StC Magazine | Summer 2019

StC Magazine

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TheMagazine Magazineof ofSt. St.Christopher’s Christopher’s The

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Changing Lanes Alumni Reflect on Career Changes Page 12

Graduation Summer 2019

Page 34

The Magazine of St. Christopher’s

EDITOR | Kathleen Thomas VISUAL CONTENT EDITOR | Cappy Gilchrist GRAPHIC DESIGN | Merry Alderman Design PHOTOGRAPHERS | Jay Paul, Jesse Peters CONTRIBUTORS | Mimi Burke, assistant to the director of alumni affairs and annual giving; Tim Carrington ‘69; Hollis Cobb ‘19; Sharon Dion, director of communications; Paul Evans ‘01, digital communications specialist; Kim Hudson, director of The Center for the Study of Boys; Alex Johnson ‘19; Mason Lecky, headmaster; Christopher McCormick ’19; Martin Millspaugh, Kate Childrey teaching intern; John Morgan ‘94; Noah Nicholson ‘19; Josh Vanichkachorn ‘19; Henry Weatherford ‘21; Karen Wormald, Kew Publications

stcva @STCVA The Magazine of St. Christopher’s

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St. Christopher’s School 711 St. Christopher’s Road Richmond, Virginia 23226

St. Christopher’s School welcomes qualified students to all the rights, privileges, programs and activities generally accorded or made available to students at the school and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sexual orientation or national or ethnic origin in administration of its educational policies, admissions policies, financial aid policies and athletic and other school-administered programs.

Member of VAIS, NAIS, NAES and IBSC

804.282.3185 www.stchristophers.com Member of VAIS, NAIS, NAES and IBSC

Cover art by Grant Mistr ‘17, a Virginia Commonwealth University art student majoring in kinetic imaging

Thanks to all the parents, students, alumni and friends who provided content and pictures for this publication.

Please send your news and photographs to thomask@stcva.org for use in an upcoming issue.

IN THIS ISSUE FEATURES 12

Changing Lanes Alumni Reflect on Career Changes

20

Center for the Study of Boys Research Update

71

Retirements

DEPARTMENTS

AROUND CAMPUS 22

Highlights

26

Arts

30

Sports Recap

GRADUATION 34

Senior Class

2

Message From the Headmaster

36

Lower School

4

Chapel Talks Noah Nicolson ‘19; Hollis Cobb ‘19; David Millman ‘19; the Rev. Durk Steed, the Rev. Joe Torrence

38

Middle School

40

Upper School

8

Faculty Voices Martin Millspaugh

10

Student Voices Christopher McCormick ‘19; Josh Vanichkachorn ‘19

REUNIONS 48

On Campus

50

Around the Country

56

Class Notes

MESSAGE FROM THE HEADMASTER

On Graduation, Alumni Careers, Arts Center / Recital Hall and Delores Smith’s Retirement The St. Christopher’s mission statement declares: “St. Christopher’s School prepares a talented and diverse group of boys for college and for life in an everchanging world.” As part of that mission, both in and out of the classroom, we seek to equip our boys with the foundation they need to be successful for whatever road they might travel.

We know that our boys will enter a competitive, global and dynamic professional landscape and that they will hold many jobs and navigate multiple career paths throughout the course of their working lives. We also know that many of our boys will work in fields and positions that do not yet exist. It is imperative that we continue to prepare boys with adaptable skill sets and nimble learning dispositions.

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These past few months have provided ample opportunities to engage with alumni here on campus, at Reunion Weekend and gatherings in Washington, D.C., Virginia Beach, New York and Virginia’s Northern Neck. It is always fascinating to hear what our graduates pursue, and some of those stories served as inspiration for this edition of StC Magazine. In these pages, you can read about a banker-turned-yachtsman, a paralegal-turned-doctor and two alumni who left business careers to become Episcopal priests. It is our sincere hope that every boy who comes through St. Christopher’s leaves with a strong sense of purpose, adaptability and the confidence to seek whatever path provides fulfillment.

At our 108th Upper School Commencement service on May 24, we added 77 members to the ranks of distinguished alumni. The Class of 2019 boasts a U.S. Presidential Scholar semifinalist (the second in St. Christopher’s history), our first Washington and Lee University Johnson Scholar, a U.S. Coast Guard Academy appointment and U.S. Army ROTC scholarship award winner. Eighteen boys will play college athletics, and 10% of the class intends to major in the visual or performing arts. More than 60% of the class earned AP Scholar distinction, and collectively they completed over 5,000 service hours during their four-year Upper School experience.

A highlight of the spring was the April 4 topping out ceremony for our Arts Center and Recital Hall. If you have not yet seen it, I encourage you to visit campus to gain perspective on this transformative facility, slated for completion in the spring of 2020. With the unprecedented growth and enhancement of arts programming on campus, this building will meet a demonstrated need for present and future Saints — providing a much-needed new home for creativity.

This summer also marks the end of the storied career of Director of Development Delores Smith, who retires after a remarkable 41-year run of raising sights, friends and funds for her beloved St. Christopher’s.

In my farewell remarks at our closing faculty and staff service, I commented that I am not aware of another individual who has exercised as much influence on the fate of an independent school in recent history as has she. I stand by that statement and offer my heartfelt respect and gratitude for all that Delores has meant to our community during the past four decades.

“We seek to equip our boys with the foundation they need to be successful for whatever road they might travel.”

Enjoy this edition of StC Magazine, and I hope to see you on campus soon.

Yours,

Mason Lecky Headmaster

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CHAPEL TALKS

“BE YOURSELF, BE A LEADER, AND TAKE CARE OF YOUR CLASSMATES.”

by Noah Nicholson ‘19 Thirteen years ago I started my first year of kindergarten, like many of my classmates here today. While many of us are excited to graduate, we’re also sad to go after being a part of this community for most of our lives. Looking back and appreciating our time in Lower School, I want to encourage you guys who will one day be in our shoes to do three things: Be yourself, be a leader and take care of your classmates.

We as a class have so many memories to take with us from the Lower School, from going to PE every day and playing Battleship with Coach Busser, or doing what Coach O’Donnell called “Elephant elephant, tiger tiger,” even though none of us really knew what we were trying to accomplish, to our grade-wide obsession with yo-yos or Silly Bandz®, there is too much to remember.

While I, as well as my classmates, have so many memories to choose from, I’ll talk about my very first, which was taking the block test with Mrs. Hunter. The test I can remember most vividly as I put different colored blocks together while Mrs. Hunter gave me directions on what to do. Surprisingly, I passed the block test with flying colors and was accepted the following year. After I got in, on the first day of kindergarten, not to my memory but

to my mom’s, I cried getting out of her car.

I was scared. There was so much here that was new to me — teachers, rooms, rules, kids — it all seemed so daunting.

That would soon change as I came to know the school I now love. What I originally saw as daunting came to be what made this place special. Everything came together to become what I saw as my second home, as I’m sure is also the case for the rest of my classmates here today.

There are many memories like mine that I’m sure you all will have as well, but there are a lot that, by the time you’re in my shoes, you won’t remember but wish you did. Lower School gave me some of the best memories I could have asked for as a kid while also teaching me a lot about myself. These lessons came from our teachers all throughout the Lower School whose main goal was to help us become men.

There are plenty of things that I wish I did differently when I was sitting in your seats, but for me it’s too late. If I could go back and do it again, I can say for certain that I would. I miss not having homework. I miss the bike unit in PE. I miss trying to trade my snacks with other people, going to recess and playing Knockout the whole

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time. There will be a lot things that by the time you’re my age you’ll come to miss. However, Lower School is a time where almost nothing else matters except school, so don’t be afraid to try lots of different things. Be yourself and don’t be afraid to do so. Figure out what you like, and try and reach as many of your classmates as possible. I used to be the kid who talked nonstop, but now I choose to listen more often than not. You have time to grow, just like we did. So make this a place you can call home, be comfortable in it and, like so many of us, it will help you grow to love this school for all that it will do for you.

Everyone gets nervous speaking in front of a large group of people no matter what age they are. Something that helped me and my classmates were Society Meetings. I don’t know how you guys feel about Society Meetings, but all I can remember was feeling so nervous. My hands were shaking, palms were sweating, and I’m sure I was trying too hard to look calm. While in the moment I felt overwhelmed, I know now that the poetry recitations were huge in helping me become a more confident and better speaker. Without that, I don’t think I could even be semi-comfortable speaking in front of you guys today.

“Being a leader doesn’t mean you always have to be the loudest person in the room or the person who talks the most. ... Sometimes a leader listens and holds back so others can step up.”

We all learn a lot about how to be a leader.

Whether that was serving on Student Council or most often in the classroom, we all learn in our own way. Being a leader doesn’t mean you always have to be the loudest person in the room or the person who talks the most. You can still be a leader even if you’re quiet and reserved like me. Sometimes a leader listens and holds back so others can step up. Take these years to try different ways of leading that best suit you. Whether that’s leading by example, being the most enthusiastic or just listening, you will all one day figure out what type of leader you’re able to be.

In Lower School we were given a sense of responsibility. I remember coming to school early and getting together all of the recycling. We would race to see who could take it out the fastest. It was a lot of fun and also taught responsibility because it was something we had to be accountable for. Yes, sometimes we didn’t want to to do it but, by the end, when we could see the recycling bin completely full, it gave us the satisfaction of completing something. There are most likely a lot of things similar to this that your teachers ask you guys to do, so when you’re given a responsibility you should take it seriously. In the long run it will teach you a lot about being accountable when you’re our age.

In a community like ours, you need to be able to lean on each other in time of need. It’s almost like a second family, and if you’re suffering from something, you can trust that the community will be there for you. I’m sure we’ve all been there when we needed someone to lean on, so be that guy for your classmates. From friends to teachers, this community will always be one that will take care of you. Whether that’s while you’re still here or after you graduate, I know that it will always be there for us, and for that we’ll always be grateful.

On behalf of my classmates, I’d like to extend a heartfelt thank you to all of you who have helped us along the way, and especially the teachers here today who are continuing to instill the values that helped us boys grow into men. Thank you all for caring for, being patient with, and believing in us. From the class of 2019 — thank you!

Noah Nicholson ’19 gave this talk April 30 in Lower School chapel.

SUMMER 2019 | 5

CHAPEL TALKS

“WE HAVE TODAY; WE HAVE NOW.”

By Hollis Cobb ’19 I’m tired. I mean, like, really tired. I know I’m not alone. With the exception of those seniors who clocked out a couple of months ago, we are collectively exhausted. Be it school work, extracurriculars, family commitments, whatever, life wears us down, burns us out. Multiple people have come up to me this week asking if I was sick or if I had a black eye, two black eyes, because, well, it looks like I do. I’m happy to report, however, that it’s April 18. The school year is coming to a close. Our stresses, we hope, will melt away come that last exam. Then we’ll be “free,” at least for a little while.

In the grand scheme of things, there are few days that we place importance on in the moment — a birthday, anniversary, graduation, the day you get married, the day you have a child. These days you look forward to, anticipate for weeks, if not months.

You appreciate those days. But how many days do we just try to push through, looking ahead to the weekend or the summer?

Many days at school or lazy Sundays at home seem to blur into a big collective mess when I look back over the past four years. In this drive just to get to the next day, to make it through that test or just to finish that one project, we glaze over our days. It’s impossible to know the impact of a single day many years down the road, but our “accidentally important” days, the ones we might miss, can have incredibly important effects. You may have met your best friend one day, without realizing the future you’d have together.

Perhaps one day you saw a grandparent, not knowing that it would be your last with him or her. Days like these are inevitable. We’ll always forget about interactions or fail to recognize an important moment when we’re in the midst of it. But we can learn to slow down and appreciate them more fully.

To give some context for the significance of today in the Christian calendar, we are in the midst of Holy Week. Jesus has entered Jerusalem after a few years of ministry to celebrate Passover as thousands throng to the city. This evening, Jesus and his disciples have dinner together, what we call the Last Supper.

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If you can imagine, Jesus’ ministry wasn’t one he could take a day off from. Always on call, healing, performing miracles or teaching, Jesus and his disciples were exhausted by the time he entered Jerusalem. I’m sure that while each day was incredible and meaningful, they began to blur together. And so when suddenly, out of nowhere, Jesus takes up the bread and wine at dinner and offers his body and blood to his friends and students, things just stop.

Jesus, a teacher and mentor, is sharing his body and his blood, “shed for you,” he says, which during Roman rule had some pretty scary implications. In this moment, everyone took pause. In part, the Last Supper is about taking that step back and appreciating a moment, in this case a meal together. We know because we named it, but the disciples didn’t know beforehand that this would be their “last” supper with their teacher. Without Jesus’ guidance, they may have departed just as they would after any other meal, later regretting their inattentiveness to this moment.

Last summer, I had the opportunity to volunteer at a camp for special needs youth and young adults. The camp was only a few days long, and each counselor was paired with a camper, who would serve as a “buddy.” I was paired with a boy about my age, one of our most challenging participants. He had a difficult home life and struggled to adapt into the community. However, I was able to break through his shell, and we began to have a wonderful time together, even if it was filled with him either not participating in activities or actively trying to escape into the woods and me having to beeline after him.

Even though we had only been together for a few days, midway through I was exhausted. All my energy was focused on getting him from one activity to the next and, though I was having fun, camp was becoming a bit of a blur. Although my experience with him improved, his behavior did not. We tried to make it work, but his lack of self-control and violent tendencies made it impossible.

I didn’t want to give up on him, but the directors decided he had to leave. I’ll never forget that last night, waiting with him for his parents. Time slowed down. Those were the hardest hours of my life, I think. I was afraid to send him back to an unstable home, and sad to separate him from the camp he had come to love. So I stayed. That’s what I could do. Not leave. And it sticks with me.

I hadn’t expected that day to be important. It started out as any other day at camp, but it ended with an experience that I’ll always carry with me. To think that if I didn’t slow down, if I didn’t stay, I might have missed it.

Maundy Thursday reminds us that even though life may beat us down, we don’t have to escape it, but rather stick with it and appreciate those moments. Sometimes, those moments will be difficult.

Sometimes you give something up, you lose someone. But those are the moments, the days, that we carry with us forever. This Last Supper is a time we can spend slowing down, enjoying our time with Jesus before the crush of tomorrow. We need to take this moment, to appreciate the community we share with those close to us, to enjoy those days that we might otherwise cast off. So today, take a deep breath. Tomorrow may be just as tiring, just as busy. But we have today; we have now.

Hollis Cobb ’19 delivered this sermon at the Maundy Thursday service during Holy Week.

MAKE AN IMPACT “The problem with not just environmental issues but any issues in the world is that you think you yourself can’t make an impact. You follow this predetermined path of ‘I’ll do these feel-good activities until I go to college, and then graduate school, and then maybe I can start to do things that actually matter.’ You don’t have to wait to impact the world. The thing is, especially with environmental issues, we don’t have time to wait anymore. … The issues we will face in our lifetimes will be the greatest humanity has ever faced.

When you leave this chapel, think about something that’s worth fighting for. You alone choose whether you will make a difference.

It’s up to all of us to decide: Will we wait to be saved, or will we get out there and save ourselves?”

David Millman ‘19’s talk to Upper School students about his efforts to enact change | May 29, 2019

“BEING PATIENT IS HARD WORK.” “We live in a world of instant gratification. We live in a Chick-fil-A drive-thru sort of existence, where we lose interest if anything takes longer than a few moments. Being patient is hard work. ... God’s promise is that those who wait will find renewed strength, renewed energy and renewed hope. Waiting has a positive impact on us because it forces us to slow down. The act of waiting shows that God is still working on a plan for us. And it is in those places of pause where God tends to speak the most often. God speaks in the waiting, the stillness and the pause. May you find a space today to be patient, to pause and to wait.”

The Rev. Joe Torrence, Lower School chapel | Spring 2019

A TILT TOWARD SPRING “We all love the arrival of the warm sun on our back, the vibrant colors of spring surrounding us, the fragrances of spring in our nostrils, summer beckoning to us. And what sets this wonderful change in the season in motion? Just a slight tilt. A small change in angle. A gentle lean.

“… Spring reveals to us that God is at work behind the scenes while we are unaware.

Underground, out of sight, while we are running around trying to keep warm during winter, the daffodil and tulip bulbs are spreading out their roots, doing all the invisible work necessary to push up a stem. Unseen to us, underground without the benefit of any sunlight, God has been busy preparing spring’s magical launching pad.

“A tilt toward the people around you will inevitably bring about change.”

“… Tilt is more important than proximity.

You can live near somebody, but unless you tilt in their direction, nothing is going change in your life. Such a tilt toward the people around you will inevitably bring about change just as surely as the earth’s tilt on its axis brings about the change of the seasons from winter to spring. When it comes to human worth, our eyes don’t see all. Human worth has an invisible quality that can’t be detected by the human eye. The human eye is amazing, but it misses a lot of God’s work. That doesn’t mean such work isn’t taking place.

“What beauty and variation even a slight tilt brings into our lives — when we dare to tilt toward God, to tilt toward one another, to tilt away from ourselves.”

The Rev. Durk Steed, Middle School chapel | Spring 2019

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FACULTY VOICES

Learning by Doing

By Martin Millspaugh, Kate Childrey teaching intern

When I step out my front door each morning, I’m welcomed by the St. Christopher’s campus with a friendly immediacy; it’s already under my feet, and has been each morning since I moved in to the apartment on the west corner of the property last August to serve as the Kate Childrey teaching intern.

The St. Chris community, especially its faculty, has welcomed me in much the same way the campus does each morning: immediately, gracefully and brightly. The consistency and warmth of the welcome — the way I can count on it each morning when I wake up — was especially meaningful in my first weeks and months here, because this role, this campus and even my short walk to work each morning were not yet familiar.

Upon arriving at the Middle School I hear a snippet of the morning sixth grade chatter about last night’s basketball games as I pass through the hallway on the way to the first period twentieth-century American history lesson taught by my mentor Hill Brown. Hill and I are often mocked for our common affinity for a base dress code of white Oxford shirt, light khakis and brown moccasins, but it’s been a perfect fit for me beyond the sartorial. Hill’s mentoring style is guided by a thorough humility that lends me confidence, and he shares his wisdom with a kind, self-effacing demeanor.

After observing his class, I teach the same lesson in second period to a new group of seventh graders. Broadly I follow his path, but he’s encouraged me to experiment and tweak things here and there, so sometimes I try to present something a bit differently. Now and then one of us will opt for boots while the other proceeds in the usual mocs.

The afternoon usually provides me a chance to observe or assist with Liz Boykin’s seventh grade English class or Fran Turner’s eighth grade Spanish students next door or across the hall, or to drift elsewhere and observe another lesson before I walk over to the field house for an afternoon athletic practice. I’ve found the midday transition from teacher to coach to be a stimulating one. Some strategies seem to be effective in both settings, but it’s not always that way. The pace, especially, can be vastly different. I enjoy coaching boys I’ve taught earlier in the day, mirroring their transition from student to athlete. It’s easy to see

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the value of the teacher-coach model.

