl y laid in th e bo tto m o f th e basket that would a id in its disappea ri ng ac lo As th e class ga t he red in oll r m orni ng c ircle, JeTau ll beamed as she graciously invited others to touch and view t he gift, to feel t he m ag ic mo m e nt a nd sh a re th e wo nd e r. The wonde r of /tow, wily a nd wliere d id it co me frolll was a ll ro lled up in to o n e little ba ll. This "wonder of nat ure" was celeb rated by eac h of her peers as she showed it a ro und th e c ircle. " How did you m ake it)" o n e asked. "Wh ere did you ge t it?" wo nd e red an o th e r. "Ca n I have it?" sa id one. "Wow!" was th e unanim o us judgeme n t, h oweve r. vVe then decided to put the g listening "show- n- tell" object o n disp lay whe re eve ryo ne could sec it, visit it, a fte r we compl eted t he c ircle ri t ua l. The wa rmth o f th e roo m (to say no thin g o f th e busy round of activities) tu rn ed th e snowba ll to water. O n e girl, noticin g th e sn ow ba ll was go ne, asked th e ete rn a l q uest ion: "whe re d id it go?" The e ntire class stopped its activiti es a nc! turn ed
Robert Barclay gets a peep at JeTaun Hyatt's "show-ntell" magic.
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The old teant1ftlork brings a volleyball surprise: ""ins by Peggy Gatsinos I 'vas up to
serve. It was our last home
game, and we
PEGGY GATS/NOS
were p laying th e Latin Sch ool, wh ich had t he best vars ity voll ey路 ba ll team in
th e In de pe nd ent School League. The press ure was intense, immeasurable. We had already cli nched second place in o u r league, w ith Lat in taking first, bu t we still wa nted t h is fi n al wi n. We wanted a victo ry over Latin's see mi ng ly unto uc h ab le vo ll ey ba ll
team. So, to say th e press ure was o n would be an unde rstate m e n t . As I stood waiting for th e referee to blow the whi stl e, I too k a d eep breath and looked out in th e d irection
of th e sta nds. The sight was a rare Olle at M PA spo rting eve nts. The bleac h ers, usua ll y only sligh tl y dotted w it h a few fans (a lm ost a ll parents), were no w over flowing with people. Th ere we re th e parents, of course, but teac he rs, adm inistra tors, and nearly half th e stu den t bo d y was th e re as we ll. T he no ise th e fa ns m ade fi ll ed th e gym w ith a life a nd vita li ty tha t ...va s usuall y absen t . That so un d of support and exc item ent was one o f th e s,,,,ee test I have eve r hea rd. In t hat in sta nt it h it me how fa r o ur va rsity vo ll ey ba ll tea m had co m e since I joined it th ree years ear lier. W he n I jo ined M PA's vo ll eyba ll team as a so p h omore in 1997, t he game was no t new to m e. It h as bee n m y o ne at hl etic passio n since grade sc hool. I jo ined th e tea m sim p ly beca use I loved th e ga m e. Fo r m ost o th er spor ts 1 p re ferred be in g a n
observe r, but w hen it came to vo ll eyba ll, I wa s th e first o ne o n th e cou rt . So, in 1997, w hen I began playi ng vo ll eyba ll on a team agai n after ha ving le ft th e game since grade school, I was both eager and excited. I looked forward to playin g co mpe ti t ive ly o n a tea mi 1 a lso looked forwa rd to wi nn ing. But win ni ng d id n 't co me easi ly, a n d it di dn ' t co me righ t away. MilA's va rsity, m y so ph o more year, la rgely consisted of u nde rclassm en. Sopho mores Aura Brickler, Sa rah Se ifer t, and me, as well as fres h me n C hri stin e Linne rud and Rebecca Frede rick, were a ll o n th e vars ity team . There we re also juni o rs and se n io rs o n t h e tea m , o f co urse, bu t t here '-路laS no de n yi ng that our team was yo ung. We pla yed agai nst more ex perie nced teams and an unsu ccessful season was so m ew hat inev itabl e and, alth o ugh I do n 't li ke to adm it it, eve n 1 saw little h o pe for ou r tea m q u ite ea rl y in th e seaso n. [ ,\'as d isappo inted , but no t surpr ised, by o ur 2- 10 co nference record. My junio r year I looked at th e n ew volleyball seaso n ahead wit h re newed hopes and exc iteme n t. M y m any mo n ths o f abse nce from th e co urt had rek in d led t hat e nthUSiasm and deter min atio n . Th e tea m was beg in n ing with a clea n slate . 'We were a ll a yea r older, o ur ski lls had improved, and we had gained so mc ex pe ri ence. The varsity team now consisted of mostl y se ni o rs and jun io rs, w ith o nl y a co upl e sop homo res. I bega n th e season w ith m uch imp roved sk ills as we ll as with hopes of hav in g a wi nni ng seaso n . T h is, h o weve r, was no t mean t to be. The team was plagued with a lack of un ity a nd a n um be r of team m embe rs were in co nsta n t co nfli ct w ith th e coach. Th e po te nti al was
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th e re, bu t because we we re never t rul y ab le to come toge th er as a tea m , o ur in iti al h opes of a successful season became no thi ng more than s hattered d rea ms. Abo ut m idway thro ug h th e seaso n, I gave up hope. I saw t hat our team was ba re ly he ld toge th er. I aba ndoned a n y ideas of w in n ing, a nd sim ply worked o n im p ro vin g m y a biliti es a n d enj oyi ng w hat I co ul d o f t he ga m es. 