JUNE 2016 S T. G E O R G E ’ S S C H O O L
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Heroism & Silence
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ood evening. It is an honor to be with all of you tonight and to try to do justice to the magnificent work Eric and Krista Peterson have accomplished here. I speak tonight from a couple of perspectives representing, first and most importantly, the family created by Lane and Diane Montesano in Buffalo, New York, with Cally, Elizabeth, Krista, Annie, Jennifer and now composed of Eric, Dan, Charlie, and me, along with 16 grandchildren. We have, as you see tonight, Numbers: loyalty, courage, experience, passion, love, and even a good bit of irreverence taught to us most powerfully by Cally. Life has tested us as a family, challenged us, introduced us time and again to adversity, trial, tragedy, and through it all and because of it all, we are here, tonight, together as we often were on an August evening in Canada: we are strong, resilient, and here to celebrate how Eric and Krista created their own particular definition of family over the past 13 years at St. George’s. In essence, their work together, Eric’s work in the Head of School office, Krista’s work in admissions, their devotion to the people of this school made St. George’s a family—more united, more purposeful, more academic, more ambitious, more kind, more thoughtful, more successful than in any era in school history. The Peterson model of family expressed an appreciation of and a zest for life, for adventure, for competition, for laughter, for people, for community. This ethic drew great students and teachers to this school, mentored future Heads of School, and together, conversation by conversation, interview after interview, trip after trip, decision after decision, opening day and graduation after another, the school flourished, sure of its guiding leadership, sure of their love, devotion, support, and affirmation. What happened here over the past 13 years was the most significant, profound leadership accomplishment in the world of American boarding schools. Under the Petersons’ leadership, a good school became great, became more coherent, intentional, and creative with every passing year.
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