The Shield Winter 2022

THE

A MAGAZINE FOR THE ROYAL ST. GEORGE’S COLLEGE COMMUNITY

Winter 2022

SHIELD A taste of the 2021/22

Annual Report inside!

Joy and Laughter How the Georgian Community Kept on Smiling Amidst a Global Pandemic

Georgian Parent Melodie Schaffer at Home on the Sea

Capturing Small Moments of Joy through Photos

Tristan Bogler ’10: From Bay Street to the Rink

Laughter is the Language of the Soul

For the complete Annual Report, scan this QR code

CONNECTION

Contents

The Shield Winter 2022 Email: shield@rsgc.on.ca General Inquiries: 416.533.9481 Alumni Inquiries: 416.516.5202

AND

COMMUNITY RSGC’s Annual Fund Appeal supporting:

Wellness Preparedness Belonging

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COMMUNITY 4

Happiness after RSGC We caught up with some former staff members to find out what is bringing them joy since they left the halls of 120 Howland Ave.

SPOTLIGHTS 8

Alumni Spotlight BY LAUREN ALPERN Tristan Bogler ’10: From Bay Street to the Rink

10 Parent Spotlight BY LAUREN ALPERN Melodie Shaffer: At Sea, At Last 12 Student Spotlight BY LAUREN ALPERN Marten and Alex Ling, Class of 2022: Bringing Joy and Laughter Through Community Service

ALUMNI 14 Annual Legacy Breakfast Find out what it means for our alumni dads to have their sons at their alma mater

For more information or to make a donation, visit www.rsgc.on.ca/giving

Thank you for your support!

ANNUAL REPORT FEATURES

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38 Small Moments of Joy In what has been a difficult year, it’s important to capture and reflect on special moments. We asked our community to share those moments with us here.

46 Laughter is the Language of the Soul BY SUMNER & LANG Laughter sees us through—in difficult times and always. Sumner & Lang talk to members of the RSGC community who use laughter in their everyday lives to make a difference.

50 Secret Passions that Bring Us Joy You think you may know someone… In this article, we share the stories of a handful of trailblazers, boundary pushers and self-reinventors you may not know you know. They are stories of vision and joy.

Annual Giving 2021/2022

Headmaster: Stephen Beatty ’86 Editor: Lauren Alpern Copy Editor: Dave Mitchell Designer: Jonathan Cresswell-Jones Photography: Lauren Alpern, CanGrad Studios, Gustavo Gonzalez, RSGC Archives, RSGC Community, Tom Stevens Editorial Committee: Lauren Alpern, Marin Anderson, Stephen Beatty ’86, Drew Blanchette ’96, Maria Jordan, Sydney Stoyan, Riley Wong

DEPARTMENTS 56 Our Changing Lives

RSGC Board of Governors Officers Chair: Gordon Raman Vice Chair: Alyssa Pei Past Chair: Cathy Cranston Treasurer, Audit and Finance Committee Chair: Richard Talbot Headmaster: Stephen Beatty ’86 Chief Financial Officer, Board Secretary: Jane Nyman Directors Sydney Stoyan, Guild Representative Eddie Beqaj ’08, Alumni Representative Andrew Ternan, Facility Committee Chair F. Haider Alvi Andrew Armstrong ’88 Manisha Burman Dr. Leanne Foster Dr. Sarah Hales Brad Holland Alison Leung Sharon Lewis Geoff Osborne ’08 Rev. Dr. Tim Elliott, Clergy

The Shield is the official magazine of Royal St. George’s College. Serving RSGC’s alumni and community, it strives to engage, inform and connect all audiences.

FPO The Shield Winter 2022 • Royal St. George’s College 1

LETTER FROM THE HEADMASTER

Dear Fellow Georgians,

W

e believe joy and laughter belong here.

This sentence is gleaned from the statement of values for the College, drafted and ratified as part of the creation of Our Knight Vision, the strategic plan for RSGC we shared with our community in the fall of 2019.

Like our Georgian guarantee to “Know and Love” each student, our belief in and commitment to joy and laughter, enshrined in the mission, vision and values of the College, is something we invoke with a commitment to authentically bring these words to life. I really cannot imagine many organizations, including schools, that would use words like love, joy and laughter with such intentionality and purpose.

As we returned from our second year of lockdown, distance learning, alternate days, virtual clubs and assemblies, and tightly cohorted student groupings, our theme this year at RSGC is Connection and Community. While the teaching and learning have certainly been a significant challenge, it is the reemergence of these two key aspects of the magic of RSGC—connection and community—that are the highest priority for us this year.

At our editorial team meeting for this issue of The Shield back in September, we landed on the themes of joy, laughter, love, connection and community. There has been so much disconnection, isolation and darkness, yet the sustaining power of these Georgian traits has endured and strengthened. You’ll find in

Heading Towards Normalcy

these pages stories and articles that will, I hope, bring light to a dark winter night. We hope you enjoy this issue.

My best wishes to our entire community for a merry Christmas, happy holidays and a prosperous new year.

Stephen Beatty ’86 Headmaster

T

of the main values of our beloved College is that joy and laughter belong here. During a period of time where joy and laughter might have been

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more difficult to attain, our community has found ways to make it happen. Simply hearing the sound of boys playing on campus during recess again is enough to make anyone smile.

The issue is full of inspiring people who have followed their passions to bring them joy, who have brought joy and laughter to themselves and the people around them, and who have found ways to ignite their passions. Alumnus Tristan Bogler ’10 found a way to make his professional leap into the hockey world after years of determination—read his story on page 8. On page 10, you can read about current

parent Melodie Shaffer finding herself again as she sails around the world. And on page 38, members of our community share their small moments of joy in photos.

As my kids often remind me, it’s important to take the time to smell the roses.

Enjoy the issue, stay healthy and happy holidays.

Lauren Alpern Editor, The Shield lalpern@rsgc.on.ca

Committee Scott Ackley ’04, Events Peter Antonoff ’82, Arts and Culture Elias Blahacek ’13, Speaker Series John Buckingham ’71, Foundation Board Representative Connor Byrne ’13, Mentorship Rudro Chakrabarti ’10, Communications

I

hope that everyone has had a great end to 2021, another year that we can put in the rear-view mirror.

Although life wasn’t entirely back to “normal,” we have made good strides to get there. The RSGCAA Executive Committee has been extremely busy bringing you virtual events throughout the fall and planning for the day that we can reconvene in person.

On October 26, we held our third On-Screen Cuisine with Afrim Pristine ’99—another sold-out event, with over 160 participants. Afrim put on another show with magnificent cheeses and meats, and we are grateful to Aperol for their sponsorship. A big thank you to Afrim and the Cheese Boutique for their continued support of RSGC and the RSGCAA. We continued with our RSGCAA’s Knights Talk, with our seventh session on November 17.

Michael Levine ’08 and Mark Kryshtalskyj ’10 sat down for a fireside chat to discuss the current state

Eddie Beqaj ’08, President Riley Wong ’12, Vice-President

Drew Blanchette ’96, Events

Dear fellow Georgians,

Message from the Editor

his issue of The Shield couldn’t be more fitting. It’s all about joy and laughter. If you know us well, you know that one

RSGC Alumni Association Executive 2021/22

MESSAGE FROM THE RSGCAA PRESIDENT

David Clark ’08, Events and Sponsorship Will Fripp ’88, Inter-Alumni(ae) Association Initiatives Conor Gordon ’09, Mentorship Steven Hobé ’88, Healthy Minds Initiative Andrew Krausz ’12, Communications Anthony Lisi ’15, Healthy Minds Initiative Jonathan Lucas ’03, Sponsorship Ben Mason ’11, Mentorship Otis Moore ’15, Arts and Culture James Reble ’10, Sponsorship Andrew Savory ’11, Communications Max Sisam ’06, Communications

of Canada’s tech sector. It was a fascinating evening with great advice for other alumni who are looking for opportunities in the space, and projections for how the industry will evolve in a post-pandemic era.

In March 2021, we launched our Georgian Connect online mentorship platform to help connect alumni mentors and mentees across the RSGCAA. We are hopeful that we will be able to do an in-person launch event in the spring of 2022. If you are interested in becoming a mentor or mentee, please email

mentors@rsgc.on.ca.

As an Executive Committee, our priorities remain the same: to bring value to our alumni and to the greater RSGC community. If there is anything you would like to see or any ideas to share, please reach out!

Wishing you all a happy holiday and happy new year!

Liam Cassano ’22, Alumni Student Liaison Jack Dawson ’22, Alumni Student Liaison

RSGC

ALUMNI

ALWAYS GEORGIAN

Best, Eddie Beqaj ’08 RSGCAA President The Shield Winter 2022 • Royal St. George’s College 3

COMMUNITY

Happiness After RSGC We checked in with some of your favourite former staff members to find out what has brought them joy since they left the halls of 120 Howland Ave.

John Birkett: COVID has had a big impact on my normal daily life. I’ve spent more than 40 years (including two as president) on the volunteer committee of the National Ballet of Canada. This usually involves all aspects of running a very successful boutique in the theatre, but COVID has kept us out of the theatre and the National Ballet of Canada headquarters. We still have to honour our $150,000 support commitment and other volunteer work has been similarly affected.

I’ve been able to attend a few virtual conferences with programmes, but I miss the person-to-person contact.

Aside from that, I’ve been reading uncountable numbers of books—some fiction, some not. I do three to five hours a day of brisk walking. Swimming still doesn’t feel comfortable because of COVID. The camera is busy most days.

Michael Burgess: I have led a full life since leaving RSGC in 1989! I have held numerous positions, including being a parish priest at various churches in Toronto and Domestic Chaplain to the Archbishop of Toronto. I was made a Canon in 2001 and became Regional Dean of Eglinton Deanery in 2007. I’ve served on a number of boards and committees, including Habitat For Humanity, the Meighan Health Centre, the Toronto Operetta Theatre and the Toronto Branch of the Gilbert and Sullivan Society.