'We e nded th e seaso n with (l d isma l con fe re nce reco rd of 2-1 0 again, co ming in n ex t to last in th e In depen de nt School Leag ue. G ive n thi s hi sto ry, o ur successfu l 1999 seaso n was nothi ng sho rt of astou nd ing. In o ur pre-seaso n p rac tice, h oweve r, I se nsed so mc thing differe n t . T he po tentia l o f thi s year's tea m see m ed to revea l itself. I was hes itant, at fi rst, to rai se hopes th a t migh t only be d isappo inted o nce again. All th e in g redien ts for success see m ed to be th ere: o ur skil l leve l as a tea m was highi we had ex pe rie nced p laye rs at all positions; we had few wea kn essesi our re lation s with Coach Dale Ral sto n were for th e most part good; a nd, most important, as a tea m we worked we ll togeth e r, bo th o n and o ff t he co urt. Th ere was no de nyi ng it - a ll the p ieces o f th e puzzle were th ere. All t ha t was left was to see if we cou ld pu ll it off on the court. We bega n the seaso n by winning o u r first ma tch a nd, tha n kfull y, it bega n a t rend th at wa s to last d uring o u r entire seaso n . W ith eac h subsequen t wi n , o ur tea m became st ro nger, mo re u n ified , and co n fide n t. It wa s t he team's me n ta l att itude t hat m ad e the d iffere nce. We went from hoping to win a m atch now and th e n to beli evin g th at we cou ld go un defea ted. We d id not wa nt" to set o ur sites a n y lowe r th a n th e league
Acade my was th e battle fo r second champ ionship. place. Th e pressure \Alas in te nse even We did not end up becom ing before the first serve and did not let vo lleyba ll champio ns of the Independent School League, alas, but what we up unt il th e fin al point of th e third game. Had it not been for the enordid manage to accomplish was still an amazing feat. We end ed ou r season with a conference record of 93, tying Woodlands Academy for second place. MilA's varsity vo lleyball tea m went from next to last place in sta ndings last yea r to second place in the league this year. I had d rea mt of playing o n a wi nnin g vo ll eyball team since I joined the game, but so mehow I neve r believed it Coach Dale Ralston instructs his charges during a time路out. would act ually co me tfllej my final year in MPA mous size, noise level, a nd enthusivo lley ball proved to be th e season asm of th e crowd, I doub l th at we that turn ed those drea ms into a wo uld not have won O Uf ma tch rea lity. agai nst Wood land s Academy (15-1 3; The final record was not our 14- 16; 16-14). It was the crowd, too, team's on ly great accomp lishment of that helped us take Latin to three the 1999 season, however. ga mes (6- 15; 15- 12; 9-15). Ou r final two matc hes of th e In each o f th ese matches, I for t he season were not on ly o ur most fi rst time in my life felt fear, anticipa路 difficult, but our most impo rtant as li o n, excitement, joy, and relief, all \,\ ,(' 11. Both, fortunately, were played at within a matter of an hour or two. J home. will never fo rget the d read t hat The match aga inst Wood lands engulfed my body as I stood poised and ready to receive a se rve that cou ld
SElfEIH
13
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mea n a disastrous end to a remarkab le seaso n, or the ad ul ation th at filled me in th e moment s when we fought for one more chance at victory and succeeded. Words simpl y don't do justice to the unbeli eva ble emotional ex peri ence of those last two ma tches. MPA's vars ity 1999 volleyball team surp rised everyone, including ourselves. It is the hard work a nd tea m wor k of Coach Ra lston, seni ors, Aura Brickler, Sarah Seifer t, and myself, jun iors, Christine Li nn erud, Rebecca Frederi ck, Maria DiPaolo, Eli za beth Toomey, and Carlene DelCasti llo, and sop homores, Leigh Kodzoman and Brie Yaksik th at made it happen. Last yea r, if so meo ne had asked, I might have cau ti ollsly pred icted a wi nnin g season in 1999. Two co nsecuti ve 2-1 0 seasons ca n make one doubtful, if not down路right cynical. I never imagined such a season as 1999. It will no\-" be fi led away as a treasured memory, an un forgettab le MPA high sc hool ex peri ence.
n (Da le Ra/stal1lVas \IDled Coacll-at-tlle- Year
by ISL volleyball waclles. - - Editor)
Famous last words:
"I don't play softball, plus I need a break... " by Sarah Seifert {OO] Sh e corne red me ou tside he r office and asked me to p lay softball. So m e mi ght ca ll Coac h Pariso intimidating a nd, to a fres hm an, she defin itely ,,"as. (Jut I to ld her, "Sorry, I' m n o t playing a third spo rt."
It was not th e way o ne wanted to end a season. T he 'W ood land s pitch er sli pped on th e rain-soaked m Ollnd and th e umpire - with two MPA runn ers 011 base
and only one out - ca lled the ga me. Wood lands, ahead 12-5, was declared th e w inne r, and MPA had to se tt le fo r a share (with Wood lands) o f th e In dependent Sc hool League so ftba ll titl e it had wo n out ri ght in '1998 w ith a 12-0 mark.
MPA, wh ic h h ad defeated Woodlands 15- 13 earli e r in th e season, fini sh ed with an ISL mark o f 11-1. MilA's ISL w inning streak of 24 al so came to an end on that rain y Woodlands fi eld in Lake Forest, a streak
that ex tended over three seasons. Lake Forest Academy, with an 8-4 win in 1997, was the last ISL team be fore Wood lands to defeat th e Academy. The strea k: MPA 1997 ......... 8
Opponent L.l~e Forest Academy ....... 6
1998 .... .. 38 24 14 16 15 7 14 7 6 19 5 18
Elgin Aca dem y ................. 6
1999 ....... 22 15
23 20
Lake Fores t .................... I I Francis Parke r ................... 5 Elgin ................................ 6 Woodland s Academy ..... 13 Willows ............................ 7 La~e Forest Academy ... .... 3 Latin .................... ... ......... 2 Latin ................................ 2 Willows ........................... 0 Elgin ...... .. ......................... 3
17
Fran cis Parker ................... 7
26 15
23 13 12 25
Latin ................................. 1 Woodlands Aca dem y ....... Lake Forest Academy ....... Franci s Parker ..... .............. Fran cis Parker ................... Lake Fo rest Acade m y ....... Willows ............ .. ....... Elgin Academy ................. Wil lows ...................... ...... Wood land s Aca demy .......