The walk back to my apartment is a brief one, as I’m home at the same moment I leave work. During a few recent evenings when I’ve opened my back door to let the sunlight in, I’ve enjoyed the sounds from a baseball game coming across the street from Siegel Field. As this place has become more familiar, I’ve learned to increasingly value each step, each chance to do something: to teach a class, learn about a student’s interests outside of school, observe a conversation, lead a drill or proctor a study hall. I’ve come to believe that the practice of learning by doing is central to teaching and to consider the phrase, “do what you are doing,” a guiding principle.

The opportunity to learn is always immediate in both time and place, it seems. I’m glad to be right here, with this campus under my feet and this community surrounding me.

The Kate Childrey Teaching Internship program was created in 2017 to honor the life and impact of Kate Childrey, a beloved JK assistant teacher at St. Christopher’s. It provides a novice educator with the opportunity to teach and learn during one academic year.

Martin Millspaugh graduated from the University of Virginia in 2017 with a double major in English and urban and environmental planning. He worked for five summers at Camp Pasquaney and was a student advisor and dormitory co-head for the The Winter Term in Lenk, Switzerland, in spring 2018. In addition to his teaching responsibilities, he served as an assistant coach for JV football, eighth grade football, eighth grade basketball and Middle School lacrosse.

As this place has become more familiar, I’ve learned to increasingly value each step, each chance to do something: to teach a class, learn about a student’s interests outside of school, observe a conversation, lead a drill or proctor a study hall. I’ve come to believe that the practice of learning by doing is central to teaching and to consider the phrase, “do what you are doing,” a guiding principle.

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STUDENT VOICES

Writing a Few Lines to Liberate My Head

By Christopher McCormick ‘19

I went for a jog in the storm, Looking to liberate my head From the inside. My clothes Stuck to my skin like snakehide.

I can’t remember when I first discovered poetry in school, but I can remember what I thought of it: This is such a waste of time.

I used to dread every day of English class spent reading Roethke or Tennyson. I was never a fan of art when I was younger, but I found poetry uniquely frustrating, even compared to other art forms.

One part of poetry made me despise it above all other parts: the language. The flowery, indirect, “poetic” language. I remember wondering, why can’t the authors just say what they mean? Why do they have to hide all their words behind veils and symbols and metaphors? I felt like poetry was just a pretentious secret code created to exclude people who couldn’t understand it; I hated each moment I spent not understanding the secret.

the chance to give voice to all of the things that I previously had no idea how to explain. Poetry allowed me a way to break my silence.

It was enjoyable for me, but not yet particularly meaningful.

However, as sophomore year became more difficult, poetry escalated from nice pastime to therapeutic activity. Poetry became a rock upon which I leaned when life became difficult — my proverbial jog in the storm. A tough day at school, an argument with my parents, a failed test — almost anything — could be expressed, if not also remedied, by writing a few stanzas. Now, more than ever, whenever I face something big — no matter how good or bad — I always know I can turn to my purple book and write a few lines to liberate my head.

What changed my mind about poetry was my sophomore year English teacher, Jay Wood. Mr. Wood was determined to instill a love — and if not, at least an appreciation would do — for poetry in each of his students. To do so, he demanded that we read a lot of it. For the first few months of sophomore year, English class was agonizing; never before had I spent so much time engaging in something I disliked so much. But then a strange thing began to happen: I began to dislike poetry less. My view toward poetry slowly and quietly changed until one day, I realized that I somehow enjoyed what I was reading. The poetry itself never changed. The language was still poetic; I still didn’t understand much of what I read. Yet somehow I had come to respect that which I used to hate. Poems that used to infuriate me now intrigued me.

About halfway through sophomore year, I took my newfound joy in poetry one step further: I decided to start writing. I started writing without really understanding why I wanted to write, so at first I just wrote to write. The quality of the writing didn’t really matter to me; frankly, it ebbed and flowed. What mattered was that writing poetry gave me

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Christopher McCormick ’19 will attend College of the Holy Cross where he plans to major in English and religious studies. He wrote this essay for his college applications.

This is the day that the Lord has made; Let us all be glad and rejoice in it.

By Josh Vanichkachorn ‘19

Today I will share how gratitude changed my life. The word “gratitude” is derived from the Latin word “gratia,” which means grace or graciousness. In some ways gratitude encompasses both of these meanings. Gratitude is a thankful appreciation for what we receive, whether tangible or intangible. In gratitude, we can see the goodness in our lives, and there is so much goodness. In the process, we often recognize that the source of that goodness lies much outside ourselves; hence, grace. As a result, gratitude can help us connect to things larger than ourselves — like community and a higher power. Gratitude helps us refocus on what we have instead of what we lack.

My sophomore year was by far the hardest year.

This was not due to academics or anything school-related, but for a large part of the year, for no real reason at all, I felt really down. I constantly struggled with a general feeling of being lost and disconnected. I felt as though I wasn’t really a part of anything or good at anything. I was too weird to be a jock, but also not quite unique enough to be a theater guy, and also lacked the confidence to create my identity. Despite having good friends, I felt truly alone. My guess is that some of you in the audience can relate to this on some level. Through that year, I found myself in some dark places, and I didn’t know how I would make it past that year.

Through it all, my friends, my family and my teachers did everything they could to help me feel better. I tried working with a counselor.

I felt like I talked all the time with my mom. I honestly couldn’t get away from her. Looking back, I now realize that it was when Mr. Jones and Mrs. Wray took the time out of their day to reach out and show they cared that I started the game-changing shift in my perspective.

So many people have supported me then and continue to support me now, including my mom and dad, my Chinese teacher, Hollis, Henry and all my other friends and faculty that I don’t have the time to thank because we’d actually be here for the rest of the day.

It’s because of all of them that I know what gratitude feels like.

Even though looking for the good in things is not anything new, smart people in smart institutions have found that changing our perspective can change our lives. This can be as simple as shifting our viewpoint of a glass being half empty to the glass being half full, so to speak.

Research has shown that you can rewire your brain to actually see the good before the bad.

For me, rainy days have always made me feel really badly, but now if I look at rainy days as an opportunity to wear a hoodie, it doesn’t seem nearly as bad (sorry, Mr. Lecky). Not being tall enough used to make me feel worthless, but now I’m proud of the fact that I may be the shortest guy ever to play for Coach Szymendera. All it takes is a small shift in our perspectives.

So I invite you all to try and find something for which you are grateful, however insignificant it may seem. Do it today and every day.

Although making these small changes in my attitude didn’t change the fact that a bad day is still a bad day, these baby steps were what it took for me to handle those days in a healthier way. I am living proof that it really does work.

In closing, I leave with you a quote that inspires me daily as the monk David Steindl-Rast offers: “It is not happiness that makes us grateful, but gratefulness that makes us happy.”

Josh Vanichkachorn ’19, who will attend New York University Shanghai, delivered this talk at the final senior chapel in May.

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DEPARTMENT TITLE

Steve McGehee | Class of 1974

Bill Thomas | Class of 1978

Mac McElroy | Class of 1979

CHANGING LANES Alumni reflect on career pivots

Montgomery Maguire | Class of 1992

Shelton McMullan | Class of 1997

Peter Boyd | Class of 2001

Blount Edwards | Class of 1981

Switching careers takes confidence and courage.

Charles Bice | Class of 1983

While many land a course and stick with it, some St. Christopher’s graduates have forayed into new ventures, most by choice, a few by circumstance.

Some seek new challenges or different kinds of rewards; others yearn for independence and greater flexibility to chart their own course. In interviews with a sampling of alumni, all expressed gratitude for the foundation and skill sets StC provided for future challenges of their adult lives.

New skills and adapting to different work environments are required; paychecks often take a hit.

Paul Evans | Class of 2001

Kevin Isaacs | Class of 2008

STEVE McGEHEE ‘74

BILL THOMAS ‘78

Banking to Ministry

Corporate Marketing to International Aid Groups

While in college, Steve McGehee ’74 hit a low point where he struggled with a Shakespeare class and the sudden, unexpected death of an StC classmate. He took a year off and worked at a small savings and loan association in Richmond. During that time, the Rev. Raby Edwards at St. Stephen’s Church invited him to give a sermon and later followed up with a letter saying that if he ever wanted to pursue the ministry to be in touch. “I kept that letter,” Steve said. “It was a sweet, wonderful thing he did to inspire me along the way. And I’ve interpreted his gesture over the years as a moment of sheer, unadulterated grace.”

After graduating from the University of Virginia, Bill Thomas ’78’s early experience with the Peace Corps in Niger, Africa, set the stage for his later pivot from corporate marketing to living and working abroad. An MBA from the University of Wisconsin led to marketing jobs with Nielsen Marketing Research, Ralston Purina and Food Lion. He enjoyed the initial challenges but found corporate America not his ultimate calling. “It was great to sell more dog food or potato chips or bottles of Coca-Cola, but it wasn’t all that rewarding,” he said.

Initially he did not heed the call. After graduating from Washington and Lee University with a degree in English, Steve received his one and only job offer from the First National Bank of Boston — what he described as the “best nondecision” he ever made. For nearly 30 years, he had a challenging and fulfilling career in commercial banking at BankBoston, spending the last 18 years of his career there in Atlanta, where he managed a team in asset-based lending.

After taking early retirement in 2009, he finally circled back to the ministry and embarked on a five-year process of vocational discernment and three years of seminary. In August 2009 at the age of 54, he enrolled at Virginia Theological Seminary in Alexandria, Virginia, and after graduating in 2012 with a master’s degree in divinity, entered parish ministry in Spartanburg, South Carolina.

He now serves as an associate rector at St. Stephen’s in Richmond, where he focuses on pastoral care. “The priesthood is a constantly evolving animal,” he said. “You have to read voraciously, as well as maintain a disciplined spiritual life, to be effective.”

He is grateful for the moral framework provided by StC’s honor system. He loved his time in the school choirs and StC’s emphasis on literature, art and writing. “Ministry is not far away from those things,” he said. “Being an English major and, later, a priest fed on the same thing: a love of beauty, a love of the divine, and a sense that both are part of something bigger than ourselves.”

Photo credit: Jay Paul

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Leslie and Bill Thomas ‘78 in Uganda en route to Queen Elizabeth National Park

At age 40, he made the leap to rejoin the Peace Corps, this go-round in a salaried deputy director position, overseeing a team of 60 volunteers in Amman, Jordan. What started out as a two-year sabbatical morphed into an expat lifestyle he and his family embraced. While his wife has held various assignments with the United Nations, he pursued communications work for USAID with posts in Vienna, Austria, and Kabul, Afghanistan. This past spring he and his wife Leslie returned to Amman for her recent promotion. “I’m open to see what opportunities are there,” Bill said.

“I’m hoping to explore some different things.”

Part of the challenge in working in foreign cultures, he said, is to keep an open mind to accept and adjust to the unexpected and not draw into yourself or focus on recreating the life you had in America. “You have to maintain enough curiosity and flexibility to make sure you keep experiencing new things and doing different things and don’t let yourself get shut away,” he said.

Bill credits StC with teaching him how to think through challenging situations in different cultures. He’s also grateful for the early emphasis on fitness. Strength and conditioning his senior year boosted his confidence as a skinny adolescent plagued with allergies and asthma. “There’s nothing like the confidence of being physically fit,” he said. “I don’t get intimidated by the crazy situations you might find yourself in. The confidence and resourcefulness that you had to learn at StC helps.”

MAC McELROY ‘79 Insurance Brokerage to Nonprofit Foundation After almost 30 years in the insurance brokerage business, Mac McElroy ’79 changed lanes in 2014 to become president of Sheltering Arms Foundation in Richmond.

After graduating from the University of Virginia, he worked for Johnson & Higgins in New York, London, D.C. and Richmond, for Marsh after its 1997 acquisition of J&H, and then spent six years with a smaller regional firm.

In 2001 he joined the Sheltering Arms Hospital volunteer board, where his family, most notably his maternal grandmother, had been involved for decades. The original Sheltering Arms Hospital opened 130 years ago to provide indigent care, and in 1981 narrowed its focus to physical rehabilitation.

It continues to provide significant financial aid to those in need with 40 beds in Hanover, 28 beds at St. Francis Medical Center in Midlothian and 10 outpatient facilities. Mac connected with the mission and, when a joint venture with VCU Health to build

a hospital just west of Short Pump called for the new position of foundation president, he threw his résumé into the ring. In 2014 he accepted the job, which is charged with managing investments, building community partnerships and reigniting philanthropy. The $95 million project broke ground last May and will open its doors in summer 2020.

Mac is grateful for StC’s focus on service, leadership and community. “Having that balance between the humility to know what you don’t know, being able to source the help you need and having the confidence to try something new, I attribute a lot to St. Christopher’s,” he said. He recommends people getting involved with organizations they care about: “You never know what those service opportunities will create.”

BLOUNT EDWARDS ‘81 Financial Services to Yacht / Towboat Services and Back Again

After graduating from the University of Virginia, Blount Edwards ’81 started with Bank of Virginia’s training program. From there, he earned an MBA from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and joined GE Capital in San Francisco, where he traveled the country, evaluating companies for potential acquisition. He later moved to New York City, where he traded high-yield debt for Citicorp Securities, Alex. Brown & Sons and CIBC World Markets before launching a private equity business.

A big switch came in 2016 when he obtained his U.S. Coast Guard Master Captain’s license, following a love for spending time on the water that dates back to his childhood, fishing and boating with his family in the Outer Banks and Chesapeake Bay areas. Blount developed a marine business, providing yacht relocation, delivery and management, as well as charter and towboat services.

During this time, Blount also provided services for TowBoatUS, helping boaters in distress off Cape Cod and in Long Island Sound at all hours in all kinds of weather conditions. Locating vessels miles offshore can be difficult, situations he sometimes compares to looking for a needle in a haystack. “A boat may only have a mechanical problem, or a vessel may be sinking miles from shore.

I could tell you some interestingly hairy stories,” Blount said. “It’s an adrenaline rush, and it can be harrowing at times.”

Mac McElroy ‘79 with his father Jack McElroy ‘49 and son Peyton McElroy ‘14

In 2019, Blount made another course change when he was recruited to work for Arthur J. Gallagher & Co., a risk management/commercial insurance brokerage firm. He’s back on Wall Street but continues to work on the water many weekends, delivering yachts and assisting vessels in need.

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Blount is grateful for the experience he had at St. Christopher’s, particularly math skills that prepared him for college, graduate school and Wall Street. That knowledge also comes into play in marine navigation. He credits the holistic learning experience at StC, where he acquired citizenship and life skills and developed lifelong connections. “Our close friends all developed and evolved together,” he said. “We were given responsibility. It was a nurturing environment that allowed us to take on challenges and appropriate risks, where we actively learned and grew.”

CHARLES BICE ‘83 International Business to General Contracting & Real Estate Development

Blount Edwards ‘81 with his stepdaughter Elizabeth

Spending his junior year at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in Montpelier, France, put Charles Bice ’83 in an international frame of mind.

After graduating, he worked for investment firm Shearson Lehman Brothers in London for eight months before returning to Richmond to work at his family’s mortgage lending business while his father dealt with some medical issues.

Charles then pursued a master’s in international business at the University of South Carolina, where he spent a year working for IBM in Brussels as a student intern. Subsequent jobs included positions with Lausanne, Switzerland-based Philip Morris International, Philip Morris USA in Richmond and parent company Altria.

His big shift came in 2008, when he left to write books and migrated to general contracting and real estate development. He and classmate Birck Turnbull ’83 have collaborated on more than a dozen redevelopment projects, primarily in Richmond’s burgeoning Scott’s Addition. On the side, Charles narrates audiobooks and continues to write.

Charles Bice ‘ 83

He is grateful to StC’s influence in stimulating a lifelong interest in culture, language and travel, as well as in honing writing skills. “When writing skills are lacking, it’s debilitating,” he said. “Reasoning, rational thinking and argumentation are so powerful in making a compelling case for yourself in the workplace.” Meanwhile, his international experiences provided life lessons in the value of community. “Coming back and reconnecting with home, knowing this is where I belong, is something I cherish,” he said. “St. Christopher’s is very central to that feeling.”

Montgomery Maguire ‘92

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MONTGOMERY MAGUIRE ‘92 Acting to Residential Real Estate

After receiving an English degree from Sewanee, Montgomery Maguire ’92 was a paralegal in Tokyo and attended Stella Adler Conservatory. From there, he segued to theater, commercials and voiceover work in New York. After 10 years, he moved to L.A. to explore film and television. He acted in the feature film “Almost in Love” and did commercials, including some Super Bowl spots. His manager was opening doors to some possibly life-changing TV shows and pilots, which he didn’t find appealing. “As I was getting more successful, I found myself liking it less and less,” he said. “What I ultimately didn’t like was the lack of control. As an actor, you’re at the mercy of other people.”

As his disenchantment grew, he ran into Michael Fitzsimmons ’91 and said he was considering a move home to be close to family because his daughter was about to start kindergarten. “He was adamant that everything was on track and it was foolish to leave,” Montgomery said of his friend, who is dialed into the entertainment industry. About that time, he heard Sinead O’Connor’s lyrics run through his head: “So you must go back home, That’s where you belong,” while stuck in traffic staring at a strip mall on Venice Boulevard. “It was right out of Jean-Paul Sartre,” Montgomery said. “I thought, ‘I have to get out of here.’” A month later he and his family were gone, and he launched a new career with Long & Foster Realtors in Richmond.

Montgomery said it’s weird to change lanes that drastically midlife, but he finds the midsize city lifestyle first rate. Growing up with a mother in real estate, he was familiar with the business. He enjoys the social nature of the work and finds similarities to acting. “As an actor you’re getting to experience other people’s lives, getting a peek into drama they are enduring every day. Real estate provides an incredible opportunity to do that.”

SHELTON McMULLAN ‘97 Business and Law to Gastroenterology

Shelton McMullan ’97 graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill with an English major, business administration minor and no specific career aspirations. He moved to New York City with some college buddies and lived there almost four years, working in consulting and then as a paralegal.

He’d always had an outside interest in medicine, so he decided that being a doctor would be challenging and ultimately rewarding.

He spent an intense year at the University of Pennsylvania taking prerequisite science classes, followed by a year in Richmond at Virginia Commonwealth University taking organic chemistry. Shelton moved to Washington, D.C., where his wife was in law school, and worked for the U.S. Chamber of Commerce before attending George Washington Medical School. He stayed at George Washington University Hospital for his internal medicine residency and then fulfilled his fellowship training in gastroenterology at Medstar Georgetown University Hospital.

He now lives in Baltimore, his wife’s hometown, and works at Medstar Franklin Square Medical Center. “Looking back, I honestly can’t say what provided the impetus for deciding to become a doctor,” Shelton said. “I’m happy that I made the choice, as gastroenterology is a very interesting and dynamic specialty, and I learn so much every day. I love hearing from people at St. Christopher’s and will forever appreciate the wonderful influence the school has had on my life.”

Montgomery appreciates the mental toughness learned at StC. “I learned a lot of grace under pressure,” he said. He faced some academic troubles his sophomore year when he wasn’t completing work assigned. The guidance committee recommended he leave, but former Headmaster George McVey offered him a second chance. He repeated sophomore year, turned his grades around and served as president of Student Council his senior year.

He believes that StC fulfills its mission to graduate boys with integrity. “I noticed that as we matriculated and got older and did different jobs, StC guys always seemed to emerge as leaders in the situation they were in and performed at a really high level, even guys who didn’t do that well in school,” he said. “There’s something about the accountability, not only to yourself but to others.”