Taking part in theatre has brought me a lot of joy. Since retirement, I’ve been involved in numerous dramatic productions—performing, scripting, narrating, singing and directing. In 2011, I played Julius Caesar for Bard in the Park, and became Artistic Director of Stage Centre Productions, one of Toronto’s most highly regarded community theatre groups, where I was responsible for seven successful seasons during which the company presented 37 productions, 25 of which I directed

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myself. I am especially proud that SCP presented the North American premiere of Entertaining Angels. I appeared at the Palmerstone Library Theatre as Major Metcalf in a production of Agatha Christie’s The Mousetrap and as Mr. Browning in Oliver! For the Scarborough Theatre Guild, I directed Dear Charles.

I am honoured to be trusted as Spiritual Director and Confessor to several younger clergy, students and others. My friends are important to me, and I take great delight that among them, I can count five Georgians who were students during my time as Chaplain.

It gives me great joy that I continue to live a fulfilling and active life—I sometimes wonder how I managed to find time to work—and I am grateful that I have spent my entire working life doing a job that I love, among people I love, in a place that I love. I consider myself to have been richly blessed, doubly so because I know that I am blessed! Who could be better off than that?

Kelley Fitzpatrick: It’s been an adjustment adapting to life as a Grade 7 teacher at St. George’s in British Columbia, but I’ve really enjoyed discovering our new home province. The B.C. lifestyle suits our family well. The pace of Vancouver is quite different from Toronto, and it has taken us some time to adjust. It’s all about work-life balance.

Most people here are very active and spend a great deal of time exploring the outdoor playground that surrounds us.

I love spending time with my family, Dave, Kieran, Quinn and our dog Frodo.

Kelley has really adapted to life in Vancouver.

Kieran spends numerous hours on the water, training with the St. George’s Rowing Team, while Quinn spends most evenings on a soccer pitch. We have had days where we have been up in the mountains cross-country skate skiing in the morning and back down in Vancouver for an afternoon outdoor soccer game wearing shorts and t-shirts.

It makes me happy to be physically active and fit, walking to work chasing the sunshine or embracing the misty mornings in the air. Just being outside, on the ocean, close to the water and wandering the woods and trails is so invigorating.

Of course, I love supporting my boys in their sports, connecting with friends and collaborating with colleagues, students and their families. Just like at RSGC, it brings me joy to help others become the best version of themselves.

Kelley loves hearing from former students and families. If you would like to get in touch, she can be reached at kfitzpatrick@stgeorges.bc.ca.

Hal Hannaford: I retired from Selwyn House in 2020 and now split my time between Montreal and Kennebunk, Maine. I derive huge joy from playing as much music as I can in Montreal and in Kennebunk Beach. I’m still doing the odd auction.

But what really brings me my greatest joy is working in my Sanctuary in Kennebunk. I just love it!

My wife Susan is working feverishly on her next novel, my daughter Alisse and her husband Christopher are doctors at the Hospital at UPenn in Philadelphia, and my son Reid (who left RSGC after Grade 8 in 2009) is a filmmaker in NYC. And of course, I still miss those wonderful, incredible and joyful RSGC years. Oh yeah, and... Go Habs Go!

David Lee: Things have changed slightly since COVID hit. Before the pandemic, I enjoyed presenting wines at food and wine shows, and festivals, working as an extra for a variety of TV shows and movies filmed in Toronto and selling movie memorabilia at comic conventions across Ontario with former RSGC VP Mike Orlando.

Since COVID, I’ve been playing golf and hockey with alumni and current and former RSGC staff and parents, doing voiceover work for numerous companies and narrating instructional videos. I’m also the Chair of the Board of Crestwood Preparatory College (my daughter Julia's former school).

David has been keeping busy with voiceover work, among other things.

Hal is keeping busy doing the things he loves: auctions, music and working in his sanctuary.

The Shield Winter 2022 • Royal St. George’s College 5

James Lee: Our two boys and the wonderful journey of parenting have brought me so much joy. I always feel that the days may be long at times, but the years are too short!

Despite living far away in West Vancouver and working as the Deputy Head at Collingwood School, I feel great joy in staying connected with my fellow Georgian colleagues and playing rounds of golf with former RSGC faculty, then catching up with stories and a drink. As the years go by, it’s nice to stay in touch and reminisce about those years that continue to sustain lasting memories of joy and happiness. It was truly a fantastic experience over the 11 years that I spent there. Great students and families, and very fond memories of the classes I taught, athletes I coached in volleyball and hockey, and colleagues who were very supportive and who provided a sense of laughter when needed.

Teaching Grade 11 Economics class in third-floor See House, throwing a baseball on the tarmac with Hal Hannaford, and the famous hotdogs at Forest Hill Arena after each home game—great memories.

RSGC is a school that understands the definition of community and a true sense of belonging.

Richard Nakatsu: I am doing well and still don’t own a cell phone! I’m still

gardening and golfing for the most part, with some home exercise (I roll around on a yoga mat). Former staff member Doug Smith has hosted me for a few suppers. I occasionally spin some yarns over chicken wings and cold beverages with former staff members Mark Ackley and Wayne Dunkley. Some present staff members, Adrian Thornbury and John Evans, have been kind enough to give me golf lessons.

I enjoyed watching Afrim Pristine’s series on cheese.

Morris Reid: My life is very simple and I’m enjoying retirement. I thought I might be bored, but I’m not, and the day passes quickly. In the morning, I go for a 40-minute walk, 20 there, 20 back, to Yonge and Finch from where I Iive, to buy my newspapers. On returning home, I read them for an hour, and then do some work—prepare food for or with my wife, or deal with email correspondence.

After lunch, I read some more and do some more light work. In the evening, I watch television. In summer, there is gardening; in winter, yard work and shovelling snow.

a student and then to return there as a teacher for seven years. As a teenager and as a young teacher, St. George's taught me lessons and principles to live by, which have guided me through my life.

Morris is enjoying the simple life of retirement.

Secondly, my career as Head of School for Holy Trinity School in Richmond Hill for 18 years followed by a three-year Headship at the Canadian College Italy located in Lanciano, Italy, was immensely rewarding. As a strong proponent of leadership as service, I had the pleasure to work with volunteers, faculty and staff, all of whom were dedicated to building strong and vibrant schools based on research-based principles and data.

George Rutherford ’71: A central joy Working as a consultant for CAIServices in my life is my family: my wife, to whom for the last seven years has also been very I have been married for 39 years, our three rewarding, as I have had the privilege to daughters, our two sons-in-law and our work with boards and leadership teams grandson. in schools across Canada to address and solve problems in order to advance their schools.

James Lee has received much These career experiences prepared joy from parenting his two me for my current service as the boys. He also enjoys staying chair of two Boards in Collingwood, in touch with his former RSGC Ont., where we now live. The move colleagues. to Collingwood has proven to be a

6 The Shield Winter 2022 • Royal St. George’s College

George's family brings him much joy.

genuine enhancement to our lives, as we now have greater opportunities for active living through hiking, skiing, cycling, curling and golfing.

Finally, I have had more opportunities to draw and paint, which have been pursuits I did not have much time for while working.

In the end, I realize that I was indeed fortunate to attend St. George's as

Don Schroder: After I left RSGC, I went back to Kingsway College School to teach Middle School math for six years. I retired from teaching this past June.

During the pandemic, the things that have given me joy have been playing golf, tennis and pickleball, as well as cycling and hiking. Lots of classes on our stationary bike.

Watching several different series on Netflix and Amazon Prime. Reading. Playing cards and board games with my family. Watching sports on TV, especially the Leafs and Raptors.

Andy Whiteley: On the first Monday after our retirement, Annette and I were in a fully packed Forester on our way to Florida on the first leg of a planned sixmonth lap of North America. We lived in different places along the way, a week in Tobago, a month in Florida, a leisurely amble across US-10 to California, up the Pacific Coast highway from bottom to top seeing a million redwood trees, a week in Vancouver, and a trip west-to-east on the Trans-Canada highway with stops along the way to see family, former colleagues and friends.

By June, we were at our Don has been active, cottage and spent the full but also enjoying summer there, a longtime some relaxation. dream fulfilled. I bought myself a pontoon boat and enjoyed countless hours cruising the lake with friends and family. By fall, we realized we needed a place to call home, so we bought and settled into our new home in Niagara-on-theLake. We love life in the town and have become reacquainted with friends and colleagues from my Ridley days.

Andy has taken great joy from travelling around the world.

Life since then has been home in Niagara, summers at the cottage and winters somewhere hot. Florida, California, Maui, Australia and New Zealand. We peaked out in the winter of 2020 with a trip to Tahiti, a 20-day South Pacific cruise from Tahiti to a dozen islands and ended up in Australia.

Since then, we have not travelled at all, but have found a great deal of satisfaction in executing a number of home improvement projects, all on time and on budget, I might add!

So, yes, we have found lots of joy along the way in retirement thus far: Joy in the luxury of time to spend any way we choose.

Joy in being able to visit with friends and family for extended periods of time.

Joy in the deepening of our relationships.

Joy in watching what other generations are getting up to.

And last but not least, the continuing joy and satisfaction of a job well done, no matter what that job is or how old you are while you’re doing it.

The Shield Winter 2022 • Royal St. George’s College 7

ALUMNI SPOTLIGHT

Tristan Bogler ’10

FROM BAY STREET TO THE RINK

BY LAUREN ALPERN

T

ristan Bogler ’10 always knew he wanted a career in hockey.

When he was in Grade 12, he remembers when the General Manager of the Toronto Maple Leafs at the time, Brian Burke, came to speak to him and his fellow Georgians in the Chapel.

Tristan stopped him at the Chapel door and told him good-naturedly that he was going to take his job. And while

Mr. Burke is no longer the Leafs’ GM and Tristan is now working in hockey, he is still aspiring to become one of 32 General Managers in the National Hockey League.

It has been a tumultuous route for Tristan, who studied Kinesiology at Western. Despite internships with the Hamilton Tigercats, the London Knights, Hockey Canada and small

Tristan loves sports and was on several athletics teams while at RSGC.