4 9 5 4 2
0 I I :;
Latin ................................. I
Just the night before my mother and I had a talk about my busy sched ule. IIYou're doing too much," my mother sa id. SARAH SEIFERT I was the eager freshman w ho joined everything. No v\" after two spo rts (vo ll eyball and basketball) and man y ex tracurricular activities, I was ge tting burned out. " I don 't pla y softba ll, a nd plus I need a break," I firml y to ld coac h . "Sara h, yo u' re a n at h le te. If you can th row, catch, and run , yo u can pla y," Pariso responded. Sh e was not ge ttin g it". "Okay," she co ntinued, "how about you co m e o ut for a wee k. If you don ' t like it, th en no softball , but if you like it, yo u become a member o f m y team." I knevv I d idn't want to p lay. I wanted to get" home at 3 p.m. and have m y life slow down, but Coach Pariso would not let" me go with o ut at leas t tryin g. I decided to hum o r he r for a week. That wa s 1997. It is no w 2000 and I was the starti ng left fi elde r o n Coac h Pariso's softball tea m. Who wou ld have th o ught that little freshman wo uld have stuc k with softba ll? I do n't rem e mbe r that first week of pra ctice. I don 't remembe r ho"路,, I fe lt or any conversatio ns w ith m y moth e r d iscuss in g my sc hed u le n o t be ing too busy. I just re me mber havin g fun. Softba ll was like no other sport. ' '''hat I liked most was that there was no division by classes. 'We we re all one team. I re me mber Christin e John so n, a senior, pickin g up th e bat bag, while I, a freshman , ca rri ed th e catc he r'S eq uipm ent. On all th e ot her team s 1 h ad bee n o n, no se ni o r he lped ca rry equipm ent. Carryi ng th e eqUipm e nt was a job for freshmen o nl y. I didn't fee l like a lowly fres hm an on th e softball tea m. It was a g reat feeling. Coac h Pariso introduced the concept o f w inning too. MPA does not focus on athletics. We play, but don't always win. After a while one kind o f gets used to losing. Things were diffe re nt with Coach Pa ri so, howeve r. She ex pected the best. I was so sca red of 11 er. I was not th e stro ngest路 softball
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We had been rescued. No matter what happened, we were always a team. I remember feeling so cool when I got my softball sweatshirt. Everyone on the team was given black pants, a grey jersey, and we bought a red tee-shirt, and a grey sweatshirt. Printed on the back of the tee-shirt was our individual number and printed on the back of the sweatshirt, in capital red letters, was our last name. I proudly wore my IISeifert" sweatshirt. I felt so cool to have a shirt with my name on the back. All our softball clothes are unbelievably comfortable too. I wear my sweatshirt year round, and I wore my tee-shirt so much I had to get a new one last year because the number was peeling off the back. That was 1997. The next year, we got even more unified. We each bought the exact same bat bags and warm up jackets. Yes, money went into being on the softball team, but it was well worth it. We were a real team. Unity in a team is an intimidation factor. If you show up on someone else's field, everyone dressed the same and carrying the same bags, it looks as if you are one mass. You are one body moving together. I had always been on the team that got intimidated. I was never the intimidator - until Coach Pariso gave us backbone. Coach Pariso's goal was to make us stronger, mentally and physically. She would always say, IIPhysical mistakes will happen, however I will not accept mental mistakes. Everyone's head must be in this game." She made us stronger by being tough on us. I remember the first time confidence crept into my head. The year was 1998 and I was a sophomore. I had an epiphany. If I stopped thinking, III can't hit this, I can't hit this, I can't hit this" and, instead, just keep my eyes on the ball, I might actually hit the ball. I was calmer after that and, not surprisingly, calming down made me play better. I was also able to take coach's criticism better. I was able to help myself and the team more. Coach Pariso taught me a lot about trusting myself. Pariso also taught me about not taking myself so seriously. Pariso has a distinct manner of joking around. She will insult you. She does not hold things back. If you say something ignorant, she will comment. She does not tolerate stupidity. And, as all good students learn from their master, Coach Pariso got back what she gave out. Making fun of coach has always been a softball tradition. We goof around. She wears bright yellow shirts, and we buzz at her. If she leaves her keys out in the open, sometimes they would happen to get hidden. And since Pariso looks so much like the Woodlands coach, Rosemary, it just seems natural that Rosemary is Pariso's evil twin. Everything is in good fun. Making fun of coach helped produce more unity with the team. But bus rides were my favorite team-building
player. Softball was not my sport, but I tried. I remember standing in the batter's box, shaking. I was so scared. I struck out numerous times. And then, I had to turn to Coach Pariso and have her yell at me for not swinging on my third strike. "If you're going to strike out, you'd better go out swinging." I still hear her stern voice in my head. As a freshman, I started in left field, not because of my skill, but because of life's chances. A week into the season, the sophomore left fielder sprained her ankle sliding into second base. She was out for the rest of the season and so I was next in line. I went out there and did my best. In practice, coach would keep hitting balls to me until I got it right. I would be out there with my glove up, my head back, and my heart praying to God that I catch the softball. Most of the time my prayers were not answered. So many balls flew over my head. The idea that it is easier to run in for a ball then to run backwards didn't hit me until the end of the season. Lots of balls went over my head and down the hill. Softball was just something I did. I didn't have much heart in it. I loved it, but was not too serious about it. I went to practice, did my best in games, and tried not to get nervous. I didn't know our record. I was oblivious. I was a freshman. It wasn't until the next year, during basketball season, that I found out we finished second in the league. "WOW," I thought. "We are actually good." I could continue to tell how, after realizing we were good, MPA's softball team went on to win two league championships. However, I want to tell a different side of the story, the side that most outsiders don't get to see, the side only the team sees, the side that will stay in my memory and heart forever. I remember, in the 1997 season, the unexpected events that followed our game at Woodlands. We won, but on our way home, the bus broke down. We were stranded at a gas station. We were all so happy we had won the game, it didn't seem to matter. (Being stuck on a bus with Pariso if we had lost to Woodlands - usually our main competitionwould not have been pretty.) There we were fourteen girls, one Coach Pariso, and one bus driver, waiting. We talked and waited. Nina Rogers cleaned the bus windows with the gas station squeegee. Coach Pariso told us some of her college stories. The best part, however, was when the bus driver went into the gas station and came out with a huge brown box. The gas station attendant gave her a box full of IIJumpin' Java" coffee mugs. We each got one as a souvenir. Today mine sits on my dresser as a piggy bank. After hours of waiting, and still no progress, except for clean windows, we called for the "Bremer bus." Mr. Bremer came to pick up the whole team. We all piled into the gargantuan red Bremer bus and cheered.
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acti vity. Being a member of th e ISL, our team s trave l very far, ve ry often. Talking was the best way to handle the hour o r more bus rides. Bus ta lks ra nged fro m school happenings, to sex, to life, to Coach Pariso's clothes. Un ity and Coach Pariso are the o n ly reasons we won two championships. Eve n mo re amazing, th e softba ll team had 24 \""ins in a row. O ur winn ing streak bega n in 1997, wit h us winning the last ga me of th e season. The 1998 seaso n was o ur best season . We went undefeated, 12 wins and zero loses. In 1999, we continued to win . The championsh ip came down to the last game of the season. We had to bea t \!Vood lands o n their fi eld. Ra in poured down thro ugh most of th e ga me and we were no t togeth er. We cnded up losing, 12-5. We fini shed th e season with 11 wins and 1 loss.