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PETER BOYD ’01

PAUL EVANS ‘01

Carpentry to Residential Real Estate

Communications Strategy to Ministry

After years of classroom learning at StC and Hampden-Sydney College, Peter Boyd ’01 pursued his yen for woodworking and landed jobs in cabinetry and later as a boatyard shipwright in Deltaville, Virginia. He thought he’d join the Coast Guard and then his father’s law practice, but a slow pivot to the Maine Maritime Academy in Castine, Maine, sent him to sea.

A degree in marine transportation provided experience and ultimately a third mate’s license to sail any size vessel upon any ocean.

For the past four years he’s worked for Moran Towing in Norfolk on ship-assist tugboats docking and undocking commercial vessels.

While an active and rewarding career, tugboating requires being gone half the year. Now married with two young boys, Peter obtained his real estate license and is now an agent with his wife and in-laws at Long & Foster Real Estate while home. Many sailors in the marine industry will go shoreside when they start a young family and return to sea when the children get older, he said.

Paul Evans ’01 well remembers the challenges of his first year at James Madison University and adjusting to a large public school when only a couple weeks in, 9/11 happened. A sage professor suggested he talk to someone about pursuing the clergy, but he shrugged it off.

Now almost two decades later, after getting a master’s degree and a 12-year career with church work and nonprofits, he enters Virginia Theological Seminary in Alexandria this August.

Between his undergraduate and graduate studies, he sailed 1,600 nautical miles from Norway to Ireland on a 44-foot schooner. “It was more of a spiritual pilgrimage,” he said. “I learned a lot about myself, self-sufficiency and humility and spent a lot of time on hands and knees scrubbing the ship’s teak deck.”

He is grateful for the foundation of his StC education and said his classmates all seem to have found their niche. “It set everybody up for success to handle whatever life seems to throw at you,” Peter said. “Overall it prepared me for everything. I will always trace my successes back to StC. It created a foundation for all others, even if you don’t know what the next thing is going to be.”

Meanwhile, he’s using his carpentry skills to restore River Edge, a dilapidated plantation in Charles City County, where he lives with his wife and sons. He stressed the need for millennials to stay flexible to be able to quickly pivot in any direction. “We operate under the assumption that there’s not going to be any Social Security or safety net,” Peter said. “We have to be as dynamic and productive as we can.”

Paul Evans ‘01 on a Grace & Holy Trinity Church mission trip to Belize

He described grad school, where he studied political science with a concentration in European Union policy analysis, as a “case of ready-fire-aim,” knowing he was interested in continuing his studies but pursuing without much intentional discernment. He graduated at the top of his class, but after graduation had a difficult readjustment back in Richmond, leading him to pack up and move to Denver, beginning what he describes as his wilderness period. “When you go through something like this, you lose all illusions about yourself,” he said. “You learn who you are. It was a severe mercy that happened. It reconnected me with my sense of vocation.”

After returning to Richmond, he worked under the tutelage of former StC Chaplain David Anderson, then rector at St. James the Less Episcopal Church in Ashland. After David passed away, Paul Peter Boyd ‘01 aboard a Moran Towing tugboat

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worked in communications for United Methodist Family Services and then joined St. Christopher’s while serving as youth minister at Grace & Holy Trinity Episcopal Church. He is grateful for his reconnection with his alma mater, where in addition to covering day-today events on campus, he serves as an advisor. “Things have really come full circle for me,” he said. “Eighteen years ago, I was a senior going through the application process for college. In 36 years I’ve had pretty incredible experiences that I believe will serve me well in doing what I want to do with the rest of my life, which is to work through the church to try and help heal a broken world.”

He is grateful for the chapel services at StC that provided “deep appreciation for having a conscious prayer life” and for a school that strives to “teach, create, train men who are willing to give their lives over to the service of others.”

back stronger following small strains,” he said. “But with the sellers, our interactions revealed an underlying expectation of deception.

Based on that philosophical difference, our partnership was likely doomed from the start.”

In the meantime, Kevin is regrouping. Some of his investors have voiced support for another venture, trusting his intention and principles. He’s focused on how to make his entrepreneurial vision a reality, and how to have fun in the process, even with the drudgery of daily tasks such as cold-calling. “You have to bring joy to the day-today aspect,” he said. “If it’s not joyful, you have to figure out how to make it that way. You have to do something that motivates you.”

KEVIN ISAACS ‘08 Investment Banking to Aspiring Business Owner After graduating from the University of Virginia, Kevin Isaacs ’08 landed a job in investment banking in Atlanta. After a few years, he had the opportunity to operate a small business and realized how much motivation autonomy and ownership can provide. He then pursued an MBA at UVA’s Darden School with the idea of becoming an entrepreneur.

After a short stint working in health care for a private equity firm in Atlanta, he was on the prowl to buy a business. He connected with a husband and wife in their 60s looking to retire and unload a company that helps health care providers streamline how they’re paid. Kevin spent the second half of 2018 working hand-in-hand with the sellers while sprinting to the finish line to complete the sale. He met with dozens of investors during an eight-figure fundraising effort, hiring lawyers and accountants to help him through the details. Last Christmas, after delivering the final agreement, he received a one-line email in response: “Our client is no longer interested in this transaction.”

In hindsight, Kevin realized trust had been deteriorating through the process. “I knew there was smoke, but I didn’t think there was fire,” he said. The ghosting stung. “I had sunk everything into this one deal and I was left holding the bag.”

Still, he knows he learned a lot through the process — primarily, to trust his gut. “There were so many mornings where I woke up with something in the pit of my stomach, wondering, ‘Can I trust these people?’” he said. He found himself comparing the experience to his time at St. Christopher’s. “In an environment of trust, it’s so much easier to build relationships that will last and even come SUMMER 2019 | 19

THE CENTER FOR THE STUDY OF BOYS

Action Research 2018-19 The Center for the Study of Boys promotes best practices in engaging and teaching boys through research, professional development and programming.

This year’s Saints Action Research theme was Boys and Stories: Pathways to Learning. “Stories teach important lessons and help connect us to others,” said Dr. Kim Hudson, director of The Center for the Study of Boys. “This year’s Saints Action Researchers leveraged the power of stories to help our boys — from the youngest to the oldest — develop their academic skills, grow their resilience and forge positive relationships with their peers.”

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1 | BUCKA WATSON Upper School Science Teacher Mr. Bucka Watson had boys share stories of struggle in his 10th grade chemistry class, based on the premise that struggle and failure are often necessary to reach a better conclusion. He shared his own story, too, and believes that the activities contributed to a more empathic learning environment. “I saw students interact in meaningful ways that they otherwise never would in a classroom setting,” Mr. Watson said.

2 | DANA KUHLEN Lower School Teacher Mrs. Dana Kuhlen researched whether sharing stories could improve peer relations in her fourth grade classroom community. She noted an increase in confidence, collaboration and empathy that set the stage for more productive, engaged and inclusive group work.

“Gaining a higher level of understanding and respect for each other provided the boys with a sense of inclusion, which all boys crave,” Mrs. Kuhlen wrote in her research summary.

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3 | PAULA MARKS

4 | SONIA MCDONNELL

5 | ISABEL SHEALY

Lower School Teacher

Lower School Spanish Teacher

Lower School Spanish Teacher

Mrs. Paula Marks explored how oral storytelling helped her first grade students in writing workshop. She found that while boys often share organized and detailed oral stories, they fall short in writing. In her research, boys first shared stories out loud followed by instruction focused on adding dialogue, writing in small steps and revising.

Mrs. Marks found that the boys’ writing improved in detail, length and spelling, and believes the oral storytelling helped create an engaging and supportive environment.

Mrs. Sonia McDonnell explored how using gestures and pictures helped fourth graders learn Spanish. Her lessons revolved around four stories, each with a listening and reading component. “I was excited to discover that by the end of the study the boys were regularly gesturing as they tried to recall vocabulary words in Spanish,” Mrs. McDonnell said. Furthermore, data showed that the words retained were typically related to specific gestures.

Mrs. Isabel Shealy incorporated familiar folk tales into lesson plans. In addition to having the boys participate in role-playing activities, she drew scenes from stories and incorporated props, costumes, puppets and flashcards. “The enthusiasm most boys exhibited during story activities led to higher levels of engagement throughout our class time,” Mrs. Shealy wrote in her research brief. “Acting out the stories seemed to make the boys less willing to give up on the language, and I observed many boys taking more risks due to their enjoyment of familiar stories and activities.”

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HIGHLIGHTS FROM HAPPENINGS

AROUND CAMPUS StC BOOKSTORE GOES ONLINE St. Christopher’s Bookstore is now online at www.stcbookstore.com. Digital Arts Teacher Amanda Livick’s photography students helped take photos of merchandise.

A TRIBUTE TO RICH HUDEPOHL SPIRIT UNLEASHED The Parents Association organized Spirit Unleashed, an April 26 fun-filled family event in the Bolling Field House where Saints enjoyed inflatable games, a pasta dinner, silent auction and tuition raffle.

DAY OF GIVING 2019 This year's Day of Giving, in honor of StC teachers, coaches and mentors, brought in a record number of 600 gifts, 120% of our goal. Donors included 283 alums, 188 parents, 67 grandparents, 67 faculty and staff and 69 first-time gifts.

A memorial just outside Upper School chapel honors late faculty member Rich Hudepohl. The new meeting area was made possible by the generosity of students and parents of the Class of 2018.

“While Mr. Hudepohl was not a fan of meetings, he would have appreciated a landmark such as this one, where students and faculty can find one another after chapel and build the relationships he cared so much about,” said Upper School Head Tony Szymendera. “The placement near chapel and an announcement to ‘meet me at Hudie’s’ should keep his spirit known among us.”

REMEMBERING KATE CHILDREY Family and friends of the late Junior Kindergarten Assistant Kate Childrey gathered in February to celebrate her legacy by dedicating a bench for the Lower School playground. The bench is one of many, which go by the acronym K.A.T.E. (Kind Acts Touch Everyone), donated every year to selected schools by the nonprofit kindness4kate.org. Kate's brother, Thurston '03, spoke on behalf of the family, including Kate's father Bill '63. In his remarks, Thurston encouraged the boys to use the bench as a refuge of kindness — a place where anyone who might need a friend can sit and expect to be greeted by one.

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ARTS CENTER AND RECITAL HALL CONSTRUCTION UPDATE The final three beams of the arts center and recital hall, signed by boys from all three divisions of the school, were ceremoniously installed April 4.

Head of School Mason Lecky made remarks, followed by remarks by Board Chair Ned Valentine ‘83. Upper School Chaplain Whitney Edwards led a prayer before the three beams were lowered. Highlights included performances by the Beaux Ties as well as the Middle and Upper School bands.

The building is scheduled to open in March 2020.

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AROUND CAMPUS

GRANDPARENTS DAY Grandparents and friends of Lower School boys visited the Lower School in late April for a morning of bonding and entertainment.

FOURTH GRADE BUSINESS SEMINAR AND CAREER DAY Parents visited fourth grade classes to discuss their work lives and then took students on field trips to local businesses. Here students visit an M.L. Bell construction site, owned by parent Mike Bell.

Later in the spring, fourth grade boys took part in an Entrepreneur Expo, where each homeroom developed a business plan, created an eye-catching advertisement and produced a product or service. Boys in third and fifth grades had the opportunity to purchase tickets and visit each business. Entrepreneur Expo Day raised $222, which was donated to the Cameron K. Gallagher Foundation in support of teenage mental health.

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MEMORIAL SERVICE AND CHAMBERLAYNE BREAKFAST At this annual service, we remember the men and women of our armed forces whose sacrifices have allowed us to live in tranquility. Each year St. Christopher’s honors those who paid the ultimate sacrifice, giving special recognition to alumni who died serving our country.

Thank you to the many friends of the school who joined us for our Memorial Service, especially the Marine Corps Veterans Color Guard and members of the Chamberlayne Society (alumni who graduated 50 years or more ago), who joined for breakfast afterward.

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The Arts From Jazz Band and theater productions to the chamber orchestra and Beaux Ties, the environment at St. Christopher’s makes it exciting and comfortable for boys to pursue their interests in music and the arts.

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SAINTS SEE THE WORLD

The Arts

An annual photo contest This year we focused on how our interactions with the environment have important global consequences. Students were charged with taking photos that illustrate people’s relationship to the physical world around them.

Photo entries were displayed in the Luck Leadership Playhouse Theatre, and a reception for the exhibit opening was held in early April.

Here are the winning photos with student descriptions of their work.

Nash Steed ’21 Constructing the Deconstruction of Nature My aim in taking these photos was to show this view: that human ambitions such as construction can easily be viewed as ruining the beauty of nature and keeping us locked out of seeing these amazing sights. I believe that the world was designed in a gorgeous way that does not need to be torn down, and that we sometimes forget how beautiful it can be because of how infrequently we get to see nature in its pure form (which is a reason why it took me so long to find an area in StC to take a photo where there was no building or minimal human disturbance).

I decided to use this sign, which was ironic as it says “Danger,” which agrees with my view that it is dangerous to be messing with the force of nature. In the bottom of the picture, I added extra grass and a brighter green color to try to show nature fighting against its destroyer by trying to overtake the fence. However, in the background (top of picture), I added a brown tint, the color that plants turn when dying, to show that nature is being killed and destroyed, concealed behind the guise of seemingly innocent construction.

Wally Whorley ’29 The Fiery Sunset

Sunset is a special time of day when everyone spends time with their family. Seeing the sunset makes people feel good.

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Keller Degnan ’26 A Machine with Tree in Claw

This photo shows how people are always destroying nature instead of enjoying it.

Joaquin Torres ’25 Untitled

A sea lion at the Uruguayan national park, Cabo Polonio. The land is protected, so the animals have no reason to be afraid of humans. It is not natural for a wild animal to not be shy or wary of humans.

Colin Reece ’19 Walking by the Glacier

The people walking are small when walking physically by a glacier, yet are powerful in how global warming is affecting these glaciers.

Max Kobal ’23 Raking the Beach

Due to global warming and an algae pest, a resort employee needs to clean the beach on a daily basis.

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WINTER & SPRING SPORTS

BASKETBALL

SWIMMING AND DIVING

The team finished fourth in the Prep League and extended a Prep League-best ninth straight trip to the tournament semifinals before falling to eventual champion Trinity Episcopal School. Captain Arnold Henderson ’19 was named All-Prep and played in two postseason All-Star games.

Walker Wallace ’20 made the all-tournament team.

The squad went 11-3, winning the Prep League meet and placing third in the state VISAA meet. University of Tennessee commit Sean Hogan ’19 swam strong with a Prep League and VISAA record in the 200 IM. Meanwhile, Miles West ’20, Hunter Sundlun ’20 and Nick Washington ’21 set a 200-free relay record at Preps. Hogan also broke the school record in the 100 backstroke and 100 free and was once again named the VISAA swimmer of the year.

FUTSAL After falling in the championship last season, futsal won the Valentine Classic in resounding fashion, 6-0 over Collegiate. It is the team’s sixth Valentine title during the past eight seasons. Sam Moore ’19 and St. Catherine’s Ashley Boardman ’19 were named to the all-tournament team, while Alexander Levengood was tapped as MVP.

INDOOR TRACK Indoor track took the Prep League crown for the third straight year and won the VISAA for the second time in the past three seasons. University of Virginia-bound Elby Omohundro ’19 was named VISAA fieldevent MVP, breaking his school triple jump record in the process. Ian Smith ’20 placed well with a win in the 1000 and provided a strong anchor for the winning 4x800 relay team. Smith broke a school record in the 500 in the Prep League meet. Omohundro and UCLA-bound Frank Royal were multiple champs.

SQUASH Varsity squash finished the season 10-2.

Highlights include a season-ending win at the Episcopal Invitational where Alex Johnson ’19, Manoli Loupassi ’23 and Holden Woodward ’23 won their respective flights. The team also placed sixth at nationals, going 2-2 in the Hartford, Connecticut, event, and was third in the Mid-Atlantic Squash Tournament at Woodberry Forest School.

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WRESTLING The grapplers won their second straight VISAA tournament, finished sixth at National Preps and won their 18th straight Prep League title. Rutgers signee Jackson Turley ’19 certainly left his mark, winning National Preps and being named All-Metro wrestler of the year.

VISAA Champs included Erik Roggie ’21, Jake Keeling ’21, Kevin-Michael Schork ’21, Mason Dubois ’21, Seth Wagner ’19 and Turley.

BASEBALL Baseball won the Prep League championship and was a state finalist, going 18-7 overall. The Saints put five players on the Prep League team, the most of any school — DayMone’ Fleming ’19, Patrick Routsis ’19, Charlie Vozenilek ’19, Griff O’Ferrall ’21 and Carter Schmitt ’21. O’Ferrall, Routsis and Vozenilek were named first-team all-state. Fleming made the second team.

O’Ferrall tied the school record for hits in a season with 42.

GOLF The team posted a record of 10-3 in headto-head matches and placed fourth in both the Prep League and VISAA tournaments. Ben Cooper ’19 was Prep League medalist, and Cooper and Wade Jefferson ’22 earned all-state honors. Cooper was named second-team All-Metro for the 2019 season.

LACROSSE Lacrosse finished 19-1 and fell in the state semifinals for its first and only loss of the season. The Prep League champions placed five on the Prep League team — Hartley Jordan ’19, Luke Valentine ’19, Cole McCoy ’20, Will Tazewell ’20 and Walker Wallace ’20 — and were led by Prep League Coach of the Year John Burke.

OUTDOOR TRACK Track won the Prep League and state meets, going 12-1 in duals. Elby Omohundro ’19 scored 56.5 points in the Prep League meet, and 53 in the State meet, thought to be records. Omohundro was the MVP of both meets, while setting a new school record in the triple jump (47-2 ¼).

Ian Smith ’20 set a school record twice in the 800, the last a 1:52.93 jaunt at States, on his way to All-Prep and all-state honors. Meyann Avele-Eya ’20, Julian Taylor ’21 and Jayden Smith ’21 were All-Prep. J. Smith, William Tune ‘20, Johnny Whitlock ‘20, Hank Valentine ’20, Nash Steed ’21, Christian Johnson ’21 and Bridger Thurston ’19 earned all-state honors.

TENNIS Tennis ran the table, going 13-0, winning the Woodberry Forest Invitational, the Prep League and State tournament. Eli Bemiss ’20, Alaister Burke ’20, Talman Ramsey ’21 and Will Thompson ’22 were each All-Prep, along with state Coach of the Year Richard Peyton.

Burke and Thompson made first-team all-state and Ramsey made second team. Burke, Thompson and Ramsey were unbeaten in singles and doubles for the entire season.

2019 DIRECTORS’ CUP For the fourth consecutive year, StC finished first in the Prep League competition for the entire athletic season. The Saints have taken the award six of the past seven years.

Compiled by Stephen Lewis, assistant athletic director / sports information director

SUMMER 2019 | 31

Student News St. Christopher’s understands how boys think, how they act and how to best develop and focus their intellect and physical and emotional energy. We call it educating the “Whole Boy,” and it doesn’t happen exclusively in the classroom.

Here are just a few highlights of what our students are doing outside of school.