8 The Shield Winter 2022 • Royal St. George’s College

roles with the Baycrest Scotiabank ProAm, Tristan absolutely could not find a job in sports after he graduated.

“I put my name and resume on baseballs and sent them to the Blue Jays. I called everybody I could think of. I just couldn’t find a job in sports,” said Tristan. “I ended up in sales roles and in the insurance business, of all places. I knew it wasn’t for me.

I was sitting at my desk in 2015, throwing pencils up at the ceiling. I knew where I wanted to be—and that’s the hockey arena.”

That’s when Tristan contacted every single GM in the NHL to ask what he had to do to get where they are. He heard back from two, including Ken Holland of the Detroit Red Wings, who told him that since he didn’t have a history as an NHL player, he would either need a law degree or an MBA. Tristan immediately went back to Western to upgrade his GPA and then got into the University of Toronto’s Rotman School of Management.

“I had no business being there, but I managed to get in because my reason for doing an MBA was so unique,” said Tristan.

Much to Tristan’s dismay, upon graduation, there was still no hockey job for him.

He ended up working at Accenture in human capital development. As with everything he did, he saw it as a way to parlay that experience into a hockey

It was a long and winding road, but Tristan has finally found his place in the sports world. He's not going to stop, but he is happy.

experience. He hoped to learn why certain teams work better than others, how to build the culture of a team and how to manage projects, but that didn’t turn out to be possible.

“That industry wasn’t for me and I wasn’t happy. Fast forward to October of 2020, and I said, ‘I’ve had enough.’ I knew I couldn’t keep doing this to myself, so I resigned with nothing in hand. I had no job networks, no nothing,” said Tristan.

“That same week that I left, I spoke to my old manager at Hockey Canada. I ended up with a six-month contract, and that set things in motion to put me in the hockey world. I had had enough of big Bay Street, and the game was there for me when I least expected it.”

That six-month contract has since turned into a full-time gig. Tristan is now the Manager of Philanthropy of the Hockey Canada Foundation.

“Now, instead of building spreadsheets and talking in corporate gibberish, through Hockey Canada Foundation’s Assist Fund, I get to remove financial barriers for families in need from coastto-coast and ultimately grow the game that we all love!” said Tristan.

Tristan has worked hard to get where he is. He is determined, driven and passionate.

“It definitely feels right to be here, but it has come with a lot of frustration and patience. It’s been a big time commitment and there has been a lot of rejection. But to be able to be a part of the game that I love every single day and get paid for it... come on!” said Tristan, who also works as

a scout for the Ontario Hockey League’s North Bay Battalion on his own time.

“It’s a dream come true in a sense, but it’s keeping me hungry. I don’t believe in looking in the rearview mirror—I’m keeping one foot forward,” said Tristan. “Until I’ve got the Cup over my shoulders, I’m not going to stop. I’m always going to look for opportunities. As soon as it’s enough, you become lazy, you become sloppy. I’m not there yet. That’s not to say that I’m unhappy, but it’s not the dream yet.”

Fellow Georgian Will Bryant ’10 has known Tristan since Grade 7 and is proud of his sports-loving friend for finally making it in the sports world.

“I’m very happy and proud of Tristan for knowing what he wants to do and never being satisfied with less,” said Will.

“He’s definitely not afraid to speak his mind and take risks.”

Which is exactly the message that Tristan has for Georgians of all ages: you have to take risks—especially if you want to find joy and laughter in what you do.

“The place you’re in now is the perfect breeding ground for your ideas. If you want to find joy and laughter, know what you want. Who do you want to be? You don’t have to be those pre-determined visions of what people have for you or whatever path people have for you. If you want to work in hockey, go do it,” said Tristan.

“I just want these guys to know to kick some butt. If you want to be in hockey, you can make it happen. There’s a lot of potential for all Georgians. It matters what you want to do with your life.”

The Shield Winter 2022 • Royal St. George’s College 9

PARENT SPOTLIGHT

MELODIE SCHAFFER

AT SEA, AT LAST

BY LAUREN ALPERN

M

elodie Schaffer has always loved to sail. She was a high-performance sailor before she became a biomedical engineer. But she gave up both high-level sailing and her career to go into full-fledged mom mode while she raised her three children: Sierra, Jasper ’18 and Fraser, Class of 2022.

Fast forward 20 years and Melodie decided it was time to get back to her first love: being out on the open water.

But this time, she has made the leap from regular sailing to offshore sailing. That means that she can go days or even weeks without seeing land. When she told her family that this is what she wanted to do, they were all very supportive.

“I spoke with everyone in the family and told them that I’d forgotten who I was and how much I love sailing,” said Melodie, who did her first offshore race in 2018. “I’ve been so busy doing ‘mom’.

I need to do ‘me’. My whole family was brilliant with it and told me to go for it.

It’s been strange for me to have people know me as Melodie, not as Fraser’s mom or Jasper’s mom.”

In January 2020, Melodie left for South Africa to race to Australia as part of the Clipper Round the World race.

She flew home for Christmas and then returned to Australia to do the next leg, heading towards China. With her older two kids away at university and Fraser away on an exchange program in France, it was the perfect opportunity to go away

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for a long race. Unfortunately, COVID changed those plans. The virus was starting to hit China hard in February, and she and her 19 sailing mates on the boat were unable to dock at their planned destination in the country. They eventually ended up in the Philippines, where they were unable to disembark for four days.

“Customs didn’t come to check us in, so we were tied up at the dock along with 10 other boats, but we weren’t allowed to go ashore, and they had the military at the other side of the gate,” said Melodie. “Each day, they would bring us a five-gallon jug of water and we would pass them our garbage, but we couldn't leave! Because we were docked, there weren’t enough beds for everyone, so people ended up sleeping on the deck, on bunks—wherever they could find. Finally, they told us we had to fly out by Friday or we were going to be in lockdown. So we got on a plane and flew home.”

While there was no risk of contracting COVID in the middle of the ocean, it still wreaked havoc on her trip. The boat is still in the Philippines, where Melodie will pick it up at the beginning of March, to resume her leg across

the Pacific Ocean to Seattle, delayed by two years.

Melodie has learned to adapt to all sorts of conditions, both on and off the water. On her Clipper Round the World race, the team worked in three-hour shifts, so they would either be working for three hours or have time below deck to rest.

“When you come off watch, you change out of your clothes, go to the bathroom, go lie down and have maybe two and a quarter hours before you have to get back to work. There’s very little time to sleep,” said Melodie. “There are times where I debate: am I going to brush my teeth? Am I going to change my clothes? I need sleep. You pick one thing and that’s what you do. You just adjust to the way of living. If you’re tired, you have to pick and choose.”

Melodie has gotten used to weeks of no sleep, no showers and tic tac breakfasts. She packs for months with two small sacks of gear: two pairs of thermal leggings, three long-sleeve shirts and a couple of sweatshirts.

“The conditions are tough, but you learn that you don't really need that much,” said Melodie.

“People change their underwear once a week. There are no showers, you take wet wipes and you don’t wash your hair. It ends up being alright.

I guess it’s just being out in the open air.

There’s no issue as far as cleanliness goes.”

Her youngest son, Fraser, isn’t surprised at his mother’s toughness and adaptability.

“Really, she’s one of the heartiest people I know, so the fact that she’s okay with the conditions and is voluntarily putting herself through it doesn’t surprise me. And getting up every three hours is just like having little kids,” said Fraser.

“We've always sailed as a family, but with her moving to offshore sailing, this is pretty much who I imagined her to be: this super hearty sailor who can do anything she puts her mind to.”

Melodie’s daughter, Sierra, who is studying pediatric medicine at St. George’s University of London, England, is so proud of her mother for following her passion.

“It’s such a good role model when you can find your passion and follow it with

so much energy and determination. She is incredibly kind and so competitive, has a lot of tenacity and is really passionate about it,” said Sierra. “She loves sailing so much, and you see that she comes alive when she’s on the ocean.”

Melodie does love the ocean. Despite being away from her family and only being able to communicate with them via scarce emails or brief phone calls from the middle of the ocean, it truly brings her joy.

“It’s magical. It’s brutally hard and absolutely magical as well,” said Melodie.

“There’s something sort of mesmerizing when you’re out on the ocean. It’s the ongoing infinity. You look and there's nothing to see. You're part of this infinity and it captivates you.”

So what’s next for Melodie? She has teamed up with fellow Canadian Ryan Barkey for a double-handed sailing race around the world, the Globe 40. It will be a tough haul against the world’s most elite sailors. And with only the two of them, the conditions will be even more difficult.

No doubt with Melodie’s passion and determination, only another global pandemic will prevent her from finishing this race.

Follow her story on Instagram at @ whiskeyjack128

The Shield Winter 2022 • Royal St. George’s College 11

STUDENT SPOTLIGHT

MARTEN AND ALEX LING CLASS OF 2022

BRINGING JOY AND LAUGHTER THROUGH COMMUNITY SERVICE

Alex and Marten have been dedicated to the kids at Lord Dufferin Public School, through both Right to Play and Virtual Reading Buddies.

They even organized a book drive for them.

BY LAUREN ALPERN

I

t can be difficult to tell Alex and Marten Ling, Class of 2022, apart.

While unique personality traits and hairstyles help people differentiate between the two, the Georgian brothers are definitely equally impressive.

Captains in Grade 8, the two are now Prefects, with Marten holding the title of Communications Prefect, while Alex is the Junior School and Community Service Prefect.

Both boys have dedicated themselves to community service at Royal St. George’s College, participating in the Right to Play program with Ms. Elizabeth Baltazar and her students in Grades 2 and 3 at Lord Dufferin Public School before COVID hit and then both the virtual Reading and Math Buddies programs during COVID. Alex credits his experience with Right to Play and the kids at Lord Dufferin to the choices he made in his prefectship.

And while his experience might have shaped his Grade 12 path, the reason why he enjoys his time with the kids is simple. It brings them joy, which brings him joy in return.