We ended u p ty ing ro r first place, so we did not lose the champio nship. In th ose three years, 1997-1999, over 18 girls we re coached by Pariso, and each played her hea rt o ut and th e result was two championships. I remember standing o utside of Coach Pa riso's office as a fres hm an, before softball bega n . I remember our conversation as if it took place yes terday. I remember those bus rid es. I remcmber feeling so nervous. I rem ember the fi rst time I fel t confident. I remember being stranded at th e gas station . As time goes on, I'm sure I'll lose many memo ri es, but softball has give n me so much. I may not remember th e score, the ga me, or my statistics, but I will never forge t the tea m. The bond you fo rm with yo u tea mmates and coach stays with yo u fo rever.
Daily Soufhfown's basketball player of the week: Shaneah Taylor It was just an average perfo rman ce-for her. Shanea h Ta ylo r scored 6S pa ints in three ga mes that \Nee k, including 33 in a win over Cristo Rey that secured the \路Va rri o rs' first win ning season in a decade. Her performance was good enough, however, fo r the juni or guard on th e MPA gi rls' basketball tea m, to be named the Dnil)' 501lllll0IVII '5 playe r of th e \Neek last February. It wasn't an excepti o nal week fo r Ta ylo r, Iloweve r. It was typica l. And that was why she ave raged better than 22 poi nts per game and led the ISL in scoring. Th e season before - her first - she managed no better th an five points per ga me. She aUr ibutes muc h of her dramatic scori ng imp rovement to da il y practi ce over the summe r. "There is no doubt th at Shanea h is o ne of the most explosive offensive players in the league," said Coach Tom Drahoza l. "S he has an explosive firs t step, and is a ve ry q ui ck, at hleti c player Wll O is also a tre mendo us free-th row shooter." O pposing coaches also ack nowledge her lalent. She scored 27 paints in a losing effo rt aga inst Latin an d Ric h Levenhage n, th e Latin coach, observed: "She took advantage of everyt hi ng that we gave her, and sil e fini shed those opportunities. That's what great playe rs do."
Player of the Week: Shaneah Taylor
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Six years on the seven seas by Wendy Heilman [89J
WENDY HEILMAN
Have you eve r sailed on board a l uxury cruise ship, or even taken a o ne n ight "cruise to nowhere?" If you have (or evell if yo u've just tho ught about it), did you ever sit back and won de r about th e countless number o f people w ho work both day and n igh t to ensure that you ha ve th e best vaca ti o n of yo ur life? vVell , I must admit" that I never even gave it a second t IlOLIg I11'. Asa
matter of fact, I n ever even dreamed o f going on a cru ise, much less WO RKING o n a c rui se ship, be fo re my senio r year in college. In th e spring of 1993, h o wever, I jUlllped aboard, signed lip for an e ight-mo nth cr ui se ship contract. That was th e beginning of th e most excit i ng yea rs of m y life. It was rea ll y a radi cal de parture, but to und e rstand 11 m" dras tic a move that was, let me explain a b it about m yself. I graduated fro lll MPA in 1989 (a fte r a se ni o r year filled wit ll AP classes) a nd wen t on to Lake Fo res t College. When I started at Lake Fo rest, I planned on gettin g a deg ree in fo reig n languages a nd perhaps acco unting, \vith drea ms of going into internationa l business. O nce I began my first se mes te r, h owever, I realized that I did not \Nant to go into business, but wa nted to rem ai n in tile inte rnationa l rea lm . The next logical ste p, therefo re, was to decla re a triple m a jor: Frenc h, Spanish and international relations. Til at did not rea lly p repare m e for any spec ific ca reer, but gave me a good start. O ne reaso n I had chose n La ke Forest was tha t, instead of offe ring a regular study abroad program, it provided inte rnships abroad instead. During my juni o r yea r, I spent th e fall semester workin g at th e United Na ti o ns (U 'ESeO) in Paris, a nd in my se n io r year, I spe nt the fall semester in Madr id, working fo r th e Spanish gove rnm e nt. Thi s gave me a few mo re ideas about what I wanted to do, but' I still was n ot ab le to nai l down a specific career c hoice. At th e end o f my junior yea r, I did a prelimina ry in terview with th e CIA and felt that I really wanted to go into th e gove rnm ent, perh aps as a translato r/ inter prete r. I fill ed out m y applications to go thc Monterrey Lan guage Inst itute in California and checked o ut a few other sc hools as ,路ve ll. By the tim e se ni or yea r star ted, afte r m y first day in class (in Madrid), I rea li zed th at I DID NOT W'lIlt to spend anot he r two years in school, a nd th at I rea ll y wa nted to take so m e time off, to "di scover myself," as "hey sa y, and
. 2S .
MIV Galaxy in Glacier Bay, Alaska.