Carter Erwin ’24, C.J. Lee ‘24 and Kahlil Nash ‘24 recorded an album this summer as the group “lil RAM3N.” Jackson Hill ’22 and Lane Jones ’22, who hosted Australian exchange students this spring, visited Perth, Australia, to study at Christ Church Grammar School for three weeks this summer.

George Freeman ’20, Mike Hawkins ’21, Christian Johnson ’21 and Nikkos Kovanes ’22 attended the Harold M. Marsh Jr. Connections Institute, a four-day summer conference dedicated to respect and understanding among all people.

Other students took part in the following summer programs: Nicholas Armfield ’20 and Teddy Damgard ’20 — International Relations Academy at Georgetown University

Lane Jones ’22 performed in the Central Regional Orchestra in February.

Brian Bell ’20 and Elijah Bossola ’20 — Institute for Leadership and Public Service at St. Christopher’s

Charlie Whitlock ’19 was selected by audition to participate in the All-State Chorus.

Joe Brennan ’20 — Donald P. Bellisario Center of Communications Broadcast Journalism program at Penn State University

Fifth graders Hayes Carithers, Leopold Kobal and James Segneri sang in the All-Virginia Elementary Chorus April 6 in Harrisonburg, Virginia. The boys worked with a guest conductor and performed with the top elementary school singers from across the state.

Thomas Lamb ’20 — American Legion Boys State

That same weekend, Middle School choristers Winston Morris ‘25, Dave Valentine ‘24, Cameron King ‘23 and Teddy Price ‘23 participated in the All-Virginia Honors Choir at the Dominion Energy Center for the Performing Arts organized by the Virginia Choral Directors Association.

St. Christopher’s showcased Baylor Fuller ‘19’s artwork in the Luck Leadership Playhouse in May.

Jude Reiferson ’20 — UVA’s Sorenson Institute for Political Leadership’s High School Leaders Program Alex Sadid ’20 — Cornerstone Institute at UVA Drew Brown ’21 — NYU Tisch Summer High School Program in Drama: Production and Design Jayden Smith ’21 — ACLU’s Summer Advocacy Program in Washington, D.C. Colin Taylor ’21 — Columbia Scholastic Press Association’s Summer Journalism Workshop at Columbia University Julian Taylor ’21 — Sports Industry Management Camp at Georgetown University Hank Valentine ’20 focused on archaeological research this summer through a six-week UVA program at Monticello with a three-week program in Redondo, Portugal.

Mike Hawkins ’21 traveled to Switzerland, Italy, France and the Netherlands on a Putney Travel program.

During the past 10 years, more than 20% of St. Christopher’s graduates have gone on to play a sport in college, and the Class of 2019 continues that tradition:

A spring student project, organized by Yates Bass ‘25 and Jack Hurlbert ‘25, built birdhouses for the StC campus. The project is part of ExploRVA, a Middle School co-curricular program.

The 65 fundraisers for the St. ChristoCURES team collected $29,327 for VCU Massey Cancer Center, with most taking part in the Monument Avenue 10K. The team, sponsored by faculty members Asha Bandal and Kim Hudson, won the Massey Challenge for the ninth time in the past 10 years with students Chris Schroeder ’20 and Olivia Armfield ’20 (St. Catherine’s) the top fundraisers, bringing in more than $10,000.

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Connor Alexander — University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (wrestling scholarship) Ben Cooper — University of Richmond (golf scholarship) Charlie Cox — Georgetown University (crew) John Flood — U.S. Coast Guard Academy (soccer) Daymone’ Fleming — Randolph-Macon College (football) Davis Gillenwater — Mercer University (lacrosse) Arnold Henderson — Virginia Commonwealth University (basketball)

Sean Hogan — University of Tennessee (swimming scholarship) Hartley Jordan — Virginia Military Institute (lacrosse scholarship) Alexander Levengood — The College of William & Mary (soccer scholarship) Sam Moore — University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (soccer) Elby Omohundro — University of Virginia (track scholarship) Patrick Routsis — Old Dominion University (baseball scholarship) Frank Royal — UCLA (track scholarship) Dhykwon Smith — Christopher Newport University (football) Jackson Turley — Rutgers University (wrestling scholarship) Luke Valentine — Sewanee: The University of the South (lacrosse) Jack Westfall — Sewanee (lacrosse)

SENIOR STANDOUTS AP SCHOLARS Ivey Chaney Nate Davis Will Hayes Jack Horsley Tyler Hutchison Chris McCormick Jack McGurn Josh Vanichkachorn

AP SCHOLARS WITH HONOR Hagan Aldridge Hollis Cobb Aidan Fitzgerald John Fitzgerald Sam Moore Colin Reece

AP SCHOLARS WITH DISTINCTION

St. Christopher’s had four of the eight male Richmond Times-Dispatch/Sports Backers monthly scholar-athlete winners — Ben Cooper ’19, John Flood ’19, Alexander Levengood ’19 and Elby Omohundro ’19. Elby was selected as one of 10 finalists for the RTD’s athlete of the year award.

Joe Beck Alex Brown John Flood Teddy Hill Philip Maruri David Millman

Warner Collier ’20 completed the online Virginia Aerospace Science Technology Scholar program in conjunction with NASA this year.

COMMENDED NATIONAL MERIT STUDENTS

Jack Horsley ‘19 will attend the University of Georgia with a scholarship from the national headquarters of Ducks Unlimited.

Tyler Hutchison ‘19 won three national Astronomy League awards, all carrying with them scholarships — one for astrophotography and two for service. He was also nominated for the National Young Astronomer Award and was tapped for a Richmond Association of Phi Beta Kappa scholarship that he will use to attend the College of William & Mary. In addition, he completed the third part of the Virginia Space Grant Scholars program, Virginia Earth Systems Science Scholars, this year, making him the first St. Christopher’s student to complete all three courses and summer programs.

Bridger Thurston ’19 received a National Army ROTC Scholarship, which he will use to attend VMI. Joe Beck ’19 was one of approximately 600 selected as a semifinalist for the U.S. Presidential Scholars program. Joe also received the Anne B. Taliaferro Scholarship administered by the Community Foundation, which he will use to attend the University of Virginia as an Echols Scholar.

(top 5% nationally) Aidan Fitzgerald Philip Maruri David Millman Sam Moore

NATIONAL MERIT SEMIFINALIST (top ½ of 1%) Joe Beck

LEXUS PURSUIT OF PERFECTION LEADERSHIP AWARD NOMINEES Joe Beck Alex Brown Philip Maruri Sam Moore Elby Omohundro

SUMMER RESIDENTIAL GOVERNOR’S SCHOOL PROGRAMS Sully Beck ’20 (medicine and life sciences) Austin Ford ’20 and Joe Parker ’20 (humanities) Garnett Nelson ’20 (math, science and technology) ALL STUDENTS LISTED ARE MEMBERS OF THE CLASS OF 2019 UNLESS OTHERWISE NOTED. SUMMER 2019 | 33

GRADUATION 2019

St. Christopher’s Class of 2019

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Front Row: Allyn Banks, Connor Alexander, Ivey Chaney, Davis Gillenwater, Luke Valentine, Sam Moore, Noah Nicholson, Alex Johnson, Will Eng-Nugent, Will Beck, Arnold Henderson, Bridger Thurston, Alex Brown, John Fitzgerald, Jack McGurn, Josh Vanichkachorn, Bo O’Connor, David Millman, Philip Maruri, Patrick Routsis Second Row: Cameron Lovings, Joe Beck, Matt Hultzapple, Colin Reece, Parker Krey, Wyatt Campbell, Mason Cametas, Nate Davis, Blake Douglas, Will Hayes, Wes Featherstone, James Gilmore, Henry Tate, Baylor Fuller, Carlton Johnson, Tate Gathright Third Row: Max Macek, Christopher McCormick, John Flood, Harrison Rhodes, Hal Gray, Charlie Boggs, Matt Hayes, Tyler Hutchison, Alex Davis, Grayson Rogers, Hagan Aldridge, Seth Wagner, Henry Barden, Elby Omuhundro, Teddy Hill, Brady Mattson, Henry Boehling, Daymone’ Fleming, Sammy Henneke, Dhykwon Smith Fourth Row: Frank Royal, Jackson Turley, Hartley Jordan, Max Nabakow, Hollis Cobb, Charlie Whitlock, Aidan Fitzgerald, Hunter Gardner, Evan Knight, Ben Cooper, Charlie Cox, Charlie Vozenilek, Alexander Levengood, Tabb Gardner, Jack Horsley, Jack Westfall, Ben Davis, Darren Badley, Sean Hogan, Henry Simril

SUMMER 2019 | 35

GRADUATION 2019 — LOWER SCHOOL

In closing her Lower School graduation speech, Head of Lower School Benita Griffin recited lessons from Little Golden Books. She challenged students and all in attendance to keep in mind golden messages from the 1940s that are still ever so relevant today: Don’t panic.

Get some exercise every day.

Daydream.

Stroll.

Make music a part of your life.

Be a hugger.

Turn off the TV from time to time and crack open a book.

Use your imagination.

Stay curious.

Take in some culture once in a while.

Learn something new.

Express yourself. Try a new look.

Be unique.

Be open to making new friends, even if you are very, very shy.

Steer clear of shady characters.

Choose your companions wisely.

Sing, even if you can’t hold a tune.

Learn to cook and clean.

Cultivate contentment.

Give in to a good cry. You’ll feel better afterward.

Get plenty of sleep, too.

Work hard.

Do no harm.

Be proud of your country.

Give thanks.

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“Class of 2026, give me reasons to continue bragging about you, long after you have left the Lower School.”

— Benita Griffin, Lower School head

LOWER SCHOOL AWARDS DOROTHY M. BUGG MEMORIAL AWARD Tal Horton ’28 ALBA WHITE MEMORIAL AWARD Matthew Matthews ‘27 WILLIAM ADAMS PINDER AWARD Bowan Ireland ‘27 and LT Nguyen ‘27 WILLIAM S. GRIFFITH PRIZE FOR ACADEMIC EXCELLENCE Benjamin and Coleman Mayer ‘27 THOMAS NELSON PAGE PRIZE FOR EXCELLENCE IN ENGLISH COMPOSITION Edward Johnson HELEN SHEPHERD MUSIC AWARD Cole Butler ANDREW BEIRNE BLAIR AWARD FOR LOYALTY AND BEST SPIRIT IN ATHLETICS Elijah Asare DUFFEY AWARD FOR LEADERSHIP IN ATHLETICS Evan Broughton SCIENCE AWARD Jack Marshalek SPANISH AWARD Konrad Katlaps GEORGE SQUIRES LITERARY AWARDS Writing | Eric Pendlebury & Baker Whisnand (first prizes); Field Ewing (second prize); Bowan Ireland ‘27, Evan Broughton, Phillip White (third prizes); James Carney ‘28, Owen Farmer ’27, Edward Johnson, Charles Lange, Beckett Scallon ‘28 (honorable mentions) Visual Arts | Cabell Benaicha ‘31 (first prize); William Sutten (second prize); Griffin Kerr ‘27 (third prize) HENRY J. TOBLER MEMORIAL AWARD FOR ART George Julias OLIVIA HARDY BLACKWELL AWARD Brooks Wright BEATTIE MEMORIAL PRIZE FOR LEADERSHIP Charles Lange and Lukas Gordinier HIGHEST ACADEMIC AVERAGE Charles Lange and Asher Green NORMA ALLEY PRIZE FOR FACULTY EXCELLENCE Ms. Mary Tryer, Lower School teacher of music HAWKINS HIDEAWAY PRIZE FOR LOYALTY AND SERVICE Mrs. Kadie Parsley, fifth grade teacher All prize winners are members of the class of 2026 unless otherwise noted.

Mrs. Kadie Parsley and Ms. Mary Tryer

SUMMER 2019 | 37

GRADUATION 2019 — MIDDLE SCHOOL

MIDDLE SCHOOL AWARDS ROBERT W. BUGG AWARD FOR OUTSTANDING CITIZENSHIP IN GRADE EIGHT Wes Wise WILLIAM R. BABCOCK MEMORIAL SCHOLARSHIP Teddy Price and Holden Woodward MONICA FRISCHKORN WENZEL MEMORIAL SERVICE AWARD Jeffrey Mitchell SARA WHALEY FORSYTHE MEMORIAL SCIENCE PRIZE Michael Jiménez and Ben MacDougall FRANKLIN & GRACE MULLINAX MATHEMATICS AWARD Ben MacDougall and Richmond Southall T. FOSTER AND ANN WITT HISTORY PRIZE Nicholas Manetas and Macon Moring WOODWORKING AWARD Hi Willett MUSIC AWARD Teddy Price DRAMA AWARD Colin Chewning ART AWARD Quintin Levy and Kyan Patel T. FOSTER AND ANN WITT ENGLISH PRIZE Bowen Hall BENJAMIN BRISCOE WHITE MEMORIAL SPANISH PRIZE Nicholas Manetas MIDDLE SCHOOL LATIN PRIZE Macon Moring DULANEY WARD FRENCH PRIZE Kirk George ATHLETIC AWARD Carson Lamb and Jack Parker CENTENNIAL CITIZENSHIP AWARDS Grade 6: Dougie Boardman, Kylen Zollinhofer, Joaquín Torres, Patteson Branch, Colby Wallace Grade 7: Eric Brown, August Lange, Patrick Mayer, Captain Worrell Grade 8: Michael Jiménez, Bowen Hall, Macon Moring, Jack Nystrom, Cade Petrus All prize winners are members of the class of 2023 unless otherwise noted

38 | StC Magazine

“Gentlemen, you are blessed with opportunities few students have available to them, and surely more than those who came before you. Take advantage of those offerings. Class of 2023, continue to take chances, try new things and chase your passions. Along with your stellar academic preparation, your honor, gentlemanly behavior, friendship, sportsmanship, integrity, the love of God and service to our fellow man, you will be prepared for all that you will face, and you will represent your school well. Additionally, you will make your Middle School teachers very proud.

“I wish you continued success as you move into Upper School next year.”

— Warren Hunter, Middle School head SUMMER 2019 | 39

GRADUATION 2019 — UPPER SCHOOL

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Joe Beck '19

Philip Maruri '19

VALEDICTORIAN

SALUTATORIAN

“I would like to end with a brief discussion of faith, an element that is undeniably embedded in the core of what it means to be a St. Christopher’s boy. Now, by faith, I do not refer specifically to the Christian faith, but religion in general. It is my belief that religion is integral to society for the moral framework it provides. In the United States, church attendance is declining. It would certainly be a tragedy for faith if that trend were to continue, but, more relevantly for those who are not Christian. ... Again, I am not referring strictly to the Christian God, but more broadly to the belief in a religion and God in general. In his farewell address, George Washington expressed a similar concern to that which I share with you today. ‘Let us with caution indulge,’ he wrote, ‘the supposition that morality can be maintained without religion.’ Fellow classmates, whatever your faith may be, always keep it close to your heart.”

“We are at the end of an era, and a new one lies before us: college.

While it may be frightening and woeful to leave such a space that many of us have called our second home for the last three to 14 years and go to a foreign place without the men whom we have called our closest friends for over a decade, I ask you all not to see this day as a lament for the fleeting past, but a celebration of the forthcoming future. Yes, new adversity will face us in college, no doubt; however, I ask you all not to quake in fear of it, but to welcome it with open arms. It is with such adversity that this class has grown to what it is, and our ability to cope with challenges of any kind is what differentiates us from others. Therefore, as the challenges of college appear before us, do not deplore them.

Instead I invite you all to say, ‘Thank you, next,’ to the adversity of the future and the challenges of today.”

SUMMER 2019 | 41

GRADUATION 2019 — UPPER SCHOOL

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UPPER SCHOOL AWARDS WILLIAM M. HILL JR. ’73 MEMORIAL SCHOLARSHIP Hunter Sundlun ’20 RAY MERCER “BUCK” PAUL III ‘06 MEMORIAL SCHOLARSHIP Teddy Bannister ’21 WILLIAM CARTER BOWLES JR. ’56 MEMORIAL MUSIC PRIZE Charlie Whitlock DOUGLASS P. GRIFFITH PRIZE FOR EXCELLENCE IN MATHEMATICS Sam Moore SCHOOL PRIZE FOR EXCELLENCE IN DRAMA Darren Badley SCHOOL PRIZE FOR EXCELLENCE IN ART Baylor Fuller SCHOOL PRIZE FOR EXCELLENCE IN ENGLISH Henry Barden SCHOOL PRIZE FOR EXCELLENCE IN SPANISH LANGUAGE Teddy Hill SCHOOL PRIZE FOR EXCELLENCE IN SPANISH LITERATURE Philip Maruri SCHOOL PRIZE FOR EXCELLENCE IN SCIENCE David Millman SCHOOL PRIZE FOR EXCELLENCE IN COMPUTER SCIENCE Joe Beck and Max Nabokow SCHOOL PRIZE FOR EXCELLENCE IN HISTORY Bridger Thurston MOORE PRIZE FOR EXCELLENCE IN FRENCH Christopher McCormick E.W. BOSWORTH LATIN PRIZE Austin Ford ’20

THE REV. MELISSA K. HOLLERITH PRIZE FOR SERVICE, COMMUNITY-BUILDING AND INCLUSION Darren Badley CHARLES M. STILLWELL PRIZE FOR LEADERSHIP Joe Beck and Christopher McCormick ALEXANDER McNEILL CARRINGTON ’41 MEMORIAL AWARD Hollis Cobb JOHN NEWTON GRAY ’35 MEMORIAL PRIZE FOR OUTSTANDING LOYALTY John Flood and Philip Maruri DASHIELL MEMORIAL PRIZE Alex Brown IRVING H. BLACKWELL MEMORIAL PRIZE FOR HIGH DEVOTION TO THE HONOR AND TRADITIONS OF ST. CHRISTOPHER’S SCHOOL Evan Knight WILLIAM CABELL BROWN PRIZE FOR CHARACTER AND ABILITY Sam Moore JOSEPH BRYAN MEMORIAL PRIZE FOR LEADERSHIP Henry Barden ARMSTRONG-JENNINGS AWARD Mr. Key Randolph ’84, Upper School English teacher ANDREW JACKSON BOLLING III FACULTY AWARD Mr. Stephen Lewis, assistant director of athletics / director of sports information / Middle School athletics coordinator CARL J. KOENIG PRIZE FOR FACULTY EXCELLENCE Mr. Billy Abbott, Upper School dean of students and history teacher All prize winners are members of the class of 2019 unless otherwise noted.