“I had a tough time enjoying myself at school sometimes when I was their age, so it’s really important to me that—especially when they’re that young—they’re enjoying their time at school and enjoying life,” said Alex. “If I can do anything to help create those opportunities, it’s something I really enjoy doing. I’m hoping that if I’m putting smiles on their faces, I’m doing a fine job.”

12 The Shield Winter 2022 • Royal St. George’s College

Marten also enjoys his time with the kids at Lord Dufferin and doesn’t see it as community service work. Like Alex, he didn’t have an easy time at school before arriving at RSGC and appreciates the value of having someone who can make a difference.

“It doesn’t feel at all like we’re volunteering. It’s just something we enjoy doing. If we were just doing it for the service hours, we would have stopped a long time ago,” said Marten. “We just love the kids there. It kind of feels like hanging out with friends. Every kid deserves to have someone who really cares about them, someone who tries to improve their attitude and their life at school. It doesn’t have to be me or Alex, but if I can make one kid smile, that’s worth it.”

Alex also already has enough community service hours to graduate. For him, the continued involvement is about connection.

“It was actually never really about the hours. As cliché as that sounds, once I started connecting with those kids, it never felt like community service,” said Alex. “I don’t really see it as something I’m going out of my way to do. It’s something I look forward to every week.”

Alex and Marten have really embraced the Virtual Reading Buddies program, coming as regularly as they can and often choosing books that were

their favourites when they were growing up. Their memories of Reading Buddies when they were kids—having older students read to them—have inspired them to do the same.

“I remember how exciting it was when the older kids would come read to us,” said Marten. “The books they read were so entertaining to me. I want that same feeling for the kids as well.”

Because the twins understand the value of reading, they organized a book drive for Lord Dufferin during the 2020/21 school year. Alex and Marten collected about 15 boxes of books generously donated by the RSGC community and personally delivered them to Ms. Baltazar. They couldn’t meet the kids in person, but they did receive thank you cards.

“We wanted to do something that would be special for them during the pandemic. We thought many of them might not have a lot to do during the day or have anything to entertain themselves,” said Marten. “We wanted them to have the same opportunities, and we assumed they weren’t getting the literature that they needed.”

Ms. Baltazar, who has known the twins since they started with Right to Play in Grade 9, was shocked when they approached her about the book drive.

“They went so beyond what is

expected, to show kindness and that they care about Lord Dufferin, Regent Park and the people who live here. You could tell that they didn’t think it was a big deal, that they weren’t doing this big huge thing. But for us, it really was a huge thing. The kids couldn’t believe they got to keep the books,” said Ms. Baltazar.

“You can’t teach the type of energy that Marten and Alex bring—they just come that way. They are advocates for our school community. I think that’s the first time ever that it was two students who wanted to do this for us. That goes a long way in my opinion.”

Ms. Baltazar recognizes that the twins bring a special energy to her classroom, be it in person or virtual.

“They have such a positive attitude and energy. They bring instant joy into the room, and they have this look that says, ‘I can make you have fun while we learn, so let’s do this.’ You know that when they’re around, we’re going to have a good day today. Together or apart, they both have the same energy,” said Ms. Baltazar. “Of course, virtual isn’t the same as in person, but there’s something about face time and seeing someone look at you with fondness, care and kindness that makes you feel like you’re not alone. Alex and Marten understand that and like to be consistent about it. It makes a huge impact on my class. They’re able to bring their natural style to virtual.

“I know that they’ll bring their positive energy wherever they go. Their dedication and care always shows in their actions.

You can tell they enjoy being there, and it makes all of us in Room 208 smile.”

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ALUMNI

We didn’t choose RSGC for our boys. Paolo (’21) chose it for himself, and Alex (’25) followed him.

But it’s not surprising that the same small and down-to-earth community appealed to them in the same way it did to me back in the day. I had no idea how important the school would be to our family.

It makes me very proud.

—Ugo Bizzarri ’89

Annual Legacy Breakfast On October 20, 2021, RSGC invited our 28 alumni fathers who have sons at the school back to campus for the annual Legacy Breakfast. While we couldn’t have a formal breakfast in Ketchum Hall or the annual group photo on the Headmaster’s Porch, we did snap individual shots and send the dads off to work with breakfast to go.

We also asked them what it means to them to have their sons at the school where they hold such fond memories. Here are some of their responses.

I've often said that the gift of sending me to St. George's was the best gift my parents ever gave me. That I am able to give my sons the same gift is really special to me. There's an added component for me, of course, that I get to watch the young men they're becoming from a front row seat, but what's more important to me is that I know they are surrounded everyday by such amazing adults. This is the best school I've ever known and I am so grateful that my sons can come here. —Stephen Beatty ’86

George Thompson ’88 and Sebastian

Stephen Beatty ’86 with Jack and Finn

I’m grateful. RSGC has continued to evolve into a competent and safe institution for our boys to grow during complex times. Sebastian is benefiting from the community—and no doubt he will develop life-long friendships in addition to benefiting from an excellent education to send him into university years and beyond.

—George Thompson ’88

14 The Shield Winter 2022 • Royal St. George’s College

I am proud, thrilled and thankful to see Richard enjoy RSGC as much as I did, to be proud to wear the uniform I was proud to wear, and see him thrive at RSGC. I always felt it was a special place, and his experiences there confirm I was right.

—John Sayers ’87

Dan Tecimer ’93 with Evan and Will

Ugo Bizzarri ’89 and Alex

I always look back on my RSGC years with fondness. Now, my two sons are lucky enough to get to experience what I did. It’s amazing how some of the same teachers and coaches I had are now teaching and coaching the next generation of Tecimers.

This always makes for a healthy debate at the dinner table on which Tecimer Mr. Evans thinks is a better soccer player. Finally, when I get that monthly bill describing what new trinket Will or Evan just had to buy at the Dragon’s Lair, it brought back memories of my dad rolling his eyes when a similar bill for me made its way to the house. —Daniel Tecimer ’93 It’s very special to have this shared experience with my sons.

The school has changed, but so much has stayed the same, so we have that common bond.

—Mark “Sparky” Andersen ’94

Mark Andersen ’94 with Sam, Max and Jake

David Bentley-Taylor ’94 and Andrew

We are thrilled to have Andrew at RSGC. I have such fond memories of my time at the school. It’s wonderful to see Andrew embracing the school and the opportunities that come with it. We look forward to watching him grow and develop lifelong friendships at the college. —David Bentley-Taylor ’94 John Sayers ’87 and Richard

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I feel that attending RSGC has strengthened the bond the boys and I have together. We regularly share stories of what the school used to be like and what it’s like now. While the renovations may have made the school look different, the learning, the friendships, the love and care from the staff, and the pride that comes with being a Georgian haven’t changed. Knowing that they are known and loved at RSGC, as I was, gives me a tremendous amount of pride as I watch them grow from children to young men. —David Gibbs ’95

Royal St. George's College

Annual Report

2020-21

David Gibbs ’95 with Drayden and Harrison

It is with immense pride that I watch my son grow and follow his own path in life. Whatever he chooses to do, we will always share the experience of being a Georgian. —Tim Pacaud ’96

It’s pretty special to see my son thrive at the school and to watch him form those lifetime friendships like I did two decades ago. —Dan Mitchell ’99

Tim Pacaud ’96 and Ethan

Dan Mitchell ’99 and Grayson

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Toby Gibson ’97 and Hunter

Having Hunter at the school gives me great comfort, especially knowing he's being welcomed into an extended family that will support and enhance his academic growth and life journey moving forward. I’m also honoured that I am able to participate in legacy events, so Hunter and I can develop a shared understanding of what it means to be a Georgian.

It felt like a homecoming being on campus with him, and it brought back years of good memories.

I'm excited for the positive journey I know Hunter has ahead. —Toby Gibson ’97

Class of 2021 drive-in graduation ceremony RSGC Annual Report |

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RSGC Annual Report 2020-21

Giving

Four-Season Field of Dreams D

uring the peak of the pandemic, when school was in and out, it was tough on everyone—teachers, students and parents. Perhaps one of the saving graces was RSGC’s physical education program. In the Junior School, the program took place outdoors no matter what the weather. It allowed the boys to burn some energy, learn new sports and help everyone’s mental health.

The Junior School phys-ed team of Scott Ackley, Drew Blanchette, Sensei David Miller and Steve Turner worked hard to put together a unique program that held the boys’ interest, got them moving and followed COVID protocols.

“It was like starting from scratch.

Your gym, your rink, your pool, your program—everything was gone, so for us, it was a huge opportunity to rethink how we do phys-ed. We got to dream big and change up what we could offer the boys, and we had fun while we did it,” said teacher Drew Blanchette. “For things like pickleball and tchouk ball, we were able to procure that equipment and, with the space we had, develop a program with all kinds of different activities. As a group deploying that, it was fun and at times challenging, depending on what the weather was looking like outside.”

The teachers worked outside all day long in all sorts of weather conditions.

They learned how to dress properly and set the boys’ expectations.

“We trained them to have the proper gear, but truthfully, they were just happy to be out there,” said Drew, who felt very lucky to be teaching outdoors through the pandemic. “They’ll come outside in

so appreciative of these shelters. They gave us a place to keep warm and a place where all of us could do our work,” said Drew.

“Now, we can store so much equipment there. At any given time, the kids are playing four or five different activities and we have ready access to the equipment. When you have equipment, the kids are going to play!”

With the Iantorno donation, the phys-ed team also purchased a wireless scoreboard for the turf. Drew says it has been helpful for both the students and teachers.

“I’m able to control the

the rain, in the snow. Unless it’s -40°C and they have to put their hands on a metal lacrosse stick, they’re fine.”

Thanks to a generous donation from the Iantorno family to the phys-ed program, the department purchased heated storage units that served as equipment

18 The Shield Winter 2022 • Royal St. George’s College | RSGC Annual Report

scoreboard from an app on my phone,” said Drew.

“Not only do we use it for phys-ed all the time, but we also use it for recess, just so the kids know how much time they have. It’s very useful.”

Drew recognizes that the gift from the Iantorno family has been extremely impactful.