just hang loose. Well , afte r a ve ry lo n g pho n e ca ll home, m y pare nts agreed . .vith me, gave mc th e ir suppo rt a nd I was off to find so meilling "coo l" to do for a year or two after grad uatio n. At that pa int, I knew o n ly that I wa nt ed to do so methin g in th e trave l industry where I mi ght use m y languages. But ,路v hat, o r how exact ly, I wasn ' t surc. Wh e n I re turn ed sta teside in Dece mbe r, I began to do so m e soul searclling to fi gure out w hi ch path I wanted to head do wn. Since I wanted to tra ve l, it mad e th e most se nse to se nd my res um es to th e maj or airlin es and hotels in Chi cago. That didn't seem to be e no ugh , however. Later, wh e n I 11eard so m e fami ly frie nds talking about th e ir daughter Wll O was working o n a c rui se ship, I became intrigued. I really kn ew no thing about working on a crui se line, of co urse, but th e re were seve ral books in the ca ree r planning and placement offi ce at Lake Fo rest that he lped deepen my int e res t. I did a little m o re research, se nt out resum es, a nd hoped fo r th e best. Even th o ugh I would ha ve take n a ho tel o r air li n e job, I think that, deep down, I was rea ll y ho ping so metlling on th e seve n seas would co me thro ugh. Afte r all, w hat youn g girl wou ldn't dream of being like Juli e o n th e Lov(' Boal? I freely ad mit that tove Bani was o ne o f my favorit e shows and I alwa ys to ld m y mo m t ha t I wan ted to be just like Juli e. It didn 't exactly work ou t that wa y, but it su re was fun ! Afte r waiting for so me tim e, I finall y received a ca ll from a gentlema n w ho claimed to be ,,,,o rkin g for a new cruise com pan y. He was impressed by m y resu me and felt that I wo uld fit in pcrfec tly. Afte r it b it m o re d iscussion and a fc\v more ,vee ks, we cam e to a n agree m en t and I wa s given th e job. Til e best I'Iling was that it started two da ys aft er graduati o n! I ''''as o n c loud nin e a nd co uld hardl y wai t to start my adve nture! Wh o wo u ld have ever thou ght th at We ndy, who WaS go ing to graduat e Cum Laude and Phi Be la Kappa from Lake Fo res t Collegc, wo uld be h eading off th e New York, to
would sta rt my day at abou t 7:30 a. m ., and work straight through until midnight or o ne a.m., wi th time off on ly to eat lunch and dinn er and change my clo th es in between ! It sure was hard, but it was a lo t of fun too! After m y stint on board th e Regnl Elllpress, I spent th e
nex t two yea rs going from sh ip to shi p, doi ng different jobs. I wo rked o n such ships as th e Star o(TexClS, th e SIS lvlajes tic, and th e DolphinlVI ho lding such jobs as socia l hos tess, program coo rdin ator, and port lecturer. The most challengi ng was po rt lecturer. Th is entails lecturing o n t he different ports of call and telling passengers where to go to get the best deals. Now, this is all fin e and wo nderful if yo u are wor kin g o n a lux ury ship when people are th ere to bu y, bu y, bu y. However, it is ve ry difficult when yo u are o n a ship where th e passenge rs th in k that paying S 10 for three tee-sh irts is expe nsive. How in th e ,vo rld wo uld they even co nsider bu yi ng a d iamond rin g! An yway, need less to say, I did not last lo ng in th at job! I d id, howeve r, keep my eyes and ea rs o pen, and when I go t a ca ll from a friend of m ine (a fe llow cruiser) who told me that a jo b was ope ning up for a pOSition on a shi p going to the Med iterran ean, I jum ped at th e chan ce.
Hubbard Glacier calving.
sig n o n boa rd a cruise ship, with abso lutely no idea what was in sto re for her!?! 'Well, I was sca red to pieces, but also very excited about m y first REAL job and being o n my own. W hen May o f 1993 fi nally ro lled around, I was so
excited I cou ld hard ly wa it fo r grad uatio n . When Saturda y, rvlay 8 finally ca me, I offi ciall y grad uated fro m Lake Forest College and on Mo nda y, May 10, I was o n an airp lane headed to New York wit h nothi ng but th e name of t he ship. I was ex pecting so meo ne from th e compan y to pick me up at th e airpor t, but when no o ne showed up, I jumped in a taxi to head to th e Shi p. Boy was I scared when 1 got in the taxicab and told th e cab dri ver the na me of th e ship. He had no idea what I was talking about and to ld me th at there were no cruise shi ps in Ne\v Yo rk! I fina ll y got hi m to take me to th e U.S.S. In trepid, wh ich is a nava l ship/ m use um , peflllanentl y clocked in New Yor k, an d - lucky fo r me! - ri gh t nex t to cr uise ship termina ls. Ane! there, before me, was my ne'v II home," th e Regal
In March of 1995, I left m y job as a port lecturer, re-
packed my bags and headed down to Ga lveston, Texas where I signed o n th e TS.S. Stella Solaris. I must admit that l11 y fondest memo ries of cruisi ng come from t he time spent o n boa rd the Stella Solaris. She is a sma ll ship, with o nl y 600 passenge rs and 280 crewmembers. She was bui lt in th e 1950 l s and is defin itely NOT a lUXury vesse l. She does have somethin g very specia l about her, howeve r. Th e ship has "Character," which ca n be felt, but is not easi ly ex plained. Most people who have work ing on ships for t he better
rt of their lives will tell you th at th e
o lder ships are rea l IIs hips" and that the new, lU Xur y lin ers
Ell/press.
I ,,,'as flabbe rgasted. Here was this II huge" ship, and she was so beautiful. The o nl y cr uise shi p Illad eve r seen in my life was the Qlleell Mar)" when I was abou t 10 years o ld, and who ca n remember back th at far? I was so imp ressed an d could not believe how lucky I was! I was ready to sta rt my new ad ventu re! [ fin all y got o n the ship, got sit uated in my cabi n (with a few mishaps in between) and snuggled down for t hat night. vVell, wasn't I surprised til e nex t mo rnin g when th e Qlleell ElizalJetlI II was docked rig ht next to us! What a ship!
(a lthough they are
magn ifi ce nt and offer every luxury)
are just "f1 oating hotels" and not rea lly ships.
As I started o n the So/aris, I was in for a whole d ifferen t wo rld . [ signed o n as the secreta ry to the chief purser, but really had no idea what that meant! Once o n board, I lea rn ed that I \vould Wendy and friends at the bottom be wor king in t he of Santor;ni, Greece.