DAVID M. BONEY JR. ’44 MEMORIAL PRIZE Allyn Banks SUMMER 2019 | 43

GRADUATION 2019 — UPPER SCHOOL

LEGACIES

Front Row: Tom Rhodes ’87, Chris Boggs ’89, Frank Royal ’86, Hill Brown ’85, James Featherstone ’86, Jeff Hayes ’84, Rod Gardner ’84, Bill Gardner ’53, Horace Gray ’56; Second Row: Harrison Rhodes, Charlie Boggs, Frank Royal, Alex Brown, Wes Featherstone, Matt Hayes, Hunter Gardner, Tabb Gardner, Horace Gray; Not Pictured: Henry Barden and Alan Johnston ’44 (Henry’s deceased great-grandfather), Coleman Baskerville ’20 (Matt Hayes’ deceased great-grandfather), Randolph McElroy ’53 (Harrison Rhodes’ grandfather)

Front Row: Ned Valentine ’83, John Westfall ’89, Robert Brumley ’90, Shelton Horsley ’81, Stefan Cametas ’90, John Whitlock ’75, Scott Campbell ’79; Second Row: Charlie Vozenilek, Luke Valentine, Jack Westfall, Blake Douglas, Jack Horsley, Mason Cametas, Charlie Whitlock, Wyatt Campbell; Not Pictured: Shelton Horsley ’45, Thomas Towers ’43 (Charlie Vozenilek’s deceased grandfather), Henry Valentine ’45

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COLLEGE DESTINATIONS BELMONT UNIVERSITY Charlie Whitlock

MERCER UNIVERSITY Davis Gillenwater

BROWN UNIVERSITY Alex Brown

NEW YORK UNIVERSITY SHANGHAI Josh Vanichkachorn

BUCKNELL UNIVERSITY Mason Cametas Ben Davis

OLD DOMINION UNIVERSITY Patrick Routsis

CASE WESTERN RESERVE UNIVERSITY Wyatt Campbell Harrison Rhodes CHRISTOPHER NEWPORT UNIVERSITY Dhykwon Smith COLLEGE OF CHARLESTON Wes Featherstone COLLEGE OF THE HOLY CROSS Christopher McCormick COLLEGE OF WILLIAM AND MARY Allyn Banks Ivey Chaney Tyler Hutchison Alexander Levengood DARTMOUTH COLLEGE David Millman DePAUL UNIVERSITY Carlton Johnson DREW UNIVERSITY Tate Lifson GEORGE MASON UNIVERSITY Darren Badley GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY Charlie Cox GETTYSBURG COLLEGE Bo O’Connor HAMPTON UNIVERSITY Cameron Lovings JAMES MADISON UNIVERSITY Henry Boehling Brady Mattson LIBERTY UNIVERSITY Will Eng-Nugent

PRINCETON UNIVERSITY Philip Maruri RANDOLPH-MACON COLLEGE DayMone’ Fleming RHODE ISLAND SCHOOL OF DESIGN Baylor Fuller RUTGERS UNIVERSITY Jackson Turley SEWANEE: THE UNIVERSITY OF THE SOUTH Hal Gray Luke Valentine Jack Westfall SKIDMORE COLLEGE Henry Tate UNITED STATES COAST GUARD ACADEMY John Flood UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA Blake Douglas Tate Gathright Matt Hayes Matthew Hultzapple Grayson Rogers Henry Simril UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, LOS ANGELES Frank Royal UNIVERSITY OF DENVER Alex Davis ­ NIVERSITY OF GEORGIA U Charlie Boggs Aidan Fitzgerald Jack Horsley UNIVERSITY OF MARY WASHINGTON Hollis Cobb

UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA AT CHAPEL HILL Connor Alexander Sam Moore Max Nabakow UNIVERSITY OF UTAH Charlie Vozenilek UNIVERSITY OF RICHMOND Ben Cooper UNIVERSITY OF TENNESSEE, KNOXVILLE Sean Hogan UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA Joe Beck John Fitzgerald Will Hayes Teddy Hill Elby Omohundro Colin Reece VIRGINIA COMMONWEALTH UNIVERSITY Arnold Henderson Evan Knight Noah Nicholson VIRGINIA MILITARY INSTITUTE Hartley Jordan Bridger Thurston VIRGINIA TECH Hagan Aldridge Will Beck Nate Davis Hunter Gardner Tabb Gardner James Gilmore Sammy Henneke WAGNER COLLEGE Parker Krey WAKE FOREST UNIVERSITY Alex Johnson Jack McGurn WASHINGTON AND LEE UNIVERSITY Henry Barden WEST VIRGINIA UNIVERSITY Seth Wagner

LONGWOOD UNIVERSITY Max Macek SUMMER 2019 | 45

GRADUATION 2019 — AWARDS

Students received school, state and national recognition at the annual Upper School Awards Ceremony in May. COMCAST OF METRO RICHMOND LEADERS AND ACHIEVERS SCHOLARSHIP Evan Knight ’19 DAUGHTERS OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION GOOD CITIZENSHIP AWARD Max Macek ’19 HIEROGLYPHIC AWARD Hollis Cobb ’19 DIGITAL MEDIA PRIZE George Thompson ’22 PINE NEEDLE AWARD Henry Barden ’19 RAPS & TAPS AWARD Hollis Cobb ’19 and Tyler Hutchison ’19 STC POETRY OUT LOUD COMPETITION Hollis Cobb ’19 (first prize); Jack Omohondro ’21 (second prize); Emory Wise ’21 (third prize) UPPER SCHOOL POETRY COMPETITION SPONSORED BY STC’S POETRY CENTER Evan Knight ’19

POETRY SOCIETY OF VIRGINIA AWARD Philip Maruri ’19 (first prize) GLEE CLUB AWARD Darren Badley ’19 and Cameron Lovings ’19 BEST THESPIAN AWARD Darren Badley ’19 VISUAL ART AWARDS PRESENTED BY THE ALLIANCE FOR YOUNG ARTISTS & WRITERS Tyler Hutchison ’19 (two silver keys); Davis Mack ’22 (one honorable mention); Tabb Gardner ’19 (one honorable mention); Jonathan Phares ’20 (one silver key); Dhykwon Smith ’19 (three honorable mentions, one gold key and one national gold medal) LATIN AWARDS FROM THE NATIONAL LATIN EXAM COMMITTEE Cum laude Mike Hawkins ’21, George Ladd and Miles Mullins ’21 Magna cum laude Taylor McDermott ’22, David Millman ’19, Peter Natale, William Tune ’20 and Hank Valentine ’20 Silver maxima cum laude Jude Reiferson ’20 Gold summa cum laude Austin Ford ’20 CHINESE AWARDS Alan Jones ’22 (Level 1); Edward Pasco ’21 (Level 2); Will Eng-Nugent (Level 4); Josh Vanichkachorn (AP)

THE GEORGE SQUIRES LITERARY AWARDS Best photography: Tyler Hutchison ’19 (first prize); Allyn Banks ’19, Jack Ireland ’22, Jack Mitchell ’22 and Max Wallace ’21 (honorable mentions) Best visual art: Baylor Fuller ’19 (first prize); Morey Levy ’21 (second prize); Alex Brown ’19, Robbie Boykin ’21, Tate Lifson ’19, Vaden Padgett ’20, Nash Steed ’21, Josh Vanichkachorn ’19 (honorable mentions) Best prose poem: Bo O’Connor ’19 (first prize); Nate Davis ’19 (honorable mention); Best conventional prose: Hollis Cobb ’19 and Colin Reece ’19 (first prizes); Tate Lifson ’19, Philip Maruri ’19 and Sam Moore ’19 (second prizes) Best haiku: Christopher McCormick ’19 (first prize); Cameron Lovings ’19 and Hollis Cobb ’19 (honorable mentions) Best light verse: Jack McGurn ’19 (first prize); Elby Omohundro ’19, Baylor Fuller ’19, David Millman ’19, Philip Maruri ’19 (honorable mentions) Best overall group of poems: Henry Barden ’19 (first prize); Tate Lifson ’19 and Philip Marur ’19 (second prizes); Jack McGurn ’19, Colin Reece ’19 and Charlie Whitlock ’19 (third prizes) 46 | StC Magazine

FRENCH AWARDS Jack Ireland ’22 (Level 2); Drew Brown ’21 (Level 3); Joe Parker ’20 (Level 4); Alexander Johnson ’19 (Level 5) LA SOCIEDAD HONORARIA HISPANICA MEMBERS Henry Barden ’19, Mason Carter ’22, Weston Williams ’21, Coleman Wray ’21 WORLD HISTORY II RESEARCH PAPER AWARD Edward Pasco ’21 ECONOMICS AWARD Joe Beck ’19 BRITISH LITERATURE AWARD Coleman Wray ’21 WILBUR DAVIS BAILEY PRIZE Joe Parker ’20 BIOLOGY AWARD Henry Barden ’19 CHEMISTRY AWARD Allyn Banks ’19 and John Fitzgerald ’19 PHYSICS AWARD Philip Maruri ’19 RPI SCIENCE AWARD Sully Beck ’20 BAUSCH AND LOMB SCIENCE AWARD Garnett Nelson ’20 ROBERT W. BUGG SCHOLARSHIP Benjamin Jones ’20 HORACE A. GRAY FAMILY SCHOLARSHIP Warner Collier ’20 and Erik Roggie ’21 JOHN PEYTON MCGUIRE MEMORIAL SCHOLARSHIP Evan Thompson ’21 MCGUIRE-WILKINSON SCHOLARSHIP Gerard Broussard ’20 MCGUIRE-JACK GORDON SCHOLARSHIP Kaleb Bey ’20 JOHN NEASMITH DICKINSON ’73 MEMORIAL SCHOLARSHIP AWARD Weston Williams ’21 BRADFORD ALLEN PARRISH ’91 MEMORIAL SCHOLARSHIP Jayden Smith ’21 G. GILMER MINOR JR. ’30 SCHOLARSHIP Morey Levy ’21 ST. LAWRENCE BOOK AWARD Gerard Broussard ’20 HAMPDEN-SYDNEY BOOK PRIZE Chas Steinbrugge ’20

RANDOLPH-MACON COLLEGE LEADERSHIP AWARD William Tune ’20 SEWANEE BOOK AWARD FOR EXCELLENCE IN WRITING Jude Reiferson ’20 KENYON COLLEGE PRESIDENTIAL BOOK AWARD Vaden Padgett ’20 JOHN MERCHANT BOOK AWARD Kaleb Bey ’20 WASHINGTON AND LEE UNIVERSITY BOOK AWARD Austin Ford ’20 WILLIAM AND MARY LEADERSHIP AWARD Harry Farley ’20 WEST POINT LEADERSHIP AWARD Hank Valentine ’20 UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO AWARD Eli Bemiss ’20 WILLIAMS COLLEGE BOOK AWARD Joe Parker ’20 DARTMOUTH BOOK AWARD Walker Wallace ’20 JEFFERSON BOOK AWARD Sully Beck ’20 HARVARD CLUB OF VIRGINIA PRIZE Garnett Nelson ’20

ACADEMIC SCHOLARSHIPS Wyatt Campbell — Case Western Reserve University Scholar Hollis Cobb — University of Mary Washington Presidential Scholar Alec Davis — University of Denver Pioneer Scholar Will Eng-Nugent — Liberty University merit scholar Wes Featherstone — College of Charleston merit scholar Aidan Fitzgerald — University of Georgia merit scholar DayMone’ Fleming — Randolph-Macon College Presidential Scholar Arnold Henderson — Virginia Commonwealth University merit scholar Evan Knight — VCU Honors Program Parker Krey — Wagner College Honors Program / merit scholar

Tate Lifson — Drew University Presidential Scholar Cameron Lovings — Hampton University Trustees Scholar and Honors Program Max Macek — Longwood University Honors Program / merit scholar Christopher McCormick — College of the Holy Cross merit scholar Max Nabakow — University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill’s EXCELerated Research Program Bo O’Connor — Gettysburg College 1732 Founders Scholar Grayson Rogers — University of Alabama Presidential Scholar and Alumni Heritage Scholar Dhykwon Smith — Christopher Newport University merit scholar Josh Vanichkachorn — NYU Shanghai merit scholar Charlie Vozenilek — University of Utah merit scholar Seth Wagner — West Virginia University merit scholar Jack Westfall — University of the South merit scholar Charlie Whitlock — Belmont University merit scholar

The 62nd Athletic Banquet recognized athletic achievement in 2018-19.

ATHLETIC AWARDS DAVENPORT TROPHY Elby Omohundro SLATER PRIZE John Flood JOHN T. SIEGEL ‘57 MEMORIAL PRIZE DayMone’ Fleming and Bridger Thurston ATHLETIC DIRECTOR’S AWARD FOR COMPETITIVE EXCELLENCE Connor Alexander, Ben Cooper, Sean Hogan, Sam Moore, Patrick Routsis and Jackson Turley NELSON HILL HOTCHKISS AWARD Will Hayes and Arnold Henderson

TALMADGE ABBITT DUPRIEST AWARD Colin Reece and Charlie Vozenilek BUERLEIN DISTANCE RUNNING AWARD Sully Beck ‘20 HUGH BRENAMAN FOOTBALL AWARD Dhykwon Smith ANNA P. GOODALE SOCCER AWARD John Flood and Alexander Levengood JAMES W. PROFFITT ‘48 BASKETBALL AWARD Arnold Henderson ST. CHRISTOPHER’S SCHOOL FUTSAL AWARD Colin Reece E. OTTO N. WILLIAMS ‘27 WRESTLING TROPHY Jackson Turley ST. CHRISTOPHER’S SCHOOL SWIMMING & DIVING AWARD Sean Hogan ST. CHRISTOPHER’S SCHOOL SQUASH AWARD Alex Johnson JOHN R. BRISNER BASEBALL AWARD Patrick Routsis and Charlie Vozenilek C. BRAXTON VALENTINE ‘41 LACROSSE AWARD Hartley Jordan and Luke Valentine LAVERGE ‘57 TENNIS AWARD Alaister Burke ‘20 HARRY W. EASTERLY JR. ‘40 GOLF AWARD Ben Cooper RANDOLPH BURWELL CARDOZO JR. ‘74 TRACK AWARD Elby Omohundro

COACHES OF THE YEAR INDOOR AND OUTDOOR TRACK PREP LEAGUE Marshall Ware SWIMMING PREP LEAGUE Stuart Ferguson and Bucka Watson LACROSSE PREP LEAGUE AND VISSA John Burke TENNIS PREP LEAGUE AND VISSA Richard Peyton PETEY JACOBS DISTINGUISHED COACHING AWARD Pontus Hiort and Richard Peyton

All prize winners are members of the Class of 2019 unless otherwise noted.

SUMMER 2019 | 47

REUNION

1

ALUMNI WEEKEND | May 3 — 4

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From Left to Right 1 | Scott Richardson ‘09, Briggs Cocke ‘09, Tre Craig ‘09, Jim Boyd ‘54 and other Saints gather at the Friday night Red & Gray Soirée on the Historic Corridor. 2 | Errett Buis ‘94, John Morgan ‘94, Brad Roberts ‘94 3 | Margaret Clary ‘09 (St. Catherine’s), Ashton Goldman ‘04, Elizabeth Layne, Byrd Davenport ‘89, Neil Talegaonkar ‘89 4 | Ellen Spong ‘73 (St. Catherine’s) and Gus Epps ‘66, Catherine and Tom Baker ‘75 5 | Billy Parrish ‘72, Ali and Will Parrish ‘04 with baby Henry 6 | Alonzo Mable, John Reid ‘89, Charles Poppell ‘89 7 | Clifton Carey ‘69 and Conway Chewning ‘69 8 | Saturday morning Early Bird Run participants

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5

“And today, as we have for decades, we come here to gather.

We come here to worship. We come here to be a community. Isn’t it telling that when we ask college sophomores when they come back, ‘Tell us how we’re doing, how’s it going for you in college, and what did we do well and what can we improve upon?’ So often one of the things they tell us is we have something we don’t want you to change. It’s this, right here. I think that’s remarkable. Regardless of how the space has been used from the time it was first constructed — military, athletic, worship — it’s always been about a community. The endeavors have been different, the activities couldn’t be more disparate, but it’s always been about people coming together to work toward a common goal and to be part of something larger than themselves. I am so grateful that St. Christopher’s has the opportunity to do that five mornings a week throughout an entire school year, five school years, 10 years, and so forth. I cannot imagine a greater gift from God.”

Andy Smith, Upper School history chair Talk to those who gathered in chapel Saturday morning

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7

8 SUMMER 2019 | 49

REUNION DC

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RALEIGH

5

6

WASHINGTON, D.C. (at the Sulgrave Club) 1 | Jenna and Robert Molster ’06, Marshall Hollerith ’13, Hunter Garland ’06 2 | Tim Carrington ’69 and Ted Ellett ’70 3 | Charlie Yorgen ’13, Rob Vozenilek ’11, Jack English ’13, John Boyer ’13, Ned Ukrop ’13 4 | Bill Schmidt ‘05, Will Brown ‘05, Chris Purdy ‘02 RALEIGH (at the home of CeCe and Peter Scott ‘68) 5 | Sammy Greenway ‘68 and Peter Scott ‘68 6 | Tiffany and Jeff Nottingham ’92, Mason Lecky, Nathan Hays ’01, Jay Wells ’92

50 | StC Magazine

OUT-OF-TOWN REUNIONS NYC

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PHILLY

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RIVER SAINTS

NEW YORK CITY 1 | Brad Whitehurst ’80, Stephen Wood ’11, Ron Smith 2 | Christopher Alexander ’09, Annie Moore ’08 (St. Catherine’s), Robert Barry ’08 3 | Tim Rose ’05, Robert Bennett ’06, Alan Basmajian ’06 PHILADELPHIA (at The Union League of Philadelphia) 4 | Marshall French ‘04, Pearson French, Brent Halsey ’07, Lindsey and John Stillwell ’09 RIVER SAINTS (at the home of Mayo Tabb ‘69) 5 | Chris Branch ‘77, Cam Hoggan ‘61, Charlie Guthridge ‘63 6 | Tyler Harris ‘65, Harry Harris ‘67, John Harris ‘69

SUMMER 2019 | 51

REUNION GATHERING TO HONOR TOM WOLFE ’47 The St. Christopher’s alumni group of New York hosted a reception and dinner at the Yale Club to celebrate the legacy of Tom Wolfe ‘47.

1 | Patrick Delaney ’10 with his fiancé Luciana Steinert, Marco De León ’08, Kyle Wittenauer ’10 2 | Clark Warthen ‘06, Neil MacLean ‘06 3 | Megan Lecky, Mason Lecky, Robert Barry ’08, Kyle Menges ’07 4 | George Dunston ’87, Corey Dalton ’11 5 | Henry Ilnicky ‘11, Ron Smith, Mac Robertson ‘12, Patrick English ‘11

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52 | StC Magazine

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Challenger Party

May 15 | A donor recognition event SUMMER 2019 | 53

ALUMNI MILESTONES

BIRTHS 1998

Mr. and Mrs. Lee G. Lester, son Hunter Cook, April 3, 2019

2000

Mr. and Mrs. Thomas R. Roper, daughter Mary Mason Spotswood, Feb. 22, 2019

2002

Mr. and Mrs. Stuart H. Ackerly, son Neal Kumar, Oct. 30, 2018

Mr. and Mrs. Scott W. Copeland, daughter Ann Douglas, March 22, 2019

Mr. and Mrs. Joel F. Parker, daughter Miller Temple, Oct. 27, 2018

Lt. Cmdr. and Mrs. J. Matthew Washko, daughter Samantha Jeanne, Oct. 16, 2018

2003

Mr. and Mrs. Hunter B. Carpenter, son Ray Braxton, Oct. 9, 2018

Mr. and Mrs. Peter H. Delaney, daughter Clair Cartwright, Dec. 20, 2018

Mr. and Mrs. Philip L. Innes, son Thomas Tullidge, Jan. 4, 2019

2004

Mr. and Mrs. B. Smith Burke, son Archer Smith, March 21, 2019

Mr. and Mrs. William H. Parrish V, son William Henry VI, March 29, 2019

Mr. and Mrs. Frank Talbott V, daughter Mary Vance Valentine, May 16, 2019

2005

Mr. and Mrs. Brian C. Delaney, daughter Bridget Frances, Nov. 20, 2018

MARRIAGES 2001

Joseph Harry Ellen III to Meghana Gowda, March 16, 2019

2005

Charles Franklin Kramer to Lisa Clark, June 2, 2018

2006

Daniel Dickerson to Kaitlyn Stamiris, July 28, 2018

Stuart Randolph Marth to Jamie Elizabeth Shultis, Jan. 19, 2019

2009

Robert Turner Blake II to Dani Fraizer, Nov. 3, 2019

2010

Seth Edward Wagner to Cassandra Dallas Rawles, April 13, 2019

Dillon Tucker Wright to Kemper Leigh Gibson, May 11, 2019

2011

Casey Tyler Fox to Madison Fuelling, Dec. 1, 2018

William Izard Valentine to Cele Craig, June 1, 2019

Saints celebrate the nuptials of Stuart Marth ’06 and Jamie Schultis in New Orleans.