“I’m super appreciative.

Our program is so much better because of that gift.

It allows the adults who deploy it to stay warm and do our jobs better, and it allows us to store the equipment,” said Drew.

“It’s like being a construction worker and having

a place to store our tools.

Without it, I don’t think we’d be doing the same job. From my perspective, it’s been brilliant.”

“Outdoor physical education is important to our youth. It gives them a space to release their energy, express themselves and clear their minds.

It is crucial for the growth of our children and the preservation of our environment.

Donating to RSGC’s outdoor education is just one way our family can help to do our part, and encourage physical activity and healthy habits.”

—The Iantorno family

storage on one side and heated shelters for staff on the other side. These units were instrumental in allowing the teachers to properly run their program.

“Prior to those shelters, we had those propane heaters and would stand under them to keep warm. It wasn’t easy! We’re

RSGC Annual Report |

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RSGC Annual Report 2020-21

The Georgian Parents Guild $65,000 donated towards our outstanding

Alumni Engagement

25

legacy dads of

38

189 alumni attended a virtual event

boys attending RSGC

741 alumni have connected RSGC to their LinkedIn Profile.

We also hosted: 3 Knights Talk speaker series sessions 2 On-Screen Cuisine with Afrim Pristine ’99 events 1 Class of 2020 virtual reunion 1 Class of 2020 Alumni Parent Pub Quiz Night 1 virtual retirement party for Nick Van Herk

22 alumni on the RSGCAA Executive Committee.

We hosted our first ever Alumni YouTube Music Event called Encore! featuring 6 performers including a mix of bands and solo performances.

20 The Shield Winter 2022 • Royal St. George’s College | RSGC Annual Report

Capital Campaign pledge

$15,000 donated toward student bursaries

We had

185 alumni

USED TEXTBOOK SALE

volunteer their time last year across the following areas: Board of Governors Foundation Board Advancement Committee RSGCAA Executive Committee Speaker Series/Knights Talk Panelist In-class Guest Speaker Classroom Project Support Grade 12 University Transition Grade 12 Speed Mentor Georgian Connect University Mentor/Buddy Healthy Minds Initiative Take Our Kids to Work Day Archive Support OBD Class Connector

$6,935 RAISED

Mistletoe Market: 131 families attended the first-ever virtual Cocktail Party; 416 individual cocktails delivered; 60 cocktail kits delivered gratis to staff and faculty as a Guild gift

$27,990.07 raised, including $16,758.55 from the silent auction and $518.66 from raffle baskets

Cheese Sale: first-ever

Parent Connections

virtual/10th annual Cheese hosted Sale; 1,264 pieces of cheese 54 people at personally delivered by 14 Pauper's Pub for Guild volunteers; 62% of 2 live breakfasts orders included cheddar. in Fall 2020

$7,350.35 raised 6 big online wine tasting/ supper events:

14

88 families for June (grads and non-grads enjoying cocktails and champagne)

Parent Ambassadors did

62 families for online wine and cheese in October 2020

27

Q&A's over Zoom during the Admissions period

55 families for January

Social Justice Committee:

15 resources posted on the Portal RSGC Annual Report |

Caribbean supper

56 families for online train trip in March

44 families for Earth Day farm-to-table Ontario supper

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RSGC Annual Report 2020-21

Arts

21 virtual

78 successfully

performances in Hidden Gems

tuned ukuleles

The Grade 5 class spent 22 hours researching and consulting with politicians in order to solve issues affecting Canadian cities

679 original GarageBand compositions from Grade 7/8 students

1 Graduation Composition written, performed and recorded by Grade 12 students

47 participants in the show (8 Junior School students, 19 Senior School students, 7 staff and 13 Georgian family members and friends of the College)

8 Concert Band recordings by Grades 9-12 Bands

ensemble recordings 8 small (trios, quartets, brass quintet) 4 Jazz Band recordings

6 samples of music by J.S. Bach remixed into new electronic compositions

97

Grade 7/8 musicians who learned music and composed without traditional instruments

22 The Shield Winter 2022 • Royal St. George’s College | RSGC Annual Report

Business/ Engineering

Academic Highlights

First online Mistletoe Market launched by SPARK Entrepreneurship

SPARK-run Spring Market generated over $1,000 for student initiatives

18

hours spent researching forces and building structures in Grade 3

16 years of ACES program success graduated from the 124 Georgians ACES program by the end of 2021

Over 50% of Macro AP students scored 4 or better

3 courses in the ACES program

RSGC Annual Report |

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RSGC Annual Report 2020-21

Canadian and World Studies (CWS)

10

The Grade 9 class placed in the top 3 of National Level School winners of the Where Challenge Contest.

students won individual prize money for the Where Challenge categories, as follows:

English 45

Academic Highlights

picture books read as a class in Grade 4

Grade 6 novels read:

364

31 children’s books written in Grade 6

“What’s in a match?”

“What’s in a phone?”

by Ryan and Henry won Best Overall in the Graphic Art category for the 12-14 age group

by Asher and Isaac won Best Overall in the Literary category for the 12-14 age group

The Young Researcher: Our 4 AP Research students acted as editors on 19 papers for The Young Researcher, the only student-run peerreviewed journal of its kind, alongside 18 expert editors (many of whom are RSGC parents and grads!).

“What’s in a “What’s in Toonie?” by your Lucky Tarek, Alex and Charms?”

Vithusan won Best Research in the Literary category for the 12-14 age group

by Kian and Stephen won Best Creative in the Multimedia category for the 12-14 age group

“What’s in a laptop?” by Jerry won Best Research in the Multimedia category for the 12-14 age group

32 Grade 11 students took AP Seminar, writing 96 individual evidence-based arguments on real-world problems, drawing on 1,056 scholarly sources, for a combined 160,000 words of thoughtful academic conversation.

That’s also 64 presentations and oral defences—over 12 hours worth!

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Boys who took on the challenge of an AP English exam:

25

Essays written in Senior English classes:

1,004

Debates in Debate Club:

Stories published in The Howlander:

Presentations delivered in Senior English:

28

28

333

Resolutions debated in Grade 6: The Grade 3 class spent 20 hours reading with the Headmaster

Creative works (poems, short stories, comics, monologues, short plays, podcasts, posters, films, satiric news stories, recorded speeches) completed in Senior School English classes:

12 889

RSGC Annual Report |

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RSGC Annual Report 2020-21

Humanities Studied

81 years of

Canadian history from 1837 to 1918

14

The Grade 7 class collected and logged over 135 artifacts for the Pandemic Archive.

They heard Mr. Dame say "download that sucker" 1,187 times and had to say: "you're still muted, sir" 16 times. They also saw Mr. Dame's kids running wild in the background 9 times.

STEM

141 computer-coded population models were made 181 structures were built, tested and fell at home positions were held to feel structural 282 yoga stability were designed and digitally built in 25 hotels Martinique

15

orange shirts designed in Grade 4 to honour the experiences of Indigenous Peoples and affirm that Every Child Matters

19:

stakeholders’ perspectives considered for Toronto hosting a future Olympic Games in Grade 6 The number of innovative solutions that Grade 5s generated after learning about health issues

Math 74

students participated in the Canadian Intermediate & Senior Math Contests, with 2 students ranking in the top 25% in the province

47 19 23

students participated in the Grade 9 Pascal Contest, with 9 students ranking in the top 25% in the province students participated in the Grade 10 Cayley Contest, with 3 students ranking in the top 25% in the province students participated in the Grade 11 Fermat Contest, with 4 students ranking in the top 25% in the province

28 hours of virtual enrichment in weekly Math Clubs

1 student participated in the AP Calculus Online Study and scored a 5 on the exam

26 The Shield Winter 2022 • Royal St. George’s College | RSGC Annual Report

Academic Highlights

47

for important people from Canada’s 47 monuments history were designed in Tinkercad were cooked at home using heat and 47 recipes analyzed

GIFs were designed to demonstrate particle theory

Modern Languages 3,457

3,290

equations were created in the 1-100 assignment

forgotten accents aigus over the letter “e” in the Junior School

7

Le Petit Prince chapters, written and illustrated by the Grade 11s, that would have made Antoine de St-Exupéry proud

46 authentic French conversations with Belgian

artist Ben Heine, who gave students constructive criticism on their artwork inspired by Heine’s Pencil vs. Camera art concept

and descriptive infographics on Spanish16 colourful speaking countries by Grade 10 Spanish students museums on la Francophonie curated by 8 virtual Grade 12 French students; 78 museum visits with audio guides for Grade 9 students written en français by Grade 9 78 biographies students about remarkable Asian-Canadians during Asian Heritage Month RSGC Annual Report |

Science 35

65

mind maps examining climate change

students in Grades 9 and 10 wrote the Michael Smith Challenge with 2 students placing in the top 10% nationally and 1 student in the top 2% nationally

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RSGC Annual Report 2020-21

Co-Curriculars 10 Peer Tutors in Grades 10-12 working virtually to support tutees in Grades 3-9

French Club

66

French debates over who the imposter was during Among Us games

CLUBS Senior School 22 clubs in term 1 138 students participated 227 house points awarded

28 clubs in term 2 140 students participated 140 house points awarded

32 Junior School

Comedy Club

2,520 minutes of laughter

Media Creation Club

Catan Club

virtual clubs 29 Junior School virtual assemblies 23 Junior School leaders 6 Junior School clubs led by Senior School students

28 The Shield Winter 2022 • Royal St. George’s College | RSGC Annual Report

Friday Morning Running Club In 2020-21, according to Strava, the RSGC running club participants managed to run a distance of

3,685 kilometres.

That is a little further than the direct distance from Toronto to Anchorage, Alaska. We are excited to be running in person again this year and we will hopefully put up enough kilometres to go coast to coast.

356

17

victory points

original GIFs created

468:

The number of times the robber was on the receiving end of some extreme language when a 7 was rolled.