The /legnl Elllpress looked like a tu gboat next to t he QE11. I was a bit surp rised , but und aunted. I fi gured lh at we all
had to start somewhere a nd one day, I wo uld wo rk myself up to a ship as big as the QE-ll. I spe nt the next six 1110 n t hs on board the Regal Empress and had a great time. I wor ked ha rd, and learn ed so mu ch about th e cruise business. At o ne pOint, I was th e assistant cru ise di rec tor, sho re excursio n manager (lnd socitl l hos tessall at th e sa me tim e! Imagine, three full tim e jo bs at o nce! I
- 26-
down th e main ave nu e, you can just picture wha t li fe was purser's office (I now switched from playing t he role of like bac k in those da ys. Imagine standin g in th e sa me "Juli e" to that of "Gopher") and would be doing much of amphitheate r whe re S1'. Paul preached to th e Ephessians. the paperwork, and sometimes handlin g passe n ge r com· When yo u close yo ur eyes, yo u can envi sion him standin g plaints and giving info rmation. Well, in th eo ry, it so un ded th e re, preac hin g to th e people. W h at a Sight! great, but in rea lity, it was a ve ry diffe re nt sto ry. Have yo u eve r bee n to Egypt and see n th e pyram ids? imagine ... o ne American woman, in an offi ce with two As yo u d ri ve into Ca iro from Alexandria, yo u can see to four G ree k m en, and with th e majority of passe ngers th e pyra mids and th e sph in x off to yo ur left. If yo u loo k being Am erica n. It does n 't take mu ch to figure o ut t hat most strai ght a head , yo u see th e bustli ng city of Cairo. What a of th e passe nge rs wo uld come to me for h elp, info rmation, differe nce. I'll neve r forget th e night \·ve were in Cairo, and I complaints, etc. and I ha d to do m y best to he lp th e m. In was ab le to see th e "sound & light sh ow" at th e pyramid s (a add iti on, I did a ll so rts of paperwo rk - registeri ng passe nge rs, lase r show put o n at ni ght that gives a hi story of th e py ra· noting if th ey were celebrating an anni versa ry, birt hda y o r mi ds). o th er eve nt a n d making sure all t ha t in for m atio n was passed A good fri e nd o f mi ne, who h ad bee n to Ca iro ma ny o n to the appropriate people. It doesn't sOllnd like mu ch of tim es before, knew what a dream of min e it \'\'as to see th e a job, but th e re we re som e days whe n I wo nde red why I had pyram ids. \Nc ll , 11e stood rig ht at th e e ntra nce to th e show ever wa nted to be in this line of business! and wa itecl fo r m e becau se h e wa nted to see the ex pression Fo r all the drawbacks of this job (answe rin g th e Same all m y face at th e very m om ent wh e n I first saw th e py ra· questions 500 tim es a da y, etc.) there were a lso man y great micls. th in gs abo ut it. I would co m e to t he office in th e m o rning Needl ess to say, it was a price less mom ent that will li ve before we arri ved in port, work llntil m os t of th e passengers with m e for th e rest of my life. left th e ship, th en I was free to The n ext da y, wh en we go out and ex p lo re th e po rts of toured the city and saw the ca ll. I was bac k in th e offi ce by sights, I was fla bbe rgas ted . We 5:00 p.m. a nd wo ul d work until started at th e Museum of th e offi ce closed at 9:00 p.lll. Antiquities where we saw tIl e Not such a bad life! legendary " King Tllt Exhibit." Th e Stella So/a ris sail ed from Many of you m ay have see n Ga lves ton and we m ade o ur way these art ifa cts in Chi cago when to Ft. La ud e rdal e before we they toured the wo rld man y sta rted th e gra nd jo urn ey of years ago, but at th e tim e, I was crossin g t he ocean! just five· yea rs·old and had Six strai ght days at sea with rece n t ly moved to C hi cago, and nothin g to see but blue water my parents we re unabl e to get does wond ers for the soul. (You al so hope that th e crew is well tickets to the ex hibiti on. Egypt. trai ned in sa fe ty man euve rs in Twenty yea rs late r, howeve r, there I was, in Ca iro, seeing eve rythin g for myse lf! After case o f an aCC ide nt, but you tend not to dwe ll o n such th e muse um , we h ead ed to th e pyra mids and were ab le to subj ects!) O n ce we a rri ved in Greece, twenty·one days later, I spend some tim e ex plorin g the pyramid s a nd th e sp hin x. I kn ew that I had mad e the right decisio n and th a t I was where J rea ll y wanted to be. I spe nt the n ext seve n m o n t hs did not c hoose to ri de a ca m el to th e pyramid, but I was ab le tourin g aro un d th e Greek Islands, Turkey, Egy pt a nd Israel to go inSide th e o ne pyramid a nd do a bit of explo ring. and ha d so man y grea t expe ri e nces. I did a b it of Sightsee in g Alt houg h th e re is reall y nothing to see in side th e pyra mid, a nd saw most o f th e histori cal sights and ce rta inl y lea rn ed th e re is an atm osp he re surround in g th e area, just as in Eph css us. If yo u close eyes, yo u can imagine th e pyramid s quite a bit abou t a nc ient history. Som e of t he p lilCes that I saw a nd spe nt tim e at were just magn ificen t! It sure made fi lled wit h a n cie nt treasures, a rtifacts and of course, mumme wish that I had paid m ore atte nti on to Mr. Stelto n mi es! d urin g wor ld histo ry as a fres hman at MPA! I did go to Egy pt and Isra e l several tim es o n subsequ ent Have yo u eve r been to Eph ess us? c rui ses, but" th e maj ori ty of m y summ ers we re spent to urin g The city is just amaz in g. Yo u ca n spe nd th e who le da y th e G ree k Island s and Turkey. Ju st a s in Ephessus and Cairo, t he re a rc ma n y pl aces in Greece and Turkey w here an cient vvandering around t he ruin s a nd th e c ity just see m s to co m e alive. You ca n walk down th e st reet wh e re Anth o ny and histo ry see ms to co me alive. Take for instan ce, th e island of Cleo patra rode th eir chariot and you ca n see o ne of th e Pa lmos, wh ere St. Jo hn wrote Rel'e/atiolls. YOLI ca n actu a ll y largest an cien t li b rari es. If yo u close yo ur eyes as yo u wa lk go in to th e grotto w h ere th e sac red book was wr itt en and see
· 27 .