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1

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4

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7

1 | Smith Burke ‘04 with his son Archer 2 | Thomas Roper ‘00 with daughter, Mary Mason 3 | William Parrish ‘04 with newborn son, Henry 4 | Turner Blake ’09 married Dani Fraizer in Richmond last November. 5 | Madison and Casey Fox ’11 celebrate their wedding at Bighorn Golf Club in Palm Desert, California, with Henley Hopkinson ‘11; Kristine Scherger ’13 (St. Catherine’s); Will Halladay ‘11; Dana Gullquist ’11 (St. Catherine’s) and Connor Wood ‘11; Not pictured: Kirby Fox ‘08, Elliott Warren ‘11. 6 | Dillon Wright ’10, his wife Kemper and a host of Saints at Grace Estate Winery in Crozet 7 | Cassandra and Seth Wagner ’10 were married in April at the University of Richmond Cannon Memorial Chapel.

SUMMER 2019 | 55

Class Notes Are you interested in becoming a class scribe? We are recruiting alumni to help us gather news.

tradition in joining the firm co-founded in 1863 by his great-great-uncle that is now one of the oldest employee-owned, independent financial services firms in America.

1969 Classmates who graduated in 1969 and carpooled together in their early years gathered at the Friday night reunion festivities on campus.

If interested, contact Kathleen Thomas at: thomask@stcva.org.

1940s Harry Easterly ’40 (deceased) was one of five inducted into the Virginia Golf Hall of Fame in 2019 at Farmington Country Club in Charlottesville. He won two Richmond Golf Association Men’s Amateur titles, finished runner-up in the 1956 VSGA Amateur and qualified for several U.S. Amateur Championships. Harry was a founder of the Richmond Golf Association, past president of the VSGA, as well as past president and executive director of the USGA. He was instrumental in bringing the 1955 and 1975 U.S. Amateur Championship to the Country Club of Virginia, served as captain of the U.S. World Amateur team and the U.S. Walker Cup team and chaired the USGA Championship and USGA Rules of Golf Committee. He helped found Independence Golf Course in Midlothian and was a member at Augusta National, Pine Valley, St. Andrews and Ballybunion.

Peter Broadbent ’69 has been inducted into the Virginia Cable Telecommunications Association’s Hall of Fame for his distinguished career. The Christian & Barton LLP Richmond attorney focuses on telecommunications as well as intellectual property, business and governmental relations.

1960s 1964 Davenport & Co. LLC celebrated Coley Wortham ’64’s 50th work anniversary this year. The Richmond Times-Dispatch ran a profile piece on the former president and chief executive who still serves as chairman. He is not the longest-tenured person, with an executive vice president at 51 years and former Chairman Henry Valentine ’45 logging 68 years. Coley followed a family 56 | StC Magazine

Isle de Pecheurs by Tim Carrington ‘69

An exhibit of Tim Carrington ’69’s work was displayed at St. Christopher’s Luck Leadership Center Playhouse in May. Tim works in oil paints on wood or canvas from sketches, his own photographs and newspaper images. Part of his artist statement reads: “His landscapes often capture the passage from afternoon to evening, or nighttime to morning, while his figures similarly suggest a transition — perhaps in the form of a fresh realization. An elderly man approaches a window to greet a new day, or workers trudge home in the slightly menacing twilight of Pyongyang. One configuration is passing, another moving in.” Tim, who splits his time between Washington, D.C., and Washington, Virginia, has worked as a writer and editor at The Wall Street Journal, based in New York, Washington and London, and also served as a senior communications officer for the Africa region at the World Bank.

John Harris ’69 may have retired from teaching Latin at Saint Gertrude High School, but he continues to be involved in the life of the school as a faculty substitute and the voice of home athletic events.

John was the recipient of the 2019 Distinguished Friend of the School award. “I love Continued on page 60

1969 50th Reunion Front Row: Dave Kabler, Joe Whitt, Dave Fauber, Chip Campbell, Dennis Miller, Chris Rose, Clifton Carey, Rick Herod, Bill Gay, Jimmy Lee Second Row: Jamie Rawles, Tim Carrington, Rick Parrish, Jack Cronly, Chris Howell, Rob Henley, Tom Bryan, Conrad Chewning, Mayo Tabb, Ian Norfleet, Woody Bedell, Buck Blair, Ferdi Baruch Third Row: Andy Christian, Whit Wall, Flub Moore, Farra Alford, Rives Hardy, Howard Hudgins, John Mason Antrim, David Whitehead, Joe Knox, Lynn Ivey, Peter Broadbent, John Harris Not Pictured: Walter Dotts, Billy Moseley

1974 45th Reunion Front Row: Manson Boze, Richard Reynolds, Paul Kuhn, John Carter, Bob Peery Second Row: John Wyatt, Ruddy Rose, Jimmy Duval, Phil Kellam, Jack Catlett Third Row: Wads Bugg, Coleman Ticer (in sunglasses), John Hancock, Art Hungerford Fourth Row: Danny Ludeman, Bev Mauck, Frank Hargrove, Steve Oddi Fifth Row: Glenn Webb, Tim Neale, George Howell, John Moon, John Woodward Not Pictured: Coke Hall

1979 40th Reunion Front Row: Rob Irby, Jamie Tyson, Bill Neal, Tucker Maloney, Kevin McHaney, Sandy Williamson, Watson Seaman, Scott Campbell, Scott Bussells, Brian Dent, Claude Davenport, Chris Andrews Second Row: Donald McEachin, Doug Marsteller, Kevin Kenny, Mac McElroy, Graham Cashwell, Jim Weinberg, Hiter Harris, Wallace Dietz Third Row: Mark Jones, Southall Bowles, Harold Williams, John Thomas, Ted Fauls, Marshall Brown, Gray Garland, Cary Wright, Black Shelley, Michael Grey, Teddy Gottwald, Woody Woodhouse, Cary Mauck, Perry King

SUMMER 2019 | 57

Class Notes

Finding the Fit College Counselor Bill Dingledine ’69 Reflects on the Art of the Transition

By Tim Carrington ’69

Bill Dingledine ’69 sees educational transitions — particularly the progression from high school to college — as an opportunity to take inventory, identify passions and own up to challenges and weaknesses. Stepping in to what many students, parents and teachers experience as a minefield of stretching aspirations and shattering disappointments, this certified educational planner views the admissions drama as an opportunity for emerging adults to understand themselves better and renew commitments to what they might be interested in doing.

Earning his bachelor’s degree at the University of Virginia and a master’s in education at Johns Hopkins University, Bill worked as assistant headmaster and Upper School director at Christ Church Episcopal School in Greenville, South Carolina, and subsequently launched, with his therapist/social worker wife Dale, a counseling service for students approaching the next chapter in their education.

In March 2018, a bicycle accident resulted in a serious spinal injury that initially constrained nearly all movement, throwing most aspects of Bill’s life into deep uncertainty. Today, Bill talks, laughs, uses his arms and even stands to take a few steps at a time. Central to Bill’s progress is his decision to continue his vocation, counseling students on their next educational chapter. Because travel is hugely demanding, Bill offers his listening and counseling skills via Zoom, an internet video program.

Classmate Tim Carrington ’69 interviewed Bill about his work.

58 | StC Magazine

Class Notes

It’s always been evident that, as much as anyone in our class, you enjoy your work.

Why is that?

“I really enjoy working with students. So often they see themselves at the whim of colleges and schools. I shift the focus to what they’re interested in. I say it’s not where you go, it’s what you do where you go. The first things I do with a student are a personality inventory, an interest inventory and a skills inventory.”

What is the role of parents in your process?

“I have parents write to me about the students. I’ll never forget the mother of this student who said that in the first grade, he never finished washing his hands because he was looking at the bubbles. That told me something about this kid.”

You make it sound engaging, even fun, but we know this time is truly fraught for most students and their families.

Why is that?

“All of a sudden, in your senior year, you don’t know where you’re going to be, and once you decide, you’re going to be in a totally new place with people you don’t know. You’re going to be totally responsible for yourself. You’ve got to think about drugs, sexual decisions, majors and money.

Then there is loneliness in a new environment, and not everybody is an extrovert.”

Tell me about a student from whom you’ve learned something.

Since your accident, you’ve had to learn to work in new ways. What is that like?

“There was a young woman oriented to science, and we talked about the prospect of a women’s college, which she was initially totally against. She ended up going to Hollins, majored in physics and was the star of the department. After graduation, she got into the master’s program at Georgia Tech.

“When I was chairman of the board of the American Institute of Certified Educational Planners, I got the idea of using Zoom for our annual meetings. Then I started to use it with students in other parts of the country. So when I had my accident, I started meeting with students using Zoom from the hospital and the rehab facility. I can see them and they can see me. I can see their facial expressions, and they don’t have to worry about taking a shower before they meet with me.”

“Then one of the most outstanding students I’ve had in 40 years was accepted at Harvard and University of South Carolina. He was so outstanding that South Carolina would all but pay him to come.

They decided on USC. After that, he got his master’s paid for, his Ph.D. paid for, and then the U.S. government paid for a second Ph.D. He didn’t have to go to Harvard to accomplish all of that.”

The recent college admissions scandal shocked a lot of people. Was this an isolated fraud or a symptom of a larger problem?

“I really wasn’t surprised by it. I’ve been aware of things that may not have been illegal, but they were unethical. There were kids getting paid to take SATs for other students. Parents have pushed their students to be on soccer and lacrosse leagues to get into college. The name brand is what they focus on, and they forget what’s entailed in learning. It’s a cliché to talk about finding a match or a fit, but it’s actually very important. Being in the ‘right’ place is critical for success, and success builds success.”

SUMMER 2019 | 59

Class Notes Continued from page 56

1980s

Saint Gertrude because it operates on a human scale,” he said. “The past 15 years have been as beneficial to me as anything I may have contributed to the school.”

1980

1970s 1975 Forbes recognized Ron Cain ’75 as a 2019 Best in State Wealth Advisor. The managing director of investments with Cain & Valentine of Wells Fargo Advisors has 40 years of experience in the financial services industry.

1978 For its 32nd year, the ‘78 Cup at Pinehurst, North Carolina, drew a crowd of 20 with 14 alumni taking part. The group got together to enjoy a few days of golf, NCAA basketball and camaraderie.

Bobby Harris ’80 has spent almost 30 years as a trial attorney in family law. The former instructor for the Virginia State Bar professionalism course in ethics has repeatedly earned recognition in state legal publications as well as Martindale-Hubbell’s highest peer review rating.

1982 Jim McLaughlin ’82’s novel, “Bearskin,” was nominated as a best first novel for an Anthony Award, named after mystery and crime fiction author Anthony Boucher, who founded Mystery Writers of America.

“Bearskin” is also winner of the 2019 Edgar Award for best first novel.

Frank Trice ’82 has been promoted to senior vice president, executive administration, at Davenport & Co. LLC in Richmond.

1983 CLASS SCRIBE Alexander Macauley ’83 alexander@macjamlaw.com Adam Bogdanove ’83 recently received Cornell University’s Award for Outstanding Accomplishments in Research and the American Phytopathological Society’s Noel Keen Award for research

excellence in molecular plant pathology.

Adam is a professor in the plant pathology and plant-microbe biology section of the School of Integrative Plant Science.

Cornell describes Adam as an “internationally recognized expert in the molecular interactions of pathogenic bacteria and plants.” He is also well-known for his development and application of genome-editing methods inspired by his discoveries in plant pathology. Adam is a co-inventor of TALENs, predecessors of the more famous CRISPR technology, used today in applications ranging from medicinal gene therapy to crop and livestock improvement. He credits his success in science in large part to learning how to write in Liston Rudd’s, George Squire’s and Ron Smith’s English classes at St. Christopher’s.

Basil Tikoff ’83 recently enjoyed a six-university/college science lecture tour for the National Science Foundation sponsored by the EarthScope program. The University of Wisconsin-Madison professor of structural geology and tectonics discussed his research on the tectonic development of the western United States. Basil lives and works in Madison with his partner Sara and their son Oliver, who is 11. He keeps in touch with classmate Chris Swezey, a geologist at the U.S. Geological Survey in Reston, Virginia.

Continued on page 62

First Row: John Fleming, John Orgain, Ed Schoeffler, Rip Wilson, Neville Johnson, Ben Jarratt; Second Row: John Macon, Wheat McDowell, Randy Daniel, Jim Cain, Matt Renner, Pratt Cook, Ware Palmer, Stuart Horsley

1979 When Sandy Williamson ‘79 (center) was honored as a new member of the JA Greater Richmond Hall of Fame, classmates Teddy Gottwald, Hiter Harris, Cary Mauck and Charlie Luck showed up for the ceremony.

Teddy Gottwald, Hiter Harris, Sandy Williamson, Cary Mauck and Charlie Luck

60 | StC Magazine

1984 35th Reunion Front Row: David Campbell, Henry Spalding, Mark Ownby, Key Randolph, Turner Bredrup, Jim Faulkner, David Blanchard, Biff Pusey Second Row: Andy Renner, Tom Towers, Rod Gardner, George Bowles, Reid Freeman, Allie Broaddus, Bennett Lee, John Wallace

1989 30th Reunion Front Row: Jimmy Sanderson, Brian White, Gordon Lewis, Fred Ames, John Westfall Second Row: Carter Brooks, Patrick Schubmehl, Kinloch Nelson, Rob Norfleet Third Row: John Reid, Todd Brickhouse, John McNeer, Billy Hoofnagle, Jimmy Knott, Neil Talegaonkar

1994 25th Reunion Front Row: Chris Peace, Joel Hoppe, Hope Erb, David Guthridge, Tony Szymendera, Greg Cavalli, Vi Nguyen, David Campbell, G Rainey, Christian Shield, Marshall Luck, Errett Buis, Miles Clarkson Second Row: Will Selden, Douglas Burtch, Keen Starke, McMahon Croft, Bryce Rowe, Travers Clemons, Travis Ellwanger, Rick Levinson, John Morgan, James Kitces, Andrew White, Michael Berlin, Sandy Etherington, Keir Rocha, Robley Bates, Jack Boyd, Cameron Wick, Alec Reynolds, Tom Gresham Not Pictured: Carter Bundy, Will Massey, Massie Ritsch, Brad Roberts, David Stuckey, Adam Walker

SUMMER 2019 | 61

Class Notes Continued from page 60

1988 Austin Brockenbrough ’88, Lowe, Brockenbrough & Co. managing director, has been named to the board of the Community Foundation for a greater Richmond, joining fellow board member Kirk Tattersall ’93.

Eddie Lumpkin ‘88 joined Spotts Fain law firm as senior counsel in corporate and business transactions. His practice focuses on mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures, franchising and licensing arrangements, and general corporate, regulatory and securities matters.

opening their lovely home, where Ricky Levinson resided during our school days.

Lounging here on the poolside terrace is Monsieur Joe Knox with our commemorative Pine Needle.

The party was fueled in no small part by delicious cocktails mixed with David Campbell’s Tanteo spicy tequila. Keeping with the “25” theme, a late-night (and, by that time, dry) game of quarters pitted Lees vs. Jacksons. John Morgan’s bootleg of the ’93 DMB concert served as the musical score for the countertop battle in the Shields’ kitchen.

1989

1990s 1991

1994 25th REUNION CLASS SCRIBE Massie Ritsch ‘94 massie.ritsch@gmail.com

Coming from London, G Rainey won the longest-distance award. Shortest distance outside of Richmond went to Travis Ellwanger, who rolled down from Northern Virginia, and Joel Hoppe from Charlottesville. From the north came Ricky from Burlington, Vermont, James Kitces from Boston, David Stuckey from Northampton, Massachusetts, David C. from Brooklyn, Vi Nguyen and Alec Reynolds from New Jersey, Jack Boyd from Baltimore, and your class scribe from Washington, D.C. From the south, Errett Buis traveled from Beaufort, South Carolina, Brad Roberts from Atlanta, and Keir Rocha from Miami.

I had a pre-reunion reunion with Keir back in February while I was down in Miami. He has recently moved back there after time in Atlanta and works in institutional real estate for SunTrust. Between our gathering in Richmond and reunions at Morehouse and UVA-Darden, Keir was on the circuit this spring.

Richmond Lawyer Neil Talegaonkar ’89 has left Thompson McMullan and joined the labor and employment team at Kaufman & Canoles P.C.

Rutherfoord Ferguson ’91 has joined Davenport & Co. LLC’s asset management team as vice president, client relationship manager. The asset management division’s clients include individuals, foundations, endowments and retirement plans.

Bryce Rowe, Will Selden, Christian, Keen Starke, Adam Walker, Andrew White and Cameron Wick.

From our graduating band of 55, 35 turned out from near and far. Charming and patient spouses and other guests came along for the weekend, as did offspring.

From the Richmond area, we saw Robley Bates, Michael Berlin, Carter Bundy, Douglas Burtch, Greg Cavalli, Miles Clarkson, Travers Clemons, McMahon Croft, Tom Gresham, David Guthridge, Marshall Luck, Will Massey, John M., Chris Peace,

Learning about Dave Stuckey’s life and work in western Massachusetts was also fun. He and his wife Ruthie have a son Aviv who turns 1 in a few months. As a doctor of osteopathy, Stuckey uses hands-on skills, his practice’s website says, “to optimize the structural alignment of [the] patient’s body in order to improve the body’s capacity for motion and overall functioning.” In short, he has magic hands.

Like Dave, Douglas Burtch is his own boss.

An attorney, Douglas specializes in workplace issues. A good bit of his work is for independent schools in Virginia. He and Jennifer have three children: Addison, Zachary and Wesley.

Who knew a quarter century ago when Dave Matthews famously played for our Homecoming dance that lyrics from the album he would release three days later would be so resonant at our 25th reunion in May? “Turns out not where, but who you’re with, that really matters,” warbled the ever-wise Dave in 1993.

And, as it turned out, where we were was pretty great too. Many thanks to Christian Shield and Sherrie ’94 (St. Catherine’s) for 62 | StC Magazine

Continued on page 67

From the Class of 1994’s 25th Anniversary edition of The Pine Needle

Class Notes

The Student Has Become the Teacher

by John Morgan ‘94 My parents kept everything from my youth, including my lackluster essays for Jay Wood, so I have all of his feedback about my Upper School writing.