Environment Club

Grade 7/8 Model Parliament Club 1 minority government elected 47 attempts to bring it down 4 bills passed into law 1 hostile witness at committee (Mr. Dame) 2 bills introduced to tackle climate change 1 bill introduced to reduce student debt 6 bills introduced to regulate the cost of video games

The group tree-planting event was postponed due to COVID, but a Georgian family planted 340 trees on their property, Big Hat Farm, outside of Orangeville. This was in partnership with the Healthy Waters Program at Nottawasaga Valley Conservation Authority.

Cartoon Drawing Club

257

illustrations made

Rusty Knights

4 staff 12 students 3 alumni 18 parents/grandparents 2 friends of the College 2 virtual performances by the Rusty Knights 6 video projects RSGC Annual Report |

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RSGC Annual Report 2020-21

275

RSGC and the Community

boys in

Grades 9-12 participated in a virtual Day of Service

$13,895 raised through the annual

Terry Fox Run

476

196 books read and 25 dance moves performed during Virtual Reading Buddies with Lord Dufferin Public School

near campus by Georgians for Remembrance Day

1,250

staff and students wore pink for Pink Shirt Day to stand up against bullying

123

Our families donated the following to food banks, community centres and churches for Community Service support:

800 sandwiches 2,300 granola bars 3,500 pieces of fruit 1,200 bread rolls 400 lbs. of turkey 500 Easter eggs

1,000 Canadian flags were planted on and meals contributed to the Friday Food Ministries program at St. Thomas’s Anglican Church

gift bags containing books and PJs collected for Heart to Hand

standing with EcoSchools, a certification program for K-12 schools that nurtures environmental learning and climate action

30 The Shield Winter 2022 • Royal St. George’s College | RSGC Annual Report

novels and workbooks donated to children and schools through First Book Canada

$345.17

raised for Movember in support of men’s health

3,506

Over pounds of hats, mittens, boots, winter jackets and sleeping bags collected for the Parkdale Activity Recreation Centre (PARC)

Achieved

PLATINUM

3,011

225

meals served through Feed the Frontlines TO to healthcare workers at Vermont Square Seniors Residence RSGC Annual Report |

635 math equations

solved during Virtual Math Buddies with Lord Dufferin Public School The Shield Winter 2022 • Royal St. George’s College 31

RSGC Annual Report 2020-21 We used close to

40,000 sanitizing wipes, enough to

Health and Safety 2020-21 was the year of the pandemic!

Many measures were implemented to keep our students safe.

cover a distance of

We collectively wore over

80,000

280,000 inches or

12.5 CN Towers.

masks.

We used over

180,000 ml

WE INSTALLED:

80

additional hand sanitizer dispensers

10

portable handwashing stations

We worked over 2,400 additional hours in housekeeping to ensure high-touch surfaces were disinfected 3-4 times per day.

6

portable washrooms

Our school-wide ventilation upgrade to bipolar ionization was an investment of

$165,000.

32 The Shield Winter 2022 • Royal St. George’s College | RSGC Annual Report

of electrostatic cleaner, the equivalent of over

15

90

portable MERV 13 air filters We had approximately 100 days of on-campus operation for over 150 Junior school boys and 290 Senior school boys, with only half on campus alternating every day.

2-litre bottles of pop.

Overall, we used over

340,000 ml of hand sanitizer, the equivalent of

We used over 880 floor stickers to help with social distancing and to denote traffic flow.

RSGC Annual Report |

3.5 bathtubs full.

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RSGC Annual Report 2020-21

66

Class of 2021

Ontario scholars

Congratulations to the Class of 2021. We wish you all the best and look forward to following you on your journeys!

51

had an admission/final average of over 90%, including

68 GRADUATES Matriculation (Confirmed as of May 31):

Carleton Dalhousie Guelph King’s-Hfx McGill Queen’s Toronto UBC Waterloo Western Western-Huron Wilfrid Laurier Humber College Colgate (NY) LoyolaMarymount (CA) Pepperdine (CA) Edinburgh (UK)

4 5 1 2 6 9 8 1 4 16 3 4 1 1 1

27

with an average of 95% or higher (these numbers were 37 and 10 respectively in 2019-20)

80% 74%

of students were accepted to the school and program of their first choice

of the Class of 2021 are attending a university in Ontario

Class of 2021 Program Choices (as of May 31, 2021)

Science 13%

1 1

Engineering 24% Business 21% Humanities/Social Science 43%

34 The Shield Winter 2022 • Royal St. George’s College | RSGC Annual Report

RSGC Annual Report |

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RSGC Annual Report 2020-21

Class of 2021 Observations and Fun Facts: Highest number of Arts/Humanities/Social Sciences matriculants in recent memory Despite multiple out-of-province offers, the vast majority of students have opted to stay in Ontario 7 students are pursuing double degrees, including 6 who enrolled in Western Ivey’s HBA For the 3rd year running, over half of the graduating class has an admission average of over 90%

Faculty and Staff News New Hires

Years of Service

Alison Hart

Welcome to our new staff members: Ashfaq Aziz (Faculty Member, Department of English) Joseph Bush (Associate Teacher, Science and Lab Technician) Holly Clarke (Advancement Services Associate) Ian Fleming (Director of University Counselling) Roma Francis (Modern Languages, Spanish and French) Michael LeSage (Facilities Manager, Aramark) Hannah Pfendt (Associate Teacher, Far left: Margaret Nozuka Junior School) and second from right: Lara Pierre (Social Worker, Nadya Habib Junior School) Edward Wilson (Middle School Humanities)

Thank you to the following staff and faculty for their dedicated service: Five Years Emily Johnson Greg Seale Steve Turner

Ted Wilson

15 Years Jay Kearsey Nadya Habib

James Leatch

RSGC Cousins Junior School teachers Soteira and Justin Briginshaw welcomed Kailo Tala in June 2021.

A younger sibling for Evryn!

Congratulations to Director of University Counselling Ian Fleming and his partner, Ulla, whose daughter Nalea was born in July 2021.

Junior School Social Worker Danielle RovinskiBannon and her husband Cameron became firsttime parents to baby Everett Samuel in August 2021.

Danielle Rovinski-Bannon Junior School Humanities Teacher Edward (Ted) Wilson and his wife, Andria welcomed their second child, Gavin, in July 2021.

Welcome back to Junior School STEM teacher Kate Hubbs, Senior School Math teacher and Senior School Learning Strategist Tara Ardila, who have returned from maternity leave.

36 The Shield Winter 2022 • Royal St. George’s College | RSGC Annual Report

10 Years Steve Beatty Alison Hart Lauren Alpern Margaret Nozuka Mike Ruscitti

RSGC Annual Report |

20 Years Glen Algarvio Sean Loucks Aaron Payne Dianne Ryan Janet Stephenson Tom Stevens Shirley Wagar 35 Years James Leatch

Roma Francis

The Shield Winter 2022 • Royal St. George’s College 37

FEATURE

SMALL MOMENTS OFJOY It’s been a difficult and tumultuous period in our lives, so it’s important to find things that bring joy and laughter. We asked members of our community to share photos that captured a small moment of joy. We share them with you here.

Junior and Senior School Art teachers Jennifer Stroud and Leanne Mladen stayed happy rollerskating to music in the sunshine all summer long! —Jennifer Stroud and Leanne Mladen, RSGC Art teachers

This photo gives me joy as it was taken pre-Covid doing something my family and I love, travelling.

It was taken during the Christmas break of 2019 on an early morning, on a small island off the coast of Thailand. —Jared Duckman, Class of 2022

Our teensy garden all cozy and sparkly for evening drinks.

—Sydney Stoyan, RSGC parent

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Cameron Horn, Class of 2026, eats the best pizza (Stuft Pizza in Palm Springs) loaded with toppings at a favourite vacation place. —John Horn, RSGC parent

I take great joy in walking to Christie Pits after school with my daughter. —Ian Fleming, Director of University Counselling

Marrying couples outdoors in the spring. The bride had to buy her dress online—it took three tries to find one. Nothing made me happier during COVID than love that wouldn’t give up and adapted to tough times. —Clare Samworth, RSGC parent I took this picture on January 25, 2021, at around 6:00 am from the hospital where I work in Brampton. We are in the northwest part of the GTA. I pointed my phone towards downtown and the CN tower stands out. Across the street is the red neon sign of the transit bus stop. The contrast between the dreamy downtown and the drudgery of everyday working in the suburbs really struck me. —Priya Chopra, RSGC parent

While we were in Spain last summer, our dog, Tobi, was spoiled by the dog boarder. —Paz Galarce, This is an annual tradition with my kids and dog.

RSGC parent We wake up early to go see the sunrise once a year. It’s quiet and peaceful, and it makes me so happy. —Lauren Alpern, Editor, The Shield

This is Max Mull, Grade 6, doing what he loves to do: fish. One of his many catches!

—Max Mull, Class of 2028 40 The Shield Winter 2022 • Royal St. George’s College

The Shield Winter 2019 • Royal St. George’s College 41

Cafe 23 on Queen Street West after an Autumn rain. —Michael Prokaziuk, RSGC parent

This is our new pup, Mango, having just enjoyed a drink on a hot summer day at the dog park. —Myles Craig, RSGC parent

This photo is of the mountains of Vermont taken in Mansonville (Eastern Townships), Quebec, near our cottage.

—Michael Prokaziuk, RSGC parent

42 The Shield Winter 2022 • Royal St. George’s College

This is one of my favourite family traditions, which has brought my family so much joy and laughter.

We missed it during the lockdown, so it was nice to be able to gather outside this past September for our annual “Jarring Tomato Sauce” Italian Family Gathering. We were all in my parents’ garage by 7:00 a.m., ready to go. My parents love that their grandkids are now taking part. We do the work and Nonno and Nonna tell us what to do while they drink their espresso! Our goal is to be done by noon.

We have lunch together and enjoy a good plate of pasta with our new tomato sauce, cooked by my mom. We end up with enough tomato sauce to last us for an entire year! My siblings and I will continue this tradition for a long time. —Toni Nosworthy, Admissions Associate

Ben, Class of 2029, loving tubing: “Faster and more wake please!”