the indentation in the wall where St. John laid his head. There are so many places to see and so many things to do that it would take a book to describe them all. Other grand adventures that I experienced on the Solaris included sailing up the Amazon River, sailing through the Panama Canal and several transatlantic crossings. The Stella Sofaris was registered in Greece and, therefore, the majority of the crewmembers had to be Greek. The second largest contingent was from the Philippines, but the crew had a decided international flavor. It was definitely an experience. And, since I was working in the purser's office, I got to be very friendly with many of the Greeks who, in turn, wanted to share their country with me. During our time off in port, the guys would take some of us non-Greeks ll out to little cafes or for drinks and show us a side of Greece that most tourists don't ever get the chance to see. We ate the traditional foods, drank the traditional lIouzaki, II listened to the traditional music and had a great time. We witnessed the dancing on tables and the breaking of plates, many times right on the ship when there was a festival or a celebrations of some sort! After almost two years on board the Solaris, I decided to leave and move on. It was a very difficult decision for me, but there were many mitigating factors. As much as I loved the people that I worked with, and as hard as it was for me to leave, I knew that I could not stay forever. I think that that is one of the problems for people who work on board ships. They get lulled into a false sense of reality and security and the more time they spend on ships, the harder it is for them to leave and to become readjusted to the "realll world. As for me, I knew that it was time to leave, and so I did. At the end of my contract, I went home for a month for a much-needed vacation, and then went to work for Celebrity Cruises. This time, I became the program coordinator. This is a person who prepares all the daily programs, and then does general secretarial work for the hotel manager, captain and other senior officers. The great thing about this job was that I had my own office and did not have to deal with the passengers. I know that sounds terrible, but after four years of listening to people complain about the most trivial things, I just could not take it anymore. I spent the next seven months on board the Zenith, touring the Caribbean in the winter and then Bermuda in the summer. As much as I loved working on ships, it was starting to become just another job for me, and the glamour of the Caribbean wore off. I decided to stick around for one more contract, and then reevaluate my situation. After a vacation, I signed on Galaxy, which was Celebrity's newest ship, just one year old when I signed on. This was quite a change, as the ship was so big - 2000
passengers and 900 crewmembers. After only one month, the company transferred me to the Mercury, their newest vessel and flagship of the company. It was a real honor to be asked to serve on this vessel. Although I was still only the program coordinator, it was equivalent to a promotion to be placed on the flagship during her inaugural cruises. I spent the next several months on board, and took her through the Panama Canal up to Alaska. Once we arrived in Alaska, I went home for vacation, but was back up in Alaska four weeks later, this time on board Galaxy again. I must say that I truly loved Alaska, and was probably the only crewmember, out of 900, who was sorry to leave Alaska and return to the Caribbean. The mountains and the clear waters are just incredible. And yes, even though it was chilly, it was worth it! Once a week, we would go to see a glacier (either Hubbard Glacier, or Glacier Bay) and spend all day just sitting in front of it. The sheer size and magnificence of the glaciers is just indescribable. Imagine, a ship weighing 77,000 tons just dwarfed by these glaciers. And to watch them calving (ice breaking off into the water) is a great experience. On the days we spent in front of glaciers, many of the crewmembers would be out on deck (in the crew area) just waiting for ice to fall, with their cameras poised and ready. Needless to say, I went through many rolls of film in Alaska! For me, after one and one-half years with Celebrity, I felt that my time on ships was up and that I had to move on. I guess that one can only handle a nomadic lifestyle for so many years. I hadn't really had a IIhome base" for nearly six years (Technically, of course, I still lived with my parents, but I was constantly on the go, moving around, changing addresses and that sort of thing.) The lifestyle onboard ships is also very different from the that "real world ll on land. The best way to describe it is to say that is was like living in a frat house on the ocean! So, I made one of the hardest decisions of my life, and decided to leave the cruise industry behind and the move on. In November, I hung up my "sea legs" and returned home to go into the family business. At this point in my life, I don't really miss the ships that much, but I sure do miss the people and all the fun I had. Every so often I think about being out at sea, so far from home, with nothing but the water surrounding you, but then I think about my family and how lucky I am to be able to be with them. I certainly do not regret the time that I spent at sea, and I would do it again in a heartbeat. How many people can say by age twenty-something, after all, that they have pretty much seen the world? How many people can say they know the major cities around the world better than their hometowns? I certainly wouldn't change what I have done, but when
II
- 28-
"What do they do with ice carving after it melts?"
I get nostalgic for those Love Boat cruises, I don't think of Julie, I think of all those questions I don't have to answer anymore: "What time is the midnight buffet?" "00 these stairs go up or down?"
"Does the crew live on board?"
"How will we know which pictures are ours?" Ah, yes, even Melville's Ishmael returned from the sea to tell the tale.
wendy's tips f:o. c.uising ... Some of these tips may sound a little bizarre, but after six years on ships, believe me, I have seen it all ... 1.
Although they are there to serve you, they are not there to be your punching bags and to be attacked for things they cannot help (Le. mistakes made by your travel agent, etc.) They will do the best they can to help you, but they are not perfect. They are human.
If you are unsure about cruising or being at sea, take
a short (three or four day) cruise first to see if you will like it. Not everyone enjoys being on the water and away from "civilization." There are several companies in Florida that offer three or four day cruises. Check with your travel agent. 2.
Check out the company with which you plan to sail. Do they offer things you will enjoy? If you are taking children, what will the ship offer them? (Most companies say they are "family friendly," but that sometimes may mean that a playroom is available and there are some modest supervised activities for children. Many of the Disney cruises are geared for children, however.
3.
Make sure you do your homework on the ports of call. Crew members may have been there before, but they certainly don't know everything about each place they visit. The ship may offer guided tours, but even if you are not interested in those the shore excursion port talks" might be helpful. (Use common sense on shore, of course. Tourists are easy to spot and you will want to safeguard valuables.)
s.
Keep in mind that those who work on ships cannot control the weather. If it rains, or there are high seas and the ship cannot make it into port, please do not blame the crew. Trust me, they want to go ashore as much as you do! (Itineraries are subject to change and if weather prevents you from getting to a desired port, remember that safety comes first.)
6.
Even if your cruise has been billed as "all inclusive," make sure that you remember your tips at the end of the week. Most of the crew make a very minimal salary and most of their earnings come from the gratuities at the end of the cruise. If someone has done an excellent job, don't forget to mention that in your comment card at the end of the cruise. It is very much appreciated and may help the crew member to get a few extra hours off in port or some other "bonus."
7.
Most importantly, remember that you are on vacation, so just sit back, relax and enjoy yourself!!!
II
4.
Be kind to the ship employees. They most likely have been on the ship for several months and are tired. They have not seen their families since they've been on board, and work seven days a week straight.
- 29-
Alumni Briefs Benjamin F. Becker [26] has "many good memories of the four years spent at MPMA and I believe I am the last surviving member of the class of 1926. I will be 92 years old in May 2000. No more travel but still am active. My wife Alice and I celebrate 64 years of marriage in May also. We have been blessed by three loving daughters and their families plus many wonderful friends. That's about it." O.J. Vogl [33] writes: "Now living in a retirement community - no house! no car! Not in the best of health - need a walker to get around. Hoping for a knee replacement. Seven grandchildren; five great grandchildren. Sorry I couldn't continue with the Retired Academy News (RAN)." Edward V. Cerny [37] reports: liMy wife of 55 years, Betsy Cerny, suffered a massive heart attack on Sept. 5, 1999 and broken hip on Oct. 12, 1999; she was operated on for the heart attack on Sept. 7, 1999, and the broken hip on Oct 13, 1999. She died on October 22, 1999. The two operations in such a short time were more than her heart could handle." Arthur C. Teichner [39] again ran the 6th Annual Desert Cancer Foundation Golf Tournament (4/3/00), to raise money to help local cancer paitients who can't afford treatment.