I’ve posted a few near the door in my classroom at St. Catherine’s. They remind my students to keep practicing, and teach that even a mediocre student can improve. On one assignment, Mr. Wood wrote in red, “Absurd inattention to punctuation casts a severe shadow of doubt about writer’s skill.” He added, “Rampant use of cliches undermines essay’s potential, colloquial diction. … Learn this comma rule: DC, IC.” When I re-read my attempts at analysis, I see that his comments tell the truth.

I was lost. On another essay, Mr. Wood crossed out a “B-” with a single red line and replaced it with a “C-,” written more boldly.

Because quizzes were taken on the back of his recycled papers, I also have old soccer rosters and the last names “Abbey” through “Benedek” from a 1984 directory from Mr. Wood’s Princeton days. There’s a letter to the Princeton Class of 1988, drumming up support for the “October 23rd tailgate-inside the Tiger Tent-where there will be FREE KEYCHAINS before the game against Harvard!” And on the reverse side of my attempt at a memorized Hamlet soliloquy (C+) lives a page of Mr. Wood’s thesis on Hemingway.

I also have my sophomore British Literature textbook, the one I used in Mr. Burke’s class when Buis or Jake brought in a cassette of Iron Maiden’s “Rime of the Ancient Mariner.” As I thumb those pages and reread my own notes, I see where I defined a “lyric poem” and scribbled a few facts about Macbeth, James Boswell and Alexander

Pope. But then there are the other parts, when I missed it all. Next to “Paradise Lost,” I wrote “Lufetarg Daed” — “Grateful Dead” spelled backwards. After Robert Browning’s poem “Love Among the Ruins,” I doodled a drum set on a stage with a rock trio. On the faces of poets Stephen Spender and Thom Gunn, I drew Civil War beards. The lyrics, “Hello, I love you. Won’t you tell me your name,” live in the middle of “Ozymandias.”

On page 127 there is a floating parachutist that I added to a John Constable painting.

Where a page is torn, I drew a rectangle and underneath it wrote, “This is a BAND-AID.”

The value of anything comes from observing it from afar. I only learned this when I left, first as a student but even m o r e so as a rookie teacher.

Mr. Wood and Mr. Smith really kicked my ass. I also remember their classes the most. I didn’t need to read a poem titled, “I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud.” I was doing just that. At times, English seemed like an impossible class to have any sort of success. I loved writing, but when we were reading Strunk and White, I wasn’t sure why. I never knew the mysterious word for Ron’s unpredictable blanks. “April is the ________ month.” As he pointed to the spoon on his file cabinet, I was looking for the fog lights to try and find the horizon.

He had the answers. He spoke a different language. Some guys knew how to translate the secret code, but I wasn’t one of them.

These days, I take the bus down Somerset for second period as part of our two schools’ “teacher exchange.” I move through the courtyard, pass where Bo Lewis used to check us in and file into Chamberlayne with my briefcase. It all looks and smells the same. I walk up the steps and enter Mr. Rudd’s old room and set up for class.

Across from Mr. Wood’s bunker of papers and gradebooks, the strange repeat of my own past isn’t lost on me. But now, he’s “Jay,” and we meet to discuss the schedule and the upcoming senior electives. He pushed me. He pushed all of us. Of course, Mr. Wood wasn’t alone. But few remain on the job — Robert Johns, Ron Smith, Andy Smith, Tony Szymendera, John Burke, Key Randolph, Don Golladay, Corydon Baylor, Cliff Dickinson, Bob Blanton. Each of them saw us at our worst and our best. As a teacher, I’m standing on the shoulders of giants. We all are. For some of us, it just took a little bit longer to understand the story.

I never thought I would be a teacher.

Somehow, it found me. When I started, next door to Mr. Cooper, teaching 6th and 8th grade English in Mr. Jeffers’ old room, Mr. Baylor became my mentor. Sitting in chapel next to Mr. Golladay, Mrs. Ford and Mr. Dickinson seemed odd at first. I still felt like an 8th grader. That was part of why I needed to leave and teach in California. I had to get away from a school where I had given the grade as a teacher and gotten the grade as a student. I’d hung out at the carving station for the alumni event and worked summers with Esau and Lamont.

What more was there to do?

John Morgan ‘94 is in his 19th year of teaching.

He is the English Department chair at St. Catherine’s and the faculty sponsor of the school’s literary magazine. His sons Levon (7) and Atticus (9) attend St. Christopher’s.

SUMMER 2019 | 63

Class Notes

Working to Change the Trajectory John Woolard '83

By Alex Johnson ’19 John Woolard ’83 has never felt stress, even when creating, building and leading huge energy conglomerates, one of which sold for $71.2 million. He believes his experience whitewater kayaking offered life lessons that applied then and now. “You have to make instant decisions,” he said. “You can’t equivocate. I think a lot of business is like that. You have to make the decision and move on, do the next thing and the next.”

His passion for kayaking took him around the world, including Chile and Zimbabwe, where he was a whitewater guide on some of the world’s most extreme rivers. During his time in Chile with his longtime friend, Woolard contemplated the idea of starting an outdoor camp in Richmond. Beginning with a small ropes course on Belle Isle, he and his partner grew a business called Passages, which morphed into an outdoor adventure company that is still growing.

While traveling, Woolard began to pay attention to biodiversity loss as well as various types of ecosystems. Instead of 64 | StC Magazine

just learning about the world’s problems, he wanted to actually help fix the issue. “I said I want to do what I can to help change the trajectory.”

Once returning to the United States, he held on to that and pursued an MBA at the University of California, Berkeley. In 1997, he co-founded and became CEO of Silicon Energy, a software firm focused on improving energy efficiency in large corporations. From there, he went on to lead BrightSource Energy and currently Google’s energy sector.

Some of the best qualities Woolard gained from his StC experience were learning to articulate ideas and communicate concisely. He also believes the science curriculum taught at StC has been extremely useful while working in the business world. For example, during a business trip to Israel focusing on the construction one of the world’s largest solar plants, Woolard used his basic science knowledge gained in high

school and college to converse with foreign engineers.

In the interview, Woolard offered some general advice to students. “The ability to surround yourself with hard-working people pays off in the long run,” he said. “You also need to realize what your strengths and weaknesses are and then surround yourself with people who have different strengths and weaknesses.”

Woolard currently lives in California with his wife and two kids. In his free time, instead of kayaking rough rivers like he used to, Woolard is now attempting to learn kiteboarding with his son. He still focuses on energy and the environment and works with the World Resources Institute to help change environmental policies.

Alex Johnson, who will attend Wake Forest University this fall, wrote this story for the May issue of the student magazine The Pine Needle.

Class Notes 1999 20th Reunion Front Row: Jeb Britton, Charlie Epes, Peyton Studebaker, Alec Richardson, Justin Mayer, Chris Guo Second Row: Walter Coleman

2004 15th Reunion Front Row: Clayton Worthington, Jay Hughes, Robert Porter, Chapman Revercomb, Alex Arnett, Brian Herod, Peter Pastore, Will Parrish, Ashton Goldman, Dan Nicholas Second Row: Andrew Littlejohn, Adrian Olsen, Danny Ludeman, Langdon Moss, Andrew Elmore, Jamie Sauer, Tee Valentine, John Cain, Will Milby, Adam Foege, Frank Talbott

2009 10th Reunion Front Row: Christopher Alexander, Thomas Shockley, Jack Wright, Briggs Cocke, Cameron Cann, Alex Brown, Turner Blake Second Row: Charlie Blanchard, Edward Rives, Jay Lynde, Jay Weisbrod, Scott Richardson, Brown Farinholt Third Row: Clay Stiles, Wood Revercomb, Austin Pace, Studie Hughes Fourth Row: Carter Younts, Bart Farinholt, Thomas Brown, Billy Miller, John Stillwell

SUMMER 2019 | 65

Class Notes

A pioneer, but also just another Saint

By Christopher McCormick '19 Whenever Michael Grey ’79 felt overwhelmed or stressed at school, a trip to the peaceful chapel, one of his “spiritual touchstones,” was the perfect remedy to center himself.

Speaking as an alum in that same chapel a few weeks ago to kick off Reunion Weekend, Mr. Grey discovered that little had changed.

“I always felt God in this place,” he said.

Mr. Grey enrolled at St. Christopher’s 50 years ago in second grade. Although just a normal second grader, he was also a trailblazer. Thanks to a transfer orchestrated by his public school principal mother, Mr. Grey became one of the first African American students to attend the school. Another African American joined that same year but did not graduate, and Donald McEachin ’79 arrived two years later. Mr. Grey’s status as one of the first students of color affected his time at St. Christopher’s as well as his life as an alumnus.

“I love this chapel. To me it’s a spiritual place … where we congregate to pray, to hear announcements about our busy school lives, to laugh, to sing hymns, to learn about our history and to make our own history … I always felt that God was here. And when we are in this place, we are all equal.”

By interviewing Mr. Grey, I had hoped to learn more about the man behind the chapel talk, and I hoped to understand what life was like for Saints of color 50 years ago. I was surprised, however, to find that Mr. Grey and I shared similar stories, and that, in some ways, not much has changed in the last half-century. Like Mr. Grey, my years at the school were defined more by feeling a part of the community than by feeling isolated from it. Being a minority almost never inhibited my ability to find a home here, and I found that teachers played a central role in my formation and, thanks to the timelessness of Mr. Boyd and Mr. Smith, Mr. Grey and I even had some of the same teachers.

What struck me about Mr. Grey’s chapel talk and about our interview was that even though Mr. Grey was indeed a pioneer, he was also just another Saint. He was not singled out for the color of his skin. Rather, he was allowed to just be a student, and the normalcy of his experience despite its extraordinary circumstances was and is something he remembers as a blessing.

I end in the same way I began, with Mr. Grey’s memories of chapel as a “spiritual touchstone,” home and great leveler. “When we [are] in chapel,” he said in his talk, “we are all equal.”

Christopher McCormick ’19 wrote this story for the May edition of the student publication The Pine Needle.

— Michael Grey ’79’s Upper School chapel talk about his experience as one of the first StC African American students | May 3, 2019

Thankfully — and possibly contrary to expectation — Mr. Grey’s time largely lacked racial tension. His first real experience of racism at school, being called a racially insensitive word, did not occur until fifth grade, and such incidents remained rare throughout Mr. Grey’s time at St. Christopher’s. Most of his memories were defined by the people who made him feel welcome and included. Of those welcoming people, his teachers remain some of the most memorable. “Mrs. Ackerly,” said Mr. Grey, “created a loving and safe environment for me to get acclimated … and thrive.”

Other teachers, such as Upper School English Teacher Ron Smith and Mr. Jim Boyd ‘54, former Upper School math teacher, also played important roles.

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Members of the Class of 1979 gather for their classmate’s chapel talk: Cary Mauck, Doug Marstellar, Michael Grey, Harold Williams, Perry King, Blackwell Shelley, John Thomas

Class Notes

Continued from page 62

Whenever and wherever we get together next, whether it’s for our 30th or an impromptu reunion before then, the Class of 1994 will follow Dave Matthews’ advice and “make the best of what’s around.”

When Chris Peace ‘94 took part in the StC Founder’s Day service, he noticed the deteriorated condition of Dr. Chamberlayne’s gravestone. With the support of the StC Alumni Board, he commissioned AP Grappone to have it cleaned up.

Jacob Moore ‘94 is co-owner of Epoch Furnishings and deals in midcentury modern furniture. For people who choose to downsize, the designs of this style of furniture suit smaller homes, and the artistic design is elegant and timeless.

1995 The new Mason Bates ’95 opera, “The (R) evolution of Steve Jobs,” was a classical music winner at the Grammy Awards in February. With music by Bates, former

Mead Composer-in-Residence of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, and a libretto by Mark Campbell, the opera explores the spiritual evolution of Apple co-founder Jobs as he faces his mortality. A co-production with San Francisco Opera and Indiana University’s Jacobs School of Music, it was recorded live in July 2017 at Santa Fe Opera, where it received its world premiere and was subsequently released in May 2018 by Pentatone. Bates’ dazzling score features a mix of lyrical and rhythmic music that is both traditional and electronic.

1998 Jonathan Bliley ’98 has been elected partner at Williams Mullen. He is with the corporate practice.

In April the Chronicle of Higher Education ran an article about attempts to make the Lawn at UVA more accessible and quoted from James Zehmer ’98, the university’s historic preservation project manager. “Our intent is that the Lawn should be welcoming to everyone — everyone should have the same experience,” he said about an $800,000 brick ramp project that stirred up some controversy.

Continued on page 68

2014 5th Reunion Christian Halsey, Tanner White, Matt MacLeod, Ian Saunders, Giles Thompson, Charles Moore, Clark Lewis, Christian Frediani, William Finch, Ryland Ansell, Peyton McElroy, Bailey White, Cole Elliott, Austin Fockler

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Class Notes

DEATHS

2000s

2010s

2001

2010

John Coggin ’01 is a communications specialist at CollabraLink Technologies Inc. in McLean, Virginia.

Mikey Bogese ’10 co-authored an article published in the multidisciplinary journal Frontiers in Psychology, “Do Dogs Prefer Helpers in an Infant-Based Social Evaluation Task?” Mikey, formerly lab manager at the Canine Cognition Center at Yale University, is now at Boston College studying the development of cooperation and fairness in children.

2002 Lt. Cdr. Matt Washko ’02 completed two graduate degrees (naval and mechanical engineering) at MIT in the spring and just relocated to the Hampton Roads area, where he is working on aircraft carrier nuclear refueling and overhauls at Newport News Shipbuilding. He is attached to Shipbuilding, the organization that officially accepts newly built and repaired ships on behalf of the U.S. government.

2003 Jonathan Wright ’03 joined Ferring Pharmaceuticals in April as senior counsel and associate director for commercial and privacy law. He had served as general counsel and chief privacy officer for QPharma since 2015.

2004 With his recent promotion to treasury manager at Owens & Minor, Will Parrish ’04 is responsible for managing the company’s capital structure, risk management and corporate banking relationships.

2005 Tim Rose ’05 was recently hired by New York City-based Drexel Hamilton, a full-service broker dealer whose owners and partners are all veterans, as are more than half of its employees. Tim is working on the fixed income desk and remains active in the Marine Corps Reserves.

2007 Rich Morgan ’07 was promoted to vice president of SMB sales at Signpost, a technology company that develops marketing automation software for local businesses to build relationships with new and existing customers.

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2011 Will Valentine ‘11 has joined Davenport & Company LLC in Richmond as an investment associate.

2013 After receiving a B.A. in history from the University of Virginia, Nat Rogers ’13 worked as a volunteer firefighter and medic and became interested in medicine and public health. He received a master’s in public health at Johns Hopkins University’s Bloomberg School of Public Health, where his research focused on genome integrity. He is now pursuing his medical degree from the Tulane School of Medicine in New Orleans.

2014

1939 Richard Henry Catlett Jr. of Richmond, Virginia, died May 3, 2019. Survivors include sons Richard H. Catlett III ’71 and Thomas Y. Catlett ’77, and grandson William S. Catlett ’33.

1942 Junius Morris Saunders Jr. of Richmond, Virginia, died April, 22, 2019.

1945 Jay Van Cleef of Montgomery, Alabama, died Dec. 4, 2018.

1948 William Rutherford Mauck of Richmond, Virginia, died April 28, 2019. Survivors include sons William R. Mauck Jr. ’75, Andrew G. Mauck ’77 and Cary C. Mauck ’79 and grandsons William R. Mauck III ’09, Stuart C. Mauck ’11 and Graham H. Mauck ’17.

1949 Edwin Parker Conquest Jr. of Washington, D.C., died May 28, 2019. Survivors include a brother Henry F. Conquest ‘46.

1953 Norman Lee Bowles Sr. of Mechanicsville, Virginia, died Jan. 9, 2019.

1955 David Cabaniss Dorset of Cobbs Creek, Virginia, died Jan. 30, 2019.

After graduating from the University of Colorado with a B.A. in English literature, Alec Ball ‘14 recently accepted a position as a proposal coordinator at Flatiron Construction, one of the leading heavy civil contractors in North America.

Joseph Corbin Parker Jr. of Louisville, died May 3, 2019. Survivors include a brother Richard H. Parker ‘57.

2015

1960

Classmates Adam Hugo ’15 and Nathaniel Llewellyn ’15 are partners in Hugo Render, a Richmond company that creates three-dimensional images and videos from two-dimensional architectural plans. The visualization helps clients struggling to interpret and understand architectural, engineering or other design schemes. Hugo Render can make images of what a space might look like at different times of day or night, or with different interior decorations or building materials.

Clarence Conway Chewning III of Middletown, Virginia, died Feb. 2, 2019. Survivors include brothers Thomas N. Chewning ‘63 and Robert L. Chewning ‘70.

1956 Dixon Wallace Christian of Richmond, Virginia, died Feb. 6, 2019.

1972 Harry Sheridan Stone of Tucson, Arizona, died April 25, 2019. Survivors include brothers William W. Stone Jr. ’67 and Alan H. Stone ’70.

2020 Carter Stonell Sommers ’20 of Richmond, Virginia, died Nov. 7, 2018. He is survived by his brother Taylor J. Sommers ’18.

Faculty News Upper School Spanish Teacher Sue Varner finished two masters degrees: an M.A. in Spanish language and culture from the University of Salamanca in Spain and an M.Ed. from James Madison University in foreign language education.

they have a beginning, a diving board, a step up. Art provides that. In my 25 years plus of teaching, I have noticed that young writers are liberated from their writing hesitation and fear when they have a photograph, a painting, even a piece of music to write about. This project has been especially fun because the kids have written about my paintings. Their honesty about my work, their interpretations of it and their own creativity demonstrated in their prose have been amazing; reading their work each day has helped me stay inspired in my own art, my painting and my writing.

Thanks to all the boys, who braved the pen, the keyboard, the pencil to create these little stories, these little gems of imagery in our classroom!”

Upper School Spanish Teacher Sue Varner

Middle School Librarian Lisa Brennan was selected by the Young Adult Library Services Association as one of five members to serve on the selection committee for the 2020 Margaret A. Edwards Award, which honors an author, as well as a specific body of his or her work, for significant contribution to young adult literature.

Middle School English Teacher Alex Knight’s artwork was on display in March in the Luck Leadership Center Playhouse.

The exhibit, “Oil and Words,” featured 20 of Mr. Knight’s paintings coupled with 20 collections of prose written by his students.

His artist statement read, “I am more of a writer than a painter. I have not trained as a painter, except that I do it when I am not writing. It’s more calming than writing, certainly more tactile. Painting brings me a more visceral and physical creativity, when I need it. And it’s a great relief to writer’s block. About my students? They are simply wonderful and talented. See and read for yourself. Why do I use art in my classroom, my own work and art from my favorite painters? Kids are inspired to write when

Self-portrait by Alex Knight

Associate Director of Athletics and Leadership Programming Andy Taibl, School Counselor Sazshy Valentine and The Center for the Study of Boys Director Kim Hudson, along with Connor Alexander ’19 and Kaleb Bey ’20, attended the April Respect My Red Training Institute on sexual misconduct, healthy relationships and consent at Holton-Arms School.