—Amanda Innes, RSGC parent The Shield Winter 2022 • Royal St. George’s College 43

I love to play basketball.

—Hertz Zhang, Class of 2029

Seeing our students back on the playing field and having the privilege of coaching them brings me joy. —Steve Turner, Director of Athletics

​​ This photo is the result of a surprise visit from my eldest daughter, Phoebe, who flew in from Halifax just to surprise us. Utter joy! —Brian Robinson, Alumni Outreach & Junior School Community Service

Always a joyous occasion to have my number-one assistant coach with me! —Sean Loucks, Basketball Coach

Hitting the trail/road makes me happy.

—Nick Van Herk, retired Director Smores on the bonfire. of University —Laura Boujoff, RSGC Counselling parent

Running through the sprinkler with my family.

—Eli Marcovici, Class of 2025

It brought me joy to see the students engaged and immersed in the love of learning and trying new things. I love watching the students accept the design-and-build challenges with great enthusiasm, and then jumping up and down with joy when they have succeeded in completing the tasks.

—Glen Algarvio, Junior School Teacher

44 The Shield Winter 2022 • Royal St. George’s College

The Shield Winter 2022 • Royal St. George’s College 45

FEATURE FEATURES

Always smiling

LAUGHTER

IS THE

LANGUAGE SOUL OF THE

Matt Burns ’04 has worked in film, television and theatre for most of his life.

46 The Shield Winter 2022 • Royal St. George’s College

Matt’s love of comedy and theatre began as a student at RSGC. He was in every school play and also performed original, student-written sketch comedy in house competitions.

BY SUMNER & LANG

“L

aughter is the language of the soul.” – So said Nobel Prize-winning poet Pablo Neruda, who, also in one of his works, described happiness as “necessary like the earth.”

Matt Burns ’04 knows this better than most people. Currently a drama teacher at Sterling Hall School, Matt has worked in film, television and theatre for most of his life, specializing in improv and sketch comedy. He is also the Artistic Director of Players, a not-for-profit organization in Toronto that produces comedy musical shows and donates its proceeds to charity. He has also worked as a therapeutic clown at SickKids Hospital, a position that abundantly illustrates the connection between health and laughter.

“Joy and laughter make a big difference in the healing of children,” said Matt. “They help build physical and emotional wellness. In addition, therapeutic clowning gives kids a sense of control in a situation where they have very few choices. It’s child-directed—the child decides what and how to play, and the clown follows their lead. It’s a fun and reassuring experience when there is a lot of stress in their lives. I’ve even helped kids manage their medical procedures, providing relief in difficult moments.”

Matt’s love of comedy and theatre began as a student at RSGC. He was

in every school play and also performed original, student-written sketch comedy in house competitions—and says that his house, Westminster, won every year!

He also participated in and helped

organize annual lip sync events.

After graduation, Matt studied theatre and drama at Queen’s University and joined the Queen’s Players, which produces musical sketch-comedy performances. He later studied and performed at Second City in Toronto and also at a variety of other theatres and festivals. In his work today as a drama teacher, Matt continues to use comedy as a way of building community.

“The mantras of improv comedy have shaped my life,” said Matt. “They are: always say yes, say ‘and’ not ‘but,’ and there are no mistakes, only gifts. I bring this approach to my students, which encourages them to take risks and find joy in what they do. When they are laughing, I know they are feeling good and are open to learning. It’s a great way to connect and bond.”

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Comedy reduces stress

The importance of laughter

Charlie Coke believes that comedy allows people to take time away from the serious parts of life and engage in pure fun.

Simon Cox believes that laughter lightens the mood and uplifts people.

Senior School art teacher Leanne Mladen agrees that comedy and laughter strengthen community. Leanne is the faculty advisor for RSGC’s Stand-Up Comedy Club and teaches stand-up at Second City. She helps the boys in the club transform the raw material of their personal experiences and ideas into well-crafted jokes and polished scripts.

“Good stand-up looks easy and casual,” said Leanne. “But it takes a lot of work to get there. The boys collaborate in their writing and give each

other feedback. Once they settle on their content, they workshop it with each other until it’s honed and ready for an audience. The whole process develops craft and confidence. And of course, we laugh together all the time.

That joyful energy is then transferred to audiences that laugh along.”

Grade 11 student Simon Cox knows what it’s like to share his jokes with a crowd. Though he plans to study computer programming at university and hopes one day to work

48 The Shield Winter 2022 • Royal St. George’s College

in video game development, he is also a big fan of stand-up comedy and joined the club in Grade 9.

He has twice performed in the RSGC talent show, Hidden Gems, once live and once virtually.

“There are two arts to comedy,” said Simon. “The first is the content and the second is the delivery. Both take a lot of work to shape and master, but at the same

time, anyone can do it. The skills can be learned. I would encourage students to come to the club and try it out. It’s a very welcoming place and, of course, we laugh a lot.”

In addition to performing at the talent show, club

members are planning to submit a video of original work to SketchFest22, which showcases live and online comedy performances. Preparing for the submission provides the group with another opportunity to tap into their creativity and hone their craft. Simon is up for the challenge and looking forward to spreading laughter beyond the school.

“I think comedy is important because it transmits a positive attitude and relieves tension, especially when times are tough,” said Simon.

“Laughter lightens the mood and uplifts people. I also like how transferable comedy is—I might share a joke in one place and it can then get passed along by someone else.

Unlike movies or plays, which can only be summarized when we talk to each other, a joke

is a complete art form that remains intact as it travels from person to person. I love that aspect of comedy.”

While Grade 12 student Charlie Coke is not a member of the Stand-Up Comedy Club, he is a practised comedian who has been performing on stage since Grade 4. Charlie draws on his own life experiences for his comedy, such as wrangling kids as a camp counsellor this past summer. He has developed the art of venting: pouring out frustrations in a comic manner.

Like comedy itself, venting can reduce stress when it has a positive purpose. Bringing joy to others through laughter provides that purpose.

“I like to take something that most people have experienced and add astute

observation and humour to it,” said Charlie. “I think comedy is a great way to share very human stories that connect us all. It also allows us to take time away from the serious parts of our lives and engage in pure fun.”

Charlie loves the energy of being backstage, as well as performing in front of an audience. He hopes one day to work in the film industry.

He describes RSGC as a safe place for students to explore their creativity and experiment with forms. He’s glad for the opportunity to be involved in drama productions and to participate in the talent show, each of which make different demands and help develop different skills.

Emily Johnson is pleased that students like Simon and Charlie have embraced Hidden Gems as a performance opportunity.

The RSGC music teacher runs the talent show, which raises funds for the Georgian Scholarship for the Arts. She schedules brief comedy acts to break up the musical acts that make up most of the show.

“Being in the audience of any live performance is a special experience,” says Emily.

“And then when it’s comedy and we get to laugh together, that really brings us close to

each other. I also appreciate the courage our students show in creating performances designed to make us laugh.

It’s a vulnerable place to be in. It’s great for the younger boys to see that modelled and know they could do it too, if they want to.”

Emily notes that the Hidden Gems audience of students, teachers, families and friends is very supportive of the young comedians.

Attendees respect the work that has gone into the performance and appreciate the talent on display. And of course, they have a natural desire to laugh together, which is much more powerful than laughing alone.

“Collective laughter takes us to a higher level of joy and happiness,” said Emily. “It connects us to each other. It keeps us strong. It keeps us healthy. Laughter is fun, but it’s not frivolous. I admire our students who express themselves and explore their identity through comedy. I think it’s good for them—and I know it’s good for all of us.”

Poets and scientists agree.

Once more, Pablo Neruda gets to the heart of the matter: “Take bread away from me, if you wish, take air away, but do not take from me your laughter.”

The Shield Winter 2022 • Royal St. George’s College 49

FEATURE Leanne has two passions: athletics and art. She enjoys spending time at the skatepark.

Teacher by day and Ironman by night.

IT professional by necessity and airplane pilot by choice.

Business school graduate by design and waterski master by calling.

Hidden among the many talents and skills of the RSGC community can be found other worlds characterized by passion, determination and perseverance. These second lives are no secret to friends and family—but may not be visible to the rest of us.

In this article, we share the stories of a handful of trailblazers, boundary pushers and selfreinventors you may not know you know. They are stories of vision and joy.

KETCHUM SECRET PASSIONS THAT BRING US JOY 50 The Shield Winter 2022 • Royal St. George’s College

LEANNE MLADEN SENIOR SCHOOL ART TEACHER / ROLLER SKATING ENTHUSIAST Leanne Mladen views the art room as a special place where students are able to experiment, practice, take risks and build confidence. That’s also how she views lakeside trails, city parks

and open lots when it comes to her pursuit of roller skating. They’re like empty canvasses that inspire a journey of discovery. Or of rediscovery.

“I roller skated in elementary school up until Grade 9,” said Leanne. “For decades, it was just something I did ‘back in the day.’ Then, about 10 years ago, I saw the coolest skates at a skateboard shop.

I decided I had to have them. Since then, I’ve been roller skating and roller dancing, and finding places to practice.

It’s daily exercise that feels like play.”

Leanne has always had two passions: athletics and art. She feels privileged to share the art room with her students, building a community of belonging where everyone is comfortable exploring their personal vision. When she heads home for the day, she explores her own creativity on her skates.

This fall, Leanne decided to test her skills at a skatepark and, she says, did pretty well right away—allowing for the learning curve.

“Yes, I fall sometimes,” she laughed.

“That’s what happens when you try new things. I wear my helmet and wrist guards, but there’s a bit of risk that comes with the fun. It’s okay to fall down. Kids do it all the time.

Sometimes, we adults could use the reminder that mistakes and mishaps are okay. It’s freeing not to be fearful.”

Leanne has found the skatepark to be a positive and encouraging place, with everyone excited when she masters a new trick. This winter, she will be taking one-on-one lessons at a different, indoor skatepark to improve her halfpipe skills. Then in the spring, it’s back outside to meet up with her fellow skaters.