"Better every year," he writes. "Last year net was $100,000. Cory (my wife) and I pay all expenses."
German American Heritage Society, the largest cultural organization in St. Louis, with 300 members. I have been in contact with Lauris Eek and Bob St. Pierre, and would like to hear from Bob Usedom and Dick Phillips. I was captain of the band and the MPMA tennis team."
Edward A. Kelly [41] asks: "What happended to the MPA sports hall of fame? It was to be started a year ago. Sent info to you all. Have not heard, or seen. I hold many of the records at MPMA, and played at Notre Dame and after war - with L.A. Rams. Also first freshman ever in monogram club, the Pres. Also class Prexy. Let me hear from you." The MPA sports hall of fame is still in the planning stages. It has not been forgotten. -- Editor
Jerome S. Levin [45] writes: "President of the Law Firm of Levin & Rosen, Ltd. in Skokie, IL . Past President of the Illinois Chapter of American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers Mediator of Matrimonial and Child Custody issues. Married to Elaine 51 years - 2 married children - four grandchildren ages 24,22, 19, & 18. Fellow of the Wilmette Rotary Club."
William M. Hutchins [42] writes: "Nancy my wife of nearly 50 years, died in February, 1996. I remarried in February of 1999 and have built a new home on Skidaway Island (south of Savannah, GA.), which we moved into last May. My bride moved here a little over a year ago from Sacramento, CA. We have travelled extensively, Scandanavia, Central Europe, Italy and the Greek & Turkish Isles, and including a tall ship cruise in Lake Michigan. We went on a cruise of the Polynesian Islands in April. Morgan Park seems to be doing very well and I am proud to be a graduate."
James R.Johnson [46] says: "Even though I am retired I keep busy with the Elks, VFW and American Legion. I am working with vets at VAMC, Prescott, AZ." M. L. Tew [48] writes: "Enjoyed meeting and talking to some of the old classmates - having some e-mail from them now everyone should list e-mail addresses in Academy Magazine - going to Tucson
with Lou Kole to play golf and take his money." Walter S. Hofman [SO] reports: "General dentist, traveled the world, China, India, Japan, most of Europe. Two married daughters, one grandson, Alex. Hobby - photography." John s. Novak [50] writes: "Spending more time in the north woods, 320 miles north of Chicago area in Forest County, Wisconsin. Hunting, fishing, skiing, snowmobiling at my door and in the summer I go golfing and do water sports. Any classmate can contact me by phone at 715/484-8983, fax 715/484-7140 and by e-mail SOKOL@ANTIGOPRO.net. Active in my business, Sokol & Company, serving as Chairman." Robert E. Hartman [54] writes: Still living in Portland, Oregon. Fishing for Salmon in Columbia River. Working for North Star Indiana. Visiting daughter and son-in-law, 2 grandsons yearly in Singapore. Plan on building a new winter home in Palm Springs, California next year." II
TAPS Russell Levy [33], November 4, 1999 Herbert Vesecky [34], December 12, 1999 Ernest Byfield [35], November 29, 1999 Susan Stodola Roche [79] , December 19, 1999
George L. Stemmler [44] writes: "I will celebrate my tenth anniversary as founding director of the
- 30-
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MPMA/MPA Fashions IlEM
DESCRIpTION
<QLQB
AflI
SlZE
A
Hood ed sweat shirt
navy
red/ wh ite M PA logo
Adult:
S
XXL
L
M
XL
= $25 $27
A
Hooded sweat shirt
navy
red/ wh it e MPA logo
Adult:
A
Ho oded sweat shirt
navy
red/ white MPA logo
youth:
1.0-1.2
B
Tie-dyed t-shirt
wild
white MPA
Adu lt:
M
B
Tie-dyed t-shirt
w ild
white MPA
Youth
C
T-shirt
gray
Scripted MPA
Adu lt :
S
XXL
$1.5 $1.4
1.4-1.6
$25
XL
$1.9
L
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C
T-shirt
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T-shirt
g ray
Scripted MPA
Youth:
4-1.0
D
T-shirt
navy
Red MPA Ath letic Dept.
Adult:
S
D
T-shirt
navy
Red MPA Athletic Dept.
Adu lt:
XXL
D
T-shirt
navy
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youth:
6-8
E
Cap
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adju st able
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E
Cap
kh aki/ blue visor
MPA
adjustab le
$1.5
F
Boxer shorts
green/blue plaid
MPA
Adult :
M
G
Concord golf sh irt
blu e collar
MPA embroidered
Adult :
M
H
Long-sleeve Henley
red
MPA
Adult:
M
H
Long-s lee ve Henley
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MPA
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Knit sk i cap
re d
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On e size fits a ll
K
Sweat shirt
white or gray
MPA sea l
Adu lt:
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Sweat shirt
w hit e or gray
MPMA seal
Adult :
M
Sweat shirt
wh it e or gray
Football team
Adult :
M
L
XL
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1.0-1.2
L L L
XL XXL XL XXL XL XXL
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Humanity + heritage + hearts sharing = international day at Morgan Park Academy International da y at MPA is a wonderful ex perien ce, fill ed wi th the human spiri t of sharing cu ltural di ve rsity. It is a co ll age of sm iting faces ready to e nj oy the toget he r-
ness of a clay created just for th e m . \'Vhen 1 say t he word " humanity," th e first sound, " hu," rem inds m e o f " hue," which suggests colof, o f COUfse. And th at is ex act ly \1\' 11at inte rnati ona l day at MPA is fi ll ed wit h: " hu es of hu man ity" - ta lking, dancing, laughing, and even eati ng - in a kale idoscope of fri en ds telling the stories of their h erita ge. Humanity + 11 er itage + hea rts sharin g = international day at
MPA!
- - Becky Frolltera (Th e co ll age was the wo rk of Reema Lamba and Pa ya l Par ikh , who s pen t h ours a nd hours ta king photog ra ph s, cuttin g and pastin g. Th e m a ny faces of MPA graced th e fro nt and back cove rs of the 1999 Compelldiul1I, w hi ch t he t\ovo g irls edited.)
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