The Richmond Symphony requested Jazz Band Director John Winn write an orchestration for the song, “This Life,” written and performed by local artist Susan Greenbaum at the Glen Allen Cultural Arts Center in March.

Mr. Winn also performed in the orchestra for the touring production of “Book Of Mormon” in March as well as Virginia Repertory Theatre’s spring production of “Atlantis.”

Middle School Resource faculty Claudia Segneri and Margaret Simpson attended the Virginia Branch of the International

Dyslexia Association spring conference. Lisa Snider, director of Lower School curriculum, instruction and academic support, who currently serves as the association president, was an event organizer. Dr. Charles Haynes gave the keynote about early identification and intervention of children at risk for reading disabilities. Sessions attended included a panel discussion, hands-on activities to experience the struggles of students with dyslexia, dysgraphia and auditory processing difficulties, and strategies to help support the academic and emotional success of a dyslexic and ADHD child.

Dr. Sarah Mansfield, assistant head of school, is joining a cohort of 16 educators across the globe in the TED-ED Innovative Educators program. She will take a TED master class, where she will prepare and deliver a talk and attend the July TED Summit in Edinburgh, Scotland.

Middle School Band Director Leslie Long, an oboist, joined two organists at recent recitals. She played a Telemann oboe sonata with her husband Reggie Long, the organist at All Saints Episcopal Church, in November, and she joined Mary Beth Bennett, the organist at Second Baptist Church, in a performance of Albinoni’s “Oboe Concerto in D Minor” in March.

She also played in a trio for flute and oboe and with the Upper School choral groups in their recent performance of John Rutter’s “Requiem.”

Arnold Henderson ‘19, Mrs. Leslie Long, Carlton Johnson ‘19

Lower School and Middle School Choir Director Nick Brata attended the American Choral Directors Association National Conference in Kansas City earlier this year.

He attended concerts and workshops and listened to national honor choirs, in which Ben Butterfield ’25, Max Kobal ’23, Teddy Price ’23 and Grady White ’24 performed.

SUMMER 2019 | 69

Middle School Math Teacher Peter Cross, Upper School Assistant Beth Wood and Athletic Director Ren O’Ferrall (pictured below) celebrated 25 years of service at the end-of-school faculty and staff dinner.

Director of Academic Technology Hiram Cuevas served on the planning committee for the Association of Technology Leaders in Independent Schools (ATLIS) annual conference. He also hosted a Google Roundtable with Google’s K-12 Program Manager Austin Swift on strategies independent schools can use to leverage their suite of tools. Meanwhile, Mr. Cuevas is completing his second year co-hosting the GSuite (Google) monthly webinar for ATLIS. Mr. Cuevas also had an opportunity to put his science teacher hat back on when he delivered a presentation at the Byrd Theatre with the Rabbi of Chabad of Virginia on death from a biological standpoint and through the context of the death and mourning process in the Jewish faith as it relates to the film “To Dust.” The presentation was part of the nationwide Science on Screen initiative, which delivers creative pairings of current, classic, cult and documentary films with introductions by notable figures from the world of science, technology and medicine.

Upper School Spanish Teacher Asha Bandal completed her 15th season as the head coach of the University of Richmond synchronized swimming team. The team competed at the national championship meet in San Antonio in March.

Five St. Christopher’s teachers attended the Global Education Benchmark Group conference at Pace Academy in Atlanta in April. Middle School Science Teacher Keena Fitch, Middle School History and Global 70 | StC Magazine

Thinking Teacher Jon Piper, Middle School Spanish Teacher and Director of Global Engagement Fran Turner, Upper School Spanish Teacher and Director of X-Term Elsa Woodaman and Upper School French and Religion Teacher and Dean of Faculty Karen Wray attended sessions on global citizenship, curriculum and program development.

Ms. Turner served on a panel discussing ways to make global programs inclusive and accessible for LGBTQ+ students and faculty.

Upper School Academic Dean and Director of College Counseling Jim Jump and Associate Director of College Counseling Scott Mayer attended the Potomac and Chesapeake Association for College Admission Counseling conference in College Park, Maryland, in May. Mr. Jump was a presenter for two panels and also spoke to students, parents and faculty at St. Margaret’s School’s Spring Weekend on “The Thoughtful College Search.” In the wake of the Operation Varsity Blues scandal, Mr. Jump was quoted in articles in The Washington Post, Chronicle of Higher Education, Inside Higher Ed, Marketwatch and Town and Country.

“Short Straw,” which deals with his father’s experiences as a marine on Guadalcanal in World War II, along with “Drought, Rome” and “From Around Here,” which focus on cityscape, weather and climate. In March, Mr. Smith’s new poem, “How She Came to Be a Model,” was published in the anthology Plume Poetry 7. In April, the former poet laureate of Virginia participated in a celebration of the Beat Poets at Wooden Spoon and presented some poems at Book People Bookstore, both in Richmond, and was the featured poet at Firehouse Theatre. In May, Mr. Smith’s new poem, “Don’t Know Much about the French I Took,” was published in Plume (online).

Ten years ago, Upper School Environmental Science and Biology Teacher Billy McGuire ‘85 drove across the United States in his 1926 Model T Ford. This summer, he followed the same route on the same back roads while documenting ecological changes visible in the landscape.

Upper School Science Teacher Dan Fisher and his wife Ally became new parents to Amara Abe June 5.

Upper School Chaplain Whitney Edwards wrote an article, “Will Stay Woke,” for the spring edition of A Matter of Spirit, a publication of the Intercommunity Peace & Justice Center in Seattle.

Upper School Teachers Amanda Livick, Marsha Hawkins and Casey Torrence presented at the National Science Teachers Association conference in St. Louis in April.

In the workshop, “From Consumption to Creation: Digital Literacies and Infographic Design,” teachers highlighted the benefits of collaboration between arts and sciences. Participants engaged in design practice while interpreting data. The StC group also visited the John Burroughs School’s new science, technology and research building.

In February, Upper School English Teacher Ron Smith delivered a short presentation about the achievement and legacy of Tom Wolfe at the Yale Club in New York City. His talk, “Tom Wolfe, Journalist, Novelist, Dandy, Gentlemen,” was delivered to an enthusiastic crowd of StC alums who live in the New York area. Later that month, the online magazine Broad Street published three of Mr. Smith’s new poems:

Dr. Ann Vanichkachorn, director of health and Upper School AP Psychology teacher, joined 24 fellow educators selected to participate in the 15th annual American Psychological Association / Clark University Workshop for high school teachers in Worcester, Massachusetts, this summer.

The workshop has become one of the most sought-after professional development experiences available to high school psychology teachers, giving attendees an opportunity to share peer-to-peer creative ideas and learn new concepts to further enhance teaching skills while learning from master teachers and top university psychological researchers.

FACULTY RETIREMENT

Mimi Burke Remembered for Energy, Organization and Caring Nature Alumni Office Assistant Retires After 37 Years

By Bryce Heiry ’22

Mrs. Mimi Burke first filled in as a substitute teacher at St. Christopher’s in the 1990s. Soon thereafter, she was hired to work in alumni affairs, which she would call home for three decades.

Her official title is assistant to Davis Wrinkle ’81, director of alumni affairs and annual giving, but Mrs. Burke is much more than that. “She’s the glue for the alumni office, frankly, and keeps everyone together,” Mr. Wrinkle said. “She keeps me on track. She keeps the alumni on track.”

Mrs. Burke has multiple ties to the school as the wife of alum Johnny Burke ’70 and mother of three Saints: Jack ’97, Smith ’04 and Ruthie ’00 (St. Catherine’s). Mrs. Burke treats students, alumni and co-workers as if they are her children or her siblings. “She’s so emotionally connected to the alums they’re like family to her, and she just wants to do a good job,” Mr. Wrinkle said.

“Mimi has never been defined by her job. She has always been a team player, always one step ahead and aware of what needed to be done.

“Mimi, thank you for all you have done for St. Christopher’s, the alumni of St. Christopher’s and the St. Christopher’s community.

“Thank you for helping make St. Christopher’s a better place. Thank you for being a proud member of our Saints community. Thank you for being a friend to so many and doing everything with such grace.”

— Davis Wrinkle ‘81, director of alumni affairs and annual giving

“We’re not a business or a typical school,” Mrs. Burke said.

“It’s the notion that we’re a family.” She will miss her office family. “Just like your friends, sometimes you don’t get along with them and sometimes you do, but everybody has got each other’s back, and when something needs to get done, we just pitch in and get it done,” she said.

Mrs. Burke is known for her fun and outgoing personality and her colorful office. Pictures of family, co-workers and alumni cover the walls like wallpaper. In addition, colorful sticky notes with positive quotes that she called “pick-me-ups” encircle a bulletin board of more pictures. Some examples are: “Good friends are like stars, you don’t always see them but you know they are there,” and “Falling down is part of life. Getting back up is living.”

Mrs. Burke has stayed here at St. Christopher’s School for many reasons, but the most important is her love for the community.

“There is an overall respect and a caring, and I want St. Christopher’s to do well,” she said. “If I can play a part in that, I will give it my all, and I want to make it happen.”

Mimi Burke with her husband John Burke ‘70

SUMMER 2019 | 71

s e r i t e or R h t i mbered f m S s me e e r r t n Delo velopme RETIREMENT

of De munity r o t Direc ting com a cultiv

By Henry Weatherford ‘21

St. Christopher’s of the late ‘70s was far different from St. Christopher’s of today when Director of Development Delores Smith first joined the staff. The campus was covered in pine tags, sidewalks were broken from tree roots, air conditioning had not been installed, and many buildings were not yet built.

Today, sidewalks are smoothly paved, the ground is level so that flooding from excessive rain remains minimal, and a great number of buildings have been constructed, including a Lower School building, Gottwald Science Center, Kemper Athletic Center and A. J. Bolling Field House, Luck Leadership Center and the Recital Hall / Arts Center currently under construction. In addition, the St. Christopher’s endowment has grown from less than $2 million to more than 80 times that during her tenure.

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“Delores has cultivated a sense of community, of engagement and affection. Yes, that can be measured in dollars and participation rates and fundraising campaigns, but it’s also intangible. I think you feel it tonight. We know it when alumni come together and celebrate each other, their memories and their bonds. Delores has been a master of cultivating that from her heart. So, Delores, thank you. We love you, and we appreciate you very much.”

— Mason Lecky at the Friday night gathering, Alumni Weekend 2019

Surely, much of this progress comes from her love of the school and ability as a fundraiser and as a behind-the-scenes worker.

“People love Delores because she’s always interested in you, and when you’re speaking with her, she’s always very focused on you,” Tressa Hamby, administrative assistant to Mrs. Smith, said. This statement puts focus on one of Mrs. Smith’s greatest strengths: her ability to connect with others.

This ability has created what Mrs. Hamby describes as “tentacles,” meaning that her reach extends most everywhere on campus. Ultimately, almost every school decision passes through her. Former Headmasters George McVey ‘57, David Hicks (interim), and Charley Stillwell frequented her office, knowing they would find open ears and sound advice, and Mr. Mason Lecky has followed suit. They value her input for her experience as well as intuition.

Her presence has also created unparalleled loyalty among the constituents of our school. They care about her because they know she cares deeply for the school. That loyalty also extends to those who work for her, many of them for more than 20 years.

“She is always willing to go to bat for those she works with,” said Director of Alumni Affairs and Annual Giving Davis Wrinkle ‘81. “She’s really built a family,” Mrs. Hamby said. “And she is the matriarch in charge.”

Mrs. Hamby described her as a “Renaissance woman,” with great ability in many arenas.

Her various passions include reading, traveling and cooking, but her greatest love is music. Sometimes, even, she will blare it in her office without warning. “[Music] calms her down, jazzes her up. She’s excited by it,” said Mrs. Hamby.

Mrs. Smith is known for her boundless energy, whether it be in giving advice on tough topics to helping fellow faculty in need. Many teachers have a story involving Mrs. Smith.

Even Head of School Mason Lecky has stories with Mrs. Smith. One summer, they both visited a school friend who lived on the river, east of St. Christopher’s. It was hot and wet, which meant the mosquitoes were out in force, attacking Mrs. Smith and Mr. Lecky vigorously, while the person they

visited was not affected at all. Mrs. Smith and Mr. Lecky were forced to retreat to their car as quickly as possible, with mosquitoes following them into the vehicle.

Her presence has created unparalleled loyalty among the constituents of our school. They care about her because they know she cares deeply for the school.

Another summer, during a retreat, a snake found its way into their cabin. Under the impression that it was a practical joke, she went to pick it up. The snake hissed at her in response. “I’ve never seen someone lift their legs so high, so quickly,” said Administrative Assistant to Director of Alumni Affairs and Annual Giving Mimi Burke.

“We’ve laughed about that since then because it was so unlike her. She’s usually so calm.”

The Delores Smith Saints Legacy Scholarship will offer tuition support to qualified sons or grandsons of alumni with demonstrated financial need.

We hope this scholarship will grow to enable the sons and grandsons of alumni to experience a Saints education regardless of ability to pay.

Though serious about her work, Mrs. Smith is not averse to the occasional prank. One time, she and her good friend, Campaign Coordinator and Assistant to the Director of Development Vicki Lynn, filled Headmaster George McVey’s office with magazines, newspapers and packing paper. “We’ve all played jokes on each other in the office,” Mrs. Lynn said. “It’s never been anything vicious or mean. It’s just been funny.”

Mrs. Smith also knows the importance of bringing in “new blood.” Walking through the development office, one will find younger people mixing in with veterans of St. Christopher’s.

While many are sad to see her go, Mrs. Smith insists she’s not leaving, but merely changing her role. Instead of development director, she will focus on her role as a parent to an alumnus, wife to Upper School English Teacher Ron Smith and lifelong friend to the school. “It will always be a part of me,” she said.“St. Chris is a family, and it’s been a pleasure to work here.”

Henry Weatherford ‘21 wrote this story for the May issue of the student publication The Pine Needle.

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FACULTY RETIREMENT

Steven Cooper

“If you know Steven as a master craftsman and teacher you are right, but you have just scratched the surface of who he really is. He is a thinker, a writer, a musician, a joke teller, but most importantly to me and many in this room, he is a friend. Steven, I was proud to work with you in the final third of your storied career, and you will be missed. But as you know, the shop is in good hands, and woodworking will live on for the boys of StC due to the foundation you have built.”

— Warren Hunter, Middle School head

Artistry in Carpentry

StC woodworking teacher to retire after 32 years

By Alex Beale ’13 Woodworking Teacher Steven Cooper was born to use his hands.

He was 4 when his mother woke up early one morning to strange sounds coming from the hallway. She discovered him, screwdriver in hand, removing the locksets from the doors in their Pennsylvania home. When he was 5 or 6, she watched him make a wooden giraffe with a hammer and nails. When he was 8, his father got him a workbench.

Over a lifetime, Mr. Cooper has acquired his skill. He spent three years working wood in his high school shop class, and after a stint at West Virginia Wesleyan College studying music, Mr. Cooper took a job at Bigg’s Antique Co. here in Richmond where, day in and day out, he worked at a bench solely with hand tools. Next was a teaching job at The Woodshed Studio, where he showed adults how to build “anything they wanted.” Afterward, Mr. Cooper and his family moved to New Stanton, Pennsylvania, in 1978 where he opened his own studio designing and making custom furniture.

In 1982, Mr. Cooper started the woodworking program at St. Christopher’s conceived by former Middle School Head Woody Woodard and funded by alum James Mullen II. Its purpose was to provide an alternative where students could problem-solve in a way that would appeal to them and give them a chance to express themselves, Mr. Cooper said.

In 1994, St. Christopher’s agreed to hold his position for two years, allowing him to attend the Rochester Institute of Technology, where he received his master’s in woodworking and furniture design. Mr. Cooper came out of RIT with new experiences and some stunning craft pieces.

To him, woodworking is more than a profession, more than a skill. To him, woodworking is an art. His greatest work is his home.

Mr. Cooper and his wife Catherine bought a house off River Road eight years ago. The house needed work, and he’s done almost all of it himself. Mr. Cooper made everything from the roof overhang to the back plates and doorknobs. He crafted the doors, trim and even mirror frames. He also took a jackhammer to the concrete floor to expand a bathroom. In the house, Mr. Cooper proudly displays his creations. No matter where you look there is something he has had a hand in creating. “Everything in here has a story,” said Catherine.

“Everything in here means something to us.” Mr. Cooper has renovated a den into what would be a man cave if not for the windows to the three-acre backyard. In the room, Mr. Cooper showcases his collection of old tools, most of them saws, some dating back to the late 1800s. The house came with an 1,100-square-foot cottage in the backyard. It has since been converted into a wood shop, Mr. Cooper’s escape.

Mr. Cooper’s passion has rubbed off on his 2 ½-year-old grandson, also his namesake. In the shop the little boy runs his hand over Mr. Cooper’s smooth, sanded woodworks. The little boy takes up his grandfather’s saws saying, “Ooooh, hand tools.”

Former Editor Alex Beale wrote this story for the May 2013 issue of the student publication The Pine Needle. Since the early ’70s, Mr. Cooper has designed and made furniture pieces by commission. His work has been shown at The Mint Museum in Charlotte, North Carolina; the Sansar Gallery in Bethesda, Maryland; and The Society of Arts and Crafts in Boston; as well as galleries in Pittsburgh and Richmond. In addition to teaching Middle and Upper School students, he now holds classes for adults at his home in the far West End.

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The Magazine of St. Christopher’s

EDITOR | Kathleen Thomas VISUAL CONTENT EDITOR | Cappy Gilchrist GRAPHIC DESIGN | Merry Alderman Design PHOTOGRAPHERS | Jay Paul, Jesse Peters CONTRIBUTORS | Mimi Burke, assistant to the director of alumni affairs and annual giving; Tim Carrington ‘69; Hollis Cobb ‘19; Sharon Dion, director of communications; Paul Evans ‘01, digital communications specialist; Kim Hudson, director of The Center for the Study of Boys; Alex Johnson ‘19; Mason Lecky, headmaster; Christopher McCormick ’19; Martin Millspaugh, Kate Childrey teaching intern; John Morgan ‘94; Noah Nicholson ‘19; Josh Vanichkachorn ‘19; Henry Weatherford ‘21; Karen Wormald, Kew Publications

stcva @STCVA The Magazine of St. Christopher’s

stcva StChristophersVA

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St. Christopher’s School welcomes qualified students to all the rights, privileges, programs and activities generally accorded or made available to students at the school and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sexual orientation or national or ethnic origin in administration of its educational policies, admissions policies, financial aid policies and athletic and other school-administered programs.

Member of VAIS, NAIS, NAES and IBSC

804.282.3185 www.stchristophers.com Member of VAIS, NAIS, NAES and IBSC

Cover art by Grant Mistr ‘17, a Virginia Commonwealth University art student majoring in kinetic imaging

Thanks to all the parents, students, alumni and friends who provided content and pictures for this publication.

Please send your news and photographs to thomask@stcva.org for use in an upcoming issue.

StC Magazine

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P. 804.282.3185 F. 804.285.3914 www.stchristophers.com

Changing Lanes Alumni Reflect on Career Changes Page 12

Graduation Summer 2019

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