“Kids make friends at the playground, and so have I at the local lot and the parks. Taking up an activity and finding others who share it is a great way to meet people and build community while having fun.”

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GRAHAM WHITE ’92, FATHER OF CONNOR WHITE, CLASS OF 2024 IT PROFESSIONAL / FLYING FANATIC Graham White is happy to talk about his work in information technology if asked. He’s a seasoned professional with over two decades of experience in the field and plenty of wisdom to share. But if you want to see a fire alight in his eyes,

ask about piloting airplanes.

Back in his mid-20s, Graham earned his private license and flew recreationally for a few years. But work, marriage, children and life in general pushed him away from his passion. A career in aviation was not in the cards. But now that the kids are older, he’s back to what he loves doing. After earning a commercial license in 2019, Graham is currently working towards the additional ratings and hours that would allow him to be hired as a pilot for a commercial airline.

“Flying is not like riding a bike,” said Graham. “It takes ongoing practice to maintain an exceptional skill level, plus you need the required hours in the air to

Up in the sky is Graham's happy place.

52 The Shield Winter 2022 • Royal St. George’s College

make it to the airlines. The pandemic has made it harder to log those hours. My goal of working full-time as a commercial pilot hasn’t been impacted by recent events, but the timeline has stretched a bit.”

Because it’s been hard to get flight school time over the past year and a half, Graham decided to purchase a small airplane with a friend this year. That frees him up to log the flight hours he needs that have been difficult to accrue. Once he earns his qualification, his professional dream is to “fly most days” locally, not internationally. He’s not particular about the specific aircraft and would love to join an outfit like Porter Airlines as a regional pilot.

What is it about flying that has kept Graham’s passion alive his whole life?

“Up in the sky is my happy place,” he said. “It’s like being in a state of flow: the perfect mix of challenge and joy. I love the view. I love being in control. I’m a bit of a cross between two pilot types: the cowboy and the super nerd. The machinery itself is as stimulating as the sense of freedom.”

While Graham’s family is sometimes uneasy about going up in the small planes he pilots, they are 100 per cent onside with supporting his passion. And this past summer, he flew his wife and two kids to Kincardine for a beach day.

“Everyone had a great time—and it was one of the most glorious days of my life!”

Drew is hoping to get into the Ironman World Championshiops in Hawaii in 2022.

DREW BLANCHETTE ’96 JUNIOR SCHOOL PHYSICAL EDUCATION TEACHER / IRONMAN IDEALIST Sports and athletics have always been a big part of Drew Blanchette’s life—to challenge himself, to benefit others and to help the boys at RSGC develop lifelong healthy habits. So, is it a surprise that he’s been competing in triathlons for the past decade? Perhaps not. But not everyone knows that he’s a bit of a challenge junky.

Once he meets one stretch goal, he’s right onto setting the next.

Drew made a move into extreme sports one summer with two entry-level events: a bike ride from Hamilton to Toronto as one leg of a national ride to support childhood cancer and a “Try-a-Tri” challenge designed to introduce new competitors to triathlons on a smaller scale.

“I felt like I almost died during the swim portion,” Drew laughed. “But it

was awesome.

After these two events, I decided to do the full national ride for childhood cancer the following year, from Vancouver to Halifax. My team leapfrogged with another, so I rode half the total distance over 12 days. I loved every minute of it.”

After jumping from beer league hockey to cycling about 200 kilometres per day, Drew naturally asked himself, “What now?” The answer: an Ironman competition in Lake Placid.

“I thought it would be one and done,” he said. “You know, just see if I could finish and then cross it off the list. Well, I’ve now done nine and I’m working to get into the Ironman World Championships in Kona, Hawaii.”

That’s not an easy feat. Spots go to professional athletes and to the highestranking competitors in their age category.

Drew won’t qualify either of those ways, so he’s focused on the legacy program.

Completing 12 Ironman competitions gets hopeful participants into a lottery system and a good chance of being selected within a few years. Drew’s got his tenth and eleventh competitions coming up in summer 2022.

In addition to enjoying pushing himself to his mental and physical limits, Drew appreciates the community of competitors he has come to know, including some family members who have gotten involved.

“I compete against myself,” said Drew. “I also train and participate for my mental health—I achieve a state of mindfulness in it. But the biggest piece is the sense of community. It’s the same at RSGC for the boys. Everyone helps each other to achieve their goals. It’s a positive, uplifting environment.”

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AUSTIN COOK ’14 AND HUNTER COOK ’16 REAL ESTATE BROKERS / WATERSKIING BOSSES There are a lot of Cook brothers and they are a lot of things. Austin is a Western graduate working in commercial real estate. Hunter has a business degree from Dalhousie and is studying real estate. Monty ’19 is in the agriculture program at Cornell University and on the D1 lacrosse team. Griffin ’21 is in his first year at Western in management and organizational studies. But despite their different locations, interests and aptitudes, they share one abiding passion: water sports. And they have turned that passion into a thriving business.

“We’re an aquatic family,” said Hunter.

“We always spent our summers on the water at the family cottage. As we got older, Austin and I worked as waterski instructors at a resort. One day, we decided that we would rather work for ourselves. So, five years ago, we started Muskoka Mafia.”

Muskoka Mafia has a simple and unique differentiator: the Cook brothers bring their specialized skills and all necessary equipment to clients’

Sarah's paintings allow her to give up control and focus on the process.

cottages. Each day, starting at about 6:30 am and going until sundown, the boys work with individual families, providing a few hours of activities on the water to each before moving on to the next. And cottage country can’t get enough of them. They were fully booked last summer and had to turn prospective clients away.

With their success, they’ve asked themselves a few questions. Should they expand and take on staff whose last names aren’t Cook? Should they sell

54 The Shield Winter 2022 • Royal St. George’s College

The Cook brothers have turned their passion for the water into a business.

their business to those who have made offers? In both cases, the answer has been no.

“We love the challenge of running this business,” said Hunter. “We don’t want to give that up. But even more, we love being together as a family. We’re apart for most of the year now, but in the summer, we get to be on the water and work with great families who trust us and inspire us to continually improve. The best thing about what we do is being together. The second-best thing is the smiles on kids’ faces when they learn how to ski. We don’t want to give any of it up.”

Hunter credits RSGC with building the brothers’ confidence and with cultivating their bold, entrepreneurial spirit. He also says that being alumni has helped their business.

“When we put ourselves out there, we’re respected and appreciated for being members of this school community.”

SARAH JESSANI SENIOR SCHOOL MATH TEACHER / PAINTING IMPERFECTIONIST Sarah Jessani always wanted to be a teacher. She loves the challenge that math provides her and her students, and the creativity involved in finding solutions. In the classroom, she emphasizes effort over outcomes, helping students to develop a growth mindset. Those with a growth mindset focus on learning as their goal, aren’t preoccupied with getting everything right, don’t give up easily and achieve better results. Sarah is a master at establishing this constructive culture in her classroom.

But when it came to her love of drawing and painting, she harboured a perfectionist streak. For a long time, Sarah was focused on replicating realist

images to perfection, diligently following the procedures that would ensure a flawless outcome. A realist painting has a very defined end goal and can be “graded” on how well it achieves it.

“I was always into abstract art—I just love how it looks,” said Sarah. “But it was a bit too ‘go with the flow’ for me. It wasn’t rule-based. So, while I admired it, I didn’t do it myself.”

That is, until Sarah had a baby and spent 18 months on maternity leave. Often confined to the house because of the pandemic, she set up a space for a studio, purchased supplies and started experimenting with a new approach.

“I decided that I needed to be okay with things not working out,” she said. “I didn’t really know what I was doing. But I decided to go all in and see what would happen if I gave up control. That was key for me—for my art and for my life. I can’t control everything. I can’t be perfect. It was very freeing to give that up and focus more on the process. It was also a bit chaotic and messy.”

Moving away from perfection has taught Sarah to be more flexible in her thinking and in her art. It has also been good for her mental health.

“It took courage for me to make this change. I had to learn to just start somewhere and see what happens. I tell the kids all the time, ‘it’s good to take risks, it’s good to experiment.’ I had to take those lessons to heart myself, and it’s been really important for me as an artist, a parent and a person.”

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Our Changing Lives MARRIAGES David Luder ’10 David Luder ’10 married Emily Edwards on September 11, 2021, in a beautiful ceremony on the ocean

at the Acoaxet Club in Westport, Massachusetts.

David’s brothers, Noah Luder ’13 and Benjamin Luder ’15, served as Co-Best Men and many other Old Boys were also in attendance, including: Chas Beatty ’10, Julian Caldwell ’10, Mike Diplock ’10, Denis Evans ’10, Mike ‘Skip’ Greey ’10, Richard

Hogarth ’10, Brandon Jones ’10 and Alex Kim ’10.

David works for Fengate Capital Management Ltd. as a Vice President, Private Equity, while Emily is a Communications Officer at Clinical Trials Ontario. The couple resides in Toronto with their dog, Gracie.

BIRTHS

CAREERS

Eddie Beqaj ’08

Andrew Savory ’11

RSGCAA President, Eddie Beqaj ’08, and his wife Kaylee are thrilled to announce the arrival of their daughter, Harper Heather, born on November 8, 2021.

Andrew was recently named Vice President of the Fraser Valley Bandits of the Canadian Elite Basketball League.

Previously the Director of Operations, Andrew joined the club in October 2018.

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2209 Bloor St West, Toronto 416-769-1717

56 The Shield Winter 2022 • Royal St. George’s College

Georgian Legacy Society… because the world needs more Georgians

Your legacy gift to Royal St. George’s College will ensure that we can continue our 50year tradition of educating future Georgians – inspiring them to become the best version of themselves. For more information on leaving RSGC in your will, please visit www.rsgc.on.ca/plannedgiving

sporty, helpful, adventurous, co-operative, kind, clever.

We asked each boy to describe himself in just six words.

Their answers were as diverse and as individual as the school itself; a place where each boy is challenged and inspired to become the best version of himself.

Call 416.533.9481 rsgc.on.ca

RSGC. Here, I am.